The Visitors...Earl & Carl Grubbs, Motherland, 1975

Muse LP, 1975

1. Kimball
2. Body & Soul
3. Levelf
4. Motherland
5. Fables of Africa
6. I Want to Talk About You
7. A Touch of Warm

Carl Grubbs, alto sax, piano on 4
Earl Grubbs, tenor sax, ss on 4, piano on 7
Joe Bonner, piano
John Lee, bass
Victor Lewis, ds
Produced by Michael Cuscuna

Carl and Earl Grubbs cut four albums as "The Visitors" for Muse and Cobblestone in the 1970s. Somehow they remain largely overlooked in the annals of spiritual/modal jazz; and only one of their albums made it to CD before the demise of the Muse label. "Motherland" was the last of these four, and is rightly considered to be one of the holy grails of the Muse catalog. I'm proud to present it here--in an excellent LP rip--thanks to the donor who wishes to be known only as WK.

According to Carl Grubbs' website (Earl has passed on), they received their musical training from none other than John Coltrane himself, who was married at the time to their cousin Naima. This is borne out by their playing, and by their repertoire, which like Coltrane alternates between originals and fairly dramatic reinterpretations of standards. The musicians here include my own favorite pianist Joe Bonner, and future funk-and-fusion bassist John Lee.

This album does not disappoint: The opening track "Kimball" is absolutely killer, a sort of slow and stately modal march; "Fables of Africa" and the title track would be at home on any number of Pharoah Sanders Impulse! sides: they are great numbers. Of the standard ballads, the old chestnut "Body & Soul" is my favorite, played here in full Coltrane-esque style. This record puts the Grubbs brothers squarely in the ranks of other spiritual jazz masters of the seventies, and I'm very pleased to be able to help give this album some wider exposure. Please join me in thanking our generous donor....be sure to leave a comment. Don't forget to check out more Muse sides on my Nine Sisters blog: you'll find hundreds of downloads and blog links there to the great Muse catalog.

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Tina Turner Chants Nam Myoho Renge Kyo

Cassette tape snippet, date & circumstance unknown

I'm off shortly for a week's vacation in the warm waters of Puerto Rico with my boyfriend. Let me leave you with this remarkable short snippet said to be Tina Turner chanting the prayer of Nishiren Buddhism. It was tacked on to the end of a cassette given to me once, and I have ripped this short under 4-minute chant for your listening pleasure. There seems to be one unfortunate tape drag. I cannot vouche absolutely that it is rock/r&b superstar Tina Turner, nor offer any information at all about this recording's date or circumstances. This is of course not a particularly musical selection, but the voice and breath here has a resonating quality that is quite hypnotic. Her breath at the end is positively liberating. Perhaps a remixer among you can turn this into a spiritual jazz masterwork.

It's my understanding that devotees chant this mantra "Nam Myoho Renge Kyo" for spiritual and material fulfillment. Nishiren Buddhism has attracted numerous celebrity adherents including, I believe, Herbie Hancock. You can also hear Jon Lucien chant this mantra on his hit "Creole Lady" (offered here at Ile Oxumare) where he seductively entices his lady to chant with him to change their destiny.

Anyway I'm not sure what kind of computer access I'll have while away so comment moderation may be uneven...but keep them coming, keeps me inspired.

So, shall we chant and change our own destinies? See you in a week.

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