Record Reviews

FUNK FACTORY ~ FUNK FACTORY WOUNDED BIRD 0116 (Barcode: 664140011625) ~ POLAND ~ Jazz-Rock Fusion Recorded: 1975 Released: 2007 1st and only album by a one-time recording project organized by the brilliant Polish Jazz musician Michal UrbaniakFind albums by this artist and his wife Urszula DudziakFind albums by this artist, following their move to the USA and after recording of several exquisite albums for the Columbia label. The album is to a large extent a cheek-in-tongue joke by Urbaniak in response to the "accusations" by his fellow American colleagues, that Eastern European musicians are not "funky". Here we have a proof that Urbaniak and his cohorts can play Funk as well as any American musician, and perhaps even better, as his Funk is so much more sophisticated and multilayered than anything else recorded in that style. Together with Urbaniak and Dudziak a couple of two other talented Polish musicians also take part in this project: virtuoso keyboardist Wlodek GulgowskiFind albums by this artist and singer Bernard KafkaFind albums by this artist, founder and leader of the superb Polish vocal group NOVIFind albums by this artist. In addition to the four Poles, a sensational American rhythm section was assembled, with bassists Anthony JacksonFind albums by this artist and Tony LevinFind albums by this artist, drummers Steve GaddFind albums by this artist and Gerald BrownFind albums by this artist and guitarists Barry FinnertyFind albums by this artist and John AbercrombieFind albums by this artist. Urbaniak burns his electric violin with the usual passion and virtuosity and Dudziak performs magic with her voice. The music was all written by Urbaniak, Gulgowski and Kafka, so here we have Polish Funk, which funks away all that´s funky. Although completely obscure, this is a great album, which hopefully can now be discovered by a wider audience after being reissued on CD. A must for all Polish Jazz enthusiasts!

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MICHAL URBANIAK ~ BODY ENGLISH UBX 1017 (Barcode: 5099902839325) ~ POLAND ~ Jazz-Rock-World Fusion Recorded: 1976 Released: 2014 This is a reissue of the only album by Polish Jazz violinist / composer Michal UrbaniakFind albums by this artist released originally on the AristaFind albums on this label label in 1976. Following Urbaniak´s departure from ColumbiaFind albums on this label after recording three albums for the label, he released just one album on the AtlanticFind albums on this label label in 1975 with a group called Funk FactoryFind albums by this artist (not bearing his name for contractual reasons) and moved on to Arista. The team that recorded the album included also his wife at the time, vocalist Urszula DudziakFind albums by this artist and excellent young American players: keyboardist Harold WilliamsFind albums by this artist, guitarist Joe CaroFind albums by this artist, bassist Basil FearringtonFind albums by this artist and drummer Steve JordanFind albums by this artist and a few guests. The album presents nine original compositions, all by Urbaniak. Musically the album continues the direction of the Columbia and Atlantic albums, offering a unique blend of Jazz-Rock Fusion, which includes strong Polish Folklore influences in its melodic motifs. The sound is much more influenced by synthesizers than on any of the previous albums and Dudziak´s voice is much less prominent, but the stylistic similarity is consistent and easily recognizable. Urbaniak´s ability to combine Funk, Groove, Fusion and World Music influences set him apart from his contemporaries and in retrospect this album still sounds refreshing and fascinating. The most intriguing aspect of this and the earlier albums mentioned above is the fact that Urbaniak, who arrived in the US just a short while ago, is more genuinely Funky, Groovy and Swinging than any of his US contemporaries, paving the way for Jazz-World Fusion more boldly than the "natives". As such he surely deserves the credit and appreciation for his innovative spirit. For Funk and Fusion fans, this is an absolute must, a timeless album that keeps kicking the butt as forcefully as it at the time of its release over four decades ago.

Updated: 13/09/2019Posted: 11/09/2019

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