Joe Henderson Quintet - At The Lighthouse

Styles: Saxophone Jazz
Year: 2004
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 76:12
Size: 175,8 MB
Art: Front

( 5:37)  1. Caribbean Fire Dance
( 8:19)  2. Recorda-Me
(10:31)  3. A Shade Of Jade
( 4:30)  4. Isotope
( 9:01)  5. 'Round Midnight
( 8:33)  6. Mode For Joe
( 7:33)  7. Invitation
(11:30)  8. If You're Not Part Of The Solution, You're Part Of The Problem
( 9:47)  9. Blue Bossa
( 0:46) 10. Closing Theme

I was pretty late coming to Joe Henderson. I was never a big sax aficionado, least of all tenors; once I got through Trane, Shorter, Rahsaan, Bartz, and Branford, I kind of grew a preference for alto players. That being what it is, there is a certain class of tenor players who do not wow me so much for their own singular identity, as much as their amazing ability to blend into an ensemble so very well (even if they are the leader). Henderson is one of those, and I do really admire his breadth in that regard. He has class and a vast technique that lets him work gigs like this to maximum. At the Lighthouse is a 1970 performance that had been split up on various releases and box compilations, but was finally loosed upon the record buying public by Milestone/Fantasy in 2004. It is one of Henderson at his peak, playing with a hearty, fat tone that slides around between warm and bubbly to boisterous and blaring. His band has Woody Shaw working a crisp trumpet, that is not too harsh or bright tonally, and reminds me of Clifford Brown a little. The rhythm department is my favorite part; Lenny White on traps never disappoints, and since I love electric piano (the Fender Rhodes is technically incapable of sounding bad…ever), the support from George Cables impresses me (because I had never recalled his name ever entering memory before this album), especially on Invitation. The take on the ‘Round Midnight Monk standard has a lot of space, which lets the various players work through nine minutes of challenging interpretation. The same interplay and great soloing happens on the Kenny Dorham composition Blue Bossa. Henderson brings a few of his on compositions, like Isotope, which are challenging and a whole push back into hard bop in the best way. White hammers and dances on the kit, making the pulse seem both out of control and effortless. The odd duck of the album is another Henderson-penned cut, f You’re Not Part of the Solution, You’re Part of the Problem. It is the closest to funky soul-jazz as this set gets, but at eleven and a half minutes makes for a filling slice of sonic badonkadonk. The sole track where acoustic bassist Ron McCLure switches to electric, he locks in with White in a linear groove workout that lets Shaw, Henderson and even Cables have a field day. I give at least partial credit to the great quality of the recording to uber-producer Orrin Keepnews. Solid! https://devrandom.net/~zeruch/wordpress/?p=453
 

Personnel: Tenor Saxophone – Joe Henderson; Bass – Ron McClure; Bass [Electric] – Ron McClure; Congas – Tony Waters; Drums – Lenny White; Electric Piano – George Cables; Trumpet, Flugelhorn – Woody Shaw

At The Lighthouse

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Christina Lux - Pure Love

Styles: Vocal And Guitar Jazz
Year: 2001
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 45:39
Size: 106,3 MB
Art: Front

(3:26)  1. Shelter
(5:51)  2. Believe
(7:32)  3. Best Friend
(4:39)  4. Liar
(4:03)  5. You Say You Love Me
(4:48)  6. Love Is...
(4:23)  7. Let It Flow
(3:55)  8. You Mean So Much to Me
(7:00)  9. Late at Night

The singer/songwriter and guitarist Christina Lux is a phenomenon. Since the mid-eighties she has become one of Germany's most wanted backup singers . She has been touring with the Jule Neigel Band back in 1989 and more recently, as a special guest, supportet Fury in the slaughterhouse on their 1998 tour. Renowned artists such as Grace Jones, Oleta Adams, Gabrielle and Nina Hagen had her sing backing vocals on prime-time TV shows. She sang on studio albums for Mick Karn of Japan fame and Deep Purple's Jon Lord. Even on dance records such as RMB's Mission Horizon (2001) her unique voice can be heardBut Christina Lux also has a career of her own. Since releasing her first two solo albums "She is Me" (1998) and "Little Luxuries" (1999) she has performed countless club concerts all around the country. Some of these were as a soloist, others as a member of her own trio including bass-player Marius Goldhammer ( Marla Glen..) and her one-man-percussion-orchestra Roland Peil (Die Phantastischen 4..). She has opened shows for Paul Young in 1999 and for New York's Tuck+Patti in 2001. Music magazine "Gitarre & Bass" (7/2001) says, " What sets her apart from others is her warm and deeply touching voice, supported by her finely tuned feeling for spontaneity and free-flowing improvisation combined with her jazzy, grooving rhythm guitar...truly great!"While the music industry sometimes fails to recognize the gold in their own backyard, Christina Lux is regarded as a brilliant musician's musician by critics both at home and in other countries. Perhaps this is because of the wide range of her repertoire: songs that are written in authentic American English, sung with her dark magic velvety voice, blending acoustic soul and funky folk with jazzy improvised highlights. According to the music magazine Soundcheck, she holds her own in a comparison with Rickie Lee Jones or Shawn Calvin.Christina Lux is a truly exceptional live artist. Her latest offering Pure Love, gives the best feel yet for the spontaneity of her live performances. Since, with the exception of two tracks, it was recorded in live situations, we're able to experience the pure magic of one of her concerts...pure pleasure! ~ Editorial Reviews https://www.amazon.com/Pure-Love-Christina-Lux/dp/B00005T7OQ

Pure Love

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Barney Wilen - French Ballads

Styles: Saxophone Jazz 
Year: 1987
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 56:22
Size: 130,5 MB
Art: Front

(4:41)  1. L'Ame Des Poetes
(3:05)  2. What Are You Doing The Rest Of Your Life
(4:28)  3. Sous Le Ciel De Paris
(3:51)  4. Syracuse
(4:11)  5. Un Ete 42
(4:11)  6. My Way
(7:15)  7. Les Feuilles Mortes
(4:13)  8. Once Upon A Time
(4:42)  9. Seule Ce Soir
(4:27) 10. Manoir De Mes Reves
(4:17) 11. Tears
(4:19) 12. La Vie En Rose
(2:38) 13. Les Moulins De Mon Coeur

Barney Wilen's mother was French, his father a successful American dentist-turned-inventor. He grew up mostly on the French Riviera; the family left during World War II but returned upon its conclusion. According to Wilen himself, he was convinced to become a musician by his mother's friend, the poet Blaise Cendrars. As a teenager he started a youth jazz club in Nice, where he played often. He moved to Paris in the mid-'50s and worked with such American musicians as Bud Powell, Benny Golson, Miles Davis, and J.J. Johnson at the Club St. Germain. His emerging reputation received a boost in 1957 when he played with Davis on the soundtrack to the Louis Malle film Lift to the Scaffold. Two years later, he performed with Art Blakey and Thelonious Monk on the soundtrack to Roger Vadim's Les Liaisons Dangereuses (1960). Wilen began working in a rock-influenced style during the '60s, recording an album entitled Dear Prof. Leary in 1968. In the early '70s, Wilen led a failed expedition of filmmakers, musicians, and journalists to travel to Africa to document pygmy music. Later Wilen played in a punk rock band called Moko and founded a French Jazzmobile-type organization that took music to people living in outlying areas. He also worked in theater. By the mid-'90s, he was working once again in a bebop vein in a band with the pianist Laurent de Wilde. Much of Wilen's later work was documented on the Japanese Venus label. ~ Chris Kelsey https://www.allmusic.com/artist/barney-wilen-mn0000117853/biography

Personnel: Barney Willen - Saxophone; Michel Graillier - Piano; Ricardo del Fra - Bass; Sangoma Everett - Drums

French Ballads

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Benny Green - The Place To Be

Styles: Piano Jazz
Year: 1994
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 58:51
Size: 135,9 MB
Art: Front

(5:59)  1. Nice Pants
(2:31)  2. Playmate
(6:59)  3. I Want To Talk About You
(3:10)  4. The Place To Be
(5:13)  5. I Felt That
(6:16)  6. Pensativa
(5:56)  7. One Of Another Kind
(5:23)  8. Which Came First?
(3:28)  9. Noreen's Nocturn
(7:13) 10. Concertina
(2:29) 11. The Gravy Waltz
(4:09) 12. The Folks Who Live On The Hill

Benny Green is one of the most gifted jazz pianists around, and The Place To Be shows off his abilities in a variety of settings. The album starts off with a big band arrangement of “Nice Pants” which at times sounds like it’s based on the changes of “Critic’s Choice,” a tune that was a staple of the Buddy Rich book from the 1960s. It has a time medium tempo swing to it and features an excellent bass solo by Christian McBride in addition to Green’s omnipresent powerhouse piano. The big band groove is also found in “I Want to Talk About You,” partly based upon “How High the Moon,” and “I Felt That,” the latter tune with a Thelonious Monk-inspired melody. Green’s trio work is outstanding and nicely varied. “Playmate” is a real tour de force and features blazingly fast single-line and octave runs a la Oscar Peterson. In the middle of the song there is a lot of nice stride piano. 

Green and company change pace with “Pensativa,” a pleasant bossa nova that is indebted to Antonio Carlos Jobim’s “Wave” and also to “You Came Along from Out of Nowhere.” “One of Another Kind” is an interesting composition and almost sounds like an up-tempo version of Miles Davis’ “So What?” Green displays a similar eclecticism with his solo piano pieces. They range from a swinging version of Steve Allen's “Gravy Waltz” to the highly contrapuntal “The Place To Be” to a very sensitive and understated performance of the beautiful ballad “The Folks Who Live on the Hill.” The last song is one of the most poignant compositions in the Great American Songbook, yet it is not performed that often, the most recording being Diana Krall’s. Benny Green is a consummate jazz pianist. He’s mastered all the past styles from Kansas City stride to Bill Evans to bebop and beyond and he’s taking the music to heights unknown. The Place To Be is just that, the place where everyone who appreciates great jazz will want to be. 

~ William Grim https://www.allaboutjazz.com/the-place-to-be-benny-green-blue-note-records-review-by-william-grim.php

Personnel: Benny Green, piano; Delfeayo Marsalis, trombone; Christian McBride, bass; Byron Stripling, trumpet; Gary Smulyan, baritone sax; John Clark, flugelhorn; Kenny Washington, drums; Herb Besson, tuba; Jerry Dodgion, flute, alto sax

The Place To Be

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Chris Gillespie - Live At The Carlyle

Styles: Vocal, Piano Jazz, Cabaret
Year: 2007
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 68:21
Size: 157,8 MB
Art: Front

( 4:40)  1. How About You
( 8:08)  2. But Beautiful
( 4:32)  3. How Deep Is The Ocean
( 5:50)  4. Alone Together
( 5:38)  5. In the Still Of The Night
( 4:37)  6. They Can't Take That Away From Me
( 5:44)  7. What's New
(13:09)  8. Take Five
( 6:04)  9. Don't Explain
( 8:12) 10. Here's To Life
( 1:42) 11. Thank You & Credits

Chris Gillespie epitomizes grace, style and sophistication in keeping with the tradition of the Carlyle Hotel. He has performed in Austria, France, Germany, Australia, Colombia and the Philippines. As a composer and performer, he has entertained Sir Paul McCartney, Bette Midler, Mary Wilson, Billy Joel, Steve Tyrell, Paul Shaffer, Luis Miguel, and heads of state: Juan Manuel Santos, President of Colombia, Petar Stoyanov, President of Bulgaria, and Bill Clinton. Before Mr. Gillespie earned the coveted position of playing 5 nights a week in the prestigious Bemelmans Bar in 2001 either with his trio (Keith Loftis, saxophone, and Dmitri Kolesnik, bass) or on his own he performed in other respected venues such as Windows on the World and The Rainbow Room. Standing out from the crowd, Chris draws from his influences of Bach and Gershwin, combining jazz and classical music as though they were intended to be played together, with audiences erupting in cheers when they hear the transition from one to the other, especially in his take on Paul Desmond's "Take 5”. Chris’s discography consists of “You’ve Arranged the Stars For Me”, a commissioned recording of originals, a compilation from the Great American Song Book titled "L-O-V-E”, and an album produced by Joyce Johnson, “Live At The Carlyle”. His latest recording, “Portraits Of Porter”, is an all-Cole Porter tribute with Bucky Pizzarelli and Martin Pizzarelli on which one can truly experience the broad palette of Gillespie's interpretations. He is also featured on Frank Tate’s album, which is a collection of songs performed by various artists who personally knew the legendary Bobby Short. Mr. Gillespie’s next release will be “The Early Show” (title of the album to be determined), an album replicating the Bemelmans Bar experience when he entertains on his own. Mr. Gillespie has performed at Avery Fisher Hall, Jazz at Lincoln Center, Merkin Concert Hall, The Lehman Center for the Performing Arts with Marvin Hamlisch and the Cafe Carlyle. His appearances on FOX5, NBC, FoxBusiness News, NPR (National Public Radio) in an interview with Faith Middleton brought exposure of his work to a larger audience. http://www.chrisny.com/

Live At The Carlyle

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