four takes
“Swing Low, Sweet Chariot”
Isaiah, live, Chicago, 2014
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Albert Ayler, recording, 1964
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Parliament Funkadelic (“Swing Down, Sweet Chariot”), live Houston, 1976
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Fisk University Jubilee Quartet, recording, 1909
voices I miss
Albert Collins (1932-1993), “Cold, Cold Feeling,” live, Switzerland (Montreux Jazz Festival), 1979
Nobody sounds like this guy, whose 1978 album Ice Pickin’, recorded at Curtis Mayfield’s studio in Chicago and nominated for a Grammy, I’m happy to say I co-produced.
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lagniappe
art beat
Bruce Davidson (1933-), Birmingham, Ala., 1963
sounds of Chicago
Marcos Balter (1974-), Dark Rooms (2007); Third Coast Percussion, 2014
If someone asked me to describe this, I wouldn’t know how to begin—which I mean as a compliment.
#1
#2
#3
#4
#5
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lagniappe
musical thoughts
[Y]oung musicians need Balter as much as Bach.
—Zachary Woolfe, New York Times, 12/3/13
tonight in Chicago
These guys will be playing at Constellation, a performing-arts center owned by the drummer.
Roscoe Mitchell (reeds) & Mike Reed (drums, electronics), live, Poland (Poznan), 2013
#1
#2
sounds of Chicago
Trio WAZ (Edward Wilkerson Jr., tenor saxophone; Tatsu Aoki, bass; Michael Zerang, percussion), live, Chicago, 2009
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lagniappe
art beat
Lee Friedlander (1980-), Detroit, 1963
sounds of Chicago
8 Bold Souls,* live, Poland (Poznan), 2009
#1
#2
#3
#4
#5
#6
*****
*Edward Wilkerson Jr., reeds; Mwata Bowden, reeds; Tomeka Reid, cello; Isaiah Jackson, trombone; Gerald Powell, tuba; Robert Griffin, trumpet; Harrison Bankhead, bass; Dushun Mosley, drums.
yesterday
I heard this guy at Chicago’s Jazz Showcase.
Charles McPherson (alto saxophone) with son Chuck McPherson (drums), live, La Jolla, California, 1997
summer in the city
Outkast, live, Chicago (Lollapalooza), 8/2/14
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lagniappe
found words
These rules will be strictly enforced. Please ensure your adherence and remain within these guidelines so as to avoid any misunderstanding or an uncomfortable situation.
—FCI Coleman Low (federal prison), visitors’ waiting room, sign
sounds of Chicago
Fred Anderson Trio (FA, tenor saxophone; Tatsu Aoki, bass; Hamid Drake, drums), live, Netherlands (North Sea Jazz Festival), 2000
summer in the city
Chance The Rapper (1993-), “Wonderful Everyday: Arthur,” live, Chicago (Lollapalooza), 8/3/14
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Another take (recording with Wyclef Jean, Jessie Ware, et al., 2014)
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lagniappe
reading table
the only hope is to be the daylight
—W. S. Merwin, “Living with the News,” last line (New Yorker, 7/28/14)
music clip of the day 