Mars Williams on Corbett vs. Dempsey

By Taylor McDowell

Prior to his untimely passing in 2023 , Mars went through his own musical archive and hand-selected recordings that he wanted to be heard. After a long and winding career - dotted with numerous landmarks (like his time with the Psychedelic Furs, or later on his annual Ayler Xmas performances) - Mars dipped into a proverbial well and procured some real gems. Chicago record label/archive/art gallery/bookstore Corbett vs. Dempsey (which has a knack for producing brilliant archival recordings) released three of those titles this year.

As someone who has always enjoyed Mars’s playing, these recordings are a treasure and a homage to a colorful, storied man who made great music. Music reviews aside, this writer would like to express his gratitude to CvsD and Mars’s family for making this music available, and to Mars for his foresight, vision and for making fucking crazy awesome music.

NRG Ensemble - Hold That Thought

Hal Russell’s NRG Ensemble is kind of a free-jazz anomaly in that it lasted for so long. Founded by Russell in the late ‘70s, the ensemble continued to record and perform for two-decades. After Russell’s passing in 1992, Williams took up the torch and, joined by Ken Vandermark, continued to push the ensemble to new heights.

Hold That Thoughtwas recorded at a live show in Holland in 1996. It is an absolutely barn burner. Alongside Williams and Vandermark (holding down the reeds) are longtime NRG Ensemblists Steve Hunt (drums) and Brian Sandstrom (bass, guitar and trumpet), as well as Chicago bassist Kent Kessler.

From the onset of the dual-reed overblown passage at the start of Straight Time , to the final swinging minutes of Cut Flowers, the entire performance is a highmark of the venerable Chicago free jazz scene. Mars and Ken are a formidable frontline - punching out catchy heads in unison before diving off into freer terrain. With Hunt, Sandstrom (whose multi-instrumentalism functions as wildcard here) and Kessler as a rhythm section, each “tune” throbs with energy. Frenzied solos and wild collective improvisation bring such heightened tension to the music, and returning to the head only has the effect of launching the music into orbit. Listen to the title track to hear what I mean.

The group shifts dynamics on tunes such as Automatic Platinum, which begins with a bass-electric guitar-vibes improvisation before the theme is introduced on horns and, later Vandermark and Williams take turns ripping brilliantly wild solos. Pet Peevefeatures some snakelike playing by Williams (soprano or sopranino) and Vandermark on clarinet, and double-double bass plucking by Sandstrom and Kessler on this exotic-hued track. In the Middle of Pennsylvania is a standout and intriguing performance that is bookended with the intermingling of bowed bass, trumpet, reeds, vibes and radio (turning the knob to find snippets of music in between the static). Two spoken intros (presumably by Mars) offer a fleeting glimpse at the rapport built between this band and the audience. He introduced the last piece (Cut Flowers) and told the crowd that after that they were free to leave, to which one spectator audibly responded, “And free to stay!” It had to have been an enthralling performance and one that is fortunately preserved. Without reservations one of the best archive releases of the year. 

Mars Williams & Hamid Drake - I Know You Are But What Am I?

Recorded live at Chicago’s Empty Bottle in 1996, this recording pairs Williams with Hamid Drake in a duo setting - to my knowledge the only recording of this pair yet available. While the sound quality is a bit lacking, it actually lends to the aura that I Know You Are But What Am I? falls in the category of some legendary bootleg that has finally surfaced for production.

It begins with The Worm- a piece penned by Williams and dedicated to then Chicago Bulls NBA star Dennis Rodman. A punchy melodic/rhythmic theme is introduced by Williams and Drake before they launch into a high-octane improvisation that never wanes. The subsequent pieces I Know ,You Are, and But What Am I? are a series of improvisations that cover a broader palette of hues and styles. I Know features some sensitive and probing solo improvisation by Mars that stands in stark contrast from The Worm’s insistent drive. You Are begins with Williams on a straight horn (soprano or sopranino) playing long, wavering intonations from a distinctly “eastern” sounding scale. Drake's rolling toms propel William’s sidewinder tones before Mars cedes the floor to Drake, who projects the piece’s rhythmic foundation into a dense polyrhythmic solo that could have come from a Milford Grave’s recording. But What Am I?opens with a dual-reed statement that elicits the obvious comparisons with Rashaan Roland Kirk. The rest of the piece melds the best of their preceding performance by juxtaposing subtler sound explorations with raucous energy pursuits. On the whole, I Know You Are But What Am I? is a wonderful document of these two Chicago comrades, and one hopes that there are more archival recordings of these two in duet. 

Mars Williams, Darin Gray, Chris Corsano - Elastic

I already owned the previously released recording of this trio (culled from the second set of the same performance in 2012), so I was thrilled to see more material from this group surface. Darin Gray (bass) and Chris Corsano (drums) are Chikamorachi - a powerhouse [a]rhythm section most often heard in their collaboration with Akira Sakata. They are volcanic in every sense of the word: a pyroclastic flow that topples all in their path; magma bubbling to the surface to form strange, forbidden moonscapes; sparks and embers of erupting lava in the night sky. As far as improvised settings goes, this is one of the finer groupings that I’ve heard Mars in.

They cover a lot of ground in this live set. Set One 1and Set One 2 (Part C) are full frontal assaults that batters the senses. Corsano is omnipresent - his playing is everywhere at once, while Gray is the thunder to Williams’s lightning. While they can flex their improvised muscles, some of the finer moments are when they let the music open up to breath. The trio transforms the music into entirely different beasts - meditative, brooding, conspiring - relying on unconventional techniques that blur the distinctions between each of their contributions. In addition to fantastic playing on various reeds, Williams is credited with playing “toys” (something that comes up a lot in his works). These contributions are no mere gimmick: though it’s hard to discern what he’s doing at all times (there’s definitely a toy piano in the mix), he uses these little instruments for their percussive sonorities to add layers to Gray and Corsano’s restless soundscapes. As in the best of group improvisations, the whole is greater than the sum of its parts. On Elastic, Williams, Gray and Corsano demonstrate a camaraderie that is readily experienced in the music. Highly recommended.