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Favorite Recordings Featuring Odd Selections of Musical Instruments.

I do a fair job of spoiling my inner child. One area is collecting CDs where the choices of musical instruments are other than main stream.

 

An example might include the Modern Jazz Tuba Project. Their CDs include 2001 “Live at the Bottom Line” and 2003 “Favorite Things”. Howard Johnson & Gravity also had a tuba jazz trio and may have done it first with 1996 “Gravity” and 1997 “Right Now”. In all four CDs they select music to optimize the fun of a tuba trio, yea it is just great fun. Exercise your sub woofers. 

 Somewhere I have CDs of upright bass trios, I’m having trouble remembering who and where? Sometimes I get half-heimers; it is expected at my age now that I am middle aged.  Found it!  Ray Brown 1997 “Super Bass” (Telarc) and 2001 Super Bass, Vol. 2” (Telarc) both highly recommended. The Vol. 2 has a trio of upright basses playing “Papa Was Rolling Stone” in parts that will kill ya. It is all good. Might leave your sub woofer with stretch marks.

 Brent Lewis seems to get more out of percussion-only than one might reasonably expect.  Start with his CD 2004 “Drum Sex” because it is entertaining to listen to. He is worth looking up on Youtube so one can try before they buy. I like his stuff.  Find a pair of #2 yellow pencils so you can play along on your desk. Oh, Brent Lewis has a percussion Christmas concept CD named 2000 "Jungle Bells"  that is a riot. It is actuality done very well.  I own his whole catalogue.

 Somewhere I picked up 1991 “An Organ Blaster Sampler” from TELARC which has some nice demo organ cuts.

 Short of howitzers for the "1812 Overture" do you have any recordings featuring out of the ordinary musical instruments that you can highly recommend?


timothywright
almarg's avatar
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almarg
9,670 posts
 
Many recordings of music from the Renaissance period feature instruments that are not usually encountered in modern times, and can be a lot of fun to listen to. One favorite:

"Images Galantes de la Renaissance," performed by the Polyphonia Antiqua ensemble, which I have in LP form on the French Pierre Verany label as PV4791.

Regards,
-- Al
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flatblackround
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No, but I loved the commercial on tv where the triangle player jumps up front of the  symphony orchestra and shreds on a solo. He really gets down and even does a Chuck Berry style chicken walk across the stage.  Epic.
edcyn
1,876 posts
 
Like almarg, I get off on weirdo period instruments of the past.  It's one of the things that keeps me returning to my Harmonia Mundi and MA Recordings discs.
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bdp24
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I love the sound of the harpsichord, an instrument rarely heard live (unless you own one ;-). I love Trevor Pinnock's CRD label (UK) recordings of Baroque compositions written for the instrument. Great works, playing, and recorded sound quality.

Van Dyke Parks: Song Cycle. It's not so much that he employed unusual instruments on his debut album (though there is a harpsichord), but rather what he has them playing (it's very orchestrated). This album was made shortly after he finished collaborating with Brian Wilson on the ill-fated Smile album. JBL included a track from the album on their early-70's demonstration LP.

Ry Cooder & V.M. Bhatt: A Meeting By The River, on Water Lily Records. East meets West. One of the best (most natural, lifelike) recordings ever made, by the best living recording engineer, Kav Alexander.

The four albums by L.A. psychedelic band Kaleidoscope, whose members included David Lindley (El Rayo-X, Ry Cooder, Jackson Browne). Unlike the above, not great sounding recordings, but oh well.

Speaking of bad sound: to hear what an electric bass should NOT sound like, give a listen to Jack Bruce's Gibson EB3/Marshall stack on Cream's Wheels Of Fire live LP. PU! I saw them live in '67 and '68, and yes, it sounded that bad in person. 

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mapman
22,093 posts
 
Check out Hanggai on Spotify. 
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