Art Ensemble of Chicago

[sal]

Anyone heard it yet? Thoughts?

[JSngry]

It's pretty mellow.

[sal]

I don't like the sound of that.....not on an AEC recording...

[JSngry]

Don't be afraid.

[Guest Chaney]

Have you heard this one?

Men on a mission.

[Chuck Nessa]

Have you heard this one?

Men on a mission.

I have, and it is a VERY good one. I think I posted about this before.

I have not heard the most recent Pi disc but think the previous one is "good for fans". I'd hate it if this was someone's introduction to the band.

Buy around a dozen cds first.

[John B]

Chuck, have you ever heard the studio album Go Home, that was recorded in 1970? That is another nice, very obscure, AEC date.

[GregK]

great timing for this thread for me. I have just started exploring this group. I got their ECM rarum, and while I know it isn't exactly representative of their work, I really really enjoy it. My goodness I never realized a bass could sound that good. and Lester Bowie has some of the best sounding trumpet I have ever heard. I need to know, where next? I will be getting the 67/68 box from Chuck after Christmas, but what else? I was thinking Nice Guys

[Chuck Nessa]

Chuck, have you ever heard the studio album Go Home, that was recorded in 1970?  That is another nice, very obscure, AEC date.

Yes, Roscoe played the lp for me when they returned (from Europe), I received a cassette, and now own a copy of the boot cd.

edit to insert "from europe".

Edited November 19, 2004 by Chuck Nessa

[John B]

I need to know, where next? I will be getting the 67/68 box from Chuck after Christmas, but what else? I was thinking Nice Guys

I asked the same question not too long ago and the answers I got are all excellent:

Pathe Sessions (Les Stances de Sophie / People in Sorrow)

Fanfare for the Warriors

Bap-Tizum

Reese and the Smooth Ones

start with those.

Here is the thread I started, which has quite a few recommendations.

Edited November 19, 2004 by John B

[Guest Chaney]

I don't think I'd recommend Bap-Tizum. Not at all a personal favorite.

[JSngry]

Different strokes, I suppose. Bap-Tizum is a long-time personal favorite.

[ajf67]

I am by no means an expert on this group, but the one I have been the most impressed with so far has been People In Sorrow. That just blew me away from the first listen. I have it on LP, so I can't comment on the CD with Les Stances.... THis is one where I think I will prefer it on CD once I get it. There is such great use of silence or "space" and this is one where the LP medium has definite drawbacks for me as my copy is just in OK shape. If I remember correctly, there was discussion about this CD in an earlier thread and there are two editions of the same material, but one was said to have better sound.

[JohnS]

When I saw the number of tracks I thought it miht be a bit fragmentary. Maybe it is but it all holds together rather well. Fine playing all round. Recommended, but as Chucks says, for fans.

Edited November 19, 2004 by JohnS

[Д.Д.]

Have you heard this one?

Men on a mission.

This one is good, if not the best AEoC, IMO. Lester is not playing that much here. unfortunately.

For the new Pi one, I will porbably skip it. The previous one The Meeting was quite weak, and this new one is from the same session, so it's hard to expect it would be much better.

As a reminder, three AEoC AMerica recordings (Phase One, With Fontella Bass and Certain Blacks) wil be reisues by EmArcy France in a couple of weeks:

Edited November 19, 2004 by Д.Д.

[Chuck Nessa]

FWIW, Certain Blacks was not recorded as an Art Ensemble project - they were sidemen. They were pissed when it came out under their name.

[sal]

Anyone else heard Sirius Calling?

[GregK]

Anyone else heard Sirius Calling?

Yep, I got it today and I think it's great (after two listenings). It is definitely quieter than some of the others that I've heard, but the sound quality is as good as or better than the ECM discs, and I really like the different sized groupings for each tune. I'll be listening to this one a lot in the near future. By the way, what is a "percussion cage"? Roscoe is credited with playing it.

Edited March 5, 2005 by GregK

[JSngry]

Anyone else heard Sirius Calling?

Been revisiting it the last few days, and am enjoying it very much. As others have noted, perhaps not a "starting point", but like anything else, knowing what came before gives this one a high element of "mature" satisfaction. Nothing particulaly "new", just further refinements and nuances.

Still, I miss the hell outta Lester Bowie, and not just in this band...