Derek, great stuff! I'm envious just that you've seen it. Salivating . . . this is record geek fetishism of the highest order.

J, to borrow the words of the grandiloquent Thom Jurek: “If this [box] isn’t – at least – nominated for a Grammy as [2004’s] best jazz [reissue], then the entire category deserves to be struck from the ballot. :)

nice story though you didn't explicitly mention what IT was!
i gathered from the small photo and the text that it seems to be a BIG Ayler box set. but how BIG is it?
is it all live stuff? unreleased? details please!

Andy, your hunch is spot on. IT is Holy Ghost, a 9cd Ayler box set to be released by the Revenant label on 10/5 (7 discs of commercially unreleased music plus 2 more filled with interviews of various vintages). Best place for complete discog specifics is probably: http://www.ayler.supanet.com/html/what_s_new.html
Rumor has it that the list price will be in the very reasonable $85-$100 range (though the above site seems to refute this).

C'mon Derek; what'd Brötz say about the Spirit Room, dammit!!

Lo siento, Cap’n. I’m sworn to secrecy on Herr Brötz’s opinions of the Spirit Room as stated second hand (the dinner convo was all off-the-record). But Bob Rusch’s liners to STALKER SONGS go into signature detail about the session in question. And while we’re on the subject, someone should write a book about the history of Cadence and its many ventures creative & commercial. I know I’d be first in line to plunk down ducats for a copy.

If that set goes on the market for $85, I'll buy a copy and eat it.

I'm getting a copy of the box in the next week or two, and will be reviewing it for culturevulture.net.

"If that set goes on the market for $85, I'll buy a copy and eat it."

chow down, baby!

http://www.cduniverse.com/productinfo.asp?style=music&pid=6770247&cart=200778198

$77 for 9 discs and a 200 page book? Along with pretty packaging?! I got my knife and fork ready! (Especially, since, at that price, I kinda think the whole thing is made of gingerbread.)

Jon, as a label guy, yourself, do you think they actually make any money selling this at that price?

no, I don't understand the economics of it, based on my own printing costs and the fact that the wholesale price will likely be $50-$60 if the retail price is that low.

maybe Revenant has grant money? they're doing some pretty incredible archival work, they deserve it a lot more than Ornette "I've coasted on my laurels for the last 30-40 years" Coleman does (whoops, did I say that out loud?).

That is a sweet, sweet price- gingerbread indeed. Maybe the Patton and Beefheart boxes were unexpected/unpublicized boons?

Looking forward to reading your take, Phil. I’m banking on a copy arriving within the same time frame.

From what the publicist told me, the guy who runs Revenant has a full-time job that pays pretty well. So I guess, like Jandek, he's throwing gobs of money down a deep dark hole, a smile on his face the whole time.

now there's an approach I can empathize with. more power to him.

"they deserve it a lot more than Ornette "I've coasted on my laurels for the last 30-40 years" Coleman does (whoops, did I say that out loud?)."

Yes, you did. You have sed the same ignorant bull since ever I first noticed your pixels somewhere on the internet.

I feel pretty confident that Ornette is laughing at his various detractors all the way to bank.

If John Litweiler is to be believed (in ORNETTE COLEMAN: A HARMOLODIC LIFE), then O.C. learned the value of a dollar very early on in his career.

Derek -

Here's my review of another recent box, to tide you over for awhile.

Got mine this morning. Oh my gosh. First of all, the plastic is sturdy enough to beat someone to death with. (So's the hardcover book within.) I've just barely begun to dip into it; had to hear the 22-minute track with Cecil Taylor, Jimmy Lyons and Sunny Murray first, of course, but now I'm bathing in Disc 4, a live set from Cleveland featuring guest sax from Frank Wright.

My copy arrived last week & I’m up to the end of disc three, moving along incrementally. Echo Phil’s “oh my gosh” completely- this is a relic of resplendent beauty. Fidelity on that Cecil track is dodgy, but given the context & significance of the material who the hell cares? The book is packed full of riches too w/ some great anecdotal tidbits from Albert Nicholas and Don Byas (both surprising admirers of Ayler’s sound) in the first few pages.

Phil, when’s your piece slated to go up over at Culturevulture? Missed that link to the Scorpions review- very cool.

It's gonna run close to street date. The next thing I'm doing for them is the 2-DVD Criterion Videodrome, which I got last week.

Not today thanks! Already got one Briana here at Bagatellen.. Briana Lewnick..

Buddy Banks has a good reissue on jazz in Paris - universal
though

I've spoken to Briana Banks on the phone. I swear I could hear the wind whistling through her skull while she was talking. I mean, porn girls as a rule aren't rocket scientists, but Briana had all the mental acuity of a heat shield plate.

May we enquire as to exactly why you ended up on the blower with Ms Banks, Phil? Is she interested in grindcore as well as hardcore :)? Maybe she too has received a copy of the Albert Ayler Box.. seems like everyone else has

Well, o lucky ones who have stuck their noses into the Holy Box (and I'm not talking about Briana Banks) - how is it?
Who's writing it up for Bags, first of all?

It’s an overwhelming smorgasbord. A bit bitter and gamey in places in terms of sonics, but lots of juicy meat and succulent aural pastry to sink your ears into. Still marveling at the number of condiments contained too (esp. the reproductions of the periodicals, Cricket, etc.) I thought you were covering it for PT & consequently figured you already had a copy in your mitts?

I'm pretty sure our man Dorward is putting quill to papyrus on it for Bags.

Oh, and I think Phil’s conduit to Ms. Banks is through his *coveted* post as editor over at Bags’ sister publication HIGH SOCIETY.

After much listening, I've isolated my favorite chunks of the Ayler box. They are, in order:

1. The Cecil Taylor piece on Disc 1
2. The Pharoah Sanders piece on Disc 6
3. The Don Ayler Sextet pieces on Disc 7
4. The Albert Ayler Quintet pieces (w/Frank Wright) on Disc 4
5. The Albert Ayler Quintet pieces on Disc 3

A lot of the other stuff I can take or leave, but those are mind-roasting (despite the foghorn-like sound quality of the Don Ayler stuff).

Phil, interesting that nearly all your picks are outside the standard Ayler group line-ups (ie. him sitting in w/ others or w/ guests joining the band). The piece w/ Cecil didn’t do nearly as much for me as I was expecting- it’s still an amazing artifact though- but I’m in total agreement re: the Pharoah, shit twice & save the matches, that’s one for the ages!

Derek! Joe! Anti spam VITE!! (What the fuck is CARIBBEAN poker anyway? Do you play for rum or what?)

2311 blacklist entries and counting...

Well, IT arrived. Complete with dried flower (!).
My first reaction on listening to Disc 1 is that Pete Gershon at Signal To Noise made a big mistake by wanting to get a review of the box in the latest issue of the mag at all costs. Bill Meyer amazingly managed to cover it in half a page, but I can tell you that just the solos in Green Dolphin Street and Summertime deserve a thousand word essay. And the track with Cecil, Lyons and Murray is fabulous.
I'm interested in the Cellar Café sessions too, having heard Sunny Murray's side of the story.. where did these recordings suddenly emerge from?
Yep, there's enough there for a whole magazine!

Just a quick followup (to Derek's post earlier) to say I don't think I'll be writing this up for Bags as the publicists were unwilling to send a free review copy; I'll probably pick it up eventually on my own dime, but probably will just enjoy it in peace & quiet rather than write it up.

How come nobody out there with the box mentioned that the second disc is identical to Ayler Records' The Copenhagen Tapes (for which I wrote liners)?! I wonder how Jan Strom - or the people at Revenant for that matter - feel about the selfsame recordings appearing on someone else's label?
It's an odd affair, especially since the box also seems to duplicate the second disc of the two disc set Albert Smiles With Sunny, i.e. the second set of the Cellar Café concert with Murray & Peacock (first set came out as Prophecy on ESP of course). I'd described that recording in the Ayl033 notes as the "authentic" version of the gig. Seems the master tapes (who owns them? Paul Haines?) are still at large..
Anyone out there got more info on this?

Jan posted on Jazz Corner about the overlap/duplication, but didn't express an opinion about the situation, I was curious about that myself.

user name JaSt:

http://new.jazzcornertalk.com/speakeasy/showthread.php?t=7451

Thanks for this Jon. I'll scour around and see if I can find out some more. I'm sure there's no suspicion of foul play involved, since the whole project is done with the blessing of the Ayler Estate, but it is certainly surprising, and Revenant's publicity people are clearly not accurate when they describe the box as containing previously unreleased recordings. But imagine how you'd feel if The World Turned Upside Down appeared in an IMJ box set! To be continued..

> Seems the master tapes (who owns them? Paul Haines?)

I don't know whose hands they're in now, but definitely not Haines, who died a year or so ago.

Yes, that's what I thought! Well, who knows.. there's already talk of lawsuits flying around. I've had email replies from some of the people involved but not all, so I'm sitting on the fence on this one.

“How come nobody out there with the box mentioned that the second disc is identical to Ayler Records' The Copenhagen Tapes (for which I wrote liners)?!”

I did, in my review of the set. From what I gather Revenant has been very concientious in their efforts to ensure that all appropriate parties are remunerated. Also, if I recall correctly, the book included makes mention of the ALBERT SMILES WITH SUNNY set & points a dubious finger at its legality/ethicality.

Dan, curious what you think of Michel Sampson’s work on the set? Lots of examples of his playing therein.

"From what I gather Revenant has been very concientious in their efforts to ensure that all appropriate parties are remunerated. "

the post from Jan I linked to was made a week ago, and it doesn't seem as if Revenant has been in contact with him at all from that, FWIW.

Does Jan hold the rights to those recordings? If not, I’m not sure why Revenant would need to contact him- unless they used his remasters. I’ll drop him a line directly and report back with what I find out (assuming he’s cool with the info being shared publicly).

since no one seems to be able to go and look at the post I linked to, here is Jan's post from JC, made Sept. 27. note the word "legally". (I have no insight to any of this, I'm merely reporting):

"The recording from Montmartre, Copenhagen, on September 3, 1964, released legally for the first time on the CD from Ayler Records, “The Copenhagen Tapes”, aylCD-033 (2002), now seams to be used already again in the Revenant box.
However, the other material on “The Copenhagen Tapes” CD, a studio recording with Ayler, Cherry, Peacock and Murray recorded on September 10, also in Copenhagen, is probably not included in the Revenant box."

I did go back & look at the post you linked to prior to my comment above. I also have no doubt that THE COPEHAGEN TAPES were the first legal release of the material. But I don’t see how that info necessarily refutes the legality of the Revenant reissue? (ie. isn’t it possible that they’re both “legal.”)

No, Derek, sorry - didn't read your review (where is it?).
Jan sent me this link:
http://clevescene.com/issues/2004-09-29/music/music3.html
So it looks like your classic family heritage brawl. FWIW, the Ayler version is totally above board and legit. Derek, I'm not sure either whether Ben Young's "nefarious" comment in the book refers to "Albert Smiles with Sunny" or "Prophecy". Sunny Murray insists that ASWS is the legit version, accusing, as ever, ESP's Bernard Stollman of ripping him off over "Prophecy". (Man, if I had $10 for every musician I've met complaining about Bernard, I could release the bloody box myself.)
Bernard Stollman is also one of the lawyers involved in this Holy Ghost business. Well hey ho, forget all that and enjoy the music. Yep Derek Samson is my main man! Fabulous!

Thanks for the reply, Dan. I’m with you on Samson, his playing is so hot on portions of the box that I’m a bit surprised his strings weren’t sprung from their housings. My piece is over at Dusted:
http://www.dustedmagazine.com/features/297

Heard back from Jan & he basically deferred to your explanation of the Revenant rigmarole. Stollman’s a guy with a perpetual black eye (deservedly so? I dunno)

Splendid review Derek, though like me you never know whether it's Samson or Sampson (I'll stick to the former version from now on, as it seems Ben Young has certainly done his homework on this one).
I found the snippet of Trane's funeral distinctly underwhelming (except for the vocal wails at the end), but I love the New Grass outtakes. In fact I love New Grass and always have done, though few people seem to agree.
Still dunno about that dried flower though..

Thanks, Dan. Looking forward to the PT findings. Samson sounds right despite the involuntary urge to insert the “p.”

I’m with you on “Thank God for Women”- cheesy & dated, but there’s an almost naïve sincerity & manic energy to the lyrics & Ayler’s delivery of them that’s instantly endearing. I love the interview segment where he sings it a cappella. Curious what folks think of MUSIC IS THE HEALING FORCE…? LOVE CRY is the late Ayler platter that warms my cockels the most.

I should perhaps qualify that "love" line above with ref to the New Grass stuff. Wouldn't wantcha to think I rate them as high as the Cellar Caf sessions, but from a documentary point they're invaluable. The blues is a killer. What's interesting about "New Ghosts" is the total incongruity of Pretty Purdie's drumming.. Meanwhile, I tracked down the information I needed regarding the duplicate sets (Cellar Cafe, Copenhagen). Not exactly a scoop, but it'll get its brief mention in the forthcoming review.
Shame the sound quality is so shitty on many of these recordings, though. Especially the Don Ayler two.. can anyone out there actually hear what Sam Rivers is doing?

I like the car-alarm blaring sound of the Don Ayler tracks. Sure, you can't pick out every note, but who cares...the overwhelming force makes up for it, as far as I'm concerned.

Up to a point, but a lot of these recordings are pretty duff. The 1970 French thing is awful.

Here's a link to my full write-up. Slash away.

"Having it on the shelf, in all its weighty, obsessive glory, implies that one is the kind of music fan who enjoys this sort of thing. Some people are comfortable with that, and others aren’t, and both types know who they are."
Would you care to explain what you mean by that, Phil?

I don't like to admit it, but I'm not one of those who isn't comfortable with not being the sort who doesn't want one of those sets sitting around.

;>}

I've gotten my copy, and have placed it on a high shelf from which I have trouble retrieving it.

Someday soon, though, something is going to rock it from its perch, and I'll have no choice but to suspend everything else I'm doing and sit with it for several hours on end.

Walt, it's Friday & my eyes are customarily bleary, but is that a quintuple negative in your post above? If so, I doff my cap in admiration at an accomplishment akin to a Triple Lindy off the high board.

Joe, may that blessed day arrive soon so we're all made privy to the possibility of perusing your comments.

Phil, not as jazzed about your piece as I was hoping, but that VIDEODROME write-up is the bomb- nice work!

>Would you care to explain what you mean by that, Phil?

What it means is that my editor at culturevulture isn't as comfortable with the use of the first person as I am. My point is, having a box like Holy Ghost in your house (if you're someone who got it for free in the mail, like I did) implies, silently, that you're the kind of person who collects and enjoys elaborate fetish objects. I don't. I would much rather have gotten something 1/3 the size, that included nothing but the CDs and the book in a slipcase, something like the Charles Mingus Passions Of A Man box from Rhino. The dried flower and the flyers and zines and photo and whatnot just seem silly and overwrought to me, and wind up being sort of a self-selecting characteristic, making sure that the box winds up only in the hands of obsessives and that casual folks are turned away, intimidated by the lunacy on display.

Phil
Thanks for the above - I quite agree with you about the dried flower and the faux-aged photo. Did you write as much in your review and get redpenned by your editor? I think it's all dangerously close to kitsch. So far almost all the reviews I've read of the box are fawning isn't-it-wonderfuls (presumably because the writers concerned are afraid of being thrown off the freebie gravy train at the next station). The more I listen to this set - and I've been with it now for two full weeks, and have listened to each disc three times (even the execrable interviews) - the more reservations I have. I hope my opinion of it swings back upwards before I have to commit my thoughts to print, as it were.

Does anyone else with the box have a problem with Disc 6? The sax sound seems to distort on the whole disc, especially in the Sanders selection and Albert's blues..

Dan, have you tried holding the flower while listening? that might allow you to overlook such petty issues... :)

"Does anyone else with the box have a problem with Disc 6?"

It doesn't seem so.
What are you going to do ? Buy a new box ?

BTW: Jan Strom confirmed on JC that there should be another Ayler box released by ESP by the end of this year. Compilation + unissued recordings.

I noticed some distortion on the Pharoah track (horns as well as rhythm, specifically Blank’s traps), but not across the entire disc.

Fwiw, I’ve got no beef with the kitsch level of the box. It’s clearly designed for music geeks & as a card carrying member of that constituency, I can hardly complain. Don’t think that should necessarily dissuade the interested Ayler-layperson from dropping coin. Also, I’m not sure how well the “gravy train” argument jibes in relation to the reviews given Revenant’s extremely sporadic release schedule. The next project (whatever it may be) is probably a couple years out.

Plus that dogwood flower’s been giving me good vibes ever since I ate it. Nice mildly hallucinogenic properties too.

Jacques, any more info on that ESP Ayler set? Sounds intriguing

Derek, that's what I read on ESP website:
"ESP has begun to convert its catalog to surround sound dvd, utilizing a proprietary system called SONATURE (www.sonature.com). The first titles to become available on dvd will be Albert Ayler (Spiritual Unity, Bells, Spirits Rejoice, and a previously unissued cd and dvd of the concert at the Maeght Foundation), and Sun Ra's Heliocentric Worlds vols 1 and 2, Nothing Is, and previously unissued material. Patty Waters and the Pearls Before Swine (both One Nation Underground and Balaklava) will also be converted to surround sound."

I wonder if Mr Stollman will also be converting the frustration and heartache of a generation of musicians into some decent and well-earned remuneration, thanks to a wonderful new technique called fair play.

Thanks to Nate for forwarding this URL to Ben Ratliff's review of the box in the NYT. I wonder what other Baganauts make of it..

http://www.nytimes.com/2004/10/24/arts/music/24ratl.html?ex=1099983619&ei=1&en=4abeace46ffb184e

My review of the box will be up online at PT on November 1st

Finally started working my way through this thing. I didn't find the packaging THAT extravagant, especially compared to Revenant's Charley Patton set (or the Showgirls deluxe DVD!).

As far as Ratliff, I think he has a point that this is not the place to go for your first experience of Ayler, but I disagree with his claim that Albert couldn't play on chord changes. Yeah, he sounds "out" on the first session on the box, playing standards, but not drastically more so than Coltrane did on some of his Prestige dates (for example).

His solos on Sunnymoon and Summertime remind me more of Dolphy (the arrangement of Green Dolphin Street is also similar to that of the tune on ED's Prestige album). I wonder if Ayler could have heard Dolphy's work. Ben Young doesn't explicitly cite Dolphy in his Influences essay. Maybe we should ask Marc Chaloin about this (Jacques Oger, if you're there, do you have Marc's email?)..

My review of Holy Ghost is now up online, kids. Happy reading - let me know yr thoughts

Dan, not Ayler-related, but in your review, you write:

"the blatant sonic revisionism of ECM's Jimmy Giuffre reissues"

I've heard about this before, that they "ECM-ized" Fusion and Thesis, but having only ever heard the CDs, I didn't know for sure. can you elaborate?

I hocked the CD when I picked up the original vinyls (in rather appalling condition but I just like Verve lps especially when I come across them for $1 a pop), but I remember it as a typical Jan Erik Kongshaug job. Sounds like JG recorded straight in Rainbow Studio. Perhaps our own Capn Hate or Capn Nate could enlighten you further Jon.

Pas moi; I'll defer to anybody on that one.

Derek? Joe? Any comments? After my review of the Crispell thing here a month back I'm not, as you can see, entirely objective about ECM :)
Back to Ayler.. received this letter from a chap called Andy Yue in response to my PT review:
frommail = u-shaped@rogers.com
fromname = Andy Yue
subjectline = Ayler Box Set
message = Hello Dan, Thanks for your review of the Ayler box set. It was very informative. I found it interesting though that there was no mention of the fact that this release seems to be a verbatim release of the 11-disc Albert Ayler Tree box set: http://www.dpo.uab.edu/~moudry/aylertree/ discography.htm
Went to visit Mr Moudry's site (Sun Ra homepage of course) but still not quite clear on what this 11CD set is all about, though it certainly seems to be more or less identical to the Revenant set.
Anyone know anything about these tree things? Obviously some sort of new fangled P2P thingamajig. Scuse me my wind up gramophone has run out of steam and my 78RPM has slowed down to 33

Derek? Joe? By any chance seen a more insignificant post dated Nov 2, 2004 anywhere (Bagatellen, post-mortems, heaven & hell) than the one mailed in by Mr Back-to-Ayler-Anyone-know-anything-about-these-tree-things D.W.?

Driveby putdowns by people who can't be bothered to leave their real name/emails--my favourite thing.

Meanwhile, there's more on the Ayler set by Art Lange in the new Coda, just arrived this morning. Probably doesn't say anything folks here won't already have gleaned from the extant reviews of this much-chewed-over set.

Dan, apologies for the delay in comment. I’ve been swimming my way to the bottom of a bottle of Maker’s Mark in the wake of the poll returns stateside.

Stupor suppressed, I can safely say I dig your piece a lot. You did a bang up job tying together all the disparate details & peppering them with some great insights. If it leans toward the longwinded it’s worth it for the number of insider nuggets included. Could’ve done without some of the self-referential stuff & I disagree to a degree with some of your appraisals, but it’s easily the most definitive review I’ve read so far.

It’s leaps & bounds better than Ben Ratliff’s half-assed NY Times article. I’m still surprised they ran that shit. Ratliff comes off like barely stooped to spend time with the set. His underlying point about it being a funeral object is a good one, but he litters it with so much ill-supported conjecture that the whole thing crumples as a result.

Scott H. has a nice write-up over at OFN (penned in tandem with Matthew Sumera) that levies an equally critical stare at the motives/methods behind the marketing of the box & it’s place in relation to the pre-existing commercial discography.

Why the decision to give Dan the hi-hat, Bush?

Re: the Ayler Tree overlap, here’s an A-B comparison from the Coltrane list posted by Patrick Regan over at his Ayler site (www.ayler.supanet.com):

“Ayler Tree Disc 1:

Track 1: The Cecil Taylor session is in the Revenant box.
Track 2 - 6: The second set from the Cellar Cafe is in the box. This was
previously issued on the double CD, 'Albert Smiles With Sunny' and was
always a bit dubious since the first CD was taken up with the same material
as on the ESP disc, 'Prophecy'. The tapes for 'Albert Smiles' came from
Sunny Murray and because of legal problems I don't think there was any way
the entire set would be issued again in double CD form, so Revenant were
justified in adding this to the box.
Track 3: The alternate take from 'Spiritual Unity'. Not in the box. This
will be in the hands of Bernard Stollman at ESP. I know that Revenant had
major problems with Stollman during the preparation for the box and that
Stollman himself was responsible for blocking the DVD of the Ayler Fondation
Maeght film after the F.M. had given their permission for its inclusion.
I'll get back to that later.

Ayler Tree Disc 2:

Tracks 1 - 5: The September 3rd Copenhagen tape. This is probably the most
controversial item in the box. I was surprised by its inclusion since Ayler
Records had done such a good job with their 'Copenhagen Tapes' CD. I know
that the box was in preparation for a while so it could be that Revenant
secured the tape before 'The Copenhagen Tapes' came out. I asked Dean
Blackwood of Revenant about it and he said he felt the box needed an example
of the Don Cherry quartet to complete the chronological/historical element
of the project, which makes sense. As far as I know there's nothing else
available of that quartet they could have used.
Tracks 6 - 8: The September 10th Copenhagen tape. These are not in the box,
but they are on 'The Copenhagen Tapes' CD.
Track 9: Archie Shepp interview about Ayler - not in the box.

Ayler Tree Disc 3:

Track 1: Burton Greene Quintet at Slugs' - this is in the box.
Track 2: Burton Greene Quintet at Slugs' - there was some doubt as to
whether Ayler is actually playing on this track so Revenant didn't use it.
Who raised the doubt I don't know but Steve Tintweiss was involved with the
box so he may have cast doubts on this track. Considering the amount of
research that went into the Revenant project I'm not going to argue with
them.
Ayler Tree, Disc 3:
Track 3: 'Holy Ghost' is 'Truth Is Marching In' from 'Live at Slug's'
Track 4: 'Infinite Spirit' is 'Our Prayer' from 'Live at Slug's'
Track 5: 'Alpha/Bells' is 'Bells'from 'Live at Slug's'

Personnel: D. Ayler (t),A. Ayler (ts), Michel Samson (v),Lewis Worrell (b), Ronald Shannon Jackson (d).
Slugs' Saloon, 5/1/66.

Ayler Tree Disc 4:

Tracks 1 - 4: The Berlin Jazz Festival. This is in the box.
Tracks 5 - 7: Stockholm 1966. Not in the box, but see above.
Track 8: Don Cherry interview. Not in the box.

Ayler Tree Disc 5:

Tracks 1 - 5: Copenhagen 1966. Not in the box.
Tracks 6 - 8: Newport Jazz Festival. In the box.
Track 9: Coltrane's funeral. In the box. (Sorry that seems a tad
disrespectful.)

Ayler Tree Disc 6:

Tracks 1 - 7: Fondation Maeght first concert. Not in the box. I've always
assumed that this is a straight copy of the Italian BluJazz bootleg since
the titles match. Dean Blackwood told me that he kept away from the F.M.
material because of legal problems and only included Steve Tintweiss' tape
of the free concert that Ayler gave at the tourist village after the
official F.M. concerts. I think the 'legal problems' came down to Bernard
Stollman again since ESP are releasing these tracks in November as 'Maeght
Foundation'. By the way I think someone said that these tracks were on the
'Fondation Maeght' CD on the Water label - they aren't. The Water release is
the original 2 volume Shandar LP taken from the second concert at the F.M.

Ayler Tree Disc 7:

Tracks 1 - 7: Fondation Maeght first concert. Same as above but retitled and
taken from a radio broadcast which is probably the original source for the
BluJazz bootleg. So, not in the box, but coming out on ESP.
Tracks 8 - 9: Fondation Maeght second concert. Not in the box. The first
track is not on the Shandar/Water release but the full version of the second
track 'Holy Family' is.
Track 10: The airport tape. In the box. Tucked away at the end of the Don
Cherry interview.

Ayler Tree Discs 8 - 11:

Various interviews, not in the box."

Derek: thanks
Dear Bush,
As Frank Zappa once said, "Fuck you, fuck you very much." (That applies to the other Bush too..)

Derek, Thanks for that comparison.
I had commented to Dan via PT that the box seemed like a verbatim release of the 11-disc Albert Ayler Tree set.
Judging from your comparison, the Tree set seems more comprehensive simply because as a bootleg, it isn't concerned with legalities. No idea about the sound though.

If I might add a little something: I had read somewhere on the web that discs 8-11 in the Tree set are from a comprehensive radio documentary on Ayler broadcast in New York. I can't remember the station though.

I haven't a/b'd the Ayler Tree with Holy Ghost, but my overall impression is that the sound quality is greatly improved on most of the overlapping material. Some of the most interesting stuff on the tree, like the Burton Greene set, was in excruciating fidelity. I'm quite impressed by Revenant's restoration work-I assumed a lot of the problems came from the source material...

The only significant unreleased stuff on the tree not in the box, besides what ESP has, as Derek notes, are the 1966 Stockholm & Copenhagen shows. I suspect that Revenant thought 4 recordings from this tour would have been too much, though having gone as far as they have, restraint hardly seems in order.

I don't have the discs with me, but Ben Young was responsible for most of the interviewing included on the tree. I think he's with WFMU, but I'm in LA. New Yorkers?

See http://www.dpo.uab.edu/~moudry/aylertree/discography.htm for the tree track list.

I think it's probably WKCR, I don't think Young has a regular show, but I know he was involved when WKCR played every record Evan Parker was ever on for his 50th birthday (I think it took about a week at that time).

DW: "I wonder if Mr Stollman will also be converting the frustration and heartache of a generation of musicians into some decent and well-earned remuneration, thanks to a wonderful new technique called fair play."

Could anybody write anything about Mr Stollman's "unfair play" ? I'm trying to write something about ESP & its owner, but everything I've found shows him as The Man of Honour, Virtue, Honesty, Modesty and so on and so on.

Dan's interview with Sunny Murray is a good place to start, as I recall:

http://www.paristransatlantic.com/magazine/interviews/murray.html

Thank you, Mr.Abbey.
Btw: Has the first two "Erstlives" been released ? Where (in Europe) can I buy them ?

"Has the first two "Erstlives" been released ? Where (in Europe) can I buy them ?"

they're officially released this week. you can order them directly from me if you're in a hurry, no European distributors will have them for a few weeks at least.

Thanks again for information. I'll wait and buy it from Robert (of MG).