Record Reviews

HAMPTON HAWES ~ HAMP`S PIANO MPS (JAPAN) 4988005212061 (Barcode: 4988005212061) ~ USA ~ Jazz Recorded: 1967 Released: 1998 This is a reissue of an album by American pianist / composer Hampton HawesFind albums by this artist, recorded in a classic piano trio format with German rhythm section: bassist Eberhard WeberFind albums by this artist and drummer Klaus WeissFind albums by this artist. The album presents eight tracks, four of which are original compositions by Hawes and four are standards. The album packaging includes the original liner notes by my Friend and Mentor Joachim BerendtFind albums by this artist, who arranged this recording session for the German SABAFind albums on this label label, during Hawes’ European tour. The sound quality is absolutely stunning. The music, although entirely within the American mainstream setting, is absolutely brilliant from start to finish due to Hawes’ extraordinary technique and lyricism, deeply rooted in the Blues. The German rhythm section plays amicably and without any inferiority complex involved, since by the time this album was recorded both Weber and Weiss had a lot of experience playing with European and American musicians, who either toured or moved to Germany. Overall, this is a beautiful classic Jazz piano trio album, which should make every Jazz lover happy, and piano trio enthusiasts feeling in seventh heaven. Not to be missed! Side Note The legendary German MPSFind albums on this label (Musik Produktion Schwarzwald) label, founded by Hans Georg Brunner-SchwerFind albums by this artist (HGBS) in 1963, first as SABAFind albums on this label Records and later on from 1968 as MPS Records, was the most important independent European record label, which had an enormous contribution to the development of European Jazz. For many years MPS cooperated with the legendary German producer / author Joachim BerendtFind albums by this artist, my Friend and Mentor, whose visionary approach and open-mindedness brought the crème de la crème of the Jazz (in the broadest meaning of the word) musicians from all over the world to the label. Between 1963 and 1983 MPS produced about five hundred albums, many of which are among the most important Jazz recordings on this planet. In 1983 the MPS catalog was sold to UniversalFind albums on this label, which sadly resulted in all those artistic treasures to almost disappear from the face of the earth – a situation not only tragic but culturally criminal. Universal reissued a part of the MPS albums (probably 128 titles) on CD between 1999 and 2011 under the "Most Perfect Sound Edition" moniker. Since 2008 the German Promising MusicFind albums on this label label released some of the MPS recordings, but at a very slow pace. In 2014 the German company Edel AG bought the MPS catalogue from Universal and released a series of 25 MPS albums on CD with a new slipcase graphic design, which brought all those excellent albums back to life. In 2015 Edel AG started to record and release new albums under the MPS moniker. In 2016 Edel AG released a series of 10 classic MPS albums on CD, which were beautifully remastered and re-packaged, presenting the original artwork and liner notes, as well as new liner notes and photographs. An obvious labor of love, these reissues are what the MPS catalogue truly deserves. This project was continued in 2017 with another series of 10 classic MPS albums released on CD. In later years some new reissues were released sporadically. Over the years many SABA / MPS albums were reissued in Japan, which is often the only available source for these albums today, but that is a story in itself.

Updated: 19/06/2025Posted: 19/06/2025

CD 1 Recommend To A Friend

VOLKER KRIEGEL ~ BITON GROOVES MOOSICUS 1309 (Barcode: 885513130921) ~ GERMANY ~ Avant-Garde Jazz-Rock Fusion Recorded: 1974 - 1982 Released: 2019 This is an archival 2CD album presenting studio recordings by the iconic German Jazz / Fusion guitarist / composer / bandleader Volker KriegelFind albums by this artist. These recordings were done at the Biton Studios in Frankfurt between 1974 and 1982 and released on five LP albums on the studio’s own label, which are all remastered and included in this reissue. These albums were released as library music for use by Radio / TV / Film industry and did not specify Kriegel’s name or any other details, since he was at the time under contact with MPSFind albums on this label Records. The album presents thirty-seven original compositions, most by Kriegel and some by his band members, which were of course the same musicians that recorded with him the albums released by MPS over the years: keyboardists Rainer BruninghausFind albums by this artist and Thomas BettermannFind albums by this artist, bassists Eberhard WeberFind albums by this artist and Hans Peter StroerFind albums by this artist, percussionist Peter GigerFind albums by this artist, and drummers Klaus WeissFind albums by this artist, Joe NayFind albums by this artist and Evert FratermanFind albums by this artist. Despite the fact that this music was never intended for commercial release and were not available to Jazz / Fusion fans at the time, it is a remarkable collection of excellent compositions, all superbly executed by Kriegel and his ensembles. The tracks are on average under three minutes in duration and the performances obviously do not feature extensive soloing, but the compositions are all first rate and Kriegel’s guitar artistry is documented here at its peak. Overall, this is wonderful European Fusion album, performed by top German Jazz musicians active in the 1970s / 1980s, as well as an important addition to the recorded legacy by Kriegel, which is carefully curated by his archive, which hopefully will be released in its entirety in time. For guitar lovers and European Fusion enthusiasts this is an absolute must!

Updated: 04/05/2022Posted: 04/05/2022

CD 2 Digipak Remastered Recommend To A Friend