Lindsey Webster - Reasons

Styles: Vocal
Year: 2022
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 61:24
Size: 141,7 MB
Art: Front

(5:52) 1. I Didn't Mean It (Feat. Brian Culbertson)
(5:50) 2. Love Of Your Life (Feat. Nathan East)
(4:34) 3. Just The Night
(5:43) 4. Stay With Me (Feat. Randy Brecker & Kev Choice)
(5:47) 5. Wish You Well
(4:52) 6. The Way
(1:46) 7. 4am
(5:39) 8. Twin Flame
(5:28) 9. You Take Me
(5:18) 10. Reasons
(6:06) 11. I'm Ok (Feat. Nicholas Payton)
(4:24) 12. Stay With Me (Soul Jazz Mix) (Feat. Randy Brecker)

Chart-topping vocalist and songstress Lindsey Webster emerges from lockdown and the end of marriage stronger than ever. Reasons, her fourth album since her 2016 breakout, shows both artistic growth and resiliency.

Now a consistent hit maker in the crossover jazz realm, Webster has the luxury of getting the very best sessionists available to take her songs a bit higher still. Indeed, she enlisted help in guest spots from the likes of Brian Culbertson, Nathan East, Randy Brecker and Nicholas Payton. But as it’s always been, the Lindsey Webster Sound starts with Webster and long-time songwriting partner & keyboardist Keith Slattery, a musical partnership that is going strong as ever even after the marital partnership ended.

We got an early exposure to the advance single “I Didn’t Mean It” that gets the album off on the good foot, putting all of Webster’s strong suits as a vocalist and composer up front.As you go through Reasons, it becomes clearer that this is as much of an RnB record as it is a smooth jazz record, and Webster has fluency in both camps and knows how to put it together into her own personal genre.

For instance, “Love of Your Life” goes deep into Quiet Storm territory, but with lush jazz chords helped along by tasteful synth backing and a vocal bass scat from East. “Twin Flame” is more of that Quiet Storm, reaching its apogee when Webster hits those really high notes. That lushness carries over in the intro “The Way” and settles into a satisfying Philly soul sway. This “Reasons” isn’t the one made into hit by Earth, Wind & Fire but is nevertheless a similarly sweetened slice of soul.

Webster’s slow tunes are equally effectively at setting the right mood: “Just The Night” is a ballad that gets the job done solely off of Webster’s aching vocal delivery. But that segues right into another a snappy mid-tempo funk number “Stay With Me” that nods to the current scene with a guest rap turn from Kev Choice and an historical horn presence via Brecker’s flugelhorn (another mix of the song takes out the rapping).

“Wish You Well” has Webster singing a low, sultry and sassy voice, and Steely Dan-smooth horn backing. More horns add a suave touch to the lightly funky “I’m OK,” and Payton is on hand to deliver a flawless trumpet solo.

Lindsey Webster has been going through a change as she adjusts back into the ups and downs of the single life, providing a lot of fodder for her latest set of songs. But thankfully nothing has changed fundamentally in her craftsmanship and style; it’s still quality soul-satisfying music for grow-nups. https://somethingelsereviews.com/2022/10/07/lindsey-webster-reasons/

Reasons

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Bill Coleman - Learning How to Disappear

Styles: Trumpet Jazz
Year: 2022
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 79:19
Size: 182,6 MB
Art: Front

(4:36) 1. From Boogie To Funk
(6:32) 2. Afromotive In Blue
(3:25) 3. Come On A My House
(9:46) 4. Have Blues Will Play 'Em
(2:54) 5. Lester Leaps In
(5:10) 6. Colemanology
(5:13) 7. In My Solitude
(2:58) 8. The Blues Jumped Up And Got Me
(4:56) 9. Pound Horn
(6:12) 10. Bill Coleman Blues
(4:06) 11. Mood Indigo
(9:42) 12. Bill, Budd And Butter
(5:50) 13. I Surrender, Dear
(3:09) 14. Si Jolie
(4:43) 15. St. James Infirmary

A mellow-toned swing trumpeter with a distinctive sound and a lyrical style, Bill Coleman was a consistent if never particularly famous musician. In 1927, he went to New York with Cecil and Lloyd Scott's band, with whom he made his recording debut. He worked with Luis Russell (1929-1932) and Charlie Johnson, and then in 1933 traveled to France with Lucky Millinder. Coleman recorded with Fats Waller (1934) and played with Teddy Hill's Orchestra (1934-1935), but then moved to France for the first time in 1935.

While overseas, he recorded frequently as a leader (really coming into his own), with Willie Lewis' Orchestra, and on dates with Django Reinhardt. He ventured as far as Bombay, and spent 1938-1940 in Egypt with Herman Chittison. Returning to New York, Coleman played with Benny Carter, Teddy Wilson, Andy Kirk, Mary Lou Williams, and John Kirby during 1940-1945, and recorded with Lester Young and Coleman Hawkins (both in 1943). However, he preferred life in Europe and, after a period with groups led by Sy Oliver and Billy Kyle, in 1948, Coleman moved permanently back to France, staying active and recording fairly regularly up until his death in 1981. By Scott Yanow https://www.allmusic.com/artist/bill-coleman-mn0000068537/biography

Learning How to Disappear

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Rickie Lee Jones - It's Like This

Styles: Vocal
Year: 2000
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 37:31
Size: 86,4 MB
Art: Front

(4:35) 1. Show Biz Kids
(5:12) 2. Trouble Man
(2:32) 3. For No One
(1:49) 4. Smile
(5:13) 5. Low Spark of High Heeled Boys
(3:26) 6. On the Street Where You Live
(4:30) 7. I Can't Get Started
(2:50) 8. Up a Lazy River
(2:03) 9. Someone to Watch Over Me
(3:16) 10. Cycles
(1:58) 11. One Hand, One Heart

Not since Billie Holiday has there been a vocalist who so completely transforms a song into her own. On It's Like This, eclectic folkie Rickie Lee Jones envelops standards, showtunes, '70s soul, and even slick jazz-rock, interpreting them with her familiar childlike, breathy shouts. In a very similar vein as 1991's Pop Pop, Jones pulls together a collection of diverse songs from throughout the 20th century and gives them a sparse, fragile spin, kind of like Diana Krall and Björk sharing coffee at an all-night diner.

Produced by Bruce Brody (who has also worked with Maria McKee and Bette Midler), this album is really a showcase for the dynamic vocalist her voice pitching and yawing like a sloop far out at sea. Several notable artists scatter themselves unobtrusively throughout the album like Joe Jackson, Ben Folds, John Pizzarelli, and Taj Mahal; each lend a subtle bassline or harmony vocal, cautiously not stepping on any of Jones' delicate lines.

Her passionate, earthy version of Marvin Gaye's "blaxploitation" hit "Trouble Man" is as soulful as her cover of the Beatles' "For No One" is pleading, each reaching out to the listener like a whisper from an inch away. Jones' unmistakable style is unlike anyone else's, and that fact alone will turn away some potential listeners; however, for fans of gentle jazz-pop, It's Like This is an intimate, dreamy wander through the songbooks of the last century. By Zac Johnson
https://www.allmusic.com/album/its-like-this-mw0000094246

It's Like This

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Tim Warfield - Jazz Is ...

Styles: Saxophone Jazz
Year: 2001
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 70:13
Size: 161,9 MB
Art: Front

(11:55)  1. Silence - The Angels Are Crying
( 8:14)  2. Origins
(10:24)  3. My Shining Hour
( 9:32)  4. The Magic Bag
( 8:43)  5. Tune # 2
(10:28)  6. My Old Country
(10:54)  7. Until Further Notice

Although it exists solely for the purposes of recordings and the occasional live gig, Tim Warfield’s quintet (Warfield- tenor saxophone; Nicholas Payton- trumpet; Cyrus Chestnut- piano; Tarus Mateen- bass; Clarence Penn- drums) has been a marvel to hear over the course of four albums dating back to the critically acclaimed A Cool Blue from 1995. They say the highest compliment that can be paid a jazz artist is the attainment of an individual voice, and in this regard Warfield stands head and shoulders above many of his peers. With a breathy and soulful timbre, his tenor voice is immediately identifiable; his compositions seek to explore a vociferous and spiritual platform that harkens back to the days of Coltrane. Unfolding in the way that a fine novel reveals itself over the course of many chapters, “Silence- The Angels Are Crying” opens with a whisper before unleashing several solo segments taken at a headier tempo. With a ‘60s Milesian flair, “Origins” possesses a catchy stop-and-go melody and a relaxed gait that allows for several extended forays. By contrast, “My Shinning Hour” is almost all Warfield and a tour-de-force it is, filled with exciting climaxes and those upper register ‘cries’ that give the saxophonist his emotional base. With an opening melody that very briefly recalls “Star Eyes,” Warfield’s “Tune #2” moves at a relaxed pace and lets Payton bask in the limelight for awhile. Just listen to the way the trumpeter paces himself and uses space to give a lesson in improvisation at the highest pinnacle. 

Then Warfield enters with that characteristic swagger and a velvet cushion provided by Mateen and Penn. Rounding things out are “The Old Country,” which finds vibe man Stefon Harris in Hutcherson mode during a well-crafted spot; and “Until Further Notice,” another wonder of shifting tempos and a perfect forum for the multifaceted brilliance of Clarence Penn. At its best, this latest installment in the saga of the Tim Warfield group is yet another lesson in the integrity and complexity that can be achieved with working groups who clearly understand the foundations of jazz. ~ C.Andrew Hovan https://www.allaboutjazz.com/jazz-is-tim-warfield-criss-cross-review-by-c-andrew-hovan.php

Personnel: Tim Warfield (tenor sax), Nicholas Payton (trumpet), Stefon Harris (vibes), Cyrus Chestnut (piano), Tarus Mateen (bass), Clarence Penn (drums)

Jazz Is ...

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Nathan Davis - Two Originals (Happy Girl & The Hip Walk)

Styles: Flute And Saxophone Jazz
Year: 1965
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 76:42
Size: 176,3 MB
Art: Front

(4:53)  1. The Flute In The Blues
(7:04)  2. Spring Can Really Hang You Up The Most
(7:18)  3. Happy Girl
(7:15)  4. Evolution
(5:08)  5. Theme From Zoltan
(2:18)  6. Along Came Byrd
(3:21)  7. Mister E.
(7:00)  8. The Hip Walk
(7:23)  9. While Children Sleep
(5:26) 10. Train Of Thought
(2:54) 11. Yesterdays
(7:56) 12. That Kaycee Thing
(3:45) 13. Carmell's Black Forest Waltz
(4:57) 14. B's Blues

Nathan Davis spent some time living and working in Europe in the mid-'60s before returning to the United States to serve in jazz education. His recordings as a leader have been hard to find, so this compilation of two 1965 studio sessions, Happy Girl and Hip Walk, (both originally issued by MPS) will be a welcome discovery for collectors who can find it. In the earlier date he is joined by trumpeter Woody Shaw, Larry Young (on piano rather than organ), bassist Jimmy Woode and drummer Billy Brooks. His happy "The Flute in the Blues" showcases his lighthearted flute playing, accompanied only by bass and drums. His big tone on tenor sax in the standard ballad "Spring Can Really Hang You Up the Most" is somewhat suggestive of John Coltrane, but with a stronger vibrato. His original "Evolution" has an exotic sound like the kind of post-bop material that was recorded by various Blue Note artists a year or two later. Shaw contributed the fascinating "Theme From Zoltan," which showcases Brooks' inventive polyrhythms and Woode's adventurous bass, backing strong solos by the trumpeter and the leader (on tenor sax). The jaunty, angular blues "Along Came Byrd" finds Davis holding his own on soprano sax. The later session retains Woode, but substitutes trumpeter Carmell Jones, pianist Francy Boland and drummer Kenny Clarke. Although the arrangements are equally challenging, things seem looser on this session, suggesting that there was more time to rehearse, though that is unlikely, since Jones was flown in especially for this date. 

The Coltrane influence is again apparent in the ballad "While Children Sleep." It would be easy to imagine Art Blakey tackling the furious "Train of Thought." Davis switches to flute for a haunting take of Jerome Kern's "Yesterdays." This valuable music was reissued in Europe by Motor Music in 1998, though it may very well have already lapsed again from print; it is well-worth investigating.~Ken Dryden http://www.allmusic.com/album/two-originals-happy-girl-hip-walk-mw0000041160

Personnel: Nathan Davis (flute, soprano saxophone, tenor saxophone); Carmell Jones, Woody Shaw (trumpet); Francy Boland, Larry Young (piano); Kenny Clarke, Billy Brooks (drums).

Two Originals (Happy Girl & The Hip Walk)

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