JOHN ZORN — The Big Gundown: John Zorn plays the music of Ennio Morricone (review)

JOHN ZORN — The Big Gundown: John Zorn plays the music of Ennio Morricone album cover Album · 1986 · Third Stream Buy this album from MMA partners
3.5/5 ·
snobb
John Zorn's monumental work - his look on Morricone soundtracks from late 80-s NY down town avant-garde musician. For such a n ambitious work Zorn organised full orchestra of mostly down-town musicians who will work with John for decades after the release of this album and many of them will become front page artists in modern avant-jazz.

Morricone genial material is easy recognizable under the skin of Zorn's look on it,so all album sounds as well known and very unusual at the same time. It's great how Zorn works with original compositions - from one hand he always leaves some main components of original,as melody,atmosphere,but he doesn't afraid to re-work it radically at the same time.As a result, listener hear easily recognizable tunes he remembers as themes for many great movies, but all music sounds as if all that happened in mid 80-s in NY down town.

There are not too many radical components (as free jazz reeds soloing or scratching electric guitars) added in music, but all structure,new dynamics, samples and effects make music sounding different - as from known,but parallel world.

From 10 compositions only one is Zorn's original, where he just tested his ability to catch Morricone's point of view. Really monumental work,extremely well played and very important for modern music development - John himself will record a long series of soundtrack (or related)music during few nearest decades.But possibly even more important is that this album showed synthesis of art-pop and modern avant-garde confirmed continuity of modern experimental music development in its relation with previous musical cultures.
Share this review
more

Review Comments

Post a public comment below | Send private message to the reviewer
Please login to post a shout
No shouts posted yet. Be the first member to do so above!

Review Index

Member Zone

Username:
Password:
Stay signed in

Jazz Subgenres

Artists Alpha-index

JMA TOP 5 Jazz ALBUMS

Rating by members, ranked by custom algorithm
Albums with 30 ratings and more
A Love Supreme Post Bop
JOHN COLTRANE
Buy this album from our partners
Kind of Blue Cool Jazz
MILES DAVIS
Buy this album from our partners
The Black Saint and the Sinner Lady Progressive Big Band
CHARLES MINGUS
Buy this album from our partners
Blue Train Hard Bop
JOHN COLTRANE
Buy this album from our partners
My Favorite Things Hard Bop
JOHN COLTRANE
Buy this album from our partners

New Jazz Artists

New Jazz Releases

My Ship Hard Bop
WILLIE JONES III
Buy this album from MMA partners
Ice Breaking Post-Fusion Contemporary
DAG ARNESEN
Buy this album from MMA partners
Lee Ritenour & Dave Grusin : Brasil Latin Jazz
LEE RITENOUR
Buy this album from MMA partners
From The North - Gogo Penguin Live In Manchester Nu Jazz
GOGO PENGUIN
Buy this album from MMA partners
Anthony Braxton Saxophone Quartet : Sax QT (Lorraine) 2022 Avant-Garde Jazz
ANTHONY BRAXTON
Buy this album from MMA partners
More new releases

New Jazz Online Videos

03 Willie Jones III My Ship #NightIsAlive
WILLIE JONES III
snobb· 4 hours ago
Fall
SUNNY KIM
js· 18 hours ago
Twilight
RANDY SCOTT
js· 1 day ago
Trifecta - Beck and Call - official video (taken from The New Normal)
TRIFECTA
js· 2 days ago
Phoenix
GRÉGORY PRIVAT
js· 2 days ago
More videos

New JMA Jazz Forum Topics

More in the forums

New Site interactions

More...

Latest Jazz News

members-submitted

More in the forums

Social Media

Follow us
Follow us on Twitter Become a Facebook fan RSS Feed