GS: This is, in my opinion, the sole usable piece from that show. I wanted to include an early version of this, because instead of the martial section (as heard on "Cold Sky Live At Be-Bop Records 2/8/89"), there was a very tribal-sounding drum solo. There's a rehearsal version that has what might be an even better solo, but the rest of the piece isn't performed as well; this drum solo is excellent, mixed right up front, and that, in addition to the song being the only thing I could see using from the gig, put it over the top for inclusion on this CD. At some point in the "latin" section, the Van Der Hammill influence briefly took full possession of my vocal chords, and growled for everyone out there in radioland.
HS: I have almost no memory whatsoever of this gig, save for Greg’s running-into the studio just in time to begin playing and how cramped we all were in that tiny performance space (“Curse you, o’ large drum setup! Thou wicked temptress has led me down the path to perdition yet again!”). Judging from the recording, it’s clear that the station engineer was mixing us “on the fly”, with the drums ridiculously loud at the very beginning. I definitely prefer this song with the martial section (as heard on the “Live At Be-Bop Records” CD, recorded 2-1/2 months after this broadcast) to the plain vanilla drum solo we have here. Although it’s not a bad drum solo, it really brings little to the song, while the martial section adds a whole other sinister dimension to Greg’s deliciously sinister composition.
Comparing the earlier version of this piece here with the one available on “Live At Be-Bop Records” really shows how Cold Sky was evolving with an ear towards making the music stronger.
credits
from Cold Sky/In Process,
released April 25, 2014
Written by Greg Segal. Arranged by Cold Sky.
