エディ・ハリス・グループで活躍したファンキー・ベーシスト、メルヴィン・ジャクソンが多くのゲスト・ミュージシャン、CADETのセッション・ミュージシャンなどを従え69年に発表した、MERCURY傘下の名レーベル”LIMELIGHT”の最後を飾った逸品が世界初CD化!様々な奏法、電気処理を駆使してベースの概念を打ち破る野心的な実験精神はレーベルの真骨頂ともいえるもの。独特の弓弾きべースの音色で度肝も抜く「Funky Skull Pt.1&2」、エディ・ハリス作のファンキー・アーヴァン・ナンバー「Bold And Black」、初期EW&Fを彷彿させる熱きオリジナル・グルーヴ「Say What」、9分半にも及ぶ圧巻のクレイジー・チューン「Silver Circles」など、この時代/レーベルならではの興味深すぎるサウンドが満載!
タワーレコード(2009/04/08)
The Wire (p.62) - "FUNKY SKULL is a meeting of the minds of the various factions of Chicago's late 60s music scene....While Jackson is very much the star of the show, the stellar cast of side players definitely make their present felt..."|
Rovi
Bassist Melvin Jackson has exactly one album in his catalog as a leader (he spent most of his time playing with Eddie Harris). But man, that's all he needed. Pumping his upright through a Maestro G-2 filter box, a Boomerang, an Echoplex, and an Am peg amp, he made that thing sound like something from outer space while keeping it firmly in the groove of the corner bar on Front Street. Gimmicky? That's what they once said about Roland Kirk playing multiple horns at once, too. As for the naysayers who think of this as a novelty, consider the heavies in his band: Roscoe Mitchell, Leo Smith, Lester Bowie, Phil Upchurch, Pete Cosey, Morris Jennings, Jodie Christian, Billy Hart, Byron Bowie, Steve Galloway, and a whole lot of others.
Rovi