Joe Locke / Geoffrey Keezer Group - Signing

Styles: Vibraphone And Piano Jazz
Year: 2012
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 55:20
Size: 127,5 MB
Art: Front

(7:55)  1. Signing
(6:58)  2. The Lost Lenore
(6:40)  3. Darth Alexis
(7:52)  4. Naima
(5:53)  5. Hide and Seek
(8:25)  6. Her Sanctuary
(6:57)  7. Terraces
(4:37)  8. This Is Just to Say

Signing is only the second release from the co-led Joe Locke / Geoffrey Keezer Group, but both men have traveled plenty of musical miles together, both on record and on stage. They've worked in trio with reed man Tim Garland under the Storms/Nocturnes moniker, produced compelling music for the Japanese marketplace using the New Sound Quartet name and filled venues across the globe to capacity when they take the bandstand together. While six years separate their debut Live In Seattle (Origin, 2006) and this follow-up, they've maintained their musical connection in the interim and their bond has only deepened with time. The music that Locke and Keezer create can be alternately potent and powerful or peaceful and poetic, but it's never less than enthralling. The program contains four Locke originals, two Keezer-penned pieces and a pair of covers that come from vastly different sources saxophonist John Coltrane and the hard-to-define singer/songwriter/musical mutt Imogen Heap. While this group has a signature aural fingerprint that comes through on nearly every track, they don't tread on the same stylistic ground from piece to piece. The title track is a drum 'n' bass-driven journey that has a rave-meets-meets jazz mentality, "Hide And Seek" is a faithful, pop-leaning instrumental facsimile of Heap's work, "Her Sanctuary" is a cascading ride of wonder and ""Darth Alexis" has an occasionally sinister quality and demonstrates the precision of this music. The album contains plenty of first-take recordings, but the performances never betray that fact.

While Locke and Keezer are responsible for shaping the band, the rhythm section deserves credit for bringing a futuristic bent into their sound. Drummer Terreon Gully and bassist Mike Pope push boundaries and bring something distinctly modern to the mix. Pope's electric bass work can serve as a grounding force, melodic instrument, textural element or impressive solo voice ("Terraces"), while Gully is a powerful rhythmic visionary who stokes the flames of this music at every turn ("Signing"). When they mix with Locke and Keezer, the resultant music projects an anything-is-possible policy. 

This music can be explosive, earthy, driven, touching or terrifying, but, most importantly, it's always unpredictable. Signing marks Locke's arrival on the Motéma label, where he has two more projects slated for release in the coming year-and-a-half, and it stands as a testament to the ever-growing connection between the vibraphonist and his piano playing partner-in-crime. ~  Dan Bilawsky https://www.allaboutjazz.com/signing-joe-locke-geoffrey-keezer-group-motema-music-review-by-dan-bilawsky.php
 

Personnel: Joe Locke: vibraphone; Geoffrey Keezer: piano, rhodes, omnisphere; Terreon Gully: drums; Mike Pope: electric bass, acoustic bass.

Signing

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Stevie Holland - Restless Willow

Styles: Vocal Jazz
Year: 2004
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 39:36
Size: 91,2 MB
Art: Front

(2:31)  1. It Might As Well Be Spring
(3:53)  2. Love Is Strong Far Than We
(3:03)  3. Summertime
(4:16)  4. How Long Has This Been Going On?
(3:43)  5. One Touch
(2:57)  6. Sunny Skies
(4:38)  7. Lush Life
(3:20)  8. Jeg Elsker Dig
(3:31)  9. Here's That Rainy Day
(2:48) 10. Zoot Walks In
(4:51) 11. Stardust

Stevie Holland has a beautiful and flexible voice. Her CD constantly varies the personnel (sometimes featuring pianist George Small and at other times guitarist Sean Harkness) and covers a few different styles. The music includes standards at a variety of tempos, some songs that sound close to show tunes, and heartfelt ballads. There are also guest appearances (one apiece) by Rubén Flores (who sings a duet with Holland on "One Touch"), flutist Joe Mennonna, and tenor saxophonist David "Fathead" Newman (who swings on "Zoot Walks In"). Among the most memorable selections are a happy interpretation of "It Might As Well Be Spring," an uptempo "Summertime," and a wonderful version of "Stardust" in which Holland's voice is backed by just Harkness' guitar. All in all, this is an impressive effort. ~ Scott Yanow http://www.allmusic.com/album/restless-willow-mw0000633409

Personnel: Stevie Holland (vocals); Joe Mennonna (flute); David "Fathead" Newman (saxophone, tenor saxophone); George Small (piano); Sean Harkness (guitar); Kenny Washington (drums); Steve Kroon (percussion).

Restless Willow

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Stu Williamson - Stu Williamson Plays

Styles: Trumpet Jazz
Year: 1956
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 59:16
Size: 136,2 MB
Art: Front

(4:16)  1. The Lady Is a Tramp
(5:41)  2. Stu's Due Blues
(2:52)  3. The Things We Did Last Summer
(3:52)  4. Yardbird Suite
(2:39)  5. Autumn in New York
(4:26)  6. Just Friends
(3:30)  7. Pee Jay
(3:50)  8. Darn That Dream
(6:11)  9. Hongry Child
(4:31) 10. Big Red
(5:07) 11. Red Cross
(3:21) 12. Talk of the Town
(3:59) 13. Oom's Tune
(4:56) 14. Rose Bud

Stu Williamson led relatively few sessions in his career and over half of them are on this excellent Fresh Sound CD. The cool-toned trumpeter is mostly heard in a quintet with altoist Charlie Mariano, pianist Claude Williamson (his brother), either Max Bennett or Leroy Vinnegar on bass, and Stan Levey or Mel Lewis on drums. The remaining four songs (all Bill Holman compositions) feature a sextet with Holman on tenor, baritonist Jimmy Giuffre, Claude, Vinnegar, and Lewis. The music swings lightly but firmly with excellent solos from all concerned, making this CD a prime example of West Coast jazz from the 1950s. Recommended. ~ Scott Yanow http://www.allmusic.com/album/stu-williamson-plays-mw0000875069

Personnel: Stu Williamson (Trumpet) , Charlie Mariano (Saxophone),  Claude Williamson (Piano), Max Bennett (Bass), Stan Levey (Drums).

Stu Williamson Plays

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Joe Lovano Quartet - Classic! Live At Newport

Styles: Saxophone Jazz
Year: 2016
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 57:49
Size: 133,0 MB
Art: Front

( 7:11)  1. Big Ben
(11:05)  2. Bird's Eye View
(10:23)  3. Don't Ever Leave Me
( 9:55)  4. I'm All For You
( 8:09)  5. Kids Are Pretty People
(11:04)  6. Six And Four

It's safe to say that many years from now, when the critics and historians have the benefit of distance to help focus their thoughts, many if not most will continue to hail much of saxophonist Joe Lovano's presently-admired body of work on the Blue Note imprint. But what will stand tallest in said discography? Some may continue to laud the bold, rhythmically charged work of his Us Five quintet; others may celebrate his fascinating Trio Fascination outings; and a different faction may extol the virtues of his commanding quartet dates recorded at the hallowed Village Vanguard. There's no shortage of good options in a portfolio that contains more than two dozen offerings and spans more than a quarter century. For this writer, it will always be the recordings that Lovano created with pianist Hank Jones amaranthine beauties that never seem to lose their luster. I'm All For You (Blue Note, 2004) and Joyous Encounter (Blue Note, 2005) incredibly engaging quartet dates with bassist George Mraz and drummer Paul Motian rounding out the lineup came first, and in quick succession; the pair's lone duo date Kids: Live at Dizzy's Club Coca- Cola (Blue Note, 2007) came a little later. Jones passed away a few years after that third record arrived in 2010, at the ripe young age of ninety-one and Lovano moved on to other musical realms, seemingly closing that incredibly fruitful chapter of his artistic life. But now the story comes alive again with the release of this set that was captured live at the Newport Jazz Festival in 2005.

After recording Joyous Encounter in May of that year, Lovano toured Europe with the quartet from the album, with model-of-class drummer Lewis Nash replacing Motian. That band coalesced into a communicative marvel, a fact that's clear as day here as those four musicians put forth integration and integrity as their collective calling cards. Subtle and artful shifts from flowering ballad territory to solid state swing help to elevate Lovano's "I'm All For You"; bluesy, raucous, cool, and gritty sounds mix perfectly together to make for an easy sell of Oliver Nelson's swinging "Six And Four"; and empathy knows no bounds on the Brazilian-inflected "Don't Ever Leave Me." Oh, to have been in the audience on that summer day. While the magic exhibited here is of a similar sort to what can be heard on the aforementioned quartet recordings, it's obviously not the same. And it should come as no surprise that the change in the drum chair is what altered the chemistry of the group. Motian was a master of percussive shading, allowing airiness into an instrumental realm that it rarely entered, and Nash typically prefers things on the taut and tidier side. The mind was pulled deep into a dream when Motian joined forces with Lovano, Jones, and Mraz, but hearing Nash with the same three is another experience entirely. He pulls the whole body of the listener into the music. If your foot isn't tapping, your body isn't moving, and your head isn't bobbing along in the affirmative during "Kids Are Pretty People," you may be suffering from some form of paralysis. Nash once released an album called Rhythm Is My Business (Evidence, 1993), and he wasn't kidding. Bestowing an album with the "classic" designation upon its release may seem a bit presumptuous, but this appears to be one of those if-the-shoe-fits cases that says otherwise. A classic, by its own definition, is something "of the first or highest quality, class, or rank," and this surely fits the bill. ~ Dan Bilawsky https://www.allaboutjazz.com/classic-live-at-newport-joe-lovano-blue-note-records-review-by-dan-bilawsky.php

Personnel: Joe Lovano: tenor saxophone; Hank Jones: piano; George Mraz: bass; Lewis Nash: drums.

Classic! Live At Newport

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Hal McKusick Octet - In A Twentieth-Century Drawing Room

Styles: Clarinet And Saxophone Jazz
Year: 1955
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 36:44
Size: 85,6 MB
Art: Front

(4:30)  1. My Inspitarion
(2:46)  2. Gift Of The Magi
(3:09)  3. You're A Lucky Guy
(2:35)  4. Can't We Be Friends
(2:33)  5. Step Lively Osie
(3:28)  6. Minor Seventh Heaven
(3:15)  7. Theme
(5:12)  8. Alto Stratus
(3:15)  9. How Long Has This Been Going On
(3:12) 10. Brother Jack
(2:44) 11. Immortal

A fine cool-toned altoist and an occasional clarinetist, Hal McKusick worked with the big bands of Les Brown, Woody Herman (1943), Boyd Raeburn (1944-1945), Alvino Rey (1946), Buddy Rich, and Claude Thornhill (1948-1949). In the 1950s, in addition to his work with Terry Gibbs and Elliot Lawrence, he was a busy and versatile studio musician. During 1955-1958, McKusick recorded nine albums of material as a leader for Jubilee, Bethlehem, Victor, Coral, New Jazz, Prestige, and Decca. Those small-group recordings, although basically cool bop, sometimes used very advanced arrangements, including charts by George Handy, Manny Albam, Gil Evans, Al Cohn, Jimmy Giuffre, and particularly George Russell. Hal McKusick died in April 2012 at the age of 87. ~ Scott Yanow http://www.allmusic.com/artist/hal-mckusick-mn0000660389/biography

Personnel:  Alto Saxophone, Clarinet – Hal McKusick;  Bass – Milt Hinton;  Cello – Abram Borodkin,  Bernard Greenhouse, Harvey Shapiro, Lucien Schmit, Milton Prinz, Sidney Edwards; Drums – Osie Johnson, Sol Gubin;  Guitar – Barry Galbraith

In A Twentieth-Century Drawing Room

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