Playlist, Week of 2025-06-15

Digging Farid Barron's piano work on this.... the Dead, the Duke, and Sun Ra continue to dominate my musical brain these days... in spite of recent lamented deaths...

Playlist 2025-06-16:

*Sophie Agnel: Song

*Art Ensemble of Chicago: The Paris Session "The Ninth Room" 

*Beach Boys: Pet Sounds (mono 50th anniversary) (sides 1, 2)

*Tim Berne's Snakeoil: Tim Berne's Snakeoil (The Tower Tapes #1) (disc 2)

*Sylvie Courvoisier: 2025-03-29 Big Ears, Knoxville TN (CDR)

*Dietrichs: No Bahdu

*Bob Dylan: The 1966 Live Recordings (disc 29)

*Egg: The Polite Force

*Duke Ellington and His Orchestra: Such Sweet Thunder

*Duke Ellington: Duke Ellington Meets Coleman Hawkins

*Duke Ellington: Money Jungle

*Duke Ellington/John Coltrane: Duke Ellington & John Coltrane (sides 1, 2)

*Duke Ellington: Liederhall Stuttgart 1967

*Grateful Dead: 1969-10-25 San Francisco (CDR) "Dark Star"

*Grateful Dead: 1969-11-02 San Francisco (CDR) "Dark Star"

*Hemphill Stringtet: Plays the Music of Julius Hemphill

*Judith Hill: Back in Time

*Led Zeppelin: Physical Graffiti (discs 1, 2)

*Allen Lowe and the Constant Sorrow Orchestra: Louis Armstrong's America, Vol. 2 (disc 2)

*Charles Mingus: Mingus Ah Um (sides 1, 2)

*Muffins: Baker's Dozen (discs 1, 2, 3)

*Muffins: Palindrome

*David Murray Quartet: Long Goodbye

*Music Revelation Ensemble: Cross Fire

*Slobber Pup: Black Aces "Accuser"

*Sly and the Family Stone: There's a Riot Goin' On (selections)

*Sparks: MAD! (sides 1, 2)

*Sun Ra and His Arkestra: Jazz in Silhouette (Expanded Edition) (side 3)

*Sun Ra: Nuits de la Fondation Maeght (discs 2, 3, 4)

*Sun Ra: Solo Piano, Vol. 1

*Sun Ra: Sleeping Beauty

*Sun Ra: Strange Celestial Road

*Sun Ra Arkestra: Live at the Paradox

*UYA: 1993-11-07 Metamorphobiallucanbe (wav)

*Various artists: Really the Blues? A Blues History 1893-1959 Vol. 1 (1893-1929) (discs 4, 5)

*Various artists: Martin Scorsese Presents The Blues (A Musical Journey) (disc 5)

*John Zorn/Brian Marsella Trio: Calculus "Parabolas"

Reading List, Week of 2025-06-15

Every bit as delightful as the first time around... 

Reading list 2025-06-16:

*Catullus, Gaius Valerius. Love Poems of Catullus (ed. Tynan Kogane) (started)
*King, Stephen. Never Flinch (started)
*Smith, Ali. Artful (reread/started/finished)
*Panter, Gary. Gary Panter (ed. Dan Nadel) (in progress)
*Lambert, Eddie. Duke Ellington: A Listener's Guide (reread/selections)
*Shakespeare, William. Othello (Arden 2nd ed., ed. M.R. Ridley) (reread/in progress)

 

Playlist, week of 2025-06-08

Once again I find myself shocked by a return to an album I'd... well, not dismissed, but was not overly impressed with, only to discover upon relistening that I was an idiot... case in point: Duke Ellington Meets Coleman Hawkins... I am not usually a fan of artificial superstar gatherings, and I'd stupidly slotted this album in that category when I first heard it, oh, 20 years ago... maybe this is the exception that proves the rule but damn this is so fine... Coleman Hawkins fits into the reduced Duke Ellington orchestra as if he'd always been there... as Eddie Lambert points out, the band was already primed by having two superior tenor saxists already on board in the past (Ben Webster and Paul Gonsalves)... and Hawkins had been at it since the 1920s with Fletcher Henderson, but by 1962 his tone is golden and fits in perfectly with Ellington's deceptively easy swing... his solo on "Mood Indigo" alone makes this an indisputable masterpiece... this just makes me think I need to listen to music more (as if I needed any prompting)... what else am I missing?

Playlist 2025-06-09:

*[Ahmed]: Wood Blues
*Art Ensemble of Chicago: 1978-10-07 Chicago (CDR) (disc 2)
*Art Ensemble of Chicago: 1978-10-14 Philadelphia (CDR) (disc 1)
*Artifacts: …And Then There’s This
*Tim Berne's Snakeoil: Tim Berne's Snakeoil (The Tower Tapes #1) (disc 1)
*Blondie: Blondie Singles Collection: 1977-1982 (disc 2)
*Blood Incantation: Absolute Elsewhere
*James Brown: Messing with the Blues (disc 2)
*John Butcher/Eddie Prévost: Interworks
*John Coltrane: 1966-07-02 Newport (CDR) "Leo"
*Elvis Costello & the Attractions: Get Happy (sides 1, 2)
*Kris Davis Trio: 2025-03-29 Big Ears, Knoxville TN (CDR)
*Bob Dylan/Various artists: Theme Time Radio Hour S01 E40 "Laughter"
*Duke Ellington and His Orchestra: Festival Session (side 2)
*Duke Ellington: The Girl's Suite/The Perfume Suite (side 2)
*Duke Ellington: Midnight in Paris
*Duke Ellington: Duke Ellington Meets Coleman Hawkins
*Duke Ellington: The Private Collection: Vol. 10, Studio Sessions New York & Chicago 1965, 1966, 1971 "Harlem"
*Duke Ellington and His Orchestra: Concert in the Virgin Islands (side 1)
*Michael Fornanek Elusion Quartet: Time Like This
*Grateful Dead: 1969-06-14 Monterey (CDR) "Dark Star"
*Grateful Dead: 1969-08-30 San Francisco (CDR) "Dark Star"
*Grateful Dead: 1969-09-01 Prairieville, LA (CDR) "Dark Star"
*Judith Hill: Back in Time
*Darius Jones: Legend of e'Boi (The Hypervigilant Eye)
*Louis Jordan and His Tympany Five: Louis Jordan's Greatest Hits (side 1)
*Allen Lowe and the Constant Sorrow Orchestra: Louis Armstrong's America, Vol. 2 (disc 1)
*Warne Marsh: Music for Prancing
*Muffins: Bandwidth
*Muffins: Double Negative
*New Ting: 2025-06-02 "Dire Frill" (wav)
*Ivo Perelman: The Art of the Improv Trio, Vol. 3
*Roxy Music: Country Life
*Masahiko Satoh/Otomo Yoshihide/Roger Turner: Sea
*Slobber Pup: Black Aces "Accuser"
*Wadada Leo Smith: 2025-03-30 Big Ears, Knoxville TN (CDR)
*Sparks: MAD!
*Bruce Springsteen: The Wild, the Innocent, and the E Street Shuffle
*Sun Ra and His Astro Infinity Arkestra: Holiday for Soul Dance
*Sun Ra Arkestra: ca. 1969-1970 Slugs', NYC (CDR) (disc 2)
*Sun Ra: Nuits de la Fondation Maeght (disc 1)
*Sun Ra: Kingdom of Discipline (side 2)
*Sun Ra: Haverford College, Jan. 25, 1980
*Henry Threadgill: Song Out of My Trees
*Various artists: Martin Scorsese Presents The Blues (A Musical Journey) (discs 1, 2, 3, 4)
*Various artists: Anthology of Noise and Electronic Music vol. 3: Third a-chronology 1952-2004 (disc 2)
*Wolf Eyes/Anthony Braxton: Live at Pioneer Works, Red Hook, NY, October 26th 2023
*Yes: Relayer (2016 remaster) (disc 1) "Gates of Delirium"

Reading List, Week of 2025-06-08

Reading list 2025-06-09:

*Panter, Gary. Gary Panter (ed. Dan Nadel) (started)
*Le Guin, Ursula K. Steering the Craft (started/finished)
*Hegarty, Paul. Noise/Music: A History (finished)
*Moore, Terry. Strangers in Paradise (Omnibus ed.) (finished)
*Lambert, Eddie. Duke Ellington: A Listener's Guide (reread/selections)
*Shakespeare, William. Othello (Arden 2nd ed., ed. M.R. Ridley) (reread/in progress)

 

Playlist, Week of 2025-06-01

 Well, I was way off base on Duke Ellington's "The Queen's Suite"... I wasn't taken with it at first, but after a few more listenings I can hear that it's beautiful, a masterful work of arranging and a unique combination of swing and mystery... Not much else to say this evening... if we were sitting somewhere pleasant, sharing a beer, I'm sure I'd have plenty to say about everything I've listened to this week... but when it comes to adding something in writing, I tend to freeze up... maybe it's the physicality of typing... 

Playlist 2025-06-02:

*[Ahmed]: Giant Beauty (disc 3)

*Air: Air Lore (side 2)

*Marshall Allen: 2009-07-06 London (CDR)

*Marshall Allen: New Dawn

*Marshall Allen's Ghost Horizons: Live in Philadelphia

*Jeff Beck Group: 1972-06-29 London (CDR)

*Dave Burrell: High Won - High Two (side 2)

*Nels Cline: Consentrik Quartet

*Deerhoof: Noble and Godlike in Ruin

*Paul Dunmall/Matthew Shipp/Joe Morris/Gerald Cleaver: The Bright Awakening

*Bob Dylan/Various artists: Theme Time Radio Hour S01 E39 "Tears"

*Duke Ellington and His Orchestra: The Ellington Suites "The Queen's Suite"

*Duke Ellington: The Girl's Suite/The Perfume Suite (side 1)

*Duke Ellington: Anatomy of a Murder

*Duke Ellington: All American in Jazz

*Duke Ellington: Midnight in Paris

*Duke Ellington: Live at the Berlin Jazz Festival 1969-1973

*Grateful Dead: 1969-08-21 Seattle (CDR) "Dark Star"

*Grateful Dead: 1969-08-23 St. Helens, OR (CDR) "Dark Star"

*Grateful Dead: Dick's Picks 4 (1970-02-13 Fillmore East) (disc 2) "That's It for the Other One"

*Mickey Hart & the Hartbeats: 1969-08-28 (CDR) "Dark Star Jam"

*Andrew Hill Sextet Plus 10: A Beautiful Day, Revisited (disc 1)

*Charles Mingus: Rarities 1946-1977 (discs 1, 2)

*Ikue Mori: Myrninerest

*Ikue Mori: Of Ghosts and Goblins

*Office Ladies: Malcolm Knew (disc 2)

*Annette Peacock: An Acrobat's Heart

*Phantom Orchard: Hit Parade of Tears

*Tom Rainey Trio: 2016-07-01 NYC (CDR) track 3

*Smokey Robinson & the Miracles: Ooo Baby: The Anthology (disc 2)

*Ravi Shankar: Master of Sitar

*Sparks: MAD! (sides 1, 2)

*Sun Ra and His Myth Science Arkestra: We Travel the Spaceways

*Sun Ra and His Inter-Galactic Research Arkestra: Nuits de la Fondation Maeght (sides 9, 10, 11, 12)

*Sun Ra and His Intergalactic Research Arkestra: Paradiso Amsterdam 1970 (side 3)

*Sun Ra and His Intergalactic Solar Arkestra: Space Is the Place: Music from the Original Soundtrack (disc 2)

*UYA: 1993-11-03 Kiss Your Meatshop, Swami (wav)

*Muddy Waters: The Anthology (disc 1)

*Anna Webber: Third Floor People

*John Zorn/Brian Marsella Trio: Ou Phrontis

Reading List, Wek of 2025-06-01

Reading list 2025-06-02:

*Hegarty, Paul. Noise/Music: A History (started)
*Dara, Evan. The Lost Scrapbook (finished)
*Martin Scorsese Presents The Blues: A Musical Journey (ed. Peter Guralnick et al.) (finished)
*Lambert, Eddie. Duke Ellington: A Listener's Guide (reread/selections)
*Moore, Terry. Strangers in Paradise (Omnibus ed.) (in progress)
*Shakespeare, William. Othello (Arden 2nd ed., ed. M.R. Ridley) (reread/in progress)

 

Playlist, Week of 2025-05-25

All American in Jazz is definitely one of the most underrated albums in the Ellington canon... maybe because there are no original Ellington-Strayhorn tunes, and the songs that are adapted are pretty mediocre ones from a failed Broadway musical... go figure: it's a fantastic record, with the band in top-notch form playing imaginative, driving arrangements and featuring great solos from Paul Gonsalves, Johnny Hodges, and Harold "Shorty" Baker, and great piano work from both Ellington and Strayhorn... 

Playlist 2025-05-26:

*[Ahmed]: Giant Beauty (disc 2)
*Air: Air Lore (side 1)
*Art Bears: Revisited (disc 2)
*Art Ensemble: 1967/68 (disc 4) "Quintet"
*Daniel Barbiero/Sam Byrd/Jimmy Ghaphery: 2017-12-02 Rhizome DC (CDR)
*Black Host: Life in the Sugar Candle Mines
*Anthony Braxton: Creative Music Orchestra (NYC) 2011
*James Brown: Messing with the Blues (disc 1)
*Dave Burrell: High Won - High Two (side 1)
*Deerhoof: Noble and Godlike in Ruin
*Bob Dylan/Various artists: Theme Time Radio Hour S01 E38 "Luck"
*Duke Ellington and His Orchestra: The Ellington Suites "The Queen's Suite"
*Duke Ellington and His Orchestra: A Drum Is a Woman (side 2)
*Duke Ellington: His Piano and His Orchestra at the Bal Masque
*Duke Ellington and His Orchestra: Festival Session (side 2)
*Duke Ellington and His Orchestra: Suite Thursday - Controversial Suite - Harlem Suite (side 1)
*Duke Ellington: Piano in the Foreground
*Duke Ellington: All American in Jazz
*Grateful Dead: 1969-08-03 San Francisco (CDR) (disc 2)
*Grateful Dead: 1969-08-16 Woodstock (CDR) "Dark Star"
*Grateful Dead: 1972-05-13 Lille, France (CDR) (disc 2) "The Other One"
*Grateful Dead: 1973-09-12 Williamsburg VA (CDR) (disc 2)
*Andrew Hill Sextet Plus 10: A Beautiful Day, Revisited (disc 2)
*Masayo Koketsu/Nava Dunkelman/Tim Berne: Poiēsis
*Brandon Lopez: Nada Sagrada
*Warne Marsh/Sal Mosca Quartet: Volume 2
*Ikue Mori/Brian Marsella/Sae Hashimoto: Archipelago X
*Ikue Mori/Steve Noble: Prediction and Warning
*Ikue Mori: Of Ghosts and Goblins
*Colin Moulding: The Hardest Battle
*New Ting: 2025-05-19 "Sigh Lonesome Hound (for Zeus)" (wav)
*Office Ladies: Malcolm Knew (disc 1)
*Elliott Sharp/Scott Fields: Réimsí Géara
*Sly and the Family Stone: Fresh
*Sun Ra: Sound Sun Pleasure (selections)
*Sun Ra: Jazz by Sun Ra, Vol. 1 [Sun Song]
*Sun Ra Arkestra: ca. 1969-1970 Slugs', NYC (CDR) (disc 1)
*Sun Ra Arkestra: 1969-07-03 Newport Jazz Festival (CDR)
*Sun Ra and His Inter-Galactic Research Arkestra: Nuits de la Fondation Maeght, Vol. 1 " The Cosmic Explorer"
*Sun Ra and His Inter-Galactic Research Arkestra: Nuits de la Fondation Maeght (sides 5, 6, 7, 8)
*Sun Ra: Piano Recital, Teatro La Fenice, Venezia
*Sun Ra: Uncharted Passages
*UYA: 1993-10-31 Reality Radio (wav)
*Various artists: Really the Blues? A Blues History 1893-1959 Vol. 1 (1893-1929) (disc 3)
*Various artists: Pennies from Heaven: 48 Original Recordings Featured in the BBC TV Serial (disc 2)
*Frank Zappa: Apostrophe (50th Anniversary Ed.) (disc 5)