Montreux

Jethro Tull is one of the most successful British acts of all time with a career reaching from the late sixties to the present day. In 2003 they made their first (and so far, only) visit to the Montreux Festival. Split into a semi-acoustic first half and a full on electric second half, the concert was a triumph combining newer songs such as "Dot Com", "Pavane" and "Budapest" with classic favorites…

Monty Alexander: The Montreux Years is a showcase of jazz piano virtuoso Monty Alexander’s iconic Montreux Jazz Festival live performances, spanning three decades of his career from 1993 to 2016. The Grammy-nominated, pianist performed some of his finest shows in the Swiss town and this release captures him at his best, bringing his laid-back, Caribbean vibes to the shores of Lake Geneva. In a career spanning six decades, Monty Alexander has built a reputation exploring and bridging the worlds of American jazz, popular song, and the music of his native Jamaica, finding in each a sincere spirit of musical expression. Monty has always been proud of his roots and effortlessly merges his iconic piano playing with other musical influences including that of his fellow countryman, Bob Marley, on the sublime “No Woman No Cry”, the live version of which appears on this release.

Generally disregarded by jazz purists, Roy Ayers' Live At the Montreux Jazz Festival is nevertheless a thoroughly engaging set of funky jazz fusion. In fact, the album is one of the most sampled jazz records in hip-hop. Loops of this performance of "Everybody Loves the Sunshine" have appeared on tracks by A Tribe Called Quest, Brand Nubian, and several others. The original grooves on this album are just as funky as those the hip-hop artists have derived from it. In fact, Ayers is probably funkier and looser than the musicians that borrowed from him several years later. Live At the Montreux Jazz Festival is one of the core recordings of acid jazz, "rare grooves," and jazz hip-hop; it's a record that sounds better 20 years after its release than it did when it first appeared.

In July 1973, Blue Note Records headed to Montreux, Switzerland to showcase several of the label’s stars at the Montreux Jazz Festival. Produced by Blue Note President George Butler, live albums all titled Live: Cookin’ with Blue Note at Montreux followed from vibraphonist Bobby Hutcherson, organist Ronnie Foster, flutist Bobbi Humphrey, and vocalist Marlena Shaw, but one of the performances by trumpeter Donald Byrd remained unreleased in the Blue Note vaults, until now.