Jump to content

What vinyl are you spinning right now??


wolff

Recommended Posts

  • Replies 55.1k
  • Created
  • Last Reply

Top Posters In This Topic

  • sidewinder

    5276

  • paul secor

    4123

  • clifford_thornton

    3855

  • jeffcrom

    2810

Top Posters In This Topic

Posted Images

0101109.jpg

Among the long list of musicians participating in the recording, I find Seldon Powell, which really surprised me. Maybe it shouldn't? Just seemed odd to find him with the Braxton and Roscoe Mitchell crowd.

Depends on who contracted the date.

On the matter of skills, though, not surprising. That's some hardass music and it wasn't a working band. Financial realities would dictate that you have a few flyshit readers in there to keep the time needed thing between the lines.

Look who else is in there - the Bridgewater brothers, Bruce Johnstone, and Jon Faddis. They weren't their to contribute their "unique personal stylings", ya' know? They were there to read the parts and keep the session moving. Time is money, as they say, and at least as much in the studio as anywhere. EVERYBODY gets OT if OT happens, unless its a scab date.

After the fact,I heard some complaints about Faddis and some other "studio" guys being unable to "stretch" to add to the music .

Link to comment
Share on other sites

And that makes sense too.

I say this very advisedly, because I love the man, I love the music, and I for sure love the album, but that Julius Hemphill big band album...if jut a few strategically placed section players would have been inserted, the writing itself might have benefited. What that might have cost the feel of the music, I dunno. Something, I'm sure.

Part of me says that if I got ears, I can hear the writing no matter what, and as a rule, I can. Another part of me says that parts are meant to be heard as much as they are felt, and that the clearer the parts are executed individually, the better you can feel them based on what is really there instead of waht you think you want to be there. And another part of me says just fuck it, go for what you get, start there and keep getting and going. Thing is, all these parts are often going on at the same time. And if/when it's Ellington, none of those parts have time to be bothered by any of that.

But as far as the Braxton record goes, hey, you made the album you made and used the people that you used, if they did what you hired them to do, the complaint that they didn't/couldn't do past that, well, live and learn. That record is glorious as is. Whatever else it could have been, hey, time machine, go for a time machine.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I'm listening to the Braxton album too right now (on CD, actually, though) and making plans to drive to Tuscaloosa for Braxton's residency at the University of Alabama later this month. On the 18th, he and the UA big band will be playing the whacked-out march and that strange, wonderful last track, among other pieces.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

And that makes sense too.

I say this very advisedly, because I love the man, I love the music, and I for sure love the album, but that Julius Hemphill big band album...if jut a few strategically placed section players would have been inserted, the writing itself might have benefited. What that might have cost the feel of the music, I dunno. Something, I'm sure.

Part of me says that if I got ears, I can hear the writing no matter what, and as a rule, I can. Another part of me says that parts are meant to be heard as much as they are felt, and that the clearer the parts are executed individually, the better you can feel them based on what is really there instead of waht you think you want to be there. And another part of me says just fuck it, go for what you get, start there and keep getting and going. Thing is, all these parts are often going on at the same time. And if/when it's Ellington, none of those parts have time to be bothered by any of that.

But as far as the Braxton record goes, hey, you made the album you made and used the people that you used, if they did what you hired them to do, the complaint that they didn't/couldn't do past that, well, live and learn. That record is glorious as is. Whatever else it could have been, hey, time machine, go for a time machine.

You want the flipside, go to the 1978 orchestra and the Koln album. For that reason I much prefer it to the Arista (even though I love that one too, of course)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Last evening, two of the last new releases under the Prestige label (post-Fantasy purchase).

Mark Soskin, Rhythm Vision, and

Patrice Rushen, Preclusion.

The Patrice Rushen release is quite fine, with Joe Henderson and Hadley Caliman.

Yeah, Preclusion's a dandy record, and came out of left field, walked into the store one afternoon, though it was some new Herbie/Joe joint, which in 1974 was a real WTF?- ish consideration, but what's this, hey, she's cute too, I'll take a copy right now, please!

Before The Dawn, the follow-up, was a good record too, but more "contemporary"/fusion-y in approach. Not silly music, just different in orientation. After that though, she began to explore other facets of her talents in other musical arenas. Obviously. But to this day, when I see her name in the credit on any "jazz-related" project, I'm not instantly put off, because the woman still has skills, fine skills. I wish hse'd do a Joe Sample and make a straight-ahead trio record for East-Wind and get it released in America on Inner City.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Last evening, two of the last new releases under the Prestige label (post-Fantasy purchase).

Mark Soskin, Rhythm Vision, and

Patrice Rushen, Preclusion.

The Patrice Rushen release is quite fine, with Joe Henderson and Hadley Caliman.

Yeah, Preclusion's a dandy record, and came out of left field, walked into the store one afternoon, though it was some new Herbie/Joe joint, which in 1974 was a real WTF?- ish consideration, but what's this, hey, she's cute too, I'll take a copy right now, please!

Before The Dawn, the follow-up, was a good record too, but more "contemporary"/fusion-y in approach. Not silly music, just different in orientation. After that though, she began to explore other facets of her talents in other musical arenas. Obviously. But to this day, when I see her name in the credit on any "jazz-related" project, I'm not instantly put off, because the woman still has skills, fine skills. I wish hse'd do a Joe Sample and make a straight-ahead trio record for East-Wind and get it released in America on Inner City.

I've never seen her live (almost, one time, but Geri Allen substituted at the last minute), but judging from her website, she plays a significant number of straight-ahead live jazz appearances.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I'm listening to the Braxton album too right now (on CD, actually, though) and making plans to drive to Tuscaloosa for Braxton's residency at the University of Alabama later this month. On the 18th, he and the UA big band will be playing the whacked-out march and that strange, wonderful last track, among other pieces.

That sounds wonderful. Lucky you.

johnlewis.jpg

The Argo/Cadet pressing. On 2nd look, that cover is pretty odd, isn't it. I mean, where's the "J"?

And:

farmer_artf_meettheja_101b.jpg

Link to comment
Share on other sites

johnlewis.jpg

The Argo/Cadet pressing. On 2nd look, that cover is pretty odd, isn't it. I mean, where's the "J"?

In red!

e5d7153f5482ffcf2ad0754cbed2957e.jpg

Somewhere in the 70s, whoever owned Chess/Argo/Etc (or maybe somebody who didn't own it...) flooded the cutout bins with all these LPs that had B&W Xerox-y looking covers. Not remembering if this was the same batch that had same front and back covers, but there was that too.

Anyway, you know how tricky xeroxing red could be back in the day.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

johnlewis.jpg

The Argo/Cadet pressing. On 2nd look, that cover is pretty odd, isn't it. I mean, where's the "J"?

In red!

e5d7153f5482ffcf2ad0754cbed2957e.jpg

Somewhere in the 70s, whoever owned Chess/Argo/Etc (or maybe somebody who didn't own it...) flooded the cutout bins with all these LPs that had B&W Xerox-y looking covers. Not remembering if this was the same batch that had same front and back covers, but there was that too.

Anyway, you know how tricky xeroxing red could be back in the day.

Yeah, I have the B&W cover. I saw the color versions. I guess when they placed the B&W copy order, they didn't realize that the "J" would blend into the black background, with amusing results. Did it inspire Mats Gustafsson's "Swedish Azz"?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

johnlewis.jpg

The Argo/Cadet pressing. On 2nd look, that cover is pretty odd, isn't it. I mean, where's the "J"?

In red!

e5d7153f5482ffcf2ad0754cbed2957e.jpg

Somewhere in the 70s, whoever owned Chess/Argo/Etc (or maybe somebody who didn't own it...) flooded the cutout bins with all these LPs that had B&W Xerox-y looking covers. Not remembering if this was the same batch that had same front and back covers, but there was that too.

Anyway, you know how tricky xeroxing red could be back in the day.

I've got a few of those Cadets and very tacky they look, although they don't sound too bad. Golson's 'Take a Number From One To Ten' and Art Farmer's 'Art' as well as the 'Big City Sounds'. Mole Jazz's deletions rack was full of them. Coincided with the 'Winter of Discontent' over here !

Edited by sidewinder
Link to comment
Share on other sites

And that makes sense too.

I say this very advisedly, because I love the man, I love the music, and I for sure love the album, but that Julius Hemphill big band album...if jut a few strategically placed section players would have been inserted, the writing itself might have benefited. What that might have cost the feel of the music, I dunno. Something, I'm sure.

Part of me says that if I got ears, I can hear the writing no matter what, and as a rule, I can. Another part of me says that parts are meant to be heard as much as they are felt, and that the clearer the parts are executed individually, the better you can feel them based on what is really there instead of waht you think you want to be there. And another part of me says just fuck it, go for what you get, start there and keep getting and going. Thing is, all these parts are often going on at the same time. And if/when it's Ellington, none of those parts have time to be bothered by any of that.

But as far as the Braxton record goes, hey, you made the album you made and used the people that you used, if they did what you hired them to do, the complaint that they didn't/couldn't do past that, well, live and learn. That record is glorious as is. Whatever else it could have been, hey, time machine, go for a time machine.

You want the flipside, go to the 1978 orchestra and the Koln album. For that reason I much prefer it to the Arista (even though I love that one too, of course)

The Arista is awesome, never had any problem with it from a listener's perspective, though there are Braxton LPs I dig out before this one. I don't find the Ring set that interesting but it was made much, much earlier before some of these concepts had taken flight.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.

×
×
  • Create New...