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This is definitely
one of not
so
many pearls of Yugoslavian jazz .
In
1978 RTB Big Band celebrated the 30th anniversary by releasing
this double album consisted of recent works recorded
from March 73 - February 77. The title wasn't as imaginative as
the music itself and it was just called 1948-1978 that was a bit
misleading for the contest of the album. It had a small inscription at
the back of the cover saying "With Guests" so also it might be known
under this name as well. Guests in this case on some of the
recordings were Dusko Gojkovic, Alan Skidmore, Gerd Dudek, Bora
Rokovic.
The well
known track "Balkan Express" made the original record sought after and
quite expensive but very few had a chance to actually hear the whole
album. Once they find the album and pay a pile of money for it
they get pleasantly surprised. This double LP is much more then Balkan
Express. It is fully packed with a top quality big band jazz fusion.
Every track is a winner. Check it and try to chose which one's your
favourite.
ALSO PLAYLISTED BY:
TOSHIO MATSUURA @ shibuya fm
DAVID BASSIN
@ freefall
BEN G @ right on fm
KEYSER & SHURIKEN @ tilos.hu
ROBERT LOCHMANN @ radio x
CRISTIANO SPILLATI @ searching
MIKE CHADWICK @ smooth fm
PATRICK FORGE @ kiss fm
RICHARD E @ furtherout recordings
MR. SCRUFF @ hot pot
MICHAEL STUKES @ whcr.org
CIAN @ an taobh tuathail
MICHAEL RÜTTEN @ soulpatrol
SIMONE @ jazz it up
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RAW DEAL @
groovesanctuary (UK)
I think it's
bloody fantastic!!!!! Every tune is a winner!!!! GREAT stuff &
Loving it :-)
PAUL MURPHY @
afroartrecords (UK)
Been playing it all day... wild weird
& wonderful. just how I like my music. and everything else come to think of it.
TOM WIELAND @
les gammas/panoptikum/7samuarai (Austria-Germany)
one of the best
european big band jazz records ever?
DJ SPIDER @
colorblind - plain gaz production (Lyon, France)
Fabulous
album! Great sounds ! Full
of samples !
SIMON HARRISON
@
basic soul (UK)
WOW what
an amazing lp and beautiful packaging!
MIGUEL BELLO @ Journeys, (Portugal)
Brilliant!
DJ JAZZMADASS @ Radio X (Frankfurt,
Germany)
Everything one needs: funky beats and fast
chasers, spacy colors, mastery solos, perfect sound. Thanks to CS for
adding another true classic to hopefully every jazzheads collection.
SAMMY GOULBOURNE @ newStyleRadio (UK)
Cosmic
Sounds has done it again!
Un-earthing a rare gem from the European jazz
vaults. Every track offers something special for the listener or the
dancer.
Another winner from Zeljko and the boys…
DUSTY GROOVE AMERICA
Funky grooves from behind the Iron Curtain
-- a collection of 70s recordings by the Radio Television Beograd Jazz
Orchestra -- done in a groovy blend of acoustic horns and electric
rhythms! The style is one that was being used heavily at the time by
some of the larger groups in the MPS mode -- a Clark-Boland-esque
punched-up groove that really breathed new life into the big band
format -- and which came across with a style that had plenty of links
to funky soundtrack work of the 70s! The group here are using lots of
guitar, organ, and keyboards at the bottom of the tunes -- then topping
them off with some great horn work that includes solos by Dusko
Goykovich, Gerd Dudek, Allan Skidmore, and a few other noteworthy
talents on the European scene at the time. And unlike other TV big
bands from the period -- like some of the Aussie groups -- the tracks
here are all original, and aren't just hokey re-creations of popular
numbers. There's a depth and soul to the album that's just great -- a
sound that's really far-reaching, but always in-the-pocket and with a
commitment to groove!
ADRIAN LEACH @ happy jazz (UK)
Seriously
good stuff
VALANCHE @ urban landscapes (USA)
Who would have thought that Belgrade has
its jazz groove on? What an awesome long-player of energetic and
soulful jazz. So cool, it took my breath away!
KARSTEN @ jazzvibes (Germany)
just listening to the jazz orkestar
beograd album. fantastic!!! will for sure play some of the tracks on
todays radio show and also in the club.
RAGGY @ off limits (UK)
excellent music as always! Track number 3 – Prolecna Etida is killa!
Sounds like Too High by Stevie Wonder, Track 11 – Aretuza is killa! This is my
kind of sublime jazz...
GERRY HECTIC @
fly.co.uk
...something quite
extraordinary and unique.. check FULL REVIEW
JOHN KILLOCH @
mainlybigbands.com (UK)
I have
seldom been as impressed with an album than I have been with this
remarkable Yugoslavian big band...The music of the RTB has a beginning
a middle and an end so it inspires and at its conclusion leaves you
fulfilled....This band rocks and swings cruelly and will leave you
exhausted.
JAZZMATE @ b-92 (SCG)
holy
grail of rare yugoslav jazz finally available to everyone. a historic
reissue. I just
dedicated 30minutes of my show to it!
SIMONE @ jazz it up!!! (I)
it's a beautiful Big Band-Jazz album. I
like every track. Every track is a killer!!!
RICHARD E @ furtherout recordings
RTB JAZZ
ORKESTAR – RTB Big Band With Guests – Cosmic Sounds 9/10
Covering
sessions from 1973 to 1977 this is big band funk and jazz of the
highest order and possibly the strongest Cosmic Sounds release ever.
Pauk begins slow and dreamy but builds into a funk fest with earthy
flute, Augeresque organ and heavy horns. Kolo has an eastern motif
early on from the horns, including baritone sax, but gets heavier and
funkier as it progresses with some blistering organ business and Gabor
Szabo style guitar. Prolenća Etida has complex drum funk, dirty wah
guitar and big, cool horn melodies. Si Zaljubiv Edno Mome is a more
mellow affair with echoes of Gil Evans arrangements for Miles on
Sketches of Spain, a plaintive trumpet calling through the lush, modal
landscape. Atlantis is almost drum and bass with crisp drums and
percussion and some grimy bass work. Balkan Ekspres is a fusion classic
with great horn riffs, Rhodes and synth play and once again a funky
drummer on the job. A great listening experience all the way through.
If you only buy one big band jazz album this year make it this one.
TIM PERLICH @ now magazine, toronto
Check the REVIEW
GREG VICKERS, Hamilton, Ontario
first
came to my attention with the track 'balkan ekspres', from the cosmic
sounds compilation of the same name. the album is incredible, an
energetic fusion of funk and jazz with some rock leanings in the rhythm
section. the brass is warm, wide and pronounced. the large band allows
for loose swelling and receding of notes and motifs that really play to
the emotions ... when it grooves it's just mind-blowing; when it's
contemplative it's moody, cinematic even. excellent horn and guitar
solos, and exemplary sound quality production across the board.
Extremely well-recommended, it will redefine the way you think about
"jazz fusion".
BEN VERGHESE, London
Worthy of comparison with other great big bands, James 'Smack' Henderson'
the Clarke-Boland, Ellington's or Quincy Jones'. Rich, moody and stuffed
with funky breaks, the RTB recordings have a freshness that guarantees their
longevity. Beautiful gatefold double LP with every track a delight. An essential record
.
ANDREW SCHROCK, Orlando, Florida @
SOUL STRUTT
Big band jazz honestly isn’t my thing, and I suspect neither is it yours.
Why? Big bands are best restricted to football games, and if they get funky,
it’s probably going to be hopelessly embarrassing. Jazz Orkestar RTB is one of the few exceptions.
These Yugoslavians pulled out all the stops, sounding more like a blaxploitation soundtrack,
even reputedly making Quincy Jones a fan when he saw them play. Click here to check out
“Balkan Ekspres”, probably their most well-known track, but not this is no one-tracker -
“Krug” has a mammoth break, and “Circle” is also a personal fave. Reissue is on Cosmic Sounds.
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