Harry 'Sweets' Edison - Gee, Baby Ain't I Good to You

Styles: Trumpet Jazz
Year: 2000
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 43:26
Size: 100,0 MB
Scans: Front

(7:38)  1. Blues For Piney Brown
(4:50)  2. Blues For The Blues
(9:31)  3. Blues For Bill Basie
(3:32)  4. Gee, Baby Ain't I Good To You
(6:52)  5. You're Getting To Be A Habit With Me
(7:03)  6. Taste On The Place
(3:57)  7. Moonlight In Vermont

Harry "Sweets" Edison got the most mileage out of a single note, like his former boss Count Basie. Edison, immediately recognizable within a note or two, long used repetition and simplicity to his advantage while always swinging. He played in local bands in Columbus and then in 1933 joined the Jeter-Pillars Orchestra. After a couple years in St. Louis, Edison moved to New York where he joined Lucky Millinder and then in June 1938, Count Basie, remaining with that classic orchestra until it broke up in 1950. During that period, he was featured on many records, appeared in the 1944 short Jammin' the Blues and gained his nickname "Sweets" (due to his tone) from Lester Young. In the 1950s, Edison toured with Jazz at the Philharmonic, settled in Los Angeles, and was well-featured both as a studio musician (most noticeably on Frank Sinatra records) and on jazz dates. He had several reunions with Count Basie in the 1960s and by the '70s was often teamed with Eddie "Lockjaw" Davis; Edison also recorded an excellent duet album for Pablo with Oscar Peterson. One of the few swing trumpeters to be influenced by Dizzy Gillespie, Sweets led sessions through the years for Pacific Jazz, Verve, Roulette, Riverside, Vee-Jay, Liberty, Sue, Black & Blue, Pablo, Storyville, and Candid among others. Although his playing faded during the 1980s and '90s, Edison could still say more with one note than nearly anyone; he died July 27, 1999, at age 83. ~ Scott Yanow https://www.allmusic.com/artist/harry-sweets-edison-mn0000670641/biography

Personnel: Trumpet – Harry'Sweets'Edison; Bass – Ray Brown; Drums – Alvin Stoller; Guitar – Barney Kessel; Piano – Oscar Peterson; Tenor Saxophone – Ben Webster

Gee, Baby Ain't I Good to You

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Ike Quebec - Blue Harlem

Styles: Saxophone Jazz
Year: 1997
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 78:35
Size: 181,0 MB
Art: Front

(3:40)  1. Tiny's Exercise
(4:28)  2. She's Funny That Way
(4:00)  3. Indiana
(4:37)  4. Blue Harlem
(3:05)  5. Hard Tack
(3:25)  6. If I Had You
(4:15)  7. Mad About You
(4:11)  8. Facin' The Face
(4:00)  9. Blue Turning Grey Over You
(3:17) 10. Dolores
(4:04) 11. The Day You Came Along
(2:56) 12. Sweethearts On Parade
(3:53) 13. I Found A New Baby
(4:30) 14. I Surrender Dear
(3:10) 15. Topsy
(2:55) 16. Cup-Mute Clayton
(3:16) 17. Girl Of My Dreams
(2:49) 18. Jim Dawgs
(2:53) 19. Scufflin'
(2:58) 20. I.Q. Blues
(2:58) 21. The Masquerade Is Over
(3:04) 22. Basically Blue

Influenced by Coleman Hawkins and Ben Webster but definitely his own person, Ike Quebec was one of the finest swing-oriented tenor saxman of the 1940s and '50s. Though he was never an innovator, Quebec had a big, breathy sound that was distinctive and easily recognizable, and he was quite consistent when it came to came to down-home blues, sexy ballads, and up-tempo aggression. Originally a pianist, Quebec switched to tenor in the early '40s and showed that he had made the right decision on excellent 78s for Blue Note and Savoy (including his hit "Blue Harlem"). As a sideman, he worked with Benny Carter, Kenny Clarke, Roy Eldridge, and Cab Calloway. In the late '40s, the saxman did a bit of freelancing behind the scenes as a Blue Note A&R man and brought Thelonious Monk and Bud Powell to the label. Drug problems kept Quebec from recording for most of the 1950s, but he made a triumphant comeback in the early '60s and was once again recording for Blue Note and doing freelance A&R for the company. Quebec was playing as authoritatively as ever well into 1962, giving no indication that he was suffering from lung cancer, which claimed his life at the age of 44 in 1963. ~ Alex Henderson https://www.allmusic.com/artist/ike-quebec-mn0000082037/biography

Blue Harlem

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The Don Menza Sextet - Horn of Plenty

Styles: Saxophone Jazz 
Year: 2016
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 79:49
Size: 184,0 MB
Art: Front

(7:48)  1. Tonawanda Fats
(6:21)  2. In a Sentimental Mood
(7:33)  3. Intrigue
(7:38)  4. As Is
(7:38)  5. Something Old, Something Blue
(6:38)  6. Take the "A" Train
(6:22)  7. Cinderella's Waltz
(6:03)  8. I Should Care
(5:44)  9. Blues for Bird (Burnin')
(8:40) 10. The Very Thought of You
(9:21) 11. Sambandrea Swing

Tenorman Don Menza's regular sextet of the late 1970s (which also includes trumpeter Chuck Findley, trombonist Bill Reichenbach, pianist Frank Strazzeri, bassist Frank De La Rosa and drummer John Dentz) is heard in fine form on two Ellington/Strayhorn standards and originals by Menza, pianist Frank Strazzeri and Marc Levin. Menza's ability to write catchy, fresh-sounding boppish lines and his fiery solos are two strong reasons to search for this little-known but superior LP. ~ Scott Yanow https://www.allmusic.com/album/horn-of-plenty-mw0000199338

"I’ve never figured out why Don Menza is never mentioned in the Top Ten list of tenor sax players. He’s got an incredibly meaty tone, had a few great runs with Maynard Ferguson, Buddy Rich, Elvin Fones and Louis Bellson, and has had a respectable solo career. It could be the curse of being associated with Los Angeles, but he’s never disappointed in concert. This album from 1979 shows a couple things 1) at one time, LA had a thriving jazz scene, as Menza brings together Chuck Findley/tp, Bill Reichenback/tb, Frank Strazzeri/p, Frank De La Rosa/b and John Dentz for a hard hitting collection of standards, originals and variations on jazz pieces. Menza himself sounds voracious as he roars on “In A Sentimental Mood” and the whole team sizzles on the clever groove changes on “Tonawanda Fats.” Strazzeri shows his writing and composing skills on “As Is” while Findley’s brass glows on the bonus tracks “The Very Thought Of You” and “Sambandrea Swing.”The disc includes 5 bonus tracks that were the casualty of the vinyl age, but fill up the space without missing a beat.  The music is all inspiring, muscular and macho, just what is all missing in most of today’s limp wrist deliveries." ~ George W. Harris (October 3, 2016) https://www.freshsoundrecords.com/don-menza-albums/6466-horn-of-plenty-5-bonus-tracks.html

Personnel: Don Menza (ts), Chuck Findley (tp), Bill Reichenbach (tb), Frank Strazzeri (p, Fender Rhodes), Frank De La Rosa (b), John Dentz (d)

Horn of Plenty

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Ariana Savalas - The Ménage a Tour! Live from Las Vegas

Styles: Vocal
Year: 2019
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 39:45
Size: 91,8 MB
Art: Front

(3:24)  1. Pretty Woman
(2:59)  2. Bubblebath
(6:34)  3. Nutcracker
(3:32)  4. Big Ben
(4:45)  5. Cologne
(4:08)  6. Wife Without Parole
(3:59)  7. Blowzart
(1:17)  8. Pure Imagination
(4:33)  9. Curtain Call
(4:29) 10. Playboy Bunny

The youngest daughter of actor Telly Savalas and his wife Julie, Ariana Savalas is a singer/songwriter, dancer, and actress. Following the death of her father in 1994 when Ariana was seven, she and her family moved to her mother's home state of Minnesota, where Ariana studied at a convent high school to participate in its theater program. Her career as a pop singer got an early start when she recorded a song at a mobile karaoke station while on vacation in Austria in her teens. The song made its way to the label Startrax, for whom she recorded a single and an EP produced by European producer Jack White (not to be confused with the former White Stripes founder). This led to Savalas touring Europe and appearing on Austrian television. Following her tour, she was accepted into London's Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, where she studied acting and Shakespeare. Meanwhile, she taught herself piano and began writing songs inspired by Queen, David Bowie, and the Beatles as well as Frank Sinatra and other jazz and vocal pop stars from the '40s and '50s. After moving to Los Angeles, Savalas landed the lead role in the independent film Miriam, about holocaust survivor Miriam Shafer; her other acting credits include the film Akrasia and a role on the CBS drama Criminal Minds. During this time, she also pursued her music, performing as a jazz singer on the cabaret scene and recording her debut album, Kingdom, with producer Mark Portmann. Her debut single, Perfect Man, arrived in January 2012 and featured Grey's Anatomy's Eric Dane in its music video. ~ Heather Phares https://www.allmusic.com/artist/ariana-savalas-mn0002374392/biography

The Ménage a Tour! Live from Las Vegas

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