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CD
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CVSD 121CD
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$13.50
PREORDER
RELEASE DATE: 9/11/2026
In September, 1967, three of the primary ensembles of free music in Northern Europe gathered for a mini-festival on Radio Bremen: the Manfred Schoof Quintet, the Peter Brötzmann Quartet, and the Irene Schwiezer Trio. Pianist Alexander von Schlippenbach appeared as part of the Manfred Schoof Quintet, but in these sets, which mixed the dozen members of the ensembles, as well as presenting them on their own, Schlippenbach in fact either led or was at the center of several groupings, presenting two of his compositions. Main Lines/1967 compiles four tracks from these formative studio sessions, which took place just as the participants were formulating the basic direction of improvised music in Europe. The CD includes large ensemble music in the mode of Schlippenbach's Globe Unity recordings, the first of which were made a year earlier. Mani Neumeier, who would soon become the drummer in the rock group Guru Guru, offers a wild percussion-centric ride in "It's Up," while saxophonist Peter Brötzmann squares off against trios -- three basses, three pianos, three drummers -- in the volatile piece "Three." The most compositionally complex works are Schlippenbach's, the title track and "Turn 14," which was part of the Schoof Quintet's repertoire. Other participants include drummer Jaki Liebezeit, who would go on to propel Can, bassists Peter Kowald, Uli Trepte, and Buschi Niebergall, pianist Fred Van Hove, saxophonist Gerd Dudek, and celebrated improvisor/drummer Sven-Äke Johansson. A major unearthing, these recordings celebrate their 60th anniversary next year but have lost none of their incendiary edge.
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CD
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CVSD 091CD
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Reissue, originally released in 1967. In 1966, pianist Alexander von Schlippenbach assembled his first large ensemble to play his compositions "Globe Unity" and "Sun." This 14-piece band, which brought together some of the leading figures in European improvised music, would eventually expand -- incorporating not only Europeans but also American and Asian musicians -- and assume its rightful name: Globe Unity Orchestra. In its nascent outing, beautifully recorded at Ariola Studio in Cologne, Schlippenbach's band was already sensational, performing at various festivals and solidifying the reputations of some of its star players. Most notably among these was a 25-year-old saxophonist named Peter Brötzmann, whose whole band -- saxophonist Kris Wanders, drummer Mani Neumeier, and bassist Peter Kowald, the latter of whom would for a period assume nominal leadership of Globe Unity -- was incorporated into the large Schlippenbach group. Globe Unity was Brötzmann's first outing on LP. Kowald's too. And future drum heroes of the krautrock genre, Neumeier (with Guru Guru) and Jaki Liebezeit (with Can) constitute the incredible rhythm section. If you factor in German early-free-music mainstays Gunter Hampel (here on flute and bass clarinet, no vibes), trumpeter Manfred Schoof, bassist Buschi Niebergall, and tenor saxophonist Gerd Dudek, Dutch saxophonist and clarinetist Willem Breuker, French trumpeter Claude Deron, the enormity of the band's potential becomes apparent. Add Schlippenbach himself, an absolute cyclone on the piano as well as prominent tubular bells and gong, and the global scene is set. Schlippenbach's unique position at the time, as one of the foremost players in German free music, but also as a rising young composer who'd studied with Bernd Alois Zimmermann, allowed him to serve as exactly the right conduit for several approaches to creative music, from introducing his graphically notated scores to making a perfect context for the debuts of future star improvisors Brötzmann and Kowald. Schlippenbach's Globe Unity was first issued on SABA in 1967, then MPS a couple of years after that. It has long been out-of-print and has only ever appeared on CD in a tiny Japanese version published in 1999. Corbett vs. Dempsey's reissue comes with facsimile cover. The music was remastered from the original tapes and is licensed directly from MPS. Anyone interested in the history of improvised music needs to hear Globe Unity, which retains a sense of urgency 56 years after it was waxed.
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LP
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CVSDLP 003LP
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LP version. Reissue, originally released in 1967. In 1966, pianist Alexander von Schlippenbach assembled his first large ensemble to play his compositions "Globe Unity" and "Sun." This 14-piece band, which brought together some of the leading figures in European improvised music, would eventually expand -- incorporating not only Europeans but also American and Asian musicians -- and assume its rightful name: Globe Unity Orchestra. In its nascent outing, beautifully recorded at Ariola Studio in Cologne, Schlippenbach's band was already sensational, performing at various festivals and solidifying the reputations of some of its star players. Most notably among these was a 25-year-old saxophonist named Peter Brötzmann, whose whole band -- saxophonist Kris Wanders, drummer Mani Neumeier, and bassist Peter Kowald, the latter of whom would for a period assume nominal leadership of Globe Unity -- was incorporated into the large Schlippenbach group. Globe Unity was Brötzmann's first outing on LP. Kowald's too. And future drum heroes of the krautrock genre, Neumeier (with Guru Guru) and Jaki Liebezeit (with Can) constitute the incredible rhythm section. If you factor in German early-free-music mainstays Gunter Hampel (here on flute and bass clarinet, no vibes), trumpeter Manfred Schoof, bassist Buschi Niebergall, and tenor saxophonist Gerd Dudek, Dutch saxophonist and clarinetist Willem Breuker, French trumpeter Claude Deron, the enormity of the band's potential becomes apparent. Add Schlippenbach himself, an absolute cyclone on the piano as well as prominent tubular bells and gong, and the global scene is set. Schlippenbach's unique position at the time, as one of the foremost players in German free music, but also as a rising young composer who'd studied with Bernd Alois Zimmermann, allowed him to serve as exactly the right conduit for several approaches to creative music, from introducing his graphically notated scores to making a perfect context for the debuts of future star improvisors Brötzmann and Kowald. Schlippenbach's Globe Unity was first issued on SABA in 1967, then MPS a couple of years after that. It has long been out-of-print and has only ever appeared on CD in a tiny Japanese version published in 1999. Corbett vs. Dempsey's reissue comes with facsimile cover. The music was remastered from the original tapes and is licensed directly from MPS. Anyone interested in the history of improvised music needs to hear Globe Unity, which retains a sense of urgency 56 years after it was waxed.
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