Pepper Adams - The Cool Sound Of Pepper Adams

Styles: Saxophone Jazz
Year: 1957
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 33:11
Size: 77,4 MB
Art: Front

(10:17)  1. Bloos, Blooze, Blues
( 7:27)  2. Settin' Red
( 7:39)  3. Like What Is This?
( 7:47)  4. Skippy

The Cool Sound of Pepper Adams is the kind of record one buys for its remarkable cover art (depicting a flame-haired beauty cupping a seashell to her ear) only to discover the music contained therein is just as spellbinding. A wonderfully soulful session featuring striking contributions from pianist Hank Jones and drummer Elvin Jones, its four lengthy cuts pulsate with energy and invention. Despite complementing Adams' baritone leads with Bernard McKinney's euphonium, the music never sounds bloated. Instead, it's supple and slinky, with a dexterity that's utterly winning. Still, there's no mistaking the physicality of Adams' tone. Songs like "Bloos, Blooze, Blues" and "Like…What Is This?" are as rich and smooth as crushed velvet. ~ Jason Ankeny http://www.allmusic.com/album/the-cool-sound-of-pepper-adams-mw0000097915

Personnel: Pepper Adams (baritone saxophone), Bernard McKinney (euphonium), Hank Jones (piano), George Duvivier (bass), Elvin Jones (drums).

The Cool Sound Of Pepper Adams

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Gloria Lynne - Lonely And Sentimental

Styles: Vocal

Year: 1959

File: MP3@320K/s

Time: 35:35

Size: 81,9 MB

Art: Front

(3:15)  1. Am I Blue

(2:43)  2. For All We Know

(3:17)  3. In Other Words

(3:15)  4. 'tis Autumn

(2:46)  5. Hands Across The Table

(2:39)  6. Love I've Found You

(2:38)  7. Blue And Sentimental

(3:03)  8. Then I'll Be Tired Of You

(2:33)  9. Man Of Mine

(3:22) 10. Little Girl Blue

(2:38) 11. We Never Kissed

(3:19) 12. Sentimental Melody

Gloria Lynne recorded many albums for Everest in her early days, slipped away into obscurity, and then in the 1990s made a comeback. An excellent singer whose style falls between bop, 1950s middle-of-the-road pop, and early soul, Lynne was always capable of putting on a colorful show. Her mother was a gospel singer and Lynne started out singing in church. She had five years of concert training and in 1951 won the legendary amateur competition at the Apollo Theater. Lynne sang with some vocal groups, became a solo artist, and in 1958 was discovered by Raymond Scott, who at the time was a top A&R man at Everest. During her busy period with Everest (at least ten records were cut between 1958-1963), Lynne had hits in "I Wish You Love" (a song she virtually made a standard) and "I'm Glad There Is You." She recorded with both orchestras and jazz combos, becoming quite popular for a period. However, with the rise of rock and the change in the public's musical tastes, Lynne was forgotten for a time. Only a commercial record in 1975 for ABC broke the silence. But starting in the early '80s, Lynne started working regularly again, regained some of her earlier fame, and in the early '90s recorded a couple of CDs for Muse; her initial Everest date also reappeared as an Evidence CD. Gloria Lynne has remained active into the 21st century, and issued one of her strongest albums in decades, From My Heart to Yours, on the Highnote label in 2007. ~ Scott Yanow https://itunes.apple.com/us/artist/gloria-lynne/id132350#fullText

Lonely And Sentimental

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The Paul Bley Quartet - Solemn Meditation

Styles: Piano Jazz

Year: 2008

File: MP3@320K/s

Time: 79:58

Size: 186,7 MB

Art: Front

(6:03)  1. Birk's Works

(3:17)  2. O Plus One

(3:40)  3. Porgy

(3:34)  4. Solemn Meditation

(3:42)  5. I Remember Harlem

(3:06)  6. Drum Two

(4:04)  7. Everywhere

(5:33)  8. Beau Didley

(3:28)  9. Persian Village

(3:25) 10. Triangle

(4:21) 11. Valse Hot

(4:36) 12. Lullaby Of The Leaves

(5:07) 13. You Go To My Head

(3:33) 14. For The Love Of Pike

(3:47) 15. Goody Speaks

(3:29) 16. Polynesia

(5:27) 17. I'll Remember April

(3:53) 18. Willow Weep For Me

(5:45) 19. Pike's Peak

This early quartet date from pianist Paul Bley is somewhat historic because it was the recording debut of both bassist Charlie Haden and vibraphonist Dave Pike. With drummer Lennie McBrowne completing the group, Bley explores a lot of unlikely material in an early postbop manner including Bill Harris' "Everywhere," Roy Eldridge's "I Remember Harlem" and some group originals. The liner notes by Carla Borg (soon to be Carla Bley), who has her "O Plus One" recorded by the group, are also noteworthy. ~ Scott Yanow http://www.allmusic.com/album/solemn-meditation-mw0000269651

Personnel:  Paul Bley – piano;  Dave Pike – vibraphone;  Charlie Haden – bass;  Lennie McBrowne - drums

Solemn Meditation

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Lou Donaldson - Play The Right Thing

Styles: Saxophone Jazz
Year: 1991
File: MP3@224K/s
Time: 49:54
Size: 80,5 MB
Art: Front

(6:21)  1. Play the Right Thing
(6:09)  2. Whiskey Drinkin' Woman
(6:54)  3. Marmaduke
(5:53)  4. Harlem Nocturne
(7:58)  5. This Is Happiness
(6:24)  6. I Had the Craziest Dream
(4:12)  7. The Masquerade Is Over
(6:00)  8. Footpattin' Time

As specifically indicated by the album's title, the title tune's bluesy cast, and Sweet Lou Donaldson's own determined liner notes, this CD aims to strike a blow for soul-jazz, a once-popular, then-maligned idiom newly returned from exile. That it does with no frills, no apologies, and an idiomatic supporting cast. For Donaldson, it was a return to the style that lit up inner-city jukeboxes for him in the 1960s, and though his alto sax lacks some of the majesty that he could summon forth, his bop-flavored technique remained in fine shape in his mid-sixties. It was also a reunion with Donaldson's occasional organist Dr. Lonnie Smith, who contributes plenty of understated savvy to his solos and bass pedal underpinning. Peter Bernstein is the crisp, tasteful guitarist and Bernard Purdie remains the genre's premier timekeeper, assisted by conguero Ralph Dorsey. Together, they work over a series of standards ("Harlem Nocturne," "I Had the Craziest Dream"), some vintage bop (Charlie Parker's "Marmaduke"), and a few Donaldson compositions. "Whiskey Drinkin' Woman," a humorous slow blues featuring Donaldson's high-pitched, good-natured vocals, became a popular feature of his stage act into the next century. With all of these ingredients in place, the CD achieves a comfortable level of competence without really grabbing hold of a groove and riding it the way Donaldson could in his Blue Note days. Also, the sound is a little dry. ~ Richard S.Ginell http://www.allmusic.com/album/play-the-right-thing-mw0000264811

Personnel: Lou Donaldson (vocals, alto saxophone); Peter Bernstein (guitar); Dr. Lonnie Smith (organ); Bernard "Pretty" Purdie (drums); Ralph Dorsey (congas).

Play The Right Thing

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Mary Halvorson Octet - Away with You

Styles: Guitar Jazz, Avant-Garde 
Year: 2016
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 56:01
Size: 128,4 MB
Art: Front

(6:18)  1. Spirit Splitter (No. 54)
(8:04)  2. Away with You (No. 55)
(9:59)  3. The Absolute Almost (No. 52)
(4:41)  4. Sword Barrel (No. 58)
(7:34)  5. Old King Misfit (No. 57)
(5:31)  6. Fog Bank (No. 56)
(5:14)  7. Safety Orange (No. 59)
(8:35)  8. Inky Ribbons (No. 53)

Continuing her streak of outstanding releases, guitarist extraordinaire Mary Halvorson once again shows her determination to build upon her unique style as a composer and bandleader. She's taken her septet from 2013's superb Illusionary Sea and added an eighth member, pedal steel guitarist Susan Alcorn, and the resulting music is typical Halvorson: harmonically complex, emotionally compelling, and full of interesting moments worth savoring. The first thing one notices about Alcorn's presence is the sense of atmosphere she provides. On the third track, "The Absolute Almost," she offers spare, crystalline notes that gradually emerge and then drift away, providing a somber opening to the cut. Then Halvorson herself joins in, with carefully placed notes that emerge in a pensive dialogue with Alcorn to continue the subdued conversation, before a break in which the rest of the band jumps in to take the piece in a dramatically different direction, full of bounce and rhythmic drive. (It's little surprises like these that always make listening to a Halvorson record such an adventure.) Alcorn's role seems to liberate Halvorson's playing, freeing up subtle opportunities for her to contribute to the group as an equal rather than as a dominant voice.

It's also immediately evident how well this group works together as a unit. Drummer Ches Smith and bassist John Hébert have worked as Halvorson's partners for several recordings, to the point that they are an intuitive element of the rhythmic fluidity that is one of her trademarks. Even during the record's more raucous moments, there's never a sense that they're in danger of losing control of the pulse. And the horns are as fabulous as you would expect: with Jonathan Finlayson, Jon Irabagon, Ingrid Laubrock and Jacob Garchik in the lineup, Halvorson has a superlative brass section for her rich compositions, each member equally adept as a soloist or as an ensemble contributor. Perhaps the most engaging aspect of the recording is its strong emotional core. Listening to the opening of the record, "Spirit Splitter," and the jubilant horn interplay that propels the track, it is clear that this is music to be enjoyed, not simply admired or respected. 

Whether we are taken down a path of exultant cacophony or melancholy musings, with Halvorson as our guide it is sure to involve her irresistible melodic sensibility. I'm sure Halvorson's next installment in her impressive catalog will continue to surprise and astonish, but in the meantime she's given us another exceptional record to celebrate. 

~ Troy Dostert https://www.allaboutjazz.com/away-with-you-mary-halvorson-firehouse-12-records-review-by-troy-dostert.php
 

Personnel: Mary Halvorson: guitar; Susan Alcorn: pedal steel guitar; Jonathan Finlayson: trumpet; Jon Irabagon: alto saxophone; Ingrid Laubrock: tenor saxophone; Jacob Garchik: trombone; John Hébert: bass; Ches Smith: drums.

Away with You

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