Eno/Byrne's My Life In The Bush Of Ghosts Reissued?

there were four non-album tracks on the original bootleg, including the Kuhlman version of 'jezebel spirit' (and I'd be surprised if that track is one of these new tracks). so there's lots of new stuff here, even for those who already have the lo-fidelity bootleg.

Well, I've got both "Q'uran" and "Very, Very Hongro" on my version and it's not like the disc I have is some Holy Grail -- it's just the normal Sire edition. I was wondering if it might've had something to do--oh, I dunno--with the fact that it's 2006, there's a perceived war against Islam going on, and the likes of France and Denmark are being burned to the ground.

The thing about Bush of Ghosts is that it's exactly what the fanboys say it is and what the critics gripe about as well. Which is to say that it's this largely unprecedented fusion of musics and cultures while also being a tinny, unholy mashup that isn't the sum of its parts.

I'd argue that latter part of that probably wasn't intentional--there's no denying it does sound like it was thrown together by a couple of nerdy white guys who know their electronics a hell of a lot better than they do their African music--but the record is more about authenticity than it is authentic. I mean, fuck taking "Music in the World of Islam" or Dunya Yusin without permission -- the whole Bush of Ghosts concept was thieved from Jon Hassell!

Holger Czukay might have something to say about that.

Talking-heads.net has this info on that bootleg:

My Life in the Bush of Ghosts outtakes (45 min) (CD “Ghosts”)

Interview with Brian Eno - Mea Culpa - Into the Spirit Womb (orig version of “The Jezebel Spirit”) - Regiment - The Friends of Amos Tutuola - America is Waiting - The Carrier - Very Very Hungry - On the Way to Zagora - Les Hommes ne le Sauront Jamais - A Secret Life - Come With Us - Mountain of Needles

But there seems to be yet another version(scroll down) with these extra tracks (was that pink thing the cover of the first edition?) :

- Cunning Tendacy (sic)
- interview
- Iron Bed
- Late But Not Serious
- Lot (= Into the spirit womb = the jezebel spirit original)
- The Carrier (about a minute longer, extra vocals in the middle)

(found these online, so they do exist) - I presume this second one is also a bootleg?

*cough*

I listened to this album over and over when it came out. Now I wouldn't exactly call it horrible, but I don't think it's very good. It mostly is of historical interest, without deserving any lost classic status. Also, I think this was a case where having heard Eno providing background on the source material in an interview contributed a lot to my enthusiasm for the record.

If you want to hear recitation of the Qur'an, it's not hard to find recordings. Putting a lame rhythm track underneath does not improve it (though I am a little sad it is being left off the album under pressure--see the Danish Muhammad Cartoon thread). I prefer solo recitation, rather than the sort of group recitation that appears on the samples on this album. (The latter really seems to be more about communal worship, while the solo recordings tend to have more artistry to them.)

Samira Tewfic is on this too, though I only properly discovered her in 1993/4. Now there's someone who needs to be reissued, seriously.

http://kikka.cocolog-nifty.com/blog/images/enobyrne2.jpg

I tend to associate all those evangelist-sampling songs (stuff like Front 242) that were popular a little bit later with this record, not that there is necessarily a direct line of influence. (I'm sure you could find earlier examples.)

Shocklee/Bomb Squad, mentioned upthread.

Qur'an was taken off the record years ago, I doubt current events had anything to do with it.

Based on looking at Amazon, I believe it was taken off the second edition vinyl issue, put back on the first CD, and taken off again more recently. BTW, here's an odd tidbit for a little perspective, courtesy of an Amazon reviewer:

'I initially heard of it thanks to a recommendation by Pink Floyd's keyboardist Richard Wright, in a 1996 interview given to Record Collector Magazine.
Mr. Wright (who incidentally also thinks highly of Remain in Light) describes his first reaction to the album, presumably on its initial release: "This knocked me sideways when I first heard it--full of drum loops, samples and soundscapes, stuff that we really take for granted now, but which was unheard of in all but the most progressive musical circles at the time."'

cunning tendacy = on the way to zagora
iron bed = the friends of amos tutuola
late but not serious = les homes ne sauront jamais
into the spirit womb = lot = the jezebel spirit (original)

For better or worse, Moby's Play.

like Ned hinted at, Hassell does not have the copyright on cross-cultural tape collage -- Czukay / Dammers' 'Canaxis' 1968, Richard Maxfield's 'Bacchanale', 1963, and James Tenney's 'Viet Flakes' 1967, all worth mentioning in reviews if you're going to get archival on us -- none of those are pop, though even there there's precedent in Czukay's 'Movies' from 1979.

Hassell overstates his case, he already had amazing solo records out & there's no confusion as to who was doing what, though yeah it would have been great if he'd been in on the sessions for this record.

Not to be too self-promoting, but I wrote a little bit about this here, although the second installment of the column will really get into the post-Eno/Byrne landscape in greater depth. I note that other posters here have covered some of the same key pieces as well.

H8erz who bag on this record = teh suq, UR all ghey

My ex-partner, whom I otherwise loved on several zillion counts, absolutely HATED my taste in music. He endlessly mocked my Steve Reich, Cocteau Twins, Kate Bush, and Stina Nordenstam, whom I otherwise need to listen to every day.

Needless to say, I did say ex-partner...

who has the skinny on the re-release?

The Ghosts record isn't considered a Talking Heads record, hence no DualDisc, Geir.

The story I'd heard is the one Naive tells, that as Eno became more and more involved with the band - and remember, he'd been around since their first LP - Harrison et al. got sick of being the backup for the Byrne and Eno Show.

http://s38.yousendit.com/d.aspx?id=2WL2GT7XI83EP0KFMOF1N31CKM

Jean Michel Jarre's Zoolook. Honestly.

Any chance of another re-up, someone? Pretty please?

No Dunya Younes albums on Spotify

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KR715ql1-Fk

that is awesome