Dan Barrett's International Swing Party Band - Tour (Live!, Vol.1, Vol.2)

Dan Barrett's International Swing Party Band - Tour (Live!, Vol. 1)
Styles: Vocal, Trombone Jazz
Year: 2012
Time: 68:39
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Size: 157,9 MB
Art: Front

(7:13) 1. Back Home Again In Indiana (Live) (Feat. Butch Miles)
(6:07) 2. On The Sunny Side Of The Street (Live) (Feat. Butch Miles)
(9:31) 3. Blues My Naughty Sweetie Gives To Me (Live) (Feat. Butch Miles, Nicki Parrott & Dan Barrett)
(5:22) 4. Keepin' Out Of Mischief Now (Live) (Feat. Butch Miles)
(8:45) 5. Tea For Two (Live) (Feat. Butch Miles)
(4:37) 6. Let's Do It (Live) (Feat. Butch Miles)
(5:27) 7. Montevideo (Live) (Feat. Butch Miles)
(7:25) 8. The King (Live) (Feat. Butch Miles)
(8:01) 9. Bochum Electricity Blues (Live) (Feat. Butch Miles)
(6:07) 10. Do You Know What It Means To Miss New Orleans (Live) (Feat. Butch Miles)

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Dan Barrett's International Swing Party Band - Tour (Live!, Vol. 2)

Time: 65:35
Size: 151,1 MB

(3:22) 1. Neal's Deal (Live) (Feat. Butch Miles)
(3:21) 2. Georgia Jubilee (Live) (Feat. Butch Miles)
(5:51) 3. Waste No Tears (Live) (Feat. Butch Miles)
(3:08) 4. Whoa Babe (Live) (Feat. Butch Miles)
(4:37) 5. Is You Is, Or Is You Ain't (Ma' Baby) (Live) (Feat. Butch Miles)
(4:22) 6. Cavernism (Live) (Feat. Butch Miles)
(5:08) 7. Absolutely, Positively (Live) (Feat. Butch Miles & Bernard Flegar)
(5:14) 8. With 'Em (Live) (Feat. Butch Miles & Bernard Flegar)
(6:29) 9. One O'clock Jump (Live) (Feat. Butch Miles)
(4:45) 10. Montevideo (Live) (Feat. Butch Miles)
(6:06) 11. If I Had You (Live) (Feat. Butch Miles)
(6:57) 12. Sweet Sue (Live) (Feat. Butch Miles)
(6:09) 13. Hindustan (Live) (Feat. Butch Miles)

I wasn’t there. I wish I had been. But the good news is that two compact discs from this band’s German tour have been issued on the Echoes of Swing label (EOSP 4058 / 4059, available separately) and they come in the ear like honey. Hot honey, if you must know: a really delicious sensation.

The gracious swingsters on these discs are Duke Heitger, trumpet / vocal; Dan Barrett, trombone, head arrangements, vocal; Dan Block, clarinet, alto, tenor; Engelbert Wroebel, clarinet, soprano, tenor; Chris Hopkins, piano; Eddie Erickson, guitar, banjo, vocal; Nicki Parrott, string bass, vocal; Butch Miles, drums; Bernard Flegar, drums (on two tracks). The material comes from March 2010, and each CD has expansive notes by Dan Barrett. This tour was the idea of the very knowing and generous jazz fan / collector / scholar / promoter Manfred Selchow, who has written two splendid books on his heroes Edmond Hall and Vic Dickenson (PROFOUNDLY BLUE and DING DING! respectively) so you know he has good taste in musicians and bands.

Volume One begins with a string of “old favorites” played with snap and crackle not to ignore pop: INDIANA and SUNNY SIDE OF THE STREET, followed by BLUES MY NAUGHTY SWEETIE GIVES TO ME, with echoes of Louis and Eddie Condon and the Hampton Victors, then Eddie convinces he us he is behaving well on KEEPIN’ OUT OF MISCHIEF NOW. The reed players and rhythm make us forget that TEA FOR TWO is ninety years old, and Nicki purrs her way through LET’S DO IT (with some nifty new lyrics as well). A rhythm section feature, MONTEVIDEO, is both startling and supple, evoking a late Ellington trio and then everyone evokes a compact powerful version of the Forties Basie band with THE KING. But wait! There’s more. A nice long blues, BOCHUM ELECTRICTY BLUES, and a sweet Duke vocal / trumpet performance of DO YOU KNOW WHAT IT MEANS TO MISS NEW ORLEANS? (which he does).

Volume Two opens with the bright NEAL’S DEAL (a Neal Hefti line for the 1951 Count Basie Sextet), then moves back nearly thirty years for GEORGIA JUBILEE, a memory of a pre-King-of-Swing record date led by Benny, with Coleman Hawkins on the tenor, and the Sidney Bechet WASTE NO TEARS featuring Block and Wroebel. Dan Barrett sings and swings mightily on the Lionel Hampton classic WHOA BABE, and then Nicki asks the troubling question in swing, IS YOU IS OR IS YOU AIN’T MY BABY. (We is, Nicki. We can’t help it nohow.)

An extraordinary, jumping version of Earl Hines’ CAVERNISM follows, then Eddie woos the crowd, which he does so well, with ABSOLUTELY, POSITIVELY, a sweet love song written by the unheralded member of the Great American Songbook fraternity, Jabbo Smith. WITH ‘EM, Dan Barrett’s clever, hot, boppish take on I GOT RHYTHM, keeps the imagined dancers hopping, leading into a sleekly intense ONE O’CLOCK JUMP. Another delightful version of MONTEVIDEO follows remarkable improvisations on the theme and a tender IF I HAD YOU, before the disc romps home with SWEET SUE and HINDUSTAN.

If you know the players and singers here, you won’t have to be convinced of the quality of the music on these discs. But these performances are sharply executed when the music calls for it (this band isn’t ashamed of rehearsing) and loose, fervent, courageous when it’s time for jamming. These are live performances, so you can hear the good humor and delight in the various rooms and the sound is fine, too.

My only problem is that I file my CDs alphabetically according to the leader or the musician / singer I gravitate towards. I can’t be fair to anyone by putting these CDs under B for Barrett or H for Hopkins. It seems I have to buy multiple copies to satisfy my ethical self. You might not be burdened by such demands, but you will be delighted by every note on both discs.
https://jazzlives.wordpress.com/2012/07/15/chris-hopkins-presents-dan-barretts-international-swing-party-2010-featuring-butch-miles/

Personnel: Dan Barrett, trombone, head arrangements, vocal; Dan Block, clarinet, alto, tenor; Engelbert Wroebel, clarinet, soprano, tenor; Chris Hopkins, piano; Eddie Erickson, guitar, banjo, vocal; Nicki Parrott, string bass, vocal; Butch Miles, drums; Bernard Flegar, drums (on two tracks); Duke Heitger, trumpet /vocal

Tour 2010 (Live!,Vol.1,Vol.2)

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Echoes of Swing - Travelin'

Styles: Vocal And Trumpet Jazz
Year: 2018
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 55:39
Size: 128,3 MB
Art: Front

(4:31)  1. Orient Express
(3:24)  2. Volare
(4:40)  3. The Old Country
(3:03)  4. On a Slow Goat Through China
(3:17)  5. Das Wrack Der Guten Hoffnung
(3:58)  6. The Fiji Hula Bula
(4:07)  7. Where or When
(3:48)  8. On a Turquoise Cloud
(3:22)  9. Cabin in the Sky
(2:48) 10. Gan Hyem
(4:05) 11. Southern Sunset
(2:37) 12. En Auto
(4:25) 13. Trav'lin Light
(3:06) 14. Disorder at the Border
(4:20) 15. Wohin?

The album of Echoes of Swing " Travelin ', celebrates the 20 years of the famous quartet. Most jazz musicians are travelers: their place of work? Clubs, festivals ... Echoes of Swing , however, has another dimension: this quartet is in itself a journey through time , since they go back to the classical jazz of the 20s to 50s, while updating it. And this for 20 years! We make a real tour of the musical world from the Orient Express of Chris Hopkins, the opening of the album. From the beginning, we have a clue of what will happen next: a pirate ship in the storm on a 12/8 measure with Bernd Lhotzky's Das Wrack Der Guten Hoffnung , then the calm of the South Seas, with Fiji Hula Bula from Hopkins to Southern Sunset by Sidney Bechet with a version that transports us to a peaceful, sensual night ... And what better way to illustrate the flight than with the Italian Volare tube he takes to a Harlem Stride, doing think of John Kirby's sextet. Several original compositions and complex arrangements with pieces originally for piano or orchestra are adapted to the quartet, testifying to a deep knowledge of the history of music . Sophisticated, thoughtful, but the imperative of old school jazz, that of entertainment, is still there: a lot of humor, whether through fun musical quotes, the subtle irony of Colin Dawson's voice, or wacky titles like On A Slow Goat Through China - the Chris Hopkins allusion to Frank Loesser's standard. For "Travelin '", the words of the great Dick Hyman - the last living legend of classical jazz piano he said about Echoes of Swing are particularly relevant: " Each of their pieces is a pearl! Together they have a unique approach to jazz and each member is a master ".

Personnel:  Colin T. Dawson (trumpet, horn, bugle, voice), Chris Hopkins (alto saxophone), Bernd Lhotzky (piano, celesta), Oliver Mewes (drums)

Travelin'

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Engelbert Wrobel's Swing Society - Delicado

Styles: Clarinet And Saxophone Jazz, Swing
Year: 2008
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 62:51
Size: 148,2 MB
Art: Front

(3:35)  1. Henderson Stomp
(6:07)  2. Lean Baby
(2:33)  3. Easy Mood
(4:19)  4. Nightfall
(3:39)  5. Frolic Sam
(2:44)  6. Louis Xv
(4:31)  7. Windjammer
(2:43)  8. Wanda
(3:26)  9. Delicado
(4:58) 10. All The Things You Are
(4:31) 11. The Trout
(4:24) 12. I Want To Be Happy
(3:39) 13. I've Got The World On A String
(3:58) 14. Good Queen Bess
(3:49) 15. All I Do Is Dream Of You
(3:47) 16. My Blue Heaven

Engelbert Wrobel was born on 11.19.1959 and made already in childhood with his talent as a clarinetist in the marching band his Eifeler home eveningsa stir before it began to be interested in the traditional jazz. The foundation of the Happy Jazzmen , his first school band, was not long in coming. With her ??winning " Angels" - as his friends call him - including 1st prize in youth jazzt .While studying classical clarinet e at the Music Academy in Dusseldorf , he was a space in Rod Mason's Hot Five offered. With the Hot Five , he gained 3 ½ years touring experience in Europe before then in 1989 his own e Swing Society founded .

Engelbert Wrobel's game is characterized by a powerful sound and a brilliant technique. He is a multi-instrumentalist who knows how to play each of his instruments in style and it has processed through years of studying classical Swing features of its various models to its own musical language. On the clarinet, the influences of are Benny Goodman, Barney Bigard and Edmond Hall not to be missed; on the tenor saxophone is have him especially Ben Webster, Arnett Cobb and   Coleman Hawkins done. His style on the Alto is rooted in the tradition of Benny Carter and Johnny Hodges , the latter being hard to miss in his game on the soprano sax. Besides the Swing Society is Engelbert Wrobel as a musician in various projects active, for example, as Benny Goodman -Solist in King Of SwingOrchestra, is kind to the big band music of the great clarinetist. More..http://www.swingsociety.de/html/biographie.html (translate by Google)

Personnel: Hazy Osterwald - Vibraphone; Engelbert Wrobel - Clarinet, Alto, Tenor; Rolf Marx - Guitar; Chris Hopkins - Piano; Ingmar Heller - Bass; Oliver Mewes - Drums; Jürgen Pfeiffer - Congas on tracks 2 and 9.

Delicado

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Engelbert Wrobel, Chris Hopkins, Dan Barrett - Harlem 2000 (Complete Session)

Size: 180,7 MB
Time: 77:43
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Released: 2002
Styles: Jazz: Mainstream Jazz
Art: Front

01. Beyond The Blue Horizon (3:43)
02. Four Or Five Times (7:38)
03. Dreamy Mood (3:58)
04. It's Been So Long (4:13)
05. Solid Old Man (4:41)
06. Angel's Idea (4:16)
07. Echoes Of Harlem (4:22)
08. Haven't Named It Yet (4:16)
09. Drop Me Off In Harlem (6:19)
10. Body And Soul (3:20)
11. Harlem Sundown (5:28)
12. I May Be Wrong (4:17)
13. B-Flat Swing (5:03)
14. Synthetic Love (6:15)
15. A Lull At Dawn (3:35)
16. Till Tom Special (Bonus Track) (6:10)

Leader Dan Barrett’s name was the only one familiar to me on this new Nagel-Heyer release (although I seem to have heard the name John Smith before). Not to worry; Barrett’s companions are as bright-eyed and wholly in tune with the nuances of his mainstream point of view as anyone could want. Apart from three songs with “Harlem” in the title there doesn’t seem to be much connection to that particular area of New York City, but the album needed a name and I suppose Harlem 2000 is as good as any. The music is certainly akin to what one might have experienced during a visit to Harlem (or many other populous area of the country) during the glory years of the Swing Era — and can still enjoy in a more contemporary setting thanks to labels such as Nagel-Heyer, Arbors and a handful of others. Barrett, who’s among the best at what he does (which in this case includes playing fabulous trombone and cornet and adding a first-rate vocal on Benny Carter’s “Synthetic Love”), can’t afford to look over his shoulder when soloing, as everyone else is no more than half a step behind and rapidly closing ground. Pianist Chris Hopkins, who wrote the liner notes, downplays his own role, which is nonetheless essential, from supervising the group’s splendid rhythm section to soloing with awareness and intelligence and contributing a handsome original composition, “Dreamy Mood.” John Smith (there’s that name again) is showcased on soprano sax on “It’s Been So Long” (in a trio setting with Hopkins and drummer Oliver Mewes), clarinetist Engelbert Wrobel on Barney Bigard’s “A Lull at Dawn,” Hopkins (with Wrobel and Mewes) on “Body and Soul,” Mewes on Lionel Hampton / Charlie Christian’s “Haven’t Named It Yet.” Wrobel also plays tenor sax (think Harry Allen) on “Solid Old Man,” “Drop Me Off in Harlem” and Barrett’s “Harlem Sundown,” Smith alto sax on “Four or Five Times,” “Angel’s Idea,” “I May Be Wrong” and Teddy Wilson’s “B-Flat Swing.” As for Barrett, he stays busy with enterprising cornet solos on seven numbers, trombone on five others including a muted / open master class on Ellington’s “Echoes of Harlem.” Bassist Christian Ramond adds nimble statements on “Haven’t Named It” and “Drop Me Off,” while Mewes takes a Krupa-like chorus on the jaunty opener, “Beyond the Blue Horizon” (a great but seldom-heard tune written in the ’30s by singer Margaret Whiting’s father, Richard Whiting) and Hopkins comps and solos superbly on every number. This realm of Jazz isn’t called “swing” without cause, and Barrett’s sextet swings freely and often throughout this sparkling and invariably persuasive session. ~by Jack Bowers

Personnel: Dan Barrett, cornet, trombone, vocals; Engelbert Wrobel, clarinet, tenor sax; John Smith, alto, soprano sax, vocals; Chris Hopkins, piano; Christian Ramond, bass; Oliver Mewes, drums.

Harlem 2000

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The Echoes Of Swing Orchestra - The Fusion

Styles: Jazz, Big Band
Year: 2003
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 53:27
Size: 123,1 MB
Art: Front

(3:24)  1. Everybody Shuffle
(3:16)  2. They Say
(2:14)  3. I Hear Music
(4:45)  4. Dickie's Dream
(2:54)  5. The Moon Looks Down And Laughs
(3:02)  6. I Cried For You
(4:28)  7. Lady Of Mystery
(3:26)  8. Etude In Gb, Op. 25, No. 9
(4:37)  9. This Heart Of Mine
(2:50) 10. It's Too Hot For Words
(3:25) 11. It's Like Reaching For The Moon
(3:51) 12. Trumpet Interlude
(4:07) 13. My Fate Is In Your Hands
(4:11) 14. Dry County Jump
(2:52) 15. Dreamy Mood

Considering that the Swing lives, guaranteed since 2000 the internationally staffed "Echoes of Swing Orchestra", the flawless in absolutely excellent sound and Arrangement Jazz presents the 1930's and 40. From the German trio "The Swingcats" and the Dutch "Echoes of Swing" a formation that has been the addition of "Orchestra" not only given, but has also earned it honestly in combo strength. The seven top-instrumentalist and singer Shaunette Hildabrand turn the clock back a good 65 years, and take you into the clubs and ballrooms of the great time of the swing in Chicago, Kansas City and Harlem. You have not the men see in Tuxedo and Ms. Hilda fire in elegant long black dress on the cover of the CD "The Fusion" to imagine the dim light and the couple who are closely entwined to "Lady Mystery" by Teddy Wilson, Harry Warrens dancing "This Heart Of Mine" and Thomas "Fats" Waller's "My Fate Is In Your Hands". With closed eyes you can see the "Echoes of Swing Orchestra" in dinner jacket with red carnation and his singer in sparkly dress.

But it also fly their skirts when the ladies on the floor of her dancers to Benny Carter "Everybody Shuffle" the Jitterbug and Swing Chris Hopkins' "Dry County Jump" are peppy rotated. The Americans Hopkins, alto saxophonist of the formation has the arrangements of the album with trumpeter Colin T. Dawson, the tenor saxophonist Frank Roberscheuten and pianist Bernd Lhotzky divided - and two titles himself wrote, including the best of the plate: the "Dry County Jump "and the smartest and funniest for my taste the 15 pieces," Dreamy Mood ". Here namely he Shaunette Hildabrand a jazz coloratura written on the vocal cords, which probably is (and as good) to hear a rarity. In fact, she is a jazz singer of format that maintains coolness with a soft vibrato, smoky lascivious and with this certain touch of. But it is probably her congenial opposite Colin T. Dawson on trumpet, Bernd Lhotzkys sparkling runs and the positive, relaxed attitude of the band involved. Echoes of Swing Orchestra: "The merger" may be recommended. ~ Frank Becker  Translate by google  http://www.omm.de/cds/jazz/echoes-of-swing.html

Echoes of Swing Orchestra:  Shaunette Hildabrand – Vocals; Colin Dawson – Trumpet; Chris Hopkins - Alto Sax; Frank Roberscheuten - Clarinet, Tenor Sax; Bernd Lhotzky – Piano; Dirk van der Linden – Guitar; Karel Algoed – Bass; Oliver Mewes - Drums

The Fusion

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Echoes Of Swing - Message From Mars

Styles: Swing
Year: 2010
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 57:41
Size: 132,4 MB
Art: Front

(3:32)  1. Shake It and Break It
(3:08)  2. Liebesleid
(3:56)  3. Twiligthnin' Hopkins
(3:30)  4. Don't Save Your Love For A Rainy Day
(2:54)  5. Odeon
(2:46)  6. Bughouse
(3:48)  7. Spring Is Here
(3:34)  8. Gavotte
(3:17)  9. Message From Mars
(4:05) 10. The Ghost Of Marsden Grotto
(4:33) 11. Don't Explain
(2:42) 12. Butterfly Chase
(5:19) 13. Goon Drag
(3:03) 14. Delirium
(3:54) 15. His Honour And The Vermin
(3:33) 16. Moonlight Fiesta

Free from any museum nostalgia, the four musicians take their inspiration from the gigantic treasury of swinging jazz, from Bix to Bop, from Getz to Gershwin, while constantly searching for the hidden, the unexpected, the exquisite. The Great American Song book and the immeasurable recordings of great Jazz pioneers form the humus for the creativity of the combo, with astonishing arrangements, virtuoso solos and expressive compositions of their own. Two horns, drums and piano. This unique, compact formation permits the greatest in harmony and flexibility and allows freedom for an agile, exact ensemble.  The group thrives on a mixture of clever arrangements and interaction of improvised dialogue, performing for, and with one another. 

The contemporary interpretation of an enormously varied repertoire and not last the humorous moderation and spontaneous stage presence, has helped gain ECHOES OF SWING great popularity and made the ensemble a much renowned and celebrated attraction on the international jazz scene. Sixteen years of touring have led the ECHOES all across Europe and the USA, to Japan, New Zealand and even the Fiji Islands. The exceedingly diverse musical development of the band is in the meantime impressively documented on five CDs.  The last ECHOES OF SWING album ‘Message from Mars’ received the ‘Prix de l’Académie du Jazz’ in Paris, and in Germany was awarded the ‘German Record Critics' Award’. Bio ~ https://www.actmusic.com/en/Artists/Echoes-Of-Swing/Biografie

Personnel: Colin T. Dawson - trumpet & voc, Chris Hopkins - alto sax, Bernd Lhotzky - piano, Oliver Mewes - drums

Message From Mars

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Chris Hopkins, Bernd Lhotzky - Partners in Crime

Styles: Piano Jazz
Year: 2012
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 56:33
Size: 130,4 MB
Art: Front

(3:19)  1. Tonk
(3:42)  2. Imagination
(3:25)  3. Georgia Jubilee
(4:24)  4. Snowfall
(4:29)  5. I Got Plenty O' Nuttin'
(4:05)  6. Jingles
(4:41)  7. Someone to Watch Over Me
(4:10)  8. Salir a La Luz
(2:32)  9. Sneakaway
(5:42) 10. Five 4 Elise
(3:52) 11. Partners in Crime
(3:27) 12. Doin' the Voom Voom
(3:18) 13. Russian Lullaby
(2:47) 14. I Believe in Miracles
(2:32) 15. Apanhei-Te Cavaquinho

Don’t let the title upset you: there are no victims here.  And the mournful basset hounds are misleading: this isn’t morose music.  It is a two-piano recital by the sterling players Hopkins and Lhotzky.  And it’s almost an hour of absolutely gorgeous music.  What distinguishes this from other discs in the idiom is something rare and irreplaceable.  Taste. Chris and Bernd are not only astonishing technicians who can scamper all over the keyboard and make joyous noise.  But they are wise artists who know that a rich diet of auditory fireworks soon palls. (How many people, listening to a gifted player “show off” a stride pianist play at dazzling speed, a horn player careen around in the upper register have thought, “That’s really impressive.  Could you stop doing it now  we’re all convinced that you can!”  I know these radical thoughts have entered my mind more than once, and I suspect I am not alone.) Although they are harmonically sophisticated musicians, Bernd and Chris know that melody and variety are essential.  

”Sweet, soft, plenty rhythm,” said Mr. Morton, and he hasn’t been proven wrong. So this disc doesn’t wallop us with pyrotechnics there is a James P. piece, Jingles but it roams around happily in the land of Medium Tempo with delicacy and precision.  It isn’t Easy Listening or music to snooze by, but no crimes are committed against Beauty here.  What’s more, these players have understood how to plan a concert even when the imagined audience may be driving or doing the dishes so there is never too much of any one approach or style.  The disc begins with the Ellington-Strayhorn Tonk (which, once again reminds me of Gershwin in Paris and Raymond Scott in his studio), then moves to a lacy reading of Fud Livingston’s Imagination, Arthur Schutt’s Georgia Jubilee, Thornhill’s Snowfall, I Got Plenty O' Nuttin', the aforementioned Jingles (a masterpiece at a less-than-frenzied tempo but swinging hard), a lovely Hopkins solo rendition of Someone to Watch Over Me, Bernd’s Salir a La Luz (dedicated to Isabel Lhotzky, the Lion’s Sneakaway as a solo for Bernd, Bernd’s Five 4 Elise (whimsically based on Fur Elise), Chris’ Partners in Crime  , Doin’ the voom voom, russian  Lullaby, I believe in miracles (for Mr. Waller), and  Nazareth’s apanhei-te cavaquinho. 

Discerning readers will note the absence of Ain’t Misbehavin’ and other songs that have been played many times in the last ninety-plus years, but this disc isn’t devoted to the esoteric for its own sake.  Each of the songs has a strong melodic line: the listener never gets bored, for even the most familiar one here say, Someone to Watch Over Me is handled with great tenderness, elegance, and a spacious intelligence, as if the players already knew what cliches and formulaic turns of phrase were possible, and had discarded them in favor of a loving, deep simplicity.  Even their 5 / 4 version of FUR ELISE is delicately hilarious. And  as an added bonus  the disc is beautifully recorded in the old-fashioned way: two Steinway pianos and one pair of Sennheiser omni-directional microphones.  It’s music for the ears, the heart, and the mind and (without meaning any acrimony here) the disc is a quiet rebuke to pianists who pound their way through the same tired repertoire and record producers who make it sound artificial. It’s a beauty, and it celebrates Beauty.  http://jazzlives.wordpress.com/2013/01/10/an-elegant-recital-partners-in-crime-by-chris-hopkins-and-bernd-lhotzky/

Partners in Crime

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Engelbert Wrobel, Frank Roberscheuten, Chris Hopkins - Jammin'

Styles: Straight-ahead/Mainstream
Year: 2011
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 75:03
Size: 172,4 MB
Art: Front

(6:53)  1. You Do Something To Me
(5:08)  2. Can't Help Lovin' That Man
(5:41)  3. Rose Room
(5:16)  4. I Can't Get Started
(6:52)  5. Robbin's Nest
(5:30)  6. Smiles
(6:46)  7. When I Grow Too Old To Dream
(4:58)  8. Mama Inez
(6:10)  9. I Surrender Dear
(4:19) 10. You Brought A New Kind Of Love To Me
(5:56) 11. I Can't Believe That You Are In Love With Me
(4:21) 12. Candlelights
(7:05) 13. El Salon De Gutbucket

This is the beauty of Jazz. As if from a dream, a multinational collection of musicians gather on the neutral ground of an international convention and are asked, on short notice to prepare and play a program. This particular group of musicians was to first meet on the bandstand. During a 15 minute Götterdammerung, they decide on a program and arrangements and then proceed to swing like they have known each other forever. This is exactly what took place at the International Association of Jazz Record Collectors convention held in Hamburg Germany in 1999. Reedists Engelbert Wrobel, Frank Roberscheuten, and pianist Chris Hopkins joined ranks to lead a band is a sometimes suprising collection of mainstream jazz standards presented in a mainstream manner. What is so stunning about this collection is the seamless telepathy with which these musicians, strangers to one another except by reputation, mix into a perfect solution of sound and swing. Martin Williams queried once that the big nonjazz listener question was, "Where is the melody". In this jazz, lake many other performances, the melody is presented up front in the head and then each musician, in a time honored manner, steps up to say what he or she has to say about that melody by offering their own melodies. This modus operandi worked all too well on this night, much to the satisfaction of those who will purchase this performance.~ C.Michael Bailey   http://www.allaboutjazz.com/php/article.php?id=8354#.UzHAD4UqPro

Personnel: Engelbert Wrobel: Clarinet, Tenor Saxophone, Soprano Saxophone; Frank Roberscheuten: Clarinet; Tenor Saxophone; Alto Saxophone; Chris Hopkins: Piano; Harvey Weston: Bass; Bobby Worth: Drums.

Jammin'

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Bernd Lhotzky And Chris Hopkins - Tandem

Styles: Dixieland/New Orleans/Swing
Year: 2008
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 55:15
Size: 126,6 MB
Art: Front

(3:28)  1. Shake It And Break It
(3:23)  2. I Adore You
(3:08)  3. Everything I've Got Belongs To You
(4:18)  4. Warm Valley
(3:45)  5. Finger Buster
(4:41)  6. Black And Tan Fantasy
(3:15)  7. You Do Something To Me
(3:00)  8. Flashes
(3:42)  9. I've Got My Love to Keep Me Warm
(3:12) 10. Sweet And Slow
(2:40) 11. I Wish I Were Twins
(5:24) 12. Lullaby Of The Leaves
(3:23) 13. Armand The Groove
(4:21) 14. J. Fred Coots-Medley: Louisiana Fairytale* + The More I Know You**
(3:31) 15. Bess, You Is My Woman Now (from "Porgy And Bess")

Making a successful piano duet recording is a challenge. In addition to the performance, there is the issue of the recording process: getting the mix right and capturing both instruments with clarity. This is not an easy thing to do, as the evidence of many poorly recorded piano duets will attest. In addition, there's the task of pacing, which is a considerable challenge with the sound of two pianos. Such duet recordings often have a frenetic dueling pianos feel, which quickly gets old. The good news about Tandem is that it's beautifully recorded, well paced, and displays the inspired performances of two excellent pianists. Pianists Chris Hopkins and Bernd Lhotzky are not just notable soloists. They also accompany each other with an intuitive sense of nuance and a sophisticated sense of musical taste. They focus on standards from the '20s to the '40s by the likes of Duke Ellington, Willie "The Lion Smith, Cole Porter, Richard Rodgers, Bix Beiderbecke, the Gershwins and other great songwriters of the age. 

This is traditional jazz, and these two pianists are extremely comfortable in this world. Arbors Jazz fans will recognize Chris Hopkins as a label regular. Anyone who has heard him on record will not be surprised by the mastery he demonstrates on Tandem. Lhotzky, an apt musical match for Hopkins, has recently released a solo recording on Arbors. Both players were raised in Germany and have a special affinity for stride and swing piano. Both are building considerable international reputations, which Tandem will undoubtedly enhance. Some of the best tracks on this consistently fine recording are breathtakingly graceful and complex stride piano duets. The musical rapport is a delight. If you're a traditional jazz fan, and especially a piano jazz fan, this is a recording not to miss. 

~ Mike Neely   http://www.allaboutjazz.com/php/article.php?id=23191#.UzDKAYUqPro
 

Personnel: Bernd Lhotzky, Chris Hopkins: piano.

Tandem

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