Swiss Movement
Swiss Movement | ||||
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Live album by | ||||
Released | 1969 | |||
Recorded | June 21, 1969 | |||
Venue | Montreux Jazz Festival, Montreux, Switzerland | |||
Genre | Soul jazz | |||
Length | 39:06 | |||
Label | Atlantic | |||
Producer | Nesuhi Ertegün, Bob Emmer | |||
Eddie Harris chronology | ||||
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Les McCann chronology | ||||
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Swiss Movement is a soul jazz[1] live album recorded on June 21, 1969 at the Montreux Jazz Festival in Switzerland by the Les McCann trio, with saxophonist Eddie Harris and trumpeter Benny Bailey.[2][3] The album was a hit record, as was the accompanying single "Compared to What", with both selling millions of units.[1]
Reception and influence
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Source | Rating |
Allmusic | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
The Rolling Stone Jazz Record Guide | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
The album was nominated for a Grammy Award in the category of best jazz performance, small group.[6] It reached No. 1 on Billboard's jazz album chart, No. 2 on the R&B chart,[7] and No. 29 on the LP chart.[8][9]
A Billboard writer commented in 2006 that "what put Montreux on the recorded-live-in-concert map was the legendary Swiss Movement album".[10] Writing in AllMusic, Richie Unterberger calls Swiss Movement "one of the most popular soul jazz albums of all time, and one of the best."[4]
The tapes of this impromptu concert were originally recorded by the festival's organisers and then passed on to Atlantic, who decided to release them after paying a fee of less than $100.[11]
McCann and Harris teamed up again for a follow-up recording, Second Movement, released in 1971.[12]
Track listing
- "Compared to What" – (Gene McDaniels): 8:41
- "Cold Duck Time" – (Eddie Harris): 6:31
- "Kathleen's Theme" – (Les McCann): 5:45
- "You Got It in Your Soulness" – (Les McCann): 7:08
- "The Generation Gap" – (Les McCann): 8:45
- "Kaftan" - (Leroy Vinnegar) – bonus track on the 1996 reissue:
Personnel
- Eddie Harris – tenor saxophone
- Les McCann – piano, vocals on "Compared to What"
- Benny Bailey – trumpet
- Leroy Vinnegar – bass
- Donald Dean – drums
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