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PRICE:
$12.00
IN STOCK
ARTIST
TITLE
Marching Song Vol. 1
FORMAT
LP

LABEL
CATALOG #
ACL 044LP ACL 044LP
GENRE
RELEASE DATE
12/17/2021

Vinyl reissue of The Mike Westbrook Concert Band's Marching Song Vol. 1, recorded and released in 1969 on Decca's Deram label. Originally released as a double-LP (also sold as two separate records), and therefore quite unusual for the time, especially for jazz. It comprised a suite of compositions by Mike Westbrook, with three tracks on Vol. 2 (ACL 045LP) written by John Surman, and based on the concept of the vainglorious futility of war. Vol. 1's "Hooray!" begins with roaring crowd noise, years before sampling was even heard of, and not dissimilar to the opening of Weather Report's "Nubian Sundance" on Mysterious Traveller (1974). Then come the drums, beating in unison courtesy of John Marshall and Alan Jackson. "Landscape" begins with Westbrook alone on piano but a highlight of this longish piece is the arco bass duet featuring Barre Phillips and Harry Miller sounding surprisingly like a string quartet to the unaware. "Waltz (for Joanna)" is a gorgeous piece of writing embellished by a peerless soaring soprano solo by Surman. Following a somber short ensemble link track, "Landscape II", Paul Rutherford produces an appropriately free trombone solo on "Other World".