Ahmad Jamal - Jazz Cafe Presents Ahmad Jamal

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 38:39
Size: 88.5 MB
Styles: Bop, Piano jazz
Year: 2001
Art: Front

[6:22] 1. Waltz For Debby
[5:40] 2. Folks Who Live On The Hill
[5:24] 3. People
[8:31] 4. Baia
[4:39] 5. The Good Life
[5:16] 6. Autumn In New York
[2:44] 7. I've Never Been In Love Before

The Jazz Cafe is an award winning live venue with a live music rota that leans towards the jazz & eclectic side of things. Some very fresh and upfront music across a variety of genres - from the coolest things in live electronic to soulful jazzy beats.

Hailing from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Jamal began playing Piano at a young age and his talents were acknowledged fast within the community. He has been described as one of the “Zen masters of jazz piano” and one of the greatest innovators of the genre. He came at a time where improvisation and speed were core to the success of jazz, however true to his personality he took steps in an opposing direction and formed what he later coined as “cool jazz”, this was an attempt to bring jazz out of the underground and further into the public domain.

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Vic Juris - Blue

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 64:12
Size: 147.0 MB
Styles: Guitar jazz
Year: 2015
Art: Front

[6:18] 1. Lonely Woman
[5:00] 2. What's Goin' On
[5:49] 3. Ugly Beauty
[6:20] 4. Tereza My Love
[7:43] 5. The Wrong Blues
[7:27] 6. All The Things You Are
[7:07] 7. Slow Hot Wind
[5:45] 8. Blue
[6:37] 9. I Wish I Knew
[6:00] 10. Remembering The Rain

VIC JURIS guitar; JAY ANDERSON bass; ADAM NUSSBAUM drums.

Vic Juris’ new album “Blue” is heavily focused on ballads, which Vic’s signature fluid sound backed up by his mature artistry fits perfectly. One of today’s premier jazz guitarists Vic Juris has been active on the scene for over four decades amassing an impressive discography.

“Vic Juris is a versatile and impressively accomplished guitarist. His playing exudes warmth, intelligence and respect for the tradition. Perhaps best of all, he seems to understand that the foregoing positives also apply to a legion of contemporary guitarists, and he looks for ways to set his work apart, in terms of sound, approach, or material. “ ~Duck Baker/JazzTimes

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Maxine Brown - Out Of Sight

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 33:20
Size: 76.3 MB
Styles: Pop/Soul
Year: 1968/2005
Art: Front

[2:25] 1. Sugar Dumplin'
[2:03] 2. Plum Outa Sight
[2:39] 3. Sunny
[2:48] 4. I Wish It Would Rain
[2:19] 5. I'm In Love
[2:34] 6. In My Entire Life
[2:48] 7. Don't Leave Me Baby
[2:14] 8. Just Give Me One Good Reason
[2:24] 9. Stop
[2:59] 10. Seems You've Forsaken My Love
[2:36] 11. When A Man Loves A Woman
[2:33] 12. Love In Them There Hills
[2:51] 13. From Loving You

Although she never had many hits, Maxine Brown was one of the most underrated soul and R&B vocalists of the '60s. During the '60s she released a series of singles for Nomar and Wand, with only a couple of songs -- "All in My Mind," "Funny," "Something You Got," "Oh No Not My Baby" -- managing to become either pop or R&B hits. Despite her lack of hits, Brown is acknowledged as one of the finest R&B vocalists of her time, capable of delivering soul, jazz, and pop with equal aplomb.

Born in Kingstree, SC, Brown began singing as child, singing with two New York-based gospel groups when she was a teenager. In 1960, she signed with the small Nomar label, who released the smooth soul ballad "All in My Mind" late in the year. The single became a hit, climbing to number two on the R&B charts (number 19 pop), and it was quickly followed by "Funny," which peaked at number three. Brown was poised to become a star, and she moved to ABC-Paramount in 1962, but she left the label within a year without scoring any hits. She signed to the New York-based, uptown soul label Wand in 1963.

Brown recorded her best work at Wand, having a string of moderate hits for the label over the next three years. Among these were Carole King/Gerry Goffin song "Oh No Not My Baby," which reached number 24 on the pop charts; "It's Gonna Be Alright"; and the Chuck Jackson duets "Something You Got," "Hold On I'm Coming," and "Daddy's Home." Part of the reason Brown didn't receive much exposure is that the label focused much of their attention on Dionne Warwick, leaving Maxine Brown to toil in semi-obscurity. In 1969, she left Wand and signed with Commonwealth United, where she had the minor hits "We'll Cry Together" and "I Can't Get Along Without You." In 1971, she moved to Avco Records, but all of her recordings for the label went ignored and she faded away over the course of the decade. ~Stephen Thomas Erlewine

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Scott Reeves Jazz Orchestra - Without A Trace

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 51:33
Size: 118.0 MB
Styles: Big band
Year: 2018
Art: Front

[6:47] 1. Speak Low
[7:34] 2. Without A Trace
[7:18] 3. All Or Nothing At All
[6:48] 4. Incandescence
[8:01] 5. Juju
[8:25] 6. Shapeshifter
[6:37] 7. Something For Tadd

Scott Reeves: trombone, alto flugelhorn; Steve Wilson: soprano saxophone, flute; Vito Chiavuzzo: alto saxophone, flute; Rob Middleton: tenor saxophone, clarinet; Tim Armacost: tenor saxophone; Terry Goss: baritone saxophone; Jay Brandford: baritone saxophone; Seneca Black: trumpet; Nathan Eklund: trumpet; Chris Rogers: trumpet; Bill Mobley: trumpet; Andy Gravish: trumpet; Tim Sessions: trombone; Matt McDonald: trombone; Matt Haviland: trombone; Max Siegel: bass trombone; Jim Ridi: piano; Dave Ellson: vibraphone; Todd Coolman: bass; Andy Watson: drums; Carolyn Leonhart: vocals.

The Scott Reeves Jazz Orchestra follows up the highly successful debut album Portraits and Places (Origin, 2016), with another masterpiece recording on Without A Trace offering new and exciting arrangements of three standards and four creative Reeves originals that all together, pack quite a powerful musical punch. A full-tenured professor at The City University of New York (CUNY), composer, trombonist and flugelhornist Reeves, takes this twenty-piece ensemble to a higher level in fashioning a riveting musical statement that is sure to resonate with lovers of the big band sound.

Comprising some of the finest musicians from the New York jazz scene, Reeves spices the cast by including such luminaries as saxophonists Steve Wilson and Tim Armacost, along with pianist Jim Ridi and vocalist Carolyn Leonhart among the world-class personnel. Penned with an Afro-Cuban rhythm in mind, the time-honored Kurt Weill and Ogden Nash composition "Speak Low," takes on a new life with solo moments from Wilson, trumpeter Chris Rogers and drummer Andy Watson. Pianist Ridi and tenor saxophonist Armacost provide the lead solos on the Reeves title track ("Without a Trace") that features Leonhart lending her lush vocals in a tune characterized by unconventional harmonies that work quite well here. The Altman/Lawrence standard "All or Nothing at All," highlights Reeves on a blazing trombone solo as the band turns brassy and bold on this interpretation of the classic with alto saxophonist Vito Chiavuzzo providing a pleasant spark.

From Wayne Shorter's 1965 release of "JuJu," Reeves provides the most recent arrangement from bassist John Patitucci on this large orchestration of the familiar piece while "Shape Shifter," delivers a much more intricate sound from a slow intro to a fast-paced swinging ¾ section, a solo by the leader on alto flugelhorn as well as a shift in tempo and mood. Ending in high-octane fashion, the band lets it all hang out on a tribute for the great Thad Jones on "Something for Thad," featuring sparkling solos from trumpeter Andy Gravish and trombonist Matt Haviland capping a vibrant and powerful session of big band jazz from the Scott Reeves Jazz Orchestra, kudos to Reeves and the band. ~Edward Blanco

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Bill Harris -S/T

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 30:37
Size: 70.1 MB
Styles: Guitar jazz
Year: 2013
Art: Front

[1:32] 1. Cherokee
[2:33] 2. Moonglow
[3:01] 3. Out Of Nowhere
[2:44] 4. Ethyl
[2:46] 5. Possessed
[2:39] 6. Perdido
[1:49] 7. I Can't Get Started
[2:35] 8. Dreaming
[2:18] 9. K.C. Shuffle
[2:09] 10. Ivanhoe
[2:20] 11. Stompin' At The Savoy
[2:22] 12. Lover
[1:42] 13. Spring

A guitarist who spent at least two decades on the road with rhythm & blues vocal group the Clovers, Bill "Willie" Harris had a thick background in bebop and swing guitar as well as gospel. The latter style was at his fingertips even before he discovered guitarists such as Oscar Moore on records and radio, since Harris' father was a preacher who was in the position to turn the church organist job over to his offspring. Meanwhile, Harris' mother was drumming in basic harmony and an uncle had chipped in with a guitar, apparently to be the beauty move. The Army supplied a bugle that temporarily halted progress with strings attached, so to speak. Harris was discharged in the mid-'40s and promptly began studying guitar in Washington, D.C., becoming fairly good with both jazz and classical pieces. Harris was encouraged particularly in the classics by high-up staff at the Columbia School of Music, yet seems to have picked the Clovers due to a perceived scent of economic security. The choice, interestingly enough, still wound up leading to expanded musical horizons when fellow rhythm & blues and session guitarist Mickey Baker eavesdropped on a Harris dressing-room practice session and began pulling strings for what would be a series of releases under Harris' own name, such as the 1960 Great Guitar Sounds. The previous EmArcy Solo Guitar from 1956 is considered to be the first album of solo jazz guitar ever released. During the '70s, Harris operated Pigfoot, a Washington, D.C., restaurant, nightclub, and art gallery. ~bio by Eugene Chadbourne

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Chet Baker & Art Pepper Sextet - Playboys

Styles: Trumpet And Saxophone Jazz
Year: 1956
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 67:21
Size: 157,2 MB
Art: Front

(4:02)  1. For Minors Only
(6:44)  2. Minor Yours
(5:42)  3. Resonant Emotions
(5:32)  4. Tynan Time
(6:45)  5. Picture Of Heath
(6:26)  6. For Miles And Miles
(5:14)  7. C.T.A.
(6:19)  8. Tynan Time
(4:17)  9. Little Girl
(7:14) 10. Minor Yours
(3:57) 11. Sonny Boy
(5:04) 12. The Route

These 1956 Pacific Jazz sides appeared in 1961 under the title Playboys. Myth and rumor persist that, under legal advice from the publisher of a similarly named magazine, the collection would have to be retitled. It was renamed Picture of Heath, as more than half of the tracks are Jimmy Heath compositions. Regardless, the music is the absolute same. These are the third sessions to feature the dynamic duo of Art Pepper (alto sax) and Chet Baker (trumpet). Their other two meetings had produced unequivocal successes. The first was during a brief July 1956 session at the Forum Theater in L.A. Baker joined forces with Pepper's sextet, ultimately netting material for the Route LP. Exactly three months to the day later, Pepper and Baker reconvened to record tracks for the Chet Baker Big Band album. The quartet supporting Baker and Pepper on Playboys includes Curtis Counce (bass), Phil Urso (tenor sax), Carl Perkins (piano), and Larance Marable (drums). Baker and Pepper have an instinctual rapport that yields outstanding interplay. The harmony constant throughout the practically inseparable lines that Baker weaves with Pepper drives the bop throughout the slinky "For Minors Only." The soloists take subtle cues directly from each other, with considerable contributions from Perkins, Counce, and Marable. With the notorious track record both Baker and Pepper had regarding other decidedly less successful duets, it is unfortunate that more recordings do not exist that captured their special bond. These thoroughly enjoyable and often high-energy sides are perfect for bop connoisseurs as well as mainstream jazz listeners.~ Lindsay Planer https://www.allmusic.com/album/playboys-mw0000196883

Personnel:  Chet Baker — trumpet;  Art Pepper — alto saxophone;  Phil Urso — tenor saxophone;  Carl Perkins — piano;  Curtis Counce — bass;  Larance Marable — drums.

Playboys

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Deborah Cox - I Will Always Love You

Styles: Vocal
Year: 2017
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 36:37
Size: 85,0 MB
Art: Front

(4:40)  1. I'm Every Woman
(5:00)  2. I Have Nothing
(3:55)  3. All the Man I Need
(4:52)  4. I Wanna Dance With Somebody
(4:55)  5. Run to You
(4:58)  6. The Greatest Love of All
(3:37)  7. Jesus Loves Me
(4:35)  8. I Will Always Love You

2017 release. Grammy Award-nominated and multi-platinum R&B/pop recording artist and film/TV actress Deborah Cox is currently crossing the country as superstar Rachel Marron in the hit musical The Bodyguard. "I Will Always Love You" is an eight track EP featuring the most requested songs from the smash-hit musical, including such iconic fan favorites as "All the Man that I Need", "I Have Nothing" and "I Will Always Love You." "Deborah Cox, a songstress with a silken, rangy voice, impresses with her energetic and emotive renditions of the songs." ~ The New York Times. "Deborah Cox astonishes!" ~  The Philadelphia Inquirer. https://www.amazon.com/I-Will-Always-Love-You/dp/B06XGDL523

I Will Always Love You

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Denny Zeitlin - Homecoming

Styles: Piano Jazz
Year: 1986
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 41:55
Size: 96,5 MB
Art: Front

(3:35)  1. First Light
(3:41)  2. Homecoming
(5:10)  3. Waltz for Josephine
(3:13)  4. Morning Touch
(5:07)  5. Hymn
(3:12)  6. Just Passing By
(3:49)  7. Brazilian Street Dance
(6:35)  8. Millpond
(3:46)  9. Mayfly
(3:43) 10. Quiet Now

Paul Winter's Living Music label mostly specialized in new age and meditation music, so this solo jazz piano set from Denny Zeitlin was a bit unusual for the company. Actually, Zeitlin mostly concentrated on quiet ballads during the date, playing ten of his originals (best-known is "Quiet Now") and showing off his lyrical rather than his swinging side. More mood variations would have uplifted the music but the results are pleasing. ~ Scott Yanow https://www.allmusic.com/album/homecoming-mw0000192448  

Personnel:  Denny Zeitlin - Piano

Homecoming

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Charlie Haden with Gonzalo Rubalcaba - Land of the Sun

Styles: Post Bop, Piano Jazz
Year: 2004
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 63:14
Size: 144,9 MB
Art: Front

(6:17)  1. Fuiste Tu (It Was You)
(5:08)  2. Sueno Solo COn Tu Amor (I Only Dream of Your Love)
(7:00)  3. Cancion De Cuna a Patricia (Lullaby for Patricia)
(8:06)  4. Solamente Una Vez (You Belong to My Heart))
(5:41)  5. Nostalgia
(7:07)  6. De Siempre (Forever)
(3:21)  7. Anoranza (Longing)
(4:49)  8. Cuando Te Podre Olvidar (When Will I Forget You)
(6:42)  9. Esta Tarde Vi Llover (Yesterday I Heard the Rain)
(8:58) 10. Cancion a Paola (Paola's Song)

It should come as no surprise that Land of the Sun, a collection of Mexican ballads written by three of Mexico's most prominent modern composers, is yet another chapter in Charlie Haden's continually unfolding musical biography. Haden was given a folder of songs by the late and legendary Mexican composer José Sabre Marroquín by his daughter as a thank you for his recording of "Nocturnal." Haden went over the tunes and decided to record some of them; he turned them over to pianist Gonzalo Rubalcaba for arranging, employed a stellar band, and Land of the Sun is the end result. What a result. There are eight compositions by Marroquín and one each by Augustín Lara and Armando Manzanero, in their own right prolific and revered songwriters who have been recorded in this country by Presley, Sinatra, and Bennett, to name a few. The band assembled for this project is stellar Joe Lovano, Ignacio Berroa, Rubalcaba, Miguel Zenón, Oriente Lopez, Larry Koonse, Lionel Loueke, Michael Rodriguez, and Juan De La Cruz. Rubalcaba's charts don't transform the songs into jazz tunes, but rather become an entryway for melodic improvisation, rhythmic invention, and group interplay. Rubalcaba's front-line interaction with Lovano, Zenón, and Rodriguez especially on "De Siempre" is emotionally honest and musically inspiring. "Nostalgia," introduced by Spanish guitar, percussion, and piano, is a wonderful springlike bittersweet melody wrapped in a languid rhythm and made poignant first by Rodriguez, and then Zenón, before the guitars waft back in. Lara's "Solamenta una Vez" is arranged for trio here. Rubalcaba's solo, with its shifting ostinati and alternating chordal and single-note runs, is breathtaking. Lovano's lyricism on "Esta Tarde Vi Llover," by Manzanero, is played in his best Ben Webster. With skittering brush work by Berroa, Lovano accents the tune's similarities to "A Kiss Is Just a Kiss" before turning it over to Rubalcaba, who extrapolates the harmony and opens it up against De La Cruz's bongos. Land of the Sun is a deeply romantic album, but it is lush without artificial ornamentation or affectation. Musically, its refinement is such that it begs critical as well as casual listening. Hopefully this won't be the last such exercise from Haden and Rubalcaba, but an introduction.~ Thom Jurek https://www.allmusic.com/album/land-of-the-sun-mw0000637062  

Personnel:  Charlie Haden – bass;  Gonzalo Rubalcaba – piano;  Ignacio Berroa – drums;  Joe Lovano – tenor saxophone;  Miguel Zenon – alto saxophone;  Michael Rodriquez – trumpet, flugelhorn;  Oriente Lopez – flute;  Larry Koonse – guitar;  Lionel Loueke – guitar;  Juan De La Cruz – percussion

Land of the Sun

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Kenny Barron - Concentric Circles

Styles: Piano Jazz
Year: 2018
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 66:13
Size: 152,4 MB
Art: Front

(4:51)  1. DPW
(7:26)  2. Concentric Circles
(5:39)  3. Blue Waters
(5:28)  4. A Short Journey
(8:15)  5. Aquele Frevo Axé
(4:43)  6. Von Hangman
(7:00)  7. In the Dark
(5:16)  8. Baile
(5:54)  9. L's Bop
(6:51) 10. I'm Just Sayin'
(4:44) 11. Reflections

Pianist Kenny Barron celebrates his 75th birthday with his Blue Note debut, 2018's sophisticated quintet album, Concentric Circles. An 11-time Grammy-nominated artist, Barron is a journeyman performer with over five decades of highly regarded work under his belt, including stints with titans like Dizzy Gillespie, James Moody, Stan Getz, and many others. He brings all of that experience to bear here with a largely original set of swinging, harmonically nuanced compositions. Backing him are his longtime bandmates bassist Kiyoshi Kitagawa and drummer Johnathan Blake, along with added quintet members trumpeter Mike Rodriguez and saxophonist Dayna Stephens. In a sense, Concentric Circles is a continuation of Barron's recent trio albums 2015's Interplay and 2016's Book of Intuition, both of which showcased his lithe improvisational skills, and deft sense of group interplay. Here, he expands that approach, offering up richly arranged melodies and songs that touch upon forward-thinking post-bop ("Concentric Circles"), atmospheric modality ("A Short Journey"), and buoyant Latin rhythms ("Baile"). Having already grabbed attention on albums with artists like Miguel Zenón, Bebo Valdés, and Charlie Haden, trumpeter Rodriguez remains a quietly ascending star-in-the-making here, blessed with a warm, puckered tone and knack for engaging, architectural lines. His bluesy solo on the hard-boppish "Blue Waters," and his tender flügelhorn turn on Caetono Veloso's ballad "Aquele Frevo Axe" are supremely engaging. Similarly, Stephens continues to prove he's one of the most inventive and accomplished players of his generation, offering up spiraling, vocal-like improvisations throughout. Together, they spar on "Baile" and take divergent, yet complementary paths on the roiling, funky "L's Bop." While Barron has never sounded anything short of virtuosic, his skills have only deepened over the years. He commands the album, framing his musicians with richly textured chord voicings one minute, and launching into evocative improvisational asides the next. What's particularly refreshing is how immediate and of-the-moment the album feels. Concentric Circles is the sound of a jazz master continuing to push forward, buoyed by his bandmates and the lessons of the past.

~ Matt Collar https://www.allmusic.com/album/concentric-circles-mw0003167648   

Personnel: Kenny Barron: Piano; Dayna Stephens: Saxophone; Mike Rodriguez: Trumpet; Kiyoshi Kitagawa: Bass; Johnathan Blake: Drums.

Concentric Circles

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