Jazz month continues here at Blogcritics and so far I've shocked nobody in my "favorite jazz records" coverage by choosing a Pat Metheny album. While still not a surprising choice for me, the selection of John Zorn's Naked City does take the music in a completely different direction. While Metheny's play is athletic and thought-provoking, it still allows for a moment of reflection. Zorn, on the other hand, can at times be a brazen slap in the face.
I'm not really sure of how I came to know about Zorn. I do know that Naked City was the first record of his I purchased. It holds a special place in my heart because it's how I learned about Joey Baron and Bill Frisell. Thank you Mr. Zorn!
If you look at the history of jazz, its incorporation of many forms of music has definite parallels in the idea of the American melting pot. Zorn's Naked City took music from that history, as well as some genres created post-modern jazz, and tossed it all in a blender. So not only does this record contain elements of traditional and modern jazz, it also plays around with a bunch of popular (and not so popular!) music: country, surf, rock, metal, funk, industrial, hardcore, and film music. Zorn takes a kind of jump-cut approach to many of these compositions. You may be swinging along one minute only to take a detour into some brutal noisemaking for a bit, only to snap right back into your original groove. If William S. Burroughs had written modern music, it might have sounded like this (though it's hard to imagine Burroughs making the kind of screeeeechy saxophone noises that Zorn does).
To see what the Naked City band was capable of, I've included a video of their cover of the James Bond theme. It starts off with that surfy introduction before launching into the main theme, which swings pretty hard. Midsong, the band explodes into a short burst of pure noise before dropping right back into the theme. When I first heard this music, it made the hair rise on the back of my neck. It somehow made me see all of the musical possibilities that were out there waiting for me.
Article comments
1 - Mary K. Williams
this does pound! Running around and throwing myself on the furniture!
2 - J. P. Spencer
Is this album a masterpiece or what? When it first came out, I rotated about half of the tracks on this album onto my old answering machine. Joey Baron's drumming on this record is just phenomenal.
3 - Brian aka Guppusmaximus
Nice Article...
John Zorn has influenced quite a few musicians (Especially Mike Patton,which is my fav)and the projects he builds are always mind numbing. I need to check out this album plus the Bladerunner Project he did with Dave Lombardo(yes,Slayer),Fred Frith & Bill Laswell.
Thanks for the Odd Jazz Inspiration this morning Mark.*Sigh* J.K.
Just some more stuff I need to spend the money I don't have on.
4 - Mark Saleski
thanks brian. ya, the problem with Zorn is that once you start you can drain your entire bank account if you're not careful. the only thing he's done that i'm not particularly high on is Spy vs. Spy. there's something about the harshness of the way they interpreted Ornette that didn't do a lot for me.
Patton: i love Pranzo Oltranzista. a good record for waking yourself up in the morning (also a good way to clear a room...)
and j.p., you're right this record really is a masterpiece. Baron's drumming made me want to drop the guitar and take up the kit (no, i didn't do it but still...)
5 - Brian aka Guppusmaximus
Oh, I agree with ya Mark. There are always some releases,from any musician, that don't always sit well with me. From Patton it has to be Peeping Tom. I was interested at first but it started to disappoint me after realizing what this man is capable of. Not to hijack this thread...
Granted, I am rather a novice in the world 'o Zorn, I can really appreciate his ability to work with all types of musicians and styles of music. As a musician, I have always looked up to people like Zorn who can be so underground but still make the ends meet doing something you love. Plus, creating the sh!t that can clear a room...F*ck pop!
6 - Tom Johnson
Great album, and their live album is no slouch either - don't miss it! If anyone's interested in Naked City, I highly recommend that box they released not too long ago - it's absolutely gorgeous and really showcases the depth of talent and range this band has. You can, of course, pick up the individual releases on their own, but then you miss out on the incredible packaging the box gives you. Zorn really went all-out on this one.