The Chris Hinze Combination ~ Netherlands

Despite what it may look like below, I have a few Hinze albums in the collection. I just haven't written anything meaningful for any of them. We'll get there eventually.

Here is my summary from 7/18/09: Dutch flautist Chris Hinze was far more than just your usual jazz flute player. Especially on Mission Suite where he combines jazz and progressive rock very effectively. Stoned Flute and Live at Montreux are more steeped in the jazz tradition, but aren't standard by any means. Who Can See the Shadow of the Sun is a bit looser than the others during this period, and will appeal most to those into "out" jazz. Sister Slick is probably Hinze's heaviest album, with Philip Catherine on guitar, and is a good representation of the harder edged fusion style. His later 70s work strayed towards fuzak. Interesting to note that his other album from the early Seventies, 1972's Virgin Sacrifice, has been reissued on CD. I'm sure it earned a CD imprint (on his own label) since it foreshadowed his future work as a new age artist. It's very different from his other albums during the early 70s.

Stoned Flute (1970)

I've had this LP for well over 20 years but I think it's only the second time for me to hear it. I had such high hopes for this when I first obtained it. That most awesome title and the fact that I was already an established Hinze fan. But this falls to the free jazz side of the equation. It's not unpleasant at all, with plenty of standup bass and piano along with Hinze's flute. Everyone once in awhile they'll catch a groove and you begin to think there might be something here to grasp onto. But then it falls apart per protocol. Lot of folks I know into this scene, but I'm just not one of them.

Former ownership: 1970 CBS (LP). Gatefold

3/3/03 (acquired); 1/7/25 (review)

Charlie Mariano with the Chris Combination (1973)

Straight up jazz session with American WWII veteran saxophonist Mariano joining forces with the Chris Hinze Combination from the Netherlands. This CD is a reissue of Charlie Mariano With The Chris Hinze Combination with the 18+ minute "bonus" title track improvisation thrown in the middle. Mariano himself was just taking baby steps into the European underground (see Osmosis for some American subversiveness) with jazz flutist Hinze's outfit. He was later to embark into an enlightening journey with Krautrock legends Embryo, and participate on some of their finest works shortly thereafter. 'Traditional South Indian (Carnatic) Kirtanam' is exactly the type of music he performed later with the underground Embryo. A real Hepcat, man.

Former ownership: CD: 1995 Black Lion (Germany) as Blue Stone. Booklet has original liner notes.

7/08/03 (acquired); 12/10/15 (review); 4/23/24

Other albums I own and need to review: Live at Montreux; Virgin Sacrifice; Mission Suite; Sister Slick

12/10/15 (new entry)

Osmosis ~ USA ~ Boston, Massachusetts

Osmosis (1970)

One of countless American albums from 1970 that demonstrated an awkward progression from psych to something else. What that something else might be is where either the allure or frustration settles in. Osmosis features none other than jazz luminary Charlie Mariano, who would take this new sound with him to Germany and jam with some of the greats like Embryo. Mariano was already 47 when this album was released, double the age of your average psych performer. His experience plays a major role here, and why Osmosis sounds entirely unique. Where it fits in the collection is a tough answer. Is it jazz rock, prog, or psych? The answer is yes. The vocal segments point to a rock heritage and they definitely have that last stage psychedelic sound down. It's kind of trippy, poppy, and disorienting. But the jazz angle that Mariano brings recalls Wolfgang Dauner, probably his closest peer in terms of age and background. In reading other reviews, one can see the frustration people have with Osmosis. It doesn't fit a narrative. Which is probably why I appreciate it more on each listen.

Ownership: 1970 RCA (LP). Acquired in 2019. 

First copy: 2017 Esoteric (CD). Has copious liner notes but no bonus tracks. Acquired in 2018.

11/3/15; 1/13/18; 8/4/23 (review / new entry)