FRESHLY DUG

January 2006

the CD ALBUM from Darryl Read and Ray Manzarek.

Review by Ralph Heibutzki

Devotees of the former Door's keyboard style will surely get a feast on this largely improvised affair, with Darryl Read delivering his own Jim Morrison-styled imagery to Manzarek's electric and acoustic pianos as the mood suits them. The comparisons seem apt on "Man O Jazz," a tribute to New Orleans' music and lifestyle, or the supernatural doings chronicled at "The Magic Tavern," where Manzarek's grand piano sounds truly thunderous. It's not hard to imagine Morrison's ghost rolling on the floor during the more intense pieces, like "Tales From the Underground Kings" or "The High Bright Sun"'s grim snapshot of a dead man lying in the road. Manzarek's playing, as always, is spry and intelligent. He knows exactly when to pull out all the stops and when to lay back. To apply Doors analogies, "Set"'s rollicking boogie wouldn't have sounded out of place on Morrison Hotel, while the sparse electric piano of "Azure Skies" could have fit comfortably on Strange Days. Read -- whose own history includes associations with the Deviants and the Pretty Things -- does a good job of varying his delivery to suit the mood. For all the title's clever destroy-all-conventions puns, this effort is crisp and disciplined; most tracks average 90 seconds. Mainstream shoppers won't understand, but fans of the Doors and Stooges' more esoteric moments should feel right at home.

                                                              



  1CD Cherry Red Lemon/Import 2006

 


 

Ray Manzarek porte en lui un traumatisme nommé DOORS et il n'aura cessé dès la mort de Jim Morrison de le retourner en tous sens, depuis la tentative de garder le groupe en vie - échec monumental des albums "Other voices" et "The full circle" -, d'engager des procédures pour attribuer la paternité des morceaux - autrefois collective - à chacun des quatre, de se fâcher avec le batteur John Densmore jusqu'à aujourd'hui parcourir le monde et "rejouer aux Doors" avec le guitariste Robbie Krieger sous le nom des Riders on the Storm... Itinéraire un rien pathétique.
On ne retirera surtout pas à Ray Manzarek qu'il était un pion essentiel des Doors, du son Doors, de la touche Doors, mais un pion seulement, car largué hors de l'échiquier lui dictant sa place et ses déplacements, l'homme s'est perdu et l'autre vie d'artiste solo qu'il a essayé de construire est le plus souvent insignifiante, quand elle n'atteint pas le ridicule (lorsqu'il se fend d'une version musak des Carmina Burana de Carl Orff !).

Darryl Read est un vieil activiste de l'underground anglais, batteur en 1969 des Crayon Angels (managés par Emperor Rosko, Dj de la fameuse radio pirate Caroline), puis de Crushed Butler, power trio jamais signé. Il a aussi tâté du théâtre, dans les années soixante-dix il est Keith Richards dans "Let the good Stones roll", s'exile en Allemagne puis aux États-Unis, collabore avec nombre de seconds couteaux, Mickey Finn, Bill Legend et surtout Terry Stamp, ex-leader des mythiques Third World War avec qui il publie en 1990 et 91 deux albums de punk gothique. Sa dernière "rencontre" en date est notre Ray Manzarek, avec qui il commet ce "Freshly dug".

Charrieurs de mythes sur le retour, les deux (prétendues) montagnes accouchent d'une souris obèse, Manzarek plaquant moultes accords de piano et de synthés progressifs sur les textes écrits et dits par Read tout au long des 27 minutes de l'album. Bon courage.

 

François Branchon © Sefronia  
09-03-2006

Darryl Read/Ray Manzarek
Freshly Dug
(Oz-it/Morpheus/Big Daddy)

If one had access to anyone in the whole music business to use to put music to your spoken-word poetry, who would be the chosen one?  For British musician and actor Darryl Read, that person was the legendary Doors keysman Ray Manzarek.  Read, well-known in the United Kingdom and Europe for his extensive work on stage, screen, and television, was also a founding member of Crushed Butler, (considered by many to be Britain's true "punk" band, before there was such a thing in ‘69-‘71).  Read first met and collaborated with Manzarek in the early '80s.  These sessions were recorded in Los Angeles and most every thing was done live with Manzarek improvising off basic themes he created for each of Read's works.  The words themselves are somewhat of the gothic and ethereal variety, a style that blends quite well with the many stylings and flavors of Manzarek's signature sound.  For fans of atmospheric mind journeys, this would be something that’s worthy of an addiction.  Tracks such as the Doors-y "Man O Jazz" and the mellow "Azure Skies" are worlds apart, but it all comes out sounding perfect. ----Christine Natanael

Altarnative.com Nov/Dec 2002

Subject: Manzarek-Read cd to be released domestically
From: dan@bigdaddymusic.com  (Dan Mackta)
Date: 7/18/02 2:59 PM Eastern Daylight Time
Message-id: <13cc416d.0207181059.32f4e8a4@posting.google.com>

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE JULY 10, 2002


WORDS MEET MUSIC AS DOORS KEYBOARDIST RAY MANZAREK
TEAMS WITH BRITISH PUNK PROGENITOR DARRYL READ


RAY MANZAREK, founding member of legendary rock band THE DOORS,
continues his practice of taking part in select collaborations with
the release of FRESHLY DUG, recorded in Los Angeles with British
musician and actor DARRYL READ. FRESHLY DUG features sixteen new poems
by Read, performed by the author, accompanied on piano, organ, and
keyboards by Manzarek. Ozit-Morpheus Records will release this
exciting album in the United States in Fall 2002.  The special CD
package includes photography by Gered Mankowitz (Rolling Stones, Kate
Bush, Giles Giles and Fripp) and an essay by journalist Pete Feenstra
of Soundcheck magazine.

Darryl Read is well-known in the United Kingdom and Europe not only
for his extensive work on stage, screen, and television but also for
his pioneering involvement with a number of seminal proto-punk, glam,
and pop musical artists. Having first gained fame as a teen idol in
London during the mid-‘60s, Read established a tough credibility as a
founding member of Crushed Butler, considered by many to be Britain's
first true "punk" band. The band existed from 1969 to 1971 but their
few recordings did not see commercial release until the late ‘90s.
During the ‘70s and ‘80s, Read played with a number of glam and punk
outfits that included Paul Thompson of Roxy Music, Sonja Kristina of
Curved Air, and various members of Traffic, Spear of Destiny,
Silverhead, and Third World War. His group during the ‘90s included
Mickey Finn (ex-T. Rex).

A perennial favorite amongst fans of classic British punk and glam,
Read first met and collaborated with celebrated Doors keyboard player
Ray Manzarek in the early 1980s. Manzarek has a reputation for seeking
out and nourishing new and emerging talents. Although Darryl Read had
years of acting and musical experience under his belt at the time that
he encountered Manzarek, it was only after the enigmatic rocker
suggested that he write some poetry for them to collaborate on
musically that he tried his hand at such writing. Ray Manzarek is
universally known for laying the musical foundation upon which Doors
vocalist Jim Morrison built his poetic song-constructions. After the
demise of the Doors, Manzarek gained fame as a producer, working with
cutting-edge acts Echo and the Bunnymen and X. In addition, he
received acclaim for collaborations with poet Michael McClure. This
Fall, Manzarek will reunite with the surviving members of the Doors
for a reunion concert in Los Angeles. Ian Astbury is slated to provide
vocals for the group.

The FRESHLY DUG session took place in an out-of-the-way little studio
in Los Angeles. Manzarek had seen most of Read's poems but went ahead
and taped their text to his music stand. Tape was rolled, and most
everything was cut live, with Manzarek improvising off basic themes he
created for each of Read's works. The musical style and the sonic
flavors are familiar but vary greatly from track to track. As Manzarek
says about this release, I'm glad this CD is finally available in the
US. Darryl and I had a great time recording together. He is down,
funky, and a very Beat poet! All in all I think of this as a very cool
disc."

http://www.darrylread.com
http://www.thedoors.com
 

Ray Manzarek was the musical twist in Jim Morrison... the crawling Kink Snake's Tail. You don't believe me ? Well, first go and re -listen to much of The Doors work then slap this on and discover a latter day lyricist, Darryl Read, whose words startlingly come to life in the company of Manzarek... the supreme interpreter of words. (Pete Feenstra, 'Soundcheck' magazine. London) Here  for 'Freshly Dug' sound samples Back catalogue and SET book can be purchased by mail order from info@darrylread.com

Darryl Read Music  © BMI 1999.
Ray Manzarek  © International Aten Music 1999. 
Photographs © Gered Mankowitz and Penny Norris.