Ruby Braff And Ellis Larkins - Calling Berlin, Vol. 1

Styles: Cornet And Piano Jazz
Year: 1995
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 64:31
Size: 149,4 MB
Art: Front

(3:59)  1. It's A Lovely Day Today
(6:23)  2. Blue Skies
(6:01)  3. Alexander's Ragtime Band
(3:34)  4. I'm Putting All My Eggs In One Basket
(5:08)  5. How Deep Is The Ocean?
(2:47)  6. Soft Lights And Sweet Music
(4:22)  7. Let's Face The Music And Dance
(3:28)  8. My Walking Stick
(4:56)  9. Russian Lullaby
(4:02) 10. You're Laughing At Me
(3:42) 11. This Year's Kisses
(3:34) 12. Top Hat, White Tie And Tails
(4:25) 13. They Say It's Wonderful
(3:01) 14. Steppin' Out With My Baby
(5:02) 15. Easter Parade

Cornetist Ruby Braff and pianist Ellis Larkins recorded a classic album of duets in 1955 and had a reunion in 1972. They waited another 22 years before cutting their third set but, despite the passing of time, the magic heard on their earlier recordings is still very much present on their Arbors release. Both Braff and Larkins love melodies and rarely leave the themes behind in their improvisations. They perform 15 Irving Berlin tunes, ranging from the famous ("Alexander's Ragtime Band," "Easter Parade," and "How Deep Is the Ocean") to the more obscure ("My Walking Stick," "You're Laughing at Me," and "Steppin' out with My Baby"). In all cases the interpretations are loving, personal, and uplifting. Guitarist Bucky Pizzarelli makes the group a trio on two numbers, and his mellow playing fits right in to the intimate setting. Because Braff (who has always had his own sound) has long been a jazz giant, and Larkins is rightfully considered an extraordinary accompanist and perfect on melodic ballads, their most recent matchup is quite successful and delightful. ~ Scott Yanow http://www.allmusic.com/album/calling-berlin-vol-1-mw0000646749

Personnel: Ruby Braff (cornet); Ellis Larkins (piano); Bucky Pizzarelli (guitar).

Calling Berlin, Vol. 1

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Robin Eubanks - Wake Up Call

Styles: Trombone Jazz
Year: 1997
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 60:23
Size: 140,3 MB
Art: Front

(7:24)  1. United
(8:19)  2. Ceora
(7:01)  3. Soliloquy
(8:56)  4. Oriental Folk Song
(7:40)  5. Wake Up Call
(7:18)  6. You Are Too Beautiful
(6:58)  7. Scrapple From The Apple
(6:45)  8. Rush Hour

A former Jazz Messenger who has also performed with the Elvin Jones Jazz Machine and the Dave Holland Quintet, trombonist Robin Eubanks' Sirocco Jazz debut is also the first recording for the British label. For this recording Eubanks gathered a group of old friends, alto saxophonist Antonio Hart, bassist Lonnie Plaxico, and drummer Gene Jackson, plus newcomers pianist Eric Lewis and trumpeter Duane Eubanks, Robin's younger brother, to perform a program of three originals, four jazz classics, two of them by Wayne Shorter, and the standard "You Are Too Beautiful." Eubanks' big sound, improvisational imagination, and genre-crossing versatility have made him one of the busier trombonists on the jazz scene, with Eubanks staying in a modern post-bop vein for this recording. Favorites include the two Shorter compositions, "United," given an Afro-Latin treatment here, and "Oriental Folk Song," staying close to the original, with "Elvinish" feel courtesy of Jackson and the head played by trumpet and trombone. Other favorites include Eubanks' compositions, the beautiful "Soliloquy," the frantic title track, based on a rapid repeating figure played by trombone and alto sax, and the up-tempo blues "Rush Hour." A welcome addition to the Eubanks discography. ~ Greg Turner http://www.allmusic.com/album/wake-up-call-mw0000233373

Personnel: Robin Eubanks (trombone); Antonio Hart (alto saxophone); Duane Eubanks (trumpet); Eric Lewis (piano); Gene Jackson (drums).

Wake Up Call

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Shirley Scott Trio - Like Cozy

Styles: Piano Jazz
Year: 1960
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 72:12
Size: 166,1 MB
Art: Front

(4:33)  1. Sweet Lorraine
(4:22)  2. I Thought I'd Let You Know
(4:48)  3. I Should Care
(4:48)  4. Spring Is Here
(3:59)  5. I Didn't Know What Time It Was
(4:16)  6. Gee Baby, Ain't I Good To You?
(5:11)  7. Until The Real Thing Comes Along
(3:49)  8. Lover Man (Oh, Where Can You Be?)
(4:12)  9. Like Cozy
(5:02) 10. Little Girl Blue
(5:01) 11. Laura
(5:19) 12. You Do Something To Me
(4:34) 13. Once In A While
(4:14) 14. 'Deed I Do
(4:08) 15. More Than You Know
(3:48) 16. My Heart Stood Still

In the ranks of unsung organists Shirley Scott has to be among the most overlooked. A veteran of countless Prestige studio gigs and an indispensable creative cog in the Eddie “Lockjaw” Davis organ combo of the late 1950s her role in popularizing and broadening her instrument’s appeal is difficult to overstate. Yet she’s rarely named among the roll call of her male peers like Jimmy Smith, Jack McDuff, Jimmy McGriff and so many others. The reasons behind the disparity are tough to pinpoint. Some might cite gender politics as the chief culprit; others might finger her prolific career as session musician. Whatever the cause behind her comparative obscurity this recent Prestige two-fer, which collects the Moodsville albums The Shirley Scott Trio and Like Cozy into one convenient package, offers a fresh reason for reappraisal and restitution. Like so many other players Scott’s approach to the organ was grounded in her earlier career as a pianist. Both of these dates provide a rare chance to compare her styles on the two instruments up close. Beginning with the easy syrupy swing of “Sweet Lorraine” on organ, she switches to piano for “I Thought I’d Let You Know.” Coming full circle of sorts “I Should Care” features her on both through the studio wizardry of overdubbing. Differing from most of her colleagues Scott regularly employed a bassist in her group, freeing up her feet from the necessity of pedal work and allowing her to focus more efficiently on melodic and harmonic possibilities in her improvisations. Her approach to acoustic keys is likewise grounded in relaxed lyricism and cleanly articulated chording. In typical Moodsville fashion all of the tunes on each of the albums are standards or ballads taken at slow to medium tempos. Duvivier and Edgehill (colleagues from the Davis group) fit like a rhythmic glove around Scott’s lead statements and Tucker adopts a similarly sensitive touch when it comes to accompaniment on the piano pieces. Track lengths are limited to the four to five minute range, keeping things concise, but Scott still finds the space for plenty of relaxed and imaginative invention. Visit her hard-edged vibrato-heavy lines on “Laura” for just one of many examples. And while there isn’t a burner in the bunch this collection works as a lavishly programmed source of elegant small combo jazz with liberally placed soulful accents. Hopefully it will rekindle wider interest in the substantial talent that was Scott’s gift. ~ Derek Taylor https://www.allaboutjazz.com/like-cozy-shirley-scott-prestige-records-review-by-derek-taylor.php
 

Personnel: Shirley Scott- organ, piano; George Tucker- bass; George Duvivier- bass; Arthur Edgehill- drums.

Like Cozy

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Anita O'Day - Gone With The Wind

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 45:52
Size: 105.0 MB
Styles: Vocal jazz
Year: 1999
Art: Front

[ 3:05] 1. A Song For You
[ 4:13] 2. Undecided
[ 6:10] 3. What Are You Doing The Rest Of Your Life
[ 4:12] 4. Exactly Like You
[ 6:07] 5. When Sunny Gets Blue
[ 4:19] 6. I Get A Kick Out Of You
[ 3:52] 7. It Had To Be You
[ 2:56] 8. Opus One
[10:54] 9. Gone With The Wind

Few female singers matched the hard-swinging and equally hard-living Anita O'Day for sheer exuberance and talent in all areas of jazz vocals. Though three or four outshone her in pure quality of voice, her splendid improvising, wide dynamic tone, and innate sense of rhythm made her the most enjoyable singer of the age. O'Day's first appearances in a big band shattered the traditional image of a demure female vocalist by swinging just as hard as the other musicians on the bandstand, best heard on her vocal trading with Roy Eldridge on the Gene Krupa recording "Let Me Off Uptown." After making her solo debut in the mid-'40s, she incorporated bop modernism into her vocals and recorded over a dozen of the best vocal LPs of the era for Verve during the 1950s and '60s. Though hampered during her peak period by heavy drinking and later, drug addiction, she made a comeback and continued singing into the new millennium. ~John Bush

Gone With The Wind

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Sophie Milman - In The Moonlight

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 56:41
Size: 129.8 MB
Styles: Vocal jazz
Year: 2011
Art: Front

[3:46] 1. Do It Again
[3:25] 2. Oh Look At Me Now
[5:28] 3. Moonlight
[4:26] 4. Speak Low
[4:01] 5. Till There Was You
[4:41] 6. Watch What Happens
[4:34] 7. Prelude To A Kiss
[5:06] 8. Ces Petits Riens
[4:05] 9. So Sorry
[4:37] 10. Detour Ahead
[3:30] 11. Let Me Love You
[4:57] 12. Day Dream
[3:58] 13. No More Blues

Widely regarded as one of Canada's best jazz singers, Russian-born, Toronto-based vocalist Sophie Milman changes tact slightly for her fourth studio album, In the Moonlight. The twinkling piano chords, shuffling, brushed stroke rhythms, and gentle brass instrumentation which defined her previous output are still very much in evidence, but having traveled to New York to record with producer Matt Pierson (Jane Monheit, Michael Franks), the Juno Award winner has capitalized on the opportunity to expand her sound by inviting a string ensemble on board for the first time in her career. However, avoiding the temptation to smother the timeless, smoky, jazz bar arrangements in layers of bombastic layers of strings, the pair only use their newly recruited musicians sparingly and when needed, with only the Duke Ellington standards "Prelude to a Kiss" and "Day Dream," and the Umbrellas of Cherbourg number "Watch What Happens" offering anything more than the occasional orchestral flourish. It's an approach which entirely befits Milman's intimate and understated cabaret tones, whose seductive French-language delivery of Serge Gainsbourg's "Ces Petits Riens" and expressive, timeless performance of the Gershwin classic "Do It Again," belie her twenty-something years. The constant low-key, candlelight vibes inevitably begin to wear a little thin, but luckily, Milman occasionally shakes things up a little bit, whether it's the sensuous bossa nova reworking of the Billie Holiday favorite "Speak Low," the toe-tapping swing jazz rendition of Jon Hendricks' "No More Blues" or, in a rare concession to the modern music scene, the yearning and heartfelt torch song treatment of Feist's folk-pop album track "So Sorry." Indeed, it's the latter's convincing transition which makes you wish that Milman would tackle more contemporary material more often. Nevertheless, In the Moonlight is still a beautifully arranged selection of songs which, while nothing particularly revolutionary, unarguably provides one of the classiest Sunday morning soundtracks of the year. ~Jon O'Brien

In The Moonlight 

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The 3 Sounds - Introducing The 3 Sounds

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 37:55
Size: 86.8 MB
Styles: Bop, Soul-jazz
Year: 1958/2011
Art: Front

[4:33] 1. Tenderly
[4:39] 2. Willow Weep For Me
[4:38] 3. Both Sides
[4:23] 4. Blue Bells
[4:37] 5. It's Nice
[3:52] 6. Goin' Home
[7:11] 7. Would'n You
[3:58] 8. O Sole Mio

What's remarkable about Introducing the Three Sounds is how the trio's lightly swinging sound arrived fully intact. From the basis of this album, it sounds as if pianist Gene Harris, bassist Andrew Simpkins, and drummer William Dowdy have been playing together for years. There's empathetic, nearly intuitive interplay between the three musicians, and Harris's deft style already sounds mature and entirely distinctive. There's no question that this music is easy to listen to, but dismissing it because of that would be wrong -- there's genuine style in their light touch and in Harris' bluesy compositions. The Three Sounds never really deviated from the sound they established on Introducing, but that's one of the things that is so remarkable -- they were fully formed on their very first album. Even if it was a peak, it wasn't the only peak in their career. They would often match the heights of this album, but this debut remains a shining jewel in their catalog, and the way to become acquainted with their sound. [The CD reissue of Introducing the Three Sounds contains the five outtakes plus the alternate take of "Goin' Home" that originally comprised the Japanese album, Introducing the Three Sounds, Vol. 2.] ~Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Introducing The 3 Sounds

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Ben Webster - King Of The Tenors

Styles: Saxophone Jazz
Year: 1954
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 38:48
Size: 90,8 MB
Art: Front

(3:01)  1. Tenderly
(4:10)  2. Jive At Six
(3:05)  3. Don't Get Around Much Anymore
(3:47)  4. That's All
(4:31)  5. Bounce Blues
(2:48)  6. Pennies From Heaven
(3:20)  7. Cotton Tail
(3:36)  8. Danny Boy
(3:55)  9. Poutin'
(3:35) 10. Bounce Blues
(2:54) 11. That's All

This 1953 date matched Webster with such peers as alto saxophonist Benny Carter, trumpeter Harry Edison, and pianist Oscar Peterson for a series of elegant yet soulful and exuberant small group dates. With no cut longer than four and a half minutes, the players didn't have time for excess statements or overkill; they had to quickly get to the heart of the matter in their solos, make their points, and return to the head. The original session has been enlarged by the addition of two previously unissued tracks, plus an alternate version of "That's All" that was later issued as a single. Label head Norman Granz excelled in producing swing-oriented, crisply played mainstream dates. Although this date is more than four decades old, Ben Webster's solos have a freshness and vitality that make them quite relevant to contemporary events. ~ Ron Wynn http://www.allmusic.com/album/king-of-the-tenors-mw0000308183

Personnel:  Ben Webster - tenor saxophone;  Benny Carter - alto saxophone;   Harry "Sweets" Edison – trumpet;  Oscar Peterson – piano;  Herb Ellis;   Barney Kessel  – guitar;  Ray Brown – double bass;  Alvin Stoller, J. C. Heard – drums.

King Of The Tenors

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Janis Siegel - Friday Night Special

Styles: Jazz, Vocal
Year: 2003
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 48:42
Size: 111,9 MB
Art: Front

(4:25)  1. The Same Love That Made Me Laugh, Made Me Cry
(5:38)  2. My, How The Time Goes By
(4:28)  3. I Just Dropped By To Say Hello
(5:26)  4. My Love Is / My Babe
(5:00)  5. Let It Be
(5:33)  6. Ill Wind
(4:30)  7. You Don't Know Me
(3:33)  8. There's A Small Hotel
(4:44)  9. Make Me A Present Of You
(5:21) 10. Misty

A founding member of the vocal quartet Manhattan Transfer and now an established solo artist as well, Janis Siegel steps out as a leader on the Telarc label for a second time with a program that couldn't be more different from her last effort. Where I Wish You Love found her delivering jazz-inflected renditions of classic pop tunes, on Friday Night Special she leads an organ/tenor quartet through a set of more obscure material. Hammond organist Joey DeFrancesco provides powerful support throughout, but is tastefully (and a bit uncharacteristically) self-effacing in his playing; tenor saxophonist Houston Person, drummer Buddy Williams, and alternating guitarists Peter Bernstein and Russell Malone round out the quartet. 

Siegel shines brightest on the slow ballads and the sultry torch numbers; her rendition of Eddy Arnold's "You Don't Know Me" is especially effective, as are her takes on "I Just Dropped By to Say Hello" and the Harold Arlen composition "Ill Wind." She's a bit less convincing as a straight blues vocalist, and her tepid version of "My, How the Time Goes By" threatens to derail the proceedings early on. But by the end of the program, when she kicks into a delightful and surprisingly uptempo arrangement of "Misty," she has proved all over again why she's one of America's favorite jazz singers. Recommended. ~ Rick Anderson http://www.allmusic.com/album/friday-night-special-mw0000595511

Personnel: Janis Siegel (vocals); Houston Person (temor saxophone); Joey DeFrancesco (Hammond B-3 organ); Peter Bernstein, Russell Malone (guitar).

Friday Night Special

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Valery Ponomarev - The Messenger

Styles: Trumpet Jazz
Year: 2001
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 50:02
Size: 118,0 MB
Art: Front

(6:14)  1. Driving To A Gig II
(9:05)  2. Messenger From Russia
(6:10)  3. Long Distance Relationship
(9:42)  4. Escape From Gorki Park
(7:56)  5. Dark Alley
(5:22)  6. Star Dust
(5:30)  7. Mirage

It’s been quite some time since Russian trumpeter Valery Ponomarev defected from his native land in order to play jazz in America. Landing a gig with Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers almost immediately, Ponomarev has gone on to practice the jazz tradition while being documented on a distinguished series of dates for the Reservoir label. Clearly, the affection that Ponomarev has for Blakey is still palpable owing to the title of his latest endeavor. The Messenger is indeed hard bop in the grand style and yet that tart Russian tinge that distinguishes the trumpeter’s sound is ever present, giving his originals a worldly stance all their own. Ponomarev definitely could not ask for better company. Tenor saxophonist Michael Karn has his own individualized line of attack, more in tune with mainstream guys like Buddy Tate and Bud Freeman than Coltrane or Rollins. Pianist Sid Simmons is one of Philadelphia’s finest and drummer Jimmy Cobb really needs no introduction at all. With a concise set of diverse tunes and Jim Anderson’s crisp recorded sound, you end up with 50 minutes of high octane playing that not only treads new ground but also spreads the message of the elders. ~ C.Andrew Hovan https://www.allaboutjazz.com/the-messenger-valery-ponomarev-reservoir-music-review-by-c-andrew-hovan.php
 

Personnel: Valery Ponomarev (trumpet), Michael Karn (tenor saxophone), Sid Simmons (piano), Martin Zenker (bass), Jimmy Cobb (drums)

The Messenger

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Steve Davis - Systems Blue

Styles: Trombone Jazz
Year: 2001
File: MP3@224K/s
Time: 67:50
Size: 108,9 MB
Art: Front

(6:33)  1. Surrey With The Fringe On Top
(9:28)  2. Spirit Waltz
(7:42)  3. Systems Blue
(8:52)  4. A Nightingale Sang In Berkeley Square
(7:32)  5. If I Love Again
(5:25)  6. Who Can I Turn To
(7:23)  7. Speak Low
(6:24)  8. Namely You
(3:43)  9. Three And One
(4:43) 10. My Old Flame

Steve Davis, the Criss Cross house trombonist and a member of One for All, is joined by a couple bandmates and two other label regulars for a session mostly devoted to standards. The setting sets Davis' deep debt to the work of J.J. Johnson in sharp relief. The trombonist develops his solos with smooth, measured phrases that emphasize eighth-note lines mostly in the middle register of the horn. On tunes such as "Who Can I Turn To," his work also bears evidence of early Miles Davis (not surprising given the close relationship between the trumpet legend and J.J. Johnson in the late '40s when each was coming to grips with bebop). What Davis lacks that his namesake had was a dramatic way with the melody. This is most evident on the trombonist's matter-of-fact reading of "A Nightingale Sang in Berkeley Square." Pianist David Hazeltine's eloquent, bop-based impressionism provides a fine foil for the leader's horn. The two tracks with Mike DiRubbo are more in the Coltrane modal mode and, though well played, seem out of place in the session. ~ David Dupont http://www.allmusic.com/album/systems-blue-mw0000221316

Personnel:  Steve Davis (trombone); David Hazeltine (piano); Peter Washington (bass); Joe Farnsworth (drums).

Systems Blue

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Bobby Watson - Made in America

Styles: Saxophone Jazz
Year: 2017
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 63:40
Size: 149,2 MB
Art: Front

(5:42)  1. The Aviator “for Wendell Pruitt”
(5:12)  2. The Guitarist “for Grant Green”
(6:18)  3. The Butterfly “for Butterfly McQueen”
(7:51)  4. The Cyclist “for Major Taylor”
(6:44)  5. The G.O.A.T. “for Sammy Davis, Jr.”
(5:49)  6. The Entrepreneur “for Madam C.J. Walker
(6:17)  7. The Jockey “for Isaac Murphy”
(1:06)  8. A Moment of Silence
(7:53)  9. The Real Lone Ranger “for Bass Reeves”
(4:02) 10. The Computer Scientist “for Dr. Mark Dean”
(6:41) 11. I’ve Gotta Be Me

Saxophonist, composer, producer, and educator Bobby Watson grew up in Kansas City, KS. As a consequence, his playing is steeped in the roadhouse blues tradition of his native city. He got his formal education at the University of Miami, where his fellow students included Pat Metheny, Jaco Pastorious, and Bruce Hornsby. The college has a distinguished, long-running, and well-respected jazz performance program. After he was graduated in 1975, he moved to New York City, the jazz capitol of the world, and soon found employment as musical director for Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers. Watson stuck with Blakey's group from 1977 to 1981, and then pursued session and tour work with more vigor, working with drummers Louis Hayes and Max Roach, saxophonists George Coleman and Branford Marsalis, multi-instrumentalist Sam Rivers, guitarist Carlos Santana and trumpeter Wynton Marsalis. He's also worked with a who's-who in the jazz vocal world, including Joe Williams, Dianne Reeves, Lou Rawls, Betty Carter, and Carmen Lundy. Finally he launched his own group, Bobby Watson & Horizon with bassist Curtis Lundy and drummer Victor Lewis, and they recorded for Blue Note and Columbia Records. Watson and Horizon were in demand and on the road from the mid-'80s to the late '90s, and he still performs with the group, with differing sidemen. Watson has amassed nearly 30 recordings as a bandleader and he's a veteran sessionman, having recorded on more than 100 other recordings. As a composer, he has recorded more than 100 of his original compositions, and his arrangements for big bands have circulated internationally. Watson, basing himself alternately in New York City and Kansas City, has been a first-call musician for more than three decades now, and he also served as a member of the adjunct faculty at William Paterson University in the mid-'80s and at the Manhattan School of Music from 1996-1999. In 2000, he was selected as the first William D. and Mary Grant/Missouri Distinguished Professor of Jazz Studies, and he's been working at the University of Missouri/Kansas City, balancing live concerts around the world with his teaching responsibilities. Since 2000, Watson's recordings under his own name include three excellent releases for the Palmetto Records label, based in New York City. They include Live & Learn (2002), Horizon Reassembled (2004), and From the Heart (2008). ~ Richard Skelly https://itunes.apple.com/us/artist/bobby-watson/id3492427#fullText

Personnel:  Bobby Watson [alto saxophone]; Stephen Scott [piano]; Curtis Lundy [bass]; Lewis Nash [drums]

Made in America

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Tony Bennett - Jazz

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 67:17
Size: 154.0 MB
Styles: Vocal
Year: 1987/2013
Art: Front

[3:06] 1. I Can't Believe That You're In Love With Me
[2:00] 2. Don't Get Around Much Anymore
[2:25] 3. Stella By Starlight
[3:59] 4. On Green Dolphin Street
[2:46] 5. Let's Face The Music And Dance
[3:18] 6. I'm Thru With Love
[3:32] 7. Solitude
[3:11] 8. Lullaby Of Broadway
[2:30] 9. Dancing In The Dark
[1:58] 10. I Let A Song Go Out Of My Heart
[4:57] 11. When Lights Are Low
[2:03] 12. Just One Of Those Things
[2:06] 13. Crazy Rhythm
[2:11] 14. Street Of Dreams
[2:33] 15. Love Scene
[4:31] 16. While The Music Plays On
[2:18] 17. Close Your Eyes
[4:30] 18. Out Of This World
[2:26] 19. Just Friends
[2:11] 20. Have You Met Miss Jones
[4:56] 21. Danny Boy
[3:39] 22. Sweet Lorraine

What a wonderful idea. This is a compilation album ranging across Tony Bennett's early career, from 1954 to 1967, highlighting some of his more adventurous sessions with jazz musicians, including Count Basie, Herbie Hancock, Herbie Mann, Art Blakey, Stan Getz, and others, and featuring jazz standards like "Green Dolphin Street," along with a healthy dose of Duke Ellington compositions. Bennett not only holds his own, he sounds delighted on every track. The ironic thing, of course, is that Columbia frowned on these kinds of side excursions from his pop career in the '50s. Now, all is forgiven, and this proves an unusually imaginative repackaging that illuminates an important part of Bennett's talent and further contributes to his '80s renaissance. (The album contains a previously unreleased 1964 performance of "Danny Boy" featuring Stan Getz. Originally released as a two-LP set, Jazz was compressed to a 67-minute CD by excising two tracks.) ~William Ruhlmann

Jazz

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Roy Hargrove - Approaching Standards

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 64:01
Size: 146.5 MB
Styles: Bop, Trumpet jazz
Year: 1994
Art: Front

[6:09] 1. Easy To Remember
[6:11] 2. Ruby My Dear
[7:38] 3. Whisper Not
[5:16] 4. What's New
[7:34] 5. September In The Rain
[6:24] 6. You Don't Know What Love Is
[8:01] 7. End Of A Love Affair
[5:43] 8. Things We Did Last Summer
[4:50] 9. Everything I Have Is Yours/Dedicated To You
[6:10] 10. My Shining Hour

Roy Hargrove/Trumpet,Flugelhorn; Stephen Scott/Piano; John Hicks/Piano; Billy Higgins/Drums; Ron Blake/Soprano Saxophone,Tenor Saxophone; Scott Colley/Bass; Foster/Drums; Gregory Hutchinson/Drums; Frank Lacy/Trombone;Christian McBride/Bass; Rodney Whitaker/Bass.

Ballads dominate the album, accounting for seven of the album's ten tracks; Hargrove generally interprets them in a cool, emotionally detached manner...Compiled from four albums whose recording dates span from 1989 to 1993, Approaching Standards...also documents Hargrove's growth as a musician. "Everything I Have is Yours/Dedicated to You," taken from the 1993 recording Of Kindred Souls, finds Hargrove in a more mature frame of mind, and points toward the much better albums he would soon make.

Approaching Standards

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Randy Crawford, Joe Sample - Live

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 49:42
Size: 113.8 MB
Styles: Soul jazz
Year: 2012
Art: Front

[5:13] 1. Every Day I Have The Blues
[3:56] 2. Feeling Good
[3:17] 3. Tell Me More And More And Then Some
[5:30] 4. Rainy Night In Georgia
[3:45] 5. This Bitter Earth
[2:25] 6. Me, Myself And I
[3:20] 7. No Regrets
[4:57] 8. One Day I'll Fly Away
[5:02] 9. Almaz
[6:07] 10. Street Life
[6:04] 11. Last Night At Danceland

Bass – Nicklas Sample; Drums – Steve Gadd; Piano – Joe Sample; Vocals – Randy Crawford. This album was recorded at various concert halls throughout Europe, during October - December of 2008.

Randy Crawford's and Joe Sample's musical paths have been intertwined for 36 years; they began with his keyboard work on her debut album Everything Must Change in 1976. She returned the favor a couple of years later with her vocal on the Crusaders' 1978 smash "Street Life." The pair have worked together intermittently since then, but only formally recorded as a dual entity on 2007's Feeling Good, a collection of (mostly) jazz tunes and standards. They followed it with No Regrets in 2008, a collection of blues, soul, and pop tunes. Both albums were highly regarded critically. Sample's piano was aided by drummer Steve Gadd and bassist Christian McBride. Live was recorded on various European stages between October and December of 2008, immediately prior to and just after the release of No Regrets. Gadd is present here, but it is Sample's son Nicklas in the upright bass chair. The impeccably recorded program is drawn from both albums and then some. Beginning with an in-the-pocket read of "Everyday I Have the Blues," and continuing with standards from the jazz, blues, and soul books, the set is well-sequenced and feels very much like a seamless live date. There's an excellent, jazzed-up reading of "Street Life" surprisingly enough, and a shimmering take on Tony Joe White's "Rainy Night in Georgia" (that features Sample quoting from the Crusaders' "Hard Times" in his vamps and fills. There's also moving a version of Clyde Otis' "This Bitter Earth" (first recorded by Dinah Washington in 1960). The tunes that reflect the depth of Crawford's and Sample's musical relationship best, however, are in her "Almaz," and Sample's "One Day I'll Fly Away." On the former, Crawford's vocal is haunting, spare, intimate; it is underscored by Sample's elegant playing with its restrained harmonics and Spanish tinge. The latter tune was more risky. Given that the song was a hit for Crawford and is her best-known tune, the bubbling bassline and lush strings are parts of its signature. Stripping all that back for this piano-trio setting meant letting the tune's simple melody be the sole anchor for its smoldering emotion. Crawford deliberately understates it. Sample responds by filling the spaces with poetic economy and a new version emerges that is every bit as resonant. While Live is a further inscription in the collaborative book authored by Crawford and Sample, it is more, too: a classy, soulful example of inspired musicmaking. ~Thom Jurek

Live

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Reuben Wilson - Organ Donor

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 48:27
Size: 110.9 MB
Styles: B3 Organ jazz
Year: 1998
Art: Front

[6:53] 1. Hot Rod
[5:25] 2. Orange Peel
[5:40] 3. Now's The Time
[6:07] 4. Groovin'
[8:14] 5. Trouble Man
[6:40] 6. Got To Get Your Own '98
[4:19] 7. Ronnie's Bonnie
[5:05] 8. Organ Donor

Drums – Adrian Harpham; Flute [Tenor], Flute [Alto], Flute [Soprano] – Melvin Butler; Guitar – Robin Macatangay; Keyboards – Bruce Flowers; Organ [Hammond B3] – Reuben Wilsonl; Percussion – Ricardo Rodriquez; Saxophone [Tenor], Flute [Tenor] – Donny Mcaslin; Trombone – Jason Forsythe; Trumpet – Kenny Rampton; Vocals – Saundra Williams, Starr Adkins.

Reuben Wilson (born 1935) is best remembered as one of Blue Note's funkiest organists, making five albums for the label between 1968 and 1971 (only Love Bug and the excellent Blue Mode are currently available on CD). He went on to record three more records for Groove Merchant, then he whipped up some disco for smaller labels and by the end of the seventies, he was gigging with the Fatback Band. Wilson disappeared from the scene until groups like Us3, Nas and A Tribe Called Quest started sampling his funky old Blue Note grooves. Now he's part of that groove hierarchy of elder funksmen who tour with funk-jazz revivalists, jams it up with Guru and the Greyboy All Stars and records groove tribs like Organic Grooves (Hip Bop).

Organ Donor is a terrific slice of heavy-metal funk. Recorded in 1996 and just recently released the U.S., it's a great introduction to Wilson's brand of grind. He's got a spare style that belies his instrument's reputation. But he manages to whip off one cool lick after another – each packing a powerful wallop of a punch. It's as if his playing doesn't have to prove anything. He knows what grooves. All eight tracks here are newly recorded, but only two (by my count) are really 'new'. Both "Now's the Time" and "Organ Donor," co-written by Wilson and producer / bassist Chris Parks, have a wildly funky groove. The rest will seem pretty familiar to funk fans, yet all are worth hearing in their new incarnation: "Ronnie's Bonnie" (originally from 1968's On Broadway and, because of US3, the launchpad for Wilson's revival), "Hot Rod" (from 1969's Love Bug, here done up MMW-style), "Orange Peel" (from 1969's Blue Mode ) and the excellent disco-funk of "Got To Get Your Own" (from an old Cadet album of the same name).

Despite a lot of cooks in the kitchen, few players other than Wilson are featured. But all solo well and a few stand out: Bruce Flower's keyboards on "Hot Rod," Melvin Bulter on "Orange Peel" and either Bulter or Mcaslin on "Got To Get Your Own" and Robin Macatangay's guitar on "Trouble Man" and "Organ Donor." This is a great disc for groove lovers, and there ain't one dud in the bunch. ~Douglas Payne

Organ Donor

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Margaretha Evmark, Rolf Jardemark - Plays Cole Porter: Get Out Of Town

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 53:11
Size: 121.8 MB
Styles: Guitar & vocal jazz
Year: 2008
Art: Front

[3:30] 1. Let's Do It
[4:13] 2. Get Out Of Town
[4:59] 3. In The Still Of The Night
[3:31] 4. So In Love
[4:05] 5. I Love Paris
[2:53] 6. Too Darn Hot
[4:41] 7. Just One Of Those Things
[4:35] 8. You'd Be So Nice To Come Home To
[4:35] 9. I Love You
[4:25] 10. I Concentrate On You
[3:05] 11. You Do Something To Me
[4:31] 12. Easy To Love
[4:02] 13. Everytime We Say Goodbye

Accordion – Pierre Eriksson (2); Drums – Anders Kjellberg (tracks: 3, 7, 9, 11); Guitar – Rolf Jardemark; Harmonica – Björn Karlsson (tracks: 3, 7, 11); Vibraphone – Mark Johnson (tracks: 3, 9, 10); Vocals, Double Bass – Margareta Evmark.

“The older I get, the more I appreciate truly good songwriting. This album was my first with an in depth focus on vocals. It features the work of the great Cole Porter, one of the most important contributors to the American songbook and entertainment.” ~Rolf Jardemark

Plays Cole Porter: Get Out Of Town

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Ornette Coleman - Virgin Beauty

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 44:53
Size: 102.8 MB
Styles: Free jazz, Saxophone jazz
Year: 1988/2013
Art: Front

[4:19] 1. 3 Wishes
[5:09] 2. Bourgeois Boogie
[4:44] 3. Happy Hour
[3:33] 4. Virgin Beauty
[5:20] 5. Healing The Feeling
[4:22] 6. Singing In The Shower
[4:23] 7. Desert Players
[4:22] 8. Honeymooners
[3:00] 9. Chanting
[1:25] 10. Spelling The Alphabet
[4:11] 11. Unknown Artist

This CD is often quite exciting, if a bit messy. Ornette Coleman (on alto, trumpet and violin) is heard with his "double quartet" Prime Time, which at the time was comprised of guitarists Bern Nix and Charlie Ellerbee, electric bassists Al MacDowell and Chris Walker, and drummers Denardo Coleman (who also plays some keyboards) and Calvin Weston. As if the ensembles are not dense and overcrowded enough, Jerry Garcia sits in on third guitar on three of the 11 Coleman originals. The music is frequently exciting, but will take several listens to absorb. Worth investigating. ~Scott Yanow

Virgin Beauty

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Robin Eubanks, Steve Turre - Dedications

Styles: Trombone Jazz
Year: 1989
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 50:08
Size: 115,1 MB
Art: Front

(6:22)  1. The New Breed
(6:11)  2. V.O.
(6:33)  3. Red, Black and Green Blues
(6:43)  4. Trance Dance
(5:03)  5. Perpetual Broove
(7:16)  6. Especially for You
(5:02)  7. Koncepts
(6:55)  8. Victory

This CD teams together two of the brightest young trombonists of the period, Robin Eubanks and Steve Turre. The music covers a wide area with "The New Breed" placing the horns over a complex 7/4 funk rhythm (with pianist Mulgrew Miller making his recording debut on synthesizer), "V.O." being a modern Latin original, "Red, Black & Green Blues" featuring the band jamming on a blues reminiscent of the Jazz Messengers and "Trance Dance" evolving from a free form introduction to a nearly impossible-to-play solo section (with 45 beats every four bars). The funky "Perpetual Groove" is succeded by a ballad dedicated to Woody Shaw, the straightahead "Koncepts" (similar to "Giant Steps") and the uptempo "Victory." Eubanks and Turre had worked together on and off for nearly four yaers at this point and their familiarity with each other's playing shows. Add to the two trombones a strong and flexible rhythm section and the result is a stimluating and varied set of modern jazz. ~ Scott Yanow http://www.allmusic.com/album/dedications-mw0000202222

Personnel:  Robin Eubanks - trombone, bass trombone, keyboards, bells;  Steve Turre - trombone, sea shells, synthesizer, bells, claves;  Mulgrew Miller - piano, synthesizers;  Francesca Tanksley – synthesizer;  Charnett Moffett – bass;  Tommy Campbell, Tony Reedus – drums;  Jimmy Delgado - congas, timbales

Dedications

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Inger Marie Gundersen - My Heart Would Have A Reason

Styles: Vocal

Year: 2009

File: MP3@320K/s

Time: 47:51

Size: 110,1 MB

Art: Front

(3:31)  1. Some Things Never Change Music

(4:09)  2. I Can See Clearly Now

(4:08)  3. That's All

(4:34)  4. Something

(4:11)  5. The Road From Yesterday

(4:07)  6. Last First Kiss

(5:17)  7. The First Time I Ever Saw Your Face

(3:47)  8. I Only Want To Be With You

(5:27)  9. Turn Your Lights Down Low

(5:28) 10. Why Should I Cry For You?

(3:07) 11. Even When

Inger Marie’s third CD release proves that the success of her previous two albums was no coincidence. She and her new collaborator, producer and guitarist Georg Wadenius, have handpicked a selection of extremely wellsuited songs, which she and her band  and featured guest, trumpeter Mathias Eick  perform to near perfection. Norwegian jazz diva Inger Marie Gundersen spreads a con- tagious mood of unstressed wellbeing. Her style is relaxed and her vocal phrasing is rock-steady. Once you’ve heard her interpret one of the songs that are so dear to her heart, her voice will never be a stranger to you. Few European fema- le vocalists can match her penetrating charisma. Her art is deeply embedded in her own original musical world. Her sound is personal, and she has the courage to choose tunes from a broader palette than the usual American Songbook. This selection includes her own originals as well as songs by Norwegian colleagues and composers from the outskirts of jazz such as Sting and Bob Marley. Inger Marie strikes a seductive, blue, vibrant note and leaves her audience with a luscious velvety, dusty feeling. Such is the smooth and credible sound of an experienced woman  it is the sound of reflection, love and longing. She administers her extraordinary vocal talent with authority.

Inger Marie does not take a new release lightly. For her, a new CD is an important and very personal undertaking   indeed it is so important, that her first solo album is only a few years back. But her following has been growing quickly ever since. Surprisingly, Asia was first to discover her great talent. She has sold thousands of units there and toured extensively. Her enga- gements include weeklong gigs at Tokyo’s Cotton Club. At home in Norway and in Denmark, where her recording label resides, and all over Europe and in the US, her audiences grow daily. The musicians on My Heart Would Have a Reason are almost exactly the same as on her first two albums (Make This Moment, 2004 and By Myself, 2006), and listening to the music, it is obvious that Inger Marie feels at home in their company. The band is: Oscar Jansen (piano/ Rhodes), Ole Kristian Kvamme (bass), Tom Rudi Torjussen (drums/percussion), Øivind G. Stømer (alto and soprano sax), Mathias Eick (trumpet) and Georg Wadenius (guitar). Swedish Georg Wadenius plays a definitive role as producer and co-arranger as well as with his tasteful musicianship on acoustic and electric guitar. Wadenius has been a professional musician since 1968. He soon became one of Sweden’s most popular session musi- cians, but moved to USA in the early ‘70s to join Blood Sweat and Tears. Once again his reputation grew swiftly, and over the years he worked with a wide range of acts inclu- ding Luther Vandross, Roberta Flack, Diana Ross, Dionne Warwick, Aretha Franklin, Donald Fagen, Michael Franks, Backstreet Boys and many others. The seasoned Georg Wadenius has now returned to Scandinavia, and his collaboration with Inger Marie has resulted in this remarkable album. http://www.challengerecords.com/products/1238593562/

Personnel: Inger Marie Gundersen (vocals); Georg "Jojje" Wadenius (guitar); Mathias Eick (trumpet); Oscar Jansen (piano).

My Heart Would Have A Reason

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Barbara Dennerlein - Orgelspiele

Styles: Jazz, Hard Bop, Post-Bop 
Year: 1984
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 41:54
Size: 97,2 MB
Art: Front

(6:27)  1. Blue Rondo A La Turk
(4:23)  2. This Masquerade
(3:55)  3. Asinus Phi
(3:04)  4. Recreation
(3:25)  5. Eternal Voyage
(2:36)  6. Werde Munter Mein Gemüthe
(5:30)  7. Spain
(2:28)  8. Prelude No.4
(3:08)  9. Fly Me To The Moon
(3:40) 10. Recordame
(3:12) 11. All In Love Is Fair

Organist Barbara Dennerlein performs a wide variety of material on this little-known quartet session from her private German Bebap label. The repertoire ranges from "Blue Rondo A La Turk" and "This Masquerade" (the latter's authorship is mistakenly assigned to George Benson) to Stevie Wonder's "All In Love Is Fair," Chick Corea's "Spain" and pieces by Bach and Chopin. Dennerlein is one of the few original voices on the organ to emerge after Larry Young and she is fine form on the swinging set. ~ Scott Yanow http://www.allmusic.com/album/orgelspiele-mw0000338070

Personnel:  Bass – Barbara Dennerlein;  Drums – Harald Rüschenbaum;  Guitar – Peter Wölpl;  Organ – Barbara Dennerlein;  Violin – Jörg Widmoser

Orgelspiele

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