B List: 10 Great Ali Baba’s Tahini Tracks
This week’s B List focuses on the unclassifiable Ali Baba’s Tahini, who return to the stage this evening at Martyr’s in Chicago for the first time in seven years. Made up of Umphrey’s McGee guitarist Jake Cinninger, brilliant songwriter Karl Englemann, whirl-of-motion drummer Steve “Krojo” Krojniewski, touring bassist Jeff Hinkle and Justin Powell on keys, ABT had an incredibly unique sound and developed a sizable fanbase over its brief existence as a touring band out of South Bend during the late ’90s.
Once Cinninger disbanded the group to join UM, you might have thought the future was bleak for Ali Baba’s Tahini but luckily the boys stayed in touch and recorded the outstanding Rockstars and Lawnmowers in 2004 before reuniting this year to put out Living Room and to embark on a brief five-gig run across the Midwest this weekend. There are only ten ABT recordings on the Live Music Archive, yet they each give a nice taste of the band’s history and what they are all about. We put together a list of one classic track for each recording along with a link to the recording itself…
The Unidentifiable = January 17th, 1998 – Mickey’s Pub
This recording of one of the first ABT shows comes from Jake Cinninger’s archives. While the track in question is marked as 42nd Street, this unidentified track features gorgeous lead guitar work and vocals from Cinninger. It almost sounds like the love child of Stevie Ray Vaughan’s Lenny and Jimi Hendrix’s Angel.
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READ ON for more of this week’s B List on Ali Baba’s Tahini…
Plastic Junk = April 9, 1999 – Daily Grind
Unfortunately the archive doesn’t feature any recordings from a vital time in the band’s history between 1/98 and this show from 4/99. You can tell the band had come a long way during that period. Check out the Englemann-penned, Zappaesque Plastic Junk which was also featured on Hopi Champa.
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KaBump = April 17, 1999 – Lula’s Cafe
Our first song on this list that made it into Umphrey’s repertoire, ABT’s KaBump sounds similar to the early UM versions before they gave Cinninger’s tune the occasional “Toto” makeover. A great instrumental, KaBump sounds like it came right out of a Nintendo video game. Other noteworthy tracks from this boot include Padgett’s Profile and covers of Rainbow County and Cissy Strut.
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Stepping Razor = May 15, 1999 – Mickey’s Pub
The ABT boys throw in some twisted lyrics to their version of Peter Tosh’s Stepping Razor. They can hardly get through the verses without breaking out into laughter. Umphrey’s debuted its cover of the tune last December and thankfully it has been added to the rotation appearing four times in 2010.
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Lockspot = May 21, 1999 – Lula’s Cafe
Jazz was a major element of Ali Baba’s Tahini sound and you can hear this influence on the original Lockspot. Another tune recorded for Hopi Champa, this live version of Lockspot features angular, auto-wah’d out leads from Cinninger and smooth brush work by Krojo. If you’re only going to download one show from this list, we’d recommend this stellar sounding soundboard.
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Last Train Home = September 23, 1999 – Mickey’s Pub
One of the most beautiful instrumentals ever written, Last Train Home was penned by jazz great Pat Metheny and is another tune that made the transition from ABT’s repertoire to Umhprey’s. All three members of the trio help propel this version to greatness. If you’re only going to download TWO shows from this list, download this board, too.
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Dig-a-dot = September 25, 1999 – Northside Hall
Mixing multiple genres within the course of a few minutes, this ABT instrumental features many classic Cinninger licks that must’ve dropped attendees jaws at these small clubs in Indiana. One of the more progressive tunes on this list, Dig-a-dot switches styles quickly like many UM tunes.
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Karl Engelmann and Friends @ Caribbean Holidaze
Nothing Too Fancy = May 27, 2000 – Bell’s Brewery
Many UM fans may not realize that this signature Umphrey’s tune actually came from Cinninger’s time with Ali Baba’s Tahini. Most of the sections found today are there in this version from a decade ago, but have been expanded upon dramatically over the past 10 years. Regardless, this SBD version gives a nice taste of early N2F.
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Professor Wormbog = August 19, 2001 – Riverfront Amphitheater
Another genre-defying instrumental, Professor Wormbog contains many different sections that the band traverses pretty quickly in this version. Krojo’s energy propels this tune and allows Cinninger to burn through a number of scintillating leads before the drummer takes a solo of his own. Wormbog is another ABT tune that Jake took with him to Umphrey’s.
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Alice = September 20, 2003 – Niles Riverfront Cafe
The original lineup of Ali Baba’s Tahini – plus Kahlil Smylie on bass – reformed for a special one-off show in Cinninger’s hometown of Niles, MI back in 2003 and debuted many songs which wound up on 2004′s Rockstars and Lawnmowers. This three-minute ditty, sung and written by Englemann, displays the country-tinged side of ABT’s music.
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- Podcast: 10 Great ABT Tracks
[Written by Scott Bernstein with DaveO]
Ali Baba’s Tahini Tour:
September 16: Martyr’s – Chicago, IL
September 17: Papa Pete’s – Kalamazoo, MI
September 18: The Bluebird – Bloomington, IN
September 19: Wuhnurth Music Festival – Spencer, IN
September 19b: Niles Amphitheatre – Niles, MI
While 42nd Street *is* among ABT’s best recordings, the version included above is *not* 42nd Street. I can’t ID what that is, but a live take on 42nd can be heard (streamed) here: http://www.archive.org/details/abt2003-09-20.flac16
Otherwise, thanks for the ABT post. Good stuff.
If anyone knows the title of the beautiful song in question, please let us know!