JON HASSELL.

This is a wonderful album by Jon Hassell - it was my introduction to his music.

Very sad news - another great musician gone.

I don’t typically have time to join in on these discussions, but Jon Hassell was special, and these warm tributes and recollections of others have reminded me of how I came to Jon’s musical cathedral and why I love his music so deeply.

I guess like some others, I learned about Jon Hassell because of Brian Eno, so “Fourth World Vol. 1” joined my collection as soon as I could buy it. But that album was much more than Eno. Hassell had me at the first sound of his breathy trumpet and gurgling undertow of electronics and percussion. I can hear it in my mind’s ear right now as I’m sitting here typing in silence.

So, as soon as I found a copy of “Earthquake Island” (Charlemagne Records, Birmingham, Alabama, 1981 or ‘82), I picked it up and was immediately taken by (what I heard to be) the post -“Bitches Brew” influence. I haven’t listened to “Earthquake Island” in a while so I don’t know whether I was just superimposing my own limited musical references at that time, or whether I would still hear that bloodline running through that album. Whatever the case, Jon was hitting all the right buttons to pique and encourage my desire for new sounds.

Oddly, I’d kind of bypassed Japan and had not been aware of David Sylvian’s solo work until I was made aware that Jon Hassell figured prominently on a 1985 12” ep by Sylvian (“Words With the Shaman”). That became a whole other thread to follow - discovering Japan (thanks Graham Parker) and the eventual depth of Sylvian’s solo career. In a backwards way, Jon Hassell led me to Japan and Sylvian’s solo material!

I only learned later that Hassell played on Terry Riley’s original 1968 recording of “In C.” I‘d had the record for years, but never studied (or recognized) the personnel. Being a completist (or OCD or something), seeking out Hassell appearances has brought years of enjoyment and discovery (Bill, your recorded output has definitely stumped and frustrated my completist collector tendencies!).

And like Bill and others here have mentioned, I‘ve had my own “dream teams”of fantasy musical collaborations that have never happened, one of which was Jon Hassell, Bill Nelson, and Ryuich Sakamoto (etc.). That kind of thing. The possibilities are limitless!

Sorry for running on, but thanks for helping to pull some old musical memories out of the cobwebs for me!

Walter

Always liked that elephant sound on that Talking Heads song. Heard him on Brilliant Trees and immediately got ’The Surgeon of the Nightsky...’ on cassette—still one of my chill-out faves. ‘City:Works of Fiction’ was good too. Damn...

RIP Jon ❤

Great story, Bill, that discovery.

When some of us first heard ‘Houses In Motion‘ on ’Remain In Light’ by Talking Heads, we’d wondered what that incredible elephant sound was. I didn’t think of a trumpet when I first heard it.

Then we got the collaborations with Eno and never looked back. I still didn’t understand how or what he did to create all that until an LP by Pandit Pran Nath, under whom Jon Hassell studied, was included in the Jon Hassell section at the record store. Bought that and while listening to it, something about Jon’s style became a little clearer, as the Raga Darbari is included here (heard on Aka / Darbari / Java - Magic Realism) and in fact is the entire B side.

Read much later in an interview with Jon about the discipline involved in learning from Pandit Pran Nath and that among other things PPN taught him circular breathing. That changed how I heard JH.

The two songs he got co-writing credits on from David Sylvian’s ‘Brilliant Trees,’ namely the title track and ‘Weathered Wall’ are stunners, especially the title track. They’re beautiful, timeless and luxurious pop ballads.

Very sad news indeed.