Volker Kriegel & Friends - Lift!
Kriegel albums remind me mostly of the unfortunate fact that there are dozens of great German jazz rock albums left unreissued, particularly on the MPS label. Honestly can it get better than this? Eberhard Weber, John Marshall, and the incomparable Zbigniew Seifert on violin, a player who’d make Jean-Luc Ponty proud. This is the real thing, fusion that’s not too polished or slick with all kinds of rough edges to it. Most of the solos are shared between Seifert and Kriegel and both are somewhat idiosyncratic players, especially Kriegel who’s guitar style and tone are so unique. This just tears it up from beginning to end and I barely could wait to go bump it up to a 12. Kriegel’s best album? Hard to say, he has so many from this period, but Lift! was my first and it gets better every listen.
Terje Rypdal Terry Bozzio Victor Bailey - Frankfurt 7/13/96
A rather amazing trio line up with three guys who I wouldn’t have thought would get in the same room together, let alone record and tour. Rypdal is a favorite guitar player here, but partially because he’s not a supervirtuoso like DiMeola or something, while I’d definitely consider Bozzio and Bailey in those categories. The tight rhythm section moves all over the place while Rypdal lays down his moves, it just never ceases to amaze me how much better he is in a live line up than on an ECM album where all the fun is ironed out. Never heard a disappointing Rypdal show and this is no different, mostly fun to see him go angular over such players.