Shows creating a "Dead-type" atmosphere
Organist John Medeski, percussionist Billy Martin, and bassist Chris Wood
formed the band that bears their names in New York City in 1992. The members
had previously played with such avant-garde jazz groups as the Lounge Lizards,
the Mandala Octet, John Zorn's Masada, and Marc Ribot's Shrek. The band's
funky version of jazz fusion and deep, improvisatory grooves earned them
a stellar reputation on the club circuit as a live act, and their shows
are frequently taped and traded by their steadily growing fan base, creating
an almost Grateful Dead-like atmosphere. Their 1992 debut, Notes from the
Underground, featured the band's reinvention of classics by jazzmen like
Wayne Shorter and Duke Ellington, and 1994's Friday Afternoon in the Universe
is the closest they have come to fully capturing the improvisational flair
that fires their live performances. After releasing 1996's Shack-man, Medeski,
Martin & Wood signed with Blue Note, releasing Combustication in 1998.
A Combustication Remix EP was issued in April of 1999; Tonic followed a
year later, marking both the group's first officially released live album
and their first acoustic recording since Notes from the Underground. Dropper
was released in fall 2000. ~ Steve Huey, All Music Guide
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