CURT JALMO – Ängel med krossade höfter (Sonet, 1972)

Swedish vocals

International relevance: **

 

An outsider classic thanks to Curt Jalmo's laughably overpretentious lyrics including embarrasing tributes to Jim Morrison and Janis Joplin (recited to music by Johann Sebastian Bach). The title, meaning ”angel with crushed hips”, should give an idea of Jalmo's poetry. 

The music itself is decent albeit unspectacular singer/songwriter stuff with some folk touches à la Contact, and sometimes with a bit of groove. Major label Sonet drummed up a set of often used session musicians such as Stefan Brolund (Hörselmat, Pop Workshop), Jukka Tolonen, folk fiddler Ole Hjort, and Lasse Wellander (Nature) to mention the most renowned. All in all a passable album if you can stand the pompous lyrics, or simply don't understand Jalmo's incommodious verbal leakage: non-Swedes certainly has an advantage here. The album's reputation has also grown with time and is now considered a cult album.

Jalmo also published ”Nattsand” in 1970, a collection of poetry which I haven't read, and quite frankly, I don't really wish to either. He was lead singer in 60's band Lay Abouts who released one single in 1967, the forgettable ”So Long Fanny”.

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