Record Reviews

JAZZ Q ~ HVEZDON (ASTEROID) (EXPANDED EDITION) GAD 119 (Barcode: 5903068120756) ~ CZECHOSLOVAKIA ~ Jazz-Rock Fusion Recorded: 1979 - 1982 Released: 2020 This is a reissue of the 7th and last album by the original incarnation of the seminal Jazz QFind albums by this artist ensemble, founded and led by keyboardist / composer Martin KratochvilFind albums by this artist. The music was recorded by a quartet version of the ensemble, which also included guitarist Frantisek FranclFind albums by this artist, bass guitarist Vit MusilFind albums by this artist and drummer Pavol KozmaFind albums by this artist. Three additional musicians took part on selected tracks. All the music was composed by Kratochvil, with one track co-credited to all four members of the ensemble. The music was recorded in 1981 but released on LP by SupraphonFind albums on this label only three years later, in 1984. This remastered and expanded version of the album includes an entire second CD of bonus material, presenting twenty-one tracks of alternate versions and other recordings made between 1979 and 1982 by the same lineup. It will take over three decades of waiting for the next Jazz Q album to be recorded. Kratochvil, who was also heavily involved in composing and recording music for the Czechoslovak film industry, was recording the music in his own studio and managed to produce vast amounts of material, which he used "interchangeably" between his Jazz Q activities and his cinematic creations, which resulted in versions of the same compositions appearing in both idioms, which is reflected on this album. The music is, as always with Kratochvil´s work, absolutely brilliant. Although dominated by his keyboards, there is plenty of space left for some blood-curdling guitar work by Francl and superb bass playing by Musil, who left Czechoslovakia for Western Europe and was accordingly omitted from the artwork´s credits on the original release. The Jazz Q material firmly belongs to the finest Eastern European Jazz-Rock Fusion material ever recorded, which sounds today every bit as brilliant as it did at the time it was created. The incredible reissues by GADFind albums on this label Records bring this legacy back to life and give an opportunity to younger generation of music lovers to get familiar with these treasures. Overall this is an absolute must for all Fusion lovers the world over, but lovers of Jazz created behind the iron curtain should find this especially interesting. Not to be missed!

Updated: 13/01/2025Posted: 15/09/2020

CD 2 Remastered Bonus Tracks Recommend To A Friend

JAZZ Q ~ JAZZ Q (EXPANDED EDITION BOX SET) SUPRAPHON 5872 (Barcode: 099925587222) ~ CZECHOSLOVAKIA ~ Jazz-Rock Fusion Recorded: 1973 - 1986 Released: 2007 This wonderful reissue Box Set collects all the recordings by the Czechoslovak ensemble Jazz QFind albums by this artist. It is a brilliant document of the music scene, which thrived in Czechoslovakia (and other so-called "Socialist" Eastern European countries behind the Iron Curtain) following the 1968 Prague Spring, cut short by the brutal invasion of Czechoslovakia by the Warsaw Pact armies. Although the liberalization and reform that the Czechoslovak People yearned for was crushed by force and had to wait for two more decades to be finally achieved, the spirit of the Prague Spring lived on in People´s hearts and Arts were one of the areas where these feelings could be manifested, albeit carefully in view of the censorship and persecution. Jazz was an escape route to many Eastern European musicians, as it was tolerated and even supported by the Socialist regime (for reasons, which are beyond the scope of this review) and by the early 1970s many Rock musicians collaborated with their Jazz colleagues in order to avoid the scrutiny, which "decadent" Rock suffered from, in contrast to the relative liberal approach to Jazz. This strengthened the Jazz-Rock movement, which at the time was gaining worldwide popularity, with many Jazz-Rock Fusion ensembles active on the Czech music scene from the early 1970s to mid 1980s, with Jazz Q being the best and most important representative of that phenomenon. It was formed by the legendary keyboardist / composer Martin KratochvilFind albums by this artist and during the decade of its activity included in its ranks a long list of superb Czech musicians, like guitarists Lubos AndrstFind albums by this artist and Frantisek FranclFind albums by this artist, bassists Vladimir PadrunekFind albums by this artist and Premysl FauknerFind albums by this artist, drummers Jaromir HelesicFind albums by this artist and Pavol KozmaFind albums by this artist and many others. The British vocalist Joan DugganFind albums by this artist (wife of Frantisek Francl), who lived in Czechoslovakia at the time was also a member of the group as was the Czech vocalist Jana KoubkovaFind albums by this artist. Kratochvil wrote most of the fantastic music played by Jazz Q, although some of the material came from various band members. In their live performances the ensemble also included standards. This Box Set includes all six studio albums recorded by Jazz Q, an archival live album released only in the 1990s and a whole CD of bonus material. In retrospect this is some of the best Eastern European Jazz-Rock, which should not be missed by any connoisseur of the genre. An essential piece of music history!

Updated: 26/01/2019Posted:

CD 8 Mini-Sleeve Box Set Remastered Bonus Tracks Essential Recommend To A Friend