Record Reviews

BOBO STENSON ~ VERY EARLY DRAGON 304 (Barcode: 7391953003044) ~ SWEDEN ~ Jazz Recorded: 1986 Released: 1997 This is an expanded reissue / remaster of the third album by the great Swedish pianist / composer Bobo StensonFind albums by this artist, recorded in a classic piano trio format with bassist Anders JorminFind albums by this artist and drummer Rune CarlssonFind albums by this artist. Originally released in 1987, this CD edition adds three bonus tracks not present on the LP. The album presents nine tracks, one of which is an original composition by Stenson and another by Jormin, and the rest are standards. The music is absolutely delightful, classic Jazz piano trio setting and modern mainstream repertoire, emphasizing the talents of three Giant musicians. Stenson is one of the great European romantics, whose music can be followed on the impressive series of recordings for the ECMFind albums on this label label, starting with his debut album from 1971 and the latest one (at the time of writing) released in 2023. Stenson released only two albums as a leader outside of his ECM recordings, this one being one of them. Jormin is one of my favorite Jazz bassist, a true virtuoso and a brilliantly sensitive player, with an impressive recording legacy both as a leader and member of groups led by Charles LloydFind albums by this artist and Tomasz StankoFind albums by this artist. Carlsson, one of Sweden’s Jazz Godfathers, known to be the drummer of choice by many American Jazz musicians, who played often in Sweden on the 1960s and 1970s. He is also known to Polish Jazz followers as a member of the early groups led by Krzysztof KomedaFind albums by this artist. Overall, this is an excellent Jazz piano trio album, which shows the Swedish / European Jazz at its best, and is a delightful musical experience from start to finish. Piano trio buffs will be absolutely smitten by this music, especially if they were not previously exposed to the early years of Stenson. Wholeheartedly recommended!

Updated: 03/08/2023Posted: 03/08/2023

CD 1 Remastered Bonus Tracks Recommend To A Friend

ANDERS JORMIN ~ ONCE DRAGON 308 (Barcode: 7391953003082) ~ SWEDEN ~ Free Jazz / Improvised Music Recorded: 1996 Released: 1997 This is the 5th album by the Swedish bassist / composer / bandleader Anders JorminFind albums by this artist, recorded in a quartet setting with Swedish saxophonist Thomas GustafsonFind albums by this artist, vocalist Jeanette LindstromFind albums by this artist and Norwegian drummer Jarle VespestadFind albums by this artist. The album presets ten tracks, three of which are original compositions by Jormin, one is co-composed by him and one is co-composed by Gustafson and Vespestad, and the rest are arrangements of standards and traditional songs. The music is based on composed themes, but is highly improvised, and quite complex. The Scandinavian mood and atmosphere prevail and Jormin’s virtuosic bass performances are the apex of the performances. For lovers of modern vocal Jazz, Lindstrom’s performances are also superb. Obviously the music requires open mindedness and patience, but the musical values are highly potent and reflect the incredible level of the European Jazz scene at the end of the last Century. Anders Jormin established a remarkable career both as a leader and sideman with such legendary Jazz musicians like Charles LloydFind albums by this artist, Tomasz StankoFind albums by this artist or Bobo StensonFind albums by this artist among others, and has a long list of exceptional recordings to his credit since the mid-1980s. This album, recorded with some of the top European Jazz players is certainly up to par with the rest of his work. Overall, this is a breathtaking example of highly advanced European Jazz / Improvised Music, which lost nothing of its potent emotions and qualities since the time it was recorded over a quartet of a Century ago. Highly recommended!

Updated: 05/07/2026Posted: 05/07/2026

CD 1 Recommend To A Friend

ANDERS JORMIN ~ SILVAE DRAGON 338 (Barcode: 7391953003389) ~ SWEDEN ~ Free Jazz / Improvised Music Recorded: 1998 Released: 1999 This is an album by the Swedish bassist / composer / bandleader Anders JorminFind albums by this artist, recorded in a sextet setting with Norwegian trumpeter Arve HenriksenFind albums by this artist, Swedish clarinetist / saxophonist Fredrik LjungkvistFind albums by this artist, Finnish vibraphonist Severi PyysaloFind albums by this artist, French guitarist Marc DucretFind albums by this artist and Swedish drummer / pianist (Anders’ brother) Christian JorminFind albums by this artist. The album presets ten tracks, all of which are original compositions by Anders Jormin. The music is based on composed themes, but is highly improvised, and quite complex. The Scandinavian mood and atmosphere prevail and Jormin’s virtuosic bass performances are the apex of the performances. Obviously the music requires open mindedness and patience, but the musical values are highly potent and reflect the incredible level of the European Jazz scene at the end of the last Century. Anders Jormin established a remarkable career both as a leader and sideman with such legendary Jazz musicians like Charles LloydFind albums by this artist, Tomasz StankoFind albums by this artist or Bobo StensonFind albums by this artist among others, and has a long list of exceptional recordings to his credit since the mid-1980s. This album, recorded with some of the top European Jazz players is certainly up to par with the rest of his work. Overall, this is a breathtaking example of highly advanced European Jazz / Improvised Music, which lost nothing of its potent emotions and qualities since the time it was recorded a quartet of a Century ago. Highly recommended!

Updated: 24/06/2026Posted: 24/06/2026

CD 1 Recommend To A Friend

EJE THELIN ~ 1966 DRAGON 366 (Barcode: 7391953003662) ~ SWEDEN ~ Jazz Recorded: 1966 Released: 2003 This is an archival album by Swedish trombonist / composer / bandleader Eje ThelinFind albums by this artist, recorded with French saxophonist Barney WilenFind albums by this artist. The album presents two sessions, the first (four tracks) recorded by Swedish Radio, featuring Thelin, Wilen, pianist Lars SjostenFind albums by this artist, bassist Erik LundborgFind albums by this artist and drummer Rune CarlssonFind albums by this artist and a ten-piece brass section, which sounds quite like a Big Band recording, and the second (five tracks) recorded in a club, featuring Thelin, Wilen, bassist Palle DanielssonFind albums by this artist and Carlsson. Thelin composed the music on seven of the tracks, one is a standard and one is a traditional tune. The music was superbly remastered and the sound quality it truly sensational. The music is an excellent example of the Swedish Jazz scene in the mid-1960s, mostly influenced by American Bebop, but already showing early signs of the new European approach, especially in Thelin’s brilliant soloing and his advanced compositions. He was one of earliest European Jazz Avant-Gardist, not yet fully committed to the new path at the time, but sensitive ears can already clearly feel the direction. Swedish Jazz scene was one of the strongest and most developed in Europe at the time, which is plainly audible here, with many superb and well trained instrumentalist and active ensembles and Big Bands, which produced many excellent recordings, which are certainly worthy of being re-discovered. The DragonFind albums on this label Records label made a great effort of preserving that musical tradition and bring it back to life. Overall, this is a splendid piece of the European Jazz history, with brilliant music superbly performed by these instrumentalists, which sounds completely fresh today and definitely deserves an honorable place in any serious Jazz records collection.

Updated: 05/11/2026Posted: 04/11/2026

CD 1 Remastered Recommend To A Friend

EJE THELIN QUINTET ~ AT THE GERMAN JAZZ FESTIVAL 1964 DRAGON 374 (Barcode: 7391953003747) ~ SWEDEN ~ Jazz Recorded: 1964 Released: 2002 This is a reissue / remaster of a live album by Swedish trombonist / composer / bandleader Eje ThelinFind albums by this artist, recorded with his quintet, which also included saxophonist Ulf AnderssonFind albums by this artist, Belgian pianist / flautist Joel VandroogenbroekFind albums by this artist, Polish (resident in Sweden) bassist Roman DylagFind albums by this artist and drummer Rune CarlssonFind albums by this artist. The album presents seven tracks, two of which are originals by Thelin, one is by Vandroogenbroek, another one is by Swedish pianist / composer Lars SjostenFind albums by this artist and three are standards. The last track is a previously unreleased bonus. The sound quality of this 1964 recording is absolutely stunning (well the German radio sound engineers were as good as their British peers). The album’s booklet reprints the original liner notes of the German edition, written by my Friend and Mentor Joachim BerendtFind albums by this artist, whom I miss every day. Thelin was one of the great pioneers of European Jazz, and although he was strongly influenced by the American Jazz tradition, later on in his career he embraced modern European aesthetics. Dylag was a Polish Jazz pioneer and played on many early Polish Jazz recordings, including those by Krzysztof KomedaFind albums by this artist, where Thelin and Carlsson also played. After he emigrated to Sweden, he was the “Polish connection” for many Polish Jazz musicians, who kick started their careers in Scandinavia. The music is mostly Bebop oriented, but the European finesse and elegance turns the album into an instant classic, which shows that by the mid-1960s the Europeans were catching up with what arose across the pond, soon to leave the Americans behind deep in the dust ;) Overall, this is a classic early European Jazz recording, which shows how well the local musicians learned from what was happening across the pond, ready to go their separate ways soon after. Brilliant reminder of the mid-1960, when I was growing up listening to this kind of stuff.

Updated: 28/01/2025Posted: 28/01/2025

CD 1 Remastered Bonus Tracks Recommend To A Friend

PARONI PAAKKUNAINEN ~ BARITONE DRAGON 376 (Barcode: 7391953003761) ~ FINLAND ~ Jazz Recorded: 2001 Released: 2002 This is a beautiful album by Finnish baritone saxophonist Paroni PaakkunainenFind albums by this artist, recorded with Finnish bassist Pekka SarmantoFind albums by this artist, drummer Reino LaineFind albums by this artist and trumpeter Tero SaartiFind albums by this artist and Swedish baritone saxophonist Peter GullinFind albums by this artist, pianist Lars SjostenFind albums by this artist, bassist Filip AugustsonFind albums by this artist and drummer Bosse SoderbergFind albums by this artist. The album presents eleven tracks, seven of which are studio recordings by the Finnish Radio and four are live recordings. Seven of the tracks are original compositions by Paakkunainen, one is by Sjosten and three are by the great late Swedish saxophonist Lars GullinFind albums by this artist and father of Peter Gullin. Paakkunainen is one of the Godfathers of modern Finnish Jazz and he participated in many groundbreaking Jazz recordings in the 1970s and 1980s. He was also very active on the Finnish Progressive Rock scene. Sadly, his solo recording output is rather limited and this is one of the few examples of his work as a leader. The music on this album is all Jazz oriented and reflects the excellent level of Scandinavian Jazz, which was already highly developed by the 1960, mostly due to the fact that many American Jazz musicians visited often and played in concert halls and local clubs, which is also widely documented by many recordings made by American Jazz stars in Sweden. Finnish Jazz developed on a more independent path, always centered on originality and search of new routes to be explored, which in retrospect produced some of the finest early modern European Jazz, including explorations of Free Jazz and Improvised Music. However, this album is mostly highly melodic mainstream Jazz, which focuses on the excellent compositions by Paakkunainen and the wonderful interplay between these matured and highly experienced musicians. Overall, this is an excellent opportunity to get exposed to a great Finnish musician, who was usually behind the scenes. Lovers of the baritone saxophone and Scandinavian Jazz should find this album very rewarding.

Updated: 04/11/2026Posted: 29/07/2023

CD 1 Recommend To A Friend

EJE THELIN ~ GRAZ 1969 DRAGON 377 (Barcode: 7391953003778) ~ SWEDEN ~ Free Jazz / Improvised Music Recorded: 1969 Released: 2005 This is an archival album by Swedish Jazz trombonist / composer Eje ThelinFind albums by this artist, recorded in a trio setting with Swedish bassist Palle DanielssonFind albums by this artist and Austrian drummer John PreiningerFind albums by this artist. The album presents nine tracks, six of which are original compositions by Thelin, two are arrangements of traditional melodies and one is an arrangement of a Pop song. Although the music was recorded over fifty-five years ago, the sound quality is absolutely perfect. At the time of the recording, the Music Academy in Graz, Austria was one of the European epicenters of modern European Jazz, and a remarkable meeting place for young European musicians from both West and East Europe, many of which later became prominent European Jazz performers / composers, some of which returned later on to teach at the same Music Academy, like my dear Friend, Polish saxophonist Leszek ZadloFind albums by this artist. This recording is a document of that fruitful era, presenting the remarkable trombone virtuoso, Eje Thelin, who became a legend of the European Jazz scene, same as the bassist performing here, Palle Danielsson, famous for his later work with Keith JarrettFind albums by this artist and countless other international Jazz stars. The music, although mostly based on solid and beautiful melodic themes, presents also clear signs of Free Improvisation and offers a lot of space. As expected, the performances by Thelin and Danielsson are absolutely phenomenal and for people, who are able to appreciate the virtuosity of this two players, this album is an incredible document of the early stages of their careers. Overall, this is a beautiful reminder of the revolutionary era of the European Jazz scene, when a huge tsunami of European young musicians discovered Jazz and transformed it completely, moving it to the next level. Wholeheartedly recommended!

Updated: 04/07/2026Posted: 04/07/2026

CD 1 Remastered Recommend To A Friend