Dinah Washington - Queen: The Music Of Dinah Washington

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 43:33
Size: 99.7 MB
Styles: Vocal jazz
Year: 2004
Art: Front

[3:10] 1. I Don't Hurt Anymore
[2:25] 2. If I Loved You
[2:59] 3. I Thought About You
[7:57] 4. A Foggy Day
[3:07] 5. I'll Drown In My Tears
[2:25] 6. You Let My Love Grow Cold
[2:46] 7. Cry Me A River
[2:26] 8. Sunny Side Of The Street
[3:04] 9. Please Send Me Someone To Love
[9:08] 10. Trouble In The Lowlands (Back Water Blues)
[2:39] 11. A Slick Chick (On The Mellow Side)
[1:21] 12. Dinah Tells A Joke

The 2004 Verve release Queen: The Music of Dinah Washington was compiled by Nadine Cohodas to coincide with her biography of the troubled singer. For a performer with such a large discography, these 12 tracks don't even begin to scratch the surface, but it gives a good idea of the eclectic nature of her material waxed between 1946 and 1961 for the Mercury label. These cuts equally sample Dinah's embrace of R&B, traditional blues, sappy string sections, and Broadway tunes, while swinging with cozy small combos or fronting large orchestras led by Hal Mooney, Teddy Stewart, Tab Smith, and Quincy Jones and featuring a plethora of high profile soloists. For novices or casual fans, the disc isn't a bad way to become acquainted with her Mercury recordings; however, it contains nothing for aficionados. ~Al Campbell

Queen: The Music Of Dinah Washington

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Enrico Rava - Full Of Life

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 61:47
Size: 141.5 MB
Styles: Trumpet jazz
Year: 2003
Art: Front

[6:31] 1. Recuerdos
[5:02] 2. Surrey With The Fringe On Top
[5:53] 3. Mystere
[5:10] 4. Miss MG
[6:25] 5. Moonlight In Vermont
[5:13] 6. Boston April 15th
[5:43] 7. Happiness Is To Win A Big Prize In Cash
[8:24] 8. Nature Boy
[3:45] 9. Full Of Life
[4:34] 10. Visions
[5:02] 11. Miss MG (Alternative Take)

Enrico Rava's new quartet has no piano or guitar. Already this is not only an anomaly for Italian jazzers, but also a rare occasion in the jazz world everywhere today. Rava's haunted mysterious lyricism has become more and more pronounced over the past decade, and his new band reveals the depth of commitment to exploring new avenues in it. With Javier Girotto on baritone and soprano saxophones, sensational bassist Ares Tavolazzi, and Fabrizio Sferra on drums, the makeup of this band is not unlike that of the Gerry Mulligan Quartet with Chet Baker. But makeup is where the similarities end. Rava's sense of adventure is wide-ranging and his restraint in tempo and multi-textural dynamics surpasses the concerns of Mulligan's pioneering experiments in harmony. For instance, the sprightly read of "Surrey With the Fringe on Top" is a commingling of two contrapuntal melodies meeting in the center of a harmonic structure geared to open on either end. On "Mystère," Girotto's statement of theme is halted after six notes before Rava enters, playing around those same notes and eventually creating a melody that whispers by on the changes, or perhaps in spite of them. The funky blues syncopation in Girotto's composition "Miss MG" plays on the staccato concerns of bebop before opening onto a theme that could have been written by Jimmy Giuffre for clarinet -- but here it is scripted for baritone sax and leads into of the most delightfully beguiling solos on the record. On other standards, such as "Moonlight in Vermont" and "Nature Boy," economy of space becomes the prime consideration for how the lyric line is developed. Tempos are taken slowly and purposefully and the ends of lines bleed into one another so that the notion of voice and song is ever present in the improvisation as well as in the theme and its variations. The title cut is the only real anomaly here, with its brisk tempo and flighty front-line statement, moving like something out of a Jack Sheldon/Art Pepper date with shifting time signatures. Ultimately, it's Rava, as soloist, arranger, and bandleader, who holds the keys to the smoky, lustrous world of sound and enchantment. And he uses his musicians to great purpose as they move all around the harmonic world, bringing out hidden delights and wonderfully executed tunes. ~Thom Jurek

Full Of Life

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Seun Kuti & Egypt 80 - From Africa With Fury: Rise

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 52:12
Size: 119.5 MB
Styles: Afro beat
Year: 2011
Art: Front

[5:16] 1. African Soldier
[5:34] 2. You Can Run
[7:39] 3. Mr. Big Thief
[7:02] 4. Rise
[7:42] 5. Slave Masters
[6:55] 6. For Them Eye
[6:12] 7. The Good Leaf
[5:48] 8. Giant Of Africa

As one might expect of a musical giant who married 27 women, the late Nigerian pop radical Fela Kuti fathered some talented kids. Two of them are furthering the family business in Afrobeat, the Africanized vision of James Brown's funk that Fela invented (and which has influenced everyone from Beyoncé to TV on the Radio). Femi, Fela's eldest son, fell out with his dad in the late Eighties, leaving the fold to start his own band. On Africa for Africa, he's still denouncing dirtbag Nigerian politicians over big-band brass and busy polyrhythms. But his grooves have mellowed, as Fela's did over time, and so has his delivery: There's a tenderness in "Boys Dey Hungry for Town" that Fela never approached.

Where his brother smolders, Seun — Fela's youngest son — burns. Still in his twenties, with 'Fela Lives' tattooed across his back, dude has built a ridiculously hot band around the surviving members of Fela's Egypt 80 crew. Longtime Afrobeat fanatic Brian Eno co-produces with a light touch: Percussion is up front, tone colors flicker. "Rise" opens with guitar shaping a looped melody, then takes flight on a trumpet solo while indicting corporate bloodsuckers. Addressing Nigeria's history ("Slave Masters") and militarism ("African Soldier"), Seun's proper coming-out closes with some positive thoughts on cannabis ("The Good Leaf"). Fela lives, indeed. ~Will Hermes

From Africa With Fury: Rise

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Cab Calloway - Hi De Ho Man

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 60:23
Size: 138.2 MB
Styles: Swing, Jive, Big band
Year: 1974/2008
Art: Front

[2:56] 1. Nagasaki
[2:50] 2. Hoy Hoy
[2:49] 3. Jumpin Jive
[2:51] 4. Abi Gezunt
[2:50] 5. Fifteen Minutes Intermission
[2:54] 6. A Chicken Ain't Nothing But A Bird
[2:44] 7. My Gal
[3:21] 8. St. James Infirmary
[2:50] 9. I Want To Rock
[3:05] 10. I'll Be Around
[3:17] 11. Minnie The Moocher (Theme Song)
[2:59] 12. The Honeydripper
[2:57] 13. Hey Now
[3:03] 14. Hi De Ho Man
[3:03] 15. Oh Grandpa
[3:18] 16. Jungle King
[3:15] 17. Two Blocks Down, Turn To The Left
[3:24] 18. San Francisco Fan
[3:05] 19. The Calloway Boogie
[2:46] 20. Everybody Eats When They Come To My House

This double LP from 1974 is a bit brief, including only 20 performances by Cab Calloway and his orchestra (around an hour of music). Several periods are covered, with titles from 1935 ("Nagasaki"), the 1938-1942 period, and nine fairly rare selections from 1945-1947. Highlights include "Jumpin' Jive," "Fifteen Minute Intermission," a 1941 version of "St. James Infirmary," "Hi De Ho Man," and a 1942 rendition of "Minnie the Moocher." On the later tracks, Calloway tries to adapt his sound to rhythm & blues but, despite his best efforts, his orchestra would not survive the '40s. ~Scott Yanow

Hi De Ho Man

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Paola Arnesano, Dado Moroni - Defrà

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 64:50
Size: 148.4 MB
Styles: Vocal
Year: 2011
Art: Front

[4:39] 1. Autumn In New York
[3:31] 2. But Not For Me
[6:02] 3. Amarti Con Gli Occhi
[3:58] 4. Someone To Watch Over Me
[6:29] 5. Alfie
[5:06] 6. Like Someone In Love
[7:37] 7. Se Todos Fossem Iguas A Voce
[4:00] 8. Nice Work If You Can Get It
[4:51] 9. I Want To Be Happy
[5:53] 10. Defrá
[4:30] 11. Cherokee
[5:39] 12. Body And Soul
[2:29] 13. Stomping At The Savoy

Paola Arnesano was born in Bari. She studied singing with the soprano Maria Grazia Pani and acting with Antonella Porfido and Franco Damascelli. Her debut as a jazz singer goes back to the end of the eighties when, in co-operation with Mario Rosini on piano, she formed a quintet in her name. In the meantime she studied the piano with Nico Marziliano and she also studied arrangement for big band with the maestro Luigi Giannatempo.

Very fond of jazz samba and bossa nova, she studied their language and repertoire: this would result in the establishment of permanent bands like the Abrasileirado and the Trio de Janeiro, whose co-leader is Guido Di Leone. Mainly attracted to the cool singers of the fifties, she started to develop original projects, such as a jazz re-interpretation of the Italian songs of the forties or the writing of lyrics for a more recent music which had never been sung before. At the same time she started to compose her own music and this would lead to the release of her first two records. In the meantime she was asked to be permanently part of Attilio Zanchi’s quartet which, besides him, the double bass player, was also formed by Guido Di Leone and Gilson Silveira. Moreover she also steadily co-operated with Davide Santorsola, Mimmo Campanale and Maurizio Quintavalle. At that time she got second at the Premio Urbani.

Her concert activity took her to England, Spain, Portugal, France, Germany, Switzerland and Austria. She gave several seminars in Italian schools and universities. Furthermore, in the last few years, she has also been performing as a member of the Faraualla vocal quartet and she has been co-operating with high calibre musicians such as Noa, Maria Pia De Vito, Paolino Dalla Porta, Francesco Sotgiu, Andrea Parodi, Pino Minafra, Rita Marcotulli, Bebo Ferra, Paolo Pietrangeli, Carmen Consoli, Antonella Ruggiero. Since 1993 she has worked at the music school Il Pentagramma in Bari, where she teaches singing, harmony and improvisation technique. Teacher of jazz singing at Conservatory Niccolò Piccinni in Bari. She won the Italian Jazz Awards "Luca Flores" 2009 as the "best jazz singer" in Italy.

Defrà

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Louie Shelton - Souvenir

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 37:42
Size: 86.3 MB
Styles: Guitar jazz
Year: 2011
Art: Front

[4:23] 1. Rio De Janeiro Blues
[4:10] 2. Walk On By
[4:39] 3. Lowdown
[4:04] 4. Hello
[4:09] 5. Loose Change
[3:06] 6. I Want You Back
[4:48] 7. Song For My Father
[4:33] 8. I Wish
[3:45] 9. I'll Be There

Louie Shelton's name may be unknown to most listeners, but his guitar work has been heard over and over by even casual popular music listeners since the mid-'60s. His career as a session musician began with the Monkees, playing the memorable riffs on several of their recordings. (Remember the cool, rapid-fire, reverb-drenched solo in "Valerie"?) He went on to play on "I Want You Back," "ABC" and "I'll Be There" for the Jackson 5, Boz Scaggs' "Lowdown," and "Summer Breeze" and "Diamond Girl" with Seals & Crofts. He played the guitar solos on pop smashes like Lionel Richie's "Hello" and Neil Diamond's "Play Me," and recorded with artists ranging from Diana Ross, Smokey Robinson, Marvin Gaye, Gladys Knight, Barbra Streisand and Whitney Houston, to the Partridge Family, Art Garfunkel and Mama Cass Elliott. He produced a number of albums as well, most notably for Seals & Crofts.

In 1995, Shelton recorded Guitar, an album showcasing his wide-ranging guitar virtuosity and versatility. Though it rocked harder than most of its peers, this recording found airplay on smooth and contemporary jazz radio when released in the United States in 1996. The follow-up, Hot & Spicy, released in April 1998, sounded like a much more calculated attempt to appeal to that market. Urban Culture followed two years later. ~bio by Jim Newsom

Souvenir

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Stan Kenton - Artistry In Bossa Nova

Styles: Piano Jazz
Year: 1963
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 37:06
Size: 88,5 MB
Art: Front

(2:48)  1. Artistry In Rhythm
(3:10)  2. Opus In Chartreuse
(2:28)  3. Interlude
(3:53)  4. Kentonova
(3:32)  5. Eager Beaver
(3:15)  6. Concerto To End All Concertos
(2:21)  7. Brasilia
(3:25)  8. Painted Rhythm
(3:01)  9. Opus In Pastels
(3:29) 10. Jump For Joe
(2:50) 11. Loco-Nova
(2:49) 12. Artistry In Bossa Nova

This LP features the Stan Kenton Orchestra (during the period when it had a mellophonium section) performing some of its familiar standards and a few newer songs with a light Brazilian rhythm provided by percussionists Frank Guerrero and Milt Holland (Larry Bunker fills in for Holland on three songs). Although one might consider this project to be an example of Kenton jumping on the bandwagon (since the bossa nova fad was at its peak at the time), the music is quite enjoyable. 

Kenton on piano is the main soloist throughout, with Conte Candoli having a couple solos on trumpet and high-note trumpeter Bud Brisbois getting a few spots. Kenton's "Brasilia" is a charming piece deserving to be revived. Otherwise, it is interesting to hear such songs as "Interlude," "Concerto to End All Concertos," "Eager Beaver," and even "Artistry in Rhythm" in this setting. ~ Scott Yanow http://www.allmusic.com/album/artistry-in-bossa-nova-mw0000899928

Personnel:  Stan Kenton - piano, arranger, conductor;  Bob Behrendt, Bud Brisbois, Conte Candoli, Bob Rolfe, Dalton Smith – trumpet;  Gil Falco, Bob Fitzpatrick, Kent Larsen – trombone;  Jim Amlotte, - bass trombone;  Dave Wheeler - bass trombone, tuba;  Joe Burnett, Dwight Carver, Bob Grull, Tony Scodwell – mellophone;  Gabe Baltazar - alto saxophone;  Ray Florian, Steve Marcus - tenor saxophone;  Jack Nimitz - baritone saxophone;  Joel Kaye - baritone saxophone, bass saxophone;  Don Bagley – bass;  Dee Barton – drums;  Larry Bunker, Frank "Chico" Guerrero - Latin percussion

Artistry In Bossa Nova

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Freda Payne - Band of Gold

Styles: Vocal, Soul
Year: 1970
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 35:09
Size: 80,9 MB
Art: Front

(2:57)  1. Band of Gold
(3:18)  2. I Left Some Dreams Back There
(3:02)  3. Deeper & Deeper
(3:05)  4. Rock Me in the Cradle
(2:30)  5. Unhooked Generation
(2:58)  6. Love on Borrowed Time
(2:41)  7. Through the Memory of My Mind
(2:58)  8. This Girl Is a Woman Now
(2:58)  9. The World Don't Owe You a Thing
(3:10) 10. Now Is the Time to Say Goodbye
(2:50) 11. Happy Heart
(2:37) 12. The Easiest Way to Fall

Although much of soul vocalist Freda Payne's early '70s association with the mighty Invictus label would be fraught with stress, her 1970 debut album, Band of Gold, was nevertheless a masterpiece of epic proportions. Touted on the sleeve as "people music, for people who like pop, rhythm and blues, ballad, hymns  just about anything," Payne's set certainly reflects that wide range and, while the overall sonic tone of Band of Gold reflects her producers' Motown history, especially across songs like "Unhooked Generation" and the Holland-Dozier penned "The World Don't Owe You a Thing," there are other more spontaneous moments here as well. With a majority of the songs co-written by Ron Dunbar, who would go on to become part of the P-Funk empire, "Payne" wowed her audience first with the top hit "Band of Gold" before diving into "Deeper and Deeper." Both are downtempo love ballads, delivered with a maturity and richness that belies much of the balladeering of the era. 

Other standouts include the young love remembrances of "Through the Memory of My Mind," which allows Payne's vocals to stay fully in front and even includes a subtle Shangri-Las-y spoken work bridge and the smoky intro'd "This Girl Is a Woman Now." It must be said, however, that the title song truly one of the greatest soul ballads of all time so dominates proceedings that it is very easy to overlook these other gems, one reason why Band of Gold rarely attracts much attention today. ~ Amy Hanson http://www.allmusic.com/album/band-of-gold-mw0000861023

Band of Gold

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Jesper Bodilsen - Mi Ritorni In Mente

Styles: Jazz, Post Bop
Year: 2003
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 57:55
Size: 132,8 MB
Art: Front

(9:36)  1. Nature Boy
(6:15)  2. How Deep Is the Ocean
(8:19)  3. Se non avessi piu te
(6:55)  4. Someday My Prince Will Come
(6:21)  5. Mi ritorni in mente
(4:30)  6. Dark Valley Serenade
(4:03)  7. Billie's Bounce
(7:44)  8. The Summer Knows
(4:08)  9. Liten Karin

The Danish bass player, composer, producer and educator Jesper Bodilsen was born January 5th 1970 in Haslev, Denmark. As 3 a year old he moved to Silkeborg with his parents and older brother and there he stayed until he was 18 years old. No one in his family were playing music. But as a 8 year old kid he found an old trumpet at the loft of his grand parents farm and he was immediately interested in trying to make music with the old horn. At the age of 10 he was admitted as a member of the school brass band there he learned to play the cornet and read music. In 1984 Jesper got his first bass - an electric bass -  and one year later he joined a pop/funk band and played his first professional gig short after. He was admitted at the Royal Academy of Music in Aarhus, Denmark in 1991 where he studied for 5 years and ended up with a Diploma degree in June 1997. The same year as he received The Memorial Bursary of Edward Eriksen and was hired to teach at the academy. While studying at the school in Aarhus Bodilsen also worked as a professional musician. In June 1994 he was asked to perform at two All Star Concerts at the Riverboat Jazz Festival together with American drummer Ed Thigpen and pianist Duke Jordan. These concerts was a kind of breakthrough for Bodilsen and in the years to come he was peforming with other great jazz artists like James Moody, Benny Golson, Lee Konitz, Tom Harrell, Joe Lovano, Horace Parlan, Jimmy Heath and Phil Woods. Often at the legendary jazz club BENT J in Aarhus. In 1995 Bodilsen moved to Copenhagen and he was immediately asked to join the Erling Kroner Dream Quartet. He was touring with different Aarhus and Copenhagen based bands in the years to come when he in 1997 met Ed Thigpen again. Ed Thigpen wanted him in his trio and together with pianist Carsten Dahl the trio recorded their first album “It´s Entertainment” in 1998. The album was nominated for a Danish Grammy and won the JazzSpecial Prize “Album Of The Year”. Bodilsen was playing and recording with Thigpen until 2010 - a collaboration that lasted 13 years and the music is well documented on 6 album releases.

Jesper Bodilsen has always been interested in producing music, finding interesting musicians to perform with and create new constellations. He has been a co-producer for Danish vocalist Katrine Madsen for more than a decade but in 1999 he started his first band “Scandinavian Summit”. They recorded 2 albums and did tours in Europe, SE Asia, China and Australia. He started his own music production company in 2002 and until now he has produced more than 15 albums, recorded and performed with many great artists. In 1998, 2002 and 2004 Bodilsen was asked to perform at the prestigious Jazzpar Prize concerts and in 2002 the prize winner was italian trumpet player Enrico Rava. Bodilsen did 4 concerts with Rava, Stefano Bollani, Gianlucca Petrella, John Abercrombie and Morten Lund and after the final concert in Copenhagen he asked Bollani and Lund if they would be interested in playing together again. One year later (in march 2003) they did the first trio tour and their first recording for Stunt Records “Mi ritorni in mente”. The first issue of this trio album was released as Jesper Bodilsen Trio. In 2004 Bodilsen was awarded with the Django d'Or Prize as “Performer of the Year” and that same year the trio recorded their second album “Gleda”. Now all the names of the trio was on the cover. The album was no. 4 on the Italian Jazz Charts in 2005 and nominated for an Australian Bell Award 2006 for “Best International Jazz Album”.

From the start the trio was touring around Europe playing clubs and festivals like the Umbria Jazz festival, Copenhagen Jazz Festival and the legendary Birdland in New York. After “Gleda” they recorded with singer Katrine Madsen. The album is called “Close To You” and was nominated for a Danish Music Award as “Best Vocal Jazz Album”. Then 4 years went by before they recorded again. This time on the highly estimated ECM label and with producer Manfred Eicher. The album “Stone In The Water” was acclaimed the best trio recording of 2009 by several jazz magazines around the world. Two of the songs on the album was composed by Bodilsen and that same year he went in the studio with Swedish guitarist Ulf Wakenius, Peter Asplund on trumpet and the Finnish vibraphone player Severi Pyysalo to record a new album mainly with his own songs. The album “Short Stories for Dreamers” was released in 2010 and was praised for its calmness and lyrical mood. Recently Bodilsen has also been a part of the succesful TV-shows “Sostiene Bollani”. In the fall of 2011 the trio, with Bollani being the host,  did 6 shows brodcasted on the Italian national channel RAI 3. Besides touring around the world and recording albums Bodilsen has also spent more and more time composing music. In 2013 his latest album Scenografie was released on the Italian record label Carosello Records.  All his music - displaying his skills as a composer, bandleader, bassplayer and producer. Mixing different moods and nationalities together with the Italians Stefano Bollani, Joe Barbieri, Nico Gori and Paolo Russo and the Swedish Ulf Wakenius and Peter Asplund. 2013 was also The 10 Year Anniversary of the trio Bollani-Bodilsen-Lund. Ten years after the first trio recording they went in the Avatar Studio in New York and recorded a new album for the ECM label inviting the great Bill Frisell and Marc Turner to join in. The album “Joy Inspite of Everything” was released in 2014 and won the prize as album of the year in Italy. Since Bodilsen left the conservatory in 1997 he has been teaching music throughout his carrier. Many new promising upcoming musicians have had him as a teacher at the Danish conservatories and in 2012 he was elected as chairman of Dansk Jazzmusiker Forening (Danish Jazz Musician´s Association)  an association which works with education for professional improvising musicians. Through masterclasses and courses arranged by DJF, and done by the best musicians and instructors on the international improvising scene, DJF give the Danish musicians the possibility to improve and get inspired. http://www.jesperbodilsen.dk/bio/

Personnel:  Bass – Jesper Bodilsen;  Drums – Morten Lund ;  Piano – Stefano Bollani

Mi ritorni in mente

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Irene Schweizer, Joey Baron - Live!

Styles: Piano Jazz
Year: 2017
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 50:57
Size: 117,0 MB
Art: Front

( 7:59)  1. Free for All (Irene Schweizer)
(12:22)  2. Up the Ladder (Joey Baron)
( 7:59)  3. String Fever (Irene Schweizer)
(10:49)  4. Jungle Beat II (Irene Schweizer)
( 4:14)  5. Saturdays (Joey Baron)
( 3:34)  6. Blues for Crelier (Irene Schweizer)
( 3:57)  7. The Open Window (Joey Baron)

A fantastic combination of players both musicians who have an incredible ability to be all over their instruments at once, yet always somehow sound completely in control! Drummer Joey Baron's demonstrated this ability for years, but maybe not as strongly as on this recent album with pianist Irene Schweizer a set that has him matching all the wonderfully dynamic energy we've always loved on her albums for Intakt sounds that are almost a small separate branch of the European improvising world, because they've got a quality that's so individual and distinct! Irene can keep things surprisingly tuneful, even when free and Baron opens up the most tuneful side of his percussion talents, really at home in the territory. Titles include "String Fever", "Up The Ladder", "The Open Window", "Saturdays", and "Jungle Beat II". © 1996-2017, Dusty Groove, Inc. https://www.dustygroove.com/item/858865?cat=jazz

Personnel:  Irène Schweizer – Piano; Joey Baron – Drums

Live!

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Joni Mitchell - Both Sides Now

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 51:23
Size: 117.6 MB
Styles: Jazz vocals
Year: 2000
Art: Front

[3:51] 1. You're My Thrill
[4:25] 2. At Last
[4:27] 3. Comes Love
[5:00] 4. You've Changed
[3:22] 5. Answer Me, My Love
[5:52] 6. A Case Of You
[4:09] 7. Don't Go To Strangers
[3:58] 8. Sometimes I'm Happy
[3:48] 9. Don't Worry 'bout Me
[3:06] 10. Stormy Weather
[3:34] 11. I Wish I Were In Love Again
[5:45] 12. Both Sides Now

Joni Mitchell has long dabbled in the jazz world, forging alliances with the likes of Charles Mingus, Jaco Pastorius, and Wayne Shorter, while incorporating elements of fusion into her more intrepid recordings. Both Sides Now, however, comes at jazz from a different angle than the experimental likes of Mingus and The Hissing of Summer Lawns. Here is Joni the chanteuse, tackling smoky standards such as "At Last," "Sometimes I'm Happy," and "Stormy Weather" in the embrace of lush pop arrangements that owe a debt to Nelson Riddle and Gordon Jenkins, though some stray over the line from stately into staid. The focus here is on Mitchell the vocalist, and she displays a real commitment to the music. She has the chops and the smarts to tackle these staples, but at times she seems intimidated by their illustrious pedigrees. Two of Mitchell's own songs are revived here--"A Case of You" and the title track. The results are mixed: the former takes on a new weight while the latter seems adolescent in such mature company. Ultimately, Both Sides Now is more a valentine to classic pop by a woman who can--and should--be off making more touchstones of her own. ~Steven Stolder

Both Sides Now

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Sir Simon Rattle - Duke Ellington Album

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 78:58
Size: 180.8 MB
Styles: Big band, Contemporary jazz
Year: 2000
Art: Front

[ 9:05] 1. Take The 'A' Train
[ 2:56] 2. You're The One (with Joshua Redman)
[ 5:12] 3. Sophisticated Lady (With Bobby Watson)
[14:09] 4. Harlem (A Tone Parallel To Harlem)
[ 4:50] 5. Isfahan (With Peter Walden)
[ 8:56] 6. Ad Lib On Nippon (Part 2) (With Colin Parr)
[ 9:04] 7. That Doo-Wah Thing From 'it Don't Mean A Thing If It Ain't Got That Swing' Part 2, Duet Fugue (With Joe Lovano)
[ 4:33] 8. Something To Live For
[ 5:30] 9. Come Sunday (With Regina Carter)
[ 4:38] 10. Solitude In Transblucency (With Richard Simpson)
[ 2:44] 11. Maybe
[ 7:15] 12. Things Ain't What They Used To Be (With Regina Carter)

Clark Terry, John Barclay, Simon Gardner- trumpet; Joshua Redman, Joe Lovano- tenor saxophone; Bobby Watson- alto saxophone; Regina Carter- violin; Andrew Barnell- bassoon; Colin Parr- clarinet; Peter Walden- English horn; Richard Simpson- oboe; Geri Allen, Mike Renzi- piano; Peter Washington, Mark Goodchild- double bass; Lewis Nash- drums; Lena Horne- vocals; City of Birmingham [England] Symphony Orchestra.

Sir Simon Rattle conducts the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra in a celebration of Duke Ellington’s music. Each impressive orchestration has been reworked by Luther Henderson to provide a full sound. The orchestra performs admirably with accurate interpretations of classic Ellington songs. Along the way, we find Clark Terry, Bobby Watson, Joe Lovano, Regina Carter, Lewis Nash and Josh Redman trading solos with the ensemble. They work together on three tracks, recalling the personal spirit of Ellington’s music and how it was created to fit his individual band members.

Some time ago, Duke Ellington and Luther Henderson discussed what would some day become this particular project. Ellington asked Henderson to arrange “Harlem” (from “Far East Suite”) for performance by a symphony orchestra, combined with his band in concerto grosso form. The two gentlemen agreed that it would represent a blending of two cultural traditions: Western European and African.

Lena Horne sings three songs. Her vocal lines, however, were prerecorded. Thus, there’s a distinct separation in sound between vocalist and accompaniment. Horne’s features appear cold and distant, while Lovano, Watson, Nash, Geri Allen and Peter Washington attempt to make things appear more convincing. Watson has a feature on “Isfahan” and Allen has a feature on “Ad Lib on Nippon,” while Carter and Terry take center stage for a lovely arrangement of “Come Sunday.” Much of the 80-minute album remains focused on celebrating Ellington’s music through full orchestral colors and carefully interwoven instrumental voices. As if to remind us of the balance achieved here between jazz and classical, Clark Terry takes over the closing number with a classic mumbles and wah-wah trumpet routine. The program makes a fine tribute to the music of Duke Ellington and presents these treasured pieces in a slightly different light. ~Jim Santella

Duke Ellington Album

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Abbey Lincoln - Abbey Sings Abbey

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s

Time: 59:03

Size: 135.2 MB

Styles: Jazz vocals

Year: 2007

Art: Front

[5:11] 1. Blue Monk

[5:16] 2. Throw It Away

[4:44] 3. And It's Supposed To Be Love

[5:25] 4. Should've Been

[3:37] 5. The World Is Falling Down

[4:53] 6. Bird Alone

[6:29] 7. Down Here Below

[3:50] 8. The Music Is The Magic

[4:35] 9. Learning How To Listen

[6:26] 10. The Merry Dancer

[4:37] 11. Love Has Gone Away

[3:54] 12. Being Me

Accordion – Gil Goldstein; Acoustic Guitar, Electric Guitar, Resonator Guitar [National], Steel Guitar, Mandolin – Larry Campbell; Bass – Scott Colley; Cello – Dave Eggar; Drums – Shawn Pelton; Performer, Lyrics By – Abbey Lincoln. Recorded on September 25-27 and November 17, 2006 at Avatar Studios, New York City.

Vocalist Abbey Lincoln's voice is the sound of the earth yearning for your soul. She is lust turned to wisdom. She is diva turned to soothsayer. In her mid-seventies at the time of this recording, Lincoln is the embodiment of a life lived as a performer and lover and now a storyteller through song. Abbey Sings Abbey finds the songstress revisiting a number of her own compositions from past albums. And while she remains a pre-eminent jazz singer, here she has surrounded herself with an eclectic and organic small group that imbues these tracks with a soft country-blues meets klezmer sound that rubs elegantly against Lincoln's burnished vocals. This is a beautifully raw and intimate album full of lament and the faint perfume of romance. As she sings on "Should've Been," "It's the sound of sorry/Looking yonder with regret. Sorry 'cause of what you got/And what you didn't get." These are enigmatic torch songs and playful blues, dark elegies and poignant ballads all featuring Lincoln's own devastatingly precise lyrics and melodies that hint at not just death and regret, but also a lingering passion for life. ~Matt Collar

Abbey Sings Abbey 

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Steve Miller Band - Anthology

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 63:32
Size: 145.4 MB
Styles: Album rock
Year: 1972/2006
Art: Front

[2:44] 1. I Love You
[3:13] 2. Going To The Country
[8:05] 3. Baby's House
[4:24] 4. Kow Kow
[4:47] 5. Your Saving Grace
[2:27] 6. Going To Mexico
[4:55] 7. Space Cowboy
[4:04] 8. Living In The U.S.A
[6:23] 9. Journey From Eden
[3:52] 10. Seasons
[4:20] 11. Motherless Children
[2:43] 12. Never Kill Another Man
[2:27] 13. Don't Let Nobody Turn You Around
[3:22] 14. Little Girl
[2:30] 15. Celebration Song
[3:08] 16. My Dark Hour

Released in 1972, Anthology provides a 16-track summary of the Steve Miller Band's first five albums, distilling their uneven space blues into a tight, effective collection of highlights. These songs are hardly as tuneful or effortlessly catchy as the songs on 1978's Greatest Hits -- apart from "Living in the USA," "Space Cowboy," and "Going to Mexico," there's nothing particularly immediate here -- but they're first-rate period pieces, capturing Miller's space blues at its most effectively spacey. ~Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Anthology

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Don Friedman Trio - Flashback

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 41:00
Size: 93.9 MB
Styles: Piano jazz
Year: 1963/1997
Art: Front

[4:38] 1. Alone Together
[6:26] 2. Ballade In C-Sharp Minor
[4:18] 3. Wait 'til You See Her
[5:02] 4. News Blues
[5:48] 5. How Deep Is The Ocean
[7:48] 6. Ochre
[6:58] 7. Flashback

Pianist Don Friedman's debt to Bill Evans was obvious in the early '60s, particularly on standards, but he also had his own creative spirit to offer. This 1997 CD reissue brings out Friedman's third of four Riverside dates, teaming him with the obscure bassist Dick Kniss and drummer Dick Berk. The pianist shows that he was developing an original voice and was familiar with the avant-garde of the period on such originals as "Ohcre" and "Flashback." In contrast, he swings conventionally but with subtle creativity on "Alone Together," "News Blues" and "How Deep Is the Ocean." A fine, well-rounded set from the underrated pianist. ~Scott Yanow

Flashback

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Lionel Hampton - Just One Of Those Things

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 66:58
Size: 153.3 MB
Styles: Vibraphone jazz
Year: 1999
Art: Front

[ 7:41] 1. Just One Of Those Things
[ 6:09] 2. Midnight Sun
[ 7:34] 3. This Can't Be Love
[17:07] 4. Flying Home
[ 2:58] 5. It's A Blue World
[ 7:20] 6. Indiana
[ 3:08] 7. Hamp's Boogie Woogie
[14:57] 8. Body And Soul

Lionel Hampton (vibraphone); Oscar Peterson (piano); Buddy DeFranco (clarinet); Herb Ellis (guitar); Ray Brown (bass); Buddy Rich (drums).

Verve's Just One of Those Things contains a selection of eight highlights from Lionel Hampton's sessions with Oscar Peterson between 1953 and 1954. This may be just a sampler, but it's a highly enjoyable one, since Hampton and Peterson were at the top of their form during this era. The compilers have skillfully balanced familiar selections with slightly esoteric choices (including 78 rpm master takes of "It's a Blue World" and "Hamp's Boogie Woogie"), resulting in an informative, entertaining introduction to one of the great pairings of '50s jazz. ~Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Just One Of Those Things

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Friend 'N Fellow - Light My Fire: Axel Schulz My Best Of

Size: 147,7 MB
Time: 62:49
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Released: 2006
Styles: Jazz/Pop Vocals
Art: Front

01. Light My Fire (3:10)
02. One More Day (4:50)
03. Kiss The Rain (4:51)
04. Crystal (3:54)
05. Fly Like An Eagle (3:12)
06. Naked In A Jacket (4:27)
07. This Love (2:04)
08. Fairy Godmother (3:19)
09. Friend Of Mine (4:53)
10. Taxi (4:01)
11. Home (3:55)
12. Forbidden Wine (3:28)
13. What A Wonderful World (3:43)
14. Elf (3:49)
15. Light My Fire (Axel Schulz Comeback Version) (4:54)
16. Bonus Taxi (Jannique Remix) (4:12)

"The music of FRIEND 'N FELLOW is calming. It picks you up when you're down - not the other way around! In 2005, they released their album Covered with the song »Light My Fire«. It's simply a uniquely positive song. If you asked me, I couldn't tell you exactly what it is. Then I started getting all these songs offered to me as entrance music. There were good and bad ones, but none of them had that one-of-a-kind feeling..."

The story began when Axel and his wife Patricia attended a Friend 'n Fellow concert simply to enjoy an evening of outstanding music. Axel was so taken with the duo's sound that one night, he decided to call Constanze Friend and ask her about supplying the entrance music for his upcoming fight. Completely surprised, Friend called her guitarist Thomas Fellow with the news. One thing led to another and eventually a friendship developed...

Since Schulz and the musicians were on the same wavelength, he quickly realized that only the music of Friend 'n Fellow possessed the power and the energy to motivate him for the fight of his life - his comeback fight on the so-called "Night of Answers" on November 25th.

Light My Fire

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Gary Williams - At The Movies

Size: 116,0 MB
Time: 49:18
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Released: 2017
Styles: Jazz Vocals
Art: Front

01. Spooky (2:44)
02. Almost In Love (3:38)
03. Both Sides Now (3:21)
04. Ev'rybody Wants To Be A Cat (3:16)
05. Puppet On A String (3:31)
06. He's A Tramp (3:07)
07. How Deep Is Your Love (3:13)
08. The Bare Necessities (3:09)
09. I Need Somebody To Lean On (3:21)
10. Baby Mine (4:22)
11. When She Loved Me (2:48)
12. (They Long To Be) Close To You (3:35)
13. Isn't This A Lovely Day (3:19)
14. Home Is Where The Heart Is (3:12)
15. Pocket Full Of Rainbows (2:39)

His style is somewhere between Michael Bublé and Frank Sinatra, but with his own inimitable twist. I am no big fan of Sinatra as I always feel that he isn’t really trying (especially in later recordings) as if he thought ‘It’s me Sinatra, they’ll buy it no matter what!’

Okay, so having deflected the rotten vegetables thrown at me from Sinatra fans, let me say that I would listen to Williams any day of the week.

He has such a beautiful voice – just like black velvet and, although the style is not completely to my liking (jazz-orientated) there is something about his voice that is completely mesmerising.

All the tracks on this new album are completely laid-back and are ideal for sitting in front of the fire sipping a nice long G&T.

It would be a bit unfair of me to pick out any track as being better than the others, but I have tell you that I have played ‘Home is Where the Heart Is’ about a dozen times since receiving the tracks to review and it just gets better and better on each listen.

Tracks are all from films (as the title of the album suggests) and they include: ‘Both Sides Now’, ‘Puppet On a String’, ‘He’s a Tramp’, ‘The Bare Necessities’, ‘Baby Mine’, ‘Isn’t This a Lovely Day’, ‘Pocketful of Rainbows’, and others.

Williams has a huge following worldwide and I am sure this album will increase that number by quite a few. Well worth a listen and to add to your collection. ~Nick Wakeham

At The Movies

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Jerry Weldon & Massimo Farao - What's New

Size: 118,7 MB
Time: 50:53
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Released: 2017
Styles: Jazz
Art: Front

01. The Gypsy (5:18)
02. My Ship (5:55)
03. We Will Be Together Again (4:17)
04. They Can't Take That Away From Me (6:39)
05. What's New (5:44)
06. What A Difference A Day Made (3:43)
07. Indian Summer (4:09)
08. It's Easy To Remember (5:07)
09. Grace (4:35)
10. For All We Know (5:20)

One of the more beautiful, more subtle settings we've ever heard for the tenor of Jerry Weldon – a very relaxed ballad session cut with pianist Massimo Farao – done with crystal-clear sound, and a very late nite vibe! Over the years, Weldon's developed a really tremendous voice on the tenor – a mode that hearkens back to old giants of mid-century, but which also never does so in any sort of slavish, or easily-retro style – so that although Jerry's blowing at their level, he still really brings a lot of his own phrasing to the horn! This can be especially true on the mellower numbers, which can still have Weldon moving with the deft changes he brings to his work in a more driving setting – and while the piano of Massimo Farao is a perfect balance in terms of modesty and simple tone, it's really Jerry's work on the set that's blowing us away.

What's New

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Urban Jazz Coalition - XXII

Size: 115,5 MB
Time: 49:28
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Released: 2017
Styles: Smooth Jazz
Art: Front

01. Roof Garden (4:51)
02. Let's Get It (4:45)
03. Soul Suite (6:06)
04. Passions (4:56)
05. Better Days Comin' (4:53)
06. Kenton's Swag (4:17)
07. Caribbean Sunset (3:56)
08. What Kind Of Man Would I Be (4:44)
09. Run For Cover (9:57)
10. The After Party (0:59)

Urban Jazz Coalition is one of the hottest new contemporary jazz groups to come onto the scene in some time, and they have created a major buzz on the national festival circuit over the past few years.

“UJC” has electrified audiences across North America performing their unique blend of urban jazz at many of the nation’s top smooth jazz festivals, including The Seabreeze Jazz Festival, The “V98.7” Detroit Smooth Jazz Fest, Jazz Fest West, The Las Vegas City of Lights Jazz and R&B Festival, The Jacksonville Jazz Festival, The Greater Hartford Festival of Jazz, “WJZZ” Atlanta’s Smooth Jazz Under The Stars Series,
and at a variety of concert venues around the country.

The UJC sound has been described by Jazz Time Magazine’s award winning smooth jazz columnist, Brian Soergel, as being “flush with rhythmic grooves, funky bass lines, and beautifully written melodies.”

Michael Schivo, producer of The Las Vegas City of Lights Festival, was quoted saying, “UJC is the best kept secret in smooth jazz…they rocked our festival into an absolute frenzy! With live performance, it’s all about the music and the energy on stage, and these guys really came to play.”

Urban Jazz Coalition has made a strong impression with radio as well, as their last three releases, “Contempo”, “Long Street”, and “Down To Get Up”, have all achieved “Top 50” status on the national smooth jazz airplay charts. The band’s music has been featured on the NBC Daytime Reality Series, “Starting Over”, as well as in the 2007 hit French film, “Le Verite Ou Presque, while another UJC album track has recently been licensed by Capitol/EMI Records as part of a Gospel/Jazz compilation project.

When asked why this group is generating so much excitement in smooth jazz circles, Carol Archer of Radio & Records was quoted as follows…“A lot of artists aspire to sound as tight and as funky as Urban Jazz Coalition, but these gentlemen can really
pull it off…and how!

With the success of the band’s latest studio project, “A New Day”, and the positive buzz generated by their energetic performances on the national smooth jazz festival circuit, Urban Jazz Coalition definitely has the momentum rolling as they prepare to hit the road during the summer of 2009.

You won’t want to miss an opportunity to hear the band that everyone in smooth jazz is talking about…Urban Jazz Coalition.

XXII

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