Johnny Hodges - The Complete Verve Small Sessions 1956-1961 (6-Disc Set)

Johnny Hodges was Duke Ellington's most important soloist, so when the alto saxophonist returned to his former employer in the fall of 1955 after leading his own band for just over four and a half years, he had Ellington's approval to record under his own name for Verve on a steady basis. This limited-edition box set collects all of Hodges' small-group sessions recorded for Verve between 1956 and 1961 (excepting some selections whose masters were lost), often with a number of sidemen on loan from Ellington. The leader's chops are best exhibited in the ballads and blues features, though his originals merit attention, too. Hodges hardly hogs the spotlight; he obviously takes his share of solos but generously features his guests and associates from the Ellington band. A nonet with Clark Terry, Ray Nance, Quentin Jackson, Jimmy Hamilton, Harry Carney, Billy Strayhorn, Jimmy Woode, and Sam Woodyard is easily the best all-around session within this compilation, with many fine tracks. The humorous "Just Squeeze Me," with Nance's hip vocals complemented by Terry's talkative horn in the background, as well as a surprising extended workout of "Take the 'A' Train," with Terry taking over the famous solo spotlight that Nance first recorded in 1941 (heard on flügelhorn) and followed by Nance on his swinging violin, are among its highlights. Some of the other veterans appearing in this collection include Roy Eldridge, Vic Dickenson, Ben Webster, and Herb Ellis. The atmosphere of each session is friendly and swinging, with the feeling that each take came together quickly, whether or not that was actually the case. While Johnny Hodges' recordings as a leader from this period never rivaled Duke Ellington's in either sales or critical acclaim, they proved to be consistently enjoyable and able to stand the test of time. The set includes 30 previously unissued tracks. ~Ken Dryden

Album: The Complete Verve Small Sessions 1956-1961 (Disc 1)
Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 76:23
Size: 174.9 MB
Styles: Saxophone jazz
Year: 2011

[ 3:07] 1. Hi 'ya
[ 7:13] 2. Snibor
[ 3:27] 3. I'm Gonna Sit Right Down (And Write Myself A Letter)
[11:44] 4. Texas Blues
[ 3:29] 5. A-Oddie-Oobie
[ 7:13] 6. Meet Mr. Rabbit
[ 2:52] 7. Duke's In Bed
[ 3:05] 8. Just Squeeze Me (But Don't Tease Me)
[ 3:19] 9. Ballade For Very Tired And Very Sad Lotus Eaters
[ 3:15] 10. Confab With Rab
[ 3:04] 11. It Had To Be You
[ 6:18] 12. Black And Tan Fantasy
[ 8:02] 13. Take The A Train
[ 2:26] 14. Viscount
[ 3:23] 15. Bouquet Of Roses
[ 4:17] 16. Digits

The Complete Verve Small Sessions 1956-1961 (Disc 1)

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Album: The Complete Verve Small Sessions 1956-1961 (Disc 2)
Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 75:12
Size: 172.2 MB
Styles: Saxophone jazz
Year: 2011

[3:35] 1. Early Morning Rock
[3:23] 2. Blues-A-Plenty
[3:35] 3. Cool Your Motor
[3:17] 4. Gone With The Wind
[4:02] 5. Honey Hill
[3:31] 6. I Didn't Know About You
[5:00] 7. Satin Doll
[9:34] 8. Reeling And Rocking
[3:38] 9. Don't Take Your Love From Me
[5:58] 10. Saturday Afternoon Blues
[5:51] 11. Just A Memory
[6:47] 12. Let's Fall In Love
[5:35] 13. Big Shoe
[2:31] 14. Ruint
[2:58] 15. Bend One
[5:50] 16. You Need To Rock

The Complete Verve Small Sessions 1956-1961 (Disc 2)

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Album: The Complete Verve Small Sessions 1956-1961 (Disc 3)
Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 78:19
Size: 179.3 MB
Styles: Saxophone jazz
Year: 2011

[5:56] 1. M.H.R
[2:41] 2. Broadway Babe
[2:19] 3. Three And Six
[7:50] 4. Not So Dukish
[3:22] 5. Central Park Swing
[8:21] 6. Preacher Blues
[3:34] 7. Jeep Bounced Back
[2:52] 8. The Last Time I Saw Paris
[3:58] 9. First Klass (C'mon Home)
[2:40] 10. Second Klass
[3:13] 11. Straight Back
[7:51] 12. Steerage
[3:30] 13. Third Klass
[3:03] 14. Meet The Frog
[5:28] 15. Nite Life
[2:56] 16. My Melancholy Baby
[2:43] 17. Lotus Blossom
[5:53] 18. Free For All

The Complete Verve Small Sessions 1956-1961 (Disc 3)

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Album: The Complete Verve Small Sessions 1956-1961 (Disc 4)
Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 67:13
Size: 153.9 MB
Styles: Saxophone jazz
Year: 2011

[4:10] 1. Br' Rabbit
[3:55] 2. Starting With You (I'm Through)
[6:20] 3. The Hare
[3:47] 4. The Things You Miss
[3:27] 5. I Told You So
[4:29] 6. Wiggle Awhile
[7:08] 7. Get Ready
[7:17] 8. The Peaches Are Better Down The Road
[5:30] 9. Hygiene
[5:04] 10. Ben's Webb
[5:46] 11. Side Door (Don't Kid Yourself)
[4:17] 12. Blues'll Blow Your Fuse
[2:43] 13. I Can't Believe That You're In Love With Me
[3:14] 14. Dual Highway

The Complete Verve Small Sessions 1956-1961 (Disc 4)

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Album: The Complete Verve Small Sessions 1956-1961 (Disc 5)
Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 75:58
Size: 173.9 MB
Styles: Saxophone jazz
Year: 2011

[4:47] 1. Big Ears
[3:43] 2. Shorty Gull
[4:33] 3. Ifida
[4:48] 4. Big Smack
[5:13] 5. I'll Be There
[5:45] 6. Just Another Day
[2:48] 7. Lollalagin Now
[4:21] 8. Medley Am I Blue Something To Remember You By
[3:41] 9. Once In A While
[2:23] 10. Do Nothin' Till You Hear From Me
[7:10] 11. Medley More Than You Know Memories Of You
[3:00] 12. The Very Thought Of You
[3:39] 13. When Your Lover Has Gone
[2:53] 14. A Blues Serenade
[4:04] 15. Night And Day
[4:40] 16. Lover, Come Back To Me
[5:22] 17. I Gotta Right To Sing The Blues
[2:59] 18. Two Sleepy People

The Complete Verve Small Sessions 1956-1961 (Disc 5)

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Album: The Complete Verve Small Sessions 1956-1961 (Disc 6)
Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 49:25
Size: 113.1 MB
Styles: Saxophone jazz
Year: 2011
Art: Front

[2:49] 1. Exactly Like You
[3:57] 2. I'm Beginning To See The Light
[4:06] 3. Val's Lament
[5:26] 4. Tipsy Joe
[3:21] 5. Waiting On The Champagne
[3:21] 6. Sweet Cookie
[4:10] 7. Frog Hop
[3:34] 8. Zag Zig
[5:20] 9. Dag Knows
[5:18] 10. Twice Daily
[3:04] 11. John Smith
[2:17] 12. Romeo
[2:35] 13. Black Sapphire

The Complete Verve Small Sessions 1956-1961 (Disc 6)

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Marc Hemmeler - Walking In L.A.

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 40:10
Size: 92.0 MB
Styles: Cool jazz, Piano jazz
Year: 1980/2006
Art: Front

[4:13] 1. Yapad De Papa
[6:41] 2. My Romance
[2:19] 3. Gravy Waltz
[5:36] 4. In Your Own Sweet Way
[5:27] 5. Walking In L.A
[6:30] 6. Do You Know What It Means
[4:16] 7. Spring Can Hang You Up
[5:05] 8. I'm An Old Cowhand

Bass – Ray Brown; Drums – Shelly Manne; Piano, Producer – Marc Hemmeler.

Marc Hemmeler is a French jazz pianist, born 1938 in Lyon.. Trio together with Ray Brown and Shelly Maine.

Walking In L.A.

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Gary Smith - Love Is Blue

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 49:02
Size: 112.3 MB
Styles: Guitar jazz
Year: 2013
Art: Front

[4:45] 1. Am I Blue
[2:23] 2. What'll I Do
[8:04] 3. Love Is Blue
[4:36] 4. Some Other Time
[4:03] 5. Nice And Easy
[5:00] 6. Why Did I Choose You
[5:55] 7. Reaching Out For You
[4:42] 8. In The Wee Small Hours Of The Morning
[4:02] 9. Our Love Is Here To Stay
[5:26] 10. Candy

Love Is Blue

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Laurence Hobgood Trio - Crazy World

Size: 155,5 MB
Time: 66:55
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Released: 2005
Styles: Jazz
Art: Front

01. Revival ( 5:11)
02. Prayer For The Enemy ( 8:07)
03. When In Rome ( 4:21)
04. March To Epiphany ( 7:02)
05. Trinity ( 6:32)
06. More Than You Know (Feat. Kurt Elling) ( 6:04)
07. The Dreaded Symphony ( 4:20)
08. Crazy World ( 5:58)
09. Endless Stars (Feat. Kurt Elling) ( 4:58)
10. Windowman (14:18)

Laurence Hobgood, Steinway D piano
Rob Amster, bass
Frank Parker, drums
Kurt Elling, vocals

The Laurence Hobgood Trio have perfected their craft through playing with US jazz vocalist Kurt Elling, who appears on two tracks on Crazy World, the trio's debut album.

Laurence is no stranger to The Naim Label, having recorded several highly acclaimed albums for us. His beautifully light touch is a joy to listen to; fingers which dance over the keys proving to be the perfect third element for bass and drums. Laurence's pianism with its shimmering arpeggios, advanced harmonies and pervasively singing tone is vaguely reminiscent of Keith Jarrett or Bill Evans.

Frank Parker's elegant drumming together with Rob Amster's fluid bass playing combine to produce jazz that is relaxed and distinguished, imprinted with an Olympic calm.

The ten tracks on the album are a mixture of Laurence's original compositions and his own arrangements, with one track by Rob Amster.

Six times Grammy nominee Kurt Elling makes a guest appearance to provide delicate vocal inspiration on two tracks recorded exclusively for this album.

Crazy World is another addition to the label's True Stereo catalogue. It was recorded by Ken Christianson direct to two track Nagra tape machine.

This Crazy World

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Leah Kline - This Precious Life

Size: 103,8 MB
Time: 42:07
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Released: 2015
Styles: Jazz: Cool Jazz, Vocals
Art: Front

01. Climb (4:43)
02. Believe (5:27)
03. Getaway (3:08)
04. Love Unconditional (5:16)
05. New Technology Blues (3:33)
06. Summer Dream (5:32)
07. The Wolf (4:37)
08. Wildish (4:45)
09. Words (5:03)

After 7 years of singing on other people's albums, Léah Kline emerges with her 2nd album of originals. ( First being "Juzz Flirtin")
Here we feel a much quieter version of Kline, confident, lower tones. She draws the listener in and creates a very intimate, listenable album of lyrics, stories and music. The result is a New Cool Jazz feel on a bed of grooves that tastes of soul, blues and jazz from the 70's music scene.

Cord Heineking (bass) has arranged and composed most of the songs on the album. The basic rhythm section is bass, drums, keyboard, rhodes or piano. Percussion, guitar and vocal harmonies are used to color in. The multi-layering in each track lends itself well to high quality headphones listening. Breaking with the jazz tradition of instrumental solos, this album keeps itself tastefully painting a soundscape around the lyrics, using space and quietness to deliver the mood.
"This Precious Life" appears to be an ode to the fragility , beauty and humor of our modern life.

This Precious Life

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John Hines - You & I

Size: 115,4 MB
Time: 49:40
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Released: 2015
Styles: Jazz: Contemporary Jazz, Vocals
Art: Front

01. Cabo Morning (Feat. Tom Capek) (3:31)
02. Serenade To A Cuckoo (Feat. Michael Pagan) (6:50)
03. My Funny Valentine (Feat. Donna Devine & Tom Capek) (3:49)
04. Decoupage (Feat. Michael Pagan) (5:15)
05. Mercy, Mercy, Mercy (Feat. Donna Devine & Tom Capek) (4:51)
06. Better Get Hit In Your Soul (Feat. Brad Goode & Michael Pagan) (5:42)
07. Someone To Watch Over Me (Feat. Donna Devine, Brad Goode & Michael Pagan) (5:45)
08. Somewhere Over The Rainbow (Feat. Donna Devine & Michael Pagan) (4:44)
09. Jus' Sayin' (4:06)
10. You & I (Feat. Donna Devine & Tom Capek) (5:03)

John Hines & Donna DeVine are modern jazz musicians with an unusual combination of melodic jazz trombone and uniquely contemporary jazz vocals. The breadth of their work represents a liberation from the stereotypical jazz norm: while they are comfortably bringing jazz classic standards to a new generation, they are also embracing quality music of more recent years, including arrangements of some of the most contemporary hits.

While rooted in a foundation of jazz trombone and female jazz vocals, they play with internationally known trumpet, piano/organ/synthesizer, bass, and percussion artists to create melodic jazz that spans swing, bebop, blues, latin, gospel, second-line, rock, and pop styles. The result is accessible, eclectic, and immensely entertaining.
The best example of their recent work is available on a landmark CD release, ‘You & I.’ A collection of 10 songs, two of which are never-before-recorded originals, will move and inspire you.

Personnel: Andy LaVerne (piano), Gary Versace (Hammond B3 organ), Anthony Pinciotti (drums)

You & I

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Andy Laverne - I Want To Hold Your Hand

Size: 141,0 MB
Time: 61:11
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Released: 2015
Styles: Jazz: Hammond Organ
Art: Front

01. Upside ( 8:33)
02. In Lieu Of Flowers ( 8:38)
03. I Want To Hold Your Hand (14:33)
04. Note Worthy ( 9:15)
05. So Long Ago (11:39)
06. Watermelon Man ( 8:30)

Andy LaVerne's unique ensemble of piano/organ/drums wraps up the two-night engagement at New York's prominent jazz lounge at the Kitano Hotel with this last volume of intriguing original compositions by LaVerne and a handful of appealing standard titles.

"In hindsight, it's surprising that the piano and organ format has been so rarely utilized in jazz because it makes so much sense. The B3 is able to provide a bass line and a unique textural counterpoint that can complement as well as step forward...it's Andy's superb originals that supply the fodder for this most rewarding collection." - Andrew Hovan, All About Jazz on 'Intelligent Design' (SCCD31618)

Personnel: Andy LaVerne (piano), Gary Versace (Hammond B3 organ), Anthony Pinciotti (drums)

I Want To Hold Your Hand

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Aysha - Take Me Higher

Size: 100,7 MB
Time: 43:22
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Released: 2015
Styles: Jazz: Smooth Jazz, Soul Jazz, Vocals
Art: Front

01. Up So High (4:06)
02. Take Me Higher (4:16)
03. Send For Me (5:53)
04. You're The Only One (3:07)
05. Sailing (4:08)
06. Undeniable (3:37)
07. The Right Thing (4:01)
08. All I Want (3:37)
09. Release Me (5:27)
10. Let's Get It On (5:06)

Nominated in 2009 and 2010 for Jazz Artist of the Year and winner of Jazz Album of the Year for the 2010 Los Angeles Music Awards with her EP Stay With Me, Aysha has a solid history as a performer. For the past eight years she has been building a strong solo career. In 2006, Aysha independently released her debut CD “Love Is A Rock” and after much anticipation, released her sophomore CD “Stay With Me. Now Aysha is now ready to release her third CD “Take Me Higher” under the Innervision Records label.

Aysha independently released her first single “Release Me”, off her new CD Take Me Higher. With an all-star line-up of top personnel aboard the production of the single that represents a Who’s Who of the music industry, music legends raved over the single and it received a stellar write up and review rating it a 10 out of 10 and posted on the examiner.com website. The single was co-written by Aysha, and celebrated music producer Monty Seward, best known for his work with celebrity artists, Vanessa Williams and Howard Hewett. Release Me reached #7 in the UK Top 30 Soul Charts. While performing in Dubai for the 2013 Dubai Jazz Festival, Aysha met Grammy nominated Producer and Saxophonist Darren Rahn most known for his several #1 hits he produced for the late Wayman Tisdale and his Grammy nominated song for Dave Koz. Aysha and Darren teamed up to write “Take Me Higher”, the title track to her new cd and just released it as the first radio single through Innervision Records. The single is currently at #16 and moving up the charts!

Along with being a recording artist, last September Aysha started her own radio show “Smooth Saturdays with Aysha” on UrbanSoulRadio.fm featuring some of the top Contemporary Jazz artists and smooth R&B artists with weekly in-studio and live performances by the guest artist. Aysha also formed the super group “The Soul Seduction Tour” featuring guitarist JJ Sansaverino, saxophonist Will Donato, bassist Darryl Williams, drummer Tony Moore and keyboardist/vocalist Monty Seward. The tour was a huge success and played at the prestigious Newport Beach Jazz Festival for 2014 along with other performances along the west coast. Some of Aysha’s past performance dates included singing the opening song for the Amazing Grace Gospel Fest at the Nokia Theatre LA Live for a house of 7000 people, Spaghettini’s in Seal Beach, CA, The Soiled Dove in Denver, CO and the Brown Theatre in the Wortham Center in Houston, TX.

Aysha has shared the stage with some of the industry’s top musicians such as Najee, Blake Aaron, Marion Meadows, Paul Brown, Darren Rahn and Everette Harp to name a few. Aysha also opened up for Greg Adams (Tower of Power) and his East Bay Soul band at 94.7 The WAVE’s Thursday Night VIBE series in Hollywood, CA. In June 2012, Aysha shared the stage with R&B sensation, Monica and Floyd at the Wortham Center’s Brown Theatre in Houston, TX and with Gerald Albright and Norman Brown in San Diego at Humphreys by the Bay for Jazz It Up 2012, a benefit for homeless women and children.

Crossing genres from R&B, Pop, Smooth Jazz and Adult Contemporary, Aysha’s velvety voice is sultry and smooth with a jazzy edge. Having influences ranging from the likes of Sade, Toni Braxton, Phyllis Hyman & Chante Moore, one can only imagine the vibe. Aysha’s musicis destined to be heard, and it will surely soothe your soul.

Take Me Higher

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Sarah Elgeti Quintet - Synchronize

Size: 129,8 MB
Time: 55:53
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Released: 2015
Styles: Jazz
Label: Gateway Music
Art: Front

01. Sah Ein Knab Ein Röslein Steh'n (4:52)
02. Scarborough Fair (4:09)
03. City Lights (3:27)
04. April Snow (3:42)
05. Da Det Var Sommer (4:27)
06. It's Getting Late (Again) (3:27)
07. Lovesong (6:03)
08. Cinderella 2012 (5:32)
09. Lights Shining Through (3:31)
10. Retrospacious (5:11)
11. Frozen Clarity (5:32)
12. Almost Happy (5:55)

Personnel:
Sarah Elgeti : Sopran-og tenorsaxofon samt tværfløjte
Marianne Markmann-Eriksen : Alt-og barytonsaxofon
Morten Schantz / Søren Bebe : Keys
Kristor Brødsgaard /Joel Illerhag : Bas
Henrik Holst / Andreas Fryland : Trommer

Sarah Elgeti, Danish saxophonist, flutist, composer and bandleader.

Her expressive, impressionistic music conjures up vivid images of beautiful scenery showcasing a variety of music styles from big band swing to bop to Avant-garde and modern funk.

Sarah Elgeti, who has led her own quintet since 2007, plays saxophone, flute, and clarinet. She tries to use the instrument she feels fit to paint her picture, she said. I talked with Sarah, a Holbaek Jazz Award winner, in 2008.

Synchronize

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Kayla Taylor Jazz - Someone To Watch Over Me

Styles: Vocal Jazz
Year: 2007
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 58:40
Size: 134,8 MB
Art: Front

(6:32)  1. Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered
(5:17)  2. East of the Sun
(3:58)  3. Day In, Day Out
(6:05)  4. Someone To Watch Over Me
(4:00)  5. S'Wonderful
(6:16)  6. My Funny Valentine
(3:46)  7. (I Want Some) Sugar in My Bowl
(4:05)  8. Sway
(4:29)  9. Walkin' After Midnight
(3:37) 10. Over the Rainbow
(5:29) 11. Do It Again
(5:02) 12. Caravan

Kayla Taylor Jazz . . . . . . . based in Atlanta, Georgia and performing Jazz & Standards from the 30's, 40's & 50's is the focus of KTJ, who primarily works as a quintet. Vocalist, Kayla Taylor is joined on "Someone to Watch Over Me" by long-time music partner & guitarist, Steve Moore; drummer, Mike Zimmerman; upright Bassist Patrick Cowan; tenor saxophonist  EJ Hughes; and tenor & bariotone saxophonist Will Scruggs.

Taylor & Moore made their way through the 90's in rock bands "A Fine Line" (also with Zimmerman) and "OneWithout" and in an acoustic duo affectionately known as "The Adventures of Kayla & Steve". The team formed a jazz & standards combo 5 years ago and developed a very loyal following at a favorite haunt - "Pacific & Vine". A live album ("A Night at Pacific & Vine")was recorded in the middle of dinner rush on Saturday, November 6, 2004 and is also available for purchase on CDBaby.com.

"We recorded this album at Wolff Bros. Post Studio in Atlanta, GA on January 13 & 14. We loved doing the live album prior to this - but it was so nice to be in the studio. Vocals were recorded live in a sound booth while the musicians were playing in the main room. This gave the tracks a really nice live feel, but we still had control over the environment since we were in a closed studio," says Kayla. Produced by Steve Moore & Kayla Taylor and recorded & engineered by Burt Wolff of Wolff Bros. Post, Atlanta, Georgia - the album was released on Taylor & Moore's label - SMartyKaT Records in July of 2007. http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/kaylataylorjazz2

Someone To Watch Over Me

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Maurita Murphy Marx & Michele Ramo - Te Amo Brazil

Styles: Latin, Clarinet Jazz
Year: 2014
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 58:19
Size: 134,8 MB
Art: Front

(3:06)  1. Assanhado
(3:38)  2. Bola Preta
(3:02)  3. Um Bandolim Na Escola
(2:43)  4. Um Chorinho Pra Você
(4:24)  5. Gloria
(5:02)  6. December Flower
(1:45)  7. Gaucho
(3:42)  8. Lua Branca
(2:29)  9. Santa Morena
(2:41) 10. Ginga Do Mané
(4:11) 11. Eponina
(4:06) 12. Escovado
(2:41) 13. Um Chorinho Em Aldeia
(6:15) 14. Carinhoso
(2:52) 15. Cochichando
(1:13) 16. Te Amo
(4:20) 17. Vou Vivendo

One of the leading clarinetists in the world, Maurita Murphy Marx’s performances include invitations from the internationally renowned Cleveland Quartet, the International Clarinet Association, ClarFest, Inc., and the National Symposium of Brazil.  A diverse performer, her Brazilian “choro” music CDs have received high critical acclaim internationally (Eurocass), “with command of the idiom, accomplished clarinet playing, verve, warmth and intensity.” Her “choro” mentors in Brazil include Nailor Proveta, Rafael Dos Santos, and Paulo Sergio Santos.  Hailed as a “master teacher”, she has been the recipient of the Collegiate Teaching Award and the invited speaker for the University of Iowa commencement exercises. In turn, her students have won first prizes exclusively in international clarinet competitions sponsored by the International Clarinet Association and ClarFest. Dr. Marx is a graduate of the Eastman School of Music with the Performer’s Certificate and Michigan State University. She has been on the music faculty at the University of Iowa since 1983.

For the past eighteen years, Dr. Marx has been specializing passionately in Brazilian “choro” music. She has been invited to perform and lecture all over the world on the “choro”, along with International Clarinet Association conferences.  Her research covers topics such as human rights, global studies, regulating emotions, arts in society, tangible heritages, diversity, social history, and politics. She is a frequent guest performer at universities throughout the United States performing Brazilian recitals.  Most recently, she has performed with guitarists Michele Ramo (University of Michigan), Bob Sneider (Eastman School of Music), Juan Tony Guzman (Luther College), Silviu Ciulei (Florida State University), and Welson Tremura (University of Florida), to name a few. It is her desire to educate and promote her passion for Brazilian music to institutions of higher education, the public and the clarinet profession.   Dr. Marx has three Brazilian “choro” CDs titled Over the Fence, Red Hot & Brazilian (with Rafael dos Santos, piano), and Te Amo Brazil (with Michele Ramo, eight-string guitar). http://music.uiowa.edu/people/maurita-murphy-marx

Te Amo Brazil

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Donna Deussen - High Wire

Styles: Vocal Jazz
Year: 2003
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 44:36
Size: 102,9 MB
Art: Front

(3:16)  1. One Note Samba
(3:40)  2. High Wire
(3:39)  3. Skylark
(4:22)  4. Blues In The Night
(3:11)  5. Old Devil Moon
(4:35)  6. River
(3:43)  7. Never Will I Marry
(4:08)  8. Sugar
(3:12)  9. Blue Skies
(3:45) 10. Show Me
(4:08) 11. Nature Boy
(2:52) 12. With Every Breath I Take

More telling than her Berklee College of Music magna cum laude degree is singer Donna Deussen's private instruction under Tierney Sutton. Sutton is second only to Cassandra Wilson when considering the seismic styleistic shifts in jazz vocals over the past 20 years. Deussen integrates her instruction intelligently, avoiding imitation. Her lessons learned are made her own. Duessen has released two recordings, about ten years apart. Side-by-side, They offer a staccato look at the singer's evolution. In a highly competitive field, Donna Duessen is deserving of much more attention than she has been given. Her time has come.

Vocalist Donna Deussen reveals the influence of Tierney Sutton through her inventive arrangements of the American Songbook. Creative arranging can give new life and reconsideration to jazz standards. Deussen joins Sutton and Wilson in the forefront of using arrangements to reveal the nuances of these well-crafted songs. On her debut, High Wire, Deussen surveys a mainstream collection of standards. "Skylark" is given a strolling treament that shows the song effective as an up-beat ballad. Deussen blows the carbon out on her wide-open take of "Blues In The Night." Guest saxophonist Eric Marienthal gives a bar-walking R&B solo that gives way to a slow blues vamp before Deussen heats things up again singing torch at 2000 degrees. 

"That Old Devil Moon" is transformed into a Latin excursion propelled by pianist Mark Massey , who solos robustly. Deussen treats Joni Mitchell's "River" respectfully, allowing this modern standard to fully breathe. Deussen's voice is durable and well-balanced. Her phrasing is certain and well considered. Deussen imparts in her songs that part of herself that enriches the lyrics by her delivery. "I Will Never Marry" is upbeat and sung with a matter- of-fact air that stikes a keen juxtaposition against Stanley Turrentine's sexy and smoldering "Sugar." Massey changes to electric piano for this latter tune, giving it a strange '70s -'00s vibe that swingseffortlessly. High Wire is fully formed and realized as a debut. What does Deussen do next... ~ C.Michael Bailey  http://www.allaboutjazz.com/donna-deussen-donna-deussen-by-c-michael-bailey__14455.php

Personnel: Donna Deussen (vocals); Mark Massey (keyboards); Aldo Bentivegna (drums).

High Wire

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Palmyra & Levita, Joao Donato - Here's That Rainy Bossa Day

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 43:37
Size: 99.9 MB
Styles: Bossa Nova, Brazilian jazz
Year: 2013
Art: Front

[3:27] 1. Tea For Two
[2:46] 2. Fotografia
[2:32] 3. Here's That Rainy Day
[2:44] 4. Vivo Sonhando (Dreamer)
[4:06] 5. September In The Rain
[3:04] 6. Inútil Paisagem (Useless Landscape)
[3:39] 7. Stormy Weather
[2:29] 8. Você (You)
[2:31] 9. What A Diff'rence A Day Made
[2:35] 10. Corcovado (Quiet Nights)
[2:12] 11. O Sapo (The Frog)
[3:31] 12. Bahia
[3:30] 13. A Namorada (Girlfriend)
[4:24] 14. Rapunzel

Light and lovely work from the team of Palmyra & Levita -- made even better by piano from Joao Donato! Palmyra's a sweet-voiced female vocalist with a style that stretches back to include influences from American torch singers of years past, and some of the warmer voices of the 60s bossa era in Brazil. Levita plays acoustic guitar with a light and jazzy touch -- and works here with some spare but wonderfully effective piano from bossa maestro Joao Donato -- to create a cool and gentle backdrop for the sweet lead vocals in the set. ~dustygroove.com

Here's That Rainy Bossa Day

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Virginia Constantine & The Little Big Band - The Bumpy Road To Love

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 54:37
Size: 125.0 MB
Styles: Vocal jazz
Year: 2007
Art: Front

[5:26] 1. When Sunny Gets Blue
[4:04] 2. All The Things You Are
[3:07] 3. An Occasional Man
[5:00] 4. You Don't Know What Love Is
[3:25] 5. Strange Divine
[4:41] 6. Nature Boy
[3:29] 7. I Won't Dance
[2:36] 8. They Can't Take That Away From Me
[4:49] 9. The Very Thought Of You
[3:46] 10. I Remember You
[2:47] 11. Everytime We Say Goodbye
[2:01] 12. Almost Like Being In Love
[3:46] 13. I'm Beginning To See The Light
[5:34] 14. Sophisticated Lady

Virginia Constantine comes from a line of famous French artists. Back in the 50s and 60s, her dad shared the bill with Louis Armstrong and Josephine Baker at the famous Olympia theatre in Paris; he was a great Jazz pianist and song-writer. Mum sang at the Sands Hotel in New-York where she met many of her heroes: Nat king Cole, Orson Wells, Marilyn Monroe...Which led to her being offered a contract with MGM, which she turned down! So she headed back to France and some years later :-), Virginia was born... While performing the Paris jazz club circuit, she met up with a very talented British pianist/composer, Brendan Walsh and the two of them decided to move to the UK, never leave each other :-) and make music together; that's how the album "The Bumpy Road to Love" came to be...
It's a labour of love and fun, as the people playing on it are all UK top musicians and dedicated their precious time to the project.The drummer and percussionist is no other than Virginia's brother who traveled from Paris to lend his fiery swing to the band... One could say the overall sound is slightly different from the smooth & polished approach that usually comes with standard Jazz recordings.While the smoothness can be found in Virginia's vocals, Jim Mullen's magical guitar licks or Gary Barnacle's warm & powerful saxophone lines,a lot went on in the post- production room, which allowed the "little big band" to experiment with added sounds and effects to try and give each song its own unique character; sometimes a bit wild and crazy, sometimes classical and emotional.... So come and enjoy the ride on this” Bumpy road to Love”……

The Bumpy Road To Love

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Grant Green - Standards

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 56:45
Size: 129.9 MB
Styles: Hard bop, Jazz-Soul, Guitar jazz
Year: 1998
Art: Front

[4:55] 1. You Stepped Out Of A Dream
[6:31] 2. Love Walked In
[7:06] 3. If I Had You
[9:05] 4. I'll Remember April
[8:11] 5. You And The Night And The Music
[8:12] 6. All The Things You Are
[5:32] 7. I Remember You
[7:09] 8. If I Had You (Alt Take)

In 1998, Blue Note released several CDs of previously unavailable (at least domestically) material from its prime years under the title of Standards. Some are not up to the level of the label's best output, but this outing is a definite exception. Guitarist Grant Green is heard in prime form in a sparse trio with bassist Wilbur Ware and drummer Al Harewood. Six of the eight performances were previously available in Japan as an LP but never before in the U.S. Because Green rarely ever played chords, sticking to single-note lines, hearing him in this setting is similar to hearing a tenor in a pianoless trio. Highlights include "Love Walked In," "I'll Remember April," "All the Things You Are," and two versions of "If I Had You." Recommended. ~Scott Yanow

Standards

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Gloria Reuben - Just For You

Styles: Vocal
Year: 2007
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 37:14
Size: 85,8 MB
Art: Front

(4:05)  1. Who
(4:31)  2. This Dream Is Real
(3:41)  3. Walk Away
(5:23)  4. Difficult Kind
(3:52)  5. Heart Strings
(3:52)  6. I Can't Make You Love Me
(3:55)  7. Sweet Thing
(3:57)  8. Angel Eyes
(3:54)  9. Just for You

Gloria Reuben is an actress, singer and social activist who has amassed impressive credentials in television, film, theater and music. Many will remember Gloria as the HIV+ health care professional “Jeanie Boulet”on the hit NBC series ER, a role that garnered her two Emmy nominations and a Golden Globe nomination.   Since then, she has had multiple regular starring roles in a variety of other television series, including RAISING THE BAR and FALLING SKIES. Most recently Gloria starred in the Lifetime movie HAPPY FACE KILLER opposite David Arquette, portrayed “Elizabeth Keckley”alongside Daniel Day-Lewis & Sally Field in the Steven Spielberg film LINCOLN, appeared alongside Paul Rudd and Tina Fey in Paul Weitz’s ADMISSION, and starred opposite Samuel L. 

Jackson in REASONABLE DOUBT. Gloria’s portrayal of Condoleezza Rice in David Hare’s play STUFF HAPPENS at the Public Theater garnered her a Lucille Lortel Award for Best Actress. Her music career includes being a backup singer for Tina Turner in 2000, which led her to record her solo record Just For You. She is currently performing with her jazz quartet and is scheduled to record a new album in the fall of 2014.  Gloria is also an activist, committing her time to the global climate change crisis through her participation with The Climate Reality Project, and to human rights issues with the RFK Center for Justice and Human Rights. ~ Bio  http://officialgloriareuben.com/about/

Just For You

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BB King, Pat Metheny, Dave Brubeck - Move to the Groove

Styles: Jazz/Blues
Year: 1983
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 46:05
Size: 105,9 MB
Art: Front

(0:48)  1. Introduction
(7:19)  2. Move to the groove
(7:28)  3. Lover man
(7:07)  4. Blue rondo a la turk
(6:24)  5. Ol' Bill Basie
(4:59)  6. The thrill is gone
(5:47)  7. Guess who
(6:09)  8. Payin' the cost to be the boss

Universally hailed as the reigning king of the blues, the legendary B.B. King is without a doubt the single most important electric guitarist of the last half century. His bent notes and staccato picking style have influenced legions of contemporary bluesmen, while his gritty and confident voice capable of wringing every nuance from any lyric provides a worthy match for his passionate playing. Between 1951 and 1985, King notched an impressive 74 entries on Billboard's R&B charts, and he was one of the few full-fledged blues artists to score a major pop hit when his 1970 smash "The Thrill Is Gone" crossed over to mainstream success (engendering memorable appearances on The Ed Sullivan Show and American Bandstand). Since that time, he has partnered with such musicians as Eric Clapton and U2 while managing his own acclaimed solo career, all the while maintaining his immediately recognizable style on the electric guitar. The seeds of Riley B. King's enduring talent were sown deep in the blues-rich Mississippi Delta, where he was born in 1925 near the town of Itta Bena. He was shuttled between his mother's home and his grandmother's residence as a child, his father having left the family when King was very young. The youth put in long days working as a sharecropper and devoutly sang the Lord's praises at church before moving to Indianola another town located in the heart of the Delta in 1943.

Country and gospel music left an indelible impression on King's musical mindset as he matured, along with the styles of blues greats (T-Bone Walker and Lonnie Johnson) and jazz geniuses (Charlie Christian and Django Reinhardt). In 1946, he set off for Memphis to look up his cousin, a rough-edged country blues guitarist named Bukka White. For ten invaluable months, White taught his eager young relative the finer points of playing blues guitar. After returning briefly to Indianola and the sharecropper's eternal struggle with his wife Martha, King returned to Memphis in late 1948. This time, he stuck around for a while. King was soon broadcasting his music live via Memphis radio station WDIA, a frequency that had only recently switched to a pioneering all-black format. Local club owners preferred that their attractions also held down radio gigs so they could plug their nightly appearances on the air. When WDIA DJ Maurice "Hot Rod" Hulbert exited his air shift, King took over his record-spinning duties. At first tagged "The Peptikon Boy" (an alcohol-loaded elixir that rivaled Hadacol) when WDIA put him on the air, King's on-air handle became "The Beale Street Blues Boy," later shortened to Blues Boy and then a far snappier B.B.

King had a four-star breakthrough year in 1949. He cut his first four tracks for Jim Bulleit's Bullet Records (including a number entitled "Miss Martha King" after his wife), then signed a contract with the Bihari Brothers' Los Angeles-based RPM Records. King cut a plethora of sides in Memphis over the next couple of years for RPM, many of them produced by a relative newcomer named Sam Phillips (whose Sun Records was still a distant dream at that point in time). Phillips was independently producing sides for both the Biharis and Chess; his stable also included Howlin' Wolf, Rosco Gordon, and fellow WDIA personality Rufus Thomas. the Biharis also recorded some of King's early output themselves, erecting portable recording equipment wherever they could locate a suitable facility. King's first national R&B chart-topper in 1951, "Three O'Clock Blues" (previously waxed by Lowell Fulson), was cut at a Memphis YMCA. King's Memphis running partners included vocalist Bobby Bland, drummer Earl Forest, and ballad-singing pianist Johnny Ace. When King hit the road to promote "Three O'Clock Blues," he handed the group, known as the Beale Streeters, over to Ace. It was during this era that King first named his beloved guitar "Lucille." Seems that while he was playing a joint in a little Arkansas town called Twist, fisticuffs broke out between two jealous suitors over a lady. The brawlers knocked over a kerosene-filled garbage pail that was heating the place, setting the room ablaze. In the frantic scramble to escape the flames, King left his guitar inside. He foolishly ran back in to retrieve it, dodging the flames and almost losing his life. When the smoke had cleared, King learned that the lady who had inspired such violent passion was named Lucille. Plenty of Lucilles have passed through his hands since; Gibson has even marketed a B.B.-approved guitar model under the name.

The 1950s saw King establish himself as a perennially formidable hitmaking force in the R&B field. Recording mostly in L.A. (the WDIA air shift became impossible to maintain by 1953 due to King's endless touring) for RPM and its successor Kent, King scored 20 chart items during that musically tumultuous decade, including such memorable efforts as "You Know I Love You" (1952); "Woke Up This Morning" and "Please Love Me" (1953); "When My Heart Beats like a Hammer," "Whole Lotta' Love," and "You Upset Me Baby" (1954); "Every Day I Have the Blues" (another Fulson remake), the dreamy blues ballad "Sneakin' Around," and "Ten Long Years" (1955); "Bad Luck," "Sweet Little Angel," and a Platters-like "On My Word of Honor" (1956); and "Please Accept My Love" (first cut by Jimmy Wilson) in 1958. King's guitar attack grew more aggressive and pointed as the decade progressed, influencing a legion of up-and-coming axemen across the nation. In 1960, King's impassioned two-sided revival of Joe Turner's "Sweet Sixteen" became another mammoth seller, and his "Got a Right to Love My Baby" and "Partin' Time" weren't far behind. But Kent couldn't hang onto a star like King forever (and he may have been tired of watching his new LPs consigned directly into the 99-cent bins on the Biharis' cheapo Crown logo). King moved over to ABC-Paramount Records in 1962, following the lead of Lloyd Price, Ray Charles, and before long, Fats Domino. More Bio ~ Bill Dahl  http://www.allmusic.com/artist/bb-king-mn0000059156/biography

R.I.P.  

Born: September 16, 1925 (age 89), Berclair, Mississippi, United States

Died: May 14, 2015, Las Vegas, Nevada, United States

Move to the Groove

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Martial Solal - Just Friends

Styles: Piano Jazz
Year: 1998
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 50:12
Size: 115,4 MB
Art: Front

(6:34)  1. Just Friends
(6:40)  2. Coming Yesterday
(3:51)  3. Willow Weep For Me
(5:34)  4. You Stepped Out Of A Dream
(2:39)  5. Hommage a Frederic Chopin
(7:20)  6. Sapristi
(5:35)  7. Summertime
(4:33)  8. Sacrebleu
(7:22)  9. I'm Getting Sentimental Over You

The liner notes quote pianist Solal as saying, "With Paul and Gary I feel as if I am at the wheel of a high-powered racing car that's running perfectly." Paul and Gary are the drummer Paul Motian and the bassist Gary Peacock. It would be difficult to improve on the pianist's description of the sensation of rhythmic inevitability the three generate. In some of these pieces the swing of linear motion is not the sole issue; Peacock's virtuoso solos on "Willow Weep For Me" and "Summertime" and Motian's exquisite cymbal fills behind Solal's out-of-tempo on "Hommage a Frederic Chopin" speak of other attributes. When the three are swinging, though, it is a visceral thrill. In many of their recordings, Peacock and Motian traffic in complexity, density and rubato avant garde adventurism. 

They do some of that with the astonishing Solal, notably on his composition "Sapristi." The three do an equal amount of straight-ahead cooking. All of it has Solal's remarkable facility and harmonic imagination, including a delicious retrofitting of "Summertime" with new chords. The elements of his solos come from sources as varied as Ravel, Monk, Evans and, of course, Chopin. He never merely stirs them into an improvisational stew. Solal's celebrated sense of form selects and marshals them, so to speak, into admirable coherence. ~ Doug Ramsey  http://jazztimes.com/articles/8751-just-friends-martial-solal

Personnel: Martial Solal (piano); Gary Peacock (bass); Paul Motian (drums).

Just Friends

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Sheena Davis Group - Young At Heart

Styles: Vocal
Year: 2007
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 50:06
Size: 115,1 MB
Art: Front

(4:30)  1. Young at Heart
(3:30)  2. It Must Be Love
(4:57)  3. Seasonal Memories
(3:07)  4. Got A Feeling
(3:30)  5. I Cried for You
(5:51)  6. Sentimental Journey
(3:54)  7. Sway
(5:16)  8. Only You
(4:07)  9. Up On The Roof
(1:58) 10. When I Grow Too Old To Dream
(4:02) 11. But Hey! That's Love
(5:18) 12. When You Wish Upon a Star

In his liner notes for the second album by the Sheena Davis Group, Richard Niles of BBC Radio 2 praises songstress Davis’s “perfect intonation, groove-laden emotive phrasing, charming vibrato and tone as clear as a cloudless sky.” Having given the group’s earlier album a generally lukewarm review, I’d say this one is roughly its equivalent. While Davis does have some sharp tools to work with, she remains a work in progress, sounding bright and confident on some numbers (“I Cried for You,” “Only You,” “When I Grow Too Old to Dream”) but less inspired on others, including the title selection, whose reading left me unmoved, as did the ballads “Sentimental Journey“ and “When You Wish Upon a Star.” The “perfect intonation” is in evidence much of the time but articulation can and does present a problem, especially at faster tempos (“Got a Feeling,” “Sway,“ “It Must Be Love”).

Davis and bassist Robert Rickenberg co-wrote “Seasonal Memories,” "Got a Feeling” and “But Hey! That’s Love,” and they’re pleasant enough tunes but no more than that. Rickenberg and drummer Pete Cater, both back from the earlier album, and Steve Holness, replacing fellow NYJO alumnus Tom Cawley at the piano, comprise a sturdy and empathetic back-up crew. Another returnee, guitarist Jim Mullen, blends in nicely on “It Must Be Love,” "Sentimental Journey” and “But Hey! That’s Love,” while another talented guest, trumpeter Guy Barker, is heard on “Seasonal Memories,” “I Cried for You” and “Only You.”  Returning to the liner notes, I’ve long wondered about their purpose. Is it promotional or informational? Niles begins his by asking, “Will anyone buy this record? More specifically, will you buy this record?” Well, if one is reading the liner notes he or she must have already done so, or else received a comp copy, as we reviewers do. So what’s the point of asking? Just thought I’d ask. As to whether the record is worth investigating, my answer would be a qualified yes, as the pluses do outweigh the minuses and it is by and large an enjoyable session, as was the group’s earlier album, Smile. ~ Jack Bowers  http://www.allaboutjazz.com/young-at-heart-sheena-davis-jazzizit-review-by-jack-bowers.php

Personnel: Sheena Davis, vocals; Steve Holness, piano; Robert Rickenberg, bass; Pete Cater, drums.

Young At Heart

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Mark Elf - New York Cats

Styles: Guitar Jazz
Year: 1998
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 64:49
Size: 148,7 MB
Art: Front

(5:03)  1. Brownie Speaks
(6:41)  2. Blues In The Night
(2:34)  3. From This Moment On
(4:41)  4. Smoke Gets In Your Eyes
(4:59)  5. No More Blues
(6:50)  6. The Conflict
(6:52)  7. Stompin' At The Savoy
(5:35)  8. Heartfelt
(7:45)  9. Walker's Walk
(5:07) 10. Pemble's Tremble
(2:51) 11. Lady Be Good
(5:46) 12. Blues For Jenny

Lovers of mainstream jazz guitar will go crazy for this one! Elf has a sturdy, straight-ahead tone that recalls jazz guitar masters Jim Hall, Wes Montgomery and Pat Martino. The tunes are a lively mix of jazz standards/classics and originals. There's a sense of unhurried forward-motion to this set; it's relaxed without being "sleepy." 

The nimble bass and swinging drums compliment Elf's playing to perfection. Elf is a player who can dazzle with a barrage of long phrases, then tease you with one or two well-placed notes. No new ground broken here--just fine, end-of-the-day relaxation-jazz with considerable substance. 

http://www.allmusic.com/album/new-york-cats-mw0000047718

Personnel: Mark Elf (guitar, chimes, sound effects); Jay Leonhart (bass); Dennis Mackrel (drums, shaker); Kevin Burrell (percussion).

New York Cats

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