SONčNA POT

Sončna pot, often translated as Sunny Way, although IMHO it sounds more like Sun`s Path, unfortunately was one album project led by Lado Jaksa, Slovenian kinda "jack-of-all-trades" artist - not only playing saxes, clarinet and keyboards, but also being responsible for all of the photos included in the cover artwork. The album, still available as LP only and often quoted as rare collector`s item, nowadays can be classified as an international project: well known, classically educated progrock, jazz and jazzrock/fusion drummer Ratko Divjak is Croatian, Jordan "Dani" Gančev is a Bulgarian exile/immigrant/dissident who had chosen now ex Yugoslavia to be his new homeland and Uros Sećerov, the guest musician is jazz percussionist from Serbia.

Moods and grooves - this is a short description of musical waves that hit the listener`s emotions. Check out the versatile, more than two dynamics often heard in contemporary music, including our beloved prog genre! Dynamics of the drum solo! The warmth of Gančev`s basses often compared to Jaco`s style! Well, to be honest, his sound is very similar, but then again, his playing is slightly different and original. Sećerov`s percussion were only a spice to it all. To make the long story short - simply not overdosed. Check out the cuica part in the composition Na poti (On the Path) that lasts for two bars only!

And, Lado, of course... Using folklore, ethno themes, some thirty and a bit more years ago, and merging them with jazz, jazzrock/fusion... And the moods, before or after the grooves, can be described as autumnlike, dreamy, kind of bittersweet, at the same time reflective, hypnotic and, I dare to say, sexy. For an example - the soprano sax part in Zarek (The Beam) could be expressed in one short sentence: "This is a soul on a plate, man!"

The more let`s say professional review of this album could probably look like this: Very different, original and by all means out of the framework project. A masterful, sophisticated piece of work containing everything that jazzrock/fusion album should have - complex arrangements, slightly dissonant now and then, as polymetric as a progrock piece should be, with virtuous solos that are not exaggerated to the point when one cannot listen to them anymore; with some ethno touch to it, regarding the fact that it was recorded in 1979. and, as we all know, world music was not that popular then. And so on...

Instead of the conclusion I would rather make a recommendation, not only to all those jazzrock/fusion aficionados, but also to all of you looking for something different, progressive ( let me be a bit presumptuous), trying to broaden your... whatever you call it.

Four stars. Although personally, I would give it 4.5 with no guilty conscience.

It is always a pleasure to discover an old, obscure and little known album from the past. And if the band comes from the former Yugoslav country (Slovenia) the pleasure is even bigger.

There is no much information about the band called SONCNA POT ("Sunny Way" or "Sun's Path") available on the Internet. The band comes from Ljubljana, a city that was primarily known for punk movement in the late 1970s in Yugoslavia but which also was a hotbed for jazz and jazz rock in the same period. Lado Jaksa was a jazz veteran, studio session musician and photographer who also contributed as keyboardist and saxophone/flute player to many rock, pop, folk and jazz rock groups (e.g. BULDOZER, PREDMESTJE, SEDMINA, JUTRO). Ratko Divjak is famous for being a drummer of renowned rock bands TIME and SEPTEMBER, while bassist Dani Ganchev comes from the jazz scene. This trio is responsible for making this, one and only album of SONCNA POT, and one must say they did a damn good job!

Although all of them skillful (multi)instrumentalists, they did not produce a record that would sound cold, technical or academic, which is sometimes the case with jazz rock, but instead made a pleasant, adventurous and highly attractive album, which invokes repeated listening. This is particularly the case with two tracks on A side of the vinyl - a lengthy suite-like "Hrepenenje" ("Longing") and piano-led jazz ballad "Na poti" ("On the Way"). Ganchev's amazing fret-less bass work reminds me sometimes of Jaco Pastorius' playful style, while Jaksa's saxophones and keyboards make wonderful melodies and improvisations. Divjak's strong drumming is occasionally supported by the guest percussionist Uros Secerov.

Even though the side B is slightly less surprising, it nonetheless continues the well-beaten path of improvised solo parts of bass, piano, organ and saxophone, which invokes the best moments of German fusion or certain jazzy aspects of English Canterbury Scene. This album is a must listen for any serious jazz-rock and progressive rock connoisseur.

PERSONAL RATING: 4,5/5