Irene Reid - The Queen of the Party

Styles: Vocal, Jazz Soul
Year: 2012
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 60:51
Size: 139,4 MB
Art: Front

(4:22)  1. Million Dollar Secret
(4:50)  2. I'm Gettin' Tired
(4:01)  3. If I Never Get To Heaven
(4:41)  4. I'm Walkin'
(5:11)  5. Aiming At Nothing
(6:19)  6. Once There Lived a Fool
(4:29)  7. Long John Blues
(4:51)  8. One Eyed Man
(5:50)  9. I Took the Backdoor Out
(5:07) 10. I Ain't Doing Too Bad
(5:18) 11. I'll Take You Back
(5:47) 12. Big Fat Daddy

From her days singing with the Count Basie band as a replacement for Joe Williams, to her Indian summer of renewed popularity, Irene Reid always lived up to her moniker, The Queen of Uptown Blues. Like Dinah Washington & Esther Phillips, Irene had a church background and never lost that divine intensity or power to convey the emotions in a lyric. Her most notable post-Basie gig was playing the wicked witch on Broadway in "The Whiz." Here is a program featuring Irene, the Charles "Mighty Burner" Earland, Eric Alexander and the rest of the crew doing what Irene did best: the Uptown Blues. ~ Editorial Reviews https://www.amazon.com/Queen-Party-Irene-Reid/dp/B008645ZFM

The Queen of the Party

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Irene Reid - One Monkey Don't Stop No Show

Styles: Vocal 
Year: 2002
File: MP3@256K/s
Time: 45:56
Size: 84,4 MB
Art: Front

(4:48)  1. I'm Getting Tired
(4:22)  2. Things We Said Today
(4:17)  3. Ain't Nobody Sleepin' In My Bed
(5:22)  4. One Monkey Don't Stop No Show
(4:08)  5. I've Gotta Be Me
(7:30)  6. You're the Best Thing That Ever Happened to Me
(5:50)  7. I Took the Backdoor Out
(5:00)  8. If the World Should End Tomorrow
(4:37)  9. Time's Getting Tougher Than Tough

Imagine a well-aged Billie Holiday imbued with Dinah Washington’s rollicking blues sensibility and you’ll begin to appreciate the magic of Irene Reid. Like so many gifted jazz singers of her generation, Reid burned briefly hot in the early 1950s, retired too young, eased her way back into the business in Europe, then became an underappreciated staple at various New York nightspots. In recent years, the Savannah-born sexagenarian has been enjoying a richly deserved renaissance thanks to a solid series of albums for Savant. One Monkey Don’t Stop No Show, Reid’s fourth Savant release, shows her in top form, surrounded by such terrific sidemen as guitarist Randy Johnston, trumpeter James Rotondi and tenor saxophonist Eric Alexander, with Bobby Forrester pumping away on the Hammond B-3 organ that Reid’s so fond of. Moving through an eclectic assortment of covers, she takes the Beatles’ “Things We Said Today” for a jaunty spin, serves up a warmly sedate version of the Gladys Knight anthem “You’re the Best Thing That Ever Happened to Me” and rescues “I’ve Gotta Be Me” from Sammy Davis overdrive, reminding us that it was always meant to be an unadorned salute to quiet self-respect. Reid is even more satisfying when dipping into the blues basket for such Dinahesque paeans to satisfied self-reliance as “I’m Gettin’ Tired,” “Ain’t Nobody Sleepin’ in My Bed” and Joe Tex’s quirky title track, originally made famous by Big Maybelle. But none of One Monkey’s tunes can quite compare to Reid’s stirring interpretation of O.C. Smith’s “If the World Should End Tomorrow.” Quite simply, a spectacular song spectacularly well done. ~ Christopher Loudon https://jazztimes.com/reviews/albums/irene-reid-one-monkey-dont-stop-no-show/

One Monkey Don't Stop No Show

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Irene Reid - I Ain't Doing Too Bad

Styles: Vocal, Soul
Year: 2001
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 46:07
Size: 105,7 MB
Art: Front

(5:12)  1. What Now My Love
(5:09)  2. I Ain't Doing Too Bad
(5:23)  3. All My Tomorrows
(4:43)  4. Sweet Lotus Blossom
(4:10)  5. Your Mind Is On Vacation
(6:20)  6. Once There Lived A Fool
(6:33)  7. Walking On A Tightrope
(8:36)  8. More Today Than Yesterday

At age 65, Irene Reid sounds quite good on I Ain't Doing Too Bad, her second comeback CD. Organist Charles Earland joins in with his group, trumpeter James Rotundi and tenor saxophonist Eric Alexander solo with their usual marvelous aplomb, and guitarist Bob DeVos and drummer Greg Rockingham fill in the rhythmic cracks nicely. Reid's voice is an even mix of the cute sassiness of Helen Humes and the soulful fullness of Etta Jones. Her predilection, or even forte, leans toward groove-oriented versions of pop tunes, which Earland is also known for interpreting; the hard charging "What Now My Love?" and the eight-plus minute "I Love You More Today Than Yesterday" are perfect examples, Earland stretching the latter's bridge with his always burning or staggered phrase B-3 solo. Better choices include the Mose Allison warhorse "Your Mind Is on Vacation" and a clever blues waltz treatment of the Stevie Ray Vaughan-Doyle Bramhall tune that Johnny Adams did to death: "Walkin' on a Tightrope." Where Adams was smouldering, Reid is simply cool. "Sweet Lotus Blossom" features Alexander's ripe tenor, while Rotundi's shades background silhouettes during the ballad "All My Tomorrows." DeVos varies from steely lines for his solo on the title track, or goes Wes Montgomery for the regret filled, seemingly autobiographical "Once There Lived a Fool." Able to turn on a dime from hopeful to sorrowful, Reid is as convincing a singer as she is talented. Hopefully a few more chestnuts like this one will spring forth before she's done. Biggest regret: the CD is just short of 46-minutes in length. ~ Michael G.Nastos https://www.allmusic.com/album/i-aint-doing-too-bad-mw0000602940 

Personnel: Irene Reid (vocals); Eric Alexander (tenor saxophone); James Rotondi (trumpet); Charles Earland (Hammond B-3 organ); Bob DeVos (guitar); Greg Rockingham (drums).             

I Ain't Doing Too Bad

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Irene Reid - The Uptown Lowdown

Styles: Vocal, Soul
Year: 2009
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 39:26
Size: 90,5 MB
Art: Front

(4:41)  1. I'm Walkin'
(5:47)  2. Candy
(4:43)  3. Mamma, He Treats Your Daughter Mean
(5:06)  4. I Believe I Can Fly
(5:20)  5. I'll Take You Back
(4:02)  6. If I Never Get To Heaven
(5:16)  7. Me and Mr. Jones
(4:28)  8. Long John Blues

Irene Reid is a survivor, a voice from a golden age of jazz and blues singers. In the 1960s, she toured with Count Basie and recorded for Verve, then disappeared for decades, only to sound better than ever on a trio of CDs with organist Charles Earland before his death in late 1999. Like its predecessors, The Uptown Lowdown is relaxed, soulful, elemental music roots with elegance. Reid sings in a style at the early intersection of jazz and R&B, with a sweet and gritty voice that recalls Dinah Washington and Ruth Brown. She covers some of their songs here, but she gives them her own spin, swinging mightily with a phrasing as natural as speech. She draws with ease on wellsprings of feeling, from a secure plaintiveness to bawdy humor, adding her own depths to "Me and Mr. Jones" and infusing a gospel spirit into the contemporary R&B of Robert Kelly's "I Believe I Can Fly." Earland builds potent grooves with drummer Greg Rockingham and blends his organ keyboards with two tenors and trumpet, creating a lush carpet of sound for Reid's rich voice. Eric Alexander contributes some booting tenor solos, and guitarist Bill Boris adds cutting, soulful blues. ~ Stuart Broomer https://www.amazon.com/Uptown-Lowdown-Irene-Reid/dp/B00000DUC6

Personnel: Irene Reid (vocals); Eric Alexander,  Mike Karn (tenor saxophone); James Rotondi (trumpet); Charles Earland (Hammond B3 organ); Bill Boris (guitar); Greg Rockingham (drums).

The Uptown Lowdown

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