Nils Landgren – Funk Unit
Fonk da World
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Hymn for Funk Heaven Nils Landgren, the man with the metallic-red lacquered trombone, calls his Funk Unit “the tightest band I’ve ever played with”. Whoever has experienced a performance of the group knows what he means. The quintet’s teamwork is extraordinary, and the group swings with an impressive, relentless rhythmic drive that pushes the music forward in a continuous powerful flow. In a word, they groove. The Funk Unit has been together for ten years. They celebrate the occasion with a CD whose name was always in the band’s basic program: “Fonk da World”. Landgren’s expressed wish was not to have a summit meeting of the illustrious stars who have worked with the Funk Unit over the years, players such as Maceo Parker, Fred Wesley, and the Brecker brothers to Till Brönner and Airto Moreira. For Landgren the aforementioned desire meant that the Funk Unit itself is the summit, thus the anniversary celebration must belong to the group alone. The motto: Funk Unit Pure. The Funk Unit is an irrepressible play-loving machine, and the inner drive that propels it is infectious. Landgren and company’s “ultimate goal” should be easy to achieve: “Fonk da World”.

Personnel
Nils Landgren – trombone,fluegelhorn, vocals (lead on “Fonk da world”)
Magnum Coltrane Price – Fender bass, rap and vocals (lead vocals on “Booty Rock”and “Amtrak”), synthesizers
Jesper Nordenström – Fender Rhodes piano, Hammond B3 organ, synthesizers
Robert Östlund – guitars,Hammond B3 organ solo on “Calvados”, synthesizers
Niklas Gabrielsson – drums,vocals,congas on ” Fonk da world”

Guest Unit
Magnus Öström – percussion
Per Ruskträsk Johansson – alto saxophone
Esbjörn Svensson – Fender Rhodes piano on ” What”s up what”s up”,” Booty Rock” and “New Morning”
Oscar Traugott – Handclaps on What”s up what”s up

Track list:
01 Booty Rock (Magnum Coltrane Price)
02 Riders On The Storm (The Doors)
03 Mo Stuff (Svensson/Landgren)
04 Fonk Da World (Landgren/Price/Svensson)
05 Anytime Anywhere (Svensson/Landgren)
06 Rock It (Hancock)
07 Amtrak (Price/Landgren)
08 Freedom Jazz Dance (Eddie Harris)
09 Le Sunset (Jesper Nordenström)
10 What´s Up, What´s Up (Niklas Gabielsson)
11 From Stockholm to Bejing (Svensson/Landgren)
12 New Morning (Esbjörn Svensson)
13 Calvados (Robert Östlund / Ulf Engström)

Producer: Esbjörn Svensson,
Executive Producer: Siegfried Loch,
Recorded June 2001 by Jan Ugand at Nord Studio 3 Stockholm, Sweden
“Calvados” and “Riders on the storm” recorded by Fredrik Andersson
(c) & (p) 2001 ACT Music+Vision GmbH & Co. KG