Playlist, Week of 2025-11-30

 

I like Future Teenage Cave Artists much better now than when it first came out... Deerhoof makes great driving music (as I was reminded of in August), and I need to go back and revisit all the albums after Breakup Song (which for me they still have yet to top, although Noble and Godlike in Ruin comes close)... The quality of Duke Ellington's later suites drops off considerably after The Afro-Eurasian Eclipse, not least because of the death of Johnny Hodges shortly before, but there's still some great moments to come...

Playlist 2025-12-01:

*Marshall Allen's Ghost Horizons: Live in Philadelphia
*Art Ensemble of Chicago: 1980-02-23 New Haven (CDR) (disc 1)
*Beatles: Sgt. Peppers Lonely Heart Club Band (Super Deluxe Ed.) (disc 4)
*Beatles: Anthology 4 (discs 1, 2)
*Anthony Braxton: Quartet (England) 1985 (disc 2)
*Anthony Braxton: 9 Compositions (Iridium) 2006 (selections)
*Patricia Brennan: Of the Near and Far
*Kris Davis Trio: 2025-11-05 Vienna (CDR) (disc 2)
*Miles Davis Quintet: Miles in France 1963 & 1964: The Bootleg Series, Vol. 8 (disc 4)
*Miles Davis: Dark Magus (disc 1)
*Deerhoof: Future Teenage Cave Artists
*Deerhoof: Noble and Godlike in Ruin
*Duke Ellington: Latin American Suite
*Duke Ellington: New Orleans Suite
*Duke Ellington: The Afro-Eurasian Eclipse
*Duke Ellington and His Orchestra: The Ellington Suites "The Goutelas Suite"
*Fred Frith/Mariá Portugal: Matter
*Grateful Dead: 1970-09-19 Fillmore East NYC (CDR) "Dark Star"
*Grateful Dead: 1972-05-11 Rotterdam (CDR) (disc 3) "Dark Star"
*Grateful Dead: 1972-05-18 Munich (CDR) (disc 3) "Dark Star"
*Grateful Dead: 1972-05-23 London (CDR) (disc 3) "Dark Star"
*Grateful Dead: 1972-09-15 Boston (Enjoying the Ride, disc 10)
*Guided By Voices: It's Not Them. It Can't Be Them. It Is Them!
*Guided By Voices: La La Land
*Tim Harding/OJ Hunter/Fred McGann/Sam Byrd: 2025-11-21 RVA (m4a)
*Bobby Hutcherson: Spiral
*King Crimson: Lizard (Elemental Mixes)
*Fela Ransome-Kuti and the Africa '70 with Ginger Baker: Live! (sides 1, 2)
*Joëlle Léandre/Jérôme Bourdellon: Evidence
*Paul McCartney: Band on the Run (side 2)
*Camila Nebbia featuring Marilyn Crispell & Lesley Mok: A Reflection Distorts over Water
*News From Babel: Sirens & Silences/Work Resumed on the Tower
*News from Babel: Letters Home
*Nicole Mitchell & an_ARCHE NewMusic Ensemble: Arc Of O: For Improvisers, Chamber Orchestra & Electronics
*Joe Morris: Abstract Truth
*Muffins: Baker's Dozen (disc 3)
*New Ting: 2025-11-24 "I Got a Backyard in My Truck" (wav)
*Sifters: Sifters
*Sun Ra and His Arkestra: Supersonic Jazz (21st Century Expanded Ed.) (sides 1, 2)
*Sun Ra and His Solar Arkestra: The Magic City (remastered and expanded stereo version) (side 2)
*Sun Ra: Heliocentric Worlds Vol. 3: The Lost Tapes
*Sun Ra and His Astro-Infinity Arkestra: Continuation (side 2)
*Sun Ra: Intergalactic Research (The Lost Reels Collection Vol. 2) "Intergalactic Universe"
*UYA: 1994-04-21 Quaver Behavior (wav)
*UYA: 1994-04-27 Surfin' with Dick Dole! (wav)
*Various artists: That Devilin' Tune: A Jazz History (1927-1934) (Vol. II, discs 1, 3)

Reading List, Week of 2025-11-30

Reading List 2025-12-01:

*Becker, Adam. More Everything Forever (in progress)
*Bernard, Bruce. Century (in progress)
*Ellmann, Lucy. Ducks, Newburyport (reread/in progress)
*Sheffield, Rob. Dreaming the Beatles (in progress)
*Simonson, Walter, et al. The Mighty Thor: Omnibus (in progress)
*Shakespeare, William. As You Like It (Arden 2nd series, ed. Agnes Latham) (reread/in progress)

Playlist, Week of 2025-11-23

 

Craig Taborn channels Sun Ra on Trio of Bloom... powerful playing here from the whole trio... What a force of nature Globe Unity must have seemed back in 1967... this music is still forceful and powerful today, rivaling Sun Ra in sheer intensity (minus the synths, of course)... I am nearing the end of my consecutive sweep through Duke Ellington's suites... just a few more to go... but of course, I will be returning to many of these again and again for the rest of my life... 

Playlist 2025-11-24:

*Allied Chemical Brothers: Meet Mr. Beat
*Beatles Remixers Group: Tuned to a Natural E,Vol. 5
*Patricia Brennan: 2025-08-22 Saalfelden (CDR)
*Patricia Brennan: Of the Near and Far
*Rodger Coleman/Sam Byrd: Cosmologies (side 2)
*Kris Davis Trio: 2025-11-05 Vienna (CDR) (disc 1)
*Miles Davis: The Prestige 10-Inch LP Collection, Vol. 2 (LP 2: sides 1, 2; LP 5: side 1)
*Miles Davis: The Cellar Door Sessions 1970 (disc 5) "What I Say"
*Deerhoof: Future Teenage Cave Artists
*Bill Dixon: Bill Dixon in Italy, Vol. 2 (side 1)
*Bob Dylan: Oh Mercy
*Duke Ellington: Ellington Remembered (sides 1, 2)
*Duke Ellington: Latin American Suite
*Duke Ellington: New Orleans Suite
*Globe Unity Orchestra: Globe Unity ‘67 & ‘70 "Globe Unity '67"
*Grateful Dead: 1971-04-27 Fillmore East (Enjoying the Ride, disc 9)
*Grateful Dead: 1972-05-04 Paris (CDR) (disc 3) "Dark Star"
*Grateful Dead: Europe '72 Vol. 2 (disc 2) "Dark Star > The Other One"
*Tim Harding/OJ Hunter/Fred McGann/Sam Byrd: Bassline Excerpts (CDR)
*Jimi Hendrix Experience: Axis: Bold as Love
*Bobby Hutcherson: Total Eclipse
*Thomas Morgan: Around You Is a Forest
*Muffins: Baker's Dozen (disc 2)
*New Ting: 2025-11-17 "Preservedly Gargle" (wav)
*Pink Floyd: The Piper at the Gates of Dawn
*Plumb: Plumb (disc 1)
*Smokey Robinson & the Miracles: Ooo Baby: The Anthology (disc 1)
*Small Faces: Ogdens' Nut Gone Flake
*Ches Smith: Clone Row
*Sun Ra and His Arkestra: Supersonic Jazz (21st Century Expanded Ed.) (sides 3, 4)
*Sun Ra and His Arkestra: Jazz in Silhouette (Expanded Edition) (sides 1, 4)
*Sun Ra and His Inter-Galactic Research Arkestra: Nuits de la Fondation Maeght (side 12)
*Sun Ra & His Intergalactic Research Arkestra: Berlin 1970 (youtube)
*Sun Ra: Lanquidity (45rpm version) (sides 1, 2, 3, 4)
*Sun Ra: Media Dreams (side 2)
*Henry Threadgill: Listen Ship
*Trio of Bloom: Trio of Bloom
*UYA: 1994-04-10 Bath Mat on Toast (wav)
*Various artists: That Devilin' Tune: A Jazz History (1927-1934) (Vol. II, disc 2)
*Various artists: Martin Scorsese Presents The Blues (A Musical Journey) (disc 2)

Reading List, Week of 2025-11-23

Reading List 2025-11-24:

*Becker, Adam. More Everything Forever (started)
*Sheffield, Rob. Dreaming the Beatles (started)
*Simonson, Walter, et al. The Mighty Thor: Omnibus (started)
*Herriman, George. Krazy and Ignatz: Howling Among the Halls of Night: The Komplete Kat Komics, Vol. 4: 1919 (finished)
*Leonard, Elmore. The Complete Western Stories (finished)
*Bernard, Bruce. Century (in progress)
*Ellmann, Lucy. Ducks, Newburyport (reread/in progress)
*Lambert, Eddie. Duke Ellington: A Listener's Guide (reread/selections)
*Shakespeare, William. As You Like It (Arden 2nd series, ed. Agnes Latham) (reread/in progress)
 

Playlist, Week of 2025-11-16

The new remaster of Sun Ra's Supersonic Jazz (the "21st Century Expanded Edition") sounds the best it ever has, and Rodger Coleman does a great job on the liner notes... recorded in early 1956 before their Transition record (Jazz by Sun Ra, aka Sun Song), Super-Sonic Jazz (originally released with the hyphen) can lay claim to being the Arkestra's first album.... and what an album it is, replete with tunes that would become Ra standards: "Sunology" (later performed with vocals as "The Lion of the Heavens"), "Advice to Medics" (which would later morph into "Friendly Galaxy"), "El Is the Sound of Joy"... as usual, Cosmic Myth has generously loaded the release with an album's worth of extra tracks, including some alternate takes of tunes on the album, but also several unreleased gems, some of which seem to have come from the Transition sessions ("Delilah," "Stratosphere")... overall a fantastic release, with one quibble: I wish they'd included the unreleased track "Journey to Discland" on the vinyl version instead of as a CD-only bonus track... oh well... 

Playlist 2025-11-17:

*Muhal Richard Abrams Orchestra: Blu Blu Blu "Bloodline"
*Art Ensemble of Chicago: 1979-11-25 Washington DC (CDR) (disc 2)
*Beatles: Past Masters (2009 stereo remaster) (sides 2, 3)
*Beatles: Yesterday and Today (sides 1, 2)
*Beatles: Sgt. Peppers Lonely Heart Club Band (Super Deluxe Ed.) (disc 3)
*Anthony Braxton: Quintet (Basel) 1977 "Comp. 69J"
*Anthony Braxton: Quartet (England) 1985 (disc 1)
*D’Angelo and the Vanguard: Black Messiah (sides 3, 4)
*Miles Davis: The Complete Columbia Studio Recordings of the Miles Davis Quintet 1965-1968 (disc 4) "Circle in the Round"
*Walt Dickerson/Sun Ra: Visions
*Bob Dylan/Various artists: Theme Time Radio Hour S01 E50 "Spring Cleaning Pt. 1"
*Duke Ellington: Yale Concert
*Duke Ellington: Live in Mexico "The Mexican Suite"
*Duke Ellington: Third Sacred Concert: The Majesty Of God
*Grateful Dead: 1971-04-25/27 Fillmore East (Enjoying the Ride, disc 8)
*Grateful Dead: 1972-04-17 Copenhagen (disc 3) "Dark Star"
*Grateful Dead: Rockin' the Rhein with the Grateful Dead (disc 3) "Dark Star > Me and My Uncle > Dark Star"
*Grateful Dead: 1972-04-29 Hamburg (CDR) (disc 2) "Dark Star"
*Tim Harding/Fred McGann/Sam Byrd: 2025-09-29 RVA (CDR)
*Tim Harding/OJ Hunter/Fred McGann/Sam Byrd: 2025-10-17 RVA (CDR)
*Tim Harding/OJ Hunter/Fred McGann/Sam Byrd: 2025-11-01 RVA (CDR)
*Tim Harding/OJ Hunter/Fred McGann/Sam Byrd: 2025-11-07 RVA (CDR)
*Tim Harding/OJ Hunter/Fred McGann/Sam Byrd: 2025-11-14 RVA (CDR)
*Tim Harding/OJ Hunter/Fred McGann/Sam Byrd: Bassline Excerpts (CDR)
*Henry Cow: Unrest
*Bobby Hutcherson: Oblique
*Bobby Hutcherson: Patterns
*Henry Kaiser/Wadada Leo Smith: Yo Miles!: Upriver (disc 2)
*Pat Metheny: "Quartet"
*New Ting: 2024-07-14 "Magic Duck Feet" (wav)
*New Ting: 2025-11-10 "Thirty Year Woofer" (wav)
*Prince: Blast from the Past 8.0 (excerpts)
*Luis Russell 1929-1930 (disc 2)
*Wayne Shorter: Adam's Apple
*Sun Ra and His Arkestra: Supersonic Jazz (21st Century Expanded Ed.) (sides 1, 2, 3, 4)
*Trio of Bloom: Trio of Bloom
*UYA: 1994-03-27 Educate My Mandole (wav)
*UYA: 1994-03-29 Can I Be Your Palbino? (wav)
*Who: The Who Sell Out

Reading List, Week of 2025-11-16

Reading List 2025-11-17:

*Ellmann, Lucy. Ducks, Newburyport (reread/started)
*Herriman, George. Krazy and Ignatz: Howling Among the Halls of Night: The Komplete Kat Komics, Vol. 4: 1919 (started)
*Shakespeare, William. As You Like It (Arden 2nd series, ed. Agnes Latham) (reread/started)
*Herriman, George. Krazy and Ignatz: The Limbo of Useless Unconsciousness: The Komplete Kat Komics, Vol. 3: 1918 (finished)
*Shakespeare, William. King Henry VIII (Arden 2nd series, ed. R.A. Foakes) (reread/finished)
*Bernard, Bruce. Century (in progress)
*Lambert, Eddie. Duke Ellington: A Listener's Guide (reread/selections)
*Leonard, Elmore. The Complete Western Stories (in progress)
 

Nicole Mitchell and JoVia Armstrong at Artspace, RVA, 2025-11-10

 

 

  

Excellent show last night from Nicole Mitchell and JoVia Armstrong at Artspace in Richmond. Lots of electronics from both players, with several intensely trancey grooves. Just beautiful.