MWENDO DAWA – Basic Line (Sonet, 1979) / Free Lines (Dragon, 1981)

 

Basic Line (Sonet, 1979) 

Instrumental
International relevance: **

The first of many albums from these Gothenburg jazzers who carved out a fusion jazz niche of their own with Susanna Lindeborg's mini moog. However, it hadn't yet found its natural place in the music this early on, and it sounds a bit like it was added when the others had done their parts, like an afterthought. Mwendo Dawa was to a fair degree tenor saxophonist Ove Johansson's band, but it was Lindeborg's keyboards that gave them their special character. ”Basic Line” sounds as if they're still searching for their unique sound, like they still are getting to know each other musically. It took some time still before they got there. Recorded in 1978.

 

Free Lines (Dragon, 1981)

Instrumental, wordless vocals

International relevance: **

Two years and a couple of albums later, Mwendo Dawa had lost guitarist Ulf Wakenius which proved beneficial. ”Free Lines” is a much tighter work signified by a greater collective self-assurance. Ove Johansson plays with great ease here occasionally touching on free jazz, but the most striking leap forward comes from drummer David Sundby who's very powerful on ”Free Lines” giving the music a the much needed push that the debut lacked. Even the album's more lyrical moments are tenser and denser. And while Susanna Lindeborg may not have a leading role here, her keyboards slip much more smoothly into the music. 

from "Basic Line":
Important Level
Basic Line

from "Free Lines"
Maria

MWENDO DAWA – Mwendo Dawa (Dragon, 1981)

Instrumental

International relevance: **

Gothenburg's Mwendo Dawa already had four albums behind them when they released this one in 1981. Core members were the fine saxophonist Ove Johansson and the equally fine pianist Susanna Lindeborg (Lindeborg was also in Salamander). ”Mwendo Dawa” features contemporary jazz with fusion leanings – competent for sure but fusionly unengaging. Mwendo Dawa is one of the groups that has become better over time – their more recent outings with more prominent electronics to go along with the jazz improvisation are more imaginative and satisfying. 

Hej vad det går

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

GÖTEBORGS MUSIKKVARTETT – Göteborgs Musikkvartett (Svenska Jazzriksförbundet, 1974) / Aftara (LIM, 1975)

Göteborgs Musikkvartett (Svenska Jazzriksförbundet, 1974)

Instrumental

International relevance: ***

A quartet featuring saxophonist Ove Johansson, later in Mwendo Dawa with Susanna Lindeborg who also engineered Göteborgs Musikkvartett's first album. It's not quite free jazz but it has some free moments; I guess you could call it free-spirited jazz. The tracks sort of emanate from a modal epicentre, and some of them are a bit similar to early Arbete & Fritid with a dash of Albert Ayler and mid 60's John Coltrane. While often good, they sometimes get stuck in a tonal rut. They know what they're aiming at but they don't always seem sure of how to get there, instead treading water. When they catapult themselves forward, it works just fine.

Aftara (LIM, 1975)

Instrumental

International relevance: ***

Their debut has faintly funky grooves, and they're more palpable on "Aftara's" side long ”Improvisation”. The pulse ought to give the music a momentum but has, oddly enough, the opposite effect. The others can't seem to get into the flow of Anders Söderling's drum patterns, and the water-treading feeling prevalent on some of ”Göteborgs Musikkvartett” is even more evident here. The two tracks on side 2 are in a freer mode but they too lack the push needed for the music to move forward.

A very good Göteborgs Musikkvartett track can be found on "LIM – Levande improviserad musik", "Bläck aut".

Aftara full album

OLLE BÄVER – Castor fiber (Amigo, 1978)

Instrumental

International relevance: ***

 

High calibre free/avant jazz from Gothenburg's vital 70's scene, with Susanna Lindeborg (Mwendo Dawa, Salamander) on piano. But ”Castor fiber” has powerful and nervy perfomances from everyone involved, which means Bo Andersson (sax, clarinet), Jan Amnehäll (sax, flute), Ingemar Landén, (drums), Per-Anders Nilsson (baritone saxophone) Kjell Thorbjörnson (bass), with guests Torulf Berg (cornet), Anders Bodebeck (trombone), and Harald Stenström (tuba). Dynamic and tense, there's anothing airy-fairy about this; still it sometimes gets the dreadful 'spiritual jazz' tag attached to it which is dead wrong – spirited is the correct word.

Olle Bäver is also represented on various artists comp "LIM – Levande musik från Göteborg". They later turned into acclaimed free jazz outfit Pow Wow that released a couple of discs on the Footprints label in 00's.

Full album