Record Reviews
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  | RICCARDO DEL FRA ~ MOVING PEOPLE
CRISTAL 276 ~ ITALY ~ Jazz
Recorded: 2018 Released: 2018
This is an album by veteran Italian (resident in France) bassist / composer Riccardo Del FraFind albums by this artist, who leads an international sextet, which includes Polish trumpeter Tomasz DabrowskiFind albums by this artist, German saxophonist Jan PraxFind albums by this artist, French saxophonist Remi FoxFind albums by this artist and pianist Carl-Henri MorissetFind albums by this artist and finally American drummer Jason BrownFind albums by this artist. American guitarist Kurt RosenwinkelFind albums by this artist appears as a special guest. The album presents ten original compositions, all by Del Fra.
The music is mainstream, beautifully melodic contemporary Jazz, lyrical and melancholic, but at the same time full of zest and superb compositions. Contrary to the initial impression the music gets quite complex and unexpected at times, with broken themes and odd meters, but at the same time never loses focus or coherence. As a result the music flows swiftly, completely absorbing the listener and the album seems to be over very quickly. The relatively short tracks and their diversity also add to this effect. The album is first and foremost an exceptional display of Del Fra´s compositions.
The musicianship is superb throughout, with every note played being just the right one at the right time. All these musicians, who represent different cultural backgrounds and age groups, are able to cooperate splendidly, creating a delicate mesh of sounds and harmonies.
Listeners familiar with the work of Dabrowski, who is usually associated with a more Avant-Garde Jazz activity, will be definitely surprised by his mellow contributions here, which are of course as delightful as everything else he ever did.
Rosenwinkel is not, in my opinion, the ideal addition to the sextet, as his playing is way more Fusion oriented and electric than the (mostly acoustic) music itself or the stylistics of the rest of the musicians and his long guitar synthesizer solos frankly sound a bit out of place, as much "attractive" as they are. But of course he is a very able instrumentalist.
Overall this is an excellent album from start to finish, with strong compositions and exquisite performances, which should delight Jazz connoisseurs the world over.
| | Updated: 12/04/2019Posted: 23/02/2019 | CD 1 Recommend To A Friend |
  | FOCUS ~ MOVING WAVES
RED BULLET 66.188 (Barcode: 8712944661880) ~ NETHERLANDS ~ Progressive Rock
Recorded: 1971 Released: 2001
This is the 2nd album by the great Dutch group FocusFind albums by this artist, led by flautist / keyboardist / composer Thijs van LeerFind albums by this artist, which also included the brilliant guitarist / composer Jan AkkermanFind albums by this artist. Following the somewhat unfocused debut album, this masterpiece finds them at their absolute best, an album which is one of the best classic Prog albums of all times and an essential piece of music history. The suite "Eruption" (over 23 minutes long) is a beautiful example of the scope and imagination of music made at the time. A timeless classic!
| | | CD 1 Remastered Essential Recommend To A Friend |
  | KAROLAK / URBANIAK / BARTKOWSKI ~ MOVING SOUTH
POLJAZZ / ANEX 314 (Barcode: 5907513047698) ~ POLAND ~ Jazz-Rock Fusion
Recorded: 1973 Released: 2009
This is the only album recorded by the fabulous Polish Jazz trio, comprising of keyboardist / composer Wojciech KarolakFind albums by this artist, violinist / saxophonist / composer Michal UrbaniakFind albums by this artist and legendary drummer Czeslaw BartkowskiFind albums by this artist. In many respects this is a companion album to the groundbreaking album by the Michal Urbaniak ConstellationFind albums by this artist, which was released as part of the Polish Jazz series ("In ConcertFind albums with this title", Vol.36) and recorded the same year as this album. Both Karolak and Bartkowski were members of Constellation and therefore it´s hardly surprising that stylistically the music is very similar.
The album includes five compositions (one is a three-part suite), four by Karolak and one by Urbaniak, which can be roughly categorized as Jazz-Rock Fusion, but they are so unique and eons ahead of their time that simplistic labeling is not doing them justice. This is truly visionary music, capturing all three musicians at the peak of their creative powers. Although Karolak composed most of the music on this album, Urbaniak´s concept of Fusion / Funk are the primary forces at work here. His use of electronics to enhance the sound of his violin is simply brilliant and completely innovative. Karolak plays also brilliantly, with his Hammond ripping the sound-space to shreds. Bartkowski is driving the music forward like mad, being the Jazziest element of the music, busy but not intrusive, with fantastic polyrhythmic feel and incredible technique.
In retrospect this is one of the most important Polish Fusion albums, which sadly remains mostly unknown even to the local fans and especially so abroad. This reissue creates another chance for this album to be re-discovered, and I recommend to all the Fusion diehard fans to start looking for this gem ASAP!
Side Note: The PoljazzFind albums on this label label, which originally released this album, was active for 20 years (between 1972 and 1991) and was owned by the Polish Jazz Society. Considering the fact that the music industry in the Socialist State was centralized and totally controlled, with just one State owned music company producing all the albums, the possibilities to record and release Jazz albums were extremely limited. Poljazz was conceived and founded in order to allow for many more Jazz (and other) albums to be released independently from the State owned Polskie NagraniaFind albums on this label / MuzaFind albums on this label and as such revolutionized the music industry at the time, being the only such enterprise in Eastern Europe. The Polish label AnexFind albums on this label reissued many of the original Poljazz albums on CD, bringing this fabulous music back to life.
| | | CD 1 Digipak Remastered Recommend To A Friend |
  | VAN MORRISON ~ MOVING ON SKIFFLE
EXILE 602448191410 (Barcode: 602448191410) ~ IRELAND ~ Classic Rock
Recorded: 2022 - 2023 Released: 2023
This is the 44th studio album by the legendary Northern Irish singer / songwriter Van MorrisonFind albums by this artist. The 2CD album presents 23 tracks, all of which are Morrison’s take on Skiffle songs, either traditional or written by others. He is accompanied by a team of excellent instrumentalists, who played on his latest recordings, which includes organist Richard DunnFind albums by this artist, pianist Stuart McIlroyFind albums by this artist, guitarist Dave KearyFind albums by this artist, bassist Pete HurleyFind albums by this artist, drummer Colin GriffinFind albums by this artist and a few other players and background vocalists.
Despite his age (77 years young) Morrison is in great condition, full of vigor and creative powers and his vocal abilities are absolutely unblemished. This is the second time he returns to the music that fascinated him in his early days, and he does so with obvious love and affection. His arrangements and in some cases expansions of the original material are all tasteful and faithful to the original style, and as such work out splendidly.
It is very difficult to find today an Artists, who is able to maintain a career for six decades, without losing any of its momentum, quality or good taste and Morrison surely deserves our appreciation for keeping the flame burning. His ability to cross genres at will, always remaining relevant, is absolutely precious.
Overall, this is another great album by a great Artists, who manages to remain relevant and creative as the time passes by. Morrison pushes aside all fads and fashions and remains true only to himself, doing what he does best, i.e. singing his heart out. Regardless if you like early Rock / Skiffle at all, this music is both entertaining and valuable, in complete contrast to everything happening around. Well done, indeed!
| | Updated: 18/05/2023Posted: 18/05/2023 | CD 2 Mini-Sleeve Recommend To A Friend |
  | RUSH ~ MOVING PICTURES (DELUXE EDITION)
MERCURY 62107 (Barcode: 602527621074) ~ CANADA ~ Progressive Rock
Recorded: 1980 Released: 2011
This is the 8th studio album by Canadian Prog heroes RushFind albums by this artist, one of the oldest and best known representatives of the genre still active today. Guitarist Alex LifesonFind albums by this artist, bassist Geddy LeeFind albums by this artist and drummer Neil PeartFind albums by this artist managed to produce an impressive set of albums over the years, sustaining a steady fan base and even some chart success. This album was their most successful release commercially and includes many of their most well known songs. This new edition offers the original album remastered and in addition a DVD with 5.1 Surround Sound mixes of the album as well as video material. This is a must to all Rush fans and a great introduction for those, who never heard their music before. Recommended!
| | | CD+DVD 2 Digipak Remastered Recommend To A Friend |
  | FABIO ZEPPETELLA ~ MOVING LINES
DISCHI DELLA QUERCIA 128017 (Barcode: 027312801729) ~ ITALY ~ Jazz
Recorded: 1995 Released: 1995
This is an album by Italian guitarist / composer Fabio ZeppetellaFind albums by this artist, recorded in a quartet setting with bassist Ares TavolazziFind albums by this artist, drummer Fabrizio SferraFind albums by this artist and British trumpeter Kenny WheelerFind albums by this artist. The album presents seven original compositions, five by the leader and two by Tavolazzi. It was released on the splendid Italian Dischi Della QuerciaFind albums on this label label, which released absolutely marvelous Jazz albums, but sadly is no longer active but was bought by the CAM JazzFind albums on this label label, which reissued most of that material.
This is one of many albums Wheeler recorded in Italy with Italian musicians, where he was highly regarded, had many friends and frequently performed. This is one of Wheeler’s recordings, which remains almost completely obscure and does not appear in most of his discographies. I was very lucky to get it from Kenny’s private collection.
The music is a marvelous example of modern European Jazz, based on melodic, somewhat melancholic (as appropriate for Italian Jazz) theme, but performed with a lot of Freedom, which suites Wheeler’s stylistic approach ideally. Due to the intimate format of this recording and the fact that Wheeler has a lot of opportunity to solo, this album offers some of Wheeler’s best work ever captured on record (if such thing is possible). The pairing of guitar and trumpet is quite unusual, but works perfectly here.
Overall, this is an excellent modern European Jazz album, performed by first class musicians, which is absolutely worth digging for, not only for the great contributions by Kenny Wheeler, but no less importantly for the splendid music and superb performances by the entire team.
| | Updated: 05/04/2023Posted: 05/04/2023 | CD 1 Recommend To A Friend |
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