Last Exit

I stumbled upon this video by one of the most brilliant versions of Bill Lazwells experimental jazz ensemble, Last Exit by accident.

I was looking for something by the Drummer/Composer, Ronald Shannon Jackson, who has led The Decoding Society for 30 years now. I was friends with Mr. Jackson back in the late 70's and early 80's and was the Decoding Society's mover with my trusty Toyota pickup truck.

So, Ronald Shannon Jackson is the drummer in this piece. Bill Laswell is one of the great synthesysts of modern music. His bands, like Material and Last Exit have brought together musicians from different ends of the realm of music. The metal gutarist, Buckethead and primal James Brown/Funkadelic Bassist Bootsy Collins (my personal hero, role and style model) formed a lasting unlikely partnership through the influence of Mr. Laswell,

This version of Last Exit has Sonny Sharrock playing guitar and I will freely admit that I consider Mr. Sharrock was one of the most distinctive and creative guitarists in jazz. I find that people either love Sharrock or find him unlistenable. It's true that his playing could encompass extreme idyllic beauty and sheer abject existential terror within a single phrase.

This was recorded live in Bochum, Germany in 1988. Free Jazz is an endangered specie!