IN CONCERT

4.5 stars. Such a cool story reading about Urbaniak's life in Poland as a child prodigy with the violin and then deciding to master the sax. His love for American Jazz and culture which would mean his eventual move to the USA. This is his first live record from 1973 and it was recorded at the Warsaw Philharmonic in May of that year. A five piece here with the bass player adding electric piano while another musician adds Hammond and Farfisa. Besides Michal's violin play his partner Urszula's vocal prowess dominates this album. Kind of a wish come true for me as I always loved her scat singing and wordless melodies and wished she was featured more. I'm surprised at how "out there" this is at times with the reverb and style especially being a live record. It's been what almost 10 months of Jazz and related listening for me and this is the final add to my top 60 list that has come out of this.

The opener "Bengal" at 17 1/2 minutes and the fourth track "Seresta" would both be featured on his "Fusion" album that would be released the following year in 1974. "Lato" is from 1972's "Inactin" record, and what a record. Then we get two short 3 plus minute tracks that I wasn't aware of previously. That opener is such trip with Urszula's amazing vocal work bringing ZAO's Maurica to mind at times. Urszula's vocals are a higher pitch though and I like how she just sings over the music whenever. On the opener "Bengal" it takes some time to kick into a groove as sounds come and go up to around the 2 1/2 minute mark. Violin is ripping it up 6 minutes in, love the percussion too. It settles back before 7 minutes and man I could listen to this all day. These guys just seem to jam and I can just imagine this Polish audience at such a prestigious venue(haha). Almost silence 9 1/2 minutes in as the audience applauds. The Urszula starts to do her thing. Oh my! Psychedelia comes to mind with the echo and style, Krautrock even. She stops around 14 1/2 minutes as the drums start to solo to the 16 minute mark when the violin returns! More organ, drums and vocals to the end. What a song!

"Spoken" is trippy and short and again has that Psychedelic vibe as vocals echo after 2 minutes. Sparse with sounds coming and going. "Lato" is about the electric piano early on then the violin arrives a minute in. Sparse until after 1 1/2 minutes when it all kicks in including those crazy vocals. It's more powerful after 3 minutes. Again it's such a trip listening to this music. I really like "Seresta" as well with all the same things happening but maybe it's less out of this world. Vocals, violin and organ although the piano leads 5 1/2 minutes in. The closer is like a dress rehearsal, the band warming up as it were.

Just an adventerous, entertaining release that has some uniformity to the sound which I like.