It was once the received wisdom that jazz, if it didn’t die, certainly took a series of wrong turns during the 1970s. Yet the number of today’s next generation artists drawing inspiration from the era, and the continued industry scramble to reissue lost treasures, tells an altogether different story. A recent new issue prompted the idea to check in with Olli Ahvenlahti, one of Europe’s great “fusion” pioneers, to reflect on a truly remarkable life in music.
With very few leaps of the imagination the career of Finnish pianist, keyboardist, composer and arranger Ahvenlahti (b. 6 August 1949, Helsinki) could be the stuff of a cult film biopic. Academy trained, Ahvenlahti started his professional career in the 60s as a session player, picking up invaluable experience accompanying visiting jazz giants from the United States. Finding his wings during the 70s fusion boom, Ahvenlahti was an early adopter of the Fender Rhodes and was there at the birth of Finland’s internationally renowned UMO Jazz Orchestra.
He increasingly focused on writing and arranging for Finnish broadcaster Yleisradio (Yle) in the 80s and his TV work ultimately led to him conducting Finland’s Eurovision entries in the 90s. His music was later championed by the rare-groove cognoscenti, and at the time of this interview he was in the middle of a series of dates to promote Mirror Mirror, his second album for Matti Nives’ We Jazz Records.
For those yet to hear it, the new album is an exciting blend that melds the sophistication of Creed Taylor’s finest CTI crossovers with some stinging grooves and in-the-pocket solos. Yet for Ahvenlahti the album is not an exercise in nostalgia, but rather a return to the music he has championed for over half a century.
“The 70’s was in many ways revolutionary in the jazz scene”, he notes with obvious satisfaction. “Miles Davis, Herbie Hancock and Weather Report with Joe Zawinul and Wayne Shorter brought brand new rhythmical ideas and sounds to jazz… all of a sudden there were electric instruments like keyboards and guitars involved here and there… the teamwork with the traditional jazz instruments like saxophones, flutes, trumpets and trombones. The drums played strong rock/pop patterns, there was an electric bass and everything sounded just beautiful.”
If the electrification of jazz was a little too much for some critics at the time, the groundbreaking fusions of jazz, rock and funk which emerged are now part of the canon. Ahvenlahti’s records for Otto Donner’s Love Records are particularly well regarded, and with hindsight have proven seminal to his career. “I bought my Fender Rhodes Suitcase 73 electric piano in 1972 and fell in love with it immediately. During those years I was in close contact with a former Finnish record company Love Records which led to the opportunity of making a solo album. My first two albums Bandstand and The Poet were recorded in Stockholm, 1975 and 1976”.
Perhaps to his surprise, the closing track from The Poet, Grandma’s Rocking Chair, was included on a compilation from London-based label Acid Jazz in the late 90s. Ahvenlahti recalls learning of his ascent to hipness during a rehearsal for a TV broadcast: “My drummer said to me during a pause ‘Hey Olli, one of your old tunes is on a British Acid Jazz collection, what do you think..?! Great, eh ..?’ The track was later remixed by US producer and DJ Kenny Dope, and to this day is a favourite encore whenever Ahvenlahti is out on the road.
Listening back to those mid-70s albums, they share a similar instrumental palette and melodic richness with Eberhard Weber’s contemporaneous recordings for ECM. “I often listened to and studied the ECM albums and became familiar with the ECM sound. I used to listen to Eberhard Weber a lot and I managed to hear him live many times.” Yet Ahvenlahti is also quick to acknowledge inspiration from across the Atlantic, and unlike many of his contemporaries he hasn’t really pursued an overtly Euro-centric voice. “I used to study the Thad Jones/Mel Lewis Orchestra albums quite often because the Thad Jones arrangements were just great and taught me to understand the horns, how they sound and also how to write for horns. I got to know both Thad and Mel, met them on different occasions, and even played with Thad”.
He also speaks with great affection of a 1975 concert with Dizzy Gillespie in Helsinki. “That day we were really tense and excited at the same time before the TV rehearsal, but when Dizzy came to the studio the atmosphere was released immediately. Dizzy turned out to be the warmest, funniest and the most skilled bebop professor in the world. We performed a great concert with live audience, and you can still watch the concert on YouTube.”
It was Ahvenlahti’s time with UMO between 1977-82 which really sharpened his chops as a composer and arranger, setting him on the path which eventually led to Eurovision. “My years in UMO big band prepared me for the conductor post in Yle because among other things I had been writing arrangements for various line-ups for many many years. Writing is something I like very much. For me writing means both composing and arranging.” Folk tunes and great works of literature often provided Ahvenlahti’s inspiration, and a cross section of his output from this period, including the ambitious five-part jazz opera Seawinds, was recently reissued by Svart Records.
Of his Eurovision experience, Ahvenlahti is quick to distinguish the contest’s current format from the decidedly more analogue performances of the 90s. “I was very lucky to experience the ‘old’ Eurovision concept with a live orchestra. The live orchestra was an essential part of the song contest. Birmingham in 1998 was the last time you could see and hear the really live orchestra. Today’s ESC is more about the stage show, lights, pyrotechnics, quick photo editing plus everything weird you can think of. ESC could learn a lesson from jazz by bringing back the ‘Holy Trinity’ – melody, harmony and rhythm”. He reminds me that Sweden’s Anders Berglund and Ireland’s Noel Kelehan were both accomplished jazz pianists outside of their Eurovision roles, so perhaps we shouldn’t be too surprised by the pedigree of this much-mocked institution?
Ahvenlahti’s Holy Trinity can be heard in abundance on Mirror Mirror, and with soloists of the calibre of Jukka Eskola and Joonatan Rautio the music crackles with raw excitement. “I’ve been very fortunate having been able to work with these young maestros, every one of them 30 years younger than me. They keep me very much updated on the jazz scene and encourage me to write new jazz tunes. Jukka Eskola, Joonatan Rautio, Jaska Lukkarinen, Ville Herrala, Jussi Kannaste and Antti Lötjönen are my closest partners and I’m grateful for their friendship, collaboration, creativity and their skilful performances on stage.” Ahvenlahti is also keen to single out We Jazz supremo Matti Nives, drawing parallels to Manfred Eicher’s role at ECM. “Thanks to Matti, jazz in Finland is doing well!”
Mirror Mirror will be supported by further live dates this autumn, allowing a new generation of fans to experience the joys and sorrows of Ahvenlahti’s emotionally resonant music. Beyond this he is more circumspect, but there is a hint of more to come: “Playing and writing keeps one alive, and Mirror Mirror has given me a lot of energy. I’m grateful for that, and since I still feel young and fresh I might start a new project in the future… never say never!”
Selected Discography
Bandstand (1975), Love Records LRCD 126
The Poet (1976), Love Records LRCD 168
Seawinds: The Complete YLE Studio Recordings 1976-1981 (2018), Svart Records, SRE171CD
Based On A Novel (1981), Svart Records SVR431
’70s Revisited (2014), Uleåborg Jazz Organisation Ry UJOCD 02 (with Eero Koivistoinen and Oulu All-star Big Band)
Thinking, Whistling (2017), We Jazz Records WJCD/LP 106
Mirror Mirror (2024), We Jazz Records WJCD/LP 75
