Oct 28, 2009

The Spirit House Movers/The Jihad


This is tasty.

Soul Sides previews the forthcoming reissue of some classic 1968 vinyl, Black & Beautiful, Soul & Madness by Spirit House Movers which features LeRoi Jones (aka poet Amiri Baraka). check it out the sample here. if you can't wait, head over to the excellent[see comments] Nothing Is for the entire album, plus a couple more from the same provenance.

I've also found also some brilliant related footage of the Leroi Jones Young Spirit House Movers and Players, an amazing performance by a group of kids at the height of the black awareness/power era. originally broadcast on a show called Inside Bedford-Stuyvesant, it was put up earlier this year at thirteen.org in the Broadcasting While Black section.
Anyone got any more info or clips like this, let me know, drop a comment.
Check it out here.

Oct 25, 2009

Sonny Fortune - In The Spirit Of John Coltrane

personnel:
Sonny Fortune alto sax, soprano sax, tenor sax; John Hicks piano: Santi Debriano bass; Ronnie Burrage drums; Steve Berrios bata drums, Julio Collazo bata drums, Reggie Workman bass; Rashied Ali drums

barabara sounds sez:
Sonny Fortune continues to blow the gospel of the Jazz Church of St. JC well into the 21st century — and into his 70s.
This album (issued on Shanachie in 2000 but now seemingly OOP) doesn't match up to his 1970s very best, but you have to love his version of Olé and the final track is a great workout.
If you like this, pick up his 2005 album
Continuum, which IS in print, on his own label, Sound Reason.

amazon reviewer sez:
Perennially underrated saxophonist Sonny Fortune has worked with Miles Davis, McCoy Tyner, and Elvin Jones. Not coincidentally, each of these musicians enjoyed a close relationship with Fortune's overriding musical influence, John Coltrane. In the Spirit consists mostly of originals by Fortune written under the influence of Trane. "Hangin' Out with J.C." borrows its chord structure from "Countdown" and "Moment's Notice," while the title track is a deep ballad reminiscent of "Dear Lord." Although he's best known as an alto saxophonist, Fortune also plays tenor and soprano here, distinguishing himself accordingly on each horn. He's accompanied by a topnotch rhythm section including John Hicks on piano, Santi Debriano on bass, and Ronnie Burrage on drums. On the last track, "For John," bassist Reggie Workman and drummer Rashied Ali lift off with Fortune on a visit to interstellar space. The spirit lives. -- Rick Mitchell

Oct 23, 2009

Bheki Mseleku - Celebration



personnel:
Bheki Mseleku piano, tenor sax, vocals; Eddie Parker flute (tracks: 3, 7); Courtney Pine soprano sax (track 10); Steve Williamson soprano sax (track 4); Jean Toussaint tenor sax (track 5); Michael Bowie bass; Marvin Smith drums; Thebe Lipere percussion (track 10)

barabara sounds sez:
Bheki was a self-taught piano prodigy; diabetic, bipolar and missing some fingers; Mercury Music Prize nominated; recorded with Courtney Pine, Joe Henderson, Abbey Lincoln, Elvin Jones and Pharoah Sanders. An exile, a world citizen. All-time great. Much respect.

wiki sez:
Bhekumuzi Hyacinth Mseleku, generally known as Bheki Mseleku (3 March 1955 – 9 September 2008) was a jazz musician from South Africa. He was a pianist, saxophonist, guitarist, composer and arranger who was entirely self taught.
Mseleku's father was a musician and teacher, and a Cambridge University music graduate, who had religious beliefs which prevented his children from ready access to the family's upright piano in case any of them should pursue something as "devilish" as music. His mother gave him the keys while his father was away, but the piano ended up as firewood one winters evening. During his childhood, Mseleku suffered the loss of the upper joints of two fingers in his right hand from a go-carting accident. He explained in a 1994 South Bank Show dedicated to him that this was wholly due to the restricted health care available to Black South Africans under Apartheid.

amazon sez:
Born in Durban, South Africa, Bheki Mseleku had worked with musicians such as Don Cherry and had collaborated on the Cry Freedom soundtrack, before he gave up music for several years. The retreat did him a world of good because on his return he recorded Celebration, his debut solo album. Playing piano, tenor sax and singing, Mseleku produced a marvellous mix of African and Western jazz music. Mseleku's piano playing owes a lot to McCoy Tyner and fellow South African, Abdullah Ibrahim, and in his vocals he possesses a decent impassioned rhythm. Many of his solos are outstanding and the length of the record gives him and his fellow musicians a chance to explore the textures of South African jazz. The musicians include British sax players Courtney Pine, Jean Toussant and Steve Williamson and Americans Marvin Smith (drums) and Michael Bowie (bass). The mix of the three continents works well and results in a groove spiritual but never sombre. A celebration indeed.

Oct 15, 2009

Tomasz Stanko - Balladyna

barabara sounds sez:
A tasty set from ECM, laid down in 1976. Stanko blows both hard and cool. This is polished jazz (bad pun intended).

dusty sez:
One of the first ECM sessions from trumpeter Tomasz Stanko — a groundbreaking player who first got his start working in Poland with Kryzstof Komeda in the 60s, but then went onto a huge legacy of compelling ECM work for the space of a few decades! This set's arguably a bit bolder than some of Stanko's later sides — a bit forceful at times, with a rhythmic conception that certainly echoes his roots with Komeda, but also shows some of his newer ear for atmospherics as well. Stanko's a tremendous trumpeter that should be ranked right up there with Don Cherry for sheer 70s inventiveness — and he really sounds wonderful here, in a quartet with Tomasz Szukalski on tenor and soprano sax, Dave Holland on bass, and Edward Vesala on drums. Titles include "First Song", "Duet", "Last Song", "Balladyna", "Nenaliina", and "Tale".

personnel:
Tomasz Stanko trumpet; Tomasz Szukalski tenor and soprano saxophones; Dave Holland bass; Edward Vesala drums

track listing:
First Song; Tale; Num; Duet; Balladyna; Last Song; Nenaliina

Oct 12, 2009

Lyman Woodard Organization Live At JJ's Lounge 1974

barabara sounds sez:
Here's a rare one from the Lyman "Saturday Night Special" Woodard Organization, which is high up there on a lot of people's lists as their favorite strata-east joint (yes, a difficult choice that one). Ripped from the JP reissue CD. The classic cut is 29-odd-minute final track — one for the inestimable Cheeba at Soundological.

dusty sez:
A rare live performance from the legendary Lyman Woodard Organization — captured here at the height of their powers in the 70s! The Organization has a really unique approach to their groove — one that starts in jazz, but moves quickly into funk -- with a spirit that you'd find in other 70s groups like Funk Inc or The Nineteenth Whole — both of which have the same soulful local spirit as Lyman's mighty group! Woodard himself is a wonderful organist — playing with these freewheeling lines that open the Hammond up strongly way past the Jimmy Smith generation, with a groove that's often soaring, but still tightly rhythmic too — a hypnotic vamp that's perfect for jamming tracks like these. Other group members are great too — and include Ron English on guitar, Norma Bell on alto sax, Lorenzo Brown on percussion, and Sundiata on congas — a very hip lineup that makes things really cook on the set! The recording was originally done for radio, and there's a few announcer bits — but that professional setting also makes the album sound way better than just a dodgy ol' local tape might. Titles include "Organ Interlude", "Kimba", "On Your Mind", "Last Tango In Paris", "You Make Me Feel Brand New", and "Cheeba".

track listing:
Kimba; On Your Mind; band announcement; Last Tango in Paris; A Portrait of Martha (organ interlude); You Make Me Feel Brand New; Cheeba