What are you listening to and WHY might anyone be interested? (Vol. XIII)

Posted by: Richard Dane on 01 January 2017

2017 has arrived today, so time to start this thread afresh.

Last year's thread can be found here;

https://forums.naimaudio.com/to...e-interested-vol-xii

Posted on: 15 December 2017 by dayjay

Steven Wilson, To the Bone, first listen to a very good slightly prog rock album, capable musician this guy is and well worth a listen. Flac via Audirvana/Hugo

Posted on: 15 December 2017 by Clive B

Robert Plant's second solo offering, The Principle of Moments, original vinyl. I think it was on this tour that I first encountered It Bites who almost commanded the evening.

Posted on: 15 December 2017 by seakayaker

Now playing........

Pat Metheny - Bright Size Life

Pat Metheny (6 string guitar, electric 12 string guitar), Joco Pastorius (bass), and Bob Moses (drums)

Streaming on TIDAL........ Continued exploration of the ECM catalogue on this Friday morning.

First two tracks and discovering some beautiful music.......

Review from the ECM Records website here: Recorded December 1975, Tonstudio Bauer, Ludwigsburg

The tunes on Bright Size Life, Pat Metheny’s first studio album as frontman, tell a story that begins at the outskirts of Jim Hall, traverses the vast plains of the American Midwest, and ends smack dab in the middle of Ornette Coleman. From the moment fingers hit strings, we are launched into the luscious warmth that would come to characterize an ECM era. Flanked by the late Jaco Pastorius on bass and a cymbal-happy Bob Moses on drums, Metheny carries the brunt of the record’s melodic thrust. Positively overflowing with gorgeous circuitousness, organic inversions, and unwavering execution, Metheny and his sidemen make it sound as if it were harder not to produce such flawless synergy. With the obvious exception of his solo efforts, this is Metheny at his barest. And while his larger group projects tend to stray into more fusion-oriented territory, here we get a trio of musicians whose sensibilities, no less intertwined, arrange themselves into a more consistent rural flavor. There is something unmistakably outdoorsy about Bright Size Life. One can’t help but want to pop this music in the stereo during a long drive or cross-country trip, and maybe even have it in one’s ears during a hike (assuming that such digital trappings aren’t antithetical to the activity). An utter delicacy of phrasing and controlled abandon is what makes Metheny such a joy to listen to as he weaves his monochromatic web. Even during those moments in “Missouri Uncompromised” and “Omaha Celebration,” which swell into ecstatic fervor, Metheny exercises stylish restraint, as if pushing too far might break an already fine thread of articulation. Slower numbers like “Midwestern Night Dream” put Metheny in a more supportive mood, spinning a web of chords in equity with his fellow musicians. The bass adopts a more chorused presence, hopping over Metheny like a frog on lily pads. “Unquity Road,” along with the title track, foregrounds a composed doorway into an improvisatory wonderland, looking back regularly to its origins, as a child would its mother. Metheny closes out the set with “Round Trip/Broadway Blues,” an Ornette Coleman medley that seems to write its script as it goes along, until the vanishing point swallows and spits us out whole.

Bright Size Life is suitably recorded, with drums given the widest berth beneath the evenly spaced leads. Pastorius has plenty of opportunities to strut his stuff on center stage, and it is astounding to hear how he manages to thread every needle that Metheny fashions from the ether. At times, guitar and bass walk hand-in-hand, while at others one trails the other. Listening to this album is like tracing a map in sound. As followers, we may not know the next phase of our journey and can only trust that our guides will come through in the end. Metheny and company deliver above and beyond in this respect, with plenty of unexplored terrain left over to do it all over again.

Posted on: 15 December 2017 by seakayaker

Now Playing......

Carla Bley - Tropic Appetites

Carla Bley (voice, recorders, piano, electric piano, clarinet, organ, marimba, celeste, percussion, Julie Tippetts (voice), Gato Barber (tenor saxophone, voice), Howard Johnson (voice, clarinet, bass clarinet, soprano saxophone, baritone saxophone, bass saxophone, tubas), Dave Holland (cello, acoustic bass, bass guitar), Michael Mantler (trumpet, valve trombone) Toni Marcus (violin, viola), and Paul Motian (drums, percussion)

Streaming from TIDAL........ Exploration of the ECM catalogue continues...... Something different, something strange, kinda fun......

Note from the ECM Records website: A continuation of the work begun by Carla Bley with poet Paul Haines on 'Escalator over the Hill'. 'The world view 'Appetites' conveys is diametrically opposed to Marshal McLuhan's vision of the global village. Its sinister jungles, incurable diseases, and ultimately insoluble conflicts between full stomachs and empty ones are more reminiscent of Paul Bowles's bleak, despairing, but exquisitely crafted third world travelogues. A challenging work with a jumpy, eccentric surface and murky depths.' - The New York Times. Very hip band: Julie (Driscoll) Tippetts, Gato Barbieri, Howard Johnson, Dave Holland, Paul Motian...

Posted on: 15 December 2017 by Stevee_S

(1996)

Finally shaking off an enjoyable day with Radio Paradise in the background and on to this recent find of an old Simon Posford Hallucinogen album. Great dance n' trance EP, very, very punchy blowing away the cobwebs. cool

Posted on: 15 December 2017 by Richard Morris

Great concept, terrific songs and I love the way Grace Slick's piano provides impetus to the music.

Posted on: 15 December 2017 by Stevee_S

(2003)

Switching to another of Simon Posford's 'projects', nothing like as hard driving as Hallucinogen but good infectious stuff none the less.

Posted on: 15 December 2017 by Jeroen20

Lester Young - The Jazz giants

From allmusic.com

Even critics who feel (against the recorded evidence to the contrary) that little of tenor saxophonist Lester Young's postwar playing is at the level of his earlier performances make an exception for this session. Young was clearly inspired by the other musicians (trumpeter Roy Eldridge, trombonist Vic Dickenson, pianist Teddy Wilson, guitarist Freddie Green, bassist Gene Ramey, and drummer Jo Jones), who together made for a very potent band of swing all-stars. The five songs on this album include some memorable renditions of ballads and a fine version of "You Can Depend on Me," but it is the explosive joy of the fiery "Gigantic Blues" that takes honors. This set, a real gem, is highly recommended.

Posted on: 15 December 2017 by seakayaker

Now Playing.....

Tord Gustavsen Trio - The Ground

Tord Gustavsen (piano), Harald Johnsen (double bass), and Jarle Vespestad (drums)

Steaming from TIDAL....... Continuation of the ECM Records Catalogue. A lovely smooth album, enjoying the music through the first two tracks quite a bit!

Note from the ECM Records website here:

Of the Norwegian artists that ECM has introduced over the years, pianist Tord Gustavsen must count as one of the least “Nordic” in musical temperament. If the contemplative component of his music and its quietude still reflect Scandinavian priorities, the manner in which he has sought and located connections to early jazz – especially the blues, gospel music, and the nexus of Caribbean music and New Orleans jazz - is entirely his own. 'The Ground' reveals a stronger sense of purpose and a greater conceptual rigour than 'Changing Places' , the trio's debut album. Without sacrificing the clear-edged melodic sensibility that can already be considered one of the hallmarks of Gustavsen’s writing, the musicians are better able to do improvise within the structure of the pieces. An immediate popular success, 'The Ground' topped Norway's pop charts in its second week of release.

Posted on: 15 December 2017 by ewemon