Mal Waldron / Steve Lacy - The Mighty Warriors: Live in Antwerp (Live)

Styles: Piano And Saxophone Jazz
Year: 2024
Time: 98:41
File: MP3 @ 128K/s
Size: 91,0 MB
Art: Front

(17:14) 1. What It Is (Live)
( 6:04) 2. Epistrophy (Live)
(12:18) 3. Longing (Live)
(12:53) 4. Monk's Dream (Live)
(24:51) 5. Variation Of III (Live)
(25:18) 6. Medley: Snake Out / Variations On A Theme by Cecil Taylor (Live)

Producer/jazz detective Zev Feldman is still at it, ferreting out unreleased recordings from jazz giants of the past and releasing them with buffed-up sound quality and first-rate packaging. Long lost recordings from pianists Bill Evans, Thelonious Monk, Art Tatum and Ahmad Jamal have seen the light of the twenty-first century, thanks to Feldman, as has newly discovered music from trumpeter Chet Baker. Now it is pianist Mal Waldron (1925 -2002) and soprano saxophonist Steve Lacy's (1934 -2004) turn, with The Mighty Warriors. The two-disc set comes from a 1995 concert at De Singel Arts Center in Antwerp, Belgium.

Both Waldron and Lacy expatriated from the United States. Waldron made the move to Europe in the mid-1960s. Lacy moved to Paris in 1970. The pair worked together and recorded together often. Waldron has the distinction of participating as the leader on the first ECM Records release, Free At Last (1970).

Waldron and Lacy are often considered free-jazz guys. There may be some truth in this, but both were melodists of the first order; their music together and apart was approachable and adventurous. Waldron, like Monk and Andrew Hill and Bud Powell, was a stylist who sounded unlike anyone else. John Coltrane gets a lot of credit for popularizing the soprano sax, but Lacy was there before him on this, releasing three albums before Coltrane came out with the groundbreaking My Favorite Things (Atlantic Records, 1961).

The Mighty Warriors is Waldron and Lacy in a quartet setting, joined by drummer Andrew Cyrille and bassist Reggie Workman. The players sound loose, "going for it." The first disc is relatively concise, with four tunes, each running between six and seventeen minutes. The opener, "What It Is," comes from Waldron's pen. It is a rambling seventeen minutes. Waldron lays down a mesmerizing rhythm; Lacy his sound dry and robust searches. Cyrille and Waldron lay down a controlled stumbling bustle of a backdrop. Lacy wrote the twelve-minute "Longing." His horn complains about his unfulfilled desire, then shifts into the prettiest of reveries. Tracks 2 and 4 are Monk originals, "Epistrophy" and "Monk Dream" lift the music away from a brooding atmosphere, adding a welcome touch of familiarity and playfulness to the set.

Disc 2 of The Mighty Warriors moves closer to free jazz, with two extended cuts, "Variation of III" and "Medley: Snake Out/Variations on a Theme by Cecil Tayor," both clocking in at the twenty-five-minute mark. The latter opens like a full-frontal assault, fierce and percussive. The former sounds like a traveler lost in a foreign land. It opens with Workman's lonely arco bass that leads into a marvelous otherworldly musical hesitation that stops and starts.

Waldron and Lacy did not boast the highest of profiles. Their moves to Europe, away from the bigger record labels, and the New York City clubs, were probably partially responsible for this. Their talent and innovative approach to making music was of the highest order and can be experienced on The Mighty Warriors.By Dan McClenaghan
https://www.allaboutjazz.com/the-mighty-warriors-mal-waldron-steve-lacy-elemental-music

The Mighty Warriors: Live in Antwerp (Live)

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Mal Waldron Sextet - Mal/2

Styles: Piano Jazz
Year: 2023
Time: 46:40
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Size: 107,2 MB
Art: Front

(6:17) 1. From This Moment On
(8:40) 2. J.m.'s Dream Doll
(8:26) 3. The Way You Look Tonight
(9:42) 4. One By One
(6:59) 5. Don't Explain
(6:35) 6. Potpourri

Before becoming an expatriate in 1965 and eventually settling in Munich, pianist Mal Waldron cut several stateside hard bop albums full of his idiosyncratic and Monk-ish piano work, and featuring choice contributions by some of the music's finest. For this 1957 date, Waldron worked with a stellar sextet interchangeably manned by John Coltrane, Jackie McLean, Idrees Sulieman, Art Taylor, and others.

Bookended by the pianist's ebullient "Potpourri" and the avant-noir blues "One by One," the set also includes a fetching cover of Cole Porter's "From This Moment On" and a beautifully complex arrangement of Billie Holiday's "Don't Explain." (Waldron was Holiday's accompanist for the last two years of the singer's life until her death in 1959.) Solo highlights include McLean's keenly constructed solo on Waldron's "J.M.'s Dream Doll" (dedicated to the alto saxophonist and his wife) and Sulieman's incredibly rich and supple trumpet work on "One by One."

For his part, Coltrane is in good form throughout, save for a few sour notes and some faltering solos; at this time Coltrane was still coming into his own and a few years shy of the masterful hard bop sides he would record for Atlantic. Waldron here leads a potent crew on an engaging and original set of arrangements. A cut above many of the relatively straightforward and blues-based hard bop dates of the time.By Stephen Cook Mal/2 - Mal Waldron, Mal Waldron Sextet | Album | AllMusic

Mal/2

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Kenny Burrell - Earthy

Styles: Guitar Jazz

Year: 1957/2020

File: MP3@320K/s

Time: 43:40

Size: 100,0 MB

Art: Front

( 9:23) 1. Earthy

( 7:12) 2. What's Not

( 6:16) 3. I Wouldn't

( 6:14) 4. The Frontline

(14:33) 5. Dayee

One of the leading exponents of straight-ahead jazz guitar, Kenny Burrell is a highly influential artist whose understated and melodic style, grounded in bebop and blues, made him in an in-demand sideman from the mid-'50s onward and a standard by which many jazz guitarists gauge themselves to this day. Born in Detroit in 1931, Burrell grew up in a musical family in which his mother played piano and sang in the Second Baptist Church choir, while his father favored the banjo and ukulele. Burrell began playing guitar at age 12 and quickly fell under the influence of such artists as Charlie Christian, Django Reinhardt, Oscar Moore, T-Bone Walker, and Muddy Waters. Surrounded by the vibrant jazz and blues scene of Detroit, Burrell began to play gigs around town and counted among his friends and bandmates pianist Tommy Flanagan, saxophonists Pepper Adams and Yusef Lateef, drummer Elvin Jones, and others.

In 1951, Burrell made his recording debut on a combo session that featured trumpeter Dizzy Gillespie as well as saxophonist John Coltrane, vibraphonist Milt Jackson, and bassist Percy Heath. Although his talent ranked among the best of the professional jazz players at the time, Burrell continued to study privately with renowned classical guitarist Joe Fava, and enrolled in the music program at Wayne State University. Upon graduating in 1955 with a B.A. in music composition and theory, Burrell was hired for a six-month stint touring with pianist Oscar Peterson's trio. Then, in 1956, Burrell and Flanagan moved to New York City and immediately became two of the most sought-after sidemen in town, performing in gigs with such luminaries as singers Tony Bennett and Lena Horne, playing in Broadway pit orchestras, and recording with an array of legendary musicians including Coltrane, trumpeter Kenny Dorham, organist Jimmy Smith, vocalist Billie Holiday, and many others. Burrell made his recorded debut as a leader on the 1956 Blue Note session Introducing Kenny Burrell technically his second session for the label, but the first to see release. From the late '50s onward, Burrell continued to record by himself and with others, and has appeared on countless albums over the years including such notable albums as 1957's The Cats featuring Coltrane, 1963's Midnight Blue featuring saxophonist Stanley Turrentine, 1965's Guitar Forms with arrangements by Gil Evans, and 1968's Blues - The Common Ground.

Beginning in 1971, Burrell started leading various college seminars including the first regular course to be held in the United States on the music of composer, pianist, and bandleader Duke Ellington. He continued performing, recording, and teaching throughout the '80s and '90s, releasing several albums including 1989's Guiding Spirit, 1991's Sunup to Sundown, 1994's Collaboration with pianist LaMont Johnson, 1995's Primal Blue, and 1998's church music-inspired Love Is the Answer. In 2001, Burrell released the relaxed quartet date A Lucky So and So on Concord and followed it up in 2003 with Blue Muse. He celebrated turning 75 years old in 2006 by recording a live date, released a year later as 75th Birthday Bash Live! In 2010, Burrell released the live album Be Yourself: Live at Dizzy's Club Coca-Cola, recorded at Lincoln Center's smaller club-like venue, followed two years later by Special Requests (And Other Favorites): Live at Catalina's. In 2015, Burrell released The Road to Love, recorded live at Catalina's Jazz Club in Hollywood. Another Catalina's live date, Unlimited 1, appeared in 2016 and featured Burrell backed by the Los Angeles Jazz Orchestra. Besides continuing to perform, Burrell is the founder and director of the Jazz Studies Program at UCLA, as well as president emeritus of the Jazz Heritage Foundation. ~ Matt Collar

https://www.allmusic.com/artist/kenny-burrell-mn0000068780/biography

Personnel: Kenny Burrell - guitar; Al Cohn - tenor saxophone; Art Farmer - trumpet; Hal McKusick - alto saxophone; Mal Waldron - piano; Teddy Kotick - bass; Ed Thigpen - drums

Earthy

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Mal Waldron - Searching in Grenoble : The 1978 Solo Piano Concert (Live)

Styles: Piano Jazz
Year: 2022
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 103:23
Size: 237,6 MB
Art: Front

(23:25) 1. Mistral Breeze / Sieg Haile
(10:05) 2. Here, There And Everywhere
( 2:28) 3. Russian Melody
( 5:34) 4. Petite Gémeaux
( 6:37) 5. Fire Waltz
( 8:32) 6. You Don't Know What Love Is
( 8:49) 7. Soul Eyes
( 7:34) 8. It Could Happen To You
( 6:16) 9. Russian Melody
( 9:40) 10. I Thought About You
( 7:24) 11. Snake Out
( 6:51) 12. All Alone

Searching In Grenoble: The 1978 Solo Piano Concert is a previously unissued recording of jazz icon Mal Waldron's mesmerizing performance at the “Five Days of Jazz" series in Grenoble, France on March 23, 1978.

Waldron was Billie Holiday’s final accompanist, played on classic sessions with John Coltrane, Charles Mingus and Jackie McLean among others, and recorded dozens of solo albums as a leader before his passing in 2002.

Originally produced by the legendary André Francís and transferred from the original Radio France tapes, this is the first official release of this music in cooperation with the Mal Waldron Estate and Ina (The Institut national de l'audiovisuel). The beautifully designed, deluxe 2-CD set includes photos by K. Abe, Brian McMillen and Raymond Ross; an extensive 24-page booklet with a heartfelt statement by Mal's daughter Mala Waldron, plus essays by producer/"Jazz Detective" Zev Feldman, journalist Adam Shatz and Ina's Pascal Rozat; and interviews with modern jazz piano luminaries Ran Blake and Matthew Shipp. Searching In Grenoble features classic Waldron originals such as “Soul Eyes" and “All Alone," and jazz standards “You Don't Know What Love Is," “It Could Happen to You" and “I Thought About You.”

The 2-CD set will be available worldwide September 23rd on Tompkins Square (TSQ5906), and was produced for release by Zev Feldman and Josh Rosenthal. Tompkins Square has released jazz recordings by Sonny Clark, Ran Blake, Calvin Keys, Bola Sete, Giuseppi Logan, Charles Gayle, and Bern Nix among others. By TOMPKINS SQUARE https://www.allaboutjazz.com/news/mal-waldron-searching-in-grenoble-the-1978-solo-piano-concert/

Searching in Grenoble: The 1978 Solo Piano Concert (Live)

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Booker Little - The New York Sessions Featuring Booker Ervin

Styles: Trumpet Jazz
Year: 2004
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 56:15
Size: 130,2 MB
Art: Front

( 5:17)  1. Scoochie
( 4:46)  2. Cycles
( 3:41)  3. Stardust
( 6:52)  4. The Confined Few
( 3:39)  5. Blues De Tambour
( 4:37)  6. Witch Fire
(10:44)  7. Things Ain't What They Used To Be
( 8:09)  8. Blue 'N' Boogie
( 8:26)  9. After Hours

Despite the extreme brevity of his life passing away at the tender age of 23 Booker Little left behind one of the most important legacies of the jazz trumpet; a legacy that has stood the test of time, growing stronger with each passing year. 

The unrivalled trumpeter is featured here in two settings; a stellar date with the under appreciated tenor saxophone giant Booker Ervin, and an unprecedented octet session featuring a who's who of Memphis, Tennessee's most celebrated musicians. A rare release by one of the finest and most underrated legends of the jazz trumpet. https://www.freshsoundrecords.com/booker-little-albums/3510-featuring-booker-ervin-new-york-sessions.html

Personnel:  Trumpet – Booker Little; Bass – Addison Farmer; Drums – Ed Shaughnessy; Piano – Mal Waldron; Vibraphone – Teddy Charles

The New York Sessions Featuring Booker Ervin

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Charles Mingus Quintet - Chazz

Styles: Jazz, Post Bop
Year: 2014
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 42:26
Size: 97,9 MB
Art: Front

(6:56)  1. Jump Monk
(6:04)  2. Serenade In Blue
(8:44)  3. Percussion Discussion
(6:34)  4. Work Song
(7:06)  5. Septemberley
(7:00)  6. All the Things You Are In C Sharp

The Jazz Workshop of 1955 is in superb form, caught in performance at the Caf Bohemia in New York. Max Roach only appears for a "Percussion Discussion" with Mingus, but the forgotten Willie Jones is no slouch either. A typically adventurous set of tunes includes two montages. ("Septemberly" combines "September in the Rain" and "Tenderly", while "All the Things You Can C-Sharp" is a blend of "All the Things You Are," Rachmaninoff's "Prelude in C-Sharp" and "Clair de Lune.") It's a very spirited date, ranking with his best work in the period. 

A further disc, Charles Mingus Quintet Plus Max Roach (Fantasy 86009), derives from the same date; these were combined as Prestige P-24010. And the boxed set of the Complete Debut Recordings (Debut 12-CDC-4402-2) includes an additional hour of previously unissued material. ~ Stuart Kremsky https://www.allmusic.com/album/chazz-mw0000901355

Personnel:  Bass – Charlie Mingus; Drums – Max Roach, Willie Jones; Piano – Mal Waldron; Tenor Saxophone – George Barrow; Trombone – Eddie Bert

Chazz

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Donald Byrd & Booker Little - The Third World

Styles: Trumpet Jazz
Year: 1999
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 33:11
Size: 76,5 MB
Art: Front

(3:49)  1. Chasing the Bird
(3:47)  2. Prophecy
(6:11)  3. Ping Pong Beer
(2:23)  4. Construction
(4:42)  5. Quiet Temple
(2:51)  6. November Afternoon
(4:20)  7. Call to Arms
(5:03)  8. Wee Tina

There is more and less than meets the eye with this hard bop collection from 1960: less Booker Little and more performers than are listed on the CD. A little research corroborates what the ear suspects: the eight tracks come from three sessions, only one of which has trumpeters Little and Donald Byrd together (three tracks). The other sessions feature, respectively, Little and trombonist Curtis Fuller (two tracks) and Byrd and baritone saxophonist Pepper Adams (three tracks). Adams is one of a half-dozen performers not credited on the CD. To further confuse matters, both the session with Little and Byrd and the one with Little and Fuller have uncredited additional trumpeters Marcus Belgrave and Don Ellis, respectively. Suffice to say, sorting out who plays the trumpet solos is not easy. It seems, though, that Little solos only on one, possibly two, numbers. Originally, these tracks came out on a Warwick LP called Soul of Jazz Percussion. This explains the additional percussion parts some integrated more effectively than others on each of the tracks. Overall, the Byrd/Adams tracks are the most consistent. "November Afternoon" from the Little/Fuller set and "Chasing the Bird" and "Wee Tina" from the Little/Byrd set are also okay. Even so, factor in a couple of poorly handled fadeout endings along with some mixing and editing gaffes and there is not enough here to rate a recommendation, except, perhaps, to the ardent Booker Little completist. ~ Jim Todd https://www.allmusic.com/album/the-third-world-mw0000603542

Personnel: Donald Byrd, Booker Little - trumpet; Bill Evans, Mal Waldron - piano; Pepper Adams - baritone saxophone; Marcus Belgrave, Don Ellis - trumpet; Curtis Fuller - trombone; Paul Chambers, Adison Farmer - bass; Armando Peraza - congas; Willie Rodriguez, Earl Zindars - perc. Philly Joe Jones Ed Shaughnessy - drums.

Third World

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Mal Waldron with Eric Dolphy and Booker Ervin - The Quest

Styles: Piano, Saxophone Jazz, Post Bop
Year: 1962
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 41:37
Size: 95,9 MB
Art: Front

(8:54)  1. Status Seeking
(4:09)  2. Duquility
(4:45)  3. Thirteen
(4:26)  4. We Diddit
(5:39)  5. Warm Canto
(5:39)  6. Warp and Woof
(8:02)  7. Fire Waltz

Although often reissued under Eric Dolphy's name, this CD reissue gives the leadership back to pianist Mal Waldron. The seven originals not only feature altoist Dolphy (who makes a rare appearance on clarinet during "Warm Canto") but tenor-saxophonist Booker Ervin, Ron Carter (on cello) and Waldron. With bassist Joe Benjamin and drummer Charlie Persip giving alert support, the complex music (which falls between hard bop and the avant-garde) is successfully interpreted. Worth checking out. ~ Scott Yanow https://www.allmusic.com/album/the-quest-mw0000078389

Personnel:  Mal Waldron – piano; Eric Dolphy – alto saxophone, clarinet; Booker Ervin – tenor saxophone (tracks 1-4, 6 & 7); Ron Carter – cello; Joe Benjamin – bass; Charlie Persip – drums

The Quest

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Mal Waldron - In Retrospect

Styles: Piano Jazz
Year: 1982
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 38:21
Size: 88,0 MB
Art: Front

( 7:31)  1. All Alone
(11:18)  2. Oleo
( 6:15)  3. Blue Monk
( 7:38)  4. I Can't Get Started
( 5:38)  5. Straight No Chaser

A great Japanese session from Mal Waldron with excellent tenor and flute from Akira Miyazawa, plus bass from Isao Suzuki and drums from Hironobu Fuzisawa! https://www.dustygroove.com/item/726554

Personnel:  Mal Waldron — piano;  Akira Miyazawa — tenor saxophone, flute;  Isao Suzuki — bass;  Hironobu Fujisawa — drums

In Retrospect

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Mal Waldron - Mal, Dance and Soul

Styles: Piano Jazz 
Year: 1989
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 71:55
Size: 164,9 MB
Art: Front

(9:34)  1. Dancing on the Flames
(7:59)  2. A Bow to the Classics
(8:11)  3. Little One
(7:52)  4. From a Little Acorns
(8:58)  5. Soul Mates
(6:49)  6. Blood and Guts
(8:56)  7. Solar
(7:35)  8. Blue Monk
(6:00)  9. Golden Golson

A pianist with a brooding, rhythmic, introverted style, Mal Waldron's playing has long been flexible enough to fit into both hard bop and freer settings. Influenced by Thelonious Monk's use of space, Waldron has had his own distinctive chord voicings nearly from the start. Early on, Waldron played jazz on alto and classical music on piano, but he switched permanently to jazz piano while at Queens College. He freelanced around New York in the early '50s with Ike Quebec (for whom he made his recording debut), Big Nick Nicholas, and a variety of R&B-ish groups. Waldron frequently worked with Charles Mingus from 1954-1956 and was Billie Holiday's regular accompanist during her last two years (1957-1959). Often hired by Prestige to supervise recording sessions, Waldron contributed many originals (including "Soul Eyes," which became a standard) and basic arrangements that prevented spontaneous dates from becoming overly loose jam sessions. After Holiday's death, he mostly led his own groups, although he was part of the Eric Dolphy-Booker Little Quintet that was recorded extensively at the Five Spot in 1961, and also worked with Abbey Lincoln for a time during the era. He wrote three film scores (The Cool World, Three Bedrooms in Manhattan, and Sweet Love Bitter) before moving permanently to Europe in 1965, settling in Munich in 1967. Waldron, who has occasionally returned to the U.S. for visits, has long been a major force in the European jazz world. His album Free at Last was the first released by ECM, and his Black Glory was the fourth Enja album. Waldron, who frequently teamed up with Steve Lacy (often as a duet), kept quite busy up through the '90s, featuring a style that evolved but was certainly traceable to his earliest record dates. 

Among the many labels that have documented his music have been Prestige, New Jazz, Bethlehem, Impulse, Musica, Affinity, ECM, Futura, Nippon Phonogram, Enja, Freedom, Black Lion, Horo, Teichiku, Hat Art, Palo Alto, Eastwind, Baybridge, Paddle Wheel, Muse, Free Lance, Soul Note, Plainisphere, and Timeless. In September of 2002, Waldron was diagnosed with cancer. Remaining optimistic, he continued to tour until he passed away on December 2 in Brussels, Belgium at the age of76. ~Scott Yanow

https://www.allmusic.com/artist/mal-waldron-mn0000665824/biography                              

Personnel:  Mal Waldron - piano;  Jim Pepper - tenor saxophone;  Ed Schuller - bass;  John Betsch - drums

Mal, Dance and Soul

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Betty Blake - Betty Blake Sings In A Tender Mood

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 31:26
Size: 72.0 MB
Styles: Vocal jazz
Year: 1961/2014
Art: Front

[1:57] 1. Let There Be Love
[2:14] 2. I'll Be Around
[1:58] 3. Moon And Sand
[2:27] 4. Trouble Is A Man
[2:17] 5. Love Is Just Around The Corner
[5:12] 6. Lilac Wine
[2:32] 7. It's So Peaceful In The Country
[2:32] 8. While We're Young
[2:23] 9. Blue Fool
[2:43] 10. All Of You
[2:32] 11. Don't Say Love Has Ended
[2:34] 12. Out Of This World

Vocalist Betty Blake made one fine recording for Bethlehem in 1960, Betty Blake Sings in a Tender Mood. On the strength of it, she deserved more opportunities and exposure. ~Ron Wynn

If you haven’t figured it out by now, here it is spelled out for you: any release of an obscure vocalist on the Fresh Sound label from Spain is going to impress you, and make you wonder why you’ve never heard of him or her before. Here’s another case in point-Betty Blake. She sang in the 50s for Buddy Morrow’s orchestra, and then after a ’57 session with vibist Teddy Charles, was invited to do an album for Bethlehem Records. After that, she simply disappeared as if abducted by aliens. Maybe they liked jazz on Mars or something, as this album of her 1961 session, as well as her handful of tunes with Charles, are delightful.

Her voice is a kind of husky mix of Chris Connor and June Christy: cool and swinging but with a dash of molasses. She is in the company of some of the classiest guys around, with Mal Waldron/p, Kenny Burrell/g, Ed Shaughnessy/dr, Zoot Sims/ts, Charles/vib, Marcus Belgrave/tp and Charlie Persip/dr just a sample of the rotating team. Even better, she wisely keeps the standards under wraps, and does some wonderful things with obscurities like “Moon and Sand,” “Lilac Wine” and “Blue Fool.” Her reading of “All of You” is rich and inviting, while “I’ll Be Around” has her in warmth and assurance. In a larger setting of an orchestra lead by Jack Zimmerman, she gets a bit Chet Bakery on “But Not For Me.” Who talked her out of more sessions? This one’s a keeper! ~GWJazz

Betty Blake Sings In A Tender Mood mc
Betty Blake Sings In A Tender Mood zippy

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Kenny Burrell, Jimmy Raney - 2 Guitars

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 49:14
Size: 112.7 MB
Styles: Bop, Guitar jazz
Year: 1957/1992
Art: Front

[ 8:49] 1. Blue Duke
[ 4:04] 2. Dead Heat
[ 5:11] 3. Pivot
[ 4:47] 4. I'll Close My Eyes
[ 9:27] 5. Little Melonae
[12:21] 6. This Way
[ 4:31] 7. Out Of Nowhere

Alto Saxophone – Jackie Mclean; Bass – Doug Watkins; Drums – Arthur Taylor; Guitar – Jimmy Raney, Kenny Burrell; Piano – Mal Waldron; Trumpet – Donald Byrd. Recorded in 1957.

For this 1957 studio session, the two distinctive but complementary guitarists Kenny Burrell and Jimmy Raney are teamed up in a septet with trumpeter Donald Byrd, altoist Jackie McLean, pianist Mal Waldron, bassist Doug Watkins, and drummer Art Taylor. The full group gets to stretch out on one original each by Watkins and McLean ("Little Melonae") and three from Waldron, while the two standards ("Close Your Eyes" and "Out of Nowhere") are individual features for Burrell and Raney. This is a well-rounded set that may not contain any real surprises, but will be enjoyed by collectors of hard bop. ~Scott Yanow

2 Guitars mc
2 Guitars zippy

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Barney Wilen, Mal Waldron Trio - Movie Themes From France

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 67:26
Size: 154.4 MB
Styles: Bop
Year: 1990
Art: Front

[ 6:21] 1. Un Homme Et Une Femme
[ 7:31] 2. Florence Sur Les Champ-Elysées
[ 9:56] 3. Les Parapluies De Cherbourg
[ 8:45] 4. No Problem
[10:31] 5. Manha De Carnaval
[ 6:57] 6. Générique
[ 7:45] 7. Les Feuilles Mortes
[ 9:37] 8. Quiet Temple

Bass – Stafford James; Drums – Eddie Moore; Piano – Mal Waldron; Tenor Saxophone, Soprano Saxophone – Barney Wilen. Recorded October 2nd, 1990 at Studio 44, Monster, Holland.

Soft and sensuous, saxophonist Barney Wilen runs gently through eight French movie soundtracks, with the Mal Waldron Trio behind him. Wilen came to international attention decades before with his work with Miles Davis, and several of the themes here were actually written by the trumpeter. Wilen has been criticized for sounding tired on this recording, and, in fact, his sound does sometimes sound somewhat sleepy, though often attractively so. In ways, this sounds a bit like Stan Getz minus some oomph. The results are lazily appealing, the sort of melodies that might be soothing after a long day. This is not to imply, though, that Wilen is anything less than a very strong jazz performer, as his phrasing and choice of notes are smack dab in the middle of the jazz tradition. Yet, even when he builds tension, as he likes to do on his soprano, it has the feel of being held back. He is best heard on tenor, and on those tracks his lilting, soft forays usually hit the mark. Waldron is an oddly sympathetic voice, so much so that the music is often in danger of drifting to paradise. ~Steve Loewy

Movie Themes From France

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Gene Ammons - Funky

Styles: Saxophone Jazz
Year: 1957
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 39:39
Size: 90,9 MB
Art: Front

( 9:01)  1. Funky
(12:23)  2. Pint Size
( 8:57)  3. Stella By Starlight
( 9:16)  4. King Size

The Gene Ammons all-star jam session recordings of the 1950's are all quite enjoyable and this one is no exception. The great tenor is matched with trumpeter Art Farmer, altoist Jackie McLean, guitarist Kenny Burrell, pianist Mal Waldron, bassist Doug Watkins and drummer Art Taylor for lengthy versions of "Stella By Starlight," the Burrell blues "Funky" and a pair of numbers by arranger Jimmy Mundy. All of the horns plus Burrell and Waldron get ample solo space and Ammons seems to really inspire his sidemen on these soulful bop jams. ~ Scott Yanow http://www.allmusic.com/album/funky-mw0000085895

Personnel:  Gene Ammons - tenor saxophone;  Art Farmer – trumpet;  Jackie McLean - alto saxophone;  Mal Waldron – piano;  Kenny Burrell – guitar;  Doug Watkins – bass;  Art Taylor – drums.

Funky

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Gene Ammons - A Stranger In Town

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s

Time: 67:51

Size: 155.3 MB

Styles: Bop, Saxophone jazz

Year: 2002

Art: Front

[9:41] 1. The Song Is You

[3:59] 2. Light'n Up

[3:32] 3. Short Stop

[3:58] 4. They Say You're Laughing At Me

[4:13] 5. Salome's Tune

[4:10] 6. Blue Coolade

[5:58] 7. A Stranger In Town

[5:32] 8. Scam

[4:24] 9. Count Your Blessings

[3:07] 10. Cara Mia

[5:18] 11. Night Lights

[5:41] 12. Calypso Blues

[8:11] 13. Nature Boy

Alto Saxophone – Oliver Nelson;Baritone Saxophone – Gene Easton, Robert Ashton; Bass – George Duvivier, Wendell Marshall; Congas – Henry Pucho Brown, Ray Barretto; Drums – Billy English, Ed Thigpen, George Brown, Rudy Collins, Walter Perkins; Piano – John Houston, Mal Waldron, Patti Brown, Richard Wyands, Wynton Kelly; Tenor Saxophone – Gene Ammons, George Barrow, Red Holloway; Trombone – Henderson Chambers; Trumpet – Clark Terry, Hobart Dotson, Nate Woodward.

More so than other independent jazz labels such as Blue Note and Riverside, the powers to be at Prestige seemed to take great liberties in producing albums that would often contain cuts from multiple sessions, a discographical nightmare at its most basic. But even more troubling, this often made for a lack of coherence that could be disconcerting at times. What then made all of this worse was that the practice was often used with some of the label’s most important and visible artists.

The forgoing will hopefully put into perspective the circumstances surrounding the strange mélange that makes up the Gene Ammons compilation A Stranger In Town. Taken from no less than five recording sessions that span from 1954 to 1970, the 13 tracks assembled here originally appeared on the albums Velvet Soul, Sock!, and Night Lights. That’s the easy part; and then it gets confusing as you try to keep up with the rotating cast of characters on hand. A boisterous “The Song Is You” gets us started with some great small group charts provided by Oliver Nelson, only to give way to a spate of quartet performances that while solid are not particularly all that revelatory. The closing three tracks, particularly a tasty “Calypso Blues,” are the cream of the crop as Ammons' blustery attack gets bluesy support from the ubiquitous Wynton Kelly. ~C. Andrew Hovan

A Stranger In Town

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Mal Waldron Quintet - Mal-1

Styles: Piano Jazz
Year: 1956
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 38:07
Size: 88,8 MB
Art: Front

(4:55)  1. Stablemates
(7:50)  2. Yesterdays
(7:19)  3. Transfiguration
(5:52)  4. Bud Study
(7:02)  5. Dee's Dilemma
(5:07)  6. Shome

Mal Waldron's recording debut as a leader presents the pianist with his many gifts already well developed. For the 1956 quartet date, he takes charge to strike a balance between the sound of a blowing session and the refinement of a more polished date. The spontaneity is there, but the set also benefits from Waldron's thoughtful charts. At this stage of his development, Waldron was a distinctive bop pianist whose occasional sputtering, knotty phrasing revealed the acknowledged influence of Thelonious Monk, as well as similarities with contemporaries Al Haig and Bud Powell. For this set, though, the focus is not on Waldron's playing, but on his ability to lead from the piano bench. The horn players top-flight boppers Idrees Sulieman on trumpet and Gigi Gryce on alto sax contribute hot solos played with class and authority, and disciplined ensemble work supports the overall structure of Waldron's charts. Some of the arrangements seem written with a larger ensemble in mind, but they also work in the quartet setting, with Waldron's effective use of staggered horn entries, dynamics, interesting harmonies, and occasional countermelodies adding color and variety to the performances. 

The tracks comprise a bright, focused performance of Benny Golson's "Stablemates," a sparse, bluesy take of the standard "Yesterdays," a pair of good Waldron originals and one from Sulieman, along with Lee Sears' "Transfiguration." Bassist Julian Euell and drummer Arthur Edgehill supply a strong and reliable bop pulse. ~ Jim Todd http://www.allmusic.com/album/mal-1-mw0000188794

Personnel: Mal Waldron (piano); Gigi Gryce (alto saxophone); Idrees Sulieman (trumpet); Julian Euell (bass); Arthur Edgehill (drums).

Mal-1

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Tiziana Ghiglioni - I'll be Around

Styles: Vocal 
Year: 1989
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 39:22
Size: 90,6 MB
Art: Front

(6:15)  1. Am I Blue
(5:14)  2. They Can't Take that Away from Me
(7:18)  3. You Don't Know what Love Is
(3:21)  4. All or Nothing at All
(5:16)  5. Glad to Be Unhappy
(2:48)  6. I'll Be Around
(2:22)  7. Yesterdays
(4:16)  8. Where Are You?
(0:20)  9. Darn that Dream
(2:08) 10. But not for Me

Tiziana Ghiglioni began his musical training in the seventies, attending the seminars of the pianist and composer Giorgio Gaslini and studying vocal technique with the soprano Gabriella Ravazzi. Among the first professional experience is the theater tour with the Shakespeare / Ellington show with the same Giorgio Gaslini and Giorgio Albertazzi .In the early eighties he began his career as a jazz singer and bandleader immediately obtaining the attention of audiences and critics thanks to the reviews of the journalist and jazz historian Arrigo Polillo who commented very positively both his first public performances is his first album ( "Lonely Woman" of 1981 ) engraved with certain emerging young among them Piero Leveratto and Luigi Bonafede .The reception of the first disc is such that in the second etching ( "Sounds of Love" of 1983 ) the singer is joined by internationally renowned musicians like Kenny Drew on piano and Niels-Henning Ørsted Pedersen on bass. In subsequent years Ghiglioni affirms its leading role in the Italian jazz working with some of the most famous national jazz musicians (including Luca Flores , Enrico Pieranunzi , Paolo Fresu , Franco D'Andrea , Gianluigi Trovesi and Enrico Rava ) and international ( including Chet Baker , Steve Lacy , Mal Waldron , Paul Bley and Lee Konitz ).

Despite being very appreciated for its executions of the traditional jazz repertoire, Ghiglioni shows a particular predilection for the free jazz and for contamination. She herself said that her passion for jazz was born after listening saxophonist Archie Shepp , one of the protagonists of the movement free. No coincidence that in his first incision is deeply involved with a piece by Ornette Coleman "Lonely Woman", which also became the title of the album. This interest in the avant-garde is witnessed, among others, from the album "SONB" of 1992 , which earned her second place in the ranking of the best albums of the magazine Musica Jazz and the nickname "First Lady" of Italian jazz (for by the then director of Pino Candini magazine). Among the most recent experiments you can cite the disc "Rotella Variations", signed together with the violinist Emanuele Parrini : an ambitious attempt to carry into music by the contemporary suggestions Mimmo Rotella .

In 2009 she was President of the Artistic Committee of the 3rd edition of the Italian Jazz Awards - Luca Flores. He currently resides between Genoa and Milan. He is professor of jazz singing teacher at the conservatory of Rovigo. On 23 and 24 June 2012 was the guest of honor at the end of essay academy year cultural musician "La Fenice" in Gioia del Colle. He sang with the children of the school who have also received from her a certificate of "Master Class". Translate by Google  https://it.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tiziana_Ghiglioni

Personnel: Vocals – Tiziana Ghiglioni; Piano – Mal Waldron; Trumpet – Enrico Rava

I'll be Around

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Mal Waldron - Crowd Scene

Styles: Piano Jazz
Year: 1989
File: MP3@256K/s
Time: 52:17
Size: 96,0 MB
Art: Front

(26:50)  1. Crowd Scene
(25:26)  2. Yin and Yang

For this quintet session, Mal Waldron contributed two somewhat episodic originals (titled "Crowd Scene" and "Yin and Yang") that are used as the basis for extended improvisations by altoist Sonny Fortune, tenor-saxophonist Ricky Ford, bassist Reggie Workman, drummer Eddie Moore and the pianist/leader. Despite the obvious talents of these very individual players, there are some rambling moments on these lengthy performances, both of which clock in at over 25 minutes. Still, it is often fascinating to hear what the musicians come up with during these go-for-broke improvisations. ~ Scott Yanow http://www.allmusic.com/album/crowd-scene-mw0000092859

Personnel: Mal Waldron (piano); Sonny Fortune (alto saxophone); Ricky Ford (tenor saxophone); Eddie Moore (drums).

Crowd Scene

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Jackie McLean - The New Tradition

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 39:58
Size: 91.5 MB
Styles: Bop, Saxophone jazz
Year: 1955/2009
Art: Front

[6:45] 1. It's You Or No One
[6:55] 2. Blue Doll
[6:23] 3. Little Melonae
[6:25] 4. The Way You Look Tonight
[6:53] 5. Mood Malody
[6:35] 6. Lover Man

Jackie McLean hasn't had too many kind things to say about the recordings he made prior to signing with Blue Note in 1959. The alto saxophonist is quick to dismiss his pre-1959 work, which he feels pales in comparison to his stunning Blue Note output of 1959-1967. But while it is true that McLean recorded his most adventurous and essential albums for Blue Note, the saxman's pre-Blue Note recordings aren't without merit. Recorded in 1955, The New Tradition is a Spanish reissue that contains his first recordings as a leader. Joined by trumpeter Donald Byrd, pianist Mal Waldron, bassist Doug Watkins, and drummer Ronald Tucker, a 24-year-old McLean leads a conventional bop date that ranges from two originals ("Blue Doll" and "Little Melonae") to performances of the standards "It's You or No One," "The Way You Look Tonight," and "Lover Man." In 1955, there was plenty of Charlie Parker in McLean's tone -- nonetheless, he was striving for originality, and the saxman was growing increasingly distinctive. If McLean told you that this session fell short of the brilliance of 1960s Blue Note classics like Demon's Dance, One Step Beyond, Let Freedom Ring, and Right Now!, he would be speaking the truth. In 1955, McLean still had some growing and developing to do -- just as John Coltrane still had some growing and developing to do when he was in Dizzy Gillespie's employ in the early '50s. But that doesn't mean that this CD is bad. Although far from essential, The New Tradition is a decent bop outing that will appeal to collectors, historians, and hardcore fans. ~Alex Henderson

The New Tradition

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Gene Ammons - Water Jug

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 79:10
Size: 181.2 MB
Styles: Bop, Saxophone jazz
Year: 2013
Art: Front

[2:36] 1. Water Jug
[4:17] 2. But Not For Me
[3:54] 3. Time On My Hands
[5:25] 4. Confirmation
[4:16] 5. My Romance
[3:44] 6. Love Is Here To Stay
[5:14] 7. Ol' Man River
[8:47] 8. Blues Up And Down
[6:30] 9. There Is No Greater Love
[6:42] 10. Mad House
[8:50] 11. Scamperin'
[8:58] 12. Hip Tip
[4:38] 13. A Pair Of Red Pants
[5:13] 14. My Foolish Heart

Ammons is paired up with a rhythm section featuring Mal Waldron on piano, bassist Wendell Marshall and Ed Thigpen on drums. These are relatively straightforward ballads which concentrate on melody. The tunes serve as effective parts to the album, coming after the celebratory mood of “Water Jug,” and features a creative cadenza by Ammons.

Water Jug

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