Bill Bruford's EarthWorks

CD1 Footloose and Fancy Free; If Summer Had It's Ghosts; A Part and Yet Apart; Triplicity; Come To Dust; No Truce with the Furies; The Wooden Man Sings and the Stone Woman Dances (60.41)

CD2 Revel Without A Pause; Never the Same Way Once; Original Sin; Cloud Cuckoo Land; Dewey-eyed, then Dancing; The Emperor's New Clothes; Bridge of Inhibition; (57.04) Recorded live in London.

Bill Bruford (d); Mark Hodgson (b); Patrick Clahar (ts,ss) Steve Hamilton (p):

(Discipline Global Mobile DMG 0201 2CD set)

Bruford will be remembered for his original playing in the rock band "King Crimson", but the recent release of his current band "Earthworks" is a far cry from the rock scene of the 1970's. For this latest release Bruford has gathered alongside his own remarkable drumming ability, three well schooled musicians to play what is primarily a selection of cerebral themes. Clahar's saxophone sounds owe a little to the inspiration of Michael Brecker, Hodgson meets the quartet without being featured, but Hamilton gives the most rewarding musical performance, often lifting the original musical ideas into a higher plane with a possible comparison with UK's John Taylor or even Chick Corea. Whether this CD purports to be Jazz may only be proven in the future.

The sum total of these two CD's is music of an experimental nature which occasionally reaches a point of fulfilment, but don't expect to tap your foot to it.

by Al Merritt

Bill Bruford's EarthWorks

More New Sounds