Archie Shepp - Yasmina, a black woman

barabara sounds sez:

It doesn't get much better than this all-time classic: Archie Shepp and his band invoking the spirits of Africa and the avant guard, a massive collaboration with the key members of the Art Ensemble of Chicago. Brilliant stuff and, needless to say, a barabara classic.

dusty groove sez:

Archie Shepp at his spiritual best – recording in Paris in 1969, and absorbing a heck of a lot of pan-African influences! The centerpiece of the album is the amazing "Yasmina" – a long track that builds with passion and fire, pulsing with an intensity that you'd expect more from Pharoah Sanders than Shepp himself. Next up is "Sonny's Back", a wonderful straight jazz groover with Archie and Hank Mobley on twin tenors upfront – making a rare and memorable recorded appearance together! The set's capped off by a mellow version of "Body & Soul", one that points towards the more soulful side of Shepp's work in the 70s.

personnel:

Archie Shepp vocals, soprano & tenor sax, piano; Roscoe Mitchell bass sax; Grachan Moncur III trombone; Dave Burrell piano; Burton Greene piano; Laurence Devereaux balafon; Sunny Murray drums, percussion; Claude Delcloo drums; Hank Mobley vocals tenor sax; Lester Bowie trumpet; Clifford Thornton cornet; Philly Joe Jones drums.

tracks:

A1 Yasmina; B1 Sonny's Back; B2 Body & Soul

Art Ensemble Of Chicago & Lester Bowie's Brass Fantasy - Live At The 6th Tokyo Music Joy '90

barabara sounds sez:

Back in February of 1990, the Art Ensemble of Chicago came to town to play at the annual Tokyo Music Joy festival – and they shared the stage with Lester Bowie's side project, his Brass Fantasy. This isn't the entire concert so some continuity does get lost, but it certainly gives a great sense of what a fun occasion it was. This is from the Disk Union CD, which gives us three tracks each of the two bands playing separately, and another four tracks of them together creating a rollocking brass-fueled celebration. Great stuff!

the chicago tribune (in 1991) sez:

What a splendid group Lester Bowie's Brass Factory has become. Three recent releases (from the magnificent DIW archives just now becoming available in this country) stake a claim for this ensemble as among the most exciting groups playing today. Bowie’s genius is in marrying edgy post-modern schtick with pure, old-time fun so that the pleasure of listening to themes from the "Phantom of the Opera" or the early rock and roll standard “Great Pretender” (let alone “My Way”) is not wholly in the listener’s head. This music goes right down the spine, which is where feeling begins. For a celebration of what new music can be when it retains its sense of delight, listen to these three discs – especially the one with the Art Ensemble of Chicago, which has never been more wonderful.

an amazon reviewer sez:

The material is wonderful, playful, and varied, with the highest point probably being a truly New-Orleansy workout by the combined bands on "A Jackson in your House," a really goofy song from one of AEC's early BYGs. There are also some free-ish moments, but Brass Fantasy were more about PoMo pastiche and twisted traditionalism than improvisation, so they tend to transform things a bit, bringing Jarman and Mitchell and Favors and Moye "in" from the "outside"... Fans know that one of the most magical things about Lester Bowie's Brass Fantasy was their ability to transform a pop song you'd never be caught dead listening to into something really magical and acceptable as music. On this disk, the unexpected bit of cultural salvage is Andrew Lloyd Webber's "Music of the Night."
It's really wonderful, even if you hate Webber.

Art Ensemble of Chicago — The Complete Live In Japan

barabara sounds sez:

Ancient to the future. That's the AEC maxim — and it sort of fits Japan in a number of ways too. On their second visit, in 1984, AEC played two evenings in Tokyo. Although I may well have been in town at the time (who can remember all those years ago?) I didn't make it to either of the gigs, which is my loss since they've only been over here maybe once since. At least they were recorded for a radio broadcast (I think) and eventually in 1988 this double CD was issued by DIW/Disc Union*. This is the second gig (April 22, Kanihoken Hall, Gotanda) in its entirety — and there are plenty of fine moments here. If you're into AEC, this is essential listening.

[*actually a one-album LP with just 5 tracks was issued in '85]

dusty sez:

2LP set that brings together all of the live material that the Art Ensemble recorded for Japanese DIW in 1984. The concert was recorded in Tokyo, and the set list that includes the tracks "Ohnedaruth", "Spanish Song", "Ancestral Voices", "The Waltz", "Zero", "Odwalla: The Theme", and "Ol Time Southside Street Dance". The playing is fairly spirited, with solos all the way through by Bowie, Jarman, and Mitchell. The record is one of their best from the 80's, and certainly one of the strongest in their catalog for DIW.

Lester Bowie - The Great Pretender

dusty sez:

Lester Bowie's no pretender here -- as he really sounds great as a leader on his own, away from the Art Ensemble Of Chicago -- really finding his voice in music, and dipping into a full range of styles and expressions! Bowie's keen wit and sensitivity both come into play here -- and the album's a bit more open and free than his Brass Fantasy years -- almost hearkening back to elements of his St Louis scene, but with a bit more dynamism overall.

amazon sez:

Bowie stretches the title tune to over 16 minutes with an artful and witty exploration of trumpet sounds, from brassy declarations to low blasts to half-valve techniques that sound like muttered asides. With backup vocals by Fontella Bass and David Peaston and a raucous baritone saxophone interlude by Hamiet Bluiett, the Platters' doo-wop classic becomes suspended between kitsch and concerto. On the rest of the CD, Bowie is backed by a very creative rhythm section of underrated players, Donald Smith on piano and organ, Fred Williams on acoustic and electric basses, and Phillip Wilson on drums. Together they range skillfully from the camp of "It's Howdy Doody Time" to the free jazz of "Doom?" to the Latin funk of "Rios Negroes."

barabara sounds sez:

Amen.