Tie Break / Power of the Horns / Sun Ra Arkestra at Warsaw Summer Jazz Days 2013 (17.07

The program of the third day of 2013 Warsaw Summer Jazz Days was a true journey through timespace continuum of jazz music.

Tie Break that started the evening is a group that emerged in the late 80s, amid the monotonic greyness of polish communism reality. The band's colourfull music, stood in perfect opposition to the traditional New Orlean jazz festivals. Funky rhythm section, rock guitar riffs, rebelious sax – tumpet frontline and, most of all, monosyllabic, playfull and tribal chants. Joyfull, energetic and spontanous. Probably influenced the most by electric Miles bands of the era, collected on the black market in underground Poland of the era, spiced with tribal showmanship.

Despite my utter respect for the Tie Break's role in polish jazz history I have to say also that their sound did seem rather outdated, just like great Miles Davis records of the era. The musician's energy on stage made the time travel experience very enjoyable.

Lou Grassi PO Band with Marshall Allen - Live at the Knitting Factory vol. 1 [Porter Records]

Live at the Knitting Factory Volume 1

PO Band:

Lou Grassi - drums

Marshall Allen - alto sax, flute

Paul Smoker - trumpet

Steve Swell - trombone

Perry Robinson - clarinet

Wilber Morris - double bass

Porter Records 2010

recorded at Knitting Factory on September 26, 2000

While some of the most active avant-garde / free-jazz musicians release a handfull of records each year other remain criminally underrecorded which makes each available cd/lp even more precious. Bill Dixon comes to mind - an extraordinary artist of immense vision whose almost entire recorded output fits comfortably into one small box ("Complete Recordings on Soul Note and Black Saint" box set). What makes the recording presented here worthwile is obviously the music, but the fact that You get to hear such musicians like Perry Robinson, Paul Smoker or Marshall Allen (whose recordings outside of the Sun Ra Arkestra are extremely rare) makes it also one of a considerable historic value for jazz maniacs like You and me (or maybe just me). This is also somehow of an archival set since the concert presented took place a decade ago.