Search - Don Cherry :: Blue Lake

Cherry freaks gotta get this one!

The Mascara Snake | Deepintheheartof Appalachia | 02/21/2003

(4 out of 5 stars)

"In my never-ending quest for the recordings of Don Cherry (why are so many recordings of such an influential master still out of print and so hard to find?) I came across this cd as well as the one with the ant on the egg yolk on the cover (orient) in a big record store in a large city on the east coast. "Never seen this before! Wonder what's up with it?" I say to myself as I scour the front and back covers for clues as to what to expect before forking over almost 20 bucks for it. Well, other than the fact that they both seem to be brand new italian reissues of albums from somewhere sometime in the 70's, i'm pretty well stumped by these ones. Then I realize that they are packaged just like a gatefold LP and there will probabbly be more info on the inside. OK, i'm really trying to resist opening it in the store right now, but, if you're reading this, you know what the quest for more D.C. can do to you, so, I just say to hell with security camereas and open it up right there in the store. And the liner notes are in Japanese! [DARNIT]!!" Ok now I know where it originally comes from, but (because of it being Japanese) it could still be anything, so I casually slide it back onto the rack and decide to spend my money on "El Corazon" a much "safer" bet.
Weeks later Xmas time rolls around and I find myself recieving this album as a present. Of course I'm exited, but still a little apprehensive about it. Now all I can say is it is a great album! Turns out to be a live recording from France in 71' I think. Featuring S. African Bassist Johnny Dyani and Turkish percussionist Okay Temiz, this is extremley sparse and diverse music. You cannot tell from what country this music is from because it is truly international. Each player is representing his country of orgin, and then going other places, (like India) which makes for a very interesting listen! If you like "MU" but need more, you should get these albums! Cherry is mostly playing piano and singing on this one, but he makes sure to rip you a new one with some serious trumpet/drumset firespitting, as well as playing some really beautiful Native American flute at the beginning. What's also cool is he does a good bit of talking between the songs about the music, musicians, and stage setting, made by his wife Moki. Mr. Dyanni is a good sonic addition to the Mu-style duo lineup, but there are many times when I wish he would just lay down some really solid and funky riffs to support the other guys, instead of opting for over the top Arco freakouts. For me, the real shining star of this album, however, is Okay Temiz. He blends Blackwell/Max Roach style drumset with turkish doumbek/darabuka playing and throws in the ambient bells and "color instruments" in a way that is very tasteful and enjoyable. I'm definitley keeping my eyes out for more of his work in the future. After checking out his website, I suspect that he is a percussionist on a level with Brasilianos like Airto, Nana, and Cyro Baptista, but with a unique point of view, being from Turkey and very versed in the music of his native land. Very good music indeed!"

Jazz / Folk Offering

Durge | 10/29/2004

(3 out of 5 stars)

"Don Cherry is one of those artists that I admire highly and I have faith that anything he touches does result in quality music. This one is fairly different from anything else of his I own. It is heavily based upon a Native American feel with all the percussive effects one might expect for that desert coyote feel. It is effective and beautiful throughout but I really miss the trumpet playing which is present on only about 20% of this CD. Don is represented most often with vocal effects that may summon spirits but don't grab me as deeply as his horn most often does. It isn't bad at all, and it may grow on me with repeated offerings. If I had no expectations I might be willing to say this is great music for it does feel genuine and uniquely moving at many moments. But if you have his better known avant garde music in mind, you probably should look to any one of many other tremendous offerings Cherry has put out."