9 July 2011

Chris McGregor's Brotherhood of Breath - Yes Please




There were a couple of requests for this one, so as we pride ourselves for being service-minded (to the best of our ability), here it is. This is BoB Mark II, with many new faces and a few carry-overs from Mark I. Missing are key regulars such as Dudu Pukwana, Harry Miller and Lois Moholo, though Harry Beckett, Nick Evans and Radu Malfatti are well-known from earlier installations of the BoB. New to the combo are some top-notch jazzers from the French scene as well as the venerable John Tchicai.

The repertoire is a mix of some new and some not so new. "Andromeda" was of course on their debut album, "Sonia" turned up on their "Procession" lp, recorded in France in 1977 and "Burning Baby" was given an airing on Chris McGregor's solo piano album, "Piano Song vol. 1", recorded for the French label Musica Records in 1977. "Maxine" cropped up again on "Country Cooking", which appeared in 1988, also recorded in France, the chosen country of residence for Chris and Maxine McGregor.

A more, shall we say, restrained and well-ordered version of the BoB here, not given to 15-minute collective otbursts which of course had its charms as I will be the first to admit. The accent here is on arrangements, carefully written-out passages, perhaps more to Chris McGregor's liking than the earlier slightly more anarchic version. But it's all good stuff, nonetheless. A couple of surprises, the funkified vibe of "Sea Breeze" with some tasteful cello playing from Caroline Collins, and the flair of "Yes Please", the latter a Malfatti composition, definitely in his pre-minimalist phase.

Basic facts:

Chris McGregor's Brotherhood Of Breath – Yes Please - Angoulème 1981

Label:In And Out

Catalog#:IaO 1001


Tracklist

A1 Andromeda – Mc Gregor
A2 Sonia – Feza
A3 Maxine – McGregor
A4 Sea Breeze – McGregor
B1 Burning Bush – McGregor
B2 Duku – Pukwana
B3 Uqonda – McGregor
B4 Yes Please – Malfatti

Credits

Piano, Flute – Chris McGregor
Cornet, Trumpet [Alto Horn] – Mark Charig
Trumpet – Peter Segone
Trumpet, Flugelhorn – David Defries, Harry Beckett
Trombone – Nick Evans, Radu Malfatti
Saxophone [Alto], Clarinet [Bass] – Andre Goudbeek
Saxophone [Baritone], Oboe, Flute – Bruce Grant
Saxophone [Soprano And Tenor], Clarinet [Bass] – François Jeanneau
Saxophone [Soprano],clarinet, Clarinet [Bass] – Louis Sclavis
Cello – Caroline Collins
Bass [Acoustic] – Didier Levallet
Bass [Guitar] – Ernest Shololo Mothle
Drums, Percussion – Brian Abrahams, Jean-Claude Montredon

Notes

Recorded 1ST and 2nd June 1981 in Théatre Municipal, Angoulème
Recorded By – Daniel Deshayes*

New scans courtesy of Nemo!

16 comments:

  1. http://www.multiupload.com/0AJ7MUR2DS

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  2. Up to your old tricks, eh, Kinabalu? I like your old tricks.

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  3. I missed this when it was up earlier,
    so thanks a lot for the re-up!

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  4. Hi
    I actually do have the "physical thing"
    But the record is bent (I bought it in 81 !
    Anyway the link is dead. I would gladly trade a valid link for the scans !
    What do you think ?
    Bye
    F.

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  5. Sounds like a good idea.

    New link:

    http://oron.com/hrk4dzn66t59

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  6. Another one:

    https://rapidshare.com/files/903239929/CMcG_s_BoB_-_YP.zip

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  7. Thanks for re-up, kinabalu. i missed it from MU. Now it would be nice to have cover scans too, Nemo.

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  8. Hi guys !
    Thanks for the link. Just got it today.
    I will do my best. The cover is actually bigger than my scanner (LP), so give me a little time to work on it.
    Will let you know as soon as it's done.
    Thx
    Nemo

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  9. A friend has offered to scan it on an A3 scan. So it's on its way...
    Will keep you posted.
    Thx
    F.

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  10. Et voilà !
    As promides here is my own attempt at a decent artwork for this incredible CD.
    I got the LP scans back from my friend. I joined the various parts. Once cleaned "sort of", I created a booklet and a back cover for a CD.
    Please let me know if this meets your approval.
    Thanks
    Bye
    F.
    [code]www.mediafire.com/?5d94iy7wf2awoqe[/code]

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  11. They will do very nicely and have been added to the main post. Thanks to you and your friend for the extra effort!

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  12. Here is new upload including scans provided by Nemo

    uložto

    At uložto, stáhnout = download, or there is language switch at topmost right.

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  13. Should this properly be called a BoB concert with so many core players missing? More just the McGregor Big Band, but none the worse for that! Was this a one-off? A very fine, very enjoyable concert, the players far more warmly cohesive than one might expect for a one-off. Lovely, swinging, with that SA flare...
    Thanks for making it available.

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  14. This is more like Mark II of the BoB, distinct from Mark I from the seventies. Chris McGregor retained the BoB name for later 80s records. If you want to turn it around, you could argue that Mark I was the Chris McGregor Big Band as well, because that was really what it was.

    As far as records are concerned, this was a one-off, though we did post a concert at Moers 1981 a few years ago. I doubt whether the links are still working, but if not, I could always re-up it, if I have the files in the archives (which I should).

    ReplyDelete