Khaliq Al-Rouf Salaam’s “The Elephant Trot Dance” released on Nilvia Records in 1979. Ashley, a site visitor and now contributor from across the pond sent this gem to me. Here we have a later iteration of “The Ensemble Al-Salaam”, whose Strata East record can be find in the archives. Upon listening it’s immediately satisfying to hear that the Al-Salaam outfit seems to have continued along their spiritual jazz path. I know very little about this LP and can only offer you this little bit that Ashley provided: “libra and title track recorded 18th june 1975 @minot studio, the other 3 were recorded at platinum factory, brooklyn, march 8 1979. it’s all good, but “malcom, the call” is a bitch”, and a bitch it is 
. Top notch, I say! Thanks again Ashley.
Enjoy!
Monthly Archives: October 2007
Marcus Belgrave’s “Gemini” released on Gem Eye/Tribe Records in 1974. One of Detroit’s finest and accompanied by other label heavyweights such as, Wendell Harrison and Phil Ranelin. Here’s some words from Freefrom.org:
“The sound picks up in the same domain as the better Art Ensemble Of Chicago records of the late 60s and early 70s — with the rubbery funk electric bass lines and celestial groove. Trumpeter Marcus Belgrave plays in a beautiful ensemble, packed with Tribe labelmates — Wendell Harrison on tenor sax & percussion, Phil Ranelin on trombone, and Harold McKinney on electric piano. Roy Brooks and Billy Turner are on drums and percussion, and the expansive vibe is fleshed out with the help of Lorenzo Brown on bongos and Daryl Dybka on mini Moog. The record includes Belgrave’s beautiful epic “Space Odyssey”, which has a long flowing cosmic groove, nice electronics, and haunting trumpet solos. Other cuts include “Gemini II”, “Marcia’s Opal”, “Glue Fingers (Parts I & II)”, and “Odoms Cave”. A focused, but still wonderfully loose set of spacey 70s soul jazz!”
I’ve pulled this link as it’s been pointed out to me that this record has be rereleased. So go support Marcus and buy this sh#t!
Lemon Kitten’s “Spoonfed & Writhing” released on Step Forward in 1979. I just happened upon this fine folker/DADA/???/// record. I’ve nabbed these words from Scaruffi.com to put this into perspective: “The Lemon Kittens were two young multi-strumentalists involved in multimedia art-performance/theater: Danielle Dax, a fan of electronic music, biblical mysticism and middle-eastern vocal music, and Karl Blake, a veteran jazz musician. Their music harked back to Canterbury’s jazz-rock, to Brian Eno’s avantgarde rock, and to the nonsense quality of much British rock.”
Also check Mutant-Sounds for Karl Blake and the endless other shares of that ilk. This is a great LP. I mean with the above description, how can you not be at least intrigued?
Enjoy!
Chico Freeman’s “The Outside Within” on India Navigation in 1978. I promised more India Navigation LP’s long ago. Well here’s one of the first in many to ‘eventually’ come. On this outing we have Chico Freeman, tenor saxophonist (doubling here on bass clarinet) performing a 19-and-a-half-minute “Undercurrent” (an original by bassist Cecil McBee) and three shorter compositions with McBee, pianist John Hicks, and drummer Jack DeJohnette. Like many of Freeman’s late 70’s to early 80’s releases the music is tinged with a far east flavor. There’s no stinkers on this one. The dynamics between the members and what I’d consider a great recording make this a ‘heater’.
Enjoy
Armando Piazza’s “Suan” released in 1973 on Beautiful Black Butterfly. Suan is heavy, yet subtle, folky Italian psych LP with oddly inflected vocals and some deliciously crunchyguitar. Armando employs the talents of Shawn Phillips for this outing and his ‘Nuas’ lp. For those unfamiliar with Armando Piazza, as I was, here’s a little bitty I found on over at Italianprog.com:”Armando Piazza was a singer-songwriter from Naples and released these albums with curious titles on the local B.B.B. label (that also released the Showmen 2 album), selling them by himself in concerts and through magazines. The albums contained acid-psych ballads, all english-sung and mainly based on acoustic guitar but sometime with good use of electric instruments, they’re also notable for the help of american musician Shawn Phillips (who lived in Naples for some years) on guitar and bass.”
Enjoy!
If you enjoyed my previous Turner Bros. share, then scoop this 7″ cut as well. Enjoy!
Rabbits & Carrots’ “Soul Latino” released on Vampisoul in 1969. I’m not even going to pretend like I know about latin music, I just don’t. There are a few holes in my collection but by far Latin has to be the, excluding the myriad of crossover Blue Note and mid-60’s jazz lp’s I have. Fortunately, I’ve been hipped to some good LP’s by friends and fellow collectors. Ok enough blundering and babbling, here’s a nice little write-up from Kevchino.com:
“This Mexican group was led by Salvadore “Rabito” Aguero and included his brothers and several other musicians who were family members with the same last name. Rabbits & Carrots had a horn section and an organ, creating a rock band with a big band sound. Together they made music that blended many of the popular music styles in America during the 60s. You got funk, soul, jazz, and psychedelic. But what makes this band standout is not only their ability to do a great job of copying these styles but being able to add a nice twist onto everything they play. There are Latin rhythms all over the place and their ability to improvise and jam the hell out of the songs they play makes this music sound slightly different from what you would imagine. A good example of that would be the slow “Romeo Y Julieta,” which sounds like it’s more a score for some B movie flick than a slow jam, making it one of the most interesting instrumental songs on the album. Being that this album was originally released in 1969, there are a few covers. Standout and familiar covers include Sly and the Family Stones “Everyday People,” Eric Burdon’s “Spill the Wine,” and James Brown’s “Sex Machine,” which is an interesting listen, being that it’s in Spanish.”
Very, Very Funky! Enjoy!
