More Together Than Alone

The title of this album hints at a sequel or follow-up to Coxhill's Alone and Together CD and, considering the period covered herein, that's exactly what it is. While Alone and Together culled solos and duets recorded throughout the 1990s, More Together Than Alone is doing the same for the first half of the 2000s. The centerpiece is a solo 20-minute performance recorded at The Vortex in July 2000. Slightly moodier than Coxhill's usual, the piece illustrates what an accomplished improviser and soliloquist he is -- with the agility of a snake charmer, he enraptures us with his soprano sax, leading us through different, often uncomfortable sounds, on an aural discovery journey. This solo piece is preceded and followed by four duets recorded between 2001 and 2005 at various Mopomoso events held at the Red Rose in London. The pieces with Hugh Davies and Henry Lowther are relatively short (both around six minutes). Davies' invented metallic instruments make unusual partners for Coxhill, who manages to converse with them but fails to develop something really meaningful with them. On the other hand, the short piece with trumpeter Lowther shows a stronger community of thought, with hints back at Coxhill's past as a jazzman. Mopomoso organizer John Russell pulls off a strong, demanding, and captivating duet with Coxhill, maybe a bit too exactly what one would expect from this pairing. The highlight of the album (besides the solo track) is the 18-minute duet with Pat Thomas on keyboards and samplers. Thomas' idiosyncratic sense of humor is a perfect match for Coxhill's sinuous playing and unpredictable mood swings. Coxhill has not changed his playing much during the 2000s and, as such, More Together Than Alone is not an essential recording, but it does bring us up to date on the man's work. ~ Francois Couture|