Locus Solus (album)

Locus Solus is an album of improvisations by John Zorn and other musicians. Originally released as a double vinyl album on Rift records in 1983 it was re-released as a CD with additional tracks on Eva/Wave in 1990 and on Zorn's Tzadik Records label in 1997.^[1]

Locus Solus
Studio album by John Zorn
Released	1983 re-released 1990 and 1997
Recorded	1983
Genre	Avant-garde, jazz, classical
Length	68:37
Label	Rift, Eva/Wave, Tzadik
Producer	John Zorn
John Zorn chronology
Archery (1982) Locus Solus (1983) Yankees (1983)
Original Rift Records Cover

Reception

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[2]
The Penguin Guide to Jazz	[3]
Spin Alternative Record Guide	8/10[4]

The AllMusic review by Joslyn Layne stated: "This captures over an hour's worth of John Zorn's search for the improvised song form.... Overall, an album of short, angular, experimental energy tracks."^[2]

The Penguin Guide to Jazz observed: "This is one of the sacred texts of '80s New York improv, a fierce scrabbly set of associations that draw heavily on the power trio aesthetic of bands like Husker Dü... It's impressively compact but sometime rather abrupt".^[3]

Track listing

No.	Title	Length
1.	"Bass and the Treble"	2:57
2.	"Acquisition and Control of Fire"	1:33
3.	"Honey-Cab"	2:33
4.	"Switch"	2:15
5.	"Juan Talks It Out of His System"	2:11
6.	"The Wish"	2:02
7.	"A Case Arose"	2:00
8.	"The Elf"	1:41
9.	"Getting Curly"	1:51
10.	"Don't Switch"	1:50
11.	"Smooth Cheeks of a Big Ego"	1:51
12.	"Add Water"	2:15
13.	"Cold"	1:31
14.	"Friar T."	0:58
15.	"Too Me"	2:16
16.	"You Rang?"	1:17
17.	"Self-Satisfied"	1:22
18.	"Agora"	1:10
19.	"Dot, Dot, Dot"	1:14
20.	"Moi Non Plus"	1:43
21.	"Liver"	1:49
22.	"The Footman's Eyes Get Crossed"	1:04
23.	"Heike Cipher Mystery"	1:47
24.	"Jedi Mind Trick"	1:06
25.	"Mysterious Island"	2:11
26.	"You Only Live Twice, Mr. Bond"	1:59
27.	"When Arrows Meet"	1:38
28.	"Never Say Never Again"	1:45
29.	"Sign of the Four"	2:13
30.	"Locus Solus, Pt. 1–2"	2:11
31.	"Where Are My Victims?"	2:06
32.	"Disco Volante"	2:06
33.	"Kaiser in Borneo"	1:48
34.	"The Saint"	1:40
35.	"The Violent Death of Dutch Schultz"	1:23
36.	"Thunderball"	1:43
37.	"White Zombie"	1:30
38.	"The Slaves of Vesuvius"	2:05

Note: (16,18,20,22) are extra tracks not available on the LP pressing.

Personnel

• John Zorn – alto and soprano saxophones, game calls, B♭ Clarinet
• Christian Marclay – turntables (tracks 1–9)
• Peter Blegvad – vocals (tracks 1–9)
• Arto Lindsay – guitar, vocals (tracks 10–22)
• Anton Fier – drums (tracks 10–15)
• M. E. Miller – drums (tracks 16–22, 31–38)
• Ikue Mori – drums (tracks 23–30)
• Wayne Horvitz – keyboards (tracks 23–30)
• Whiz Kid – turntables (tracks 31–38)

References

1. Tzadik catalogue
2. Layne, J. AllMusic Review accessed July 22, 2011
3. Cook, Richard; Morton, Brian (2000). The Penguin Guide to Jazz Recordings (5th ed.). Penguin. p. 1612. ISBN 0-14-051452-X.
4. Spin Alternative Record Guide. Vintage Books. 1995. p. 450.