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Music : My Life in the Bush of Ghosts: Remastered
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Rating: 
- Music with "Found" Voices and Instruments
Eno and Byrne described the sampling (I know they did it manually with tape rather than with a sampler machine) as using "found voices and sounds. It is a shame that in the wake of the Satanic Verses that Eno and Byrne felt it necessary to drop Qur'an and that it remains dropped from the new version, as here it is use for the beauty of the sound of the voice. The context sets the voice off very effectively and in no way takes away from the spiritual integrity of the prayer. As I recall the removal of this track was not in response to any specific threat but just in response to the general climate of fear at the time, shame on those who threaten violence in the name of god. Incidentally the album from which Eno and Byrme sampled the voice for that track is available on Music in the World of Islam Vol.1: Human Voice/Lutes a series of Islamic music albums produced , mainly by Jean Jenkins of which I had a couple on vinyl which I bought from the Museum of Scotland during a related exhibition on Islamic music, they are primitive recordings of beautifully spiritual music.
Rating: - Musically the best album of the 1980s
The atmospheres, textures, spaces, and other worldly sounds of this album are staggering. All other attempts at a "World" music seem to me slight by comparison.
There is deep unease in this album; like another reviewer in these pages, I cannot help but be struck by the prescience of the piece, capturing an African/Arabian world ill at-ease under the yoke of what were then growing global American and other western interests.
The narratives of Byrne's "Remain in Light" have now been jettisoned in favour of sonic landscapes which perfectly evoke another world, real or imagined, far more vividly even than the brilliant "Listening Wind" from the Talking Heads disc.
Eno showed too how he could move from the cold, stark world of eastern Europe in Warszawa (on Bowie's "Low")to the heat of Africa, and create something equally compelling and beautiful.
Oddly, the one track which now seems out of place is "The Jezebel Spirit"; there is something slightly voyeuristic about those moments as the exorcism builds, and the track seems more lightweight than the rest of the album as a result.
Generally, though, this is a wonderful record, and the last that Byrne produced (alone or not) of that stature. Like Bowie before him, the magic seemed to evaporate once Mr Eno departed.
Rating:
- in the Bushell of Ghosts
I think I ought to counter the effusive responses here and put in my opinion, for what its worth. Yes, this album does sound ahead of its time, and yes, there is some beautiful music on here. But first of all, this re-issue muddles the track listing of the original album (to its detriment), and further, the album is not quite as consistently brilliant as everyone here makes out, especially with an extra "side" of bonus tracks.
The opening track, America is Waiting, I can't help comparing to the opener on Public Enemy's Fear of a Black Planet, which was clearly influenced by its scratchy-funk-meets-TV-sermoniser cut-up. But whereas PE's track was brutally, discordantly funky, Eno and Byrne's version just sounds disjointed and a little bit lightweight- I guess its not easy for middle-class white boys to sound too damn funky. Anyway, things really get going with the beautiful Mea Culpa, (the original album opener) with its subtle, multi-tracked world-music percussion, which builds slowly and satisfyingly. Then comes the album's highlight, Regiment, with its funky, proto-trip-hop bassline set against strangely moving African vocals, and a slightly askew sample. Great stuff. The next two tracks don't do anything for me; Jezebel Spirit is often singled out as a highlight, but for me, the dated-sounding 80s slap-bass just sounds a bit lightweight.
Side 2 is the best side. No more dated slap-funk bass, and the emphasis is shifted less towards funk, and more towards polyrhythmic and percussive textures. Very, Very Hungry has a very interesting staccato rhythm, but the highlight of this side is wistful The Carrier, with its plaintive vocals once again married perfectly to Eno and Byrne's sampled soundscapes. Mountain of Needles is also beautiful, an almost completely ambient track which depends for its effect on its glistening percussive timbres. This was originally the album closer, and rightly so, as its understated textures and blissful ambience serve to cleanse the palette. Unfortunately, becuase this is a re-issue, we have another "side" of bits and pieces to get through, which, like most re-issued bonus tracks, are mostly unmemorable, although Two Against Three and Number 8 are culled from the original.
There's some impressive stuff, here, undoubtedly, and the influence of Eno's "non-musician" approach is clearly everywhere, but for me this is just too "difficult" an album to be completely enjoyable: nonetheless, it comes recommended.
Rating: - Visionary work
Spacehopper "aldorb" or whatever you're name is: you need to calm down. This is not a great album ruined, nor a sorry excuse for a re-release. Quran was removed from the vinyl album (or musicassette, if you like) back in 1980 by Eno and Byrne themselves after they were informed the recordings of muezzin used on the track might give offence to Muslims. Simple as..
Rating: - My Life in the Bush of Ghosts - The Director's Cut
My Life of the Bush of Ghosts is an extraordinary, prescient collection of songs that is almost without peers (although other reviewers here have done a good job of summarising like-minded artists). It is unparalleled in its synthesis of international music styles into a futuristic funk so energetic and vital it is hard to believe it was largely pieced together in a studio in the absence of the (yet-to-be-invented) sampler. If you haven't already experienced this record then this is a fantastic opportunity for you to discover in all its remastered glory - although I have to say I wasn't blown away by the quality update here. Often you expect remasterings to totally revitalise older recordings but there is no such epithany here - maybe because there was little wrong with the original recording, I don't know. Unlike previous reviewers I was not familiar with the track 'Qu'ran' and may be wrong in my assumption that this was in fact removed from the album tracklist a long time ago, and not specifically for this edition. It is also worth mentioning (as it hasn't been said here already) that this edition includes a number of bonus tracks from the original sessions that are worthwhile from a completist point of view if nothing else. Some of these are just sonic doodles and others are fully realised tracks that may not meet the standard of the rest of the album but are pretty good in their own right.
- Music with "Found" Voices and InstrumentsEno and Byrne described the sampling (I know they did it manually with tape rather than with a sampler machine) as using "found voices and sounds. It is a shame that in the wake of the Satanic Verses that Eno and Byrne felt it necessary to drop Qur'an and that it remains dropped from the new version, as here it is use for the beauty of the sound of the voice. The context sets the voice off very effectively and in no way takes away from the spiritual integrity of the prayer. As I recall the removal of this track was not in response to any specific threat but just in response to the general climate of fear at the time, shame on those who threaten violence in the name of god. Incidentally the album from which Eno and Byrme sampled the voice for that track is available on Music in the World of Islam Vol.1: Human Voice/Lutes a series of Islamic music albums produced , mainly by Jean Jenkins of which I had a couple on vinyl which I bought from the Museum of Scotland during a related exhibition on Islamic music, they are primitive recordings of beautifully spiritual music.
Rating:
- Musically the best album of the 1980sThe atmospheres, textures, spaces, and other worldly sounds of this album are staggering. All other attempts at a "World" music seem to me slight by comparison.
There is deep unease in this album; like another reviewer in these pages, I cannot help but be struck by the prescience of the piece, capturing an African/Arabian world ill at-ease under the yoke of what were then growing global American and other western interests.
The narratives of Byrne's "Remain in Light" have now been jettisoned in favour of sonic landscapes which perfectly evoke another world, real or imagined, far more vividly even than the brilliant "Listening Wind" from the Talking Heads disc.
Eno showed too how he could move from the cold, stark world of eastern Europe in Warszawa (on Bowie's "Low")to the heat of Africa, and create something equally compelling and beautiful.
Oddly, the one track which now seems out of place is "The Jezebel Spirit"; there is something slightly voyeuristic about those moments as the exorcism builds, and the track seems more lightweight than the rest of the album as a result.
Generally, though, this is a wonderful record, and the last that Byrne produced (alone or not) of that stature. Like Bowie before him, the magic seemed to evaporate once Mr Eno departed.
Rating:
- in the Bushell of GhostsI think I ought to counter the effusive responses here and put in my opinion, for what its worth. Yes, this album does sound ahead of its time, and yes, there is some beautiful music on here. But first of all, this re-issue muddles the track listing of the original album (to its detriment), and further, the album is not quite as consistently brilliant as everyone here makes out, especially with an extra "side" of bonus tracks.
The opening track, America is Waiting, I can't help comparing to the opener on Public Enemy's Fear of a Black Planet, which was clearly influenced by its scratchy-funk-meets-TV-sermoniser cut-up. But whereas PE's track was brutally, discordantly funky, Eno and Byrne's version just sounds disjointed and a little bit lightweight- I guess its not easy for middle-class white boys to sound too damn funky. Anyway, things really get going with the beautiful Mea Culpa, (the original album opener) with its subtle, multi-tracked world-music percussion, which builds slowly and satisfyingly. Then comes the album's highlight, Regiment, with its funky, proto-trip-hop bassline set against strangely moving African vocals, and a slightly askew sample. Great stuff. The next two tracks don't do anything for me; Jezebel Spirit is often singled out as a highlight, but for me, the dated-sounding 80s slap-bass just sounds a bit lightweight.
Side 2 is the best side. No more dated slap-funk bass, and the emphasis is shifted less towards funk, and more towards polyrhythmic and percussive textures. Very, Very Hungry has a very interesting staccato rhythm, but the highlight of this side is wistful The Carrier, with its plaintive vocals once again married perfectly to Eno and Byrne's sampled soundscapes. Mountain of Needles is also beautiful, an almost completely ambient track which depends for its effect on its glistening percussive timbres. This was originally the album closer, and rightly so, as its understated textures and blissful ambience serve to cleanse the palette. Unfortunately, becuase this is a re-issue, we have another "side" of bits and pieces to get through, which, like most re-issued bonus tracks, are mostly unmemorable, although Two Against Three and Number 8 are culled from the original.
There's some impressive stuff, here, undoubtedly, and the influence of Eno's "non-musician" approach is clearly everywhere, but for me this is just too "difficult" an album to be completely enjoyable: nonetheless, it comes recommended.
Rating:
- Visionary workSpacehopper "aldorb" or whatever you're name is: you need to calm down. This is not a great album ruined, nor a sorry excuse for a re-release. Quran was removed from the vinyl album (or musicassette, if you like) back in 1980 by Eno and Byrne themselves after they were informed the recordings of muezzin used on the track might give offence to Muslims. Simple as..
Rating:
- My Life in the Bush of Ghosts - The Director's CutMy Life of the Bush of Ghosts is an extraordinary, prescient collection of songs that is almost without peers (although other reviewers here have done a good job of summarising like-minded artists). It is unparalleled in its synthesis of international music styles into a futuristic funk so energetic and vital it is hard to believe it was largely pieced together in a studio in the absence of the (yet-to-be-invented) sampler. If you haven't already experienced this record then this is a fantastic opportunity for you to discover in all its remastered glory - although I have to say I wasn't blown away by the quality update here. Often you expect remasterings to totally revitalise older recordings but there is no such epithany here - maybe because there was little wrong with the original recording, I don't know. Unlike previous reviewers I was not familiar with the track 'Qu'ran' and may be wrong in my assumption that this was in fact removed from the album tracklist a long time ago, and not specifically for this edition. It is also worth mentioning (as it hasn't been said here already) that this edition includes a number of bonus tracks from the original sessions that are worthwhile from a completist point of view if nothing else. Some of these are just sonic doodles and others are fully realised tracks that may not meet the standard of the rest of the album but are pretty good in their own right.