Earthworks (album)

1987 studio album by Bill Bruford's Earthworks

Earthworks

Studio album by

Bill Bruford's Earthworks

Released| 16 March 1987[1]
Recorded| October 1986
Studio| Terminal 24 Studios, London, England
Genre| Jazz fusion
Length| 43:55
Label| EG
Producer| Dave Stewart, Bill Bruford
Bill Bruford's Earthworks chronology
|  | Earthworks
(1987)  | Dig?
(1989)

|
|

Earthworks is the first album by Bill Bruford's Earthworks, a jazz fusion band led by drummer Bill Bruford with keyboardist and trumpeter Django Bates, saxophonist Iain Ballamy, and acoustic bassist Mick Hutton.[2] It was released in 1987 on EG Records and reissued on Summerforld in 2005. The album was co-produced by Bruford's former bandmate Dave Stewart.[2]

## Reception

[edit]

Professional ratingsReview scores

Source| Rating
AllMusic| [3]
The Penguin Guide to Jazz| [4]
Moving the River| [5]

At AllMusic, critic Chris Kelsey gave the album three-and-a-half stars out of five.[3] He wrote, "The best thing about this band is its refreshing ingenuousness; they make intelligent, sophisticated instrumental pop music that doesn't pander in the least."[3]

Writing for All About Jazz, John Kelman noted that "Bruford's attraction to the juncture of strict form and freer improvisation, took a giant leap forward with Earthworks," and commented that the group "was unquestionably an improvising band; more than just a soloist playing over a fixed rhythm section, Earthworks has always been a looser affair, as much about interplay as adhering to any compositional form."[6]

A reviewer for Moving the River wrote: "Some musicians have a unique touch – you can identify them within a few notes. In Bill Bruford's case, his snare drum is his main audio imprint. But he also always had a highly-original composing style before his retirement in 2009, and both are very much in evidence on the excellent Earthworks album."[5]

## Track listing

[edit]

1. "Thud" (Iain Ballamy) - 4:10
2. "Making a Song and Dance" (Ballamy, Bill Bruford) - 5:52
3. "Up North" (Ballamy, Django Bates, Bruford) - 5:19
4. "Pressure" (Bruford) - 4:57
5. "My Heart Declares a Holiday" (Ballamy, Bates, Bruford) - 4:35
6. "Emotional Shirt" (Bates) - 4:45
7. "It Needn't End in Tears" (Ballamy) - 5:14
8. "The Shepherd Is Eternal" (Bates, Bruford) - 1:50
9. "Bridge of Inhibition" (Ballamy, Bates, Bruford) - 4:15

## Personnel

[edit]

* Bill Bruford – drums, electronic drums, percussion, producer
* Iain Ballamy – alto, soprano, and tenor saxophones
* Django Bates – tenor horn, trumpet, keyboards
* Mick Hutton – bass
* Dave Stewart – keyboards, sampling, producer

Source:[7]

## References

[edit]

1. ^ "New Albums". Music Week. 14 March 1987. p. 26.
2. ^ a b Kelman, John (23 April 2005). "Bill Bruford's Earthworks: Earthworks & Dig?". All About Jazz. Retrieved 30 May 2017.
3. ^ a b c Kelsey, Chris. "Earthworks – Bill Bruford". AllMusic. Retrieved 30 May 2017.
4. ^ Cook, Richard; Morton, Brian (2006). The Penguin Guide to Jazz Recordings. Penguin Books. p. 185.
5. ^ a b "Bill Bruford's Earthworks: 30 Years On". Moving the River. Retrieved 29 September 2022.
6. ^ Kelman, John (23 April 2005). "Bill Bruford's Earthworks: Earthworks & Dig?". All About Jazz. Retrieved 29 September 2022.
7. ^ "Earthworks - Bill Bruford". AllMusic. Retrieved 30 May 2017.

* v
* t
* e

Earthworks

* Bill Bruford
* Iain Ballamy
* Django Bates
* Mick Hutton
* Tim Harries
* Steve Hamilton
* Patrick Clahar
* Geoff Gascoigne
* Mark Hodgson
* Gwilym Simcock
* Tim Garland
* Laurence Cottle

Studio albums|

* Earthworks (1987)
* Dig? (1989)
* All Heaven Broke Loose (1991)
* The Sound of Surprise (2001)

Live albums|

* Stamping Ground (1994)

Authority control databases |

* MusicBrainz release group

|

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