JAZZ ROCK/FUSION

I'm not going to say a lot about this one as the majority around the "Net" rate this rather highly while I'm not so impressed. Some call the "Horn Rock" as we get plenty of blasting horns a style that right off the bat is a negative for me. Also the vocals while being okay really sound loungy at times especially on that title track when after 2 minutes he sings "... but I know whoa whoa whoa whoa" I mean I laughed right out loud the first time I heard that. Just some cringe on this song for me which overall I'd describe it as lame at best. The cover art isn't much better.

But I'm giving this 3 stars because we get some really good instrumental work on this one plus I feel the album ends quite well with "Sadness Of A Moment" with the strummed guitar and flute standing out along with reserved vocals. And the closer "To B" an instrumental with some jazzy bass before 3 1/2 minutes and dissonant horns late which surprised and impressed me.

The opener "Autobiography" is pretty good especially the drum work but "She's learning" and "A Time A Place" I find disappointing. The other track "Hiding From Dawn" is cool with that slow groove of bass and pulsating keys. So this album is a mixed bag for me but there's certainly not enough here to even consider 4 stars. Just my poor taste in music I suppose. As I said earlier most people really appreciate this recording

I stumbled across Agora 'Live In Montreux' during my many forays thru You Tube Channels in search of old distant unknowns of Progressive Rock . Yes they are more Jazz Rock the Progressive but Agora gives us a fine album and live to boot. What was most striking and something I cant believe was not mentioned in other reviews is the strong resemblance to Soft Machine. The track details and history I'll not repeat as it has been covered by others . Give them a listen and if you like, and I mean really like Soft Machine and the early 70s Jazz Rock era you will appreciate this release I gave it 3 stars only because they are is not really Progressive Rock .

The album's title along with the cover art makes me smile. Larry Young's real name is Khalid Yasin Abdul Aziz and he had played on Miles Davis' "Bitches Brew" album and I mention that because this record does remind me of that classic recording. Yes we get Larry's electric organ sounding distorted leading the way instead of trumpet plus this one has more of an African sound with those rhythms but both have so much going on as they trip along. Tons of beats here with drums, percussion, bongos and congas. We get sax and trumpet along with cello, guitar, bass and electric piano. Oh and some crazy vocal expressions at times. This album is nuts, it really is and I love it! Pharoah Sanders was a mystery guest on sax and vocals.

"Saudia" opens with organ and intricate sounds. This is one of the more normal songs I guess you could say. An organ driven track with percussion sounds and bass helping to lead the way. "Alive" is the shortest at 2 minutes and it hits the ground running with all kinds of sounds. So much going on. A real depth to that sound as well. The organ fires off some rounds over and over. Lots of percussion sounds too.

"Hello Your Quietness(Islands)" opens with some experimental sounds including spacey ones. Percussion and horns soon arrive shaking things up. Organ at 1 1/2 minutes arrives with bass in tow. I like the way the organ and trumpet pulse before 3 minutes. What an array of sounds, I'm so impressed as it has this laid back groove to it as well. It starts to pick up some and get more intensity before 7 minutes before settling back very late.

This album really does get better a it plays out. Next up is "Sunshine Fly Away" and it opens with percussion and clashing cymbals but soon bass, drums and fuller sound arrives. Organ after a minute and it will come and go. Horns around 2 1/2 minutes along with lots of percussion sounds. Just tripping along. The organ pulses after 3 1/2 minutes then we get some organ runs. The horns blasting after 5 minutes. Nice. What a track!

The closer is insane and brilliant. "Khalid Of Space Part Two-Welcome" is the title and it's 12 1/2 minutes of joy really. Sounds pulse and beat along with some experimental outbursts. Exotic sounds too as the organ pulses wildly. Some crazy vocal expressions before 3 minutes and there's so much going on here. Love the outbursts of distorted organ. Insanity after 7 minutes and I'm head banging. Go figure? Cello after 8 1/2 minutes. Brilliant! More vocal expressions before 11 minutes. What a closer!

I just have to give 5 stars for Larry's best work, he was really inspired here.

This is studio album number two for this Jazz/Rock band from Belgium. A nine piece here with plenty of horns including tenor sax, soprano sax, trumpet, trombone, bass clarinet and flugelhorn. We also get flute, bass, guitar, drums and a variety of keyboards including synths from band leader Marc Moulin.

"Bolkwush" is a great opener as we get keys, drums and bass right away as horns arrive blasting and they will come and go. Love that trumpet just before a minute as other horns continue to come and go. I also like the low end sounding keys and bass along with the steady, punchy sounding drums. "Temse" has intricate drum work as horns and flute kick in briefly. The electric piano takes over as the horns return. Such a good groove to this one as the horns come and go over top. Some clavinet too after 2 minutes.

"Phalene" has a relaxed sound to it of electric piano, drums and a horn to start. Bass joins in as well to this lazy and smokey sounding song. Such a chilled-out track as it drifts along with different sounds coming and going over top. Love that electric piano. "Balek" might be my favourite though. We get these deep sounds that pulse as drums help out. Melancholic synths and horns start to come and go. Electric piano after a minute. The melancholic synths are back after 2 1/2 minutes to the end.

"Polk" is kind of funky as electric piano joins in. Horns before 1 1/2 minutes replace the piano but the latter returns a minute later. "Only Nineteen" opens with bass and drums and they create an excellent sound here as the electric piano joins in quickly. Some brief blasting horns before 2 1/2 minutes before they turn steady playing over top.

"Red Net" has relaxed electric piano as slowly played horns join in. This is really laid back. Electric piano leads the way for the most part other than early on and late. "Re-Union" is different from the rest. Atmosphere hums and hovers as it floats along throughout. Sounds like electronics over the final minute which is kind of cool.

Another solid album by these jazzers from Belgium. 4 stars.

Finally got a copy of this. It's about time! Two Sides of Peter Banks was his first solo album. There seems to be a story that the label wanted a Flash album and a Peter Banks solo album to be released exactly the same time, so it's a bit obvious that the album was rush released (which explains the two jams, "Stop That!" and "Get Out of My Fridge" were tagged at the end of side two). Essentially this is as much a Jan Akkerman album as a Peter Banks album. Here they get help from two Flash bandmates with Ray Bennett and Mick Hough, plus Phil Collins, John Wetton (misspelled "Whetton" on the album), and even Steve Hackett; however, the last two only appeared on "Knights (Reprise)". "White House Vail" is a really amazing piece, I especially dig the more calm parts towards the end. One parts sounds like Steve Hillage went and borrowed it for his own "Leylines to Glassdom" off his album Green (1978). "Knights" has a rather harsh start (Änglagård borrowed a part of this for "Ifrån Klarhet till Klarhet" off their album Hybris from 1992) but has some really brilliant passages. "Knights (Reprise)" is actually a bit different, with a nice jazzy part played on synth. If Steve Hackett is on this, you can barely notice him. So much has been said on how inferior side two is that people tend to overlook the opening cut, "Beyond the Loneliest Sea", as this is as much the same high quality material that took up side one. A rather moody piece with electric piano and classical guitar (latter courtesy of Akkerman). "Stop That!" and "Get Out of My Fridge" came from extended late-night jams. Peter Banks and Jan Akkerman didn't have these session to put on album in mind, but it happened anyway, because he was rushed with solo album and getting Flash's last album Out of Our Hands out the same day. To be honest, despite the clumsy feel to "Stop That!" I rather like the mood and atmosphere. The Grateful Dead had gotten away with worse jams, but it's true the flaws are plain obvious to see. Phil Collins often sounded like he kept doing things on his drums to try to up the intensity, to keep a smoother flow, it's like he was saying, "Hey guys, lets up the pace". "Get Out of My Fridge" is more successful, although not to everyone's taste. It's clear they weren't taking themselves seriously here as they try a more country-influenced jam. I am not 100% surprised that Peter Banks stated that Jan Akkerman was embarrassed that those two jams were put on record. There may be elements of Flash, Focus, and Yes, but it's not immediately obvious. I can say right away that I far prefer this over Steve Howe's Beginning, because you don't have to put up with Steve's singing (no one can deny Steve's talent on guitar, but Beginnings prove his mouth should have never been near a microphone).

This is one of those albums I should have bought years ago, because you can't deny the brilliant material, but it's as popular opinion goes, aside from "Beyond the Loneliest Sea" the rest of side two doesn't quite match the brilliance of side one, but it's still a worthy album in your collection.

Frankly I think this is a top five classic jazzrock album of all time and the zenith of the golden age of fusion in the marketplace. The band is flat out awesome and this is a smooth wave from beginning to end, like a surfer on the longest most serene ride of their life. Larry Coryell is the most prime example of a jazz based musician that took most of his chops from rock musicians and applied them in a manner that allowed him to stand out from his competition. None of the songs really stand out from the rest and this set begs to be digested as a whole. Sometimes I feel the running time is a bit short but that is a mild complaint.

I think I should begin by introducing these two excellent musicians to those who don't know them.

David Cross was the violin player of King Crimson, during the years 1972 ? 1974 and participated in the albums Larks Tongues in Aspic, Starless and Bible Black and Red. Further than King Crimson, he played with many famous musicians and recorded lots of solo albums.

David Jackson has been the saxophone player and a former member of Van Der Graaf Generator, until 2008. He also played with lots of musicians during his long career, like Peter Gabriel and Peter Hammill for example.

This year, the two David's decided to unite their musical forces and the result was the album Another Day that was released a few months ago.

Another Day is an all-instrumental album, having as basic instruments the electric violin by David Cross and the saxophones of David Jackson, accompanied by bass, keyboards and drums. The style of the album is Jazz-Rock and it is not so easy to listen to, especially if you are not familiar with this specific music style. Personally speaking, I found it difficult to get used to it, and I'm not sure if I can appreciate it to the level it should be appreciated.

There are some beautiful and melodic songs included here, like for example Going Nowhere, Millenium Toll and Anthem for Another Day, mixed with some others more Jazzy ones, which I didn't like so much to be honest.

My rating would be 3.0 stars

— First review of this album —

Consummate drummer Xavi Reija is back with his fourth solo album, and as with the wonderful 'Resolution' from 2014, he has been joined by guitarist Dusan Jevtović. However, this time he has brought in two Stick Men with Tony Levin providing bass, upright bass and stick and Markus Reuter on touch guitar. This means that between them there are four more sounds and potential interactions on show than would be possible with any 'normal' quartet. Recorded in just one day, the album is a cacophony of sounds and notes being brought together by four musicians who are consistently bouncing ideas off each other. Reuter and Levin are touring together a great deal, so know each other's styles intimately, while Reija and Jevtović have a long history together as well, and the two pairs combine to make an album of exciting and invigorating music.

One of the joys of this album is the sheer variety, with all four playing lead (all at the same time), although it is often left to Levin and Reuter to attempt to maintain some sort of stable foundation for the others to play against. The four lengthy songs are parts I-IV of the title cut, composed by all four, as they bounce the ideas off each other and see where the music takes them. The second of these commences with Xavi shuffling on drums, Tony providing some beautifully warm upright bass, Markus creating the soundscape as only he can, before Dusan makes his entrance. It is an incredibly intense album, with so much going on at all times, yet it never overloads the senses as it continues to make music sense throughout. Putting these four into a room together, turning on the tapes and then just letting them play, was truly inspired. When it comes to fusion, bringing together jazz, progressive rock and improvisation, then it is hard to find a stronger group of players. This is an incredible album, totally essential to anyone who enjoys this style of challenging and almost avant garde music.

The original formation of the DR DOPO JAM was formed by bandleader, composer, instrumentalist, vocalist and head honcho Kristian Pommer in Roskilde, Denmark not too far from Copenhagen back in 1968 under the guise of a Zappa-inspired psychedelic band but by the time the band (after many lineup changes) got to their debut "Entree" in 1973, it had become an eclectic mishmash of styles surrounded by big brass jazz-fusion and a goofy cabaret type of persona that emphasized not only an unpredictable and unrepeatable stylistic approach but ensured a healthy dose of whimsy that offered a glimpse of what would happen if the "Hot Rats" era of The Mothers of Invention had joined up with the Bonzo Dog Doo-Dah Band to cut a couple albums culminating in the wild extravaganza of their sophomore release "Fat Dogs And Dansihmen."

Due to the bloated nature of the band's lineup for their only two albums to be released in the 70s and a lack of commercial success, Pommer threw in the towel and moved on to form the funk rock band Tequila which in turn released a couple albums and then called it a day themselves. Instead of establishing a new band, Pommer decided to resurrect the days of DR DOPO JAM in 1981 but with a more time period friendly vibe with the release of the third album CRUISIN' AT MIDNITE. For this album, Pommer completely started from scratch and found two members from previous lineups and three completely new ones which made the totality of the band a mere eight members which by DR DOPO JAM standards was pretty low.

Right from the very first track "Midnite Cruiser," it's apparent that Pommer was going for a more mainstream sort of sound on CRUISIN' AT MIDNITE with a funk based groove and an early 80s sort of new wave feel. While the Zappa influences haven't been totally trampled upon, they have been tamed and the jazz-fusion and silliness extravaganzas had been set on chill mode for this one. The tracks are fairly straight forward boogie rock with an emphasis on exotic rhythms and heavy percussion zones. While the band had garnered the well deserved reputation as the most experimental of Danish bands, on this third release little of that would be apparent although there are scant moments of bizarre freakouts and progressive outbursts but for the most part this one is fairly tame and lackluster compared to the 70s offerings.

While the genre jumping still exists with Canterbury Scene type flute parts, jazz-fusion albeit on simmer as well as the occasional rockin' out segment, the music on CRUISIN" AT MIDNITE is fairly similar with a funky groove that wouldn't be out of the question on the dance floor. While DR DOPO JAM has remained elusive outside of their Danish homeland, this third offering is even more obscure as it is the far inferior product to have been unleashed under that moniker. While i wouldn't call this album a waste of time by any means, it lacks the creative vitality that the initial pair dished out in virtually every aspect. This one was actually quite unnecessary and if visual guides offer any assistance, the blandness of the cover art in comparison to the first two album's artier side is a perfect indicator what to expect sonically as well. Well, worth the listen but rather meh and forgettable.

Continuing what they started on their debut album 'Entree,' the Danish musical whack job DR DOPO JAM released their second album FAT DOGS AND DANISHMEN in 1974 with founder, leader, main composer, singer and instrumentalist Kristian Pommer cranking out a whopping double album of crazy Zappa inspired material that took as many creative liberties as was humanly possible through the course of eleven bizarre tracks that dared to stuff in as many genres as possible without losing a beat.

Despite being Danish, DR DOPO JAM found a home on the German Zebra label which found prominent label mates like A.R. & Machines, Kin Ping Meh, Epitaph and Ougenweide. Even within this eclectic crowd Pommer's idiosyncratic band stood out like a sore thumb looking more towards the US music scene for inspiration rather than their neighbors to the south with a huge collective of musicians dishing out the ultimate display of humorous pastiches in a labyrinthine journey through a ridiculous amount of musical styles.

Once again, the Mothers of Invention provided the necessary ingredients for DR DOPO JAM to riff off of and do so quite well on their sophomore release. 'Entree' was primarily composed of one massively long track that sprawled on for 25 minutes with a few more tracks tacked onto the end but FAT DOGS AND DANISHMEN differs in that all the tracks are significantly shorter with only two extending past the eight minute mark and adopting the same mini-suite formula but even within the shorter tracks, genre skipping is quite the norm.

Anyone craving wildly new versions of Frank Zappa's early years will find lots to love here, especially in the period between 'Hot Rats' and 'Waka/Jawaka' with ample doses of utter ridiculousness and character changes that utilize the same wacky humor and spastic progressive instrumental outbursts. In addition to the album length being expanded, so too is the musical cast with 21 musicians and vocalists taking turns like a collective on different tracks.

When i say that FAT DOGS AND DANISHMEN likes to genre skip i really mean that these guys throw in everything including the kitchen sink. In just the first track 'Cowboy-Song' alone there is brass rock, Zappa-esque jazz-fusion, straight forward rock, spaghetti western, surf rock, progressive rock moments and soul funk all wrapped around an instantly addictive vocal melody. And then it delivers a nice rockin' guitar solo. The lyrics are hilarious and the band reminds me a bit of the Bonzo Dog Doo-Dah Band in that department as well as Zappa.

The album just continues to bedazzle with nosedives into a mind-boggling diverse eclectic palette of moods and styles whether it be lounge jazz, Canterbury Scene prog, Paganini inspired violin antics with classical piano, gypsy folk, tango, classical, 60s pop vocal (as in Tom Jones), Santana-esque Latin jazz soul, mambo, big band, game show music and bossa nova just to name a few. Careful scrutiny will reveal even subtler intricacies. Less vibraphones this time around and more clavinet, piano, organ and heavy percussion.

Overall FATS DPGS AND DANISHMEN tends to be a split between progressive instrumental jams and silly shorter tracks that place more emphasis on the wacky humor. In many ways, it seems that DR DOPO JAM prognosticated the 80s era of Zappa with silly melodic tracks eschewing lengthy prog workouts in favor of a pure comedic delivery. However when the proggy parts let loose as on the title track, things get really proggy and heavy on the 'Hot Rats' fusion at its best however despite the obvious influences, DR DOPO JAM creates a unique tapestry that sounds like Zappa in a parallel universe.

FAT DOGS AND DANISHMEN lets loose way beyond the craziness dished out on 'Entree' a hundredfold. While on the debut, there was a lot more emphasis on the big brass bravado of the jazz-fusion, however on this one is more like a sampler pack of whatever whim and whimsey presented themselves at the moment, however this music never jettisons the melodic groove that ties it all together. DR DOPO JAM was literally the Mr Bungle of the early 70s and is an acquired taste to say the least, but personally i love this kind of musical freedom especially when done so well. This band was a true joy to discover despite not being perfectly executed.