Lol Coxhill - Coxhill on Ogun (1977 & 78)

Lol Coxhill - Coxhill on Ogun (1977 & 78)

Diverse & The Joy of Paranoia 

jazz | 2lp on 1cd | eac-flac-cue-log-cover | 400MB

OGUN

Allmusic:
This Ogun CD is actually the reissue of two Coxhill albums from the '70s. The first, "Diverse" -- which is comprised of two improvisations ("Diver" and "Divers") with bassist Dave Green, percussionist John Mitchell, and cellist Colin Wood -- was issued in 1977 and is represented here last. The second, The Joy of Paranoia -- which features Coxhill in settings from solo to trio -- was released in 1978. The set comes out of the gate stomping with "The Wakefield Capers." It's an odd composition in that it features a funky, driven bass and electric guitar with ostinato figures from Coxhill and moves into a greasy groove before melting away temporarily to include an acoustic Spanish guitar to replace the electric in the forefront, and takes on a Brazilian rhythmic slant before shifting into reggae, soul, R&B, and free improv before winding out some 19 minutes later as a chaotic free jazz tune. "The Clück Variations" are a duet with Veryan Weston on piano that take as their inspiration a clarinet and piano duet by Webern. And there's also a lovely cover of "Loverman" with Coxhill blowing dry and sweet -- like sherry -- accompanied by Michael Garrick's electric piano in a reading of the tune that suggests it was originally written for broken tempos and scuttles harmonics. On the later material, the two long pieces that make up the Diverse album, we get Coxhill as we know him best: as a quirky, complex improviser with a sense of humor and a flair for understatement. "Diver" is completely solo, a long, loping travail through Coxhill's tonal universe as expressed by his great love of balladry. It's an unusual timbral specter he reveals, but it's a welcome one in that his phrasing, sonorities, and tonal explorations are never off the mark and always expansive harmonically. On the quartet piece, we get chamber improvisation at its finest; various dialogues and languages assert themselves only to disappear before they can take themselves too seriously. The music circles round, and turns out and in on itself before breaking onto higher ground as sound itself. In all, this is a fine retrospective view of Coxhill, even if it is only for two years. This was a particularly fertile period for him, and listeners will be more than gratified by its breadth and scope.

Tracks
-1. "The Wakefield Capers" - Coxhill - 18:46
-2. "The Clück Variations" - Coxhill, Weston - 7:49
-3. "Joy of Paranoia Waltz" - Coxhill - 2:11
-4. "Lover Man" - Davis, Ramirez, Sherman - 5:15
-5. "Perdido" - Drake, Lengsfelder, Tizol - 7:20
---
-6. "Diver" - Coxhill - 16:25
-7. "Divers" - Coxhill, Green, Mitchell-Davidson - 21:21

Personnel
* Michael Garrick: electric piano
* Dave Green : bass
* John Mitchell: drums
* Paul Michell-Davidson: bass guitar
* Ken Shaw: electric guitar
* Varyan Weston: piano
* Colin Wood: cello
* Richard Wright: spanish guitar

 sample & buy: Coxhill on Ogun