The Odds Avant Qu'elle ne Parte

This largely successful Savoy reissue CD brings back an obscure session led by Charles Moffett who here mostly plays vibes and a bit of trumpet in addition to drums. He is teamed up with the underrated (and largely forgotten) tenor-saxophonist Paul Jeffrey, bassist Wilbur Ware and drummers Dennis O'Toole and seven-year old Codaryl Moffett. On some selections both O'Toole and Codaryl play drums and the latter proves to be able to hold his own even at such a young age; in fact Codaryl contributed two of the five originals. The songtitle "Avant Garde Got Soul Too" pretty well sums up this adventurous but often surprisingly melodic set.

John Hollenbeck - The Claudia Quintet (2001) {Blueshift–CRI CD2004}
EAC rip (secure mode) | FLAC (tracks)+CUE+LOG -> 375 Mb | MP3 @320 -> 161 Mb
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© 2001 Blueshift / Composers Recordings Inc. | CD2004
Jazz / Avant-Garde Jazz / New Chamber Music / Modern Creative / Drums

Releasing three quite noteworthy CDs in as many months, drummer/composer John Hollenbeck certainly made what one might describe as an "auspicious debut" as a leader. Just consider the range of styles covered in this burst of activity. No Images, Hollenbeck's initial recording from October 2001, is the most avant-garde of the three, with drums and saxophones squaring off in free jazz territory and trombones and drums accompanying the taped voice of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.; Quartet Lucy, hitting the street in January 2002, reflects Hollenbeck's attraction to the austere and spacious music of the ECM label. And The Claudia Quintet (released on the very same day as Quartet Lucy), a recording of subtlety, beauty, and a fair measure of fire smoldering beneath its surface.

A four-hour, 90-track overview of the Los Angeles music scene between 1965 and 1968
Featuring a dazzling combination of major league LA players, enduring cult acts and ultra-rare garage punk 45s Housed in a stylish clamshell box, ‘Heroes and Villains’ is a fascinating four-hour trip into the heart of the late ‘60s LA music goldmine. After The Beatles captivated a generation with their appearance on the Ed Sullivan Show, the Los Angeles music scene moved beyond the previously-dominant surf, hot-rod and girl group discs to fashion a spirited response to the British Invasion.

The Black Saint and the Sinner Lady is one of the greatest achievements in orchestration by any composer in jazz history. Charles Mingus consciously designed the six-part ballet as his magnum opus, and – implied in his famous inclusion of liner notes by his psychologist – it's as much an examination of his own tortured psyche as it is a conceptual piece about love and struggle. It veers between so many emotions that it defies easy encapsulation; for that matter, it can be difficult just to assimilate in the first place. Yet the work soon reveals itself as a masterpiece of rich, multi-layered texture and swirling tonal colors, manipulated with a painter's attention to detail. There are a few stylistic reference points – Ellington, the contemporary avant-garde, several flamenco guitar breaks – but the totality is quite unlike what came before it. Mingus relies heavily on the timbral contrasts between expressively vocal-like muted brass, a rumbling mass of low voices (including tuba and baritone sax), and achingly lyrical upper woodwinds, highlighted by altoist Charlie Mariano.

A fascinating collection of mostly instrumental live and studio material recorded by the original Mothers of Invention, complete with horn section, from 1967-1969, Weasels Ripped My Flesh segues unpredictably between arty experimentation and traditional song structures. Highlights of the former category include the classical avant-garde elements of "Didja Get Any Onya," which blends odd rhythmic accents and time signatures with dissonance and wordless vocal noises; these pop up again in "Prelude to the Afternoon of a Sexually Aroused Gas Mask" and "Toads of the Short Forest." The latter and "The Eric Dolphy Memorial Barbecue" also show Frank Zappa's willingness to embrace the avant-garde jazz of the period. Yet, interspersed are straightforward tunes like a cover of Little Richard's "Directly From My Heart to You," with great violin from Don "Sugarcane" Harris…

Back with their first new studio album in four years, Mr. Big have survived the turmoils of significant lineup alternations, the introduction of grunge, a seemingly unavoidable breakup, and the odds stacked against the entire original lineup coming back together for a reunion in 2009, and yet somehow they've overcome all of that and continue to regularly tour and create music right in line with their earlier efforts.