Expression Encoder 4

In October 1990, Lou Reed interviewed Vaclav Havel, playwright, poet, president of the newly emancipated Czechoslovakia, and – surprisingly? – a Velvet Underground fan. During the course of their conversation, Havel handed Reed a book. "These are your lyrics, hand-printed and translated into Czechoslovakian. There were only 200 of them. They were very dangerous to have. People went to jail." Nobody will go to jail for owning Between Thought and Expression, but Reed's lyrics remain dangerous – not, as in Communist Czechoslovakia, for what they are, but for what they say…

801 & Phil Manzanera - 801 Live (1976) {2CD Set, Expression Records EXPCD3R, Collector's Edition rel 2009}
EAC rip (secure mode) | FLAC (tracks)+CUE+LOG -> 786 Mb | MP3 @320 -> 274 Mb
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© 1976, 2009 Expression Records | EXPCD3R
Rock / Prog Rock / Art Rock / Electronic / Experimental Rock

801 provided Roxy Music guitarist Phil Manzanera with one of his most intriguing side projects. Although the band only played three gigs in August and September 1976, this album captures a night when everything fell right into place musically. That should only be expected with names like Eno and Simon Phillips in the lineup. (Still, the lesser-known players – bassist Bill MacCormick, keyboardist Francis Monkman, and slide guitarist Lloyd Watson – are in exemplary form, too.) The repertoire is boldly diverse, opening with "Lagrima," a crunchy solo guitar piece from Manzanera.

Tied to a significant new exhibition at Tate Britain, a killer collection surveying Black Soundsystem culture’s indelible influence on UK over successive generations from the ’70s to the ’00s.

A two-LP set of drummer Billy Cobham's harder to find recordings from the later '70s. Of the two, Magic is far superior and is generally regarded as one of his most interesting recordings in his extensive discography. The addition of Simplicity of Expression: Depth of Thought amounts to nothing more than a throw in. Cobham recorded some embarrassing disco during the late '70s and this is a prime example. This two-fer is too good to pass up, though, and makes the LP highly recommended for fusion collectors.

Tied to a significant new exhibition at Tate Britain, a killer collection surveying Black Soundsystem culture’s indelible influence on UK over successive generations from the ’70s to the ’00s.

Joe Lovano can always be relied upon to switch gears from one project to another, constantly exploring new music and fresh variations of older pieces. On Streams of Expression, he contributes the five-part "Streams of Expression Suite," a three-part "Birth of the Cool Suite" (conducted by Gunther Schuller) that uses themes from Miles Davis' 1948-1950 Nonet, and three briefer works. Lovano utilizes several groups along the way, and there are spots for the other horn players (including tenors George Garzone and Ralph Lalama, baritonist Gary Smulyan, and especially trumpeter Tim Hagans) to be heard. Lovano is in prime form, the Miles Davis melodies are expertly updated, and although none of the new individual themes were destined to be future standards, the playing by Lovano and his sidemen is consistently creative.

The debut album of Joe Lovano’s Trio Tapestry was one of 2019’s most talked-about releases. The trio’s musical concept – the Boston Globe spoke of “utterances of hushed assurance, lyricism and suspense” - is taken to the next level on its second album, Garden of Expression, a recording distinguished by its intense focus. Lovano, a saxophonist whose reach extends across the history of modern jazz and beyond, plays with exceptional sensitivity in Trio Tapestry. And the music he writes for this group - tenderly melodic or declamatory, harmonically open, rhythmically free, and spiritually involving - encourages subtle and differentiated responses from his creative partners. Joe describes their interaction as “magical”. Carmen Castaldi’s space-conscious approach to drumming further refines an improvisational understanding that he and Lovano have shared since the 1970s.

John Coltrane - Expression (1967) {Impulse!-Verve Originals B0015826-02 rel 2011}
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© 1967, 2011 Impulse! / Verve / UMG | Verve Originals Series | B0015826-02 | LP A-9120
Jazz / Avant-Garde Jazz / Modal Music / Free Jazz / Hard Bop / Saxophone

Recorded at two sessions in early 1967, Expression represents John Coltrane's final recording sessions just months before his death. A varied and searching record, Coltrane shares space with fellow universal travelers Pharoah Sanders, Jimmy Garrison, Rashied Ali, and wife Alice Coltrane. This band, working hard during the time leading up to Coltrane's demise, was performing in the most spiritually reaching territory Coltrane would aspire to. This is evidenced by the burning tenor/drum duet section of "Offering," perhaps the highlight of these sessions. Coltrane and Ali spiral into the far reaches here with a boundless energy that somehow remains controlled and restrained even in its rawest moments.

Phil Manzanera & 801 - Listen Now (1977) {Expression Records–Virgin EXPCD17 rel 2000}
EAC rip (secure mode) | FLAC (tracks)+CUE+LOG -> 344 Mb | MP3 @320 -> 130 Mb
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© 1977, 2000 Expression Records / Virgin | EXPCD17 / 7243 849276 22
Rock / Prog Rock / Art Rock / Electronic / Experimental Rock

Phil Manzanera had no problem filling his mid-'70s downtime away from Roxy Music. His guitar graced some 20 albums, like John Cale's Fear, Eno's Here Come the Warm Jets, and Nico's The End. This outing from his all-star side group is slicker than his 1976 live debut album, but no less worthwhile; some 16 musicians are credited. The sound is sleek and sophisticated; even lyrics aren't exempt from creative twists, as shown on "Listen Now"'s glistening jazz-pop – which cleverly juxtaposes its title against a bouncy "now, now, listen" chorus.