Count Basie - King Of Swing

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 33:10
Size: 76.0 MB
Styles: Big band, Swing
Year: 1954/2002
Art: Front

[3:24] 1. Cherry Point
[4:00] 2. Bubbles
[2:39] 3. Right On
[3:37] 4. The Blues Done Come Back
[3:46] 5. Plymouth Rock
[2:53] 6. I Feel Like A New Man
[3:14] 7. You For Me
[3:04] 8. Soft Drink
[2:47] 9. Two For The Blues
[3:42] 10. Slow But Sure

Alto Saxophone, Clarinet – Marshall Royal; Alto Saxophone, Tenor Saxophone – Ernie Wilkins; Baritone Saxophone – Charlie Fowlkes; Bass – Eddie Jones; Drums – Gus Johnson; Guitar – Freddie Green; Piano, Conductor – Count Basie; Tenor Saxophone – Frank Foster, Frank Wess; Trombone – Benny Powell, Bill Hughes (2) (tracks: 6 to 10), Henderson Chambers (tracks: 1 to 4), Henry Coker; Trumpet – Joe Newman, Joe Wilder (tracks: 1 to 4), Reunald Jones, Thad Jones (tracks: 6 to10), Wendell Culley. Tracks 1-4: Recorded December 12, 1953 at Fine Sound, New York City. Track 5: Recorded August 13, 1953 in Los Angeles. Tracks 6-10: Recorded August 16, 1954 at Fine Sound, New York City. 96 kHz, 24-bit digital transfer.

Following a brief lull earlier in the 1950s, Count Basie had rebuilt his big band by the time of this trio of studio sessions originally recorded for Clef. Among the musicians present on one or more of the dates are trumpeters Joe Newman, Joe Wilder, and Thad Jones and a reed section with Marshall Royal, Frank Foster, Frank Wess, and Ernie Wilkins, along with a dependable rhythm section anchored by Basie's longtime rhythm guitarist, Freddie Green. While none of the numbers seemed to stay in the band book for all that long, the consistently swinging performances and tasty solos make this worth the attention of swing fans. ~Ken Dryden

King Of Swing

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The Randy Johnston Trio - Riding The Curve

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 58:15
Size: 133.3 MB
Styles: Swing, Guitar jazz
Year: 1999
Art: Front

[ 6:16] 1. The Song Is Ended (But The Melody Lingers On)
[ 8:30] 2. All Through The Night
[ 6:15] 3. I Get Along Without You Very Well
[ 8:26] 4. High-Heel Sneakers
[10:04] 5. You've Never Been There!
[ 5:12] 6. The Park
[ 8:09] 7. Wives And Lovers
[ 5:19] 8. For Thomas

Trio was formed during a tour of Spain in 1997 - guitarist Johnston, Hammond B-3 player Joey DeFrancesco, drummer Idris Muhammad, as well as special guest saxophonist Johnny Griffin, swing from start to finish.

Riding The Curve

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Tina May - A Wing And A Prayer

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 55:21
Size: 126.7 MB
Styles: Vocal jazz
Year: 2006
Art: Front

[4:06] 1. Maybe September
[3:04] 2. You'd Be So Nice To Come Home To
[5:36] 3. Who Can I Turn To
[5:03] 4. Sunshower
[6:44] 5. Too Late Now
[5:51] 6. Blue Narcissus (Black Narcissus)
[4:55] 7. Turn Out The Stars
[2:48] 8. When In Rome
[7:12] 9. A Wing And A Prayer
[5:08] 10. Easy To Love
[4:49] 11. A House Is Not A Home

Tina May: vocals; Stan Sulzmann: saxophone, flute; Nikki Iles: piano.

Even though she has over ten discs to her name, Tina May is still little known in the wider jazz world. A regular performer in clubs and arts centres in Britain and Europe, she has never had the major label backing that seems to be required to catapult a jazz singer into the public eye. For those who have heard her, this is something of a blessing. Recording mainly on the small 33 Records label has allowed her to develop without the pressures that star status might have imposed. The result has been a string of excellent albums using outstanding instrumentalists like Don Weller, Alan Barnes, Tony Coe and Dave Newton, each one centred on the American songbook, but with the added surprises of vocal adaptations of jazz tunes and the occasional foray into French (for a whole album on Jazz Piquant!). On A Wing and a Prayer, May is supported by just two instrumentalists. Nikki Iles, her pianist of choice for some years, is a beautifully lyrical player from the John Taylor school. Reedsman Stan Sulzmann is one of the quiet heroes of British jazz, with a reputation stretching back to the 1960s. Together they have made a record of quiet introspection that''s dominated by songs of loss and longing.

The boppy voice and piano duet on "Maybe September sets the mood, and Sulzmann provides immediate contrast, his simultaneous tenor weaving around the vocal line. All three musicians take "Who Can I Turn To? well away from Broadway self-pity into a spirited jazz exploration, with particularly fine piano from Iles. "Too Late Now and "Turn Out The Stars explore the bleak downside of relationships, greatly benefiting from the sparse instrumentation. "When in Rome brings a few moments of comedy to lighten the overall mood. However, the tracks that really stand out are Tina May's own vocal interpretations of two very different jazz tunes. Joe Henderson's "Black Narcissus, re-titled "Blue Narcissus, emerges as a striking demonstration of her almost perfect pitch; she hits the notes without wavering during some extremely difficult chord changes. The title track, "A Wing and a Prayer, takes Kenny Wheeler's gorgeous "Gentle Piece and turns it into a pastoral ballad with ethereal, breathy flute. On an earlier album May shaped Bobby Watson's "Time Will Tell into a heart-stopping vocal performance; the two adaptations on this CD further suggest that jazz singers seeking fresh repertoire should be giving May's recordings a listen.

A Wing and a Prayer is much more than just another CD from an aspirational singer. It's a superbly crafted piece of work from three top-flight musicians who work together as an integrated jazz trio. Listen to it as you would listen to a piano or saxophone trio—it repays that sort of concentration. ~Bev Stapleton

A Wing And A Prayer

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Xavier Cugat & His Orchestra - Cugat Plays The Continental Hits

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 29:07
Size: 66.7 MB
Styles: Easy Listening, Latin jazz
Year: 1962/2012
Art: Front

[2:14] 1. Mack The Knife
[2:32] 2. Petite Fleur
[3:00] 3. Apache
[2:08] 4. Volare
[2:15] 5. Never On A Sunday
[2:26] 6. Calcutta
[2:21] 7. Sucu Sucu
[2:30] 8. The Third Man Theme
[2:44] 9. Wonderland By Night
[2:18] 10. The Poor People Of Paris
[2:33] 11. Come Prima
[2:01] 12. Guaglione

Born in Spain, Xavier Cugat's family moved to Havana, Cuba, when he was three. Always musically inclined, he packed up and moved to Los Angeles, where he worked as a cartoonist for the Los Angeles Times newspaper during the day and labored to put together a band at night. After a few years of playing smaller clubs in the L.A. area, Cugat finally got his break when he and his band secured a job at the prestigious Coconut Grove nightclub in 1928. His style of music caught on, and Cugat was instrumental in bringing Latin music to the attention of the US public. In the '30s and '40s he was nicknamed "The Rumba King" because of his popularization of that Latin dance. In Cugat's film appearances he usually played himself, even if the character had a name other than Xavier Cugat, and he and his band appeared in several memorable MGM musicals in the '40s. After suffering a stroke in 1971, Xavier Cugat retired.

Cugat Plays The Continental Hits 

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Sue Palmer - After Hours

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 41:28
Size: 95.0 MB
Styles: Piano blues/jazz
Year: 2010
Art: Front

[4:04] 1. After Hours
[3:33] 2. Down The Road A Piece
[3:17] 3. Boogie Noir
[3:20] 4. Room Service Boogie
[2:59] 5. Speakin' My Mind
[2:52] 6. Frog Tongue Stomp
[2:55] 7. Nice Work If You Can Get It
[2:23] 8. Honeysuckle Rose Boogie
[3:21] 9. Domino Boogie
[3:09] 10. Caddo Boogie
[3:30] 11. Rockhouse
[4:38] 12. Lil' Rock Getaway
[1:20] 13. La Vie En Rose

Best known for her beehive-wearing stint with blues diva Candye Kane in the '90's, Sue Palmer has been making her mark in the last decade with her high energy band, the Motel Swing Orchestra, and her flashy boogie woogie stylings. Wearing a couple of pounds of big cocktail rings on each hand, she wails through a very complete blues keyboard vocabulary like the veteran she is. She has performed with many of the legends of the boogie genre, playing double piano with Marcia Ball, Hadda Brooks, Sonny Leyland, Steve Lucky, Jeannie Cheathem, Ricky Nye, Mr. Boogie Woogie (from the Netherlands), Mike Seeley, Caroline Dahl, Wendy Dewitt, Lisa Otey, Doña Oxford, Deanna Bogart, Silvan Zingg (Switzerland), Janie-Noele Helies (France), Elena Tourbina (Russia) and Jan Preston (New Zealand). Sue, known widely as San Diego's Queen of Boogie Woogie, has been honored by her city for her cultural contributions by having a day named after her (March 25th, 2008), played at the Arches Piano Stage in Cinncinnatti (2008), won the International Blues Challenge in Memphis for Best Self Produced CD 2008 ("Sophisticated Ladies") from the Blues Foundation, won numerous San Diego Music Awards for her albums and bands, including Best Blues Album 2010 for her first solo piano album "After Hours."

After Hours

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Frank Rosolino - Fond Memories Of...

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 63:19
Size: 144.9 MB
Styles: Trombone jazz
Year: 1996
Art: Front

[13:18] 1. All The Things You Are
[10:15] 2. My Funny Valentine
[10:35] 3. I Love You
[ 7:20] 4. Violets
[ 6:58] 5. Corcovado
[ 8:08] 6. Autumn Leaves
[ 6:42] 7. Free For All

Bass – Jaques Schols; Drums – John Engels; Orchestra – Metropole Orchestra; Piano – Louis Van Dyke. Recorded June 1973 and May 1975 at Radio NOS Studios, Hilversum, Netherlands.

This album brings together two Rosolino recording sessions made in the Netherlands during 1973 and 1975 which sat somewhere for 20 years. One of jazz's premier players, this album displays Rosolino's unique facility with the trombone. Although he died tragically in 1978, he remains a major influence on the way the slide instrument is played. The opening cut sets the tone with a 13 minute plus exploration of all the nooks and crannies of "All the Things You Are." This is followed by a similar in-depth improvisional probe of "My Funny Valentine." Although the Metropole Orchestra is highlighted on the album cover, it is present on just 2 of the 7 tracks . One of them, "Violets," was written especially for Rosolino by Jerry Van Rooyen. On this track, and on the other backed by the Metropole Orch., Rosolino plays with long, clean, melodic lines, putting out the mellow sound unique to the trombone. For the remaining cuts, Rosolino is backed by the Louis Van Dyke Trio collaborating on Jerry Van Rooyen's arrangements. Rosolino uses strong staccato attack on all of these tunes, spurred on by Van Dyke's driving piano. Van Dyke does not permit any lapse into a softer playing style. ~Dave Nathan

Fond Memories Of...

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Roma Trio - Ciao Ciao Bambina

Styles: Contemporary jazz
Year: 2008
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 66:07
Size: 152,6 MB
Art: Front

(5:00)  1. All Of You
(4:23)  2. Solar
(6:21)  3. Amarsi Un Po'
(8:34)  4. Anche Un Uomo
(7:51)  5. Moon And Sand
(6:00)  6. Just One Of Yhose Things
(6:57)  7. Torna A Surrient
(2:35)  8. Maramao Oerche Sei Morto
(6:01)  9. Ciao Ciao Bambina
(5:10) 10. That's All
(7:11) 11. Celestina's Waltz

Youthful and adventurous Roma Trio, led by pianist Luca Mannutza, released its thrilling debut CD Love Is A Many-Splendored Thing (TKCV-35401) from Venus Records ago in June 2007. It became an instant hit with its unique, thrilling and lyrical sound. At hand we have their strong sophomore release, Ciao Ciao Bambina. The group retains its unique mixture of tradition-oriented lyricism and forward-looking, progressive concepts. After a relatively straight-ahead rendition of "All Of You," the trio launches into a surprising version of "Solar" with fragmented rhythm figures and fiery solos. This album also includes the trio's unique treatments of Italian popular songs and traditional melodies. The Italian jazz scene is really hot right now, and this trio is one of the top groups in the country. Recommended!

Personnel:  Luca Mannutza (piano);  Gianluca Renzi (bass);  Nicola Angelucci (drums)

Ciao Ciao Bambina

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Elmo Hope - Hope Meets Foster

Styles: Piano Jazz, Bop 
Year: 1955
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 38:13
Size: 88,3 MB
Art: Front

(6:28)  1. Wail, Frank, Wail
(5:16)  2. Zarou
(6:17)  3. Fosterity
(6:41)  4. Georgia On My Mind
(5:51)  5. Shutout
(7:38)  6. Yaho

This decent bop session features tenor-saxophonist Frank Foster and pianist Elmo Hope in a quintet with the forgotten trumpeter Freeman Lee (who is on three of the six songs), bassist John Ore and drummer Art Taylor. They perform three of Hope's originals, two by Foster and an uptempo version of "Georgia on My Mind." None of the originals caught on (when was the last time anyone played "Fosterity"?) and nothing that innovative occurs but the music should please bop fans. ~ Scott Yanow http://www.allmusic.com/album/hope-meets-foster-mw0000267678

Personnel:  Elmo Hope (piano); Frank Foster (tenor saxophone); Freeman Lee (trumpet); John Ore (bass); Arthur Taylor (drums).

Hope Meets Foster

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David Binney - The Time Verses

Styles: Saxophone Jazz
Year: 2017
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 65:58
Size: 153,6 MB
Art: Front

( 0:26)  1. Dawn
(10:56)  2. Walk
( 5:11)  3. Arc
( 0:25)  4. Morning Tide
( 8:58)  5. Strange Animal
( 7:26)  6. Seen
( 0:25)  7. Noon Tide
( 6:08)  8. The Reason To Return
( 6:12)  9. Time Takes It's Time
( 0:19) 10. Evening Tide
(11:24) 11. Where Worlds Collide
( 6:17) 12. Fifty Five
( 1:16) 13. Arc Reprise
( 0:27) 14. Dusk

A slightly different album than usual from saxophonist David Binney a set that still features plenty of the leader's great work on alto sax, but which also includes a few electric textures, and sampled sonic moments elements used sparely, on short tracks before the main instrumental moments but in a way that adds a nice degree of color to the record, but without getting in the way of the jazz performance! The piano of Jacob Sacks is also a key part of the album's sense of sound and the core group also features Eivind Opsvik on bass and Dan Weiss on drums. Jen Shyu joins on vocals for the track "Seen" and other titles include "Fifty Five", "The Reason To Return", "Dawn", "Arc", "Strange Animal", and "Time Takes Its Time". © 1996-2017, Dusty Groove, Inc. https://www.dustygroove.com/item/824766/David-Binney:Time-Verses

Personnel:  David Binney (Saxophone);  Jacob Sacks (Piano);  Eivind Opsvik (Bass);  Dan Weiss (Drums).

The Time Verses

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