It is the early 1980s and Wendell Harrison is one of the most important players of the decade in his hometown of Detroit. With Tribe (from 1971) he ran one of the great artist-run networks – including an affiliated record label – that took DIY seriously. Soon after, the project was abandoned, but »Rebirth« was put back into the hands of the artists. During this time, Harrison picked up his instruments less often; work overwhelmed him. It wasn’t until 1979 that he began to pursue his own artistic ambitions again: »Organic Dream« sounds not entirely inappropriate, like a vision that was allowed to grow over a long period of time and then finally came to fruition in a creative outpouring.
The organic dreams that Wendell Harrison lives out on this reissue become almost orgasmic dreams. Fun aside: physicality is indeed a theme on the six pieces on this LP. The opener, »Ginseng Love«, sounds like the inner-city Detroit version of the Island of Joy from »Asterix Conquers Rome«, followed by »Winter«, a romantic journey that does not suffer from hypothermia. The slow-funky »The Wok« toys with Asian stereotypes on the piano – everything is moving and extremely sensual and tangible. More reissues from Wendell Harrison please.
Organic Dream
