Attention Span (album)

Attention Span is a collaborative album by Bob Ostertag, Fred Frith and John Zorn, released in 1990 by RecRec Music.[1][2][3][4][5]

Attention Span
Studio album by Ostertag with Zorn with Frith
Released	1990 (1990)
Recorded	September – December 1989 (1989-12)
Studio	Various The Knitting Factory (New York City, New York) Mills College (Oakland, California)
Genre	experimental sound collage
Length	45:21
Label	RecRec
Bob Ostertag chronology
Voice of America (1982) Attention Span (1990) Sooner or Later (1991)
Fred Frith chronology
Step Across the Border (1990) Attention Span (1990) Dropera (1991)
John Zorn chronology
Naked City (1990) Attention Span (1990) Torture Garden (1991)

Reception

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[6]

Ted Mills of AllMusic said of Attention Span that it is "not as cohesive as some of his other, more conceptual works (sometimes you wonder if the whole thing is a favor to his fellow artists), but certainly not without worth."[6]

Track listing

No.	Title	Music	Length
1.	"Power"	Ostertag, Zorn	1:07
2.	"Paper Jam"	Ostertag, Zorn	0:16
3.	"Warning"	Ostertag, Zorn	0:25
4.	"And Gate"	Ostertag, Zorn	0:10
5.	"Necker Cube"	Ostertag, Zorn	0:56
6.	"Fold"	Ostertag, Zorn	1:06
7.	"Ebb Tide"	Ostertag, Zorn	0:51
8.	"Marketing Research"	Ostertag, Zorn	0:21
9.	"Fixed Resistor"	Ostertag, Zorn	0:17
10.	"Radiant Power"	Ostertag, Zorn	1:14
11.	"Depth Reversal"	Ostertag, Zorn	0:21
12.	"Dangerous Zone"	Ostertag, Zorn	0:37
13.	"Hit the Road"	Ostertag, Zorn	0:21
14.	"Smoking"	Ostertag, Zorn	1:55
15.	"Waiting"	Ostertag, Zorn	1:31
16.	"Electric Flux"	Ostertag, Zorn	0:36
17.	"Cocktail Lounge"	Ostertag, Zorn	0:35
18.	"Coat Check"	Ostertag, Zorn	1:05
19.	"Detour"	Ostertag, Zorn	0:24
20.	"Meter"	Ostertag, Zorn	0:59
21.	"Circuit Breaker"	Ostertag, Zorn	1:11
22.	"Surge Impendence"	Ostertag, Zorn	0:40
23.	"Vision"	Ostertag, Zorn	1:57
24.	"Black, To a Chimp"	Ostertag, Zorn	0:20
25.	"Neon"	Ostertag, Zorn	1:00
26.	"Emergency Shop"	Ostertag, Zorn	3:14
27.	"Flame"	Frith, Ostertag	1:54
28.	"Bone"	Frith, Ostertag	5:39
29.	"Jolt"	Frith, Ostertag	6:03
30.	"Bolt"	Frith, Ostertag	4:37
31.	"Loops"	Frith, Ostertag	0:56
32.	"Drowning Offshore"	Frith, Ostertag	2:43

Personnel

Adapted from the Attention Span liner notes.[7]

Musicians

• Fred Frith – guitar (1-26)
• Bob Ostertag – sampler, liner notes
• John Zorn – alto saxophone (1-26)

Production and design

• Bob Appel – engineering
• Douglas Kenny – cover art, design
• Jonathan Nelson – engineering
• Diego Zweifel – design

Release history

Region	Date	Label	Format	Catalog
Switzerland	1990	RecRec	CD	ReCDec 33

References

1. Rusch, Bob (1995). "Bob Ostertag w/ John Zorn/Fred Frith: Attention Span". Cadence. David Haney: 7. Retrieved August 14, 2020.
2. Dean, R.T. (March 2003). Hyperimprovisation Computer-Interactive Sound Improvisation. A-R Editions. p. 122. Retrieved August 14, 2020.
3. Ostertag, Bob (July 27, 2009). Creative Life: Music, Politics, People, and Machines. McFarland & Company. p. 188. Retrieved August 14, 2020.
4. "Bob Ostertag: Attention Span". CD Review Digest. Peri Press. 6 (4): 410. 1992. Retrieved August 4, 2020.
5. Caras, Tracy; Gagne, Cole (1992). "Interviews with American Composers". Soundpieces 2. Peri Press. 6 (4): 410. Retrieved August 4, 2020.
6. Mills, Ted. "Bob Ostertag: Attention Span > Review". AllMusic. Retrieved August 14, 2020.
7. Attention Span (booklet). Bob Ostertag. Zürich, Switzerland: RecRec Music. 1993.CS1 maint: others (link)

External links

• Attention Span at Discogs (list of releases)