BYG Actuel

BYG Actuel was a French record label specialising in free jazz. It was founded in the late 1960s by Jacques Bisceglia, Jean-Luc Young and Jean Georgakarakos, the name of the label coming from the initial letters of the three founders' surnames.

The label is notable for inviting a large number of American free jazz musicians to Paris to record in the summer of 1969, a time when they were receiving little support or attention in the United States. Many of these musicians were already overseas at the time, having appeared at the Pan-African Music Festival in Algiers in July 1969. [ [http://www.villagevoice.com/2000-07-18/music/bridge-across-the-cliff Bridge across the cliff] . "Village Voice", 18 July 2000.] The resulting albums are an important repository of free jazz recordings from the period. Some of the musicians who made the trip to record were Anthony Braxton, Don Cherry, Sunny Murray, Archie Shepp, Alan Silva and Dave Burrell.

The label also released a small number of non-jazz recordings by artists such as Musica Elettronica Viva and Gong.

In 2002, a compilation album, "JazzActuel: a collection of avant garde/free jazz/psychedelia from the BYG/Actuel catalogue of 1969–1971", was released by Charly Records (as a 3CD set) and Get Back Records of Italy (as a 6LP set). The collection was curated by Thurston Moore of Sonic Youth and journalist Byron Coley. ["Downbeat", June 2002.]

List of albums released by BYG Actuel

*Acting Trio, "Acting Trio"
*Art Ensemble of Chicago, "Message to Our Folks"
*Art Ensemble of Chicago, "Reese and the Smooth Ones"
*Art Ensemble of Chicago, "A Jackson in Your House"
*Daevid Allen, "Magick Brother"
*Daevid Allen, "Banana Moon"
*Paul Bley, "Ramblin"'
*Anthony Braxton, "B-Xo/N-0-1-4-7a" (also referred to as "Anthony Braxton", or "Composition 6g")
*Anthony Braxton, "This Time"
*Dave Burrell, "Echo"
*Dave Burrell, "La Vie de Bohème"
*Don Cherry, "Mu, First Part"
*Don Cherry, "Mu, Second Part"
*Jacques Coursil, "Way Ahead"
*Jacques Coursil, "Black Suite"
*Andrew Cyrille, "What About?"
*Claude Delcloo and Arthur Jones, "Africanasia"
*Freedom, "Freedom at Last"
*Gong, "Camembert Electrique"
*Burton Greene, "Aquariana"
*Arthur Jones, "Scorpio"
*Joachim Kuhn, "Sounds of Feelings"
*Joachim Kuhn, "Paris is Wonderful"
*Steve Lacy, "Moon"
*Steve Lacy, "Epistrophy
*Jimmy Lyons, "Other Afternoons"
*Pierre Marietan and Terry Riley, "Germ: Keyboard Study 2"
*Grachan Moncur, "New Africa"
*Grachan Moncur, "Aco Dei de Madrugada"
*Sunny Murray, "Homage to Africa"
*Sunny Murray, "(Never Give a Sucker) An Even Break"
*Sunny Murray, "Sunshine"
*Musica Elettronica Viva, "The Sound Pool"
*Musica Elettronica Viva, "Leave the City"
*Michel Puig, "Stigmates"
*Sun Ra, "The Solar-Myth Approach, Vols 1&2"
*Dewey Redman, "Tarik"
*Sonny Sharrock, "Monkey-Pockie-Boo"
*Archie Shepp, "Blasé"
*Archie Shepp, "Yasmina, A Black Woman"
*Archie Shepp, "Poem for Malcolm"
*Archie Shepp, "Full Moon Ensemble Live in Antibes, Vols 1&2"
*Archie Shepp, "Live at the Pan-African Festival"
*Alan Silva, "Luna Surface"
*Alan Silva & the Celestial Communications Orchestra - "Seasons"
*Ame Son, "Catalyse"
*Kenneth Terroade, "Love Rejoice"
*Clifford Thornton, "Ketchaoua"
*Frank Wright, "One For John"

References

ee also

* List of record labels