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Dusted Features
Every Friday, Dusted Magazine publishes a series of music-related lists compiled by our favorite artists. This week: Father Yod affiliates Children of the Sixth Root Race and Brazilian fusion vet Ivan 'Mamão' Conti.
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Listed: Children of the Sixth Root Race + Ivan 'Mamão' Conti
Children of the Sixth Root Race
All hail Father Yod! The bearded leader of 1970s California commune The Source Family is one of the more regaled figures in psychedelic music circles, mostly because his record’s are hard to find but also because they’re pretty kicking once you find them. For a long time, it was thought his bands, the Spirit of ’76 and later YaHoWa 13, recorded nine LPs before the chosen one died in a hang-gliding accident in 1975. Turns out, now the magic number is 10. In 2006, some lucky fellow discovered an old rehearsal tape from 1973, recorded in the Father’s garage. After a lengthy bidding war, Drag City won the right to release Songs From the Source to the world under the moniker Children of the Sixth Root Race. For more on this intriguing band, check out Kevan Harris’ Dusted feature on the Father Yod documentary, Revisiting “Father”. Djin Aquarian, original Source Family guitarist and composer, took part in this week’s Listed.
1. Tennessee Ernie Ford - “Sixteen Tons”
From 1955, on 78 rpm played on our old RCA Victor record player consol. I think it was the deep and resonant voice and the ironic, pissed off, in-debt-to-the-man, but-unresigned-to-die-just-yet lyrics.
2. The Tornadoes - “Telstar”
From 1962. Hope-filled soaring new sounds firing the imagination about the new frontier of space and what’s yet to be found out there. Strange electronic keyboards or early synth sound, with big orchestral harp adding context. Humanity turns another page in technology and rock ‘n’ roll expands its borders.
3. The Beatles - “Tomorrow Never Knows”
A reverse guitar and psychedelic sounds. A sitar. A one-chord song. Relax and float down stream with love and harmony.
4. Laura Nyro - Eli and the Thirteenth Confession
From 1968, a feminine voice suffering, brooding. A great songwriter. Solo artistry. A lonely, tremendous talent.
5. Alice Coltrane - Universal Consciousness
From 1972. Hhoomm, Allah. Mantric expressions of voice, harp and Hammond organ. Trance-jazz rhythms of enlightenment. A magic carpet ride rising out of selfness into God-ness. Expanding perception and synthesizing worship.
6. Les McCann and Eddit Harris - “Compared To What”
Live at the London House around 1968. Grooving social commentary pop/jazz song about trying to make sense out of “reality,” compared to nothing to compare “reality” to. How to make sense of “what” is so out of context in the modern mentality that we forgot what’s true and what’s an illusion to base reality upon.
7. The Beatles - “Strawberry Fields Forever”
Painting soundscapes in ethereal space with new brushes and colors.
8. George Harrison and Ravi Shankar - The Concert for Bangladesh
Playing and pleading to the heart of the West for direly-needed aid. Part of the awakening of rock ‘n’ roll social responsibility.
9. Ya Ho Wha 13 - Penetration - An Aquarian Symphony
From 1973. It still blows my mind how well the piece all came together unrehearsed spontaneously flying freely to a crescendo of sounds and emotions and interconnectedness through dimensions of imagination.
10. Walela - Walela
The first album of Rita Coolidge, sisters and grandmother singing beautiful original songs about the sacred struggle of the native American spirit. Rattle, drum, flute, evoking, honoring elders, youngsters and ancestors with song.
Ivan 'Mamão' Conti
When hip-hop producer Madlib (nee Otis Jackson) traveled to Brazil in 2006, he looked up Ivan ‘Mamão’ Conti, drummer of the renowned fusion group Azymuth. The beat junkie loved himself some Brazilian flavor and wanted to record with someone who knew the tradition inside out. Conti was such a man. The Rio drummer has played with a host of Brazilian royalty, including Gal Costa, Roberto Carlos, and Marcos Valle. A veteran of the fusion scene on an international scale, Mamão’s breaks have supplied DJs with breaks for over 30 years. On this particular evening, Conti performed a variety of rhythms with Madlib and Mochilla labelhead B+, resulting in the collaboration Jackson Conti and the album Sunjinho. Conti took part in this week’s Listed.
1. Gene Krupa - Drummin’ Man
Since 1938, Gene Krupa has been my great idol and the inspiration of my career. And another great drummer, Budy Rych, together really revolutionized the way to play drums. Krupa’s 10 albums also collects some of the great musicians of the time, such as Roy Eldrige, Leo Watson, Buddy Wise, Frank Rosolino and other great names.
2. The Bossa Tres - The Bossa Tres
This album, in my opinion, was the greatest moment of instrumental trios in Brazil – and the world - in the 1960s. Formed for Luiz Carlos Vinhas (piano), Tião Netto ( acoustic bass) and Edson Machado (drums), it revolutionized a new movement of bossa for Brazilian groups and opened the way for the improvisation of trios.
3. Tenorio Jr. - Embalo
The pianista and composer Tenorio Jr., with whom I had the pleasure to play one night in Rio De Janeiro, also had a great importance in the development of Brazilian instrumental music. On this album, he created many compositions that all beginning and professional musicians of the time followed, recreating the form of swing and musical elegance. The album also features other great musicians, like Milton Banana (drums) and Sergio Barroso (acoustic bass).
4. The Mahavishnu Orchestra - The Inner Mounting Flame
This band, formed by the guitarist John MacLaughlin, was my great inspiration during the 1970s. With the great Billy Cobham (drums), Rick Laird (bass), Jan Hammer (keyboards) and Jerry Goodman (violin), they created a new way to play and to improvise on composed subjects without never losing the jazzistico flavor.
5. Erlon Chaves - Banda Veneno Internacional
Arranjador and teacher Erlon Chaves assembled great Brazilian orchestras, formed by the best musicians of the time. He gave special treatment to each composition, resulting in incomparable taste. I’m very proud to have participated in this diverse writing and shows. Erlon Chaves is my great idol and teacher in the way of playing with an orchestra.
6. Weather Report - I Sing the Body Electric
This is really one of the best albums and performances that I know. Comprised of the unforgettable Joe Zawinul (keyboards), Wayne Shorter (sax) Miroslav Vitus (acoustic bass), Eric Gravat (drums) and Dom Um Romao (percussion), this is one of the albums of ‘70s that impressed me as a performance and as an improvisation. It’s without a doubt one of the 10 best albums I’ve heard in my life!
7. The Tamba Trio - Avanço
The Tamba Trio formed of Luiz Eça (pianista arranjador and a man of sensitive and fantastic taste), Bebeto (bass, flute and vocal) and Helcio Milito (drums and vocal) tried with this work to enchant young adults of an entire generation to not only hear its music, but to congregate in night clubs. Proper parties would play this and dance to the sound of the Tamba Trio.
8. Azymuth - Telecommunication
For me, this was one of the best albums by the group. Creation, improvisation and freedom of composition in a studio are rare, and here we obtained moments of very great sincerity and friendship. I was very happy in participating with Jose Robert Bertrami (piano and keybs) Alex Malheiros (bass) Helio Delmiro ( guitar) on this Milestone Records project from the ’80s.
9. Return to Forever - No Mystery
Chick Corea (piano and keyboards), Stanley Clarke (bass), Lenny White (drums), Al Di Meola (guitar). In my opinion, it was a project that radically changed the way to improvise and insert electronic instruments in jazz.
10. Jackson Conti - Sujinho
A great meeting of a DJ (Madlib) and a drummer (me!), where the joy in the rhythms and the compositions, the friendship between one another, made this project a new way of recording without barriers. A work that I appreciate very much and really is due to MadLIb and Brian Cross (a.k.a. B+). Music is the universal language of the GOOD.
By Dusted Magazine
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