Montreux Jazz Festival

A tribute to the 50th anniversary of the Montreux Jazz Festival, Switzerland, with Nina Simone, Miles Davis, Etta James, Marvin Gaye, David Bowie, and many more geniuses on tape; a cool Quincy Jones and a laughing Herbie Hancock; sweaty musicians, crazy audiences, and some very rare files.

The night of July 12th 2010 was a memorable evening in the history of the Montreux Jazz Festival. The theme of the night was "Singin' and Swingin'" and it starred Roger Cicero and his fantastic Big Band under the guidance of Lutz Krajenski. Cicero and Hs Band gave an electrifying performance with a mixture of swing ballads, seventies' soul and danceable grooves featuring classics like "Zieh die Schuh aus", "Nicht artgerecht" and "Wenn sie dich fragt" and the English adaptations of his hits "Murphys Gesetz" ("Murphy's Law") and "Ich had das Gefühl für dich verlor'n" ("That You And I Feeling"). Roger Cicero enchanted the crowd and his musicians thrilled this discerning audience. What a show!

Sade, recorded live at the Montreux Jazz Festival, in Montreux, Switzerland during 1984. Track list: Why can't we live together?; Your love is king; Hand on to your love; Sally; When I go to make a living; I will be your friend; Cherry pie; Frankie's first affair; Smooth operator; Snakebite; Love affair with life.

Jethro Tull is one of the most successful British acts of all time with a career reaching from the late sixties to the present day. In 2003 they made their first (and so far only) visit to the Montreux Festival. As ever Ian Anderson leads from the front with his instantly recognizable voice and inimitable style of one-legged flute playing. Split into a semi-acoustic first half and a full on electric second half, the concert was a triumph combining newer songs such as “Dot Com”, “Pavane” and “Budapest” with classic favorites.

Elvis Costello & The Attractions tear through 20 songs from the Lake Geneva shoreline.

“Live at Montreux Jazz Festival 2005 captures Audioslave’s high-voltage performance at the iconic Montreux Jazz Festival. Recorded live at the Miles Davis Hall in Switzerland, this concert features a powerful mix of songs from their second album Out of Exile, plus acoustic and electrifying covers spanning Soundgarden, Rage Against the Machine, and Temple of the Dog.”

The debut performance of Cory Wong at the Montreux Jazz Festival in 2023.

It’s a fifth appearance at Montreux for this singer in from the cold who has her musical family to keep her warm. A key figure of contemporary jazz, Diana Krall bewitches with her rounded contralto timbre and her piano rambles, for which she’s been awarded several Grammies. In her most recent album, Glad Rag Doll (2012), Diana mischievously extracts the charm from ’20s standards and polishes them up as though they had just been invented yesterday. Marvellous vaudeville, skillfully produced by guitarist T-Bone Burnett and accompanied by Marc Ribot, among others. (FFJM © 2013)