Van Swings With Fame

This is one of my favorite Van Morrison albums, 1995's "How Long Has This Been Going On", recorded by Van along with his pal Georgie Fame, doing some great RnB/Jazz tunes. I wish he had recorded more records like this one instead of the middle of the road pap that he sometimes did. I saw him do this repertoire at Jazzfest in '96, and even if The Man wasn't at his best, he cranked them out pretty sweet, while Georgie picked up the slack when the leprechauns got up Van's ass (moody bugger, isn't he?).

Highlights, for me, include: "The New Symphony Sid" (my favorite one, actually - especially Georgie's genius vocal take in the bridge), "Sack O' Woe", "Centerpiece", "Blues in the Night", and "That's Life" (Sinatra's).

Here is an excerpt from an interview about this recording:

JF: There's quite a feel of the Ray Charles band in some of this. It's got that... Particularly the way the horns are written for and everything. Was Pee Wee Ellis involved in writing?

VM: Oh yeah, he wrote the horn charts. Yeah

JF: By the standards of a lot of record making, this was all put together pretty fast, wasn't it?

VM: Yeah it was, but I think it's because we rehearsed, had a couple of good rehearsals. And so everybody was ready and clued-in.

JF: And how long did it actually take to do?

VM: An afternoon. We were there four hours maybe, five hours. All these musicians are very good and very clued-in. They're very fast, you know? So... You know, it's great to work with these kind of people. You usually don't find these type of musicians in the rock field. 'Cause it's much more sort of plodding.

JF: Where was the record recorded, Van, and what was it about the venue that you like?

VM: Um, we just sort of did it at Ronnie Scott's for, sort of, just the vibe.

HOW LONG HAS THIS BEEN GOING ON?

1. I Will Be There
2. The New Symphony Sid
3. Early In The Morning
4. Who Can I Turn To
5. Sack O' Woe
6. Moondance
7. Centerpiece
8. How Long Has This Been Going On?
9. Your Mind Is On Vacation
10. All Saints Day
11. Blues In The Night
12. Don't Worry About A Thing
13. That's Life
14. Heathrow Shuffle

PS: I am trying out a new upload service, so let me know if you have any trouble/complaints!!

Damon Albarn's Mali Music

Before Gorillaz, before The Good, The Bad and The Queen, there was Mali Music:"It was quite a random thing, " he says, picking up the story. "I was approached by Oxfam to go to Mali as their ambassador and get involved in their various initiatives out there. But I felt that was missing the point of using me, a musician."

"I'm not really one of those people who believes that if you're a musician you can just leave that behind and start getting into politics," he explains. "So I went back to them and said that I'd rather go and meet the musicians and see if there is some kind of common link that I could develop something from."
Oxfam set up chances for Albarn to meet and play with Malian musicians and the experience worked. "I just listened and talked and occasionally joined in with my melodica," he says, sounding rather proud.

"I played it on the last few albums I've made and it's just become my instrument of choice. In the context of Mali music it worked really well. It's a very simple instrument and it sonically fits in, for some reason."
Armed with a DAT tape, he recorded his collaborations in Mali and returned to his London studio with over 40 hours of music. "I spent two years figuring out how I could turn it into something that would satisfy me as a musician but also make some kind of cross-cultural link," he says.

Damon Albarn - "Mali Music"

1. Spoons
2. Bamako City
3. Le Relax
4. Nabintoue Diakite (Live)
5. Makelekele
6. Djembe
7. Tennesse Hotel
8. Niger
9. 4am At Toumani's
10. Institut National Des Arts
11. Kela Village
12. Griot Village
13. Le Hogon
14. Sunset Coming On
15. Ko Kan Ko Sata Doumbia On River
16. Les Ecros

Jimmy II + III

Ok, here, after more than a few days, I know, are the second and third installments in the Savoy box set of Jimmy Scott's early years. Enjoy the heartache!

DISC 2:
1. If You Only Knew
2. Am I Wrong?
3. Laughing On The Outside
4. I'll Be All Right
5. Please Be Kind
6. Never Peace Of Mind
7. Oh, What I Wouldn't Give
8. All Or Nothing At All
9. I'm Through With Love
10. Address Unknown
11. I May Never
12. What Wouldn't I Give
13. I Need Some Lovin' Baby
14. When It Comes To Love
15. There Will Never Be Another You
16. I'm Afraid The Masquerade Is Over
17. Once
18. What Good Would It Be
19. Way You Look Tonight, The
20. Things That Are Love
21. Everybody's Somebody's Fool
22. Time On My Hands
23. Sometimes I Feel Like A Motherless Child
24. If I Ever Lost You

DISC 3:
1. Please Forgive Me
2. How Else
3. If You Are But A Dream
4. Evening In Paradise, An
5. My Romance
6. When You Wish Upon A Star
7. Blue Bird Of Happiness
8. These Are The Things I Love
9. Smile
10. I'll Be Around
11. You've Changed
12. Way We Were, The
13. Anchored By My Side
14. Can't We Begin Again
15. Close Your Eyes
16. More I See You, The
17. When I Fall In Love
18. What Are You Doing The Rest Of Your Life?