Oregon - Our First Record
SKU
28-WUND9432.2
“Let's get one thing straight from the outset: Oregon is not nor were they Ever a "New Age" group. There is nothing saccahrinely simple or cloyingly pretty about this music - it is harmonically complex, rhythmically interesting and melodically uncliched. I have never understood why this band came to be labeled in such a facile and flagrantly inaccurate way. Along with bandleader Paul Winter (and coming from a completely different place,) Miles Davis, they were the true godfathers of what's come to be known as world jazz. Not to mention important contributors to 3rd stream music.
Think about it: who else was effortlessly combining western classical, Indian and African music so effectively and organically in 1970?! This was before Weather Report, Mahavishnu, Return to Forever etc, and on top of that, at the time they were doing it all acoustically. Which set them apart from the fusion movement and may be largely responsible for the unfortunate mislabeling and consequent misperception of the group. The point is, Oregon was first and foremost a group of fearless risk-taking improvisers with a solid jazz (and classical) background. On top of that, they were good composers.
This first album was recorded back in 1970 for a fledgling label with a big vision, but sadly, never got off the ground. Recorded on an 8 track system on "The Farm", a sort of hippie commune owned by friends of Walcott, it was held back from release until 1980. It disappeared pretty quickly until it was re-released on CD briefly in 2007. It is once again hard to come by.
This is not a demo tape - it is a fully realized, well produced and surprisingly good sounding recording of a group that had already fully formed its musical identity. In fact, both Canyon Song (Distant Hills,) and Margueritte (Music From another Present Era,) would be re-recorded and released on subsequent albums.”-Brian Whistler
- LabelWounded Bird
- UPC664140943223