BOB DOWNES "Open Music" 1970 UK PHILIPS EX+
£
120
$
159
£ 120
Sold For
Oct 28, 2010
Sold Date
Oct 18, 2010
Start Date
£ 22
Start price
13
Number Of Bids
Great Britain
Country Of Seller
eBay
Auctioned at
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Description
BOB DOWNES "Open Music" 1970 UK PHILIPS EX+ TOP COPY
RARE AVANT-GARDE JAZZ LP IN BEAUTIFUL CONDITION
BOB DOWNES
Open Music
ORIGINAL UK PHILIPS (SBL 7922) FIRST PRESSING (February 1970) OF BOB DOWNES DEBUT LP "Open Music" - IN BEAUTIFUL CONDITION HAVING SEEN LITTLE PLAY (one/two light spindles to the labels and unmarked vinyl surfaces which shine like new) AND DELIVERING SENSATIONALLY CLEAN, CRYSTAL CLEAR AND SHARP AUDIO THROUGHOUT WITH LITTLE TO FAULT - FANTASTIC LP, EXCEPTIONAL COPY AND VERY, VERY HIGHLY RECOMMENDED INDEED
PRESSED ON QUALITY MID/HEAVYWEIGHT VINYL WITH THE FIRST BLACK/SILVER PHILIPS LABELS
MATRIX: 844253 1Y//3 ? 420 12 1 / 844253 2Y//3 ? 420 11 2
THE LP IS HOUSED IN THE ORIGINAL FULLY LAMINATED SLEEVE WITH LINER NOTES BY RICHARD WILLIAMS AND BOB DOWNES
AND COMES COMPLETE WITH THE ORIGINAL WHITE POLY-LINED INNER WITH UK PATENT NUMBERS AND "MADE IN GREAT BRITAIN" PRINTED IN GREY
Open Music was Bob Downes' debut album, recorded for the Philips label in 1969 and his impact on the UK scene was such that he was voted top place in the flute category of the Melody Maker jazz poll's British musician section for three consecutive years from 1972.
Although Downes is best known for his flute playing, he is a genuine multi-instrumentalist, playing no fewer than seven instruments on this album, including the less conventional, acetate paper.
The recording's centrepiece is "Dream Journey" which takes up the whole of Side One of the LP, received its première by Ballet Rambert on November 27, 1969 in London. It runs just over twenty minutes. Divided into two parts, the first eleven minutes of the track are devoted to flute and percussion, with special emphasis on the sporadic, dramatic interspersions of timpani. The whole piece is very cinematic and reflects music of a more classical nature, but the second half is considerably more jazz informed. The ensemble sax sections are dynamically engaging, underpinned by acoustic bass and drums building to repeated crescendos with Downes providing an exciting flute solo.
The shorter pieces on Side Two are either solo flute, flute and drums, or flute, drums, and bass. These largely improvised tracks are predominantly quiet, ruminative pieces dominated by Downes' intricate flute. However, "Ghosts in Space" is more structured with a strangely hypnotic head defined by flute, arco bass, and drums, while the middle collective improvisation section is enlivened by Downes screaming in the noisier parts. The final track, "Electric City" which was to give its name to a succeeding album, recorded by Downes for Vertigo (1970), is effectively a jazz-rock piece. Again, Downes inserts some scat singing—or more accurately, shouting—all against a backdrop of ostinato bass, Chris Spedding's unmistakable guitar work, and wild multi-tracked saxophones, all conjuring up an exciting mêlée of sound.
This album surely explains Downes high-ranking in the Melody Maker polls.
Open Music is an unusual and innovative collection of flute mastery
Track Listing:
Side One: Dream Journey
Side Two: Birth Of A Forest - Integration - Contract - Ghosts In Space - Desert Haze - Electric City
LABELS: The labels are clean, bright and unmarked just one/two light spindle traces - this copy has seen little play - NEAR MINT
VINYL Visual: The vinyl surfaces retain their original deep, like new glossy sheen and are unmarked - MINT-
VINYL Audio: Sensational LP which sonically covers a tremendous dynamic range with music ranging from the quietest, gentle solo flute (Debussy and Ravel come to mind) to out-and-out raucous jazz/prog percussion and sax. The cut is superb with a crystal clear, deep, rich and warm sound - beautifully recorded and engineered, and on playback at a loud volume (which is how I always listen to my LPs prior to listing) there is little to fault. There are some occasional background ticks (not continuous), most evident on the quietest passages but these in no way detract from the music and apart from these little minor ticks the playback is beautifully clean - in my opinion just about as good as it gets and certainly the finest copy I have seen - and I haven't seen many of these - this is a very hard record to find and this copy has barely been played. Very strictly graded an EXCELLENT+ for audio this is a wonderful copy of a sensational piece of work and very, very highly recommended indeed
SLEEVE: The original fully laminated sleeve is also in beautiful condition with no real wear to speak of - the laminate has a beautiful deep glossy sheen (with only the lightest of record impression) and the edges and spine are crisp and sharp - NEAR MINT
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POST & PACKING
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419 (GS 6.0.7 (419))
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