Playlist, Week of 2025-03-23

Weird of Mouth consists of improvisations from the trio of Mette Rasmussen, Ches Smith, and Craig Taborn... Smith and Taborn I was familiar with, but Rasmussen less so... she is an excellent, fiery alto sax player... their playing together here is dazzling and brilliant... Yes, What's Going On is a masterpiece, but I have a soft spot in my heart for I Want You, and I think it's a better seduction album than Let's Get It On... I am finding "The Queen's Suite" to be one of the weakest of Duke Ellington's suites, in spite of what Lambert has to say about it... I will listen more to see what I am missing... I love the concept of Yo Miles! but they can't touch the pure intensity of what inspired them... but it's great that that music continued to be played; it needs to be, even if it ain't Miles... 

Playlist 2025-03-24:

*Louis Armstrong: From the Original Okehs Vol. 3 1928/29
*Average White Band: Average White Band
*Black Host: Life in the Sugar Candle Mines "Hover"
*Blood Incantation: Absolute Elsewhere
*Blue Notes: Blue Notes for Mongezi (disc 2)
*Blue Notes: Blue Notes in Concert
*Anthony Braxton: 2 Compositions (Ensemble) 1989/1991
*Anthony Braxton Quartet: Standards (Brussels) 2006 (discs 2, 3)
*Patricia Brennan Septet: Breaking Stretch
*Kris Davis: Diatom Ribbons Live at the Village Vanguard (disc 1)
*Kris Davis Trio: 2022-05-13 NYC (CDR)
*Miles Davis: 1972-09-14 Boston (CDR)
*Miles Davis: In Concert (sides 1, 2)
*Nick Dunston: Atlantic Extraction
*Nick Dunston: Colla Voce
*Bob Dylan/Various artists: Theme Time Radio Hour S01 E26 "Halloween"
*Duke Ellington: The Private Collection, Vol. 1: Studio Sessions Chicago, 1956
*Duke Ellington and His Orchestra: Newport 1958
*Duke Ellington/Johnny Hodges: Back to Back
*Duke Ellington/Johnny Hodges: Side by Side
*Duke Ellington and His Orchestra: The Ellington Suites "The Queen's Suite"
*Marvin Gaye: I Want You (Deluxe Edition) (discs 1, 2)
*Grateful Dead: The Complete Fillmore West 1969 (disc 8) "Dark Star"
*Grateful Dead: 1969-03-15 San Francisco (CDR) "Dark Star"
*Grateful Dead: 1969-03-22 Pasadena (CDR) "Dark Star"
*Grateful Dead: 1969-03-28 Modesto, CA (CDR) "Dark Star"
*Grateful Dead: 1969-03-29 Las Vegas (CDR) "Dark Star"
*Grateful Dead: 1974-09-11 London (CDR) "Seastones"
*Grateful Dead: 1980-09-04 Providence RI (Download Series Vol. 7) (disc 3)
*Mary Halvorson Octet: Away with You
*Mary Halvorson Octet: 2018-11-12 Venice (CDR)
*Henry Kaiser/Wadada Leo Smith: Yo Miles!: Sky Garden (disc 1)
*Janel Leppin: Ensemble Volcanic Ash: To March Is to Love
*Little Feat: Waiting for Columbus (disc 1)
*Locals: Play the Music of Anthony Braxton
*Brandon Lopez: Nada Sagrada
*Allen Lowe and the Constant Sorrow Orchestra: Louis Armstrong's America, Vol. 2 (discs 1, 2)
*Brian Marsella’s iMAGiNARiUM: Mediatas (disc 3)
*Charles Mingus and His Jazz Groups: Mingus Dynasty
*Matt Mitchell: Vista Accumulation (discs 1, 2)
*Roscoe Mitchell: Solo [3] (disc 3)
*Roscoe Mitchell: One Head Four People
*Ikue Mori: Obelisk
*New Ting: 2025-03-03: "Cleaning Up the Corners" (wav)
*Opeth: The Last Will and Testament
*Ozric Tentacles: Jurassic Shift
*Evan Parker Electro-Acoustic Ensemble: Warszawa 2019
*Red Trio/John Butcher: Summer Skyshift
*Matana Roberts: Coin Coin Chapter Two: Mississippi Moonchile
*Ravi Shankar: Live: Ravi Shankar at the Monterey International Pop Festival
*Sharp/Lopez/Kaiser/Amendola: Minus X: A Tribute to the Music of Iannis Xenakis (disc 1)
*Matthew Shipp Trio: New Concepts in Piano Trio Jazz
*UYA: 1993-08-21 Office Facility Love Nest Rug (wav)
*UYA: 1993-09-13 Intervallic Shapes (wav)
*UYA: 1993-09-19 Off the Corner (wav)
*Various artists: That Devilin' Tune (Vol. I, disc 7)
*Anna Webber: simpletrio2000
*Webber/Morris Big Band: Both Are True
*Ben Webster: Ballads (sides 1, 2)
*Weird of Mouth: Weird of Mouth

Reading List, Week of 2025-03-23

Reading List 2025-03-24:

*Eco, Umberto. Confessions of a Young Novelist (started)
*Lowe, Allen. Turn Me Loose White Man, or, Appropriating Culture: How to Listen to American Music, 1900-1960, Vol. 2 (finished)
*Lambert, Eddie. Duke Ellington: A Listener's Guide (reread/selections)
*Mendelson, Cheryl. Home Comforts: The Art and Science of Keeping House (in progress)
*Williams, Tad. To Green Angel Tower (in progress)
*Young, Marguerite. Miss MacIntosh, My Darling (reread/in progress)

 

Playlist, Week of 2025-03-16

The most well-known version of "Dark Star" has to be the first one the Grateful Dead released, on Live/Dead... and that really was the best version they'd played (that was recorded, anyway) up to that point... everything comes together... up to then, Bill Kreutzmann had kept himself to half-heartedly playing shakers, with only occasional tentative forays on the drum kit, until 1969-02-22, and that must have felt good, because here, a few days later, he plays the kit forcefully for part of the song, driving Garcia in a different way and adding a new dimension, which to my ears kicks it to the next level... "Dark Star" is becoming more and more of a full-group improvisatory exploration... This week my listening was focused, it seems, on "Dark Star," Duke Ellington, Roscoe Mitchell, Anthony Braxton, and Sun Ra... so what else is new?

Playlist 2025-03-17:

*[Ahmed]: Wood Blues

*[Ahmed]: Giant Beauty (disc 2)

*All Set: All Set

*Johann Sebastian Bach: The Well-Tempered Clavier (Glenn Gould) (disc 1)

*Beatles: The Early Beatles (mono 2024) (side 1)

*Blue Notes: Blue Notes for Mongezi (disc 2)

*Hamiet Bluiett: Orchestra, Duo, & Septet (sides 1, 2)

*Anthony Braxton: Ninetet (Yoshi's) 1997, Vol. 3 (disc 2)

*Anthony Braxton Ensemble: 2006-06-10 Kerava, Finland (CDR)

*Anthony Braxton Sextet: 2006-08-12 Lisboa (CDR)

*Anthony Braxton Quartet: Standards (Brussels) 2006 (disc 1)

*Peter Brötzmann Octet: The Complete Machine Gun Sessions "Machine Gun"

*Clear Frame: Clear Frame

*Gerald Cleaver & Violet Hour: Live At Firehouse 12

*John Coltrane: One Down, One Up: Live at the Half Note (disc 1)

*John Coltrane: First Meditations (For Quartet) (side 1)

*Miles Davis: In Person Friday and Saturday Nights at the Blackhawk, Complete (disc 3)

*Miles Davis Quintet: 1967-11-07 Karlsruhe, Germany (CDR)

*Bob Dylan/Various artists: Theme Time Radio Hour S01 E24 "Time"

*Bob Dylan/Various artists: Theme Time Radio Hour S01 E25 "Guns"

*Duke Ellington: The Girls' Suite/The Perfume Suite (side 2)

*Duke Ellington/Ella Fitzgerald: Ella Fitzgerald Sings the Duke Ellington Song Book (disc 3) "Portrait of Ella Fitzgerald"

*Duke Ellington and His Orchestra: Ellington Indigos (sides 1, 2)

*Duke Ellington: His Piano and His Orchestra at the Bal Masque

*Duke Ellington's Spacemen: The Cosmic Scene

*Duke Ellington and His Orchestra: Live at Newport 1958 (discs 1, 2)

*Duke Ellington and His Orchestra: Jazz at the Plaza Vol. II (side 1)

*Duke Ellington and His Orchestra: Ellington Jazz Party in Stereo (side 1)

*Kate Gentile: Mannequins

*George: Leave It (side 2)

*George: Letters to George (side 2)

*Grateful Dead: Fillmore East 2-11-69 (disc 2) "Dark Star"

*Grateful Dead: 1969-02-14 Philadelphia (CDR) "Dark Star"

*Grateful Dead: 1969-02-15 Philadelphia (CDR) "Dark Star"

*Grateful Dead: 1969-02-21 Vellejo, CA (CDR) (disc 1)

*Grateful Dead: 1969-02-22 Vellejo, CA (CDR) "Mountains of the Moon > Dark Star"

*Grateful Dead: Live/Dead "Dark Star"

*Grateful Dead: The Complete Fillmore West 1969 (disc 4) "Dark Star"

*Grateful Dead: The Complete Fillmore West 1969 (disc 7) "Dark Star"

*Mary Halvorson: Reverse Blue

*Billie Holiday: The Complete Billie Holiday on Verve 1945-1959 (disc 1)

*Vijay Iyer: Compassion

*Jefferson Pilot: The Return of Troubled Youth Orchestra

*Jefferson Pilot: Sad Magazine

*Ned Lagin: Seastones (1975 versions)

*Lama + Chris Speed: Lamaçal

*Allen Lowe and the Constant Sorrow Orchestra: Louis Armstrong's America, Vol. 1 (discs 1, 2)

*Jimmie Lunceford: The Complete Jimmie Lunceford Decca Sessions (disc 4)

*Brian Marsella’s iMAGiNARiUM: Mediatas (discs 1, 2)

*Roscoe Mitchell: Songs in the Wind

*Roscoe Mitchell: 2012-03-10 London (CDR)

*Roscoe Mitchell/Brus Trio: After Fallen Leaves

*Roscoe Mitchell and the Note Factory: The Bad Guys

*Thelonious Monk: Piano Solos (side 1)

*Ikue Mori: Class Insecta

*New Ting: 2025-03-03: "Cleaning Out the Corners" (wav)

*NRBQ: Interstellar (side 1)

*Tony Oxley Quintet: The Baptised Traveller

*Zeena Parkins: Dam Against the Spring Tide

*Matana Roberts: Coin Coin Chapter Two: Mississippi Moonchile

*Matana Roberts: Coin Coin Chapter Five: In the Garden (sides 3, 4)

*Sonny Rollins: Worktime (side 1)

*Otis Rush: 1956-1958 Cobra Recordings

*Secret People: Secret People

*Ravi Shankar: The Sounds of India

*Sun Ra and His Solar Arkestra: Other Planes of There (side 2)

*Sun Ra and His Myth Science Arkestra: When Angels Speak of Love (sides 1, 2)

*Sun Ra: Heliocentric Worlds Vol. 3: The Lost Tapes

*Sun Ra: Spaceways [Outer Spaceways Inc.]

*Sun Ra: Monorails & Satellites: Works for Solo Piano Vols. 1, 2, 3 (disc 3)

*Sun Ra and His Arkestra: Thunder of the Gods (side 1)

*Sun Ra: Egypt 1971 (disc 3)

*Henry Threadgill's Zooid: Pop Start the Tape, StoP

*Mary Lou Williams Trio: Free Spirits

*John Zorn: New Masada Quartet Vol. 3

*John Zorn/Brian Marsella Trio: Ballades

Reading List, Week of 2025-03-16

Reading List 2025-03-17:

*Williams, Tad. To Green Angel Tower (started)
*Paré, Alix, and Valérie Sueur-Hermel. The Fantastic Gustave Doré (finished)
*Lambert, Eddie. Duke Ellington: A Listener's Guide (reread/selections)
*Lowe, Allen. Turn Me Loose White Man, or, Appropriating Culture: How to Listen to American Music, 1900-1960, Vol. 2 (in progress)
*Mendelson, Cheryl. Home Comforts: The Art and Science of Keeping House (in progress)
*Young, Marguerite. Miss MacIntosh, My Darling (reread/in progress)

Playlist, Week of 2025-03-09

Not much to say this weak week... drifting in and out of listening...

Playlist 2025-03-10:

*Marshall Allen: New Dawn
*Borderlands Trio: Wandersphere (discs 1, 2)
*Anthony Braxton: Ninetet (Yoshi's) 1997, Vol. 3 (disc 1)
*Death Ambient: Drunken Forest
*Bob Dylan/Various artists: Theme Time Radio Hour S01 E23 "Water"
*Duke Ellington and His Orchestra: Such Sweet Thunder
*Duke Ellington/Ella Fitzgerald: Ella Fitzgerald Sings the Duke Ellington Song Book (disc 3)
*Grateful Dead: 1969-01-26 San Francisco (CDR) "Dark Star"
*Grateful Dead: 1969-02-04 Omaha, NE (CDR) "Dark Star"
*Grateful Dead: 1969-02-05 Kansas City (CDR) "Dark Star"
*Grateful Dead: 1969-02-06 St. Louis (CDR) "Dark Star"
*Grateful Dead: 1969-02-07 Pittsburgh (CDR) "Dark Star"
*Jefferson Pilot: Welcome Stranger
*Jefferson Pilot: Long Distance
*Jefferson Pilot: The Hopeless News
*Locals: Play the Music of Anthony Braxton
*Mindbreath Trio: 2015-01-10 Union Arts, Washington DC (wav)
*Roscoe Mitchell: Solo [3] (disc 2)
*Ikue Mori: Hex Kitchen
*Charlie Parker: Yardbird in Lotusland (side 1)
*Ravi Shankar: India's Master Musician
*Sun Ra: Saturn Research: Rarities and Oddities (CDR compilation) (disc 2)
*Sun Ra and His Myth Science Arkestra: Fate in a Pleasant Mood
*Sun Ra: Egypt 1971 (discs 1, 2)
*Sunn O))): Kanno
*Henry Threadgill Very Very Circus: 1992-01-30 London (CDR)
*Two Much: Reut Regev/Igal Foni: Never Enough
*UMO Jazz Orchestra: UMO Plays the Music Of Muhal Richard Abrams
*Vandermark 5: Beat Reader
*Various artists: Turn Me Loose White Man (discs 9, 10, 11, 12, 13)
*Various artists: Subradar Sampler #02
*David S. Ware et al.: Planetary Unknown
*Hank Williams: The Original Singles Collection Plus (disc 3)
*Wire: Pink Flag
*Neil Young: After the Gold Rush

Reading List, Week of 2025-03-09

The new Ali Smith novel is all too scaringly prescient, and yet also hopeful... 

Reading List 2024-03-10:

*Smith, Ali. Gliff (started/finished)
*Williams, Tad. Stone of Farewell (finished)
*Lambert, Eddie. Duke Ellington: A Listener's Guide (reread/selections)
*Lowe, Allen. Turn Me Loose White Man, or, Appropriating Culture: How to Listen to American Music, 1900-1960, Vol. 2 (in progress)
*Mendelson, Cheryl. Home Comforts: The Art and Science of Keeping House (in progress)
*Paré, Alix, and Valérie Sueur-Hermel. The Fantastic Gustave Doré (in progress)
*Young, Marguerite. Miss MacIntosh, My Darling (reread/in progress)

Playlist, Week of 2025-03-02

 

Roscoe Mitchell's Solo [3] is becoming my favorite of his solo recordings (except for the original solo version of "Nonaah")... Solo [3] is one disc horn overdubs, one disc solo alto, and one disc percussion or solo sax... it is incredibly compelling... It's hard to get past some of the coy narration, but there are some musical gems scattered throughout A Drum Is a Woman, especially from Clark Terry... it's really too bad that no footage of the original televised show seems to exist... Such Sweet Thunder, on the other hand, is nothing but one magnificent gem of a masterpiece... The Dark Stars are getting interesting in a different way now that Tom Constanten has joined... he's certainly interesting, but his early shows are rough, and I am missing Pigpen on organ... I think that will change by the time we get to Live/Dead...

Playlist 2025-03-03:

*[Ahmed]: Giant Beauty (disc 1)
*All Set: All Set
*Art Ensemble of Chicago: Third Decade (side 2)
*Albert Ayler et al.: New York Eye and Ear Control (side 1)
*Beatles: Beatles for Sale (2009 mono remaster)
*Anthony Braxton with the Creative Jazz Orchestra: Composition No. 175, Composition No. 126 Trillium-Dialogues M (disc 1)
*Anthony Braxton + Duke Ellington: Concept Of Freedom (Dahinden/Kleeb/Polisoidis/Höldrich)
*Anthony Braxton/Italian Instabile Orchestra: Creative Orchestra (Bolzano) 2007 "Comp. 164 pt. 1"
*Rodger Coleman and Sam Byrd: 2022-11-26 Nashville (wav) track 1
*John Coltrane: Evenings at the Village Gate "Africa"
*Cream: Best of Cream (side 2)
*Miles Davis Quintet: Live in Europe 1967: The Bootleg Series Vol. 1 (disc 3)
*Nick Dunston: Atlantic Extraction
*Bob Dylan: The Bootleg Series Vol. 1-3 (disc 1)
*Duke Ellington and His Orchestra: The Treasury Shows, Vol. 11 (disc 1)
*Duke Ellington: Ellington at Newport 1956 (Complete) (discs 1, 2)
*Duke Ellington and His Orchestra: A Drum Is a Woman
*Duke Ellington and His Orchestra: Such Sweet Thunder (sides 1, 2)
*Duke Ellington: Money Jungle
*Grateful Dead: 1969-01-24 San Francisco (CDR) "Dark Star"
*Grateful Dead: 1969-01-25 San Francisco (CDR) "Dark Star"
*Grateful Dead: 1972-04-11 Newcastle (CDR) "Truckin'"
*Mary Halvorson Quintet: Saturn Sings
*Earl Hines: Giants of Jazz (disc 2)
*Jefferson Pilot: Shadow Hobby
*Jimmie Lunceford: The Complete Jimmie Lunceford Decca Sessions (disc 3)
*Charles Mingus: Let My Children Hear Music (side 2)
*Roscoe Mitchell & the Note Factory: Song for My Sister
*Roscoe Mitchell: Solo [3] (disc 1)
*Paul Motian: Tribute (side 1)
*New Ting: 2025-02-24 "Advance Remorse for Bell of the Cow" (wav)
*Painkiller: Samsara
*Evan Parker ElectroAcoustic Septet: Seven "Seven-2"
*Zeena Parkins: Dam against the Spring Tide
*Pete "La Roca" Sims: Basra
*Nino Rota: 8 ½ (OST)
*Nino Rota: Fellini's Amarcord (side 1)
*Hazel Scott Trio: Relaxed Piano Moods
*Tyshawn Sorey: The Inner Spectrum of Variables (disc 2) "Movement V + VI + Reprise"
*Tyshawn Sorey Trio: The Susceptible Now
*Sparks: Exotic Creatures of the Deep (sides 3, 4)
*Sun Ra: Art Forms of Dimensions Tomorrow (side 2)
*Sun Ra and His Solar Arkestra: Secrets of the Sun (side 1)
*Sun Ra and His Astro Infinity Arkestra: Strange Strings (Expanded Edition) (side 1)
*Sun Ra and His Astro-Ihnfinity Arkestra: Sun Embassy (side 1)
*Sun Ra Arkestra: Live At Pit-Inn Tokyo, Japan, 8, 8, 1988 (side 1)
*Bettye Swann: The Money Recordings
*Tower of Power: 1974-12-31 Winterland, SF (CDR)
*Cecil Taylor Quintet: 1965-07-02 Newport (CDR)
*Various artists: Turn Me Loose White Man (disc 8)
*Various artists: Latin Rhythms in Hi Fi
*Various artists: Easy Rhythms for Your Cocktail Hour
*Various artists: Space Age Cocktail Lounge (disc 1)
*Various artists: Anthology of Noise and Electronic Music vol. 1: First a-chronology 1921-2001 (disc 2)
*Anna Webber: Shimmer Wince
*Anna Webber/Matt Mitchell: Capacious Aeration
*John Zorn/JACK Quartet: The Complete String Quartets (disc 2)