EGBA – Live In 75 (no label, 2017; rec. 1975)

 Instrumental, Swedish vocals, other languages
International relevance: ***

A streaming-only release from EGBA's missing year between the first and second album. Professionally recorded at Bullerbyn, a music pub in the middle of Stockholm. with transitional line-up of Ulf Adåker, Ulf Andersson, Ahmadu Jarr, Bjarne Roupé, Harald Svensson, Göran Lagerberg and Åke Eriksson. It's closer in style to ”Live At Montmartre” from 1977, meaning a heavy African influence, but the kick-off track, the otherwise unavailable ”14 ton trotyl” is unusually heavy and the collection's high point. EGBA fans should really treat themselves to this obscure release.

Full album playlist (Spotify)

EGBA – Omen (MNW, 1981)

Instrumental
International relevance: **

EGBA's albums got gradually less interesting as their popularity grew. True they got more proficient, but it's the first album aura of their 1974 debut that appeals to me the most. By 1981 they were an enormously tight jazz fusion outfit clearly impressed with the likes of The Crusaders and Herbie Hancock's Headhunters with undertows of Latin and African rhythms as known from EGBA's earlier albums. ”Omen” also shares a few traits with the reborn Miles Davis's ”The Man With The Horn” released the very same year. Although I'm nowhere near a fan of fusion jazz, there are still the occasional 70's album that displays wit, joy of discovery and search for a new, vital expression, but by the early 80's, it had become a style for middle managers in television rimmed glasses and brown polyester suits. Very much like "Omen".

Full album playlist

A VARIOUS ARTISTS SPECIAL – 3 jazz compilations

Featured artists: Kustbandet / Arbete Och Fritid

Club Jazz 6 (SR, 1972)

Instrumental

International relevance: ***

”Club Jazz” was a series of nine volumes of radio recordings released on Swedish Radio's own imprint SR Records from 1970 to 1974, a jazz equivalent of sorts to the early 80's ”Tonkraft – Levande musik från Sverige” series. The featured artists were either given a full album or one LP side each, and the series captures performers such as Eje Thelin, Stefan Abeleen with Lasse Färnlöf, Opposite Corner and vocalist Nannie Porres. The most interesting volume from a progg perspective is also the one with the most bizarre coupling. The sixth installment has one side of Kustbandet's uninteresting trad jazz and the second one dedicated to Arbete & Fritid. The Arbete & Fritid part is Ove Karlsson's fantastic 20 minute track ”Ostpusten-Västpusten” in its entirety, recorded at Uppsala Stadsteater in April 1972. It's Arbete & Fritid at their gorgeous best, and thankfully the track was resurrected as a bonus track on the CD reissue of their third album making it easier to obtain (and easier to avoid Kustbandet).

Jazz från det svenska 70-talet (Caprice, 1974)
Featured artists: Kustbandet / Jazz Doctors / Rolf Larsson & Jack Lidström Dixieband / Ove Linds Kvartett / Björn Milder / Umeå Big Band with Benny Bailey / Peps Blues Band / Gugge Hedrenius Big Blues Band / Lars Gullins Kvintett / Nisse Sandströms Kvartett / Lasse Werner och hans vänner / Nannie Porres Kvintett / Stefan Abeleens Kvintett / Arbe Domnérus Kvintett med Rune Gustafsson / Arbete & Fritid / Bernt Rosengrens Kvartett / Rena Rama / Egba

International relevance: **

Instrumental, English vocals

The title means ”Jazz from the Swedish 70's” and features a wide stylistic range, from the blues of Peps Persson to the fusion of Egba, from the dixieland stomp of Kustbandet to the post bop of Bernt Rosengrens Kvartett. So it serves its purpose of being a non-discriminating catalogue of contemporary jazz but it's also an incredibly frustrating spin if you listen to it all way through. But with such an array of styles, there are of course worthwhile moments. Fans of vocal jazz should be delighted by Nannie Porres's take on ”Willow Weep for Me” – after all, she's the second finest Swedish jazz vocalist after Monica Zetterlund. The contribution from the aforementioned quartet led by Bernt Rosengren is good and lively. Rena Rama makes one of their best vinyl appearances with ”Daisy Lee McGhee” – probably the best selection on the album, and better than Arbete & Fritid's bluesy but unsatisfying ”En solig dag på landet/The Big Bad Bag of Baba-Louie”.

Det nyJAZZte från Göteborg (Caprice, 1977)
Featured artists: Mount Everest / Opposite Corner / Mwendo Dawa / Soffgruppen

Instrumental

International relevance: **

Another Caprice Records release, this time showcasing the talents of the mid 70's Gothenburg jazz and improvisation scene. Mount Everest (as a trio) has a great Coltrane fuelled medley of ”Black Snow” and ”Sherpa Dance”, Mwendo Dawa is a little too close to fusion for my comfort, Opposite Corner is good, while Soffgruppen isn't quite as great as on their album.

Arbete & Fritid - Ostpusten-västpusten
Jazz från det svenska 70-talet full album playlist
Mwendo Dawa - Microsvit

Opposite Corner - Love Song

HÄXMJÖLK – Eskimo Heat (Metronome, 1976)

Instrumental

International relevance: ***

Centered around guitarist Jan Tolf (who wrote all songs for ”Eskimo Heat”) and keyboardist Harald Svensson, this could be seen as an Egba off-shoot and a continuation of Resa. Also featuring drummer Malando Gassama, saxophonist Lennart Åberg, and bassist Guy Roellinger who appeared on Melvyn Price's ”Rhythm and Blues” in 1974. Häxmjölk's style is obvious already on beforehand: funk fusion with tight arrangements that will appeal to fans of the aforementioned bands, Kornet and Mamba but much too formulaic for me.

Full album playlist

EGBA – The 1970's albums

Sweden's leading fusion band of the 70's, founded in 1971 and active through the 80's, with one stray album released in 2004. Their name stands for Electronic Groove & Beat Academy but they're exclusively refered to by the acronym EGBA. The band was centered around trumpeter Ulf Adåker and had a changing line-up over the years, at one point or another including guitarist Jan Tolf, Göran Lagerberg, Amadu Jarr, pianist Harald Svensson (Resa, Häxmjölk), drummer Åke Eriksson (Wasa Express) and Per Tjernberg (Archimedes Badkar). A reformed EGBA is still performing.

EGBA (Grammofonverket, 1974)
Instrumental, other languages 

International relevance: ***

 

Their first album presented all of the band's characteristics, jazz fusion inspired by the likes of Miles Davis and Chick Corea, with funky grooves providing the foundation on the heavier tracks, with a distinct African influence to boot, most notably on”Gbinti”. ”Capsiloni”, written by drummer Claes Wang, veers towards Archimedes Badkar. ”Egba” is one of the finer examples of Swedish fusion thanks to its diversity and inspired playing. Great cover too.

Jungle-Jam (Sonet, 1976)

Instrumental, other languages

International relevance: ***

Egba's second album adds a bit of Latin music to the mix, and takes the funk one step further. The album unfortunately lacks a lot of the charm that makes their debut enjoyable. This is pretty much a standard funk fusion album with the urge to explore and discover largely substituted with technical precision.

Live at Montmartre (Sonet, 1977)

Instrumental, other languages

International relevance: ***

Better than ”Jungle-Jam”, probably because it was recorded live, with Egba feeding off the audience at the Montmartre jazz club in Copenhagen. Here they expanded their palette of styles to include reggae on ”Satobe”. Still not on par with their debut however.

Amigos Latinos (Sonet, 1978)
Instrumental, other languages 

International relevance: ***

 

Just like the title suggests this is an album with a stronger emphasis on Latin influences. It's also an excruciatingly dull album, with fusion meaning a mathematically precise show-off. I find it extremely hard to sit through without a steadily increasing level of irritation.

Bryter upp! (MNW, 1979)

Instrumental
International relevance: ***

A literal translation of the album title would be ”breaking up”, and while not exactly true, it saw Egba change to a smaller line-up and also a new label. The title also suggests the band was taking off in a new direction which is partly true as ”Bryter upp!” is less hysterical than ”Amigos Latinos”, a little more reflective. It still fails to satisfy unless you have a high tolerance for their kind of music.

”Progglådan” features two Egba tracks recorded for the Swedish Radio in 1972, and three more from a 1978 session.

I can see why they're highly regarded by fusion fans for their passion and skills making them much better than many of their peers, even if they're not to my liking.

Egba full album playlist
Jungle Jam full album playlist
Live at Montmartre full album playlist
Amigos Latinos full album playlist