Thursday, May 30, 2019

Freddie Hubbard - Jazz Moods - Hot

Styles: Trumpet Jazz
Year: 1970
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 72:03
Size: 165,8 MB
Art: Front

(12:09)  1. Red Clay
( 7:01)  2. Take It To The Ozone
(11:03)  3. First Light
(10:42)  4. The Intrepid Fox
( 7:34)  5. Sky Dive
( 6:04)  6. Theme From Kareem
(17:26)  7. Straight Life

Jazz Moods: Hot collects various tracks from trumpeter Freddie Hubbard's '70s CTI label recordings. These are stellar, funky, and forward-thinking cuts that, while highly regarded, are often overlooked in favor of Hubbard's '60s Blue Note recordings. While fans of '70s fusion will want to pick up the complete albums, this works as a solid introduction to the second half of Hubbard's career. Included are all the title songs from the albums, including 1970's "Red Clay" and 1972's "First Light" as well as such standout album tracks as "Theme From Kareem" off 1978's Super Blue. ~ Matt Collar https://www.allmusic.com/album/jazz-moods-hot-mw0000475807

Jazz Moods - Hot

Anita Harris Quartet - Moments in Time

Styles: Vocal
Year: 2006
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 66:34
Size: 153,7 MB
Art: Front

(3:59)  1. Sunday
(3:35)  2. You've Changed
(4:12)  3. Like Someone in Love
(5:42)  4. Laura
(4:01)  5. I Can't Give You Anything but Love
(5:12)  6. More Than You Know
(4:03)  7. At Long Last Love
(3:31)  8. Solitude
(5:47)  9. I Dedicate This to You
(3:43) 10. Prelude to a Kiss
(4:48) 11. I'm Old Fashioned
(3:52) 12. You Took Advantage of Me
(5:31) 13. I Remember Clifford
(4:16) 14. Lover Come Back to Me
(4:13) 15. My Romance

Anita Harris made her debut before a jazz audience in 1993, at the 13th Merimbula Jazz Festival, accompanied as she is here by Kim Harris on piano, Evan Harris on electric bass and Alan Richards on drums. Her debut CD, Moments in Time, originally recorded in 1998, is now re-released under the Newmarket Music label, following upon the success of her 2005 release, The Wee Small Hours. http://newmarketmusic.com/album/Anita-Harris-%252d-Moments-In-Time.html

Moments in Time

Yusef Lateef - Prayer To The East

Styles: Saxophone, Flute and Tambourine Jazz 
Year: 1957
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 44:46
Size: 103,5 MB
Art: Front

( 9:54)  1. A Night In Tunisia
(13:09)  2. Endura
( 8:18)  3. Prayer To The East
( 6:45)  4. Love Dance
( 6:37)  5. Lover Man

A half-a-century following its original release, Prayer to the East by Yusef Lateef remains a seemingly blessed moment of creative interaction between American modern jazz and the music of the so-called Arab East, the latter evoked in essences ranging from snippets of traditional musical scales to picture postcards of Tunisian nightlife. The second half of the '50s was a busy period for Lateef, at that time under contract to the Savoy imprint. This album as well as three others were all cut in October of 1957, establishing as much documentation as could ever be needed of a transition from a player in the swing context of bandleaders such as Lucky Millinder and Hot Lips Page to a bold adventurer. Extended improvisations and the introduction of unusual instruments were important parts of this development and these recordings, yet the impression should not be one of austerity. Lateef's use of the flute turned out to be commercial, one of many instances of this particular axe finding more favor among the listening public than it tends to within the ranks of musicians themselves. Lateef and comrades may have been going for deep listening, still it is worth pointing out that an admirer of sides such as Prayer to the East pointed out how much fun him and his buddies used to have listening to this music while playing pool. The lengthy "Night in Tunisia" is nothing but a great moment in small modern jazz combo recordings, allowing Lateef's budding interest to bloom in an intriguing light. Flugelhornist Wilbur Harden was also a collaborator of John Coltrane's in the same period. The brassman dodges imitations of the song's composer, high-note trumpet maestro Dizzy Gillespie, instead hovering in his mid-register, revealing a joke in a turn of phrase as if he was being spied on. The album's title track comes from drummer Oliver Jackson, so tightly affiliated with swinging syncopation that his nickname was "Bops Junior." Later drummers working in Lateef's combos such as Frank Gant and of course Elvin Jones would introduce more polyrhythms, percolating a brew that by the end of the '50s had much less of the aroma of a mainstream cup of jazz. Some listeners may find, however, that a player such as Jackson creates more excitement, more workable dynamics, the tension of a stylistic clash that is inevitably hinted at rather than shouted. "Lover Man" may have been an overdone number in the jazz combo repertory even by 1957; the subsequent years would only redeem this particular performance were it more substantial. A formidable Lateef original and Les Baxter's "Love Dance" are the two concluding numbers, each in the six-minute range without a wasted moment in either case. The leader's improvisations are perfect, full of interesting choices of register, a man in motion who somehow masks his true dimensions. ~ Eugene Chadbourne https://www.allmusic.com/album/prayer-to-the-east-mw0000120364

Personnel:  Yusef Lateef - tenor saxophone, flute, tracks 3 and 4, tambourine; Wilbur Harden - flugelhorn; Hugh Lawson - piano, ocarina; Ernie Farrow - bass; Oliver Jackson - drums, gong

Prayer To The East

Freddie Roach - Down To Earth

Styles: Jazz, Post Bop
Year: 1962
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 38:46
Size: 89,6 MB
Art: Front

(6:43)  1. De Bug
(5:50)  2. Ahm Miz
(6:30)  3. Lujan
(8:09)  4. Althea Soon
(6:36)  5. More Mileage
(4:55)  6. Lion Down

Freddie Roach differentiated himself from the legions of soul-jazz organists on his debut album, Down to Earth. Many jazz organists played the instrument down and dirty, and while there's funk in Roach's playing, his style is ultimately lighter than many of his peers, with clean, concise solos and chords. His backing trio guitarist Kenny Burrell, tenor saxophonist Percy France, and drummer Clarence Johnston follows his lead, providing supple instrumental support that never loses sight of the groove. Furthermore, Burrell and France both have their chances to shine, contributing some nicely understated solos. Nevertheless, Down to Earth remains Roach's show; he wrote five of the six songs and his organ is at center stage on each number. The legato blues of "De Bug" is a terrific showcase for Roach's elegantly funky style, while the sprightlier "Ahm Miz" proves that he can get gritty if he so chooses. But the signature of Down to Earth is Roach's tasteful bluesy grooves, which prove to be just as entertaining as the hotter styles of his Blue Note peers Jimmy Smith and John Patton. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine https://www.allmusic.com/album/down-to-earth-mw0000759652

Personnel:  Freddie Roach - organ; Percy France - tenor saxophone; Kenny Burrell - guitar; Clarence Johnston - drums

Down To Earth

Cory Weeds - Live At Frankie's Jazz Club

Styles: Saxophone Jazz
Year: 2019
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 65:15
Size: 149,9 MB
Art: Front

(8:22)  1. Bluesanova
(6:39)  2. Mood Malody
(6:55)  3. Gypsy Blue
(6:10)  4. Consequence
(7:24)  5. Fabienne
(7:28)  6. Formidable
(8:15)  7. Up Tight's Creek
(5:21)  8. Tolypso
(8:38)  9. The Three Minros

Yes, this is saxophonist/master of all livelihoods Cory Weeds' quintet, the year is 2018, and the group is beyond a doubt Live at Frankie's Jazz Club in Vancouver, British Columbia. But close your eyes, open your ears and it's the unapologetic re-creation of a quintessential hard-bop session from the historic Blue Note / Prestige years of the 1950s-60s. Indeed, to underscore the point, the quintet's pianist is the venerable Harold Mabern who actually performed and/or recorded back in the day with such giants as Lee Morgan, Jackie McLean, Freddie Hubbard, Tina Brooks and a who's who of celebrated masters from a glorious age that may never return but whose legacy rests secure in the earnest hands of Weeds and his dexterous teammates. The buoyant concert gets under way on an assertive note with Morgan's walking "Bluesanova" (introduced by Michael Glynn's resonant bass) and segues into Mal Waldron's lyrical "Mood Malody" before delving into impressive original compositions by Brooks, McLean, Walter Davis Jr. and Swiss alto overseer George Robert. 

Davis' three-quarter time "Formidable" is one of several highlights with the ensemble in lock-step to undergird perceptive solos by Weeds, Terell Stafford and Glynn. Brooks' freewheeling "Up Tight's Creek," which follows, offers more of the same with Stafford's nimble trumpet brightening the landscape, Weeds in blue-chip form and Glynn adding another thoughtful statement. McLean, whose high-speed "Consequence" is heard earlier in the program, caps the evening with his sunny Caribbean-flavored "Tolypso" and "The Three Minors," whose irrepressible tempo and boppish licks epitomize the time in which it was written. Weeds, Stafford and Mabern are in superior form again, as is drummer Julian MacDonough who adds another driving solo on "Consequence." Robert (Weeds' longtime mentor who died far too soon, in 2016) wrote the handsome ballad "Fabienne," on which Weeds is featured, Brooks the smooth, Latin-leaning "Gypsy Blue," wherein Stafford, Weeds and Mabern are at their self-controlled and lyrical best. 

While tipping their hats to the past, Weeds and his able colleagues prove conclusively that music of this caliber is essentially timeless. A superior concert in every respect, one that should especially gladden the hearts of those who call to mind with fondness the short-lived but incomparable era of hard-bop jazz. ~ Jack Bowers https://www.allaboutjazz.com/live-at-frankies-jazz-club-cory-weeds-cellar-live-review-by-jack-bowers.php

Personnel: Cory Weed: alto saxophone; Terell Stafford: trumpet; Harold Mabern: piano; Michael Glynn: bass; Julian Macdonough: drums.

Live At Frankie's Jazz Club