Record Reviews

FLAMINGO ~ FLAMINGO (SWINGING TRICITY VOL.4) SOLITON 250 (Barcode: 5901571092508) ~ POLAND ~ Jazz Recorded: 1961 - 1963 Released: 2012 This is the fourth installment in the excellent archival series documenting Polish Jazz created in the country´s Tricity on the Baltic Sea, one of the important centers where Polish Jazz thrives and over the years produced numerous first-rate musicians and superb bands. The series presents material, which in most cases never previously appeared in any form and therefore is of immense historic importance. This chapter presents the FlamingoFind albums by this artist ensemble, a Traditional Jazz outfit, which was very popular locally as well as in the rest of the country and even participated in the prestigious annual Jazz Jamboree Festival in Warsaw. The group was founded in the late 1950´s, following the great Polish Jazz rebirth after the two historic Sopot (one of the Tricity cities) festivals in 1956 and 1957, which were a turning point in Polish Jazz history. The ensemble existed for about a dozen years until the late 1960s, and unfortunately never managed to record even one album, which sadly was the fate of many Polish Jazz artists during the Socialist regime. However they did record for the Tricity Polish Radio station in Gdansk, where most of the material included on this album comes from, except for five tracks that come from the 1961 Jazz Jamboree Festival, which were previously released by the state owned record label Polskie NagraniaFind albums on this label (MuzaFind albums on this label). Flamingo was one of quite a few Polish Jazz ensembles playing Traditional Jazz, i.e. Ragtime, Dixieland and New Orleans, as part of the Traditional Jazz Revival, which swept Europe in the 1950s and 1960s. It was founded by pianist Jerzy DerfelFind albums by this artist, bassist Henryk PietrewiczFind albums by this artist and banjoist Lucjan WozniakFind albums by this artist. They were soon joined by drummer Janusz NalaskowskiFind albums by this artist and clarinetist Eugeniusz PudelewiczFind albums by this artist. Other group members present on this album were trumpeters Piotr NadolskiFind albums by this artist and Ryszard PodgorskiFind albums by this artist, and trombonists Andrzej DorawaFind albums by this artist, Edward RykaczewskiFind albums by this artist and Jan TomaszewskiFind albums by this artist. After the group folded, several members joined other groups; like Rama 111Find albums by this artist, which appears on an earlier release of this series, and even NiemenFind albums by this artist´s group AkwareleFind albums by this artist. The group performed mostly Traditional Jazz standards, with their youthful energy and zest overcoming the lack of experience. The overall level of performances was nothing short of excellent, which gained them quite a following and respect at the time. They performed in several European countries and participated in many jazz festivals. Since their split they managed to get briefly reunited a few times celebrating their past. Most of the Flamingo members live now outside of Poland. This is another great piece of Polish Jazz history, which should definitely be told and preserved as part of the country´s Cultural Heritage. Kudos to Marcin JacobsonFind albums by this artist for creating this series and keeping it going!

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KLAN ~ CHMURA NAD MIASTEM GAD 066 (Barcode: 5901549197891) ~ POLAND ~ Progressive Rock Recorded: 1972 - 1994 Released: 2017 This is an archival release collecting previously mostly unreleased recordings by the legendary Polish Prog group KlanFind albums by this artist, founded and led by vocalist / guitarist / songwriter Marek AlaszewskiFind albums by this artist. The material spans a period of twenty two years and includes radio, studio and live recordings featuring several lineups of Klan and recordings Alaszewski made with other musicians. Some cult Polish musicians take part in these musicians, like guitarist Tomasz JaskiewiczFind albums by this artist and Tomasz ButowttFind albums by this artist from Czeslaw NiemenFind albums by this artist´s AkwareleFind albums by this artist group, Wojciech WaglewskiFind albums by this artist and others. The music includes a wide kaleidoscope of stylistic approaches, from Psychedelic Rock, Progressive Rock and Alternative Rock, and presents Alaszewski as a composer of great diversity and talent. The three part suite, which also includes string quartet arrangements, is a beautiful example of East European Prog at its best. Considering the fact that these musical treasures remained hidden until recently, finally brought to life by the restless team of GADFind albums on this label Records, is especially significant in view of Alaszewski´s tragic health problems. All the proceeds from this album are dedicated to his convalescence. For fans and collectors of East European Prog this album is a great find and a must have item in their collections!

Updated: 02/02/2018Posted: 02/02/2018

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STANISLAW SOJKA ~ W HOLDZIE MISTRZOWI - LIVE UNIVERSAL 602537329854 (Barcode: 602537329854) ~ POLAND ~ Blues-Rock Recorded: 2013 Released: 2012 This is a live recording of a concert by veteran Polish Blues / Jazz / Rock vocalist Stanislaw SojkaFind albums by this artist (a.k.a. Soyka) and his band, performing songs by Poland´s greatest ever singer / composer Czeslaw NiemenFind albums by this artist. Niemen composed all the nine songs performed here, three of which also have his lyrics and others are by other lyricists or poems written by Polish poets. Sojka also plays piano and the band comprises of seven players, including a brass section, and a guest guitarist Tomasz JaskiewiczFind albums by this artist, original member of the band AkwareleFind albums by this artist, Niemen´s first group, which recorded many of these songs originally. Considering Niemen´s legendary status on the Polish scene, any attempt to tackle his material is a priori a potentially perilous affair. No other Polish vocalist managed, in the decades that followed, to come even close to Niemen´s power of expression and vocal virtuosity. Therefore this album, although a tribute, faces enormous challenges, which unfortunately prove insurmountable even to such an experienced and talented artist as Sojka. Niemen´s songs needed to be rearranged quite radically in order to fit within Sojka´s vocal range. In addition the instrumental accompanied was updated, which distances the songs from their original Rock setting and places them into a comfortable middle-of–the-road relaxed Pop setting with slight Jazzy overtones. Overall the album sounds incredibly nice, which of course is its key problem; Niemen´s music might mean many different things to different people, but "nice" was never among them. The music is played perfectly and beautifully recorded, with a warm, clear sound quality, especially so for a live recording. The audio CD is accompanied by a DVD capturing the same concert, so the listener has a choice of just listen to or also watch the proceedings. Personally, I find little affinity for this project, which simplifies and even to some extent trivializes the original songs in my opinion, but I´m sure many others will find this a most pleasurable listening experience. Luckily I still have the original Niemen recordings to keep the memory alive and the fire burning.

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