9 votes

Album of the Week #13: Don Cherry - Don Cherry/Brown Rice

This is Album of the Week #13 ~ This week's album is Don Cherry - Don Cherry/Brown Rice

Note that this album has been released under two names/artworks: self titled (Don Cherry) and 'Brown Rice'.

Year of Release: 1977
Genre(s): Spiritual Jazz
Country: United States
Length: 39 minutes
RYM | Listen! (Album.Link)

Excerpt from The Quietus:

Cherry transformed the rigorous improvisational ethos he developed and deployed alongside Ornette Coleman in the creation of free jazz as a crucial tool to communicate and collaborate with musicians far outside of his original milieu. Few before or since have demonstrated comparable ease in connecting with other musicians, regardless of background or ethos, like Cherry. His ability to locate the deepest, most humanistic, and spiritual links in disparate traditions remains sublime. Lots of musicians profess that they don’t recognise genre, but it’s hard to think of an artist who lived it as much as he did.

Discussion points:
Have you heard this artist/album before? Is this your first time hearing?
Do you enjoy this genre? Is this an album you would have chosen?
Does this album remind you of something you've heard before?
What were the album's strengths or weaknesses?
Was there a standout track for you?
How did you hear the album? Where were you? What was your setup?

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Album of the week is currently chosen randomly (via random.org) from the top 5000 albums from a custom all-time RYM chart, with a 4/5 popularity weighting. The chart is recalculated weekly.
Missed last week? It can be found here.
Any feedback on the format is welcome ~~

4 comments

  1. georgeboff
    Link
    I'm not really much of a jazz fellow besides appreciating some of the classics - if I am going to listen to some jazz it'll be earlier than this. Think Duke Ellington or Count Basie. But I enjoyed...

    I'm not really much of a jazz fellow besides appreciating some of the classics - if I am going to listen to some jazz it'll be earlier than this. Think Duke Ellington or Count Basie.

    But I enjoyed this album well enough - it's weird, and I'm not sure I enjoyed the whispered lyrics, but the instrumentation was fun and very world music sounding while still being recognizably jazz. But there's some good playing here, whether that be on the piano or the trumpet, and I can appreciate the technical and improvisational skill that goes into making a record like this.

    Will I listen to it again? Probably not, but I had a fine time listening today. I appreciate the threads as always, and I hope everyone reading has a nice day :)

    2 votes
  2. [3]
    selib
    Link
    this is one of my favorite Jazz albums together with Alice Coltrane's Journey to Satchidananda. I don't have a lot of insight things to say about it, I just love the mood it builds throughout the...

    this is one of my favorite Jazz albums together with Alice Coltrane's Journey to Satchidananda.

    I don't have a lot of insight things to say about it, I just love the mood it builds throughout the album.

    The piano part at the end of the third song "Chenrezig" is one of the most euphoric moments in music I know.

    1 vote
    1. [2]
      arghdos
      Link Parent
      Somewhat unrelated, but some folks recently a uncirculated Alice/Santana show from the Illuminations era and it’s lovely. https://theheatwarps.com/2023/10/30/coltrane-santana-1974/

      Somewhat unrelated, but some folks recently a uncirculated Alice/Santana show from the Illuminations era and it’s lovely.

      https://theheatwarps.com/2023/10/30/coltrane-santana-1974/

      2 votes
      1. selib
        Link Parent
        whoa thank you for this!

        whoa thank you for this!

        2 votes