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Right, this is it. I’ll talk about the John Zorn albums I know and which I can recommend. I have read in this thread that some people might be interested in this, so I hope this will be of help.  Here it goes.

These are the ones I own:

(1980) - Pool
I have only played this once yet, and I can’t say I really “get” it. I’ll keep on trying though. Pool is his earliest “solo” release and, like most of his early works, it is a game piece. It features a group of people improvising, but with a set of rules or something. It’s clear that I don’t fully get this either. The mathematical liner notes don’t make it easier. I think I’ll soon dive into the world of his game pieces and try to figure out what it’s all about. Not recommended to newcomers, but essential for people interested in the development of Zorn’s music. For the ear, this is best compared to free jazz improvisation I think, but apparently that’s not the way this music comes to be.

(1983) - Locus Solus
This is also very crazy stuff, but it is definitely more accessible than Pool. Very noisy, and at times comparable to the most crazy stuff that Zappa did with the early Mothers. Because it’s so noisy (and also includes sproken word), it has some similarities with Smegma as well. Free jazz/avant-noise… Not for beginners either.

(1983, 1986) - The Classic Guide To Strategy - Volumes One & Two
John Zorn on saxes, clarinets and gamecalls. It’s a solo free jazz improvisation album, so in that aspect comparable to Peter Brötzmann’s 14 Love Poems. Both reed-players have a different style though. This is a very difficult to listen to as well, but I like this better than Pool or Locus Solus. Still not recommended to newcomers though. Only for people who already like extreme free jazz.

(1987) - Spillane
Just got it; haven’t listened to it yet.

(1990) - Naked City
My first John Zorn album and also the only one I have reviewed yet. Masterpiece. For more info see my review.

(1995) (Dekoboko Hajime) & Yamantaka Eye - Nani Nani
Just got it; haven’t listened to it yet.

(1996) - Film Works V - Tears Of Ecstacy
The first album I got from the Film Works series. Very eclectical. All different kinds of music (surf/noise/jazz/world/metal) written for a music about aliens having anal sex (if I recall correctly from the liner notes). I still have to see this movie! The music is very nice, but Zorn has released better stuff, also in the Film Works series.

(1996) - Film Works VI - 1996
Just got it; haven’t listened to it yet.

(2001) - The Gift
A strange one for Zorn, because it’s not scary or agressive in any way. A nice collection of surf/easy listening/world/jazz tunes, mostly guitar-driven. Only two track sound a bit foreboding, one of them including vocals by Mike Patton. Apart from that, the music is very relaxing. Of course there always has to be something disturbing, so Zorn included some pretty provocative artwork inside the deceptively innocent-looking package. A nice album, which shows Zorn’s soft side. Not one of my favourites, but worth checking out if the description appeals to you.

(2001) - Songs From The Hermetic Theater
This is the real meat. Including one ear-splitting piece of electronic music and one ear-splitting piece of computer music (are those mouse-clicks I’m hearing?), this probably features some of the most annoying music ever recorded. I love it. The other tracks are a foreboding and rumbling tribute to filmmaker Maya Deren and a tribute to artist Joseph Beuys. The latter is absolutely beautiful. It features numerous everyday objects (such as metal pipes, honey, mud, pencil, lightbulb etc.) used as musical instruments, together with a few conventional instruments. The result is a fascinating piece that, just like a radio play, evokes images. This CD is both challenging and beautiful. I recommend it, but only to very adventurous listeners.

(2002) - Film Works XII - 2002 Volume Two - Three Documentaries
Now this is the CD that I would most highly recommend. It’s accessible, beautiful and still challenging to the ear. Featuring the scores to three short films, the music is diverse, but not without a flow. The music for the first film is varied. The music for the second film is focused on beautiful guitar music. I once read somewhere that Morricone taught Zorn that you only need one theme to write a complete soundtrack. There is indeed one theme that runs through the score here, and I don’t get tired of it. The music for the third film is focused on the cello. Both quiet and intense music. In short, this is my favourite Film Works release and one of my favourite JZ CD’s overall. Highly recommended.

(2004) - 50th Birthday Celebration Volume 4 - Electric Masada
Excellent live fusion album. Masada with electrical power. If you’re not sure which Zorn album to get next, and you’re a fusion fan, get this one.

(2006) - Film Works XVII - Notes On Marie Menken - Ray Bandar - A Life With Skulls
Some guitar music in the same vein as Film Works XII here, together with some music for percussion. Also featured are a free jazz piece, and a piece of “ambient jazz” (or something), that sounds a bit like Masada meets Nils Petter Molvær. Very good, but not as good as Film Works XII.

(2006) (Mark Feldman and Sylvie Courvoisier) - Malphas - Book Of Angels Volume 3
This is beautiful. A selection of songs from one of the Masada songbooks, the Book Of Angels, performed by Mark Feldman and Sylvie Courvoisier (violin and piano, respectively). I was so lucky to see Feldman and Courvoisier perform it live two months ago, together with some other work of Zorn. It was one of the best concerts I had ever attended (lucky, lucky b*****d!). Soon afterwards I got this CD. It’s not as good as the concert, but close. Very passionate performance. Recommended.

(2006) - Moonchild
This is the most recent John Zorn release. Completely the opposite of the previous CD, Malphas, this is Mike Patton, Trevor Dunn and Joey Baron playing eleven “songs without words”. Very noisy, loud and aggressive assault of occult hardcore/rock/metal. If you love Naked City and Fantômas, this is for you.

In addition, I own Naked City (2002) - Live, Vol. 1 - Knitting Factory 1989. It’s basically the Naked City album performed live, with some extra material. Not as tight as the studio album, but the differences from the studio album are of course the reason why a fan would buy this. If you like the Naked City album already, then this is a good purchase, but I would buy some of Zorn’s other music first, to get a better impression of the different aspects of his career.

I have also listened a few times to Masada 5 - Hei and I really like it, but I don’t own it yet. I have also heard some Painkiller, but it’s too early for me to say much about that, except that it’s loud (but you probably knew that already ).

Phew, that sure took a lot of energy to write.  I hope some of you found the energy to read it as well and maybe even find it useful. Good luck and have fun exploring John Zorn’s catalogue!

Joren

PS: Now my holiday has begun, I recommenced my work at John Zorn's dicography on ProgArchives. (Avestin already knows this, but I thought the rest of you might also want to know.) A while ago, I had added a lot of albums without track listings or other information. Two days ago I started to add this missing information. I'm almost done with that. Then there are three more things to do. 1: I shall look at the additions somebody else has made (one member under the name of silentman has added a large number of albums), and update them where necessary, to make sure all the info is correct and in the same layout as the rest of the dicography. 2: I shall complete the dicography; quite a few albums are still missing. 3: I will add individual entries for some side projects, most notably Naked City and Painkiller. I intend to keep the Masada albums where they are. After that, I will probably (finally) add some RIO/Avant/Zeuhl bands. In other words, do what I'm supposed to do as a member of the RIO/Avant/Zeuhl team.

PPS: One more thing: Next Wednesday I’m going to see John Zorn and Masada live in Rotterdam (same place where I saw Art Zoyd last year). I’m so excited!!!