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In 1983, James Blood Ulmer's "Odyssey" album was released by Columbia. It was recorded at the Power Station in New York City. Ulmer, at the time, had a deal with Columbia that paid him more money than probably anyone ever thought that Columbia spent altogether on jazz alone. This would be the last album made as part of his deal. For the recording, Ulmer put together the unlikely power trio of himself (providing the mumbling vocals and mantralike guitars), Charlie Burnham on violin and drummer Warren Benbow.

The album became an instant classic. It has been in and out of print since it was first issued. Today, it commands $75 per CD and $45 per album -- yes, it's currently out of print.

The unique choice of instruments... Voice, guitar, violin, drums... open up the drums. When I think of a recording with great drumming as well as engineering and production of a high order I tend to think of "Odyssey."

Anyhow, somehow along the way, Warren Benbow and I have become email friends. So, I've asked him and he's agreed to talk about this recording with us.

Warren Benbow on YouTube


Warren Benbow's My Space page

Coincidentally, Warren sent me a couple clips about Eric Gravatt, drummer for McCoy Tyner. I was reading the news this week and this story is everywhere... http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?.../e114020S80.DTL

I think Warren was joking about Eric's high ride cymbal.



I got one more thing I want to add then we'll get Warren in here.

Trouser Press said of "Odyssey"...

Ulmer hit a high-water mark with the brilliant Odyssey. Along with drummer Warren Benbow and violinist Charles Burnham, the album combines Ulmer's innovative playing, a powerfully sweeping mix of cerebral probing and surging, bluesy expressiveness — a style that prompted many to call him the most important African-American guitarist since Jimi Hendrix — and his natural ease with, and interest in, post-country blues and soul fusions. The instrumentals pack plenty of free-jazz punch, imbuing his Coleman-derived concept with an invigorating accessibility; the vocal pieces gorgeously complement Ulmer's raggedly soulful singing with a lovely down-home feel. Burnham's warm electric violin, in particular, delivers a striking adaptation of the black string band tradition to a rich stew of blues, gospel, soul and jazz. In short, Odyssey is Ulmer's most complete record.

Source: http://www.trouserpress.com/entry.php?a=james_blood_ulmer

It may come as a surprise to my stateside forum buddies, but I have that same album in vinyl. It was recommended to me by my guitar teacher who perhaps fled Brooklyn to beat the draft. What I thought was great is that the guitar was used as more of a band-leading instrument, and they seemed freer to go off in more musical directions. The violin work was from another planet in comparison to folks like Venutti or Grapelli, but obviously it was in the pocket.

If you like music by James Blood Ulmer you'll also like Canadian guitarist Sonny Greenwich. It's never a flurry of notes but more like channeling a man upstairs voice.

Before I got Warren in here I was going to pull reviews of "Odyssey" but I cannot find them at the house.

So, if I can get Warren in here, let's get it started.

Warren, tell us about the preproduction for the album. Did you guys practice before entering the studio? If so, who was involved beyond yourself, Blood and Charlie? Most of the people who read the forums here come from pop, rock and country backgrounds. How does preproduction differ for a jazz project like "Odyssey" versus a pop music recording?