Johnny Griffin - Introducing

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 47:18
Size: 108.3 MB
Styles: Bop, Saxophone jazz
Year: 2007
Art: Front

[3:52] 1. Mil Dew
[5:36] 2. Chicago Calling
[5:08] 3. These Foolish Things
[4:53] 4. The Boy Next Door
[4:18] 5. Nice And Easy
[5:00] 6. It's All Right With Me
[7:53] 7. Lover Man
[6:19] 8. The Way You Look Tonight
[4:15] 9. Cherokee

Bass – Curly Russel; Drums – Max Roach; Piano – Wynton Kelly; Tenor Saxophone – Johnny Griffin. Recorded At Van Gelder Studio, Hackensack, New Jersey on April 17, 1956.

Johnny Griffin had been kicking around in R&B bands for years before his Blue Note debut in 1956. A tenor saxophonist with fresh sounds, a warm, soulful style and the fastest technique in jazz, he moves from lyrical ballads to blistering tempos with ease. Two bonus tracks from the session have been added to the original LP. The first-class accompaniment is provided by Wynton Kelly, Curly Russell and Max Roach. Within two years, Griff would becomes one of the leading tenor saxophonists in jazz as a member of Thelonious Monk's quartet.

Introducing mc
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Ida Landsberg - Acoustic Bossa Nova

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 42:27
Size: 97.2 MB
Styles: Bossa Nova, Jazz vocals
Year: 2012
Art: Front

[4:20] 1. You Are The Sunshine Of My Life
[2:41] 2. (I Can't Get No) Satisfaction
[3:03] 3. I Heard It Through The Grapevine
[2:35] 4. Venus
[3:48] 5. The Look Of Love
[3:21] 6. It's Too Late
[3:34] 7. Walk On The Wild Side
[3:44] 8. Sunny
[4:34] 9. Maniac
[3:11] 10. Jammin'
[3:51] 11. Fragile
[3:41] 12. You Are Not Alone

Guitar – Simone Salvatore; Vocals – Ida Landsberg.

After a long and intense 70s musical rebel period in my adolescence at the sound of the The Doors, Janis Joplin and the Beach Boys, I discovered jazz music which would have been my strongest passion. Charlie Parker and Dave Brubeck had become my new heroes, Nina Simone and Ella Fitzgerald my idols. Soon the desire of letting music be a central part of my life became concrete. I was admitted to the Berlin University of Fine Arts and studied music pedagogy there until I left Germany for a student exchange program. My time at the UdK was one of the greatest I can remember. I had a female a cappella trio, sang in different choirs and we made plenty of University productions. It was a busy and fun period.

I had the pleasure to collaborate with many wonderful musicians. And then one day I received an email from Singapore that I was about to move to the spam folder. But then I read it and after I read it again, and it sounded quite serious. They were asking for some music samples for their label and I decided to send them. And they liked them and wanted to release my works. This was the beginning of a great collaboration with EQ Music Singapore, Hitman Jazz and later Irma Records with whom I released 4 solo albums for now – jazz and bossa nova as well as one album with my own compositions – and many compilations. And others are about to be realized.

Music is my aim and ambition, my continuous research and look to the future. No day passes without having some idea or project to realize, something new to create or experience, some unexperienced music style to live. Some notes left to write or to sing. Music for me is not a passion. It is a necessity.

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Bireli Lagrene - 2 album set: Djangology / To Bi Or Not To Bi

Guitarist Bireli Lagrene is one of several European heirs to the tradition of Gypsy swing launched by Django Reinhardt. Lagrene has incredible technique on display through this two-CD set, which compiles a solo concert and a meeting with the WDR Big Band, which have also been released separately. In the solo live set, the guitarist plays ten originals that show the influence of Django Reinhardt yet incorporate elements of modern jazz and other styles. The intricate "Sur la Croisette" will impress fans of classical guitar, though it is very much a jazz composition. His moving take of "La Belle Vie" revives a popular decades-old ballad written by jazz guitarist Sacha Distel. One wild twist is Lagrene's blending of two rock songs, Queen's "We Are the Champions" and "We Will Rock You," with the 1960s pop hit "It Was a Very Good Year" in a long medley, which actually proves to be viable in a jazz setting, though the middle selection is its weakest link. On the second disc, Lagrene is joined by the WDR Big Band for a concert that is essentially a salute to Django Reinhardt, with a few modern twists added and imaginative arrangements by conductor Michael Abene. He plays electric guitar (which Reinhardt also utilized on occasion during the last decade of his career). There is also material not associated with Reinhardt, such as Lagrene's fiery bop opener "Place du Tetre," which is full of a distracting series of song quotes, while his sincere vocals in "The Shadow of Your Smile" and "The Good Life" (both written long after Reinhardt's death) are a nice surprise. The Reinhardt selections are all superb efforts. "Anouman" is an obscure masterpiece written by Reinhardt shortly before his death; Lagrene's touching rendition also features baritone saxophonist Jens Neufang. Abene's distinctively post-bop scoring of Reinhardt's "Impromptu" ignites Lagrene, who takes plenty of chances in his crowd-pleasing solo. The guitarist is also absolutely amazing in the uptempo post-bop setting of "Caravan." ~Ken Dryden

Album: Bireli Lagrene, WDR Big Band - Djangology
Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 69:38
Size: 159.4 MB
Styles: Gypsy jazz
Year: 2006
Art: Front

[9:15] 1. Place Du Tertre
[5:08] 2. Good Life
[5:59] 3. Djangology
[8:28] 4. Impromptu
[6:11] 5. The Shadow Of Your Smile
[8:59] 6. Blues En Mineur
[5:37] 7. Anouman
[6:47] 8. Flêche D'or
[6:18] 9. Caravan
[6:51] 10. All Of Me

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Album: To Bi Or Not To Bi
Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 61:16
Size: 140.3 MB
Styles: Gypsy jazz
Year: 2006
Art: Front

[ 7:10] 1. Sur La Croisette
[ 5:52] 2. London (Soli Love)
[ 3:12] 3. R & Bi
[ 5:45] 4. We Are The Champions We Will Rock You It Was A Very Good Year
[ 4:04] 5. Sous Les Pommiers
[ 2:19] 6. Capucines
[ 1:55] 7. La Belle Vie
[ 5:44] 8. Madras Express
[10:42] 9. Amparo
[ 6:13] 10. Bar De Nuit
[ 2:06] 11. To Bi Or Not To Bi
[ 6:07] 12. Vague à L'âme

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Mel Torme - Mel Torme Sings Fred Astaire (Remastered)

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 34:52
Size: 79.8 MB
Styles: Vocal
Year: 2014
Art: Front

[3:07] 1. Nice Work If You Can Get It
[3:55] 2. Something's Gotta Give
[2:34] 3. A Foggy Day
[3:00] 4. A Fine Romance
[3:25] 5. Let's Call The Whole Thing Off
[3:08] 6. Top Hat, White Tie And Tales
[2:21] 7. The Way You Look Tonight
[2:33] 8. The Piccolino
[2:59] 9. They Can't Take That Away From Me
[2:57] 10. Cheek To Cheek
[2:19] 11. Let's Face The Music And Dance
[2:29] 12. They All Laughed

Though it's sometimes relegated to second or third place among Tormé's best albums of the '50s (behind Mel Tormé and the Marty Paich Dek-Tette and It's a Blue World), it's difficult to hear how Mel Tormé Sings Fred Astaire can't be the best album of his entire career. Featuring an artist at the peak of his ability and talent, a collection of top-drawer songs from the best pop composers ever, and a swinging ten-piece that forms the perfect accompaniment, Sings Fred Astaire is one of the best up-tempo vocal albums ever recorded. Coming hot on the heels of Mel Tormé and the Marty Paich Dek-Tette in 1956, this tribute to Hollywood's most stylish dancer finds Tormé obliging with his nimblest and most elegant singing. Even while Marty Paich's band takes "The Way You Look Tonight" and "Cheek to Cheek" at a breakneck pace that Astaire himself would've had trouble with, Tormé floats over the top with death-defying vocal acrobatics. He's breezy and sophisticated on "They Can't Take That Away from Me," ecstatic and effervescent on "Top Hat, White Tie and Tails" (matching an exuberant solo by trumpeter Pete Candoli), and even breaks out an affectionate croon for "A Foggy Day." A collection of perfect hard-swinging pop with a few ballads thrown in for good measure makes Sings Fred Astaire a masterpiece of the vocal era. ~John Bush

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Various - Nuevos Flamencos

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 96:58
Size: 222.0 MB
Styles: Flamenco, World music
Year: 2017
Art: Front

[3:05] 1. Veneno - Titiriti
[3:58] 2. Alejandro Conde - Cada Cual Por Su Camino
[3:47] 3. Los Delinquentes - La Primavera Trompetera (Radio Edit)
[4:20] 4. Alba Molina - Alegría De Coral
[9:48] 5. Triana - Abre La Puerta
[4:41] 6. Carmen Linares - Aquel Que Tenga Un Sentir
[4:02] 7. Jose Merce - Aire (Bulerías)
[3:58] 8. Navajita Platea - Frio Sin Ti
[3:33] 9. Parrita - Eres Parte De Mi Vida
[3:15] 10. Martires Del Compas - Tu Hielo
[4:31] 11. Rancapino - Bésame Mucho
[4:27] 12. Mayte Martin - Serenoke (Malagueña)
[3:40] 13. Raul Mico - Malos Tiempos Para La Lírica
[3:47] 14. Azucar Moreno - Luna
[2:38] 15. Chacho - La, La, La
[3:08] 16. Romero San Juan - Con Ella
[3:28] 17. Veneno - Palabras Para Julia
[4:27] 18. Dorantes - Nana De Los Luceros
[2:53] 19. Alba Molina - Summertime
[4:27] 20. Remedios Amaya - Turu Turai(Tango)
[2:17] 21. El Chocolate - El Alcalde De Guadix
[3:11] 22. Aurora Guirado - Reciproco
[1:51] 23. Raul Mico - El Calor Del Amor En Un Bar
[3:52] 24. Martires Del Compas - Echale, Echale
[3:40] 25. Parrita - Ayúdame

New flamenco (or nuevo flamenco) is synonymous with modern flamenco and is a derivative of traditional flamenco. It combines flamenco guitar virtuosity with musical fusion. Jazz, rumba, bossa nova, Gypsy, Latin, Middle Eastern, rock, Cuban swing, tango, salsa and especially blues have all been fused into flamenco by different artists to produce its sound.

Traditional flamenco had been displaced in Spain in the 1950s and 1960s by rock-and-roll. Artists such as Camarón de la Isla worked with the music during that period, infusing it with new sound. However it was during the 1980s that revival really took off, by artists such as Paco de Lucia, Nina Corti, Pata Negra, Ketama, and later more mainstream stylists, such as the Gipsy Kings. The artists fused it with other forms, including jazz and salsa. Although fused with other music, it was still based on the classic flamenco the artists had grown up with, a new form of the old. Among the artists wrongly associated with this style is Ottmar Liebert. Another example is the duo Strunz & Farah, who, in an interview in Guitar Player magazine, strenuously denied that their music was a form of flamenco, whilst acknowledging an influence.

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Monty Alexander - The Way It Is

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 45:59
Size: 105.3 MB
Styles: Bop, Piano jazz
Year: 2006/2014
Art: Front

[11:22] 1. People Make The World Go Round
[ 6:34] 2. What Are You Doing With The Rest Of Your Life
[ 4:49] 3. Bluesology
[ 4:18] 4. Soft Winds
[ 8:28] 5. Come Sunday
[ 5:08] 6. That's The Way It Is
[ 5:18] 7. Bossa Nova Do Marilla

Bass – John Clayton; Drums – Jeff Hamilton; Piano – Monty Alexander.

Montgomery Bernard "Monty" Alexander (born 6 June 1944) is a jazz pianist. His playing has a Caribbean influence and bright swinging feeling, with a strong vocabulary of bebop jazz and blues rooted melodies. He was influenced by Louis Armstrong, Duke Ellington, Nat King Cole, Oscar Peterson, and Frank Sinatra. Alexander also sings and plays the melodica. He is known for his surprising musical twists, bright rhythmic sense, and intense dramatic musical climaxes. Monty's recording career has covered many of the well known American songbook standards, jazz standards, pop hits, and Jamaican songs from his original homeland. Alexander has resided in New York City for many years and performs frequently throughout the world at jazz festivals and clubs.

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Rolf Kuhn - And His Sound Of Jazz

Styles: Clarinet Jazz
Year: 1960
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 41:33
Size: 96,4 MB
Art: Front

(4:15)  1. Istambul
(3:58)  2. Waltzing Matilda
(3:44)  3. Lady Of Spain
(5:18)  4. Canadian Sunset
(4:10)  5. South Of The Border
(5:01)  6. Atlanta, GA
(3:08)  7. A Touch Of Berlin
(4:39)  8. Manhattan
(3:21)  9. Chicago
(3:56) 10. Caravan

Rolf Kuhn's style has evolved through the years. The clarinetist started out playing in German dance bands in the late '40s. He worked with radio orchestras starting in 1952 and moved to the U.S. in 1956. Kuhn subbed for Benny Goodman on a few occasions during 1957-1958, played in the Tommy Dorsey ghost band (1958), and worked in a big band led by Urbie Green (1958-1960). In 1962, Kuhn returned to Germany, where he has explored more adventurous styles of jazz (including dates with his younger brother, keyboardist Joachim Kuhn) but still occasionally shows off his ties to swing. Kuhn recorded with an all-star group called Winner's Circle (1957), Toshiko Akiyoshi (1958), and as a leader starting in 1953, including a 1956 New York quartet date for Vanguard. ~ Scott Yanow https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/rolf-kuhn-and-his-sound-of-jazz/462175205

Personnel: Rolf Kuhn (clarinet); Jack Sheldon (trumpet); John Bunch (piano); Jim Hall, Chuck Wayne (guitar); George Duvivier, Henry Grimes (bass); Don Lamond, Ray Mosca (drums).

And His Sound Of Jazz

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Lionel Hampton - The Lionel Hampton Quintet

Styles: Vibraphone Jazz
Year: 1954
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 72:10
Size: 168,0 MB
Art: Front

(17:11)  1. Flying Home
( 6:33)  2. Je Ne Sais Pas
( 5:52)  3. On the Sunny Side of the Street
( 6:25)  4. April in Paris
( 9:28)  5. Don't Be That Way
( 8:36)  6. These Foolish Things
(11:14)  7. The Way You Look Tonight
( 6:48)  8. It's Only a Paper Moon

In 1954, producer Norman Granz held a couple of marathon recording sessions featuring vibraphonist Lionel Hampton, pianist Oscar Peterson, bassist Ray Brown, drummer Buddy Rich, and (on April 13) clarinetist Buddy DeFranco. This set has three selections from the DeFranco date (a 17-plus-minute "Flying Home," the original "Je Ne Sais Pas," and "On the Sunny Side of the Street") and one from the earlier session ("April in Paris"). Hampton is typically exuberant throughout (grunting rather loudly during a few later ensemble choruses on "Flying Home"), DeFranco and Peterson are as swinging as usual, and the overall music is quite joyous. Even if "Flying Home" does not reach Granz's claim of being the best-ever version of the song (one misses the honking tenor and screaming trumpet), this is an excellent and rather spontaneous outing. [The Verve Master Edition also features the tracks "Don't Be That Way," "These Foolish Things," "The Way You Look Tonight," and "It's Only a Paper Moon."] ~ Scott Yanow https://www.allmusic.com/album/the-lionel-hampton-quintet-mw0000591293 

Personnel:  Lionel Hampton - vibraphone;  Buddy DeFranco - clarinet;  Oscar Peterson - piano;  Ray Brown - double bass;  Buddy Rich - drums

The Lionel Hampton Quintet

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John Wright - Mr. Soul

Styles: Piano Jazz
Year: 1962
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 35:28
Size: 81,7 MB
Art: Front

(5:24)  1. Our Waltz
(3:27)  2. Blue Prelude
(5:32)  3. What's New
(3:28)  4. Everything's Gonna Work Out Fine
(5:37)  5. Mr. Soul
(2:34)  6. Shake
(5:18)  7. Strut
(4:05)  8. Now Hang In There

Mr. Soul is the 1962 album by pianist John Wright. Originally released on the Prestige label, this was remastered by Phil De Lancie and released in 1995 by Original Jazz Classics/Fantasy Jazz.Called "the songwriter's singer" for his uncanny interpretive abilities, John Wright emerged late in life as one of the foremost British folk balladeers of his generation. Born June 22, 1947, in coastal Bournemouth, England, and raised in Manchester, Wright first sang alongside his three older brothers in their church's choir, and in his early twenties he moonlighted in a series of little-known rock bands while working by day as a salesman. After impulsively joining the British Army's Household Cavalry unit in 1970, Wright grew deeply attached to country life, and upon leaving the military in 1974 he settled in North Yorkshire, working as an assistant shepherd. He continued toiling as a hill shepherd after relocating across the border to the Newcastleton and Hawick area, and in his spare time began collecting and playing traditional folk songs only when a postman heard Wright singing around his farm was he invited to perform at a local social dance, and for years he remained in relative anonymity, singing almost exclusively at community events. With proceeds from the sale of a horse, in 1990 Wright funded sessions for Border Crossings, a stark collection of traditional British folk ballads the initial pressing of 200 cassettes sold out in three days thanks to a profile in a local newspaper, and subsequent editions sold about 3,500 copies in all. A collaboration with local guitarist Kenny Spiers brought Wright to the attention of Fellside Records, and in 1993 the label issued his first proper full-length, Ride the Rolling Sky. A brief tour of the Netherlands followed, and with the follow-up The Things We've Handed Down he began moving past his traditional repertoire in favor of more contemporary material, much of it self-penned. For 1999's Pages Turning Wright signed to the Greentrax label, a leap that brought his music even greater attention, and he continued releasing new LPs on an annual basis until his sudden death on February 7, 2008. ~ Jason Ankeny https://www.allmusic.com/artist/john-wright-mn0000194942                

Personnel:  John Wright - piano;  Wendell Marshall - bass;  Walter Perkins, Jr. - drums;

Mr. Soul

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