David Murray @ Creole Restaurant & Jazz Cafe

David Murray, Kidd Jordan, David Burrell, Roy Campbell, Harrison Bankhead and Hamid Drake at Creole Restaurant & Jazz Cafe (2167 3rd Ave at 118th St, Manhattan)
9p and 11p
free

Back in the 80s, The Village Voice a) called jazz saxophonist and bass clarinetist David Murray the musician of the decade and b) was quite a respectable publication, so claims like "musician of the decade" really mattered. He's still carrying on the torch now, a master of the circular breathing technique, something that allows him to extend his phrases for minutes at a time. Kidd Jordan, the other sax/clarinet player in this lineup is no one to scoff at either. The French Ministry of Culture has Knighted him, and he's played alongside Stevie Wonder, Ornette Coleman, Aretha Franklin and Cecil Taylor just to name a few. Tonight the two of them are backed by some other notables, among them Roy Campbell and Hamid Drake, both of whom deserve a little Wiki search. Hop on this. You'll probably never get to see these guys play together again, and if you do, it certainly won't be for free.

***

Silver Apples live @ The Knitting Factory + Silent Barn

Silver Apples at The Knitting Factory Tap Bar (74 Leonard St btw Church and Broadway, Manhattan)$10 advance / $12 at the door. Wednesday, September 12.

Silver Apples are also playing a ToddP show tomorrow night, Thursday, September 13 at Silent Barn.

In the late 60s in New York, the Silver Apples were making music that was truly unlike anything else around. The duo, Danny Taylor, who played percussion, and Simeon, who sang and played an instrument that consisted of "nine audio oscillators and eighty-six manual controls" (basically an early synthesizer), predated the fusion of drone and rock even of pioneers Spacemen 3 and Suicide. Their sound was driving and shimmering, with rhythms shifting in and out to make w! ay for bending ambience and hums--really beautiful and powerful stuff. After two albums, the band disappeared, never to be heard from again until the mid-90s, when Simeon reformed the band with a new percussionist to tour and record another couple albums. Had it not been for a van accident that left Simeon with a broken neck just after the reformation of the band, we may have heard a lot from them after that comeback, but the injuries sidelined him. Miraculously he's recovered fully over the years, and though performances are rare, they do occur from time to time. Tonight's one of those times, and it absolutely shouldn't be missed.

***

Brooklyn Bridge

The Brooklyn Bridge, one of the oldest suspension bridges in the United States, stretches 5,989 feet (1825 m)over the East River connecting the New York City boroughs of Manhattan and Brooklyn. On completion, it was the largest suspension bridge in the world and the first steel-wire suspension bridge. Originally referred to as the New York and Brooklyn Bridge, it was dubbed the Brooklyn Bridge in an 1867 letter to the editor of the Brooklyn Daily Eagle.[2] Since its opening, it has become an iconic part of the New York skyline. In 1964 it was designated a National Historic Landmark.

***