''Eleven Ghosts'' is an album of duets by pianist

Myra Melford Myra Melford (born January 5, 1957) is an American avant-garde jazz pianist and composer. A 2013 Guggenheim Fellow, Melford was described by the ''San Francisco Chronicle'' as an "explosive player, a virtuoso who shocks and soothes, and who can m ...

and drummer/percussionist

Han Bennink Han Bennink (born 17 April 1942) is a Dutch drummer and percussionist. On occasion his recordings have featured him playing soprano saxophone, bass clarinet, trombone, violin, banjo and piano. Though perhaps best known as one of the pivotal fig ...

which was recorded in Switzerland in 1994 and released on the

HatOLOGY Hathut Records is a Swiss record company and label founded by Werner Xavier Uehlinger in 1974 that specializes in jazz and classical music. The name of the label comes from the artwork of Klaus Baumgartner. Hathut encompasses the labels hat ART, ...

label in 1997.Myra Melford: Projects
accessed May 23, 2018

Reception

The

Allmusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...

review by Joslyn Layne stated "Supreme musicians Myra Melford and Han Bennink join together for a duo recording as blues progressions, boogie-woogie, and Harlem stride become the trampoline from which they jump. It's free, free, but far less cryptic -- and more accessible -- than one might expect. ... ''Eleven Ghosts'' won't scare the audience off. Even people who stiffen at the words "outside jazz" will relax their shoulders while listening to this album". In

JazzTimes ''JazzTimes'' is an American magazine devoted to jazz. Published 10 times a year, it was founded in Washington, D.C. in 1970 by Ira Sabin as the newsletter ''Radio Free Jazz'' to complement his record store. Coverage After a decade of growth ...

, Bill Shoemaker wrote "On ''Eleven Ghosts'', pianist Myra Melford and percussionist Han Bennink bring complementary assets to a free-ranging duo program. Melford’s affinity for the blues and her compositional skills give the album a subtle structural underpinning. Bennink continually pushes the music to the brink with his patented combination of cyclonic energy and loony humor".Shoemaker, B
JazzTimes Review
accessed May 23, 2018

Track listing

All compositions by Myra Melford except where noted # "The First Mess" (Han Bennink, Myra Melford) – 2:33 # " How Long Blues" (

Leroy Carr Leroy Carr (March 27, 1904 or 1905 – April 29, 1935) was an American blues singer, songwriter and pianist who developed a laid-back, crooning technique and whose popularity and style influenced such artists as Nat King Cole and Ray Charles. Mus ...

) – 5:31 # "Frank Goes To" – 7:23 # "Another Mess" (Han Bennink) – 4:48 # "Which Way Is That?" – 9:24 # "Three Ghosts" (Bennink, Melford) – 5:11 # "Some Relief" (composer unknown) – 1:12 # "And Now Some Blues" – 4:43 # "Now" – 2:05 # "And Now" – 2:51 # " The Maple Leaf Rag" (

Scott Joplin Scott Joplin ( 1868 – April 1, 1917) was an American composer and pianist. Because of the fame achieved for his ragtime compositions, he was dubbed the "King of Ragtime." During his career, he wrote over 40 original ragtime pieces, one ra ...

) – 3:01

Personnel

– piano *

– drums

References

{{Authority control Hathut Records albums Myra Melford albums Han Bennink albums 1997 albums