Wichita Vortex Sutra (CD)

• Category:  Music  »  Spoken Word  »  General/Spoken Word
• Format: CD   Learn more about the CD format using Tower WIKI.
• Release Date: October 5, 2004
• Label: Artemis Records
• UPC: 699675157722
• WAPI (Tower ID): 106504941
• Average Customer Review: There are no customer reviews yet. Be the first to write a review!

Browse more products related to "Wichita Vortex Sutra"

Browse more products related to "Allen Ginsberg"

Personnel: Allen Ginsberg (vocals); Elliott Sharp (guitar, bass instrument); Lee Ranaldo, Lenny Kaye, Marc Ribot, Arto Lindsay (guitar); David Mansfield (mandolin); Stephan Smith (violin); Art Baron (flute, didjeridu, trombone); Lenny Pickett (contrabass clarinet); Philip Glass (piano); Steve Shelley (drums); Michael Blair (percussion); Hal Willner (sound effects); Christian Marclay (turntables).

Liner Note Authors: Hal Willner; Greil Marcus.

Recording information: Poetry Project, St. Mark's Church, New York, New York (10/29/1994).

In addition to his well-known achievements as a poet, political activist, and gadfly to the morally and intellectually complacent, Allen Ginsberg was also a talented collaborator. His flair for choosing musicians sensitive to his flowing musical language allowed him to breaks down barriers, turning the written word into a symphony of sounds that was both performance and social event. On this live recording, made at St. Mark's Poetry Project in New York City in 1994, Ginsberg reads his WICHITA VORTEX SUTRA, an epic poem about the Vietnam War written in 1966.

The work is featured in its entirety, and Ginsberg's reading is backed by the musical expertise of some of the most luminous talents from New York's downtown scene. Composer/pianist Philip Glass, guitarists Arto Lindsay and Marc Ribot, drummer Steve Shelley, and turntablist Christian Marclay lend nuanced, highly textured backdrops to Ginsberg's narratives, which drift from meditations on the purity of the rural American spirit to damnations of the US war-hungry government. Aurally, the performance is gripping, and offers timely thematic resonance as well, given America's then-involvement in the Persian Gulf region. It is also eerily prophetic, given the US's sustained occupation of Iraq in the 2000s.

There are no customer reviews yet. Be the first to write a review!

• Great Deals on CDs under $9.99

  New Releases, Bestsellers and Classic Albums all for under $10! Great Music for Everyone's Tastes!

• Great Deals on DVDs under $12.99

  New Releases, Bestsellers and Classic DVDs all for under $13! Great Movies, TV and DVD Specials for Everyone's Tastes!

• Great Deals on Books under $14.99

  New Releases, Bestsellers and Classic Books all for under $15! Great Reads for Everyone's Tastes!