Splash – 2 (1978 Sweden). I spoke of Splash’s debut a few weeks ago. Here’s the confusingly named 3rd and last album called “Splash 2”. At this point, the group had moved from standard pop rock structures to an improvisational jazz rock unit. I hesitate to use the word “fusion” here, as they clearly weren’t emulating the usual suspects like Return to Forever or Weather Report. And at times they have that college level stage band type tightness. There’s also a little bit of silliness calling out their Zappa influence (not to mention some fine guitar soloing). And even a little dancing around the barn music to open the album. No CD available.

Pondus - Myrornas Frammarsch (1979 Sweden). A couple of reliable sources urged me to try this album again. I had the LP in the early 90s and was surprised to hear at least one person tell me it that Pondus reminded them of Berits Halsband. Uh… no. Now it IS a complex fusion album. But it’s much more on the jazz side of things than rock. The guitar has a very light amplification tone, the rhythms are clearly out of the jazz school, and the structure is more geared towards featured instrumental solo sections. No CD available.

Patchwork – Ouvertures (1978 France). This one is more typical fusion than the more jazz influenced Swedish albums above. The contents are pretty much light and breezy fusion with sax and flute leads. Some funky parts as well, typical of the era. However, the strong melodic content makes this one a worthwhile listen. A very different album from the RCA subsidiary Cobra label, a label who primarily specialized in electronic rock oriented releases (Heldon, Hydravion, Lard Free). No CD available.