Dion McGregor

The human mind and its forms of expression will never cease to amaze. These legendary ’60s recordings of a man dreaming out loud with rhythmic delight are some of the most perplexing and intriguing monologues ever set to tape. It’s almost unbelievable that these weren’t written and rehearsed, granted the clear delivery and befuddling subject matter of the monologues, not to mention their would-be compositional depth. Cities designated to midgets, multiply-hatted Uranians living under suburban houses, bizarre scavenger hunts — McGregor’s subconscious mind is a wonderfully warped one (he was actually a show-tune songwriter) and his dainty, high-class voice is perfectly suited for delivering the often hilarious one-liners being unknowingly deadpanned within these incredible scenarios. Further Somniloquies is a full disc of unreleased recordings, the third in a series that found its debut with a 1964 Decca LP and a sophomore offering in 1999 on John Zorn’s Tzadik label. The liner notes tease there’s more on the way. Too much more of this might be a little much to take, but this stuff is about as interesting as it comes.