Thad Jones - Three And One

Styles: Cornet Jazz
Year: 1987
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 58:53
Size: 135,7 MB
Art: Front

( 5:28)  1. Instant blues disinstant
( 8:03)  2. My one and only love
( 8:13)  3. But not for me
( 5:40)  4. Night mist blues
( 6:41)  5. My romance
( 8:58)  6. Three and one
(10:20)  7. But not for me
( 5:26)  8. Instant blues disinstant

Thad Jones was 61 at the time of this recording and had made a full-fledged recovery after some health problems, although he was only two years away from his death. He is showcased on cornet throughout the quartet date with pianist Ole Hansen, bassist Jesper Lundgaard and drummer Ed Thigpen, and is heard in very good form. Jones plays two of his originals, Ahmad Jamal's "Night Mist Blues," "My Romance," "My One and Only Love" and "But Not for Me." This date is reminiscent in ways of Jones' Debut session from 29 years earlier, which also found him taking harmonically sophisticated solos in a quartet. Recommended. ~ Scott Yanow https://www.allmusic.com/album/three-and-one-mw0000647320

Personnel:  Cornet – Thad Jones; Bass – Jesper Lundgaard; Drums – Ed Thigpen; Piano – Ole Kock Hansen

Three And One

---

Matthew Shipp - By the Law of Music

Styles: Piano Jazz
Year: 2002
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 60:47
Size: 140,6 MB
Art: Front

(0:17)  1. Signal
(2:51)  2. By The Law of Music
(6:58)  3. Implicit
(5:00)  4. Fair Play
(6:45)  5. Grid
(3:05)  6. Whole Movement
(7:56)  7. Game of Control
(4:21)  8. Point to Point
(3:28)  9. P X
(5:36) 10. Grid
(5:05) 11. Coo
(4:31) 12. X Z U
(4:53) 13. Solitude

This is a reissue of the original 1996 Hat Art recording. Yet, pianist Matthew Shipp has gone on to release umpteenth solo outings besides his intermittent performances with bassist William Parker and violinist Mat Maneri. Other than the trio’s rather abstract rendition of Duke Ellington’s “Solitude,” Shipp composed the remaining twelve pieces. They venture into what has now become familiar territory where the band delves into microtonal patterns, and shifting tonalities. The trio also implements various odd-metered time signatures amid a matrix-like platform. The album title might serve as an antithesis to the musicians’ musical output. As they seemingly defy the laws of music via sequences of counterbalancing motifs, and free form improv interspersed with John Cage-like concepts. On “Fair Play,” Parker establishes a fervent pace due to his steady, walking bass lines as Shipp and Maneri render interweaving statements that develop into subsequent mini-motifs. Otherwise, the respective musicians have made signifcant advances since the onset of this release. Recommended. ~ Glenn Astarita https://www.allaboutjazz.com/by-the-law-of-music-matthew-shipp-hat-hut-records-review-by-glenn-astarita.php?width=1920

Personnel: Matthew Shipp: piano;  William Parker: bass;   Mat Maneri : violin.

By the Law of Music

---

Marty Grosz - Hooray For Bix!

Styles: Vocal And Guitar Jazz 
Year: 2000
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 45:00
Size: 104,5 MB
Art: Front

(2:42)  1. Changes
(4:15)  2. Cryin' All Day
(3:12)  3. Lonely Melody
(4:07)  4. I'm Gonna Meet My Sweetie Now
(3:46)  5. Sorry
(3:05)  6. My Pet
(3:46)  7. The Love Nest
(4:00)  8. Clementine
(4:19)  9. Oh, Miss Hannah
(3:39) 10. Wa-Da-Da (Everybody's Doin' It Now)
(4:24) 11. For No Reason At All In 'C'
(3:38) 12. Because My Baby Don't Mean Maybe Now

A native of Germany, guitarist and vocalist Marty Grosz's especial personality has been part of the traditional jazz scene since the early '50s. Growing up in New York and later moving to Chicago, Grosz has played over the years with renown musicians such as Dick Wellstood, Art Hodes, Jabbo Smith, and the group Soprano Summit. Still active today, Grosz's Hooray For Bix! was originally cut for Riverside in 1957 and it not only pays homage to its namesake, '20s and '30s cornet wizard Bix Beiderbecke, but also serves as a watermark of the '50s revivalist movement. Like one of his inspirations, Eddie Condon, Grosz works out on a guitar of the four-string variety and his main function here is of a rhythmic thrust, with two fine vocals thrown in to boot. In deference to Beiderbecke's horn of choice, co- leader Carl Halen opts for the use of a cornet, an instrument seldom used these days in jazz. The rest of the band is filled out with instruments representative of your normal Dixieland-type ensemble, and while none of the men have any major name recognition, they all play with skill and fervor. Frank Chace's robust baritone sax work is particularly lovely, as is his breathy clarinet stylings, which are very much akin to that of Pee Wee Russell. A shrewd decision on the parts of Grosz and Halen was to go for material that was a bit left-of-center from the obvious, so don't expect to hear "Singin' the Blues" or "In a Mist." In fact, the only Beiderbecke original turns out to be "For No Reason At All." That's all just fine though, because this set proves to be a bit more poetic than similar sessions of this ilk. Even those with a bit of apprehension towards music of this genre will find something to like here, as solo space for all is copious and collective improvisation is kept at a minimum. As an added bonus, Dave Jones' beautiful early stereo manifests each instrument with clarity and warmth. ~ C.Andrew Hovan https://www.allaboutjazz.com/hooray-for-bix-marty-grosz-fantasy-jazz-review-by-c-andrew-hovan.php

Personnel: Marty Grosz- guitar and vocals; Carl Halen- cornet, Turk Santos- second cornet (tracks 6 & 12 only), guitar (track 9 only); Harry Budd- trombone; Frank Chace- clarinet & baritone sax, Bob Skiver- clarinet & tenor sax; Tut Soper- piano, Chuck Neilson- bass, Pepper Boggs- drums

Hooray For Bix!

---

Joe Morris, William Parker, Gerald Cleaver - Altitude

Styles: Guitar, Post Bop
Year: 2012
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 72:27
Size: 166,0 MB
Art: Front

(26:22)  1. Exosphere
(25:22)  2. Thermosphere
(12:04)  3. Troposphere
( 8:39)  4. Mesosphere

Guitarist Joe Morris is on a roll. Hardly a month goes by without a new release featuring the Boston-based musician. Of course, he doubled his chances by adding acoustic bass to his armory alongside his six-stringed axe. It's the latter he wields on this trio date featuring bassist William Parker and drummer Gerald Cleaver, captured at New York City's Stone in June, 2011. Strangely, given their long acquaintance, this is the first time this particular combination has recorded, though each knows the others well from other collaborations. Cleaver and Parker form two-thirds of improvising collective Farmers By Nature, while Parker featured alongside Morris in the Eloping With The Sun (Aum Fidelity, 2003) triumvirate, and the guitarist and drummer both number among Jean Carla Rodea's Azares. What that familiarity ensures is that there is none of the "getting to know you" tentativeness that afflicts some first-time dates. All three leap straight in, spinning yarns. Inspired by the lengthy expositions of Coltrane and Cecil Taylor (although sounding nothing like either) the threesome maintains an urgent pace throughout the first extended piece (50-plus minutes, demarcated into the first two tracks, comprising the opening set in full). In a relatively straightforward execution, the adventure stems from the ceaseless search, as the trio obsessively wrings all the possibilities inherent from a single mood via a steadily blossoming stream of consciousness. As Morris says in the liners: "we kept it simple and let it unfold naturally, listening for the discovery of melody, always comfortable on that tremendous platform of rhythm." And that's how it sounds. While no one is likely to go away humming a refrain from this disc, a certain lower case lyricism permeates the atmosphere, especially the guitarist's genial single line rivulets and Parker's tonally sympathetic counterpoint. Their unity of purpose is such that even when the music opens out for a drum solo towards the end of "Exosphere," the dynamic doesn't change and the energy level barely dips. For the second set, excerpted here in the final two cuts, Parker switches from bass to sintir a Moroccan three-stringed lute. That decision engenders a different feel, with Parker's dusty grooves evoking Africa's vast open plains and timeless emotions. Cleaver avoids the obvious foot-tapping response, preferring instead a clattering pulse resembling fragments of several diverse tempos simultaneously. Subtle accents and changes of emphasis color the flow to maintain interest with Morris at his most assertive on "Mesosphere" pressing his points with a determined vigor. To sum up: three friends with nothing to prove bring home the bacon on a hot night in NYC. ~ John Sharpe https://www.allaboutjazz.com/altitude-joe-morris-aum-fidelity-review-by-john-sharpe.php

Personnel: Joe Morris: guitar; William Parker: bass, sintir; Gerald Cleaver: drums.

Altitude

---