Joe Williams Feat. Ben Webster - Havin' A Good Time

Styles: Vocal And Saxophone Jazz
Year: 2005
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 54:25
Size: 125,2 MB
Art: Front

(4:21) 1. Just a Sittin' and a Rockin'
(6:43) 2. Kansas City Blues
(3:02) 3. By the River St. Marie
(5:00) 4. That's All
(2:36) 5. Alone Together
(3:10) 6. I'm Through with Love
(2:34) 7. The Great City
(6:23) 8. A Hundred Years from Today
(6:46) 9. Ain't Misbehavin'
(5:57) 10. Honeysuckle Rose
(2:05) 11. Alright, Okay, You Win
(4:47) 12. Have a Good Time
(0:54) 13. Band Intro & Goodbye

Havin' A Good Time documents a concert that never should have happened. In the winter of 1964 Providence was socked with a blizzard that kept eager concertgoers away from the club where Joe Williams was playing. Enough people showed up that he still had to perform a few sets, but the lucky few who were there were given a rare treat; improbably, Ben Webster showed up out of nowhere and asked if he could sit in.

This is the sort of magical encounter on which jazz thrives: no preparation, no rehearsal, just a couple of masters joining together to produce some wonderful music on the spot. According to pianist Junior Mance, this was the only meeting between Webster and Williams, and fortunately it was caught on tape. All of these songs are either well-known or based on fairly simple chord progressions, which allows the band to plug into the numbers without much difficulty.

If Webster hadn't appeared, the set would still have been worth a listen; Williams always did his best work in front of an audience, and the fact that the small crowd had braved the storm to see him no doubt only added to his enthusiastic delivery. Blues songs like "Just A Sittin' and A Rockin' were tailor-made for Williams' rich baritone and exuberant presence. But the presence of Webster adds a new dimension; he gets ample solo space, really digging in to the slower numbers that he plays so beautifully, and huffs quietly behind Williams as he sings. The rhythm section seems invigorated by the chance to play with the added firepower; Junior Mance in particular carves out a niche with some smoking accompaniment.

Havin' A Good Time is an appropriate title for this new release. Clearly the audience enjoyed the collaboration and the musicians crafted some terrific entertainment. It may have been cold and snowy outside, but it sure was hot inside. By David Rickert https://www.allaboutjazz.com/havin-a-good-time-hyena-records-review-by-david-rickert

Personnel: Joe Williams: Vocals; Junior Mance: Piano; Mickey Roker: Drums; Ben Webster: Tenor Saxophone; Bob Cranshaw: Bass.

Havin' A Good Time

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Bob Reynolds - Somewhere in Between

Styles: Saxophone Jazz
Year: 2013
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 59:25
Size: 137,1 MB
Art: Front

(5:23)  1. Creep
(5:30)  2. Feedback
(5:25)  3. The Beginning
(4:16)  4. Holocene
(5:18)  5. What She Didn't Say
(7:01)  6. Rise and Fall
(4:50)  7. A Love Story (In Three Cities)
(4:52)  8. Everlong
(5:55)  9. Phalanx
(5:31) 10. Closer
(5:19) 11. 622 (Bonus Track)

As a saxophonist, Bob Reynolds has worked with a diverse array of artists in both pop (John Mayer, Michael Buble, Usher, Amos Lee, Jessica Simpson, Willie Nelson, Guy Sebastian) and jazz (Richard Bona, Tom Harrell, Brian Blade, Aaron Goldberg, Reuben Rogers, Eric Harland, Gregory Hutchinson). Reynolds is also an award-winning composer with 4 albums of original material and 4 ASCAP Young Jazz Composer Awards to his credit. He graduated with honors from Berklee College of Music and currently lives in Los Angeles.It's been nearly one year since we went into the studio to record this album. It's been nearly two years since I began talking with   Matt Pierson (Joshua Redman, Brad Mehldau) about what this album would be.It's been even longer since I began jotting down configurations for who might play this music, what songs would go on this album, and what the overall concept would be. Longer still since some of these tunes were born.I knew it was going to be a great album; I got the best people for the job. I naively thought this might be the record that caught the attention of a Blue Note, Nonesuch or Concord Records. 

Not because one needs a record label to release music these days. Anybody can put their music on iTunes. All my records are available online. But if you want to reach a wider audience, get promotion, tour effectively, and make more records, you need help. Or you need to be independently wealthy.I discovered jazz during the height of the young lion era. Wynton Marsalis paved the way in the '80s; Joshua Redman, Roy Hargrove and Christian McBride carried the torch in the 90's, and for awhile, every decent jazz musician in New York was putting out records for a label and touring.Those days are gone.But there's a big upside: I get to make whatever music I want with whomever I choose. You can't get dropped when you've never been picked up.My style doesn't fit neatly into a category like acoustic, straight-ahead, mainstream, contemporary or–God-forbid–smooth jazz, so it's a blessing I don't have to make music to please a particular record label.I don't have anyone telling me to make radio edits, use certain "marquee" players, what tunes to play, or that I'd sell more tickets/albums if I just wore leather pants and walked through the audience playing my sax high above my head.That is something to be grateful for.I'm also very grateful there are people in the world who dig my music. And thanks to technology, we're able to communicate directly.

I'm beyond grateful to find myself in such talented company. To have musical friends and compatriots who not only understand my vision, but bring such life, intensity, and personality to it. Does it take longer to produce and manufacture high-quality albums on your own? Yes. Will that prevent me from doing it? No. I only wish I could increase the pace of my output (hence the lament for a label [read: bank]). People love to talk about how "easy and cheap" making music is thanks to laptops, home recording software and the web, but the fact is it costs considerable sums to hire the best musicians, engineers and studios. You can buy tools and materials at Home Depot, but does that mean you should build your own house? Anyway, there's a track below in the YouTube media box we are all very excited about. I hope it makes you smile. http://www.jazzreview.com/jazz-spotlights/somewhere-in-between-by-bob-reynolds.html

Personnel: Bob Reynolds - tenor, soprano saxes; Eric Harland - drums; Janek Gwizdala - bass; Oli Rockberger - piano, keyboards; John Shannon - guitar; Bashiri Johnson - percussion with special guests John Mayer - guitar, lap steel guitar (2, 3)
Aaron Parks - piano (1, 3, 5)

Somewhere in Between

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Jeri Southern - Jeri Southern Blue Note, Chicago, March 1956

Styles: Vocal And Piano Jazz
Year: 2016
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 68:17
Size: 158,6 MB
Art: Front

(4:01)  1. I Hadn't Anyone Till You - Live
(0:23)  2. Jeri Introduces Her Trio Members - Live
(2:33)  3. Mad About the Boy - Live
(2:19)  4. You Better Go Now - Live
(3:19)  5. I'm in Love with the Honorable Mr. So and So - Live
(2:16)  6. Dancing on the Ceiling - Live
(2:18)  7. I Get a Kick out of You - Live
(3:33)  8. Too Late Now - Instrumental, Live
(4:18)  9. This Can't Be Love - Live
(3:30) 10. Miss Johnson Phoned Again Today - Live
(4:15) 11. One Day I Wrote His Name Upon the Sand - Live
(3:56) 12. It's De-Lovely - Live
(3:24) 13. September in the Rain - Live
(3:49) 14. When I Fall in Love - Live
(2:09) 15. Every Time - Live
(3:49) 16. He Was Too Good to Me - Live
(2:55) 17. Someone to Watch over Me - Live
(3:05) 18. Scarlet Ribbons - Unaccompanied Vocal, Live
(4:45) 19. Too Marvelous for Words - Live
(4:19) 20. Something Wonderful - Live
(3:10) 21. I've Got a Crush on You - Live

It’s a shame that pianist and vocalist Jeri Southern’s self-truncated career has left her a mere footnote in the history of jazz singing-for she ranked among the most gifted and compelling artists of the 1950s, blending the cool-school sangfroid of Chris Connor with the purr of Peggy Lee and the sophisticated sultriness of Julie London. (All the while she proved equally impressive behind a Steinway, with shades of Nat Cole, Art Tatum and Erroll Garner.) Southern released a dozen albums, all for major labels-Decca, Capitol, Roulette-before her chronic stage fright got the better of her and she retired from performing in 1962, still in her mid-30s. Her slim but stellar output included just one live LP, 1959’s At the Crescendo. At last, a quarter-century after her death, comes this 70-minute session, captured with stunning quality at Chicago’s Blue Note in early 1956. Alongside a pair of house-band stalwarts-bassist Al Bruno and drummer Dominic Simonetta-she navigates a sterling playlist: Noël Coward, Rodgers and Hart, Cole Porter, Burton Lane, Alan Jay Lerner, the Gershwins and a stunning, a cappella “Scarlet Ribbons.” Across her career’s dozen years, Southern also carved a unique niche, specializing in vaguely scandalous romantic mini-sagas. That enticing peculiarity is winningly exercised here, as she sketches the angst-driven drama of “Miss Johnson Phoned Again Today,” “One Day I Wrote His Name Upon the Sand,” “I’m in Love With the Honorable Mr. So and So” and her sole signature hit, the edge-of-sin “You Better Go Now.”~ Christopher Loudon https://jazztimes.com/reviews/albums/jeri-southern-blue-note-chicago-march-1956/

Jeri Southern Blue Note, Chicago, March 1956

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Jazz Funk Soul - Forecast

Styles: Contemporary Jazz
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 44:48
Size: 103,4 MB
Art: Front

(3:33) 1. Hustle
(5:43) 2. Keep Holding On
(5:17) 3. Funkin' in AZ
(4:23) 4. Forecast
(3:50) 5. Bouncing Back
(5:15) 6. Fish Grease
(3:14) 7. Count Me In
(5:44) 8. When the Time Comes
(3:43) 9. Hidden in Plain Sight
(4:02) 10. CSL (For Charles Samuel Loeb)

On their fourth album, 2022's wryly titled Forecast, instrumental jazz supergroup Jazz Funk Soul further embrace their hooky, soulful sound. The record follows 2019's Life and Times, which found guitarist Paul Jackson, Jr. taking over for original guitarist Chuck Loeb (who tragically died from cancer in 2017) and joining forces with the other founding members, saxophonist Everette Harp and keyboardist Jeff Lorber. Though subtle, the change from Loeb to Jackson was significant, as each player brought his own distinctive style to the band's overall sound.

With Loeb, the trio favored soaring, brightly attenuated pop-jazz melodies. While that melodicism remains a core part of the group's style (just check out "Count Me In"), Jackson brings a crisp, rhythmic R&B sensibility to their sound, informed by his many years of working with artists like Quincy Jones, Michael Jackson, and Whitney Houston. If Life and Times evoked the funky soul-jazz of the Crusaders and sax icon David Sanborn, then Forecast makes such comparisons vibrantly explicit. Cuts like the opening "Hustle," "Fish Grease," and "Funkin' in AZ" spotlight the warm interplay between Harp's juicy sax lines, Lorber's rich keyboard harmonies, and Jackson's bluesy fretboard riffs.

Particularly evocative of the Crusaders' sound is "When the Time Comes," with its warm acoustic bass groove and summery, laid-back atmosphere. The trio even pay tribute to their late bandmate with the poignant slow-jam album closer "CSL (For Charles Samuel Loeb)." With Forecast, Jazz Funk Soul underline their reputation as masters of no-consense, soulful contemporary jazz.By Matt Collar https://www.allmusic.com/album/forecast-mw0003734081


Personnel: Everette Harp - Saxophone; Jeff Lorber - Keyboard; Paul Jackson Jr.- Guitar

Forecast

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