JOHN ZORN

JOHN ZORN
SPILLANE (1987)
320 KBPS

Before John Zorn broke with the Nonesuch label to form his own record companies, he recorded a series of excellent titles there, of which Spillane may be the best. The title cut temporarily removes the moratorium on the use of the phrase tour de force; it splices dozens of brief musical motifs to tell a plotless tale of haunting, affectionately tongue-in-cheek film-noir pastiche. "Forbidden Fruit" is a deeply intricate, speed-induced collaboration with Kronos Quartet, which includes Japanese vocalist Ohta Hiromi and turntablist Christian Marclay. And "Two-Lane Highway," the track that makes this album a true must-have, is a kind of blues concerto written for guitarist Albert Collins, who is prodded willingly through a selection of tight settings, matched riff for riff by Robert Quine's heavily echoed six-string, and supported by, among others, dual drummers Ronald Shannon Jackson and Bobby Previte and organist Big John Patton.

1. Spillane
2. Two-Lane Highway Part 1
Preacher Man
White Line Fever
Nacogdoches Gumbo
East Texas Freezeout
San Angelo Release
Rollin' To Killeen
Blowout
Devil's Highway
Midnight Standoff
Marchin' For Abilene
3. Two-Lane Highway Part 2
Hico Killer
Long Mile To Houston
4. Forbidden Fruit