Friday, August 1, 2008
don't say it unless you mean it
Haven't had much time to post recently, but I felt inspired this week to put up something from one of the all-time classic jazz albums.
John Coltrane's A love supreme is an intense, spontaneous expression of spirituality, touching on free jazz but grounded in Coltrane's own unique sound, his rhythmic and melodic sense. The suite is largely up-tempo, in four parts, beginning with Acknowledgement, above, and ending with the contemplative piece I've posted below, called Psalm, which is a "musical narration" of a poem Coltrane wrote to give thanks to God. As I mentioned on RR, if you read the text of the poem you can follow the words being articulated by Coltrane's saxophone. That isn't so important, though- the music stands alone as one of jazz's pivotal moments.
To balance Coltrane's stratospheric spirituality, something a little more earthy- the Cannonball Adderley Quintet with some advice for when adversity strikes- plead for mercy..
(player removed)
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22 comments:
Thanks, Nilpferd. Loved them both.
What a great band that was, that's the tightest essence of jazz in five short minutes. I mentioned here once that I'd seen them in a small club in San Diego, early '60's; memorable I can still recall details.
Thanks for the feedback.
I envy you for that, GF. I wish I'd been able to see the Adderley band, although Cannonball died when I was about 4, I grew up on the early sixties albums like Jazz Workshop revisited or Things are getting better. Love Cannonball's voice and the effortless feel of the band: as you say, the essence of jazz.
For that matter I'd also love to have seen Coltrane live.
I was just listening to the samples from Pete Rock & CL SMooth's second album and found this Cannonball Adderly sample
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tbWMvvzj79c
Awesome track! Sample sounds like Capricorn, with George Duke on keys. Original here- http://de.youtube.com/watch?v=uZcvb4ieU3Q
It is Capricorn! I downloaded all the songs he samples on the album, and there are some really good ones. The more I hear of Pete Rock, the more I like him. I'll 'Spill something after the weekend, cause I'm semi obsessed...
Capricorn was in my mind because I recently got a George Duke album with a version of it, and also had listened to the Adderley version last week.
I just listened to some clips of Pete Rock's instrumental work, and it reminds me a bit of Madlib's Yesterdays New Quintet albums, with the laid back beats and Rhodes. Looks like I have to order Main Ingredient.
The main ingredient is good, and I also really love Mecca and the Soul Brother (which also has some cannonball-sampling tracks). I'm currently most in love with their EP All Souled Out, which is the first thing they put out. This track (same name as their subsequent album) just kills me...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NfOAEkvE0Pw
Another vivid memory from that same period was walking through North Beach in SF on a sunny Sunday afternoon and hearing some great tenor spilling out onto the street, I was passing the Blackhawk and it was Gene Ammons and Sonny Stitt! Plus there was a Hammond B3 in the rhythm section.
I popped for the $2 cover and went in.
I've still got their vinyl from that era.
Good memories, GF.
My copy of Main ingredient just arrived, Steenbeck...
Main Ingredient's one of my favourite hip hop albums (out of the literally several that I own… )
Only several, huh? I have more than just a couple, but not so many that they are actually numerous. I guess I have a slightly inadequate sufficiency of hip-hop albums.
In fact, I'd say I have a "curiosity" of hip hop albums, that being the amount of albums in a particular genre which is just big enough to say you are into that genre, without being anywhere near the size of a definitive collection. Or even a top ten.
I hope you like it, Nilpferd. I'm glad it has the Mr.DNA stamp of approval. What are the other hip hop albums you have mr. DNA? I would guess that Nilpferd has some madlib and some Roots.
"Curiousity" is a genious group noun, Nilpferd. I'd say I have a curiousity of jazz albums.
Heard it through this morning, very good.
Right about my hip-hop- otherwise add Gang Starr, Guru's Jazzmatazz, Ursula Rucker, and a few assorted Ninja Tunes compilations, and the rest depends on whether you class Galliano, DJ Shadow and Ammoncontact as hip-hop. I keep meaning to get some ATCQ after your and EJD's recommendations but haven't managed it yet. I was also meaning to follow up on those Blackalicious tracks from a while back on RR, too.
I was going to add earlier that hip hop is dangerous for me because one thing leads to another...I just got a couple of gang starr albums (and I love them) because... I was going on and on about Pete Rock and Ejaydee said I'd like DJ Premier, and then I thought to myself, well, the tracks he produced for Nas were wonderful, and then I read an interview with Pete Rock in which he talked about Premier, and then...I end up with a few more albums...
Premier is awesome.. I still like his work with Branford Marsalis on Buckshot le Fonque, although that was quite a flawed album..
What makes up your jazz curiosity?
I'm a big fan of Cannibal Ox and El-P.
Um...A Night in Tunisia and Kind of Blue.
Actually, I have a ton of jazz if you count Billie Holiday, Nina Simone, Louis Armstrong, Cab Calloway, jelly Roll Morton, Ella Fitzgerald, Chet Baker... Don't know why I wasn't taking those into account. The number of jazz tracks I own is actually growing as I download sample collections from various hip hop albums. I love the fact that hip hop is teaching me about jazz.
By the way, where would you start with cannonball Adderly?
Mnemonic, just Youtubed Cannibal Ox- Pain Killers. A great track.
With EL-P I assume you don't mean Emerson, Lake and Palmer? The rapper's myspace site won't open for me at the moment though.
Steenbeck, there's a new Cannonball Adderley compilation out called "Walk Tall- the David Axelrod years" with a good cross-section of the last years of his life- when his most-sampled tracks were recorded- check out at http://statesiderecords.com/
"Things are getting better" is a beautiful example of his earlier career, recorded with Milt Jackson in the late fifties.
My own hip hop collection is more curiosity than completist too but I'll see if I can spill some this evening.
My own hip hop collection is more curiosity than completist too but I'll see if I can spill some this evening.
Looking forward to it, Mnemonic. Maybe we can expand our respective curiosities to.. an inquisition?
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