''Music Speaks Louder Than Words'' (subtitled ''James Blood Ulmer Plays the Music of Ornette Coleman'') is an album by

James Blood Ulmer James "Blood" Ulmer (born February 8, 1940) is an American jazz, free funk and blues guitarist and singer. Ulmer plays a Gibson Byrdland guitar. His guitar sound has been described as "jagged" and "stinging". His singing has been called "ragge ...

recorded in 1995 and released on the Japanese DIW label.

Reception

Opinions of the album varied. 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 Don Snowden awarded the album 1 stars, stating, "what an enormous let-down ''Music Speaks Louder Than Words'' is in terms of execution ... Ulmer sounds distracted and disinterested, his guitar lines all introverted thumb mumbles and musings played softer than his acoustic rhythm section (and they're being sensitive) ... What a wasted opportunity". In JazzTimes Bill Milkowski wrote "Blood always sounds best when he’s skronking over the top of a free flowing, interactive and understated rhythm section ... He conjures up that more open-ended vibe on this collection of Ornette Coleman compositions ... when he’s using space dramatically, surfing on top of rolling waves of rhythm, there is no more distinctive and startling sound in jazz guitar. Few other six-stringers can capture the provocative, probing essence and dark beauty of Ornette like Blood". On All About Jazz Glenn Astarita said "This is the recording Ulmer fans have been waiting for. The festivities are celebratory! Ulmer is a talented and unique voice on the guitar. Better yet, he swings! ... A well balanced affair and highly recommended".Astarita, G
All About Jazz Review
August 1, 1997

Track listing

All compositions by

Ornette Coleman Randolph Denard Ornette Coleman (March 9, 1930 – June 11, 2015) was an American jazz saxophonist, violinist, trumpeter, and composer known as a principal founder of the free jazz genre, a term derived from his 1960 album '' Free Jazz: A Colle ...

except where noted # " Lonely Woman" – 6:50 # "Elizabeth" – 6:56 # "Sphinx" – 5:39 # "Dance in the Dark - Music Is My Life" (James Blood Ulmer) – 5:33 # "Cherry Cherry" – 7:50 # "I Can't Take It Anymore" (Ulmer) – 2:58 # "Street News" – 7:12 # "Skies of America" – 7:10 # "Rap Man" (Ulmer) – 4:33

Personnel

–

guitar The guitar is a fretted musical instrument that typically has six strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming or plucking the strings with the dominant hand, while simultaneously pressing selected stri ...

*Calvin "Hassēn Truth" Jones – acoustic bass (tracks 1, 3, 5, 7 & 8) *Amin Ali – electric bass (tracks 2 & 4-6) * Rashied Ali (tracks 1, 3, 5 & 7), Aubrey Dale (tracks 2, 4-6 & 9) –

drums A drum kit (also called a drum set, trap set, or simply drums) is a collection of drums, cymbals, and other Percussion instrument, auxiliary percussion instruments set up to be played by one person. The player (drummer) typically holds a pair o ...

*Michael Mustafa Ulmer –

keyboards Keyboard may refer to: Text input * Keyboard, part of a typewriter * Computer keyboard ** Keyboard layout, the software control of computer keyboards and their mapping ** Keyboard technology, computer keyboard hardware and firmware Music * Musi ...

(tracks 4, 6 & 9)

References

{{Authority control 1996 albums James Blood Ulmer albums DIW Records albums