Bette Midler - Cool Yule

Bitrate: 320K/s
Time: 37:00
Size: 84.7 MB
Styles: Holiday
Year: 2006
Art: Front

[3:10] 1. Merry Christmas
[2:26] 2. Cool Yule
[3:54] 3. Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas
[2:44] 4. Winter Wonderland Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow!
[3:18] 5. I'll Be Home For Christmas
[3:56] 6. What Are You Doing New Year's Eve
[3:22] 7. I've Got My Love To Keep Me Warm
[3:10] 8. O Come, O Come, Emmanuel
[2:33] 9. Mele Kalikimaka
[5:08] 10. From A Distance
[3:13] 11. White Christmas (White Christmas)

Forever the entertainer, Bette Midler pulls out all the stops for this swinging Christmas album, which has something old, something new, something revisited and absolutely nothing to be blue about.

Bette treats Christmas favorites with due respect while giving them her special touch, whether she's playfully bantering with Johnny Mathis on "Winter Wonderland/Let it Snow! Let it Snow! Let it Snow!" or going back to her Hawaiian roots with "Mele Kalikimaka". Another highlight of the album is the yuletide remix of her huge hit "From a Distance".

This is a great addition to any Christmas music collection, and a wonderful gift for anyone who enjoys traditional Christmas carols. ~Amanda Richards/Amazon

Cool Yule

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Clifford Jordan Quartet - Repetition

Bitrate: 320K/s
Time: 41:08
Size: 94.2 MB
Styles: Saxophone jazz
Year: 1984/1998
Art: Front

[6:47] 1. Third Avenue
[3:32] 2. Fun
[6:43] 3. Repetition
[4:32] 4. Evidence
[6:28] 5. Nostalgia/Casbah
[5:42] 6. House Call
[7:22] 7. Quittin' Time

Clifford Jordan was in top form for this marathon, noon-to-midnight quartet studio session with Barry Harris, Walter Booker, and Vernel Fournier. The veteran hard bopper brought three potent originals to the date, and the group collaborated on the driving up-tempo "Fun." Neal Hefti's "Repetition" could be subtitled "Relaxation" for its easygoing tempo. The short but effective rendition of Monk's "Evidence" packs plenty of punch, while the medley of Fats Navarro's "Nostalgia" and Tadd Dameron's "Casbah" is also a masterful performance. The only downside to this release is the self-serving liner notes by the enormously egocentric Stanley Crouch. ~Ken Dryden

Repetition

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Anna Gadt - Breathing

Size: 135,9 MB
Time: 58:54
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Released: 2013
Styles: Jazz Vocals
Art: Front

01. Follow Me (5:55)
02. Don't Go (9:35)
03. The Rebirth (7:33)
04. A Warm Coat (2:54)
05. Liryka Spiacego (3:55)
06. The Source (4:35)
07. You (3:14)
08. Soothing Simplicity (6:18)
09. Breathing (5:09)
10. Lullaby For J. (2:19)
11. Just Be (7:23)

Anna is not an easy artist to describe. Her characteristic features may actually seem contradictory: gentleness, restless soul, mystery, sensitivity, as well as a strong personality and a sense of humour. In her music, Slavic origins interlace with European inspirations. Improvised music is what fascitates her most. She seeks forms of expression through the word, the sound and most of all, through the silence.

What she finds particularly interesting is the philosophy of Ayn Rand (individualism of opinion) and the poetry of May Angelou, an American poet who used to work with Martin Luther King. Angelou’s texts turned out to be an excellent subject to write music to. That is how songs “Alone”, “They Went Home” and “Still I Rise” came into being. The last one is also the title song of the album released in 2010. In her music, she oscillates in an intriguing way between singing, whispering and talking. In inprovisation, she’s not afraid to use her voice in an unusual way.

At first, she studied classical music. She would love to spend long hours playing Bach, Chopin or Grieg on the piano. Actually, her inclination for classical music, especially for Jan Sebastian Bach, has remained strong up to now. The direction that she’d chosen when she was only 10 years old changed suddenly when she listened to the solo of Toots Thielemans on a Pat Metheny’s record Secret Story. She was so impressed by his improvisation, that she wished to continue her education in jazz music.

In 2002 she was accepted to the prestigious Jazz Institute of the Academy of Music in Katowice, where she currently works as a teacher.

She was awarded the prize of Jazz Struggle contest and got introduced to the competition’s jury president, Billy Harper. That was the moment in her artistic life which she finds crucial. “This award helped me believe in myself. During that concert I played my own songs, so my musical feeling and aesthetics were appreciated. This award boosted my spirits, especially because Billy Harper, whom I adored and really admired, was the president of the jury”.

Anna has already recorded 2 albums. Her debut record “Na mojej drodze”(On my way), was published in 2008. It contained original songs sung in Polish and it aroused interest among the critics and listeners. The record was nominated to the Fryderyk Music Award, the Jazz Debut Album of the Year – a prestigious award of the Polish music industry. Anna presented her album at numerous concert, among others, at Szczecin Music Fest, where she opened Suzanne Vega’s performance.

The release of her second album Still I Rise (2010) was followed by many concerts in various places, including Polish Radio Studio – one of the most important concert venue in the country.

Apart from her individual work, she supports her friends’ projects. She is connected with the Voicingers festival and also cooperates with Jazz City Choir, the only jazz vocal formation in Poland.

Breathing

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Duke Seidmann - Subtonic

Size: 131,3 MB
Time: 56:45
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Released: 2013
Styles: Swing Jazz, Saxophone Jazz
Art: Front

01. Record Hop (4:15)
02. 633! Knock (4:39)
03. Take 'em Off, Take 'em Off (4:02)
04. Royal Garden Blues (4:56)
05. Daydream By Design (5:00)
06. Twiddly Bits (3:09)
07. The Very Thought Of You (2:22)
08. Sunday (4:08)
09. Searsy (3:16)
10. Kalli The Koolo (3:42)
11. Brotherhood Of Man (4:19)
12. I Can't Get Started (7:14)
13. Willie And The Hand Jive (5:38)

The Swiss saxophonist, singer and co-founder of the Flagships Duke Seidmann is a wanderer between worlds. The longtime former president of the Jazz Circle Zurich is also the owner of a voice response promotion company and writes books on etymology. His great passion is the intersection between jazz, blues and R & B of the forties and early fifties, for which he coined the term "Prerock Music". As inspiration on tenor he calls musicians such as Al Sears, Eddie Chamblee, Ben Webster or Lester Young. ~A Google translation from the German

Subtonic

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Poncho Sanchez & Terence Blanchard - Chano Y Dizzy

Bitrate: 320K/s
Time: 54:49
Size: 125.5 MB
Styles: Latin jazz, Afro-Cuban rhythms
Year: 2011
Art: Front

[6:45] 1. Chano Pozo Medley: Tin Tin Deo Manteca Guachi Guaro
[5:29] 2. Con Alma
[2:56] 3. Wandering Wonder
[4:52] 4. Siboney
[4:06] 5. Dizzy's Dashiki
[5:17] 6. Groovin' High
[6:22] 7. Nocturna
[4:45] 8. Harris' Walk
[5:27] 9. Promenade
[4:03] 10. Jack's Dilemma
[4:43] 11. Arinanara

Latin jazz percussionist Poncho Sanchez teams up with trumpeter Terence Blanchard to pay tribute to the innovative Afro-Cuban jazz recordings of Dizzy Gillespie and Chano Pozo on 2011's Chano y Dizzy! Introduced to each other in 1947, legendary bebop trumpeter Gillespie and equally famous Cuban congo player Pozo created what was to be called Afro-Cuban jazz and helped spur the development of Latin jazz. Consequently, their names are synonymous with such compositions as "Tin Tin Deo," "Con Alma," and "Manteca" -- all of which are covered here. Long an avowed acolyte of Gillespie and Pozo, Sanchez is the perfect musician to delve into this music, as is Blanchard, who clearly has an affinity for Latin-infused jazz. While Sanchez and Blanchard tackle such Afro-Cuban-associated gems as Gillespie's "Groovin' High" and even Pozo's punchy and bright 1930s composition "Ariñañara," they also explore some more contemporary pieces well suited to the vibe. Among these are the steamy Ivan Lins ballad "Nocturna" (which Blanchard also covered on his 2003 release Bounce) as well as Ernesto Lecuona's languid ballroom number "Siboney." In keeping with the Latin bop aesthetic, there are also some fine small big-band originals from Sanchez's band, including trombonist Francisco Torres' driving "Promenade" and trumpeter Ron Blake's funky boogaloo "Harris' Walk." An inspired and heartfelt tribute, Chano y Dizzy! is a must-hear for Latin jazz fans as well as longtime Sanchez and Blanchard listeners. ~ Matt Collar
Recording information: Henson Recording Studios, Los Angeles, CA. Photographer: Ashley Stagg.

Poncho Sanchez (vocals, congas, percussion); Terence Blanchard (trumpet); Francisco Torres (vocals, trombone); Tony Banda (vocals); Rob Hardt (alto saxophone, tenor saxophone); Ron Francis Blake (trumpet); David Torres (piano); Joey De Leon, Jr. (drums, bongos, percussion); George Ortiz (timbales).

Chano Y Dizzy

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Viktoria Tolstoy - White Russian

Styles: Vocal
Year: 1999
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 54:58
Size: 126,3 MB
Art: Front

(4:10)  1. Solitary
(3:39)  2. Venus & Mars
(4:12)  3. My Garden
(3:36)  4. I Do Care
(4:44)  5. Holy Water
(3:44)  6. Wonderful Life
(2:55)  7. Invisible Changes
(4:45)  8. High Heels
(3:47)  9. For Your Love
(5:36) 10. Casablanca
(4:59) 11. Spring
(5:38) 12. My Funny Valentine
(3:06) 13. Solitary

Viktoria Tolstoy is a highly celebrated and respected international jazz vocalist and her numerous success stories are all a product of this explosive natural supertalent. Viktoria has never taken a single singing class thus she also owns that little perfect difference that delivers her clearly strong and wonderfully untamed, vibrant sound. She'll capture the moment on any given occasion and will outperform herself from one grand evening to the next. Viktoria reaches all the way and her colorful, spontaneous persona will by all means make one forget to breathe for not only a short moment. Viktoria is already on the very top, yet once again aiming up. Viktoria has been saluted by media wherever she has landed since she first grabbed that microphone, and rest assure, this show will go on. We suggest you buckle up. Expect a lot. ~ http://www.viktoriatolstoy.com/biography.php

White Russian

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Eric Alexander - Revival Of The Fittest

Styles: Straight-Ahead Jazz
Year: 2009
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 55:45
Size: 128,1 MB
Art: Front

(7:24)  1. Revival
(7:35)  2. My Grown-Up Christmas List
(8:46)  3. The Island
(8:14)  4. Too Late Fall Back Baby
(5:16)  5. Love-Wise
(5:26)  6. Blues For Phineas
(7:01)  7. You Must Believe In Spring
(6:00)  8. Yasashiku

It isn't hard to understand why Eric Alexander has employed acoustic pianist Harold Mabern on more than a few of his albums. The big-toned tenor saxophonist has enjoyed a strong rapport with his former teacher, and that rapport is very much in evidence on Revival of the Fittest. Alexander employs Mabern on almost every song on this 2009 recording; the exception is Alexander's contemplative "Yasashiku (Gently)," which finds Alexander performing a tenor/piano duet with Mike LeDonne. But Alexander features Mabern on every other track, and the two of them form a cohesive acoustic quartet with bassist Nat Reeves and drummer Joe Farnsworth. One has high expectations when Alexander and Mabern get together; they don't let us down on a hard bop/post-bop CD that ranges from inspired performances of George Coleman's "Revival," Ivan Lins' "The Island," and Michel Legrand's "You Must Believe in Spring" to two Mabern pieces that the pianist previously recorded on albums of his own (the driving "Too Late Fall Back Baby" and the Phineas Newborn, Jr.-dedicated "Blues for Phineas"). 

Ballads have long been one of Alexander's strong points, and he reminds us how expressive a ballad player he can be on Marvin Fisher's "Love-Wise" (which Nat King Cole made famous with a Nelson Riddle-arranged recording in 1958). Alexander's performance of "Love-Wise" recalls John Coltrane's hard bop period of the late ‘50s, when he was recording for Prestige; Trane gave us some delightfully lyrical recordings of ballads during his pre-Atlantic period (including "Stardust," "Lush Life," and "Invitation"), and Alexander acknowledges Prestige-era Trane on "Love-Wise" but does so without allowing his own personality to become obscured. Revival of the Fittest is yet another example of how rewarding an Alexander album can be when Mabern is on board. ~ Alex Henderson   http://www.allmusic.com/album/revival-of-the-fittest-mw0000824421

Personnel: Eric Alexander: tenor saxophone; Harold Mabern: piano; Nat Reeves: bass; Joe Farnsworth: drums. 

Revival Of The Fittest

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Ken Peplowski Quartet - Memories Of You

Styles: Jazz
Year: 2006
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 68:44
Size: 157,8 MB
Art: Front

(5:35)  1. Memories Of You
(3:52)  2. I'll Be Seeing You
(5:10)  3. Bright Moments
(6:54)  4. In A Sentimental Mood
(8:23)  5. Dream Dancing
(4:45)  6. Last Night When We Were Young
(7:52)  7. It Might As Well Be Spring
(5:09)  8. Lotus Blossom
(7:35)  9. But Not For Me
(6:30) 10. Poor Butterfly
(6:51) 11. Memories Of You II

Ken Peplowski is among the top clarinetists and tenor saxophonists of his generation. After a long, fruitful period recording as a leader for Concord, Peplowski started getting a number of offers to record for overseas labels. He alternates between the two instruments during these 2006 sessions, well accompanied by pianist Ted Rosenthal, bassist Gary Mazzaroppi (long Marian McPartland's bassist of choice), and drummer Jeff Brillinger, all veterans like the leader. Peplowski's lush tenor in the first interpretation of "Memories of You" recalls Ben Webster with his soft, breathy vibrato and lyrical style. 

He also caresses Roland Kirk's infrequently heard ballad "Bright Moments" and renders an elegant "Dream Dancing" as well. On clarinet, Peplowski's magical treatment of "In a Sentimental Mood" (backed solely by bass at first) suggests a bird's song. The cream of the crop is his warm interpretation of Billy Strayhorn's "Lotus Blossom." This set is perfect for late-night listening. ~ Ken Dryden  http://www.allmusic.com/album/memories-of-you-mw0001492873

Memories Of You

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Art Blakey & The J. M. - The Freedom Rider

Styles: Hard Bop
Year: 1961
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 54:03
Size: 125,4 MB
Art: Front + Back

(7:56)  1. Tell It Like It Is
(7:28)  2. The Freedom Rider
(6:23)  3. El Toro
(6:16)  4. Petty Larceny
(6:00)  5. Blue Lace
(6:16)  6. Uptight
(6:57)  7. Pisces
(6:44)  8. Blue Ching

The final recording by this edition of The Jazz Messengers (featuring trumpeter Lee Morgan, tenor saxophonist Wayne Shorter, pianist Bobby Timmons, bassist Jymie Merritt and drummer/leader Art Blakey) finds the group consolidating their year-and-a-half of experience into yet another exciting document. 

Blakey's unaccompanied drum feature on "The Freedom Rider" is full of drama while the rest of the program (two compositions apiece by Morgan and Shorter) makes this last chapter for this particular band quite memorable. ~ Scott Yanow  

http://www.allmusic.com/album/the-freedom-rider-mw0000597050

The Freedom Rider

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