Playlist, Week of 2016-03-27

One of Ra's many masterpieces. The title track is a monster, plus you get the first studio version of "The Shadow World," one of Ra's landmark compositions. The two "abstract" pieces, "Abstract Eye" and "Abstract 'I'," would have fit right in perfectly on any of the Heliocentric records.

Playlist 2016-03-28:

*Mozart: The Concertos for Piano & Orchestra (Murray Perahia/English Chamber Orchestra) (disc 2)
*Peter Brötzmann/Han Bennink/Fred Van Hove: 1974-06-02 Moers, Germany (CDR)
*Peter Brötzmann/Han Bennink/Fred Van Hove: 1975-05-18 Moers, Germany (CDR)
*Brötzmann/Van Hove/Bennink: Tschüs
*Peter Brötzmann: Solo
*John Coltrane Quartet: 1965-03-19 Half Note, NYC (CDR)
*John Coltrane Quartet: 1965-03-28 Village Gate, NYC (selections) (CDR)
*John Coltrane: Live at the Half Note: One Down, One Up (disc 1)
*Coleman Hawkins: Classic Coleman Hawkins Sessions 1922-1947 (disc 6)
*Ingrid Laubrock Sleepthief: The Madness of Crowds
*Ingrid Laubrock Anti-House: 2011-01-19 Bremen, Germany (CDR)
*Living By Lanterns: New Myth/Old Science
*New Ting Ting Loft: 2016-02-22 “Contact Saturn (Checking on Ra)” (wav)
*New Ting Ting Loft: 2016-02-29 “Leap at the Wheel” (wav)
*Tom Rainey Trio: Camino Cielo Echo
*Tom Rainey Trio: 2011-05-06 Firehouse 12, New Haven, CT (CDR)
*Sun Ra and His Myth Science Arkestra: Interstellar Low Ways
*Sun Ra and His Myth Science Arkestra: When Angels Speak of Love
*Sun Ra and His Solar Arkestra: The Magic City
*Sun Ra: Disco 3000: The Complete Milan Concert 1978 (Art Yard) (disc 2)
*Sun Ra and His Omniverse Jet-Set Arkestra: Beyond the Purple Star Zone
*Sun Ra and His Omniverse Jet-Set Arkestra: Oblique Parallax
*Sun Ra Arkestra: 1980-12-26 Detroit Jazz Center (disc 1) (CDR)
*Sun Ra: God Is More than Love Can Ever Be!
*Sun Ra: The Other Side of the Sun
*Trio What: 2016 compilation (wav)
*Art Bears: 1979-04-16 Charleville, France (cassette) (side B)
*Kevin Ayers And The Whole World: Hyde Park Free Concert 1970
*Beach Boys: Beach Boys' Party! Uncovered And Unplugged (disc 1)
*East West Blast Test: Popular Music for Unpopular People
*Heldon: Agneta Nilsson
*High Llamas: Here Come the Rattling Trees
*Phil Manzanera: The Sound of Blue
*Paul McCartney: McCartney(Archive Collection) (disc 1)
*Otis Redding: Pain in My Heart
*Spacemere: Apartment Opera
*Tribe Called Quest: People’s Instinctive Travels and the Paths of Rhythm
*UYA: 1989-10-30 Middle East, Cambridge MA (wav)
*Various artists: Cuban Big Bands 1940-1942
*Various artists: Music for Weirdos (disc 3)
*XTC: Apple Venus

Reading List, Week of 2016-03-27

Reading List 2016-03-28:

*Van den Berg, Laura. Find Me (started)
*July, Miranda. The First Bad Man (started/finished)
*Dibbell, Carola. The Only Ones (finished)
*Bryson, Bill. A Short History of Nearly Everything (in progress)
*Oxford Handbook of Shakespeare, ed. Arthur F. Kinney (in progress)
*Ratliff, Ben. Every Song Ever: Twenty Ways to Listen in an Age of Musical Plenty (in progress)

Playlist, Week of 2016-03-20

The Impulse version of Atlantis was one of the first Sun Ra records I ever owned. I think I was in college when I got it, used, cheap, and heavily scratched. I never really took to it then, partially because it was in such lousy shape, and partially because my tender ears weren't ready for it, and so I got rid of it. Of course I wish I had hung on to it. Sigh.

Playlist 2016-03-21:

*Peter Brötzmann Octet: The Complete Machine Gun Sessions
*Peter Brötzmann/Han Bennink/Fred Van Hove: 1972-03-24 Frankfurt-Höchst, Germany (CDR)
*Peter Brötzmann/Han Bennink/Fred Van Hove: 1972-06-24 Frieburg/Breisgau, Germany (CDR)
*Brötzmann/Van Hove/Bennink plus Albert Mangelsdorff: Outspan No. 1
*Brötzmann/Van Hove/Bennink: Outspan No. 2
*Rodger Coleman/Sam Byrd: 2015-12-28 Nashville (wav)
*John Coltrane Quartet: 1962-11-19 Stockholm (CDR) (selections)
*John Coltrane Quartet: 1963-11-04 Stuttgart (CDR) (disc 2)
*John Coltrane: A Love Supreme (Deluxe Ed.) (disc 1)
*John Coltrane: The Classic Quartet: The Complete Impulse! Recordings (disc 4)
*Ingrid Laubrock’s Anti-House: 2010-01-18 London (CDR)
*Living By Lanterns: New Myth/Old Science
*Tom Rainey Trio: 2010-10-17 Sibiu, Romania (CDR)
*Sun Ra: The Heliocentric Worlds of Sun Ra, Vol. 1
*Sun Ra and His Band from Outer Space: Space Aura
*Sun Ra and His Astro Infinity Arkestra: Atlantis
*Sun Ra: The Soul Vibrations of Man
*Sun Ra: Media Dreams (disc 2)
*Sun Ra Arkestra/Cauleen Smith: Black Utopia: Sun Ra Lectures & Rehearsals (streaming)
*Dark Carpet: 2016-03-04 The Rock Shop, Brooklyn (wav)
*High Llamas: Here Come the Rattling Trees
*Hotel X: X Years
*Supremes: Where Did Our Love Go
*Supremes: More Hits by the Supremes
*Various artists: Music for Weirdos (discs 1, 2)

Reading List, Week of 2016-03-20

Fun and games with John Webster.

Reading List 2016-03-21:

*Bryson, Bill. A Short History of Nearly Everything (started)
*Dibbell, Carola. The Only Ones (started)
*Ratliff, Ben. Every Song Ever: Twenty Ways to Listen in an Age of Musical Plenty (started)
*Webster, John. The White Devil (started/finished)
*Barthelme, Donald. Flying to America: 45 More Stories (finished)
*Oxford Handbook of Shakespeare, ed. Arthur F. Kinney (in progress)

Playlist, week of 2016-03-13

Absolute killer (no pun intended) classic.

Playlist 2016-03-14:

*Anthony Braxton: Anthony Braxton Quartet [Sao Paulo 2014]
*Peter Brötzmann Octet: The Complete Machine Gun Sessions
*Brötzmann/Van Hove/Bennink: Brötzmann/Van Hove/Bennink
*John Coltrane Quartet: 1963-10-25 Copenhagen (CDR)
*John Coltrane Quartet: 1963-11-04 Stuttgart (CDR) (disc 1)
*Ingrid Laubrock Anti-House: Ingrid Laubrock Anti-House
*Tom Rainey Trio: Pool School
*Sun Ra and His Myth Science Arkestra: When Angels Speak of Love
*Sun Ra: The Antique Blacks [remastered 2015]
*Sun Ra: Media Dreams (disc 1)
*Sun Ra And His Outer Space Arkestra: A Fireside Chat With Lucifer
*Sun Ra/Brian Harnetty: The Star-Faced One: From the Sun Ra/El Saturn Archives
*Art Bears: 1979-04-16 Charleville, France (cassette) (side A)
*High Llamas: Here Come the Rattling Trees
*Soft Machine: 1975-01-10 Enschede, The Netherlands (CDR) (disc 2)

Reading List, Week of 2016-03-13

Reading List 2016-03-14:

*Kyd, Thomas. The Spanish Tragedy [with 1602 additions] (reread/started/finished)
*Geerken, Hartmut, et al. Omniverse Sun Ra [Expanded and revised 2nd ed.] (finished)
*Hall, James W. The Big Finish (finished)
*Kondo, Marie. The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up (finished)
*Barthelme, Donald. Flying to America: 45 More Stories (in progress)
*Oxford Handbook of Shakespeare, ed. Arthur F. Kinney (in progress)

Playlist, Week of 2016-03-06

Catching up from a busy week!

Playlist 2016-03-07:

*Elliott Carter: CDR compilation (disc 2)
*Peter Brötzmann: Fuck De Boere
*Peter Brötzmann: Balls
*Peter Brötzmann Trio with Don Cherry: 1971-08-27 Berlin (CDR)
*Rodger Coleman: 2016-01-20 Portland Brew 12 South, Nashville (wav)
*John Coltrane Quartet: 1963-06-10 Showboat, Philadelphia (CDR)
*John Coltrane: My Favorite Things: Coltrane at Newport
*John Coltrane: The Classic Quartet: The Complete Impulse! Recordings (disc 3)
*Chick Corea: The Vigil “Pledge for Peace”
*Kris Davis/Ingrid Laubrock/Tom Rainey Trio: 2011-10-22 Cormons, Italy (CDR)
*Kris Davis Trio: Waiting for You to Grow
*Kris Davis Trio: 2015-01-22 Vienna (CDR)
*Drew Gress: 7 Black Butterflies
*Coleman Hawkins: Classic Coleman Hawkins Sessions 1922-1947 (disc 4)
*Ingrid Laubrock Anti-House: Roulette of the Cradle
*Ingrid Laubrock: Ubatuba
*Mahavishnu Orchestra: The Inner Mounting Flame
*Mahavishnu Orchestra: 1973-01-27 Buffalo, NY (CDR) (disc 1)
*New Ting Ting Loft: 2016-02-05 “Up and Atom” RVA Noise Showcase, WRIR Party, Richmond VA (wav)
*New Ting Ting Loft: 2016-02-08 “Optose” (wav)
*New Ting Ting Loft: 2016-02-22 “Contact Saturn (Checking on Ra)” (wav)
*Sun Ra and His Solar Arkestra: Secrets of the Sun
*Sun Ra and His Arkestra: Bad and Beautiful
*Sun Ra: Art Forms of Dimensions Tomorrow
*Sun Ra and His Astro Infinity Arkestra: Atlantis
*Sun Ra and His Mythic Science Arkestra: The Paris Tapes: Live at le Theatre du Chatelet 1971 (selections)
*Sun Ra: Media Dreams (disc 1)
*Sun Ra: Sound Mirror
*Sun Ra: Sleeping Beauty
*High Llamas: Here Come the Rattling Trees
*Opeth: Damnation

Reading List, Week of 2016-03-06

Catching up from a busy week!

Reading List 2016-03-07:

*Barthelme, Donald. Flying to America: 45 More Stories (started)
*Hall, James W. The Big Finish (started)
*Hall, James W. Going Dark (started/finished)
*Geerken, Hartmut, et al. Omniverse Sun Ra [Expanded and revised 2nd ed.] (in progress)
*Kondo, Marie. The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up (in progress)
*Oxford Handbook of Shakespeare, ed. Arthur F. Kinney (in progress)

Listening Streams

I've got four major listening streams going on now:



Coltrane. As I've mentioned before, I've been working my way sort of chronologically through my Coltrane collection, two or three discs a week. I'm hovering around the 1963 -1964 corridor now.



Brötzmann. I'm re-acquainting myself with early Brötzmann, reminding myself of his sheer power but also his versatility.



Tom Rainey.  I'm becoming more and more enamored of Rainey's playing. It's really hitting me where I live. This has been a long-term thing going on for the last few years, but now I'm getting fairly obsessed. I love how he fits into all kinds of contexts: sax/drum duos, electric guitar power bands, classic jazz quintets, piano trios, guitar/sax/drum trios, even solo.  (I am not a huge fans of drum solos, not at all, but I find myself tolerating things just fine whenever a rare Rainey solo comes around.) He's not at all a slick player; he's earthy and organic. At any rate, since I've also been on a major Ingrid Laubrock kick, it's especially nice when these two streams run together. Both are major contributors to some of the best jazz being played these days.



Finally, last but not least, Sun Ra. Ra has shown up deceptively little in my weekly playlists over the last few years, but that's only because I get my daily dose of Ra on the Magic Jukebox, which is so heavily stocked with Ra that you'd think I don't have much else on it (Ra's major competitors for space on it being the Beatles, the Beach Boys, Anthony Braxton, Duke Ellington, and Billie Holiday). Saturn research has been a major concern of mine over the years, and my in-depth listening has gone through stages. It's only natural, now that I'm immersed in reading the new revised edition of Omniverse Sun Ra, that I'd get myself in deep again. This stuff is damn good for the soul. Speaking of which, the most exciting news coming down the pike this year so far is the pending release of The Intergalactic Thing, two albums' worth of 1969 rehearsals of mostly unheard Ra compositions.

On Shakespeare's Late Style

[The opening scene of Henry VIII] seemed to have the full stamp of Shakespere [sic.], in his latest manner: the same close-packed expression; the same life, and reality, and freshness; the same rapid and abrupt turnings of thought, so quick that language can hardly follow fast enough; the same impatient activity of intellect and fancy, which having once disclosed an idea cannot wait to work it orderly out; the same daring confidence in the resources of language, which plunges headlong into a sentence without knowing how it is to come forth; the same careless metre which disdains to produce its harmonious effects by the ordinary devices, yet is evidently subject to a master of harmony; the same entire freedom from book-language and commonplace; all the qualities, in short, which distinguish the magical hand which has never been successfully imitated. (J. Spedding, "Who Wrote Shakspere's Henry VIII?" in Gentleman's Magazine 178 (1850), quoted in Brian Vickers, Shakespeare as Co-Author, Oxford 2002, p. 337)