The Book Of Heads

Label: Tzadik
Category: Music

Average customer rating:

Media: Audio CD
Number Of Discs: 1

UPC: 702397700920
EAN: 0702397700920
ASIN: B000003YSR

Release Date: 1995-09-19

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Avant Garde & Free Jazz

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Tracks:

Etude # 1
Etude # 2
Etude # 3
Etude # 4
Etude # 5
Etude # 6
Etude # 7
Etude # 8
Etude # 9
Etude # 10
Etude # 11
Etude # 12
Etude # 13
Etude # 14
Etude # 15
Etude # 16
Etude # 17
Etude # 18
Etude # 19
Etude # 20
Etude # 21
Etude # 22
Etude # 23
Etude # 24
Etude # 25
Etude # 26
Etude # 27
Etude # 28
Etude # 29
Etude # 30
Etude # 31
Etude # 32
Etude # 33
Etude # 34
Etude # 35

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Customer Reviews:

Extraordinary but ultimately unsatisfying........2005-11-23

"The Book of Heads" was composed by John Zorn in 1978 for guitarist Eugene Chadbourne, a set of 35 etudes for solo guitar that was designed to push the guitarist to extremes, utilizing extended techniques-- both those associated with classical guitar, those innovated by Chadbourne and his contemporaries, and those Zorn came up with on his own. The material sat, unrecorded, until 1995 when Zorn, no longer working regularly with Chadbourne, called upon guitarist Marc Ribot to perform them.

Ribot, a guitarist of enormous talent, began his long association with Zorn eight years prior to this as a contributor to Zorn's soundtrack work and as a member of the ensemble on the superb "Kristaalnacht", but this was really the first feature for Ribot on a Zorn record. The liner notes indicate that six months of preparation were underway before this was recorded.

Ribot tackles the pieces with extraordinary virtuosity and flair-- the sheer range of technique on display here is stunning. I play a bit of guitar myself, but cannot readily identify how some of the sounds are produced (at one point it sounds like he's sawing the neck of the guitar). But ultimately, it feels more like a technique display more than anything else.

One thing I will note-- I've seen Ribot perform pieces from this record live, and in those cases, I've found them intriguing. I suspect that the visual aspect of seeing the technique involved assists in the notion of understanding the innovation behind it, although I will state that while I found the pieces more engaging, I still felt they lacked purpose. But much of Zorn's early work (the Game Pieces for example) lend themselves far better to live rather than studio performances.

On the other hand, there are folks who swear by this record. It certainly is interesting, but I just can't get into it.

Good effort.......2004-08-06

This is one interesting piece of work from Zorn, and especially so for those interested in the guitar field, it's a real challenge and an important landmark. Ribot does a good work on it, but I wonder if not the very Mr. Chadbourne himself should have performed this piece that was written back in 1978 for him. If such a performance ever come to be released it would most likely strike a 5.

A look into two of jazz's greatest heads........1999-09-03

Warning: this CD may cause "spontaneous overflows of powerful feeling." Composed in 1978 for Eugene Chadbourne, and recorded in one day (!) in 1995, these 35 etudes stretch any definition of guitar-playing one might have. Marc Ribot was certainly the musician John Zorn needed to express his ideas of what the guitar should sound like--Ribot has the sensitivity in ear and fingertip to bring the nuances of Zorn's composition to realization. After listening to this CD, one needs no more proof of Zorn's excellence as a composer, nor of Ribot's virtuosity as a guitarist.

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