Bill Cantos - Sensibility

Styles: Vocal And Piano Jazz
Year: 2023
Time: 49:56
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Size: 115,0 MB
Art: Front

(4:53) 1. Sensibility
(2:57) 2. This Can’t Be Love
(5:48) 3. Bull In A China Shop
(4:19) 4. I’m A Believer
(4:56) 5. Love, To Me
(4:17) 6. Kiss On My List
(5:04) 7. I May Be Wrong
(4:46) 8. Things We Said Today
(3:12) 9. That Sunday That Summer
(3:29) 10. No Halfway
(2:56) 11. Fly Me To The Moon
(3:15) 12. I’ve Always Been Here

Renowned pianist, vocalist and songwriter Bill Cantos is thrilled to announce the release of his highly anticipated album, "Sensibility," set to launch on July 21, 2023. With a captivating blend of original compositions and imaginative covers, Cantos takes listeners on a dynamic musical adventure that showcases his unique style and extraordinary talent.

"Sensibility" is a heartfelt reflection of Cantos' musical identity, encompassing both his current artistic expression and his rich musical heritage. The album features a delightful mix of originals inspired by recent years, along with captivating renditions of diverse songs that are both cool and unexpected. Cantos has always been drawn to artists who skillfully incorporate different influences into their music while imprinting it with their distinct voice, and he achieves precisely that on this remarkable record.

Co-produced and co-arranged with musical partner Mari Falcone, "Sensibility" represents Cantos' musical evolution. The album's arrangements were honed during his dynamic live performances; in LA, Bill is a regular performer at Vibrato, the world-renowned club owned by Alpert. Bill's compositions have been covered by such artists as Ramsey Lewis, Lea Salonga, and Patti Austin. With a rich background touring and recording with luminaries like Herb Alpert & Lani Hall, Burt Bacharach and Phil Collins, Cantos has established himself as a respected figure in the music industry. His deep love for Brazilian music is evident in his collaborations with notable Brazilian artists, and his contributions to film soundtracks have garnered widespread acclaim.

Come along on this musical journey as Bill Cantos invites listeners to experience a combination of classic jazz, pop, and Brazilian influences that transcend genres but all come together to paint a portrait of Bill’s unmistakeable....”Sensibility".
https://www.thepunkhead.com/music/bill-cantos-releases-sensibility

Sensibility

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The Crusaders - Gold (2-Disc Set)

For listeners willing to overlook the fact that this Crusaders retrospective begins the story in 1970 nine years after the combo began recording excellent hard bop and soul-jazz  the two-disc set Gold is just as good and nearly as thorough as the 1996 four-disc box Way Back Home. (Since the running time is only 17 seconds shy of 160 minutes, it's truly jam-packed.) Focusing on the '70s allows the set to dwell considerably on each record the group released during the decade that produced its most popular (although not most rewarding) music. After grabbing a pair of tracks from the Crusaders' two Chisa LPs of 1970-1971, the set moves on to the Blue Thumb years with multiple selections from every main album of the '70s 1, The 2nd Crusade, Scratch, Chain Reaction, Free as the Wind. The material is primarily fusion and jazz-funk, moving into crossover jazz by the second disc, and while the group never quite matched great themes with great grooves, this is the easiest way to get to the heart of their discography. (Rare groove fanatics may agree or disagree with the inclusion of the shortened 12" version of "Street Life," although it still clocks in north of five minutes.) ~John Bush

Album: Gold (Disc 1)

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s

Time: 79:14

Size: 181.4 MB

Styles: Jazz-funk, Crossover jazz

Year: 2007

[1:43] 1. Freedom Sound

[4:50] 2. Young Rabbits

[3:58] 3. Way Back Home

[5:25] 4. Put It Where You Want It

[3:43] 5. So Far Away

[6:03] 6. Tough Talk

[3:03] 7. Don't Let It Get You Down

[6:02] 8. Scratch

[7:30] 9. Hard Times

[5:47] 10. Funk Funk

[9:29] 11. Lilies Of The Nile

[2:42] 12. Double Bubble

[7:27] 13. Ballad For Joe (Louis)

[2:27] 14. I Felt The Love

[3:26] 15. Creole

[5:33] 16. Chain Reaction

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Album: Gold (Disc 2)

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s

Time: 79:04

Size: 181.0 MB

Styles: Jazz-funk, Crossover jazz

Year: 2007

Art: Front

[6:12] 1. Spiral

[5:35] 2. Keep That Same Old Feeling

[6:14] 3. Free As The Wind

[4:42] 4. Night Crawler

[8:53] 5. Sweet 'n' Sour

[5:36] 6. It Happens Everyday

[4:14] 7. Feel It

[4:52] 8. Snowflake

[4:40] 9. Fairy Tales

[5:27] 10. Street Life

[6:21] 11. Soul Shadows

[6:37] 12. Last Call

[5:00] 13. I'm So Glad I'm Standing Here Today

[4:33] 14. Hold On

Gold (Disc 1)(Disc 2)

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Fay Claassen & David Linx & Wdr Big Band - And Still We Sing

Styles: Vocal, Big Band
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 56:01
Size: 129,4 MB
Art: Front

(5:32) 1. Sum It up (Disturbing the Peace)
(5:17) 2. Along Goes Betty
(5:48) 3. Waterfalls
(5:19) 4. Good Times
(5:55) 5. Tackle and Dabble
(6:30) 6. In a Sentimental Mood
(5:04) 7. Feel the Beat
(6:35) 8. J’me Prépare
(6:12) 9. I Will Build Myself a Nation (Biding My Time)
(3:43) 10. Rebirth

The Dutch vocalist Fay Claassen and her Belgian colleague David Linx sing some passages in unison, in others their voices cross or shine on their own. A congenial duo that harmonizes almost perfectly with each other, without a doubt, two all-round complementary timbres that already made for exclamation marks on the album “One Heart, Three Voices” with Diederik Wissels in 2005. But Claassen and Linx only experience the fine finishing touches through the dynamism of the WDR Big Band, which Magnus Lindgren navigates through ten songs. You never tire of singing the Song of Songs to this brilliantly nuanced body of sound, which is once again able to fully serve the two protagonists,without directing the spotlight on his famous soloists such as trombonist Andy Hunter or tenor saxophonist Paul Heller (Claassen's husband) at the right moments. Exciting: In the opener “Sum It Up (Disturbing The Peace)” the vocalists build a stable bridge from scat to rap in the form of spoken recitations. I would love to have more of it! Translate By Google https://www.jazzthing.de/review/fay-claassen-david-linx-and-still-we-sing/

And Still We Sing

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Chuck Sagle & Neal Hefti Orchestras - Splendor In The Brass + Jazz Pops

Bitrate: 320K/s

Time: 65:27

Size: 149.8 MB

Styles: Contemporary jazz

Year: 2013

Art: Front

[3:57] 1. When Sunny Gets Blue

[3:22] 2. A Taste Of Honey

[2:49] 3. Bernie's Tune

[3:16] 4. Man With A Horn

[4:05] 5. Playboy's Theme

[2:54] 6. On Green Dolphin Street

[2:50] 7. Love For Sale

[1:55] 8. A Night In Tunisia

[2:51] 9. Easy Living

[2:03] 10. The Moon Was Yellow

[2:54] 11. Brassanctified

[2:56] 12. Coral Reef

[2:12] 13. Take Five

[2:50] 14. Exodus

[3:24] 15. Like Young

[4:56] 16. One & Two O'clock Jump

[3:14] 17. Cute

[4:34] 18. Moanin'

[3:10] 19. Petite Fleur

[5:07] 20. Li'l Darlin'

Tracks #1-11, from the Reprise album "Splendor in the Brass" (RS 6047). Tracks #12-20, from the Reprise album "Jazz Pops" (RS 6039). Both sessions recorded at Radio Recorders, Hollywood, in 1962.

Chuck Sagle was a widely experienced arranger and conductor when, in 1962, he joined the a&r department at Reprise Records in Los Angeles. Among the first projects he produced for the label was his own album “Splendor in the Brass.” His tasteful arrangements skillfully juxtaposed various small instrumental combinations with each other and with the full orchestra, with deftly voiced French horns and saxophones revealing his fertile imagination and versatility. Garnishing these well-conceived performances are solos by such luminaries as Lou Levy, Shorty Sherock, Cappy Lewis, Buddy Collette, Bill Perkins and Emil Richards.

The second album on this set, “Jazz Pops,” also a Reprise release, is by another big band, this time under the direction of arranger, composer, trumpeter and bandleader Neal Hefti. While his arrangements here are of a different order to his early work for Woody Herman and Count Basie, they still bear the mark of his considerable talent. His writing is economical and unpretentious. The soloists, moreover, include Joe Maini, Jack Sheldon, Ted Nash, Larry Bunker and Conte Candoli.

In all, two highly satisfying big band albums of similar approach and spectacular sound, solidly heavily conceived and arranged—and brilliantly performed.

CHUCK SAGLE AND HIS ORCHESTRA
Collective personnel includes: Conrad Gozzo, Mickey Mangano, Shorty Sherock, John Best, Ray Triscari, Bud Brisbois (tp); Cappy Lewis (tp, flh); Dave Wells (b-tp); Milt Bernhart, Tommy Pederson, William Schaefer, Lew McCreary, Lloyd Ulyate, Lew McCreary, Tommy Shepard, Dave Wells (tb); Ed Kusby, George Roberts (b-tb); Sinclair Lott, James Decker, George Hyde, Gale Robinson, Vince DeRosa, John Cave, Alan Robinson (frh); Ted Nash, Harry Klee, Bill Calkins (as, fl); Jules Jacob (as, cl); Buddy Collette (ts, fl); Wilbur Schwartz, Gene Cipriano, Bill Perkins (ts); Chuck Gentry, Dick Nash (bs); Sam Rice, Red Callender (tuba); Louis Singer, Emil Richards (vib); Ray Sherman, Lou Levy (p); Al Hendrickson, Bob Gibbons (g); Joe Mondragon (b); Alvin Stoller, Milt Holland, Earl Palmer (d); Norman Jeffries, Larry Bunker (bongos); plus string section.

NEAL HEFTI AND HIS ORCHESTRA
Collective personnel includes: Al Porcino, Conte Candoli, Gerald Wilson, Don Fagerquist, Jack Sheldon, Pete Candoli (tp); Dick Nash, Tommy Pederson, Lew McCreary, Tommy Shepard, Dick Noel (tb); George Roberts, Kenny Shroyer (b-tb); Vince DeRosa, Bill Hinshaw, Dick Perissi, Gale Robinson, Alan Robinson (frh); Joe Maini, Charlie Kennedy (as); Med Flory, Lou Ciotti (ts); Bill Hood (bar); Harry Klee, Plas Johnson, Bill Calkins, Justin Gordon, Buddy Collette, Ted Nash, Willie Schwartz (fl); Emil Richards (vib); Larry Bunker (vib, bongos); Bob Gibbons (g); Al McKibbon (b); Shelly Manne, Earl Palmer (d); Milt Holland (conga); Francisco Aquabella (bongos).

Splendor In The Brass + Jazz Pops

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Joel Lyssarides/Georgios Prokopiou - Arcs & Rivers

Styles: Jazz
Year: 2024
Time: 40:41
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Size: 94,1 MB
Art: Front

(3:34) 1. Arcs
(4:51) 2. Anamnesis
(3:07) 3. A Night in Piraeus
(5:25) 4. Echoes
(4:27) 5. Rivers
(2:15) 6. Lyssarides Lament
(6:08) 7. Kamilieriko Road
(4:30) 8. Orange Moon
(3:25) 9. From East to West
(2:55) 10. Zafeirious Solo

It is highly (exceedingly) likely that an album review involving a piano and a bouzouki has never been featured in any high end audio journal. Most will have never heard of this instrument and will utter “It’s all Greek to me”, and they will of course be correct.

Arcs & Rivers is just such an album, but fear not, with the exception of one track that celebrates the ‘Greekness’ associated with the instrument, the album will not evoke memories of long hot days on a magical Aegean isle.

This album is the result of musical curiosity, Joel Lyssarides (piano) went and heard Georgios Prokopiou (bouzouki) playing live in Stockholm, spoke to him afterwards, and they arranged to meet for a session and have forged a musical partnership. Both musicians come are of Greek origin but are residents of Stockholm.

The musical journeys taken by Lyssarides and Prokopiou could not have been more different to one another, while Lyssarides has made his name from accompanying mezzo-soprano Anne Sophie von Otter as well as being a contributor to the excellent Esbjörn Svensson tribute e.s.t. 30, commemorative album, Prokopiou had a less salubrious start and honed his skills playing his bouzouki at seedy clubs in Athens from the age of 10.

The result of this meeting of stark different musical backgrounds is a charming short album that in deference to the promos is far from being anything close to jazz, instead it offers melodious sounds that combine essences of ancient European music with hints of ‘nearly country music’ (the banjo is a distant relative of the bouzouki after all) with some Greek accents. There are melodys, pace and panache and a very synergetic musical relationship, there is no leader in this band of two.

The bouzouki sound signature is made of using three or four groups of two strings and is mostly at the mid high to high range of the sound scale. When accompanied by a piano that is able to offer syncopating background backup with lower registers, the bouzouki is projected and stands in front of the speakers, listening to the album is akin to a live session in a small space. Arcs & Rivers is a charming album, timed for the arrival of shorter days and a likely to aid lowering the blood pressure during a commute on busy highways and byways.
https://the-ear.net/music/arcs-rivers/

Arcs & Rivers

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The Harry Allen Duo & Trio - I'll Never Be the Same

Styles: Jazz
Year: 1995
Time: 70:14
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Size: 161,0 MB
Art: Front

(5:20) 1. All Through the Night
(6:09) 2. I Won't Dance
(2:52) 3. I'll Close My Eyes
(5:19) 4. I'm Gonna Sit Down and Write Myself a Letter
(5:33) 5. Avalon
(5:15) 6. Estate
(5:40) 7. Sweetheart of Sigma Chi
(5:42) 8. I'll Never Be the Same
(4:37) 9. It's Alright with Me
(3:00) 10. Shining Sea
(4:51) 11. Waltz for Debbie
(5:03) 12. Roses of Picardy
(6:41) 13. Fascinating Rhythm
(4:05) 14. If I Love Again

Gene Lees writes, "Stan Getz was once asked his idea of the perfect tenor saxophone soloist. His answer was, 'My technique, Al Cohn's ideas, and Zoot's time.' The fulfillment of that ideal may well be embodied in thirty-year-old Harry Allen."

BMG recording artist Harry Allen has over twenty recordings to his name. Three of Harry's CDs have won Gold Disc Awards from Japan's Swing Journal Magazine, and his CD Tenors Anyone? won both the Gold Disc Award and the New Star Award. His recordings have made the top ten list for favorite new releases in Swing Journal Magazine's reader's poll and Jazz Journal International's critic's poll for 1997, and Eu Nao Quero Dancar (I Won't Dance), the third Gold Disc Award winner, was voted second for album of the year for 1998 by Swing Journal Magazine‚s reader‚s poll.

Harry has performed at jazz festivals and clubs worldwide, frequently touring the United States, Europe, and the Far East. He has performed with Rosemary Clooney, Ray Brown, Hank Jones, Frank Wess, Flip Phillips, Scott Hamilton, Harry 'Sweets' Edison, Kenny Burrell, Herb Ellis, John Pizzarelli, Bucky Pizzarelli, Gus Johnson, Jeff Hamilton, Terry Gibbs, Warren Vache, and has recorded with Tony Bennett, Johnny Mandel, Ray Brown, Tommy Flanagan, James Taylor, Sheryl Crow, Kenny Barron, Dave McKenna, Dori Caymmi, Larry Goldings, George Mraz, Jake Hanna, and Al Foster, among others.

Harry is featured on many of John Pizzarelli's recordings including the soundtrack and an on-screen cameo in the feature film The Out of Towners starring Steve Martin and Goldie Hawn. He has also done a series of commercials for ESPN starring Robert Goulet.

Harry was born in Washington D.C. in 1966, and was raised in Los Angeles, CA and Burrillville, RI. He received a Bachelor of Arts degree in music in 1988 from Rutgers University in New Jersey, and currently resides in New York City.https://www.allaboutjazz.com/musicians/harry-allen/

I'll Never Be the Same

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Rolf Ericson - Stockholm sweetnin'

Styles: Trumpet Jazz
Year: 1985
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 58:43
Size: 139,6 MB
Art: Front

(4:41)  1. Bird song
(4:15)  2. Squeeze me
(4:57)  3. Evelyn
(5:41)  4. Broadway
(5:41)  5. Little man, you've had a busy day
(4:42)  6. Stockholm sweetnin'
(4:35)  7. Nancy with the laughing face
(4:43)  8. Mel's bells
(5:25)  9. In a sentimental mood
(4:49) 10. Without a song
(4:14) 11. What am I here for
(4:54) 12. Thou swell

Trumpeter Rolf Ericson was 62 when he made this recording (only his second as a leader in 13 years and third in 28 years), but he was still in his prime. Teamed up with drummer Mel Lewis and three fellow Swedes (tenor saxophonist Nils Sandstrom, pianist Goran Lindberg, and bassist Sture Nordin), Ericson's cool bop style is well featured on five standards, Nordin's "Mel's Bells" (based on "If I Were a Bell"), Thad Jones' catchy "Bird Song," and Ericson's jazz waltz "Evelyn." A pretty definitive sampling of Ericson in his later years with plenty of fine straight-ahead swinging. ~ Scott Yanow https://www.allmusic.com/album/stockholm-sweetnin-mw0000233638

Personnel: Rolf Ericson (trumpet, flugelhorn); Nils Sandstrom (tenor saxophone, piano); Claes Crona, Göran Lindberg (piano); Sture Nordin, Mel Lewis (drums).

Stockholm sweetnin'

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Dizzy Gillespie - Manteca (Remastered)

Styles: Bebop
Year: 2024
Time: 82:30
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Size: 190,2 MB
Art: Front

(10:44) 1. Night in Tunisia
( 4:39) 2. Yo No Quiero
( 4:55) 3. Whisper Not
( 3:38) 4. Tangorine
( 4:58) 5. Hallelujah
( 3:45) 6. Wonder Why
( 3:17) 7. Annie's Dance
( 2:52) 8. Lovely One In The Window
( 5:10) 9. Doodlin
( 3:47) 10. Flamingo
( 3:12) 11. Yesterdays
( 5:10) 12. Tour De Force
( 2:39) 13. My Reverie
( 3:54) 14. I Remember Clifford
( 2:10) 15. Left Hand Corner
( 4:09) 16. Tin Tin Deo
( 3:35) 17. Jordu
( 9:48) 18. Manteca

Introducing the Wally Heider 3 Microphone Technique the quintessential solution for capturing pristine audio quality in any setting. Striking a perfect balance between clarity, warmth, and depth, Hieder’s labor of love revolutionized the art of audio engineering in his time and captured every nuance of every great performance from the grandest dance hall to the darkest corner of the jazz world with absolute fidelity.

No venue too big or too small, Hieder painstakingly amassed a collection of silky-smooth recordings of huge historical significance that were decades ahead of the audio capture of the time, many of which provide some of the only known recordings of complete arrangements by these legendary artists. Now forming the basis of the Hindsight Records catalogue these ‘Wally Hieder Library of Congress’ recordings are newly remastered and proudly presented here for your listening pleasure.

Next up: One of the most prolific and virtuosic Jazz musicians of the era Dizzy Gillespie, takes you through a collection of his biggest hits and well-loved tunes on the double album ‘Manteca’, with tracks including ‘Night in Tunisia’, ‘Lovely One in the Window’ and ‘Wonder Why’."
https://dizziegillespie.bandcamp.com/album/dizzie-gillespie-manteca-the-wally-heider-recordings

Manteca

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Nicki Parrott - Feelin' Groovy

Styles: Vocal
Year: 2024
Time: 52:51
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Size: 121,7 MB
Art: Front

(3:58) 1. The 59th Street Bridge Song (Feelin' Groovy)
(5:44) 2. He Called Me Baby
(4:21) 3. Everybody's Talkin'
(4:16) 4. These Boots Are Made For Walkin'
(5:46) 5. Mas Que Nada
(3:26) 6. Catch The Wind
(4:02) 7. Pure Imagination
(4:25) 8. I'll Be Your Baby Tonight
(3:50) 9. If I Fell
(3:44) 10. Up On The Roof
(4:43) 11. Both Sides, Now
(4:30) 12. What The World Needs Now Is Love

Australian-born Nicki Parrott emigrated to the USA in 1994 and after studying with Rufus Reid and Ray Brown she soon acquired a reputation in New York circles as a stellar, big-toned bass player. She has become even better known as a high-quality vocalist with an intimate delivery, perfect intonation and exquisite taste in material. She reminds me a little of Blossom Dearie and her Dear Blossom album is well worth tracking down.

She has revisited the older songbook repertoire on her 27 recordings so far and Black Coffee, which won the Golden Disc Award in 2010, is one I often return to. It has numbers you don’t hear every day, such as Don’t Smoke In Bed, Go Slow and Just One More Chance. In recent years she has found inspiration performing songs of a slightly newer vintage on her Carpenters Songbook, the Burt Bacharach Songbook and Great 70s albums.

This release with an all Australian personnel is a follow-up to If You Could Read My Mind and she opens with Paul Simon’s laid-back hymn to the 59th Street Bridge aka Feelin’ Groovy. Woody Allen and Diane Keaton sat alongside that bridge in one of the standout scenes from Allen’s 1979 masterpiece Manhattan.

Mas Que Nada finds Nicki singing in what sounds like authentic Portuguese. It was Sérgio Mendes’ first hit just after Herb Alpert’s wife Lani Hall had joined Brazil ’66. Todd Hardy (trumpet and flugelhorn), Shane Hannan (trombone) and Martha Baartz (tenor) help create a raunchy, foot-tapping groove on He Called Me Baby and These Boots Were Made For Walkin’. As an aside, West Coast bassist Chuck Berghofer played the bass on Boots, Nancy Sinatra’s big 1965 hit, including inventing its distinctive descending chromatic riff.

Ballads such as Everybody’s Talkin’ and the lovely Pure Imagination provide a welcome change of pace. Nicki’s sensitive reading of the latter is a delight. By Gordon Jack
https://jazzjournal.co.uk/2024/08/21/nicki-parrott-feelin-groovy/

Feelin' Groovy

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Syd Lawrence Orchestra - Strictly Big Band

Styles: Big Band
Year: 2008
Time: 59:06
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Size: 137,5 MB
Art: Front

(3:04) 1. Lover
(3:37) 2. Basin St Blues March
(3:33) 3. Autumn In New York
(4:12) 4. Before The Parade Passes By
(2:54) 5. My Hero
(3:11) 6. Bill Bailey Won’t You Please Come Home
(3:31) 7. Maybe September
(3:00) 8. Cherokee
(3:35) 9. Girl Talk
(4:23) 10. Lullaby Of Broadway
(3:57) 11. Just In Time
(3:03) 12. Under A Blanket Of Blue
(2:50) 13. This Could Be The Start Of Something Big
(2:36) 14. Hallelujah
(2:36) 15. I Dream Of Jeannie
(2:23) 16. One
(6:34) 17. Slaughter On Tenth Avenue

Do you like dates I know I do. One of my favourite dates was 22 September 1958, when Stan Kenton recorded all twelve titles for his terrific Stage Door Swings album. How did they manage to do that And now, another favourite date is 4 March 2008, when Chris Dean's Syd Lawrence Orchestra recorded all seventeen titles for this album. How did they manage to do that Well, for starters, you have to have a band which is on a roll', a band which is disciplined, confident, tackling some fresh material, stuffed with talent and keen to strut its stuff.

The Syd Lawrence Orchestra is on such a roll....The Orchestra's latest album Stricly Big Band features 17 tuneful and swinging numbers unique to the Syd Lawrence Orchestra. Nobody else plays 'em! There are Syd's original charts the perfect tempo and loose swing of Basin Street Blues March, Girl Talk written and played as if it came straight off Count Basie's Atomic Mr. Basie album (which it didn't, of course), the high-kicking writing for the whole band on One from A Chorus Line, the adapted transcriptions of Glenn Miller's I Dream Of Jeannie which he never recorded commercially, of Ralph Flanagan's Miller-styled My Hero, and of Frank Comstock's dynamic arrangement of Slaughter On Tenth Avenue for Les Brown.

Then there's Roland Shaw's take on Cherokee (Ray Noble wrote it, Charlie Barnet had a hit with it, but Roland updates it and throws in a touch of Miller-ish voicings for the saxes), an up-tempo Lover and a swinging Hallelujah where the chart has Syd's pencilled scribbles all over it but to my ears the overall voicings suggest Roland's hand. NDO arranger Alan Roper is represented by Autumn In New York and Lullaby Of Broadway an intricate and fascinating arrangement he wrote originally for Geraldo. Then there are a couple of little gems. First, the late Ronnie Hazlehurst is represented by Bill B.By Editorial Reviews https://www.amazon.com/Strictly-Big-Band-Lawrence-Orchestra/dp/B001J662W4

Jon De Lucia Octet - Live at The Drawing Room

Styles: Saxophone Jazz
Year: 2018
Time: 68:30
File: MP3 @ 128K/s
Size: 63,3 MB
Art: Front

(5:03) 1. Somp'm Outa' Nothin'
(7:44) 2. Smog Eyes
(6:07) 3. The Song is You
(5:50) 4. Venus de Milo
(6:04) 5. I Resemble You
(6:48) 6. Jazz of Two Cities
(5:58) 7. Darn That Dream
(4:57) 8. Preservation
(5:38) 9. Palo Alto
(8:35) 10. Sextet
(5:41) 11. BONUS: The Sheepherder

Saxophonist Jon De Lucia met the great tenorist Ted Brown in 2014, and got to play with him soon after. He was and is struckby the pure lyricism and honesty in his improvising. One of the original students of forward thinking pianist Lennie Tristano in the 1940s, Brown, along with Lee Konitz, is among the last of this great school of players. Later, when De Lucia discovered some of Jimmy Giuffre’s original scores from the Lee Konitz meets Jimmy Giuffre session of 1959, which Brown and Konitz both participated in, he knew he wanted to put a band togetherto play this music with Ted.

Thus the Jon De Lucia Octet was formed. A Five Saxophone and Rhythm lineup with unique arrangements by the great clarinetist/saxophonist Jimmy Giuffre. The original charts featured Lee Konitz on every track, and the first step in 2016 was to put a session together reuniting Brown and Konitz on these tunes. An open rehearsal was held at the City College of New York, Lee took the lead and played beautifully while Ted took over the late Warne Marsh’s part. This then led to the concert you have here before you.

De Lucia steps into Lee’s shoes, while the features have been reworked to focus on Brown, including new arrangements of his tunes by De Lucia and daughter Anita Brown. The rest of the band includes a formidable set of young saxophonists, including John Ludlow, who incidentally was a protege of the late Hal McCusick, who also played on the original recording session of Lee Konitz meets Jimmy Giuffre, and plays the alto saxophone, now inherited, used in the session. Jay Rattman and Marc Schwartz round out the tenors, and Andrew Hadro, who can be heard to great effect on Venus De Milo, plays the baritone.
In the rhythm section, Ray Gallon, one of NYC’s most swinging veterans on the piano, Aidan O’Donnell on the bass and the other legend in the room, the great Steve Little on the drums. Little was in Duke Ellington’s band in 1968, recording on the now classic Strayhorn tribute …and His Mother Called Him. Bill, before going on to record all of the original Sesame Street music and much more as a studio musician.
More.....https://jondelucia.bandcamp.com/album/jon-de-lucia-octet-featuring-ted-brown-live-at-the-drawing-room

Live at The Drawing Room

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Lucy Woodward - Stories From The Dust

Styles: Vocal
Year: 2024
Time: 35:18
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Size: 81,9 MB
Art: Front

(4:31) 1. Fray
(3:34) 2. City Girls
(4:34) 3. Love Never Leaves
(4:40) 4. Clenched Fists
(2:53) 5. Rocketeer
(5:18) 6. Lady in Waiting
(4:05) 7. The Letter
(2:56) 8. Old To You (Live from Sonic Ranch)
(2:43) 9. Put Down The Bottle

Lucy Woodward releases her 7th studio album, Stories From The Dust (April 5, 2024). It is perhaps her most personal album yet, as crafted with GRAMMY Award-winning co-producer and co-writer of most of the songs on the album David Garza (Fiona Apple, Gaby Moreno).

The tracks and melodies pull you toward Lucy’s poignant insights of matters of the heart in the world’s fragile present. David and Lucy spent several weeks in downtown LA writing these stories about women, the ones she grew up with the fiercely independent and unconventional women who raised herand those she merely observed from afar, whether in the sandbox or on the subway. Lucy soon found herself writing songs like she’d never written before, or had never even thought about writing before. Lucy says, “a different kind of songwriter in me snuck up on me and hit me hard.”

Recorded at Sonic Ranch on the border of Mexico and Texas, Dust features longtime friend and bass extraordinaire Tim Lefebvre (David Bowie, Rudder, Tedeschi Trucks) and keyboardist Larry Goldings (James Taylor, Maceo Parker, John Mayer) who wrote with Lucy for the album. Bill Withers and Nina Simone a few artists she already loved were her touchstones, and she added inspiration from the deep rivers of Americana, blues, flamenco singing and the sounds of the female voices from Sergio Mendes & Brasil ’66.

Stories From The Dust is rootsy and melodic, continuing a decades-long streak of craft oriented, critically acclaimed full length albums from the New York native.
https://lucywoodward.bandcamp.com/album/stories-from-the-dust

Stories From The Dust

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Rhoda Scott - Fly Me To The Moon (Live in Eaubonne)

Styles: Jazz, Post Bop
Year: 2024
Time: 67:24
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Size: 155,4 MB
Art: Front

(8:11) 1. Fly Me To The Moon
(5:50) 2. Hippest cat in Hollywood (Live)
(4:45) 3. I got my mojo working (Live)
(6:03) 4. Angel Eyes (Live)
(3:55) 5. Chitlins con carne (Live)
(7:07) 6. This masquerade (Live)
(6:10) 7. One mint julep (Live)
(4:04) 8. Life is just a bowl (Live)
(6:07) 9. Impressions (Live)
(5:55) 10. Stormy weather (Live)
(7:17) 11. Watch what happens (Live)
(1:55) 12. Lil' darlin (Live)

Who can pass Rhoda Scott? But what's the matter with? The one that was very (too much for some) media we didn’t use the term on television in the '60s and '70s, the one that accompanied the Choeurs de France playing Gospel, the iconic leader of the Lady Quartet and the Ladies All Stars who have been filming for 20 years, the organist with bare feet and the absolute toe to the inimitable sound, or It is in this last formation that we find him here in a very recent recording of 7 May 2024 at the Orangerie d’Eaubonne. With her faithful stagemate, drummer Thomas Derouineau and the elegant guitarist Nicolas Peslier. A reduced training that highlights this great lady of jazz so pleasant and simple when you have the chance to meet her.https://lagazettebleuedactionjazz.fr/rhoda-scott-et-le-lady-quartet/

So this is Rhoda's nectar and the Hammond organ, so this sound so taking and enveloping, these deep bass, this energy alternating with softness. You have to see Rhoda in concert to measure the fusion with her instrument, how sometimes she shakes him or after the caress, a visual show as well.

Rhoda chose a repertoire of standards that she had never recorded before. The contrasting dialogues of the organ with Nicolas Peslier's guitar arbitrated by Thomas Derouineau's subtly drumming are sublime clear and make us rediscover certain standards that are still not worn and here regenerated. A weak concern me for "This Masquerade" with the cheerful energy contained and for "Impressions" by John Coltrane in a tonic version. Beautiful trio really. Pure jazz to put in all ears, a gift to the Audience of Aug., and I hope will be shared with many others. By Philippe Desmond https://blog.lagazettebleuedactionjazz.fr/rhoda-scott-trio-live-in-eaubonne/
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Fly Me To The Moon (Live in Eaubonne)

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Eddie Harris - The Lost Album Plus The Better Half

Styles: Saxophone Jazz
Year: 1993
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 56:18
Size: 130,3 MB
Art: Front

( 6:10)  1. The Dancing Bull
( 4:33)  2. Antidote
(14:55)  3. Cuttin' Out
(15:24)  4. Shakey Jake
( 2:33)  5. Half & Half
( 2:24)  6. K.C. Blues
( 4:03)  7. Lawrence Of Arabia
( 6:13)  8. Yea, Yea, Yea

Eight cuts culled from early-'60s Vee Jay dates. The first four blend soul-jazz and straight bop, with Ira Sullivan sparkling on trumpet and Harris dueling with alto saxophonist Bunky Green. The other two feature Harris wailing the blues alongside organist Melvin Rhyne, Sullivan, Green and guitarist Joe D'Orio. They recall the glory days of steamy, funky organ combos, with drummer Gerald Donovan keeping the backbeat steadily in the groove. ~ Ron Wynn https://www.allmusic.com/album/the-lost-album-plus-the-better-half-mw0000660476

The Lost Album Plus The Better Half

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Andy Laverne - Spot On

Style: Piano Jazz
Size: 150,6 MB
Time: 65:35
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Released: 2024
Art: Front

1. Tune For Tyner (8:50)
2. Wistful Thinking (5:36)
3. Bassline (8:41)
4. Solace (7:25)
5. Spot On (5:46)
6. Interlude (8:41)
7. Flipside (7:11)
8. Prelude For Chick (6:35)
9. Corean (6:47)

Jazz pianist, composer, and arranger Andy LaVerne studied at Juilliard, Berklee, and the New England Conservatory, and took private lessons from legendary jazz pianist Bill Evans. The list of musicians with whom LaVerne has worked reads like a Who's Who in jazz: Frank Sinatra, Stan Getz, Woody Herman, Dizzy Gillespie, Chick Corea, Lionel Hampton, Michael Brecker, Elvin Jones, and numerous others.

A prolific recording artist, his projects as a leader number over 50, the most recent are: Intuition, a duo with saxophonist Jerry Bergonzi (SteepleChase), and Epiphany, a collection of Andy’s newest compositions (ClaveBop).

LaVerne is also a prominent jazz educator, having released a series of instructional videos, Guide to Modern Jazz Piano, Vols. 1 &, 2, and Jazz Piano Standards (Homespun Tapes), featuring the Yamaha Disklavier, as well as the video, In Concert (Homespun Tapes), with guitarist John Abercrombie. He is the author of Handbook of Chord Substitutions, Tons of Runs (Ekay), Bill Evans Compositions 19 Solo Piano Arrangements, and is the pianist on The Chick Corea Play-Along Collection (Hal Leonard).

The Music Of Andy LaVerne (SteepleChase Publications) has recently been published. Forthcoming are Keyboard’s Jazz Piano Compendium (BackBeat Books), and Jazz Bach, and Jazz Chopin (Mel Bay). Countdown To Giant Steps (Aebersold Jazz) is a two CD play-a-long with companion book, of which LaVerne served as player/producer/writer, and Tunes You Thought You Knew (Aebersold Jazz) is a LaVerne play-a-long CD/book set. Secret of the Andes, a collection of LaVerne originals, is Andy’s newest offering from Aebersold Jazz.

Andy is a frequent contributor (since 1986) to Keyboard Magazine, and Piano Today Magazine. His articles have also appeared in Down Beat, Jazz Improv, Piano Quarterly, Jazz and Keyboard Workshop, and JazzOne.

Andy is the recipient of five Jazz Fellowships from the National Endowment for the Arts, and winner of the 2000 John Lennon Songwriting contest for his tune Shania. He has appeared at concerts, festivals, and clubs throughout the world, and has also given clinics and Master classes at universities, colleges, and conservatories worldwide. Recently he has toured and recorded with legendary singer/songwriter Neil Sedaka. LaVerne is Professor of Jazz Piano at The Hartt School (University of Hartford), and on the faculty of the Aebersold Summer Jazz Workshops.
https://www.allaboutjazz.com/musicians/andy-laverne/

Spot On

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Bob Baldwin - It's Okay to Dream

Styles: Smooth Jazz
Size: 154,2 MB
Time: 66:44
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Released: 2024
Art: Front

1. Cape Town At Night (7:33)
2. Turn Up the Positive (5:30)
3. That One (6:48)
4. My Will (4:44)
5. Malema, Pt. 1 (6:56)
6. Malema, Pt. 2 (2:31)
7. Dreamin the Dream (6:13)
8. I'm Good (Thanks for Asking) (5:39)
9. Get the Love (5:46)
10. Complicit (5:53)
11. It's Okay to Dream (5:17)
12. 'Til We Meet Again (3:51)

The second album that jazz keyboard player Bob Baldwin released on June 28 is a contemporary album. Baldwin describes “It’s Okay to Dream” as “a contemporary playlist of thoughts and dreams.”

Crafted from a toolbox of R&B, soul, funk, jazz, house music, Latin American and South African rhythms and melodies, the album was previewed earlier this year with the invigorating single 'I'm Good (Thanks for Asking)'.

The second single, 'Turn Up The Positive', followed on June 17, collecting playlist additions. Baldwin wrote the entire album, revisiting one of his 1980s songs, ‘Get the Love’, and finding inspiration from his wife (‘That One’) and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. ('Dreamin' the Dream'). He offers authentic South African culture on 'Malema' and 'Cape Town at Night', which were co-written by Mozambican artist Jimmy Dludlu and performed by Dludlu's band members.

“Some of the music for the album was written in a dream. I hope the playlist takes you to a peaceful place where you can hear your beautiful voice, beyond the busy hustle and bustle of your own existence. This music is exactly what you need at the perfect time,” said Baldwin who just completed a concert tour of Johannesburg, South Africa. 'Til We Meet Again' appears in instrumental and vocal versions on 'Songs My Father Would Dig' and instrumentally on this album. The song was written for Baldwin's late brother William, who tragically died in a car accident in 1991 at the age of nineteen.

“It's a constant reminder, even 33 years later, that you never forget that day, the moment the phone rings and you hear the pain coming over the phone from my sister, who was visited by a local police officer who delivered that horrific news. I had just seen William twelve hours earlier at a family event. That day my heart was torn to shreds. I will never forget him and his spirit. This song is a repeat of a great man. We always ask, “What if…what if he was alive today?” Baldwin said.

Baldwin's contemporary jazz is very beautiful and highly recommended!http://www.smooth-jazz.de/Patrick/Baldwin/ItsOkayToDream.htm

It's Okay to Dream

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Peter Erskine New Trio - Joy Luck

Styles: Jazz, Post Bop
Year: 2011
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 60:59
Size: 146,5 MB
Art: Front

(6:00)  1. Joy Luck Club
(4:22)  2. On Land, On Sea
(6:43)  3. Man's Dream
(4:09)  4. Esperanca
(6:19)  5. Dr. Kildare
(3:58)  6. Iridesence
(4:49)  7. Something I Said
(6:57)  8. Dreaming Paris
(5:02)  9. I've Never Been In Love Before
(8:21) 10. Every Tomorrow
(4:13) 11. Song for Zoey

Texture is all on Joy Luck, a fine recording that introduces the versatile Vardan Ovsepian on keyboards and arrangements. Buttressed by Erskine’s nephew Damian on bass, this set sparkles, shimmers, provokes and delights. Each of the 11 tracks tells a story or at least implies one. Take the brooding “Dr. Kildare,” a Jerry Goldsmith tune that unfolds in stately fashion with Ovsepian at his most magisterial and Erskine at his bluesiest: Ovsepian weaves a mutable improvisation as Erskine fills, then drops back, and then takes over. Simultaneously relaxing and stimulating, this is music as conversation. While Erskine originals dominate, the choice of covers is judicious. Vince Mendoza’s “Esperança” gets a jaunty, martial treatment sparked by Ovsepian’s insidious synth and Erskine’s rimshots. Erskine plays resonant, sultry marimba on Bob James’ aptly titled “Iridescence,” and his brushwork, in sync with Ovsepian’s sturdy, dappled piano, brings fresh gravity to Frank Loesser’s “I’ve Never Been in Love Before.” Ovsepian’s “Every Tomorrow,” highlighted by Damian Erskine’s plummy bass, is a stunning showcase for a prodigious technique and a faintly mathematical harmonic sensibility. Ovsepian is one to watch, as is the younger Erskine, whose bittersweet “Song for Zoey” caps this subtle, thoughtful disc. ~ Carlo Wolff https://jazztimes.com/reviews/albums/peter-erskine-new-trio-joy-luck/

Personnel:  Drums, Marimba – Peter Erskine;  Bass – Damian Erskine;  Piano – Vardan Ovsepian

Joy Luck

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Dinah Washington - The Fabulous Miss 'D': The Keynote, Decca and Mercury Singles 1943-1953 (4-Disc Set)

A four-CD box set containing 107 tracks, The Fabulous Miss D! The Keynote, Decca and Mercury Singles 1943-1953 traces the first decade of Dinah Washington's recording career on 78s and 45s with a song on either side, starting with her stint with Lionel Hampton and continuing through the early years of her solo career. The album title implies an equivalence among the three labels for which Washington recorded in this period, but that is just a way of assuring the potential customer that those early Hampton sides -- the Keynote singles "Evil Gal Blues"/"Homeward Bound" and "Salty Papa Blues"/"I Know How to Do It" featuring a Hampton sextet, and Hampton's Decca single "Blow Top Blues" are included.

In fact, most of this material comes from Mercury, and that means her string of solo R&B hits starting with 1948's "Ain't Misbehavin'" and running through 1953's double-sided "TV Is the Thing (This Year)"/"Fat Daddy," with the chart toppers "Am I Asking Too Much" and "Baby Get Lost" in between, along with all the B-sides (some of which also charted) and plenty of non-chart items, all in chronological order. That sequencing allows an appreciation of Washington's development from the bluesy jazz and big-band efforts of the early recordings through jump blues to a mixture of ‘50s R&B and lush pop efforts. It's clear that Mercury hoped to cross Washington over to the pop charts, and every now and then, strings and a hearty backup chorus signal an attempt to push her toward the sound of Patti Page. But only "I Wanna Be Loved" made an impression on the pop chart in this period, and the poppier efforts tended to miss the R&B charts, where Washington otherwise scored consistently in the Top Ten. Sometimes, she did so by going gutbucket and gritty, such as on "Long John Blues," perhaps the most salacious song ever written about dentistry ("You thrill me when you drill me") and a number three hit in 1949. But Washington got to the same chart peak with her version of Hank Williams' "Cold Cold Heart," which suggests both her versatility and the range of Mercury's demands on her. Indeed, she was frequently called upon to cover pop hits for the R&B market during this period, and succeeded with such reverse crossover hits as "Harbor Lights," "My Heart Cries for You," "Wheel of Fortune," and "Tell Me Why," which, just earlier, had been pop chart entries for Sammy Kaye, Guy Mitchell, Kay Starr, and the Four Aces, respectively. And she occasionally undertook pop standards, such as "Embraceable You" and "How Deep Is the Ocean," or dipped into the Bing Crosby ("Just One More Chance") or Frank Sinatra ("I'm a Fool to Want You") catalogs, always with satisfying results. ~William Ruhlmann

Album: The Fabulous Miss 'D' (Disc 1)
Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 75:16
Size: 172.3 MB
Styles: Jazz vocals, R&B
Year: 2010

[2:51] 1. Evil Gal Blues
[2:46] 2. Homeward Bound
[3:01] 3. Salty Papa Blues
[3:09] 4. I Know How To Do It
[3:17] 5. Blow Top Blues
[2:43] 6. I Can't Get Started
[2:45] 7. Joy Juice
[2:52] 8. Embraceable You
[2:53] 9. When A Woman Loves A Man
[2:39] 10. Oo Wee Walkie Talkie
[2:38] 11. A Slick Chick (On The Mellow Side)
[2:51] 12. Postman Blues
[2:50] 13. That's Why A Woman Loves A Heel
[2:50] 14. I Wanna Be Loved
[2:58] 15. Stairway To The Stars
[2:46] 16. Mean And Evil Blues
[2:30] 17. Fool That I Am
[2:37] 18. Since I Fell For You
[2:40] 19. You Can Depend On Me
[2:32] 20. There's Got To Be A Change
[2:32] 21. Early In The Morning
[2:35] 22. I Love You, Yes I Do
[2:51] 23. Don't Come Knocking At My Door
[2:46] 24. Ain't Misbehavin'
[2:45] 25. No More Lonely Gal Blues
[2:55] 26. West Side Baby
[2:31] 27. Walkin' And Talkin'

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Album: The Fabulous Miss 'D' (Disc 2)
Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 72:26
Size: 165.8 MB
Styles: Jazz vocals, R&B
Year: 2010

[3:08] 1. I Want to Cry
[3:14] 2. Resolution Blues
[2:36] 3. Tell Me So
[2:52] 4. In the Rain
[2:47] 5. Am I Asking Too Much
[3:05] 6. I Sold My Heart to the Junkman
[2:40] 7. It's Too Soon to Know
[3:01] 8. I'll Wait
[2:47] 9. Why Can't You Behave
[2:34] 10. It's Funny
[2:46] 11. You Satisfy
[2:29] 12. Laughing Boy
[2:35] 13. (What Can I Say) After I Say I'm Sorry
[2:20] 14. Pete
[2:48] 15. Baby Get Lost
[3:07] 16. Long John Blues
[2:53] 17. Am I Really Sorry
[3:11] 18. I Challenge Your Kiss
[2:22] 19. Good Daddy Blues
[2:50] 20. Richest Guy in the Graveyard
[2:24] 21. I Only Know
[1:55] 22. New York, Chicago, and Los Angeles
[3:01] 23. It Isn't Fair
[3:07] 24. Journey's End
[2:47] 25. I Wanna Be Loved
[2:52] 26. Love (Me) With Misery

The Fabulous Miss 'D'(Disc 1) (Disc 2)

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Album: The Fabulous Miss 'D' (Disc 3)
Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 74:54
Size: 171.5 MB
Styles: Jazz vocals, R&B
Year: 2010

[2:42] 1. I'll Never Be Free
[2:39] 2. Big Deal
[2:59] 3. How Deep Is the Ocean
[2:28] 4. Why Don't You Think Things Over
[3:00] 5. Harbor Lights
[2:57] 6. I Cross My Fingers
[3:17] 7. Time Out for Tears
[2:54] 8. Only a Moment Ago
[3:21] 9. My Kind of Man
[2:24] 10. If I Loved You
[2:11] 11. Fast Movin' Mama
[2:40] 12. Juice Head Man of Mine
[2:43] 13. My Heart Cries for You
[3:19] 14. I Apologize
[3:20] 15. I Won't Cry Anymore
[3:13] 16. Don't Say You're Sorry Again
[3:01] 17. Please Send Me Someone to Love
[3:04] 18. Ain't Nobody's Business If I Do
[2:29] 19. Fine Fine Daddy
[3:08] 20. I'm So Lonely I Could Cry
[2:40] 21. If You Don't Believe I'm Leaving (Count the Days I'm Gone)
[2:37] 22. I'm a Fool to Want You
[3:18] 23. Cold, Cold Heart
[2:56] 24. Mixed Emotions
[2:54] 25. Be Fair to Me
[2:25] 26. Saturday Night

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Album: The Fabulous Miss 'D' (Disc 4)
Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 75:25
Size: 172.7 MB
Styles: Jazz vocals, R&B
Year: 2010
Art: Front

[3:09] 1. Out in the Cold Again
[2:41] 2. Hey, Good Looking
[2:50] 3. Just One More Chance
[3:02] 4. Baby Did You Hear
[2:15] 5. Wheel of Fortune
[2:56] 6. Tell Me Why
[2:48] 7. Trouble in Mind
[2:37] 8. New Blowtop Blues
[2:57] 9. Mad About the Boy
[2:45] 10. I Can't Face the Music (Without Singing the Blues)
[2:54] 11. Pillow Blues
[2:44] 12. Double Dealing Daddy
[2:54] 13. My Song
[2:31] 14. Half as Much
[3:00] 15. Stormy Weather
[2:56] 16. Make Believe Dreams
[2:25] 17. I Cried for You
[3:13] 18. Gambler's Blues
[2:54] 19. You Let My Love Grow Cold
[2:53] 20. Ain't Nothin' Good
[2:15] 21. Lean Baby
[2:13] 22. Never, Never
[2:24] 23. TV Is the Thing This Year
[2:25] 24. Fat Daddy
[2:20] 25. Silent Night
[2:40] 26. The Lord's Prayer
[2:30] 27. My Man's an Undertaker
[2:02] 28. Since My Man Has Gone and Went

The Fabulous Miss 'D'(Disc 3) (Disc 4)

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Claire Martin - Too Darn Hot!

Styles: Vocal Jazz
Year: 2002
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 56:44
Size: 133,4 MB
Art: Front

(4:53)  1. Something's Coming
(3:51)  2. Love At Last
(4:14)  3. The Gentleman Is A Dope
(4:10)  4. These Foolish Things
(5:29)  5. It's Raining In My Heart
(3:52)  6. Too Darn Hot
(5:26)  7. Black Coffee
(4:13)  8. Noir
(4:40)  9. Love Is A Necessary Evil
(4:41) 10. When I Fall In Love
(3:43) 11. I Can Let Go Now
(5:28) 12. Four Walls
(1:58) 13. Blue Motel Room

Talented and hip beyond her years the most exciting jazz star to soar to my attention in a decade. By Rex Reed The New York Observer

Too Darn Hot! (Linn Records AKD 198) is Claire Martin’s ninth album for Linn Records. Claire makes a welcome return to her jazz roots with a "dream-team" line-up of UK jazz musicians. Visit http://www.linnrecords.com/ to download soundclips and find out more. This album features many songs from the Great American Song Book: Rogers and Hammerstein's The Gentleman is a Dope, Leonard Bernstein’s Something’s Coming from West Side Story, a superb arrangement of Cole Porter’s Too Darn Hot!, as well as luscious readings of When I Fall in Love and Black Coffee. These tracks are alongside new material by Joel Siegel (Noir) and Geoffrey Keezer (Four Walls) whilst Claire once again pays homage to one of her key influences Joni Mitchell with the final track Blue Motel Room, an a cappella duet with Ian Shaw. Collaborating with producer Richard Cottle, Too Darn Hot! features the cream of British talent and features Nigel Hitchcock, Gareth Williams, Laurence Cottle, Ian Thomas, Clark Tracey and Phil Robson. Special guest artists include the much-acclaimed pianist Geoff Keezer who is featured on his own composition Four Walls which was written for Claire.

The Tapestry String Quartet play on two arrangements by Sir Richard Rodney Bennett, again written especially for Claire, It’s Raining in my Heart and When I Fall in Love. Sir Richard has been a champion of Claire's work since her debut album The Waiting Game (Linn Records AKD 018) for which he wrote the liner notes.

Introducing Claire Martin.....Claire Martin achieved instant recognition with her 1992 debut album, The Waiting Game, which was chosen as one of The Times (London)records of the year. Sir Richard Rodney Bennett concluded his liner notes for the album with the unabashed exclamation: 'This record knocks me out!' Tony Bennett was equally enthusiastic when he appeared on the same bill as Claire at the Glasgow Jazz Festival and has since had the pleasure of sketching Claire during a recent awards ceremony. Claire has a keen interest in all areas of popular music from jazz to pop. On her recordings, songs by Harold Arlen and Irving Berlin rub shoulders with Stevie Wonder, Phoebe Snow and Milton Nascimento, reflecting her eclectic roots. Claire counts Shirley Horn, Joni Mitchell, Betty Carter and Ella Fitzgerald among her stylistic influences. In January 1995 Claire made her American debut with four sell-out shows at The Nest in Washington DC to great acclaim from the Washington Post and The Village Voice. Later that year Claire won the Best British Vocalist category at the British Jazz Awards, and took her group to Ronnie Scott's to make her first live album, entitled Offbeat (Linn Records AKD 046), which includes an outstanding interpretation of Phoebe Snow's Something Real. New York Times contributor James Gavin, author of The History of New York Cabaret wrote: 'In an era when young jazz singers tend to sound far too much like their idols there's no mistaking the voice of Claire Martin who combines a cool, burnished tone with the ear of a born musician.' Following enthusiastic reviews for her appearances in the United States, Claire recorded Make This City Ours (Linn Records AKD 066) in New York, her fifth album for Linn and featuring an international line-up including American saxophonist Antonio Hart.

In March 1996 Claire appeared as guest vocalist on Years Apart (Linn Records AKD 058) with guitarist Martin Taylor recreating the 1934 Hot Club of France. Claire recorded Undecided, originally sung by Beryl Davis.

Claire also provided the lyrics for the title track and had the pleasure of recording in Paris alongside the legendary violinist Stephane Grappelli, who described her as ‘a wonderful artist, who swings and has such warmth to her voice.' The sixth album to be released was Take My Heart (Linn Records AKD 093). This was a change of direction for Claire she started to explore other genres including soul, R&B, folk, and rock. For example, Claire was joined by Noel Gallagher (Oasis) on the track Help and she also covered a Nick Drake track, Riverman. Following on from these explorations Claire released her seventh album Perfect Alibi (Linn Records AKD 122), in April 2000, this time with an appearance by guest artist John Martyn. Every Now and Then the Very Best of Claire Martin (Linn Records AKD 177) is a collection of the best tracks from the first seven albums. Too Darn Hot! is a welcome return to jazz for Claire Martin. It also heralds her first new material for 2 years.  Claire has performed throughout Europe and North America at festivals in Germany, France, the Netherlands, Norway, Denmark, Canada and the United Kingdom including the Edinburgh, Glasgow and Harrogate International Festivals and with many of the world's great orchestras including the BBC Big Band and the RIAS Big Band in Berlin. In 2001 Claire toured the Far East, Europe, and Australia. In addition to her busy concert schedule Claire Martin presents 'Jazz Line-up' on BBC Radio 3. Claire will be performing songs from Too Darn Hot at Ronnie Scott’s Jazz club, London, November 4th 9th 2002. http://www.jazzreview.com/jazz-news/news-story/vocalist-claire-martin-is-too-darn-hot.html


Personnel: Claire Martin (vocals); Ian Shaw (vocals); Phil Robson (guitar); Tapestry Quartet (strings); Nigel Hitchcock (saxophone); Geoffrey Keezer (piano, electric piano); Gareth Williams (piano); Richard Cottle (organ, keyboards); Geoff Gascoyne (double bass); Laurence Cottle (bass guitar); Clark Tracey, Ian Thomas (drums); Miles Bould (percussion).

Too Darn Hot!

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Vince Mendoza, London Symphony Orchestra – Epiphany

Styles: Post Bop
Year: 2002
Time: 62:18
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Size: 142,6 MB
Art: Front

( 7:16) 1. Impromptu
(10:20) 2. Wheaten Sky
( 8:12) 3. Esperanza
( 6:03) 4. Ambivalence
( 9:06) 5. Sanctus
( 8:56) 6. Epiphany
( 7:44) 7. Barcelona
( 4:39) 8. Deep Song

In and out of print since its initial release in '99, composer/arranger Vince Mendoza's Epiphany represents one of the finest examples of orchestration in a jazz setting. While there have been other fine examples of large-scale blending, they have often simply retrofitted existing material, as was the case with last year's Promises Kept, where pianist Steve Kuhn's compositions were lushly interpreted by arranger Carlos Franzetti.

Mendoza is a composer in his own right who may not be known to a broader audience, but has been a favourite source for artists including Gary Burton, John Abercrombie and Charlie Haden since he emerged on the scene in the mid-'80s. He's also a well-respected arranger, having worn that mantle for artists as diverse as Joe Zawinul, Joni Mitchell and Bjork. So it's a good thing that Michael Watts Productions has seen fit to reissue this significant disc so that it can be revisited by a fresh audience.

Unlike some jazz ensemble-with-orchestra collaborations where clumsy transitions between the two do nothing more than highlight their stylistic disparities, this effort reflects Mendoza's views that all the instruments available to him are part of a larger palette. Consequently the entire affair feels completely organic and unforced. There are times when the focus is on the orchestra, other times where the ensemble is in the forefront, and still other occasions where the two meet on common ground. The integration is so seamless that one is often unaware of the remarkable way in which Mendoza shifts the emphasis.

Mendoza has used sequencers as part of the writing process in the past, something that remains evident even on his more recent compositions, where repetition of complex passages act as a backdrop for themes that are occasionally convoluted yet always memorable. But with the broader textures available from the orchestra, he is able to construct subtle rubato passages. On the title track, where the strings gently introduce the piece, drummer Peter Erskine finally and delicately establishes time as the ensemble gradually inserts itself and pianist John Taylor takes a well-constructed solo that seems to intuitively ebb and flow with the support of the orchestra.

And yet as complex as Mendoza's charts can clearly be, even when the meter is irregular, they feature nothing jarring or angular. The overall ambience is lush without being saccharine, tender without being overly sentimental, easy on the ears without losing the challenge that bears new experiences on repeated listens. A broader dramatic arc imbues the entire cycle; one might listen to individual tracks, but taken as a whole Epiphany yields an altogether richer experience. With only six albums to his name, Epiphany is an all-too-rare opportunity to hear Mendoza in his own element, focusing on his own compositions with the broadest possible range of available textures and an all-star cast of improvisers. A classic. By John Kelman
https://www.allaboutjazz.com/epiphany-vince-mendoza-michael-watts-production-review-by-john-kelman

Personnel: Vince Mendoza (composer, arranger, conductor), London Symphony Orchestra, John Abercrombie (guitar), Michael Brecker (tenor saxophone), Peter Erskine (drums), Marc Johnson (bass), Joe Lovano (tenor saxophone), John Taylor (piano), Kenny Wheeler (trumpet, flugelhorn)

Epiphany

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