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New Impulse! Reissues


jazzbo

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I think that there is a resurgence in interest in Ayler; I've seen it with myself and a few others coming into the fold. "Healing" is an interesting album. . . I'm down with almost all but the bagpipes! "New Grass" is in my opinion a better album, and may have been a better choice, but as I have the Japanese of "New Grass" I'm happy they released "Healing." That sax sound on both is just so huge and expressive!

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I mean Ayler never was popular - and then you got guys like Murray, Gioia and Piazza suggesting that if you were white and liked this sort of music, you wanted blacks to be noble savages. Which is kind of below the belt.

Not exactly helpful. I think the music is a mixture of melancholy and joy.

Simon Weil

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  • 3 weeks later...

Hey Simon, do you know where have you read quotes like that? I'd like to see those--I didn't realize that sentiment had been expressed, and I'm writing about the music (right now, just for school).!"

Sorry it took me so long to get back to you Usual Channels. My attention must been elsewhere (it must have been). Actually, I'm in the process of researching the stuff. I may write something at some point....

Check out:

Ted Gioia in Jazz and the Primitivist Myth (in The Imperfect Art)

Tom Piazza in Blues up and Down (in the collection of the same name)

Martha Bayles interview (online but not a great example)

The Lincoln Center lot (Murray and Marsalis) also do it.

Simon Weil

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The only one from that list that I have read is Tom Piazza. I certainly don't remember any such reference regarding Albert Ayler. Piazza's "noble savage" point was directed against white critics who he believes don't like Wynton Marsalis because Marsalis refuses play that role, and instead beats them at their own game.

Such a comment form Gioia would surprise me too, given the generally positive write-up that Ayler got in his History of Jazz book.

On the other hand, I wouldn't be surprised to hear Stanley Crouch say something like that. After all, Crouch calls white people who like Public Enemy "masochists."

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It's good to see the interest in Ayler, we've been spoilt for choice lately with his cds, Healing Force, Nuits de la Fondation Maeght and The Copenhagen Tapes. A nice selection from his early playing through to his final recordings. It's got to be good.

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John L wrote:

The only one from that list that I have read is Tom Piazza.   I certainly don't remember any such reference regarding Albert Ayler.  Piazza's "noble savage" point was directed against white critics who he believes don't like Wynton Marsalis because Marsalis refuses play that role, and instead beats them at their own game.

No, you're being too easy on Piazza.

Such a comment form Gioia would surprise me too, given the generally positive write-up that Ayler got in his History of Jazz book.

He's patronising about Ayler in his history. On primitivism, check the reference I gave if you want.

BruceH wrote:

Keep in mind that Gioia's "The Imperfect Art" came out back in 1988----10 or 12 years before his History of Jazz. He had plenty of time to change his mind on some scores, and, perhaps, mature a bit.

Can't see why.

John L wrote:

On the other hand, I wouldn't be surprised to hear Stanley Crouch say something like that.   After all, Crouch calls white people who like Public Enemy "masochists."

I haven't actually seen Crouch do it. Murray and Marsalis do. People expect the Lincoln Center mob - and particularly Crouch - to take these sorts of "outrageous" positions. Piazza and Gioia - not so. They aren't supposed to be "extremists", certainly not Gioia. That's why it's important that they do.

They don't explicitly say that listening to Ayler if you're white means you want blacks to be noble savages, but the way they structure the debate across, sometimes, a number of writings ends up pointing in that direction (certainly if you write - or think - about Ayler fundamentally in terms of emotion they'll accuse you of that.).

It's hard to dig out - and to do it you'd have to write articles. Which I'm thinking about.

Probably someone ought to do it.

Simon Weil

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  • 3 years later...

Bumping this one up from when this board first started — kind of interesting to see the enthusiasm for Impulse's reissue campaign, and how it's played out since.

Is there still a U.S. jazz reissue program for Impulse? It seems like the last batch was a while ago ...

Wasn't Cosmic Music supposed to come out at one time?

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Bumping this one up from when this board first started — kind of interesting to see the enthusiasm for Impulse's reissue campaign, and how it's played out since.

Is there still a U.S. jazz reissue program for Impulse? It seems like the last batch was a while ago ...

Wasn't Cosmic Music supposed to come out at one time?

The last digipack reissue I picked up was John Coltrane's terrific Interstellar Space, with Rashied Ali. It came out in 2000.

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Bumping this one up from when this board first started — kind of interesting to see the enthusiasm for Impulse's reissue campaign, and how it's played out since.

Is there still a U.S. jazz reissue program for Impulse? It seems like the last batch was a while ago ...

Wasn't Cosmic Music supposed to come out at one time?

The last digipack reissue I picked up was John Coltrane's terrific Interstellar Space, with Rashied Ali. It came out in 2000.

That was the golden age of jazz reissues. With the labels overrun by suits and mergers, the days of scrumptious reissues are over.

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Bumping this one up from when this board first started — kind of interesting to see the enthusiasm for Impulse's reissue campaign, and how it's played out since.

Is there still a U.S. jazz reissue program for Impulse? It seems like the last batch was a while ago ...

Wasn't Cosmic Music supposed to come out at one time?

Well a Pharoah and Shepp came out recently, via the Verve LP by Request (sort of) series. They sound great.

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Well a Pharoah and Shepp came out recently, via the Verve LP by Request (sort of) series. They sound great.

The Shepp was pretty useless, though, since the major cuts were available as bonus cuts on 'The Way Ahead' CD. Better if it would have been 'Things Have Got to Change' (impossible to find on CD now), or at least 'For Losers' or 'The Magic of Ju-Ju' (both pricey imports, which I did shell out for). The couple of short stray tracks from Kwanza could have been placed as bonus cuts on these.

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I'd forgotten that Kwanza had just been reissued — indeed, a weird choice. And now Verve/Impulse/Universal/Mel Gibson has gone back to jewel cases! Jeebus.

Yeah, 2000 was a great year for Coltrane reissues. We even got, for no particularly good reason, Impressions — with all the tracks previously issued, sometimes more than once, on compact disc! I guess for original cover art fetishists, that one. (I love original cover art, and didn't even buy that one.)

Maybe Ravi can throw us another bone in '08. :rlol

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Well a Pharoah and Shepp came out recently, via the Verve LP by Request (sort of) series. They sound great.

The Shepp was pretty useless, though, since the major cuts were available as bonus cuts on 'The Way Ahead' CD. Better if it would have been 'Things Have Got to Change' (impossible to find on CD now), or at least 'For Losers' or 'The Magic of Ju-Ju' (both pricey imports, which I did shell out for). The couple of short stray tracks from Kwanza could have been placed as bonus cuts on these.

Well, that's your personal opinon. I had the tracks on The Way Ahead, and a vinyl copy that was worn, and I wanted the whole session together as a cd and I'm glad to have it. For me it works as a single entity quite wall. And I feel the sound on this is better than earlier digipak Impulses.

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Lon, what was the recent Pharoah side? I couldn't figure it out from the Verve website. Thanks.

Bumping this one up from when this board first started — kind of interesting to see the enthusiasm for Impulse's reissue campaign, and how it's played out since.

Is there still a U.S. jazz reissue program for Impulse? It seems like the last batch was a while ago ...

Wasn't Cosmic Music supposed to come out at one time?

Well a Pharoah and Shepp came out recently, via the Verve LP by Request (sort of) series. They sound great.

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For my tastes, Village of the Pharoahs is much more engaging than Elevation. It's great that we have both, though.

Now I just wish I could hear, for once, Live at The East! I have tried to order this from Japan, have tried to trade for it ... all with no luck.

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For my tastes, Village of the Pharoahs is much more engaging than Elevation. It's great that we have both, though.

Now I just wish I could hear, for once, Live at The East! I have tried to order this from Japan, have tried to trade for it ... all with no luck.

Late,

There are digital copies of Live at the East circulating. I'll admit that once I heard it, I was somewhat disappointed given all the hype on this board.

Guy

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