Johnny 'Hammond' Smith - Black Coffee

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 77:07
Size: 176.5 MB
Styles: Soul-jazz
Year: 1962/2013
Art: Front

[4:17] 1. Black Coffee
[3:04] 2. Monterey Theme
[4:15] 3. I Remember Clifford
[7:13] 4. Far Away Places
[7:19] 5. Rufus Toofus
[6:18] 6. Body and Soul
[5:30] 7. He's a Real Gone Guy
[4:59] 8. Blues for DeDe
[5:20] 9. Mr. Wonderful
[4:20] 10. Cyra
[3:41] 11. Lambert's Lodge
[5:39] 12. Love Letters
[4:45] 13. Blues on Sunday
[5:53] 14. Departure
[4:29] 15. Opus 2

Drums – Leo Stevens; Guitar – Eddie McFadden; Organ – Johnny "Hammond" Smith*; Tenor Saxophone – Selden Powell* (tracks: A1, A3, B1 to B3). Recorded live at the Monterey Club, New Haven, Connecticut, November 8, 1962.

Two of organist Johnny "Hammond" Smith's earliest gems (Black Coffee and Mr. Wonderful) are reissued in full on a single CD, Black Coffee. Although influenced by Jimmy Smith, this particular organist was also a strong grooving player, able to play both blues and more complicated chord changes. He is showcased with a quartet that includes tenor saxophonist Seldon Powell and guitarist Eddie McFadden, and in a quintet with McFadden, tenor man Houston Person and trumpeter Sonny Williams; in both cases Leo Stevens is on drums. The material (with eight colorful originals including "I Remember Clifford," "Body and Soul," and "He's a Real Gone Guy" among the 15 numbers) has a fair amount of variety, and Johnny "Hammond" Smith is heard at his best throughout this reissue. ~Scott Yanow

Black Coffee

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Jan Garber - The Great Jan Garber

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 31:01
Size: 71.0 MB
Styles: Big band
Year: 1994
Art: Front

[0:44] 1. My Dear
[2:29] 2. 's Wonderful
[3:14] 3. More Than You Know
[2:49] 4. Maria Elena
[3:02] 5. Stardust
[3:08] 6. It's A Wonderful World
[2:33] 7. Lovely To Look At
[2:36] 8. Oh, Lady Be Good
[2:29] 9. It's Only A Paper Moon
[2:16] 10. Birth Of The Blues
[2:41] 11. I'll See You In My Dreams
[2:54] 12. The Things We Did Last Summer

Jan Garber began his extended career on America's bandstands as a modest quartet (including his own violin) following World War I. It later emerged as a full-fledged 'hot band' in the 1920s; a 'sweet' band in the early 1930s through the early 1940s; a 'swing' band during World War II; and back to the 'sweet' style permanently in late 1945.

Jan's greatest popularity surfaced in early 1933, shortly after he took over leadership of the 'Little Freddie Large Orchestra' from Canada. With Freddie's unique lead alto saxophone captivating radio listeners from Cincinnati to Catalina Island, the Garber Band - with a sound like Lombardo but lots peppier - became an overnight sensation at Chicago's famed Trianon Ballroom. A year later, it was solidly entrenched among the most popular dance groups in the entire country.

Prominent in this emergence were the imaginative musical arrangements of pianist Doug Roe; the singing of Nebraska native Lee Bennett; and a series of comic skits, special shows and mini-concerts during each dance.

The Great Jan Garber

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Lena Horne - Love Is The Thing

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 60:28
Size: 138.4 MB
Styles: Vocal jazz
Year: 1994
Art: Front

[2:47] 1. I'd Do Anything
[3:17] 2. Love Is The Thing
[3:28] 3. Fun To Be Fooled
[2:11] 4. It's Love
[3:35] 5. You're The One
[3:40] 6. I Get The Blues When It Rains
[2:39] 7. Darn That Dream
[2:56] 8. I'm Through With Love
[3:15] 9. Someone To Watch Over Me
[2:42] 10. I Let A Song Go Out Of My Heart
[3:24] 11. I'm Confessin' (That I Love You)
[2:18] 12. It's Anybody's Spring
[3:33] 13. The Rules Of The Road
[3:37] 14. Paradise
[2:49] 15. I Got Rhythm
[3:43] 16. I Understand
[2:35] 17. It's A Lonesome Old Town
[2:43] 18. I Hadn't Anyone Till You
[2:15] 19. They Didn't Believe Me
[2:50] 20. Come On Strong

Since there isn't much out there from Lena's 50s career this is the only collection available. It finds Miss Horne backed by hot jazz combos on such numbers as "Love Is The Thing" and strings for instance on "Fun To Be Fooled." This is an overall satisfying compilation by a fine pop singer, who at times does sing straight ahead jazz. ~Aaron/Amazon

Love Is The Thing

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Lee Konitz - Tenderlee For Chet

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 78:03
Size: 178.7 MB
Styles: Bop, Saxophone jazz
Year: 1999/2012
Art: Front

[10:26] 1. Blues For Chet
[12:16] 2. My Funny Valentine
[11:40] 3. Just Friends
[ 7:27] 4. It Could Happen To You
[10:38] 5. But Not For Me
[13:08] 6. What's New
[12:24] 7. I'll Remember April

Alto Saxophone – Lee Konitz; Bass – Pietro Ciancaglini; Drums – Fabrizio Sferra; Piano – Stefano Bollani. Recorded live in Rome at La Palma on December 5 & 6, 1998.

One of the most individual of all altoists (and one of the few in the 1950s who did not sound like a cousin of Charlie Parker), the cool-toned Lee Konitz has always had a strong musical curiosity that has led him to consistently take chances and stretch himself, usually quite successfully. Early on he studied clarinet, switched to alto, and played with Jerry Wald. Konitz gained some attention for his solos with Claude Thornhill & His Orchestra (1947). He began studying with Lennie Tristano, who had a big influence on his conception and approach to improvising. Konitz was with Miles Davis' Birth of the Cool Nonet during their one gig and their Capitol recordings (1948-1950) and recorded with Lennie Tristano's innovative sextet (1949), including the first two free improvisations ever documented. Konitz blended very well with Warne Marsh's tenor (their unisons on "Wow" are miraculous) and would have several reunions with both Tristano and Marsh through the years, but he was also interested in finding his own way; by the early '50s he started breaking away from the Tristano school. Konitz toured Scandinavia (1951), where his cool sound was influential, and he fit in surprisingly well with Stan Kenton & His Orchestra (1952-1954), being featured on many charts by Bill Holman and Bill Russo. Konitz was primarily a leader from that point on. He almost retired from music in the early '60s but re-emerged a few years later. His recordings have ranged from cool bop to thoughtful free improvisations, and his Milestone set of Duets (1967) is a classic. In the late '70s Konitz led a notable nonet and in 1992 he won the prestigious Jazzpar Prize. He kept a busy release schedule throughout the '90s and dabbled in the world of classical music with 2000's French Impressionist Music from the Turn of the Twentieth Century. The Mark Masters Ensemble joined him for 2004's One Day with Lee, and in 2007 he recorded Portology with the Ohad Talmor Big Band. He has recorded on soprano and tenor but has mostly stuck to his distinctive alto. Konitz has led consistently stimulating sessions for many labels, including Prestige, Dragon, Pacific Jazz, Vogue, Storyville, Atlantic, Verve, Wave, Milestone, MPS, Polydor, Bellaphon, SteepleChase, Sonet, Groove Merchant, Roulette, Progressive, Choice, IAI, Chiaroscuro, Circle, Black Lion, Soul Note, Storyville, Evidence, and Philogy. In 2011, he released his own trio album Knowinglee and appeared on the live ECM date Live at Birdland (recorded in 2009) with pianist Brad Mehldau, bassist Charlie Haden, and drummer Paul Motian. ~ Scott Yanow

Tenderlee For Chet

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Kirk Lightsey Trio & Freddie Hubbard - Temptation

Styles: Piano And Trumpet Jazz
Year: 1987
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 51:16
Size: 117,6 MB
Art: Front

(10:29)  1. Gibraltar
( 7:23)  2. Evidence
( 7:59)  3. Society Red
(11:06)  4. Temptation
( 8:13)  5. Love Is a Many-Splendored Thing
( 6:04)  6. Brigitte

A pianist who is not a trendsetter but is consistently excellent, Kirk Lightsey long ago developed his own sound within the hard bop tradition. He started playing piano when he was five, although he also played clarinet while in high school. Lightsey worked in Detroit and California in the early '60s, often accompanying singers. He gained some attention in 1965 when he recorded with Sonny Stitt and was on five Prestige records with Chet Baker. However, Lightsey mostly had low-profile gigs until he toured with Dexter Gordon (1979-1983) and became part of the Leaders (starting in the late '80s). Kirk Lightsey has recorded with Jimmy Raney, Clifford Jordan, Woody Shaw, David Murray, and Harold Land, among others, and has led his own sessions for Criss Cross and Sunnyside, including piano duets with Harold Danko. He released the duo album, The Nights of Bradleys with bassist Rufus Reid on Sunnyside in 2004. https://itunes.apple.com/us/artist/kirk-lightsey-trio/id293375220#fullText

Personnel: Kirk Lightsey (piano), Freddie Hubbard (trumpet), Santi Debriano (bass), Eddie Gladden (drums), Jerry Gonzalez (percussion).

Temptation

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Liza Pulman - Liza Pulman Sings Harold Arlen

Styles: Vocal
Year: 2014
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 36:48
Size: 86,1 MB
Art: Front

(4:14)  1. I Had Myself A True Love
(2:57)  2. With The Sun Warm Upon Me
(4:27)  3. One For My Baby
(2:50)  4. Let's Fall In Love
(3:41)  5. Stormy Weather
(4:02)  6. Over The Rainbow
(3:12)  7. Last Night When We Were Young
(2:07)  8. Happiness Is Just A Thing Called Joe
(6:15)  9. I'll Wind/Come Rain Or Come Shine/When The Sun Comes Out (Weather Medley)
(3:00) 10. Get Happy/Shining Hour

Liza has enjoyed an extensive and varied careerencompassing a broad spectrum of music, comedy and theatre.  After training at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama she joined Glyndebourne Opera enjoying roles in many of the globally renowned ompany’s leading productions.
From Glyndebourne she guested with the D’Oyly Carte and Carl Rosa companies playing the leads in operettas by Offenbach and Gilbert and Sullivan. Liza has always been in demand for musical theatre. Her performances have included Adrian Noble’s award-winning 2002 production of Chitty Chitty Bang Bang at the London Palladium with Michael Ball, a production which became the theatre’s longest running show. Liza also played opposite Phillip Schofield in the UK tour of Doctor Dolittle.

In 2004 Liza joined the internationally renowned comedy trio Fascinating Aïda and their award winning shows have taken them to venues and festivals across the globe.Liza continues her solo career with numerous projects including her acclaimed show Everything’s Coming Up Roses and the development of her concert and recording series Liza Pulman Sings. In 2016 Liza is touring the UK with her major theatre show The Songs Of Hollywood.  http://www.lizapulman.com/biography/

Liza Pulman Sings Harold Arlen

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Masqualero - Masqualero

Styles: Jazz Fusion
Year: 1983
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 74:02
Size: 179,1 MB
Art: Front

(6:00)  1. Ved Fossen
(3:42)  2. Wallen, wallen!/Helsinki song
(7:04)  3. Delete
(5:30)  4. Nyl
(4:50)  5. Til Radka
(4:50)  6. Rememberance
(5:43)  7. Fortere
(5:45)  8. Drifter
(5:27)  9. Masqualero
(4:14) 10. Sinki song
(5:06) 11. Aural Exciter
(4:39) 12. Not yet
(4:55) 13. Off balance
(6:11) 14. Den hemmelige

Despite plenty of evidence to the contrary, there are still those who think that Norwegian musicians can't play "real jazz" (whatever that is), and that what they do play is something consistently (and erroneously) categorized as "Nordic Cool." Submitted for your approval is today's Rediscovery: the self-titled debut from Masqualero, a group that would retrospectively become known as a Norwegian supergroup and one that demonstrates there's plenty of "real jazz" going on in this country of five million, with a disproportionate number of significant artists going on to garner international acclaim. What group, after all, would name itself after a composition by American saxophonist Wayne Shorter a composition that appears as the only non-original on Masqualero and not be somehow affiliated with the jazz tradition? Two of Masqualero's members its cofounders were already internationally known names. Double bassist Arild Andersen first appeared on Munich's lauded ECM label with Jan Garbarek on the saxophonist's early classic Afric Pepperbird (1970), moving on to record a number of albums for the label under his own name (three of them released between 1975 and '78 and collected by the label in the 2010 box set Green Into Blue-Early Quartets). Drummer Jon Christensen, after also appearing on Afric Pepperbird, went on to become the label's de facto house drummer for the next decade or so, appearing on subsequent albums by artists ranging from Garbarek, Ralph Towner and Eberhard Weber to Bobo Stenson, Miroslav Vitous and Keith Jarrett.

Both continue to record for the label to this day. Andersen's last album was the superb Mira (2014), with his longstanding trio featuring saxophonist Tommy Smith and irrepressible drummer Paolo Vinaccia; he remains a bassist who, despite possessing a muscular tone and frightening dexterity, is capable of deeper lyricism and an ability to make his instrument truly sing. Christensen heard most recently on the overdue first-time CD issue of bassist Miroslav Vitous' Miroslav Vitous Group (1981) is a drummer whose earlier power has been diminished somewhat by physical impairments, but who these days remains a creative player of a more textural bent. Still, 30 years on, their collaborative work in Masqualero remains some of their absolute best. The balance of Masqualero's five members were relative youngsters.already showing substantial promise and who would subsequently go on to become well-known leaders and, in some cases, international stars. Trumpeter Nils Petter Molvaer was just 23 when Masqualero was released, and while playing here with a more burnished tone and unmistakable jazz sensibility, he would go on to become a world-famous fuser of improvisation, electronica, world music and more on albums like Khmer (ECM, 1997), which was one of a number of albums released by Norwegian artists in 1997-'98 that truly shook the music world. 

Pianist Jon Balke was 28, but was on the cusp of emerging as not just an improviser with an unmistakable voice in groups like Jøkleba!, but as an even more influential composer with Oslo 13 and Magnetic North Orchestra, ensembles that had a significant impact on up-and-comers like The Source, Trygve Seim and Jaga Jazzist.  23 year-old saxophonist Tore Brunborg, in addition to superb albums as a leader including Tid (Curling Legs, 1993) and the more recent Lucid Grey (DRAVLE, 2009), would become an important collaborator with artists ranging from Ketil Bjornstad, Tord Gustavsen and Mathias Eick to Manu Katche, Misha Alperin and Mats Eilertsen. Recorded at Oslo's Talent Studio with engineer Jan Erik Kongshaug a pairing that, by that time, had also become a regular one for ECM label head/founder Manfred Eicher Masqualero comes charging out of the gate with Brunborg's high octane "Ved Fossen" and rarely lets up throughout the 73-minutes of Odin's 1997 CD of the original 1983 vinyl edition, adding five bonus tracks totalling 25 minutes and, rather than placing them at the end of the record, integrates within the original set list to create a large whole with its own distinct arc. More...John Kelman  https://www.allaboutjazz.com/masqualero-masqualero-by-john-kelman.php

Personnel:  Bass – Arild Andersen;  Drums – Jon Christensen , Piano, Electric Piano [El. Piano] – Jon Balke;  Tenor Saxophone, Soprano Saxophone – Tore Brunborg;  Trumpet – Nils Petter Molvær

Masqualero

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Joel Weiskopf - Where Angels Fear To Tread

Styles: Piano Jazz
Year: 2016
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 70:28
Size: 161,7 MB
Art: Front

(7:59)  1. Patience
(7:15)  2. Breakthrough
(5:26)  3. Came to Believe
(9:11)  4. Love Song
(9:02)  5. Elegy for D Sharpe
(8:49)  6. Lonely Evening
(8:09)  7. Where Angels Fear to Tread
(6:48)  8. Time Remembered
(7:45)  9. Free Fall

Award-winning pianist/composer Joel Weiskopf has long been established in the straightahead jazz scene in the USA and abroad. While he has released a number of leader albums, this is his debut leader outing on SteepleChase. On this album Weiskopf brings out his time-tested repertoire (all originals plus Bill Evans' "Time Remembered") for a quintet date with his Syracuse compatriots, trumpeter Joe Magnarelli and saxophonist Andy Fusco, plus drumming sensation Jaimeo Brown.

"Joel Weiskopf is a serious jazz pianist with an individualistic style that is an amalgam of a great number of influences from American jazz to Brazilian samba." - C. Andrew Hovan, CD Review http://www.propermusic.com/product-details/Joel-Weiskopf-Where-Angels-Fear-to-Tread-227884

Personnel: Joel Weiskopf (piano), Joe Magnarelli (trumpet, flugelhorn), Andy Fusco (alto and soprano saxophone), Doug Weiss (bass), Jaimeo Brown (drums)

Where Angels Fear To Tread

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