Craig Oldham

As a lifelong soul boy - poet, actor, presenter Craig Charles has been adding to his trunk of funk music since his youth, and now after almost 20 years hosting his world renowned BBC6 Music and Radio 2 shows, DJing at clubs and festivals around the globe his reputation as an ambassador for all things soulful & funky is indisputable.

Craig Taborn's recorded debut as a leader showcases the talented pianist in a variety of settings ranging from post-bop and hard bop to free jazz and avant-garde jazz, with bassist Jaribu Shahid and drummer Tani Tabbal providing strong support throughout the sessions. Taborn's furious opener is "David the Goliath," a turbulent number that blends a driving post-bop attack with an occasionally exotic Middle Eastern flavor. The pianist's "Uproot" is reminiscent of the flights of Cecil Taylor. He also delves into less familiar works by jazz giants, including Ornette Coleman's quirky "Compassion," Horace Silver's relaxing "Shirl," and a jaunty interpretation of John Coltrane's "Bass Blues," the latter showcasing Shahid.

This CD invokes the presence of the divine mother. I listend to this CD while at a week long silent meditation retreat. It filled me with a gentle joy, peace and immense loving kindness. It is very calming, gentle and nurturing. It features the following songs: Ganesh Invocation, Devi Prayer and Lalitha Ashtotram, which is a Sanskrit mantra of the 108 sacred names of the mother divine. ~ Brad VanAuken

How is it that Eela Craig haven't gotten more attention from lovers of ‘70s Euro-rock? Is it because they were too Austrian or too arty for Krautrock lovers, who prefer the grittier, more visceral sounds of German bands like Can and Guru Guru to Eela Craig's sophisticated prog stylings? On the other side of the fence, did they miss out on inclusion in the pantheon of classic prog bands because they weren't from England, or were lumped in with the Krautrock scene? Whatever the case, their second album, One Niter, is a grand-scale prog rock masterpiece. There was a five-year gap between One Niter and the band's debut album, which gave Eela Craig plenty of time to evolve from the post-psychedelic sounds of their first effort…

Now here's something you don't hear too much in the world of prog rock: a Christian prog rock album. But Eela Craig did such an album in 1978. "Missa Universalis", their fourth album takes a Roman Catholic Mass to a prog rock context. Luckily they didn't have to water down their prog rock sound to have a religious theme. At this point, they were playing a rather lush style of prog rock heavy on the string synths, not unlike what Eloy was doing at the same time, only more polished, and surprisingly (given Eela Craig were Austrians), no ridiculously accented vocals like you do Frank Bornemann. For this concept, the members of the band decided to sing in four languages, Latin, French, German, and English, quite a lot for the band to do, put they pulled it off.

Released at the beginning of 1978 (recorded August to November 1977), there was one minor change in the Eela Craig lineup. And that was the return of vocalist Wil Orthofer, apparently because the band he was in between his absence with Eela Craig, called Ice Planet (a blues outfit that never recorded, that also featured two other ex-Eela Craig members, Heinz Gerstmair and Horst Waber) broke up due to the deaths from two non-Eela Craig members from two separate automobile accidents. The funk has more or less disappeared, going for a more conventional late '70s symphonic prog rock sound.

Composers Craig Armstrong and Calum Martin have embarked upon a new collaboration, which began as a meeting of ideas with a mutual, long-held belief that there was a special project to be written, looking at the unique spiritual tradition of Gaelic Psalm singing. This has been achieved in a most spectacular way on the brand new album, ‘The Edge of the Sea’, featuring two new works: ‘The Martyrdom Variations’, and ‘Ballantyne’; with the concept being realised by bringing together a curated congregation by Calum’s from the Isles of Lewis and Harris in the Outer Hebrides of Scotland, along with the outstanding talent and enthusiasm of the Scottish Ensemble. It was agreed at the outset by them both that any music based on the Gaelic Psalms would have to be respectful of the tradition and that the composition written to accompany the singing would allow complete freedom of expression for the singing style.