AMM

Two concerts from AMM, at once similar and contrasting.

Two concerts from AMM, at once similar and contrasting.

Continuing with the bass clarinetists, the time has come to have a listen to Rudi Mahall. Actually, he's a sideman for this project, which is headed by brilliant Japanese pianist Aki Takase.
This is a delightful way to appropriate the jazz tradition, in this case Fats Waller. One might think that this group of Berlin avantguardists might not be the right people to do so, but thinking it over, there is a legacy of collective improvisation linking the early practitioners to today's free jazzers so if this project might sound odd on paper, in practice it comes off very well.
A motley crew on this one:
Nils Wogram,tb
Rudi Mahall,bcl
Aki Takase,p
Eugene Chadbourne,g,banjo,voc
Paul Lovens,dr
Fats Waller,comp
All in all, Fats' Boys (well, almost). The added outsider chap to this crew of Berlin residents is of course lovable eccentric Eugene Chadbourne who gets to do the vocals on a couple of tracks and proves that the banjo is perfectly OK in this setting.
The tunes:
1 Lookin' Good, But Feelin' Bad 5:56
2 Handful Of Keys / Announcement AT 7:39
3 Jitterbug Waltz / Hold Tight (Want Some Seafood Mama) 7:53
4 Viper's Drag 8:55
5 Medley: Ain't Misbehavin' / Way Down South Where The Blues Began (W.C.Handy,comp) / Honeysuckle Rose / Announcement AT 14:50
6 Announcement Speaker 1:08
7 Two Sleepy People (HoagyCarmichael,comp) / Lookin' Good, But Feelin' Bad 2:27
Recorded live on February-21, 008 in Hamburg, Germany, at NDR, Rolf-Liebermann-Studio,
2008. Top sound from FM radio.
The cd version received the German jazz critics' award in 2004.
Another golden Dime. It has dropped off the tracker, so I've no idea who taped/uploaded this one.
They played here two years ago, but I wasn't there. I keep wondering where my head was at at the time.
If this one catches on, we do have some more Aki Takase up our sleeve.
Fun is guaranteed for all!

September 18,2007
SLAMMIN' THE INFINITE
Steve Swell: trombone, composition
Sabir Mateen: reeds
Matthew Heyner: bass
Michael Wimberly: drums
track01 -37:40
track02 -20:34
The Living Theatre
21 Clinton Street
New York NY
Perhaps not a household name, but Steve Swell has played with many of the greats such as Braxton, Cecil Taylor, William Parker and particularly with his influencer Roswell Rudd. Veteran multi-instumentalist Sabir Mateen needs no introduction from me. Steve has played previously in his bands.
Very good quality audience recording. My thanks to taper and uploader.

for tantris who posted a great live MEV show some months back.
Heres the 2nd MEV,album from 1968..theres nothing quite like this in the free improvised canon..early AMM is about the only plausible comparison.
this is magnificently raw..the sort of thing that fumblers like sonic youth..do in their spare time when they aren't making lame ass corporate rock albums.
the galling thing is that they have become famous for feedback /noise noodling..and can get highly paid gigs at noise and improv festivals.
while thoughtful and amazing records like this languish in obscurity.
Credits:
Cello [Amplified] - Jon Phetteplace (tracks: 1 to 4)
Percussion [Amplified], Vocals - Frederick Rzewski* (tracks: 1 to 4)
Synthesizer [Portable] - Allan Bryant
Trumpet, Percussion - Alvin Curran (tracks: 1 to 4)
Notes: Track 1 to 4 recorded live in London in 1968.
Tracklisting:
1 MEV* Part I (11:23)
2 MEV* Part II (5:40)
3 MEV* Part III (9:05)
4 MEV* Part IV (15:15)
5 Allan Bryant Bug Get Tgethr, Stomp N Flash Dans (11:49)
the last track is a synth solo.
not much evidence of this online ..save for a few second hand copies.
please note , our friend Volkan ..has provided rome cansrt ,from the same year check the comments.
thank you Volkan

When I bought this LP, thirty odd years ago, I'd never heard of Ray Russell. I bought it primarily because it featured Harry Beckett, who was, and still is, a big favourite of mine. Funnily enough, all these years later, I've still heard little of him, though apparently he is a cult figure in some quarters, and has made numerous recordings. His style on this recording is akin to that of John McLaughlin at the time, and is accompanied my some stalwarts of the British 70s jazz scene. Runswick is also a bit of an enigma to me. This is the only example of his work I've heard, but he really is excellent on both accoustic and electric bass.
I've included quite a lengthy resume of Russell's career in the rip for those people who can be bothered to read such stuff. Somewhat surprisingly, he's composed and recorded a number of TV theme tunes, including one which will be familiar to Brits - "Bergerac", the 80s detective series set in Jersey, that hotbed of crime, starring John (Barnaby) Nettles.
Details:
Ray Russell - gt
Tony Roberts - reeds
Harry Beckett - flg
Nick Evans - tb
Daryl Runswick - bass
Alan Rushton - dr
Tracks
Sarana
Rites and Rituals
Abyss
Cradle Hill
Recorded De Lane Lea Studios August 1970
Relased on CBS 64271
MP3 and Flac links in comments. Sorry no covers, no scanner at the moment.


There's been an encouraging spate of Chris McGregor and Brotherhood rereleases lately, some of which has been featured on this blog before. Just around the corner is a Blue Notes box set containing all of their four releases on the Ogun label. One of them has also been posted here previously.
But what's on offer here and now has not been officially released yet at any rate. It's an excerpt from a concert inside Balver Höhle in Germany in 1972.
The info given is as follows:
Call 8:44
Andromeda 9:13
Think Of Something 14:19
Track 4 4:14
Lineup:
Harry Beckett
Marc Charig
Malcolm Griffith
Nick Evans
Dudu Pukwana
Mike Osborne
Gary Windo
The first three pieces are announced as such by the radio presenter, but "Call" sounds uncannily like "Ismite is Might" off the Willisau album and features most likely Nick Evans on the trombone. The second piece is "Mra" leading into "Andromeda". The third piece is "Do It" leading into "Think of Something", the latter featuring Mike Osborne on alto, Gary Windo on tenor and either Mark Charig or Harry Beckett on trumpet. The last piece is quite clearly "The Serpent's Kindly Eye", also on the Willisau album (which was the first ever release on the Ogun label).
The sound's fair on the first three, but a bit grimy on the last, though. The band is at its ramshackle best as ever. Some may find the BoB cacophonous at times, but to these ears it's beautiful cacophony.
Mp3 and flac versions in the comments section. Another golden dime.



Continuing with the bass clarinet theme (after the previous posting of Michel Pilz), here are two in one go.
In particular, Michel Portal has made the bass clarinet his primary instrument, but here he picks up the sax and a bandoneon as well. Peter Brötzmann is mostly known for his tenor work, but here he switches to bass clarinet and a bunch of other instruments. And even Han Bennink dabbles on the clarinet in between hammering the kit and the bass drum.
So, all in all, about 40 minutes of anarchical merriment, recorded in a Paris studio in 1977, and broadcast on radio, though details are scanty. The announcer butts in at about the thirty minute mark to tell what's going on, but no titles to the piece.
Brötzmann and Bennink are mates of 40 years standing, but the presence of Portal adds another dimension to this set. I leave it to the listener to figure out who is who, but I find Portal adds a melodic touch to the fierceness of Brötzmann, but Portal can be as screechy as the other guys when the fancy takes him.
Basic info:
BRÖTZMANN / PORTAL / BENNINK
16-Jun 1977
unknown, Paris, France
source/lineage: FM
Peter Brötzmann: bassclarinet, clarinet, tenorsax, altosax, mouthpiece
Michel Portal: bassclarinet, clarinet, altosax, "double clarinet", contrabassclarinet, bandoneon, voice
Han Bennink: small drum set, "soft trumpet", clarinet, viola, xylophone, whistle, piano, various percussion, etc.
1. untitled improvisation 30:09
2. untitled improvisation 10:16 (at start with voice over by radio host)
Another Dime download ...
There'll be more bass clarinetists coming up shortly ...
Looking back through the blog, I see that no Zorn recordings have been posted, which is surprising considering all the Masada and Bladerunner stuff that was upped at Church #9. I can't say that I like his more esoteric stuff, but this concert really swings.
Details:-
Special OlympiansSaalfelden Jazz Festival
Saalfelden, Austria
August 28, 1988
01 Unknown
02 Unknown
03 Unknown
04 Unknown
John Zorn - alto
John Patton - organ
James 'Blood' Ulmer - guitar
Bobby Previte - drums
Patton seems an unlikely partner for Zorn, being a veteran of numerous 60s and 70s Blue Note albums in the company of people like Grant Green. Ulmer was a member of Patton's trio in the 60s so maybe that's where the introduction to Zorn came about. However it happened it certainly was a worthwhile combination. Nothing too wild or adventurous about this, but it sure hits the right spot
Links in comments. Many thanks to moretoonz for seeding. Lineage uncertain, but excellent sound quality.

hey ,having some problems with volume 3 of this set so heres the final volume..possibly the most adventurous grouping in the set.
though Dagmar's vocals wont thrill everyone , ( me im an old Henry Cow/ art bears fan).
enjoy!!!
info- personnel
new movements in jazz
radio netherlands transcription service lp87.073/076
disc 4
Program 4
Maarten Altena Octet
Special guest Dagmar Krause (vocals)
George Lewis trombone
Wolter Wierbos trombone
Paul Termos altosaxophone
Peter van Bergen tenorsaxophone
Maartje ten Hoom violin
Guus Janssen piano
Maarten Altena double-bass/leader/composer
Michael Vatcher drums
Side A 23’02”
Schor (Husky) 8’22
Improvisation 7’45
Goody two-shoes 6’03
Side B 26’51
Improvisation and
Points Congealing 8’22
Haai (shark) 4’05
The Feathers and
Klaroen (Clarion) 9’13
Uncle Jimmy’s 4’05
All compositions by Maarten Altena
Recorded on September 27th 1985 at the Meervaart
In Amsterdam
Recorded in the studio in NYC 17th March 1971. Chick Corea, piano, flute, percussion Anthony Braxton, alto, flute, sopranino, clarinet, contrabass-clarinet, percussion Dave Holland, bass, cello, guitar, percussion Barry Altschul, drums, kalimba, percussion. The second of two Circle releases which were inexplicably issued only in Japan, initially on vinyl and later on CD. As before, if anyone can throw some light on why this music was never issued in Europe or the US, the information would be very welcome. This rip is taken from the original Japanese vinyl, CBS Sony SOPL 20-XJ. The performance is a single two-sided composition credited to Corea alone, and if any listener can sense a line drawn between one man's composition and four men's improvisation, he's a better man than I. The piece opens with much of the heat and intensity associated with the free jazz of 1971, with Altschul especially taking few prisoners, before the quartet veers off into extended flute and percussion workouts, a certain amount of navel-gazing and a question-mark of an ending. Perhaps Corea's own words, from the liner notes, best sum the piece up: "Our music is a focal point, constantly created anew, with each playing. … It is our opinion that creativity will play an important role (maybe the important role) in lifting our consciousness about ourselves and others. … When we are alive in the fullest sense of the word, we are creating". Enjoy. glmlr 
Recorded in Germany, 28th November 1970, location not specified. (The record is indeed grammatically mis-titled, as above). Chick Corea, piano Anthony Braxton, alto, flute, sopranino, percussion Dave Holland, bass, cello Barry Altschul, drums, percussion. The first of two Circle releases which were inexplicably issued only in Japan, initially on vinyl and much later on CD. Why this music was never issued in Europe or the US is a mystery to me. Can anyone throw some light on this? This rip is taken from the original Japanese vinyl, CBS Sony SOPL 19-XJ. By early September 1970, Corea and Holland had both left Miles' adventurously electric band, and quickly settled into acoustic free jazz territory. After a brief studio fling which month which produced "The Sun" LP (with Liebman, Grossman, DeJohnette and others), they cemented themselves with Braxton and Altschul, and Circle became the focus of their joint activities over the following 9 months. This concert features two side-long Circle staples: Dave Holland's "Toy Room - Q&A" and the standard "There is No Greater Love". Both pieces will be familiar to Circle fans but, as ever, these interpretations are intriguingly different. Classic Circle trademarks are all here in good form: Corea's propulsive piano, Braxton's Chicago-inflected blues, Holland's melodic hold on the roots and Altschul's meticulously tuned percussion. And there's a little "fly in the ointment" - on side B behind Braxton's alto solo, either Corea or Holland double up with him on … flute? oboe? musette? A teaser for your ears. Enjoy. glmlr 
After a little interruption, here's the follow up to the Penck series. Double album this time. As usual, info via Rick Lopez's discography :

Kahil El' Zabar Ritual Trio: Another Kind Of Groove
Sound Aspects CD016
Recorded May 26th 1986 in Germany.
Billy Bang (violin, bells)
Malachi Favors (bass, percussion)
Kahil El'Zabar (drums, earth drum, bass bamboo flute, berimbau, sanza, ankle bells)
Here's a share from drhotte that he (?) posted in the comments of my last El' Zabar posting. I wouldn't want you to miss this one. No essay this time; but enjoy the music.

Kahil El'Zabar with David Murray Golden Sea
Sound Aspects Records 027
Recorded January 28,1989 in Chicago
Kahil El'Zabar (traps, earth d, ashiko d, mbira, sanza, ankle bells, vc)
David Murray (ts, bcl)
1. Golden Sea (Kahil El'Zabar) 10:50
2. Dreams (Kahil El'Zabar) 5:55
3. Sunrise Serenade (Kahil El'Zabar) 7:55
4. Sweet Meat (Kahil El'Zabar) 7:40
5. All Blues (Miles Davis) 10:10
6. Song For A New South Africa (David Murray) 4:45
Kahil El'Zabar and David Murray seem to bring out something special in each other. They've been consistent collaborators: El'zabar has been in a couple of Murray's quartets (including the excellent, but hard to find, People's Choice) and a couple of Octets; while Murray's been on four duo albums under El'zabar's name. All the duo recordings are worth owning, but this (for me) is the strongest. It's also sadly the hardest to get hold of; and I'm not sure it even got a CD release.
El'Zabar and Murray share an interest in Afro-centric music and pan-African culture, and this is apparent in much of the music here. The very title of Murray's 'Song For A New South Africa' is an index of this. However, the orientation is surprisingly best achieved on their interpretation of Miles Davis' 'All Blues'. Murray is at his plaintive best on Bass Clarinet, while El'Zabar plays the Mbira or Sanza (which the LP lists as separate instruments, but which I've always understood them to be two names for the same Shona 'thumb piano' instrument). The track reaches its peak with Murray playing and El'Zabar singing. This is, perhaps, my favorite piece of Murray Bass Clarinet 'ballad' playing. He seems to take a perverse pleasure in playing a bass instrument beyond its usual highest frequencies, and draws upon the textures of gospel playing to create a sound I find deeply affecting. A haunting and beautifully realised cultural and musical fusion. 'Sunrise Serenade' features El'Zabar alone on Mbira/Sanza with ankle bells and a wordless vocal and rhythmic chants. It's one of the best tracks on the LP for me, though regular visitors to this blog may find it a step too far beyond jazz sensibilities.
Each track has a distinctive texture, achieved most often by El'Zabar's use of different percussion instruments (Murray has never made major changes to playing style across his whole career, let alone an LP). 'Dreams' features a hand drum (I'm guessing it's the Ashiko drum) and a more meditative and gentler start for Murray on tenor before his characteristic gospel-rich style kicks in. I'm also speculating when I say this sounds like a total improvisation from Murray; a notion backed up by the fact that none of the pieces credited to El'Zabar have strong melodies (a Murray characteristic). I think the balance (on this track and the whole LP) works very well overall, though, giving a sax and percussion duo album a lot of variety. For Sweet Meat El'Zabar plays conventional jazz traps with lots of cymbal ride and rhythmic work on the tuned drums while Murray's ecstatic tenor runs build in intensity. This is possibly the most conventional duo piece, but executed with panache. 'Song For A New South Africa' features a poly-rhythmic hand drum and ankle bells textual bed, and a fairly straight-forward rendering of the strong melody riff by Murray. They clearly liked this number because the duo repeated the piece on record three years later on A Sanctuary Within, and thirteen years later on Love Outside Of Dreams with very similar, if slightly more complex renderings.
1989 was a classic year for Murray, and his work made available in that twelve moths is remarkably wide. Albums released in that year included a James Brown-tribute funk project (Cold Sweat), a challenging piano-sax duo with Dave Burrell (Daybreak), an attempt at the jazz mainstream through the Columbia-released Ming's Samba, four other jazz quartet albums under different group names and for different labels (I Want To Talk About You, Last Of The Hipmen, Lucky Four, The Fo'tet), and a WSQ collection of soul covers (Rhythm & Blues). This one fits in the eclectic moment comfortably. I hope you enjoy it.

Baikida Carroll The Spoken Word
Hat Hut M/N 1979
Hat Hut Records, Switzerland
Baikida Carroll Trumpet, Flugelhorn, Prepared Trumpet
Recorded Live at Mapenzi in Berkeley, CA
April 22,1977 & April 1, 1978.
Recorded by Cynthia Kanstein and Daryl Suzukawa
The Spoken Word I (Carroll) 17:05
The Spoken Word II (Carroll) 14:30
Third Image (Carroll) 15:15
Rites And Rituals (Carroll) 11:50
Double Rainbow Forest (Carroll) 10:25
Baikida Carroll’s made important contributions to some truly great recordings, and yet his own material seems to get far less a profile than it should. He was part of the Dogon A.D. band under Julius Hemphill’s leadership, part of David Murray’s big band Live on At Sweet Basil, and part of the Black Artists Group on In Paris, Aries, he’s on John Carter's Castles of Ghana, Oliver Lake's NTU, Muhal Richard Abrams' Blues Forever.
Given how readily he seems to work with others it’s quite a surprise to find how inventive he is out on his own. Here’s a double LP’s worth of some interesting and stimulating music, where he uses volume (and lack of it), messed-up instruments and even some strong playing to truly talk through his horn. Thanks again to Dale for passing this on to me.

This one was somehow prompted by a discussion in the comment section of an earlier posting where one commentator professed his admiration for the work of Michel Pilz.
So when the opptunity came to download this concert from Dime, naturally I had to take it to find out. My inclination had been in the direction of people like Michel Portal and Rudi Mahall (and we shall have both in upcoming posts), but Pilz is certainly a worthwhile addition to the premier league. I find him distinctly different - more linear, flowing if these words make any sense - not unlike Brötzmann.
Listening to this 30-minute piece, I find Mr. Pilz overshadowed by Mr. Niebergall who has a physical attack which reminds me of the great South Africans Harry Miller and Johnny Mbizo Dyani. You get the feeling that once he's through, the whole damn thing can be sold off as scrapwood.
Niebergall was in the forefront of the first generation of German free jazzers, having played with virtually anybody on the scene, including Brötzmann himself.
This particular line-up with Pilz and Uwe Schmitt on drums appears only to be documented on a 1978 release "Celeste" on the Trion label. There's one to hunt for!
Niebergall ceased making records round about 1980 and reportedly lived in recluse in Frankfurt a.M. until his death in 1990.
A short radio intro and then "Tilip", recorded at the Moers New Jazz Festival on 15 may 1978.
What's on offer here is 30 minutes plus of dynamite. Dig in!
Michel Pilz, bass clarinet
Buschi Niebergall, bass
Uwe Schmitt, drums
1. speaker/broadcast 0:25
2. Tilip (Michel Pilz) 33:30
Recorded at New Jazz Festival, Moers on May 15, 1978.

Following on from the recent Hamburg Concert, and with special thanks to Boromir for posting the interim Bergamo piece, we continue with Circle.
"Quartet Pieces Nos. 1, 2 & 3".
Recorded in the studio - New York - 21st August 1970.
Chick Corea, piano, prepared piano, vibes, percussion, bass-marimba
Anthony Braxton, alto, sopranino, clarinet, contrabass-clarinet, percussion, voice
Dave Holland, bass, cello, acoustic guitar, percussion
Barry Altschul, drums, percussion, bass-marimba, vibes.
These three fascinating pieces are the earliest example of Circle's other side, their work in a lifeless studio, with no engrossed audience to offer inspiration, challenge or acceptance. All three pieces were issued only on a Blue Note 2LP set called "Circulus", under Corea's name, and have never appeared on CD, to my knowledge. This rip is taken from the original vinyl, with apologies for the occasional surface noise. The music is also the first recorded evidence of Braxton playing with what was until then Corea's trio.
In the opening minute or so, the musical aesthetic promptly reveals itself to be far closer to developments (in 1970) in European-style free improvisation and contemporary classical music, rather than the conventional notions of jazz. All three pieces are open improvisations, stark, spiky, a tad austere, with a disorienting use of space, unnerving deviations, terse twists and turns. A volcanic highlight appears on Piece No. 2 at the 5 minute mark, where Corea suddenly hits upon a single note, wrings the life out of it in seconds and sends the entire band careering off in a wholly unexpected (by them) direction. All the musicians use a wider-than-usual range of instruments, e.g. Holland on acoustic guitar, Corea on vibes and Braxton's vocal contribution at end of Piece No. 2 will surely raise an eyebrow or two.
The musical results show thrilling interplay, rich in detail, and no lack of careful listening among the players. What is more extraordinary is that just three days before these recordings were made, Corea and Holland, both on electric instruments, played an explosive set with Miles at Tanglewood on 18th August and followed it up a few days later with Miles' Isle of Wight Festival appearance on 29th August in front of a mere half-million people. In between the two, they tossed us these three acoustic gems.
glmlr





As the last pictures post seemed to please a lot of you, here are a few 1970's covers from the French magazine Jazz Hot. Particularly nice pic of Braxton playing chess !
Credit is as follow : Lacy : Gérard Noël /Coleman & Braxton : Latapie-Trombert / Dixon : Latapie / Rivers & Holland : Alex Dutilh.
The news :
I've been working on an online database to store scanned material related to the kind of music we share here, and it is nearly operational (should be working in a few days). For the moment there is something like 70-80 articles - mostly interviews, not available elsewhere on the net - stored in it but that number could grow quickly if things go well, that is to say if people want to participate and upload their own material. In order to avoid legal problems linked to copyright issues the database will be private but anyone interested is welcome, whether you have things to share or not. To stay informed, please send an email to the address in the comments and I will answer with a detailed text on how to make things work and a password.
If things go well, this database could become a great tool for all of us making researches on free music so let's hope it will !
Pierre
PS : if one of our dear readers is a drummer and has 30 minutes to lose, I need your help so please get in touch :).
Kuumbwa Jazz Center, Santa Cruz, California. 5/10/87. Broadcast over KUSP-FM. 93 min. Not the complete show. Excellent sound. (Rebroadcast on WKCR Sun Ra memorial show, 6/8/93)
1st set:
unidentified improvisation (incl. Patrick, as; Wilson, ts; Allen or Gilmore, EVI)
unidentified improvisation (Ra, p; Davis, as)
East of the Sun (Bowman) (Gilmore, voc; Ra, p and syn)
[It's Only a] Paper Moon (Rose-Harburg-Arlen) (Jenkins, voc; several verses added by Jenkins)
Frisco Fog (Carr-Roberts)
unidentified title (Jenkins, falsetto wordless voc)
Queer Notions (Hawkins) (Ra, p; Gilmore, ts)
Beautiful Love (Young-Coots-Gillespie-Van Alstyne) (Ra, voc; Gilmore, ts)
Inside the Blues (Ra) (Ra, p)
Slumming on Park Avenue (Berlin) (Jacson and ens voc; Raand ens, voc)
When You See Danger / Now's the Time (Parker) / Straight No Chaser (Monk) (Jenkins, scat voc; prob. Thompson, bs)
We Travel the Spaceways (Ra) (Ra and ens voc; the original tune; marching)
Outer Spaceways Incorporated / Space Is the Place (Ra) (Ra, declamation; more marching; not the original tunes)
The Arkestra: Ra-p, syn, voc; Eddie Gale-tp; Marshall Allen-as, ob, fl, EVI, perc; Pat Patrick-as; Danny Davis-as; John Gilmore-ts, EVI, perc, voc; Ronald Wilson-ts; Eloe Omoe-as, bcl, contra-alto cl; James Jacson-bsn, Ancient Egyptian Infinity Drum, voc; prob. Danny Thompson-bs; unidentified-b; Buster Smith-d; unidentified-cga, perc; Art Jenkins-voc. (rlc)
An exceptional concert -- one of the few times Art Jenkins' bebop scatting was captured on tape. Eddie Gale confirms his presence on this tape.
Flac and MP3 forthcoming. No scans.






A few more of those French ads from the 70's featuring free players. The most surrealistic being the last one, advertising the availabilty of Ayler, Shepp, Ra and Sanders records in all "Euromarchés", a French hypermarket chain !
P.