Post Internet, the music magazine on your newsstands has been saved by the advent of the ubiquitous cover disc. Some are of dubious quality, but not Jazz From Poland (Harkit Records). Definitely worth the £3.70 of the cover price alone but along with the usual news, reviews and gig list, this issue includes interviews with giants Wayne Shorter, Oscar Peterson and Gary Burton together with not so well known (but we know), Alex Wilson and Eska Mtungwazi.

Getting back to the CD, it is part of the promotion for the first London Polish Jazz Festival, which is going to take place at the Polish Social and Cultural Association (POSK) in Hammersmith on 20th –24th July. There’s also going to be a concurrent Polish Film Festival including works by Roman Polanski.

Although aimed firmly at the jazz mainstream, the CD could have been compiled by friend of Fly, Maciej Grochot aka DJ Animisiewasz Startt (see interview).

The CD starts off with ‘Sympatie i Antypatie’ by vibraphonist, Jerzy Milian who we know from the ‘Polish Jazz’ compilation on JCR. This one finds his hammers in typical 60s mode (taken from the album Best of Jerzy Milian).

Krystof Komeda is arguably the most well known artist due to his links with Polanski and 3 tracks are included. ‘Pushing The Car’ is a short piece from the original sound track to Polanski’s Cul-de-sac. ‘Po Katastrofie’ was one of his last recordings before his death in the late 60s and the final one is ‘Kattorna’, which features the trumpet of Tomasz Stañko (what a solo! Recorded in 1965).

Stañko himself is represented here with ‘Stambura Road’, which is very much in Gilles Peterson’s modal Jazz Britannia bag. Whilst ‘Rotation’ by Andrej Kurylewicz is serious hard bop.

The CD also features Andrzej Brezeski with a whimsy called ‘Auntie’s Gossip’, a version of ‘In A Sentimental Mood’ by Stan Getz (Live in Warsaw) with the sax of Jan ‘Bird’ Wróblewski and Czeslaw Bartowski’s ‘Ballad For Small Chinese Children’ (written by Wróblewski).

Possibly the best of the lot is the ‘Magic Lady’ herself, Urszula Dudziak with a live version of ‘Tico Tico’. The Thursday night appearance at the festival is billed as her “exclusive UK debut”. If that’s correct, it’s a wrong rectified for this “truly unique” vocalist.

The other gigs are, The Stan Tracey Trio (20th), Jerzy Milian (22nd), East-meets-West Showcase “featuring an array of award winning artists from Poland and Western Europe” (23rd) and last, but not least, Ewa Bem (24th).

Thanks to Michael Fishberg who has done a ‘Zeljko Kerleta’ by starting up Harkit as his own record label five years ago. It all sounds exceptionally promising and I’m definitely going to see at least some of it. See you there.

Links:
Jazzwise July 2005 Issue 88 www.jazzwise.com
Polish Jazz Festival/Harkit Records
POSK, 246 King Street, Hammersmith, London W6 0RF