Strings

by Eugene Chadbourne

Overview

These 14 selections that feature Eugene Chadbourne on solo guitar, banjo, Dobro, and "noise" reflect not only that Chadbourne is one of the nuttiest and funniest serious improvisers on the planet, but they also showcase his unnerving talent to dig into someone else's composition, drag the most hidden nuances out of it, and showcase them in an entirely new and very emotionally revealing way. Chadbourne begins with his own "The Shreeve," a guitar piece that collapses three different melodic ideas into three different tonal improvisations in just under four minutes. Next is a deep, Ralph Stanley-esque bluegrass read of John Coltrane. No, you didn't read it wrong. I am not going to spoil it and tell you which of Coltrane's tunes he fires his way through, but suffice to say there's also a bit of Dick Dale in there with Stanley, too. There are also several homages here, one to Grace Slick, complete with guitar-kissing sounds; one to Sonic Youth titled in the manner of an Anthony Braxton composition; and one each for Roland Kirk, Derek Bailey, and author Paul Bowles. There are more formal covers here too, including Mingus' "Goodbye Pork Pie Hat" (which simply has to be heard to be believed) and Sonny Rollins' "Tenor Madness," as well as one each by Ellington and Strayhorn. What does it all add up to? Everything, that's what. Chadbourne has a way of making American music from all vernaculars sing along with itself without looking in the mirror to see if it looks good enough to go out. To thread all of this through with stunning improvisation that reflects many of the same ideas at hyper-speed with the dexterity of a kung-fu master in a cotton field makes Chadbourne a true outsider, the master of musical art brut. ~ Thom Jurek

Product Details

Release Date:	01/30/1994
Label:	INTAKT RECORDS
UPC:	7619942502522

Tracks

1. The Shreeve
2. Coltrane Medley
3. Adagio Blanco-Hassen
4. Inscription Atop Pula Coliseum
5. Screw KKK
6. Monk's Mood
7. Spider's House
8. Tenor Madness
9. Upper Manhatten Medical Group
10. Day Dream
11. Primera Causa Della Rupturo Centazzo
12. Stay on the Case
13. Goodbye Pork-Pie Hat
14. Derelody

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Eugene Chadbourne   Primary Artist,Banjo,Dobro,Noise,Guitar

Technical Credits

John Latouche   Composer
Duke Ellington   Composer
Eugene Chadbourne   Composer
John Coltrane   Composer
Grace Slick   Composer
Billy Strayhorn   Composer
Thelonious Monk   Composer
Derek Bailey   Composer
Peter Pfister   Mixing,Engineer
Rahsaan Roland Kirk   Composer
Paul Bowles   Composer
Joseph Blough   Photography
Charles Mingus   Composer
Sonny Rollins   Composer