Tennessee State Fair: Cattle

Tennessee State Fair: Introduction

OK, that's it for birds for the time being.

On Sunday, August 13th, Liz and I went to the State Fair for the sole purpose of taking photographs. Look forward to lots of pics of farm animals, model trains, and the bizarre attractions of the midway.

Uncommon Birds at the Feeder: Rufous-sided Towhee

Uncommon Birds at the Feeder: Brown Thrasher

Uncommon Birds at the Feeder: Summer Tanager (female)

At least I think that's what this is. The thing is, I've never seen a male Summer Tanager around, which is red with black wings. I used to think it was some kind of oriole, but I don't think that's right. If it is a Summer Tanager, she will fly to the tropics for the winter. We'll see.

Sun Ra Sunday

Interlude: 1967-1970

Although the Arkestra was finding an increasing amount of paying work during the late nineteen-sixties, maintaining a residence in Manhattan was becoming untenable. Szwed describes the situation:

As New York City became aware of the shift in demographics taking place in the
East Village, the police began to pay more attention to the area, and the Arkestra was regularly warned about the noise at rehearsals. So when the landlord decided to put the house up for sale Sun Ra saw that it was time for a move. Marshall Allen’s father owned some property in Philadelphia and offered to rent them a row house at 5626 Morton Street in Germantown. So in the fall of 1968 Sun Ra moved to what he called ‘the city Brotherly shove,’ the ‘worst place in America,’ ‘the headquarters of the devil in disguise.’ (p.266)

Philadelphia was perhaps not quite as bad as all that; the Morton Street house remained Ra’s headquarters for the rest of his life and, to this day, Marshall Allen still lives there where he continues to conduct the posthumous Arkestra’s business. Szwed goes on to inform us:

Rehearsals created a few complaints from their new neighbors, but when the
police arrived, Sonny told them they were merely making a joyous noise to the
Lord in the city as the Good Book required. And gradually they became known as
good neighbors, especially liked by the kids. Within a year there was a record
by the Arkestra on the juke box in the neighborhood Laundromat and Sonny was
listed in the Philadelphia phone book as ‘Ra, Sun.’ (the phone was sometimes
answered by an ominous voice which proclaimed, ‘You have reached Outer Space…’) (p.267-268)

Nevertheless, the move to Philadelphia was disruptive. In 1968, Ra’s music was still virtually unknown outside of New York (and perhaps Chicago) so recruiting competent musicians was more difficult and, with much of the Arkestra scattered across the eastern seaboard, the more intricate ensemble pieces and swing-era showpieces of the old repertoire suffered from inadequate rehearsal time. Philadelphia also lacked a thriving jazz scene so any paying work would entail travelling back and forth to New York City. Soon, relentless travelling would come to define the Arkestra’s existence: first out to California, then to Europe and beyond.

By mid-1970, everything was in place for the next phase of Sun Ra’s earthly journey, a great adventure that would take him around the planet as the intergalactic cosmic messenger of space-age jazz. Always an early-adopter of new technology, Sonny had acquired the latest electronic keyboards: a Hohner Clavinet, a Gibson Kalamazoo organ, a more deluxe Farisa, the RMI Rocksichord electric piano, and a Moog Minimoog monophonic synthesizer. Along with the acoustic piano, these instruments would comprise his arsenal throughout the nineteen-seventies. On stage, Ra appeared to be piloting a spaceship from behind his cockpit of keyboards with their myriad knobs, switches and twinkling lights. The core members of the Arkestra were by now wholly committed to Ra’s expansive vision; brass players and rhythm section members would come and go, but these musicians would remain stalwart accomplices to the end. Sonny was refining his compositional approach, writing specifically for these core musicians and incorporating conducted improvisations into the structure of his compositions. Soon he would embark on his ambitious “Discipline” series (which eventually numbered well over one hundred titles) each of which builds insanely complex structures out of the simplest materials. With the addition of June Tyson and other singer/dancers along with a full-blown light show, Sun Ra was transforming live performances into a ritualized “cosmo drama” full of theatrical choreography, sanctified exhortations, elaborate space chants, and maniacal percussion workouts — perfect for the psychedelic-ized audiences of the time. But at the same time, Ra could now rely on his “micro-Arkestra” consisting of John Gilmore, Marshall Allen, and Danny Davis to realize any new music, as The Night of the Purple Moon so ably demonstrates.

Aside from the handful of albums we’ve just discussed, this transformative period from 1967 to 1970 is (relatively speaking) sparsely documented and various and sundry tracks only appear on a handful of compilations which were issued in later years. Interestingly, a decent-quality audience recording from the Electric Circus in 1968 also circulates amongst collectors, giving some crude indication of the state of the “cosmo drama” during this period. Sorting all of this material out will be the focus of the next several Sun Ra Sundays.

Playlist 9-12-09

* Corelli: Trio Sonatas (English Concert/Pinnock) (Arkiv Produktion CD)
* Veracini: Sonatas (Holloway/ter Linden/Mortensen) (ECM CD)
* LeClair: Sonatas (Holloway/ter Linden/Mortensen) (ECM CD)
* J.S. Bach: Pour clavecin solo (Richard Egarr) (Harmonia Mundi CD)
* Miles Davis: Complete Live at the Plugged Nickel, 1965 (d.1-3) (Columbia 8CD)
* Herbie Hancock, et al.: Blow Up (original soundtrack) (4 Men With Beards LP)
* Sun Ra: Janus (1201 Music CD)
* Sun Ra: The Solar Myth Approach Vols.1&2 (BYG Actuel/Charly 2CD)
* Sun Ra: Electric Circus, New York, NY 1968 (AUD 2CDR)
* The Beatles: Please Please Me (mono) (Apple/EMI CD)
* The Beatles: With the Beatles (mono) (Apple/EMI CD)
* The Beatles: A Hard Day’s Night (mono) (Apple/EMI CD)
* The Beatles: The Beatles For Sale (mono) (Apple/EMI CD)
* The Beatles: Help! (mono) (Apple/EMI CD)
* The Beatles: The Beatles (a/k/a The White Album) (mono) (Apple/EMI 2CD)
* The Beatles: Mono Masters (Apple/EMI 2CD)
* Pink Floyd: Piper at the Gates of Dawn (Deluxe Edition) (d.1&3) (EMI 3CD)
* Van Morrison: Astral Weeks (Warner Bros. LP)
* Van Morrison: Moondance (Warner Bros. LP)
* Grateful Dead: Greek Theatre, Berkeley, CA 7-13-84 (SBD 3CDR)
* Grateful Dead: Road Trips Vol.2, No.1: “MSG September ’90” (GD 3CD)
* Grateful Dead: The Spectrum, Philadelphia, PA 3-18-95 (SBD 2CDR)
* Jerry Garcia Band: Bay Area 1978 (Pure Jerry 2CD)
* The Smiths: The Sound of the Smiths (Warner Bros./Rhino 2CD)
* Yo La Tengo: Popular Songs (Matador CD)
* Robert Pollard: Elephant Jokes (GBV, Inc. LP)
* Jim O’Rourke: The Visitor (Drag City LP)
* Boredoms: Chocolate Synthesizer (Reprise CD)

Commentary:

Question: In their 25-year-long career, has Yo La Tengo ever made a bad (or even mediocre) album? Answer: No. Their new album, Popular Songs, is a sprawling, magnum opus. It feels like a glorious summation of their already polymathic aesthetic, but at the same time adds yet another new element to their sound: tastefully arranged strings which give some of these tracks a cozily, Bacharach-ian panache. Once again, Nashville’s own Roger Moutenot produced. This record has been getting a lot of play at Chateau NuVoid since its release on Tuesday.

The return of Jim O’Rourke from self-imposed exile is also a big event at the record store. The Visitor is a brilliantly executed suite of orchestral pop music full of intricate arrangements and evocative instrumentation. Unlike Eureka (1999) and Insignificance (2002), there is no singing, but that’s OK. O’Rourke plays every single instrument flawlessly and seamlessly, further evidencing the length and breadth of his musical genius. Just beautiful.

It might be after the end of the world, but there sure are some great records being released these days!

Common Birds at the Feeder: Downy Woodpecker (male)

Common Birds at the Feeder: Mourning Dove

Common Birds at the Feeder: Red-bellied Woodpecker (male)

Common Birds at the Feeder: Hairy Woodpecker (female)

Common Birds at the Feeder: Northern Cardinal (female)

Common Birds at the Feeder: Tufted Titmouse

Yard Piano

Sure, most places have “yard cars.” Here in Music City we also have “yard pianos!”

Yard Car

Sun Ra Sunday

Sun Ra & His Intergalactic Infinity Arkestra: The Night of the Purple Moon (Atavistic CD)

In mid-1970, Sun Ra reentered Variety Recording Studio, this time with a bare-bone Arkestra and yet another new electronic keyboard in tow, the RMI Rocksichord. In his perceptive liner notes to this CD, John Corbett describes the sound of the Rocksichord as an “unforgettable nasal quack,” and that’s a pretty accurate description of this primitive, transistorized electric piano. In another person’s hands, this would sound cheesy and (now) hopelessly out of date. But Ra builds solid, evocative compositions around the instrument and it is, inexplicably, just exactly perfect. Unfortunately, the original tapes were unsalvageable, so this reissue had to be sourced from a clean LP. There’s plenty of surface noise present, so at least we can be thankful the producers didn’t get carried away with the noise reduction and de-clicking, which can often just make things worse. Although Impulse! was prepared to reissue this album in late-seventies, it has remained an ultra-rare artifact until Atavistic released this CD in 2007. Despite the less-than-perfect sound-quality, The Night of the Purple Moon is one of the great Sun Ra albums – and one of my favorite albums of all time.

Gilmore plays mostly drums throughout, only pulling out the tenor saxophone for “Impromptu Festival,” where Danny Davis sits in on the drum stool. While neither were virtuoso drummers, they were more than adequate and, most importantly, well understood the unique rhythmic feel of Ra’s music. Stafford James produces a beautiful, rounded tone on the electric bass, at times almost sounding like an upright acoustic. Sadly, this was James’s only recorded appearance with the Arkestra. “Sun Earth Rock” sets the tone with the quacking Rocksichord changes over a medium groove and a simple, bluesy head. After a bouncy keyboard interlude, Davis peals off a brief, but astonishingly fluent alto sax solo. “The All of Everything” is a pretty ballad with Davis adding some mellifluous flute to Ra’s gently rippling chords. Gilmore’s tenor solo on “Impromptu Festival” is another example of his sheer genius: opening with a sort of fanfare, he bends and twists the two-note melody and massages the stiff, pre-bop rhythms to construct a trenchant, incisive statement.

The next three tracks feature Sonny alone with two Minimoogs and the Rocksichord, but unlike the experimental improvisations found of My Brother the Wind Vol.II, the pieces are tautly controlled compositions orchestrated for electronic keyboards. “Blue Soul” is a typically moody, down-tempo blues while “Narrative” sets a loping, asymmetrical bass line on synthesizer against stabbing chords and busy melodic figures on the Rocksichord. “Outside the Time Zone” takes a rubato ballad form and puts the melody in the bass synthesizer, embellished with buzzing, quivering Rocksichord.

The ensemble returns with “The Night of the Purple Moon,” which sets up a blues-rock vamp for bass and drums while Ra noodles around in a quasi-Egyptian mode. A tremolo effect gives the Rocksichord a fluttering, psychedelic tinge. “A Bird’s Eye View of Man’s World” pits lurching bass and Rocksichord unisons against Davis’s squealing alto, while Gilmore drifts in and out of time with free abandon. “21st Century Romance” is another lilting ballad with James holding down a throbbing pedal point with Gilmore’s simple, but effective drumming. Meanwhile, Davis extemporizes on the richly woody alto clarinet along with Ra’s thrumming Rocksichord. “Dance of the Living Image” choogles along with a repeating ostinato and Davis tapping away on bongos. The album closes with a relaxed performance of “Love in Outer Space,” a tune which was by now a staple in the Arkestra’s songbook. Davis alternates between alto clarinet and bongos, leaving most of the musical space to Ra’s percolating Rocksichord.

For this CD reissue, Atavistic has conveniently added the alternate version of “Love in Outer Space” that was previously issued on Out There a Minute. Taken a slightly faster tempo, this version follows a similar contour, but is perhaps a more satisfying performance due to Ra’s interestingly varied electronic timbres. Three additional bonus tracks are also included, derived from a 1964 home recording of Sonny soloing on Wurlitzer electric piano and electric celesta. The Wurlitzer sounds a little worse for wear, but the damaged instrument creates interesting percussive, overtone-laden effects which mesh nicely with the ringing, bell-like celesta. While these tracks are mostly inconsequential, they are conceptually similar to the Minimoog and Rocksichord solos found on the album proper, and serve to further demonstrate Ra’s brilliantly coloristic approach to electronics. An appropriate appendix to a near-perfect album.

Playlist 9-5-09

* Marais: Pièces de Viole du Second Livre, 1701 (Savall et al.) (Telefunken LP>CDR)
* Marais: Pièces de Viole Vol.2: Quatrième Livre, 1717 (Savall et al.) (Telefunken LP>CDR)
* Corelli: Trio Sonatas (English Concert/Pinnock) (Arkiv Produktion CD)
* Handel: 12 Solo Sonatas, Op.1 (Academy of Ancient Music/Egarr) (Harmonia Mundi 2CD)
* J.S. Bach: Orchestral Suites (Akademie für Alte Musik – Berlin) (Harmonia Mundi 2CD)
* Clemenic Consort: Danses Anciennes de Hongrie (Harmonia Mundi LP>CDR)
* Les Basses Reunies: Prokys Hall, Cesky Krumlov (CZ) 7-12-07 (FM CDR)
* Il Concerto Viennese (Leopold/Dearing): Schloss Eggenberg, Graz 7-27-08 (FM CDR)
* Musica Florea: Schloss Eggenberg, Graz 9-1-08 (FM CDR)
* Holloway/ter Linden/Mortensen: Garrison Church, Copenhagen 4-8-08 (FM 2CDR)
* Miles Davis Ascenseur pour l’échafaud (original soundtrack) (Fontana/Polygram CD)
* Charles Mingus Sextet with Eric Dolphy: Cornell 1964 (Blue Note 2CD)
* Keith Jarrett: Mysteries: The Impulse Years: 1975-1976 (Impulse! 4CD)
* The Beatles: Rubber Soul (mono) (Apple/EMI CD)
* The Beatles: Revolver (mono) (Apple/EMI CD)
* The Beatles: Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band (mono) (Apple/EMI CD)
* The Beatles: Magical Mystery Tour (mono) (Apple/EMI CD)
* The Beatles: The Mono Masters (disc 2) (Apple/EMI CD)
* Bob Dylan: Together Through Life (Columbia 2LP)
* Grateful Dead: Road Trips Vol.2, No.4: “Cal Expo ‘93” (GD 3CD)
* Jerry Garcia Band: Bay Area 1978 (Pure Jerry 2CD)
* Wilco: Wilco (the album) (Nonesuch CD)
* Wilco: Kicking Television (Nonesuch 2CD)
* Yo La Tengo: Ride the Tiger (City Slang CD)
* Robert Pollard: Crickets: Best of the Fading Captain Series 1999-2007 (FCS 2CD)
* Robert Pollard: The Crawling Distance (GBV, Inc. CD)
* Robert Pollard: Elephant Jokes (GBV, Inc. LP)
* Swell Maps: A Trip to Marineville (Munster 2LP + 7”)
* Boredoms: Pop Tatari (Reprise CD)
* Sonic Youth: The Eternal (Matador 2LP)

Commentary:

I was shocked – shocked, I tell you! – to find The Beatles In Mono box set in my mailbox this afternoon. It is not even “officially” available until Wednesday (9-9-09) and, given its “limited edition” status, I was unsure if my order from Music Direct would even be filled. I never even received an email confirmation! I eagerly opened it up and immediately put on Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band, which is a very different album in mono and is, like the other albums in this collection, the edition the Beatles themselves assembled and approved. Listening to it was a revelation, even though I have heard “needle-drop” CDR transcriptions of the original mono LP. Suitably impressed, I proceeded to listen to a bunch of other albums, which had Lizzy and I both dancing around the house. The Beatles catalog has needed remastering for a long, long time, and the mono mixes have been out of print since the nineteen-sixties. (NB: The U.S. versions of the Beatles catalog up through Rubber Soul in mono and stereo are available on The Capitol Albums Vol.1 & 2, but these editions are famously “butchered.) Better late than never, EMI has finally done a suitably magnificent job with these CDs. Manufactured in Japan, the mono set meticulously replicates the original LP jackets, inner sleeves, and inserts and each is wrapped in a clear, re-sealable mylar bag. The discs themselves, which reproduce the original labels, are contained in round-bottomed rice paper sleeves, typical of first-class Japanese fastidiousness. Nice! Needless to say, The Beatles will be big part of the soundtrack this Labor Day Weekend. At some point, I will need to obtain the stereo box, which contains Let It Be and Abbey Road, neither of which were mixed to mono, stereophonic reproduction having become the norm by 1969. Incidentally, the mono box contains the original 1965 stereo mixes of Help! and Rubber Soul since the stereo box inexplicably utilizes George Martin’s 1987 remixes. Confusing? Yes. But I am grateful to have them. Due to the surprisingly high demand, EMI is apparently preparing a second pressing of The Beatles in Mono, so if you’re interested, do not hesitate; this is the Beatles as they were meant to be heard and I am certain that these mixes will again slip out of print in the near future.

Pretty Pink Light

Monsters by Liz

In 2004 (or so), Liz embarked on a wonderful art project. She made a couple dozen of these “monsters” and left them around for people to find on grocery store shelves, gas-station pumps, and other random locations. Attached was a little booklet; this one says:

YES
You found me!
I’ve been waiting for you.
I have 3 questions:
1. What did you love to do as a child that made the hours fly by?
2. Do you still do those things?
3. If not, how would you change your life to do them again?
?

Isn’t that beautiful?

(Thanks, Liz!)

Common Birds at the Feeder: Northern Cardinal (male)