Phalanx Revisited - Timeless

James Blood Ulmer
Duration: 06:59
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Guitarist/singer James "Blood" Ulmer cut a distinct path. Or, rather, he followed multiple paths that he merged into a ground-breaking concept. Beginning the early ‘70s. he played with avant garde alto sax icon Ornette Coleman and his group, refining the concept of "harmolodics." The concept gave equal weight to melody, harmony and rhythm to liberate performance from stale patterns. In the ‘80s and ‘90s, Ulmer put more weight on thrashy deep blues. Ulmer “squared the circle” of playing blues, jazz, rock and funk all at the same time by open tuning his guitar, which could sound slightly detuned, and strumming clusters of notes. Here, he’s complemented by emerging saxophonist Lakecia Benjamin and his band playing a free groove and throwing in vocals. Ulmer passed away, June 3, 2026.

Posted by Scott Lichtman.