HutchFan

@kh1958 -- I should add this album to the rotation?

Yep. I'm familiar with Free Lancing and Odyssey. Those two -- plus Captain Black -- are the three albums that I've been cycling thru while trying to get a foothold on Ulmer's music.

Lucky Thompson!

Next up: George Adams / Don Pullen Quartet - Earth Beams (Timeless, 1980)

I agree. His music almost reminds me of someone who's heard and absorbed Jimi Hendrix and then traveled back in time to visit and play with some early Delta bluesmen. Like it's modern and ancient simultaneously. Rhythm-wise, though, it doesn't sound like "jazz" (very much in quotes, to me). It up-and-down, march-like rhythmic feeling reminds me of something that preceded jazz.

I'm still wrasslin' with Ulmer's music -- but making some progress, I think. James Blood [Ulmer] - Tales of Captain Black (Artists House, 1979) I'm discovering that it's best to approach this music through a different doorway than the one called Jazz. To cop Ornette's phrase, this other doorway might simply be called Something Else.

Yes, absolutely. The goal is to always find someone who's even MORE extreme in their collecting habits than we are. Then we can point at them when our spouses raise their eyebrows and say, "But look at him!!! Compared to that guy, my habit is completely reasonable!"

Now spinning: The Michel Petrucciani Trio - Live at the Village Vanguard (Concord-George Wein Collection, 1985) with Palle Danielsson & Eliot Zigmund

Good stuff! Martinon was (is?) an under-appreciated conductor, I think. Did you get to see him while he was MD at the CSO?

Ooooooh. Nice! Thanks for the heads-up.

Very, very interesting, Allen. Thanks for sharing those thoughts.

Beautiful. NP: Larry Willis - Sanctuary (Mapleshade, 2003)

I think this is something that many of us here on the board have experienced as well!

Interesting. I had no idea that book existed.

I don't think these genres exist anywhere -- aside from the minds of our fellow board-members! Then again, invention is an essential component of jazz. So . . . why not !?!?

Earl Hines - Tour de Force (Black Lion, rec. 1972) Truthful title.

That tracks.

On a George Benson kick this morning.

I've always wanted to hear Lowther's Child Song, but it's not readily available -- even for streaming on YT. I'll check out this JiB release instead.

I'd be very surprised if Byers did the arranging on Gula Matari. The music sounds soooo distinctively Quincy Jones-like. I'd be less surprised if Byers helped out on Walking in Space, although -- even on that record -- Byers must've really studied Q's sound to replicate it. It's a darn good record. I really like it. Like Ardley's Kaleidoscope of Rainbows, you can hear the influence of Minimalism in Chrome-Waterfall (composers like Reich, Glass, and such). Very different than anything you'd hear from a jazz band on this side of the pond, AFAIK.

I don't think Gula Matari is an especially "jazzy" -- as in jazz solos -- sort of record, even though the band is stocked with ridiculously good soloists and there's some terrific soloing. The music is fundamentally about Quincy's skills as an arranger. It's been a long time since I listened to Walking in Space -- but I think both records work similarly. Both are reminiscent of his soundtrack work as much as they're about "Jazz." For example, the way Quincy re-imagines "Bridge Over Troubled Water" as something coming out of a southern church reminds me (at times) of his music for In the Heat of the Night. In any case, it's terrific music -- even if it's more about vibe than about soloists. And, while I'm listening, Quincy can (and often does!) make me think things like: "Damn, the way Q blends those four trombones togther sounds soooo good! Is there a bass trombone in there?!?! Because I've never heard nothin' like that!" I suppose I didn't answer your question! I'm not sure which record I prefer more or which is jazzier. I'd need to revisit Walking in Space. EDIT: I just finished re-listening to Walking in Space. My impressions: Gula Matari is a more ambitious (and more interesting) record; it aims much higher than WiS. Quincy wrote "Gula Matari," a 13-minute long piece inspired by Africa for the album. There's nothing comparable on WiS. So Gula Matari . . . less pop vibes. More ambitious in scope. Not necessarily more jazz (well, maybe some more), but a better, more satisfying record -- in this listener's opinion. My 2 cents.

Sammy Davis Jr. - The Wham of Sam (Warner Archives, 1994) featuring Marty Paich & his Dek-Tette and Marlene VerPlanck Loves Johnny Mercer (Audiophile, rec. 1978) I keep coming back to this album. The cuts are short (mostly between 2 and 3 minutes), and there are no instrumental solos. Throughout, the focus is squarely on VerPlanck. That might not sound like a formula for success -- but it works. VerPlanck's voice and interpretations carry the day. Mercer's lyrics leap to life, and the band swings hard in their supporting role. Pizzarelli especially.