The Montreux Jazz Festival and BMG, have announced the next installment in “The Montreux Years” collection series with Marianne Faithfull: The Montreux Years and Muddy Waters: The Montreux Years, which will be released on Friday 27 August 2021.

Available on multi-format configurations—including double LP, as well as download and streaming services that include TIDAL Masters—the two new full-length albums feature performances from Marianne Faithfull and Muddy Waters’ multiple appearances at the iconic Swiss festival for the very first time, recorded and remastered in breath-taking quality. 

The Montreux Years is said to represent the spirit of the Montreux Jazz Festival and the legacy of its founder, Claude Nobs. Nobs refused to compromise on quality of his event or these recordings. Mastering has been performed by Tony Cousins at London’s Metropolis Studios, and it incorporates MQA to capture the original sound of these live performances. Similar to the first albums in the series, Nina Simone and Etta James, the Marianne Faithfull and Muddy Waters albums will be accompanied by exclusive liner notes and previously unseen photography.

Instantly recognisable with her raw vocal talents and charisma, Marianne Faithfull has been a long-time friend of the Montreux Jazz Festival, appearing five times over a nearly 15-year period: 1995, 1999, 2002, 2005 and 2009. The first live album of Faithfull in over 10 years, Marianne Faithfull: The Montreux Years opens with an enchanting rendition of Van Morrison’s Madame George, recorded live at Auditorium Stravinski on 10 July 1995, where her range and dynamism is instantly apparent.

Fans of Faithfull can immerse themselves in these recordings, which include several songs from her celebrated album Broken English, such as a guitar-heavy performance of the track Broken English, the soaring Guilt and John Lennon’s rousing anthem Working Class Hero. Meanwhile, the sensitivity of Strange Weather, recorded live at Casino Barrière on 6 July 2005 is said to capture the depths of Faithfull’s brutal and ragged beauty.   

The king of Chicago Muddy Waters was the hot ticket during his run of appearances at the Montreux Jazz Festival in the 1970s. Already a cultural and musical force to behold when festival founder Claude Nobs first caught him live in 1965, Waters found critical acclaim outside of the U.S., sparking the blues revival in the U.K. and finding a clamoring crowd in Montreux.

The Montreux Years brings together a repertoire of Waters’ blues classics, from the chugging standard Mannish Boy and genre defining I’m Your Hoochie Coochie Man, to the stripped-back majesty of Rosalie, all of which were delivered with effortless style and swagger.  

Pre-order Marianne Faithfull: The Montreux Years and Muddy Waters: The Montreux Years here. 

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