Compatible with all MP3 players including iPod, iPad, iTunes and Window Media Player
LOOKING FOR AMERICA was nominated for the 2004 Grammy Award for Best Large Jazz Ensemble Album.
With an unlikely amalgam of influences including Eric Dolphy, Thelonious Monk, Oliver Nelson, Charles Ives, and Woodstock-fatback-groove, Carla Bley's musical palette is a quirky and uncompromising one. A maverick in the American tradition by any standard, Bley began writing crystalline melodies for her first husband, pianist Paul Bley, in the early 1960s. She made a name for herself writing for other musicians, winning many awards along the way from institutions like Down Beat and Jazz Times.
If you enjoy your patriotism, not to mention your jazz, with an impish twist, her 2003 installment, LOOKING FOR AMERICA, might be the ticket. Clocking in at nearly 22-minutes, her version of the National Anthem, loosely based on "The Star Spangled Banner," might be the most original version of the piece since Jimi Hendrix's notorious performance in '69. As their titles imply, "Fast Lane" and "Tijuana Traffic" come replete with pulsing car-horn harmonies. The writing for the brass and winds throughout is done with bright, bold colors and tight, interlocking rhythms. The proceedings are capped off with a slaphappy "Old MacDonald."
Don Alias (percussion).
Recorded at Avatar Studios, New York, New York on October 7 & 8, 2002.
Personnel: Carla Bley (conductor, piano); Wolfgang Pusching (alto saxophone, flute); Andy Sheppard, Craig Handy (tenor saxophone); Gary Smulyan (baritone saxophone); Lew Soloff (trumpet); Jim Pugh (trombone); Karen Mantler (glockenspiel, organ); Steve Swallow (bass); Billy Drummond (drums);
Big Band
Mojo (Publisher) (10/03, p.112) - 3 stars out of 5 - "...Much of this meditation on Bley's homeland is affectionate and funky..."
Carla Bley - Looking For America Album Track Listing
Trk
Song
Time
Price
1
Grand Mother (with Big Band)
0:53
$0.99
2
National Anthem: Og Can Uc?/ Flags/ Whose Broad Stripes?/ Anthem/ Keep It Spangled (with Big Band)
21:47
3
Step Mother (with Big Band)
3:16
$0.99
4
Fast Lane (with Big Band)
5:15
$0.99
5
Los Cocineros (with Big Band)
10:55
6
Your Mother (with Big Band)
1:38
$0.99
7
Tijuana Traffic (with Big Band)
8:03
8
God Mother (with Big Band)
1:25
$0.99
9
Old Macdonald Had a Farm (with Big Band)
6:15
$0.99
Looking For America Music Review
Customer Looking For America Reviews
Average Rating: (5 out of 5 stars)
One of the Best of the Year This just might be Carla Bley’s best recording ever. The arrangements are some of the best you will hear; she takes well worn tunes like Old McDonalds farm and invests them with fire and energy but at all times still keeping the main tune right up front. The track that has received the most attention from the jazz press is of course her reinterpretation of the National Anthem. Some critics say she hates America. That is not true. What she says in her music is what we really feel about our country not what we SAY we feel. The players are all top notch and playing at the top of there game. This one will stay on your CD player for a while, a must have for any real jazz fan. For sure one of the top ten of the year. Submitted by raymondehayes (Minneapolis MN USA) Was This Review Helpful? YesNo 1 of 1 found this helpful.
Have you heard this album?
Purchase Looking For America CD
Customers Who Buy Looking For America CD Purchase:
Share this Product