Steve Grossman - Time to Smile

Styles: Saxophone Jazz
Year: 1994
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 60:14
Size: 139,1 MB
Art: Front

(7:25)  1. 415 Central Park West
(7:03)  2. Circus
(8:42)  3. I'm Confessin'
(6:48)  4. Extemporaneous
(7:47)  5. This Time the Dream's On Me
(8:39)  6. Time to Smile
(5:49)  7. Till There Was You
(7:57)  8. E. J.'s Blues

This outing is one of tenor-saxophonist Steve Grossman's finest recordings to date. He has mixed together the almost equal influences of John Coltrane and Sonny Rollins to achieve his own style and sound. The program is quite strong with its superior yet generally underplayed standards joined by two of the leader's originals, Elvin Jones's "E.J.'s Blues" and Freddie Redd's "Time to Smile"; also the lineup of musicians would be difficult to top. Pianist Willie Pickens shows a lot of versatility on the hard bop-oriented music, trumpeter Tom Harrell (who is on around half of the tracks) is as fiery and alert as usual, bassist Cecil McBee has a strong musical personality that comes across even when restricted to accompanying the soloists, and drummer Elvin Jones remains in prime form. The main focus however is mostly on Grossman and he continues to grow as an improviser year-by-year. Highly recommended.By Scott Yanow https://www.allmusic.com/album/time-to-smile-mw0000181523

Personnel:  Tenor Saxophone – Steve Grossman; Bass – Cecil McBee; Drums – Elvin Jones; Piano – Willy Pickens; Trumpet, Flugelhorn – Tom Harrell

Time to Smile

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Joe Lovano - Trio Fascination Edition One

Styles: Saxophone Jazz
Year: 1998
Time: 66:09
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Size: 151,4 MB
Art: Front

(3:05) 1. New York Fascination
(6:44) 2. Sanctuary Park
(7:37) 3. Eternal Joy
(4:56) 4. Ghost of a Chance
(7:12) 5. Studio Rivbea
(4:59) 6. Cymbalism
(9:36) 7. Impressionistic
(7:15) 8. Villa Paradiso
(5:12) 9. 4 on the Floor
(9:28) 10. Days of Yore

Never predictable, Joe Lovano's saxophone artistry has him moving in all directions at once. Similarly, his ensembles have ranged from large to small, and this latest session features an excellent grouping. Presenting his own compositions, the 45-year-old leader draws upon nearly 30 years of professional experience and dedicates the album to those artists in Cleveland, Ohio who were there for him at the start. After performing with his father's band and attending the Berklee School of Music in Boston, Lovano's career went through the traditional phases that included experience with Lonnie Smith, Jack McDuff, Woody Herman, and Mel Lewis. Teaming with singer Judi Silvano in 1980, the saxophonist discovered a unique jazz presentation that employed the human voice as an instrument amid the timbres of a traditional ensemble. Combining tradition with avant-garde ideas, Lovano brings a unique sound to the modern mainstream. Three of the pieces on this album are extracted from a larger work that Lovano composed as part of a Jazz At Lincoln Center commission. “

Dave Holland works as a melodic counterpart to Lovano's saxophone lead. The bassist, who turned 52 last month, began his professional career in his native England before linking up with Miles Davis and later garnering associations with leading members of the modern jazz idiom, including Jack DeJohnette, Herbie Hancock, Sam Rivers, and Chick Corea. Elvin Jones accompanies with a light touch and subtle shadings; however, his periodic emphatic statements add a vital force needed for the balance this trio has attained. Jones, who turned 71 in September, is the younger brother of pianist Hank Jones and trumpeter Thad Jones. His name recognition stemming from his role in the John Coltrane quartet of the early 1960s, Jones has spent much of his career teaching and helping younger musicians to find their own voices in jazz.“

Joe Lovano chooses to present his familiar tenor saxophone sound on most tracks; the soprano saxophone is employed on "Eternal Joy," the alto sax on "Studio Rivbea" & "4 on the Floor," and the alto clarinet on "Impressionistic." Victor Young's "I Don't Stand a Ghost of a Chance With You" is presented in standard form with brushes and strolling bass in support. It's all about the melody, as Lovano offers his heartfelt interpretation of Ned Washington's lyrics. With the leader choosing alto clarinet and Holland using the bow, the trio performs "Impressionistic" with an ear on the melody and a hand on the arrhythmic pulse.

Jones provides a feature, using every facet of the drum set to create various textures while Lovano and Holland pair off with doubled melodic lines. Switching to alto sax at mid-stream, Lovano continues to deliver the session's highlight with a superb presentation from all three artists. For the most part, the album contains music from a jazz trio that is steeped in the hard bop tradition, willing & free to unleash creative feelings, and in agreement as to what constitutes the modern mainstream in jazz. Highly recommended.https://www.allaboutjazz.com/trio-fascination-joe-lovano-blue-note-records-review-by-jim-santella“

Personnel: Joe Lovano- tenor saxophone, soprano saxophone, straight alto clarinet; Dave Holland- acoustic bass; Elvin Jones- drums

Trio Fascination Edition One

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John Coltrane With Eric Dolphy - Evenings At The Village Gate

Styles: Modal, Post Bop
Year: 2023
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 80:03
Size: 183,6 MB
Art: Front

(15:53) 1. My Favorite Things
(15:27) 2. When Lights Are Low
(10:12) 3. Impressions
(16:02) 4. Greensleeves
(22:26) 5. Africa

Recorded in 1961, Evenings at the Village Gate: John Coltrane with Eric Dolphy showcases the legendary saxophonist's quintet during their monthlong residency at the storied Greenwich Village nightclub. Along with Dolphy on alto saxophone, bass clarinet, and flute, Coltrane's group here features his classic lineup of pianist McCoy Tyner, bassist Reggie Workman, and drummer Elvin Jones.

This is the same group that would go on to record such landmark albums as 1961's Olé Coltrane, 1961's Africa/Brass, and appear together on 1961's Live! at the Village Vanguard. Recorded on a single ribbon microphone by future Nina Simone and Bob Dylan engineer Richard Alderson, the album was never intended to be released as a professional recording.

Primarily, Alderson (who was in his early twenties at the time and working as a soundman for the club) wanted to check the room's sound and try out his new microphone. The recording would eventually make its way into the vast archive of The New York Public Library for the Performing Arts, where it would be largely forgotten before eventually being rediscovered. While the sound itself is not as robust as the later Vanguard recordings, it still delivers an exciting fly-on-the-wall atmosphere, capturing the group at the apex of their transition from hard-driving modal jazz to the more avant-garde, harmonically free approach Coltrane would embrace by the middle of the decade.

Much of this transition was brought on by Dolphy, whose wide, intervallic style and adventurous harmonies had a strong influence on Coltrane, which can be heard from both players throughout the recording. Most interesting is their take on "My Favorite Things," which Coltrane recorded a year prior for his album of the same name and which became somewhat of a radio hit. Where that original recording found Coltrane interpolating the melody to a degree, here, he pushes the song to ever more bold heights, utilizing spiraling multi-note runs and throaty, atonal smears.

Equally exploratory atmospheres mark the group's take on "Impressions," a regular song in Coltrane's live shows that he leaps into here with a wild abandon. It's also easy to imagine just how unusual and distinctive Dolphy must have sounded to audiences at the time. This is especially evident when he takes the bass clarinet lead on "When Lights Are Low," playing the melody with a stark soulfulness in a style reminiscent of Sonny Rollins before launching into a solo that quickly frays the harmonic edges of the lyrical standard. Tragically, within six years after this recording, both Dolphy and Coltrane would be gone. Despite the understated and lo-fi nature of the recording, Evenings at the Village Gate is a testament to their profound artistry and creative synergy. By Matt Collar
https://www.allmusic.com/album/evenings-at-the-village-gate-john-coltrane-with-eric-dolphy-mw0004003962

Personnel: Soprano Saxophone, Tenor Saxophone – John Coltrane; Bass – Art Davis, Reggie Workman; Drums – Elvin Jones; Flute, Bass Clarinet, Alto Saxophone – Eric Dolphy; Piano – McCoy Tyner

Evenings At The Village Gate: John Coltrane with Eric Dolphy

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John Coltrane & Archie Shepp - New Thing At Newport

Styles: Saxophone And Piano Jazz
Year: 1966
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 66:03
Size: 151,5 MB
Art: Front

( 1:08) 1. Spoken Introduction To John Coltrane's Set By Father Norman O'connor
(12:44) 2. One Down, One Up
(15:21) 3. My Favorite Things
( 2:02) 4. Spoken Introduction To Archie Shepp's Set By Billy Taylor
(10:28) 5. Gingerbread, Gingerbread Boy
( 6:43) 6. Call Me By My Rightful Name
( 3:26) 7. Scag
( 5:49) 8. Rufus (Swung His Face At Last To The Wind, Then His Neck Snapped)
( 8:19) 9. Le Matin Des Noire

What better place than the Newport Jazz Festival, a historically tight-laced and conservative jazz forum, for the quartets of Coltrane and Shepp to pour out their soulful selves as libations for the masses? Prior to this 1963 concert the festival’s track record with adventurous jazz fare was checkered at best. Monk and Giuffre had played there in previous years, but the focus was undeniably on the accessible and the mainstream. Things had become so skewed that Charles Mingus, Max Roach felt obligated to organize a concurrent festival of their own in protest and were given the sobriquet The Newport Rebels. Coltrane’s immense popularity made him the perfect candidate to breach Newport’s defenses and in typical benevolent fashion he brought a host of his associates in tow for a unified siege on the senses and sensibilities of the audience. What a spectacle it must have been. Fortunately the tape machines were rolling.

As if in deference to the Newport jazz community’s naïveté toward the New Thing embarrassingly banal comments from Father Norman O’Conner preface and append Trane’s performance. The so-called ‘jazz priest’ demonstrates his ignorance by referring to Elvin Jones as a ‘kind of a newcomer to the world jazz.’ Mercifully his introductions are brief and the quartet works up a lengthy lather on “One Down, One Up” before launching into a burning rundown of “My Favorite Things.” Compared to other concert recordings by the quartet the first piece is just below par, though there’s still plenty of incendiary fireworks ignited by the four on second. Coltrane’s upper register tenor solo becomes so frenetic on “One Down, One Up” that there are moments where he moves off mic, but his soprano work on “My Favorite Things” is nothing short of astonishing, a blur of swirling harmonics that threatens split his horn asunder.

After Coltrane and crew have sufficiently anointed the Newport crowd in a monsoon of New Thing sentiments it’s Shepp’s turn. His set is a different bag, brimming with political overtones and barely contained dysphoria and his sound on tenor is an arresting amalgam of raspy coarseness and delicate lyricism. Hutcherson’s glowing vibes knit gossamer webs around the rhythmically free center accorded by Phillips and Chambers. It all comes to boil on the haunting “Scag” a tone poem fueled by Phillips acerbic bow, Hutcherson’s ghostly patterns and Shepp’s bone dry recitation that captures the loneliness of a junkie’s desperation. The stuttering starts and stops of “Rufus” carry the feeling of cultural dislocation even further referencing the brutality and finality of a lynching through musical means. Shepp and his partners were pulling no punches in exposing the captive audience to their art. A low-flying plane disrupts the opening of “Le Matin des Noire,” but the four players quickly regain direction and sink into a lush Noirish vamp that carries the tune to a close.

This new version of the disc marks the first time the original 3-track tapes of the concert have been remastered and they are given the royal treatment through 24-bit digital transfers. Also included for the first time is a beautiful facsimile of the Shepp album cover picturing the saxophonist with song charts and horn.By Derek Taylor
https://www.allaboutjazz.com/new-thing-at-newport-john-coltrane-impulse-review-by-derek-taylor

Players: John Coltrane- soprano & tenor saxophones; McCoy Tyner- piano; Jimmy Garrison- bass; Elvin Jones- drums; Archie Shepp - tenor saxophone, recitation; Bobby Hutcherson - vibraphone; Barre Phillips- bass; Joe Chambers - drums.

New Thing At Newport 1965

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Elvin Jones Jazz Machine - At Uncle Po's Carnegie Hall, Hamburg 1981

Size: 153,9+153,6 MB
Time: 66:57+66:41
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Released: 2017
Styles: Jazz
Art: Front & Back

CD 1:
01. Elvin Jones Blues (20:12)
02. In A Sentimental Mood (15:51)
03. Doll Of Bridges (30:53)

CD 2:
01. George And Me (22:00)
02. My One And Only Love (15:21)
03. Antigua (20:01)
04. Friday Night ( 9:18)

Elvin Jones was an icon of drumming, a powerful package of energy and inspiration and a true master of his craft. This historic live recording from 1981, released for the first time, shows the powerful and dynamic performance of this great musician in synergy with his superb band.

Elvin Ray Jones was born in Pontiac in 1927, as the youngest of ten children and brother of pianist Hank and trumpeter Thad Jones. He was one of the most respected and successful jazz drummers of all time. His illustrious career included spending five years as the drummer for saxophonist John Coltrane, including playing on milestone albums such as 'A Love Supreme'.

Jones called his own ensemble 'Jazz Machine' and this 1981 version included two tenor-saxophonists, Carter Jefferson and Dwayne Armstrong, guitarist Marvin Horne; and with the Japanese pianist Fumio Karashima, who added a noteworthy dosage of Far-East melodics and harmony to the concert. Together with Karashima and the well-tried bassist Andy McCloud, Elvin Jones had recorded a trio-LP just previously to the European tour documented here.

Personnel: Carter Jefferson, Dwayne Armstrong (saxophone), Fumio Karashima (piano), Marvin Horne (guitar), Andy McCloud (bass), Elvin Jones (drums)

At Uncle Po's Carnegie Hall CD 1, CD 2

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Clifford Jordan - Mosaic

Styles: Saxophone Jazz
Year: 1961
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 78:40
Size: 180,6 MB
Art: Front

(6:06)  1. Sunrise In Mexico
(5:20)  2. Extempore
(4:49)  3. Down Through The Years
(4:05)  4. Quittin' Time
(4:46)  5. One Flight Down
(3:56)  6. Windmill
(5:00)  7. Don't You Know I Care?
(4:59)  8. Mosaic
(3:54)  9. Cumberland Court
(4:52) 10. A Story Tale
(5:39) 11. You're Driving Me Crazy
(3:28) 12. Defiance
(6:03) 13. Prints
(5:03) 14. Hip Pockets
(5:16) 15. They Say It's Wonderful
(5:16) 16. If I Didn't Care

Two excellent early Clifford Jordan albums, Starting Time and A Story Tale, are reissued in full on this single CD. Jordan, whose sound was just beginning to become quite distinctive in 1961, is heard with a quintet also including trumpeter Kenny Dorham, pianist Cedar Walton, bassist Wilbur Ware, and drummer Albert "Tootie" Heath, and on a set with altoist Sonny Red, Tommy Flanagan or Ronnie Mathews on piano, bassist Art Davis, and drummer Elvin Jones. 

With the exception of four selections, all 16 tunes are group originals. Best-known are Walton's "Mosaic" and "One Flight Down," but all of the music is high-quality hard bop. Dorham and Red are both in excellent form, constantly challenging Jordan. Fine if formerly obscure music. ~ Scott Yanow http://www.allmusic.com/album/mosaic-mw0000010913

Personnel: Clifford Jordan (tenor saxophone); Sonny Red (alto saxophone); Kenny Dorham (trumpet); Ronnie Mathews, Tommy Flanagan, Cedar Walton (piano); Wilbur Ware (acoustic bass); Elvin Jones, Albert "Tootie" Heath (drums).

Mosaic

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John Coltrane - A Love Supreme: Live in Seattle

Styles: Saxophone Jazz
Year: 2021
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 75:31
Size: 173,2 MB
Art: Front

(21:53) 1. A Love Supreme, Pt.I: Acknowledgement
( 2:28) 2. Interlude 1
(11:05) 3. A Love Supreme, Pt.II: Resolution
( 6:23) 4. Interlude 2
(15:27) 5. A Love Supreme, Pt.III: Pursuance
( 6:32) 6. Interlude 3
( 4:20) 7. Interlude 4
( 7:21) 8. A Love Supreme, Pt.IV: Psalm

John Coltrane was moving faster than the speed of sound in 1965. Besides divining his place within the music, the world, his God, he was touring; a two week gig with Thelonious Monk at the Village Gate led to Newport then into a frenetic week in Europe. With the classic quartet plus Archie Shepp, Art Davis and Freddie Hubbard he had just completed the mind-bending sonic assault Ascension (Impulse!, 1966). That anyone could keep up with him or think one step ahead of him was Herculean. Few did. That is why we are still fascinated to listen when they do. To discover. To be some small part of something larger.

A Love Supreme: Live In Seattle memorialises for only the second known time; the first full performance of this holy suite was in Antibes, France, on July 26, 1965 released masterfully after decades of bootlegs, variations, and augmentations galore as part of A Love Supreme: The Complete Masters (Impulse, 2013).

Discovered in the private collection of Seattle saxophonist and educator Joe Brazil, this blistering October 2, '65 performance culminated a week's residency at The Penthouse, where the fiercely difficult and unapologetically atonal Live In Seattle (Impulse, 1971) was also recorded. Here, we find Coltrane moving singularly beyond the structures and strictures of the summer, expanding the live sound to include not only McCoy Tyner, Elvin Jones and Jimmy Garrison but also fellow rogue sax visionary Pharoah Sanders, second bassist Donald Raphael Garrett and also on sax Carlos Ward.

Despite the lack of contemporaneous fanfare, and given the fact that the night was recorded with two microphones, A Love Supreme Live In Seattle is not only a performance for the ages but a marvelous sounding one as well. Intensely immersive, the music builds upon the original template until it becomes something startlingly original yet again: A revived prayer, a bold logistic, a howling tribute to the soul. Each man is a force of indisputable nature (check out Tyner and Jones especially on "Pursuance: Part III," Coltrane and Sanders free, shrieking energy throughout.) Wheeling, keening, pleading, the music implores the higher power to reveal himself/herself/itself to the club's capacity crowd (275 very lucky souls) and now it implores us, compels us, to pay reverent attention to every moment. To every breath. And pray. By Mike Jurkovic https://www.allaboutjazz.com/a-love-supreme-live-in-seattle-john-coltrane-impulse-records__25172

Personnel: John Coltrane: saxophone; Pharoah Sanders: saxophone, tenor; Carlos Ward: saxophone, alto; McCoy Tyner: piano; Jimmy Garrison: bass, acoustic; Donald Garrett: bass, acoustic; Elvin Jones: drums.

A Love Supreme: Live in Seattle

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Joe Henderson - The Complete Blue Note Studio Sessions (5-Disc Set)

Styles: Jazz
Year: 2021
Time: 79:01
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Size: 180,9 MB
Art: Front

(15:18) 1. Una Mas (One More Time)
( 8:58) 2. Straight Ahead
( 7:20) 3. Sao Paulo
( 5:08) 4. If Ever I Would Leave You
( 8:01) 5. Blue Bossa
( 9:09) 6. La Mesha
( 4:14) 7. Homestretch
( 6:02) 8. Recorda Me
( 7:23) 9. Jinrikisha
( 7:24) 10. Out of the Night

If an artist stamps his jazz passport with any one of these labels Blue Note, Verve, Milestone it's pretty much a guarantee that you've arrived in style. Tenor saxophonist Joe Henderson has traveled with all three and more. The 2021 reissue from the prestigious Mosaic Records focuses on Henderson's 1960s tenure with Blue Note offers a new opportunity to experience an abundance of rich and creative jazz from the decade.

Big band and bop were duking it out in the late 1940s, bebop gained a foothold in the 1950s and the 1960s saw some amazingly creative artists emerge as they conjured up even more jazz hybrids (straight jazz, Avant-Garde, fusion and more). Henderson began to come of age during the very late 1950s, the tail end of one of the most dynamic and creative decades for jazz. He then moved confidently into the 1960s and beyond. He began to gain momentum in the 1960s (sitting in with saxophone master Dexter Gordon early on), learned from listening to other sax giants including Charlie Parker and Sonny Rollins and soon teamed up with numerous A-list artists including trumpeter Kenny Dorham, a Blue Note co-artist. The spotlight shifted a bit during the seventies and eighties for Henderson but he was amazingly prolific in the 1990s. Verve championed him during that decade with a high profile 'come back' campaign and sessions such as Lush Life (1982) contained everything from the supple and smoky "Isfahan" and "Blood Count" to the soaring and spontaneous "Johnny Come Lately." Touring took him to various venues and in a talk backstage after a mid-1990s concert, Mr. Henderson was dapper and smartly dressed, low key, quiet and reserved. He was a joy to talk to. But his constant companion, a lit cigarette, was absent, probably due to venue restriction (chain smoking eventually took him down in 2001.)

Mosaic collected nearly fifty cuts on five CDs and captured a world of spontaneous creativity. In addition, a modest yet informative booklet is included. A book's worth of praise could follow, so let's look at a few tracks from each compact disc: Everything gets underway with the title cut from trumpeter Kenny Dorham's Una Mas (1963) album in which Henderson joins as a featured sideman. At over fifteen minutes, the opening track is a celebration of the then contemporary sounds of Bossa Nova, with hints of other styles including the blues. He may be the second billed musician on the disc, but Henderson's sax is supple, lush and creatively enticing as a close bond was being forged between the two men. Everyone swings, and they are upbeat on "Straight Ahead," one of the other standout tracks from the Dorham-lead sessions. (full review => https://www.allaboutjazz.com/the-complete-joe-henderson-blue-note-studio-sessions-joe-henderson-mosaic-records)

Personnel: Joe Henderson: Saxophone; Kenny Dorham: Trranumpet; Herbie Hancock: Piano; Tony Williams: Drums; McCoy Tyner: Piano; Bob Cranshaw: Bass; Duke Pearson: Piano; Richard Davis: Bass, Acoustic; s: Drums; Tommy Flanagan: Piano; Ron Carter: Elvin Jones: Bass; Cedar Walton: Piano; Lee Morgan: Trumpet; Curtis Fuller: Trombone; Grant Green: Guitar; Bobby Hutcherson: Vibraphone; J.J. Johnson: Trombone; Al Harewood: Drums; Woody Shaw: Trumpet; Andrew Hill: Piano.

The Complete Blue Note Studio Sessions CD1

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Styles: Jazz
Year: 2021
Time: 76:41
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Size: 175,6 MB
Art: Front

( 8:17) 1. La Mesha (alternate take)
( 7:38) 2. Homestretch (alternate take)
( 8:33) 3. Teeter Totter
(10:05) 4. Pedro's Time
( 5:38) 5. Our Thing
( 6:20) 6. Back Road
( 8:06) 7. Escapade
( 7:11) 8. Teeter Totter (alternate take)
( 5:31) 9. Our Thing (alternate take)
( 9:18) 10. In 'N Out (alternate take)

The Complete Blue Note Studio Sessions CD2

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Styles: Jazz
Year: 2021
Time: 76:45
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Size: 175,7 MB
Art: Front

(10:25) 1. In 'N Out
( 9:09) 2. Punjab
( 6:17) 3. Serenity
( 7:11) 4. Short Story
( 6:25) 5. Brown's Town
(12:24) 6. Trompeta Toccata
( 5:46) 7. Night Watch
(11:05) 8. Mamacita
( 8:00) 9. The Fox

The Complete Blue Note Studio Sessions CD3

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Styles: Jazz
Year: 2021
Time: 78:40
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Size: 180,1 MB
Art: Front

(11:58) 1. Inner Urge
( 9:16) 2. Isotope
( 7:14) 3. El Barrio
( 7:21) 4. You Know I Care
( 7:24) 5. Night and Day
( 8:14) 6. Hobo Joe
( 8:30) 7. Step Lightly
( 6:07) 8. The Kicker
( 5:46) 9. Mo' Joe
( 6:45) 10. If

The Complete Blue Note Studio Sessions CD4

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Styles: Jazz
Year: 2021
Time: 59:11
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Size: 135,5 MB
Art: Front

(7:08) 1. A Shade of Jade
(8:03) 2. Mode for Joe
(6:53) 3. Black
(6:43) 4. Caribbean Fire Dance
(7:23) 5. Granted
(6:41) 6. Free Wheelin'
(9:28) 7. Mode for Joe (alternate take)
(6:49) 8. Black (alternate take)

The Complete Blue Note Studio Sessions CD5

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Lew Soloff - Speak Low

Styles: Trumpet Jazz
Year: 1987
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 55:21
Size: 126,9 MB
Art: Front

(7:55) 1. Marilyn
(7:26) 2. Duty Blues
(7:45) 3. Speak Low
(9:14) 4. Raunchy Rita
(4:39) 5. Reincarnation of a Lovebird
(9:51) 6. But Beautiful
(8:28) 7. Stella by Starlight

In May of 1968, Lew Soloff got the call to replace Randy Brecker in a fledging jazz/rock band called Blood, Sweat and Tears. The band became a immediate hit, selling millions of albums and winning a Grammy Award for their initial release. Since then, he has become one of New York's "first call" trumpeters and has never lost his love for jazz, which is apparent in his 1987 album, Speak Low. ~ Editorial Reviews https://www.amazon.com/Speak-Low-Lew-Soloff/dp/B001CJJPJK

Personnel: Trumpet – Lew Soloff; Bass – Richard Davis; Drums – Elvin Jones; Piano – Kenny Kirkland

Elvin Jones, Jimmy Garrison Sextet, McCoy Tyner - Illumination!

Styles: Jazz, Post Bop
Year: 1998
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 31:04
Size: 71,9 MB
Art: Front

(5:33) 1. Nuttin' Out Jones
(3:46) 2. Oriental Flower
(6:25) 3. Half And Half
(4:09) 4. Aborigines Dance In Scotland
(5:12) 5. Gettin' On Way
(5:57) 6. Just Us Blues

Until it was reissued in 1998, this was one of the more elusive Impulse sets of the 1960s. Recorded in 1963 and co-led by John Coltrane's drummer and bassist (Elvin Jones and Jimmy Garrison), the music is most significant for introducing Sonny Simmons (alto and English horn) and Prince Lasha (flute and clarinet), who are joined in the sextet by underrated baritonist Charles Davis and Trane's pianist McCoy Tyner.

Each of the musicians except Jones contributed an original (there are two by Davis); the music ranges from advanced hard bop to freer sounds that still swing. While Garrison's contributions are conventional (this was his only opportunity to lead or co-lead a date), Jones is quite powerful. However, it is the playing of both Simmons, who tears it apart on English horn during "Nuttin' Out Jones," and Lasha (when is he going to be rediscovered and recorded again?) that make this early "New Thing" date of greatest interest.~ Scott Yanow https://www.allmusic.com/album/illumination%21-mw0000033695

Personnel: Drums – Elvin Jones; Alto Saxophone, English Horn – Sonny Simmons; Baritone Saxophone – Charles Davis; Bass – Jimmy Garrison; Clarinet, Flute – Prince Lasha; Piano – McCoy Tyner

Illumination!

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McCoy Tyner - The Real McCoy (Remastered / Rudy Van Gelder Edition)

Styles: Piano Jazz 
Year: 1967
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 37:09
Size: 85,6 MB
Art: Front

(8:47)  1. Passion Dance
(9:12)  2. Contemplation
(6:37)  3. Four By Five
(6:32)  4. Search For Peace
(6:00)  5. Blues On The Corner

It is to McCoy Tyner's great credit that his career after John Coltrane has been far from anti-climatic. Along with Bill Evans, Tyner has been the most influential pianist in jazz of the past 50 years, with his chord voicings being adopted and utilized by virtually every younger pianist. A powerful virtuoso and a true original (compare his playing in the early '60s with anyone else from the time), Tyner (like Thelonious Monk) has not altered his style all that much from his early days but he has continued to grow and become even stronger. Tyner grew up in Philadelphia, where Bud Powell and Richie Powell were neighbors. As a teenager he gigged locally and met John Coltrane. He made his recording debut with the Art Farmer-Benny Golson Jazztet, but after six months left the group to join Coltrane in what (with bassist Jimmy Garrison and drummer Elvin Jones) would become the classic quartet. Few other pianists of the period had both the power and the complementary open-minded style to inspire Coltrane, but Tyner was never overshadowed by the innovative saxophonist. During the Coltrane years (1960-1965), the pianist also led his own record dates for Impulse.

After leaving Coltrane, Tyner struggled for a period, working as a sideman (with Ike and Tina Turner, amazingly) and leading his own small groups; his recordings were consistently stimulating even during the lean years. After he signed with Milestone in 1972, Tyner began to finally be recognized as one of the greats, and he has never been short of work since. Although there have been occasional departures (such as a 1978 all-star quartet tour with Sonny Rollins and duo recordings with Stephane Grappelli), Tyner has mostly played with his own groups since the '70s, which have ranged from a quartet with Azar Lawrence and a big band to his trio. In the '80s and '90s, Tyner did the rounds of labels (his old homes Blue Note and Impulse! as well as Verve, Enja, and Milestone) before settling in with Telarc in the late '90s and releasing a fine series of albums including 2000's Jazz Roots: McCoy Tyner Honors Jazz Piano Legends of the 20th Century and 2004's Illuminations. In 2007, Tyner returned with the studio album McCoy Tyner Quartet featuring saxophonist Joe Lovano, bassist Christian McBride, and drummer Jeff "Tain" Watts. ~ Scott Yanow https://www.allmusic.com/artist/mccoy-tyner-mn0000868092/biography

Personnel: McCoy Tyner (piano); Joe Henderson (tenor saxophone); Ron Carter (bass); Elvin Jones (drums).

R.I.P.
Born: December 11, 1938, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States

Died: March 6, 2020

The Real McCoy (Remastered / Rudy Van Gelder Edition)

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Jimmy Woods Sextet, Elvin Jones - Conflict

Styles: Saxophone Jazz
Year: 2015
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 56:54
Size: 131,2 MB
Art: Front

(5:47)  1. Conflict
(6:01)  2. Coming Home
(7:57)  3. Aim
(6:44)  4. Apart Together
(5:50)  5. Look to Your Heart
(6:32)  6. Pazmuerte
(4:54)  7. Conflict (Alt. Take)
(7:12)  8. Aim (Alt. Take)
(5:53)  9. Look to Your Heart (Alt. Take)

Jimmy Woods was a talented musician who made few recorded appearances before vanishing into obscurity. Conflict is the second of two '60s solo records on Contemporary, the first already reissued in a previous batch of limited edition releases. It’s tempting to judge Woods solely on the company he keeps certainly the likes of Andrew Hill, Elvin Jones, and Harold Land don’t have to be bothered with middling talent. However, Woods proves he can more than handle the responsibilities on a program consisting entirely of forward-thinking, advanced hard bop originals, which also utilize inventive call-and-response riffs. “Conflict” is a lopsided blues with an edgy vamp from Hill which allows the front line to indulge in some grand exploratory work. On the other hand, “Apart Together” features a complicated head and the type of restless chord progressions that serious musicians love to dig in to. Woods demonstrates his ability to handle the changes and aptly deserves the company he keeps. Elvin Jones fits in his usual thunderous moments, and the rest of the sidemen, Hill and Carmell Jones in particular, are models of creative expression. Contemporary signed Woods after Ornette Coleman’s departure to Atlantic. While not quite an equal replacement, Woods proved that he was a talented musician whose time in the spotlight, for whatever reason, was brief. ~ David Rickert https://www.allaboutjazz.com/conflict-jimmy-woods-fantasy-jazz-review-by-david-rickert.php

Personnel: Jimmy Woods-alto sax; Carmell Jones-trumpet; Andrew Hill-piano; George Tucker-bass; Elvin Jones-drums.

Conflict

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Stephen Scott - Aminah's Dream

Styles: Piano Jazz
Year: 1993
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 57:19
Size: 132,5 MB
Art: Front

(6:32)  1. Aminah's Dream
(4:35)  2. Behind The Scenes
(6:38)  3. Young Confucius
(5:51)  4. Positive Images (Mother, Father)
(5:24)  5. The Pit And The Pendulum
(7:09)  6. When God Created Women
(4:48)  7. L'Ill Bro'... Life Goes On
(4:39)  8. You Are Too Beautiful
(4:58)  9. Moontrane
(6:40) 10. The Spur Of The Moment

One of the most promising of the "Young Lions," pianist Stephen Scott has a versatile style that can range from McCoy Tyner to Wynton Kelly without resorting to mere copying. On his second release as a leader, Scott holds his own during six trio performances with bassist Ron Carter and drummer Elvin Jones. The other four selections add four nonsoloing horns playing harmonies behind Scott's piano. With eight of the ten songs being his originals, this is a fine all-around showcase for the talented Stephen Scott. ~ Scott Yanow https://www.allmusic.com/album/aminahs-dream-mw0000618597

Personnel:  Piano, Co-producer – Stephen Scott (5); Alto Saxophone – Justin Robinson (tracks: 1,4,6,9); Bass – Ron Carter; Drums – Elvin Jones; Tenor Saxophone – Don Braden (tracks: 1,4,6,9); Trombone – Jamal Haynes (tracks: 1,4,6,9); Trumpet – Terell Stafford (tracks: 1,4,6,9); Tuba – Bob Stewart (tracks: 1)

Aminah's Dream

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Pharoah Sanders - Rejoice

Styles: Saxophone Jazz
Year: 1988
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 63:28
Size: 148,3 MB
Art: Front

(12:47)  1. Rejoice
( 7:42)  2. Highlife
(10:02)  3. Nigerian Juju Highlife
( 5:45)  4. Origin
( 6:28)  5. When Lights Are Low
( 5:20)  6. Moments Notice
( 5:47)  7. Central Park West
( 4:06)  8. Ntjilo Ntjilo/Bird Song
( 5:29)  9. Farah

A two-LP set on Theresa, Rejoice features Pharoah Sanders in excellent form in 1981. Sanders sounds much more mellow than he had a decade earlier, often improvising in a style similar to late-'50s John Coltrane, particularly on "When Lights Are Low," "Moments Notice," and "Central Park West." The personnel changes on many of the selections and includes such top players as pianists Joe Bonner and John Hicks, bassist Art Davis, drummers Elvin Jones and Billy Higgins, vibraphonist Bobby Hutcherson, trombonist Steve Turre, trumpeter Danny Moore, a harpist, and (on "Origin" and "Central Park West") five vocalists. The music always holds one's interest, making this one of Sanders' better later recordings. ~ Scott Yanow https://www.allmusic.com/album/rejoice-mw0000196812

Personnel:  Pharoah Sanders - tenor saxophone, bells, vocals;  Danny Moore - trumpet (tracks 4-7);  Steve Turre - trombone (tracks 4-7);  Lois Colin - harp (tracks 7 & 8);  Bobby Hutcherson - vibraphone (tracks 1, 4, 6 & 7);  John Hicks - piano (tracks 4-7);  Joe Bonner - piano, vocals (tracks 1-3 8 & 9);  Peter Fujii - guitar, vocals (track 2 & 3);  Art Davis - bass (tracks 1 & 4-7);  Jorge Pomar - bass, vocals (tracks 2 & 3);  Elvin Jones (track 1), Billy Higgins (tracks 4-7) - drums;  Big Black - congas, vocals (tracks 2 & 3);  Babatunde Lea - bells, drums, shekere, vocals (tracks 1-3);  George V. Johnson Jr. - vocals (track 6);  B. Kazuko Ishida - voice (track 1);  Flame Braithwaite, Bobby London, Sakinah Muhammad, Carroll Wilson Scott, Yvette S. Vanterpool - vocals (tracks 4 & 7);  William S. Fischer (vocal arranger (tracks 4 & 7).

Rejoice

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Tommy Flanagan Trio - Overseas

Styles: Piano Jazz
Year: 1957
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 53:50
Size: 127,9 MB
Art: Front

(3:21)  1. Relaxin' At Camarillo
(3:46)  2. Chelsea Bridge
(6:00)  3. Eclypso
(4:22)  4. Beat's Up
(2:33)  5. Skal Brothers
(7:08)  6. Little Rock
(2:15)  7. Verdandi
(4:44)  8. Delarna
(6:29)  9. Willow Weep For Me
(4:36) 10. Delarna (take 2)
(2:11) 11. Verdandi (take 2)
(6:18) 12. Willow Weep For Me (take 1)

This studio session represents one of Tommy Flanagan's earliest dates as a leader, recorded while he was in Stockholm, Sweden. Bassist Wilbur Little and a young Elvin Jones on drums provide strong support, but the focus is on Flanagan's brilliant piano. The brilliant opener is a potent brisk run through Charlie Parker's "Relaxin' at Camarillo," followed by a faster than typical "Chelsea Bridge," which the leader playfully detours into another Billy Strayhorn composition ("Raincheck") for a moment, while also featuring Jones' brushwork in a pair of breaks. Flanagan's approach to the venerable standard "Willow Weep for Me" is steeped in blues, backed by Little's imaginative accompaniment. The bulk of this date is devoted to Flanagan's compositions, though only one, "Eclypso," remained in his repertoire for long. This engaging piece alternates between calypso and bop, with Jones switching between sticks and brushes. "Beat's Up" has the obvious influence of Bud Powell, while the extended blues "Little Rock" opens with a sauntering bass solo. This album has been released under various titles on several labels, including DIW, Dragon, Met, and Prestige, though Fantasy reissued it with three alternate takes in 1999. ~ Ken Dryden https://www.allmusic.com/album/overseas-mw0000671961

Personnel:  Tommy Flanagan – piano;  Wilbur Little - bass;  Elvin Jones - drums

Overseas

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Phineas Newborn - Back Home

Styles: Piano Jazz
Year: 1976
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 39:40
Size: 91,2 MB
Art: Front

(3:49)  1. Sugar Ray  (Newborn)
(6:08)  2. Ill Wind
(5:11)  3. Watch What Happens
(4:14)  4. No Moon At All
(4:25)  5. Back Home  (Newborn)
(5:27)  6. On Green Dolphin Street
(4:54)  7. Pamela  (Newborn)
(5:28)  8. Love For Sale

On one of Phineas Newborn's final recordings (although he would live until 1989), the brilliant but i'll pianist is reunited with the rhythm team that he had recorded with in 1969: bassist Ray Brown and drummer Elvin Jones. Actually, despite his health problems, Newborn was always superlative on records, and his playing on five straight-ahead standards (including "No Moon at All" and "Love for Sale") and three of his originals is excellent.~ Scott Yanow https://www.allmusic.com/album/back-home-mw0000674737

Personnel:  Phineas Newborn Jr. – piano;  Ray Brown – bass;  Elvin Jones – drums

Back Home

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The Great Jazz Trio - Autumn Leaves

Styles: Piano Jazz
Year: 2002
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 54:57
Size: 128,5 MB
Art: Front

(5:27)  1. Autumn Leaves
(6:36)  2. Yesterdays
(4:13)  3. Rhythm-A-Ning
(4:44)  4. Blue Bossa
(6:22)  5. Take The 'A' Train
(5:53)  6. Summertime
(6:20)  7. Caravan
(4:43)  8. Six And Four
(5:00)  9. My Funny Valentine
(5:34) 10. Bye Bye Blackbird

The Great Jazz Trio was a working cooperative working with various lineups led by Hank Jones in during the 1970s and 1980s, but the revival of this defunct group finds Jones joined by two newcomers to the group, seasoned veterans Richard Davis on bass and the leader's brother, Elvin Jones, on drums. Oddly enough, the two brothers have recorded together very infrequently during their long careers, so this opportunity must have been special to them. The opening track signals a different direction for the group, with Elvin's explosive solo stealing the show in "Autumn Leaves." The pianist's imaginative arrangement of "Yesterdays" begins as a stunning solo before Davis' sparse bass and Elvin's brushes join him. The buoyant treatment of Kenny Dorham's "Blue Bossa" finds Hank in a humorous mood, inserting several brief quotes from well-known works such as "Hot House" and "Blue Skies." The trio is clearly cooking by the time it recorded the percolating take of Oliver Nelson's "Six and Four." Hopefully, this delightful date by the Great Jazz Trio will result in a follow-up recording session. ~ Ken Dryden https://www.allmusic.com/album/autumn-leaves-mw0000318396

Personnel:  Hank Jones - Piano; Richard Davis -  Bass ; Elvin Jones - Drums.

Autumn Leaves

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Elvin Jones - In Europe

Styles: Jazz, Post Bop
Year: 1991
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 63:28
Size: 145,4 MB
Art: Front

(17:40)  1. Ray
(32:45)  2. Doll of the Bride
(13:02)  3. Island Birdie

Recorded live at a jazz festival in Germany, In Europe represents a typical Jazz Machine live performance, three selections from the group's regular repertoire where the musicians get plenty of room to stretch out, fueled by Jones' propulsive polyrhythms. "Ray-El," written by Elvin's brother Thad Jones, is a medium tempo blues number featuring a fine flute solo by Sonny Fortune. The traditional Japanese folk song "Doll of the Bride" is a 32 minute tour-de-force beginning with Fortune's flute and a long Jones drum solo using mallets, then moving into a Latin-ish vamp with excellent solos from Fortune on tenor sax and Willie Pickens on piano. "Island Birdie," written by McCoy Tyner, is a happy calypso reminiscent of "St. Thomas" with a nice turn on soprano sax by Ravi Coltrane, the son of Elvin's former employer John Coltrane, and bassist Chip Jackson. This was Jones' return to recording after a seven year hiatus. ~ Greg Turner https://www.allmusic.com/album/in-europe-mw0000678298

Personnel:  Elvin Jones - drums;  Sonny Fortune - tenor saxophone, flute;  Ravi Coltrane - tenor saxophone, soprano saxophone;  Willie Pickens - piano;  Chip Jackson - bass

In Europe

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Elvin Jones - Dear John C.

Styles: Jazz, Post Bop
Year: 1965
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 42:38
Size: 99,1 MB
Art: Front

(3:56)  1. Dear John C.
(5:22)  2. Ballade
(3:49)  3. Love Bird
(5:54)  4. Everything Happens To Me
(3:41)  5. Smoke Rings
(4:24)  6. This Love Of Mine
(4:11)  7. Anthropology
(4:09)  8. Feeling Good
(3:59)  9. Fantazm
(3:08) 10. That Five-Four Bag

The second album by Elvin Jones as sole title rights leader (excluding the co-op ensemble that recorded the stunning and essential progressive jazz icon Illumination!) has the drummer sounding more like a backup musician, as he claims no compositional duties or noticeable solo space. In fact, this is one of the very best albums in the career of alto saxophonist Charlie Mariano, who occupies the bulk of lead lines and improvising responsibilities. He's so up-front, and on an instrument that is not John Coltrane's main instrument the tenor sax that the title is also a bit of a misnomer. The value of Jones as a bandleader lies in his concept of using fellow Detroiter Sir Roland Hanna or brother Hank Jones on selected tracks, or in the case of three tracks, no pianist. Bassist Richard Davis rounds out this truly brilliant ensemble of burgeoning mid-'60s jazz stars, who play an enticing collection of standards, bop, compositions of Bob Hammer, and originals from several modern sources. A stone cold bebopper and Charlie Parker devotee at the time of this recording. Mariano is the standout performer. He swings easily but mightily on the title track paralleling Coltrane's "Milestones," stretches the Charles Mingus evergreen "Reincarnation of a Lovebird" (titled here as "Love Bird"), and pulls out all the stops with Hank Jones during an only slightly flawed (they miss two notes) version of the tricky "Anthropology." 

They tack a calypso beat onto Duke Ellington's "Fantazm" in a playful, modern dress, and stroll on the quirky Hammer composition "That Five-Four Bag" as an offshoot retort to Dave Brubeck's "Take Five." The three tracks sans piano include a walking version of "Everything Happens to Me"; the ballad "Smoke Rings," where the band excepting Mariano is relaxed; and Frank Sinatra's "This Love of Mine," where the emotive saxophonist dips into humor, even a bit ribald. The variety from cut to cut is engaging, and there's nothing over the top, even the drumming of Elvin Jones. With the musicality at a high level, Dear John C. needs revisiting by drumming students and jazz fans to note how teamwork, shared values, and held-in-check dynamics benefit the overall quality of music. It seems this recording is underrated when over time it should never be. Dear John C. is deserving of an excellent rating. ~ Michael G.Nastos https://www.allmusic.com/album/dear-john-c-mw0000096993  

Personnel: Elvin Jones (drums); Charlie Mariano (alto saxophone); Roland Hanna, Hank Jones (piano); Richard Davis (acoustic bass).

Dear John C.

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Mike Lipskin with Willie 'The Lion' Smith - California Here I Come

Styles: Piano Jazz 
Year: 1971
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 39:32
Size: 90,6 MB
Art: Front

(4:52)  1. California Here I Come
(4:20)  2. Mule Walk
(2:41)  3. Stan And Mike's Blues
(3:40)  4. Echo Of Spring
(3:25)  5. Carolina Shout
(3:55)  6. I'm Comin' Virginia
(6:39)  7. Sheik Of Araby
(3:07)  8. Thou Swell
(2:39)  9. Snowy Mornin' Blues
(4:12) 10. Old Fashioned Love

Willie "The Lion" Smith was a legend among the Harlem stride pianists, on this long unavailable LP he shares a few pointers with protégé Mike Lipskin. The title track is at first dominated by their conversation over the music, but their romping duo rendition simulates what an old-fashioned cutting contest might have sounded like. Their duets of "Carolina Shout" and "The Sheik of Araby" are equally enjoyable. Both pianists are represented on solo tracks and Lipskin fronts a quartet with underrated clarinetist Stan Monteiro, the odd choice of electric bassist Chuck Rainey, and the surprising inclusion of drummer Elvin Jones, who plays a duo on brushes with Lipskin on "Snowy Mornin' Blues." Overdue for appearance on CD, but unlikely with the death of producer Bob Thiele in 1995.~ Ken Dryden https://www.allmusic.com/album/california-here-i-come-mw0000852933    

Personnel:  Piano – Mike Lipskin, Willie "The Lion" Smith;  Bass – Chuck Rainey;  Clarinet – Stan Monteiro;  Drums – Elvin Jones

California Here I Come

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