New Record Shelves Build at Jazzman HQ

Like everyone else I try to curb my record buying habits mostly due to space and money but also because it's hard to find the time to listen to them all. I'm ashamed to say I've bought records over a year ago and not got round to listening to them yet. What makes it even harder to appreciate new records as well as the collection is when everything's getting to be a bit of a mess! Up until recently everything's been OK, separate sections for latin, soundtracks and library and everything else lumped in A-Z. But I've become lazy recently due to time and space constraints and not filing things properly, and stuff has accumulated, stuff that I want/don't want/need to file/need to listen to/need to upgrade all getting piled up together. Some records have been stashed in such a way that I can't get to stuff that I want access to.

So having had this on my mind for some time, last weekend I finally got something sorted that I have wanted for many, many years... record shelving like the ones you get in a record shop!

Here's the set up before we got started. These were custom built shelves made out of 18mm plywood a few years back. As you can see, records and CDs littering the floor prevent access to the lower shelves:

And random piles were starting to accumulate:

It wasn't THAT badly organised, but you can see it did need a revamp. This was a great opportunity to build some new shelves like in a record shop where I could flick through records and actually see the covers. It also means no more "sideways crooked neck soreness" and no more records and plastic sleeves sticking out which I personally can't stand!

So the first thing we had to do was remove all the records:

The bottom part of the shelving was going to be retained because front facing shelving takes up so much space. The idea was to put as many records as I can in the front facing record bins, and everything else underneath, filed sideways as before. So the top two shelves got sawn off (that's my mate Alan helping out, I'm useless at woodwork and no way could have done this on my own):

So here we are with the top shelves removed:

We also took some of the lower shelves apart so we could have some space for the floorstanding speakers to fit and to make it all work a bit better:

The lower shelves were moved forward into the room. Then a horizontal rail was placed along the wall and fixed into place with screws and glue, and onto this a new sheet of plywood was placed:

The horizontal sheets went flush from the wall at one end right to the other so it was like a continuous table top. Then it was time to start making the bins which were made out of 9mm plywood with the edges curved off:

Nearly done now, 16 bins in total, each holding about 200 LPs:

Here you can see the spaces we made to put the two floorstanding speakers:

We also built a shelf above to put my collection of 45s boxes, and under that a rail on which to display some LPs:

And here we are, pretty much done, ready for sanding, finishing, and painting:

I didn't bother painting the lower shelves again as we were working at the weekend, running out of time, and I needed it all finished so we could work on the Monday. So just the record bins got done, with an ebony woodstain. I don't mind the shabby chic look on the shelves anyway. Here we are with the speakers installed:

And after having cleaned up a bit, ready for the records to go on!

Finished, and records on at last! No more mess! I can flick through the records just like in a record shop and enjoy the cover art and it's brought a whole new lease of life to the collection. It took a couple of days but if anyone has the space and desire to do this what are you waiting for?!

Gigi Campi

As far as I'm concerned the best jazz group that ever graced this planet was the Clarke-Boland Sextet. Comprised of both European and American musicians, their heyday was in the '60s and their recorded output amounted to no more than a few LPs and 45s. Unlike many of their contemporaries, whose music could often sound dull and like hard work, their small group jazz was always done in impeccable taste, with rhythm and swing, and a sense of togetherness and fun.


The man behind this band was Gigi Campi. He was the guy who put the band together and arranged their live and studio dates. He was the organiser, the motivator, the driving force. In the face of all kinds of logistical and financial hurdles, his passion for music was the sole reason behind his superhuman efforts to get the music out there.


Gigi Campi passed away on 6 January 2010, so on this anniversary I've made a mix of some of his productions. Not all the songs are from the Clarke-Boland Sextet, some are from related records too, namely some of those by individuals like Sahib Shihab, Fats Sadi and Johnny Griffin; and of course the Clarke-Boland Big Band. Anyway, the mix is on the link below, as well as an excellent article from Lander Lenaerts.

A Tribute To Gigi Campi 1928 - 2010 by Laid Back on Mixcloud

Jazzman Gerald DJ Set

Here's part of a DJ set that I did in Lausanne, Switzerland in Dec 2011. Usually these things go unrecorded and we're just left with drunken memories of what went on, but Phil and the guys did a good job and recorded about an hour's worth of what was a 2 hour set of rockin' RnB, popcorn, titty, RnR, funk, jazz and there's even a bit of latin soul in there to an enthusiastic and packed house!


Here's the link, tracklist is below:


An hour of fun

Buddy Rich - The Beat Goes On

Merced Blue Notes - Rufus Jr

Ruth Brown – As Long as I’m Moving

Ken Jones – Chicken Pot Pie

Big Danny Oliver - Sapphire

Royal Jesters - You Tickle Me Baby

Cyclones – Bullwhip Rock

Betty James – A Little Mixed Up

Shakespears - Summertime

Dave Phillips - Tainted Love

Ella Fitzgerald – These Boots Are Made for Walking

Ric Gary - Pimples & Braces

Joe Swift – Bell Bottoms

Ron Andrea – If It’s Lovin’ You Want

Towanda Barnes - If I’m Guilty

Zuzu Blues Band – Zu Zu Man

Isonics - Sugar

Ronnie Love - Chills & Fever

Jerry Lee Lewis - Hit the Road Jack

Marie Knight - I Thought I Told You Not To Tell Him

Jo Ann Henderson - Baby Please Don’t Go

Earl Grant - Fever

The Champs – Clubhouse

Chuck Rio - Margherita

Little Johhnny Taylor - Somewhere Down the Line

New for 2012 - Spiritual Jazz 2 - Europe

I've been working on this for a while, now it's ready, and the double LP/CD/download will be out in Feb 2012.

 

As the ‘60s progressed, cultural and political revolutions occurred both in the US and in Europe. Jazz was both a victim and a saviour, with radical developments in the music occurring in both continents. In the US, artists took control of their own musical destiny as small labels broke away from the mainstream, expressing new and creative visions of freedom and peace against a backdrop of civil unrest, repression and war. Be sure to check the first volume of this series, Spiritual Jazz (JMANCD.020). In ‘60s Europe the jazz community forged ahead with a different revolution; that of breaking away from mere emulation of their American counterparts. A distinctive, European jazz sound began to develop that combined traditional music from across Europe and around the world with the creative freedom so abundant in American jazz. Over time the most forward-thinking creative talents of the post-Coltrane European jazz generation crafted and nurtured sophisticated and multi-faceted styles of jazz that were as radical as they were beautiful, giving modern jazz a characteristically European flavour.

THE MUSIC
A heady mix indeed; stirring jazz overtures with orchestra and choir, festival performances recorded live from the grassy heartlands of central Europe, modal montages inspired by pilgrimages to Asia and Africa, experiments in rhythm and sound where modern jazz meets traditional Balkan and Flamenco folk music. This is Spiritual Jazz – European style.

We dedicate this album to Michael Garrick, who died shortly before its release. His contribution to UK jazz was profound, and we’re proud to include one of his previously-unreleased tracks.

·All tracks fully licensed and digitally restored from the original master tapes

·Comprehensive liner notes with individual notes on each track with original stories direct from the musicians and artists

·16 page colour CD booklet with in-depth liner notes, album cover scans and previously unpublished photographs

·Most tracks never before reissued – previously only available on rare LP’s that change hands for hundreds of dollars.

·180g double vinyl pressing with thick, glossy double gatefold sleeve and colour inserts

·RARE and FINE music heard only on Jazzman – all because WE DIG DEEPER!

• 1. Erich Kleinschuster- Communion (Austria)
• 2. Albert Mangelsdorff - Varie (Germany)
• 3. Michael Garrick - Temple Dancer (UK, previously unreleased version)
• 4. Raphael - Archangelo (Belgium)
• 5. Barney Wilen - Africa Freakout (France)
• 6. Nicolai Gromin - Corrida (Czechoslovakia)
• 7. Heikki Sarmanto - Duke and Trane (Finland)
• 8. Wroblewski Jazz Quintet - Nana Imboro (Poland)
• 9. Dusko Goykovic - Bosna Calling (Yugoslavia)
• 10. Pedro Iturralde - Las Morillas de Jaen (Spain)
• 11. Hans Dulfer - Candy Clouds Pt 2 (Holland)

• 
  

London Metro 14 Nov

Here's a little piece in the London Metro that was published today. Can anyone guess which record it is?

Coming Soon - Tino Contreras CD/dbl LP

TINO CONTRERAS

JMANCD/LP.043

A lifetime of waltz-time exotica, latinesque choral chants and psychedelic modal jazz from Mexico’s best kept musical secret!

INTRODUCTION

Our never-ending mission to reveal the under-appreciated-yet-worthy-of-attention jazz masters around the world has now taken us far away and across the sea to Mexico. Not the first port of call you’d consider if you were looking for hard bop or modal jazz, but here we have found an incredible jazz drummer whose career has spanned over 5 decades, and is still playing to this day. In that time Tino Contreras has produced countless recordings, played on innumerable live dates, and has performed with various jazz groups all around the world. Yet he is still relatively unknown, and probably Mexico’s best kept secret in jazz.

We tell the story of the maverick that is Tino Contreras and showcase his unique and fascinating career with 16 tracks, a 12 page colour CD booklet and a double gatefold LP.

THE MUSIC

During his far-reaching travels over the years, all kinds of weird and wonderful sounds have come to influence the music of the imaginative Mexican jazzman. Hear latinesque ritual chants in Orfeo en los Tambores, insane percussion in the high-tempo jazz-dance favourite What is This Thing Called Love,  avant-garde experimentation with a psychedelic subframe in Orbita, exotic waltz-time jazz in Visnu and religiously-themed chamber jazz with choir in Credo, Santo and Gloria. Not only that, but noted influences from India, Egypt, Turkey and Brasil create a most fascinating jazz album, the likes of which you will most likely never have heard before. We hope you enjoy as much as Tino does:

·         Eclectic recordings made during the course of a lifetime by a very special Mexican jazz drummer during his worldwide travels

·         Never-before-seen pictures, photos and images from Tino Contreras’ personal collection on one CD/double gatefold LP

·         Extensive original liner notes in both English AND Spanish with comments from Tino himself

·         180g vinyl pressing with original art sleeve in gloss

RARE and FINE music heard only on Jazzman – all because WE DIG DEEPER!