Ted Heath - Anything Goes

Styles: Jazz, Big Band
Year: 2010
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 61:06
Size: 140,6 MB
Art: Front

(1:44)  1. Anything Goes
(2:20)  2. You Do Something to Me
(2:04)  3. Love Is Just Around the Corner
(2:57)  4. Indian Summer
(2:10)  5. Gone with the Wind
(2:53)  6. Perfidia
(2:27)  7. In the Still of the Night
(3:13)  8. September Song
(1:58)  9. I Cried for You
(2:53) 10. Blues in the Night
(2:10) 11. When I Grow Too Old to Dream
(2:42) 12. April in Paris
(2:24) 13. Change Partners
(3:13) 14. Time on My Hands
(2:29) 15. Always True to You in My Fashion
(2:50) 16. Whispering
(2:28) 17. Adios
(2:43) 18. Speak Low
(3:13) 19. Blue Moon
(2:34) 20. When the Saints Go Marching In
(2:40) 21. Stardust
(2:16) 22. Who
(2:02) 23. Robbins Nest
(1:53) 24. California Here I Come
(0:36) 25. Listen to My Music

Ted Heath was one of the most famous big-band leaders in Great Britain of the 1950s. His bands played modernized swing music that was always danceable but occasionally had worthwhile solos played in the tradition. Heath started out playing tenor horn before he switched to trombone when he was 14. He spent a period playing as a street musician and then was discovered by Jack Hylton, who hired him for his band. Heath had long stints as a sideman with a variety of top dance bands, including ensembles led by Bert Firman (1924-1925), Hylton again (1925-1927), Ambrose (1928-1936), Sydney Lipton (1936-1939), and Geraldo (1939-1944). Heath began leading his own big band in 1944 and, through regular appearances on the radio, tours, and concerts, he soon became a household name in England. The innovations of bebop were largely ignored in favor of playing swing-oriented charts, although some of Heath's soloists (particularly Ronnie Scott, Danny Moss, Don Rendell, and Kenny Baker) became notable as jazz players. Heath, whose band was always of high musicianship and used "Listen to the Music" as its theme song, also became well known in the United States, visiting the U.S. several times starting in 1956. His orchestra recorded quite frequently starting in 1944 (mostly for Decca and London), including ten albums in 1959 alone. Even after Ted Heath's death in 1969, the big band continued performing and recording with a live concert cut as late as 1977. ~ Scott Yanow https://itunes.apple.com/mn/artist/ted-heath/id15808662#fullText

Anything Goes

---

Donna Byrne - Licensed To Thrill

Styles: Vocal Jazz
Year: 2002
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 62:23
Size: 145,3 MB
Art: Front

(4:34)  1. You And The Night And The Music
(3:52)  2. Nobody Else But Me
(4:52)  3. My Old Flame
(4:53)  4. Agua De Beber
(6:20)  5. Talk To Me Baby
(5:30)  6. Reaching For The Moon
(4:48)  7. Shadowland
(3:51)  8. Old Devil Moon
(5:38)  9. The Underdog
(4:31) 10. I'll Always Be In Love With You
(3:51) 11. I Don't Care Much
(4:58) 12. I'm Walkin'
(4:40) 13. Remember My Child / Grow Tall My Son

Any recording titled Licensed to Thrill sets up a certain expectation. Unfortunately, the latest CD from the Boston-based vocalist rarely lives up to its promise. Byrne delivers a solid, competent set of pop and jazz standards, but her thin, reedy voice isn't particularly distinctive or compelling, much less thrilling. What sparkles are the nuanced, textured arrangements by bassist and husband Marshall Wood and the masterful performances by her sidemen. Scott Hamilton's soaring tenor sax underlines the light-hearted rhythms of "Nobody Else But Me," while Wood's subtle bass lends a sexy playfulness to "Talk To Me Baby." Byrne displays confident phrasing on up-tempo numbers like "Old Devil Moon" and "Agua de Beber." She swings comfortably, but doesn't bring anything particularly interesting or innovative to her selections. An exception is the Fats Domino golden oldie "I'm Walkin," in which Bucky Pizzarelli's divine guitar propels the rhythm section with a joyous drive lacking on the rest of the album (this arrangement has a contribution by pianist Tim Ray). Byrne's at her best on ballads; her lack of vocal color hinders her the least when she can shine as an interpreter. 

She is dry and evocative on "The Underdog," a bittersweet song by Dave Frishberg, and appropriately moody for a melancholy jazz take on "I Don't Care Much," a John Kander/Fred Ebb song cut from, then reinstated into, the Broadway musical Cabaret. Her soft, understated version of the war-horse "My Old Flame" is meticulously rendered with nearly perfect diction. While Byrne has an attractive tone and is rhythmically adept, she is too often upstaged by her own arrangements to make a mark for herself with this disc. ~ Ed Felper https://www.allaboutjazz.com/licensed-to-thrill-donna-byrne-a-records-review-by-ed-felper.php
 

Personnel: Donna Byrne –Vocals;  Scott Hamilton -Sax (Tenor);   Bucky Pizzarelli –Guitar;   Tim Ray -Piano, Arranger;   Marshall Wood -Bass, Arranger, Associate Producer;   Jim Gwin –Drums .

Licensed To Thrill

---

Oscar Pettiford & Vinnie Burke - Bass

Styles: Jazz, Post Bop
Year: 1955
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 37:07
Size: 85,6 MB
Art: Front

(2:56)  1. Sextette
(2:33)  2. Golden Touch
(2:20)  3. Cable Car
(2:42)  4. Tricrotism
(2:24)  5. Edge of Love
(2:33)  6. Oscar Rides Again
(2:51)  7. The Continental
(2:18)  8. For All We Know
(3:15)  9. Yesterdays
(2:42) 10. Imagination
(2:41) 11. Time Out
(1:24) 12. Softly As In The Morning Sunrise
(4:02) 13. On the Alamo
(2:20) 14. Honeysuckle Rose

Although the great bassist Oscar Pettiford gets first billing, this CD actually has six selections from his quintet (with tenor saxophonist Charlie Rouse, Julius Watkins on French horn, pianist Duke Jordan, and drummer Ron Jefferson) and eight from bassist Vinnie Burke's quartet (clarinetist Ronnie Oldrich, Don Burns on accordion, and guitarist Joe Cinderella). The Pettiford half is notable for including three of his compositions ("Tricrotism" is best known), utilizing the Rouse-Watkins front line (which would become the Jazz Modes during 1956-1958) and for Pettiford doubling on cello. The Burke group has the usual instrumentation exploring melodic versions of seven standards, plus the bassist's "Time Out." These two unrelated sessions are complementary, displaying the cooler side of 1950s bebop. ~ Scott Yanow http://www.allmusic.com/album/bass-by-pettiford-burke-mw0000671915

Personnel: Oscar Pettiford (cello); Joe Cinderella (guitar); Don Burns (accordion); Ron Odrich (clarinet); Charlie Rouse (tenor saxophone); Julius Watkins (French horn); Duke Jordan (piano); Ron Jefferson (drums).

Bass by Pettiford/Burke

---

The Steve Miller Band - Born 2B Blue

Styles: Vocal And Guitar Jazz 
Year: 1988
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 42:07
Size: 96,8 MB
Art: Front

(4:11)  1. Zip-A-Dee-Doo-Dah
(3:35)  2. Ya Ya
(4:58)  3. God Bless The Child
(2:48)  4. Filthy McNasty
(5:23)  5. Born To Be Blue
(4:48)  6. Mary Ann
(4:02)  7. Just A Little Bit
(4:35)  8. When Sunny Gets Blue
(5:11)  9. Willow Weep For Me
(2:31) 10. Red Top

Disregard the fact that the "space" in Steve Miller's "space blues" was a large part of why he had his own distinctive musical identity, because if you're going into 1988's Born 2B Blue looking for a return to his trademark space blues, or even a revitalization of his roots, you'll be sorely disappointed. In fact, this isn't even a blues album it's a jazz album, pitched halfway between soul-jazz and smooth jazz. He's able to draft such heavy-hitters as Phil Woods and Milt Jackson for guest spots, and his taste in material is quite nice, balancing the overly familiar ("Willow Weep for Me," "God Bless the Child") with relatively obscure R&B cuts ("Ya Ya," "Mary Ann") and selections that demonstrate that he's a genuine fan, such as Horace Silver's "Filthy McNasty." Now, does all this make Born 2B Blue a worthwhile genre exercise? Well, in a sense, it does, since Miller is passionate as he can be, turning in charmingly laid-back performances that may not be noteworthy, but are pleasant as can be. So, it winds up being something that's modestly impressive and enjoyable as it's playing, but no matter what its virtues are, it's more noteworthy for what it is than what it gives. ~ Steve Thomas Erlewine http://www.allmusic.com/album/born-2b-blue-mw0000197299

Personnel:  Guitar, Vocals – Steve Miller;  Bass – Billy Peterson;  Drums – Gordy Knudtson;  Keyboards – Ben Sidran

Born 2B Blue

---