openwebworks music gallery

Syncofunk

Jamnation getting funkish. Recorded at Stolte Studios in Champaign sometime in 2004.

Download mp3 file

Syrup

Captured live at Fat City in Champaign, probably in 2003. Here we have Larry "Syrup" Moss on tenor sax showing how he got his name. Also Duane Pickett playing the keys. He moved away and we miss him!

Download mp3 file

Smooth Jaz

One of Jamnation's later jams. All I had was the little motif, so we milked it a bit. Nice drums by Kenny Reiss!

Download mp3 file

Sailplane

At some point Jamnation splintered into different things. One of these became The Weeds. Here is one of the first Weeds jam tracks, recorded at Stolte Studios in Champaign. A blanket over my 1965 Super Reverb, turned way up, lead to ringing strings fed by feedback with other notes on top. The ending is pure synchronicity.

Download mp3 file

Rashamon

Another Jamnation studio jam. Kinda weird!

Download mp3 file

In Memory of Iris Chang

Iris Chang, author of The Rape of Nanking and Thread of the Silkworm, was a brilliant writer and journalist. She was also a genuine and gentle soul, who confronted and exorcised historical evil at great personal cost. I barely knew Iris, had only one encounter: an interview on WILL Radio's Focus 580. Regardless, when she took her own life I was heartbroken.

This live jam track was captured at Stolte Studios in Champaign some time in 2003 or 2004. It reminds me of Iris Chang.

Download mp3 file

F#

This became known as the F# Jam for obvious reasons. Another Jamnation jam, captured at Stolte Studios in Champaign. Brain MacElwain lays down the low guitar motif. My guitar is the lead voice, and playing those big F# chords with the open B and E strings, then crazy pretty much all the way thru. Then Brian MacElwain pulls off one of the coolest stunts near the end with the single-note wah thing during a breakdown that just happened. All jam, nothing planned...serious telepathy happening here.

Download mp3 file

Cool Jam

Another Stolte Studios spontaneous jam, recorded in 2000 on a four-track Minidisc machine. Damn but those things sounded pretty good.

Download mp3 file

Camera

Recorded spontaneously in Gavin Stolte's Champaign studio while our friend Carl took pictures. It was almost a dare: c'mon guys, play something good. This was the band Jamnation at its almost-best, just whipping it out in the studio for no good reason. Fun!

Download mp3 file

.Jam

Jamnation produced a CD at one point and this was on it. Members of Jamnation: Gavin Stolte, bass and vocals; Kenny Reiss, drums!; Brian MacElwain, guitar and vocals; Larry "Syrup" Moss, tenor sax; David Tcheng, keyboards, trumpet, flute, and vocals; and Jack Brighton, guitar and vocals.

Download mp3 file