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corto maltese

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Posts posted by corto maltese

  1. The track 'Fela' is a killer

    Lester Bowie recorded this album upon his return from Nigeria where he lived and worked with Fela Kuti. "For Fela" is his tribute.

    Yes, so did I. I do enjoy ep1str0phy's posts - always written with insight and care.

    Hear, hear.

  2. nah, got it from a shop in France a while back.

    It was more expensive than the one that just sold. We bantered about this some time ago I thought!

    Original copies of "Free jazz" are actually not that difficult to find (for a mid 60s European free jazz record that is). I wonder about variations in the size of the pressings of some of these avant garde titles on disques Mouloudji: I've seen ten times more "Free jazz" than "Le nouveau jazz". The same goes for two André Almuro titles from the same period: "Le condamné à mort" versus "Avec" (but that can probably be explained by the fact that the first one was a collaboration with the label boss himself...).

    On my turntable now: Jimmy Giuffre 3 "Music for people, birds, butterflies & mosquitoes" on Choice. Silly title and not a very attractive cover, but the music is fine.

  3. Funny thing, those vintage Japanese free jazz pressings. "Church number nine" on Odeon has even got 10 minutes of extra music (sort of "part 3") compared to the French Calumet.

    I have an original French pressing but have long been curious about the Japanese Odeon and its extra ten minutes of music. Curious, but it's hard to break the bank purchasing something you already own!

    I've checked again and am pretty sure now that the extra music on the Japanese Frank Wright is the '"Church number nine" track on Noah Howard's "Space Dimension" (which didn't really belong there in the first place). It's been restored (it's longer and doesn't have the fade out-pause-restart) and the sound is far, far superior.

    Anyway, French or Japanese, it's still one of the most exciting free jaz records ever made and it deserves a first class reissue (how about a Noah Howard & Frank Wright Complete Small Group Sessions box set?).

  4. "Monoceros and "Finger Palace" were both recorded in 1978 (Monoceros in April, Finger Palace in November during a tour of Japan). I think Monoceros holds the edge, but they are both superb. I talked with EP once about "Finger Palace" (which is only out in a Japanese issue, and I think O/P), and EP said that the "Vaincu Va" album (which I have and which is easily available) was recorded shortly after that tour of Japan and recording of the "Finger Palace" album, and his chops were in great shape, so add that to the list of superb recordings/performances. Still, it's "Monoceros" for me.

    All three are great. Finger Palace was actually recorded in Berkeley and came out on a Beak Doctor LP. Don't think it ever saw a CD release. The Vancouver concert is from a couple of days later.

    There is an Evan Paker solo album recorded during his 1982 tour of Japan. It's called "Zanzou" and was released on the Jazz & Now label. The back cover's got a great picture of Evan playing his soprano with two terrorized Japanese children covering their ears.

    R-150-2894498-1352305731-7851.jpeg

  5. That's one advantage of living on the old continent, I suppose.

    If you can look past the mostly dull covers, there's some excellent free jazz on Amiga records (and a lot of other thing too, of course).

    Now playing: Quartetto Luigi Bonafede "Riflessioni" (Red, 1980). Two side-long improvisations with piano, two basses and drums.

    Next will be some Karin Krog, if there's time left before the Christmas eve obligations.

  6. On the topic of Frank wright and curio Japanese pressings; the Japanese version of Noah Howard's "space dimension" sounds great whereas it seems all French America pressings have some sort of mastering/pressing flaw.

    I only have the French "Space Dimension". The third track on that album is part of the "Church number nine" session (Muhammed Ali replaces Art Taylor). The track starts with a bit of Bobby Few piano amidst percussion, then the music drops away (!) and starts again with Ali's drums. I think that track was restored for the Japanese issue of "Church number nine" (the extra music I was talking about in my earlier post).

    Both the original "Church number nine" on Calumet and the Japanese issue sound dramatically better than that track on the "Space Dimension" album. If the Japanese issue of "Space Dimension" sounds equally good, I need that one!

  7. Nice score. Have a dead silent Japanese press of "le nouveau jazz" and only the In Situ CD version of "free jazz"...

    I've been told the Japanese "Le nouveau jazz" is a stereo pressing. If so, is it "real" stereo?

    I think my copy is stereo but honestly have no idea. Catalog number is "SL-5007-AX". My copy is a white label promo and all the text on the back and inner gatefold is in Japanese.

    The pressing quality is pristine and not a single click is to be heard which is nice.

    Yeah, Columbia pressed up promos of both Tusques Mouloudjis - they are also quite rare, pressings are undoubtedly better than the originals. So it goes...

    Funny thing, those vintage Japanese free jazz pressings. "Church number nine" on Odeon has even got 10 minutes of extra music (sort of "part 3") compared to the French Calumet.

  8. I bought two of those Sun Ra's (Unity & Other Voices) that were old dead stock - not bootlegs or reissues AFAIK. They were not warped or damaged in anyway. They sound fine to my ears.

    Some Horo's (including the Sun Ra's) had two pressings. Dead stock copies of the second pressing do turn up quite regularly here in Europe. Sun Ra originals have a yellow label; later Horo pressings have orange labels.

    Both sound fine, like in fact many Horo's do.

  9. Here's some information from "a reliable source":

    This album was a demo session that Miroslav recorded in 1970.

    When he 'left' Weather Report he 'sold' this to Japan for 'large' money

    and 'never paid' the 'sidemen'.

    Since there is a looming fear of retribution Sony won't touch this.

    And the deal was for Japan only.

    The liner notes in the accompanying data sheet in Japanese are dated to 1974, that fits into above story. If I ever get the equipment to transfer this to CD I will let you know. Maybe I should sell this on ebay some day ..... how much does it go for?

    My copy of the album is an original pressing on CBS/Sony Japan, apparently dating from 1970 (SOPC-57101-J), which seems to contradict the story of the post-Weather Report deal. It was reissued in CBS/Sony's "Best Jazz Collection" series in 1974, hence the confusion perhaps.

    These are Miroslav Vitous' own thoughts about the session (http://www.innerviews.org/inner/vitous.html):

    "I made that album after Infinite Search. I was working with David Baker, the engineer, and was experimenting with different musicians and material. I had Billy Cobham, John McLaughlin and Joe Zawinul there. They experimented with me. After six months, I thought I had enough material and put together an album. I think there is some excellent music on it. Purple was made before Weather Report started, but you can already hear some material that we later played with the band. There’s a song called “Water Lily,” which has an identical skeleton to a piece we recorded with Weather Report called “Morning Lake.” There’s another Weather Report piece called “Seventh Arrow” that was also on Purple. There was a development of the material on Purple that ended up in Weather Report. It was a stepping stone."

    Not being much of a jazz-fusion pyrotechnics fan myself, I do like the openness and spareness of the music. One would imagine this to be essential listening for Vitous fans.

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