The Mercurial Musical World of John Lurie Is Illuminated Anew on ‘Music from the Series (Painting with John)’

The latest from Renaissance-man and quixotic rambler John Lurie is a 56-song collection of recent musical collaborations that will do much to satisfy fans of the musician-artist-actor-memoirist.

Meanwhile, those who are indifferent, annoyed, or puzzled by the now-71-year-old Lurie’s almost-five decades long (and heavily hyphenated) body of work could very well still be intrigued this 56-song set, available in vinyl and digital formats. Forgoing his alto saxophone for guitar and banjo, on Music from the Series, Painting with John, Lurie jams with a roster of similarly-minded players, many from the outer realms of the NYC jazz scene, including Steven Bernstein, Michael Blake, Curtis Fowlkes, Clark Gayton, Smokey Hormel Evan Lurie, Billy Martin, Jane Scarpantoni, G. Calvin Weston and Doug Wieselman.

While the album is a companion piece to Lurie’s popular HBO series of the same name, in total Painting with John offers up a dented-but-smooth mix of noir and blues, famously used to great effect by Lurie in his Grammy-nominated soundtrack for the film Get Shorty. Banjo plonks, chanting, and Lurie’s gravelly voice are all featured over the course of traversing the album; while it might be a bumpy ride for some, many will be content to listen to Lurie’s travelogue of his unique interior world. 

Music from the Series, Painting with John is out now and available in digital and vinyl formats via Bandcamp. Stream via your preferred platform here.