The Touchstone (album)

The Touchstone is the second album by British jazz trio Azimuth, recorded in June 1978 and released on ECM the following year. The trio features trumpeter Kenny Wheeler, vocalist Norma Winstone, and pianist John Taylor.^[1]

The Touchstone
Studio album by Azimuth
Released	1979
Recorded	June 1978
Studio	Talent Studio Oslo, Norway
Genre	Jazz
Length	45:11
Label	ECM ECT 1130 ST
Producer	Manfred Eicher
Azimuth chronology
Azimuth (1977) The Touchstone (1979) Départ (1980)

Reception

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[2]
The Penguin Guide to Jazz	[3]

The AllMusic review by Michael G. Nastos describes The Touchstone as an "atmospheric recording".^[2]

The Penguin Guide to Jazz Recordings calls the album "perhaps the group's masterpiece, combining jazz, classical and contemporary composition, and sheer sound in a mix that is as invigorating as it is thought-provoking", singling out "See" as "glorious."^[4]

Tyran Grillo, writing for ECM blog Between Sound and Space, called the album "the group’s most enigmatic", commenting: "This is an elusive set... filled with quiet, seething power, but also one that builds its nests comfortably over our heads. It can only fly, because it knows no other way to travel."^[5]

Track listing

Side I

No.	Title	Length
1.	"Eulogy"	10:26
2.	"Silver"	6:30
3.	"Mayday"	5:31

All tracks are written by John Taylor

Side II

No.	Title	Length
1.	"Jero"	6:21
2.	"Prelude"	5:37
3.	"See"	10:46

Personnel

Azimuth

• John Taylor – piano, organ
• Kenny Wheeler – trumpet, flugelhorn
• Norma Winstone – vocals

References

1. ECM discography accessed September 13, 2011
2. Nastos, M. G. AllMusic Review accessed September 13, 2011
3. Cook, Richard; Morton, Brian (1992). The Penguin Guide to Jazz on CD, LP and Cassette. Penguin Books. p. 48.
4. Cook, Richard; Morton, Brian (1998). The Penguin Guide to Jazz on CD. Penguin Books. p. 69.
5. Grillo, Tyran (November 30, 2010). "Azimuth". Between Sound and Space. Retrieved April 23, 2022.