Browse by Artist: RUSSELL, ARTHUR

Artist:	RUSSELL, ARTHUR
Title:	Calling Out of Context
Label:	AUDIKA RECORDS
Format:	CD
Price:	$14.50
Catalog #:	AU 1001CD

"When Arthur Russell died in 1992 he left an overwhelming archive of over a 1000 tapes that reveal the sublime genius of one of the most important musicians of the last 25 years. As a cellist, songwriter, composer, and disco visionary Arthur Russell consistently blurred the lines of our expectations of what pop music could be. Originally from Iowa, Arthur travelled west in 1970 to study Indian classical composition with Ali Akbar Khan, befriended Allen Ginsberg, performed with Alice Coltrane, and then moved to New York in 1973 to study at the Manhattan School of Music. Quickly gravitating to the then burgeoning downtown scene, Arthur wrote and performed his minimal compositions (captured on Instrumentals and Tower Of Meaning. Both to be re-issued by Audika) and collaborated with a who's who of some of New York's most influential artists including Rhy's Chatham, Ernie Brooks, David Byrne, Phillip Glass, Laurie Anderson, Jon Gibson, Robert Wilson, Christian Wolff, John Cage, Arnold Dreyblatt, and Phill Niblock. It then changed by a mere accident. Simply, he went to a disco. Inspired by the sonic repetition and sense of community, Arthur wrote and recorded some of the most important records of the disco era including 'Kiss Me Again', 'Is It All Over My Face', and co-founded Sleeping Bag Records with partner Wil Socolov releasing 'Go Bang' and the album 24-24 Music. In 2002 Audika Records entered into an exclusive licensing agreement with the estate of Arthur Russell to issue previously unreleased and out of print material from Arthur's vast archive. The first album Calling Out Of Context , features 12 previously unreleased tracks recorded during Arthur's prime years 1985-90. The material is drawn from Corn, an album that was completed in 1985 but never released, and an abandoned album recorded for Rough Trade as Arthur had become ill. Many of these tracks show hidden sides of Arthur's talent and underline the loss of his great potential. Contrary by nature, Arthur's spontaneous reaction and altered perception to his environment produced music that remains challenging and contemporary. Arthur's open hearted attitude to music was far ahead of it's time, and now that time is ours."

Artist:	RUSSELL, ARTHUR
Title:	World of Echo
Label:	AUDIKA RECORDS
Format:	CD
Price:	$15.00
Catalog #:	AU 1002CD

"Out of print for over fifteen years, Arthur Russell's most extraordinary work, World Of Echo is issued for the first time on CD by Audika Records. Newly remastered from Arthur's pristine original 1/4" sequenced masters, World Of Echo sounds like nothing you have heard or will ever hear. 18 tracks are featured including drumless versions of his Disco classics 'Let's Go Swimming', 'Tree House' and 'Wax The Van' along with four previously unreleased tracks from Sketches From World Of Echo. Originally released on LP in 1986, World Of Echo is a deeply intimate and meditative work of awe-inspiring grace and remains a timeless work of sublime beauty. Arthur's aim was to achieve what he calls 'the most vivid rhythmic reality', with just cello, voice, and echoes. Arthur achieved all of this and more on one of the most amazing albums you will ever hear." [this is the regular mass market single CD version; limited version with bonus DVD is out of print]

Artist:	RUSSELL, ARTHUR
Title:	First Thought Best Thought
Label:	AUDIKA RECORDS
Format:	2CD
Price:	$21.00
Catalog #:	AU 1005CD

"Before disco, and before the transcendent echoes, Arthur Russell wanted to be a composer. His journey began in 1972, leaving Iowa to study Indian classical composition with Ali Akbar Khan in Northern California and ending two years later in New York at the Manhattan School of Music. In that brief period Arthur met and worked with several musicians and poets that would guide his work throughout the remainder of the decade: Allen Ginsburg, Christian Wolff, Jackson MacLow, Rhys Chatham, Philip Glass, Elodie Lauten, and Ernie Brooks. First Thought Best Thought collects Arthur Russell's out of print instrumental and orchestral compositions along with over 45 minutes of previously-unreleased material on two CDs. Initially intended to be performed in one 48 hour cycle, 'Instrumentals' was in fact only performed in excerpts a handful of times as a work in progress. The legendary performances captured live in New York at The Kitchen and Franklin St. Arts Center include the cream of that era's downtown new music scene including Ernie Brooks, Rhys Chatham, Jon Gibson, Peter Gordon, Garrett List, Andy Paley, Dave Van Tiegham, and Peter Zummo. Included here is the previously unreleased 'Instrumentals' Vol. 1 along with 'Instrumentals' Vol. 2 that has been out of print for over twenty years. Originally released in 1984, sections of 'Instrumentals' Vol. 2 were incorrectly mastered at half speed, and have been now corrected for this compilation. 'Reach One' is one of Arthur's earliest compositions dating back to 1973. The hypnotic soundscape was written and performed for two Fender Rhodes pianos, and is previously unreleased. One of the holy grails in Arthur's discography, 'Tower Of Meaning' is a beautiful and stunningly moving orchestral work. Conducted by the late Julius Eastman, 'Tower Of Meaning' was originally released in a limited private edition of only 320 copies. 'Sketch For The Face Of Helen' shares only the same title as the previously released excerpt from 1981. Inspired by his work with friend and composer Arnold Dreyblatt, this previously unreleased version was recorded with an electronic tone generator, keyboard and ambient recordings of a rumbling tugboat from the Hudson River. First Thought Best Thought is an essential collection of the lost instrumental treasures from Arthur Russell's vast archive and brings the genius of his legacy closer into focus. Packaged with a 16-page color booklet + O-card of archival images and essays by former Modern Lover Ernie Brooks and Audika's Steve Knutson."

Artist:	RUSSELL, ARTHUR
Title:	Springfield
Label:	AUDIKA RECORDS
Format:	CD
Price:	$11.00
Catalog #:	AU 1007CD

Seven track mid-length CD, all tracks previously unreleased. Includes a new DFA remix. "Before Homer (Simpson) there was Arthur Russell and his vision of a utilitarian and common social oasis. There appears to be in every state of the union a Springfield -- be it county, city or street. Arthur imagined that his music could be universally accepted in each and every one of them. Springfield is one of the last compositions Arthur Russell wrote in his all too short lifetime. Arthur recorded over four hours of tracking with the intention of collaborating with a producer for completion. It never happened until now when DFA accepted the monumental task of editing and completing the track. No overdubs were used with the exception of minimal keyboards on the remix. Three versions are included with separate vocal takes. The result is a classic electro dub track that ranks beside Arthur's visionary club music and DFA's prime remixes. The remaining tracks are some of Arthur's finest, most twisted moments, and culled from the unreleased 1985 album Corn. 'See My Brother, He's Jumping Out (Let's Go Swimming #1)', is the original (and no less stunning) version of what became the classic 12" released a year later. 'Corn #3' is a hypnotic instrumental with Casiotone, cello and found water sounds while 'Hiding Your Present From You' is a psychedelic blur that hints at the elements that came later with World of Echo. Closing out the album is 'You Have Did The Right Thing When You Put That Skylight In,' Arthur's ode to his close friend Ernie Brooks' home skylight. The heavy metal cellos rumble throughout as Arthur sings, 'It makes your place, your pad, a nicer place to be.' Springfield is a companion album to the critically acclaimed Calling Out Of Context, and offers further exploration of the genius of Arthur Russell."

Artist:	RUSSELL, ARTHUR
Title:	Love Is Overtaking Me
Label:	AUDIKA RECORDS
Format:	CD
Price:	$15.00
Catalog #:	AU 1010CD

"Four years ago, Audika Records began releasing the exceptionally varied, long sought-after music of Arthur Russell, and in the process has succeeded at helping the beloved, late artist find the broader audience he always believed he would reach. A new generation of listeners and critics has come to appreciate Russell as a visionary and an influence upon a broad range of today's most compelling musical artists. Now, Audika will bring to light an as-yet-unavailable side of Russell's body of work -- the most rare and, at the same time, arguably the most accessible part -- in Love Is Overtaking Me, which comprises 21 demos and home recordings of unreleased pop, folk and country songs from his vast catalog. While much critical and popular affection for Russell's music has come about well after his untimely death from AIDS in 1992, many fellow artists believed in his genius and were drawn to collaborate with him during his lifetime. The legendary producer John Hammond (Billie Holiday, Bob Dylan, Bruce Springsteen) recorded Russell on several occasions; a number of these recordings will finally be heard on Love Is Overtaking Me. So, too, will songs recorded with various incarnations of The Flying Hearts, a group formed by Russell and Brooks whose shifting line-up included, by turns, Jerry Harrison, Rhys Chatham, Jon Gibson, Peter Gordon and Peter Zummo as well as Larry Saltzman and David Van Tieghem. Several other Russell projects are represented on Love Is Overtaking Me, including The Sailboats, Turbo Sporty and Bright & Early. Compiled from over eight hours of material, three years in the making, Love Is Overtaking Me reaches back further to Russell's first compositions from the early '70s and spans forward to his very last recordings, made at home in 1991. Chris Taylor of Grizzly Bear contributed mixing, restoration and editing to the album, whose tracks were selected by Audika's Steve Knutson, Ernie Brooks and Russell's companion, Tom Lee. A number of the songs feature prominently in Wild Combination: A Portrait of Arthur Russell, Matt Wolf's film, which had its world premiere this year at the Berlin International Film Festival and will be released theatrically and on DVD by Plexifilm. Love Is Overtaking Me is the fifth release of Russell's material by Audika Records, whose work has proven that the music remains as contemporary today as when it was first recorded. The label launched with the disco/new wave collection Calling Out Of Context (2004) and continued with a reissue of the cello-and-voice masterpiece World Of Echo (2005); the instrumental compositions double-disc First Thought Best Thought (2006); and the hip-hop-inspired Springfield EP (2006), which includes a DFA remix of the title track. Extensive Love Is Overtaking Me liner notes by Tom Lee provide an intimate perspective on Russell's diverse catalog, which spanned an extraordinary diversity of styles and won the love of artistic communities that would seem utterly disparate, from Philip Glass, John Cage and Allen Ginsberg to rock bands like The Talking Heads and The Modern Lovers; the pre-Studio 54 disco-party scene of Nicky Siano's Gallery and David Mancuso's loft; and DJ-producers like Francois Kevorkian and Larry Levan, among others."

Artist:	RUSSELL, ARTHUR
Title:	Another Thought
Label:	ORANGE MOUNTAIN
Format:	CD
Price:	$19.00
Catalog #:	OMM 027CD

"During his lifetime, classically trained composer, cellist and disco legend Arthur Russell studied and performed with a wide variety of musicians and artists including The Flying Lizards, David Byrne, Rhys Chatham, Ali Akbar Khan, Allen Ginsberg, John Hammond, Peter Gordon, Jon Gibson, Jerry Harrison, Garret List, Frank Pagano, Andy Paley, Leni Pickett and Peter Zummo. In 1979, Russell, working under the name Dinosaur, wrote and produced Kiss Me Again -- the first disco single to be released by Sire Records and the first of Russell's many innovative dance tunes. Kiss Me Again also features contributions from then-fledgling guitarist David Byrne. As a solo act in the 1980s, he produced successes such as the single 'In the Light of the Miracle' (featured on this release) and the album World of Echo (1987, Rough Trade) a masterpiece that defies description and categorization. World of Echo was included in Melody Maker's 'Top Thirty Releases of 1986'. When Russell dies of AIDS in 1992 at the age of 40, the Village Voice wrote, 'his songs were so personal that it seems as though he simply vanished into his music.' Orange Mountain's re-release of Russell's 1994 album Another Thought (Point Music) is a fitting tribute to one of music's greatest and most underappreciated musical innovators."

Artist:	RUSSELL, ARTHUR
Title:	The World of Arthur Russell
Label:	SOUL JAZZ RECORDS (UK)
Format:	CD
Price:	$18.00
Catalog #:	SJR 083CD

"Soul Jazz Records are re-releasing their seminal retrospective on Arthur Russell (currently fetching over $300 on e-bay!). Since the initial groundbreaking release of The World of Arthur Russell five years ago, Russell has become the subject of intense media interest. With the recent release of a film about his life (A Portrait of Arthur Russell), as well as a new album of unreleased recordings, (Love Is Overtaking Me), Arthur Russell's stature as a great artist has grown to is current height. ('One of the great songwriters of the 20th century' --The Wire). Arthur Russell holds a unique place in the history of dance music. As an artist he had the admiration of everyone from Philip Glass to Todd Terry. As well as his solo work he also formed the seminal groups Dinosaur L and Loose Joints in the 1980s. With tracks such as 'Go Bang' and 'Is It All Over My Face?', Russell redefined Dance music in the 1980s as both an intelligent and subversive form. At the center of the New York Dance scene in the 1980s, Russell was co-founder of Sleeping Bag Records along with Will Socolov. As well as releasing Russell's own material, Sleeping Bag would release seminal music from Mantronix, Larry Levan, Patrick Adams, EPMD, Joyce Sims and Todd Terry amongst others. As a regular visitor at David Mancuso's 'Loft', and Nicky Siano's 'Gallery' nightclubs and even Studio 54, Russell immersed himself in the New York Dance scene whilst continuing to create avant-garde experimental music. These two elements in his life and music make him truly unique. Larry Levan, Walter Gibbons and Francois Kervorkian all played pivotal roles as remixers of Russell's work and feature on many of the tracks featured here. Arthur Russell died in 1992 from AIDS leaving behind an enormous body of work. This release features both the classic tracks of Arthur Russell such as 'Go Bang', 'Is It All Over My Face', 'Wax The Van' etc alongside impossible-to-find collectors tracks such as 'In The Light Of The Miracle' and the private-pressing only 'Pop Your Funk'. This is the first collected work of Arthur Russell who has been for many years one of the most respected iconic artists in the history of dance music."

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