Musicians’ Obits 2017

January
–7. Nat Hentoff, 91, renowned jazz critic, political columnist, and free speech activist
—-“He never lost his sense of rage.”
–8. Peter Sarstedt, 75, pop singer (Where Do You Go to My Lovely? +)
10. Buddy Greco, 90, jazz singer and pianist
13. Riza Arshad, 53, Indonesian jazz keyboardist and a lovely man.
16. William Onyeabor, 70, ‘mysterious and reclusive Nigerian synthesizer whiz’
18. Mike Kellie, 69, drummer with Spooky Tooth, Only Ones and an in-demand session drummer.
21. Maggie Roche, 65, one-third of family band the Roches.
22. Jaki Liebezeit, 78, drummer and founding member of Can (Click his name for live sessions)
22. Peter Overend Watts, 70, bass player with Mott The Hoople
24. Butch Trucks, 69, Allman Brothers Band drummer

February
–2. Deke Leonard, 72, guitarist (Man, Iceberg)
–5. David Axelrod, 83, much sampled producer and composer
12. Al Jarreau, 76, Grammy-winning and very distinctive jazz singer
13. Michael Naura, 82, German jazz pianist, critic and producer
17. Peter Skellern, 69, more than a ‘pop singer-songwriter and interpreter’.
19. Larry Coryell, 73, pioneering and eclectic jazz fusion guitarist (w. downloadable compilation)
23. Horace Parlan, 83, hard-bop pianist with Charles Mingus, Roland Kirk, Archie Shepp et al.

March
–3. Misha Mengelberg, 81, Dutch improvising jazz pianist
–4. Valerie Carter, 64, back up singer for James Taylor, Jackson Browne, Don Henley, Neil Diamond, Ringo Starr et al.
–4. John McGeoch, 48, guitarist with Magazine, Siouxsie and the Banshees, PiL ++
16. James Cotton, 81, blues harp legend, Muddy Waters (video), Howling Wolf, Janis Joplin ++
18. Chuck Berry, 90, pioneering rock’n’roller, still gigging at 80 … His life in pictures

27. Clem Curtis, 76, original lead singer with the Foundations +
28. Arthur Blythe, 76, innovative jazz saxophonist

April
-1. Ikutaro Kakehashi, 87, Japanese developer of Roland keyboards, drum machines
–8. Brian Matthew, 88, disc jockey and radio presenter, a ‘voice for our generation’
11. John ‘J’ Geils, 71, rock star (click name for 1974 concert)
15. Allan Holdsworth, 70, seminal jazz-rock guitarist (click name for media content)
28. Joanna Brouk, 68, composer “at the nexus between ambient, new age, drone, and classical minimalism“

May
–5. Clive Brooks, 67, drummer with Egg, later drum technician with Pink Floyd
–8. Dave Pell, 92, jazz saxophonist and bandleader.
17. Chris Cornell, 52, “architect of Grunge”
27. Gregg Allman , 69, organist with the Allman Brothers (a gig in 1984)
29. David Lewiston , 88, ethnomusicologist whose first recordings were in Bali

June
10. Julia ‘Jupe’ Perez, 36, Indonesian dangdut singer who faced down the Fundamentally Perverted Islamists
14. Anita Pallenberg, 73, actor, model and muse to the Rolling Stones
27. Geri Allen, 60, influential jazz pianist
28. Kelan Phil Cohran, 90, trumpeter and occasional zither (Sun Ra and His Arkestra)
Listen to African Skies

July
-5. Pierre Henry, 89, a leader of the musique concrète genre.
16. Kitty Lux, 59, founder of the Ukulele Orchestra of Great Britain, the world’s first.
25. Dr G Yunupingu, 46, singer-songwriter, member of Yothu Yindi
31. Chuck Loeb, 61, jazz guitarist, composer (Stan Getz, Steps Ahead, Four Play)

August
–8. Glen Campbell, 81, singer, songwriter and guitarist (an unreleased concert from 1967)
22. John Abercrombie, 72, seminal jazz fusion guitarist (video) & ECM mainstay.
30. Skip’ Prokop, 73, drummer, co-founder of Canadian group Lighthouse “the world’s first 13-piece jazz-rock orchestra“

September
–3. Walter Becker, 67, ‘half’ of Steely Dan (IndoJazzia tribute)
–5. Holger Czukay, 79. founder member of Can
–8. Don Williams, 78, country singer and Nashville songwriter
22. Harold Pendleton, 93, founder of London’s legendary Marquee Club and Reading Festival
24. Jack Good, 86, television and theatre producer: Six-Five Special and Oh Boy! (UK), Shindig! (USA)
30. Tom Paley, 89, a pioneer of the 50s American folk revival

October
–2. Tom Petty, 66, Heartbreakers/Travelling Wilburys singer and writer of transcendent pop-rock songs.

-8. Grady Tate, 85, American hard bop and soul-jazz drummer and singer (discography)
18. Phil Miller, 68, crucial yet unassuming guitarist with the ‘Canterbury’ bands Delivery, Matching Mole, Hatfield and the North, National Health, In Cahoots
24. Fats Domino, 89, “true giant of postwar American popular music: no one sounded like him, yet ask who he influenced, and the answer is everyone.”

November
–7. Paul Buckmaster, 71, English artist, arranger, conductor, composer, Grammy Award winner.
16. Michael ‘Dik Mik’ Davies, 73, electronics pioneer, and original keyboardist with Hawkwind
18. Malcolm Young, 64, co-founder, songwriter and guitarist with AC/DC
21. David Cassidy, 65, teen idol (Partridge Family), singer-actor.

December
–6. Johnny Halliday, 74, France’s biggest rock star, sold 110 million albums.

ABC of Fruit

A is for …
B is for … (banana)
C is for …

Last Sunday’s Image of the Week on my main site was of bananas. As well as links to some oddball videos I also included a download of four music tracks which include the word ‘banana’ in the title.

Rather than asking you to think of an A and a C fruit, this is the tracklist of the compilation you are welcome to download.

Voices

I’ve been hearing voices again … Again?, Yes, again.

And you can hear them too if you click this link.

Yin-Yang

When five former US Presidents with different political persuasions come together for a fundraiser on behalf of those areas of the USA which have suffered devastation from recent hurricanes, then we are seeing the best of the American Dream: it’s one of inclusiveness, of working together for the common good..

That the current President contributed a video which praised them for “being fine public servants”, but that there was little else in his script, which he read without looking into the camera, was a strong indication why the five needed to come together.

Life has to be about balance, of truces rather than battles, of constructive compromises (i.e. of the highest, rather than lowest, common denominator), and acceptance that ‘they’ do not have to be like ‘us’.

Here are some songs and music which describe symptoms and offer a cure.

Download

01. Masqualero – Off Balance
02. Blossom Toes – I Will Bring You This And That
03. Dr. John – Right Place, Wrong Time
04. Ian Gomm – Black and White
05. The Persuaders – Thin Line Between Love And Hate
06. Ric Ocasek – Balance
07. Rupert Hine – One Man’s Poison
08. Mary Black – Trying to Get the Balance Right
09. Lee Morse – If You Want The Rainbow (You Must Have The Rain)
10. Brian Eno & Jah Wobble – Unusual Balance
11. Jansen & Barbieri – Balance
12. Ryuichi Sakamoto – Acceptance

Phil Miller R.I.P.

January 22, 1949 – October 18, 2017

Unassuming man yet crucial guitarist with the ‘Canterbury’ bands Delivery, Matching Mole, Hatfield and the North, National Health, In Cahoots, and …

Discography

Gamelanish Grooves 4

“This music comes from somewhere unknown and offers hope that there are worlds of music out there, unexplored and waiting to be discovered.”

That’s from a review of Orchestra Bana Luya from Kinhasa, Zaire

The likembé merge to provide a brutal, hypnotising beat, the cousin to The 13th Floor Elevators’ electrified jug or John Cale’s manic viola. The rapid intensity of rhythm matches the finest exponents of Krautrock, occasionally drifting close to the confused energy of Aphex Twin or Autechre, with the damaged tempo of Beefheart or Marc Ribot slithering in.

That’s what the reviewer heard … but I hear hypnotic gamelan, as I do in the other tracks gathered for you. I’ve pruned some 25 minutes off that track, so if you want to be transported click the link above.

Having been in Indonesia for nigh on 30 years, I’ve got to hear a lot of local music, yet very little of it excites me. This is probably because local musicians in general play for their audiences who want the familiar. I listen out for the excitement of extemporaneous sounds of musicians playing for themselves, for fun.

Although I’ve labelled each track with the nationality of the artist(s), none to my knowledge had nationalistic messages about character building or other such claptrap. The first three tracks have most definitely been composed to reflect the musicians’ love of Indonesian scales and melodies.

If you share that, then I hope you’ll download my compilation and listen with open ears.

The first three Gamelanish Grooves can be found here.

Enjoy!

Širom from Slovenia

“Fearlessly textured sonic landscapes – both linked to and unbound by – the past and present, geography and tradition, the real and imagined. Hypnotic, otherworldly and epic. Širom’s music moves like the restless waters of their homeland, Slovenia. No matter how hushed or slow it may seem, it is never ever standing still.”

Listen to their new album I Can Be A Clay Snapper here.

Solo Jazz Piano 1

I don’t often post jazz music here, preferring to post on IndoJazzia. However, jazz is my favourite genre, and if music maketh man, then this post is at the core of me. I grew up listening to my father playing his favourite ‘jazz’ standards. This version of George and Ira Gershwin’s I Got Rhythm was recorded when he was 85.

Sadly, I felt that his playing was one-dimensional and after I left the parental nest I began to really appreciate the meditative zone induced by the artistry of some jazz pianists.

This download is one continuous track to keep you in the mood. Although Mingus (bass), Gismonti (guitar) and DeJohnette (drums) are better known for their primary instruments, they fit quite nicely in my selection.

Tracks
Charles Mingus – Orange Was The Color Of Her Dress, Then Silk Blues
Egberto Gismonti – Don Quijote
Tete Montoliu – Una Guitarra
Esbjörn Svensson – Like Wash It Or Something
Jack DeJohnette – Ebony
Jacob Karlzon – Gaspard de la Nuit II: Le Gibet (after Ravel)
Mara Rosenbloom – I Rolled and I Tumbled (tribute to John Lee Hooker)
Keith Tippett – Let The Music Speak

Blogisteria

I’ve been online since 1998, but have only been able to watch YouTubes and explore the wondrous world of music blogs since 2013, which was when a fibre-optic cable for internet access made its appearance near Jakartass Towers.

I’ve been much like a squirrel ever since, gone nuts grabbing any album which glittered in my memory and/or curiosity to stash in my archives. I’ve rebuilt most of my three long-lost (through marital separations and house moving since you ask) record collections, given away most of my cassettes and tried unsuccessfully to sell my CDs.

I suppose I’ve been trying to relive those excursions I would make to the Record and Tape Exchange emporia I used to visit in lunchtimes and spare hours.  I’d invariably come away with something I hadn’t heard, or even heard of, but which attracted me because I recognised a name in the credits.

Sometimes I bought something which I’d resell later, or give away, because it had little appeal for me. More often than not, though, there were hidden gems, albums which didn’t sell then and are largely forgotten now by all but a few dedicated crate diggers. Some of them now make these albums available through their blogs.

Being a contrary kind of bloke, I seek out esoterica, albums unavailable from regular outlets, or which are only available for rich bidders on eBay.

Lisa Sinder who posts mainly ’70s albums on Ezhevika Fields offers no information whatsoever about the albums. If there’s no info about them via an internet search either, or just minimal facts on Discogs.com, then her site is a lucky dip. Check her tags for the music genre.

However, her blog list in the left column did lead me to Julian Ryan’s Progressive Reviews (PR). He also posts albums from the seventies, but in addition he offers his opinions, minimal reviews, on a musician’s discography and places the chosen album(s) in their context, with links to the various releases of the supporting players.

What intrigues me the most about both blogs is that I’ve heard of very few of the musicians they bring into the limelight.  How many names do you recognise in this screen-grab from Julian’s site?

I just had to dig in, and, yes, there are certainly gems for my ears, but also some albums which didn’t sell then for pretty good reasons.

I’ve put together a compilation of tracks – download here – from albums discovered on PR’s site. Click on the names below to go to the pages which have the albums. Most have some sample tracks to listen to before deciding to download the complete album.

Kenneth Knudsen – Danish keyboardist

Gerardo Bátiz – Mexican pianist and flautist

Peter Thorup – Danish singer-songwriter who toured with Alexis Korner, “the godfather of the British blues”, in the early ’70s. He was then the vocalist in CCS, which has a hit with Led Zep’s Whole Lotta Love.

The Rainer Brüninghaus track is from a ‘library record‘, meaning that it is a recording which may end up as background music for a TV advertisement, or part of a soundtrack for a soap opera.

Vanessa – Norwegian prog-rock group

Zbigniew Seifert‎ – Polish jazz violinist who died too young

Waterfall – early 70’s UK ‘hippy-dippy’ folk-rock

A couple of other music blogs with a similar range of esoterica worth exploring:
Vinil Inflamable

Cun Cun Revival  – check out the Indonesian albums

Holger Czukay R.I.P.

(24.3.38 – 5.9.17)

fr.Wikipedia: Holger Czukay, born Holger Schüring was a German musician, probably best known as a co-founder of the ‘krautrock’ group Can. Described by critic Jason Ankeny as “successfully bridging the gap between pop and the avant-garde”, Czukay is also notable for having created early important examples of ambient music, for having explored “world music” well before the term was coined, and for having been a pioneer of sampling.

Gordon Skene says, “They weren’t a band who had hit singles, or even hit albums, or were even played very much on [radio]. But the represented a turn in music; looking at it as an experimental forum and a place of free-form music that, on its surface, was so damned weird that most people paid no attention to them. But to that handful of people who were open and willing and listening – they were one of the most powerful and influential bands to come along.”

Obit

Interview (2012)

Download these album tracks

1969. Holger Czukay & Rolf Dammers – Canaxis
Mellow Out

1980. Holger Czukay – Movies inc. Morvern Callar OST
Fragrance
+

1981. Holger Czukay – On The Way To The Peak Of Normal
Witches’ Multiplication Table

1982. Holger Czukay, Jah Wobble, Jaki Liebezeit
Where’s The Money?

1987. Holger Czukay – Der Osten ist rot
The Photo Song

1991. Holger Czukay – Radio Wave Surfer
Late Night Radio

1993. Holger Czukay – Moving Pictures
Witches’ Multiplication Table

1999. Holger Czukay – Good Morning Story
Good Morning Story