December 27, 2021

This was Semi-Christmas Show No. 2 and the last Breaking The Tethers episode of 2021. As with Semi-Christmas Show No. 1, there was much fun had. Lots of oddball Xmas stuff coupled with the normal BTT fare. It’s well worth a listen, I think! 😁

The first Breaking The Tethers program will be on Monday, January 3, 10 to 11 am MT, cjsw.com or 90.9 FM. I’m not sure what will be on the agenda for that day but my brain is working on some things…

Thanks.

Andrew

December 20, 2021

So, here we have semi-Christmas show no. 1 for 2021, featuring a split between the usual Breaking The Tethers oddball jazzy mixed bag and some Christmas-themed music, which was also oddball and jazzy and mixed. My top two tracks from this were the "Merry fucking Christmas" sound collage (which got quite the response on CJSW text traffic) and the Bent Spoon Trio's version of "God rest ye merry gentlemen", featuring some awesome fuzzed out guitar.

Semi-Christmas show no. 2 will be on Monday, December 27 from 10 to 11 am MT, 90.9 FM or cjsw.com.  As with its predecessor, I'm going to start things off with a Christmas sound collage, this time from Wayne Butance. This will also be last show of calendar year. Anyway, hope you can join me there and then!

Thanks.

Andrew

December 13, 2021

This was a show full of songs (sometimes, literally, with words! three actual songs! what has become of me?! 😄 ) and variety. I think my favourite track from this week was "Insurrealista" by the Afro Yaqui Music Collective; I'd forgotten what a good piece this is, going to some very interesting places. You can listen to this and all the rest from this episode at bit.ly/3seyvaO.

The program on Monday, December 20 will be semi-Christmas show no. 1, to be followed by semi-Christmas show no. 2 on Monday, December 27. I'm doing two shows of this sort as Breaking The Tethers this year bookends December 25. What you'll get is some regular BTT fare along with some seasonally-themed material; don't expect anything too conventional! Join me for both no. 1 and no. 2 from 10 to 11 am MT at cjsw.com or 90.9 FM.

Thanks.

Andrew

December 6, 2021

I didn't plan it this way but this edition of Breaking The Tethers turned out to be another "new" show or maybe better worded, a "2021" show. Everything played came from this calendar year.  Much of the music was, indeed, quite new but a few pieces were released in the first part or so of the year. It was all good stuff; put your ear to the speaker and give it a listen here.

Christmas is a-coming so here's a quick note about Christmas music. I will play some Christmas tunes (not a lot but some...) starting on the December 20 program and also on the December 27 show. Christmas Day falls in between two BTT episodes so I'll feature some holiday stuff on both shows. And then we're done 😁

The next Breaking The Tethers program (non-Christmas!) will be on Monday, December 13. As always, tune in with me at cjsw.com or 90.9 FM from 10 to 11 am MT.

Thanks.

Andrew

November 29, 2021

Lots of tracks (11!) played in lots of different styles this week. Perhaps the most noticeable thing was the fact that I played three tracks with singing. Yeah, me playing three jazz songs in one show! Well, stranger things have happened. You can take it all in here.

You can also join me on the first Monday of the last month, Monday, December 6, for the next Breaking The Tethers show. Tune into cjsw.com or 90.9 FM from 10 to 11 am MT.

Thanks!

Andrew

November 22, 2021

Maybe more straight-ahead sounds this week but still some kicking stuff. Some notes on this show:

*I played two recently-released tracks from the prolific Christian McBride, as bookends in the first set of tunes. I could have played a third one from another new McBride release but I’ll throw that one onto the tracklist for a future program.

*I played some Stan Getz for the first time in ages. It might have been the first ever non-Brazilian Stan Getz track I’ve put on BTT. 

*The show finished off with a Oscar Peterson piece, recorded live with the jazz guitar great Joe Pass in his band. As with Getz, it’s been a long time since Peterson has appeared on Breaking The Tethers.

You can listen to the whole program here.

Join me for more great music on Monday, November 29, from 10 to 11 am MT at cjsw.com or 90.9 FM.

Thanks.

Andrew

November 15, 2021

Only seven songs this week but they were a great seven songs. Lots of material from the “out there” side of town and no shortage of Canadian content. Fave track of the lot? It might just be the Canadian Brass’ somewhat mad version of Rush’s “2112 overture”. Listen to it all here.

Another good show is in the planning stages. See how it turns out by tuning in with me on Monday, November 22 from 10 to 11 am MT at cjsw.com or 90.9 FM.

Thanks.

Andrew

November 8, 2021

November and BTT continues with a fine show on this day. Lots of music packed into 60 minutes; 11 tracks played, only a few of which were short. From the responses I got, the Ray Russell piece (“These that I am” and the Revolutionary Snake Ensemble tune (“Cassandra 4 remix”) were the favourites. 

Next week, more music on Monday, November 8. Tune in from 10 to 11 am MT by going to 90.9 FM or cjsw.com.

Thanks.

Andrew

November 1, 2021

This was the first BTT show after the 2021 CJSW funding drive. I figured I needed to start with a bang of sorts so I went with perhaps the wildest track from the recently-unearthed-and-released Live in Seattle: a love supreme by John Coltrane (I love the fact that there's a new Coltrane album coming out pretty much every year these days!). The other tracks were great too and fit together nicely. I particularly point out the medley by Gilgamesh; for me, it's always good to get into another Canterbury sound group.

More thanks again to those who pledged on Breaking The Tethers (and on other CJSW programs) during last week's drive. I don't have a final list of names and numbers yet but I'll share this (first names only, of course) when I do get them.

Show number 2 of November 2021 will be on Monday, Nov. 8, from 10 to 11 am MT, at cjsw.com or 90.9 FM. Join me if you can! (and I very much hope you can!)

Thanks.

Andrew

October 25, 2021

Well, the Breaking The Tethers 2021 CJSW Funding Drive show is history now. Music was played, fun was had, and money pledged. We didn't break last year's record of $1082 but money was still brought in, just over $200. Many thanks to those who have pledged so far! You can still pledge on BTT or any other CJSW program at cjsw.com/donate or by calling 403-220-5000. You can also listen to the BTT FD program here.

Back to the usual, more or less, for the next episode of Breaking The Tethers. Gonna lean to the freakier side of things next week, I think. Join me on Monday, November 1, 10 to 11 am MT, 90.9 FM or cjsw.com.

Thanks.

Andrew

More about the 2021 CJSW Funding Drive and Breaking The Tethers

As I type, there’s less than a day to go before the Breaking The Tethers funding drive edition. The show will be on Monday, October 25, from 10 to 11 am MT at cjsw.com or 90.9 FM. I’ll play some tunes, chat with some, and, hopefully, much money will be raised for CJSW. On that last note, my goal is to beat last year’s total, which was $1082; you can help me do that by donating at cjsw.com/donate anytime or call 403-220-5000 during the show. 

When you pledge, there will be some incentives available at the station level and at the show level. Looking at the latter, there’s two things. First, there’s going to be a digital mix up for grabs featuring some great tunes played on Breaking The Tethers; here’s what’s in the mix:

Ray Baretto - “Right on”

Charnett Moffett - “Rejoice”

Bobby Hutcherson - “Dialogue”

Ephemerals - “Rising”

Sun Ra Arkestra - “Unmask the Batman”

Steve Howe - “Siberian khatru”

Lunar Octet - “Oye”

Rachel Eckroth - “Oil”

The Witherbees - “I just wasn’t made for these times”

Don Ellis and the Hindustani Jazz Sextet - “Bombay bossa nova”

Frank Foster - “J.P.‘S thing”

Fabiano de Nascimento - “Samba tres”

Anna Webber - “Idiom III”

Derrick Hodge - “Little tone poem” 

It’s a fine set of music. Be sure to pick it up!

There’s also several great jazz CDs on deck for pledging:

Errol Garner - Symphony Hall concert

Dave McMurray - Grateful deadication

The Spike Wilmer Trio - Aliens & wizards

Ron Miles - Rainbow sign

Ian Hendrickson-Smith - The lowdown

Kenny Garrett - Sounds from the ancestors

Julian Lage - Squint

James Francies - Purest form

Again, all great stuff. Yours for pledging to the 2021 CJSW Funding Drive and Breaking the Tethers!

Many thanks!

Andrew

PS As I type, the total pledged so far in the Funding Drive is $61,712!

October 18, 2021

Last show before the 2021 CJSW Funding Drive begins! (see below for more on the Drive) It followed the recent mode of featuring several news with a couple of older pieces. In this case, the old tracks both came from the same band (but from different records), Gruvoria, out of Toronto. I generally don't play more than one song by the same artist but, in this case, I saw these two side-by-side on my "to play sometime" list and said "what the heck" 😀.

Let's talk about the upcoming Funding Drive. Everything starts on Friday, October 22, at 9 am MT. The end day is a week later, 6 pm MT on Friday, October 29. In between, there will be much fun had and pledging done. I'm hoping everyone reading this will send in their support. You can do this by going here or here (anytime!) or by calling 403-220-5000, once the Drive has begun. The Breaking The Tethers FD show will be on Monday, October 22, 10 to 11 am MT, 90.9 FM or cjsw.com. Join me for more fun and pledging, with some fine incentives available during the hour.

Thanks.

Andrew

CJSW Funding Drive 2021 and Breaking The Tethers

As I type, it's just under a week until the 2021 edition of the CJSW Funding Drive (FD) begins! This is a fun time but also an important time, when CJSW calls upon its great listeners for support, to help the station grow and develop. Here's the info about this year's event:

The Drive will run from Friday, October 22 at 7:00 am through Friday, October 29 at 6:00 pm.

The theme this year is Radio In Colour.

The goal for the Drive is $200,000 or 2000 donors. 

You'll be able to hear the Drive at the usual places: cjsw.com and 90.9 FM.

You'll be able to pledge online at fundingdrive.ca and by phone at 403-220-5000.

There's more about the FD here.

The Breaking The Tethers Funding Drive show will be on Monday, October 25, from 10 to 11 am. We're going to play some great tunes and raise some cash for Calgary's campus and community radio station.

A variety of incentives will be available during the BTT show, both at the station level (check them out here) and during the show (only!) . The latter will include a variety of fine jazz CDs, all recent releases and all played on BTT. There'll also be a digital mix available as another incentive. This 80-minute mix o' tracks features and all-over-the-map set of music that was played on BTT since FD 2020. It's a great listen.

My goal for this year is to hit four digits in pledges connected to Breaking The Tethers and go beyond last year's total, which was $1032.50. I'm hoping you can join me on October 25 and help bring this goal to fruition!

If you have any question, please feel free to connect with me via email, Twitter, or Facebook.

Many thanks.

Andrew

October 11, 2021

Today, it was the long and short of it, at least in terms of songs. Long was “10 10 10” by Mujician from their recently released album. Short was, well, all the other songs. Even with the lengthy free jazz workout from Mujician, I still managed to fit in several other songs, all not long but none really short either. It was all good stuff, all good stuff. Listen and check out the tracklist here.

As noted last week, the 2021 CJSW Funding Drive is coming up soon, Oct. 22 to 29. The BTT FD show will be on Oct. 25, usual time, usual place. There will be a variety of incentives available when pledges are made on the program, some at the station level and some at the show level. Stay tuned for more info!

There’s still one more episode of Breaking The Tethers before FD begins. This will be on Monday, Oct. 18, at 90.9 FM or cjsw.com, from 10 to a am MT.

Thanks.

Andrew

October 4, 2021

This week on Breaking The Tethers on CJSW: Pretty much a total grab-bag of sounds. New and old music, a nice mix of styles (though if there's a lean in this episode, it's towards jazz-rock with at least a couple of the tracks played fall into this category, starting with "Messy Mark" by Marbin). It's all here.

Show no. 2 of October 2021 will be on Monday, October 11, from 10 to 11 am MT, at cjsw.com or 90.9 FM. You know, the usual time and place 😀

Thanks.

Andrew

PS Just to put this in your brains for the first time... Coming up later this month, from October 22 through October 29, it's the annual CJSW Funding Drive! I'll have loads more about FD 2021 and the Breaking The Tethers FD show (which will be on Monday, October 25) in the weeks to come but, to start with, please check out the Funding Drive site.

September 27

Overall, just a nice, varied show this week. Recapping just a few of the genres, there was free jazz (Fourth World Quartet), percussion (Drumhand), solo guitar (Charlie Ballantine), organ jazz-rock (2B3), and First Nations sounds (Cochemea). Give it a listen: bit.ly/2WwKymq

Want to listen to the next program? On Monday, October 4, go to cjsw.com or 90.9 FM from 10 to 11 am MT. 

Thanks.

Andrew

September 20, 2021

Mostly brand new music this week, accompanied by a few trips into the early years of the 21st century. The middle part of the show featured a "spacey" section with several short (for jazz) tracks ("Bogs and silence" through "Spacelift"). I didn't fully plan this out; it mostly just materialized during the show and I think it worked well. You can check out the whole shebang here.

I'm hoping for another fun and interesting show next week. To find out, join me on Monday, September 27 from 10 to 11 am MT at 90.9 FM or cjsw.com.

Thanks.

Andrew

September 13, 2021

Sometimes, shows come together nicely, flow together nicely, etc. I think this was one of those shows. It was a bit more out there than the previous week and there was no shortage of stylistic variation but it still came across as a complete whole. My fave two songs from the program: "Domiabra" by Noah Howard (it's always good to play some straight-up free jazz) and "Loser" by Dave McMurray (one of my top Grateful Dead/Jerry Garcia songs sung by the great Bettye LaVette). And here's the show: bit.ly/3Ahoz1p

You know what to do next Monday, September 20, 10 to 11 am MT... Join me for the next Breaking The Tethers episode at cjsw.com or 90.9 FM!

Thanks,

Andrew

September 6, 2021

I decided to stick with newer material for this Labour Day episode of Breaking The Tethers. I say "newer" not "new" as the tracks played today were from 2021, both very recent and from earlier in the year, but also from 2018 and 2019. I think the show ended up being a success, if perhaps a little mellower than the usual fare on BTT.  Listen to it here.

I might do the same kind of show next week. On that note, you can join me to find out on Monday, September 13, 10 to 11 am MT, at cjsw.com or 90.9 FM (the usual place and time, yada, yada).

Thanks.

Andrew

August 30, 2021

The last Monday in August (where did August go? July went by at a reasonable pace, I thought, but August was done in a zip!) I was away for this show (doing some camping) but Brennan Chaudhry, host of another fine CJSW show, The Prisoners Dilemma, filled in for me (again!). Brennan did his usual fine job; what a great tracklist! Many thanks to Brennan! Check it all out here.

For the first Monday in September, I'll be back behind the board, doing that music thing. Join me on Labour Day, September 6, from 10 to 11 am MT, at cjsw.com or 90.9 FM.

Thanks.

Andrew

August 23, 2021

This was all-new episode no. 2 for August and a darn fine one, if I may say so myself 😁. All the tracks worked together well and there was a fair amount of variety, though with a noticeable lean to the avant. Good show. Enough said. Listen here.

I don't know what the next edition of BTT will be like. I say this because I won't be there. I'm away that Monday so Brennan Chaudhry will be filling in, as he has done a number of times over the last few years. He will do a fine job as always. Join Brennan on August 30, 10-11 am MT, cjsw.com or 90.9 FM.

I'll return for the first show in September, on Monday, September 6 (Labour day in Canada and the US, first day of Rosh Hashana).

Thanks!

Andrew

August 16, 2021

I always have at least some newly-released or newly-re-released music on deck to play on Breaking The Tethers. Sometimes, I've got a great deal of backed-up stuff; in part, this is because I do a fair amount of the pre-playlist reviews of recordings sent to CJSW, particularly the jazz material. This week, I was definitely into backed-up territory so I decided to have an "all new" show.  I think it worked out pretty good, a nice, solid show (with two vocal piece! What's happening to me?! 😆) I still have a big mess of new songs that I want to play on BTT so the next edition (Monday, August 23, 10 to 11 am MT, cjsw.com or 90.9 FM) will also be a "new" show.

Anyway, you can give the Aug. 16 show a listen at bit.ly/3B8oxJn

Thanks.

Andrew

August 9, 2021

Nothing too straight-ahead this week (though a couple of tracks basically fall into that territory).  Mostly, there was material that had a rock aspect (e.g. "The eleven" by Dave McMurray and "Out-bloody-rageous" by Soft Machine) or was out there (e.g. "Love and other species" by Shipp and Walerian and "Krishna Krishna" by Alice Coltrane).

A note about the last song in the show. I was planning to play “Yallah”, a live track by the Paul Motian trio; I announced this, in fact. Instead, I accidentally played “Ruby my dear” (the Monk tune), from Motian’s studio album, Monk in motion.

You can listen to the show here.

Hopefully, no mess ups in next week’s program! Find out next Monday, August 16, 10 to 11 am MT, at cjsw.com or 90.9 FM.

Thanks.

Andrew

August 2, 2021

For this first show in August (where did July go?!), I figured I needed to head out there, at least in part. This wasn't an all-avant show but I made sure I played some wilder stuff e.g. "Counterparts" by Craig Taborn and "Distinction veils" by the Draperies. The rest of the songs were pretty interesting as well. Go to bit.ly/3CiNOBV to listen to this episode.

BTT continues next week, as per usual. Listen on Monday, August 9, 10 to 11 am MT, at cjsw.com or 90.9 FM.

Thanks.

Andrew

July 26, 2021

A solid, solid show methinks. There was a kicking starter ("Sounds of freedom" by Benito Gonzalez),  a short classical piece ("Preludes for piano: no. 12, allegro strepitoso"), a trumpet set (featuring two of my favourite jazz trumpet players, Miles Davis and Lee Morgan), and another groovy track from the continuing Jazz Is Dead series ("Mars walk"), a fair amount of Canadian stuff, and much more. Here's where to take it all in: bit.ly/3zDqjkT.

Hopefully, there's another solid program next week. Tune in with me on Monday, August 2, from 10 to 11 am, at the usual spots, cjsw.com or 90.9 FM 9 (or try both!)

Thanks.

Andrew

July 19, 2021

I have to admit, I really liked this show. There was plenty of variation and interesting sounds (including Sun Ra!) but maybe the main point for me was the reaction I got via text to the first track, "Religion helmets" by the Draperies. One guy just hated it. I always take that as a good sign. I'll play more from that record in a couple of weeks or so 😁. You can take in the Draperies and more from this edition of BTT here.

Tune in for the next episode on Monday, July 26, from 10 to 11 am MT, at 90.9 FM or cjsw.com

Thanks!

Andrew

July 12, 2021

Greetings. I found that I had a fairly full bin of newly-released music so I decided to do an "all-new" show this week (it's been at least a few months since I've done one of these). Lots of good, fresh-off-the-press tunes played in this episode of BTT. I suppose I did cheat a bit as I included a piece that was released in late November 2020 ("No incorpora" by Formica/Edward et al) but that's still "new" in the grand scheme of things 😃.

I'm not sure what form the next Breaking The Tethers episode will take (it'll probably be a "regular" kinda show) but join me to find out on Monday, July 19 from 10 to 11 am MT at cjsw.com or 90.9 FM.

Thanks.

Andrew

July 5, 2021

This week's episode had a bit of lean to the avant. Beyond that, it was the usual mix of new and old stuff, shorter and longer. Fave tracks:

"There are other worlds" by Sun Ra. Any Sun Ra is good Sun Ra! It's always a good show when it starts with a track from the Man from Saturn.

"Something for Ndugu". This is a drum solo by Willie Jones III in honour of the late Leon Ndugu Chancelor. I've found that drum solos fit pretty nicely into BTT shows.

"Excursion" by Bennie Maupin, off his first solo album. A very spooky affair.

"Vermelho quente" of the 7th volume of the Jazz is Dead series. Always good stuff.

Listen to these and more here.

I might make next week's show an "all-new" program. Haven't done one of those for a while. Find out which route I take on Monday, July 12, from 10 to 11 am MT, cjsw.com or 90.9 FM.

Thanks!

Andrew

June 28, 2021

We end June 2021 with a nifty grab bag of jazzy sounds, mostly newly released stuff and a fair amount of Canadian content. This included an awesome cover of the Beach Boys' "I just wasn't made for these times" by the Witherbees, oud-jazz from Kane Mathis ("August"), and a kind of out there Wayne Shorter track (yes, I'm on a bit of a Wayne Shorter kick), "Mesphistopheles", written by his brother Alan. All well worth checking out.

The first Monday in July features the next edition of Breaking The Tethers. Hang with me on Monday, July 5 from 10 to 11 am MT. Go to cjsw.com or 90.9 FM.

Thanks.

Andrew

June 21, 2021

Plenty of great music in this week's show. The "big long track" was "The prayer" by World's Experience Orchestra from the free jazz compilation (of sorts), Peace in the world & Creator spaces. I've drawn a few tracks off this very interesting record for BTT in the past few months. Other notable tracks played include an alternate version of "Take 5" from the Dave Brubeck Quartet (it's different from the well-known version though not massively so) and "Rejoice" by Charnett Moffet (features great "cultish" backing vocals).

There's one more Breaking The Tethers show in June. Please join me on Monday, June 28, from 10 to 11 am MT for another fine episode. Tune into 90.9 FM or cjsw.com.

Thanks.

Andrew

June 14, 2021

I always aim for each Breaking The Tethers episode to feature a wide variety of music stylistically and I think this episode was a excellent examples of this. To name just a few styles, we had guitar jazz ("Squint" by Julian Lage), Ethio-jazz  ("Tezeta" by Hailu Mergia and the Walias Band), avant jazz ("Chasing the ghost" by the Darius Jones Trio), Cuban music ("Orakinyongo" by Okute), and atmospheric music ("Light east of Sendai" by Susie Ibarra). All good stuff. Give it a listen!

We'll have a "day after the solstice" show on Monday, June 21 (no on-air goat sacrifice, sorry). Join me then from 10 to 11 am MT at cjsw.com or 90.9 FM.

Thanks.

Andrew

June 7, 2021

A solid show overall this week, I thought. A few notes:

*Everything starts with a song from A Troop of Echoes ("Little bird"). Though not well known, the record that it comes from, Days in automation, is one of those records that I keep returning to from time to time.

*Track two features a drum feature from the incredible Tony Williams, from his Blue Note album Spring. It's been a long time since I've played anything from a Tony Williams solo album. It was good to rectify this.

*The label Wewantsounds reissues great records from past decades. This week, I was happy to play "J.P.'s thing" from Foster's 1975 release, Loud minority. I got lots of positive comments about "J.P.'s thing", even as the song was playing.

Thanks.

Andrew

May 31, 2021

To greater or lesser extent, I like all the Breaking The Tethers shows I produce. In addition, some shows just go good, with nice flow, tracks that are different yet complementary, and no screw-ups from yours truly. Today's show pretty much fell into that category, I'm pleased to say. In addition, as a few people told me after shortly after the show ended, it "freaked our beans", which is always praise, IMO.  You can check out the bean-freaking music here.

I'm hoping that the next BTT episode will be just as fine. We can all find out on Monday, June 7, from 10 to 11 am MT, at cjsw.com or 90.9 FM.

Thanks.

Andrew

May 24, 2021

There was definitely an out-there lean to the music on today's show, though not exclusively (e.g. the song by Erin Propp and Larry Roy was pretty mellow). My favourite tracks were probably "Frankenstein" by Archie Shepp, which I thought was a really good way to start the program, and "Mais non" from the Hugh Hopper Band, the late Hugh being a favourite of mine. And, of course, it's always fun to play the Aaron Keele version of the Smith's "What difference does it make". You can take it all in at bit.ly/34eyF4I

What will we get next week? As always, tune in to find out! Go to cjsw.com or 90.9 FM from 10 to 11 am MT on Monday, May 31.

Thanks.

Andrew

PS I accidentally chopped off the first couple of minutes of the show. The podcast begins with the start of Shepp's "Frankenstein"; the only thing missing are my introductory words (which is probably no great loss 😆) Apologies for this.

May 17, 2021

No Andrew for this program (last-minute family thing) but my spot was ably taken by Brennan Chaudry, regular host of another CJSW show, Prisoners Dilemma. Brennan did his usual great job and played some nifty tunes. Give it a listen here.

I'll be back for the Monday, May 24 edition of Breaking The Tethers. Join me at cjsw.com or 90.9 FM from 10 to 11 am MT. 

Thanks.

Andrew

May 10, 2021

I should have got to this earlier (apologies) but I invite you to check out the May 10 show, tracklist and podcast here.  There was definitely a lean "out there" this week, with a fair amount of variation within that. I also managed to fit in a few items that were on my backlog list of songs to play e.g."Jamaica east" by Randy Weston and "That's America fer ya" by Howard Roberts. Fave track this week? Probably "The creator is so far out" by the Phil Musra Group (I'm going to play something by Musra's brother, Michael Cosmic, sometime in the next few weeks, maybe even on May 24, when I'm back on air).

Thanks. Stay tuned for the next posting, on the May 17 show.

Andrew

May 3, 2021

Lots of good music played this week, in a variety of styles, as per usual, but perhaps the most striking tracks revolved around interstellar space and the planet Mars. Allow me to explain. I figured this week's show needed to start with a bang. I've had Nels Cline and Gregg Bendian's version of John Coltrane's "Mars" (from their album Interstellar space revisited) on my to-play list for a while. This piece definitely has a kick, to say the least, so I put it on as first song, first set. I think it accomplished its task. For a comparison of sorts, I ended the set with the original version of "Mars", played by Coltrane and Rashied Ali, originally recorded in 1967 but not released until 1974, a track that is no shrinking violet either.

There may be more craziness next week. Join me to find out on Monday, May 10 from 10 to 11 am MT. Go to cjsw.com or 90.9 FM.

Thanks.

Andrew

April 26, 2021

Howdy. Most episodes of Breaking The Tethers are pretty wide and varied. This week's show might have gone a step or two beyond the norm, which may be saying something. The range of music covered spiritual jazz ("Mountain song" by Menagerie), free jazz ("Prescott: the fort town" by Nick Fraser), synths ("Sustain" by Sam Grendel), a 70s jazz cover of a Minnie Ripperton song ("Loving you" by the George Otsuka Quartet), political stuff ("That daughter" by Janice Lowe & Namaroon), and more. Who knows what next week will bring? In the meantime, you can take in the April 26 program again or for the first time.

The next BTT show will be on the usual time and place, Monday, May 3, from 10 to 11 am MT, 90.9 FM or cjsw.com. Please join me if you can (and I hope you can!)

Also, next week's edition will be the CJSW Listener Appreciation Week show! More on this soon!

Thanks.

Andrew

April 19, 2021

This was a music-filled, 13 track BTT episode. There was a definite lean to the avant, especially in the middle section of the show, but I would say that a number of jazz bases were touched upon. Some faves from me:

"Song for my friends" by Abdullah Sami. Some great guitar work here on this NYC loft jazz classic.

"Dismal swamp" by Charles Lloyd & the Marvels. Jazz flute! And pedal steel guitar!

"More than human" by Wayne Shorter. Shorter getting out there on a favourite of mine.

"Exit music (for a film)" by the Art of Time Ensemble. They do a nice job with the Radiohead classic.

"Sunshine superman" by Dr. Lonnie Smith. And Iggy Pop! And it works!

"Where can I listen to this?!" you ask yourself. Go here!

The next Breaking The Tethers episode will be on Monday, April 26 (last Monday in April! time is passing...). Join me at cjsw.com or 90.9 FM form 10-11 am MT.

Thanks.

Andrew

March 8, 2021

And more catch up, this time a varied show from March 8. I'll just note one thing here: I played a song about someone called Emmett this week ("The death of Emmett Till" by Charlie Ballantine from the album Life is brief: the music of Bob Dylan, a record I've been returning to here and there over the past few years) and the following week (March 15) I played a song by someone called Emmett (see the entry for that week). Anyway, go to bit.ly/3mWEBbb to listen.

Thanks.

Andrew

March 1, 2021

Here's my last March catch-up entry. Some things to note in this edition of Breaking The Tethers:

*Two tracks from South American musicians, Nacho Szulgas 5 and Ernesto Judos.

*More stride piano from Emmett Cohen ("Pitter panther patter"; say that three times fast)

*A Pharoah Sanders track, which is always worth celebrating. This time, I played the fairly crazy "Red, black & green" from Thembi. I've heard that Pharoah has a new album coming out, the first in a long while.

Listen to it all here.

Thanks.

Andrew

March 15, 2021

I'm doing some catch up posting for a few weeks in March that I missed (or just slacked off on 😀 ). Here's the first, for March 1. My fave track for this week was the thing that started it off, a recently released vestige of the NYC free jazz loft scene in the 1970s, "Clarity 3" Michael Gregory Jackson. In an almost completely different vein, I also played some newly-created stride piano music, from Emmett Cohen. One must have variety! Take in these tracks and more here.

Thanks.

Andrew

April 12, 2021

Just a good show this week. Lots of tenor sax but also other instruments. Includes some kind of lengthy tracks and a piece that's a whopping eight seconds long! ("Colibri" by Camila Nebbia and Axel Filip). You can dig it at bit.ly/3tllj1v.

I recommend you listen to the next Breaking The Tethers episode; it will be fine! (I hope! 😁) Go to cjsw.com or 90.9 FM on Monday, April 19 from 10 to 11 am MT.

Thanks!

Andrew

April 5, 2021

I was back as host this week, after being away for a week. Many thanks to Brennan Chaudry, host of Prisoner's Dilemma on CJSW, for filling in for me (there's a good chance he'll be back, if you like what he did on BTT). 

Musically, this show basically fit the mold that Breaking The Tethers shows (at least hosted by me!) have had for the past little while. Mostly newly-released material with one or two non-new tracks played (including something by Pink Floyd this week!) Give it a listen here.

You've still got me next week 😁. Join me for program #2 of April 2021 on Monday, April 12, 10-11 am MT. Go to 90.9 FM or cjsw.com.

Thanks.

Andrew

March 22, 2021

A show in the pattern that's been the common one recently, with mostly newly-released material coupled with a trip or two to the past (in this case, the Freddie Hubbard and Dean Pallen numbers). Perhaps the most notable track on the album was the first one played, "Lockdown throwdown" by the recently-departed Chick Corea and Gary Husband, made up of sounds they bounced back and forth to each other during the COVID quarantine.

Listen to the whole thing here.

Thanks.

Andrew

March 29, 2021

There was no Andrew in this BTT edition (I was away for a few days) but my spot was more than ably filled by Brennan Chaudry, the regular host of Prisoner's Dilemma, another fine program on CJSW. Brenann played some pretty awesome stuff, even just looking the first two tracks: "Choix multiples" by Simon Provencher, a track I might well have started the show with had I been hosting, and "Trance" by Cecil Taylor; it's always a good idea to play Cecil Taylor.  You can hear Brennan do his thing here.

I'll be back behind the board for the next iteration of Breaking The Tethers, on Monday, April 5 (yep, it's April already!). Join me for a mess of good music from 10 to 11 am MT at cjsw.com or 909.9 FM.

Thanks.

Andrew

February 22, 2021

Perhaps a slightly atypical show this week, with a bit more mellower (but not straight-ahead) music, a bit more funky stuff, and definitely more vocals (I recall at least three tracks with some form of vocals) than usual appear during Breaking The Tethers. No problem with that, of course; variety is the spice of life or something along those lines. You can take it all in here.

One of the last things I do in each BTT episode is to give the details about the next program. This time, I wasn't sure what day the following Monday was going to be. February 29? March 1? Well, it is going to be March 1 though I was certainly confused; my brain was thinking that, because the summer Olympics are talking place this year, it's a leap year and there will be a February 29. Nope. The summer Olympics were postponed to this year from last so no 29th. Accordingly, join me for the next episode of Breaking The Tethers on Monday, March 1, from 10 to 11 am MT at 90.9 FM or cjsw.com.

Thanks.

Andrew

February 15, 2020

With the passing of both Chick Corea and Milford Graves in the days leading up to these shows, I figured it was most appropriate to pay homage to these great. There was one longer track for Graves ("Response", which I think strongly represents his style) and two shorter ones for Corea ("Vedana" and "The hilltop", not that two tracks could fully represent someone who put out so many records in so many styles). The rest of the music in this show was made of a few new releases and a couple of trips back into the early years of the 21st century, both items that we on my "return to sometime" list (these were tunes by Nicole Mitchell and Hilario Duran). Check everything out here.

Next week: Might be the usual mix of old and new. Maybe an all-new program. Tune in to find out on Monday, February 22 from 10-11 am at cjsw.com or 90.9 FM. Hopefully no more jazz greats die!

Thanks.

Andrew

February 8, 2020

Overall, just a good show this week, with a nice mix of styles, dates, and lengths. Fave track? Probably "Caractacus" by the John Surman Trio. I also really like the "Riddles of the sphinx" sequences (with sequence 9 played on this program). Go here to listen to the full show and check out the tracklist.

Next week's BTT episode will likely be in the same vein (though I suspect I'll be doing an all-new show or two in the not-too-distant future). Tune in to find out on Monday, February 15 from 10-11 am MT at 90.9 FM or cjsw.com.

Thanks.

Andrew

February 1, 2021

First show in February 2021, fittingly on the first of the month. Unlike the previous two weeks, this was not an all-new music show; rather, this was a return to the more usual format of BTT, with a mix of styles and dates reflected in the music. Fave stuff this week included groovy jazz from Ian Hendrickson-Smith ("The lowdown", title track of his latest record), a surprisingly great tune from Badge Epoque Ensemble ("Sing a silent gospel"), and the totally weird "Distole" from the group from La Plata, Argentina who's name I never get straight (we'll leave it at that!). You can listen to it all at https://bit.ly/2YCxI3o

The next Breaking The Tethers program will be the same vein as this week's and will be broadcast on Monday, February 8, 10-11 am MT, at 90.9 FM or cjsw.com. Please join me then!

Thanks.

Andrew

January 25, 2021

Last Monday of Jan. 2021 and another "all-new" program on Breaking The Tethers (listen here). This time, there was some Canadian material (Brian Buchanan, Cory Weeds, and David Restivo), lots of piano, lots of guitar, and two tracks from the recent Blue Note Re:imagined release. All nice stuff.

For next week's show, I think it'll be back to the usual format for BTT, with a mix of styles and dates. I'm not fully sure what will be played on this edition but it will be good (isn't it always?! 😀) Join me on Monday, February 1, 10-11 AM MT, at 90.9 FM or cjsw.com.

Thanks.

Andrew

January 18, 2021

2021 is a new year so I thought "let's do an all-new" episode of Breaking The Tethers. I haven't presented one of these for a while and the new material was starting to pile up (not necessarily a bad thing, of course). The result was a nice mix of aural treats though definitely leaning "out there". Fave track: "A wrinkle in time sets concentric circles reeling" by the Dave Mazurek Exploding Star Orchestra. Anything Dave Mazurek does is interesting and nifty and crazy and more. Take it all in here.

The next BTT program will be on Monday, January 25, from 10-11 am MT, at cjsw.com or 90.9 FM.  I've decided that this will also be an "all-new" show. Tune in for good sounds, as per usual.

Thanks

Andrew

January 11, 2021

It's been a busy week or so in my world so I'm doing some catch-up with the Jan. 11 edition of BTT (listen here). This was fun show, with lots of new material and a fair amount of Canadian content (Weeds, Tosoff, and Soul Stew). Only two older tracks, a solo piano piece by Keith Jarrett recorded in Budapest in 2016 ("Part IV") and "Blinks" by Roswell Rudd and Steve Lacy, a track I think I might have played on air when the record came out in 2007; no worries, time for a repeat, 14 years later! 😀

The next post will have some info on the Jan. 18 and Jan. 25 programs in the next post.

Thanks.

Andrew

January 4, 2020

This was the first BTT show of 2021. Musically, I thought it went well; a nice mix, leaning a bit to the funky side. On the mic, things weren't so good; I was either very smooth or just tripping over my tongue or coughing. Apologies for the latter two. I'll have it more together for the next program.

On that note, please join me for 2021 show #2, on Monday, January 11, 10-11 am MT, 90.9 FM or cjsw.com.

And before I forget, here's the link to the Jan. 4 episode: bit.ly/3bogu1t

Thanks.

Andrew