Helen Merrill - You've Got A Date With The Blues

Bitrate: 320K/s

Time: 36:43

Size: 84.1 MB

Styles: Vocal jazz

Year: 1959/2006

Art: Front

[5:21] 1. The Blues From Black, Brown And Beige

[3:33] 2. Am I Blue

[3:17] 3. Blue Gardenia

[3:27] 4. You've Got A Date With The Blues

[3:34] 5. The Thrill Is Gone

[3:08] 6. (Ah The Apple Trees) When The World Was Young

[3:36] 7. Blues In My Heart

[3:22] 8. Vous M'eblouissez (You Go To My Head)

[2:45] 9. Lorsque Tu M'embrasses (Just Squeeze Me)

[3:05] 10. The Meaning Of The Blues

[1:31] 11. Signing Off

Helen Merrill dates are always something special. This set for Metrojazz, which has been reissued as a Verve CD, matches the cool-toned yet inwardly heated singer with an all-star sextet arranged by Quincy Jones and featuring solos by trumpeter Kenny Dorham and either Frank Wess or Jerome Richardson on flute and tenor. The repertoire includes versions of "You Go to My Head" and "Just Squeeze Me" sung in French, a couple of numbers by producer Leonard Feather, Duke Ellington's "The Blues From Black, Brown and Beige," and a haunting rendition of "The Thrill Is Gone." Recommended. ~Scott Yanow

You've Got A Date With The Blues

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Stan Getz - The Essential Stan Getz: The Columbia Years (2-Disc set)

One of the all-time great tenor saxophonists, Stan Getz was known as "The Sound" because he had one of the most beautiful tones ever heard. Getz, whose main early influence was Lester Young, grew to be a major influence himself and to his credit he never stopped evolving.

Getz had the opportunity to play in a variety of major swing big bands while a teenager due to the World War II draft. He was with Jack Teagarden (1943) when he was just 16, followed by stints with Stan Kenton (1944-1945), Jimmy Dorsey (1945), and Benny Goodman (1945-1946); he soloed on a few records with Goodman. Getz, who had his recording debut as a leader in July 1946 with four titles, became famous during his period with Woody Herman's Second Herd (1947-1949), soloing (along with Zoot Sims, Herbie Steward, and Serge Chaloff) on the original version of "Four Brothers" and having his sound well-featured on the ballad "Early Autumn." After leaving Herman, Getz was (with the exception of some tours with Jazz at the Philharmonic) a leader for the rest of his life.

Throughout his career Getz recorded as a leader for Savoy, Spotlite, Prestige, Roost, Verve, MGM, Victor, Columbia, SteepleChase, Concord, Sonet, Black Hawk, A&M, and EmArcy among other labels (not to mention sessions with Lionel Hampton, Dizzy Gillespie, and Gerry Mulligan) and there are dozens of worthy records by the tenor currently available on CD. ~Scott Yanow

Album: The Essential Stan Getz: The Columbia Years (Disc 1)
Bitrate: 320K/s
Time: 74:37
Size: 170.8 MB
Styles: Saxophone jazz
Year: 2013

[ 3:53] 1. Early Autumn
[ 3:47] 2. Blue Getz Blues
[ 4:16] 3. Blue Serge
[ 4:29] 4. Clear Out Of This World
[ 5:15] 5. Misty
[ 7:01] 6. Who Cares
[ 5:49] 7. Lester Left Town
[ 5:39] 8. The Peacocks
[ 4:52] 9. What Am I Here For
[ 3:58] 10. Skylark
[10:35] 11. Invitation
[ 9:58] 12. Summer Night
[ 4:59] 13. Polka Dots & Moonbeams

The Essential Stan Getz: The Columbia Years (Disc 1)

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Album: The Essential Stan Getz: The Columbia Years (Disc 2)
Bitrate: 320K/s
Time: 76:46
Size: 175.7 MB
Styles: Saxophone jazz
Year: 2013
Art: Front

[15:31] 1. tanglewood concerto
[ 5:42] 2. A Song After Sundown
[ 3:50] 3. The Girl From Ipanema
[ 3:29] 4. Double Rainbow
[ 4:40] 5. Aguas De Marco
[ 5:19] 6. Ligia
[ 5:16] 7. E Preciso Perdoar
[ 4:01] 8. Retrato Em Branco E Preto
[ 8:09] 9. Five Hundred Miles High
[ 4:14] 10. Lush Life
[ 5:06] 11. Captain Marvel
[11:24] 12. Infant Eyes

The Essential Stan Getz: The Columbia Years (Disc 2)

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Raphael Wressnig's Organic Trio - Cut A Little Deeper On The Funk

Bitrate: 320K/s

Time: 52:37

Size: 120.4 MB

Styles: Organ jazz

Year: 2008

Art: Front

[4:46] 1. Road To Detroit

[4:37] 2. N.O.T. Aka N'awlins Thang

[7:06] 3. Cut A Little Deeper On The Funk

[4:41] 4. Ridin'

[5:17] 5. Stringdance

[7:40] 6. Exit Soul-Ville

[7:01] 7. Midnight On The Bayou

[4:45] 8. Twenty Four

[6:39] 9. Growlin' The Blues

Raphael Wressnig was 28 at the time of this recording but is already considered one of Europe's top jazz organists. On this CD, Wressnig plays the usual assortment of blues and soul-jazz grooves but also stretches his instrument by playing some music that borders on the avant-garde, some funk, a second-line New Orleans parade rhythm groove, a soulful country ballad, and even hints of hip-hop. Two songs are performed solely by Wressnig's Organic Trio, a unit that had been together for six years by 2008, featuring the fine guitarist Georg Jantscher and drummer Lukas Knöfler. Three numbers add either tenor saxophonist Craig Handy or Christian Bachner, two others have the team of trumpeter Eric Bloom and tenorman Sax Gordon, and the remaining two find percussionist Luis Ribeiro making the group a quartet. The constant changes in instrumentation along with the wide variety of styles give Cut a Little Deeper on the Funk plenty of variety, but the main reason to pick up this CD is to discover the brilliant playing of Raphael Wressnig. ~Scott Yanow

Cut A Little Deeper On The Funk

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Novabossa - S/T

Bitrate: 320K/s
Time: 38:25
Size: 88.0 MB
Styles: Bossa Nova, Latin jazz
Year: 2005
Art: Front

[4:01] 1. O Barquinho (My Little Boat)
[2:52] 2. Wave
[2:46] 3. The Look Of Love
[2:56] 4. Garota De Ipanema
[3:00] 5. Corcovado
[3:02] 6. You Don't Know Me
[2:42] 7. Dindi
[3:02] 8. Skylark
[3:30] 9. Smile
[4:27] 10. The Nearness Of You
[3:13] 11. My One And Only Love
[2:48] 12. The Look Of Love (Sax Version)

novabossa, a Seattle-based jazz/bossa nova quintet, performs the music of Antonio Carlos Jobim and a selection of great standards and sultry ballads. Featuring the stunning vocals of Márcia Távora; and the spirited musical stylings of Marty Jourard (keyboards), Frederick Cockfield (bass), Peter Caruso (guitar) and Eric Larson (drums/perc), novabossa combine the best of two musical worlds: Brazil's beautiful bossa nova, and elegant tunes from the Great American Songbook.

Novabossa

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Adelaide Ruble - Come Fly With Me

Styles: Vocal Jazz
Year: 2005
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 36:15
Size: 85,5 MB
Art: Front

(2:16)  1. On The Street Where You Live
(4:00)  2. A Nightingale Sang In Berkley Square
(2:38)  3. Come Fly With Me
(3:36)  4. Do You Know What It Means To Miss New Orleans
(4:29)  5. I've Got You Under My Skin
(2:25)  6. They Can't Take That Away From Me
(2:32)  7. I Get Along Without You Very Well
(2:25)  8. A Wink And A Smile
(3:39)  9. Don't Worry Bout Me
(2:12) 10. Devil May Care
(2:42) 11. I Thought About You
(3:16) 12. I See Your Face Before Me

Adelaide Ruble evidently makes her debut recording as a leader with Come Fly with Me. The Washington, D.C., area resident digs deeply into a number of frequently recorded gems from the Great American Songbook, backed by a strong band anchored by keyboardist and guitarist Rick Eldridge and some terrific trombone by Harry Watters. Ruble has a warm alto voice and an almost conversation approach, though occasionally with a touch of excessive vibrato that seems to come from nervous energy. She's best on the slow ballads like a heartfelt "I Get Along Without You Very Well" (a lovely duet with Eldridge on piano) and a sassy, brisk treatment of "Devil May Care" (complemented by Watters' tasty licks). Ruble avoids many of the traps that singers can fall into, like running a song into the ground with excessive choruses (only one runs past the four-minute mark), though the CD is rather brief at just over 36 minutes. Adelaide Ruble's initial release is a promising beginning to her career as a recording artist. ~ Ken Dryden  http://www.allmusic.com/album/come-fly-with-me-mw0000515926.

Come Fly With Me

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Rebecca Zapen - Nest

Styles: Pop/Rock
Year: 2011
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 40:29
Size: 123,4 MB
Art: Front

(2:31)  1. Beautiful Love Songs Without the Love
(4:09)  2. Peace
(3:58)  3. Ledge
(2:29)  4. Swamp Pit
(3:07)  5. Lakewood
(3:09)  6. I'm Gonna Make So Many Things For You
(3:03)  7. 888
(1:41)  8. Tiny and Strong
(3:51)  9. You Did Me Wrong
(2:38) 10. Grandfather's Song
(2:36) 11. Jacaranda
(4:03) 12. Addicted to Love
(3:06) 13. Colorado

Barely out of the starting gate, Rebecca Zapen's brand-new release, Nest, was awarded Florida Album of the Year 2011 (Florida Times-Union). The album's delicate, cinematic, lush new folk forays into Americana, bossa nova, and pop. In essence, Zapen made Nest while she was building a nest of her own, with husband and recording engineer Jeremy Douglass, who also plays keyboards and melodica on the new album. The two met when Jeremy (from St. Petersburg) was searching for a string player for a friend's recording project and found classically-trained violinist Rebecca (in Jacksonville). After corresponding for a while, a chance gig allowed the two to meet and it was love at first sight. It was bashert, fate. In a dizzy, giddy whirlwind, Rebecca moved to St. Pete where they soon married and started a family. The recording for Nest began when Rebecca was 6 months pregnant, during which time they laid down all the rhythm tracks before baby Joel came into the world. They took a break from the recording as they adjusted to being new parents and getting back into the swing of gigging and such. After 13 months away from the recording they dedicated themselves to finishing it, burning the midnight oil (and 1 and 2am oil), and had it mastered when Joel was 20 months old.

Twelve of the thirteen tracks on Nest are originals, with one cover, a bossa nova version of Robert Palmer's "Addicted to Love". Singer and multi-instrumentalist Zapen plays violin, guitar, ukulele, and cavaquiño on the album, which hops genres from the finger-picked folk and lush vocal harmonies and strings of "Peace", to the sultry bossa nova rhythms of "Ledge" and "Addicted to Love", to the stark Appalachian twang of "Colorado", in which Zapen delivers one of her most powerful songs with the simplest arrangement of voice and violin. Ukulele and its South American cousin the cavaquiño make an appearance on "Tiny and Strong" and "Beautiful Love Songs Without the Love", respectively. Rebecca forays into pop with her feel-good "I'm Gonna Make So Many Things For You", and features autobiographical songs "Jacaranda", "888", "Lakewood", and "Grandfather's Song". 

The cinematic "You Did Me Wrong" moves seamlessly from folk to string-driven pop to spaghetti western to jazz waltz. The songs' instrumentations vary, including support from violin, double bass, drums, clarinet, trumpet, trombone, and keyboards. And there is Zapen's beautiful voice, lilting and crooning, with purity of tone and minimal use of vibrato, although she reveals a rarely-heard facet of her voice, belting key phrases in "Colorado". Said one listener, "your voice made my heart break into a million pieces".http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/rebeccazapen

Nest

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Louis Stewart - Overdrive

Styles: Guitar Jazz
Year: 1993
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 71:49
Size: 164,4 MB
Art: Front

( 5:30)  1. All The Things You Are
( 9:44)  2. (Oh) Lady Be Good
( 8:04)  3. Polka Dots And Moonbeams
( 6:37)  4. Oleo
( 7:17)  5. Yesterdays
( 5:50)  6. Stomping At The Savoy
(11:23)  7. Body And Soul
(10:33)  8. Walkin'
( 6:47)  9. My Shinging Hour

There is no doubt that Irish jazz guitarist Louis Stewart is one of the all-time greats, and it is obvious from the first notes he plays on any occasion. Quick witted, clean and clear, original, inventive, steeped in tradition, astonishing at most turns and only remarkable on the others, the only reason most of you don't know him is that he works in Europe, barely visiting the continental America's during his five decades of performing. This live club date at the Tron Jazz Cellar in Edinburgh, Scotland shows Stewart at the height of his powers during a set of well-worn standards, brought to life by this brilliant plectrist. As most use energy as a fuel for the others, or as a flashy pyrotechnical show, Stewart has no problem playing quickly. 

In fact, for him it all seems so effortless when he plays a straight melody on the well-worn "All the Things You Are," the rousing "Oleo" with its tricky changes played perfectly, or the very fast, never flustered "Stompin' at the Savoy," where he seems really in his element. Did it take any time for him to warm up? In contrast to the fleet fingered display of virtuosity, Stewart also likes to change things up a bit. He strips down the melody of "Lady Be Good," extrapolates slightly on the basic theme, and then stretches out the song in his solo spotlight, swings the normally balladic "Body and Soul," and fattens the tempo for the usually relaxed "Walkin'." Ronnie Rae is the bassist, and the Edinburgh native and regular accompanist for vocalist Fionna Duncan acquits himself well on this recording, especially taking the lead for "Walkin." The appropriate closer "My Shining Hour" closes this set of music that showcases Stewart wonderfully, and is likely the best, certainly most accessible recording of his relatively small discography. ~ Michael G.Nastos  http://www.allmusic.com/album/overdrive-live-at-the-tron-edinburgh-mw0000665369.

Personnel: Louis Stewart (guitar); Ronnie Rae (bass instrument); Tony McLennan (drums).

Overdrive

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Louis Hayes - Dreamin Of Cannonball

Styles: Jazz, Bop
Year: 2001
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 68:59
Size: 158,3 MB
Art: Front

(7:06)  1. What Is This Thing Called Love
(5:49)  2. The Chant
(5:16)  3. Dat Dere
(7:29)  4. I Can't Get Started
(5:46)  5. Work Song
(6:14)  6. Naturally
(8:33)  7. Fiddler On The Roof
(7:46)  8. The Jive Samba
(7:15)  9. Scoth And Water
(7:41) 10. Del Sasser

Louis Hayes & the Cannonball Legacy Band pay tribute to the drummer's late employer by exploring a number of songs that he recorded while working with Cannonball Adderley. The veteran is in great form, joined by alto saxophonist Vincent Herring, trumpeter Jeremy Pelt, pianist Rick Germanson, and bassist Vicente Archer. The music doesn't focus on any one edition of Adderley's band, but delves into music the alto saxophonist recorded during the early '60s. Hayes' crop of Young Lions opens with an explosive take of "What Is This Thing Called Love?," delves with gusto into Bobby Timmons' soul-jazz hit "Dat Dere" and Nat Adderley's spiritual-flavored "Work Song," and delivers a playful performance of "Fiddler on the Roof," the latter tune showcasing the leader's effective solo. No effort is made to mimic Adderley's style or the sidemen who played alongside him, though it is clear that all the musicians are enjoying themselves throughout these sessions. ~ Ken Dryden   http://www.allmusic.com/album/dreamin-of-cannonball-mw0000223532.

Personnel: Louis Hayes (drums); Vincent Herring (alto saxophone); Jeremy Pelt (trumpet); Rick Germanson (piano).

Dreamin Of Cannonball

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