Thums Up
Bengt Berger
“Grammy winning album finally out on vinyl!”
Thums Up is named after the Indian soft drink
(spelled like that) was the one album by Chapter 7, a Swedish jazz group from the late eighties. Our cd was released by Caprice Records (CAP 21361) and won a Swedish grammy.
We were:
Thomas Gustafson, Roland Keijser and Lennart Åberg, saxes;
Nils Landgren, trombone;
Two double basses: Anders Jormin and Sergei Muchin;
and two drummers: Anders Kjellberg and Bengt Berger.
When we did a concert at a Swedish jazz festival we rented tuxedos which might seem natural today but was slightly controversial at the time:
Live TV from Fasching
We did a live concert at Fasching that was televised by Swedish national television. By then Ivo Nilsson had replaced Nisse Landgren. Here is a series of videos at YouTube from the concert. Among other songs we play two Dollar Brand pieces, The Opener/Closer by Ornette, Harry Lime Theme and Telisirama by Saint Tyagaraja.
Release concert 34 years late
The Thums Up album was originally released on cd (and cassette sic!) as the cd medium was new at the time but now, 34 years later its released on vinyl thanks to efforts by Jonas Kullhammar. When asked about a small concert at the release, everybody said yes so we played at Scala in Stockholm on November 20. Unfortunately Roland Keijser and Lennart Åberg has left the planet and Anders Jormin and Nils Landgren are busy elsewhere, so the enthusiastic lineup that tried to remember the music was: Ivo Nilsson, Thomas Gustafsson, Fredrik Ljungqvist, Jonas Kullhammar, Sergei Muchin, Viktor Reuter, Anders Kjellberg and Bengt Berger.
Sergei Muchin, Ivo Nilsson, Fredrik Ljungqvist, Thomas Gustafsson, Bengt Berger, Jonas Kullhammar, Viktor Reuter, Anders Kjellberg
Tour after 35
We had fun so we decided to do three more concerts during 2023, on Fasching in Stockholm on September 6, followed by Umeå the day after and Victoria in Malmö on the 8th. We will release one more album at that time, a recording from the Chicago Jazz Festival that we visited in 1990. In that concert we had the wonderful Ulf Åkerhielm on one of the double basses.
Live recording from 1990 released now
Tracklist
| 1 | The Opener/CloserWritten By – Ornette Coleman | 0:13 | |
| 2 | From La Belle HelenWritten By – Jacques Offenbach | 2:42 | |
| 3 | BabarWritten By – Bengt Berger | 5:12 | |
| 4 | 8 LimitedArranged By – Bengt BergerWritten By – Traditional | 9:10 | |
| 5 | FörstWritten By – Sergei Muchin | 5:05 | |
| 6 | Kora SongWritten By – Don Cherry | 4:50 | |
| 7 | Kopula de TriWritten By – Bengt Berger | 6:19 | |
| 8 | Penye GahuArranged By – Bengt BergerWritten By – Traditional | 6:54 | |
| 9 | The Opener/CloserWritten By – Ornette Coleman | 3:05 |
More info
- Cover – Ulf Andersson (5)
- Double Bass – Anders Jormin, Sergei Muchin
- Drums, Percussion – Anders Kjellberg, Bengt Berger
- Producer – Bengt Berger, Ruud De Sera
- Tenor Saxophone, Soprano Saxophone – Lennart Åberg, Roland Keijser
- Tenor Saxophone, Soprano Saxophone, Percussion – Thomas Gustafson
- Trombone – Nils Landgren
Recorded at Rainbow Studio as, Oslo, Norway December 6 & 7, 1987
Won Swedish jazz Grammy for the release year 1989
Spotify
Other albums with Bengt Berger
Cool Funeral Beer – Day 1 – The Creation Of The Final Ancestor Shrine
[CEX37]
Inside Kalegala
[CEL 01]
Chapter Seven Live In Chicago 1990
[CEX38]
Kummelholmen Sustain Session
[CEX35]
Viltvarning – Live At Fasching 2002
[CEX33]
Live In Stockholm 1991
[CEX25]
Nicolai Dunger: Terror Och Tradition
[2018·537052]
Gothenburg
[CE41]
Gothenburg Live
[CEX23]
Live In Frankfurt 82 On Vinyl
[BS040]
Swedish Jazz History – Vol 11
[2017·CAP22067]
Miniatures
[2017·GLRLP0001]
Beches Indian Brew
[CE38]
Live In Stockholm 1969
[CE36]
Blue Blue
[CE34]
Again And Again (vinyl Edition)
[MLR008]
Again And Again
[CE31]
Sånger Under Natten
[CE28]
Beches Brew Bag
[CEX17]
Beches Brew Big
[CE27]
Music Is My Salvation
[CE18]
Be Five: Blues For E.d.
[2012·GAFCD 1114]
The Vedbod Tapes
[CE20]
More Vedbod Tapes
[CEX15]
Beches Brew
[CE13]
Rare Ragas And Talas – Stockholm 1986
[CEX12]
Live In Stockholm 77
[CE11]
Inside Information
[2007·PSCD172]
Another Swedish Christmas – Country & Easterns Julskiva
[CE12]
Live In Frankfurt 82
[CE09]
Live In Nürnberg 84
[CEX09]
Raag Charukesi: Copenhagen 1986
[CEX04]
Up Close
[CE04]
Up Close – Extra Takes
[CEX05]
See You In A Minute – Memories Of Don Cherry
[CE03]
See You In A Minute – the extra takes
[CEX01]
Arco Iris
[2003·IMPALA007]
Live Vol. 2 At Mosebacke
[2001·AMCD890]
All Time High
[2001·AMCD885]
Live Vol. 1 At Glenn Miller Café
[2001·AMCD889]
1999 Eilert Pilarm & Partybandet Live In Stockholm
[EPCD1]
Lennart Åberg: Green Prints
[1998·CAP1276]
Berger & Keijser: Off Spring
[1997·PSCD92]
Om Natten
[1997·AMCD880]
Enteli Live
[1997·AMCD738]
1996 Travelogue
[1996·ZTC-T-1]
1995 Sagan Om Ringen (lord Of The Rings)
[1995·SRSRPROF637]
Tarang
[1995·RUBCD12]
Enteli
[1994·PSCD77]
Vyer – View
[1992·CAP21426]
From Fasching With Love (swedish Jazz Live)
[1992·PSCD61]
Thums Up
[CAP21361]
Praise Drumming
[DRCD449]
Barrikadorkestern: Internationalen
[1984·URMAX 1]
Bitter Funeral Beer
[1982 ECM 1179]
Music In Sweden 7 – Alternative Instrumental Music (cap 1163)
[1980·CAP1163]
Nävgröt
[1980·MNW10F]
Anita Livstrand: Mötet
[1978·MNW 87P]
1978 Archimedes Badkar & Afro 70 Band – Bado Kidogo
[1978·MNW 91P]
1977 Tre
[1977·MNW 78P]
Archimedes Badkar Ii
[1976·MMNW 62-63P]
Spjärnsvallet
[1976·MNW57P]
Archimedes Badkar – Badrock För Barn I Alla Åldrar
[1975·MNW 53P]
Don Cherry: Organic Music Society
[1973·CAPRIKSLP44/50]
Rena Rama
[1973·CAPRIKSLP49]
Don Cherry: Eternal Now
[1973·SONET]
Nils Sandström: The Painter
[1972·CAP22067]
Staffan Harde
[1972·SJR-LPS-2]
Till Soluppgång Och Till Lycka
[1972-K3]
Arbete Och Fritid: Club Jazz – 6
[1972·SR]
Fickteatern: Allt Växer Tills Det Hejdas
[1971·MNW16P]
Sånger Om Kvinnor (songs About Women)
[1971·MNW23P]
Skäggmanslaget: Snus, Mus Och Brännvin
[1971·SONET SLP-2522]
Arbete Och Fritids Andra Lp
[1971·SLP2526]
Arbete Och Fritid
[1970·SONET]