PHIL MINTON voice
1 - no doughnuts in hand 1 - 0:39
2 - no doughnuts in hand 2 - 2:30
3 - no doughnuts in hand 3 - 0:35
4 - no doughnuts in hand 4 - 1:30
5 - no doughnuts in hand 5 - 1:48
6 - no doughnuts in hand 6 - 2:22
7 - para five - 1:13
8 - no doughnuts in hand 7 - 1:28
9 - no doughnuts in hand 8 - 0:57
10 - no doughnuts in hand 9 - 1:27
11 - no doughnuts in hand 10 - 2:03
12 - no doughnuts in hand 11 - 1:27
13 - no doughnuts in hand 12 - 0:57
14 - no doughnuts in hand 13 - 1:18
15 - no doughnuts in hand 14 - 2:12
16 - no doughnuts in hand 15 - 2:31
17 - no doughnuts in hand 16 - 1:56
18 - no doughnuts in hand 17 - 2:07
19 - no doughnuts in hand 18 - 1:44
20 - no doughnuts in hand 19 - 1:45
21 - short wilkins - 0:46
22 - vo be dayish - 0:54
23 - no doughnuts in hand 20 - 1:07
24 - no doughnuts in hand 21 - 0:49
25 - no doughnuts in hand 22 - 1:34
26 - breath out one - 0:28
27 - breath out two - 0:32
28 - breath out three - 0:24
29 - breath out four - 0:33
30 - breath out five - 0:26
31 - eyeful - 0:55
32 - team spirit - 2:43
33 - para plus - 1:11
34 - rubbish - 2:53
35 - breath out again - 0:38
36 - and again - 0:26
37 - i have given this much more thought than blair did before he decided to invade iraq - 2:04
All digital recordings made in Welwyn Garden City (near London) by Veryan Weston
1 - 16: 2007 April 19
17 - 37: 2007 April 20
Total time 51:54
All previously unissued
This is the 3rd of my doughnut reduction series. I know things aren't getting better but I hope the singing cheers you up a bit. I would prefer to sing with other people and most of the time that's what I do. But it seems every ten years or so I need to sing a few songs on my own.
I recorded these pieces in the same order as on the CD and this is the best way to listen if you have the time.
PHIL MINTON (2008)
"On his new solo CD, this sensible-looking man proffers 37 thin slices of his unfettered soul. Not long ago, these croaks, burps, high-pitched exhalations, deep-throated drones and shreds of garbled half-language would have seen Minton either burnt alive or hailed as an emissary of God. A two-minute fissure of majestically ludicrous babble, entitled i have given this much more thought than blair did before he decided to invade iraq, even manages to be satirical."
STEWART LEE - SUNDAY TIMES 2008
"As with the earlier volumes, Minton leaves laryngeal censors and shackles at the figurative door. Thirty-seven 'songs' zip by in just over fifty minutes, though their relative brevity doesn't necessarily lead to easy consumption. The collected sounds on many of the pieces superficially resemble a taxonomy of ethnic caricatures and speech impediments. The closer Minton comes to coherent speech, the less convincing and startling his creations. My favourite aspect is the array of imaginative imagery engendered by the sounds. The opener sounds like a prayer circle of asthmatic Gyuto monks. Title pieces 5 and 7 resemble the mush-mouthed mumblings of the Swedish Chef capped by Ricola-worthy yodels. Para five makes me think of Donald Duck's nephews Huey, Dewey and Louie, if throttled by piano wire. Self-inflicted strangulation factors into several other pieces.
Pure sound ventures are relatively few. The whirring drone on title piece 6 resembles wind gusting steadily through a ventilation pipe while 22 consists mainly of avuncular hums. 8 assembles a string of tea kettle whistles and screams. Minton's irrepressible humor bleeds through even on the more controlled pieces where he'll occasionally punctuate a concluding stretch of silence with one final gasp or sputter. Vo be dayish presents a Minton improvisation based on a Veryan Weston transcription of a Minton improvisation and curiously ends up the most conventionally "song-like" in structure. Weston also handles recording chores. The last piece, an improvised collection of strained sighs and eructation, layers in barbed political commentary with the admonition i have given this much more thought than blair did when he decided to invade iraq.
Most of the tracks are ones I probably won't put in regular rotation, but my admiration for Minton's art remains steadfast. Many of his oral expulsions require extraordinary muscular and respiratory control. Last year's SLUR is an easier sell as it features Minton's voice mixed with other instruments. This disc is for the truly brave souls able to embrace his improvisations sans such collaborative filters."
DEREK TAYLOR - BAGATELLEN 2008
Return to Emanem home page or go to CD releases or musicians