Not now Records. Catalogue number: NOT2CD605. EAN: 5060143496059
The release date will be March 11th.
Available from:
http://organ.co.uk/index.php?route=product/product&product_id=1333
After the release of the Klaus Wunderlich CD ‘MAESTRO’ and the subsequent trading cessation of Bell Musik [Germany] it was thought by millions of Wunderlich fans around the globe that it would mean the end of further re-issues and compilations. Sound engineer and close friend Werner Kohlhammer, was given the task of clearing out Klaus Wunderlichs home studio and ensuring that a safe home was found for the hundreds of reels of quarter inch magnetic tape on which all his precious recordings had been made. During this operation several boxes, many of them sparsely annotated were discovered, but over a period of time it was possible to discover what their contents were. Amongst them, and being heard for the very first time, are the contents of this new double CD release ABSOLUTELY WUNDERLICH. For most of 2015 I fired off letters and e-mails to various UK record labels informing them of the discovery of this un-released material, suggesting they might like to consider its release. The very last Record Label I contacted, NOT NOW MUSIC Ltd, indicated they were in fact very interested because they had been trying to secure the rights to release some earlier Wunderlich recordings. The opportunity to have ‘new’ material was too good to pass up and so in early March my efforts and those of Werner Kohlhammer will come to fruition.
At first glance the programme contents may look familiar but their performance is going to be the nearest thing to enjoying a live concert, sans applause, that you will ever experience. Klaus being the master professional musician that he was rehearsed each of his proposed UK concert tour programme contents, playing them on his Wersi Spectra, and recording them direct to a standard 2 track stereo Studer recorder...such as can be seen in my GOLDEN DAYS video on You Tube. Thus we now get to hear lengthy medleys instead of each item being recorded as separate tracks: to my mind much more enjoyable because you can now immerse yourself in your very own ‘living room concert environment’. That Klaus ever considered for one minute these tracks to be worth public consumption is highly unlikely, and to some extent my involvement in their commercial release did weigh on my conscience. The perfectionist that he was would never have allowed it. I only hope he will forgive me for therefore ignoring both his perfectionist trait and my conscience. The playing is, as we have all come to expect, 100% faultless, and the sounds are therefore more natural and for the very first time, devoid of any additional studio enhancements. To me this is the ‘Koncert Klaus’.
One of his very early LPs states that he provided music for films, and during many letters we exchanged it was one of the things I forget to ask him about. The clearance of his studio revealed another box of tapes recorded many years earlier, in his Hammond organ period. Looking at the titles of the tracks, 8 of which are being heard for the very first time as bonus tracks on ABSOLUTELY WUNDERLICH CD 2, I couldn’t help but think that maybe the reference to film music, if indeed there was any, might be recordings he made for Travelogue films or even commercials. I may be well off the mark, but when I listen to them, I can easily imagine how perfectly they would fit into such genres. I wonder if you’ll agree.
Finally, it is my hope that the Sales figures for this latest release will be financially rewarding to NOT NOW MUSIC Ltd who, let’s face it are not a major player in the record distribution and manufacturing market, to perhaps consider taking over where Bell Musik finished in the distribution of future Wunderlich releases. Are there any more ABSOLUTELY WUNDERLICH gems out there? Who knows?
Alan Ashton.
Producer. Organ1st Radio.
Editorial Note.... It is understood that the sleeve notes of the new album will be compilied by Alan Ashton and Ian Griffin who was on stage with Klaus (right) during his appearance at the Caister Keyboard Cavalcade in October 1985.
Alan Ashton (left) was given one of Klaus' gold discs by his family in appreciation of compiling his discography.
Next year will see the 20th anniversary of the death of Klaus Wunderlich who died at age of 67 after being awarded with 14 gold awards for world wide sales of his albums.
