Ralph Towner - Blue Sun (1983)

 

Related:

Oregon - Music of Another Present Era (1972)

Ralph Towner - Diary (1973)

Ralph Towner - Solstice (1974)

Still can't prioritize this blog at the moment, but I wanted to quickly drop some Sunday listening on you. Like Towner's Diary, Blue Sun is a completely solo endeavor, which means that he wrote and performed every piece of it -- guitars, piano, cornet, synthesizers, some light percussion. Very easy on the ears kinda stuff.

Track listing:

1. Blue Sun

2. The Prince and the Sage

3. C.T. Kangaroo

4. Mevlana Etude

5. Wedding of the Streams

6. Shadow Fountain

7. Rumours of Rain

Over and gone

Also listen to:

Terje Rypdal - After the Rain (1976)

Bill Frisell - In Line (1983)

Hunstville - For the Middle Class (2006)

Abstract, instrumental folk-jazz/post-rock from a Norwegian trio. Dreamy, droning, but bubbling over with life, For the Middle Class sounds both improvisational and expertly composed, and is probably a mix of the two. A favorite of mine ever since the golden age of the mp3 blog.

Track listing:

1. The Appearance of a Wise Child

2. Serious Like a Pope

3. Add a Key of Humanity

4. Melon

Presence in absence

You might also like:

Masabumi Kikuchi - Poo-Sun (1970)

Gastre del Sol - Camoufleur (1998)

Arild Andersen - Sagn (1990)

Norwegian bassist/composer Arild Andersen's folk-jazz opus. Buoyed by an excellent band that includes the beautiful, dynamic vocals of Kirsten Bråten Berg and rock-leaning guitars of Frode Alnæs, Sagn succeeds where many others have failed: getting me to enjoy a fusion of jazz and Scandinavian folk.

Track listing:

1. Sagn

2. Gardsjenta

3. Eisemo

4. Toll

5. Draum

6. Laurdagskveld

7. Tjovane

8. Sorgmild

9. Svarm

10. Gamlestev

11. Reven

12. Nystev

13. Lussi

14. Rysen

15. Belare

16. Sagn

I want to see your face in every kind of light

In fields of gold and forests of the night

You might also like:

Bill Connors - Of Mist and Melting (1978)

Bill Frisell - In Line (1983)

Egberto Gismonti - Egberto Gismonti (1969)

Lovely first album of jazz-saturated folk rock by virtuosic Brazilian guitarist Egberto Gismonti. Laid-back and sunny but with plenty of energy, filled out by a percussion, piano, strings, flute, and a bit of Gismonti's sweet, understated singing.

Track listing:
1. Salvador
2. Tributo a West Montgomery
3. Pr'um Samba
4. Computador
5. Atento, Alerta
6. Lirica II (Pra Mulher Amada)
7. O Gato
8. Um Dia
9. Clama-Claro
10. Pr'um Espaço
11. O Sonho
12. Estudo Nr. 5

A series of portraits

If you like this, you should hear:

Joan Manuel Serrat -
Mediterráneo (1971)

Milton Nascimento -
Minas (1975)

Stephan Micus - Implosions (1977)

A far-out set of Eastern-influenced acid folk from German musician Stephan Micus. While none of these songs feature more than two different instruments at once, each one has a different instrumental approach from the last, there's a good deal of layering, and Micus sings on three out of five of them, so it's a consistently dynamic, engaging listen. Not to be missed.

Track listing:
1. As I Crossed a Bridge of Dreams
2. Borkenkind
3. Amarchaj
4. For the Beautiful Changing Child
5. For M'schr and Djingis Khan

Circular sky

If you like this, you should listen to:

Robbie Basho -
Venus in Cancer (1970)

Bruce Palmer -
The Cycle Is Complete (1971)

Vasant Rai - Spring Flowers (1976)

Related:
Collin Walcott - Cloud Dance (1976)

Lovely instrumental pieces by Indian musician Vasant Rai. A vibrant aural tapestry of tabla, sitar, violin, guitar, oboe, French horn, fretless bass, and others, with Rai's sarod at the center.

Track listing:
1. Smile Goddess Sarasvati
2, Distant Village
3. Spring Wind
4. Guitarist from Unjha
5. Saptak
6. Leaving Home
7. Midnight Meditation

Sunlight dance

You'll probably also enjoy:

Kay Gardner -
A Rainbow Path (1984)

Robert Rich & Lisa Moskow -
Yearning (1985)

John Martyn - One World (1977)

Previously on OPIUM HUM:
John Martyn - Grace and Danger (1980) + Glorious Fool (1981)

...and my hellish week is over. Here's some laid-back, jazz-y, slightly funky folk rock from one of the world's all-time most under-appreciated musicians. I refuse to write any more, YOU CAN'T MAKE ME.

Track listing:
1. Dealer
2. One World
3. Smiling Stranger
4. Big Muff
5. Couldn't Love You More
6. Certain Surprise
7. Dancing
8. Small Hours

Love is coming

Milton Nascimento - Minas (1975)

One of many jaw-dropping albums of breezy, evocative, effortlessly innovative jazz/folk/ornate pop/psych tunes from Brazilian music legend Milton Nascimento. Released shortly after Native Dancer, a fruitful collaboration with saxophonist Wayne Shorter that granted Nascimento a worldwide audience, Minas is bursting at the seams with ideas -- one moment, laid-back folk rock glides over skittering jazz rhythms; the next, a choir battles towering guitar feedback; the next, syncopated hand percussion and wa-wa guitars disappear into a cloud of lush strings. All this, yet Minas makes for an easy, cohesive, one might even say, relaxing listen.

Track listing:
1. Minas
2. Fé Cega, Faca Amolada
3. Beijo Partido
4. Saudade dos Aviões da Panair (Conversando no Bar)
5. Gran Circo
6. Ponta de Areia
7. Trastevere
8. Idolatrada
9. Leila (Venha Ser Feliz)
10. Paula e Bebeto
11. Simples
12. Norwegian Wood (This Bird Has Flown) (bonus)
13. Caso Você Queira Saber (bonus)

From the lonely afternoons

John Martyn - Grace and Danger (1980) + Glorious Fool (1981)

John Martyn was a British singer-songwriter who, over the course of a career that spanned over five decades, developed and honed a unique musical vision that fused elements of blues, folk, jazz, and rock. Written and recorded as Martyn went through a divorce, Grace and Danger can be considered among the all-time great breakup records. His next album, Glorious Fool, has a similarly lush, keyboard-heavy sound and is, ultimately, just as emotionally complex and compelling.

Track listing:
-Grace and Danger-
1. Some People Are Crazy
2. Grace and Danger
3. Lookin' On
4. Johnny Too Bad
5. Sweet Little Mystery
6. Hurt in Your Heart
7. Baby Please Come Home
8. Save Some (For Me)
9. Our Love
-Glorious Fool-
1. Couldn't Love You More
2. Amsterdam
3. Hold On My Heart
4. Perfect Hustler
5. Hearts and Keys
6. Glorious Fool
7. Never Say Never
8. Pascanel (Get Back Home)
9. Didn't Do That
10. Please Fall In Love with Me
11. Don't You Go

G&D
GF