DOUBLE-SIZE NEWSLETTER!

Will the Wonders of Modern Music Never Cease?!? Breathe Deep and Groove to the Special Sounds of..


Vandermark All-Star 10-CD Set! Evan Parker QT! Brotzmann Solo! Meredith Monk! Jose Maceda! Braxton & Leandre! Ivo Perelman Trio! John Wolf Brennan Solo! Bobby Previte Group! Swallow/Talmor/Nussbaum!

Gianluca Petrella Cosmic Sun Ra Band! Campbell/McPhee/Parker/Smith Ayler Project! David Murray! Trevor Watts! Leandre/Vidal/Boni! Jamaaladeen Tacuma! Bauer/Thomas/Buck! Tom Waits Live! Luc Ferrari! Rolf Kuhn Tri-O!

Wertmuller/Rupp! .. and Rupp/Pliaks/Wertmuller! Sommer/Phillips/Schoof/Trovesi! Leimgruber/Demierre/Phillips! Stockhausen! Bern/Brody/Rodach! Merzbow! Erdman/Steidle! Oren Ambarchi! Four Moondog CDs! Thomas Heberer Trio!

Bloodbath: King/Otomo/Umezu/Koichi! Gong 2032: Classic 'Radio Gnome' lineup Re-United! Unreleased Funkadelic!

and ..omigosh! ..Classic 'Horo' Albums FINALLY released on CD: Sun Ra, Sam Rivers, Archie Shepp, Konitz/Solal, Johhy Griffin!




**********


Downtown Music Gallery FREE In-Store Performance Schedule Continues with:

This Sunday, November 22nd at 6pm:
ANDERS NILSSON - Guitar Wiz Will Blow Your Mind!

Sunday, November 29th at 6pm - DoubleHeader!: NONOKO YOSHIDA & DAVE SCANLON!
Wonderful New Sax & Guitar Duo!
BIGGI VINKELOE & STEVE SWELL!
Swedish Alto Sax Great Meets Downtown Trombone Giant!


Sunday, December 6th at 6pm:
ERGO! Cuneiform Recording Artists Featuring:
BRETT SROKA / SAM HARRIS / SHAWN BALTAZOR!
Celebrating the Release of their Fabulous New CD!


Sunday, December 13th at 6pm:
MIKKO INNANEN / JOE FONDA / LOU GRASSI!
Superb Reeds / Acoustic Bass / Drums Trio!


Tuesday, December 15th at 6pm:
DANIEL LEVIN / INGEBRIGT HAKER-FLATEN / FRANK ROSALY!
New Cello / Contrabass / drums Trio! Rare DMG Tuesday Gig!


Sunday, December 20th at 6pm:
JUDITH INSELL & REUT REGEV!
Amazing New Viola & Trombone Duo!


Sundays, December 27th & January 3rd - nothing scheduled


Sunday, January 10th at 6pm:
JEREMIAH CYMERMAN / CHRISTOPHER HOFFMAN / HARRIS EISENSTADT!
Extraordinary New Clarinet / Cello / Percussion Trio!


Sunday, January 17th at 6pm:
ANDY HAAS & DEE POP!
Two Magical/Mystical Musicians Return to DMG for a Rare Duo Set!


**************


IN-STORE THANKSGIVING WEEKEND TWO-DAY OVERSTOCK SALE!

Friday 11/27 and Saturday 11/28 we will have 15% off all OVERSTOCK/BACKSTOCK CDs found in the Cabinet Drawers - AND ONLY FOUND IN THE CABINET DRAWERS - of our customer areas.

LAST copies which are on display are NOT on sale - just the extra copies found in the drawers. It's our way of decreasing excess inventory while giving you a necessary gift-buying savings!

ALSO, THIS INCLUDES ALL USED &or RARE (ORANGE STICKER) ITEMS. WOW!

YOU MUST COME IN - NO MAIL ORDERS, NO HOLDS - You must pay for items when you pick them out

That'll give you a reason to visit us instead of Wal-Mart and Best Buy this Thanksgiving Weekend!


**************





Three NEW Tzadiks!

EVAN PARKER - House Full of Floors (Tzadik 7632; USA) Evan Parker is one of the world's greatest saxophone virtuosos, a revolutionary innovator who has almost single handedly changed the language of the instrument. House Full of Floors is the exciting follow up to his incredible studio composition Time Lapse, released to great acclaim on Tzadik in 2006. Working with three of London's most accomplished improvisers, Evan has fashioned a new world of sound in this exciting new recording. Radical soundscapes from one of the most important musical figures in contemporary music!!! Featuring: Evan Parker on tenor & soprano saxes, John Russell on guitar, John Edwards on bass and Aleks Kolkowski on viola, saw & wax cylinder recorder. TZADIK KEY SERIES
CD $14

MEREDITH MONK - Beginnings (Tzadik 7721; USA) An unprecedented collection of recordings charting the earliest years of one of the world's most innovative and exciting renaissance women - composer, singer, performer, film director, visual artist and auteur Meredith Monk. Hand selected by Meredith from her personal archives, this fascinating compilation ranges from her first solo vocal performances in the mid-'60s, to ground-breaking works from the '70s up through 1980. An essential portrait of a vocal pioneer at her virtuosic and exploratory best. TZADIK ORACLES SERIES
CD $14

JOSE MACEDA - Ugnayan (Tzadik 8068; USA) An important discovery of the original 1974 recording of a Maceda masterpiece! Recorded as 20 channels broadcast simultaneously on all of Manila's radio stations to the population gathered in public spaces with hand-held transistor radios, Ugnayan was a massive production supported by the Marcos regime intended to meld values of indigenous Filipino culture with modernist aesthetics. Though politically problematic and largely misunderstood, the effort involving the public in an avant garde, environmental music performance was an unprecedented achievement that has not yet been surpassed. Xenakis-like clouds of sounds from bamboo instruments, cymbals, gongs and voices are precisely notated in a 100-page score using complex polyrhythmic relationships that realize Maceda's unique textural style in its most concentrated and intense form. The composer supervised the separate recording for each radio channel onto high quality analog tapes and the result is the most stunning example of this important and neglected composer's work yet released. Essential. TZADIK COMPOSER SERIES
CD $14




Another mammoth box from Ken Vandermark!

KEN VANDERMARK RESONANCE With STEVE SWELL/DAVE REMPIS/TIM DAISY/MIKOLAJ TRZASKA/PER-AKE HOLMLANDER/MAGNUS BROO/MICHAEL ZERANG/YURLY YAREMCHUK/MARK TOKAR - Resonance: Manggha Hall November 18, 2007 [10 CD box set] (Not Two 830; EEC) Resonance band is one of the most important groups in Ken Vandermark's immense assortment of undertakings, which not only revisit several decades of history of jazz history art form (from Sonny Rollins to Stan Kenton, to Cecil Taylor, to Ornette Coleman, to Eric Dolphy, to ...), but also writes some new and fascinating chapters. Discs 1-8 comprise various small group formations formed out of the 10 players, recorded in studio at Krakow, Poland between November 12 and 16, 2007, and in Lvov, Ukraine on November 17, 2007; Discs 9 & 10 are the actual 10-tet concert at Manggha Hall (final concert) in Krakow, Poland, November 18, 2007
Ken Vandermark (USA) - tenor & baritone saxes, clarinet; Yuriy Yaremchuk (Ukraine) - tenor & soprano saxes, bass clarinet; Mikolaj Trzaska (Poland) - alto sax, bass clarinet; Mark Tokar (Ukraine) - bass; Steve Swell (USA) - trombone; Dave Rempis (USA) - tenor & alto saxes; Per-Ake Holmlander (Sweden) - tuba; Tim Daisy (USA) - drums; Magnus Broo (Sweden) - trumpet; Michael Zerang (USA) - drums, percussion
When composing for a group, Ken Vandermark as a rule takes into account factors such as each musician's approach to improvisation, personal tastes and individual sound. So when he chose to compose for a tentet that included musicians who were virtually an unknown quantity to him - musicians such as Polish saxophonist/clarinetist, Mikolaj Trzaska and the Ukrainian duo, Yuriy Yaremczuk on reeds and Mark Tokar on bass - it could have been seen as a foray into relatively unknown territory. And it was to an extent, although the leader had already forged an intimate understanding with some of the musicians who were involved - percussionist Tim Daisy and saxophonist Dave Rempis are after all fully-fledged members of the Vandermark 5 and Ken has worked with Swedish trumpeter Magnus Broo in the Four Corners project. He is also familiar with the work of tuba player Per-Ake Holmlander and percussionist Michael Zerang as they play together in Peter Brotzmann's Chicago Tentet. But nobody in the tentet - extraordinarily, given his reputation and work ethic - had previously performed with the great New York-based trombonist, Steve Swell!
At the end of the week, music fans from all over the region flocked to the concerts in Lviv and Krakow that the musicians had been rehearsing for over the preceding five days, one group even chartering a jet from Georgia. At the end of the week, when it was time to say goodbye, the bonds formed between some of the musicians were so strong that some couldn't contain their tears. But for many of these artists it was adieu rather than farewell as many intend to build on their Resonance experience by collaborating with each again in the future. (Philip Palmer, Jazzwise magazine)
10 CD set for $130


ALBERT AYLER PROJECT [ROY CAMPBELL Jr/JOE McPHEE/WILLIAM PARKER/WARREN SMITH] - Tribute To Albert Ayler: Live at the Dynamo (Futura/Marge 45; France) This looks great to me, but I actually haven't heard it yet. Here's my review of the same band from this year's (2009) Vision Fest: " The Ayler Project are another new downtown all-star quartet featuring Joe McPhee on tenor sax & pocket trumpet, Roy Campbell on trumpets & flute, William Parker on bass and Warren Smith on drums, gongs & other percussion. The quartet are a tribute to the legendary free/jazz originals, Albert & Donald Ayler. They play a few of Ayler's own songs as well as a few songs influenced by the Aylers. Commencing with some ritualistic gongs and spoken words by Roy, it was an auspicious beginning. The first piece featured some burning solos from Roy on trumpet and Joe on tenor with William Parker bowing up a storm on bass. One song reminds of some sort of South African ballad lovely flugel and tenor harmonies. Warren Smith is a master drummer and played with astonished taste and creativity throughout the set. "Our Prayer" featured Warren on mallets and was filled with suspense with two great but restrained trumpets up front. There were times when the quartet burned like a MF and times when they sound like the cosmic sounds of the Ayler Bros. themselves." - Bruce Lee Gallanter, Downtown Music Gallery
CD $18


JOELLE LEANDRE/MAGUELONE VIDAL/RAYMOND BONI - Trace (Red Toucan 9337; Canada) Personnel: Joelle Leandre on contrabass & voice, Maguelone Vidal on soprano & baritone saxes and Raymond Boni on guitar. This is a great year for superb discs from contrabassist extraordinare Joelle Leandre. Joelle has done some strong duo discs with George Lewis, Barre Phillips, Jean Luc Cappozzo and now Anthony Braxton, as well working with Israeli musicians on the Kadima label. Now we have a fine trio offering with French guitarist Raymond Boni who has worked with Joe McPhee, Daunik Lazro and Andre Jaume and Maguelone Vidal, with whom I was not previously familiar.
This disc was recorded live at Centre Choregraphique National de Montpellier in Languedoc-Roussillon in France in January of 2008. Mr. Boni has a unique sound on guitar, somewhere beyond jazz and rock. For "Joseph et Joseph" he tosses off a variety of noisy phrases which are answered intricately by Ms. Vidal's soprano sax. Ms. Leandre's bowing is also quite distinctive and intense. On "La Passe" she will start one idea which is completed tightly by Maguelone's bari sax. Although there are a few spirited duo sections, it is the three way conversations that work best at exchanging fascinating ideas. There are moments when the improvisations bristle with energy and moments when the suspense has that edge-of-your-seat intrigue, as well as bit of vocal adventurousness. Certainly this disc is more interesting and more uplifting than the daily news, so why not tune in and be carried away. - Bruce Lee Gallanter, Downtown Music Gallery
CD $15



Six new releases from LEO!

ANTHONY BRAXTON/JOELLE LEANDRE - Duo [Heidelberg Loppem] 2007 [2 CD Set] (Leo 548/549; UK) This is the meeting of two giants of improvised music that afficionados have been waiting for for a long time. The double CD documents this meeting in its entirety. Anthony Braxton played sopranino, soprano and alto saxes, and contra-bass clarinet. One can write volumes about this meeting, yet two words would be sufficient to describe what happened in that Heidelberg Cafe on March 17, 2007 - Pure Magic.
2 CD set for $28

IVO PERELMAN With DOMINIC DUVAL/BRIAN WILSON - Mind Games (Leo 547; UK) This recording with Dominic Duval on bass and Brian Wilson on drums marks 20th anniversary of Ivo Perelman's recording career. As Art Lange writes in his liner notes, Ivo's creative expression has been almost equally divided between the "abstract" nature of free jazz and the "roots" music of his homeland - folk song and popular music from his native Brazil. Needless to say, Ivo's music developed over these 20 years, but intensity and passion remain constant features of his identity.
CD $17

JOHN WOLF BRENNAN - The Speed of Dark: Solo Piano (Leo 543; UK) John Wolf Brennan is one extraordinary pianist. Although Mr. Brennan can be heard on thirty+ discs from the Leo & Creative Works label, playing in solo, duos, trios & larger groups, for this disc he has done something completely different. Brennan plays a variety of different pianos (Steinway & Yamaha), as well as other keyboards (harmonium, accordion & melodica), both prepared and hybrids like framepiano or tamburopiano. On all but one piece, he plays a different keyboard or two. Each of the 23 pieces evokes a different vibe or scene. Brennan opens with "Ever for Never" which is based on a Celtic theme and it is quite majestic and lovely. "R.R.R.R.R." blends a somber harmonium with a sped-up metronome sparse piano fragments. "Maelstrom" is an appropriate title for a piece that involves two pianos swirling around one another and building to a grand conclusion. The liner notes explain the ideas behind or sources for certain sounds used in different pieces. The pieces themselves need little explanation since each piece successfully paints a different scene or evokes a different spirit. This a masterwork for varied keyboards held together by a singular vision. - Bruce Lee Gallanter, Downtown Music Gallery
CD $17

JOACHIM GIES & SOUND/BODY/CELLS - Shimmering (Leo 541; UK) Saxophonist and composer Joachim Gies presents his new German-Israeli trio SOUND/BODY/CELLS. With the vocalist Ronni Gilla who summons up the depths of the human voice, subtle drumming of Denis Stilke and unique sounds of Gies' saxophones, the trio reveals uncharted musical territory. They move between the poles of deep, dark urban music and light, transcendental songs of the shamans. Recorded live and unplugged they capture the energy of the future.
CD $17

SCOOLPTURES [NICOLA NEGRINI/ACHILLE SUCCI/PHLIPPE GARCIA/ANTONIO DELLA MARINA] - Materiale Umano (Leo 546; UK) Nicola Negrini - bass, metallophone & live electronics, Achille Succi - bass clarinet, alto sax & shakuhachi, Antonio Della Marina - sinewaves & live electronics and Philippe Garcia - drums, voice & live electronics. I can't say that I was familiar with any of the members of this Italian quartet but I did notice that Achille Succi does have a duo disc out on El Gallo Rojo with Salvatore Maiore. Scoolptures is a formidable improvising quartet that moves from free jazz to electronic improv pretty quickly. Each of the 13 tracks is name after a "slice" of something like "Brainslice" or "Nerveslice". Achille's Succi's alto sax or bass clarinet is often at the front of the quartet with electronics swirling and tight yet free support of that inventive acoustic bass and drums underneath. Sometimes this music is playful, sometimes it is filled with suspense. For "Chunkslice" Achille's alto drifts eerily on a cushion of hypnotic electronic space. I dig the way the electronics and samples are used selectively to create effective soundscapes and spacious drama. Acoustic bassist Nicola Negrini also plays quite well, often adding tasty licks to the right places. Another gem from Leo's unending treasure chest of delights by lesser known musicians from around the world. - Bruce Lee Gallanter, Downtown Music Gallery
CD $17

CHRISTINE WODRASCKA/RAMON LOPEZ - Momentos (Leo 542; UK) This is the eighth CD by the pianist Christine Wodrascka and drummer Ramon Lopez on Leo Records. However, seven years passed since the time they recorded their duo "Aux portes du matin". This time they went to the studio to create a work of great intimacy. As Christine writes in the liner notes, they felt great confidence in each other, they were completely focused and they achieved the state when they felt of one mind - they were trying to catch those moments of magic and they definitely succeeded.
CD $17

VYACHESLAV GUYVORONSKY/ANDREI KONDAKOV/VLADIMIR VOLKOV - In Search Of A Standard (Leo 544; UK) The three leading Russian improvisers (Vyacheslav Guyvoronsky - trumpet, voice, Andrei Kondakov - piano, percussion, Vladimir Volkov - bass) have been playing together for several years. This time they have come up with a special project to compose their original pieces with references to jazz standards. The sensitive ear will recognize glimpses of Duke Ellington or Miles Davies. However, they are not aping Americans. Their references are a part of their original compositions.
CD $17


BOBBY PREVITE With GIANLUCA PETRELLA/WOLFGANG PUSCHNIG/BENOIT DELBECQ/NILS DAVIDSEN - Pan Atlantic (Auand 9020; Italy) With Gianluca Petrella on trombone, Wolfgang Puschnig on alto & bari saxes, Benoit Delbecq on Fender Rhodes piano, Nils Davidsen on electric bass and Bobby Previte on drums & compositions. Longtime downtown drum wizard and master-composer Bobby Previte never ceases to amaze me. With more than twenty discs out as a leader and a dozen or more different bands, he consistently surprises us with each release.
'Pan Atlantic' features yet another great band that Bobby has organized with members from different scenes/places like Italy (Petrella), France (Delbecq) and Germany (Puschnig). Still, it is Bobby's strong writing and selective use of personnel that makes this so great. "Deep Lake" has one of those signature repeating lines (spacious & suspense-filled) that Previte is so fond of with a strong solo from the sax. "Stay on the Path" has an intense M-Base like riff with more burning sax from Wolfgang as well as strong harmonies for the trombone and sax. I can't recall Mr. Delbecq playing electric piano before this as he is more known for his experiments playing inside an acoustic piano. His skeletal yet cerebral playing fits just right in these tunes and reminds me of the some of the better seventies fusion records. Bobby's writing is often sly and hypnotic, also recalling great electric jazz from the same era. What makes this disc so fine is the way Bobby's music evokes the grand gesture, each piece sounds like we are entering a fantastic new scene. On "Destruction Layer" the eerie electric piano and bubbling electric bass have that sinister 'Bitches Brew' like vibe. The title track is my favorite since the lush, majestic harmonies for the horns and distorted electric piano sound so great together, opposites that blend perfectly. What's interesting about this disc is that although Bobby's (small group) composing has not changed that much in the two decades that he's been around, this music still sounds fresh and engaging in its own way. - Bruce Lee Gallanter, Downtown Music Gallery
CD $16

STEVE SWALLOW/OHAD TALMOR/ADAM NUSSBAUM - Playing In Traffic (Auand 9019; Italy) With Ohad Talmor on tenor sax, Steve Swallow on electric bass and Adam Nussbaum on drums. I recall Ohad Talmor from his time with Other Quartet who had a couple of fine discs on the Knit label way back when. Since then Ohad has collaborated with Lee Konitz and co-led a band with eternal bass great and composer Steve Swallow. Even further back, I remember drum great Adam Nussbaum from his time with John Scofield and John Abercrombie.
'Playing in Traffic' is a true trio effort with each member of the trio contributing songs. In between some of the tracks are short improvised sections, which add a different flavor the more laid back songs . Electric bass legend Steve Swallow has his own approach and sound on bass and it is Steve that kicks things off on the title track, swinging his tush off while Ohad plays slow burning tenor with that warm, tasty tone. The "Days of Old" has a most relaxed vibe with a sublime bass solo from Mr. Swallow and an elegant tenor solo from Mr. Talmor. There is something most endearing about calm pace of many of these tracks, the dreamy, drifting pace washes over us like warm, comfortable blanket. Very nice indeed. - Bruce Lee Gallanter, Downtown Music Gallery
CD $16

GIANLUCA PETRELLA COSMIC BAND - Coming Tomorrow - Part One (Spacebone 1001; Italy) Through a half dozen discs, Gianluca Petrella has shown himself to be a strong trombone player, composer and bandleader. Mr. Petrella has now organized a great 10-piece ensemble and called it the Cosmic Band. Why the Cosmic Band? They cover four songs by Sun Ra and seem to be inspired by Sun Ra's intergalactic music. The opening song is a most spirited electric version of "Space is the Place," which will have you smiling and perhaps dancing around - it just feels so good! Those great fuzz keyboards, slamming drums and steaming horns, oh yeah! The rest of the songs are originals but are in a similar space/rocking or space/jazz vein. "Flexible" features just trippy, floating horns with Gianluca playing those most effective, extended trombone sounds. Sun Ra's "Saturn" has a swell laid back, slightly funky groove with sparkling electric piano, great trombone and then kicks in and swings hard before it sails out to space and then floats back down to Mother Earth."A Little Beat Waltz" has a dark, suspense filled repeating bass-line theme with some cosmic floating synth and eerie distant vocals. Is that you Sun Ra?!? Petrella has done a splendid job of arranging four of Sun Ra's classic songs so that they sound fresh, crafty and both ancient and modern simultaneously. Although I am not familiar with most of the ten musicians in this ensemble, all of these players are perfect for the task of playing this music just right. Without any doubt this disc is thee Sun Ra tribute of the year, as well as one of this year's (2009) undiscovered treasures. - Bruce Lee Gallanter, Downtown Music Gallery
CD $16




Three new FMPs!

PETER BROTZMANN - Lost & Found: Solo (FMP 134; Germany) This impressive solo set was recorded live in Nickelsdorf in July of 2006. The irrepressible German reeds legend Peter Brotzmann has more than a hundred discs to his name but only a handful are solo discs. For this set and disc, Peter plays four reeds: tenor & alto sax, b-flat clarinet and taragato. Each reeds gets its own piece except for the encore. A smart-ass journalist might say that since Mr. Brotzmann quit drinking in the last decade, he has mellowed out a bit. We know that Brotzmann has not really mellowed out since he plays differently in different situations. Hence his volcanic playing with his electric power trio (with Pliakas & Wertmuller) at the Vision Fest earlier this year (2009).
'Lost & Found' is a powerful and direct solo offering. Right from the opening salvo, Brotz is digging in and making his presence known. That tone, that sound could only be one man. He starts with alto sax and takes his time to scream and erupt like a dormant volcano. Certain notes are blasted and bent into different shapes. He finally settles down and plays with subdued fire. Each note is carefully tested and played with restrained power. He switches to clarinet for the the title piece, again building slowly in intensity. His tone and choice of notes is similar but he is telling a different story now, even playing a somber ballad-like section towards the end before bending each note dramatically for the conclusion. Although this is a live recording and taped from a short distance, the sound is still well-captured like being not too far in the audience at a festival. For "Universal Madness," Brotzmann spins cascades of notes on his taragato without really screaming but still twisting those notes hypnotically. This leads to "...Got a Hole in It" which he plays on his trusty tenor. The tenor sax is the one that Brotzmann is most known for and his sound is instantly recognizable. He blasts powerfully, screaming and screeching and digging deeply, but still simmering nicely in the second half. This is a splendid solo offering that will pick you right up and take you along for a joyous ride. - Bruce Lee Gallanter, Downtown Music Gallery
CD $20

OLAF RUPP/MARINO PLIAKAS/MICHAEL WERTMULLER - Too much is not enough (FMP 135; Germany) Olaf Rupp on electric guitar, Marino Pliakas on electric bass and Michael Wertmuller on drums. German guitarist, Olaf Rupp, can be found on some discs playing solo, duo or trios from the Grob, FMP & Emanem labels. For this intense offering Olaf collaborates with the dynamic Marino Pliakas on electric bass and Michael Wertmuller on drums, both of whom also work with Peter Brotzmann and KK Null. So you know that this rhythm team can & do go to extremes. This disc was recorded live at the Loft in Koln in Germany and sounds pretty clean considering how intense and noisy it is. `The first piece "Adito 1" is way over the top, but the trio calms down a bit for the second excursion. Although the playing is free, it is quite focused and exciting. The trio is tight and they move in waves together, often at a furious pace. There is a natural flow to the way things unfold on this disc. There are haunting dark melodies buried beneath that surface of noise. All three of these musicians are strong improvisers and an integral part of the trio, each helps to determine the direction. For "Boller Ballade 1" it is the powerful mallet work of Wertmuller that is most impressive and pushing the trio higher and higher. Not every piece is over-the-top, actually there are more restrained ye no less intense pieces as well. This is an immensely satisfying and more diverse than one might imagine. Brutal beauty, it seems to me. - Bruce Lee Gallanter, Downtown Music Gallery
CD $20

STEFAN KEUNE/HANS SCHNEIDER/ACHIM KRAMER - No Comment (FMP 133; Germany) Stefan Keune (sopranino-, alto- & baritone saxophone); Hans Schneider (double bass); Achim Kramer (drums, percussion); recorded August 3, 2008 in Duisburg, Germany
Both in the area of Jazz as well as in improvised music, the saxophone-bass-drum trio is regarded as the power formation par excellence: raw, direct, no frills, reduced to the minimum in order to get out the maximum of power. This line-up allows the interleaving of two instruments - in the classic case, the two time keepers - in order to propel the third instrumentalist, the saxophone player right out to the fore.
This trio can be seen as an isosceles triangle, as an optimal constellation offering plenty of possibilities for interaction, at the same time excluding the possibility of one player hiding behind the others. In fact their music is so open, confident and so deeply relaxed that they can be classifi ed within the big historic framework - with Albert Ayler, Gary Peacock and Sunny Murray at its beginnings. And this is in fact the strength of free music that its protagonists, no matter how disjointed, see themselves as part of this continuum and do not betray its tradition.
CD $20




New [and two vintage] releases on Jazzwerkstatt!

Besides reissuing important out-of-print discs FMP and other labels, Jazzwerkstatt has released an amazing flood of great New Recordings from a number of Europe's best musicians - including many seldom heard of here in the U.S. Here are more than a dozen New discs of intensely creative sounds:

DAVID MURRAY With LESTER BOWIE/FRED HOPKINS/PHILLIP WILSON - Live At The Lower Manhattan Ocean Club (Jazzwerkstatt 81; Germany) This All-Star quartet was recorded on New Year's Eve 1977! I remember seeing David Murray play at this very club perhaps the same year. For me, going to the Lower Manhattan Ocean Club, was an odd venue across the street from Battery Park. A kind of ritzy, yacht club that seemed like a strange place for what was once known as 'loft jazz'. This is a reissue of a two LP album volumes/single CD that came out on India Navigation and it's been out-of-print for nigh on twenty years. At this stage in his career - early twenties - there was a bit more of Albert Ayler's influence in his playing than Ben Webster's, which would subsequently become dominant. Four of the six songs were written by Mr. Murray with two by Butch Morris, who also collaborated and did arrangements for Murray's Big Band. The music has a joyous swagger that feels just right. Both Murray and Art Ensemble's trumpet hero Lester Bowie play swell, spirited solos that seem to spring form their hearts and minds. The great rhythm team of Air's Fred Hopkins on double bass and legendary Chicago drummer Philip Wilson also do a great job of adding righteous bits of blues, funk and overall earthiness to the grand quartet. (Sadly, all but David - long may he live - have since passed away). "Bechet's Bounce" does have an almost Dixieland-like feel with appropriate solos from Lester's trumpet and David's soprano sax. Butch Morris' two songs are longer and more adventurous. I dig the way the rhythm team plays around the theme on "Obe" with a long, thoughtful and slightly twisted solo from Lester B. What makes this quartet special is the way they take traditional ideas and extend them into the future. This disc captures a most spirited quartet and helps to remind us of those great avant/jazz gigs of the seventies, so many years ago. - Bruce Lee Gallanter, Downtown Music Gallery
CD $19

TREVOR WATTS - The Deep Blue (Jazzwerkstatt 84; Germany) Featuring Trevor Watts on alto & soprano saxes, percussion, piano and synth. This was recorded & mixed at ARC Studios, Hastings, UK, August - December 2008. I was under the impression that this was a solo sax disc, but it is so much more. Besides being one the singular saxists to emerge from British avant/jazz scene of the mid-sixties, Trevor Watts has led or co-led a number of innovative bands like the Spontaneous Music Ensemble (with John Stevens), Amalgam and the Moire Music Group. In each of these bands, Trevor's playing and vision have continued to evolve, from free improv through fusion (sort of) through African-inspired rhythms. For this great disc, Trevor has decided to play all of the parts himself, overdubbing saxes, percussion, piano & synth. The first time I listened to it, I thought what a marvelous band Trevor has organized yet again. There are layers of saxes, interlocking percussion and an overall joyous groove and vibe. Trevor's superb soprano rides on top of the waves of saxes and African-sounding percussion on "Lace", as well as throughout this truly joyous disc. Each song has an infectious melody, rhythm and groove. There are solo records where the use of a drum program or overdubbing give the record an artificial vibe, but not with this disc. Everything fits just right and every song is joy to hear and consider. Trevor has obviously planned this disc out carefully since there is so many inventive layers of parts involved. The repeating sax lines are used in a most hypnotic way and do a great job of taking us along for the ride. - Bruce Lee Gallanter, Downtown Music Gallery
CD $19

MICHAEL WERTMULLER/OLAF RUPP - The Specter Of Genius (Jazzwerkstatt 52; Germany) Olaf Rupp (acoustic & elec.-guitar); Michael Wertmuller (dr). Rupp and Wertmuller have certainly helped solve the mystery of how density is created. Density can be conveyed as energy, brute force, volume, or speed, but in this case is a result of the delicate structures produced by Rupp's fluid guitar playing and Wertmuller's highly accomplished drumming. These structures are so intricately interwoven, interlinked, and interrelated that they give rise to a whole of great depth. - Felix Klopotek
CD $19

GUNTER SOMMER/BARRE PHILLIPS/MANFRED SCHOOF/GIANLUIGI TROVESI - Peitzer Grand Mit Vieren (Jazzwerkstatt 77; Germany) Gunter Baby Sommer on drums, Barre Phillips on double bass, Gianluigi Trovesi on clarinets & alto sax and Manfred Schoof on trumpet. There are improv dates that are just magical, you know something special is going on when you listen closely. This is one such great set. Each of these four fabulous musicians is from a different place, yet they come together as one inspired singular force. Gunter Sommer's incredible mallet work is at the center of the quartet with throbbing contrabass while the trumpet and clarinet interweave intricately. There is a great deal of inspired cross fertilization with an organic unfolding of events, eventually building to some intense interplay. Each of these four players excel at different approaches and ideas, hence different combinations and strategies are involved. It is as if a long story is unfolding with different sections occurring but there is thread that holds this altogether. Blessed relief from four strong winds. - Bruce Lee Gallanter, Downtown Music Gallery
CD $19

JAMAALADEEN TACUMA'S COLTRANE CONFIGURATIONS - Coltrane Configurations (Jazzwerkstatt 66; Germany) John Coltrane resides in the pantheon of most, if not all, jazz lovers. Both fans of post-bop harmonies and free-jazzers appreciate his contribution to music. But few would approach Coltrane's tunes in the funky manner of Jamaaladeen Tacuma, who confesses that his main influences were The Temptations and James Brown [pre-Ornette Coleman, that is]. Yet the prominent bass player is here with a project entitled "Coltrane Configurations, Jamaaladeen's tribute to his fellow Philadelphian who has inspired just about everyone who is interested in modern and/or spiritual jazz; many of his compositions became standards that have been played again and again by his many admirers. Jamaaladeen has arranged five of Trane's classics for his fine quartet, "India", "Dahomey Dance", "Impressions", "Naima" and "A Love Supreme". They are performed live in Dortmund, Germany in October of 2008. "India" begins with what sounds like an excerpt of an interview with John Coltrane as the song slowly fades in. I dig the exuberant way that this quartet plays this piece with Jamaaladeen's sly, slippery el. bass bubbling underneath and Tony's superb soprano sailing on top. Although the song is done in a somewhat more funky way, the spirited vibe is still there at the center. Both the soprano sax and electric piano solos are spun like a wondrous web of gold. The interplay between the bass and drums is often astonishing as they swirl furiously and tightly around one another. Nobody plays electric bass quite like Mr. Tacuma, and since he records so infrequently, it is indeed great to hear him working his nimble fingers all over those strings. There is one thing that I might have changed and that is leaving out some of synth playing which sounds a but dated. Otherwise this is a strong and spirited date that will many of Trane's fans smile and perhaps even get down with. - Bruce Lee Gallanter, Downtown Music Gallery
CD $19

AUS [JOHANNES BAUER/CLAYTON THOMAS/TONY BUCK] - Live At Nicelsdorf (Jazzwerkstatt 51; Germany) Featuring Johannes Bauer on trombone, Clayton Thomas on acoustic bass and Tony Buck on drums. Whoops, must've forgotten my promo, so here's a review without actually hearing this. Three excellent musicians from varied backgrounds making spirited and often intense improvisations. Probably live from the Jazzwerkstatt Fest in Germany. Well recorded and well worth your time-tested consideration. Real review when I remember to actually bring one home. - BLG
CD $19

ALAN BERN/PAUL BRODY/MICHAEL RODACH - Triophilia (Jazzwerkstatt 71; Germany) The "cult hit" of the 2003 Berlin Jazz Festival, Bern, Brody & Rodach [pianist/accordionist Alan Bern, trumpeter Paul Brody, and guitarist Michael Rodach] brings together the unlikely combination of accordion/piano, trumpet and guitar to create surreal and evocative soundscapes of great beauty and playfulness. Haunting the intersection of film music, ambient jazz, New Jewish Music and free improvisation, all three players are acclaimed composers and bandleaders with their own individual voices.
On the band's first CD, "Triophilia" (Jazzwerkstatt), Bern, Brody & Rodach play all original compositions that invite listeners to dream, dance, and join them in their "love of the trio."
CD $19

PETER BROTZMANN/PEETER UUSKYLA/PETER FRIIS NIELSEN - Noise Of Wings (Jazzwerkstatt 56; Germany) [reissue of Slask 19 (1999) with the addition of 1 Bonus cut from 2001!] Here we go: Peter Brotzmann on tenor and clarinet, Peter Friis Nielsen on electric bass, and Peeter Uuskyla on drums. What does this say to you? It says Last Exit without Sonny Sharrock, that's what. Somehow it's both more and less than that, however. Stridently more European than that ensemble, the saxophonist and friends have six relatively brief (around the eight-minute mark) tunes and one 20-minute monster jam at the end. What more is there to say about the way Brotzmann improvises in these situations? He goes for the throat, always. There may be some repetition, but if so it's because of the rhythm section that he wisely employs here to keep things from moving into an overdrive from which there is no return. It's difficult sorting out track to track what's happening, because it's all constant, all notes, all turning interminably on the axis of Brotzmann's propensity for the long line. And thank God. This is endurance improvisation to be sure, with no regard for boundaries, traditions, histories, or genres. There is no quarter given and none taken in this skronk-fest. And as a result, it's one of the more glorious, mind-expanding Brotzmann dates we have. Not for the faint of heart. - Thom Jurek, AMG
CD $19

DANIEL ERDMANN/OLIVER STEIDLE - Lenina (Jazzwerkstatt 50; Germany) Studio recording and concept disc featuring Daniel Erdmann on saxes, electronics & keyboards and Oliver Steidle on drums, percussion, accordion & sampler. Although the Jazzwerkstatt label is only a few years old, they already have a handful of musicians that record for them regularly like Rudi Mahall, Jan Roder and Oliver Steidle. Nothing wrong with that as it does keep these creative musicians busy and out of trouble. Daniel Erdmann is in a group called Gunter Adler with Mr. Mahal, as well as being found on other discs from the Jazzwerkstatt and Creative Sources labels.
This disc is based on ideas found in Aldous Huxley's novel "Brave New World", hence the names of many of the pieces were inspired by the same novel. It is hard to tell from listening to this mostly instrumental music but the sounds & music are consistently engaging. Drifting, breath-like sax sounds and spooky percussion and/or samples drift by... All but one of the pieces are relatively short, yet there is a great deal of intricate interplay between these two fine musicians. Sampled voices and other odd sounds are selectively used, swirling around the sax and drums duo excursions. Steidle does a good job of establishing beats and turning the rhythms inside out time and again. There does seem to be some sort of story taking place since each piece creates a different scene or evoke a different vibe. Very interesting. - Bruce Lee Gallanter, Downtown Music Gallery
CD $19

ROLF KUHN & TRI-O [RONNY GRAUPE/JOHANNES FINK/CHRISTIAN LILLINGER] + MATTHIAS SCHRIEFL - Close Up (Jazzwerkstatt 89; Germany) This is the 2nd JWS release for the lineup of Rolf Kuhn on clarinet, Ronny Graupe on guitar, Johannes Fink on double bass & Christian Lillinger on drums (w/ a CD on Clean Feed) this time with the addition of guest Matthias Schriefl on trumpet. Again it is a triumph! Legendary German clarinetist, Rolf Kuhn, turned 80 (!) this year (2009) and continues test his abilities by playing with creative musicians much younger than him. I dig the way that Rolf and guitarist Ronny Graupe play the theme of "29FF" tightly together. Both Mr. Kuhn and Mr. Graupe are gifted soloists and take consistently inventive and spirited solos throughout. The rhythm team players also burn hard at times and play consistently intricate together. I dig the way the guitarist and bassist play slow textures on "Spacerunner" while the clarinet & drums play quick, complex lines together. Electric guitarist Ronny Graupe is particularly impressive since he changes his tone and approach on every track. Why he isn't more well known is anybody's guess since he is as inventive as any other great guitarist I've heard in recent years. Ronny has also contributed two fine tunes to this disc so it turns out that he is a fine composer as well. Guest trumpeter Matthias Schriefl is featured on two tunes and is yet another undiscovered player of note, playing a couple inventive Don Cherry-like solos. Considering that Rolf Kuhn is still going strong at 80 years, there is hope those of us who think that we are getting old. There is still time left for all of us spring chickens and ancient ducks. - Bruce Lee Gallanter, Downtown Music Gallery
CD $19

URS LEIMGRUBER/JACQUES DEMIERRE/BARRE PHILLIPS - Albeit (Jazzwerkstatt 74; Germany) Review forthcoming - if there are any left!
CD $19

TAMA [AKI TAKASE/JAN RODER/OLIVER STIEDLE] - Rolled Up (Jazzwerkstatt 67; Germany) Review forthcoming - if there are any left!
CD $19

GLEICHWIEDERDA - Kurztrip (Jazzwerkstatt 47; Germany) Alexander Beierbach on tenor & soprano saxes, Steffen Faul on trumpet, Anke Lucks on trombone, Fee Stracke on piano, Berit Jung on Berit Jung on double bass and Hampus Melin on drums. Again, Jazzwerkstatt unleashes a new disc from lesser known German musicians and again we have a winner! I haven't heard of any of the members of this sextet but I am delighted nonetheless. This disc has wonderfully wacky vibe, inventive and fun at the same time. All members of the sextet contribute tunes except for the drummer and the music is diverse and often infectious. "Brother" reminds me of spy movie music from the sixties or seventies, while "Kurztrip" shifts between free and swinging sections. "10439" is rather orchestral with rolling piano and dreamy horns and more mature than you would imagine. What is most interesting about this disc is that it covers so much unexpected ground. There is a guest named Baba Dango who plays talking drums on two songs, adding some odd yet subtle rhythms to "Cry" and "Reach". Since each tune seems to involve a different era of jazz, this disc would be perfect for a blindfold test. There are 14 songs on this disc and each one is successful in its own way. Another great surprise from the fine folks at Jazzwerkstatt. - Bruce Lee Gallanter, Downtown Music Gallery
CD $19

KAYLA QUINTET - End Times (Jazzwerkstatt 65; Germany) The Kayla Quintet feature Ben Abarbanel-Wolff on tenor sax & compositions, Gerhard Gschlobl on trombone, Antonis Anissegos on Wurlitzer piano, Jan Roder on bass and Oliver Stiedle on drums. Although I only know of saxist Ben Abarbanel-Wolff from one disc that he did with Sirone on the Not Two label a few years back, the rhythm team of Jan Roder & Oliver Steidle are on number of discs from the Jazzwerkstatt label. as well as working with Rudi Mahall on various projects.
"Homeless" opens with a simmering, laid back vibe and subdued solos from the trombone and tenor. The electric piano/acoustic bass/drums rhythm team does a good job of swirling around the central theme without playing too tightly. I like the way Ben writes somber yet thorny harmonies for the two horns while the rhythm team speeds up and slows down the tempo with an elastic sense of expertise. Electric pianist Antonis adds some Soft Machine-like wah wah & echo to his eerie keyboard at times which is another plus. Ben's songs have an haunting sort of elegance that you don't find very often nowadays. Both Ben and trombonist Gerhard are gifted musicians whose solos are expressive without rarely having to shout or scream. A fine slow-burning gem of a disc. - Bruce Lee Gallanter, Downtown Music Gallery
CD $19




For the FIRST TIME EVER! Rare HORO albums released on CD!
[We hope there will be more to come..]

SUN RA QUARTET With JOHN GILMORE/MICHAEL RAY/LUQMAN ALI - New Steps (Horo/Atomic; EEC) Sun Ra (piano, electric piano, organ); John Gilmore (tenor sax); Michael Ray (trumpet); Luqman Ali (drums). Recorded in Italy, January 2 & 7, 1978.
Originally issued on a 2-LP set, New Steps was the third of four projects Sun Ra (1914-1993) recorded for the Italian label Horo between 1976 and 1978. The quartet sessions represent a real pinnacle of creativity, even for this prolific period of the late 1970s when his record output hit a peak. Between 1977 and 1978 alone, Ra released some twenty albums and two video documents. As mentioned, the Italian tour presented Sun Ra mostly in a quartet format. Sun Ra played piano and electronic keyboards, including a Crumar Mainman. The sparse instrumentation is based on extraordinary and worthy contrasts. Luqman Ali played drums with Sun Ra around 1960, as Edward Skinner. This 1978 group represents his reappearance after an apparent absence of many years. The saxophone of John Gilmore, a soloist in Sun Ra aggregations since 1956, is paired with relative newcomer Michael Ray on trumpet.
CD $18

SAM RIVERS BLACK AFRICA With JOE DALEY/SYDNEY SMART + DON PULLEN - Villalago (Horo/Atomic; EEC) Sam Rivers (tenor sax, soprano sax, flute, piano, voice); Don Pullen (piano, track 3 only); Joe Daley (tuba, euphonium); Sidney Smart (drums, percussion)
Born Samuel Carthorne Rivers in El Reno, Oklahoma, on September 25, 1923 (and still active at the age of 86!), Sam Rivers is one of the most prominent of the free jazz players. Active in jazz since the early '50s, he earned wider attention during the diffusion of free jazz in the mid-'60s. This CD contains a complete performance by the Sam Rivers Black Africa Trio with Joe Dailey on tuba and euphonium, and Sidney Smart on drums and Percussion, and guest Don Pullen, recorded in Villalago, Italy, on July 24, 1976. Originally issued in a long out of print 2-LP set by the Italian Horo label.
CD $18

ARCHIE SHEPP QUINTET - Libya [aka Jazz A Confronto..plus] (Horo/Atomic 76811; EEC) Archie Shepp (tenor and soprano sax); Charles Greenlee (trombone); Dave Burrell (piano); David Williams (bass); Beaver Harris (drums)
A complete long unavailable session by the Archie Shepp Quintet recorded in Rome on September 28, 1975 for the legendary Italian Horo label. [This CD uses the cover from the Body And Soul album on Horo]
This set consists of Archie Shepp's complete session with his American group recorded in Rome, Italy, on September 28, 1975, and issued here on CD for the first time ever. This was the first of three sessions recorded by Shepp for the Italian label Horo, which were subsequently issued on the albums Jazz a Confronto #27, Body and Soul, Mariamar and The Tradition. While the first three albums contained the results of two sessions (those of September 28, 1975 and of October 16, 1975), The Tradition included a single Rome session taped on October 12, 1977. The session of September 28, 1975 yielded four titles, three by Shepp with his American group (included here), which were originally released on Jazz a Confronto #27 (Lybia and My Heart Cries Out to Africa) and Body and Soul (Dogon). The fourth title from that session, Tropical, featured Shepp with a mixture of Brazilian and Italian musicians plus trombonist Charles Greenlee. As this group would record the complete October 16, 1975 session, Tropical has been included with that date on our companion volume Mariamar (Atomic Records 76810).
CD $18

ARCHIE SHEPP - Mariamar ..plus (Horo/Atomic 76810; EEC) Archie Shepp (tenor and soprano sax); Charles Greenlee (trombone); Cicci Santucci (trumpet); Irio De Paula (guitar); Alessio Urso (bass); Afonso Vieira (drums)
A complete long unavailable session by the Archie Shepp Sextet with Charles Greenlee plus Italian and Brazilian guests. Recorded in Rome for the legendary Italian Horo label on October 16, 1975, to the five titles of that session, we have added Tropical, taped by the same formation on September 28, 1975 (the same day that Shepp recorded three long titles with his American quintet, now presented on our companion CD Lybia).
This set consists of Archie Shepp's complete session accompanied by a mixture of Brazilian and Italian musicians plus trombonist Charles Greenlee, recorded in Rome, Italy, on October 16, 1975. It is issued here for the first time ever on CD! This was the second out of three sessions recorded by Shepp for the Italian label Horo, which were subsequently issued on the albums Jazz a Confronto #27, Body and Soul, Mariamar and The Tradition. While the first three albums contained the results of two sessions (those of September 28, 1975 and of October 16, 1975), The Tradition included a single Rome session taped on October 12, 1977.
The session of October 16, 1975, included here in its entirety, produced five titles (tracks 1-5 of our CD), which originally appeared on the albums Mariamar (Mariamar, Tres Ideias, The Magic and Shepp's Mood) and Body And Soul (from Body And Soul). The latter album also included Dogon, by Shepp and his American group, recorded on September 28, 1975 (the three titles produced by the group on this date can be found on our companion volume Lybia (Atomic Records 76811), and Tropical, the fourth title taped that day. As Tropical was performed by the exact same formation as the October 16 session, we have included it here at the end of this CD for the sake of continuity.
CD $18

LEE KONITZ/MARTIAL SOLAL - Duplicity (Horo/Atomic; EEC) Lee Konitz (alto sax); Martial Solal (piano) The complete long unavailable album DUPLICITY, showcasing amazing duets by Lee Konitz and Martial Solal.
These recordings were originally issued by the legendary Italian Horo label on a long out of print 2-LP Set, which is included here in its entirety.
As Chris Sheridan mentioned in his extended original liner notes, Duplicity wasn't the first recorded collaboration between Lee Konitz (81-years old at this writing) and Martial Solal (82-years old at this writing; both Konitz and Solal were born the same year!). They had previously made a quartet album together titled European Episode in Rome on October 12, 1968 (with Henri Texier on bass and Daniel Humair on drums). Solal also recorded one tune on Konitz' album Satori, recorded in New York on September 30, 1974 (most of that album was recorded in a trio format, featuring Konitz, Dave Holland on bass and Jack DeJohnette on drums. Pianist Dick Katz also participated on one track). Konitz and Solal were also taped playing a live set together at the Antibes Jazz Festival, in France, on July 26, 1974 (with NHOP on bass and Daniel Humair again on drums). This was followed by Duplicity, which was originally issued on a 2-LP set by the Italian label Horo. It is included here in its entirety, and for the first time ever on CD. Even though the song titles seem strange, as Sheridan notes, most of them derive from the harmony of well-known standards. Words Have Been Changed is based on Three Little Words. Rhythm Sweet is based on I Got Rhythm, Esselle is based on Sweet And Lovely, November Talk is based on Indian Summer and Roman Walkings is based on All the Things You Are. Duplicity is unique in that it is their first duet experience together and their only studio album in this highly intimate format.
CD $18

JOHNNY GRIFFIN QUARTET - Jazz a confronto (Horo/Atomic; EEC) Johnny Griffin (tenor sax); Franco D'Andrea (piano); Giovanni Tommaso (bass); Bruno Biriaco (drums)
The complete long unavailable album JAZZ A CONFRONTO, recorded by the Johnny Griffin Quartet for the legendary HORO label in Rome during 1974. As a BONUS, The Pasta Parade, a tune based on Gershwin's Strike Up the Band, which completes the original session here on CD. It had only originally appeared on a compilation LP.
Tired of being underappreciated in the United States, many important American jazz musicians moved to Europe for extended parts of their careers. Johnny Griffin went to live in Europe in 1963. First he established himself in France, where he played with his fellow expatriate, Bud Powell, on several occasions. Griffin relocated to the Netherlands in 1978. The album included here was made for the Italian label Horo during those years in Europe. Recorded in Rome, Italy, Griffin is featured here in a quartet format backed by renowned Italian pianist Franco D'Andrea, bassist Giovanni Tommaso and drummer Bruno Biriaco. According to discographies, these are Griffin's only known recordings with either D'Andrea or Biriaco. Oddly enough, the Jazz a Confronto LP by Johnny Griffin seems to be (according to all discographies) the only existing testimony of his playing during all of 1974.
CD $18




NEW JAZZ COMPOSERS OCTET [DAVID WEISS/MYRON WALDEN/JIMMY GREENE/STEVE DAVIS/NASHEET WAITS et al] - The Turning Gate (Motema 19; USA) the New Jazz Composers Octet (NJCO) is proud to release The Turning Gate, its first recording for the Motema label and third album overall. Featuring ambitious new pieces by founder-trumpeter David Weiss, pianist Xavier Davis, saxophonist Myron Walden and bassist Dwayne Burno, the album once again 'stretches hard bop's kind-of-unstretchable formula' (Macnie) and points the jazz mainstream toward a new horizon.
Among the works are two tracks conceived by Weiss: his own The Turning Gate, inspired by an old Korean legend that "happiness is just around the corner, always out of reach"; and Bad Alchemy, by the '70s avant-rock band HENRY COW (!), an eccentric source well beyond the comfort zone of most jazz musicians, but incisively arranged by Weiss and beautifully performed by the Octet. Also funded by CMA is Xavier Davis' The Faith Suite, a remarkable six-movement opus, with each movement "representing a different type of faith or lack of faith," according to Davis (the first composer to win the CMA award twice). The suite portrays faith as ancient, humbling and doubt-inducing, but also able to inspire great feats of courage and devotion. In these six movements one hears the sheer breadth and depth of the Octet's ability and dynamic range. There are fiery solo statements by trombonist Steve Davis, tenor/soprano saxophonist Jimmy Greene, baritone saxophonist Norbert Stachel, alto saxophonist Myron Walden, drummer Nasheet Waits and of course Xavier Davis himself.
Completing the program is Dwayne Burno's romantic ballad Once, featuring leader Weiss in an exceptionally poignant solo; and Myron Walden's Onward, which proceeds from a breathtaking chorale-like introduction to the main body of the tune, closing the album in high spirits. Here and throughout the date we hear Weiss' gift as a producer, his yen for "building a rhythmic geography, conjuring a particular emotional landscape, offering an important role to each member" (Macnie) - qualities that have informed every NJCO outing to date
CD $16



The Classic Period GONG line-up of 72-74 with a new 2009 recording!

GONG [DAEVID ALLEN/GILLI SMYTH et al] - 2032 [Radio Gnome Invisible Trilogy Pt 4] (A Wave/G Wave/Wakyo; Japan) 2009 album from Daevid Allen and Co. Released to coincide with the band's 40th Anniversary, 2032 continues Gong's famous Radio Gnome album trilogy which includes the milestone psychedelic progressive rock albums Flying Teapot (1973), Angel's Egg (1973) and You (1974). The classic band line-up on the album includes Daevid Allen (guitar, lead vocal): Steve Hillage (lead guitar) -first time on a Gong album in 35 years!; Gilli Smyth (Space Whisper and poetry), Miquette Giraudy (synthesiser), Mike Howlett (bass), Chris Taylor (drums), and Theo Travis (sax and flute). Described as exhilarating, compelling and other worldly, 2032 represents the first time Hillage has recorded with original Gong founder, Daevid Allen, since 1974.
CD $20


SECRET CHIEFS 3: TRADITIONALISTS [TREY SPRUANCE et al] - Le Mani Destre Recise Degli Ultimi Uomini (Web Of Mimicry 28; USA) From out of nowhere Secret Chiefs 3 (operating here as Traditionalists, one of the seven 'satellite bands' introduced on Secret Chiefs 3's album Book of Horizons) presents an elaborate 'colonna sonora paranoica' - a paranioac film soundtrack! The film is imagined, but the horror is real. This entire project, as you might expect from this band, is a spiralling allegory that extends itself well-beyond its starting-point cliche as a 'soundtrack for a non-existent film.' But that's always been one of those potentially good cliches, in theory anyway. Pursuant to that potential, this particular work remains singularly, decidedly faithful to its sworn genre, the Giallo Horror Film Soundtrack!
CD $15

also available..

SECRET CHIEFS 3 [TREY SPRUANCE et al] - Live At The Great American Music Hall [DVD] (Web Of Mimicry 36; USA) Live at the Great American Music Hall captures Secret Chiefs 3 in concert with what many consider to be the best of their many line- ups in 14 years of playing. Shot in 2007 at one of the band's favorite haunts, this DVD does justice to a group whose live energy usually exceeds the recorded medium.
This DVD also includes an award-winning and seriously dimensionally altered 80-minute stop-motion animation feature film directed by Tawd Dornfeld that uses Secret Chiefs 3's live show as a soundtrack.
DVD $18


TOM WAITS - Glitter And Doom Live [2 CD set] (Anti/Epitaph 87053; USA) In 2008, Tom Waits launched a sold out national tour, garnering intense critical praise Paste magazine called it the best live show of 2008 and thrilling fans across the country and the world, some in cities where Waits had never played before. Now comes the document of those concerts, 17 performances hand picked by Waits from along the tour. Leaning heavily on songs from his ANTI releases including a haunting Trampled Rose from Real Gone and roaring Get Behind The Mule from Mule Variations. Waits also digs into the vaults for tracks like a reimagined Singapore from 1985's Rain Dogs. Disc 2 contains strange stories and tales spoken in that famous ultra-gravelly whiskey voice between songs on the tour!
Glitter and Doom Live will reside in the Waits catalog alongside earlier live albums like Nighthawks at the Diner and Big Time, both discs held on par with his classic studio releases by fans. 2 CD set for $17



Released a few weeks/months back, but we just HAD to bring these to your attention

OUMOU SANGARE With FRED WESLEY/PEE WEE ELLIS/TONY ALLEN et al - Seya (Nonesuch 519650; USA) Singer and songwriter Oumou Sangare is genuine superstar in her native Mali, and a charismatic performer who has thrilled audiences around the world with her exhilarating live performances. Seya is Sangare's first international release in six years; to call it long awaited, here as well as in Mail, would be an understatement. The 11 song disc has already met with unanimous acclaim in the U.K., where the album debuted in February. The singer co-produced the album with multi-instrumentalist Cheick Tidiane Seck, and wrote all but one song, the traditional number 'Donso'. Sangare is backed by a large, all-star ensemble of Malian and international musicians, including longtime accompanist 'Benogo' Brehima Diakite, master of the six-string kamele ngoni, two James Brown veterans (saxophonist Pee Wee Ellis and trombonist Fred Wesley) and Fela Kuti's legendary musical director, Nigerian drummer Tony Allen.
CD $17


U.S. [UNITED SOUL] MUSIC WITH FUNKADELIC/GARY SHIDER - U.S. Music With Funkadelic (Ace/Westbound SEWM 149; UK) U.S. (United Soul) was Gary Shider's band and a part of George Clinton's Parliafunkadelicment thang before he joined the P-Funk crew full-time (that's Shider in the diaper, if you didn't know). They issued a single billed as "U.S. Music with Funkadelic" (previously released on the Music For My Mother comp) but this album sat on the shelf until 2009. U.S. was a self-contained band, but their studio material also featured various members of Funkadelic. Let's be clear: this is a full, finished album, not simply a roundup of unfinished/unused tracks. And it's a good one too! Aside from the final track, it's not nearly as hard as Funkadelic and there's lots of prominent piano. Gary Shider sings his ass off throughout as well as contributing some hot guitar playing.
"This Broken Heart" is a big production ballad with strings and piano, similar in feel to the single "I Miss My Baby." "Baby I Owe You Something Good" was a solid single, but the stand-out tracks have to be "Be What You Is" and "Rat Kiss the Cat on the Navel." "Be What You Is" is a Clinton tune that sounds something like a cross between Funkadelic's "You and Your Folks, Me and My Folks" and "Friday Night August 14." The fact that this track may be a bit derivative doesn't mean it's not great, though, with weird reverby production and some great guitar. As mentioned, "Rat Kiss the Cat on the Navel" is the most "Funkadelic" track, with its slightly ominous tone, relentless driving beat, and nasty fuzz guitar soloing. Producer Fuzzy Haskins certainly took more than a few production cues from George but shows on this tune he could get just as loopy lyrically as well. The album is a bit on the short side, but it's quality stuff. U.S. Music with Funkadelic is a solid album and an interesting missing link that's sure to please Funkadelic fans. - Sean Westergaard, AMG
CD $20

FUNKADELIC - Toys (Westbound; USA) Toys features about 50 minutes of previously unreleased Funkadelic tracks from the early '70s, about evenly divided between proper songs and jams. The availability of such a large chunk of recordings in excellent sound quality from their prime might seem like a huge blessing for their devoted fans, but while in general it is of considerable interest for Funkadelic fanatics, more casual funk listeners might be wary. It's a little like getting a very high-quality bootleg of studio works in progress, though it can be fairly pointed out that even some actual Funkadelic albums had songs that sometimes sounded like works in progress. But if you are the sort of fan who likes to peek into the hidden underbelly of a major band's foundation, the CD definitely has its merits. Chief among these are significantly different versions of "You Can't Miss What You Can't Measure" (here titled "Heart Trouble") and "Up for the Down Stroke" (here under its original title, "The Goose That Laid the Golden Egg"), though the aforementioned "Wars of Armageddon" differs from its official release only in the absence of sound effects. Otherwise, the tracks tend toward drifting jams that are more notable for the funk-psychedelic playing than the songs themselves. Even one of the cuts with vocals, "Talk About Jesus," has few lyrics other than a few female singers intoning the title over and over; another, the brief "2 Dollars & 2 Dimes," has nothing in the way of a vocal other than George Clinton uttering a few typically wacky proclamations. Also on the CD is a 1973 video clip (playable on PC or Mac computers) of the band, in typically odd and flamboyant costume, romping around New York to "Cosmic Slop."
CD $16



STANLEY SCHUMACHER With SABIR MATEEN/LUJAS LIGETI/EVAN LIPSON - Jive At 5:05 (Musikmacher 04; USA)
CD $13

a few copies found of..

SABIR MATEEN - Symphony For The Creator (Alden Street; USA) Saxman Sabir on all instruments; recorded 1996
CD $10

THE GAMELAN SON OF LION [DANIEL GOODE/PHILLIP CORNER/BARBARA BENARY et al] - Bending The Gending (GSOL 003; USA) Wiggy stuff by the Gamelan Son of Lion crew. Featuring 11 compositions by as many performers. You'll be as inclined to think of Bat Chain Puller era Beefheart and the strange world of Harry Partch as you would the traditional rhythmic strokes of the Indonesian Gamelan
CD $12


MICK BARR/NONDOR NEVAI - Barr*Nevai [Ltd Ed of 100] (ugExplode ; USA) [CD-R] Strictly limited to 100 copies only. NO DIGITAL DOWNLOAD!
Straight-up, this is demented metal. As I'm listening to it, I keep on imagining my D.R.I. records playing on a my old broken turntable that liked to play at different speeds, changing the pitch at random. For those who already obtained Nondor's player piano cd, you may be surprised to hear this man's blast beats and guttural incantations (lyrically reminiscent of Venom), but then again if you are surprised then you are not acclimated to his works, which are usually on the loud side of the spectrum. Mick Barr is now a household name in many circles. He is the Ravi Shankar of guitar, usually when he plays his fingers become a blur and the sympathetic strings resonant so perfectly with the lightning fast notes he is playing, on this album you could say he is playing more straight forward. This CD is definitely for those who like things heavy, so if you're soft, back off. RECOMMENDED!!! - Chuck Bettis/DMG
CD $14


MERZBOW [MASAMI AKITA] - 13 Japanese Birds Pt 10: Niwatori (Important 270; USA) The 10th installent in Merzbow's ambitious 13 Japanese Birds series is devoted to the Japanese word for "chicken." One composition, "Niwatori Obsession," divided up into three parts. Inspired by Olivier Messiaen's Catalogue D'Oiseaux.
CD $14

MERZBOW [MASAMI AKITA] - 13 Japanese Birds Pt 11: Shirasagi (Important 275; USA) Part 11 in the series, devoted to the white heron. Tracks include "Transformed Into Food," "Once The Human Meat Is Done, Cut It Up And Mix With The Vegetable Curry," "Dismemberment Of Nature" and "Chained."
CD $14

ROBIN CRUTCHFIELD - The Hidden Folk (Important 274; USA) "Brand new full length from legendary ex- D.N.A./Dark Day/No-Waver Robin Crutchfield. If you venture far enough into the forest, you may be so lucky as to stumble across a miniature race which make their homes in hollow oak trees that contain passages to underground caverns where they work at harvesting minerals and gems. This musical collection of 19 gems of true 'underground' music, a hidden folk music, attempts to capture the essence of the wee magic ones in soundscapes that depict them at work and play, the only evidence of these mysterious, hidden ones that we can offer. The rest of us are fortunate enough that they continue to share their planet and work in subtle ways that keep us from snuffing all the joy out of it. Won't you cooperate with them a little; do as you will be done by and leave the place a little better than you found it? Robin Crutchfield, the critically acclaimed performance artist, moved to New York in the '70s, only to cross over from art into music with his no wave band DNA, recording tracks for Brian Eno's historic No New York album. This was followed by Dark Day, a series of collaborations with Nina Canal, Nancy Arlen, Tuxedomoon, Jim Jarmusch, and others, resulting in releases of various genres: cold wave, proto-electronic, medieval pagan, and electronica. Trading plastic transistors and wires for wood and strings in 2000, he went green, taking up ancient instruments, harps, drums, lyres and psalteries. He currently pursues and explores acoustic trancelike daydreamscapes of the mysterious and elusive inhabitants of an otherworld most have only experienced through folktale and fable."
CD $14

JOZEF VAN WISSEM - Ex Patris [Ltd Ed LP] (Important 267; USA) Limited to 500 copies. "The title Ex Patris ('From The Fathers') plays on the idiomatic baroque lute compositions presented here which emulate the classical repertoire. It also refers to this almost forgotten instrument, which was passed on by the fathers. The aim is to bring back and liberate the lute. The four compositions on Ex Patris form a circular narrative of interlocking repetitive melodic series. The follow up to Important release It Is All That Is Made kicks off with the pro apocalyptic track 'The Day is Coming.' 'Amor Fati' ('Love Is A Religion') channels a deep interest in both love for religion and religious belief in love. Multiple palindromes are juxtaposed and linger. 'Son of Dawn' consists of mirrored lute harmonics that serve as an intro to the 13 minute elegiac 'After The Fire Has Devoured All It Will Consume Itself.' The piece builds and releases tension and puts layer upon layer of ecstatic melody. At the end even the work itself gets devoured but it remains eternal, with no potential beginning and without end."
LP $14

THE HARMONIC SERIES [V.A.] - A Compilation Of Musical Works In Just Intonation (Important 272; USA) "The Harmonic Series is a compilation of musical works in Just Intonation created by three generations of contemporary composers who utilize this tuning system. This compilation was curated over the span of two years by Duane Pitre. The goal of this compilation and its accompanying liner notes is to educate listeners about the origins and use of Just Intonation, as well as to portray the unique beauty of this tonal 'color palette,' which is heard by relatively few in the Western world and explored by even fewer. Although all the artists on the compilation work within the avant-garde/experimental genre, each artist lends something unique to the collection, and each employs a different approach toward how to utilize Just Intonation. Within The Harmonic Series you'll find an array of instrumentation such as piano, cello, accordion, electronics, guitar, Ukelin, saxophone, violin, koto, and more.
The featured artists on The Harmonic Series are: Pauline Oliveros, Ellen Fullman, Charles Curtis, Michael Harrison, Greg Davis, R Keenan Lawler, Duane Pitre, Theresa Wong, and Zachary James Watkins."
CD $14



OREN AMBARCHI - Intermission 2000-2008 (Touch 40; UK) Intermission brings together a range of material Australian sound artist Oren Ambarchi has contributed to compilations and limited-edition vinyl releases between the years 2000 and 2008. Highlights include two live recordings -- an early, fragile solo guitar recording taken from a radio broadcast in 2000 and "A Final Kiss On Poisoned Cheeks," his powerful 12" recorded live in Vancouver in 2007 and originally released on Table Of The Elements. Additional tracks include "Iron Waves,"an exclusive track in collaboration with vocalist Paul Duncan and "Intimidator," featuring Australian pianist/composer Anthony Pateras, originally released on Southern Lord. These are special anomalies in the Ambarchi canon, but nonetheless feature the hallmarks of his unique sound-world, all underpinned by his trademark deep guitar tones and meticulous attention to detail. All tracks are newly remastered, many of which are available on CD for the first time. Oren Ambarchi's works are hesitant and tense extended songforms located in the cracks between several schools: modern electronics and processing; laminal improvisation and minimalism; hushed, pensive songwriting; the deceptive simplicity and temporal suspensions of composers such as Morton Feldman and Alvin Lucier; and the physicality of rock music, slowed down and stripped back to its bare bones, abstracted and replaced with pure signal. From the late '90s, his experiments in guitar abstraction and extended technique have led to a more personal and unique sound-world, incorporating a broader palette of instruments and sensibilities. On releases such as Grapes From The Estate (TO 061CD) and In The Pendulum's Embrace, Ambarchi has employed glass harmonica, strings, bells, piano, drums and percussion, creating fragile textures as light as air which tenuously co-exist with the deep, wall-shaking bass tones derived from his guitar. Ambarchi works with simple constructs and parameters; exploring one idea over an extended duration and patiently teasing every nuance and implication from each texture; the phenomena of sum and difference tones; carefully-tended arrangements that unravel gently; unprepossessing melodies that slowly work their way through various permutations; resulting in an otherworldly, cumulative impact of patiently-unfolding compositions.
CD $16


JEAN-PHILIPPE COLLARD-NEVEN - Incidental Music (Sub Rosa 276; Belgium) Belgian composer, improviser and pianist Jean-Philippe Collard-Neven presents music for an absent film, Incidental Music -- 33 miniatures for piano and chamber orchestra taken from theater performances or documentaries. These pieces find new life here, released from their original context, inviting the listener's imagination to recreate their story, perhaps from a long-lost French film of the 1970s. As the composer contextualizes, "I was born, musically speaking, with film music. George Delerue, Philippe Sarde, Ennio Morricone, Michel Legrand, Francis Lai, Gabriel Yared, Francois de Roubaix, Antoine Duhamel, and many more are responsible for my first musical emotions. Those childhood evenings lying flat on my belly in front of the family's TV screen watching the films of Sautet, Lelouch, Verneuil, De Broca, Truffaut, Audiard, Almodovar and so many others were an endless spring of emotions at which -- I understand it now -- I quenched my thirst for the deepest emotions buried within myself. It is almost surprising that I have not tried earlier to practice what I have considered since childhood to be the most beautiful profession in the world: to be a composer of film music." Jean-Philippe Collard-Neven treads the career path of an atypical musician where classical, contemporary, electroacoustic, jazz and improvisation, French chanson, theater, dance, cinema, and literature coexist side-by-side. Far from being a mindlessly voracious form of eclecticism, his penchant towards diversity is the expression of a single-minded passion, an open-minded spirit which steers clear of pigeon-holing and weaves connecting threads between styles, genres and periods.
CD $16


LUC FERRARI - Les Arythmiques (Blue Chopsticks 19; USA) "Les Arythmiques is one of the final works created by electroacoustic composer Luc Ferrari. A starting point for the piece was the challenge to represent in sound the jolt of electricity that had been sent across his heart to treat his arrythmia. The sound that he finally crafted to his satisfaction is the crackling, vaguely terrifying one that jolts Les Arythmiques into life and reappears throughout to interrupt the proceedings at the most unlikely moments. The sound environment that the electrical shocks interrupt is that of the EKG's regular beeps, the distant tolling of a church bell, and even more distant sounds resembling birds. In other words, it's the sound of enforced rest, of a patient immobilized. This relatively small repertoire of concrete sounds is examined with a disorienting repetitiveness that brings to mind the mobile-like quality of many of Ferrari's electroacoustic works. Here that quality is combined with the lightning-quick stabs associated with Erik M and Otomo Yoshihide, two artists with whom Ferrari collaborated in his final years. Les Arythmiques ultimately moves beyond the hospital room by delving into an archive of remembered sounds. Murmurings in Italian give way to the English-language interjection 'Are y'all familiar with the parts of a saddle?' -- the composer's reflection on material gathered in the American Southwest for his Far-West News series. Ferrari's characteristic humor is here, particularly in the superimposition of diverse sound environments. But Les Arythmiques also possesses a nagging unease, a persistent gravity that both listener and composer cannot shake. Les Arythmiques was included as part of the ten-CD box set Luc Ferrari: L'Oeuvre electronique (Ina GRM). This is the first time that it has appeared as a separate release."
CD $14


KARLHEINZ STOCKHAUSEN//ERNSEMBLE RECHERCHE - Kontra-punkte, Refrain, Zeitmasze, Schlagtrio (Wergo 6717; Germany) Performed by The Ensemble Recherche. "The four works on this disc come from the first nine years of a compositional career that would span almost another half century. Yet today, one scarcely hears them as 'early Stockhausen,' but rather as a series of essential cornerstones of the emerging post-war European avant-garde on which Stockhausen, as the youngest major composer involved, exercised a crucial influence. What should strike is not what these pieces have in common, but how different they are from one another. Each exemplifies a phase of Stockhausen's early development. The Ensemble Recherche is one of the most distinguished ensembles for new music. With more than 450 premieres to its credit since it was founded in 1985, the ensemble has made a substantial contribution to the development of contemporary chamber and ensemble music."
CD $24



Found! Last copies of this Rarity!

BLOODBATH [JOHN KING/OTOMO YOSHIHIDE/KONDOH TATSUO/HAYAKAWA TAKEHARU/AOYAMA JUN] With KAZUTOKI UMEZU/MAKIGAMI KOICHI - Live Bloodbath Live (DIW/Phenotype 02; Japan) All star avant-noise/noise-funk band! Released only Japan in 1996. These are the last few copies from that one time pressing. Of course you could pay $100 on eBay later..
CD $15 [limited time price]

also..

JOHN KING/DAVID MOSS/YOSHIHIDE OTOMO - All At Once At Anytime (Victo 029; Canada) These three noted improvisors on guitar, percussion, turntables, electronics & vocals, recorded live 5/20/94. [limited time sale price]
CD $10

JOHN KING/ELECTRIC WORLD With AMIN ALI/ABE SPELLER/BERNIE WORRELL - Life=Love (MuWorks 1014; USA) Smokin' power trio led by the great el. guitarist from David Moss band w/Sharrock's rhythm team and Bernie Worrell!!
It's too bad John King's funk project Electric World did not achieve anything wider than local success. If you like your funk rock-solid, inspired, and creative, try to locate a copy of this gem from 1993. King can churn out groovy rhythm guitar lines, but where he shines is in his solos -- that's where one can literally feel the fact that the man led a double life as a funkster/avant-garde improviser. And yet, if he takes tonal liberties, he keeps things in the beat, never losing sight that Electric World is about funk rock and nothing but. Bassist Amin Ali slaps it like he means it, although at times his contorted lines get flashy just for the sake of it. Drummer Abe Speller plays squarer than David Moss, but he does the job convincingly. Now, the treat on this CD is the presence of Parliament legend Bernie Worrell on four tracks, including the eight-minute jam "Flash." This may be the straightest album Robert Musso produced for his label Muworks, but it still entertains intelligently. ~ Francois Couture, AMG
CD $8.00 7 for 6 SALE.


MOONDOG [LOUIS HARDIN] - Elpmas (Kopf 123314; Germany) Originally released in 1991, Moondog's Elpmas is a landmark late-period work by the legendary composer. After a prolonged period of silence while living in Germany, Louis Thomas Hardin (aka Moondog) returned to America in 1989 to partake in a highly-praised performance at the 10th New Music America Festival, sharing the program with John Zorn and Butch Morris. Although returning to his home in Oer-Erkenschwick, Germany shortly after the performance, the sudden attention and renewal of interest in his work prompted Moondog, then in his late-70s, to record new material. Elpmas is the stunning result of a revitalized legend still at the peak of his vitality and innovation. On Elpmas, Moondog uses a sampler for the very first time, complementing his compositions with field recordings, and explaining, "The sampler is ideal for my kind of music, which is mostly contrapuntal, specifically canonic." The percolating marimba patterns on opening track "Wind River Powow" recalls the type of pure, luscious tone-studies that once deemed Moondog "the founder of minimalism" by Philip Glass and Steve Reich, but Elpmas is a varied, thematic work, epic in scope and dedicated to the aboriginal peoples of the world. "Westward Ho!" is an 8-part canon depicting the western migration from Europe to the New World, and features guest musicians Gotz Alsmann and Andi Toma (Mouse On Mars). "Suite Equestria" is the most energizing piece on the album, its intricate marimba pattern carried to epic heights by the incursion of a valiant male chorus. Elpmas also introduces Moondog's "Overtone Continuum," an ambitious compositional system in which a 4-part male chorus is overdubbed 12 times, resulting in the disorienting 144-voice experiment "The Message." The album ends with "Cosmic Meditation," a 24-minute expanse of hazy warmth and melancholic, Eno-esque ambience intended to suggest the rising and falling waves of the Siderial Sea. As Moondog concludes in the liner notes, "Its unworldly sound brings one close to the essence of things, to the 'peace that passeth all understanding.'"
CD $16

MOONDOG [LOUIS HARDIN] - A New Sound Of An Old Instrument (Kopf 133017; Germany) Originally released in 1979 by Kopf and reissued in 1999. By the time A New Sound Of An Old Instrument was released, Moondog (Louis Thomas Hardin) had made his home in Germany for 5 years, and decided to compose this suite of pieces in honor of "The King Of Instruments," the pipe organ. "The organ has not been called the 'King of Instruments' for nothing, because of all instruments, it has the widest range of possibilities, lending itself to any mood or style. In suffering the organ to emit secular and even profane music, namely dance music, I do not find it out of place, since I am fully aware of the organ's pagan beginnings, the pipes of Pan." Playing upon this notion, Moondog matches several of these organ pieces with shakers and other forms of knocking percussion which lends an organic feel to what is traditionally thought of as a formal, unbendable instrument. On the contrary, Moondog emphasizes the percussive and contrapuntal/staccato tones the organ is capable of producing, rather than drones, although those are also used here to provide a background for what does feel like decidedly vernal, lilting, woodland pipes. He also explains in the liner notes his "logrundrs," a canonical method of counterpoint. A New Sound Of An Old Instrument is a true Moondog oddity, but his mastery of illustrating the neverending nature of patterns in melodic tone and sequence are especially prominent here, focused as it is on one instrument. Organs played by Fritz Storfinger and Wolfgang Schwering. Package includes liner notes written by Louis T. Hardin himself.
CD $16

MOONDOG [LOUIS HARDIN] - H'Art Songs (Kopf 330160; Germany) This is Kopf Records' 1999 CD reissue of Moondog's H'art Songs, originally released in Germany in 1978. In 1974, New York City's famous "Viking Of Sixth Avenue" travelled to Europe to produce a concert of his works with the Frankfurt Radio Orchestra. Afterwards, Moondog (Louis Thomas Hardin, 1916-1999), who once told an interviewer that he considered himself a "European in exile," felt compelled to stay on the continent in order to realize the imagined European identity he invoked with his clothing and music. Moondog felt culturally and artistically closer to Europe and it was here where he spent the rest of his life, developing some of the most unique and surprising, if not lesser known developments in his vast body of work. H'art Songs is one anomaly in the composer's output during this period, as each of the songs are considerably traditional in form with a sing-song, almost pop-oriented mentality. All the songs consist of Moondog singing to minimal, catchy piano accompaniments and occasional percussion. Moondog sings with a quavering sincerity in his voice that recalls Robert Wyatt while the pathos and humor in the lyrics to songs like "Enough About Human Rights" ("What about hog rights?/What about frog rights?") and "I'm Just A Hop Head" ("...and so I'll be, till I'm dead/I started hopping when first I hopped into bed") suggests the innocent despair of Daniel Johnston. The simplicity in these songs, however, is misleading, as the repetitive melodies are blessed with subtle chord structures that gradually take on an epic, even otherworldly, feel. This singular quirkiness and radiant uniqueness in approach makes this music distinctly Moondog. Highly accessible yet criminally overlooked, H'Art Songs' music reveals a fascinating stage in Moondog's artistic development, blessed with the understated beauty that makes his work so timeless.
CD $16

MOONDOG [LOUIS HARDIN] - In Europe (Kopf 330140; Germany) Originally released by Kopf in 1977, and reissued in 1999, Moondog In Europe was visionary composer Louis Thomas Hardin's (aka Moondog) first release after moving to Germany. Perhaps reflecting the historicity of his new environment, this album is more structured and formal than most of his previous releases; however, his layered song-cycles are just as circular and experimental, and still backed by a fair amount of tribal percussion. There are moments of whimsy, as on "In Vienna," with its bouncing, music-box like celesta, or on "Viking I," also reflected with a snappy celesta melody, but there are also moments of parlor-room somberness, as on the string arrangements for "Romance In G" or the last 20+ minutes of the album, which is comprised exclusively of extremely heavy pipe-organ suites. Moondog In Europe, though less playful than other of his albums, displays Moondog's virtuosity as a classical composer, with elegantly stylized pieces that see Moondog embracing a grandiosity he hadn't approached previously.
CD $16



IGGINBOTTOM [ALLAN HOLDSWORTH et al] - Igginbottom's Wrench (Cherry Red/Esoteric 2164; UK) Allan Holdsworth is a legendary figure in the world of Jazz and Rock guitar players. For four decades he has been considered one of the finest exponents of the instrument. Esoteric Recordings are pleased to announce the release of the album that saw Holdsworth make his recorded debut, Igginbottom's Wrench. Igginbottom was formed in Bradford in 1968 and also featured Dave Freeman (drums), Steven Robinson (guitar, vocals) and Mick Skelly (bass). Their sole album was originally released by Decca's Deram label in 1969, and featured such innovative pieces as The Castle and Sweet Dry Biscuits. The record also enjoyed the patronage of Jazz legend Ronnie Scott. A criminally under-rated work, Esoteric is proud to present the album to a new audience.
CD $21

THUNDERCLAP NEWMAN [JOHN 'SPEEDY KEENE/JIMMY McCULLOCH/ANDY 'THUNDERCLAP' NEWMAN] - Hollywood Dream (Cherry Red/Esoteric 2149; UK) The single Something in the Air, released in 1969, was an international chart topping hit that seemed to sum up the mood of the times. Its inclusion in a poignant scene in the film The Magic Christian made the song even more legendary and heralded the arrival of Thunderclap Newman. The band was a trio fronted by John 'Speedy' Keene, Jimmy McCulloch and Andy 'Thunderclap' Newman , assembled by Who guitarist Pete Townshend to serve as a vehicle for the songs of 'Speedy' Keene.
Something In The Air / Hollywood #1 / The Reason / Open The Door, Homer / Look Around / Accidents / Wild Country / When I Think / The Old Cornmill / I Don't Know / Hollywood Dream (Instrumental) / Hollywood #2 / Bonus Tracks - Something In The Air (Single Version) / Wilhemina / Accidents (Single Version) / I See It All / The Reason (Single Version) / Stormy Petrel
CD $21

LIVERPOOL SCENE [ADRIAN HENRI/ANDY ROBERTS/MIKE EVANS/PERCY JONES/MIKE HART et al] - The Amazing Adventures Of The Liverpool Scene: The Anthology [2 CD set] (Cherry Red/Esoteric 2138; UK) Released 29/06/09. First-ever anthology of the legendary late 60s counter-culture act. The Liverpool Scene were fronted by gifted artist and poet Adrian Henri. Also in the band were folk artist Mike Hart, accomplished singer-songwriter Andy Roberts award-winning jazz bassist Percy Jones (later in Brand X) and Mike Evans. This 2-CD set draws on three rare albums and a posthumous compilation for RCA, issued between 1968 and 1970. None of the Liverpool Scene's music is currently available on CD. Widespread media coverage expected, not least via the late Adrian Henri's reputation. Essential for any fan of the Bonzos, the Scaffold or even Frank Zappa/Mothers Of Invention. Includes several previously unissued TV recordings.
2 CD set for $23


THE SCENE IS NOW - Burn All Your Records (Lexicon Devil 24; Australia) Lexicon Devil presents part three of three in their reissue series documenting the great works of New York's '80s avant-garde group, The Scene Is Now. TSIN were formed at the dawn of the 1980s by Philip Dray and Chris Nelson, a band born from the ashes of no wave trio, Information (the third partner of that outfit being Rick Brown). Influenced equally by the ragged avant-folk sounds of the Holy Modal Rounders and The Fugs, the screech of DNA and Mars, and the traditional Americana of Bob Wills and Hoagy Carmichael, TSIN instantly set themselves apart from the pack. Their music was an indefinable mixture of the old and new, the impenetrable and the accessible and the weird and wonderful. Some folks compared 'em to the Red Krayola or Pere Ubu, some to SST outfits such as the Meat Puppets and Slovenly, and some people even hail them as the world's finest no wave jug band. The point is this: between the years 1984 and 1988, they released three magnificent albums on their own label, Lost (the last two being in co-operation with the Twin/Tone label), which have been out-of-print for a dog's age and had never seen the light of day on compact disc. Until now. This is their extremely rare 1985 debut, Burn All Your Records. Recorded in 1984, BAYR was laid to tape when the band was still musically pretty raw and yet to blossom into the melodic powerhouse they became over their subsequent two LPs. From an almost amelodic chaos through to a streamlined pop band in three shakes. On BAYR, The Scene Is Now were tearing out a ramshackle brand of Dada-infused post-no wave folk-rock which was part DNA, part Fall, part Fugs and equal doses of Pere Ubu and the Red Krayola. BAYR is 20 tracks of primo slop-pop in just under 40 minutes. It's the sound of four NYC gentlemen kicking against the pricks in Reagan-era America. It's some of the best hardly-discovered underground rock 'n' roll made in the 1980s, and it's finally available again, remastered from the original tapes and featuring a full-color, 16-page booklet with liner notes by Wire/Uncut scribe Jon Dale and Dave Lang and a wealth of exclusive photos from the period. And, yes, it does feature "Yellow Sarong," as later covered by Yo La Tengo.
CD $14

still available..

THE SCENE IS NOW - Total Jive (Lexicon Devil 25; Australia) Lexicon Devil presents part two of three in their reissue series documenting the great works of New York's '80s avant-garde group, The Scene Is Now. This time around the label reissues their sophomore album from 1986, Total Jive. TSIN was formed in the early '80s by Philip Dray and Chris Nelson, born from the ashes of no wave outfit, Information (documented in Thurston Moore and Byron Coley's No Wave: Post-Punk. Underground. New York. 1976-1980 book). Joined by Dick Champ and Jeff McGovern, they went on to release three LPs in that decade which remain amazing and scarcely-heard gems from underground America. With a sound which was distinctly New York -- equal parts Velvets/Feelies strum, angular geekoid rock a la Television/Talking Heads and choppy avant rhythms straight from the no wave -- the band also melded influences from such disparate sources (The Fall, Minutemen, Bob Wills) that they remain a tough band to musically pin down. They truly are/were a unique blend of the avant-garde and the traditional. Total Jive was originally released on the band's own Lost label in 1986, manufactured and distributed by the Twin/Tone label. Roughly half of the tracks are produced by downtown wiz-kid, Elliott Sharp, and it has never been issued on CD before. This version is fully remastered from the original master tapes and features a 12-page, full-color booklet with never-seen-before photos of the band from the period, as well as liner notes by Lexicon Devil honcho, Dave Lang. The 1980s produced a lot of great underground sounds from the U.S.A., and The Scene Is Now is certainly one of them, begging for some much-deserved 21st-century recognition.
CD $14

THE SCENE IS NOW - Tonight We Ride (Lexicon Devil 26; Australia) Between the years 1984 and 1988, The Scene Is Now released three magnificent albums, which have been out of print for a dog's age and have never seen the light of day on compact disk -- until now. This exclusive Lexicon Devil CD reissue of the band's third album, Tonight We Ride, has been fully remastered from original tapes by the band. Some folks compared them to the Red Krayola or Pere Ubu, some to SST outfits such as the Meat Puppets and Slovenly, and some people even hail them as the world's finest no wave jug band. The Scene Is Now (TSIN) were formed at the dawn of the 1980s by Philip Dray and Chris Nelson, a band born from the ashes of no wave trio Information (the third partner of that outfit being Rick Brown). The beauty of TSIN lies in their deceptive simplicity. What at first appears to be a straightforward, rootsy rock tune twists and turns throughout its lifespan into something completely different, keyboard lines and guitar licks darting out to and fro and seemingly pulling in different directions. The Scene Is Now remain -- as indeed they still exist -- one of the great post-Beefheart harmolodic American pop bands. Influenced equally by the ragged avant-folk sounds of the Holy Modal Rounders and the Fugs, the screech of DNA and Mars, and the traditional Americana of Bob Wills and Hoagy Carmichael, TSIN instantly set themselves apart from the pack. If you like the music of their fans -- Sonic Youth and Yo La Tengo (who covered an old TSIN track on their Fakebook LP) -- the music of their peers -- Mofungo, Pere Ubu, dBs, Fish & Roses, The Feelies -- or the sounds of their acknowledged influences -- Sun Ra, Red Krayola, Minutemen -- you'll love the music of The Scene Is Now. Their music was an indefinable mixture of the old and new, the impenetrable and the accessible and the weird and wonderful. Certainly the most accessible of the three, this album features the added talents of ex-dBs Will Rigby and Pere Ubu wunderkind Tony Maimone, expanding the TSIN clan to a family of six. Playing it 20 years after its original release, it still stands tall as one of the great, virtually unknown albums from 1980s underground America.
CD $14


FREEDOM RHYTHM AND SOUND - Revolutionary Jazz & The Civil Rights Movement 1963-82 (Soul Jazz 219; UK) "This album coincides with the release of the massive hardback deluxe book, Freedom Rhythm & Sound: Revolutionary Jazz, original cover art compiled by Gilles Peterson and Stuart Baker, released on Soul Jazz Records featuring the cover artwork of many seminal revolutionary jazz albums created between 1965-83. Martin Luther King, Malcolm X and the civil rights movement of the 1960s loom large as self-determination, economic power and musical freedom led to revolutionary jazz artists finding new paths -- both musical and economic. Concurrent with the emergence of the counter culture and underground rock movement in the 1960s and years before the D-I-Y cultural revolution of punk in the 1970s, Sun Ra, John Coltrane, Pharoah Sanders, Don Cherry, Ornette Coleman, the Art Ensemble of Chicago and others 'took control' of their own work by recording, releasing and distributing their own music themselves. This album, released alongside the book, features many of the major artists who make up the book as well as many hidden gems of records made on very small run cottage-industry jazz labels from this period -- the original DIY records! The album comes with extensive sleevenotes and photos." Includes a 28-page booklet. Artists include Sun Ra And His Outer Space Arkestra, Art Ensemble of Chicago, Joe McPhee & John Snyder, Oliver Lake/NTU, Staton Davis' Ghetto/Mysticism, Steve Colson & The Unity Troupe, Mary Lou Williams, Joe Henderson, Philip Cohran & The Artistic Heritage Ensemble, Gary Bartz NTU Trrop, Pheeroan akLaff, The Hastings Street Jazz Experience, Gato Barbieri & Dollar Brand, Ralph Thomas, Archie Shepp, Horace Tapscott & The Pan Afrikan Peoples Arkestra, Errol Parker, Amina Claudine Myers, The Pharaohs, Edward Larry Gordon, Michael White, Roy Brooks & The Artistic Truth and Lloyd McNeill.
CD $23

FREEDOM RHYTHM AND SOUND//GILLES PETERSON & STUART BAKER, editors - Revolutionary Jazz Original Cover Art 1965-83 (Soul Jazz 218; UK) [ltd time SALE; normally $40] "This heavyweight deluxe hardback book is a unique collection of cover artwork of revolutionary jazz music between 1965-83, compiled by Gilles Peterson and Stuart Baker, founder of Soul Jazz Records. Martin Luther King, Malcolm X and the civil rights movement of the 1960s loom large as self-determination, economic power and musical freedom led to revolutionary jazz artists finding new paths -- both musical and economic. Freedom, Rhythm and Sound includes a large introduction contextualising the music and artwork as well as features on many of the people involved. Alongside the musicians mentioned above these include Rashied Ali, Steve Reid, Mary Lou Williams, Horace Tapscott, Lloyd McNeil, Tribe, The Last Poets, The Pharoahs, Philip Cohran, Black Artists Group and many others." 180 absolutely stunning pages.
BOOK on Sale! $30 [normally $40]


AFRICAN BOOGALOO [V.A.] - The Latinization Of West Africa (Honest Jon's 041; UK) Honest Jon's presents a collection of music from '60s and '70s West Africa that is heavily influenced by Latin sounds from the era, representing a mutual cultural exchange that would have a permanent impact on the evolution of each region's trademark sound. Much of what makes modern Latin music so irresistible came from Africa in the first place. When the first waves of African rhythms, reconstituted in the Caribbean, returned home on radios and records, Africans -- especially in West and Central Africa -- received them with great enthusiasm. Staid dance bands that replicated European music soon began to swing as Caribbean accents settled in their rhythm sections. By the 1950s, Africa had produced its own Calypsonians, and more than one African musician changed his name to give it a Latin flavor. Some even composed songs in Spanish, while others wrote nonsense lyrics that only sounded like the real thing. There is no better evidence of the push-me-pull-you, back-and-forthing between two cultures than the Afro-Latin compilation we have here. All the flow from an unparalleled period of exuberance and creativity after World War II had ended and before homegrown tyranny had yet to descend on the land. It was Africa's moment, optimistic and free. You can hear it in the music. --Adapted from text by Gary Stewart, author of Rumba On The River: A History of the Popular Music of the Two Congos. CD $17
also available as 2 LP set for $22


***********************************


IF YOU'RE ALREADY SUBSCRIBED TO OUR NEWSLETTER, BUT SOMEHOW YOU'RE NOT RECEIVING THEM IN YOUR INBOX..

Many of your incoming emails are being blocked and you don't know it! Many emails like our newsletter are frequently blocked by aggressive spam filters being used by nearly all email services.

To help avoid this problem and get our newsletter:

Hotmail Users: Place the domain " downtownmusicgallery.com " on your Safe List, so that you can receive our emails. The safe list can be accessed via the "Options" link next to the main menu tabs. Also place the email address dmg@downtownmusicgallery.com in your address book.

AOL: Place the domain " downtownmusicgallery.com " in your Address Book. Also add the email address dmg@downtownmusicgallery.com to your address book.

Yahoo! Mail: If one of our e-newsletters is filtered to your 'bulk' folder, open the message and click on the "this is not Spam" link next to the "From" field. The same goes for any other e-mail you receive that doesn't belong there. Add the address dmg@downtownmusicgallery.com to your address book.

Other email services [Earthlink, GMail et al]: Place the domain " downtownmusicgallery.com " on your email filter's whitelist. You may need to search your email help menu for details on how to do this. Depending on software/version, they may call it a "whitelist," a "good list" or similar name. Adding the address dmg@downtownmusicgallery.com to your address book will help too.