HARRY BECKETT :: Les Jardins Du Casino (1993)

HARRY BECKETT :: Les Jardins Du Casino (West Wind 1993)

Recorded April 1991 (1-3), May 1987 (4,5)

CD West Wind 2080 (OOP)

BROTHERHOOD OF BREATH :: Memorial Concert (1994)

This is good album, although music does not so fresh, as with Chris and Louis. Sound of CD is a bit muddy, so I tried to enhance it. Mp3 only this time.

Chris McGregor's Brotherhood Of Breath ~ The Memorial Concert ~ 1994

Pinise Saul: vocals
Paul Taylor: trombone
Annie Whitehead: trombone
Dave Defries: trumpet & flugelhorn
Harry Beckett: trumpet & flugelhorn
Peter Volpe: trumpet & flugelhorn
Thomas Dyani: percussion
Daryl Leeque: percussion
Frank Williams: tenor saxophone
Ray Carles: alto saxophone
Julian Arguelles: baritone & soprano saxophone
Steve Williamson: alto, tenor & soprano saxophone
Robert Juritz: tenor saxophone & bassoon
Roland Perrin: piano
George Wolfaardt: bass (electric)
Gilbert Matthews: drums

1. Dakar 13:42
2. Sangena 9:28
3. Andromeda 5:41
4. Big G 10:16
5. Lafente 9:15
6. Bakwetha 10:51
7. Country Cooking 5:51
8. Mra 7:22

(Chris McGregor) - 1,2,3,6,7
(George Lee) - 4
(Dudu Pukwana, Pinise Saul) - 5
(Dudu Pukwana) - 8

(P)+(C)1994 by ITM Media

CHRiS McGREGOR GROUP :: Ronnie Scott's, London 1967

I don't remember where I found this, maybe in contributions section. Anyway here it is remastered, very early version of Brotherhood of Breath, albeit not yet using that moniker.

CHRiS McGREGOR GROUP - 31 December 1967, Ronnie Scott's, London

1. White Lines (5:30)
2. Travelling Somewhere (6:05)
3. New Year Carnival (10:40)
4. Nick Tete (10:42)
5. The Bride (12:32)

Chris McGregor - piano
John Surman - baritone saxophone
Ronnie Beer - tenor saxophone
Dudu Pukwana, Mike Osborne - alto saxophone
Jimmy Phillips - soprano saxophone
Mongezi Feza, Pat Higgs, Mick Collins - trumpet
Malcolm Griffiths, Chris Pyne - trombone
Dave Holland - bass
Alan Jackson - drums

Doudou Gouirand - Mouvements Naturels - Disques Jam 1982

Doudou Gouirand is a french saxophonist who has started to record in the middle of the seventies. As side man he have worked with Pierre Dørge New Jungle Orchestra, Mal Waldron, Johnny Dyani, Okay Temiz’s Oriental Wind, Michel Marre to name a few. Some of those musicians are featured on his own albums. In 1985 he have recorded « Forgotten Tales » with Don Cherry on one track but this album is not so memorable in my opinion. Three years before he published « mouvements naturels » with some of the musicians previously mentionned + Chris McGregor on one track.

Face A:

1. Amanda
2. 2. jungle Dream
3. 3. Song For J.M

Face B:

1. Blues For B.B
2. 2. Mélanésie Nuclear No 1
3. 3. Mouvements Naturels

Doudou Gouirand: alto, soprano saxophone, flute, voice, piano

Michel Benita: bass on a. 1

Johnny Dyani: bass, voice

Jean Claude Montredon: drums, percussions on a1, a3, b1

Merzak Mouthana: drums, percussions on a2, b2, b3

Lelle Kullgren: guitar on b1

Pierre Dørge: guitar

Chris McGregor: piano on b1

Disques Jam 0482/DG 028 lp rip

DiSTRiCT SiX - To Be Fee (Editions EG 1987)

 

This album is still widely available as a second hand article as LP or CD. A great one, with Chris McGregor, maybe on unappropriate label...

Chris McGregor - piano, vocals;
Jim Dvorak - pocket trumpet, vocals;
Brian Abrahams - drums, percussion, vocals;
Dill Katz - fretless bass guitar;
Harrison Smith - tenor and soprano saxes, flute, bass clarinet, vocals

1. Ke A Rona (Power To The People) (Dvorak) 3.35
2. Into The Light (Dvorak & Abrahams) 16.41
3. Etlon-tu (Abrahams) 4.28
4. Songs For Winnie Mandela (Abrahams) 17.30
  a) Reasons Of The Heart
  b) Kwa Tebugo (At Louis’s House)
  c) Unity Dance
5. Kali-Mba (Night Song) (Abrahams)  6.31
6. Mbiso (Abrahams) 8.31

Recorded at Woodway Manor Studios, Wokingham, Berkshire, June 1987
EGCD 53 (UK)

BADEN BADEN NEW JAZZ MEETING 1973

Mongezi Feza, trumpet
Uli Beckerhoff, trumpet
Albert Mangelsdorff, trombone
Perry Robinson, clarinet
Charlie Mariano, alto saxophone
Dieter Scherf, alto saxophone
Bobby Jones, tenor saxophone
Zbigniew Seifert, violin
Toto Blanke, guitar
Philip Catherine, guitar
Jasper Van't Hof, keyboards
Dave McRae, keyboards
Wolfgang Dauner, keyboards
Chris McGregor, keyboards
Palle Danielsson, bass
Peter Trunk, bass
Jean François Jenny-Clark, bass
Edward Vesala, drums
John Marshall, drums
Okay Temiz , percussion
Norma Winstone, vocals
Joachim-Ernst Berendt, announcement

Disc 1
01. Introduction (Joachim-Ernst Berendt)     1:30
02. Ballad for B.B. (P. Catherine)     6:57
    Blanke (L), Catherine (R)

03. Introduction (Joachim-Ernst Berendt)     0:45
04. Normal (A. Mangelsdorff)     2:47
    Mangelsdorff, Winstone

05. Introduction (Joachim-Ernst Berendt)     1:25
06. Ohne Mühe (W. Dauner)     9:32
    van't Hof (el-p, org) (L), Dauner (p, synth) (R)

07. Introduction (Joachim-Ernst Berendt)     1:14
08. Angel Wings (P. Catherine)     16:38
    Catherine, Seifert, McRae (p), van't Hof (el-p, org), Trunk, Marshall

09. Introduction (Joachim-Ernst Berendt)     0:52
10. Fugavi (J. van't Hof) (second version)     11:47
    Mariano, van't Hof, Trunk, Marshall

11. Introduction (Joachim-Ernst Berendt)     0:49
12. Lopez (A. Mangelsdorff)     17:30
    Mangelsdorff, Breckerhoff, Scherf, Mariano, Dauner, Danielsson, Vesala

13. Announcement (Joachim-Ernst Berendt)     0:04

Disc 2
01. Introduction (Joachim-Ernst Berendt)     1:16
02. Blasting Off (P. Robinson)     5:46
    Robinson, McRae, Jenny-Clark, Vesala

03. Introduction (Joachim-Ernst Berendt)     0:49
04. Moon Quake (J. van't Hof)     2:28
    Mariano, van't Hof, Trunk, Marshall

05. Introduction (Joachim-Ernst Berendt)     1:10
06. Trio Tronic (W. Dauner)     5:35
    van't Hof (el-p, org) (L), McRae (el-p), Dauner (p, synth) (R)

07. Introduction (Joachim-Ernst Berendt)     1:00
08. Questions to Come (A. Mangelsdorff)     1:37
    Mangelsdorff, Vesala

09. Introduction (Joachim-Ernst Berendt)     1:31
10. Kasilana (O. Temiz) (inc)     8:41
    Feza, Mariano, McGregor, Danielsson, Temiz

11. Introduction (Joachim-Ernst Berendt)     0:29
12. Indifferent (D. Scherf)     2:31
    Mangelsdorff, Scherf, Robinson, Danielsson, Winstone

13. Introduction (Joachim-Ernst Berendt)     0:45
14. Before (P. Catherine)     5:50
    Blanke (L), Catherine (R)

15. Introduction (Joachim-Ernst Berendt)     0:48
16. Electric Circus No. 1 (T. Blanke)     9:48
    Blanke, van't Hof, Vesala

17. Introduction (Joachim-Ernst Berendt)     0:59
18. Human Being (N. Winstone)     10:59
    Winstone, Mangelsdorff, Mariano, McRae, van't Hof, Danielsson, Marshall, Vesala

19. Introduction (Joachim-Ernst Berendt)     2:45
20. St. Nikolaus (C. McGregor) (inc)     6:05
    Winstone, Jones, Robinson, Mariano, Scherf, Feza, Beckerhoff, Mangelsdorff, Catherine, Blanke, Seifert, McRae (el-p), van't Hof (el-p, org), Dauner (p, synth), McGregor (p), Danielsson, Jenny-Clark, Vesala, Marshall, Temiz

Disc 3
01. Introduction (Joachim-Ernst Berendt)     1:11
02. Peter's Bass Meet (P. Trunk)     8:56
    Jenny-Clark (L), Danielsson, Trunk (R)

03. Introduction (Joachim-Ernst Berendt)     0:39
04. Fugavi (J. van't Hof) (first version)     7:50
    Mariano, van't Hof, Trunk, Marshall

05. Introduction (Joachim-Ernst Berendt)     2:02
06. Lion (P. Trunk)     6:45
    Breckerhoff, Feza, Mangelsdorff, Robinson, Scherf, Mariano, Jones, Seifert, Blanke, Catherine, van't Hof, Trunk, Vesala, Marshall, Temiz

07. Introduction (Joachim-Ernst Berendt)     1:02
08. Walk Softly, Carry a Black Stick (B. Jones)     6:37
    Jones (cl), Robinson, Trunk, Danielsson

09. Introduction (Joachim-Ernst Berendt)     1:42
10. Electric Circus No. 2 (T. Blanke)     6:02
    van't Hof (L), Blanke (R), Vesala

11. Introduction (Joachim-Ernst Berendt)     0:40
12. Trio Electric (W. Dauner)     3:04
    van't Hof (el-p, org) (L), McRae (el-p), Dauner (p, synth) (R)

13. Introduction (Joachim-Ernst Berendt)     0:47
14. Voyage (E. Vesala)     7:08
    Breckerhoff, Feza, Mangelsdorff, Mariano, Jones, Robinson, Danielsson, Jenny-Clark, Vesala

15. Introduction (Joachim-Ernst Berendt)     0:43
16. My Night, My Day (Z. Seifert) (inc)     11:25
    Mariano, Jones, Seifert, Dauner, Danielsson, Vesala

Disc 4
01. Introduction (Joachim-Ernst Berendt)     1:51
02. Lopez (A. Mangelsdorff)     16:53
    Mangelsdorff, Breckerhoff, Scherf, Mariano, Dauner, Danielsson, Vesala

03. Introduction (Joachim-Ernst Berendt)     1:39
04. Angel Wings (P. Catherine)     15:07
    Catherine, Seifert, van't Hof, McRae, Trunk, Marshall

05. Introduction (Joachim-Ernst Berendt)     0:45
06. Duo Electron (W. Dauner-J. van't Hof)     11:04
    Dauner (p, synth), van't Hof (el-p, org)

07. Introduction     0:45
08. Blasting Off (P. Robinson)     7:51
    Robinson, Scherf, McRae, Jenny-Clark, Vesala

09. Introduction     0:11

Disc 5
01. Introduction     0:29
02. Kasilana (O. Temiz)     9:14
    Feza, Mariano, McGregor, Danielsson, Temiz

03. Introduction     0:41
04. Lion (P. Trunk)     5:03
    Breckerhoff, Feza, Mangelsdorff, Scherf, Mariano, Jones, Robinson, Seifert, Blanke, Catherine, van't Hof, Vesala, Marshall, Temiz

05. Introduction     0:18
06. Before (P. Catherine)     5:14
    Blanke, Catherine

07. Introduction     0:33
08. Human Being (N. Winstone)     10:48
    Winstone, Mangelsdorff, Mariano, van't Hof, McRae, Danielsson, Vesala, Marshall

09. Closing announcement  0:04


Discs 1-3 include music recorded during the Baden-Baden New Jazz Meeting in Südwestfunk Studios in Baden-Baden early December.
Most probably before Discs 4-5 were recorded at a public performance on December 7, 1973 at Kurfürstliches Schloss in Mainz.

Chris McGregor Sextet at the BBC 1967/68

 A couple of vintage gems here, recorded for the BBC in the late 60s.

 First is the Blue Notes Sextet from 1967:

1. Traveling Somewhere
2. Sun Song
3. Sophisticated Lady
4. Pibroch

 BBC Broadcast, late 1967

Mongezi Feza ~ trumpet
Dudu Pukwana ~ alto sax
Chris McGregor ~ piano
Ronnie Beer ~ tenor sax
Dave Holland ~ bass
Louis Moholo ~ drums

Strictly speaking, it is not really the Blue Notes as Johnny Dyani is absent from these recordings, but it's possible it was announced as such at the time.

 Secondly, we have the Chris McGregor Sextet from 1968:

Chris McGregor Sextet
BBC Studio, London

Mongezi Feza (tpt);
Dudu Pukwana (as);
Ronnie Beers (ts);
Chris McGregor (p);
Dave Holland (b);
Laurence Allen (d);
Unknown (ann)

1 Sabendye Baye (C. McGregor) 6:55
2 Introduction 1:10
3 Nikomakwe
4a Fazumizaza Izela (C. McGregor) 4:36
4b Introduction 0:19
5 Yekiti Squidiocious (C. McGregor) 9:43
6 Tikoloshi (C. McGregor)

The titles are taken from the Plosin database, but they match well with the announcements (as far as can be heard).

 I've pieced together the second radio concert from two sources so as to retain the right sequence. I think the announcer could be Ronnie Scott. Anyone knows?

Thanks to online chums for supplying these treasures!

CHRiS McGREGOR's BROTHERHOOD OF BREATH - Middelheim Jazz Festival 1987

Wonderful radio broadcast contributed by mew23. Photos are from "Country Cooking" album, recorded January 1988.

CHRiS McGREGOR's BROTHERHOOD OF BREATH - Live at Middelheim Jazz Festival 1987

Harry Beckett - trumpet
Dave Defries - trumpet
Claude Deppa - trumpet
Annie Whitehead - trombone
Fayyaz Virji - trombone
Julian Arguelles - soprano and baritone sax
Chris Biscoe - alto sax, clarinet
Steve Williamson - tenor and alto sax
Jeff Gordon - tenor sax, clarinet, flute
Robert Juritz - tenor sax
Chris McGregor - piano
Ernest Mothle - electric bass
Gilbert Matthews - drums
Thomas Dyani - congas


1. Dakar [19:37]
2. Atlantic Island Dreams [10:42]
3. You And Me (Sejui) [10:29)
4. Country Cooking [13:12]
5. Big G [10:38]
6. Andromeda [06:20]

Recorded live at the Jazz Middelheim Festival in Antwerp, Belgium, August 14, 1987

FM radio broadcast
Total time [70:58]

Brotherhood of Breath live at Siegendorff 1975

This is a one-hour excerpt from a BoB concert in Siegendorff in Austria on 11 July 1975. The final track in this set is unfortunately faded out before the end and I've no idea whether there were more tunes, but I have a hunch there might have been.

The line-up is not entirely certain, but quite possibly similar to the BoB line-up at the Willisau concert the same year. I've added Harry Beckett as he was playing on both 1975 gigs featured on the "Bremen to Bridgwater" cd released by Cuneiform, so there is a likelihood that he is on this gig as well though one cannot be entirely sure (unless one can pick him out from the audio). New to BoB is Bruce Grant on baritone sax, stepping in for John Surman, one might say. He also appeared on the "French" version of BoB on "Yes Please" which we have posted here earlier.

There was no set list given when this was posted on the Dime network, so I've had to reconstruct the list by listening to the tunes and crosschecking with other BoB albums. Interestingly, many of the tunes here were never released in a studio version, might not even have been recorded, but were regulars in the BoB live repertoire. From what I've been able to find out, these are the tunes:


01. warming up + Ismite is Might (Chris McGregor) (16:10)
02. The Serpent's Kindly Eye (Chris McGregor) (10:48)
03. Untitled original (Mike Osborne) (8:10)
04. Tunji's Song (Tunji Oyelana) (6:18)
05. Mra (Dudu Pukwana) (12:24)
06. Kongi's Theme (Chris McGregor) (cut off) (4:55)

The third tune was never given a title, but according to information from the "Bremen to Bridgwater" double cd, was written by Mike Osborne and appears as the final track on cd1, recorded at Bridgwater earlier that year. Nice to hear the anthem-like "Ismite is Might", appearing at roughly at the 11-minute mark on the first track here, after a false start of "Mra".

Line-up:

Chris McGregor - piano
Dudu Pukwana - reeds
Mike Osborne - reeds
Evan Parker - reeds
Elton Dean - reeds
Bruce Grant - reeds
Mongezi Feza - trumpet
Marc Charig - trumpet
Harry Beckett - trumpet
Nick Evans - trombone
Radu Malfatti - trombone
Harry Miller - bass
Louis Moholo - drums

This is an audience recording. The sound is fairly good, and the BoB is at their shambolic best, as always.

Chris McGregor's Brotherhood of Breath - Yes Please

There were a couple of requests for this one, so as we pride ourselves for being service-minded (to the best of our ability), here it is. This is BoB Mark II, with many new faces and a few carry-overs from Mark I. Missing are key regulars such as Dudu Pukwana, Harry Miller and Lois Moholo, though Harry Beckett, Nick Evans and Radu Malfatti are well-known from earlier installations of the BoB. New to the combo are some top-notch jazzers from the French scene as well as the venerable John Tchicai.

The repertoire is a mix of some new and some not so new. "Andromeda" was of course on their debut album, "Sonia" turned up on their "Procession" lp, recorded in France in 1977 and "Burning Baby" was given an airing on Chris McGregor's solo piano album, "Piano Song vol. 1", recorded for the French label Musica Records in 1977. "Maxine" cropped up again on "Country Cooking", which appeared in 1988, also recorded in France, the chosen country of residence for Chris and Maxine McGregor.

A more, shall we say, restrained and well-ordered version of the BoB here, not given to 15-minute collective otbursts which of course had its charms as I will be the first to admit. The accent here is on arrangements, carefully written-out passages, perhaps more to Chris McGregor's liking than the earlier slightly more anarchic version. But it's all good stuff, nonetheless. A couple of surprises, the funkified vibe of "Sea Breeze" with some tasteful cello playing from Caroline Collins, and the flair of "Yes Please", the latter a Malfatti composition, definitely in his pre-minimalist phase.

Basic facts:

Chris McGregor's Brotherhood Of Breath – Yes Please - Angoulème 1981

Label:In And Out

Catalog#:IaO 1001


Tracklist

A1 Andromeda – Mc Gregor
A2 Sonia – Feza
A3 Maxine – McGregor
A4 Sea Breeze – McGregor
B1 Burning Bush – McGregor
B2 Duku – Pukwana
B3 Uqonda – McGregor
B4 Yes Please – Malfatti

Credits

Piano, Flute – Chris McGregor
Cornet, Trumpet [Alto Horn] – Mark Charig
Trumpet – Peter Segone
Trumpet, Flugelhorn – David Defries, Harry Beckett
Trombone – Nick Evans, Radu Malfatti
Saxophone [Alto], Clarinet [Bass] – Andre Goudbeek
Saxophone [Baritone], Oboe, Flute – Bruce Grant
Saxophone [Soprano And Tenor], Clarinet [Bass] – François Jeanneau
Saxophone [Soprano],clarinet, Clarinet [Bass] – Louis Sclavis
Cello – Caroline Collins
Bass [Acoustic] – Didier Levallet
Bass [Guitar] – Ernest Shololo Mothle
Drums, Percussion – Brian Abrahams, Jean-Claude Montredon

Notes

Recorded 1ST and 2nd June 1981 in Théatre Municipal, Angoulème
Recorded By – Daniel Deshayes*

New scans courtesy of Nemo!

Chris McGregor's Brotherhood of Breath with Archie Shepp en concert a Banlieues Bleues

What with the World Cup in football finale a day away, I thought it was about time to sneak in some South African music here. Another good reason is that this one was requested on a jazz-related mailing list. So therefore ...

This was the final installment of the Brotherhood of Breath, recorded at the Banlieues Bleues festival in France in 1989. The previous year had seen the release of "Country Cooking", a studio recording with many of the players on this live concert. By the late 80s, the only remaining from the original BoB was Harry Beckett, apart from McGregor, of course. A couple of tunes from that record was carried over to this cd, the title track the most obvious one.

An added delight was the appearance of Archie Shepp who contributed a couple of his own tunes and can be heard on tenor throughout the whole concert. A worthy replacement for Dudu Pukwana, one might say, though BoB without Dudu was not quite the same. The South African influence is quite strong on the first four tracks, while the latter three veers into more standard jazz territory and the penultimate one with the added treat of some Sheppian vocals culminating in a jouyous and swinging concert through and through. The first and fourth tracks features the vocals of Sonti Mndebélé, a fresh member adding a touch of sisterhood. Finally, the album features a piano very much out of tune. A pianist's curse, I suppose.

1. Sangena (Chris McGregor/Sonti Mndebélé)
2. Mayebuye (Chris McGregor)
3. Country Cooking (Chris McGregor)
4. Jikele (Traditional)
5. Presentation
6. Steam (Archie Shepp)
7. Sweet as Honey (Chris McGregor)
8. Bessie Smith's Blues (Archie Shepp)

The full line-up can be found in the scans with the attached files.

Here are a couple of photos from Maxine McGregor's book:

Chris McGregor's Brotherhood Of Breath - Live in Moers '81

Taped by "Ilario" this is the same BoB that recorded (few days before)
the album "Yes Please" for In and Out, and, as you'll note, even the
pieces' list is almost the same : a mix of old and new compositions.

Rec. live at "The 10th Moers Festival", Moers, Germany, on June 7, 1981
(mics recording)

Chris McGregor,piano,conductor
Harry Becket/Mark Charig/David Defries/Peter Segone,trumpet
Ray Anderson/Nick Evans/Radu Malfatti,trombone
Andre Goudbeek/Bruce Grant/Francois Jeanneau/Louis Sclavis/John Tchicai,reeds
Didier Levallet/Ernest Mothle,bass
Caroline Collins,cello
Brian Abrahams/Jean-Claude Montredon,drums

1. Sonia [M.Feza] (06:00)
2. Yes, Please [R.Malfatti] (14:23)
3. Duku [D.Purkwana] (10:25)
4. Maxime [C.McGregor] (09:06)
5. Untitled Original (10:24)
6. Andromeda [C.McGregor] (10:17)

Total Time 1:00:38

Chris McGregor Quintet + RAI Big Band - Live in Mestre '80

This is the fourth event/concert organized by the Italian RAI
(during 1980), with its own B.B. supporting the work of some
great contemporary composers/arrangers.
Even without D.Pukwana/M.Osborne/G.Windo/etc, McGregor
was able to produce some noteworthy music.

here the complete list of all concerts.

Rec. live at "Teatro Corso", Mestre, Italy,
on April 2, 1980 (radio broadcast)

Chris McGregor,piano,conductor
Radu Malfatti,trombone
Harry Miller,bass
Louis Moholo,drums
Jean-Claude Montredon,percussions
+
RAI Big Band :
Nino Culasso/Doriano Beltrame/Cicci Santucci/Michele
Lacerenza,tp - Giancarlo Beccattini/Ernesto Pumpo/
Marco Pellacani/Gennaro Baldino,tb - Gianni Oddi/Baldo
Maestri/Sal Genovese/Beppe Carrieri/Carlo Metallo,reeds
- Sergio Coppetelli/Pino Rucher,gt - Maurizio Majorana,b -
Carlo Zoffoli,vib - Roberto Pregadio,p - Roberto Zappulla,dr

1. Track #1 (06:00)
2. Track #2 (11:05)
3. Track #3 (15:04)
4. Track #4 (09:25)
5. Track #5 (06:29)
6. Track #6 (15:39)

Total Time 1:03:44

Chris McGregor & The Castle Lager Big Band - Jazz The African Sound

Following up Riccardo's fine series of big band recordings, here's another one, going back to 1963 and South Africa. This is from a cd re-release in 1991 of the original lp released on Teal Records back then, though listening to it, it sounds as if it was sourced from the original vinyl. This came into my hands via several intermediaries, originating with Chris McGregor's son, if I remember correctly. Thanks to all and sundry. This is one that belongs up on the blogs. It was posted in the past, but this should in any case be an audio upgrade.

The basic facts:

Chris McGregor & The Castle Lager Big Band - Jazz - The African Sound (1991 Teal TELCD 2300)

1. Switch (Kippie Moeketsi)
2. Kippie (Dollar Brand)
3. Eclipse At Dawn (Dollar Brand)
4. Early Bird (Chris McGregor)
5. I Remember Billy (Kippie Moeketsi)
6. Now (Chris McGregor)

saxes:
Dudu Pukwana (Lead alto), Barney Rachabane (2nd alto), Nick Moyake (tenor), Christopher Columbus Ngcukane(baritone) and Kippie Moeketsi (alto and clarinet)

trombones:
Bob Tizzard (lead), Blyth Mbityana and Willie Nettie

trumpets:
Dennis Mpali (lead), Ebbie Creswell, Mongesi Feza and Noel Jones

bass:
Sammy Maritz

drums:
Early Mabusa

Piano:
Chris McGregor

Recorded 16th and 17th September 1963 by Alan Boyle

Remastering Richard Austen, Downtown Studios



Castle Lager is, as one can see above, a South African brewery, and the promoter of an annual jazz festival, the Cold Castle Jazz Festival, at which the band played in 1963. The brewery also agreed to sponsor a 17-piece big band with musicians of McGregor's choice. But finding concert outlets were more difficult as the brewery was only prepared to sponsor concerts in the black townships, but not in the "white" venues which would have given much better exposure for the band, nationally as well as overeseas. But with the initiative and tenacity of Maxine McGregor, two concerts was organised in the Johannesburg Playhouse and were a resounding success, according to reviews in the papers. All of this is vividly recounted in Maxine's McGregor's biography, "Chris McGregor and the Brotherhood of Breath", published by Bamberger Books in 1995. Required reading for the whole story of the Blue Notes and the Brotherhood, up to the death of McGregor in 1990.

Here's a picture from the book:



Musically, the blend of styles was apparent - southstream as derived from mainstream, but yet different. As one reviewer put it; "While admitting the obvious influence of American jazz on its South African counterpart (it is impossible to discount the tremendous impact of Ellington alone), South African jazz has a character and expression of its own - gay, warm, exceedingly good-humoured, uninhibited and vital". And, "this is a big bustling, muscular blending of the old familiar swing with a flavour which anybody who has listened to African music in recent years will recognise as springing straight from the townships. At times this flavour is most subtly imparted, but it is always there".

So, with these few words, a happy new year to all ... and cheers!

Brotherhood of Breath in Altena Castle, Germany, 1972

There's been an encouraging spate of Chris McGregor and Brotherhood rereleases lately, some of which has been featured on this blog before. Just around the corner is a Blue Notes box set containing all of their four releases on the Ogun label. One of them has also been posted here previously.

But what's on offer here and now has not been officially released yet at any rate. It's an excerpt from a concert inside Balver Höhle in Germany in 1972.

The info given is as follows:

Call 8:44
Andromeda 9:13
Think Of Something 14:19
Track 4 4:14

Lineup:

Harry Beckett
Marc Charig
Malcolm Griffith
Nick Evans
Dudu Pukwana
Mike Osborne
Gary Windo

The first three pieces are announced as such by the radio presenter, but "Call" sounds uncannily like "Ismite is Might" off the Willisau album and features most likely Nick Evans on the trombone. The second piece is "Mra" leading into "Andromeda". The third piece is "Do It" leading into "Think of Something", the latter featuring Mike Osborne on alto, Gary Windo on tenor and either Mark Charig or Harry Beckett on trumpet. The last piece is quite clearly "The Serpent's Kindly Eye", also on the Willisau album (which was the first ever release on the Ogun label).

The sound's fair on the first three, but a bit grimy on the last, though. The band is at its ramshackle best as ever. Some may find the BoB cacophonous at times, but to these ears it's beautiful cacophony.

Mp3 and flac versions in the comments section. Another golden dime.

Chris McGregor's Brotherhood of Breath - Live Berlin 1971

This recording has done the rounds several times on the net, so some of you will have it. For those who haven't I recommend you grab it - it's a gem.



Line-up

Harry Beckett - trumpet
Marc Charig - trumpet, cornet
Malcolm Griffiths - trombone
Nick Evans - trombone
Dudu Pukwana - alto sax
Mike Osborne - alto sax, clarinet
Alan Skidmore - baritone, tenor and soprano sax
Gary Windo - tenor sax
Chris McGregor - piano, keyboards
Harry Miller - bass
Louis Moholo - drums


I guess you all know the origin of B of B, so I'll spare you the story. I don't know the origin of the recording, the sound's far too good for a 70s audience bootleg, so I guess that it's a radio broadcast. Oddly enough, though it's supposed to have been recorded in Berlin, the announcer of the concert is (or sounds) English, and the band seem to be appearing between other acts.

The recording is ripped at 192 kbps (very good quality), with 2 single tracks of about 30 mins each.

Link in comments (click post title).

Chris McGregor Group - Very Urgent (1968)

This recording was posted over at c#9 some months ago, but I see the link is no longer active, so for those who missed it or to newcomers to these shores, here it is again.

This is a new rip from what is a quite rare vinyl.

Line-up

Chris McGregor - piano

Dudu Pukwana - alto

Ronnie Beer - tenor

Mongezi Feza - pocket trumpet

Johnny Dyani - bass

Louis Moholo - drums

Ripped at 256 kbps. Link in Comments.