KCRW Broadcast 12

Fanatics! Tonight, I thought we would change things up a bit and go long. I know you can handle it and I think you just might find tonight’s gathering of tunes to be to your liking. Tonight, we are going to check out some pieces of work that take longer than the usual few minutes to realize their potential. One of my favorite Miles moments is the track we’re playing tonight. Perhaps of all the musicians I have ever listened to, it’s Miles who re-invented himself so successfully again and again. If you listen to the best of all the different phases of his development, it’s quite staggering. I hope you like this track.

Hot Buttered Soul album has been one of my favorites since I was in 5th grade. My mother bought it and I started listening to it a lot and eventually, she gave it to me. Now, it’s considered a Soul classic and breakthrough album but when Ike initially released it, he definitely turned some heads. Years ago, he and I talked about the album at length and he confirmed many of the questions that I had about the melding of electric guitars with large scale instrumentation. It was one of the blueprints for where Soul went for quite some time. Hyperbolicsyllabicsesquedalymistic and his version of Walk On By are my two favorite tracks on the album. If you like what you heard tonight, the rest of the album is worth checking out.

Stellar Regions. This came out years after the big man’s passing and from what I’ve read, was his last studio session. This is I think one of his best and for me, most frustrating sessions. I can’t help but think that he was turning a corner in his playing and had he another year of life, could have realized some amazing music, besides the incredible material he left us with. Tonight, Fela goes long and XBXRX goes quite exploratory. Sounds is one of the most interesting things ever released by the band and by the man who is behind it, Vice Cooler. VC threatens another XBXRX release this year. When he lets us hear it, we will bring that to you ASAP. I hope you dig tonight’s big jam out. Until next Saturday night . . . STAY FANATIC!!! --Henry

Henryontheradio@AOL.com