1981 · Album
To Be Continued
Recorded January 1981 · ECM · Personnel: Terje Rypdal (guitar), Miroslav Vitous (bass), Jack DeJohnette (drums)
Vitous and DeJohnette: The Rhythm Section Decides
The rhythm section doesn't accompany Rypdal here—it pushes back, shapes the space, refuses to disappear.
What makes To Be Continued (1981) work is Miroslav Vitous on bass. The trio's previous self-titled album had keyboards layering the sound thick, but here the space opens up. Vitous doesn't just hold down the bottom—he's conversational, sometimes answering Rypdal's guitar lines, sometimes leading them somewhere unexpected. His tone is warm and full, and he plays with the kind of melodic awareness that keeps a trio from feeling like a solo with accompaniment. Jack DeJohnette behind the drums adds restlessness; he's never settling into a groove for long, which keeps Rypdal from coasting. Together they make this a real trio, not a vehicle.
AllMusic reviewer Paul Collins gave it 4½ stars, noting it lacks the atmospheric keyboards of the earlier album but remains "quite compelling." That's fair. The record is leaner, more exposed. Without keyboards to fill the air, every note from Vitous matters more. DeJohnette can't hide behind texture either. The drums have to justify their presence on every stroke.
This sits somewhere in the middle of Rypdal's catalog—not a peak, but solid and specific. If you already know his work and want to hear what happens when you strip away the production and let three strong musicians argue with each other for forty minutes, this delivers. It's the kind of album that rewards attention but doesn't demand it, which is exactly what a working trio should sound like.
Who's playing
Where next?
More by Terje Rypdal
All 37 albums →
The musicians on this record
Journey's End 1983
Miroslav Vitous
plays double bass here
plays double bass here
Parallel Realities 1978
Jack DeJohnette
plays drums (drum set) here
plays drums (drum set) here
