Albert Ayler - Holy Ghost (Revenant box)

[tristano's ghost]

Just posted on the Coltrane list:

caught evan parker recently which was a real treat --
news for this group is that we found out there that
revenant is planning a big ayler project. i found
more in the american-statesman:

"the next giant revenant project is box set focusing
on the late free jazz pioneer albert ayler. 'this is
definitely as big as the (charley) patton box for us,'
blackwell says. titled 'holy ghost' -- and penciled
in for a fall 2004 release -- the projected eight-cd
collection is slated to include extensive liner notes,
never-before-seen photographs of ayler and his bands,
and hours of never-before-released material, including
ayler's legendary performance at john coltrane's
funeral."

the revenant ad in the parker program called it a
"multi-disc set" scheduled for summer of 2004.

perhaps a revenant set, along with the documentary
also planned for 2004, will help bring ayler more of
the attention he deserves. and get me those ayler
fridge magnets i've been looking for.

[Jonathan Sutton]

Did Ayler actually play with Coltrane, does anyone know? Not on record, as far as I am aware, but how much unrecorded activity was there, if any?

Great news about the Ayler box!


Jonathan: Apparently this exists on tape:

Philharmonic Hall, Lincoln Center, NYC, 19th February 1966.
Don Ayler (t), Carlos Ward (as), Albert Ayler (ts), John Coltrane (ss,ts,perc), Pharoah Sanders (ts, perc), Alice Coltrane (p), Jimmy Garrison (b), Rashied Ali, J.C. Moses (d).
‘My Favorite Things’ (35-40 mins.)


You can find an MP3 of Ayler playing at John Coltrane's funeral here:

http://ayler0.tripod.com/html/downloads.html

[Sergio Zamora]

Mouth-watering.

[Other Steve]

Same label is currently negotiating (and negotiating and negotiating, with the right mix of patience and dogged determination) what is currently shaping up to be a series of multi-CD boxes dedicated to rare Ornette Coleman material, both studio and live. Don't know exactly what's going to be in the offing, but I sent the label some moderately rare stuff to copy, and I know other collectors from the Ornette list did the same.

God bless Dean Blackwood.

[JaSt]

In the May issue of The Wire, we learn that the box may include the film from S.Paul de Vence 1970 on a DVD. That video has been shown in public before.

I would be surprised if the Copenhagen TV audio from 1962 isn't there also (w. Cecil's trio). I tried to get in on Ayler Records but failed.

I know that they have tried hard to get the very first (?) recording with Albert Ayler (Helsinki June 1962) into the box and that should be great to at last be able to have that wonderful music on a record. Can always hope.

With the relatively small catalog that now exists, ANY release of Albert's work would be extremely welcome!! Most of the material on the 11 disc set that was distributed from the online Ayler Tree was incredible though the production value was iffy. I love all of those discs, and the intervies are gerat as well, but I would love to have a box set like the one mentioned here, and hopefully the quality will be a little better.

[Clay Fink]

I recommend the Charlie Patton box - a true work of an obsessive (Fahey, not Patton).

Also:

"American Primitive", Volume 4 of thr Harry Smith Anthology, Jinks "Tex" Carmen, "Neffertiti" by the Cecil Taylor trio and the Stanley Brother's RichRTone sides. An unbelievably eclectic label.

I also have their Beefheart box - kind of an odd collection. It's not a "best of". It's relly just a collection of rarities, a lot of which is at least interesting, if only to a Beefheart fan. This is what this Ayler box sounds like. If it's anything like their other stuff, it's worth having, if for nothing else, the quality of the remastering, the documentation and packaging .

[Root Doctor]

I'd add these two outstanding Revenant titles to Clay's list:

Country Blues by Dock Boggs
Blue Roots by the Bassholes

[Jon Abbey]

I think this has been mentioned here and there, but I'm pretty sure it doesn't have it's own thread yet, which it certainly seems to deserve...

Revenant Records will be releasing a 9 CD box of previously unreleased (officially, anyway) Albert Ayler material this October. there's some more info here:

http://www.ayler.supanet.com/html/what_s_new.html

"Trane was the father. Pharoah was the son. I was the holy ghost."

[Pete C]

Thanks for the link, Jon. I really want to hear this:

Pharaoh Sanders Ensemble: Sanders (tenor saxophone); Chris Capers (trumpet); Albert Ayler (tenor saxophone); Noah Howard (alto saxophone); Dave Burrell (piano); Sirone (bass); Roger Blank (drums)

1. Venus (Sanders) 22:30

[Sergio Zamora]

Yeah, this was mentioned before, but it's still excellent news. Can't wait!

[Other Steve]

Most of this information can be pieced together from the website Jon cites above, but here it all is in one place, from the press release that accompanied an 11-track sampler CD (tracks on the sampler indicated in red). Timings listed here do not agree precisely with those on the sampler, so in some cases (Cleveland and Berlin 1966), these are my best guesses. Sound quality and restoration range from very good to excellent throughout the sampler.

ALBERT AYLER
HOLY GHOST
REVENANT RVN CD 213
RELEASE DATE: OCTOBER 2004


DISC ONE:

Herbert Katz Quintet w/Albert Ayler
June 19, 1962 in Helsinki, Finland
1. Sonnymoon for Two (8:35)
2. Summertime (6:55)
3. On Green Dolphin Street (3:30)

Cecil Taylor Quartet w/Albert Ayler
November 16, 1962 in Copenhagen, Denmark
1. spoken intro (4:33)
2. Four (21:44)

Albert Ayler Trio
June 14, 1964 in New York City
6. untitled, ends with "Saints" (6:39)
7. Saints (10:20)
8. Ghosts (10:50)


DISC TWO:

Albert Ayler Trio
June 14, 1964 in New York City
1. The Wizard (6:39)
2. Children (9:17)
3. Spirits (0:58)

Albert Ayler Quartet
September 3, 1964 in Copenhagen, Denmark
4. Spirits (9:40)
5. Vibrations (8:14)
6. untitled (9:09)
7. Mothers (7:53)
8. Children (8:30)
9. Spirits (1:24)

Burton Greene Ensemble w/Albert Ayler
Jan/Feb 1966 in New York City
10. untitled (9:08)


DISC THREE:

Albert Ayler Quintet
April 16, 1966 in Cleveland, Ohio
1. spoken intro (1:00)
2. Spirits Rejoice (4:41)
3. D.C. (6:09)
4. untitled (7:04)
5. Our Prayer (6:50)
6. spoken intro (0:25)
7. untitled (16:01)
8. Ghosts (6:35)

Albert Ayler Quintet
April 17, 1966 in Cleveland, Ohio
9. Spirits Rejoice (6:47)
10: Medley: Prophet - Ghosts - Spiritual Bells (15:05)
11. Our Prayer (10:07)


DISC FOUR:

Albert Ayler Quintet
April 17, 1966 in Cleveland, Ohio
1. untitled / Truth Is Marching In (16:19)
2. Spirits (9:40)
3. Medley: Zion Hill - Spirits - Spiritual Bells (22:34)
4. untitled (9:38)


DISC FIVE:

Albert Ayler Quintet
November 3, 1966 in Berlin, Germany
1. spoken intro (1:18)
2. Ghosts / Bells (11:10)
3. Truth Is Marching In (7:30)
4. Omega (3:50)
5. Our Prayer (4:19)

Albert Ayler Quintet
November 8, 1966 in Rotterdam, the Netherlands
6. spoken intro (1:23)
7. Truth Is Marching In (10:33)
8. Bells (5:43)
9. Spirits Rejoice (10:25)
10. Free Spiritual Musics Part IV (7:04)


DISC SIX:

Albert Ayler Quintet
June 30/July 1, 1967 in Newport, Rhode Island
1. Truth Is Marching In / Omega (9:36)
2. Japan / Universal Indians (5:57)
3. Our Prayer (8:30)

Albert Ayler Quartet
July 21, 1967 ("Coltrane Funeral") in New York City
4. Love Cry / Truth Is Marching In / Our Prayer (6:20)

Pharoah Sanders Ensemble w/Albert Ayler
5. Venus / Upper and Lower Egypt (22:30)

Albert Ayler
ca. late August 1968 in New York area
6. untitled blues (6:17)
7. untitled sermon (1:45)
8. Thank God for Women (10:22)
9. New Ghosts (demo fragments) (6:06)


DISC SEVEN:

Don Ayler Sextet w/Albert Ayler
January 11, 1969 in New York City
1. Prophet John (10:51)
2. Judge Ye Not (10:31)

Albert Ayler Quartet
July 28, 1970 in Villages Vacances Tourisme, St. Paul de Vence, France
3. Mothers/Children (8:35)
4. untitled (14:29)
5. untitled (5:20)
6. untitled (10:55)


DISC EIGHT:

1. Albert Ayler interview with Birger Jørgensen, ca. early December 1964 in Copenhagen, Denmark (5:20)
2. Albert Ayler interview with Birger Jørgensen, November 11, 1966 in Copenhagen, Denmark (5:31)
3. Albert Ayler interview with Daniel Caux, July 27, 1970 in St. Paul de Vence, France (38:54)


DISC NINE:

1. Albert Ayler interview with Kiyoshi Koyama, July 25, 1970 in St. Paul de Vence, France (58:21)
2. Don Cherry interview with Daniel Caux, unknown date in St. Paul de Vence, France (17:42)

[Nate Dorward]

Good lord, that looks like an amazing compilation.

[Alastair]

That "untitled blues" is on the latest Wire Tapper, for those who won't get to hear the promo disc.

[stonemonkts]

Originally Posted by Nate Dorward

Good lord, that looks like an amazing compilation.

Indeed it does.

I don't believe I have any of that material. I have the Live in Greenwich Village double CD, Spiritual Unity, and Spirits Rejoice. It appears to be a quite a bonanza for Ayler fans.

I believe some of these tracks appeared on that set of discs that was circulated via the Ayler tree mailing list a couple of years back.

At least the set with Cecil Taylor did.

Either way, I'm salivating. THIS is going to be one incredible set of discs!!!

[Clay Fink]

So who's this Albert guy?

[Jason Bivins]

Don's brother, yo. Sheesh.

[SilentKnowledge]

Nice. I'll request this for a Christmas Gift!

[john williams]

Excellent, but I could live without 2 disks of interviews. Put 'em in the booklet or something.

[Jon Abbey]

yeah, I bet this will be seriously pricy, Revenant has never been known for keeping their prices down.

[GoodSpeak]

Originally Posted by Jason Bivins

Don's brother, yo. Sheesh.

Hey now...I get a royalty for any "sheesh" on these boards.


























sheesh.

[Gordon B]

Originally Posted by GoodSpeak

Hey now...I get a royalty for any "sheesh" on these boards.

I thought you were going to say "Who is Albert Ayler and why does he matter?"









Sheesh!

[Pete C]

up

[Oger]

Originally Posted by Jon Abbey

yeah, I bet this will be seriously pricy, Revenant has never been known for keeping their prices down.

I read somewhere the price shouldn't be too high.
At least in US, don't know in Europe...
I received this link with design presentation.
http://home.austin.rr.com/subculture/news.htm

[Jon Abbey]

yeah, Steve Smith wrote somewhere that he thought it would retail around $90, although he wasn't positive.

[Derek Taylor]

Based on Oger's design link $90 seems like a steal. Fingers (& toes) crossed that it is so.

[Other Steve]

It's $100 USD.

[Salvador Dali Lama]

i would pay any sum for one such a monumental peice of ayler-dom. i'll go ahead and plan to fast for a few days to make sure i can get it the day it comes out.

albert albert, semper albert!