Bill Evans - Further Ahead: Live in Finland 1964-1969 (2LP RSD25)

Further Ahead: Live in Finland (1964-1969), a stunning new collection of never-before-heard performances by the master jazz pianist Bill Evans, will arrive as a limited, 180-gram two-LP set on Record Store Day (April 12, 2025) from Elemental Music.

This set of major discoveries is the 13th Evans archival package to be produced by the award-winning “Jazz Detective” Zev Feldman in cooperation with the Bill Evans Estate.

Feldman says, “Evans is widely celebrated and has legions of fans all over the world, and these never-before-released recordings present yet another chapter of his musical legacy being issued for the very first time….It's not lost on me how precious each of these Evans projects is. We take them incredibly seriously and try to present Bill Evans in the best way possible, and also create packages that people will want to come back to for many years to come. Evans is eternal.”

Further Ahead comprises recordings made during the keyboardist’s Scandinavian tours of the ‘60s. He is heard, at the height of his powers, in Helsinki performances in 1964 (with his working trio including bassist Chuck Israels and drummer Larry Bunker) and 1965 (supported by bassist Niels-Henning Ørsted Pedersen and drummer Allan Dawson, with special guest Lee Konitz), and in 1969 at Tampere (with his longest-running trio mates, bassist Eddie Gomez and drummer Marty Morell).

This edition of the package will include an essay by jazz authority Marc Myers; remembrances and reflections from Israels, Gomez, Morell, and pianist and educator Gil Goldstein; Evans’ own take on his writing process, drawn from Goldstein’s book Jazz Composer’s Companion; rare photos; and more.

Tracklist
01 How my heart sings
02 Come rain or come shine
03 Nardis
04 Autumn leaves
05 Five
06 Detour ahead
07 Come rain or come shine
08 My melancholy baby
09 Very early
10 Who can I turn to?
11 Round midnight
12 Gloria's step
13 Turn out the stars
14 Autumn leaves
15 Quiet now
16 Emily
17 Nardis