Pool (album)

Last updated
Pool
Pool Parachute.jpg
Studio album by John Zorn
Released 1980, 1997 & 2000
Recorded March 1, 1980
Genre Avant-garde
Length55:15
Label Parachute P011/12
Tzadik TZ 7316
Producer John Zorn
John Zorn chronology
Pool
(1980)
Archery
(1982)
Tzadik Edition
Pool (album).jpg

Pool is an album by John Zorn featuring his early "game piece" composition of the same name which was first released on vinyl on Parachute Records in 1980 as a double album including the composition "Hockey". [1] The album was released on CD on Tzadik Records with an additional bonus track featuring a test recording of Archery as part of The Parachute Years Box Set in 1997 and as a single CD in 2000. [2] The album was the first released solely under Zorn's name following his collaboration with Eugene Chadbourne, School (1978).

John Zorn American composer, saxophonist and bandleader

John Zorn is an American composer, arranger, record producer, saxophonist, and multi-instrumentalist with hundreds of album credits as performer, composer, and producer across a variety of genres including jazz, rock, hardcore, classical, surf, metal, soundtrack, ambient, and improvised music. He incorporates diverse styles in his compositions, which he identifies as avant-garde or experimental. Zorn was described by Down Beat as "one of our most important composers".

Tzadik Records American record label

Tzadik Records is a record label in New York City that specializes in avant-garde and experimental music. The label was established by composer and saxophonist John Zorn in 1995. He is the executive producer of all Tzadik releases. Tzadik is a not-for-profit, cooperative record label.

<i>Archery</i> (album) 1982 studio album by John Zorn

Archery is an album by John Zorn featuring his early "game piece" composition of the same name. The album was first released on Parachute Records in 1982 and later released on Tzadik Records with additional rehearsal takes as a part of The Parachute Years Box Set in 1997 and as a triple CD set in 2001.

Contents

Reception

The Allmusic review by Joclyn Layne awarded the album 3 stars stating "Dedicated fans should check this out, as it is part of the early annals of Zorn. Listeners with less patience for music theory -- and Zorn skeptics -- should save Pool for later, because it will not win anyone over; nor will the compositional theories become more clear upon listening. Essentially, Pool has more historical value than listening interest." [3]

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg [3]

Track listing

All compositions by John Zorn

Original Vinyl Release

Side One
No.TitleLength
1."Pool"17:12
Side Two
No.TitleLength
1."Pool (continued)"16:40
Side Three
No.TitleLength
1."Pool (conclusion)"17:20
Side Four
No.TitleLength
1."Hockey (first version)"11:16
2."Hockey (second version, take 2)"3:42
3."Hockey (second version, take 5)"2:43
4."Hockey (second version, take 8)"0:50
5."Hockey (second version, take 10)"0:59

CD Release

  1. "Pool" - 50:45
  2. "Archery (test and false start)" - 3:30 Bonus track on CD release

Personnel

Polly Bradfield is an American violinist from the New York City free improvisation scene of the late 1970s and early 1980s. Her closest musical associates were Eugene Chadbourne and John Zorn. She also played on records by William Parker and Frank Lowe. Her music career ended when she moved to California sometime in the 1980s. Her last appearance on record was on Zorn's The Big Gundown in 1986.

Violin bowed string instrument, usually with four strings tuned in perfect fifths

The violin, sometimes known as a fiddle, is a wooden string instrument in the violin family. Most violins have a hollow wooden body. It is the smallest and highest-pitched instrument in the family in regular use. Smaller violin-type instruments exist, including the violino piccolo and the kit violin, but these are virtually unused. The violin typically has four strings tuned in perfect fifths with notes G3, D4, A4, E5, and is most commonly played by drawing a bow across its strings, though it can also be played by plucking the strings with the fingers (pizzicato) and by striking the strings with the wooden side of the bow.

Vibraphone musical instrument

The vibraphone is a musical instrument in the struck idiophone subfamily of the percussion family. It consists of tuned metal bars, and is usually played by holding two or four soft mallets and striking the bars. A person who plays the vibraphone is called a vibraphonist or vibraharpist.

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References

  1. Discogs album entry: John Zorn, Pool, accessed November 25, 2013
  2. Tzadik catalogue
  3. 1 2 Layne, J. Allmusic Review accessed July 22, 2011