Thursday, November 1, 2018

Chico Freeman - Sweet Explosion

Styles: Saxophone Jazz
Year: 1990
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 74:25
Size: 172,4 MB
Art: Front

( 7:49)  1. Peaceful Heart
( 8:11)  2. Exotic Places
( 9:17)  3. Afro Tang
(10:58)  4. My Heart
(15:22)  5. Pacifica I, II & III
(10:41)  6. Read The Signs
(12:07)  7. On The Nile

A collection of some of the best numbers played by Brainstorm when the band made its highly successful debut at London's Ronnie Scott's Jazz Club in 1990. One of the most innovative and engaged small groups in contemporary improvised music, Brainstorm here presents 74 electrifying minutes of inspired and wideranging music and abundantly reaffirms the notion that jazz is the sound of surprise. As Ed Hazel has observed, "Chico Freeman's style combines the energy and wide leaps of John Coltrane's later work with a classic conception of form and a strong sense of swing." https://www.amazon.co.uk/Sweet-Explosion-Chico-Freeman/dp/B000005YLF

Personnel: Chico Freeman (saxophones);  Delmar Brown (piano, keyboards,vocals);  Norman Hedman (percussion);  Alex Blake (bass);  Tommy Campbell (drums)

Sweet Explosion

Kate Schutt - No Love Lost

Styles: Vocal, Guitar
Year: 2007
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 46:54
Size: 107,8 MB
Art: Front

(4:30)  1. How Much In Love
(3:27)  2. Wrecking Ball
(4:37)  3. Mary
(5:19)  4. Peter Please
(4:35)  5. Raining
(4:18)  6. Calamity
(3:51)  7. I'm Yours
(3:18)  8. Two Halves
(4:48)  9. The Moon Got Broken
(4:23) 10. The Young
(3:44) 11. Glamorous Life

No Love Lost is an album from singer/songwriter/guitarist Kate Schutt, a U.S citizen living in Guelph, Ontario, Canada since 2005 Schutt offers a variety of moods, and her writing is always sharp regarding the state of her heart, via some tunes of love some unrequited and some rather active. The overall mood of the album echoes the work of vocalist Madeleine Peyroux, who has achieved enormous success, as well as a drop of Norah Jones insofar as arrangement and delivery. The opening, low-key "How Much in Love" sports minimal accompaniment Schutt's guitar backed by viola and cello. The mood changes drastically on the following "Wrecking Ball," moving into a shuffle beat utilized often by Peyroux, and very effectively accompanied by harmonicist Paul Reddick and trumpeter Patrick Boyle, on one of several appearances. The important addition of Boyle, as well as guitarist Duane Andrews' Django Reinhardt-like vibe, fully adds to this music.  "Peter Please" is Schutt's first "love lost" vehicle, with direct lyrics that are right on the mark. "I'm Yours" pairs Schutt with blues singer Toni Lynn Washington for a minimalist but upbeat performance. One highlight of this album is the concluding cover of Sheila E.'s 1984 dance floor hit, "The Glamorous Life." This heated tune, a popular club classic of the pre-hip-hop era, is, in a way a match for the talented original music of vocalist/timbalist Escovedo. What Schutt does here is to raise the shuffle beat a bit more to mid-tempo, and insinuate the lyrics which normally wouldn't be heard over the din of the dance floor to make them into a sensuous lesson to women, young and old a most impressive musical milestone. Which is a good summation of No Love Lost. A coda to the closing track might be to imagine the Sheila E. original being played at full strength at a local disco, while Schutt's version is spun at the back corner tables on the upper floor for romantic couples. ~ Michael P.Gladstone https://www.allaboutjazz.com/no-love-lost-kate-schutt-artistshare-review-by-michael-p-gladstone.php

Personnel: Kate Schutt: 8-string guitar/bass hybrid, electric guitar, bass, vocals; Dave Jamrog: drums; Duane Andrews: acoustic guitar; Patrick Boyle: trumpet; Mark Shilansky: piano; Toni Lynn Washington: backup vocals; Paul Reddick: harmonica (2); Tomasin: rhyme; Jeff Louie: violin; Cloe Kline: viola; Nat Barrett: cello; Adrian Ross: trumpet (10).

No Love Lost

Harold Mabern Trio - Don't Know Why

Styles: Piano Jazz
Year: 2003
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 58:13
Size: 133,6 MB
Art: Front

(6:24)  1. Edward Lee
(6:43)  2. Dance with Me
(5:23)  3. My Favorite Things
(4:44)  4. Don't Know Why
(6:32)  5. Dreamy
(6:16)  6. Cabu
(6:19)  7. The Surrey with the Fringe on Top
(6:14)  8. Nightlife in Tokyo
(5:05)  9. Blues for David
(4:33) 10. My Shining Hour

It's difficult not to break into a smile when hearing Harold Mabern play piano, as the hard bop stylist has a knack for giving his all as if he were entertaining an audience, even during a studio date. This trio meeting with bassist Nat Reeves and drummer Joe Farnsworth finds Mabern covering a lot of styles, including a few surprising choices. He takes Peter Brown's disco hit "Dance with Me" into new ground with a brisk arrangement incorporating funk, Latin, and driving post-bop. Jesse Harris' soft ballad "Don't Know Why" was a huge hit for singer/pianist Norah Jones on her platinum-selling CD Come Away with Me, though Mabern infuses it with a brighter tempo and a bit of country flavor, plus just a hint of gospel. For most jazz musicians, it's hard to avoid a modal approach to "My Favorite Things" since John Coltrane reworked it into that setting; Mabern follows that path but does his best to avoid outright cloning of McCoy Tyner's technique in Coltrane's historic recording, though total avoidance is impossible. The pianist's potent originals include the hard-driving, gospel-flavored "Edward Lee" and the tense, infectious "Nightlife in Tokyo." Reeves and Farnsworth excel in their support of Mabern, though the hard-charging pianist is practically a one-man band with his boundless energy. ~ Ken Dryden https://www.allmusic.com/album/dont-know-why-mw0000693848

Personnel: Piano – Harold Mabern; Bass – Nat Reeves; Drums – Joe Farnsworth

Don't Know Why

Wayne Jones - Closed For The Holidays

Styles: Jazz, Post Bop
Year: 2011
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 23:40
Size: 54,6 MB
Art: Front

(3:40)  1. Closed For the Holidays (feat. Rick Braun & Mike Macarthur)
(3:45)  2. Feeling Playful
(4:09)  3. Barcelona
(4:05)  4. Children Who Lose Their Way (feat. Rick Braun)
(3:43)  5. Perfect Mistakes
(4:15)  6. Strawberry On a String

You may have heard the phrase musician’s musician! You know the type … they’re such established players in the scene that everyone wants them on their sessions. Australian bass player, songwriter, arranger, and performer Wayne Jones fits the term perfectly. He has played with so many of Australia’s leading artists over such a long period of time. However, It took until 2006 for Jones to show his true colours with the release of his first solo album ‘Forgotten Melody’. Luckily for music lovers we only had to wait until 2009 for the follow up ‘Saturday Street’, further cementing Jones’ reputation as a world-class instrumentalist and tunesmith. Since Jones presented us with Saturday Street, he sold his much loved vintage car, packed his bags and traversed the world spreading the word on his music, resulting in club gigs in Tokyo, performances on the foreshore in Florida, chart topping tracks in the Canary Islands and has achieved airplay from radio stations at all points of the global compass. Now in 2011, Jones unleashes his finest work yet, the six track recording ‘Closed For The Holidays’. The folks at iTunes define it as it an EP, in vinyl-speak, you’d call it an album. Call the format whatever you want, the music is yet another classy collection of high-quality smooth/contemporary jazz grooves featuring Jones’ signature sound. Closed For The Holidays includes an incredible array of international musicians supporting Wayne on the recording including sought-after US trumpet player Rick Braun, Mike MacArthur on sax, Fallon J Williams III on drums and percussion, Dave Carter (Keys), Ron Peers (guitar), and Paulo Vargas (percussion). While Jones has accumulated many miles of travel with his music career, his world journey is far from over, in fact it’s only just beginning. Yet with Closed For The Holidays you can’t help but feel he’s arrived anyway! Closed For the Holidays is ideal ammunition for Jones to take his music to the world with confidence and that’s what he intends to do. The future looks bright with stand-alone gigs, festivals and promotional activity planned in territories where Jones has already established a name for himself. “It’s a great progression,” Jones says of the new album. “The last two were good and I think I have learned things while over in the States and I feel I have progressed in my writing and playing. Having the involvement of Mike on sax and Rick Braun on trumpet … I love the players that usually play with me but I was after a different flavour this time. I really have a great feeling about this one. I feel I have arrived.” By Greg Phillips, editor Australian Musician magazine. https://store.cdbaby.com/cd/waynejones3

Personnel:  Wayne Jones on Lead Bass; Rick Braun on Trumpet & Mike MacArthur on Sax.

Closed For The Holidays