The people who heard Steve Lacy’s final solo performance in 2003 at the “Unerhört” Festival in Zurich will not have forgotten the experience. This rollercoaster of emotions. It didn’t just go under the skin; it went straight to the heart. It was so moving to see and hear the love, serenity, trust and sense of adventure that the totally weak Lacy displayed for his music. This is what was so wonderful and magic about that grey, cold November afternoon: we all witnessed what it is like when a master of improvisation gets carried away by the power of music. He became one with the music, drawn to it like a magnet. How beautiful: sadness found joy. Coldness found warmth. Tension found peace and serenity. And the big spotlights warmed the cold afternoon as if they were the sun.

Cover art: René Guiffrey
Cover design: Jonas Schoder
Liner Notes: Bill Shoemaker, Jürg Wickihalder, Irène Aebi
Photo: Francesca Pfeffer

Recorded November, 29, 2003 at Unerhört! Festival, Rote Fabrik, Zürich, Switzerland. Mixed, edited and mastered in March 2010 by Patrik Schwitter, Sunhill Project Studio, Switzerland. Executive production: Jürg Wickihalder. Produced by Intakt Records, Patrik Landolt.