Okay, there's been a gap in my blogging. It doesn't mean I fell off the globe, but rather that I'm just an erratic blogger.
So, to catch up - I've been on a bit of an ECM Records jag lately. I don't know what it is about ECM, but I've always been intrigued by the label and its roster. I picked up two recent releases: "In Full View" by the Julia Hulsmann Quartet, and Nik Bartsch's Ronin Live. The Julia Hulsmann Quartet, now with British trumpeter Thomas Arthurs in the fold, is a nice Sunday morning CD. The interplay is subtle, the melodies are not too out there, and there's a warmth throughout the whole CD. Nik Bartsch's Ronin, on the other hand, is a bit more challenging. Imagine the improvisation of King Crimson in the "Larks' Tongues" era with the polyrhythms of the "Discipline" era. The music is more groove oriented - if you can discern a groove in the music, that is. (They seem a bit averse to a straight 4/4 pattern.) The use of the bass clarinet as more of a rhythmic instrument than a lead instrument is surprising, but it works well in this instance. And I still have Keith Jarrett's "Hymns/Spheres" to be played for that perfectly dismal autumn day when it's cold, dark, and windy - the music in this album doesn't really have a happy feel to it.
I was called to help out with the Disco Ensemble for the Old Town School's Disco Tribute on Friday. The drum seat was already ably filled, so I brought a tambourine and cowbell. This is from the first song of the second set - Heatwave's "Groove Line." I wasn't too familiar with it, not having heard the song in God knows how many years, but hey - it's disco. If you can count to four, you can play percussion.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dAzdiM58u70&feature=youtu.be
Saturday, though, had to be the capper. On what was rather spur of the moment, Judy and I decided to see "Once Upon a Dream" featuring The Rascals. And by The Rascals, I'm glad to say that it was the original Rascals - Eddie Brigati, Felix Cavaliere, Gene Cornish, and Dino Danelli. Given that their split in 1970 was legendary (it's one thing to burn bridges, but Brigati used a few thousand pounds of napalm to seal the deal), it's a minor miracle that they are performing on stage again. But under the tutelage of Miami Steve Van Zandt, he was able to coax them to do some performances in New York and New Jersey and, given the success, took the act out to Chicago for five nights. It was a multi-media show, including lots of filmed commentary from the band members and some "flashback" film footage showing the Rascals in their early days. The video part was extraordinary, the music was phenomenal - I can easily file that in one of the five best shows I've ever seen. Kudos to Miami Steve for getting those guys to put on a great show and not end up strangling each other by the end of the first set. There aren't many famous 60s bands whose members are on this side of the ground, so it was good to see the four of them playing together - and playing so well, too.
