{"title":"Billy Bang","description":"\u003cp\u003eThe violin is hardly the first instrument that comes to mind when you think about jazz, but that's never daunted Billy Bang, one of the instrument's most adventurous exponents. Over the past 26 years Bang's hard-edged tone, soulful sense of traditional swing and evocatively expressive style has enhanced over two dozen albums by top names in a variety of genres, from the blistering funk of Bootsy Collins and the harmolodic groove of Ronald Shannon Jackson's Decoding Society to the intergalactic uproar of Sun Ra. With more than 15 albums under his own leadership, nearly a dozen more in co-led endeavors, and five more with the String Trio of New York (which he co-founded in 1977 with guitarist James Emery and bassist John Lindberg), Billy Bang is one of the more prolific and original members of the progressive scene.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eBorn William Vincent Walker in Mobile, Alabama in 1947, his family moved to New York City's Harlem while he was still an infant. In junior high school he was nicknamed Billy Bang after a cartoon character, and over his initial protests, it stuck. Around the same time, his primary interest turned to music, and he took up the violin, switching to percussion in the early '60s when he became captivated by Afro-Cuban rhythms. While attending a Massachusetts prep school under full scholarship, he met and began playing with fellow-student, folk-singer Arlo Guthrie. Drafted into the army following graduation, Bang was sent to Vietnam, an experience that profoundly affected his life, often quite painfully. Returning home and radicalized, Billy became active in the anti-war movement, and by the late '60s had returned to music.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eHeavily inspired by the exploratory fire of John Coltrane, Eric Dolphy, Ornette Coleman and the liberating energy of the free-jazz movement, Bang returned to the violin as his principal means of expression. Attending New York's Queens College, and studying privately with renowned violinist Leroy Jenkins, Bang became a key member of the dynamic New York avant-garde scene of the '70s. Forming his own group, The Survival Ensemble, and working with artists like David Murray, Frank Lowe, William Parker and the legendary Sam Rivers, Billy began to reach an international audience in 1977 with the String Trio, remaining with the cooperative ensemble for nine years. During these same years he continued to tour and record with his own ensembles, as well as genre-busting ensembles like The Decoding Society and Bill Laswell's Material (alongside guitar giant Sonny Sharrock). He even briefly led his own funk-oriented band, Forbidden Planet, and in 1981 taught at the University of Nebraska. He continued to work and collaborate with notables like Murray, Don Cherry and James 'Blood ' Ulmer, and in 1982 began a ten-year association with the incomparable Sun Ra, concluding with a 1992 quartet recording for Soul Note, \"A Tribute to Stuff Smith,\" dedicated to the father of the jazz violin.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIn 1990, Bang formed the Solomonic Quartet with trumpeter Ahmed Abdullah, and continued to freelance and lead his own groups. Relocating to Berlin in 1996 where he lived until 2000, Bang criss-crossed the Atlantic frequently, performing all over Europe and doing five tours through the South and Midwest with percussionist Abbey Rader, three of which included tenorman Frank Lowe. He also began a regular working relationship with percussionist Kahil El'Zabar in 1996, performing in duet, and sometimes as a trio with esteemed Art Ensemble of Chicago co-founder and bassist Malachi Favors Maghostut.\u003cbr data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003cbr data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003eBang recorded several albums for the Justin Time label – he was a dazzling improviser, excellent composer, a provocative leader and on the cutting-edge of jazz expression. He passed away Monday April 11th, 2011 the cause was complications of lung cancer.\u003c\/p\u003e","products":[{"product_id":"above-beyond-an-evening-in-grand-rapids-1","title":"Above \u0026 Beyond: An Evening In Grand Rapids","description":"\u003cp data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003eThis is a remarkable album on several levels. Recorded at a performance by the Billy Bang Quintet at the Urban Institute for Contemporary Arts in Grand Rapids, MI on April 28, 2003 and captured using a laptop running ProTools, it was to be the last recorded appearance of tenor sax great Frank Lowe, who died four months later from lung cancer. While it is obvious at times during the evening that wind is a priority for Lowe (he only had one lung at this point), this is far from a shaky outing for him, and his short, lyrical lines are central to this stunning set.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003eBang and Lowe were unknowingly at the endgame of their long collaboration together (they first began working together in the mid-'70s) during this two week tour, and the whole unit ( Andy Bemkey on piano, Todd Nicholson on bass, and Tatsuya Nakatani on drums) is sharp and focused, easing into each selection gently, allowing the musicians to find a center, then building and growing the improvisations in a natural flow before gliding back to the main theme for compositional resolve. The result is a kind of free jazz moving with -- as opposed to against -- a melodic center, and even when these selections slide to the atonal side, it all fits and manages to be both surprising and expected at the same time, which means this set is wonderfully accessible. Bang's violin work is as fresh and vital as always, and one quickly forgets the oddity of a violin at the center of a jazz combo as Bang and Lowe play off of and around each other with a sharp but free flowing precision that only comes with a deep respect and familiarity for each other's talent and range.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003eThe powerful \"Dark Silhouette\" is the emotional center of this performance, but all four selections are a tangible part of a whole, and it is a disservice to this album to look at it any other way. The show may have been a swan song for Lowe, but it is still full of a delightful, gentle joy, and the music is uplifting, natural and -- in the best sense -- logical. Lowe on his deathbed asked Bang to make sure this performance was released. One can hear why. It's magnificent.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e-Steve Legget\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Billy Bang","offers":[{"title":"Digital Download","offer_id":39455798132896,"sku":"0068944020850","price":9.99,"currency_code":"CAD","in_stock":true},{"title":"CD","offer_id":39456238436512,"sku":"","price":15.0,"currency_code":"CAD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0537\/8477\/2768\/products\/8737ec9d-6b2f-44b0-bb39-1e1eeffbbd7317619599468879937393-LARGE_96227b96-bbc1-48b2-be2e-ee353b2ca6bc.jpg?v=1615585300"},{"product_id":"bang-on-1","title":"Bang On","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003eBang is well-regarded as one of the premier progressive jazz violinists, and this recording, not surprisingly, shows him balancing music both inside and out. Pianist D.D. Jackson follows these modern traditionalist lines, while unheralded bassist Akira Ando holds up things nicely, and drummer Ronnie Burrage constructs and deconstructs rhythms in rapid-fire fashion. Of the standards, played within the tradition, all are easily identifiable and enjoyable. \"Sweet Georgia Brown\" is a most vibrant rendition of the other side of Stephane Grappelli -- straight, swinging, and yes, incorporating some low-atmosphere blasts and scrapings. \"Yesterdays\" has Jackson setting off sparklers with his now characteristic Don Pullen-like, hand-turned rumblings. \"Willow Weep for Me\" is a neat changeup on the well-known ballad; instead, it's a down-home blues, flowing from wistful crying to a river of tears. \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003eBang writes engaging material for this quartet, and likes to mix messages. The R\u0026amp;B bass ostinato against bubbling Latin rhythm sets Burrage ablaze during \"Don's Dream,\" while more funky blues and a simple melody works with a complex, acid-tinged Bang solo on \"Three Faces of Eve.\" The hippest of modern compositions, \"Spirits Entering\" is rambunctious, loaded with changes -- many on the spot -- and framed by modal piano. Jackson constantly challenges rhythmic parameters and melodic barriers, while Bang follows suit. Both are at the top of their game on this one. \"'Bama Swing\" might turn out to be a standard; certainly it's a signature piece for the violinist, a very tuneful, straight swinger wiith both plucked and bowed melody lines which any listener should appreciate. This is Billy Bang's finest recorded hour -- a hallmark for modern jazz violin in the 1990s, and a strong candidate for best jazz CD of 1997.                                                                                     - Michael G. Nastos\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Billy Bang","offers":[{"title":"Digital Download","offer_id":39456278118560,"sku":"0068944010554","price":9.99,"currency_code":"CAD","in_stock":true},{"title":"CD","offer_id":39470770585760,"sku":"","price":15.0,"currency_code":"CAD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0537\/8477\/2768\/products\/fbef3aab-0af4-4a6e-8852-252e614c3ab91900061306346188596-LARGE_53c324d1-cc11-4a3d-9680-70a7aa379841.jpg?v=1615591583"},{"product_id":"big-bang-theory-2","title":"Big Bang Theory","description":"\u003cp data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003eBilly Bang long ago earned his reputation as an engaging leader and violin soloist in avant-garde circles. Luckily that has not stifled his abilities and ambition to play in more straight-ahead settings as he does on\u003cspan data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cem data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003eBig Bang Theory\u003c\/em\u003e. Bang's assembled drummer Codaryl Moffett, pianist Alexis Pope, and bassist Curtis Lundy -- musicians easily capable of improvisation while maintaining a cohesive balance.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003eBang scored five originals including \"At Play in the Fields of the Lord\" providing Pope and Lundy ample solo space to shine and \"One For Jazz,\" a tribute to drummer Dennis Charles that starts with voice and drum and hauntingly falls into full quartet momentum. The inclusion of Freddie Hubbard's exuberant composition \"Little Sunflower and a joyous funky version of the traditional \"Swing Low, Sweet Chariot\" sum up the projects overt statement of spirituality that borders on experimentation while maintaining conventional structures.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e-Al Campbell\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Billy Bang","offers":[{"title":"Digital Download","offer_id":39456572506272,"sku":"0068944013555","price":9.99,"currency_code":"CAD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0537\/8477\/2768\/products\/aabacddc-2d54-42bf-8428-6ce908e64b132737283052064121609-LARGE_84ed72c7-980e-41fb-8cd2-df1a566a82fb.jpg?v=1615595040"},{"product_id":"vietnam-reflections-1","title":"Vietnam: Reflections","description":"\u003cp data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003eViolinist Billy Bang's series of recordings about his Vietnam experiences have helped him open up and purge some demons, and they have resulted in some superior music. On this set, he performs originals that hint at Asian music and often become fertile vamps for the improvisations of Bang and his sidemen. There are also three traditional Vietnamese melodies and brief vocals from Co Boi Nguyen. Bang has rarely sounded better, and he is assisted quite ably in the solo department by altoist James Spaulding, Henry Threadgill (who sticks to flute), trumpeter Ted Daniel, and pianist John Hicks. The music is more post-bop and even hard bop than it is avant-garde, and it is both accessible and creative.\u003cspan data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cem data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003eVietnam: Reflections\u003c\/em\u003e\u003cspan data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e \u003c\/span\u003eis well worth exploring.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e-Scott Yanow\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Billy Bang","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":39456606945440,"sku":"0068944021253","price":9.99,"currency_code":"CAD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0537\/8477\/2768\/products\/c98878ff-e01e-410f-9821-0a83bff1292d12015345290377615395-LARGE_388e6bf3-6921-4efa-a307-4330a9a190f2.jpg?v=1615595363"},{"product_id":"vietnam-the-aftermath-1","title":"Vietnam: The Aftermath","description":"Violinist Billy Bang is equally at home whether performing heady, modern-jazz-style improvisation or when churning out a straightforward swing vibe within mainstream contexts. Here, saxophonist\/flutist Sonny Fortune, pianist John Hicks, and others lend their wares to this generally invigorating 2001 production. Based upon his Vietnam War experiences, Bang and associates meld Southeast Asian modalities with Western scales and bouncy swing vamps amid a few tenderly executed ballads. The violinist and tenor saxophonist Frank Lowe engage in some heated dialogue during the hard-driving \"Saigon Phunk,\" while the venerable Lawrence \"Butch\" Morris conducts the septet on \"Bien Hoa Blues.\" Hence, this program is fabricated upon interweaving Asian undertones, groove-laden rhythms, and the instrumentalists' strong soloing. However, some of the compositions are less memorable than others, although the violinist's steadfast commitment to this deeply personal undertaking cannot be compromised.\n\n-Glenn Astarita\n\n","brand":"Billy Bang","offers":[{"title":"Digital Download","offer_id":39456635945120,"sku":"0068944016556","price":9.99,"currency_code":"CAD","in_stock":true},{"title":"CD","offer_id":39470812299424,"sku":"","price":15.0,"currency_code":"CAD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0537\/8477\/2768\/products\/40cb0f82-6020-42d0-a6ad-a9b8a9ff8ab311606386037411877334-LARGE_5dac02c1-4be9-4bac-aea2-b8453bcdfa2a.jpg?v=1615595639"}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0537\/8477\/2768\/collections\/picArtist120.jpg?v=1615924266","url":"https:\/\/justin-time-records.myshopify.com\/collections\/billy-bang.oembed","provider":"Justin Time Records","version":"1.0","type":"link"}