Jazz Celula / Cellula in 1976 and 1978

How odd that the one "l" goes missing from the first to the next?

In a long line of Eastern European fusion bands such as the recent Polish VA, Impuls, Crash, etc., etc. it will be assumed we never get tired of that sound here, which so deftly mixes classical education with the fusionaut teachings of Return to Forever and Mahavishnu.  

From the database:

Czechoslovak jazz combo. Formed 1968 in Prague, led by Laco Deczi. In the 1970s essentially identical to the Czechoslovak Radio Jazz Orchestra rhythm section and soloists. After a line-up change in the mid-1980s, featuring Deczi’s son Vaico Deczi on drums, and after Deczi’s immigration to New York, the group evolved to Cellula New York which is still actively performing as of 2012.

Note that Laco, described as trumpet player, bandleader, and composer, was prolific on his own as well.  (I pray he won't be deported too now.)

From the first, Probuzeni:

From the second, the Thread of Life:

There is a missing album or perhaps two which should show up shortly, surely...

Lennart Åberg's Green Prints (1986, Sweden) [by request] with limited lossless

Ambient-ECM style jazz with a large band which thankfully prevents the whole from descending into the boredom of too many notes with too few textures, this recalls many previously posted albums with Amazonian themes in the past like this one.  Not as experimental and more listenable than Laneri's.

Note the highly professional (and huge) lineup here-- including one Jan Schaffer...  Lennart of course is composer / arranger / conductor, plus flute and sax player.  In all honesty I wasn't too crazy about his previous album with the promising title of Partial Solar Eclipse.  But this one's better.

The track called Night Spirits, if you listen to it through with patience, demonstrates his university composition education:





Like the 1977 album though, it tends to drag on.  However the long track on the second side called Round B, has three parts and is much like a symphonic poem so I split it into thirds.  Note that it's Jan playing guitar / guitar synth on this one, as he does also on the song Green Prints.

Harald Hedning's remarkable masterpiece, unreleased in 1974

Nothing gets me more excited than the sight of that Gibson Les Paul shape (in gold).  A work of art in itself.

Masterpiece, right?  There's nothing more to be said.  Information.

Track 4, Defileringen:






A purely instrumental hard guitar-driven slice of umptuous cantankerous progressiveness that recalls automatic fine tuning and the Mr. Euphoria (my rip stolen and made available here) I once posted long ago, this is a must-have and tragically was not released back in the day when it would have made progheads drool...  thank god it's today resuscitated!

We waited 40 years during which this majestic music was squirrelled away, but thankfully it's back in the saddle again.  I just wonder why in music dept.'s of universities today that track is not taught as an example of ingenious, unique and powerful music composition to all the students...

Daniel Garcia - Del Otro Lado (UK/ARG - 1982)

Once again, thanks to my friends for introducing me to these wonderful albums, seemingly utterly lost to oblivion, but again undeservedly.  Immediately your ears will prick up like a rabbit's when you hear the first stunning track called Apertura Inicial:

Note the comfort with progressive composition right away.  Most songs have vocals and feature that same sunny sound you expect from latin music as heard on the great Argentinian band Spinetta Jade.  Too bad everyone has to get deported to their home countries now!


Not a lot of information on this artist. One small (Spanish) note on youtube:

ALBUM SOLISTA DE DANIEL GARCIA (TANGOLOCO)DE 1982 La Banda:
Luis Ceravolo, Ruben Rada,Yuya Sosa
Esteban Prieto
Creador de música para TV y Cine. 
Actualmente lidera el grupo "Tangoloco". 
Es el Director musical del espectáculo "Arráncame la Vida" , de Chico Novarro y Betty Gambartes , con Juan Darthés y Cecilia Milone.
Ganador del Martin Fierro por su tema para TV "Con las alas del alma". 
Creador de la cortina de la serie "099 Central"
Más datos : 
Tangoloco : www.tangoloco.com.ar
Tangoloco en Facebook :http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?i... 
Arrancame la vida en Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?i... ( Estará todo el verano en el Auditorium de Mar del PlaTA.

Eduardo Moreno, the amazing unknown progressive music composer...

His information is in the database already.  Note that this Spaniard made his music in the unheard-of years (for classic prog) of 1990 to 1995.  As I've said so many times before, it's just such a shock to hear such delightful standard issue prog (like on the Ocean albums) from a totally unexpected quarter.
Nor are they even known at all, they weren't to me and probably won't be to you-- so these two surely should get the trophy for most obscure good prog that no one knows about.

This is keyboard-driven with some electronics but enough variety to spare us from the soporific tendencies of "berlin-school" electronics.

Track 7 from the "Imaginary Film" is called Nada:





Clearly worthy of being included in a soundtrack perhaps of a depressing French film involving family deaths, such a common feature there. Notice how effectively the banged-out echoing chords work on the strange chord changes.

From Ultimo Hombre, track 4 is clearly a lesson in classic prog:





It's part of a suite and it's called Opera Omnia, Parte II: La Creación.  Wow.

And of course many of us are still filled with sadness since November 8th, as we reflect on the Last Man, thinking about the future of our people and the democracy which I suppose everyone in the West lately has really taken for granted, with so many not bothering to take part in it.  Even the ancient Greeks realized it's the most unstable political system and can easily be waylaid by a demagogue / tyrant especially when the people have become too pampered and complacent and the oligarchy too powerful.  I'll go right out and say it, by electing a joke president the country is now a joke too.  The America that was so proud and amazing in the past, an example to the entire rest of the world, the financial, scientific, and artistic nucleus-- it's now gone?