Debby Moore - My Kind Of Blues

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 34:44
Size: 79.5 MB
Styles: Jazz/blues vocals
Year: 2011
Art: Front

[3:03] 1. Five Months, Two Weeks, Two Days
[2:27] 2. Come On Home To Me
[2:26] 3. See See Rider
[2:41] 4. Nothin' But Trouble On My Mind
[2:10] 5. Sent For You Yesterday
[2:40] 6. Baby, Won't You Please Come Home
[3:01] 7. I'm Travelin' Light
[2:58] 8. (I Know) My Baby Loves Me True
[2:51] 9. Why Don't You Do Right
[2:25] 10. How Come You Do Me Like You Do Do Do
[2:56] 11. Hallelujah, I Love Him So
[2:49] 12. No Love, No Nothin'
[2:12] 13. Get A Feeling

Debby Moore (vocals, whistling), Harry Edison (trumpet), Jimmy Jones (piano), Barry Galbraith (guitar), George Duvivier (bass), Elvin Jones (drums), Don Donaldson (arrangements). Recorded in New York City, December 1959.

Debby Moore, who once sang with Earl Hines, was a Fifties pop singer whose light, warmly caressing voice and ability to read a lyric and phrase well showed a frank jazz awareness. It’s no surprise, then, that she was able to get a quintet of this quality for this mix of blues and standards. Although group is cast in a mainly accompanying role, it could call on Sweets Edison’s swinging solos and delightful backing for the singer who also contributes the novelty of whistling on a couple of tracks in a style not unlike the trumpeters as well Jimmy Jones’s elegant soloing and Barry Galbraiths funky guitar. The result was a consistently interesting debut session, with the singer generating her lithe, detached swing and getting her own groove going.

My Kind Of Blues

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Donald Byrd - Early Byrd: The Best Of The Jazz Soul Years

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 73:54
Size: 169.2 MB
Styles: Bop, Soul-jazz
Year: 1994/2015
Art: Front

[ 9:43] 1. Slow Drag
[ 5:19] 2. West Of The Pecos
[ 6:50] 3. Book's Bossa
[ 5:17] 4. Jelly Roll
[ 8:25] 5. Mustang
[ 6:15] 6. Blackjack
[ 8:57] 7. The Weasil
[ 7:48] 8. The Dude
[15:18] 9. The Emperor

Early Byrd: The Best of the Jazz Soul Years contains a selection of nine tracks from Donald Byrd's mid-'60s recordings, bypassing his funkier fusions of the late '60s and early '70s. These songs -- including such numbers as "Slow Drag," "Jellyroll," "Mustang," "Blackjack" and "The Dude" -- feature the trumpeter at his grittiest and funkiest. Fans of his early hard bop years will still find enough improvisation here to make it interesting, while latter-day fans will find enough grooves. It's a solid introduction to one of Byrd's most prolific periods.

Early Byrd: The Best Of The Jazz Soul Years

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Joe Cocker - Mad Dogs & Englishmen (Deluxe Edition) 2-Disc Set

Listening to this CD brings back a lot of memories. Mad Dogs & Englishmen was just about the most elaborate album that A&M Records had ever released, back in 1971, a double LP in a three-panel, fold-out, gatefold sleeve, with almost 80 minutes of music inside and a ton of photos, graphics, and annotation wrapping around it. A live recording done in tandem with a killer documentary film of the same U.S. tour, it was recorded at the Fillmore East, where the movie was a cross-country affair, and the two were, thus, completely separate entities -- also, as people couldn't "buy" the film in those days, the double LP has lingered longer in the memory, by virtue of its being on shelves, and also being taken off those shelves to be played. Unlike a lot of other "coffee table"-type rock releases of the era, such as Woodstock and The Concert for Bangladesh, people actually listened to Mad Dogs & Englishmen -- most of its content was exciting, and its sound, a veritable definition of big-band rock with three dozen players working behind the singer, was unique. The CD offers a seriously good sound, whether it's just Joe Cocker and a pianist and organist in the opening of "Bird on a Wire," or the entire band going full-tilt on "Cry Me a River"; the remastering was set at a high volume level and there was a decent amount of care taken to get the detail right, so you can appreciate the presence of the multiple drummers, and the legion of guitarists and singers, plus the multiple keyboard players. The lead guitar and solo piano on "Feelin' Alright," for example, come through, but so do the 34 other players and singers behind the lead. This record was also just as much a showcase for Leon Russell as it was for Joe Cocker, which A&M probably didn't mind a bit, as Russell was selling millions of records at the time. As is now known, and it's recounted in the new notes, the tour from which this album was drawn all but wiped out Joe Cocker -- on a psychic level -- because the music was presented on such a vast scale (and there is a moment in the movie where he mentions breaking up his former backing group, the Grease Band, with a hint of regret in his voice) and his own contribution was so muted by Russell's work as arranger and bandleader. He may well have been the "victim" of a "hijacking" of sorts, but the musical results, apart from the dubious "Give Peace a Chance," are difficult to argue about upon hearing this record anew, decades after the fact -- it's almost all bracing and beautiful. [In 2005 Mad Dogs & Englishmen was reissued in a two-CD deluxe edition with eight previously unreleased live performances inserted throughout the discs and four rare studio recordings tacked onto the end. The new live performances are longer and looser and Russell plays an even bigger role. They're excellent, as are the stereo studio mixes of "The Letter" and "Space Captain," available for the first time here.] ~Bruce Eder

Album: Mad Dogs & Englishmen (Deluxe Edition) Disc 1
Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 57:25
Size: 131.5 MB
Styles: Rock
Year: 1970/2005
Art: Front

[4:56] 1. Honky Tonk Women
[3:18] 2. She Came In Through The Bathroom Window
[5:57] 3. The Weight
[2:46] 4. Sticks And Stones
[6:31] 5. Bird On A Wire
[4:05] 6. Cry Me A River
[4:59] 7. Superstar
[5:48] 8. Feelin' Alright
[5:33] 9. Something
[5:47] 10. Darling Be Home Soon
[3:40] 11. Let It Be
[4:00] 12. Further On Up The Road

Mad Dogs & Englishmen (Deluxe Edition) Disc 1

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Album: Mad Dogs & Englishmen (Deluxe Edition) Disc 2
Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 79:22
Size: 181.7 MB
Styles: Rock
Year: 1970/2005
Art: Front

[ 8:05] 1. Let's Go Get Stoned
[ 5:20] 2. Space Captain
[ 4:09] 3. Hummingbird
[ 2:59] 4. Dixie Lullaby
[ 4:33] 5. The Letter
[ 7:03] 6. Delta Lady
[ 4:46] 7. Please Give Peace A Chance
[12:37] 8. Blue Medley
[ 8:40] 9. With A Little Help From My Friends
[ 2:40] 10. Girl From The North Country
[ 5:45] 11. Warm-Up Jam Under My Thumb
[ 4:10] 12. The Letter
[ 4:20] 13. Space Captain
[ 4:09] 14. The Ballad Of Mad Dogs And Englishmen

Mad Dogs & Englishmen (Deluxe Edition) Disc 2

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June Christy - June's Got Rhythm

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 43:06
Size: 98.7 MB
Styles: Jazz vocals
Year: 1958/2006
Art: Front

[2:23] 1. Rock Me To Sleep
[3:16] 2. The Gypsy In My Soul
[2:41] 3. I'm Glad There Is You
[2:43] 4. They Can't Take That Away From Me
[1:55] 5. It Don't Mean A Thing (If It Ain't Got That Swing)
[2:46] 6. My One And Only Love
[2:56] 7. When Lights Are Low
[3:34] 8. I Can Make You Love Me (If You Let Me)
[4:17] 9. Easy Living
[3:15] 10. Blue Moon
[2:16] 11. All God's Chillun Got Rhythm
[2:30] 12. Baubles, Bangles And Beads
[2:22] 13. Aren't You Glad You're You
[2:39] 14. Looking For A Boy
[3:26] 15. Small Fry

Bass – Monty Budwig; Drums – Mel Lewis, Shelly Manne; Flute – George Spelvin; Guitar – Laurindo Almeida; Oboe – Bob Cooper; Piano – Russ Freeman; Trombone – Frank Rosolino; Trumpet – Ed Leddy; Tuba – Red Callender. Recorded in Hollywood, June, 1958.

Many of singer June Christy's popular Capitol albums feature her cool-toned vocals backed by an orchestra. This recording is an exception. Christy excels on a jazz-oriented set with a nonet that includes trumpeter Ed Leddy, trombonist Frank Rosolino and her husband Bob Cooper (who arranged the set) on tenor and oboe. Christy accurately called this music "intimate swing." Her versions of such songs as "I'm Glad There Is You," "My One and Only Love," "When Lights Are Low" and "Blue Moon" are tasteful, sincere and often quite memorable. ~Scott Yanow

June's Got Rhythm

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Bill Heller - Find The Way

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 57:08
Size: 130.8 MB
Styles: Smooth jazz
Year: 2014
Art: Front

[5:17] 1. Guaraldi (Feat. Jeff Kashiwa)
[5:30] 2. Down & Loaded (Feat. Jeff Kashiwa)
[4:33] 3. Bill's Bop (Feat. Eric Marienthal)
[4:20] 4. Blackbird On A Fence (Feat. Jeff Kashiwa)
[5:06] 5. Find The Way (Feat. Jeff Kashiwa)
[4:49] 6. Hanna (Feat. Eric Marienthal)
[5:27] 7. Alone
[5:51] 8. Latinesque (Feat. Carl Fischer & Luis Bonilla)
[5:33] 9. 5 For 1 (Feat. Eric Marienthal)
[4:39] 10. Afrikaan
[4:53] 11. My Thing
[1:05] 12. Trottoir Du Musette

Perhaps best known as keyboard player with smooth jazz super-group (the) Rippingtons, Bill Heller has released his own solo collection, the excellent ‘Find The Way’. It fuses together jazz of varying complexions through the combined talents of guest performers (and Rippingtons band-mates) Jeff Kashiwa, Rico Belled and Dave Karasony plus fine work from Eric Marienthal Ronnie Gutierrez, Joel Rosenblatt and Dave Anderson. However, that said, this is very much Heller’s album. He writes all twelve tracks, produces throughout and, with his mastery on keys, leaves listeners wondering why it has taken him so long to move center stage.

Indeed it was back in 1998 that Heller made his first Rippingtons appearance. That was for the ‘Topaz’ CD and he has been performing live with the band since March of 2001. By that time Jeff Kashiwa was already a regular member of the line-up and with ‘Find The Way’ it is Kashiwa who helps get the show on the road with tremendous sax and flute for the opening ‘Guaraldi’. This mellifluous song has an aura of the Rippingtons about it and much the same can be said of the fabulous ‘Afrikaan’ that is right up there with the best that ‘Find The Way’ has to offer.

Find The Way

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Gerry Mulligan Quartet - Gerry Mulligan Quartet Featuring Chet Baker

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 49:15
Size: 112.8 MB
Styles: West Coast jazz, Saxophone jazz
Year: 1992
Art: Front

[2:26] 1. Carioca
[2:31] 2. Line For Lyons
[4:05] 3. Moonlight In Vermont
[3:12] 4. Bark For Barksdale
[2:55] 5. Turnstile
[3:11] 6. The Lady Is A Tramp
[2:54] 7. My Funny Valentine
[2:46] 8. Limelight
[0:20] 9. Gerry Mulligan Signing Off
[3:02] 10. Flying The Coop
[3:23] 11. Why Not
[2:44] 12. So What
[3:27] 13. I May Be Wrong But I Think You're Wonderful
[3:27] 14. New York
[2:28] 15. Leavin' Town
[3:23] 16. Hot Dog
[2:52] 17. Sax Appeal

This CD is a compilation of two separate recording sessions, one led by Gerry Mulligan with Chet Baker on trumpet, the other by the Chubby Jackson Big Band. Half the Mulligan-Baker quartet material was recorded at the Black Hawk in San Francisco in September 1952, the other half four months later in LA. The personnel remains the same for both. The two horn men, along with Carson Smith (b) and Chico Hamilton (d) were laying down the foundation of what soon would be referred to as West Coast or Cool jazz, a sound just as swinging as its East coast rival, but tempered somewhat by a more introspective rhythm approach (the use of brushes over sticks by the drummer, for example) and in the case of this group, no piano. Many who disparage West Coast jazz make the claim that it was cold, pensive, and unswinging, which makes one wonder if such people ever really listened to the music. Such tunes as BARK FOR BARKSDALE, TURNSTILE, and LIMELIGHT are modern dynamos, far from retiring wallflowers. Baker, who supposedly couldn't read music, is truly inspired on these early sides.

The Jackson sides were recorded at one session for Prestige in 1950 in New York and feature an all-star modern big band, including Mulligan (bar sax) Howard McGhee (tp) Zoot Sims (ts) JJ Johnson (tb) and Jackson (b) among many other top players. Best might be the up-tempo rouser FLYING THE COOP, written by Tiny Kahn, a performance that sets the band off well, especially Sims and Johnson. I MAY BE WRONG is also a great tune done to perfection here, thanks to Mulligan's playing and arranging.

The music on this CD is fresh and exciting. The playing is top-notch. This is a must-have CD for anyone interested in modern jazz, especially during its earlier years. ~Bomojazz

Gerry Mulligan Quartet Featuring Chet Baker

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Erroll Garner Trio - Humoresque

Styles: Piano Jazz
Year: 1995
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 71:11
Size: 166,4 MB
Art: Front

(5:11)  1. Humoresque
(5:28)  2. Moonglow
(4:19)  3. In A Mellow Tone
(5:03)  4. Don't Worry 'Bout Me
(3:12)  5. Exactly Like You
(4:42)  6. Creme De Menthe (Dreamy)
(2:35)  7. Oh, Lady Be Good
(4:00)  8. I've Got The World On A String
(2:37)  9. Rosalie
(3:10) 10. There's A Small Hotel
(3:14) 11. Mean To Me
(2:53) 12. Easy To Love
(3:20) 13. All Of A Sudden
(3:27) 14. You Are My Sunshine
(4:33) 15. Part Time Blues
(2:21) 16. I Wanna Be A Rug Cutter
(7:18) 17. 7-11 Jump
(3:39) 18. Alexander's Ragtime Band

One of the most distinctive of all pianists, Erroll Garner proved that it was possible to be a sophisticated player without knowing how to read music, that a creative jazz musician can be very popular without watering down his music, and that it is possible to remain an enthusiastic player without changing one's style once it is formed. A brilliant virtuoso who sounded unlike anyone else, on medium tempo pieces, Erroll Garner often stated the beat with his left hand like a rhythm guitar while his right played chords slightly behind the beat, creating a memorable effect. His playful free-form introductions (which forced his sidemen to really listen), his ability to play stunning runs without once glancing at the keyboard, his grunting, and the pure joy that he displayed while performing were also part of the Erroll Garner magic.

Garner, whose older brother Linton was also a fine pianist, appeared on the radio with the Kan-D-Kids at the age of ten. After working locally in Pittsburgh, he moved to New York in 1944 and worked with Slam Stewart's trio during 1944-1945 before going out on his own. By 1946, Garner had his sound together, and when he backed Charlie Parker on his famous Cool Blues session of 1947, the pianist was already an obvious giant. His unclassifiable style had an orchestral approach straight from the swing era but was open to the innovations of bop. From the early '50s on, Garner's accessible style became very popular and he never seemed to have an off day up until his forced retirement (due to illness) in early 1975. His composition "Misty" became a standard. Garner, who had the ability to sit at the piano without prior planning and record three albums in one day (all colorful first takes), made many records throughout his career for such companies as Savoy, Mercury, RCA, Dial, Columbia, EmArcy, ABC-Paramount, MGM, Reprise, and his own Octave label. ~ Scott Yanow http://www.allmusic.com/artist/erroll-garner-mn0000206967/biography

Humoresque

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Michael Cochrane - Minor Matrix

Styles: Piano Jazz
Year: 2000
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 63:17
Size: 145,3 MB
Art: Front

(7:08)  1. I'll Keep Loving You
(5:16)  2. One Finger Snap
(6:05)  3. Waltz
(6:43)  4. On The Sunny Side of The Street
(4:57)  5. Mamacita
(5:57)  6. This Is New
(8:40)  7. Summer Night
(6:55)  8. Minor Matrix
(5:03)  9. Ask Me Now
(6:30) 10. So Sorry Please

Michael Cochrane starts his new CD with Bud Powell’s classic “I’ll Keep Loving you” manifesting again his musical roots and influences. As John Murph of JazzTimes once wrote about Cochrane’s SteepleChase debut album Cutting Edge, this album also “ sings unapologetically that bebop indeed still lives. ”

Personnel: Michael Cochrane (piano); Alan Nelson (drums); Calvin Hill (bass)

Minor Matrix

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David Garfield - Seasons Of Change

Styles: keyboards, Piano Jazz
Year: 2004
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 61:51
Size: 141,7 MB
Art: Front

(7:23)  1. El Judio Magnifico
(4:22)  2. Aquas De Marcos (Waters Of March)
(5:01)  3. Too Shy To Say
(5:35)  4. Summertime
(8:32)  5. Prophecy
(2:05)  6. Chino MacDonald
(6:46)  7. Harvest Time
(7:25)  8. Manha De Carnival (A Day In The Life Of A Fool)
(5:30)  9. One Finger Snap
(9:07) 10. Gracias (Thank You)

The Los Angeles based keyboard player David Garfield has a long career as a musical director, arranger, composer and producer behind him, and he is still one of the 'Cats' that you always see playing local clubs such as The Baked Potato, Cafe Cordiale, La Ve Lee. You'll also find him on world tours with big acts with likes of George Benson.  Over the span of his career, he's scored and recorded for films ('Annie' and 'Always' with J.D. Souther), Television ('Fame' and its five accompanying 'Kids from Fame' recordings), and commercials (Coca Cola, McDonald's, Seven Up). He has produced many albums and appeared on several as a keyboard player, arranger and composer. Along with his active recording career he toured with Earl Klugh, Michael McDonald, Nancy Wilson, Oleta Adams/Luther Vandross, Brenda Russell and many local L.A. acts and has been the musical director for George Benson and Dianne Reeves. He also appeared on The Tonight Show, Arsenio Hall and Solid Gold, and has composed and recorded more than 200 original compositions.  As if that array of challenges weren't enough to satisfy his creative urges, Garfield has led several popular bands rock/jazz/funk/world beat fusion bands in Los Angeles since his arrival in the mid-70s. The first of these was Karizma, which he formed with top session players Carlos Vega, Lenny Castro, Mike Landau and Jimmy Johnson. Karizma played sold out club dates in L.A. for years and released four albums ('Dream Come True', 'Cuba,' 'All The Way Live,' and 'Arms of Love') to great success in Japan, Australia and throughout Europe. At one point, Karizma, which still regroups every so often, also toured extensively, including dates with Sadao Watanabe, Jeff Lorber and the Yellowjackets.

Garfield and longtime friend/collaborator, guitarist Steve Lukather from Toto, formed Los Lobotomys in 1985, and this band has also met with great success in L.A. and abroad. In 1994, Garfield and Lukather produced the guitarist's second solo album 'The Candyman' on Sony International. The project featured Fee Waybill from the Tubes and Simon Phillips, drummer for Toto, and the band embarked on a sell out tour of Europe and Japan, sharing stages with Peter Gabriel, Aerosmith and others. As is typical of his musical resume, Garfield has worked on a number of unique projects over the past few years, both at home, in Europe and Japan. The Los Lobotomys tour led to a long-term scoring assignment on a German TV show, and he has produced various Japanese artists in addition to working with top Italian singing star Eros Ramazzotti. Garfield has also performed at Keyboard Magazine's 20th Anniversary Concert at the NAMM show alongside Bruce Hornsby and Joe Zawinul; played at the Modern Drummer magazine's anniversary concert with Steve Ferrone; scored the syndicated TV show 'Sentinel'; sat in with Isaac Hayes and The Blues Brothers at a House of Blues benefit concert; released two DCI instructional videos on how to play rock and roll keyboards; written music for the trailer for the Billy Crystal-Robin Williams comedy 'Father's Day' with James Newton-Howard, and background cues for Good Day L.A. In between these gigs, he was pouring over the logistics and finally the recording sessions for the Tribute to Jeff release. Garfield also formed a production company, Creatchy Productions. With access to the top studio musicians and state of the art technology, they have offered modern production values to both commercial and experimental projects. Creatchy Productions has released many projects by various artists, and has accessed the Japanese and European market. By continuing to craft world music with Contemporary Jazz and to delve into new international technologies, David Garfield has secured his niche as a visionary in contemporary music.

At first glance, all of these diverse projects may seem to have little in common with his earliest gigs touring and recording with Willie Bobo, Freddie Hubbard and Tom Scott. The Chicago born, New York and St. Louis bred Garfield can summarize his entire, admittedly all encompassing career in three simple words: 'I make music. That's my mission statement. Things developed slowly over time, till I was playing every different kind of music in unique situations. Always going against the grain, doing music that may not have been the 'in' thing at the time but hanging around until it became popular.'It all goes back to when I was seven years old, first learning the piano,' he adds. 'There seemed like a great spiritual connection there, and I felt compelled to keep playing. I started my life playing rock, Led Zeppelin, Grand Funk and started meeting more and more jazz musicians in St. Louis which made jazz a logical second love for me. It's been an incredible education.' David Garfield has led many musical projects and one of the cornerstones in his career is the 'Tribute To Jeff' project released in 1997. On May 8th 1992, music lost one of the greatest drummers ever, Jeff Porcaro. He was a big part of the west coast music and L.A. scene through the 70s and 80s. Jeff Porcaro was like a magnet, attracting attention from musicians and fans, and today he still is 'King Of The Groove' because of his very tight drum playing. Making 'Tribute To Jeff' album required a lot of hard work and for David Garfield it took 5 years to finally put the record together and release it. There are many well-known musicians on this album and most of them have played with Jeff Porcaro on albums, tours and gigs. David Garfield has always been very close to the Porcaro family, so he was the right person to make this great album. David also hosts the yearly Carlos Vega Memorial Birthday, a tribute to his friend Carlos Vega, who introduced him to the Los Angeles music business. Carlos Vega passed away in 1997 and David Garfield keeps the spirit alive with the annual concert every year in December at a local club in Los Angeles. In 2005, David Garfield and his production company Creatchy Records released the albums 'Tribute To Jeff Revisited' and 'Seasons Of Change', and later that year he went to Europe with Los Lobotomys for a week of gigs and clinics in Denmark. David is currently working on new releases from both Karizma and Los Lobotomys and will be going to Europe to perform with Russ Miller, Eric Marienthal and John Peña in the spring of 2007. https://www.last.fm/music/David+Garfield/+wiki

Personnel: David Garfield (piano, keyboards); Luis Conte (percussion).

Seasons Of Change

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