Alexander Hawkins

Larry - thanks for the link to Shelton's site. I heard him recently on something - just can't place what! - and really enjoyed his playing. Although, IIRC, that was entirely acoustic, so I'll be interested to hear his 'laptopping'. Thinking of 482 Music, one album I do remember enjoying a great deal (haven't listened in a bit, though) was http://www.482music.com/albums/482-1031.html this. Jim Baker plays analog synthesiser, although to me what he did on that was reminiscent of some of the electronics players I enjoy. I suppose a distinction I've been sloppy with is that between those who play electronics as a primary 'instrument', and those who use it as a processing tool. And then as well, those who use live samples, and those with a prerecorded library...I'm generally a little more wary of the prerecorded library (hence perhaps also Lewis' birds..!) - it's obviously different, but does seem in some ways like an acoustic player just unloading their bag of licks... That said - and Nate may back me up on this! - a really great band over in these parts is 'Bruise' (Tony Bevan, Orphy Robinson, John Edwards, Ashley Wales, Mark Sanders), where Ashley uses a great deal of 'library' samples (although uses real-time processing as well).

Really interesting to read that Larry - I've been 'grappling' with this one a lot too. I share a lot of your opinions on this. I really love the work of all three musicians in almost all of the other contexts in which I've heard them, but I find this trio quite difficult. Perhaps because I'm young (26) and so relatively very new to these players (probably first heard them when I was 18), I still have something of an uncritical reaction, especially to what Roscoe and Muhal do (the latter, I think, because I'm a piano player, so really in awe from a number of angles). I agree with your assessment - I don't think these two are necessarily on the same page (and are probably on increasingly divergent pages?), but that isn't necessarily an issue for me, for similar reasons to those you cite: Mitchell has such an overwhelming musical ability and control that he can probably make music on any/anyone's turf, and Abrams for something of the opposite reason - that through the bloody-mindedness of his approach, he'll hold his own and sound fascinating whatever the musical relief. Lewis - even that Lewis that I really love - is slightly difficult for me. I have to listen the same way as Tatum. Tatum is my favourite piano player, period; and one of my favourite musicians, period; but I think this only came when I was able to 'get over it', technically. This didn't quite mean ignoring that what he was doing was instrumentally so stunning (like Roland Kirk for me as well, it's too integral to the concept), but somehow learning that this element of his concept was really some way back in what was going on musically, compared e.g. to harmonic/rhythmic ingenuity. Now, Tatum I've cracked from my personal listening point of view(!); but Lewis - well, I listen to him play on 40B from Basel (1977), a tune that is hard enough for me to get around on piano, and *still* there's a large part of my brain (doubtless the conservative part) saying - 'but that's a *trombone*!?!' So I suppose my take on it is that I find Lewis' instrumental concept to be quite difficult in the first place - like Tatum, there is a risk to the casual listener of finding it a bit meretricious (whereas what's also so beguiling about it is that it's so deep at the same time to the sincere listener). And that introducing the laptop as well really puts me in jeopardy - after all, here's another layer of 'stuff' to get through on the way to the music. Now, I'm simply not familiar enough with Lewis' trombone or (especially) electronics to draw any conclusions about his relationship with the horn as a result of his relationship with the electronics. What I do find fascinating about this record is how I listen to it. Given that I'm more than a little unable to be critical about Roscoe or Muhal, and that I'm very fond of Lewis' work, there's a large part of me which really just *wants* to like it, and to leave it at that. But listening to it, I do find it difficult to like in this way, despite flashes of absolute brilliance from each. My solace at the moment(!) is that I seem to 'get' a little bit more of what's going on each time, so at least as the 'friendly experiencer' I'm being rewarded..! I find the question of electronics very interesting, especially the question of how they react with 'acoustic' instruments. On our scene in the UK, there's some extremely gifted electronics players. Personally, I just don't enjoy working with them as much unless they have the same facilities as an 'acoustic' musician, in terms of ability to lead, respond, otherwise interact etc. (granted that this may be a somewhat 'old-school' approach)!. That said, there are some phenomenally gifted electronics guys around, who are absolutely the equal of other 'traditional' players (e.g. Pat Thomas - an unbelievable electronic musician as well as pianist), and, more pertinently to the discussion here, guys who integrate electronic manipulations into their 'acoustic' concept (e.g. Philipp Wachsmann, Marcio Mattos, etc.) On a related note, I'm very interested to hear Braxton's approach to 'laptopping' in his new(ish) 'Diamond Curtain Wall' trio - there's already a few examples on record, but I've yet to hear them.

Thanks! BTW - playing piano in a group with Nat King Cole. Pressure, anyone???

How can you not have a good time when you're wearing white shoes? When you're playing cricket and losing. MG :rofl:

Thanks! I'm not too familiar with the US outlets...try to avoid getting stung by customs wherever possible

I just wondered if anyone had a copy of either 'Turn' or 'Bad Guys' with which they were willing to part??? They seem pretty tough to get hold of here in the UK...I see that 'Turn' is available from the label, but if anyone had a SH one, that would be great...it's not cheap direct! Thanks in advance for any leads.

Absolutely! Had this on only yesterday. Pretty astonishing sequence. I think I'm going to start asking my students to listen to this.

Also - I guess it's a more explicit thing for solo recitals, in some ways: John Butcher and Roscoe Mitchell.

Monk. Bruckner.

Flight of the Foo Birds

I would check him out playing solo. The new one on Emanem is supposed to be magnificent, although I haven't heard it (although if my diary's to be trusted - since Emanem's discography certainly is - shared the bill on one of the gigs which is represented on the CD, and it definitely was special).

Shame on anyone who charges £185 to hear music. Wouldn't expect to hear much jazz from the Jazz Cannons - they appear to be a function band... As for other places in London? Not Ronnie's. They've sold out a while back, so it's only really a place for suits now. The VERY VERY occasional thing worth hearing, but their admission charges are an absolute disgrace. Depends on what you want to hear, otherwise...the Vortex has a great programme, often of more interesting stuff than elsewhere. The Red Rose is the home of experimental music in London - often great 'free jazz' (for want of a less clumsy label) to be heard there. The Jazz Cafe occasionally has good things, but is also shamefully expensive. Big events - well, the South Bank and Barbican have interesting things from time to time.

I really enjoy Funny Rat. Maybe it deserves a thread of its own?

Taborn's left hand is outrageous in that clip!

Yeah - Harry absolutely SMOKED at the Rutherford memorial gig at the Red Rose a few weeks back. A truly awesome trio with Nick Stephens and Tony Marsh. Later that night, BTW, we had the trumpet section of Harry, Kenny, Henry Lowther, Ian Smith, and Orphy Robinson(!) in the London Improvisers Orchestra!

Another review here! (Scroll down)... And another here. Another!

I think Taborn is easily one of the best younger pianists around. Let's face it, how many times is Roscoe Mitchell wrong with his bands, and Taborn is STUNNING in the Note Factory (IMHO). Strangely, the playing of his I've probably been most ambivalent about has been his leader disc on piano in the Thirsty Ear series - some killing playing and arrangement (e.g. 'I Cover the Waterfront'), and some markedly less interesting, more generic stuff...

Not sure about Kenton doing Wagner , but Donald Lambert doing the overture to 'Tannhauser' is fun!

Dave Burrell's 'La Vie de Boheme' is pretty cool

As a Chelsea man, I have to support Mr Bonetti! [OK - not his finest hour ] Agreed, Carson was woeful, despite that great save in the second half. England were a total joke last night. Frankly, some kind of miracle we managed to score two goals (what an extraordinary cross from Beckham to set up the second, however!).

Thank you - and thank you for the advice too

Clifford - they're CDs. Thanks for the tips - I had no idea that the Parlan was still in print. Oops! p.s. Uncle Skid - I haven't really monitored ebay 'dynamics' before...if it only had one bidder, does that suggest maybe the demand isn't there at the moment?

A little bit of a thorny one this - don't want to be seen to be covertly attempting an auction - but I'd really appreciate some help. I'm looking to finance rehearsal and recording of a project of mine, and I guess one of the things I could do - albeit reluctantly - is sell the very few Mosaic sets I have! I have the Mobley and Farlow, which are both readily available, so it's not really worth me selling those, but I do have the Sam Rivers, Horace Parlan, and the Byrd/Adams, which I think are all OOP. One option is ebay, I suppose, but I've not sold any of my music before, so am totally out of touch with what kind of money I could get for these...could anyone offer any advice as to what prices I might be looking at, so I can decide whether/how to sell??? A real wrench selling this stuff which I love so much, but it'll presumably come around again in some form or other at some stage, whereas I'm really keen to get this group of mine into the studio as soon as possible while the material is still fresh. Don't make me save up for it - they'll know the notes by then .

My first released effort came out in April, from this band. Here's the label's website, where you can read the liner notes by bassist/composer Simon H. Fell. Here's a review from Point of Departure; and one each from DMG and ejazzNews. Also excited to say I'm with another band to be released on Emanem in the new year! My website, as well...

Cecil Taylor - Sunny Murray - Jimmy Lyons - Nefertiti, The Beautiful One... - killing version.