Reissues
Dance With Me Montana
* 2022 stock * "The main point of interest of this album is its session date. Recorded in 1982, this is one of the very few documents of the late Sonny Sharrock's playing between his classic work with Pharoah Sanders and Don Cherry as well as on his own and his re-emergence with Last Exit in 1985. Bill Laswell had already utilized his talents on Material's Memory Serves release from the prior year, but here is Sharrock in a simple trio, playing several of the pieces that would become part of his…
Makrokosmos
** 2022 remastered repress ** Pianist Margaret Leng-Tan - considered the leading exponent of “extended” piano techniques - is at her best with this music. George Crumb and Ms. Tan worked closely on the preparation of these works for the recording. Crumb’s Makrokosmos I & II were written to expand the world of color and sonic possibilities which a single piano and pianist could create. In addition to playing the keyboard, the pianist is required to strum and pluck the strings; apply glass tumbler…
Spirale
Released way back in 1974, the lone, self-titled effort from Spirale is an album notable for its lack of electronic instruments. It also has some of those loveable low-budget production flaws that are so often heard in obscure 1970s Italian progressive music, and the bass quite often seems charmingly out-of-tune. But this was an earnest and quite energetic jazz-rock ensemble excursion, with excellent brass arrangements and improvisation. Other instruments used include violin, drums, piano and va…
A Monastic Trio
A Monastic Trio is the first solo album by Alice Coltrane. Recorded in 1968, she intended it to be a tribute to her husband, John Coltrane, who had died the year before. It originally featured the message: "This music is dedicated to the mystic, Ohnedaruth, known as John Coltrane during the period from September 23, 1926 to July 17, 1967Alice Coltrane - harp, pianoPharoah Sanders - flute, bass clarinet, tenor saxophoneJimmy Garrison - bassRashied Ali - drumsBen Riley – drumsWhile John's spirit c…
Universal Consciousness
Universal Consciousness is the fifth solo album by Alice Coltrane, released in 1971 on Impulse! Records. Universal Consciousness builds nicely on albums that came before it. It grows out of the unbridled celebration of her late husband's life on A Monastic Trio and the soulful wanderings of her most well-known record, Journey in Satchadananda.In The Wire's "100 Records That Set the World on Fire," David Toop writes, "[Universal Consciousness] clearly connects to other dyspeptic jazz traditions –…
'Round About Midnight (Live At The Totem Vol. 2)
* 2022 stock * "Archie Shepp's 1979 quartet of American and European musicians (Clifford Jarvis, drums; Seifried Kessler, piano; Bob Cunningham, bass) put more fire under him as an improviser than anybody since Coltrane. These cats came to play, and they were playing for keeps. It's all Shepp can do to lead the band. Opening with a furiously paced "Donna Lee," with Shepp's solo winding all around the intervals and changing them in mid-phrase, Jarvis double times even his legato. For 16 minutes t…
Live At The Dreher
* 2022 stock * Marge Records presents Live at Dreher by Roy Burrowes Sextet featuring Mal Waldron Roy Burrowes (trompette & bugle), Richard Raux (saxophones ténor et soprano), Mal Waldron (piano), Patrice Caratini (contrebasse) & George Brown (batterie) - On two tracks : Roger Raspail (percussions) Recorded live on 10th march 1980 at Dreher, Paris.
Sunrise
* 2022 stock * New York-born drummer Stu Martin made a name for himself at the age of sixteen by playing with many of the great bands - those of Billy May, Jimmy Dorsey, Count Basie, Duke Ellington, Maynard Ferguson and Quincy Jones, among others. In the 1960s he moved to Europe where he played with the greatest musicians of the time such as Jean-Luc Ponty, the Kühn brothers, Martial Solal or John McLaughlin. A very complete drummer adapting to all forms of jazz, he was part of the John Surman a…
Aigu - Grave
* 2022 stock * Sunny Murray's Aigu-Grave, a nominal quintet date with percussionist Pablo Sauvage appearing on two of the five tracks; the rest of the group features French tenor saxophonist Richard Raux, Bobby Few and Alan Silva. Its two leading tracks, “Happiness Tears” and “Tree Tops,” are memorable Murray compositions which are given free and satisfying treatments. The theme of “Happiness Tears” searches through some minor intervals before resolving in a cheerful major chord. “Tree Tops” is …
The Awakening
Tip! * 2022 stock * This 1979 date by tenor saxophonist Billy Harper is one of his most transcendent. Rife with his deep study of Coltrane's modalism, and his own deep knowledge of the blues and Eastern music, Harper and his quintet take on three extended pieces: "Soran Bushi-B.H." comes in at over 12 minutes, while "Cry Of Hunger," is over 20; both work out of extended harmonic architectures to place improvisation as a new element (remember, this was 1979), as an extension of the jazz "song." T…
La Chiesa
*2022 stock* This official soundtrack album for the Italian horror movie La Chiesa ("The Church") features four pieces performed by Keith Emerson. These are The Church (Main Theme); Prelude 24 (From Well Tempered Clavier); The Possession, and The Church Revisited, all four of which have also been included on the Keith Emerson "At the Movies" 3CD set. Emerson's contributions add up to about 13 minutes of music all in all.The rest of the music on this soundtrack is by other artists, including seve…
Anche Se Volessi Lavorare, Che Faccio?
"Released in 1972 on the Cinevox record label, Morricone’s score is in a word classic. It contains every musical trademark that we associate with the Maestro, quirky and jaunty backgrounds, romantic and poignant melodies, infectious and haunting musical interludes and emotive and heartrending passages that just melt the listener. The CD re-issue was also on Cinevox, and the company released it in the November of 2003, it contains a little more music than the LP recording in fact there are four …
L'uccello dalle piume di cristallo
*2022 stock* "Touted as being the definitive edition of Ennio Morricone's darkly seductive score for the first motion picture directed by Italian master of the macabre, Dario Argento, this release of L'uccello Dalle Piume Di Cristallo, or The Bird With The Crystal Plumage, coincides with the film's debut on Blu-ray (see separate review). The entire original soundtrack-album is presented here in stereo for the first time and, not only that, but a very generous helping of bonus and alternate track…
Non Ho Sonno (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)
*2022 stock* "Non ho sonno isn’t exactly a return to the glory days of Suspiria and Roller, but it’s very good, and is worthy of purchase before most of the 1980’s soundtracks. Though Goblin managed to hold on to the 1970’s sound even on most of their 1980’s work, this album sounds much more like the 1980’s than the 1970’s or 1990’s, especially the guitar. As far as opening themes go, “Non Ho Sonno” is good. That basically goes for the rest of the music too. It’s all very good, but not as unique…
Schock (Transfert-Suspence-Hypnos)
*2022 stock* Back in '76 or so, Mario Bava wanted in on some of Argento's azione in the film music department. For his movies, Dario had enlisted some homegrown twentysomethings fresh from sessions in England as an outfit alternately called Oliver and Cherry Five. The quartet, rechristened Goblin, had cranked up their amplifiers to score Dario's two very popular films, the bloody Profondo Rosso and the supernaturally-inclined Suspiria. Bava wanted the same kind of sonorous edge for his next fora…
Autumn Leaves
* 2022 stock * Futura Records presents Autumn Leaves: Ben Webster (saxophone ténor), Georges Arvanitas (piano), Jacky Samson (contrebasse) & Charles Saudrais (drums) Recorded 5th june 1972 at studio Europasonor, Paris
Under Paris Skies
* 2022 stock * This recording of a 1971 date pairs legendary hard bop pianist Freddie Redd with an obscure French rhythm section. Didier Levallet and Didier Carlier on bass and drums, respectively, are certainly good musicians; they comp and center very well around the changes Redd sets out in his original tunes such as "Diane I Love You," "Bleeker Street Blues," "To Bud With Love," "This Heart of Mine," "You," and "My God Is Love." Their backing is tight and organized, and that's the problem. R…
Santa Sangre - 30th Anniversary Limited Edition
For Alejandro Jodorowsky'"Santa Sangre," Simon Boswell has composed, arranged and conducted a fascinating electronic music score with Latin flavor that describes all the world of Fenix the magician from his childhood to young man, a world full of music and colors, but also filled with dark fears.
La Setta
Suspended sounds and vocalizations in Latin introduce the scrupulous 'electronic' commentary of Pino Donaggio. While the mysterious atmosphere of the opener La Setta soon evolves into a syncopated rhythm, the following Ansimando offers the listener disturbing notes of keyboards and elliptical effects of synthesizers that constitute, in addition, the central body of the mysterious Il Cuore Strappato. The dreamlike plots of Sogno are, instead, based on the continuous dialogue between acoustic guit…
Contamination
*2022 stock* `Contamination' sees Italian progressive and cult soundtrack band Goblin add a refreshing dose of other wordly sci-fi sounds to their usual creeping horror atmospherics, and it makes for a mostly consistent and successful album.This time the soundtrack to a science-fiction film, It's a shame that the album is another mostly unnoticed and somewhat ignored work from the band, because in addition to a number of suspenseful and moody numbers, it contains the classic Goblin track `Quiet …