Sergio Mendes - In The Key of Joy Disc 1, Disc 2

Album: In The Key of Joy Disc 1
Styles: Bossa Nova
Year: 2019
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 43:37
Size: 102,1 MB
Art: Front

(4:11) 1. Sabor Do Rio
(3:20) 2. Bora Lá
(2:54) 3. La Noche Entera
(3:56) 4. Samba In Heaven
(4:13) 5. Muganga
(3:13) 6. In The Key Of Joy
(4:15) 7. Love Came Between Us
(3:11) 8. Catch The Wave
(2:57) 9. Romance In Copacabana
(2:56) 10. This Is It (É Isso)
(4:26) 11. Times Goes By
(3:58) 12. Tangara

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Album: In The Key of Joy Disc 2
Year: 2020
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 58:00
Size: 134,6 MB

(2:39) 1. Mas Que Nada
(4:03) 2. Agua De Beber
(3:57) 3. Primitivo
(3:24) 4. Lamento (No Morro)
(3:14) 5. Pais Tropical
(4:52) 6. Reza
(3:19) 7. Consolacao
(3:05) 8. Going Out Of My Head
(2:43) 9. The Frog
(4:29) 10. Morro Velho
(2:43) 11. The Look Of Love
(3:18) 12. Constant Rain
(4:26) 13. So Many Stars
(3:25) 14. Tonga (A Tonga Da Mironga Do Kabulete)
(4:16) 15. Never Gonna Let You Go
(4:01) 16. Fanfarra – Cabua-Le-Le

With exuberant Brazilian beats variously smoldering and at full flame, In the Key of Joy (Concord Records, 2019) archives the sound and the ambiance that defines Sergio Mendes. In 2020, the composer, keyboardist and vocalist celebrates more than sixty years in the music industry with this release. No matter how many beautiful songs and engaging records Mendes has provided over the years, many of a certain age will always first conjure up Sergio Mendes and Brazil '66. The 1960s produced a musical tapestry that was near limitless in its emotional depth and diversification. Mendes firmly yet delicately grabbed hold of that joy with both hands and has never let go. He has expressed it in pop, jazz, Brazilian and beyond. In 1968 we were treated to his spicy take on Burt Bacharach's "The Look of Love" and the heartbeat of Latin romance was within us. That sound and mood has playfully filled the air ever since.

In the Key of Joy kicks off with a visit from Common on the feisty "Sabor Do Rio." This, along with the title track, with rapper Buddy, illustrate Mendes' ability to stay current and explore new territory, while never sacrificing any of his core sound. Chico Brown's catchy acoustic guitar work is augmented by vocalist Shelea on "Catch the Wave." Mendes shuns the collaborative with his own jaunty piano skills on "Romance in Copacabana." His days with bossa nova legend Antonio Carlos Jobim are remembered with pianist and co-writer Joao Donato playing a duet on the upbeat "Muganga." It's also a family affair as Mendes' wife, singer and muse Gracinha Leporace joins in the fun and Joe Pizzulo's daughter, Sugar Jones, sings "Samba in Heaven." Pizzulo himself adds a reconnect with Mendes on "Love Came Between Us." Long time collaborators Hernan Pascal and Guinga join the party as well. A true celebration of family, friends and music. On the final track, Guinga's snappy guitar grooves signify that the celebration continues.

Released in conjunction with a bright documentary of his career, In the Key of Joy is at once a homage to the past and a step forward. This is a concept record. Breezy, bright, and infectious tunes are generally not the making of a concept record. But again, Sergio Mendes does what he does best. The concept is simple. Relax, get comfortable and breathe in the joy.~Jim Worsley https://www.allaboutjazz.com/in-the-key-of-joy-sergio-mendes-concord-music-group

Personnel: Sergio Mendes: pianos; Leo Costa: drums; Andre de Santana: bass; Paul Jackson Jr.: guitar; Mika Mutti: acoustic guitar, synths & rhythm design, percussion.

In The Key of Joy Disc 1, Disc 2

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René Marie - How Can I Keep From Singing?

Styles: Vocal
Year: 2000
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 62:47
Size: 145,4 MB
Art: Front

(3:43)  1. What A Difference A Day Makes
(6:44)  2. Tennessee Waltz
(1:28)  3. Motherless Child
(6:11)  4. Four Women
(5:01)  5. The Very Thought Of You
(4:07)  6. I Like You
(6:47)  7. Afro Blue
(6:21)  8. A Sleepin' Bee
(6:04)  9. Hurry Sundown
(5:08) 10. God Bless The Child
(5:25) 11. Take My Breath Away
(5:41) 12. How Can I Keep From Singing?

A forty-something singer who retired to raise a family in the Virginia-D.C. area, Marie is making a comeback, and it's a welcome egress. She has a strong individualistic, enjoyable voice which includes parts of Ella, Sarah, Dinah, Betty Carter, Nancy Wilson, and Teri Thornton most closely Thornton. She's smooth but never slick, easy on the ears, with a good range and a deep, rich instrument that can easily belt when commanded. Pianist Mulgrew Miller, guitarist Marvin Sewell, and drummer Gerald Cleaver comprise the glue of these sessions, the ultimate musical accompanists and button pushers. Marie tackles some interesting re-arrangements, like the quick samba version of "What a Difference a Day Makes," atypical hard scattish bopping "God Bless the Child," and Sewell's Duane Allman-ish slide guitar during a bluesy swing take of "Tennessee Waltz" with Marie moaning, groaning, and yeah-ing on the bridge.

"Motherless Child" starts with Ugonna Okegwo's bass and Marie's voice, then merges to light Fender Rhodes based funk for Nina Simone's tale of the black Aunt Sarah, yellow woman/white fathered Sefronia, tan prostitute Sweet Thing, and brown toughie Peaches on "Four Women." Most in the mainstream, Marie sings with Miller in duet and trio on the ballad "The Very Thought of You," the cute, standard, easily swung "A Sleepin' Bee," and on the edge, the delineated, slow 6/8 "Afro-Blue" with jungle percussion by Jeffrey Haynes, soprano saxophonist Sam Newsome, Oscar Brown's deep lyric, and Marie's nervous oohs. As a songwriter Marie shines on the best cut of the date, "I Like You," a hip, swinging modal piano buoying an exhaustive, extended lyric where she likes this special someone more than just about anything. There's also the light bossa original, not the pop tune, "Take My Breath Away" with Sewell's acoustic guitar, and the Enya penned title track, using various pop, folk, and ethnic nuances with Newsome and hand percussion inserted. All in all this is a credible effort that should pave the way for much more, as Marie is quite capable and talented. Recommended. 

~ Michael G.Nastos https://www.allmusic.com/album/how-can-i-keep-from-singing-mw0000064441

Personnel: Rene Marie (vocals); Sam Newsome (soprano saxophone); Mulgrew Miller (piano, Fender Rhodes piano); Marvin Sewell (guitar); Ugonna Okegwo (bass); Gerald Cleaver (drums); Jeffrey Haynes (percussion).               

How Can I Keep From Singing?

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Maxine Sullivan - The Great Songs from the Cotton Club

Styles: Vocal
Year: 2014
File: MP3@192K/s
Time: 47:26
Size: 67,5 MB
Art: Front

(2:09) 1. Happy As the Day Is Long
(3:38) 2. You Gave Me Ev'rything but Love
(2:39) 3. As Long As I Live
(4:10) 4. Raisin' the Rent
(3:39) 5. Neath the Pale Cuban Moon
(5:04) 6. Ill Wind
(2:57) 7. Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea
(2:14) 8. I Love a Parade
(2:54) 9. Harlem Holiday
(2:39) 10. Get Yourself a New Broom
(3:21) 11. Stormy Weather
(3:26) 12. In the Silence of the Night
(3:18) 13. That's What I Hate About Love
(2:17) 14. Primitive Prima Donna
(2:55) 15. I've Got the World on a String

“Maxine Sullivan was in a class by herself. Sullivan gave her all to a song, and in so doing made the song a celebration of the best in classic American popular music rather than an occasion to show off her vocal prowess. It is one of her best albums, and should be heard by all.”~ Lawrence Schulman, ARSC Journal

Back in print for the first time in more than a decade, Harbinger Records’ award-winning album, MAXINE SULLIVAN: THE GREAT SONGS FROM THE COTTON CLUB BY HAROLD ARLEN AND TED KOEHLER is making it’s long-awaited debut on iTunes and other music download sites. Nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Female Vocalist and winner of the NAIRD award in the same category, the album features many previously unrecorded songs by the famous songwriting team of Harold Arlen and Ted Koehler. In addition to the first-time recordings, Sullivan interprets such standards as “Stormy Weather” and “Buds Won’t Bud” with her patented gently swinging style. Hailed on many 10 Best lists, Great Songs from the Cotton Club, brought Maxine Sullivan’s 50-year career to a highpoint and led the way to two more highly regarded recordings for Harbinger, Together: Maxine Sullivan Sings Jule Styne and The Lady’s in Love with You: Maxine Sullivan Sings the Music of Burton Lane.

Maxine Sullivan got her start at a remarkably named nightclub, The Benjamin Harrison Literary Club, in 1934. She sang with Claude Thornhill’s band and had a smash hit with her recording of the Scottish standard, “Loch Lomond.” In the ‘40s, she and her husband, jazz musician John Kirby, became the first black jazz stars to have a regular radio program. She appeared in the films St. Louis Blues and Going Places, the latter in which she and Louis Armstrong introduced the song “Jeepers Creepers.” She and Armstrong had a long friendship and appeared together in the fabled Cotton Club and on Broadway in the musical Swinging the Dream in which Maxine introduced the jazz standard, “Darn That Dream.” She later appeared on Broadway in the show My Old Friends for which she received a Tony Award nomination.

After retiring to raise her children, Maxine created The House That Jazz Built in the South Bronx where she supported programs encouraging young talent and introducing children to the world of jazz. In 1967 she returned to recordings with jazzman Bob Wilbur. Her three albums for Harbinger Records came soon thereafter giving new audiences a chance to hear one of the greatest jazz singers of all time. This long-awaited reissue brings this tremendous album to her legion of fans and to a new generation who can rejoice in the great vocals and great songs of the Cotton Club era. https://www.musicaltheaterproject.org/maxine-sullivan-the-great-songs-from-the-cotton-club.html

Personnel: Vocals – Maxine Sullivan; Alto Saxophone, Clarinet – Phil Bodner; Bass – Phil Flanagan; Drums – Jackie Williams ; Guitar – Marty Grosz; Piano – Keith Ingham

The Great Songs from the Cotton Club

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