Ekseption

After Ekseption split up in the mid seventies, Rick and Rein came together and decided to reunite Ekseption, with the same band members of their fourth and fifth album. The opening track of this album ('Again') is probably the best opening track from Rick ever…

This record has outstanding, clean and expressive rhythmic trumpet arrangements, a bit in the genre of early Frank Zappa (Grand Wazoo, Waka/Jawaka), but more dynamic, funky and rhythmic: it gives an ambience of winners! there are trumpet, saxophone, clarinet and flute, so that these wind instruments take a huge place in the music…

Following the departure of keyboardist and founder Rick van der Linden, the Dutch band Ekseption took a rapid downhill turn under new leader Hans Jansen. Unlike the earlier mix of classics, rock, and jazz, this edition of the band seems absolutely directionless…

Although this release is titled 3 originals, this double CD contains the first four albums of EKSEPTION. The band's development is clearly audible, from the first album where they just had embarked on the musical course that would bring them a lot of success, to the fourth album, where they truly had grown into a tight unit performing symphonic rock music, performing their music with an orchestra…

EKSEPTION is a Dutch band that was famous during the late sixties/early seventies for the way it combined themes from classical composers with contemporary rock and jazz in a blend of dominating, virtuoso keys and trumpet plus sax(es). The story of EKSEPTION as we know it begins when they won the first prize at the Loosdrecht Jazz Festival in 1968, and they were rewarded with a record contract with Philips….

In their eight-year existence, Ekseption came as close as any group from the European continent ever did to stealing the thunder of early classical rock outfits such as the Nice and rivaling the early work of Emerson, Lake & Palmer. In Holland, they charted singles based on classical compositions and released successful concept albums, and were – along with Focus – the top progressive rock band in the Dutch-speaking world. The group's roots actually go back to 1958 and a Haarlem-based band called the Jokers, formed by Hans Alta (bass), Tim Griek (drums), Rein van den Broek (trumpet), and Huib van Kampen (guitar, saxophone), who specialized in covers of American rock & roll…

In 1958 the school band The Jokers is formed in Haarlem. Members are Hans Alta (bass), Rein van den Broek (trumpet), Tim Griek (drums, he was the producer for the first Brainbox album, he died in a car crash in 1988) and Huib van Kampen (guitar/saxophone). The play covers of well known songs. In 1965 the name is changed to Incrowd. In 1967, the name has already changed to Ekseption because there is another Dutch band with the name Incrow…

The band EKSEPTION started as a Rhythm and Blues band, having their start under some different names for the band since the late fifties (The Incrowd, The Jokers). By the mid sixties the name of the band was changed to EKSEPTION, with trumpet player Rein van der Broek (who died in May of this year) being the only musician who was present in all the recordings that this band released during its existence. They first released three singles between 1966 and 1968 influenced by the Rhythm and Blues music style…

This record was something of an enigma – apparently it never got distributed very widely even in England, where it was recorded and released, and was never officially issued in the United States. The band calls to mind early Deep Purple (pre-Machine Head) in their style, while the record resembles the early progressive efforts of the Moody Blues…