Power Spot (ECM Touchstones)

Jon Hassell

Product Details

• Audio CD (October 28, 2008)
• Original Release Date: 1986
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Ecm Records
• ASIN: B001CSQIO6
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #21,655 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description

Possibly the most significant recording by experimental trumpeter/student of Stockhausen, Jon Hassell. Hassell was the creator of a musical aesthetic he termed "Fourth World" - global ethnic styles + electronica. His trumpet glides and soars over a tapestry of ambient keyboard textures/percussion. Produced by Brian Eno and Daniel Lanois, of Roxy Music, Talking Heads and U2 fame

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Behold, one of the original masters!, December 24, 2005

By	cubik dervish "mroddyssey" (burque, usa) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Power Spot (Audio CD)

If one were ahead of the pack and twenty years later the pack had caught up and stomped all over one's then newly demarked turf, is one to blame and to be scorned as cliched by "today's standards"? Certainly not.

The problem is, sometimes it happens. Hassell, Riley, Reich et al are usually in this situation. Now that their studies of non-Western music have been exploited and rampantly overused by anyone from hip-hoppers to electronica artist as well as avant-garders, their legacy is muddled by nay-sayers and not very knowledgeable folks. A shame indeed.

Hence, the music of Hassel in Power Spot and Fourth World Music is what the latter day acolytes should be measured against, not viceversa.

That said, the music itself is a thrill to experience for the first time (and well beyond). Its use of microtonics, polyrhythms, etc puts to shame many a contemporary ripper-off, setting a standard that still has to be upped. Pure class!

17 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars 2 Hassell Albums are required: This one and Fourth World I, December 4, 2000

By	D. W WISELY "chiffandfipple" (Birmingham, AL USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Power Spot (Audio CD)

Jon Hassell was at the top of his form on this landmark CD. You'll never hear anything like it. For the uninitiated, Jon Hassell plays the trumpet and was highly influenced by Brian Eno, Indian music, Miles Davis, and the minimalist school. He made a series of albums, including the landmark collaboration with Brian Eno, Fourth World: Possible Musics Vol I, in which his trumpet was electronically processed, to essentially create an entirely new sound. This CD provides the tightest and most musical setting for this unique approach. It's good it is being re-released. I have a copy of the original CD and it's a fine recording.

12 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Quintessential Hassell Album, October 13, 2000

By	Greg Benson (Athens, GA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Power Spot (Audio CD)

Could it be that this album was not previously available on CD? Shame on the record company, because this, along with "Dressing For Pleasure," is Hassell's most accessible effort to date. It's got the long, meditative meanderings for which we all love him, it's got the explosive and rhythmic short pieces, and it has a confidence in its mission that is lacking in most "New Age" (sorry to use that term in reference to Hassell) efforts. Its sounds seem deeply rooted in the earth, yet transport the listener to staggering heights. I could rummage my mind for more hyperbolic phrases, but they would fall far short in describing the power of this album.