Aurore Quartet - Manouche Jazz Swing

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 47:38
Size: 109.1 MB
Styles: Gypsy swing
Year: 2012
Art: Front

[4:08] 1. Pent Up House
[2:57] 2. Swing 42
[3:16] 3. Stompin' At Decca
[5:24] 4. Czardas
[4:51] 5. Nuages
[3:17] 6. Double Concerto
[3:17] 7. Sweet Sue
[5:15] 8. Beautiful Love
[2:47] 9. Sweet Georgia Brown
[4:18] 10. Sosnica
[3:36] 11. Swing 39
[4:27] 12. Swing Gitan

Formed in September 2004, The Aurore Quartet is fronted by the glamorous, talented Aurore Voilque on violin and vocals and completed by the dynamic trio of Siegfried 'Ziggy' Mandace and Darko Andelkovic on guitars, and Pierre Frasque on double bass. Mixing their diverse musical backgrounds, this joyful band brims with lyricism and humour, touching the heart and soul of their audience and taking them on a musical trip to 30s and 40s swing and Gypsy folk repertoires. With their own very personal interpretations and memorable compositions, The Aurore Quartet enthrals and lifts the spirits! Joining them as guest musicians on this live recording are Gypsy Jazz virtuoso Ritary Gaguenetti and rising vocal star Phillipa Leigh, helping to create an eclectic and exhilarating musical feast!

Manouche Jazz Swing

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Chembo Corniel & Andrea Brachfeld - Beyond Standards

Styles: Latin Jazz, Flute Jazz
Year: 2006
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 59:23
Size: 136,4 MB
Art: Front

(6:48)  1. Flor de Zampona
(7:43)  2. Transition
(7:04)  3. Naima
(4:56)  4. Conception
(7:17)  5. Chelsea Bridge
(4:50)  6. E. S. P.
(6:37)  7. African Flower
(5:30)  8. Freedom Jazz Dance
(4:08)  9. My Little Suede Shoes
(1:32) 10. Interlude
(2:52) 11. Oddudua

Latin Jazz-This music would be better described as Jazz Latin since we really focused on the jazz standards. Then we added many Afro-Cuban as well as Puerto Rican rhythms to each song. This is a great introduction to this style of music.

Andrea Brachfeld has released many cds touching on a wealth of traditional flute styles in the Latin tradition. She is well known in many New York circles for her wealth of experience and cultural knowledge and awareness. She has touched on many projects involving progressive approaches to ensemble playing and Beyond Standards serves as one such accomplishment.

Teamed up with master percussionist Wilson "Chembo" Corniel, this duo of excitement will leave lasting impressions in your mind and ear. Joined with Andrea and Chembo are a line up of NY's most sought after personel such as Hilton Ruiz and Steve Turre just to name a few. The rhythm section sustains it\'s energy with the most worthy drummer for the late Ray Barretto , Vince Cherico. http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/abrachfeld

Personnel: Andrea Brachfeld, Wilson "Chembo" Corniel, Jr. (flute, piccolo, zambona, piano); Steve Turre (trombone); Hilton Ruiz (piano).

Beyond Standards

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Don Lanphere And New Stories - Home At Last

Styles: Saxophone Jazz
Year: 2001
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 65:10
Size: 150,3 MB
Art: Front

(6:27)  1. The Night Has A Thousand Eyes
(8:12)  2. Alone Together
(6:50)  3. My Ideal
(8:20)  4. Invitation
(5:37)  5. Violets For Your Furs
(6:52)  6. Home At Last
(6:44)  7. Solar
(6:10)  8. Estate
(5:02)  9. End Of A Love Affair
(4:51) 10. Goodbye

Veteran tenor saxophonist Don Lanphere is a modern Lazarus, a bebop-blowing master brought back to life by Jesus. The 73-year-old Yakima-bred musician was a teenaged fixture on the New York scene during 52nd Street heyday. He made his recording session debut with Max Roach and Fats Navarro in New York in 1948 and hung out with Charlie Parker at bebop’s birth. By the time Lanphere was 22, he had a heroin habit, an arrest record, and had lost his girlfriend, Chan Richardson, to Parker. Ten years later, after another drug bust (marijuana), Lanphere quit the music business…for 23 years.

In 1982, buoyed by his born-again Christian faith at 60, Lanphere revived his career and has produced a succession of glorious swing-to-bop recordings topped by the recently released, Home At Last. Liner notes credit inspiration from “Bird, Prez, Zoot and the two Sonnys,” but Lanphere’s warm, plaintive synthesis of stylistic advancements by Parker, Young, Sims, Rollins and Stitt is a very personal sound, a masterful, individual voice. On Home At Last, Lanphere’s assured, succinct improvisations are framed expertly by New Stories’ supple rhythmic support. Pianist Marc Seales is a particularly adept accompanyist and, like his rhythm team of bassist Doug Miller and drummer John Bishop, a sensitive listener who knows how to leave lots of breathing room for the leader.

Romantic ballad readings of “Alone Together,” “Violets For Your Furs,” and “Goodbye” ground the group’s more muscular workouts with a tenderness that is heartbreakingly beautiful. The confidence and virility of Lanphere’s playing is in evidence from the opening “The Night Has A Thousand Eyes.” Seales stands out on that cut too. Several of the band’s arrangements are playful adaptations of the ballad form, particularly Lanphere’s clever remaking of “My Ideal” and Hank Mobley’s “ Home At Last.” Another treat is Lanphere’s elegiac soprano sax reading of “Estate” followed by the saxophonist’s most endearing homage to Lester Young, a gorgeous version of “The End of A Love Affair.” He caps a superb studio effort with a soulful, wise version of Gordon Jenkins’ “Goodbye.” Don Lanphere is an absolute master, and this is a masterpiece. 

~ Joseph Blake  http://www.allaboutjazz.com/home-at-last-don-lanphere-review-by-joseph-blake.php

Personnel: Don Lanphere - Saxophone, Doug Miller - Bass, Marc Seales - Piano

Home At Last

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Toni Solà - Natural Sounds

Styles: Saxophone Jazz
Year: 2003
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 55:16
Size: 127,1 MB
Art: Front

(3:38)  1. Amy
(5:18)  2. Mangoes
(4:05)  3. Safari Blues
(7:31)  4. Un Instant de Màgia
(4:09)  5. Funk to Grover
(4:52)  6. Nictalops
(3:09)  7. All the Gin Is Gone
(5:15)  8. Come Sunday
(4:16)  9. Ger-Ru
(7:05) 10. Bright Moments
(5:53) 11. Song for Stanley Turrentine

The style he cultivates is a compendium of illustrious influences (Illinois Jacquett, Gene Ammons, Sonny Rollins, Dexter Gordon, Arnet Cobb, Buddy Tate, David Sanborn, King Curtis, Stanley Turrentine...) yet with an overrending feeling of swing and strength of expression; two essential elements in Toni Solà's extroverted playing. His language is both direct and vigorous and keeps the public in constant climax of complicity with his discourse. Few tenor players today can presume to be as independent and sollicited as Solà. http://www.freshsoundrecords.com/natural_sounds-cd-3714.html

Featuring: Toni Solà (ts,ss #8), Xavier Monge (p), Ignasi González (b), Pau Bombardó (d)

Natural Sounds

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Leny Andrade & Roni Ben-Hur - Alegria De Viver

Styles: Bossa Nova, MPB
Year: 2015
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 46:50
Size: 110,8 MB
Art: Front

(3:11)  1. Samba Iluminado
(2:55)  2. Balanço Zona Sul
(5:49)  3. Dindi
(4:54)  4. Refém Da Solidão
(3:10)  5. Estrada Branca
(2:34)  6. Alegria De Viver
(2:58)  7. Cantador
(3:07)  8. É Preciso Perdoar
(3:22)  9. Carinhoso
(2:53) 10. Passa Por Mim
(2:17) 11. Rugas
(3:15) 12. Ana Luisa
(2:30) 13. Una Manana
(3:51) 14. O Que É Amar

It’s hard to argue with Tony Bennett when he describes Leny Andrade as the “Ella Fitzgerald of Brasil”. Anyone who has heard Ms. Andrade live or on record will agree. Her sublime artistry is born of integrity and intensity. She indulges in a harmonically rich turn of phrase, clothed in beautifully balanced and largely polyphonic textures that still feel like gossamer and when she turns up the heat as rich and sensuous as raw silk. Described as having a dynamic voice capable of stunning leaps from an upper register, to dramatic plunges into gravity-defying depths, Leny Andrade is no ordinary mezzo-soprano. Her singing comes on a generous scale with a wide range and bags of personality easily enough to encompass every aspect of the Brasilian cultural ethos.

Ms. Andrade is accompanied by an equally dynamic instrumental personality: Roni Ben-Hur. The guitarist is an inspired choice for this date. Mr. Ben-Hur concentrates on the sonorities of his instrument treating the colours it makes as independent of Leny Andrade’s uncommonly lush notes, doing justice to it (his guitar) in his warm old-school playing as he manages to pull multiple melodious lines which he weaves deftly into his seemingly diaphanous harmonic canvas. His mannerisms are cultured. They spark reflective utterances as a framing stimulus towards the rhapsodic melismas that dance their way out from the vocalastics of Ms. Andrade. It is hard to imagine another pairing for this repertoire or any other for that matter.

One of the challenges that even Brasilian artists face when attempting a programme is steering clear of the tried and tested and often all-too-familiar, even tried Brasilian standards. This record, Alegria de Viver pulls music out of surprising, under-represented catalogues. Of course, you cannot avoid the music of Baden Powell, Vinicius De Moraes, Pixinguinha, Antonio Carlos Jobim and Dori Caymmi, certainly not if you are intent on making a good record. Then turning it into something great is a matter of good taste and inhabiting the songs from the inside out. Few vocalists from Brasil can do this with as much facility as Leny Andrade.

Leny Andrade does great things with the lyric and the music throughout the repertoire. If anything is to be singled out for special mention – an unfair task in this instance I may as well recommend “Carinhoso” and “O Que é Amar” the latter is a rarely performed piece by one of Brasil’s most gifted sons Johnny Alf. It does bear mention that the album is breathtaking from end to end, though. Together, Leny Andrade and Roni Ben-Hur lay it all out for us in one superbly rich and eloquent verse after the other, representing art at its most sublime. The profound romanticism of Brasilian storylines is magically matched by the high drama of the delivers of lyrics. Both artists allow the music to evolve with a wonderful feeling of spaciousness in which the intense musical textures of these pieces are beautifully revealed. http://latinjazznet.com/2015/10/04/reviews/cds/album-of-the-week/leny-andrade-roni-ben-hur-alegria-de-viver/

Personnel: Leny Andrade: vocals; Roni Ben-Hur: guitar.

Alegria De Viver

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Coleman Hawkins - Desafinado

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 35:20
Size: 80.9 MB
Styles: Bossa Nova, Saxophone jazz
Year: 1963/1997
Art: Front

[5:46] 1. Desafinado
[2:49] 2. I'm Looking Over A Four Leaf Clover
[3:54] 3. Samba Para Bean
[1:29] 4. I Remember You
[3:55] 5. One Note Samba
[5:57] 6. O Pato
[4:08] 7. Un Abraco No Bonfa
[7:19] 8. Stumpy Bossa Nova

That Coleman Hawkins jumped on the jazz/bossa nova bandwagon craze initiated by Stan Getz in 1962 was a bit of a surprise to his fans, but that he was comfortable in the idiom should not be off-putting. Able to adapt to any style over his lengthy career, the legendary tenor saxophonist chose classic standards adapted to Brazilian rhythms, music from masters like Antonio Carlos Jobim and João Gilberto, and a Manny Albam original. Producer Bob Thiele and music director Albam were strong in their resolve directing Hawkins to do this project, and the results are fairly predictable, especially considering that every single track is played in midtempo. The difference is the deployment of two guitarists in Barry Galbraith (lead) and Howard Collins (rhythm) split into separate stereo channels, with bassist Major Holley and no full kit drummer, although Eddie Locke with a minimal and stripped-down setup, Willie Rodriguez, and even Tommy Flanagan play small Latin percussion instruments. Themes derived from nights in Rio such as the beautifully rendered title track and "One Note Samba" are quite typical, but "O Pato" (The Duck) has a component added on from Duke Ellington's "Take the 'A' Train," while the Hawkins original "Stumpy" is adapted into "Stumpy Bossa Nova," derived from Dizzy Gillespie's "Groovin' High" with a taste of "The Man I Love" tacked on at the end. Albam's "Samba Para Bean" is standardized cool with Locke's accents via brushes on closed hi-hat cymbals, while "I Remember You" is a completely unforced, pretty rendition of this well-worn standard. Gilberto's tribute to Luiz Bonfá, "Um Abraco No Bonfa," sports a guitar lead by Galbraith in a stretched-out frame. The curve ball is a somewhat weird crossbred samba take of "I'm Looking Over a Four Leaf Clover," a truly corny song the band tried to make cool, only marginally succeeding. The simplified style of this album overall perfectly suited the amiable, good-natured, and laid-back Hawkins at a time when the world was somewhat in political turmoil regarding Caribbean nations and the role of South America in the emerging so-called Third World. He passed away seven years later, leaving a legacy as the most revered tenor saxophonist in jazz, and this very nice recording in his long discography, unique even unto itself. ~Michael G. Nastos

Desafinado

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Melanie Dahan - Keys

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s

Time: 56:44

Size: 129.9 MB

Styles: Vocal jazz

Year: 2014

Art: Front

[5:33] 1. Whisper Not

[5:45] 2. I'm Through With Love

[6:04] 3. Poor Butterfly

[5:09] 4. Dedicated To You

[6:00] 5. Beautiful Love

[5:17] 6. Everytime We Say Goodbye

[6:38] 7. Some Other Time-Lucky To Be Me

[4:57] 8. Star Eyes

[5:01] 9. What's New

[6:16] 10. Never Said

Baptiste Trotignon (piano); Thomas Enhco (piano); Pierre de Bethmann (piano); Manuel Rocheman (piano); Franck Amsallem (piano); Thomas Bramerie (doublebass); Lukmil Perez (drums).

Following 2 well-received recordings, French jazz vocalist Melanie Dahan has just recorded a new one. She has a history of working with excellent musicians (pianist Giovanni Mirabassi) and this album continues this fine tradition. The distinctive, continually surprising sound of this new album is the result of an especially satisfying collaboration with 5 pianists, a veritable who's who of the best in France. A smartly conceived concept recording made up of 10 jazz standards where each pianist pays tribute to the American songbook in his fresh and inventive own way. Each one of their unique and contemporary arrangements acts to highlight Dahan's vocal qualities and to make her voice an instrument.

Melanie's strengths - expressive delicacy at low volumes, flexible phrasing - are all here. Above all, there's her voice - light but expressive, engaging and evocative, whether she's singing in English (here), French (in her first album) or Portuguese (in her second album).

Keys

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The Swingcats - Get Happy!

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 66:17
Size: 151.8 MB
Styles: Contemporary jazz
Year: 2003
Art: Front

[4:00] 1. Lullaby Of The Leaves
[3:53] 2. Christopher Columbus
[4:45] 3. I've Got A Crush On You
[3:35] 4. Get Happy
[3:34] 5. Hallelujah
[4:03] 6. Harlem Nocturne
[5:23] 7. Undecided
[3:09] 8. Jubilee
[3:25] 9. Fools Rush In
[3:47] 10. My Little Suede Shoes
[3:06] 11. C'est Magnifique
[5:31] 12. Tea For Two
[4:11] 13. The Midnight Sun Will Never Set
[3:31] 14. King Porter Stomp
[3:13] 15. Be Bop
[3:30] 16. Laura
[3:32] 17. Crazy Rhythm

Frank Roberscheuten (leader, clarinet, saxophones), Dirk Van Der Linden (piano), Karel Algoed (bass), Moritz Gastreich (drums), Shaunette Hildabrand (vocals).

Perhaps a testament to the greatness of the only original art form to come out of the United States is how well it translates to other musicians in places outside of North America. Certainly this is evidenced in the CD Get Happy by the Swingcats. The Swingcats, made up of musicians from Germany, Belgium and the Netherlands, were formed in 1991 and are led by saxophonist and clarinetist Frank Roberscheuten. Get Happy represents the group's cross section of selections ranging from the early jazz of Jelly Roll Morton through more modern styles penned by Charlie Parker and Dizzy Gillespie. Also featured prominently is the group's vocalist, Shaunette Hildabrand, who hails from Oklahoma.

Although there is nothing particularly musically "outside" or adventurous about what the Swingcats perform on Get Happy, there is no doubt they are very competent musicians in great command of their instruments and demonstrate a superlative stylistic understanding of the music. All seventeen pieces on the recording represent jazz standards, including Dizzy Gillespie's "Be Bop," Charlie Parker's "Little Suede Shoes," Jelly Roll Morton's "King Porter Stomp," and selections from the Great American Songbook by George Gershwin, Cole Porter, Harold Arlen, Hoagy Carmichael, and Sammy Kahn. Vocalist Shaunette Hildabrand is a standout on "I've Got a Crush on You," the title cut, "Tea for Two," and "Undecided." Of particular note to this listener is her swinging styling on "Fools Rush In" and "C'est Magnifique" and her beautiful rendition of the classic ballad "Laura." Throughout all of the tunes with vocals, Hildabrand is aptly accompanied by a consistent and tight rhythm section and Roberscheuten's musical asides on saxophone or clarinet.

Jazz aficionados who are particularly interested in groups which hold fast to a swinging groove right down the center of the jazz mainstream and also maintain the repertory and sensibility of jazz of the past will find the Swingcats right up their alley. The group provides an excellent clinic on maintaining the jazz tradition. ~Craig W. Hurst

Get Happy!

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Jake Langley - Diggin' In

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 77:23
Size: 177.2 MB
Styles: Guitar jazz
Year: 2014
Art: Front

[6:36] 1. Ogd
[8:10] 2. God Bless The Child
[8:16] 3. Cheese Cake
[5:30] 4. The Garage
[6:39] 5. Sugar
[8:13] 6. Blues For Jim San
[9:40] 7. Gibraltar
[6:24] 8. Maya
[5:55] 9. Continental Blues
[4:58] 10. Bolivia
[6:58] 11. Desert Sun

Jake Langley, guitar; Joey DeFrancesco, B3 organ; Terry Clarke, drums.

Sometimes it's nice to get exactly what you expect after reading the cover, no more or less. Guitarist Jake Langley's Diggin' In features organist Joey DeFrancesco and drummer Terry Clarke playing mostly standards in a Wes Montgomery vein. Learning that much by reading the CD cover suggests a contemporary Lee Ritenour-style treatment with enough twists from DeFrancesco's presence for an intelligent recreational listen. The sort of album, in other words, for unwinding after a long day when one isn't ready to completely submit to the mental enema of typical contemporary.

Langley, 30, a Toronto resident selected as Canada's guitarist of the year in the National Jazz Awards, possesses stylings that carries over from studies with Pat Martino and Jim Hall, plus plenty of influence from the Montgomery school. Diggin' In, his third solo album, returns to the lower-key trio playing of his debut Doug's Garage after showcasing a collection of funk/acid/Latin originals with a larger cast on Non Fiction. Consistency is a good summary for this set, never venturing into uncomfortably exploration or hollow mailed-in territory. Langley keeps the melodies recognizable and his soloing elaborates rather than reinterprets. His plucking runs the range of leisurely to lively, easily absorbed without being completely predictable. Montgomery's "O.G.D." has a laid back feel, for instance, but Langley spices it up with a rapid series of post bop runs. He also displays a fine command for upbeat blues on "The Garage," the lone original composition on this album. His blues-ballad rendition of Billie Holiday's "God Bless The Child" is a smooth change of pace, although it fails to leave any lasting impressions. The same might be said for the album as a whole—while it's pleasant, it may not linger beyond the moment the listener hits the "off" switch.

DeFrancesco has more acclaimed outings on his resume, but he isn't being called upon to go all out and delivers well for the setting. His tone and a bit of extra kick compared to Langley's treatments, plus offering some extra depth as an accompanist, are what will spur listeners to pick this over similar trio discs when the mood arises. Clarke gets little time on his own, but generally his loose-style playing feels like a living organism propelling things ahead.

Diggin' In doesn't cover any new territory, but does a good job within the one it does occupy as long as listeners are seeking comfort rather than a life-changing experience. It's also comforting knowing Langley is capable of mixing styles album to album, making his past and future efforts worth keeping an eye on if this one satisfies.

Diggin' In

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Agnieszka Hekiert - Night And Day Swing

Styles: Jazz, Vocal
Year: 2004
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 48:09
Size: 110,3 MB
Art: Front

(6:55)  1. Green Eyes
(4:42)  2. Smile
(3:20)  3. Night and Day
(5:06)  4. They Can't Take That Away From Me
(6:14)  5. Our Love is Here to Stay
(4:16)  6. Route
(6:04)  7. Tea in the Sahara
(2:36)  8. A Tisket a Tasket
(8:52)  9. What a Wonderful World

The jazz singer, Agnieszka Hekiert, has been working with the extraordinary jazz artist Bobby McFerrin since 2009. Her other stage partners include Krzysztof Herdzin, considered by Jazz Forum to be one of the three best jazz pianists in Poland, and the Polish jazz legend Leszek Zadlo. She is currently the most in-demand vocal coach in Poland because she gives the final polish to the voices of young artists in TV shows like X-Factor (2011 TVN), Poland's Got Talent (2010/2011 TVN), My Camp Rock II (2009 Disney Channel) and Star Academy (2008Polsat). 

Agnieszka is there fore able to combine two of her passions: performing on stage as bandleader during jazz concerts and imparting her knowledge and experience as vocal coach to young talents. She still gets to work with the best: WeBe3, Rhiannon, Roger Treece and above all Bobby McFerrin, with whom she sang numerous concerts (Vocabularies Project).

Agnieszka has a degree from the jazz and pop department of the music academy in Kattowitz. Her career began in Poland, where she won many prizes at divers festivals. She then worked with well-known stars of the Polish music scene like Krzysztof cieraski, Wiesaw Pieregorólka, Natalia Kukulska, Maryla Rodowicz, Ryszard Rynkowski and Marek Baata.With the years, her field of activity extended beyond the Polish border. Agnieszka started to perform in both Germany and Austria. This resulted in an ongoing collaboration with the saxophonist Leszek Zadlo, the Bulgarian pianist Konstantin Kostov and the percussionist Nevian Lenkov.The fruits of this collaboration, which can be found on the 2009 album "European Impressions", are an incredible mixture of Slavonian melancholy and Balkan energy. The virtuosity of Leszek Zadlo is combined with the wonderful and expressive voice of Agnieszka with ease and energetic improvisation.

Agnieszka also writes music and lyrics, creates arrangements, directs a Circle singing choir (like Bobby McFerrin) and holds vocal workshops all around Europe. The Süddeutsche Zeitung about Agnieszka: "Unbelievable vocal artistic and phrasing"... and the Tölzer Kurier: "Her music is a pleasure for the ears"; "The finest jazz, that one can just not get enough of"  http://www.hekiert.com/bio-1.html

Night And Day Swing

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Jesper Thilo - Still Movin'

Styles: Saxophone Jazz
Year: 2015
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 64:06
Size: 148,1 MB
Art: Front

(4:29)  1. Somebody Loves Me
(6:16)  2. Black and Blue
(4:25)  3. Move
(6:37)  4. Day Dream
(5:55)  5. Just Friends
(7:57)  6. Misty
(8:42)  7. That's All
(5:21)  8. Baby Won't You Please Come Home
(7:54)  9. Stars Fell on Alabama
(6:26) 10. West Coast Blues

One of the top European straight-ahead jazz musicians from 1970 onward, Danish reedman Jesper Thilo has appeared on many records with American artists in addition to recording with his fellow countrymen. His tenor sound is reminiscent of Zoot Sims. Thilo, who has also occasionally played alto and clarinet, first recorded as a leader for Storyville in 1973, and in the 1980s and 1990s on Storyville his sidemen at various times included Hank Jones, Kenny Drew, Clark Terry, Roland Hanna, and Harry "Sweets" Edison. Thilo also appeared on Miles Davis' Aura (with compositions and arrangements by fellow Dane Palle Mikkelborg), released by Columbia in 1989. After the turn of the millennium Thilo has continued recording for a variety of labels, including several releases on Stunt Records: Remembering Those That Were (2009), On Clarinet (2010), and Scott Hamilton Meets Jesper Thilo (2011). ~ Scott Yanow  https://itunes.apple.com/gm/artist/jesper-thilo/id31015525#fullText

Personnel:  Jesper Thilo - tenor sax;  Ben Besiakov – piano;  Jesper Lundgaard - bass

Still Movin'

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Amir ElSaffar - Crisis

Styles: Trumpet Jazz
Year: 2015
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 66:24
Size: 154,5 MB
Art: Front

( 4:54)  1. Introduction - From the Ashes
( 8:50)  2. The Great Dictator
( 3:17)  3. Taqsim Saba
( 8:18)  4. El-Sha'ab (The People)
( 7:05)  5. Love Poem
( 9:45)  6. Flyover Iraq
(13:34)  7. Tipping Point
( 3:29)  8. Aneen (Weeping), Continued
( 7:08)  9. Love Poem

Chicago area native, Amir ElSaffar has been working inside and outside the typical context of jazz since his Two Rivers Ensemble debut, Two Rivers (PI Recordings, 2007). The trumpeter and composer (and master santour player) has built a unique musical architecture based his study of the microtonal techniques of his ancestral Iraqi maqam. While ElSaffar was not raised with a strong sense of father's native culture, his own interest led him to travel extensively in the Middle East. His recent travels coincided with elements of the Arab Spring movements and ElSaffar found himself particularly influenced by the events in Egypt where he had lived for a year and had experienced the cultural turmoil related to the Mubarak regime and its troubled aftermath. Crisis, the third release from ElSaffar's Two Rivers Ensemble, is decidedly more political in nature but treats the music with the same fervent enthusiasm as the group had applied to their more folkloric improvisational recordings. The more abstract elements that ElSaffar had employed on Two Rivers and Inana (PI Recordings, 2011) are circumvented as the emphasis here is on the dualism of purer jazz and authentic Arab styles of music. In this technique, ElSaffar creates a distinctive paradigm.

The intent of Crisis is not in any way veiled. Following the brief opening "Introduction From the Ashes," the suite moves into the "The Great Dictator" with its fluid themes that speak to both repetitive oppression and rare glimmers of light and hope. ElSaffar's solo trumpet improvisation "Taqsim Saba" relies heavily on maqam and Hijaz (a region of Saudi Arabia) influences. The quiet beauty of the piece bleeds into Carlo Derosa's marching bass intro to "El-Sha'ab (The People)" where the mood becomes more confrontational. "Flyover Iraq" adds further layers of complexity combining Turkish melody and the flair of a Chicago horn section. "Tipping Point" is a self-contained study in its own right. The thirteen-plus minute composition opens with DeRosa's cautious bass lines before launching into a narrative that answers to the earlier "The Great Dictator." ElSaffar describes the structure of the composition as ..."simultaneously pulling in multiple directions." There is an endemic sense of potential chaos even in moments of calm as they inevitably explode in remnants of previous pieces that go careering by like shrapnel. The album closes with the melancholy "Aneen (Weeping), Continued," referencing the latter half of the "Two Rivers Suite" from that 2007 recording, and finally "Love Poem" and ancient Sufi poem set to music.

What ElSaffar is doing on Crisis is unique in music. From a perspective of compositional technique, perhaps only multi-reedist/composer Hafez Modirzadeh with his In Convergence Liberation (PI Recordings, 2014) comes close and it's no coincidence that ElSaffar was an integral part of that project. But from a political and historical vantage point, the task of narrating complex global events through instrumental music is more than challenging. 

ElSaffar has not only commendably told this personal and globally important story but has produced a masterpiece of a recording in doing so. ~ Karl Ackermann  http://www.allaboutjazz.com/crisis-amir-elsaffar-pi-recordings-review-by-karl-ackermann.php
 

Personnel: Amir ElSaffar: trumpet, vocal, santour; Ole Mathisen: tenor and soprano saxophone; Nasheet Waits: drums; Carlo DeRosa: bass; Tareq Abboushi: buzuq; Zafer Tawil: percussion.

Crisis

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Randy Weston, Melba Liston - Volcano Blues

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 53:15
Size: 121.9 MB
Styles: Piano jazz, Jazz-blues vocals
Year: 1993
Art: Front

[2:42] 1. Blue Mood
[6:01] 2. Chalabati Blues
[3:17] 3. Sad Beauty Blues
[2:31] 4. The Nafs
[2:23] 5. Volcano
[4:08] 6. Harvard Blues
[5:07] 7. In Memory Of
[3:45] 8. Blues For Strayhorn
[4:10] 9. Penny Packer Blues
[2:23] 10. J.K. Blues
[6:21] 11. Mystery Of Love
[7:15] 12. Kucheza Blues
[3:06] 13. Blues For Elma Lewis

Pianist Randy Weston and trombonist/arranger Melba Liston have collaborated successfully for many years. This pairing was on a series of blues numbers, with Weston doubling as session producer and pianist while giving Liston almost total arranging control, except for three numbers. The results were an intriguing twist on standard 12-bar blues, as Weston's muscular piano lead the way through rigorous performances of Count Basie's "Volcano" and his own "Blues For Strayhorn," "Sad Beauty Blues" and "In Memory Of." Liston's arrangements required disciplined solos, and Weston's steady hand generated impressive cohesion and interaction during the unison segments. A superb example of the African/African-American musical continuum. ~Ron Wynn

Volcano Blues

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Jackie McLean - 4, 5 And 6

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 45:02
Size: 103.1 MB
Styles: Saxophone jazz
Year: 1956/2006
Art: Front

[ 9:55] 1. Sentimental Journey
[ 5:13] 2. Why Was I Born
[ 4:58] 3. Contour
[11:22] 4. Confirmation
[ 5:32] 5. When I Fall In Love
[ 7:59] 6. Abstraction

In 1956 Jackie McLean was only beginning to assert himself as a true individualist on the alto saxophone, exploring the lime-flavored microtones of his instrument that purists or the misinformed perceived as being off-key or out of tune. 4, 5 and 6 presents McLean's quartet on half the date, and tunes with an expanded quintet, and one sextet track -- thus the title. Mal Waldron, himself an unconventional pianist willing to explore different sizings and shadings of progressive jazz, is a wonderful complement for McLean's notions, with bassist Doug Watkins and drummer Art Taylor the impervious team everyone wanted for his rhythm section at the time. The quartet versions of "Sentimental Journey," "Why Was I Born?," and "When I Fall in Love" range from totally bluesy, to hard bop ribald, to pensive and hopeful, respectively. These are three great examples of McLean attempting to make the tunes his own, adding a flattened, self-effaced, almost grainy-faced texture to the music without concern for the perfectness of the melody. Donald Byrd joins the fray on his easygoing bopper "Contour," where complex is made simple and enjoyable, while Hank Mobley puts his tenor sax to the test on the lone and lengthy sextet track, a rousing version of Charlie Parker's risk-laden "Confirmation." It's Waldron's haunting ballad "Abstraction," with Byrd and McLean's quick replies, faint and dour, that somewhat illuminates the darker side. As a stand-alone recording, 4, 5 and 6 does not break barriers, but does foreshadow the future of McLean as an innovative musician in an all-too-purist mainstream jazz world. ~Michael G. Nastos

4, 5 And 6

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Boston Pops Orchestra - Swing, Swing, Swing

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 45:33
Size: 104.3 MB
Styles: Orchestral, Easy Listening
Year: 1985
Art: Front

[3:16] 1. Opus One
[3:16] 2. Begin The Beguine
[2:55] 3. Sunrise Serenade
[2:53] 4. Tuxedo Junction
[2:23] 5. Satin Doll
[3:28] 6. In The Mood
[3:59] 7. Sing, Sing, Sing
[2:38] 8. Stompin' At The Savoy
[3:46] 9. Moonlight Serenade
[3:09] 10. String Of Pearls
[2:44] 11. Sleepy Lagoon
[3:27] 12. Song Of India
[3:11] 13. Snowfall
[4:21] 14. Swing, Swing, Swing

Banker Henry Lee Higginson established Boston's first full-time resident orchestra. An unprecedented one-million-dollar grant endowed the Boston Symphony Orchestra, which, since its debut on October 22, 1881, has established itself as one of the great orchestras of the world.

In order to give orchestra members summer employment, and to recapture the ambience of the Bilse Orchestra's beer-hall concerts in Berlin where Higginson had been a music student, Higginson established a second BSO season in the spring, played by a reduced orchestra initially called the Music Hall Promenade Orchestra. The "Pops," as it became known informally and later officially, was also an audience hit. The Boston Pops remains, essentially, the Boston Symphony Orchestra minus its first chair players. ~Joseph Stevenson

Swing, Swing, Swing

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Bill Evans - Blue In Green

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 52:52
Size: 121.1 MB
Styles: Modal music, Jazz piano
Year: 1974/1991
Art: Front

[6:25] 1. One For Helen
[7:17] 2. The Two Lonely People
[4:48] 3. What Are You Doing The Rest Of Your Life
[7:01] 4. So What
[5:42] 5. Very Early
[4:00] 6. If You Could See Me Now
[7:43] 7. 34 Skidoo
[3:54] 8. Blue In Green
[5:58] 9. T. (Twelve Tone Tune)

This CD reissue contains a Canadian concert by the Bill Evans Trio. Pianist Evans, bassist Eddie Gomez and drummer Marty Morell had been playing regularly together since 1969 (Gomez had joined the group back in 1966). The tight and almost telepathic musical communication between the musicians, the strong repertoire (six Evans originals, a pair of ballads and "So What") and the appreciative audience make this a fairly definitive recording by this classic unit. ~Scott Yanow

Blue In Green

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Donald Harrison & Terence Blanchard - Black Pearl

Styles: Saxophone Jazz
Year: 1988
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 53:08
Size: 121,8 MB
Art: Front

( 2:59)  1. Selim Sivad
( 7:34)  2. Black Pearl
(10:44)  3. Ninth Ward Strut
( 5:40)  4. Infinite Heart
( 6:20)  5. The Center Piece
( 6:15)  6. Somewhere
( 4:14)  7. Dizzy Gillespie's Hands
( 4:08)  8. Toni
( 5:11)  9. Birth of the Abstract

The fifth and final recording by the Terence Blanchard-Donald Harrison Quintet uses the same notable rhythm section that was on their previous Crystal Stair release: pianist Cyrus Chestnut, bassist Reginald Veal, and drummer Carl Allen. In addition, two songs add vibraphonist Monte Croft and percussionist Steve Thornton while guitarist Mark Whitfield sits in on "Infinite Heart." With the exception of Leonard Bernstein's "Somewhere," the repertoire is split between compositions by the co-leaders. 

Harrison (who contributed tributes to two notable trumpeters, "Selim Sivad" and "Dizzy Gillespie's Hands") was heard at his best during his period with this group. All five of the Quintet's releases (two for the George Wein Collection on Concord and three for Columbia) are worth picking up for this was one of the most stimulating acoustic jazz groups of the mid- to late '80s. ~ Scott Yanow  http://www.allmusic.com/album/black-pearl-mw0000652086

Personnel: Alto Saxophone, Soprano Saxophone, Saxophone – Donald Harrison;  Bass – Reginald Veal;  Drums – Carl Allen;  Guitar – Mark Whitfield;  Percussion – Steve Thornton;  Piano – Cyrus Chestnut Trumpet – Terence Blanchard;  Vibraphone – Monte Croft

Black Pearl

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Slide Hampton - Jazz With A Twist/Explosion

Styles: Bop, Big Band
Year: 1962
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 65:05
Size: 149,5 MB
Art: Front

(2:34)  1. The Jazz Twist
(3:04)  2. Mack The Knife
(2:10)  3. Gorgeous George
(3:58)  4. Strollin'
(6:40)  5. The Barbarians
(2:58)  6. Work Song
(2:54)  7. Slide Slid
(4:37)  8. Day In Day Out
(6:17)  9. Red Top
(2:25) 10. Revival
(2:23) 11. Maria
(3:59) 12. Delilah
(2:33) 13. Begin The Beguine
(3:01) 14. Your Cheatin' Heart
(3:33) 15. Spanish Flier
(2:58) 16. Bye Bye Love
(3:29) 17. Love Letters
(5:25) 18. Slide's Blues

A few years ago a “new swing revival” burst onto the music scene, bolstered by newcomers like the Brian Setzer Orchestra, Big Bad Voodoo Daddy, and the Royal Crown Revue, among others. Suddenly techno clubs featured swing nights, as albums by these artists appeared at the top of the charts. Although the new swing craze has passed as we all knew it would, one positive fallout was that many older stalwarts, like Louis Prima and Louis Jordan, received posthumous exposure as a result. 

Another swing artist deserving of wider exposure is Slide Hampton, who has recently been given the reissue treatment by Collectables Records with a two-fer CD overflowing with enthusiasm and swing. Hampton, a gifted trombonist and arranger who previously spent time with both Lionel Hampton and Maynard Ferguson, keeps things lively on both sessions with punchy horn arrangements and lively tempos that make the relatively small orchestra of ten sound like twenty. All of the selections here are real toe-tappers, propelled with a ferocious snap by Vinnie Ruggiero on drums and either Ray Barretto or Willie Bobo on congas. 

The addition of congas adds an additional “junglish” sound to every track, in particular the Hampton original “The Barbarians”. All soloists are in fine form throughout, especially Hampton and Jay Cameron; only a few soloists are permitted on each track, which leaves room for everyone to stretch out for a few choruses. Those in the know will recognize veteran players like George Coleman and Horace Parlan among the mix. As far as the sessions themselves are concerned, Jazz With a Twist is a relatively straightforward set, whereas Explosion! is a bit more adventurous, including country and western tunes, Arabian stylings on “Delilah”, and an upbeat arrangement of “Bye Bye Love” among the more traditional tunes. Although still a good session, the eclectic nature of the tunes on the latter recording detracts from the overall enjoyment. However, the seven originals included on both prove that Hampton can compose tunes that can stand alongside any big band chart currently in circulation.

While not likely to launch another swing revival, this CD is a welcome reissue to an artist deserving of more attention. The last swing craze was fueled by the sheer joy and enthusiasm that good big band music can inspire; Hampton’s recordings are no exception. If Brian Setzer ever needs some inspiration, he would be wise to check out these recordings. ~ David Rickert  http://www.allaboutjazz.com/jazz-with-a-twist-explosion-the-sound-of-slide-hampton-slide-hampton-collectables-review-by-david-rickert.php

Personnel: on "Jazz With a Twist":Slide Hampton and Benny Jacobs-El, trombones; Willy Thomas and Hobrt Johnson, trumpets; George Coleman, tenor sax; Jay Cameron, baritone sax; Horace Parlan, piano; Eddie Khan, bass; Ray Barreto, congas; Vinnie Ruggiero, drums. On "Explosion!" Slide Hampton and Benjamin Jacobs-El, trombones; John Bello, Chad Ferreti, and Jerry Tyree, trumpets; Joe Farrell, tenor sax; Jay Cameron, baritone sax; Horace Parlan, piano; Bob Cranshaw, bass; Vinnie Ruggiero, drums; Willie Bobo, congas.

Jazz With A Twist/Explosion

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Barbara Fasano - Busy Being Free

Styles: Jazz, Vocal
Year: 2015
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 56:47
Size: 130,8 MB
Art: Front

(5:01)  1. How Little We Know
(5:12)  2. Cactus Tree
(3:58)  3. Remind Me
(2:59)  4. Dancing in the Dark
(4:03)  5. If I Loved You
(3:45)  6. It Never Was You
(3:17)  7. Roundabout
(5:20)  8. The Surrey with the Fringe on Top
(3:45)  9. Time Flies
(3:38) 10. I Got Lost in His Arms
(3:30) 11. Hurry on Down
(4:10) 12. But Beautiful
(4:38) 13. Photographs
(3:25) 14. Where or When

Barbara Fasano, whose fourth CD, “Busy Being Free" drops November 2015, has been hailed as one of the nation’s most stunning and soulful singers. Frank Scheck of The New York Post raves, "Fasano is a gorgeous, soulful singer who has an actor’s intensity in whatever she sings." Whether singing a song by Joni Mitchell or Harold Arlen or Cole Porter, Fasano takes her audience on a spellbinding, emotional musical journey. Her performances and recordings have won her three Backstage Bistro awards, three MAC awards and a New York Nightlife award. Fasano is a regular performer at New York’s most prestigious clubs. Together with her frequent musical partner, Eric Comstock, she was among the last singers to headline at the Algonquin’s legendary Oak Room supper club, with their show “HELLUVA TOWN: A New York Soundtrack”, which enjoyed an acclaimed and sold-out run and has toured the country. The New York Times’ Stephen Holden called it “exhilarating”, singling out Fasano as a “lyrically sensitive interpreter” and comparing her to one of her idols, Lena Horne. “Mr. Comstock and Ms. Fasano are turning the neighborhood into a hotbed of pleasure.”  

Fasano’s voice reaches deep into the soul of humanity. “She illuminates with torchlight,” according to David Finkle of The Huffington Post. “The slim, raven-haired Fasano continually allows feelings to simmer and crackle, singing Cole Porter's ‘In the Still of the Night’ as well or better than anyone has ever sung it.”   Rex Reed of The New York Observer notes, "She gives off palpable electricity", and NEXT’s David Hurst declares, “Fasano is nothing short of a revelation, with the poise and jazz chops to go with her beauty to create a formidable singer.” Theatermania’s Brian Scott Lipton simply states, “Fasano, who sounds better than ever, once again proves herself to be a remarkably expressive singer.” 

Wall Street Journal jazz critic Will Friedwald calls Barbara “a charismatic stylist who effectively channels the spirits of the great über-divas Lena Horne and Barbra Streisand” in his new book The Biographical Guide to the Great Jazz and Pop Singer. On her CD, “Written In The Stars”, a Harold Arlen collection, she surrounds herself with an A-list jazz ensemble, including John di Martino on piano. The CD has garnered praise in publications as diverse as JazzTimes and Playbill, and receives radio play around the world. The New Republic’s David Hajdu raves, “With this record, Barbara Fasano proves that she is not just a great Italian crooner, an heir to Sinatra for our time, but a jazz singer of the first rank.” Barbara’s previous CD, “The Girls of Summer”, is an eclectic mix ranging from Springsteen to Sondheim, and based on her one-woman show of the same title. Both of these CDs were named Record of the Year by the Manhattan Association of Cabarets and Back Stage Bistro awards, and her work as a live performer has twice earned her awards for Female Vocalist of the Year.

Barbara is a native New Yorker, who grew up in a spirited Italian Catholic household – excellent preparation for a life in show business! From her early childhood, music and stories were a way of life. Her mother made the Sunday lasagna while listening to Italian American singers like Jerry Vale on the radio. Her father listened to Louis Armstrong, Ella Fitzgerald and Bing Crosby and sang along in a joyful baritone, teaching Barbara many of his favorite songs. From the early Streisand albums, she learned the music of her favorite composer, Harold Arlen, and learned to play the guitar, memorizing recordings by Paul Simon, Joni Mitchell and other singer-songwriters. Combine all this with her grandparents’ stories of Neapolitan singers and vaudeville and you see how her musical identity was forged. Within her eclectic choices, what remains consistent is her ability to invest a lyric with deep emotional truth, creating virtual one-act plays out of each song.

She earned a degree in theatre, has worked as an actress across the country, and is the recipient of Hofstra University's Estabrook Alumni Achievement Award. Barbara's work as a teacher in New York and around the country includes private coaching, workshops and master classes in the art of performance and song interpretation. Together with Eric Comstock, their workshop, SING THE TRUTH, has enriched the lives and music of hundreds of vocalists. They have an ongoing relationship with the Musical Theater department at University of Michigan, and have recently taught a course in The Great American Songbook at the Neighborhood Playhouse School of the Theatre. She has also worked with the Michael Feinstein Songbook Initiative in Los Angeles, coaching and judging gifted high school students.

Barbara’s many New York headline engagement include concert appearances at Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center’s American Songbook at the Appel Room, Rose Hall, Dizzy’s Club Coca-Cola, New York Festival of Song, Town Hall and New York’s 92nd Street Y’s Lyrics and Lyricists series. Starring engagements in cabaret and nightclubs include Birdland, The Algonquin, Feinstein’s, The Carlyle,  Iridium, 54 Below, Café Sabarsky, the Colony in Palm Beach, and the Palace in Stamford, CT. Arts centers and music festivals across the country include Caramoor, Arizona Jazz Festival, Jersey Jazz, Kanbar Center, Cooperstown Music Festival, Sheldon Concert Hall and Jazz at The Bistro in St. Louis, Prince Music Theatre, and Kerrytown Concert House. Barbara recently made her London debut at Brasserie Zédel in Piccadilly. In the words of revered jazz critic Ira Gitler, she “has it all, and then some … artistic, swinging, and superbly entertaining.” http://barbarafasano.com/bio.html

Busy Being Free

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Christian McBride Trio - Live At The Village Vanguard

Styles: Neo bop
Year: 2015
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 68:26
Size: 157,5 MB
Art: Front

( 9:13)  1. Fried Pies
( 2:38)  2. Band Introduction
( 7:14)  3. Interlude
( 9:06)  4. Sand Dune
( 6:56)  5. The Lady in My Life
( 8:41)  6. Cherokee
(10:19)  7. Good Morning Heartache
( 7:01)  8. Down by the Riverside
( 7:14)  9. Car Wash

Recorded over three consecutive nights in December of 2014, Live at the Village Vanguard showcases bassist Christian McBride and his trio in concert at the storied New York venue. A four-time Grammy winner, McBride has been a superstar in the jazz world since debuting as a teenager in the late '80s. Here, McBride is joined by his trio bandmates, pianist Christian Sands and drummer Ulysses Owens, Jr. This is the same outfit that recorded the swinging, sophisticated 2013 studio album Out Here. As with that release, Live at the Village Vanguard finds McBride diving headlong into a set of swaggering, lively standards, originals, and unexpected covers, including a take on the theme to the cult '70s comedy film Car Wash. https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/live-at-the-village-vanguard/id1022494050

Live At The Village Vanguard

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