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Sounds to cherish 6
Another in an occasional series… Gebhard Ullmann/Chris Dahlgren/Jay Rosen, Cut It Out (Leo Records)The German woodwind maestro with bassist Chris Dahlgren and drummer Jay Rosen. Dahlgren stirs it up electronically; Ullmann focuses solely on bass clarinet and bass flute. Truly odd, truly wonderful. Sam Rivers/Adam Rudolph/Harris Eisenstadt, Vista (Meta Records)How this one got away from me in ’04 I can’t
Six Picks: February 2007
My monthly list of recommended CDs, as published in All About Jazz-New York, February 2007: Steve Coleman and Five Elements, Weaving Symbolics (Label Bleu) Scott Colley, Architect of the Silent Moment (CAM Jazz) George Colligan, Blood Pressure (Ultimatum) Ari Hoenig, Inversations (Dreyfus) Jason Lindner, Ab Aeterno (Fresh Sound World Jazz) Charles Tolliver, With Love (Mosaic/Blue Note)
Tin Hat review
The eclectic chamber-jazz group Tin Hat performed on Jan. 28 at World Cafe Live in Philadelphia. My review is in today’s Inquirer. [Update: A minor correction — I described “Fata Morgana” as a “three-horn chorale”; it was actually two horns and violin. In jazz slang the word “horn” can refer to just about any instrument, but I won’t pretend that
Defending liberalism
Jonathan Cohn of TNR offers a brief history of contemporary liberalism and how “liberal” became a dirty word. The subject couldn’t be more relevant, as this piece by Rick Perlstein shows. There’s much talk right now about supposed Democratic zeal to “defund” the troops; Perlstein discusses how politicians like Hillary Clinton, deathly afraid of the accusation, are doing their best
“For the love of Kermit”
Bassist Kermit Driscoll has third-stage Lyme Disease and is struggling. There’s a benefit coming up to raise funds for his medical expenses: Monday, Jan. 29 at 8 p.m., Tonic, 107 Norfolk Street, near Delancey Street, Lower East Side, 212-358-7501, tonicnyc.com; cover, $25. Slated to perform: Bill Frisell, John Zorn, John Patitucci, John Hollenbeck. Tax-deductible donations can also be made payable
Iraq malaise PS
A quick response to the comment here, for clarity’s sake before the State of the Union Address: I’m sorry to say, but your comments here look like a watered down version of the Bush administration’s “blame the Iraqis” strategy. As I said in the post, the “blame the Iraqis” rhetoric is common among Dems and Repubs, pro-surge and anti-surge. What
Sharia law in Kurdistan?
See below… — Please send letters to support our campaign to remove Article No. 7 from the proposed constitution for Kurdistan. To all women’s group, secularist organisations, trade unions and political activists, we need your help to prevent Islamic Sharia law being implemented in Kurdistan. In December, we declared a campaign to repeal Article 7 from the proposed constitution of
The Iraq malaise
A reader named Gary has inquired about my position on troop withdrawal, “redeployment,” what have you. Yes, I support a troop withdrawal. The U.S. mission in Iraq is riddled with internal contradictions. American troops are shoring up a Shia-dominated regime that they’re simultaneously doing battle against, in various ways. The Maliki government wants the U.S. out, so it can turn