The Köln Concert

Pia-pia-pia-no, piano, piano
Pia-pia-pia-no, pia-piano 🎹

The highest selling jazz album of all time, so pretty much bullet proof as far as criticism is concerned.

Whether it actually is a jazz album is up for discussion. Some people say that its complete lack of jazz rhythm, jazz harmony or ... you know ... jazz kind of rule it out.

If a solid hour of improvised solo piano in a kind of "70s modern" style sounds like something you'd run a mile from, then it probably is.

But you might find that on another day, in another mood, at another time this is the most sublime thing you've ever heard and might just change your life.

It’s a landmark piece of modern jazz and a bravura performance, but it’s not a real favourite of mine. The improv style has more to do with folk harmonics then anything jazzy, which to my ears is a bit anodyne.

Piano makes me lose control. My sole complaint is the audience noise. I listened to this while walking on a barren, quiet path where my only friends were the squirrels. Every time I heard a grunt I whipped my head around to find the culprit. I must've looked loony.

it's a jazz album....on piano.

Never gets old

Really great, emotive piano playing. Especially liked the part of the first song between the 10 and 20 minute mark. However, this does end up fading to being background music without additional instrumentation IMO.

without a doubt one of my favorite albums ever
(vinyl)

Phenomenal musician.

Not actually my favorite from Jarrett but a great album

This man is, quite simply, a revelation. It takes a special kind of talent to notch up a performance of this calibre on an entirely improvisational basis, at the dead of night and with a last minute substituted, hastily tuned and adjusted baby grand piano.

It's those imperfections and limitations with the instrument heard, combined with Keith Jarrett's boundless creativity, that firmly imprint this recording into the history books. An emotionally poignant and immensely passionate showing, not just through the breathtaking playing in and of itself, but also through the interspersed vocal ticks and welps of enthusiasm from Keith Jarrett that give the recording a deep-seated interpersonal feel.

I wish I could have been there.

Це сходу 5. Топ концерт, де сам контекст і історія не менш цікаві за музику.

“The Köln Concert” is a live recording of improvisational pianist Keith Jarrett. While it was certainly exciting to listen to without knowing what to expect that evening, I would classify the recording as somewhere between easy listening and deep focus. Jarrett's broad stylistic repertoire means that the music shifts between different styles and is therefore mostly unpredictable. On the other hand, he manages to weave influences from romanticism to jazz into a harmonious whole without any real breaks.
I find it challenging to rate because there are only a few comparable albums on the list—most likely other concert recordings such as “Live at the Regal” by B.B. King. In this context, my conclusion would be something like “nice, but not groundbreaking.”

Pleasant while walking but did drag a little by part IIc. Any other day it would have been a 2. Story behind it was interesting.

I was not aware of this album, and oh man, this is great. Definitely going to listen to this again.

This was great, beautiful playing but it got boring after a while.

I am not a huge fan of instrumental jazz and while this is nice it just washed over me forgettably (I have made up a new word in Keith’s honour). The most exciting thing about it was the woos and shouts from either the crowd, Keith, or someone trying to tell a member of the audience that their aunt was locked in the lady’s toilet and needed to be rescued. I couldn’t tell.

Holy fucking shit.

Bravo, Keith.

Dette var fint. Får nesten dårlig samvittighet for at jeg bruker jazz som bakgrunnsmusikk, men det er i det minste fin bakgrunnsmusikk.

It was nice piano thingies! Would be great to have on in the background