Nothing Stays the Same

by DJ Wally

Overview

One look at the personnel and you just might do a double take: all-star avant-garde jazzers William Parker, David S. Ware, and Matthew Shipp, among others, meet Keef Destefano in a spin of genres that is likely to leave you spinning. Destefano (aka DJ Wally) has made a career of mixing things up with a hip-hop glaze. This one is no different, except that he tackles head-on a style of playing that in large part has resisted commercial appeal. Whether fans of the esoteric Parker, Ware, and Shipp will follow them down this road or abandon them, or whether a new audience will be attracted, is unclear -- but you can't fault them for trying. The results are eerily danceable, with some of the virtuosic playing that might be expected filtered through Destefano's warped vision. You may never have thought that these kinds of players would make it into the dancehall, but they show that they have the chops to expand their visions without sacrificing their essential concepts. While some might charge "sellout" and purists might cry "foul," the music stands on its own terms as a creative thrust tempered by a pop sensibility. It could attract a new, young audience, hopefully one that might be tempted to explore the discographies of these artistic giants. There is much more here than the fusion disasters of the 1970s warranted (just hear Shipp's acrobatics on "Shipp Solo (Interlude)"), though the traps for the unwary cannot be ignored. ~ Steven Loewy

Product Details

Release Date:	10/21/2003
Label:	THIRSTY EAR
UPC:	0700435714021

Tracks

1. Hello (Intro)
2. A Day in the Life
3. Nothing Stays the Same
4. Thirsty Thrills
5. Lessons Learned
6. A Night in Savannah
7. Out of the Blue
8. Matthew Shipp Solo
9. Paint by Number
10. Shaken
11. I Spy
12. Maybe Just One
13. A-Plus
14. Medley

Album Credits

Performance Credits

DJ Wally   Primary Artist
Guillermo E. Brown   Guest Artist,Drums
David S. Ware   Guest Artist,Sax (Tenor)
William Parker   Guest Artist,Bass
Matthew Shipp   Guest Artist,Piano
Daniel Carter   Guest Artist,Reeds
Peter Gordon   Guest Artist,Flute
Khan Jamal   Vibraphone
Keef Desterfano   Sampling

Technical Credits

Dan Fogelberg   Composer
Russell Senior   Composer
John Lennon   Composer
Nick Banks   Composer
David Gilmour   Composer
Candida Doyle   Composer
DJ Wally   Composer,Producer
D.H. Peligro   Composer
Jarvis Cocker   Composer
Mark Webber   Composer
Matthew Shipp   Artistic Director
Steve Mackey   Composer
Paul McCartney   Composer
Chris Young   Producer
Peter Gordon   Executive Producer
Kerrie DeStafano   Quotes Researched & Compiled