Natalie Cole - Still Unforgettable

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 55:13
Size: 126.4 MB
Styles: Contemporary jazz vocals
Year: 2008
Art: Front

[2:55] 1. Walkin' My Baby Back Home [duet With Nat King Cole]
[3:09] 2. Come Rain Or Come Shine
[2:26] 3. Coffee Time
[4:40] 4. Somewhere Along The Way
[5:22] 5. You Go To My Head
[3:29] 6. Nice 'n' Easy
[4:00] 7. Why Don't You Do Right
[6:01] 8. Here's That Rainy Day
[3:51] 9. But Beautiful
[5:49] 10. Lollipops And Roses
[4:02] 11. The Best Is Yet To Come
[2:48] 12. Something's Gotta Give
[3:07] 13. Until The Real Thing Comes Along
[3:26] 14. It's All Right With Me

Natalie Cole's liner notes for Still Unforgettable make it sound like the Great American Songbook had been collecting dust on her shelf since 1991, when she recorded Unforgettable, the album that shot her into the mainstream. (She had been releasing Top Ten R&B albums since 1975, but Unforgettable was something else, a cultural phenomenon that inspired a Saturday Night Live skit.) Still Unforgettable features another duet with father, "Walkin' My Baby Back Home," but its make-up isn't that much different from albums like Take a Look (1993), Stardust (1996), or Ask a Woman Who Knows (2002). While she has been reinterpreting classics on and off for nearly two decades now, she can't be faulted for phoning it in; in fact, she seems to be having more fun with the songbook than before. If you're keeping score at home, Nat King Cole was 32 when he recorded "Walkin' My Baby Back Home"; Natalie was in her late 50s when she recorded the duet with her father's vocals which would, for the sake of the song here, make her old enough to be her father's mother. By Andy Kellman

Still Unforgettable

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Tony Bennett - Playin' With My Friends: Bennett Sings The Blues

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s

Time: 57:05

Size: 130.7 MB

Styles: Vocal

Year: 2001

Art: Front

[3:28] 1. Alright, Okay, You Win (With Diana Krall)

[3:35] 2. Everyday (I Have The Blues) (With Stevie Wonder)

[2:41] 3. Don't Cry Baby

[4:53] 4. Good Morning Heartache (With Sheryl Crow)

[3:14] 5. Let The Good Times Roll (With B.B. King)

[4:12] 6. Evenin' (With Ray Charles)

[3:52] 7. I Gotta Right To Sing The Blues (With Bonnie Raitt)

[3:49] 8. Keep The Faith, Baby (With K.D. Lang)

[3:23] 9. Old Count Basie Is Gone (Old Piney Brown Is Gone)

[3:19] 10. Blue And Sentimental (With Kay Starr)

[4:29] 11. New York State Of Mind (With Billy Joel)

[3:15] 12. Undecided Blues

[3:32] 13. Blues In The Night

[4:32] 14. Stormy Weather (With Natalie Cole)

[4:45] 15. Playin' With My Friends (With Others)

Tony Bennett's latter-day albums tend to have themes, and this one has two, as indicated by its double-barreled title: It is both a duets album and a blues album. The duet partners include ten singers who range from his recent touring partners Diana Krall and k.d. lang to fellow veterans Ray Charles, B.B. King, and Kay Starr, and younger, but still mature pop stars Stevie Wonder, Bonnie Raitt, and Billy Joel. All sound happy to be sharing a mic with Bennett. Not surprisingly, the singer's conception of the blues does not extend to the Mississippi Delta or the South Side of Chicago; rather, he is interested in the blues as filtered through the sound of the Swing Era, particularly from around Kansas City, and as interpreted by Tin Pan Alley and show tunes. For the former, his true mentor is Count Basie, whose overt influence is heard on six of the 15 tracks. Bennett makes no attempt to hide this, leading off the album with two songs, "Alright, Okay, You Win" (a duet with Krall) and "Everyday (I Have the Blues)" (a duet with Wonder), closely associated with Basie singer Joe Williams. The Broadway and Hollywood blues style is introduced in three selections written by Harold Arlen. On about half the tracks, the Ralph Sharon Quartet is augmented by Harry Allen's saxophone and Mike Melvoin's Hammond organ, but this remains a small, intimate affair that emphasizes the singers. There are missteps -- Sheryl Crow's Billie Holiday impersonation on "Good Morning, Heartache" is unfortunate, and Natalie Cole, as usual, sounds out of her depth on "Stormy Weather." But the trade-offs Bennett enjoys with King and Charles are priceless, and the Joel duet is surprisingly effective. On the whole, this is yet another entry in Bennett's lengthening series of autumnal recorded triumphs. ~William Ruhlmann

Playin' with My Friends"

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Natalie Cole - I Love You So

Styles: Vocal, R&B
Year: 1979
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 39:15
Size: 91,4 MB
Art: Front

(5:05)  1. I Love You So
(3:50)  2. You're So Good
(4:56)  3. It's Been You
(4:46)  4. Your Lonely Heart
(3:46)  5. The Winner
(4:05)  6. Oh, Daddy
(4:47)  7. Sorry
(4:18)  8. Stand By
(3:38)  9. Who Will Carry On

If, in 1979, anyone still had illusions about Natalie Cole being a hardcore soul purist, they were shattered by I Love You So. Although this is primarily an R&B effort, Cole laces her R&B with a big dose of pop. And that isn't necessarily a bad thing, because most of the material is solid and enjoyable. Those who like Cole as gritty, funky soul shouter should appreciate "You're So Good," but she also gets into everything from sleek disco ("I Love You So") and a Fleetwood Mac cover ("Oh, Daddy") to a commercial R&B/adult contemporary blend ("Who Will Carry On"). Meanwhile, "Your Lonely Heart" (a Cole original that also appeared on her We're the Best of Friends album with Peabo Bryson) is the sort of pop-country ballad that wouldn't be out of place at a Dolly Parton or Reba McEntire session. I Love You So isn't among Cole's essential releases, but it's a satisfying effort that underscores her ability to successfully tackle a variety of musical styles. ~ Alex Henderson  http://www.allmusic.com/album/i-love-you-so-mw0000091145

Personnel: Natalie Cole (vocals); Chuck Bynum (electric guitar, background vocals); Richard Fortune, Norman Zeller, Phil Upchurch, Johnny McGhee (electric guitar); Robert O'Bryant, Oscar Brashear (trumpet); George Bohannon, Maurice Spears (trombone); Mark Davis , Linda Williams, Sonny Burke , Marvin Yancy (keyboards); Bobby Eaton, Jeff Eyrich, Keni Burke (electric bass); Alvin Taylor (drums); Sissy Peoples, Anita Anderson (background vocals).
 

R.I.P.
Born: February 6, 1950/ Died: December 31, 2015

I Love You So

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Ray Charles - Genius Loves Company (10th Anniversary Edition)

Styles: Vocal, R&B, Soul
Year: 2014
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 61:01
Size: 141,0 MB
Art: Front

(3:59)  1. Ray Charles & Norah Jones - Here We Go Again
(3:47)  2. Ray Charles & James Taylor - Sweet Potato Pie
(3:56)  3. Ray Charles & Diana Krall - You Don't Know Me
(4:00)  4. Ray Charles & Elton John - Sorry Seems To Be The Hardest Word
(3:32)  5. Ray Charles & Natalie Cole - Fever
(4:35)  6. Ray Charles & Bonnie Raitt - Do I Ever Cross Your Mind?
(5:01)  7. Ray Charles & Willie Nelson - It Was A Very Good Year
(5:16)  8. Ray Charles & Michael McDonald - Hey Girl
(4:26)  9. Ray Charles & B.B. King - Sinner's Prayer
(4:33) 10. Ray Charles & Gladys Knight - Heaven Help Us All
(4:55) 11. Ray Charles & Johnny Mathis - Over The Rainbow
(3:44) 12. Ray Charles & Van Morrison - Crazy Love (Live)
(5:04) 13. Ray Charles & Poncho Sanchez - Mary Ann
(4:06) 14. Take 6 - Unchain My Heart

"The way these days just rip along, too fast to last, too vast, too strong..." ~ Jackson Browne

The final recording of Ray Charles, Genius Loves Company, enjoys its tenth anniversary. It is striking to consider that it has been over ten years since the death of Ray Charles, one of the most imposing figures in American music. The music made in the second half of the twentieth century has had a remarkable staying power owing partially to its revolutionary quality and the near frantic dedication of the Post-World War II Baby Boom generation. Charles' contributions to this music are without measure. It is useful to consider the role, or roles, played by Charles in American music. He deftly fused the blues with gospel music forming that offshoot of rhythm and blues: soul music. He then took this new eutectoid and mashed it up with jazz, creating an earthy humus. Once he had done this, he took on country and western music, infusing that mostly-white genre with the same soul music he previously created, resulting in the groundbreaking Modern Sounds in Country & Western Music (ABC, 1962). Charles' reach was long and deep. 

Genius Loves Company is Charles' valedictory. It was recorded between June 2003 and March 2004, with Charles passing away from liver disease on June 10, 2004. While Charles' health was certainly questionable during recording, there is no indication of diminished capacity. His singing is robust and vibrant, overt and assertive. Charles had to have his eye on the end but he was never going to let on. If anything can be said of Charles' singing voice, it is that he "became more himself" as he aged. If Johnny Cash's late voice and appearance were those of an Old Testament prophet, then Ray Charles in autumn was a dying Mozart composing his sunny Clarinet Concerto less in defiance than acceptance.

Duet recordings, pitting old masters with contemporary musicians, are nothing new. Tony Bennett has made a cottage industry of them (and not to any bad effect at that). Time was of the essence for Charles and what better a love letter to his mastery than for him to share the stage with so many like-minded musicians who admired him so. It was because of this programming, the chosen artists and some shrewd marketing that Genius Loves Company was Charles' first top ten recording in 40 years. One of the biggest criticisms of the Charles biopic Ray was that the story ended 40 years early. My argument would be, "what was there left for Ray Charles to do?" This is an album of artists' collaborative praise for a fellow artist. Programming for the original recording was superb as was duet partner and song choice. Norah Jones, a closet country queen masquerading as a jazz artist, is a perfect foil to Charles on "Here We Go Again." Broad country block chords and Jones' creamy voice properly accent Charles' sacred sandpaper tone. 

Charles is most simpatico with his near contemporaries. "Fever" with Natalie Cole and "Heaven Help Us All" with Gladys Knight are love fests. Charles digs deep with BB King (and Lucille) on "Sinner's Prayer" and Bonnie Raitt on "Do I Ever Cross Your Mind." Raitt's signature slide guitar, ever influenced by Lowell George, is captured beautifully sonically. Ray Charles possessed a stylistic depth and breadth with few peers. When considering who could step in and accept the mantle from Charles after his death, I posited two names, both gratefully represented here. Willie Nelson has had as varied a career as Charles, sampling and then mastering every genre attempted. The two duet on a song closely associated with another such kindred spirit, Frank Sinatra. "It was a Very Good Year" is an unexpected luxury of artistic irony and grace). Van Morrison shares and ultimately offers his "Crazy Love" as a gift to Charles, the two crossing traditions with all we have in common.  The present Deluxe Edition sports a piquant "Mary Ann" with percussionist Poncho Sanchez and an awesome "Unchain My Heart" with Take 6. An hour-long DVD detailing the making of Genius Loves Company is a bit of gravy for this Fall class. Happy Birthday, Genius Loves Company... it has been a very good year. ~ C.Michael Bailey  http://www.allaboutjazz.com/ray-charles-genius-love-company--10th-anniversary-deluxe-edition-by-c-michael-bailey.php
 

Personnel: Ray Charles: vocals, keyboards; Ray Charles-vocals, piano; Norah Jones, James Taylor, Diana Krall, Elton John, Natalie Cole, Bonnie Raitt, Willie Nelson, Michael McDonald, Gladys Knight, Johnny Mathis, Van Morrison-vocal; B.B. King, guitar, vocal; Billy Preston-organ; Poncho Sanchez: percussion; Take 6; 63-piece orchestra; others.

Genius Loves Company (10th Anniversary Edition)

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Van Morrison - Duets: Reworking The Catalogue

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 76:43
Size: 175.6 MB
Styles: R&B, Rock, Blues, Soul vocals
Year: 2015
Art: Front

[5:15] 1. Some Peace Of Mind (With Bobby Womack)
[3:50] 2. If I Ever Needed Someone (With Mavis Staples)
[3:49] 3. Higher Than The World (With George Benson)
[6:23] 4. Wild Honey (With Joss Stone)
[3:43] 5. Whatever Happened To P.J. Proby (With P.J. Proby)
[4:54] 6. Carrying A Torch (With Clare Teal)
[4:12] 7. The Eternal Kansas City (With Gregory Porter)
[4:58] 8. Streets Of Arklow (With Mick Hucknall)
[3:52] 9. These Are The Days (With Natalie Cole)
[4:42] 10. Get On With The Show (With Georgie Fame)
[4:24] 11. Rough God Goes Riding (With Shana Morrison)
[6:42] 12. Fire In The Belly (With Stevie Winwood)
[4:00] 13. Born To Sing (With Chris Farlowe)
[5:15] 14. Irish Heartbeat (With Mark Knopfler)
[4:02] 15. Real Real Gone (With Michael Buble)
[6:34] 16. How Can A Poor Boy (With Taj Mahal)

On DUETS: RE-WORKING THE CATALOGUE, Van Morrison and the guests selected and recorded some of his songs from the catalog of 360 songs across his career. Deliberately steering away from his more well-known classics, Van enlisted some of the artists he most respects to perform these songs with him to re-craft and re-imagine them. The album was recorded in his home town of Belfast and London in the United Kingdom over the last year, using a variety of musicians and fresh arrangements.

Produced by Van Morrison along with Don Was and Bob Rock, the album features duet performances with Bobby Womack, Steve Winwood, Mark Knopfler, Taj Mahal, Mavis Staples, Michael Bublé, Natalie Cole, George Benson, Gregory Porter, Clare Teal, P.J. Proby, Joss Stone, Georgie Fame, Mick Hucknall, Chris Farlowe, and Van's daughter Shana Morrison.

Van Morrison is considered one of the most prolific recording artists and extraordinary live performers of our time. He has received a multitude of awards and accolades including 6 Grammy Awards, a Brit Award, an OBE, an Ivor Novello, and has been inducted in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. His visionary songwriting and mastery of many genres continues to shine on albums celebrating and re-exploring his blues, jazz, skiffle and country roots. With one of the most revered catalogues in music history, his talents as a composer, singer and performer are unmatched.

Duets: Reworking The Catalogue

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Natalie Cole - Holly And Ivy

Bitrate: 320K/s
Time: 46:44
Size: 107.0 MB
Styles: Holiday
Year: 1994
Art: Front

[3:34] 1. Jingle Bells
[3:07] 2. Caroling, Caroling
[4:22] 3. The First Noel
[4:20] 4. No More Blue Christmas'
[6:07] 5. Christmas Medley Jingle Bell Rock Winter..
[3:22] 6. Merry Christmas, Baby
[2:48] 7. Joy To The World
[3:03] 8. The Little Boy That Santa Claus Forgot
[3:24] 9. A Song For Christmas
[4:59] 10. Silent Night
[3:37] 11. The Christmas Song
[3:57] 12. The Holly And The Ivy

As she did with Unforgettable, Natalie Cole again follows her in father's footsteps with a Christmas recording. Although this does not have the same 'classic' quality of her dad's The Christmas Album, it is a fine outing. Performing with either a big band or small group, Ms. Cole performs a combination holiday classics along with some lesser known tunes such as "The Little Boy That Santa Claus Forgot" and "No More Blue Christmas." ~ Robert Taylor

Recorded at Oceanway Studios and Record Plant, Hollywood, California; O'Henry Studios, Burbank, California; Bill Schnee Studio, North Hollywood, California.

Natalie Cole (vocals, piano); John Chiodini, Paul Jackson, Jr., Phil Upchurch (guitar); Terry Trotter (piano, celesta); Charles Floyd, Alan Broadbent, Cedar Walton (piano); Patrice Rushen (celesta, Fender Rhodes piano); Michael Baird , Jeff Hamilton , Harold Jones (drums); Larry Bunker, Brent Fischer (percussion). Background vocals: Hilary Bonine, Josh Breslow, Rachel Brook, Blake Ewing, Jessica Frank, Megan Joyce, Gary Klarer, Janine Kamwene-Colquhoun, Alma Lira, Majorie Mejia, Arielle Ramos, Niki Rosenfield, Zan Tansey, Alberto Vasquez, Jason Yun, Julie Delgado, Tony Warren, Sandy Simmons, Catte Adams, Dorian Holley, Jacke Ward-Smith, Sally Stevens, Terry Stilnell-Haraton, Mary Mylan, Angie Jaree, Donna Davidson, Don Shelton, Gary Jones, David Joyce, Gene Morford, Bob Joyce, Kevin Dorsey, Katrina Perkins.

Holly And Ivy

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Andrea Bocelli - My Christmas

Bitrate: 320K/s
Time: 57:23
Size: 131.4 MB
Styles: Holiday
Year: 2009
Art: Front

[3:58] 1. White Christmas
[3:52] 2. Angels We Have Heard On High
[3:31] 3. Santa Claus Is Coming To Town
[4:32] 4. The Christmas Song
[4:24] 5. The Lord's Prayer
[4:31] 6. What Child Is This
[3:32] 7. Adeste Fideles
[4:16] 8. O Tannenbaum
[3:32] 9. Jingle Bells
[4:40] 10. Silent Night
[4:17] 11. Blue Christmas
[4:34] 12. Cantique De Noel
[0:00] 13. Caro Gesù Bambino
[4:23] 14. I Believe
[3:15] 15. God Bless Us Everyone

Andrea Bocelli's 2009 My Christmas album finds the Italian tenor performing various classic holiday-themed songs that touch on classical, opera, and pop. Included are such well-known holiday songs as "Santa Claus Is Coming to Town," "O Tannenbaum," and "Silent Night." The versatile Bocelli also delves into such iconic Christmas hits as "Blue Christmas" and "The Christmas Song" (featuring a duet with Natalie Cole). Of course, the opera and classic songs are Bocelli's bread and butter, and here listeners get such lavishly produced cuts as "Adeste Fidelis," "Cantique del Noel," and "Caro Gesu Bambino." My Christmas is not only a warm and inviting holiday album, but also a superb classical crossover entry worthy of Bocelli's discography. ~ Matt Collar

Recording information: Chartmaker Studios in Los Angeles; Abbey Road Studio; Chartmaker Studios in Los Angeles.

Arrangers: William Ross ; David Foster.

My Christmas

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Nat King Cole - The Christmas Song

Bitrate: 320K/s

Time: 42:10

Size: 96.6 MB

Styles: Holiday

Year: 2009

Art: Front

[0:15] 1. Nat's Christmas Wishes

[3:10] 2. The Christmas Song

[1:07] 3. Deck The Halls

[2:17] 4. O Come All Ye Faithful

[1:25] 5. God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen

[3:00] 6. O Tannenbaum

[2:18] 7. O Little Town Of Bethlehem

[1:26] 8. I Saw Three Ships

[2:57] 9. O Holy Night

[1:49] 10. Hark! The Herald Angels Sing

[3:26] 11. A Cradle In Bethlehem

[1:58] 12. Away In A Manger

[1:23] 13. Joy To The World

[1:56] 14. The First Noel

[2:01] 15. Caroling, Caroling

[2:07] 16. Silent Night

[1:33] 17. Buon Natale

[2:30] 18. All I Want For Christmas (Is My Two Front Teeth)

[1:42] 19. The Happiest Christmas Tree

[3:41] 20. The Christmas Song (With Natalie Cole)

First issued in the early 1960s, this collection of musical Christmas cheer is packed full of the smoothly sung, sentimental favorites associated as much with Nat "King" Cole himself as with the season. The singer's performance of "The Christmas Song" is an unforgettable classic reprised here twice, once in an updated version that includes a contemporary vocal from his daughter, Natalie, and also in Cole's original 1946 recording. Other traditional religious favorites like "I Saw Three Ships" and "Away in a Manger" are also featured, in a setting that, with its well-arranged orchestral accompaniment, manages to sound both sophisticated and folksy.

Digitally remastered by Bob Norberg (Capitol Mastering). Additional Tracks Reissue producer: Brad Benedict. Personnel includes: Nat "King" Cole (vocals, piano); Natalie Cole (vocals); Ralph Carmichael (conductor).

The Christmas Song

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