Tune Tag #11 with Jeremy Shatan of "AnEarful" Pt. 1: Miles Davis, Jobim, Robert Palmer, Mutual Benefit, DJ Logic, Garland Jeffreys
Jeremy gives us an earful of the exotic, the experimental, & the avant! No worries, mate, it's all guaranteed to not need a drop of novocaine! Plus, a peek at a fan letter Frank Zappa wrote...at 16!🤣
Tag! You’re It, Jeremy!
A self-described “music obsessive” born in New York (who, judging by this photo, stands head and shoulders above the crowd), Jeremy describes his Substack as “Giving you an earful about an omnivorous array of music, from cutting edge sounds by living composers to new (and old) classics in rock, folk, hip hop, pop, R&B, reggae, jazz, global, and more. Established 2009.”
Feel free to read, subscribe, and get “AnEarful” from Jeremy by clicking here!
Jeremy’s Song #1 to Brad: Mutual Benefit, “Growing at the Edges,” Transgressive Records
Jeremy’s rationale: I chose the title track to Mutual Benefit’s new album (released October 6, 2023) just because there are few things more exciting than new music from an artist you love that manages to enlarge your appreciation of their work.
I’ve been on board with Jordan Lee (pictured above) and Mutual Benefit for almost 10 years, since Love’s Crushing Diamond in 2013, and one thing I love about his music is how carefully concealed the rock-solid structure of his songs is beneath the ethereal outer layers. This new album may be his best, an extraordinary achievement that I want to share it with you and as many other people as possible.
Brad’s #1 Song to Jeremy: Robert Palmer, “Closer to the Edge,” 1994
Jeremy’s response: Well, this was unexpected! A Robert Palmer track from an album of which I was barely aware. I’ve long thought Riptide (1985) was his last album worthy of consideration, and the brief part of this I listened to did not cause me to change that assessment. However, we’re not here for me to pass judgment, but rather to find connections between the songs being shared. The only link I can see is the use of the word Edge or Edges, which seems too obvious…but I’m going with it!
Brad’s rationale: With little else to go on from an artist (Mutual Benefit) about whom I knew nothing, I just leaned on a word from the band’s song title, “Growing at the Edges.” Hence, Robert Palmer’s “Closer to the Edge” from his Honey, an album on which he did everything but empty the ash trays in 1994!
Palmer produced, arranged, and even hand-lettered the writing on the front cover!
Jeremy’s #2 Song: Miles Davis, “Black Satin,” 1972
Brad’s response: Jeremy chose a Miles Davis song (and album) produced by noted jazz producer, New Yorker Teo Macero, who, 22 years later, produced the Robert Palmer Honey album, from which “Closer to the Edge” came. Macero was a Columbia Records staff producer for two decades beginning in 1957.
Macero, for the Palmer record, is actually listed as having done “additional production” (as opposed to assistant producer) hinting at post-production or later overdubs. Palmer is listed as a producer (and arranger), with Richard Coble serving as Production Co-ordinator. Very smooth move, Jeremy!
Jeremy’s rationale: My perusal of the credits for the Robert Palmer album revealed a surprising contributor: Teo Macero (pictured above, right, with Miles), who is noted on the album for providing “Additional Production.”
Macero was a sax/trumpet player who studied with Edgar Varèse, the pioneer of musique concrète, and taught Macero editing techniques, which were a critical part of his piece, Poème électronique. Macero became legendary for his production work on many of the greatest albums of Miles Davis’ electric period, hence, my pick for song #2.
Brad’s Song #2: DJ Logic, “Abyss,” 1999
Jeremy’s response: DJ Logic…cool pick! When the e-mail notification went by, I saw the word “Logic” and expected the worst, LOL, so this was a relief. Great sounds that I haven’t listened to in years. As for the tag, a sample of Badal Roy’s tabla from On The Corner rang out and was instantly recognizable in “Abyss.”
Brad’s rationale: From 1999’s Project Logic I chose this song because it, like the Palmer and Miles songs, was produced by the incredible Teo Macero (who also played horns on this track)! Interestingly, it’s the only track on the album Macero produced!
Jeremy’s Song #3: Ronald Shannon Jackson and The Decoding Society, “Sortie,” 1980
Brad’s response: I have no idea what the link is between my DJ Logic song and “Sortie” by Jackson. My only guess is the presence, here, of guitarist Vernon Reid, still four years away from forming Living Colour! Reid actually began his music career in Jackson’s band—Living Colour was formed in ‘84.
Jeremy’s rationale: Checking out DJ Logic’s bio on Wikipedia, I noted that he considers guitarist Vernon Reid his mentor. Reid is mostly known for his work in Living Colour, the hard rock band and cornerstone of the Black Rock Coalition.
However, I was aware of Reid’s talents years before “Cult Of Personality” blasted out of radio stations throughout the land. In the late ‘70s, I became a huge fan of the late Ornette Coleman (1939-2015), the groundbreaking sax/violin/trumpet player and composer whose 1961 album Free Jazz (on Atlantic Records in their 14th year of existence) had birthed a movement.
In the ‘70s, he continued to evolve, eventually creating a theory of Harmolodics, which organized a new form of collective improvisation [Coleman also used the name “Harmolodic” for both his first website and his record label, distributed by Verve/Polygram]:
He formed an electric group called Prime Time in 1975, and quickly became newly and widely influential in the jazz world.
As I followed these mind-blowing pursuits, I tried to keep up with all the work being done by his associates, who included a drummer named Ronald Shannon Jackson. So, when I heard Jackson had formed his own band, The Decoding Society, I made sure to grab their 1980 debut, Eye On You (About Time Records), which featured none other than a teenage Vernon Reid, DJ Logic’s future mentor and one of the stars of song #3.
Brad’s Song #3: Garland Jeffreys, “Hail Hail Rock’n’Roll,” 1991.
Jeremy’s response: Garland Jeffreys?!? Brad has a remarkable talent for pulling out artists I never think about, in this case someone whose work I respect but that never found a place in my listening life.
As soon as I heard the song, I saw how it could be a rallying cry (if a rather gently groovy one) for the Black Rock Coalition, with lyrics like “Hail hail rock ‘n’ roll/Comes from R & B and soul,” which made me think Brad had cottoned on to the Vernon Reid connection on my song #3.
Then I heard some shredding near the end and wondered if Reid himself was on the song - yup! I will editorialize for a minute and say that it’s kind of amusing that Jeffreys, er, borrowed a song title from Chuck Berry [whom he name-checks in the song, with other rock originators] while talking about giving credit where it’s due.
To add further irony, Berry himself always counted “Hillbilly music,” which has Anglo-Irish roots, as a huge influence, writing in his autobiography, “The music played most around St. Louis was country-western and swing. Curiosity provoked me to lay a lot of the country stuff on our predominantly black audience. After they laughed at me a few times, they began requesting the hillbilly stuff.” But, point taken, Mr. Jeffreys!
Brad’s rationale: Even with Reid’s Living Colour success by this time (1991), I chose Brooklynite, Garland Jeffreys (now 80), “Hail Hail Rock’n’Roll,” on which Reid played guitar.
The lead single from his 1991 Don’t Call Me Buckwheat album (RCA Records worldwide), “Hail Hail Rock ‘n’ Roll” reached #12 on the German singles chart and spent 24 weeks there.
Jeremy’s Song #4: Domenico Lancellotti, “Quem Samba,” 2023
Brad’s response: Not really sure how “Quem Samba” connects or relates to the Garland Jeffreys song. But, I’m always up for sambas, and certainly anything bossa nova, particularly by Jobim.
Jeremy’s rationale: For song #4, I was dead set on pulling the conversation back to the 21st century. Domenico Lancellotti is a brilliant Brazilian singer, songwriter, producer, and performer who I’ve been following for years.
He’s been a serial offender on my Top 25 list and his latest, Sramba, was on my Best Of 2023 (So Far). I was scanning through that list and remembered his song “Quem Samba,” and realized it was a perfect volley back to Brad as, like “Hail Hail Rock’n’Roll,” it references a musical genre in its title.
Although nothing Domenico does is traditional, his knowledge of Brazilian music from Samba to Bossa Nova to Tropicalia and beyond is both broad and deep. So I brought us full circle, from one 2023 favorite to another, with several fascinating diversions along the way. How would Brad end this thing??
Brad’s Song #4: Antonio Carlos Jobim, “Samba De Uma Nota So” (“One Note Samba”)
Jeremy’s response: Good call! From an innovator of the samba to a foundational exploration of the form by Brazil’s greatest composer. I’m a huge Jobim fan, especially the work he did with Frank Sinatra, which included an excellent version of this song:
Jobim’s melodies are so suave, yet contain enough of that bittersweet sensation the Brazilian’s call “saudade” that they give you a roadmap for how to move through the world with dignity even when it seems intent on causing you pain. And that’s something music can do in general, provide a model for how to exist and interact with others.
Saudade: a feeling of longing, melancholy, or nostalgia that is supposedly characteristic of the Portuguese or Brazilian temperament.
It’s been a pleasure doing this exercise - I hope Brad and everyone else enjoys it as much as I did!
Another form of TT that I love are tennis tournaments, and this tag certainly had the feel of a Djokovic/Federer match. Great to learn how much (more) Vernon Reid had contributed to the music world than I realized. And some new artists/songs I’m gonna have to check out!
So much fun, Brad! And since you added Zappa, I'll lob back the fact that I saw him conduct the music of Edgar Varese at a legendary concert here in NYC...let the tagging continue!