Various - Puttin' On The Ritz: Capitol Sings Irving Berlin

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 69:03
Size: 158.1 MB
Styles: Vocal, Traditional pop, Easy Listening
Year: 1992/2007
Art: Front

[1:11] 1. Mary Martin, John Raitt - There's No Business Like Show Business
[1:47] 2. Judy Garland - Puttin' On The Ritz
[1:59] 3. Vic Damone - Marie
[3:19] 4. Dinah Shore - The Song Is Ended
[2:31] 5. Crew Chiefs - Heat Wave
[2:32] 6. Dick Haymes - Isn't This A Lovely Day
[2:31] 7. The Starlighters - Play A Simple Melody
[3:01] 8. Nat King Cole - What'll I Do
[3:07] 9. Bobby Darin - All By Myself
[4:39] 10. Nancy Wilson - You Can Have Him
[2:27] 11. Gordon MacRae - Steppin' Out With My Baby
[3:23] 12. Kay Starr - You're Just In Love
[3:08] 13. Andy Russell - Easter Parade
[2:30] 14. Johnny Mercer - Alexander's Ragtime Band
[2:44] 15. Peggy Lee - Cheek To Cheek
[2:37] 16. The Four Freshmen - Be Careful, It's My Heart
[2:50] 17. Betty Hutton - Blue Skies
[3:23] 18. Ian Bernard - How Deep Is The Ocean
[2:23] 19. Nat King Cole - Let's Face The Music And Dance
[3:27] 20. Sue Raney - How About Me
[2:25] 21. Vic Damone - Change Partners
[2:41] 22. Dean Martin - I've Got My Love To Keep Me Warm
[3:00] 23. Jo Stafford - White Christmas
[2:33] 24. Gordon MacRae - Always
[2:43] 25. Margaret Whiting - God Bless America

The songs of Irving Berlin are I-beams in the towering edifice of 20th century popular music. This sampler of predominately pop recordings from the Capitol catalog may serve as both a grab bag of enjoyable entertainments and a useful introduction to some of this composer's nicest tunes. Each of the 25 tracks perfectly illustrates the essence of a given song, and would be especially useful for anyone seeking to learn the rudimentary contours. Jazz is only marginally represented here, in spite of the fact that jazz grew up on Irving Berlin's often jazz-inspired melodies, many of which survive today primarily as jazz standards. Certainly jazz is manifested in Nat King Cole (with both trio and big band), Nancy Wilson, Johnny Mercer and bandleaders Red Norvo and Billy May. Several ex-big-band singers are in the mix, including Peggy Lee and Kay Starr. Jo Stafford sings like an angel, Dinah Shore's gentle rendering of "The Song Is Ended" comes across as a marvel of sensitivity, and Betty Hutton's handling of "Blue Skies" is among her prettiest performances on record. The timeline represented here (1944-1963) almost exactly traces the golden age of the post-WWII, pre-Beatles star pop vocalists. The core sample contains measurable amounts of Judy Garland, Mary Martin, Margaret Whiting, Dean Martin, Bobby Darin, Gordon MacRae, Dick Haymes and Vic Damone, as well as pearly white group vocals by the Starlighters, the Crew Chiefs, the Pied Pipers and the Four Freshmen. ~arwulf arwulf

Puttin' On The Ritz: Capitol Sings Irving Berlin

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Marian McPartland - Just Friends

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 72:29
Size: 165.9 MB
Styles: Bop, Standards, Piano jazz
Year: 1998
Art: Front

[ 4:58] 1. Jeepers Creepers
[ 6:03] 2. I've Got A Crush On You
[ 5:26] 3. Some Time Ago
[ 5:15] 4. It's You Or No One
[ 4:20] 5. Just Friends
[ 7:02] 6. Twilight World
[ 5:50] 7. Lullaby Of The Leaves
[ 4:27] 8. Chrysalis (An Improvisation)
[10:16] 9. Gone With The Wind
[ 5:31] 10. Marian McPartland
[ 4:27] 11. There Will Never Be Another You
[ 5:30] 12. Lady Be Good
[ 3:17] 13. When The Saints Go Marching In

Some jazz fans casually dismiss duo piano performances as mere novelties that all too often result in train wrecks. With hundreds of Piano Jazz sessions and a few additional multiple piano releases to her credit, plus an amazing ability to complement the style of any musical partner, Marian McPartland should have long since destroyed this musical myth. She's joined by six different pianists on this delightful date, who she has considered among her favorite Piano Jazz guests; however, these recordings were made specifically for Concord. Tommy Flanagan joins her for a joyous run through "Jeepers Creeper" and a lyrical take of "I've Got a Crush on You." Renee Rosnes sits in for a swinging version of "Some Time Ago" and a bossa nova treatment of "It's You or No One," while Geri Allen and McPartland revive the forgotten chestnut "Lullaby of the Leaves" and also create an eerie duo improvisation, "Chrysalis." George Shearing and McPartland amuse themselves with a jaunty arrangement of the title track, then play Shearing's chart of McPartland's "Twilight World." But the cream of the duets is shared with old friend Dave Brubeck. Brubeck actually composed "Marian McPartland" on the way to his second Piano Jazz appearance; their wonderful improvisations around this catchy upbeat theme find both of them at the top of their game. McPartland wraps the CD alone with the Dixieland standard "When the Saints Go Marching In," though her relaxed approach serves as an emotional elegy to her late husband Jimmy. Jazz piano just doesn't get any better than this. ~Ken Dryden

Just Friends

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Peter Bernstein Trio - Monk

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 59:00
Size: 135.1 MB
Styles: Straight ahead jazz
Year: 2009
Art: Front

[6:34] 1. Let's Cool One
[4:36] 2. Pannonica
[4:23] 3. Work
[4:47] 4. Brilliant Corners
[5:21] 5. In Walked Bud
[2:26] 6. Monk's Mood
[7:16] 7. Well You Needn't
[6:03] 8. Bemsha Swing
[4:39] 9. Played Twice
[2:25] 10. Ruby, My Dear
[6:24] 11. Blue 5 Spot
[4:01] 12. Reflections

How and by whom a piece of music is presented profoundly influences how it's heard. This would seem to be a truism, but it is one often contradicted. Case in point: a band begins playing a Duke Ellington standard and there's recognition and approval from the audience, the "I like Duke" effect. When this happens with a singer beginning "Satin Doll" the irony is lost. Ellington disliked those Johnny Mercer lyrics so much he rarely presented a vocal version of the piece himself. Which bring us to Thelonious Monk.

He never employed or recorded with a guitarist (save early bootlegged jam sessions with Charlie Christian and a big band with Howard Roberts) and his piano playing and arranging can hardly be called guitar-like. Hearing guitar play Monk's music is like hearing an orchestral version of a Wagner opera aria; it reveals a wholly different aspect of the music. While Monk's own versions put emphasis on the disjointed angularity and idiosyncrasies of the music, guitar interpretations bring out their lyrical, melodious side. Howard Alden is good at this, but until this CD, the only other guitarist with a knack for bringing out that side of Monk who devoted a whole album to it was Joshua Breakstone. Peter Bernstein's trio approach can be encapsulated in the title of the opening track: "Let's Cool One."

Like Ben Riley's Monk Legacy Band, which also employs a guitar (and no piano), this trio brings out the strong melodicism inherent in Monk's music. And Bernstein is a graceful guitarist who polishes the rough pianistic edges Monk gouged into his tunes, as can be heard on his solo version of "Monk's Mood." The trio pieces remain largely true to the tempos, an important part of Monk's conception, but bassist Doug Weiss and especially drummer Bill Stewart rile up the surface just enough to save these interpretations from being obsequiously polite. ~George Kanzler

Peter Bernstein: guitar; Doug Weiss: bass; Bill Stewart: drums.

Monk   

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Sonny Clark - The Best Of The Blue Note Years

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 64:17
Size: 147.2 MB
Styles: Bop, Piano jazz
Year: 2001
Art: Front

[ 6:42] 1. Shoutin' On A Riff
[ 7:23] 2. Dial S For Sonny
[ 6:46] 3. Speak Low
[13:26] 4. Sonny's Crib
[ 6:30] 5. Softly, As In A Morning Sunrise
[ 9:19] 6. Cool Struttin'
[ 7:26] 7. Junka
[ 6:41] 8. Deep In A Dream

It took awhile, but Blue Note has finally seen fit to honor one of its best with a best-of disc. And thanks to rabid fans like John Zorn and hard bop fanatics the world over, pianist Sonny Clark has also gotten the kind of reissue program such label cohorts as Hank Mobley, Wayne Shorter, and Lee Morgan have been blessed with for some time. Culled from Clark's short but potent prime of 1957-1961, the first five sides here (out of nine) come from his particularly fertile first year, when such classic LP's as Dial "S" for Sonny, Sonny's Crib, and Sonny Clark Trio were cut. Besides an urbane slice of Clark's single note style ("Softy, As In a Morning Sunrise"), this batch features two of his marquee originals (the Far Eastern-tinged, noirish blues swingers "Sonny's Crib" and "Dial S For Sonny") and an exquisite early Coltrane vehicle ("Speak Low"). Things get even better with the title track to his hard bop masterpiece, Cool Struttin', and the Ike Quebec feature, "Deep In A Dream," from the equally fine Leapin' and Lopin' album. Add to that an all-star list of hard boppers like Mobley, Curtis Fuller, Donald Byrd, Art Farmer, Charlie Rouse, Paul Chambers, and Philly "Joe" Jones, and you have a very classy way of staving off the Clark shopping spree that is sure to come. ~Stephen Cook

The Best Of The Blue Note Years

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Lori Johnson - A Class Act

Styles: Vocal
Year: 2000
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 39:15
Size: 94,0 MB
Art: Front

(3:55)  1. If I Only Had A Heart (From "The Wizard Of Oz")
(1:42)  2. I Need A Man
(1:37)  3. Judy Garland Medley: Smile
(1:23)  4. Rock-A-Bye Your Baby
(2:12)  5. Over The Rainbow
(5:14)  6. Someone To Watch Over Me
(2:53)  7. Use What You've Got (From "The Life")
(4:11)  8. Good Morning Heartache
(3:38)  9. My Body (From "The Life")
(2:44) 10. Little Girl Blue
(3:48) 11. Bewitched
(1:33) 12. Children's Medley: Animal Crackers
(2:14) 13. Too Ra Loo Ra Loo Ra
(2:06) 14. Swinging On A Star

Pop jazz by a female singer/pianist. Smooth Jazz Category for radio programing.  Great vocals and band. ~ Joey Welz

Lori Johnson is a class act. One listen to her music and you'll know why she is Canadian American’s newest smooth jazz female star. ~ Joey Welz  http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/ljohnson

Personnel: Lori Johnson (vocals); John McDuffie, Jim Lum, Tom Bethke (guitar); Dave McKelvey (harmonica); Rob Kyle, Ray Hermann (flute,saxophone); Steve Weingart, Frank Josephs (piano); Dave Stone, Kirk Smith, Trey Henry (acoustic bass); Kurt Walter (drums, percussion); Kristina Hamilton, Linda McCrary (background vocals).

A Class Act

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Pete And Conte Candoli - "Two Brothers"

Styles: Trumpet Jazz
Year: 1999
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 65:34
Size: 150,5 MB
Art: Front

(8:24)  1. A Night In Tunisia
(7:56)  2. Stompin' At The Savoy
(9:34)  3. Jitterbug Waltz
(8:58)  4. Willow Weep For Me
(6:59)  5. (Back Home Again In) Indiana
(7:10)  6. My Funny Valentine
(6:35)  7. I Can't Get Started Without You
(9:55)  8. St. Thomas

The elder of the trumpet-playing Candoli brothers, Pete initially made the greater impact of the two in Woody Herman's First Herd at the tail end of the swing era. A powerful, flamboyant soloist, his big moment came toward the end of "Apple Honey," where he would appear in a Superman costume and cut loose scorching, dissonant flurries of high notes. Pete started with the Sonny Dunham band in his 17th year (1940-1941) and passed through the bands of Will Bradley, Benny Goodman, Ray McKinley, Tommy Dorsey, Freddie Slack, and Charlie Barnet before settling into the Herman band from 1944 to 1946. He worked for Tex Beneke (1947-1949) and Jerry Gray (1950-1951) before moving to Los Angeles, where he became immersed in studio work with side trips into the Les Brown (1952) and Stan Kenton (1954-1956) bands. From 1957 to 1962, he co-led a group with Conte and later fronted his own band, while recording on his own for Columbia, Warner Bros., Kapp, and Somerset. He has been married to singers Betty Hutton and Edie Adams; with the latter, he formed a nightclub act in 1972 in which he sang, danced, led the orchestra, and played. He would continue to perform with Conte off and on into the 1990s. Although Pete's profile had been low and his trumpet technique slipped in later years, he could still burn in a swing-grounded manner in the '90s. ~ Richard S. Ginell, Rovi  https://itunes.apple.com/us/artist/pete-candoli/id1098927#fullText

Personnel:  Trumpet – Conte Candoli, Pete Candoli;  Bass – Wilbur Campbell;  Drums – Danny Shapera;  Piano – John Young; 

"Two Brothers"

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Randy Johnston - Homage

Styles: Guitar Jazz
Year: 2011
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 51:42
Size: 119,2 MB
Art: Front

(6:02)  1. All Or Nothing At All
(6:34)  2. Pat and Wes
(4:16)  3. The Cooker
(5:52)  4. Angel
(6:52)  5. Cedar's Place
(7:06)  6. Ruby
(5:14)  7. Lyresto
(6:08)  8. Society Red
(3:34)  9. Loco 47

Beginning with 1991’s Walk On and continuing through two more Muse dates (all of which are currently out-of-print), a few sets for High Note and then 1998’s Riding the Curve, guitarist Randy Johnston has championed his own take on the mainstream jazz guitar tradition, doing so with not much of any fanfare whatsoever. But with his second effort for Cincinnati’s J Curve label, Homage, things just might start to change for the better. Johnston believes it to be his best effort yet and I’d be hard pressed to argue. The premise here is quite simple- pick a few tunes and write a few more that have something to do with some of your influences as a player, gather a top-notch rhythm section, and then add a brassy horn section. Furthermore, hire a capable arranger in the guise of Rich Shemaria to put together the charts and you’ve got yourself a frontrunner. Johnston is, of course, the main soloist here and he carries the show with a warm and burnished tone and a coherent improvisational style that sagaciously uses space and patterns of tension and release. Also taking a few well-placed solos here and there are trumpeter Jim Rotondi, tenor man Eric Alexander, pianist Xavier Davis, and baritone saxophonist Nick Brignola.

The material is particularly strong and just a bit out of the ordinary to boot. For instance, Jimi Hendrix’s “Angel” acquires new life in a sweet version that barely resembles the original, while George Benson’s “The Cooker”, Kenny Burrell’s “Lyresto” and Dexter Gordon’s “Society Red” all benefit from the fact that they haven’t been performed to death in the past. Johnston’s own “Pat & Wes”, dedicated to Pat Martino and Wes Montgomery, features those mellow octaves endemic to both saluted players’ arsenals and “Cedar’s Place” has a beguiling structure and chord progression akin to Cedar Walton’s own aesthetic. Throughout it all however, Johnston maintains his own identity utilizing the tunes as a mere starting point. A more superior homage one couldn’t ask for, wouldn’t you say? ~ C.Andrew Hovan  http://www.allaboutjazz.com/homage-randy-johnston-j-curve-records-review-by-c-andrew-hovan.php

Personnel: Randy Johnston- guitar, Jim Rotondi- trumpet, Eric Alexander- tenor saxophone, Nick Brignola- baritone saxophone, Wayne Coniglio- trombone, Xavier Davis- piano, Nat Reeves- bass, Kenny Washington- drums

Homage

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Laurence Alison - Claro

Styles: Latin, Vocal
Year: 2015
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 51:35
Size: 118,6 MB
Art: Front

(4:02)  1. Na Minha Canção
(3:23)  2. Corrida de Jangada
(4:06)  3. O Último Pássaro
(5:53)  4. Claro!
(5:13)  5. Somente uma Vez
(4:23)  6. Beatriz
(4:01)  7. Candeias
(4:03)  8. Canto Triste
(6:38)  9. Do Lado de Edu
(5:29) 10. Choro Bandido
(4:18) 11. Frozen Bones

Laurence Allison, singer, lyricist, librettist, studied the piano at five, entered the recording field at nine and sang in the Paul Kuenz Baroque choir, then, turned to Jazz music at eighteen. She performed in clubs and theaters (Elysée Montmartre, Chaillot Theater, Gaveau, Wagram, Rond-Point Theater, Méridien, Bataclan etc... and also in Germany and England). She recorded and participated in many festivals as a side woman with Warren Bernhart, Steve Grossman trio, Dave Burrell, Georges Arvanitas, Franck Wess, Reggie Johnson, French contemporary music composer André Mouret, Marc Steckar, world-electro-jazz group Alata, Herve Krief funk-electro group, Afro-Cuban orchestra Salsa y boogaloo. Many big bands as Gerard Badini or Laurent Mignard Duke Orchestra invited her. She has recorded with her own quartet and sextet. , she played and recorded with Alain Jean-Marie, Laurent Coq, Benoît Sourisse, Jean-Marie Ecay, Niels Lan Doky, Didier Lockwood, Marcel Azzola.
http://www.juste-une-trace.com/en/artists/laurence-allison.html

Claro

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Peter Herbolzheimer Orchestra - Toots Suite

Styles: Trombone Jazz, Big Band
Year: 2005
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 40:35
Size: 93,7 MB
Art: Front

(2:22)  1. After You've Gone
(3:16)  2. I Won't Dance
(3:48)  3. Teach Me Tonight
(2:03)  4. Love Is Just Around the Corner
(3:23)  5. Fat Man Boogie
(4:06)  6. Early Autumn
(2:51)  7. It Don't Mean a Thing (If It Ain't Got That Swing)
(2:40)  8. New York Special
(3:45)  9. Jumpin' At The Woodside
(3:29) 10. Mood Indigo
(2:44) 11. South of the Border
(2:49) 12. Hit the Road Jack
(3:13) 13. The Peach

There are no harmonicas on this 13-track CD, so why is it called Toots Suite? Well, it's not for Toots Thielemans. In 1969 Herbolzheimer founded his internationally successful Rhythm Combination & Brass. With this album, his American debut, Herbolzheimer thought, you know, brass: toot, toot. Don't make me explain it. Fortunately, his music is self-explanatory, and quite good if you're into retro, big-band instrumentals. Herbolzheimer hasn't strayed too far from some of the original charts, such as Billy May's "Fat Man Boogie," Woody Herman's "Early Autumn" and Count Basie's "Jumpin' at the Woodside." There's a track called "New York Special" that is a mild reworking of Neal Hefti's "Li'l Darlin'," and Herbolzheimer has the nerve to affix the trademark Basie postscript. No credits are given for soloists, and while John Clayton is listed among three bassists, there are no clues as to which track(s) he plays on. And in case you give a toot, the 20-piece band is disciplined and knows how to swing. ~ Harvey Siders  http://jazztimes.com/articles/16667-toots-suite-the-peter-herbolzheimer-orchestra

Personnel: Peter Herbolzheimer (trombone); Peter Tiehuis (guitar); Karl Drewo, Ferdinand Povel, Heinz Von Hermann, Ray Warleigh, John Ruocco (saxophone); Ack Van Rooyen, Allan Botschinsky, Jan Oosthof (trumpet); Otto Bredl, Roy Deuvall, Jiggs Whigham, Bart Van Lier (trombone); Rob Franken, Thomas Clausen (piano); Wolfgang Schlüter (vibraphone); Bruno Castellucci (drums).

Toots Suite

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