Description:
Leading the charge for radical black music in the '60s was the Art Ensemble of Chicago. Drawing from old jazz traditions, trumpeter Lester Bowie, saxophonists Roscoe Mitchell and Joseph Jarman, and bassist Malachi Favors added heady doses of satire along with a collectivist sense of sonic mischief. Employing a multitude of "little instruments"--whistles, sirens, hand drums, gongs, bells--and various costumes, the group's early performances were as much theater as music. On this CD, a collection of their two earliest studio recordings (made in Paris in 1969), many of the theatrical elements are included, and without vis
Leading the charge for radical black music in the '60s was the Art Ensemble of Chicago. Drawing from old jazz traditions, trumpeter Lester Bowie, saxophonists Roscoe Mitchell and Joseph Jarman, and bassist Malachi Favors added heady doses of satire along with a collectivist sense of sonic mischief. Employing a multitude of "little instruments"--whistles, sirens, hand drums, gongs, bells--and various costumes, the group's early performances were as much theater as music. On this CD, a collection of their two earliest studio recordings (made in Paris in 1969), many of the theatrical elements are included, and without visuals supporting them, these recordings tend to be more cultural artifacts than consistent musical experiences. Which is not to say there isn't much great music here--Mitchell's R&B flavored "Rock Out," the free-form horn blowout of "Get in Line," and the eclectic "A Brain for the Seine" stand out--but there are also stretches of satirical vocalizing and percussive meandering (this was prior to drummer Don Moye's arrival) that perhaps worked better in performance. Nonetheless, as the first documents of this important group, this is a must for devoted Art Ensemble followers. --Wally Shoup
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Manufacturer: Varese Sarabande
Release date: 18 September 2001
EAN: 0030206114621 UPC: 030206114621
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