Smoke (Alexander von Schlippenbach and Sunny Murray album)

Smoke is an album by pianist Alexander von Schlippenbach and drummer Sunny Murray.

[1][2][3][4][5] In a review for AllMusic, Thom Jurek stated that the album "reveals with startling clarity the inherent musical courage it takes to play freely with another musician you have never encountered... von Schlippenbach abdicates his normal responsibilities as a leader and becomes a collaborator.

Murray, never really anybody's sideman, takes the reins and turns his rhythmic chops on in such a way that the pianist cannot help but to respond in a like manner... when it's over, in the silence, the listener will most assuredly sit for a while in disbelief at what just transpired.

"[1] The authors of The Penguin Guide to Jazz Recordings awarded the album a full 4 stars, calling it "an intriguing collaboration, in which both men hang up their 'free music' armour and get down to what sounds like a set of phantom standards.

"[6] Author Todd S. Jenkins called the recording session a "dream opportunity" with "appealing" results, and commented: "Murray's deliberate tuning of his drums plays a vital role in settings like this, permitting him to function as melodically as Schlippenbach's forceful piano approach casts him in a [Cecil] Tayloresque percussive role.