James Hale has posted what is, as far as I know, the first review of Infernal Machines (out May 12).
His writeup reminds me that at some point I really need to post something in-depth about George Russell's incredible legacy. For now, I'll just say that if you haven't heard the Gerry Mulligan Concert Jazz Band's version of "All About Rosie" (and trust me, I know the original has that jaw-dropping Bill Evans solo, but seriously, this is the version you need) I envy you, because you are about to have your mind blown.
Remember, George wrote this in 1957. 1957! Just listen, all right?
Congrats on getting your CD out there. That's one I have to pick up.
Not 100% on topic, but this may blow your mind: Copyright is so badly out of control that "jazz is probably illegal."
Gann keeps censoring my comments so the same link probably won't show up in the comments on his site. It should show up on somebody's site. This situation is crazy, completely out of control, and rapidly getting worse.
Posted by: mclaren | 19 April 2009 at 09:26 PM
mclaren, you have to be careful who you believe on the internet.
I don't really know who James Boyle is, but he is wrong about what he says, at least in the U.S. and Canada. Using an existing chord progression like Rhythm changes for your original melody is NOT copyright infringement in the U.S. or Canada (this has been argued in courts several times already), and nobody is going to sue you over your "Cry Me A River" fragment in your solo. Yes, rap tunes that sample existing recordings that are still under copyright (mechanical protection on recordings ends 50 years after first publication, unlike the authors' protection) are breaking the law, and they get slapped for it when they are caught, so they mostly stopped doing it and clear their samples first. However, there is no clear law against cobbling together your own "sound-alike" sample, as long as it doesn't include a recognisable portion of the melody or any of the lyrics of the original. The sampling restriction is a mechanical rights issue, not strictly a performing rights issue, so even if you DO use a sound-alike (made by you) of a substantial portion of an existing tune and include it on your CD, simply paying the very affordable statutory fee (about 8.5 cents in Canada per copy) will keep you out of hot water.
Bar and club performances are absolutely no problem at all, if they have licences paid to BMI and ASCAP (SOCAN in Canada) and they probably do. It's only when you start selling CDs that you have to look into this.
Luciano Berio, in his Sinfonia, did essentially what Ives did, but checked first with the publishers of Mahler and the others he quoted so he would not be sued. Not illegal if you have permission.
Posted by: cbj smith | 20 April 2009 at 10:25 AM
Sorry to get sidetracked there, Darcy. Great review! I can't wait to get my copy!
Posted by: cbj smith | 20 April 2009 at 10:31 AM
Is that a picture of Gerry playing tenor on the cover of that record on amazon's site?
Posted by: Mark | 21 April 2009 at 04:43 AM
It is indeed. I have no idea why they picked that photo for the Gerry Mulligan - Jazz Masters cover -- it makes no sense. The tunes are all killing Mulligan Concert Jazz Band cuts, though.
Posted by: DJA | 21 April 2009 at 09:08 AM
It seems that photo dates from the Getz Meets Mulligan date of around that time, where the two switched horns for half the album. Mulligan was an accomplished tenor player (and clarinet, too) recording solos on that instrument with various bands (Claude Thornhill, among others), so it isn't that big a stretch, except that the bari was known as Mulligan's "brand"
Posted by: cbj smith | 21 April 2009 at 09:58 AM
Darcy, @AccuJazz Twittered about Infernal Machines: First Impressions on Darcy James Argue's "Infernal Machines": really creative, accessible, imaginative music that needs to be heard.
Posted by: elizabeth! | 25 April 2009 at 09:43 PM