Charles McPherson - Live at the Cellar

Styles: Saxophone Jazz
Year: 2003
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 72:34
Size: 166,5 MB
Art: Front

(10:16)  1. Spring Is Here
(13:25)  2. Illusions In Blue
(10:44)  3. Blue & Boogie
(14:59)  4. How Deep Is The Ocean
(11:55)  5. Manhattan Nocturne
(11:13)  6. Star Eyes

Live at the Cellar is a sizzling collection of extended improvisations featuring a Vancouver-made quartet: Charles McPherson (alto sax), Ross Taggart (piano), Jodi Proznick (bass) and Blaine Wikjord (drums). McPherson and band fashion their work for the literati. McPherson opens hard with Rodgers and Hart's "Spring Is Here." The native of Joplin, Miss. singes the ears with intense improvisation for five minutes, then hands it over for very compelling interplay between Taggart and Proznick before the tune eventually dissipates on the resonance of McPherson's horn. The alto saxophonist's playing is demanding on drummers; fortunately veteran Vancouver player Wikjord lays down enough complexity to make an entire record of drum parts. As the interplay spreads, Taggart pops chord placements into areas where the drums are otherwise rolling, leaving a resulting work of sounds in perpetual transit. Apparently, Dizzy Gillespie's "Blue & Boogie" left a medical legacy. Unconfirmed sources claim that band members plunged their heads into ice buckets post-set, as Proznick's hands were reported to have become an autonomous, collective blister and Taggart's piano needed its own treatment afterwards. Wikjord's sticks, meanwhile, perished in the blaze. Typically, McPherson was fine (something like, "Yeah, right on!"). Live at the Cellar tries to be as light in the back half as it tried to be heavy in the first half. In this context, it is hard to pull one's head out of the fire to feel the cool of Irving Berlin's "How Deep is the Ocean." "Manhattan Nocturne" continues to bring the collective pot to a low boil with some great rhythm work. The leader returns to the fore for "Star Eyes," and there is where we are brought full-circle. Can any audience navigate the musical expectations that such a complete reversal demands? Bop fans can't escape the intensity of McPherson's work. Jazz fans should just try to smoke it. That's what the band did. Live at the Cellar lights it up! ~ AAJ Staff https://www.allaboutjazz.com/live-at-the-cellar-charles-mcpherson-cellar-records-review-by-aaj-staff.php

Personnel: Charles McPherson - alto sax; Ross Taggart - piano; Jodi Proznick - bass; Blaine Wikjord - drums.

Live at the Cellar

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Karin Plato - There's Beauty In The Rain

Styles: Vocal Jazz
Year: 1998
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 54:52
Size: 126,0 MB
Art: Front

(3:21)  1. This Can't Be Love
(4:42)  2. If I Were A Bell
(4:58)  3. Hum Drum Blues
(5:05)  4. Innocent Again
(2:59)  5. Mountain Greenery
(6:28)  6. Beauty In The Rain
(3:52)  7. Joy Spring
(4:12)  8. You Don't Know What Love Is
(5:59)  9. Lazy Afternoon
(4:34) 10. You Give Me The Blues
(5:24) 11. Hooray For Love
(3:11) 12. Dog For A Day

Karin Plato is a talented jazz vocalist whose delivery is straightforward and swinging. Rather than being an adventurous improviser or a scat singer, Plato's variations are subtle, soulful and expressive while paying close attention to the words that she improvises. She hits the notes that she aims for and is able to essay wide interval jumps with apparent ease; plus, her haunting voice is appealing. The singer was wise to surround herself with a particularly strong group of jazz players for her debut. Pianist Ross Taggart (who has many short solos), bassist Torben Oxbol and drummer Craig Scott give her a solid and swinging foundation. Campbell Ryga, who is heard on alto and soprano, is often a co-star, taking many inventive spots that fit in well with Plato's voice. Tenor saxophonist Bill Abbott guests on "Beauty in the Rain," one of four originals contributed by the singer. Other highlights include a happy reworking of "If I Were a Bell," Oscar Brown, Jr.'s "Hum Drum Blues," a heated "Mountain Greenery," Clifford Brown's "Joy Spring" (which is not easy to sing) and a slower than usual treatment of "Hooray for Love." This CD is well worth exploring, and Plato clearly has a great future ahead of her.~ Scott Yanow http://www.allmusic.com/album/theres-beauty-in-the-rain-mw0000941299

Personnel: Karin Plato (vocals); Campbell Ryga (soprano saxophone, alto saxophone); Bill Abbott (tenor saxophone); Ross Taggart (piano); Craig Scott (drums).

There's Beauty In The Rain

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Cory Weeds Quintet - Everything's Coming Up Weeds

Styles: Saxophone Jazz
Year: 2009
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 52:04
Size: 120,0 MB
Art: Front

(6:33)  1. B.B.'s Blue Blues
(7:19)  2. Biru Kirusai
(5:42)  3. Ella's Walk
(5:22)  4. Little Unknown One
(5:59)  5. I've Never Been in Love Before
(5:48)  6. Bailin' on Lou
(4:44)  7. 323 Shuter
(5:14)  8. Cyclaman
(5:20)  9. The Pour

Everything's Coming Up Weeds, the 50th release from the Cellar Live stable, is a stellar recording featuring an extraordinary quintet. At first blush, it recalls the energy and fervor of wonderful Benny Golson bands and, if the memory can be stretched a wee bit further, also some memorable sessions of Jazztet or even a Jazz Messengers middle passage. The date is led by the big tenor sound of Cory Weeds saxophonist, broadcaster, jazz impresario extraordinaire and owner of Canada's leading West Coast nightspot, The Cellar Restaurant and Jazz Club. There is also excellent work from pianist Ross Taggart, trumpeter Jim Rotundi, bassist John Webber and drummer Willie Jones III.  There are several remarkable aspects to this record. First, the writing of the originals is of the very highest order. The music is wonderfully crafted with an extraordinary ear for tonal colors and rhythmic textures, whether it is a blues such as Taggart's "BB's Blue Blues," which appears to be an oblique tribute to Thelonious Monk, or an exotic narrative from Rotundi, "Biru Kirusai," which is almost a title in Bunga Emas (the language of Malaysia) and conjures up images of the sights and smells of exquisite Southeast Asia. The highlight, of course, is Weed's writing, which is mature and exquisitely crafted, with a fine sense of the sonority and sliding elegance of the tenor saxophone. On his "Little Known One," Weeds paints sonic images of Dexter Gordon. And like Gordon, Weeds is able to bend his fat sound to practically cry at the most tender moments of the song.

On Frank Loesser's "I've Never Been in Love Before," Cory Weeds establishes his mastery over the ballad, digging deep into his horn an extracting a genuine, glowing warmth that few tenor saxophonists today have been able to summon, even in balladry. Weeds also exhibits remarkable command of the bebop rhythm with his "Bailin' On You" and "323 Shuter." His chart, "The Pour," sounds like a classic tune from a Jazz Messengers songbook. But make no mistake, this is all Cory Weeds. This is, in fact, the second remarkable aspect of this record. It is bursting with ideas and superb expression. Few small ensembles playing today complement each other with sensitivity to each other's sound. It is like an Duke Ellington band, where each of the players, like alchemists, forge tones that meld into one another. The interplay is almost seamless, with Taggart's "Cyclaman" and Weeds' "The Pour" bringing that molten sound of the quintet to sublime fruition. This is also a wonderfully tongue-in-cheek title: Everything's Coming Up Weeds. If anything, there is jazz in full bloom here, end-to-end. ~ Raul D’Gama Rose https://www.allaboutjazz.com/everythings-coming-up-weeds-cory-weeds-cellar-live-review-by-raul-dgama-rose.php

Personnel: Cory Weeds: tenor saxophone; Jim Rotundi: trumpet; Ross Taggart: piano; John Webber: acoustic bass; Willie Jones III: drums.

Everything's Coming Up Weeds

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Joani Taylor With Ross Taggart & Friends - A State Of Grace

Bitrate: 320K/s

Time: 61:30

Size: 140.8 MB

Styles: Vocal jazz

Year: 2002

Art: Front

[5:34] 1. All My Tomorrows

[5:49] 2. The Very Thought Of You

[5:29] 3. Imagine My Frustration

[4:40] 4. A State Of Grace

[5:19] 5. For All We Know

[4:37] 6. Seeing For The Very First Time

[3:23] 7. You Look Good

[5:32] 8. Answer My Questions

[5:35] 9. I Ain't Got Nothing But The Blues

[4:14] 10. You're Blase

[6:11] 11. Detour Ahead

[5:03] 12. You Must Believe In Spring

Joani is Canada's “First Lady of the Jazz Ballad”. She has legendary status in Canadian music circles and has sung on thousands of film scores, commercials and recordings…..working with a variety of luminaries from Bryan Adams and Stevie Wonder to James Galway, David Foster, Cannonball Adderley, and Miles Davis. Joani has flown worldwide to bewitch audiences in concerts and festivals. She has won nominations and awards for her work in both Canada and the U.S. She has had a hit single and recorded five albums, not including the compilations she has been featured on. Joani is releasing her explosive sixth product featuring her own profound and prolific writing, as well as her brilliant vocal performances.

A State Of Grace

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