Reissue with the latest remastering. Features original cover artwork. Comes with a descripton in Japanese. A tremendous moment for the great George Adams as a leader – a record that won the reedman widespread attention after some key work in the bigger groups of Gil Evans and Charles Mingus! Adams is a searing, soulful player right from the start – stepping out strongly on tenor at the kickoff of the record, but also blowing some flute with this moodier, more spiritual tone that really deepens our appreciation of his talents as a musician. The rest of the group is filled with similar spiritual energy – and includes Ron Burton on piano, Don Pate on bass, Al Foster on drums, and Azzedin Weston on percussion. The style is nicely different than some of George's later work with Don Pullen – maybe a bit more straightforward, but in a great way that really unlocks his voice as a leader – and titles include "Funk A Roonie Peacock", "Metamorphosis for Mingus", "Paradise Space Shuttle", and "Intentions".
Although a youngster compared to most of his Austin friends, guitarist, singer, and songwriter Charlie Sexton has already had several phases to his career. Sexton, raised in Austin, TX, made his debut with Pictures for Pleasure in 1985 at age 16. He followed that up with a self-titled second album when he was 20. Because word of his reputation as a prodigy guitar player spread far and wide, he found himself an in-demand session player while still in his late teens, and he had the opportunity to record with Ron Wood, Keith Richards, and Bob Dylan.
There is a moment near the top of jaimie branch’s FLY or DIE LIVE, the new album recorded by the trumpeter’s quartet in Zurich, Switzerland on January 23rd, 2020, which feels like it bears the weight of both that specific pocket of time, and a prophecy for all that was soon to come. branch and her Fly or Die crew — cellist Lester St. Louis, double bassist Jason Ajemian, and drummer/percussionist/mbira player Chad Taylor — had just kicked off the concert at Moods, with the opening tracks off their then-new studio album FLY or DIE II: Bird Dogs of Paradise, the second of which, “Prayer for Amerikkka” is among the best political songs written during the Tr*mp Era, and when the moment in question pops off.