Forbidden Blues Explained

Forbidden Blues
Type:	Album
Artist:	James Blood Ulmer
Cover:	Forbidden Blues.jpg
Released:	October 20, 1998
Recorded:	July 30, 31 & September 8, 1996
Genre:	Jazz
Length:	51:34
Label:	DIW
Producer:	Kazunori Sugiyama & James Blood Ulmer
Chronology:	James Blood Ulmer
Prev Title:	Music Speaks Louder Than Words
Prev Year:	1996
Next Title:	Cross Fire
Next Year:	1997

Forbidden Blues is an album by American guitarist James Blood Ulmer recorded in 1996 and released on the Japanese DIW label in 1998.^[1]

Reception

The Allmusic review by Thom Jurek awarded the album 4 stars and stated, "For those seeking to listen to the continuing development of James Ulmer as a musician, there are projects like this one, that pick up where his Odyssey recordings leave off, and where the Blues Preacher and Blues Allnight recordings, flawed as they are, tried to direct our attention. This is jazz that embraces the spectrum of black music and holds within it the possibility for magic at each and every turn".^[2]

Track listing

All compositions by James Blood Ulmer

1. "What Is" – 4:40
2. "Forbidden Blues" – 5:56
3. "Eviction" – 6:36
4. "Do You Wanna" – 6:47
5. "Forget Not" – 5:33
6. "High Yellow" – 5:07
7. "Hymn" – 5:52
8. "We Got to Get Together" – 6:15
9. "Inspiration" – 4:49

• Recorded at Avatar Studios, NYC on July 30, 31 & September 8, 1996

Personnel

• James Blood Ulmer – guitar, vocals, flute
• Charles Burnham – violin (tracks 5, 7 & 9)
• Michael Musutafa – keyboards (tracks 4, 6 & 8)
• Calvin X Jones – acoustic bass (tracks 1–3)
• Amin Ali – electric bass (tracks 4, 6 & 8)
• Calvin Weston – drums
• Dana Manno – vocals (track 2)

Notes and References

1. http://outbreakin.hp.infoseek.co.jp/jamesulmer.htm James Blood Ulmer discography
2. Jurek, T. [{{AllMusic|class=album|id=r378090|pure_url=yes}} Allmusic Review] accessed July 16, 2010