A SHORT BUT SWEET LIST WONDERFUL DISCS FROM JOHN ZORN'S 'THE PORT OF LAST RESORT' DVD, ANDREW HILL, A DEREK BAILEY RARITY,

HECTOR ZAZOU CD + DVD, DISKAHOLICS (GUSTAFSSON-MOORE-O'ROURKE), 5 from NINE WINDS (VINNY GOLIA, PAUL SMOKER & JOEY SELLERS),

5 from FRESH SOUND (RON HORTON, LOREN STILLMAN, EIVIND OPSVIK, DANIEL FREEDMAN & GUILLERMO KLEIN), BEN MONDER w/ NAVARRETE-BAEZA, STEVE KHAN TRIO, ANTOINE BERTHIAUME & TAKUMI SEINO,

EVEN MORE ACID MOTHER TEMPLE CDS, CHARLIE HADEN/RALPH TOWNER/JULIAN PRIESTER, JOACHIM KUHN/HARRY BECKETT QT, IVO PERELMAN /DON PRESTON QT, PLUS...

SOME AMAZING HISTORIC RARITIES from ORNETTE COLEMAN (3 TITLES!), ERIC DOLPHY, MILES & TRANE, GIL EVANS, JOE HENDERSON, BILL EVANS, TOMMY FLANAGAN, McLEAN/KONITZ/BARTZ/MARIANO, CLIFFORD BROWN...




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DEE POP is experiencing a difficulty with his current mail server: they won't let him send out his gig newsletter via bulk mailing. Whilst he is getting set up anew with alternative methods - hopefully by next week...
WE ARE ASKING YOU TO FORWARD THIS SCHEDULE TO YOUR FRIENDS IN NEW YORK CITY WHO MAY BE ON HIS LIST BUT AREN'T ON OURS
[We cannot add his list to ours without getting permission from all individuals involved]

IN any case, Current information is always available here

first, two special gigs:

Feb 24 Bush Tetras with Dee Pop @ Tonic $10 IN ADAVANCE, $12 DAY OF SHOW

FREESTYLE JAZZ @ CBGB'S GALLERY - SPECIAL SUNDAY SHOW FEB 26 - 7PM Hanuman Sextet: Andy Haas, Don Fiorino, Mia Theodoratus, Reuben Radding, Dee Pop, David Gould James Finn Quartet: Kenny McGLoin, Leon Lee Dorsey, Jackson Krall
Steve Swell Orchestra

and then...

Dee Pop presents:
Weekly FREESTYLE JAZZ Every Thursday @ Jimmy's Restaurant
downstairs below the Burp Castle - 43 East 7th Street - NYC - 212-982-3006 -

March 2
8pm Rob Brown, Daniel Levin, Satoshi Takeishi
10pm - Downtown Horns: Roy Campbell, Daniel Carter, Sabir Mateen

March 9
8 & 10pm Bauhaus Quartet: Kevin Norton, Dave Ballou, Tony Malaby, John Lindberg

March 16
8pm: Joe Giardullo, Rich Rosenthal, Todd Capp
10pm: Mostly Others Do the Killing

March 23
8pm Dom Minasi Trio with Ken Filiano and Jackson Krall plus special guest Steve Swell.
10pm TBA

March 30
8pm Sabir Mateen, Jane Wang, Warren Smith
10pm Carnival Skin: Bruce Eisenbeil, Perry Robinson, Peter Evans, Hill greene, Klaus Kugel

April 6
8pm Sam Bardfeld Group
10pm James Finn Quintet with Warren Smith, Jackson Krall, Leon Lee Dorsey, Kenny McGloin

April 13
8pm & 10pm Steve Lehman Quartet

May 18
George Haslam

May 25
8pm & 10pm Ellery Eskelin & Gerry Hemingway

June 15
James Finn Qunitet

$10 per set - 1 drink minimum - Great and reasonably priced food & Large Selection of Beer Available - Come early or call for reservations

The Freestyle Jazz series is looking to book groups interested in performing late sets. Please contact Dee Pop for further information. 917-656-1587.

Thanks and hope to see you at one of these shows. Your patronage is what will keep it going.


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JOAN GROSSMAN & PAUL ROSDY {directors}/JOHN ZORN {music} - Zuflucht In Shanghai: The Port Of Last Resort [DVD] (W&W 915004; USA) This remarkable documentary reveals a lost world, when Shanghai was the Far East's most illustrious city. It is filled with the extraordinary images of refugees who were refused by the so-called land of the free as well as from other countries. It shows an uncommon view of Chinese life, creating a compelling vantage point for understanding and experiencing this difficult story of survival. This little known story is presented through the recollections of four former refugees through a collage of evocative archival materials: personal & published writings by the refugees, secret documents, rare home movies, photographs, newsreels and propaganda films. John Zorn's superb and touching music blends Jewish and eastern melodies in a sublime balance that is perfect for the images presented in the film. I have long believed that this soundtrack, bits of which are found on Zorn's 'Filmworks VIII', is one of his greatest achievements. The musicians utilized are Min Xiao-Fen on pipa, Marc Ribot on guitar, Anthony Coleman on piano, Mark Feldman on violin, Erik Friedlander on cello and Greg Cohen on bass. More of the Chinese music used in this film can be found on an excellent recently released disc called 'Metropolitan Shanghai', also on Winter & Winter. Huguette and I watched this DVD just after New Year's and were deeply moved by it. 80 minutes long, subtitles in English, German, French, Japanese & Spanish. - BLG
DVD $29


HECTOR ZAZOU & BERNARD CAILLAUD With BRIAN ENO/RYUICHI SAKAMOTO/DAVID SYLVIAN/BILL RIEFLIN/PETER BUCK - Quadri + Chromies [CD + DVD + 10 cards in a special ltd box] (Materiali Sonori 90139; Italy) CD with Peter Buck (tracks 2-3-6); Brian Eno (tracks 4-5-7); Bill Rieflin (tracks 5-6-8-9); Ryuichi Sakamoto (tracks 1-3-4-6-8); David Sylvian (track 2); and Archea Strings (Mauro Fabbrucci, Vieri Bugli violins; Marcello Puliti viola; Damiano Puliti cello; Filippo Pedol double bass) Quadri + Chromies brings together the video pictures of Bernard Caillaud and the electronic music of Hector Zazou. Images and music are generated by computer and there is no systematic search for syncronicity. Colors and sounds seem to dialogue in a strange mechanical music that becomes, by pure chance, suddenly understood by the spectator. 'Quadri+Chromies' was created as a live performance in Florence (Festival Fabbrica Europa) in May 2002 and performed again in Moscow in October 2003, Monterrey (Mexico) in October 2004 and Sofia in March 2005. Zazou and Caillaud write:
Several works are necessary to resume the efforts to marry these two sensorially constructed spaces. The relationships between sounds and colours, frequencies and wavelenghts have been explored by everyone from Newton to Scriabine, Valensi to Xenakis, Schoenberg to Baranoff-Rossini. Inverse feedback is beginning with the graphic synthesis of sounds. In any case the liaison must be legible/visible or at least driven by a process that is often complex but justifiable, demonstrable thus comprehensible. We are not sure if the correspondence between the Arts makes sense, but it's endlessly and hungrily investigated through the concept of interactivity and its dance of signals. But we all know that interactivity is an illusion. There is always a master and a slave. One decides and the other obeys. To destroy this relationship is to disconnect in order to better communicate, to give free reign to dialogues born of chance, to cheer at accidents of synchronicity, to render the incidents of this path exciting and unique. With 'Quadri + Chromies' we have chosen juxtaposition over connection. We want to shatter the correspondance imposed by our cultural references, to liberate ourselves from our obsessive desire to understand in order to better perceive. We want to suggest a way of making sense of sensorial encounters that are fortuitous and rare.
"Just listened to this in the store for the first time - not quite the 'lower-case' sound, yet sparse 'instrumentals' with vibrant color and dynamics; not ambient, yet not foreground. VERY BEAUTIFUL! THUMBS UP!!!"- Manny Lunch [Too bad I have to wait to get home to see/hear the DVD half]
CD + DVD $35.
Warning: the DVD above is PAL, which North American customers will NOT be able to play unless they have a multi-region player with PAL capabilities.


WALTER MALLI/DEREK BAILEY With OSKAR AICHINGER/HANS STEINER/KARL SAYER - Live At The Vortex 2003 [Ltd Ed of 100] (Arto; USA) With individually drawn covers by Walter Malli. Featuring Derek Bailey on guitar, Walter Malli on soprano sax & drums, Oskar Aichinger on piano, Hans Steiner on bass clarinet and Karl Sayer on double bass. Except for the late Derek Bailey, I don't know much about the personnel on this disc, except that Oskar Aichinger has three releases on the Between The Lines label. The Vortex is a small club on the outskirts of London that has been the home to many gigs for the past few decades from Elton Dean, Paul Dunmall, Keith Tippett, Evan Parker & Barry Guy. This disc is a live date, yet it has a well-recorded studio quality sound. It starts with an excellent duo piece by Bailey and Malli on soprano sax. Aichinger enters on the second piece playing mysteriously inside the piano as Steiner plays some quiet bass clarinet. For those of us that love that concentrated European style of free/improv, this is indeed a treat. Mr. Bailey has some sympathetic players here, often playing in that strange yet calm free-wheeling sound. There is an occasional playful quality to this, not all of it is too serious, yet it is consistently fascinating. The recently departed Derek Bailey left a long legacy of recorded material, but sadly his own label, Incus' discs are quickly disappearing with an uncertain future as to if or when they will be reissued. Hence, there are less CDs being available as time goes on. Which makes treasures like this one all the more important. And yes, we do realize that this disc is a bit over-priced [!], not our doing - BLG
CD $50


MARIO PAVONE SEXTET - Deez to Blues (Playscape 50505) Featuring Steven Bernstein on trumpets & arrangements, Howard Johnson on tuba, bari sax & bass clarinet, Charles Burnham on violin, Peter Madsen on piano, Mario Pavone on bass & compositions and Michael Sarin on drums. This is my man Mario Pavone's 12th disc as a leader and again he triumphs! Mario refers to this music as "upside down", since the piano and bass often play the melody as the horns play a counter melody, this makes sense as you listen to it. Mario has put together a unique frontline of trumpet, tuba or bari sax and violin. The ubiquitous Steve Bernstein sounds superb here playing a good deal of muted trumpet both in solos and with violin and tuba in harmonies. Both Charles Burnham (violinist for Blood's Odyssey Band) and Howard Johnson (tuba virtuoso) are the two newest members of Mario's sextet and both add some new flavors to this already outstanding brew/unit. This dynamic rhythm team has been together for over a decade and sound especially spirited, always moving tightly together, expanding, contracting and shifting like an organic motor. Pianist Peter Madsen remains one of the finest of all modern day jazz pianists and never ceases to astonish everyone who hears him. "Dances 3/5" begins calmly and freely, building until it hits its twisted groove and eventually back into freer terrain as it ends. Marty Ehlich's "Day of the Dark Bright Light" is a mysterious, dream-like piece with an exquisite, late night bari sax solo from Howard Johnson. "Ocbo" features an inspired round robin of short solos from the trumpet, tuba, violin and piano, while "Second-Term Blues" features Mario's powerful acoustic bass at the center of a sad dirge, which is no doubt inspired by the unfortunate second term of our evil leader. Mario's other quintet (w/ Tony Malaby & Ron Horton) will be at the 55 Bar on Thursday, March 16th. In the meantime, those in the know should buy this treasure chest of delights. - BLG
CD for $14 (in stock next Tuesday with possible price change)


NAVARRETE-BAEZA With BEN MONDER - Juego De Ninos (Bau Records 1481) Featuring Ben Monder & Ceasar Arriagada on guitars, Agustin Moya on tenor sax, Daniel Navarrete on bass & Andy Baeza on drums & sampler. As a big fan of local guitar wiz Ben Monder, I was pleased when this Chilean drummer named Andy Baeza left us with copies of this fine disc earlier this week. The opening piece is called "Intro" and it is a spacious thing for swirling guitar(s) and percussion. It glides right into "Fluidos", a tight, uptempo piece with some outstanding guitars, one doing those volume-pedal swirls and the other soloing in a fast, fleet Pat Martino sort of way. Monder takes one of those incredible solos that will make fusion fans smile for quite a while. What makes this quintet so special is the way they write tunes that give both guitarists intricate interconnected parts to play, switching off on different roles. Most of these tunes start with the bassist setting the groove or vibe, then the drums hitting it and finally both guitars, with very different tones weaving magically around one another. Occasionally the drummer will insert some odd sampler sounds to add a bit of mystery. The saxist must be a just guest here, since he is so under-utilized. Either way, there is enough fabulous guitars here to make many of us happy. - BLG
CD $10


STEVE KHAN - The Green Field (Tone Center 4044) Featuring Steve Kahn on guitar, John Patitucci on acoustic bass, Manolo Badrena on percussion, Jack DeJohnette on drums, plus a couple of other guest percussionists. Jazz/fusion guitar great, Steve Khan's career stretches back some 30 years, recording with chop-meisters like Larry Coryell, Steve Marcus and the Brecker Brothers. Steve has some 16 previous discs as a leader, but hasn't recorded one since 1998. In 1997, his disc, "Got My Mental" featured the same rhythm team as this one with Patitucci and DeJohnette. One 'The Green Field', John's quartet plays half of Steve's originals and do some splendid covers by Ornette, Herbie Hancock, Wayne Shorter and Thelonius Monk. I hadn't heard any of Khan records in many years, not being much of a fusion fan myself, but was pleasantly surprised by this gem. Commencing with the sly groove of "El Vinon", the repeating theme is one that you can't get out of your head. Ornette's "Congeniality" has that fine, swirling early Metheny-like sound, with a superb, long solo from Mr. Khan. Patatucci and DeJohnette both play with inspired, nervous energy, tight and flowing together in constant connection, making a perfect rhythm team throughout. Steve has a rich, warm jazz tone on his guitar and plays with inventive spirit throughout, even when Patatucci solos on his contrabass, Khan plays with understated grace underneath. Even with one drummer and three percussionists, no one ever plays too much or gets in anyone's way, giving this music a fresh feel, a chance to breathe. Jack DeJohnette is also consistently marvelous, ever elegant and adding a constant (rhythmic) flow. This is without a doubt the best jazz guitar disc I've heard is quite a while. - BLG
CD for $15


ANTOINE BERTHIAUME/TAKUMI SEINO - ARC: Beneath The Surface (Voice Of Silence; Japan) When the young Montreal-based guitarist, Antoine Berthiaume's first disc came out on Ambiances Magnetiques, it featured Antoine performing duos with both Derek Bailey and Fred Frith, two of the elder statesmen of modern improv guitar. This was quite a surprise to many of us who had not heard of Antoine before this. Since then, Antoine has another fine trio disc out on A.M. and has also played a solo set here at DMG last year. He recently came to visit and left us with copies of his new duo disc with a Japanese guitarist named Takumi Seino, another musician with whom I was unfamiliar. This duo disc was recorded live at Big Apple, in Kobe, Japan, in July of 2005. Both of these sonic explorers appear to by using a variety of devices to alter their sound. Antoine often sounds Frith-like with his use of volume swirls but uses other odd devices to come up with different space/rock guitar sounds. Takumi is a well-matched guitarist, although it sounds as if he has a rack of sonic effects, twisting his electronic sounds into all sorts of strange shapes. I am reminded at times of those Frith/Kaiser duos, which don't sound too much like they are produced by guitars. The title track is a long (nearly 22 minute) epic of cosmic, mesmerizing sounds that should make many space rock & prog-heads smile. Both Antoine and Takumi have fine 10 minute solo pieces that show their unique sound quite well. Both guitarists play lovely pieces which are semi-acoustic works that are quite elegant, melancholy and jazz-like in tone. The final duo, "White, Wisps of Red and Blue", features some eerie bowing and variety of bizarre sounds that build into spacious alien worlds. Considering that neither of these guitarists is very well known, this is a most successful duo of extraordinary sonic magicians. - BLG
CD for $15


DISKAHOLICS [JIM O'ROURKE/MATS GUSTAFSSON/THURSTON MOORE] - Live In Japan vol. 1 (Load 86) "Documenting a 2002 sojourn to Japan that featured some slathering improv between Jim O'Rourke (synth, noise), Mats Gustafsson (sax, noise), and Thurston Moore (guitar, noise). Although the purpose of the visit might have been to find bagloads of righteous collector-styled records, this recording flops onto the sidewalk with some of that old salted slug action you know - deep breaths with a deadly spasm. The sounds here really get electro-acoustic in the same vein as leather elbowed warriors like Toop and Henri, but with scrappy crappy horizontal huddle of minds flowing with the JUICE!"
CD $14


NICK CAVE & WARREN ELLIS - The Proposition [OST] (Mute 9305) "A powerful western drama set in the savage Eden of 1880s Australia, The Proposition is an elemental story of family conflict and primal violence, destructive love and divided loyalties. Featuring an international superstar cast including Guy Pearce, Ray Winstone, Emily Watson and Danny Huston, it is directed by John Hillcoat from a specially commissioned script by the globally acclaimed singer-songwriter Nick Cave. Cave has also composed the film's soundtrack in conjunction with Warren Ellis, his longtime Bad Seeds collaborator and multi-instrumentalist frontman of The Dirty Three. Incorporating soft chamber pieces, ghostly mood-scapes and whispered laments, these 16 tracks are as starkly beautiful as the landscape of the film. Story and music are closely intertwined."
CD $16


FESTIVAL EXPRESS [V.A. With GRATEFUL DEAD/THE BAND/JANIS JOPLIN -BOB SMEATON dir. - Festival Express [2 DVD set] (New Line 7573) Festival Express is a rousing record of a little-known, but monumental, moment in rock n' roll history, starring such music legends as Janis Joplin, The Band, and the Grateful Dead. Set in 1970, Festival Express was a multi-band, multi-day extravaganza that captured the spirit and imagination of a generation and a nation. What made it unique was that it was portable; for five days, the bands and performers lived, slept, rehearsed and did countless unmentionable things aboard a customized train that traveled from Toronto, to Calgary, to Winnipeg, with each stop culminating in a mega-concert. The entire experience, both off-stage and on, was filmed but the extensive footage remained locked away -- until now. A truly momentous achievement in rock film archeology, Festival Express combines this long-lost material with contemporary interviews nearly 35 years after it was first filmed.
"The vintage concert footage alone makes Festival Express a memorable and worthwhile endeavor, offering scintillating performances by Janis Joplin, the Band (their rollicking version of "Slippin' and Slidin'" is particularly mind-blowing), the Grateful Dead, Buddy Guy, Flying Burrito Brothers and others (does any remember Mashmakhan!?!). In 1970, during the heyday of the rock festival, promoter Ken Walker decided to organize a traveling musical revue, bringing the mountain to Mohammed, as it were. In five days' time, the festival played in three Canadian cities with the entire conglomeration traveling, playing, and getting smashed together the whole way. Nearly as rewarding as the live performances are the candid scenes of the train ride itself, an endless jam session and party during which musicians of all shapes and sizes let their hair down--musically and otherwise. The contemporary interviews with Walker and some of the surviving musicians are particularly noteworthy, as a way to prove that it all actually happened. Walker comes off as a hero in the film: he treated the musicians like royalty and insisted that the train roll on even though he was losing his shirt. (His financial failure is a large reason why this material stayed in the vaults for so long.) Perhaps the most remarkable scene is an off-the-cuff, LSD-fueled train jam featuring Joplin, the Band's Rick Danko, and the Dead's Jerry Garcia playing the old chestnut "Ain't No More Cane." Danko is so obliterated that even Janis has to ask him if he's OK--when Janis is worried about your state of mind, you must be pretty messed up." -- Marc Greilsamer
There are so many inspired moments here, particularly Richard Manuel's touching version of "I Shall Be Released", a super jam version of "See See Rider" by Ian & Sylvia with Garcia & Delaney Bramlett sitting in. The Dead and Janis Joplin are consistently fine throughout. That's right the Mascara Snake, right on! - BLG
2 DVD set for $20


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From NINE WINDS:

VINNY GOLIA - Music for Like Instruments: The Clarinets (Nine Winds 279) Featuring Vinny Golia on taragato, Ab, Eb, A, Bb, alto, bass, contralto and contrabass clarinets and Andrew Pask, Cory Wright, Jim Sullivan and Brian Walsh on Bb & bass clarinets. This is the third in a series of "Music for Like Instruments". There is just no stopping the incredible Vinny Golia and his numerous ongoing projects. Who else but Vinny would put together a quintet of unique clarinetists, a most difficult instrument to play and then write challenging music for his clarinet clan. Right from the first track, "Clown Car Syndome", we know we are in store for something completely different. This piece features layers of swirling clarinets, intricately written and well played. Each of the thirteen pieces here deals with different sonic terrain and approaches to playing and exploring clarinet sounds. Circus music, modern classical, cartoon episodes, all kinds of bent notes, high and low-end drones, Zappa-like accordion-sounding harmonies from 'Uncle Meat', other-worldly sounds too difficult to describe and too many surprises to mention here. What amazes me about this is that it is better than a good deal of modern classical music that is too serious or difficult so its own good. Consistently engaging without going overboard. - BLG
CD for $15

JOEY SELLERS' JAZZ AGGREGATION - El Payaso (Nine Winds 217) Featuring Tony Malaby, John O'Gallagher & Adam Kolker on reeds; Joey sellers, Taylor Haskins & Dave Ballou on trumpets; Joe Fiedler, Noah Bless & Nathan Durham on trombones; David Berkman on piano, John Hebert on bass and Michael Sarin on drums. I only know of Joey Sellers from a previous disc on Nine Winds that co-led with Tony Malaby. I recognize about half of the dozen musicians as downtown players and I believe that Mr. Sellers was living here at the time. The title track is first and it features some fine, laid back playing, haunting harmonies and quirky solos from Adam Kolker on bass clarinet and Tony Malaby on tenor. There is also a bit of sly humor in there and some unexpected changes in direction. The Jazz Aggregation remind me of the Microscopic Septet, with their occasional goofiness, inspired writing and solid soloing. A number of these folks take great solos time and again, especially John O'Gallagher, Tony Malaby, Dave Ballou and Dave Berkman. Joey's writing and arranging is often rich, warm and elegant at times. Nice to hear music that is adventurous and spirited without being too far out. - BLG
CD for $15

MARK TRAYLE/VINNY GOLIA - Music for Electronics & Woodwinds (Nine Winds 243) Featuring Mark Trayle on electronics and Vinny Golia on assorted woodwinds. Although Mark Trayle has worked with Leo Smith, Nels Cline and Maryanne Amacher, I can't say that I've heard him before this date. Reeds master, Vinny Golia, is on more than sixty discs, since moving to L.A. more than two decades ago and runs the great Nine Winds label. Vinny plays nearly 30 different reed instruments, very few musicians could say that. On this unique duo disc, Mark takes Vinny's varied reeds and uses them as his source, thus turning the sounds inside-out into a wide variety of shapes and sounds. Vinny can be hard playing his different flutes, clarinets, double reeds and axes as Mark samples him and manipulates those sounds. Vinny often has a warm, human tone of many of his reeds so this keeps the duo from going too far into another dimension. Challenging sounds but not too difficult to deal with, most of the time. - BLG
CD $15

VINNY GOLIA - A Gift for the Unusual: Music for Contrabass Saxophone (Nine Winds 239) Featuring Vinny on Tubax, Michael Vlatkovich on trombone, Wayne Peet on various keyboards, Jessica Catron on cello (1 track), Bill Barrett on chromatic harmonica (1 track) and Bill Casaleon contrabass. LA based multi-reeds hero, Vinny Golia, keeps immensely busy with a wide variety of musical situations - from soloto duo to trio to his well-recorded quintet and his large ensemble. He has nearly 25 CDs in print as a leader, running the vast Nine Winds label as well as recording for Leo, Music & Arts, CIMP and more. He loves to play those unusual reed instruments, many types of clarinets, flutes and saxes. On 'A Gift for the Unusual' he is featured on the newly developed Tubax that is a type of contrabass sax, an incredibly low-pitched sound with the power of a saxophone. Each of the eleven pieces explores a different idea or theme for this colossal growling, grumbling monster. One strong trio features Vlatkovich on trombone and Casale on bass, groaning, droning and erupting quietly together. There is long duo with hand percussion that is most mysterious sounding and story-like. On "Eye My" a duo with Wayne Peet on piano swings nicely, no doubt hard to do on that unwieldy horn. The solo Tubax pieces again explore certain regions of that saxes' unique sound, showing that Vinny works hard at pushing the limits of its odd sound range. Vinny's unique composing is also on display here as he has written some odd trio pieces with intricate, yet open-ended parts for the trombone, keyboard, bass and bass sax. Another successful work is for chromatic harmonica, organ and bass sax, which has a nice cinematic quality. Vinny and his cohorts have done a great job here, showing some diverse colors, connections and compositions throughout. - BLG
CD $15

PAUL SMOKER - Brass Reality (Nine Winds 241) Featuring Paul Smoker on trumpet & compositions, Herb Robertson on trumpet, valve trombone & Eb tuba, David Taylor on bass trombone & Bb tuba and Phil Haynes on percussion. Both Paul Smoker and Herb Robertson remain two of the most intense and creative trumpeters known and have played together on a few occasions. Smoker has played with Anthony Braxton, Gregg Bendian, Damon Short and Fred Hess, as well as with Ellery Eskelin in Joint Venture that included Phil Haynes. Smoker has put together a unique brass trio (two trumpets & tuba mostly) plus drums for this date. All three of the brass players are masters of extended technique and unusual sounds. They get a chance to display many of these sounds and sonic fireworks throughout. On "Fractals, Part 1", as Phil's free-flowing percussion floats and spins, one trumpet sputters and bursts into flight as the tuba and trombone play eerie long tones and crafty colors. Very Braxtonian. Phil gets into a subtle shuffle on "Waltz" as the horns play some slightly bend counter-melodies. Phil's nimble brush playing continues throughout the piece as each horn takes a fine solo. I dig the way each of the horns spin in different orbits on "Fanfare & Procession", each taking weird solos as the other two horns play bent harmonies in the distance. Phil bows his eerie cymbals on "Harmon City" as the muted horns play ghost-like sounds in a most mysterious way. I love "Phil's Blues", where Phil plays an infectious second-line beat as the horns get down and get sort of funky. As Phil plays subtle castanets on "Alice's Legacy", the horns shift between charted long tones, warm slightly bent harmonies and freer sections. This music often deals with textures and densities, with the horn men occasionally playing harmonies with themselves by singing through their horns. A fascinating blend and a quite a tasty brew. - BLG
CD $15

LESS OF FIVE - ACROBATI FOLLI E INNAMORATI (Nine Winds 244) This appears to be a most impressive Italian quartet on the LA-based Nine Winds label, oddly enough. Less of Five features Giorgio Occhipinti on piano & prepared piano, Olivia Bignardi on alto sax and clarinet, Guiseppi Guarrella on double bass and Antonio Moncada on drums. Pianist Giorgio Occhipinti's name sounded familiar to me and it turns out he is one of the most creative and busiest pianist from Italy. He worked with dozens of great musicians including Evan Parker, Joelle Leandre, Barre Phillips, Peter Brotzmann, as well as many of the Italian greats. He appears to lead numerous bands and has recorded for Jazz Halo, Between the Lines and now Nine Winds. I don't know the other members of his fine quartet, but each contributes pieces to this exciting disc. Most of the pieces are pretty short, yet are consistently tight, adventurous and never stay in one place very long. At times, Giorgio will tap on the strings inside the piano, while playing the keyboard with the other hand. The bassist creates suspense while the alto saxist bends those notes slowly, as we enter a dream-world, the pianist tapping out some eerie Morse codes signals. That sense of adventure and constant inventiveness is kept alive throughout. On "Cus Cus", there is playful duo of just tapping inside the piano and what sounds like ping pong balls as percussion. Olivia has an enchanting tone on sax, slightly pinched yet somehow enticing. Their drummer does a fine job of playing with his hands on drums, as well as with mallets, often outlining the rhythms with Giorgio's equally crafty and percussive piano. I like the way the quartet play a series of solos on "Uma onda de musica continua", yet the flow/thread continues throughout. Giorgio's immensely inventive two-handed piano solo is one of the discs many marvels. The quartet often perform their magic by working together as inter-connected duos and bouncing their ideas back and forth effortlessly, with many surprises in-store. More under-recognized brilliance from the colossal Nine Winds stable. - BLG
CD $15


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MORE AMT MADNESS!

ACID MOTHERS TEMPLE - Starless and Bible Black Sabbath (Alien8 62; Canada) "While this album is certainly a tribute record it doesn't consist of straight-up Sabbath worship in the simple sense of covers. The band sounds as if they are simultaneously paying respect to other Sabbath-influenced projects such as Melvins or Zeni Geva, the later being the former home of Tabata, one of the Temple's latest recruits. Starless and Bible Black Sabbath consists of two tracks, the first being an epic thirty four minute blowout titled 'Lady from Hell.' The opening cut begins in a similar fashion to Black Sabbath's eponymous open albeit much less dramatic. The second track relates more to the band's obsession with Kraut rock, sounding like the more pop-oriented period of Hawkwind."
CD $14

KAWABATA MAKOTO & UP-TIGHT - Up-Tight & Kawabata Makoto (Galactic Zoo Disc/Eclipse 002; EEC) "Flattening new CD from one of the greatest live psych groups in the world. Anyone who witnessed their monolithically powerful set at Instal 2005 needs this incredible disc, one of the most epic and dynamically damaged post-Velvets acid rock re-thinks in recent memory. The addition of Acid Mothers Temple guitarist Makoto Kawabata brings an even darker/more elegantly fucked sensibility, with the result that every track feels like it could explode into narcotic chaos at any moment. Aoki's vocals strike the perfect post-Reed/Verlaine/Hell level of decadent damage and the songs are just beautifully rendered, with the group stretching mantric rock forms into whole new zones of affirmative electric beauty. Fuck. Highest recommendation. Comes with great Velvet Underground rip-off sleeve, too."
CD $14

ZOFFY - Zoffy Live! (AMT OM1; Japan) "Live recordings spanning from May 1999 - May 2003 from Acid Mothers Temple members Tsuyama Atsushi (vocal, bouzouki, acoustic & electric guitar, alpine trumpet, bass harmonica, bamboo reed, soprano recorder, drums) and Kawabata Makoto (oud, bouzouki, violin, yoruk, algoza, electric guitar, bowed peacock harp, electric organ, electronics, theremin, 6 string bass, chorus). Originally released a limited edition CD-R (100 copies) on the Acid Mothers Temple label in 2000, this CD version includes three bonus tracks."
CD $19


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NEW RECORDINGS FROM THE GREAT BARCELONIAN 'FRESH SOUNDS' LABEL [and a couple of restocks]

RON HORTON With TONY MALABY/JOHN O'GALLAGHER/FRANK KIMBROUGH/MIKE SARIN et al - Everything In A Dream (Fresh Sound NT 243; EEC) Featuring Ron Horton trumpet & flugelhorn, John O'Gallagher on alto sax, Tony Malaby on tenor sax, Frank Kimbrough on piano, Masa Kamaguchi & John Hebert on basses and Mike Sarin on drums. Ron Horton continues to explore his unique blend of ideas and influences with five original works and four well-selected compositions by jazzmen Andrew Hill, Jimmy Giuffre and classical composers, Samuel Barber and Claudio Monteverdi. Andrew Hill's "Yellow Violet" is a superb, elegant opening piece with warm, tasty solos from Ron's trumpet, Tony's tenor and Frank exquisite piano. Mr. Hill's dreamy harmonies for the horns are quite marvelous. Horton's own "Bring It On" is another winner and reminds me of that engaging circular writing that Mario Pavone excels at. It is interesting that both Horton and Pavone use the great drumming talent of Mike Sarin. Bravo! Samuel Barber's "Saint Ita's Vision" features some extraordinary playing from bassist John Hebert, as well as an exquisite solo from Mr. Kimbrough. The title track, "Everything in a Dream" is another wonderful song, with Sarin's superb drumming at the center and a rather scary bowed bass and sax segment. Ron's "Full Moon Over Lisbon" is an especially enchanting piece with Ron's flugel and Tony's tenor at their most tender. Even when things begin in free space on "Did-it, Did-it, Did-it", they soon evolve into more auspicious, written territory and a marvel at that. O'Gallagher's alto solo is a work of art, the band ever so tight, with both bassists swirling superbly and Sarin again at his best. "Grovellin'" is an explosive, tight and most impressive work. Ron Horton worked on this disc for two+ years and it sounds like it. Truly diverse and most impressive from beginning until the end. - BLG
CD $15

BILL CARROTHERS - Shine Ball (Fresh Sound NT 242; EEC) Bill Carrothers has been a professional pianist for over 20 years. He has played many venues throughout the U.S. and Europe including the Village Gate, Knitting Factory, Birdland, Blues Alley, New Morning (Paris), the Audi Jazz Festival in Brussels, the Nevers Jazz Festival (where he shared the bill with Abbey Lincoln), the Montreal Jazz Festival, Jazz Middelheim, and the Marciac Festival in France. In October of 2000, Mr. Carrothers headlined the prestigious Rising Star Tour throughout Germany, Austria, and Switzerland. He has been a leader on nine recordings, all of which have received critical acclaim. His sideman credits have included some of the greatest names in jazz. About Shine Ball he says: There are no lead sheets for this music. It was completely spontaneously improvised on the spot. There wasn't a single scrap of paper between the three of us for the whole two days. The only things we talked about in the studio were our kids. My kind of recording! Just as well...I can't read music anyway.
CD $15

SAMO SALAMON QUARTET With TONY MALABY/MARK HELIAS/TOM RAINEY - Two Hours (Fresh Sound NT 238; EEC) SAMO SALAMON is a jazz guitarist and composer, but working also as a studio and project musician. He began his musical journey by studying classical guitar in Maribor and continued with studying jazz guitar on the jazz conservatorium in Klagenfurt. In December 2000 he was living with and studying individually for one month in New York with the jazz master John Scofield. Through the years he was studying guitar and had lessons with known guitar players such as Rudy Linka, Tim Brady and Andrea Allione in Trieste. In year 2000 he was a part of the project of the drummer Zlatko Kaucic and has meanwhile recorded and played with many great international and slovenian jazz musicians."The band on the CD is just amazing. I am so happy that I was able to play with these cats, it was just beautiful. That's why the CD has the title Two Hours, we recorded namely the whole album in two hours, it was so natural and spontaneous, without any discussions, music just happened... We met two days before the recording session... we were supposed to have a rehearsal in the club Detour but they were shooting a movie there... you know, New York, so the guys came for nothing, I didn't have a phone, so I couldn't call anyone... Tony ate his Chinese food, Tom was relaxed, while Mark drove to the club with a cab, mad since I didn't call him whether he needs an amp or not... that's how we met... then the Detour situation... Mark luckily lives nearby, so we drove to this place, went through the tunes acoustically, Tom playing on plates and pans... the gig in the evening was really musically beautiful... so was the recording..."- Samo Salamon
CD $15

CHRIS CHEEK With BRAD MEHLDAU - Blues Cruise (Fresh Sound NT 235; EEC) On his fourth CD for Fresh Sound New Talent, Chris Cheek is endorsed by the original Brad Mehldau quartet. Blues Cruise is an incredible showcase for the powerful, tasteful playing, and compositional talents of Chris. A relaxed cruise through the mainstream, sophisticated sounds and melodic lines that emerge from the masterful artistry of this wonderful musicians.
CD $15

JAMIE STEWARDSON With TONY MALABY/JOHN HEBERT/GEORGE SCHULLER - Jhaptal (Fresh Sound NT 233; EEC) Guitarist Jamie Stewardson launched his performing career with a stint aboard a cruise ship, working with assorted pop artists, including The O'Jays, The Temptations, Martha Reeves, Patti Page, Kay Starr and The Drifters. Finished with the pop music business he immersed himself in jazz, eventually playing with such notables as George Russell, Jimmy Guiffre, John Stowell, Matt Maneri, George Schuller and Tony Malaby. Jamie Stewardson is currently a member of the faculty at the New England Conservatory Preparatory School. He also plays guitar and bass with The David Zoffer Differential, performs with his own groups, and cites the influences of Geri Allen, Dave Holland and Maria Schneider in his jazz composition efforts. The players on "Jhaptal" include some of the best jazz musicians on the East Coast: Tony Malaby, Alexei Tsiganov, John Hebert and George Schuller. It's easy to hear why they were attracted to Stewardson's writing. He clearly relishes a creative challenge and developing a personal approach. His pieces draw on wide interests and experiences in subtle and surprising ways. Mahavishnu's "Vision of the Emerald Beyond", Gustav Malher's "Kindertotenlieder", Arnold Schoenberg's dodecaphonics, Ornette Coleman's harmolodics, and music of the Indian subcontinent, all echo within the music.
CD $15

LOREN STILLMAN With GARY VERSACE/SCOTT LEE/JEFF HIRSCHFIELD - It Could Be Anything (Fresh Sound NT 230; EEC) "Much has been made of Loren's youth (he is 23), especially when juxtaposed against the maturity of his music. From where I stand, it is one of the highest achievements for a musician to develop an immediately recognizable sound and/or a compositional technique, both of which Loren as done. I have compared him in this way to Greg Osby (who is 20 years older) as one of that has honed an individualistic sound and composing style. If jazz means anything, it is a musician's ability to express his or her individuality, and in this increasingly commercial world, someone who maintains their integrity while creating Art is rare. Of the ten tracks presented here, eight are by Loren Stillman. These eight form a compositional group, are related in their intervallic makeup and compositional technique and thus present the listener with a clearer glimpse into Loren's musical mind. Loren's music seduces without being overbearing, and, after listening to "It Could Be Anything" I hope you will agree, that is a wonderful thing to be swept away by such beautiful music." (From the liner notes) - Budd Kopman, CD reviewer for Cadence Magazine, All About Jazz and Jazz Improv Magazine.
CD $15

EIVIND OPSVIK With TONY MALABY/LOREN STILLMAN/CRAIG TABORN et al - Overseas II (Fresh Sound NT 219; EEC) This is the second leader-session by the acclaimed Norwegian composer and bassist Eivind Opsvik for Fresh Sound New Talent. Since moving to New York in 1998 Eivind has been working on his own compositions and concepts and, in early 2002, he assembled some of his favourite musicians in the city, some of whom he's played with for years and some who are more recent acquaintances, with the intention of doing gigs around the city and to record a CD. In selecting musicians for his band Eivind favoured open-mindedness, individuality and musicians with experience from the free music scene who would give his music a certain edge and energy. Eivind has tried to avoid predictable forms and instrumentations, without sacrificing the wholeness and spontaneity of the music. Being from Norway Eivind's music is a combination of two worlds; the European and the New York jazz scene. European melody and space combined with the grooves/rhythms and intensity of New York. Essential listening for all fans of new and interesting jazz mixed with pop sensibilities and a fresh breath of northern air.
CD $15

GUILLERMO KLEIN Y LOS GUACHOS With CHRIS CHEEK/BILL McHENRY/BEN MONDER - Live In Barcelona (Fresh Sound NT 218; EEC) The arrival of Argentinean musician Guillermo Klein in Barcelona in 2003 was well received by the city's jazz community. This good reception was, however, not surprising given the prestige that Guillermo enjoyed in New York as composer, arranger and director of his band Los Guachos. In Barcelona he presently plays the piano with groups such as those of Giulia Valle and Joe Smith and has put together his own band, which features Gorka Benitez, David Xirgu and Carme Canela among others. In autumn of 2004, Guillermo returned to New York to perform with Los Guachos. Two monthes later, it was invited to perform with Los Guachos at the 36th Barcelona Jazz Festival. For a such special occasion, Juan de Cruz Urquiza and Richard nant flew in from Buenos Aires, Chris Cheek, Bill McHenry, Taylor Haskins, Sandro Tomasi, Jeff Ballard and Ben Monder came from New York and Fernando Huergo from Boston. Los Guachos were joined by two regular Fresh Sound New Talent artists, Gorka Benitez and Carme Canela.The result was an intense and brilliant concert that took place in the cozy setting of the Luz de Gas venue.
CD $15

MAGALI SOURIAU TRIO With CHRIS CHEEK/MATT PAVOLKA - Petite Promenade (Fresh Sound NT 181; EEC) French pianist Magali Souriau was first noticed as the leader of a gorgeous big band, but her trio shows that she's an equally astounding pianist and small-group leader. She started playing classical piano at the age of 3, but switched to jazz and has received many awards in recognition of her outstanding achievement in Jazz composition. Her trio consists of Magali Souriau (piano), Chris Cheek (sax) and Matt Pavolka (bass). "One of the most original orchestral jazz composers of our time - astonishing music." - Ben Ratliff, NY Times
CD $15

CHRIS LIGHTCAP QUARTET With TONY MALABY/BILL McHENRY/GERALD CLEAVER - Bigmouth (Fresh Sound NT 148; EEC) "Bigmouth" is bassist Chris Lightcap's much-anticipated second release as a leader for Fresh Sound. His first CD, "Lay-Up" was rated "one of the year's best" by the New York Times and reached the top ten of CMJ's jazz radio chart. "Bigmouth" is quite simply the next stage in the development of a vital musical entity. Chris Lightcap really consolidates himself as a versatile and inspired leader. He brings together a group of regular collaborators who only go to add further colour to Chris' already rich compositions. Here we are presented with seven original numbers and one cover version, of the Lennon / McCartney tune, "Dig A Pony", which is given a really personal makeover from Lightcap's nimble bass playing. Featured on the album is New York saxophonist Bill McHenry (a Fresh Sound New Talent regular and regular collaborator with many artists, like Rebecca Martin), Tony Malaby, also on tenor, and fiery improv-drummer Gerald Cleaver (also a Fresh Sound New Talent leader, with his critically acclaimed "Veil of Names"). This a young and thoughtful album that offers a twist on the usual quartet sound.
CD $15

CHRIS LIGHTCAP QUARTET With TONY MALABY/BILL McHENRY/GERALD CLEAVER - Lay-up (Fresh Sound NT 74; EEC) Chris Lightcap is a gifted bassist and composer who has worked with George Garzone, Joe Morris, Mark Turner and Sheila Jordan, among many others. For his debut recording as a leader, he assembled the formidable creative talents of Tony Malaby and Bill McHenry on tenor saxophones and Gerald Cleaver on drums. The quartet navigates its way through the leader's original compositions with a common sense of musical purpose, their individual voices combining beautifully to produce a composite sound that is at once unexpected, joyful and swinging.
CD $15

BILL McHENRY QUARTET With PAUL MOTIAN/BEN MONDER/REID ANDERSON - Featuring Paul Motian (Fresh Sound NT 160; EEC) Featuring Bill on tenor sax, Ben Monder on guitar, Reid Anderson on bass and Paul Motian on drums. Over the past year, local tenor sensation, Bill McHenry, has been garnering mucho attention and praise from the NY Times, the Voice and assorted jazz zines, but sadly the fine Fresh Sound New Talent series/label has had some distribution problems. We are starting to now stock many of their titles and we will be mentioning and reviewing the ones we are currently stocking. Bill has an incredibly warm and lovely tone on his tenor sax, you can hear the history of those jazz giants from Coleman Hawkins through Sonny Rollins within his sound. Bill and Ben play especially eloquently here on tenor and guitar with some equally relaxed and exquisite playing from the drums and acoustic bass. Monder plays some eerie, ghost-like shadow sounds on "Alfombra Magica", instead of soloing to great effect. "Social Unconsciousness" is dedicated to Charlie Haden and it does have memorable third world melody and Monder takes a splendid (early) Frisell-like solo. There is a most relaxed sense of grace here, as if no one is in a hurray to jump to that nervous NY pace. There is a moment on "Dimensions" where one section fades into another and from that point we move through some quietly disorienting dream spaces. This is Bill's third fine date for Fresh Sounds and we will be stocking the others as well. - BLG
CD $15

DAVID WEISS - The Mirror (Fresh Sound NT 204; EEC) David Weiss (tp), Myron Walden (as), Marcus Strickland (ts #1-5), Xavier Davis (p), Dwayne Burno (b), E.J. Strickland (d #1-5), Craig Handy (ts #6-7), Steve Davis (tb #6-7), Norbert Stachel (bs, bcl #6-7), Nasheet Waits (d #6-7) 'The Mirror' is Weiss' second date as a leader for the Fresh Sound New Talent label. It finds the trumpeter drawing inspiration from great filmmakers such as Stanley Kubrick, and particularly Russian Andrei Tarkovsky, as he puts his sextet through their paces on a set of heady bop-infused tunes.
"The sextet and octet of David Weiss hit hard on his second Fresh Sound New Talent album, 'The Mirror'. This album is a mixture of lyrical soloists, beautiful arrangements, and a lot of great bop. The outcome is a musical masterpiece which impacts the mind, never wanting the music to end. The trumpeter/composer works wonders on each song. The songs were inspired by the works of Russian filmmaker Andrei Tarkovsky. Though the songs weren't made specifically for the movie, it did help Weiss to create magic.The album is divided by the first five tracks as a sextet and the final two as an octet. The opening track, 'Stalker', is an uptempo number with fiery tunes. It then leads into the title track, 'The Mirror', which is a midtempo tune with great solos. These first two tracks set the flavor for the rest of the album. The mood then begins to change a bit on the last two tracks, as the New Jazz Composers' Octet is led by Weiss. The trombone of Steve Davis and the bass clarinet of Norbet Stachel are added to create the full sound of the octet. The first track for the octet is 'Love Letter To One Not Yet Met'. It is an emotional and lyrical experience that is held on with casual swing. The final track, 'Mr. Jin', is another for the octet. It is a straightforward swing with a big band sound.This album is filled with great tunes and great solos. It is intelligently put together and lyrical in every sense. Weiss takes his time and plays the music in a manor that is actually heard and felt by the listener. It's the versatility and musical expertise that ultimately make this album pure enjoyment." - Erica I. Feliciano, JazzReview.com
CD $15

NEW JAZZ COMPOSERS OCTET [DAVID WEISS/MYRON WALDEN et al] - Walkin' The Line (Fresh Sound NT 151; EEC) Featuring: David Weiss (tp), Myron Walden (as), Jimmy Greene (ts,ss), Steve Davis (tb), Andrew Williams (tb), Chris Karlic (bs), Xavier Davis (p), Dwayne Burno (b), Nasheet Waits (d), Craig handy (as, ts, ss), Joe Chambers (d)They're back! These eight players present us with their second CD for the Fresh Sound New Talent label after the group's acclaimed debut, "First Steps Into Reality" (FSNT 059 CD) and a string of successful live dates around the globe. This new album is as fresh as ever and presents the group on full form. All the players here are fine jazz musicians and future stars...so discover them today!
CD $15

DAVID WEISS - Breathing Room (Fresh Sound NT 110; EEC) David Weiss (tp), Marcus Strickland (ts), Craig Handy (as), Xavier Davis (p), Dwayne Burno (b), E.J. Strickland (d)David Weiss first came to the attention of Fresh Sound Records as the co-leader of the critically acclaimed New Jazz Composers Octet whose debut album First Steps into Reality (Fresh Sound FSNT-059) was lauded as a "gem" and received a Critics Pick as one of the Top 5 Albums of the Year in Jazz Times. The Octet built on the success of First Steps into Reality by collaborating with trumpet legend Freddie Hubbard on the recently released New Colors (Hip Bop Records). The London Observer praised the Octets "fine, surging ensemble sound" and noted "Trumpeter-arranger David Weiss is definitely a name to watch". For Breathing Room, Weiss called on his New Jazz Composers Octet co-leaders pianist Xavier Davis and bassist Dwayne Burno and introduces two of the finest young musicians to come on the scene in quite some time, tenor saxophonist Marcus Strickland and drummer E.J. Strickland (look for Marcus' debut CD 'At Last' also on Fresh Sound, FSNT-101). Long-time collaborator Craig Handy plays alto sax on four numbers. The music has its roots in the '60s Blue Note sound with the inclusion of to lesser-known Wayne Shorter compositions and a variation on the classic Joe Henderson composition 'The Kicker'. But while Weiss is clearly influenced by the writing of Wayne Shorter, his compositions for sextet prove he has his own unique and distinct voice.
Mr. Weiss won the Chamber Music America Doris Duke Jazz Ensembles Project: Creation and Presentation grant for his compositions.Since returning to New York in 1986, Weiss has performed and/or recorded with Freddie Hubbard, Tom Harrell, Barry Harris, Jaki Byard, Jimmy Heath, Jimmy Cobb, Terence Blanchard, Randy Brecker, Pete La Roca, Clifford Jordon, Junior Cook, Reuben Wilson, Jeff Watts, Benny Green, Bob Belden, Roy Hargrove, Frank Foster, Eddie Henderson, James Spaulding, Idris Muhammad, and Billy Hart. Weiss is also a highly sought after arranger, collaborating with Freddie Hubbard, Abbey Lincoln, Rodney Kendrick and many others. He also arranged the Main Theme for the 'Cosby Mysteries' for NBC, Alto Legacy featuring Phil Woods, Vincent Herring, and Antonio Hart, and a Rahsaan Roland Kirk tribute album entitled Haunted Melodies featuring many of the top saxophonists in New York including Joe Lovano, Donald Harrison, and James Spaulding.
CD $15

NEW JAZZ COMPOSERS OCTET [DAVID WEISS/MYRON WALDEN et al] - First Steps Into Reality (Fresh Sound NT 59; EEC) Featuring: David Weiss (tp), Myron Walden (as), *Jimmy Greene, Gregory Tardy (ts), Andrew Williams (tb), James Farnsworth, *Dave Rickenberg (bars), Xavier Davis (p), Dwayne Burno (b), Nasheet Waits (d)This unique debut CD by this composers collective features some of the finest young talent in jazz today in a five horn front line setting that fully exploits their exceptional compositional and improvisitional abilities.
CD $15

DANIEL FREEDMAN - Trio (Fresh Sound NT 116; EEC) Featuring Jason Lindner on piano, Omer Avital on bass and Daniel Freedman drums plus guests Myron Walden on alto sax, Josh Levitt on flute & Tomer Tzur on percussion (all on one track apiece). I recognized Mr. Freedman from seeing him around the scene when he dropped off his CDs last week. Each member of the trio contributed tunes to this fine disc, in addition to a traditional Moroccan piece. The vibe here is jubilant and has a strong post-klez sound. This is a strong piano trio where all three members are part of the sound, dancing on the groove together as one spirit. I like the way the trio keeps shifting tempos and dynamics throughout "Rise Up", Jason Lindner does a fine job of playing with that vibrato sound, something that Harold Mabern does so well. The great Omer Avital is often at the center of many of these pieces and plays strong spirit throughout, taking a number of fine solos. There is a lovely, melodic steam that runs through all of these tunes, yet the trio never stops spinning, furiously at times. "Alach Ya Ghazali", the Moroccan tune, is especially festive and features some fine flute from Josh Levitt. Joyous music in times of darkness is well-needed medicine for those of us who are sick of what's happening here. - BLG
CD $15

BLOOMDADDIES [SEAMUS BLAKE/CHRIS CHEEK] - Mosh For Lovers (Fresh Sound NT 131; EEC) Seamus Blake (ts), Chris Cheek (ts), Jesse Murphy (b, vcl), Tony Mason (d), Dan Reiser (d), Jorge Rossy (d)
CD $15

BILL McHENRY With BEN MONDER - Rest Stop (Fresh Sound NT 33; EEC) Bill McHenry (ts), Ben Monder (g), Chris Higgins (b), Dan Rieser. This CD is the recording debut as leader of tenor saxophonist Bill McHenry. As you will discover from the music played here, Bill is a musician creating a contemporary voice with melodic freedom, intricately carried by Ben Monder, Chris Higgins and Dan Rieser.
CD $15

BRAD MEHLDAU/MARIO ROSSY/PERICO SAMBEAT/JORDI ROSSY - Vol 2: New York-Barcelona Crossing (Fresh Sound NT 37; EEC)
CD $15


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RUDI ET NINI FLORES - Chamame: Music of Corrientes (Ocora 560186; France) "Chamame is the main musical genre played, danced and sung in Argentina's North-Eastern provinces. Long derided, this mixture of Spanish, Guarani and African influence is now enjoying an unprecedented revival. Recorded in Buenos Aires, Argentina in 1993. Brothers Rudi Flores on guitar and Nini Flores on accordion were both born in the Corrientes province of Argentina, but since 2000 they have lived in France."
CD $19

ENSEMBLE HIJIRI KAI - Urban Music of the Edo Period (Ocora 560196; France) "The Hijiri Kai Ensemble (the name means Group of Wise People) was formed in 2003 for a concert tour of France. Their instrumentation comprises shakuhachi flute, koto zither and shamisen lute. On this album, they play classical Japanese music from the end of the 'modern' period."
CD $19


ERIK M - Sixperiodes (SIRR 24; EEC) "Sixperiodes departs from composed and improvised music fragments from dance or theatre performances, silent films or dance-conferences. Far from classic soundtrack music, each creation here is accomplished using diverse approaches and techniques that demonstrate the most personal skills of Erik M in combining different material - digital and acoustic sounds, field recordings and vinyl manipulations - in a unique way. His primary aim is no longer simply to quote his system of references but to create for himself a bank of singular material to compose without referring to other works, thus approaching a subtle abstraction and a sense of pause within contemporary sonic agitation."
CD $14

ANDRE GONCALVES & KENNETH KIRSCHNER - Resonant Objects (SIRR 22; EEC) "This piece was recorded live at Phil Niblock's Experimental Intermedia Foundation in New York in the spring of 2005 and is part of Andre's ongoing series focused on creating micro-environments, computer controlled hermetic spaces. Bringing together sound and space through sympathetic vibrations, sound is used as a medium to excite space in order to render audible its natural resonances - sound multiplying in and by space."
CD $14

JASON KAHN - Sihl (SIRR 23; EEC) "Sihl was recorded live in studio using percussion and analogue synthesizer. This collection of recordings is named after the Sihl, a river running through Zurich, where I live. At the time I started working on these pieces, I had a studio at a place where the Sihl and the Limmat (the other river which runs through Zurich) ran briefly parallel to each other before converging further on. Whereas the Limmat runs deep and fast and appears rather pure in its composition, the Sihl plunders along slowly, is comparatively shallow and interspersed with a good number of rocks jutting through its surface, small whirlpools and random clumps of tall grass. I appreciate the Sihl's slow pace and muddy constitution. At some points during the summer the Sihl even seems on the verge of drying up." - Jason Kahn.
CD $14

RLW - I.K.K. Purpur (SIRR 25; EEC) "The I.K.K.-project is the new project of Ralf Wehowsky (RLW), the influential German electronic music composer who started his recording career in 1980. And following his inclination for collaboration it counts with contributions from Dan Warburton, Andrew Deutsch, Chris Halliwell, Strotter Inst., Stephen Vitiello, and Frisch/Rainey/Wehowsky. I.K.K. Purpur started in 1794, when Christoph Schmid wrote the lyrics for Ihr Kinderlein Kommet, using a melody by contemporary composer Johann Abraham Peter Schulz. It was performed soon after in Thanhausen an der Mindel for the first time. In 2001, a few weeks before Xmas, RLW recorded his daughter Sonja (aged 5 then) singing some of her favourite Xmas tunes."
CD $14

IANNIS XENAKIS/AKI TAKAHASHI - Vol. 4: Works For Piano (complete) (mode 80) 2006 repress w/ bonus track. 24 bit remaster. "Xenakis' piano music is among the most powerful and virtuosic of the latter part of the 20th century. Full of dynamic energy and color, the works can evoke the sonic equivalent of an exploding cosmos or a mysterious, foggy world of mists through which glimpses of form and light can be perceived. At the hands of Aki Takahasi, they come alive with a special vitality. Of Aki's playing of 'Herma', Xenakis wrote in 1973: 'It was a difficult work and according to my French musician friends, unplayable. They thought it would need at least 1 year of work and advised me to rewrite it for at least two or three players and two pianos. Indeed, it introduced an expansion of the hands all over the keyboard simultaneously. When I first heard Aki play it in Paris last Fall at her Musee d'Art Moderne recital I was, in spite of my skepticism, conquered by her play. There was no problem with the huge technical difficulties. A tender and warm musicality irradiated through the piece in a bright, sparkling and powerful performance.' the breathtaking performances in audiophile quality sound make this one of the great Xenakis -- and new music -- recordings of all time."
This Reissue now contains an added piece: the first recording of Xenakis's 12 minute '6 Chansons,' charming early miniatures written while Xenakis was studying in Paris with Messiaen and Milhaud. They provide a glimpse at Xenakis's early musical interests, influences and roots, documenting a distinct kinship with the piano music of Debussy and Bartok. 24-bit audiophile remastering.Aki Takahashi, piano, Jane Peters, violin Palimpsest (1979) for piano, six drums, winds and strings (12:41)
CD $15



GREAT NEW HORDE OF ARCHIVAL JAZZ JEWELS!!!...

ORNETTE COLEMAN With CHARLIE HADEN/DAVID IZENZON/CHARLES MOFFETT - The Love Revolution - Italian Tour 1968: Rome/Milan [2 CD set] (Gambit 69224; EEC) The material collected for this 2-CD set corresponds to the February 1968 European tour, featuring the Coleman's Quartet with his regular unusual group including David Izenzon and Charlie Haden on bass, and Ed Blackwell on drums. The first CD includes the Rome concert, with extended versions of four original compositions, including a fantastic interpretation of the already popular "Lonely Woman." The second CD contains the Milan's Teatro Lirico performances, with three original compositions.The sum of this material on one edition, makes this an essential release, capturing a crucial period of the career of an artist that without a doubt, remains the ultimate contemporary musician of the jazz vanguard.
"Totally ass-kicking!!" - Mikey "IQ" Jones.
2 CD set $22

ORNETTE COLEMAN TRIO With DAVID IZENZON/CHARLES MOFFETT - Falling Star (Jazz Door 12151; Germany) Live from 1965, probably from the same European tour that produced those two great Blue Notes discs, 'Live at the Golden Circle in Stockholm'. You best grab this quick before the jazz police step in and confiscate this "authorized" recording.
CD $16

ORNETTE COLEMAN With DEWEY REDMAN/CHARLIE HADEN/ED BLACKWELL - Live in Belgrade (Jazz Door 12112; Germany) Most likely from 1970 or 1971 and previously only available as an infamous bootleg. Let's see how long this one remains available (2/15/06).
CD $16

MILES DAVIS QUINTET - Live In Paris 1969 (Jazz Door 1201; Germany) Featuring Miles on trumpet, Wayne Shorter on soprano & tenor saxes, Chick Corea on electric piano, Dave Holland on bass and Jack DeJohnette on drums. Live from 1969 and pretty incredible! 72 minutes long - great sound - and featuring long versions of "Gemini" and "Double Image" Smokin'!!!
CD $17

MILES DAVIS QUINTET With JOHN COLTRANE - Live In Zurich 1960...and NYC 1958 (Gambit 69220; EEC) 5 cuts from Switzerland with Miles, Coltrane, Wynton Kelly, Paul Chambers, Jimmy Cobb 4/8/60; and 4 cuts from Cafe Bohemia with Miles, Trane, Chambers, Bill Evans, Philly Joe Jones 5/17/58
CD $16

ERIC DOLPHY - The Complete Uppsala Concert Sweden 1961 [2 CD set] (Gambit 69213; EEC)
2 CD set $22

CLIFFORD BROWN & MAX ROACH QUINTET With SONNY ROLLINS - Complete Live At The Beehive 1955 [2 CD set] (Lone Hill 10128; EEC) Originally a double LP on Columbia, this is Brown's first ever recording with Sonny Rollins and Max Roach recorded live at Chicago's Bee Hive on November 7th, 1955.The playing is actually somewhat historic, a jam session featuring the ill-fated Clifford Brown, tenorman Sonny Rollins (who was playing with Brownie for the first time), drummer Max Roach and a few other musicians (Nicky Hill on tenor, pianist Billy Wallace [or Chris Anderson], guitarist Leo Blevins and bassist George Morrow), but earlier editions of this [on LP] betrayed not-very-good recordings. They have been cleaned up here as best as possible.
2 CD set for $25

GIL EVANS ORCHESTRA With GEORGE ADAMS/HANNIBAL MARVIN PETERSON - Voodoo Chili (Jazz Door 12117; Germany) Live from 1974 & '78.
CD $16

BILL EVANS And ORCHESTRA - Brandeis Jazz Festival June 12, 18, 20 NYC 1957 (Gambit 69214; EEC) conducted by either Gunther Schuller and George Russell arr/cond. Three Evans trio tunes from the 18th are bonus cuts over the original LP relase!
CD $16

BILL EVANS TRIO WITH EDDIE GOMEZ/MARTY MORELL - My Foolish Heart (West Wind 2075; Germany)
CD $15

JOE FARRELL/FRANK FOSTER/CHICK COREA/ELVIN JONES/GENE PERLA - John Coltrane Memorial Concert, Poland September 12th 1971 (Jazz Door 1255; Germany) Two long pieces: "Shinjitu' by Keiko Jones and "Simone" by Frank Foster
CD $16

TOMMY FLANAGAN/RON CARTER/TONY WILLIAMS - The Trio (Gambit 69218; EEC) recorded June 16-17 1983; 14 tracks/74 minutes total.
CD $16

TOMMY FLANAGAN With COLEMAN HAWKINS/ROY ELDRIDGE et al - Riff Tide (Jazz Door 12152; Germany)
CD $16

CHARLIE HADEN/RALPH TOWNER/JULIAN PRIESTER - Helium Tears (New Edition 8707; Germany) Featuring Charlie Haden on contrabass, Ralph Towner on acoustic guitar and Julian Priester on trombone.
CD $15

COLEMAN HAWKINS With ROY ELDRIDGE/BUCK CLAYTON/HANK JONES/RAY BROWN - The Stanley Dance Sessions (Lone Hill 10189; EEC) 13 cuts; 78 minutes
CD $16

JOE HENDERSON QUINTET With TERASUMA HINO - Sunrise in Tokyo (Jazz Door 12120; Germany)
CD $16

RAHSAAN ROLAND KIRK - Third Dimension And Beyond (Gambit 69210; EEC) two sets of recordings: 7 cuts with Carl Pruitt, Jimmy Madison, and Henry 'Hank' Madison inNY 11/9/56; and 6 cuts with Ira Sullivan, Ron Burton, Donald Garrett, and Gerald 'Sonny' Brown in Chicago 6/7/60
CD $16

JOACHIM KUHN/HARRY BECKETT/JERRY BERGONZI/J.F. JENNY-CLARK - Some Time Ago (New Edition 8704; Germany) Live from '91 & '92. Featuring Joachim Kuhn on piano, the great Harry Beckett on trumpet, Jerry Bergonzi on tenor sax and J.F. Jenny-Clark on acoustic bass and what, no drummer?
CD $15

STEVE LACY - Early Years 1954-1956: The Legendary Pioneer Of Modern Soprano Sax [2 CD set] (Fresh Sound 364; EEC) This 2 CD set charts the exciting early years of Steve Lacy, playing progressive Dixieland and swinging mainstream jazz on a soprano saxophone with extraordinary freshness, vigor and personal style, when he exploded onto the mid-50's jazz scene. To hear Steve play the multi-toned modern figures and extended line on an instrument usually associated with Sydney Bechet is always a stimulating experience. Of his extraordinary approach to the instrument, Lacy said: "As Charlie Parker increased the technical and expressive possibilities of the alto, Milt Jackson, the vibraphone, Kenny Clarke, the drums and Jimmy Blanton, the bass, one of my personal aims is to do the same for the soprano." On hearing these sessions, we think you'll agree that he managed to do just that.
"During the preparation of this production [originally slated as a release on the Lone Hill label as "Steve Lacy: The Complete Whitey Mitchell Recordings] Steve Lacy sadly passed away in Boston on Friday, June 4, 2004. He maintained a vigorous teaching and performing schedule right up until his last month. He continued to produce works of startling originality, and was considered one of jazz's most prolific recording artists. Fifty years after he made his first recordings, it is obvious now that Steve Lacy took that challenging instrument and made it his own. He'll be missed."
2 CD set for $22

JACKIE McLEAN/LEE KONITZ/GARY BARTZ/CHARLIE MARIANO - Altisimo (West Wind 2019; Germany) Live from 1974 & '78.
CD $15

WES MONTGOMERY ALL STARS Featuring CANNONBALL ADDERLEY/JON HENDRICKS/PONY POINDEXTER - A Good Git-Together/Kismet (Lone Hill 10133; EEC) Never Previously Released on CD!
This set offers a two long lost treasures - with the focal point being Wes Montgomery - on 1 CD: Jon Hendricks' first album as a leader, 'A Good Git-Together has not been reissued since its 1959 release, but it is a real gem. This rarity features such major sidemen on various tracks as altoist Pony Ponidexter, guitarist Wes Montgomery and both Nat and Cannonball Adderley. Hendricks -- who, at the time, was riding high in Lambert, Hendricks and Ross -- is in superb form on such numbers as "Everything Started In the House of the Lord," a couple of songs that Hendricks had written for Louis Jordan, Randy Weston's "Pretty Strange," "Social Call" and the jubilant "A Good Git-Together." A near-classic LP long overdue to be reissued on CD. -- Scott Yanow, AMG
....and a second album released under the group name Mastersounds performing their version of the Broadway revue Kismet: "Recorded in the late '50s and released in 1966 when the name Wes Montgomery became well known, this reading of Borodin's evergreen classic "Kismet" is a wondrous platter. The Mastersounds were the Montgomery brothers' group before Wes stepped out on his own. Monk and Buddy Montgomery were excellent musicians in their own right. Buddy's vibe work on this record clearly shows that he was leading the group through their paces, and his performance is excellent. Top marks also for piano player Richard Crabtree, whose vamp on "Baubles, Bangles & Beads" is positively funky, and drummer Benny Barth. Wes was indeed coming into his own here, and for just that reason alone this is an important record. Although merely an accompanist, he gets to stretch out on the extended "Not Since Nineveh" and the snaky, Eastern-tinged "Fate." Overall, an excellent jazz reading of one of the most beloved musicals ever and also an important historical record for Wes Montgomery fans"- Matthew Greenwald, AMG

LEE MORGAN With DIZZY GILLESPIE ORCHESTRA Featuring WYNTON KELLY & BENNY GOLSON - Those Dizzy Days (Lone Hill 10107; EEC) It was not until Lee Morgan came into the band in Gordon's place that Dizzy had a trumpeter of comparable individuality to his own. The line of trumpets includes Talib Ahmad Dawud, Carl Warwick and others behind Lee & Diz, Ray Connors, Al Grey and others on trombone, Pee Wee Moore on baritone, Wynton Kelley on piano, and a stunning showing by Charlie Persip on drums! Originally recorded in Hester, Pensylvania, June 14th (# 1-11), LA, March 23rd (#12-13), NY, April 8th (14-15) and Newport Jazz Festival, July 6th, 1957. 78 minutes!
CD $16

IVO PERELMAN/DON PRESTON/BUELL NEIDLINGER/AIRTO MORIERA - Circle Dance (New Edition 8705; Germany) Live from 1974 & '78.
CD $15

CECIL TAYLOR With JOHN COLTRANE et al - Hard Driving Jazz [aka Stereo Drive aka Coltrane Time] (Gambit; EEC) [BONUS CUTS ON THIS ALBUM: 2 cuts with Taylor/Steve Lacy/Buell Neidlinger/Denis Charles from 9/14/56 + 3 more without Lacy from the same date!]This album was originally released as a Cecil Taylor record on United Artists [UA] label called Hard Driving Jazz (for the mono edition) and Stereo Drive (for the stereo edition) in 1958. It was Cecil's session and included Kenny Dorham, Chuck Isreals, Louis Hayes, and John Coltrane (the only time Coltrane and Taylor recorded together). In '62, with the 'Trane's star having risen way above his contemporaries, UA marketed this as a Trane album and retitled it Coltrane Time and it has unfortunately stayed this way ever since [currently on Blue Note]. But it is a classic album nonetheless, the interplay between these two giants is great; Taylor's playing on this was said by several to have emulated Monk's! Too bad there wasn't another meeting between these two in the '60s!
CD $16



RESTOCKED DVDs:

ART ENSEMBLE OF CHICAGO - In Concert: Live From The Jazz Showcase [DVD] (Rhapsody 2869005; EEC) 1981 Color 50 min.
Lester Bowie (trumpet and percussion), Joseph Jarman (reeds and percussion), Roscoe Mitchell (reeds and percussion), Malachi Favors Maghostut (bass and percussion), Famoudou Don Moye (percussion) performing "We-Bop Promenade," "On the Cote Bamako," "Bedouin Village," "New York Is Full of Lonely People," "New Orleans," "Funky AECO2 and "Theme (Odwalla)" on Nov. 1, 1981.
"The Art Ensemble of Chicago has been the jazz avant-garde's best stage show for a decade. Members of the quintet perform in quasi-African costumes, masks and face paint, surrounded by two tons of instruments -- drums, gongs, bells, saxophones, toys and just about anything else that makes useful noises -- all the while sharing musical and visual jokes as they go caroming through the history of jazz.... One of the most intelligent jazz documentaries around." -- Jon Pareles, THE NEW YORK TIMES
[complete program on each side of the disc: one side NTSC all region, other side PAL all region!] DVD $25

JAKI BYARD//ELVIN JONES - Anything For Jazz//Different Drummer [DVD] (Rhapsody 2869018; EEC)
DIFFERENT DRUMMER: Elvin Jones; A Film by Ed Gray 1979 Color 30 min. "This is an excellent visual and aural study of the great drum innovator, with some smoking work from his 1979 quartet with saxophonist Pat La Barbara, guitarist Ryo Kawasaki, and bassist David Williams. One can begin to feel and understand how this man combines power with complexity. He shows step-by-step the great strokes which, upon impact, merge dynamically with an intersecting rhythm. Elvin's concepts also include impressionistic philosophy; he explains his vision of drums and cymbals as sonic agents of color. The treat midway through the clip is of the classic Coltrane quartet in full flight. Elvin comments: 'We didn't have to talk much. It was telepathy.'" -- Kevin Lynch, DOWNBEAT
ANYTHING FOR JAZZ: Jaki Byard 1980 B&W 25 min. Directed by Dan Algrant "This intimate view of pianist Jaki Byard shows a warm and charming man, open and unpretentious...Commentary by bassist Ron Carter and pianist Bill Evans (who died in 1980 shortly after this program was made) shows Byard's place as a skilled musician to be of much greater importance than his moderate fame would indicate. The tape is a mixture of performance -- solo piano and Byard's big band, the Apollo Stompers -- and commentary in a very relaxed and natural manner by Byard." -- John S. Wilson, VIDEO REVIEW
DOUBLE FEATURE! Both episodes in 1 DVD
[complete program on each side of the disc: one side NTSC all region, other side PAL all region!]
DVD $25

ORNETTE COLEMAN//ROLAND KIRK & JOHN CAGE: Two Films By DICK FONTAINE - Ornette Coleman Trio//Sound? Featuring Roland Kirk & John Cage [DVD] (Rhapsody 2869045; EEC) [complete program on each side of the disc: one side NTSC all region, other side PAL all region!] Total Time: 58 min.
"Ornette Coleman Trio" A film by Dick Fontaine, 1966. Featuring Ornette Coleman (tp,as,v), David Izenzon (b), Charles Moffett (d). Director Dick Fontaine set out to catch the music, the thoughts and the personalities of Ornette Coleman's mid-1960s trio during two days in Paris while they worked on scoring a film. He did that job exceptionally well. There is a memorable performance of Ornette's 'Sadness' (complete and uninterrupted from David Izenzon's bowed introduction to the end!) during which Fontaine quickly cuts away from images of the musicians responding to the movie screen to concentrate his cameras directly on the players' serious, passionate involvement with their improvisations. It is one of the best filmed jazz performances ever captured on video.
" - Sound??" A film by Dick Fontaine, 1967. Featuring Roland Kirk, John Cage. Although Rahsaan Roland Kirk and John Cage never actually meet in this film (Cage's enigmatic questions about sound are intercut with some of Kirk's more ambitious experiments with it) these two very different musical iconoclasts share a similar vision of the boundless possibilities of music. Kirk plays three saxes at once, switches to flute, incorporates tapes of birds played backwards, and finally hands out whistles to his audience and encourages them to accompany him, "in the key of W, if you please." Cage, on the other hand, is preparing a work for musical bicycle with David Tudor and Merce Cunningham at the Seville Theatre in London. Cage meets Rahsaan's music in an echo chamber, and he ends his search for the sound of silence in his favorite spot -- the anechoic chamber -- where it turns out to be the uproar of "your nervous system in operation." Rahsaan is in top form playing everything from "A Nightingale Sang In Berkeley Square" to his suite "Rip, Rig and Panic.X"1. Roland Kirk in Concert 2. Collective improvisation 3. Playing at the Zoo 4. Blues 5. A "Nightingale Sang In Berkeley Square"
DVD $25

JOHN COLTRANE - Trane Tracks: The Complete Video Coltrane [DVD] (Efor 722563; EEC) [complete program on each side of the disc: one side NTSC all region, other side PAL all region!] Comprehensive narration with revealing insight into Coltrane's life and music. This carefully restored, digitally remastered DVD includes rare photo gallery, 30 minute interview with McCoy Tyner, concert footage of legendary tracks 'So What' (with Miles Davis), 'Afro Blue', 'Alabama', 'Every Time We Say Goodbye', 'Naima', 'Impressions' (featuring Eric Dolphy), & 'My Favorite Things' (featuring Eric Dolphy) plus video clips of Miles Davis, Johnny Hodges, Lester Young, Coleman Hawkins, Thelonious Monk and others. Subtitles in French and Spanish. Approx. 80 mins
DVD $20

LEE KONITZ Featuring HAROLD DANKO - Portrait Of An Artist As Saxophonist [DVD] (Rhapsody 2869013; EEC) 1988 Color 83 min. A Film by Robert Daudelin
Features the songs "Stella by Starlight," "Struttin With Some Barbecue," "Hi Beck," "Kary's Trance," "Subconscious-Lee" and "She's as Wild as Springtime"
"If only more jazz docs were as good as Montrealer Robert Daudelin's 1988 LEE KONITZ: PORTRAIT OF THE ARTIST AS A SAXOPHONIST. Devoid of narration, this film lets the altoist reveal himself in conversation, in duets with pianist Harold Danko and in a workshop with students. Konitz talks of the lasting impact study with Lennie Tristano made on his music. Konitz is a man obsessed with line and rhythm, insisting on the importance of playing melodies straight, and singing old Armstrong solos in unison with Danko (who strums piano strings, autoharp style, on 'Struttin' With Some Barbecue')." -- Kevin Whitehead, DOWNBEAT
[complete program on each side of the disc: one side NTSC all region, other side PAL all region!] DVD $25

STEVE LACY - Lift The Bandstand [DVD] (Rhapsody 2869046; EEC) [complete program on each side of the disc: one side NTSC all region, other side PAL all region!]
AS a subject for a jazz documentary, Steve Lacy makes things easy. He is both an important musician - the first soprano saxophonist in modern jazz - and an articulate one. In the 50 minute film, ''Steve Lacy: Lift the Bandstand,'' the film maker Peter Bull lets him tell his own story, illustrating it with remarkable archival footage and live performances from a 1983 Public Theater concert by Mr. Lacy's sextet. Mr. Lacy spent his apprenticeship at the extremes of jazz, old and new. He took up the soprano saxophone after hearing the New Orleans jazz musician Sidney Bechet - the film includes a Bechet performance - and worked with such traditional-jazz patriarchs as Pee Wee Russell and Pops Foster. His next affiliation was with the pianist Cecil Taylor, whose roiling music, Mr. Lacy says, had him ''swimming furiously in the avant-garde ocean.'' There's a clip of Mr. Lacy's next mentor, the arranger Gil Evans, and of his most important influence, the composer-pianist Thelonious Monk; there's also footage of John Coltrane, who, Mr. Lacy contends, took up the soprano saxophone after hearing him. He also explains why, after starving in New York in the early 1960's, he moved to Europe to continue his career.
The old footage shows what Mr. Lacy learned, and what an individualist he turned out to be. On the soprano saxophone, which he compares to a ''high, shrill infant,'' he doesn't sound like Bechet or Coltrane; his compositions take the angularities of Thelonious Monk through even more twists and turns. Playing solo, Mr. Lacy seems to choose each note with a chess master's care; leading his sextet, he meshes his phrasing with the voice of Irene Aebi, then rides the band's rhythms with skirling, high-speed extrapolations. The film includes both a solo excerpt from ''Gay Paree-Bop'' and a full-length sextet version, with Mr. Lacy transformed from introvert to extrovert. Other tunes performed include "Evidence"and "Prospectus" - Jon Pareles, New York Times
Indispensable for anyone interested in Steve Lacy DVD $20

CHARLES MINGUS/THOMAS REICHMANN - Mingus In Greenwich Village [DVD] (Rhapsody 2869032; EEC) 1968 B&W 58 min. A Film by Thomas Reichman
MINGUS is an excellent portrait of this great bassist/composer and some of the hard times that came his way. The film features a superb MINGUS in action at a nightclub near Boston ("All the Things You Are," "Secret Love," "Take the A Train"), where he is joined by DANNIE RICHMOND, WALTER BISHOP, JOHN GILMORE and CHARLES McPHERSON; as well as scenes of him conducting his big band, composing, singing and reciting his own poetry. "Although there are performances, most of this black-and-white film is harrowing cinema verite of the great composer and jazz bassist in his New York loft, surrounded by the clutter of his life and art, waiting for the police to evict him. During the wait, Reichman tossed out a few questions, and even in his distraction, Mingus spoke passionately, and at length, about politics, family, education, 'sex as a source of survival,' the politics and consequences of racism. Mingus is wry, bitter, resigned, yet always proud.. The film succeeds mostly because of Reichman's supple juxtaposition of joy (the bassist's sweet interaction with his five-year-old daughter) and great pain. There is a defiance that gives way to tears -- Mingus' and ours -- when the Department of Sanitation coldly trucks away his possessions, including his beloved bass, to temporary storage, and again when Mingus is arrested after hypodermic needles are found in the apartment (a reporter tells Mingus not to worry, he's getting 'a million dollars in publicity'). If this film were ever colorized, it would be all blues." - Richard Harrington, WASHINGTON POST
[complete program on each side of the disc: one side NTSC all region, other side PAL all region!] DVD $25

FREDDIE REDD QUARTET With JACKIE McLEAN/SHIRLEY CLARKE - Jack Gelber's 'The Connection' [DVD] (Efor 2869032; EEC) [complete program on each side of the disc: one side NTSC all region, other side PAL all region!] Total Time: 102 mins
The late Shirley Clarke [ex-wife of Arthur C Clarke, who also made the Ornette Coleman 'Made In America' documentary that took two decades to complete] directed this Cannes Festival prize-winning 1962 film is based on the Living Theatre's production of the Jack Gelber play 'The Connection'. "A quintessential work of '60s cinema - a harrowing depiction of junkies waiting for their 'connection' to show up is lightened by the performance of the jazzmen who are also waiting for their fix" - John Summiliani, Philadelphia Inquirer
Freddie Redd composed the music for Jack Gelber's The Connection, a gritty play about musician junkies. Gelber had originally thought that the play would feature real musicians -- who would also double as actors in minor roles -- improvising on blues and jazz standards in the tradition of Charlie Parker, but Redd convinced him to use an original score. The two weaved Redd's original compositions into the score, making it an integral part of the play, but the music holds up superbly on its own. Using the direction "in the tradition of Charlie Parker" as a starting point, the pianist wrote seven pieces of straight-ahead bop, wide open for improvisations, and then assembled a sterling quartet featuring himself, alto saxophonist Jackie McLean, bassist Michael Mattos, and drummer Larry Ritchie. In this film it is performed on camera by the quartet as part of the actual play, filmed entirely inside a one-room apartment! [This score was later re-recorded under studio conditions by the same quartet for the Blue Note record of the same name] This is as real as it has ever got - musically and otherwise.
DVD $25

GREATEST JAZZ FILMS EVER [V.A. With MILES DAVIS/BILLIE HOLIDAY/CHARLIE PARKER/THELONIOUS MONK/LESTER YOUNG/DIZZIE GILLESPIE/JIMMY GIUFFRE/HARRY EDISON et al] - Great Jazz Films Ever [2 DVD set] (Idem 1059; EEC) [complete program on each side of the disc: one side NTSC all region, other side PAL all region!]
DISC 1 [also available separately as Great Performances (Idem 1057)] includes the only two surviving films of Charlie Parker, one featuring his acceptance of the Down Beat Award [1952] playing "Hot House" with a 5tet incl. Dizzy Gillespie, Dick Hyman; and the other a two reel movie with the JATP troupe: five tunes [1950] with a band incl Coleman Hawkins, Lester Young, Hank Jones, Buddy Rich, Ella Fitzgerald, Ray Brown, Flip Phillips, Harry Edison and Bill Harris!!! This also has the exemplary half hour [ 4 tunes] CBS television program featuring the classic late '50 Miles Davis Quintet [John Coltrane, Wynton Kelly, Paul Chambers, Jimmy Cobb] and the Gil Evans Orchestra - an absolute historic masterpiece in perfect sight & sound [rely on poor quality bootlegs no longer!]...as well as the complete material from the "Jammin' The Blues" filmed sessions of August-September 1944 with Lester Young, Illinois Jacquet, Harry Edison, Barney Kessel, Red Callender [or John Simmons], Jo Jones [or Sid Catlett], Marlowe Thomas, [7 tunes including 4 - with Dicky Wells and Garland Finney added - not originally in the released short feature!]
DISC 2 [also available separately as Sound OF Jazz (Idem 1058)] includes the complete version of 'The Sound Of Jazz' film: 9 tunes featuring Bilie Holiday, Count Basie, Thelonious Monk, Jimmy Giuffre and many others; and a shorter film 'Jazz From Studio 61' with Ahmad Jamal, Ben Webster, et al. DVD $42

GREAT JAZZ PERFORMANCES [V.A. With MILES DAVIS/CHARLIE PARKER/LESTER YOUNG/DIZZ GILLESPIE/HARRY EDISON et al] - Great Performances: Four Jazz Movie Masterworks [DVD] (Idem 1057; EEC) [complete program on each side of the disc: one side NTSC all region, other side PAL all region!]
This DVD includes the only two surviving films of Charlie Parker, one featuring his acceptance of the Down Beat Award [1952] playing "Hot House" with a 5tet incl. Dizzy Gillespie, Dick Hyman; and the other a two reel movie with the JATP troupe: five tunes [1950] with a band incl Coleman Hawkins, Lester Young, Hank Jones, Buddy Rich, Ella Fitzgerald, Ray Brown, Flip Phillips, Harry Edison and Bill Harris!!!
This also has the exemplary half hour [ 4 tunes] CBS television program featuring the classic late '50 Miles Davis Quintet [John Coltrane, Wynton Kelly, Paul Chambers, Jimmy Cobb] and the Gil Evans Orchestra - an absolute historic masterpiece in perfect sight & sound [rely on poor quality bootlegs no longer!] ...as well as the complete material from the "Jammin' The Blues" filmed sessions of August-September 1944 with Lester Young, Illinois Jacquet, Harry Edison, Barney Kessel, Red Callender [or John Simmons], Jo Jones [or Sid Catlett], Marlowe Thomas,
[7 tunes including 4 - with Dicky Wells and Garland Finney added - not originally in the released short feature!]
DVD $25

THE SOUND OF JAZZ [V.A. With BILLIE HOLIDAY/COUNT BASIE/THELONIOUS MONK/JIMMY GIUFFRE et al] - Complete Edition...plus (Idem 1058; EEC) includes the complete version of 'The Sound Of Jazz' film: 9 tunes featuring Bilie Holiday, Count Basie, Thelonious Monk, Jimmy Giuffre and many others; and a shorter film 'Jazz From Studio 61' with Ahmad Jamal, Ben Webster, et al.
DVD $25


MORE ARCHIVAL CD REISSUES & RESTOCKS...

MATCHING MOLE [ROBERT WYATT/PHIL MILLER/DAVE McRAE/BILL MacCORMICK] - Little Red Record (CBS 471488; UK) The is the amazing second offering by Robert Wyatt's superb post-Soft Machine prog/jazz/rock quartet featuring Phil Miller on lead guitar, Dave McRae on keyboards, Bill MacCormick on el. bass and Robert Wyatt on lead vocals and drums. Produced by Robert Fripp and with a guest appearance by Eno on synth. A true quirky Canterbury classic disc with such fab songs like the poignant "God Song" and "Starting in the Middle of the Day, We Can Drink Our Politics Away". If you don't already own this, well, what are you waiting for?!?
CD $14

MATCHING MOLE [ROBERT WYATT/PHIL MILLER/DAVE McRAE/BILL MacCORMICK] - Matching Mole (CBS; UK) First album of Robert Wyatt's superb post-Soft Machine prog/jazz/rock quartet featuring Phil Miller on lead guitar, Dave McRae on keyboards, Bill MacCormick on el. bass and Robert Wyatt on lead vocals and drums. The name comes from the french name for Soft Machine: "machine mole". Hatfield/Soft/Caravan fans, waddya waitin for!!!
CD $14


RAVI SHANKAR - The Man And His Music [2 CD set] (Times Square 9051) Pandit Ravi Shankar is probably the most successful Indian musician of modern times. His pioneering work over the last five decades has maintained a consistency in quality that few can match. His name is synonymous with that best-known of Indian string instruments - the "sitar". In this album, from the archives of India's oldest and most respected record companies, Saregama, is a selection of some of Raviji's (as he is respectfully called) finest recordings representing two facets of his career.
2 CD set for $15


ANANDA SHANKAR - A Life In Music [2 CD set] (Times Square 9052) "Nephew of Ravi Shankar...Sitar teacher of Jimi Hendrix...a resident of '60s California when the words 'flower power' really meant something...is it any wonder that the work Ananda Shankar created is unique, vital and exciting?Ananda Shankar, in the words of a critic, 'was an original musician of the world before the term world music was invented.' Trained in Indian classical music and subsequently exposed to western trends, he pioneered a distinctive sound, decades ahead of its time: vibrant new age music, capable of breaking barriers between races, cultures and generations. Ananda, unfortunately, passed away in 1999, at the peak of his career. However, Ananda's creative efforts retain their originality and appeal even today. His music has inspired the 'Asian Underground' movement. His original vinyl recordings have always been in demand, and DJs/fans have paid ridiculous amounts of money to acquire them through specialist record outlets. Long unavailable, and too often bootlegged, the recordings on this specially-priced 2CD-set were originally released by the then EMI-owned Gramophone Company of India, and now known as Saregama India Ltd."
2 CD set for $15


SCOTT WALKER - Climate Of The Hunter (Virgin; EEC) 2006 remaster. With Evan Parker, Ray Russell, Mark Isham, Mo Foster, Peter Van Hooke, Mark Knopfler, Phil Palmer. "Climate of Hunter was Scott Walker's only album of the 1980s. It drew critical raves for a minimalist, trancelike ambience that showed him keeping abreast of cutting-edge trends. This version of the album is digitally remastered for the first time and has the addition of sleevenotes by music journo and St. Etienne member Bob Stanley."
Like so many in my country [U.S.], I was late to catch on to Scott Walker, in my case when I first heard his first solo album in about 1976 by which time it was a cool period piece. But from that point forward I kept my eye out for Walker's scarce vinyl, picking it up whenever I crossed paths with one of his records. I first heard Climate of Hunter in about 1986; it was already three years old. There were still those same incredible vocal pipes but wow the music had really moved! I was frankly unable to absorb this album at first though I gave it many tries. I suspected that the fault was entirely my own and not Scott Walker's. By the time this record reached about ten years of age I could understand it. The very best of other recording artists had begun to catch on to Walker's musical ideas presented here [like David Bowie et al]. And now Climate of Hunter just sounds like the most beautiful visionary piece of modern music imaginable. Think of a much more musically substantial "Avalon," and you will have some idea of what Climate of Hunter sounds like. But it is much less sweet, much more intriguing, with much more to offer on repeated listenings. When you have put away all of your old pop records as childish playthings Climate of Hunter will remain on your shelf (or in your hard drive) as a permanent fixture in the music that you take with you to the end of your life. I'm not kidding. Being the middlebrow type that I am, I am still currently struggling with the musical challenges presented by Walker's newer (but now fairly old) album "Tilt." - Randall E Adams, Amazon
"One of my favorite albums - utterly perplexing yet completely enveloping - and any record that has Evan Parker and Ray Russell sharing sonic space with Billy Ocean is okay with me! Highest recommendation!!" -Mikey "IQ" Jones
CD $15


ALLEN GINSBERG - First Blues [2 CD set] (Water 166) "Beat generation poet Allen Ginsberg was also a singer/songwriter who was encouraged to write and record by none other than Bob Dylan, who took Allen into the studio his first ever 'music' recordings. Those 1971 recordings with Dylan, as well as sessions from 1976 with members of Dylan's Rolling Thunder Review band produced by maverick John Hammond (Billie Holiday, Aretha Franklin and Bruce Springsteen), and additional recordings from 1981 were gathered together and released as the double LP First Blues in 1983. Many of the recordings feature cello player Arthur Russell (known for his 1970s Flying Hearts band and his ground-breaking 1980s solo recordings). First time on CD: 24 songs on two CDs. Cover photography by the legendary Robert Frank. Original detailed liner notes by Allen Ginsberg."
CD $18

FRED NEIL - Fred Neil (Water 165; USA) "Neil's 1966 Capitol debut contains some of his best known (and most covered) songs including 'Dolphins,' 'That's The Bag I'm In,' and the future theme song to the 1969 blockbuster film Midnight Cowboy (and Harry Nilsson hit) 'Everybody's Talkin'.' Original artwork. Detailed liner notes."
CD $15

LOU REED - American Poet (Easy Action 012; UK) Contains never before released live material recorded in Hempstead, New York on December 26th, 1972 by an inspired Lou Reed, backed by The Tots, recorded right after the release of the album "Transformer". Contains 12 tracks including "Walk On The Wild Side," "Rock 'n Roll," "Sweet Jane," "Heroin," "I'm Waiting For My Man," "Satellite Of Love" & a beautiful early version of "Berlin". The extensive booklet has full colour shots of Lou live at the Kings Cross Scala taken by Mick Rock in 1972.
CD $18

MC5 - Purity Accuracy (Easy Action 008; UK) Tracks: "Gotta Keep Movin'" demo, "Baby Won't Ya" demo guide vocals, "Sister Ann" demo, "Over and Over," "Train Music," "Pledge Song," "Tonight" demo, "Human Being Lawnmower" demo, "Looking at You" original single 1968, "Born Under a Bad Sign" live at the first Unitarian Church Detroit 7th sept '68, "I Want You Right Now" live at the first Unitarian Church Detroit 8th Sept '68, "Motor City Is Burning" live at the Grande Ballroom Oct '68, "Black To Comm" unknown live recording, "Revolutionary Blues" live, "Michigan" June '68, "Skunk" recorded live at 100 Club London March 2003. Bite size best of the 'Purity Accuracy: Complete' box housed in the new super jewel boxes.
CD $18

Also available...

MC5 - Purity Accuracy: Complete [6 CD set] (Easy Action 002; UK) "The first ever 'band authorized' project since 1971. Contains unreleased material. Includes new version of the band performing classic songs with Lemmy from Motorhead, Nicke from the Hellacopters and Dave Vanian from the Damned on vocals. Liner notes by Nina Antonia feature current interviews with all of the surviving members of the band, plus an interview with manager John Sinclair. Contains scarce recordings from the fledgling band in 1965 to blistering live performances in 1970 and recordings as recent as last year." Disc One: Rehearsals; Disc Two: 1965-68; Disc Three: Live at the Saginaw Civic Center 1st Jan. 1970; Disc Four: Live at the Grande Ballroom 1968; Disc Five: Live at the Sturgis Armory, Michigan 27th June 1968; Disc Six: 13th March 2003 London 100 Club.
CD $58


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DMG RECOMMENDED CALENDAR OF GIGS FOR FEBRUARY 24th - MARCH 5TH, 2006




THE DMG FREE IN-STORE MUSIC SERIES CONTINUES EVERY SUNDAY WITH:

This Sunday, February 26th at 6pm:
MICHAEL BATES/RUSS JOHNSON/TONY BARBA/JEFF DAVIS!
Michael is a fine bassist & composer & this is his new quartet

Next Sunday March 5th at 6pm:
ANDERS NILSSON!
Great guitarist from Aorta!


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THE STONE is located at the NW corner of Avenue C & 2nd Street
Performances take place at 8 & 10pm from Tuesday - Sunday nights
There are no advance tickets, first come, first served, there is no phone
There is no food or beverage served, just a serious listening environment
Admission for each set is $10, unless otherwise indicated
Check out the website for The Stone at thestonenyc.com


February at The Stone is curated by Basya Schecter

2/24 Friday
8 pm - Ben Goldberg (clarinet) Trevor Dunn (bass) Kenny Wollesen (drums) - New Klezmer Trio.
10 pm- Ben Goldberg Quintet - Ben Goldberg (clarinet) Rob Sudduth (sax) Trevor Dunn (bass) Ches Smith (drums) plus special guest violinist $20 per set, $30 for both sets

2/25 Saturday 8 pm - Ben Goldberg Quartet: Ben Goldberg (clarinet) Erik Friedlander (cello) Shazad Ismaily (perc/bass) Trevor Dunn (bass)
10 pm - Ben Goldberg Quartet w/ Ben Goldberg (clarinet) Ellery Eskelin (sax) Trevor Dunn (bass) Ches Smith (drums)

2/26 Sunday
8 pm - Anat Forte Trio - Anat Fort (piano) Gary Wang (bass) Roland Schneider (drums) - Compositions by Anat Fort.
10 pm - Valentin Silvestrov "Drama" for Violin, Cello and Piano
Jenny Lin (piano) Cornelius Dufallo (violin) Dorothy Lawson (cello)

2/28 Tuesday
8 pm - Frank London (trumpet)
10 pm - Shanir Blumenkranz plays Masada Book Two: Shanir Blumenkranz (oud) and ensemble Exotic new readings of John Zorn's Book of Angels.


March at The Stone is curated by Butch Morris

3/1 Wednesday - 8 and 10 pm
What We Live Four - Lisle Ellis (bass) Larry Ochs (saxophones) Don Robinson (drums) Saadet TØrkØz (voice)

3/2 Thursday - 8 and 10 pm
Elliot Sharp: Orchestra Carbon performs Quarks Swim Free Elliot Sharp (guitar) Orchestra Carbon

3/3 Friday - 8 and 10 pm
J.A. Deane (sampler, live sampling) Tyshawn Sorey (percussion, piano)

3/4 Saturday - 8 and 10 pm
J.A. Deane (sampler, live sampling) Miguel Frasconi (sampler, glass) Aki Onda (tapes)

3/5 Sunday - 8 and 10 pm
Butch Morris Phantom Station

Sun March 5th -
8pm - TIN HAT - Founded by violinist Carla Kihlstedt, guitarist Mark Orton, and accordionist/pianist Rob Burger, the original Tin Hat Trio was formed as a composers collective. When Rob Burger left in 2004, clarinetist Ben Goldberg became a permanent member. Tonight multi-instrumentalist Ara Anderson completes the quartet.


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Tonic is located at 107 Norfolk Street between Delancey and Rivington Streets in Manhattan's Lower East Side, around the corner from Delancey F train stop

Sun Feb 26th-
8pm - HUMAN FEEL REUNION: JIM BLACK, ANDREW D'ANGELO, KURT ROSENWINKEL & CHRIS SPEED!

Wed March 1st-
8pm - PARADOX TRIO!
10pm - Manuel Mota & Ernesto Rodrigues with Margarida Garcia, Jaime Fennelly, Chris Forsyth & Barry Weisblat

Fri March 3rd-
8pm - Kid Congo Powers Record Release Show: Kid Congo & the Pink Monkeybirds plus Congo Norvell plus Thalia Zedek plus Electroputas plus Size Queen plus Marcus Schmickler & Julee Cruise!


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February 23-26
VISION COLLABORATION NIGHTS
Third Annual Festival of New Dance/Music Works

at the 14th Street Y
344 East 14th StreeY

Tickets $20 per night - 4 Day Pass $50
Reservations/Audience Contact: 212-696-6681


SCHEDULE

Thursday, February 23, 7:30 pm
7:30 Moments from (Woom'en)n Project: Marlies Yearby (dance), Nioka Workman (cello)
8:00 Field: Felicia Norton (dance), Leroy Jenkins (violin)
8:25 Through the Walls of Memory: Nancy Zendora (dance), Daniel Carter (reeds & trumpet), Marilyn Sontag (visual art)
9:00 Merge: Gus Solomons jr. (dance), Todd Nicholson (bass)
9:20 Kidd Jordan (tenor sax), William Parker (bass)


Friday February 24, 7:30 pm
7:30 Nexus of Three Attention Spans: Gloria McLean (dance), Ellen Christi (voice), Kazuko Miyamoto (vis. art)
7:50 Healing the Children: Maria Mitchell (dance), Therese Folks-Plair (Musician / Storyteller)
8:20 Cycles: Elaine Shipman with Gabriel Zaragosa, Nadege Hottier (dance), Jackson Krall (drums)
8:40 Moments from (Woom' en)n Project: Marlies Yearby (dance), and Nioka Workman (cello)
9:15 Kidd Jordan (tenor sax), Roy Campbell (trumpet), Nioka Workman (cello), Jackson Krall (drums)

Saturday, February 25, 7:30 pm
7:30 Cursive: I Dance to Keep Things Whole: Yin Mei (dance), Wei Ligang (calligraphy, painting), Joe McPhee (reeds and trumpet)
8:00 DanceWordsSpeakPeace, part 2 - Water Over the Bridge: Patricia Nicholson (dance), Kidd Jordan (tenor sax), William Parker (bass)
8:30 Constellation: Higher Octave: K.J. Holmes (dance), Roy Campbell (trumpet)
8:55 Glass in My Mouth: Julian Barnett (dance), Alvin Fielder (drums)
9:15 Kidd Jordan (tenor sax), William Parker (bass), Alvin Fielder (drums)

Sunday, February 26, late afternoon - 5 pm
5:00 Glass in My Mouth: Julian Barnett (dance), Alvin Fielder (drums)
5:20 DanceWordsSpeakPeace, Part 3 - Lopsided Smile: K. J. Holmes, Yoshiko Chuma, Patricia Nicholson (dance) Billy Bang (violin), William Parker (bass)
5:45 To Get Rid of in Fall: Sonia Portugal (dance), Rob Brown (alto sax) 6:10 Cursive: I Dance to Keep Things Whole: Yin Mei (dance), Wei Ligang (calligraphy, painting) Joe McPhee (reeds and trumpet)
6:40 Improv MixUp (dancers and musicians Improvise together in varying combinations)
Featured Dancers: Sonia Portugal, Julian Barnett, Patricia Nicholson, Yin Mei Musicians: Kidd Jordan, William Parker, Roy Campbell, Alvin Fielder


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Friday, February 24th, 2006 at 8pm:

Trio / Wet Ink Ensemble Annual Concert -- with CHRISTIAN WOLFF, LARRY POLANSKY AND KUI DONG. At Tenri Cultural Institute, 43A West 13th St.

The tradition continues with Wet Ink's fifth presentation of New Hampshire's two-piano, one-guitar improv trio known simply as Trio. The group features veteran composer/performers Larry Polansky, Kui Dong, and Christian Wolff. The first half of the concert will feature members of Wet Ink Ensemble performing new works by Reiko Fueting, Alex Mincek, and Jeff Snyder.


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SATURDAY, FEBRUAY, 25TH, 1pm @ TOWER RECORDS (Lincoln Center)

Steve Swell's: SLAMMIN' THE INFINITE
w/ Sabir Mateen, alto, tenor, flute, clarinet, eb clarinet, John Blum, piano Matt Heyner, bass, Jackson Krall, drums, Steve Swell, trombone
THIS GIG IS BEING PRESENTED AT NO CHARGE TO THE PUBLIC and THERE WILL BE FREE GOURMET FOOD!!!!!!!! And....


Freestyle Jazz @ CBGB'S GALLERY 313 BOWERY 212-677-0455
SUNDAY FEBRUARY 26TH starting at 6pm sharp!

in order of appearance:
STEVE SWELL'S NATION OF WE (aka NOW Ensemble) featuring Roy Campbell, Raphe Malik, Matt LaVelle - trumpets; Dick Griffin, Peter Zummo, Dave Taylor, Steve Swell - trombones Saco Yasuma, Will Connell - altos; Sabir Mateen, Ras Moshe - tenors Chris Forbes, piano Todd Nicholson, Matt Heyner, bass Jackson Krall, Dee Pop, drums
HANUMAN SEXTET: Andy Haas, Don Fiorino, Mia Theodoratus, Reuben Radding, David Gould, Dee Pop
JAMES FINN QUARTET with Kenny McGloin gt, Leon Lee Dorsey bass, Jackson Krall drums
The VORTEX 9 vs. SPACE FANTASTIC UNIT: Live Evil featuring Sean Nowell, Jon Landeau, Aaron Schragge, Mark Kurwen, David Butler and Luke Schneiders


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VIJAY IYER QUARTET - premiere performances of "Tragicomic"

Vijay Iyer, piano/compositions; Rudresh Mahanthappa, alto saxophone; Stephan Crump, bass; Marcus Gilmore, drums


THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 23
Kennedy Center Jazz Club, Washington, DC
http://www.kennedy-center.org/programs/jazz/jazzclub/home.html


FRIDAY-SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 24-25-26
The Jazz Standard, 116 East 27th Street btwn Park & Lexington, NYC
http://www.jazzstandard.net
sets at 7:30, 9:30, & 11:30pm (no late set on Sunday)


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ANTHONY BRAXTON (12+1)TET

March 16-19 - Sets at 8 & 10pm

Anthony Braxton (12+1)TET features:
Mr. Braxton (alto and sopranino saxes, compositions), Taylor Ho Bynum (cornet, flugelhorn, trumpbone), Jessica Pavone (viola, violin), Jay Rozen (tuba, euphonium), Carl Testa (bass, bass clarinet), Aaron Siegel (percussion, vibraphone), Andrew Raffo Dewar (soprano and c-melody sax, clarinet), Reut Regev (trombone, flugelbone), Sara Schoenbeck (bassoon, shenai), Nicole Mitchell (flutes), Mary Halvorson (guitar) Stephen Lehman (alto & sopranino saxes) and James Fei (alto sax & bass clarinet)
At the Iridium Jazz Club -1650 Broadway (Corner of 51st)
reservations: 212-582-2121, www.iridiumjazzclub.com


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