|
Audio Asylum Thread Printer Get a view of an entire thread on one page |
For Sale Ads |
69.113.175.74
The violinist passed away Saturday. And not a peep from the music media. If I wasn't listening to WKCR 89.9 FM NYC, I would be none the wiser.
Short bio: http://aacmchicago.org/members/Leroy.html
Follow Ups:
Thanks for telling us. I collected all of the Revolutionary Ensemble records back when I was a grad student. Jenkins also had a couple of remarkable records on the Black Saint/Soul Note label, if I remember. One of my favorite jazz violinists.
This is another evidently worthwhile musician i failed to encounter while he was alive in that i can't say i knew any of his music.Somewhat recently Elton Dean died and in reading about him heard of The Soft Machine of whom I'd heard precisely nothing.Reading about him only after his death was posted about on another forum lead me to finding some recordings where he plays and i am so pleased i did.I will now have to find some of Mr. Jenkins'.
Amazon has his "Solo" CD used for $12 - good place to start, assuming solo jazz recitals don't turn you off.
I posted this on the Vinyl Asylum earlier today:This is a real loss for the music community, especially as he was active just about until the end of his life. The last few days I have been playing the LPs I have of his (with the Revolutionary Ensemble and on his own) on JCOA, A&M, Black Saint, and Tomato. I saw him in the the 70s in the jazz loft in NYC. That's when I realized that the boundaries between jazz and classical are artificial.
Leroy Jenkins did a lot of things no one else did. To these ears, the sound of his violin never seemed forced or out of place in a jazz setting. His playing managed to be both soulful and cerebral, delicate and disturbing, political and transcendent. His work is a reminder that jazz can still be in the vanguard of American music.
Thanks for that link.
I also had a couple of his LPs from his Revolutionary Ensemble recordings, which was my introduction to his music back in the late 70's. And recently picked up the Equal Interest album he did with Joseph Jarman and Myra Melford.
I will miss his musical contribution.
Thanks for posting this.I'll never forget my introduction to Leroy's music. I worked at a record store and bought a cut-out LP for myself of the eponymously titled "Revolutionary Ensemble" LP. I had no clue what they were doing but I immediately felt a kinship with Leroy and the group. To this day, RE remains my favorite jazz ensemble. Imagine my joy when a few years ago, not only was "The Psyche" reissued but they also put out a brand new album, 2.5 decades after their last one. I missed that on LP and went through hell trying to find "The People's Republic" which I eventually did.
Other good Leroy... the duet disc with Rashied Ali and his "Solo" disc on the Lovely Music label. He was an incredible musician and I'm sorry to discover his voice has been silenced. But we still have his past stuff to dig and study. He was certainly innovative and unique.
This post is made possible by the generous support of people like you and our sponsors: