Nothing Is v2.0

Wayne Shorter: Odyssey of Iska

2011-08-12T13:50:00.000-05:00

This album features music from Shorter's last recording session for Blue Note, and as far as I know is currently out of print in the US. Here's the AMG review:

On August 26, 1970, Wayne Shorter recorded two separate albums for Blue Note (the other one is Moto Grosso Feio), his final projects for the label. For this set, Shorter (doubling on tenor and soprano) utilizes a double rhythm section comprised of vibraphonist Dave Friedman, guitarist Gene Bertoncini, both Ron Carter and Cecil McBee on basses, drummers Billy Hart and Alphonse Mouzon, and percussionist Frank Cuomo. On the verge of joining Weather Report (referred to in the liner notes as "Weather Forecast"), it is not surprising that Shorter's originals include titles such as "Wind," "Storm," and "Calm." These moody works were never covered by other jazz players but they work quite well in this context, launching melancholy flights by Shorter.

Tracks:
1. Wind
2. Storm
3. Calm
4. De Pois Do Amour O Vazio
5. Joy

Personnel:
Wayne Shorter - tenor sax & soprano sax
Ron Carter - bass
Cecil McBee - bass
Gene Bertoncini - guitar
Billy Hart - drums
Alphonse Mouzon - drums
Frank Cuomo - percussion
David Friedman - vibraphone, marimba

If you like late 1960s & early 1970s fusion, you'll probably dig on this one as well.

Update: Since the original post, this recording has been reissued and is commercially available.

Open thread

2010-03-19T14:01:00.000-05:00

With Haloscan dying, I ended up losing a lot of comments, and unfortunately Blogger won't allow me to have comments on old posts. So, here's an open thread.

I'm in the process of making some possible career changes, and so am extremely pressed for time. When the proverbial dust settles, I do have a backlog of material I want to upload for you all. Thanks for your patience.

Foday Musa Suso: Kora Music From Gambia

2009-10-08T15:36:00.003-05:00

I thought I'd share this only because it offers an opportunity to hear Foday Musa Suso in a context other than pop or jazz (if you search the archives you'll find some more of Foday's recorded work available).

Download Kora Music From Gambia

"Top Ten From the Free Jazz Underground"

2009-09-27T16:39:00.004-05:00

Here's an oldie but a goodie from Thurston Moore, that I like to come back to from time to time. His "top ten" list (which let's face it, went way beyond a top ten) has been a source of inspiration as I've searched to find exciting music to listen to, and occasionally share.

#
TOP TEN FROM THE FREE JAZZ UNDERGROUND

by thurston moore

No matter how you listen to it JAZZ is ostensibly about FREEDOM.

FREEDOM and the MYSTERY surrounding it.

And, like MUSIC, it is an ABSTRACT.

It's SHAPES, FORMS (SOUNDS!) are DISTINCT and PERSONAL and SENSITIVE to each player's DESIRE.

And the DESIRE is INFINITE.

FREEDOM is not just another word for nothing left to lose.

We know this from MESSAGES beamed from the space-lantern of his cosmic highness SUN RA!
The MESSAGE was clear:

"NOTHING IS."

To freely improvise a solo within a structural context may have begun with a young Louis Armstrong in the early 20's. As a boy he grew up in New Orleans hearing and seeing musicians both black and white cultivating a celebratory and spiritual vibe.
They were flowers in the dustbin.
Slaveships stole the horns and drums. The captured African would not be allowed to communicate as they had.
Upon THE FREEDOM ACT the freed slave sought and fought for the EXPRESSION oppressed.
And THE FREEDOM PRINCIPLE developed.
Jelly Roll Morton, like Louis Armstrong began to record compositions of PURE BLACK AWARENESS. Both these men had been witness, early in the century, to BUDDY BOLDEN - a man who supposedly blew the cornet so masterfully (and so loud!) that his legend was rampant. He supposedly recorded upon a cylinder (pre-vinyl format) and it has yet to be found!!
Ideas of improvisation, live and on recordings, became increasingly more sophisticated and political throughout the 40's, 50's and 60's. From Lester Youngs' twisting reedy tones to Charlie Parkers spurious key changes and (along with Miles Davis, Max Roach, et al) hyper-fast note-fly.
John Coltrane was the man. With the introduction of the long-playing record, people like Trane could experiment and extend their playing for posterity.
The vinyl communicated around the world. Trane's SOUND was BEAUTIFUL and COMPLEX and inspired all who received it. Trane himself was duly inspired by some of the most far-out musicians of the then burgeoning jazz avant-garde. Chief amongst them was Sun Ra & his Arkestra.
Factions of experimentation abounded throughout the 50's and 60's. Trane, Ra, Ornette Coleman and his white plastic alto playing notes and tones at once beautiful and harsh. Thelonius Monk, Lennie Tristano, Charles Mingus and Eric Dolphy composing and playing music inspired by whole worlds of experience (blues, eastern and western classical, religion, etc.)
Music like no one had yet imagined would emanate from the wild hearts of those such as Albert Ayler and Cecil Taylor.
These are all names of artists commonly associated with the avant-garde jazz underground of the 20th century. They all recorded fairly prolifically throughout their lifetimes (and some, like Cecil Taylor, continue). But there were so many more musicians performing and recording so-called "new" music at the time. It happened mostly in the late 60's/early 70's with the concept of artist-run collectives coming into fruition.
To play jazz totally FREE and ORGANIC was a gesture whose time had come in the 60's. It was SOCIAL and POLITICAL for reasons involving relationship, race, fury, rage, peace, war, love and FREEDOM.
We search for artifacts from this underground constantly. They were arcane and obscure at the time and are even more so today. No record labels are reissuing this stuff (some are e.g.: Evidence Records reissuing all of Sun Ra's independent Saturn label releases).
Here's a list of ten (out of hundreds of) LP's recorded in total grassroots fashion from the FREE-JAZZ underground. These are fairly impossible to locate and if you want to know what FREE-JAZZ may sound like you can get CD's of certain crucial classics where this music was allowed to exist: John Coltrane-Interstellar Space (Impulse/MCA), Ornette Coleman-Beauty Is A Rare Thing (Atlantic/Rhino), The Art Ensemble - 1967/68 (Nessa, PO Box 394, Whitehall, MI 49461), Sun Ra-various titles (Evidence)

TOP TEN FREE JAZZ UNDERGROUND

1. DAVE BURRELL - Echo (BYG 529.320/Actuel Volume 20)..

In the fall of 1969 Free Jazz was reaching a kind of nadir/nexus. Within the industry it was controversial. Classic traditionalists (beboppers included) were outraged by men in dashikis and sandals jumping on stage and just BLOWING their guts out creating screaming torrents of action. Most musicians involved with this crying anarchy could get no bookings beyond the New York loft set. The French lovers of the avant-garde embraced this African-American scene wholly. This recording is one of many in a series of LP's with consistent design. BYG released classic Free Jazz documents by Archie Shepp (at his wildest), Clifford Thornton, Art Ensemble of Chicago, Grachan Moncur III, Sunny Murray, Alan Silva, Arthur Jones, Dewey Redman and many others. A lot of these cats are present on this recording where from the first groove it sounds like an acoustic tidal wave exploding into shards of dynamite. If you can locate Alan Silva's "Lunar Surface" LP (BYG 529.312/Actuel Vol. 12) you'll find a world even that much more OUT.

2. MILFORD GRAVES & DON PULLEN - Nommo (S.R.P. LP-290)

Milford may be one of the most important players in the Free Jazz underground. He enforces the sense of community as a primary exponent of his freely improvised music. His drumkit is home-made and he rarely performs outside of his neighborhood. When he does perform he plays his kit like no other. Wild, slapping, bashing, tribal freak-outs interplexed with silence, serenity and enlightened meditation. This LP was manufactured by the artists in 1967 and is recorded live at Yale University. The interplay between Milford and Don (piano) is remarkable and very free. There's a second volume which also is as rare as hen's teeth.

3. ARTHUR DOYLE Plus 4 - Alabama Feeling (AK-BA AK-1030)

Arthur is a strange cat. Not too many people know where he's from (Alabama is a good guess). He resided in New York City in the 70's and showed up in loftspaces spitting out incredible post-Aylerisms. Mystic music which took on the air of chasing ghosts and spirits through halls of mirrors (!). He hooked up with noise/action guitarist Rudolph Grey who was making the current No-Wave scene and with Beaver Harris (drums) they played gigs in front of unsuspecting art creeps apparently not "hip" enough to dig, let alone document, the history blasting their brains. Arthur did release this lo-fi masterpiece and it's a spiraling cry of freedom and fury. AKBA Records released a number of classic NYC loft-jazz sessions, most notably those of label boss Charles Tyler, a screaming tenor player who also blew with Rudolph in the late 70's/early 80's. Arthur continues to play/teach etc. in Binghamton, N.Y. and recently released in 1993 "More Alabama Feeling" on yours truly's Ecstatic Peace label (available from Forced Exposure/POB 9102/Waltham, MA 02254)

4. SONNY MURRAY - Sonny's Time Now (Jihad 663)

Sonny was the drummer considered to be the first to realize and recognize and perform, on drums, pure FREE jazz. He played behind and along with Ayler early on and Cecil Taylor. He constructed groups which always flew and raged with spiritual abandon. He took time as an abstract and turned it into free motion. This recording is super-lo-fi and is awesome. On it play Ayler(tenor) and Don Cherry (trumpet) as well as Leroi Jones (now known as Amiri Baraka) reading a killer poem called "Black Art". This music is very Ayler but more fractured and odd. Like a lot of these records there is only a front cover with the back of the jacket blank. Whether this was done for economic or artistic reasons is unclear. Jihad was a concern of Leroi Jones and anything released on this label is utterly obscure. The only other title I've seen is one just called "BLACK AND BEAUTIFUL" from the mid-60's which is Leroi and friends sitting on the stoops of Harlem chanting, beating drums and celebrating Leroi's "poems" ("The white man/at best/is..corny!") There was an ad for Jihad in an old issue of Jazz & Pop magazine which announced a Don Ayler (Albert's amazing trumpet-playing bro) LP but I've yet to meet anyone who's actually seen this. "Sonny's Time Now" was reissued a few years ago in Japan (DIW-25002) on CD and LP (with an enclosed 7" of two extra scratchy tracks!) but even that is near impossible to locate. Recorded in 1965.

5. THE RIC COLBECK QUARTET - The Sun Is Coming Up (Fontana 6383 001)

Issued in the UK only in 1970. Ric was an interesting white cat who came to the U.S. to blow some free e-motion with NYC loft dwellers. He's most well known for his amazing playing on the great Noah Howard's first ESP-Disk release (ESP 1031). The whole 1000 series of ESP is critical & crucial to anybody wanting to explore this era of Free Jazz featuring recordings by Ayler, Ornette, Sonny Simmons, Sun Ra, Henry Grimes, Steve Lacy, Sunny Murray, Marzette Watts, Patty Waters, et al. I'm not including any of these in this list as they're all available on CD now (from Forced Exposure, address above). The picture of Ric on the Noah Howard LP shows a man with race-car shades and a "cool" haircut playing his horn while a ciggie burns nonchalantly from his relaxed grip. A very hip dude. And very FREE. His only solo recording is this Fontana LP which he recorded while cruising through Europe. He connected with South African drummer Selwyn Lissack (whatever happened to...) and the UK's famous avant-altoist Mike Osborne and bassist J.F. 'Jenny' Clark (student of 20th century compositionists Lucian Berio and Karlheinz Stockhausen) to create this exceptional and complex masterpiece

6. JOHN TCHICAI AND CADENTIA NOVA DANICA - Afrodisiaca (MPS CRM711)

Tchicai is a 6'6" Danish/Congolese tenor sax player who, in the early 60's, started blowing minds all across the Netherlands with his radical "music for the future". Archie Shepp encouraged him to come to NYC and join like-minded souls of avant-guardia. Tchicai came over and kicked everybodys ass. Leroi Jones shouted his name and talent loudly as Tchicai hooked up with Shepp and Don Cherry for the New York Contemporary Five and later an even heavier ensemble with Milford Graves and Roswell Rudd called the New York Art Quartet. The NYAQ recorded one of the most crucial sessions for ESP-Disk (esp1004) which had Leroi reciting his infamous BLACK DADA NIHILISMUS (available on CD from Forced Exposure). AFRODISIACA was released in Germany (and in other re-release configurations...supposedly) and is Tchicai gathered with 25 other local-Euro musicians playing a hurricane of a piece by trumpet/composer Hugh Steinmetz. This music gets way way out and has the real ability to take you "there". The echo effect on some of this shit is quite ill in a very analog way. And the way the shit gets that dirty-needled distortion at the end of side one (all 25 cats GOING AT IT!) is beautiful, baby, BEAUTIFUL!!

7. RASHIED ALI and FRANK LOWE - Duo Exchange (Survival SR101)

Frank Lowe has been studying and playing a consistently developing tenor sax style for a few decades now. At present he's been swinging through a Lester Young trip which can be heard majestically on his Ecstatic Peace recording (E#19..from Forced Exp.) In the early 70's, however, he was a firebrande who snarled and blew hot lava skronk from loft to loft. He played with Alice Coltrane on some of her more out sessions. Rashied Ali was the free-yet-disciplined drummer whom Coltrane enlisted to play alongside Elvin Jones and Pharaoh Sanders (and Alice) in his last mind-bending, space-maniacal recordings (check out surely the Coltrane/Ali duet CD Interstellar Space). Elvin quit the group cuz Rashied was too hardcore. Those were the fuckin' days. And Rashied had his own club downtown NYC called Ali's Alley! Duo Exchange is Rashied and Frank completely going at it and just burning notes and chords where ever they can find 'em. Totally sick. Survival was Rashied's record label which had cool b&w matte sleeves and some crucial releases mostly with his quartet/quintet and a duo session with violinist LeRoy Jenkins.

8. THE PETER BROTZMANN SEXTET/QUARTET - Nipples (Calig - CAL30604)

The influence of Free Jazz-era Coltrane, Ayler, Esp-disk, Shepp, etc. on hard drinking, knuckle-biting European white cats is formidable. These guys didn't care so much about plaing "jazz" as just totally ripping their guts out with high-energy, brain-plowing NOISE. Brotzmann (sax, German), Evan Parker (sax, UK), Derek Bailey (guitar, UK), and Han Bennink (drums, Dutch) are a few of the spearheaders of this Free-Euro scene and are caught on this insanely rare early document. The b&w cover has a fold-out accordion post card set of personal images of the musicians glued and paperclipped to its front. Brotzmann went on to help further the critical documentation of the Euro-Free-Jazz scene with FMP (Free Music Productions) Records which still exists to this day. There are over a 100 releases on this label of pure Euro-improv and they all offer remarkable moments. Derek Bailey went on to create his own categorically similar Incus Records in the UK which is also still extant. As is the Han Bennink associated I.C.P. (Instant Composers Pool) Records. The most mind-blasting of these recordings may be MACHINE GUN (FMP 24 CD available from NorthCountry Distr./Cadence Bldg./Redwood, NY 13679) where Brotzmann leads an octet through a smashing clanging wonderland of noise. Improvisation and classic western musics are seriously tended to by a large Euro community and it's all pretty fascinating. Check out the works of Alexander von Schlippenbach, Barry Guy & The London Jazz Composers Orchestra, Misha Mengleberg, Peter Kowald, Andre Jaume, Andrea Centazzo, Lol Coxhill and just about anybody who plays with them.

9. THE MARZETTE WATTS ENSEMBLE - (Savoy MG-12193)

Marzette was a serious black art cat who resided in downtown NYC when Free Jazz as a NEW cultural revolution was in full gear. He painted and composed wonderful music where some of the coolest locals could flow their flavor. One of the heaviest ESP-disk recordings is Marzette's MARZETTE AND COMPANY (On CD from Forced Exposure) which has the incredible talents of saxist Byard Lancaster (who released an early indie b&w Free Jazz classic out of Philly called LIVE AT MCALLISTER COLLEGE - find it and send it to me..) and guitarist Sonny Sharrock (check his wild influence on Pharaoh Sanders' TAUHID Impulse CD and his own obscure noise guitar masterpiece BLACK WOMAN on Vortex) and cornetist Clifford Thornton (academic NEW MUSIC/Free Jazz "teacher" who released a few crucial sides such as COMMUNICATIONS NETWORK on Third World and THE PANTHER AND THE LASH on America) and the amazing free vocalist Patty Waters (who recorded two infamous hair-raising platters on ESP-Disc). This recording on Savoy was one of a series produced by Bill Dixon, an early associate of Archie Shepp's, who was an incredible composer in his own right. I've heard tapes of Dixon leading Free-Jazz orchestras into sonic symphonic heavens. Very hardcore.

This recording I list because of all its obvious loaded references but it's also quite happening and anything with Marzette, Dixon (especially INTENTS AND PURPOSES on RCA Victor), Byard (careful, there's some clinkers) and Clifford is extremely worthwhile.

10. MARION BROWN - In Sommerhausen (Calig 30 605)
BLACK ARTISTS GROUP - In Paris, Aries 1973 (BAG 324 000)
FRANK WRIGHT QUARTET - Uhuru Na Umoja (America 30 AM 6104)
DR. UMEZU-SEIKATSU KOJYO IINKAI - (SKI NO. 1)
CECIL TAYLOR - Indent, part 2 (Unit Core 30555)

Five way tie for last? Well, seeing as there's no "beginning" or "end" to this shit I have to list as many items as possible just to reiterate the fact that there was (indeed) a ton o' groovy artifactual evidence to support the reality of the existence of FREE MUSIC. Dig? There's used record stores all over the country (the world!) and they all have the potential to be hiding some of these curios amongst the bins and most peeps just ain't sure of their worth and sometimes you can find 'em really cheap. It's definitely a marketplace of the rarefied so when peeps are "hip" to it expect this shit to be way pricey.

Marion Brown was/is an alto player who made an incredible LP with Tony Oxley and Maarten Altena called "Porto Novo" that just twists and burns start to finish. Marion could really get on OUT as well as just play straight up. Shepp dug him and got him to do some great LP's on Impulse. He had a septet at one point that was especially remarkable featuring Beaver Harris (drums), Dave Burrell (piano), Grachan Moncur III (bone), and Alan Shorter (trumpet). Alan being Wayne Shorter's (Miles Davis sideman/classicist) brother. Where Wayne was fairly contemporary (though eclectic as a muh'fuck) Alan was strictly ill and has two obscuro LP's worth hunting down: "Orgasm" (Verve V6 8768) and "Tes Estat" (America AM 6118). "In Sommerhausen" is Marion in late 60's exploratory fashion and is quite freaky with the vocal whoops of Jeanne Lee. There's another LP from this period called "Gesprachsfetzen" (Calig CAL 30601) which really lays down the scorch.

The Black Artists Group was an unit not unlike that of The Art Ensemble of Chicago. Except they only recorded this one document and it only came out in France on a label named after the group. This is squeaky, spindly stuff and very OPEN and a good indication of what was happening in the early 70's with members Oliver Lake (later of the infamous World Saxophone Quartet) and Joseph Bowie (Art Ensemble's Lester Bowie's bro, later to start Defunkt).

Tenor saxist Frank Wright may be (previous to Charles Gayle's current reign) the heir apparent to both Trane and Ayler. Unfortunately he had a heart attack a few years back while rockin' the bandstand. All his recordings are more than worthwhile especially his BYG outing "One For John" (529.336/Actuel Vol. 36), his two ESP sessions (on CD from Forced Exposure) and his Center-of-the-World series of trio recordings with Alan Silva (bass) and Muhammed Ali (drums - Rashied's brother, not the pugilist) on the French label Sun. This LP "Uhuru.." is nothing short of killer with the great Noah Howard (alto), Bobby Few (pianist of Steve Lacy fame) and Art Taylor (heavy old-school drummer in free mode) going OUT and AT IT in stunning reverie.

FREE JAZZ of course made a strong impression on the more existential-sensitive populace of Japan. Some real masters came out of the Japanese scene and were influential to some of the more renowned noise artists of today (Boredoms, Haino Keiji). One such Jap-cat is alt-saxist Dr. Umezu who has mixed it up with NYC loft-dwellers on more than one occasion. On this completely obscure, underground release he unleashed some pretty free shit with the likes of William Parker (bass), Ahmed Abdullah (trumpet), and Rashid Shinan (drums). Parker is possibly one of the most important FREE musicians working in NYC. He's got his own constant writing/performing schedule as well as gigs with anyone from Cecil Taylor to Charles Gayle. He recorded one solo LP in the 70's called "Through Acceptance of the Mystery Peace" (Centering Records 1001) which is, as you might've guessed, "good".

I suppose we should wind things up with the king of FREE MUSIC then and now: Cecil Taylor. Cecil started experimenting with sound, new concepts of "swing", open rhythms and room dynamics very early on. He furthered his adventure with music-conservatory studies and applied a master's technique to his fleeting, furious, highly-sensitive pianistic ACTIONS. Today he's almost shaman-like in his mystic noise transploits. He hates record business weasels after years of scorn and neglect (club owners had been know to beat him up after gigs claiming he damaged their pianos) and records now for the aforementioned artist's label FMP. In the early 70's he had his own label called Unit Core and released two crucial LP's: the one listed above and one titled "Spring of Two Blue J's" (Unit Core 30551). This is when his group included two critical figures on the FREE scene. Alt-saxist Jimmy Lyons (now deceased) was a consistent improviser and a perfect player alongside Cecil as was veteran drummer Andrew Cyrille who recorded his own solo (and duos with the likes of Milford Graves and Peter Brotzmann) LP's on various small labels (BYG, FMP, Ictus).

So..that's it...and that's not it. If you're at all intrigued by this personal primer do yourself a favor and seek some of this shit out and free yr fucking mind and yr ass will surely scream and SHOUT.

later...............thurston
Copyright Grand Royale magazine/Thurston Moore
http://www.evol.org/free.jazz.html

Arthur Doyle Electro-Acoustic Ensemble: Conspiracy Nation

2009-09-22T20:16:00.003-05:00

Performers:
Arthur Doyle (tenor sax, voice, flute, recorder)
Leslie Q (bass, guitar) Ed Wilcox (drums, percussion)
Vinnie Paternostro (Roland 505)
Tim Poland (Clavinova) Dave Cross (turntable, Ibanez DM 1100 sampler, drums on side 1, track 1.)

Tracks:
1. Birdman
2. Ahead A Pothead
3. Barbatiri
4. Love Ship
5. Pull the String
6. Alabama and Mississippi Reunited
7. No Title

Side One rec. at Hallwalls, Buffalo, NY on January 24, 2002. Side Two rec. at Analog Shock Club, Rochester, NY on January 26, 2002. Available as LP only

One of a number of vinyl-only releases on Qbico. Doyle has been on a roll since he began his comeback in the 1990s.

Download Conspiracy Nation

Arthur Doyle and Sunny Murray: Live at the Glenn Miller Cafe

2009-09-22T01:52:00.003-05:00

Performers:
Arthur Doyle (flute, tenor sax, voice)
Bengt Frippe Nordström (alto sax)
Sunny Murray (drums)

Tracks:
1. Spontaneous Creation, Pt. 1
2. Spontaneous Creation, Pt. 2
3. Spontaneous Creation, Pt. 3
4. African Love Call
5. Two Free Jazz Men Speak
6. Nature Boy
7. Joy

Liner Notes: Arthur Doyle and Sune Spångberg
Photography and Cover Art: Åke Bjurhamn
Engineer: Per Ruthström

You know if Arthur Doyle and Sunny Murray are involved, the results will be incendiary.

Download Live at the Glenn Miller Cafe

Arthur Doyle: Plays and Sings From the Songbook Vol. 1

2009-08-22T14:07:00.003-05:00

Here's another Arthur Doyle album - this one recorded around the time Doyle began his comeback after returning from France, where he had done time for a crime he didn't commit. While in the joint, he wrote down a bunch of tunes and lyrics, and some of that material became among the first songs he'd record once he finally got the chance again. Doyle fans will know what to expect in this set - it's a solo recording in the truest sense of the term, with Doyle playing multiple instruments (flute, piano, and of course, tenor sax) as well as serving up some vocal performance art. I've mentioned before that his vocal style is definitely unique. Listeners with an ear for free jazz will likely have the open mind needed to truly appreciate what Doyle is trying to do here. Many of these songs have been since recorded in a variety of contexts, from solo performances to sax-drum duos, to various electric and acoustic combos.

Recorded in 1992, it would take three years for it to finally see the light of day on Audible Hiss.

Tracks:
1. Ozy Lady Dozy Lady
2. Yo Yoo>Yo Yoo
3. Olca Cola in Angola
4. Hey Minnie Hey Wilbur Hey Mingus
5. Flue Song
6. Just Get The Funk Spot
7. Goverey

The cover art and design were handled by Doyle's old friend and former Blue Humans band mate Rudolph Grey.

Download Plays and Sings From the Songbook Vol. 1

Jah Wobble & Evan Parker: Passage to Hades

2009-08-22T13:51:00.002-05:00

Credits:
Jah Wobble - Bass, Producer
Evan Parker - Tenor Sax
Clive Bell - Flute, Pipes, Harmonica (tracks 1, 3, 4)
Mark Sanders - Drums
Jean-Pierre Rasle - Bagpipes (tracks 1, 4)

Tracks:
1. Passage to Hades
2. Giving Up the Ghost
3. Full On
4. Finally Cracked It

Recorded in Sept. 2000 at Intimate Studio, and released in 2001 on 30 Hertz Records.

With the exception of "Full On" (which clocks in at just under nine minutes) the tracks run about 13 to 14 minutes each, allowing the musicians stretch out and their ideas develop. This one's all about the groove. Parker responds brilliantly in this context. Fans of Wobble will know what to expect. Evan Parker fans should be in for a pleasant surprise. Well-worth seeking out.

Download Passage to Hades

Jon Hassell: Dressing For Pleasure

2009-07-23T22:53:00.005-05:00

When I was much younger, I recall Jon Hassell classified as a "new age" recording artist. From what I knew of new age music, after hearing Hassell I had to wonder what the critics and marketing folks were smoking. With this album, Jon Hassell got about as close as he ever would to acid jazz. If I were to use one word to describe Dressing For Pleasure, that word would be "sultry." The opening track ("G-Spot") is a personal favorite - part of what makes it work is Flea's bass playing. Also of note was the track ("Club Zombie") that would become the theme for the hit TV series The Practice. Overall the album was the most risque of Hassell's career. There was always a sensuality to his music, but this album from the song titles to the the instrumentation are nothing short of raw sexuality. Several of these tracks could serve as background music for raps ("Zeitgeist" comes to mind). Something tells me the suits at Warner Bros. had no idea how to even begin to market this one, and of course the recording went out of print. I'm not sure if this is the album I'd use to introduce Hassell's work, but it's definitely worth seeking out for those already initiated. Newbies should check some of Hassell's earlier work like Earthquake Island, or Fourth World Vol. 1: Possible Musics (with Brian Eno).

Some info:

Credits:

Bass [Electric, Keyboard] - Pete Scaturro (tracks: 3, 4, 8, 9, 11)
Drums, Percussion - Brain* (tracks: 1, 2, 4 to 12)
Engineer, Mixed By - Pete Scaturro
Executive Producer - Kevin Laffey
Guitar - Joe Gore (tracks: 2, 5, 7 to 10, 12, 13)
Keyboards - Jon Hassell (tracks: 5 to 9, 12)
Mastered By - Stephen Marcussen
Producer - Jon Hassell , Pete Scaturro
Sampler, Programmed By - Blk Lion (tracks: 1, 3, 5, 7, 8, 12)
Sampler, Synthesizer - Jamie Muhoberac (tracks: 1, 2, 12)
Trumpet - Jon Hassell (tracks: 1, 2, 5 to 7, 9 to 13)
Written-By - Jon Hassell
Notes: Recorded July-December 1993 except track 13 recorded live in rehearsal, november 1989.

Tracks (includes credits for guest artists):

1 G-Spot (5:03)
Bass - Flea
Organ - Pete Scaturro
Saxophone - Kenny Garrett
2 Villa Narco (4:32)
Bass - Trevor Dunn
Piano - Pete Scaturro
3 Kolo X (3:48)
Programmed By [Drum Programming] - Pete Scaturro
Saxophone - Kenny Garrett
4 Personals (4:13)
Scratches - DJ Grand Shogun KB
Voice - Leslie Winer
Written-By - Leslie Winer
5 Club Zombie (3:28)
6 Zeitgeist (3:51)
Guitar - Gregg Arreguin
7 Steppin' Thru Time (4:08)
Bass, Voice - Islam Shabazz
Producer - Blk Lion , Lee Curreri
Programmed By, Organ - Lee Curreri
Voice - Jon Hassell
Written-By - Pete Scaturro
8 Destination: Bakiff (4:16)
9 Sex Goddess (4:30)
Bass - Islam Shabazz
10 Buzzworld (4:28)
Bass - Buckethead
Written-By - Brain* , Buckethead , Joe Gore , Pete Scaturro
11 The Gods, They Must Be Crazy (5:42)
Piano - Greg Kurstin
Vocals - Zoe Ellis
Voice - Jon Hassell
Written-By - Pete Scaturro
12 Mati (4:21)
Bass - Trevor Dunn
13 Blue Night (Live) (7:42)
Bass - Peter Freeman (2)
Drums, Percussion - Adam Rudolph

Download Dressing for Pleasure

Arthur Doyle: Live in Japan Doing the Breakdown

2009-07-21T03:03:00.004-05:00

By this point, you should know what you're getting into whenever you download and play an Arthur Doyle joint. This recording features Doyle performing solo during his late 1990s tour of Japan. Doyle is credited with playing tenor sax, piano, and vocals; and of course all compositions and words are credited to Doyle. The album was released in 1998 on Yokoto Music Entertainment. Other credits:

Produced by Yokoto Shigeru

Master Engineer: Hashimoto Yoei
Photography (cover and back): Wakui Hiromi
Designer: Akiyama Shin

Tracks:
1. African Queen
2. Ozy Lady Dozy Lady
3. Noah Black Ark
4. Goverey
5. Doing the Breakdown
6. Just Get the Funkspot

Tracks 1-3 recorded at Modern Art Museum Sendai (11-5-1997)
Track 4 recorded at Barber Fuji (11-10-1997)
Tracks 5-6 recorded at Shuyukan (11-8-1997)

I'm not sure this recording will necessarily win over any new fans, but for those of us who are Arthur Doyle completists, it's a must.

Download Live in Japan Doing the Breakdown

Ilia Belorukov

2009-06-21T00:45:00.006-05:00

Here's a bio from Ilia's website:

Ilia is a young (born 1987) saxophonist from Saint-Petersburg, Russia. He works in the direction of free improvisation, free-jazz, noise and electroacoustic music. Ilia practices an experimental approach of sound extraction on different types of saxophones (alto, tenor and baritone) and on flute (inc. fluteophone). In his compositions and improvisations you can find out influences of John Zorn, Derek Bailey, Mats Gustafsson, Evan Parker and other masters of improvised music.
The artist records and distributes his music by himself. He often plays at The Gallery of Experimental Sound – 21 (GES-21), Saint-Petersburg.

Ilia has played with such musicians as David Stackenäs (Sweden), Ignaz Schick (Germany), Arkadij Gotesman, Skirmantas Sasnauskas (Lithuania), Black Motor trio, Tero Kemppainen, Jaakko Tolvi & Topias Tiheäsalo (Finland), Edyta Fil (Poland), George Bagdasarov (Armenia/Czech), Demetrius Spaneas (USA), Vladislav Makarov, Sergey Letov, Nikolay Rubanov, Alexey Lapin, Dmitriy Kakhovskiy, Alexei Borisov, Philip Croaton. Together with Dots & Lines group (trio with Roman Stolyar and Andrey Popovskiy) he performed on the festival of Jazz.Ru portal dedicated to it’s 10th anniversary. He’s also a member of Wozzeck, Totalitarian Musical Sect (TMS).

He collaborates with musicians of other genres: with Moscow groups crrust (experimental hardcore), Tooth Kink (noise, live electronics), Motherfathers (noise-rock), Solntsetsvety (magical unicellular music); with St.-Petersburg avant-rock band Hg (Rtut'). Benzolnye Mertvecy (improvised noisecore), with Samara mathcore-band Penny Flame.

At the same site, he lists as his influences:

John Coltrane, John Zorn, Tim Berne, Mats Gustafsson, Evan Parker, Peter Brotzmann, Frode Gjerstad, John Butcher, Derek Bailey, Fred Frith, Lasse Marhaug, Phill Niblock, Robert Fripp, David Sylvian, Jeff Beck, Leonid Fedorov & Vladimir Volkov, Zu, Fennesz, Anton Webern, Alban Berg, Arvo Part, Gyorgy Ligeti, Alfred Schnittke, Valentin Silvestrov, Louis Andriessen, Paul Desmond, Meshuggah, The Dillinger Escape Plan, Grenouer, crrust, Converge, Isis

One thing rather notable about Ilia Belorukov is that a number of his recordings are available for download free of charge. What I'll be doing here is to provide a sampler of albums from projects that he is involved with in order to give you an idea of his range of interests. I'll start with the album that served as my introduction to his music.

dadazu: sin of omission

The music is a continuous 79 minute jam from a live gig in late 2007. It's a dark, moody, improvised drone piece, for lack of a better description. From the recording's site:

Recorded live at 13/11/2007 [esg21]
Mixing & recording: Dima Yalkin
Mastered by M. Pozin & I. Belorukov
Cover photo: M. Pozin

Ilia Belorukov – baritone saxophone, delay-sampler
http://www.myspace.com/belorukov

Maxim Pozin – prepared tenor saxophone, electronics
http://www.myspace.com/bbiimmkkaa

Pavel Mikheev – electric guitar
http://www.myspace.com/ejectyourcd

Mikhail Ershov – electric bass guitar

Dadazu is free improvising collective includes a couple of young musicians from the modern St.Petersburg’s experimental scene.
Contact:
http://www.aposition.org/e_v/dadazu_e.htm

The recording was made available on April 12, 2009 by Clinical Archives.

Next up is some solo work. This one is called Saxophone Solos Vol. 1.:

Some info about the album:

Ilia - Alto, Tenor & Baritone Saxophones, Mouthpieces
Recorded at Illusion Studio on 21 February 2007 & 7, 8, 14 April 2007
Engineered & Mixed by Ilia Belorukov
Mastered by Philip Croaton at Fate Speaks Studio
Cover Art by Ilia Belorukov

All track titles are simply Roman numerals, except for the last track, which is titled "IX (for Philip Croaton). The recording was issued January 27, 2008 by Clinical Archives. Since Coleman Hawkins first dropped "Picasso" about six decades ago, the sax solo recording has become something of a jazz staple - especially in avant-garde circles. The music here is not easy to describe. The reference points that seem to work for me at the moment are the solo recordings from the AACM crew, to the extent that there is a lot of open space to be found on each of the recording's tracks; and Kaoru Abe's solo recordings in some of the louder moments (Ilia Belorukov does seem to channel some of the dark foreboding that Kaoru Abe made into a veritable art form). Unlike Abe, or perhaps one of my favorite sax players to record regularly as a solo artist, Arthur Doyle, this is music that seems to privilege the rational over the emotional. Also, there's something rather interesting in Belorukov's technique - in spots makes the sax sound like a stringed instrument being plucked (see IV, for example). I can't say I've heard anything quite like that. You'll hear some very interesting soundscapes to say the least.

Finally, let's check out another project with which Belorukov has been involved, Totalitarian Musical Sect. Clinical Archives has two of this combo's recordings available.

Warm Things vol. 1 - Live in GES-21:

Info:

Dmitriy Kakhovskiy - bass and objects
Vitaliy Kucherov - guitar and objects
Alexey Stavizkiy - trombone and clarinet and flutes and objects
Ilia Belorukov - alto and baritone saxophones
Maxim Pozin - alto and prepared alto sax and clarinet and flutes and objects

Recorded by Dmitriy Yalkin at GES-21 on 9 May 2007
Mastered by Dmitriy Kakhovskiy

Photo by Nikolay Ovcharenko
Cover Art by Ilia Belorukov

Tracks:

Thing One
Thing Two
Thing Three
Thing Four
Thing Five

Warm Things vol. 2, Live in GES-21:

Info:

Dmitriy Kakhovskiy - contrabass
Vitaliy Kucherov - electric guitar & flute
Ilia Belorukov - alto saxophone & flute

Recorded by Dmitriy Yalkin at GES-21 on 14 January 2008
Mastered bu Dmitryiy Kakhovsky

Photo by Eugene Apollonsky
Cover art by Ilia Belorukov

Tracks:

Thing Six
Thing Seven
Thing Eight
Thing Nine

According to the first of the recordings, the Totalitarian Musical Sect cites as influences Can, Art Ensemble of Chicago, and Sun Ra, and refer to their sound as "a new Russian primitivism." And yes, the influences they cite seem to make their presence felt on both recordings.

What I've done here is to embed the recordings here on Nothing Is. Follow the links to the respective recordings and you can download the mp3s, cover art, and booklets free of charge - the works are licensed under Creative Commons. If these recordings whet your appetite, Ilia Belorukov is a very busy individual, who records prolifically in various combos, much of which should be commercially available. Since I'm relatively new to the Russian jazz scene, I'm sure I'm just barely scratching the tip of the iceberg. At age 22, Belorukov is just getting warmed up. His career will be one to watch.

Pharoah Sanders: Message From Home

2009-03-01T02:49:00.000-06:00

Pharoah Sanders came back in a big way during the mid 1990s, proving that he was still quite capable of the fiery playing that made his reputation in the 1960s and early 1970s. AMG reviewer Richard Ginelli remarked:

The world music-minded producer Bill Laswell gets a hold of Pharoah Sanders here and lo, the sleeping volcano erupts with one of his most fulfilling albums in many a year. Message From Home is rooted in, but not exclusively devoted to, African idioms, as the overpowering hip-hop groove of "Our Roots (Began In Africa)" points out. But the record really develops into something special when Sanders pits his mighty tenor sound against the pan-African beats, like the ecstatically joyful rhythms of "Tomoki" and the poised, percolating fusion of American country & western drums and Nigerian juju guitar riffs on "Country Mile." In addition, "Nozipho" is a concentrated dose of the old Pharoah, heavily spiritual and painfully passionate, with a generous supply of the tenor player's famous screeching rhetoric, and kora virtuoso Foday Musa Suso shows up on "Kumba" with a touch of village Gambian music. This resurrection will quicken the pulse of many an old Pharoah fan.

Pharoah was working a bit with Bill Laswell at the time, appearing on such Laswell-produced joints as Jah Wobble's Heaven and Earth for a couple tracks, as well as performing with and composing music on Maleem Mahmoud Ghania's Trance of Seven Colors. The album does offer a healthy dose of what, for lack of a better term, can be called the Bill Laswell sound - depending on one's perspective that might be a turn-on or a turn-off. Sanders fans will be pleased that the sax legend comes across as firmly in control with the end result an album of world fusion with teeth. A shame it's out of print.

Tracks:

1. Our Roots (Began in Africa) (10:21)
2. Nozipho (9:43)
3. Tomoki (6:26)
4. Ocean Song (8:49)
5. Kumba (7:50)
6. Country Mile (6:03)

Personnel:
Bass - Charnett Moffett , Steve Neil
Drums - Hamid Drake
Guitar - Dominic Kanza
Keyboards - Bernie Worrell , Jeff Bova , William Henderson
Kora - Foday Musa Suso
Percussion - Aiyb Dieng
Producer - Bill Laswell
Saxophone - Pharoah Sanders
Violin - Michael White

Download Message From Home

Alice Coltrane: Lord of Lords

2009-02-23T14:17:00.001-06:00

Lord of Lords was Alice Coltrane's last record for Impulse! prior to her brief stint with Warner Bros. She made a remarkable musical transformation in the years following her husband's untimely death. By the time of this particular recording, like a lot of jazz artists, Alice Coltrane was crossing over, but not to fusion, funk or disco: rather she was crossing over into another realm altogether. The music seems to have much more in common with Western classical music (her fascination with Stravinsky and with lush string section accompaniment should be one strong hint), and arguably Indian classical music. The selections sound much more scored than improvised, but somehow no matter what the context there beats the heart of a jazzer. If you're new to Alice Coltrane's work, I'd strongly suggest trying out her earlier Impulse! albums before listening to this one - in particular Ptah the El Daoud and Journey in Satchidananda. This recording is more for the seasoned fan or completist, and ideally those open to her subsequent musical output for Warner Bros.

Tracks:
1. Andromeda's Suffering (9:04)
2. Sri Rama Ohnedaruth (6:12)
3. Excerpts From The Firebird (5:43)
4. Lord Of Lords (11:17)
5. Going Home (10:02)

Credits:
Bass - Charlie Haden
Cello - Anne Goodman , Edgar Lustgarten (2) , Jan Kelly , Jerry Kessler , Jesse Ehrlich , Raphael Kramer , Ray Kelley
Drums, Percussion - Ben Riley
Harp, Piano, Organ, Tympani, Percussion - Alice Coltrane
Producer - Ed Michel
Viola - David Schwartz , Leonard Selic , Marilyn Baker , Myra Kestenbaum , Rollice Dale , Samuel Boghosian
Violin - Bernard Kundell , Gerald Vinci , Gordon Marron , James Getzoff , Janice Gower , Leonard Malarsky , Lou Klass , Murray Adler , Nathan Kaproff , Ronald Folsom , Sidney Sharp , William Henderson (2)

Music arranged and conducted by Alice Coltrane
Produced by Ed Michel under the direction and inspiration of Alice Coltrane
Recorded and mixed at The Village Recorder, Los Angeles, from July 5 to July 13, 1972
Engineering by Baker Bigsby

Dowload Lord of Lords

Jah Wobble: Heaven and Earth

2009-02-23T13:53:00.001-06:00

This is an interesting album in part because of Pharoah Sanders' appearance on a couple tracks. An AMG review which seems reasonably fair and accurate:

Fusing Eastern and Western classical influences with elements of ambient, dub and hip-hop, Jah Wobble has created a truly brilliant pancultural concept album. The title track opens the LP with a near-orchestral range of dynamic emotions centered around Zi Lan Liao's vocals and violin, Kui Hsuing Li's soaring bamboo flute, and Wobble's percolating tribal drums. "A Love Song" is a hypnotic dub track showcasing the vocal talents of Natacha Atlas, whose Middle Eastern melody lends a sultry feel perfectly matched by the sensual bassline. Bill Laswell lends his distinctive touch "Gone to Croatan" and "Hit Me," which perfectly match hip-hop beats and turntable wizardry provided by DJs DXT and Rob Swift with Pharoah Sanders' mind-bending flute and horn solos and Bernie Worrell's synth textures. But the piece de resistance is "Om Namah Shiva," which combines Najma Akhtar's nimble vocal calisthenics and Inder Matharu's dazzling tabla rhythms with programmed percussion and Wobble's botton-end bass wallop to create highly effective world/dance track. Laswell himself calls Heaven & Earth "the best thing Jah Wobble has ever recorded. Who are we to argue?

Tracks and credits:

1 Heaven & Earth (8:41)
Congas, Bells - Neville Murray
Keyboards - Mark Ferda
Vocals, Zither [Ku Cheng] - Zi Lan Liao

2 A Love Song (7:23)
Guitar - Justin Adams
Vocals - Natacha Atlas

3 Dying Over Europe (3:11)

4 Divine Mother (11:12)

5 Gone To Croatan (15:30)
Drums - Jerome 'Bigfoot' Brailey*
Guitar - Nicky Skopelitis
Keyboards - Bernie Worrell
Percussion - Aiyb Dieng
Producer - Bill Laswell
Saxophone [Soprano], Flute - Pharoah Sanders
Scratches - Rob Swift

6 Hit Me (7:42)
Drums - Jerome 'Bigfoot' Brailey*
Guitar - Nicky Skopelitis
Keyboards, Synthesizer - Bernie Worrell
Percussion - Aiyb Dieng
Producer - Bill Laswell
Saxophone [Tenor] - Pharoah Sanders
Scratches - DXT , Rob Swift

7 Om Namah Shiva (4:47)
Drum Programming, Keyboards - Mark Ferda
Guitar, Backing Vocals - Justin Adams
Tabla [Tablas] - Inder 'Goldfinger' Matharu*
Vocals - Najma Akhtar

Jah Wobble handles production (except tracks 5 and 6), bass, drums, percussion, and keyboards on the various tracks. This isn't the only time that Wobble has played or collaborated with jazz artists. I have another album that I'll share at some point.

Note: Between a busy January interterm teaching load, the start of the Spring Semester, and a school board candidacy (which I ultimately lost), I've been just a bit swamped. There are some recordings in the pipeline, so as always, stay tuned!

Download Heaven and Earth

Jon Hassell: Earthquake Island

2009-01-04T03:50:00.000-06:00

As good an introduction to Jon Hassell's music as any. Earthquake Island was his second as a leader, and features a cast of musicians who were known, more often than not, for their work in jazz and fusion - and explains the jazz-ish touches throughout the album. It's a personal favorite that is regrettably one of his more hard-to-find recordings.

Download Earthquake Island

Cabaret Voltaire: 2X45

2009-01-03T22:13:00.000-06:00

I first learned about Cabaret Voltaire in the mid-1980s, when their videos to such tracks as "Kino" and "Do Right" were still fresh. By that point, the Cabs were a duo consisting of Steve Mallinder and Richard Kirk (Chris Watson was gone by the end of 1981), and their singles were mostly industrial dance tracks intended for rotation in clubland - and they managed some minor hits in their day. Of course even their hits were a bit too left-field to be accused of sounding mainstream. Before then, the band was known for their abrasive electronic experimentation. 2X45 finds the Cabs in transition between their past, when their only intention was to piss their audience off, and what would be their future. The album was recorded over two sessions with somewhat different lineups: one from October 1981 and the other from February 1982.

The sound will please fans of the No Wave scene to no end - it's dark, paranoid, angular, and downright funky. The Cabs' influences were varied, ranging from the minimalism of Steve Reich, ambient music of Brian Eno, the funk that made James Brown famous, and On the Corner-era Miles Davis. I've always dug on the first two tracks especially. "Breathe Deep" sounds like a tune ideal for some postpunk blaxploitation flick soundtrack. "Yashar" has some pretty interesting percussion and tape loops.

Personnel:
Tracks 1-3
Richard H. Kirk - Guitar, Sax, Clarinet, Synth
Stephen Mallinder - Bass, Vocals, Percussion
Chris Watson - Vox Continental, Tapes
Alan Fish - Drums, Percussion

Tracks 4-6
Richard H. Kirk - Guitar, Sax, Roland SHO9 and CSQ 100, Tapes
Stephen Mallinder - Bass, Vocals, Tapes
Eric Random - Guitar, Percussion
Nort - Drums, Percussion

Tracks:
1. Breathe Deep
2. Yashar
3. Protection
4. War of Nerves (T.E.S.)
5. Wait and Shuffle
6. Get Out of My Face

Download 2X45

Marion Brown: Live in Esslingen

2009-01-01T00:01:00.000-06:00

It's been a little while since I posted any Marion Brown recorded material, so I thought I'd hook you up with a live bootleg recording that I happened upon about three or four years ago. The sound on this live bootleg should serve as a bridge between Brown's live recordings from around 1968 or 1969 (as well as the album Porto Nova), and his ECM release Afternoon of a Georgia Faun and his duets recordings during the early 1970s. In fact, those latter releases are arguably quite similar to what you'll find here with this quintet. The ECM connection should be apparent not only from the basic approach this particular combo takes, but from the personnel list: ECM founder Manfred Eicher plays bass on this session. Expect a fairly minimalistic soundscape, "little instruments", and plenty of open spaces. In other words, don't expect a noisefest, but don't expect easy listening. Brown's music, no matter how spare, refuses to stay in the background. It's also a pleasure to hear a young Wadada Leo Smith on trumpet. Marion Brown fans will want this.

Personnel:
Marion Brown - Alto Sax
Leo Smith - Trumpet
Thomas Stoewsand - Cello, Flute
Manfred Eicher - Bass
Fred Braceful - Percussion

Tracks:
Note that although the track listing consists of a part A and B, on the CD I have, it simply appears as a single continuous improvised piece, running 46 minutes.

Download Live in Esslingen

Joseph Jarman: Earth Passage/Density

2008-12-31T00:06:00.000-06:00

Here's another one from the vaults for fans of Joseph Jarman. Earth Passage/Density features Jarman and Moye, accompanied by two other multi-instrumentalists on four very distinct tracks, from the world music rooted "Zulu Village," to the relatively swinging straight-ahead jamming on "Happiness Is," the moody "Jawara," and to the concluding number "Sun Spots" (which is very free sounding and quite dominated by Moye - reminiscent of something from an AEC session). Challenging yet fun music that is easily worth a few listens.

Personnel:
Joseph Jarman - Flute, Clarinet (Bass), Flute (Alto), Flute (Bass), Piccolo, Sax (Alto), Sax (Soprano), Sax (Tenor), Clarinet (Alto), Bamboo Flute
Famoudou Don Moye - Percussion, Chimes, Drums, Triangle, Bells, Cowbell
Rafael Garrett - Bass, Clarinet, Flute, Pan Flute, Conch Shell, Bamboo Flute
Craig Harris - Flute, Percussion, Trombone, Vocals, Voices, Didjeridu, Cowbell, Bamboo Flute

Tracks:
1. Zulu Village (13:11)
a. Hommage
b. Summoning The Elders
c. Children's Sun Celebration
2. Happiness Is (10:15)
3. Jawara (12:15)
4. Sun Spots (11:00)

Recorded on February 16 & 17, 1981 at Barigozzi Studios, Milan, Italy, and released on Black Saint in 1981. The album saw one reissue in 1993.

Download Earth Passage/Density

Randy Weston: Tanjah

2008-12-30T00:07:00.000-06:00

Tanjah is a gem from the 1970s, featuring Randy Weston and Melba Liston collaborating together (their last would be in 1998's Khepera, which is still commercially available), utilizing a big band format. Since this was recorded in the 1970s, you should expect some electric instruments - in this case Weston playing a Fender Rhodes piano on some of the selections. Critics will no doubt argue as to whether the electric piano detracts from the music, but personally I find no problem with it (maybe it's simply because I'm a child of the 1970s); where there will be no argument is on the compositions and performances, which are rock solid. The CD added the alternative takes of "Sweet Meat".

These sessions were recorded May 21 - May 22, 1973 and originally issued on Polydor that same year (catalogue # 5055). Verve reissued the album in CD form in 1995. Currently it's out of print.

All discographical information courtesy of Randy Weston's website and AMG.

Personnel:
Randy Weston - Piano, Fender Rhodes
Ernie Royal - Trumpet, Flugelhorn
Ray Copeland - Trumpet, Flugelhorn
Jon Faddis - Trumpet, Flugelhorn
Al Grey - Trombone
Jack Jeffers - Baritone Trombone
Julius Watkins - French-Horn
Norris Turney - Alto Sax, Picolo
Budd Johnson - Tenor Sax, Soprano Sax, Clarinet
Billy Harper - Tenor Sax, Flute
Danny Bank - Baritone Sax, Baritone Clarinet, Flute
Ron Carter - Bass
Rudy Collins - Drums
Azzedin Weston - Percussion
Candido Camero - Percussion, Narrator
Omar Clay - Marimba, Timbales
Taiwo Yusve Divall - Alt Sax, Ashiko Drums
Earl Williams - Percussion
Ahmed-Abdul Malik - Oud, Narrator (on 7)
Delores Ivory Davis - Vocal (on 8)

Melba Liston arranger, director

Tracks:
1. Hi-Fly
2. In Memory Of
3. Sweet Meat
4. Jamaica East
5. Sweet Meat (First Alternative Take)
6. Tanjah
7. The Last Day
8. Sweet Meat (Second Alternative Take)
9. Little Niles

TANJAH original LP. liner notes

ABOUT RANDY WESTON
Pianist-composer-lecturer Randy Weston was born and raised in Brooklyn, NY and began playing piano professionally in the early 1950's, During his career he has won international acclaim as an instrumentalist, and performed in alt major jazz clubs in New York and other U.S. cities as well as all major cities in North and West Africa. He has appeared on major television shows and extensive radio program throughout Africa and the U.S. He's performed in colleges and universities throughout the world, and is generally not duly credited with being the first to conceive and perform a "History of Jazz" concert/lecture programs in schools and libraries in New York City; many other groups are now performing similar programs in New York as well as other cities. He's been the subject of feature articles in the U.S.. France. Africa, and England, and is recognized as a serious, prolific composer.

He has traveled widely in Africa, beginning in 1961 when he made his first trip to Nigeria to perform and lecture under the auspices of the American Society of African Culture. In 1967 Randy and his sextet made a three-month concert tour of fourteen countries in West and North Africa as part of the U.S. State Department's Cultural Presentation program. In 1968 he settled in Morocco and performed throughout Morocco and Tunisia, Togo, the Ivory Coast and Liberia. In 1970 he opened in Tangier at the African Rhythm Cultural Center. In 1972 he was the major force behind the first festival of American, African and Moorish music held in Tangier.

Randy is an articulate spokesman on the pivotal position of African music, dance and other arts in the world cultural scene, on the diversity and importance of Africa's vast musical resources; and on encouraging true cultural exchange and mutual learning between creative artists.

Two of Randy's strongest influences have been his father, who insisted that Randy take piano lessons at an early age, and his son (Niles) Azzedin, who has traveled with him throughout Africa. Azzedin plays the African conga drums, incorporating many of the traditional African rhythms, Randy credits his playing as the major force behind the rhythms of his music.

Randy has recorded more than a dozen albums throughout his 20-year career.
Tanjah Is his first album on the Polydor label.

ABOUT MELBA LISTON
Melba Liston is a warm, sensitive woman of enormous musical talents. She is an arranger of the first order, and also a fine trombonist. She has distinguished herself solidly in the music field with an impressive array of credits.

Starting as a trombonist in the pit orchestra of the Lincoln Theater In her native Los Angeles in 1943, Miss Liston worked her way through bands such as Gerald Wilson, Dizzy Gillespie, and Quincy Jones during the '950's. In 1958 she toured Europe with Quincy Jones's hand as arranger, trombonist, and actress in the Arlen-Mercer musical Free and Easy. Upon returning to the Stales she became a freelance arranger for Riverside Records, arranging for Milt Jackson, Randy Weston, Gloria Lynne, and Johnny Griffin, to name a few.

She also arranged albums for such famous Motown Records artists as Marvin Gaye, Billy Eckstine, and The Supremes.

In 1967 Melba co-led the dark Terry Big Band. At the same time she was associated with Etoile Productions as an arranger for Duke Ellington, Jon Lucien, Solomon Burke, Tony Bennett, and the Buffalo Symphony Orchestra. In 1968 she lent her talents as a trombone teacher at Pratt Institute Youth-in-Action Orchestra in Brooklyn, as well as to the Harlem Back Street Youth Orchestra, In recent years she has divided her time between her work with youth orchestras in the Los Angeles Watts area, and arranging for Count Basle, Abbey Lincoln, Duke Ellington, and Diana Ross.

Tanjah marks a happy reunion for Miss Liston and Randy Weston, for whom she has arranged four other albums.

Randy Weston is a true original. He's a thoroughly creative artist - one who possesses that rare quality of being a creator of art, as opposed to an interpreter of art.

He is in tune with nature and he creates music out of the depths of the rhythms of life. The primary qualities of his music are fire, spirit, strength, unabashed earthiness, and total individuality. His compositions are not intimidated by time. His percussive style of playing the piano pushes the rhythms out front, and underneath the earthiness, he cooks. He makes his band cook with intense drive. His band on this album was hand-picked, and their infectious joy In playing together is obvious on every cut of this album.

Randy feels that music is a universal language, and that African rhythms have dominated many lands and influenced many languages. ' He contends that African rhythms contain ingredients of melody and beat that are the basis of all popular music of today. His own music bears testimony to this contention,

Side one of the album opens with an updated Latin-flavored arrangement of Hi Fly.
Candido, inspired by the essence of the tune. offers some spontaneous rap In Cuban-Spanish which translates:

"...We're gonna fly high.
It's a pretty flight, and away we go.
Only up, up and higher -
watch and listen.
Randy Weston, he's going high and his is right there, baby"

Up there is right where Jon Faddis, a brilliant 19-year old trumpet virtuoso, takes the tune with his soaring solo.

In Memory Of was inspired by the ritual of the African funeral procession, which is very sad on the way to the burial grounds, but afterward, on the way back, the band starts swinging. This version of the march has a heavy African rock blues beat, with Ron Carter laying down a steady drone bass line that creates the spirit of the event. Both Ray Copeland and Al Grey offer fine solos using the growl technique, a sound seldom heard today but commonly used by oldtime brass players.

Sweet Meat personifies what Randy describes as a saucy, spicy, African chick with a very hip, unbelievably swinging walk. Sometimes she's sophisticated, sometimes she's funny. She could be found in ihe Congo, Harlem, or Mississippi. Melba Liston's flowing arrangement provides an elegant tilting cushion for the reeds out front. The mood of the tune conjures up shades of Basie and dancing cheek to cheek.

Jamaica East is the musical story of a beautiful five-day journey by Randy and his family to Jamaica. He was immediately inspired by the lush beauty of the island, the warmth and hospitality of the people, and their rich cultural heritage. Profoundly inspiring was his acquaintance with relatives who are natives of Kingston, and the discovery of family in Stokes Hall, St. Thomas. Randy's melody captures the rhythms that are Jamaica, and Miss Liston's exciting arrangement captures the spirit of carnival, dance, and song.

Side two opens with the title tune Tanjah, which is Arabic for Tangier, where Randy makes his home. The rhythm la based on the music of the peoples of North Africa, specifically Morocco. Tanjah was inspired by the festival held in Tangier in 1972, which represented a very significant step in bringing about communication through music between artists of different countries, albeit of the same African heritage. Moreover, the festival was the realization of a dream for Randy - the product of months of hard work and energy expended by many people both in Tangier and New York. Three stars of that festival are featured on this tune. Billy Harper, Azzedin, and Ahmed Abdul-Malik. Malik sets the mood as he relates in Arabic the feeling of brotherhood experienced by the artists - Moroccan and American - who appeared In the festival:

". . . Peace be upon you, brothers. Welcome my brothers. Greetings. All praises due to God for everything around us."

The Last Day is a beautiful, moving ballad which expresses Randy's musical impression of the last day on earth - when the heavens open, the power of the Creator appears, and the world gets down on its knees and prays. The warm, magnificently flawless voice of Delores Davis is heard here on record for the first time; Ernie Royal takes the lead with a standout solo.

Little Niles was written twenty years ago by Randy for his son, and stands out as the most famous of his jazz waltzes- It was then, and still is, dedicated to children everywhere.

Although many different rhythms and beats are displayed throughout this album,
the essence for Randy all stems from Africa.

This is why he calls his music "African rhythms".

1973 Mari Jo Johnson

Liner notes to the 1995 CD reissue:

TANJAH

In the late Fifties to early Sixties, it was all in the air:
the Civil Rights Movement, Malcolm X, Martin Luther King ...
we had that kind of energy,
and it inspired me to compose what was in the air.

The following are excerpts of an interview of Randy Weston conducted in April 1995 by Mari Jo Johnson.

I listened to Tanjah recently and it still sounds current, timeless. What do you think accounts for this? Do you attribute this to your music being classic or traditional in the true sense?

I just listened to it with Melba Liston and we suddenly realized: It's as if no time went by at all. This is the kind of music that is both traditional and modern. There has not been a big change [for me] musically at all.

[But times are changing;] I've never felt African spirituality as strong as I have recently, in many things I see. I see children playing the African drum in America. I see exhibitions of sculpture; I see more bookshops and more people aware of African writers and African-Caribbean writers. Mother Africa, for me. Is asserting herself and I'm part of that current. Anybody involved with the spirit and culture of the real Africa today, in spite of all the negative things, has got to be inspired: We're coming together globally after having been separated for centuries.

What about playing solo piano as opposed to playing with sidemen?

With solo piano you're no longer a pianist, you're a storyteller. You have to tell stories, you have to paint pictures, you have to create sculpture, you have to recite poetry with the instrument. You take people on different voyages, to different worlds. So the piano, already an orchestra, becomes a moving orchestra; you can go to Brazil and Italy and Harlem.

[This feeling was] strengthened by being in Africa, because traditional musicians there are historians and storytellers. When they're playing a song, they're keeping a certain story alive. The piano becomes a traditional African instrument:
The musicians tell a story so we can never forget. If I'm telling a story about Duke Ellington, a tribute to him. It's not just his song I'm playing: I'm protecting the Spirit of Duke Ellington. I'm letting the people know they can never forget this man.

I want to tell different stories now. I want to tell about certain heroes of mine in Africa, but I have not had the time to compose a melody or a rhythm. For example, Cheikh Anta Diop is one of my heroes, and I want to write some music for him but It hasn't happened yet- I want to do more portraits.

Has there been a certain time in your career when there was an outpouring of several new compositions?

Oh, definitely, the late Fifties to early Sixties was a very explosive period for me, the most active period for writing compositions. I don't compose as I used to, maybe because I'm playing more piano now. It sounds funny, it sounds contrary in a way. bill since I've been playing more solo piano, the ideas don't come for compositions as they used to. In the late Fifties to early Sixties, it was all in the air: the Civil Rights Movement, Malcolm X, Martin Luther King ... we had that kind of energy, and it inspired me to compose what was in the air.

Your association with Melba Liston goes back to the Fifties, when you were both with Riverside Records. What has been her role in the Randy Weston big-band sound?

Melba is incredible; she hears what I do and then expands it. She will create a melody that sounds like I created it; she's just a great, great arranger.
Melba has had tremendous big-band experience, she has traveled a lot, and she knows a lot more about musicians than I do. So whenever we do a date, we always sit and talk about the musicians we want for our band. For each recording I have a certain sound that I hear for a particular instrument, and a certain musician has a particular sound that I would like for that song - and Melba's, the same way. She picked Ernie Royal. and she reintroduced me to Budd Johnson and Quentin Jackson, her buddies. Whenever [Melba and 1] had a big band. when they were alive, we'd always start off with them and build from there.

We never said it directly, but we both knew that to do a recording we would want to have the older musicians to give us that foundation, and then we would get the younger musicians on top. The older musicians have the know-how; they know all the secrets, things that we don't know about music. Melba always made sure that we would have that kind of base.

The musicians for this dais were hand-picked and the cream of the crop of those residing in New York City at the time. Talk about them and why you picked each one.

Ray Copeland and I go back together; we were in a band in Brooklyn when we were seventeen years old. He was my original arranger when we had the small group. Ray was a featured trumpeter at Radio City Music Hall at the same time he was making gigs with me, in the Fifties and early Sixties. He was really a wonderful trumpet player and we were very close.

I heard Jon Faddis play - well, I'd never heard a young man play trumpet like that before — I heard him when he was nineteen years old, When Melba and I were putting the band together, we said we needed somebody who [could] hit those high notes. Jon's playing was way up there, in the stratosphere. It was really Hi-Fly

I had not worked with Ernie Royal before. But the solo he took on The Last Day is just an absolute masterpiece. All of these elder musicians had such beautiful tones [on] their instruments.

I remember Julius Watkins when he and Charlie Rouse had their own group. Julius was one of those foundations I mentioned before: When we were putting a big band together, one of the first persons we spoke about was Julius A master French horn player.

Al Grey was on Uhuru Afrika, which we did [for Roulette] in 1960, I'll never forget meeting Al in Paris years ago; it was a big rally for some political party and we did "Hi-Fly" as a ballad. His playing almost made people cry.

Norris Turney took over Johnny Hodges's place with Duke's band, and although he doesn't sound like Hodges, he has that romantic, beautiful, big, pretty sound. It reminded me how, growing up, listening to my heroes, I could identify everybody by his sound. Morris's sound on Sweet Meat is just so thrilling; three different versions that he plays entirely differently. I don't like Fender Rhodes but I try to do something different on each version.

The first time I heard Billy Harper was with Max Roach's group, and I just fell in love with him right away. He has that kind of energy, the kind of power Booker Ervin had, he doesn't play like Booker but he's got that Texas fire, a dynamic, energetic sound, that challenges.

Danny Bank, the baritone player, took care of business on this date. It was my first time working with him.

Budd Johnson, another foundation, a great saxophone player and arranger, a wonderful person, too; I remember Budd when he was with Earl Hines. Earl had a piece, "Second Balcony Jump", and Budd was featured on it. I also met him through Melba, and she and I would always try to get him whenever we put together a big band.

Ahmed Abdul-Malik and I also grew up together. Ahmed exposed me to North African and Arab music. He was the first one to really bring Middle Eastern music and jazz together. When we were young we used to get put out of bands, because we were always trying to find funny notes to play, the notes in between notes. He was on my first tour, when I went to Nigeria in 1961.

Ron Carter and I go back to the Fifties, when he played with my trio; we used to work in the Berkshires. His bass work is just incredible on this particular date; he plays so beautifully — just a great musician!

Candido was the real master, from Cuba, I worked with him for three years or more - I had become exposed to African-Cuban drumming when I heard Chano Pozo, whom Candido succeeded. Really a true master drummer. Having him and Azzedin together was just fantastic.

My son, Azzedin Weston, has a unique style of drumming, having [listened] to popular music in the late Fifties and early Sixties and having traveled to Africa with me. He also studied with Sticks Evans, a wonderful teacher of drums and percussion, and also his own talent nurtured in
Morocco. Azzedin, I can truly say. is an original on the conga drums.

Rudy Collins. a superb musician, was one of the very top big-band drummers: he could handle everything.

Delores Ivory Davis had a beautiful, priceless voice and was a great pleasure to work with.
Ray, Ernie, and Rudy . . . they're no longer with us; they are really missed. They were deep brothers and great musicians.

This music sounds very fresh because of its rhythms. We were paying a lot of attention to the rhythm a long time ago, playing music that was very strong and very rhythmic. People weren't ready for the African direction. Now people have caught up with this music.

This music is like the traditional music of Africa, it's timeless. When you go into the village and you hear the music there, you realize the real music is timeless.

1995 Mari Jo Johnson.

Download Tanjah

Foday Musa Suso - Watto Sitta

2008-12-29T00:01:00.000-06:00

Watto Sitta, credited to Foday Musa Suso's band Mandingo (also known as Mandingo Griot Society), was one of the fruits of his collaboration with Bill Laswell (during the 1980s and 1990s) and brief association with Herbie Hancock during the 1980s. Recorded during the period in which Foday Musa Suso appeared on Herbie Hancock's album Sound System, and collaborated with Hancock on Village Life and Jazz Africa, Watto Sitta has a considerably more popish sound. Some of that no doubt is due to the presence of Bill Laswell as co-producer, and the temptation at the time to add drum machine effects (they detract a bit considering that the crew assembled included plenty of expert drummers and percussionists). That said, it makes for an enjoyable listen, and although out of print currently, inexpensive copies can be found. The last track is my personal favorite. You'll recognize many of the musicians on Watto Sitta from their appearance as performers on Jazz Africa, and both those albums can be played back-to-back quite comfortably. If you enjoy one of those recordings, you'll enjoy the other as well.

Personnel:
Foday Musa Suso - Kora, Dousongoni, Kalimba, Talking Drum, Lead Vocal
Joe Thomas - Bass
Abdul Kakeen - Guitar
Adam Rudolph - Congas, Moroccan Bongos, FraFra Bell, Gnaua Clapper, Shekere, Turtle Shell
Hamid Drake - Drums
Reymond Sillah - Dudungo
Isatou Walker - Backing Vocals
Nora Harris - Backing Vocals
Robin Robinson - Backing Vocals
Manu Washington - Djembe (track 6)
Herbie Hancock - DX7 Synthesizer (tracks 1, 5)

Tracks:
1. Harima
2. Muso
3. Natural Dancer
4. Kansala
5. Dewgal
6. Don't Worry

Produced by Bill Laswell and Foday Musa Suso. DMX programming by Bill Laswell and Foday Musa Suso. All songs written and arranged by Foday Musa Suso.

Released initially in 1984 on Celluloid (catalogue # CELL 6103) as an LP and three years later as a CD. Later reissued on CD by Terrascape.

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Alan Shorter: Orgasm

2008-12-28T00:54:00.000-06:00

I managed to score a copy of Orgasm when Verve briefly reissued the album as part of its short-lived "Elite Edition" series. It's kind of an odd album in that in the middle of recording Alan apparently switched producers, and also had to replace some of his players. In spite of the behind-the-scenes turmoil, Orgasm is a consistent sounding recording, and one of the more beautiful statements from the free jazz community. I've heard of comparisons between this album and Ornette Coleman's early work (the two composers share a common bassist, Charles Haden), and I find that I can play this album fairly comfortably side by side with some of Coleman's classics (Change of the Century comes to mind). Much has been made about his apparent lack of training and technique, although honestly I can't really hear any deficit in his flugelhorn playing. He seems to get the job done within the parameters of his compositions, which I would suppose is pretty much what matters. It's a painfully hard to find album, but worth finding and spinning. Shorter would go on to record Tes Esat, which was reissued briefly a few years ago.

Alan apparently had a number of personal problems that made him difficult to work with, and he died in obscurity in the late 1980s. His brother Wayne had this to say about him:

The strongest thing you can say about Alan is that he was an original, as original as you can get. He didn't want any academic guidelines to equip him to reinvent the wheel. He was always in confrontation, or there was confrontation on the horizon...with record executives, rehearsal places, front offices, professors in school. Teachers would mark on his papers, and he would ask "Why?" on top of the teachers' remarks.

I gather that Alan did quite a bit of composing during his brief life, and left behind scattered remains of those compositions as his legacy. Wayne once commented that he would one day look through Alan's work and do some of his compositions (Wayne used his brother's "Mephistopheles" on one of his mid-1960s albums), although as far as I am aware that has yet to bear fruit.

Personnel:
Alan Shorter - Flügelhorn (all tracks except track 4), Trumpet (track 4), Tambourine (track 4)
Gato Barbieri - Tenor Sax
Charlie Haden - Bass (tracks 1, 6)
Reggie Johnson - Bass (tracks 2, 3, 4, 5)
Rashied Ali - Drums (tracks 1, 6)
Muhammad Ali (Drums (tracks 2, 3, 4, 5)

Tracks:
1. Parabola
2. Joseph
3. Straits of Blagellan
4. Rapids
5. Outeroids
6. Orgasm

Recorded at A&R Recording, NYC, September 23, 1968 (tracks 3 & 4); September 25, 1968 (tracks 2 & 5); and November 6, 1968 (tracks 1 & 6). Released on Verve, catalogue # V6-8768.

Download Orgasm

Steve Williamson: Journey to Truth

2008-12-26T01:12:00.001-06:00

There is nothing that could have prepared those who knew of Steve Williamson only from his first album, A Waltz for Grace, for what awaited them upon dropping Journey to Truth into the CD player. The cover photo and CD graphics should be a dead giveaway that this cat was up to something different - from the pix of Williamson that harken back to the early 1970s to the hip-hop flavored graphics - this was not going to be a collection of post bop numbers. The very first track sounds inspired by John Coltrane and Rashied Ali's jams on Interstellar Space (a sound that will be replicated on track 4, "Affirmation"). The second track, with its hard funk rhythm section and inspired vocals by Jhelisa Anderson, should seal it. Williamson was out to make a statement.

In fact, it seems like a concept album. The problem is, as I have mentioned elsewhere, that Journey to Truth SOUNDS like three separate albums - each going in its own direction, which is not healthy for a concept album. There aren't any bad tracks on the album, though the raps on the middle section are probably less inspired than music and vocals found on the rest of the tracks. It's just that Journey to Truth doesn't make for a particularly coherent listening experience.

I'm partial to the first section, The Journey, which is what I imagine Plunky Branch and crew of Oneness of Juju would have sounded like if they had traveled ahead in time a couple decades. From the Coltranesque sax and percussion excursions on "Meditation" and "Affirmation," to the title track, the instrumental "Oh Africa Africa Africa," to the smoking cover of "Celestial Blues," Williamson hits all the right notes. The music is tight, the mood is set, and the listener can groove and meditate at the same time.

The second section, The Pffat Factor, will probably be mildly reminiscent of Miles Davis' Doo Bop, or perhaps Guru's Jazzmatazz albums. Personally I tend groove much more on Williamson's sax playing than his rapping, and think that Black Thought has had much better moments with his own crew, The Roots (whose albums I strongly recommend). The last track in the section is an instrumental, and seems like it could have had potential for the rotation at a smooth jazz station.

The final section, That Fuss, is comprised of three solid jazzy R&B numbers somewhat focused on social-political concerns. I'm not sure how tuned in Williamson was to Plunky Branch's 1980s work with The Oneness of Juju, but it seems safe to point out that Williamson was mining similar territory. Those last three tracks seem like they could have been quite radio-friendly. Overall, Williamson is communicating a positive message, attempting to incite his listeners to pursue spiritual and social change - and that is the constant in these otherwise very divergent sections making up the finished product. It's all well-produced, Williamson definitely knows how to write and play, and he's surrounded himself with an able crew of musical performers. If you keep an open mind, you certainly won't be bored.

The problem, to the extent that it is a problem, is that Williamson seems like one of those musically and intellectually curious cats who simply is interested in so much that he ends up going off in multiple directions at once. His music is very hard to pigeonhole that way, but it is an approach that isn't conducive to record sales. Hence, this would be his last recording as a leader, so far. The suits at Verve would drop him from the roster, and Williamson would fade into obscurity. Occasionally I read rumors that he's still recording, is involved with two different combos (one that sticks to relatively straight-ahead jazz and one that pursues the funk and hip-hop direction that characterized this album) and apparently continues to be quite impressive on stage.

Since I've already mentioned the involvement of one member of the legendary alternative rap crew The Roots, Black Thought, I would be remiss in my blogging duties if I did not mention the involvement of two other members: Hubb and B.R.O.theR.? (the artist usually known as ?estlove).

As an aside - I'd be curious to hear the album that came in between 1990's A Waltz for Grace and 1995's Journey to Truth: that is 1992's Rhyme Time (That Fuss Was Us!).

Performers:
Steve Williamson - tenor sax (tracks 1, 2, 4, 9, 10, 12), alto sax (tracks 2, 11, 13), soprano sax (track 6, 7, 8, 11), bells (tracks 1, 4), programming (tracks 2, 7, 8, 10, 11), drum programming (track 6), keyboards (tracks 6, 7, 10, 11), EWI (tracks 6, 7), piano (tracks 11, 12), cowbell (track 8), vocal execution (tracks 6, 7), organ licks (track 13)
Sola Akingbola - percussion (tracks 1, 4, 5), djembe drums (tracks 1, 4)
Jhelisa Anderson - vocals (tracks 2, 5, 12)
Anthony Tidd - piano (tracks 2, 3), organ intro (track 6)
Marc Cyril - bass (tracks 2, 9, 11, 12, 13)
Hubb (Leonard Hubbard) - bass (track 5), piano (track 11)
Michael Mondesir - bass (tracks 6, 7, 8)
B.R.O.theR.? (Ahmir Khalib Thompson) - drums (tracks 2, 3, 5, 7, 9, 12)
Pete Lewinson - drums (tracks 11, 13)
Henri Jelani Defoe - guitar (tracks 2, 3, 5, 6, 7, 8, 11, 13)
Jason Rebello - rhodes (track 5)
Black Thought (Tariq Trotter) - rap (tracks 9, 12)
Dennis Rollins - trombone (tracks 11, 13)
Pamela Anderson - vocals (track 11)
Noel McKoy - vocals (tracks 12, 13)

Tracks:
The Journey
1. Meditation (3:23)
2. Journey to Truth (7:48)
3. Oh Africa Africa Africa (6:08)
4. Affirmation (3:27)
5. Celestial Blues (6:56)
The Pffat Factor
6. Part I: Who Dares (5:56)
7. Part II: They Don't Wanna Hearit! (6:31)
8. Part III: Rough (5:42)
9. Pffat Time (6:02)
10. Antigua (3:53)
That Fuss
11. How Ya Livin? (4:37)
12. Blakk Planets (5:32)
13. Evol Lover (4:57)

All tracks composed and arranged by Steve Williamson, except track 2 (vocal arranged by Jhelisa Anderson), track 5 (written by Andy Bey), track 11 (written by Pamela Anderson and Steve Williamson) and track 13 (written by Noel McKoy).

Dowload Journey to Truth

Steve Williamson: A Waltz For Grace

2008-12-25T18:49:00.001-06:00

Steve Williamson was part of a late 1980s-early 1990s British Invasion of jazzers, that also included Courtney Pine (both of whom played together with the UK's Jazz Warriors). The impression I get is that both musicians were initially considered part of the so-called "young lions" who had endeavored to return jazz to its pre-fusion and pre-free jazz roots, but both as time went on, had other ideas. This particular album, A Waltz for Grace (dedicated to his grandmother), is Steve William's first as a band leader. It's basically a post bop recording with some interesting funk and Latin flourishes throughout. It's also the more coherent of the two albums of his that I have in my possession, and one that I enjoy listening to in its entirety from start to finish whenever I have the time. Whether the album had enough going for it to stand out from the rest of the early 1990s post bop field is debatable, and I get the feeling that its critical reception was fairly mixed. Still, I think it's quite nice and certainly worth a listen. We'll just add it to the list of woulda-coulda-shoulda recordings that now languish in some corporate conglomerate's vaults.

Personnel:
Steve Williamson - All Saxophones plus Additional Percussion (on UK Sessions)
Mark Mondesir - Drums
Lonnie Plaxico - Bass (US Sessions)
Gary Crosby - Bass (UK Sessions)
Dave Gilmore - Guitar (US Sessions)
Julian Joseph - Guitar (UK Sessions)
Abbey Lincoln - Vocals (track 4)
Kevin Haynes - Additional Percussion (on UK Sessions)

Tracks:
1. Down (Slang) (3:18)
2. Awakening (4:35)
3. Visions (4:29)
4. A Waltz For Grace (4:15)
5. Mandy's Mood (5:49)
6. Soon Come (4:14)
7. Straight Ahead (4:45)
8. Mandela (4:29)
9. Groove Thang (1:42)
10. Synthesis (4:59)
11. Hummingbird (5:41)
12. How High The Bird (4:22)
13. Words Within Words (5:01)

Download A Waltz For Grace

Herbie Hancock & Foday Musa Suso: Jazz Africa

2008-12-24T12:44:00.001-06:00

Jazz Africa is the live companion piece to Village Life. Recorded in Los Angeles at some point around 1986, the duo is augmented by a number of sidemen - many of whom were heavy hitters in the music world at the time. Here's an AMG review of the album:

Recorded in Los Angeles' Wiltern Theatre one December afternoon as part of the Jazzvisions project, this was released four years later almost as an afterthought to the series -- and even many of Hancock's electric music fans weren't aware it was out. A pity, for this is one of the great unheralded Herbie Hancock recordings, a rock-'em, sock-'em, live tour de force that fuses Hancock's electric keyboard work, Foday Musa Suso's kora, incantory vocals, and scraping violin, and a thundering African/Caribbean rhythm section. The CD opens and ends quietly with the delicate, folk-like music introduced on Village Life but the record is dominated by two lengthy, madly swinging workouts for Hancock, Suso and the rhythm section, which is anchored by Santana's ageless Cuban-born percussionist Armando Peraza. Though not all of the concert is included here (the laserdisc and VHS versions contain more music), the CD does convey a good deal of the incredible energy level of the live event, where Hancock looked and played like a man possessed. This was a real breakthrough for Hancock, but alas, this perpetual chameleon has yet to pursue this stimulating direction further.

The music draws on the ideas explored on Village Life, but more danceable, funkier than the original. I've done my best to determine the credits from extremely minimal information. Hopefully it's accurate enough. If you liked Village Life, you'll dig this one was well. Copies of this album now sell for around $125, if you can find 'em.

Personnel:
Herbie Hancock - keyboards
Foday Musa Suso - kora, vocals
Aiyb Dieng - percussion
Armando Peraza - percussion
Adam Rudolph - percussion
Joe Thomas - bass
Hamid Drake - drums, percussion
Abdul Hakeem - guitar

Tracks:
1. Kumbasora
2. Debo
3. Cigarette Lighter
4. Jimbasing

Download Jazz Africa

In case you hadn't noticed

2008-12-24T02:44:00.003-06:00

This place has become busy as of late. One factor is some occasional time to breathe. Until the 2nd of January, I'm on vacation, which gives me some time to line up some music to post. Even before that, once my courses were sufficiently prepped late in the semester, I was able to devote more to this particular endeavor. We'll see what the interterm and spring semester do to my schedule - I wouldn't expect the current torrid pace to go on indefinitely, but realistically I should be able to up a couple albums a week most weeks. The other factor was - thanks to some very kind donors - I've been able to afford some better software for ripping and transforming my cd collection to high-quality mp3 files (at least better than Windows Media Player). You've already begun reaping some of the benefits, and I'm only warming up. Over the next several months, I should be able to treat you to some out-of-print and often hard-to-find jazz recordings, as well as some industrial music, fourth world, and some other dangers.

In the meantime, if you're new to this joint, take a look around - there are plenty of albums to download (as of now there are over 120 active downloads available). To those who visit, I never say this enough: thanks.

Randy Weston Vishnu Wood Duo: Perspective

2008-12-23T20:31:00.000-06:00

Perspective is one of many fine recordings that has slipped through the cracks. Although out of print, it's not impossible to find used at a semi-reasonable price. For whatever reason, no one that I know of has shared this album either via p2p or via the music sharing blogs. It's certainly a pleasant enough listening experience, and a piano-bass duo setting is pretty unusual for Weston making the recording a fairly unique one in Weston's extensive (and thankfully extensively recorded) career. Vishnu Wood is considerably less known of the two, perhaps best known for his performance (playing oud) on Alice Coltrane's album Journey in Satchidananda. Wood appeared on some of Weston's albums during the 1970s, and appeared on at least one Archie Shepp album before disappearing. It's warm music perfect for those cold winter evenings.

Personnel:
Randy Weston - Piano
Vishnu Wood - Bass

Tracks:
1. Blues to be There (Ellington, Strayhorn)
2. Body and Soul (Eyton, Green, Heyman, & Sour)
3. Hi Fly (Weston)
4. Khadesha (Wood)
5. African Cookbook (Weston)

Both musicians play together except for "Hi Fly", which is a Randy Weston piano solo, and "Khadesha", which is a Vishnu Wood bass solo.

Recorded December 14, 1976. Issued on Denon, probably 1977, catalogue # YX-7564-ND. Reissued on CD by Denon, catalogue # 8554.

Download Perspective

Maleem Mahmoud Ghania with Pharoah Sanders: The Trance of Seven Colors

2008-12-23T13:41:00.002-06:00

This was my first album of Gnawa trance music, and what led me to pick it up in the first place was the mere fact that Pharoah Sanders was on it, and during the late 1990s I was on a Pharoah Sanders binge (much to my wife's chagrin). Once the first few seconds of the first track unfolded, I was hooked, and there was no looking back.

The mid-1990s marked something of a renaissance for Pharoah Sanders, who rediscovered the fierceness of his early years on Sonny Sharrock's last proper studio album Ask the Ages, and subsequently became a highly sought-after sideman on numerous projects (e.g., Franklin Kiermyer's album Solomon's Daughter in which Sanders is part of the quartet, a couple tracks on Jah Wobble's Heaven and Earth, an appearance on a remake of the Last Poets' classic "This is Madness" for the Stolen Moments: Red Hot + Cool compilation CD). Sanders would shortly thereafter record the album Message From Home. Whether it was drawing on the legacy of Trane's classic quartet era, or pushing the envelop with some fierce playing in hip-hop, alternative rock, or world music genres, Pharoah Sanders was proving a force to be reckoned with once more.

In some respects, this album recalls some of the more world music moments from such Pharoah Sanders albums as Thembi, and his playing is consistently fiery throughout. Not to worry: Sanders does not steal the show, laying out for a couple tracks and ever mindful that the music is the Gnawans' vision. He does get a moment all to himself though - see "Peace in Essaouira (For Sonny Sharrock)" - and his tone is rich and warm as he pays homage to a deceased friend. Bill Laswell produces, but unlike a lot of Laswell joints, this time around Laswell hangs back and simply documents the action. The album feels like some master Gnawa musicians and a jazzer (and friends & family) getting together to party. Somehow I feel physically better whenever I play this recording - that may be merely psychosomatic, but I'd like to believe that this is truly healing music.

Note, I believe this album does tend to circulate around blogtopia. Hopefully I won't be stepping on too many toes, and hopefully the perspective I offer is unique enough to make it worth your while.

Performers:
Maleem Mahmoud Ghania - Guimbri, Lead Vocal, Tbel
Pharoah Sanders - Tenor Saxophone
Maleem Boubker Ghania - Second Guimbri (track 6), Tbel
Maleem Mahmoud Ahkaraz - Tbel (track 8)
Maleem Abdellah Ghania - Krkaba, Vocal Chorus, Handclaps
Abdellah Ahkaraz - Krkaba, Vocal Chorus, Handclaps
El Moktar Ghania - Krkaba, Vocal Chorus, Handclaps
Mohamed Abdellaoui - Krkaba, Vocal Chorus, Handclaps
Mohamad Outanine - Krkaba, Vocal Chorus, Handclaps
Abdellatif Abdellaoui - Krkaba, Vocal Chorus, Handclaps
Hassan Machoure - Krkaba, Vocal Chorus, Handclaps
Mohamed Boujmia - Krkaba, Vocal Chorus, Handclaps
Abdellah Lamsuiger - Handclaps

On "Handouchi" only
Hamadcha of Essaouira:
Maleem Abdelkabir Addabachi - Lead Ghaita
Abdelmalak Ben Hamou - Ghaita
Abderrahman Nimini - Tbel
Abdelmoula Hnikkich - Harrz
Mustapha Bouson - Harraz

Female Vocal Chorus
Zaida Ghania - Leader
Mina Ahkaraz, Saida Battach, Fatna Ifis, Fatima Labied, Hafida Ghania, J'mia Ghania, Khadija Ghania, Malika Ghania

Tracks:
1. La Allah Dayim Moulenah (Ghania, Sanders) 11:10
2. Bala Moussaka (Traditional) 3:54
3. Hamdouchi (Traditional) 9:07
4. Peace in Essaouira [For Sonny Sharrock] (Sanders) 7:23
5. Boulandi Samawi (Traditional) 13:56
6. Moussa Berkiyo/Koubaliy Beriah La'foh (Traditional) 4:34
7. Salat Anbi (Traditional) 8:17
8. Casa Casa Atougra (Traditional) 5:05
9. Mahraba (Traditional) 7:48

All tracks are traditional and arranged by Maleem Mahmoud Ghania except:
Track 1: written by Maleem Mahmoud Ghania & Pharoah Sanders
Track 3: Traditional, arranged by Maleem Abdelkabir Addabachi
Track 4: written by Pharoah Sanders

Recorded in the House of the Caid Khoubane in the Medina of Essaouira, District Chbanat, Morocco on June 1, 1994 - June 3, 1994. Released on Axiom, catalogue # 524047.

Download The Trance of Seven Colors

The Splendid Master Gnawa Musicians of Morocco featuring Randy Weston

2008-12-23T03:35:00.002-06:00

I first heard Gnawa trance music around a decade ago, and was immediately hooked. I remember telling a younger friend about the genre, but made the mistake of including the term "trance music" in the description. It became clear in a hurry that each of us held a radically different definition of "trance" - Gnawa trance music is performed exclusively on acoustic instruments. Whether or not my younger friend ever checked into the music of the Gnawa I do not know - I lost touch with him probably six or seven years ago.

This particular album was actually the second Gnawa trance CD that I picked up (the first was The Trance of Seven Colors), and part of the appeal was Randy Weston's involvement in the project. Weston mainly takes a back seat, save for some brief piano accompaniment on the final track, "Chalabati" and handling the production chores. In the wrong hands, this could have been an exercise in exotica for the sake of exotica. Not so here. Weston's interest in the music is quite genuine and deep-seated - going back a few decades (his first stint residing in Morocco was from 1968-1973), and a Gnawa influence can be found in much of his recorded jazz output since the 1970s. Since about the late 1990s (if not before), Weston has been performing in concert with master Gnawa musicians - occasionally dropping a live CD every now and then. A great deal of care went into the production and packaging of this particular album - including a fair amount of material in the liner notes regarding the context of the Gnawa tribe, their history, and some information about the selections included on the finished product. Needless to say, since a traditional Gnawa healing ceremony would last for hours, we're merely being treated to a portion of what would be experienced. If I ever get the opportunity to travel to Morocco, the music of the Gnawa is definitely on the list of experiences to savor. The music and the information on the CD are themselves to be savored as both a sensuous and educational experience.

Performers:
Hag'houge, clapping, vocals
The M'Alems (The Masters):
Ali El Mansoum
Molay Abdelaziz
Mohamed Zourhba
Boubker Gania
Mohamed El Ghorfi
Ahmed Boussou
Abdelouahid Berrady
Mahmoud Gania

Karkaba, backing vocals, clapping
M'Barek Ben Outman
Abdemebi Oubella

Hag'houge, clapping, vocals
Abdellah El Gourd

Piano
Randy Weston

Tracks:
1. La Voix Errrante: Sorie/Folinho Rejale/Ahayana Wayi/Bokarli Ana (18:58)
2. Sound Playing: Bermaryo/Fanyro/Merkadi/Yobady/Ya la la/Concoba/Tembara (43:26)
3.Chalabati (8:31)

Recorded September 17, 1992 in the ballroom of the La Mamounia Hotel, Marrakech, Morocco. Released on Verve-Antilles in 1994 (catalogue # 314 521 587-2).

Download The Splendid Master Gnawa Musicians of Morocco

Griot Galaxy: Kins

2008-12-23T02:02:00.000-06:00

Griot Galaxy was a Detroit-area crew that flourished during the 1980s. Kins was, as far as I know, their first release. I first of heard of Griot Galaxy in 2004, and over the next year learned a good deal about the band and one of their members, Faruq Z. Bey. These cats at times sound like a portion of one of Sun Ra's arkestras - indeed the song titles alone suggest a Sun Ra influence, as did the band's apparent tendency to perform in Sun Ra-style costumes. At other times throughout the album, they show some definite punk and funk influences, such as on "Zenolog Aintro". Overall, the music is moody, angular music, perfect for the times (then and now). Fans of Sun Ra, Ornette Coleman (especially his Prime Time band), James "Blood" Ulmer (even though there is no guitarist in this band), late-1970s Human Arts Ensemble, and Defunkt should find plenty to like about this crew.

Personnel:
Jaribu Shahid - Acoustic Bass, Electric Bass
Tani Tabbal - Drums
David McMurray - Flute, Tenor Sax, Alto Sax, Soprano Sax
Anthony Holland - Alto Sax, Soprano Sax
Faruq Z. Bey - Tenor Sax, Alto Sax

Tracks:
1. Xy-Moch
2. Zycron
3. Zenolog Aintro
4. Androgeny
5. Kins
6. Xy-Moch Theme

Recorded September 13 & 14, 1981 at Spectrum Sound Studio, Detroit, Michigan. Poem by Mashashahid dated 1-4-82. Released on Black & White Records, catalogue # B & W 001.

Download Kins

Arthur Doyle Quartet: Live @ The Cooler

2008-12-22T23:28:00.000-06:00

Live @ The Cooler is a nice follow-up to the Blue Humans album I posted previously. This time around, Arthur Doyle is in charge. The tunes are ones that are among Doyle's standards (to the extent that someone as obscure as Doyle can have songs considered standards) - especially "Flue Song" and "Noah Black Ark". The former features Doyle playing the flute; the latter is a homage to Noah Howard, who gave Doyle his first big break in the free-jazz realm on The Black Arc (the piece builds on that album's tune "Mount Fuji"). On the opening track, Doyle sounds like he's playing multiple reeds at once. For his part, Rudolph Grey's playing is as loud as ever, but the sound is more atmospheric. To these ears, 15 years allowed Doyle and Grey to become wiser, more skillful collaborators. It doesn't hurt that the rhythm section is up to the task of keeping up with those two.

Personnel:
Arthur Doyle (tenor sax, flute)
Rudolph Grey (electric guitar)
Wilbur Morris (bass)
Tom Surgal (drums)

Tracks:
1. Spiritual Healing
2. Flue Song
3. Noah Black Ark

All compositions by Arthur Doyle (BMI)
Photos: Simon Badger
Liner Notes: Sumner Crane
Recorded March 15, 1995

Released on The Lotus Sound in 1996

Download Live @ The Cooler

The Blue Humans: Live - N.Y. 1980

2008-12-22T22:55:00.002-06:00

This album was my introduction to Arthur Doyle. The way that cat could hold his own with Rudolph Grey's guitar playing (with the amps turned all the way to 11) turned me into a believer. During the relatively quieter moments, Beaver Harris lays out this tribal groove that practically calls listeners to join the pit. These cats were playing some extra-loud free-form energy music at punk clubs in the late 1970s and early 1980s, which seems appropriate enough. Hell, we'll call it jazz you can mosh to. Free jazz buffs who dig on punk and no wave, and punks who can groove on jazz will want to play this one at stun volume.

Personnel:
Rudolph Grey (Electric Guitar)
Arthur Doyle (Tenor Saxophone, Flute)
Beaver Harris (Percussion)

Tracks:
1. Untitled
2. Untitled
3. Untitled
4. Untitled

Cover Photo: Ronald V. Williams
Cover Design: Rudolph Grey
Recording Engineer/Graphics Production: R. Bianca
Recorded at Hurrah, NYC March 12, 1980

Released on Audible Hiss in 1995.

Download Live - N.Y. 1980

Noah Howard: Live in Europe Vol. 1

2008-12-22T01:42:00.001-06:00

Here's another one of those extreme hard-to-find albums. I obtained my copy several years ago on one of the p2p networks, and haven't seen it around the internet tubes since (save perhaps for the long-gone Church Number Nine blog). The sound is practically Coltrane-esque. This is music with plenty of fire, yet pleasing to the ears in much the same way that Trane's classic quartet was circa 1965. Noah Howard authored or co-authored three of the tracks. The remaining tracks are covers, including one of 'Trane's standards, "Ole'".

Personnel:
Noah Howard - Alto Sax
Takashi Kako - Piano
Ken Carter - Bass
Muhammad Ali - Drums (except track 4)
Oliver Johnson - Drums (track 4)

Tracks:
1. Creole Girl (N. Howard - N. Dove)
2. New Arrival (N. Howard)
3. Lift Every Voice And Sing (J. R. Johnson)
4. Ole' (J. Coltrane)
5. Kanpai (N. Howard - N. Dove)

Nat Dove is credited with arrangements for all tracks except "New Arrival". All tracks recorded at various European venues during 1975, and released on Sun Records, catalogue # SR 105.

Dowload Live in Europe Vol. 1

Plunky & Oneness of Juju: Make a Change

2008-12-22T00:58:00.001-06:00

1980's Make a Change marks the completion of the transition Plunky Branch was making from avant-jazz (as was the case on his early 1970s band Juju) to radio-friendly R&B and funk. That's not to say that there aren't some jazzy moments, but the jazz takes a back seat on this outing. The title track even manages to work in some reggae influences. The track "Every Way But Loose" would become a minor hit in the clubs and on the R&B charts in 1982, and sends the message that in addition to becoming more aware, these cats want to make you partay! "Run Away Bay" and "Love's Wonderland" would be considered "smooth jazz" today. Many of the tracks remind me of what bands like Earth Wind & Fire were doing at the time. Jazz purists won't groove on this, but those who don't mind exploring something with an R&B edge will find plenty to love.

Personnel:
Plunky Branch - Horns, Tenor Sax, Soprano Sax, Flute, Lead Vocals, Background Vocals
Muzi Branch - Bass, Background Vocals, Handclaps, Percussion
Ras Mel Glover Jr. - Lead Rhythm Guitars
Virtania "Cookie" Tillery - Lead Vocals, Background Vocals
Kevin Davis - Drums, Conga Drums, Timbales
Weldon Hill - Piano, Fender Rhodes, Synthesizers, Organ
Marcus Macklin - Rhythm Guitar
Eka Ete Jackie Lewis - Lead Vocals, Background Vocals
Okyerema Asante - Talking Drums
Judy Spears - Background Vocals
Veronica "Nilaya" Jones - Background Vocals
William "Bill" Joyner - Piano, Clavinet

Tracks:
1. Make A Change
2. Run Away Bay
3. Love's Wonderland
4. Every Way But Loose
5. Higher
6. Always Have To Say Good-Bye

From the liner notes:

The Oneness of Juju speaks of the unity of our magic, the togetherness of our purpose and the universality of our roots.

This music bridges several groupings who have performed as a family making changes, collectively creating music.

This album is dedicated to all those who have given themselves to make and/or support this music.

Thank you all, Plunky

Recorded at Omega Studios, Kensington, MD. Released on Black Fire Records, catalogue # BF19811).

This album would be re-released two years later on Sutra as Every Way But Loose, with a different track sequence, and an instrumental version of the title track added.

Download Make a Change

Oneness of Juju: Bush Brothers & Space Rangers

2008-12-22T00:52:00.000-06:00

Bush Brothers & Space Rangers, which is sometimes called Oneness of Juju's "lost" third album, was recorded in between Space Jungle Luv and Make a Change. It's a transitional album, with Plunky and crew continuing to deliver those spiritual and spirited kozmigroov jams, much as they had on 1975's African Rhythms and 1976's Space Jungle Luv. "Bootsie's Lament" is a gorgeous slow moving vocal number that makes me wonder why Ms. Lewis never quite had the fame that such contemporaries as Dee Dee Bridgewater had. The band reprises their signature tune "African Rhythms" with funkier percussion-laden instrumentation, and layers of vocals that make the end result more radical, more out there than the original version. "Rhythms Timelessness" is an instrumental that takes the basic "African Rhythms" theme and slows it down. "West Wind" has that atmospheric feel that would put it right at home with Herbie Hancock's early 1970s sextet, or Bennie Maupin's and Julian Priester's ECM albums from the decade. "Nooky" could have been an outtake from either of the first two Oneness of Juju albums. The band also does a couple covers - something a bit unusual - including a vocal version of Miles Davis classic "All Blues", and a cool version of George Benson's "Breezin'" that could have been radio-friendly (certainly for stations and DJs focused on R&B and Quiet Storm). What sets this particular album truly apart from its predecessors, though, is the presence of several fairly mainstream-sounding R&B numbers that foreshadow the band's minor early 1980s hit "Every Way But Loose." "Plastic" was the probable single, had this album had a proper release around 1978. That tune, along with "Be About the Future", "The Stuff to Make You Move", and "Get Your Head Together" are quite dancefloor friendly and certainly could have made the playlist of R&B stations. Plunky and crew were out to make a statement, and their positive message comes through loud and clear, and just as relevant three decades after their recording.

Personnel:
Plunky Branch - Tenor Sax, Soprano Sax, Flute, Shekere, Vocals
Eka Ete Jackie Lewis - Lead Vocals, Hand Percussion
Muzi Branch - Electric Bass, Shekere, Vocals, Arranger
Ras Mel Melvin Glover - Guitar, Shekere
Brian Jackson - Piano
Tony Green - Drums, Percussion
Okyerema Asante - African Drums, Log Drums, Bells, Percussion, Vocals
Judy Spears - Vocals
Peddie Maples - Congas, Vocals, Percussion

Tracks:
1. Breezin'
2. West Wind
3. African Rhythms
4. Be About the Future
5. Plastic (Is Easy to See Thru)
6. Nooky
7. All Blues
8. Afro Beat
9. Bootsie's Lament
10. Rhythms Timelessness
11. The Stuff to Make You Move
12. Get Your Head Together

Recorded September 6 1977 at Arrest Recording Studio, Washington DC.

Download Bush Brothers & Space Rangers

Lon Moshe's Southern Freedom Arkestra: Love is Where the Spirit Lies

2008-12-21T01:39:00.005-06:00

I just can't get enough of the music created on the Black Fire label during its run in latter half of the 1970s. This particular album credited to Lon Moshe (who was part of James Plunky Branch's bands Juju and Oneness of Juju). The tunes on Love is Where the Spirit Lies are very spiritual kozmigroov jams that are certainly influenced by early Juju (just check those first two Strata East albums), but also draw upon the sound and vision of such cats as Sun Ra, Alice Coltrane, Pharoah Sanders, early to mid 1970s Don Cherry, and early Mtume. Fans of those artists or of the Strata East label will probably groove on this one.

Just a word of warning: the sound files are ones I found via p2p networks a few years ago and the last track is badly messed up (if this were the good old days of analog sound media, I'd swear that half of that particular track had been accidentally taped over). The rest of the album should play just fine. Who knows, perhaps I will have incited someone to hook us up with a better version. Like a lot of the albums from the Black Fire back catalogue, this one goes in and out of print. I've just never had the good fortune to have the coin when it has been commercially available. Some day perhaps.

Personnel:
Lon Moshe - Vibraphone, Marimba
Eka Ete Jackie Lewis - Vocals
Robin Bolling - Vocals
Ngoma Hill - Poetry, Violin
Ras Mel Melvin Glover - Guitar
Nathanel Nat Lee - Acoustic Piano
Timothy A. Hall - Piano
Calvin Craddock - Bass
Tommy Spencer - 6 String Fender Bass
Reggie Brisbaine Jr. - Drums
Ndikho Xaba - Percussion, Conga, Bells
Marvin Daniels - Flugelhorn, Trumpet, Shekere
Ben Wilson - Vibraphone

Tracks:
1. Prayer for Saude
2. Love is Where the Spirit Lies
3. The Hutch
4. Doin' the Carvin' for Thabo
5. Survival Raga #9
6. Low Ghost
7. Ballad for Bobby Hutcherson

Recorded June 3, 1976 and September 14, 1977 at Arrest Recording Studio, Washington DC. Released on Black Fire, catalogue # BF 19804.

Download Love is Where the Spirit Lies

Ginger Baker - Stratavarious

2008-12-20T01:35:00.005-06:00

A lost gem from the early 1970s, parts of which ended up on a compilation album (Do What You Like) from Ginger Baker's short-lived Air Force project. Stratavarious is more properly Baker's first post-Air Force recording, and offers a mixed bag of afrojazz and jazz rock. The first two tracks are the more African-leaning tunes: the former Baker's take on a traditional song, the latter a tune penned by Fela Kuti. The next two tracks would appeal to classic rockers yearning for a return to the days of Cream. Throw in a drum duet with Guy Warren (a cat who paved the way for Babatunde Olatunji, and whose 1950s and 1960s recordings are about as hard as hen's teeth to find) and some electronic noodling, and you have the proverbial icing on the cake. A pretty nice description of the players and the album can be found at with comb & razor.

Personnel:
Ginger Baker - Drums
Guy Warren - Drums (track 5 only)
Fela Ransome-Kuti - Organ, Vocals, Piano, Percussion
Bobby Gass - Bass
Sandra Danielle - Vocals
Alhaji Jk Brimar - Percussion

Tracks:
1. Ariwo
2. Tiwa (It's Our Own)
3. Something Nice
4. Ju Ju
5. Blood Brothers 69
6. Coda

Download Stratavarious

Don Sleet: All Members

2008-12-19T00:48:00.003-06:00

How about a little change of pace. All Members was Don Sleet's only recording as a leader. Too bad, as the music and playing are as bad-ass as anything you'd hear on Blue Note during the era. Why Sleet never caught on is one for speculation, though perhaps Derek Taylor's explanation is plausible: he was just one among many highly talented musicians and composers, making the odds of standing out difficult at best.

Personnel:
Don Sleet - Trumpet
Jimmy Heath - Tenor Sax
Wynton Kelly - Piano
Ron Carter - Bass
Jimmy Cobb - Drums

Tracks:
1. Brooklyn Bridge
2. Secret Love
3. Softly, As in a Morning Sunrise
4. Fast Company
5. But Beautiful
6. All Members
7. The Hearing

Recorded March 16, 1961 at Plaza Sound Studios, and released that year by Jazzland, catalogue # JP-945.

Download All Members

Bobby Few: More Or Less Few

2008-12-19T00:05:00.001-06:00

Both Center of the World and Sun Records released some powerful music during their brief runs. Bobby Few, pianist who collaborated with Frank Wright, Alan Silva, and Muhammad Ali during the 1970s recorded a couple albums under his own name (one each for Center of the World and Sun). This particular recording is a piano trio date with Silva and Ali. The title track, "Simone", and "Chasing the Piano" are fiery energy pieces. "Few's Blues" is a free-jazz-blues tune that you can hum to. The boppish "I'll Never Be the Same Again" has Few on vocals, and has that late-night, bar is about to close feel to it. Dig it!

Personnel:
Bobby Few - Piano, Melodica, Voice
Muhammad Ali - Drums
Alan Silva - Bass

Tracks:
1. More Or Less Few
2. Few's Blues
3. Simone
4. I'll Never Be the Same Again
5. Chasing the Piano

Recorded in Paris, November 1973 and subsequently released on Center of the World, catalogue # CW 003.

Download More Or Less Few

Gato Barbieri and Dollar Brand: Hamba Khale

2008-12-17T14:40:00.003-06:00

Here's an interesting pairing: Gato Barbieri just before transitioning to a world fusion and later jazz-lite saxophonist and legendary South African pianist Dollar Brand. Lots of interesting jazz coming out of Europe in the late 1960s.

Personnel:
Gato Barbieri - Tenor Sax
Dollar Brand - Piano, Cello, and Tambourine

Tracks:
1. The Aloe and the Wild Rose
2. Hamba Khale
3. To Elsa
4. 81st Street

Download Hamba Khale.

Sun Records Discography Project

2008-12-11T23:35:00.003-06:00

I started up a blog called Staring at the Sun from the Center of the World, in an attempt to help centralize and simplify the search for rare and out of print recordings from France's Sun Records and Center of the World Records - two labels that issued a number of recordings by Frank Wright, Bobby Few, Alan Silva, and fellow travelers. I've provided relevant links for each album that I can find for either a blog or a label that currently has made the music available (be it by mp3 files or by selling the music commercially). Feel free to check it out, and if there's something I've managed to miss, drop a comment over at Staring at the Sun from the Center of the World.

Bobby Few, Alan Silva, & Frank Wright: Solos and Duets

2008-12-11T00:13:00.004-06:00

Here are both volumes of Solos and Duets by Bobby Few, Alan Silva, and Frank Wright. Both albums were recorded at various intervals in 1975, and the music on each album lives up to the title.

Frank Wright, Bobby Few, Alan Silva - Solos & Duets Vol 1

Released in 1976 on Sun Records, catalogue # SR102. Recorded at Massy Paris Reims between January and November 1975.

Personnel:
Bobby Few - Piano
Alan Silva - Bass
Frank Wright - Tenor Sax

Tracks:
1. Side A. (23:31)
a. Song For Cyrille, Children Of Joy
b. El Torro
c. Unknown Step

2. Side B. (15:48)
a. Echo Send
b. Sound Of A

Frank Wright, Bobby Few, Alan Silva - Solos & Duets Vol 2

Released in 1976 on Sun Records, catalogue # SR103. Recorded at Massy Paris Reims between January and November 1975.

Personnel:
Bobby Few - Piano
Alan Silva - Bass
Frank Wright - Tenor Sax

Tracks:
1. Side A. (24:00)
a. Grenada
b. Fondemental Blues

2. Side B. (24:15)
a. Who's Got The Keys
b. We Have Found The Keys

Fans of Joseph Jarman and Famoudou Don Moye's Egwu-Anwu and Marion Brown's Duets albums, who want something with just a bit more edge (Wright seems to be chaneling Albert Ayler on his appearances during these sessions), will find plenty to love about these albums. Note that each of the tracks on these rips is of a complete album side. Muchas, muchas gracias to Arcturus (if u r still reading this blog) for sending these my way last year when I was having some computer difficulties.

Download Solos and Duets Vol. 1

Download Solos and Duets Vol. 2

Frank Wright: Last Polka in Nancy?

2008-12-10T22:09:00.005-06:00

Last Polka in Nancy? was the second album released on the Center of the World label (catalogue # CS 002). The album was later reissued as a CD in 1999, with a bonus track on Fractal Records (catalogue # Fractal 007 CD). Like its companion recording, Center of the World, Vol. 1, Last Polka in Nancy? is out of print, and will cost an arm and a leg if you can find it. Besides, it isn't often that one gets to hear a free jazz polka tune (see track 5).

Here's Thom Jurek's review in AMG:

The second volume in the excellent Fractal live retrospective of the Frank Wright Quartet comes to us from Nancy in 1973. Pianist Bobby Few, bassist Alan Silva, and drummer Muhammad Ali (no, it's not) with Wright blowing the living hell out of his saxophones and clarinet, are a picture of free jazz as it permeated the European landscape at the time. This is a freewheeling exorcism of a set with spar but well placed dynamic sequences that accent all the textures possible when the boundaries to expression are gone. Silva uses a bow as much as he plays pizzicato; Few uses his keen sense of harmonic balance to open the upper register of the instrument while playing huge ninth and even 11th chords like a bell, ringing in the tone fields for Wright who bleats, squawks, screeches, screams, and moans through his horn, playing ostinato blues lines through his horn like Albert Ayler (check "Guana Dance, Part 2" by Silva especially). His notes are harsh, bitten off and bloodied curdles of the human voice as it attempts to express what it can never state in words. The compositions, if they can be called that, are by Few and Silva, and as open mode pieces; they work as such, especially on the level of timbral sonance and microtonal systemic work. Wright is no match for Few's sharp, elegant range on his instrument, and so he uses force as counterpoint, while Silva and Ali engage in the dance of shimmering tempos. There aren't many recordings like this out there, and this one is as essential and as blessed by demonic inspiration as Vol. 1 is.

Personnel:
Frank Wright - Tenor Sax, Bass Clarinet
Bobby Few - Piano
Alan Silva - Bass
Muhammad Ali - Drums

Tracks:
1. Winter Echoes (Few) 14:47
2. Guanna Dance, Part 1 (Silva) 4:04
3. Guanna Dance, Part 2 (Silva) 11:33
4. Thinking of Monk (Few) 1:21
5. Doing the Polka (Few) 10:16
6. Two Birds with One Stone (Wright) 18:57

Tracks 1 - 5 were recorded at the Jazz Pulsations Festival in Nancy, France 10/10/73. Track 6 was recorded at Detmold, Neue Anta, in 1978.

Download Last Polka in Nancy?

Byron Morris & Gerald Wise: Unity

2008-12-09T23:04:00.004-06:00

Here's another worth reposting. This album, Unity, was originally posted by the now apparently defunct Reality Unit Concepts in 2006. Here's how RUC described the album:

Byron Morris & Gerald Wise - "Unity" (EPI)

“The idea for this album was mostly spontaneous… until the actual recording, we had never performed together as a group. The result was not only beautiful, it was also a little unbelievable.” – Byron Morris
.

This is the album that Byron Morris put out in 1972, before “Blow thru your mind,” but bears little to no resemblance to any of his later albums. Recorded several years earlier in 1969, it is two sides of blistering, raw, unhinged jazz. . . .Also features an early appearance by two Philly artists who would later be frequently recorded: Byard Lancaster, who even contributes some Leon Thomas-esque yodels, and Keno Speller.

Here's the AMG review of Unity:

A few years before co-founding Unity with Vincent McEwan and Gerald Wise, Byron Morris co-led this rare 1969 date with Wise. Playing Unity next to the LPs that Morris recorded in the 1970s, one hears quite a contrast. The main focus of Morris' 1970s albums was a melodic, relatively accessible style of modal post-bop, whereas Unity favors abstract, uncompromising, mostly outside free jazz. The two instrumentals on this LP -- the 16-minute "JWM + 53" and the 23-minute "Black Awareness" -- aren't for the uninitiated. Like a lot of 1960s avant-garde jazz, Unity must be accepted on its own terms. And for those who do, the rewards are certainly there. The stream-of-consciousness approach serves Morris well, and he has very uninhibited company in Wise (trumpet), Byard Lancaster (soprano sax, flute, trumpet, drums), Vins Johnson (baritone and tenor sax), Freddie Williams (upright bass), Abu Richard Sharrieff (percussion), and Keno Speller (percussion). Unfortunately, this LP has long been out of print and is extremely difficult to find, so if by some chance you come across a copy somewhere, grab it immediately.

This session was recorded in 1969 and released in 1972 on E.P.I. Records (catalogue # EPI-01).

Personnel:
Byron Morris - Saxophone [Alto, Soprano], Vocals
Gerald Wise - Trumpet
Freddie Williams - Bass
Keno Speller - Congas, Effects [Special Effects]
Byard Lancaster - Flute, Saxophone [Soprano], Trumpet, Drums, Vocals
Abu Sharrieff - Percussion, Vocals
Vins Johnson - Saxophone [Tenor, Baritone]

Tracks:
1. JWM+53 (15:33)
2. Black Awareness (23:03)

Dowload Unity

Frank Wright: Church Number Nine

2008-12-09T01:40:00.004-06:00

Church Number Nine was recorded March 7, 1970 in Paris, and released on an obscuroid French label called Calumet (catalogue # 3674) in 1973, in an extremely limited run (only 300 copies were produced). It was briefly reissued a few years ago as a CD on Black Keys. The music is one continuous piece, broken up only due to the limitations of the vinyl LP format, and it's everything you'd expect for a free jazz blowout that includes both Frank Wright and Noah Howard. Frank Wright also adds voice periodically - saying, among other things, "It's time for the world to be at peace" (to which I say, amen!). The tune, "Church Number Nine" has also appeared in truncated form on Noah Howard's Space Dimension (utilizing the same lineup on that song only) and as a bonus track on the Fractal reissue of the Frank Wright album, Center of the World Vol. 1.

This particular lineup also recorded One For John in late 1969 for BYG/Actuel. Also, note the liner notes written by Valerie Wilmer, author of a book about the free jazz scene entitled, As Serious As Your Life.

Personnel:
Frank Wright - Tenor Sax, Voice
Noah Howard - Alto Sax
Bobby Few - Piano
Muhammad Ali - Drums

Tracks:
Church Number Nine Part 1 (25:44)
Church Number Nine Part 2 (19:18)

Download Church Number Nine

Frank Wright & Muhammad Ali: Adieu, Little Man

2008-12-08T23:48:00.007-06:00

Here's a reed/drum duo, in the tradition of John Coltrane and Rashied Ali (Muhammad's brother), tearing the roof off the sucka! If you like energy music, and loved Interstellar Space, you'll love this. Muhammad Ali didn't get a lot of recording opportunities during his career; his brother, who was also under-recorded, fared somewhat better. Those sessions on which Muhammad did appear quickly went out of print, with few being revived on CD (perhaps among the more noteworthy of those reisues was his appearance on three of the tracks on Alan Shorter's debut as a leader, Orgasm).

Adieu, Little Man was recorded in Paris in April 1974, and released on Wright's Center of the World label, catalogue # 004. The top image is from the front cover of the album (thanks to Rate Your Music); the remaining two images are of Frank Wright and Muhammad Ali, respectively from around that time. I don't know if those were part of that album's artwork or not. Whoever originally ripped this, thanks! Also props to Arcturus who sent this my way when my computer system went down last year.

Personnel:
Frank Wright -Tenor Sax, Bass Clarinet
Muhammad Ali -Drums

Tracks:
Side 1 (21:46)
Side 2 (22:20)

Download Adieu, Little Man

Children of the Sun: Ofamfa

2008-12-07T23:37:00.004-06:00

Here's another rarity - initially rescued from obscurity by the blog Reality Unit Concepts, whose description back in 2006 went as follows:

OFAMFA was the first of the releases put out by Universal Justice and the Black Artists’ Group (B.A.G.) collective out of St. Louis. Whereas the later releases of this loose-knit group might have some comparisons with mass-marketed music, OFAMFA is in the territory of unique recordings.

The track “Rent Man” might be the exception, and is very reminiscent of the album “Funky Donkey” by Luther Thomas. The rest is part spoken word, part rather inept but effortful jazz, and part collective free group improvisation. Depending on your state of mind, it is either brilliant next-level sound art, or an incomprehensible and bumbling train wreck. Or both. I always think to myself, I could just listen to the amp hum from an anonymous location in St. Louis some 35 years ago and be content.

One thing is for sure, there’s a good reason nobody else would release this. It makes John Coltrane sound like “Get on the Good Foot.” R-A-W. Even Arista avoided it when they raided the catalog to re-release “Under the Sun” and “Whisper of Dharma.” Hence, this is another entry in this blog’s catalog of un-loved recordings that still haven’t seen a proper digital release.

A couple years ago, I described Ofamfa as:

of interest to folks digging on some of the Black Artists Group & Human Arts Ensemble material I've posted on my blog - and of course it will be of interest to those who dig on what cats like Last Poets and Watts Prophets were doing back in the late 1960s and early 1970s.

In particular, the approach reminds me of Last Poets' album At Last - in other words think of it as jazzoetry.

Personnel:
Raju Áten - Conga, Small Instruments
Oliver Lake - Soprano Sax, Alto Sax, Flute, Poems, Small Instruments
Floyd LeFlore - Trumpet, Small Instruments
Ishac Rajab - Trumpet
Arzinia Richardson - Bass, Small Instruments
Vincent Terrell - Cello
Charles "Bobo" Shaw - Drums, Small Instruments
Ajulé - Poet, Arrangements, Small Instruments, Drums

In the credits, the following individuals are listed as "dancers who worked with the group": Carolyn Zachary, Etta Jackson, Johadi, and Sandra Weaver.

Tracks:
1. Sweet Street Song
2. Uu-Twee
3. After Jeremiah'swed
4. Sounds of Scorpio
5. Trane Songs
6. Rent Man
7. a. A Little Tom is a Dangerous Thing
7. b. Echos (O Susanna)

Note that tracks 4 and 7.a. are credited to Oliver Lake; track 7.b. is traditional. Poems copyright Bruce Rutlin, 1971. Released on Universal Justice Records.

Ajulé's liner notes are themselves a rather interesting read, offering something of a history lesson of a fertile period of jazz in the metropolitan St. Louis area:

All of the brothers playing and writing on this record are members of the Black Artist Group (BAG) which is based in St. Louis, "Misery." The Black Artist Group, a loose association of young Black men & women, is a potent/fertile creative force; a group which has contributed strong/fresh/inspirational creativity in the fields of Music/Writing/Dance/Drama. The Children of the Sun is one of the units operating under the BAG umbrella; others are or have been, The Oliver Lake/BAG, The 'BAG' Ensemble (Big Band), Red Black & Green Solidarity Unit, Onawali Dancers, Malinque Rhythm Tribe, BAG Drama Dept., Great Black Music Orchestra of St. Louis, Fire-Earth-Air-Water, Me We & Them, Julius Hemphill Quartet and some others.......all different creative approaches and reflecting a sum of influences and wisdoms which ranges across 500 years from here to Africa.......During their brief creative association the COS etched themselves into many hearts and minds. The group was together for little more than a year. Playing college concerts (when $ lucky), playing benefits for all kinds of groups of Black people and progressive whites. "A spiritual oasis in the baren desert of Amerika..." They would say, sometimes...... The conceptions reflect experiments which sought to establish a balance/harmony between the mediums of muse/ic and the spoken/sung word, (often the motions of dancers added still another depth) a balance which would catch the pulse and flame of the will of our people even tho they and we had already condemned the english language as the criminal insignia of the privileged class/es. (...Still, english wuz the only language we had in common so it was a dilema of how to reinspire the language). But because the members had to spend a majority of their time food getting their experiments and investigations were abandoned short of their goal which was/is to find a way to restablish the natural harmony of the Spiritual World; which has been upset and polluted to the same extent as our physical world: SPIRITUAL ECOLOGY?? Unfortunately, as it was, the experiments had to be cut short just as the techniques of communication were being perfected. Cut short by a manifestation of whut George Jackson called "over oppression." These young Black men look, walk, talk, eat, love, trip like us all but (unlike most) life is incalcuably more important to them than property values, hot dogs, cadillacs, or even "civilization;" if u can dig where i'm comin from! Their compassion for the Black, the poor, and the disadvantaged in general is reflected by the staggering numbers of free concerts they give/have given or the free classes they offer at BAG in the 4 major disciplines. And by the fact that they seek to maintain their comittment to life and creativity even as they exist at or near the starvation level. So these young Black men are emissaries of the Spiritual Universe....... the lost/abandoned universe they seek to describe in their creativity. "The main thing a musician would like to do is to give a picture to the listener of the many wonderful things he knows of and senses in the universe."* All these things are being said ...... u see ...... in an attempt to distinguish them favorably from their contemporaries in the Kapitalist "superstars"/entertainers/puppets who frolic like gelded puppies across the stages/footlights of the nation; at the end of the silver gaudy chains held by the bloody hands of the richest pale faces and their legions of sattelites and lackeys; who do come in all colors and races. This expression was recorded (by BAG) at various concerts and all of it was recorded "live"/accomplished in one taping. Other than regular microphones no electronic devices shaped this creativity (BLACK).

we are new yes we are old before and after the mighty winds of change and revolution The "Black Artist Group" wuz there yes we are the shambles, ruined tones of ancient memories and the sound of running waters, singing leaves flirting the silly air and yes sunlight splashed against dark wrinkled faces sighed winds driving the seasons the gifted moans of cherished lovers yes yes yes serene faces of beautiful children Ours..........

*John Coltrane

- Ajulé

All typos are solely mine. Ofamfa is worth checking out.

Download Ofamfa.

Sam Rivers: Paragon

2008-12-07T02:48:00.004-06:00

This trio date was recorded in Paris on April 18, 1977 and released in 1979 on Fluid Records, catalogue # 101.

Personnel:
Sam Rivers - Tenor Saxophone, Flute, Soprano Saxophone, Piano
Dave Holland: Bass, Cello
Barry Altschul: Drums

Tracks
1. Ecstasy
2. Bliss
3. Rapture
4. Tingle
5. Paragon

The titles should give you an idea of what to expect with this particular trio. "Ecstasy" is very much an ecstatic energy workout. "Bliss" captures Rivers on flute, and is musically quiet, as we would expect in a blissful state. "Rapture" goes back to a sax, bass, and drum format, and again the title sets the mood - very fluid, very fast-paced. Rivers switches to piano for "Tingle" which somehow manages to get the listener's senses tingling. Rivers becomes truly a multi-instrumentalist for "Paragon" - and all I can say is that if this is what perfection sounds like, I'm digging it. Drummer Barry Altschul and bassist Dave Holland were regular conspirators on Sam Rivers joints during the mid-1970s. On this one, they truly sound like they know each other well.

Rob Ferrier of Allmusic puts it thusly:

As the checks got smaller for jazz musicians, the bands did also. The fewer people to pay, the more profitable the venture. In some ways, this was a tragedy. For other musicians, men like Sam Rivers, it was an opportunity to make the music in his head. Rivers is a giant thinker. While his Blue Note recordings are certainly more accessible to the average listener, it is his remarkable trio output that is the core of his musical thought. Rivers is a player whose playing brooks no argument. There aren't many who can hang, even in a supporting role. There certainly isn't room for other soloists. This is sweeping, grand, muscular music, as regular and jagged as a seismograph, or the jittering of a lie detector. Here, he's supported by two men perfectly suited for their roles, Dave Holland and Barry Altschul. Fine musicians, here they are extensions of the music that pours from Rivers.

I'd like to think that Holland and Altschul are more than extensions of Rivers' music - not to diminish Rivers' accomplishments as an improvisor and composer, but to simply acknowledge that the music is a conversation, and the two sidemen involved are simply ones who happen to be fluent in the language Rivers speaks.

Download Paragon.

New wish list

2008-12-07T01:09:00.005-06:00

Since I've managed to find just about all the grails I had initially sought a couple years ago, it's time for a new quest. At the moment, the list is fairly brief:

~~Sam Rivers - Sizzle (1976, Impulse!)~~

Human Arts Ensemble (listed on Oliver Lake's discography, but listed as Solidarity Unit, Inc. on Dennis Owsley's City of Gabriels discography) - Red, Black, & Green (1971, Universal Justice, according Oliver Lake's discography, but maybe released under the BAG Concert Series?)

Human Arts Ensemble - Poem of Gratitude (1972, Universal Justice)

Arthur Doyle Electro-Acoustic Ensemble - National Conspiracy (2004, Carbon [part of Carbon's CDR series & now OOP] - a remix album of tunes from Conspiracy Nation, etc.)

Jacques Coursil Unit: Way Ahead

2008-12-06T23:05:00.006-06:00

Jacques Coursil Unit - Way Ahead

Released on BYG/Actuel, catalogue # 529319.

Personnel:

Beb Guérin - Bass
Claude Delcloo - Drums
Arthur Jones - Saxophone [alto]
Jacques Coursil - Trumpet

Notes: Recorded July 7 & 8, 1969 at Studio Saravah, Paris, and produced by Jean Georgakarakos and Jean-Luc Young.

1. Duke (10:07)
2. Fidel (7:37)
3. Paper (18:08)

Here's a review by Brandon Burke at AMG:

Trumpeter Jacques Coursil's Way Ahead is a highly overlooked and absolutely stunning free jazz session. The cacophonous spazzery that marks much of the BYG/Actuel series (ex: Alan Silva's Luna Surface, Dave Burrell's Echo) is almost nonexistent on Way Ahead. Whereas many of the others in this series -- as stunning and powerful as they are -- tend to be star-studded anything-goes blowing sessions, Way Ahead is a quartet date and thus, even at its most fevered moments, only sounds like four musicians letting loose as opposed to, say, twelve. Again, while these ensemble dates are enjoyable and of great historical significance, Way Ahead simply allows for more space. In this sense, while quite free, it still retains an openness that makes dates by AACM associates like Roscoe Mitchell more palatable for those inexperienced with the freewheeling "energy music" of the late '60s. The first side finds the group tackling two Coursil originals, while the entire second side is an extended version of Bill Dixon's "Paper."

Like other other albums on BYG/Actuel featuring Jacques Coursil, either as leader or as an accompanist, this one is absolutely stunning. It is "way ahead" - or perhaps more to the point, the music world was way behind and is only now catching up.

Download Way Ahead.

Rudolph Grey: Transfixed

2008-12-06T04:29:00.006-06:00

Transfixed was released in 1988 on New Alliance Records, catalogue # NAR 036. As far as I know this was never issued as a CD. "Ghosts" is mildly reminiscent of the work Doyle and Grey were doing back when they were together in The Blue Humans. "1,000 Luminous Flowers" and the title track are blasts of pure guitar energy with the amps cranked up to 11. Only "Whirl" provides anything close to relief, and even it, which I believes features Crane on piano, is extremely dissonant. Definitely not for the faint of heart.

Performers:
Rudolph Grey
Arthur Doyle (track 1)
Sumner Crane

Tracks:
1. Ghosts
2. 1,000 Luminous Flowers
3. Whirl
4. Transfixed

Download Transfixed

Clifford Thornton: Communications Network

2008-12-05T00:54:00.005-06:00

In some ways Communications Network is an uneven joint, if for no other reason than that the tracks were recorded at different locations with different ensembles. The first two tracks (which would have made up side one on the LP), were recorded in January 1972 by a quartet that included Thornton on cornet and electric piano, L. Shankar on violin, Sirone (of Revolutionary Ensemble fame) on bass, and Jerome Cooper on percussion. The music on those two tracks is very free, spontaneous, spiritual, and relatively mellow. The third track, "Festivals and Funerals," recorded three months later, is a considerably edgier experience. Here, the septet provides some musical backing for poet Jayne Cortez, and in between her verses these cats kick out the jams. It's angry music for an angry time - and the sounds still resonate over three and a half decades later. One bit of trivia: Marzette Watts, the cat who led a couple albums during the late 1960s (including the Marzette Watts Ensemble on Savoy), was credited as engineer for the album, and mixed tracks 1 and 2. Communications Network was released on Third World Records, catalogue # 12272.

Personnel:
Clifford Thornton- cornet (all tracks), electric piano (tracks 1 & 2)
Nathan Davis- soprano sax (track 3)
Lakshinarayana Shankar- violin (tracks 1 & 2)
Sirone- bass (tracks 1 & 2)
Andy Gonzalez- bass (track 3)
Jay Hoggard- vibes (track 3)
Jerome Cooper- percussion (tracks 1 & 2)
Jerry Gonzalez- congas, percussion (track 3)
Vincent George- conga, percussion (track 3)
Nicky Marrero- timbales, percussion (track 3)
Jayne Cortez- poet (track 3)

Tracks:
1. Communications Network Part 1 (11:46)
2. Communications Network Part 2 (5:29)
3. Festivals and Funerals (24:45)

Tracks 1 and 2 recorded January 22, 1972, at ABC Stage City, NYC. Track 3 recorded April 17, 1972, at the Festival Of African American Music.

Download Communications Network

Frank Wright: Stove Man, Love is the Word

2008-12-05T00:03:00.002-06:00

During its short existence, the blog Church Number Nine managed to post up a number of treasures, including the Frank Wright album, Stove Man, Love is the Word. It's a post-Center of the World outing that finds Wright and crew doing what they do best: blowing some minds. The reviewer at Allmusic.com describes the album as an extension of Eric Dolphy's work. The title track is a bluesy waltz number with Wright offering some smoky vocals (something he loved to do on his late 1970s albums - his singing style reminds me a bit of Satchmo for some reason). "T-and-W" picks up the pace with Wright, Alim, and Smith serving up some spirited soloing over Latin percussion - makes for some very pleasant listening. "Rice Patch" is a darker piece that seems to draw on mid-1960s Trane, mid-1960s Don Cherry, early 1970s McCoy Tyner for sonic inspiration. "Export" ends the album with a bang - a very fast-paced joyous noisefest. Solid spiritual jazz from beginning to end.

Sandra, catalogue # 2106

Recorded: Munich Loft May 22, 1979

Performers:
Frank Wright - tenor sax, vocals
Kamal Abdul Alim - trumpet
Tony Smith - piano
Richard Williams - bass
Kahlil Abdullah - conga, percussion
Gerry Griffin - drums

Tracks:
1. Stove Man, Love is the Word
2. T-and-W
3. Rice Patch
4. Export

Dowload Stove Man, Love is the Word

[Better image added thanks to Solomon in the comments!]

Human Arts Ensemble: Junk Trap

2008-12-04T00:25:00.005-06:00

Here's another one from the Human Arts Ensemble crew. Junk Trap was released by Black Saint in 1978, the same year it was recorded. Guaranteed to melt some faces. Cats looking for some sort of synthesis of AACM-style free improv, rock, and funk will love it.

Tracks:
1. Beyond The New Horizon (7:33)
2. Night Dreamer (11:00)
3. Brown Rock City (7:20)
4. Skiwee (6:24)
5. Junk Trap (9:16)
6. Electric Two (6:20)
7. Sequence (2:27)

Personnel:
Joseph Bowie (trombone)
Luther Thomas (alto sax)
James Emery (guitar)
John Lindberg (basses)
Charles Bobo Shaw (drums, bugle)

recorded May 1978, Milan, Italy

Download Junk Trap

Human Arts Ensemble: P'nk J'zz

2008-12-03T02:10:00.005-06:00

I wish I knew a bit more about this one. From what I can surmise, it was recorded around 1977, and released in 1981. The first track has a gritty, rockin' bass line, and a sound that would probably fit in with what the No Wave scenesters were digging on toward the end of the 1970s. Jacki Bee Tee is free improv number that has a bit of a Latin groove to it. Some more free jazz follows on the third track (Concere Ntasiah), which has an almost Gothic rhythm thing anchoring the proceedings - plenty of open space, and quiet moments, with some lovely acoustic guitar soloing. Be Bo Bo Be closes the album with a sound that I'd almost characterize as 1960s Archie Shepp or Marion Brown gone electric, with a splash of Revolutionary Ensemble thrown in - it's definitely fire music. Punk jazz may be an apt enough description, certainly in terms of spirit, and often in sound. I'd mosh to it.

Released on Muse, catalogue # MR 5232.

Tracks
1. Steam Away Kool 500
2. Jacki Bee Tee
3. Concere Ntasiah
4. Be Bo Bo Be

Personnel:
Charles Bobo Shaw - Drums
Joseph Bowie - Trombone
Julius Hemphill - Soprano Sax
Francois Nyoma Mantuila - Acoustic & Electric Guitars
Alex Blake - Bass, Electric Bass
Abdul Wadud - Cello

[Update 12/3: one of my commenters had some additional info about this album: Great post, here's a little more discog info for you, this WAS released in 77 or so as Charles Bobo Shaw & the Human Arts Ensemble "Concere Ntasiah" on the Universal Justice label (cat# UJ101). Good to know!]

Download P'nk J'zz

Sam Rivers two-fer: Black Africa! Villalago & Black Africa! Perugia

2008-12-02T01:46:00.003-06:00

Here's another rarity that was originally posted at Gizmo's regrettably defunct blog. After combing the comments (the last commenter seems to have been especially helpful), I have gone through, relabeled the various mp3 files, and hopefully have them properly titled and arranged. Both albums were released on the Horo label as double LPs, and are described by Carl Brauer of Cadence as follows:

"Umbria Jazz certainly has got to be one of the most unique jazz events in the world. Taking place in the Umbria region of central Italy, this festival is a mini tour by both participating musicians and the public of the little towns in the region. The performances take place in the piazzas or parks of the village, and no entrance fee is charged. A nominal charge is made for bus transportation to the villages. These two double albums document the performances by the Sam Rivers tour: the villages of Villalago and Perugia."

Here's the info from each album.

Black Africa! Villalago:

Horo catalogue # HDP 03-04

Recorded at the Umbria Jazz Festival in Villalago, Italy, July 24, 1976 (except for track 5, which was recorded in Perugia, Italy on July 25, 1976)

Personnel:
Sam Rivers - Tenor Sax, Soprano Sax, Flute, Piano, Voice
Joe Daley - Tuba, Euphonium
Sidney Smart - Drums, Percussion
Don Pullen - Piano (track 3)

Tracks:
1. Soprano Section
2. Piano & Flute Sections
3. Flute & Tenor Sections
4. Villalago: Encore
5. Perugia Concert: Finale

Black Africa! Perugia:

Horo catalogue # HDP 05-06

Recorded at the Umbria Jazz Festival in Perugia, Italy on July 25, 1976

Personnel:
Sam Rivers - Tenor Sax, Soprano Sax, Flute, Piano, Voice
Joe Daley - Tuba, Euphonium
Sidney Smart - Drums, Percussion

Tracks:
1. Tenor Section
2. Piano Section
3. Flute & Soprano Sections
4. Tenor Section

Download Black Africa! Villalago

Download Black Africa! Perugia

Joseph Jarman & Famoudou Don Moye: Egwu-Anwu

2008-12-02T00:34:00.001-06:00

Egwu-Anwu (Sun Song) is an out-of-print live recording by Joseph Jarman and Famoudou Don Moye. Somehow I uploaded this album among others and never quite got around to posting it. The recording is of a live performance recorded in Woodstock, NY, which was released by India Navigation on January 8, 1978 (catalogue # IN 1033). The album was reissued on CD in the late 1990s before falling out of print. I occasionally encounter the mp3 files for Egwu-Anwu on the peer-to-peer networks.

If you're familiar with the AACM crew, you'll know what to expect: very free and spontaneous music characterized by lots of open space, generous use of "little instruments" (i.e., unorthodox objects in a jazz context such as conch shells and whistles), and just enough dissonance to keep you engaged but not so much as to wake up the kids - for me it's ideal night music. Folks who dig on Marion Brown and Leo Smith's Creative Improvisation Ensemble and Marion Brown and Elliott Schwartz's Soundways (see my post on those albums from two years ago) will find plenty to groove on here.

Personnel:
Famoudou Don Moye - Drums, Percussion [Other], Other [Bailophone], Conch, Whistle, Horns, Marimba
Joseph Jarman - Saxophone [Tenor, Alto, Sopranino], Flute, Clarinet [Bass], Conch, Vibraphone

Tracks:
1 Enu-Igwe: Egwu-Yesi Kipaleta [The Heavens] 1:55
2 Enu-Igwe: Egwu Jilala/Egwu Ping [The Heavens] 21:32
3 Nanke Ala: Ikpa-Azu - Ohnedaruth [And the Earth] 21:14
4 Nke Ala: Egwu-Erosora Ekou Katah [The Earth Is Ours] 6:51
5 Nke Ala: Egwu-Trombong Goudiaby [The Earth Is Ours] 6:34
6 Nke Ala: Egwu Ogotemmeli [The Earth Is Ours] 6:58
7 Na Enu Igwe: Lobo/Ekpokpona-Ye Fai [And the Heavens] 19:56

When I uploaded it, I did so in two parts, with the first three tracks on part one and the last four tracks on part two. I don't know who ripped this initially - but whoever it was did a fine job, and deserves mad props.

Download Egwu-Anwu part 1 and Egwu-Anwu part 2.

Arthur Doyle & Hamid Drake: Your Spirit is Calling

2008-12-01T00:33:00.005-06:00

Your Spirit is Calling is an out-of-print limited very limited edition recording in which Doyle partners with legendary free jazz percussionist Hamid Drake. This was one of Qbico's early releases (catalogue # QBICO 15), recorded in 2003 and released the following year. It's as free-spirited as any of Doyle's recordings. The title track has a very angular sound and has Doyle on piano and voice and Drake on drums. "Noah Black Ark" is essentially a standard - as close to a standard as any obscure free jazz tune can be - in which Doyle sings and scats over some very swingin' drumming. "Flute and Drums" lives up to its title - with Doyle throwing in some scatting for good measure. Doyle finally picks up the sax for "Swing Low" which takes the duo into some noisefest territory (imagine Kaoru Abe on acid channeling Trane and Ayler in some sort of woulda-coulda-shoulda duo with Rashied Ali as a touchstone). "Jericho of Ballad" has Doyle back on the flute with Drake continuing to provide the sort of spirited drumming he played on the previous tune. "9th or 8th November" is another piece that is a standard from the Arthur Doyle canon - one that he's been recording in one form or another since the late 1970s. For this piece, Doyle is back to his trusty sax, singing and snarling through it like a man possessed. It's easily the fastest-paced tune of the set. The final piece, "Conga and Flute" is aptly named - ending the album on relatively mellow note, reminiscent of some of Don Cherry's work on Codona and similar outfits. Both musicians sound totally in sync with one another, making it worthy session to seek out.

A word about Doyle's singing is in order. When Arthur Doyle sings or scats, the vocals come across like the mumblings of a drunken skid row derelict. Given that the man has been to Hell and back, the impression I get is that this is very much an integral part of his artistry - a reflection of a side of life much of his audience would likely have no knowledge. Most of his vocalisms are imitative of the instruments he plays, reflecting the time spent in prison without access to a sax or flute - also keep in mind that philosophically he tends to view those instruments as extensions to the voice. The sound is unabashedly human, all too human, of a man pouring a lifetime's worth of emotions out there and demanding that those who happen to be in the vicinity deal with it. What one gets then is an experience that doesn't make for easy listening. Rather, it's some of the most beautifully abrasive stuff you'll likely hear, assuming you have sufficiently open ears.

Performers:
Arthur Doyle (tenor sax, flute, recorder, piano, voice)
Hamid Drake (drums, percussion)

Tracks:
1. Your Spirit Is Calling
2. Noah Black Ark
3. Flute And Drums
4. Swing Low
5. Jericho Of Ballad
6. 9th Or 8th November
7. Conga And Flute

Recorded June 7th, 2003 at MU REC Studio, Milano

Download Your Spirit is Calling

Arthur Doyle Plus Four: Alabama Feeling

2008-11-30T00:01:00.003-06:00

Here's a personal favorite from the Arthur Doyle vaults - Alabama Feeling. This album was originally released in 1978, and then reissued on CD 20 years later. It's an intense ride from beginning to end. Doyle has made an art form out of lo fi free jazz recordings, as well as serving up a unique style of sax playing: the cat can sound like he's playing multiple reeds with just one instrument, and views the various instruments he plays (tenor sax, bass clarinet, and flute on this album; recorder on other albums) as an extension of the human voice. His approach may be an acquired taste, but as far as I'm concerned it's a taste well worth acquiring. I first got turned on to Doyle when I picked up a Blue Humans recording (Live NY 1980), and was intrigued not only with his work from that gig, but also a review of Doyle's earlier work on Noah Howard's classic album Black Arc included in the liner notes:

Doyle is another matter. This man is dangerous - he never plays anything you could recognize, just furious blasts of rage. His solo on "Domiabra" couldn't be written down, or even sorted out. It sounds more like raw energy than anything I've ever heard. He's nasty, man.

Given my unabashed love of all sorts of unorthodox music (this blog focuses on my jazz side, but I have had a long-standing love of punk, postpunk, and early industrial music), the moment I read descriptions of an artist as "dangerous" and "nasty" - I want to know more. I've been spending the better part of this decade trying to get a hold of as much of Doyle's recorded work as possible.

A review of the album by Dan Warburton (who has occasionally performed with Arthur Doyle):

In late 1977, Arthur Doyle brought his quintet to New York to play at the Brook, a loft space on West 17th Street managed by Charles Tyler, with whom Doyle formed the label Dra that same year. The saxophonist/flutist/vocalist was joined by old friends from his hometown of Birmingham, Alabama, Charles Stephens on trombone, and Rashied Sinan on drums (whose only other memorable appearance was on Frank Lowe's 1973 ESP album Black Beings). Sinan turned up with a student of his, Bruce Moore, "to give it more rhythmic feel," and Richard Williams was brought in on Fender Bass to take on both drummers. From the opening splendidly titled "November 8th or 9th -- I Can't Remember When," Alabama Feeling pounds the listener into the ground with thrilling energy, playing easily on a par with classic albums on labels such as ESP and BYG Actuel. Doyle released this recording of the concert, whose dreadful sound quality was perfectly in keeping with the prevailing no wave ethos of the period (Doyle was, incidentally, one of the first jazz musicians to play Max's Kansas City in 1978, with Rudolph Grey and Beaver Harris as the Blue Humans), on Dra in an edition of 1,000, and the first CD reissue 20 years later in 1998 (also limited to 1,000 copies) was transferred by Glenn Branca's house percussionist, Wharton Tiers, direct from vinyl, complete with surface noise and dodgy editing. Connoisseurs of Sun Ra (with whom Arthur Doyle also played but, alas, never recorded) have long been prepared to forego quality sound in the name of great music, and any listener prepared to do the same will not be disappointed. It's worth it for Doyle's snarling entry on "Ancestor" alone.

The track "Ancestor" to which Warburton refers is interesting in that it seems to be a capsule summary of the history of the human species boiled down to a handful of minutes. The references to ESP-Disk and BYG recordings seems apt - if you dig much of the material from those legendary labels, you'll fall in love with Alabama Feeling.

Performers:
Arthur Doyle (tenor sax, bass clarinet, flute)
Richard Williams (Fender bass)
Rashied Sinan (drums)
Bruce Moore (drums)
Charles Stephens (trombone)

Tracks:
1. November 8th or 9th – I Can’t Remember When
2. Something for Caserlo, Larry, & Irma
3. A Little Linda, Debra, Omita, Barry & Maria
4. Ancestor
5. Mother Image, Father Image
6. Development
a. BaBi Music for Milford & Huge
b. Alabama Soul for Arthur
c. Ramie & Master Charles of the Trombone

All compositions by Arthur Doyle (BMI)
Recorded live at the Brook, November 11, 1977
Engineer: Rashied Sinan
Mastering Engineer: Rashied Sinan
Cover Art: Martha Hurd
Photos: Ken Mermel
Transfer to CD: Wharton Tiers, Fun City Studios, NYC, 2-25-98

Dowload Alabama Feeling

Update: Rank Records has reissued an LP of Alabama Feeling. Check it out.

Arthur Doyle: Live at the Dorsch Gallery

2008-11-29T22:05:00.004-06:00

I think this one was once posted on the gone-but-not-forgotten Church Number Nine blog. This is truly an Arthur Doyle solo appearance, with Doyle playing sax, flute, and also singing on six untitled tracks. The session dates from August 11, 2000, at the Dorsch Gallery in Miami, FL., and was released as a very limited edition CDR two years later. If you're familiar with Doyle's work, you'll know what to expect. He's arguably a kindred spirit to such cats in the rock world as Thurston Moore.

Download Live at the Dorsch Gallery

Pharoah Sanders: Wisdom Through Music

2008-11-27T21:29:00.009-06:00

Another gem from Pharoah Sanders' Impulse! days. What I'm sharing is the album as it's circulated around the usual p2p sources. Sound quality should be pretty decent, but beware that the track "Love is Everywhere" that I have seems to be cut short - over two minutes seem to be missing. I've also corrected a couple errors ("High Life" and "Wisdom Through Music" seem to have been mislabeled) [Thanks to a comment, those errors are no longer an issue - see new link at the end of this post]. Regrettably I have no access to the original album, but maybe someone here will be able to rip a better set of mp3s. The celebratory "High Life" is Sanders' interpretation of the West African style of music by that name - a style that Sanders would revisit from time to time during his career. "Love is Everywhere" is an abbreviated version of the extended track appearing on the album Love in Us All. The title track is a slow moving meditative drone with plenty of Badal Roy's tabla playing. There seems to be some uncredited vocal and kora playing on "Golden Lamp" - a tune that has an almost folky feel to it. The final track starts out as a slow predominantly vocal hymn that eventually gets cooking - some very spirited, fast-paced free-form instrumental jamming. Roy's presence contributes a distinctly South Asian feel to the tracks appearing after "High Life."

Interesting bit of trivia: flutist James Branch is also known as James "Plunky" Branch - the guiding spirit behind the legendary 1970s jazz combo Juju and Oneness of Juju (a band that is still alive and kicking in one form or another). Tabla player Badal Roy and percussionist Mtume played together in Miles Davis' touring and studio band in the early 1970s.

The info: Impulse! catalogue # AS 9233. Copyright 1973 - presumably released 1974.

Personnel:

Pharoah Sanders - Tenor Sax, Alto Sax, Flute
James Branch - Flute
Joseph Bonner - Piano
Cecil McBee - Bass
Lawrence Killian - Percussion
James Mtume - Percussion
Babadal Roy - Percussion
Norman Connors - Drums

Tracks:

1. High Life
2. Love is Everywhere
3. Wisdom Through Music
4. Golden Lamp
5. Selflessness

Download Wisdom Through Music via Magic of Juju!

Michael White: Go With the Flow

2008-11-27T00:32:00.003-06:00

Here's another one from the Michael White canon. Compared to the previous album, Father Music, Mother Dance, this one is a considerably funkier affair with the combo pared down to six performers, including holdovers Jenkins, Nash, and King and newcomers pianist Ed Kelly (who also appeared with Pharoah Sanders on a couple albums) and drummer Paul Smith. The title track and "In the Silence" are my personal faves - those tracks could easily appear alongside some mid-1970s Oneness of Juju tunes on a mix-tape or CD; in other words, kozmigroov at its spaciest and finest. "Moondust Shuffle" is a bluesy tune that swings like a mofo. Impulse! during the early to mid 1970s was a very special label, and generated plenty of music for which to be thankful.

Impulse! - Catalogue # ASD-9281

Tracks:

1. Go With the Flow
2. The Lady Sirro
3. In the Silence (Listen)
4. Spaceslide
5. Her
6. Moondust Shuffle
7. Go With the Flow

Personnel:

Michael White - Violin [Electric], Tambourine, Synthesizer, Percussion [Small]
Kenneth Jenkins - Bass [With Wa-wa Pedal], Bass [Fender]
Kenneth Nash - Congas, Bells [Griot], Kalimba, Vocals, Gong, Synthesizer [Moog], Percussion [Small]
Paul Smith - Drums
Ed Kelly - Electric Piano, Piano, Organ [Hammond]
Bob King - Guitar

Download Go With the Flow

Michael White: Father Music, Mother Dance

2008-11-26T23:49:00.002-06:00

Another beautiful late-period Impulse! recording. "Reiko" may easily be the highlight of this album - a gentle ballad with some wonderful conversation between violin and guitar. The title track, "Commin' From" and "Way Down Inside" serve up the funk. "Water Children" is another instrumental ballad, albeit with more prominent percussion than "Reiko". The final track comes the closest to a straight-ahead jazz track. Cosmic, but not too far out. Some info:

Father Music, Mother Dance - Impulse AS-9268 (LP) quadraphonic

1. Father Music, Mother Dance
2. Reiko
3. Commin’ From
4. Way Down Inside
5. Water Children
6. Mary's Waltz

Michael White - electric violin, rhythm violin, African tambourine, bass drum, handclap, Moog synthesizer, vocal
Norman Williams - alto saxophone
Bob King - guitar
Clifford Coulter - piano, Fender Rhodes electric piano, Hammond organ
Kenneth Jenkins - amplified bass, Fender bass
Clarence Becton - drums, agogo
Kenneth Nash - congas, North African sakara drums, Knole drum, Chinese temple bells and gongs, cowbell, tambourine, wood bells, piano, Fender Rhodes electric piano bottom, pepper-filled Kodak film can shaker, and assorted African and South American percussion instruments
Marti McCall - lead and background vocals
Josef Powell - background vocals
Myrna Matthews - background vocals

From the liner notes:

Recorded at Wally Heider Recording, SF, January 16-18, 1974, and sweetened at ABC Recording Studios and Royal Hidley Hall, LA. Engineering by Baker Bigsby, assisted by Valerie Clausen (Heider’s) and Dominic Lumetta.

The producer would like to express his appreciaton to the following honorary members of the Neo-Z-Mtg. Co. Gross Art Production Team for their much-needed assistance and aid: Professor George Hormel for his continued encouragement; his wiling henchman, Judge La Palm, for Moog services above and beyond the call of friendship; Thomas Q. Hidley for thick carpets and snappy dressing; the redoubtable Sandra Axelrod for her new found negotiating skills; Valerie and Debbie for their knowledge of hotcha gourmet spots in the City By The Bay, and their unfailing courage in the face of fainting spells and other errata; and the dreaded Susan Atamain, for both her patience and restraint, to say nothing of her incomparable ability to get her old man up in time, no matter the adversity of curcumstance.

The album was mixed by means of the Standard Matic system for fully compatible stereo and quadraphonic reproduction, and should provide and exceptional when heard on any high quality playback system.

The louder the better.

Peace, serenity and very grateful thanks to Ed Michel, Baker Bigsby, all the musicians that made the date possible, including Marti McCall, Myrna Matthews, and Josef Powell, Ed Riley, and, most of all, for inspiration, Mary.

Michael White.

Music as a creative medium has always excited me. Everywhere you turn you'll find another point if view; another universe of knowledge available to those who heed, and as diverse as is the talent of artists.

Micheal White has been adjudged to be a man of gentle character, impressionable difference immense serenity. His preceding Impulse recordings, Spirit Dance (AS-92150, Pneuma (AS-9221), The Land Of Spirit And Light (AS-9241), validate the aforementioned character references in full, but for a minute, because as the spectrum of Michael White's music turns with this album,he unleashes fire, depth, and the strong blues roots born to him (Boogaloo if you will). Particular note should be taken with fervent foot-stomps, ass-shakin' and porous sweat to the title tune "Father Music, Mother Dance" to "Way Down Inside" and not to be outdone, "Commin' From" to characterize the fiery side. Then on to the immaculately beautiful "Reiko", a composition by the extremely talented and highly diverse guitarist Bob King.

As multi-faceted as is the the talent of Michael White, so be it reflected, promulgated and supported by his formidable bassist Kenneth Jenkins and extremely articulate drummer Clarence Becton. Master percussionist Kenneth Nash's composition "Water Children" brings to mind an excerpt of poetry on this occasion: "But you, children of space, you restless in rest, you shall not be trapped nor tamed for you shall flow with the water, flow with the gale winds, you shall not be an anchor, you shall be a mast". To close the curtain (for a minute) on this album, Michaels "Mary's Waltz" is the flowing effervescent sensitivity that is so indicative of Michael's personality as attributed to his soft-spoken, gracious, and striking beautiful Lady Mary.

It is almost impossible for one man to describe another mans music as intended here, and to do it justice. However, the creation and stimulus - the motivational force behind the music - is the descriptive essence of this music. Michael White is the music - the music is Michael White.

Ed Riley. Miles Ahead. February 4, 1974

Download Father Music, Mother Dance

If you dig this, you'll probably groove on Pneuma and Land of Spirit and Light - both of which I believe are commercially available as of this writing.

Pharoah Sanders: Live at the East

2008-11-25T21:52:00.004-06:00

The work of Pharoah Sanders seemed fitting for a 100th post. Live at the East is one of several albums from Sanders' Impulse! days that has yet to see a proper reissue in the US (an effort to reissue the Impulse! back catalogue was aborted at the end of the 1990s). It's a bit of a shame really, as the music on this album is nothing short of stunning. It's been a couple years since anyone in blogtopia posted Live at the East (see Orgy in Rhythm, who provides some excellent commentary), so I figure the time is ripe for a new upload. I came by my first set of mp3 files for this album on the old Napster - the sound quality was dodgy, but after reading so many tantalizing descriptions of the album, I was just thankful to have the opportunity to hear the tunes at all. The sound files I'm providing here are considerably higher quality - I found them on Soulseek about four years ago. "Healing Song" takes up much of the first side of the original LP, opening with the lush sound of piano, percussion, and voice over which Sanders offers up a lilting melody before letting loose. The piece is very free, but never overwhelming, instead lulling the listener into a near-meditative state before reaching its climax. Bassists Cecil McBee and Stanley Clarke get to showcase their mad skillz about five or so minutes into the piece, setting a fairly funky pace for the rest of the performers. Since Joe Bonner co-wrote the piece, it's not too surprising that his piano work is front and center. "Lumkili" starts out with a similar sax line that began the first piece, but goes in a somewhat different direction - the warm sounds he offers up would not seem out of place on, say, some of his later albums like Journey to the One. After that rather laid-back tune, the session closes with "Memories of J. W. Coltrane" which goes for a monastic vibe: the gentle bells, gong, harmonium, bailophone, and bass provide a drone over which the vocalists slowly chant. Given the spiritual direction of John and Alice Coltrane toward the end of John's life, this seems like a fitting tribute to a great artist and mentor. Here, Sanders' sax serves merely as another chanting voice - almost Tibetan on the occasions when it briefly appears.

Impulse! Catalogue # AS-9227

Personnel:
Pharoah Sanders - Saxophone
Cecil McBee - Bass
Stanley Clarke - Bass
Lawrence Killian - Congas, Percussion [Bailophone]
Norman Connors - Drums
William Hart - Drums
Carlos Garnett - Flute, Voice
Joseph Bonner - Piano, Harmonium
Harold Vic - Tenor Vocals
Marvin Peterson - Trumpet

Tracks:
1. Healing Song (Sanders/Bonner) - 21:37
2. Lumkili (Sanders) - 8:43
3. Memories of J. W. Coltrane (Sanders) - 12:51

Dowload Live at the East

Jihad Records

2008-11-24T21:26:00.014-06:00

Consider this a mini-discography brought to life, thanks to the miracle of mp3s. Jihad Records released only three albums during its existence, but at least a couple of those recordings are well-sought-after by fans of the jazz avant-garde. Each of these albums is radically different from the others, save for one common denominator: the appearance or involvement of beat poet, playwright, and activist Amiri Baraka (in an earlier time known as LeRoi Jones). Here's a brief overview of the Jihad label:

Jihad was a label that was formed by Imamu Amiri Baraka to broadcast the work of the Jihad Cultural Center, Newark NJ. It produced and issued ... three discs ... , but recorded much more. The first two items are the target of most serious collectors of Free Jazz, each for a different reason.
Sonny's Time Now brought together a fantastic group of free improvisors during the ferment of the "New Thing" of the mid Sixties (Don Cherry-tp; Albert Ayler-ts; Louis Worrell, Henry Grimes-b; Sunny Murray-d; LeRoi Jones [now Imamu Amiri Baraka]-recitation on last track) at a time when their work was causing discussion and argument through-out the jazz world. In many ways Sonny's Time Now may be viewed as a continuation of two classic ESP titles: New York Eye & Ear Control (ESP 1016) and The New York Art Quartet (ESP 1004).
A Black Mass is a morality play about the races of man, written, directed and performed by Baraka and a cast drawn from his Cultural Center. The reason it is so greatly sought after is because the incidental music was done by Sun Ra and members of his Arkestra. This disc is truly a rare item in the Sun Ra discography, being even more difficult to find than all but one or two of Sunny's own Saturn lps.
The third release, Black and Beautiful....Soul and Madness featured Baraka reading his poetry, "...backed by a vocal group and an uncredited band (definitely, an artifact from the 60's)", to quote Jihad collector Anthony Rogers.
It has been said that Imamu Amiri Baraka has many other tapes that he was never able to issue on the Jihad label. A Japanese release of Sonny's Time Now has been reported, with an additional track, but it would appear that the CD is as elusive as the original vinyl release. Chuck Nessa said that the DIW release was an "...lp in Japan with a one sided 7" 33 1/3 rpm bonus disc. The bonus disc is #850925 (I.M.-0598 A). The "tune" on the bonus disc is "The Lie". I believe they later issued a CD of all the material." Ed Rhodes states that "...the CD reissue is 35DIW 14CD. There is no selection titled "The Lie" on this disk, just the three titles from the original lp. Page 130 of Baraka's Black Music refers to "The Lie" but the short promo on page 177 does not. I believe there is a reference somewhere that refers to "The Lie" as part 2 of "Justice", which was split between sides 1 and 2 of the original lp. Will post again if I find it."
Baraka has stated that he would like to see all of the material gathered by Jihad to be released correctly. I hope that this can be done while I'm still far enough away from senility to enjoy the music.

The version of Sonny's Time Now presented here is the one with "The Lie" included. If you groove on mid-1960s free jazz, such as the recordings released at the time by ESP-Disk, you'll dig on this. If the lineup looks intense on paper, it is even more intense to actually here. This music is raw energy. As Thurston Moore put it:

his recording is super-lo-fi and is awesome. On it play Ayler (tenor) and Don Cherry (trumpet) as well as Leroi Jones (now known as Amiri Baraka) reading a killer poem called "Black Art". This music is very Ayler but more fractured and odd.

Indeed, Ayler smears and skronks like a man possessed, and in a manner that anticipates such cats as Kaoru Abe. Don Cherry is quite recognizable, playing much as he would during the period. Murray is the pulse driving the rest of the music. Bassists Worrell and Grimes are a bit hard to hear in the mix, save for the quieter passages. Baraka's contribution to this group of free jazz power players is "Black Art" which features such strident passages as, we want "poems that kill." Assassin poems, Poems that shoot guns. The words, like the music, are as far from peace and love as anything from the stereotyped and romanticized 1960s that has been packaged by the corporate media since.

Jihad 663

Personnel:
Sunny Murray - Drums
Albert Ayler - Tenor Sax
Don Cherry - Trumpet
Louis Worrell - Bass
Henry Grimes - Bass
LeRoi Jones - Voice (on "Black Art")

Tracks:
1. Virtue
2. Justice
3. Black Art
4. The Lie

A Black Mass is typically sought-after more for the inclusion of Sun Ra's Arkestra as musical accompaniment. Truth be told, you barely get much of Sun Ra except for a flourish here and there. So if you're a Sun Ra fan looking for a lost gem, you'll be a bit disappointed. The sound quality is also a bit dodgy, so you'll have to strain to hear the dialog. Those with the patience to hear the words will be treated to a portal to one particularly volatile period in the struggle for civil and human rights that still continues to this day.

I'm not sure about the personnel on this one, beyond Baraka and members of Sun Ra's crew at the time. The piece itself is broken up into two parts due to the constraints imposed by LP format.

Credits

Catalog # Jihad 1968

A play by Amiri Baraka (LeRoi Jones)

Carl Boissiere - Jacob
Barry Wynn - Tantil
Jacquie Bugg - Eulalie
David Shakes - Beast
Yusef Iman - Nasafi
Elaine Jones - Olabumi
Sylvia Jones - Tilla
Bob Washington - Narrator

and the Sun Ra Myth-Science Arkestra

Black and Beautiful, Soul and Madness (credited to The Jihad) is a recording that would have fit in with recordings by contemporaries such as Gil Scott-Heron, The Last Poets, and The Watts Prophets. The musical backing might be a bit dated, but the words still pack a contemporary punch. If one is interested in the historical origins of rap and hip-hop, one can find here some of the Zietgeist that would produce some incredibly powerful rhymes and tunes a generation later by such cats as Public Enemy and KRS-One, and today's underground rappers such as Common and Mos Def. If I recall correctly, this one was posted by Reza at one of his blogs a while back.

Jihad LP1001

Spirit House, Newark

Personnel:

Bobby Lyle - Bass
Russell Lyle - Saxophone [Alto], Flute
Aireen Eternal - Vocals [2nd Tenor]
Gilbert Monk - Vocals [Baritone]
Yusef Iman - Vocals [Bass], Congas
Freddie Johnson - Vocals [Lead Tenor]
Leonard Cathcart - Vocals [Tenor]
LeRoi Jones - Voice [Poetry]

Weusi - Liner Notes
Daniel Dawson - Photography

Tracks:
1. Beautiful Black Woman
2. Miss Natural Soul
3. Form is Emptiness
4. Mishap (So Much Soul)
5. Madness
6. Nineteen Sixty-Something
7. Sacred Chant
8. Unity
9. Fight

The music on these three albums portrays a 1960s far different from the version shoved down our throats like so many commercials with Peter Fonda pitching compilation cds of folk rock and psychedelia from the era. It's a 1960s that deserves a hearing and a viewing all the same. It is a 1960s that is arguably as timely as ever at a time when so many seem bound and determined to pretend that the issues of the day have been "resolved."

Download Sonny's Time Now

Download A Black Mass

Dowload Black and Beautiful, Soul and Madness

Don Cherry: Organic Music Society

2008-11-24T00:11:00.004-06:00

Here's another artist whose work I've grooved on for a long time - at least since I stumbled upon his contributions to various tracks on an ECM sampler that my parents unloaded on me back in 1980. That ECM sampler (Music for 58 Musicians) offered examples of Don Cherry in both world fusion (Codona) and free jazz (Old and New Dreams, which covered Ornette Coleman tunes) settings. I tend to gravitate toward his world fusion recordings, and this out-of-print gem is a personal favorite.

Here's the lowdown (via this Don Cherry discography):

Personnel

Don Cherry: trumpet, piano, harmonium, vocals
Maffy Falay: muted trumpet
Tommy Goldman: flute
Tommy Koverhult: flute
Tage Siven: bass
Okay Temiz: drums
Youth Orchestra
Mok Cherry: tamboura, vocal
Nana Vasconcelos: berimbau, percussion
Helen Eggert: tamboura, vocal
Hans Isgren: sarangi
Bengt Berger: drums, percussion
H'suan: percussion, trumpet
Chris Bothen: doussn' gouni

tracks

1. North Brazilian Ceremonial Hym - (N.Vaconcelos) - 12:30 MONO
2. Elixir - (D.Cherry) & Manusha Raga Kamboji - (Hans Isgren) - 8:30 STEREO
3. Relativity Suite Part One - (D.Cherry) - 6:53 STEREO
4. Relativity Part Two - (D.Cherry) - 12:02 STEREO
5. Terry's Tune - (T.Riley), Hope - (D.Cherry), The Creator Has A Master Plan - (P.Sanders/L.Thomas), Sidharta - (D.Cherry), Utopia & Visions - (D.Cherry) - 20:30 STEREO
6. Bra Joe From Kilimanjaro - (D.Brand) & Terry's Tune - (T.Riley) - 6:34 MONO
7. Resa - (D.Cherry) - 7:43 MONO

Documentary recordings made 1971-1972 by Göran Freese, Rita Knox, Jan Bruér.
Editing and mastering: Göran Freese.
Liner notes: Jan Bruér.
English translation: Keith Knox.
German translation: Juliane Backman.
Album production: Jan Bruér, Keith Knox, Rita Knox.
Album cover and painting: Moki.
Only the recordings from August 14th, 1972 (Elixir-Relativity Suite) were made in a recording studio. The rest of the material consists of documentation recordings made on portable machines, some of them carried out under awkward acoustic conditions.

The tracks and times I list are as found on the mp3s that I've found floating around the Internet tubes - otherwise, all information regarding the the tracks and their composers (and whether the recordings were in stereo or mono) are as presented in the discography. Expect plenty of percussion, chanting, singing, and non-Western jazz instrumentation. A lot of "world music" or "worldbeat" got a bad name for being bland, lowest-common-denominator pabulum, but I can guarantee that much of what Cherry was recording sounded (and still sounds) quite engaging and experimental. Given the circumstances in which this album was recorded - i.e., varied times, locations, and recording conditions - the sound is strikingly coherent throughout. Only the sound quality of Resa (the last track) seems dodgy. The first four tracks have the least in common with what we would normally consider jazz. The last three tracks mix non-Western instrumentation and ideas with instrumentation more typical of an avant-garde jazz performance. Very spirited and spiritual music. Don Cherry would later collaborate with Nana Vasconcelos on several Codona albums, and with Bengt Berger for the album Bitter Funeral Beer.

Download Organic Music Society

Julian Priester: Polarization

2008-11-23T00:41:00.003-06:00

Love, Love got a proper reissue on ECM not too long ago. Perhaps this recording will also get a much-overdue reissue. Long before I became a jazzer, I fell in love with the recordings released by ECM. Perhaps it overstates things a bit to say that there was an ECM "sound" during the 1970s and early 1980s, as the roster of artists was certainly a diverse bunch, but there is definitely something strikingly consistent in the production that comes across. I'd probably use the term "atmospheric" to describe a typical ECM listening experience, with Priester's recordings for the label well-exemplifying that experience. Polarization (released in 1977) doesn't have the butt-shaking grooves that characterized 1974's Love, Love - instead offering a program of avant-fusion that leaves one imagining meditating in a warm cabin on a Scandinavian winter's eve. Only Anatomy of Longing, at the end of the program, offers a dose of understated funkified fusion - suggesting what Herbie Hancock's early 1970s pre-Headhunters sextet would have sounded like had that crew stayed together.

Tracks:
1. Polarization - Rhythm Magnet- Wind Dolphin
2. Coincidence
3. Scorpio Blue
4. Anatomy Of Longing

Personnel:
Heshima Mark Williams - bass
Augusta Lee Collins - drums
Ray Obiedo - guitar
Curtis Clark - piano
Ron Stallings - sax
Julian Priester - trombone

Produced by Manfred Eicher.

Download Polarization

Jacques Coursil: Black Suite

2008-11-22T23:57:00.005-06:00

Here's Eugene Chadbourne's review in Allmusic.com:

This amazing trumpeter led two album sessions for BYG, both highly respected projects. This might be the one to take off to the desert island, as the presence of Anthony Braxton as part of the band really makes for an intoxicating brew, if abstract free jazz is the cup of tea on order. Braxton is just fantastic in a collaboratory role, cutting loose with even more of an edge than when leading the band and adding texture with his contrabass clarinet that brings to mind the fog rolling into the forest right before the scene where the villagers storm the evil castle. Arthur Jones cuts loose on alto sax in the manner that makes all his appearances on this label so delightful -- fiery, full of spirit, always an exciting presence. As kind of the lost voice of the trumpet in modern jazz, Coursil is not only a great discovery for the modern jazz fan, but a fine creative vintage that holds up to repeat visits over the years. His control of the difficult horn and totally original melodic thinking really makes his playing stand out among the admittedly thin ranks of avant-garde trumpet players. None of the players who have Coursil's technical mastery play with as much heart and soul. He also proves himself a great bandleader, passing some of the key tests of this distinction with the music featured on this album. One composition after which the record has been titled takes up the entire slab of vinyl, clocking in at a bit over a half-an-hour. Only a good bandleader can pull off an epic of this sort, and only a good bandleader can pull together a rhythm section that on paper promises the excitement of the local newsboys sitting in. The French bassist and drummer featured here were this label's Grade Z rhythm section, and sound better playing quietly than they do when hitting loudly. That's because of the recording, which distorts the drums and bass after a certain level of attack. On the other hand, the quiet sections are not picked up as well by the microphones -- assuming there were microphones -- and, as a result, the horns have even more room to maneuver. Let's allow the artist to serve as his own critic in the case of pianist Burton Greene, who would later publicly dismiss all of his playing from this era as being claptrap. Like another much more famous and prolific modern jazz trumpeter and bandleader, Coursil takes even questionable music contributions, such as the entire existence of this rhythm section, and turns it into a highly useful musical function. Jazz scholars who feel rhythm sections are unimportant can, of course, gloat over the musical success of this particular album. At any rate, it is one of the best examples of just how beautiful modern jazz can be.

Released on BYG/Actuel, catalogue # 529349.

The crew on this album:
Jacques Coursil - trumpet
Arthur Jones - alto sax
Anthony Braxton - bass clarinet, soprano sax
Burton Greene - piano
Beb Guerin - bass
Claude Delcloo - drums

The music is a continuous piece broken into two parts due to the necessary constraints of the old vinyl LP format. There's not much I can add to the Chadbourne's review. Suffice it to say that music on this recording lives up to the hype. It's not a noisefest (as free jazz is often stereotyped), but rather the emotional intensity gets expressed through the open spaces and abundant quiet passages. Highly recommended for fans of Arthur Jones' recordings Scorpio and Africanasia.

Download Black Suite.

Mixed Bag: Mixed Bag's First Album

2008-11-21T01:51:00.003-06:00

Another gem from the gone-but-not-forgotten T.R.I.B.E. label. It got released at some point as a Japanese import, but as far as I am aware never got reissued stateside. The recording is indeed a mixed bag, starting with an upbeat Latin-flavored jazz tune ("La Margarita"), slowing it down for a gorgeous post-bop ballad ("I Wish"), then offering up the straight-ahead "Maxine". The last half of the album goes into fusion territory. "Ziaus" fits in nicely with the sort of soul jazz that was T.R.I.B.E.'s stock in trade. The pensive "New Moon" throws Latin rhythms into the mix, and "Shark" closes out the album with a solid dose of funk. Folks who dig the T.R.I.B.E. and Strata-East labels will probably like this offering.

Tracks:

1. La Margarita
2. I Wish
3. Maxine
4. Ziaus
5. New Moon
6. Shark

Personnel:

Ron Brooks - Bass, Producer, Mixing
Gaff Dunsun - Keyboards
Jerry Glassel - Guitar
Dave Koether - Percussion, Drums
Larry Nozero - Flute, Reeds, Cuica
Dan Spencer - Percussion, Drums

Bob James - Liner Notes
Greg Reilly - Engineer, Mixing
Norm Snyder - Photography, Back Cover Photo
Bud Spangler - Producer, Mixing
Marie Tapert - Graphic Design, Art Direction

Download Mixed Bag's First Album

Thanks!

2008-10-26T22:33:00.002-05:00

I have received the occasional contribution to the tip jar. Let's just say, that if I've been remiss in sending a personal thank you note, I'll make sure hopefully soon to get one fired off. Trust me, it's appreciated.

Kain - The Blue Guerrilla

2008-10-26T22:13:00.002-05:00

This solo album by Gylan Kain, one of the original Last Poets -- before the group recorded for Douglas Records -- is a study in angry poetics, performance art, and killer presentation. Recorded and issued in the early '70s, The Blue Guerrilla is a freestyle set before such a thing was even a dream. Kain's one pissed-off cat, raging not only against the usual necessary concerns, but also against the stereotypes in his own community. Free jazz-funk grooves on guitars, electric violins, a slew of drums, and ghostly keyboards accompany his gorgeous and disturbing ranting that is far from pointless. From the opening ritual scarification of "I Ain't Black," with it's free jazz approach and over-the-top screaming, to the poignant indictment of "Harlem Preacher," to "Black Satin Amazon" and "Constipated Monkey," Kain is a hipster without a country, a street poet without an audience, an activist without sympathy. And rather than succumb and stylize his thang to get his message across, he becomes angrier, slyer, slicker, less forgiving, and more insightful. Music is placed here not as accompaniment, but as a framework for Kain to place his poetry in a context of the African-American oral tradition and the Living Theatre. And he gives no quarter. This man makes the Last Poets he left behind sound like schoolboys trying to sound pissed off. Kain would make Gil Scott-Heron run away for fear of being exposed as the effete he became before he turned into an out-and-out drug addict. There aren't any other records like this; this is the sound of the apocalypse, one that Amiri Baraka predicted and celebrated. Come to The System of Dante's Hell as narrated by Kain. Sit down, listen all the way though if you can; wake up. There's a riot goin' on.

Review from Allmusic Guide by Thom Jurek

The album, to say the least, is an intense listening experience performed by a cat who must be one intense individual. Jurek does a decent job of capturing the essence of Kain's one solo album. The music and words fit in with what his former Last Poets crew were doing at the time, although with more attention paid to musical arrangements - ranging from free jazz on the opening tracks to a cooler West Coast feel for much of the remaining album (though cooler here is only a relative term - the music has an edge to it).

To me the highlight of the album is the final track, "Look Out for the Blue Guerrilla." The tune starts out with a basic keyboard-bass-drum backing that has that hazy weed-smoke-filled room vibe to it as Kain drops these philosophical rhymes that build in intensity and religious imagery, with a travel-logue that sounds like Kain's been channeling HST as he was writing Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, or Oscar Zeta Acosta's Autobiography of a Brown Buffalo. Certainly, the song, like Thompson's and Acosta's books, captures the rotten core of the "American Dream" - in Kain's case, laying out a vision of an America with machine guns on every corner, and ending with a climax in which Kain and crew shout a warning to "Look Out For The Blue Guerrilla!"

If you can dig on some Amiri Baraka-inspired second generation beat poetry, that takes on issues of racism and oppression that are every bit as topical today as they were back in 1971, this album's for you. Last Poets fans should dig this. I've heard his work described as “Holy Roller Existential Blues” and “Poetic Aggression”. That's as good a description as any.

Gylan Kain has kept busy since his falling out with the Last Poets and the recording of The Blue Guerrilla as a playwright, multimedia collaborations with Z'ev, and of course performing his poetry both solo and with musical backing. He's most recently appeared with jazz/hip-hop/fusion artists Electric Barbarian since 2003, appearing on their 2004 album él. and Minirock from the Sun. Some press reviews from the Electric Barbarian website:

JAZZTIMES March 18, 2005 - Larry Appelbaum
Dutch Jazz Meeting
"Friday night began with a sound collective called Electric Barbarian, with electric bassist and leader Floris Vermeulen, and featuring a headphone-wearing trumpeter who kept one hand on his mixer, a turntablist named Grazzhoppa and a drummer prone to mock bodybuilder poses. After an opening instrumental with washes of sound and a pseudo tribal beat, Gylan Kain, one of the founding members of the Last Poets, wailed and ranted his piece about "My Niggaz" with textured accompaniment. At one point he came out into the audience and recited in the face of an audience member who was moved to get up and leave, but not before Kain followed the poor man up the aisle. "Kicking Mickey Mouse in his house", indeed."

[...]

Kwadratuur.be August 2, 2004 - Koen van Meel
"These songs are solidly driven on a simple harmonious basis and are underlayed by Floris Vermeulen's melodious bass, which gives the whole thing soul." (...) "Vocal contributions are laid on top of this instrumental foundation. Kain is especially fascinating. His poems are visual, difficult to pin down in the beginning, but are delivered as pure spoken word, with a flow which most MCs can only dream of."

Gylan Kain is in my opinion one of those writers and artists who deserves far more recognition than he's received. The recorded material he's contributed to Electric Barbarian's albums this decade (along with accounts of his performances at their gigs) has certainly been tantalizing. Given the dearth of recorded material available by Gylan Kain, that he's had any influence on the subsequent direction of underground rap is a minor miracle. Some of the more direct evidence comes from KMD's magnum opus, Bl_ck B_st_rds (maybe one of these days I'll re-up that one). In the meantime, "look out for the Blue Guerrilla."

Download The Blue Guerrilla.

Quick update

2008-10-04T15:31:00.005-05:00

I've re-upped a temporary version of Sunny Murray's album Big Chief. I'll have a better quality mp3 version hopefully later tonight [Update: Mission accomplished].

Also, I'm going to go on a fundraising drive this month. If you've appreciated this blog and its contents, just click on the tip jar. Finding and sharing some rare music can be resource-intensive. A little help with the overhead is always appreciated, and the more help I get, the less time I spend hustling up a few bucks elsewhere and the more time I can spend providing y'all with quality and rare music.

Human Arts Ensemble - Live Volumes 1 & 2

2008-09-22T21:56:00.003-05:00

It's been a while since I last dropped any Human Arts Ensemble joints, so here's one from back in 1978, in two volumes.

Human Arts Ensemble
Live Vol. 1
Circle Records

Tracks:

1. Stick Candy Man
2. Concere Natashiah
3. Blue Lou
4. Let's Do Six-Eight

Personnel:

Charles Bobo Shaw - drums
Luther Thomas - alto sax
John Lindberg - bass

Rudolf Kreis - producer

Recorded live in "De Groote Luxe", Tilburg, Holland, May 23, 1978

Live Vol. 2
Circle Records

Tracks:

1. Sequence
2. Tiburg Centre
3. Ectodorph
4. Ballad
5. Concere Natashiah

Personnel:

Charles Bobo Shaw - drums
Joseph Bowie - trombone
James Emery - guitar

Rudolf Kreis - producer

Recorded live in "De Groote Luxe", Tilburg, Holland, May 23, 1978

Download Live Vol. 1 and Live Vol. 2

Noah Howard - Space Dimension

2008-09-22T21:17:00.006-05:00

Here's one from the vaults that makes the rounds on the internet from time to time. This particular recording dates back to the period when Noah Howard was regularly collaborating with the late Frank Wright - who appears on this session, and whose famous tune "Church Number Nine" is showcased.

Tracks:

1. Space Dimension (Howard)
2. Viva Black (Howard)
3. Church Number Nine (Wright)
4. Song For Poets (Howard)
5. Blues For Thelema (Howard)

Personnel:

Noah Howard - Alto Sax
Frank Wright - Tenor Sax
Bobby Few - Piano
Art Taylor - Drums
Muhammad Ali - Drums on "Church Number Nine"

Download Space Dimension.

Some Housekeeping

2008-09-22T02:18:00.004-05:00

Around the end of my summer hiatus, apparently there was a bit of psychodrama that I thankfully largely missed out on. To hopefully avoid any sort of repeat, here's how this blog works:

1. I link other blogs and sites for one of two reasons - a) the blog or site links to here, or b) the blog or site has interesting content (imho) that I think others should check out. The usual norm in the world of blogging is that links, and the readership that hopefully accompanies those links, are to be encouraged. If you run a blog, but don't want new readers, you might look into either making the blog or website strictly "members-only", or maybe just get out of the blogging biz altogether. Also, if you have a blog and already link to here, just drop me a line and I'll be glad to reciprocate (within reason - I won't link to anything pornographic or racist, so don't even go there).

2. Comments are great! Although I don't often reply, I appreciate the props, feedback, and knowledge that others share here. That said, from this point forward, any language that I deem abusive or threatening will be immediately deleted at my discretion. The same goes for any comments (regardless of content) that are authored by "anonymous" (c'mon, that just shows a combination of laziness and cowardice).

3. Email is fine, but please note that even legit email messages can end up caught in a spam trap. If that happens, I'll likely never see the message. If you want to make sure that something related to this blog gets read, put this blog's name in your message subject header followed by a concise description of the message's topic. I check messages about every other day, so be patient. If a message is urgent, and you don't get a reply, re-send the message (just on the off chance that it got caught up in spam). Whatever you do, don't throw a tantrum because you don't get an immediate reply, and please realize that sending trolls my way in the aftermath of said tantrum will not help but rather will hurt your cause - they'll just get their comments tossed into the bozo bin, and in all probability will be banned from posting here from now on; I'll end up mildly annoyed, and your feelings will still be hurt.

That concludes this PSA. Now back to our regularly scheduled blogging.

Jothan Callins & The Sounds of Togetherness - Winds of Change

2008-09-22T01:06:00.004-05:00

Tracks:

1. Prayer for Love and Peace
2. Winds of Change
3. Sons and Daughters of the Sun
4. Triumph

Personnel:

Jothan Callins - trumpet, bells
Joseph Bonner - piano, tambourine
Norman Conners - drums, percussion
Cecil McBee - bass
Roland Duval - conga, percussion

I first heard of this one courtesy of Seth Watter of the blog, Meshes of the Afternoon. Seth does a great job of describing the album - better than I'd probably do as a non-musician hobbyist. Callins apparently worked with a number of big names in the music world (not only jazz), including of course the legendary Sun Ra. Not surprisingly, there is a bit of a Sun Ra influence in the music. The album would have easily fit in with the Strata-East roster (as Seth notes), as well as T.R.I.B.E and Black Fire (Oneness of Juju's old label from the period). In other words, expect some primo kozmigroov, with the emphasis more on the cosmic. Absolutely gorgeous music.

Apparently, Callins and The Sounds of Togetherness toured extensively during his career. It's a pity he didn't get more of an opportunity to lead some studio sessions. He certainly had the vibe. The one document he left behind as a band leader is tantalizing.

Download Winds of Change

Beaver Harris Quintet: Live WKCR, March 21, 1977

2008-09-22T00:59:00.000-05:00

Here's some vintage late 1970s free jazz, courtesy of the late Beaver Harris. The music on these three mp3 files is from a live broadcast at WKCR-FM. About the best information I can get on this session comes from the David S. Ware sessionography:

March 21, 1977 / WKCR-FM Studio, New York City
unknown titles [51:03]
Raphé Malik (tp)
David S. Ware (tenor sax)
Hamiet Bluiett (bs)
Tito Sumpa (perc)
Beaver Harris (drums)

With the possible exception of Sumpa, these cats are all close to household names in the avant-jazz world. The sound quality is quite good - the nice thing about live-in-studio performances is that you get a feel for what the band would be like live, but without the potentially dodgy acoustics that plague live club or concert bootlegs.

The first track is a sprawling 44 minute piece of pure cacophony that slowly takes shape as the musicians get a feel for their surroundings. Needless to say, the drums and percussion are prominent, and sometimes Malik and Ware sound if they're struggling to be heard. Bluiett's bass simply seems to blend into the percussion. About halfway through, Malik gets some extended space to solo, followed by Ware near the half-hour mark. His soloing at this relatively early date in his career foreshadows his more recent work. That solo is followed by a drum-percussion dialog between Harris and Sumpa, before the rest of the band rejoins to close things out. Track 2 picks up where the first track ended. The final track features piano, suggesting that Cecil Taylor must have been sitting in on the session as well - the third track definitely has a different feel to it, and quiets things down enough to give Bluiett a chance to be heard. There are definitely some knowledgeable cats who drop by here, so maybe one of 'em will be able to give us the lowdown on the session beyond the fragments that I can provide.

Dowload Live WKCR, March 21, 1977

Marion Brown: Le Temps Fou

2008-09-21T21:08:00.006-05:00

Marion Brown: Le Temps Fou Polydor 658142 (France)

Tracks:

1. Le Temps Fou 5:24
2. Cascatelles (Phillips) 5:31
3. Song For Serge And Helle 6:39
4. Boat Rock 4:59
5. Ye Ye 6:08
6. En Arricre 11:31

Personnel:

Ambrose Jackson, trumpet, percussion;
Marion Brown, alto saxophone, bells;
Gunter Hampel, vibraphone, bass clarinet, percussion;
Barre Phillips, bass, percussion;
Steve McCall, drums;
Alain Corneau, percussion on 6

recorded September 1968, Studio Davout, Paris

A film soundtrack composed by Marion Brown, with the exception of the track "Cascatelles". It's pretty standard late-1960s Marion Brown - which means if you're a fan, you'll be pleased to find this. The music stands up quite nicely - there aren't any tracks that would qualify as incidental music or filler. The tune "Boat Rock" is a bit of an oddity in that it is more of a rock tune, with jazz instrumentation.

Enjoy another of the jazz underground's grails!

Download Le Temps Fou.

Archie Shepp & Philly Joe Jones

2008-09-21T14:59:00.004-05:00

ARCHIE SHEPP AND PHILLY JOE JONES America 30 AM 6102

Recorded November-December 1969, Paris, France

Side One

1. The Lowlands

Side Two

1. Howling In The Silence;

a. Raynes or Thunders
b. Julio's Song

Personnel

Anthony Braxton; soprano, alto sax
Chicago Beau; soprano sax, harmonica, vocal
Archie Shepp; tenor sax, piano
Julio Finn; harmonica, vocal
Leroy Jenkins; violin
Earl Freeman, bass, vocal
Philly Joe Jones; drums

Here's another out of print gem from Archie Shepp's canon. Shepp always seemed to have a deep reverence for the music's history even during his most avant-garde days, and by 1969 the journey was taking him into blues territory (certainly quite apparent on this album and also tracks from another overlooked gem from the time, Blasé).

From the liner notes for the track, "The Lowlands":

"THE LOWLANDS is a musical portrait of live in the black ghettos and southern black communities. The music begins with shouts and screams because shouts and screams are a sure sign of life. Whether one is shouting for joy or screaming in pain life and feeling for whatever is expressed here.

Archie Shepp, tenor, takes you on a tour of the Lowlands which hopefully is an unforgetable one. The rest of the orchestra breaks into a line rhythm, as Shepp and Philly Joe Jones blend in. And then, I begin the recitation of the Lowlands with the participation of the rest of the orchestra: Earl Freeman, bassist, in particular. After the recitation, I join Leroy Jenkins on violin, Julio Finn, Harmonica, Anthony Braxton, Alto-sax and myself, Soprano-sax, providing an interesting, mad, black, wild background for Shepp’s solo. After solos the rhythm resumes and the final verses are recited ending in a series of lone screams.

My thanks go to all who made my composition possible.
- L.T. Beauchamp [my note: aka Chicago Beau]
Paris, December 11th, 1969"

It's fiery music, a bit low-fi, and raw.

Download Archie Shepp & Philly Joe Jones

Babatunde Olatunji - Soul Makossa

2008-09-21T00:20:00.003-05:00

Olatunji - Soul Makossa (Paramount PA 6061)

Personnel
Marvin Stamm (tp)
Eddie Bert (tb)
Joe Henderson (ts)
Reggie Lucas (el-g)
Gordon Edwards (el-b)
Ronnie Lito (d)
Bernard Barber, Eric Bruce, Michael "Babatunde" Olatunji, Kehinde Stewart (African d)
Michael "Babatunde" Olatunji (African d, vo)
Stacy Edwards (cowbell)
Brett Brown, Charles Payne (shekere, African d)
Akwasiba Atigbi, Erroll Edwards, Lady Oluoju Walquer (vo)

Tracks
1. Soul Makossa
2. Takuta
3. Masai
4. Dominira
5. O-Wa

This one's a decidedly funky joint that was dropped in 1973, and which fans of Fela Kuti or of On The Corner-era Miles Davis would enjoy tremendously. I love percussion - there's plenty of it here. "Soul Makossa" is a mid-tempo funk-jazz workout. "Takuta" opens like a track from Drums of Passion - percussion and chanting - but quickly moves into a minimalist funk vibe that wouldn't be at all out of place alongside, say, David Byrne and Brian Eno's My Life in the Bush of Ghosts. The pace slows down a bit for "Masai", which meanders like a river current nearing the delta. "Dominira" opens with a nasty guitar & percussion intro before settling into an almost popish groove. "O-Wa" turns away from pop and closes the album on a note more reminiscent of "Takuta".

This music is a celebration of life, performed by people who seem to enjoy what they are doing and each other's company. For those of us who believed at one point that we could cure the world's social ills by injecting some peace and love into the collective psyche with music, this is the sort of stuff that makes it easy to believe once more. Enjoy!

Download Soul Makossa

Marzette Watts Ensemble

2008-09-19T01:30:00.005-05:00

Here's another Holy Grail from the 1960s free jazz scene. Marzette Watts' other album, Marzette and Company (recorded for ESP-Disk in 1966, but not released until 1971) goes in and out of print, but is relatively easy to find.

Savoy dropped this eponymous joint in 1969, but never saw fit to reissue it. A shame, because it is a nice slab of vinyl that fits in nicely with much of what ESP-Disk was offering at the time. The recording includes three Watts originals, a couple Ornette Coleman tunes (including the standard, "Lonely Woman") and a Bill Dixon tune. Thurston Moore held this album in high esteem for good reason. It rocks - not as a full-throttle noise assault, but as a varied, subtle recording that kicks out the jams in all the right places. The cover of "Lonely Woman" in particular stands out, partially because of the Patty Waters vocal.

Tracks:
Side A
1. Octobersong (Dixon)
2. Play It Straight (Coleman)
3. F.L.O.A.R.S.S (Watts)

Side B
1. Medley (Watts)
2. Lonely Woman (Coleman)
3. Joudpou (Watts)

Personnel:
Marzette Watts - tenor sax
Marty Cook - trombone
Tom Berge & J. C. Moses - drums
Juny Booth, Steve Tintweiss, Cevera Jehers - basses
Frank Kipers - violin
Robert Fews [sic?] - piano
George Turner - cornet
Patty Waters, Amy Schaeffer - voices

Bill Dixon - producer; cover design; liner notes; piano on "Play it Straight"
Jerry Newman - engineer
James Mannis - cover photo

Recorded at Stereo Sound Studios, New York, New York.

As an aside from the great minds think alike department: when I upped this album in August, I was expecting to be able to post it right away - but that was before some local school board matters hit the fan. I just couldn't get into doing much with music until after all that got settled. Turns out that the cats over at Destination Out upped a sampler of tracks from Marzette Watts Ensemble last week, along with an excellent summary.

I'm assuming that the cat listed as Robert Fews is actually Bobby Few.

Download Marzette Watts Ensemble

Dewey Redman - Unreleased 1969 Session

2008-08-26T01:09:00.001-05:00

This is a cool find:

Dewey Redman
Unreleased Blue Note or Strata East / dolphy Series Session [no label, 1CD]
Record Plant, NYC, December 19, 1969

The thing about jazz, and about free-jazz especially, is that there is something timeless about it. Recorded 38 years ago, Apple-itis, the opening track on this CD, still has the ability to astound today as it probably did so many years ago. To recall a comment someone made on the internet, "Dewey Redman enters with a shattering roar, literally screaming while playing the saxophone. The earth opens up and you contemplate the multitudes of strange large brown insects that burrow and feed near the ancient runes." It is a tough work out with Redman making the saxophone bleed while ably supported by Chris Capers on trumpet.

While Look For The Black Star would eventually be released in 1975 with a different lineup, the two versions here carry a lyrical (samba-ish) swing and indicate what Redman could do to a composition along a more "traditional" jazz line. And because of Redman's musette (or the Chinese suona), certain passages carry an Asian feel.

Dewey Redman is best known for his work with Ornette Coleman, appearing on the recording New York Is Now, among others. He also played in Keith Jarrett's American Quartet, and was a member of the collective Old And New Dreams. (Younger jazz fans will probably know of Dewey as the father of saxophonist Joshua Redman.)

For Dewey Redman, it was the sound that mattered. In an interview, he said: "In my world, that's the first thing I reach for is the sound. Technique is OK, but if you got the technique and I got a good sound, I'll beat you every time. You can play a thousand notes and I can play one note and wipe you out. That's what I reach for is a sound." Redman was 75 when he died of liver failure in Brooklyn, New York on September 2, 2006.

[snip]

As far as we can ascertain, this recording has never been officially released.

Note: Due to the length of some of the files, please be patient when downloading the tracks.

Track 01 Apple-itis 12:32 (17.2MB)

Track 02 Interconnection (take 2) 10:06 (13.9MB)

Track 03 P.S. (take 1) 7:49 (10.7MB)

Track 04 Look for the Black Star (13:25) (18.4MB)

Track 05 Look for the Black Star (take 2) 13:25 (20.7MB)

Lineup:
Dewey Redman (as, musette)
Chris Capers (tp)
Bob Cunningham (b)
Ed Blackwell (dr)
Rashied Ali (dr)
Eddie Moore (dr)

Download it here.

sorry about the delays

2008-07-31T15:39:00.001-05:00

Will get back to regular updates in August.

Arthur Doyle - WHRW Radio Interview, November 1979

2008-06-01T13:46:00.004-05:00

Here's another Arthur Doyle item I've seen floating around the internet, thanks to the p2p sites. The interview is nearly three decades old, providing some insights into the free/avant-jazz scene of the time, Arthur's personal history, his hopes and plans as of the end of the 1970s, as well as a discussion on Arthur's technique on the sax. The listener also gets treated to material off of Alabama Feeling, and of course he plays some solo material live in studio.

Get WHRW Radio Interview.

Arthur Doyle - More Alabama Feeling

2008-05-24T21:48:00.003-05:00

There's quite a bit of Arthur Doyle material floating around if one is willing to look. This recording marked a resurgence in interest in Doyle's music in the early 1990s.

Performer:
Arthur Doyle (Tenor Sax, Voice)

Tracks:
1. Hao
2. Nature Boy

Year recorded: 1990

Released on Forced Exposure in 1993.

His recordings tend to go out of print fairly quickly, although thankfully there are a few albums still in print. Qbico and Carbon have been releasing quite a bit of his work this decade - usually in extremely limited editions.

Get More Alabama Feeling

Some Housekeeping

2008-05-24T20:05:00.001-05:00

I fixed a couple broken links, in the process re-upping the following albums:

Coleman Hawkins - Wrapped Tight

Olatunji - Flaming Drums!

Various Artists - Live From Soundscape: Hell's Kitchen

2008-05-24T14:51:00.004-05:00

Here's another one of those rarities that I managed to find at another blog about a year ago. I had already heard the Don Cherry tracks, since those had been circulating around p2p networks for the past decade. Let's just say that the whole album rocks the house. The info (courtesy Eliminate Fear Of The Unkown):

Live from Soundscape: Hell's Kitchen
Various Artists
DIW-405
1978-1983
128 Rate AAC Files (Equivalent to 192 rate mp3)

Tracks and Credits:

Odean Pope Trio [Odean Pope, tenor saxophone; Gerald Veasley, bass; Cornell Rochester, drums]:

1. Improvisation 1 (14.23)
Recorded 26 February 1983.

Peter Brötzmann Trio [Peter Brötzmann, tenor saxophone; Harry Miller, bass; Louis Moholo, drums]:

2. Improvisation 2 (18.49)
Recorded 28 November 1980.

Ed Blackwell, drums; Charles Brackeen, tenor saxophone:

3. Improvisation 3 (09.20)
4. Improvisation 4 (05.45)
Recorded 16 February 1980.

Don Cherry, stalagtites (5), flute (6):

5. Improvisation 5 (08.18)
6. Improvisation 6 (02.59)
Recorded October 1978.

All recorded at Soundscape, 52nd Street, NYC, apart from (5) and (6), recorded in Mammoth Cave, Kentucky.

While you're at it, check out the review by j-bombay at Eliminate Fear Of The Unknown from that same link. No need to reinvent the wheel on my part. Hopefully j-bombay won't mind my taking the liberty to re-up this gem. It deserves to be heard.

Download Live From Soundscape: Hell's Kitchen

Arthur Doyle Discography Update

2008-05-24T14:15:00.003-05:00

The latest version of the Arthur Doyle Discography is now available. At this point, it appears I've managed to track down just about any recording that has ever been released. I do have some sound files that appear to be from bootleg recordings whose sources I need to track down, but other than that I think it's pretty complete. If I've missed anything, feel free to email me.

This is one of those labors of love. I have never met the man, and regrettably the closest I'll probably ever come to seeing him gig live has been through the occasional YouTube video, but I've become quite passionate about his music over the last nearly decade.

Last Poets - At Last

2008-05-24T13:06:00.005-05:00

This was one of those Holy Grail recordings, that I finally managed to track down. The one review that I've read about the album was pretty unflattering, but at least to my ears it hits the right notes. It's not as essential as their early albums The Last Poets and This is Madness, or other recordings from the 1970s such as Chastisement or Delights in the Garden, and unlike any of those albums seems doomed to remain out of print. I actually think it fits in quite nicely with Chastisement and Delights in the Garden - it's just a bit more lo-fi than those albums. And if the vocals sound strained, contrary to the allmusic.com review, careful listening will suggest that it is intentional on certain tracks rather than an artifact of trying to be heard over the jazz combo backing.

Download At Last

David Burrell - Echo

2008-04-29T14:23:00.004-05:00

Thurston Moore sez:

In the fall of 1969 Free Jazz was reaching a kind of nadir/nexus. Within the industry it was controversial. Classic traditionalists (beboppers included) were outraged by men in dashikis and sandals jumping on stage and just BLOWING their guts out creating screaming torrents of action. Most musicians involved with this crying anarchy could get no bookings beyond the New York loft set. The French lovers of the avant-garde embraced this African-American scene wholly. This recording is one of many in a series of LP's with consistent design. BYG released classic Free Jazz documents by Archie Shepp (at his wildest), Clifford Thornton, Art Ensemble of Chicago, Grachan Moncur III, Sunny Murray, Alan Silva, Arthur Jones, Dewey Redman and many others. A lot of these cats are present on this recording where from the first groove it sounds like an acoustic tidal wave exploding into shards of dynamite. If you can locate Alan Silva's "Lunar Surface" LP (BYG 529.312/Actuel Vol. 12) you'll find a world even that much more OUT.

Released on BYG/Actuel, catalogue #529320.Tracks

1. "Echo" — 20:01
2. "Peace" — 22:04

Personnel

Band:

Dave Burrell — piano, arranger, liner notes
Arthur Jones — saxophone (alto)
Grachan Moncur III — trombone
Sunny Murray — bass, drums
Archie Shepp — saxophone (tenor)
Alan Silva — bass
Clifford Thornton — cornet

Production:

Jacques Bisceglia — coordination
Claude Delcloo — executive producer
Claude Jauvert — engineer
Philippe Gras — photography
Jean Luc Young, Jean Georgakarakos — producers

Download Echo

Stanley Cowell: Regeneration

2008-03-31T22:04:00.003-05:00

Credits:
Acoustic Guitar - Jerry Venable (tracks: 1)
Bass - Bill Lee (2) (tracks: 2, 5, 6, 7)
Bass Drum & Ibo Chanting - Aleke Kanonu (tracks: 1, 3, 5)
Guitar - Glenda Barnes (tracks: 1)
Harmonica & Flute - Psyche Wanzandae (tracks: 4, 5)
Mama-lekimbe, Percussion & Madagascan Harp - Nadi Quamar (tracks: 2, 6, 7)
Snare Drum, Ride Cymbal, Gembhre & Percussion - Billy Higgins (tracks: 1, 2, 3, 5, 6, 7)
Soprano Saxophone & Flute - Jimmy Heath (tracks: 5, 6, 7)
Synthesizer, Piano, Kora & Mibra - Stanley Cowell (tracks: 1, 2, 4, 5, 6, 7)
Vocals - Kareema (2) (tracks: 5, 6, 7)
Vocals & Electric Bass - Charles Fowlkes* (tracks: 1, 5, 6, 7)
Waterdrum, Parade Drum & Percussion - Ed Blackwell (tracks: 1, 3, 5)
Wooden Fife & Wooden Flute - Marion Brown (tracks: 3, 6)
Zuna - John Stubblefield (tracks: 5)

Tracks:
1. Trying To Find A Way (3:49)
2. The Gembhre (4:30)
3. Shimmy Shewobble (4:00)
4. Parlour Blues (5:00)
5. Thank You My People (8:30)
6. Travelin' Man (4:00)
7. Lullabye (5:45)

This was originally released on the Strata-East label in 1976. Nice kozmigroov vibe.

Download Regeneration

Archie Shepp - Pitchin Can

2008-02-29T21:12:00.003-06:00

Personnel:
Archie Shepp-ts,ss
Bobby Few-p
Bob Reid-b
Clifford Thornton-valve tb,tp
Muhammad Ali-d
Al Shorter-flh
Djibrill-cga
Ostaine Blue Warner-perc
Lester Bowie-tp
Sunny Murray-d
Julio Finn-harm
Noah Howard-as
Leroy Jenkins-vla
Dave Burrell-p
Earl Freeman-b
Chicago Beau-voc

America 6106 F rec Paris 11/9/69 7/23/70

Fans of Archie Shepp's BYG output from the same time period will dig on this one as well.

Download Pitchin Can

Arthur Jones: Scorpio

2008-01-31T00:05:00.002-06:00

Since I'd posted the Claude Delcloo/Arthur Jones album, Africanasia earlier, this seemed like a reasonable one to follow. The music is definitely well-worth hearing and deserves a much wider audience than it has had thus far.

Tracks:
1 C.R.M.
2 B.T.
3 Sad Eyes
4 Brother B.

Credits:
Bass - Beb Guerin
Drums - Claude Delcloo
Saxophone [Alto] - Arthur Jones

Producer - Jean Georgakarakos , Jean-Luc Young

Recorded in Paris, France, August 1969 and released on BYG/Actuel, catalogue #529350.

Download Scorpio

David S. Ware: Birth of a Being

2007-12-23T14:24:00.001-06:00

David S. Ware
Birth of a Being

hat HUT W (LP)

1. Prayer [10:50]
2. Thematic Womb [16:35]
3. A Primary Piece #1 [13:45]
4. A Primary Piece #2 [11:45]

all comp. Ware

Apogee:
David S. Ware (tenor sax)
Gene Y. Ashton [aka Cooper-Moore] (piano)
Marc D. Edwards (drums)

#1, 3, 4 rec. April 14, 1977
#2 rec. April 15, 1977
CIRecording, Inc.
New York City

This was David S. Ware's first album as a band-leader. If one needs to make the case that Ware has been one of the most consistently excellent recording artists over the last three decades, this album definitely evidence.

Download Birth of a Being.

Claude Delcloo/Arthur Jones: Africanasia

2007-11-23T23:04:00.002-06:00

Tracks:
1. Africanasia, part 1 (Claude Delcloo) [19:16]
2. Africanasia, part 2 (Claude Delcloo) [17:36]

Personnel:
Claude Delcloo (drums)
Arthur Jones (alto sax)
Joseph Jarman, Roscoe Mitchell, Kenneth Terroade (flutes)
Clifford Thornton (conga)
Malachi Favors (log-drum)
Earl Freeman (gong, bell, percussion)

Recorded August 22, 1969 at Studio Saravah, Paris, France

Released by BYG/Actuel, catalogue # 529306.

Absolutely gorgeous album that lives up to its title.

Download Africanasia