It was the 21st of august 1988. I remember it as it was just a few weeks ago. My parents and I went down to Talavera/Mainwiese in my hometown Würzburg where Michael Jackson was performing during his "Bad" tour. I was 10 years old and for some months already proud owner of this masterpiece of Quincy Jones. Oh man, did they rock this show!! Amongst others in the band: Jennifer Batten on guitar, Ricky Lawson on drums and Sheryl Crow on backing vocals. I even found some videos and photos of this performance. Actually we didn't go down to the concert area, but we went up to the vinyards, where half of the Franconian population was sitting. That had to do with the fact that there was a minimum age to enter the concert. But then I wouldn't have been able to see the stage, the view from the vineyards was much better. It was one of the first shows with big screens so we saw everything and actually didn't miss a note. It was breathtaking.
During the concert night fell. So atmospheric..
The album "Bad": After a short Beatles phase with my friend Isabell, "Bad" was the record I got addicted to. I had in on cassette. It was still in my pre-english period. The song "Bad" itself was so catchy that I had to listen to it again and again. Play, rewind, play, rewind... Phonetic English days. I made up my own meaning of the lyrics. The music is so good that even without the lyrics, it's hypnotizing. Jimmy Smith is playing Hammond B3 on it, Greg Phillinganes plays a synth solo. Other songs I loved were "Just good friends" with Stevie Wonder, "Liberian Girl", "Another part of me" and "I just can't stop loving you". A few years ago I was asked to play a piece of music I normally don't play with my band. I chose "I just can't stop loving you", here it is. A Michael Jackson song in a Susanne Alt Quartet acoustic jazz version:
This is a tune called Kalunga Dance, from my latest album Dark Horse, order it here or buy it at a concert, the next one is Brebl, Nijmegen 1 day after my birthday on 16th of April! Hope to see you there!In this performance, we featured percussionist/vocalist and world citizen Helene Jank. She lived and worked in Brazil for quite a while and I really think it's audible here. I love the way she and the band creates this moment of space within the concert and this is also why - I think - visiting concerts is important because then you get to experience the whole context of the concert. How is the program build up, how does the audience respond and what does music makes you feel. More info:Susanne Alt: sax, Matthijs Geerts and Ike van Bergen: keys, Thomas Pol: bass, Yoràn Vroom: drums, Helene Jank: percussion Performed at 16th of January 2026 at Bimhuis, Amsterdam, Recorded by Onno Prillwitz Filmed by Robert Glass and Albert Nooij. - It was the 21st of august 1988. I remember it as it was just a few weeks ago. My parents and I went down to Talavera/Mainwiese in my hometown Würzburg where Michael Jackson was performing during his Bad tour. I was 10 years old and for some months already proud owner of this masterpiece of Quincy Jones. Oh man, did they rock this show!! Amongst others in the band: Jennifer Batten on guitar, Ricky Lawson on drums and Sheryl Crow on backing vocals. I even found some videos and photos of this performance. Actually we didn't go down to the concert area, but we went up to the vinyards, where half of the Franconian population was sitting. That had to do with the fact that there was a minimum age to enter the concert. But then I wouldn't have been able to see the stage, the view from the vineyards was much better. It was one of the first shows with big screens so we saw everything and actually didn't miss a note. It was breathtaking.During the concert night fell. So atmospheric..The album Bad: After a short Beatles phase with my friend Isabell, Bad was the record I got addicted to. I had in on cassette. It was still in my pre-english period. The song Bad itself was so catchy that I had to listen to it again and again. Play, rewind, play, rewind... Phonetic English days. I made up my own meaning of the lyrics. The music is so good that even without the lyrics, it's hypnotizing.Jimmy Smith is playing Hammond B3 on it, Greg Phillinganes plays a synth solo. Other songs I loved were Just good friends with Stevie Wonder, Liberian Girl, Another part of me and I just can't stop loving you. A few years ago I was asked to play a piece of music I normally don't play with my band. I chose I just can't stop loving you, here it is. A Michael Jackson song in a Susanne Alt Quartet acoustic jazz version:
