Today we remember Jazz saxophonist Lee Konitz who passed away on April 15 due to complications from COVID-19 with a look back from our archives. —Ed.
Omnivore Recordings continues their welcome repackaging of six early ‘80s Art Pepper LPs with “West Coast Sessions” Volume 3: Lee Konitz and Volume 4: Bill Watrous. Originally issued only in jazz-loving Japan with the crucial California alto strategically positioned in the sideman role for contractual reasons, their reemergence puts Pepper’s name back on the marquee alongside due credit for the initial leaders. While one objective of the series was to capture an informal atmosphere on standards, blues, and well-known tunes, the overall mood of these two installments contrasts markedly. With bonus takes and swell liners by Art’s widow Laurie Pepper, they’re available on CD.
With the arrival of these discs, Omnivore’s release strategy for this string of late-career studio dates by the long-struggling but ultimately triumphant West Coast saxophonist comes into sharp focus: divide the contents into thirds and pair a high-profile guest with a lesser-known but skilled participant for simultaneous release.
Earlier this year, Volume 1 offered Pepper’s fellow alto giant Sonny Stitt while Volume 2 spotlighted the comparatively unknown Cali pianist Pete Jolly; the upcoming editions will present a session featuring West Coast drum mainstay Shelly Manne and a set ripe with the trumpet of the far from forgotten (through sheer diversity of credits) but less celebrated Jack Sheldon.
Over three decades later, Omnivore’s teaming of figures firmly remaining on the musical radar screen with those familiar primarily to aficionados is smart, but the objective of Japanese label Atlas was simply to put some wax into the hands of jazz fiends; the original vinyl releases were titled High Jingo by Lee Konitz and his West Coast Friends and Funk’n Fun by the Bill Watrous Quintet.
NEW RELEASE PICKS: Buck Curran, No Love is Sorrow (Obsolete Recordings) Curran, a deft guitarist and also a talented singer-songwriter, finished this set, his third solo full-length (he’s also half of Arborea) in late February in Bergamo, Italy, where he, his pregnant wife (the other half of Arborea) and young son have been on lockdown since March 9 due to Covid-19. The album is being rushed released digitally in order to procure much needed income for Curran and family, and it’s safe to say that for anybody who’s pleasurably soaked up the sounds of the ’00s psych/ folk/ New Weird underground (a scene which in fact spawned Arborea), No Love is Sorrow will be a solid buy. Curran alternates between sturdy instrumentals and appealing vocal tunes, though for “Django (New Years Day)” he switches to piano a la his inspiration Robbie Basho; it’s worth noting that Curran’s is much nearer to trad folk and indie folk. I figure this will get a physical release soon, but buying digital now helps the man and his fam, so please consider it. A-
V/A, Women of Doom (Desert Records / Blues Funeral) Featuring Nighthawk and Heavy Temple, Amy Tung Barrysmith (of Year of the Cobra), Besvärjelsen, Mlny Parsons (of Royal Thunder), Frayle, The Otolith (comprised of four former members of SubRosa), Doomstress Alexis, Deathbell, and The Keening (with Rebecca Vernon, the one member of SubRosa not in The Otolith), everyone gets a track each except Mlny Parsons, who brings two to this righteous party. The comp’s raison d’être is right there in the title (Doom being a strain of contempo metal, if you didn’t know), and it’s both an admirable exercise and a damn solid listen, one consistent to the point where it’s difficult to pick a favorite, so I won’t. I will mention that the concept of inclusivity reflects a breath of approach (within genre, pushing genre, beyond genre) that makes this set such a start-to-finish winner, and will add in closing that folks bummed about SubRosa’s breakup should be flat-out stoked over The Otolith’s track. It’s a killer. A-
REISSUE/ARCHIVAL PICKS: Ellen Fullman, In the Sea (Superior Viaduct) Ellen Fullman is one of the leading lights in the history of the Drone. This 2LP, like the Jon Gibson double set below, came out in late February, but I’ve been able to give it the necessary attention only recently; it’s an exquisite follow-up to Superior Viaduct’s 2015 reissue of her 1985 debut The Long Stringed Instrument, and more than simply a vinyl pressing of her ’87 cassette In the Sea. LP one truncates the title piece and “Staggered Stasis” (they ran 40 and 34 minutes) from the tape, adds a portion of “Work for 4 Players and 90 Strings” from the tape of the same name (also from ’87) on side three, and then drops an unreleased excerpt of “Work for Two” (from ’88 at De Fabriek in Den Bosch, Holland) on side four. Now, some might get the idea that Fullman’s music will be impenetrable or difficult, but I disagree, as when these sides start up it’s like walking into a giant head shop emporium with infinite rooms. It’s mystically robust, dig? A
Jon Gibson, Songs & Melodies 1973-1977 (Superior Viaduct) Superior Viaduct has already reissued two of Gibson’s key early albums, debut Visitations and follow-up Two Solo Pieces, both originally on the Chatham Square Productions imprint of Philip Glass, from ’73 and ’77, respectively, making this collection the perfect companion. It’s also noteworthy that nearly everything here is previously unreleased as “Song I” and “Song II” feature Arthur Russell and Barbara Benary (“Song II” also has David Van Tieghem) and “Equal Distribution” is a side-long piece with Julius Eastman on piano. “Solo for Saxophone” is a tasty number with Gibson on soprano (he plays organ, piano and flute on other selections), but the standouts are the sublime drift of “Melody IV” and tidier patterns of “Melody III” on side three. Altogether not as vital as Visitations or Two Solo Pieces, but still very necessary. A-
Boise, ID | The Record Exchange Takes the Lead: For the foreseeable future, people will spend more time in the virtual world, and the Record Exchange has taken an active role in keeping music lovers engaged. From online shopping to music steaming and screenings on social media, the store has been a pioneer when it comes to connecting people to music. “We are so appreciative of music lovers that are still shopping with us and not the big beast Amazon,” said Marketing and Promotions Director Chad Dryden. “We miss the people and the music, but we aren’t going to prematurely open. First and foremost, 
Qrates Is Bringing Old-School Vinyl Distribution Back — And Offering a COVID Workaround for Musicians: In 2019, U.S. vinyl record sales grew by nearly 20 percent to over $500 million, marking the 14th consecutive year in which the format’s domestic commercial performance has improved. Now, COVID-19 is putting that progress on pause, though Qrates is developing smart manufacturing and distribution workarounds to keep growing the format. The medium that was previously thought to be financially unworkable has enjoyed — current global crisis notwithstanding — a massive resurgence. But even under global lockdowns and quarantines, an ever-increasing number of fans and artists are eager to experience today’s music on vinyl, which has passed the test of time with flying colors. But how, exactly, should an artist go about distributing vinyl, when buying it just got so difficult? Just recently, Amazon indicated that vinyl purchases would be delayed while more essential supplies are prioritized. That freeze is slowly being lifted on non-essential goods, though it will probably take a while to return to previous levels. Meanwhile, physical record stores are closed, even though tens of thousands of fans would love nothing more than 
UK | Here’s a map of all the UK record stores doing home delivery during lockdown: Support your local record store. Record Store Day 2020 may have been postponed in the UK as a result of the continuing coronavirus crisis – but music fans are being encouraged to shop at independent record stores online using the map below. This year’s annual event – due to be held on Saturday April 18 – was set to see hundreds of vinyl and cassette releases sold exclusively through independent record shops for one day only. Up to 230 independent record shops from every corner of the UK, as well as thousands around the world, were set to take part in the celebrations with live in-store performances, mini street festivals and entertainment. But with the ongoing coronavirus crisis continuing to hit the UK music industry, organisers have been forced to postpone this year’s event until June 20. Instead, people are being urged to support their local independent record shop online and pledging to order the “one missing record in their collection” in support of the new 
How to Organize Your Music Collection at Home: Keep your vinyl and CDs protected, organized and beautifully displayed. You’ve gone through the adventure of building a world-class record collection, and kept it in excellent condition for years or decades — now it’s time to properly store it for easy access, aesthetics, and protection. There are some general rules about where to keep your music (especially records), which boil down to: Don’t store them in any room with a lot of moisture or smoke to avoid mold or unpleasant odors. But that doesn’t matter if you have little piles of music strewn throughout your house collecting dust, or getting knocked over by your robot vacuum. If you’re ready to get more serious about keeping your records or CDs organized, we can help. We’ve gathered a couple of storage options for both types of media that can accommodate collections of various sizes. These shelving units are designed to look really nice right next to each other, so you can get another one as your music library grows. Once your albums properly stored, it’ll be easy to pluck one for listening rather than hunting around for a recent find you swore was right there. Whether you sort your music by last name, genre, or year is up to you, but you can’t get to that fun part without 
