Making It Happen - Eric Jupp And His Music (1969?)

Although they show up with some regularity, I’ve stopped buying Eric Jupp albums when I find them in op-shops these days. I’ve listened to a few, and Jupp’s LPs are typically schmaltzy lounge-room jazz firmly ensconced in an old-school, conservative musical mindset. It's pleasant enough stuff and features some great players, but not really my thing. I bought Making It Happen from the Salvos because it features an original composition by John Sangster, and due to the presence of some of my favourite sixties/seventies Oz jazz players (John Sangster, Don Burrows, George Golla, Derek Fairbrass, Warren Daly). 

This feels like an album where the young turks have dragged old fart Jupp into a more hip, modern set of songs. It’s not that hip though; there are still a number of soundtrack numbers and standards that are ever-present on these sorts of LPs - Theme From Exodus, Tara’s Theme from Gone With The Wind, Live For Life theme, Nino Rota’s A Time For Us from Romeo & Juliet and Hava Nagila. Most of these are pretty nice, if forgettable. 

The bulk of the set however is made up of instrumental arrangements of contemporary pop songs such as Puppet On A String (Sandie Shaw, 1967), Sounds of Silence (Simon & Garfunkel, 1966), The Other Man’s Grass Is Always Greener (Petula Clark, 1967), When I’m 64 (The Beatles, 1967), Help Yourself (Tom Jones, 1968) and Spinning Wheel (Blood, Sweat and Tears, 1969). A lot of these tracks are pretty great and the playing is always top-notch - for example, check out Burrow's echoey clarinet solo in the impossibly jaunty rendition of When I’m 64. 

The highlight is unquestionably Kaffir Song written by John Sangster. Most people would be familiar with this song from The Jazz Sound of The Don Burrows Quartet. In my opinion, the version on Making It Happen is superior. It’s a more fast-paced, less conspicuously ‘jazzy’ version and the interplay between the percussion and the bass is far more complex and interesting. (As amazing as the bass work is, the bassist is not credited in the liner notes - I’m guessing it’s Ed Gaston, but who knows?) It’s a looping, hypnotic trip into faux-exotica highlighted by Burrows high-pitched Bb school flute.

The other track which I really like is the Live For Life theme. From what I can tell, the original recording of this theme was a slow waltz - here Jupp reimagines the piece as a frantic whirlwind of exotic strings and horns, with the same picked bass tone as featured on Kaffir Song. It sounds like the kind of song that would played in a sixties movie over a montage of people doing important things very quickly. 

Label: Columbia

Released: 1969? (There is no date listed, but the latest of the cover songs was released in 1969). 

Players: Eric Jupp - piano, arrangements and musical direction.

Don Burrows - flutes, clarinet

Billy Burton - trumpet

George Golla - guitar

John Sangster - percussion, vibraphone

Derek Fairbrass - drums

Warren Daly - drums

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Seasons Of Love - Gerard Kennedy/Sven Libaek (1972)

I first saw this album on the old Votary Records trades page, listed as ‘for Libaek completists only’. It’s a fair assessment of this LP - Libaek merely provides accompaniment for Australian seventies television star Gerard Kennedy as he recites Rod McKuen-style poetry over a smooth jazz backing. It may be instructive to focus on the music and the poetry separately:

THE MUSIC, BY SVEN LIBAEK. Sven’s compositions on the LP are quite good, if a little innocuous (it is intended as background music after all). There are some great moments though, which is not surprising as this was recorded right in the middle of Libaek’s golden era - he would go on to record the soundtrack for Inner Space a year after this release. None of the musicians are credited, but I am pretty confident that the usual suspects are playing on this record: George Golla on guitar, Don Burrows on flutes, John Sangster on vibes and percussion and so on. Many tracks also feature the addition of string sections which tends to bring out great stuff from Sven. The frustrating thing is that there are very few moments on the LP where the music is brought to the forefront and given a chance to be heard. Autumn is one such track, where we get a chance to hear haunting flute lines cycle over orchestral strings with a cool jazz underpinning from the rhythm players. The twin, harmonising sax lines bookending Spring are another lovely touch. A few themes are repeated and developed over a couple of tracks which adds some depth, and was not something that Sven usually did. But unfortunately, any moments of Libaek goodness invariably get interrupted by Gerard Kennedy’s awkward, artless spoken word.

THE POETRY, BY GERARD KENNEDY. Let me be blunt; the poetry on this record is bad. Really bad. Really, really bad. I think I could state without risk of hyperbole that this is the worst poetry I have ever heard. Gerard affects a bad boy, outsider persona for the poetry, but also injects a strange sort of cutesiness that, while not necessarily at odds with the material, fills me with an intense sort of simultaneous rage and embarrassment. Embarragement?

Throughout Seasons Of Love, Kennedy’s turn of phrase is embarrassingly unselfconscious and pretentious - I could pick almost any line from the album to illustrate this, here’s a random sample: ‘[Let’s] put up a maze of love with walls a thousand thoughts thick’ from I Think I’ll Build A Wall or “You moved [...] proud and graceful like a young gazelle picking her way through the forest.” from The Quiet Time Of Reason. There are really only two themes that are touched upon in the poems (if I was being kind, I’d call it consistency): Gerard describing how he is an outsider (Travel Broadens The Mind, I Am An Island) or musings on wanting to find love, but being too much of a free-thinking bohemian to be able to love just one woman (all the other tracks). Gerard is always alone, even in a crowd. The rain is his brother, and the wind is his friend.

Of course, Kennedy can’t be blamed for the abysmal standard of the poetry because despite the strongly personal nature of the verse, he didn’t actually write it. The poetry itself is credited to one Warwick Randall. One website I read even suggested that ‘Warwick Randall’ was a pseudonym for Kennedy, but from what I can ascertain, Randall is a real person. He has a couple of books of poetry to his name, is credited as working with Kennedy on a number of television shows and wrote for Melbourne broadsheet The Age in the early eighties. 

The fact that Kennedy didn’t even write the words that he delivers with such hammy enthusiasm only adds to the weirdness of this record. Did Kennedy recognise his limitations as a poet and outsource the job? Did he think that his friend was a criminally under appreciated poet and wanted to bring his work to a wider audience? Perhaps Gerard just wanted to portray himself as a tough yet arty nonconformist but didn’t actually have the poetic skills required for an LP of this nature and so turned to a lesser known, but confident poet whom he happened to know through work? I have so many questions about the execution and production of this LP, but I suspect that everyone involved with Seasons Of Love instantly forgot about it soon after it was released.

...And yet, I keep listening to this LP. I tend to eschew the ‘so bad it’s good’ school of music appreciation (I prefer music that’s ‘so good it’s good’) but there’s something about Seasons Of Love that keeps me coming back. There’s something mesmerising about this seventies wannabe alternative pin-up boy effusing cringe-inducing poetry (that he didn’t even write) over a backdrop of sweet, smooth jazz from a composer who was at the top of his game and probably wrote this material in his sleep. If nothing else, it’s a fascinating cultural artifact - when, where, could this have ever been considered cool?

Label: Festival

Released: 1972

Players: Gerard Kennedy - spoken word

Sven Libaek - composer, arranger

Musicians uncredited.

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Wives & Lovers - George Golla (1968/70)

George Golla has played on countless records accompanying Don Burrows, Sven Libaek, John Sangster et al, but he very infrequently released LPs under his own name and own direction. This is one of those records, and it’s a nice one. Wives & Lovers is a crowd-pleasing set of standards, Beatles covers and Brazillian bossa. I recall seeing a live LP of Golla and his band which was recorded at a popular pancake eatery in Sydney - I imagine this is exactly the kind of set they would playing, one that would ensure that the punters were hearing something they were familiar with or at least something that was engaging on first listen. Only one piece, Waltz To Adelaide, is a Golla original and it’s a damn shame that there aren’t more on this record because it’s the album's standout for me - a Libaek-esque waltz with nice dynamic changes and great work from the horn section. In fact, it’s as good as Libaek’s best, and the way that it is arranged and executed as a complete, concise song actually exceeds most of Sven’s work in this regard. 

Of the two Beatles covers, Day Tripper probably wouldn’t sound out of place on an album of novelty easy-listening covers, but it’s pleasant enough. Fool On The Hill is quite an interesting interpretation of this song and reimagines it as an odd shuffle with a sort of weird sense of unease in the chorus. The standards are pretty standard, although Wives and Lovers is great, and the Brazilian stuff on side two is good, but still feeling a bit safe and diluted for a popular audience. Overall, a lovely late-sixties Oz jazz album with some unevenness in the quality, but worth it for Golla’s Waltz To Adelaide and a few others.

Label: Festival
Released: Sleeve says 1970, disc says 1968.
Players: George Golla - guitar
Don Burrows - flute, alto flute, alto sax
Errol Buddle - bassoon, tenor sax
Pete Haslum - trombone
John Sangster - vibes, percussion
Derek Fairbrass - drums
Ed Gaston - bass (credited on the back as ‘Ed Faston’ - no respect at all.)
George Thompson - bass

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Don Burrows And The Brazilian Connection - Don Burrows Quintet, Sydney String Quartet, Octavio Burnier & Claudio Cartier (1979)

My view of 1970s Australia is derived entirely from pop-cultural artefacts. Through my incomplete, stochastic lens, the Australia of the seventies was a land far more isolated than today, infused with a unique kind of funky antipodean jazz. A land where flute was king, and Don Burrows reigned supreme as it’s finest exponent. It’s hard to imagine a time when a jazz flautist was the most successful and prolific of instrumentalists, but in the magic heyday of Australia in the seventies, anything was possible.
Like any prolific musician, Burrows has his hits and misses. The first record of his I ever bought - Don Burrows Presents The Brazilian Connection, is one of the hits. This is a double live LP recorded in 1978 at the Sydney Opera House and Canberra Theatre featuring the Don Burrows Quintet, the Sydney String Quartet and two Brazilian singer-songwriters; Octavio Burnier and Cluadio Cartier. Each track features a performance played by different permutations of these musicians. For example, some tracks feature just the Brazilians with the string quartet, some feature all the ensembles playing together, a couple feature the classic duo lineup of Burrows and guitarist George Golla and so on.

Although this is Don’s record, the Brazilians - Burnier and Cartier - steal the show. Tracks like 'Don João (King John)', 'Sitio Azul (A happy, country weekender)', 'Adventura Espacial (Adventure in space)' and 'Recreio (Playtime)' have a beautiful sound, particularly when the guitarists are accompanied by the string quartet. Although the overtly jazz flute feel of much of the LP has dated somewhat, the songs by Burnier and Cartier still sound very fresh and quite contemporary.

That being said, the tracks featuring all the players are amongst the best material on the LP. My favourite track on the LP is probably 'Lembrando Ed Kleiger (Remember Ed Kleiger)'. Opening with the Brazilians singing a gorgeous melody over a funky backing from the Don Burrows Quintet, highlighted with flourishes from the Sydney String Quartet which then segues into seven odd minutes of extended solos from our esteemed players. 'Lenda das Amazonas (Legend of the Amazons)' is another track where the players go all in, follows much the same format as the latter tune and is equally as good.

Don Burrow’s albums seem to be less sought out and celebrated than those by other Oz jazz players of the seventies - possibly due to their sheer abundance. This LP however, is well worth a listen and easily holds its own in comparison with other lauded Australian jazz LPs from this era.

Label: Cherry Pie
Released: 1978 (Recorded live at Sydney Opera House and Canberra Theatre)
Players: Don Burrows - flutes, clarinet, percussion
George Golla - guitar, percussion
Tony Ansel - electric piano, synth, percussion
Paul Baker - bass, percussion
Paul Jansen - percussion

Octavio Burnier & Claudio Cartier - 6 and 12 string guitar, vocals, percussion

Harry Curby - 1st violin, percussion
Derel Tincu - 2nd violin, percussion
Alex Todicescu - viola, percussion
Nathan Waks - cello, percussion

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Bush Theme/Lonely Australian Landscape - Sven Libaek (1966)

Here's another gem from Urban Bowerbird favourite Sven Libaek. These two tunes are taken from the nature documentary soundtrack Nature Walkabout, however these are quite different versions to the tracks that appear on the LP. These versions are shorter and have faster tempos than the album versions and a few changes in orchestration and arrangement. The two tracks also seem to be played by a more stripped-down version of Sven's usual ensemble - there are no saxophone, flute or trumpet parts, just piano, guitar, bass, vibes and harmonica on Bush Theme. I am unsure why different versions of these songs were released on the single - is this a standard practice? I have a 7" single from Libaek's Inner Space soundtrack (Thatcherie/Sounds Of The Deep) and it contains exactly the same versions as featured on the LP. Weird.

I always felt that Bush Theme was one of the weaker tracks on Nature Walkabout and I think the increase in tempo and the concision of this arrangement improves it immeasurably. Lonely Australian Landscape on the other hand is one of my favourite of Sven's compositions and I like it even better with this pacing and arrangement. It takes what is already a great melody and gives it an incredible urgency and energy.

Label: Festival
Released: 1966 (I assume; that's when the Nature Walkabout soundtrack was released.)
Players: Unsure, but here's an educated guess: Sven Libaek - piano 

George Golla - guitar
John Sangster - vibes, percussion
Ed Gaston - bass
Derek Fairbrass - drums
Richard Brooks - harmonica

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Getaway (Consulate cigarettes) - Bob Young & His Orchestra featuring Helen Reddy, Errol Buddle and George Golla. (~1963)

This is the first in a number of posts featuring promotional records. I purchased this record because it appeared to be some kind of cigarette advertisement but also because it featured Oz jazz greats Errol Buddle and George Golla. After trying to find out about this record, I also found out that it was apparently the very first vocal appearance of Helen Reddy. It's a nifty little track featuring a full horn section (courtesy of Bob Young's orchestra, we presume), an extended, though safely accessible, solo from Buddle and some nice guitar work from Golla. The lyrics are pretty much what you'd expect: Get away from the everyday - swing to Consulate. The Virginia menthol cigarette. Cool, clean Consulate - the Virginia menthol cigarette! - the melody of the last line is so catchy that it surely could have been the basis of a hit single. Despite Ms. Reddy's exuberance in singing these lines in the early sixties, I am told that she does not endorse smoking and gave up the habit in later life. The people at Rothmans of Pall Mall were good enough to include a vocal and an instrumental take of this track.

Label: Promotional - Released by Rothmans of Pall Mall (Aust.) Ltd.

Released: ~1963

Players: Helen Reddy - vocals

Errol Buddle - tenor saxaphone

George Golla - guitar

Bob Young and his Orchestra: everything else, I guess.

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The Music Of Sven Libaek - Sven Libaek (1967)

This LP seems to be one of the lesser heard of Libaek's albums from his golden era in the sixties and seventies. I can't imagine why - it's a fantastic set of music as good as (or better than) his soundtrack work which has enjoyed such a resurgence in appreciation over the last few years. In any case, the majority of the pieces on this album are from film and television soundtracks composed 'in the last year or so' and then rearranged and rerecorded for this album. The liner notes don't mention which soundtracks, but the titles give clues: Gold Coast Fanfare, Lake Moondara, Northern Territory and so on.

EDIT: I've noticed from the liner notes of the Nature Walkabout soundtrack that some of these earlier works are mentioned. Man And A Mural was from the soundtrack to an 'award winning art documentary film' of the same name which was produced and edited by Nature Walkabout producer  Bill Copland. Done Away With was part of the music Sven wrote for a 'TV play' of the same name by Pat Flowers. Versions of Northern Territory and Theme From An Unwritten Movie were released on a 1963 EP by balalaika player Andy Sundstrom on CBS when Libaek was at the helm as A&R man. I recently tracked down this EP and wrote a post on it here.

The compositions are played by that great team of Sydney jazz players familiar from countless other Australian recordings of the era: Don Burrows, Errol Buddle, George Golla, John Sangster and Derek Fairbrass amongst others. This is a superb album which deserves to be placed in the same league as Libaek's best.

Postcript: The excellent ABC podcast RareCollections recently ran a two-part interview with Libaek containing a lot of great information from Sven. Check it out here.

Label: Festival

Released: 1967

Players: Sven Libaek - piano, guitar

Don Burrows - alto sax, alto flute, flute

Errol Buddle - tenor sax

Eric "Boff" Thompson - trumpet

Richard Brooks - harmonica

George Golla - guitar

John Sangster - vibes, glockenspiel, bongos

Ed Gaston - bass

Derek Fairbrass - drums

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