Clifford Brown - Memorial Album (Remastered)

Styles: Trumpet Jazz
Year: 1953/2001
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 71:12
Size: 165,1 MB
Art: Front

(4:14)  1. Bellarosa
(3:56)  2. Carvin' The Rock
(3:14)  3. Cookin'
(3:46)  4. Brownie Speaks
(4:51)  5. De-Dah
(4:19)  6. You Go To My Head
(3:51)  7. Carvin' The Rock (Alternate Take)
(3:08)  8. Cookin' (Alternate Take)
(4:05)  9. Carvin' The Rock (Alternate Take #2)
(4:02) 10. Wail Bait
(4:07) 11. Hymn Of The Orient
(3:56) 12. Brownie Eyes
(3:27) 13. Cherokee
(3:44) 14. Easy Living
(4:34) 15. Minor Mood
(4:07) 16. Wail Bait (Alternate Take)
(3:42) 17. Cherokee (Alternate Take)
(4:01) 18. Hymn Of The Orient (Alternate Take)

Clifford Brown emerged fully formed in 1953, a trumpeter gifted with an ebullient swing and technical skills that added polish and precision to fresh invention. Foregoing both the manic pyrotechnics of Dizzy Gillespie and the laconic introversion of Miles Davis, he also provided a stylistic model for jazz trumpeters that has never gone out of style. This CD combines Brown's first two recording dates as leader, placing him in quintet and sextet settings with some of the core musicians of the New York bop scene. The first nine tracks have Brown in an inspired quintet, prodded by the twisting, off-kilter solos and comping of the brilliant and underrated pianist Elmo Hope and the sparkling complexity of drummer Philly Joe Jones. While altoist Lou Donaldson is deeply in the sway of Charlie Parker, Brown sets his own course, whether it's the boppish "Cookin'" or the standard "You Go to My Head." 

The final nine tracks have Art Blakey's drums driving the sextet, while altoist Gigi Gryce's understated concentration acts as an effective foil to Brown's joyous, dancing lines. Taken at a medium up-tempo, "Cherokee" is one of Brown's most effective vehicles. The alternate takes from each session highlight Brown's spontaneous creativity, while Rudy Van Gelder's remastering adds fresh focus to both his gorgeous tone and the explosive drumming. ~ Stuart Broomer - Editorial Reviews https://www.amazon.com/Memorial-Album-Clifford-Brown/dp/B00005MIZ6

Personnel: Tracks 1-9: Clifford Brown - trumpet; Lou Donaldson - alto saxophone; Elmo Hope - piano; Percy Heath - bass; Philly Joe Jones - drums. Tracks 10-18: Clifford Brown - trumpet; John Lewis - piano; Gigi Gryce - alto saxophone, flute; Charlie Rouse - tenor saxophone; Percy Heath - bass; Art Blakey - drums

Memorial Album

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Elmo Hope Trio - Meditations

Styles: Piano Jazz
Year: 1955
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 43:34
Size: 102,8 MB
Art: Front

(3:42)  1. It's A Lovely Day Today
(3:25)  2. All The Things You Are
(4:27)  3. Quit It
(2:55)  4. Lucky Strike
(4:58)  5. I Don't Stand (A Ghost Of A Chance With You)
(3:49)  6. Huh
(3:00)  7. Falling In Love With Love
(3:25)  8. My Heart Stood Still
(2:41)  9. Elmo's Fire
(4:28) 10. I'm In The Mood For Love
(6:41) 11. Blue Mo

Although Elmo Hope was one of the more interesting jazz composers of the 1950s, the emphasis on his trio set with bassist John Ore and drummer Willie Jones is on Hope's piano playing. Influenced greatly by Bud Powell (his contemporary), Hope performs standards (such as "All the Things You Are" and "Falling in Love with Love") along with some originals, most of which are based on the chord changes of earlier songs. Fans of bop piano and Bud Powell will want this enjoyable CD reissue. ~ Scott Yanow http://www.allmusic.com/album/meditations-mw0000691394

Personnel:  Bass – John Ore;  Drums – Willie Jones;  Piano – Elmo Hope

Meditations

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Elmo Hope - Plays His Original Compositions

Styles: Piano Jazz
Year: 1961
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 54:08
Size: 125,7 MB
Art: Front

(3:35)  1. Hot Sauce
(5:01)  2. When The Groove Is Low
(4:28)  3. De-Dah
(3:46)  4. Abdullah
(3:39)  5. Freffie
(6:45)  6. Stars Over Marrakesh
(4:58)  7. Chips
(4:05)  8. Happy Hour
(4:21)  9. Moe's Bluff
(4:31) 10. Moe Is On
(4:39) 11. Maybe So
(4:15) 12. Crazy

The highly original works of composer/pianist Elmo Hope included in this collection are certainly a landmark in his career and a source of unalloyed joy to his many admirers. Paul Chambers and Philly Joe Jones, two of the most exciting jazz musicians, are the remaining two-thirds of this extraordinary trio. Within the dazzling framework of Hopes vivid compositions, they form an aggregation with a strikingly individual style. https://www.freshsoundrecords.com/elmo-hope-albums/4386-plays-his-own-compositions.html

Personnel: Elmo Hope (p), Paul Chambers, Edward Warren (b), Philly Joe Jones, Granville Hogan (d)

Plays His Original Compositions

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Elmo Hope - A Night in Tunisia

Styles: Piano Jazz
Year: 2015
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 103:03
Size: 237,6 MB
Art: Front

( 6:29)  1. Something for Kenny
( 6:18)  2. Barfly
( 7:32)  3. Like Someone in Love
( 5:47)  4. B's A-Plenty
( 6:00)  5. Boa
( 4:51)  6. Minor Bertha
( 2:58)  7. Tranquility
( 3:55)  8. Eejah
(10:50)  9. I Love You
( 4:56) 10. Low Tide
(10:41) 11. Elmo's Blues
(10:16) 12. A Night in Tunisia
( 4:21) 13. Stellations
( 8:42) 14. Somebody Loves Me
( 6:32) 15. Low Tide - Alternate Take
( 2:46) 16. Pam

Overshadowed throughout his life by his friends Bud Powell and Thelonious Monk, Elmo Hope was a talented pianist and composer whose life was cut short by drugs. His first important gig was with Joe Morris' R&B band (1948-1951). He recorded in New York as a leader (starting in 1953) and with Sonny Rollins, Lou Donaldson, Clifford Brown, and Jackie McLean, but the loss of his cabaret card (due to his drug use) made it very difficult for him to make a living in New York. After touring with Chet Baker in 1957, Hope relocated to Los Angeles. He performed with Lionel Hampton in 1959, recorded with Harold Land and Curtis Counce, and returned to New York in 1961. A short prison sentence did little to help his drug problem and, although he sounds fine on his trio performances of 1966, he died a little over a year later. Elmo Hope's sessions as a leader were cut for Blue Note, Prestige, Pacific Jazz, Hi Fi Jazz, Riverside, Celebrity, Beacon, and Audio Fidelity; his last albums were initially released on Inner City. Hope was also a fine composer, although none of his songs became standards.~ Scott Yanow https://www.allmusic.com/artist/elmo-hope-mn0000145307/biography

A Night in Tunisia

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Elmo Hope Sextet And Trio - Homecoming!

Styles: Piano Jazz

Year: 1961

File: MP3@320K/s

Time: 50:26

Size: 116,6 MB

Art: Front

(5:56)  1. Moe, Jr. (take 4)

(4:41)  2. Moe, Jr. (take 2)

(3:14)  3. La Berthe

(6:33)  4. Eyes So Beautiful As Yours

(5:15)  5. Homecoming

(6:48)  6. One Mo' Blues

(5:33)  7. A Kiss For My Love (take 5)

(5:39)  8. A Kiss For My Love (take 4)

(6:43)  9. Imagination

Homecoming! is a particularly high-spirited record for this stage in Hope's troubled career. Following an extended stay in Los Angeles, a number of the day's top players helped welcome a refreshed Hope back to New York on this session. Tenor saxophonists Frank Foster and Jimmy Heath, as well as trumpeter Blue Mitchell, form the front line on the sextet numbers, while on all tracks Hope is joined by the rhythm section of Percy Heath and Philly Joe Jones. Four of the album's (original) seven tracks are sextet performances and the two alternate takes only appear on the Fantasy Original Jazz Classics CD reissue. The Dameron-esque bop numbers sizzle and weave and the tenor work of Frank Foster is especially rewarding on the album's bouncing opener, "Moe, Jr.," take four on the CD. The three ballads are equally fresh and less doom-ridden than comparable performances found elsewhere in his catalog. Expect fine performances by all. This great hard bop record is highly recommended. ~ Brandon Burke https://www.allmusic.com/album/homecoming%21-mw0000093981

Personnel:  Elmo Hope - piano;  Blue Mitchell - trumpet (tracks 1, 2, 4, 7 & 8);  Frank Foster, Jimmy Heath - tenor saxophone (tracks 1, 2, 4, 7 & 8);  Percy Heath - bass;  Philly Joe Jones - drums

Homecoming!

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Elmo Hope - Informal Jazz

Styles: Piano Jazz
Year: 1956
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 38:43
Size: 88,8 MB
Art: Front

(11:13)  1. Weeja
( 8:41)  2. Polka Dots and Moonbeams
( 9:05)  3. On It
( 9:43)  4. Avalon

The Prestige label turned out records like this at the rate they roast ducks in Chinatown, and there are plenty of happy souls who can't get enough of either. If this particular session hasn't assumed the legend of a jazz classic, it's because, on the whole, some little spark seems to be missing. If this element could be defined easily, and put into words quickly and efficiently, then record producers and musicians would know exactly how to create the perfect jam session record. The people involved in this record know much more about such a science then the average musician and record producer. These are musicians very far down the road from being average, all of this underscoring the difficulty of creating a spontaneous recording session at which moments of improvisational genius are expected to pop up. While the album's title is another example of how cleverly labels such as this can describe what they are selling, there are really many aspects of these proceedings that are hardly informal at all. Describing these in the order in the importance, the obvious place to start is the drum and bass team of Philly Joe Jones and Paul Chambers. The playing of these gentlemen here is worth the price of the record alone, even if the copy is secured from a tightwad used-record store owner somewhere in the Ozarks who only opens the doors of his establishment for gold credit card owners. This is hardly the kind of rhythm section playing heard at a jam session, except possibly in heaven. Elmo Hope mans the piano bench at the helm of this dream team, and while the liner notes call him the "nominal leader" for the blowing date, he earns actual leader status by accomplishing two things. First, his solo spots are the best part of the record, especially the part of "Weeja" where even Jones drops back, eventually adding some strange filigree. At this point the rhythm section seems to be making a statement about having gone through the rigmarole of backing all the previous horn solos in an exercise that is supposed to produce great moments of jazz, but maybe didn't. They play as if in relief, as if happy it is up to them for a change. What happens is truly memorable, but it sounds more like professional musicians who have worked together many times hitting a genius moment, not a jam session.

Second, Hope provides original material that helps give the record its personality. It is typical to pass off the tunes at sessions such as this as just simple contrivances to launch soloists, but again it is a stretch to imagine an "informal" recording session where even material as complicated as this is played. Both of the standards have arrangements that would leave jazz students, and some of their teachers, tying their shoes on the bridge. Hope's "Weeja" has a simple fanfare of a theme, sure, but it is arranged within a nifty series of short blowing spots. This is where the merry listener gets the treat of hearing Donald Byrd, Hank Mobley, and John Coltrane introduce themselves instrumentally, the latter tenor giant making a great ride of the bridge. Everything is tight, together, and without a hitch. Squeaking mouthpieces from Mobley and Coltrane are the only casual aspects. 

These tenor titans are promoted as being involved in reviving the instrumental battle popularized by Gene Ammons and others here, but a real duel would require some kind of interaction between the participants. Mobley and Coltrane really don't seem to be paying much attention to each other, pursuing their own agendas. Mobley has the whisk broom and the fluff brush, enjoying an effortlessly fluid tone with a sound a bit like Warne Marsh at times. Coltrane continually blasts ringing melodic variations on various hard bop licks, each of them worthy of being chiseled into marble. The trumpeter's acrobatics are familiar, pole-vaulting through the changes, running the 440 through the bridge, then a standing broad jump in the trades with Jones. Can anyone else play like Byrd? It hasn't happened yet. The overall best performance is probably "Polka Dots and Moonbeams" since it is the one slow tune of the bunch, it gets the most special treatment. Shorn of nothing but moments of sheer brilliance, a shorter and better version of this album would feature only the piano solos and the parts where everyone trades fours with the drummer. ~ Eugene Chadbourne https://www.allmusic.com/album/informal-jazz-mw0000907736

Personnel:  Elmo Hope — piano;  Donald Byrd — trumpet;  John Coltrane, Hank Mobley — tenor saxophone;  Paul Chambers — bass;  Philly Joe Jones — drums

Informal Jazz

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Elmo Hope Quintet - Elmo Hope Quintet

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 75:45
Size: 173.4 MB
Styles: Piano jazz
Year: 1954/1991/2015
Art: Front

[2:48] 1. It's A Lovely Day Today
[2:51] 2. Mo Is On
[2:59] 3. Sweet And Lovely
[2:52] 4. Happy Hour
[3:53] 5. Hot Sauce
[3:06] 6. Stars Over Marakesh
[3:05] 7. Freffie
[2:56] 8. Carvin' The Rock
[2:46] 9. I Remember You
[2:52] 10. Mo Is On (Alternate Take)
[4:17] 11. Crazy
[3:48] 12. Abdullah
[3:36] 13. Chips
[4:01] 14. Later For You
[4:12] 15. Low Tide
[4:25] 16. Maybe So
[4:23] 17. Crazy (Alternate Take)
[6:08] 18. So Nice
[5:56] 19. St. Elmo's Fire
[4:45] 20. Vaun-Ex

Bass – Percy Heath; Drums – Art Blakey; Piano – Elmo Hope; Tenor Saxophone – Frank Foster; Trumpet – Freeman Lee.

Of the collections of Elmo Hope's '50s recordings, Trio and Quintet is the one to get. It includes his prime Blue Note sessions and features a stellar cast of hard bop musicians including Art Blakey, Frank Foster, Philly Joe Jones, and Harold Land. The majority of the tunes are Hope originals which, in their angular introspection, bear the influence of both Bud Powell and Thelonious Monk. Things begin with ten mostly hard bop swingers from a trio date in 1953. Prominently featured is Hope's Powell like, single line attack. Solos stay brisk and straightforward on uptempo numbers like "Hot Sauce," but turn a bit mercurial on slower pieces like "Happy Hour." Standout tracks include Hope's "Mo Is On" with its "off to the races" opening statement and "Carvin' the Rock," which falls somewhere between Powell's "Parisian Thoroughfare" and "So Sorry Please." Percy Heath and Philly Joe Jones provide sympathetic support throughout. The Quintet tracks start with an East Coast session featuring Foster and Blakey. "Crazy"; it causes some problems for trumpeter Freeman Lee, but finds Foster in command with a vigorous solo statement. The remainder of the session impresses with a series of rhythmically rich Hope compositions which, like the majority of Monk's tunes, stay memorable in spite of their complexity. Three more Hope tunes from a West Coast date round out the quintet tracks and close the CD. This Blue Note release is great not only for its cross-section of Hope compositions, but also for the many fertile ideas they've inspired in top-drawer soloists. ~Stephen Cook

Elmo Hope Quintet mc
Elmo Hope Quintet zippy

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Elmo Hope - Hope Meets Foster

Styles: Piano Jazz, Bop 
Year: 1955
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 38:13
Size: 88,3 MB
Art: Front

(6:28)  1. Wail, Frank, Wail
(5:16)  2. Zarou
(6:17)  3. Fosterity
(6:41)  4. Georgia On My Mind
(5:51)  5. Shutout
(7:38)  6. Yaho

This decent bop session features tenor-saxophonist Frank Foster and pianist Elmo Hope in a quintet with the forgotten trumpeter Freeman Lee (who is on three of the six songs), bassist John Ore and drummer Art Taylor. They perform three of Hope's originals, two by Foster and an uptempo version of "Georgia on My Mind." None of the originals caught on (when was the last time anyone played "Fosterity"?) and nothing that innovative occurs but the music should please bop fans. ~ Scott Yanow http://www.allmusic.com/album/hope-meets-foster-mw0000267678

Personnel:  Elmo Hope (piano); Frank Foster (tenor saxophone); Freeman Lee (trumpet); John Ore (bass); Arthur Taylor (drums).

Hope Meets Foster

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Elmo Hope - Elmo Hope Trio

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 42:51
Size: 98.1 MB
Styles: Bop, Piano jazz
Year: 1959/2010
Art: Front

[5:39] 1. B's A Plenty
[6:11] 2. Barfly
[3:50] 3. Eejah
[5:57] 4. Boa
[6:08] 5. Something For Kenny
[7:23] 6. Like Someone In Love
[4:45] 7. Minor Bertha
[2:54] 8. Tranquility

The boppish and fairly original Elmo Hope performs seven of his obscure originals, many of which are well worth reviving, plus "Like Someone In Love" in a trio with bassist Jimmy Bond and drummer Frank Butler. Bop and straight-ahead jazz fans wanting to hear a talented pianist play fresh tunes should explore Elmo Hope's valuable music. ~Scott Yanow

Elmo Hope Trio

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Elmo Hope Trio - Elmo Plays His Own Compositions

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 53:37
Size: 122.7 MB
Styles: Piano jazz
Year: 1961/2011
Art: Front

[3:32] 1. Hot Sauce
[4:58] 2. When The Groove Is Low
[4:25] 3. De Dah
[3:44] 4. Abdullah
[3:36] 5. Freffie
[6:42] 6. Stars Over Marakesh
[4:55] 7. Chips
[4:03] 8. Happy Hour
[4:19] 9. Moe's Bluff
[4:27] 10. Mo Is On
[4:36] 11. Maybe So
[4:14] 12. Crazy

Elmo Hope (p), Paul Chambers, Edward Warren (b), Philly Joe Jones, Granville Hogan (d). Recorded in New York City, 1961.

The highly original works of composer/pianist Elmo Hope included in this collection are certainly a landmark in his career and a source of unalloyed joy to his many admirers. Paul Chambers and Philly Joe Jones, two of the most exciting jazz musicians, are the remaining two-thirds of this extraordinary trio. Within the dazzling framework of Hopes vivid compositions, they form an aggregation with a strikingly individual style.

Elmo Plays His Own Compositions

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Elmo Hope - Hope Full

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 39:48
Size: 91.1 MB
Styles: Bop, Swing
Year: 1961/1995
Art: Front

[4:35] 1. Underneath
[5:17] 2. Yesterdays
[5:00] 3. When Johnny Comes Marching Home
[5:05] 4. Most Beautiful
[6:04] 5. Blues Left And Right
[3:30] 6. Liza (All The Clouds'll Roll Away)
[5:23] 7. My Heart Stood Still
[4:50] 8. Moonbeams

During the early years of the bop revolution, few of its younger pianists recorded unaccompanied solos. Even by 1961, solo albums by the bop musicians were considered a bit unusual, but Elmo Hope (an underrated composer and pianist) fares quite well during this Riverside set, which has been reissued on CD. Hope is joined by his wife Bertha on second piano during three of the eight numbers, most notably on a swinging "Blues Left and Right." Of the solo pieces, Elmo Hope is at his best on "When Johnny Comes Marching Home" and a cocktailish, but appealing, version of "Liza." ~Scott Yanow

Hope Full

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