The Impressions(Emus) 320kbps

 

The Impressions on Emus

 

 

There’s not much info out about this Emus label release. It seems like Emus didn’t totally have it’s biz together anyway. Speaking of business, the record store that I purchased this album from is now out of it. CD Game Exchange in Adams Morgan is no more as of a few months ago, not to mention the Circuit City in the shopping center by my home. If I was to shop for records today where would I go?

  Curtom Publishing Company was a business comprised of Curtis Mayfield, and Eddie Thomas, who, along with being the Impressions bus driver, also convinced them to change their name from “The Roosters”. The Impressions also included Jerry Butler, who is now a politician not unlike another musician I revere, and Sam Gooden.

This is definitely a compilation, but all of my digging friends say they haven’t seen it, so here it is.

 

John Lewis-“Original Sin” at 320 kbps (1961)

 

I could say more than enough about this third stream trailblazer, but it’d be smarter of me to let the composer speak on it. 

This is my second work written for the conventional symphony orchestra-the first, actually of music with such extended length with no improvisation.

Some of the difficulties were anticipated. To communicate my musical ideas, especially the rhythmic conceptions, to musicians who have been trained to play classical music exclusively is not easy. Writing for strings is especially problematic; the violin has played only a minor role in the evolution of jazz, and there are those who argue that it should have no place in jazz at all. While I disagree with that point of view, it cannot be denied that it takes a violinist a very long time to acquire an adequate technique for the standard repertoire (probably longer than for any other instrument), and once he has, he has a way of playing that is fairly set in a rigid mould. Jazz rhythms and jazz feeling are not easily produced under those cirumstances.

Harry Lookofsky, a fine classicaly trained violinist, who has also done notable work in jazz (as in his LP, Stringsville, Atlantic 1319), has been very helpful to me in finding ways to communicate my rhythmic ideas, deeply rooted in jazz as they are, to string players. In the album, The Modern Jazz Quartet & Orchestra (Atlantic 1359), an attempt was made by three other composers and myself to combine techniques and ideas that come from both classical music and jazz. This album represents another step. Admittedly we are only beginning, but it is a great challenge, one that we fin very exciting, and for that reason more than worth all the effort.-John Lewis

1. Part One-Creation of the World & Creation of Adam
2. Part Two-Recognition of Animals
3. Part Three-Birth of Eve
4. Part Four -Adam & Eve Pas De Deaux
5. Part Five-Teaching & Temptation
6. Part Six-Expulsion From The Garden of Eden

Here tis

And if you dig this, you’ll dig the album

Stomu Yamashta/Steve Winwood/Michael Shrieve- “Go” 320kbps (1976)

 

Stomu

 

 

It’s more than fitting that I dug this Yamashta gem out of a crate at a local CD/Game exchange here in the DC metro area. Due to the shift of power from label to artist, most music stores have either gone out of business, or limited their purchasing of new musics to new releases(With all the Klaus Schulze(Arp 2600, Arp Odyssey, Moog, EMS Synthi A., Farfisa Syntorchester)  blips and swells, one could believe this 1976 release hit the shelves this year. CD/Game Exchange, amidst all of the opposition has stayed in business. If a crime has been committed against music, socioeconomic Natural Selection is the culprit, not blogs, or torrents, or third party file hosts. 

What I like most about this out of print saga is it’s unabashed genre jumping. Steve Winwood(vocals/piano) and Pat Thrall give a central melodic dimension for us all to hum along to. and Rosko Gee(bass) also of Traffic with Winwood, roots the groove. He and former Santana member Mike Shrieve(drummer) are solid cornerstones that push forward the aptly entitled “Go”

Other mentionable contributions include Al Dimeola, Julian Marvin, and Chris West.

This album is no longer for sale in it’s original format, but you can purchase it as part of a box set, and I also tracked down a live version.

So here’s part 1 and 2 of the original…

1. Solitude

2. Nature

3. Air Over

4. Crossing The Line

5. Man Of Leo

6. Stellar

7. Space Theme

8. Space Requiem

9. Space Song

10. Carnival

11. Ghost Machine

12. Surfspin

13. Time Is Here

14. Winner/Loser

And if you like this, you’ll like the album.