Red Norvo Quintet - The Forward Look

Styles: Vibraphone Jazz
Year: 1957
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 70:26
Size: 162,2 MB
Art: Front

(6:31)  1. Rhee Waahnee
(7:24)  2. The Forward Look
(6:02)  3. Between The Devil And The Deep Blue Sea
(4:00)  4. My Funny Valentine
(6:42)  5. How's Your Mother-In-Law?
(3:27)  6. Saturday Night
(3:19)  7. Mountain Greenery
(6:34)  8. I'm Beginning To See The Light
(7:46)  9. When Your Smiling
(4:31) 10. Room 608
(4:52) 11. Foe Lena And Lennie
(9:13) 12. Cookin' At The Continental

The music on this CD, taken from a New Year's Eve concert, had never been issued prior to the release of this CD by Reference in 1991. With Jerry Dodgion (mostly on alto and flute), guitarist Jimmy Wyble, bassist Red Wooten and drummer John Markham being his sidemen, this was a well-integrated group despite the lack of major names. 

Norvo's vibe playing was in its prime and he is in excellent form during a wide-ranging set that ranges from "My Funny Valentine" and "When You're Smiling" to Quincy Jones's "For Lena and Lennie" and "How's Your Mother in Law"; the repertoire includes quite a few obscurities. This surprisingly well-recorded CD is well worth picking up as an example of Red Norvo's playing in the latter half of the 1950s. ~ Scott Yanow http://www.allmusic.com/album/the-forward-look-mw0000096135

Personnel: Red Norvo (vibraphone, background vocals); Jimmy Wyble (guitar); John Markham, Red Wootten (drums).

The Forward Look

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Helen Sheppard - Hello Tomorrow

Styles: Vocal, Swing
Year: 2004
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 46:49
Size: 109,7 MB
Art: Front

(4:07)  1. Don't Say Goodbye
(4:51)  2. You Don't Love Me
(3:22)  3. In Your Eyes
(4:54)  4. Lazarus
(0:28)  5. Reeling
(5:40)  6. All the Best Men
(4:24)  7. Hello Tomorrow
(2:54)  8. Troubles Inside
(6:07)  9. Three O'Clock
(3:11) 10. Walk Ten Miles
(6:00) 11. Never Too Late
(0:47) 12. One in a Million

This is an eclectic collection of smoky ballads and swing numbers, which co-exist quite happily alongside more soulful songs and others which could easily live on a superior pop album. It also suits vocalist Helen Sheppard's humor there are some cheeky little touches to make you smile, and at 25 seconds, "All the Best Men" must be the shortest album track ever. "Hello Tomorrow" was recorded live with no overdubs in 2003 at Trident West (Malcolm Toft's new studio in Torquay) with local players: Gary Evans - drums, Riaan Vosloo - bass, Tom Unwin - piano, Mick Green - sax, Martin Holland - trumpet with special guest Marc Walpot on accordion. Recorded and produced by Leo Feigin, owner of Leo Records. ~ Editorial Reviews https://www.amazon.com/Hello-Tomorrow-HELEN-SHEPPARD/dp/B0000ARNE9

Personnel: Helen Sheppard (vocal); Tom Unwin (piano); Riaan Vosloo (bass instrument); Gary Evans (drums);  Mick Green (sax); Martin Holland (trumpet);  Marc Walpot (accordion).

Hello Tomorrow

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Steve Khan - Subtext

Styles: Guitar Jazz
Year: 2014
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 70:20
Size: 161,3 MB
Art: Front

(9:08)  1. Bird Food
(6:58)  2. Blue Subtext
(7:18)  3. Baraka Saza
(8:34)  4. Infant Eyes
(8:14)  5. Heard
(7:53)  6. Never Let Me Go
(7:05)  7. Cada Gota de Mar
(5:50)  8. Hackensack
(9:17)  9. Bait and Switch

Guitarist Steve Khan's latter day work has been increasingly focused on Latin jazz fusion of various shapes, so the scope and direction of Subtext should come as no surprise to his longtime followers. This album arrives three years after Parting Shot (Tone Center, 2011) and runs along similar lines. That one was an originals-heavy, percussively-coated session that dipped into the songbooks of Thelonious Monk ("Bye-Ya") and Ornette Coleman ("Blues Connotation" and "Chronology"); this one is a mostly covers companion piece that also touches on the work of those same iconic artists.  On Subtext, fronting a percussion-heavy quintet, Khan refashions some classics, unearths some rarely covered gems, and delivers a trio of originals that fit nicely into the mix. Khan works with a highly capable crew drummer Dennis Chambers, bassist Ruben Rodriguez, and percussionists Bobby Allende and Marc Quinones. Together, these men could wreak havoc and set four-alarm fires, but the guitarist mostly holds everybody in check, preferring to create a rhythmic mesh instead of a blazing inferno. That quintet defines the sound of the record, but several guests drop in to add their two cents. Trumpeter Randy Brecker wields his flugelhorn on Coleman's "Bird Food"; Rob Mounsey provides orchestrations for a few numbers and appears twice on keyboards (the too-sleek title track and just-right, M-Base-meets-Santana rewrite of saxophonist Greg Osby's "Heard"); while accordionist Gil Goldstein and vocalist Mariana Ingold appear on "Cada Gota De Mar," a number influenced by Colombian Vallenato music co-written by the vocalist and Khan. The remaining tracks all find Khan in fine form. He cooks on Freddie Hubbard's infrequently explored "Baraka Sasa," delivers a spicy songo-influenced take on Monk's "Hackensack," imagines "Never Let Me Go" as a relaxed-and-moody bolero, turns Wayne Shorter's "Infant Eyes" into a 6/8 Afro-Cuban vehicle, and closes out the program with the simmering cha-cha original, "Bait And Switch." Subtext is a pleasing, low-flame Latin outing delivered by some of the best in the business. It's occasionally wanting for a bit more bite and flight, but the balance of restraint and strength demonstrated has always been a Khan calling card; his desire to flow rather than fly has often kept him under the radar with the public, though most musicians know the score when it come to this venerable guitarist: Khan kills in his own special way. 

~ Dan Bilawsky https://www.allaboutjazz.com/subtext-steve-khan-tone-center-review-by-dan-bilawsky.php

Personnel: Steve Khan: guitar; Ruben Rodriguez: electric bass, baby bass; Dennis Chambers; drums; Marc Quinones: timbal, bongo, percussion; Bobby Allende: conga, bongo (1); Randy Brecker: flugelhorn (1); Rob Mounsey: keyboards (2, 5); orchestrations (3, 4, 6, 7), coro (7); Gil Goldstein: accordion (7); Mariana Ingold: vocals (7).

Subtext

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Eddie Calvert - Latin Festival

Styles: Trumpet Jazz
Year: 1960
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 32:11
Size: 75,7 MB
Art: Front

(2:51)  1. Siboney
(3:16)  2. Besame Mucho
(3:17)  3. Por Favor ...
(2:28)  4. Flamingo
(2:24)  5. La ultima noche
(2:23)  6. Copacabana
(2:50)  7. Nicolasa
(3:23)  8. Venezuela
(2:20)  9. Adios Mariquita Linda
(2:07) 10. Aurora
(2:34) 11. You belong to my heart
(2:14) 12. The Three Caballeros

Eddie Calvert, known as the man with the golden trumpet, was born in Preston, Lancashire on the 15th March 1922 as Albert Edward Calvert. As a child he was exposed to his family's love of brass band music and he learned to play many brass instruments but concentrated on the trumpet. He joined the Preston Town Silver Band at the age of 11 but the war interrupted his musical career and by the late 1940s he returned to play in various amateur brass bands, eventually moving to the professional circuit with the dance bands Geraldo and Billy Ternet. Going solo, he appeared on TV with the Stanley Black Orchestra. He signed to the Columbia label, part of the EMI group and released an instrumental trumpet version of the German song Oh Mein Papa which had most famously been covered in English as Oh My Papa by Eddie Fisher. Calvert's instrumental easily won the chart battle in the UK and it remained at no.1 for nine weeks at the beginning of 1954. Over a year later he was involved in another chart battle for supremacy with the song Cherry Pink And Apple Blossom White and this time it was much closer with both his and a very similar trumpet version by Perez Prado reaching no.1 in the Spring of 1955. Several other hits followed including a version of Stranger In Paradise, John And Julie and Mandy, while Little Serenade was his final hit in June 1958. When the 1960s provided no change of fortune, Calvert moved away to settle in South Africa where he lived out the remainder of his life, dying on the 7th of August 1978. 

~ Sharon Mawer http://www.allmusic.com/artist/eddie-calvert-mn0000793645

Personnel:  Trumpet – Eddie Calvert;  Orchestra – The Martin Slavin Orchestra

Latin Festival

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Stanton Moore - Emphasis on parenthesis

Styles: Jazz, Post Bop
Year: 2008
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 46:53
Size: 108,2 MB
Art: Front

(6:27)  1. (Late night at the) Maple Leaf
(2:56)  2. (Proper) Gander
(3:22)  3. Wissions (Of vu)
(5:10)  4. (Sifting through the) African Diaspora
(4:37)  5. Over (Compensatin)
(5:39)  6. (Smell my) Special Ingredients
(3:48)  7. (I have) Super Strength
(4:28)  8. (Who ate the) Layer Cake
(2:57)  9. Thanks! (Again)
(4:07) 10. (Put on your) Big People Shoes
(3:19) 11. (Here come) The Brown Police

When New Orleans native son Stanton Moore settles down behind his drum kit, what's sure to follow is enough electrifying energy and raw power to rebuild The Crescent City all by its own bad self.  Moore's rocking and rolling drums are pushed upfront in the mix, but they don't drown out Will Bernard's guitar and Robert Walter's keyboards. This trio is very much a democracy and there's plenty of room for each musician to go off on his own, while still staying within the framework of the band. Nothing here is meant to be taken too seriously, as Emphasis! (On Parenthesis) is all about the grooving and jamming. The real difference between "(Put On Your) Big People Shoes" and "Proper (Gander)" may be nothing more than how much longer or shorter one song is, compared to the other. Walter's deliciously bent toy piano on the loopy "Wissions (of Vu)" and Moore's funky timekeeping sound as thought they were written for an over-the-top Quentin Tarantino flick. "(Sifting Through the) African Diaspora" features a reverberating bass line that will have you searching the liner notes for the musician, but it's only Walter working the bass pedals on the Hammond B3 to perfection. "(Who Ate the) Layer Cake?" is straight-up, Jeff Beck-ish dirty rock n' roll complete with guitar riffs and thundering drum rolls. "Proper (Gander)" allows Bernard to go off on some high-flying solos as Moore anchors it all, bashing the hell out of his drums. All that's missing is a shaggy, long-haired blond lead singer (which isn't all bad). Moore can change up from funk to rock and back to jazz seamlessly, and seems equally at home with any genre he chooses. The problem for any critic with an album like Emphasis! (On Parenthesis) is they risk exposing the reader to paralysis by analysis. This isn't the kind of album you have to think about too much. Moore, Bernard and Walter are clearly having a good time and they want you to as well. This lean, mean and sassy album is meant to be played and enjoyed, not pondered. There's not a wasted moment or a bad song on this album. It's a solid contender to be on many end of the year "Best of" lists. ~ Jeff Winbush https://www.allaboutjazz.com/emphasis-on-parenthesis-stanton-moore-telarc-records-review-by-jeff-winbush.php

Personnel: Stanton Moore: drums; Will Bernard: guitar; Robert Walter: Hammond B3, piano, toy piano and clavinet; Michael Skinkus: shakere (6); Robert Wilmott Walter: vocals (7).

Emphasis on parenthesis

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Robin Kenyatta - Stompin' At The Savoy

Styles: Flute And Saxophone Jazz
Year: 1974
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 37:38
Size: 88,3 MB
Art: Front

(2:28)  1. Stompin' At The Savoy
(3:07)  2. Smooth Sailing
(9:59)  3. The Need To Smile
(2:29)  4. Two Bass Blues
(5:23)  5. Neither One Of Us
(4:32)  6. Mellow In The Park
(3:59)  7. Jessica
(5:37)  8. River Boat

A great blend of older jazz styles and the sweet 70s funk of Robin Kenyatta served up with a hip sort of sparkle overall! There's a few familiar jazz modes in here that definitely live up to the spirit of the title but most of the record is more open, laidback, and somewhat spiritual thanks to help from a hip lineup that includes Billy Harper on tenor sax, Dwight Brewster and Larry Willis on electric piano, Winston Wright on organ, Lew Soloff on trumpet, and Jimmy Knepper on trombone! Some of the best tracks here are surprisingly open and earthy almost pointing back towards Kenyatta's Until album, but a bit more inside and other cuts have a warmer sort of 70s glow, more in the mode that Robin was hitting on other Atlantic albums of the time. Titles include "The Need To Smile", "Mellow In The Park", "Jessica", "River Boat", "Two Bass Blues", and "Smooth Sailing". © 1996-2017, Dusty Groove, Inc. https://www.dustygroove.com/item/475315

Personnel: Robin Kenyatta (flute, saxophone, soprano saxophone, alto saxophone); Tasha Thomas, Robin Clark, Carl Hall (vocals); David Spinozza (guitar, electric guitar); Hux Brown (guitar); Billy Harper (tenor saxophone); Lew Soloff (trumpet, flugelhorn); Jimmy Knepper (trombone); Gladstone Anderson, Neville Hinds, Sonelius Smith (piano); Dr. John (electric piano, keyboards); Dwight Brewster, Larry Willis (electric piano); Winston Wright (organ); Ron Carter (bass instrument, acoustic bass, upright bass, electric bass); Lewis Worrell, Walter Booker (acoustic bass); Chuck Rainey, Jackie Jackson (electric bass); Alphonse Mouzon, Winston Grennan, Bernard "Pretty" Purdie (drums); Gilmore Digap (congas, tambourine); Guilherme Franco, Ralph MacDonald, Joao Palma (percussion).

Stompin' At The Savoy

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Linda Kosut - Life Is But A Dream

Styles: Vocal
Year: 2003
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 44:12
Size: 103,5 MB
Art: Front

(2:47)  1. I Think It's Going To Rain Today
(4:02)  2. Walking In Memphis
(2:56)  3. Peel Me a Grape
(3:53)  4. Skylark
(3:20)  5. Teach Me Tonight
(4:03)  6. Come To My House
(4:23)  7. My Romance
(2:10)  8. If I Were A Bell
(3:23)  9. What You'd Call A Dream
(3:30) 10. Dat Dere
(4:51) 11. Factory/The Mason - Medley
(4:48) 12. Boats Against The Current

Linda Kosut, a San Francisco-based vocalist, is known for her unique stylings of jazz standards and pop tunes. She is a moving and entertaining performer who brings authentic passion and interpretative skill to lyrics and the "story" song. She has performed in many of San Francisco's nightclubs including the renowned Empire Plush Room, Jazz at Pearl's, Anna's Jazz Island, etc. Her tours have included stops at the Gardenia and Jazz Bakery in Los Angeles, Chicago's Davenport's and New York's Triad, Encore and Reprise Room at Dillon's. Linda is a founder of the San Francisco vocal trio The Kitchenettes and she teaches performance technique. Linda is a 1990 Fellow of the Cabaret Symposium of the Eugene O'Neill Theater Center and a former student of New York's Actors' Institute. https://store.cdbaby.com/cd/kosut

Life Is But A Dream

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David Benoit - Here's To You, Charlie Brown: 50 Great Years!

Styles: Piano Jazz
Year: 2000
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 41:54
Size: 96,6 MB
Art: Front

(3:06)  1. Linus and Lucy
(4:18)  2. Charlie Brown Theme
(4:38)  3. Pebble Beach
(4:30)  4. Linus Tells Charlie
(4:34)  5. Frieda
(5:17)  6. Christmas Time Is Here
(3:08)  7. Getting Ready
(4:05)  8. Blue Charlie Brown
(4:28)  9. Red Baron
(3:47) 10. Happiness

An album of Peanuts-related music performed by David Benoit is a no-brainer, not only because of the retirement and death of Charles Schultz, who drew the comic strip, but also because Benoit has in recent years taken over writing the music for the ongoing series of shows, which were scored originally by Vince Guaraldi. Benoit emphasizes his predecessor by devoting seven of the album's ten tracks to Guaraldi compositions. Unfortunately, he begins with one of those exercises in necrophilia that is usually the province of the less-talented progeny of great singers, overdubbing a few of his own unnecessary noodlings on the original recording of "Linus and Lucy." Fortunately, things improve after that, as the trio of Benoit, bassist Christian McBride, and drummer Peter Erskine is joined by a series of high-profile guest musicians: guitarist Marc Antoine on "Pebble Beach" and "Red Baron"; trumpeter Chris Botti on Benoit's "Linus Tells Charlie"; saxophonist Michael Brecker on "Freda"; and guitarist Russell Malone on "Blue Charlie Brown." Despite the spring release date, the inclusion of the near-standard "Christmas Time Is Here" is inevitable, and here it's sung by Take 6. In an inspired move, the album closes with Al Jarreau's winsome take on "Happiness," a song from the stage musical You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown. All in all, this is a pleasant, if minor, addition to Benoit's catalog. ~ William Ruhlmann http://www.allmusic.com/album/heres-to-you-charlie-brown-50-great-years%21-mw0000061082

Personnel: David Benoit (piano); Al Jarreau, Take 6 (vocals); Michael Brecker (tenor saxophone); Chris Botti (trumpet); Vince Guaraldi (piano); Marc Antoine, Russell Malone (guitar); Christian McBride (bass); Peter Erskine (drums).

Here's To You, Charlie Brown: 50 Great Years!

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Lucinda Williams - Car Wheels On A Gravel Road

Styles: Country
Year: 1998
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 51:49
Size: 120,4 MB
Art: Front

(4:36)  1. Right In Time
(4:44)  2. Car Wheels On A Gravel Road
(4:42)  3. 2 Kool 2 Be 4-Gotten
(3:20)  4. Drunken Angel
(3:08)  5. Concrete And Barbed Wire
(5:28)  6. Lake Charles
(3:28)  7. Can't Let Go
(3:31)  8. I Lost It
(3:30)  9. Metal Firecracker
(3:23) 10. Greenville
(4:09) 11. Still I Long For Your Kiss
(4:01) 12. Joy
(3:42) 13. Jackson

It isn't surprising that Lucinda Williams' level of craft takes time to assemble, but the six-year wait between Sweet Old World and its 1998 follow-up, Car Wheels on a Gravel Road, still raised eyebrows. The delay stemmed both from label difficulties and Williams' meticulous perfectionism, the latter reportedly over a too-produced sound and her own vocals. Listening to the record, one can understand why both might have concerned Williams. Car Wheels is far and away her most produced album to date, which is something of a mixed blessing. Its surfaces are clean and contemporary, with something in the timbres of the instruments (especially the drums) sounding extremely typical of a late-'90s major-label roots-rock album. While that might subtly alter the timeless qualities of Williams' writing, there's also no denying that her sound is punchier and livelier. The production also throws Williams' idiosyncratic voice into sharp relief, to the point where it's noticeably separate from the band. As a result, every inflection and slight tonal alteration is captured, and it would hardly be surprising if Williams did obsess over those small details. But whether or not you miss the earthiness of Car Wheels' predecessors, it's ultimately the material that matters, and Williams' songwriting is as captivating as ever. Intentionally or not, the album's common thread seems to be its strongly grounded sense of place specifically, the Deep South, conveyed through images and numerous references to specific towns. Many songs are set, in some way, in the middle or aftermath of not-quite-resolved love affairs, as Williams meditates on the complexities of human passion. Even her simplest songs have more going on under the surface than their poetic structures might indicate. In the end, Car Wheels on a Gravel Road is Williams' third straight winner; although she might not be the most prolific songwriter of the '90s, she's certainly one of the most brilliant. ~ Steve Huey http://www.allmusic.com/album/car-wheels-on-a-gravel-road-mw0000028744

Personnel: Lucinda Williams (vocals, acoustic guitar, dobro); Buddy Miller (acoustic & electric guitars, mando guitar, background vocals); Steve Earle (acoustic & resonator guitars, harmonica, background vocals); Gurf Morlix (6 & 12 string electric guitars, electric & acoustic slide guitars, background vocals); Charlie Sexton (electric & slide guitars, dobro); Johnny Lee Schell (electric & slide guitars, dobro); Bo Ramsey (electric & slide guitars); Ray Kennedy, Greg Leisz (12 string electric guitar, mandolin); Richard "Hombre" Price (dobro); Roy Bittan (accordion, Hammond B-3 organ, organ); Michael Smotherman (Hammond B-3 organ); John Ciambotti (acoustic & electric basses); Donald Lindley (drums, percussion); Jim Lauderdale, Emmylou Harris (background vocals).

Car Wheels On A Gravel Road

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Russell Malone - Time For The Dancers

Styles: Guitar Jazz
Year: 2017
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 49:14
Size: 114,8 MB
Art: Front

(6:16)  1. Time For The Dancers
(6:09)  2. Leave It To Lonnie
(6:29)  3. The Ballad Of Hank Crawford
(5:07)  4. There'll Be Another Spring
(5:53)  5. Pocket Watch
(4:55)  6. Theme From Chico And The Man
(4:20)  7. And So It Goes
(6:15)  8. Little B's Poem
(3:47)  9. Flowers For Emmett Till

If 2016's All About Melody showcased Russell Malone's love of a good melodic song, then 2017's Time for the Dancers finds him building upon that sentiment and celebrating his affinity for sweet, rhythmic grooves. The guitarist's third album for High Note, Time for the Dancers is a fluid, engaging production that finds Malone straddling the line between urbane, acoustic jazz standards, earthy funk, and virtuosic balladry. Helping him achieve this superlative balance are longtime bandmates pianist Rick Germanson, bassist Luke Sellick, and drummer Willie Jones III. Together, they play with the kind of nuanced interplay and sensitivity that come with years of live performance which they have. With his acoustic, hollow-body guitar and warm, un-effected sound, Malone comes off as a grounded, no-nonsense musician; a swing-friendly progenitor of straight-ahead jazz and standards. All of which is true and evident here. That said, he's also an incredibly soulful improvisationalist with a wide-ranging ear for all kinds of music. What's so invigorating about his approach is just how seamlessly he is able to incorporate all that he hears into one gorgeously realized style. In that sense, he brings to mind a balance of such elder luminaries as Kenny Burrell, Wes Montgomery, and yes, George Benson. From the buoyant and dreamy, '60s-influenced title track to the bluesy twang of "The Ballad of Hank Crawford," Malone grounds the proceedings with his steady, rhythmic swing and perfectly timed attack. It's a skill most evident on his funk-infused homage to his longtime friend, bassist Lonnie Plaxico, on "Leave It to Lonnie." Centered on a tasty bass riff, the song finds Malone slowly building his groove-based solo, weaving in bits of crunchy atonalism and deliciously bluesy asides. Elsewhere, he applies an equally compelling energy to Jose Feliciano's breezy "Theme from 'Chico and the Man'," and a poetic, gorgeously rendered, classically influenced solo take on Billy Joel's ballad "And So It Goes."~ Matt Collar http://www.allmusic.com/album/time-for-the-dancers-mw0003062170

Personnel: Russell Malone (guitar); Rick Germanson (piano); Willie Jones III (drums).

Time For The Dancers

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Chuck Loeb - Mediterranean

Styles: Guitar Jazz
Year: 1992
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 64:24
Size: 149,8 MB
Art: Front

(5:46)  1. Mediterranean
(4:52)  2. Mr. Z
(4:56)  3. Heart
(6:12)  4. Discipline
(6:12)  5. Twelve
(4:42)  6. Let It Be
(4:51)  7. In the Paint
(5:31)  8. FYI
(6:28)  9. Far Star
(4:45) 10. Memory Lane
(5:15) 11. Carbo Fuel
(4:49) 12. Autumn

Guitarist Chuck Loeb ends up with an enjoyable yet very typical collection on this outing. Typical, meaning easy to swallow and occasionally remarkable but for the most part the kind of music radio eats up and listeners have been saturated with. We've heard this kind of thing before. Loeb's tender and breezy acoustic work dominates, but the electric fire he sets on go for broke zoomers like "Mr. Z" and "Carbo Fuel" are far more distinctive and better worth the price of admission. As a composer, Loeb is more than able, but his blistering contributions to Nelson Rangell's projects far surpass the mellow fare he presents here. Rangell, fellow saxman Bill Evans and keyboardist Mitch Forman add lots of spark and improvisational energy to a disc that simply needs a little less cool breeze and more electric gale. ~ Jonathan Widran http://www.allmusic.com/album/mediterranean-mw0000098754

Personnel: Chuck Loeb (guitar, keyboards); Elizabeth Loeb, Christina Loeb, Carmen Cuesta (vocals); Paul Peabody (violin); Nelson Rangell (flute, piccolo, alto saxophone); Bill Evans (tenor saxophone); Mitchel Forman (piano, keyboards); Clint DeGanon, Zach Danziger (drums); David Charles (percussion).

R.I.P.
Born - December 7, 1955
Died - July 31, 2017

Mediterranean

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Eddie Calvert - It's Impossible And Other Great Hits

Styles: Trumpet Instrumental
Year: 1972
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 35:02
Size: 82,3 MB
Art: Front

(3:20)  1. I Just Can't Help Believing
(3:18)  2. It's Impossible
(2:22)  3. Don't Let It Die
(3:15)  4. Love Story
(3:07)  5. We've Only Just Begun
(2:10)  6. Till
(3:07)  7. Another Time,Another Place
(3:23)  8. Man Without Love
(2:34)  9. Dream Baby
(3:03) 10. Home Lovin' Man
(2:22) 11. It's Only Makebelieve
(2:56) 12. My World Is Yours

Eddie Calvert, known as the man with the golden trumpet, was born in Preston, Lancashire on the 15th March 1922 as Albert Edward Calvert. As a child he was exposed to his family's love of brass band music and he learned to play many brass instruments but concentrated on the trumpet. He joined the Preston Town Silver Band at the age of 11 but the war interrupted his musical career and by the late 1940s he returned to play in various amateur brass bands, eventually moving to the professional circuit with the dance bands Geraldo and Billy Ternet. Going solo, he appeared on TV with the Stanley Black Orchestra. He signed to the Columbia label, part of the EMI group and released an instrumental trumpet version of the German song Oh Mein Papa which had most famously been covered in English as Oh My Papa by Eddie Fisher. Calvert's instrumental easily won the chart battle in the UK and it remained at no.1 for nine weeks at the beginning of 1954. Over a year later he was involved in another chart battle for supremacy with the song Cherry Pink And Apple Blossom White and this time it was much closer with both his and a very similar trumpet version by Perez Prado reaching no.1 in the Spring of 1955. Several other hits followed including a version of Stranger In Paradise, John And Julie and Mandy, while Little Serenade was his final hit in June 1958. When the 1960s provided no change of fortune, Calvert moved away to settle in South Africa where he lived out the remainder of his life, dying on the 7th of August 1978. ~ Sharon Mawer  http://www.allmusic.com/artist/eddie-calvert-mn0000793645

It's Impossible And Other Great Hits

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Herb Alpert - Herb Alpert & Colors

Styles: Trumpet Jazz
Year: 1999
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 46:29
Size: 106,9 MB
Art: Front

(3:57)  1. Libertango
(6:33)  2. The Look of Love
(5:32)  3. Colors
(3:34)  4. i Want You
(4:16)  5. Think About it
(5:04)  6. Dorita
(3:38)  7. Lady in My Life
(3:22)  8. Love at First Glance
(5:56)  9. Magic Man
(4:32) 10. Slow Train

It would be easy for the former Tijuana Brassman and founder of A&M to just rest on his career achievements or just make music to pass the time, but instead, the 60-something trumpeter rings in with one of the year's most remarkable jams. Alpert's recent output has ranged from the heart of smooth jazz (Second Wind, produced by Jeff Lorber) to fiery Latin (Passion Dance), but here the muse takes him to the mystical world of studio-bred trip-hop. Working with multi-instrumentalists and producers Will Calhoun and Doug Wimbush, Alpert surrounds his muted trumpet with hypnotic vibes and ambiences some of which seem to drift into the sonic atmospheres, others bred from thick machine generated exotic percussion textures percolating over throbbing urban bass grooves. While ethereal experimentation with tons of cool studio equipment and sonic possibilities seems to be the general philosophy, he hasn't forgotten his Latin roots. The opening track, "Libertango," features a lighthearted horn melody drifting over a throbbing urban bass groove, percussion clicks, and the galloping flamenco flavors of Wimbish's acoustic guitar, all wrapped up in a dramatic synth orchestral sweep. "Dorita" centers Bernard Fowler's Spanish vocals amidst a wacky swirl of pitter patter and marching percussion, spacey sound effects, exotic soundscaping, moody retro keyboards, and Alpert's catchy, laid-back melody. Bridging past and present, Alpert approaches Burt Bachrach's "The Look of Love" as if it were a Miles Davis/Brian Eno collaboration, his smoky horn enhanced by his wife Lani Hall's breathy vocals. He also covers himself with a new hip-hop shuffle arrangement of his popular early-'80s gem, "Magic Man." Older and wiser than either Rick Braun or Chris Botti, Alpert gives the genre's two top horn guns a powerful run for their smooth jazz money. ~ Jonathan Widran http://www.allmusic.com/album/colors-mw0000667240

Personnel: Herb Alpert (vocals, trumpet, flugelhorn); Will Calhoun (vocals, snare drum, percussion); Lani Hall (vocals, sampler); Bernard Fowler (vocals); Heitor Pereira (guitar); Doug Wimbish (acoustic guitar, trumpet); Jorge "Coco" Trivisonno (bandoneon); Bernie Worrell (organ, keyboards); Gregory Smith (keyboards, programming); Eduardo del Barrio (string synthesizer, sampler); Paulinho Da Costa (percussion); Danny Saber (programming).

Herb Alpert & Colors

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Ahmad Jamal - The Essence, Part 1

Styles: Piano Jazz
Year: 1994
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 55:22
Size: 127,4 MB
Art: Front

( 6:33)  1. Flight
( 6:56)  2. Toulouse
(10:14)  3. The Essence
( 5:49)  4. Lover Man (Oh, Where Can You Be?)
( 6:44)  5. Catalina
( 6:58)  6. Autumn Leaves
( 5:33)  7. Street Of Dreams
( 6:34)  8. Bahia

Mostly recorded in Paris, with two additional tracks from New York, this absorbing collection is a testament to the continuing ability of Ahmad Jamal to startle and engage jazz listeners who are tired of Tyner/Evans clones and want to hear something different. An equal mixture of standards and Jamal compositions, some of which move through several contrasting sections, this CD reaches its peaks when Jamal and company dive in and work around a single bass ostinato and a propulsive rhythm groove. Bassists James Cammack (Paris) and Jamil Nasser (New York) provide the former, drummer Idris Muhammad and percussionist Manolo Badrena are in charge of the latter, and a tough-sounding George Coleman turns up on tenor on the New York tracks. One fascinating quirk  Jamal seemed fixated upon Oliver Nelson's "Stolen Moments" at these sessions, for he quotes the tune several times on the album. These sessions were so fruitful that Verve was able to serve up a tasty second helping a year later. ~ Richard S.Ginell http://www.allmusic.com/album/the-essence-pt-1-mw0000732792

Personnel: Ahmad Jamal (piano); George Coleman (tenor saxophone); Jamil Nasser, James Cammack (bass); Idris Muhammad (drums); Manolo Badrena (percussion).

The Essence, Part 1

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Al Hirt - Latin In The Horn

Styles: Trumpet Jazz 
Year: 1966
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 31:21
Size: 73,8 MB
Art: Front

(2:37)  1. Baia
(2:50)  2. Frenesi
(2:27)  3. Taboo
(2:38)  4. Angelitos Negros
(2:57)  5. Meditation (Meditaçao)
(2:35)  6. A Sky Without Stars (Un Cielo Sin Estrellas)
(2:18)  7. Gringo A-Go-Go
(3:11)  8. Manhã De Carnaval
(2:56)  9. Margarita
(2:03) 10. What A Diff'rence A Day Made
(1:59) 11. Be True To Me (Sabor A Mi)
(2:45) 12. Desafinado

A lush, easy-going Brazilian outing, Latin in the Horn is aided substantially by the sophistication Lalo Schifrin brings to Hirt's cotton candy. Schifrin's orchestra waxes elegantly while Hirt's restraint is a pleasant surprise. Even though this outing post-dates the "Bossa Nova" fad by a few years, Schifrin was always masterful in this style. Listeners will certainly want to hear the magic Schifrin weaves on beauties like "Taboo," "Angelitos Negros," "Margarita," "Be True To Me" and the two Schifrin originals ("A Sky Without Stars" and "Gringo A Go Go"). http://www.freshsoundrecords.com/al-hirt-albums/2161-latin-in-the-horn.html

Personnel:  Al Hirt (tp), Lalo Schifrin (arr, dir)

Latin In The Horn

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Karin Krog & John Surman - Bluesand

Styles: Vocal
Year: 1999
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 55:03
Size: 126,5 MB
Art: Front

(4:44)  1. The Nightingale
(3:19)  2. Ribbon Of Sand
(4:50)  3. Sombre Woods
(4:33)  4. Voice Shadow
(4:26)  5. It Could Be Hip
(7:03)  6. Don't Just Sing
(2:50)  7. SAS Blues
(2:41)  8. So Blue
(6:31)  9. Bluesand
(1:52) 10. Hiden Dreams
(5:31) 11. Secret Games
(6:38) 12. Fly Away

An adventurous singer who is quite versatile, Karin Krog is able to sing anything from standards to fairly free improvisations. She made her recording debut in 1964, appeared at many jazz festivals in Europe in the mid-'60s, and in 1967, came to the U.S., performing and recording with the Don Ellis Orchestra and Clare Fischer's trio. A world traveler based in Europe, Krog has recorded fairly steadily through the years, using such sidemen as Kenny Drew, Niels-Henning Orsted Pedersen, Jan Garbarek, Ted Curson, Dexter Gordon, Palle Mikkelborg, Steve Kuhn, Steve Swallow, Archie Shepp, Bengt Hallberg, and John Surman; she has made records for Philips, Sonet, Polydor, and other European labels. ~ Scott Yanow https://itunes.apple.com/mt/album/bluesand/id296953304

Bluesand

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Kenny Drew - Swingin' Love

Styles: Piano Jazz
Year: 1983
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 48:23
Size: 120,0 MB
Art: Front

(4:48)  1. But Not For Me
(6:16)  2. My Romance
(7:29)  3. Stella By Starlight
(5:31)  4. Autumn Leaves
(5:24)  5. Nature Boy
(4:01)  6. Like Someone In Love
(5:06)  7. You Don't Know What Love Is
(5:15)  8. Begin The Beguine
(4:29)  9. Here's That Rainy Day

A talented bop-based pianist (whose son has been one of the brightest pianists of the 1990s), Kenny Drew was somewhat underrated due to his decision to permanently move to Copenhagen in 1964. He made his recording debut in 1949 with Howard McGhee and in the 1950s was featured on sessions with a who's who of jazz, including Charlie Parker, Coleman Hawkins, Lester Young, Milt Jackson, Buddy DeFranco's quartet, Dinah Washington, and Buddy Rich (1958). Drew led sessions for Blue Note, Norgran, Pacific Jazz, Riverside, and the obscure Judson label during 1953-1960; most of the sessions are available on CD. He moved to Paris in 1961 and relocated to Copenhagen in 1964 where he was co-owner of the Matrix label. He formed a duo with Niels-Henning Orsted Pederson and worked regularly at the Montmartre. Drew recorded many dates for SteepleChase in the 1970s and remained active up until his death. ~ Scott Yanow http://www.allmusic.com/artist/kenny-drew-mn0000081841/biography

Personnel:  Kenny Drew (piano); Niels-Henning Orsted Pedersen (bass);  Ed Pedersen (drums)

Swingin' Love

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Thelonious Monk - Something in Blue

Styles: Piano Jazz
Year: 1971
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 39:39
Size: 91,0 MB
Art: Front

(2:27)  1. Blue Sphere
(7:55)  2. Hackensack
(5:14)  3. Nice Work If You Can Get It
(3:43)  4. Criss Cross
(6:40)  5. Something in Blue
(5:25)  6. Evidence
(3:30)  7. Jackie-Ing
(4:42)  8. Nutty

Alan Bates took Thelonious Monk into the studio for his first trio recording in fifteen years with his old sidekick Art Blakey. It has been said often enough that Blakey is the ideal drummer for Monk, and one has only to hear them together again after all this time to realize the truth of the statement. If Blakey at times seems to push the pianist almost too hard, that is in fact the nature of their musical relationship. And, throughout the session, Blakey appeared to be vying with the producer in alternately cajoling and coercing Monk into fulfilling various requests from the small invited audience. ~ Editorial Reviews https://www.amazon.com/Something-Blue-THELONIOUS-MONK/dp/B003BI9UUY

Personnel:  Piano – Thelonious Monk;  Bass – Al McKibbon;  Drums – Art Blakey 

Something in Blue

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Karel Boehlee Trio - Luiza

Styles: Piano Jazz
Year: 2012
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 59:25
Size: 136,6 MB
Art: Front

(4:06)  1. Atrás Da Porta
(4:45)  2. Bouquet
(5:14)  3. Madalena
(5:37)  4. Besame Mucho
(6:27)  5. Luiza
(6:16)  6. Por Toda Minha Vida
(5:03)  7. Favela
(5:07)  8. Coração Vagabundo
(6:40)  9. Bilhete
(6:37) 10. Corcovado
(3:28) 11. Brazilian Sugar

The Karel Boehlee trio was founded in 2003, with band members Hein Van de Geijn, and Hans van Oosterhout. In the meantime they made 7 cd's for M&I records. (nowadays it is a part of Pony Canyon). The music is a mixture of jazz-, classical- and popmusic, and therefore it is not a traditional jazztrio. It sounds very delicate and detailed, and yet the music is not complicated. The Karel Boehlee Trio plays jazzstandards, but also the standards from artists like Stevie Wonder and Donald Fagen. They are very popular in asia, especially in Japan and Korea. https://www.last.fm/music/Karel+Boehlee+Trio/+wiki

Luiza

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Ann Savoy & Her Sleepless Knights - Black Coffee

Size: 102,6 MB
Time: 43:40
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Released: 2010
Styles: Jazz, Vocals
Art: Front

01. I Cried For You (3:34)
02. Whoa, Tilly, Take Your Time (3:01)
03. Nuages (2:54)
04. Black Coffee (3:55)
05. If It Ain't Love (3:28)
06. You've Been A Good Ole Wagon (2:45)
07. My Funny Valentine (4:20)
08. Cette Chanson Est Pour Vous (4:03)
09. If You Were Mine (3:47)
10. New Orleans Blues (3:18)
11. Embraceable You (Feat. Tom Mitchell) (4:17)
12. J'attendrai (4:11)

Cajun singer Ann Savoy & Her Sleepless Knights turn in another re-creation of French-style acoustic jazz of the mid-20th century on their second album, Black Coffee. The model, of course, is the Hot Club of France, with lead guitarist Tom Mitchell making like Django Reinhardt and fiddler Kevin Wimmer like Stéphane Grappelli. That group didn't have a vocalist, of course, but here Savoy takes vocal choruses in between the jazz solos with the exuberance and phrasing of Maria Muldaur, though she is more of a straight contralto, lacking Muldaur's high notes. To add to the effect, she sometimes sings in French, with an accent often more suggestive of Baton Rouge than Paris. It's all quite pleasant, if in a distinctly retro manner. ~by William Ruhlmann

Black Coffee 

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