Harry Allen & Ken Peplowski & Scott Hamilton - Like The Brightest Star

Styles: Saxophone Jazz
Year: 2019
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 69:47
Size: 165,5 MB
Art: Front

(9:58) 1. You And The Night And The Music
(7:24) 2. Like The Brightest Star
(7:39) 3. Somebody I Just Met
(8:51) 4. Topsy
(3:42) 5. It Was So Beautiful
(5:33) 6. Das Blues
(6:59) 7. The Shadow Of Your Smile
(4:59) 8. That Old Black Magic
(5:32) 9. Old Folks
(9:04) 10. Sleep

The three major masters of Tenor Saxoph, Harry Allen & Ken Peplofski & Scott Hamilton This masterpiece allows you to fully listen to the charm of the Jazz Tenor Sax in an ensemble by Solo. Recorded at The Hideaway Studio in California at February 19 & 20, 2019.
https://www.amazon.com/Like-Brightest-Star-Three-Tenors/dp/B07Y1XMMHJ

Personnel: Harry Allen Harry Allen - tenor sax; Ken Peplowski - tenor sax; Scott Hamilton - tenor sax; Tom Lanier - Tom Ranier - piano; David Stone - bass; Kevin Canner Kevin Kanner - drums

Like The Brightest Star

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Miles Davis Quintet in Concert Live at the Olympia, Paris, November 30 - 1957 (Live)

Styles: Jazz
Year: 2023
Time: 72:36
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Size: 167,2 MB
Art: Front

(7:24) 1. Solar
(6:27) 2. Four
(3:29) 3. What's New?
(8:08) 4. No Moe
(7:25) 5. Lady Bird
(4:40) 6. Tune Up
(6:24) 7. I'll Remember April
(7:29) 8. Bags' Groove
(5:11) 9. 'Round Midnight
(6:18) 10. Now's the Time
(7:15) 11. Walkin'
(2:20) 12. The Theme

Another live Miles Davis recording. Well, once the studio outtakes have dried up, this is the only seam left to mine. Happily, with advances in sound technology, old radio broadcasts are increasingly being dusted down and treated to a little digital TLC. Since 1983, Fresh Sounds Records has been a leading light in reissues and archival releases (see Fresh Sound Records and the Legacy of Recorded Jazz), in addition to producing many hundreds of contemporary artists. This one from Jordi Pujol's Barcelona label has rarity value, representing the first unabridged release of Davis' concert at the Olympia, Paris, in 1957. At this historic venue, the trumpeter was backed by top French musicians and old sparring partner from Minton's Playhouse days, drummer Kenny Clarke.

The set is a typical one for that time in Davis' trajectory post-bop, swing, blues and ballads. Given that Davis had undergone a throat procedure just two months prior to this late-November date, he is in remarkably good form. Local musicians Rene Urtreger on piano, bassist Pierre Michelot and tenor saxophonist Barney Wilen are well up to the task. Wilen, who despite his youthful twenty years had already recorded an album as leader at the start of the year, had impressed Davis on the American's visit to Paris the year before, and little wonder. Listening to Wilen's solos on "Tune Up" and "I'll Remember April," to pick just two gems, we hear a saxophonist confident enough not to be imitative.

Davis sits out three songs the hard-working Wilen plays overtime on "Now's the Time"but otherwise leads from the front, switching between mute and open bell on one extended solo after another. Fired up on "No Moe" and "Bags' Groove," Davis is hauntingly tender on "Round Midnight" and "What's New?" This latter sounds like a ghostly forerunner of "Blue in Green" from Kind of Blue (Columbia, 1959), a tune generally credited to Bill Evans. Regardless of tempo, the trumpeter's playing is unfailingly emotive.

Michelot and Urtreger enjoy their moments in the spotlight but impress most for locking in rhythmically with the dynamic Clarke. The great drummer, a Paris resident, is in wonderfully feisty mode, his trademark ride cymbal and bass-drum bombs driving the music and injecting an edge into otherwise fairly safe material. Notable too, however, is his subtly persuasive brushwork.

Four days later this same line-up would go into the studio to record the music for Louis Malle's film Ascenseur pour l'eschafaud (Fontana, 1958). Almost entirely improvised, Davis' atmospheric noir soundtrack asks more of the musicians, and is the more remarkable recording for that. Still, the evident passion of this live performance from the Olympia, created in no small part by an engaged Parisian audience, makes In Concert at the Olympia, Paris 1957 a welcome extract from the Davis mine that keeps on giving.By Ian Patterson
https://www.allaboutjazz.com/in-concert-at-the-olympia-paris-1957-miles-davis-quintet-fresh-sound-records

Miles Davis Quintet in Concert Live at the Olympia, Paris, November 30 - 1957 (Live)

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Janet Evra - Meet Me in Paris

Styles: Vocal
Year: 2023
Time: 37:35
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Size: 86,7 MB
Art: Front

(2:34) 1. C'est Si Bon
(3:26) 2. Mia Mia
(3:06) 3. Turnaround / Suis-Moi
(2:49) 4. Comment Te Dire Adieu
(4:05) 5. La Vie En Rose
(2:57) 6. C'est Magnifique
(4:38) 7. Paris (Encore)
(3:15) 8. Sympathique
(3:20) 9. Un Homme Et Une Femme
(3:19) 10. Zou Bisou Bisou
(4:00) 11. La Mer / Beyond the Sea

One can, it is said, always find new wine in old bottles, assuming you have a good grapes to harvest and a knowledgeable vintner. Janet Evra, of British birth but now based in St Louis Missouri, is one such maker of good wine. The materials are, for the most part, familiar, but the genre is French as are many of the names associated with the tunes. Meet Me In Paris is indeed a pleasant treat. If your taste runs to Edith Piaf, Charles Trenet or Claude Lelouch films, Evra's most recent recording may indeed be welcome.

While Evra also plays string bass (with a distinctly American four strings), that is not really much in evidence here. The music is about her voice and stylings, a slightly come-hither tone entirely suited to the music at hand. Evra's band supports her very well; the musicians understand their function is to embellish and support the singing, not to overwhelm it. This they do quite capably and set a very relaxed mood.

Of course, not everything here is, in a strict sense, of French vintage. Evra adds a few originals ("Mia Mia," "Paris Encore"), and Cole Porter's "C'est Magnifique," but the rest is hardcore boite de nuit fare. "La Mer/Beyond the Sea" is often associated with Bobby Darin, but Evra puts her own distinctive stamp on it. But if one's taste runs to "La Vie en Rose" or "C'est Si Bon," here they are.

Some of Evra's other recordings suggest desire to broaden her audience, and to perform with topflight jazz players like Randy Brecker and Benny Benack. So much the better because these and other instrumentalists add rhythmic variation and dynamic modulation. They only serve to render her instrument a lovely voice more appealing. Sometimes, the bossa nova artists who Evra also admires were able to accomplish this by only a slight inflection in voice or even a well-placed breath. Who could forget Antonio Carlos Jobim's unforgettable "aaaah" in "Girl from Ipanema" Getz/Gilberto (Verve, 1964)?

Jazz belongs to everyone and to every language. French, Brazilian, British, and, of course American English too.By Richard J Salvucci https://www.allaboutjazz.com/meet-me-in-paris-janet-evra-plum-jazz

Meet Me in Paris

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The Flying Horse Big Band - A Message from the Flying Horse Big Band

Styles: Jazz, Big Band
Year: 2023
Time: 51:18
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Size: 118,0 MB
Art: Front

(4:56) 1. Free for All
(5:34) 2. Hipsippy Blues
(6:02) 3. Room 608
(5:42) 4. This Is for Albert
(5:03) 5. Mosaic
(4:38) 6. Peace
(5:50) 7. Gregory Is Here
(5:50) 8. Lester Left Town
(2:38) 9. Whisper Not
(5:01) 10. On the Ginza

The Message on the Florida-based Flying Horse Big Band's sixth album comes straight from the "messengers" themselves drummer Art Blakey's legendary Jazz Messengers, whose music is admirably presented here, and to whom the album is dedicated.

Its ten songs were composed by members of the Jazz Messengers ayne Shorter, Hank Mobley, Horace Silver, Cedar Walton, Benny Golson and two were re-scored for a large ensemble by former Messenger Michael Philip Mossman, with other charts by Mark Taylor (four), Harry Allen (two), Don Sickler and Billy May. As was true of Blakey's ensembles, swinging is always on the front burner and, even though none of the themes was written for a big band, the Flying Horses and their masterful arrangers make them seem as though they have always belonged there.

It is hard to overpraise the section work, as brass, reeds and rhythm are strong and coherent throughout, working overtime to breathe life into these superlative charts. It is almost as if the Messengers had been revitalized, larger and more impressive than ever. And, as for the charts, there is not one that is less than eloquent and charming. Even so, special mention must be given to Taylor's clever arrangement of Shorter's "Lester Left Town," as he translates what is usually a mournful homage to the great Lester Young into a thundering flag- waver worthy of Woody Herman or Buddy Rich at their high-octane best.

The session opens and closes with seductive burners by Shorter "Free for All," arranged by Mossman, and "On the Ginza," arranged by Taylor. The Horses fly high on both, as they do on every number in between, thanks to splendid preparation by director Jeff Rupert, spotless section work and resourceful solos by all hands. "Free for All" seldom pauses for breath, nor does "On the Ginza." The temperature remains high on Mobley's "Hipsippy Blues," Silver's "Room 608," Shorter's "This Is for Albert" and Walton's "Mosaic," the first trimly arranged by Allen, the last by Sickler, and those in between by Taylor.

Even Silver's relatively easy-going "Peace" swings in its own sweet way, thanks to Allen's sparkling arrangement, after which the tempo accelerates on Silver's "Gregory Is Here" (arranged by Mossman) and "Lester Left Town." Golson's lone composition, and May's only chart, "Whisper Not," is yet another highlight, as the Horses gallop in harmony behind earnest solos from tenor saxophonist Edmund "Quint" Johnson and alto saxophonist Micah Silverstein. That leaves the postscript to "On the Ginza" and, again, no one disappoints, as the band plays with its usual gusto while alto saxophonist Paul van Wormer and trumpeter Josh Mercado lend their solo talents.

Although soloists are named, the only omission, improbably enough, is drummer James Fortune who has powerhouse turns on "Free for All" and "Mosaic." Fortune shares timekeeping duties with the equally talented Jamesly Jean-Mary. Mercado takes every trumpet solo, and the same holds true for trombonist Dan Parrish, while van Wormer owns every alto saxophone solo save one, Silverstein's on "Whisper Not." Guitarist Noah Charles shines another bright light on "Room 608," "Gregory Is Here" and "Lester Left Town." Trumpets and trombones face a number of arduous passages, every one of which is navigated with ease and assurance, while the rhythm section not only keeps pace but adds its own vitality to the partnership.

The Flying Horse Big Band is never less than superb, and its dynamic Message comes through loud and clear. Even those whose big-band library is bursting at the seams must find space enough to accommodate this marvelous album. It is a decision that won't cause any regret.By Jack Bowers https://www.allaboutjazz.com/a-message-from-the-flying-horse-big-band-flying-horse-records

A Message from the Flying Horse Big Band

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