Customer Reviews

Do the Don't

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Do the Don't, as my first E# acquisition, is a really enjoyable album. it's a feast for the ears with a variety of moods that will lift you, encourage introspection and inspire movement. i am a blues fan that doesn't listen to straightahead blues for long periods of time, so this is a perfect outing for me. this is mostly an instrumental record with great compositions and musicianship. E# crafts some absolutely killer guitar tones and goes on some daring experimental excursions that will send your mind into the stratosphere. Sam Furnace (r.i.p., per liner notes) is an amazing soulful saxophonist with a far reaching harmonic approach. The vocal stuff is quite good (4 of the 10 tunes contain vocals). Dean Bowman (of Screaming Headless Torsos) sounds incredible, as does Eric Mingus (both on vox). Grandmaster bluesman Hubert Sumlin's guitar playing is delightfully expressive and is heard throughout the record. This is an otherworldy 'blues' record that successfully fuses gutsy blues, rock and jazz with heavy tinges of freedom while showcasing the extremely high-grade compositions of the legendarily prolific Elliott Sharp! My personal fave trax: Blues In the MIddle, Please Don't, Oil Blues and Skramble. This is Terraplane's 2nd record. I have not heard the 1st. Dig this one, for it will lift the searching soul.

Elliott Sharp's music covers an amazing variety of styles and influences, but this is only the second recording showcasing is talent for the blues in his Terraplane band. The original Zoar release has long been hard to come by, but Intuition's 2008 reissue is much easier to come by at typical CD prices (if you appreciate Downtown Music, you probably know how to find it), and includes 5 bonus tracks not on the Zoar release: music written for plays Yellowman and Raw Boys during the same period, inspired by blues from the mid-60s. For those interested in hearing the interplay between modern creative music and the blues, this is essential.