Vesa-Matti Loirin - 1971 - 4 of 20 (full album)
Vesa-Matti "Vesku" Loiri is well-known in his native Finland as a comedian, actor, and Emma-nominated musician. Born in Helsinki in 1945, Loiri made his first major film appearance in the 1969 comedy Pohjan Tähteet, a film he co-wrote with Ere Kokkonen. He went on to appear in dozens of movies and television shows over the course of his career, notably in the role of Uuno Turhapuro (Numbskull Emptybrook), a character developed by Spede Pasanen. He also provided the voice of the Genie in the Finnish dub of Disney's Aladdin. A singer, songwriter, and flutist, Loiri performs in a wide range of musical styles, and is perhaps best known for his Jacques Brel-like interpretations of the poetry of Hermann Hesse and Eino Leino. Loiri doesn't limit himself to folk music; a talented iskelmä performer, he was selected to represent his country in the 1980 Eurovision contest with the song "Huilumies." Loiri released over a dozen records throughout his career, and he was still going strong well into the 2000s; his 2006 album, Ivalo, peaked at number one in Finland and was nominated for several Emma Awards.
The U.S. release of Loiri's 1971 album 4+20 might go some way toward spreading the word outside of Finland. It finds Loiri functioning primarily as a flautist, though he makes a couple of casual vocal contributions over the course of the album. Though it's a mostly instrumental outing, 4+20 isn't exactly a jazz album. True to Loiri's many-sided musical personality, it mixes jazz, folk, and rock freely. The result is a cross between the groove-conscious, flute-centric post-bop work of Herbie Mann (Loiri covers a number of tunes from the Mann songbook here) and the flights of flautist fancy essayed by the likes of Traffic's Chris Wood or even early Jethro Tull. The album's title track is an instrumental excursion that uses the Crosby, Stills & Nash tune as its starting point, and is cut into three pieces that bookend and bisect the record. The comic side of Loiri's acting work comes out in "Mummon Kaappikello," in which his singing is sped up to achieve a Woody Woodpecker-like effect. Over the course of the album, a loose, fun, slightly stoned feeling prevails, one that's very much in keeping with the era, and is exemplified by Loiri's original liner notes, which proclaim "This record was made spontaneously, without any great preparations. It is not meant to serve commercial purposes."
http://www.allmusic.com/album/4-20-mw0001176056
The U.S. release of Loiri's 1971 album 4+20 might go some way toward spreading the word outside of Finland. It finds Loiri functioning primarily as a flautist, though he makes a couple of casual vocal contributions over the course of the album. Though it's a mostly instrumental outing, 4+20 isn't exactly a jazz album. True to Loiri's many-sided musical personality, it mixes jazz, folk, and rock freely. The result is a cross between the groove-conscious, flute-centric post-bop work of Herbie Mann (Loiri covers a number of tunes from the Mann songbook here) and the flights of flautist fancy essayed by the likes of Traffic's Chris Wood or even early Jethro Tull. The album's title track is an instrumental excursion that uses the Crosby, Stills & Nash tune as its starting point, and is cut into three pieces that bookend and bisect the record. The comic side of Loiri's acting work comes out in "Mummon Kaappikello," in which his singing is sped up to achieve a Woody Woodpecker-like effect. Over the course of the album, a loose, fun, slightly stoned feeling prevails, one that's very much in keeping with the era, and is exemplified by Loiri's original liner notes, which proclaim "This record was made spontaneously, without any great preparations. It is not meant to serve commercial purposes."
http://www.allmusic.com/album/4-20-mw0001176056
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