Sign of Life: Music for 858 Quartet

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Sign of Life: Music for 858 Quartet
Sign of Life.jpg
Studio album by Bill Frisell
Released April 26, 2011
Recorded September 27-October 16, 2010
Studio Fantasy Studios, Berkeley, CA
Genre Jazz
Length53:23
Label Savoy SVY17818
Producer Lee Townsend
Bill Frisell chronology
Lágrimas Mexicanas
(2011)		Sign of Life: Music for 858 Quartet
(2011)		 All We Are Saying
(2011)

Sign of Life: Music for 858 Quartet is an album by Bill Frisell which was released on the Savoy label in 2011. [1] [2] The album features the same lineup that played on Frisell's 2005 album, Richter 858 .

Bill Frisell American musician

William Richard Frisell is an American guitarist, composer and arranger. One of the leading guitarists in jazz since the late 1980s, Frisell came to prominence as a stalwart for ECM Records. He went on to work in a variety of contexts, notably as a member of the New York City Downtown Scene where he formed a long partnership with John Zorn. He was also a longtime member of Paul Motian's groups from the early 1980s until Motian's death in 2011. Since 2000, Frisell's eclectic output as a bandleader has emphasized folk, country music, and Americana.

Savoy Records American record label

Savoy Records is an American record company and label established by Herman Lubinsky in 1942 in Newark, New Jersey. Savoy specialized in jazz, rhythm and blues, and gospel music.

<i>Richter 858</i> album by Bill Frisell

Richter 858 is a 2005 studio album by American jazz guitarist Bill Frisell consisting of improvised music inspired by the paintings of German artist Gerhard Richter.

Contents

Reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar half.svgStar empty.svg [3]
All About Jazz Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svg [4]

In his review for Allmusic, Thom Jurek said, "Sign of Life is a curious, quirky, and deceptively low-key affair that is musically labyrinthine and ambitious; it's full of gorgeous spaces, textures, utterly instinctive interplay, and unexpected delight". [3] Writing for All About Jazz, John Kelman stated, "It may not possess the hard surfaces and sharp edges that some believe are endemic to the creation of adventurous music, but Sign of Life is no less daring because of it. Filled with unexpected twists and turns that, after a number of revealing and rewarding listens, are clearly as much about 858's approach to the music as it is the music itself, Sign of Life continues Frisell's lifelong exploration of richly divergent—yet ultimately convergent—paths, drawn together in a myriad of permutations and combinations". [4] The Independent's Andy Gill observed, "On Sign of Life, Frisell offers fragments of haunting melodies that seem to hang like mist; some have affiliations in folk and country music, some in jazz, some in classical; and they're all played by a string quartet in which one of the violins is replaced by Frisell's guitar, the players allowed to extemporise around the melodies as they see fit" [5] In Stereophile Fred Kaplan wrote "Bill Frisell's Sign of Life (Savoy Jazz) is one of the most gorgeous new albums I've heard in a while ... There are traces of folk, bluegrass, minimalism, western-blues, as well as certain modes and improvisational cadences of jazz". [6]

<i>All About Jazz</i> comprehensive American website for jazz enthusiasts and professionals, based in Philadelphia

All About Jazz is a website established by Michael Ricci in 1995. A volunteer staff publishes news, album reviews, articles, videos, and listings of concerts and other events having to do with jazz. Ricci maintains a related site, Jazz Near You, about local concerts and events.

<i>The Independent</i> British online daily newspaper

The Independent is a British online newspaper. Established in 1986 as a politically independent national morning newspaper published in London, it was controlled by Tony O'Reilly's Independent News & Media from 1997 until it was sold to Russian oligarch Alexander Lebedev in 2010. The last printed edition of The Independent was published on Saturday 26 March 2016, leaving only its digital editions.

Stereophile is a monthly magazine that focuses on high-end home audio equipment, such as loudspeakers and amplifiers, and audio-related news, such as online audio streaming.

Track listing

All compositions by Bill Frisell.

  1. "It's a Long Story (Part One)" – 2:42
  2. "Old Times" – 5:01
  3. "Sign of Life" – 2:51
  4. "Friend of Mine (Part One)" – 5:50
  5. "Wonderland" – 3:20
  6. "It's a Long Story (Part Two)" – 6:34
  7. "Mother Daughter" – 2:22
  8. "Youngster" – 3:03
  9. "Recollection" – 2:56
  10. "Suitcase in My Hand" – 2:24
  11. "Sixty Four" – 3:54
  12. "Friend of Mine (Part Two)" – 1:51
  13. "Painter" – 1:16
  14. "Teacher" – 1:30
  15. "All the People, All the Time" – 2:07
  16. "Village" – 4:22
  17. "As It Should Be" – 1:52

Personnel

Guitar fretted string instrument

The guitar is a fretted musical instrument that usually has six strings. It is typically played with both hands by strumming or plucking the strings with either a guitar pick or the finger(s)/fingernails of one hand, while simultaneously fretting with the fingers of the other hand. The sound of the vibrating strings is projected either acoustically, by means of the hollow chamber of the guitar, or through an electrical amplifier and a speaker.

Jenny Scheinman American jazz violinist and composer

Jenny Scheinman is a jazz violinist. She has produced several critically acclaimed solo albums, including 12 Songs, named one of the Top Ten Albums of 2005 by The New York Times. She has played with Linda Perry, Norah Jones, Nels Cline, Lou Reed, Ani Difranco, Bruce Cockburn, Aretha Franklin, Lucinda Williams, Bono, Bill Frisell, the Hot Club of San Francisco, and Allison Miller.

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

The violin, also known informally 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, 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.

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References

  1. ↑ Bill Frisell discography, accessed November 3, 2017
  2. ↑ Savoy Jazz website, accessed November 3, 2017
  3. 1 2 Jurek, Thom. Bill Frisell – Sign of Life: Music for 858 Quartet > Review at AllMusic . Retrieved November 3, 2017.
  4. 1 2 Kelman, J., All About Jazz Review, April 25, 2011
  5. ↑ Gill, A., The Independent Review, August 18, 2011
  6. ↑ Kaplan, F. Stereophile Review, May 16, 2011
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