|
abAna I Paint His Face long playing vinyl record OQ'EBAL 003
Available in Fall 2008. abAna was a group fronted by sound poet Bob Cobbing which featured free improvising musician David Toop and Paul Burwell as well as Lyn Conetta, Herman Hauge and Christopher Small. Long a historic curiosity to the general listening public, the group never had anything released until David Toop compiled the double CD Not Necessarily "English Music" for the Leonardo Music Journal. Presented alongside contemporaries such as AMM, Lol Coxhill, Spontaneous Music Orchestra, The People Band, Evan Parker / Paul Lytton, Steve Beresford, Ron Geesin, Gentle Fire, Derek Bailey, Mike Cooper and The Scratch Orchestra, abAna was revealed to be as original, free and full energy as these other better known acts from the era in England's history. This LP is the first full length release by the group and cause for celebration. The production is being done with the cooperation of David Toop, and the blessing of Bob Cobbing's widow Jennifer Pike. Bob Cobbing created his first monotype poems in 1942, and started composing sound poems in 1954. He was a founder of the profile Writers Forum which continues as both a meeting place for experimental writers and a publisher with over one thousand publications. Bob gained international notoriety in the 1960s when concrete poetry and sound poetry were becoming increasing popular. His work was included in many book and sound anthologies, and he published a large amount of works on paper. Sadly, though he was also prolific in recording, that side of his work gained little public release, though his work was features on record anthologies from Revue OU, Swedish Radio, Fylkingen, Opus Disques, CBS Italy, and Cramps Records, as well as on the Birdyak LP which saw Bob in collaboration with Hugh Metcalfe. Unrelentingly experimental, Cobbing's work was many times intense. Both on the page and in person, his treatment of words could become so fragmented as to become textures. He passed away in 2002. David Toop was turned on by the rock groups of the late 1960's in London, but really blown away by an accidental encounter with AMM at one of these concerts. With his friend Paul Burwell, he explored free music, often taking apart the forms of rock and roll. Early on he performed on Simon Finn's wonderful outsider folk album Pass The Distance while Burwell and he collaborated in the duo Rain in the Face. In this period, he explored various new instrumental forms and techniques which he documented in the booklet New/Rediscovered Musical Instruments. After Brian Eno picked up a copy of the booklet, he invited Toop and Max Eastley to record an album for his Obscure series of LPs. Following this Toop released several things through his own Quartz Publications, including recordings of Yanomano shamans that he made, and played in the group Alterations with Steve Beresford, Peter Cusack and Terry Day. Later he turned to electronic music and has released several solo CDs in recent years. Parallel to this, he become known as a journalist and author, having written several books including Ocean of Sound. Paul Burwell was a close collaborator with David Toop especially through the 1970's. They worked together on the Simon Finn LP, the group Rain in the Face, abAna, and several other projects such as Whirled Music. Mostly a percussionist, his instruments and installations were documented in Toop's New/Rediscovered Musical Instruments booklet, as well as his own publication Paths Into the Forest. In 1983, he formed the Bow Gamelan Ensemble with Anne Bean and Richard Wilson. Paul sadly passed away in 2007. |
track listing:
|