Mark O'Connor - On The Rampage

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 48:05
Size: 110.1 MB
Styles: Progressive bluegrass
Year: 1980/2016
Art: Front

[5:53] 1. Opus 1 Come Ride With Me
[4:55] 2. Opus 2 Mark's Ark
[4:18] 3. Opus 3 Midnight Interlude
[3:04] 4. Opus 4 On The Rampage
[5:07] 5. Opus 8 Ease With The Breeze
[5:42] 6. Opus 10 Rampology
[4:15] 7. Opus 7 The Dark Rain
[4:02] 8. Opus 5 Soft Gyrations
[3:45] 9. Opus 9 Tubular Explosions
[7:00] 10. Opus 6 Disco Fiddle Rampsody

Mark O'Connor was all of 17 years of age when he made On the Rampage in 1979 for Rounder, yet he was already a seasoned player attracting a lot of attention in the world of bluegrass. Overdubbing himself on violins and guitars, O'Connor shares no fewer that ten originals, which not only show a surprising maturity but demonstrate that he's a major player in stretching the supposed boundaries of bluegrass. Mark is unaccompanied for the haunting "Midnight Interlude," which consists solely of his multiply overdubbed instruments. It doesn't hurt to have veterans like mandolinist Sam Bush on hand, while both David Grisman and Tony Rice are added for the mellow "Ease With the Breeze." ~Ken Dryden

On The Rampage mc
On The Rampage zippy

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Mark O'Connor - The New Nashville Cats

Styles: Violin Jazz
Year: 1991
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 64:34
Size: 151,0 MB
Art: Front

(2:42)  1. Bowtie
(5:26)  2. Restless
(6:13)  3. Nashville Shuffle Boogie
(5:04)  4. Pick It Apart
(3:38)  5. Traveller's Ridge
(3:58)  6. Granny White Special
(2:46)  7. Cat In The Bag
(2:42)  8. The Ballad Of Sally Anne
(4:55)  9. Swang
(3:05) 10. Dance Of The Ol' Swamp Rat
(4:09) 11. A Bowl Of Bula
(2:21) 12. Limerock
(5:14) 13. Sweet Suzanne
(5:44) 14. Orange Blossom Special
(6:31) 15. Now It Belongs To You

With an incredible lineup of Nashville's very best musicians, this package covers a wide range of musical territory, from bluegrass to the blues, with plenty of stellar pickin'. Ironically, this mostly instrumental album won a vocal Grammy when Vince Gill, Ricky Skaggs, and Steve Wariner teamed with Mark O'Connor on "Restless."~ Tom Roland https://www.allmusic.com/album/the-new-nashville-cats-mw0000263977

The New Nashville Cats

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Mark O' Connor Hot Swing Trio - In Full Swing

Styles: Dixieland/New Orleans/Swing
Year: 2002
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 57:16
Size: 133,3 MB
Art: Front

(3:55)  1. In Full Swing
(5:13)  2. Honeysuckle Rose (with Wyton Marsalis & Jane Monheit)
(5:20)  3. Tiger Rag  (with Wyton Marsalis)
(6:56)  4. Misty  (with Jane Monheit)
(5:49)  5. Stephane And Django
(3:46)  6. Fascinating Rhythm  (with Jane Monheit)
(6:08)  7. 3 For All
(5:55)  8. As Time Goes By (with Wyton Marsalis & Jane Monheit)
(7:22)  9. Limehouse Blues
(6:47) 10. One Beautiful Evening

Mark O'Connor is hotter than hot these days. The onetime country fiddler's best-selling, Grammy winning classical albums have made him that rarest of things: a crossover artist whose genre-hopping is less about marketing than serious creative expression and boundless musical ambition. In Full Swing, O'Connor's new tribute to fellow violin virtuoso Stephane Grappelli - the man he calls his mentor - is something of a time-out in O'Connor's assault on the classical world. Regardless, it's an entirely engaging tour de force. O'Connor is one of those musicians whose skill, artistry and sheer talent - plus his obvious joy in music-making - make you sit back and smile. His affinity for Grappelli is tangible as he and his "swing trio" (with guitarist Frank Vignola and bassist Jon Burr), along with guests Wynton Marsalis and Jane Monheit, tear through a set of Swing-era standards and in-the-tradition originals. 

O'Connor and Marsalis make an interesting pairing, both for their wide-ranging musical knowledge and their ties to the classical realm, as well as their palpable (and, in Marsalis's case, often exasperating) ambition. Marsalis appears to relish his sideman role here, turning in some of his most relaxed playing in years and giving O'Connor a run for his money on the high-speed "Tiger Rag" and "Honeysuckle Rose". The unfortunately over-hyped Monheit - really more of a cabaret performer than jazz singer - is a bit out of her depth in this company, especially on the up-tempo numbers; she's more effective on a smoky rendering of the Casablanca chestnut, "As Time Goes By". Guitarist Vignola, on the other hand, more than holds his own in the potentially daunting role of playing Django to O'Connor's Grappelli. ~ Joel Roberts   http://www.allaboutjazz.com/in-full-swing-sony-legacy-music-review-by-joel-roberts.php#.U2krRShvCPM

Personnel: Mark O'Connor (violin); Jane Monheit (vocals); Frank Vignola (guitar); Wynton Marsalis (trumpet); Jon Burr (bass).

In Full Swing

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Mark O'Connor's Hot Swing Trio - Live In New York

Bitrate: 320K/s
Time: 60:04
Size: 137.6 MB
Styles: Swing, Violin jazz
Year: 2005
Art: Front

[ 5:31] 1. Fascinating Rhythm
[ 5:11] 2. Cherokee
[11:17] 3. Anniversary
[ 8:05] 4. Ain't Misbehavin'
[ 5:12] 5. M & W Rag
[ 6:32] 6. Funky Swing
[ 4:25] 7. Fiddler Going Home
[ 5:24] 8. Gypsy Fantastic
[ 3:07] 9. Don't Get Around Much Anymore
[ 5:15] 10. Tiger Rag

A product of America's rich aural folk tradition as well as classical music, Mark O'Connor's creative journey began at the feet of a pair of musical giants. The first was the folk fiddler and innovator who created the modern era of American fiddling, Benny Thomasson; the second, French jazz violinist, considered one of the greatest improvisers in the history of the violin, Stephane Grappelli. Along the way, between these marvelous musical extremes, Mark O'Connor absorbed knowledge and influence from the multitude of musical styles and genres he studied. Now, at age 49, he has melded and shaped these influences into a new American Classical music, and a vision of an entirely American school of string playing. As The Los Angeles Times recently noted, he has "crossed over so many boundaries, that his style is purely personal."

Violinist/composer/fiddler Mark O'Connor is widely recognized as one of the most gifted contemporary composers in America and surely one of the brightest talents of his generation. Mark brings us his latest Hot Swing Live In NY on Omac Records

Live In New York

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