Sean Jones - Roots

Styles: Trumpet Jazz
Year: 2006
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 73:41
Size: 169,7 MB
Art: Front

(1:34)  1. Children's Hymn
(7:12)  2. Roots
(6:46)  3. Divine Inspiration
(7:03)  4. God's Gift
(7:05)  5. Come Sunday
(8:03)  6. Lift Every Voice
(1:43)  7. Offering Time
(5:11)  8. Conversations
(5:19)  9. El Soul
(5:03) 10. Puddin' Time
(8:00) 11. What We Have
(5:35) 12. John 3:16
(5:01) 13. I Need Thee

With his inspired quintet, trumpeter Sean Jones goes back to his roots on this album, interpreting original music and the standard repertoire, focusing on gospel. His gorgeous trumpet tone and down-home technique are the centerpiece of the album, as they were on his previous two releases. Jones likes to express himself from a traditional point of view, offering vocal-like phrases that meld seamlessly with one another. With alto saxophonist Tia Fuller providing cohesive harmony, the trumpeter emerges as a powerful melodic force. For much of the album, Jones works with his quintet, which also includes pianist Orrin Evans, bassist Luques Curtis and drummer Obed Calvaire. His quartet interpretations of "Come Sunday and "Lift Every Voice provide warm reflections, while his duet with pianist Eddie Howard on "I Need Thee soaks up centuries of emotional spirit. Earlier, Jones' solo interpretation of "Children's Hymn opens the album with a solemn embrace that runs through the session as a guiding theme and provides comfortable solace. At times, he veers from the prayerful medium and allows spurts of meaningful celebration, as on his original "Offering Time and Evans' "Conversations, which comes loaded with rich, satisfying flugelhorn vibrations. Jones "speaks" through his horn to communicate with his audience, adding a tender touch and plenty of expression. He's open-horned for much of the session and more effective on the brighter trumpet celebrations. At the top of his game, Jones lifts tradition into the arms of all believers through a program that explores jazz's gospel roots. ~ Jim Santella https://www.allaboutjazz.com/roots-sean-jones-mack-avenue-records-review-by-jim-santella.php

Personnel: Sean Jones: trumpet, flugelhorn; Tia Fuller: alto saxophone, flute, soprano saxophone; Orrin Evans: piano, electric piano, keyboard; Eddie Howard: organ, piano; Luques Curtis: acoustic bass; Obed Calvaire, Jerome Jennings: drums.

Roots

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Bill O'Connell, The Latin Jazz All-Stars - Imagine

Styles: Piano Jazz
Year: 2014
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 59:27
Size: 137,1 MB
Art: Front

(5:45)  1. Optimism
(6:43)  2. Stepping Stones
(7:46)  3. Imagine
(6:48)  4. Shaman's Dance
(6:57)  5. Missing Mr. Berrios
(6:23)  6. Jigsaw
(6:38)  7. 25 Years
(5:20)  8. Willow Weep for Me
(7:03)  9. Whitecaps

It's curious that Bill O’Connell’s 11th album as a leader is titled after the revered John Lennon anthem covered within, because it’s atypical of most of his work. O’Connell’s stock-in-trade is bop-tempered Afro-Cuban rhythm, and few traces of such surface during the elegant float through the song. But what the pianist and his sextet do with “Imagine” instead is more valuable than giving it a stock clave coating. About midway through the nearly nine-minute rumination, following saxophonist Steve Slagle and trombonist Conrad Herwig’s subtle, repeated restating of the theme, O’Connell carries it away, his impeccably phrased solo leaving Lennon far behind. By the time Slagle returns to wrap it, the reimagining of “Imagine” is unrecognizable, becoming this sextet’s own, and a highlight of the set. O’Connell’s original compositions are handled with similar spirit and inventiveness. The ballad “Missing Mr. Berrios,” a wistful tribute to the late drummer and percussionist Steve Berrios, again leaves it up to the hornmen to provide shape, O’Connell only detouring from the simple chord pattern that’s been providing the foundation briefly enough to let us know he’s there. Of the uptempo numbers, both “Stepping Stones” and especially the closing “Whitecaps” afford the brawny rhythm team of bassist Luques Curtis, drummer Richie Barshay and percussionist Richie Flores (the last two returnees from O’Connell’s previous effort) ample opportunity to flex. That latter tune is closer to what we’ve come to expect from Bill O’Connell, but by the time we’ve gotten to it, he’s made it clear that perhaps what we should really expect from him is only the unexpected. ~ By Jeff Tamarkin https://jazztimes.com/reviews/albums/bill-oconnell-and-the-latin-jazz-allstars-imagine/

Personnel: Bill O'Connell (Piano); Luques Curtis (Bass); Richie Barshay (Drums); Richie Flores (Percussion); Steve Slagle (Soprano Saxophone, Alto Saxophone); Conrad Herwig (Trombone).

Imagine

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Gene Ammons - Gene Ammons Swinging the Jugg

Styles: Saxophone Jazz
Year: 1976
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 32:18
Size: 74,8 MB
Art: Front

(4:17)  1. Swinging the Jugg
(5:44)  2. Round Midnight
(5:23)  3. Look of Love
(5:42)  4. Lover Man
(4:34)  5. Just the Blues
(6:35)  6. Confessing the Blues

Gene Ammons, who had a huge and immediately recognizable tone on tenor, was a very flexible player who could play bebop with the best (always battling his friend Sonny Stitt to a tie) yet was an influence on the R&B world. Some of his ballad renditions became hits and, despite two unfortunate interruptions in his career, Ammons remained a popular attraction for 25 years. Son of the great boogie-woogie pianist Albert Ammons, Gene Ammons (who was nicknamed "Jug") left Chicago at age 18 to work with King Kolax's band. He originally came to fame as a key soloist with Billy Eckstine's orchestra during 1944-1947, trading off with Dexter Gordon on the famous Eckstine record Blowing the Blues Away. 

Other than a notable stint with Woody Herman's Third Herd in 1949 and an attempt at co-leading a two tenor group in the early '50s with Sonny Stitt, Ammons worked as a single throughout his career, recording frequently (most notably for Prestige) in settings ranging from quartets and organ combos to all-star jam sessions. Drug problems kept him in prison during much of 1958-1960 and, due to a particularly stiff sentence, 1962-1969. When Ammons returned to the scene in 1969, he opened up his style a bit, including some of the emotional cries of the avant-garde while utilizing funky rhythm sections, but he was still able to battle Sonny Stitt on his own terms. Ironically the last song that he ever recorded (just a short time before he was diagnosed with terminal cancer) was "Goodbye."~ Scott Yanow https://www.allmusic.com/artist/gene-ammons-mn0000160198/biography
 

Personnel: Tenor Saxophone – Gene Ammons; Drums  – Bob Guthrie; Guitar  – George Freeman; Organ  – Bob Pierce

Gene Ammons Swinging the Jugg

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Joe Newman - Soft Swingin' Jazz

Styles: Trumpet Jazz
Year: 2005
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 74:25
Size: 173,8 MB
Art: Front

(3:18)  1. Makin' Whoppee
(2:38)  2. Three Little Words
(4:29)  3. Scotty
(2:37)  4. There's A Small Hotel
(3:19)  5. I Let A Song Go Out Of My Heart
(3:39)  6. Moonglow
(3:01)  7. Organ Grinder's Swing
(3:35)  8. Rosetta
(3:07)  9. Too Marvellous For Words
(2:59) 10. The Farmer's Daughter
(3:56) 11. Save Your Love For Me
(3:08) 12. The Happy Cats
(2:53) 13. Cocktails For Two
(3:40) 14. Later For The Happenings
(4:04) 15. Buttercup
(4:26) 16. Robbin's Nest
(2:18) 17. They Can't Take That Away From Me
(3:47) 18. Feather's Nest
(3:01) 19. Mean To Me
(3:34) 20. Between The Devil And The Deep Blue Sea
(3:19) 21. Joe's Tune
(3:31) 22. I Never Knew

The title says it all. Soft Swinging Jazz pairs Joe Newman with organist Shirley Scott, bassist Eddie Jones, and Charlie Persip for a mellow, lovely session unique within the trumpeter's catalog. For starters, Newman assumes vocal duties on a handful of cuts, proving himself a fine crooner. Moreover, the spacious, nuanced arrangements afford him the room to summon some of his most intimate but impassioned solos. Not to mention that Scott's an uncommonly sympathetic collaborator, shaping and underlining the melodies to create rolling, contoured grooves with the texture of velvet. The album was reissued in 2007 on the Lonehill label alongside the subsequent The Happy Cats. 

~ Jason Ankeny https://www.allmusic.com/album/soft-swinging-jazz-mw0000350883

Personnel:  Joe Newman - trumpet, vocals; Shirley Scott - organ; Eddie Jones - bass; Charlie Persip - drums; Ernie Wilkins - piano

Soft Swingin' Jazz

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Cyrille Aimee - Move On: A Sondheim Adventure

Styles: Vocal
Year: 2019
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 49:47
Size: 116,0 MB
Art: Front

(2:00)  1. When I Get Famous (Intro)
(3:39)  2. Take Me to the World
(2:52)  3. Love, I Hear
(2:52)  4. Loving You
(3:05)  5. Marry Me a Little
(4:14)  6. Being Alive
(2:41)  7. So Many People
(4:08)  8. Not While I'm Around
(1:58)  9. They Ask Why I Believe in You
(5:27) 10. No One is Alone
(2:37) 11. Un Baiser d’Adieu (One More Kiss)
(5:08) 12. I Remember
(5:22) 13. Move On
(3:38) 14. With so Little to Be Sure Of

Cyrille Aimée's latest album may come as a shock to fans of the French vocalist. Gone is the light, bubbly approach that has been her hallmark. Aimée is now a "musical interpreter," no less, and is devoting a whole album to the late works of American composer Stephen Sondheim. Except for Adrien Moignard's acoustic guitar on "So Many People," she has discarded her marvelous manouche backing band, depriving her of the interplay that made her recent stint at New York's Poisson Rouge so enjoyable. She is now accompanied by American studio musicians and highly professional though they may be the chaleur and charm of her work is gone. Whether these songs deserve her devotion is also debatable. Sondheim is fast approaching his 90th birthday. We're a world away from West Side Story, first staged on Broadway in 1957, and from A Little Night Music and its hit "Send In The Clowns" from 1973. Sondheim's recent work is frankly stodgy, with an over emphasis on words and not enough attention paid to the music. "No One Is Alone" makes a philosophical point rather than entertains. "Marry Me A Little" is plain outdated. "So Many People" hints at the writer's confusion as an octogenarian in the modern world. Aimée copes pretty well. Occasional bursts of scat singing show she can still do jazz, and perhaps indicate nervousness concerning her change of direction. Her affection for these Sondheim songs seems genuine. Underneath her frothy French persona, Aimée is a tough cookie who will undoubtedly weather the storm should the rest of the world not share her enthusiasm. ~ Chris Mosey https://www.allaboutjazz.com/move-on-a-sondheim-adventure-cyrille-aimee-mack-avenue-records-review-by-chris-mosey.php

Personnel: Cyrille Aimée: vocals; Assaf Gleizner, Thomas Enhco: keyboards; Jeremy Bruyere: bass; Yoann Serra: drums; Abraham Mansfaroll: percussion; Rubin Kodhelj: cello; Adrien Moignard, Ralph Lavita, Diego Figueredo, Sebastien Giniaux: guitar; Rubin Kodhelj: guitar and cello; Warren Walker, Bill Todd: tenor saxophone; Maxime Berton: soprano saxophone; Patricia Bartley: alto saxophone; Wayne Tucker: trumpet; Mathias Levy, Fung Chern Hwej, Gregor Huebner: violin; Julie Goodale: viola.

Move On: A Sondheim Adventure

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