Tomasz Stańko: Polish Radio Sessions 1970-91

In post-World War II Poland, jazz served as an act of defiance against the state, a resistance to the cultural restraints imposed on society. With its improvised nature and swinging rhythms, it stood in direct opposition to the rigid structure of socialist society. Where jazz relies on individual improvisation as a form of expression, socialist society demanded the opposite from individuals; they were expected to be just another part of the machine. Universal conformity was the goal, and since jazz represented the ultimate form of individual expression, its unpredictability was unacceptable. Consequently, jazz was forced underground, literally, performed and listened to only in secret, in the cellars and basements of Poland, hidden from authorities. Although jazz soon escaped the catacombs, its fiercely independent, underground spirit remained and continued to influence a generation of musicians. It was in those catacombs that the seeds of the music found on Tomasz Stańko's new box set,  Polish Radio Sessions 1970-91 (POLSKIE RADIO, 2025) were sown. The set is conveniently organized chronologically, making it easier to treat each disc as an individual album. Jacek Gawlowski restored and restructured the tapes, making them sound as if they were recorded yesterday and not over 50 years ago.

The first disc, Piece for Diana and Other Ballads (1970/71), features the Tomasz Stańko Quintet recorded over three sessions, Stańko on trumpet, Zbigniew Seifert on alto saxophone and violin, Janusz Muniak  on tenor saxophone and percussion,  Bronislaw Suchanek  on double bass and Janusz Stefanski  on drums. This is also the same lineup that recorded Music For K (Polskie Nagrania Muza, 1987) and Purple Sun (Calig,1973), two landmark albums of Polish Jazz.  This disc focuses heavily on honoring Krzysztof Komeda  while also featuring several Stańko originals and group improvisations. Throughout these sessions, the tone of Stańko's trumpet is both raspy and melancholic. From the first session in November 1970, "Kattorna (Cats)," written by Komeda and featured on the landmark Astigmatic (Muza, 1966) album, the horn lines are long and fluid, with room to improvise after the melody is presented, before ultimately pulling it all back together and concluding with a final statement of the theme. The last song on the disc, "Piece for Diana," is the real showpiece of this session. It is one of three songs recorded during the sessions in October 1971. The trumpet sounds far off in the distance, like a foghorn in the dark, guiding you home, gradually getting louder as one gets closer to it.  The sound is not entirely dissimilar to Miles Davis,' but it is not as urgent or sharp; it is more melancholic and beautiful, fluid even. Although it is a Stańko original, the fingerprints of Komeda are all over it—in a good way.

Disc two, Unit, was recorded over two sessions, one on November 20th 1974, and the second on January 14th 1975.  Significantly more pared down from the first disc, Unit was recorded by the trio of Stańko, Czeslaw Bartkowski  on drums, and Adam Makowicz  on Rhodes Piano and Rhodes piano bass. These sessions feature a freer style of playing, definitely less composed and more improvised. While the songs still contain most of the same characteristics of Stańko's playing, his lines were beginning to become shorter, almost conversational and less fluid, while still retaining that raspy, melancholic tone. The music is more adventurous here; Makowicz's Rhodes playing is the perfect complement to Stańko; both seem to float and dart in and out and around each other, never becoming entangled and always pushing forward. "Unit" is somewhat unique in the fact that a saxophone-less trio covers two John Coltrane  songs from Giant Steps (Atlantic, 1959), the title track and "Countdown." The tunes are not as fiery as the Coltrane versions; instead of focusing on the "sheets of sound" on Giant Steps, Stańko plays more with the space between the notes, drawing it out and exploring it. He leaves the rapid-fire improvisations to Makowicz.

Disc three, Zamek Mgiet, which translates to Castle of Mist, is another trio session recorded in 1976, with Stańko on trumpet, grand piano, and hunting horn, Bartkowski on drums and percussion, and Tomasz Szukalski  on tenor saxophone, soprano saxophone and bass clarinet. There are a few things that make this session interesting. First and foremost is the use of a hunting horn. The horn adds a unique element to the proceedings, its lone note calling out to the listener, fading in and out before disappearing in the mist. The second interesting element is the use of studio overdubs. Stańko and the band build layers of instruments into the music that they simply could not do in the standard live trio format. The tunes are very avant-garde/free jazz-leaning, yet at the same time very clearly composed, and they flow together like one 38-minute-long suite. Highly experimental in its use of the studio as an instrument, and also highly rewarding to the listener. 

Things take a turn into free electronica on disc four, Freelectronic: Almost Gama. Recorded over multiple sessions in 1985 and 1986, Stańko deploys his trumpet less like a musical instrument and more like a pickaxe, digging away at the surface and searching for something deeper, a true feeling, and more often than not, he finds it. Janusz Skowron 's Roland JX-3P synthesizer and Tadeusz Sudnik 's EMS synthesizer create an eerie cosmic vibe, whilst Vitold Rek 's bass is less an instrument of rhythm and more of an exploratory throb, the heartbeat of a foreign planet, that is being explored and colonized by these futuristic astronauts on a mission to conquer the universe with their cosmic jams. Freelectronic: Almost Gama is a rewarding listen. Yes, it is out there, but not too far. Free, but not so free that it is inaccessible.

Rue de la Tour is the 5th disc in the set and the last recorded, in January 1991. It was also among the first digital Polish jazz recordings, recorded on a DAT in the studio. This set is a duo, just Stańko and Szczurek on trumpet and bass. Two of the absolute best players in the world, playing together, just listening to each other with a sympathetic ear. Creating spontaneous music, no rules, no boundaries, just the creative spark that exists when two masters play together. Stańko's raspy tone is still as brilliant and unique as it was on the first sessions recorded 21 years earlier, except now it is somehow more mature, more thoughtful, and more emotionally powerful. This is the sound of a man who has experienced life, both good and bad, and is still inspired to create, never stagnating and always pushing forward.

Disc six, recorded on February 9th, 1983, Jazz Rock Company Live at Akwarium sounds like a funkier Bitches Brew (Columbia Records, 1970). In addition to Stańko, Apostolis "Lakis" Anthimos  is on electric guitar, Jerzy Kawalac  is on bass, Andrzej Ryszka  is on drums, Vitold Rek is once again on double bass, and José Torres  is on congas. The Jazz Rock Company only played three gigs together, so it is a true privilege to hear one of those gigs. Combining jazz and rock was certainly nothing new by 1983, but what was unique about this group was the compositions, all Stańko originals. Each is constructed to showcase the strengths of the band members; Anthimos, in particular, really shines on this set. His guitar brings an element to Stańko's music that is unique, rocking, yes, exploratory, most definitely. It calls to mind some of the great jazz-leaning psychedelic German bands of the 70s, such as Guru Guru and Embryo.  

Polish Radio Sessions 1970-91 is not just another great box set; this is something more than that, an essential and alternate look at one of the most important artists in European jazz history. This is also the story of music in Poland itself, a story of freedom and rebellion, a tale of artistic triumph, of music that emerged from the darkness of the catacombs and into the light. It is the story of Tomasz Stańko and how he brought all of this beautiful music to the world, showing the beauty of the human spirit and the ability to persevere artistically through oppressive times.  

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