The last Simon and Bard in The Enormous Radio from 1984

For some reason I bought a VG media this time, and I must first apologize for that.  Not the usual practice here obviously.  Perhaps our old friend quimsy can repair the file for us, if he is still out there, listening.

Are we now too chronically far into the eighties fuzakitis to enjoy good music?  Well, the quality has depreciated a tad for sure, but this definitely has its delightful moments and kindnesses to offer us, and note Larry Coryell is back on guitar.  I think most here can enjoy some more tasteful fusion, all instrumental.  Incidentally, after listening all past week to the previous LP from them, I have to say I really enjoyed it greatly, more than most finds from recent memory.

A track called "A Boy and His Dog" reminds me of the old scifi film with Don Johnson, in which, briefly, in the setting of a post-apocalyptic future (like in the book/movie "The Road") everyone has to fight to survive-- unlike in the McCormack book wherein the hero is accompanied by his young son, here Don has a telepathic dog to help him seek out food and warn him of danger in a symbiotic relationship.  One day he discovers a subterranean city where humans have isolated themselves from the perils or radioactivity of the outside earth and a beautiful woman there falls in love with him and vice versa...  I won't bother to warn you of my shocking spoiler here, how when they finally escape from down there after multiple adventures, Don finds his loyal dog starving to death because he had abandoned him and after looking at the girl--  the last scene shows them happily walking off into the sunset together again.
Obviously the kind of movie that sadly cannot be made anymore today.






And consider the utterly bizarre title given to the Nuns Canyon Waltz in contradistinction to the beauty of the contents:





Sadly, no long track this time, though the record does end in a brilliantly dramatic & built up finale (Vampire cows on parade!).


And this was made in 1984... ah, how well we all remember those alt-truths...
In Miranda's words: "Oh Brave new world, that has such people in it!"

Next Simon and Bard: Tear It Up with Ralph Towner from 1982

After Musaic I was quite eagerly anticipating the next installment but when I heard the first track my heart dropped.  Luckily, as in Doug Lofstrom's oddball Beatlesian choice of opener for his Music album, the remainder turned out to be totally of the same inimitable ilk as the first album.  It seems the opener merely shows some conciliatory gestures towards the elementary school fuzak that was such an unrelenting and incurable plague of the eighties, after which the musicians are given freedom to play sophisticated and elegantly intelligent music.  In fact, already by the second track the sweeter meditative side of the band is quite in evidence, on a little composition called Lazlo's Muse:





Notice the percussive ascending piano chord pattern from Fred Simon which was a big feature of the Musaic composition.  As on the previous album, a longer suite appears, this time at the start of the second side, this time called Octabloon.  Look forward to that very well composed sonata-structured piece with different tempo'd sections and again very Muffins-like, with a most dramatic finale.

My one perhaps critical comment, meek as it is, may be that ultravirtuoso Ralph is not put to the fore as we had hoped.  It's OK-- this is Simon and Bard's show.

Look forward again to more.

Simon & Bard Featuring Larry Coryell in 1980's Musaic [by request]

Simon and Bard made three records, supposedly, back in this period.  Fred Simon was the keyboardist and Michael Bard sax and flute player augmented on this first album from 1980 by a moderately large and useful band.  Of course what immediately attracts our attention is that the guitarist is none other than famed fusioneer Larry Coryell, who really should need no further description here.  (And notice that in the next 1982 album, they enlisted Ralph Towner! great taste in guitarists, right?)

The discogs blurb for Fred Simon, of whom I knew nothing until this request, is worth reprinting:

Frederick Victor Simon

Fred Simon has been making music for more than thirty years, composing for records, live performance, film, dance, and television, with instrumentation ranging from solo piano to symphonic orchestra. His recorded work includes seven albums of original music under his name, three albums (as principle composer) with the Simon and Bard Group, numerous appearances on compilations and samplers, and many appearances as side-musician. 

Fred has recorded and/or performed with Ralph Towner (founding member of Oregon), Paul McCandless (founding member of Oregon), Larry Coryell, Lyle Mays, Iain Matthews (founding member of Fairport Convention), Jerry Goodman (Mahavishnu Orchestra violinist), Steve Rodby and Paul Wertico (both with Pat Metheny Group), Bonnie Herman (Singers Unlimited), Kurt Elling, Fareed Haque, David Onderdonk, Ingrid Graudins, Ross Traut, The Stan Kenton Orchestra and many others.

Wow! will be your reaction.  Notice that he did make a few albums on his own, presumably in solo style piano.  All compositions on this record are by him except A4's disappointing entry Fancy Frogs by Coryell.

Overall, a mixed bag with some of that annoyingly light fusion mixed in with decent and well-conceived compositions.  The track ded. to Joni Mitchell is particularly cute, appropriately enough for Robert Plant's experience of Going to California:





The more I've listened to this wee fantasia the more I enjoy it, as it seems to really capture her mid to late seventies jazzier free spirit, though there is nothing of the earnest and folksy earlier sixties-era strummer in there.

In this regard I have to tell a personal story relating to Joni very quickly.  For many years from the album Blue I was familiar with the story behind the song Little Green which is about the baby she gave up for adoption as a teen (the father's last name was Green), and who she desperately wanted to be reacquainted with throughout her life.  Some two decades ago it so happens that, through a mutual friend, I met the daughter herself whose name turned out to be Kilauren Green and who was in the midst of the revelation brought about by the loosening of adoption records and rules that her mother was indeed the famous Joni (confirmed by DNA or the Word of God).  The happiness of Joni could only be equated by her disillusionment at finding out her daughter was on welfare with no job, a casual drug user and had no artistic talent, after so many years of doubtlessly imagining the beautiful artist she must have turned out to be.  At least the wealth of the mother took the daughter off the country's welfare system, since Joni perforce had to financially support her to a considerable level, essentially forever...   Years later their relationship hit rock bottom and below when Joni charged Kilauren with assault after a fistfight at her LA residence...  All of which serves to illustrate very well the principle in the English saying: "be careful what you wish for."

One last comment regarding Joni, few people out there I'm sure are aware that she took one really beautiful stab at progressive rock in the chamber orchestrated piece Paprika Plains.  Its mystery and dreaminess have made it a favorite of mine since simply forever.  If you haven't heard it, please go ahead and have a listen.  It's from the double LP Don Juan's Reckless Daughter, which unfortunately doesn't hold any further interest for us.

The last track with the awkward title Musaic is also very interesting.  Look forward to that one and its appropriate placement at the end.  And towards the end of this quasi-symphonic composition the whole band takes flight into the skies as if to paint with the colors of feathered wings... gorgeous.

What it also reminds me of is the flights of fancy of that master band from the US, The Muffins, in their earliest works.  And how we can escape through the most beautiful creations of art our sore reality full of disappointments like the unexpected turns in our children's lives...

As usual, thanks to the requester for drawing my attention to this overlooked slice of musical 1980.