Ella Fitzgerald - Ella In Japan:'S Wonderful Disc1 And Disc 2

Album: Ella In Japan: 'S Wonderful  Disc 1

Styles: Vocal Jazz
Year: 2011
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 64:37
Size: 148,9 MB
Art: Front + Back

( 3:47)  1. Cheek To Cheek
( 3:59)  2. Deep Purple
( 2:20)  3. Too Close For Comfort
( 3:21)  4. I Love Being Here With You
( 3:00)  5. Fly Me To The Moon
( 2:34)  6. 'S Wonderful
( 2:59)  7. I've Got You Under My Skin
( 2:39)  8. Hallelujah I Love Him So
( 3:09)  9. Misty
( 2:48) 10. Whatever Lola Wants
( 3:43) 11. Bill Bailey
( 4:38) 12. The Blues (Ella's Blues)
( 3:20) 13. 'Round Midnight
( 4:39) 14. I Can't Get Started
( 6:43) 15. Undecided
(10:53) 16. Jam Session

Ella Fitzgerald had recorded live albums in venues ranging from Newport to Berlin to Hollywood when she and a quartet led by Roy Eldridge traveled to Japan in early 1964 for a series of concerts. Norman Granz, the former Verve head and current Fitzgerald manager who accompanied the musicians on their trip, recorded the concerts for release, but the tapes sat unissued in the Verve vaults a victim of the surplus of Ella material already recorded but not released for nearly 50 years, until the 2011 two-disc reissue Ella in Japan: 'S Wonderful. In the early '60s, Japan was thick with jazz fans, and crowds swarmed the Hibiya Kokaido Public Hall in Tokyo for the January 19 show that is included on the first disc. (The second disc includes a far more exclusive affair, recorded at a hotel a few days later.) Although another live album was recorded and released just a few short months after these shows (Ella at Juan-Les-Pins), the material has few overlaps. Ella is in fine form as usual, she turned up the candlepower in front of an audience  personalizing Peggy Lee's "I Love Being Here with You" early in the program, and even singing in Japanese, to the delight of the crowd, during a stirring "'S Wonderful." The quartet, including Eldrige on trumpet plus pianist Tommy Flanagan, bassist Bill Yancey, and drummer Gus Johnson, are quite adept at sounding bigger than a four-piece, especially on Ella's saucy "Whatever Lola Wants." (Also, an instrumental mini-set of four tracks concludes the first disc.) Raiding the vaults can be a risky proposition, but here, as with the massive four-disc Twelve Nights in Hollywood compilation, fans of Fitzgerald specifically, or great jazz singing in general, will find a wealth of great material. ~ John Bush https://www.allmusic.com/album/ella-in-japan-s-wonderful-mw0002125314

Personnel:  Ella Fitzgerald - Vocals;  Roy Eldridge - trumpet;  Tommy Flanagan - piano;  Bill Yancy - bass;  Gus Johnson - drums

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Album: Ella In Japan: 'S Wonderful  Disc 2

Year: 2011

File: MP3@320K/s

Time: 36:27

Size: 84,0 MB

(3:32)  1. Cheek To Cheek

(3:29)  2. Shiny Stockings

(4:31)  3. Can't Help Lovin' Dat Man

(3:45)  4. Bill Bailey

(5:02)  5. Take The 'A' Train

(0:38)  6. Closing / A-Tisket, A-Tasket

(3:42)  7. Ain't Misbehavin

(3:56)  8. My Last Affair

(6:59)  9. Perdido

(0:49) 10. Closing / A-Tisket, A-Tasket

Ella In Japan: 'S Wonderful; Disc 1, Disc 2

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Roy Eldridge Quintet & Ella Fitzgerald Quintet - In Concert

Styles: Jazz, Post Bop
Year: 2022
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 52:01
Size: 119,9 MB
Art: Front

(9:36) 1. Soft Winds
(5:19) 2. Roy's Riff
(3:57) 3. Cheek To Cheek
(3:19) 4. You Brought Me A New Kind Of Love
(3:32) 5. All I Need Is You
(2:51) 6. Too Close For Comfort
(2:55) 7. Whatever Lola Wants
(5:18) 8. Allright, Okay, You Win
(3:54) 9. Lady Be Good
(4:44) 10. I Loves You, Porgy
(6:30) 11. How High The Moon

Roy Eldridge’s name on this disc is a bit of a red herring. The trumpeter plays the first two songs, accompanied by the same band that will back Ella Fitzgerald on the remainder of the program. Make no mistake: This recording belongs to the First Lady of Song, who’s in top form for this May 1959 Copenhagen performance.

Granted, it’s hard to find a Fitzgerald title from this period where she wasn’t in top form, so perhaps In Concert is just par for the course. But what a par. Her flawless flower of a voice coats each song like a soothing balm; only on close listening do we hear details like her masterful rubato on “You Brought Me a New Kind of Love” or the delicately sung syllables of “Lady Be Good” (here even slower than on her then-recent Gershwin Songbook album). But there are also delights right on the surface: “All Right, Okay, You Win” is loaded with Fitzgerald’s famous ad libs in both scat and lyric. (“He got eyes like diamonds, teeth shine like yellow gold FORT KNOX!”)

The album’s jewel is an on-point reading of “Whatever Lola Wants.” Fitzgerald melds with precision to Gus Johnson’s drums, then guitarist Herb Ellis melds with precision to Fitzgerald; they hold the line through more of Ella’s rubato, flourishes and growls, moving on a dime into high gear when the song becomes a medley with “Who’s Got the Pain?”

Does that make the Eldridge tunes throwaways? Hardly. Both “Soft Winds” and the rhythm-changes “Roy’s Riff” are brilliant showcases for his serrated-edge trumpet sound and timeless swing, the former doubling as a feature for Ellis’ surprisingly caustic guitar. He and Eldridge are a magical combination. Good as they are, though, they’re appetizers. Ella is the main course.By Michael J.West
https://jazztimes.com/reviews/albums/roy-eldridge-quartet-ella-fitzgerald-quintet-in-concert-steeplechase/

Personnel: Roy Eldridge - (trumpet on tracks 1 & 2); Ella Fitzgerald - (vocal on tracks 3 -11); Herb Ellis - (guitar on tracks); Lou Levy - (piano); Wilfred Middlebrooks - (bass); Gus Johnson - (drums)

In Concert

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Ralph Sutton, Kenny Davern - Ralph Sutton & Kenny Davern

Styles: Piano, Clarinet Jazz
Year: 1980
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 66:43
Size: 156,2 MB
Art: Front

(3:15)  1. That's A-Plenty
(4:45)  2. Old Fashioned Love
(4:24)  3. Jazz Me Blues
(4:14)  4. Am I Blue
(6:16)  5. St. Louis Blues
(4:44)  6. Black And Blue
(2:33)  7. Take Me To The Land Of Jazz
(5:52)  8. All By Myself
(5:09)  9. My Honey's Lovin' Arms
(1:55) 10. 'Taint Nobody's Business
(5:48) 11. My Daddy Rocks Me
(4:53) 12. I Would Do Most Anything For You
(4:30) 13. Sweet Lorraine
(4:43) 14. Memphis Blues
(3:35) 15. A Porter's Love Song To A Chambermaid

This CD reissue combines two full LPs originally recorded for the Chaz Jazz label, with pianist Ralph Sutton and clarinetist Kenny Davern joined by Gus Johnson on drums. Traditional jazz fans will delight in Sutton's powerful brand of stride piano (the bass is never missed), yet he is also a very effective accompanist who can play a soft ballad with the best of them. Davern's always lyrical clarinet explores a wider range than most trad jazz players. Things get underway at a fast clip with "That's A-Plenty," followed by a dreamy take of James P. Johsnon's "Old Fashioned Love." Each man has an individual vocal feature as well: Davern's approach to "Take Me to the Land of Jazz" is almost conversational, while Sutton adds an enthusiastic humorous vocal á la Fats Waller to his upbeat solo feature of "'Tain't Nobody's Bizness If I Do," and Johnson's voice is surprisingly similar to Doc Cheatham's in a warm rendition of "Sweet Lorraine." Marty Grosz's hilarious liner notes have been retained, and an amusing new cartoon cover has been added by George Booth, making this CD a desirable purchase even if you already own the two long unavailable LPs that first showcased this music. ~ Ken Dryden https://www.allmusic.com/album/ralph-sutton-kenny-davern-complete-mw0000599345

Ralph Sutton & Kenny Davern

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Buddy Tate - Buddy Tate & His Buddies

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 43:25
Size: 99.4 MB
Styles: Bop, Saxophone jazz
Year: 1973/1994
Art: Front

[ 8:16] 1. Rockaway
[ 6:15] 2. Medi 2
[ 7:39] 3. Paris Nights
[10:04] 4. When I'm Blue
[11:10] 5. Sunday

Bass – Milt Hinton; Drums – Gus Johnson; Guitar – Steve Jordan; Piano – Mary Lou Williams; Tenor Saxophone – Buddy Tate, Illinois Jacquet; Trumpet – Roy Eldridge.

Jam sessions featuring swing veterans were not that common an occurence on record during the early '70s, making Hank O'Neal's Chiaroscuro label both ahead of and behind the times. This CD reissue is most notable for having pianist Mary Lou Williams (who rarely was invited to this type of freewheeling session) as one of the key soloists. Also heard from are the tenors of Buddy Tate and Illinois Jacquet and the aging but still exciting trumpeter Roy Eldridge; the backup players are rhythm guitarist Steve Jordan, bassist Milt Hinton and drummer Gus Johnson. Together they jam three group originals, Buck Clayton's "Rockaway" and the standard "Sunday" and, although falling short of being a classic, this infectious and consistently swinging music is worth picking up. ~ Scott Yanow

Buddy Tate & His Buddies

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Peanuts Hucko, Lars Erstrand, Louise Tobin, Marty Napoleon, Jack Lesberg, Gus Johnson - Tribute To Benny Goodman

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 54:14
Size: 124.2 MB
Styles: Dixieland jazz
Year: 1984/2000
Art: Front

[4:11] 1. Rose Room
[5:32] 2. Rockin' Chair
[4:48] 3. If I Had You
[5:33] 4. Moonglow
[3:37] 5. Seven Come Eleven
[3:32] 6. He Is Funny That Way
[3:14] 7. Goodnight
[1:45] 8. 'deed I Do
[4:02] 9. The Man I Love
[5:20] 10. The World Is Waiting For The Sunrise
[3:15] 11. Am I Blue
[1:47] 12. There'll Be Some Changes Made
[7:32] 13. Stealin' Apples

Louise Tobin (vocals); Peanuts Hucko (clarinet); John Bunch, Marty Napoleon (piano); Lars Erstrand, Frits Landesbergen (vibraphone); Gus Johnson , Jack Hanna (drums).

A terrific homage to the hits of Benny Goodman beautifly recorded on the Timeless label. Recorded during the mid 80s in Germany. The clarinet is performed by Peanuts Hucko to great effect. Special treat are vocals by Hucko's wife Louise Tobin who was once married to Harry James and sung with Benny's big band in the 30's! 50 years later she sounds even more swell with a charming style similar to Mildred Bailey and a bit like Maria Muldaur. Wild! ~Bruce London

Tribute To Benny Goodman

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