Rahsaan Roland Kirk – Monkey Thing
Rahsaan Roland Kirk – Mood Indigo/Cabin In The Sky
Rahsaan Roland Kirk – Narrow Bolero
As is our tradition, on this day, August 7th, we always highlight the music of our patron saint at Melting Pot, Rahsaan Roland Kirk. More than any other place, it was in live performance that Rahsaan’s talents really shined. This set was recorded live at the Club Monmartre in Copenhagen in October 1963. This was still fairly early on in Rahsaan’s career (he didn’t take on the name “Rahsaan,” until 1970), roughly his sixth album as a leader and the very first (to my knowledge) that featured a live performance. Though it isn’t as freewheeling as the later Vibration Society recordings, such as Bright Moments, there are still a few moments where Rahsaan’s sense of humor and personality comes through (peep the opening to Mood Indigo where he name checks the horn section, which of course is all him).
Aside from the playing from Rahsaan, what really makes this an interesting set is the fact that legendary Bluesman Sonny Boy Williamson sat in with the group (which also featured Tete Montoliu and Niels-Henning Ørsted Pedersen). He’s credited on the album as “Big Skol,” which was likely connected to contractual issues. I’ve never read much on how Sonny Boy came to be on this album, and I would love the story of how he come came to be there that night and I would absolutely LOVE to hear what he thought of Rahsaan playing all those horns at once, and even playing the flute with his nose. “Monkey Thing,” is classic Rahsaan, outrageous in every sense of the word, having Sonny Boy’s harp on there just takes the Blues swagger up a major notch…Bright Moments indeed!