DMG Newsletter for July 12th, 2019

JAZZ AIN'T NOTHIN' BUT SOUL
Written by Norman Mapp
Recorded by Betty Carter & Joe Lee Wilson

Jazz is makin' do with 'taters and grits,
Standin' up each time you get hip,
Jazz ain't nothin' but soul!

Jazz is livin' high off nickels and dimes,
Telling folks 'bout what's on your mind,
Jazz ain't nothin' but soul!

Trumpets, cassettes, slide trombone,
Rhythm, makin' love,
People wearin' fancy clothes,
It's the voice of my people!

For me, jazz is all the truth to be found,
Never mind who's puttin' it down,
Jazz ain't nothin' but soul!
Jazz ain't nothin' but soul!
Jazz ain't nothin' but soul!

Chocolates, coffee, saxophones,
Rhythm, makin' love,
People wearin' fancy clothes,
It's the voice of my people!

For me, jazz is all the truth to be found,
Never mind who's puttin' it down,
Jazz ain't nothin' but soul!

I started listening to jazz seriously around 1972, while taking a ‘History of Jazz’ class at Glassboro State College (with Manny Albam as my professor). I was already listening to lots of progressive music & jazz/rock, but starting with Miles’ ‘Bitches Brew’ and Herbie Hancock’s ‘Sextent’ albums, I started working my way backwards through the long history of jazz. Originally I went to jazz clubs like the Village Vanguard, the Village Gate or the Five Spot. As I got into more avant/jazz, I started going to all sorts of loft spaces: Environ, Studio We, the Brook… Nearly every weekend my friends & myself ended up at one or more of these performance places. Bond St. in the East Village, was often our main destination. There were three avant/jazz places within 2 blocks: Studio Rivbea (run by Sam Rivers), the Ladies Fort (run by Joe Lee Wilson) and the Tin Palace, an actual jazz club (booked by Stanley Crouch, when he was still a nice guy). I became good friends with Joe Lee Wilson, a jazz singer who you might’ve heard on a some albums with Archie Shepp. Joe Lee’s voice was something else: rich, warm, expressive… his smile and his exuberant spirit were infectious! The above song was his theme song and he titled his first (?) album, ‘Livin’ High Off Nickels & Dimes’. Give the song a listen, it should make you smile. I recall one night at the Ladies Fort when Joe Lee Wilson, Sheila Jordan & Eddie Jefferson were trading chorus after chorus of some standards that we all knew & loved. I felt like I was in Jazz Heaven and honored to be there! - Bruce Lee Gallanter, DMG

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THERE AIN’T NO CURE FOR THE SUMMERTIME BLUES!?! Or is there..?!?

While DMG still sells CD’s in lesser quantities, we are selling more Used records/vinyl through Discogs and in the store over the past year or so. We are looking to buy a collection of records, mostly from the sixties, seventies & eighties: jazz, rock, prog, psych, folk, roots, world, New Music, modern classical… As business is rather slow during the summer, we need to acquire, clean, price and sell more vinyl to help us survive. If you want to donate any money, here is our paypal address: ebay@downtownmusicgallery.com. If you want to make a contribution and you don’t have deep pockets? You can also donate vinyl in good shape. If you decide to donate records and you are not local, let us know. We can pay for the shipping.

It is slower for us in the Summertime so please come visit, shop, talk and check out the live music in our Free Sunday Music Series. We have a friendly and informed staff so… Tell your friends and family. thanks, BLG at DMG

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The Downtown Music Gallery 28th Anniversary Celebrations began on May 1st & Continues!
Every In-store This Summer Helps Celebrate the Spirit of Creative Music Performed Live.

Sunday, July 14th:
6pm: NICK LYONS - Solo Sax!

Sunday, July 21st:
6pm: LARUM Featuring: CHET DOXAS / MICAH FRANK - Woodwinds / Cassette Deck/Electronics
7pm: MICHAEL VATCHER and DARREN JOHNSTON - Drums and Trumpet

Sunday, August 4th:
6pm: ALEX WARD / SAM WEINBERG / HENRY FRASER -
Clarinet/Guitar // tenor/soprano saxes // Contrabass!
7pm: SEAN ALI - Solo ContraBass!

Rare Monday, August 5th:
6:30: ROBERT DICK and LESZEK “HEFI” WISNIOWSKI - International Flute Duo!
7:30: MILO TAMEZ - ToBeatorNottoBeat - Solo Drums!

Sunday, August 11th:
6pm: LOUNA DEKKER-VARGAS / LEDAH FINCK / TAL YAHALOM / NICK DUNSTON /
STEPHEN BOEGEHOLD - Flute / Violin / Guitar / Bass / Drums
7pm: BEN GOLDBERG & Company

DMG is located at 13 Monroe St. (between Catherine & Market Sts) in a basement below a small gallery. Take the F train to East Broadway or the 6 train to  Canal or the B or D to Grand, or the M-15 bus to Madison & Catherine. Come on Down, the Sunday Music Series is Always Free & the Vibes are Always Cosy. You can check the weekly in-store sets through our Instagram feed

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This Week's Newsletter Begins with This Colossal Unreleased 2 LP Deluxe Set:

BILL DIXON & CECIL TAYLOR - Duets 1992 (Triple Point Records 241; USA) “Trumpeter Dixon and pianist Taylor, friends going back to their Truman-era school days, associated copiously in nearly every artistic fashion, except making music together. ‘Duets’ is their only meeting in studio apart from both artists appearing on Taylor’s 1966 landmark Blue Note LP ‘Conquistador’. In 1992 they made the briefest summer festival tour to Italy and France, budgeting in two additional days for this recording session. That musical output was prepared for a release that was shelved for more than a quarter century and now comes out as a posthumous release in tribute to both giants. The initiative to release this music began with the Bill Dixon Trust and was approved by Taylor in his final years. Now,a wider public will hear music that they both prized, documenting the extraordinary relationship between their musicalities. ‘Duets’is a remarkable and unique item in the extensive catalogs of both men’s recordings. Fans familiar with Dixon and Taylor’s distinctive styles will approach with curious uncertainty: How could it possibly work to blend styles of Joyce and Hemingway? Pollock and Kline? Nevelson and Brancusi? Bill Dixon and Cecil Taylor share a fundamental fiber of taste and reaction as the basis for their interaction. The complementary nature of ‘Duets’ makes the case thoroughly that the project stands apart not just from the numerous duet projects of both instrumentalists, but from the wide field of improvised duets in this sector of the music. Strictly limited to 665 copies worldwide, this 2-LP set has been scrupulously mastered from the original tape, reserving both the high gloss and the brutal physicality of the recording. Plates cut by Sterling Sound’s Grammy®-winning mastering master Steve Fallone have been pressed into virgin vinyl at QRP, and wrapped in a hand-numbered Old Style Tip-On ® gatefold jacket that Stoughton has perfected. The package also includes a new contextualizing essay by historian Ben Young, hitherto-unpublished photographs from the collaboration, and artifacts reproduced from the original release plans. Bill Dixon conceived this as a deluxe digital release; Triple Point is honored to bring ‘Duets’ to vinyl reality in the 21st Century.”
2 LP Deluxe Set $95 (LTD Edition of 665; hand-numbered) [1 Week sale, order before 7/19/19) and take off $5, making this deluxe classic gem $90 - in stock early next week]


The release date these two new Tzadik Releases is Friday, July 26th:

JOHN ZORN - Tractatus Musico - Philosophicus (Tzadik 8365; USA) Drawing inspiration from philosophy, avant-garde cinema, drama and music, Tractatus brings many of Zorn’s lifelong interests together into a stunning new musical universe. Including big band cutups, saxophone fireworks, environmental soundscapes and a rip-roaring game-call-Ketjak, this is Zorn musing alone in the studio harnessing the powers of his twisted imagination and underground musical sensibility. Filled with wit, color and mystery, this bizarre suite is among the weirdest music Zorn has ever created and will appeal to only the most open-minded of listeners. Not for the faint of heart. Caveat Emptor!
CD $21


JOHN ZORN // GNOSTIC TRIO With BILL FRISELL / CAROL EMANUEL / KENNY WOLLESEN - The Book Beri’ah Vol 7 - Netzach (Tzadik 5107; USA) “One of Zorn’s most beloved and unique 21st century ensembles, the Gnostic Trio features the distinctive guitar of Bill Frisell, the vibraphone of Kenny Wollesen and the ethereal harp stylings of Carol Emanuel. The sounds are soulful and heavenly and for this, their seventh cd together, they perform nine tunes from the Book Beri’ah, the last book of music completing the Masada legacy. Frisell’s magical sonorities dance around harp and vibraphone creating a heavenly improvisational counterpoint. Truly music of the angels, Netzach is a gem.”
CD $16


RICH HALLEY with MATTHEW SHIPP / MICHAEL BISIO / NEWMAN TAYLOR BAKER - Terra Incognito (Pine Eagle Records 012; USA) Featuring Rich Halley on tenor sax, Matt Shipp on piano, Michael Bisio on contrabass and Newman Taylor Baker on drums. For a couple of decades now, we’ve seen Oregon-based tenor saxist, Rich Halley, releasing discs, usually one per year. In the past, Mr. Halley has collaborated with Bobby Bradford, Michael Vlatkovich and Vinny Golia. Since starting the Pine Eagle label around 2008, Mr. Halley has been playing with his son Carson on all releases since. Mr. Halley rarely makes his way to NY, but did so for a rare visit in August of 2018. He both played live and recorded in the studio with Matt Shipp’s ongoing trio with Michael Bisio on bass and Newman Taylor Baker on drums.
This disc, ’Terra Incognita’, is the result of that studio date. Considering that this was the first time that this quartet played together, they sure do sound strong, inspired, focused as one spiritual force. Although, Mr. Halley’s tenor is upfront, there is consistent dialogue going on. As turbulent as things get on top, there is a sense of calm underneath. When Mr. Halley’s solo ends, the trio ascends together. With his left hand, Mr. Shipp plays those dark, cerebral chords which the rest of the rhythm team connect with while Shipp’s right hand spins a layer of quick fractured lines. When Halley re-enters, the quartet move together, expanding & contracting, there is an organic current that flows throughout connecting each member of the quartet. The quartet slows down for “Forager”, so that Mr. Halley can stretch and show off his splendid, warm, rich tone on his tenor. The rest of the group, lays back and play an exquisite, sparking version of free jazz with a sublime bass solo from Mr. Bisio. I love the way Mr. Halley & Mr. Shipp shadow each other’s lines on “Centripetal”, spiraling together in tight orbits. This marvelous disc concludes with a long piece called, “The Journey”. It starts out quietly, with Mr. Halley’s tone most haunting, the trio stripped down to skeletal suspense. This piece is long and builds slowly with a layer of lines flowing between all four members. I caught an amazing duo set last Saturday (7/6/19) with Matt Shipp and Michael Bisio at Happy Lucky No. 1. There two musicians have been working together for a long while now and you can hear the way they connect time & again. The trio with Mr. Taylor Baker also continually evolves and works splendidly together. Mr. Halley fits perfectly with this group, the culmination is outstanding indeed! - Bruce Lee Gallanter, DMG
CD $14 [In stock next week]


New from LISTEN! FOUNDATION - Eight Amazing New Discs in Stock in a Week or so… I will do some reviews when our box does arrive

BARRY GUY with AGUSTI FERNANDEZ / MARILYN CRISPELL / JOELLE LEANDRE / PAUL LYTTON - @70 - Blue Horizon / Live at Ad Libitum Festival 2017 (Listen! Foundation FSR 07; 2019; Poland) Blurb below
3 CD Set $40

JOELLE LEANDRE / BERNARD SANTACRUZ / THEO CECCALDI / GASPAR CLAUS - Strings Garden (Listen! Foundation FSR 10; 2018; Poland)
3 CD Set $40

EDDIE PREVOST / EVAN PARKER - Tools of Imagination (Listen! Foundation FSR 05/2018; Poland)
CD $17

PETER EVANS / AGUSTI FERNANDEZ / BARRY GUY - Free Radicals at DOM (Listen! Foundation FSR 15; 2018)
CD $17

PAULA SHOCRON & PABLO DIAZ With GUILLERMO GREGORIO - Dialogos (Listen! Foundation; Poland)
CD $17

IZUMI KIMURA / BARRY GUY / GERRY HEMINGWAY - Illuminated Silence (Listen! Foundation FSR 01; 2019; Poland)
CD $17

JOE MORRIS / BRAD BARRETT / TYSHAWN SOREY - Cowboy Transfiguration (Listen! Foundation; Poland)
CD $17

TREVOR WATTS / STEPHEN GREW - Let it Be - Live in Liverpool (Listen! Foundation FSR 02/2019; Poland)
CD $17


Five Great New Discs from Not Two, In stock Next Week! (Reviews next week)

ROBERT DICK / JOELLE LEANDRE / MIYA MASAOKA - Solar Wind (Not Two MW 986; Poland) Featuring: Robert Dick: glissando flute, bass flute, contrabass flute & piccolo, Joëlle Leandre: contrabass & voice and Miya Masaoka: koto, percussion.
CD $17

MATTHEW SHIPP / MARK HELIAS / GORDON GRDINA - Sin and Bones (Not Two MW 987; Poland) Featuring: Matthew Shipp – piano, Gordon Grdina – guitar and Mark Helias – contrabass.
CD $17
 
JOE McPHEE / JOHN EDWARDS / KLAUS KUGEL - A Night In Alchemia (Not Two MW 992; Poland) Featuring: Joe McPhee - trumpet & saxes, John Edwards - double bass and Klaus Kugel - drums.
CD $17

JEB BISHOP FLEX QUARTET with RUSS JOHNSON / JASON ROEBKE / FRANK ROSALY - Re-Collect (Not Two MW 990; Poland) Featuring: Jeb Bishop - trombone, Russ Johnson - trumpet, Jason Roebke - bass and Frank Rosaly - drums.
CD $17

R.A.N. With ALBERT CIRERA / RAFAK MAZUR / NICOLAS FIELD - Five Spontaneous Ones (Not Two 988; Poland) Featuring: Albert Cirera – tenor & soprano saxes, Rafał Mazur – acoustic bass guitar and Nicolas Field – drums.
CD $17


New from Another Timbre in Stock:

APARTMENT HOUSE // OLIVIER MESSIAEN / LINDA CAITLIN SMITH - Perform Olivier Messiaen and Linda Catlin Smith (Another Timbre 143; UK) “The UK ensemble Apartment House performs two works--Olivier Messiaen's "Quatuor pour la fin du Temps" in 6 movements; and Linda Catlin Smith's "Among the Tarnished Stars"--taking a fresh modern approach to the Messiaen, drawing out its experimental character, and the sense of drama and intricate gradations of sonority in Smith's rich and mysterious work.”
CD $15

CATHERINE LAMB - Point/Wave (Another Timbre 142; UK) “The first piece composer Catherine Lamb has written specifically for acoustic guitar was commissioned by Chilean guitarist Christian Alvear, extending concepts from an installation piece titled "Secondary Rainbow" with Bryan Eubanks, Lamb employs electronics over an infinite cycle of four "environmental chords" which overlap and resonate with one another.”
CD $15

ANGHARAD DAVIES / CYRIL BONDI / PIERRE-YYES MARTEL / CHRISTOPH SCHILLER - Awire (Another Timbre 140; UK)”During the tour in support of their "Tse" release, the quartet of Cyril Bondi on Shruti box, pipe & harmonica, Christoph Schiller on spinet & effects, Pierre-Yves Martel on Viola da Gamba, pipe & harmonica, and Angharad Davies on violin, captured this performance at London's Cafe OTO, improvised over a sequence of pitches with astonishing creativity.”
CD $15

FEDERICO POZZER - Breaths (Another Timbre 141;UK) “Three works from Italian composer and pianist Federico Pozzer in his "breathing" series, compositions where the musicians follow the concept of inhaling, exhaling, and pausing, set against certain fixed actions or interactions as they devise their own musical actions, the goal to overcome both the players' freedom in decision-making and strictness in the score.”
CD $15

JAMES WINDFELL - Weeks (Another Timbre 139; UK) “Violinist Mira Benjamin requested British composer James Weeks write a long-duration piece for her, Weeks evoking the image of a violin alone in a remote hill played only by the wind, using an evolving palette of timbral and harmonic material resolving with long sequences of Just Intonation three-part chords, Benjamin also whistling and singing softly.”
CD $15


It has taken me a few weeks to actually sit down and listen to the three new discs from the Elsewhere label. Considering how much work goes into each and every disc, it is always well worth the effort.

Three More Sonic Treasures from The Marvelous Elsewhere Label:

SHIRA LEGMANN / MICHAEL PISARO - Barricades (Elsewhere 009; USA) “This album contains LA-based composer Michael Pisaro's recent composition 'Barricades,' a 63-minute piece for piano and electronics. Consisting of thirteen studies (piano pieces, some with electronics) and two electronic interludes, the piece is performed by Israel-based pianist Shira Legmann, with Pisaro on electronics.
"Barricades has a distant but decisive relationship to the keyboard music of Louis and François Couperin. The title refers to 'Les Barricades Mystérieuses' by François Couperin – and to the technique of overlapping, interlocking voices, creating a thicket or web-like texture. I have loved the music of the Couperins since college, but it was when Shira sent me some of her favorite music to play, and 'Les Barricades Mystérieuses' was among the scores, that the idea for this piece began to crystallize. The process of writing and working on the piece with Shira was one of watching the barricades, which I pictured as a network of twisted vines, unravel." - Michael Pisaro
Mr. Pisaro is a prolific composer with nearly three dozen discs listed in the DMG database. This disc was composed by Mr. Pisaro with Shira Legman on piano and the composer on electronics. The piano is stark at first, each note carefully placed, with certain notes rumbling, resonating, glowing, humming, an eerie layer of drone(s), suspended in the air. Time seems to be moving more slowly. Are those resonating notes nature or electronically enhanced. Hard to tell but most effective nonetheless. Complete silence and patience is required to appreciate what is going on here. Takes one time and listen closely. Another world will be revealed. There are two short interludes for electronics which give us some breathing space in between the stark world of subtle suspense. - Bruce Lee Gallanter, DMG
CD $15

REINIER VAN HOUDT / BRUNO DUPLANT - Lettres et Replis (Elsewhere 008; USA) “This album contains six pieces written by French composer/artist Bruno Duplant, all composed and realized by Dutch pianist/composer Reinier van Houdt. Duplant's scores 'Lettres (pour Reinier van Houdt)' (2017) are three letter-form scores personally addressed to van Houdt containing letter sequences distributed across the page. 'Trois replis d'incertitude' (2018) are also three letter-form scores but with the notion of 'repli' (meaning 'fold' in a Deleuzian postmodern baroque sense as well as 'withdrawal' of incertitude and reactionaries toward the neglect of ecology, humanism, and culture). Duplant's scores also reflect Mallarmé's notion of textual space and chance, leaving a large room for the interpreter/performer.“
Reading the explanation for how these pieced were composed is often fascinating but only occasionally helps to understand what we are hearing when we listen closely. The pieces were composed by French composer Bruno Duplant and based on letters written by Reinier Van Houdt. There are also field recordings made by Mr. Van Houdt, which were recorded on 100th anniversary of John Cage’s birthday (September 5, 2012). This disc consists of three letters and three replies. The music here unfolds slowly and sounds as if certain strings inside the piano are being plucked or muted most carefully. Each note or sound whether thin or thick is most effective. The field recordings give the music a sense of place or space as if the environment is breathing just like those who are listening. The music has a solemn, melancholy resonance as if we are waiting for something good to happen after wandering for so long in the forest of the unknown. One of the thing I notice is that the muting of certain notes gives the piece a more stark sort of suspense while the notes that resonate longer add a breathing quality which feels more hopeful. Since nearly each note or sound is surrounded by space or soft reverberations, every sound has an effect. This forces us to listen more carefully and think about the way each sound works. It makes perfect sense that the field recordings were inspired by John Cage, a composer & philosopher who cared so much about the way sound effect us. - Bruce Lee Gallanter, DMG
CD $15

MELAINE DALIBERT - Cheminant (Elsewhere 007; USA) “This is French composer/pianist Melaine Dalibert's third solo piano album, following his well-received 2018 album 'Musique pour le lever du jour' (elsewhere 002) and 2017 album 'Ressac' (at111). 'Cheminant' contains a diverse array of Dalibert's unique compositions for solo piano, ranging from the up-tempo rhythmic 'Percolations' performed masterfully by Dalibert's right hand, to the slow, prolonged meditative 'Music in an octave' and 'Cheminant', to the kaleidoscopic 'Étude II' with the repetitive hammered chords, and lastly his latest piece 'From zero to infinity' dedicated to post-minimal composer Peter Garland.
All five pieces were composed by Dalibert in 2017-2019, reflecting his current interest in questioning how the harmonic shifts could affect the listening experience with subtly evolving chords through a scale or different tones, creating a similar state to vertigo. Diverse as they may seem, all five pieces attain delicately balanced harmonization of rich layers of the woody, warm direct tones of the piano, overtones and resonances, blended to form a complex harmonic beauty exquisitely delivered with Dalibert's virtuosic piano techniques.” Sample clip on YouTube:/youtu.be/GlpX45HtpaQ
There is something special going on here. As I listen to the first piece, “Music in An Octave”, I hear one chord being played slowly over and over, the notes shimmering in the silence between the strikes. The fan in my kitchen hums quietly while those chords are continually struck over and over. I took chair yoga earlier today which helps me quiet down my often racing, anxiousness. That same sense of calm is also found here with the music which unfolds just as slowly, thoughtfully, each chord well placed on the silence. Take some time and you will be reward for your patience. - Bruce Lee Gallanter for Downtown Music Gallery
CD $15


It has taken me a while to actually work my through the 5 CDs in this box-set. If you want to read then original notes from the composer or label, you can see them in the DMG database or on the Erstwhile website. Here is my review:

TOSHIYA TSUNODA - Extract From Field Recording Archive (Erstwhile / ErstPast 001-5; USA) I have long been fascinated with field recordings and had made some myself in the seventies and eighties on my Sony TCD5 cassette deck with a stereo mic. The one lesson I learned was this: you can almost never hear everything captured in a field recording until you listen to it over and over, at different times. Perception seems to be effected by mood and memory. I have been slowly working my way through the five discs in this set, one at a time and trying to listen closely, concentrating. I am currently listening to Disc 1. Each track captures a vibration which is caused by where it is recorded. It takes some time to slow down and notice the way the sound of the vibration develops. We must learn how to tune out the other extraneous sounds like a passing airplane or car or birds nearby or our neighbors. At first, I didn’t much difference between each track or vibration. After a while, I started to notice the different shapes or textures of the vibrations, as subtle or slight as they were. Sitting in my listening room, undistracted, I could tell the differences between each piece. Vibrations resonate more quickly or slowly, each piece sounds or feels like we are in a different place or space. At times it sounds as if the vibrations are nearly silent so it takes time to notice the ultra-subtle sounds. There is an uneasy feeling going on here. Each of the first three disc capture sounds in different places and with time we get a different sense of place with each piece.
“In addition to those three, for this reissue box Tsunoda compiled two new albums. CD 4, 'Extract From Field Recording Archive #4', contains his previously unpublished recordings of the Nagaura Port from the same period as #1-#3, and CD 5, 'Reflection-Revisiting', contains more recent recordings from 2007-2018, in which he revisited some of the original port areas, looking for a certain continuity between his ideas in the past and the present, while also discovering the differences between the two periods.” - Toshiya Tsunoda
As I listen to disc 5, again it takes time to adjust to sounds or vibrations. What has changed? Is it me or has something really changed? Hard to tell at first but once again the texture of the tone or drone seems to evoke another place. The sounds here help us to concentrate our perception. Is that sound coming from inside or outside? Hmmmmm. Keep focusing, open up, more will be revealed over time. While I was in my kitchen earlier, I noticed the scent of hotdogs being cooked. Even the slightest variation of a smell changes the way I or we feel. It makes me hungry. I would suggest that you purchase this deluxe box-set only in you have the time to actually listen to it closely, on a good stereo system and more than once. Only then will the many riches be revealed. - Bruce Lee Gallanter, DMG
5 CD Deluxe Box-Set $68


NATURE WORK With JASON STEIN / GREG WARD / ERIC REVIS / JIM BLACK - Nature Work (Sunnyside 1554; USA) Featuring Jason Stein on bass clarinet & compositions, Greg Ward on alto sax & compositions, Eric Revis on bass and Jim Black on drums. I have been looking forward to hearing this disc ever since reading about it on the Sunnyside upcoming release list a couple months ago. The co-leaders here, Jason Stein & Greg Ward, are amongst the best in the Chicago creative music scene. Both have a handful of their own releases and lead several of they own ensembles. Jason Stein’s long-running trio, Locksmith Isidore, did stadium tour last year opening for Stein’s half-sister, comedian Amy Schumer!?! Aside from his own albums, you can hear Greg Ward on a number discs from Mike Reed & Jason Roebke. What is interesting about this quartet is the rhythm team: L.A. bassist Eric Revis, who seems to work with everyone: Branford Marsalis, Tarbaby & his own units and former-Downtown drummer Jim Black (currently living in Berlin).
Right from the opening salvo, “The Shiver”, both reedmen are exchanging tight, quick lines, spinning around one another intricately. Jim Black has a unique way of propulsing, he swings with an oft-kilter rhythmic pulse which only a strong, thinking bassist can adapt to. It is unusual to hear a bass clarinet/alto sax frontline but somehow this one works so well. Both reedsmen play tart, twisted lines, bending their notes together and exchanging lines sometimes midstream. I love the odd harmonies the reeds that Mr. Ward wrote for “Zenith”. Jim Black’s drums play throughout in tight, spastic-sounding bits, revving up and down, while the reeds play their own twisted lines. Things calm down for a haunting sort-of ballad called, “Opter Fopter”, which seems to have sad, lovely melody buried beneath the surface which grows majestically throughout. “Tah Dazzle” seems to have bent-funk-like groove which runs throughout, with a couple of inspired solos from both the alto sax and bass clarinet. Hopefully this great quartet will tour soon so we can get a chance to hear them in their prime. I’ve played this disc a half dozen times over the past couple of weeks at DMG. It keeps getting better as I hear more of what is really going on above and beneath the surface. - Bruce Lee Gallanter, DMG
CD $15


THE MOTHERS OF INVENTION with FRANK ZAPPA / IAN UNDERWOOD / BUNK GARDNER / JIM SHERWOOD / DON PRESTON / ROY ESTRADA / JIMMY CARL BLACK / ARTIE TRIPP - “Live In London & Paris 1968 (Keyhole 9090; EEC) Broadcast towards the close of the Mothers Of Invention's rapturously received second European tour, this double-album offers two superb performances. The first was performed for BBC TV's Late Night Line-Up on October 23rd, while the second came three days later at the Paris Olympia. Both find the band on typically adventurous, iconoclastic form. The entire BBC TV and Radio France broadcasts presented here together with background notes and images. Songs included: “Plastic People”, “Hungry Freaks Daddy”, “Son of Mr. Green Genes”, “King Kong” and lots of improvisations.”
2 CD Set $24


JUSTAFIXATION - Flower Powered Trippers From The British Psychedelic Subculture (Particles 009; UK) Justafixation was one of the more elusive and illuminating compilation series to have emerged in the early 1990s. Originally released over three separate, extremely limited vinyl pressings, Justafixation's brief appearance served up a sublime collection of rare lysergic pleasures from the 1960s British landscape. Particles has unearthed this ultra-rare series and lovingly restored it to its former glory. Replete with additional and informative liners, rare memorabilia, and professionally re-mastered original sound recordings, Justafixation takes you on a journey to the colorful underbelly of the British Empire's third nipple. Triple-CD box set with 36-page full-color booklet. Includes over 70 tracks recorded between 1966-1970.
Features Spider, Wonderland, Legay, Shawn Phillips, Sleepy Rosie, David McNeil, Lord Sutch, The Koobas, The Quik, Rifkin, Sleepy, Hayden Wood, Subterranean Monastery, Mood Of Hamilton, Blair Smith, Blonde On Blonde, The Act, Murray Head, The Nashville Teens, Peter Sully & The Orchard, Sweet Feeling, Information, Lee Harmers, Studio Six, The Bunch, The Shakespeares, Jigsaw, Boeing Duveen And The Beautiful Soup, Barry Mason, The Julian Kirsch, The Moving Finger, Roger Denison, Sun Dragon, George Bean, Penny Nichols, The Slender Plenty, Kaplan, Andrew Bown, Beloved Ones, Billy Nicholls, The Gass Company, J.A. Freedman, The Mindbenders, Kippington Lodge, Jet Harris, Consortium, The Secrets, Sasha Caro, Chris McClure, The Herbal Mixture, Cupid's Inspiration, Ramases and Selket, Our Plastic Dream, The Music Bachs, The Rokes, Alex Harvey, Virgin Sleep, The Pandamonium, Edwick Rumbold, Cherry Smash, The Rockin' Berries, The Deejays, Gary Walker & The Rain, Garden Odyssey, The Blue Jeans, The Trend, Sharon Tandy, and The Unauthorized Version.
3 CD Set $33


South African bassist JOHNNY DYANI was a founding member of the legendary Blue Notes, who left South Africa for good in the early 1960’s and migrated to south France, Switzerland and London before eventually moving to Denmark in the seventies. He was an amazing contrabassist (and occasionally played electric bass) and you can hear something special in the way he plays on each & every record he made. After moving to Denmark, Mr. Dyani recorded 5 albums as a leader plus another half dozen with pianist Joe Bonner and vibe player Khan Jamal. I dig each of these releases so please check out any of the below if you don’t already own them. There are also two duo records with Dollar Brand on Enja that are immensely lovely, most haunting. Neither are currently in stock but we hope to get them back if we can. - BLG

Back in Stock:

JOHNNY DYANI WITCHDOCTOR'S SON With JOHN TCHICAI / DUDU PUKWANA / et al - Witchdoctor's Son (Steeplechase 31098; Denmark) Since his arrival in England as a South African expatriate in the early '60s and as a member of the Blue Notes, bassist Johnny Dyani served as a powerful and creative component of innumerable ensembles (including those led by Abdullah Ibrahim and Chris McGregor) before releasing a series of albums under his own name in the late '70s and '80s. Witchdoctor's Son is certainly one of the best of these, featuring the wonderful dual reed frontline of John Tchicai and fellow ex-pat Dudu Pukwana. The pieces reflect Dyani's upbringing in the township style prevalent in South Africa, a joyous, surging music which seeks to transcend the horror of everyday life as experienced by the native majority. None of the compositions give a better example of this than the superb concluding number, "Magwaza," a traditional song arranged by Dyani with a grooving, elastic bassline that is absolutely irresistible and which provides fertile ground for inspired solos by Tchicai and Pukwana. Dyani would die far too early in 1986, but his warmth and utter musicality happily found expression in several small group recordings made in the prior ten years, of which Witchdoctor's Son is a sterling example. Highly recommended.” - Brian Olewnick, AMG
CD $17

JOHNNY DYANI With CHARLES DAVIS / ED EPSTEIN / THOMAS DYANI - Afrika (Steeplechase 31186; Denmark) “For Afrika, South African expatriate bassist Johnny Dyani enlarged his group to a septet from the quartet formation he had used on prior Steeplechase recordings and, in the process, shifted gears slightly from the deeper, beautifully bitter songs that had been his forte (such as "House Arrest" on Mbizo) to a somewhat lighter fare, replete with catchy, skipping melodies and funky electric bass. Something of the township feel, so basic to his work, was also lost by replacing Dudu Pukwana with veteran saxman Charles Davis and by the odd inclusion of steel drums which supply a lilting quality. All of these elements make for a perhaps less satisfying effort that others by Dyani but still a fairly enjoyable one. His bass figure at the beginning and end of "Grandmother's Teaching" is almost worth the price of the album and a great example of the sort of thing that no one but Dyani could accomplish, and "Funk Dem Dudu" retains enough of that "African cry" to make one yearn for more. With its relatively short song times, Afrika might have been his stab at a bit of popular notice and is certainly a fun record, if not up to the heights of classics like his Witchdoctor's Son.” - Brian Olewnick, AMG
CD $17

JOHNNY DYANI QUARTET With JOHN TCHICAI / HARRY BECKETT / BILLY HART - Angolian Cry (Steeplechase 31209; Denmark)”Bassist Johnny Dyani's final recording as a leader (he died a year later at the age of 40) matches his warm sound with trumpeter Harry Beckett, John Tchicai (doubling on tenor and bass clarinet) and drummer Billy Hart on six of his melodic yet explorative originals. Dyani's atmospheric and colorful music was long underrated but, like that of Abdullah Ibrahim (a fellow expatriate from South Africa), Johnny Dyani was a major composer whose flights were tempered by a strong emphasis on fresh melodies. Stimulating music.” - Scott Yanow, AMG
CD $17

JOHNNY DYANI QUARTET With DUDU PUKWANA - Mbizo (Steeplechase 31163; Denmark) ”A live quartet date, Mbizo has the nice, relaxed feel of a warm concert in an intimate setting with the musicians at liberty to stretch out as they please. The final piece is a dedication to Charles Mingus and there's a similar vibe to records like Charles Mingus Presents Charles Mingus with Eric Dolphy and Ted Curson, albeit perhaps not up to that stellar level. The songs vary from lively burners like "Dorkay House," all township strut, to brooding, gorgeously bitter dirges as etched in the bleakly titled "House Arrest." Dyani was one of the strongest, most purely musical bassists in the music up to his untimely death in 1986, and he grounds his group here with rich, pulsating support and imaginative compositions, as well as offering a lovely solo on "Musician's Musician." Indeed, few musicians played with such a unique combination of scornful bitterness and loving appreciation of small moments of beauty as did Dyani. His stalwart companion, fellow South African expatriate Dudu Pukwana, is in fine form, liquid and fiery, as is the lesser-known Ed Epstein, especially on baritone sax. Mbizo is one of a string of fine albums recorded by Dyani in the several years prior to his death and is well worth hearing by virtually any jazz fan.” - Brian Olewnick, AMG
CD $17

JOHNNY DYANI QUARTET With DON CHERRY / DUDU PUKWANA / MAYAKA NTSHOKO - Song For Biko (Steeplechase 31109) “Bassist Johnny Dyani had a large tone and a relaxed yet authoritative style. On this classic SteepleChase release he teams up with two other South African expatriates (altoist Dudu Pukwana and drummer Makay Ntshoko) plus cornetist Don Cherry for music that is haunting, emotional, somewhat adventurous, yet also melodic. While "Song for Biko" is the most memorable piece, all five of Dyani's originals (including the 16-and-a-half-minute "Jo'burg-New York") are special. The music combines together Dyani's South African folk heritage with Ornette Coleman's free bop and elements of avant-garde jazz. Highly recommended.” - Scott Yanow, AMG
CD $17

JOE BONNER TRIO With JOHNNY DYANI / BILLY HIGGINS - Parade (Steeplechase 31116; Denmark) “Featuring Joe Bonner on piano, Johnny Dyani on acoustic bass and Billy Higgins on drums, a studio date from 1979. Mr. Bonner played piano for Pharoah Sanders, Max Roach, Billy Harper & Woody Shaw in the sixties and early seventies and later moved to Copenhagen. For his first date for Steeplechase, he put together an incredible all-star trio with Blue Notes bass wonder Johnny Dyani and the swingingest west coast jazz drum sensation - Billy Higgins! This cd reissue includes three previously unreleased tracks, not found on the original album version.”
CD $17

JOE BONNER & JOHNNY DYANI - Suburban Fantasies (Steeplechase 31176; Denmark)
CD $17


LP Section:

MIKE COOPER - Distant Songs Of Madmen (Backwards 024; Italy) A new Mike Cooper release is always a great event. Mike Cooper on the recording: "Distant Songs Of Madmen was recorded live in Palermo and was my solo set in a concert organized by Lelio Gianetti and Curva Minore, which included Truth In The Abstract Blues and Eugene Chadbourne. My set was free improvisation; some cover versions of folk and pop songs and some of my own songs. The title of the record and some of the improvised pieces were taken from Sam Shepard's writing. Sam, one of my favorite writers, has sadly died since I recorded this record and I dedicate it to his memory." Artwork by Italian artist Carla Indipendente. Mastered for vinyl by Brian Pyle (Ensemble Economique). Includes insert; edition of 300.
LP $24

LEE 'SCRATCH' PERRY & THE UPSETTERS - Scratch And Company Chapter 1 (Clocktower 114; Canada) Originally released in 1981. Landmark dub record from legendary reggae producer Lee "Scratch" Perry, using a combination of established collaborators and new musicians: The Upsetters, Johnny Lover & The Towerchanters, Lee & The Blue Bell, Val Bennett, Brad Osbourne & The Towerchanters, Devion Iron, The Black Arks, and Ricky And Bunny.
LP $16

AUGUSTUS PABLO - King Tubbys Meets Rockers Uptown (Clocktower 085; Canada) "If you had to pick one album that best represents the pinnacle of the art of dub, you'd cull the candidates down pretty quickly to ten or 12, and it would get very difficult after that. Few would fault you for ending up with this one, though, which stands as perhaps the finest collaboration between two of instrumental reggae's leading lights: producer and melodica player Augustus Pablo and legendary dub pioneer King Tubby. Among other gems, this album offers its title track -- a dub version of Jacob Miller's 'Baby I Love You So'-- which is widely regarded as the finest example of dub ever recorded. But the rest of the album is hardly less impressive. 'Each One Dub', another cut on a Jacob Miller rhythm, possesses the same dark and mystical ambience, if not quite the same emotional energy, as 'King Tubby Meets Rockers Uptown,' and the version of the epochal 'Satta Massaganna' that closes the album is another solid winner. Pablo's trademark 'Far East' sound (characterized by minor keys and prominent melodica lines) is predominant throughout, and is treated with care and grace by King Tubby, who has rarely sounded more inspired in his studio manipulations than he does here. Absolutely essential." - Rick Anderson, All Music
LP $16

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Bruce Lee Gallanter’s Recommended Gig List for June of 2019:

THE NEW STONE
Is Located at the New School’s Glass Box Theatre
55 West 13th street - just east of 6th ave

THE STONE RESIDENCIES - PAULINE KIM - JULY 9–13

7/12 Friday
8:30 pm - RESPONSES to the Bach Chaconne—Music by Pauline Kim Harris, Missy Mazzoli, Elizabeth Hoffman, Yoon-Ji Lee, Annie Gosfield and John King; Pauline Kim Harris (violin); Pauline Kim Harris A Spiral Is A Line (2019) WORLD PREMIERE Missy Mazzoli Dissolve, O My Heart (2010) Elizabeth Hoffman morsels (2018) US PREMIERE Yoon-Ji Lee Shakonn (2014) Annie Gosfield Long Waves and Random Pulses (2012) John King C-H-A-C-O-N-N-E (2013)

7/13 Saturday
8:30 pm - DRUMS x VIOLIN x PERCUSSION—New music by Pauline Kim Harris, Jessie Cox and James Ilgenfritz; Pauline Kim Harris (violin) Jessie Cox (drums) Billy Martin (percussion) Brian Chase (drums) Alex Cohen (double kick bass drum) Ricardo Romaneiro (drum machine)

THE STONE RESIDENCIES / AARON NOVIK / JULY 16–20

7/16 Tuesday
8:30 pm - Frowny Frown - Aaron Novik (clarinets) Kasey Knudsen (sax) Sam Ospovat (drums) Shayna Dunkelman (percussion) Ches Smith (congas) Michael Coleman (piano) Michelle Amador (voice) Lisa Mezzacappa (bass) Dina Maccabee (violin, voice) Ava Mendoza (guitar)

7/17 Wednesday
8:30 pm - QUINTET - Tim Bulkley (drums) John Finkbeiner (guitars) Patrick Cress (sax) Aaron Novik (clarinets) Lisa Mezzacappa (bass)

7/18 Thursday
8:30 pm - O O - Aaron Novik (clarinet) Tim Bulkley (drums) Kurt Kotheimer (bass) Eli Wallace (piano) Anna Webber (flute) Kasey Knudsen (sax)

7/19 Friday
8:30 pm - No Signal - Aaron Novik (clarinet in A) Jeremiah Cymerman (clarinet in Bb) Ava Mendoza (guitar) Ches Smith (vibes) Shayna Dunkelman (xylophone) Nick Millevoi (guitar)

7/20 Saturday
8:30 pm - QUINTET - Aaron Novik (clarinets) Thomas Heberer (trumpet) Patrick Holmes (clarinet) Steve Swell (trombone) Cornelius Boots (shakuhachi)

THE (NEW) STONE is located in The New School’s Glass Box Theatre  
All Sets at The New Stone start at 8:30pm Tickets: $20
There are no refreshments or merchandise at The Stone. 
Only music. All ages are welcome. Cash Only at the door. 
A serious listening environment.
The Stone is booked purely on a curatorial basis

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THE JAZZ GALLERY Presents:

Saturday, July 13th:
NIR FELDER TRIO
Nir Felder -guitar
Orlando LeFleming -bass
Jimmy Macbride -drums
sets at 7.30pm 9.30pm

Friday, July 26th:
TIM BERNE 2
Tim Berne -saxophone
Matt Mitchell -piano
sets at 7.30pm 9.30pm

Saturday, July 27th:
TOM BERNE 3
Tim Berne -saxophone
Justin Faulkner -drums
Matt Mitchell -piano
sets at 7.30pm 9.30pm

The Jazz Gallery is located at:
1160 Broadway, 5th fl
between 27th 28th streets
New York, NY 10001
info@jazzgallery.org

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Bushwick Improvised Music Series Continues:

Monday July 15th
7pm Patrick Cress - baritone/alto saxophone
Kim Cass - bass
Tim Bulkley - drums
Mitch Marcus - tenor saxophone

8pm Stephen Gauci - tenor saxophone
Sandy Ewen - guitar
Adam Lane - bass
Kevin Shea - drums

9pm Juan Carlos Polo - drums
Dan Blake - saxophone/electronics
Chris McCarthy - keyboard

9:45pm Santiago Leibson - keyboard
Shawn Lovato - bass
Lesley Mok - drums

10:45pm Sean Ali - bass
Michael Foster - saxophones
David Grollman - drums

11:30pm Lisa Mezzacappa - bass
Darren Johnston - trumpet
John Finkbeiner - guitar
Vijay Anderson - drums

Downstairs @ Bushwick Public House
https://bushwickpublichouse.com/ gaucimusic.com
1288 Myrtle Avenue , Bushwick
(Across the street from M train Central Ave stop)
$10 suggested donation

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I-BEAM Presents:

FRIDAY, JULY 12, 2019 - 8:30 PM 9:30 PM
MIKE McGINNIS TRIO
Mike McGinnis: clarinet/saxophone
Peter Apfelbaum: Piano/organ
Malick Koly: Drums

SUNDAY, AUGUST 4, 2019 - 8:30 PM 10:30 PM
ARTEMIS SEXTET
Art Lande - Piano
Will Bernard - Guitar
Bruce Williamson - Woodwinds
Brian Drye - Trombone
Mike McGinnis - Woodwinds
Matt Wilson - Drums

IBEAM in BROOKLYN, NYC
168 7TH STREET
BROOKLYN, NY, 11215