Kerry Ellis, Brian May - Acoustic By Candlelight

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 64:30
Size: 147.7 MB
Styles: Vocal
Year: 2013
Art: Front

[3:17] 1. Born Free
[4:49] 2. I Loved A Butterfly
[3:45] 3. I Who Have Nothing
[4:21] 4. Dust In The Wind
[4:25] 5. The Kissing Me Song
[4:56] 6. Nothing Really Has Changed
[4:30] 7. Life Is Real
[3:43] 8. The Way We Were
[4:32] 9. Something
[4:37] 10. Love Of My Life
[3:25] 11. I'm Not That Girl
[4:31] 12. I Can't Be Your Friend
[3:44] 13. In The Bleak Midwinter
[3:46] 14. Crazy Little Thing Called Love
[6:04] 15. No One But You [only The Good Die Young]

Vocal and acoustic instruments - you've got to be good to get away with that! And you've got to be very good to produce a five-star album. Fortunately Kerry Ellis and Brian May are very good.

The CD takes a while to get going - after the first few songs I was convinced this was going to be a four-star review - but picks up quickly with highlights including The Kissing Me Song, Something, Love Of My Life, I'm Not That Girl, I Can't Be Your Friend, Crazy Little Thing Called Love, and No One But You. Special mention has to go to Something, which has long been my favourite Beatles song. Kerry's voice sounds wonderful on this and Brian has done an excellent job of reproducing George Harrison's guitar sound. ~Mark Syder

Acoustic By Candlelight

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The Speakeasies' Swing Band - Land Of Plenty

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 45:54
Size: 105.1 MB
Styles: Retro Swing
Year: 2015
Art: Front

[5:10] 1. Sinner's Advice
[4:31] 2. My Baby Kicked Me Out
[4:49] 3. Love Theme From 'the Godfather'
[5:41] 4. S. Ballad
[2:34] 5. Cashor Check
[3:18] 6. Pera Vrechi
[4:15] 7. To Danio
[4:23] 8. Gypsy Curse
[5:28] 9. Please Love Me
[5:40] 10. Deal With The Devil

Acoustic Guitar – Giannis Ntalianis; Clarinet – Christos Papadopoulos; Double Bass – Panos Voulgarakis; Drums – Stergios Koias; Electric Guitar – Panos Karnoutsos; Piano, Accordion – Manolis Stamatiadis; Saxophone – James Wylie (tracks: 7,8,10); Trombone – Menelaos Karagiannis (tracks: 8,10); Trumpet – Christos Anastasiadis (tracks: 7,8,10); Violin – Thanos Anagnostopoulos (tracks: 3); Vocals – Caterina Sisinni. Recorded live at “Royal Alzheimer Hall” studio by Titos Kariotakis, Christos Harbilas & Orestis Patsinakidis.

Ten stories that will take you back to the Prohibition era where the speakeasies and swing music were the only means to get around everyday life problems.

Land Of Plenty

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Shorty Rogers & His Giants - The Swinging Mr. Rogers

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 45:17
Size: 103.7 MB
Styles: Trumpet jazz, West Coast jazz
Year: 1955/2006
Art: Front

[5:42] 1. Isn't It Romantic
[4:38] 2. Trickley Didlier
[6:29] 3. Oh Play That Thing
[4:56] 4. Not Really The Blues
[7:53] 5. Martians Go Home
[6:10] 6. My Heart Stood Still
[3:53] 7. Michele's Meditation
[5:32] 8. That's What I'm Talkin' 'bout

This Lp has one of trumpeter Shorty Rogers' finest small group sessions of the 1950's; fortunately the music has been reissued by Mosaic on CD in a box set. Rogers, Jimmy Giuffre (on clarinet, tenor and baritone), pianist Pete Jolly, bassist Curtis Counce and drummer Shelly Manne are the epitome of cool on a well-rounded and consistently interesting set. Highlights including "Isn't It Romantic," "Trickleydidlier," "Not Really The Blues" and Rogers' "hit" "Martians Go Home." ~Scott Yanow

The Swinging Mr. Rogers

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Steve Turre - One4J

Styles: Trombone Jazz
Year: 2003
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 60:26
Size: 140,3 MB
Art: Front

(3:47)  1. Overdrive
(6:50)  2. Wee Dot
(4:52)  3. Lament
(5:07)  4. One 4 J
(4:58)  5. Mr. Johnson
(5:41)  6. Short Cake
(6:22)  7. Kelo
(5:21)  8. What Is This Thing Called Love?
(5:08)  9. El Camino Real
(5:50) 10. Enigma
(6:25) 11. Minor Blues

One4J is the second high profile multi-trombone release this season, after Spirit of the Horn (MCG Jazz, 2003) by Slide Hampton and The World of Trombones. That disc was an implicit hommage to the trombone master J.J. Johnson. This present disc is explicitly dedicated to the Imminent Mr. Johnson, who passed away February 4, 2001. Steve Turre digs deep into the Johnson songbook to pull out compositions by and songs associated with or inspired by Mr. Johnson. For his part, Turre successfully arranged these various trombone anthems for six talented and very different trombonists. He crafts "Overdrive" for himself and Robin Eubanks; "We Dot" for Andre Heyward; and Johnson's most famous composition, "Lament," for Joe Alessi and Steve Davis (with Douglas Purviance blowing the bass trombone). All are carried off with the grace and calm of low brass. Discs like this can be somewhat risky affairs, with their emphasis on a single instrument. An orchestra of trombones might sound as if it will come off as an orchestra of cellos. But in this case, the disc is not terribly trombone heavy. It provides a completely satisfying listening experience while highlighting those keen practitioners of the trombone. ~ C.Michael Bailey https://www.allaboutjazz.com/one4j-paying-homage-to-jj-johnson-steve-turre-telarc-records-review-by-c-michael-bailey.php?width=1920

Personnel: Steve Turre, Joe Alessi, Steve Davis, Robin Eubanks, Andre Hayward, Douglas Purviance -Trombones;   Stephen Scott,  Renee Rosnes-Piano;  Peter Washington-Bass;  Victor Lewis-Drums;  Abou M'Boup-Percussion.

One4J

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Chris Connor - Sweet And Swinging

Styles: Vocal
Year: 1978
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 37:10
Size: 87,4 MB
Art: Front

(2:21)  1. I Feel A Song Comin' On
(4:05)  2. Anyplace I Hang My Hat Is Home
(3:00)  3. Just In Time
(3:41)  4. Here's That Rainy Day
(3:38)  5. Out of This World
(5:40)  6. When Sunny Gets Blue
(1:51)  7. Things Are Swingin'
(3:37)  8. Where Flamingos Fly
(2:55)  9. I've Got You Under My Skin
(4:49) 10. I Wish You Love
(1:28) 11. The Sweetest Sounds

Not all that much was heard from Chris Connor after her last Atlantic record in 1962 until this date. Her recordings for FM, ABC-Paramount (quite commercial), Bainbridge and Japanese Sony in the interim were all quite obscure. But at the age of 50, she began to make a comeback and showed that her voice was still strong and her cool style intact. Accompanied by pianist Michael Abene, bassist Michael Moore, drummer Ronnie Bedford and Jerry Dodgion on alto and flute, Connor performs 11 diverse tunes, including remakes of a few earlier numbers. Highlights include "Out of This World," "Where Flamingos Fly" and "When Sunny Gets Blue." ~ Scott Yanow http://www.allmusic.com/album/sweet-and-swinging-mw0000626664

Personnel: Chris Connor (vocals); Michael Abene (piano, keyboards); Ronnie Bedford (drums).

Sweet And Swinging

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Branford Marsalis - I Heard You Twice the First Time

Styles: Saxophone Jazz
Year: 1992
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 69:48
Size: 161,1 MB
Art: Front

( 9:06)  1. Brother Trying to Catch a Cab (On the East Side) Blues
(10:10)  2. B.B.'s Blues
( 9:21)  3. Rib Tip Johnson
( 6:48)  4. Mabel
( 6:32)  5. Sidney in da Haus
( 5:27)  6. Berta, Berta
( 7:16)  7. Stretto from the Ghetto
( 5:33)  8. Dance of the Hei Gui
( 6:23)  9. The Road You Choose
( 3:09) 10. Simi Valley Blues

Branford Marsalis plays the blues on this interesting if erratic CD. Among his many guests are B.B. King (although surprisingly, there is no interaction between Marsalis and King), John Lee Hooker, Russell Malone, Linda Hopkins (who comes across very well), Joe Louis Walker and brothers Wynton and Delfeayo Marsalis. Ranging from hints of field hollers and New Orleans to country blues, a vignette ("Brother Trying to Catch a Cab (On the East Side) Blues") and a few more conventional burnouts, this is an intriguing set that is worth picking up. ~ Scott Yanow http://www.allmusic.com/album/i-heard-you-twice-the-first-time-mw0000084782

Personnel:  Branford Marsalis (vocals, soprano, alto & tenor saxophones);  B.B. King, John Lee Hooker (vocals, guitar); Linda Hopkins, Thomas Hollis, Roscoe Carroll, Carl Gordon, Charles Dutton (vocals); Wessel Anderson (alto saxophone); Wynton Marsalis, Earl Gardner (trumpet); Defeayo Marsalis, David Sagher (trombone); Kenny Kirkland (piano); Russel Malone, Joe Louis Walker, T-Blade (guitar); Robert Hurst, Reginald Veal (bass); Jeff "Tain" Watts, Bernard Purdie, Herlin "Homey" Riley (drums).

I Heard You Twice the First Time

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Chick Webb - Strictly Jive

Styles: Jazz, Big Band, Swing
Year: 1999
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 75:16
Size: 174,7 MB
Art: Front + Back

(2:53)  1. Down Home Rag
(2:32)  2. Facts and Figures
(2:21)  3. Go Harlem
(2:33)  4. Sing Me a Swing Song
(2:36)  5. Gee, But You're Swell
(3:05)  6. Rusty Hinge
(2:29)  7. Clap Hands, Here Comes Charlie
(2:59)  8. That Naughty Waltz
(3:16)  9. Strictly Jive
(3:06) 10. Squeeze Me
(2:34) 11. If Dreams Come True
(3:11) 12. Harlem Congo
(4:18) 13. I Want to Be Happy
(2:29) 14. Midnite in a Madhouse
(3:06) 15. Azure
(3:00) 16. Spinnin' the Webb
(2:44) 17. Liza
(3:05) 18. Macpherson Is Rehearsin' (To Swing)
(2:45) 19. Ella
(2:49) 20. Who Ya Hunchin'
(2:58) 21. 'Tain't What You Do
(2:38) 22. In the Groove at the Grove
(2:45) 23. Lindyhopper's Delight
(2:52) 24. Take It from the Top
(3:12) 25. Jubilee Swing
(2:50) 26. Untitled

Strictly Jive is the Hep label's 25-track salute to Chick Webb, a formidable percussionist who led one of the toughest big bands of the 1930s. Strictly Jive concentrates upon the years 1935-1940, a period of time that represents the second half of the ten-year Webb dynasty. The Chick Webb orchestra was a jazz incubator from which emerged seasoned instrumentalists like Taft Jordan, Sandy Williams, Garvin Bushell, Hilton Jefferson, and Eddie Barefield, as well as future bandleaders John Kirby and Louis Jordan, and renowned composer and arranger Edgar Sampson. Saxophonist Wayman Carver, one of the few flutists in jazz during the 1930s, was a featured soloist with Chick Webb and may be heard piping away in front of the band on Wilbur Sweatman's "Down Home Rag." 

Most people who have heard of Webb associate him with his star vocalist Ella Fitzgerald, a dynamic woman who assumed leadership of the band after 30-year-old Chick Webb succumbed to spinal tuberculosis on June 16, 1939 in his hometown of Baltimore, Maryland. ~ arwulf arwulf  http://www.allmusic.com/album/strictly-jive-mw0000245698

Personnel: Chick Webb (drums); Louis Jordan (vocals, alto saxophone); Ella Fitzgerald (vocals); Chauncey Houghton, John Trueheart, Bobby Johnson (guitar); Wayman Carver (flute, tenor saxophone); Garvin Bushell (clarinet, alto saxophone); Pete Clarke, Eddie Barefield, Edgar Sampson, Hilton Jefferson (alto saxophone); Elmer "Skippy" Williams, Sam Simmons, Teddy McRae (tenor saxophone); Irving "Mouse" Randolph, Mario Bauzá, Taft Jordan, Dick Vance, Bobby Stark (trumpet); Nat Story, George Mathews, Sandy Williams , Claude Jones (trombone); Tommy Fulford, Don Kirkatrick (piano); Bill Beason (drums).

Strictly Jive

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Lester Young - The 'Kansas City Sessions'

Styles: Clarinet And Saxophone Jazz

Year: 1997

File: MP3@320K/s

Time: 67:17

Size: 154,6 MB

Art: Front

(3:02)  1. Way Down Yonder in New Orleans (take 2)

(3:00)  2. Way Down Yonder in New Orleans

(3:03)  3. Countless Blues

(3:01)  4. Countless Blues (take 2)

(3:00)  5. Them There Eyes (take 2)

(3:01)  6. Them There Eyes

(2:56)  7. I Want a Little Girl

(2:57)  8. I Want a Little Girl (take 2)

(2:59)  9. Pagin' the Devil

(2:58) 10. Pagin' the Devil (take 2)

(3:22) 11. Three Little Words (take 2)

(2:54) 12. Three Little Words

(3:20) 13. Jo Jo

(3:18) 14. I Got Rhythm (take 3)

(3:18) 15. I Got Rhythm (take 2)

(3:19) 16. I Got Rhythm

(2:53) 17. Four O'Clock Drag

(2:53) 18. Four O'Clock Drag (take 3)

(3:07) 19. Laughing at Life

(2:54) 20. Good Mornin' Blues

(3:06) 21. I Know That You Know

(2:47) 22. Love Me or Leave Me

This is a CD overflowing with classic performances. The great Lester Young is heard with the 1938 version of the Kansas City Six, a group also including trumpeter Buck Clayton (in prime form), Eddie Durham on electric guitar (where he preceded Charlie Christian) and trombone, the rhythm guitar of Freddie Green, bassist Walter Page, and drummer Jo Jones. The four selections (all of which are joined by an alternate take apiece) are most notable for Young's switching to clarinet on some of the pieces. His clarinet solo on "I Want a Little Girl" sounds eerily like Paul Desmond's alto of 15 years later. These classic cool jazz performances have delightful interplay between the two horns. The second part of the reissue features the 1944 Kansas City Six in which Young (sticking to tenor) and trumpeter Bill Coleman are joined by a three-piece rhythm section and trombonist Dickie Wells. Wells, who takes some very colorful and nearly riotous solos, rarely sounded better, and the four selections are highlighted by three equally rewarding versions of "I Got Rhythm" and two of "Three Little Words." The CD concludes with the four titles by 1938's Kansas City Five, which was essentially the early Kansas City Six without Young. Clayton is once again in top form, and Durham's guitar solos were among the first worthwhile examples of the electric guitar on record. This gem is highly recommended for all jazz collections. ~ Scott Yanow http://www.allmusic.com/album/the-kansas-city-sessions-mw0000087654

Personnel: Lester Young (clarinet, tenor saxophone); Freddie Green (vocals, guitar); Eddie Durham (electric guitar, trombone); Bill Coleman , Buck Clayton (trumpet); Dicky Wells (trombone); Joe Bushkin (piano); Jo Jones (drums).

The Kansas City Sessions

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