Friday, June 17, 2011

Charlie Nothing - The Psychedelic Saxophone of Charlie Nothing [1967]



"Charles Martin Simon (July 8, 1941 – October 23, 2007), better known as Charlie Nothing, was an American musician, musical instrument maker and writer. He created the dingulator, guitar sculptures made out of American cars, and performed at several music festivals in the United States and Europe. He made two albums and published 12 books." 
-- wikipedia.com


Personnel
Charlie Nothing - alto saxophone, flute
Unknown - gong, conga, banjo ukelele

Thursday, June 16, 2011

Steve Lacy - The Window [1987]



"The Window is an album by Steve Lacy which was released on the Italian Soul Note label in 1988. It features six of Lacy's compositions, one featuring text by the poet Mary Frazee, performed by Lacy, Jean-Jacques Avenel  and Oliver Johnson." -- wikipedia.com


Personnel
Steve Lacy - soprano saxophone
Jean-Jacques Avenel - bass
Oliver Johnson - drums

Sunday, June 12, 2011

Cecil McBee - Music From The Source [1977]



"Other than a 1974 set for Strata-East, this post-bop effort was bassist Cecil McBee's earliest recording as a leader. With Chico Freeman (heard on tenor and flute) as the most impressive soloist, McBee performs two originals and a piece by Hal Galper in a sextet that also includes trumpeter Joe Gardner, pianist Dennis Moorman, drummer Steve McCall andDon Moye on conga. The music is spiritual in nature, sometimes quite modal and in the adventurous genre of John Coltrane without being derivative. A fine live set, one of two recorded within a two-day period at New York's Sweet Basil." -- allmusic.com


Personnel
Cecil McBee - bass
Chico Freemann - flute, tenor saxophone
Joe Gardner - trumpet, flugelhorn
Dennis Moorman - piano
Steve McCall - drums
Don Moye - percussion

Thursday, June 9, 2011

Arthur Jones - Scorpio [1970]



"Arthur Jones had one of the warmer and more romantic styles in "energy music," making this, his debut as a leader, a highly enjoyable set. While the late-'60s avant-garde jazz scene is typically associated with heated and furious solo flights, Jones managed to fuse his love of older bop and blues players with the prevalent tendencies of the day. In this way, Jones was as adept at caressing a ballad as he was at shredding apart a fast one. Both of these sides are in evidence -- quite literally -- on this disc. The searing "C.R.M." opens the session with a relentless frenzy of notes; cutting and slashing everything in it's path. It is one of four Jones originals. The evocative and gritty ballad "Sad Eyes" begins the second on a much different note. This piece as well as the opening bars of the album's closer, "Brother B," provide a wonderful example of an avant-garde player digging into his blues roots. Where Archie Shepp incorporated a soulful Ben Webster swagger into the New Thing, Jones applies the style of another elder statesman, particularly that of Johnny Hodges. The result is also reminiscent of Ornette Coleman's mid-'60s trio sessions with David Izenzon and Charles Moffett, only Jones had the tendency to employ more squeaks and growls than did Coleman. Bassist Beb Guerin and drummer Claude Delcloo round out the trio and both are given a good amount of solo/duet time on each side's opener. Scorpio was recorded only a month after the trio supported Jacques Coursil on his first Actuel date, the quartet session, Way Ahead. This is a very warm and firmly rooted free jazz record. Highly recommended." -- allmusic.com


Personnel
Arthur Jones - alto saxophone
Claude Delcloo - drums
Bob Guerin - bass

Sunday, June 5, 2011

Sahib Shihab - Conversations [1963]



"Because he spent so much of his career living in Europe, Sahib Shihab is primarily known for being a baritonist in the bop era. As this very interesting CD shows, he was also quite original on the alto, soprano and flute and by the early 1960's was open to the influence of the avant-garde without losing his own musical personality. Shihab, who is teamed on this live Copenhagen session with flugelhornist Allan Botchinsky, guitarist Ole Molin, drummer Alex Riel and the 17-year old bassist Niels Henning Orsted Pederson, performs "Someday My Prince Will Come," "Charade" and a lengthy version of "Billy Boy" along with five originals including the three-part "Conversations." This surprising music is well worth several listens and shows that Shihab was a much more diverse player than is usually thought." -- allmusic.com


Personnel
Sahib Shihab - alto, baritone, soprano saxophones, flute
Allan Botchinsky - flugelhorn
Ole Molin - guitar
Niels Henning Ă˜ersted Pedersen - bass
Axel Riel - drums
Bjarne Rostvold - snare drum on "Charade"

Michael Gregory Jackson - Clarity [1976]



"Before his career defining records on Arista/Novus in the 80s and 90s, jazz and fusion guitarist Michael Gregory Jackson recorded his debut for ESP-Disk'. The sessions, recorded in New York, Connecticut and Los Angeles in the summer of 1976 are wildly meditative and personify the seventies laid-back vibe. A trio of soft, lilting melodies set the mood; David Murray on tenor sax, Oliver Lake on flute, and the album's leader, Michael Gregory Jackson on acoustic guitar. The unfolding stream of ideas make these improvisations vital today; arrhythmic strumming, an enchanted R&B vocal from Mr. Jackson, avant percussive clatter, processed electric guitar, and fiery horn lines over timpani and flute. Composer and trumpeter Wadada Leo Smith, cited as a major influence by Mr. Jackson himself, is featured on the album." -- espdisk.com


Personnel
Leo Smith - tp, stp, flh, Indian fl
Oliver Lake - fl, ss, as, talking d, cowbell
David Murray - ts
Michael Gregory Jackson - ac-g, vo, el-g, el-mand, bamboo fl, timp, mar, per

John Handy - Recorded Live at the Monterey Jazz Festival [1965]



"John Handy's performance at the 1965 Monterey Jazz Festival was a sensation and arguably the high point of his career. The altoist, using a quintet that included violinist Michael White, guitarist Jerry Hahn, bassist Don Thompson, and drummer Terry Clarke (all of whom were young unknowns at the time), played two lengthy songs: the 27-minute "If Only We Knew" and "Spanish Lady," which lasts a mere 19 and a half minutes. After a brief theme, "If Only We Knew" mostly features unaccompanied solos. Handy's opening statement immediately quieted the crowd, which was amazed by the altoist's courage and the logic of the advanced yet tonal music. "Spanish Lady" also has a long Handy statement and builds up to a very exciting conclusion. Even over three decades later, the music sounds fresh, colorful, and innovative. The original Columbia LP (which has been long out of print) had reversed the order of the songs and even their titles so this Koch CD reissue is very welcome on several levels. Highly recommended." -- allmusic.com


Personnel
John Handy - alto saxophone
Jerry Hahn - guitar
Michael White - electric violin
Don Thompson - bass
Terry Clarke - drums