Sunday, February 25, 2007

Steve Marcus- Tomorrow Never Knows


YES...Tomorrow Never Knows with Steve Marcus is the first record that I'll be flossing up in here.
Its on the US prog jazz label Vortex, I'm not really familiar with a lot of releases on that label, just Joe Zawinul's Third Stream album.
As far as I know Steve Marcus's other outings on Vortex are more leftfield and a bit noisier than Tomorrow Never Knows, please give me a shout if you have anything to add about he's Vortex albums cause I dont know them that well.
From 1968 side 1 echoes the sounds of the late 60's contemporary rock scene with some Donavan and Beatles, not easy listening styled but raw and in your face-ish.
Side 2 is where its at though, shifting gears into a progressive jazz mode with the title track, (11:07 min. long and also a Beatles thingy btw) a mellow theme over rumbling fuzz guitar with a modal (funk) bassline and rock drumming, wow...
Ahead of its time and at this point sounds like electric Miles did a few years later. The track proceeds in what I'd describe as psychedelic jazz, then changes mood with a long acoustic piano stretch for the middle part.
The last cut is good too, reminds me of a 1997 hiphop sample or some shit off a Cadet Concept record with John Klemmer.
There's no musicians credited on the cover, Steve Marcus plays saxophone(s), other than that instruments featured includes drums, fenderbass, ac. piano, hapsicord and el. guitar.
Produced by Herbie Mann.


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