Evan Parker, Paul Rogers, Louis Moholo

By Stef Gijssels

This is truly a wonderful album, suddenly seeing the light of day, after having been in on an audio-cassette for some decades, and now available on CD and digital. It brings a trio improvisation of Evan Parker on tenor and soprano, Paul Rogers on bass and the late Louis Moholo on drums. Moholo passed away last year, so the release is also a timely tribute to the South African drummer, whose second name – Tebugo -has become the title of the album – and of one track. “Tebugo” means ‘gratitude‘ or ‘we are thankful‘ in Sesotho, one of South Africa’s languages, which makes the title even more appropriate. 

The two other tracks play with the same letters to form different words. One track lasts a little less than half an hour, the next fifteen minutes and the third more than half an hour. The performance was recorded in 1992 at the Vortex in London. 

It is as good as it gets. The music feels expansive and crystalline—intense yet airy, razor-sharp and vividly defined. It crackles with energy, sparkles and whirls with motion, splashing and clattering in bright, tactile detail. Lively and bustling, it pulses with dynamic vitality, animated spirit, and a finely tuned sensitivity that keeps it fresh and sprightly throughout. 

This is free improvisation at its finest, with all three musicians performing at peak form. Rogers occasionally slips into boppish runs on the bass, but more often the music feels entirely present—unconcerned with direction or destination, existing simply for the shared act of creation. It lingers in the moment, shaped by collective intuition. The unfiltered joy of acoustic instruments resonates throughout, making it a genuine pleasure to experience.

Enjoy!

Listen and download from Bandcamp.