Medeski Martin & Wood Tonic (2000)

The Dropper is the 2000 album by jazz trio Medeski, Martin & Wood. This was their second album for Blue Note.

Imagine the cubist angles of Sun Ra’s alto saxophonist Marshall Allen fluttering in between beats, Marc Ribot on guitar, plus strings, and a percussion ensemble, and you have a glimpse into what the Dropper is about. The album organically weaves avant-garde experimentalism and hypnotic thunder music into a well-developed dropper. Witness the trio’s maturing sound metamorphize once again.

Medeski, Martin & Wood had already created a series of fine albums and a fervent following before they were signed to Blue Note, one of the most prestigious labels in jazz history. But rather than taking it easy after having made it in the jazz world, MM&W actually pushed the envelope even further during the Blue Note years, continually challenging their listeners as well as themselves. Note Bleu: The Best of the Blue Note Years: 1998-2005 compiles tracks from all five Blue Note albums, and does an excellent job of summarizing their label tenure. The Tonic recording was something of an anomaly. Self-produced and entirely acoustic, it's represented by only one track: a beautiful, slow interpretation of "Hey Joe." As nice as it is, it just doesn't fit with the rest of the material and breaks the flow just a bit.

Friday Afternoon In The Universe is the 1995 album by Medeski, Martin & Wood, their third effort. This was released by Gramavision.

Imagine the cubist angles of Sun Ra’s alto saxophonist Marshall Allen fluttering in between beats, Marc Ribot on guitar, plus strings, and a percussion ensemble, and you have a glimpse into what the Dropper is about. The album organically weaves avant-garde experimentalism and hypnotic thunder music into a well-developed dropper. Witness the trio’s maturing sound metamorphize once again.

Imagine the cubist angles of Sun Ra’s alto saxophonist Marshall Allen fluttering in between beats, Marc Ribot on guitar, plus strings, and a percussion ensemble, and you have a glimpse into what the Dropper is about. The album organically weaves avant-garde experimentalism and hypnotic thunder music into a well-developed dropper. Witness the trio’s maturing sound metamorphize once again.

End Of The World Party (Just In Case) is the 2004 album by Medeski, Martin & Wood. Released by Blue Note/EMI, it was the last album the group did for Blue Note before returning to an independent label.

Medeski, Martin & Wood had already created a series of fine albums and a fervent following before they were signed to Blue Note, one of the most prestigious labels in jazz history. But rather than taking it easy after having made it in the jazz world, MM&W actually pushed the envelope even further during the Blue Note years, continually challenging their listeners as well as themselves. Note Bleu: The Best of the Blue Note Years: 1998-2005 compiles tracks from all five Blue Note albums, and does an excellent job of summarizing their label tenure. The Tonic recording was something of an anomaly. Self-produced and entirely acoustic, it's represented by only one track: a beautiful, slow interpretation of "Hey Joe." As nice as it is, it just doesn't fit with the rest of the material and breaks the flow just a bit.

Medeski, Martin & Wood had already created a series of fine albums and a fervent following before they were signed to Blue Note, one of the most prestigious labels in jazz history. But rather than taking it easy after having made it in the jazz world, MM&W actually pushed the envelope even further during the Blue Note years, continually challenging their listeners as well as themselves. Note Bleu: The Best of the Blue Note Years: 1998-2005 compiles tracks from all five Blue Note albums, and does an excellent job of summarizing their label tenure. The Tonic recording was something of an anomaly. Self-produced and entirely acoustic, it's represented by only one track: a beautiful, slow interpretation of "Hey Joe." As nice as it is, it just doesn't fit with the rest of the material and breaks the flow just a bit.

Farmer's Reserve is the 1997 album by Medeski, Martin & Wood. This was their last album before they found a new home with Blue Note Records. This was remastered and reissued in 2004 on Indirecto via Billy Martin's own label, Amulet.