Blog Archives
FAITU#42
FRIDAY AFTERNOON IN THE UNIVERSE
(FAITU#42)
1995-05-05
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Wood + Martin @Liberty Lunch, Austin, TX 1996-04-13
Source info:
1995-05-05.dsbd.126805.t-flac16 [TSP1995#11]
– SET I (tracks 1-7) –
– SET II (tracks 8-17) –
– SHACK THOUGHTS –
FRIDAY AFTERNOON IN THE UNIVERSE (FAITU#42)
“Don’t fuck with John Medeski.”
– Billy Martin
— this comment from illyB near the end of the first set is a good summation of the gig, but let’s extend it to the trio as a whole. Not gonna blab on about this gig in detail. This is *classic* ’95, but turned up to eleven — this could arguably be the hottest show we have of ’95, and that’s saying A LOT! My Shack buddy, Mike (aka shackaholic) had this to say upon originally seeding this show:
If you were to have just one MMW recording from 1995, this would be a great candidate. The first set is average to slightly above average (the Pakalolo is excellent however).
The second set is a highlight set, IMO. The Think, We’re So Happy and Chubb Sub are all amazing versions. The rest of the second set is great too and features a Worms with a funky beginning. It’s as if they were going to do a Bemsha Swing/Lively Up Yourself but instead about 40 seconds in or so, it morphs into Worms.
Great great show that I highly recommend downloading.
Mike (aka shackaholic)
I’m gonna counter Mike’s assessment of Set 1 with this: He was blinded by the FIRE that is Set 2! HA! But, IMHO, the 1st set of this gig is MORE than average. Again, everything about this show is indeed classic ’95, but with a twist, a heightened energy — an extra sweet Pakalolo; the “usual” killer Drum Solo inside LCTDT(P); an early Sequel, born from It’s A Jungle In Here’s demise; that Bemsha fake-out to start Worms?; the run of tunes following Worms. All of this is standard for 1995, sorta, but this gig just lifts it all that much more from the first moment … at least to my ears. Yeah, even the first set is tops! The move out of the end of ripping The Lover > Pakalolo is, well, check it out …
Oh, and I’d be remiss if I didn’t note how intense and tight Beeah is in this gig — it’s a favourite of mine, and it was interesting to hear Chris say at a recent interview down in NOLA that this tune was written from a need: they had a first “official” gig and needed tunes! Glad they did! Beeah is sublime … and perfect for this Friday Afternoon In The Universe …
enjoy the grooves,
dug
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FAITU#41
FRIDAY AFTERNOON IN THE UNIVERSE
(FAITU#41)
1994-03-11
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MMW c.1992/93
Source info:
1994-03-11.akg460b.87048.t-flac [TSP1994#3]
– ONE SET (tracks 1-12) –
– SHACK THOUGHTS –
FRIDAY AFTERNOON IN THE UNIVERSE (FAITU#41)
We are LUCKY to have this show! First (known) gig of 1994 gets the year going in an exploratory nature showcasing a young band searching for their sound while already having the reigns to control what they’re already able to accomplish. These early years of MMW are full of fire, and it’s fantastic to hear, but it’s only the beginning of so much more music … however, it’s fun to revel in these early grooves … onto the show!
– ONE SET –
A new tune begins the first set of the year, “Knoxville Beat”, and this is the first of 2 known performances, the 2nd being the following night. The temp title comes from this debut happening in Knoxville, and it is a cool rushed BEAT! Chris has a really cool busy line at spots coupled with this lengthy pulse to get the tune going, while Medeski lays it out fast as well and Billy drives it all. Billy keeps the drive up, but the keys and bass both drop to a more sparse groove, and so it goes … VERY cool to hear this. We had 3/12/1994 for a while and had presumed this tune on that show to be an improvisation since we had nothing to compare it with, but once we got a copy of this 3/11 gig I realized this is indeed a tune — and now it sorta sounds like one, eh? This breaks down into an Open Improv that kind of extends the tune’s outro until …
MMW early ’90s
It’s A Jungle In Here, the song from album of same name, pops up, a tune that morphs over the next year to become the song Sequel, which is released on the album FAITU. Again, comparing to the 3/12/1994 gig, you can hear John refer to this tune as “It’s A Jungle In Here” so as far as the band was concerned, that was what they were still playing at this point…and while the tune is certainly not as clean as Sequel became, it sounds like the same tune but a little looser … at least to my ears … I think IAJIH might be missing some of the more structured breakdown moments that were incorporated into Sequel…maybe? I dunno …
Up next, “Screeching Flamingos”, dubbed such due to the screeching nature of Chris’ bow action and the fact that the tune’s first known performance is in this venue, Flamingo’s, the tune is a HEAVY TRIBAL VIBE! Wow! An incredible pulse to this groove, but we only have a couple of recorded versions, unfortunately: this and the next night, March 12/1994, where it opens the 2nd set. It almost sounds like a distant cousin to Worms (which we’ll hear from shortly), but is most certainly its own beast. Cool to hear, and again was thought to be an improvisation when all we had was 3/12/1994, but we now know it to be composed.
Shack, the tune, is up next and stretches into a VERY nice groove. Never disappointed with this tune, interesting the band abandons it over the next few years, but any time they visit the tune it’s worth the listen to this groove!
John introduces the band (NOT Billy), and lets us know we’ll be enjoying some Worms next, off their latest album (It’s A Jungle In Here) — great album! You should get it if you don’t have it! And so Worms offers us some more “screeching” bow work from Chris, albeit in a slightly more friendly groove (interesting to term Worms a “friendly” groove, but compared to “Screeching Flamingos”, it is!). Worms opens into a Drum Solo, which is normal for the tune — it’s the length and explosiveness of the solo that seems to vary from version to version, although some forego a solo entirely in favour of more wacky playfulness from the players. Anyhoo, this solo erupts quite largely and circles back to the Worms riff to take us out into some Open Improv before landing in this weekly series’ namesake, Friday Afternoon In The Universe — I just love the looseness of this wickedly groovy tune. The way it congeals from the ether, grooves, and then separates, FAITU is top knotch for me in MMW’s composed arsenal — it’s like a micro-sample of MMW’s macro-grooves, a snapshot of MMW captured in a single tune. As the separation ensues a Bass Solo rises allowing Chris to beat and groove his way into Chubb Sub, and it gets grooving in a real cool way.
A short pause, and then Medeski kicks in on the clavinet for a few minutes by himself, at the end of track#9, rolling over to the next track where we get to enjoy the Pakalolo — an excellent choice, not as expansive as some versions get around ’94-’95, before the tune fades out of the repertoire (thanks to those who requested in during the 2011 request gigs!), but still this is always worth hearing. I guess it might be cut short as a result of the trio migrating into some Improv that slides oh so nicely into Chinoiserie — you gotta hear this sequence of tracks!
mmw @(le) poisson rouge, NYC, NY 2017-01-18
Another brief pause and John introduces the band, as was his role at this time, and then announces they’ll be closing with a King Sunny Ade tune, Moti Mo, and this is always a sweet vibe with which to close a gig … some might prefer something more upbeat, but the beauty and intensity of Moti Mo would win for me every time …
Cool to hear a couple of new tunes in this show, tunes that are a little more abstract than some of the groovier numbers but unfortunately never stuck around in the live repertoire very long, and yet THANKS TO THE TAPERS we have them captured to hear, lo these 23 years later, on this relaxing spring Friday Afternoon In The Universe …
enjoy the grooves,
dug
THE SHACK STREAM
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FAITU#40
FRIDAY AFTERNOON IN THE UNIVERSE
(FAITU#40)
2001-08-25
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Marshall Allen c.2001
Source info:
2001-08-25.sbd.12422.t-flac16
– ONE SET (tracks 1-10) –
FRIDAY AFTERNOON IN THE UNIVERSE (FAITU#40)
– SHACK THOUGHTS –
It’s like the band decided to peripherally perform the album, THE DROPPER, in this live setting since Marc Ribot and Marshall Allen were both there. This set is EXACTLY why I listen to MMW. Not the only reason, but one of many that are all EXACTLY why I listen to MMW … while spontaneous composition/improvisation isn’t heard much in this gig, what these musicians do with the songs played is absolutely stunning … let’s dig in!
MMW w/ Marc Ribot @Umbria Jazz Festival,
Teatro Mancinelli, Orvieto, Italy 2001-12-31
– ONE SET –
The set begins with an Open Improv, exploring the space — I think just the trio until about 2min in and then you can hear Ribot’s guitar howl out, and we’re getting some squawks and squeals from Marshall Allen as well … it’s all very abstract, but also sort of a loose introduction to The Dropper (the song) — we get John’s key sound signifying the tune @3:22 on the first track, but then it all sort of falls apart a bit — it seems — simply as a way to restart into The Dropper and get it rolling. So when the track rolls over, this time John’s keys hold the line, Billy kicks in the beat and we are grooving along by the time Chris brings in the base to punctuate things, and essentially hold the melody and foundation of the tune for us. Oh yeah, and then Marc starts letting out some rhythmic spatters and joins the fray nicely. @2:45 Allen asserts himself in the mix — it’s hard to tell if some of the sounds preceding this were coming from him or the keys, but at this point he’s getting horny and we can dig it — listen to Ribot strumming off those spaces in the back of the sound! Things just get MORE CRAZY from here, so just after 7min when John is bringing back the head of the tune (if you can call it that), he’s really wrestling for space in the cacophony of Ribot and Allen — WHOAH! Tune boils down to nothing …
And the Partido Alto groove emerges, feeling so good and about to get super rockin’ as a result of one of the guests — but I ain’t complaining! Ribot comes in with a nice sweet rhythmic pattern again, interjecting some solo lines … the beat picks up as illyB moves to the kit from the percussion, and we are cooking now — and Ribot basically takes over driving this one, I think. He ROCKS this tune HARD … until it simmers down through a drum interlude of sorts, sweetened by John’s piano tinkering in the final moments of the track …
Marc Ribot c.2001
Chris gets us going with a Bass Solo next — fast fingers here! Beats his wood for a while here with high energy until he hits those sweet descending notes leading into Shacklyn Knights, and the Knights step right into the groove and we are moving with the trio only at this point — love the groove/feel of this tune! A Drum Solo comes out of Shacklyn, leading us to Big Time, again with just the trio — heavy vibe on this tune, always fun. In the final noise moments of the tune, just as it’s becoming Felic, Allen and Ribot can be heard again in the mix helping along with the open wacky sounds.
Felic is SOOOOOOOOO f#$kin awesome! And with Ribot and Allen throwing down in the mix, this is some HEAVY shit! Lovin’ it! Chris keeps pulsing that bass line, keeping it together. This tune erupts even more over time, pushing and pushing until we are …
ROLLING! We Are Rolling kicks in, and just when it seemed like Felic was the “heavy” tune, our heads are pushed that much further to the brink — the 5 voices on stage are all clamouring for space in the sound and it is INTENSE! Until we hit that space break with a reggae tinge … but it’s all about to explode again! And AGAIN!
Note Bleu is the soothing sound to follow the previous chaos, but keeps an edge due to Marshall’s sound — such bite to his playing!
MMW @The O’Shaughnessy, St. Paul, MN 2001-10-18
A short Open Intro and we are vibing to Sun Ra’s Angel Race (I’ll Wait For You), a tune MMW had been playing for a couple years at this point. Having become part of a medly with Nostalgia In Times Square in the spring 2000 acoustic tour and throughout the remainder of that year, here we get a full treatment of the tune with one of Sun Ra’s band members and Marc Ribot — yeah, this is pretty damn sweet! (I’d heard the trio play Angel Race in ’99, just after it entered the live repertoire, and it was wild with just the three of them — these 5 on stage are wild!) There is what seems like digi-noise c.4min and at times after that, but I think it’s what Allen is doing on his horn! How he’s playing it is eliciting that sound, and then you hear him come in more melodically, but those staccato breaths are breaking the peak!</p
Bubblehouse — does Chris tease the melody from Zappa’s Peaches En Regalia c.6:48?!?! NO! It’s Jelly Belly – RIGHT? Or is it? You decide! Bubblehouse is always grooving and welcome by the crowd, but Ribot and Allen raise the stakes a bit more — you’ll like it, trust me.
You can tell MMW love playing with Ribot, it just shows, and then the addition of Allen finds everyone playing at their tops! Not that the trio ever sounds like they’re slacking on other nights, but this gig just has a VERY special vibe … perfect for a wacky Friday Afternoon In The Universe …
enjoy the grooves,
dug
THE SHACK STREAM
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Celebrate 4/20 w/ MMW Grooves!
– KNOWN/CIRCULATING RECORDINGS FROM 4/20 –
Trouble playing/downloading tunes?
– THE SHACK PROJECT CELEBRATES MMW @26 YEARS! –
Happy 420 …
enjoy the grooves,
dug
| – LOOK FOR SHACK ICONS! – | |
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Select this icon to visit my OneDrive and DOWNLOAD a zip file containing an ID tagged lossless FLAC fileset of the show. |
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Select this icon to visit my OneDrive and DOWNLOAD a zip file containing an ID tagged lossy MP3 fileset of the show. |
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Select this icon to find info about the show setlist and recording source via db.etree. |
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Select this icon to visit the show page for streaming MP3s, show notes, etc. here @TSP. |
| ~ 4/20 Shows ~ ~ FLAC & MP3 filesets ~ ~ Download and/or Streaming ~ |
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 MMW @The Staircase, Scranton, PA 2005-05-13 |
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| 2001-04-20.neumann-u89.117619.t-flac16 [TSP2001#15] Warfield Theatre, San Francisco, CA Friday, April 20, 2001 One Set Only Karl Denson’s Tiny Universe opened for MMW |
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| 2002-04-20.mg-m300.9562.t-flac16 [TSP2002#9] Warfield Theatre, San Francisco, CA Saturday, April 20, 2002 Most of the show with Dan the Automator – turntables * w/ extended outro # w/ the Uninvisible Horns of San Francisco: Steven Bernstein – trumpet, slide trumpet, director Ralph Carney – bari sax, flute, homemade thing Paul Hanson – bassoon + effects Kenny Brooks – tenor sax, oboe |
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| 2002-04-20.schoeps641.9521.t-flac16 [TSP2002#10] Warfield Theatre, San Francisco, CA Saturday, April 20, 2002 Most of the show with Dan the Automator – turntables * w/ extended outro # w/ the Uninvisible Horns of San Francisco: Steven Bernstein – trumpet, slide trumpet, director Ralph Carney – bari sax, flute, homemade thing Paul Hanson – bassoon + effects Kenny Brooks – tenor sax, oboe |
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 Wood & Martin @Mondavi Center, Jackson Hall, Davis, CA 2013-04-20 |
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| 2004-04-20.fob.dpa4023.23966.t-flac16 [TSP2004#15] Café du Nord, San Francisco, CA Tuesday, April 20, 2004 |
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| 2005-04-20.akg463.29083.t-flac16 [TSP2005#30] Liberty Hall, Lawrence, KS Wednesday, April 20, 2005 |
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| 2013-04-20.neumann-km140.124444.t-flac16 [TSP2013#7] Mondavi Center for the Arts, Davis, CA Saturday, April 20, 2013 with Joshua Light Show |
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THE SHACK STREAM
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FAITU#39
FRIDAY AFTERNOON IN THE UNIVERSE
(FAITU#39)
2013-04-19
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| Trouble playing tunes? | ||||
MMW @Kirkland Performance Center, Kirkland, WA 2013-04-17
Source info:
2013-04-19.neumann-km140.124443.t-flac16
– SET I (tracks 1-6) –
– SET II (tracks 7-13) –
– SHACK THOUGHTS –
FRIDAY AFTERNOON IN THE UNIVERSE (FAITU#39)
The ACOUSTIC goodness of MMW … oh yeah. Perhaps more accurately referred to as “Chamber Music” — that’s what Billy called the music at the shows I hit at this time … has a nice ring to it … reverent …
MMW 2013 Acoustic Tour
– SET I –
Show begins carving through the open space, everyone filling the sound, and then c.3min Medeski plays this lilting line on the piano (familiar?) and the vibe changes to something soothing, which slides right into Hip Chops on the next track, a killer romp, courtesy of Roland Kirk, that is always fun to hear the guys play. The tune takes a turn near the end back into some Open Improvisation, which almost feels like it’s picking up where the pre-Hip Chops open exploration left off — cool! This set’s open playing so far has been rather comforting, but around 3min into track #3 the sounds take a turn towards the eerie and anxiety-inducing — tension! So it gets more tense for a bit before breaking apart into some random note playing (or so it sounds), which all pulls together into a groove of sorts when we roll into track #4.
MMW @Roseland Theater, Portland, OR 2013-04-18
The Improv takes a little shift @3:06 that sounds like the beginning of what is more developed by @6:03 of track #4 — I’m not sure if this is just really beautiful improvisation, or if we’ve hit a tune … kind of reminds me of something from Medeski’s solo album that came out around this time, A DIFFERENT TIME … but I’ve never been able to place it. A lovely listen …
A big swig of Olde Wyne wraps up the set leaving you feeling all warm inside …
– SET II –
A quick bassline from Chris and a sprinkling of melodica from John, while illyB interjects some snare accents, gets us going into what I’ve (stupidly?) temp-named “Melodiccordion Shuffle”. The tune debuted on the previous fall’s East coast acoustic tour and had John on the Claviola upon the debut of the tune’s melody on Oct 3/2012 in Fall River, MA — and it’s been unclear to me if itwas a song at that point, or just an improvised melody that night because it wasn’t until the next night that we hear a more “full” version of a song, and it continued to morph over that fall tour, the Blue Note run, and in these spring ’13 gigs. Anyway, the Claviola was new to me when I witnessed that first melody performance in Oct ’12, and I dubbed the instrument a “Melodiccordion” — it’s like a hybrid of the melodica and an accordion, hence the odd temp-name for this track since I often try to be descriptive with temp-names for new tunes. Not too long after I discovered the name of the instrument as the Claviola. Pretty sure this performance is on the melodica though.
Wood @Roseland Theater, Portland, OR 2013-04-18
The next piece is hauntingly beautiful in all the right ways: Ballade In C Minor, ‘Vergessene Seelen’. This also has a VERY interesting history in MMW’s live repertoire. First (known) appearance of what I’d term the ‘Vergessene Seelen’ melody dates way back to May 29/1994 where the band jams off this in an electric setting — VERY cool discovery I made earlier while preparing FAITU#16. The ‘Vergessene’ melody surfaces yet again 6 years later, now in an acoustic setting, when the band began their run of acoustic gigs in early 2000; Apr 14/2000 began with yet another embryonic version of the “tune” — again, more like it’s a melody in John’s head that he toys with from time to time … I wonder how many other times it’s been used? I haven’t found others yet, but I’m listening! Finally on the 2007 acoustic spring tour the band debuts the tune they developed around that lingering melody, and Ballade In C Minor, ‘Vergessene Seelen’ is played each night, then disappears, eventually making its way onto the release of Free Magic in 2012. leading the band to playing it again — and REALLY working it! — over the fall 2012 tour, and again on this spring 2013 tour. This night’s version, like any of them, is well worth hearing. It’s a weird tune, but I REALLY dig it. This 4/19/2013 performance moves through the “Ballad” section smoothly and the ‘Vergeessene Seelen’ section seems especially hopping — the fall versions seemed to all move towards breaking down earlier or more slowly, but this one just quits the energy right to a short Drum Solo to finish out.
MMW @Roseland Theater, Portland, OR 2013-04-18
“Wild Instrument Jam” was great when I caught versions on the fall tour, and this one doesn’t disappoint either — well, except for the one idiot who keeps calling for the band to “fill it in”. Sometimes it’s best to just be quiet and listen, you might be rewarded in your soul for such attention. Maybe that’s just me? So, this is another “wild” and wacky improvisation with John on the Fujara (a Slovakian shepherd horn) — John gravitated to this choice of instrument over the fall acoustic shows, but the first few times this moment happened in the fall gigs it seemed he might introduce a new/unique instrument each time or at least shuffle between the newly played Claviola, Bamboo Sax, or Fujara. This jam works weirdly into Bob Marley’s Legalize It — a tune they’ve covered electrically as a trio since 2003, but then became part of their MSMW repertoire and was recorded on the OUT LOUDER album with Scofield.
Suspicious Minds closes the set and the show — as unlikely a cover as any MMW have tackled. I LOVE It. Got to hear it a couple of time on the fall ’12 East Coast leg of the tour.
Medeski & Martin @Roseland Theater, Portland, OR 2013-04-18
So no encore, which is how the band rolls sometimes … in this case, no worries, as each set sits as a nice whole in and of itself … I think these acoustic chamber sets will treat you well on this (Good) Friday Afternoon In The Universe …
enjoy the grooves,
dug
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