
Fusion!
From Alice Coltrane to Moor Mother
Alex Coles(Author)
Sternberg Press
Published on 1. October 2024
Book
Paperback/Softback
128 pages
978-1-915609-37-3 (ISBN)
Description
The role of jazz as a catalyst in rock, pop, funk, new wave, hip-hop, and techno. From music writer Alex Coles, Fusion! From Alice Coltrane to Moor Mother traces the origins and legacy of blended musical genres by focusing on twelve dynamic collaborations. From Alice Coltrane working with Carlos Santana in 1974 to Moor Mother sharing the mic with Wolf Weston in 2022, the collaborations-cum-chapters reveal how musicians pursue fusion as a process. With sonic fusion always premised on cultural fusion, each of the collaborations find musicians using the mixing of genres to explore fusions of generations, eras, philosophies, sensibilities, idioms, histories, and even continents. When the musicians hail from contrasting musical genres their collaboration leads to a dynamic tension, typified by free jazz trumpeter Don Cherry recording with Lou Reed, Kendrick Lamar cutting tracks with saxophonist Kamasi Washington, Miles Davis playing with electric guitarist John McLaughlin and synth player Danalogue joining Shabaka Hutchings and Max Hallett to form the Comet is Coming. Fusion! pushes the music of overlooked musicians--such as post-punk singer and saxophone player Lora Logic--to the fore while emphasizing overlooked aspects of the oeuvres of better-known figures such as Herbie Hancock, Joni Mitchell, Neneh Cherry and FourTet. To characterize their unique approach to fusion, each of the examples Coles explores are driven by a dynamic sonic principle coined by the musicians themselves.
More details
Language
English
Place of publication
United Kingdom
Product notice
Paperback (trade)
Illustrations
1 B&W ILLUS.
Dimensions
Height: 181 mm
Width: 116 mm
Thickness: 13 mm
Weight
158 gr
ISBN-13
978-1-915609-37-3 (9781915609373)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Person
Alex Coles is a critic. He is author of Crooner (2023), Tainted Love: From Nina Simone to Kendrick Lamar (Sternberg Press, 2023) and DesignArt (2005).