Wednesday, February 19, 2020

Rosemary Clooney - Swings Softly

Size: 74,4 MB
Time: 30:50
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Released: 1960/2010
Styles: Jazz Vocals
Art: Front

01. For You (1:55)
02. Always Together (2:46)
03. You Ol' Son Of A Gun (2:31)
04. I Wonder (2:48)
05. Always Be In Love (2:23)
06. Grieving For You (2:46)
07. With You And Me (2:20)
08. Looking For A Boy (2:12)
09. With The Night (2:57)
10. Love Eyes (2:29)
11. Sorry For Myself (2:39)
12. Keep It Simple (2:58)

Rosemary Clooney (May 23, 1928 – June 29, 2002) was an American singer and actress. She came to prominence in the early 1950s with the song "Come On-a My House", which was followed by other pop numbers such as "Botch-a-Me", "Mambo Italiano", "Tenderly", "Half as Much", "Hey There" and "This Ole House". She also had success as a jazz vocalist. Clooney's career languished in the 1960s, partly due to problems related to depression and drug addiction, but revived in 1977, when her White Christmas co-star Bing Crosby asked her to appear with him at a show marking his 50th anniversary in show business. She continued recording until her death in 2002.

Swings Softly

Harry Allen & Scott Hamilton - 'Round Midnight

Size: 437 MB
Time: 66:23
File: FLAC
Released: 2012
Styles: Jazz
Art: Front & Back

01. My Melancholy Baby (6:03)
02. Great Scott (7:51)
03. How Am I To Know (8:29)
04. The Opener (6:26)
05. Baubles, Bangles And Beads (8:43)
06. Hey Lock! (7:50)
07. Lover (8:10)
08. Flight Of The Foo Birds (6:06)
09. 'Round Midnight (6:40)

Tenor saxophonists Harry Allen and Scott Hamilton are veterans who have occasionally shared the stage and recorded together, a complementary pairing reminiscent of the team of Al Cohn and Zoot Sims. For these 2012 sessions, the two tenorists are joined by pianist Rosanno Sportiello, bassist Joel Forbes, and drummer Chuck Riggs, all of whom, like the co-leaders, are regulars on the jazz party circuit. The songs selected include a mix of standards, jazz favorites, and a handful of obscurities. Their relaxed interpretation of the old chestnut "My Melancholy Baby" is anything but hackneyed, with a conversation between the two tenors. The hard-driving bop setting of Rodgers & Hart's "Lover" showcases how well the tenor men complement one another's playing, with Forbes' potent bass work driving them. The standard "Baubles, Bangles and Beads" was a favorite of Gerry Mulligan; this version transforms it into an easygoing bossa nova. The breathy vibrato in the robust setting of "'Round Midnight" recalls the great Ben Webster. One hidden gem is the brisk, swinging take of Neal Hefti's "Flight of the Foo Birds" (the title was inspired by an old joke with a Spoonerism punch line), written for Count Basie and long forgotten. Allen's punchy "Great Scott" is a reworking of "Indiana" that was inspired by a riff he heard Hamilton play; together they swing like mad. This rewarding release proves there is still plenty of life left in two-tenor record dates. ~Ken Dryden

'Round Midnight