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| Marc Ribot solo and in duets with Henry Grimes Marc Ribot and Henry Grimes perform Thursday, March 16th 20O6: Marc Ribot solo and in duets with Henry Grimes, Issue Project Room, 4OO Carroll St, Carroll Gardens section of Brooklyn, NY, 8 p.m. Marc Ribotguitarist, composer, arranger was born in Newark, NJ and as a teen played guitar in various garage bands while studying with his mentor, Haitian classical guitarist and composer Frantz Casseus. In 1978 Marc crossed the river to New York City, where he served as sideman for such musicians as jazz organist Jack McDuff and legendary soul shouter Wilson Pickett. Marc began his five-year stint as a member of the Lounge Lizards (John Lurie's innovative and influential downtown jazz ensemble) in 1984. At the time, Marc's playing, which blended elements of classic blues guitar with the ironic "no wave" Knitting Factory aesthetic, caught the ear of a number of artists who were also interested in amalgamating and disrupting disparate musical traditions, resulting in concerts and/ or recordings with "T-Bone" Burnett, Don Byron, Chocolate Genius, Anthony Coleman, Elvis Costello, Marianne Faithfull, Bill Frisell, the Jazz Passengers, Arto Lindsay, Medeski Martin & Wood, the Sun Ra Arkestra, Tom Waits, and John Zorn, to name a few. Marc Ribot has also composed and recorded his own brand of downtown soul music with his bands the Rootless Cosmopolitans and Shrek. In 1998 Atlantic Records released the critically acclaimed "Marc Ribot y Los Cubanos Postizos" featuring Ribot's beautifully slanted interpretations of material by the great Cuban songwriter Arsenio Rodriguez. Composer Stewart Wallace wrote an electric guitar concerto with orchestra for Marc, and the piece was premiered by the National Symphony Orchestra in Washington, D.C. in 'O4. Recently Marc has written several musical scores, as he continues to write, perform, and collaborate, currently working with a new sonically dense rock band called the Marc Ribot Mystery Trio, also producing a record of material by his Haitian mentor Frantz Casseus. And most relevant to the night at Issue Project Room, he has been touring and recording with his Spiritual Unity Quartet, dedicated to the music, spirit, and inspiration of Albert Ayler, the group Marc Ribot says he started partly so that he could get to play music with Henry Grimes. Master bassist and teacherHenry Grimes, missing from the music world since the late '6O's, has made an unprecedented comeback after receiving the gift of a bass (a green one called Olive Oil!) from William Parker in December, 'O2 to replace the instrument Henry had been forced to give up some 3O years earlier. Between the mid-'5O's and the mid-'6O's, the Philadelphia-born, Juilliard-educated Henry Grimes played brilliantly on some 5O albums with an enormous range of musicians, including Albert Ayler, Don Cherry, Benny Goodman, Coleman Hawkins, Roy Haynes, Lee Konitz, Steve Lacy, Charles Mingus (yes, Charles Mingus), Gerry Mulligan, Sunny Murray, Sonny Rollins, Roswell Rudd, Pharoah Sanders, Archie Shepp, Cecil Taylor, Charles Tyler, McCoy Tyner, Rev. Frank Wright, and many more ... and then one day, for reasons largely related to troubles in the music world at the time, he disappeared. Many years passed with nothing heard from him, yet after a short while with his new bass, he emerged to begin playing music again. These days, he lives, works, and teaches in New York City and has been working with Marshall Allen, Fred Anderson, Roy Campbell, Jr., Marilyn Crispell, Andrew Cyrille, Bill Dixon, Hamid Drake, Charles Gayle, Edward "Kidd" Jordan, Joe Lovano, Sabir Mateen, Bennie Maupin, Jemeel Moondoc, David Murray, William Parker, Marc Ribot, and many more; since 2OO3, Henry Grimes has played and toured extensively in Europe (Austria, Belgium, Croatia, Finland, France, Germany, Holland, Italy, Norway, Portugal, Spain, Slovenia, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey) as well as Canada and the U.S. To the astonishment and joy of all, he's playing at the very height of his artistic powers (or indeed anyone's), just as though he'd never stopped at all! The recipient of a prestigious "Meet the Composer" award in 'O3 and two more in 'O5, Henry was designated "Musician of the Year" by "All About Jazz/ New York" in 'O4; one of his trios was chosen Best Jazz Trio of 2OO4 by "NYPress, " and one of his concerts at HotHouse in Chicago was named one of the ten best of 'O5 by "Time Out / Chicago." He's still healthy and strong, and his gentle, humble bearing and courageous life story have inspired all those privileged to know him, hear him, play music with him. write your comments about the article :: © 2006 Jazz News :: home page |