Showing posts with label Eddie Harris. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Eddie Harris. Show all posts

Friday, September 20, 2024

Eddie Harris - The Lost Album Plus The Better Half

Styles: Saxophone Jazz
Year: 1993
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 56:18
Size: 130,3 MB
Art: Front

( 6:10)  1. The Dancing Bull
( 4:33)  2. Antidote
(14:55)  3. Cuttin' Out
(15:24)  4. Shakey Jake
( 2:33)  5. Half & Half
( 2:24)  6. K.C. Blues
( 4:03)  7. Lawrence Of Arabia
( 6:13)  8. Yea, Yea, Yea

Eight cuts culled from early-'60s Vee Jay dates. The first four blend soul-jazz and straight bop, with Ira Sullivan sparkling on trumpet and Harris dueling with alto saxophonist Bunky Green. The other two feature Harris wailing the blues alongside organist Melvin Rhyne, Sullivan, Green and guitarist Joe D'Orio. They recall the glory days of steamy, funky organ combos, with drummer Gerald Donovan keeping the backbeat steadily in the groove. ~ Ron Wynn https://www.allmusic.com/album/the-lost-album-plus-the-better-half-mw0000660476

The Lost Album Plus The Better Half

Tuesday, May 16, 2023

Etta James - Time After Time

Styles: Vocal
Year: 1995
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 64:37
Size: 149,0 MB
Art: Front

(5:02) 1. Don't Go To Strangers
(5:03) 2. Teach Me Tonight
(4:31) 3. Love Is Here To Stay
(6:36) 4. The Nearnes Of You
(4:26) 5. Time After Time
(5:50) 6. My Funny Valentine
(6:55) 7. Imagination
(4:01) 8. Fool That I Am
(6:27) 9. Willow Weep For Me
(5:19) 10. Ev'rybody's Somebody's Fool
(4:19) 11. Night And Day
(6:01) 12. Someone To Watch Over Me

Casual fans of Etta James most often thought of her as a blues singer, and she was, when that was what she wanted to do, but she also sang straight girl group pop, belted out R&B and soul tunes, and she also, when she chose, took herself uptown and sang jazz.

That's the case here, as James elegantly delivers her versions of vocal jazz standards like Sammy Cahn and Jule Styne's "Time After Time" and Hoagy Carmichael's "The Nearness of You," in front of a tight and fluid big band comprised of Josh Sklair (guitar), Eddie Harris and Herman Riley (tenor saxophone), Ronnie Buttacavoli (trumpet, flügelhorn), Kraig Kilby (trombone), Cedar Walton (piano), John Clayton (bass), Paul Humphrey (drums), and Donto Metto James (shakers). It's all graceful and uptown, and James' singing is hauntingly beautiful. By Steve Leggett
https://www.allmusic.com/album/time-after-time-mw0000175382

Personnel: Vocals – Etta James; Bass – John Clayton (tracks: all except 6); Drums – Paul Humphrey (tracks: all except 6); Flugelhorn – Ronnie Buttacavoli (tracks: 6, 7, 8, & 9); Guitar – Josh Sklair; Piano – Cedar Walton (tracks: all except 6); Tenor Saxophone – Eddie Harris (tracks: 2, 3, 5, & 12), Herman Riley (tracks: 4, 7, 9, 10, & 11); Trombone – Kraig Kilby (tracks: 2, 3, 5, 7, 9, 10, & 12)

Time After Time

Friday, April 7, 2023

Buddy Montgomery - Ties Of Love

Styles: Piano Jazz
Year: 1986
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 44:07
Size: 101,2 MB
Art: Front

(6:57)  1. Muchissimo
(7:01)  2. Expressions In Blue
(5:24)  3. Darrah
(3:35)  4. All The Things You Are (A)
(5:43)  5. Ties (A/B)
(4:55)  6. Stablemates (B)
(4:33)  7. Rose Marie
(5:55)  8. Soft Earth

By 1986, Buddy Montgomery had not recorded as a leader for many years, and because he is so well-respected, his first Landmark outing became quite an all-star affair. Heard mostly on piano but also switching to vibes for two songs, Montgomery is joined on various tracks by trumpeter Claudio Roditi, David "Fathead" Newman on tenor and flute, guitarist Ted Dunbar, bassists Ron Carter and John Heard, drummers Marvin "Smitty" Smith and Billy Higgins, and a couple of percussionists. In addition, tenor saxophonist Eddie Harris jams on "Stablemates" and "Ties," and Marlena Shaw takes vocals on "Ties" and "All the Things You Are." Despite all of the guests, the leader (who contributed five of the eight songs) does not get buried in the proceedings and holds his own with his friends. ~ Scott Yanow http://www.allmusic.com/album/ties-of-love-mw0000193414

Personnel:  Buddy Montgomery - piano, vibes,  Marlena Shaw - vocal,  Eddie Harris - tenor sax,  Ron Carter - bass,  Ted Dunbar - guitar,  John Heard - bass,  Billy Higgins - drums, Steve Kroon - congas,  David "Fathead" Newman - tenor sax, flute, Claudio Roditi - trumpet, Marvin "Smitty" Smith - drums, Warren Smith - percussion

Ties Of Love

Monday, October 31, 2022

Eddie Harris - Cool Sax, Warm Heart

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 33:10
Size: 76.0 MB
Styles: Jazz-funk
Year: 1964/2002
Art: Front

[2:55] 1. Chicago Serenade
[3:51] 2. Since I Fell For You
[3:00] 3. Stum Stang
[2:20] 4. Django's Castle
[4:20] 5. More Soul, Than Soulful
[2:44] 6. Everthing Happens To Me
[4:23] 7. But Not For Me
[6:59] 8. Brother Ed
[2:33] 9. Hip Hoppin'

Eddie Harris – tenor saxophone; Wynton Kelly – piano (tracks 1, 2, 6 & 7); Warren Stephens – guitar; Melvin Jackson – bass; Bucky Taylor – drums; The Malcom Dodds Singers – vocals.

A really fantastic album that's one of Eddie Harris' most unique albums of the 60s! The record features Eddie blowing in that lean and soulful mode that he used on his best Vee Jay albums – a bit exotic, but never meandering, with impeccable placement in all his solos, and a tone that's probably one of the most revolutionary he ever used. Some tracks have a backing chorus of female voices, singing in a floating mode that's hip and easy – and others are straighter jazz tunes, with a nice little groove.

Cool Sax, Warm Heart  

Tuesday, April 5, 2022

Cedar Walton - Mobius & Beyond Mobius

Styles: Jazz, Straight-ahead/Mainstream
Year: 2015
File: MP3@256K/s
Time: 79:52
Size: 146,8 MB
Art: Front

(10:07)  1. Blue Trane
(10:34)  2. Soho
( 7:48)  3. Off Minor
( 6:18)  4. The Maestro
( 5:39)  5. Road Island Red
( 4:15)  6. Bad Luck
( 6:18)  7. Low Rider
( 5:16)  8. Beyond Mobius
( 4:32)  9. Jive Talkin'
( 5:16) 10. Canadian Sunset
( 7:24) 11. The Girl with the Discotheque Eyes
( 6:17) 12. Lonely Cathedral

Two killers from Cedar Walton back to back on a single CD! First up is Mobius a real revelation from pianist Cedar Walton an unusual electric album from the 70s quite a surprise, given the mostly-acoustic sound of most of Cedar's other records! The album's a killer, though and has this fresh, full take on funky jazz for the time not the usual CTI copycat mode, and instead this compelling hybrid of elements that includes lots of Fender Rhodes from Walton, sweet guitar likes from Ryo Kawasaki, and lots of rootsy percussion from Ray Mantilla and Omar Clay two players who really make the album nice and earthy at the bottom. The rest of the group is wonderful, too and includes tenor from Frank Foster, alto and baritone from Charles Davis, and trumpet from Roy Burrowes all fresh players who open up a big can of soul for the set on titles that include a classic break version of "Off Minor", plus "Blue Trane", "Soho", and "Road Island Red". Beyond Mobius is a great electric set from Cedar Walton and a set that moves beyond his previous Mobius album, in case you couldn't guess from the title! The style here is a bit more tightly arranged with some backup vocals on a few cuts, which underscore the core jazzy elements from Walton on a range of keyboards and synth, Eddie Harris on tenor, and Blue Mitchell on trumpet all grooved together with some tight guitar lines from Eric Gale and Cornell Dupree! Keyboards definitely get some great solo time in the spotlight, but the overall sound is quite strong too a nice instrumental funk approach, save for the added chorus vocals in a few spots. Titles include the moogy "Beyond Mobius", a cover of "Low Rider", and the tracks "Jive Talkin", "The Girl With The Discotheque Eyes", and "Lonely Cathedral". © 1996-2016, Dusty Groove, Inc.https://www.dustygroove.com/item/766015

Personnel: 
Beyond Mobius: Cedar Walton - keyboards, synthesizer arranger, conductor;  Burt Collins, Jon Faddis, Blue Mitchell - trumpet, flugelhorn;  Wayne Andre, Alan Raph – trombone;  George Marge, Eddie Harris - tenor saxophone;  Norman Carr, Harry Cykman, David Moore, Morris Sutow – strings;  Cornell Dupree, Eric Gale - rhythm guitar;  Gordon Edwards – bass;  Charles Collins, Jimmie Young – drums;  Angel Allende – percussion;  Mike Lipskin - percussion, ARP synthesizer, voice, string arranger, string conductor;  Alan Abrahams, Adrienne Albert, Yolanda McCullough, Maeretha Stewart – voice;  Rod Levitt - horn arranger, horn conductor, string arranger, string conductor

Mobius: Cedar Walton - keyboards, arranger;  Roy Burrowes – trumpet;  Wayne Andre – trombone;  Charles Davis, Frank Foster – saxophones;  Ryo Kawasaki - electric guitar;  Gordon Edwards – bass;  Steve Gadd – drums;  Omar Clay, Ray Mantilla – percussion; Adrienne Albert, Lani Groves - vocals

Mobius & Beyond Mobius

Wednesday, June 9, 2021

Horace Parlan - Glad I Found You

Styles: Piano Jazz
Year: 1986
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 42:29
Size: 98,0 MB
Art: Front

( 4:54)  1. Monday Morning Blues
(10:08)  2. Hip Walk
( 6:03)  3. Oblivion
( 7:50)  4. Something for Silver
( 7:00)  5. Glad I Found You
( 6:31)  6. Afternoon in Paris

Expatriate pianist Horace Parlan and a couple of fine Scandinavians (bassist Jesper Lundgaard and drummer Aage Tanggaard) welcome Thad Jones (heard exclusively here on flugelhorn) and the great tenor Eddie Harris to this spirited set. Jones was making a successful, if short-lived comeback, and at two years before his death, this was one of his final high-quality small-group recordings. Harris is heard throughout in top form. The quintet performs two Parlan originals (including "Something for Silver"), a couple of obscurities, John Lewis' "Afternoon In Paris" and Bud Powell's "Oblivion." Parlan sounds inspired by the other musicians on this spirited hard bop set. ~ Scott Yanow https://www.allmusic.com/album/glad-i-found-you-mw0000196134

Personnel:  Horace Parlan - piano; Thad Jones - flugelhorn; Eddie Harris - tenor saxophone; Jesper Lundgaard - bass; Aage Tanggaard - drums

Glad I Found You

Tuesday, September 3, 2019

Lalo Schifrin - Bossa Nova Groove

Styles: Piano Jazz
Year: 1962
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 73:24
Size: 170,4 MB
Art: Front

(7:42)  1. Mima
(5:32)  2. Samba para Dos
(3:31)  3. Tel Eco Teco Nº 2
(4:57)  4. Lolita Marie
(8:32)  5. Céu e Mar
(5:45)  6. Whispering Bossa Nova
(2:26)  7. Boato
(2:39)  8. Chora Tua Tristeza
(3:16)  9. Poema do Adeus
(2:49) 10. O Apito no Samba
(5:15) 11. Chega de Saudade
(1:52) 12. Bossa em Nova York
(3:30) 13. O Amor e A Rosa
(2:26) 14. O Meniño Desce o Morro
(2:23) 15. Menina Feia
(3:58) 16. Ouça
(3:43) 17. Samba de Uma Nota So
(2:59) 18. Patinho Feio

An Oscar- and Emmy-nominated film and television composer, classical composer, and acclaimed jazz pianist, Lalo Schifrin emerged as a big-band leader in the mid-'50s, collaborating with the likes of Dizzy Gillespie and Xavier Cugat before beginning to score films in the mid-'60s. His iconic theme to TV's Mission: Impossible was first broadcast in 1966. Following in the footsteps of John Barry and Monty Norman's "James Bond Theme," its orchestral jazz instrumentation (including prevalent flutes, brass, piano, bongos, and jazz drums) and adrenalized staccato, syncopated rhythms helped to define spy music for decades to follow. Much like contemporaries Michel Legrand, Henry Mancini, and André Previn, while he wrote in a variety of styles, Schifrin remained best known for his jazz-inflected scores. They also included crime films like 1968's Bullitt, which set an urban scene with a large jazz ensemble that included electric guitar and electric bass, and the Dirty Harry franchise (1971-1988). Though more varied, the Dirty Harry scores maintained an antsy jazz M.O. while updating the production palette over time to include more keyboards, strings, and rock-styled drums. After his Mission: Impossible theme was repurposed for a big-screen reboot in the mid-'90s, Schifrin combined jazz, rock, and lush orchestral tracks in his lively soundtracks for the Rush Hour action franchise in the late '90s and 2000s. Over 50 years after its introduction, his Mission: Impossible theme was still featured heavily in Lorne Balfe's music for the blockbuster sixth entry in the film series, 2018's Mission: Impossible - Fallout. Born Boris Claudio Schifrin in Buenos Aires in 1932, Schifrin grew up with a father who played violin with the Teatro Colón Orchestra. When Lalo was six years old, his dad arranged for him to begin studying piano with Enrique Barenboim, father of celebrated pianist/conductor Daniel Barenboim. As a teenager, he studied piano with the former head of the Kiev Conservatory, Andreas Karalis, and harmony with composer Juan Carlos Paz. After winning a scholarship to the Paris Conservatory in the early '50s, he studied with French composers Charles Koechlin and Olivier Messiaen. In his off hours, he played in Parisian jazz clubs, and in 1955, he represented Argentina in the Paris International Jazz Festival. After returning to Buenos Aires, he started his own 16-piece, Basie-style jazz band, the first of its kind in Argentina, and found work as a pianist and arranger. 

His status as a bandleader helped him meet Dizzy Gillespie in 1956, and Schifrin offered to write a suite for Gillespie. He completed the five-movement Gillespiana in 1958, the same year he became an arranger for Xavier Cugat. In 1960, Schifrin moved to New York City and joined Gillespie's quintet, which recorded Gillespiana to much acclaim. He became Gillespie's musical director until 1962, contributing another suite, The New Continent, before leaving the position to concentrate on his writing. Schifrin accepted his first film-scoring assignment in the U.S. in 1963 (Rhino!) and moved to Hollywood, soon finding a niche composing for both TV and the silver screen. In the meantime, he composed works marked by his jazz-classical fusion style, including the 1963 ballet Jazz Faust and 1965's Jazz Suite on the Mass Texts. After establishing himself on episodes of television series such as The Alfred Hitchcock Hour and The Man from U.N.C.L.E., Schifrin joined the music department of the spy series Mission: Impossible. It premiered on CBS in 1966 and featured his catchy 5/4 instrumental "Theme from Mission: Impossible," a track that would live on in TV-music collections for decades to come. He followed it a year later with his theme to Mannix, around the same time he was becoming known for his jazzy scores to high-profile crime films such as Cool Hand Luke (1967) and Bullitt (1968). He earned his first Academy Award nomination for Cool Hand Luke and his second a year later for the D.H. Lawrence drama The Fox. Schifrin composed the music for the Don Siegel-directed Coogan's Bluff, starring Clint Eastwood, in 1968. 

He reunited with the pair on 1971's Dirty Harry and went on to write music for four of the five remaining films in the series, which extended through the '80s (1976's The Enforcer was composed by Jerry Fielding). During that time span, he also wrote scores for films as diverse as the 1976 war film Voyage of the Damned (his third Oscar nomination), Disney's The Cat from Outer Space from 1978, and the 1979 horror classic The Amityville Horror (his fourth Oscar nomination). He received two more Academy Award nominations in the '80s, for The Competition (1980) and The Sting II (1983).  While he continued to write frequently for movies and TV, Schifrin returned some of his focus to classical works during the '90s, a decade that saw the release of the first three in a series of orchestral jazz albums called Jazz Meets the Symphony. He also arranged much of the music for the first three of the Three Tenors concerts. In 1996, his Mission: Impossible theme reached another generation when it was repurposed for a series of films starring Tom Cruise. U2's Adam Clayton and Larry Mullen, Jr. produced a dance version of the theme that reached the Top Ten of the singles charts in the U.S. and U.K. Still writing original material for film, beginning in 1998, Schifrin provided playful orchestral scores for the first three entries in the Rush Hour series, starring Jackie Chan. Schifrin stayed active in Hollywood in his seventies, scoring films such as the crime film After the Sunset and the horror movie Abominable (directed by his son, Ryan Schifrin), in addition to Rush Hour 3 in the 2000s. The third, fourth, and fifth Mission: Impossible films saw release during the 2010s, as did the Schifrin-scored romantic comedy Love Story (2011) and basketball bio-pic Sweetwater (2016). ~ Marcy Donelson https://www.allmusic.com/artist/lalo-schifrin-mn0000781932/biography

Personnel: Lalo Schifrin (piano), Leo Wright (alto sax), Eddie Harris (tenor sax), Jimmy Raney (guitar), Art Davis, Chris White (bass), Chuck Lampkin, Rudy Collins (drums), Osvaldo Cigno, Jack Del Rio (percussion).

Bossa Nova Groove

Monday, February 18, 2019

Eddie Harris - Eddie Harris Goes To The Movies

Styles: Saxophone Jazz 
Year: 1962
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 27:08
Size: 62,9 MB
Art: Front

(3:16)  1. Laura
(2:45)  2. Moonglow
(2:19)  3. Be My Love
(2:35)  4. Gone With The Wind
(2:12)  5. Secret Love
(3:00)  6. These Foolish Things Remind Me Of You
(2:16)  7. Tonight
(3:24)  8. The More I See You
(2:31)  9. Green Dolphin Street
(2:47) 10. I Guess I'll Hang My Tears Out To Dry

Eddie Harris Goes to the Movies is the fifth album by American jazz saxophonist Eddie Harris. Recorded in 1962 and released on the Vee-Jay label the album features Harris performing orchestral arrangements of many motion picture themes of the era. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eddie_Harris_Goes_to_the_Movies

Personnel:  Eddie Harris - tenor saxophone; Unnamed Orchestra conducted by Dick Marx

Eddie Harris Goes To The Movies

Monday, June 11, 2018

Eddie Harris - Freedom Jazz Dance

Styles: Saxophone Jazz
Year: 1997
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 53:48
Size: 123,5 MB
Art: Front

(5:30)  1. Freedom Jazz Dance
(6:25)  2. Georgia on My Mind
(9:06)  3. Little Sunflower
(7:53)  4. Stars Fell on Alabama
(7:48)  5. Lisa Marie
(7:54)  6. Joshua Fit the Battle of Jericho
(9:10)  7. For All We Know

Eddie Harris' final "authorized" studio date, like most in the last decade-and-a-half of his life, is a conservative acoustic blowing session, trying one last time to capture the minds and hearts of bop-minded purists. Frankly, he never sounded better on tenor than he does here, his tone luminous, the freak high notes perfectly integrated into his uniquely swinging style, his ballad phrasing infused with an even more poignant singing quality. He had a crack backup piano trio in tow, anchored by his old cohort Billy Hart on drums (who sounds freer than ever), with the emerging Jacky Terrasson on piano and George Mraz on bass. Yet the CD's mainstream idiom is cautious in the extreme "Joshua Fit the Battle of Jericho" à la Trane is about as adventurous as this quartet gets (and Harris was into that style when it was current) and the only Harris original is the title tune, albeit superbly done. As a document of Eddie Harris in full bloom as a hard bopper, Freedom Jazz Dance is marvelous, but reveals only one side of this bewilderingly multi-faceted, innovative musician and as such, it is an incomplete memorial. [A Japanese version adds a bonus track.] ~ Richard S.Ginell https://www.allmusic.com/album/freedom-jazz-dance-mw0000090767  

Personnel: Tenor Saxophone – Eddie Harris;  Bass – George Mraz;  Drums – Billy Hart;  Piano – Jacky Terrasson

Freedom Jazz Dance

Tuesday, July 25, 2017

Eddie Harris - There Was a Time (Echo of Harlem)

Styles: Saxophone Jazz
Year: 1990
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 59:24
Size: 136,4 MB
Art: Front

( 8:32)  1. Love Letters
(10:21)  2. Historia de un Amor
( 5:02)  3. Autumn in New York
( 4:51)  4. Photographs of You
( 4:28)  5. The Song Is You
(12:42)  6. Harlem Nocturne
( 5:22)  7. There Was a Time (Echo of Harlem)
( 8:03)  8. Lover Come Back to Me

Eddie Harris, famous as the master of the electrified sax and for his brand of funky jazz, sticks exclusively to acoustic straightahead music on this rewarding Enja CD. With assistance from pianist Kenny Barron, bassist Cecil McBee and drummer Ben Riley, Harris is heard in peak form on such songs as "Love Letters," "Autumn in New York," "The Song Is You" and a lengthy "Harlem Nocturne." Although Harris has maintained a fairly low profile during the past decade, he is still playing in his prime as this highly recommended CD demonstrates. ~ Scott Yanow http://www.allmusic.com/album/there-was-a-time-echo-of-harlem-mw0000675002

Personnel: Eddie Harris (tenor saxophone); Kenny Barron (piano); Ben Riley (drums)

There Was a Time (Echo of Harlem)

Thursday, July 20, 2017

Eddie Harris - I Need Some Money

Styles: Saxophone Jazz
Year: 1998
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 45:03
Size: 103,6 MB
Art: Front

( 3:12)  1. I Need Some Money
( 9:49)  2. Get On Down
( 6:11)  3. Time To Do Your Thing
( 4:15)  4. Carnival
(11:56)  5. I Don't Want Nobody
( 4:07)  6. Bumpin
( 5:30)  7. That's It

No longer content to hide his voice behind a horn and an amp, Eddie Harris finally steps out as a singer in the first of a series of humorous hard-luck songs that would be the flagships of his next few LPs (one reason for this move, perhaps, was the title of this album, but his vocals didn't produce any hits). Harris also fools with an electronic rhythm machine and electronic horn attachments that practically turn his sax into a synthesizer. In any case, the thing he still does best here is ride a groove, the best of which is the extremely danceable "Get on Down," complete with Leon Thomas-like yodeling and a percussive vocal from the erstwhile sax master. "Carnival" also develops a head of steam when it starts to evoke a street celebration. There are indications, though, that Harris' repertoire of funk sax licks is beginning to run a bit thin. ~ Richard S.Ginell http://www.allmusic.com/album/i-need-some-money-mw0000944796

Personnel: Eddie Harris (vocals, saxophone, tenor saxophone, electric saxophone, piano, electric piano, organ); Derf Reklaw-Raheem (vocals, congas, talking drum, tabla); Durf Frederick Walker (vocals, congas, tabla, timbales); Bradley Bobo (guitar, 6-string bass); Ronald Muldrow (guitar); Rufus Reid (upright bass, 6-string bass); Calvin Barnes (drums, percussion).

I Need Some Money

Sunday, July 2, 2017

Eddie Harris - People Get Funny...

Styles: Saxophone Jazz
Year: 1987
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 40:44
Size: 95,0 MB
Art: Front

(4:37)  1. People Get Funny When They Get A Little Money
(8:04)  2. La Carnival
(5:18)  3. Ski Ball
(6:04)  4. Three Quarter Miles
(4:28)  5. Silver Plated
(5:25)  6. Hal Strange
(3:51)  7. The Time Of My Life
(2:55)  8. Step Down To The Top

Most of Eddie Harris' recordings on the Dutch Timeless label in the mid-'80s saw some action in the States but not this one, which was only released in Europe. A shame, for this was mostly one of Harris' few recorded excursions into funk during this period and it's a good one, stripped down, to the point, and featuring remarkably better material than most of his later Atlantic funk recordings. The full name of the vocal title track is "People Get Funny When They Get a Little Money" and it's another of Harris' wry, slightly bitter takes on the foibles of the material world, complete with some vintage acrobatic funk sax. "Three Quarter Miles" is one of Harris' most ingratiating loosey-goosey, triple-meter blues, and "Silver Plated" is a fine tune based roughly on a variation of the "Listen Here" vamp. With the help of overdubbing, Harris lays some electric and tenor saxophone, choral vocals, and humorous funk scatting over his own clarinet comping on the snazzy samba "Carnaval"; sometimes it's a bit stiff, but there is ebullience to spare. When drummer Carl Burnett is laying down a straight-ahead bop groove on "Hal Strange," Harris is locked into his distinctive funk manner, but when he takes off on Burnett's "The Time of My Life," he plays bop style with stunning harmonized electric sax runs Supersax on DC current. Pianist William S. Henderson III also contributes a Headhunters-esque piece called "Ski Ball." Harris' fans ought to grab this if it ever turns up in the vinyl bins. ~ Richard S.Ginell http://www.allmusic.com/album/people-get-funny-mw0000541077

Personnel: Eddie Harris (vocals, saxophone, tenor saxophone, electric saxophone, electric piano, Clavinet); Larry Gales (acoustic bass, electric bass); Carl Burnette (drums).

People Get Funny...

Wednesday, May 17, 2017

Les McCann - On The Soul Side

Styles: Piano Jazz
Year: 1995
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 62:58
Size: 144,4 MB
Art: Front

(5:09)  1. Shabalala
(8:41)  2. Early Riser
(7:16)  3. Back Rub
(8:12)  4. Vu Jade (The Feeling Of Never Having Been There Before)
(8:55)  5. New Blues
(5:15)  6. Lift Every Voice And Sing / God Bless America
(3:52)  7. Ignominy
(4:22)  8. The Children
(4:50)  9. Dippermouth
(6:22) 10. Look To Your Heart

While other Les McCann albums have emphasized R&B or soul-jazz vocals, the singer/pianist does very little singing on this CD. Only on "Look to Your Heart" can McCann's vocals be heard. Except for "God Bless America" (which contains a memorable vocal by Lou Rawls), all of the other tracks are jazz instrumentals. Joined by saxman Keith Anderson, trumpeter Jeff Elliott, bassist Abraham Laboriel, and drummer Tony St. James, a 58-year-old McCann makes jazz pianism his top priority on this album. It's a very lyrical and accessible sort of jazz pianism -- those who have spent a lot of time savoring Gene Harris' playing or getting into Joe Sample's Carmel should appreciate McCann's melodic playing on "Back Rub," "Shabalala," and other originals. Sadly, On the Soul Side is the last studio album that McCann would record as a leader before suffering a major stroke in early 1995 one that weakened his piano playing without depriving him of his ability to sing. ~Alex Henderson http://www.allmusic.com/album/on-the-soul-side-mw0000115110

Personnel: Les McCann (piano, vocals); Lou Rawls (vocals); Eddie Harris, Keith Anderson (saxophone); Jeff Elliott (trumpet, flugelhorn); Abraham Laboriel (bass); Tony St. James (drums).

On The Soul Side

Thursday, January 5, 2017

Various - Mack The Knife

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 52:49
Size: 120.9 MB
Styles: Assorted Jazz styles
Year: 1998
Art: Front

[8:14] 1. Barney Wilen - Mack The Knife
[6:34] 2. Pharoah Sanders - In A Sentimental Mood
[5:24] 3. Lee Konitz - My Funny Valentine
[6:22] 4. Eddie Harris - Georgia On My Mind
[5:56] 5. Carmen Leggio - Street Of Dreams
[7:03] 6. Archie Shepp - The Thrill Is Gone
[6:44] 7. Phil Woods - Souvenir
[6:28] 8. Barney Wilen - I Cover The Waterfront

About the song 'Mack the Knife": "Mack the Knife" was composed on a whim by Bertolt Brecht and Kurt Weill while they were putting the finishing touches on Die Dreigroschenoper in 1928. As the story goes, the diva-esque tenor who was playing the part of Mackie Messer, aka Macheath or Mack the Knife, suggested that a whole song should be written to introduce his character before he comes on stage. As one columnist recently wrote, "the essence of the song is: Oh, look who's coming onstage, it's Mack the Knife - a thief, murderer, arsonist, and rapist." The song, which became the opening number, was composed in less than 24 hours and added to the show at the final hour. Little did Weill and Brecht know it would be one of their most well-known legacies.

In some ways, The Threepenny Opera, tagged by Brecht and Weill as a show "by and for beggars," revolutionized musical theater. Die Dreigroschenoper was revolutionary because it was a fun musical that doubled as biting satire, throwing stone after stone at the corruption of the German government and its supporters without naming any names. It also integrated contemporary trends like tango and foxtrot. It was also historically fascinating because it was actually a re-write of a musical composed a full two hundred years before, John Gay's Beggar's Opera. In the early 1700s, the Beggar's Opera—which poked light fun at London's bourgeois classes—became wildly popular as the first comic opera. The parody, which featured a Robin Hood-type Macheath who stole from the rich, was later popular in the British colonies in New York and was supposedly enjoyed by George Washington. The Beggar's Opera was translated into German and became a popular play in 1920s Berlin because it spoke to the excesses of post-World War I Germany.

Not surprisingly, Brecht and Weill were pushed out of Germany by the Nazis in 1933, and their works were banned. They both ended up in the U.S. after seeking refuge in several European countries. Given that his life as a writer was devoted to calling out corruption and that he spent about a decade hiding from the Nazis, it is ironic that Brecht, who emigrated to the U.S. in the 1940s, was called before the House Un-American Activities Committee in 1947 and fled the U.S. for fear of political persecution.

Brecht and Weill's interpretation of the John Gay play is more sinister and intense than the amusing Robin Hood themes that showed up in the original. Macheath, the show's anti-hero, goes from being a bit of a crook to being a pretty serious one: he is portrayed as a murderer, rapist, and arsonist who is openly frightening but butters up the people around him, especially women, to keep on their good side. In The Threepenny Opera, he is known as Mackie Messer (Messer is German for knife).

Mack The Knife

Monday, June 6, 2016

Eddie Harris - A Tale of Two Cities

Styles: Saxophone Jazz
Year: 1991
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 62:19
Size: 143,9 MB
Art: Front

(13:01)  1. Chicago Serenade
( 8:14)  2. Cherokee
( 5:57)  3. Lover Man
( 4:55)  4. Sonnymoon (For Two)
( 4:31)  5. I Can't Get Started (With You)
(14:16)  6. Illusionary Dreams
( 5:54)  7. Don't Let Me Go
( 5:26)  8. Listen Here

One classic album that features two soulful performances by Eddie Harris in a nightclub setting, A Tale of Two Cities represents the artist at the Keystone Korner in San Francisco in 1978 and at Joe Segal's Jazz Showcase in Chicago in 1983. Joel Dorn has elected to debut Hyena with four 'live' memories, from Eddie Harris, Rahsaan Roland Kirk, Les McCann, and Cannonball Adderley. Who could ask for anything more?  Harris works his tenor saxophone with a vocal-like enthusiasm for most of the album. His is a light, fluid, unmistakable tone. But it's what Harris does with the horn ' his hearty improvisation ' that makes the difference. A communicator who always looked around the room, made eye contact, and took it all in while he performed, Eddie Harris related to everyone in the house. His wizardry could knock you off the barstool. Whether blowing fast and furious a la Bird, or mellowing out with the emotional heartache presence of Billie Holiday, the saxophonist brought out the best jazz had to offer. His sprightly wordless vocals on 'Sonnymoon for Two,' in unison with his piano accompaniment, set up a remarkable solo that Harris performs on the trumpet with a saxophone mouthpiece. Thus, he adds Miles Davis parallels to his winning formula. The leader's electronic saxophone is added for a lengthy 'Illusionary Dreams,' on which he performs some of his best examples of soul jazz. This track includes over four minutes of Harris' conversational rapport with his audience. He emulates Billie Holiday overtly on 'Don't Let Me Go' by singing through the horn. Then, on 'Listen Here,' we get a taste of some of the saxophonist's most memorable music. Long recognized as one of those 'desert island' albums, A Tale of Two Cities has much to offer ' even for those who do not like jazz.~Jim Santella https://www.allaboutjazz.com/a-tale-of-two-cities-eddie-harris-hyena-records-review-by-jim-santella.php
 
Personnel: Eddie Harris (vocals, tenor saxophone, electric saxophone, trumpet, piano); Rob Schneiderman, Jack Wilson (piano); Louis Spears, Herbioe Lewis (bass); Albert Heath, Eddie Marshall (drums).

A Tale of Two Cities

Tuesday, March 1, 2016

Les McCann & Eddie Harris - Swiss Movement

Styles: Piano And Saxophone Jazz
Year: 1969
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 47:51
Size: 109,7 MB
Art: Front

(8:56)  1. Compared to What
(7:08)  2. Cold Duck Time
(6:15)  3. Kathleen's Theme
(7:34)  4. You Got It in Your Soulness
(9:12)  5. The Generation Gap
(8:43)  6. Kaftan

One of the most popular soul jazz albums of all time, and one of the best, although Harris (and trumpeter Benny Bailey) had never played or rehearsed with the Les McCann Trio before, and indeed wasn't even given the music. Perhaps that's what sparked the spontaneous funk coming through clearly on the tape of this show, recorded at the Montreux Festival in 1969. It's actually much more of a showcase for McCann than Harris, although the tenor saxist's contributions are significant. The sole vocal, a version of Gene McDaniels' "Compared to What," remains McCann's signature tune. [Some reissues add a nine-minute bonus track, "Kaftan."] ~ Richie Unterberger  http://www.allmusic.com/album/swiss-movement-mw0000054231

Personnel: Eddie Harris (vocals, saxophone, tenor saxophone, electric saxophone, trumpet, piano); Les McCann (vocals, piano, keyboards); Benny Bailey (trumpet); Donald Dean (drums).

Swiss Movement

Thursday, February 25, 2016

Eddie Harris - Exodus to Jazz

Styles: Saxophone Jazz
Year: 1961
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 39:45
Size: 91,6 MB
Art: Front

(6:43)  1. Exodus
(3:43)  2. Alicia
(2:53)  3. Gone Home
(5:34)  4. A.T.C.
(2:48)  5. A.M. Blues
(3:24)  6. Little Girl Blue
(5:12)  7. Velocity
(4:34)  8. W.P.
(2:02)  9. Exodus (Single Version)
(2:48) 10. Alicia (Single Version)

One of the biggest hit jazz LPs of the post-rock & roll era, Eddie Harris' Exodus to Jazz seemed to come completely out of left field. It was the debut album by a previously unknown artist from an under-publicized scene in Chicago, and it was released on the primarily R&B-oriented Vee Jay label, which had originally signed Harris as a pianist, not a tenor saxophonist. The impetus for its breakthrough was equally unlikely; Harris adapted Ernest Gold's stately, somber theme from the Biblical film Exodus which had been covered for an easy listening hit by Ferrante & Teicher and made it into a laid-back jazz tune. Edited down to 45-rpm length, it became a smash, reaching the pop Top 40 and pushing the album to the upper reaches of the charts a nearly unprecedented feat for instrumental jazz in 1961. 

Its stunning popularity sent jazz critics into a tizzy after all, if it was that accessible to a mass audience, there just had to be something wrong with it, didn't there? In hindsight, the answer is no. Exodus to Jazz is full of concise, easy-swinging grooves that maintain the appealing quality of the strikingly reimagined title track (particularly Harris' four originals). Far removed from his later, funkier days, Harris plays a cool-toned tenor who owes his biggest debt to Stan Getz's bop recordings, though there are touches of soul-jazz as well. He's no slouch technically, either; he plays so far and so sweetly in the upper register of his horn that some still mistakenly believe he was using an alto sax on parts of the record. Exodus to Jazz paved the way for numerous other crossover successes during the '60s (many in the soul-jazz realm), and while that may not be a credibility-boosting trend to start, the music still speaks for itself. ~ Steve Huey  http://www.allmusic.com/album/exodus-to-jazz-mw0000117010

Personnel: Eddie Harris (tenor saxophone); Joe Diorio (guitar); Willie Pickens (piano); Harold Jones (drums).

Exodus to Jazz

Tuesday, February 23, 2016

Eddie Harris - Dancing By A Rainbow

Styles: Vocal, Piano And Saxophone Jazz
Year: 1995
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 56:51
Size: 130,6 MB
Art: Front

(12:52)  1. Mean Greens
( 5:30)  2. The Grand Strut
( 7:09)  3. Set Us Free
( 3:42)  4. Boogie Woogie Bossa Nova
( 6:40)  5. You Are Not The Right One For Me
( 5:33)  6. Dancing By A Rainbow
( 7:19)  7. An April To Be Remembered
( 8:02)  8. It's Just Fun And Games

If Musicmasters' claim that Freedom Jazz Dance is the last "fully authorized" Eddie Harris studio session is to be believed, what are listeners to make of this baby, which followed the Musicmasters date by nearly a year? Whether authorized or not, Dancing by a Rainbow is actually a better capstone to his studio legacy. Recorded in a reverberant Munich studio, with old '70s cohort Ronald Muldrow back on electric guitar, Nolan Smith on trumpet and flugelhorn, and a strutting rhythm section (electric and acoustic bassist Jeff Chambers, drummer Gaylord Birch), the music-making is hotter, the styles more diverse, and the 60-year-old leader who had a little more than a year and a half to live is in just as splendidly inventive shape. All the compositions are Harris', nearly half of which are remakes of some of his best, less-often-encored stuff from his heyday in the '60s and early '70s. If anything, this hard-swinging, nearly 13-minute remake of "Mean Greens" is even better than the original, with Muldrow's rhythm guitar serving as the main engine. 

Harris' solo is a career-encompassing summary of his funk style, and further down on the track he starts comping on piano right in the middle of Chambers' solo which has the electrifying effect of driving everyone even harder. "Set Us Free" (originally recorded with Les McCann) goes at a faster, more brittle, percolating tempo, and "Boogie Woogie Bossa Nova" is brighter in tone and funkier in pace. The newer tunes range from truckin' soul-jazz ("The Grand Strut") through the loose-jointed syncopated funk of the title track, the good-time Brazilian samba "It's Just Fun and Games," and the more straight-ahead manner that Harris often cultivated in the last years. For old times' sake, Harris also cuts loose a bop-scat vocal on "An April to Be Remembered," with an occasional reminder of his Leon Thomas-style yodel. Clearly, the Europeans understood Eddie Harris' versatility perfectly. ~ Richard S. Ginell  http://www.allmusic.com/album/dancing-by-a-rainbow-mw0000646878

Personnel: Eddie Harris (vocals, tenor saxophone, piano); Nolan Smith (trumpet, flugelhorn); Ronald Muldrow (electric guitar); Jeff Chambers (electric bass); Gaylord Birch (drums); Uli Stach (percussion).

Dancing By A Rainbow

Sunday, December 20, 2015

Horace Silver - Pencil Packin' Papa

Styles: Piano Jazz
Year: 1994
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 66:31
Size: 158,1 MB
Art: Front

(5:48)  1. Pencil Packin' Papa
(7:09)  2. I Got The Dancin' Blues
(6:50)  3. Soul Mates
(7:02)  4. I Need My Baby
(6:11)  5. My Mother's Waltz
(7:21)  6. Red Beans And Rice
(8:13)  7. Blues For Brother Blue
(4:56)  8. Let It All Hang Out
(6:58)  9. Señor Blues
(5:59) 10. Viva Amour

This CD's main assets are the many new compositions by Horace Silver and his colorful arrangements for the six-piece brass section. Although not enough is heard from the brass players on an individual basis (the greatly underrated trumpeter Oscar Brashear and trombonist George Bohanon get just one solo apiece), this is partly alleviated by the guest tenors. Red Holloway solos on seven songs while James Moody, Eddie Harris and Rickey Woodard each pop up twice. In addition, O.C. Smith does a fine job on his four vocals although Silver's abilities as a lyricist are still open to question. However his piano solos are typically exciting and inventive and Silver has obviously lost none of his enthusiasm even after four decades of music making. ~ Scott Yanow  http://www.allmusic.com/album/pencil-packin-papa-mw0000624836

Personnel: Horace Silver (piano); O.C. Smith (vocals); Red Holloway, Eddie Harris, Rickey Woodard, James Moody (tenor saxophone); Oscar Brashear, Ron Stout, Jeff Bernell (trumpet, flugelhorn); George Bohanon (trombone); Maurice Spears (bass trombone); Suzette Moriarty (French horn); Bob Maize (bass); Carl Burnette (drums).

Pencil Packin' Papa

Saturday, September 19, 2015

Eddie Harris - Eddie Harris Sings The Blues

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 41:09
Size: 94.2 MB
Styles: Hard bop, Soul jazz
Year: 1972/2005
Art: Front

[ 7:10] 1. Please Let Me Go
[ 4:57] 2. Ten Minutes To Four
[ 3:48] 3. A Child Is Born
[ 4:05] 4. Walk With Me
[12:29] 5. Eddie Sings The Blues
[ 8:38] 6. Giant Steps

Eddie Harris had sung through his horn prior to this release, but not to such a great extent as on this wide-ranging LP. Here he tries to shape words through the filters of a reed mouthpiece, a slightly noisy wah-wah pedal and electronic amplification, and the results are genuinely expressive despite the aura of gimmickry. Indeed "Please Let Me Go," thanks to Harris' pleading sax vocal and Richard Evans' string drapery, deliberately and hauntingly evokes Billie Holiday's orchestral sessions from the 1950s. In the category of funk, "Ten Minutes to Four" is almost a reworking of "1974 Blues" in the exotic 10/4 meter and, "Walk with Me" could have been a minor hit single with its catchy tune, wah-wah sax vocals and stentorian brass riffs. Finally, if for no other reason than ego (Harris admitted so himself), he tackles "Giant Steps" at a galloping Latin beat, the scattershot solo with the freak high notes all in his own style. Another fascinating installment in Harris' long Atlantic period. ~Richard S. Ginnell

Eddie Harris Sings The Blues