For some reason I’ve skipped Xaphan from The 2nd Masada Songbook on Tzadik. I thought this year’s invincible Bar Kokhba Sextet release was the first one yet indeed Trey Spruance’s madmen Secret Chiefs 3 were the first to step up to that holy task of getting 16 bar sheets of music from John Zorn and crafting them into their own creations.

If you don’t know them already, Secret Chiefs 3 are an even further out Mr. Bungle and their ADD eclecticism is tailor made for this series. Yet although the critics were very impressed with this release, I remain calm in the face of saz and oriental rhythms because I’m not an orientalist, rather a real person from Istanbul.

The third and last addition to the series this year is by the world famous jam trio Medeski, Martin and Wood, whose members are stalwarts of the downtown scene. It is not wildly kaleidoscopic as Xaphan, yet with more coherence and a stricter basis in jazz and the added bonus of having melodies from the Masada songbook on top.

While I think none can surpass the excellent Bar Kokhba disc Lucifer (voted #22 on Rateyourmusic best of list) both discs are essential additions to the Masada songbook collection. If you wanna go zany with oriental rhyhtms get Xaphan, if you wanna experience the klezmer jam get Zaebos, if you are a fan you’ll get both anyways!

The next in series will be in Spring 2009, and I heard that it will feature Joe Lovano, Dave Douglas, Uri Caine, Greg Cohen and Joey Baron.