John Campbell - Workin' Out

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 62:08
Size: 142.3 MB
Styles: Piano jazz
Year: 2001
Art: Front

[ 7:20] 1. Four In One
[10:08] 2. Sky Dive
[ 8:29] 3. Duke Ellington's Sound Of Love
[ 3:30] 4. Steps
[ 7:17] 5. Maiden Voyage
[ 6:56] 6. Wonderful
[ 4:34] 7. Fall
[ 8:52] 8. Sea Journey
[ 4:59] 9. I Waited For You

A powerful pianist who often gets overlooked, John Campbell is heard in top form throughout this trio set. Teamed with bassist Jay Anderson and drummer Billy Drummond, Campbell makes such tunes as Thelonious Monk's "Four In One," Freddie Hubbard's "Sky Dive," Wayne Shorter's "Fall" and Chick Corea's "Sea Journey" sound simple. This consistently enjoyable and often hard-swinging set serves as a perfect introduction for listeners who are not familiar with the brilliant playing of John Campbell. ~Scott Yanow

Workin' Out mc
Workin' Out zippy

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Denise King, Massimo Farao Trio - La Vie En Rose

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 54:09
Size: 124.0 MB
Styles: Jazz vocals
Year: 2017
Art: Front

[5:47] 1. Save Your Love For Me
[4:35] 2. The Shadow Of Your Smile
[6:11] 3. Skylark
[5:08] 4. La Vie En Rose
[6:27] 5. Estate
[5:29] 6. The Very Thought Of You
[5:16] 7. My Romance
[3:23] 8. Let's Do It
[4:51] 9. I've Got A Crush On You
[5:15] 10. Do It Again
[1:42] 11. Where Or When

Denise King, vocals; Massimo Farao', piano; Aldo Zunino, bass; Steve Williams, drums.

Denise King is a singer whose naturally beautiful voice, vibrato and phrasing please musicians as well as fans. Listening to her warm tone, impeccable phrasing, and the absolute control she has of her voice is mesmerizing. Whether she’s singing a Billie Holiday, Ella Fitzgerald or Sarah Vaughan standard, or an Aretha Franklin cover, she puts her heart and soul into every note. Denise has mastered the art of making a song her own no matter what the genre.

In the past 25 years, Ms King has sung at almost all of the top venues in Philadelphia, several in New York, Paris, Turkey, Brazil, Africa, Germany and Japan. She is a self-proclaimed torch bearer, a keeper of the flame holding the preservation and presentation of the traditional style of jazz singing close to her heart. No gimmicks, no pyrotechnics, just an intense focus on the melody and the lyrical content.

With a voice described as velvet smooth, warm and steeped in sophistication, she captivates you and holds you with every note. In this age of auto-tune, quick fixes and artistic gimickery, her love of people, performance style, and energy have ensured her a spot in the jazz community for a long time.

"Denise King sings pop and jazz standards with touches of the blues, soul and even gospel in a voice steeped in a sophisticated, swinging, sometimes soulful, satin style much like one of her idols, Sarah Vaughan." ~ All About Jazz

La Vie En Rose mc
La Vie En Rose zippy

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Sonny Stitt - Just In Case You Forgot How Bad He Really Was

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 65:12
Size: 149.3 MB
Styles: Saxophone jazz
Year: 2009
Art: Front

[ 5:25] 1. Dig Dr. Woody
[ 7:09] 2. Star Eyes
[ 3:13] 3. Everything Happens To Me
[ 5:44] 4. The Night Has A Thousand Eyes
[12:11] 5. Ballad Medley: How Deep Is The Ocean, Smoke Gets In Your Eyes, My Foolish Heart, Over The Rainbow, Serenade In Blue
[ 3:50] 6. Solo Excerpt
[11:44] 7. Lover Man
[ 4:08] 8. Laura
[10:14] 9. Wee
[ 1:31] 10. Outro

Recorded at the Keystone Korner in San Francisco less than a year before saxophonist Sonny Stitt suffered a fatal heart attack, this 65-minute session includes saxophonists Richie Cole and John Handy, pianist Cedar Walton, bassist Herbie Lewis, drummer Billy Higgins, and vibraphonist Bobby Hutcherson. The jam session, billed as a "bebop alto summit," was recorded before an enthusiastic club audience over a two night period and produced by Dr. Herb Wong, but never released. With about half the session spotlighting the leader on both alto and tenor, and with impeccable sound recording, the comfortable session is a welcome surprise, and presents Sonny Stitt in fine performing form.

Jazz critic Dr. Herb Wong produced the 1981 session and provides the liner notes. The opening track, "Dig Dr. Woody," is Stitt's tribute to the dentist who had recently reconstructed the saxophonist's front teeth with a fixed bridge; that dentist was Dr. Woody Wong, brother of Dr. Herb Wong. On "Dig Dr. Woody" and "The Night Has A Thousand Eyes," Stitt works out on tenor accompanied by the veteran rhythm section, and evokes moods ranging from loose and comfortable to quasi-dramatic. Similarly, Stitt sits in the solo spotlight for the ballads "Everything Happens To Me" and "Laura," this time on alto. The saxophonist offers a firm lyrical approach to the ballad, maintaining spirit throughout and seeming to enjoy the opportunity to express.

This "bebop alto summit" approach allows room for solo choruses from each of the member of the ensemble as well as ample three-saxophone interplay. "Star Eyes," "Wee," and "Lover Man" provide space for the alternating soloists. On alto, Stitt, Cole, and Handy exhibit slightly different timbres, in much the same way that singers possess distinctive voices. For "Lover Man," Stitt opens and closes the number, turning it over to Handy, Hutcherson, Walton, and Cole in that order. Each has a lot to say, and again on "Wee" this order of soloing is preserved, except for Walton's piano solo and Higgins' extended drum solo. The medley of ballads affords an opportunity for Stitt, Cole, Hutcherson, Walton, and Handy to accept the feature for a song each. The individual solo work, the ensemble interaction, and their effect on the enthusiastic audience make this a memorable session. Highly Recommended. ~Jim Santella

Just In Case You Forgot How Bad He Really Was mc
Just In Case You Forgot How Bad He Really Was zippy

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Antonio Carlos Jobim - Wave: the Antonio Carlos Jobim Songbook

Styles: Vocal, Brazilian Jazz
Year: 1962
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 63:32
Size: 146,2 MB
Art: Front

(2:52)  1. Wave
(5:50)  2. So Danço Samba (Jazz Samba)
(3:14)  3. Happy Madness
(3:12)  4. Chovendo Na Roseira
(5:53)  5. Desafinado
(2:48)  6. A Felicidade
(4:46)  7. O Grande Amor
(4:03)  8. Insensatez
(4:48)  9. Amor Em Paz (Once I Loved)
(4:16) 10. Corcovado (Quiet Nights of Quiet Stars)
(5:20) 11. Triste
(2:31) 12. The Boy from Ipanema
(5:18) 13. Samba de Uma Nota Só (One Note Samba)
(5:26) 14. Vivo Sonhando
(3:08) 15. Wave

The sequel to the popular The Girl from Ipanema anthology basically reshuffles the deck, duplicating nine of the earlier CD's songs and adding six new ones, using mostly the same performers with a few additions. The new wrinkle is that the artists perform different tunes, a game that one imagines could be continued indefinitely on future issues. Among the highlights: Ella Fitzgerald has a marvelous time bouncing to the rhythms of "So Danço Samba," Wes Montgomery  the consummate musician scores again with a lovely "Amor Em Paz," and Oscar Peterson is a surreal speed demon on "Triste." Lowlight: Sarah Vaughan's awkwardly mannered "The Boy from Ipanema." Again, there is plenty of Stan Getz along with his tenor sax successor in matters Jobim, Joe Henderson plus Astrud and João Gilberto, Dizzy Gillespie, Toots Thielemans, Charlie Byrd, Herbie Hancock, Chick Corea, Pat Metheny, and Jobim himself. As a jazz buff's introduction to Jobim, either Songbook will do, but Verve's The Man from Ipanema triple album is the best, most comprehensively idiomatic choice overall. ~ Richard S.Ginell https://www.allmusic.com/album/wave-the-antonio-carlos-jobim-songbook-mw0000648316     

Personnel includes: Antonio Carlos Jobim (vocals, piano, guitar); Cesar Camargo Mariano (piano, electric piano); Joao Gilberto (vocals, guitar); Ella Fitzgerald, Sarah Vaughan, Elis Regina, Astrud Gilberto (vocals); Stan Getz, Joe Henderson (tenor saxophone); Dizzy Gillespie, Donald Byrd (trumpet); Romeo Penque (flute, piccolo, clarinet, oboe, English horn); Danny Bank (flute, alto flute); Phil Woods (clarinet); Toots Thielemans (harmonica); Chick Corea, Herbie Hancock, Oscar Peterson, Lalo Schifrin, Eliane Elias (piano); Pat Metheny, Wes Montgomery, Charlie Byrd, Oscar Castro-Neves (guitar); Ron Carter, George Duvivier, Sam Jones (bass); Grady Tate, Paulo Braga (drums); Candido Camero (conga); Milton Banana (percussion); Gil Evan's Orchestra, Frank Foster's Orchestra.

Wave: the Antonio Carlos Jobim Songbook

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Viktor Lazlo - She

Styles: Vocal, Jazz Pop 
Year: 1985
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 37:19
Size: 85,5 MB
Art: Front

(1:38)  1. She
(5:15)  2. Sweet, Soft N'lazy
(4:04)  3. Ain't Gonna Come
(4:30)  4. Canoe Rose
(2:47)  5. Put The Blame On Mame
(4:19)  6. I Don't Wanna Love Again
(3:48)  7. Pleurer Des Rivieres
(3:38)  8. Last Call For An Angel
(3:43)  9. Backdoor Man
(3:31) 10. Loser

A stylish and sensual singer, Sonia Dronier became Viktor Lazlo when Belgian producer Francis Depryck discovered her and put together a package inspired by strong sexuality and black-and-white film. Born in Lorient, France, Dronier spent her college years studying and modeling in Brussels, Belgium. After she spent some time singing backup vocals in Depryck's band Lou & the Hollywood Bananas, the producer rounded up a set of nostalgic and noir-flavored songs and renamed her after a character in the Humphrey Bogart classic Casablanca. The stylish full-length She began her career in 1985 with a mix of songs sung in French, English, and Spanish. A French-language cover of Julie London's "Cry Me a River" ("Pleurer des Rivières") became a big hit across Europe a year later. In 1987 she hosted the televised broadcast of the Eurovision contest, which was held in Belgium that year. That same year she had another Euro hit with "Breathless," a duet with American singer James Ingram. After a move back to France in 1989 she released a series of successful albums before the ambitious Verso appeared in 1996 with funk and dub influences and a guest appearance from the classic reggae rhythm section of Sly & Robbie. Critical response to the album was so overwhelmingly positive that Dronier claimed interviews promoting the release had focused on her music instead of her clothes for the first time in her career. ~ David Jeffries https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/she/358461037

She

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Wayne Shorter - The Soothsayer

Styles: Saxophone Jazz
Year: 1965
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 50:07
Size: 115,0 MB
Art: Front

(7:16)  1. Lost
(4:51)  2. Angola
(6:42)  3. Angola (alternate take)
(8:23)  4. The Big Push
(9:40)  5. The Soothsayer
(5:36)  6. Lady Day
(7:37)  7. Valse Triste

A good month for tenor saxophone connoisseurs, April 2008, with a second Rudy Van Gelder re-master released alongside Ike Quebec's signature Blue & Sentimental (Blue Note, 2008). The Soothsayer may be comparably less of a benchmark in Wayne Shorter's discography, and remains to some extent overshadowed by its close contemporary Speak No Evil (Blue Note, 1964), but it's a solid and enduring album despite 15 years between the recording session and the original LP release. Things were happening big time for Shorter in early 1965, when The Soothsayer was recorded. After five years with drummer and band leader Art Blakey as musician, composer and, finally, musical director, the saxophonist had recently joined trumpeter Miles Davis' second great quintet. With Davis, Shorter would record six studio albums over the next three years the first, E.S.P. (Columbia, 1965) was recorded two months before The Soothsayer plus a further four under his own name. There was an embarrassment of Shorter riches around, and The Soothsayer was initially shelved to make way for the release of the more structurally adventurous The All Seeing Eye (Blue Note, 1965). When Shorter left Davis and joined Weather Report, The Soothsayer, temporarily, was overtaken by events. It was finally released in 1980. The album finds Shorter in the company of two Davis quintet colleagues bassist Ron Carter and drummer Tony Williams together with pianist McCoy Tyner, then a member of saxophonist John Coltrane's classic quartet, trumpeter Freddie Hubbard and the relatively unsung alto saxophonist James Spaulding. Hubbard and Carter had been retained from Speak No Evil; Tyner had been featured on the earlier Shorter albums Night Dreamer (Blue Note, 1964) and Ju Ju (Blue Note, 1964). Spaulding and Williams were new recruits. Shorter's virile playing aside, the album is worthwhile for the presence of drum prodigy Williams (Shorter's regular drummers of the time were Elvin Jones and Joe Chambers) who turns in an inventive solo on "Angola" and for the strength of Shorter's writing. The triple meter, medium groove "Lost," the opener, is quintessential Shorter of the period. Eight years before the release of The Soothsayer it was featured on Weather Report's Live In Tokyo (Columbia, 1972). "Angola," which follows, sounds like it could have been written earlier, for Blakey's band. The haunting "Lady Day" is a ballad tribute to singer Billie Holiday. Of interest too is Shorter's re-arrangement of Finnish composer Jean Sibelius' pretty "Valse Triste" on Speak No Evil, Shorter had credited Sibelius as a key inspiration for that album's "Dance Cadaverous." The word "deconstruction" may not have been common jazz parlance in 1965, but deconstruct is exactly what Shorter does here, sensitively and engagingly. ~ Chris May https://www.allaboutjazz.com/the-soothsayer-wayne-shorter-blue-note-records-review-by-chris-may.php

Personnel: Wayne Shorter: tenor saxophone; James Spaulding: alto saxophone; Freddie Hubbard: trumpet; McCoy Tyner: piano; Ron Carter: bass; Tony Williams: drums.

The Soothsayer

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Joey DeFrancesco - The Champ: Round 2

Styles: Jazz, Hard Bop
Year: 1998
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 68:18
Size: 156,7 MB
Art: Front

(8:37)  1. The Champ
(5:37)  2. Back at the Chicken Shack
(5:04)  3. Bayou
(6:44)  4. I'm an Old Cowhand
(5:53)  5. The Sermon
(7:56)  6. The Boss
(6:56)  7. Oh No, Babe
(4:38)  8. Hackensack
(8:19)  9. Greensleeves
(8:29) 10. The Champ (The Rematch)

The Champ: Round 2 is the second volume of Joey DeFrancesco's tribute to mentor and Hammond B3 groove master Jimmy Smith. While 1999's The Champ was an entertaining and honorable tribute, Round 2 produces only patchy rewards even with the swinging camaraderie provided by guitarist Paul Bollenback and drummer Byron Landham. Compared to the first volume in which the initial freshness of the idea was more palatable, Round 2 suffers from slight stagnation (two versions of "The Champ" on this disc!) for the same reason. Following the late-'90s studio releases of The Champ, Goodfellas, and the live set Incredible, three discs that rely mainly on standards and jazz classics, this disc is ultimately disappointing, finding DeFrancesco repeating challenges we have already heard him acheive. ~ Al Campbell https://www.allmusic.com/album/the-champ-round-2-mw0000620309

Personnel: Joey DeFrancesco (Hammond B-3 Organ); Paul Bollenback (guitar); Byron Landham (drums).

The Champ: Round 2

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Hank Mobley - Quintet

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 56:51
Size: 130.1 MB
Styles: Saxophone jazz
Year: 1957/2008
Art: Front

[6:45] 1. Funk In Deep Freeze
[7:38] 2. Wham And They're Off
[6:36] 3. Fin De L'affaire
[6:37] 4. Startin' From Scratch
[7:14] 5. Stella-Wise
[7:28] 6. Base On Balls
[6:54] 7. Funk In Deep Freeze
[7:35] 8. Wham And They're Off

In his musical life, there always seemed to be two Hank Mobleys. He spent most of his career as a sideman, uplifting the music of Max Roach, Dizzy Gillespie, Art Blakey, Horace Silver, Miles Davis, Slide Hampton and Cedar Walton. But on records, his most significant work was as a leader for Blue Note. Mobley's round tone, flexibility and ability to write catchy melodies made him a popular figure for 15 years.

On Quintet, he is at the head of a group featuring musicians from both the Blakey and Silver bands including the two leaders. Mobley, who contributed all six compositions, is very much in control, performing the thoughtful and melodic yet stirring brand of hard bop that he most loved. Funk In Deep Freeze is the most famous of the songs but all are well worth reviving and enjoying.

Mobley and Art Farmer work off each other in subtle yet fiery fashion (they often seemed to think alike) and the Silver-Blakey reunion is a joyous occasion. Overall, the Hank Mobley Quintet sounds so tight and telepathic that it is almost like they played together four sets a night at Birdland rather than actually being a superb one-time get-together.

Quintet mc
Quintet zippy

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Joanie Sommers, Laurindo Almeida - Softly, The Brazilian Sound

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 37:14
Size: 85.3 MB
Styles: Bossa Nova, Easy Listening
Year: 1964/1997
Art: Front

[2:58] 1. Meditation
[3:16] 2. Dear Heart
[3:06] 3. Watching The World Go By
[2:49] 4. Quiet Nights (Corcovado)
[2:43] 5. Once
[3:21] 6. Softly, As I Leave You
[2:21] 7. I Could Have Danced All Night
[2:57] 8. I'll Remember April
[3:31] 9. You Can't Go Home Again
[3:23] 10. Carnival
[3:55] 11. Old Guitaron
[2:49] 12. That's All

Joanie had a great 'teen' hit in the early sixties called "Johnny Get Angry". But it was only a bit later when she released an album of Bossa Nova numbers that blew me away. Still a teen ager, I had landed a job with a local FM station and put Joanie's Bossa Nova on the air immediately. It was like a breath of fresh air. Her unique voice caressed subtle Bossa rhythms like a cool sea breeze. She handled rhythms and phrasing as subtly as Getz --lilting, gently swinging, precise. Listening to her ablbums are still like sipping Pina Coladas, barefoot on a sunset beach. Rio never had a better ambassador. The good news is: this sound is as fresh as ever. Timeless! This collection features some of the same songs that I remember from that sixites release --Quiet Nights and Meditation, specifically. But every song she touches, she makes hers. Joanie is definitely among the great vocalists. ~Len Hart

Softly, the Brazilian Sound

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Dan Siegel - Origins

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 46:24
Size: 106.2 MB
Styles: Piano jazz
Year: 2018
Art: Front

[4:57] 1. Rite Of Passage
[3:41] 2. When One Door Closes
[4:45] 3. After All
[3:47] 4. Lost And Found
[5:10] 5. Arabesque
[4:54] 6. Moon And Stars
[5:10] 7. Strange Sky
[4:49] 8. Under The Sun
[5:02] 9. Crossing
[4:04] 10. Origins

According to his official biography keyboardist Dan Siegel has already released twenty solo albums. With Origins he has just launched his newest project. Anew a collaboration with bassist Brian Bromberg. Beside Dan and Brian are performing Allen Hinds (electric guitar), Ramon Stagnaro (acoustic guitar), Craig Fundyga (vibraphone), Rogerio Jardim (voice), Vinnie Colaiuta (drums) and Lenny Castro (percussion). All compositions and arrangements are by Dan.

Dan Siegel remains true to his well-established style, which moves in the melodious contemporary jazz without fashionable bonds and technical bells and whistles. His tried and tested team helps him realize his sonic dreams giving the listeners beautiful musical hours for a long time. ~Hans-Bernd Hulsmann

Origins mc
Origins zippy

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Kathy Kosins - All In A Dream's Work...

Styles: Vocal
Year: 1995
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 45:29
Size: 104,4 MB
Art: Front

(3:52)  1. I Can't Change You
(4:21)  2. Man Of My Dreams
(4:49)  3. Down To My Last Dream
(5:15)  4. Four
(3:28)  5. Lucky Guy
(4:27)  6. Nightfall
(4:33)  7. Goodbye To Nothing
(3:42)  8. Happy
(5:46)  9. Time Changes Everything
(5:13) 10. Your Smile

The subtitle that Schoolkids gave Kathy Kosins' debut album, All in a Dream's Work, was A Collection of New Standards a lofty, exaggerated subtitle, to be sure. When you're putting out a collection of mostly new, previously unrecorded material by an unknown singer, calling the songs "new standards" is incredibly presumptuous and amounts to excessive hype. But while All in a Dream's Work isn't full of songs that became well-known standards, it's a decent, if unremarkable, debut that ranges from Blue Note-ish hard bop to R&B/pop-influenced quiet storm offerings. The only song on the album that can honestly be called a standard is "Four," which was credited to Miles Davis but is said to have been written by Eddie "Cleanhead" Vinson most of the other tunes were co-written by Kosins. While "Man of My Dreams" exemplifies her quiet storm side, "I Can't Change You" and "Lucky Guy" are the type of hard-swinging bop items you would have expected to hear on a Blue Note session in the late 1950s or early '60s. 

If you took away Kosins' expressive vocals and let the songs be heard as instrumentals, it would be easy to picture them on an old Art Blakey, Hank Mobley, or Horace Silver date. This CD demonstrated that while Kosins couldn't be considered a composer of standards in 1995, she was a competent artist who was worth keeping an eye on. ~ Alex Henderson https://www.allmusic.com/album/all-in-a-dreams-work-mw0000175878    

Personnel: Kathy Kosins (vocals); Paul Shapiro (soprano saxophone); Walt Symanski, Walt Szymanski, Walter White (trumpet, flugelhorn); Bobby Routch (French horn); Jeff Franzel (piano); Warren Odze, Damon Duewhite, Steve Wolf, Pete Siers (drums).

All In A Dream's Work...

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Karel Boehlee Trio - Love Dance

Styles: Piano Jazz
Year: 2008
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 66:15
Size: 151,9 MB
Art: Front

(6:34)  1. Love Dance
(8:16)  2. The Shadow Of Your Smile
(4:56)  3. The Change Of Charly
(5:53)  4. Calling You
(6:35)  5. The Goodbye Look
(6:46)  6. Search For Peace
(5:41)  7. Rocket Love
(5:12)  8. Old Friends
(5:37)  9. Dance Cadaverous
(4:09) 10. Meditation From 'Thais'
(6:29) 11. Dance Of The Lonely Butterfly

Karel Boehlee (April 23, 1960), a pianist and composer. From his youngest years Boehlee was a revelation in the Dutch jazz scene. From his birthplace he started from his 16th to play with various bands and jazz artists. His first records were an immediate success, especially in Japan. And since 1989 he was invited with his European Jazz Trio for several performances in Japan. Over the years, Boehlee emerged himself as one of the greatest pianists in the Netherlands which resulted in performances with the very greatest international jazz musicians. He has been playing for over twenty years as a pianist with such as Toots Thielemans and Philip Catherine. He also plays regularly with our national jazz greats like Toon Roos, Fay Claasen and Trijntje Oosterhuis. He is also in demand as a session musician with pop artists like Gino Vanelli and many others. His recognizable piano playing and compositions are also increasingly being asked in Japan, Korea where Boehlee increasingly performs as a solo artist. Besides his career as a pianist Karel Boehlee is also main piano teacher at the Conservatory van Amsterdam. https://karelboehleepiano.wordpress.com/bio/

Love Dance

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Horace Silver - Safari (1952-1954)

Styles: Bop, Piano Jazz
Year: 1994
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 67:54
Size: 158,1 MB
Art: Front

(2:49)  1. Safari
(2:55)  2. Thou Swell
(2:49)  3. Yeah
(3:48)  4. Horacescope (Horoscope)
(2:50)  5. Prelude To A Kiss
(3:11)  6. Ecaroh
(3:02)  7. Quicksilver
(2:49)  8. Knowledge Box
(3:28)  9. Opus De Funk
(3:01) 10. Day In, Day Out
(3:43) 11. How About You
(3:55) 12. I Remember You
(2:37) 13. Silverware
(3:05) 14. Buhaina
(6:45) 15. Doodlin'
(7:28) 16. Creepin' In
(5:22) 17. Room 608
(4:08) 18. Stop Time

Silver's music was a major force in modern jazz on at least four counts. He was the first important pioneer of the style known as hard bop, which combined elements of rhythm-and-blues and gospel music with jazz, influencing pianists such as Bobby Timmons, Les McCann, and Ramsey Lewis. Second, the instrumentation of his quintet (trumpet, tenor saxophone, piano, double bass, and drums) served as a model for small jazz groups from the mid-1950s until the late 1960s. Further, Silver's ensembles provided an important training ground for young players, many of whom (such as Donald Byrd, Art Farmer, Blue Mitchell, Woody Shaw, Benny Golson, and Joe Henderson) later led similar groups of their own. Finally, Silver refined the art of composing and arranging for his chosen instrumentation to a level of craftsmanship as yet unsurpassed in jazz. He is a prolific composer, and one of very few jazz musicians to record almost exclusively original material; his work consistently combines simplicity and profundity in a rhythmically infectious style, which, despite its sophistication, sounds completely natural. Several of his compositions have become jazz standards, including The Preacher, Doodliti, Opus de Funk, Seflor Blues, Nica's Dream, Sister Sadie, and Song for my Father. From the mid-1960s Silver has written lyrics as well as music for a series of three quintet recordings, The United States of Mind, and recorded a number of albums featuring the quintet with ensembles of brass, woodwind, percussion, voices, and strings. His quintet continued to tour regularly in the 1980s, performing a wide range of material from his impressive and influential library of original works. ~ Editorial Reviews https://www.amazon.com/Safari-1952-1954-Horace-Silver/dp/B0000060SB

Safari (1952-1954)

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Silkie - You've Got to Hide Your Love Away

Styles: Vocal, Pop/Rock
Year: 1965
File: MP3@256K/s
Time: 47:41
Size: 91,1 MB
Art: Front

(2:15)  1. You've Got to Hide Your Love Away
(3:59)  2. Times They Are A-Changin'
(4:22)  3. Mr.Tambourine Man
(3:05)  4. Close the Door Gently
(3:53)  5. Dylan's Dream
(2:47)  6. Girl of the North Country
(2:59)  7. Blowin' in the Wind (1965)
(2:04)  8. Blood Red River
(3:13)  9. Love Minus Zero-No Limit
(3:08) 10. It Ain't Me Babe
(2:21) 11. Tomorrow Is a Long Time
(3:01) 12. City Winds
(2:37) 13. Leave Me to Cry
(2:28) 14. Keys to My Soul
(2:56) 15. Born to Be With You
(2:27) 16. I'm So Sorry

?The Silkie's sole album was unobjectionable but bland mid-1960s harmony pop-folk, similar to Peter, Paul & Mary and the Seekers, but lacking as strong a repertoire and as much vocal power as Peter, Paul & Mary (and to a lesser degree the Seekers). No less than eight of the twelve songs were covers of early Bob Dylan songs, none of them particularly creative. The two group originals were also in the anodyne pop-folk mold, making their hit Beatles cover itself no match for the John Lennon-sung original the highlight of the LP.

The CD reissue on One Way strengthens the record considerably with the addition of all four songs (three of them group originals) from their two 1966 singles. While similar to the material on the album, there's a little more grit and pop sensibility to the melodies and arrangements, although in the virtual absence of percussion, it doesn't quite cross into full-fledged folk-rock. ~ Richie Unterberger https://www.allmusic.com/album/youve-got-to-hide-your-love-away-mw0000079541     

Personnel: Ivor Aylesbury, Mike Ramsden (vocals, guitar); Sylvia Tatler (vocals); Kevin Cunningham (double bass).

You've Got to Hide Your Love Away

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Vinnie Colaiuta, Robben Ford, Jimmy Haslip - Jing Chi

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 67:10
Size: 153.8 MB
Styles: Fusion
Year: 2002
Art: Front

[8:04] 1. The Hong Kong Incident
[5:23] 2. Stan Key
[9:47] 3. Tengoku
[4:58] 4. Crazy House
[6:14] 5. Going Nowhere
[6:14] 6. Go Figure
[8:44] 7. Man In The Ring
[5:28] 8. In My Dream
[7:51] 9. Train Song
[4:22] 10. Aurora

Colaiuta: drums, programming; Robben Ford, guitars, vocals (5); Haslip: bass, keyboards, vocals (8); Brian Auger: organ (7); Dan Morris: tabla (5); Steve Tavaglione: EWI wind synthesizer, programming, keyboards.

Another Tone Center supergroup strikes gold. Ex-Zappa drummer Colaiuta joins Yellowjackets bassist Haslip and blues-jazz guitar god Ford for a pretty damned satisfactory fusion foray. The big ears and fleet fingers required to pull off music like this are present in spades, and Ford's pedigree revives the blues feeling that's been so often absent in jazz-rock outings.

This is actually a fairly relaxed set compared to some of the barn-burners Tone Center has released of late. The impression is that of three friends who decided to sit down and jam on a hot August night, aware of their chops but more interested in a tempered musical conversation. For the most part the strategy works well, keeping Jing Chi from falling into the usual trap of "sound and fury signifying nothing" that tends to plague fusion albums. Like many jazz combos, this bunch seems most at home with the blues, evidenced by Ford's rapturous wailing on tracks like "Crazy House."

There are some nice diversions here, particularly Ford's crystalline acoustic playing on a tense "Train Song" and his head-smashing metallicity on the opening of Colaiuta's "Aurora." Haslip takes a heavily synthesized vocal on the ethereal "In My Dream," a big change of pace. Colaiuta reminds us that he's a master of all kinds of grooves, his polyrhythms setting up obstacle courses for the strings to playfully navigate. Jazz-rock pioneer Brian Auger adds some hot organ to the cool drive of "Man in the Ring," and his interaction with Haslip at solo time is priceless. Steve Tavaglione's EWI synth and programming are present here and there for atmospheric support, buoyant but unobtrusive. This disc is yet another triumph for Tone Center and the great fusion revival. ~Todd S. Jenkins

Jing Chi mc
Jing Chi zippy

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Bennie Green - Walking Down

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 41:01
Size: 93.9 MB
Styles: Bop, Trombone jazz
Year: 1956/2013
Art: Front

[12:00] 1. Walkin' (Down)
[12:18] 2. The Things We Did Last Summer
[ 5:37] 3. East Of The Little Big Horn
[ 5:44] 4. It's You Or No One
[ 5:19] 5. But Not For Me

The third of Bennie Green's three Prestige albums from 1955-1956 features the personable trombonist in a quintet with the young tenor-saxophonist Eric Dixon (here showing a strong Paul Gonsalves influence), and an obscure but swinging rhythm section (composed of pianist Lloyd Mayers, bassist Sonny Wellesley, and drummer Bill English). The solos are colorful if occasionally stumbling, and the arrangements of the four standards and Green's "East of the Little Big Horn" have their share of surprises; "Walkin'" and "The Things We Did Last Summer" are taken at two different tempos while "It's You or No One," normally a ballad, really cooks. ~Scott Yanow

Walking Down

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Lisa Craze - November Daisy

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 32:21
Size: 74.1 MB
Styles: Vocal
Year: 2018
Art: Front

[3:42] 1. November Daisy
[4:19] 2. Maybe All Along
[3:51] 3. Gateway
[5:37] 4. What If The Sky (Forgot How To Rain)
[2:48] 5. Bad Feeling
[4:21] 6. Yes, It's Time
[1:57] 7. I Am Revealed
[5:42] 8. Someone Else To Know

Piano: Darrius Willrich and Robert Evangelista; Keys : Darrius Willrich; Guitar: James Howard and John Raymond; Bass : James Clark; Drums: John Stout; Flute : David Miner; Saxophone: David Miner; Clarinet: Dewey Marler; Horns ; Robert Lee; Strings: Arranged and Performed by Andrew Joslyn.

Lisa Craze is a singer/songwriter from Seattle, Washington. She sang as a child but was silent for about 30 years- instead concentrating on radio newscasts. After reconnecting with music in her church, she started performing and eventually writing and recording. Now she writes and sings songs of Love, Hope, Loss, Pain, Faith and Life. She crosses genres, knowing the Universal nature of music.

November Daisy mc
November Daisy zippy

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The John Bunch Quintet - John's Bunch

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 58:27
Size: 133.8 MB
Styles: Piano jazz
Year: 1975/2002
Art: Front

[5:09] 1. John's Bunch
[8:02] 2. Love You Madly
[4:12] 3. Who Cares
[4:29] 4. Cecily
[4:46] 5. Isfahan
[4:39] 6. Just Friends
[6:22] 7. Cecily (Take 2)
[4:01] 8. Just Friends (Take 2)
[5:16] 9. John's Bunch (Take 7)
[6:34] 10. Cecily (Take 1)
[4:51] 11. Isfahan (Take 2)

A rare set made in 1975 for Harry Lim's Famous Door label, John's Bunch finds veteran swing pianist John Bunch making his debut as a leader. He jams four standards and his own "John's Bunch" and "Cecily" in a quintet with tenor saxophonist Al Cohn, trombonist Urbie Green, bassist Milt Hinton, and drummer Mousie Alexander. It is a rare pleasure getting to hear Urbie Green (normally a studio or mood music musician) in this small-group setting, and his beautiful tone blends in well with the cool tone of Cohn. Recommended. [The CD reissue adds alternate takes to four of the six selections (with two new versions of "Cecily"), so it practically doubles the amount of music.] ~Scott Yanow

John's Bunch mc
John's Bunch zippy

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Bruce Forman Quartet - There Are Times

Styles: Guitar Jazz
Year: 1987
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 43:39
Size: 101,0 MB
Art: Front

(5:28)  1. There Are Times
(5:29)  2. Milan K
(4:25)  3. All The Things You Are
(4:50)  4. The Nearness Of You
(5:05)  5. Stella By Starlight
(4:13)  6. Con Alma
(4:33)  7. Strike Up The Band
(4:26)  8. Prelude To A Kiss
(5:05)  9. Little Rootie Tootie

Because he has spent most of his life living in northern California, guitarist Bruce Forman tends to be underrated, if not completely overlooked, but he has always been an exciting bop-oriented player. This outing with pianist George Cables, bassist Jeff Carney, drummer Eddie Marshall and guest vibraphonist Bobby Hutcherson has an excellent assortment of songs (including "All the Things You Are," "Strike Up the Band" and Thelonious Monk's "Little Rootie Tootie"), inventive solos, and an upbeat feel throughout. Recommended. ~ Scott Yanow https://www.allmusic.com/album/there-are-times-mw0000198048

Personnel: Bruce Forman (guitar); George Cables (piano); Bobby Hutcherson (vibraphone); Eddie Marshall (drums); Jeff Carney (bass).

There Are Times

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Morgana King - Simply Eloquent

Styles: Vocal
Year: 1986
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 38:06
Size: 124,5 MB
Art: Front

(4:53)  1. I Get A Kick Out Of You
(5:21)  2. Every Time We Say Goodbye
(3:22)  3. Let's Call The Whole Thing Off
(6:01)  4. Down In The Depths
(5:01)  5. It Never Entered My Mind
(3:52)  6. Will You Still Be Mine
(6:13)  7. Body And Soul
(3:18)  8. Simply Eloquent

None of the more than 30 albums recorded by singer Morgana King since the mid-'50s have been embraced by the size of the audience that bought tickets to see the first two chapters of The Godfather film trilogy, in which King acted in the role of Mama Corleone. But it would be wrong to assume she has had more impact as an actress than as a vocalist. Her acting roles, few and far between, are chosen with care, but do not have the resonance of some of her finest recordings. Millions saw her onscreen in The Godfather films, but her performance was certainly overshadowed by performers such as Robert DeNiro and Al Pacino, not to mention the famous turn by Marlon Brando as her husband. Another role of King's was in the 1997 film A Brooklyn State of Mind; she has also appeared in several television productions. It is possible that there are actors and actresses who have named Morgana King as a great inspiration. Yet, the results of a simple Internet search under her name only yielded dozens of quotes from vocalists and other musicians about the great influence of her recordings and singing style, not her work before the camera. It might not be a surprise when a young female singer gushes about King's albums, but these fans also include deeper thinkers such as classical bass virtuoso Gary Karr. References to her music also show up regularly in fiction as a kind of mood-setting device, such as: "It was a beautiful day in Malibu. He got up, made a coffee and put on a Morgana King record."    

Some record collectors might be surprised to realize that a complete set of King sides might eliminate any elbow room for, say, the discography of one of the prolific blues guitarists with this regal surname. Morgana King sides can be divided into several periods. It took her almost eight years to peak at whatever commercial success she was going to have with the 1964 A Taste of Honey album, thus ending the early years. She then was absorbed into the Atlantic and Reprise corporation and an exemplary series of releases by singers such as Big Joe Turner, Ruth Brown, Lavern Baker, and Ray Charles. The label's greatest producers stared the oncoming rock & roll in the eye, never forgetting their basic R&B orientation. Within a few years, a sub-category developed, seen through paisley glasses. The material became more philosophical, the increasing intellectual depth not surprisingly accompanied by the audience stampeding in the opposite direction. This might make sense, though; while 1965's The Winter of My Discontent is a masterpiece, 1968's Gemini Changes is laughably pretentious. By the early '70s she was anxious to get into films, the music business pushing away any and all veteran talent. Later in the decade she launched the mature period of her career, though, once again recording as more of a jazz-flavored artist for Muse, a label which in itself indicates a disinterest in pop culture. The label was loyal to her, regularly recording her through the following decade. This material was reissued in the late '90s by the 32 Jazz label, whose honcho, Joel Dorn, also presided over the reissue of her Reprise sides. If a special sort of bittersweet feeling pervades her later performances, perhaps it has something to do with this return to her jazz singing roots. Her father had been a performer of folk and popular music on voice and guitar, and she had begun singing in nightclubs such as Basin Street in New York City when she was in her mid-twenties.

Only a few years earlier, she had been immersed in classical studies at the Metropolitan School of Music. Basin Street may have been in the same city, but it must have seemed like a completely different musical world. The formal training undoubtedly filled in aspects of her musical walk where some of her peers might have had to limp. For this reason alone, some listeners find her efforts the most swinging of the '60s generation of pop singers. It meant much critical acclaim during her career, if not great commercial success. At many stages, King seems to have been making other plans. For the 1960 Encyclopedia of Jazz by Leonard Feather, she lists this ambition: "To become a dramatic actress." ~ Eugene Chadbourne https://www.allmusic.com/artist/morgana-king-mn0000501436/biography

Personnel:  Vocals – Bill Mays , Morgana King;  Bass – Steve La Spina;  Drums – Adam Nussbau;  Flute, Clarinet, Soprano Saxophone, Alto Saxophone, Tenor Saxophone – Ted Nash;  Keyboards – Bill Mays

Simply Eloquent

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