Mundell Lowe - A Grand Night For Swinging

Styles: Guitar Jazz
Year: 1957
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 37:59
Size: 88,0 MB
Art: Front

(4:22) 1. It's A Grand Night For Swingin'
(7:18) 2. Blues Before Freud
(7:19) 3. Easy To Love
(2:53) 4. It Could Happen To You
(3:35) 5. Love Me Or Leave Me
(5:37) 6. You Turned The Tables On Me
(6:52) 7. Crazy Rhythm

At one time a listener could place a CD like guitarist Mundell Lowe's A Grand Night for Swinging in the disc player and immediately date it to the 1950s. But the revival of many older styles by younger musicians like guitarist Howard Alden in the '80s and '90s has led to an overlapping of styles. This may make it difficult to match an album to a particular date, but it does help to make older styles more familiar and, thus, accessible. A Grand Night for Swinging is a nice set, featuring Lowe and a good supporting cast including pianist Billy Taylor, bassist Les Grinage, drummer Ed Thigpen, and, on three cuts, alto saxophonist Gene Quill. Known for his cooler tone and lighter touch at the time, Lowe had decided to record an album that proved he could swing a little harder.

The set kicks off with the upbeat title track, a Taylor original, that finds Lowe bopping along with clean flowing lines, similar to Barney Kessel. The up-tempo pieces, like "Love Me or Leave Me" and "Crazy Rhythm," work best, pushing the band into fervent workouts. The addition of Quill on several selections adds depth and drive to cuts like "Blues Before Freud," creating something akin to Kenny Burrell's early '60s work. That this recording should be re-released soon after 2000's Mundell's Mood is fitting; it's a reminder of a distinguished bop/cool tone guitarist who has recorded a number of fine albums since the 1950s. A Grand Night for Swinging will be a real treat for fans unfamiliar with Lowe's earlier work, and a satisfying selection for fans of good jazz guitar.~ Ronnie D. Lankford, Jr. https://www.allmusic.com/album/a-grand-night-for-swinging-mw0000116708

Personnel: Mundell Lowe - guitar; Billy Taylor - piano; Les Grinage - bass; Ed Thigpen - drums; Gene Quill - alto saxophone (tracks 2, 5 & 6)

A Grand Night For Swinging

---

Connie Francis - My Thanks to You

Styles: Vocal
Year: 1959
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 39:50
Size: 91,7 MB
Art: Front

(3:38)  1. My Thanks to You
(2:35)  2. The Bells of St. Mary's
(3:10)  3. A Garden in the Rain
(3:53)  4. Try a Little Tenderness
(3:32)  5. A Tree in the Meadow
(2:37)  6. Now Is the Hour
(3:30)  7. I'll Close My Eyes
(3:51)  8. The Very Thought of You
(4:24)  9. These Foolish Things
(2:26) 10. Cruising Down the River
(3:04) 11. The Gypsy
(3:04) 12. Goodnight Sweetheart

Only two weeks after recording The Exciting Connie Francis, her first adult pop album, Connie Francis was in a studio in England cutting a second one. While the earlier record featured some swinging uptempo material with big band backing, however, My Thanks to You was strictly a sting-filled ballad session, complete with choir backing. Francis sang in her best chaste Catholic girl voice, sounding somewhat constricted by the material and arrangements, but nevertheless respectful. Her attempt to cross over to the adult market turned out to be premature, however, as neither album sold. Francis then hit upon a more commercial idea for expanding her audience, turning to a series of ethnic albums, starting with Italian Favorites.

~ William Ruhlmann https://www.allmusic.com/album/my-thanks-to-you-mw0000895214

My Thanks to You

---

Stu Williamson - Stu Williamson Plays

Styles: Trumpet Jazz
Year: 1955
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 79:41
Size: 183,9 MB
Art: Front

(3:20)  1. Slugger
(3:10)  2. Ther'll Never Be Another You
(2:39)  3. Autumn In New York
(3:16)  4. Sunday
(4:17)  5. The Lady Is A Tramp
(3:51)  6. Yardbird Suite
(3:23)  7. Sapphire
(2:51)  8. The Things We Did Last Summer
(3:54)  9. Strike Up The Band
(3:30) 10. Don't Get Around Much Anymore
(5:40) 11. Stu's Dues Blues
(3:29) 12. Pee Jay
(4:25) 13. Just Friends
(3:48) 14. Darn That Dream
(6:09) 15. Hongry Child
(4:30) 16. Big Red
(5:05) 17. Red Cross
(3:20) 18. Talk Of The Town
(3:58) 19. Dom's Tune
(4:57) 20. Rose Bud

The younger brother of pianist Claude Williamson, Stu Williamson was a fixture on West Coast jazz dates of the 1950s. He moved to Los Angeles in 1949 and spent periods playing with Stan Kenton (1951), Woody Herman (1952-1953), and Kenton again (1954-1955), in addition to shorter stints with Billy May and Charlie Barnet. The mellow-toned Williamson, best-known for his association with Shelly Manne (off and on during 1954-1958), was on a countless number of sessions up until 1968 when he dropped out of the music scene. A drug addict, Stu Williamson spent most of his last two decades struggling outside of music. ~ Scott Yanow http://www.allmusic.com/artist/stu-williamson-mn0000526195/biography

Personnel:  Stu Williamson on trumpet, Charlie Mariano on alto sax, Claude Williamson on piano, Max Bennett on bass and Stan Levey on drums.

Stu Williamson - Plays

---

The Dan Barrett, Enric Peidro Quintet - It's a Wonderful World

Styles: Trombone And Saxophone Jazz
File: MP3@128K/s
Time: 47:25
Size: 44,4 MB
Art: Front

(5:27) 1. Cherokee
(6:22) 2. You blew the flame out of my heart
(4:13) 3. Laughing at life
(3:38) 4. Good Queen Bess
(3:22) 5. Swingin' At The Famous door
(5:20) 6. Ballad Medley: Stairway To The Stars / Dedicated To You
(3:58) 7. This Is My Lucky Day
(4:56) 8. It's a Wonderful World
(4:09) 9. Foolin' Myself
(5:56) 10. Blues for Five

Third album by the swinging team formed by trombonist Dan Barrett and tenor player Enric Peidro.As usual they swing really hard together and respective their tones blend as bread and butter, creating a unique and gorgeous sound that a jazz critic recently described as "medicine for sore ears". Backed by a smooth rhythm section, led by the excellent Richard Busiakiewicz on piano, the two horns keep their "conversational" approach to soloing heard in their previous albums.

Its a joy to hear how their singing soloing lines and phrasing complement each other perfectly. In short this is a new release that both complements and its the perfect following to their previous Cds, as the band keeps intact his "modus operandi".A choice that makes perfect sense cause this unusual two horn team (unusual as they come from different backgrounds, countries and generations) really excels at what they do, so as someone said rightfully "if its not broken, don't fix it".Looking forward to their fourth album together!!

Personnel: Dan Barrett: Trombone; Enric Peidro: Tenor sax; Richard Busiakiewicz: Piano; Andrés Lizón : Bass; Michael Keul: Drums

It's a Wonderful World

---