Their most memorable work might be playing with Karen Souza on her unforgettable version of Radiohead´s Creep. Another favorite vocalist is Dinah York with whom they recorded a spectacular version of the Amy Winehouse classic, Back to Black.
They describe themselves as mellow and it is clear that they work and play almost intuitively as a unit. The Cooltrane Quartet is destined to keep spinning pop hits into silky jazz numbers we are sure to recognize.
Smoke On the Water
The Cooltrane Quartet Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
On the lake geneva shoreline
To make records with a mobile
We didnt have much time
Frank zappa and the mothers
Were at the best place around
But some stupid with a flare gun
Burned the place to the ground
They burned down the gambling house
It died with an awful sound
Funky claude was running in and out
Pulling kids out the ground
When it all was over
We had to find another place
But swiss time was running out
It seemed that we would lose the race
Smoke on the water, fire in the sky
We ended up at the grand hotel
It was empty cold and bare
But with the rolling truck stones thing just outside
Making our music there
With a few red lights and a few old beds
We make a place to sweat
No matter what we get out of this
I know well never forget
Smoke on the water, fire in the sky
The Cooltrane Quartet's song Smoke on the Water is a cover of the classic Deep Purple track, which tells the story of a real-life event that happened in Montreux, Switzerland on December 4, 1971. Deep Purple was in town to record an album at the Montreux Casino, which was located on the shore of Lake Geneva. However, during a Frank Zappa concert at the venue, someone fired a flare gun into the ceiling, starting a fire that eventually burned the casino to the ground. This incident is known as the "Montreux Casino Fire."
The lyrics of the song paint a vivid picture of the chaos that ensued that night. The opening lines describe how everyone had come to Montreux "to make records with a mobile," referring to the mobile recording studio that Deep Purple used to record their albums. They had limited time to work, so this event was a significant setback. The next lines describe how Frank Zappa and the Mothers were playing at the casino the night of the fire, and how the place was burned to the ground by "some stupid with a flare gun."
The second verse of the song describes the aftermath of the fire. The gambling house was destroyed with a terrible sound, and a man named Funky Claude helped evacuate people from the burning building. Once the dust had settled, Deep Purple had to find another place to record their album. They ended up at the Grand Hotel in Montreux, which was cold and empty. However, with "a few red lights and a few old beds," they managed to make a place to sweat and continued to create music. The song ends with the refrain "Smoke on the water, fire in the sky," which serves as a haunting reminder of the tragedy that took place in Montreux that day.
Line by Line Meaning
We all came out to montreux
We all arrived in Montreux
On the lake geneva shoreline
By the shores of Lake Geneva
To make records with a mobile
To record music using a mobile studio
We didnt have much time
Limited time to record
Frank zappa and the mothers
Frank Zappa and his band, The Mothers of Invention
Were at the best place around
They were performing at the best venue in the vicinity
But some stupid with a flare gun
Someone foolish fired a flare gun
Burned the place to the ground
And burned the venue to the ground
Smoke on the water, fire in the sky
Resulting in smoke and fire
They burned down the gambling house
The arsonists burned down a casino
It died with an awful sound
The casino burned down causing terrible noise
Funky claude was running in and out
A person called Funky Claude was going in and out of the venue
Pulling kids out the ground
Saving children from the venue
When it all was over
Once the incident was over
We had to find another place
We had to look for another venue
But swiss time was running out
We were running out of time to continue recording in Switzerland
It seemed that we would lose the race
We thought we might not be able to finish recording on time
We ended up at the grand hotel
Eventually, we moved to the Grand Hotel
It was empty cold and bare
The hotel was vacant, cold, and uncared for
But with the rolling truck stones thing just outside
But with a mobile truck studio parked outside
Making our music there
We continued recording our music there
With a few red lights and a few old beds
We had limited equipment and space
We make a place to sweat
We created a place to work hard
No matter what we get out of this
Regardless of the outcome
I know well never forget
We will never forget the experience
Smoke on the water, fire in the sky
And the memory of the smoke and flames will always remain
Contributed by Mia O. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@nelia9410
We all came out to Montreux
On the Lake Geneva shoreline
To make records with a mobile
We didn't have much time
Frank Zappa and the Mothers
Were at the best place around
But some stupid with a flare gun
Burned the place to the ground
Smoke on the water, fire in the sky
Smoke on the water
They burned down the gambling house
It died with an awful sound
Funky Claude was running in and out
Pulling kids out the ground
When it all was over
We had to find another place
But Swiss time was running out
It seemed that we would lose the race
Smoke on the water, fire in the sky
Smoke on the water
We ended up at the Grand hotel
It was empty cold and bare
But with the Rolling truck Stones thing just outside
Making our music there
With a few red lights and a few old beds
We make a place to sweat
No matter what we get out of this
I know we'll never forget
Smoke on the water, fire in the sky
Smoke on the water
@robertbutas
I really love this jazzy interpretations of Deep Purple,
and Karen´s luscious singing.
@adamfletcher8542
Smooth, cool and so gorgeous. So real.
@jorgemurilodefensordecastr2749
So nice!
@curtisgabriel6730
Love it sounds cool
@angelguerra534
Great song !!!!
@WalkingNice
amazing jazz
@user-ez7yg8jb4r
amazing!
@adamfletcher8542
Prices voice, so Impresive. So good, words fail me.
@mvdmvffin
🖖✨😌
@macdaddybill
amazing...