Selected Signs - Volume One - ECM Anthology
Various Artists - ECM/BMG

Anybody with even a passing fancy for Jazz knows how innovative and influential this label really is. ECM's mastermind Manfred Eicher has a reputation for attracting Jazz musicians who flirt with different genres of classical, and totally rewire the very structure of Jazz. That's no easy task but his sampler shows that having prestige in Jazz does not mean sounding too 'out there' for most of us. Selected Signs Volume One is actually quite mellow. It's relaxing and most of the tracks incorporate a sense of mystery and beauty usually reserved for Classical music. Pianist Misha Alperin's effortless 'Morning' is what I call lucid Jazz. Its feeling of peace is tranquilizing and very clear. Guitar legend Ralph Towner does his usual dreamy picking on 'Tale of Saverio.' Selected Signs also includes tracks never released in Canada. As ECM's first commercial sampler, it's a treat.
--by John Beaudin