Pat LaBarbera - Deep In A Dream

Bitrate: 320K/s
Time: 70:46
Size: 162.0 MB
Styles: Saxophone jazz
Year: 2007
Art: Front

[6:33] 1. Deep In A Dream
[3:52] 2. Something To Live For
[6:49] 3. There's A Lull In My Life
[5:38] 4. It Shouldn't Happen To A Dream
[4:54] 5. Maybe You'll Be There
[4:12] 6. Here's To My Lady
[9:11] 7. Moon And Sand
[5:57] 8. What Good Would The Moon Be
[5:36] 9. Why Try To Change Me Now
[5:38] 10. Some Other Spring
[7:19] 11. I Heard You Cried Last Night
[5:01] 12. As Long As I Am Dreaming

Last September tenor/soprano saxophonist Pat LaBarbera appeared at the Forest City Jazz Festival with the same rhythm section featured on this CD. At the time, he alluded to the fact that he had always wanted to record an all-ballads album. Thanks to Bill King and Greg Sutherland of RadioLand Jazz, Pat's dream has become a reality. Deep In A Dream is a 12-track collection of lovely, slow burners that is perfect for late-night listening. While some of the tunes are well-known standards (Something To Live For and There's A Lull In My Life), a number of Pat's hand-picked favourites are more obscure. Indeed, Pat states in the liner notes that master balladeer Frank Sinatra's early recordings, Maybe You'll Be There, Why Try To Change Me Now and Deep In A Dream, were the source for these song choices.

Although Pat has always been known for his up-tempo, Coltrane-influenced screamers, Deep In A Dream shows that Stan Getz and Lester Young have also inspired him. Brother Joe LaBarbera's brush work is light and feathery, Neil Swainson pulls deep, rich tones from his bass and pianist Don Thompson's occasional solo spots are suitably restrained. Break out the candles and wine and enjoy! ~John Sharpe

Deep In A Dream

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Kenny Dorham Quartet - Two Horns, Two Rhythms

Bitrate: 320K/s
Time: 42:20
Size: 96.9 MB
Styles: Hard bop, Trumpet jazz
Year: 1993/2008
Art: Front

[5:20] 1. Lotus Blossom
[6:10] 2. 'sposin'
[2:54] 3. Soon
[4:38] 4. Is It True What They Say About Dixie
[4:23] 5. The End Of A Love Affair
[4:19] 6. I'll Be Seeing You
[6:33] 7. Noosebloos
[3:10] 8. Jazz-Classic
[4:49] 9. 'Sposin' (Alternate Take)

Trumpeter Kenny Dorham was one of the most underrated talents of the bop and hard bop eras. Although he did not hit high note or influence a lot of players, Dorham's appealing sound and consistently creative ideas should have made him a star in the jazz world instead of just a journeyman. On this CD reissue (which adds an alternate take of "'Sposin'" to the original eight-song LP program), Dorham and altoist Ernie Henry (on his final session) are heard in a pianoless quartet (with either Eddie Mathias or Wilbur Ware on bass and drummer G.T. Hogan) playing three of the trumpeter's originals (including "Lotus Blossom") and four standards. Highlights include "I'll Be Seeing You" and a rare revival of "Is It True What They Say About Dixie?" The sparse setting (unusual for a Dorham session) works quite well. ~Scott Yanow

Two Horns, Two Rhythms

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Felicia Sanders - That Certain Feeling

Styles: Vocal Jazz
Year: 2010
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 31:27
Size: 72,4 MB
Art: Front

(2:08)  1. Dancing In The Dark
(2:33)  2. Summertime
(1:35)  3. Nobody Else But Me
(3:28)  4. Music, Maestro, Please
(3:31)  5. A Woman's Love Is Never Done
(1:44)  6. La Bonne Cuisine - Rabbit At Top Speed
(1:47)  7. I Happen To Like New York
(3:40)  8. Summer Love
(3:21)  9. That Certain Feeling
(4:26) 10. I Had Myself A True Love
(3:08) 11. What Have You Done All Day

Felicia Sanders (c. 1922 – February 7, 1975) was a singer of traditional pop music. Born Felice Schwartz in Mount Vernon, New York, she sang in the 1940s, with big bands and on the radio, based in Los Angeles, California. She stopped singing professionally to get married to Michael Snider (who was in the army), and had a son, Jefferson with him. They eventually got divorced both having part-time custody of their child. In 1950 she returned to singing in a nightclub in Hollywood, Café Gala. She was heard there by Benny Carter, who thought enough of her talent to recommend her to Mitch Miller, Columbia Records' artist and repertory director. She was picked, in 1953, by Columbia's biggest orchestra leader, Percy Faith, to sing vocal on a song he was recording, taken from the film Moulin Rouge a biographical film about Toulouse-Lautrec.

The song, known as "The Song from Moulin Rouge" was recorded on January 22, 1953 and released by Columbia with the credits shown as "Percy Faith and his Orchestra featuring Felicia Sanders." She had been paid only union scale and her name appeared below Faith's in small letters, but she had a success. The song scored #1 on all the record charts and was to be her greatest success.

Just before the record was released she was hired by New York's famous Blue Angel nightclub, and she played there for a long time, being the first singer to do the song "In Other Words (Fly Me to the Moon)" although she did not record it until several other singers had done so. When she recorded "In Other Words" at Decca Recording studio, it was backed with "Summer Love" (composed by Victor Young) in1959.

Miller kept finding other songs to have her sing, but only one other scored among the Top 30: "Blue Star", based on the theme from a well-known television series, Medic. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Felicia_Sanders

That Certain Feeling

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Eric Alexander - Two Of A Kind

Styles: Saxophone Jazz
Year: 1997
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 55:58
Size: 128,3 MB
Art: Front

(8:25)  1. Happy Song
(7:56)  2. Pentimento
(7:14)  3. Mr. Harris
(6:12)  4. I Can't Get Started
(8:26)  5. Cecil's Slide
(6:08)  6. Angel Eyes
(5:16)  7. Beautiful Things
(6:18)  8. Kick-A-Poo

Eric Alexander is a high-powered tenor saxophonist whose style falls between hard bop and post-bop. On this set he splits his time between quartet numbers with pianist David Hazeltine, bassist John Webber, and drummer Joe Farnsworth and quintet pieces that co-star baritonist Cecil Payne. Unfortunately, Payne (74 at the time) sounds past his prime, displaying a weaker tone than he had previously although he tries his best during his three appearances (two Payne originals plus "I Can't Get Started"). Alexander (who brought in three originals of his own) sounds fine throughout and he helps to revitalize the straight-ahead tradition with his passionate playing. ~ Scott Yanow  http://www.allmusic.com/album/release/two-of-a-kind-mr0000763180

Personnel: Eric Alexander (tenor saxophone); Cecil Payne (baritone saxophone); David Hazeltine (piano); John Webber (bass); Joe Farnsworth (drums).

Two Of A Kind

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David Liebman - Lieb Plays Wilder

Styles: Flute And Saxophone Jazz
Year: 2007
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 62:07
Size: 142,7 MB
Art: Front

(7:53)  1. Where Is The One?
(6:26)  2. A Long Night
(6:32)  3. Winter Of My Discontent
(4:48)  4. Trouble Is A Man
(6:06)  5. If Love´s Like A Lark
(4:04)  6. The Wrong Blues
(5:32)  7. The Lady Sings The Blues
(5:44)  8. Moon And Sand
(8:13)  9. Just As Though You Were Here
(6:45) 10. While We're Young

Saxophonist Dave Liebman has covered a lot of territory in a career now well into its fourth decade, but his approach has never resembled anything conventional. Much has been written about Liebman mining territory first explored by Coltrane; and in his expressionist approach that is nevertheless capable of rich subtlety, the lineage is clear. Towards the untimely end to his life, Coltrane travelled inexorably away from structure into extended improvisations that had little in the way of conventional foundation, but Liebman has continued to explore improvisational possibilities within more defined frameworks. Sometimes those frameworks can be quite complex, as on recent recordings involving his quartet featuring guitarist Vic Juris; but they can also be looser, as on his duet recording with pianist Marc Copland, Bookends. While Liebman has a stellar reputation, he curiously remains less of a household name than contemporaries like Michael Brecker and Joe Lovano with whom he teamed for last year's excellent Saxophone Summit. His general avoidance of major labels has actually been liberating as with Copland allowing him to release far more recordings as a leader than such contracts would permit.  

And without the interference of a label looking for an easy route to mass appeal, Liebman has been able to make recordings like Lieb Plays Wilder. It's clearly accessible, mining material that feels like standards, but it's more off the beaten path. Alec Wilder, in fact, wrote one of the definitive books on other composers more typically associated with the Great American Songbook, The American Popular Song, but based on the compositions here, he was at least some of the time working similar territory himself. On this largely trio recording with bassist Marius Beets and Eric Ineke who he rightfully says "is one of the most swinging drummers I know" Liebman alternates between tenor and soprano saxophones, bringing out a wooden flute for the intro to the darkly balladic "Trouble is a Man." Liebman has spent many years focusing on the soprano, only recently bringing out the tenor more regularly, but that's a good thing, because his musical personality is equally distinctive on the bigger horn. 

The material ranges from the bright "Where is the One" and the up-tempo swing of "A Long Night" one of two tracks featuring guest pianist Marc Van Roon to the bossa feel of "Winter of My Discontent" and the bluesy jazz waltz "If Love's Like a Lark." Throughout, Liebman honours the intent of the compositions, but he's liberal enough to demonstrate their myriad possibilities by extending into passages where textural flurries replace simpler lyric concerns. Recording standards is nothing new to Liebman, but with Lieb Plays Wilder he introduces his audience to material that, by all rights, should have been considered part of the Great American Songbook. ~ John Kelman  http://www.allaboutjazz.com/lieb-plays-wilder-dave-liebman-challenge-records-review-by-john-kelman.php#.VHzQ_8mHmtg
 

Personnel: Dave Liebman: tenor and soprano saxophones, flute; Marius Beets: bass; Eric Ineke: drums; Marc Van Roon: piano (4, 10).

Lieb Plays Wilder

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Eric Johnson & Mike Stern - Eclectic

Styles: Guitar, Jazz, Rock
Year: 2014
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 72:02
Size: 167,4 MB
Art: Front

(5:23)  1. Roll With It
(3:08)  2. Hullabaloo
(6:06)  3. Wherever You Go - With Intro
(4:50)  4. Red House
(6:24)  5. Remember
(4:27)  6. Benny Man’s Blues
(7:34)  7. Wishing Well
(7:06)  8. Big Foot - With Intro
(5:26)  9. Tidal
(6:38) 10. You Never Know
(6:48) 11. Dry Ice
(8:05) 12. Sometimes

Two bona fide guitar heroes in their respective fields; Eric Johnson in the rock realm and Mike Stern in the jazz world join forces to produce the explosive Eclectic, a scintillating musical showcase that brings together their disparate influences in one potent package. Fans of both artists and guitar aficionados will want to hear this unique collaboration. Backed by Anton Fig (James Brown, Miles Davis, Bruce Springsteen, Stevie Wonder) on drums and Chris Maresh on bass the group impresses throughout the albums 12 tracks with writing contributions from both guitarists and even a cover of Jimi Hendrix Red House where Mike makes his vocal debut trading lines with Eric on this event record.  ~ Editorial Reviews  http://www.amazon.com/Eclectic-Eric-Johnson/dp/B00MKKZVXO

Eclectic

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David Ostwald's Gully Low Jazz Band - Blues In Our Heart

Bitrate: 320K/s
Time: 60:58
Size: 139.6 MB
Styles: Mainstream jazz
Year: 2007
Art: Front

[3:18] 1. Jubilee Stomp
[3:43] 2. When Day Is Done
[3:32] 3. Don't Forget To Mess Around
[6:25] 4. Lover Come Back To Me
[4:48] 5. Thou Swell
[4:48] 6. Someday Sweetheart
[3:49] 7. Panama
[4:18] 8. 'tain't So, Honey 'tain't So
[6:08] 9. Blues In My Heart
[3:07] 10. New Orleans Stomp
[3:36] 11. Changes
[3:34] 12. Who's It
[5:07] 13. Home
[4:35] 14. Diga Diga Doo

Tuba, Banjo, and a 2/4 Beat. I have been listening to a lot of Nagel-Heyer releases lately and I have been trying to identify the things that make "traditional" jazz traditional. Certainly the presence of the Tuba and Banjo (or guitar as a percussive, rhythmic instrument with harmonic capabilities) are two big clues. Tuba player David Ostwald and the ubiquitous Howard Alden cover these instruments on this and many N-H releases. The majority of the music is played with a 2/4 time rather than the more familiar 4/4 Swing and beyond feel. These factors seem to be what contribute most to the "Traditional" sound. The Gully Low Jazz Band sells itself as a band a variety of jazz styles, but to my ears they play them all in a vintage manner. That is okay with me. Listening to Blues in Our Heart immediately makes me think of Don Byron's Bug Music and any number of Wynton Marsalis releases. My estimation is the Gully Low Jazz Band plays a more authentic brand of traditional jazz than Mr. Marsalis (as much as I admire his music) ever should. The music on this disc (and all other N-H I have heard) sounds genuine and sincere, not overly reverent or worshipful. The sure novelty of the Gully Low Jazz Band is that it only has one constant, the presence of David Ostwald. When Ostwald is asked to record, he assembles his band then under the Gully Low name. Pretty cool. Being associated with N-H helps as their stables are stocked with players totally empathetic with Ostwald and his traditional temperament. For this particular disc, he has assembled Marsalis alums Wycliffe Gordon and Herlin Riley, former Concord stablemates Howard Alden and Ken Peplowski, and fellow N-H cronies Mark Shane and Randy Sandke. This group executes as it appears— too good to be true but it is true.

Miniduos. This disc is replete with vintage performance, but what is most fun is many of these pieces have duo breaks with the Howard Alden's guitar/banjo and another instrument. Alden joins Randy Sandke in a trumpet/banjo lovefest on the opening "Jubilee Stomp". Alden converses with Ken Peplowski on "Panama" and "Changes" and takes the helm alone on "When Day is Done". This arrangement technique adds a tautness and excitement to these time worn classics that makes them new and exciting. Outside of the playing of the aforementioned, Mark Shane shines on piano, always being in the right place at the right time in both solos and comps.

If you, the curious listener/reader, likes the old-timey, traditional sound of Bug Music or Wynton Marsalis trying to be Joe "King" Oliver, this disc (and many other Nagel-Heyers) is for you. If you don't like this music, learn to. It is the musical Old Testament of Jazz. ~Michael Bailey

David Ostwald: Tuba; Randy Sandke: Trumpet; Wycliffe Gordon: Trombone, Vocals; Ken Peplowski: Clarinet, Alto Saxophone; Mark Shane: Piano; Howard Alden: Banjo, Guitar; Herlin Riley: Drums.

Blues In Our Heart

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Mose Allison - Local Color

Bitrate: 320K/s
Time: 35:58
Size: 82.4 MB
Styles: Hard bop, Piano jazz, Vocal jazz
Year: 1957/2006
Art: Front

[2:59] 1. Carnival
[3:20] 2. Parchman Farm
[3:42] 3. Crepuscular Air
[4:07] 4. Mojo Woman
[3:26] 5. Town
[3:14] 6. Trouble In Mind
[3:34] 7. Lost Mind
[5:37] 8. I'll Never Be Free
[3:15] 9. Don't Ever Say Goodbye
[2:40] 10. Ain't You A Mess

This CD reissue brings back Mose Allison's second of six Prestige recordings. Allison performs eight instrumentals in a trio with bassist Addison Farmer and drummer Nick Stabulas, displaying his unusual mixture of country blues and bebop and even taking an effective trumpet solo on "Trouble In Mind." However it is his vocals on "Lost Mind" and particularly the classic "Parchman Farm" that are most memorable. ~Scott Yanow

Local Color

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Annie Lennox - Nostalgia

Bitrate: 320K/s
Time: 39:14
Size: 89.8 MB
Styles: R&B, Standards
Year: 2014
Art: Front

[2:42] 1. Memphis In June
[1:11] 2. Georgia On My Mind
[3:29] 3. I Put A Spell On You
[5:08] 4. Summertime
[2:57] 5. I Cover The Waterfront
[3:40] 6. Strange Fruit
[2:59] 7. God Bless The Child
[3:19] 8. You Belong To Me
[2:50] 9. September In The Rain
[2:53] 10. I Can Dream, Can’t I
[2:29] 11. The Nearness Of You
[5:31] 12. Mood Indigo

Annie Lennox's ongoing evolution from New Wave ruler into U.K. queen of blue-eyed soul isn't exactly surprising – her magnificent voice has always had an R&B foundation, on display in this orchestral set of jazz and blues standards. "Summertime," "Strange Fruit" and "God Bless the Child" show reverence and impeccable technique yet not quite enough signature to transcend mere impressiveness. Standouts: the Andrews Sisters' "I Can Dream, Can't I?" playfully set to a cha-cha groove, and Ellington's "Mood Indigo," with barrel-house brass and raw, if measured, blues hollers. "C'mon, play that thing!" Lennox goads a horn player. One might say the same to her. ~Will Hermes

Nostalgia

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Freddie Hubbard - Open Sesame

Bitrate: 320K/s
Time: 53:06
Size: 121.6 MB
Styles: Hard bop, Trumpet jazz
Year: 1960/2002
Art: Front

[7:07] 1. Open Sesame
[6:23] 2. But Beautiful
[6:25] 3. Gypsy Blue
[5:32] 4. All Or Nothing At All
[5:59] 5. One Mint Julep
[6:51] 6. Hub's Nub
[7:13] 7. Open Sesame (Alternate Take)
[7:32] 8. Gypsy Blue (Alternate Take)

Freddie Hubbard's first recording as a leader, Open Sesame features the 22-year-old trumpeter in a quintet with tenor saxophonist Tina Brooks, the up-and-coming pianist McCoy Tyner, bassist Sam Jones and drummer Clifford Jarvis. This set shows that even at this early stage, Hubbard had the potential to be one of the greats. On the ballad "But Beautiful" he shows maturity; other highlights include "Open Sesame," a driving "All or Nothing at All" and "One Mint Julep." It's an impressive start to what would be a very interesting career. ~Scott Yanow

Open Sesame

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Beryl Davis - I'll Be Seeing You

Styles: Vocal Jazz
Year: 1995
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 47:06
Size: 109,4 MB
Art: Front

(4:22)  1. The Nearness of You
(2:33)  2. Where or When
(3:15)  3. Old Cape Cod
(3:34)  4. I Can't Get Started
(3:21)  5. Star Eyes
(2:32)  6. A Nightingale Sang in Berkeley Square
(2:32)  7. I'll Be Seeing You
(3:18)  8. I Remember You
(2:13)  9. The Very Thought of You
(4:12) 10. They Can't Take That Away from Me
(2:20) 11. As Time Goes By
(2:11) 12. Dream a Little Dream of Me
(2:26) 13. Cabaret
(5:46) 14. Chaplin Walked Here
(2:26) 15. You Made Me Love You

Big-band singer Beryl Davis was born in England; the daughter of bandleader Harry Davis, she spent her formative years on tour with her father's orchestra, eventually becoming the act's featured vocalist. Subsequently touring Europe with Stéphane Grappelli, George Shearing, and Ted Heath, in 1944 Davis was recruited to join Glenn Miller's Army Air Force Orchestra, and after Miller's death also performed for the troops with Johnny Desmond and the Crew Chiefs. Spotted by Bob Hope, she made her Hollywood debut on his show, next spending a year singing alongside Frank Sinatra on Your Hit Parade; tenures with Benny Goodman, Vaughn Monroe, and David Rose followed, and in 1954 Davis joined with Jane Russell, Rhonda Fleming, and Connie Haines to form a popular gospel quartet that scored a series of hits, including "Do Lord." She continued carrying the big-band torch in the decades to follow, performing with Mel Tormé, the Gene Krupa Orchestra, and the Kay Kyser Band in addition to touring in A Salute to Glenn Miller. Davis died in October of 2011 of complications from Alzheimer's disease. She was 87. 

Bio ~ https://itunes.apple.com/us/artist/beryl-davis/id310982#fullText

I'll Be Seeing You

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Dave Pell Octet - Jazz Goes Dancing (Prom to Prom & Campus Hop)

Styles: Saxophone Jazz
Year: 2012
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 77:26
Size: 178,6 MB
Art: Front

(3:19)  1. Look Who's Dancing
(3:09)  2. Let's Face the Music and Dance
(2:55)  3. Prom to Prom
(3:00)  4. Walkin' My Baby Back Home
(4:17)  5. Java Junction
(2:49)  6. You're My Everything
(4:17)  7. Forty-Second Street
(3:04)  8. By the River Sainte Marie
(3:57)  9. I Know Why and so Do You
(3:31) 10. We're in the Money
(3:02) 11. Cheerful Little Earful
(3:04) 12. East of the Sun
(4:36) 13. Would You Like to Take a Walk
(3:24) 14. Lulu's Back in Town
(2:35) 15. I'll String Along with You
(3:03) 16. Remember Me
(3:01) 17. Summer Night
(2:52) 18. You
(3:22) 19. Young and Healthy
(2:36) 20. The Continental
(2:43) 21. Dance for Daddy
(3:02) 22. When I Take My Sugar to Tea
(2:44) 23. If I Had You
(2:55) 24. Cheek to Cheek

Shortly after it was formed in 1953, the Dave Pell Octet won best new combo of the year in polls conducted by America s Daily News and Mirror newspa- pers. Six of its eight members were included in Down Beat magazine s 1953 poll of the top musicians in the country. Pell and his group flipped fans every where they appeared, specializing in Proms and School Dances, and becoming the first name jazz group ever to play for dancing at one of the top Sunset Strip clubs, The Crescendo, and also the Hollywood Palladium. Its jazz was described variously as tasty, sophisticated, subtle, warm, bright, clean, friendly, inventive, happy, and a complete show and concert rolled into one. One successful Octet approach was to have the crowd gather around the bandstand to watch it play a fast jive number featuring the band s excellent soloists. An essential contributing factor in the Octet s success was that Pell hired the West Coast's finest arrangers to write the beguilingly melodic and alway attractive, danceable band charts; people of the calibre of Marty Paich, Bill Holman, Shorty Rogers, Jack Montrose, Med Flory, John T. Williams. And it was this canny combination of quality and accessibility that really made the Octet s name and gave the music its enduring flavour. In Dave's own words: "Here's hoping you enjoy our combined dance-and-jazz Campus Hop!"~ Editorial Reviews  

http://www.amazon.com/Dave-Pell-Octet-Dancing-Campus/dp/B00AROAWJI

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Jazz Goes Dancing (Prom to Prom & Campus Hop)

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Houston Person - Mellow

Styles: Saxophone Jazz
Year: 2009
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 55:44
Size: 127,9 MB
Art: Front + Back

(5:41)  1. Sunny
(6:26)  2. Too Late Now
(4:56)  3. In A Mellow Tone
(4:56)  4. To Each His Own
(6:11)  5. What A Difference A Day Made
(4:16)  6. Two Different Worlds
(6:41)  7. Blues In The Am
(5:34)  8. Who Can I Turn To?
(7:42)  9. God Bless The Child
(3:15) 10. Lester Leaps In

Houston Person's Mellow could easily have been called "Up Close and Personal." With dozens and dozens of recordings to his credit, it's just the latest in a long list of exemplary sets that always evidence the warmth of his tone and the directness of his tenor sax phrasing. Also mixed in as well is a funky R&B feeling. That is particularly noticeable on the bouncy "Sunny" that opens the set. Everyone gets into a sweet heat, most notably when James Chirillo pungently strums his guitar, John J. DiMartino jumping in with emphatic piano. Ultimately Person wraps it all up with blazing, beefy blasts that gradually diminish and fade away as if into some celestial cloud-space.  With that old gem of Lane-Lerner's, "Too Late Now," the contrast is dramatic. It's typical of Person's deep knowledge of the Great American Songbook. Long ago Lester Young suggested that jazz soloists ought to know the lyrics of a song. 

This is a lush, unhurried take on which the emotional connection is immediate as Person soars with his saxophone. He can also be surprising as with that old Dinah Washington standby, "What a Difference a Day Makes," recast here with a distinctly bolero-like feel. The rhythm is dynamic, the beat clear and effect irresistible. Person's own "Blues in the AM" is the most specifically blues-drenched number on the set, a showcase for the gospel side of his playing, inspiring Chirillo to chime in with particularly inventive enthusiasm. The set closes with a rollicking "Lester Leaps In" and they're clearly having a blast. You will too. ~ Andrew Velez  http://www.allaboutjazz.com/mellow-houston-person-highnote-records-review-by-andrew-velez.php#.VH0xvsmHmtg

Personnel: Houston Person: tenor saxophone; John Di Martino: piano; James Chirillo: guitar; Ray Drummond: bass; Lewis Nash: drums.

Mellow

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Dave Liebman & Michael Stephans - Lineage

Styles: Saxophone Jazz
Year: 2013
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 55:00
Size: 126,5 MB
Art: Front

(6:23)  1. Mr. Sandman
(7:13)  2. Eleanor Rigby
(6:26)  3. Visions
(4:37)  4. Tequila
(6:41)  5. Dames: I Only Have Eyes For You: I Only Have Eyes For You
(4:36)  6. Walk, Don't Run
(6:04)  7. Woodstock
(5:13)  8. Wipe Out
(3:28)  9. Here, There And Everywhere
(4:14) 10. Love Me Tender: Love Me Tender

Saxophonist Dave Liebman was yet another musician drawn into the orbit of trumpeter Miles Davis, contributing to the always innovative master band leader's extraordinary and ground breaking but underappreciated and even maligned at its time of release On the Corner (Columbia Records, 1972), as well as Dark Magus (Columbia Records, 1974) and Get Up With It (Columbia Records, 1974). Then, like so many others saxophonists Wayne Shorter and John Coltrane, pianist Herbie Hancock, drummers' Tony Williams and Elvin Jones, to name just a handful Liebman, a changed man for the Davis experience, left that orbit on his own trajectory, to become one of our premier inside/outside jazzers with scores of releases under his own name, including outstanding (but distinctively his own) homages to Davis and alto saxophonist/free jazz pioneer Ornette Coleman. So Lineage, a teaming with drummer Michael Stephens, a Liebman contemporary, and three young up-and-coming players, delving into rock and pop tunes of the late fifties and early sixties may come as a surprise. Dave Liebman was born in 1946. 

That means he would have encountered the 1963 surf/rock hit, "Wipe Out," by the Surfaris, when he was 17 years old. The saxophone/rock rave up, "Tequila" came out in 1958. Liebman would have been about 12 years old, an age where many young people discover music. Elvis Presley's "Love Me Tender" came out in '56. You get the idea. Liebman and Stephen's idea for this Lineage was a re-visitation of the popular songs they had been drawn to in their younger days, and deconstructing then re-harmonizing, and generally reshaping them under the umbrella of the ideas that Liebman has been employing in jazz for the past forty years. In case you're wondering and because it sounds as if it wouldn't it works, amazingly well. "Mr. Sandman," a sweet and goofy tune, recorded and released by the Chordettes in 1954, seems the least likely of vehicles for a jazz treatment. Stephens's shuffling drums accompany Liebman's soprano sax, playing the melody straight, until pianist Bobby Avey stretches out, taking the mood from gentle whimsey to serious improvisation. The Beatles get two nods: "Eleanor Rigby" and "Here, There and Everywhere." 

The former, with Liebman on wooden flute, opens with an Eastern atmosphere. Switching to soprano sax, Liebman keeps the melody recognizable until guitarst Vic Juris a veteran of Liebmans's jazz quartet steps out with an elastic acoustic solo. On "Here, There and Everywhere," one of the loveliest tunes in the Lennon/McCartney songbook, Liebman switches to tenor sax, introducing the tune on a tender note before he surges into wild and wooly territory, with distinctively Liebman-esque growls and roars over a backdrop of Avey's cool organ flow. And there's "Woodstock, singer/songwriterJoni Mitchell's late sixties anthem that Liebman and the band lead into dark and foreboding territory. Lineage, taking familiar pop tunes and turning them inside out, with reverence, is an excellent addition to the extensive Dave Liebman discography. ~ Dan McClenaghan  http://www.allaboutjazz.com/lineage-rock-and-pop-classics-revisited-dave-liebman-whaling-city-sound-review-by-dan-mcclenaghan.php#.VHygdMmHmtg
 

Personnel: Dave Liebman: soprano and tenor saxophones, wooden flute; Evan Gregor: electric and acoustic bass; Vic Juris: electric and acoustic guitars; Bobby Avey: acoustic and electric piano, organ; Michael Stephens: drums, percussion; Matt Vashlisan: alto and soprano saxophones, flute, EWI, clarinet.

Lineage

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Johnny Maestro - A Date With Johnny Maestro & The Brooklyn Bridge

Size: 140,2 MB
Time: 59:26
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Released: 2013
Styles: Pop Rock, Doo Wop
Art: Front

01. The Worst That Could Happen (Live) (3:55)
02. Lonely Teardrops (Live) (3:15)
03. I'll Be Satisfied (Live) (2:20)
04. Unchained Melody (Live) (4:00)
05. Little Bitty Pretty One (Live) (2:23)
06. Gimme Some Lovin' (Live) (3:49)
07. You'll Never Walk Alone (Live) (5:11)
08. 16 Candles (Live) (2:37)
09. Sweetest One (Live) (2:41)
10. Gee But I'd Give The World (Live) (2:41)
11. Pretty Little Angel (Live) (2:14)
12. Knockin' At My Front Door (Live) (2:10)
13. What A Suprise (Live) (3:03)
14. Step By Step (Live) (2:00)
15. Welcome Me Love (Live) (2:33)
16. I Thank The Moon (Live) (2:49)
17. Trouble In Paradise (Live) (2:22)
18. Your Husband, My Wife (Live) (3:19)
19. The Angels Listened In (Live) (2:28)
20. Blessed Is The Rain (Live) (3:26)

The precise recording dates of this CD is elusive until one looks at the credits — the notes give a nice general history of Johnny Maestro and the Brooklyn Bridge, but it's only on checking the production notes (inside of the package) that the modern origins of the recordings at hand become clear. The packaging might lead the unwary purchaser to think these were vintage sides. That said, the stuff sounds great — these recordings do successfully mimic a classic late-'50s/early-'60s doo wop/R&B harmony vocal sound, a little on the slick side and a bit cleaner than what one ever heard on records at the time, but nothing to offend too badly, apart from some synthesized sounds here and there (which are inevitable with modern privately made recordings such as this). There's nothing revelatory, but it is a superb showcase for the post-2000 version of the group, and a lot of fun for those who take their vintage music in off of PBS broadcast concerts and the more slickly packaged oldies shows.

Bio:
After making a name for himself as lead singer of the Crests, vocalist Johnny Maestro formed Brooklyn Bridge in 1968 and scored a gold record the next year on Buddah with a cover of the Fifth Dimension's heartbroken "Worst That Could Happen." Brooklyn Bridge were an amalgam of Maestro, the Del Satins (the vocal group that backed Dion on many of his early-'60s solo hits), and a brassy outfit called the Rhythm Method. Brooklyn Bridge enjoyed several more hits in 1969 and 1970, and Maestro often performed on the oldies circuit during the decades to follow. He died of cancer at his home in Cape Coral, FL, in March 2010 at the age of 70.

A Date With Johnny Maestro

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Oliver Lake Organ Quartet - Plan

Size: 112,6 MB
Time: 48:18
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Released: 2010
Styles: Jazz
Art: Front

01. Plan (3:43)
02. Backup (6:16)
03. Ta Ta Ta (5:48)
04. After Touch (8:33)
05. In This (6:05)
06. Spring-Ing (5:55)
07. 2 Parts Air (4:40)
08. Dance Two (7:15)

Personnel:
Oliver Lake - alto saxophone
Johnathan Blake - drums
Freddie Hendrix - trumpet
Jared Gold - Hammond b-3 organ

Eight original compositions by Oliver Lake are performed by his organ quartet with style, spirit and zeal. The album features some of the best young talented musicians in the New York area: brilliant organist Jared Gold, inspired by the great jazz organist Larry Young; Trumpeter Freddie Hendrix, reminiscent of the great Freddie Hubbard; and the highly creative drummer, Johnathan Blake. Lake's organ quartet takes these compositions on some unusual journeys for organ jazz, exploring freebop, funk, fun and musical conversations.

The veteran alto saxophonist advances the suspense from his previous 2008 organ quartet disc, Makin’ It. Lake comes out explosively from the opening title track, on which he employs his acerbic tone and sidewinding phrases in unison with trumpeter Freddie Hendrix before blasting off into a vigorous improvisation. Adding to the restive energy is Johnathon Blake’s propulsive drumming and Jared Gold’s squawking, almost pianistic approach to the Hammond B3. When the quartet explores a groove as on the bluesy “Backup” or the Latin-tinged “After Touch,” the rhythmic and harmonic foundation shifts unexpectedly and the front-line horns soar.

Plan

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Helen Schneider - Right As The Rain

Size: 148,7 MB
Time: 63:57
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Released: 1995
Styles: Jazz Vocals
Art: Full

01. My Ship (10:55)
02. Send In The Clowns ( 6:02)
03. Some Cats Know ( 7:37)
04. I've Got The World On A String ( 6:28)
05. Get Out Of Town ( 7:29)
06. I Was So Young, You Were So Beautiful ( 5:30)
07. I Had Myself A True Love ( 8:57)
08. Over The Rainbow ( 5:40)
09. Right As The Rain ( 5:16)

Helen Schneider (born December 23, 1952 in Brooklyn, New York City) is an American singer and actress working mainly in Germany.

Born the daughter of Dvora und Abraham Schneider (the name is German and means tailor), she studied piano before starting to perform as a singer in venues in New England and New York.

Between 1978 and 1984 she achieved some success as a rock singer in Germany; her song Rock’n’ Roll Gypsy even reached the top 10 record charts. 1980 she toured as an opener with the German rock legend Udo Lindenberg. She played one of the leads and the love interest of Eddie Wilson in the 1983 film Eddie and the Cruisers, which has since gained a huge cult following, especially in unusual places for an American film such as Nepal, Russia and especially Germany, where Schneider had name recognition.

In 1987 she began her acting career at the Theater des Westens in Berlin playing the Sally Bowles in the musical Cabaret. From 1995 to 1998 she performed as Norma Desmond in Sunset Boulevard by Andrew Lloyd Webber. Since 1998 she mainly performs chansons and songs with lyrics pieces by Kurt Weill. She worked with Eberhard Schoener on the recording of the Short Opera (1996) and on the goodbye-song for the TV series Derrick. From 1999 to 2001 she performed as Eva Perón in the musical Evita at the Bad Hersfelder Festspiele.

Right As The Rain

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Gregory Hines - Jazz My Way

Size: 182,8 MB
Time: 78:41
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Released: 2014
Styles: Jazz: Cool Jazz
Art: Front

01. Kruise Kontrol (6:56)
02. Jesus Is The Best Thang (5:26)
03. Spirit Of Washington (6:45)
04. Jazzing It Up (7:02)
05. Jazz My Way (6:10)
06. Nothing To Lose (6:03)
07. Just 4 U (5:54)
08. Butterfly (6:30)
09. Just A Friend (6:16)
10. To Each Its Own (7:43)
11. Steady Rain (7:15)
12. Just In Time (6:35)

Best-known as a dancer — tap, specifically — and an actor of stage and screen, Gregory Hines was also a singer of some accomplishment. A self-titled album appeared in 1987, after a guest spot the previous year on Luther Vandross' Give Me the Reason album. It was the only popular venture that Hines would make, but not the first or last recording. Cast recordings for several Broadway stage hits feature Hines the singer in fine form, including Eubie! (1975), Sophisticated Lady (1981), and Jelly's Last Jam (1992). In 1997 he starred in a television series, The Gregory Hines Show, and had a recurring role on another series, Will and Grace. Hines passed away August 9, 2003, after a battle with cancer.

Jazz My Way

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Laura Dorais - Here's To Life

Size: 81,0 MB
Time: 34:33
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Released: 2014
Styles: Jazz Vocals
Art: Front

01. Let's Face The Music And Dance (3:34)
02. Willow Weep For Me (4:16)
03. I Thought About You (3:58)
04. How Deep Is the Ocean (3:32)
05. At Sundown (3:46)
06. 'Tis Autumn (4:01)
07. That Old Black Magic (3:06)
08. On The Sunny Side Of The Street (2:33)
09. Here's To Life (5:45)

My favorites on this album are simply put, all of them. Let's Face The Music and Dance for the harmonies, the upbeat pace, the fun. Willow Weep For Me for the fact that my father used to play it when I was a kid, for all of us kids, as a nighty night song, and for how Rodney Burge just plays the heck out of it and thereby makes me really sing it. Doug McKeehan did many of these arrangements, well, all right, six of the nine songs here, including I Thought About You which always makes me think about trains and YOU who I had to leave, all over again. How Deep Is The Ocean is deeply satisfying to sing. Thank you, Irving Berlin, for giving all of us such a great song in which to express deep love, and thank you, Doug for your great accompaniment and arrangement here. At Sundown was first made known to me by the great radio singer Ruth Etting. I am so grateful to Walter Donaldson for writing a song with such stunning lyrics and happy melody. 'Tis Autumn by Henry Nemo- 'tis a great song, all about the trees and the birds and love, again, who would have guessed. That Old Black Magic by Johnny Mercer and Harold Arlen is treated in a fresh way here by Doug McKeehan, moving from a kind of spooky minor key into a spin, and I am loving that spin I am in. On The Sunny Side of the Street is hip hop happy. Here's To Life, first sung by the great Shirley Horn, is my favorite song to sing for girlfriends, i.e., for Ladies Who Lunch, and we all know who we are! Another song with a story, and what else is a singer, but a person who puts stories to song. I hope you love these songs and my fabulous musicians as much as I do. Love and Happiness to You! Laura Dorais

Here's To Life

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Jumaane Smith - I Only Have Eyes For You

Size: 109,2 MB
Time: 46:58
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Released: 2014
Styles: Jazz: Trumpet, Vocals
Art: Front

01. Come Rain Or Come Shine (Feat. Michael Buble) (4:39)
02. Dream (3:28)
03. Georgia On My Mind (3:25)
04. I Only Have Eyes For You (Feat. Naturally 7) (3:19)
05. The Way You Look Tonight (5:36)
06. What A Wonderful World (3:58)
07. Yesterday (3:57)
08. Someone To Watch Over Me (4:57)
09. La Vie En Rose (Feat. Jackie Evancho) (4:30)
10. Stardust (5:05)
11. Please Send Me Someone To Love (3:58)

Jumaane Smith, trumpeter and vocalist, has already done what most musicians spend their lives dreaming about. He’s traveled the world, played stages in historic clubs, in massive stadiums and at cultural landmarks, recorded a solo album, appeared on national television and performed for two sitting U.S. presidents.

His collaborations range from pop idols to jazz legends, and the list reads like a lineup for the best New Orleans Jazz Fest ever. He’s worked with Stevie Wonder, Quincy Jones, Michael Buble’, Jackie Evancho, Alicia Keys, The Jonas Brothers, Wyclef Jean, Justin Bieber, Diddy, Natalie Cole, James Ingram, Wynton Marsalis, Ravi Coltrane, Chris Botti and many more.

At 16, while most kids are content with getting a driver’s license, Jumaane was on a plane for the first time headed to Europe. As a member of the Roosevelt High School Jazz Band under the direction of Scott Brown, he spent three weeks performing at such events as the Montreux Jazz Festival in Switzerland and the North Sea Jazz Festival in Den Hague.

Only a few years later, now living in NY, Jumaane was one of 17 musicians (including only 4 trumpeters) invited to join the inaugural class of Jazz Studies at Julliard – a program developed by Wynton Marsalis.

In 2002, Marsalis awarded him a scholarship to attend the Academy of Achievement Summit in Dublin, Ireland. The attendees were some of the greatest thinkers alive: world leaders such as Gorbachev and Bill Clinton, Hollywood giants such as James Earl Jones, and Nobel Prize winners. Asked the night before the event’s gala finale, Jumaane and a fellow student performed a duet for the event under pressure with no repertoire prepared, “opening” for Chuck Berry. One year later, as February was being declared African-American Music Month, Jumaane and the Jazz Museum in Harlem All-Stars performed for George W. Bush in the East Room of the White House.

In 2005, Jumaane was invited to audition for Michael Bublé’s band. Nine years later, Jumaane continues to perform, record, travel and learn as a part of the Bublé family. “The experience has been what I imagine post-graduate school to be like,” he says. “Michael Bublé is a wonderfully humble, down to earth and extremely generous person who thrives off of his family and friends realizing their own hopes, dreams and goals. It has been truly inspirational working with him.”

From touring the world with Bublé to playing the Grammy Awards show with Stevie Wonder and the Jonas Brothers to recording “As I Am” with Alicia Keys to appearing on the “American Idol” soundtrack to scoring and performing music for the film “Handsome Harry,” Jumaane’s accomplishments go on and on. The recordings he’s appeared on have sold more than 25 million copies worldwide, garnered four Grammy nominations and earned three Grammy wins. The TV shows he’s appeared on total an audience of around 100 million viewers.

Now Jumaane steps forward and takes center stage as he has completed his debut record “I Only Have Eyes For You.” A celebration of the Great American Songbook with the theme of love and romance, the album includes interpretations of classic tunes full of personal emotion. The debut features performances by Michael Bublé, Jackie Evancho and Naturally 7.

“I imagine that it is very rewarding to see your own project become successful,” he says. “As the leader, you get back what you put into it.” Now only time will tell how a lifetime of learning and all-star mentorship will pay off.

I Only Have Eyes For You

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