Rumor: Glen Moore has left Oregon - Is this true???

[Dave (in MA)]

But I lost touch with Oregon after the ECM period. I had no idea Mark Walker was with them. Does he do any of the "world" percussion stuff that Walcott and Gurtu did, or is it basically kit drums now?

They actually had less of an Indian influence when Bombay native Trilok Gurtu was in the group than when NYC native Collin Walcott was in the group. Walker primarily works with a traditional kit, switching to hand drums on occasion. If you want to keep abreast of what's going on with the group, your best bet is to check Walker's site; the official band site is woefully neglected.

[wideopenears]

One of my all-time favorite albums is Oregon's Crossings. That is a perfect rainy day record for me. I'm a fan of all their eras, and saw them with Gurtu, but wish I had seen them before Colin passed.

Pepe' Linque has some pretty outrageous upright playing. Glen had personality, for sure.

[wideopenears]

https://youtu.be/Se_AHDLjRRA?t=498

Dropped in at the beginning of the above-referenced tune..

[jkelman]

One of my all-time favorite albums is Oregon's Crossings. That is a perfect rainy day record for me. I'm a fan of all their eras, and saw them with Gurtu, but wish I had seen them before Colin passed..

Fortunately I did...many times, including a two-night run in Montreal where I stayed at the same hotel and hung with them for some meals. I'm so happy that I got to meet and hang significantly with Colin a couple years prior to his untimely passing. Still miss him.

And it's sad that Glen has decided to pack it in. Oregon just won't be the same without his wry sense of humour - both in the way he spoke and in much of his music. They'll still be very good, of course; but with only two remaining founding members, the chemistry will shift considerably. And as much as I'm sure I'll enjoy it, it certainly will not be the same....

[time captain]

I am surprised and very happy to see all the interest & love for Oregon and all the recent responses to this thread. I feel much the same as you John K. : Collin's passing seems to be lingering with me as much or more than anyone else we have lost.
What might have happened with music in the late 1980's and beyond had Collin lived? Maybe he would have left Oregon anyway. Maybe he would have stayed. Maybe some of the rock musicians working with "world music" in the 1980s [ Peter Gabriel, Mickey Hart, David Sylvian for example ] might have worked with Collin. That would have brought more attention to Collin's solo work, Codona, Oregon and ECM Records [ their label at the time of his passing ].

After the Beatles broke up [ I was 10 and under their spell since their appearance on Ed Sullivan before I was yet 5 ] I got into, one by one, the many artists we celebrate on this site [ with a lot of help from Triad Radio ]. However as the "classical rock" & "art rock" [ as it was called then ] began to fade with the end of the 1970s, it was Oregon & ECM Records that seemed like the next step for me. The promise of music like "On The Silent Wings Of Freedom", "Relayer", "Awaken", "Meddle", "Ummagumma", Esperanto's "Dance Macabre", "Marscape", the Island Records era Jade Warrior, to name just a few, was carried further with the musics of Towner, Walcott, Moore, McCandless, Eberhard, Rypdal, Garbarek.

I got into the Grateful Dead very late, after the bus had parked. It was Oregon who taught me about changing set lists every night, and mass quantities of improv. I first encountered them at the Amazin' Grace in Evanston in 1975. They would come to that sacred little room a few times a year. Usually they would play Friday, Saturday & Sunday nights - two sets each night. I was witness to many, many of these concerts. Sitting maybe 4 feet from Ralph and / or Collin. I often wish there was a website like Forgotten Yesterdays for Oregon fans. What an amazing musical sojourn they have been.

I do not really know the members of Oregon I have opened once for Ralph [ @ Lower Links in 1990 or 1991 ]. I have spoken to them a couple of times. I once asked either Glen or Ralph if they would ever release a box set of live recordings. I can not remember which gentleman I was talking to, but they couldn't see why anyone would want to hear that. That answer surprised me. I have many shows I have collected, and from where I sit - releasing live Oregon sets would be a music studies course unto itself.

[Dave (in MA)]

Bumping the thread in case anyone wants to talk about them. Here's another video with the new kid on the bass fiddle.

Nothing new on the tour front that I can see, but this piece off Mark Walker's page looks interesting:

03/24/16 - 03/25/16 Recording with Bob Karty, Steve Rodby and Paul McCandless
San Francisco, CA tba United States
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Time: 10:00am. Age restrictions: All Ages.
Bob Karty – piano, keys, compositions; Paul McCandless – reeds; Steve Rodby – bass; MW – drums/perc