Saturday, May 30, 2009

Babbitt

This is pretty interesting......

Questionnaire.....pt. 3

This time it's Allan Browne, Shannon Barnett and Scott Tinkler.

Allan Browne: check him out here

1. Favorite/particularly interesting jazz album?

george lewis "climax session" blue note ..not the trombone player !

2. Favorite/particularly interesting 'world' recording?

allegri "misere" king's college

3. Favorite/particularly interesting classical recording/piece?

golbergs g. gould

4. Name a Jazz recording you're mad about but not many other people would know.

jelly roll morton "Billy Goat stomp"

5. Name a (genre other than jazz or jazz) record you're mad about but no one would've thought you'd be into.

are you experienced ? jimmy hendrix

6. Give me 3 of your favorite Australian Jazz recordings.

allfrey st. stompers ..barnard bros, dyer and polities 1959
" the thousands " phil slater quartet
bernie mc gann "ugly beauty "

7. Most underrated Australian Jazz player?

stephen grant

8. Most underrated non-Australian Jazz player?

warren baby dodds /billy higgins

9. Name a gig (or two or three) you saw in Australia that really stays with you....

roland kirk sydney town hall and basement 1973 ?
duke ellington dallas brooks hall
simon barker and carl dewhurst wangaratta

10. Favorite book(s) on music?

dr. faustus thos. mann

Shannon Barnett: check her out

1. Favorite/particularly interesting jazz album?

Duke Ellington – The Far East Suite or Black, Brown and Beige.

2. Favorite/particularly interesting 'world' recording?

Celia Cruz – anything!

3. Favorite/particularly interesting classical recording/piece?

Sarabande from Bach’s Cello Suite in D Minor.

4. Name a Jazz recording you're mad about but not many other people
would know.

Not many people would know the record? ‘Fahvergnugen’ Nils Wogram.
Not many people would know I liked it? Harry Connick Jnr ‘25’

5. Name a (genre other than jazz or jazz) record you're mad about but
no one would've thought you'd be into.

Justin Timberlake – Cry Me a River and Rod Stewart – Maggie May

6. Give me 3 of your favorite Australian Jazz recordings.

Vince Jones – Live
Julien Wilson Trio – While You Were Sleeping
Stephen Magnusson, Eugene Ball and Sergio Beresovsky – Healing Songs

7. Most underrated Australian Jazz player?

Stephen Grant

8. Most underrated non-Australian Jazz player?

Jim Black

9. Name a gig (or two or three) you saw in Australia that really stays
with you....

BBC @ MIJF 2009
The Necks @ The Corner Hotel 2005(?)
Kevin Hunt et al at Charles Sturt University - Bathurst 2000

10. Favorite book(s) on music?

‘Hendrix – Setting the Record Straight’ by John McDermott and Eddie Kramer…
and also comparing Mingus’ autobiography ‘Beneath the Underdog’ with the slightly more realist ‘A Critical Biography’ by Brian Priestley.


Scott Tinkler: check him out

1. Favorite/particularly interesting jazz album?

Out to Lunch- Eric Dolphy
Out Front - Booker Little

2. Favorite/particularly interesting 'world' recording?

What does World mean? Do you mean Earth recording?
Stuff by Karaikudi Mani and Sruthi Laya
Daorum, Simon Barker with the Korean fellas, amazing, can I call it "World"?

3. Favorite/particularly interesting classical recording/piece?

Elliot Carter- Catenaires, in fact, most Carter.
Rose is a Rose- John Rodgers, Classical? Well it's notated, apart from the Imporov stuff, not Jazz, bloody incredible music, my favorite Aus recording full stop.

4. Name a Jazz recording you're mad about but not many other people would know.

Chuck Mangione- Feels So Good,

5. Name a (genre other than jazz or jazz) record you're mad about but no one would've thought you'd be into.

Karnatic stuff, Korean Pansori stuff, Balkan-the drinking appeals, maybe some Tom Waits stuff, some Bjork, Meshugar,

6. Give me 3 of your favorite Australian Jazz recordings.

Artisans Workshop
Showa 44 (either one)
Phil Slater quartet, the thousands
Walter Lampe- Trio Music. ( he is Aussie but the album may not be)
Is that 3?

7. Most underrated Australian Jazz player?

Mark Simmonds - as good as it gets, every Aussie should be taught about what he did, everyone else should hear what he did.
Ken Edie, one of the most distinctive musicians on his instrument in the world, he cuts down trees, the world is so retarded.

8. Most underrated non-Australian Jazz player?

Dewey Redman, might sound weird but his son is better known for christ sake????

9. Name a gig (or two or three) you saw in Australia that really stays with you....

Karaikudi Mani - Sruthi Laya Quartet - Adelaide late 90's, one of the best performances of any kind I've ever seen, fucking incredible on every level,
The Daorum group live in Brisbane and Sydney, Il Tong is by far my favorite singer.
Pateras/Baxter/Brown at Wang.
Ren Walters/Guthrie/Becker at Bennetts.

10. Favorite book(s) on music?

I like the book I wrote that Barney mentions, if I could read I'd like more too.

Thursday, May 28, 2009

Questionnaire.....pt. 2

In this issue, Will Guthrie, Peter Knight and Geoff Hughes

Will Guthrie: check him out

1. Favorite/particularly interesting jazz album?

At the moment - 'Trickles' - Steve Lacy

2. Favorite/particularly interesting 'world' recording?

At the moment - 'Aquatic' - The Necks

> 3. Favorite/particularly interesting classical recording/piece?

At the moment - David Tudor - 'Music for Piano'

> 4. Name a Jazz recording you're mad about but not many other people
> would know.

Roscoe Michell - Solo Saxophone Concert

> 5. Name a (genre other than jazz or jazz) record you're mad about but
> no one would've thought you'd be into.

At the moment - Palace Brothers - 'Arise Therefore'


> 6. Give me 3 of your favorite Australian Jazz recordings.
At the moment

The Necks - Piano, Bass Drums
Mark Simmonds Freeboppers 'FIRE'
Artisans Wokshop


> 7. Most underrated Australian Jazz player?

Maybe under-documented is a better word than underated - Mark Simmonds

> 8. Most underrated non-Australian Jazz player?

Roscoe Mitchell

> 9. Name a gig (or two or three) you saw in Australia that really stays
> with you....

Ren Walter's TIP (mid 90's)
Bucketrider (mid 90's)
Jim Denley / Robbie Avenaim (late 90's I think)


> 10. Favorite book(s) on music?

At the moment - Forces in Motion: The Music and Thoughts of Anthony Braxton

Peter Knight:
check him out

1. Favorite/particularly interesting jazz album?

In A Silent Way Miles Davis

2. Favorite/particularly interesting 'world' recording?

Thimar John Surman, Anouar Brahem, Dave Holland

3. Favorite/particularly interesting classical recording/piece?

Quartet for the End of Time Messiaen (Morton Feldman's Piano and String Quartet on a different day)

4. Name a Jazz recording you're mad about but not many other people would know.

The Codona Trilogy Collin Walcott, Don Cherry, Nana Vasconcelos

5. Name a (genre other than jazz or jazz) record you're mad about but no one would've thought you'd be into.

Last Splash The Breeders

6. Give me 3 of your favorite Australian Jazz recordings.

Other Planes Erik Griswold
Strobe Coma Virgo Phil Slater
Nine Conversations Paper Hat (Colin Hopkins, Frank Di Sario, Andrew Gander)


7. Most underrated Australian Jazz player?

Stephen Grant

8. Most underrated non-Australian Jazz player?

Kenny Wheeler

9. Name a gig (or two or three) you saw in Australia that really stays with you....

Stephen Grant's New Orleans Five at the Fountain Inn Port Melbourne (around 1991)
The Necks Wangaratta Jazz Festival 2002 (I think)
Band of Five Names Bennetts Lane 2003


10. Favorite book(s) on music?

Musicking Christopher Small
The Rest Is Noise Alex Ross
Audio Culture: Readings in Modern Music Christoph Cox, Daniel Warner (eds)


Geoff Hughes: check him out

1. Favorite/particularly interesting jazz album?

The Bridge -Sonny Rollins

2. Favorite/particularly interesting 'world' recording?

D'Gary - Music from
Madagascar - so light and awesomely heavy at the same time..

3. Favorite/particularly interesting classical recording/piece?

Turangalila
-Messaien - LA Phil on CBS

4. Name a Jazz recording you're mad about but not many other people
would know.

Bill Evans Consecration 1 - heaps of people seem to hate this
period of Bill for various reasons -I just hear a man totally possessed by music
and finding grace even when he's very sick and only months away from death.

5. Name a (genre other than jazz or jazz) record you're mad about
but no one would've thought you'd be into.

Who knows what anyone thinks -(or
cares?) Exodus -Bob Marley and the Wailers

6. Give me 3 of your favorite Australian Jazz recordings.

Too hard ::: Angels
and Rascals -Andrea Keller, You You -the Alcohotlicks, , Tinkler Live - Allan
Browne -Trios -for now anyway::: TOO HARD

7. Most underrated Australian Jazz player?

Nearly everyone

8. Most underrated non-Australian Jazz player?

Ben Monder

9. Name a gig (or two or three) you saw in Australia that really
stays with you....

Lost and Found at last years IMJF and BBC at this years
IMJF - Stephen Magnusson solo anywhere, anytime

10. Favorite book(s) on music?

Harmonic Experience WA Mathieu
Harmonic Mechanisms for guitar Vol 2 - George Van Eps
The Listening Book - WA Methieu
Listening and Voice -Don Ihde
The Maestro Myth -Norman LeBrecht
Berlioz - Memoirs
The Act Of touch -Tobias Matthay - this guy is a nutter - buts its fun if
you can get past the post Victorian vernacular and the absurd level of
detail.



Wednesday, May 27, 2009

Questionnaire.....

In the spirit of a similar questionnaire over at Do The Math, I sent a bunch of questions out to some Australian jazz musicians. I'll be updating this post as more get sent back to me, but in the meantime, we have Paul Grabowsky, Tim Stevens and Barney McAll.
The idea with these is for people to get a bit of an insight into what these great musicians are into, and also to (hopefully) get some recommendations for new things to check out.

Paul Grabowsky: check him out

1. Favorite/particularly interesting jazz album?

Miles Davis 'My Funny Valentine' Ornette Coleman 'In All Languages"

2. Favorite/particularly interesting 'world' recording?

Young Wagiluk Group (S.E. Arnhem Land), Karaikudi R Mani "Sruthi Laya"

3. Favorite/particularly interesting classical recording/piece?

Beethoven String Quartet Amin op 132

4. Name a Jazz recording you're mad about but not many other people would know.

Andrew Hill 'Smokestack' Sun Ra "Space is the Place"

5. Name a (genre other than jazz or jazz) record you're mad about but no one would've thought you'd be into.

Esquivel "Space Age Bachelor Pad Music"
Beatles "Abbey Road"

6. Give me 3 of your favorite Australian Jazz recordings.

Aaron Choulai 'Korema'
The Necks 'Sex'
Mark Simmonds 'Fire'

7. Most underrated Australian Jazz player?

Ian Chaplin

8. Most underrated non-Australian Jazz player?

Warne Marsh

9. Name a gig (or two or three) you saw in Australia that really stays with you....

Steve Magnusson Trio Bennetts Lane 2007
Phil Treloar Feeling/Thought Sydney Conservatorium 1988
The Necks Corner Hotel 2008

10. Favorite book(s) on music?

Schoenberg Style and Idea
Slonimsky Thesaurus of Scales and Melodic Patterns
Groves Dictionary of Music and Musicians

Tim Stevens: check him out

1. Favorite/particularly interesting jazz album?

Miles Davis: Filles de Kilimanjaro

2. Favorite/particularly interesting 'world' recording?

The Necks: Mosquito

3. Favorite/particularly interesting classical recording/piece?

Bartok: String quartet no. 3

4. Name a Jazz recording you're mad about but not many other people
would know.

'Gone with the wind' featuring Art Tatum and Ben Webster
or 'One' by Andrea Keller (on 'Angels and rascals')

5. Name a (genre other than jazz or jazz) record you're mad about
but no one would've thought you'd be into.

The Go-Betweens: Liberty Belle and the Black Diamond Express

6. Give me 3 of your favorite Australian Jazz recordings.

Browne/Costello/Grabowsky: Six by three
Hustas/Keller: Icedreaming
John Sangster: The joker is wild

7. Most underrated Australian Jazz player?

Graeme Lyall

8. Most underrated non-Australian Jazz player?

John Taylor

9. Name a gig (or two or three) you saw in Australia that really
stays with you....

Paul Grabowsky, Gary Costello and Allan Browne at Mietta's, early-mid 1990
Tony Gould, Lach Easton and Steve Heather, Palace Hotel East Hawthorn,
c.1992
Kenny Kirkland, Adam Armstrong and Andrew Gander, Wangaratta 1996
Joshua Redman trio, Melbourne Recital Centre, April 2009

10. Favorite book(s) on music?

Scott DeVeaux: The birth of bebop
Igor Stravinsky: The poetics of music
Leo Treitler: Music and the historical imagination

Barney McAll: check him out

1. Favorite/particularly interesting jazz album?

The Survivors Suite - Keef Jarrett.
This is a complete picture where you have to listen to the whole.
Dewey Redman is completely masterful here as are all these icons.


2. Favorite/particularly interesting 'world' recording?

Djelika by Toumani Diabate

3. Favorite/particularly interesting classical recording/piece?

Morton Feldman Piano and String Quartet - Aki Takahashi and Kronos Quartet

4. Name a Jazz recording you're mad about but not many other people would know.

Victor Feldman "The Artful Dodger"

5. Name a (genre other than jazz or jazz) record you're mad about but no one would've thought you'd be into.

Eyeless in Gaza "Pale Hands i Loved So Well".
Had a huge Influence on me .


6. Give me 3 of your favorite Australian Jazz recordings.

John McAll "Black Money"
Chris Abrahams "Walk"
Andrea Keller "Angels and Rascals"


7. Most underrated Australian Jazz player?

Adam Ponting

8. Most underrated non-Australian Jazz player?

Masabumi Kikuchi

9. Name a gig (or two or three) you saw in Australia that really stays with you....

"Transwaste" at the Middle Park Hotel. This was Peter Jones, Jamie Fielding, Michael Sheridan (forget who played bass).
Industrial and very free music which, having caught the train in from Mooroolbark at 16 years old...changed my very DNA.

Paul Grabowsky at RMIT Glasshouse. Solo piano Concert. Especially remember a song he played for his Rabbit. Paul brought fire from another tribe.

Jamie Fielding at RMIT Glasshouse with Martin Jackson's band. It was like watching/hearing a magician or sorcerer. Jamie was on the precipice of discarding "Jazz" so
I got to witness a ghost music and a future music in teh same performance.
Meeting Jamie that day also stays with me and I was changed by that.

10. Favorite book(s) on music?

But Beautiful by Geoff Dyer
Ethics, Etiquette and our Jazz Society by Scott Tinkler
(Forward by Michel Tortoni)


Friday, May 1, 2009

Geri Allen/Paul Motion/Charlie Haden

Recently I discovered this trio's album, "Segments". Having already listened to "Etudes" and "In the Year of the Dragon", I'm already reasonable familiar with all of this trio's approach to music making, but, listening to this record, it struck me how this group often doesn't get to respect it deserves for an approach to playing 'songs' of various kinds in a creative way.
If you are a drummer, bass or piano player and don't own any of these records you have a massive hole in your library that needs filling (don't we all). If you play any other horn, then you should check this stuff out anyway.
The thing I really love about all of these guys playing is that they are all more concerned with line, rather than with clearly outlining harmony and form (or so it sounds to me). This gives the music amazing forward motion. Anybody who knows anything about these players knows they are masters of the aforementioned, but they never let it get in the way of great ensemble playing, in fact they are using their command of form and harmony to move past any dependence on it.
The more I think about that last point, the more I really think it sums up why I like this trio so much, and how I want t0 approach playing jazz repertoire (I mean that in the broadest sense). I was going to go into a whole lot of stuff about influences, particularly of Geri Allen's, and why I don't think that many people studying jazz have this down as essential listening, but it doesn't really seem that necessary now.....enjoy.