1968-02-14 / HAMPEL
GUNTER HAMPEL & HIS PSYCHEDELIC ROCK GROUP
February 14, 1968 – Mühlheim, Stadthalle ("LIFE!!!")
Gunter Hampel vib/fl; Spencer Brighton g/voc; Freddie Gosseye bg; Jan van der Ven (Jan Veen) d.

1. LIFE IS LOVE IS MUSIC IS ALL (Gunter Hampel) – 19:35
- a. KAFACH
- b. LIFE IS LOVE IS MUSIC IS LIVE
- c. SONG FOR ALL MOTHERS
2. Announcement by Dietrich Schulz-Köhn ("Dr.Jazz") – 0:59

Length: 1t/21'
Source: rb/WDR (direct on February 14, 1968)
Lineage: FM>tape>HD>Flac

Comment: During the year 1968 a couple European "free jazz" musicians began to separate from their groups, to electrify their music and to connect it with other performing arts within multi media shows and happenings. The "Jazz meets India" project of Barney Wilen and Irene Schweizer end of '67 led during springtime of '68 to the Barney Wilen Free Rock Group as well as to the first "Guru Guru Groove Band" by Mani Neumeier and Uli Trepte in July 68. The preceding electric experiments with Irene Schweizer stayed unrecorded (as far as I know). Jaki Liebezeit, the drummer of the Manfred Schoof Quintet was founding the CAN in June 68.

As far as I know, the first recorded document of this new development is the performance of GUNTER HAMPEL & HIS PSYCHEDELIC ROCK GROUP on 14th February 1968 as part of a big concert event called "LIVE!!!" in the Stadthalle of Muehlheim (between Duesseldorf and Essen), recorded and broadcasted direct by the WDR. There were other groups in the bill a.o. the Orchestra of Kurt Edelhagen.
The performance of Hampel was a shock for the audience, specially for those who expected "Free Jazz". It was electric "Psychedelic Music" strongly influenced by groups like Velvet Underground. In his closing announcement the "Dr.Jazz" felt to be forced to apologize for this "Pop" stuff. His announcement, that this group would perform at the "Deutsches Jazz Festival" in Frankfurt/M and later in Nuernberg didn't became true. Hampel would perform there with his parallel existing Quartet + Jeanne Lee.
Soon after this Muehlheim concert Hampel's Psychedelic Rock Group was called "Time is Now". The guitarist was substituted by Bruno Besse and the drummer by Laurie Allen. Further members of this international group were Simon Prestwich (fluid light shows) and Roel Koes (electronics and sound engineer). I don't know what happened to the members of the first Psychedelic Rock Group, but some of You will also know the title "Responsible (for Jan van der Ven)", composed by Fred van Hove and recorded by the Peter Broetzmann "Machine Gun" Octet in June 68, just after this young drummer died from some drug abuse.

"Time is Now" was performing during the hot springtime of 68 in Paris, at the theatre- and filmfestival in Avignon, in Belgium, the Netherands and Germany. For the performance at the Essener Songtage end of September 68 the guitarist Bruno Besse was substituted by John McLaughlin (I was in the audience then). Later in November 1968 this groups gathered again for a couple of concert in Berlin, Duesseldorf, Amsterdam, Utrecht, Brugge and Bruxelles.

All these 1968 Psychedelic Rock experiences of Gunter Hampel stayed unpublished. I guess it was not at least because this kind of music was only a part of a total live-event with light show, movies, dancing, smoking and loving.