G-Stone Master Series No. 1 - Peter Kruder - Private Collection

Year of Release: 2009

Label: G-Stone

Genre: Various - Downtempo Electronica / Contemporary Classical-Alternative / Ambient -Progressive Rock / Jazz

Music: 5

Sound: 4.5
Format Reviewed:CD 

This is a compilation by Peter Kruder - one half of the renowned K&D (Kruder and Dorfmeister), composer, DJ, record 'digger' and music aficionado.

Presented in a classy looking silver and black box and subtitled with, "Classics From My Living Room and Bedroom", this immediately stood out in the record store and beckoned to me. 

Kruder prefaces the album with:

"This compilation is about, a collection that spans my entire life searching for music that makes a difference, sounds unique and ultimately provides a huge and ever growing inspiration to whatever I did and still do on my own path of music making".  

That is quite the goal and it is certainly heads above the majority of after hours / late night / "chill-out" inspired DJ/Musician mixes, even two of the better ones that come to mind - "Back To Mine" and "Late Night Tales", which are still hit and miss affairs (and will review at a later date).

From my experience, these mixes tend to fall into the following broad categories:

   1. Nowhere; poorly mixed, randomly sequenced and with no sense of progression
   2. Average; usually lazily mixed without any care, average to good sequencing, good music.  Unfortunately the mix detracts from the album
   3. Memorable;  a mix that takes you on a journey from start to finish, excellent track selection, something you emerge from affected for the better.

This mix falls into the latter.   As a DJ myself, I'm very critical of these compilations - a mix should be a journey, it should be more than the sum of it's parts, otherwise it's a pointless exercise.  

Thankfully, this album delivers with an eclectic selection of 17 sublime tracks selected from Kruder's personal collection of over 35,000 pieces of vinyl (many of which are out of print and available only on vinyl and I suspect one or two not available anywhere else but his record shelves).  

In spite of the varied nature of artists, the feel of the mix is perfect - very much a testament to his ability and music sense.  The selection is really beyond any sort of genre classification and mirrors my own belief that good music is just good music, no matter the genre.

Within the sturdy cardboard box are 17 CD sized cards, with some photos and a very personal explanation of why he has chosen each track, what it evokes in him and what it means to him.  The following is my favourite "story" from the notes for the track "Three Girls by Stargard":

"I was in Zurich with Rainer Truby and Alexander Barck from Jazzanova to play at a club and the day after the gig we all went record shopping.  I always love to go shopping with two supa pros like this.  After finding a couple of records that were ok but not amazing, Rainer came over to me and with the words "I think you might like that" handed me this record.  I put it on the turntable and was just blown away.  Tripped out space funk with great vocals and a far out production.  Rainer Truby is one of those record diggers that have a sixth sense.  I was once walking down a street with him in Rio de Janerio when he abruptly stopped.  We were standing in front of a huge shopping mall and he urged me to go in with him because he felt the presence of a record store.  Hidden away of course in the farthest corner of the mall we found one.  Underneath CD racks with the commercial bull of today - huge crates of old Brazilian records.  I bought about fifty albums of stuff that you would only see in the racks of serious collectors.  So whenever now Truby says follow me, I just shut up and do so..."

The mix opens with "The Rainbow" from the forgotten classic Talk Talk album Spirit of Eden, which is one of my favourite albums of all time.  He says that when he open a set with this track it "sets the mood for all that was to come", and indeed it does.

Whilst listening to the album, it is clear the amount of effort he has gone to in sharing this music;  each track is a unique element in the picture he paints.  My personal highlights include tracks by Milt Jackson with The Ray Brown Big Band, Tom Waits, Craig Armstrong and what he saves for last, Rokia Traore's "Mariama".  He says that whenever he needs to check out a sound system, he uses this track and it tells him everything.    I just went and had another listen to it on my system and I do believe he is correct.

What I love most album this album is that it is an engaging, intimate affair;  I sit down, put the music on, get out the notes and it's like Kruder's there talking me through each song, smoking a fat joint and telling me why he loves the track that has just come on.

He has also replicated one of the most endearing qualities of vinyl within a CD format - compelling art work and liner notes, which is something that I feel is not done enough anymore.


On that note, let me take you back to to a time when cassettes ruled, CDs were new and vinyl was all but forgotten.  When I was barely a teenager, I'd jump on my bicycle and ride to my friend's place down the road to enthusiastically bring him my weekly hip-hop finds on casette.  We'd sit down all afternoon in his living room listening to my freshly dubbed music, whilst his old man lay on the couch watching horse racing);  These are some of my most treasured memories and whenever I hear one of those songs on those cassettes, I'm transported back to a time when people shared music and the appreciate went deep.   

When I look back, it's clear to me that the act of sharing the music forged a deeper connection not only between us but to the music to which we have now poured our memories and emotions into.  Years from now, the only memories people will have of the music is of when they sat at their desk and downloaded it from iTunes.

Now Peter Kruder has been kind enough to invite us into his home and share his music - please don't say no.


Stray Observations (borrowed from The A.V. Club) gleaned from the notes: 

P.Kruder: 

• once could not bear to listen to guitars
• presumably, likes to wear white pants (God bless Europeans!)
• includes a new "Peace Orchestra" track, and explains how he lost interest in making downtempo tracks.  It also gives some explanation to me of the housey-dance-shake yer ass-shit fest that the Kruder and Dorfmeister show in Melbourne, Australia degraded into.
• features a track by Jan Hammer - composer for Miami Vice Theme and Beverly Hills Cop
• doesn't usually check out world music sections in record stores