Pantheon

Every so often I think I'll keep adding to this "pantheon": the albums that have become so deeply ingrained in my psyche, that to be without 'em would likely cause a nervous collapse. Yes, I love everything I post here-- in fact, I love music much more than I do myself, and the human species in general. But-- there's completely different levels of love; not everything you listen to is gonna make ya glad to be alive while simultaneously ripping out yer innards. So, whenever you see the word "pantheon" in the title, yer gettin' the very best stuff I can yank outta my collection.


SONNY SHARROCK - Black Woman (1969)


What's a young Coltrane fan to do when he has such crippling asthma that playing the sax is outta the question? In Sonny Sharrock's case, he picked up a guitar and applied similar phrasing to create his own "sheets of sound." He appeared on landmark jazz albums like Pharaoh Sanders' "Tauhid," and "Izipho Zam," made a mindblowing cameo on Miles Davis' "Tribute to Jack Johnson" and played extensively with Herbie Mann. In fact, it was Mann who secured the studio time and contract with Vortex Records that led to this LP, Sharrock's debut as band leader.

Almost as striking as Sonny's rapid fire clusters of notes is his then-wife Linda's orgasmic moans and agonized shrieks that bear more than a little resemblance to Patty Waters' deconstruction of "Black is the Color" (scroll down a few posts) four years previous. I have no idea what state their relationship was in at the time of this recording, but I'd guess it was in constant flux. On the title track, axe and vox combine to create an epic, anthemic sound; on "Peanut," they push and prod each other, extracting a disjointed call-and-response hymn unlike anything recorded before or since.

More Sonny here.

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TIM BUCKLEY - Starsailor (1970)


Tim Buckley had already begun to alienate his folkie fanbase with "Lorca" a few months earlier-- what the hell was up with this golden-voiced disciple of Fred Neil? Why would he release an album filled with meandering free jazz-like structures and vocal gymnastics that made it sound as though he was being disemboweled? Well, if they wuz bewildered by "Lorca," "Starsailor" musta felt like a kick in the groin. Not only was it a continuation of the avant garde themes which in hindsight, he'd barely scratched, it was a full-on operetta revolving around the pit of anguish that burned in his guts; he also began to fully utilize the five and a half octave vocal range he had at his disposal.

I'm gonna hazard a guess that Buckley had been listening intently to Leon Thomas-- particularly his work with Pharaoh Sanders on "Karma." He liberally borrows Thomas' conventional-croon-to-absurd-yodel on several tracks, most notably "Monterey," a dissonant Voodoo Blues that conjures a vibe equal parts atavistic ritual and sleazy mating call. Bunk Gardner, late of the Mothers of Invention, provides some Ornette-esque sax squawk, further pushing the song into uncharted territory-- at least for the early 1970's zeitgeist. "Moulin Rouge" is a brief slice of Franco-Pop that coulda easily been recorded by Edith Piaf-- I only mention it as it is one of the few cuts that provides a respite from the suffocating melancholy and bordering on psychedelic experimentation that makes up the rest of the LP. For instance, the ethereal title track is akin to  smoking far too much DMT, only to discover that instead of encountering the promised elves hiding in the artificial netherworld, you find yourself surrounded by bloodthirsty, shapeless abominations far outside the realms of HP Lovecraft's worst nightmares. Lee Underwood's stellar guitar work also deserves a nod. His connection with Buckley borders on preternatural-- be it the spare, mournful licks he uses to accompany Tim's wounded wail on the oft-covered/butchered "Song to the Siren," or the majestic, fleet-fingered riffs that double Buckley's vocal on "Come Here Woman."

If you're new to the elder Buckley, this may not be the best place to start. I'd recommend "Dream Letter: Live in London" for virgins, as well as for fans of his offspring, a certain Jeff.

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