Jezebel was literally a fallen woman. She was a queen who manipulated her king to abandon Yahweh and the Biblical prophets. She bore false witness which resulted in an innocent man being put to death. Cut to the chase, she was thrown out of a high window by members of her retinue and her corpse was devoured by stray dogs. Her name has become synonymous with alluring women who lead men astray.
Today's post will be a brief #morgenseiten (cyber-buddy @shortcut 's idea for a morning stream of consciousness post.) As with my post yesterday, this post also relates to @katharsisdrill 's post about rap music.
Zeitgeist
Years ago I read a book that had a chapter about how ideas seems to move into a collective unconscious and spread around the world. I don't recall too many details, but the author laid out multiple examples. Are thoughts more than biochemical reactions in the brain? Is there such a thing as a collective unconscious? Of course I don't know the answer, but my life experience makes me suspect the answer might be yes.
Spoken Word Music
My knowledge of rap music is very limited, so out of curiosity I searched to see when it became a “thing.” The consensus seemed to be 1979 when Sugar Hill Gang's “Rapper's Delight” was released, but naturally its underground history goes back further.
My post yesterday dealt an example with music I was listening to when rap was gaining popularity (James Brown's “Repeat the Beat.”) So I decided to hone in on the year 1979-1980 and some of what I was listening to, and that's why I mentioned the collective unconscious. Brian Eno and David Byrne began recording My Life in the Bush of Ghosts in the summer of 1979, just as rap was being put to vinyl.
Interestingly, they used funky rhythm and lots of sampling on this record. It is noteworthy that they used sampling of the spoken word for some of the lead vocals on tracks. Although it is not rap, there's heavy sampling, emphasis on rhythm, and the spoken word as lead vocal. So I found that to be an interesting coincidence.
The Jezebel Spirit
Today I want to present a track from the album, and I've specifically selected "The Jezebel Spirit," because it was derided by a Rolling Stone critic (I'm not a fan of music critics):
Even more annoying is "The Jezebel Spirit," which utilizes a recorded exorcism. Byrne and Eno latch onto the rhythm of the exorcist's dry laugh for the backup, but they fade out before we find out what happened to the possessed woman — which would have been a lot more interesting than the chattery band track. Blasphemy is beside the point: Byrne and Eno have trivialized the event. Source: Rolling Stone April 2, 1981, by Jon Pareles link
NOT child friendly
CHILD FRIENDLY VERSION
Annoying chattery band track? I disagree, but what's your take?
Photo
The photos is a collage of pixabay.com photos with heavy effects by @roused – no attribution required
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I want to sincerely thank you for the much appreciated and totally unexpected upvote and recognition. The platform can at times seem like a futile pursuit, and your upvote keeps hope alive --it's a wonderful thing you're doing.
Thanks again! @roused
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Thanks so much :)
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Great collage :-)
I also owned the My Life in the Bush of Ghosts vinyl until I gave it to my DJ-ing son. I wasn't aware of the connection to RAP music, though. But it's pretty much obvious.
I also believe in some kind of unified field of consciousness. It's probably the same thing, that made different people around the world discover important inventions (like the telephone) nearly at the same time.
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I had that as vinyl too -- may still have it in the basement, now sure ;-) I might be the only one who sees a connection to rap, but like you it does seem clear to me when I think about it.
PS The first video clip made me think of you and @katharsisdrill
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Yeah! Some strong photography in there (put together by a photography teacher). I even spotted the cover image of John Zorn's Naked City, which is one of my favorite avant garde albums.
I'm definitely looking forward to more collaborations, where powerful images meet some great music.
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Or... make music to your art!
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I agree, I thought there was a powerful synergy between the photos and the music. I hope you will take up that challenge of putting your art to music :-)
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I only arrived at this album much later, but there is no doubt that the same possibilities led to the similar results. That is one of the things I love about music - the seamless way the abstract patterns blend underneath, while on the surface there is strict genre restrictions.
I often catch myself in thinking that it was much better in the decades that is now gone, but I often get a reality check when I run into old text like the art critic you quote. Those people were also there back then, it is just us that surrender more to them now... and maybe it is just me :)
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It's interesting, I've come to the conclusion that there are musicians who are artists, and artists who happen to be musicians. People who even if they hadn't made music they would have made art of some kind.
I would put David Byrne in that group along with Frank Zappa, Joni Mitchell (artist anyway), Bowie to a certain extent, and there are certainly others. In any case, artists and musicians sometimes seem tap to into the same possibilities or the Zeitgeist, but each interprets that influence in a different way.
For example, I read that the Brazilians were listening to Miles Davis' cool jazz /Kind of Blue and their interpretations of that were fused with their own samba tradition -- the result was the fantastic Bosa Nova of the 60s and 70s.
As for writing criticism, I've been asks countless times to write album reviews, but except for one review (for the guy whose music I used on my audio interviews) I've always declined.
I want to be completely honest, but also positive, and enthusiastic -- so for that reason I always stuck with interviews, and only with people whose music moved for impressed me. Back in the 60s and 70s, Rolling Stone magazine could make or break rock musicians. They had some excellent writers, but several of them had egos that were metastasized ;-)
It's all so subjective, in reality the art is what it is. BTW, have you seen some of those pranks of art critics? They are simply hilarious!
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I just a couple of days ago saw that Frank Zappa was involved with the avant garde movement. He was playing on bicycles, a project that closely resembled some of the happenings of the Fluxus movement. I am sure he was on the avant garde scene, and it makes perfect sense.
What makes an artist is interesting. The decision is so different from person to person. I have known many, many musicians and pictorial artists that simply was in the community and learned how to do the stuff. Some was attracted to it from very early on or had their talent recognised by their parents, and then started seeing themselves as important artists. Others like myself started in the actual art very early and it became an important part of life. There's also the incidental artist who likes the community and end up artist - often both extremely boring and successful art they make :)
I respect your decision. It keeps the world more open and art never really was about closing down and remembering to shut of the light, which is what most of the put-into-boxes work of art-criticism is about.
I have just purchased a strange album by Danish Black Metal queen Myrkur, and as it is a strange eclectic mix of genres it has made people furious because it isn't black metal in their definition. I never understood this need of categories. I will write a morgenseite about it.
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I was going to include this clip as I started reading your answer, but then you mention it yourself ;-)
In some respects art is truly in the eye of the beholder. @kus-knee has they great contest about "Mundane Art" just looking around and finding things that are art, like stacked wood, manhole covers, etc.
As for genres, they are sometimes useful descriptions, but often inadequate, and I know lots of musicians who loathe labels.
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The art of that time was based on zen-like fascinations, so it was also part fun part, part 120% seriousness. I know one of the artists that was in the Fluxus group and I think their greatest achievement was that they managed to incorporate contradictions. They helped out all day preparing Stockhausen's concert and took part in the demonstrations outside that another of their friends had organised saying that the avant garde only was for the upper class and that black funk and soul music was the true art.
I can easily see Zappa just taking the decision to switch on that axis.
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