Interview with Han Bennink & Misha Mengelberg

I’m listening, moving and grinning my way through some old ICP (Instant Composer’s Pool) recordings of that most sublime duo,  Dutch weirdoes Han bennink & Misha Mengelberg again. And as i flick through youtube, I find a pleasing, if Dutch, interview with these two grands. The really interestin part is the short excerpt of a video from 1980. Be sure to check it. Hell yes!!!

Orange Juice – Rip it up

Morning!

Following is a great tune by Scottish wave pioneers ORANGE JUICE, fronted by the incomparable EDWYN COLLINS, who would later have his solo impact on the mainstream chart circuit with “Never met a girl like you before”. This is the title track of their 1983 album “Rip it up”. Nice and gentle. Chilling vocals.

Horace Silver – Senor Blues

and again. Horace, of course. Great funky hardbop pioneer. Always swinging and driving hard. Grinding.

One of his many jukebox hits was 1956′ ‘Senor Blues’, minor blues groove with a slight latin touch. The original featured Hank Mobley and Donald Bryd on horns, I think.

This is from a Dutch appearance in 1959 and has the most popular Silver frontline of Blue Mitchell turmpet, Junior Cook tenor. Also Louis Hayes on drums.

the one version that struck the jukeboxes most was, I think, the vocal rendition, recorded in in 1958. Contained as a bonus in the RVG edition of “Six Pieces of Silver”. Lyrics by Horace Silver, vocals by Bill Henderson.

Emtidi – Walk in the park

Morning folks,

had a long drive yesterday, now I’m enjoying the marvellous summer sun on the balcony. The perfect accompaniment comes from EMTIDI, german folk-kraut-duo of Maik Hirschfeld and Dolly Holmes that recorded their second LP Saat in 1972 at Dierks Studio close to Cologne. Superb relaxation and a nice little jamming part at the end. On Ohr/Pilz records. highly recommended. Enjoy!!

Hatfield and the North

Highly eager to learn more about this great Cantebrury outfit of ex-CARAVAN members and of course, the Soft Machine region.

Beautiful, melodic progressive sound, at times a bit CAMELesque, sometimes the odd lines recall even a little Mothers Of Invention.

Here’s one:

Einheitsfrontlied (Ton Steine Scherben, Wader, Brötzmann)

again and again!

This great song was composed by Hanns Eisler and Bertolt Brecht some time around the 1920′s  I guess. Continueing our Brötzmann spree, I’ve compiled a few versions that differ quite severely.

First is great German protopunks Ton Steine Scherben. They recorded their live version in 1971 for their debut “Warum geht es mir so dreckig”. Quite original.

Second: Hannes Wader. German folk and protest song legend. He brought countless versions of it playing to bewildered and, some fear, belligerent young students and workers at union meeting. A nice down-home rendition. From the album “Hannes Wader singt Arbeiterlieder” (1977)

Now: Brötzmann again. His rendition might seem a bit cynical in its total dissolution of the theme, the blooddrenched rendition of the theme makes up for the cynicism. Interestingly, there are two versions recorded on video. The first is from the NDR broadcast with Fred Van Hove and Han Bennink. The second one is from the Warsaw Jazz Jamboree of 1974 and has Alex Schlippenbach on piano, Peter Kowald on bass and the maginificent Paul lovens on drums. (Note here the tragic of playing this upright socialist theme in that environment and, also, of dissecting it in this way.)

Love from somewhere around the Communist moon!

Peter Brötzmann Trio NDR 1974

It’s again…

I saw the great Peter with his Chicago Tentet at Moers on Sunday and this 69year old devil doesn’t cease to blow the post each time I see him. Such marvellously sanguine violence and lyricism. Incomparable. Such performances are the fruit of an almost 50 years of playing experience. Things started out a lot more down to earth and also a lot more dada for Brötzmann. This was the preeminent mode of his BIG trio (the first trio with Peter Kowald and S.A.Johanson being an exception) , the quasi stars of European free improv for a long time. Things got clownier and clownier until they disbanded in 1975 with the fittingly titeld “Tschüs”.

Anyways, their connections haven’t been lost, luckily.

Skipping all this, it’s early 1974 here and the Brötzmann Trio is in full blast. (<-!)

From an NDR broadcast recorded in Hannover, it’s Brötzmann on alto/tenor saxophone, Fred Van Hove on piano and the incomparable Han Bennink on percussion and all sorts of debris. Enjoy.

News from the gutter: now a mere collection of random findings

Hello!

It has been quite a bit since the last post and since it’s getting increasingly odd to scramble for words to write and as, simultaneously, the discovery and consumption of new music and videos is increasing, i hereby limit my postings to largely uncommented spreadings of whatever worthwhile i find on y.t. and elsewhere.

An aforehand note: My musical preferences are widewidewide. Ever broadening scope, i hope.

Kicking things off: The great Manny Marc, Corus86, Reckless with a track from their great “Sexurlaub”. Video by Aggro-Tv “Halt die Fresse”

love