Host Mitch Goldman and his musician-guest explore rare archival recordings of one of the guest’s favorite artists.
Episodes
Sunday Nov 20, 2022
Sunday Nov 20, 2022
"Lester Bowie": instead of thinking of that sound as a person's name, maybe we should start thinking of it as a verb. Here's one definition: to change the orientation of something familiar so that it becomes unimaginably magnificent. Example: "I'm going to Lester Bowie this pebble and make a beautiful jewel out of it" or "I'm going to Lester Bowie these old tires into a holiday feast." It helps if you apply a bit of magic as Lester always seemed to manage to do.
This Monday night on Jazz Alternatives, Eric Person and host Mitch Goldman put Lester Bowie in Deep Focus. While Lester may be more familiar from his work with the Art Ensemble of Chicago and Brass Fantasy, Eric and Mitch are digging somewhat deeper. Once again, gems from the WKCR archives abound.
This Monday night on Jazz Alternatives, Eric Person and host Mitch Goldman put Lester Bowie in Deep Focus. While Lester may be more familiar from his work with the Art Ensemble of Chicago and Brass Fantasy, Eric and Mitch are digging somewhat deeper. Once again, gems from the WKCR archives abound.
Only on WKCR 89.9FM, WKCR HD1 and wkcr.org this Monday from 6pm to 9pm NYC time. Next week it goes up on the Deep Focus podcast on your favorite podcasting app or at https://mitchgoldman.podbean.com/
#WKCR #DeepFocus #JazzAlternatives #EricPerson #LesterBowie #MitchGoldman #JazzInterview #JazzPodcast
Photo credit: Robbie Drexhage, CC BY-SA 4.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0>, attraverso Wikimedia Commons
Sunday Nov 13, 2022
Sunday Nov 13, 2022
"Lester Bowie": instead of thinking of that sound as a person's name, maybe we should start thinking of it as a verb. Here's one definition: to change the orientation of something familiar so that it becomes unimaginably magnificent. Example: "I'm going to Lester Bowie this pebble and make a beautiful jewel out of it" or "I'm going to Lester Bowie these old tires into a holiday feast." It helps if you apply a bit of magic as Lester always seemed to manage to do.
This Monday night on Jazz Alternatives, Eric Person and host Mitch Goldman put Lester Bowie in Deep Focus. While Lester may be more familiar from his work with the Art Ensemble of Chicago and Brass Fantasy, Eric and Mitch are digging somewhat deeper. Once again, gems from the WKCR archives abound.
This Monday night on Jazz Alternatives, Eric Person and host Mitch Goldman put Lester Bowie in Deep Focus. While Lester may be more familiar from his work with the Art Ensemble of Chicago and Brass Fantasy, Eric and Mitch are digging somewhat deeper. Once again, gems from the WKCR archives abound.
Only on WKCR 89.9FM, WKCR HD1 and wkcr.org this Monday from 6pm to 9pm NYC time. Next week it goes up on the Deep Focus podcast on your favorite podcasting app or at https://mitchgoldman.podbean.com/
#WKCR #DeepFocus #JazzAlternatives #EricPerson #LesterBowie #MitchGoldman #JazzInterview #JazzPodcast
Photo credit: Lester Bowie, Sweet Basil, NYC by Anthony Barboza, Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture. Fair use.
Monday Nov 07, 2022
Monday Nov 07, 2022
"Lester Bowie": instead of thinking of that sound as a person's name, maybe we should start thinking of it as a verb. Here's one definition: to change the orientation of something familiar so that it becomes unimaginably magnificent. Example: "I'm going to Lester Bowie this pebble and make a beautiful jewel out of it" or "I'm going to Lester Bowie these old tires into a holiday feast." It helps if you apply a bit of magic as Lester always seemed to manage to do.
This Monday night on Jazz Alternatives, Eric Person and host Mitch Goldman put Lester Bowie in Deep Focus. While Lester may be more familiar from his work with the Art Ensemble of Chicago and Brass Fantasy, Eric and Mitch are digging somewhat deeper. Once again, gems from the WKCR archives abound.
This Monday night on Jazz Alternatives, Eric Person and host Mitch Goldman put Lester Bowie in Deep Focus. While Lester may be more familiar from his work with the Art Ensemble of Chicago and Brass Fantasy, Eric and Mitch are digging somewhat deeper. Once again, gems from the WKCR archives abound.
Only on WKCR 89.9FM, WKCR HD1 and wkcr.org this Monday from 6pm to 9pm NYC time. Next week it goes up on the Deep Focus podcast on your favorite podcasting app or at https://mitchgoldman.podbean.com/
#WKCR #DeepFocus #JazzAlternatives #EricPerson #LesterBowie #MitchGoldman #JazzInterview #JazzPodcast
Photo credit: Robbie Drexhage, CC BY-SA 4.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0>, attraverso Wikimedia Commons
Sunday Oct 30, 2022
Sunday Oct 30, 2022
This Monday night on Jazz Alternatives, Mitch Goldman welcomes drummer Don McKenzie back to the studio for a very special Deep Focus on the supergroup Last Exit (Peter Brotzmann, Sonny Sharrock, Bill Laswell, Ronald Shannon Jackson), a rebroadcast from 2015.
The band was known for its uncompromising musical ferocity, fueled by the band members' confrontational attitudes. Greg Kot wrote that they brought a level of "volume and violence that makes most rock bands sound tame." Although Last Exit left a mere handful of recordings and made only limited tour dates, they left a reputation for scorched earth; dazzled, sputtering listeners and no apologies. A quarter century later, however, when the swagger of the music's creators has been set aside, what emerges is magnificent improvisation (they never rehearsed) with glistening shards of beauty from each of the composer/bandleader members. This will be especially well borne out by the unreleased live recordings to be presented on Monday night, music the world has almost never heard.
Drummer Don McKenzie, well-known for his playing with Elliot Sharp, Marc Ribot, Vernon Reid and Roswell Rudd among many, many others, brings special insight into this ensemble, so often discussed but so seldom brought to light.
The band was known for its uncompromising musical ferocity, fueled by the band members' confrontational attitudes. Greg Kot wrote that they brought a level of "volume and violence that makes most rock bands sound tame." Although Last Exit left a mere handful of recordings and made only limited tour dates, they left a reputation for scorched earth; dazzled, sputtering listeners and no apologies. A quarter century later, however, when the swagger of the music's creators has been set aside, what emerges is magnificent improvisation (they never rehearsed) with glistening shards of beauty from each of the composer/bandleader members. This will be especially well borne out by the unreleased live recordings to be presented on Monday night, music the world has almost never heard.
Drummer Don McKenzie, well-known for his playing with Elliot Sharp, Marc Ribot, Vernon Reid and Roswell Rudd among many, many others, brings special insight into this ensemble, so often discussed but so seldom brought to light.
WKCR 89.9FM, WKCR HD1 and wkcr.org. Catch it on the Deep Focus podcast on your favorite podcasting app or at https://mitchgoldman.podbean.com.
#WKCR #JazzAlternatives #LastExit #DonMcKenzie #DeepFocus #MitchGoldman #PeterBrotzmann #SonnySharrock #BillLaswell #RonaldShannonJackson #JazzRockFusion #NoWave
Photo credit: no publishing information available.
Friday Oct 28, 2022
Friday Oct 28, 2022
This Monday night on Jazz Alternatives (6pm to 9pm) Mitch Goldman welcomes drummer Don McKenzie back to the studio for a very special Deep Focus on the supergroup Last Exit (Peter Brotzmann, Sonny Sharrock, Bill Laswell, Ronald Shannon Jackson), a rebroadcast from 2015.
The band was known for its uncompromising musical ferocity, fueled by the band members' confrontational attitudes. Greg Kot wrote that they brought a level of "volume and violence that makes most rock bands sound tame." Although Last Exit left a mere handful of recordings and made only limited tour dates, they left a reputation for scorched earth; dazzled, sputtering listeners and no apologies. A quarter century later, however, when the swagger of the music's creators has been set aside, what emerges is magnificent improvisation (they never rehearsed) with glistening shards of beauty from each of the composer/bandleader members. This will be especially well borne out by the unreleased live recordings to be presented on Monday night, music the world has almost never heard.
Drummer Don McKenzie, well-known for his playing with Elliot Sharp, Marc Ribot, Vernon Reid and Roswell Rudd among many, many others, brings special insight into this ensemble, so often discussed but so seldom brought to light.
The band was known for its uncompromising musical ferocity, fueled by the band members' confrontational attitudes. Greg Kot wrote that they brought a level of "volume and violence that makes most rock bands sound tame." Although Last Exit left a mere handful of recordings and made only limited tour dates, they left a reputation for scorched earth; dazzled, sputtering listeners and no apologies. A quarter century later, however, when the swagger of the music's creators has been set aside, what emerges is magnificent improvisation (they never rehearsed) with glistening shards of beauty from each of the composer/bandleader members. This will be especially well borne out by the unreleased live recordings to be presented on Monday night, music the world has almost never heard.
Drummer Don McKenzie, well-known for his playing with Elliot Sharp, Marc Ribot, Vernon Reid and Roswell Rudd among many, many others, brings special insight into this ensemble, so often discussed but so seldom brought to light.
WKCR 89.9FM, WKCR HD1 and wkcr.org. Catch it on the Deep Focus podcast on your favorite podcasting app or at https://mitchgoldman.podbean.com.
#WKCR #JazzAlternatives #LastExit #DonMcKenzie #DeepFocus #MitchGoldman #PeterBrotzmann #SonnySharrock #BillLaswell #RonaldShannonJackson #JazzRockFusion #NoWave
Photo credit: no publishing information available.
Tuesday Oct 25, 2022
Tuesday Oct 25, 2022
This Monday night on Jazz Alternatives, Mitch Goldman welcomes drummer Don McKenzie back to the studio for a very special Deep Focus on the supergroup Last Exit (Peter Brotzmann, Sonny Sharrock, Bill Laswell, Ronald Shannon Jackson), a rebroadcast from 2015.
The band was known for its uncompromising musical ferocity, fueled by the band members' confrontational attitudes. Greg Kot wrote that they brought a level of "volume and violence that makes most rock bands sound tame." Although Last Exit left a mere handful of recordings and made only limited tour dates, they left a reputation for scorched earth; dazzled, sputtering listeners and no apologies. A quarter century later, however, when the swagger of the music's creators has been set aside, what emerges is magnificent improvisation (they never rehearsed) with glistening shards of beauty from each of the composer/bandleader members. This will be especially well borne out by the unreleased live recordings to be presented on Monday night, music the world has almost never heard.
Drummer Don McKenzie, well-known for his playing with Elliot Sharp, Marc Ribot, Vernon Reid and Roswell Rudd among many, many others, brings special insight into this ensemble, so often discussed but so seldom brought to light.
The band was known for its uncompromising musical ferocity, fueled by the band members' confrontational attitudes. Greg Kot wrote that they brought a level of "volume and violence that makes most rock bands sound tame." Although Last Exit left a mere handful of recordings and made only limited tour dates, they left a reputation for scorched earth; dazzled, sputtering listeners and no apologies. A quarter century later, however, when the swagger of the music's creators has been set aside, what emerges is magnificent improvisation (they never rehearsed) with glistening shards of beauty from each of the composer/bandleader members. This will be especially well borne out by the unreleased live recordings to be presented on Monday night, music the world has almost never heard.
Drummer Don McKenzie, well-known for his playing with Elliot Sharp, Marc Ribot, Vernon Reid and Roswell Rudd among many, many others, brings special insight into this ensemble, so often discussed but so seldom brought to light.
WKCR 89.9FM, WKCR HD1 and wkcr.org. Catch it on the Deep Focus podcast on your favorite podcasting app or at https://mitchgoldman.podbean.com.
#WKCR #JazzAlternatives #LastExit #DonMcKenzie #DeepFocus #MitchGoldman #PeterBrotzmann #SonnySharrock #BillLaswell #RonaldShannonJackson #JazzRockFusion #NoWave
Photo credit: no publishing information available.
Sunday Oct 23, 2022
Sunday Oct 23, 2022
No one will ever embody the concept of music as spiritual sustenance the way that Pharoah Sanders did. William Hooker heard the call through the music and it changed his life. William joins Mitch Goldman to remember this enduring moment of inspiration and to explore the WKCR archives. Jewels abound.
The Pharoah Sanders Memorial Broadcast is all day Monday 9/26. This segment is 6pm to 9pm on WKCR 89.9FM, WKCR HD-1 and wkcr.org. Next week it goes up on the Deep Focus podcast on your favorite podcasting app or at https://mitchgoldman.podbean.com/
#WKCR #PharoahSanders #PharoahSandersMemorialBroadcast #WilliamHooker #MitchGoldman #DeepFocus #JazzInterview #JazzPodcast
Photo credit: Pharoah Sanders by Manfred Werner (Tsui), CC BY-SA 3.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0>, via Wikimedia Commons
Thursday Oct 20, 2022
Thursday Oct 20, 2022
No one will ever embody the concept of music as spiritual sustenance the way that Pharoah Sanders did. William Hooker heard the call through the music and it changed his life. William joins Mitch Goldman to remember this enduring moment of inspiration and to explore the WKCR archives. Jewels abound.
The Pharoah Sanders Memorial Broadcast is all day Monday 9/26. This segment is 6pm to 9pm on WKCR 89.9FM, WKCR HD-1 and wkcr.org. Next week it goes up on the Deep Focus podcast on your favorite podcasting app or at https://mitchgoldman.podbean.com/
#WKCR #PharoahSanders #PharoahSandersMemorialBroadcast #WilliamHooker #MitchGoldman #DeepFocus #JazzInterview #JazzPodcast
Photo credit: Pharoah Sanders by Manfred Werner (Tsui), CC BY-SA 3.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0>, via Wikimedia Commons
Saturday Oct 15, 2022
Saturday Oct 15, 2022
No one will ever embody the concept of music as spiritual sustenance the way that Pharoah Sanders did. William Hooker heard the call through the music and it changed his life. William joins Mitch Goldman to remember this enduring moment of inspiration and to explore the WKCR archives. Jewels abound.
The Pharoah Sanders Memorial Broadcast is all day Monday 9/26. This segment is 6pm to 9pm on WKCR 89.9FM, WKCR HD-1 and wkcr.org. Next week it goes up on the Deep Focus podcast on your favorite podcasting app or at https://mitchgoldman.podbean.com/
#WKCR #PharoahSanders #PharoahSandersMemorialBroadcast #WilliamHooker #MitchGoldman #DeepFocus #JazzInterview #JazzPodcast
Photo credit: Pharoah Sanders by Manfred Werner (Tsui), CC BY-SA 3.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0>, via Wikimedia Commons
Thursday Oct 06, 2022
Thursday Oct 06, 2022
Every once in a while, an artist comes along who gets so caught up in the sweep of history that the world seems to create itself for the artist's work, rather than the other way around. Dollar Brand came of age as a pianist in South Africa in the late Fifties, just in time for the multiethnic explosion of Johannesburg's Sophiatown. In the wake of the repression that followed the Sharpeville Massacre of 1960, he became a European exile. Within months, his music came to the attention of Duke Ellington who was so moved that he brought about the LP session Duke Ellington presents The Dollar Brand Trio on Frank Sinatra's Reprise label.
Brand came to New York, subbed for Duke leading the Ellington Orchestra and attended Juilliard. But experiences with John Coltrane, Don Cherry and the progressive cadre of the Jazz world gave him a new appreciation of his African roots and he incorporated them into his music. He returned to South Africa, converted to Islam and became Abdullah Ibrahim. With these changes came a new style of music that embraced the multi-kulti, freedom-loving culture of his native Cape Town. His song "Mannenberg" became a theme for the anti-apartheid movement.
After South African police fired on children during the Soweto Uprising of 1976, Ibrahim publicly came out in support of the African National Congress and subsequently returned to New York. Here he found a community of open-minded musicians and an audience that was supportive of his distinctively contemplative and deeply grooving music.
After the Apartheid regime fell and Nelson Mandela became president, Ibrahim returned to Cape Town; In 2022, he is still recording and performing throughout the world.
What's that you say? "Gary Lucas? That guy's a rocker! Who is he to talk about Abdullah Ibrahim?" A rocker? Guess what: so is Abdullah Ibrahim! Have you heard Gary's version of Ibrahim's "Bra Joe From Kilimanjaro"? You will have a whole different understanding of who both of these guys are. Besides, Gary Lucas is a true musical gourmand of the New York old school and I love to talk about music with him. I can't wait to hear what he has to say about his fellow iconoclast. As always, the WKCR archives have delivered some rare beauties for us to cherish.
This Monday (Sept. 19) on WKCR 89.9FM, WKCR HD-1 and wkcr.org. Next week it goes up on the Deep Focus podcast on your favorite podcasting app or at https://mitchgoldman.podbean.com/
#WKCR #JazzAlternatives #DeepFocus #AbdullahIbrahim #GaryLucas #MitchGoldman #JazzInterview #JazzPodcast
Photo credit: Tore Sætre, CC BY-SA 4.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0>, via Wikimedia Commons