Rare Turkish-inspired jazz fusion recording, ‘Oriental Groove’ reissued
This month, the French-based Hot Mule label will be reissuing the highly obscure mid-eighties jazz fusion album, titled Oriental Groove from the short-lived ensemble Gülistan.
Recorded in a small rehearsal space in Vienna during the summer of 1986, this session came about when six Austrians and one Kurdish immigrant teamed up to explore a multi-cultural mix of European-influenced jazz grooves with Eastern Mediterranean and Middle Eastern scales and rhythms. This melding of different regional sounds resulted in one of the most uniquely original jazz fusion recordings of it’s era. The record featuring Mehmet Emir, Josef Olt, Robert Schaar, Alfred Stütz, Heimo Tauscher, Adula Ibn Quadr, and Mike Fitsch, is a combination of electric piano melodies, complimentary horns and strings, funky bass lines, and Turkish-rooted percussion.
Over thirty years later, Hot Mule has received permission from the original members of the project to put out an official reissue of the album. Carefully remastered from the original source, this limited 500-copies edition of the record will include extensive liner notes by Donna Leake, as well as exclusive photos handpicked by the band.
Overall, even through this limited reissue, it’s great to see that this incredibly original and brilliant recording is receiving a much-deserved re-release. Don’t sleep on this one!
The reissue of Gülistan’s ‘Oriental Groove’ is officially reissued through Hot Mule on Nov 15.
Gülistan — ‘Oriental Groove‘
(Originally released: 1986 / Ha Ha Soundwave)
(Reissued: 2019 / Hot Mule)
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