Record Reviews

JEFF BECK ~ ORIGINAL ALBUM CLASSICS VOL.2 SONY 886976605124 (Barcode: 886976605124) ~ UK ~ Jazz-Rock Fusion Recorded: 1980 - 2000 Released: 2010 This Box Set collects reissues of five albums by the legendary British guitarist / composer / bandleader Jeff BeckFind albums by this artist, originally released on the EpicFind albums on this label label between 1980 and 2001. They are: “There & BackFind albums with this title” (1980), “FlashFind albums with this title” (1985), “Jeff Beck`s Guitar ShopFind albums with this title” (1989), “Who Else!Find albums with this title” (1999) and “You Had It ComingFind albums with this title” (2001). Those are the third, fourth, fifth, seventh and eighth solo studio albums recorded by Jeff Beck. The soundtrack “Frankie`s HouseFind albums with this title” (1992 with Jed LeiberFind albums by this artist), as well as the sixth album “Crazy LegsFind albums with this title” (1993) are missing in this Box Set, as usual for unexplained reasons. The “Flash” album includes a couple of bonus tracks not present on the original album. The musicians playing on these albums include some of the best players, both in the UK and USA, such as keyboardists Jan HammerFind albums by this artist and Tony HymasFind albums by this artist, bassists Mo FosterFind albums by this artist and Doug WimbishFind albums by this artist, drummers Simon PhillipsFind albums by this artist, Carmine AppiceFind albums by this artist and Terry BozzioFind albums by this artist and many, many others. Musically Beck flirts on these albums with diverse environments, such as Jazz-Rock Fusion, Pop and Rock. Except for the “Flash” album, which features vocal contributions by Beck and other guests, including Rod StewartFind albums by this artist on one track, the rest of the material is mostly instrumental and displays Beck´s guitar pyrotechnics at their full scale. Overall, this is a real treat to all guitar fans and a great showcase of Beck’s undeniable talent as one of the greatest guitarists of all time. Side Note The "Original Album SeriesFind albums with this title" by Warner Bros.Find albums on this label, the "Original Album ClassicsFind albums with this title" by SonyFind albums on this label, the "5 Original AlbumsFind albums with this title" by UniversalFind albums on this label, the Box Sets by RhinoFind albums on this label and other similar releases are an archetypal example of how good intentions turn sour. Although these new editions often bring back to life some of the best music ever made on this planet, which in many cases has been lost in the tides of time and was unavailable on the market for ages, they suffer from an unforgivable disregard for the essence of cultural values and general sloppiness, contrary to human decency, which requires as to treat our Cultural Legacy with respect and loyalty. The Box Sets produced under these monikers have no discographical information whatsoever about the lineups, musician names, composers, lyricists, dates and places of recording, original release data and even basic copyright data (the last is strictly illegal BTW). Although the original LP sleeves are reproduced, they are often edited and information (which would be in most cases too small to be readable) is removed. Most importantly these Box Sets don't include any booklet offering a historical background and perspective about the Artists and the Music, which are extremely important and vital to the preservation of our Culture and passing the knowledge to the next generations. In short the fact that these Box Sets are meant to be inexpensive, does not mean that they have to be cheap. Considering the fact how many times this music has been sold over and over again by the labels, this is a crying shame!

Updated: 03/09/2021Posted: 03/09/2021

CD 5 Mini-Sleeve Box Set Bonus Tracks Recommend To A Friend

CLARVIS / SULZMANN / HYMAS ~ FOR ALL THE SAINTS VILLAGE LIFE 97123 (Barcode: 5024777971238) ~ UK ~ Jazz-World Fusion Recorded: 1996 Released: 1997 This is the debut album by British Jazz trio called For All The SaintsFind albums by this artist, which comprises of pianist Tony HymasFind albums by this artist, saxophonist / flautist Stan SulzmannFind albums by this artist and drummer Paul ClarvisFind albums by this artist. The album presents twelve tracks, seven of which are improvisations on traditional tunes from different Cultural spheres, and five are original compositions by the trio members. The music is a wonderful amalgam of Jazz and World Music elements, treated with a lot of Freedom and recorded in a relaxed atmosphere, which allows the three musicians to exchange ideas without any pressure. The album offers a very unique spacey sound as a result of the recording being captured at a church (All Saints Church in Petersham), which also gave the trio / album its name / title. The result is mostly quite removed from the original traditional sources, so one must not expect to hear exact quotes, but just hints and most of all the atmosphere and perhaps a rhythmic characteristic of the source, rather than explicit World Music vistas. On the other hand, the music is definitely not completely Freely Improvised, which results in a perfect balance between familiar elements and Free improvisations, making it accessible to relatively wide audiences. The album was released on the Village LifeFind albums on this label label, owned by Clarvis, and is sadly pretty obscure among the British Jazz enthusiasts, like most of the excellent releases on that label, all of which deserve a much wider recognition. My friendly advice is to grab anything still available on that label, before they are all sold out. Overall, this is an excellent Jazz-World Fusion, emphasizing the Free / Improvised Music influences. This is definitely one of Sultzmann’s most Free oriented recordings and since everything recorded by him deserves of course special attention to the British Jazz community, as he is still grossly underrated, despite his contribution lasting decades. This is another true gem!

Updated: 05/07/2023Posted: 05/07/2023

CD 1 Recommend To A Friend

JOHN DANKWORTH ~ MOVIES `N` ME VOCALION 8469 (Barcode: 765387846923) ~ UK ~ Jazz Recorded: 1974 Released: 2010 Legendary British saxophonist / composer / arranger / bandleader John DankworthFind albums by this artist was one of the Godfathers of modern British Jazz. Although his career started in mid-1940s he was keen to pursue the sounds of Bee Bop, when those crossed the Atlantic and later pioneered the modern British Big Band sound. In parallel to his Jazz career, Dankworth was active as composer of music for film and TV. This album focuses around these scores and presents them in Jazz arrangements, performed by a dreamy Big Band, which includes the crème de la crème of British Jazz at the time: saxophonist Don RendellFind albums by this artist, trombonist Malcolm GriffithsFind albums by this artist, trumpeter Kenny BakerFind albums by this artist, pianist Tony HymasFind albums by this artist and many others. The music is excellent of course, as is the performance. British Jazz fans will find this stuff delightful, and Big Band enthusiasts will have a field day with this. I don´t think there is anything else I need to add here, just grab it, if this is your cup of tea!

CD 1 Remastered Recommend To A Friend

FOR ALL THE SAINTS / THE SOLID STRINGS ~ BUBBLING UNDER VILLAGE LIFE 98116 (Barcode: 5037013981168) ~ UK ~ Jazz-Classical Fusion Recorded: 1998 Released: 1998 This is an album by British Jazz trio called For All The SaintsFind albums by this artist, which comprises of pianist Tony HymasFind albums by this artist, saxophonist / flautist Stan SulzmannFind albums by this artist and drummer Paul ClarvisFind albums by this artist, recorded with the Solid StringsFind albums by this artist string quartet led by violinist Sonia SlanyFind albums by this artist. The album presents five tracks, one each composed by Sultzmann and Hymas, two by Slany and the last piece being partly traditional and partly composed by Sultzmann. The music is a wonderful amalgam of Jazz and Classical Music elements, but also many other less obvious influences, like World Music and Folklore. The septet sounds like a fully organic musical unit and the Jazz and Classical elements complement each perfectly, creating a brilliant chamber atmosphere of delicate beauty and depth. The pieces are all perfectly structured, most lasting close to or over the ten minutes’ mark, and the string arrangements, despite the fact of being quite complex, are highly melodic and rhythmically suitable for the Jazz improvisations by the trio, creating together a highly aesthetic musical treat. The album was released on the Village Life label, owned by Clarvis, and is sadly pretty obscure among the British Jazz enthusiasts, like most of the excellent releases on that label, all of which deserve a much wider recognition. My friendly advice is to grab anything still available on that label, before they are all sold out. Overall, this is a brilliant Jazz-Classical Fusion offering of the highest class, which offers wonderful compositions, arrangements and performances, which make this music ageless and completely resistant to passing time. Everything recorded by Sultzmann deserves of course special attention to the British Jazz community, as he is still grossly underrated, despite his contribution lasting decades. This is a true gem!

Updated: 30/06/2023Posted: 30/06/2023

CD 1 Recommend To A Friend