Junius Paul announces album
Album release: 22nd November 2019
Label: International Anthem
More info: Junius Paul’s website
Today, Junius Paul has announced his debut album 'Ism'. Known to followers of International Anthem Record's catalogue as a right-hand rhythmist for Makaya McCraven (appearing on In The Moment, Highly Rare and Universal Beings), known to followers of creative music as a next-generation torch-bearer for The Art Ensemble of Chicago (appearing on their recently released 50th Anniversary LP We Are On The Edge), and known to many musicians as a multi-functional first chair bassist of the Chicago scene... Junius's debut 'Ism' comes fairly deep into a prolific career of being a stone cold backbone for countless others' ensembles.
Recorded across a handful of live & studio locations in Chicago, the album features over a dozen instrumentalists, friends & collaborators of Junius' - including Vincent Davis, Justin Dillard, Corey Wilkes, Isaiah Spencer, Tomeka Reid, Marquis Hill, Irvin Pierce, Shanta Nurullah, and Makaya McCraven (who also produced the record).
Speaking about the album, the label says, "This one has been a long time coming. Of course many followers & practitioners of jazz & improvised music will agree Junius is well overdue for his leader debut; but we mean more specifically, this one has been a longtime coming. . . After working through nine recording sessions and over three years of considered post-production with Junius and editor-in-chief Makaya McCraven, we can faithfully say: it was worth the wait."
Alongside the announcement Junius has also share the first track from the record 'Asé' - Listen HERE
'Ism' comes on two 140-gram black vinyl LPs inside a heavyweight reverse-board *gatefold jacket* with flooded black pockets, IARC obi strip and dome-patterned inner-sleeves. The album artwork comes via of London / resident visualists of Total Refreshment Centre Raimund Wong & Fabrice Bourgelle, with gatefold design by IARC designer Craig Hansen.
And, per what's become International Anthem's standard, they have a limited edition run of color vinyl, for the first pressing only. This time it's 333 copies pressed with transparent Green & Gold colored vinyl.
Pre-order HERE
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Junius Paul - 'Ism'
liner notes by Ayana Contreras
(excerpted)
Ism opens audaciously with the spiritual mic-check “You Are Free To Choose,” a track that features Junius Paul alongside Vincent Davis (drums), Justin Dillard (piano), and Corey Wilkes (horns).
This is by no accident. In many ways, “You Are Free To Choose” captures the spirit of Junius Paul’s artistic roots. Corey, Justin, and Vincent were among the multigenerational cadre of Chicago musicians present when Junius chose to follow his own path of creative discovery at the storied Velvet Lounge on the South Side of the city back in October of 2002.
Though the origins of his craft go back to playing in church, his creative voice really developed during jam sessions at clubs like The Velvet alongside members of the AACM, or Association for the Advancement of Creative Musicians. It was iron sharpening iron, the most natural form of knowledge transfer. He explained The Velvet’s vibe in 2018: “It’s like in Africa.... If you had this society of diviners or medicine people, or you know, sages… The Velvet stuff is not secret; but there are certain aspects of it… if you weren’t there, you weren’t there.” The Velvet Lounge closed in 2010.
Back in the sixties and seventies, Chess Records’s Ter-Mar Studios was just a few blocks away from where The Velvet sat beginning in 1983. Chess was where some of Junius’s idols (like guitarist Pete Cosey and producer Charles Stepney) recorded some of his favorite albums. He sees himself as a part of that lineage. “I come from that... It’s special to be a part of that magic.” Junius still drives back to the club’s former location. “Every time I pass there” he notes, “the memories flood back.”
“Fred Anderson and a Half” and “Ma and Dad” were both were recorded at the first of two June 2016 sessions Junius led at Comfort Station (a historic trolley stop turned art gallery). They both were also named in tribute to people who helped form him. “Fred Anderson and a Half” for the musician and proprietor of The Velvet, and “Ma and Dad” for his parents, who helped guide his musical journey from an early age. Both of his parents are musical, his father was at one time a DJ. Meanwhile, his stepfather was instrumental in introducing Junius to deep cuts by artists like Miles Davis and Jackie McLean, helping to shape his musical worldview. All of these influences are clear in the Comfort Station recordings. “For a while, I wanted [these sessions] to be the album,” Junius adds. “They are very unique,” and come “from the Velvet Lounge family,” featuring Junius alongside Tomeka Reid and Isaiah Spencer.
“Baker’s Dozen,” featuring Isaiah Spencer on drums, Rajiv Halim on sax and Jim Baker on his outrageous ARP synthesizer, was recorded live at the second of the two Comfort Station sessions and flipped by Makaya McCraven, who highlighted the crunchy Funkadelic meets Water Babies funk of that session to great effect. Jim was a last-minute addition to the set, providing the backbone of what Junius calls an “unassuming headbanger.” Jim is also part of the Velvet Lounge Family.
“Paris” is another stand out track. It was born at The Hideout in Chicago, but developed (or “chopped”) by Makaya in Paris. The pair were working on a different project during the day, would head to a bistro for a meal (Junius favors duck confit and wine), then would work on edits at night. Junius notes that “Paris” is one for the clubs: “I want a 12” [extended DJ] cut!”
As Junius pushes forward as a creative musician, he is careful to carry with him the spirit and the knowledge he’s gathered from those who have come before him. He is very literally a bridge between generations of the Chicago vanguard, currently playing in Makaya McCraven’s combo and in the Art Ensemble of Chicago, in addition to fronting his own band.
One morning on tour with the Art Ensemble in Australia, Roscoe Mitchellcalled Junius’s hotel room and asked if he was coming to breakfast. He was. “That will never get old,” he shared with me on the other line. To play in the Art Ensemble of Chicago is the culmination of “a dream.” One that started at The Velvet Lounge nearly twenty years ago while watching his heroes. “What they taught me is that you can be yourself, as long as you’re badass at it.”
Tracklist:
1. You Are Free To Choose
2. Bowl Hit
3. View From The Moon
4. Baker's Dozen
5. Asé
6. The One Who Endures
7. Spocky Chainsey Has Re-Emerged
8. Georgia
9. Twelve Eighteen West
10. Collant Denier
11. Paris
12. Tune No. 6
13. Sprouts
14. Fred Anderson and a Half
15. Ma and Dad
16. Two Minute Warning
17. Outro
Find Junius Paul online: FACEBOOK | TWITTER | WEBSITE | INTERNATIONAL ANTHEM