Customer Reviews

Does Your House Have Lions: The Rahsaan Roland Kirk Anthology

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

As Stanley Crouch observes in his liner notes to this excellent two-disk set, Rahsaan Roland Kirk occupied an uncomfortable place in the saxophone pantheon clearly a notch below Coltrane and Rollins but clearly above professional journeyman. What set him apart (other than his absence of sight and his ability to play multiple reed instruments simultaneously) was his extraordinary capacity for synthesizing diverse musical styles, as amply documented in this excellent career overview.

Kirk ranged from the straight-ahead bop of "Wham Bam Thank You Ma'am" from a 1961 session with Mingus, to the eerie atmospherics of "The Inflated Tear" and "Seasons," to R&B "Volunteered Slavery" and "The Old Rugged Cross" (the word play of the spoken introduction to the latter is worth the price of admission alone - I would have loved to hear what Rahsaan would have made of rap) to pop "Ain't No Sunshine" and "Say A Little Prayer" (in which he quotes the "Acknowledgement" movement from "A Love Supreme") to observations on racial and sexual relations. A cranky sort of humane-ness comes through throughout.

If Coltrane was a seeker and Rollins a virtuoso, Rahsaan Roland Kirk was your eccentric neighbor sitting on his porch dealing out street wisdom. A worthy introduction to the career of a sadly missed musician.

This is a great best-of for rahsaan, to be sure, and if you don't have alot of his music already, I would recommend it highly, but being a best-of means that the songs are taken out of the context of the albums they were recorded for, and it always leaves me with a feeling like... "hey, this is great..., but what about the music I am missing?". With Rahsaan, you don't want to be missing anything. My preference for Rahsaan is actually for box sets that are entire albums like Aces Back to Back, or Dog Years in the Fourth Ring, etc. Don't avoid buying this box if you just want a little, but get hip to rahsaan and accept the fact that you can't eat just one.

it would be difficult to define the music that occupies this superb set. there is a tremendous range of influences from blues, traditional jazz, and folk to neo-classical, world music and avante-garde stylings, all bearing the sublime fingerprints of rahsaan. this is music that goes straight for the gut and hits its mark with perfect precision.

There isn't too much to say about this record, except what it less-than-obviously is not (namely, a message to future generations of all ages). As Joel Dorn's for-once-respectful liner notes make clear, Kirk was a public figure in an age of public figures and perhaps one of the last of them: his famed three-horn method (a sight to see) derives from vaudeville, rather than the military brass bands of Albert Ayler's "dreams". And the absolute modernism of the "chitlin circuit" compared to various modalities of bop is something to consider, as is the very sad story about Kirk and the fusion group Stuff (who knew how to play "King Heroin", but not "A Night In Tunisia") and the extremely instructive stories about Kirk's sense of humor in the face of incredible (insuperable) obstacles. A figure richly deserving a sentimental and melancholy book, music that demands a listenership.

This 2CD anthology from Rhino is a great introduction to Rahsaan Roland Kirk. The set has selections from Kirk's recordings with the Atlantic label, from his early days with Charles Mingus to his solo work. As with the other sets in Rhino's Atlantic Jazz Gallery series the production for the set is excellent. The sound is great and the 40 page booklet makes interesting reading The only reason this does not get5 stars is that the selection of tracks is not very cohesive and does not give the listener a consistent feel for Kirk. A more comprehensive set such a the Complete Mercury Recordings is ideal ,however this is much more affordable and makes a great introduction to Kirk. Be warned you will find yourself buying more of Kirk after listening to this.

Kirk was one of the most unique and talented jazz musicians of the 60s and 70s, a real innovator who is sometimes unjustly passed off as a novelty act because he would play two or three instruments at once. This compilation serves as a great introduction for those who don't know his music. Although the selections are not chronological, the set does hold together very well and does a great job demonstrating the breadth of his talent and his ability to incorporate a number of different styles into his music. I would still recommend picking up the full albums (start with "We Free Kings"), but those who are looking for a nice compilation to sum up the man's prime years should give this a try.

i dig the whole vibe on these discs.very funky and funny and great music.it has challenge to it and is daring.