Chris Bennett - Chris Bennett / Less Is More

Album: Chris Bennett
Size: 104,4 MB
Time: 44:54
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Released: 1993
Styles: Jazz Vocals, Pop/Rock
Art: Front

01. My Funny Valentine (4:00)
02. Shimmy Softly (4:05)
03. Turning Into Love (4:25)
04. Aint No Game (4:13)
05. Roll (3:57)
06. Bus Stop (4:12)
07. Besame Aqui (4:21)
08. Secret Spaces (4:27)
09. And Yet (5:26)
10. Somewhere (5:43)

Chris Bennett is a fine singer based in Los Angeles whose style crosses over between pop and jazz and whose voice can be quite haunting. Both of her parents played piano (her mother was an elementary school music teacher) and she was studying piano and dance by the time she turned five. Bennett majored in music and dance at the University of Illinois and went to graduate school at UCLA. She started appearing in nightclubs at that time and for a period settled in Germany. As a pop songwriter, she was quite successful; her tunes were recorded by top artists in the R&B and pop fields, including Tina Turner. Since returning to Los Angeles, Chris Bennett has recorded as a leader for Renegade and Pacific St. ~Biography by Scott Yanow

Chris Bennett

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Album: Less Is More
Size: 116,1 MB
Time: 49:41
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Released: 1998
Styles: Jazz Vocals, Pop/Rock
Art: Front

01. Drifting (3:23)
02. Where Do You Start (3:07)
03. Isnt It Romantic (3:33)
04. My Foolish Heart (4:07)
05. Make Me New For You (3:49)
06. People Will Say Were In Love (3:39)
07. Dindi (5:47)
08. Theme From Midnight Express (5:05)
09. Feels Like A Heartbreak (4:10)
10. You Never Saw Me Dance (3:46)
11. Less Is More (3:29)
12. Some Other Time (5:40)

Chris Bennett is a versatile singer whose spine-tingling voice generates soft power. She gets her message across with quiet subtlety and always seems to fully understand the words she is interpreting. Although not really an improviser, Bennett is quite effective throughout this ballad album. Singing some older tunes (including "Isn't It Romantic," "My Foolish Heart" and "Some Other Time") and six of her melodic originals (which are generally pop-oriented), Bennett is featured in several different settings. There are some duets with pianist Eric Doney, a few of the other pieces also use guitarist Wayne Johnson, bassist Cliff Hugo, percussionist Bobbye Hall, flutist Gary Herbig, the tenor of Armando Castagnoli and/or violinist Haim Shtrum (who has a pretty tone), and the singer plays piano on three of her songs. With a few exceptions (such as "Make Me New For You"), the emphasis is on slower tempos, but Bennett's sensuous long tones make the record quite listenable. ~Review by Scott Yanow

Less Is More

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Charlie Hunter & Scott Amendola - The Cars EP (Bonus Version)

Size: 58,4 MB
Time: 25:23
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Released: 2014
Styles: Jazz Guitar
Art: Front

01. Bye Bye Love (5:40)
02. Candy O (3:39)
03. Double Life (3:25)
04. Good Times Roll (4:36)
05. Let’s Go (3:33)
06. You Got To Move (Bonus Track) (4:27)

Over the next four months Hunter and Amendola are releasing four 5-track EPs, each focusing on the music of a particular artist or act. The project opens with ingenious distillations of Duke Ellington/Billy Strayhorn gems such as “Rockin’ In Rhythm,” “Daydream” and “Mood Indigo.” From Cole Porter’s songbook, they interpret standards, including “Too Darn Hot,” “Every Time We Say Goodbye” and “Anything Goes.” Country music and jazz are often cast as antithetical styles, but the truth is far more complicated. For Hunter and Amendola, a great song is simply a great song, and they find plenty of grist for improvisation in Hank Williams’ classics like “Cold Cold Heart,” and “Ramblin’ Man.” They find fertile ground even further afield from typical jazz fare in the music of new wave rockers The Cars, digging into hits like “Candy-O,” and “Let’s Go.” “The idea is to do these four and see how people respond,” Hunter says. “We started thinking why do we keep making 10-song CDs. I don’t necessarily want to do 10 Hank Williams songs, but five can work well. As long as the song is good we can put it through the mill, like what we did with T.J. Kirk and the Bob Marley album I made.

The Cars EP

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Chantale Gagne Trio - Silent Strength

Size: 117,7 MB
Time: 50:38
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Released: 2008
Styles: Piano Jazz
Art: Front

01. Second Wave (4:47)
02. Tranquilite (4:59)
03. In My Mind (6:27)
04. Silent Strength (4:36)
05. New York Nights (5:38)
06. I Mean You (6:04)
07. Reves (6:04)
08. Peri's Scope (4:16)
09. But Beautiful (5:59)
10. Subway Rag (1:42)

A native of Quebec, Canada, jazz pianist Chantale Gagné began studying music at the age of 8. For more than 7 years, the organ was her primary instrument. At 15 however, the piano became Chantale’s true passion.

From 1997 to 1999, she studied jazz piano with James Gelfand at College Marie-Victorin in Montreal, followed by 4 years at McGill University where she received her degree in “Jazz Piano Performance”. Jan Jarczyk, Jeff Johnston, Andre White and Rémi Bolduc are among her most influential teachers.

In 2005, Chantale met famous pianist Kenny Barron and although she studied with him for a short period of time, this encounter proved to be so inspiring to Chantale both as a pianist and composer that she realised jazz had become her deepest calling.

For the past few years, Chantale has been busy performing in Canada, U.S. and Europe from piano solo to big bands to smaller ensembles.

She is now living in New York City. Her newly released, self-produced album “Silent Strength” recorded with Peter Washington on bass and Lewis Nash on drums, has been met with great reviews and features many of her original compositions.

Silent Strength

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Mark Buselli - Untold Stories

Size: 121,0 MB
Time: 51:58
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Released: 2014
Styles: Jazz: Straight-a-head
Art: Front

01. Untold Stories (5:39)
02. Slider (5:33)
03. Angelica (7:21)
04. Claude (9:24)
05. Istanbul (8:24)
06. What About Me (6:53)
07. Jetstream (8:40)

A combination of Miles, Art Farmer, and so many other bop greats, Buselli gives us no choice but to be held spellbound. --Jazz Review

After eight releases with his Jazz Orchestra, and a stellar duo recording with pianist Claude Sifferlen, Indianapolis trumpeter Mark Buselli turns to his quintet for a wide-ranging set of six originals plus a new take on Ellington's Angelica. Featuring saxophonist Danny Walsh, pianist Steve Allee, Jeremy Allen on bass and Steve Houghton on drums, the dynamic group's years-built rapport shines through on this swinging collection.

Untold Stories

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Simone Kopmajer - Live At Heidi's Jazzclub

Bitrate: 320K/s

Time: 66:01

Size: 151.2 MB

Styles: Jazz vocals

Year: 2013

Art: Front

[5:15] 1. Tea For Two

[3:50] 2. It Don't Mean A Thing

[9:41] 3. Besame Mucho

[5:24] 4. Shoes (From Paris To Rome)

[5:19] 5. Love Will Keep Us Alive

[3:34] 6. Lucky Mojo

[3:51] 7. How Do You Keep The Music Playing

[5:59] 8. What A Difference A Day Makes

[4:09] 9. (If You Can't Sing It) You'll Have To Swing It (Mr. Paganini)

[4:43] 10. Imagine

[8:13] 11. Caravan

[5:57] 12. Kiss

Simone has worked with jazz giants such as George Mraz, Houston Person, Dick Oatts, John di Martino, Victor Lewis, James Genus,... and has played at well known Jazz Festival all over the world.

Daughter of a family of Austrian musicians, Simone began singing with her father's band and studying piano and voice at age twelve. Over the last years, she rose up through the various systems of support for jazz in Europe - talent competitions, officially-subsized orchestras and festivals. She studied formally in Graz, Austria, where two of the foremost jazz vocal educators, Mark Murphy and Sheila Jordan, have long-term teaching residencies, made her US debut in 2000, and has worked all over the world.

Simone Kopmajer - vocals; Ron Teixeira - piano; Rabbit Simmons - bass; Reinhardt Winkler - drums; Terry Myers - tenor sax, clarinet.

Recorded at Heidi´s Jazzclub on the 7th of April 2012

Live At Heidi's Jazzclub

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Hilario Duran & His Latin Jazz Big Band - From The Heart

Bitrate: 320K/s
Time: 52:23
Size: 119.9 MB
Styles: Latin jazz, Easy Listening
Year: 2008
Art: Front

[5:17] 1. Mambo Influenciado
[6:32] 2. From The Heart
[5:42] 3. Habanera In Spain
[4:22] 4. Angel Eyes
[5:42] 5. Paq Man
[6:02] 6. T'dot Cha Cha Cha
[5:31] 7. Moon Face Again
[1:23] 8. Rumba For Chano
[4:39] 9. Blem Blem Blem
[7:08] 10. Farewell

Anyone who heard the explosive band put together by multi-instrumentalist Arturo Sandoval shortly after he broke away from the seemingly indivisible Irakere would probably remember the ubiquitous young gentleman at the piano. He was the one with the propulsive attack that featured a left hand like God in a Cuban descarga, abetted by the lightening fast right hand with darting flourishes that finished his intricate phrases. The "escuela de vida," where he cut his musical teeth, was the Orchesta Cubana de Musica, with whom, in 1976, he replaced departing pianist Jesus "Chucho" Valdes.

The gentleman in question is Hilario Duran. It was at Orchesta Cubana de Musica, Duran has said, that he "learned the art and tricks of big band orchestras (taught by) the director of this great orchestra, German Pifferrer." When he said that, Duran was being his typically modest Cuban self. Six years earlier, in 1970, he was responsible for the arrangements of another well-known big band, Orchesta de Aficionados. So by the time 1976 came around, Duran had already, over six years, come to leave his personal voice in the echoes of the charts for two famous orchestras—and that almost four decades ago.

So the art of the big band would be nothing new to Duran. This is what makes his first US release, From the Heart, not just an exciting experience, but the closing of a circle and the culmination of a musical expedition that has come to fruition after long and hard journeying. It's a journey that first began in Cuba and hit milestone after milestone in Canada, the country in which Duran chose to live. And what a journey it has been. Full of ritmo, soul and jazz and such obvious love for an art that Duran has mastered with style and finesse. Hats off also to Alma Records producer, Peter Cardinali, for seeing this gigantic project through.

From The Heart

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Thomas Fryland - Perfume And Rain

Bitrate: 320K/s
Time: 72:51
Size: 166.8 MB
Styles: Trumpet jazz
Year: 1996/2013
Art: Front

[4:50] 1. Too Marvelous For Words
[6:03] 2. She's Funny That Way
[4:54] 3. Our Delight
[4:26] 4. Beautiful Moons Ago
[5:26] 5. Cherokee
[5:24] 6. Flossie Lou
[5:17] 7. Perfume And Rain
[5:10] 8. Daybreak
[4:47] 9. Lotus Blossom
[5:46] 10. Out Of Nowhere
[5:06] 11. You Must Believe In Spring
[5:56] 12. Tea For Two
[3:33] 13. Bourbon Street Parade
[6:05] 14. Humpty Dumpty Heart

Born in a small city near the German border in Denmark 1969, Thomas Fryland started playing the trumpet at the age of 7. He graduated from the Royal Conservatory in the Haag, Holland, after 2 years of study in 1992. Among his teachers were Frans Elsen, Barry Harris, John Ruocco and Ack van Rooyen.

He has released 11 albums as a leader and has participated on a large number of recordings as a sideman. He has received a number of honors for his playing and recordings. From 1998 till 2005 he was a member of the Danish Radio Big Band performing the solo chair in the trumpet section.

Since 2005 he is the teacher of Jazz trumpet at the conservatories in Copenhagen, Århus and Ålborg in Denmark. Through the years he has recorded and toured with greats like Phil Woods,Kenny Werner, Ferdinand Povel, Joe Lovano, Frans Elsen, Benny Golson, Maria Schneider, Jim McNeely, Eric Alexander, Renee Rosnes, Sam Yahel, Dave Hazeltine, Kenny Drew, NHØP, Bob Mintzer, Mike Stern, Tim Hagans, Randy Brecker, Duke Jordan, Toots Thielemans, Ivan Lins, Dick Oatts a.m.o.

Thomas Fryland: trumpet; Jacob Fischer: guitars; Jesper Lundgaard: bass; Svend Erik Norregaard: drums.

Perfume And Rain

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Nicki Parrott - Moon River

Styles: Vocal Jazz
Year: 2007
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 54:08
Size: 124,7 MB
Art: Front + Back

(4:02)  1. Moon River
(4:09)  2. Is You Is Or Is You Ain't My Baby?
(3:21)  3. Say It Isn't So
(3:40)  4. You'd Be So Nice To Come Home To
(4:36)  5. Takin' A Chance On Love
(4:04)  6. I Don't Know Enough About You
(3:51)  7. Makin' Whoopee
(5:14)  8. Cry Me A River
(3:48)  9. What A Difference A Day Made
(4:43) 10. Besame Mucho
(4:19) 11. I Can't Give You Anything But Love
(2:54) 12. Nicki's Blues
(5:19) 13. The More I See You

Japan's appetite for American jazz is ever increasing and their Venus Records has been releasing new material from mainstream artists that is attractively packaged and superbly recorded. Included in their catalog is Moon River, bassist/vocalist Nicki Parrott's debut as a leader. Much in demand as a bassist, Parrott has developed a uniquely emotive style that is adaptable to a number of genres but in all cases her sensitive touch is what sets her apart. Her recent foray into jazz vocals complements her bass playing exceedingly well and is similarly showcased here. Like her bass playing, the power in her voice is drawn from her phrasing and textural mastery which is striking and very well suited to this program that consists primarily of standards. Rounding out a quintet that develops these nuggets into delightfully fresh and poignant performances are the best jazz musicians that Parrott has yet to record with. Billy Drummond, whose textural drums augment Parrot perfectly, jointly anchors this very strong rhythm section. 

Tenor saxophonist Harry Allen, in possession of a warm rich tone, adds a smoky air to the allure of tunes like "Besame Mucho" and "Cry Me A River" while sweetening the playfulness of the Louis Jordan classic "Is You Is Or Is You Ain't My Baby?." Pianist John Di Martino and guitarist Paul Myers remain quite true to these melodies but do occasionally swing out to cook a tune like Cole Porter's "You'd Be So Nice To Come Home To." In the context of all this is Parrott whose combination of sensitivity and coquettishness, on both bass and vocals, can be beautifully tender as it is on the CD closer "The More I See You" or frankly erotic as on her own "Nicky's Blues." Mastered in a way that evokes a warm club atmosphere, Moon River is a fitting forum for Parrott to flaunt her singular combination of poignant vocals and passionate bass. ~ Elliott Simon   http://www.allaboutjazz.com/moon-river-nicki-parrott-venus-records-review-by-elliott-simon.php#.U2kEEyhvCPM
 

Personnel: Nicki Parrott: vocal & bass; Harry Allen: tenor sax; John Di Martino: piano; Paul Myers: guitar; Billy Drummond: drums.

Moon River

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Jeanne Lee & Mal Waldron - After Hours

Styles: Vocal And Piano Jazz
Year: 2003
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 42:21
Size: 98,4 MB
Art: Front

(7:28)  1. Caravan
(7:07)  2. You Got To My Head
(4:03)  3. I Could Write A Book
(3:24)  4. Goodbye Pork-Pie Hat
(3:17)  5. Straight Ahead
(7:21)  6. Fire Waltz
(4:30)  7. I Let A Song Go Out Of My Heart
(5:10)  8. Every Time We Say Goodbye

Mal Waldron’s passing this past December robbed jazz of one of its finest and most original pianists. His long career was marked by many high points, including stints with Billie Holiday, Charles Mingus, Eric Dolphy and Booker Little. It is especially wonderful to listen to Waldron in solo and duet settings, where his unique style on his instrument can be heard to its fullest effect. One of the best of these albums is After Hours, a thrilling standards set recorded with the late vocalist Jeanne Lee. While Lee’s voice is an acquired taste, it is often grand and expressive. Lee soars through her remarkable range, but she always retains a sense of intimacy.

Waldron, who spent the last few years of Billie Holiday’s life as her accompanist, is sensitive to Lee’s needs as he improvises behind her. Yet Waldron never fails to enchant the listener with his haunting tone and his unique touch. After Hours has a meditative rather than romantic air about it, which suits both Lee and Waldron’s styles. Both artists are masters of understatement, drawing more attention with a whisper than many could with a shout. The song selection is eclectic. An exotic “Caravan” sits alongside a mournful “Goodbye Pork- Pie Hat” and a sultry “I Could Write a Book.” Each performance is rich and deeply nuanced, inviting the listener to “listen and dig it,” as Lee sings in “Pork-Pie Hat.” Can you dig it? Mal Waldron was playing what he was feeling.   ~ Alexander M.Stern   http://www.allaboutjazz.com/after-hours-jeanne-lee-owl-records-review-by-alexander-m-stern.php#.U20xMChnAqY
 

Personnel: Jeanne Lee, voice; Mal Waldron, piano

After Hours

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Gordon Webster - Live In Philadelphia

Styles: Piano Jazz
Year: 2010
File: MP3@256K/s
Time: 60:07
Size: 110,8 MB
Art: Front

( 3:45)  1. Milenberg Joys
( 3:59)  2. Honeysuckle Rose
( 3:57)  3. Joshua Fit The Battle
( 2:50)  4. Twenty-Four Robbers
( 2:31)  5. I Can't Believe That You're In Love With Me
( 5:16)  6. Bei Mir Bist Du Schoen
( 4:24)  7. Route 66
( 5:31)  8. Moonglow
( 5:27)  9. When I Get Low
( 4:14) 10. Don't Get Around Here Any More
( 4:12) 11. C Jam Blues
(13:53) 12. Sister Kate
( 0:04) 13. Extra Track

Pianist Gordon Webster has performed with Wycliffe Gordon, Grant Green Jr., Tim Hagans, Donny McCaslin, Ingrid Jensen, Chris Parker, Steve LaSpina, Jim Rotondi, Adam Nussbaum, Ron McClure, Chris Potter, Joel Frahm, and Jim Black among others. His playing has been showcased in numerous New York City venues including the Blue Note, The Iridium, Sweet Rhythm, The Cutting Room, Cleopatra’s Needle, Makor, 92nd Street Y, Mannahatta Lounge, Kavehaz, Triad Theater, Smalls, Cafe Vivaldi, The Bar Next Door, St. Nick’s Pub, Night and Day, and Dizzy’s Club Coca-Cola. Webster graduated from the Manhattan School of Music Masters Degree in jazz studies program in 2006, and has studied privately with Kenny Barron, Garry Dial, Sonny Bravo, Ari Heonig and Samir Chatterjee. He has performed in Japan, Korea, Hong Kong, Singapore, France, Australia, and throughout the United States and Canada at international jazz festivals, jazz clubs, and dancing events including lindy exchanges, workshops and camps. 

Originally from Ottawa, Webster began studying music at the age of four. In 1993 he moved to Toronto where he earned a Bachelor of Music from the University of Toronto in 1999. During his eleven years as a Toronto resident, Webster was able to collaborate with many of Canada’s finest jazz instrumentalists and singers. His first trio recording, as a leader, “Three We” was released in 2000 with sidemen Duncan Hopkins and Kevin Dempsey. Other recording credits include Canadian jazz releases with Chris Robinson, Kim Addison, Rita di Ghent; groove/fusion projects KITE, Jukejoint and Gruvoria; a recent duo album with Rochester trumpeter Mike Kaupa; and brother Mike Webster’s fall 2005 release Leading Lines featuring bassist John Benitez (Eddie Palmeri, Chick Corea, John Scofield) and trumpeter Mike Rodriguez (Charlie Haden, Joe Lovano, Clark Terry). Gordon has taught jazz improvisation and piano at Jazzworks summer camp near Ottawa, Canada for five years, maintains a sizeable roster of private students, and has appeared in educational concerts for children with the National Arts Centre Orchestra in collaboration with conductor Boris Brott. In addition to his ongoing creative pursuits as a jazz musician, Gordon developed a passion for lindy hop and blues dancing over the past six years, which has become a significant influence in his life since 2001. ~ Bio   http://www.last.fm/music/Gordon+Webster/+wiki

Live In Philadelphia

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Gianni Basso & Renato Sellani - Body & Soul

Styles: Saxphone And Piano Jazz

Year: 2008

File: MP3@320K/s

Time: 57:20

Size: 132,5 MB

Art: Front

(6:13)  1. Body And Soul

(3:50)  2. La Mer

(4:08)  3. Star Dust

(5:42)  4. Ma L'Amore No

(5:18)  5. Deep Purple

(5:20)  6. Pennies From Heaven

(4:50)  7. My Foolish Heart

(4:40)  8. I Should Care

(4:13)  9. Watch What Happens

(4:28) 10. Miss Bo

(4:50) 11. Solamente Una Vez

(3:43) 12. I Love you

Saxophonist Gianni Basso and pianist Renato Sellani, Piemontese octogenarians, pay retrospective homage on Body and Soul, caressing Swing Era favorites with devotion and delight, grace and poetry. Basso models his brimming, avuncular style on Coleman Hawkins, complete with gruff, burly tone, nowhere more in evidence than on the pace-setting title track. Sellani approaches Teddy Wilson with a conservatory touch, discreetly tasteful and tidy, bubbling over but occasionally, as on "Watch What Happens". This Legrand tune, along with "Beyond The Sea" and Latin classics, give away their European bent. ~ Fred Bouchard  http://www.allaboutjazz.com/globe-unity-italy-gianni-basso-renato-sellani-norberto-tamburrino-and-giorgio-gaslini-by-fred-bouchard.php#.U2gHbiiS-PM

Body & Soul

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