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.

Playlist, Week of 2025-11-09

 

Duke Ellington's 1948 Carnegie Hall concert is a gem... the first documented recording of "Lush Life" (featuring its composer, Billy Strayhorn, on piano) and wonderful versions of "Reminiscing in Tempo" and "The Tattooed Bride" (also its premiere)... all this and Ben Webster too (although he's not featured nearly enough)... Profanation (Preparation for a Coming Darkness) is poppier than other Praxis records I've heard, and is weaker for it... Jumpin' and jivin' with Luis Russell... now I can't get "The New Call of the Freaks" out of my head... More to say on the new release of Sun Ra's Supersonic Jazz after I've absorbed it some more...

Playlist 2025-11-10:

*Marshall Allen: The Universe Oriki
*AMM: The Inexhaustible Document
*Art Ensemble of Chicago: The Paris Session "The Ninth Room"
*Art Ensemble of Chicago: 1979-11-25 Washington DC (CDR) (disc 1)
*Beatles Remixers Group: Tuned to a Natural E, Vol. 4
*Anthony Braxton: Composition No. 173 "Opening Music - Introduction"
*Jack DeJohnette New Directions: 1992-02-22 Charlottesville VA (CDR) (discs 1, 2)
*Bob Dylan/Various artists: Theme Time Radio Hour S01 E49 "Death and Taxes"
*Duke Ellington and His Orchestra: Carnegie Hall, November 13, 1948 (discs 1, 2)
*Duke Ellington: Second Sacred Concert
*Ella Fitzgerald/Louis Armstrong: Porgy and Bess
*Grateful Dead: 1971-10-21 Chicago (CDR) "Dark Star > Sittin' on Top of the World > Dark Star"
*Grateful Dead: Dick's Picks 2 (1971-10-31 Columbus OH) "Dark Star"
*Grateful Dead: 1971-12-05 NYC (CDR) "Dark Star > Me and My Uncle > Dark Star"
*Grateful Dead: 1972-04-14 Copenhagen (disc 3) "Dark Star"
*Barry Guy/Mats Gustafsson/Raymond Strid: Tarfala
*Joe Henderson: Mode for Joe
*Paul McCartney: Band on the Run (side 1)
*Roscoe Mitchell: One Head Four People
*Praxis: Profanation (Preparation for a Coming Darkness)
*Prince: Blast from the Past 7.0 (excerpts)
*Keith Rowe/John Tilbury: Duos for Doris (disc 1)
*Luis Russell 1929-1930 (disc 1)
*Tyshawn Sorey: The Inner Spectrum of Variables (disc 1)
*Tyshawn Sorey: Pillars (disc 3)
*Sun Ra and His Arkestra: Supersonic Jazz (21st Century Expanded Ed.) (sides 1, 2, 3, 4)
*Sun Ra and His Arkestra: Prophet
*Weather Report: 1980-11-14 London (CDR)

Reading List, Week of 2025-11-09

A wonderful, satisfying (if bittersweet) ending to Pullman's marvelous series...

Reading List 2025-11-10:

*Leonard, Elmore. The Complete Western Stories (started)
*Pullman, Philip. The Rose Field (The Book of Dust, Vol. 3) (started/finished)
*Pullman, Philip. The Secret Commonwealth (The Book of Dust, Vol. 2) (reread/finished)
*Bernard, Bruce. Century (in progress)
*Herriman, George. Krazy and Ignatz: The Limbo of Useless Unconsciousness: The Komplete Kat Komics, Vol. 3: 1918 (in progress)
*Lambert, Eddie. Duke Ellington: A Listener's Guide (reread/selections)
*Shakespeare, William. King Henry VIII (Arden 2nd series, ed. R.A. Foakes) (reread/in progress)
 

Playlist, Week of 2025-11-02

 

In my "Dark Star" listening, I am now up to 1972, the beginning of the golden age of Dark Stars... some intense listening coming up, and the Steppin' Out "Star" (1972-04-08 London) is one of the best ever... Duke Ellington's Paris, March 1964 has great live versions of several tunes from The Far East Suite... As I have said before, I have found that I quite love Sun Ra's LP Prophet... so glad they discovered that music... it's amazing what he could do with an instrument he was playing for the first time... 

Playlist 2025-11-03:

*Rashied Ali/Frank Lowe: Duo Exchange (side 1)
*Art Ensemble: 1967/68 (disc 5) "Congliptious/Old"
*Art Ensemble of Chicago: 1979-06-29 NYC (CDR) (disc 2)
*Beatles: Sgt. Peppers Lonely Heart Club Band (Super Deluxe Ed.) (disc 2)
*Sonny Clark: The Complete Sonny Clark Blue Note Sessions (disc 3)
*Kenny Clarke/Andrew Cyrille/Milford Graves/Famoudou Don Moye: Pieces of Time (side 1)
*Rodger Coleman/Sam Byrd: Cosmologies (side 1)
*John Coltrane: Selflessness featuring My Favorite Things (side 2)
*D’Angelo and the Vanguard: 2015-06-14 Bonnaroo, Manchester, TN (CDR) (discs 1, 2)
*Miles Davis: In Concert (disc 2)
*Jack DeJohnette New Directions: In Europe (side 1)
*Duke Ellington: The Girls' Suite/The Perfume Suite (side 1)
*Duke Ellington: Paris, March 1964
*Duke Ellington: Soul Call
*Duke Ellington: The Far East Suite (side 2)
*Faust: The Faust Tapes
*George: "Do You Want to Go...Swimming?"
*Grateful Dead: 1971-12-15 Ann Arbor (CDR) "Dark Star"
*Grateful Dead: 1972-03-23 Academy of Music, NYC (CDR) "Dark Star"
*Grateful Dead: Steppin' Out with the Grateful Dead: England '72 (disc 4) "Dark Star"
*Tim Harding/OJ Hunter/Fred McGann/Sam Byrd: 2025-11-01 RVA (CDR)
*King Crimson: Lizard (Elemental Mixes)
*Muffins: Baker's Dozen (disc 1)
*Pere Ubu: Datapanik in the Year Zero (sides 1, 2)
*Pere Ubu: New Picnic Time (sides 1, 2)
*Wayne Shorter: The All Seeing Eye
*Sonic Youth: Goodbye 20th Century (disc 1)
*Sun Ra and His Intergalactic Research Arkestra: Paradiso Amsterdam 1970 (side 1)
*Sun Ra: Media Dreams (side 1)
*Sun Ra: On Jupiter (side 1)
*Sun Ra and His Arkestra: Prophet (side 1)
*Sun Ra: Solo Works (CDR compilation)
*Sun Ra: Stray Voltage (discs 1, 2)
*Sun Ra Arkestra: Live at the Paradox
*Henry Threadgill: Listen Ship
*Trio of Bloom: Trio of Bloom
*UYA: 1994-03-13 Ideological Nipple (wav)
*UYA: 1994-03-24/27 Up Your Arkestra (wav)
*Various artists: Martin Scorsese Presents The Blues (A Musical Journey) (disc 1)
*Various artists: Stax Revue: Live in '65! (discs 1, 2)
*John Zorn: Prolegomena
*John Zorn/Brian Marsella Trio: Nocturnes

Reading List, Week of 2025-11-02

Rereading His Dark Materials and the first two volumes of the Pullman trilogy The Book of Dust in preparation for the brand new third volume!

Reading List 2025-11-03:

*Pullman, Philip. The Secret Commonwealth (The Book of Dust, Vol. 2) (reread/started)
*Herriman, George. Krazy and Ignatz: The Limbo of Useless Unconsciousness: The Komplete Kat Komics, Vol. 3: 1918 (started)
*Shakespeare, William. King Henry VIII (Arden 2nd series, ed. R.A. Foakes) (reread/started)
*Herriman, George. Krazy and Ignatz: The Komplete Kat Komics, Vol. 1: 1916 (started/finished)
*Pullman, Philip. La Belle Sauvage (The Book of Dust, Vol. 1) (reread/started/finished)
*Pullman, Philip. The Amber Spyglass (reread/finished)
*Windsor-Smith, Barry. Monsters (reread/finished)
*Bernard, Bruce. Century (in progress)
*Lambert, Eddie. Duke Ellington: A Listener's Guide (reread/selections)