Spiritual Jazz 18: Behind The Iron Curtain: Sounds Beyond Barriers Pt 1 [2LP]

Various Artists - Spiritual Jazz 18: Behind The Iron Curtain: Sounds Beyond Barriers Pt 1 [2LP]

Double LP version. Part 1. One of the most politically charged terms of the 20th century, the Iron Curtain was a metaphor for political and cultural division. In a post-war telegram Winston Churchill referred to the fault line that ran through Europe between East and West as ''an Iron Curtain is drawn down upon their front. We do not know what is going on behind.'' In this two-part album, as far as jazz is concerned, Jazzman will showcase, describe and celebrate exactly what was ''going on behind.'' Music is the power supreme, with the ability to transcend all barriers, be they physical, political or metaphorical. The liner notes illustrate the complex and contradictory history of Soviet jazz, and the tracks chosen cover the key period of the early 1960s to the 1980s. It was during these dark years of the Cold War that the Soviet Union and its satellite states produced a number of outstanding artists playing in a variety of styles. The impact of modernism, from hard bop and Latin to modal and cool jazz, had found its way through cracks in the curtain. The deeply-felt ancestral strains of traditional European folk music were combined with the exciting new and progressive sounds of the West, and a radical, intoxicating brew was created that no amount of guns, tanks or polonium tea could overcome. Jazzman chronicles the triumph of jazz at a time of extreme geopolitical conflict. What went on behind the Iron Curtain in these countries was once mysterious and unknown to the West, but the perseverance of their artists provided sound and light amid the secretive, dark days of the communist-capitalist standoff. There was no end of life-affirming spiritual jazz behind the Iron Curtain. Featuring Collage, Manfred Ludwig-Sextett, Krzysztof Komeda, Polish Jazz Quartet, Vagif Mustafa-Zade, Quartet Jazz Focus-65, Theo Schumman Combo, Vaclav Zahradnik, Karel Velebny, Sevil, Focus '65, Golstain-Nosov Quintet, YU All Stars 1977, and Dan Mindrila. 01. Collage - Halb Sirp (Bad Sickle) 02. Manfred Ludwig-Sextett - Gral 03. Krzysztof Komeda - Crazy Girl 04. Polish Jazz Quartet - Promenade Through Empty Streets 05. Vagif Mustafa-Zade - Caucasus 06. Quartet Jazz Focus-65 - Monday Morning 07. Theo Schumman Combo - Karawane 08. Vaclav Zahradnik - Podzimni Slunce 09. Karel Velebny - Lori 10. Sevil - Mugam 11. Focus '65 - Autumn Sun 12. Golstain-Nosov Quintet - Rosinent In Toledo 13. YU All Stars 1977 - Kosmet 14. Michael Fritzen Quartett - Rien 15. Dan Mindrila - Sonet