Fire Museum Rec. Alan Sondheim & Ritual All 770 : The Songs (US,1967)***
Liner notes say "Ritual All 770 were a group of improvisers living in Providence, Rhode Island. Rejecting the notion that avant garde music was solely the realm of isolated academia, they delved fearlessly and joyously into their music, creating a work that sounds fresh nearly 40 years later."
This first album on viberboat Records very quickly leads to two ESP recordings soonafter. The album was “lead” by Alan Sondheim who’s only restriction to the group was : “don’t do anything against the guitar with koto passages”. The album is recorded live and except for some reverberation and volume controlling, was pure improvisation. Except for some try-out, the only real preparation was a libretto of 8 pages without telling the vocalists how to sing it, with a free choice to take just anything from it, a script with some ideas of poems, words and yelling as the elements for making music.
I did not immediately notice it was an old work here, except when the association with mid ‘60’s early free jazz with avant garde surely is a very noticeable influence, because the styles which the musicians use for improvisation is, except for the chaotic confusions, rooted in jazz and blues.
The album is included on the legendary Nurse With Wound list of experimental recordings, so there must be a reason for it.
The recording has something chaotic, because the musicians are not the experienced free jazz professionals, so the opening up to freedom occurs in a very different way compared to how the academia free jazz musicians build it. Instead of opening up a structure, they accepted in the improvisation a factor of chaotic mingling where the feeling to feel-free and “I-do-what-I-want, whatever my neighbour does” is more what you hear, enjoying somewhat like an amateur or idiot somewhat carelessly but as a go ahead for mind confusing psychedelia. The musicians in that way don’t reach yet a real communal challenge. Their playing is based upon recognisable improvisation techniques but more freely. Only the ritualistic organic form unfolds itself by the I-do-what-I-want-freak-element freely. Especially the vocal parts are one of the better and more interesting things, because they sing consciously over it and seem to express best the human factor of the feeling free, like a “nanana-I-do-it” over it (I think it is this element which N.W.W. tried as well on some albums). In moments of need the fast guitar improvisations and koto seem to resume the energy in chorus parts.
Alan Sondheim played Electric Guitar, Violin, Flute, Suling, Xylophone, Alto Saxophone, Classical Guitar, Clarinet, Shenai, Bass Recorder, Mandolin, So-na, Hawaiian Guitar, Koto, Sopranino Recorder, Chimta, Cor Anglais, Sitar and Bansari. Ritual All 770 was Barry Sugarman (Tabla, Dholak & Naquerra), Chris Mattheson (Bass), Robert Poholek (Trumpet & Cornet), Ruth Ann Hutchinson (Vocals), June Fellows (Vocals) and J.Z. (Jazz Drums).
Limited to 500 copies.
See also next release :
NWW : "The Sylvie and Babs Hi-Fi Companion" (UK,1985)*****
