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Arthur Russell: The Oskaloosa Kid

Monday, May 12, 2008

A classically trained cellist from Iowa who cut his teeth on New York's downtown '80s art scene, composer Arthur Russell recorded everything from disco to experimental music to haunting electronic ballads. He died in 1992 at age 40. Matt Wolf, director of the new documentary "Wild Combination: A Portrait of Arthur Russell" and New Yorker pop music critic Sasha Frere-Jones join us to talk about Russell’s influence and work.

"Wild Combination" screens on Thursday, May 15 at 7 p.m. and 9 p.m. at the Kitchen. That venue also presents musical tributes to Arthur Russell on Friday, May 16 and Saturday, May 17, both at 8 p.m. More information here.

Our blog: John Schafer on fitting Arthur Russell into "Loose Joints"

The Kitchen web site
"Wild Combination" web site
Sasha Frere-Jones blog at NewYorker.com


Comments

  • [1] bill from mamaroneck May 12, 2008 - 02:17PM

    You're neglecting to mention Russell's new-wave/indie-rock work. He replaced Chris Spedding in The Necessaries (also featuring former Modern Lover Ernie Brooks)and appeared on their only album, 1981's "Event Horizon" on Sire Records.


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