Reviews

A pioneering work for countless styles connected to {\electronic}, {\ambient}, and third-world music, {^My Life in the Bush of Ghosts} expands on the fourth-world concepts of {$Jon Hassell} and {$Brian Eno}'s work with a whirlwind 45 minutes of {\worldbeat}/{\funk}-{\rock} (with the combined talents of several percussionists and bassists including {$Bill Laswell}, {$Tim Wright}, {$David van Tieghem}, and {$Talking Heads}' {$Chris Frantz}) that's also heavy on the samples -- from radio talk-show hosts, Lebanese mountain singers, preachers, exorcism ceremonies, {\Muslim chanting}, and {\Egyptian pop}. It's also light years away from the respectful, preservationist angles of previous generations' {\field recordings} and {\folk song} gatherers. The songs on {^My Life in the Bush of Ghosts} present myriad elements from around the world in the same jumbled stew, without regard for race, creed, or color. As such, it's a tremendously prescient record for the future development of music. [A 2006 remastering improved the sound, added seven previously unreleased audio tracks recorded at the same time, and also included the film clip for {#Mea Culpa} by {$Bruce Conner}, whose work exhibits the same plundering aesthetic as {$David Byrne} and {$Eno}'s.] ~ John Bush, All Music Guide