Grand Guignol

• Artist: Naked City
• Rating:
• Release Date: 1991
• Total Time: 58:31
• Type: Instrumental, Contains explicit content
• Genre: Avant-Garde

Review

Naked City's follow up to their self-titled album is a departure from the New York noir that they had perfected. Here, after a 17 minute, moody title piece, all low rumbling punctuated by drum thrashes and distorted screams, is a very straight transcription of Debussy's "Cathedrale Engloutie" featuring some very lovely, watery guitar work from Bill Frisell. Other modern pieces follow, with works by Scriabin, Ives, Messian, and Di Lassus. And then for something completely different: 32 thrash'n'burn numbers lasting anywhere from 10 seconds to a whopping 1:14, most with humorous titles (some favorites: "Jazz Snob: Eat Shit," "Perfume of a Critic's Burning Flesh," "Pigfucker"). Forget the subtlety of the first half -- this is thrash jazz! Yamatsuka Eye of the Boredoms provides vocals. As they say, there's screaming, and then there's Yamatsuka Eye. Whether or not such eclecticism makes for awkward listening is apparently the last thing on Zorn's list, and it probably shouldn't be a concern anyway. A rewarding album. ~ Ted Mills, All Music Guide

Tracks

Track Title	Composers	Performers	Time
Grand Guignol	John Zorn	Naked City	(17:40)
La Cathédrale Engloutie	Claude Debussy	Naked City	(6:24)
Three Preludes Op. 74: Douloureus, Déchirant	Alexander Scriabin	Naked City	(1:17)
Three Preludes Op. 74: Très Lent, Contemplatif	Alexander Scriabin	Naked City	(1:42)
Three Preludes Op. 74: Allegro Drammatico	Alexander Scriabin	Naked City	(:48)
Prophetiae Sybillarum	Orlande de Lassus	Naked City	(1:46)
The Cage	Charles Ives	Naked City	(2:00)
Louange Á l'Éternité de Jésus	Olivier Messiaen	Naked City	(7:07)
Blood Is Thin	John Zorn	Naked City	(1:00)
Thrash Jazz Assassin	John Zorn	Naked City	(:45)
Dead Spot	John Zorn	Naked City	(:31)
Bonehead	John Zorn	Naked City	(:51)
Piledriver	John Zorn	Naked City	(:33)
Shangkuan Ling-Feng	John Zorn	Naked City	(1:14)
Numbskull	John Zorn	Naked City	(:29)
Perfume of a Critic's Burning Flesh	John Zorn	Naked City	(:24)
Jazz Snob Eat Shit	John Zorn	Naked City	(:24)
The Prestidigitator	John Zorn	Naked City	(:43)
No Reason to Believe	John Zorn	Naked City	(:26)
Hellraiser	John Zorn	Naked City	(:39)
Torture Garden	John Zorn	Naked City	(:35)
Slan	John Zorn	Naked City	(:23)
The Ways of Pain	John Zorn	Naked City	(:31)
The Noose	John Zorn	Naked City	(:10)
Sack of Shit	John Zorn	Naked City	(:43)
Blunt Instrument	John Zorn	Naked City	(:53)
Osaka Bondage	John Zorn	Naked City	(1:14)
Shallow Grave	John Zorn	Naked City	(:40)
Kaoru	John Zorn	Naked City	(:50)
Dead Dread	John Zorn	Naked City	(:45)
Billy Liar	John Zorn	Naked City	(:10)
Victims of Torture	John Zorn	Naked City	(:20)
Speedfreaks	John Zorn	Naked City	(:48)
New Jersey Scum Swamp	John Zorn	Naked City	(:41)
S&M Sniper	John Zorn	Naked City	(:14)
Pig Fucker	John Zorn	Naked City	(:23)
Cairo Chop Shop	John Zorn	Naked City	(:22)
Facelifter	John Zorn	Naked City	(:54)
Whiplash	John Zorn	Naked City	(:19)
The Blade	John Zorn	Naked City	(:35)
Gob of Spit	John Zorn	Naked City	(:18)

Credits

Maruo Suehiro (Illustrations), Bob Ludwig (Mastering), Lisa Wells (Typesetting), Yamatsuka Eye (?), Tomoyo T.L. (Design), Bob Dorough (Vocals), John Zorn (Arranger), Bob Dorough (?), Scott Ansell (Engineer), Wayne Horvitz (?), Bill Frisell (Guitar), Yamatsuka Eye (Vocals), Disk Union (Executive Producer), Bill Frisell (?), John Zorn (Producer), John Zorn (Vocals), Joey Baron (Drums), John Zorn (?), Joey Baron (?), Lisa Wells (Photo Typesetting), Kazunori Sugiyama (Associate Producer), Fred Frith (Bass), Lisa Wells (?), Wayne Horvitz (Keyboards), Martin Bisi (Engineer), John Zorn (Sax (Alto)), Seigen Ono (Engineer), Fred Frith (?), Roger Moutenot (Engineer), Roger Moutenot (Mixing)