Piano Conclave (directed by George Gruntz) - Palais Anthology (1975 Germany). Hard hitting fusion album on MPS from an all-star cast of Europe’s finest ivory ticklers. A mix of funky fusion, Canterbury rock and piano jazz. A nice surprise and not an album one would likely buy if they saw it - except for the marquee names, which is more than impressive: Gordon Beck, Wolfgang Dauner, George Gruntz, Jasper Van’t Hof, Joachim Kuhn, Martial Solal, John Lee, Alphonse Mouzon. Yea, pretty ridiculous lineup right there. Since the MPS label is starting to be reissued, I would imagine this would be a high priority for fans.
Jun Fukamachi 21st Century Band - Rokuyu (1975 Japan). Keyboardist Fukamachi made many fusion albums throughout the late 1970s. Supposedly this is his best and most progressive oriented album. Parts are great heavy fusion with smoking electric guitar, and one could see a band like Kenso getting wind of this prior to launching their career. One track is a pretty mundane, standard 70s jazz, that would later be known as “smooth jazz”. Side 2 is more varied and includes some experimental bits, electronic rock (mellotron, el. piano, synths, rock drums) and blistering heavy fusion. Pretty cool record. I haven’t seen on CD so I’ll presume it is in need of a reissue.
Patrice Meyer - Racines Croisees (1983 France).
Patrice Meyer - Dromadaire Viennois (1986 France). Two solid instrumental albums from guitarist Patrice Meyer, who recruited some famous Canterbury names like Pip Pyle, Hugh Hopper and Didier Malherbe (from Gong) to participate on the latter solo effort. “Dromadaire Viennois” has some Zeuhl bass and is the more interesting of the two albums. When Meyer plugs in, he can be quite kinetic. Both albums are rooted in jazz, and possess a tranquil side to offset the more energetic pieces. Not essential, but very good for the era, especially the latter album. Neither are available on CD.