Customer Reviews

Dogon A.D.

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I just wanted to add a bit of history to the other reviews. This is the first CD release of a 1972 recording session of four musicians (five on The Hard Blues) that were largely unknown at the time.

The leader was Julius Hemphill on alto sax and flute. He is joined by Baikida E.J. Carroll on trumpet, Abdul Wadud on cello, Phillip Wilson on drums and Hamiett Bluiett on the bari (on The Hard Blues).

It would be hard to exaggerate the importance of this session on the free jazz/creative improv of the time. The only real comparisons are sessions like Roscoe Mitchell's Sound recordings or Braxton's For Alto recordings. In all three cases, the session in question introduced a new aesthetic into the burgeoning vocabulary of the free jazz tradition.

In the case of Dogon A.D. part of the effect was due to the combination of almost a country blues feel with free jazz. This is apparent on the title track and on The Hard Blues (which for reasons of space was only released on the Coon Bid'ness LP that followed later). Part of the effect was instrumentation- the use of Wadud's cello created a whole new sound palette and led to many alto/cello sessions. Part of the effect was due to the sophistication and density of some of the group improvs (Rites) contrasted with the openness (or spareness) of the sound on some of the other tunes. What was apparent with Hemphill from the start was a wide open approach to music- a love of the blues, of the different textures available from the instruments in this group, of complexity and of simplicity. In other words, Hemphill from the start was a complete composer and musician in full exploration of the possibilities.

Hemphill and Bluiett would go to form The World Saxophone Quartet with David Murray and Oliver Lake, one of the most important ensemble in jazz in the last fifty years. Later in his life, Hemphill would experiment with saxophone sextets.

This recording session is the beginning of an artistic life (all too short) devoted to the creation of great collective art. Get it now people while you can.

I had this as a download from some free jazz blog in the internet as it was the only way to listen to this music. Then Marty Ehrlich did a wonderful version of the main title in his also wonderful cd 'Things have got to change'. I have others from Hemphill which are great but this is a special one. It has that 'i don't know what' that only classic recordings usually have. The sparseness of the sound and the particular instrumentation (cello, sax, trumpet and drums) sure help to give this it's uniqueness. Let's just say that if you like Ornette, Ayler, Threadgill, free-yet-composed-jazz, and the likes, you are in for a real treat.

This is my favorite jazz album of the last 40 years.

Amazing composition from Mr. Hemphill and great collective playing from all involved. Sound constructed to tell a story with each song. Space and timing used to maximum effect. I have 2 copies of this on vinyl and now I finally have it on CD. I am so happy, I am singing the title song. Great Music! Amazing players!

The folks at International Phonograph deserve thanks not just for making this classic available, but also for taking the care to make sure it has the remastering and packaging it deserves. BEAUTIFUL!

Only 1500 made so get it before its gone.

You should really try to obtain Doggone AD if you can. This came out on Aritsa Freedom in the mid 1970s.

Julius Hemppell here takes a simple but gripping bass riff and improvises with his sax. This sounds basic, but Hemppell has a rough tone, similar to Archie Shepp. He also has an fantastic sense of timing and makes amazing use of space. He is able to take advantage of the simplicity by carving out the cries and swaks of free jazz into sharp shapes. Hypnotic and jarring throughout.

This should definitely be reissued

I have been waiting for a long time to see this album reisssued on CD!!! I had the vynil, to me it is one of the top jazz album ever recorded ....

Pure beauty

The music=amazing. Now let's talk packaging. This Cd is packaged as though you were buying the original LP. Including a sleeve for the CD. It has that distinct "crackling" sound that an album had when you opened the cover. It's like a mini version of the record. I find myself handling and storing it as I would my old records. Great job.

Thanks to Kevin Whitehead for reviewing the reissue of this album on CD. Somehow I'd managed to live my life without ever hearing -- or perhaps it is remembering -- Julius Hemphill. Grinding, bluesy, barking, funky, and that's some cello in the background. Love it.

As if Robert Johnson and Charlie Parker hooked up for a night on the town in Helena. Delta Blues meets Chamber Jazz, as west african griots hold their coats.

One of the most singular, cinematic, impassioned examples of modern and jazz and blues in the history of American music. Hemphill's solos on "Dogon A.D" and "The Hard Blues" are so powerful, so personal, you'll find yourself hollering in support as he keeps upping the emotional ante. And his writing is even better. Also, the forays into freer, less groove-oriented music, in both ballad and pressure-cooker forms, are equally powerful. Julius was a dear friend of mine and I miss him every day I'm alive. There is much to admire in his small recorded catalog, such as his Nonesuch Big Band featuring the likes of Bill Frisell, his work as a driving force behind the World Saxophone Quartet, and the superb Sextet recordings for a saxophone ensemble, such as FAT MAN AND THE HARD BLUES.

But there is a purity of purpose and vision to these 1972 recordings, encompassing as they do the multi-cultural influences, the fusion of theater and poetry and painting and dance and all of the visual arts of the Black Artist Group in St. Louis, and the border-less, searching quality that distinguished all of Julius Hempjhill's music.

Hell, I pre-ordered two copies--one for me and one for my friend Julius. Long may he wave. A great alto sax improviser, and a great composer. And a great character. God bless him.

Julius Hemphill was playing and writing music that hasn't even been thought of yet by other musicians. He was so good that God took him home early so he could play for Him.