What Are You Listening To (November - December 2006)

[papsrus]

Originally Posted by Bev Stapleton

Listen carefully to the clarinet on 'Mr Freeman' on 'Mosaic Man' - the way it shifts against the rhythm is magical.

It is enchanting, isn't it?

Originally Posted by Freek

I know exactly what you mean! The rhythms of that track and the powerful solos make it my favourite on the album, together with the super-soulful 'Cap Esperance'.

Cap Esperance ... what a wonderful tune. One of those melodies that sticks with you. I just love the drum solo on that one. You can almost hear the melody in it. Amazing.
The whole damn album is a joy.

Chris Speed's "Deviantics" last night left me a little flat. Not sure why. Have to give it a few more spins.

NP: Anthony Braxton with the Fred Simmons Trio: 9 Standards

[HutchFan]

Good for a rainy day in Georgia.

[Lonson]

[WorldB3]

Originally Posted by Bev Stapleton

Interesting reaction. I think that's one of the reasons I DO like it (and the electric flavoured Douglas). I never cared for the funk. I can see how listeners who have funk as one of the key elements of their listening might not take to his music.

The Douglas discs have some of the density of the 70s Miles; but I find they owe more to the Filles de Kilimanjaro/Silent Way/Bitches Brew era.

Maybe that wasn’t the right word, Strange Liberation doesn’t have any funk on it and I was immediately drawn to it. In fact I think its one of the best records of the decade of any genre.

With Freak In I haven’t found a center or a bottom to it yet, as much as On The Corner was all over the place it had a solid foundation even if it was just a basic funk groove.

It could also be a timing issue, when I got it I had just spent a couple weeks listening to a lot of atmospheric stuff and at that point I kind of needed to move on to something else for a bit. Haven’t given up on it yet.

Whats a good Polar Bear disc to start with?

NP:

[Tenorman]

Volume 5 of the Blue Note 50th Anniversary Collection 1970-1989


Paul Desmond Quintet / Quartet


State Of The Art Bob Florence Limited Edition

[Bev Stapleton]

Originally Posted by WorldB3

Maybe that wasn’t the right word, Strange Liberation doesn’t have any funk on it and I was immediately drawn to it. In fact I think its one of the best records of the decade of any genre.

With Freak In I haven’t found a center or a bottom to it yet, as much as On The Corner was all over the place it had a solid foundation even if it was just a basic funk groove.

One of the things I find with Douglas is that every few discs there's one I don't respond to at all. 'Witness' lost me completely. I found 'Stange Liberation' far less involving than 'The Infinite' or 'Freek In.' 'Mystery and Meaning', by contrast, has me gripped.

We all come to new music with the weight of all we've heard before, all we've adopted and all we've rejected, and the new disc gets interpreted through all that baggage. The thing is, we all have different baggage. Which might explain why our responses to 'Freek In' and 'Strange Liberation' are so different.

Originally Posted by WorldB3

Whats a good Polar Bear disc to start with?

There are only two - 'Dim Lit' and 'Held on the Tips of Fingers'. I'd go for the latter. Having said that, 3/4 of Polar Bear are in Acoustic Ladyland, so you have the option of three discs there - the first is the jazziest, with extended explorations of the Hendrix catalogue, titles slightly altered! The following two are made up of very brief, angst-ridden punky things. I played the latest this afternoon - I can't say I really cared for it.

All are available on e-music so you could sample from there.

[the magnificent goldberg]

Playing today's newies

I think, on a first listen, this is my all time favourite Christmas album


Very nice. And with a wonderful, Fred Wesley-type, FUNK cut called "Waita minute", which I LURVE!


I thought I'd like Fred Aderson, from seeing his pictures on the covers of LPs people posted. And I was right, I do. This guy is RIGHT up my street!

MG

[bevrich]

[Jamie Wightman]

Now THAT is one heck of an afternoon of music!

[duaneiac]

If Reinhardt / Grappelli & the Hot Club of France had recorded a Christmas album, it might have sounded something like this

[bevrich]

[the magnificent goldberg]

Kora Jazz Trio - Kora Jazz Trio
Kora Jazz Trio - Part 2
Haruna Ishola & his Apala Group - Apala messenger
Africando - Ketukuba

MG

[Bev Stapleton]

Yesterday:

The Classical stuff:

The two Janacek Quartets by the Gabrieli Quartet - no photo out there.

The folky stuff:



Mor a mid-winter disc than a Xmas one. Superb.

The rock stuff:



From e-music after reading enthusiasm elsewhere at AAJ. Really like this. Great voice, the band sound like they were recorded in a club rather than a stadium and don't do the modern trick of thumping out a 1:1 beat. Good songs.



Marvellous disc of stripped down 'Rock Bottom' tracks and rareities. Lots of the Wyatt humour.



Another overlooked (and OOP) Thompson disc. CD-R'd it.

And the jazz:




All wonderful discs. What a wide range of sounds jazz covers.

Then today:



Disc 3



CD-R'd.



Like this even more than the previous one.



A much undervalued record. Given how poor their later discs were, this one tends to get lumped in with them. It in fact has some marvellous songs...and those harmonies are still perfect.

The classical:



A fabulous version. If you don't have this and are looking for a version don't be scared off by the budget price or the non-star names. Good couplings too.

The Jazz:



The new Acoustic Ladyland - I had a feeling that this might be a step too far for me so I used e-music. First play left me quite alienated. I think this is young folks music.



Wheras this I loved. Julian Arguelles, Michael Formanek and Tom Rainey moving from the world of Sonny Rollins at the Vanguard to folk and world music sounds. The AAJ reviewer was not taken by it; I really enjoyed it.



One of the best box sets I own. Gloriously melodic, classic jazz guitar.

And currently thrilling to glorious guitar of a different nature:

[wordsandsounds]

Originally Posted by Lonson

What's your take Lonson since you have been listening ot a lot of Geri Allen lately. The radio station I work with has a copy and I took a listen but found little to catch on to personally which was really disappointing because I think she is a fantastic musician.

Originally Posted by WorldB3

Maybe that wasn’t the right word, Strange Liberation doesn’t have any funk on it and I was immediately drawn to it. In fact I think its one of the best records of the decade of any genre.

With Freak In I haven’t found a center or a bottom to it yet, as much as On The Corner was all over the place it had a solid foundation even if it was just a basic funk groove.

Your discription for Strange Liberation was actually my response to Freak In actually. I find Strange Liberation to be a great album while I hae yet to actually "hear" what is so damn invigorating about Freak In (and a large portion of Witness) eventhough they are both universally upheld as great albums. I'll pull them out sometime soon and give em another shot...

Originally Posted by the magnificent goldberg

Kora Jazz Trio - Kora Jazz Trio
Kora Jazz Trio - Part 2

Every time you post these MG, I want to hear them...

Originally Posted by Bev Stapleton

The new Acoustic Ladyland - I had a feeling that this might be a step too far for me so I used e-music. First play left me quite alienated. I think this is young folks music.

Old fart...

--

Currently:


Personnel: Ron Carter (bass); Benny Golson (tenor saxophone); Joe Locke (vibraphone); Sir Roland Hanna (piano); Lenny White (drums). Recorded at Clinton Studios, New York, New York on April 6, 2001.

By far my favortie Ron Carter lead date. Fantastic line up and tunes. And some real substance in my opinion unlike many of his other dates (which are good albums in a very standard sense). This one is very nice...

[Freek]

Originally Posted by the magnificent goldberg

I thought I'd like Fred Aderson, from seeing his pictures on the covers of LPs people posted. And I was right, I do. This guy is RIGHT up my street!

Has he got SOUL or what?