Friday, November 28th, 2008 ... 9:00 a.m. - noon ... KZSU, 90.1 FM

(Return to playlists.)

With my 3:00 p.m. show being eclipsed by a sports broadcast today, and with Francis taking the day off, I scooped up his morning time slot and used it to mix my free-jazz show with his classic-rock-leaning tastes.

I didn't intend to play that much rock, but the Devo track amped me up more than expected, and that meant having to keep up the energy level for as long as possible. It's hard. The cerebral improv, experimental, and electronics stuff I normally play is just a brick wall of a stop after a rockin' rock track.

At its best moments, this was one of the most lively shows I've done in a long time, representing exactly what I'd been trying to do with my format since the beginning. At its worst, it was like when kids harmlessly bail out of a sled and go flying all over the hill: Ugly to watch, fun to cause.

Format:
ARTIST -- "TRACK TITLE" -- ALBUM TITLE (LABEL, YEAR)
Horizontal lines denote microphone breaks.

! Devo -- "Girl U Want" -- Freedom of Choice (Warner Bros., 1980)

Gillicit -- "Nouvelle Cuisine" -- Ginseng (Altri Suoni, 2001)

Yes, you can follow up Devo with jazz, as long as it's this kind of sharp-edged, punk-infused noisy jazz. Gillicit is a quintet that includes Lucien Dubuis, whose aggressive crossover style was noted here. That's crossover between slashing, aggressive rock and avant-garde jazz, not the usual smooth-jazzy "crossover."

The Time Traveler show features quite a bit of -- no offense to Francis, but -- overplayed classic rock. I wanted to go for some more

Source: Pi Recordings
obscure yet fitting tracks, some of which are legitimately famous on their own, like this one. I've played BÖC before; see here.

Haven't listened to the full album yet, but I'm sure I'll have lots to say once I do. Come back to this space later.

Ornette Coleman -- "Jordan" -- Sound Grammar (Sound Grammar, 2006)

Previously noted here.

I've played these guys a lot in the past couple of years, particularly noted and here.

Previously noted here.

* Frank Lowe -- "In Trane's Name" [excerpt] -- Black Beings (ESP-Disk, 2008; orig. released 1973)

Previously noted here.

! David Bowie -- "Dead Man Walking" -- Earthling 2004 (Columbia, 2004; orig. released 1997)

Bowie's drum 'n' bass period, which I think lasted only one album. The whole thing could probably be called derivative, but Earthling has some pretty good songs on it, especially this one, which I'd honestly rank among Bowie's best ever. (There's an amazing stripped-down version, just voice and acoustic guitar, that Bowie performed for various radio-station appearances while on tour; you can get a copy on the Live From Studio 8A compilation of Conan O'Brien musical guests.)

I also like "Little Wonder," even though it's a cute folksy song pumped up with drum 'n' bass steroids for a very forced, uncomfortable sound, and "Battle of Britain," which has some clever engineering and includes an awesome diagonal-piano solo that recalls "Aladdinsane." A couple of tracks like "Telling Lies" also get into the sour, acidic, Nine-Inch-Nails grittiness that Bowie had already dabbled in, and I find I enjoy those, too.

Previously noted here.

Per the BÖC comment above, I didn't want to just spin "Radar Love" like Francis has done repeatedly. This one, with its long psychedelic jam feel and a spacey synth/samples break in the middle, better fit the hybrid aesthetic of the show anyway. Despite having a couple of major radio hits, Golden Earring remains an underrated band in the U.S.

* Jean Martin and Evan Shaw -- "Wedged Under The Front Of $0.99" -- Piano Music (Barnyard, 2007)

Previously noted here.

Previously noted here.

Previously noted here.

* Trio Encompas -- "Jetlag Blues" -- Trio Encompas (Avant Coast, 2008)

Previously noted here.

Palinckx and Guests -- "Dogmeat" -- Llivvve!! (Vonk, 1992?)

Belgian musician Jacques Palinckx (guitar) and his usual quartet including Joos Buis (trombone) combines with, well, guests: Michael Vatcher on drums here; various Dutch new-boppers there; pianist Lol Coxhill turning in a vocal performance over there. There's even a track with a string quartet playing a Ives selection. Crazy, snide modern jazz with lots of artsy quiet breaks.

Previously noted here.

! Harry Nilsson -- "All My Life" -- Pussy Cats (Dynaflex (RCA), 1974)

Random vinyl pull. Nilsson (and The Monkees) happens to be situated right by the door to the music office, so I'm seeing his name week after week. This album was produced by John Lennon, incidentally.

Previously noted here.

A local band that was well regarded and well exposed (at least around here) in its time and has gone undeservedly forgotten, aside from frequent spins on KFOG's 10@10.

Reconciled includes what might be their most enduring hit, "I Still Believe," but it also happens to be their most kick-ass album. "Oklahoma" is a straightahead rocker that singer Michael Been and guitarist Tom Ferrier used to open the duet shows I saw some years back. Other tracks just strike the perfect mix of roots rock and '80s synth angst that made The Call stand out. The ending of Side 1 (we're talking the old vinyl era, after all) really stands out for me: the angry pulsing of "Blood Red (America)" followed by the more hopeful but still dark guitar riff opening "The Morning" is just a great transition.

The Call's latest comeback, to my knowledge, was a 1998 indie-label release called To Heaven and Back that was surprisingly good and showed Been still has the fire burning. No idea if there's any hope for another band reunion or if Been is even still writing.

Previously noted here.

* = Item in KZSU rotation
! = Pop anomaly
? = Item not in KZSU library

-- Go back to Memory Select playlists.
-- Bay Area free/improv music calendar: http://www.bayimproviser.com.