One of those landmark meetings of mighty talents that sounds even better on record than it does on paper – as the set somehow finds this really special space that's completely between all the best early 70s modes of both Terry Riley and John Cale! Cale was really coming into his own at the time as a solo act – creating amazing records after leaving the Velvet Underground, but also still tied to the deeper art scene from which he emerged. Riley was on the way to becoming one of the most popular of the more modern composers – thanks to a nod from The Who, and a big audience for his wonderfully trippy records on Columbia. The label allowed the pair to create this really special music here – sounds that borrow from Riley's minimalism, while also having some of the darkness of Cale's own compositions – and coming across with this jagged, almost modal sort of approach that's really great. Cale only sings on one song, and the rest of the set is instrumental – as Riley plays piano, organ, and soprano sax – and Cale joins in on bass, guitar, viola, and harpsichord. The two of them groove together in these totally cool tracks that build and build, with minimal lines repeating over and over in endlessly fascinating groove – in a way that touches on a weirdly funky mode! The cut "Ides Of March" has the potential to be dancefloor groover in the jazz dance scene, and there's lots of other great tracks like "Church of Anthrax", "The Protege", and "The Hall of Mirrors at the Palace of Versailles". CD

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Really beautiful work from the great Terry Riley – and a set that continues some of the surprising and wonderful shift towards jazz improvisation he's brought to his career in more recent years! If you know Riley, you'll know that the record's not really a jazz album – and instead, it features him improvising and stretching out in his own minimal ways on both standards, and some original tunes – all recorded in a very intimate studio setting in Japan, with Riley playing both acoustic piano and keyboards, often overdubbed. The set includes really surprising takes on "Blue Room", "The Best Thing For You", "Round Midnight", and "Yesterdays" – then also includes original tunes "Pasha Rag", and "Gotcha Wakatcha" – the last of which has Riley singing along with Sara Miyamoto. Features a bonus 7" single – with the song "Ballade For Sara & Tadashi" in both piano and keyboard versions! LP, Vinyl record album

Really beautiful work from the great Terry Riley – and a set that continues some of the surprising and wonderful shift towards jazz improvisation he's brought to his career in more recent years! If you know Riley, you'll know that the record's not really a jazz album – and instead, it features him improvising and stretching out in his own minimal ways on both standards, and some original tunes – all recorded in a very intimate studio setting in Japan, with Riley playing both acoustic piano and keyboards, often overdubbed. The set includes really surprising takes on "Blue Room", "The Best Thing For You", "Round Midnight", and "Yesterdays" – then also includes original tunes "Ballad For Sara & Tadashi", "Pasha Rag", and "Gotcah Wakatcha" – the last of which has Riley singing along with Sara Miyamoto. CD

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One of those landmark meetings of mighty talents that sounds even better on record than it does on paper – as the set somehow finds this really special space that's completely between all the best early 70s modes of both Terry Riley and John Cale! Cale was really coming into his own at the time as a solo act – creating amazing records after leaving the Velvet Underground, but also still tied to the deeper art scene from which he emerged. Riley was on the way to becoming one of the most popular of the more modern composers – thanks to a nod from The Who, and a big audience for his wonderfully trippy records on Columbia. The label allowed the pair to create this really special music here – sounds that borrow from Riley's minimalism, while also having some of the darkness of Cale's own compositions – and coming across with this jagged, almost modal sort of approach that's really great. Cale only sings on one song, and the rest of the set is instrumental – as Riley plays piano, organ, and soprano sax – and Cale joins in on bass, guitar, viola, and harpsichord. The two of them groove together in these totally cool tracks that build and build, with minimal lines repeating over and over in endlessly fascinating groove – in a way that touches on a weirdly funky mode! The cut "Ides Of March" has the potential to be dancefloor groover in the jazz dance scene, and there's lots of other great tracks like "Church of Anthrax", "The Protege", and "The Hall of Mirrors at the Palace of Versailles". CD

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A fantastic recording of two minimalist classics – each done here in an unique sort of way! The reading of Steve Reich's "Six Pianos" features six different artists on the instrument – but each recorded by themselves, away from the others, using their own piano – which is quite different from any sort of unified group recording of the work! The differing spaces and types of instrument maybe makes for more of a sense of individual "voice" to the performance than some others – yet the whole work still adhere's brilliantly to Reich's compositional ideas – especially his idea of phase shift over time! And on that note, the version of Terry Riley's "Keyboard Study #1" is wonderful too – featuring acoustic piano from Gregor Schwellenbach (who produced the record) – plus delays imposed on the performance by Lukas Vogel, whose almost working a Steve Reich tape trick into the more organic compositional ideals of Riley! CD

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An early masterpiece from the young Terry Riley – a work that's a bit different than some of his more solo or small group outings – but one that really sets the stage for all of Riley's experiments in years to come! The premise here is very unusual – in that the "score" features 53 separate short musical passages – which are then to be played in an order defined by the musicians themselves, in shifting patterns of repetition, moving in and out of phase with a really otherworldly quality – ever shifting, turning, and drifting – all to create a remarkable tapestry of sound, texture, and melody. This recording of the work is still the best, and it was produced with excellent care by David Behrman – and features musicians who include Jon Hassell on trumpet, Edward Burnham on vibes, Jan Williams on marimbaphone, David Shostac on flute, and Margaret Hassell on "The Pulse". CD

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Two rare soundtracks by Terry Riley – unsung examples of his musical genius during one of the the most fruitful periods in his career! Les Yeux Fermes features two very long tracks – each over 18 minutes long, and spun out with a spare, minimal groove that's very much in Riley's Rainbow In Curved Air mode. "Journey From The Death Of A Friend" is especially nice – with extended electric piano parts that flow, dip, and turn wonderfully. And "Happy Ending" builds a bit more slowly – with droning reed parts that almost have an Eastern feel, and remind us at times of something we might hear on Impulse Records! The score for Lifespan features shorter songs throughout – still often quite minimal, with instrumentation that includes organ, tabla, and a bit of electronics – played in a wonderfully spare mode, but always with an inherently rhythmic groove that stretches out in these beautiful patterns in sound. Titles include "G Song", "The Oldtimer", "Delay", "In The Summer", "Slow Melody In Bhairavi", and "Music Inside Curved Entrances". CD

Amazing work from Terry Riley – just the sort of recordings that will always make us love him forever! The album features two long recordings of the title track – "Persian Surgery Dervishes" – both built out of slow, spare organ lines from Riley – played in these really modal, long-flowing ways – then augmented with additional feedback that's totally great! The sound of the keyboards here definitely lives up to the billing Terry got from the Who as "Baba O'Riley" – yet in the original form like this, you can really hear Riley's genius. The music is very similar to his classic Rainbow In Curved Air, and the quality of the sound is excellent! CD

A haunting live recording from 1968 – a set that features Terry Riley at his slow-building, modally-influenced best! The performance was part of a concert titled "Purple Modal Strobe Ecstasy With the Daughters of Destruction" – which is actually a pretty good description of the sound, given the gently-flowing, somewhat trippy quality of the music! The longish tunes build with very spare elements from soprano sax, organ, and time-lag accumulator – all shifting slowly over time, and coming across with a bit more of an edge than some of Riley's more above-ground recordings of the period. CD

A haunting live recording from 1968 – a set that features Terry Riley at his slow-building, modally-influenced best! The performance was part of a concert titled "Purple Modal Strobe Ecstasy With the Daughters of Destruction" – which is actually a pretty good description of the sound, given the gently-flowing, somewhat trippy quality of the music! The longish tunes build with very spare elements from soprano sax, organ, and time-lag accumulator – all shifting slowly over time, and coming across with a bit more of an edge than some of Riley's more above-ground recordings of the period. CD

Beautiful sounds from Joanna Brouk – an artist who was sometimes lost amidst the new age scene of the 80s, but one who's got a much deeper, more intellectual approach overall! True, Brouk's music does have a certain meditative spirit – but she also was a student of Terry Riley and Robert Ashley, and drank deep of the new compositional spirit of the time – especially in the work of Riley, which is often reflected here, but in a more contemplative way than his own recordings. Music sometimes features a core line on flute, opening up and unfolding slowly – and there's also some nice piano, and even a bit of conch shell and Orca sounds too. Double-length set features the usual strong Numero Group level of notes and history – and contains 22 tracks in all, some of which were only ever issued on cassette! CD

Mindblowing minimalism from the legendary Sandy Bull – an artist who might have had acoustic roots in folk music, but who was instantly turning his music into something else – drawing on modal styles of Eastern music, European generations of expression on guitar, jazz-based improvisation – and maybe even prefiguring work to come from composers like Terry Riley and La Monte Young! This album's one of Bull's first, and it's pure genius right from the start – with a side-long performance on the incredible "Blend", which features slight drums from jazz musician Billy Higgins – which Sandy extrapolates these long passages on acoustic guitar. Side two features the fantastic "Carmina Burana Fantasy" on banjo – a kind of trans-historical performance that's right up there with John Fahey's best of the decade – alongside equally mindblowing "Non Nobis Domine" and "Little Maggie" – and the closing electric guitar genius of "Gospel Tune". LP, Vinyl record album

A landmark set of grooves by this excellent Detroit group – a trio who recorded for the local indie Karen, but got a much bigger boost towards fame when their record was picked up by Atlantic! The set's one of the killer 60s Motor Town sets produced by Ollie McLaughlin – and like the rest, it's got a really special edge – music that goes way past any simple 60s soul cliches, and which will make the set one of the real standouts in your collection. Arrangements are by Dale Warren, Riley Hampton, and Mike Terry – and titles include The Capitols' big hit "Cool Jerk", and also includes loads of other great tracks written by Donald Storball of the group – like "Dog & Cat", "Zig Zaggin", "The Kick", and others – plus versions of "Hello Stranger", "Love Makes The World Go Round", and "Good Lovin". LP, Vinyl record album

A landmark set of grooves by this excellent Detroit group – a trio who recorded for the local indie Karen, but got a much bigger boost towards fame when their record was picked up by Atlantic! The set's one of the killer 60s Motor Town sets produced by Ollie McLaughlin – and like the rest, it's got a really special edge – music that goes way past any simple 60s soul cliches, and which will make the set one of the real standouts in your collection. Arrangements are by Dale Warren, Riley Hampton, and Mike Terry – and titles include The Capitols' big hit "Cool Jerk", and also includes loads of other great tracks written by Donald Storball of the group – like "Dog & Cat", "Zig Zaggin", "The Kick", and others – plus versions of "Hello Stranger", "Love Makes The World Go Round", and "Good Lovin". LP, Vinyl record album

Spacey piano work from Jordan De La Sierra – material that's clearly informed by the 60s experiments of La Monte Young and Terry Riley, but which also has a more open, spiritual quality too! The piano has a nice sense of tuning – one that's almost watery at points – and Jordan's in no rush to let the notes unfold, as he often waits for one to resonate out before starting the next – which creates this very spacious, meditative quality throughout – a mode that's also inspired by Indian music, but much more laidbck and North California! The package reproduces the original 2LP set – complete with artwork and original notes. CD

Two very cool, very trippy numbers – both with almost a freakbeat sort of vibe! "Look At The Lights" has superb arrangements from John Cameron – who brings in a bouncy groove with jazzy flourishes next to the more psychedelic vocals, lyrics, and guitar! "Hold On To Your Mind" is an especially unusual number – very obscure, and a track that begins with this freewheeling romp that mixes piano, percussion, and a rolling rhythm that's maybe a more condensed version of the Church Of Anthrax territory explored by John Cale and Terry Riley – then graced with wicked vocals that really send the whole thing over the top! 7-inch, Vinyl record

The wonderful Raincoats are on the cover this time around, and the issue looks at the way their once-overlooked music has gone on to get the attention it deserved, and keep on having an influence over generations to come! There's lots more too – a very interesting piece that has Terry Riley and Hamid Drake commenting on Don and Moki Cherry, a set of unpublished AC/DC photos from 1977, the duo of guitarists Marisa Anderson and William Tyler, unseen collage art from Jim Jarmusch, an interview with singer/songwriter Tim Rutili, the rebirth of singer Merry Clayton, a cool collection musical artifacts at the Henry Ford Museum, 13 pages from issue #2 of Gary Panter's Jimbo comic, and lots more cool stuff too – the sort of articles that have continued to make Maggot Brain one of the most interesting magazines in recent years! Magazine

A really special live performance from Thelonious Monk – one that features his killer quartet of the 60s, but also opens the door to some surprise guest appearances too – all of which makes for a recording that's nicely different than much of the Monk live material of the period! The core group is already great enough – the tremendous Charlie Rouse on tenor, and superb rhythm work from Larry Gales on bass and Ben Riley on drums – and they're joined by other players at points, including Clark Terry and Ray Copeland on trumpets, Johnny Griffin on tenor, Phil Woods on alto, and Jimmy Cleveland on trombone – whose presence on the record echoes some of the larger charts that Monk cooked up during the late 50s for a few key albums. The tracks with the added players are especially long – and titles include "Hackensack", "We See", "Epistrophy", "Evidence/Epistrophy", "Don't Blame Me", "Blue Monk", and "Oska T/Epistrophy". CD

Amazing sounds from Nico – material recorded for the BBC during that wonderful early 70s stretch when she had firmly broken from the Velvet Underground, and was really making some mindbending music of her own! The vibe here is a lot like Desertshore – with very spare instrumentation made mostly from long lines on harmonium, providing very moody waves of sound next to the singer's incredible vocals – which have a more powerful, hypnotic quality in the setting than they ever did in a bigger group – a minimalist power that clearly owes a bit of a debt to Terry Riley and LaMonte Young, but which is definitely imbued with Nico's own strong spirit. The four tracks here are a crucial addition to her all-too-small catalog from the time – and titles include "No One Is There", "Frozen Warnings", "Janitor Of Lunacy", and "Secret Side". Only four tracks – but all of them are great! LP, Vinyl record album

Incredible work from Nico – easily one of her most haunting albums ever, and a huge step forward even from the sublime Chelsea Girl record! John Cale produced and arranged the album, and plays some extra-spooky harmonium throughout – an instrument that's got the same low, dead tones as Nico's vocals – which makes for a wonderfully haunting blend! Parts of the record echo the minimal explorations that Cale did with Terry Riley, but in a different way – with heroin definitely playing strongly as part of the aesthetic. The album's a gem through and through – definitely one of the few crucial solo works from Nico – and titles include "My Only Child", "All That Is My Own", "Afraid", "Janitor Of Lunacy", and "Abschied". LP, Vinyl record album

The poetry of the title isn't lost on the group on the record – nor is the "sleep" reference that the famous phrase would imply – as the quartet work in much mellower territory than on some of the other Zorn-directed projects of this nature on Tzadik in recent years – often with a beautifully minimal and hypnotic vibe! The group features twin keyboards – organ from John Medeski, and piano and Fender Rhodes from Brian Marsella – both players who loop around each other in nice ways, and get these slight contributions from the guitar of Bill Frisell and drums of Kenny Wollesen – both musicians who really let the keys take the lead, almost like a small combo jam version of Terry Riley territory. Beautiful throughout – with titles that include "A Secret Twilight", "Eventide", "Introit", "Lacrimosa", and "Midnight Vespers". CD

A sublime mix of art, jazz, and other unusual sounds – served up in tribute to the roving 7 x 7 exhibition series, and with a really beautiful package! The book itself is great – 12" square, and with 64 pages of artwork and writing in the middle – graced by recordings from a rich array of artists, all of them hip – and very well-chosen for the set! Some of the artists here do work that's very different than their usual material – and the set features contributions that include "Yellow" by Sean O'Hagan, "Azul" by Kassin, "Harlem Nights" by Nile Rodgers, "Sahasrara" by Terry Riley, "Blues In Orange" by Archie Shepp, "Zellesenya" by Mulatu Astatke, and "Red Alhambra" by Robert Wyatt. LP, Vinyl record album

With selections by Kitaro, Terry Riley & The Kronos Quartet, Yas Kaz, and Steven Halpern. LP, Vinyl record album

An amazing organ player from the Ethiopian scene – one whose work here easily rivals that of Mulatu and some of the best artists on the Ethiopiques series! Hailu Mergi has plenty of jazz in his approach – not just on his own keyboard lines, but also in the way he lets the group members open up on tenor, trumpet, flute, and piano with great sounds of their own – a groove that's especially nice when Mulatu comes into the mix with some work on vibes as well! Yet the whole record also has the best exotic overtones of other Ethiopian grooves you'll know from the time – an eerie, almost otherworldly sort of sound – as the organ drifts over the top with riffs that feel like they're lifted from Terry Riley, yet turned much more towards a groove-heavy sound. The whole thing's wonderful – easily the best release on this label so far – and titles include "Woghenei", "Yemiasleks Fikir", "Lomi Tera Tera", "Musicawi Silt", "Birtukane", "Eti Gual Blenai", and "Tche Belew". LP, Vinyl record album

A long-overdue tribute to the legendary Moondog – one of the true visionaries of American music in the 20th Century! Moondog got his starts as a blind musician working the streets of New York at the end of the 40s, but he did so (as you'll note on the cover photo) with a range of unusual instruments of his own invention, and in a minimal, rhythmic style that linked together primitivism with higher musical ideals. Moondog's often been called "the father of minimalism" – and while his experiments of the 50s prefaced the work of Steve Reich, Terry Riley, and others, his work was also much more personal, and had an earthy intensity that's still tremendously powerful even decades later! This collection is one of the first to dip into the earliest of Moondog's recordings – his recordings for the Mars, SRC, Brunswick, and Moondog labels – which are presented here alongside selected tracks from his albums for Epic and Prestige, also of similar vintage. Nearly all the tracks here offer a very primitive blend of percussion that's sometimes mixed with unusual woodwind or stringed instruments – nearly all of Moondog's own invention – and the package also features some great notes on his long career, plus some photos that are as gripping as the music itself! Titles include "Down Is Up", "Big Cat", "Bumbo", "Rimshot", "Rabbit Hop", "Instrumental Round", "Be A Hobo", "Dog Trot", "Oasis", "2 W 46th Street", and "Why Spend The Dark Night With You". CD

A really haunting little sound library record, and one that's very different than just about anything else we can think of in the genre! The set is filled with spare keyboards and electronics – almost in the territory of Terry Riley, but slowed down in pace – so that it's more spacious and meditative, with these elements that almost feel like they'd be perfect for tripping out in a planetarium and watching some nighttime star show! The work was originally used in the film In Kluis, but works beautifully here as a meditative album on its own – with titles that include "Fences", "Nude", "The Wall", "Tree Angle", "Observations", "Problems", "Inside", and "Desire". LP, Vinyl record album

A great little collection of hip 70s soul jazz tunes – recorded for the Mainstream level by a few different groups, but all united with a spirit of freedom and soulful exploration. Titles include "Dark Mood" by a group with Bobby Hutcherson, Harold Land, Mtume, and Buster Williams; "Quien Sabe" by Hadley Caliman, Larry Vuckovich, and others; "Miscegenation" by Buddy Terry, Woody Shaw, Eddie Henderson, and Joanne Brackeen; and "Valerie" by Blue Mitchell, Herman Riley, and Joe Sample. LP, Vinyl record album

Incredible work from Nico – easily one of her most haunting albums ever, and a huge step forward even from the sublime Chelsea Girl record! John Cale produced and arranged the album, and plays some extra-spooky harmonium throughout – an instrument that's got the same low, dead tones as Nico's vocals – which makes for a wonderfully haunting blend! Parts of the record echo the minimal explorations that Cale did with Terry Riley, but in a different way – with heroin definitely playing strongly as part of the aesthetic. The album's a gem through and through – definitely one of the few crucial solo works from Nico – and titles include "My Only Child", "All That Is My Own", "Afraid", "Janitor Of Lunacy", and "Abschied". CD

Incredible work from Nico – easily one of her most haunting albums ever, and a huge step forward even from the sublime Chelsea Girl record! John Cale produced and arranged the album, and plays some extra-spooky harmonium throughout – an instrument that's got the same low, dead tones as Nico's vocals – which makes for a wonderfully haunting blend! Parts of the record echo the minimal explorations that Cale did with Terry Riley, but in a different way – with heroin definitely playing strongly as part of the aesthetic. The album's a gem through and through – definitely one of the few crucial solo works from Nico – and titles include "My Only Child", "All That Is My Own", "Afraid", "Janitor Of Lunacy", and "Abschied". LP, Vinyl record album

Early 70s greatness from Don Cherry – a double album's worth of profoundly spiritual soundscapes paired with lots of weird effects – and a very laidback groove overall! Tracks are written by Cherry, Terry Riley, Pharoah Sanders, and Nana Vasconcelos – and include performances by Don on trumpet, voice, and harmonium. Lots of cool percussion elements by the group, with some tabla and other Indian instrumentation. Titles include "Elixir", "Relativity Suite (Parts 1 & 2)", "Terry's Tune", "Hope", "The Creator Has a Master Plan", and "Resa". CD