Electric Violin World Jazz: The Guarneri Underground

The .mp3 (MPEG) versions contain each song in its entirety. If you download the .mp3 files and like what you hear, please visit our ordering page to buy a CD or pay a small fee for the MPEG files. Thanks for supporting independent music!
Web only MPEGs
Here's where you'll find new tracks and special "web-only" releases.
Life Is Full Of Suprises .mp3 As they say in the Bud commercials, "True, true." Written by Mohammed Shaibu. Underhill's Waltz .mp3 Newly re-recorded, this was originally released on Jeff's solo CD, "Street of Dreams." Om Asatoma Sad Gamaya .mp3 A song by the newest member of the group, Beth Quist.	Be My Friend .mp3 Another tune by Mohammed Shaibu, and always popular in the live show. Kashmir .mp3 One of the great Led Zeppelin tunes, this Guarneri Underground version features Beth Quist on vocals. Boleria .mp3 Eric Jaeger plays this solo on flamenco guitar.

Captive Album Tracks
Uplands Ride .mp3 A Greco-Celtic (no, that's not a typo) tune named after a ride John took in Hawaii. A cruise through the twisty roads of Maui's "uplands" on a Harley Fat Boy inspired the rolling rhythm of this tune for bouzouki and violin. Big Island .mp3 The island is Madagascar. This song was inspired by several players from that Island, including one we saw at the Juan de Fuca festival: D'Gary. His elegant yet driving guitar style prompted John to work on branching out his guitar picking style. Bathers at Asnieres .mp3 Named after the Seurat painting, we think this is the tune going through the head of the big guy in the red swimming trunks. The guitar part originally started as a tune called "Pointilism," but as it got funkier we knew it was really all about the guy in the red trunks.... Mango Twister .mp3 A slow jazz groove that gives Jeff a chance to pull some cool licks out of his violin, Mikel a chance to step out on bass, and John a chance to explore the finer points of jazz guitar. Assisi .mp3 Named after the city made famous by St. Francis, this tune is archtypically "Guarneri" with the violins using digital delays and rich harmonies. Eric Jaeger makes a guest appearance to add a bit of flamenco spice.	Captive .mp3 The complex rhythm of this tune (it switches back and forth between 9/8 and 4/4) heightens the tension of the dark atmosphere. Mikel gets a chance to step out on sax with a rainy-evening solo, followed by John on violin giving his wah pedal a workout. Bloodmoon .mp3 Captive moves smoothly into the even more complex rhythm of this percussion jam. The introduction features a Romanian instrument called a dovyanka, and then starts to groove as Brian Pertl fires up his digeridoo. Mohammed and TJ get a workout soloing over the 9 beat rhythm (counted as "1-2-3-4-1-2-3-1-2" with accents on each "1"), while John works his way through just about every drum in his apartment.... Surfin' Ivory .mp3 Mohammed is as good a guitarist as he is a drummer, and here shows us how it's done with this Reggae-inflected tune. Playa .mp3 A playa is an area of desert that turns into a lake when the rains come, and then back to desert during the dry season. The structure of this song mimics that natural cycle. Eric Jaeger steps in on Flamenco guitar (right channel) and trades solos with John (left channel). You can hear a live version of this song on our live CD, "Bootleg." Storybook .mp3 A string quartet Jeff wrote with Spenser Hoveskelund, this tune features Spenser on upright bass and his wife Tracy on cello. Jeff dedicates this song to Abigail Banker and to his son, Gareth Sick, whose story is just getting started.

Bootleg Album Tracks
This album is now out of print, so this is the only place to find these songs!
Chango .mp3 We have such a great percussion section in TJ and Mohammed, we decided we should kick off the album with this Latin tune from "New World" that puts them front and center. Low Rider .mp3 A bit of funk to liven up the evening. Originally written and performed by War, John and Jeff show that violins can be every bit the horn section.... And in the middle Mike Rollins takes a bass solo right into Gary Neuman's "Cars." Fitting, don't you think? Box of Marbles .mp3 A wee bit of slide bouzouki from the "New World" album. This song never fails to get an audience going. Now we just need a slide violin.... Chameleon .mp3 And here you thought Herbie Hancock could only be covered by other piano players. Featuring a guitar solo by Mohammed (whose guitar playing we want to feature more often, 'cause it's great).	Big Island .mp3 That island being Madagascar. John came up with this tune after being inspired by D'Gary, a west African guitarist who played just before GU at the Juan de Fuca festival a few years back. A studio version will be featured on the new studio album "Assisi". Playa .mp3 A playa is an area of desert that turns into a lake when the rains come, and then back to desert during the dry season. The structure of this song (in a Spanish style) mimics that natural cycle. This is a live version of the song featured on the studio album "Captive." Voodoo Chile .mp3 Jimi Hendrix. Need we say more? Of course, a classic like Hendrix can only be foreshadowed by a classic like Bach.... Grendel .mp3 A bonus studio track originally recorded during the "New World" recording sessions, this song rocked just a bit too hard to fit on that record. But it fits perfectly with the high energy of our live show. The talkover at the beginning is Jeff reading from the poem "Beowulf" (from which Grendel comes) in the original old English.

New World Album Tracks
Darwin .mp3 Inspired by the minimalism of Steve Reich, this track features electric violins played through digital delays to achieve a rolling contrapuntal rhythm. Box of Marbles .mp3 Quite possibly the first song ever to feature an Irish bouzouki played with a slide. John and Jeff trade contrasting solos, while Dan Tyack brightens the rhythm and texture with the unique sound of his Peda-bro (a combination dobro and pedal steel). Take a Walk .mp3 Two electric violins, played pizzicato. The violin bass line makes good use of the C and low F on Jeff's six-string violin. Pacifying the Cat .mp3 Dedicated to John's cat, Larry, this song gets her (yes, her) rolling on the floor in a purring apoplexy. Gazirah .mp3 Named after the Gazirah club in Egypt, this track features Ben Khoshkhoo singing the poetry of Rumi. Reflected Moon .mp3 The first song John ever wrote for guitar, this track was inspired by the work of several guitarists, including Michael Hedges, Alex DeGrassi, and Eric Tingstad. John was honored when Eric agreed to play the piece on this album.	Farewell to Inwood .mp3 Celtic music with a house beat. That was the order of the day when this piece was originally arranged for the LA theatre production of "Beggars in a House of Plenty." Listen in particular for the second solo, in which Jeff plays his electric violin through a "wah" pedal to literally make his fiddle "speak." Lonely Woman .mp3 Well, we don't have any plastic violins on which to play this tune by Ornette Coleman, but hopefully we've captured the spirit.... Occupancy .mp3 The first song John and Jeff ever wrote together. Written for a banquet honoring Bill Gates' mother. Chango .mp3 The only Latin track on the record, we just had to include it. It's too much fun! Jeff found the name after a visit to Puerto Rico: a "chango" is a black bird common to the beaches there. Baglama .mp3 The Turkish baglama saz is a long-necked lute with frets made of knotted nylon cord. One of the oldest middle eastern lutes, the frets are arranged in a microtonal scale. This track also features a wonderful solo by Mike Gordon on clarinet. The Boat .mp3 The last track on the album, The Boat presents the mellower side of the saz, and a rich, mournful melody by the acoustic violins. In the middle section, John plays the solo on Native American cedar flute. All songs copyright Š 1997 The Guarneri Underground except "Lonely Woman" copyright Ornette Coleman.
The entire New World album...as a single waveform!