Jazz Fusion Music

Unlike Joseph Kolb I was thrilled to see this reissue, since the sonics have been cleaned up remarkably from the original (and rare!) CD issues of Time Is The Key and Live. And I don't believe Leave It Open has ever been released before on CD. The sound is crystal clear, with dynamics and detail never before audible.

Unfortunately these are not the best albums of Pierre Moerlen's Gong. They feature Pierre's amazing mallet work but the rest of the band pretty much comps, playing the same chord over and over while Pierre solos. Earlier PMG albums were a little more egalitarian, and certainly stronger compositionally. Nevertheless this set is essential to complete the collection on what was a unique instrumental rock experiment.

i bought this from another place because it was advertised as a dvd. it isn't. it's 3 releases on 2 cds: time is the key, live and leave it open. these releases are available and most gong fans probably have them. it irritates me we have yet another compilation release. like hawkwind, gong has a ton of compilations already. granted, they may not be from the pierre moerlen era. the liner notes discuss the history of gong with emphasis on the daevid allen era. it mentions nothing of moerlen's passing. this too irritates me as trying to compare the era's is like comparing early soft machine with it's last incarnation. they should not be compared. the sound and style evolved into something totally different. why not write solely about pierre moerlen's gong, as that's what's being sold. anyway, if you don't have any of the later gong material, i guess this is a good place to start. if you have this stuff, then skip it, there's nothing new here. i would appreciate more live, unreleased material, rather than recycling what already is available.

I had this album on LP and literally wore the grooves out of it, especially WHEN YOUR LOVER HAS GONE, which is the best version of that tune I know. Absolutely beautiful. Most of the tunes were composed by Dick Hyman, who plays piano here, and they are all quite handsome. Only one tune, THEME AND INNER TUBE, is not to my liking - it's somewhat experimental and free in nature. Mundell Lowe is on guitar, Eddie Safranski on bass, Don Lamond on drums, and Rusty Dedrick plays trumpet along with Elliott. Recorded March 1955. Highly recommended.

"Solo Works-- The Lumina Recordings" collects three LPs recorded by Ned Rothenberg of primarily solo recordings from the early 1980s, digitally remastered and if I'm not mistaken made available for the first time of CD. Rothenberg doesn't quite have the name recognition that a number of other downtown performers have gained and being a reed player seems to put everyone on that scene pretty much in the shadow of John Zorn, but these recently reissued recordings offer an opportunity to evaluate Rothenberg's early works and consider him as a distinct artist.

Rothenberg's first LP of solo material, "Trials of Argo", was recorded in 1980 and 1981 and consists of two extended performances. It is probably the least satisfying of the material on this set. By his own admission in the liner notes, he wasn't quite sure of what he was doing in this environment and particularly on the title track, it shows. "Trials of Argo" is an alto sax feature with a number of overdubbed woodwind instruments in the mix. It opens with chirping and breathy sounds and eventually builds into a fractured rhythmic figure that turns over to more concrete lines. The problem, however, is that the focus of the piece is lost in the overdubs, and before it settles back into its original sound, it ends up being pretty washed out. The end finds Rothenberg frantically blowing over a drone and the playing is fine enough that it makes up for what it took to get there, but the piece as a whole fails. "Continuo After the Inuit" fares a bit better-- it builds from a low droning note on alto occasionally punctuated by an upper register excursion-- building in intensity and volume with the upper register performance taking hold over the droning. It has a nice sound and one could imagine it would have developed nicely over time live.

A significant leap forward is the material from "Portal"-- recorded in 1982 and 1983, the three tracks show Rothenberg coming moreso to terms with constructing a solo performance. "Portal" is similar in form to 'Continuo' with the same drone/upper register format swapping, but performed on bass clarinet and much better realized. "Caenis" finds Rothenberg performing on a soprano double ocarina (a sort of box-shaped wooden flute)-- he uses the polyphonic nature of the instrument to construct two coplimentary lines that starts off gently and picks up over time-- it ends up being one of the more intriguing and satisfying pieces on the entire collection. "Polysemy" finds Rothenberg performing on alto sax and drum kit with Gerry Hemingway joining on a steel drum. This piece is built around rhythmic figures by and large, with all three instruments providing by and large a rhythmic rather than a melodic component. The performance itself ends up being quite engaging, with Rothenberg's simple lines intertwining around each other.

It is on the final LP included in this collection-- "Trespass"-- however that Rothenberg really hits his stride. Consisting of seven briefer solo performances (rather than the extended works of the previous records), it benefits from the economy of the pieces-- Rothenberg makes more succinct statements around individual ideas and rather than attempting to make extended ideas come forth. This allows for the record to have more of the notion of tracks that excite you-- "Caeneus" finds Rothenberg digging deeply into blues tradition before surrendering to overtones and his circular lines, the title track finds him exploring descending lines using overtones to shift between them, and "Slapstick", probably the real standout of the record, features a fantastic, swinging bass clarinet line with Rothenberg showing how agile and versatile both he and the instrument is. The onlyu really extended cut, "Kakeai", is an alto sax duet between Rothenberg and John Zorn and proves to be stunning. Zorn's presence adds a frantic energy to the piece that Rothenberg picks up on and the 11 minute+ workout turns out to be the most energetic and exploratory cut on the record with extended register and technique rising and falling. Rothenberg seems inclined to occasionally maintain a more rhythmic figure while letting Zorn cut loose, but the two respond to each other nicely and the performance is fantastic throughout.

This compilation also includes three unreleased tracks recorded significantly later that feature more of an electronic bent. "Wrestling with Water", from 1991 and performed on processed bass clarinet, is a near-ambient piece, with the horn rising above a swirl. Structurally, it's actually quite siilar to the earlier material, but it works significantly better. "Funhouse" (presented in two tracks), from 1998, features live processing by David Weinstein and again finds Rothenberg on bass clarinet, is probably the best performance on the set. Drifting in and out of ambient and his usual pallette, Rothenberg is able to construct a piece that demands attention and is stunningly well performed-- it's easy to see where his progress has brought him.

This set has been remastered-- truthfully I never had the original recordings, but the sound is clear and distinct with no residual traces of the analog transfer and the release includes an essay by Rothenberg about the history of these recordings that makes for a nice read.

All in all, "The Lumina Recordings" is a fine set-- Rothenberg had a long way to develop as a solo performer and it shows, but the opportunity to see his work so early is well worth investigation.

There is only one thing wrong with this Cd, it has an ending. I actually heard this Cd like 3-4 years ago, and I though I would never have the opportunity to buy it, being that it is out of print. But ""Halilujah'' for AMAZON! (mabey they sould pay me for this.....)But the Cd was life changing. Alot of fusion has lost it's groove and the thought of fun, and good songwriting, but these guuys......
My favorite cut is actually three;
IT AINT WHAT IT IS- this was so great because the head was so spot-on as far as catchy as well as deep, not to mention beautiful
WHODUNIT- Amazing phrasing from David Gilmor, this guy's phrasing is just like a saxiphone, way diggable
STEELORCHARD- This song mixes a sweet almost progressive/ dreatheatere-esque guitar part mixed w/ an almost counter-point relationship with the rest of the band!
The Whole cd was fantastic but these tracks, in my opinion, stood out

This reunion concert has been released in many different versions.

This CD is about 2/3's of the concert. The other third of the concert was released on a separate CD.

The complete concert is available on either the "Reunion Concert" DVD or the double CD called "Theme for a Reunion". Get one of those. Some of the best songs from the concert are not on this CD.

I love the Turtle Island String Quartet because of their use of a traditionally classical music ensemble to create a jazz sound. This CD is wonderful because it uses selections from their earlier recordings as well as their latest ones.

All in all a great cd for a romantic evening :0) Contains great jazz songs, that are classical in writting, likewise has very nice solo piano songs. Why not a 5 you might ask. Well after listning to the Koln Concert by Keith Jarrett, its pretty hard to beat. I especially liked the song played along with John Scofield, it respects him and Jarrett has artists.

RCA Victor presents Keith Jarrett's music, very much like the American standards to which he has devoted his jazz performing in the last two decades, is hummable, witty, rhythmically infectious and structurally solid. Few artists define greatness as powerfully as Jarrett does, his profound influence on modern music is celebrated by a wide range of groundbreaking artists who explore and re-interpret his strikingly original music. Jarrett has reached such fame by mastering the different genres of jazz and classical music, and his uncategorizable improvisations, is nothing short of astounding.

This entire CD is simply awesome, with today's artists giving their all to this musical tribute - "The Music of Keith Jarrett", one of the best jazz albums to come out with original music that has been overlooked for too long!

Total Time: 58:52 on 13 Tracks/ RCA Victor - 09026 63607 2 (2000)

This is real soul music. It is deeply moving and satisfying. It never dates.

This is real contemporary genius at work. This collection includes the sounds of nature blended with gospel, folk, and classical and jazz tunes. Paul Winter has great reverence for nature and humanity, and it comes through in his music in a way that inspires me and everyone with whom I have shared this CD. Great lyrics with lines like:

"The dark, dark night is ending, and morning has begun..."

Regarding the ocean: "If she dies, nothing survives..."

Although classed by most as "new age" music, what sets this apart from the Windham Hill collections I've listened to is this focus on blending of human artistry with nature, and I don't hear a lot of synthesized sounds on this recording. You will hear crowds singing with the wolves, and whales in chorus with the Consort. If you are unfamiliar with Paul Winter's work, this is an excellent place to start.