Record Reviews

JOE PASS ~ INTERCONTINENTAL MPS 4029759097235 (Barcode: 4029759097235) ~ USA ~ Jazz Recorded: 1970 Released: 2014 This is a reissue of a little known album by legendary American guitarist / composer Joe PassFind albums by this artist recorded in trio format with German bassist Eberhard WeberFind albums by this artist and British drummer Kenny ClareFind albums by this artist. Together the trio plays ten tunes, one of which is an original composition by Pass, another one is an original composition by the studio´s recording director Willi FruthFind albums by this artist and the rest are standards. Recorded at the legendary MPS Studio in the Black Forest village of Villingen, this is probably the best sounding Pass album ever recorded. This intimate trio format with the incredible support Pass receives from Weber enables him to concentrate on playing the melody and improvisations without the need for supportive chord work and as a result this is one of the most impressive albums he ever recorded. Combined with the brilliant sound quality this is guitar heaven from start to finish and fans of Jazz guitar playing (and I mean Jazz not Fusion) will find this album an absolute must have. It is my favorite Pass album, and I do know quite a few of his recordings. This album demonstrates why best American Jazz musicians always wanted to record at the MPS Studio and release records on the MPSFind albums on this label label. The respect, recognition, love and total devotion they received in Europe was always infinitely more supportive than the usual treatment back home. 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: 27/05/2018Posted: 10/07/2016

CD 1 Slipcase Remastered Recommend To A Friend