Two sides of Gene / left rev MCD

Gene side - Popular, commercial, smooth, "vanilla", straight, orchestral,  patriarchal, crooning.

Strangely I came to know the identity of this incredible voice through his not so sappy, yet not so subtle Jack Nitzsche arranged hit "Walk With A Winner". The overtly competitive machismo that defined this musical seduction of sugar mamas the world over, coupled with Gene's vocal bravado, won me quickly, helped by a few well-placed tubular bell parts from Jack. I quickly sought out his discography, which at first disappointed me with its over-saturation of (A. Nobody) writer credits and chart fluff as well his credit for penning forgettable Yardbirds hit "I'm A Man" ("that's spelled M-A-N"). However my further discoveries of this fascinating figure's pedigree sowed seeds for whats become a longtime appreciation for both Gene's smaltzy beginnings and his Hip-Hop championed self-reinvention...

left rev MCD side - Unhinged, political, funky, dark, stoned, fused, radical, unnerving.

This is the artist that lands himself as one of the greats to be remembered this and every month. The indescribable feeling of hearing "get it together... SEE WHAT'S HAPPENING!" in its original musical context as well as the "Jagger the Dagger" groove will never leave me, having redefined my teenage ear as profoundly as Q-Tip and the Beasties defined my adolescent one. Headless Heroes is one of those extremely unique early moments after jazz's heydey in which you truly get to see the black indivdual in total unabashed, political, social and artistic expression, all synthesized into a truly experiential album. The unmistakable textures on this record would inspire a generation of disciples to the vinyl statements of black cultural consciousness of which MCD was at the fore. Even his adoption of the Master of Ceremonies abreviation began a tradition that became central to hip-hop and rap culture. The ease with which the left rev spins something like Jesus' love, supermarkets and discovery of the americas into fever-pitched, politically charged lyrical landscapes is impressive in light of the climate of media repression around such issues. Mention must also be made of one Alphonse Mouzon who's performance at the drumkit here is unrivaled by any other. Playing with bold character and wild abandon, Mouzon's deep grooves and chopped polyrhytmic breaks shape the percussive backbone of hip-hop to the present day. I have no doubt anyone who hears this will fall head over heels for the bleeding heart radical that Eugene McDaniels became and produced his most influential work as.

GET IT TOGETHER

Serious Music

Too bad the main kind of attention this highly lauded tour de force seemed to get in Canada was that from fogies and upstarts alike who wanted to have "but is it jazz??" discussions. NO, IT ISN'T JAZZ, MORONS, ITS A GIANT SAXOPHONE HARKING JUDGEMENT DAY. There, I said it. If there is one thing other than blow minds this record did it was reaffirm the lack of ownership snobby wasps have over jazz as well as that which jazz has over the sax. This record works outside of any definable musical compartment to create a truly solitary feeling of an observed passage of time. While effective in linear flow, most of the pieces on this album manage to stop time for monolithic moments of reflection, the orations of Laurie Anderson creating diverging, polyphonic narratives throughout. Stetson's ability to create atmosphere and continuity through a kind of additive synthesis in his playing reflects beautifully the subject matter: the way in which history and war are composed through the collective memory, out of innumerable bits and pieces. The innovative and mesmerizing recording techniques employed for this H2T session give the heaviest moments of this work lumbering weight, while others (A Dream of Water) seem to float as clouds, shimmering timelessly. Arcade Fire said it themselves, this record deserved the Polaris more. It would seem we hardly deserved such a stunning accomplishment.  Thank you, Colin.

Judgement