Here’s a bit of light pop music from Latvia made for a relaxing day. The artists, Edgars Zveja and Valentīna Butāne, both came from conservatory backgrounds in what was then the Latvian S.S.R.
Music Videos
[Music] Ganelin Trio – 1976 Live (Soviet Jazz)
I owe Leo Feigin of the stellar imprint Leo Records perhaps the greatest debt of my musical life. It was he who introduced me, via releases and correspondence, to the works of Sergey Kuryokhin and The Ganelin Trio somewhere near 30 years ago (how time flies…). This is the trio at their peak.
Personnel:
Vyacheslav “Slava” Ganelin – Piano
Vladimir Tarasov – Percussion
Vladimir Chekasin – Saxophone
[Music] Byzantine Time Machine – Adventure In Istanbul
Byzantine Time Machine are a new discovery, thanks to a darling friend in Italy who hipped me to their mix of ethno-dub music a few months ago.
[Music] Louis Jordan – Saturday Night Fish Fry
The King of Jump Blues, Louis Jordan, is giving me a very nice suggestion as to what I should be doing this evening. Cod it is!
[Music] Spooky Tooth & Pierre Henry – Offering
I am well aware that some of my friends and colleagues hate this song, considering it near the bottom of Pierre Henry’s musical canon. So be it.
The reason I’m featuring this tune, however, is for two reasons. First, it was my introduction to Henry’s work. I wasn’t much of a hard-rock guy, and Spooky Tooth didn’t hold a lot of interest for me, but seeing the record cover had me wondering what sort of racket these guys were making. Second, the concept of a rock/experimental mass, based on the Apostolic Christian model, left me intrigued.
I know that Henry’s fellow composer, Pierre Schaeffer, was a devout Roman Catholic, but I read nothing of Henry’s beliefs over the years. Still, it was a nice gesture, an interesting project, and a doorway to Pierre’s far more adventurous works.
[Music] John Cale & Brian Eno – Spinning Away
After a rather horrifying weekend of blistering heat, drunken fireworks popping everywhere and scaring my dog off, it’s nice to hear something happy and soothing.
John Cale and Brian Eno cut the album Wrong Way Up as a one-off collaboration in 1988. They apparently didn’t gel together so nicely during the sessions, but you’d never know it by hearing this track.
[Music] Oval – SE
Though Markus Popp’s Oval is best known for his glitchy compositions, he’s been branching into rather sublime, Brazilian-inflected pop music as well. Lovely stuff.
His back catalog is 50% for the time being over at Bandcamp as well. Now’s a good time to stock up on his work.
[Music] Burkina Electric – Mdolé
Burkina Electric are a very interesting Burkinabé avant-pop featuring drummer, percussionist and composer Lukas Ligeti. Burkina Faso must have quite a few hidden treasures worth hunting for.
[Music] The Post-Decadent Singers – Post-Decadent Songs
The Post-Decadent Singers are a group led by Mexican guitarist Hector Javier (H.J.) Ayala. Mellow, shimmering, improvisational music. H.J. is a cut above so many other experimental musicians out there.
For more on Hector’s music, consider visiting his Bandcamp site.
[Music] Andy Loore & Paul Kass – Evasion (1978) [Full Album]
A bit of easy listening today, courtesy of Andy Loore (who is Janko Nilović under a pseudonym) partnering with Paul Kass.