Third Eye

Phil Stöckli Quintet

Listen: Sample 1 Sample 2 Sample 3

"With the potent support of the musicians on this Fresh Sound New Talent debut, Phil Stöckli trains his "third eye" on the musical worlds he inhabits, fixing his gaze most often on the land where the great Amazon River begins and ends its journey. The constant and ever-changing flow of the "river" is an apt image for the place this date holds in the leader's development as both a player and composer. "The river deepens as it reaches the sea" it has been said, and as evidenced in this excellent recording, Stöckli is definitely a "new talent" to watch as his musicality deepens and matures".
- Christopher McIntyre, trombonist and curator of music at NYC performing arts space The Kitchen (NYC, 5/2003)

Tracklisting:

1. Source Nature (6:23)
2. King Neptune (7:44)
3. Babalou (7:00)
4. Third Eye (8:40)
5. Body & Soul (7:09)
6. Timeless Tale (8:10)
7. The Cost of Freedom (7:22)
8. Moment's Joy (6:45)
9. Stretch Out (4:55)
10. Colibri (4:05)

All compositions by Phil Stöckli except #5 by J.Green.
Recorded at Skyline Studios, Clinton, September 8 & 9, 2002.
With: Phil Stöckli (as,ts), Mike Moreno (g), Pete Rende (p,fender rh,synt), Matt Penman (b), Jeff Ballard (d), Matthias Künzli (perc #1,5,8), Barbara Mendes (vcl #1)


Review:

"The title of this disc may be slightly misleading. If its creator, saxophonist Phil Stockli, is to be taken at his word, you should be transported on an astral expedition, the kind of which Pharoah Sanders and Dr. Lonnie Liston Smith regularly course. Or you may expect to experience a sense a moving inner spirit. This does not happen with or as a result of the music on Third Eye. But what emerges is still beautifully intense.

Stockli's voice is mature, robust and it emerges from a well-formed mind with loads of talent to boot. Not only this, Stockli can shift rhythmic bases from Brazil (as in 'Source Nature') to Latin Europe (as in 'Colibri'), or simply remain in the classic realm of jazz central - his version of 'Body & Soul' has got to be one of the most surprising and refreshing you will hear in a long time! This is what makes the musical journey of Third Eye worth sharing with this extraordinary
saxophonist and musician.

It bears mention here that Phil Stockli has a unique voice, deeply
influenced by Wayne Shorter, but a voice all his own, nevertheless. And hegrows on you with the bold nature of his harmonic leaps - especially in 'King Nature' and 'Body & Soul' harnessed with dramatic mastery of changing tempo by Matt Penman (bass) and Jeff Ballard (drums)."

- Raul d'Gama Rose