Name: Billy Bang Lucky Man
Brand: Billy Bang

Bonus disc

Bonus disc: No

Catalogue number

BBE650ALP

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Colour

Black

Colour details

Discogs ID

Format multiplier

Download code

Download code: No

Rough Trade Exclusive

Rough Trade Exclusive: No

Extended format

Extended format: No

Format detail

Format Music GB

Limited edition

Release date

2021-05-14

Signed copies

Signed copies: No

Supplier GB

The Orchard

Tax rate GB

Standard:20

UPC / Barcode

195497548422

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Total Cap

3 / Extended format: No / LP / Rough Trade Exclusive: No / Signed copies: No / black

BBE650ACD

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1 / CD / Extended format: No / Rough Trade Exclusive: No / Signed copies: No

Artist

Billy Bang

Genre GB

Jazz

Label GB

BBE is a UK based record label, short for Barely Breaking Even. Founded in 1996 by Peter Adarkwah and Ben Jolly, the label releases both original works and compilations. Known for their compilation series such as "The Beat Generation" and "Kings of...," BBE features a wide range of collections in genres like jazz, soul, hip-hop, r'n'b, house, drum'n'bass, and more. With a diverse roster of artists including *J Dilla*, *Pete Rock*, *Roy Ayers*, *Marley Marl*, and many others, BBE continues to be a prominent force in the music industry.
The label's association with German label G-Stone Recordings has further expanded its reach. Since its inception, BBE has released numerous acclaimed albums and compilations that have garnered critical acclaim and commercial success.
With an extensive catalog spanning over two decades, BBE remains dedicated to showcasing exceptional talent from various genres while consistently delivering high-quality music to its loyal fanbase worldwide.

In association with IF Music, BBE Music presents Lucky Man: music from the eponymous documentary film, charting jazz violinist and Vietnam veteran Billy Bang’s brave return to the country, 40 years after the War.

The film Lucky Man by Jean-Marie Boulet and Markus Hansen follows Billy Bang as he returns to the battlefields of his past, this time with a violin in-hand instead of a rifle. The documentary follows Billy as he travels the length and breadth of Vietnam to collaborate with local musicians, discover the culture he never got to experience the first time around, and to try to find some closure for the haunting trauma that still lingers within.

The trip took place in 2008, three years before Billy Bang’s passing and these never-before released field recordings, lovingly polished at The Carvery studio in London, capture the musician’s many poignant musical encounters along the way. The journey took him from Ho Chi Minh City and the Mekong Delta, through to the highlands and the Banhar and Jorai gongs of the Montagnards, north across the 17th parallel, climaxing with ‘Mystery of the Mekong’, his collaboration with the Hanoi Symphony Orchestra.

The album Lucky Man is composed of recordings captured throughout Billy Bang’s travels in Vietnam, interspersed with his candid thoughts about music, art, war, and his return to the country. Trần Mạnh Tuấn, the saxophonist featured on ‘Jungle Lullaby’ is well known in Saigon, where he owns a club called Sax n’Art, in which the live collaboration was recorded. In the more rural Kon Tum province, The Banhar Gong Group of Kuntum perform one of their traditional pieces, over which Billy’s off-the-cuff improvisation simply soars. The Phu Dong Family Band (a collective comprising an incredible 25 members of leader Duc Dau’s family) appears on ‘New Saigon Phunk’ and ‘Song for Don Cherry’, recorded in their native Ho Chi Minh City. Duc Dau is also a collector of ancient traditional instruments, and he plays a primitive stone Lithophone called a Dan Da with Billy in an energetic and exciting live jam that feels more like a duel at points.

Billy Bang Lucky Man

Music GB