Emergency-Entrance (1972)

Formed in the style of their American contemporaries Chicago and Blood, Sweat & Tears, Emergency was another interesting German band founded in the early 1970s by Hanus Berka, a Czechoslovakian multi-instrumentalist with extensive experience working in the United States for other musicians of his nationality, such as Miroslav Vitous and Jan Hammer. For Emergency, Berka recruited his compatriots Jiro Matousek (keyboards), Dusko Goykovich (trumpet), and Otto Bezloja (bass), as well as German drummer Udo Lindenberg and British guitarist Barrié Newsboy. After a remarkable debut album that incorporated sounds like brass rock, R&B, and funk jazz, the band underwent its first lineup changes, bringing in drummers John Redpath and Curt Cress, keyboardist Jiøí Matousek, and guitarist Frank Diez. With this new lineup, they released what is considered their best work, "Entrance", a record that continues down the stylistic paths of their debut, but with a more bluesy approach. Songs like the jazz-influenced blues-rock tracks "Happiness" and "Journey", the dynamic jazz-rock "Emergency Entrance", and the dusty jazz-rock "Killin' Time" make up a solid album that, despite its tasteless cover, is a pleasant recording of the best brass rock from the early 70s.