Monday, October 12, 2020

Nancy Walker - Rainy Days & Mondays

Styles: Piano Jazz
Year: 2013
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 59:50
Size: 138,3 MB
Art: Front

(3:49) 1. All by Myself
(5:45) 2. The Sound of Silence
(3:22) 3. In My Life
(4:18) 4. Don't It Make My Brown Eyes Blue
(4:36) 5. All out of Love
(4:47) 6. Help Me Make It Through the Night
(4:27) 7. If You Leave Me Now
(4:48) 8. Honesty
(4:13) 9. I'm Not in Love
(4:59) 10. I'd Really Love to See You Tonight
(3:21) 11. If
(4:09) 12. Don't Cry out Loud
(3:47) 13. So Far Away
(3:22) 14. Rainy Days and Mondays

Nancy Walker is a Canadian musician based in the Toronto area. Her work as a pianist and composer reflects her view of the times we live in at times intense, at times poignant, at times cerebral. Her most recent recording as leader is ‘Til Now Is Secret (Addo Records). Showcasing ten of her original compositions, the recording features multi-reed player Shirantha Beddage, guitarist Ted Quinlan, bassist Kieran Overs and drummer Ethan Ardelli, and was made possible with the help of the Ontario Arts Council. Nancy has been recognized Canada-wide. Winner of the 2008 National Jazz Awards Keyboardist Of The Year Award and the 2003 Montréal International Jazz Festival’s prestigious Grand Prix de Jazz, Nancy has several previous discs as leader to her credit. Her debut, Invitation, was released in 1997, and was voted one of the year’s best by Jazz Canadiana reviewers. Toronto Star critic Geoff Chapman named Luminosity (2000) one of the top jazz recordings of that year. Levitation, Nancy’s third recording (2003), was “a fine example of the modern jazz musician’s art” according to the Globe & Mail’s Mark Miller. When She Dreams was released in 2004 on Canada’s premier jazz label, Justin Time Records, and shot to the number one position on Canadian campus radio jazz charts.

In 2005, Nancy and her quartet (featuring saxophonist Kirk MacDonald, bassist Kieran Overs and drummer Barry Romberg) toured the Canadian jazz festivals. That same year Nancy was nominated in four categories at Canada’s National Jazz Awards. In 2006, Nancy’s recording Rainy Days and Mondays (Somerset/Universal) was nominated for a JUNO award in the “Instrumental Album Of The Year” category. She was also among the Keyboardist Of The Year nominees at the 2006 and 2007 National Jazz Awards. Her next recording Need Another was a trio date with Kieran Overs and drummer Ethan Ardelli. Nancy’s 2011 release New Hieroglyphics (made possible with the help of The Ontario Arts Council) featured Ted Quinlan (guitar) along with Overs and Ardelli. Nancy’s quartet toured Western Canada in the fall of 2011 in support of the recording, with the assistance of The Canada Council For The Arts. Nancy has a solid background as a pianist and keyboard player for a variety of international recording and concert acts, both in and outside the jazz idiom. She’s recorded and toured with folk artist Sylvia Tyson, children’s entertainer Raffi, pop icons The Parachute Club, balladeer Roger Whittaker, and well-loved composer (the late) Hagood Hardy, to name a few.

Over the years Nancy has built enduring jazz relationships. As the pianist in the John Geggie Trio, Nancy held the piano chair in the house rhythm section for The Ottawa International Jazz Festival’s nightly jam sessions for over a decade. With bassist Geggie, Nancy has performed in concert with drum legend Billy Hart, contemporary drum heavyweight Matt Wilson and saxophone dynamo Donny McCaslin. She has recorded and performed in concert with the cream of Canada’s jazz vocal crop, from Vancouver’s Karin Plato to Toronto’s Emilie-Claire Barlow, and has worked frequently alongside Toronto saxophonists Kirk MacDonald and Pat Labarbera. Nancy can be heard on recently released recordings by Kirk MacDonald Jazz Orchestra, Fair/Galloway Quintet, John Geggie + Donny McCaslin (this Plunge Records release garnered rave reviews and made several “Best of” lists), and Swedish guitarist Mikko Hildén.Thanks to grants from The Canada Council For the Arts, Nancy has had the opportunity to study with renowned American pianist/composers Fred Hersch, Jason Moran, and Myra Melford. https://nancywalkermusic.com/biography/

“Nancy Walker has played enough piano to know how to keep listeners interested however hard she pushes the boundaries of familiarity.”~ Geoff Chapman, The Whole Note Magazine

Rainy Days & Mondays

Pia Zadora - All or Nothing at All

Styles: Vocal
Year: 2020
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 36:38
Size: 84,5 MB
Art: Front

(3:51) 1. All or Nothing at All
(5:40) 2. Body and Soul
(2:34) 3. The Best Is yet to Come
(3:08) 4. Witchcraft
(4:36) 5. Cry Me a River
(3:14) 6. Teach Me Tonight
(3:19) 7. Nice and Easy
(5:06) 8. Come Rain or Come Shine
(5:06) 9. Tears out to Dry

Often derided by critics in the early '80s for her starring roles in bad movies, Pia Zadora found more respect as a singer. A former child actress, Zadora became a favorite target for film reviewers who argued that her acting career was the result of being married to multimillionaire Meshulam Riklis. (Her Golden Globe award in 1982 was even investigated.) Although Zadora didn't release her first LP, Pia, until 1982, her first recording actually appeared nearly two decades earlier. In 1964, a prepubescent Zadora sang "Hooray for Santa Claus" on the soundtrack to Santa Claus Conquers the Martians. Later, in 1983, "The Clapping Song" from Pia hit number 36 on the Billboard charts. Much of Zadora's best adult music work involved covering big band and pop standards. After Zadora toured with crooner Frank Sinatra in the early '80s, he began to heavily influence the material she was performing. For 1985's Pia & Phil, she was even backed by the London Philharmonic Orchestra. Zadora collaborated with Jermaine Jackson for a modern sound; moreover, in 1988, R&B hitmakers Jimmy Jam & Terry Lewis produced her album When the Lights Go Out, but it was only distributed in the U.K. When the Lights Go Out was followed by Pia Z. in 1989, which marked Zadora's return to the U.S. market. ~ Michael Sutton https://www.allmusic.com/artist/pia-zadora-mn0000846557/biography

All or Nothing at All