After nearly three years in France, the Art Ensemble celebrated their homecoming with this triumphant performance at the Ann Arbor Blues & Jazz Festival. Raucous, theatrical, chaotic and at times quite beautiful, it’s brilliant in its anti-virtuosity and sheer face-painted exuberance. When they came offstage, Muddy Waters told them, “I don’t know what y’all was doing, but y’all was doing it.”

– Phil Freeman