Andy Summers

Andy Summers - Peggy's Blue Skylight - 2000 - RCA Victor

"A set of arrangements of Mingus music. As a guitarist he still favors blues/rock solos...but themes are treated to intelligent interpretive twists." - Mojo (Publisher) (11/00, p.106)

A risky business taking a shot at some twelve Mingus compositions. Many jazz purists would insist that only Mingus could play Mingus, in the same way that many jazz fans maintain that everything Charlie Parker played was the definitive version. If you have heard recordings like Charles Mingus' "The Black Saint & The Sinner Lady", then you will probably make comparisons with Summers' jazz efforts. It's impossible not to make comparisons. Nothing in music should be taken as sacrosanct. If it was, there would be no musical evolution, and nobody would be blogging ! Andy is no stranger to jazz or jazz fusion. He has worked with people like Kevin Ayers, Kevin Coyne, Robert Fripp, and the great Soft Machine. But taken on it's own, "Peggy's Blue Skylight" is mostly a good jazz album with some great fusion tinges. There is a wonderful list of musicians on this album, including Randy Brecker on trumpet, Dave Carpenter on bass, and John Novello on Hammond organ. Members of the jazz outfits, the Kronos Quartet, and The Jazz Passengers also appear on this recording. Just to go back to Charles Mingus; On this album Andy Summers, takes a lot of the "heaviness", and "fatness" out of Mingus' tunes and stamps them with his own style. Credit to the guy for undertaking this album which is HR by A.O.O.F.C. This album is also available with three bonus tracks, - "East Coastin'", "Fables of Faubus", and "Noddin' Yer Head Blues". Andy also played guitar on Juicy Lucy's "Blueprint" album which is really good. If you would like to hear some truly brilliant jazz guitar, listen to Andy Summers, & John Etheridge's "Invisible Threads" album. If you are a Police (the band) fan, this could be a new, and hopefully enjoyable kind of "Synchronicity" for you !

TRACKS

Boogie Stop Shuffle
Tonight At Noon
Reincarnation Of A Lovebird
Opus Three
Cumbia Jazz Fusion
Remember Rockefeller At Attica
Peggy's Blue Skylight
Weird Nightmare
Goodbye Pork Pie Hat/ Where Can A Man Find Peace?
Free Cell Block F
Self Portrait in Three Colours
Myself When I Am Real

All music and lyrics by Charles Mingus

TRACKS / MUSICIANS

BOOGIE STOP SHUFFLE
Andy Summers: Guitar
Dave Carpenter: Bass
Joel Taylor: Drums
Randy Brecker: Trumpet

TONIGHT AT NOON
Andy Summers: Guitar
Dave Carpenter: Bass
Joel Taylor: Drums
Nick Ariondo: Accordian
Hank Roberts: Cello

REINCARNATION OF A LOVEBIRD
Andy Summers: Guitar
Dave Carpenter: Bass
Joel Taylor: Drums
John Novello: Hammond B-3 Organ
Geetha Bennett: Vocal, Veena & Tamboura
Hank Roberts: Cello

OPUS THREE
Andy Summers: Guitar
Dave Carpenter: Bass
Joel Taylor: Drums
John Novello: Hammond B-3 Organ
Rob Thomas: Violin

CUMBIA JAZZ FUSION
Andy Summers: Guitar
Dave Carpenter: Bass
Joel Taylor: Drums
Hank Roberts: Cello
Michito Sanchez: Percussion

REMEMBER ROCKEFELLER AT ATTICA
Andy Summers: Guitar
Dave Carpenter: Bass
Joel Taylor: Drums
Alison Wedding: Vocal
John Novello: Hammond B-3 Organ
Michito Sanchez: Percussion
Brian Kilgore: Percussion
Rob Thomas: Violin
Curtis Fowlkes: Trombone
Hank Roberts: Cello

PEGGY'S BLUE SKYLIGHT
Andy Summers: Guitar
Dave Carpenter: Bass
Joel Taylor: Drums
Michito Sanchez: Percussion
Nick Ariondo: Accordian

WEIRD NIGHTMARE
Deborah Harry: Vocal
Andy Summers: Guitar
Dave Carpenter: Bass
Joel Taylor: Drums
John Novello: Hammond B-3 Organ
Hank Roberts: Cello


GOODBYE PORK PIE HAT/ WHERE CAN A MAN FIND PEACE?
Q-Tip: Vocal
Andy Summers: Guitar
Dave Carpenter: Bass
Joel Taylor: Drums
John Novello: Hammond B-3 Organ
Hank Roberts: Cello

FREE CELL BLOCK F
Andy Summers: Guitar
Dave Carpenter: Bass
Joel Taylor: Drums
The Jazz Passengers:
-- Roy Nathanson: Alto Saxophone
-- Curtis Fowlkes: Trombone
-- Bill Ware: Vibraphone
-- Rob Thomas: Violin


SELF PORTRAIT IN THREE COLOURS
Andy Summers: Guitar
Dave Carpenter: Bass
Joel Taylor: Drums
Hank Roberts: Cello

MYSELF WHEN I AM REAL
Andy Summers: Guitar
Kronos Quartet:
-- David Harrington: Violin
-- John Sheba: Violin
-- Hank Dutt: Viola
-- Jennifer Culp: Cello

MUSICIANS (GENERAL)

Andy Summers - Guitar, Electric Sitar
Dave Carpenter - Bass
John Novello - Organ, Hammond Organ
Joel Taylor - Drums
Michito Sanchez, Brian Kilgore - Percussion
Roy Nathanson # - Alto Sax
Randy Brecker - Trumpet
Curtis Fowlkes # - Trombone
Hank Roberts, Jennifer Culp * - Cello
Hank Dutt * - Viola
John Sheba *, David Harrington *, Rob Thomas # - Violin
Nick Ariondo - Accordion
Bill Ware # - Vibraphone
Geetha R. Bennett - Vocals, Tamboura, Veena
Debbie Harry, Q-Tip, Alison Wedding - Vocals
N.B: * Plays with the Kronos Quartet, * # Plays with The Jazz Passengers

REVIEWS

In a similar vein as his 1999 release Green Chimneys: The Music of Thelonious Monk, guitarist Summers now offers tribute to jazz pioneer Charles Mingus. The collection is a little cobbled together, with an ill-conceived rap from Q-Tip over "Goodbye Pork Pie Hat" and a sparse, unfunky reading of "Cumbia Jazz Fusion," but the former Policeman's bright guitar work works hard at tying it all together. Making more admirable guest spots are Randy Brecker bringing his crossover jazz trumpet to "Boogie Stop Shuffle," Deborah Harry singing on "Weird Nightmare," and the genre-bending Kronos Quartet performing a string arrangement of the final track "Myself." While at times overproduced and slick, Summers must be commended for approaching Mingus' daunting music head on and adapting it as his own. © Zac Johnson, All Music Guide © 2010 Answers Corporation http://www.answers.com/topic/peggy-s-blue-skylight

If Andy Summers's gigs in the late 1990s fell short of expectations, Green Chimneys, his 1999 Monk tribute, showed great improvement, and the progress continues in this homage to Mingus. His line playing is still occasionally a little halting, but he has some very respectable solos on "Opus 3," "Cumbia Jazz Fusion," and "Free Cell Block F." And there are also sterling contributions from Randy Brecker, Hank Roberts, Deborah Harry, and others. Above all, though, the album's success flows from the same arranging intelligence Summers brought to the Police 20 years ago. The old chestnut "Goodbye Porkpie Hat" is about the only suggestion of cliché, with a string quartet (courtesy of Kronos) arrangement of "Myself" showing the breadth of the leader's imagination. Fellow Policeman Sting showed an interest in jazz after leaving the service, but as this richly varied and entertaining set shows, Summers, free of the pressures of stardom, has been the one to more fully explore the music. © Mark Gilbert © 1996-2010, Amazon.com, Inc. or its affiliates

"Peggy's Blue Skylight" is a tribute to the music of Charles Mingus. After successfully trying his hand at interpreting the compositions of Thelonious Monk with GREEN CHIMNEYS, ex-Police guitarist Andy Summers stretches his musical experimentation even further with "Peggy's Blue Skylight", a collection of Charles Mingus' works. Whereas Monk was quirky and introverted, Mingus was often brash and expansive. Summers, given his unusually creative musical background, does a grand job of interpreting these heady pieces in his own idiosyncratic fashion. Right off the bat, Summers makes a bold reading of "Boogie Stop Shuffle" as a lazy reggae lope. Always having been one to create mesmerizing atmospheres out of which he forges creative slants on his musical subjects, Summers' esoteric settings for "Reincarnation Of a Lovebird," "Goodbye Porkpie Hat/Where Can a Man Find Peace?" and "Myself When I Am Real" are ample proof of the guitarist's inspiration. Other more conventional readings in this rich experiment include "Cumbia Jazz Fusion," with its deep samba groove, and Deborah Harry's sultry version of "Weird Nightmare." Originally released in 2000, Peggy's Blue Skylight is Andy Summer's tribute album to Jazz pioneer and legend Charles Mingus. It features The Police guitarist with an all-star cast including, among others, Deborah Harry, Q Tip, The Kronos Quartet, Rob Thomas, Randy Brecker and The Jazz Passengers, all paying tribute to one of the world's greatest 20th century Jazz composers. Recorded at Fool For Love Studio, Venice Beach, California; Megatrax, Los Angeles, California; Right Track, New York, New York; Skywalker Ranch Studios, San Francisco, California in 2000. 1996 - 2010 CD Universe; Portions copyright 1948 - 2010 Muze Inc.
For personal non-commercial use only. All rights reserved http://www.cduniverse.com/search/xx/music/pid/7485433/a/Peggy's+Blue+Skylight.htm

BIO (WIKI)

Andy Summers (born Andrew James Somers 31 December 1942) is an English guitarist and composer best known for his work in The Police and Eric Burdon & The Animals. Andrew James Summers was born on 31 December 1942 in Poulton-le-Fylde, Lancashire, England to his parents, Maurice and Jean Somers. When he was a young child, he moved to Bournemouth, Dorset, upon which he took up the guitar at age 14. By 17, he was playing in local clubs. While a teen he worked in a Bournemouth music store frequented by a young Robert Fripp. Although Summers had been essentially self-taught when he began his professional musical career, he studied classical guitar at California State University at Northridge for four years until 1973. Summers began his recording career in the 1960s as the guitarist for the R&B group Zoot Money's Big Roll Band, and its subsequent psychedelic-era incarnation, Dantalian's Chariot. In 1968, Summers was a member (for a couple of months, from May to July of the Canterbury scene jazz fusion band Soft Machine, although he did not record with the group. He also recorded with Eric Burdon and The Animals), and spent much of the mid-seventies doing session work for Kevin Ayers, Kevin Coyne, and others. He was also a member of the band Strontium 90 along with Sting, Stewart Copeland and Mike Howlett. When he moved back to London, he changed his surname from Somers to Summers. Summers achieved international prominence as the guitarist for The Police (which he first had contact with in 1977, and of which he was the oldest member by almost a decade), most notably on popular hits such as "Message in a Bottle", "Don't Stand So Close to Me", and "Every Breath You Take". Summers also wrote songs for the Police, such as "Omegaman", and "Mother", and his instrumental "Behind My Camel" (on which Sting refused to play) won the Grammy for Best Rock Instrumental in 1980. Although Sting was the primary lead vocalist, Summers sang lead vocals on several songs, including "Be My Girl - Sally" (which he co-wrote) and "Mother." After the break-up of The Police in 1983, Summers continued his musical career, both as a solo artist and in collaboration with other musicians. He has also developed his career as a writer (of books and essays) and a photographer.

MORE ABOUT ANDY SUMMERS

While Andy Summers is best known as the guitarist of the Police, he has since forged a successful and acclaimed solo career with new age-influenced contemporary instrumental music that, like his work with Sting and company, draws on his love for jazz and his fascination with creating instrumental textures. Born Andrew James Somers in Poulton-Fylde, Lancashire, England, on December 31, 1942, the young Somers (who later changed his surname to the more easily spelled Summers) moved to Bournemouth as a child and, upon taking up the guitar at 14, immersed himself in the local jazz scene. By 16, he was playing in local clubs and coffeehouses, where he was noticed by Zoot Money. Somers was invited to join Money's Big Roll Band, with whom he appeared on the live album The All Happening Zoot Money's Big Roll Band at Klook's Kleek. Money eventually changed the band into a psychedelic outfit called Dantalian's Chariot, and when that project dissolved in early 1968, Somers briefly signed on with the Soft Machine before rejoining Money in a revamped Animals lineup for the LP Love Is. When that imploded in 1969, Somers studied classical guitar and composition at UCLA for four years, in the meantime giving guitar lessons, gigging with a local Latin-rock band, and acting with various theater troupes. Upon his return to England in 1973, Summers became something of a journeyman, touring in the backing bands of Neil Sedaka, Kevin Coyne, Kevin Ayers, and David Essex. Summers met Sting and Stewart Copeland in 1977 while playing with a band called Strontium 90. The two asked Summers to join their full-time project, the Police; together, the trio gradually developed a style centered around jazz- and reggae-influenced pop/rock, and Sting's strong bass lines allowed Summers to supply subtle sonic textures and colors on his guitar, and to experiment with various effects. Summers first stepped out on his own in 1982, teaming with King Crimson guitarist Robert Fripp on the jazz- and Eastern-tinged I Advance Masked. It was followed in 1984 with Bewitched, another Summers/Fripp collaboration, around the same time the Police officially disbanded. Eager to establish himself in musical realms outside of rock & roll, Summers did a bit of movie soundtrack work (Down and Out in Beverly Hills, 2010, etc.) before returning to recording, this time on his own. His first solo effort, 1987's harmonically intricate yet pop-oriented XYZ, met with poor critical response. Its follow-up, 1988's Mysterious Barricades, was more successful, emphasizing Summers' textural sensibilities on its jazzy, new age-influenced compositions. A string of albums in this style followed through the '90s, notably The Golden Wire (1989), Charming Snakes (1991), World Gone Strange (1991), Invisible Thread (1993), and The Last Dance of Mr. X (1997). For 1998's Strings of Desire, he teamed with South American guitar virtuoso Victor Biglione; 1999's Green Chimneys: Music of Thelonious Monk found Summers working with a larger ensemble than usual for him, as well as his first collaboration with Sting since the Police (on a version of "'Round Midnight"). Following the success of his Monk-themed album, the guitarist put together an album of interpretations of compositions by Charles Mingus called Peggy's Blue Skylight, released in late 2000. Earth + Sky appeared four years later. Summers continued to record thereafter, releasing First You Build a Cloud in 2007. He also participated in the Police reunion tour that same year. © Steve Huey © 2010 Rovi Corporation. All Rights Reserved http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=11:aiftxqr5ldae~T1