Claire Martin - Bumpin' - Celebrating Wes Montgomery

Styles: Vocal Jazz
Year: 2019
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 52:41
Size: 121,2 MB
Art: Front

(4:36)  1. Road Song
(4:21)  2. Polka Dots and Moonbeams
(4:23)  3. Willow Weep for Me
(5:30)  4. 'Round Midnight
(6:07)  5. If You Could See Me Now
(4:29)  6. Going out of My Head
(4:58)  7. I Could Get Used to This (Bumpin')
(4:08)  8. West Coast Blues
(5:07)  9. Back in the Room (Bock to Bock)
(4:57) 10. Born to Be Blue
(3:58) 11. The End of a Love Affair

Two award-winning jazz musicians from the UK, singer Claire Martin and guitarist Jim Mullen, celebrate the music of perhaps the most iconic guitarist in jazz history, Wes Montgomery, to mark the 50th anniversary of his death. 

The concert will feature classic Montgomery compositions such as Full House, Road Song and Bumpin’ plus well-known songs from his repertoire including Willow Weep for Me, If You Could See Me Now and Goin’ Out of My Head. http://ystadjazz.se/event/claire-martin-feat-jim-mullen-celebrating-the-music-of-wes-montgomery/?lang=en

Personnel:  Claire Martin (UK) – vocals; Jim Mullen (UK) – guitar; Magnus Hjorth – piano; Thomas Ovesen (DK) – bass; Kristian Leth (DK) – drums

Bumpin' - Celebrating Wes Montgomery

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Gene Harris Quartet - Live In London

Styles: Piano Jazz
Year: 2008
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 62:29
Size: 144,0 MB
Art: Front

(13:26)  1. No Greater Love
(15:18)  2. Blue Monk
( 6:04)  3. My Funny Valentine
(11:18)  4. In A Mellow Tone
( 9:02)  5. Misty
( 7:19)  6. Blues Closer

Gene Harris (1933-2000) was the master of blues in jazz. A self-proclaimed "blues pianist with chops," Harris could sting the most un-blues-like melody and make it sound like it was written by Meade Lux Lewis and performed by Oscar Peterson. Since Harris' death in 2000, posthumous releases of previously unreleased performances have been steady but sparse. These include: Live at Otter Crest (Concord Jazz, 2001), Instant Party (Concord Jazz, 2004), and now Live in London. Documenting a 1996 London performance with a local rhythm section, Live in London find Harris at his most exuberant. The set begins with an expansive "No Greater Love," with Harris introducing the piece with a length legato prelude before turning the tempo upside-down, giving the ballad the momentum of a freight train, albeit a happy one. Guitarist Jim Mullen sounds more rock than jazz, but does manage a clever Mozart quote ("allegro molto," from the "Symphony 40 in G minor") and several cartoon soundtrack quotes. An up-tempo "Blue Monk" provides Harris his first of three blues venues, allowing him and guitarist Mullen to display their considerable chops. This is where Harris is most at home, a steady romp through those twelve bars with a smile as big and fresh as his Idaho home. "My Funny Valentine" displays Harris invention in approaching a melody from the bottom side up in the same way as Erroll Garner in his salad days. The recital center point is the fifteen-minute "In a Mellow Tone." Harris, who states that he never plans set lists or performances, effectively conjures this Ellington chestnut out of thin air, employing the same introduction paradigm he used on "Valentine." He reveals the song covertly and then overtly. Harris uses his great sense of drama to build upon the melody, chorus by chorus, until he achieves the maximus of his orchestral style. Harris salutes Garner with a sensitive "Misty" before closing things with, what else, a blues appropriately entitled "Blues Closer." The Resonance Records website sports a brief interview with Harris where the pianist is revealed as a smiling, amiable giant interested only in playing music. One must believe that there is much more unreleased Gene Harris out there to celebrate. ~ C.Michael Bailey https://www.allaboutjazz.com/live-in-london-gene-harris-resonance-records-review-by-c-michael-bailey.php

Personnel: Gene Harris: piano; Jim Mullen: guitar; Andrew Clyendert: bass; Martin Drew: drums.

Live In London

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Jim Mullen - Somewhere In The Hills

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 61:24
Size: 140.6 MB
Styles: Guitar jazz, Funk
Year: 2005
Art: Front

[4:57] 1. Somewhere In The Hills
[6:58] 2. The Two Lonely People
[7:20] 3. Lush Life
[5:46] 4. Tender Is The Night
[7:28] 5. Without A Song
[5:06] 6. Lucky To Be Me
[4:30] 7. You're My Everything
[4:54] 8. Smile
[5:41] 9. The Night We Called It A Day
[3:17] 10. Medication
[5:24] 11. The Craw That Killed The Pussey O

Jim Mullen has a storied history. Born 1945 in Glasgow, Scotland, he played guitar and bass in the late '60s and '70s with Pete Brown, Brian Auger, Vinegar Joe and Kokomo, among others. Mullen formed Morrissey Mullen with saxophonist Dick Morrissey on sax around 1975, enjoying a 15-year partnership and becoming one of the top jazz-funk club bands of the '80s. Has been involved in solo projects since the '90s.

Somewhere In The Hills is the fourth album by Mullen's quartet, and that shows through their tightness of their playing. You can hear each individual in the band is well aware of the others and knows just when to stop, start and fade. The opening (title) track sees Mullen and pianist Gareth Williams playing a mid-paced toe-tapping tune where Mullen's guitar sings, not plays. The sleeve notes that accompany this album state that all these tracks are songs, because Mullen's guitar playing has a vocal intimacy. Yeah, sure. No, they really do! On the slow ballads like “The Two Lonely People” and Charlie Chaplin's "Smile" you'd swear his instrument was vocalising.

My favourite track is the super fast-paced “Medication”—every member of the band excels on this one—and do check out the slower but still quick “Without a Song,” where the other members of the group get to do solos. Mullen's jazz-funk material from the '80s was enjoyable, but I have to admit that this album is good jazz—hardly surprising when you consider the years this man has been playing. ~Johnny Wills

Jim Mullen - Guitar; Gareth Williams - Piano; Mick Hutton - Bass; Gary Husband - Drums

Somewhere In The Hills

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The Jim Mullen Organ Trio Feat. Stan Sulzmann - Smokescreen

Styles: Guitar Jazz
Year: 2006
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 59:14
Size: 136,1 MB
Art: Front

(6:56)  1. Consolidation
(6:58)  2. Stairway to the Stars
(5:15)  3. It Never Entered My Mind
(5:56)  4. Walk on By
(4:58)  5. When I Grow Up
(5:07)  6. Smokescreen
(5:08)  7. Aja
(4:28)  8. Cornelius
(5:03)  9. The White Cockade
(4:34) 10. Buzzard Count
(4:48) 11. Chances Are

It's hard to find even the most spartan abstract-music fan who isn't a closet admirer of Hammond organ jazz. The gospel-powered style popularised by Jimmy Smith in the 1960s still crosses generations. (The Hammond's gospel roots go back to the era when not all churches had organs, but the Hammond had wheels, allowing preachers to drive them to the service). Jim Mullen, the great Scottish funk and jazz guitarist, runs a mellow, lightly-swinging, more idiomatically wide-ranging version, with the elegantly boppish Mike Gorman doing the organ honours - and saxophonist Stan Sulzmann is a welcome guest on three tracks. The Scottish traditional The White Cockade works unexpectedly well with Sulzmann's soprano. And Mullen's silky sound, and a slow account of Stairway to the Stars makes the best of the guitarist's singing tone Mullen has the remarkable knack of sometimes making his instrument suggest Ray Charles's voice. 

Mullen's springy rhythmic sense and Gorman's twisting lines also make a classy job of It Never Entered My Mind. The only catch is that the music has a restrained, lounge-jazzy feel occasionally, and you wish for a burst or two of vulgar, old-fashioned Hammond-bashing hyperbole. But this is a popular UK touring band, faithfully presented. ~ John Fordham  http://www.theguardian.com/music/2006/dec/15/jazz3

Personnel:  Jim Mullen – guitar; Mike Gorman - Hammond organ; Matt Skelton – drums; Stan Sulzmann - sax

Smokescreen

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Jim Mullen Organ Trio - Make Believe

Bitrate: 320K/s
Time: 54:57
Size: 125.8 MB
Styles: Contemporary jazz
Year: 2008
Art: Front

[6:38] 1. Nature Boy
[7:46] 2. Make Believe
[6:10] 3. When I Fall In Love
[5:53] 4. Nancy
[6:55] 5. A Fond Kiss
[8:07] 6. Speed Of Sound
[6:53] 7. Just The Little Things
[6:30] 8. Rule Of Thumb

If you are not acquainted with the subdued delights of the Organ Trio, here's your chance. Not three organs, you'll be glad to know, but Hammond organ, drums and Mullen's inimitable, mellow guitar. With its fearsome power held in check, the Hammond is capable of great warmth and delicacy and Mike Gorman is a master of this. Matt Skelton's drumming is feather-light but firm. The trio has now become a quartet with the addition of Stan Sulzmann on tenor saxophone. His glossy tone and sweeping phrases bring a new perspective to the sound. The programme mixes originals with ballads ranging from Nat King Cole to Robert Burns. ~Dave Gelley

Make Believe

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