Nina Simone - Little Girl Blue (Remastered)

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 37:56
Size: 86.8 MB
Styles: Piano & Vocal jazz
Year: 1958/2013
Art: Front

[4:00] 1. Mood Indigo
[3:09] 2. Don't Smoke In Bed
[2:27] 3. He Needs Me
[4:15] 4. Little Girl Blue
[3:20] 5. Love Me Or Leave Me
[3:34] 6. My Baby Just Cares For Me
[5:26] 7. Good Bait
[3:46] 8. Plain Gold Ring
[3:44] 9. You'll Never Walk Alone
[4:10] 10. I Loves You Porgy

LITTLE GIRL BLUE is sublime. From the first catchy beats of "Mood Indigo" to the last bonus track, the extended "My Baby Just Cares For Me," you're in for a real treat. Simone's vocals are smoky and deep, at times almost sounding male, and her voice carries in it such melancholy  maybe melancholy isn't the right word  but there's a likability factor that cannot be denied. Perhaps it's in her phrasing or in its sincerity, but whatever it is, it sounds comforting and familiar.

And then there's her grand mastery at the piano and her arrangements that takes songs and makes them her own. Listen to the swinging arrangement on "Love Me Or Leave Me," and the interpolation of "Good King Wenceslas" into "Little Girl Blue." You might not recognize the name but you'll know it when you hear that little melody. There are four tracks that are just instrumentals "Good Bait," "You'll Never Walk Alone," "Central Park (Blues)," and "African Mailman." These four tracks show off Simone's talent as a pianist. They're gorgeous, too. I think the sound is fantastic, the remastering is great, and it doesn't sound dated even though this album is from 1957. ~Alex H.

Little Girl Blue    

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Dominick Farinacci - Short Stories

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 51:07
Size: 117.0 MB
Styles: Contemporary jazz, Trumpet jazz
Year: 2016
Art: Front

[4:38] 1. Bamboleo
[6:07] 2. Señor Blues (Feat. Jacob Collier)
[5:34] 3. Soldier's Things
[2:55] 4. Doha Blues
[5:08] 5. Sunshine Of Your Love
[5:28] 6. Tango
[6:00] 7. Somebody That I Used To Know (Feat. Jacob Collier)
[5:28] 8. Afternoon In Puebla
[8:11] 9. Black Coffee
[1:34] 10. Parlour Song

There are so many superlatives thrown around these days that they seem to have lost their effect; but as this unique and deeply grounded album sinks into your consciousness, you will undoubtedly come to the conclusion that Dominick Farinacci is not only one of the truly outstanding musicians of his generation, but also that what is behind the music is nothing short of miraculous.

Short Stories – a compelling suite of music with a repertoire that spans genres and generations united by the trumpeter/composer’s soulful conception. Bringing together songs from Tom Waits, Horace Silver, Dianne Reeves, The Gypsy Kings as well as original compositions, Farinacci has managed to create his own musical universe, aided by musicians of the highest caliber. A short glance at the artists he and producer Tommy LiPuma involved speaks for itself: Christian McBride, Steve Gadd, Larry Goldings, Jacob Collier, Jamey Haddad and Gil Goldstein, for starters. All of the songs have a narrative that any listener can relate to. It might be the eternal duet between people in love, a memory from way back triggered by a chance encounter, an enchanting melody heard from afar that takes over your life or the tremendous empathy that can come from seeing someone else overcome an unimaginable personal struggle.

Farinacci had already achieved enough stature by his mid-teens that Wynton Marsalis offered to help him set his sights on coming to New York, and by 2001, Farinacci was one of only four trumpeters in the world to be selected as the inaugural students in The Juilliard School’s first jazz curriculum. During his school years and afterwards, Farinacci immediately distinguished himself as a soloist/bandleader/composer with a vision.

Short Stories

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Marty Grosz - Keep A Song In Your Soul

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s

Time: 65:14

Size: 149.3 MB

Styles: Guitar jazz

Year: 1995

Art: Front

[3:32] 1. Sentimental Gentleman From Georgia

[3:38] 2. He Ain't Got Rhythm

[4:10] 3. I've Got To Sing A Torch Song

[3:36] 4. Hot Lips

[4:19] 5. I've Got A Crush On You

[3:58] 6. Georgia Jubilee

[5:50] 7. Snuggled On Your Shoulder

[3:31] 8. Keep A Song In Your Soul

[3:53] 9. Little White Lies

[4:48] 10. From Monday On

[4:42] 11. Love Will Find A Way

[4:15] 12. A Cheerful Little Earful

[3:49] 13. Can't Help Lovin' Dat Man

[3:47] 14. By The Fireside

[3:35] 15. You Can't Stop Me From Loving You

[3:43] 16. You Came To My Rescue

Marty Grosz is quite notable in at least three ways. He is one of the top (and one of the few) rhythm acoustic guitarists, and his chordal solos are always delightful. He sings in a Fats Waller-inspired style. And Grosz is one of jazz's top comedians, able to spin out hilarious, sometimes nonsensical monologues. Two of his three talents are heard on this CD, although he should record a comedy album someday. Grosz leads two different groups during the 1994 sessions. One band has the members of his Orphan Newsboys (trumpeter Peter Ecklund, clarinetist Bobby Gordon, and bassist Greg Cohen) along with the reeds of Dan Levinson, pianist Chris Dawson, and drummer Hal Smith. The other half of this set features Ecklund, Cohen, trombonist Joel Helleny (whose plunger work is outstanding), Dan Block on clarinet and alto, Scott Robinson on tenor and baritone, pianist Keith Ingham, and drummer Artie Kinsella. The repertoire is dominated by obscurities from the '20s and '30s, with a couple of standards tossed in. Grosz sings on half of the songs. Highlights include "Sentimental Gentleman From Georgia," a cooking version of "Hot Lips," "From Monday On," and "Love Will Find a Way." This is a spirited and enjoyable outing, well worth picking up by hot jazz fans. ~Scott Yanow

Keep A Song In Your Soul

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Sarah Elgeti Quintet - Into The Open

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 60:54
Size: 139.4 MB
Styles: Saxophone jazz
Year: 2011
Art: Front

[2:28] 1. Home
[6:19] 2. Bossa Among The Trees
[7:45] 3. Out In The Fields
[5:42] 4. Downstairs
[4:47] 5. Ringe I Vand
[5:24] 6. But I Wish I Could
[3:30] 7. Trying To Forget
[4:47] 8. Blustering Waves
[4:11] 9. Clouds
[6:43] 10. Angelique
[4:32] 11. Night Moves
[4:41] 12. Bossa Among The Trees (Remix)

From the Danish Radio (DR) Big band—directed by such greats as Thad Jones, Bob Brookmeyer and Jim McNeely—to the jazz environment of Copenhagen's Café Montmarte, Denmark has been at the forefront in nurturing and producing some of the finest jazz musicians in Europe and, indeed, the world. Saxophonist/flautist Sarah Elgeti is the latest Danish wonder to emerge on the international stage, astounding critics with Into the Open, by her all-Danish quintet. Elgeti wields her sax like a veteran journeyman, pens her own music, is an educator and as a multi-instrumentalist on this debut, performing on tenor and soprano saxophones, flute and percussion.

The leader pairs with alto and baritone saxophonist Marianne Markmann-Eriksen, creating a saxophone front line that powers the music in an assertive yet stylish manner. The very brief "Home" seems more of a warm-up for Elgeti, the only featured soloist, sounding off on a number many have described as Nordic in nature. Nevertheless, "Bossa Among the Trees" reveals a superb band and the first Elgeti-Markmann-Eriksen saxophone combination on a pulsating bossa-influenced excursion. "Out in the Fields" takes the band to a quieter landscape, maintaining the musical conversation between the saxophonists while highlighting beautiful chords from Christian Bluhme Hansen's nylon string guitar.

The funk is alive and well coming into the open on the gyrating "Downstairs," while "Ringe I Vand" (let it rain) and "Clouds" share common atmospheric textures, showcasing Elgeti on flute. The swinging, hard bop "Blustering Waves" captures excellent play from Ben Besiakov on Fender Rhodes, though it is not the main highlight of the tune. The all-out saxophone assault from the leader and Markmann-Eriksen's husky baritone are the featured voices, augmented by Mikkel Uhrenholdt and Magnus Poulsen's additional alto saxophones.

With the short "Clouds" drifting into more mellow territory, the light and melodic "Angelique" (dedicated to her mother) takes the sensitive balladic route, offering Elgeti an opportunity to strike a warm and tender tone. In stark contrast, the official finale, "Night Moves," provides a very different approach with an improvised avant-garde sound. The album concludes with a fusion-tinged percussive rendition of "Bossa Among the Trees" as a remixed bonus track.

Presenting a variety of styles from bop, bossa and funky blues to straight-ahead and avant-garde, Into the Open is a sparkling debut from the Sarah Elgeti Quintet, a group of unheralded Danish musicians led by the newest saxophone voice to emerge from Denmark's proud jazz scene and culture. Virtually unknown in the United States, with this gem of a recording, Elgeti is poised to take her music into the open embrace of American audiences. ~Edward Blanco

Into The Open

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Marvin Gaye & Tammi Terrell - The Best Of Marvin Gaye & Tammi Terrell

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 28:08
Size: 64.4 MB
Styles: Smooth Soul, R&B
Year: 2000
Art: Front

[3:01] 1. Your Precious Love
[2:26] 2. Ain't No Mountain High Enough
[2:47] 3. You're All I Need To Get By
[2:13] 4. Ain't Nothing Like The Real Thing
[2:26] 5. Good Lovin' Ain't Easy To Come By
[2:39] 6. If This World Were Mine
[2:12] 7. Two Can Have A Party
[2:20] 8. If I Could Build My Whole World Around You
[2:29] 9. Keep On Lovin' Me Honey
[2:46] 10. You Ain't Livin' Till You're Lovin'
[2:43] 11. Hold Me Oh My Darling

This installment in the 20th Century Masters: The Millennium Collection series is an excellent 11-track overview of Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell's legendary duet partnership, made all the more invaluable by Motown's inexplicable failure to keep any other Gaye/Terrell compilation in print. All the important items are here, from "Your Precious Love" and "Ain't No Mountain High Enough" to "Ain't Nothing Like the Real Thing" and "You're All I Need to Get By." While other volumes in this overall pretty decent budget-line series still have a definite feeling of incompleteness, this one plays like a detailed look at Gaye and Terrell's best material together; it differs from the early-'70s comp Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell: Greatest Hits by omitting "What You Gave" and "The Onion Song," and including "Two Can Have a Party." ~Steve Huey

The Best Of Marvin Gaye & Tammi Terrell

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Finn Ziegler - Blues Up

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 46:50
Size: 107.2 MB
Styles: Contemporary jazz
Year: 2017
Art: Front

[6:02] 1. Blues Up
[6:24] 2. Rebild In Rhythm
[9:44] 3. Can't Help Lovin' Dat Man Of Mine
[5:24] 4. Dan
[5:59] 5. Angel
[7:17] 6. I Want To Be Happy
[5:57] 7. Den Lille Anemone

Trained as a violinist at the Royal Danish Music Conservatory, but quickly found out, inspired by Svend Asmussen, that it was the jazz music closest to his heart. He has contributed to about 1000 recordings and appeared alongside many of the jazz's big names. Also a handful of solar charger was made, by 2003.

First and foremost, the jazz career Stan Fåz, the vibraphoneist Milt Jackson and the violinists Svend Asmussen / Stuff Smith in the luggage, Finn Ziegler got into the jazz career, which for a period of five decades stylistically brought him wide. Besides his own groups he appeared in numerous contexts. Eg in the 1950s with Finn Savery, Erik Moseholm and Ib Glindemann's orchestra. From the 1970s with the Radio's Big Band as soloist, leader and family member. A significant part of Finn Ziegler's work as a jazz musician took place at two venues/hostels, which he therefore also very naturally has been strongly identified with. In the 1990s Finn Zieglers Hjørne was in Frederiksberg and from the early 1970s La Fontaine, whom he co-ownered until 1986. He helped to make Fontaine one of Copenhagen's most held jamsession places. It was time for La Fontaine, who made his reputation with foreign musicians who visited the city/country and left the road by finishing their jobs elsewhere.

Finn Ziegler died on December 10, 2005 70 years old after being surgery for cancer in the jaw. (Translated from Danish).

Blues Up

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Jimmy Greene - Beautiful Life

Styles: Saxophone And Flute Jazz

Year: 2014

File: MP3@320K/s

Time: 49:11

Size: 113,4 MB

Art: Front

(5:12)  1. Saludos / Come Thou Almighty King

(6:38)  2. Last Summer

(3:22)  3. When I Come Home

(7:14)  4. Ana's Way

(5:21)  5. Your Great Name

(4:35)  6. Where Is The Love?

(6:16)  7. Seventh Candle

(3:06)  8. Maybe

(4:03)  9. Prayer

(3:23) 10. Little Voices

Two years after the death of his six-year-old daughter, Ana Grace Marquez-Greene, in the shootings at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut, saxophonist Jimmy Greene returns with 2014's Beautiful Life. Both a direct response to Ana's death and a celebration of her life, Beautiful Life is a gorgeous, heartbreaking, and ultimately uplifting album. Backed by a stellar rhythm section featuring pianist Renee Rosnes, bassist Christian McBride, and drummer Lewis Nash, as well as a handful of guests and many close friends, including NBC's The Voice season one winner (and fellow Hartt School graduate) Javier Colon, pianist Cyrus Chestnut, and singer Kurt Elling, Greene has crafted an album of deep spiritual grace, imbued throughout with Ana's exuberant personality and wide-eyed joy in life. With his warm, burnished saxophone tone and swinging improvisational lines, one might expect Greene to stick to a straight-ahead jazz approach here. Certainly, while his concept is grounded in soulful post-bop jazz, he displays an open-hearted, cross-genre love of music, reworking a contemporary Christian worship song into a small-group jazz number, as he does on "Your Great Name," and setting "The Lord's Prayer" to music, as he does on the orchestral "Prayer" with vocalist Latanya Farrell. Whether it's his lyrical duet with pianist Kenny Barron on "Where Is Love?" from the musical Annie or the spoken word soliloquy set against a children's choir in "Little Voices," delivered here by The Princess and the Frog actress Anika Noni Rose, Greene incorporates songs and artists Ana loved. And it's not just Ana's spirit that's present on all of Beautiful Life; working with guitarist Pat Metheny, Greene begins the album in poignant fashion, weaving together recordings he made of Ana singing both the traditional Puerto Rican holiday song "Saludos" and the hymn "Come Thou Almighty King." Although born out of tragedy, Beautiful Life is surprisingly never sad or, as one might understand, angry. On the contrary, by celebrating his daughter's unconditional love for her family, music, and life, Greene transforms his personal anguish into something that's as inspirational to the soul as it is beautiful to the ears. ~ Matt Collar http://www.allmusic.com/album/beautiful-life-mw0002757119

Personnel:  Jimmy Greene - tenor and soprano sax, flute;  Lewis Nash – drums;  Renee Rosnes - piano (tracks 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 10);  Isaiah Marquez-Greene - piano (track 1);  Kenny Barron - piano (tracks 6 and 8);  Cyrus Chestnut - piano (track 9);  Pat Metheny - acoustic guitar (track 1);  Jonathan DuBose - guitar (track 10); Christian McBride – bass;  Jeffrey Krieger and Peter Zay - cello (tracks 3 and 9);  Michael Wheeler and Sharon Dennison - viola (tracks 3 and 9);  Leonid Sigal, Cyrus Stevens, Karin Fagerburg, Millie Piekos, Yuri Kharenko-Golduber, Candace Lammers, Krzysztof Gadawski, Lu Sun Friedman, Michael Pollard - violins (tracks 3 and 9);  Javier Colon - vocals (track 3);  Kurt Elling - vocals (track 4);  Latanya Farrell - vocals (track 9);  Ana Marquez-Greene - vocals (track 1);  Anika Noni Rose - spoken word (track 10)

Beautiful Life

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Anne Chris - Just Kissed the Sun

Styles: Vocal
Year: 2014
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 47:22
Size: 109,2 MB
Art: Front

(2:44)  1. Mirrorman
(4:13)  2. In This Green Field
(3:45)  3. Love Is a Battlefield
(5:22)  4. Keep On Walking
(3:10)  5. Everlasting Springtime
(3:46)  6. Still
(4:34)  7. Natural
(4:15)  8. Naked
(3:18)  9. Stepping Out
(4:34) 10. Rise and Fall
(3:58) 11. Alphabet of You
(3:38) 12. Just Kissed the Sun

Anne Chris is a Dutch vocalist and composer currently living in Amsterdam. To date, Anne Chris has released three albums, ‘Tomorrow is Today’ (2004), ‘Play for Now’ (2010), and ‘Just Kissed the Sun’ (2014). She has performed at world-renowned venues such as Bimhuis, North Sea Jazz Festival and Concertgebouw in Amsterdam. http://annechris.com/bio/

Just Kissed the Sun

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Stan Kenton - Live From The Las Vegas Tropicana

Styles: Piano Jazz, Big Band
Year: 1959
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 72:21
Size: 170,1 MB
Art: Front

(5:33)  1. Artistry In Rhythm
(3:41)  2. Bernie's Tune
(3:25)  3. Tuxedo Junction
(4:31)  4. Street Scene
(3:44)  5. Puck's Blues
(5:25)  6. This Is Always
(3:23)  7. Don't Get Around Much Anymore
(4:49)  8. Design For Blue
(4:24)  9. Home Journey
(3:32) 10. A String Of Pearls
(4:32) 11. It's All Right With Me
(6:00) 12. Intermission Riff
(3:36) 13. I Concentrate On You
(5:47) 14. The End Of A Love Affair
(1:21) 15. You And I And George
(4:43) 16. Sentimental Riff
(3:47) 17. Random Riff

The 1959 Stan Kenton Orchestra, which boasted such soloists as trumpeter Jack Sheldon, altoist Lennie Niehaus, Richie Kamuca and Bill Trujillo on tenors and trombonist Ken Larsen, is heard in spirited form on this live LP. Performing arrangements mostly by Gene Roland along with one apiece by Johnny Richards, Niehaus and Kenton, the band plays some surprising material (such as "Tuxedo Junction" and "Street Scene") but mostly comes up with creative, fresh and concise statements. This is admittedly not one of the classic Stan Kenton recordings but is generally superior to his studio recordings of the period. ~ Scott Yanow http://www.allmusic.com/album/kenton-live-from-the-las-vegas-tropicana-mw0000879812

Personnel: Stan Kenton (arranger, piano); Lennie Niehaus (arranger, alto saxophone); Gene Roland, Bill Mathieu, Johnny Richards (arranger); Bill Trujillo, Richie Kamuca (tenor saxophone); Billy Root, Sture Swenson (baritone saxophone); Frank Huggins, Bud Brisbois, Jack Sheldon, Joe Burnett, Roger Middleton (trumpet); Archie Lecoque, Kent Larsen, Jim Amolette (trombone); Bob Olson, Bill Smiley (bass trombone); Red Kelly (bass); Jerry McKenzie (drums)

Live From The Las Vegas Tropicana

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Phoebe Snow - Never Letting Go

Styles: Vocal
Year: 1977
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 33:22
Size: 77,5 MB
Art: Front

(3:23)  1. Love Makes A Woman
(3:37)  2. Majesty Of Life
(3:55)  3. Ride The Elevator
(4:05)  4. Something So Right
(3:15)  5. Never Letting Go
(3:02)  6. We're Children
(3:33)  7. The Middle Of The Night
(3:55)  8. Electra
(4:33)  9. Garden Of Joy Blues

Phoebe Snow made it onto the soul charts with her version of Barbara Acklin's 1968 hit "Love Makes a Woman" (#87), which served as the leadoff track of her fourth album. But the record marked a fall-off in both her commercial success and her artistic accomplishment. The tasty studio musicians and Phil Ramone's pop-jazz production were still in place, and Snow remained a remarkable singer, but her synthesis of styles was beginning to seem not so much inspired as muddled. ~ William Ruhlmann http://www.allmusic.com/album/never-letting-go-mw0000308963

Personnel:  Phoebe Snow - vocals, acoustic guitar;  Hugh McCracken, Steve Burgh, Steve Khan – guitar;  Will Lee, Tony Levin – bass;  Ken Ascher, Richard Tee, Bob James – keyboards;  Chris Parker, Grady Tate, Steve Gadd – drums;  Ralph MacDonald – percussion;  Michael Brecker - tenor saxophone;  Phil Woods - alto saxophone;  Hubert Laws – flute;  Eddie Daniels – clarinet;  Gwen Guthrie, Lani Groves, Patti Austin - background vocals;  Kenny Loggins - vocals on "We're Children"

Never Letting Go

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Alphonso Johnson - Yesterdays Dreams

Styles: Jazz Funk
Year: 1976
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 35:55
Size: 82,7 MB
Art: Front

(4:45)  1. Love's The Way I Feel 'Bout Cha
(3:24)  2. As Little As You
(5:12)  3. Scapegoat
(5:17)  4. Show Us The Way
(5:01)  5. Balls To The Wall
(2:16)  6. Tales Of Barcelona
(5:57)  7. Flight To Hampstead Heath
(4:00)  8. One To One

Alphonso Johnson is regarded as one of the foremost Jazz bassists in the business. His stint with Weather Report really put him on the map. In the 70's, he recorded three outstanding albums for Columbia Records. Yesterday's Dreams was issued in 1976 and features Grover Washington Jr., Lee Ritenour, Ernie Watts, Patrice Rushen, Philip Bailey, Diane Reeves & Sheila E. Wounded Bird. 2006. ~ Editorial Reviews https://www.amazon.com/Yesterdays-Dreams-Alphonso-Johnson/dp/B000GPIFJW

Personnel:  Vocals, Bass, Guitar [Acoustic] - Alphonso Johnson;  Vocals - Diane Reeves , Jon Lucien , Phillip Bailey Bells [Orchestra], Marimba, Vibraphone - Ruth Underwood;  Congas, Percussion - Sheila Escovedo;  Drums - Chester Thompson , Mike Clark;  Guitar [Acoustic, Electric] - Lee Ritenour;  Guitar [Electric] - Ray Gomez;  Keyboards - Patrice Rushen;  Organ - David Foster , Mark Jordan;  Saxophone [Baritone], Flute - Ernie Fields;  Saxophone [Tenor] - Ernie Watts , Grover Washington, Jr.;  Synthesizer - Ian Underwood;  Trombone - Garnett Brown , George Bohannon;  Trumpet - Chuck Findley;  Trumpet, Flugelhorn - Gary Grant

Yesterdays Dreams

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