Kenny Burrell - The Artist Selects

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 74:32
Size: 170.6 MB
Styles: Guitar jazz
Year: 2005
Art: Front

[4:55] 1. This Time The Dream's On Me
[6:01] 2. Delilah
[3:46] 3. But Not For Me
[4:39] 4. Phinupi
[4:43] 5. Love, Your Spell Is Everywhere
[7:56] 6. Scotch Blues
[4:40] 7. Weaver Of Dreams
[9:33] 8. Swingin'
[5:25] 9. Chitlins Con Carne
[2:39] 10. Soul Lament
[3:58] 11. Midnight Blue
[5:26] 12. These Foolish Things
[5:57] 13. Hackensack
[4:48] 14. Freedom

Kenny Burrell's The Artist Selects features tracks the Detroit native culled himself from the best of his '50s and '60s output for Blue Note. This superb collection includes such well-known tracks as "Midnight Blue" and "Chitlins Con Carne" as well as lesser-known cuts like "Phinupi." While there are similar single-disc collections of this material, the personal aspect of the collection makes it a noteworthy addition to Burrell's various compilation albums. ~Matt Collar

The Artist Selects

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Aretha Franklin - Take A Look: The Clyde Otis Sessions

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 53:56
Size: 123.5 MB
Styles: Soul
Year: 1964/2011
Art: Front

[2:51] 1. I'll Keep On Smiling
[3:14] 2. Shangri-La
[2:32] 3. Zing! Went The Strings Of My Heart
[4:16] 4. People
[2:32] 5. A Mother's Love
[2:15] 6. Friendly Persuasion (Thee I Love)
[2:56] 7. But Beautiful
[1:49] 8. That's Entertainment
[2:39] 9. Take A Look
[4:41] 10. (Ah, The Apple Trees) When The World Was Young
[2:27] 11. Jim
[2:57] 12. Sweet Bitter Love
[4:52] 13. Only The Lonely
[4:05] 14. My Coloring Book
[2:53] 15. I Wish I Didn't Love You So
[4:19] 16. People (Mono Mix0
[2:29] 17. A Mother's Love (Mono Mix)

Initial July 1964 sessions with Clyde Otis were productive but Columbia didn’t release the material as an album. Those efforts are represented here by The Clyde Otis Sessions. It’s amazing that so much quality material was left aside, including the song which gives the box set its title. “Take a Look” predates “What’s Going On?” and other socially-conscious songs (“Lord, what’s happening to this human race?/I can’t even see one friendly face…”) that drew headlines in the years to come. In spite of a powerful, pointed statement (“Take a look at your children…”) and ending summation (“Nobody wins when the price is hate”), “Take a Look” perhaps didn’t have a great impact because of its string-drenched arrangement that didn’t speak to the youth culture upon its release by Columbia in 1967 after Franklin’s departure for Atlantic.

Take A Look: The Clyde Otis Sessions

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One For All - Optimism

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 69:37
Size: 159.4 MB
Styles: Neo-bop, Straight ahead jazz
Year: 1998
Art: Front

[ 8:22] 1. Optimism
[ 6:59] 2. Stranger In Moscow
[ 7:21] 3. Straight Up
[11:12] 4. All For One
[ 6:07] 5. Pearl's
[ 7:15] 6. Spring Can Really Hang You Up The Most
[ 7:55] 7. What Kind Of Fool Am I
[ 8:06] 8. The Prevaricator
[ 6:16] 9. These Foolish Things

This is the second album by One for All, an all-star sextet of young jazz veterans totally steeped in the hard bop tradition and group dynamic of Art Blakey and Horace Silver's classic ensembles. Eric Alexander, the rising tenor sax phenom, trombonist Steve Davis (Jazz Messengers, Jackie McLean, Chick Corea's Origin), and Peter Washington, the talented and ubiquitous bassist, are probably the best known players here. But all the band's members are respected figures on the New York scene with long lists of impressive credits. And these guys really know what they're doing, whether it's reworking standards like "Spring Can Really Hang You Up the Most," "What Kind of Fool Am I?" and "These Foolish Things," or tearing through a number of fine neo-hard-bop originals. ~Joel Roberts

Optimism

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Various - Les Enfants De Django

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 62:27
Size: 143.0 MB
Styles: Gypsy jazz
Year: 2008
Art: Front

[3:05] 1. Jacques Verieres - Mon Pote Le Gitan
[5:52] 2. Babik Reinhardt - Troublant Boléro
[5:00] 3. Babik Reinhardt - Miroir
[3:56] 4. Marc Fosset - Rêverie
[2:35] 5. Marc Fosset - Liberchies
[2:18] 6. Laurent Bajata - Daphné
[2:21] 7. Laurent Bajata - Nouvelle Adresse
[3:41] 8. Raphaël Faÿs - Improvisation N3
[2:44] 9. Raphaël Faÿs - Berceuse
[2:26] 10. Patrick Saussois - Webster
[3:57] 11. Patrick Saussois - Theo
[2:41] 12. Dorado Schmitt - Blue Drag
[4:26] 13. Dorado Schmitt - Flora
[2:38] 14. Francis-Alfred Moerman - Valse Manouche
[2:11] 15. Francis-Alfred Moerman - La Chafouine
[4:46] 16. Romane - Nuages
[4:11] 17. Romane - Bibiguine
[3:29] 18. Jacques Verieres - Au Temps D'edith Et Django

Gypsy jazz inherited of Django Reinhardt, sometimes called Gypsy swing, is the only non-american form of jazz recognized by the people who created Jazz. A purely French Jazz, that has crossed many borders, a festive and happy music that now belongs to more than a people’s patrimony. Different generations of his most brilliant heirs shares with us their love for this music, their approach, their relationship with Django, and how they think it is evolving.

Les Enfants De Django

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John Hicks, Elise Wood, Walter Booker, Jack Walrath - Single Petal of a Rose

Styles: Jazz, Post-Bop
Year: 1994
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 65:28
Size: 150,0 MB
Art: Front

(5:26)  1. Sometime Ago
(8:45)  2. Infant Eyes
(4:16)  3. Yes or No
(3:51)  4. Ballad of Black Man
(4:34)  5. Ghosts of Yesterday
(5:59)  6. Portraits
(5:33)  7. Topaz
(7:06)  8. A Child Is Born
(4:57)  9. Single Petal of a Rose
(9:31) 10. Embraceable You
(5:25) 11. Virgo

The flute has always seemed an odd instrument for jazz. There is something so subtle and predictable about its tone that I never feel the player has enough room to really improvise. On this recording the fine pianist John Hicks teams up with flutist Elise Wood for a variety of ballads that provide a mellow and romantic, candle-lit dinner kind of sound. The title track, composed by Duke Ellington, is played with simplicity and elegance by the duo. Bassist Walter Booker helps out on a number of tracks and provides a steady foundation for the two to encircle. On the tender David Murray composition, "Ballad of a Black Man," trumpeter Jack Walrath joins Hicks-Woods and the three improvise together as coequal voices. Walrath also joins in with a muted trumpet on the final track "Virgo." Hicks is at his best on Gershwin’s "Embraceable You" and I kept wanting to hear more of him alone throughout the CD.~ Mark Craemer http://www.jellyroll.com/05/johnhicks.html

Personnel: John Hicks (piano); Elise Wood (flute); Jack Walrath (trumpet); Walter Booker (bass).

Single Petal of a Rose

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Pamela Rose - Every Time I'm With You

Styles: Vocal Jazz
Year: 1996
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 41:33
Size: 95,3 MB
Art: Front

(4:11)  1. Every Time I'm With You
(4:51)  2. On the Sunny Side of the Street
(3:21)  3. Whether to Stay or Go
(3:34)  4. Consider Me
(5:09)  5. Bye Bye Blackbird
(5:04)  6. Love For Sale
(2:51)  7. It's Only a Paper Moon
(5:21)  8. Never Known a Morning
(4:08)  9. You Came a Long Way From St. Louis
(2:59) 10. I'm Just a Lucky So and So

For her second CD, San Franciscan Pamela Rose has shifted the emphasis away from original material and blues to more familiar standard staples. While there are still a few originals, it's tunes by such major contributors to the Great American Songbook as Duke Ellington and Jimmy McHugh who get the singer's attention. And she does very well with them. "Bye Bye Blackbird," with Rob Sudduth's tenor laying down a soulful backdrop, is done at a much slower tempo than usual. Its arrangement and tempo are much like Mel Tormé's rendition, with Phil Woods' alto doing the sax honors. A jauntily arranged "Consider Me" is the best of the very good Rose/Nate Ginsberg originals with its catchy, swinging rhythms. Close behind is a graceful ballad, "Never Known a Morning." This time it's Jeff Ervin providing the necessary tenor sax backdrop over Ginsberg's piano. Another difference from Rose's first is that her voice has lost some of its nasal quality, becoming richer and fuller. This may well be due to the different kind of songs on this play list when compared to the previous CD. She is much more a torch singer with such songs as "On the Sunny Side of the Street," with an arrangement that transforms this old warhorse into a highly charged, emotional vehicle for Rose. But she still brings to the up-tempo material the same exuberance and sass that pour from the speakers in joyful vocal celebration. In addition to the tenor help, Ginsberg's trio, sometimes sounding like the old Art Van Damme Trio, does the bulk of the support work. This CD is another solid vocal outing for the very talented Pamela Rose and is recommended. ~ Dave Nathan http://www.allmusic.com/album/every-time-im-with-you-mw0000648604

Every Time I'm With You

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Chris Byars - Jasmine Flower

Styles: Saxophone Jazz 
Year: 2013
File: MP3@224K/s
Time: 64:24
Size: 103,7 MB
Art: Front

(6:56)  1. Shhh... It's A Library
(5:16)  2. Say you'll stay
(7:00)  3. Mustang
(6:36)  4. I Know It's You
(6:16)  5. Jasmine Flower (MO Li Hua)
(7:29)  6. Lucky Swing
(6:39)  7. The Wind On The Bridge
(7:21)  8. Rose Water
(4:35)  9. Bye, Sandy
(6:12) 10. Song From Morocco

Chris Byars is an award-winning saxophonist, composer, bandleader, conductor and educator based in New York City. He divides his artistic focus between development of original material and studying the vast repertoire of jazz composers of the 20th century. Chris plays alto, tenor and soprano saxophones, flute and clarinet. He performs with his band, which ranges from trio to octet, and as a sideman. Chris is also available to lead big bands and conduct full orchestras. For over two decades, he has been a staple of the New York City jazz scene, performing at the city's finest venues, including the Village Vanguard, Dizzy's Club Coca-Cola, Birdland, Smalls, Mezzrow, The Jazz Gallery and Iridium. Chris is an innovative and prolific composer. He has written for ensembles of all sizes, from trio to full orchestra. His twelfth commercially-released CD as a leader, The Music of Frank Strozier, is slated for release in January 2017. Chris is also an original and elegant arranger. He has been commissioned by the WDR Big Band to arrange a centennial celebration concert of Thelonious Monk’s compositions, to be performed in March 2017. As a Cultural Ambassador for the U.S. State Department, Chris has traveled to over 50 countries to perform concerts and present educational workshops. Chris is an enthusiastic jazz educator. He teaches in affiliation with The New School and also privately, through his own studio or via Skype. He conducts jazz clinics at colleges throughout the U.S., such as The School for International Teaching in Brattleboro, VT. http://www.chrisbyars.net/bio/

Personnel:  Chris Byars, alto sax;  Stefano Doglioni, bass clarinet;  Johm Mosca, trombone;  Ari Roland, bass;  Phil Stewart, drums;  James Byars, english horn (1,2,3,6,9);  Mine Sadrazam, piano (5)

Jasmine Flower

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Vincent Gardner - The Good Book Chapter Two: The Book Of Now

Styles: Trombone Jazz

Year: 2011

File: MP3@320K/s

Time: 63:06

Size: 147,1 MB

Art: Front

(10:04)  1. A Servant Of The People

( 7:49)  2. Calypso

(10:02)  3. 466-64 (Freedom Fighters)

( 9:57)  4. Speak Low

( 8:39)  5. Like A Son

( 7:25)  6. Love Letters

( 9:08)  7. The Paper Chase

Vincent Gardner's The Good Book series is a refreshing change from many jazz CDs by up-and-coming artists, in that he is not only exploring standards and familiar jazz works, but also overlooked gems by musicians currently on the scene. The trombonist assembled a top-shelf quintet consisting of saxophonist Walter Blanding, pianist Aaron Goldberg, bassist Neil Caine, and drummer Ulysses Owens. It's not every day that someone records one of pianist Marcus Roberts' pieces, but his "A Servant of the People" is a perfect vehicle for Gardner's expressive chops. Fans of Kenny Barron will be very familiar with his "Calypso," a lighthearted, infectious work that showcases Goldberg, Blanding (on soprano), and the leader. Jimmy Heath's compositions have long been favorites of jazz musicians, so the breezy "Like a Son" is another uncovered treasure as well, a hip bop tune with a few twists. Kurt Weill's "Speak Low" has been a standard for decades and Gardner's spacious playing in this easygoing treatment is complemented by Blanding's rich soprano sax. Victor Young's "Love Letters" isn't as well known, though Goldberg's lush backing to Gardner's melancholy horn conveys its message without lyrics in the introduction, though a quick tempo change turns it into an upbeat cooker. It is clear that Vincent Gardner is destined to be one of the greats of his generation on trombone. ~ Ken Dryden http://www.allmusic.com/album/the-good-book-chapter-two-the-book-of-now-mw0002195036

Personnel: Vincent Gardner (trombone); Walter Blanding (soprano saxophone, tenor saxophone); Aaron Goldberg (piano); Ulysses Owens (drums).

The Good Book Chapter Two: The Book Of Now

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Donald Edwards - Evolution Of An Influenced Mind

Styles: Post Bop, Contemporary Jazz 
Year: 2014
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 63:56
Size: 147,1 MB
Art: Front

(2:08)  1. American Drum Call To Mama
(7:19)  2. History Of The Future
(4:56)  3. Niecee
(6:55)  4. The Dream
(6:53)  5. The Essential Passion
(5:18)  6. Dock's House
(5:30)  7. Nichtmare Of Fun
(6:52)  8. When
(6:58)  9. Culmination For Now
(5:24) 10. Not Really Gumbo
(5:37) 11. Truth Of Consequence

Donald Edwards is one of those drummers that seem to be taken for granted. He's constantly being called upon to support others, shaping moods and grooves on record for everybody from saxophonist Dayna Stephens to trombonist Conrad Herwig to vocalist Carolyn Leonhart, but he's largely avoided being in the spotlight. He's only released two other leader dates in his two-plus decades as a professional drummer, and both records went largely unnoticed. Now, after serving as a sideman on a half dozen Criss Cross sessions, Edwards is stepping out with his own date for the venerable Dutch label.  Evolution Of An Influenced Mind finds Edwards fronting and backing a fiery quintet of like-minded musicians on a program of original music; ten of the eleven pieces on the album are credited to the drummer, and "When" comes from the pen of the pianist on the date the incomparable Orrin Evans. 

After hearing this material, it's hard to understand why Edwards hasn't occupied the driver's seat more often. Edwards, Evans, and the rest of the cast guitarist David Gilmore, tenor saxophonist Walter Smith III, and bassist Eric Revis aren't known for pussyfooting around, and this music reflects each man's assuredness and strength(s). These qualities can be manifested in edgy post-modern scenarios ("History Of The Future"), frantic burners ("The Essental Passion"), measured swing, and mutable constructs. Tempos aren't always of the metronome busting variety, yet things rarely feel relaxed here; Gilmore's tonal tweaks, Smith's sense of unpredictability, and the fantastic flights undertaken by each of these men see to that. Strict time is occasionally dispensed with, as when Edwards marries his drums to chants ("American Drum Call To Mama"), or when the band visits spiritually-charged material that reaches for a higher plane ("When"), but rhythm remains Edwards' business. Mid-tempo swing fits him like a glove, laid-back funk futurism sounds just fine when he plays it ("Culmination For Now"), and aggressive environments suit him. Edwards may be selfless when he works for others, but this man has a strong sense of self that shines through on Evolution Of An Influenced Mind. ~ Dan Bilawsky https://www.allaboutjazz.com/evolution-of-an-influenced-mind-donald-edwards-criss-cross-review-by-dan-bilawsky.php

Personnel: Donald Edwards: drums; Walter Smith III: tenor saxophone; David Gilmore: guitar; Orrin Evans: piano; Eric Revis: bass. 

Evolution Of An Influenced Mind

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