Bill Laswell . does he got an album I can listen to all the way through??

(BTW...I'm gonna tape 90 mins of sound art for you, you still want it yeah)

(sorry abt the delay on the tape BTW...I just haven't been able to get round to it)

Noise of Trouble is my favorite Last Exit rec as well.

*drooling* OK got any of that stuff from the early 70s (you've seen the beefhart doc where the magic band are doing a version of click clack right)

and if you want some Derek bailey stuff then I've got it.

The Last Wave - Arcana - w/ Derek Bailey and Tony Williams

Panthalassa - his terrific 70s Miles Mix

Guts of a Virgin - Painkiller - w/ John Zorn and Mick Harris

Ask the Ages - Sonny Sharrock w/ Pharoah Sanders, Charnett Moffett and Elvin Jones - One of Laswell's best production jobs - see also 'Orgasmatron' by Motorhead and 'The Burning World' by Swans

Decided... Already the Motionless Heart of Tranquility, Tangling the Purple Prayer called 'I' - Purple Trap - Laswell, Keiji Haino and Rashied Ali

i'd recommend these too. but his bass playing? aaaargh! dull.

I was just gonna suggest Praxis' Transmutations, as that was the first Bill Laswell album I ever got sooo many years ago, and listened to it from beginning to end almost every day for the last 3 years of high school. Bad-ass album.

Didn't Laswell produce the Tabla Beat Science album? That thing is KILLER!

He also has a couple ambient albums he did with Talvin Singh that are really stunning, albeit in a listen-to-this-late-at-night-with-headphones-on kinda way.

(i tht i'd discovered a mysterious contrary phenomena)

well I mentioned this above and its not that he is 'lame'. The piece consisted of one constantly repeating bassline and there were other things but they were all so non-substantial that the only thing I could keep my ears fixed on was that constantly repeating bassline.

I like things that change a bit over time and yet don't, on the whole, but the way this was played out in a way that there didn't seem to be much change. The whole thing in the 'dulled' my mind into a coma (I'm not sure this bit makes much sense but I won't change it).

The problem with his stuff is poor editing and his weird sense of production and quite often his very bass tone, which quite often has me wondering if he's just stubborn about his lame outdated "sound" or if he really think that sounds great.

As for his other productions, he's got moments on the Mick Jagger solo album and PiL's "Album."

Second the recommendations for Pain Killer. Just get the four-CD box; the two EPs are on Disc 1, Disc 2 is the killer part of Execution Ground (the sucky ambient remix version is Disc 3), and Disc 4 is smokin' live stuff from Japan, with guest vocals from Eye.

Also, check out Praxis's Transmutation Live if you can find it - it was on Douglas, and now it's out of print, but there's some mind-roasting interaction between Buckethead and the whole Invisibl Skratch Piklz on it.

James Blood Ulmer - America: Do You Remember the Love? (1986) - Ronald Shannon Jackson sounds great on this

As others have mentioned, Laswell's bass playing leaves a lot to be desired. Its not the tone (which is timeless), its that strangely for someone with so influenced by dub, funk, and africa, BL rarely plays a supple groove. There's no syncopation, no bounce, just on the ledger plod.

But do check out his production work with OTHER bassists. My personal faves are Automation: Dub Terror Exhaust, (apt title, w/ Wobble on woofers, and a contender for loudest bass on record ever), and his production of Jamaican rhythm section Sly & Robbie on Rhythm Killers, the great lost 80's funk symphony.

BL's lasting contribution to my personal contribution is his impeccable taste in releasing non-Western musics. Gnawa Music of Marrakesh, Talip Ozkan, Samulnori, etc all opened up hitherto unheard genres for me (and make Stern's Music a tidy sum at my expense).

As others have mentioned, Laswell's bass playing leaves a lot to be desired. Its not the tone (which is timeless), its that strangely for someone with so influenced by dub, funk, and africa, BL rarely plays a supple groove. There's no syncopation, no bounce, just on the ledger plod.

But do check out his production work with OTHER bassists. My personal faves are Automation: Dub Terror Exhaust, (apt title, w/ Wobble on woofers, and a contender for loudest bass on record ever), and his production of Jamaican rhythm section Sly & Robbie on Rhythm Killers, the great lost 80's funk symphony.

BL's lasting contribution to my personal collection is his impeccable taste in releasing non-Western musics. Gnawa Music of Marrakesh, Talip Ozkan, Samulnori, etc all opened up hitherto unheard genres for me (and make Stern's Music a tidy sum at my expense).

I have purchased maybe 20 Laswell-related discs and these are the 3 that I listen to on a regular basis.

Buckethead + Invisibl Skratch Piklz = screaming metal madness w/crazy turntable noise antics. Brilliant. I swear.

This strikes me as hilariously accurate.

Yeah, he produced it (and they were married at the time; I believe they have a kid together, but I could be wrong about that).

I like this darkish ambient album he did with tetsu inoue on FAX: https://www.discogs.com/Cymatic-Scan-Cymatic-Scan/release/134772

The latest subscriber exclusive on Bandcamp is a Praxis show from the Knitting Factory in NYC that featured a shit-ton of guest vocalists: Antipop Consortium, Nature Boy Jim Kelly (a pseudonym for one of the dudes from New Kingdom), Sussan Deyhim, Liu Sola, and to introduce the show, Rammellzee. I was there; he came onstage in full junkyard samurai/gundam armor. It was amazing.

Rammellzee. I was there; he came onstage in full junkyard samurai/gundam armor. It was amazing.

as in like the cover for his album !?

https://www.discogs.com/Rammellzee-Bi-Conicals-Of-The-Rammellzee/release/247455

Yeah, it was something like this one. Unbelievable to see in person.

https://superradnow.files.wordpress.com/2011/09/rammellzee.jpg

well i never.
i had always assumed the cover of that album was a (toy) model type of thing.
guess not.
need to dig out the album again.
did not get into it when i first heard it, then gave it a few spins last year, and really really enjoyed it.
think once i realised it was an noice/beats/experimental album as opposed to straight up hip hop (which i expected when i picked it up), then the whole vibe of it hit home a lot more.

Noteworthy, and sad to see

https://www.gofundme.com/f/emergency-please-help-bill-laswell

The good news is that he is just about at his goal, and after just 2 days.

Jeebus. Well, if there was any doubt the dude put every penny he ever made back into making and recording music for and with others ...

Thought someone would mention Hashisheen: The End of Law

Lots of familiar names on the list of donors.

A really interesting subscriber-only release just went up: an hour-long rehearsal recording from 1997 with Derek Bailey on guitar, Laswell on bass, Jack DeJohnette on drums, and DJ Disk on turntables. They played at some festival in Frankfurt, and this is from the day before, or something.

Most recent "guy can't catch a break" update:

We hope you have started the new year full of joy and happiness. Thank you for supporting Bill Laswell. He is sending his regards to you for 2023.

Bill was hospitalized in December 2022 with a severe blood infection on top of what he's already been dealing with (diabetes and high blood pressure). This infection caused his heart to malfunction. After 3 rounds of electric shocks to set the heartbeat correct, he was rushed to the emergency room and was admitted to the ICU for an extended period of time. We were told that if we hadn't called 911, he likely would have died. Bill doesn't remember any of it. He is now out of the hospital, his infection is cured... however he still has to be monitored and periodically examined. He started working again a couple of days ago while trying to recover at the same time.

Bill had lost some recording projects due to hospitalization and has again fallen behind on the studio rent. He would need to come up with a couple of month's rent as soon as possible in order to avoid an eviction process starting. At this moment, he really needs to keep the studio for work on some more recordings. Bill feels very bad asking again but really needs your help. Thank you very much for being there for him.

Credit the GoFundMe with regular updates, but man, it's been nothing but bad news since the original ask.

Bill is back in the hospital from the rehab. They needed to check his wounds. He is still on antibiotics, it has to be continued for a couple of weeks. Also, his wounds are still in healing process. He still needs wound vac. The hospital is trying to get the home care service for him, it's been taking time. Till they could fix that, he has to stay at the hospital. We weren't expected Bill's hospitalization would go long time like this. He would not be able to work yet and it is hitting him a lot. One thing we were told, was that he is getting better. He is tired and depressed being in the bed, but always talking about how he is grateful about your donation. wanted to send big thank you to all of you for supporting him and being there for him.

More bad news since the first GoFundMe. Sounds like he's going to lose his studio, and his recovery remains slow at best, costing him work...

More bad news since the first GoFundMe. Sounds like he's going to lose his studio, and his recovery remains slow at best, costing him work...

had no idea he was in these straits, has there been any further updates?

I just picked up Hear no Evil on vinyl for $4; been a while since I listened to this (I used to love the CD)

The introductory essay for my Stereogum column this month is gonna be all about Last Exit, since he's put up, no joke, six complete concerts by that group for his Bandcamp subscribers (of which I am one).

I contributed to his Gofundme so I get updates every couple months. He seems to be in bad shape, yes.

very sorry to hear this.

i've been revisiting his bob marley remix album from the 90s recently which has held up remarkably well.

Update today in fact:

Bill is still having the same problems, pain everywhere, no power to move around. A doctor whom he was suggested wasn't available with Bill's insurance. Soon, with help of Jazz Foundation, he will be getting what he was requested. We are hoping this will bring some positive solution. We really hope he will be able to play the bass like he used to, in near future and starts walking.
He is sending his sincere THANK YOU to everyone. Your supports kept him alive. thank you so much.

Literally every update since the gofundme began, even the good news, has been bad news. The latest:

Bill is back in the hospital. His home care nurse found out that his oxygen level was 51...(really low), suggested to call 911. When he got discharged last month, he still had liquid in his lungs, as well as his red blood cell, hemoglobin levels were very low. They could not give the iron to him because of the bacteria which loves iron, needed to wait till his kidney function gets better which actually did... so Doctor was ready to send nurses to give iron shots... however, it was a little too late for that. He's been in hospital for 5 days now. He had pneumonia which is cured, and his liquid in his body is pretty much gone. When he could breath without oxygen, he could come back home. His kidney is functioning well enough to push the liquid out of the body. He is a little confused but physically getting better. little by little...step by step.... thank you so much for your supports!! he really really appreciate it and sending love.

Every time I see this thread bumped I feel a little twinge of dread.

Same feeling I get every time I get a gofundme update! In both cases, apparently warranted. Though somehow there is a still a new Painkiller album coming next month.

Listening to a new Bandcamp-subscribers-only live recording from the 2006 Moers Festival by a group with Nils Petter Molvaer on trumpet, Eivind Aarset on guitar, Laswell on bass, Hamid Drake on drums and Aïyb Dieng on percussion. As spacy dub-metal fusion goes, it's pretty good. It's an audience recording, but it's been cleaned up.

Turns 70 today. I thought he was older!!

Is Deconstruction: The Celluloid Recordings a definitive compilation, or are there better releases?

Well, it looks like a pretty good overview of a lot of Celluloid stuff, that's for sure. Then he moves into the Axiom era.

Super cool Axiom album:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0S-pLVrGwFE

How about *this* lineup!?!

Carlinhos Brown: guitar, percussion, vocals
Wayne Shorter: soprano saxophone
Henry Threadgill: flute
Herbie Hancock: piano, prepared piano
Bernie Worrell: Hammond B-3 organ
Tony "Funky Drummer" Walls: drums, metal
Larry Wright & David Chapman: buckets

Though my fave supergroup lineup may remain Material's "The Third Power:"

Jungle Brothers (Baby Bam & Mike G): vocals
Jalaluddin Mansur Nuriddin: vocals
Shabba Ranks: vocals
Bootsy Collins: vocals, guitar
Gary Shider: vocals, guitar
Gary "Mudbone" Cooper: vocals
Jenny Peters: vocals
Herbie Hancock: piano
Bernie Worrell: piano, organ
Jeff Bova: synthesizers
Henry Threadgill: flute
Olu Dara: cornet, African trumpet
Nicky Skopelitis: guitar, fairlight
Michael Hampton: guitar
Robbie Shakespeare: bass
Sly Dunbar: drums, drum programming
Aiyb Dieng: percussion

HORN SECTION
Fred Wesley: trombone
Maceo Parker: alto sax
Pee Wee Ellis: tenor sax

BRASS SECTION
Joe Daly: baritone horn
Richard Harper: Euphonium
Marcus Rojas: tuba
Joel Brandon: whistling

I really, really like the Deadline album "Down By Law." Phillip Wilson gives that album a coherent "something" that is just undeniable!!

The lineup on the Third Power is amazing but I don't remember the album being very interesting...I should revisit.

I don't think it's particularly interesting or weird, but I love it. Good tunes and performances.

I think thats true of a few laswell fusion-y things from around that time. Almost kinda cozy how well everyone gets along.

I like Third Power a lot. It started production as a Sly and Robbie record, and it’s in the same bag as their Language Barrier and Rhythm Killers records from around that same time.

I like that Bahia Black album posted above though it would’ve been killer to have everyone playing together. Seems Shorter/Hancock play on one set of tunes , Worrell and Threadgill on another.

GoFundMe to cover his essential needs. Response has been great, much more than the original goal.

Bill Laswell has spent his life creating music that has shaped generations.

A visionary bassist and producer, he has contributed to over 3,000 recordings and collaborated with artists ranging from Herbie Hancock and Mick Jagger to countless innovators around the world.

His work on Herbie Hancock’s groundbreaking “Rockit” helped bring turntablism into the mainstream and inspired an entire generation of musicians.

For those who want to understand the full scope of Bill’s work and legacy, a detailed biography is in the photo section.

Now, Bill needs help.

Over the past years, Bill’s health has declined significantly. What began as serious infections and complications has left him physically weakened, and today he is largely bedridden. He is no longer able to perform, travel, or sustain the level of work that once supported him.

Bill is still in recovery, and while we believe he can improve, it is taking much longer than we had hoped.

He continues to need regular medical support, basic living expenses, and day-to-day care. Things most people take for granted — rent, phone, medical supplies — have become ongoing challenges. While he still works when he can, his condition limits him greatly.

Previous fundraisers helped him survive critical moments — hospitalization, studio crises, and the loss of income during the pandemic. But those campaigns are now outdated, and the reality is that Bill still needs consistent support to get through each month.

This fundraiser is simple and immediate:

We are trying to raise $5,000 to cover essential needs right now:

Medical supplies and care
Rent and basic living costs
Communication (phone, internet)
Daily necessities

Nothing extravagant — just stability.

If Bill were able to get up, play, tour, and produce as before, he would. But right now, that’s not possible.

So we are asking — quietly and honestly — for help.

If his music has ever meant something to you…
If his work has ever inspired you…
If you believe in supporting artists who have given so much…

Please consider contributing.

No amount is too small, and sharing this page helps just as much.

We are deeply grateful to everyone who has supported Bill so far — it has meant more than words can say.

Bill has been genuinely surprised and moved by the kindness and support he has received, and feels truly fortunate that so many people care about him.

We’re asking, once again, for your help in getting him through this next period.

Thank you.

Deja vu. Poor Bill.

given how prolific and involved he has been in the industry for so so long,
the fact that there is a need for this will never make sense to me.
and yeah i get that re divorce + owning the studio etc
but still.
laswell was involved with so many big name artists and yet he clearly never really got the $$$ payoff.

I've been kind of wondering about this too - how can someone who's worked so much be in this much trouble? - but I thought it was more of a reflection of how fucked up this country remains with regards to health care and elderly care.

To use another example, look up Leon Lederman, who I actually had the pleasure of meeting once - a brilliant Nobel Prize-winning physicist based in Illinois who not only worked and lived to very old age but lived a pretty modest lifestlye - in short, he did everything even the most hardened asshole in politics would say you had to do to have health care.

But it STILL wasn't enough. He had to auction off his Nobel Prize medal - which sold for $765,000 - to pay for the mounting bills related to his end-of-life care. (He began to suffer from memory loss in 2011, and died in an Idaho nursing home in 2015.)

I don't know that much about Laswell beyond listening to his work, so I don't doubt he could've been cheated out of money or had other unusual financial pressures, but it wouldn't surprise me at all if this situation would've happened regardless of those hypothetical events.

It makes me wonder, if Lederman lost his medal or for some reason never won it - which would've been an egregious mistake given his achievements - what would've happened? Another GoFundMe campaign? It's fucking bullshit so many people have to resort to that.

(to be clear, it's bad enough that I've actually discussed moving to another country with my partner in recent years - not imminently but eventually. I never, ever thought I'd move to a foreign country and say be buried or cremated someplace else, but I've seen too many people in life get financially crushed in their final years living here, and the reality at this point is too big for us to ignore.)

A friend of mine recently moved to Spain and has talked about encountering numerous old friends from the hardcore punk scene in Europe and when he asks them what's up, they all answer with some variation on "I can't afford to get old/sick in America."

yes, this is literally why I am leaving

yeah, i get all that re health costs in the US.
but for a long time, laswell was a big name producer : Material, PiL, Jagger, Herbie Hancock etc etc ...
all big name artists who sold well.
how on earth being a core part of such names should someone be needing to reach out for help.
given the mans insane history i would have thought someone in his stuffed to the max rolodex would be all 'you know what, i'll pay it all .. '.
i find this whole story seriously depressing.
yeah i can throw a few coins to help,
but there is something fundamenatally wrong when bill laswell, (i mean muthafiggin' BILL LASWELL) needs to do this.

yes, there is something fundamentally wrong with America

I don't know the details at all but it's certainly possible he didn't have much in the way of points/publishing on the big albums, and I could also easily imagine that he took his producer profits and plowed them into his label, putting together fantasy supergroup lineups together to make weirdo instrumental music that's probably not making much as a catalog.

Yeah, when I interviewed him 15 years ago or so he talked about how much time he used to spend finding someone willing to give him money to fly a bunch of equipment (and Pharoah Sanders) to Morocco to make an album, for example. Two quotes:

This [Praxis] album was released in Japan in 2008—what were the legal holdups that kept it from coming out in the US?

That was a rumor, because there were actually no legal holdups. I owed a record to Sanctuary. I did a deal with a guy who was at the label called Merck Mercuriadis. Merck seemed to have a lot of power there, and he helped me to get money to do projects. We made a deal for, I think, about five records, and then I did a mix of the Trojan catalog for him, a double CD of old reggae stuff. So this relationship was building, and before I really started this record, Sanctuary kinda went away and he disappeared, so I no longer owed them a record. But I had some other projects I had the funds to continue. I handed a live record in to them, which was good, which was just the Praxis quartet, the bass, drums, guitar and Bernie Worrell. We gave [Mercuriadis] that to fulfill our obligation, but by that time, he was gone, and so was, for the most part, what I saw the label being. I had the idea that we were gonna do [this record] so we just continued with the idea. I had two things. One was Tabla Beat Science with John McLaughlin. We were gonna invite [Carlos] Santana to play, and we had some money to do it. That was the one that got away, and Praxis was the one where I was actually able to salvage the idea. So it was never a legal thing at all, it was more—what I didn’t want to do was just give it to some small label that would fold and then I would never hear of it again. And it was in a time when majors were not so trustworthy. You’d give it to a major and it might not ever come out. I didn’t want to throw it away, so I purposely sat on it until I thought I could have more control over it being visible and available. And I did it in Japan strictly to realize the package, to create a hard copy to give to people, to have artwork and be able to say ‘This is the idea, eventually I want to put it out worldwide.’ That’s the story. I read that there was legal stuff, but there never really was. The Sanctuary thing was so loose you could hardly use the word ‘deal.’ It pretty much came and went, and I don’t really know what happened and at this point I don’t care. It was pretty sudden, you know—we had set up quite a few things, and then it just went away. And so did a lot of things. That’s when it all started to collapse. It’s for the best, though.

...

Do you seek out production work, or do people come to you?

No, I mostly get things coming to me. What I seek out is the structure of labels or production companies. Like, in Japan I’ll approach someone and say, I need to do a series of projects—I don’t wanna do just one record, and then it comes out and it’s gone in two weeks. I’d like to do a label or a series of projects that would hopefully last for a few years. To build something and keep building. I’ve done that in Japan, I’m trying to do it now in Ethiopia. You start something and you wanna continue for a while. So I seek those things out. These days, you don’t knock on the door of a major label and get funding for doing these things. You have to go out and really hustle and work, and the key now is networking and investors, really. People that appreciate stuff and have a way to get it realized. I reach out for that stuff. And as far as the records that come out and production stuff, mostly I get called and a lot of it’s sort of favor-oriented. It’s not always just work for hire and you do a great job and here’s a paycheck. A lot of it’s just to help people get along, you know?

It seems like music has really returned to the patronage system.

It has, totally. That’s exactly what it is. Which is okay. It’s just a different kind of navigation, you have to work a little differently.

but it's certainly possible he didn't have much in the way of points/publishing on the big albums

i think that this is a massive factor.
i was under the impression that blackwell funded all the axiom supergroup chaos as a tax write off, but maybe not.

xpost.

I just assumed he was one of those eccentric Full Artist types that didn't save money, just rolled it into future projects. He also iirc still owns his studio, which is probably worth something, but the GoFundMes of recent past indicated they really didn't want to resort to that, his livelihood.