If you are wondering what that says it is something like "Wojtek Kaminski's Swing Workshop Forty Years On." The Polish small band Swing Workshop is celebrating 40 years. I think.
That's the downside of being on the receiving end of Polish jazz CDs. Even Google translate only takes you so far. The upside is that the Poles have been punching above their weight playing jazz and swing for 60 years now. You seemingly can't go wrong with a Polish jazz album and this one is no exception.
Dymitr Markiewicz, a famous Polish musician in his own right, is a friend of the paper who sends us excellent CDs we certainly wouldn’t find on our own. Most of them have been very tight Dixieland oriented traditional jazz bands. Swing Workshop demonstrates that some of those same musicians produce first-rate Swing as well.
Swing Workshop has a smooth classic sound that I must admit is not normally my cup of tea. But when a group is this solid even those who won't be converted are forced to appreciate it. The mental image I created was of an extraordinarily good resort band playing jazz standards for retirees. The whole crowd is immersed but only the few realize how uniquely good it really is.
The quintet is led by Wojtek Kamiński on piano. He provides flourish throughout but on Oscar Peterson's "Hymn to Freedom" he really shines. He has been involved in every notable traditional jazz ba
