Joe Henderson - Double Rainbow: The Music of Antonio Carlos Jobim

Bitrate: 320K/s

Time: 62:07

Size: 142.2 MB

Styles: Post bop, Bossa Nova, Saxophone jazz

Year: 1995

Art: Front

[4:43] 1. Felicidade

[5:22] 2. Dreamer

[6:33] 3. Boto

[4:28] 4. Ligia

[5:20] 5. Once I Loved (Amor Em Paz)

[5:26] 6. Triste

[5:00] 7. Photograph

[5:16] 8. Portrait In Black And White

[6:38] 9. No More Blues

[3:10] 10. Happy Madness

[5:37] 11. Passarim

[4:30] 12. Modinha

The third of tenor-saxophonist Joe Henderson's tribute CDs on Verve was originally supposed to be a collaboration with the great bossa nova composer Antonio Carlos Jobim but Jobim's unexpected death turned this project into a memorial. Henderson performs a dozen of the composer's works with one of two separate groups: a Brazilian quartet starring pianist Eliane Elias and a jazz trio with pianist Herbie Hancock, bassist Christian McBride and drummer Jack DeJohnette. In general, Henderson avoids Jobim's best-known songs in favor of some of his more obscure (but equally rewarding) melodies and in some cases (such as a very straight-ahead "No More Blues") the treatments are surprising. Highlights of this very accessible yet unpredictable CD include "Felicidade," "Triste," "Zingaro" and a duet with guitarist Oscar Castro-Neves on "Once I Loved," although all of the performances are quite enjoyable. Highly recommended. ~Scott Yanow

Double Rainbow

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Justin Morell Quintet - The Music Of Steely Dan

Bitrate: 320K/s
Time: 52:47
Size: 120.8 MB
Styles: Mainstream, Straight ahead
Year: 2013
Art: Front

[6:41] 1. Home At Last
[4:44] 2. My Rival
[7:40] 3. I Got The News
[6:11] 4. Third World Man
[7:39] 5. The Royal Scam
[6:45] 6. Maxine
[6:38] 7. End Of The Line
[6:25] 8. Babylon Sisters

Rock/pop band, “Steely Dan” signified the epitome of hip-ness thanks to a string of monumentally successful recordings. They blended cool, jazzy licks with memorably melodic themes and soul, blues, rock frameworks during their successful 1970’s run. In fact, the main proprietors of the band, keyboardist, Donald Fagen, and bassist, Walter Becker hired well-known jazz session musicians on several occasions. So, the jazz connection was in place, amid the unit’s witty or perhaps, Dylan-esque lyricism and often endearing arrangements. With that, twenty-eight year old, Los Angeles, guitarist/film scorer, Justin Morell, and his band of Southern California session aces reinterpret six Steely Dan classics (Becker/Fagen), along with a lone Fagen composition, and one original.

The quintet’s modus operandi rings loud and clear as Morell, John Daversa (trumpet) and Tom Peterson (saxophone) jubilantly state the memorable choruses in concert with the jazz-based rhythms. Whereby, the guitarist often anchors the proceedings via his deft comping and beautifully structured soloing. They adhere to the original compositions while injecting a personalized stamp into works such as the dreamy “Home At Last,” and others. In addition, the soloists articulate a mild frenzy atop the rhythm section’s leanly executed swing on, “I Got The News.”

The musicians touch upon a higher worldly plane during their modern jazz-based spin of “The Royal Scam.” On this piece, the soloists’ augment the song’s soulful motif with ferocious call and response type dialogue. Legendary L.A. session drummer, John Guerin lays down a brisk strut in support of Daversa’s warmly stated lines and Peterson’s soul-searching tenor sax solo on “Babylon Sisters.” Bassist, Todd Sickafoose often propels the band into mid-tempo swing vamps while Morell’s well-placed chord progressions provide a budding flow throughout.

Many of “Steely Dan’s” LPs continue to enjoy staying power, as Morell and co. parallels that notion in exuberant (jazz-based) fashion with this glowing testament to a great outfit. Highly recommended. ~Glenn Astarita

The Music Of Steely Dan

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Walt Weiskopf - Anytown

Bitrate: 320K/s

Time: 58:34

Size: 134.1 MB

Styles: Saxophone jazz, Mainstream

Year: 1999

Art: Front

[7:51] 1. Anytown

[7:02] 2. Scottish Folk Song

[8:00] 3. Blues In The Day

[6:56] 4. Adrienne

[7:47] 5. Love For Sale

[6:53] 6. King Midas

[7:09] 7. Grand Delusion

[6:52] 8. Breakdown

Although popularity and critics polls speak much to the contrary, saxophonist and composer Walt Weiskopf is one of the most artistic and exceptional jazz musicians around. That he's gone as long as he has without receiving much notice by the jazz press or public at large is undeniably inexplicable. This fact is made even more confounding when one considers that the cerebral and explorative style he has pursued has made other men, such as Joe Lovano and Chris Potter, household names. But it should come to no surprise that while the autonomy allowed him by working for the small Dutch independent Criss Cross is a plus, it certainly doesn't yield the big bucks promotion that comes with a major label deal. None of this seems to hamper Weiskopf's work however, because he remains a very active educator, writer, jazz clinician, and working musician despite his relatively low profile.

Weiskopf's latest set, Anytown, is his fifth for Criss Cross overall and offers somewhat of a departure in that the crew he has chosen to work with brings a different character to the proceedings than what we've heard on previous efforts for the label. For starters, two mainstays from his past albums are missing. Pianist brother Joel has been spelled here by the superbly imaginative Renne Rosnes and regular drummer Billy Drummond has been replaced by the equally ambidextrous Tony Reedus. Rounding out this ensemble are bassist Doug Weiss and vibraphonist Joe Locke and what a wonderful collective spirit they generate on a program of seven Weiskopf originals and one revamped standard.

As with all his recordings, Weiskopf likes to leap from the gates with his opening gambit and the title track here is no exception. A beguiling line full of the twists and turns that mark his best work, the melody is executed brilliantly by Weiskopf and Locke and their blend throughout is highly agreeable. As a superior follow-up to his re-working of a Japanese folk melody on the previous Sleepless Nights, "Scottish Folk Song" moves along in a nice lilting three. And if the previous mention of Weiskopf being a "cerebral" type of player leads you to believe he's all technique and no heart, then go straight to the ballad "Adrienne," where his breathy tone and quiet lyricism is touching in its beauty. Rounding things out, we also get the up tempo burn-out that comes with "Blues in the Day" and "Breakdown."

As strong as his writing is, Weiskopf is also a master saxophonist with a fluid approach that includes the kinds of rapid arpeggios and guttural wails that mark the work of Wayne Shorter and John Coltrane's "sheets of sound" approach. Locke has proven to be the up-and-coming vibraphonist on the scene with a technical virtuosity and musical wisdom beyond his years, while Rosnes continues to impress this reviewer with a talent that's deserving of much wider recognition. Weiss and Reedus also do their part to keep things rolling and the latter spurs Weiskopf on in ways that only Drummond had previously been able to do. Taken as a whole, Anytown is another successful effort from Weiskopf and it possesses the kind of integrity and enduring brilliance that will mark it as a classic for now and years to come. ~C. Andrew Hovan

Walt Weiskopf- tenor saxophone, Joe Locke- vibraphone, Renee Rosnes- piano, Doug Weiss- bass, Tony Reedus- drums

Anytown

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The Jive Aces - Dance All Night

Styles: Jazz, Swing
Year: 2005
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 51:27
Size: 119,1 MB
Art: Front

(2:47)  1. I Could Have Danced All Night
(3:22)  2. Long Distance Love Affair
(3:19)  3. Jive Ace Boogie 1
(3:11)  4. I Wanna Roll
(2:20)  5. Blue Moon
(1:57)  6. My Baby Just Cares for Me
(3:54)  7. Dream a Little Dream of Me
(3:59)  8. Ac-Cent-Tchu-Ate the Positive
(3:08)  9. What Do I Tell My Heart
(2:59) 10. When You Wish Upon a Star
(3:35) 11. Clear Body, Clear Mind
(3:03) 12. I've Got Affinity for You
(4:22) 13. Singing in the Rain
(3:03) 14. High Energy Jive
(3:23) 15. Trust Is
(2:57) 16. Aces Swing

Having become the first ever band to reach the semi finals of Britain's Got Talent in 2012 following up with a performance for Her Majesty The Queen as part of the Diamond Jubilee celebrations and performances for both the Olympic and Paralympic celebrations, The Jive Aces have truly established themselves as the UK's top Jive & Swing band. Together for over a decade, this extremely popular six piece group have performed at thousands of festivals, theatres and events throughout the UK, Europe and USA, as well as Japan, Israel, South Africa, Morrocco and the Caribbean, 30 countries in all. The Jive Aces are renowned for their high energy Jump Jive music (the exciting sound where Swing meets Rock ‘n Roll) and spectacular stage show. They combine a mixture of fresh arrangements of swing/Jive/R&B classics songs made famous by such greats as Louis Prima, Cab Calloway, Bobby Darin, Louis Armstrong, Dean Martin, Big Joe Turner and Sammy Davis Jnr along with a selection of superb swinging originals taken from their studio albums. The Jive Aces have worked with many of the top names in the business, including John Travolta, Status Quo, Isaac Hayes, Van Morrison, Count Basie Orchestra, Keely Smith, Priscilla Presley, Buddy Greco, Kirstie Allie, Kenny Ball, Chuck Berry, Tony Christie and Lee Evans to name just a few. 

The band has performed at countless major events including: “In Full Swing” at The Royal Albert Hall (when they headlined and sold out the iconic venue’s first ever swing dance); The Berkeley Square Ball; Glastonbury Festival; The London Season; Montreux Jazz Festival (5 times); Lovebox Festival; The Royal Ballet's 50th Anniversary; North Sea Jazz Festival; World Swing Dance Championships (Oslo and New York); Grand Order of Water Rats Annual Ball (3 times); Society of Distinguished Songwriters Ladies Night (twice); City of London Festival; The Ryder Cup; Cannes Film Festival (official party); Cork Jazz Festival; Conservative Party Conference (twice); Society of Distinguished Songwriters and have performed for HRH Prince Philip at The World Pony Carriage Championships. The Jive Aces were the recipients of the prestigious “City of Derry International Music Award” for 2006, previous recipients being Van Morrison and Jools Holland. 

They also received in 2008 a special award from the Variety Club of Great Britain for their contributions to entertainment and charity. The band has been featured on literally hundreds of TV and radio shows, most recently they are featured playing live every Wednesday night on BBC Radio London’s “Late Nights” show with Jo Good. Other appearances include CNN; ABC's “Good Morning Los Angeles”; Channel 4's “Holy Smoke”; BBC Radio 2; DNA Stories; Wakey, Wakey Campers; JazzFM; “A Swingin’ Christmas” (one-hour PBS Special); an eight week residency the hit Italian show “Niente Popo Dimenoche”; BBC1 TV for “Children in Need”, and many more.The band has released seven studio albums, one dance compilation and also a skiffle E.P.. Their latest “King of the Swingers: A Salute to Louis Prima” features guest appearances from Kenny Ball, Ray Gelato, Toni Elizabeth Prima and more and is on the Golden Age Recordings label. With their high energy music, bright stage suits, wild stage show, irresistible humor and sheer professionalism, the Jive Aces will quickly get any audience on their feet - or dancing in their seat! Each and every show is guaranteed to go with a swing! More Bio ~ http://www.jiveaces.com/who_are/

The Jive Aces are: Ian Clarkson – Vocals & Trumpet; Ken Smith – Double Bass; Vince Hurley – Piano; Peter Howell – Drums; John Fordham – Saxophone; Alex Douglas – Trombone

Dance All Night

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Paulette Dozier - Over & Over Again

Styles: Vocal Jazz
Year: 2007
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 42:39
Size: 98,1 MB
Art: Front

(3:34)  1. You'll Never Know
(4:26)  2. Over And Over Again
(5:32)  3. Moon Dance
(3:50)  4. Does Anybody Really Know What Time It Is
(3:24)  5. Together Yet Alone
(4:17)  6. Moonlight In Vermont
(4:08)  7. The Very Thought Of You
(4:32)  8. All Of Me
(3:54)  9. Saturday In The Park
(4:59) 10. Let's Stay Together

Right out of the gate the listener will know that singer Paulette Dozier is an entertainer. The fact can readily be heard in her perfectly balanced alto, a voice crisp and confident, a voice that serves her well. The second thing the listener will note is Dozier employs a crack band and arranger in pianist Mike Levine, who proves no rear in his mixing of pop and jazz. Over & Over Again is Dozier's second self-produced recording, her first being her 2006 With You, a release characterized by the same fine craftsmanship as the newer release. Paulette Dozier turns out to be the authentic item, singer, stage performer, provocateur. Dozier mixes old and new standards with an emphasis on the new. 

Two Chicago songs are covered in "Does Anybody Really Know What Time it Is" and "Saturday in the Park" (featuring a piquant David Carder trumpet) each deliver faithful to the original but with jazz authority and grace. Another "new standard" is Al Green's "Let's Stay Together," performed up tempo with verve. Saxophonist Ed Calle shows up on the disc opener, "You'll Never Know." He lends a genre-stretching solo to the piece that places it on the fulcrum between pop and jazz. Dozier's own "Over and Over Again" is a sexy playful piece not bashful in expressing the singer's intentions, just as Dozier's take on Van Morrison's "Moondance." Dozier turns the tables on the boy's club and shows that she can give as good as she gets. Over & Over Again is a full-bodied treatment of originals and standard set in thoroughly modern arrangements that never allow the material to descend in to the tepid smooth jazz waters. Paulette Dozier must really be something live. ~ C.Michael Bailey  http://www.allaboutjazz.com/over-and-over-again-paulette-dozier-self-produced-review-by-c-michael-bailey.php#.VCyOkBawTP8

Personnel: Paulette Dozier: vocals; Mike Levine: piano; Jamie Ousley: bass; Sammy Levine: Drums; Daniel Warner: Guitar; Dante Luciani: Trombone; Ed Calle: tenor saxophone; Errol Rackipov: vibes; Ira Sullivan: flugelhorn, David Carder: Trumpet Domenica Fossati: flute.

Over & Over Again

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Denny Zeitlin - Stairway To The Stars

Styles: Piano Jazz
Year: 2014
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 66:40
Size: 153,9 MB
Art: Front

(7:04)  1. There Will Never Be Another You
(9:17)  2. You Don't Know What Love Is
(7:58)  3. I Could Have Told You
(3:36)  4. Oleo
(7:15)  5. Stairway To The Stars
(7:03)  6. I'll Take Romance
(2:09)  7. Bass Prelude To Deluge
(8:53)  8. Deluge
(7:14)  9. Spring Is Here
(6:10) 10. Out For A Stroll

Pianist Denny Zeitlin's Stairway to the Stars recording sparkles to life on the familiar Great American Songbook jewel, "There Will Never Be Another You." This version has everything that the best piano trio efforts offer: elegance, inspired three-way interplay, a vivacious groove thanks to drummer Matt Wilson and bassist Buster Williams and Zeitlin's always supple touch and endless inventiveness.  Zeiltin, has rolled in a creative high gear since his teaming with Sunnyside Records in 2009, beginning with In Concert with Buster Williams and Matt Wilson. Since that Sunnyside debut, he has released on the label two masterpieces of solo piano, Precipice (2010) and Labyrinth (2011), in addition to his audacious electro/acoustic symphony, Both/And (2013), three sets that represent the artist's best work in an extended and distinguished career that goes back to his sideman assignment in flutist Jeremy Steig's Flute Fever, (Columbia Records, 1963) and a quick follow-up with his first release under his own name, Cathexis (Columbia Records, 1964).  Stairway to the Stars was recorded in 2001, at the Jazz Bakery in Los Angeles. It's a full set at the club that finds the trio locking in with a spirit of fun, adventure and devil-may-care panache. 

The tunes, for the most part familiar fare, are given a rare buoyancy and bounce by Williams and Wilson, and a shimmering and sometimes bright shining sheen by Zeitlin. Few pianists working today have his command of harmonic depth, his "just right" and sometimes daring touch with a melody. The nine minute plus "You Don't Know What Love Is" has never sounded lovelier, with Wilson's popping percussion, Zeitlin's pinpoint delicacy and subtle flourishes. The disc's title cut, from the 1959 Billy Wilder movie, "Some Like It Hot," celebrates the tune with a subdued groove, Williams' bass pulsing like a lovelorn heart, Wilson whispering in her ear with his brushes, Zeitlin in a spare note mode, with small splashes of beautiful harmonic embellishment. Zeitlin also offers Wayne Shorter's "Deluge," a distinctively modern-leaning tune that the trio goes after with gusto, and there's Sonny Rollins' "Oleo," taken at a freewheeling, careening pace, with Zeitlin combining the rare combination of grace with runaway speed.  Rodgers and Hart's "Spring Is Here," from the 1938 musical "I Married and Angel," is given a slow bossa nova treatment, and the closer, "Out For A Stroll," the lone Zeitlin original on the set, finishes up in a bluesy groove, a relaxed spring-in-the-step rhythm to take the music off down the road. A beautiful set that will rank with the top piano trio outings of the year. ~ Dan Mcclenaghan  http://www.allaboutjazz.com/stairway-to-the-stars-denny-zeitlin-sunnyside-records-review-by-dan-mcclenaghan.php#.VC7CkxawTP8

Personnel: Denny Zeitlin: piano; Buster Wiliams: bass; Matt Wilson: drums.

Stairway To The Stars

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Aldo Romano - Just Jazz

Styles: Jazz
Year: 2008
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 45:12
Size: 103,8 MB
Art: Front

(4:37)  1. Cite Soleil
(4:37)  2. Prego
(2:55)  3. Spring Tide
(4:13)  4. Handle With Care
(3:50)  5. Blues For Roy
(2:31)  6. Chick Webb
(3:52)  7. Libero
(4:24)  8. Black and Blue
(4:33)  9. Dany K
(2:23) 10. Township
(4:31) 11. Lontananza
(2:38) 12. Maple Leaf Rag

Aldo Romano has long proven himself an innovative leader and the 2007 sessions that make up Just Jazz are no exception. Romano is not one to take a lot of solos himself, preferring to showcase his bandmates while adding color behind them. His pianoless quartet consists of clarinetist Mauro Negri, who played on Romano's earlier Dreyfus CD État de Fait, old friend Henri Texier on bass, and the much younger Géraldine Laurent, a gifted French saxophonist whose star is rising. Most of the release focuses on Romano's captivating originals, highlighted by the emotional "Cité-Soleil" (French for "Sun City"), named for the wretched shanty town in Port-au-Prince, Haiti. "Township" is an infectious African-flavored chant, with Laurent's vocal-like alto recalling Eric Dolphy, and Negri's electronically altered clarinet adding seasoning. 

"Chick Webb," named for the famous swing drummer, has a fun twist in that the bassist is the featured soloist. Romano's love for Ornette Coleman's work is well known, so it shouldn't be surprising to hear the dissonance within the drummer's "Libero!!" ("Free!!")." His powerful interpretation of Fats Waller's maudlin "Black and Blue" and lighthearted take of Scott Joplin's "Maple Leaf Rag" round out this diverse, rewarding CD. ~ Ken Dryden  http://www.allmusic.com/album/just-jazz-mw0000793534

Personnel: Aldo Romano (drums) ; Mauro Negri (clarinet); Géraldine Laurent (saxophone); Henri Texier (double bass).

Just Jazz

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