03/29/25 - Jam_13

"There was more resistance to the fact I was using computers than to the fact that I was a woman doing music." -- Laurie Spiegel

 Listen to the show below!

Artist	Track	Album	Label	Year	Notes
Laurie Spiegel	The Unquestioned Answer	The Expanding Universe	Philo	1980 (1974-1976)	A soft and atmospheric piece of progressive electronic music. Spiegel's work at Bell Labs places her in the lineage of early electronic pioneers, though emerging during the Kraftwerk revolution.
Krok	Breath of Night Kyiv	Even the Forest Hums: Ukrainian Sonic Archies 1971-1996	Light in the Attic	2024 (early 1980s)	A jazz fusion piece from the waning years of the USSR. Smooth and polished. Carries a cosmopolitan tone similar to city pop.
T. Dyson & Company	It's All Over	N/A	Cyndee Music	1980	A rare bedroom synth-funk single from Chicago. Reissued for RSD 2021.
Ellen McIlwaine	Higher Ground	The Real Ellen McIlwaine	Kot'ai	1975	A guitar-and-voice psychedelic blues take on Stevie Wonder's "Higher Ground." McIlwaine is generally known for blending folk and blues influences.
Mr. Fingers	Mystery of Love	N/A	Alleviated	1985	Dub-influenced house track by Larry Heard, one of house music's pioneers. Bass-forward mix and experimental textures.
Res	700 Mile Situation	How I Do	MCA	2001	A neo-soul track from Res' debut album, How I Do, which mixes alt-rock, trip-hop, and post-punk revival elements.
Dwight Sykes	Where Ever You Are	Songs Vol. 1	Peoples Potential Unlimited	2013 (1980-1990)	Moody and nocturnal synth-funk track with lo-fi aesthetics. Accidentally aligns itself with vaporwave.
Wilburn Burchette	Birth of a Witch	Guitar Grimoire	Burchette Brothers	1973	Solo guitar piece from a self-taught musician who infused his sound with Tibetan mysticism.
Steve Hiett	Blue Beach - Welcome to Your Beach	Down on the Road by the Beach	Sony/CBS	1983	A dreamy ambient pop track from a photographer-turned-one-time-musician. Originally released exclusively in Japan.

03/22/25 - Jam_12

"Knowing all these little things, I adapt my playing for each individual artist-instead of me just sitting back there and playing for myself." -- Louie Bellson

 Listen to the show below! Note: Sorry I had to cut the show a bit short today. There were some technical issues.

Artist	Track	Album	Label	Year	Notes
Magnum	Your Mind	Fully Loaded	The Phoenix	1974	Obscure psychedelic soul-funk band from the 70s. Released only one album.
Del Jones' Positive Vibes	Court Is Closed	Court Is Closed	Hikeka Records	1973	Politically charged Philadelphia soul group of the early 70s. Self-released two records that are technically the same album.
Louie Bellson & Walfredo de los Reyes	Sentido En Seis	Ecue ritmos cubanos	Pablo	1978	Established jazz drummer teamed up with Afro-Cuban percussionist. Largely a descarga record with a small band. Features Walfredo's son also on percussion.
The Rance Allen Group	That Will Be Good Enough For Me	Truth Is Where It's At	Gospel Truth	1972	Gospel-soul trio of brothers. Church-rooted vocals and Stax-backed grooves. Powerhouse vocals.
Mike and Pam Martin	Lonely Entertainer	Fernwood Pacific	Agustus Records	1975	Country rock couple duo from Colorado. Low fidelity and mellow.
Abdallah Oumbadougou	Anou Malane	Anou Malane	N/A	2019 (1990s)	Pioneering Tuareg guitarist from Niger. Fusion of electric blues with traditional tuareg music, creating the politically revolutionary genre of tishoumaren.
The Invaders	Spacing Out	Spacing Out	Duane	1970	Short-lived Bermudan funk-rock band. Blends psychedelic soul, rock, and funk. Album released during a golden age of black rock music.
Joe Henderson & Alice Coltrane	Earth	The Elements	Milestone	1974	Saxophonist Joe Henderson with spiritual jazz innovator Alice Coltrane. Record journeys through music representative of the four elements air, water, fire and earth.

03/08/25 - Jam_11

"Travis Scott sampled one of the songs and put it on his Grammy album. So after 40, almost 50 years, all of a sudden, the most money I've made in music is in the rap era, so it's pretty wild that happened" -- Chuck Senrick talking about Travis Scott sampling "Don't be So Nice"

 Listen to the show below 

Artist	Track	Album	Label	Year	Notes
Chuck Senrick	Don't Be So Nice	Dreamin'	N/A	1977	Lo-fi, minimal lounge pop track. Originally pressed in 200 copies.
Spontaneous Overthrow	All About Money	All About Money	New-Ark Recordings	1984	Outsider soul-funk from Newark PA. Amateurish instrumentation with off-key vocals and somewhat rambling lyrics about being broke.
Shira Small	My Life's Alright	The Line of Time and the Plane of Now	N/A	1974	A mellow pop-soul/jazz-pop track recorded as a high school senior project and distributed in 500 copies.
Willis Alan Ramsey	Muskrat Candlelight	Willis Alan Ramsey	Shelter	1972	Atmospheric folk rock original of "Muskrat Love" later made famous by America and Captain & Tennile.
Faust	Jennifer	Faust IV	Virgin	1973	Rare moment of accessbility from krautrock band Faust.
Tim Buckley	Lorca	Lorca	Elektra	1970	Tense experimental folk track. Demostrates Buckley's shift towards more avant-garde and boundary-pushing sounds.
Charlie Feathers	Can't Hardly Stand It	N/A	King	1956	Rockabilly cut with eerie reverb and jerky vocals. Unintentionally ominous.
Cukor Bila Smert'	The Great Han-Tuan River	Manirna Muzyka	Koka	1990	Darkwave-influenced track from Ukrainian avant-garde scene.
Syrinx	Hollywood Dream Trip	Syrinx	True North	1970	Canadian prog rock band makes ECM-style fusion.

12/14/24 - Jam_7

"I want to make this clear: I am a jazz artist. I don’t want to pretend to be something that I’m not." - Grachan Moncur III talking about being the first to make trombone central to jazz, incidentally creating avant-garde music and opening the door for other weird stuff to record for Blue Note

 Listen to the show below! 

Artist	Track	Album	Label	Year	Notes
Grachan Moncur III	Air Raid	Evolution	Blue Note	1964	Ahh yes, the rare trombone bandleader. Grachan is most known for playing on some of Jackie McLean's most acclaimed early sixties records. When this record was released, along with its somewhat sister records a year later titled Some Other Stuff, playing with Jackie was most of what he had done, which makes sense considering Jackie basically picked him up when Grachan was in high school. This recording session features some heavy hitters including Jackie McLean, Lee Morgan, and Bobby Hutcherson, who adds his distinct vibraphone to an already off-kilter post-bop sound. Blue Note was generally not at the forefront of avant-garde stuff, there are a few big ones but not too much there. They put out some Don Cherry, Eric Dolphy, and Cecil Taylor, but were they leading distributors of the free or avant-garde? Not so much. Also, this is one of those somewhat rare intermediate points between post-bop and what had already come but was not yet completely accepted.
Dickie Landry	Hang the Rich	N/A	DFA	1986	Founding member of the Philip Glass ensemble records dance punk in the eighties... a total one-off. A single never released until early this year. I found this completely on accident listening to his usual run of records, all falling into the minimalism category (repetive rhythm, static harmony). Makes this even more interesting as a one-off.
Hans Reichel	Bonobo II	Bonobo	FMP	1976	This is some of the best solo free improv I've ever heard. Though I will say it does feel somewhat structured rather than being completely free. Hans Reichel has collaborated most famously with Fred Frith, a pioneering member of the rock in opposition scene. The structure I'm hearing may or may not be attributed to Reichel's early education in classical violin. He often used either his self-created instruments, such as the daxophone, or a box with his guitars. I think here he is just picking and plucking, but with a lot of overdubbing... it lets him create a great multilayered texture through the record.
New Kingdom	Mexico or Bust	Paradise Don't Come Cheap	Gee Street	1996	An interesting mash of rock and rap primarily through sampling. This duo released two albums, this one being the last. They both met at the thrift store they were working at in NYC. Their records weren't too positively received at the time, but it is pretty unique especially for the time... super fuzzed out and somewhat psychedelic stuff.
John D. Loudermilk	Goin' to Hell On a Sled	The Open Mind of John D. Loudermilk	RCA Victor	1969	The record itself totes the line between pop country and protest-y contemporary folk, this track being more on the latter side. It is a total one-off strange affair... Loudermilk was primarily known if at all for being a songwriter who had many hits under his belt, mostly in the sixties. This record is both a product of its time and a weird detour for someone who had never shown any inkling of writing songs like this.
Eugene McDaniels	Supermarket Blues	Headless Heroes of the Apocalypse	Atlantic	1971	Early sixties pop soul singer turned political progressive soul singer. His biggest hits were "A Hundred Pounds of Clay" and "Tower of Strength" in 1961, neither songs written by him. However, he would go on to be a relatively successful songwriter, including his own material starting in the late 60s. The first notable song of this type, "Compared to What," was recorded by Roberta Flack and hundreds of other important figures in jazz and R&B. His own discography hasn't gotten as much attention, however. Headless Heroes of the Apocalypse is the second of his two politically conscious seventies records. It allegedly caused Spiro Agnew, vice prez to Nixon at the time, to ask Atlantic to withdraw it from sale.
James Blood Ulmer	Are You Glad to be in America?	Odyssey	CBS	1983	James Blood Ulmer is a somewhat towering figure in 80s avant-garde jazz fusion scenes that would draw attention from publications like The Wire or Option while they were both underground-jazz-only mags. James Blood's early career consisted of playing with folks like Art Blakey and Joe Henderson before he stepped into his own bag as a bandleader. I chose his sort-of flagship track to play here... funny 'cause he's not the greatest enunciator in general but especially on this track.
Old and New Dreams	Old and New Dreams	Old and New Dreams	Black Saint	1977	Supergroup of Don Cherry, Dewey Redman, Charlie Haden, and Eddie Blackwell playing somewhat conceptually driven somewhat free jazz. The entire basis for their improv is a set melody for the theme as is typical of any jazz, and then developing specifically only on that melody throughout each song. This track in particular is very atmospheric with the consistent percussion as a backbone and the horns moving in and out.
Yaki Kandru	Mare Mare	Indianische Musik aus Kolumbien	FolkFreak	1982	Native South American traditional music from Columbia. This is actually a duo, though it doesn't sound much like it. They made about two records, this being the intro track from their second.
Billy Hart	Rahsaan Is Beautiful	Enchance	Horizon	1977	Very gentle spiritual jazz, somewhat of a tribute to Rahsaan Roland Kirk. Billy Hart is a drummer most known for playing on much of Herbie Hancock's prime fusion records. This track is from his own debut bandleading record, made some 25 years after starting a recording career. I am suspecting the Roland Kirk connection because of the track title and the way it sounds. They even bring out the koto just for this track alone.
Journeyman	Valves	Mama 6	Ntone	1992	Ambient dub side project from a standout figure in the genre. Paul Frankland, or Woob as he is more commonly known, started producing ambient music in the mid-90s as Woob. I will say electronic music in the 90s/2000s no matter how much of a cult following it appears to have is very well documented, whether through digital or print publications or other forms of documentation. There is a surprising amount of information about this guy. Ambient is especially an interesting genre... from what I have seen and read, very few people actually intend to make ambient music, it just turns out that way. This form of sample-based ambient is very reminiscent of other murky sound collage experimental recordings.
Palabritas Flojas	Isol/Zypce	Sima	Darla	2008	Art pop collaboration between a children's book writer and an industrial electronic composer. Sounds a bit wild, but is actually quite subdued and subtle. Both are from Buenos Aires, Argentina. Well I am being a bit withholding: Isol was the founding lead singer of the indie pop group Entre Rios for about five years, so it's not that strange of a collaboration, but she is definitely more well known for her books. Isol has won awards for her children's books and other such accolades, but Zypce doesn't have quite the same footprint that she does despite being more involved in music.

12/07/24 - Jam_6

"Now, I don't really think it matters where you're based. The internet provides more self-managing platforms for promotion than you could have dreamed of ... It's how you use those opportunities that matters now." - Graham Lambkin, WFMU interview

 Listen to the show below! 

Artist	Track	Album	Label	Year	Notes
Graham Lambkin	The Brendan Drill	Salmon Run	Kye	2007	Independently released musique concrète from England. Graham Lambkin is generally a audio-visual artist, and as such makes experimental music that is common of such folks (e.g., Yoko Ono, Laurie Anderson, Ryoji Ikeda). Lambkin is most well-known for being in The Shadow Ring, a 90s experimental rock outfit that remains still obscure relative to similar groups from that time. I think this track, along with many others from the album, has a great mix of textures and works well as an opener to today's program.
Ünol Büyükgönenç	Japon Balıkçısı	Güzel Günler Göreceğiz	Armoni	1988	Turkish folk with some quirky elements. This song, "The Japanese Fisherman," has the sound of water splashing throughout it and an approximation of Japanese chanting. Ünol was a member of Kardaşlar, a 70s anatolian rock band, before recording this album in 1979. It was not released until nine years later due to the September 12 coup carried out by the Turkish Armed Forces in 1980.
Ernest Hood	The Secret Place	Neighborhoods	Thistlefield	1975	Ambient exploring the peaceful sounds of neighborhoods. Specifically, suburban neighborhoods in Portland, Oregon. Ernest Hood was a jazz guitarist and played with his brother in the Portland area in the 1940s. In the 50s, he contracted polio. He had limited mobility and had to use a wheelchair for the rest of his life. He could no longer hold the guitar. So he picked up the zither, which is not held but lays flat and can be picked or strummed. This record is one of two that he ever recorded.
Beverly Glenn-Copeland	Ever New	...Keyboard Fantasies...	Atlast	1986	One of the most critically acclaimed new age artists, and his most famous song "Ever New." He was on of the first black students to study at McGill University in Montreal. Prior to Keyboard Fantasties, he had released two folk albums. This album was rediscovered and promoted by Ryota Masuko in 2015. the record subsequently recieved quite a few reissues and reprints thereafter.
Lewis	Like to See You Again	L'Amour	R.A.W.	1983	Sparse ambient adult contemporary. He released two albums in the eighties that remained under the radar until they were re-released in 2014 (Light in the Attic!). During the making of these two albums, Lewis worked as a stockbroker in Calgary. It is hard to paint an accurate picture of him because there are so many rumors. One of them is that he was a scammer. This one is connected to him disappearing after not paying the photographer for this record's album cover. Another is that he didn't know how to play any instruments and somehow created a cohesive musical soundscape by himself. He plays all the instruments on this record. But in general, there is very little known about him, and he continues to retain an air of mystery about his life and his music. Even his family lost contact with him; however, he is still alive as LitA reached out to him in order to reissue the albums, and his real name is known as well.
B.W. Stevenson	On My Own	B.W. Stevenson	RCA Victor	1972	Mellow progressive country from the early seventies. B.W. Stevenson, or Buckwheat Stevenson, had a decently sized hit in 1973 titled "My Maria," landing on no. 9 on Billboard. Interestingly, it didn't chart on the country chart at all. This song, however, is from his debut album, which has received little attention in comparison to his one big hit. If you only heard his hit, you would not be prepared for how this record sounds. It is a very gentle listen throughout, this track included.
The Five Stairsteps	In The Beginning	2nd Resurrection	Dark Horse	1976	Progressive soul. The Five Stairsteps are best known for their song, "O-o-h Child" in 1970 which you have most likely heard. At that time, they were a group of six siblings. But by 1976, only four had stayed in the group. Fun fact: the sister left in 1972 and went on to graduate from and work at Emory. The group rebranded as just Stairsteps and released their last record, 2nd Resurrection. This whole album is fantastic and very consistent, which is surprising considering this would be their last. It has yet to be reissued.
Woo	The Heart Sleeps	Into the Heart of Love	Cloud Nine	1990	Somewhat experimental, sort-of new age ambient music. This is a British duo consisting of two brothers Mark and Clive Ives. This track is from their third and most well-known album. They appear to be a very ground-up sort of group musically -- they constantly experimented with new technologies as they were coming out. They are very prolific, so if you're interested you can definitely hear more.
Kaliyuga Pro	Untitled	This One	n/a	2004	Soft instrumental hip hop from Finland. Kaliyuga Pro has been making beats since 1998. This record, along with his others, was self-released which was easier to do by the 2000s (CDr). The song I chose is from an album of untitled tracks, this one being the sixth.
Lewis Taylor	Lucky	Lewis Taylor	Island	1996	Lush neo-soul with psychedelic elements. Lewis Taylor was originally a guitarist touring with the psychedelic rock band Edgar Broughton Band. In the 80s, he released two psychedelia-tinged new wave records under the name Sheriff Jack. The song I've chosen is from his debut album under his own name. it was released as a single, but the album didn't garner too much attention. He had a hard time getting his music out due to label expectations and requirements, which may have had a hand in him not being very well known.

9/28/24 - Jam_1

 The first show of the 2024 fall semester was a Jam. Listen to the show below! 

Artist	Track	Album	Label	Year	Notes
Eddie Kendricks	My People...Hold On	People... Hold On	Tamla	1972	Founding member of the Temptations. Relatively successful solo career in the 1970s. People... Hold On is part of prevalent wave of 70s black power music that was very popular to engage in regardless of the artist's typical output.
The Counts	Thinking Single	What's Up Front That Counts	Westbound	1972	Little known funk group from Detroit. The album is overall pretty fantastic if you're into funk, a real rare nugget. They incorporate a few weird bits in their stuff, the beginning of this track being one of them.
Frank Zappa and The Mothers of Invention	Andy	One Size Fits All	DiscReet	1975	What a weird bit of Zappa this is. It lacks that satirical/parodic angle he typically goes for -- not in the lyrics mind you (see: "Andy Devine had thong rind") but the instrumental behind it has a strange sincerity that I wouldn't expect from a Mothers showing. Features George Duke and Napoleon Murphy Brock on vocals.
João Bosco	Casa De Marimbondo	Caça à raposa	RCA Victor	1975	Brazilian MPB singer-songwriter. As is the case with other MPB artists, Bosco is a conscious and philosophical writer. This track is no different... it declares samba to be a powerful cultural force that should not be belittled or dismissed. Possible political implications.
Eero Koivistoinen Music Society	SUITE 19	Wahoo	RCA Victor	1973	Finnish band leader Eero Koivistoinen puts together a group for a bit of jazz fusion in 1973. Reminds me of fusion from the 90s. Ahead of its time in that way. Koivistoinen is decently prolific if you're interested in hearing more. This group is probably his most well known project outside of the world of performance and in the world of recordings.
Stray	Time Machine	Stray	Transatlantic	1970	Heavy Psych from the UK. Outside of the confines of men 40s+ who collect heavy psych records, this group isn't very well known. Their sound is solid regardless. I found out about them through Peel sessions.
Cortex	Troupeau bleu	Troupeau bleu	Espérance	1975	Upon first listen, I immediately recognized Cortex as sample music despite not being able to think of any songs that sample them. It's definitely got that air about it. The drums, the vocals, the piano, the sax, the bass, the guitar. Sample-able elements galore. You really don't even have to do anything to it. The musical hooks are everywhere, this song is a prime example.
Mahmoud Ahmed	Endenesh gedawo	Mahmoud Ahmed	Kaifa	1975	Super warm tizita from Ethiopia. Ahmed released a few albums and many singles before moving to the U.S. He had a revival in the mid-80s and returned to making music, largely because of the album this song comes from. It's a very involved experience, puts you in a trance.
Lucio Battisti	Anima latina	Anima latina	Numero Uno	1974	Anima latina = Latin soul/inner self. Music by Battisti, lyrics by Mogol -- big duo in 70s Italian artsy pop music. This track is from their most progressive and complex album, featuring grand orchestrations. This album is supremely ahead of its time and shocking to be from 1974. I hear a lot of different things in it, pretty crazy. If you listen to any album from today's set, this is the one. Battisti and Mogol spent months in Brazil making it. Like the rest of album, the title track explores themes of colonialism, cultural resistance, and the impact of consumerism on traditional societies; i.e., Latin America circa mid-20th century.