Greg Osby
The Invisible Hand (Blue Note)
Alto saxophonist Greg Osby showed a penchant for going where others can't during his tenure with the avant-garde/funk-oriented M-Base Collective. Here he brilliantly taps the talents of guitarist Jim Hall and pianist Andrew Hill. From the gentle wanderings of "Ashes" to the freewheeling "Indiana," these legendary innovators add depth to Osby's explorations.
Devo
Pioneers Who Got Scalped: An Anthology (Warner Archives/Rhino)
The Spud Boys are back, in a release that finally collects the best and strangest of that which was Devo. One trip through this legion of tunes will perplex anyone: Not incoherent enough to be punk, too sarcastic to be New Wave, eventually Devo drifted below the musical horizon. But as this anthology unfolds, the brilliance of songs like "Mongoloid" and "Whip It" is undeniable; the band's inspired deconstructionist cover of "(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction" will never be equaled. This is Devo, feathers and all, outlining our sad but predictable devolution in words and music.
John Scofield
Bump (Verve)
Guitarist/composer and longtime funkateer John Scofield still dips heavily into the groove stream - with enthusiastic help from some great fusion players: Tony Scherr and Kenny Wollesen of Sex Mob, Soul Coughing's Mark De Gli Antoni, and Johnny Dirkin and Erik Kalb of Deep Banana Blackout. Scofield's guitar, with its trademark fat organ sound, remains the only constant, adding soul to the rhythms laid down by ever-shifting sidemen. Dirkin and Kalb play a vigorous second-line backbeat to Scofield's distorted noodling on "Blackout," while Antoni's effects interact with the guitarist's shower of bent notes, octave slides, squawks, and squeaks on "Beep Beep."
Lou Reed
Ecstasy (Reprise)
Iconoclastic street poet or apocalyptic rock and roller? Take your pick. After years of tumultuous expression, Lou Reed is still kicking hard. Embellishing his rock quartet with string and horn arrangements, Reed revisits themes of sex and drugs, as well as love and redemption. The sprawling centerpiece, "Like a Possum," surveys his capacity for survival. Coupling scorching guitar feedback with idyllic romanticism, Ecstasy is essential.
Conlon Nancarrow
Studies for Player Piano (Wergo)
Frustrated by the performative limits of mere mortals, the late Conlon Nancarrow sought mechanical means to execute überhuman musical feats, composing almost exclusively for his custom-modified player pianos. The results reached polyphonic realms hitherto unknown, from the Bartòkian boogie-woogie-on-speed of "Study no. 3" to the atonal glissandi of "Study no. 25." It's all been brought to Earth in this five-CD set.
Bill Frisell
Ghost Town (Nonesuch)
The latest from unpredictable Bill Frisell features 16 tracks of exotically spare guitar and little else (not that he needs any help). It's tempting to call this minimalism, but songs like "Variation on a Theme (Tales from the Farside)" and "What a World," with their busy arrangements, throw off such easy labels. It's the mood of Frisell's playing that brings it all together. His interpretations are consistently dark and measured, while his choice of material is typically eccentric. Renditions of A. P. Carter's "Wildwood Flower," Hank Williams' "I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry," and the Gershwins' "My Man's Gone Now" peacefully coexist in a soundscape that feels desolate indeed.
Miles Davis & John Coltrane
The Complete Columbia Recordings (1955-1961) (Columbia/Legacy)
In 1955 Miles Davis, only 29 but already one of jazz's most charismatic figures, hired an obscure, heroin-addicted saxophonist named John Coltrane to play in his six-piece band. Their styles couldn't have been more different - Davis sparse and dry, Coltrane explosive - but their six-year association produced incredibly powerful, haunting music. Part four in Columbia/Legacy's Miles series, this multi-CD set is full of alternate takes, live cuts, and ephemera geared toward completists. Still, it's a fine complement to the classics of the Davis/Trane canon,'Round About Midnight, Milestones, andKind of Blue.
Susana Baca
Eco de Sombras (Luaka Bop)
Baca's second US release may have its roots in the folk music of her native Peru, butEco also draws heavily on the singer's African heritage. Her supple voice channels the cool insouciance of Brazilian vocalist Astrud Gilberto, while her all-star band - using Andean instruments like the cajòn (a wooden drumming box) - grounds her notes with rhythm. Capturing the dreamlike quality of a Gabriel Garcìa Márquez novel, Baca spins magic realism into sound.
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