Rabshakeh

I wasn't really around at the time (too busy learning to walk / chew / etc.), but wasn't a lot of the rhetoric weirdly anti-corporate, rather than the other way around? For example, the quotations from the link in Dub Modal's post above emphasise how Really Real Jazz (TM 1965: Columbia) was artistic and uncommercial, whereas what the Second Quintet sidemen had being doing in the intervening period was selling out. Both came out on Warner / Columbia etc. Quite how Crossings was meant to be "commercial" but J Mood was "authentic" escapes me. But that's called marketing, I guess.

Some great stuff posted in the last 6 hours. I know this is a thread that mostly goes on in the background, but I still get a lot out of it. There's always new records to listen to or old friends to revisit.

That's a good one.

I was going to put that one down! But I had a failure of will.

I meant more the endless controversy, although I am a bit surprised at how few of those records have been mentioned too. I don't think they're that bad, although Guy Berger's "astro-turfy and phony" is a good phrase which I intend to adopt myself going ahead. Okay, here are my favourite jazz records of the 80s, in rough chronological order. Some may have already been mentioned above. Jack deJohnette - Special Edition Arthur Blythe - Illusions Fred Anderson - The Milwaukee Tapes, Vol. 1 Derek Bailey, John Zorn and George Lewis - Yankees Milcho Leviev - Blues for the Fishermen Andrew Hill - Strange Serenade Julius Hemphill - Flat Out Jump Suite Pharaoh Sanders - Journey to the One David Murray - Ming Derek Bailey - Aida Muhal Richard Abrams - Mama and Daddy World Saxophone Quartet - Steppin' Grover Washington Jr - Winelight Roscoe Mitchell and the Sound Ensemble - Snurdy McGurdy and her Dancing Shoes James Newton - Axum Chico Freeman - The Outside Within Phil Woods/Lew Tabackin - Phil Woods/Lew Tabackin Steve Lacy - N.Y. Capers & Quirks Chick Corea - Three Quartets Old and New Dreams - Playing Vinny Golia - The Gift of Fury Anthony Braxton - Six Compositions: Quartet Bill Dixon - November 1981 Mal Waldron and Steve Lacy - Live at Dreher Paris 1981 Keith Tippett - Mujician Lester Bowie - The Great Pretender Griot Galaxy - Kins Leo Cuyper - Heavy Days Are Here Again John Carter - Dauwhe Bob Moses - When Elephants Dream of Music Ethnic Heritage Ensemble - Impressions World Saxophone Quartet - Revue Roswell Rudd, Steve Lacy, Misha Mengelberg, Kent Carter and Han Bennink - Regeneration Billy Bang - Outline No. 12 George Adams Don Pullen Quartet - City Gates Joe McPhee Po Music - Oleo Kaoru Abe - Mort a Credit Kenny Baron Trio - Green Chimneys Steve Lacy Seven - Cliches Harrison/Blanchard - New York Second Line Lee Konitz and Martial Solal - Star Eyes, Hamburg 1983 Sun Ra - A Fireside Chat With Lucifer Jaco Pastorius - Invitation Trovesi Damiani Quintet - Roccellanea Khan Jamal Quartet - Dark Warrior Vienna Art Orchestra - The Minimalism of Eric Satie New Phil Woods Quintet - Integrity Fred Anderson - The Missing Link Peter Brotzmann - 14 Love Poems Paul Motian - The Story of Maryam Cecil Taylor - Winged Serpents (Sliding Quadrants) Grupo Niche - No Hay Quinto Malo Nate Morgan - Retribution, Reparation Position Alpha - The Great Sound of Sound Ray Anderson - Right Down Your Alley Dave Holland - Seeds of Time Lester Bowie's Brass Fantasy - I Only Have Eyes for You John Hicks - Inc. 1 Anthony Braxton - Quartet (Coventry) 1985 Irene Schweizer - The Storming of the Winter Palace James Newton - The African Flower Joe Henderson - State of the Tenor John Carter - Castles of Ghana Last Exit - Last Exit Ran Blake Quartet - The Short Life of Barbara Monk Steve Lacy - Morning Joy Andrew Hill Trio and Quartet - Shades Tim Berne - Fulton Street Maul Irene Schweizer - Live at Taktlos Misha Mengelberg, Steve Lacy, George Lewis, Ernst Reijseger, Han Bennink - Dutch Masters Mal Waldron and Steve Lacy - Sempre Amore Edward Vesala - Lumi Out of the Blue - Live at Mount Fuji Charlie Haden / Paul Motian feat. Geri Allen - Etudes David Torn, Time Berne and Ches Smith - Cloud about Mercury Michael Brecker - Michael Brecker Charles Brackeen Quartet - Worshippers Come Nigh Irene Schweizer & Gunter Sommer - Irene Schweizer & Gunter Sommer John Zorn, George Lewis and Bill Frissell - News for Lulu Evan Parker - The Snake Decides Jerome Cooper Quintet - Outer and Interactions Gonzalo Rubalcabra - Mi Gran Pasion Derek Bailey and Cyro Baptista - CYRO Mal Waldron and Jim Pepper - Art of the Duo Muhal Richard Abrams - The Hearinga Suite Gary Thomas & Seventh Quadrant - Code Violations John Butcher, Phil Durrant, Paul Lovens, Radu Malfatti, John Russell - News from the Shed Henry Threadgill Sextet - Rag, Bush and All Paul Bley Trio - BeBopBeBopBeBopBeBop

I was impressed at how long the thread has gone before anyone even mentioned them.

Thumbs up from me for the recent Voluptuaries record on Leo by Brandon Seabrook and Simon Nabatov. It's a really nice one if you fancy something free improv-ish, but with a bit of heart. Nul points for the font choice on the album cover though! It's on Bandcamp with some tracks available for streaming.

Thanks!

Good reminder. I'm overdue revisiting that one.

I hadn't heard of the Italian Instabile Orchestra at all. Looks like a great place to start.

Thanks!

Yep! Likewise.

Currently listening to this one: From G To G (Soulnote, 1992) by the Gianluigi Trovesi Octet. It easily stands up to the best records by Threadgill's or Murray's octets (no disrespect to those great groups - I'm using them as a marker for quality). As always, I'm struck by how (comparatively) under-explored and under-promoted the Italian scene is. I seem to have a thousand Brötzmann records and yet I am hearing this utter gem for the first time today. Some nice recommendations in the above thread, but if anyone has any more albums they want to suggest to some receptive ears, please let me know.

I can't think of another artist who keeps you guessing what's coming next quite like Harris does.

Thanks Hutch! I saw your post earlier and thought it was worth checking.

There've been a couple mentions of Eddie Harris albums and sideman dates in the '80s popping up recently. It hadn't occured to me that he kept recording that late. Are any of them really worth tracking down? Does he switch to standard tenor or is he still using effects?

Thanks Steve! I love the older RED trio records with some of the collaborators here and was sizing this one up. I'll take the plunge.

How is this one? I can always use Oliver Lake recommendations.

I take the same view. It's pretty shredding and fun. I'm not sure I'd take the platinum option dining experience at $9,500 though.

Gotta say, I'm really enjoying Mat Walerian's bass clarinet playing at the moment on his records with Matthew Shipp and others (e.g., last year's Every Dog Has Its Day But It Doesn't Matter Because Fat Cat Is Getting Richer on ESP).

It's been uploaded to Bandcamp: https://talkingjazz.bandcamp.com/album/talking-jazz Purchase or streaming. A wonderful resource.

He went through a funny comeback about a decade and a half ago. It faded as fast as it came. Always plumped for Martin Denny meself.

I doubt that anything in it would be news to you. It is very much an overview. I enjoyed the telling, and the way he tied the threads into an overall narrative.

Atomic / School Days - Nuclear Assembly Hall (Okla, 2004) Nice to reconnect with this one. It has aged well. Not dissimilar to Chicago Octet/Tentent in style, but more easily digestible.

I finished this book today. I have to say that I enjoyed it about as much as any book that I have read about the jazz avant garde (which is what it is: it's about avant garde jazz and improvised music from the New Thing in the 60s to the European Free Improv and NY Downtown scenes of the 90s; it really isn't about jazz in the 70s), except possibly for books made up of interviews with musicians (in which category I'd put Val Wilmer etc). It has a nice feel for narrative and development, and it stays reasonably open-minded and free of polemic. I particularly liked the mixed focus, which draws in economic, structural and critical developments and gives them near-equal billing with musical developments.