First ever reissue of the debut and only album by Finnish Fusion/Jazz Rock group Flu-Band. Originally released on vinyl in 1981, this is the first time the album Fly is available on CD.
Especially given the musical climate of the 1970s-80s, it’s no wonder that the name Flu-Band or Calle Björklund doesn’t ring a bell. Flu-Band was very largely a project quickly put together for this particular recording with the help of a bank loan and experienced musicians. However, the album did not come from nothing. Björklund, who was largely self-taught as a musician, drifted from playing bass in a school band to forming an instrumental trio called Flu-Band during the 1970s, as a result of various bands and jam sessions in Helsinki. For a couple of years they played borrowed songs: Janne Schaffer, Jeff Beck, Billy Cobham, Shadows, Santana… These influences (as in the English word inFLUence) are also referred to in the band’s name, not the Flu!
The original trio recorded a demo tape in 1979, but for the actual recording sessions the line-up was augmented by professional musicians who were invited to join in. Pentti Lahti, who was called in at short notice to replace Seppo “Baron” Paakkunaisen, played alto saxophones and flutes, Jukka Wasama, borrowed from Piirpauke, percussion and Esa Kotilainen keyboards. Kotilainen also recorded and mixed the album at Indigenous Studio in December ’80. Frank Robson sings the lyric “Marabu“, the others are instrumentals. Calle Björklund is responsible for guitars and Matti Kanerva for drums, Harri Virtamo replaced Tapani Lahtinen on bass just a few weeks before the sessions.
The actual release of the album went surprisingly smoothly. Björklund walked into JP Music‘s office near his home, offered the album to them, it was immediately accepted and released in ’81. The album received little press coverage. In the early 80s Björklund also made a couple of tapes for YLE, one of which featured compositions by Flu-Band.
“When you listen to the album, it’s inconceivable that several musicians came straight from the forest to the sessions,” Björklund says. “The album was also recorded really quickly, in about a week, and it doesn’t sound rushed at all.“
Since then, Björklund has not been very active in the public music scene. Since 2003, however, he has been touring again with the reconstituted Flu-Band in various line-ups, including Jukka Gustavson, Jukka Hakoköngäs and Jan-Olof Strandberg.
Pre-order the album here: https://www.svartrecords.com/en/product/flu-band-fly-cd/11158
Tracklist:
- Bego
- Surfing
- Marabu
- Lucky Nine
- Five