Longing

Pristine acoustics and beautiful music. Good for rainy days, or any others.

http://www.mediafire.com/file/ydnfiz3tzjk/Ry Cooder & V.M. Bhatt- A Meeting By The River.zip

With the Beetles

I've been working on a solo acoustic guitar album. This isn't it: this is just the demo I recorded yesterday so that I can hear what the songs I've been working on sound like. So, there are lots of errors, some squonky notes, some hesitations and stumbles, and a couple distorted moments from being overly casual with the microphone levels. Also, most the songs run a little longer than is reasonable, due to the fact that I'm wandering around improvising a bit too much and trying to find my way back to the main motifs.

But, all in all I'm pretty happy with how this is sounding, and I feel like sharing it with my friends, and asking for feedback. Let me know what you think: too droney? Not droney enough? Too new age? Too melancholy? Overly pretty? Not pretty at all? Lack of catchy melodies? Not enough rhythm? Etc, etc, etc. I'll probably disregard your suggestions, but that doesn't mean I don't want to hear them. Because I very much do.

http://www.mediafire.com/file/uimdzlmtymi/Ero Gray- With the Beetles Solo Guitar Demo 11-09-09.zip

The Name of the Game Is Life Works

The great final work, finished just before his death. Every track is gorgeous, and deceptively simple (though details emerge on repeated close listening). There's lots of heart in these, proving just how emotionally rich unadorned hip-hop beats can be.

http://www.mediafire.com/file/hi1u4m2mloe/J Dilla Jay Dee- Donuts.zip

Preludio

I'm sort of obsessed with this (Brazilian guitar great Baden Powell, no relation to the British founder of Boy Scouts).

Much younger, in punk rock mode:

While we're loving on Brazilian guitar, try a taste of this yumminess:

(Lauriendo Almeida and the Modern Jazz Quartet)

The Single Petal of a Rose

Absolutely lovely.

Supposedly the Queen's Suite was written and recorded as a private pressing, just for the Queen of England's ears only. I'm glad a copy got out, because it's fucking great.

http://www.mediafire.com/file/yddk1nnziw0/Duke Ellington- The Ellington Suites.zip

Sheer Magic

Do not operate heavy machinery while listening to this album.

I'm not kidding. This is some dangerously soporific mellow shit.

Pandit Hariprasad Chaurasia makes Simon & Garfunkel sound like Slayer.

Possibly the most relaxing music I've ever heard.

Enjoy.

http://www.mediafire.com/file/0utdnkmy4tw/Hariprasad Chaurasia- Sounds of Silence.zip

Stop! Look! And Sing Songs Of Revolution

I'd been listening to this off and on for years, but what really settled this album for me was right after the election of 2004, when Dan's "Wake for Democracy" ended with a police raid, and I got my groin patted down by a cop while guns aimed at me. Afterwards this album seemed to tell all sorts of related stories, and the night extended into fractal patterns of heartache and anger as Mingus worked in flamenco flourishes and somber orchestrations (never forgetting the occasional grim jest- one of the beauties of Mingus is that his sense of humor is never missing from his sense of tragedy). There are times when you don't hear music, you live within it, and that was one time.

Anyhow, there are several Mingus albums that I'd want on a desert island, but I'm posting this one first.

http://www.mediafire.com/file/yzwtmjnzodn/Charles Mingus- The Black Saint and the Sinner Lady.zip

Authentic Celestial Music

Moody instrumental sweepiness. These guys are also insanely good live.

They've made several excellent records but for whatever reason this is my favorite.

http://www.mediafire.com/file/tntjulenxjz/Dirty Three- Ocean Songs.zip

I Know That You Know

from a bio at

http://www.duke.edu/~njh3/biography.html:

Legend has it that classical pianist Vladimir Horowitz was so awed by Tatum's wizardry that it brought him to tears. Fittingly, his strongest support comes from one of his early influences, Fats Waller. One time in 1938 Tatum dropped in to hear Waller play at a club. By way of introduction Waller told the audience, "I just play the piano, but God is in the house tonight."

Seems about right. I'm no pianist, but it's easy to hear the insane level of mastery here. Even better, it's in service of musical effect-- and the songs are exceptionally beautiful with this level of baroque ornamentation.

Can't find the proper art for this collection, so substituted random photo.

http://www.mediafire.com/file/zmnydxkmeki/Art Tatum- Classic Piano Solos.zip

The Tennessee Toad

I've always thought Leo Kottke was due for hipster recognition as much as John Fahey. Of course, Fahey was a depressive who created a minimalist, purely instrumental style primarily derived from blues, whereas Leo is a showman who's always worked in sort of a flashy country genre, and even sang on occasion.

So the comparison (they're both primarily steel-string guitarists known for their mastery of the instrument), is foolish and I hereby retract it and apologize. Anyhow, Mr. Kottke's albums are not always perfect, but they're almost always amazing from a guitarist's point of view (I like his singing voice too, but not everyone does). And the moodier compositions and dry sense of humor ought to appeal to folks who would otherwise tend to dismiss anything this country-oriented.

This (I think) was his first album, and as such is a perfectly realized statement of purpose: jaw-dropping virtuosity, dreamy compositions, and fingers like iron, on the 12-string guitar (a very difficult instrument to master), and on its six-string sister.

http://www.mediafire.com/file/mzrlyujfynm/Leo Kottke- 6 and 12 String Guitar.zip

Not Michael Jackson's Album of the Same Name

Listened to Yoshi Wada- Off The Wall on the subway this morning, and am completely stunned. High-intensity bagpipes-and-timpani drone madness. Not for the faint of heart or timid of ear. Sort of reminiscent of some of the woolier Terry Riley stuff.

http://www.rootstrata.com/rootblog/?p=20

On a similar linking-to-Root-Blog-for-intense-drone-purposes note, I highly recommend Sitaar Tah!, in which that high-sparkly-overtone-hiss you hear with one sitar is replaced by a gigantic sinus-clearing wilderness of gorgeous resonant overtone sound using twenty sitars:

http://www.rootstrata.com/rootblog/?p=1133
(Beware of potential viruses with this link-- see my note at the end of this post)

Both of the above magick musicks may totally ruin some folks' day. And make others'. Or, in my case, just right for some days, and totally wrong for others. So don't blame me if you aren't up for the brain-melt. (But let me know if you love it, though of course Root Blog and Ubuweb are the real sources, I'm just a recommender).

While I'm at it, here's a less noisy but possibly even more wonderful Ubuweb link (which I think Captain Meltmaster clued me into originally- Thanks Dan!)--
Pandit Pran Nath, whose gigantic gentle voice creates universes:

http://www.ubu.com/sound/nath.html

And another Pran Nath link, again via Root Blog:

http://www.rootstrata.com/rootblog/?p=75

At this point it should go without saying that I'm a big fan of Root Blog. And, um, cosmic drone.

With the Sitaar Tah link: make sure you have a good working antivirus, I've noticed that SendSpace (the file host) tends to feature popup ads that try to install viruses on your PC! Avast works just fine for me, and blocks it every time. But I'd hate to indirectly cause your computer to get infected.

In fact, let me just say, if you don't have a fully operational antivirus, please go immediately and get AVG Free or Avast Free now. My professional life as a computer geek won't interfere much with this blog, but this is essential and should be done before anything else.

Each Today is Yesterday's Tomorrow

Not much point in trying to describe this. Listen; either you'll love it or you won't. I think odds are in favor of the former. This is not abstract or intellectual music: it's sweet and naive and direct. Enjoy.

Files are in two parts: just unzip to one folder and proceed as usual.

http://www.mediafire.com/file/tm3nmnrejmo/Moondog- Moondog-Moondog2 1.zip

http://www.mediafire.com/file/1bqnjwfyjod/Moondog- Moondog-Moondog2 2.zip

If you're in the NYC area, come see Rad Unicorn tonight in Brooklyn. 8 pm sharp, Jalopy Theatre. $10 but that includes CDs from the Bogs Visionary Orchestra and Jose Delhart, both of which ought to be well worth owning.

Reverie

A thrift store purchase that has never gotten too far from my turntable. World music from back when Americans only knew the Middle East existed because of Peter O' Toole in Lawrence of Arabia. I've no idea what the actual heritage of this record is, or what Mr. Arakelian's background or area of expertise is. But it's a delicious record, and I could listen to it daily for the rest of my life and be happy.

(Interesting side note: I once saw someone selling a copy of this record on ebay for $90. Right now someone's selling one for $9 (buy-it-now price). I bought mine for $1 originally, so I guess it was a bargain either way.) I digitized this inexpertly from LP, apologies for clicks & pops.

http://www.mediafire.com/file/zezzmhtomvy/Aram Arakelian Ensemble- The Oud.zip

This is NOW AVAILABLE in a (probably much superior) digitized version, here:
http://www.amoeba.com/the-oud-aram-arakelian-ensemble/albums/841766

Very Special

Duke Ellington, in a trio setting with Max Roach and Charles Mingus. That's really all you ought to need to know. Exceedingly fine.

(Link is in two parts due to upload restrictions. Just unzip them both to the same folder.)

http://www.mediafire.com/file/yvyz2ojxzfo/Duke Ellington- Money Jungle 1.zip

http://www.mediafire.com/file/ymadlxzmfma/Duke Ellington- Money Jungle 2.zip

I'm Dead and Gone, But I'll Always Be By Your Side

Sleepy/scary ghostly white-boy blues with experimental/ambient intent. A fairly intoxicating blend of scrabbly fret noise, whale-song bent notes, and gasping-for-air chokes that defy and destroy wanky Blues Hammer stratocaster cliches. The last song, a Lonnie Johnson cover sung by his wife, haunts me perpetually.

http://www.mediafire.com/file/znudtttztn1/Loren Mazzacane Connors- In Pittsburgh.zip

I've Got A Feeling You're Fooling

Fascinating, joyful, intricate & playful jazz guitar from before the dawn of time. Well, at least, from before the dawn of 'jazz guitar'. These folks were inventing everything from scratch, and damn, they were good.

A Yazoo records compilation I picked up as a teenager (a gift from the gods that I probably didn't deserve). Seems to be pretty thoroughly out of print, but you never know.

http://www.mediafire.com/file/oqm324wndtn/VA- Fun on the Frets.zip

Gathering Rain Clouds

Indian classical music, via slide guitar. Gorgeous and intense.

http://www.mediafire.com/file/jdlzmdtl1zk/Vishwa Mohan Bhatt- Gathering Rain Clouds.zip

Declaration of Dub

Probably hands-down my favorite dub album of all time. Consistently funky, ghostly, joyful and haunted, with the warmest belly-vibrating basslines and the most glistening echoing brass and the most perfect crackling snare drums. I've listened to a lot of dub in my time but for me this is pretty much the top of the heap.

http://www.mediafire.com/file/gmeme4fw2nv/King Tubby- Dub from the Roots.zip

Mysterious Semblance

Dan turned me on to this one. Truly lovely synth-space-gurgle transcendentalism.

http://www.mediafire.com/file/jzmndwiobzm/Tangerine Dream- Phaedra.zip

Let Go

So, if you've had a pretty successful career as a Brazilian guitar master & jazz sideman, and then your health breaks down and you have a spiritual epiphany, become a very serious yoga practitioner, and decide to retire from the life of a performing musican, what do you do?

If you're Djalma D'Andrade, you record two albums of intense, inward-looking, spiritual solo guitar instrumentals that blend classical, jazz, flamenco, samba and brazilian folk.

I have the Windham hill LP version of this, and it sounds noticeably better. When they put it on CD they screwed up the sound somehow-- the reverb sounds a little bit canned or something. But it's still amazing (and I'm too lazy to digitize the LP I have), so enjoy. The second of his two solo end-of-life albums is also excellent, but this is the one I'm most attached to. Both can (and in my opinon should) be purchased online.

http://www.mediafire.com/file/tgqwtbyt3mn/Bola Sete- Ocean Memories.zip