There are some artists who bind themselves strongly to a time and place. An album might remind me of rainy days in Halifax, or the people I listened to it with. When that time is past, I may listen to once every few years for nostalgia's sake. Moondog I expect to enjoy as long as I have partial hearing in at least one ear.
There are two Moondog albums I view as peak musical experiences - Moondog (1956) and Moondog (1969). None of the other albums will do you any harm either, but these two are perfect. I reach for them whenever I feel grumpy I can't find any new music I like. The best I can say about Sax Pax for a Sax is it sounds like the 1969 album. There's even a retake of the "Bird's Lament" composition on Sax Pax, but more of that sound is very welcome. The idea of nine saxophones playing at once doesn't appeal to me intuitively, but the arrangements are incredibly warm, and enriched by percussion, piano, vocals, even the 'Dog himself on bongos.
If you like Moondog's music, you'll like his story too. A blind inventor who lived for decades on the streets of New York City, dressed as a viking? Sign me UP! I better stop before I start repeating myself - you have to understand I'm listening to the album as I write and getting pretty worked up. I'll leave you with the track I've been whistling for days, "Paris." Yes, it's a little bit cheesy, but it's also so heartwarming that if you don't like it, I can say without ever having met you that you are dead inside. Enjoy:
I'd heard Moondog before, but I think this was the first Moondog c.d. I actually owned. Moondig really might be an antidote for grumpiness, and I kind of like your idea about making this mandatory listening for people. In fact, I'm going to do my part by making my 8th graders listen to it during some quiet writing time this week.
ReplyDeleteGood man! The Moondog Effort needs more like you.
ReplyDelete