Friday, December 17, 2021

Emily Remler - Retrospective, Volume Two "Compositions"

Styles: Guitar Jazz
Year: 1981
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 60:53
Size: 139,4 MB
Art: Front

(4:30) 1. Mocha Space
(5:02) 2. Nunca Mais
(6:39) 3. Waltz For My Grandfather
(7:24) 4. Catwalk
(6:28) 5. Blues For Herb
(8:03) 6. Transitions
(4:10) 7. The Firefly
(6:17) 8. East To Wes
(4:30) 9. Antonio
(7:46) 10. Mozambique

Emily Remler (September 18, 1957 – May 4, 1990) was an American jazz guitarist who rose to prominence in the 1980s. She recorded seven albums of hard bop, jazz standards and fusion guitar.

Born in New York City, Remler began to play the guitar at the age of ten. Initially inspired by rock artists such as Jimi Hendrix and Johnny Winter as well as other popular styles of music, she experienced a musical epiphany during her studies from 1974 to 1976 at the Berklee College of Music in Boston, Massachusetts. She began to listen to such legendary jazz greats as Wes Montgomery, Joe Pass, Pat Martino, Charlie Christian, Miles Davis and John Coltrane and took up jazz with a ferocious intensity, practicing almost constantly and never looked back. After graduating Berklee at age 18 she started her professional career touring around the USA.

Remler's first significant and formative step as a fledgling professional musician was to settle in New Orleans where she played in blues and jazz clubs working with bands such as FourPlay and Little Queenie and the Percolators before beginning her recording career in 1981. She was championed by guitar great Herb Ellis, who referred to her as "the new superstar of guitar". Ellis introduced her to the world at the Concord, CA Jazz Festival in 1978. In an interview with People magazine, she once said of herself: "I may look like a nice Jewish girl from New Jersey, but inside I’m a 50-year-old, heavyset black man with a big thumb, like Wes Montgomery." ~People Mag. 1982~ Recorded for the famous Concord label, Remler's albums showcase the diverse influences of a fast-developing artist who quickly attained a distinctive jazz style on the guitar through her interpretations of jazz standards and her own compositions.

Her first album as a band leader, Firefly, won immediate acclaim and her bop guitar on the follow-up, Take Two, was equally well received. Transitions and Catwalk traced the emergence of a more individual voice, with many striking original tunes, while her love of Wes Montgomery shone through on the stylish East to Wes. When the rhythm section is floating, I'll float too, and I'll get a wonderful feeling in my stomach. If the rhythm section is really swinging, it's such a great feeling, you just want to laugh Emily Remler In addition to her recording career as a band leader and composer, Remler played with artists as diverse as Larry Coryell, with whom she recorded an album entitled Together, and the singer Rosemary Clooney. She played on Broadway for the Los Angeles version of the show 'Sophisticated Ladies' from 1981 to 1982 and produced two popular guitar instruction videos. She also toured for several years in the early eighties as guitarist for Astrud Gilberto.

In 1985, she won the ‘Guitarist Of The Year’ award in Down Beat magazine’s international poll. In 1988, she was 'Artist in Residence' at Duquesne University and, in 1989, received Berklee's Distinguished Alumni award. She married Jamaican jazz pianist Monty Alexander in 1981, the marriage ending in 1984. Her first guitar was her elder brother's Gibson ES-330, and she played a Borys B120 hollow body electric towards the end of the 1980s. Her acoustic guitars included a 1984 Collectors Series Ovation and a nylon string Korocusci classical guitar that she used for playing bossa nova. When asked how she wanted to be remembered she remarked: "Good compositions, memorable guitar playing and my contributions as a woman in music…. but the music is everything, and it has nothing to do with politics or the women’s liberation movement." She appealed to all audiences with her wide understanding of all forms of jazz. She gained respect from fellow musicians and critics because of her dedication, enthusiasm and remarkable skill. Remler, who was a heroin addict, died of heart failure at the age of 32 at the Connells Point home of musician Ed Gaston, while on tour in Australia. Two tribute albums were recorded after her death, Just Friends volume one and two, featuring contributions from Herb Ellis, David Benoit, Bill O'Connell and David Bromberg among many others. In 2006 the Skip Heller Quartet recorded a song called "Emily Remler" in her memory. https://www.jazzmusicarchives.com/artist/emily-remler

Personnel: Guitar – Emily Remler; Bass – Bob Maize, Buster Williams, Don Thompson, Eddie Gomez; Drums – Jake Hanna, Marvin "Smitty" Smith, Terry Clarke; Drums, Percussion – Bob Moses; Piano – Hank Jones, James Williams ; Trumpet – John D'Earth

Retrospective, Volume Two "Compositions"

Roger Kellaway - Cello Quartet

Styles: Piano Jazz
Year: 1970
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 42:03
Size: 96,7 MB
Art: Front

(3:01) 1. Saturnia
(7:49) 2. Sunrise
(5:39) 3. Morning Song
(8:24) 4. Jorjana 2
(2:45) 5. Esque
(5:07) 6. On Your Mark Get Set Blues
(2:57) 7. Invasion Of The Forest
(6:18) 8. Jorjana 8

Roger Kellaway launched his reputation as a consummate iconoclastic musician with this album, which was considered an elegant breakthrough in its time. He assembled a novel quartet featuring his piano, the late Edgar Lustgarten's classical cello (Kellaway's favorite instrument), Chuck Domanico on bass, and Emil Richards on marimba and percussion, writing pieces using chord symbols and notes without stems to allow for improvisation. The resulting album falls ever so neatly between the cracks of classical music and jazz, sometimes leaning in the latter direction (e.g., the Latinized groove of "Jorjana #2"), but mostly occupying a never-never land of Kellaway's own invention. Lustgarten's lush, dark tone establishes a haunting classical ambience, which creates weird stylistic juxtapositions in pieces like the boogie-based "Esque"; on a few tracks, there is some truly quirky writing for a full studio symphony orchestra conducted by Kellaway. The most memorable composition of the lot is the instantly winning, deceptively simple "Morning Song" (later published in a version for tuba and piano!), where Kellaway throws in more than a hint of barrelhouse piano. This album became a cult favorite, in and out of print on LP and CD, but never too difficult to locate.~ Richard S. Ginellhttps://www.allmusic.com/album/roger-kellaway-cello-quartet-mw0000696916

Personnel: Piano – Roger Kellaway; Acoustic Bass – Chuck Domanico; Cello – Edgar Lustgarten; Guitar – Joe Pass ; Percussion – Emil Richards; Violin – Erno Neufeld

Cello Quartet

Lesley Gore - I'll Cry If I Want To

Styles: Vocal
Year: 1963
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 26:00
Size: 68,4 MB
Art: Front

(2:22) 1. It's My Party
(2:15) 2. Cry Me a River
(2:07) 3. Cry
(2:15) 4. Just Let Me Cry
(2:01) 5. Cry and You Cry Alone
(2:23) 6. No More Tears
(2:11) 7. Judy's Turn to Cry
(1:53) 8. I Understand
(2:24) 9. I Would
(2:19) 10. Misty
(1:46) 11. What Kind of Fool Am I
(2:00) 12. The Party's Over

Lesley Gore's debut album was rushed out on the heels of her debut smash, "It's My Party," and suffered from being made into a contrived concept album of sorts. Most of the songs were about -- as the title indicated crying, since the key hook of "It's My Party" had Gore boasting that she could cry if she wanted to. The effect, if only temporarily, was to make her out to be something of a novelty artist, even if one of the songs other than "It's My Party" (its inferior follow-up, "Judy's Turn to Cry") turned out be a big hit as well. Aside from the limited lyrical themes, a bigger problem was that the material, other than the two big hits, largely veered between tame treatments of pop standards ("Misty," "Cry Me a River," "What Kind of Fool Am I") and unmemorable soppy pop ballads by contemporary writers that tapped into the weaker aspects of doo wop-influenced girl group music.

this point, Gore seemed to be as interested in being an adult torch singer as a teen rocker, but her teenaged pipes were simply far more suited toward girl group-style songs than trying to be another Julie London. The big flaw is one that seems obvious in retrospect, but probably wasn't even seen by many who were helping to direct her career at the time: Aside from the hits, nothing here rocked respectably, or swung as Quincy Jones' arrangements were capable of doing, though "Cry Me a River" wasn't too bad. Gore would, perhaps to the surprise of many, go on to establish a respectable career with a series of hits that didn't always milk the self-pity bucket, though this first effort gave all the indication of her being a one-hit wonder.~ Richie Unterberg https://www.allmusic.com/album/ill-cry-if-i-want-to-mw0000845050

I'll Cry If I Want To

Bette Midler - Bette Midler Sings The Rosemary Clooney Songbook

Size: 73,1 MB
Time: 30:57
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Released: 2003
Styles: Jazz/Pop Vocals
Art: Front

01. You'll Never Know (1:44)
02. This Ole House (3:02)
03. On A Slow Boat To China (Duet With Barry Manilow) (2:31)
04. Hey There (3:30)
05. Tenderly (3:11)
06. Come On-A My House (1:50)
07. Mambo Italiano (2:50)
08. Sisters (Duet With Linda Ronstadt) (2:53)
09. Memories Of You (3:20)
10. In The Cool, Cool, Cool Of The Evening (2:44)
11. White Christmas (3:16)

Cabaret icon Bette Midler reunites with her old piano partner Barry Manilow for the first time in over 30 years to toast one of their mutual idols on Sings the Rosemary Clooney Songbook. Clooney was one of the top jazz/pop vocalists of the '50s whose clear, bright tone, impeccable melodicism, and smiling, girl-next-door image came together to make classics out of tunes like "In the Cool, Cool, Cool of the Evening" and "Hey There" -- both covered here. In that tradition, Midler's plucky blonde persona and genre-crossing style and Manilow's modern day blend of Mercer and Porter make this album work -- most of the time. Mostly what you get is the Divine Miss M and "Mister Manila," as Midler affectionately refers to Manilow, returning to their '70s New York roots on "On a Slow Boat to China," a solid and classy version of "Sisters" with Linda Ronstadt taking the Betty Clooney role, and a very Dixie Chicks-esque contemporary bluegrass reworking of "This Ole House." Least of all, you get limp, hip-hop-lite arrangements of "Come On-A My House" and "Mambo Italiano," which only serve to drain the songs of any swing and makes the twee-period lyrics all the more cloying. Nonetheless, Midler -- who can carry a tune on personality alone -- sounds elegant and alive here and Manilow's classy orchestral arrangements frame the proceedings with the urbane glow of nostalgia for a time -- be it the '50s or the '70s -- when a big band, a great song, and blonde with a nice voice were all you needed for a good time. ~by Matt Collar

Sings The Rosemary Clooney Songbook

Thursday, December 16, 2021

Dan Nimmer Trio - Horizons

Styles: Piano Jazz
Year: 2019
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 63:17
Size: 146,6 MB
Art: Front

(4:25) 1. Lisa
(6:34) 2. Rain
(5:01) 3. Teef
(3:52) 4. Horizons
(5:40) 5. On Green Dolphin Street
(4:29) 6. South Seas
(3:31) 7. Theme From M.A.S.H.
(5:01) 8. Open Sesami
(5:43) 9. Flamenco Sketches
(4:43) 10. Mr. Lucky
(5:53) 11. Old Forks
(3:26) 12. The Fall Of Love
(4:53) 13. Untitles #5

An old soul in a young body, Dan Nimmer plays with the spirit, the passion and the soul of someone who has been on the planet much longer. With prodigious technique and an innate sense of swing, his playing often recalls that of his own heroes, specifically Oscar Peterson, Wynton Kelly, Erroll Garner and Art Tatum. As a young man, Mr. Nimmer's family inherited a piano and he started playing by ear; he was, if you will, "called" by the instrument. He studied classical piano and eventually became interested in jazz.

In 2005, Mr. Nimmer became a member of Wynton Marsalis's Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra and the Wynton Marsalis Quintet, both in which he has been a member ever since. In addition to Wynton Marsalis, Mr. Nimmer has performed and or recorded with Jimmy Cobb, Norah Jones, Willie Nelson, Paul Simon,Chick Corea, George Benson, Houston Person, Eric Clapton, Tom Jones, Jon Faddis, Benny Golson, Brian Lynch, Lewis Nash, Peter Washington,Fareed Haque and many more.https://store.acousticsounds.com/d/143117/Dan_Nimmer_Trio-Horizons-Single_Layer_Stereo_SACD

Personnel: Dan Nimmer - piano; David Wong - bass; Pete Van Nostrand - drums

Horizons

Aga Zaryan - Looking Walking Being

Styles: Vocal
Year: 2010
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 62:34
Size: 143,8 MB
Art: Front

(2:42) 1. Cherry Tree Avenue
(4:48) 2. Looking Walking Being
(5:02) 3. Let Me
(4:02) 4. For The New Year, 1981
(5:06) 5. The Stars Are As Lonely As Us
(7:42) 6. Seeking My Love
(4:04) 7. February Evening In New York
(5:53) 8. My Name
(6:32) 9. Temptation Game
(5:23) 10. Waiting The Moon
(4:40) 11. What Is This Thing Called Happiness
(6:36) 12. The Thread

Aga Zaryan (born Agnieszka Skrzypek January 17, 1976) is an internationally recognized jazz vocalist of the new generation. She is known for her distinctive style, class and intimate approach to singing, with a characteristic lightness of phrasing and warm, slightly matte-toned voice. Aga Zaryan has been successful in integrating ambitious artistic goals with popular appeal, recording four albums to date, all of which have earned gold, platinum or multi-platinum status in Poland. Aga was also named Jazz Vocalist of The Year in the European Jazz Forum Magazine's yearly Jazz Top readers' poll in 2007, 2008 and 2009. She has appeared in clubs and at festivals in Poland, England, the USA, Germany, Israel, France, Sweden, Norway, the Czech Republic, Montenegro, Bulgaria, Turkey, Portugal, Russia and Iceland. https://www.last.fm/music/Aga+Zaryan/+wiki

Personnel: Aga Zaryan (Vocal); David Doruzka (Guitar); Michal Baranski (Bass); Lukasz Zyta (Drums); Munyungo Jackson (Percussion)

Looking Walking Being

Harry Connick, Jr. - Harry For The Holidays

Bitrate: 320K/s
Time: 63:37
Size: 145.6 MB
Styles: Holiday
Year: 2003
Art: Front

[3:31] 1. Frosty The Snowman
[3:20] 2. Blue Christmas
[3:15] 3. The Christmas Waltz
[3:04] 4. I Wonder As I Wander
[3:55] 5. Silver Bells
[5:08] 6. Mary's Little Boy Child
[3:53] 7. Santa Claus Is Coming To Town
[3:39] 8. The Happy Elf
[5:55] 9. I'll Be Home For Christmas
[4:39] 10. I Come With Love
[3:46] 11. Nature Boy
[3:20] 12. O Little Town Of Bethlehem
[3:25] 13. I'm Gonna Be The First One
[3:43] 14. This Christmas
[4:04] 15. Nothin' New For New Year
[4:51] 16. Silent Night

Ten years after his first holiday-themed album, When My Heart Finds Christmas, pianist/vocalist Harry Connick, Jr. found the spirit again with Harry for the Holidays. Still centered on Connick's vocals, this foray into "tinsel tunes" is more jazz oriented than his 1993 release and allows for his growth as a performer, arranger, and conductor. Like a Brooks Brothers' suit worn at Mardi Gras, Connick's writing for his big band and full orchestra mixes New Orleans rhythms with crisp, swinging arrangements that call to mind '60s Michel Legrand and Quincy Jones. Nothing Connick has done before can quite prepare you for the screaming trumpets and rollicking second-line-style swing of his leadoff take on "Frosty the Snowman." In fact, most of the classic standards here, including "Hark the Herald Angels Sing" and "Silver Bells," get highly unexpected treatments as on "Santa Clause Is Coming to Town," which is worked up into a funky, brass-band "go-go" dance number. Similarly tasty is "I'll Be Home for Christmas," which not only features some of the best crooning the Will and Grace star has ever done, but also a beautifully modest Count Basie-inspired piano solo. There is also an appealing balance to Harry for the Holidays between songs of Christmas nostalgia and heartfelt ruminations on what the season means in a deeper sense. Throw in four original compositions that touch on Scott Walker-esque orchestrated pop, Tin Pan Alley songcraft, and country -- yes, that is the George Jones dueting with Connick on "Nothin' New for the New Year" -- and not only do you have one of the best holiday albums in years, but easily the best album of Connick's career. [Harry for the Holidays was reissued in 2005 as a dual disc CD/DVD with additional audio tracks, video clips and an interview on the DVD side.] ~Matt Collar

Harry For The Holidays

Diane Schuur - Midnight

Styles: Vocal And Piano Jazz
Year: 2003
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 48:30
Size: 111,2 MB
Art: Front

(2:58)  1. Meet Me, Midnight
(4:49)  2. When October Goes
(3:49)  3. Stay Away From Bill
(4:18)  4. I'll Be There
(4:12)  5. Consider The Point From Both Ends
(3:31)  6. What Is Love?
(4:06)  7. He Loved Me
(2:39)  8. Southwind
(3:31)  9. Our Love Will Always Be There
(3:32) 10. No Heartache Tonight
(3:58) 11. Good-bye My Love
(4:02) 12. Life Is Good
(2:59) 13. Anytime

Diane Schuur has been singing for an adoring public since the age of nine. Those who have praised and supported her talent include Count Basie, Dizzy Gillespie, B.B. King, Stan Getz and Leonard Feather. She has been nominated five times for Grammy Awards and has received two, for Timeless in 1986 and Diane Schuur with the Count Basie Orchestra in 1987.  Midnight is a video-enhanced CD, Schuur’s third release for Concord Records and her first under the tutelage of Barry Manilow and his co-producer, co-writer and arranger, Eddie Arkin. Over the course of a year, Manilow, Arkin and their lyricists Marty Panzer, Bruce Sussman and Adrienne Anderson composed thirteen songs for Schuur; two of the selections feature lyrics by Johnny Mercer.

The attempt to create and maintain a smoky, after-hours ambience is generally successful, with good variety, order and pacing; Dan Higgins’ alto sax solos are especially poignant and communicative. The chemistry between Manilow and Schuur seems felicitous; the CD is produced and polished to a slick sheen, with big-name jazz and soul soloists, well-harmonized arrangements, and an orchestra of glistening strings conducted by Jorge Calandrelli. Schuur’s vocal instrument is in its usual fine form, with good rhythmic and harmonic sensibilities, three-plus octave range, and impeccable intonation (although her emotional intensity sometimes causes her to over-sing and her vibrato to become tremulous). The guest appearances by Allyson, McKnight and Manilow each fit their respective selections and arrangements to a tee. Those who like their music lush, polished, dramatic and emotional are apt to find this CD to their liking. Those who like an edge to their jazz, a spirit of adventure and unpredictability, would probably do well to look elsewhere. ~ J.Robert Bragonier  http://www.allaboutjazz.com/midnight-diane-schuur-concord-music-group-review-by-j-robert-bragonier.php

Personnel: Diane Schuur (vocals, piano); Phillip Ingram, Yvonne Williams (vocals, background vocals); Karrin Allyson, Barry Manilow, Brian McKnight (vocals); Eddie Arkin, Oscar Castro-Neves, Anthony Wilson (guitar); Gayle Levant (harp); Dan Higgins (flute, alto saxophone); Tommy Morgan (harmonica); Bill Liston (clarinet, saxophone, tenor saxophone); Warren Luening (trumpet, flugelhorn); Andy Martin (trombone); Alan Broadbent, Randy Kerber (piano); Alan Estes (vibraphone, percussion); Harvey Mason, Sr. , Peter Erskine (drums); Paulinho Da Costa (percussion).

Midnight

Art Blakey - Roots & Herbs

Styles: Jazz
Year: 1961
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 62:14
Size: 142,9 MB
Art: Front

(7:06)  1. Ping Pong
(6:05)  2. Roots And Herbs
(7:51)  3. The Back Sliders
(7:30)  4. United
(6:45)  5. Look At The Birdie
(6:55)  6. Master Mind
(7:12)  7. The Back Sliders (alt take)
(5:58)  8. Ping Pong (alt version)
(6:48)  9. United (alt version)

Originally recorded in 1961, Art Blakey & the Jazz Messengers' Roots & Herbs was first released in 1970 and then reissued on CD in 1999. Like many titles in the Blue Note catalog, this fine Blakey outing was initially shelved by Alfred Lion for unknown reasons; thankfully, considering Blakey's large array of available Blue Note albums, this wasn't necessarily a crisis. But now that it's out once again with a 24-bit digital makeover, Roots & Herbs is definitely a welcome addition to the drum master's CD catalog. Having already been a magnet for such talented hard bop players and writers as Hank Mobley, Benny Golson, Clifford Brown, Horace Silver (who helped form the original group), and Kenny Dorham, the Messengers' lineup of 1961 featured one of Blakey's best rosters: In addition to trumpeter Lee Morgan, who would alternate in the early '60s with Freddie Hubbard, the band featured tenor saxophonist Wayne Shorter, pianists Walter Davis, Jr. and Bobby Timmons, and bassist Jymie Merritt. Feeding off six early compositions by Shorter (the CD also includes three alternate takes), all the players reel off topnotch solos atop Blakey's fluidly galvanizing swing beat. Highlights include "Ping Pong," "Look at Birdie," and "Master Mind," compositions that, in their fetchingly askew way, nicely foreshadow the wealth of ideas to come from Shorter's pen throughout the '60s. ~ Stephen Cook  http://www.allmusic.com/album/roots-herbs-mw0000254919

Wednesday, December 15, 2021

James Clay - I Let a Song to Out of My Heart

Styles: Saxophone Jazz
Year: 1989
File: MP3@192K/s
Time: 68:09
Size: 97,1 MB
Art: Front

(5:46) 1. Things Ain't What They Used to Be
(8:24) 2. My Foolish Heart
(6:31) 3. Rain Check
(6:14) 4. The Very Thought of You
(6:58) 5. I Mean You
(5:07) 6. I Let a Song Go Out of My Heart
(7:20) 7. Just in Time
(7:12) 8. I Can't Get Started
(7:07) 9. John Paul Jones A.K.A. Trane's Blues
(7:25) 10. Body and Soul

James Clay, a thick-toned tenor saxophonist who knew Ornette Coleman and Don Cherry in the 1950s, recorded a bit near the end of the decade, spent ten years touring with Ray Charles, and then in the late '60s moved back to his native Texas. He was not heard from for quite some time, until he worked a bit with Don Cherry in 1988. In 1989 he led his first record date in 29 years and it is excellent, a fine straight-ahead quartet outing with pianist Cedar Walton, bassist David Williams, and drummer Billy Higgins. Although not flawless (there are occasional reed squeaks and a few brief wandering moments), this is one of James Clay's finest recordings. He is well featured on ten jazz standards including "Things Ain't What They Used to Be," "Raincheck," "I Mean You," and "Trane's Blues." Recommended.~Scott Yanowhttps://www.allmusic.com/album/i-let-a-song-go-out-of-my-heart-mw0000320510

I Let a Song to Out of My Heart

Ron Carter, Jim Hall - Telephone

Styles: Jazz, Chamber Jazz
Year: 1985
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 45:38
Size: 104,8 MB
Art: Front

( 5:33) 1. Telephone
( 5:54) 2. Indian Summer
( 4:16) 3. Candlelight
( 6:57) 4. Chorale and Dance
(10:30) 5. Alone Together
( 7:45) 6. Stardust
( 4:39) 7. Two s Blues

The epitome of class and elegance, though not stuffy, Ron Carter has been a world class bassist and cellist since the '60s. He's among the greatest accompanists of all time, but has also done many albums exhibiting his prodigious technique. He's a brilliant rhythmic and melodic player, who uses everything in the bass and cello arsenal; walking lines, thick, full, prominent notes and tones, drones and strumming effects, and melody snippets. His bowed solos are almost as impressive as those done with his fingers. Carter has been featured in clothing, instrument, and pipe advertisements; he's close to being the bass equivalent of a Duke Ellington in his mix of musical and extra-musical interests. Carter's nearly as accomplished in classical music as jazz, and has performed with symphony orchestras all over the world. He's almost exclusively an acoustic player; he did play electric for a short time in the late '60s and early '70s, but hasn't used it in many, many years.

Carter began playing cello at ten. But when his family moved from Ferndale, MI, to Detroit, Carter ran into problems with racial stereotypes regarding the cello and switched to bass. He played in the Eastman School's Philharmonic Orchestra, and gained his degree in 1959. He moved to New York and played in Chico Hamilton's quintet with Eric Dolphy, while also enrolling at the Manhattan School of Music. Carter earned his master's degree in 1961. After Hamilton returned to the West Coast in 1960, Carter stayed in New York and played with Dolphy and Don Ellis, cutting his first records with them. He worked with Randy Weston and Thelonious Monk, while playing and recording with Jaki Byard in the early '60s. Carter also toured and recorded with Bobby Timmons' trio, and played with Cannonball Adderley. He joined Art Farmer's group for a short time in 1963, before he was tapped to become a member of Miles Davis' band.

Carter remained with Davis until 1968, appearing on every crucial mid-'60s recording and teaming with Herbie Hancock and Tony Williams to craft a new, freer rhythm section sound. The high-profile job led to the reputation that's seen Carter become possibly the most recorded bassist in jazz history. He's been heard on an unprecedented number of recordings; some sources claim 500, others have estimated it to be as many as 1,000. The list of people he's played with is simply too great to be accurately and completely cited. Carter's been a member of New York Jazz Sextet and New York Jazz Quartet, V.S.O.P. Tour, and Milestone Jazzstars, and was in one of the groups featured in the film Round Midnight in 1986.

He's led his own bands at various intervals since 1972, using a second bassist to keep time and establish harmony so he's free to provide solos. Carter even invented his own instrument, a piccolo bass. Carter's also contributed many arrangements and compositions to both his groups and other bands. He's done duo recordings with either Cedar Walton or Jim Hall. Carter's recorded for Embryo/Atlantic, CTI, Milestone, Timeless, EmArcy, Galaxy, Elektra, and Concord, eventually landing at Blue Note for LPs including 1997's The Bass and I, 1998's So What, and 1999's Orfeu. When Skies Are Grey surfaced in early 2001, followed a year later by Stardust, Carter's tribute to the late bassist Oscar Pettiford. In 2006 another tribute album was released, Dear Miles, dedicated to Miles Davis, also on Blue Note. https://www.jazzmusicarchives.com/artist/ron-carter

Personnel: Ron Carter - bass; Jim Hall – guitar

Telephone

Art Blakey & The Jazz Messengers - First Flight To Tokyo: The Lost 1961 Recordings

Styles: Jazz, Hard Bop
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 103:05
Size: 240,7 MB
Art: Front

(22:34) 1. Now's The Time
(13:32) 2. Moanin'
(11:44) 3. Blues March
( 0:32) 4. The Theme
(12:13) 5. Dat Dere
(13:28) 6. 'Round About Midnight
(17:15) 7. Now's The Time
(11:12) 8. A Night In Tunisia
( 0:30) 9. The Theme

There is a saying in the opera world which, though innocuous on the face of it, damns a work before the overture has begun let alone after the fat lady sings. The saying, beloved of breathless publicists deaf to its implication, is that such and such an opera is "rarely performed." The reason it is rarely performed, of course, is because nine times out of ten it is a dud. When it comes to jazz albums the parallel saying is "previously unreleased." Unless the recording has only recently been discovered to exist, five gets you ten that it, too, is a dud and the longer it has lain unreleased the greater that probability. First Flight To Tokyo is, Blue Note tells us, a "thrilling previously unreleased" live recording. Its subtitle, The Lost 1961 Recordings, suggests the tapes have not until recently been known to exist and that, as with the Dead Sea Scrolls, only decades of dedicated archaeological excavation have unearthed them. In fact, the tapes and their whereabouts have been known about for sixty years. One is minded, therefore, to arrange the following words into a well known phrase or saying: barrel, bottom, scrape.

Actually, First Flight To Tokyo is not that bad. It is certainly not a dud. But nor is it the masterpiece it will doubtless be dubbed by gullible reviewers who are perhaps unfamiliar with the genuinely great live albums in the Jazz Messengers' discography. It is, in fact, a solid album from one of the hardest working bands of its era and not without interest. But A Night At Birdland (Blue Note, 1954) or At The Café Bohemia (Blue Note, 1956) it is not. The alternate takes of Charlie Parker's "Now's The Time," one lasting 22:34, the other 17:15, suggest the band played two sets at Tokyo's Hibiya Public Hall on January 14, 1961. The tune had been in the band book since 1954 and is part of the aforementioned A Night At Birdland, along with Dizzy Gillespie's "A Night In Tunisia," which is also heard here. The Messengers' front line was then trumpeter Clifford Brown and alto saxophonist Lou Donaldson, not First Flight To Tokyo's trumpeter Lee Morgan and tenor saxophonist Wayne Shorter. The other Tokyo tunes pianist Bobby Timmons' "Moanin'" and "Dat Dere" and ex-Messenger tenor saxophonist Benny Golson's "Blues March" were more recent additions to the book. Nothing from Shorter, who is one of the two most interesting composers in the history of the Jazz Messengers (the other being Golson).

All these tunes get expansive going on raucous performances. The opening track is the longer of the two versions of "Now's The Time," and it is the most compelling performance on the 2xCD set, opening and closing with five minute solos from Blakey, sandwiching others by Shorter, Morgan and Timmons. Just shy of three years away from his defining hit, "The Sidewinder," Morgan is already post bop and across gospel infused hard bop. Shorter is still some distance from his nuanced mature style and attempts, on this track and the others, to follow Blakey's wish that every chorus should sound like the grand finale of the set. Throughout the album, Timmons is his own deeply funky self. The only track which does not quite convince is Thelonious Monk's "'Round About Midnight." Morgan is superb, but Blakey and the Messengers were better at belters than ballads, notwithstanding their gorgeous reading of Golson's "Whisper Not" on 1958 Paris Olympia (Blue Note).

Bottom line: First Flight To Tokyo is one for hardcore Jazz Messengers' aficionados, who will already know that this particular Messengers lineup is arguably heard at its best on two Blue Note studio albums also recorded in 1961, A Night In Tunisia and Roots And Herbs.~ Chris Mayhttps://www.allaboutjazz.com/first-flight-to-tokyo-the-lost-1961-recordings-art-blakey-and-the-jazz-messengers-blue-note-records__30509

Personnel: Art Blakey: drums; Wayne Shorter: saxophone; Lee Morgan: trumpet; Bobby Timmons: piano; Jymie Merritt: bass.

First Flight To Tokyo: The Lost 1961 Recordings

Tuesday, December 14, 2021

The Count Basie Orchestra - Live At El Morocco

Styles: Jazz, Big Band
Year: 1992
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 67:43
Size: 158,5 MB
Art: Front

(4:49) 1. Gone An' Git It Y'all
(5:43) 2. A Night At El Morocco
(5:04) 3. Right On, Right On
(5:11) 4. That's The Kind Of Love I'm Talking About
(5:18) 5. Corner Pocket
(4:06) 6. Little Chicago Fire
(5:21) 7. Shiny Stockings
(5:27) 8. Angel Eyes
(6:41) 9. Major Butts
(4:40) 10. Ditty
(5:00) 11. Vignola Express
(4:48) 12. Basie
(5:29) 13. One O'Clock Jump

Even without its original leader, the Count Basie Orchestra is today one of the finest jazz big bands in existence. Frank Foster has kept the instantly recognizable sound while welcoming younger soloists and infusing the band's repertoire with new charts. This strong live program is typical of the Basie band in the '90s, performing older tunes (such as "Corner Pocket" and "Shiny Stockings") that alternate with newer and no less swinging originals, all of which leaves room for the orchestra's many promising soloists.~Scott Yanowhttps://www.allmusic.com/album/live-at-el-morocco-mw0000087296

Personnel: Alto Saxophone [Lead], Piccolo Flute – Danny Turner; Alto Saxophone, Flute – Manny Boyd; Baritone Saxophone, Bass Clarinet – John Williams ; Bass – Cleveland Eaton; Bass Trombone – Bill Hughes; Drums – David Gibson ; Guitar – Charlton Johnson; Piano – George Caldwell ; Tenor Saxophone, Flute – Doug Miller, Kenny Hing; Trombone – Clarence Banks, Robert Trowers; Trombone [Lead] – Mel Wanzo; Trumpet – Bob Ojeda, Derrick Gardner, Melton Mustafa; Trumpet [Lead] – Mike Williams

Live At El Morocco

June Christy - June Christy 1977

Styles: Vocal
Year: 1977
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 42:19
Size: 97,1 MB
Art: Front

(3:25) 1. My Shining Hour
(4:51) 2. Once Upon A Summertime
(2:28) 3. Show Me
(6:14) 4. Everything Must Change
(4:20) 5. Willow Weep For Me
(3:54) 6. I'll Remember April
(4:01) 7. The Trouble With Hello Is Goodbye
(4:06) 8. Autumn Serenade
(4:13) 9. Sometime Ago
(4:43) 10. Angel Eyes

Though she was the epitome of the vocal cool movement of the 1950s, June Christy was a warm, chipper vocalist able to stretch out her impressive voice on bouncy swing tunes and set herself apart from other vocalists with her deceptively simple enunciation. From her time in Stan Kenton's Orchestra, she inherited a focus on brassy swing from arranger friends like Pete Rugolo. Rugolo would become a consistent companion far into her solo days, too, arranging most of her LPs and balancing her gymnastic vocal abilities with a series of attentive charts.

Born Shirley Luster in Springfield, IL, she began singing early on and appeared with a local society band during high school. She moved to Chicago in the early '40s, changed her name to Sharon Leslie, and sang with a group led by Boyd Raeburn. In 1945, after hearing that Anita O'Day had just left Stan Kenton's Orchestra, she auditioned for the role and got it early that year. Despite an early resemblance (physically and vocally) to O'Day, the singer -- renamed June Christy -- soon found her own style: a warm, chipper voice that stretched out beautifully and enlivened Kenton's crossover novelties ("Shoo Fly Pie and Apple Pan Dowdy," the million-selling "Tampico") as well as the leader's intricately arranged standards ("How High the Moon"). As she became more and more popular within the Kenton band, arranger Pete Rugolo began writing charts with her style especially in mind. After the Kenton orchestra broke up in 1948, Christy worked the nightclub circuit for awhile before reuniting with Kenton for his 1950 Innovations in Modern Music Orchestra, a very modern 40-piece group that toured America. She had already debuted as a solo act the year before, recording for Capitol with a group led by her husband, Kenton tenor saxophonist Bob Cooper.

Christy's debut LP for Capitol, 1954's Something Cool, was recorded with Rugolo at the head of the orchestra. The album launched the vocal cool movement and hit the Top 20 album charts in America, as did a follow-up, The Misty Miss Christy. Her 1955 Duet LP paired her voice with Kenton's piano, while most of her Capitol LPs featured her with various Kenton personnel and Rugolo (or Bob Cooper) at the head of the orchestra. She reprised her earlier big-band days with 1959's June Christy Recalls Those Kenton Days, and recorded a raft of concept LPs before retiring in 1965. Christy returned to the studio only once, for 1977's Impromptu on Musicraft.~John Bush https://www.allmusic.com/artist/june-christy-mn0000837592/biography

Personnel: June Christy – vocals; Lou Levy – piano; Jack Sheldon – trumpet; Frank Rosolino – trombone; Bob Cooper – tenor saxophone, flute; Bob Daugherty – bass; Shelly Manne – drums

June Christy 1977

Earl Klugh - Late Night Guitar

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 35:45
Size: 81.8 MB
Styles: Guitar jazz
Year: 1980/1999
Art: Front

[1:58] 1. Smoke Gets In Your Eyes
[2:59] 2. Nice To Be Around (Nice To Have Around)
[2:44] 3. Like A Lover
[1:46] 4. Laura
[3:26] 5. Jamaica Farewell
[1:52] 6. Tenderly
[2:54] 7. Mona Lisa
[2:05] 8. Triste
[4:20] 9. Two For The Road
[2:47] 10. Mirabella
[2:06] 11. Lisbon Antigua
[2:51] 12. A Time For Love
[3:51] 13. I'll Never Say Goodbye (The Promise)

This is the perfect setting for acoustic guitarist Earl Klugh, playing strong melodies (including such standards as "Smoke Gets In Your Eyes," "Laura," "Mona Lisa" and "Two for the Road") while joined by strings and several horns in an orchestra arranged and conducted by Dave Mathews. As usual for a Klugh session, the guitarist sticks mostly to the themes and does not improvise much, as he never considered himself a jazz player; but the overall effect is quite pleasing.

Late Night Guitar

Carmen Lundy - Soul To Soul

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 71:33
Size: 163.8 MB
Styles: Jazz vocals
Year: 2014
Art: Front

[5:21] 1. Kindred Spirits
[6:14] 2. Life Is A Song In Me
[6:36] 3. Soul To Soul
[7:11] 4. When Will They Learn
[5:12] 5. Daybreak
[4:08] 6. Between Darkness And Dawn
[6:34] 7. Grace
[4:36] 8. Grateful, Pt. 1
[4:43] 9. Grateful, Pt. 2
[6:31] 10. Everything I Need
[4:33] 11. Don't You Know How I Feel
[5:36] 12. Sardegna
[4:11] 13. What's Your Story, Morning Glory

Carmen Lundy – vocals, piano, Rhodes, keyboards, guitar, drums, percussion, string arrangements and programming; Patrice Rushen – piano, Rhodes, keyboards; Geri Allen – piano, Rhodes; Darryl Hall – acoustic bass, electric bass; Jamison Ross – drums, percussion; Mayra Casales – percussion, congas; Carol Robbins – harp; Warren Wolf – vibes; Randy Brecker – trumpet, ugelhornl Ada Rovatti – tenor sax; Bennie Maupin – tenor sax, soprano sax Simphiwe Dana – vocals; Background Vocals – Carmen Lundy, Patrice Rushen, Jamison Ross, Mayra Casales, Darryl Hall, Elisabeth Oei.

“Soul To Soul,” a passionate new song cycle from vocalist, songwriter, producer and musician Carmen Lundy is Lundy’s 14th album, and the next chapter in her critically-acclaimed career as both a musical artist and a visual artist; a return to her roots but also an exploration of these roots — and the journey that those roots can take you on. Featuring the stellar talents of guest artists Patrice Rushen, Geri Allen, Randy Brecker, Mayra Casales, Simphiwe Dana, Bennie Maupin, Carol Robbins, Ada Rovatti, and Warren Wolf along with Carmen’s core rhythm section members Darryl Hall and Jamison Ross , “Soul To Soul” invites the listener on an intriguing journey. The moods and moments of “Soul To Soul” are genre-bending and traverse many borders, both literally and figuratively.

Soul To Soul

Monday, December 13, 2021

Deborah Silver - Pure Silver

Styles: Vocal
Year: 2014
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 42:43
Size: 98,5 MB
Art: Front

(4:03) 1. At Last
(3:22) 2. Cheek to Cheek
(4:01) 3. Sunrise, Sunset
(4:05) 4. I Got the Sun in the Morning
(4:06) 5. All the Things You Are
(3:46) 6. More Today Than Yesterday
(4:40) 7. Can't Take My Eyes off of You
(2:57) 8. People Will Say We're in Love
(3:28) 9. I'll Be There
(4:35) 10. More Than You Know
(3:35) 11. I Wanna Be Around

An ebullient vocalist, Deborah Silver is known for her soulful but polished readings of classic jazz and pop melodies. She initially garnered attention with her 2014 debut, Pure Silver, before topping the Traditional Jazz Albums chart with 2016's The Gold Standards.

Born and raised in Indianola, Mississippi, Silver grew to appreciate all kinds of music in her youth, including pop, rock, jazz, standards, R&B, and country. Her mother was an opera singer who also worked as a vocal coach on the side. While Silver sang in choir when she was in high school, she struggled with shyness and tried to remain inconspicuous when she performed. After enrolling at Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri, she developed greater confidence and went on to appear in student theater productions, where her passion for singing took hold. She began taking voice lessons, and after graduating, relocated to Los Angeles. There, she continued her studies working with noted vocal coach Seth Riggs. In time, Silver moved to South Florida, married, and raised a family.

Silver still found time to perform as a jazz vocalist, and an effort to support a member of her family also helped her reach a new and larger audience. In 2009, Silver's sister was diagnosed with ALS (amyotrophic lateral sclerosis), a progressive neurodegenerative condition also known as "Lou Gehrig's disease." As Silver spearheaded a number of projects to increase awareness of ALS and raise money for research, she put her own talent to good use. Silver's debut album, 2014's Pure Silver, was a collection of standards and pop favorites that showed off her refined vocal stylings, and she pledged that 100 percent of the proceeds from sales of the CD would be donated to ALS research. The album was well reviewed, and Silver developed a growing and appreciative audience on the cabaret circuit.

For her second album, 2016's The Gold Standards, Silver worked with producers Steve Tyrell and Jon Allen, and arranger Alan Broadbent. Grammy-winning singer Jack Jones and celebrated jazz chanteuse Ann Hampton Callaway also made guest appearances on the record, and Silver donated all proceeds from first-day sales to ALS charities. The Gold Standards debuted in the number one spot on the Traditional Jazz Albums and Heatseekers Albums charts, while hitting the number two spot on the overall Jazz Albums survey and 150 on the overall Top 200 listings. Two years later, she joined vocalist Freddy Cole for a duet on his legendary brother's song "Orange Colored Sky," which was released as a stand-alone tribute track. Silver then returned to her solo work with 2020's Glitter & Grits, a jazz and country-steeped collaboration with Asleep at the Wheel's Ray Benson.~Mark Deming https://music.apple.com/us/artist/deborah-silver/834189572

Pure Silver

The Monty Alexander Trio - Zing!

Styles: Piano Jazz
Year: 1968
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 34:23
Size: 79,2 MB
Art: Front

(2:51) 1. Zing!
(5:51) 2. You're My Everything
(4:09) 3. Once Upon a Time
(3:54) 4. Always True to You In My Fashion
(3:21) 5. The Magnificent Seven
(4:12) 6. Bossa Nova Do Marilla
(3:40) 7. Small Fry
(3:06) 8. Girl Talk
(3:16) 9. Nocturne In E-Flat

Pianist Monty Alexander was 23 when he recorded his lone album for RCA, just his third recording of what would be a very productive career. Alexander, who at that point in time was most influenced by Oscar Peterson and Ahmad Jamal, already showed a great deal of maturity in his playing, as effective on uptempo tunes as he was on ballads. Last reissued as a French RCA, this outing matches Alexander in trios with either Victor Gaskin or Bob Cranshaw on bass and Roy McCurdy or Al Foster on drums. The repertoire ranges from the pianist's title cut and Cole Porter's "Always True to You In My Fashion" to some show tunes, Neal Hefti's "Girl Talk," and Chopin's "Nocturne In E-Flat," which is turned into jazz. A strong effort that is long overdue to be reissued on CD.~Scott Yanowhttps://www.allmusic.com/album/zing%21-mw0000870960

Personnel: Piano – Monty Alexander; Bass – Bob Cranshaw, Victor Gaskin; Drums – Al Foster, Roy McCurdy

Zing!

Carmen Lundy - Code Noir

Styles: Vocal 
Year: 2017
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 53:22
Size: 122,8 MB
Art: Front

(3:50)  1. Another Chance
(4:41)  2. Live Out Loud
(3:51)  3. Black and Blues
(4:30)  4. Whatever It Takes
(4:53)  5. Afterglow
(3:41)  6. Second Sight
(4:38)  7. The Island, The Sea and You
(5:36)  8. I Keep Falling
(5:07)  9. I Got Your Number
(4:54) 10. You Came into My Life
(2:56) 11. Have a Little Faith
(4:40) 12. Kumbaya

Fantastic work from Carmen Lundy one of our favorite jazz singers of all time, and an artist who keeps on giving us her best as the years go on! This album's definitely some of Carmen's best as it features the singer working with a wonderful group that includes Jeff Parker on guitar, Patrice Rushen on piano, Ben Williams on bass, and Kendrick Scott on drums a tight core combo who really find a way to push Lundy's energy even more than usual while Carmen herself handles other keyboards with her vocals, and serves especially righteous material! There's a bit more politics here than on previous records perfect for the spirit of the moment but Carmen also mixes a lot of warmth and love into her music as well. Titles include "Black & Blues", "Afterglow", "Whatever It Takes", "I Keep Falling", "The Island The Sea & You", "Have A Little Faith", and "Another Chance". © 1996-2017, Dusty Groove, Inc. https://www.dustygroove.com/item/823955/Carmen-Lundy:Code-Noir

Carmen Lundy: vocals, keyboards, guitar, background vocals; Patrice Rushen: piano; Ben Williams: acoustic and electric bass; Kendrick Scott: drums, percussion; Jeff Parker: electric guitar; Elisabeth Oei: background vocals track 7.

Code Noir

Kirk Lightsey - Le Corbu

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 60:14
Size: 137.9 MB
Styles: Contemporary jazz
Year: 2015
Art: Front

[2:11] 1. Prelude Ravel
[9:58] 2. You And The Night And The Music
[6:42] 3. Footprints
[6:44] 4. Heaven Dance
[3:49] 5. Le Corbu
[6:19] 6. Lament
[7:11] 7. I Wanna Be Kissed
[7:59] 8. Everyone In Uniso
[9:17] 9. A Child Is Born

Double Bass – Tibor Elekes; Drums, Percussion – Famoudou Don Moye; Piano, Flute – Kirk Lightsey.

Famoudou Don Moye (b. 1946) is an American avant-jazz percussionist and drummer, best known as a member of The Art Ensemble Of Chicago since 1969, and recognized as an extraordinary master of Afro-Caribbean percussion instruments and rhythmic techniques. Don Moye developed his own original 'sun percussion' style of performing, and led Sun Percussion Summit with Enoch Williamson, which is a group dedicated to exploring the traditions of African-American percussion music.

Kirkland Lightsey is an American jazz pianist, born 15 February 1937 in Detroit, Michigan, USA.

Tibor Elekes is a Hungarian / Swiss bassist, composer and engineer, born 3 May 1960.

Le Corbu