Eric Alexander - Alexander the Great

Styles: Saxophone Jazz
Year: 2009
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 55:48
Size: 128,4 MB
Art: Front

(7:30)  1. Burner's Waltz
(6:02)  2. Let's Stay Together
(6:29)  3. God Bless The Child
(8:11)  4. Explosion
(5:24)  5. Through The Fire
(8:13)  6. Soft Winds
(5:56)  7. Born to Be Blue
(8:01)  8. Carrot Cake

Among the numerous projects in which Eric Alexander was involved during the nineteen- nineties (including a dozen records under his own name and approximately three times as many as a sideman) was his ongoing involvement in the soul-jazz band of the late Charles Earland. Alexander’s stint with “The Mighty Burner” was his first major gig after placing second to Joshua Redman in the Thelonious Monk competition for tenor saxophonists in 1991. For this disc recorded in 1997, Earland assumed the role of producer as well as playing the Hammond B3 organ. In contrast to Alexander’s regular, straight-ahead fare as a leader for a number of record labels, Alexander the Great pretty much sticks to the formula of Earland’s popular recordings for Muse and HighNote, with an emphasis on funk and soul grooves. The material includes a couple of crowd-pleasing pop tunes (“Let’s Stay Together” and “Through the Fire”), some standards (“God Bless the Child,” “Soft Winds,” and “Born To Be Blue,”), and originals by Alexander and guitarist Peter Bernstein. Trumpeter James Rotondi’s (another veteran of Earland’s bands) crackling, bop-oriented solos are among the disc’s highlights, especially on Alexander’s “Burner’s Waltz.” Bernstein contributes turns filled with bluesy inflections. Drummer Joe Farnsworth wisely doesn’t try to compete with the hum and rumble of Earland’s organ; instead, he keeps good time and spurs everyone on with precise accents and fills. Although Alexander plays well throughout the entire disc, it is during his composition, appropriately titled “Explosion,” that he proves why he’s one of the finest young tenor players in jazz. He tears through the changes of the up-tempo tune for several choruses with great intensity and a seemingly endless supply of ideas. I dare say that Sonny Stitt (a formative influence) and George Coleman (a mentor) would be proud of him. ~ David A. Orthmann https://www.allaboutjazz.com/alexander-the-great-eric-alexander-review-by-david-a-orthmann.php

Personnel:  Eric Alexander – tenor saxophone; James Rotondi – trumpet; Charles Earland – Hammond B3 organ; Peter Bernstein – guitar; Joe Farnsworth – drums

Alexander the Great

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Melissa Errico - What About Today? Live at 54 Below

Styles: Vocal
Year: 2015
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 109:30
Size: 254,4 MB
Art: Front

(2:37)  1. “Why are actors so nuts?” (Live)
(3:31)  2. What About Today? (Live)
(6:15)  3. “Do you like this hair flip?” (Live)
(5:39)  4. The Summer Knows (Live)
(3:31)  5. “Those were seals...” (Live)
(2:39)  6. The April Fools (Live)
(6:18)  7. “Let's stay at the movies a little longer...” (Live)
(6:09)  8. His Eyes, Her Eyes (Live)
(3:08)  9. “How ‘bout we do a little Broadway?” (Live)
(5:25) 10. It’s an Art (Live)
(3:55) 11. “One perfect storm of a song...” (Live)
(5:08) 12. Meadowlark (Live)
(5:31) 13. “Where does that leave us?” (Live)
(4:12) 14. Getting Married Today (Live)
(6:02) 15. “Time to regroup...” (Live)
(5:04) 16. No More (Live)
(2:55) 17. “It doesn’t get better than this...” (Live)
(4:00) 18. Small World (Live)
(5:25) 19. Show Me (Live)
(4:30) 20. The Heart Is Slow to Learn (Live)
(2:27) 21. “I got the idea to write this...” (Live)
(1:50) 22. “I am really bananas about Eydie Gormé...” (Live)
(2:40) 23. What Did I Have That I Don’t Have? (Live)
(4:42) 24. Last Dance (Live)
(2:37) 25. “I’m like Cher in Moonstruck!” (Live)
(3:07) 26. How Are Things in Glocca Morra? (Live)

Recorded at the popular New York cabaret and restaurant venue 54 Below, What About Today is a mix of Broadway classics, film tracks and more contemporary songs as well as one of Melissa Errico’s own compositions. A slightly breathless start to the album, maybe through excitement and audience banter, it opens with What About Today by David Shire, but it’s by the third track The April Fools from the motion picture of the same name, that Errico really hits her stride. Possibly best known for her leading lady roles on and off Broadway, one of her earliest was back in 1993 was that of Eliza Doolittle in My Fair Lady, and fans will relish the opportunity to have a recording of the fiery and forceful Show Me. In contrast is the beautiful Gentle Child, which Errico wrote for her first daughter Victoria, a soft and sensitive lullaby. There are three tracks from composer Stephen Sondheim, including Getting Married Today from the musical Company, previously described as “one of Sondheim’s toughest songs” but Errico captures the crazed humour of a bride having a mental breakdown on her wedding day, perfectly. This is balanced by the reflective yet stirring, No More from Into the Woods (cut from the movie version), and the flirtatious Small World from Gypsy. There are two songs by Stephen Schwartz, who Errico calls “The King of Broadway”; the comedic and lyrically witty It’s An Art from the little known 1978 musical Working and Meadowlark from The Bakers Wife. This is Errico’s fifth album, and it features a diverse range of material, including 11 previously unrecorded tracks, however, this recording doesn’t do her justice. A large amount of dialogue is also included, which frustratingly interrupts the flow of the album somewhat. This isn’t to say that the narrative isn’t interesting, and to the producers’ credit, is tracked giving the listener the option to skip on repeat listening, but with 15 songs out of 27 tracks, gives a sense as to the quantity. While audience banter may be good in the live show, it doesn’t translate as well to the recording and as a result, the album feels busy, and a difficult listen, despite Errico’s phenomenal vocals. That said, there is also a sense of fun that comes across with this recording, and it undoubtedly captures the cabaret atmosphere on the evening. Throughout the album, Errico herself is scintillating and her impressive range is evident, with a welcome infusion of soft jazz at times. https://www.thereviewshub.com/cd-review-melissa-errico-what-about-today-live-at-54-below/

What About Today? Live at 54 Below

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Cedar Walton - Composer

Styles: Piano Jazz
Year: 1996
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 61:10
Size: 140,2 MB
Art: Front

(6:15)  1. Martha's Prize
(7:24)  2. The Vision
(5:51)  3. Happiness
(7:14)  4. Minor Controversy
(8:21)  5. Hindsight
(7:41)  6. Underground Memoirs
(6:16)  7. Theme for Jobim
(6:12)  8. Groove Passage
(5:54)  9. Ground Work

For Cedar Walton's debut on the Astor Place label, the widely respected veteran pianist contributed all nine selections. Although his "Bolivia" is a jazz standard, Walton is not normally thought of as a major composer. However, quite a few of his new pieces could possibly become standards in the future if jazz improvisers explore this disc. Of the more memorable originals, "Martha's Prize" has a light cheerful melody; "The Vision" gives Ralph Moore an opportunity to show just how distinctive he can sound on soprano; "Happiness" is a joyful hard bop tune a little reminiscent of "Little Rock Getaway" with a bridge added; "Underground Memoirs" (which has a particularly strong Walton solo) is a haunting ballad, and "Theme for Jobim" swings with a strong bossa beat. The all-star lineup (trumpeter Roy Hargrove, altoist Vincent Herring, Ralph Moore on tenor and soprano, bassist Christian McBride, and drummer Vic Lewis) plays up to their potential with Hargrove sometimes recalling Freddie Hubbard, and Moore and Herring getting in their spots and the ensemble as a whole sometimes resembling the Jazz Messengers. Due to the voicings, there are times when one would swear that a trombone was present. Highly recommended. ~ Scott Yanow https://www.allmusic.com/album/composer-mw0000647511

Personnel:  Cedar Walton - piano; Roy Hargrove - trumpet; Ralph Moore - soprano saxophone, tenor saxophone; Vincent Herring - alto saxophone; Christian McBride - bass; Victor Lewis - drums

Composer

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John Surman - Saltash Bells

Styles: Saxophone Jazz
Year: 2012
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 58:58
Size: 135,6 MB
Art: Front

( 6:32)  1. Whistman's Wood
( 3:13)  2. Glass Flower
( 7:32)  3. On Staddon Heights
( 3:36)  4. Triadichorum
( 8:18)  5. Winter Elegy
( 2:17)  6. Ælfwin
(10:40)  7. Saltash Bells
( 3:27)  8. Dark Reflections
( 2:41)  9. The Crooked Inn
(10:37) 10. Sailing Westwards

There's no denying the "the sound of surprise" of group recordings; working solo, however, provides its own possibilities, despite meaning different things to different people. Pianist Keith Jarrett views it as a means for pulling form from the ether: one man, one piano, in real time. Multi-instrumentalist Stephan Micus, on the other hand, considers it a blank slate where it's one man but a multitude of instruments layered one upon the other, through multi-tracking, over the course of days, months...even years. Reed player John Surman has been creating one-man orchestral works since Westering Home (Island, 1972), but it's been his subsequent 33-year tenure with ECM where he's created a larger body of work that has included an additional half dozen solo recordings, beginning with his label debut, 1979's Upon Reflection. Saltash Bells is Surman's first solo recording since 1995's A Biography of the Rev. Absalom Dawe, though he's been far from inactive, releasing the quartet-based Brewster's Rooster (2009) and Rain on the Window (2008) a sublime duo set with organist Howard Moody recorded at Ultern Kirke in Oslo, where Surman now resides with wife/singer Karin Krog in addition to two non-ECM recordings: Cuneiforms's marvelous archival find, Flashpoint: NDR Jazz Workshop April '69 (2011), and the large-ensemble The Rainbow Band Sessions (Losen, 2011). 

Credits for Surman's previous one-man efforts cited them taking place during the course of a month; Saltash Bells, in contrast, was recorded over just two days in 2009 and one more in 2011. Surman adds tenor saxophone, and alto and contrabass clarinets to his core arsenal of soprano and baritone saxophones, bass clarinet and synthesizers...even harmonica, for the first time, on the epic "Sailing Westwards," gently layered so seamlessly with his synth patterns as to feel like a unified voice. Loops, synthesizer sequences and multi-tracked horns suggest preconception, but in Surman's sphere these remain a means of using improvisation to create further improvisational contexts, whether it's building foundations or soaring over them, as he does towards the end of "Sailing Westwards," his soprano responding to the various layers that combine to shape this hypnotic closer of cinematic proportions. Saltash Bells is not all layered constructs, however. The pensive "Glass Flower" features Surman a capella on bass clarinet, while baritone saxophone is the sole voice on "Ælfwin." Elsewhere, "Triachordum" is a trio baritone piece, Surman's improvisational voice adding the shifting vertical harmony to two horns separated by fifths throughout, even as he fashions melodies in the moment over the course of nearly four minutes. Surman's soprano saxophone on "Dark Reflections" seems to be on a course that orbits around a series of shifting lines more buried in the mix, while baritone and soprano saxophones evoke both lyricism and unrelenting pulse on "The Crooked Inn." Saltash Bells is an intended reference to Surman's birthplace in Tavistock, a scenic location on the River Tavy, which runs through West Devon to the English Channel. Sounds of church bells and seagulls echoing over the landscape are but two touchstones that imbue the charmingly pastoral Saltash Bells, an album that confirms you can take the man out of the place but you can't take the place out of the man. ~ John Kelman https://www.allaboutjazz.com/saltash-bells-john-surman-ecm-records-review-by-john-kelman.php

Personnel: John Surman: soprano, tenor and baritone saxophones, alto, bass and contrabass clarinets, harmonica, synthesizer.

Saltash Bells

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Bernard Peiffer - Bernie's Tune

Styles: Piano Jazz
Year: 2015
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 43:10
Size: 99,9 MB
Art: Front

(6:14)  1. Lover Come Back to Me
(3:37)  2. You Took Advantage of Me
(2:33)  3. Rhumblues
(3:38)  4. S Wonderful
(5:18)  5. Black Moon
(4:19)  6. Ah-Leu-Cha
(6:32)  7. Blues on the Wing
(3:15)  8. Bernie's Tune
(3:19)  9. Lullaby of the Leaves
(4:21) 10. Blues for Slobs

A rare American session by French pianist Bernard Peiffer one of the stronger stars of the Paris scene of the 50s, working here with US players that include Ed Thigpen, Joe Puma, and Oscar Pettiford. Tracks are short and playful, in keeping with Peiffer's style and titles include "Bernie's Tune", "Lover Come Back To Me", "Rhumblues", "Black Moon", "Ah Leu Cha", and "S Wonderful".© 1996-2019, Dusty Groove, Inc. https://www.dustygroove.com/item/730076?filterfield=veryrecent&sort_order=date_added

Personnel:  Piano – Bernard Peiffer; Bass – Chuck Andrus, Oscar Pettiford; Drums – Edmund Thigpen; Guitar – Joe Puma

Bernie's Tune

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