Hank Crawford - Essential Jazz Masters

Styles: Saxophone Jazz
Year: 2011
Time: 108:46
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Size: 250,9 MB
Art: Front

(2:47) 1. Whispering Grass
(5:34) 2. Misty
(6:34) 3. Angel Eyes
(3:09) 4. The Peeper
(5:09) 5. What Will I Tell My Heart?
(3:58) 6. Stardust
(2:43) 7. Groovin'
(3:53) 8. Baby, Let Me Hold Your Hand
(3:20) 9. You've Changed
(5:04) 10. Don't Get Around Much Anymore
(4:53) 11. Dat Dere
(5:03) 12. But On The Other Hand
(4:22) 13. Don't Cry, Baby
(6:41) 14. Boo's Tune
(3:40) 15. Sweet Cakes
(3:17) 16. Read 'Em And Weep
(4:39) 17. Sherri
(3:31) 18. Please Send Me Someone To Love
(5:38) 19. Lorelei's Lament
(5:44) 20. Stoney Lonesome
(4:36) 21. Sister Sadie
(4:28) 22. Two Years Of Torture
(4:43) 23. The Story
(5:09) 24. Four, Five, Six

Hank Crawford was an alto sax sensation since he stepped out of the Ray Charles band back in 1963. A signature piercing, full bodied, blues, soul, and gospel drenched tone, sets him apart from the alto pack. He has an instantly recognizable voice, and his excellent choice of material suits his style perfectly. He is a bluesman turned preacher on the sax, and the sermon is always on time.

Bennie Ross Crawford Jr. was born in Memphis, Tennessee on December 21, 1934, began formal piano studies at age nine and was soon playing for his church choir. His father had brought an alto saxophone home from the service and when Hank entered high school, he took it up in order to join the band. He credits Charlie Parker, Louis Jordan, Earl Bostic and Johnny Hodges as early influences.

At school, he hung out with Phineas and Calvin Newborn, Booker Little, George Coleman, Frank Stozier and Harold Mabern all of whom would go on to become important jazz figures. "We had a pretty good education just by being around each other," Crawford says now.

Before he had finished high school, Hank was playing in bands led by Ben Branch, Tuff Green, Al Jackson, Sr. and Ike Turner. They were frequently called upon to back such up-and-coming blues singers as B. B. King, Bobby Bland, Junior Parker, Johnny Ace and Roscoe Gordon and the Palace Theatre, the Club Paradise and other Memphis venues.
More......https://www.allaboutjazz.com/musicians/hank-crawford/

Essential Jazz Masters

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Cannonball Adderley / Nat Adderley Quintet - What Is This Thing Called Soul (Live In Europe)

Styles: Saxophone And Cornet Jazz
Year: 1960
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 42:06
Size: 96,7 MB
Art: Front

(8:51) 1. Azule Serape
(6:43) 2. Big "P"
(6:36) 3. One For Daddy-O
(9:59) 4. The Chant
(8:26) 5. What Is This Thing Called Love
(1:29) 6. Cannonball's Theme

Cannonball Adderley's 1960 Quintet (with cornetist Nat Adderley and pianist Victor Feldman) was in top form during their tour of Europe. Norman Granz did not release the music heard on this CD until almost 25 years after the fact but the strong solos and enthusiastic ensembles had not dated nor faded with time. These versions of "The Chant," "What Is This Thing Called Love?" and "Big 'P'" make for interesting comparisons with the better-known renditions. Adderley fans will want this set. By Scott Yanow https://www.allmusic.com/album/what-is-this-thing-called-soul-mw0000674626


Personnel: Alto Saxophone – Cannonball Adderley; Cornet – Nat Adderley; Drums – Louis Hayes; Piano – Vic Feldman; Bass – Sam Jones.

What Is This Thing Called Soul (Live In Europe)

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Jill Barber - Encore!

Styles: Vocal
Year: 2024
Time: 41:24
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Size: 95,4 MB
Art: Front

(2:51) 1. Plus je t’embrasse
(4:05) 2. Ménilmontant
(3:07) 3. Nuages
(2:52) 4. De temps en temps
(3:42) 5. Padam padam
(2:58) 6. La mer
(4:06) 7. Ordinaire
(6:06) 8. Mal de vivre
(4:12) 9. Les eaux de Mars
(3:42) 10. Que reste-t-il de nos amours?
(3:39) 11. Parlez-moi d’amour

“For me, singing in French is a physical, sensory experience ... It’s a new language in which I can express myself artistically and be vulnerable.” (Jill Barber under her homepage)

It is already the fourth album with/by JILL BARBER, which we discuss under our side and – let's say it her voice is still getting used to. Many say guarantees: “Wow, a really charismatic voice that is recognized again always and everywhere!”

Others, on the other hand, could also notice: “Oh, strange this voice, which gives the songs a clearly recognizable, but somehow sometimes childlike charisma in high tones!”

It is always a matter of subjective (listening) feeling – and that is decisive and decisive in music. But especially with JILL BARBER the boundaries of sky high jayscent to quite annoyed are quite fluent.

This feeling does not change on their current album “ ENCORE! ”. But, but, but... ...and here we would be at a real plus point in the context of her 2024 album: “ ENCORE! “ Barbers (second) purely French-language album, which follows her most successful (also French-language) album “Chansons” from 2013, in which she covered a large number of classic French chansons, which accompany the language of this language in the French language.

And right here – with her now eleven-year-old album JILL BARBER ENCORE!is once again using “ENCORE!”: Where “Chansons” stopped, she is now setting her new interpretations of French-language classics, including songs by BLOSSOM DEARIE, ROBERT CHARLEBOIS, CHARLES TRENET, who now she now include the legendary PIdeveloped the extra classreation, which would certainly have inspired the good Edith in this intensity, away.

Thus, “ ENCORE!” actually becomes an absolutely fascinating album for friends of French chansons, which, in addition to the specially chosen cover versions, the quiet chanson and cocktail lounge atmosphere, which can probably best be described as the adjective 'dreamlike'.

But it is not only the aura of the French Chanteuse Piaf, which the Canadian musician knows how to capture perfectly, also another musician, this time from a completely different genre, revives her in an inimitable way with “De temps en temps”: the American-born, dancing and singing actress JOSEPHINE BAKER, who accepted French citizenship in 1937 and belonged to the Resistance in the Second World War. With her fascinating as well as very revealing manner, she was the muse of many artists and was considered the 'Black Venus'.

It is precisely this aura that JILL BARBER revives with her Baker song like a 'White Venus' by noting herself: "The black-American, Anglophone Joséphine Baker made this song famous in 1939 and later became one of the greatest stars in France. At that time, it was daring for a woman to sing about her desire for physical affection without the need for a relationship and I think it is still quite sexy and empowering today.”

And that behind every note and many texts on “ ENCORE!” now also a lot of eroticism plays a big role, is quite striking. But eroticism and chanson basically often belong as closely together as the swing and the big band, which also often sounds on Barber's album. But the French chanson is simply much more intimate, which can be enjoyed to the fullest of this finely designed yellow LP, which is why another special song from the LP is “Oridinaire”, which JILL BARBER explicitly emphasizes: “When I first heard this classic by Robert Charlebois, I was completely enchanted... It is a conjuring of a famous singer. I approached this performance like an actress by becoming the central figure of the song in all her fragility. In combination with Drew's lush and dramatic string orchestration, this is really pure emotion.”

But not only “Ordinaire” is the pure emotion on “ENCORE! “. Basically, it is each of the 11 songs that literally strip before us in the versions of the Canadian musician until we discover her whole beauty. And this is exactly where this extraordinary voice from JILL BARBER fits perfectly.

FAZIT: One decade after her world success “Chanson” JILL BARBER once again collaborates with the Grammy-nominated producer Drew Jurecka and the musicians, who accompanied her eleven years earlier on “Chanson’s” (their most successful album to date) to produce “ENCORE!”, the long-awaited sequel. “ ENCORE!” is a wonderfully arranged and richly orchestrated album that contains completely new interpretations of classic songs by Edith Piaf, Charles Trenet, Blossom Dearie, Django Reinhardt, Robert Charlebois, Josephine Baker and others, and continues the atmosphere like Aura, with which JILL BARBER has already conquered the hearts of their fans with the French language and selected cover songs.

However, it will become apparent whether, after so many years, there is still favourable to the easing musical times for this 11-year-old success concept. “ ENCORE!” is a successful 'addition' of the "Chansons" album. Especially recommended is the coloured vinyl pressing, which spreads a similarly warm and relaxed-dream mood on the turntable as the songs between the grooves.
http://www.musikreviews.de/reviews/2024/Jill-Barber/ENCORE/

Personnel: Vocals - Jill Barber; Bass - Chris Banks; Guitar - Nathan Hiltz, Justin DuHaime; Others - Winds, strings, harps, bandoneo, accordion

Encore!

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Lyn Stanley - The Moonlight Sessions, Vol. Two

Styles: Vocal Jazz
Year: 2017
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 58:18
Size: 136,8 MB
Art: Front

(3:50)  1. Makin' Whoopee
(3:19) 2. The Very Thought of You (feat. Christian Jacob)
(3:19)  3. That Old Feeling (feat. Mike Garson)
(2:34)  4. Summer Knows
(4:06)  5. Over the Rainbow (feat. Christian Jacob)
(5:02)  6. How Deep Is the Ocean? (feat. Mike Garson)
(4:54)  7. Angel Eyes (feat. Mike Garson)
(5:51)  8. At Seventeen (feat. Mike Garson)
(4:43)  9. You've Changed
(3:27) 10. Smile
(5:46) 11. Love Me or Leave Me (feat. Tamir Hendelman)
(2:42) 12. How Insensitive (feat. Christian Jacob)
(5:27) 13. Since I Fell for You (feat. Mike Garson)
(3:12) 14. I'll Be Seeing You

Song Stylist Lyn Stanley completes her Moonlight Sessions with Volume 2. This present offering follows only a few months after the release of her well-received The Moonlight Sessions, Volume 1 (A.T. Music, 2017), capping her project with a collection of carefully selected, well-covered standards, with a couple of surprises. Stanley's three-part creative paradigm, started with Volume 1 is continued and completed here. Stanley aimed to: one, reestablish a measure of audio fidelity (analog) to recording and playback; two, reassert the Great American Songbook as the gateway to understanding the history of jazz; and three, redefine what a "song stylist" is. She has largely accomplished this, while still offering something beyond these creative vectors: a deeply intimate consideration of iconic life songs. The disc opens with a perfect Stanley vehicle, "Makin' Whoopie." She give the standard a spot-on sardonic reading that smolders with experience and humor. Hendrik Meurkens' harmonica provides just a slippery enough slope to send the song into the stratosphere. Stanley's romantically-charged, wistful reading of "That Old Feeling" segues nicely into the first surprise, "Summer Knows" from the film, Summer of '42 (Warner Bros., 1971). This pairing is a slick bit of programming deserving attention. The second such diptych involves the other surprise, Janis Ian's 1974 single "At Seventeen" from her album Between The Lines (Columbia). This is Stanley's most daring and inspired inclusion in this recital and she sings the song with a sepia nostalgic charge that makes the piece fit with the rest of the set list. Juxtaposed against the almost sheer darkness of "Angel Eyes," the two songs give ready evidence to Stanley's command of her repertoire and direction. Critic's Note: Anno Domini 2017, marks the 100th Anniversary of recorded jazz, deftly noted by the release of the Original Dixieland Jazz Band's shellac "Dixieland Jass Band One-Step (A)/Livery Stable Blues (B)," Victor 18255, recorded February 26, 1917 and released March 7, 1917. Just for perspective, in 1917, my father was 18 months old and my mother was yet to be born for two years. It is also the twentieth anniversary of me writing for All About Jazz. The first recording I reviewed for the magazine was Art Pepper's San Francisco Samba (Contemporary, 1997), published December 1, 1997. I am using this present review as part of a series noting my twentieth anniversary with the magazine and paying special tribute to my fellow writers at All About Jazz and Publisher Michael Ricci. ~ C.Michael Bailey https://www.allaboutjazz.com/lyn-stanley--the-moonlight-sessions-volume-2-lyn-stanley-at-music-llc-review-by-c-michael-bailey.php

Personnel: Lyn Stanley: vocals; Mike Garson: piano; Christian Jacob: piano; Tamir Hendelman: piano; Chuck Berghofer: bass; Ray Brinker: drums; Bernie Dresel: drums; Joe LaBarbara: drums; Luis Conte: percussion; John Chiodini: guitar; Chuck Findley: trumpet; Rickey Woodard: tenor saxophone; Bob McChesney: trombone; Hendrik Meurkens: harmonica.

The Moonlight Sessions, Vol.Two

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Lyn Stanley - The Moonlight Sessions, Vol. 1

Styles: Vocal Jazz

Year: 2017

File: MP3@320K/s

Time: 50:42

Size: 116,6 MB

Art: Front

(4:56)  1. All or Nothing at All (feat. Christian Jacob)

(4:06)  2. Willow Weep for Me (feat. Tamir Hendelman)

(4:34)  3. Moonlight Serenade (feat. Christian Jacob)

(5:16)  4. My Funny Valentine (feat. Mike Garson)

(4:52)  5. Embraceable You (feat. Tamir Hendelman)

(3:01)  6. Why Don't You Do Right?

(2:59)  7. Girl Talk (feat. Mike Garson)

(4:19)  8. Crazy (feat. Mike Garson)

(3:07)  9. Close Your Eyes (feat. Mike Garson)

(4:38) 10. How Insensitive (feat. Tamir Hendelman)

(4:58) 11. Break It to Me Gently (feat. Mike Garson)

(3:49) 12. In the Wee Small Hours

With release of her various audiophile editions (LP, CD, reel-to-reel) of The Moonlight Sessions, Volume 1, Lyn Stanley brings into clear focus the driving forces behind her previous three releases: Lost in Romance (A.T. Music, LLC, 2011); Potions: From the '50s (A.T. Music, LLC, 2014); and Interludes (A.T. Music, LLC, 2015). These forces include: one, reestablishing a measure of audio fidelity (analog) to recording and playback; two, reassert the Great American Songbook as the gateway to understanding the history of jazz; and three, redefine what a "song stylist" is. Stanley has made it a sharp point to pay close attention to the sonics of her recordings. She has always been able to surround herself with the best musicians and record in the warmest of environments like Hollywood, CA's Capitol Recording Studios, and Los Angeles, CA's The Village Studios and LAFx using Frank Sinatra's Telefunken U47 ("Telly") microphone, to boot. The recordings were analog mixed and mastered to 1/4" 30ips stereo tape, with engineering provided by Al Schmitt/Steve Genewick (tracking); Michael Bishop (mixing) and Bernie Grundman (mastering). The media produced for distribution are: One-Step 180 gram/45RPM/Double Vinyl LP; stereo SACD (Super Audio CD) Hybrids; and 1/4" 15ips reel-to-reel tape. What all this gear-head speak means is that the environment for the music has all the proper sonic nutrients and dry warmth to produce the type of recorded sound we, of a certain age, can remember hearing. Stanley's aim is to record and produce media able to provide test material for high- end audiophile playback systems; to do it thoughtfully and creatively; and to honor the music produced. Stanley's repertoire here is already amply time-tested to the point where it is fair to ask, ..."if we could possibly need one more standards vocal set?" Every generation needs an artist to set an example of how the songs making up the Great American Songbook are performed as nominally envisioned by the composers. For me, my introduction to the Songbook was through Linda Ronstadt's mid-'80s standards recordings, What's New (Asylum, 1983); Lush Life (Asylum, 1984); and For Sentimental Reasons (Asylum, 1986). Were these great vocal recordings? I suspect they were good enough as they got me interested in these songs from the 1920s-'50s that basically defined a jazz canon after 1945.

For the front end of the 21st Century, a solid argument can be made that Lyn Stanley is an artist bearing the mantle of teacher, to a new generation of music listeners, of the times and places from which jazz, instrumental and vocal music came. This extant collection of songs called "standards" has been nothing if not durable in its various interpretations. What Stanley provides in her previous three recordings, and now The Moonlight Sessions, Volume 1, is an elegantly conservative approach to these songs that can be compared to that of Frank Sinatra. Sinatra had great respect for the composers and songwriters providing him material, and he honored them in his styling of their songs. His interest was never about improvisation; it was always about sincere and well-balanced delivery. So, too, is Stanley's charge. Her recordings' superb sonics and carefully considered arrangements provide a nourishing environment for her to present these songs in a sophisticated manner befitting their introduction to the newly exposed. Finally, Stanley reminds us of the difference between a "song stylist" and a "jazz singer," though, if we were to construct a proper Venn diagram, there would certainly be overlap between the two. In comparison, Stanley has more in common with Sinatra than, say, Betty Carter. She is not going to detonate some barrage of scat and vocalese fireworks; rather, Stanley delivers her melodies unadorned by nothing more than her warm and intimate alto voice. On The Moonlight Sessions, Volume 1 Stanley addresses her material with spare yet graceful instrumental ornamentation. Her rhythm section is anchored by pianists Mike Garson, Christian Jacob, and Tamir Hendelman; bassist Chuck Berghofer; and drummers Ray Brinker, Bernie Dresel, {Joe LaBarbara}}. Added to this considerable firepower are other notable musicians, specifically chosen for the given compositions.

Stanley's Volume 1 recital kicks off with a clever "All or Nothing at All," bookended with trumpet quotes (courtesy of Chuck Findley) from George Gershwin's A Rhapsody in Blue. That little touch adds a sepia patina to the song before Stanley brings the song into the present. Stanley sings con brio, as does Findley in his finely-structured obbligato and solos. Tenor saxophonist Rickey Woodard digs deep, producing a muscular, virile tone to play foil to Stanley's coolly jaded protagonist on "Willow Weep for Me." The tempo is measured and determined, never lagging: a hard feat to achieve at slow tempo. The inclusion of Glenn Miller's "Moonlight Serenade" (with lyrics by Mitchell Parish) is a pleasant surprise and a smart nod to the Swing Era, when jazz was the popular music. Again, Stanley sings languidly, with a crepuscular recline in her voice. "My Funny Valentine" and "Embraceable You" deserve added attention for their ubiquity in recorded literature. Music writer Scott Yanow's published "Ten Songs That Should Be Avoided" in his book The Jazz Singers: The Ultimate Guide (Backbeat, 2008). This list necessarily includes "My Funny Valentine." Unless one can bring something dramatically new to this war-horse as Laurie Antonioli did darkly on her 2015 Varuna (Origin Records), it should be allowed to rest. My defense for Stanley's inclusion is her beautiful and conservative treatment, which presents the melody as originally intended. Then, compare it to Chet Baker's idiosyncratic Chet Baker Sings (Pacific Jazz, 1954) to hear two vastly different approaches to the same song. This same reasoning works for "Embraceable You": Listen to Stanley's purring performance of the tune, and then to Charlie Parker's famous 1947 recording to hear what the big deal about jazz is. That said, Stanley did not play everything by the book. Her performance of Willie Nelson's (by way of Patsy Cline) "Crazy" is arranged as a polite roadhouse romp where the singer lets her hair down. The inclusion of Brenda Lee's "Break It to Me Gently" is inspired, forcing the perimeter of what are considered "standards" a little further out. Stanley closes with "The Wee Small Hours in the Morning," reminding us, of necessity, of Frank Sinatra in our musical collective consciousness...and of the necessity of Lyn Stanley and her mission. Now, on with Volume 2! ~ C.Michael Bailey https://www.allaboutjazz.com/the-moonlight-sessions-volume-1-lyn-stanley-at-music-llc-review-by-c-michael-bailey.php

Personnel: Lyn Stanley: vocals; Mike Garson: piano; Christian Jacob: piano; Tamir Hendelman: piano; Chuck Berghofer: bass; Ray Brinker: drums; Bernie Dresel: drums; Joe LaBarbara: drums; Luis Conte: percussion; John Chiodini: guitar; Chuck Findley: trumpet; Rickey Woodard: tenor saxophone; Bob McChesney: trombone; Hendrik Meurkens: harmonica.

The Moonlight Sessions, Vol.One

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Eric Reed & Dave Young - Live To Air Oscar Peterson Day

Styles: Piano, Bop
Year: 2022
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 36:18
Size: 84,6 MB
Art: Front

(6:05) 1. Night Train
(5:55) 2. Moten Swing
(6:13) 3. Bags' Groove
(2:49) 4. I Got It Bad (and That Ain't Good)
(5:44) 5. Hymn to Freedom
(5:04) 6. Perdido
(4:25) 7. Georgia on My Mind

On Aug. 15, 2022, JAZZ.FM91 honoured and celebrated one of our country’s best, Oscar Peterson. The day culminated in this special Live to Air concert featuring pianist Eric Reed and bassist Dave Young in a duet performance in the Long & McQuade Performance Hall at JAZZ.FM91. It was co-hosted by Dani Elwell and Céline Peterson.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7I573iuWL20

Personnel: Eric Reed - piano; Dave Young - bass

Live To Air Oscar Peterson Day

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Chris Byars - Boptics

Styles: Saxophone Jazz
Year: 2024
Time: 62:49
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Size: 144,6 MB
Art: Front

(5:56) 1. Bophthalmology
(6:35) 2. Melatonin'
(6:03) 3. Minor Boptics
(7:21) 4. 3 D Flat
(6:33) 5. eKat
(5:04) 6. Endure And Remain
(5:31) 7. Look Ahead
(7:01) 8. Clementsy
(7:29) 9. Emily Reno
(5:11) 10. Times Square Lights

Chris Byars was born Christopher Lawrence Byars in 1970 in New York City to musical parents Janita Byars (First Clarinet, American Symphony Orchestra) and James Byars (Oboe/English Horn, New York City Ballet Orchestra). In 1983, he adopted jazz as a musical departure from an early career as an opera singer, during which he performed dozens of productions for The New York City Opera and The Metropolitan Opera, including many high-pressure solo roles.

Byars earned Bachelor of Music (1990) and Master of Music (jazz studies, performance, 1992) degrees from Manhattan School of Music. Over the course of five decades, Byars has participated in musical productions from behind the scenes, as a sideman, as a leader, as a traveling artist, conductor, educator, arranger, and composer. Byars has traveled to 55 countries representing the Unites States as a Cultural Envoy for music outreach programmed by US Embassies. Chris co-directed recurrent outreach programs in Syria and in Cyprus, with the purpose of healing divisions and building goodwill towards the United States.

Byars has carefully balanced attention between works of the past and present. Performing with the quintet Across 7 Street in the 1990s, he regularly premiered new compositions while appearing steadily on Sundaynights at Smalls Jazz Club. Byars has composed five extended works as suites (several movements each), addressing local geographies, musical depictions of biographies, and visual art. The current working band is titled Chris Byars Original Sextet which denotes a departure from material written by others. One decade previous, Byars transcribed, arranged, performed, and recorded tributes to jazz greats Teddy Charles, Freddie Redd, Gigi Gryce, Lucky Thompson, Duke Jordan, Frank Strozier, and Jimmy Cleveland.

When possible, these subjects or their families were included as performers or listeners. During the pandemic, Byars continued to arrange and compose, writing Birdography for the NDR Big Band (Hamburg, Germany) and original material for an upcoming 2023 Steeplechase Records release entitled Look Ahead, Byars sought economic refuge within the sphere of civic service, personally interviewing and assisting over 10,000 citizens as a bilingual Contact Tracer for New York City, canvassing the Bronx as a Field Enumerator for the 2020 Decennial Census, and serving as a Spanish Interpreter of NYC Board of Elections.

In May 2022, his CD entitled Rhythm and Blues of the 20s was released for Steeplechase, featuring new original compositions and arrangements for the Chris Byars Original Sextet.
https://www.jazzmusicarchives.com/artist/chris-byars

Personnel: Chris Byars(tenor saxophone), Zaid Nasser(alto saxophone), Stefano Doglioni(bass clarinet), John Mosca(trombone), Ari Roland(bass), Keith Balla (drums)

Zara McFarlane - Sweet Whispers: Celebrating Sarah Vaughan

Styles: Vocal
Year: 2024
Time: 43:57
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Size: 101,4 MB
Art: Front

(5:49) 1. Tenderly
(3:46) 2. Mean To Me
(4:39) 3. Inner City Blues
(3:17) 4. September Song
(2:35) 5. Great Day
(5:40) 6. If You Could See Me Now
(3:42) 7. Interlude
(4:10) 8. Obsession
(3:13) 9. The Mystery of Man
(4:29) 10. Stardust
(2:33) 11. Sweet Whispers

Zara McFarlane's fifth album a recording that actually fits the vogueish description "project" represents a marked change of focus for the singer, from London to New York City and points west. Closely associated with London's radical underground jazz scene, McFarlane has previously peopled her touring and recording bands with fellow adventurers such Shabaka Hutchings, Shirley Tetteh, Idris Rahman, Robin Hopcraft, Nathaniel Cross, Binker Golding and Moses Boyd. Significantly, too, McFarlane has also written the vast majority of the material she has recorded, with her Jamaican heritage often apparent, never more so than in the remarkable, at times surreal, Songs Of An Unknown Tongue (Brownswood, 2020), and its immediate predecessor, Arise (Brownswood, 2017).

All this changes with Sweet Whispers: Celebrating Sarah Vaughan. Not for the worse, not for the better, just changes. The album is a sumptuous tribute to Sarah Vaughan during her 100th-anniversary year. The set list comprises eleven songs closely associated with Vaughan, and McFarlane is accompanied by a reeds and rhythm section quartet performing in classic straight-ahead style. The group was assembled by Giacomo Smith, who co-produced and co-arranged with McFarlane. The arrangements are outstanding (check the YouTube below). Smith also plays soprano saxophone, alto saxophone, clarinet and bass clarinet on the album.

The program includes "If You Could See Me Now," the first song Vaughan recorded under her own leadership, in 1946, written for her by Tadd Dameron and Carl Sigman. There is, too, the last song Vaughan recorded, Gilson Peranzzetta, Dori Caymmi and Tracy Mann's "Obsession," from Brazilian Romance (Columbia, 1987). Also included, Marvin Gaye and James Nyx's "Inner City Blues (Make Me Wanna Holler)," which Vaughan recorded on her album A Time In My Life (Mainstream, 1971). Like McFarlane, Vaughan did not shy away from recording socially and politically inspired songs.

It is sometimes imagined that the stylists on London's underground scene are dismissive of America's jazz tradition. It is, of course, nonsense and Sweet Whispers demonstrates that. McFarlane makes no attempt to "recalibrate," "reimagine," "reconstruct" or reanything the material, though there is a nod to the Caribbean on "Obsession" with the use of steel pan. The album was recorded live to tape, with minimal overdubs, and possesses an appropriately authentic back in the day feel.By Chris May
https://www.allaboutjazz.com/sweet-whispers-celebrating-sarah-vaughan-zara-mcfarlen-eternal-source-of-light

Sweet Whispers: Celebrating Sarah Vaughan

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Gerry Mulligan Quartet & Bob Brookmeyer - Paris

Styles: Saxophone And Trombone Jazz
Year: 1954
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 61:58
Size: 142,3 MB
Scans:

(3:38) 1. The Lady Is a Tramp
(4:58) 2. I May Be Wrong
(6:25) 3. Gold Rush
(3:35) 4. Makin' Whoopee
(4:16) 5. Laura
(4:25) 6. Soft Shoes
(4:36) 7. The Nearness of You
(6:04) 8. Bark for Barksdale
(4:18) 9. Bernie's Tune
(4:31) 10. Five Brothers
(3:14) 11. Lullaby of the Leaves
(4:50) 12. Limelight
(3:45) 13. Come out Wherever You Are
(3:16) 14. Moonlight in Vermont


Personnel: Baritone Saxophone – Gerry Mulligan; Bass – Red Mitchell; Drums – Frank Isola; Trombone – Bob Brookmeyer

Paris

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Dianne Reeves - The Grand Encounter

Styles: Vocal Jazz 
Year: 1996
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 50:26
Size: 116,7 MB
Art: Front

(5:01)  1. Old Country
(3:23)  2. Cherokee
(8:12)  3. Besame Mucho
(3:46)  4. Let Me Love You
(4:54)  5. Tenderly
(6:06)  6. After Hours
(3:27)  7. Ha!
(5:24)  8. Some Other Spring
(5:08)  9. Side By Side
(4:59) 10. I'm Okay

This CD could have been titled Finally! Dianne Reeves has long had the potential to be the top female jazz singer, but so many of her previous recordings were erratic as she skipped back and forth between idioms without committing herself. However, after years of flirting with jazz and being seemingly undecided whether she would rather be a pop star, she at last came out with a full jazz album in 1996, and it is a gem. The supporting cast on the ten selections (which feature different personnel on each cut) is remarkable and everyone gets a chance to play: trumpeters Clark Terry and Harry "Sweets" Edison, altoists Phil Woods and Bobby Watson, tenorman James Moody, trombonist Al Grey, harmonica great Toots Thielemans (on "Besame Mucho"), pianist Kenny Barron, bassist Rodney Whitaker, and drummer Herlin Riley.

In addition, Joe Williams shares the vocal spotlight on "Let Me Love You" and a touching version of "Tenderly," Germaine Bazzle sings along with Reeves on "Side by Side," and a rendition of Charlie Ventura's "Ha!" has a vocal group consisting of Reeves, Bazzle, Terry, Moody, and the young Kimberley Longstreth. Other highlights include Nat Adderley's "Old Country," "Some Other Spring," and "Cherokee." Despite the heavy "competition," the leader emerges as the star of the set due to her beautiful voice and highly expressive singing. This highly recommended CD is the Dianne Reeves release to get. By Scott Yanow
https://www.allmusic.com/album/the-grand-encounter-mw0000081516

Personnel: Vocals – Dianne Reeves, Germaine Bazzle, Joe Williams , Kimberley Longstreth; Vocals, Tenor Saxophone – James Moody; Vocals, Trumpet – Clark Terry ; Alto Saxophone – Bobby Watson , Phil Woods; Bass – Rodney Whitaker; Drums – Herlin Riley; Harmonica – Toots Thielemans; Piano – Kenny Barron; Trombone – Al Grey ; Trumpet – Harry "Sweets" Edison

The Grand Encounter

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Spike Robinson - Spike Robinson Plays Harry Warren

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 79:02
Size: 180.9 MB
Styles: Saxophone jazz, Mainstream jazz
Year: 2005
Art: Front

[5:46] 1. This Heart Of Mine
[7:44] 2. At Last
[8:41] 3. The Boulevard Of Broken Dreams
[5:27] 4. There Will Never Be Another You
[7:12] 5. I Had The Craziest Dream
[4:01] 6. Shadow Waltz
[6:20] 7. Serenade In Blue
[4:55] 8. This Is Always
[5:20] 9. The More I See You
[3:25] 10. Chattanooga Choo Choo
[4:32] 11. Cheerful Little Earful
[6:11] 12. I Only Have Eyes For You
[4:22] 13. Lulu's Back In Town
[4:59] 14. I Wish I Knew

This CD reissues tenor saxophonist Spike Robinson's 1981 Discovery LP of the same name and adds six additional selections recorded in 1993. The Discovery date was recorded when Robinson was already 51 and found him returning to jazz after a 30-year absence from full-time activity. The cool-toned tenor (heard with pianist Victor Feldman, bassist Ray Brown, and drummer John Guerin) proved to be very much in his prime, a new type of Young Lion who brought back the Four Brothers' sound.

The 1993 selections with pianist Pete Jolly, bassist John Leitham, and drummer Paul Kreibich are on the same high level. Since the underrated Harry Warren was one of the top songwriters of the 1930s and '40s, Robinson had plenty to choose from on this tribute set. His high-quality repertoire includes "This Heart of Mine," "There Will Never Be Another You," "Serenade in Blue," "Lulu's Back in Town," and even "Chattanooga Choo Choo." A highly recommended and swinging program.By Scott Yanow

Spike Robinson Plays Harry Warren

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Carol Albert - Fly Away Butterfly

Styles: Vocal And Piano Jazz
Year: 2017
Time: 43:33
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Size: 100,3 MB
Art: Front

(4:09) 1. Fly Away Butterfly
(4:09) 2. Awakening
(4:23) 3. On My Way
(4:20) 4. Across The Sky
(4:28) 5. One Way
(3:59) 6. Mas Que Nada
(4:23) 7. Chasing Waterfalls
(5:24) 8. Never Thought It Would Be This Way
(4:09) 9. Transition
(4:09) 10. Fly Away Butterfly (Reprise)

Every so often, an artist comes along that makes you reimagine the possibilities of music. With Fly Away Butterfly
 Album, Carol Albert delivers a seminal and sizzling contribution to the artistic sphere, blending lively melodies with thoughtful and refined arrangements. Every song presents not just different sounds but soundscapes in which Carol invites us to inhabit and explore.

But this album is also one of healing, as Carol lost her husband in 2014, and she turned back to composing music after some years off from her Recording Career. After her “Christmas Mystique” production, she started on this work, tackling the personal issues she has faced and this time, head on. Throughout the opus, we hear, quite beautifully, about Carol’s stages of recovery and healing. And by so doing, she has given us something for each one of us to hold onto.

The title track “Fly Away Butterfly” evokes an ambient groove enlivened by joyful, even mirthful flutes, the soundtrack to a butterfly flying away, from this place to that. Indeed, the track is symbolic, as Carol’s voice is intimate and distant, the delicate balance of love and loss that we all must face during life. “Awakening” flows and builds with an ostinato groove, lilting flutes, and well-placed piano touches. The song is wrought with anticipation and playful exchanges that resolve to the tonic chord, a brilliant display of compositional prowess and acumen. In fact, an encounter with a Blue Morph butterfly in Costa Rica prompted her to write the tune. Perhaps unwittingly, Carol’s has given us a track for our times, to be “awakened” to the tension-and-release, call-and-response of life. That after the very worst times comes recovery and healing. And Carol’s album, listened from start to finish, can be part of a veritable music healing, enriching your soul with creative and artistic ferment.

“On My Way” is even more explicit, an anthem for our times. It’s a song of new beginnings. Her lyrics “On My Way/To a better day/I’ll spread my wings and fly away…” connote not just escapism but realism. In truth, sometimes you need an army of one to get the job done. You have to take things into your own hands. At least with Carol’s horn-drenched tune, you’ll have a musical accompaniment as you face towards the future. “Across the Sky” begins with a Coltrane-like incandescent solo with dreamy, even distant vocals. With her vocal performance, Carol has her audience hanging on every note with anticipation. “One Way” is a song about love and combines some of her favorite elements such as acoustic piano, nylon string guitar, and a hint of Latin percussion. The original version of “One Way” appears on Al Jarreau’s 1988 hit album Heart’s Horizon. “I have always loved the song and thought creating and performing a new arrangement of it would be the perfect celebration of his artistry and life”

In “Mas Que Nada,” the Latin rhythms pulse with fervor and give a stylistic panache to this track, as if you were listening at a dark-lit club with fire-red dancing. What’s more, Carol’s voice displays a richness and versatility of the highest order, with beautiful incantations and vocalizations. As an admirer of Latin music, Carol had me taken with this song. In a word, stunning.

“Waterfalls are all about that instant change in forward momentum, and can be powerful metaphors,” said Carol when describing the track “Chasing Waterfalls.” Her rolling piano propels the momentum of the song back-and-forth, ultimately advancing it without compunction so that we’re immersed, maybe even drenched in a sonic landscape of groove in the province of jam! “Never Thought It Would Be This Way” is a personal introspection into life when things turn out differently than expected. And ain’t that the truth.

The lyrics however aren’t bitter but bittersweet, informed by a life of love and loss. “Transition” brings us back into the ambient world with watercolor harmonies and kaleidoscopic timbres cascading throughout the number. It’s about moving into new realms. And with the last track “Fly Away Reprise,” Carol sends the message that there must be a final letting go. 

In this album, we hear it all, and we are better for it. Carol Albert has given us a musical testimonial borne out of the crucible of loss. We hear both resilience and grace in her music. By giving so much of herself in this music, we not only hear her, but she creates a space for us to join her on the road ahead. By Kabir Sehgal https://www.allaboutjazz.com/news/fly-away-butterfly-new-album-by-carol-albert/

Fly Away Butterfly

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Lauren Henderson - La Bruja

Styles: Vocal
Year: 2022
Time: 37:52
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Size: 88,1 MB
Art: Front

(3:15) 1. Perfidia
(2:55) 2. Veinte años
(2:40) 3. La bruja
(2:54) 4. Fría
(5:24) 5. Así
(2:55) 6. Febrero hums
(3:07) 7. La sitiera
(5:37) 8. Amistad
(3:24) 9. Deseo
(2:56) 10. Veinte años ii
(2:42) 11. Silencio

There may be many singers more famous even lionised than Lauren Henderson. But not a single one in recent memory can beguile the senses with the emotional seduction of her vocals, delivered almost continuously sotto voce. In fact it’s almost as if she doesn’t sing as much as she casts a spell on the hapless listener with her voice. How appropriate therefore, that her album should be entitled La Bruja.

Miss Henderson plays the role of la bruja to the hilt. But she turns her “inner-witch” into a good-spellbinding one. The thematic centrepiece [of sorts] of her proverbial witchcraft, then, is of her interpretations of the iconic song by María Teresa Vera – Veinte Años – which is interpreted three times with three different singularly metaphorical ways bringing the meaning of the original lyric written by the celebrated Miss Vera into the modern-day ethos which is characterised by the newly sinister discrimination and objectifying of women in the developed world.

Vocally Miss Henderson is in luxuriant form on this, her ninth album; her dark-tinted contralto is as edible as pure, bitter chocolate in all its luxury assortments. This is an enormous mitigation for the commonality in the lyrics that accompany the songs, making the continuous heartache and the profound density of the [lyrics and meanings of the] repertoire bearable, something that would otherwise be hard to endure for a half-hour-plus album.

Miss Henderson has also written four of these songs and what is most remarkable about this fact is not so much that they are made to fit the overall emotional ethos of [the rest of] the album, but that they, in fact, have an uncannily symbiotic relationship emotionally – indeed artistically with the rest of the repertoire, as if they are cut from the same proverbial cloth itself. This is a stroke of genius, one that belongs to Miss Henderson alone and to one else.

The recording features a superb instrumental cast – many of the names relatively unfamiliar to those outside the absolute inner circle of musicians haunting the studios and clubs of New York City [and other music hubs of the USA]. But some names do stand out: Joel Ross, who contributes the radiance [in sound and style] and pliant virtuosity of the vibraphone to La Bruja, Fría and Amistad, and John Chin, a pianist who has been woefully underrecognised for his ability to transform the songfulness of everything he plays on this album.

No matter the various degrees of the relative obscurity of the cast of musicians each proves himself to be completely attuned to the vision and ingenious artistry of Miss Henderson. Each more than pays his own [proverbial] way in this music. Indeed musician contributes to bringing a gleaming triumphant lustre to the elementally pained lyricism of this unforgettable album by the prodigiously-gifted Lauren Henderson.
https://latinjazznet.com/reviews/albums/featured-albums/lauren-henderson-la-bruja/

Musicians – Lauren Henderson: vocals; Joel Ross: vibraphone [featured – 3, 4, 8]; Nick Tannura: guitar [featured – 1, 2, 5-7, 10]; Gabe Schneider: guitar [featured 9, 11]; Sean Mason: piano [featured – 3, 4, 8]; John Chin: piano [featured – 1, 5, 7, 9, 11]; Eric Wheeler: bass [featured – 1, 3-5, 7-9, 11]; Joe Dyson: drums [featured 1, 3-5, 7-9, 11]

La bruja

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Spike Robinson - A Real Corker

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 59:20
Size: 135.8 MB
Styles: Saxophone jazz
Year: 1995
Art: Front

[ 7:15] 1. This Love Of Mine
[ 5:11] 2. That Old Devil Called Love
[ 5:34] 3. It Seems To Me I've Heard That Song Before
[ 6:19] 4. I Remember You
[ 6:39] 5. Under A Blanket Of Blue
[ 6:15] 6. Fools Rush In
[ 6:32] 7. I Don't Want To Walk Without You
[10:31] 8. The Nearness Of You
[ 5:00] 9. I'm Just Breezin' Along With The Breeze

Tenor saxophonist Spike Robinson has been quite consistent throughout his career. Influenced by Stan Getz and Zoot Sims, Robinson is virtually the last of the "Four Brothers" tenor stylists. For his typically joyful and swinging session, the veteran tenor is accompanied by guitarist Louis Stewart (who contributes a complementary second solo voice), bassist Red Mitchell and drummer Martin Drew. Although all nine songs are standards, most are not played all that often, and the treatments are fresh and enthusiastic. Highlights include "This Love of Mine," "I Remember You," a lengthy version of "Nearness of You," and "Breezin' Along With the Breeze." Well worth searching for.By Scott Yanow

A Real Corker

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Rebirth Brass Band - Do Watcha Wanna

Styles: Jazz Funk
Year: 2008
Time: 53:35
File: MP3 @ 128K/s
Size: 54,9 MB
Art: Front

(5:35) 1. I Feel Like Funkin' It Up (Extended Mix)
(3:14) 2. All Blues
(4:41) 3. Shotgun Joe
(5:01) 4. My Song
(6:25) 5. When the Saints Go Marchin' In
(4:02) 6. Four Leaf Clover
(4:20) 7. Bye and Bye
(3:43) 8. Back Home Again In Indiana
(4:02) 9. All of Me
(4:04) 10. You Can't Fly If You're Too High
(8:21) 11. Do Whatcha Wanna

Another recent release by the fine contemporary marching ensemble The Rebirth Brass Band. This one has a little more funk and R&B influence, but still has plenty of undiluted, classic New Orleans numbers.By Ron Wynn https://www.allmusic.com/album/do-whatcha-wanna-mw0000678328

Do Watcha Wanna

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Troy Roberts - Green Lights

Styles: Saxophone Jazz
Year: 2024
Time: 71:57
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Size: 165,2 MB
Art: Front

( 8:06) 1. Green Lights
( 7:13) 2. The Question
( 5:56) 3. By Your Side
( 6:52) 4. Solar Panels
(10:07) 5. Harry Brown
( 9:21) 6. Jive Dumpling
( 9:04) 7. Up to No Good
( 6:31) 8. The Scotsman's Ballad
( 8:13) 9. Stretch Armstrong
( 0:30) 10. Soundcheckin'

There is an abundance of listenable music on Green Lights, the album from New York-based tenor saxophonist Troy Roberts his sixteenth as leader in sixteen years. Clearly, he must be doing something right.

That "something" includes playing graceful and eloquent tenor, mustering admirable sidemen for this quartet date, and focusing on largely agreeable music (Roberts wrote all of the album's ten generally likable songs). The sidemen in question are guitarist Paul Bollenback, bassist John Patitucci and drummer Jimmy Macbride. No guest artists, simply Roberts and rhythm, which is all that is needed to carry the day.

As leader and composer, much of the album's allure rests on Roberts' shoulders. While there is no questioning his competence at either task, neither is there sufficient cause based on what is presented here to raise him above a crowded field of contemporaries who have similar goals in mind. Comparisons aside, Roberts is simply quite good at what he does and that should be good enough to please most listeners.

The leader's comrades are exceptionally talented and responsive, lending the quartet a tight and synchronous vibe. Paticucci is metronomic, as always, while MacBride blends power and sensitivity to get the job done. Bollenback, meanwhile, coaxes several esoteric sounds from his guitar, none of which is unseemly or out of place. And to ice the cake, each of them is an accomplished soloist.

Roberts'themes are for the most part soft-flowing and sober, with an emphasis on burnished and tasteful sound. No flag-wavers here, with the possible exceptions of "Solar Panels" and "Stretch Armstrong," which turn up the heat while allowing Roberts and the others to flex their impressive chops. Another outlier is the chimerical "Harry Brown," on which the group veers off the beaten path for a few moments of more exploratory blowing before returning safely home. After "Stretch," the session ends with thirty seconds of light-hearted "Soundcheckin.'"

In sum, Green Lights is another very good recording by the talented Troy Roberts and his dexterous teammates, and well worth one's time.By Jack Bowers
https://www.allaboutjazz.com/green-lights-troy-roberts-self-produced/

Personnel: Troy Roberts - tenor saxophone, compositions; Paul Bollenback - guitar; John Patitucci - acoustic bass; Jimmy Macbride - drums

Green Lights

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Lyn Stanley - Interludes

Styles: Vocal
Year: 2015
Time: 58:41
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Size: 136,7 MB
Art: Front

(4:03) 1. How Long Has This Been Going On
(3:33) 2. Just One Of Those Things
(4:37) 3. Black Velvet
(4:23) 4. More Thank You Know
(4:31) 5. Boulevard Of Broken Dreams
(5:26) 6. Whole Lotta Love
(3:28) 7. Last Tango In Paris
(5:09) 8. Don't Explain
(2:58) 9. Nice 'n Easy
(5:13) 10. The Island
(3:53) 11. It's Crazy
(4:47) 12. In A Sentimental Mood
(3:15) 13. I Was A Little Too Lonely
(3:18) 14. I'm A Fool To Want You

Vocalist/producer Lyn Stanley has established herself as a foremost stylist of the Great American Songbook. That is no mean feat. The sheer amount of vocal music made each year around the Songbook is impressive. It is too bad that the quality of a great many of those recordings is not equally impressive. Stanley's two previous recordings, Lost in Romance (A.T. Music, LLC, 2013) and Potions: From the '50s (A.T. Music, LLC, 2014), have been an evolving prelude to the present. "How Long has This Been Going On," the opener for Interludes demonstrates Stanley's command of the standard.

But it is not the jazz standard that is special about Interludes. Stanley addresses two more recent compositions: "Black Velvet," released by Alannah Myles in 1989 and Led Zeppelin's "Whole Lotta Love," from Led Zeppelin II (Atlantic, 1969).

Lyn Stanley takes on the most white-hot anthem of the carnality of youth. She does so unflinchingly. There is little to be nostalgic about young love once you've learned what you are doing. And that is Stanley's point with covering this song. Arranged by guitarist John Chiodini the nominal blues-rock monolith becomes a steamy rumba propelled by bassist Chuck Berghofer and drummer Paul Kreibich, whose deft tom-tom work amps up the performance's already heady sensuality. Then, there is Stanley, who produced this recording, ensuring that a proper mixture of Bobby Gentry's "Ode to Billy Joe," Peggy Lee's "Fever," and Dusty Springfield's "Son of a Preacher Man" are admixed into one grown up vision of love, sex, and the whole shooting match.

Think if George Gershwin had composed "Summertime" with J.J. Cale and you may begin to get the idea. Stanley must be applauded for taking this gigantic artistic chance. So many "jazz" covers of contemporary material end so badly. In this case, not so. This is a special release in every way. By C. Michael Bailey https://www.allaboutjazz.com/interludes-lyn-stanley-at-music-llc-review-by-c-michael-bailey

Personnel: Lyn Stanley: vocals; Mike Garson, Bill Cunliffe: piano; Chuck Berghofer: bass; Ray Brinker, Paul Kreibich: drums; John Chiodini: guitar; Cecilia Tsan: cello; Brad Dutz: percussion; Bob McChesney: trombone; Hendrik Meurkens: harmonica; Steve Rawlins: finger snaps.

Interludes

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Eliane Elias - Dance Of Time

Styles: Vocal, Brazilian Jazz
Year: 2017
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 56:20
Size: 129,9 MB
Art: Front

(4:17)  1. O Pato
(3:50)  2. You're Getting To Be A Habit With Me
(5:20)  3. Copacabana
(4:59)  4. Coisa Feita
(5:15)  5. By Hand (Em Maos)
(3:48)  6. Sambou Sambou
(4:59)  7. Little Paradise
(6:33)  8. Speak Low
(3:20)  9. Samba De Orly
(5:38) 10. Na Batucada Da Vida
(4:22) 11. An Up Dawn
(3:55) 12. Not To Cry (Pra Nao Chorar)

Way back in 1991, Brazilian-born pianist Eliane Elias opened Illusions, her debut solo album, with a tune called "Choro." It offered a swinging distillation of the musical form that has been at the heart of her life-long study of samba. Since then, she's revisited her musical heritage over and over again, wedding modern jazz to post-1960 Brazilian jazz and MPB. In the process, she's developed an instantly identifiable sound as a pianist. Dance of Time follows 2015's fine Made in Brasil, a set that relied most heavily on bossa nova. Teaming again with collaborative producers Steve Rodby and husband Marc Johnson, Elias is accompanied by a stellar rhythm section: bassist Marcelo Mariano, guitarist Marcus Teixeira, drummer Edu Ribeiro, and percussionists Marivaldo dos Santos and Gustavo di Dalva on most of this set. Recorded in Brazil and New York, the date also includes a wonderful guest list that includes Take 6's Mark Kibble, Randy Brecker, Mike Manieri, Joao Bosco who adds his voice and guitar to a lovely reading of his own "Coisa Feita" and Toquinho.

The program contains readings of killer sambas such as "O Pato," Joao Donato's eternal "Sambou Sambou," the wonderful "Samba de Orly" (co-composed by Toquinho, who also sings on it, Vinicius De Moraes and Chico Buarque), and Ary Barroso's "Na Batacuda da Vida." Each of these numbers remains faithful to the originals, but Elias' arrangements, pianism, and breezy, syncopated vocals graft them so thoroughly onto swinging, straight-ahead, modern post-bop, it's difficult to accept they weren't always in the jazz fakebook. But she goes further. She injects Harry Warren's slippery pop blues "You're Getting to Be a Habit with Me," with a slow choro backbeat. She also transforms Kurt Weill's and Ogden Nash's sultry "Speak Low" into simmering, polished modern jazz with a fantastic multi-tracked backing vocal by Kibble and great soloing from Brecker.

The best tunes here, however, are her own. "By Hand ("Em Maos") offers another backing vocal from Kibble, as Elias stitches samba onto bossa in a lithe, sensual groove. "An Up Dawn" is a vehicle for her intricate, syncopated chord voicings on her instrument's middle and lower registers, which create an interlocking dance of samba, tango, and bluesy ragtime. "Not to Cry (Pra Nao Chorar)" is a co-write with Toquinho who lends his guitar and weathered yet effective vocal in a duet. He began the tune in 1978 as a vehicle (for Elias) with the working title "Eliane." He completed it for this album with participation from the tune's muse. Their singing voices are an elegant yet earthy study in contrasts, while his lilting guitar chords pace her keyboard embellishments. Its tenderness sends the set off with a sweet whisper. Dance of Time is inspired, deftly musical, and truly accessible to a wide range of listeners from jazz to pop to Brazilian music. It's virtually flawless.By Thom Jurek http://www.allmusic.com/album/dance-of-time-mw0003020224

Personnel: Eliane Elias (vocals, piano).

Dance Of Time

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Dmitry Baevsky - The Composers

Styles: Saxophone Jazz
Year: 2012
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 53:07
Size: 122,9 MB
Art: Front


(6:30) 1. Ojos de Rojo
(6:12) 2. Gaslight
(5:52) 3. Mister Chairman
(5:29) 4. To Whom it May Concern
(7:37) 5. Self Portrait (of the Bean)
(6:15) 6. Swift As the Wind
(4:17) 7. Smoke Signal
(6:02) 8. Three Wishes
(4:49) 9. Tears Inside

Personnel: Dmitry Baevsky: alto saxophone; Peter Bernstein: guitar; David Hazeltine: piano; John Webber: bass; Jason Brown: drums.

The Composers

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Spike Robinson - Spring Can Really Hang You Up The Most

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 62:26
Size: 142.9 MB
Styles: Saxophone jazz
Year: 1986
Art: Front

[5:12] 1. Love Walked In
[7:20] 2. Talk Of Thw Town
[5:32] 3. Some Time Ago
[5:27] 4. For You, For Me, For Evermore
[8:56] 5. Lover Come Back To Me
[8:03] 6. Ghost Of A Chance
[7:51] 7. Shadow Of Your Smile
[4:58] 8. April Showers
[9:03] 9. Spring Can Really Hang You Up The Most

Spike Robinson's sessions are usually pleasant, casually swinging, and musically proficient, and this quartet outing isn't any different. Robinson explores ballads, mid-tempo standards, and originals with a steady, big tone and full sound. He doesn't try anything too intricate, sticking close to the melody and then adding some embellishments and slight alterations. The backing group featuring Ted Beament, Peter Ind, and Bill Eyden follow the same formula. ~Ron Wynn

Spring Can Really Hang You Up The Most

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