CAN's legendary Arles performance from 1975 has finally be given a proper double-LP release by Mute. Check it out!
Here's the scoop...
LIVE IN ARLES 1975 is the seventh album in the acclaimed live series from German experimental rock pioneers CAN, overseen by founding member Irmin Schmidt and released on Mute.
Widely regarded as one of their finest performances, even by the band members themselves, this concert took place at the Roman Théâtre Antique in Arles. The lineup consisted of the core four members: Schmidt, Michael Karoli, Jaki Liebezeit and Holger Czukay. The band played as part of a festival that included other artists such as Nico and Kevin Ayers.
The recording was unearthed from the Spoon Records vaults, after long only existing through the stories of those who were there. To celebrate its first release, it feels only fitting that the sleeve notes include first-hand accounts from people who attended the show.
As with the rest of the series, this release captures the unique nature of CAN’s onstage improvisations. Every show was different, and these recordings offer a fresh look at a band whose creative process never truly finished.
Have a listen to Live in Arles, 1975 below. Get a copy on vinyl via Bandcamp right here.
Director Michelle Heighway has been working on her film about the CAN frontman since 2014 and could use your help to finish it.
Energy: A Documentary About Damo Suzuki
Critically-acclaimed director Michelle Heighway has been working with iconic musician Damo Suzuki since 2014, culminating in ENERGY.
The film shows five years of Suzuki’s life in Germany and the United Kingdom as he confronts cancer and attempts to continue a never-ending global tour.
We are now crowdfunding for the final phase of the film: archival copyright fees and music licensing which will allow us to honor Damo’s story with the documentary it deserves.
“ENERGY is a wonderful story of hope,” says Heighway. “It’s a personal portrait of an iconic musician, a nomad and a person who connects others all around the world.”
The film examines the past, present and future of Suzuki’s influential music, from his beginnings with legendary band CAN, to his singular outlook on life, creativity, and protest.
A crowd-funding campaign has been launched by Heighway via Indiegogo to raise funds to help complete the film with contributions helping to pay for music licensing, archival photos and footage rights, graphics, sound mixing, mastering, colour/sound correction and other post-production costs as well as distribution.
For those who'd like to help out with a donation and get a signed photo of Damo, digital stream of the completed film, a limited edition coffee mug, t-shirt or DVD, go here. Check out the trailer below.
The Singles – available on triple vinyl, CD, digital download and via streaming services on June 16th – is a collection of all of CAN's single releases presented together for the first time including such well-loved tracks as “Halleluwah,” “Vitamin C” and “I Want More” to more obscure singles such as “Silent Night” and "Turtles Have Short Legs." The anthology also includes the non-LP track “Shikako Maru Ten” (listen below), originally issued as the B-side of CAN's “Spoon” single which was a Top 10 hit in Germany in 1972. The songs on this compilation are all presented in their original 7-inch edits.
CAN, founded in 1967, released their debut album Monster Movie (1969) which set them apart from the mainstream, carving out a sound that transcended the boundaries of experimental electronic, jazz and modern classical music. CAN’s influence extends from post-punk musicians such as Joy Division and Primal Scream, through avant-garde composers including Bernhard Lang and Radiohead. CAN mainman Irmin Schmidt began his musical career as a pupil of Stockhausen and Ligeti, and conducted numerous high-profile orchestras in his native Germany and abroad. Hearing the sounds of Jimi Hendrix and Frank Zappa in the ‘60s led to the formation of CAN, yet Schmidt never lost touch with his avant-garde classical upbringing.
The Barbican in London recently hosted a very special event to mark CAN’s 50th anniversary year: Irmin Schmidt conducted the London Symphony Orchestra, presenting the world premiere of an original orchestral work composed by Schmidt and Gregor Schwellenbach called CAN Dialog while a specially curated supergroup brought together by Sonic Youth’s Thurston Moore and featuring CAN’s first singer Malcolm Mooney performed a set of CAN tracks, including “She Brings The Rain,” “Yoo Doo Right” and “Mother Sky.”
In spring 2018, Faber & Faber will publish a new book devoted to CAN titled All Gates Open. The special edition will come in two volumes: one will be the first complete, authorized biography of the band written by Wire contributor Rob Young (who wrote a Wire cover story on CAN in April 1997 and recalled his time spent with drummer Jaki Liebezeit here) and the second, CAN Kiosk by Irmin Schmidt, is a collage of thoughts, visuals and interviews collated by Max Dax and Robert Defcon.
CAN – THE SINGLES (Mute)
1. Soul Desert
2. She Brings The Rain
3. Spoon
4. Shikako Maru Ten
5. Turtles Have Short Legs
6. Halleluwah (Edit)
7. Vitamin C
8. I’m So Green
9. Mushroom
10. Moonshake
11. Future Days (Edit)
12. Dizzy Dizzy (Edit)
13. Splash (Edit)
14. Hunters And Collectors (Edit)
15. Vernal Equinox (Edit)
16. I Want More
17. ...And More
18. Silent Night
19. Cascade Waltz
20. Don’t Say No (Edit)
21. Return
22. Can Can
23. Hoolah Hoolah (Edit)
Single Artist Releases 1. WITCH - We Intend To Cause Havoc! 2. Don Cherry - Organic Music Society 3. The Flatlanders - The Odessa Tapes 4. Hannibal Marvin Peterson - The Tribe 5. Feedtime - The Aberrant Years 5. Ebo Taylor – Twer Nyame 6. Dan Penn – The Fame Recordings 7. Myrian Makenwa – La Extraordinaria 8. Edzayawa - Projection One 9. Tim Maia – Nobody Can Live Forever 10. Henri-Pierre Noel - Piano 11. Azanyah - The One 12. Yabby You & Bretheren - Deeper Roots: Dub Plates & Rarities, 1976 to 1978 13. Can - The Lost Tapes 14. The Funkees - Dancing Time: The Best Of Eastern Nigeria’s Afro Rock Exponents, 1973-77 15. Lee Perry - Sound Doctor: Lee Perry And The Sufferers' Black Ark Singles & Dub Plates 1972 To 1978 16. Sandy Denny – The Notes and Words: A Collection of Demos and Rarities 17. William Parker - Centering: Unreleased Early Recordings, 1976-1987 18. Henri Guédon - Cosmozouk 19. Grupo Los Yoyi - Yoyi 20. Buck Owens - Tall Dark Stranger 21. The Lijadu Sisters – Afro-Beat Soul Sisters: The Lijadu Sisters At Afrodisia, Nigeria, 1976-79 22. Reverend Gary Davis - An Afternoon With Reverend Gary Davis 23. Ilaiyaraaja – Fire Star: Synth-Pop & Electro-Funk from Tamil Films 1985-1989 24. Pauline Oliveros - Reverberations Tape and Electronic Music 1961-1970 25. Alfonso Lovo - La Gigantona 26. George Jackson - Let The Best Man Win: The Fame Recordings Volume 2 27. William Sheller - Lux Aeterna 28. Derdiyoklar İkilisi - Disco Folk 29. Augustus Pablo - Dubbing On Bond Street 30. Lee Hazlewood – The LHI Years: Singles, Nudes & Backsides, 1968-71 31. Afro Funk - Body Music 32. Pharoah Sanders - In The Beginning 33. Ahora Mazda - Ahora Mazda 33. Rob – Make It Fast, Make It Slow 34. Brenda Ray – D'Ya Hear Me! Naffi Years, 1979-83 35. Karen Dalton - 1966 36. HE3 Project - Chapter Three 37. Tronics – Love Backed by Force 38. Emil Richards - Stones / Journey To Bliss 39. The Outsiders - Monkey On Your Back: Their 45s 40. Baris Manco - Sakla Samani, Gelir Zamani 41. Doug Jerebine – Doug Jerebine Is Jesse Harper 42. Lou Ragland – I Travel Alone 43. Shin Joong Hyun – Shin Joong Hyun & Yup Juns 44. Mahmoud Ahmed - Mahmoud Ahmed Accompanied By The Ibex Band 45. Roy Porter Sound Machine – The Story of Roy Porter Sound Machine 1971-1975 46. Domingo Cura – Tiempo De Percusion: An Anthology, 1971-77 47. Royal Band de Thiès – Kadior Demb 48. Justin Rutledge & The Junction Forty - No Never Alone 49. Afro Kelenkye Band - Jungle Funk 49. Salah Ragab & The Cairo Jazz Band - Unreleased Egyptian Jazz 1968-1974 50. Ironing Board Sam - An Introduction To Ironing Board Sam
Various Artist Compilations
1. Diablos Del Ritmo: The Colombian Melting Pot,1960-1985
2. The Return Of The Stuff That Dreams Are Made Of
3. Jukebox Mambo: Rumba & Afro-Latin Accented Rhythm & Blues 1949 to 1960
4. It's Saturday Night!: Starday-Dixie Rockabilly 1955-1961
5. Personal Space: Electronic Soul, 1974-1984
6. R&B Hipshakers, Vol. 3: Just a Little Bit of the Jumpin' Bean
7. Holy Spirit: Spiritual Soul & Gospel Funk from Shreveport’s Jewel Records
8. TV Sound & Image: British Television Film & Library Composers 1955-78
9. Work Hard, Play Hard, Pray Hard: Hard Time, Good Time & End Time Music, 1923-1936
10. A Search For CMS African Records by Blue Flamingo
11. ¡Saoco! The Bomba and Plena Explosion in Puerto Rico 1954-1966
12. The Detroit Funk Vaults: Funk and Soul from Dave Hamilton, 1968-1979
13. Killed By Synth, Vol. 1
14. The Rojac Story: The Best Of Rojac & Tayster
15. The Original Sound of Cumbia: The History of Colombian Cumbia & Porro As Told By The Phonograph 1948-79
17. Soul Cal: Funky Disco & Modern Soul Masterpieces 1971-1982
18. Fetén: Rare Jazz Recordings From Spain, 1961-1974
19. Now's The Time: Deep German Jazz Grooves Vol 2: 1957-1969
20. Cooler Than Ice: Arctic Records & The Rise Of Philly Soul
21. Loving On The Flipside: Sweet Funk And Beat-Heavy Ballads 1969-1977
22. Royal Grooves: Funk & Groovy Soul from the King Records Vault
23. Tomorrow's Achievements: Parry Music Library 1976-86
24. Down Under Nuggets: Original Australian Artyfacts 1965-1967
25. Spiritual Jazz Volume II and III: Esoteric, Modal And Deep European Jazz 1960-78
26. Eccentric Soul: Omnibus Vol. 1
27. Regional Garland - Mixed Sugar: The Complete Works, 1970-1987
28. Hall of Fame: Rare and Unissued Gems from the Fame Vaults
29. From The Vaults Of Ric & Ron Records: Rare & Unreleased Recordings 1958-1962
30. Sensacional Soul Vol. 3: Spanish Soul Stompers 1966-1976
31. The Music City Sessions, Vol. 1-3
32. Eccentric Soul: A Red Black & Green Production
33. Zendooni: Funk Psychedelia & Pop From Iranian Pre Revolution Generation
31. Wail Man Wail! The Best of King Curtis 1952-1961
32. Twin Cities Funk & Soul: Lost R&B Grooves From Minneapolis/St. Paul 1964-1979
33. Deep Enough Volume 1: Deep Jazz, Deep Funk & All Kinds Of Deep Grooves
34: Man Chest Hair: 17 Outbursts Of Unreleased Testosterone From The 1970s Mancunian Rock Underground
35: Java-Java: Indonesia Screaming Fuzz, Vol. 2
36. Soul Braza: Brazilian 60's & 70's Soul Psych, Vol. 2
37. Ike Turner Studio Productions: New Orleans And Los Angeles 1963-65
38. Cumbia Beat Vol 2: Experimental Guitar Driven Tropical Sounds From Peru 1966-1983
39. You Turned My Head Around: Lee Hazlewood Industries 1967-1970
40. Sofrito: International Soundclash
41. Lost Soul Gems: From Sounds Of Memphis
42. Surinam: Boogie & Disco Funk From The Surinamese Dance Floors, 76-83
43. Strange Passion: Explorations In Irish Post Punk DIY & Electronic Music 1980-83
44. Ivory Coast Soul 2: Afro Soul In Abidjan From 1976 To 1981
45. Ritmo Caliente
46. Khana Khana: Funk Psychedelia & Pop From Iranian Pre Revolution Generation
47. The Best of Perception & Today Records
48. Diggin' Down Argentina: Nuggets From The Rioplatense Scene 1967-1976, Vol 2
49. Jende Ri Palenge: People Of Palenque
50. Dabke: Sounds Of The Syrian Houran
