CD 1: NEW ACOUSTIC SWING DUO, THE ORIGINAL LP
1. MUSIC FOR JOHN TCHICAI (7:45)
2. FELIX MERITIS AND B.V. (4:35)
3. I.C.P. 1 FOR MAARTEN DERKSEN (1:40)
4. SINGING THE IMPALPABLE BLUES (3:15)
5. MR. M.A. DE R. IN A. (3:20)
6. GAMUT (21:16)
CD 2: LIVE IN ESSEN
1. ESSEN 1 (14:54)
2. ESSEN 2 (9:31)
3. ESSEN 3 (17:57)
4. ESSEN 4 (10:39)
5. ESSEN 5 (10:48) ESSEN 6 (14:56)
Late in 1967, saxophonist Willem Breuker and drummer Han Bennink recorded the first LP for the new artist-run free improvised music label, ICP Records. New Acoustic Swing Duo was an instant classic, and remains one of the most enduring documents of Dutch improvised music ever recorded. With Breuker’s omnidirectional reed work, which ranges from plaintive to excoriating, occasional sneering tone adds a kind of ironic twist to the expressive outpouring. He could be as explosive as Peter Brötzmann, but Breuker has a razor sharp wit and sense of humor. Since this recording, Bennink has gone on to be seated among the royalty of jazz and improvised music drummers. At the time, he was a fresh-faced 25-year-old, hauling around increasingly immense kits with heaps of percussion flotsam and jetsam, playing tabla and vibrapan, and sparking it all with tsunami energy. Keep in mind, Coltrane and Ali had just recorded Interstellar Space (which would not be issued until 1974), and the economical drum/sax lineup was by no means yet a standard in improvised music. Shortly after recording this, Breuker and Bennink would join Brötzmann to record Machine Gun, another European free music keystone. Somehow, despite its historical importance and aesthetic magnificence, New Acoustic Swing Duo has never been available as a stand-alone CD. Remastered from original tapes, this reissue includes the original cover with the “ICP 001” hand-stamp, as well as several versions of the handmade covers designed by Bennink, drawn from Mats Gustafsson’s wonderful collection. Finally, as a special bonus, the two-disc package includes a legendary concert by Breuker and Bennink, recorded in Essen, Germany, in 1968, released here for the first time.
credits
released March 20, 2020
WILLEM BREUKER, soprano, alto, & tenor saxophone, E-flat clarinet, bass clarinet
HAN BENNINK, bass drum, small and large tom toms, street parade drum, tabla, banya, vibrapan, homemade rattles, cow and temple bells, Chinese, 7-inch, & giant cymbals, scraper, Chinese temple blocks, hi-hat, iron and wooden sticks, voice
Recorded November 19 and December 10, 1967, at Felix Meritis, Amsterdam.
Engineered by Gerard van Beusekom. All compositions by Willem Breuker. Cover designs by Han Bennink. Interior spread of handmade Bennink cover designs from the collection of Mats Gustafsson (photos by Ziga Koritnik).
Remastered for CD by Alex Inglizian at Experimental Sound Studio, Chicago. Licensed from the Instant Composers Pool. Special thanks to Susanna von Canon, Mats Gustafsson, and Ziga Koritnik. CD design by David Khan-Giordano. Reissue produced by John Corbett.
supported by 20 fans who also own “New Acoustic Swing Duo”
Professor Graves always amazes, this lost session from a week prior to the recording of his classic "Babi" is a welcome addition to his discography. Mr. Johnson