SZOBEL

I can't verify the truth of the tale/s but I believe Szobel was related to the legendary Bill Graham (the US promoter) and this was how he ended up invited to New York. Via the Graham ticket it got his foot in the door of studios and in one an Arista signed act were recording (Gladys Knight and band?). During a break Szobel asks is he ok to sit and play the keyboard/s. They ask 'who are you?' He replies 'the best you will ever hear'. So of course they all gather round for a laugh and after 5 mins are ringing Arista and getting them to send an A&R man down to sign this kid. I understand his social awkwardness stemmed from issues we would understand better these days but the story continued that they had to get a set of musicians to play with him who could follow him rather than spend hours in rehearsals. All the above conspired to produce maybe the best keys based fusion (and touching other areas) albums of the 70's if not ever. I appreciate it more as it doesn't sound over rehearsed or top session players reading the dots and has a fire in it that goes beyond the virtuosity of the main man....maybe that's why I am meh about for example Hiromi. Trying to explain this and offering comparisons and influences is perhaps as complex as some of the music on the album. Szobel was too young to have absorbed a breadth of influences from jazz and fusion and maybe the 'classical' side of his playing is the enhancer here rather than 'this is my best jazz chops guys'. It doesn't sound like anyone else but also sounds like everyone else. If someone told you it was Chick Corea up to his eyes on his supplement of choice...you wouldn't be over surprised. I remember buying the album from a 99p cut out bin as I liked the cover of the Flat Iron building in NY and thought he looked a bit 'Tim Buckley' and I guess I expected something like that. But having been pinned to the wall on my first listen I decided I didn't 'understand' it but made damned sure I kept it. Over the years it has become to my ears, as I claimed above, perhaps the best jazz/rock/fusion album ever. It is perhaps fitting that he didn't record anything else...it was rumoured he ended up living in a commune near Jerusalem...because the album is 'unfollowable'.