Playlist, Week of 2023-01-29

Still getting a handle on Cecil Taylor... I've been listening to him for almost 50 years (!) and his music still rewards repeated listening, and also continues to mystify... I'm so glad I got to see him multiple times, and even was able to talk to him (and Jimmy Lyons!) once... it was more like, make a fool of myself and mumble while he looked at me askance... but still... no matter where you dip in his vast discography there are treasures and inspirational puzzles... how on earth was he able to sustain his vision with such power and uncompromising effort, for so many years?... it occurs to me that many of the artists I most admire, like Sun Ra and Anthony Braxton, have done that... All three of them have a huge legacy of recorded sound that takes years to process and understand... I'm still working on it, not there yet... and of course there is no end: the journey is all... so much more to say on Mr. Taylor... in due time... for now, my listening, while still all over the place, is focusing on Cecil Taylor, Sun Ra, and Charles Mingus... keeping me going...

Playlist 2023-01-30:

*Susan Alcorn/Leila Bordreuil/Ingrid Laubrock: Bird Meets Wire

*Anthony Braxton: Nine Compositions (DVD) 2003 "Comp. 328 (12tet)"

*Terri Lyne Carrington: New Standards, Vol. 1

*Elvis Costello & the Attractions: Get Happy (sides 1, 2)

*Kris Davis: Aeriol Piano

*Duke Ellington: …And His Mother Called Him Bill

*Satoku Fujii: Hyaku: One Hundred Dreams

*Joe Henderson: The Complete Joe Henderson Blue Note Sessions (disc 3)

*Jimi Hendrix: Songs for Groovy Children (The Fillmore East Concerts) (disc 4)

*Henry Kaiser Band: Heart's Desire

*Mat Maneri: Pentagon

*Charles Mingus & the Jazz Workshop All Stars: The Complete Birdland Broadcasts 1961-62 (FM) (discs 1, 2, 3)

*Charles Mingus: The Complete Town Hall Concert

*Andrew Oliver/David Horniblow: The Complete Morton Project

*Charlie Parker Quintet: Complete Live at Birdland (disc 2)

*Greg Saunier/Mary Halvorson/Ron Miles: New American Songbooks, Vol. 1

*Arnold Schoenberg: Das Klavierwerk (Peter Serkin)

*Arnold Schoenberg: String Trio, Op. 45/String Quartet, Op. 10 (Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center) (CDR)

*Tyshawn Sorey: The Off-Off Broadway Guide to Synergism (disc 3)

*Sun Ra: Exotica (discs 1, 2)

*Sun Ra: Some Bonus Tracks (CDR compilation)

*Sun Ra and His Arkestra: 1985-09-27/28 Philadelphia (CDR) (discs 1, 2)

*Sun Ra Arkestra: 1985-10-25 Innsbruck, Austria (CDR)

*Sun Ra and His Arkestra: Prophet

*Cecil Taylor: The Complete, Legendary, Live Return Concert at the Town Hall NYC November 4, 1973 

"Autumn/Parade"

*Cecil Taylor: Indent

*Cecil Taylor: Mysteries: Untitled

*Cecil Taylor: 3 Phasis 

*Cecil Taylor Unit: 1978-06-10 Köln (CDR)

*Cecil Taylor Orchestra Humane (Ubuntu): 2004-03-28 (CDR) (disc 1)

*Henry Threadgill Zooid: Tomorrow Sunny/The Revelry, Spp

*UYA: Improvisations 4 (1990-1992): Blister Ethic "Black Drone" 

*Various artists: The Stuff That Dreams Are Made Of (disc 2)

*Anton Webern: Complete Webern - Boulez (disc 6)

*Tony Williams: Spring

*Stevie Wonder: At the Close of a Century (disc 4)

*John Zorn: Tzadik Radio Hour 

*John Zorn: Bagatelles Vol. 12: Cleric

Reading List, Week of 2023-01-29

 

Reading List 2023-01-30:

A while back I started keeping my reading log in a spreadsheet... by now I've got enough data that I can analyze my reading habits of the past and see if it matches with my perception... I feel like I've been doing more and more rereads (which is fine and in many ways, really, is where it's at)...

*Federman, Raymond. Double or Nothing (3rd ed.) (started)
*King, Stephen. Fairy Tale (started)
*Pullman, Philip. Count Karlstein (started/finished)
*Plath, Sylvia. The Bell Jar (reread/finished)
*Adorno, Theodor W. Essays on Music (ed. Richard Leppert) (in progress)
*Jenkins, Todd S. I Know What I Know: The Music of Charles Mingus (in progress)

Playlist, Week of 2023-01-22

The Candid Mingus recordings contain some of Eric Dolphy's best playing ever... Nice to revisit some of the brilliant pop from Scott Brookman, a true local hero... Dug out the George Duke/Billy Cobham live album (the one with the truly horrible cover of heads and feet) and was reminded how great Alphonso Johnson was back then... saw that band in Williamsburg in a small club and was really flabbergasted by how powerful they were... then in a nostalgic rush I tried Johnson's first solo album Moonshadows and was reminded why I never go back and listen to that one... I love his bass playing with Weather Report and always thought he was so much a better fit for that band than Jaco... so I tortured myself by sampling some of his second album, Yesterday's Dreams... I can't believe I still own that album... oh well... 

Playlist 2023-01-23:

*Zoh Amba: O, Sun

*Beethoven: Concerto for Violin and Orchestra in D Major (Anne-Sophie Mutter/Berlin Philharmoniker)

*Beethoven: Symphony No. 6/Brahms: Symphony No. 2 (BBC Symphony Orchestra)

*Anthony Braxton/Gino Robair: Duets 1987

*Scott Brookman: Smellicopter Two

*Byrds: The Notorious Byrd Brothers

*Billy Cobham-George Duke Band: "Live" on Tour in Europe (selections)

*Rodger Coleman and Sam Byrd: 2022-11-26 Nashville (wav)

*Kris Davis: The Slightest Shift

*Miles Davis: The Prestige 10-Inch LP Collection, Vol. 2 (LP 3: sides 1, 2, LP 4: side 1)

*Duke Ellington: The Complete Ellington Indigos

*Gentle Giant: 1976-09-23 Dusseldorf (CDR)

*Andrew Hill: Mosaic Select (disc 1)

*Jefferson Pilot: The Return of Troubled Youth Orchestra

*Alphonso Johnson: Moonshadows

*Rob Mazurek: Desert Encrypts Vol. 1

*Charles Mingus Group: Debut Rarities Vol. 3

*Charles Mingus Jazz Workshop: 1959-07-04 Newport (CDR)

*Charles Mingus: The Complete Candid Recordings of Charles Mingus (discs 1, 2, 3)

*Charles Mingus: Oh Yeah

*Roscoe Mitchell: Not Yet: Six Compositions

*Roscoe Mitchell/Mike Reed: The Ritual and the Dance

*Pere Ubu: Live at the Longhorn April 1, 1978 (sides 1, 2)

*Tom Rainey Obbligato: Tom Rainey Obbligato

*Tom Rainey Obbligato: Float Upstream

*Omar Rodriguez-López: Old Money

*Arnold Schoenberg: String Trio, Op. 45/String Quartet, Op. 10 (Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center) (CDR)

*Arnold Schoenberg: Kammersymphonie, Op. 9 (Pierre Boulez/Ensemble InterContemporain)

*Arnold Schoenberg: Suite, Op. 29/Verklärte Nacht, Op. 4/3 Pieces for Chamber Orchestra (Pierre Boulez/Ensemble InterContemporain)

*Ches Smith: Interpret It Well

*Tyshawn Sorey: The Off-Off Broadway Guide to Synergism (disc 2)

*Sun Ra and His Arkestra: The Sun Myth (African Chant)

*Sun Ra: Bandcamp Tracks (CDR compilation) (discs 2, 3) 

*Sun Ra: Crystal Spears (Remastered)

*Sun Ra Arkestra: 1985-07-09 Stockholm (CDR) (discs 1, 2, 3)

*Sun Ra and His Arkestra: Prophet

*Cecil Taylor Feel Trio: Two Ts for a Lovely T (disc 10)

*Cecil Taylor and the Sound Vision Orchestra: 2002-06-21 Knitting Factory NYC (CDR) (disc 3)

*Henry Threadgill: Double Up, Plays Double Up Plus

*Henry Threadgill 14 Or 15 Kestra AGG: Dirt... And More Dirt

*Thumbscrew: Theirs

*UYA: Improvisations 3 (1993-94) (CDR) "Yes, a Man > Carefree > Saturn" 

*Mary Lou Williams: Zodiac Suite

*Mary Lou Williams Collective: Zodiac Suite: Revisited

*Stevie Wonder: Jungle Fever: Music from the Movie

*Stevie Wonder: Miscellaneous (CDR compilation)

*World Saxophone Quartet: Dances and Ballads

*John Zorn: Bagatelles Vol. 11: Jim Black Quartet 

Reading List, Week of 2023-01-22

Reading List 2023-01-23:

*Plath, Sylvia. The Bell Jar (reread/started)
*Barth, John. Postscripts (Or Just Desserts): Some Final Scribblings (started/finished)
*Federman, Raymond. Take It or Leave It (started/finished)
*Nabokov, Vladimir. The Gift (reread/finished)
*Adorno, Theodor W. Essays on Music (ed. Richard Leppert) (in progress)
*Jenkins, Todd S. I Know What I Know: The Music of Charles Mingus (in progress)

 

Review of Sun Ra and His Arkestra: Prophet

 

It is pretty amazing to think there are still undiscovered Sun Ra studio recordings out there. Undocumented live shows and rehearsals are one thing (I wouldn't be surprised if there are hundreds of those), but full-blown studio recordings are another beast altogether. And Prophet is quite a beast--over 50 minutes of Ra and the Arkestra playing and improvising in the studio in 1986, with a huge chunk of that devoted to Ra experimenting with the then-brand-new Prophet VS synthesizer. 

Now, the Prophet has never been my favorite of synths. The sound is pretty canned, and kind of stale to my ears--even Zawinul or Prince couldn't get much life out of it. But Ra makes it his own, especially on the title track, a 16-minute Prophet solo. He certainly puts it through its paces. This is a glorious, beautifully-recorded Ra keyboard solo. 

"Infinity Excursion" is a special moment, too: a James Jacson solo on the infinity drum. It's nice to have this unique drum in studio-quality sound. It's also nice that the solo is relatively short. "The Prophet at Play" is a percussion-heavy piece where Ra continues to explore the metallic textures of the synth, with a brief Fred Adams trumpet solo towards the end. 

"The Prophet Returns" starts off as another interesting synth solo, but for me the highlight of the album comes when the full Arkestra roars in at about 8:35, with a blast of sonic energy. It's a glorious moment, reminiscent of the full ensemble passages of "The Magic City," but it only lasts less than a minute before it is undermined by an uninteresting (if competent) drum solo from John Brown. Oh, well. The horns eventually return, but the spell is broken.

A word about the two CD-only bonus tracks: as huge a fan as I am of all things Ra, these tracks are difficult to listen to, especially "They'll Come Back," because June Tyson is obviously sick, and her voice sounds horrible. While these are interesting arrangements, hearing Tyson's beautiful voice croaking and straining doesn't do her any favors.

Overall, then, an interesting release (how could it not be?) but hardly crucial--except perhaps for the initial solo--and somewhat disappointing.

Playlist, Week of 2023-01-15

Playlist 2023-01-16:

*Paul Bley/Evan Parker/Barre Phillips: Time Will Tell
*Grateful Dead: Grateful Dead [Skull and Roses]
*Grateful Dead: Dick's Picks 21 (1985-11-02 Richmond VA) (disc 1)
*Death Grips: No Love Deep Web
*Mary Halvorson: Amaryllis
*Charles Mingus: Blues & Roots
*Charles Mingus: Mingus Dynasty
*Charles Mingus: Pre-Bird
*Charles Mingus: Mingus at Antibes
*Omar Rodriguez-López: Calibration (Is Pushing Luck and Key Too Far)
*Soft Machine: Facelift: France & Holland (disc 1)
*Tyshawn Sorey: The Off-Off Broadway Guide to Synergism (disc 1)
*Sun Ra: Bandcamp Tracks (CDR compilation) (disc 1)
*Cecil Taylor: The Complete, Legendary, Live Return Concert at the Town Hall NYC November 4, 1973
"Autumn/Parade"
*Thundercat: Thundercat (CDR compilation)

Reading List, Week of 2023-01-15

Reading List 2023-01-16:

*Chusid, Irwin, and Chris Reisman. Sun Ra: Art on Saturn: The Album Cover Art of Sun Ra's Saturn Label (finished)
*Shakespeare, William. Troilus and Cressida (Arden 3rd ed., ed. David Bevington) (reread/finished)
*Adorno, Theodor W. Essays on Music (ed. Richard Leppert) (in progress)
*Jenkins, Todd S. I Know What I Know: The Music of Charles Mingus (in progress)
*Nabokov, Vladimir. The Gift (reread/in progress)

 

Playlist, Week of 2023-01-08

Mingus and Sun Ra, oh yeah... "New York Sketchbook" is one of my all-time favorite Mingus compositions...too bad there's only two versions of it (have I already said that here? If so, sorry)...

Playlist 2023-01-09:

*Zoh Amba: O, Sun
*Art Ensemble: 1967/68 (disc 5) "Congliptious/Old"
*Beatles: Revolver (Super Deluxe 4 LP Edition 2022) (side 8)
*Beatles: The Beatles (side 3)
*Paul Bley/Evan Parker/Barre Phillips: Time Will Tell
*David Bowie: Heroes
*Terri Lyne Carrington: New Standards, Vol. 1
*Neil Cicierega: Mouth Dreams (selections)
*Neil Cicierega: Mouth Sounds(selections)
*Kris Davis: Lifespan
*Miles Davis: Quiet Nights
*Decoy & Joe McPhee: Oto "Opening Might"
*Andrew Drury: Content Provider
*Duke Ellington and His Orchestra: Togo Brava Suite (Storyville)
*Satoku Fujii: Hyaku: One Hundred Dreams
*Jerry Garcia: Garcia
*Mary Halvorson: Amaryllis
*Herbie Hancock: The New Standard
*Layers of Memory: 2019-12-07 RVA (wav)"No. 2"
*Charles Mingus: Mingus Three (disc 1)
*Charles Mingus: Tijuana Moods (Bluebird First Editions) (disc 1)
*Charles Mingus: East Coasting
*Charles Mingus: A Modern Jazz Symposium of Music and Poetry
*Charles Mingus: Jazz Portraits
*Charles Mingus: Blues & Roots
*Charles Mingus: Mingus Ah Um (side 1)
*Roscoe Mitchell: Solo [3] (disc 1)
*New Ting: 2020-02-03 "Fred's Lane Is My Lane" (wav)
*Prince and the Revolution: 1986-06-07 Detroit (CDR)
*Omar Rodriguez: Omar Rodriguez
*Omar Rodriguez-López: Se Dice Bisonte, No Búfalo
*Arnold Schoenberg: Das Klavierwerk (Peter Serkin)
*Tyshawn Sorey Trio: Mesmerism
*Sparks: The Rest of Sparks (side 1)
*Sparks: Hippopotamus (sides 1, 2, 3)
*Sun Ra: Treasure Hunt (CDR rarities compilation)
*Sun Ra: Explore the Cosmos (CDR compilation)
*Sun Ra Arkestra: Kosmos in Blue: A John Gilmore Anthology, Vol. 1
*Sun Ra Arkestra: Blues at Midnight: A John Gilmore Anthology, Vol. 2
*Sun Ra and His Arkestra: Prophet
*Sun Ra Arkestra: Living Sky (sides 1, 2, 3, 4)
*Craig Taborn: Shadow Plays
*Cecil Taylor and the Sound Vision Orchestra: 2002-06-21 Knitting Factory NYC (CDR) (discs 1, 2)
*Alex Ward Item 10: Volition (Live At Cafe Oto) "Volition"
*Brian Wilson: At My Piano
*John Zorn: Bagatelles Vol. 9: Asmodeus
*John Zorn: Bagatelles Vol. 10: Julian Lage and Gyan Riley

Reading List, Week of 2023-01-08

Reading List 2023-01-09:

*Chusid, Irwin, and Chris Reisman. Sun Ra: Art on Saturn: The Album Cover Art of Sun Ra's Saturn Label (started)
*Nabokov, Vladimir. The Gift (reread/started)
*Segar, E. C. The Complete E.C. Segar Popeye: Vol. 2 Sundays 1932-1934 (finished)
*Adorno, Theodor W. Essays on Music (ed. Richard Leppert) (in progress)
*Jenkins, Todd S. I Know What I Know: The Music of Charles Mingus (in progress)
*Shakespeare, William. Troilus and Cressida (Arden 3rd ed., ed. David Bevington) (reread/in progress)

Playlist, Week of 2023-01-01

Happy new year! The Brian Wilson solo piano album is really starting to grow on me... at first I felt like it was a bit too much in the Muzak vein, not so different from what you'd hear someone noodling at Nordstrom's or something but no, it's much nicer than that, and I've warmed to it quite a bit... and the melodies, of course, are gorgeous... Last year I did some deep diving into Duke Ellington, especially his later years (which I think of as post-1945)... this year it's Charles Mingus... I've always got Mingus tunes floating through my head, but it's nice to go through his discography chronologically... the sheer richness of his compositions are life-sustaining and full of energy... 

Playlist 2023-01-02:

*Beach Boys: Good Vibrations: Thirty Years of the Beach Boys (disc 1)
*Anthony Braxton: Sonic Genome (2019-10-31 Berlin) (CDR)
*Elvis Costello: This Year's Model (sides 1, 2)
*Miles Davis & Gil Evans: The Complete Columbia Studio Recordings (disc 4)
*Miles Davis: Big Fun (side 1)
*Death Grips: Year of the Snitch
*Deerhoof: Surprise Symphonies
*Jimi Hendrix Experience: Axis Bold as Love (side 1)
*Jimi Hendrix: Songs for Groovy Children (The Fillmore East Concerts) (disc 3)
*Fela Kuti: Fela Ransome Kuti Vol. 1 & 2 (side 4)
*Charles Mingus: The Jazz Experiments of Charles Mingus
*Charles Mingus: Mingus at the Bohemia
*Charles Mingus: Charles Mingus Quintet + Max Roach
*Charles Mingus: Pithecanthropus Erectus
*Charles Mingus Jazz Workshop: 1956-07-05 Newport (CDR)
*Charles Mingus: The Clown
*Matt Mitchell/Kate Gentile: Snark Horse (disc 6)
*Roscoe Mitchell Sound Ensemble: Live in Detroit (sides 1, 2, 3, 4)
*Muffins: Open City
*Tom Rainey Trio: 2013-10-19 Brooklyn NY (CDR) track 6
*Soft Machine: Facelift: France & Holland (discs 1, 2, DVD)
*Steely Dan: Katy Lied (Mobile Fidelity) (side 2)
*Sun Ra: Singles: The Definitive 45s Collection 1952-1991 (disc 3)
*Sun Ra: Celestial Love (sides 1, 2)
*Sun Ra and His Arkestra: Prophet
*Sun Ra Arkestra: Living Sky
*Titan to Tachyons: Vonals
*Various artists: The Birth of the Third Stream "Revelations (First Movement)" (Charles Mingus)
*Brian Wilson: At My Piano

Reading List, Week of 2023-01-01

Reading List 2023-01-02:

*Adorno, Theodor W. Essays on Music (ed. Richard Leppert) (started)
*Shakespeare, William. Troilus and Cressida (Arden 3rd ed., ed. David Bevington) (reread/started)
*Jemisin, N. K. The World We Make (started/finished)
*Rosenbaum, Ron. The Shakespeare Wars (reread/finished)