John Zorn's Cobra: Live at the Knitting Factory is a performance of John Zorn's improvisational game piece, Cobra, performed at The Knitting Factory in 1992. The album resembles the missing link between John Zorn's work with Masada and Naked City. It also had a major impact on the electronic scene of New York.
The Allmusic review by Scott Yanow awarded the album 1½ stars stating "There are some colorful segments, but in general, these self-indulgent performances would be much more interesting to see in person than to hear on record. Taken purely as a listening experience, one is surprised that this material has even been released". Guy Peters stated "If this is your first acquaintance with Zorn’s multifaceted universe, chances are you’ll never visit it again and therefore it only can serve as a treat for those who were there, seriously dedicated fans".
All compositions by John Zorn
- "Hemachatus Haemachatus" - 2:11
- "Naja Naja Atra" (Organized by David Shea) - 8:43
- "Many-Banded Krait" - 10:53
- "Taipan" - 1:30
- "D. Popylepis" - 3:20
- "Lampropeltis Doliata Syspila" (Organized by Joe Gallant) - 2:19
- "Boomslang" - 11:07
- "Maticora Intestinalis" - 6:13
- "Acanthopis Antarcticus" - 4:00
- "Hydrophiidae" - 5:42
- "Ngu Sam Liem" - 0:53
- "Ophiophagus Hannah" - 1:25
- "Boulengerina" - 5:23
- "Laticaudia Laticaudia" (Organized by Steven Bernstein) - 3:03
Note: All songs are named after subspecies of Cobra snakes
All tracks recorded live at the Knitting Factory, New York CityTrack 1 - recorded in January 1992Track 2 - recorded in February 1992Track 3 - recorded in March 1992Track 4 & 5 - recorded in April 1992Track 6 - recorded in May 1992Track 7 - recorded in June 1992Track 8 - recorded in July 1992Track 9 - recorded in August 1992Track 10 - recorded in September 1992Track 11 & 12 - recorded in October 1992Track 13 - recorded in November 1992Track 14 - recorded in December 1992Christine Bard (1,3,7): drumsAnthony Coleman (1,2,3,7,9): samplerMark Degliantoni (1,2,3,9): samplerCurtis Fowlkes (1,3): tromboneEvan Gallagher (1,2,6,8,10): keyboards, sampler, trombone, cornetGisburg (1,4,5,7): voice (soprano), mouth organ, tin whistleRoy Nathanson (1,3,7,9): soprano, alto, tenorJames Pugliese (1,2,7,9): drums, sampler, percussionMarcus Rojas (1,13): tubaDavid Shea (1,2,9): samplerDoug Wieselman (1): clarinetMichelle Kinney (2,13): cello, electronicsTim Spelios (2): CD playersDavid Weinstein (2): samplerBrad Jones (3): string bassMyra Melford (3): synthesizerZeena Parkins (3,7): electric harpMarc Ribot (3,7): electric guitarJay Rodrigues (3): altoE.J. Rodriguez (3,14): drums, percussionBill Ware (3): vibraphoneJeff Buckley (4,5): voice (tenor)M. Doughty (4,5): voice (tenor)Judy Dunaway (4,5,8): voice (mezzo-soprano), electric guitar, balloonsMark Ettinger (4,5): voice (tenor)Cassie Hoffman (4,5): voice (soprano)Nina Mankin (4,5): voice (mezzo-soprano)Chris Nelson (4,5): voice (baritone)Juliet Palmer (4,5): voice (alto)Wilbur Pauley (4,5): voice (bass)Rick Porterfield (4,5): voice (baritone)Eric Qin (4,5): voice (baritone)Kevin Sharp (4,5): voice (throat)Louie Belogenis (6): drumsSteven Bernstein (6,10,13,14): sampler, trumpet, slide trumpetDawn Buckholz (6): samplerJoe Gallant (6,10): string bass, 6-string contrabass guitarRandy Hutton (6): synthesizerMargaret Lancaster (6): soprano, altoFred Lonberg-Holm (6,8,11,12): electric harp, tape recorder, CD players, noisemakers, cornetVito Ricci (6): electric guitarWalter Thompson (6,10): alto, baritone, fluteEd Broms (7): string bassTamela Glenn (7): voice (soprano)Lee Hyla (7): samplerTim Smith (7): bass clarinetChris Wood (7,9): string bassBob Lipman (8): electric guitar, bongos, percussionLeslie Ross (8,11,12): bassoon, electric bassoon, shawm, various reedsBlaise Siwula (8): alto, trumpetKiku Wada (8): electric guitarDavid Watson (8,11,12): electric guitar, trumpetSteve Waxman (8): electric bass, pocket trumpet, percussionMichael Evans (9,10): drums, percussionCraig Flanagin (9): electric guitarK.J. Grant (9,11,12): electric bass, voice (alto)John King (9): dobroSharon Topper (9): voice (soprano), noisemakersJohn Zorn (9): altoDavid Cast Castigilione (10,14): tenor, bass clarinet, baritone saxophoneAllan Chase (10): soprano, altoHollis Headrick (10): drumsRolf Sturm (10): electric guitarSteve Swell (10): tromboneThomas Ulrich (10): celloNick Balaban (11,12): synthesizersApril Chung (11,12): violinPaul Hoskin (11,12): baritoneDonna Jewell (11,12): voice (soprano)James Lo (11,12): drumsMakigami Koichi (11,12): voice (tenor)Matthew Ostrowski (11,12): analog synthesizerGreg Anderson (13): acoustic, string instrumentsDavid Krakauer (13): clarinet, bass clarinetFrank London (13): trumpet, percussionPaul Morrissett (13): kaval, gaida, violinAndrea Parkins (13): accordionSebastian Steinberg (13): electric bassAlicia Svigals (13): violinJane Tomkiewicz (13): percussionBilly Martin (14): percussion, talking drumBen Perowsky (14): drumsAdam Rogers (14): electric guitarDan Rosengard (14): synthesizersDanny Sedownik (14): percussionPaul Shapiro (14): soprano, tenor, fluteDavid Tronzo (14): slide guitar
