Jazz Piano legend McCoy Tyner on this weeks Downbeat. Recorded live in Holland on March 1, 1984 and originally broadcast by Radio Nederland for their Sesjuns series, this set features Tyner in exquisite form.

Good way to close out a hectic week. Turn it up and kick your shoes off.

(Carlos Miguel Prieto - new faces on World Podiums)

Since last weeks installment of the Mid-Week concert went so well, we're back for another mid-week taste of the concert hall. This time a concert by the Amsterdam Concertgebouw, guest conducted by Carlos Miguel Prieto, a rising young star in conducting circles who has guest conducted a number of symphony orchestras throughout Europe and the U.S. since this concert was first broadcast on December 4, 2005 by AVRO Radio 4 in Holland.

Two works tonight - Lydische Nacht by the Dutch composer Alphons Diepenbrock, who was a contemporary of Gustav Mahler and a warhorse, Tchaikovsky's Symphony Nr. 5. A little over an hour's worth of music and the announcer (in case you were wondering) is in Dutch.

If you aren't familiar with Alphons Diepenbrock, I urge you to check him out. It'll be worth it.

Enjoy.

January 14, 1986 saw a flurry of terrorist alerts and cautions issued by U.S. Embassies throughout Europe. The threat was coming from unnamed Palestinian groups over the recent outcome of the Achille Lauro hijacking. Fighting was escalating in Yemen between rebel forces and government troops. Buenos Aires was the scene of the worst rioting in years on the occasion of a visit from David Rockefeller, not one of the loved people in Argentina. And vice-President Bush joined Daniel Ortega at the Inauguration of Guatemalan President Vinicio Cerezo. Cerezo, who was largely viewed as a mouthpiece for the real military power behind the Guatemalan government, was vigorously supported by the Reagan administration and applauded by Reagan as a step in the direction towards democracy, despite the fact that within weeks most all the suppressive actions of the Guatemalan government were alive and well and rounding up suspects as usual.

Fun and games and the usual rotation of the earth, slightly off its axis, this day in January 1986.

(Belgian prisoners and German captors - a common sight in May 1940)

Seventy years ago this week, the war in Europe inched closer to the brink when Germany launch a full-scale invasion of Belgium, Luxembourg and Holland on May 10th. On the same day, Neville Chamberlain offered his resignation and the duties of Prime Minister went to First Lord of the Admiralty Winston Churchill.

H.V. Kaltenborn: “Let us, in this evening hour, attempt to summarize what has happened during the day, in which three neutral countries were invaded; Luxembourg. Belgium and Holland. In which there were two cabinet changes. A complete change of leadership in England and the addition of further parties to the cabinet in France.”

All signs were pointing to an eventual invasion of Britain as each country was invaded and fell under Nazi rule. And, despite assurances to the contrary, it was only a matter of time before the U.S. would get involved. But that wouldn't be for another year.

(Supersister - One of the most influential bands of the 70s most people never heard of)

One of the great upshots of the Progressive era in rock music was that few years where bands were influencing each other, freely borrowing and nobody from the mainstream paid any attention. Supersister were a Dutch Prog band most every fan of Progrock knew about, but didn't reach chart success. We liked that fine. I'm sure the band wasn't too crazy about it, purely from a financial point of view - but they were legends among people who knew and followed them. At their peak in 1972 I was writing about them for several magazines, none of whom had the slightest idea what they were all about and greeted the music as weird and crazy. But Supersister were part of a larger picture - a picture that included Can, Caravan, Van der Graaf Generator, a whole host of bands whose music quietly shaped and later influenced bands even today.

It's interesting to realize a lot of people now are being turned on to these groups because they seem so fresh, even after 40 years. Probably because they were so uncommercial at the time they barely ever got airplay, except the odd FM station, usually run by college kids. If you've never heard it before it's new to you.

Sadly, Supersister never got to tour the U.S. in the 70s, only in 2000 did they make it to L.A. for a reunion gig. But any hopes of continuing and building on that were dashed with the sudden death of co-founder and flautist Sacha van Geest. Supersister now remains a legend and a memory. Robert Jan Stips, keyboards and co-founder has gotten the rights back to all the Supersister catalogue (formerly on Polydor Holland) and has reissued them in addition to some live and unissued material which are well worth looking into and adding to your library.

So this installment of the Backstage Weekend goes to two festivals, one in Baarn Holland on February 5, 1971 and the other (last two songs, Judy Goes On Holiday and Radio) from the Midsummer-pop Festival in Meerlo in July 8, 1972.

A legendary band performing at their prime. And music never looked back.

(Paul Hindemith - complicated relationships)

This week's batch of 78's is the Violin Concerto written in 1939 by the German composer Paul Hindemith. It was slated to be premiered in Germany that year, but fate and the Nazi's had other plans and it was finally performed in Holland in 1940, with Hindemith having migrated to Switzerland in 1938 and eventually living and working in New York by 1940.

This recording, made in Paris for French HMV in 1948, features the violinist Henri Merckel with the Lamoureux Orchestra led by Roger Desormiere.

Don't quote me on this, but I think this is the first commercial recording of the concerto.

(The Motions - Dutch Psychedelia you probably never heard of)

The Motions were a big deal in Holland from 1963-1971. During their Beat phase they were produced by none other than Scott Walker (of the Walker Brothers) for several singles. And their label, Philips had issued their last album in the States to very little notice. They are all but unknown in the States and really only known by collectors even in Europe.

This track "Wonderful Impressions" comes from their psychedelic period from 1967. It was short lived, but it did yield some interesting tracks, even though their label decided it would be a good idea to mix a fake audience in (think: John's Childrens infamous Orgasm album with overdubbed audience). It doesn't seem to serve a purpose, but luckily it doesn't detract from what is a very nice track.

More unearthed gems.

(RO-D-YS - I know, how can you know about a band when you can't even pronounce their name?)

Contrary to public opinion, not all Psychedelia originated in either England or the U.S. - no, the whole world embraced it rather well, and it came in a bunch of different languages.

A lot of psych, and later prog-rock came out of Holland from the mid-sixties onward. One of those bands had the unlikely name RO-D-YS - which, as near as anyone can guess is pronounced Rowdy's, since there were at least two other bands calling themselves The Rowdy's milling around Holland. So rather than change their name, they just changed the spelling. Fair enough.

Nothing they recorded was ever released in the States, or even the UK, even though the band recorded quite a bit and had several singles on the Dutch charts.

This particular track "Sleep,Sleep, Sleep" was released in 1968, and I believe it was their third or fourth single release.

RO-D-YS lasted from 1966-1969, with various members wandering in and out of other Dutch bands. They weren't destined to become a household name, but they were part of an interesting and active movement that also included some innovators for the next decade. Stay tuned.