Benny Carter Quartet - Sax A La Carter

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 46:22
Size: 106.2 MB
Styles: Saxophone jazz
Year: 2004
Art: Front

[2:56] 1. And The Angels Sing
[3:34] 2. Everything I Have Is Yours
[3:04] 3. I Understand
[3:15] 4. All Or Nothing At All
[2:21] 5. I'll Never Smile Again
[3:43] 6. If I Loved You
[3:22] 7. Far Away Places
[3:57] 8. I Should Care
[2:59] 9. For All We Know
[2:47] 10. (I Don't Stand A) Ghost Of A Chance With You
[3:04] 11. The One I Love (Belongs To Someone Else)
[2:42] 12. Moon Of Manakoora
[2:19] 13. Ennui
[3:01] 14. Friendly Islands
[3:10] 15. Friendly Islands

Benny Carter - sax, Jimmy Rowles - piano, Leroy Vinnegar - bass, Mel Lewis - drums. Recorded at Radio Recorders in Los Angeles on February 5, 1960.

This is the great American alto saxist and composer Benny Carter, who died last year (2004) at 95, breezing along with a fine quartet in LA in 1960 - with that genius of piano accompaniment, Jimmy Rowles. Carter's sound seems to embody the pragmatically sensual, life-embracing ease that characterises the jazz of the pre-bop era - though as an immensely sophisticated musician, Carter's improvising was full of modern audacities.

This is a conventional and easy-swinging set - but the pleading romantic tremor in the ballad playing, the suggestively swivelling slurs and the almost Bird-like brittleness on For All We Know all testify to a master in his prime. ~John Fordham

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Akiko - Simply Blue

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 46:10
Size: 105.7 MB
Styles: Jazz vocals
Year: 2005
Art: Front

[3:38] 1. Let's Face The Music And Dance
[4:19] 2. Speak Low
[5:49] 3. Same Ol' Gloomy Song
[3:45] 4. Old Devil Moon
[4:32] 5. Blues No. 8
[4:49] 6. Whisper Not
[4:54] 7. Do You Know
[4:25] 8. Night And Day
[4:30] 9. Not Lovers, Always Friends
[5:24] 10. Wish You Were Here

Drums – Tommy Campbell; Piano – Tadataka Unno; Bass – Yoshio “Chin” Suzuki; Vocals – Akiko.

Born in Tokyo, Akiko began playing piano at age 4. She began listening to rock and punk music when she was a junior high school and then began to take their interest in different types of music including 70's Disco Music 60's Oldies, 50's Rock and Country & Western In particular, they like music, she was particularly inspired by old black music Jump & Jive and Doo Wop. At age 18, she happened to listen to Sarah Vaughan and Ella Fitzgerald and met with Jazz Afterwards she began to sing like a pro at Jazz Club Tokyo when she was a student.

Akiko in 2001 signed with Universal Jazz. In June 2005, Akiko released his first live album "Simply Blue "which was recorded at the Jazz Club Motion Blue Yokohama.

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The Black Market Trust - Just One Of Those Things

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 38:13
Size: 87.5 MB
Styles: Vocal harmony group, Swing
Year: 2017
Art: Front

[2:00] 1. Almost Like Being In Love
[2:58] 2. All Of Me
[3:19] 3. It's Only A Paper Moon
[1:48] 4. Just One Of Those Things
[2:37] 5. TAin't That A Kick In The Head
[4:02] 6. That's All
[2:21] 7. Dream Of You
[2:08] 8. Pretty Trix
[4:08] 9. Please Stay
[3:33] 10. The Way You Look Tonight
[3:36] 11. God Only Knows
[2:41] 12. Young At Heart
[2:57] 13. Tonight You Belong To Me

The Black Market Trust's musical roots run deep, and their new album "Just One of Those Things" reflects that. Artists as diverse as Django Reinhardt, Cole Porter, Frank Sinatra, John Lennon and Paul McCartney, Brian Wilson, are among the talents that influenced the creation of the album. As true artists, the members of the group channelled their inspiration into a sound all their own.

The five members of The Black Market Trust, Jeffrey Scott Radaich, Chris Irwin, Brian Netzley, Brandon Laws and Nick Coventry imbue the album with an obvious love of music and contagious, upbeat, toe tapping joy. The title track, the much performed Cole Porter classic "Just One of Those Things", feels fresh and optimistic as performed by the group. "God Only Knows" by the Beach Boys is especially poignant sung in Radaich's tender baritone. "Please Stay", a Black Market Trust original in the style of Jamaican Rocksteady, showcases the group's lyric writing ability and wide range. The rapport The Black Market Trust has built from their many live performances together is evident when listening to "Just One of Those Things". The cohesion and communication that developed through their many performances together shines through, and makes for a compelling listening experience. The live performances are a hallmark of the group and they continue to perform live as much as possible to get a chance to interact with their fans.

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Marty Grosz - Left To His Own Devices

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s

Time: 64:27

Size: 147.6 MB

Styles: New Orleans jazz

Year: 2000

Art: Front

[4:18] 1. The New Yorker

[4:33] 2. It's A Sin To Tell A Lie

[4:26] 3. Dream Sweetheart

[3:52] 4. Mood Hollywood

[2:59] 5. The Night Was Made For Swing

[4:37] 6. Then I'll Be Tired Of You

[3:13] 7. You're Gonna Lose Your Gal

[3:53] 8. Street Of Dreams

[4:12] 9. Blue Echoes

[4:24] 10. Dream Man

[5:39] 11. I've Had My Moments

[2:46] 12. Never Had A Reason To Believe In You

[4:31] 13. Concentratin' (On You)

[3:18] 14. Take Me To That Land Of Jazz

[3:38] 15. Jubilee

[4:02] 16. Lonesome Me

All of guitarist-singer Marty Grosz's recordings are easily recommended to fans of small group swing and hot jazz. On this set Grosz is often heard in a smaller unit than usual. While five songs utilize a quintet with cornetist Randy Reinhart, the reeds of Scott Robinson, guitarist Mike Peters, and bassist Greg Cohen, and five other numbers have the same group except without Reinhart and with Dan Block adding his reeds, there are also three duets by Grosz and Reinhart, and three duets for the guitarists. No matter what the setting, Grosz is in a typically droll and witty mood, reviving obscurities (including two Fats Waller songs), contributing two originals, taking cheerful vocals, and contributing chordal guitar solos. Fun music. ~Scott Yanow

Left To His Own Devices  

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Ellen Andersson Quartet - I'll Be Seeing You

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 50:59
Size: 116.7 MB
Styles: Jazz vocals
Year: 2016
Art: Front

[2:47] 1. 's Wonderful
[6:42] 2. You've Changed
[6:44] 3. A Day In The Life Of A Fool
[5:14] 4. Au Privave
[6:05] 5. I'll Be Seeing You
[6:43] 6. Gloomy Sunday
[5:36] 7. Everything I Love
[7:52] 8. Smile
[3:12] 9. I Cried For You

Ellen Andersson: vocals; Peter Asplund: trumpet; Oilly Wallace: saxophone; Anton Forsberg: guitar; Hannes Jonsson: bass; Sebastian Brydniak: drums.

Swedish vocalist Ellen Andersson sings in a strangely forced way, trying to imitate Billie Holiday but sounding more like someone in dire need of a laxative. This is most apparent on "You've Changed," which Holiday recorded on her 1958 Columbia album Lady In Satin when past her prime.

In 2013 another Swedish singer, Isabella Lundgren refashioned history, singing the song as Lady Day might have done when young, on another Prophone album, Ela, by guitarist Anders Färdal and harmonica player Luciano Mosetti. Lundgren's version knocks Andersson's stiff, self-conscious interpretation into a cocked hat, despite heroic efforts by guest trumpeter Peter Asplund and bassist Hannes Jonsson to rescue the number. "Gloomy Sunday," another number associated with Lady Day, while equally painful on occasion shows an adventurous spirit and features an interesting solo by another guest, Danish alto saxophonist Oilly Wallace. He is featured too on "I Cried For You," otherwise notable for Andersson's bizarre phrasing.

But it's her first album so let's not be too harsh on the poor girl. She has a good voice and shows considerable ability on her wordless forays, where she no longer attempts to sound like Lady Day and is relieved too of the responsibility of reinterpreting lyrics from the Great American Songbook, which have all been sung countless times before. Her work with Asplund on Charlie Parker's "Au Privave" sees her at her most relaxed and confident and she also goes in for some admirably adventurous scatting on the title track, "I'll Be Seeing You." Of the members of her quartet, guitarist Anton Forsberg displays considerable ability, notably on Charlie Chaplin's "Smile." ~Chris Mosey

I'll Be Seeing You

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Oscar Brown Jr - Live Every Minute

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 47:19
Size: 108.3 MB
Styles: Bop, Vocal jazz
Year: 1998
Art: Front

[4:47] 1. Long As You're Living
[3:19] 2. Dat Dere
[3:17] 3. The Snake
[5:40] 4. It's October
[2:47] 5. Mr. Kicks
[3:53] 6. World Full Of Grey
[7:41] 7. Haven't I Loved You Somewhere
[3:56] 8. A Column Of Birds
[3:50] 9. Hazel's Hips
[3:13] 10. Billie's Bounce
[4:50] 11. Old Lovers Song

Oscar Brown, Jr. was 71 when, in June 1998, the veteran jazz vocalist traveled to Hamburg, Germany and recorded Live Every Minute for Minor Music, a German label. By that age, some singers will lose a lot of their vocal power -- Frank Sinatra, Peggy Lee, and Ella Fitzgerald are three examples of once-great singers whose voices had deteriorated considerably by the time they reached their late sixties or early seventies. On the other hand, Carmen McRae and Jimmy Scott still sounded great at 70; so it varies from singer to singer. Thankfully, Brown's voice is holding up nicely on Live Every Minute, which finds him revisiting the lyrics that he wrote for Bobby Timmons' "Dat Dere," Stanley Turrentine's "Long As You're Living, " and Charlie Parker's "Billie's Bounce" in his younger days. These 1998 versions aren't definitive, but they're enjoyably swinging -- and they demonstrate that Brown still had a lot of soul at 71. Although the Chicago native is famous for writing lyrics to familiar bop tunes that started out as instrumentals, most of the melodies that he embraces on this CD are his own -- melodies that range from playfully funky ("Mr. Kicks") to reflective ("It's October") to melancholy ("World Full of Gray"). The latter is about growing older and coming to the realization that the world usually isn't black and white but rather, a shade of gray. So why is the song melancholy? Because seeing two sides of the story (political, romantic, or whatever) when you're 35 or 40 is tougher, harder, and more challenging than seeing things in black and white when you're 19 and mindlessly idealistic; ignorance is bliss, after all. Live Every Minute isn't among Brown's essential releases, but it's a solid, pleasing effort that the singer's diehard fans will appreciate. ~Alex Henderson

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Marianne Faithfull - Come My Way

Styles: Vocal
Year: 2008
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 47:44
Size: 110,2 MB
Art: Vocal

(2:05)  1. Come My Way
(2:34)  2. Jaberwoc
(3:00)  3. Portland Town
(2:28)  4. House Of The Rising Sun
(2:43)  5. Spanish Is A Loving Tongue
(2:52)  6. Fare Thee Well
(2:03)  7. Lonesome Travellers
(2:05)  8. Down In The Salley Garden
(1:45)  9. Mary Ann
(1:26) 10. Full Fathom Five
(2:59) 11. Four Strong Winds
(2:29) 12. Black Girl
(2:08) 13. Once I Had A Sweetheart
(2:03) 14. Bells Of Freedom
(3:08) 15. Blowin' In The Wind
(3:28) 16. Et Maintenant
(2:49) 17. That's Right Baby
(5:31) 18. Sister Morphine

When Marianne Faithfull released her first two albums for the U.K. market in the spring of 1965, she took the unusual step of issuing them simultaneously. One, simply titled Marianne Faithfull, was the pop-oriented collection that listeners of her hit singles would have expected. The other, Come My Way, by contrast was comprised solely of folk tunes, most of them traditional, the acoustic settings arranged by guitarist Jon Mark. Faithfull at this very early stage in her career still had the tremulous soprano common to many woman folk singers of the era. While her singing here is pleasant and competent, it's rather average when stacked against the emotional commitment and personality the best interpreters of such tunes brought to the material at the time. Indeed, Faithfull herself would do the same kind of repertoire, with considerably greater vocal imagination and more forceful musical backing, on her underrated third U.K. album, 1966's North Country Maid. Still, it's an OK record, Faithfull putting her pipes to reverent use on folk revival staples like "Portland Town," "House of the Rising Sun," "Once I Had a Sweetheart," and "Black Girl," taking on a contemporary writer with Ian Tyson's "Four Strong Winds." 

Her reading of "Lonesome Traveller" stands out for the propulsive backing, with hasty 12-string guitar strums and what sound like bongos. The CD reissue, available briefly in Britain in the early '90s and then in Japan in the early 2000s, adds four bonus tracks: the 1964 B-side "Blowin' in the Wind"; "Et Maintenant," from a 1965 EP; the poppy and bluesy 1966 B-side "That's Right Baby"; and her classic 1969 single "Sister Morphine," which predated the Rolling Stones' version by a couple of years. ~ Richie Unterberg https://www.allmusic.com/album/come-my-way-mw0000369699        

Come My Way

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Herbie Mann - Live At The Whiskey A Go Go (1969) / Mississippi Gambler (1972)

Styles: Flute Jazz
Year: 2001
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 68:34
Size: 158,3 MB
Art: Front

(15:07)  1. Ooh Baby
(14:06)  2. Philly Dog
( 5:28)  3. Swing Low Sweet Chariot
( 6:51)  4. Mississippi Gambler
( 8:52)  5. Dippermouth
( 5:26)  6. Respect Yourself
( 5:49)  7. I've Been Loving You Too Long
( 6:50)  8. (I Can't Get No) Satisfaction

Flutist Herbie Mann had a particularly strong group in the late '60s, a sextet also including vibraphonist Roy Ayers, Steve Marcus on tenor, guitarist Sonny Sharrock, bassist Miroslav Vitous and drummer Bruno Carr. Although this LP is long out-of-print and its total length is under a half-hour, the group's sidelong jams on "Ooh Baby" and "Philly Dog" are danceable, funky and spontaneous, making this one of Herbie Mann's better sets of the era. ~ Scott Yanow https://www.allmusic.com/album/live-at-the-whisky-a-go-go-mw0000882547               

In 2001, Collectables released Live at the Whisky A Go Go/Mississippi Gambler, which combined a pair of original Atlantic LPs  Live at the Whisky A Go Go (1968) and Mississippi Gambler (1972) by Herbie Mann on one compact disc. ~ John Bush https://www.allmusic.com/album/live-at-the-whisky-a-go-go-mississippi-gambler-mw0000591148

Live At The Whiskey A Go Go (1969) / Mississippi Gambler (1972)

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Vincent Herring - Folklore: Live At The Village Vanguard

Styles: Saxophone Jazz 
Year: 1994
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 57:35
Size: 131,9 MB
Art: Front

(6:37)  1. Folklore
(6:20)  2. Theme For Delores
(8:07)  3. The Girl Next Door
(8:13)  4. Romantic Journey
(8:14)  5. Fountainhead
(8:43)  6. Window Of Opportunity
(8:52)  7. This I Dig Of You
(2:26)  8. Mo's Theme

Known mainly for his session playing, Vincent Herring has released Folklore under his own name, recorded live at the legendary Village Vanguard in New York City. Herring has played with Art Blakey, Horace Silver and Dizzy Gillespie among many historical giants. On Folklore, he puts together an impressive band, including some of the new, major talents in jazz: Cyrus Chestnut (piano), Ira Coleman (bass), Carl Allen (drums) and promising Scott Wendholt (trumpet). 

The band is tight, and plays with soulfulness and swing. The music is enjoyable and makes for a pleasant listen, yet doesn't break any new ground. Highlights from the set include the thoughtful "Theme for Delores," the fine Wendholt composition, "Window of Opportunity" and the fast-paced cover of Hank Mobley's "This I Dig of You." Of the players, Chestnut continues to impress as one of today's best pianists and provides the most interesting material on this set. Folklore is a solid effort. It will please many fans of live, bop-oriented jazz and not offend any. ~ Brian Bartolini https://www.allmusic.com/album/folklore-live-at-the-village-vanguard-mw0000112270

Personnel: Vincent Herring (alto & soprano saxophones); Scott Wendholt (trumpet); Cyrus Chestnut (piano); Ira Coleman (bass); Carl Allen (drums).

Folklore: Live At The Village Vanguard

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