Saturday, March 27, 2021

Shirley Horn - But Beautiful: The Best Of Shirley Horn

Styles: Vocal And Piano Jazz
Year: 2005
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 63:09
Size: 145,9 MB
Art: Front

(2:27)  1. I Just Found Out About Love
(7:10)  2. You Won't Forget Me
(2:58)  3. You Don't Know Me
(2:05)  4. The Great City
(4:45)  5. Fever
(6:04)  6. If You Love Me
(6:45)  7. A Time For Love
(2:51)  8. Come Dance With Me
(4:53)  9. Nice 'n' Easy
(4:43) 10. But Beautiful
(5:37) 11. Here's To Life
(4:54) 12. Jelly, Jelly (Bonus Track)
(3:07) 13. Loads Of Love (Bonus Track)
(4:43) 14. I Didn't Know What Time It Was (Bonus Track)

Shirley Horn is a jazz diva who needs little introduction. This veteran of song is one of the classic vocalists of any era. But Beautiful gives us some classic recordings that highlight her career, as well as three bonus tracks recorded from a recent performance at the Au Bar in New York City. The first eleven tracks are from Horn's Verve Records catalogue, including I Thought About You and Loads of Love: Shirley Horn with Horns, which was originally released on Mercury Records. Horn became a singer by accident. While performing as a pianist in a restaurant/nightclub, she recalls a regular patron who brought a large teddy bear with him. Horn said the man offered her the bear if she would sing "Melancholy Baby. She wanted the toy badly enough that she overcame her shyness and sang. This led to others asking her to sing, and Horn gradually established herself as a vocalist. Over the years, she spent time working with Miles Davis and raising her daughter. Shortly before his death in 1991, Davis added his trumpet to the title track of Horn's "You Won't Forget Me," which appears on the new release. The singer paid tribute to the man who helped her rise to jazz prominence with "I Remember Miles, for which she won a Grammy for Best Jazz Vocal Performance.

But Beautiful highlights some of the best recordings of Horn's career. "You Won't Forget Me displays Horn's vocal perfection, complemented by Davis' muted trumpet. "The Great City, a swinging tune that first appeared on Horn's Loads of Love, is a delightful but cautionary tale about a wide-eyed young person who thinks the big city is the answer to his or her problems. "If you come in, make sure you can get back out, Horn sings. "Jelly, Jelly, one of the three bonus tracks, is an easygoing, bluesy cut that features Roy Hargrove on trumpet in one of the few notable instrumental solos on the album. Throughout, Horn is at her best. While her sound is clean and her tone perfect, she sings with the same soulful flair that got Miles Davis' attention many years ago. To Shirley Horn fans who already have all her albums, the three bonus tracks, while good, may not be worth it. But for those who haven't heard much Horn, But Beautiful is a great place to start.~Woodrow Wilkins http://www.allaboutjazz.com/but-beautiful-the-best-of-shirley-horn-shirley-horn-verve-music-group-review-by-woodrow-wilkins.php
 
Personnel: Shirley Horn: vocals, piano; various artists with Ed Howard: bass (11-13); Steve Williams: drums (11-13); Roy Hargrove: trumpet (11, 13); George Mesterhazy: guitar (11-13); Buck Hill: saxophone (13).

But Beautiful: The Best Of Shirley Horn

Artie Shaw - Begin The Beguine

Styles: Clarinet Jazz
Year: 1987
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 66:27
Size: 157,4 MB
Art: Front

(2:49)  1. Nightmare
(3:13)  2. Indian Love Call (From "Rose Marie")
(3:13)  3. Back Bay Shuffle
(3:11)  4. Any Old Time
(2:12)  5. Traffic Jam
(3:18)  6. Comes Love
(3:18)  7. What Is This Thing Called Love?
(3:13)  8. Begin the Beguine
(3:10)  9. Oh! Lady Be Good
(3:02) 10. Frenesi
(2:33) 11. Serenade to a Savage
(3:13) 12. Deep Purple
(2:46) 13. Special Delivery Stomp
(3:18) 14. Summit Ridge Drive
(3:08) 15. Temptation
(3:34) 16. Stardust
(6:30) 17. Blues, Pts. I & II - (From William Grant Still's "Lennox Avenue Suite")
(3:26) 18. Moonglow
(3:07) 19. Moon Ray
(4:04) 20. The Carioca

Among the big band leaders of the 1930s and '40s, Artie Shaw was considered one of the most innovative and creative. His rendition of "Begin the Beguine" is the one everybody remembers and set the gold standard for that song. Yet, his arrangements and solos on the licorice stick are second to none. ~ Editorial Reviews https://www.amazon.com/Begin-Beguine-Artie-Shaw/dp/B000002W97

Begin The Beguine

Rebecca Binnendyk - I Don't Belong to You

Styles: Vocal
Year: 2019
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 35:03
Size: 81,9 MB
Art: Front

(2:53) 1. I Don't Belong to You
(3:37) 2. Your Love Isn't Enough
(3:32) 3. Brick by Brick
(3:02) 4. Baby Back
(3:39) 5. You Can Leave Your Hat On
(4:05) 6. Slip Slidin' Away
(3:58) 7. Circles
(3:14) 8. Everybody Knows
(3:37) 9. I Like It When You Love Me
(3:23) 10. Brick by Brick (Acoustic)

The Canadian singer-songwriter Rebecca Binnendyk just released a new song ‘I Don’t Belong To You’ and it’s actually really catchy, upon hearing it for the first time we knew it was something special. Rebecca’s writing style is unique and catchy, and her voice is a piece of heaven. This song is worth checking out as we’re positive you’re going to love the production style here.

The Canadian singer-songwriter, who has delivered medical supplies to the Maasai tribe and taught sex education and music to young people in Uganda, is pairing the release of her second album, I Don’t Belong To You (released Sept 13th), with raising money for Plan International Canada, a global organization dedicated to advancing children’s rights, equality and education for girls and the putting an end to female genital cutting which affects 3.9 million annually women and girls globally. http://cheerstothevikings.com/2019/10/01/rebecca-binnendyk-i-dont-belong-to-you/

I Don't Belong to You

Dr. Lonnie Smith - Breathe

Styles: Hammond b3 Organ
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 63:52
Size: 148,4 MB
Art: Front

( 7:45) 1. Why Can't We Live Together
( 7:25) 2. Bright Eyes - Live
( 7:33) 3. Too Damn Hot - Live
( 9:44) 4. Track 9 - Live
(12:04) 5. World Weeps - Live
( 8:20) 6. Pilgrimage - Live
( 4:22) 7. Epistrophy - Live
( 6:37) 8. Sunshine Superman

A new release by the iconic 78 year old New York organist Dr Lonnie Smith is always keenly anticipated, and this his third since returning to the Blue Note label after nearly 50 years absence is no exception. During his lengthy career the Hammond B 3 specialist has recorded thirty albums as a leader and appeared on very many other recordings, notably with the likes of saxophonist Lou Donaldson, guitarist George Benson and bassist Red Holloway. Now a N.E.A. Jazz Master, he was voted Organist of the year no less than nine times by The Jazz Journalists Association since 2003. A documentary film showcasing the talents of this remarkable and forward thinking musician entitled "Dr B3 The Soul Of The Music" by the award winning Canadian film maker Ed Barreveld was nearing completion as of December last year.

Six of the eight tracks on this almost one hour long, highly entertaining album were recorded during the organists 75th birthday celebrations at The Jazz Standard club in New York City during 2017. That session forms the centre piece of the recording but is top and tailed by two studio takes of the organ, guitar and drums trio with guest vocalist Iggy Pop. Jazz purists should have no concern about the presence of this 73 year old artist from Michigan once known as "The Godfather of Punk" for his time with "The Stooges" and his work with the late great David Bowie, as he fits perfectly into the context of the recording with minimalistic and subdued renderings of the Timmy Thomas tune Why Can't We Live Together and Donovan's 1966 hit Sunshine Superman. It is however the club session that really strikes home, most of the tunes are from the leaders pen and show great originality in both their concepts and execution. The doctor's organ sound is almost always understated and full of intriguing subtle harmonies, the one exception being on the more up-beat Bright Eyes where overtones of the ever popular Jimmy Smith are evident, but even this is somewhat a slow burner and contains one of a number of telling solo passages during the set from the North Carolinian saxophonist John Ellis.

All the numbers have an inbuilt delicacy about them without ever becoming trite or sentimental in any way. A good example of this is the rather strangely titled Track 9, which although intricate in parts has a strong searching quality about it and brings a stratospheric interlude from trumpet man Sean Jones to the fore alongside a telling contribution from the baritone of ex Roy Hargrove Big Band saxophonist Jason Marshall. A key component of the whole ambient sound of the set is the performance throughout of guitarist Jonathan Kreisberg who has now been in the band for over eleven years and supplies both superb single note runs as well as having a strong affinity when exchanging ideas with the leader. This is particularly so when the band reverts to the trio mode, such as on the twelve minute World Weeps, a truly stunning and sensitive piece to begin with that builds layers of tension as the tempo and volume increases to an almost angry level as it progresses before once more dropping down into more calmer waters. Proceedings are further enhanced on one track by the presence of the mezzo soprano Alicia Olatuja, a vocalist more than comfortable in a wide range of settings from The Brooklyn Tabernacle Choir to The Julliard Jazz Ensemble, who engrained her reputation considerably with a well publicised performance at Barack Obama's second presidential inauguration. Here she quite obviously brings the house down on Meryl Konenigsberg's poignant lyrics to Lonnie Smiths excellent composition Pilgrimage. In summary this is a very fine album, not just for the performances of the main soloists but also for the tight ensemble sound when the band are in septet mode and the stunning but sensitive drumming of Jonathan Blake from first to last. Although it is only March it is very likely that this disc will at least be pencilled in on some peoples top ten jazz albums of 2021. by Jim Burlong https://www.jazzviews.net/dr-lonnie-smith---breathe.html

Personnel: Dr Lonnie Smith ( Hammond B3 Organ), Sean Jones (trumpet), Robin Eubanks (trombone), John Ellis (tenor), Jason Marshall ( baritone), Jonathan Kreisberg (guitar), Johnathan Blake (drums), Guest vocalists, Iggy Pop & Alicia Olatuja.

Breathe

Shirley Horn - Jazz 'Round Midnight

Styles: Vocal And Piano Jazz
Year: 1988
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 62:39
Size: 143,9 MB
Art: Front

(6:44)  1. A Time For Love
(4:39)  2. Someone To Light Up My Life
(3:40)  3. Beautiful Love
(4:45)  4. Fever
(4:24)  5. Loving You
(4:02)  6. How Long Has This Been Going On
(6:10)  7. Quietly There
(2:47)  8. Baby, Baby All The Time
(3:00)  9. You Don't Know Me
(4:40) 10. I Wanna Be Loved
(2:57) 11. Peel Me a Grape
(3:26) 12. How Am I To Know?
(3:21) 13. So I Love You
(7:57) 14. Meaning Of The Blues

Jazz 'Round Midnight is an enjoyable budget-priced sampler of 14 songs from Shirley Horn's stint at Verve. While this collection is hardly definitive, it is quite enjoyable, sporting an appealingly low-key, seductive atmosphere and several dynamite performances, including versions of "A Time for Love," "Fever," "Loving You," "How Long Has This Been Going On?," "I Wanna Be Loved," "So I Love You" and "The Meaning of the Blues."~Stephen Thomas Erlewine http://www.allmusic.com/album/jazz-round-midnight-shirley-horn-mw0000031881

Personnel: Shirley Horn (vocals, piano); Wynton Marsalis (vocals, trumpet); Johnny Mandel, Roy Hargrove, Toots Thielemans (vocals); Jim Walker (flute); George Mesterhazy (piano); Larry Bunker (vibraphone); Steve Williams (drums); Alex Acuña (percussion).

Jazz 'Round Midnight

The Pied Pipers - In A Tribute To Tommy Dorsey

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 34:56
Size: 80.0 MB
Styles: Vocal harmony group
Year: 1997/2011
Art: Front

[2:37] 1. I'm Getting Sentimental Over You
[2:39] 2. Oh! Look At Me Now
[3:45] 3. Once In A While
[3:06] 4. On The Sunny Side Of The Street
[3:11] 5. I'll Never Smile Again
[2:13] 6. Heat Wave
[3:29] 7. There Are Such Things
[2:32] 8. The One I Love (Belongs To Somebody Else)
[2:52] 9. Street Of Dreams
[2:22] 10. Marie
[2:54] 11. Taking A Chance On Love
[3:10] 12. Let's Get Away From It All

Originally consisting of eight members, the Pied Pipers had their greatest success after nearly half of the members left the group. The remaining Pipers (Billy Wilson, Chuck Lowry, Jo Stafford, and her then-husband John Huddleston) joined the Tommy Dorsey Band in 1939, backing Sinatra on many classic recordings. In 1942 the Pied Pipers broke away from Dorsey, and Huddleston joined the army, to be replaced by Hal Hopper, one of the original eight members. The group backed Johnny Mercer on several tracks during the early 40s, including "Candy" and "Blues in the Night." Their first single ("Deacon Jones"/"Pistol Packin' Mama") was released in 1943. Stafford had become quite busy with her solo career and left the group in 1944, to be replaced by June Hutton. Throughout the rest of the decade the Pied Pipers charted frequently, yet their popularity waned in the '50s. A group bearing the Pied Pipers' name still tours today. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine

In A Tribute To Tommy Dorsey