BURNIN' RED IVANHOE

1. "August Suicidal" (4:32) sounds like a slightly more sophisticated 1960s Eric Burdon with The Animals or Arthur Brown's Crazy World. Organ, racing drums, guitar, and bass with pompous male vocalist singing and screaming over the top. Interesting bass guitar solo in the third minute. (8.875/10)

2. "When I Look Into Your Eyes" (3:40) slow, polished 1960s psychedelic rock. They musicians are skilled and very disciplined, but I hear absolutely no elements in this song that would lead me to think, "Jazz-Rock Fusion." However, I greatly admire the control and maturity the band displays on this musical expression. (9/10)

3. "La Beauté Du Buste" (4:50) soprano saxophone, bass, and wah-wah-ed Fender Rhodes electric piano each soloing at the same time, forming an interesting and surprisingly palatable weave. Now, this could qualify for significant J-RF points--though there is nothing here that doesn't sound like it was inspired by Yes Fragile shorts or The Doors' L.A. Woman. (8.875/10)

4. "Make Me Look Away" (5:40) this one feels almost straight out of the American South: like a Doors venture into Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young; Arthur Lee's LOVE; The Eagles and Joe Walsh before they became one. The earliest Lynyrd Skynyrd. Very solid, great Southern Rock with one heck of a lead guitar sound (and, for that matter, that of the rhythm guitars, too) and skilled and passionate guitar soloing (from multiple guitars!). This could easily have been a major hit on FM radio stations in America! (10/10)

5. "Rockin' Rambler" (11:42) a cross between Creedence Clearwater Revival, Grand Funk Railroad, and Uriah Heep. More stellar sound production and mixing that fully and clearly captures the work of these talented musicians. The song itself is really just a 12-minute two-chord vamp within which Ole Fick sings (and talks) in his VAN MORRISON/JIM MORRISON/MICK JAGGER blended style while Karsten Vogel toots his alto sax along-side. The palette thins in the seventh minute while Ole and Karsten continue vamping. Kenneth Knudsen gets some shine on his Fender Rhodes in the tenth minute before a major slow down, space out takes over (though I can still feel/hear the "absent" two-chord vamp right up to Karsten's final squeak. (17.625/20)

6. "Tell Me" (5:20) back to the Eric Burdon & The Animals (or War) style and sound with Ole following the bass and sax's seven note rising scale melody line exactly during the verses. The choruses are a little more free and interesting, but those repeating verses get pretty irritating. Nice professional ROBIN TROWER-like guitar solo in the third and fourth minutes. A fine, polished performance of a somewhat weak composition. (8.75/10)

7. "Accident" (0:15) bloody nothing. Is the 15-second gap between songs the "accident."

8. "After The Carcrash" (3:00) treated electric guitars slowly weave their picked melodies with one another for the first 1:15. Then Karsten joins in with his plaintive sax. It's like a funereal dirge. Multiple sax tracks woven together are what take us out over the final minute. Kind of magical, that ending. (8.875/10)

Total time 38:59

No matter how finely crafted, performed, recorded, and produced these songs are (and there is a LOT of finery here) this album is in no way, shape, or form a Jazz-Rock Fusion album.

B/four stars; an excellent collection of finely rendered Southern Blues-Rock songs. Would have been great to play in rotation with my Rolling Stones, Doors, Uriah Heep, Crosby, Stills, Nash, Lynyrd Skynyrd, and Eric Burdon albums.

1. "The W.W.W. Suite": - i. "Second Floor, Croydon" (8:37) Ole sings in a John Lennon-effected voice over some John Lennon-like music to open this one before the spacious pause in the beginning of the second minute which ends with the band launching into a Brit-Rock sounding pseudo-R&B theme. Sounds like BR Ivanhoe's version of "Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood." The sound engineering is different from their previous album: more effects used on the bass and vocals with warmer treatments given to the organ, drums, and flutes--and with everybody brought more forward in the mix, making it much more intimate, as if the listener is inside the instrumentalists' circle on stage instead of 20 feet away. The organ, drums, and guitar playing are rather primitive while the vocalist and seem more adventurous. Nice sound but a little too primitive to garner high marks. (17/20)

- ii. "W.W.W." (6:07) droning amplifier feedback sound opens this one, holding for quite a while as organ, bass, cymbals, and violin gradually add their subtle experimentations and interjections. This loose weave of cacophonous tuning and warmup jamming continues well into the second half of the song until some peaceful flute- and whale-like violin notes seemingly soothe and calm the rest of the band members. Very interesting and, I have to admit, somehow enjoyable--not unlike a POPOL VUH listening experience. (8.75/10)

- iii. "Avez-Vous Kaskelainen" (4:47) the band here slowly congeals into a "Driver's Seat"-like organ-driven groove within which wah-wah-ed violin and electric guitar flit and float. Like an experimental DOORS jam that never made it to album. (8.75/10)

- iv. "Kaske-Vous Karse Mose" (3:49) Karsten Vogel's soprano sax gets to lead this with some nearly free-jazz playing, but not before his organ and Kim Menzer's flute set up a hypnotic, nearly-Krautrock foundation. Also featuring multi- tracking! (8.875/10)

5. "All About All" (4:08) strummed John Lennon-like acoustic guitar opens this one before the band jumps into a BADFINGER-like pop song about the band's history: musically and geopolitically. Fun and funny with some nice soprano sax playing throughout. (8.875/10)

6. "Oblong Serenade" (6:25) another Beatles imitation, this one from the Fab Four's psychedelic peak years. Pounded piano, trombone, and multiple track dedication to loose drunken-fun vocals gives it a lot of Magical Mystery Tour feel-- as does the kazoo-like soprano sax play in the third minute. At 3:47 Jess Stæhr and Bo Thrige Anderson double the pace, providing the impetus to the rest of the soloists to up their energy levels--which Karsten Vogel, Ole Flick, and even a weak Kim Menzer do nicely on. their sax, electric guitar, and trombone, respectively. (8.875/10)

7. "Cucumber-Porcupine" (5:21) bass, bass drum, guitar, and alto sax all chime in on punctually playing a "Stand By Me"-like progression of riffs before flute, sax, and group choir vocals peel off to make their own melody lines. Drummer Bo Thrige Anderson eventually smooths out his rhythmic support into more of a rock style, but the bass and electric guitar continue to chug through the song's original staccato progression till the very end. The happy song seems to want to end the album with a feeling of laid-back cohesion and commisseration--as if we're all in this together and it's gonna be all right. Nice. (8.875/10)

Total Time 39:14

While I like the new, richer sound palette and experimental moods of the band being expressed on this album, I do not think it to contain many memorable songs: so many feel unfinished, as if the band were using these studio sessions to become more proficient with the new (and old) sounds of their instruments, work out new ideas and skills, as well as try to figure out how the individual band members can better serve the needs of the collective. Once again, I cannot in good faith consider this album a shining example of Jazz-Rock Fusion music; there is more of a jazz-like experimentalism being expressed here, but there is really very little jazz. More R&B than jazz.

B-/four stars; a likable collection of songs in which a band is doing a lot of experimentation. But the question must be asked: How much of it is for themselves and their own growth and entertainment and how much for their audience?

1. "Across The Windowsill (7:40) rooted in psychedelic pop music of the Argent/Animals ilk, this is a song that sounds like it could have come from the Sixties. Oh. Wait! It did! Four chord rock for the jam in the third through minutes over which Ole Fick solos on his electric guitar. Karsten Vogel's organ sound and riffs are straight out of the Animals' repertoire and Ole's voice is pure late Sixties Steve Winwood or Mark Farner. The most interesting thing in the song is the weird sounding saxophone soloing through the seventh and eighth minutes. All in all it's a very solid song for its time. (13.25/15) 2. "Canaltrip" (5:21) with their acoustic instruments only we get a conglomeration of Django-ed "Take Five" played in a relaxed Beatnick circle. Two acoustic guitarists, two percussionists, and Kim Menzer's tenor saxophone playing over five minutes of a two-chord cycle. Interesting--especially the purposely-raunchy sax play--but not sure it's worth five minutes of attention. Though Kim's sax play is awesome (as far as saxophone play goes), perhaps this one would have been better off left in the practice room. (8.75/10)

3. "Rotating Irons" (8:19) harmonica leads us into a very laid-back, San Francisco-sounding blues-rock tune. Nice, steady play from the Lou Reed bass and drums. Free floating bluesy electric guitar joins for a bit before Ole Fick enters with a raspy shout vocal. This is as good as anything coming out of the U.S.'s West Coast psychedelic scene of the late 1960s. A slight increase in both tempo and intensity occurs at the end of the fourth minute as the organ's two chords and Kim's mouthharp rejoins, but it's really Ole's show: guitar and vocal alternating in the spotlight like a true star of the blues (B.B. King comes to mind). Very solid and engaging for this kind of music. (18/20)

4. "Gong-Gong, The Elephant Song" (5:40) opens with one chord held long and hard while multiple horns spin around with the shaker percussion. Then the band jumps into gear with a near-surfer three-chord guitar riff repeated ad nauseum within a rhythm section that is moving along at a runner's pace. Kim's mouthharp takes the lead for a good long minute before any sign of the reeds returns, but then a motif switch allows the alto sax to grab the lead while the band returns to the pseudo-surfer motif.around the four minute mark the wind group comes together for a bit to announce room for the second saxophone, and then it just kind of ends, with each instrument sticking around a bit as if unsure if they're really supposed to stop. Nice solid jamming that yields nothing very memorable. (8.75/10)

5. "Near The Sea" (3:58) here Ole sings as if he's Electric Dylan while the band accompanies him with some gentle folk R&B. Electrified folk, if you ask me. (8.75/10)

6. "Secret Oyster Service" (9:48) five minutes of spacious, pensive, bare-minimum of instrumental support for an extended tenor saxophone solo before the band breaks into a "I'm Just a Singer in a Rock 'n' Roll Band"-like rock motif only to continue to support a now-more frenetic saxophonist. in the eighth minute a second saxophone starts his engine and gets into the act while the others continue their crazy pace down the mountainside. While Karsten Vogel's alto screeches and wails, the rest of the band coalesces into a harmonically-texturalized flow for the big finish. Okay; that was that! (17.25/20)

Total Time: 40:46

I'm not convinced this album should be anywhere near the Jazz-Rock Fusion classification; if it's due to their future production (and Kim Menzer's wind instrument acumen), I get it, but I'll not be including this album among the mainline J-R F albums.

B-/four stars; a nice display of burgeoning talent getting their chops in line. Not sure I'd recommend this album to anyone other than the die-hard fans of 1960s blues psych but it's not bad!

I'll skip the 2 first tunes I consider passable and focus on what I find the most interesting elements of this album.

Saxophone piece 1 is a short and interesting instrumental, a jazz tune dynamic, fast, so fast we could almost consider it as a transitional piece.

Marsfesten is much more psychedelic with its psalmodic female choruses, the structure is noticeable with an alternate of rocky parts and psalms with a "vague music theme" both at the beginning and the end of the tune.

Antique Peppermint beats it all as strong psychedelic jazz instrumental and psalmodic voices.

Indre Landskab is clearly a classic rock with a strong riff, the sustained presence of harmonica, and a wah pedal.

Jizzlou is simple, efficient, not a masterpiece but a really nice track and a good blues-rock.

lo and behold! We have Saxophone Piece 2, it has a more grating side which makes me think of Captain Beefheart in his Trout mask replica (curiously released the same year!), we are more at the borders of the bruises, Avant-rock, and experimental in some way.

Medardus starts with a row of trumpets, quite masterful and worrying, then comes the chorus, and in the end, a song clearly structured in several parts that best shows what is BURNIN RED IVANHOE, a jazz-psyche rock band whose borders are frankly erased in some of the tracks, this one is the best proof I think.

Larsen is another sympathetic psychedelic tune, sung in English, with extensive use of the wah-wah pedal, and flute.

Oyizl is a longer instrumental, absolutely jazz, the highlight is the drum solo, very demonstrative.

Ivanhoe In The Woods revolves around a trumpet version of I can get no (satisfaction), this pastiche is quite amusing but fail to stand out.

Ida Verlaine shows quite well the blending of pure blues-rock and psychedelia

Inside, is again a short but pleasant instrumental lead by brasses which announces the final track.

...and the end is psychedelic with Ksilioy, the longest piece of the album, a bit lackluster in my mind.

As we have seen, M144 is a varied album in its style, it is an album with uneven content. There is a good psychedelic base - blues rock and we venture throughout the tracks into pure jazz-rock, even pure jazz, psychedelic rock, or proto-prog. Some pieces are well-posed in their kind, without leaving it, and others see a fusion of the kinds sometimes happy other times more hazardous.

Overall, it's a good rendition for a debut album, it has many elements of proto-prog but is still kept in a primary category of jazz/proto-prog, it is still a very good demonstration for this period. Many tracks are self-explanatory and kept my attention, somewhat the album is a bit marred by some dull compositions that fail to enter any category or to blind correctly with other styles. 'eager to see what the following albums have in store for us...

"BRI" documents Burnin Red Ivanhoe as a band still going strong, a vital unit still able to produce the goods 46 years after it was formed. As far as style is concerned, this isn't an album that sticks to progressive rock as such though, which might be regarded as a negative dimension for some, but if you can enjoy a band that opts to explore a broader stylistic framework that contains anything from radio friendly rock to experimental progressive rock, then this CD merits a check.

"Second Floor, Croydon" is laid back with vocals. It does kick in before 1 1/2 minutes. Flute before 4 minutes. Drums and organ lead after 7 minutes. I much prefer the second half of this song. "W.W.W." opens with not much going on until we get some haunting sounds that come and go after 1 1/2 minutes. The organ and drums start to come and go as well with no real melody. Interesting tune to say the least. "Avez-Vous Kaskelainen ?" starts to build with drums and organ. Great sound after 1 1/2 minutes.

"Kaske-Vous Karsemose" is my favourite track. Again the drums and organ lead. Sax 3 minutes in. The drumming is excellent. Two incredible songs in a row. "All About All" opens with strummed guitar and drums. This is catchy with vocals. Silly lyrics and horns too. A fun tune. "Oblong Serenade" is another song that can't be taken too seriously with the horns and theatrical vocals. I like the guitar late. "Cucumber- Porcupine" has this catchy beat with horns. Vocals before 2 minutes.

Of their first three albums this might be my favourite, but they're all good. 3.5 stars.

"Across The Windowsill" is a good opener with the focus on the strong vocals. This one's catchy and I like the tasteful guitar at 1 1/2 minutes that goes on and on as organ, bass and drums support. Vocals return around 3 1/2 minutes, sax a minute later. "Canaltrip" is a jazzy, trippy tune with mostly sax and drums throughout. "Rotating Irons" is a bluesy track with harmonica.

"Gong-Gong,The Elephant Song" has lots of horns and cymbals until it kicks in before a minute. I like the beat here. It settles after 3 minutes then kicks back in quickly. "Near The Sea" is a laid back tune with guitar and light drums early as vocals join in. Flute after 2 1/2 minutes. "Secret Oyster Service" is the almost 10 minute closing track. Not much going on here,some dissonance around 3 minutes then it kicks in before 5 minutes.

This is a band I enjoy, but as yet I really haven't been bowled over by them yet. 3.5 stars.

"Ivanhoe I Brondbyerne" is a good opener with the forceful vocals and drums while the organ plays along. I really like the organ in this one and the mellower sections. Flute before 2 minutes. "Ridder Red" opens and closes with horns but the rest is fairly laid back and catchy with outbursts of guitar. The vocals are almost spoken. The drums come to the fore after 2 1/2 minutes. "Saxophonepiece 1" is uptempo with sax playing over top. "Marsfesten" has these soft vocals with a mellow soundscape which are contrasted with the fuller more passionate passages. "Antique Pepperment" has this catchy beat with horns. Guitar after 2 minutes. Vocal melodies a minute later. "Indre Landskab" also has a catchy beat with what sounds like harmonica.Vocals join in. "Jiizlou" opens with horns and drums. Guitar 1 1/2 minutes in. "Kaj" and the next three tracks are the best stretch of music for me. Raw guitar opens this one before drums, bass, organ and vocals join in. I like the sound here a lot. Horns 1 1/2 minutes in. "Tingel-Tangelmanden" is slower paced with the focus on the vocals early. I like the guitar that goes on and on as the drums pound from 1 1/2 minutes to 4 1/2 minutes.

"Laeg Dig Kun Ned" has a good rhythm and they have two vocalists singing different lyrics at the same time. It works ! "Saxophonepiece 2" has a Rio flavour with the dissonant horns. "Medarjus" opens with solemn horns. A change after a minute as drums take over. Bass joins in,guitar and horns follow. Vocals after 2 minutes. It ends as it began. "Purple Hearts" reminds me of Syd Barrett. A fun song with lots of organ. A nice prolonged instrumental section to end it as well. "Larsen" is laid back with reserved vocals and floating organ. "Oylzi" is taken over by the drumming fairly quickly. Violin comes in then horns. A drums solo after 3 minutes. "Ivanhoe In The Woods" opens sounding like "Satisfaction" by the STONES. Lots of horns. "Ida Verlaine" is mournful to open. It kicks in with guitar before 1 1/2 minutes. "Sensitive Plant" opens with organ and drums as vocals join in. It's ok. "Inside" is experimental with sounds coming and going. "Ksilioy" is the 10 1/2 minute closer. It's uptempo with vocals right away. A good rhythm as vocals come and go. They jam for a long period of time. I like it.

Very much a mixed bag as most double albums tend to be for me. So much to like here though. I'm looking forward to hearing the more Jazzy followup. 3.5 stars.

The music hasn´t got much to do with the progressive jazz/ rock that made Burnin´ Red Ivanhoe such an exciting band in the beginning of their career. There´s a definite modern nineties pop/ rock touch to the sound and the songs are generally very commercial and not the least progressive IMO. I think Karma Cowboy ( with lyrics by the famous and sadly deceased Danish poet and author Dan Túrell) and the instrumental Jammin´ My Animal with the very distinct didjeridu, are partially enjoyable while I can´t really find much joy in the rest of the tracks.

The musicianship is excellent as usual but the music is not as challenging or focused on instruemental sections as was the case on the first albums from the band.

The production is professional but not really to my liking.

I can´t say that I´m very excited about this album and my rating lies somewhere between 1 and 2 stars. There are a few enjoyable momemts here and there so I´ll stretch and give Lack of Light 2 stars. Lack of Light is just a notch better than Shorts but overall it´s not very recommendable.

I don´t know if the original LP version only had ten songs as it is stated here on PA but the CD version that I have is a double CD. The first CD contains the same ten songs that were on the LP version while the second CD contains the same songs but now with English sung lyrics. The first CD has Danish sung lyrics.

The music is far from the experimental Jazz/ Rock style Burnin´ Red Ivanhoe is generally known for and I´m sure that fans of the first three and most famous albums would cringe with embarrasment if they heard Shorts because this is bad eighties AOR if I´m being nice and really bad AOR if I´m not. You can still hear Karsten Vogel´s saxophone playing here and there but it´s about the only thing that links this album to Burnin´ Red Ivanhoe of the seventies. What a shame. This is such a cheesy album full of simple pop tunes with trivial arranged instrumentation.

The musicianship is good, but it´s no surprise if you´ve heard their albums from the seventies.

The production is a horror of an eighties production. Just listen to that terrible drum sound.

This is a terrible disappointment for me and even though I read on the inner sleeve to Burnin´ Red Ivanhoe´s debut album M144 that the eighties weren´t very good for the band, I imagined that their excellent music just wasn´t inn at the time, but sadly it´s the other way around. The music was simply too bad to be enjoyed by anyone at the time. There is literally nothing I enjoy on this album and even though the musicianship is good I can´t give this album more than 1 star. BIG disappointment. I can highly recommend that you stay away from this one and purchase one of the first three albums from the band instead.