Funny Rat

[Д.Д.]

I used to play the final track of Frank Zappa's Civilization Phase III a lot.

Music-wise this is a great great disc, but some of the spoken words sections are extremely annoying IMO.

[Guest Chaney]

This thread is at the '2000 REPLIES' point!

If you click on the '2000', you get:

Who posted in: Funny Rat

Poster :: Posts

Д.Д. 519

king ubu 349

John B 255

Chaney 225

J.A.W. 183

Geoff 51

couw 46

Nate Dorward 46

P.L.M 42

Gary 40

gnhrtg 36

Clunky 32

Matthew 32

brownie 20

Late 17

clifford_thornton 14

jon abbey 13

alankin 10

EKE BBB 10

Chuck Nessa 9

David Ayers 7

7/4 7

rockefeller center 5

Jazzmoose 4

alejo 4

WD45 3

AmirBagachelles 3

Jim Dye 2

.:.impossible 2

Joe Christmas 2

shrugs 2

Swinger 2

JSngry 1

Peter 1

Adam 1

jazzbo 1

mgraham333 1

randyhersom 1

KOB 1

Rob C 1

Brandon Burke 1

Edited June 22, 2004 by Chaney

[couw]

who's this Д.Д. guy then?

ahhh! space oddity, revel in there for the little moment...

Edited June 22, 2004 by couw

[Guest Chaney]

who's this Д.Д. guy then?

...

An M.V.P., I'd say.

Those young guys have so much more stamina.

[Guest Chaney]

From the DMG newsletter:

THE 9TH ANNUAL VISION FESTIVAL

"VISION FOR A JUST WORLD"

Review by Bruce Lee Gallanter of Downtown Music Gallery

      Our rental vehicle pulled back into NYC with my Victo fest

buddies - Jason Roth, Kurt Gottschalk & Lawrence Donahue-Green after

a ten plus hour journey from Victoriaville in Quebec, stopping back

at DMG to drop off Jason and some cds I bought at Victo and headed

over to the first night of the Vision Festival, Tuesday May 25th!

Yes, I was a bit burnt out after a week and some 24 sets up at Victo,

but the Vision Fest is another great fest that occurs just once a

year and this year's week-long 31 set schedule looked to be the best

ever. And as it turned out, it was the best Vision Festival, Patricia

Nicholson Parker and her staff had outdone themselves! Lucky for me,

I was there for every set except for three - the opening Sun Ra

Arkestra set, because I was still in transit, the Amiri Baraka set

because I need a rest and the Joe McPhee set, because I had to catch

that last train back to Jersey.

      The first set I caught was by the Khan Jamal Quintet and it one

of the only sets I had any complaints about. Khan is an amazing

vibist and had a great all-star unit with Jemeel Moondoc on alto sax,

Roy Campbell on trumpets, plus a Philly rhythm team of Dylan Taylor

on bass and Dwight James on drums, plus poetess Pheralyn Dove. I have

always dug Khan Jamal since hearing with Sunny Murray's Untouchable

Factor in the 70's. Khan had played with Matt Shipp at one of those

Vision mini-fests at the Mercury Lounge and knocked us out once more.

Matt has since used him on a couple of those Blue Series releases.

The problem that I had with this set was that the poet Ms. Dove read

her words over most of the music, giving Khan, Jemeel and Roy a

minimum of solo space. I did dig some of her poetry, but it was a bit

too much. I know that Khan could've pushed Jemeel and Roy into higher

flights of fancy, but it only happened in spurts.

      The last set that night was by James "Blood" Ulmer all-star trio

with Jamaladeen Tacuma on electric bass and Calvin Weston on drums.

Blood is a great guitarist, whose many recordings are pretty

inconsistent. Here, he was inspired by his powerful Philly rhythm

team, who pushed him to play some of his best stuff. The music was a

righteous blend of funk/jazz/rock/blues with that great harmelodic

complexity that Blood long ago learned from Ornette and continues to

utilize. All three members of this great trio were in fine form, all

took great solos. Blood whipped out the blues standard "Little Red

Rooster" and sang it with righteous authority.

      The second night started out with a marvelous set featuring Yagi

Michiyo on kotos, Ned Rothenberg on alto sax, shakuhachi & clarinet

and Mark Dresser on contrabass. It was a treat to hear koto virtuoso

Yagi, since she so rarely comes to NY. She once played at our old

store in a duo with Marc Sloan and I heard her do another amazing duo

with Elliott Sharp at Project Issue Room two weeks ago. She had been

rehearsing, composing and recording with this new trio and they

sounded great together. It was an all acoustic blend of haunting

sounds from Ned's shakuhachi and alto while Yagi played lovely

folkish melodies on her koto, as Mark also played spooky bowed bass

which was dark and mystical. The trio played a piece they had written

and recorded called "The Outer Planet Suite" and it was an incredible

work which moved through sparse and eventually more violent sections.

Can't wait for that cd.

      Another fine acoustic trio was next called Equal Interest with

Joseph Jarman on alto sax, flutes & percussion, Leroy Jenkins on

violin and Myra Melford on piano & harmonium. This all-star trio has

been around for a few years now and has its own unique sound. Their

sound was closer to modern classical than jazz, much of it sounded

composed. Their music was made of slightly twisted fragments that

were woven into a more dense tapestry as they evolved. Leroy has a

most distinctive sound on his violin, unlike anyone else. He switched

off on harmonica and Jarman played a small (African?) xylobox, an

unusual yet successful combination. There was a beautiful song that

featured Myra on harmonium, Leroy on violin and Jarman on flute,

which was filled with fragile beauty. Jarman even sang nicely on one

piece as well, which I recognized from a more recent Art Ensemble cd.

      An historic meeting of three giants from different

generations/backgrounds, was the phenomenal Henry Grimes Trio with

Marilyn Crispell on piano, Henry on acoustic bass and Andrew Cyrille

on drums. Beginning very slowly and quietly, building perfectly

together, exchanging ideas and ascending to a powerful conclusion.

The wonderfully dynamic Marilyn Crispell doesn't play here often

enough, so that each time she does, it is a special occasion. This

was one of the festival's highlights and during the second half of

the set, they moved into a furious, stormy section that send shivers

up our spines. We can only hope that this marvelous trio records

sometime soon, this is manna for us free/jazz junkies.

      The last set of day two was also special, being a duo of

pianist Fred Van Hove and trombonist Johannes Bauer. I believe this

was Fred's first ever gig in NY. After hearing an amazing solo set

from Mr. Van Hove up at Victo, it was a gas to hear him again in

different, yet no less engaging a context. Johannes is the brother

another trombone hero Connie (who was scheduled to play on the final

day of this Vision Fest) and both played in the great Doppelmoppel,

who I once heard up at Victo. Johannes worked his way through a

variety of splurts, odd vocal sounds and blasts - both well-seasoned

musicians tossing ideas back and forth. Van Hove made a number of

magical and mysterious sounds by playing inside the piano, rubbing

and banging, as well as rolling his hands across the piano in a Don

Pullen-like way. This fine set illustrated how well our European

brethren have advanced and evolved with modern jazz into another new

thing of their own invention. This entire night of unusual mixed

trios and a great Euro duo gave depth and hope that the Vision Fest

brings folks together with no borders or boundaries to hold it back.

      Day #3 opened with the Burnt Sugar Chamber Arkestra, which was

conducted by author/concept man Greg Tate, who also likes to push the

boundaries that the jazz police/purists/snobs have set up to only get

credence that which swings and fits their mold. Burnt Sugar is a

unique blend of many streams, with jazz just being one, and with

rock, funk, blues & hip-hop influences included. Personnel changes

somewhat from gig to gig, here they had almost 20 members with a few

well-known downtowners like Lewis Barnes, Vijay Iyer and Matana

Roberts. Butch Morris has worked with/conducted for Burnt Sugar on a

few occasions and Greg Tate seems to have learned from Butch,

refining his talent as a strong conductor by waving the magic wand or

baton and coaxing the cosmic thread into a brilliantly woven

tapestry. This was the most lyrical and sublimely laid backs set I've

heard from Burnt Sugar with a number of well placed solos added for

good measure. A lovely cello and piano duo in one section, with a

number of fine, sly and snake-like solos from Matana on alto sax, a

long mind-blowing Hendrix-like guitar solo from Rene Akan (?), strong

male and female vocals and a great acoustic bass solo (Jason

Dimatteo?). The entire piece moved slowly and organically, with Greg

Tate really keeping everything focused as it swirled

kaleidoscopically around.

      Vermont based poet, storyteller and occasional Vision fest MC,

David Budbill has established a strong and ongoing rapport with

William Parker, who works as a multi-instrumentalist is this setting

with gongs, ethnic percussion, double reeds, kora and that

four-string African acoustic bass guitar thing (sintir?). David reads

a number of short, simple yet thought-provoking poems about our

current emperor, George Bush and the evil things that he has done.

William did a wonderful job of creating an ongoing acoustic and

organic dialogue that works perfectly with Budbill's thoughtful poems.

      Whit Dickey's longtime trio with Matt Shipp on piano, William

Parker on bass and Whit on drums erupted into deep, dark and

turbulent waters, pounding hard and washing over us in dense waves.

Whit, meanwhile played here with much restraint, floating over his

drums and balancing the storm-force a lighter touch. Whit's spooky

spoken words opened and closed the set with, "coalesce, amalgamate,

mutate and conform", strange, yet fitting. A strong, probing and

somewhat intense piano trio that does not sound like any other. I

missed the set by Amiri Baraka & Blue Ark, because I needed a break

and some sleep to rejuvenate.

      The fourth night was Friday May 28th and attendance was down due

to competition with an AACM tribute to the late Art Ensemble bassist

Malachi Favors which featured a rare solo soprano sax set from Roscoe

Mitchell (which I heard great things about). Day 4 at the Vision Fest

was no less engaging. The first set featured the poetry and voice of

Steve Dalachinsky with the drums/percussion of Tim Barnes and the

dancing of Ximena Garnica. Steve is the main MC for many nights of

the Vision and is both honest, cranky and lovable at the same time.

He never ceases to surprise me with his barbed observations of life

in NY. He asks, "Why can't we all just get along?" and knows there

are no easy answers. He sings a verse from the blues standard "See

See Rider" and wails on the "Blind Joe Death" mantra, eventually

screaming and letting it all out. He is not afraid to let out the

pain and frustration that many of us feel, due to the mess that our

country is in. Both Tim Barnes' careful and expressive percussion and

Ximena's unique dancing also help to fill in the void that Steve's

questions and stories make out think about.

      A strong quartet with Rob Brown (alto sax), Steve Swell

(trombone), Joe Morris (acoustic bass) and Luther Gray (drums) was up

next. The first piece had a great avant-bop theme that recalled

Ornette's great quartet from the early sixties. Both Rob and Steve

took inspired solos throughout the set, but it was the diverse

writing that really showed how well rounded this band really is.  One

tune was quite haunting with minimal bowed bass and soft mallets, the

hushed horns up front were drifting by ever so eloquently. Joe

Morris' bass continues to get better all the time and works just

right with Luther Gray, who also plays in Joe's great guitar trio.

The quartet burnt down the house on the last piece with both horns

spinning profusely around one another like birds in flight.

      Patricia's PaNic Dance Trio and another of William's quartets

featured Rob Brown, Lewis Barnes (trumpet) and Samir Chatterjee

(tables) worked together as one spirited ensemble. It began with all

four musicians playing squeeze-drums and walking slowly around the

stage as the three expressive dancers slowly swirl around the stage.

There was a great combination of sounds when William's quartet moved

to tabla, gimbri (4 string African guitar thing), alto sax & trumpet.

When William switched to bass, he and the tabla player lock into each

other's groove, as both horns dance on top. Much of this music has a

rhythmic foundation, which gave the dancers some currents to navigate

upon. William's kora playing was also added a magical, ethnic,

organic vibe to this set.

      Another surprisingly superb set featured a solo effort from

Mixashawn, a native American tenor saxist who also played flutes,

electronics, berimbau, percussion and sang. The entire set was a

beautifully connected suite, which unfolded with a series of stories.

Mixashawn is a marvelous storyteller with a number of intriguing

stories or observations, including the bizarre story of Ishi, whose

brains were taken out. We all loved his echoplex berimbau song about

the sad love of money and his golden tone on tenor was another

delight. He put together the entire set so that it flowed together

perfectly throughout.

      Day 4 closed with an explosive set from Kidd Jordan's New

Orleans Band which included Clyde Kerr on trumpet, Darryl Levigne on

piano (a new name for us), William Parker on bass and Alvin Fielder

on drums. This was a most intense quintet with strong solos from all

members. I remember the trumpeter from one earlier Vision Fest and

dug the way he played with calm, well placed notes, a clear tone as

Kidd shrieked and turned his notes inside-out. Kidd has a unique way

of bending his notes on sax, taking a nod from the way Trane and

Pharoah also twisted their sax tones. The previously unknown Darryl

Levigne started with just a few notes placed here and there, taking a

long time to build into a frenzy. Drummer Alvin Fielder is yet

another under-recognized master, doing a fine job of helping push the

quintet skywards.

      Reggie Workman & Ashanti's Message opened Day 5 with another set

that transcended the boundaries of modern jazz. The line-up featured

JD Parran on flute & alto clarinet, John Betty on alto sax, Kyoko

Kitamura on vocals, Yayoi Ikawa on piano, Gerry Hemingway on drums

and legendary bassist & professor Reggie Workman at the helm. It

opened with everyone playing spooky and spacious percussion - gongs,

bowed cymbals, saw, inside-the-piano sounds - other worldly and quite

mesmerizing. A great piece called "Desire for Peace in the Kingdom"

was next and began with more free-floating sounds, included an

effective short rap section (from John Betty) and built to an

explosive conclusion. JD was especially amazing on alto clarinet,

Gerry the perfect percussionist for this diverse band and our friend

Kyoko is becoming one of best jazz vocalists around. An extremely

well balanced set with Reggie's superb contrabass and direction

guiding it perfectly.

      One of the most talked about sets of this year's consistently

strong outpouring was the Vision premier of Sabir Mateen's Quintet.

This monster unit featured Raphe Malik on trumpet, Sabir on

multi-reeds, Raymond King on piano, Jane Wong on acoustic bass &

cello and Ravish Momin on drums. Considering this was the first

Vision Fest appearance by Philly's Raymond King and Boston's Jane

Wong, they both gained many new fans thanks to their impressive

playing. Ravish Momin, who played with Kalaparush's trio in a

previous Vision fest, also wowed the audience with his slamming drum

work. Sabir dedicated a touching tune called "Brother Wilbur" to the

much missed bassist, Wilbur Morris, one of the two bassists to whom

this festival was dedicated, and Jane played a marvelous bass solo in

his memory. Sabir and Raphe are one of the hottest, fire-spitting two

horn teams and spewed forth some molten blowing on a few of these

furious tunes. Ravish seems to have mixed the intricate rhythms of

tabla playing into a new style of trap drumming and was pretty

astonishing through, fanning the flames underneath everyone else.

      The legendary and warm hearted professor of healing rhythms,

Milford Graves' quartet featured two of his old cohorts Joe Rigby on

nearly every sax, Hugh Glover also on saxes, William Parker back on

bass & kora and Milford on that custom-made drum-set, dancing and

vocalizing. Milford's rare sets (once or twice a year) are about

ritual, spectacle, audience participation and true spirit of

free-jazz, sixties style, where just about anything can happen. The

ritual begins with the frenzy of free-jazz blasting from both saxes,

William's burning acoustic bass and Milford's swirling arms around

his double bass drum, psychedelic hand painted and uniquely hand-made

drum kit. Joe Rigby in equally impressive on alto, flute, tenor, bari

and sopranino saxes, taking his time and playing inspired solos on

each. Milford sings in a charming and often hilarious invented

African sounding language that makes us all smile as he communicates

with us on another level. Not only does Milford dance, convulse and

roll of the floor of the stage, he of course, moves through the

audience, picks us one of its members and carries the trusting soul

up to and onto the stage, where three more dancers (students of

Milford's) are now all dancing oddly around Milford in righteous

abandon. There are some great combinations of instruments

(kora/flute/dijeradoo) and (sopranino/clarinet/bass/drums) that make

for some more incredible sections. Plus Milford always ends each set

with tasty speech about respecting the elders and reaching out for

the hope of the younguns.

      Cooper-Moore's great Triptych Myth trio was up next and I was

expecting amazing things from Cooper-Moore's piano and handmade

things, Tom Abbs on bass, Chad Taylor on drums and their guest Moo

Lohkenn on vocals. In recent times, Cooper had boasted at gigs that

he is going outdo all those great avant-jazz piano legends, even

naming a half dozen pianists of note. A tall tale you say?!? First

thing, there is more than enough room to dig all of the well known

greats - Cecil Taylor, Keith Tippett, Marilyn Crispell, Alex Von

Schlippenbach, Matt Shipp, Borah Bergman, etc. as well as lesser

known giants (you can fill this in at your leisure). There is no need

to prove anything, unless you think there is that need. Cooper-Moore

has invented and plays a bunch of great hand-made instruments - some

sorta xylophone, a diddely bow and a horizontal harp. Instead of

playing a great deal of amazing piano, he switched off on a few of

his other instruments, which are interesting enough. The set also

featured the strange vocals of this exotic woman that he met in

Wuppertal, Germany, Moo Lohkenn. Moo mixed the extremes with some

blues tunes and scary Diamanda Galas-like echoplex weirdness. Its not

that I didn't dig her singing, but it didn't really fit with the vibe

of the fest or eeven the set. The rhythm team sounded great when they

had a chance to stretch out, only Tom Abbs could keep a didjeradoo

attached to the center of his contrabass, so he can play both

simultaneously. With Cooper-Moore's piano, the greatness only came in

spurts. I kind of expected more from that tough-talking, yet still

charming son-of-a-gun.

      Sadly, I had to split at 1am just as the ever-incredible Joe

McPhee Quartet was about to hit. Shit, I had to can't that last train

back to Joisey or (hardly) sleep on the floor of the store. I would

have loved to hear this quartet featured wonderful Rosi Hertlein on

violin, the grand Dominic Duval on contrabass, Harold E. Smith on

drums and Joe McPhee on sax & trumpets. Turns Mr. Smith hasn't played

with his old pal Mr. McPhee in some thirty years and he had a much

bigger (grey) afro than I had in high school, and mine was pretty

big. Oh well, as Fleetwood Mac might say.

      Roy Campbell's TAZ opened Day #6 with Andy Bemkey on piano,

Chris Sullivan on bass and Michael Thompson on drums. Roy is

completely charming as an MC and is consistently great on his 3

trumpets. Roy began with some delightful flute playing as Andy evoked

cosmic sounds from inside the piano. They finally broke into a hard

swinging, fat and funky Blue Note 60's groove, with on high-flying

pocket trumpet. Andy played some mighty fine & soulful piano on

"Piece of Mind" and Roy played some lovely flugelhorn on an immensely

touching ballad called "Where Has My Father Gone?". Roy's

sharp-witted observations and commentary on the Bush clan are often

worth the price of admission.

      The most highly anticipated set of this year's Vision Fest was

the reunion of the Revolutionary Ensemble, who also haven't played in

about thirty years. The Revolutionary Ensemble was and still is Leroy

Jenkins on violin, Sirone on acoustic bass and Jerome Cooper on

drums. The time was ripe for this momentous return as their first and

only reissue 'The Psyche', one of their five hard to find albums, was

recently been reissued on Mutable cds. They sounded like they were

coming from another dimension, it was twilight zone time. It reminded

of my early loft-jazz gigs, when sets were so out, it made one

question their own sanity. It was like three planets circling each

other in cosmic convergence. When Leroy and Sirone bowed at the same

time, they turned things inside-out. Leroy took one solo in which he

scraped the bow on the violin creating a startling tension that was

almost too much to bear, Since Sirone no longer lives here and Jerome

Cooper does just one of those solo sets, this was an historic moment.

Jerome's drumming was the best I've heard him in many years,

balancing his two string-playing comrades perfectly. It was true

challenge to hear the intricate yet well buried inner dialogue that

took some time to get used to. Jerome seemed to wince whenever the

audience applauded after a solo, since this music was more about the

construction and juxtaposition of three distinct voices. Brilliant or

just too much? I say the former.

      The other highly anticipated set was Dave Burrell's Echo/Peace

Continuum, performing both album side-long pieces from that super

intense BYG free/jazz onslaught album called 'Echoes'. Master jazz

pianist Dave Burrell put together a unique cast of all strong spirits

that have never played together in this situation. The personnel were

Sabir Mateen & Steve Lehman on saxes, Dave on piano, William Parker

on bass and William Hooker on drums. The music quickly exploded with

waves of molten energy. Sabir did an awesome job of screaming and

shrieking with his sax, blasting hard through most of the set. Dave

himself directs the energy but plays very few notes at first, taking

his time to sprinkle the occasional punctuation and navigation. It

was both transcendent and way over the top!?! Invigorating or rather

scary.

      The final set that night was by Tri-Factor, who are Billy Bang

(violin), Hamiet Bluiett (bari sax) and Kahil El-Sabar (drums, ethnic

percussion). Once again, three veteran's of the (avant) jazz scene,

work so well together. Sometimes the violin and bari sax would play

the theme and then each would take a long, laid back solos, as

Kahil's subtle percussion holds down the fort. Kahil opened one piece

with an enchanting thumb piano solo, which was mesmerizing but it

went on for too long. At times it seemed like this was a collection

of inspired solos more than a group effort. But it was still pretty

great and it was a blast to hear the wonderful Kahil El-Zabar for the

first time.

      The final night of the Vision fest was a tribute to two bassists

that had passed away last year - Peter Kowald and Wilber Morris, both

beautiful souls who had a most positive affect on the downtown scene

as well as international avant-jazz world. Their spirits were

definitely felt by those in attendance that very special night.

      The first set was Butch Morris' New York Skyscraper (Orchestra),

Butch is Wilber's brother. Butch has a completely unique way of

conducting and his 18-piece orchestra was in truly transcendent form.

I've heard Butch conduct over a dozen times throughout the years, but

this was the best one yet! His personnel included Okkyung Lee,

Michael Marcus, Andrea Parkins, Andy Bemkey & Tom Abbs. Our old pal

and cellist extraordinaire - Okkyung Lee, played the first solo and

she was just incredible, thus making the first part a phenomenal

intro. Butch consistently focused the energy and added layers of

lines by directing different subsections of the orchestra. The music

was often filled with shimmering colors, which kept shifting as it

evolved. Eerie yet majestic layers of drones were in constant motion.

It was a series of dreamscapes that unfolded slowly and grew

organically as it became more dense.

      Another unexpectedly spectacular set featured the dynamic duo of

Gunda Gottschalk on violin and Xu Feng Xia (legendary FMP artist) on

guzheng, which is Chinese koto-like instrument. Both of these women

played with Peter Kowald in an earlier Vision fest some five years

ago and Gunda also played a swell solo set at the old DMG location,

as well as at another Vision Fest at the Knit. The duo began with

each woman doing strange vocal sounds, Xu's voice sounding more

traditional as Gunda twisted her sounds into little knots, the piece

evolved from more cautious to even scarier sounds as they also wove

their instruments around and with their unique voices. Xu would hit

notes on her guzheng with near violent power, bending notes with

power and passion. Gunda is one of best improving violins I've heard

in a while and constantly matched Xu's great playing with equally

fascinating layers of diverse improv magic. Another festival high

point!

      For many of my Euro free-improv loving pals, the next set was

thee one that we will be talking about for years to come. It featured

the all-star trio of Connie Bauer on trombone, Barre Philips on bass

(replacing Peter Kowald who had played with this trio for many years

in the past) and Gunter "Baby" Sommer on drums. What was beautiful

about this set was the incredible restraint and sublime way these

older musicians played. They started spaciously, built slowly and

blended their talents into an animated but always subtly connected

work of art. Barre had a most pure and elegant tone on his contrabass

with no effects to alter it. Gunter is one of the charming and

occasionally hilarious drummers to watch, using feathers and other

assorted odd objects on his drums, cymbals and gong collection placed

on the floor. Connie continues to be one of the best improving

trombonists we know and he played a number of extraordinary solos,

using multiphonics, humming into the trombone to get chords and

astonishing all in attendance with his advanced 'bone explorations.

The set featured numerous solo, duo and trio sections, the balance of

dynamics and resourcefulness was astonishing at times.

      The final set was the William Parker Bass Quartet with Charles

Gayle on alto sax. The quartet featured the amazing line-up of Alan

Silva, Sirone, Henry Grimes and William Parker, all on acoustic

basses. This was a truly historic meeting of four influential

bassists with vast amounts of records and gigs for each. Each one has

a most distinctive style and they worked together wonderfully -

plucking, bowing, strumming and blending ideas into a rich and spicy

soup of sound. Sometimes they created the ancient cosmic drone when

two or more bassists would be bowing at the same time. There were

moments of deep, dark and solemn sadness and moments of beauty and

hope. They evoked a communal spirit and I got the feeling that both

Peter Kowald and Wilber Morris would certainly be smiling down from

the heavens. Charles Gayle also did a swell job of playing some

Ayler-esque alto sax, riding the waves created by the bass storm.

Alan Silva seemed to hold back and add just the right amount of

spacious punctuation, which kept things more in focus and connected

by an inner thread. The assorted combinations of duos and trios were

always shifting within the quintet. It was a most perfect tribute to

two fallen heroes, who will continue to be a source of inspiration

for the future. William Parker gave a touching speech at the end of

the set as he eloquently introduced each of the bassists and said

that we should also remember other bassists who have passed like

Malachi Favors and Fred Hopkins.

      The 9th Annual Vision Fest was in many ways the best one yet and

will be pretty difficult to beat for next year's First Decade Vision

Festival. It was very well attended on just about every night and at

seven days, just the right length. There was also a better balance

this year of music, poetry and dance. The sound in the room was

mostly good throughout, with only a few bad moments on occasion. The

communal spirit and extended family-like gathering of folks and

musicians from around the world was what made it all the more special

to just about everyone I spoke with. DMG is proud once again to have

been helpful, by spreading the word and selling advance tickets. We

should all thank Patricia & William Parker and their trusty staff for

the immense amount of work they put into this colossal endeavor. We

hope to sponsor our own night at the Vision fest next year and

present some of our favorite musicians like Dennis Gonzalez, Paul

Dunmall/Paul Rogers Trio, Tisziji Munoz, Mario Pavone and some John

Zorn project.

[couw]

Just to put it all into some perspective, here's one for all you funny people.

The Friedhelm Schönfeld Trio with "Dimensionen," a three part suite recorded in 1972. With Friedhelm Schönfeld (cl, as, ts), Klaus Koch (b), and Günter Sommer (ds). Pretty nice euro free jazz from when difference still mattered and there was still that big ass wall these guys were hidden behind.

right click and save to listen (6.5Mb mp3): this link

don't click directly, that doesn't work somehow.

sound quality is pretty low, but I had to make it manageable somehow. Enjoy!

[Gary]

This thread is at the '2000 REPLIES' point! 

If you click on the '2000', you get:

Who posted in: Funny Rat

Poster :: Posts

Д.Д. 519

king ubu 349

John B 255

Chaney 225

J.A.W. 183

Geoff 51

couw 46

Nate Dorward 46

P.L.M 42

Gary 40

And I still feel as if I'm gatecrashing when I post.

That 40 cannot be right surely.

It should be a few more soon , I've managed to lay my hands on some Funny rat inspired titles.

Edited June 23, 2004 by Gary

[Д.Д.]

This thread is at the '2000 REPLIES' point!

:

Well, Tony, you expected it when you started the thread, didn't you?

[Д.Д.]

That 40 cannot be right surely.

It should be a few more soon , I've managed to lay my hands on some Funny rat inspired titles.

Bring them on, Gary!

[Д.Д.]

who's this Д.Д. guy then?

...

An M.V.P., I'd say.

Mentor in Violence Prevention? Hmmm....

[Guest Chaney]

Just to put it all into some perspective, here's one for all you funny people.

...

Thanks John! Good stuff!

Did you upload that from an LP? Is there... ahem... a side B?

This thread is at the '2000 REPLIES' point! 

If you click on the '2000', you get:

Who posted in: Funny Rat

Poster :: Posts

Д.Д. 519

king ubu 349

John B 255

Chaney 225

J.A.W. 183

Geoff 51

couw 46

Nate Dorward 46

P.L.M 42

Gary 40

And I still feel as if I'm gatecrashing when I post.

That 40 cannot be right surely.

It should be a few more soon , I've managed to lay my hands on some Funny rat inspired titles.

If I ever see you, remind me to smack you.

Gate crasher? ALL are welcome - as long as we can stay on-topic most of the time.

Well, Tony, you expected it when you started the thread, didn't you?

What did I expect? If you hadn't suggested that we move our e-mailings to this board, this thread would have known the fate of most of my threads: a quick and little noticed death.

[couw]

Just to put it all into some perspective, here's one for all you funny people.

...

Thanks John! Good stuff!

Did you upload that from an LP? Is there... ahem... a side B?

yup, but side B is by another group, the Hubert Katzenbeier Quintett. Pretty interesting inside/outside stuff with some nifty flute and tenor work by Konrad Körner and some strong trombone by the leader. With every one of these LPs I find, there are new names added to the long list of GDR jazz musicians. These people never cease to amaze me. In spite of all the restrictions, this must have been a lively scene.

[Gary]

That 40 cannot be right surely.

It should be a few more soon , I've managed to lay my hands on some Funny rat inspired titles.

Bring them on, Gary!

One is is one of your recommendations.

I need to listen to it a couple of more times but first listen gets a

[Gary]

[if I ever see you, remind me to smack you. 

Gate crasher?  ALL are welcome - as long as we can stay on-topic most of the time.

[Guest Chaney]

I'm listening to a Die Like A Dog disk as supplied to me by Florin ( ) with Brotzmann / Kondo / Kessler / Drake -- Willisau 1998.

As far as I can recall, this is my first exposure to Toshinori Kondo and I must say: I'm impressed. Nice electrified soloing and especially effective backing. This band manages a nicely mourful sound and it's a bit refreshing to have a slightly less active bassist on board. Kessler's sometimes simpler lines can be very dramatic.

Anyone care to point me toward other worthy recordings featuring Kondo?

[John B]

I'm listening to a Die Like A Dog disk as supplied to me by Florin ( ) with Brotzmann / Kondo / Kessler / Drake -- Willisau 1998.

Anyone care to point me toward other worthy recordings featuring Kondo?

Other than the other DLAD discs? I'm assuming you've heard Little Birds Have Fast Hearts 1 & 2, Aoyama Crows, and the self-titled DLAD disc on FMP, right? If not, start there. He is also on Brotzmann's Marz Combo disc, which is quite nice.

I just checked AMG and I would also recommend Brotz' Stone/Water, William Parker's Through Acceptance of the Mystery Peace, on Eremite, and Bill Laswell's Charged Live.

Edited June 23, 2004 by John B

[Guest Chaney]

Other than the other DLAD discs?  I'm assuming you've heard Little Birds Have Fast Hearts 1 & 2, Aoyama Crows, and the self-titled DLAD disc on FMP, right?  If not, start there.  He is also on Brotzmann's Marz Combo disc, which is quite nice.

I have none of those. I really should pick up Little Birds Have Fast Hearts 1 & 2 as those seem to be favorites of many a Funny Rat poster.

[John B]

Other than the other DLAD discs?  I'm assuming you've heard Little Birds Have Fast Hearts 1 & 2, Aoyama Crows, and the self-titled DLAD disc on FMP, right?  If not, start there.  He is also on Brotzmann's Marz Combo disc, which is quite nice.

I have none of those. I really should pick up Little Birds Have Fast Hearts 1 & 2 as those seem to be favorites of many a Funny Rat poster.

You'll love them. If you decide to order them go through Verge. They have the best prices for FMP if you are ordering from the U.S.

[gnhrtg]

Little Birds Have Fast Hearts, both volumes, and Stone/Water (on which Kondo really shines, though it's a larger ensemble, Brotzmann's Chicago Tentet, so you'll hear less Kondo here than on the DLAD records; however, it's a very strong album and worth every cent despite its being rather short, 40 min).

Edited June 23, 2004 by gnhrtg

[John B]

Anybody knows tis one by chance:

Dave Holland / Barre Phillips "Music from Two Basses" (ECM, 1971).

I see it's just been reissued on CD in Japan (with corresponding price). Barre Phillips is one of my favorite bassists (his solo CD Camouflage (Victo) is my favorite solo bass record... Dave Holland is no slouch either... but the price...

Listened.

Amazing.

This one will certainly become one of the most often listened-to discs of the following year. If I were a bassist I would listen to it standing on my knees.

Hopefully I can track down a reasonably priced copy of this one. It sounds amazing! Dave Holland was a monster on the bass when we saw him in January.

I got it for 2300 yen ($21.1) plus very reasonable shipping from Hiroshi Tanno.

Not bad, I think.

I'm going to email Hiroshi Tanno today and make this disc (and possibly one other Japanese disc) my last purchase for a while. Did he tell you that he is no longer able to obtain any copies of the Pharoah Sanders disc?

[Д.Д.]

I'm going to email Hiroshi Tanno today and make this disc (and possibly one other Japanese disc) my last purchase for a while. Did he tell you that he is no longer able to obtain any copies of the Pharoah Sanders disc?

Yes, that was him.

-------------------------------------------

John, I didn't know you have THAT much Brötzmann. So you say März Combo is nice? I am intrigued because it has two guitarists (including Caspar Brötzmann - very talented guy).

I think there is also a DLAD disc with Roy Campbell instead of Kondo, but IMO Campbell is much less interesting than Kondo, so I am not in a hurry to get thiis one.

--------------------------------------------

Tony, our delightfully unpredictable themusicresource should have many FMP releases relatively cheap.

[John B]

------------------------------------------

John, I didn't know you have THAT much Brötzmann. So you say März Combo is nice? I am intrigued because it has two guitarists (including Caspar Brötzmann - very talented guy).

I think there is also a DLAD disc with Roy Campbell instead of Kondo, but IMO Campbell is much less interesting than Kondo, so I am not in a hurry to get thiis one.

--------------------------------------------

Tony, our delightfully unpredictable themusicresource should have many FMP releases relatively cheap.

as far as I recall, yes, it is a good disc. I'll listen to it again this week and let you know what I think. I have a lot of Brotzmann on FMP that I bought from someone used for $7 or $8 each.

Campbell is not bad at all on the DLAD disc on Eremite. You should give it a chance someday. Not essential, but a really nice disc if you are a fan of this music.

[John B]

This is a disc that might have slipped beneath many people's radars:

Barry Altschul - You Can't Name Your Own Tune

Despite the sly dig at Braxton in the album title, this one is very inspired by him and features some great playing. Altschul on drums and percussion, Sam Rivers on tenor, soprano, and flute, Dave Holland on bass, George Lewis on trombone and Muhal Richard Abrams on piano. This was recorded in 1977 and was last issued on 32jazz, so it should be out of print at this point. Highly recommended, if you can track down a copy.

[Guest Chaney]

...

Tony, our delightfully unpredictable themusicresource should have many FMP releases relatively cheap.

DON'T GET ME STARTED!

I'm boycotting The Music Resource. I'm willing to spend a bit more money ordering elsewhere and thus avoiding the whole unpleasantly unpredictabe nature of TMR.

It's been a while since I've ordered anything from Verge as the Canadian Dollar is (and has been) pretty strong.

[John B]

It's been a while since I've ordered anything from Verge as the Canadian Dollar is (and has been) pretty strong.

With the current exchange rate these are just over $16 from Verge. Cadence has them for $17. Those are the best prices I have found so far.