Monday, November 14, 2016

Russ Reinberg & Dan Barrett - A Fool's Errand

Size: 142,3 MB
Time: 60:40
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Released: 2015
Styles: Jazz: Big Band, Swing
Art: Front

01. Rush Hour (3:50)
02. A Fool's Errand (3:55)
03. Atonement (3:05)
04. Walkin' Out The Door (3:33)
05. Right Place, Wrong Key (4:34)
06. Tin Pan Alley Man (3:09)
07. Walkin' The Cat (3:08)
08. Dog Tired Blues (3:27)
09. Write If You Get Work (3:32)
10. Waiting For You (3:40)
11. Laid Back Blues (3:08)
12. Hot Potato (3:54)
13. All Your Life (3:43)
14. Hogtown (3:12)
15. Midnight Passage (3:57)
16. Minor Detail (3:17)
17. Plain Ol' Blues (3:27)

Duke Ellington once said, “There are two kinds of music: Good and bad.” Westlake Records’ album, A Fool’s Errand, brims with the former, over an hour of consistently good music.

Westlake selected the finest Swing jazz musicians in California to perform seventeen original tunes by clarinetist Russ Reinberg, then digitally recorded them with some of the world’s finest ribbon microphones and audio components. The album’s superb sonics combine the clarity of digital with the warmth and richness of analog.

More about music: We live in a very odd world. It is a place where people judge art, music, and almost everything else by whether it is “in style”. Fashion, along with war, are two of man’s most asinine ideas. If something is good, especially music, it never goes out of fashion.

Despite the opinions of some twelve year olds, Mozart, Bach, Brahms, and Beethoven have never gone out of fashion. And despite snobbish nonsense by some contemporary jazz aficionados or the inability of immature listeners to appreciate them, Benny Goodman, Artie Shaw, Duke Ellington, and Count Basie (among others) endure as icons of the Golden Age of American culture.

A Fool’s Errand continues that legacy with new tunes, new arrangements, and a uniquely pleasing sound. So Westlake Records challenges you:

Listen to the album. The uplifting, hard swinging rhythm section of Katie Cavera’s guitar, Brent Harding’s upright gut string bass, and Burr Middleton’s drums may yank you out of your chair and inspire you to jump around. While Dan Barrett and Russ Reinberg swing just as hard themselves, both are masters of traditional blues and melodic ballads. Their interpretations and improvisations may touch your heart.

It’s that kind of album with that kind of music. It gets to you. Before long you may find yourself in an unusually good mood.

A Fool's Errand 

Marina & The Kats - Wild

Size: 133,4 MB
Time: 56:54
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Released: 2016
Styles: Jazz Vocals, Swing, Gipsy Jazz
Art: Front

01. Kat Walk (2:51)
02. Shim Sham (3:23)
03. Mrs. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde (3:58)
04. Bamboozle Boogie (3:32)
05. Moon On The Hill (3:56)
06. Easy Does It! (4:11)
07. Paradise City (3:44)
08. Wild (2:42)
09. Superb (3:08)
10. Porcelain (3:32)
11. And Her Tears Flowed Like Wine (3:40)
12. I Fell For You (3:52)
13. C O F F E E (2:57)
14. Sweets On The Top Shelf (4:25)
15. Treat Me Nice (2:46)
16. Forever Young (4:10)

Just one year ago Marina & The Kats, the smallest Big Band on Earth, released their Debut LP „Small“. Now they are back in the studio. And this time the outcome is a vinyl double-album called „Wild“, with enough room for 16 songs.

Marina and her cats are remaining faithful to their style and their slogan SWING SWING SWING. Having the experience and know-how of over 100 live-concerts under their paws, they‘re diving even deeper into the driving sound of the Juke Joints and Ballrooms. Racy gypsy guitars, nimble melodies, airy snare drums and Marinas uniquely charming voice meld into a nostalgic cocktail - ready to be enjoyed either at breakfast or in the evenings at the dance cafè, bringing immediate smiles to everyone.

While on „Small“ Marina sang about how life goes if one's a bit short of stature, she shows us on „Wild“ that behind a sweet, innocent exterior there can lurk a rascal. In „Easy does“ she wonders why everyone rushes to work in the early morning after her having just come back from a wild and crazy dance party. She loves playing pranks on „Bamboozle Boogie“, squabbles with her lover on the bluesy „Mrs. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde“ and tries to distract with a syrupy, inncocent air all that she got away with („Wild“). Marina is a girl who wears the pants, and in the outspoken „Treat me nice“ she makes clear exactly how a man should treat a woman.

She knows how to help herself to the candy on the top shelf and she dances the seductive Cha Cha of a Femme Fatale („Sweets On The Top Shelf“).

Once in a while she‘ll dream of peaceful times like on „Moon On The Hill“, that’s spiced with a swift vibraphone, or she‘ll wonder about impermanence („Forever Young“.)

She declares her love of coffee (in the heartwarming C O F F E E) and to her hometown („I Feel For You“); she tries to seduce with recipes („Superb“), and just likes dancing her feet to a red hot glow. („Shim Sham“).

The album is topped off with two cover versions: Guns N' Roses classic „Paradise City“ and „And Her Tears Flowed Like Wine“, once already sang by the unforgettable Anita O'Day along with Stan Kenton.

With Marina & The Kats you take a dreamy journey into the times of Djano Reinhart and Cab Calloway, the Divas and the Crooners, the Lindy Hops and the Collegiate Shags, the Radio shows and the Revue theatres, the Miròs and the Picassos, the Peek-A-Boo's and the Victory Rolls, the Buick Rivieras and the Cadillac Convertibles, between the dim Cotton Club of Harlem and the sun sparkling palm trees of Santa Monica, and you still land softly in the here and now.

Wild

John Sheridan's Dream Band - Hooray For Christmas!

Size: 153,3 MB
Time: 65:04
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Released: 2010
Styles: Jazz: Jazz Vocals, Xmas
Art: Front & Back

01. Hooray For Christmas! (4:26)
02. Pocketful Of Miracles (6:48)
03. The Holiday Season (3:32)
04. Christmas Will Be A Little Lonely This Year (4:58)
05. (Everybody's Waiting For) The Man With (4:36)
06. The Christmas Blues (7:21)
07. Cool Yule (4:56)
08. I Know Why And So Do You (5:01)
09. Plenty To Be Thankful For (4:50)
10. A Song For Christmas (4:04)
11. Little Jack Frost Get Lost (2:40)
12. The Difficult Season (6:23)
13. Santa Claus Is Comin' To Town (5:23)

There's a certain sameness to many Christmas CDs because so many artists focus on a relatively small group of carols and standards of the season, but that isn't the case with Hooray for Christmas! Pianist John Sheridan formed his Dream Band after leaving his work as a sideman with Jim Cullum's Jazz Band, and he recruited one of his favorite singers, Rebecca Kilgore (who is a regular guest on his CDs), for this project, while he has shared the stage with many of the musicians at various jazz parties, including cornetists Randy Reinhart and Warren Vaché, trombonist Dan Barrett, and clarinetists Dan Block and Ron Hockett, among others. The upbeat "Hooray for Christmas!" was penned by Don Sebesky and it serves as a perfect opener, showcasing Kilgore's warm vocals. The forgotten gem "Pocketful of Miracles" features a delightful trombone conversation between Barrett and Russ Phillips. Guitarist Eddie Erickson is the featured vocalist in the witty "Christmas Blues," while Kilgore is on hand for Dave Frishberg's bittersweet "The Difficult Season." Kilgore's romantic touch is evident in her lovely interpretation of "I Know Why and So Do You." The swinging "Cool Yule" was penned by the prolific pianist/composer/author/television star Steve Allen, with Kilgore's snappy vocal backed by the swinging horn section. Sheridan wrote the lovely, touching ballad "Christmas Will Be a Little Lonely This Year," backing Kilgore's sensitive vocal with elegant piano and Vaché adding a touching muted solo, as the remainder of the band sits this one out. This is one Christmas CD that will stand the test of time without growing stale. ~by Ken Dryden

Hooray For Christmas!

Johnny Holiday - Songs Of Antonio Carlos Jobim

Size: 74,8 MB
Time: 31:38
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Released: 2016
Styles: Samba, Bossa Nova, Jazz Vocals
Art: Front

01. Triste (2:40)
02. The Wave (3:07)
03. I Concentrate On You (2:37)
04. How Insensative (3:18)
05. This Happy Madness (2:39)
06. Dindi (3:34)
07. The Girl From Ipanema (2:58)
08. Quiet Nights Of Quiet Stars (2:41)
09. Meditation (2:52)
10. Once I Loved (2:41)
11. One Note Samba (2:27)

A superb ballad singer who also knows how to swing a good song, Johnny Holiday is an ageless performer who is still in his musical prime. "I want listeners to believe what I sing, as if I am singing directly to them. All of the things I have experienced in my life go into my singing. I am a storyteller. I've been in the business since I was 11 and I've seen so much." Very few performers have ever been active for as long a period and still emerged sounding in peak form. And very few dig as deep into the lyrics of classics from the Great American Songbook, give fresh and insightful interpretations, and sing with a smile in their voice. This is a talent just waiting to be discovered. ~Scott Yanow

Songs Of Antonio Carlos Jobim

Sammy Rae - Sugar

Size: 101,2 MB
Time: 37:42
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Released: 2016
Styles: Jazz/Rock Vocals
Art: Front

01. Dirty Brother (3:28)
02. Million Dollars (4:18)
03. Stop Time (3:18)
04. Shine (3:34)
05. Do Me No Favors (4:22)
06. No One Else Was Alive (3:28)
07. Roof & Walls (3:41)
08. Something (3:20)
09. Let Me Down Easy (3:52)
10. Ashes (4:15)

Sammy Rae is a NYC based singer/songwriter, currently in production of her second studio record. Accompanying herself on piano, Sammy has a unique sound that is youthful, rooted in jazz and classic rock, and sprinkled with hints of blues and R&B. Expect spirited and sassy lyrics, eclectic instrumentation and high energy performances. Quirky, vulnerable and confident, she's 2 parts jazz starlet, 2 parts rock belt, and 100% a breed all her own.

Sugar

Joel Evans & Friends - Swing, Lounge, Jazz Vol. 1 & Vol. 2

Size: 159,0+165,9 MB
Time: 67:27+70:37
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Released: 2016
Styles: Cool Jazz, Jazz Vocals
Art: Front

Vol. 1:
01. So Close To Getting Close (Feat. Patrick Maier) (3:22)
02. Plenty More (Feat. Carla Helmbrecht) (5:01)
03. Simple Evening (Feat. Kenny Washington) (4:40)
04. Because Of You (Feat. Shanna Carlson) (4:33)
05. Maybe It’s You! (Feat. Patrick Maier) (3:48)
06. I’ll Never Be The Same (Feat. Carla Helmbrecht) (4:31)
07. Something Blue (Feat. Kenny Washington) (4:35)
08. Ship Of Fools (Feat. Elya Finn) (3:49)
09. So Close To Getting Close (Instrumental) (3:22)
10. Plenty More (Instrumental) (5:04)
11. Simple Evening (Instrumental) (4:40)
12. Because Of You (Instrumental) (4:33)
13. Maybe It’s You! (Instrumental) (3:46)
14. I’ll Never Be The Same (Instrumental) (4:32)
15. Something Blue (Instrumental) (3:14)
16. Ship Of Fools (Instrumental) (3:50)

Vol. 2:
01. Fly Away (Feat. Patrick Tuzzolino) (3:50)
02. Watercolor Love (Feat. Tami Damiano) (3:36)
03. Jumpin' At The Juke Joint (Feat. Patrick Maier) (2:39)
04. No Easy Way To Say Goodbye (Feat. Roberta Donnay) (4:52)
05. The Diva (Feat. David Sparkman) (4:20)
06. So Near (Feat. Carla Helmbrecht) (5:24)
07. Love's Gonna Getcha! (Feat. David Sparkman) (3:35)
08. The More I Think Of You (Feat. Scott Dreier) (4:49)
09. The Day That We Met (Feat. Tami Damiano) (4:28)
10. Fly Away (Instrumental) (3:48)
11. Watercolor Love (Instrumental) (3:38)
12. Jumpin' At The Juke Joint (Instrumental) (2:39)
13. No Easy Way To Say Goodbye (Instrumental) (4:52)
14. The Diva (Instrumental) (4:17)
15. So Near (Instrumental) (5:21)
16. Love's Gonna Getcha! (Instrumental) (3:35)
17. The More I Think Of You (Instrumental) (4:47)

Joel Evans is extremely grateful to all the artists whose talented performances are embodied here!

Joel Evans & Friends is the "Band Name" for Producer/Songwriter Joel Evans' Collected Recordings.
Evans has songs & cues in more than 85 movies and 400 TV episodes; major Hollywood films, hip indie flicks, network and daytime dramas; ranging from Wedding Crashers to Hateship, Loveship (Kristin Wiig); and from Friends to Glee. The 2014 Daytime Emmy winning special Young & Restless Tribute to Jeanne Cooper features Joel's song, “That’s When I’ll Stop Loving You” as its main theme. Ciroq Vodka TV and radio ads highlight his Big Band number, "Fly Away." Grammy-winning vocalist Carmen Bradford sings his song, "No Easy Way To Say Goodbye” on tour with the Count Basie Orchestra. Evans' songs have been recorded by diverse artists, including Spencer Day, Dave Samuels, Hillary Smith, Shaun Murphy, Roberta Donnay, The Yellowjackets and Peter Tork. (the former Monkee has a great blues band!)

After earning his BA on flute at Cal State University East Bay he performed with a series of groups, and quickly realized the fortunes of a jazz flautist were capricious at best. “We did one gig where the pay didn't even cover our bar tab,” he notes wryly. Later, a stint on piano backing Bobby Freeman (“Do You Wanna Dance”) took Evans to Tahoe and Reno, where watching the rock godfather reiterate the same patter night after night further inspired him to improvise. Life imitates art: in the film Rumor Has It, Kevin Costner and Jennifer Aniston share a conversation while the Joel Evans Combo paints the aural backdrop in the same San Francisco hotel where he once worked a steady piano gig. Evans’ Hollywood-sophisticated melodies are often used on screen to evoke sumptuous surroundings like hotel lobbies and upscale restaurants, so it’s no coincidence that he spent years performing in just these types of venues as a live player. Swing, big band and jazz: he occupies a decided stylistic niche. “I can’t do everything. I don’t write stuff that’s like what’s on the radio. I decided early on to hell with it, I’m going to do what I love.”

Unlike many instrumental composers, Evans usually co-writes complete songs. “Until it Happens to You” from Mini’s First Time provided an improbable soundtrack to a fight scene with stars Jeff Goldblum and Alec Baldwin “trying to kill one another, with my Sinatra style swing thing in the background,” laughs Evans. He notes that one of his most unexpected inclusions was in the gritty rock and roll noir film, Sugartown, where his sweet song, “Moody” played behind, as he delicately phrases it, “The depiction of an act of love. But it fit the scene.” A self-professed team player, Evans enlists first call musicians who can deliver the requisite tones; veterans like Bernadette Peters' favorite bassist, Mario Suraci and David Rokeach from the Ray Charles band; seasoned authorities who helped invent the genres his compositions reference. Talented Co-writers like Nashville-based Lisa Aschmann and pop/theatrical writer Adryan Russ contribute their magic to the sterling credibility of the songs. ~Bio by Dan Kimpel

Swing, Lounge, Jazz Vol. 1
Swing, Lounge, Jazz Vol. 2

Victoria Mozalevskaya Trio - Freedom To Be You

Size: 99,7 MB
Time: 42:50
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Released: 2016
Styles: Jazz
Art: Front

01. Notice Of A Moment (3:46)
02. Pacific Motion (5:59)
03. Incentive (6:10)
04. Freedom To Be You, Pt. 1 (3:19)
05. Freedom To Be You, Pt. 2 (4:40)
06. My Ballad (6:06)
07. Anahata (7:09)
08. After Work Blues (5:36)

Victoria Mozalevskaya is a Russian saxophonist. Born in Kazakhstan, the first possibility was to learn to play an instrument at the age of 7 years. With a self-painted keyboard, she took her first "piano lessons" with a school colleague. After moving to the Russian region of Altai two years later Victoria received her first piano and vocal lessons at a music school. At the age of 13, the clarinet was taught for the first time, but it had to give way to the saxophone after only one year. Already during this classical education at the "Altai College of Culture" Victoria was so enthusiastic about the jazz that she switched to the music college in Novosibirsk in 2005, which offered as a single training place in Siberia a jazz course. Soon she founded the "Jazz City Band", very active in the local scene. In 2008, Victoria moved into the world: After an intensive, three - week jazz practice as part of the "Open World" sponsorship program, which was conducted by Bob Mintzer in California (USA), she began her apprenticeship with Andy Scherrer at the Swiss Jazz School in Berne. With her own bands as well as as a sidewoman in various projects, Victoria continued her career in Switzerland and played at several festivals. In 2012, she realized her biggest dream and lived in New York City for a whole year, where she was inspired by the tireless pulse of the jazz metropolis and gained unique experiences, which she has since incorporated into her music and projects. Back in Switzerland, Victoria 2014 completed her master's degree in music performance at the jazz department of the HKB in Bern.

Freedom To Be You

Wanda Sá - Cá Entre Nós

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 44:43
Size: 102.4 MB
Styles: Brazilian jazz vocals
Year: 2016
Art: Front

[3:30] 1. Rio De Maio
[4:01] 2. Samba Pequeno
[3:45] 3. Cá Entre Nós
[3:52] 4. Considerando
[3:12] 5. Em Tempo, Eu Te Amo
[4:51] 6. Fora De Hora
[3:43] 7. Fotografia
[3:06] 8. Cala, Meu Amor
[3:01] 9. Entardecendo
[5:02] 10. The Nearness Of You
[6:36] 11. Uma Simples Canção

When at 13 she enrolled at Roberto Menescal's guitar academy, Wanda Sá (also known as Wanda de Sah), a successful bossa nova artist, was spotted by Ronaldo Bôscoli and invited to appear on the programs Dois no Balanço (TV Excelsior) and O Fino da Bossa (TV Record). Starting her professional career at 19 with Wanda Vagamente (1964), one of the earliest arranging assignments by Eumir Deodato, Sá launched "Inútil Paisagem" (Tom Jobim/Aloysio de Oliveira) and the earliest compositions by Edú Lobo, Francis Hime, and Marcos Valle. The album, launched at the Fino da Bossa show (at the Paramount Theater in São Paulo), was a success (having been reissued in Japan in the decade of the 2000s) and had a hit with "Vagamente" (Roberto Menescal/Ronaldo Bôscoli). By the end of the same year, she joined Sérgio Mendes' Brasil '65 (with Rosinha de Valença and Jorge Ben Jor), realizing successful shows in Brazil and the U.S., where Brasil '65 was recorded (with the participation of Bud Shank and the Sérgio Mendes Trio). She also recorded in the U.S. the solo Softly and performed both in Brazil and the U.S. with the Sérgio Mendes Trio. In 1966, she returned to Brazil where she did shows with Baden Powell, Vinícius de Moraes, Mièle, Luís Carlos Vinhas, and the Bossa 3. In 1969, Sá participated in Paul Desmond's Hot Summer. Married to Edú Lobo from 1969 to 1982, a period in which she left the scene, Sá returned in the late '80s, performing shows with Roberto Menescal and Mièle, recording Brasileiras in 1994 with Célia Vaz. In 2000, she recorded with Luís Carlos Vinhas, Tião Neto, and João Cortez the CD Wanda Sá & Bossa Três with bossa nova classics and new compositions. Four successful seasons at the Sabbata Tokyo turned the CD Wanda Vagamente into a hit, having reached second place on the top charts. In 2001, she participated with Roberto Menescal, Marcos Valle, and Danilo Caymmi in the Fare Festival (Pavia, Italy). ~ bio by Alvaro Neder

Cá Entre Nós

Jack Teagarden - Big Band Jazz

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 30:36
Size: 70.1 MB
Styles: Big band, Swing
Year: 1979/2010
Art: Front

[3:33] 1. Octoroon
[3:30] 2. The Blues
[2:51] 3. Mr. Jessie Blues
[2:24] 4. Swinging On A Teagarden Gate
[2:38] 5. The Mole
[3:06] 6. Somewhere A Voice Is Calling
[2:48] 7. I Can't Get Away From The Blues
[2:48] 8. Yankee Doodle
[2:06] 9. Aunt Hagar's Blues
[2:17] 10. I Swung The Election
[2:30] 11. Harlem Jump

Among the many landmarks of the jazz scene is one that seems destined to last forever. It’s the trombone artistry of Jack Teagarden. An honest kind of artistry, Teagardens tromboning is generally credited with having advanced the instrument to the high level of technical achievement it enjoys among today’s modern musicians, and, at the same time, has stated a case for the lyrical quality in jazz for the nearly forty years he has been playing professionally. Although he once sang a blues line that testified he was born in Texas and raised in Tennessee. Weldon Leo Teagarden was born in Texas and raised in Oklahoma. His birthplace was Vernon, Texas, and the date was August 20, 1905. While still in his childhood he moved to Oklahoma. His mother gave him early piano lessons, and his father, a bit of a musician himself, presented Jack with a trombone on his seventh Christmas.

His brothers, Trumpeter Charlie and drummer Clois, have played on stand with him, off and on during the decades Jack has been blowing jazz. Jack spent considerable time as a youth listening to the music and the hymn singing at Negro religious meetings. Out of this, it’s surmised, he drew his earliest feeling for the blues. He joined the Peck Kelly band in 1921, when he was sixteen years old, and hasn’t been off the scene since. He has played with Paul Whiteman’s big band, Benny Goodman’s recording groups, Louis Armstrong’s All Stars, Ben Pollock’s band, countless groups and orchestras, many of them under his own leadership. These days, he leads his own combo, one he has traveled successfully with to the Far East for the U.S. State Department. Of this venture, nothing but praise----both musical and personal----rang from every port of the band’s call. The trip covered a grueling eighteen weeks and as many countries. It was studded with many highlights. For instance, Jack and crew jammed with the King of Cambodia who as clarinetist had jammed with his idol, Benny Goodman, when Benny had toured that area few years earlier.

Also Teagarden tuned the two available pianos in the remote city of Kabul, Afghanistan, where most of the populace had never seen brass musical instruments before. Playing under adverse conditions of weather and health. Teagarden became ill in Japan, and returned after the tour a very weak and very sick man. He played the last six weeks of the tour with a serious hernia, but refused to undergo surgery until the commitments had been filled and all his dates had been played. He went, it appears, to superhuman lengths to live up to what he has stated to nearly interviewer: “I try to play what people like.” Generally, what people seem to like is Teagarden.

Big Band Jazz

Carin Lundin Quintet - Babble

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 50:00
Size: 114.5 MB
Styles: Vocal jazz
Year: 2000/2011
Art: Front

[3:29] 1. Babble
[4:43] 2. Am I Blue
[3:39] 3. Exactly Like You
[4:34] 4. Little Lily
[3:36] 5. Tea For Two
[5:27] 6. In The Wee Small Hours Of The Morning
[4:47] 7. Mr. Nice Guy
[4:33] 8. Lover Come Back To Me
[4:55] 9. Nothing
[5:43] 10. It Might As Well Be Spring
[4:29] 11. Your Love Was Sprung On Me

Bass – Mattias Welin; Drums, Percussion – Jonas Holgersson; Piano – Mathias Algotsson; Trumpet – Johan Setterlind; Vocals – Carin Lundin.

Carin Lundin is a class act, one of Sweden's best jazz singers. She hangs in there year on year, ably fending off the challenge of newer arrivals, without ever getting the full recognition she so richly deserves.

Babble

George Shearing - That Shearing Sound

Styles: Piano Jazz
Year: 1994
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 66:32
Size: 159,6 MB
Art: Front

(4:10)  1. East Of The Sun
(6:37)  2. I Like To Recognise The Tune
(3:49)  3. I'll Never Smile Again
(5:14)  4. I Hear Music
(5:45)  5. Girl Talk
(4:13)  6. Autumn Serenade
(3:39)  7. Consternation
(2:57)  8. Stars In My Eyes
(4:13)  9. Strollin'
(5:10) 10. Very Early
(7:10) 11. Conception
(7:04) 12. Peace
(6:24) 13. Lullaby Of Birdland

This was pianist George Shearing's first recording in a piano-vibes-guitar-bass-drums quintet since he broke up his original group in 1978 after 30 years of steady work; Shearing sounds surprisingly inspired throughout. With guitarist Louis Stewart, vibraphonist Steve Nelson, bassist Neil Swainson, and drummer Dennis Mackrel, Shearing explores such vintage Quintet standards as "East of the Sun (And West of the Moon)" and "I'll Never Smile Again" along with two Horace Silver compositions, a pair of his own songs ("Conception" and his biggest hit, "Lullaby of Birdland"), and a variety of other suitable material. The music ranges from easy listening to hard-driving bebop. The sound of the George Shearing Quintet remains as appealing as ever. ~ Scott Yanow http://www.allmusic.com/album/that-shearing-sound-mw0000117761

Personnel: George Shearing (piano); Louis Stewart (guitar); Steve Nelson (vibraphone); Dennis Machrel (drums).

That Shearing Sound

Ramsey Lewis - Maiden Voyage

Styles: Piano Jazz
Year: 1968
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 47:12
Size: 109,2 MB
Art: Front

(4:47)  1. Maiden Voyage
(3:17)  2. Mighty Quinn
(3:00)  3. Sweet Rain
(2:32)  4. Lady Madonna
(3:37)  5. Do You Know The Way To San Jos
(4:45)  6. Ode
(4:41)  7. Les Fleur
(2:58)  8. Since You've Been Gone
(3:57)  9. In The Heat Of The Night
(2:37) 10. Afro-Boogaloo Twist
(4:03) 11. Only When I'm Dreaming
(6:53) 12. Eternal Journey

One of the key records from the Cadet/Concept scene in late 60s Chicago a tremendous collaboration between pianist Ramsey Lewis and arranger Charles Stepney and the kind of record that took soul and jazz to a whole new level! Ramsey on his own is great enough at this point but add in Stepney's touch, and the record becomes something really brilliant a blend of soaring strings, groovy rhythms, and spaciously stepping piano lines all held together with a tremendous amount of creative imagination! The group here features a young Maurice White on drums and Cleveland Eaton on bass both hitting a groove that's quite different than the Ramsey Lewis Trio sound of years back, with a lot more space, a lot hipper rhythms, and just the right sort of groove to match Stepney's sophisticated touches. The piano gets a bit electric at times, but is mostly acoustic overall and titles include a great version of Minnie Riperton's "Les Fleur", a funky version of "Mighty Quinn", and the cuts "Afro Boogaloo Twist", "Maiden Voyage", "Ode", "Do You Know The Way To San Jose", "Only When I'm Dreaming", and "Eternal Journey". (Blue label stereo pressing.) © 1996-2016, Dusty Groove, Inc. https://www.dustygroove.com/item/2160?s=Ramsey+Lewis&incl_oos=1&incl_cs=1&kwfilter=Ramsey+Lewis

Personnel:  Ramsey Lewis – piano;  Cleveland Eaton - bass, arranger;  Maurice White – drums;  Charles Stepney - arranger

Maiden Voyage

Dick Oatts - All Of Three

Styles: Saxophone Jazz
Year: 1998
File: MP3@224K/s
Time: 55:08
Size: 88,6 MB
Art: Front

( 6:10)  1. Barnacle Bill
( 7:17)  2. Gumbo G
( 4:32)  3. Single Line
( 6:59)  4. In love & memory
( 8:14)  5. On dominant
( 4:11)  6. In light of
(11:11)  7. Alone Together
( 6:30)  8. Break take

Born and raised in the state of Iowa, Dick Oatts was brought up in a musical family. He was introduced to the saxophone by his father Jack Oatts, a respected jazz educator and saxophonist. After high school, Dick attended Drake University and in 1972 he began his professional career in Minneapolis/St. Paul.  It was 1977 when Oatts decided to move to New York City. He then became a member if the Thad Jones Mel Lewis Orchestra. Since then he has recorded and toured with small groups such as Red Rodney, Eddie Gomez, Vic Juric, Bob Brookmeyer, Mel Lewis, Dom Salvador, Jerry Bergonzi, Flim & the BB's, Fred Hersch, Dave Berkman, Soren Moller, Terell Stafford, Jon Faddis, Lalo Schiffrin, and Ray Mantilla. His big band and larger group experience include performances with the Vanguard Jazz Orchestra, Mel Lewis, Carnegie Hall Jazz Band, Lester Bowie, Joe Lovano, Sam Jones-Tom Harrell, Paquito D'Rivera, Jim McNeely, Tito Puente, Kenny Wheeler, and Gunther Schuller. Oatts has also been featured with the Stockholm Jazz Orchestra, Danish Radio Big Band, Norboton Jazz Orchestra, Metropole Orchestra, and the UMO Big Band in Helsinki. He has accompanied such vocalists as Joe Williams, Sarah Vaughn, Ella Fitzgerald, Neene Freelon, Mel Torme, and Milton Nascimento. He has recorded solos for pop artists Luther Vandross, James Taylor, and Everything But the Girl. Oatts is now a Steeplechase recording artist and has six Cd's released as a leader. (All of Three, Standard Issue, Simone's Dance, Standard Issue vol. 2, South Paw, Gratitude). He also has a CD out on the RED label with bassist Dave Santoro entitled Meru. Dick has 3 CDs as a leader on the DMP label with pianist and a co-leader Garry Dial.  For 30 years, Mr. Oatts has appeared at college jazz festivals as a soloist and clinician throughout the United States, Europe, Asia, Canada, South America, and the Middle East. Oatts is a professor of Jazz Studies at the Boyer School of Music at Temple University and has been an artist-in-residence at the Amsterdam Conservatory since 1997. http://www.dickoattsmusic.com/#biography

Personnel: Dick Oatts (alto & tenor saxophones); Dave Santoro (bass); James Oblon (drums).

All Of Three

Jimmy Giuffre - Western Suite

Styles: Clarinet And Saxophone Jazz 
Year: 1958
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 37:25
Size: 85,8 MB
Art: Front

( 5:52)  1. Western Suite: Pony Express
( 4:17)  2. Western Suite: Apaches
( 3:01)  3. Western Suite: Saturday Night Dance
( 4:28)  4. Western Suite: Big Pow Wow
(11:24)  5. Topsy
( 8:20)  6. Blue Monk

In late 1957, jazz saxophonist, clarinetist, composer, and iconoclast Jimmy Giuffre broke up the original Jimmy Giuffre 3 with Ralph Pena and Jim Hall. In early 1958, for a recording session, he formed a new trio without a rhythm section. For the album Trav'lin' Light, his new trio included Hall on guitar and the underrated trombone giant Bob Brookmeyer. For a year, they gigged together up and down the West Coast and played summer festivals, recorded, and even played clubs in New York. They became a trio of adventurous musicians for whom form was not an obstacle to creativity. As the year wound down, Giuffre wanted to document the trio once more, sensing its life was coming to an end. He composed the four-movement "Western Suite" with the trio's strengths in mind, as a way of documenting how they had come together as a band during that year. The piece itself stands as a crowning achievement in a career that included discovering the talents of Steve Swallow and Paul Bley and making the truly revolutionary recording Free Fall for Columbia three years later. The roots of that thinking lie in this set. Jim Hall's playing was dark, funky, ambiguous, sounding like drums and voices all at the same time particularly in the fourth movement. Brookmeyer became the pace setter. 

His lines were played as stage settings for the other two players to dialogue and narrate against. Giuffre, ever the storyteller, advanced the improvisation angle and wrote his score so that each player had to stand on his own as part of the group; there were no comfort zones. Without a rhythm section, notions of interval, extensions, interludes, and so on were out the window. He himself played some of his most retrained yet adventurous solos in the confines of this trio and within the form of this suite. It swung like West Coast jazz, but felt as ambitious as Copland's Billy the Kid. The record is filled out with two other tunes, one of Eddie Durham's, "Topsy," and the final moment of mastery this band ever recorded, the already classic "Blue Monk." The easy stroll of the front line with Brookmeyer's trombone strutting New Orleans' style is in sharp contrast to Giuffre's clarinet playing. Which carries the bluesy melody through three harmonic changes before he solos and then plays three more. Hall keeps it all on track, and somehow the piece sounds very natural this way, though unlike "Monk," there are no edges here everything is rounded off. This is as solid as any of the earlier or later Jimmy Giuffre 3 records, and two notches above Trav'lin' Light in that it reveals a fully developed sense of the responsibilities, possibilities, and freedoms of reinventing jazz for the trio. ~ Thom Jurek http://www.allmusic.com/album/western-suite-mw0000530642

Personnel:  Jimmy Giuffre - clarinet, tenor saxophone, baritone saxophone;  Jim Hall – guitar;  Bob Brookmeyer - piano, valve trombone

Western Suite

Lindsey Webster - Back To Your Heart

Styles: Vocal 
Year: 2016
File: MP3@192K/s
Time: 60:10
Size: 83,1 MB
Art: Front

(5:06)  1. Back to Your Heart
(5:35)  2. Where Do You Want to Go
(6:32)  3. I Know You Well
(4:51)  4. Those Three Words
(5:11)  5. One at a Time (feat. Kirk Whalum)
(5:14)  6. On Our Way
(5:24)  7. Somehow
(4:21)  8. Living a Lie
(4:39)  9. Aint It Funny
(6:14) 10. Next to Me
(6:58) 11. Fast and Slow

Originally a cellist singer/songwriter Lindsey Webster found her musical way to the vocal interpretation in the Soul, Pop and R&B genre. With her self titled debut album (2013) she won “Best Acoustic Song” in the Independent Music Awards. Her second album You Change (2015) aroused the attention of the listeners and increased the degree of awareness. With the third album Back To Your Heart (2016) she is designated to achieve her international breakthrough as an artist of the contemporary jazz genre.

Musicians on this album are beside vocalist Lindsey Webster on selected tracks Keith Slattery (keyboards), Mike DeMicco and Tony DePaolo (guitar), Fred Doumbe (bass), Dan Hickey (drums), Foluso Mimy (percussion), Ken Gioffre and Kirk Whalum (sax) and the additional horn section on Ain’t It Funny with Jay Collins (baritone sax & horn arrangements), Ken Gioffre (tenor sax), Joe Fiedler (trombone) and Chris Pasin (trumpet).

Back To Your Heart is scheduled for release November 4, 2016 on Shanachie Entertainment. All songs are written by Lindsey Webster & Keith Slattery. Lindsey comments euphorically:  “Here it is our third album! I am excited to say that this is by far our best work. In terms of the songwriting, the production, and the overall sound, we are thrilled to deliver this labor of love to you. Special care was taken on each song to make it the best it could possibly be, and I think that my evolution as an artist, a songwriter, and a producer are reflected on this album?Already on her previous albums Lindsey flirted with timbre and style of the most famous singer Sade. On the lead single Back to Your Heart she has perfected this skill to breathtaking similarity. Nevertheless she doesn't bend her own personality, which flashes superbly in many passages. Her strength of expression gives Where Do You Want to Go a delicate decor of vividness and individuality. I Know You Well is less an intimate description of a relationship, as a platform of manifest vocal artistry. Those Three Words chooses the reciprocal approach. Lindsey's voice becomes a gentle breeze of affection with a touch of romance. One At A Time follows this stylistic line with Kirk Whalum on sax in duo partnership. The song was inspired by the Black Lives Matter movement and is Lindsey's answer and practical implementation.

On Our Way has the dynamic and tension curve of Grover Washington's Just The Two Of Us. Holding the tone in such a flamboyant way will initiate applause on every live event. With her resonant voice Lindsey leads Somehow to ups and downs in a positive sense. On Living a Lie she showcases passion, audacity and expressiveness pulling all stops of her full-bodied vocal gift. Tremolo, falsetto, smoothness and strength, the full range of a high professional interpret. Ain't It Funny delivers an utterly explosive vocal firework with virtuoso performance of all horns. The style on Next to Me is easily identifiable. Influenced by Sade Lindsey transforms her voice to new qualitative highs. Keith Slattery's instrumental harmony of keyboards and Rhodes piano adds a fine acoustic stimulation. Final delight for ear and soul is Fast and Slow.  Lindsey challenges herself and masters these tasks marvelously. Lindsey Webster combines on her new album Back To Your Heart empathy and sensibility with attentive mastery and a prodigious musical talent. Her already achieved level of artistry goes far beyond her notoriety. It's up to the audience to provide a welcome balance. http://www.smooth-jazz.de/firstview/Webster/BackToYourHeart.htm

Back To Your Heart