Record Reviews

MALGORZATA MALISZCZAK ~ ZLOTE MYSLI KOBIETY POLSKIE RADIO 1954 (Barcode: 5907812249540) ~ POLAND ~ Jazz & Poetry Recorded: 2014 Released: 2015 This is a wonderful album, which presents twelve original compositions by Polish pianist / composer Malgorzata MaliszczakFind albums by this artist, based on poems (by prominent Polish poetesses and poets), which present the feminine "point of view". The beautiful texts and superb music go hand in hand, creating a gorgeous set of songs, carefully arranged and Jazzed up, performed by four vocalists: Lola SzafranFind albums by this artist, Mietek SzczesniakFind albums by this artist, Beata PrzybytekFind albums by this artist and Agnieszka MaliFind albums by this artist. The vocalists are supported by a great team of instrumentalist, including many of the top Polish Jazz players, like the great pianist Pawel TomaszewskiFind albums by this artist, bassist Andrzej SwiesFind albums by this artist, drummer Pawel DobrowolskiFind albums by this artist and many others. Kudos to Tomasz KalwakFind albums by this artist for producing this gem! The album firmly continues the Polish Jazz & Poetry tradition, which goes back to the 1960s and always has been one of the most successful expressions of the local Culture. It is good to see that it has not been abandoned so far, even though the contemporary music scene makes every effort to annihilate every sign of Culture itself. Of course the fact that these poems were written in the Polish language limits the potential audience, I´m pretty sure that even non-Polish speakers should be able to enjoy this album in full. Personally I find Beata Przybytek to be the most striking vocalist on this album, but all four artists make a grand job, including the veteran Szafran, who seems to be still in great form. The instrumental work is perfectly suiting the lyrical atmosphere, with subtle soloing and attentive accompaniment. This album simply says "elegance and grace" minute after minute, and when it is eventually over, one longs for more. Overall this is a splendid effort and everybody who contributed to its creating deserves to be wholeheartedly thanked and congratulated. One can only hope that it will be heard by as many people as possible, who can truly appreciate it.

Updated: 01/01/2016Posted:

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BERNARD MASELI ~ DRIFTER WARNER MUSIC POLAND 190296460135 (Barcode: 190296460135) ~ POLAND ~ Jazz-Pop Fusion Recorded: 2013 - 2019 Released: 2021 This is an album by the Polish Jazz vibraphonist / composer Bernard MaseliFind albums by this artist, recorded over a period of several years with a long list of Polish and international Jazz instrumentalists and vocalists. The album presents twelve tracks, eleven original compositions or co-compositions by Maseli and one by Japanese composer Kozaburo HiraiFind albums by this artist. The album was, for some strange and inexplicable reasons, released in the new “Polish Jazz Masters” series, which was designed to include Polish Jazz albums not released in the legendary “Polish Jazz” series, but recorded before 1990, which is not a case here. It was also released in a non-standard packaging as a jewel case and not as a digipak, as the rest of the series. The music is all on the distinctly lighter side of the Jazz spectrum, mostly Smooth Jazz and even in some case not Jazz at all, being Rap, Funk, Soul or simply Pop. Maseli plays vibraphone, marimba, kalimba and Mallet KAT and improvises brilliantly, the music has only a very fait Jazz undercurrent. The wonderful Beata PrzybytekFind albums by this artist adds some great vocals on several tracks, again those being mostly in the Soul department. Of course Maseli is still a superb Jazz musician and definitely has an honorable position among Polish Jazz vibraphonists, but on this album he shows other facets of his musical personality, which is perfectly fine. His compositions are all excellent and he and his fellow musicians are all first class performers and the album offers many wonderful moments, probably not necessarily for a Jazz audience. Overall, this is a very nice Pop-Jazz Fusion, Funk, Soul and World Music album, with superb mallet technique displayed by Maseli on all the instruments he uses to create this music, which is a great fun to listen to and mostly also quite danceable.

Updated: 15/04/2023Posted: 15/04/2023

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BEATA PRZYBYTEK ~ I`M GONNA ROCK YOU FLID 001 ~ POLAND ~ Jazz Recorded: 2011 - 2012 Released: 2012 This is the fourth album by the Polish vocalist Beata PrzybytekFind albums by this artist and her debut as a singer / songwriter. After releasing three consecutive albums between 2003 and 2005, Przybytek took almost seven years to come up with this album, which presents sixteen songs written by her to lyrics (in English) by Alicja MaciejowskaFind albums by this artist (thirteen songs) and her own (the remaining three songs). She is accompanied by a wonderful ensemble of gifted and sympathetic instrumentalists, which includes the keyboardist / arranger Tomasz KalwakFind albums by this artist, who is responsible for the truly excellent and highly skilled musical settings created for her songs. Other players include guitarist Damian KuraszFind albums by this artist, pianist Boguslaw KaczmarFind albums by this artist, bassists Tomasz KupiecFind albums by this artist and Adam KowalewskiFind albums by this artist, drummers Arek SkolikFind albums by this artist, Krzysztof DziedzicFind albums by this artist and Filip MozulFind albums by this artist and percussionist Slawomir BernyFind albums by this artist. Several guest musicians also appear, among them trumpeter Piotr WojtasikFind albums by this artist, vibraphonist Bernard MaseliFind albums by this artist, organist Jan SmoczynskiFind albums by this artist and others. Przybytek started her career as a Jazz vocalist, but her last album ("WonderlandFind albums with this title"), which comprised entirely of songs by Stevie WonderFind albums by this artist, saw her already flirting with Pop, Soul and Rhythm And Blues. This album, which focuses on her songwriting as much, if not more, as on her performances, takes her into new territory, which in a beautiful amalgam of Pop, Blues, Gospel, Soul and Jazz. The artistic level of her songwriting is formidable and these sixteen songs are all jewels in their own right, quite diverse and beautifully full of character. I must admit that at first hearing I could hardly believe my ears as I haven´t heard such a sublime collection of new songs in a very long time. The vocal performances are also first-class, somewhat similar to the mannerisms of Etta JamesFind albums by this artist / Amy WinehouseFind albums by this artist, but with a wonderfully warm tone and total control of timbre and expression. It´s a pity she chose to sing in English as I personally am quite convinced that if she sang these songs in her native language the result would have been even more stunning. Well, one can´t win them all. Still this is one of the best albums of its kind that I´ve heard in a very long time. The instrumental parts are, as already mentioned, simply delightful. Each song gets quite a different treatment, which keeps the album changing mood and ambiance often, as well as the instrumentation. The guest musicians get to deliver their respective solo spots and it sure looks like a great time was had by all during the recording sessions. This album is also a wonderful example of high quality music, which can be overtly accessible, without compromising even an iota of its intrinsic value. Every music lover should have a field day with this brilliant piece of music. Hats off, Beata! Silesia rulez again!

Updated: 08/05/2023Posted:

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BEATA PRZYBYTEK ~ THE ISLAND PRK 057 ~ POLAND ~ Jazz Recorded: 2003 Released: 2004 This is the second album by Polish Jazz vocalist Beata PrzybytekFind albums by this artist, recorded with her quintet, which comprises of saxophonist / flautist Marcin ZupanskiFind albums by this artist, pianist Dorota ZaziabloFind albums by this artist, bassist Robert SzewczugaFind albums by this artist and drummer Ryszard BalcerFind albums by this artist. Same as its predecessor, which was recorded eighteen month earlier, this album presents nine classic Jazz vocal standards, sung in their original English version. There are no arrangement credits on the album´s liner notes. The album was recorded while Przybytek was still a student at the Academy of Music in Katowice where she studied Jazz vocals and her group comprises of her fellow students from the same school as well as students from the Academy of Music in Krakow. The result is in many respects a direct continuation of what the debut recording offered, but it is much more relaxed (and even somewhat lax), suggesting more self-confidence. Effectively it lacks the youthful enthusiasm and spontaneity and therefore also looses some of the charm of the debut album. Przybytek saves the day by exposing her ability to stretch her voice and use a husky tone most effectively, which brings her closer sonically to Soul and Blues rather than to the straight-forward Jazz format. On this album her talent obviously outgrows the abilities of her cohorts and with a different band she would have probably achieved a much better result. All in all this is still a very nice mainstream vocal Jazz album, which should make most of the fans utterly satisfied. Przybytek is a very talented singer and once she reached her full potential as singer / songwriter all her qualities came to full bloom. In the meantime this is a nice souvenir from the student days. Definitely worth investigating!

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BEATA PRZYBYTEK ~ TODAY GIRLS DON`T CRY FLID 003 (Barcode: 5908254159718) ~ POLAND ~ Jazz-Soul Fusion Recorded: 2015 - 2017 Released: 2017 This is the long anticipated fifth album by Polish singer / songwriter Beata PrzybytekFind albums by this artist. It presents twelve original songs composed by Przybytek, nine of which feature English lyrics by Alicja MaciejowskaFind albums by this artist, two feature Polish lyrics by Dariusz DuszaFind albums by this artist and one features Polish lyrics by Grzegorz WasowskiFind albums by this artist. There is also a bonus track (lucky thirteen) written by Polish poet Andrzej PoniedzielskiFind albums by this artist and guitarist / composer Jakub ChmielarskiFind albums by this artist. The recording of the album lasted for almost two and a half years, spans several recording studios and features some of the best Polish Instrumentalist, many of them associated with Polish Jazz. Keyboardist Tomasz KalwakFind albums by this artist is again in charge of the arrangements and production and other musicians involved include keyboardists Boguslaw KaczmarFind albums by this artist and Pawel TomaszewskiFind albums by this artist, guitarists Damian KuraszFind albums by this artist and the a/m Jakub Chmielarski, bassists Adam KowalewskiFind albums by this artist, Robert SzewczugaFind albums by this artist and Andrzej SwiesFind albums by this artist, drummers Pawel DobrowolskiFind albums by this artist, Filip MozulFind albums by this artist and Arek SkolikFind albums by this artist, percussionist Slawomir BernyFind albums by this artist, saxophonists Marek PodkowaFind albums by this artist and Mariusz MaczkaFind albums by this artist and trumpeter Sebastian SoldrzynskiFind albums by this artist. Vocalist Beata BednarzFind albums by this artist guests on one track. About five years ago the previous album by Przybytek ("I`m Gonna Rock YouFind albums with this title") landed accidently on my desk and my enthusiastic review expressed my delight and joy experienced while listening to it, heralding her as one of the great hopes of the Polish vocal scene, despite the fact that she was almost completely unknown at the time. After a long wait it is even more delightful to hear that my "discovery" proved to be spot on and Przybytek delivered another masterpiece, not only on the Polish scale, but surely on a world scale as well. There are only a handful of other singer / songwriters active today who are able to write such wonderfully heartfelt songs and deliver them with such passion, conviction and seductive magnetism. Each and every one of these songs is an absolute gem, with no weak moments on the entire album. Although rooted in Jazz, Przybytek made a very conscious and in retrospect astute decision to move towards Soul, Rhythm And Blues and sophisticated Pop, which suit both her warm, sexy voice and obviously also her musical inclinations better than the Jazz idiom she started with. It takes a lot of intuition and self-confidence to make decisions like that, which in Przybytek´s case paved the way for her spectacular success. She truly "found herself" perfectly on this album, which directly projects on its quality, making it as "perfect" musically as albums get. Of course Przybytek´s vocals are more polished than on her earlier recordings, luckily not destroying her natural vocal qualities, which are still convincing and heartbreaking. Although I prefer her singing Polish lyrics (as usual in my case) her delivery of the English lyrics are spotless and completely natural. The instrumental work by all the musicians involved is absolutely stunning, as expected. My personal favorites are the organ parts played by Tomaszewski, who is superb as always, but the overall level of performances is simply extraordinary. This is obviously one of the best Polish albums released in 2017, regardless of what other critics may say. Over the years I have completely lost confidence in the Polish music awards scene, including the "Fryderyki", which have become a complete farce, but if any Polish album deserves the title of album of the year 2017, this is it! Przybytek is the epitome of talent and professionalism, which sadly are not in high esteem any more. Personally I wish to thank you Beata for fulfilling my belief in you, for writing such beautiful songs, for singing them so exquisitely and for making this dark, sad world a better place, even if only for some fifty six minutes and twenty two seconds ;) Go Women!

Updated: 08/05/2023Posted: 24/12/2017

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BEATA PRZYBYTEK ~ WONDERLAND NOT TWO 767 (Barcode: 5907589871678) ~ POLAND ~ Jazz Recorded: 2005 Released: 2005 This is the third album by Polish Jazz vocalist Beata PrzybytekFind albums by this artist, recorded with her quartet, which comprises of pianist Dorota ZaziabloFind albums by this artist, bassist Konrad BasiukFind albums by this artist and drummer Ryszard BalcerFind albums by this artist. Guest artists include percussionist Slawomir BernyFind albums by this artist, guitarists Jacek KrolikFind albums by this artist and Jaroslaw SmietanaFind albums by this artist and veteran saxophonist Janusz MuniakFind albums by this artist. On this album Przybytek says farewell to the Jazz standards songbook, which she used on her two earlier recordings, and dedicates this entire project to songs by the great Stevie WonderFind albums by this artist, selecting ten of his well-known tunes and presenting them in new arrangements, which results of course in a tribute album of sorts. Wonder´s songs, although catchy and beautifully melodic, are by no means straightforward musically and Przybytek takes quite a risk here attempting to re-invent the Master singer / songwriter by changing his original songs utilizing a Jazzy arrangement but also playing around with the melodies harmonically, twisting them and altering their tempi, usually to half the original speed. Somehow magically all this works out fine and the resulting music has a life of its own; still close enough to the source to be easily identified but at the same time significantly different to make things interesting. Her vocal performances are her best to date, showing undeniably that she sings well when not limited by stylistic restrictions, i.e. her Jazz education and experience, utilizing mannerisms and vocal routines commonly used in Soul, Rhythm And Blues and even Rock. All these influences finally amalgamate in her vocal performance on this album, which immediately put her on a completely new plane musically. Her vibrato is simply irresistible, causing goose bumps and other inexplicable physical and metaphysical effects to the innocent listener. She gets a very sympathetic support from the quartet, especially the acoustic bass, which is right at her side at all times supporting her wonderfully. The percussionist plays on several tracks, keeping his arsenal to minimum, which is very tasteful and rare since percussionists often tend to dominate every recording they´re on. Both guitarists and the saxophonist solo briefly, ornamenting the album but not adding any vital contributions, which would change its quality. All in all this is a very bold statement, beautifully executed and full of wonderfully sensitive musical tricks and treats. It takes more that a single listening sessions to really appreciate this album, but that is quite customary for all quality musical ventures as this one. A few more spins and the listener is hooked entirely. In many respects this album could appeal to a wide range of music connoisseurs, both those who prefer Jazz and those who like Pop material. Quality is a universal heart opener, and this album definitely opens many hearts!

Updated: 08/05/2023Posted:

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BEATA PRZYBYTEK ~ YOU DON`T KNOW WHAT LOVE IS PRK 049 ~ POLAND ~ Jazz Recorded: 2002 Released: 2003 This is the debut album by Polish Jazz vocalist Beata PrzybytekFind albums by this artist, recorded with her quintet, which comprises of saxophonist / flautist Marcin ZupanskiFind albums by this artist, pianist Dorota ZaziabloFind albums by this artist, bassist Robert SzewczugaFind albums by this artist and drummer Ryszard BalcerFind albums by this artist. Violinist Krzysztof MaciejowskiFind albums by this artist guests on one track. The album presents nine classic Jazz vocal standards, sung in their original English version. There are no arrangement credits on the album´s liner notes. The album was recorded while Przybytek was a student at the Academy of Music in Katowice where she studied Jazz vocals and her group comprises of her fellow students from the same school as well as students from the Academy of Music in Krakow. The result is certainly well above the expectations one might have from a group of very young and inexperienced musicians. Both the vocals and the instrumental backing are quite excellent and most importantly have a unique sound and afresh approach to these standards, which have been tried countless times before. The arrangements include enough space for the instrumentalists to be able to show their skills, which they do repeatedly. Przybytek unveils her warm and expressive voice, which she playfully stretches between seductive meows and heartbreaking howls, all in good taste and with obvious talent. She does not use often the husky tone, which she utilizes on her later recordings, but her enormous potential is quite evident here. She also is one the very few Polish vocalists that can get away with singing in English without sounding utterly ridiculous, which works in her favor. Her intonation tends to be on the Gospel / Blues side, which suits her well. Overall, although not very innovative or groundbreaking, this is a very solid offering, which as a debut can be definitely regarded as an outstanding effort. Vocal Jazz fans will find this quite delightful, combining youthful enthusiasm and innocence with talent and dedication. Well done!

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