A SHOWCASE OF PACO DE LUCÍA’S MOST MESMERISING MONTREUX JAZZ FESTIVAL LIVE PERFORMANCES BETWEEN 1984 to 2012

PLUS

LINER NOTES FROM JOHN MCLAUGHLIN & RARE PHOTOS OF PACO DE LUCÍA’S TIME AT MONTREUX

PRE-ORDER HERE.

London Wednesday 18 January 2023 – BMG today announces the next instalment in The Montreux Years series with “Paco De Lucía: The Montreux Years,” to be released Friday 24 February 2023 and available to pre-order now. The new album is a collection of Paco De Lucía’s finest live performances at the Montreux Jazz Festival between 1984 to 2012. Beautifully restored and remastered, “Paco De Lucía: The Montreux Years” will be available in multi-format configurations including superior audiophile heavyweight vinyl, MQA quality CD and HD digital.

One of the world’s most celebrated flamenco guitarists, Paco De Lucía helped legitimize flamenco music across the world and was one of the first flamenco guitarists to have successfully crossed over into other genres of music including classical and jazz. Described by Eric Clapton as a ‘titanic figure in the world of flamenco music’, De Lucía was noted for his fast and fluent picados and was known for adding abstract chords and scale tones to his compositions with jazz influences. These innovations saw him play a key role in the development of traditional flamenco and the evolution of new flamenco and jazz fusion. At the age of 18 De Lucía recorded his first album ‘La Fabulosa Guitarra’ in Madrid. One of his greatest musical partnerships was with the Spanish singer Cameron de la Isla in the 1970s. Together the two men recorded 10 albums, which inspired a New Flamenco movement.

Recognised for his musical impact and one of Spain’s greatest musical exports, De Lucía was awarded Spain’s prestigious Asturias Prize for Art in 2004 as the ‘most universal of flamenco artists’. Following his death in 2014, Paco De Lucía won a Latin Grammy Award for Best Flamenco Album and Album of the Year for his final album Canción Andaluza.

Throughout his career, Paco De Lucía played at the Montreux Jazz Festival many times and remains one of the festival’s most iconic musicians to play the Swiss festival. The performances from this new collection are curated from eight shows between 1984 to 2012. Encapsulating his time at the festival, “Paco De Lucía: The Montreux Years” opens with the 2012 live performance of ‘Vámonos’.

Fans of the pioneering flamenco guitarist can immerse themselves in the sounds that defined De Lucía’s career, which includes one of his best-known recordings ‘La Barrosa’ from the 1987 album ‘Siroco’. Delving further into De Lucía’s repertoire, ‘Paco De Lucía: The Montreux Years’ includes the tracks ‘Solo Quiero’, ‘El Tesorillo’ and ‘Buana Buana King Kong’.

The release includes brand-new liner notes from ‘Guitar Trio’ collaborator, close friend and alumni in The Montreux Years series John McLaughlin, and rare photos from Paco De Lucía’s Montreux shows.

John McLaughlin says: “Many superlatives have been written about Paco de Lucía and all of them are true. I am neither Spanish nor do I play Flamenco music although after hundreds of concerts with Paco in the ‘Guitar Trio’ with Al Di Meola, or together on our duo tours, I feel honoured and well qualified to write about one of the greatest friends of my life. Paco was not only a genius with the guitar but also an exceptional human being. He didn’t read music but I have never met a musician with such an impeccable ear. In addition, his thirst for deeper musical knowledge and experience allowed him to expand the musical traditions of Flamenco music. In almost every Flamenco guitar player today, you will hear Paco’s influence.”

Launched in 2021, ‘The Montreux Years’ is the embodiment of the spirit of the Montreux Jazz Festival and the legacy of its much-loved founder, Claude Nobs. Nobs refused to compromise on quality or settle for anything other than the best and this ethos lives on in the superb quality of the recordings compiled in ‘The Montreux Years’. Mastering has been performed by Tony Cousins at London’s iconic Metropolis Studios, incorporating MQA to capture the original sound of the special live performances.

Available on pre-order now and released on Friday 24 February, ‘Paco De Lucía: The Montreux Years’ is the eighth instalment of The Montreux Years series, which began with musical titans Nina Simone and Etta James, followed by Marianne Faithfull and Muddy Waters, John McLaughlin, Chick Corea and Monty Alexander. Having received critical acclaim worldwide, ‘Nina Simone: The Montreux Years’ and ‘John McLaughlin: The Montreux Years’, reached #1 on the UK Official Jazz & Blues Chart in 2021 and were hailed by the likes of the New York Times and JazzFM.

LP TRACKLISTING

Side A

Vámonos (Live -Montreux Jazz Festival 2012)

La Barrosa (Live -Montreux Jazz Festival 2006)

Side B

Solo Quiero (Live -Montreux Jazz Festival 1984)

Alta Mar (Live -Montreux Jazz Festival 1984)

Side C

El Tesorillo (Live -Montreux Jazz Festival 2006)

Buana Buana King King (Live -Montreux Jazz Festival 1984)

Side D

Variaciones de Minera (Live -Montreux Jazz Festival 2012)

Zyryab (Live -Montreux Jazz Festival 2006)

CD TRACKLISTING

1. Vámonos (Live -Montreux Jazz Festival 2012)

2. La Barrosa (Live -Montreux Jazz Festival 2006)

3. Solo Quiero (Live -Montreux Jazz Festival 1984)

4. Alta Mar (Live -Montreux Jazz Festival 1984)

5. El Tesorillo (Live -Montreux Jazz Festival 2006)

6. Buana Buana King King (Live -Montreux Jazz Festival 1984)

7. Variaciones de Minera (Live -Montreux Jazz Festival 2012)

8. Zyryab (Live -Montreux Jazz Festival 2006)

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ABOUT MONTREUX JAZZ FESTIVAL

Montreux Jazz Festival is a renowned music festival created by Claude Nobs and held annually in Montreux, Switzerland across two weeks in July. Now in its 55th year, the festival draws 250,000 music lovers from all across the world to the Lake Geneva shoreline. Montreux Jazz Festival celebrates the industry’s emerging and contemporary acts, whilst paying homage to music’s legendary acts. Originally a pure jazz festival since inception in 1967, Montreux began showcasing other styles of music throughout the decades and today presents artists from across every genre imaginable. Artists that have graced the stage of Montreux include Etta James, Bob Dylan, Elton John, Ms Lauren Hill, Aretha Franklin, David Bowie, James Brown, Kendrick Lamar, Leonard Cohen, Marvin Gaye, Miles Davis, Nina Simone and many more. Mathieu Jaton serves as CEO of Montreux Jazz.

ABOUT MONTREUX SOUNDS

Founded by Claude Nobs in 1973, Montreux Sounds owns a collection of 5000 concerts “Live at the Montreux” recorded both in audio and video (More than 2000 performances were filmed in High Definition since 1991) and has published already more than 450 major artists, live on the same stage, including shows dating back to the late 1960s. For more information, visit: www.montreuxsounds.com.