whi music downloads for 2008

i'm posting the year's download stats here, not for bragging purposes, but cos a lot of you are involved in these releases in one form or another. The figures are a bit crude, in that i've just divided the total download figure by the size of the total file to come up with a number: people might not have downloaded the whole thing. Over the year there's been more than 150Gb of downloads.

whi004: a present from the pickpocket: phil hargreaves & Lee Noyes

MP3: 40 downloads FLAC: 180 downloads

whi005: Blind Chaos Free Dada

winter 1972

I eagarly awaited listening to this album when it finally arrived in the mail. it was july, and i was living in hawaii at the time. the item itself had been on back order through forced exposure for weeks, and i had no idea when or if it would ever arrive. so, it was a pleasant suprise. my eyes glittered like a kids would i guess. but the more grown up aspect of me wanted to wait for the right time, which i had decided later that day: the first appearance of snow (as i was set to move back to michigan soon).

intention and surprise

hiya peeps

i was sent this query by a young pianist of my acquaintance: it seemed like a big question, and that any response would only be my own anyway (ie one person's alibi), so i'm throwing it open to the community to tackle. i'm kind of suspecting there might be as many answers as players:

Prince Lasha 1929-2008

Just saw this on allaboutjazz.

On vancouverjazz.com, musician and broadcaster Gavin Walker reported hearing
from John Handy that Prince Lasha has passed away:

"I was just informed by a reliable source (John Handy) that the legendary
flutist/saxophonist Prince Lasha passed away in Oakland, CA (Dec.
11). Many people will remember his own recordings (especially with Sonny
Simmons) and his associations on records with Eric Dolphy, Elvin Jones and
many others and in later years with Odean Pope. Lasha was born William

Mary Halvorson - Dragon's Head - Firehouse 12

Maybe I'm growing soft in my old age, but I'm liking quite a lot of recent CDs.

Had read praise of Mary Halvorson over the past couple of years, but what I'd read didn't mesh with the folk-chamber-jazz duet I saw a year or so ago. Was also rather put off by the efficiency of the Firehouse 12 publicity machine - announcements seemed to be cropping up everywhere, every day.

But, the modem needed some exercise and I downloaded...

Peter Brotzmann - The Brain of the Dog in Section - Atavistic

It's been quiet recently, so here's a suggestion to warm up those winter evenings.

Been finding recent small-group Brotzmann sessions a little formulaic (never really cared for the larger group, Octet or Tentet?).

But this one comes across like a breath of fresh air - duo with Fred Lonberg-Holm. Seems to pull Brotzmann out of his cruise control (was similarly taken when I saw Lonberg-Holm perform with Joe McPhee some while ago). Worth checking out if you've become a bit jaded in recent months. But a warning if you buy CDs by quantity - playing time is only 37 minutes.

Les Stances A Sophie - AEC

If you've ever been curious about the film behind the soundtrack, it's now out on DVD (at least here in England) - released by Soul Jazz.

Essentially a bit of sub-par French cinema of the time telling a tale of ex-hippie adjusting to marriage to straight man. Snippets of AEC burst out from time to time (sounding a bit different to how I remember the record) and there's a brief performance. Also Joseph Jarman does a spot of acting (plays the part of a jazz musician - not wholly convincingly).

cadavre esquis compilation

the first Cadavre Esquis compilation is now up at
http://www.imperfectsilence.whi-music.co.uk/

as i haven't integrated this with the rest of the site, it's kind of a demi-release. this is so that anyone who's on the CD can have a look at the sleeve etc and check for typos/offer constructive criticism etc. next week i'll do the rest, and then make hard copies for participants.

meantime, anyone else is free to check it out and offer comments as well. hope you like it.

cheers

Where is Cecil Taylor performing next?

I saw Cecil perform once in Philadelphia, two years ago, and I'm eager to see him again. Does anyone know of a website or mailing service that will keep me up to date about his shows? He once had a website, but sadly it's gone. Thanks!
Best,
Heath

www.myspace.com/grasshairduo
"Breathe If You Can" is on Leo Records

The East

Just been listening to an album by Mtume & the Umoja Ensemble, 'Alkebu Lan (Land of the Blacks') - really powerful Black nationalist spiritual/free jazz double LP featuring the likes of Gary Bartz, Carlos Garnett, Joe Lee Wilson and Andy Bey. Anyway, I noticed in the recording details that it was recorded at The East, which was also, of course, the location for Pharoah Sanders' 'Live at The East', which was recorded at around the same point in the 1970s. All the details I can find on The East was that it was located in Brooklyn. Does anyone know anything else about this club?

Syndicate content