Francesca Leone Quartet - Racing Against Time

Styles: Vocal
Year: 2017
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 50:45
Size: 117,6 MB
Art: Front

(3:18) 1. Eu Preciso Aprender a Ser Só
(3:23) 2. Fascinating Rhythm
(4:53) 3. Composed on Piano for Mal Waldron
(4:52) 4. Wide Awake
(4:48) 5. Emily
(5:37) 6. Funk in Deep Freeze
(5:00) 7. 16 Tuxedos over a Blue Curtain / From Mingus to Duke
(7:41) 8. So in Love
(6:31) 9. Que reste-t-il de nos amours
(4:35) 10. Racing Against Time

Francesca Leone (born in Bari in 1974) is an Italian jazz singer. In 1993 she began studying singing at Il Pentagramma (The Pentagram), a music school in Bari, with Mariella Carbonara. She deepened her study of jazz singing and improvisation with Paola Arnesano, and also became a member of a female vocal quartet called The Four Sisters. Over the years, she has furthered her training by participating in events such as the Umbria Jazz Festival, seminars with Tiziana Ghiglioni, Sheila Jordan, at the seminar on vocal harmony with Charles Lomanto and Voicecraft techniques with Roberto Demo. She has also participated in workshops with Dado Moroni, Roberto Gatto, Gilson Silveira, Bobby Durham, and Irio De Paola, and won a scholarship in 2007 at the Spoleto Vocal Jazz Workshop that is held each summer in Spoleto, Umbria, under the tutelage of Michele Hendricks.

Leone teaches vocal jazz at Il Pentagramma. Her singing style is inspired by singers of the 50s, and the Francesca Leone Quartet release, A Tribute To Chet Baker, is a tribute to the great singer and trumpet player who performs with his quartet. Leone also collaborates with Pippo Lombardo in his project, Marchio Bossa, and has appeared on several of the group's albums, including Italian Lounge Music, No Bossa No Party, Best Of Lounge - Fantasy, and Colorando under the Azzurra Music label. All the Way: The Jimmy Van Heusen Songbook (2006) is Leone's first CD as leader with Guido Di Leone, Teo Ciavarella, and Aldo Vigorito for the jazz records label, fo(u)r.

Sensitive to the Brazilian sounds and rhythms inspired by João Gilberto, she formed the Francesca Leone Quartet together with Guido Di Leone, Giuseppe De Lilla and Fabio Delle Foglie, and the foursome recorded Bossa na minha casa ("Bossa in my house") in 2008. In 2004, Leone had also formed the vocal quintet Mezzotono, and together they won the prize for best a cappella group at the 2008 Solevoci Festival in Varese, and in June 2008 released their album, Mezzotono. https://www.last.fm/music/Francesca+Leone/+wiki

Racing Against Time

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Ches Smith and We All Break - Path of Seven Colors

Styles: Latin Jazz
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 68:41
Size: 160,5 MB
Art: Front

( 2:41) 1. Woule Pou Mwen
( 9:05) 2. Here's the Light
( 9:39) 3. Leaves Arrive
( 6:07) 4. Women of Iron
(13:35) 5. Lord of Healing
( 7:05) 6. Raw Urbane
( 8:57) 7. Path of Seven Colors
(11:29) 8. The Vulgar Cycle

Drummer/percussionist Ches Smith, an acclaimed bandleader and seasoned Tim Berne sideman, is also a devoted student of Haitian music and traditional drumming. Path of Seven Colors is the culmination of a long and immersive process, essentially a dream come true for this son of Sacramento based in New York. Collaborating with Haitian singer/lyricist and percussionist Daniel Brevil, Smith formed We All Break, which started as a unique four-piece with Brevil on vocals and tanbou drum, Markus Schwartz on tanbou as well, Smith on drum set, and Matt Mitchell (Smith’s Tim Berne bandmate) on piano. In 2017, that group quietly made an eponymous album, now being offered as a bonus disc to accompany the new, more expansive Path of Seven Colors.

Alto saxophonist Miguel Zenón, whose own work has explored connections between cutting-edge jazz and traditional Puerto Rican idioms, broadens the palette of Path of Seven Colors with his beautifully centered tone and flawless melodic execution at all speeds. Nick Dunston adds bottom on upright bass while driving the rhythm and filling an ensemble role with subtle notated parts, bowed passages, and other curveballs. Schwartz, the Danish-born, Brooklyn-based master of traditional Haitian drums, returns on tanbou and also joins the choral circle for spellbinding vocal chants in Haitian Creole with Brevil, Sirene Dantor Rene, and Fanfan Jean-Guy Rene (who plays tanbou as well). Smith joins the Creole chanting circle himself, as can be seen in Mimi Chakarova’s beautiful 50-minute documentary on the making of the album.

Mitchell’s piano provides harmonic density and dreamlike dissonance, locking in rhythmically at every juncture. He and Zenón improvise like fiends, the tanbou drums groove and ring out, the massed voices rise to sing Brevil’s gorgeous original melodies and traditional Haitian ones as well. Demanding and highly virtuosic in character, the music has a strong African imprint and an inescapably emotional pull — not least because this album release coincides with a new period of political dislocation in Haiti. Smith’s approach is ambitious yet humble and highly personal, a gesture of support to the Haitian people and a love letter to the musical culture they’ve made. https://music.apple.com/us/album/path-of-seven-colors/1554582490

Personnel: Ches Smith: drums, percussion, vocals; Miguel Zenón: alto saxophone; Matt Mitchell: piano; Nick Dunston: bass; Sirene Dantor Rene: vocals; Daniel Brevil, Markus Schwartz and Fanfan Jean-Guy Rene: tanbou, vocals.

Path of Seven Colors

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Tommy Dorsey, Jimmy Dorsey - Swingin' In Hollywood

Styles: Jazz, Swing, Big Band
Year: 1998
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 75:14
Size: 176,9 MB
Art: Front

(4:13)  1. We'll Get It
(2:53)  2. Song Of India
(5:52)  3. So Long, Sarah Jane
(3:28)  4. If I Had You
(3:19)  5. Thunder And Blazes
(3:52)  6. Katie Went To Hati
(3:17)  7. Hawaiian War Chant
(2:38)  8. You Dear
(3:52)  9. One O'Clock Jump
(2:50) 10. Noche De Ronda
(3:06) 11. Milkman Keep Those Bottles Quiet
(2:58) 12. I Know Its Wrong
(2:29) 13. Battle Of The Balcony Jive
(3:23) 14. I Should Care
(3:01) 15. National Emblem March
(3:16) 16. John Silver
(3:16) 17. The Guy With The Slide Trombone
(3:25) 18. Boy! What Love Has Done To Me!
(5:06) 19. Star Eyes
(5:26) 20. Fascinating Rhythm
(3:23) 21. Opus One

Although credited to the Dorsey Brothers, this is not a collection of collaborations or duets, just an anthology of tracks that one or the other of the brothers filmed and recorded for MGM soundtracks in 1942-1945. It's actually much more weighted toward Tommy (who has 13 of the 21 sides) than Jimmy; it's mostly instrumental, but vocalists like Bob Eberly, Helen O'Connell, and Nancy Walker are featured on some of the selections. The sound is good, and as a dozen of the items were previously unreleased (with 13 appearing for the first time in stereo), Dorsey collectors will consider this indispensable. For the more general fan, it's not the first place to get acquainted with their work, but it's quite respectable early-'40s swing. In general, it's more effective the harder and faster it swings  as on Jimmy's extended version of "One O'Clock Jump," and Tommy's "Battle of the Balcony Jive" and "Opus One"  and the less it resembles movie musicals.~ Richie Unterberger https://www.allmusic.com/album/swingin-in-hollywood-mw0000599571

Swingin'In Hollywood

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Lina Nyberg & Jacob Karlzon - Temper

Styles: Vocal

Year: 1997

File: MP3@320K/s

Time: 46:35

Size: 106,8 MB

Art: Front

(3:53)  1. One More Hymn

(4:30)  2. It Might As Well Be Spring

(4:49)  3. Sometime Ago

(5:06)  4. Invitation

(5:18)  5. Embraceable You

(4:28)  6. What If

(3:53)  7. On What A Beautiful Morning

(5:36)  8. CC Rider

(5:17)  9. Now At Last

(3:40) 10. Still Alive

Lina Nyberg was born in Stockholm, Sweden in 1970 and raised in an artistic home. She discovered jazz at age 14 and at 18 years of age Lina began singing with Swedish senior jazz stars such as Bernt Rosengren, Nisse Sandström, Fredrik Norén Band, and others. In 1990 Lina built her own first constellation “Lina Nyberg Kvintett” consisting of Per “Texas” Johansson, Esbjörn Svensson, Dan Berglund and Mikel Ulfberg. After gratuating from the Royal College of Music in Stockholm as a Master of Fine Arts in 1993 she released her first CD- Close (Prophone records). A duo recording with late pianist Esbjörn Svensson. An instant success and Swedish jazz classic. This was also the beginning of a very fruitful cooperation with the brilliant producer and owner of Prophone records, late Erland Boëthius. Lina and her quintet received the prestigious Swedish Grammis award for her CD “when the smile shines through” in 1995. “OPEN” released in 1998 and recorded with bassist Palle Danielsson and pianist Anders Persson, among others, was nominated for a Swedish Grammis and received raving reviews. More ..http://www.linanyberg.se/?page_id=45

Temper

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Angela Hagenbach - The Way They Make Me Feel

Bitrate: 320K/s
Time: 60:07
Size: 137.6 MB
Label: Resonance
Styles: Jazz vocals
Year: 2009
Art: Front

[5:47] 1. Cinnamon And Clove
[5:09] 2. Slow Hot Wind
[4:41] 3. Summer Me, Winter Me
[7:32] 4. I Will Wait For You
[4:18] 5. Quietly There
[5:05] 6. Sure As You're Born
[5:59] 7. Close Enough For Love
[5:33] 8. Charade
[4:59] 9. Whistling Away The Dark
[6:55] 10. His Eyes, Her Eyes
[4:05] 11. The Way He Makes Me Feel

For Angela Hagenbach's debut album on Resonance Records, The Way They Make Me Feel, producer George Klabin devised a unique approach: most contemporary jazz vocal albums are a hodge podge of various songs by different writers, while others are songbooks devoted to a single composer or lyricist. The Way They Make Me Feel, contrastingly, combines the best songs of three venerated musical giants whose work collectively defines a key era of American music: Michel Legrand, Henry Mancini, and Johnny Mandel. Hagenbach reports that Klabin thought of the album title - a play on the Legrand classic "The Way He Makes Me Feel" (from Yentl) even before the two of them had finished selecting the songs. Pre-selecting the title was a new approach for the Kansas City-based singer who served as producer and AR director on each of her five previous albums for her own label, Amazon Records® "My methods are quite different," she says, "yet each of my projects has its own uniqueness. I'm certainly pleased with the results of this debut."

Angela Hagenbach: vocals; Tamir Hendelman: piano; Kevin Axt: bass; Bill Wysaske: drums; Steve Wilkerson: reeds; Willie Murillo: trumpet; Frank Marocco: accordion; Larry Koonse: guitar; Peter Kent: concertmaster, violin; Strings: Sharon Jackson, Vladimir Polamiditi, Cameron Patrick, Shari Zippert, Susan Chatman, Gina Kronstadt, Kathleen Robertson; Kuno Schmid: Piano & String orchestra arrangements.

The Way They Make Me Feel

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V.A.- Ice on the Hudson: Songs by Renee Rosnes & David Hajdu

Styles: Vocal
Year: 2018
File: MP3@128K/s
Time: 51:12
Size: 48,5 MB
Art: Front

(5:11) 1. A Tiny Seed
(5:13) 2. I Used to Like to Draw
(3:13) 3. Trotsky in Mexico
(3:42) 4. All But You
(3:24) 5. To Meet My Brother
(6:17) 6. The Passage
(6:34) 7. Little Pearl
(3:01) 8. I Like Pie
(5:34) 9. Ice on the Hudson
(3:42) 10. I Still Feel the Same
(5:17) 11. Confound Me

Ice on the Hudson features vocalists René Marie, Janis Siegel, Darius de Haas and Karen Oberlin and an all-star ensemble interpreting diverse songs about the emotional complexities of adult life in today’s world. There’s a special chemistry that’s found only in the rarest of songwriting partnerships, forever linking the names of composer and lyricist in the minds of listeners. The names Renee Rosnes and David Hajdu are already well known to music lovers: Rosnes as one of her generation’s most acclaimed jazz composers and pianists, Hajdu as an award-winning author and critic. With Ice on the Hudson, their first collaborative album of songs, the pair reveals a breathtaking synergy, crafting a collection of deeply felt and genre-defying songs that join words and music with alchemical results.

Ice on the Hudson, due outOctober 12 via SMK Jazz (a newly launched imprint curated by Smoke Sessions Records), brings together four magnificent vocalists: revered, GRAMMY® Award-nominated jazz singer René Marie; Manhattan Transfer co-founder and nine-time GRAMMY® winner Janis Siegel, celebrated musical-theater actor and art-song interpreter Darius de Haas; and acclaimed jazz/pop performer Karen Oberlin. Their voices are matched by a stunning ensemble, featuring Rosnes at the piano along with cellist Erik Friedlander, saxophonists Steve Wilson and Seamus Blake, clarinetist Ken Peplowski, bassist Sean Smith, drummer Carl Allen, and percussionist Rogerio Boccato. While both Rosnes and Hajdu can boast considerable accomplishments in their respective fields, songwriting was a fairly new endeavor for both. Rosnes had had a handful of instrumental compositions set to lyrics, and Hajdu had collaborated on a few songs with Fred Hersch and others. When Rosnes and Hajdu decided to try writing together, five years ago, “Everything clicked,” in Hajdu’s words.

“Renee is one of the most gifted, most sophisticated and most creative composers alive,” Hajdu says. “I consider myself the luckiest boy in the music world for getting to write with this flat-out genius. We both enjoy the exhilarating thrill of doing something that we care about, that draws on our professional and life experiences, but that provides a whole new set of challenges for us.” For Rosnes, who has long drawn inspiration for her own music from sources as diverse as the natural world and the visual arts, the partnership has given her rich depths of emotion and narrative to plumb. “David is a powerful and compelling storyteller,” she says, “and each of his lyrics has many layers and great substance. It’s been a fulfilling experience to take his words and search for melodies that truly allow the story to shine through.” Given the tantalizing complexity of Hajdu’s words, Rosnes found herself exploring a wide range of sensibilities, never concerned with genre. Ultimately, while some pieces fit comfortably into the jazz songwriting tradition of Jon Hendricks or Bob Dorough, others evoke the world of musical theater or such respected singer-songwriters as Joni Mitchell or Randy Newman. “When I embarked on this project with David, I put the idea of genre out of my mind,” she explains. “I was most interested in allowing the lyrics to inspire and move me in whatever direction that musically translated to.”

“A Tiny Seed” opens the album with a parable both timeless and timely, about a wall-building king and the seemingly small detail that grows to topple his kingdom. Marie’s wry, soulful vocal offers inspiration to those hoping to turn such fairy tales into reality. Her serpentine lines bring an exotic mystery to “Little Pearl,” a reinterpretation of Rosnes’ instrumental “The Quiet Earth.” Siegel’s voice seems to float into a whimsical daydream on “I Used to Like to Draw,” a tender reminiscence of the childhood days when we all gave vent to our imaginations, before the supposed reality of adult life quashed such fancies. Siegel also sings “The Passage,” which takes the natural splendor that inspired Rosnes’ instrumental piece “Gabriola Passage” into the realm of transcendence. On the title track, “Ice on the Hudson,” she takes the bizarre fact that the Hudson River flows both upstream and downstream as a metaphor for the often contradictory aspects of grown-up reality one of several instances of complex ideas that stem from the collaboration between two artists with a wealth of life experience.

Oberlin offers a bit of culinary respite from the world’s divisiveness on the playful “I Like Pie” and a bit of romantic perspective on “I Still Feel the Same.” The moving “All But You” builds from scraps of both songwriters’ biographies to paint a picture of living with a missing someone. Rosnes suggested a song based on her experience as an adopted child wondering about her birth parents, which Hajdu countered with his own background. “Renee said it felt strange growing up not knowing who her biological parents were, but my father sat at the dinner table with me every night my whole life, and I don’t know who my father was either. We share that feeling of a hole in your life, that there are people who could have been there who were not.” Hajdu based “To Meet My Brother” on the tragic loss of his sister and the feeling of wanting to be reunited, whatever the cost. Darius de Haas brings tender yearning to that piece and an urgent sensuality to “Confound Me.” His knack for theatrical drama illuminates “Trotsky in Mexico,” a Sondheim-like musing on the Russian revolutionary’s fling with Frida Kahlo. https://reneerosnes.com/music/ice-on-the-hudson-the-songs-of-renee-rosnes-david-hajdu/

Vocalists: Janis Siegel; Karen Oberlin; René Marie; Darius de Haas

Musicians:Renee Rosnes, piano; Steve Wilson, alto & soprano sax; Seamus Blake, tenor sax; Ken Peplowski, clarinet; Erik Friedlander, cello; Sean Smith, bass; Carl Allen, drums; Rogerio Boccato, percussion

Ice on the Hudson: Songs by Renee Rosnes & David Hajdu

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Jo Jones - Jo Jones Trio

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 40:02
Size: 91.7 MB
Styles: Contemporary jazz
Year: 1959/2009
Art: Front

[2:37] 1. Sweet Georgia Brown
[2:49] 2. My Blue Heaven
[3:46] 3. Jive At Five
[2:51] 4. Greensleeves
[3:17] 5. When Your Lover Has Gone
[3:20] 6. Philadelphia Bound
[3:24] 7. Close Your Eyes
[3:12] 8. I Got Rhythm (Part I)
[3:01] 9. I Got Rhythm (Part Ii)
[3:46] 10. Embraceable You
[3:53] 11. Bebop Irishman
[4:01] 12. Little Susie

Jo Jones on drums, Ray Bryant on piano, and Tommy Bryant on bass.

Jo Jones is probably best known for his work with Count Basie, but his small-group dates as a leader, though overlooked, are also very rewarding. The veteran drummer is joined by pianist Ray Bryant and his brother, bassist Tommy Bryant, who both worked with Jones between 1957 and 1960. The trio is effortlessly swinging through two contrasting interpretations of "I Got Rhythm," and a version of "Jive at Five" features Jones drumming with just his hands. Equally enjoyable are the trio's treatments of "Greensleeves" and standards like "Sweet Georgia Brown" and "Embraceable You," which they could have likely played in their sleep. The pulsating closing blues "Little Susie" is a collaborative effort. While Everest developed a reputation as a budget label in the 1970s due to poor packaging and its frequent omission credits for the musicians and composers, this 1959 LP treats the musicians with the respect they deserve, adding warm liner notes by Nat Hentoff. This long-unavailable album will be somewhat difficult to find. ~Ken Dryden

Jo Jones Trio

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Pasquale Grasso - Pasquale Plays Duke

Styles: Guitar Jazz
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 56:08
Size: 129,1 MB
Art: Front

(3:45) 1. It Don't Mean a Thing
(5:21) 2. Blue Rose
(4:19) 3. Prelude to a Kiss
(4:52) 4. Solitude
(3:54) 5. Cotton Tail
(4:22) 6. Warm Valley
(4:56) 7. Mood Indigo
(4:41) 8. In a Sentimental Mood
(3:34) 9. Wig Wise
(4:26) 10. All Too Soon
(3:46) 11. Day Dream
(4:19) 12. In a Mellow Tone
(3:46) 13. Reflections in D

When you hear what sounds like two guitars playing together and then discover there’s only one, you can be pretty sure it’s in the hands of Pasquale Grasso. It is generally agreed that this 33-year-old Italian virtuoso, now resident in New York, has raised guitar technique to a new and terrifyingly high level. Terrifying, that is, to other guitarists who have been goggling at a series of video clips and digital-only recordings over the past few months. Now here’s something for the rest of us, a whole album of Duke Ellington tunes.

In the very first minute of the first track, It Don’t Mean a Thing, I had to remind myself that the melody, orchestral accompaniment and sundry flourishes were all the simultaneous work of one man on six strings. Grasso’s improvised solo is quite brilliant, too. The slow ballads with their subtle harmonies are tastefully restrained, while I have never heard Cotton Tail taken as fast as it is here. There are guest singers Samara Joy and Sheila Jordan and, on most tracks, drummer Keith Balla and bassist Ari Roland, who contributes an impossibly intricate solo with the bow.

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Pasquale Plays Duke

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Carmen McRae - Song Time

Styles: Vocal
Year: 1993
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 44:21
Size: 103,1 MB
Art: Front

(2:02) 1. I'm Gonna Lock My Heart
(1:07) 2. Thou Swell
(2:26) 3. Fly Me To The Moon
(1:32) 4. Miss Brown To You
(2:28) 5. Make Someone Happy
(2:46) 6. I Left My Heart In San Francisco
(2:09) 7. Just A Gigolo
(3:48) 8. Just In Time
(2:46) 9. Guess Who I Saw Today?
(1:55) 10. He Loves Me
(2:21) 11. Sounds Of Silence
(2:43) 12. MacArthur Park
(3:08) 13. Star Dust
(2:21) 14. Day By Day
(3:08) 15. I Got It Bad (And That Ain't Good)
(2:15) 16. The Right To Love
(2:58) 17. Alfie
(2:18) 18. Walking Happy

In the 1960s Carmen McRae did several sessions for a public-service radio series called The Navy Swings. They were 15-minute shows, with Navy recruiting spiels between songs, so the performances are miniatures two or three minuts long. The repertoire is familiar from her LPs of the time (when her voice was in its prime), but the intimate setting of the piano trio rather than the orchestral backdrop makes the rediscovery of these tapes especially welcome.~Les Line https://www.allmusic.com/album/song-time-mw0000120232

Song Time

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Enrico Rava & Joe Lovano - Roma

Styles: Trumpet And Saxophone Jazz
Year: 2019
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 66:14
Size: 152,2 MB
Art: Front

(15:07) 1. Interiors
( 9:46) 2. Secrets
(12:32) 3. Fort Worth
( 9:57) 4. Divine Timing
(18:49) 5. Spiritual, Over The Rainbow & Drum Song

Pristinely recorded in November 2018, at Rome's Auditorium Parco della Musica, Roma rises from fertile, anticipatory mists like a great host of ECM recordings past, present, and future do and will. Quietly coalescing around the polyphonic, noir-impressionism of master Italian trumpeter Enrico Rava's vaporous "Interiors" are Rava's masterful saxophone counterpart Joe Lovano, accompanied by the avant derring-do of long-time Rava collaborator pianist Giovanni Guidi, double bassist Dezron Douglas and drummer Gerald Cleaver.

Though it is the first time Rava and Lovano have recorded together it is still par for both that all five of the expansively spirited tracks hold their own slippery atmospheres, giving these crafty improvisers plenty of leeway and free range to take the music where it wants to go and how they take it there. For these forward-thinkers, Rava's "Secrets" may be a somewhat traditional piece but, with the horns trading heads and Cleaver's decisive pinpoint accuracy, it is anything but. The same can be said for Lovano's fever-paced "Fort Worth," even with its marked swing time and blues. This is a jam's jam with Lovano wailing, Rava's levelling lines, Guidi sailing, and Douglas and Cleaver pushing the abandon

It could be argued that "Fort Worth" is Roma's highlight, but then where would that put the exquisite closing medley that gorgeously sweeps in Lovano's "Drum Song" drawn from one of his peak recordings, Folk Art (2009, Blue Note) John Coltrane's quixotic "Spiritual" and the ravishing, breath-capturing "Over The Rainbow" that Guidi pulls from the fraying sprawls of "Spiritual" and quietly, pastorally brings Roma to a glorious close.~ MIKE JURKOVIC https://www.allaboutjazz.com/roma-enrico-rava-ecm-records-review-by-mike-jurkovic

Personnel: Enrico Rava - Trumpet; Joe Lovano - Tenor Saxophone, Tarogato; Giovanni Guidi - Piano; Dezron Douglas - Double Bass; Gerald Cleaver - Drums

Roma

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Viktorija Pilatovic - Nica's Blues - EP

Styles: Vocal
Year: 2013
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 28:57
Size: 66,7 MB
Art: Front

(5:19)  1. We Could Solve That
(4:35)  2. Clowns
(4:34)  3. Boplicity
(4:27)  4. I Get a Kick Out of You
(4:41)  5. Four
(5:19)  6. Nica's Blues

Since August 2013 Viktorija Pilatovic has been a Faculty member of USFQ College of Music, Berklee College of Music International Network Member School in Quito, Ecuador, where she is a professor of Jazz Vocal Performance. She is a new artist for Greg Osby's "Inner Circle Music" label. Her debut album "Nica's blues" is available online. Viktorija was invited to take part in The First International Festival of Jazz Improvisation skills Master-Jam Fest in Odessa, Ukraine on the 5th-8th of June 2013. The Festival gathered 43 musicians from all over the world. In November 2012 Viktorija Pilatovic Quintet was an opening act for Chris Dave and Drumheadz at Vilnius Mama Jazz Festival involving artists as : Wallace Roney and Ravi Coltrane. In October 2012, jazz singer, composer and arranger Viktorija Pilatovic performed her original composition “We Could Solve That” with internationally renowned bassist Victor Wooten in Valencia, Spain’s iconic Palau de les Arts Reina Sofia performing arts complex, complete with a rhythm section and backing vocals all scored by the young artist herself. Her unique arrangement and composition skills were quickly noticed when she arrived at Berklee Valencia in September of 2012 to persue her Masters in Contemporary Studio Performance on a full ride scholarship. 

In just a few months after her arrival, Viktorija was invited to perform at the Berklee Yamaha All-Stars Concert alongside music legends bassist Abraham Laboriel, saxaphonist Perico Sambeat and vibraphonist Victor Mendoza, in addition to performing her arrangement of “So What” by Miles Davis with a vocal ensemble and backing band at Berklee Valencia’s Welcome Lecture for Berklee College of Music President Roger Brown, Valencian government officials and local media. Earlier in 2012, Viktorija found herself the only student invited to participate at the AEC Pop and Jazz Platform in Lille, France, representing the young jazz generation amongst a number of music professionals, discussing teaching methods and the future of jazz education. In March 2012, she found herself performing as a solo artist with PCC Sympho-Jazz orchestra conducted by the legendary John Clayton. In July she performed at the Montreux Jazz Festival in Montreux, Switzerland. These accomplishments were made possible by Viktorija’s dedication and perserverance to her craft, starting in the early years of childhood.

Viktorija was born on the 12th of March in 1989 in Klaipeda, Lithuania. At the age of 6 she started playing classical piano, winning many Carl Czerny Piano Competitions.  Throughout her childhood, she took part in many children ensembles performing all over country. In 2007, she began her Bachelor studies in Jazz Vocal at the Lithuanian Academy of Music and Theatre.  Since then, she has participated in a number of Jazz contests, such as the International Jazz Vocal Competition in 2008, 2009 and 2010, winning 1st prize in 'Jazz Fountain 2008'.  In 2009, Viktorija was invited to take part in “Klaipeda’s Sea Festival”, appearing at The Tall Ships’ Races where she performed with The National Big-Band, recieving live coverage from Lithuanian national TV and radio.  In 2008, the young artist performed at a festival in Naggar, Himachal Pradesh, India hosted by the International Roerich Memorial Trust. In 2010, Viktorija moved to The Netherlands to further her jazz studies at Prins Claus Conservatorium. Here her style evolved from traditional to contemporary jazz, fusing a number of styles and colors. Viktorija took lessons from J.D. Walter, Ralph Peterson, Alex Sipiagin, David Berkman, Don Braden, Jeff Cascaro, Joris Teepe, Freddie Bryant, Gene Jackson and Robin Eubanks. In 2011, Viktorija won 3rd prize at the The Nederland Jazz Vocalisten Concours for her completely original arrangement of the famous standard “My Favorite Things”, featuring a solid bass line, modal harmonies and odd time signatures.  The show was broadcasted on Radio 6 The Netherlands.  Also in 2011, Viktorija toured Athens, Greece with guitarist and vocalist  Adedeji Adetayo.  Following the tour, she returned to Greece with her female jazz Group “The Sound Of Reflection” after the request by many, where they spent playing almost every night for a month. Viktorija’s success shows no signs of stopping.

She now holds two bachelor’s degrees, one from the Prins Claus Conservatorium and one from the Lithuanian Academy of Music and Theater.  She is currently studying for her Master's Degree in the Contemporary Studio Performance program at the Berklee College of Music, Valencia Campus. During this time, Viktorija continues to develop arrangements and original compositions with a unique for a wide variety of ensembles at Berklee while strengthening her business skills at the university and developing her own teaching methods.  On top of all this, Viktorija is working on her debut album featuring original compositions and unique arrangement of jazz standards, fusing jazz, hip-hop and soul, with an expected release of late 2013.  While this young talent is busy working on a number of musical endeavors with a whirlwind of success, it is clear the only direction she is headed is up.  http://www.viktorijapilatovic.com/#!biography/c10fk

Nica's Blues - EP

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Janice Hagan - Music & Cuisine: Halloween Party

Styles: Vocal
Year: 2013
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 75:02
Size: 174,1 MB
Art: Front

( 4:30)  1. Evil Ways
( 5:07)  2. That Old Black Magic
( 4:08)  3. Ding, Dong the Witch Is Dead
( 4:19)  4. People Are Strange
( 4:49)  5. Witchy Woman
( 5:12)  6. I Put a Spell on You
( 4:38)  7. Spooky
( 4:06)  8. Black Magic Woman
( 4:58)  9. Witchcraft
( 4:36) 10. Monster Mash
( 3:29) 11. Bad Moon Rising
( 4:55) 12. Welcome to My Nightmare
(20:11) 13. Spooky Sound Effects

Gather your friends for a spooktacular evening featuring devilishly delicious cocktail party fare and swingin' versions of Halloween hits. The Cuisine: Cocktails: Witches Brew Black Magic Nuclear Runoff Electric Ghoul Ade Soups + Dips: Pumpkin Soup Chilled Blood Soup Slime Dip Guacamoldy Appetizers: Wonton Ghosts Spicy Bat Wings Devilish Eggs Spiced Cauliflower 'Brains' Pumpkin Seeds Three Ways Mini Cornbread Muffins Apple Bites Finger Food Desserts: Mini Pumpkin Cupcakes Poison Apples Dem Bones Mmmmummys
https://www.amazon.in/Music-Cuisine-Halloween-Kenny-Vehkavaara/dp/B003YDIE12

Music & Cuisine: Halloween Party

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Rock Candy Funk Party - We Want Grooove

Styles: Jazz Funk
Year: 2013
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 67:06
Size: 153,9 MB
Art: Front

( 4:39)  1. Octopus-E
( 5:50)  2. Spaztastic
( 8:05)  3. Ode To Gee
( 6:10)  4. We Want Groove
(10:36)  5. The Best Ten Minutes Of Your Life
( 7:15)  6. Animal/Work
( 3:47)  7. Dope On A Rope
( 5:00)  8. Root Down (And Get It)
(15:40)  9. New York Song

This quartet repurposes the jazz-funk sounds of yesteryear into a tasteful, eclectic mix, packed with memorable compositions and aided by the crystalline recording process, enabling the music to breathe amid great detail and depth. Featuring blues-rock guitar hero Joe Bonamassa trading licks with guitarist Ron DeJesus, Rock Candy Funk Party was recorded at drummer Tal Bergman's studio, denoting the band's debut. Rock Candy Funk Party is a production that sports a festive aura, We Want Groove are prophets of good cheer. The album emanated from Bergman and DeJesus' Groove Vol. 1 (2007, Independent) followed by live performances, ultimately leading to the We Want Groove aggregation. The musicians' collective resumes comprise gigs and performances with top rock, jazz and pop acts, spanning multiple genres, and their sensibilities and approaches to various musical platforms are impeccably transposed to disc.

The jazz-funk, soul brew is often given a bluesy touch by Bonamassa who is situated on the left channel while DeJesus is heard on the right channel, tendering a well-defined soundstage. In a loose sense the guitarists are role players, alternating between the jazz, funk and blues-rock idioms. One of the more prominent examples of the retro vibe is "The Best Ten Minutes of Your Life," which could parallel a soundtrack from one of the old Blaxploitation flicks with inferences to the late, blues and funk guitarist Johnny "Guitar" Watson's oozing notes and trickling phraseology, tinted with echo and reverb. Otherwise, keyboardist Renato Neto kicks the proceedings off with spacey and dream-laden Fender Rhodes treatments, followed by bassist Mike Merritt distinct groove-building and Bergman's simple metronomic hi-hat pulse. With breezy and drifting synth overlays, the guitarists eventually spawn a counter-melody to inject a tuneful theme built on effective use of space via a multi-hued outline, piloting a blissful primary melody. 

They inject multi-colored sound-shaping mechanisms into this piece that also benefits from an insightful production, designed with a Midas touch. One of the enthralling aspects of the album, other than the solid material and stellar audio engineering, pertains to the bands manifold rhythmic flows and perceptive use of dynamics. Of course the dance-ability factors are prevalent throughout, but it's a hybrid concoction that yields significant rewards where the old synchronizes with the new, as the group artfully contemporizes and uplifts the tried and true. ~ Glenn Astarita  http://www.allaboutjazz.com/rock-candy-funk-party-joe-bonamassa-j-and-r-adventures-review-by-glenn-astarita.php
 

Personnel: Joe Bonamassa: guitars; Ron DeJesus: guitars; Mike Merritt: bass; Renato Neto: keyboards; Tal Bergman: drums, percussion.

We Want Grooove

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Ann Richards, Stan Kenton - Two Much!

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 40:04
Size: 91.7 MB
Styles: Jazz vocals
Year: 1961/2017
Art: Front

[3:53] 1. It's A Wonderful World
[3:59] 2. The Morning After (The Night Before)
[3:52] 3. I Was The Last One To Know
[4:34] 4. My Kinda Love
[4:07] 5. I Got Rhythm
[4:34] 6. No Moon At All
[3:46] 7. Don't Be That Way
[4:07] 8. Suddenly I'm Sad
[3:13] 9. Nobody Like My Baby
[3:53] 10. All Or Nothing At All

Ann Richards never received the same acclamation as her more famous vocal predecessors with the Stan Kenton Orchestra, Anita O'Day, June Christy, and Chris Connor. While these three went on to carve out successful careers as singles, Richards, after her divorce from Kenton, slowly sank into obscurity. With a style closer in style to O'Day's, Richards could swing out a tune with the best of them and could scat with vim and verve. She demonstrates these talents on "It's a Wonderful World" and "All or Nothing at All." She could also credibly deliver on blues tunes as on "The Morning After (The Night Before)." Richards could move to a lower range and get torchy, which she does on "My Kinda Love." Then she slow-drags "I Got Rhythm," riding atop the doleful tones of the trombone section and a muted trumpet. While he didn't have the big names that peppered earlier bands, this Kenton group could swing and play as a cohesive group. Like all Kenton bands, it featured the high note blaring trumpet. Here it's Bud Brisbois that supplied the upper atmospheric notes on the horn. There are a couple of selections where Richards is backed by just a small group, as on "No Moon at All," where she doesn't have to compete with the larger aggregation, showing off her voice to its full advantage. With a slim discography, this album is an important contribution to the legacy of a good singer whose career was far too short. ~Dave Nathan

Two Much!

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Gregoire Maret, Romain Collin & Bill Frisell - Americana

Styles: Harmonica, Piano And Guitar Jazz
Year: 2020
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 54:31
Size: 125,4 MB
Art: Front

(3:08) 1. Brothers in Arms
(3:57) 2. Small Town
(6:16) 3. Rain Rain
(4:02) 4. San Luis Obispo
(5:15) 5. Back Home
(5:27) 6. Wichita Lineman
(7:07) 7. The Sail
(8:14) 8. Re: Stacks
(6:11) 9. Still

Harmonica player and composer Gregoire Maret is not a familiar name in the U.S. but he should be. The New York-based artist has recorded with Jimmy Scott, Jacky Terrasson, Steve Coleman and Five Elements, Charlie Hunter, Terri Lyne Carrington, Pat Metheny and many others. The very bankable musician has appeared on over seventy-five releases as a sideman and has recorded as a leader on three albums. Americana unites Maret with pianist, composer and label-mate Romain Collin, along with legendary guitarist Bill Frisell, and drummer Clarence Penn on one track.

The music on Americana comes from the perspective of two immigrants to the U.S.; the Swiss-native Maret, and Frenchman Collin. On many tracks Frisell adds the authenticity he brought to his own Nonesuch Records projects such as Nashville (1997), Good Dog, Happy Man (1999) and Disfarmer (2009). Maret and Collin often perform as a duo and open the album with the unexpected; Scottish-born Mark Knopfler's Dire Straits song "Brothers in Arms" feels like a natural here. Frisell then joins in on two of his own compositions, "Small Town" and "Rain, Rain" given a fresh feel with Maret's contributions.

Collin's "San Luis Obispo" appeared on the pianist's Press Enter (ACT Music, 2015); a beautiful Appalachian-tinged lullaby, sparse and haunting in its original piano form, Frisell and Maret give it a down-to-earth reading. Maret's "Back Home" is the only appearance of Penn who adds some light brushwork. The trio takes on the Jimmy Webb classic "Wichita Lineman" and the Justin Vernon composition "Re: Stacks" from the Dirty Bourbon River Show debut For Emma, Forever Ago (Self-produced, 2007). In Collin, Maret and Frisell we have artists of three origins, entangled together in the early influences of U.S. music; they urge the listener to hear common threads. Americana is a journey guided by distant lights, and the musicians lead each other in an alliance that is both conversant and spiritual. Highly recommended.~KARL ACKERMANN https://www.allaboutjazz.com/americana-gregoire-maret-romain-collin-bill-frisell-act-music

Personnel: Gregoire Maret: harmonica; Romain Collin: piano; Bill Frisell: guitar, electric; Clarence Penn: drums.

Additional Instrumentation: Romain Collin: piano, Moog Taurus, pump organ, effects; Bill Frisell: electric guitar, acoustic guitar, banjo; Clarence Penn: drums.

Americana

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Lee Morgan - Here's Lee Morgan (Disc 1) And (Disc 2)

Styles: Trumpet Jazz
Year: 1960
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 37:17 (Disc 1)
Size: 86,1 MB (Disc 1)
Time: 65:35 (Disc 2)
Size: 151,4 MB (Disc 2)
Art: Front

Disc 1

(5:17)  1. Terrible ''T''
(7:42)  2. Mogie
(5:36)  3. I'm A Fool To Want You
(6:03)  4. Running Brook
(6:13)  5. Off Spring
(6:23)  6. Bess

This CD reissue has its original six songs expanded to 11 with the inclusion of five alternate takes. The music is good solid hard bop that finds Lee Morgan (already a veteran at age 21) coming out of the Clifford Brown tradition to display his own rapidly developing style. Matched with Clifford Jordan on tenor, pianist Wynton Kelly, bassist Paul Chambers and drummer Art Blakey, Morgan's album could pass for a Jazz Messengers set. ~ Scott Yanow  http://www.allmusic.com/album/heres-lee-morgan-mw0000188579

Personnel: Lee Morgan (trumpet, flugelhorn); Clifford Jordan (tenor saxophone); Wynton Kelly (piano); Paul Chambers (bass); Art Blakey (drums).

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Disc 2

(5:42)  1. Terrible ''T'' (take 7)
(6:53)  2. Terrible ''T'' (take 6)
(7:25)  3. Mogie (take 2)
(7:31)  4. Mogie (take 1 mono)
(5:54)  5. I'm A Fool To Want You (take 1)
(5:43)  6. I'm A Fool To Want You (take 2)
(6:16)  7. Running Brook (take 9)
(6:50)  8. Running Brook (take 4)
(6:39)  9. Off Spring (take 7)
(6:38) 10. Bess (take 3)

Here's Lee Morgan (Disc 1) (disc 2)

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John Patitucci & Andy James - An Evening with John Patitucci & Andy James

Styles: Jazz, Post Bop
File: MP3@256K/s
Time: 82:48
Size: 152,2 MB
Art: Front

(4:23) 1. Autumn In New York
(7:08) 2. Besame Mucho
(3:08) 3. I Love You And Dont You Forget It
(5:07) 4. To Dream As One
(4:41) 5. Moonlight In Vermont
(5:09) 6. Day Dream
(5:46) 7. Blackbird
(3:19) 8. When I'm With You
(6:05) 9. Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow
(4:12) 10. Unchain My Heart
(6:22) 11. Fire Rain
(4:19) 12. Burn For Love
(5:30) 13. Some Other Time
(4:26) 14. Laura
(4:00) 15. More Than You Know
(5:02) 16. My Heart Belongs To Daddy
(4:03) 17. Angel Eyes

On An Evening with John Patitucci & Andy James, two gifted performers join forces to conjure an intimate evening of captivating music. At a time when jazz aficionados around the world have been starved for musical experiences, the album recreates the sultry atmosphere of a candlelight nightclub as some of the most revered musicians in modern jazz perform classic standards. Due out November 5 via Le Coq Records, An Evening with John Patitucci & Andy James features nearly 90 minutes of scintillating music featuring an incomparable ensemble. In addition to James’ mesmerizing vocals and Patitucci’s bass mastery, the album boasts arrangements by piano great Bill Cunliffe for an ensemble that includes saxophonists Chris Potter and Rick Margitza, trumpeter Terell Stafford, guitarists Chico Pinheiro and Jake Langley, keyboardists John Beasley and Jon Cowherd, percussionist Alex Acuña, drummers Vinnie Colaiuta, Marcus Gilmore and Marvin “Smitty” Smith, along with powerful horn and string sections.

“I wanted people to just sit back and enjoy a listening experience of serene pleasure,” declares James. “John and I tried to create something easy to listen to that would leave people feeling good afterwards. I recorded the album in anticipation that people wouldn’t something too complicated at this time we all find ourselves in.” Jazz singing and Flamenco dance have been parallel passions throughout Andy James’ life. Flamenco took prominence during what she now refers to as “act one” of her artistic life. She became renowned as a world-class Flamenco dancer, enjoying a successful career dancing with husband and partner Piero Pata in Madrid. For “act two,” James relocated to the U.S. and focused on her singing career, renewing collaborations with the great jazz musicians who had crossed her path while they traveled through Europe. She and Pata launched Le Coq Records, releasing a series of albums ranging in style from the elegance of the female jazz swing tradition to vintage R&B to the post-bop urgency of the classic Blue Note era.

An estimable professional family has quickly found a home at the label, with Patitucci, Acuña and Cunliffe playing key roles on a number of releases and several musicians making recurring appearances from one recording to the next. On An Evening With…, Patitucci proves an ideal partner for James, bringing his revered tone and musical vision to the project and convening the ideal musicians for each piece.“When choosing personnel for any project,” Patitucci explains, “I try to find the greatest musicians that I have longstanding relationships with, in order to have the opportunity to get more deeply into the music at hand.” Over the course of a career lasting four decades, Patitucci has forged essential collaborations with some of the most acclaimed artists in jazz and beyond, most notably long-lasting partnerships with iconic saxophonist Wayne Shorter and the late Chick Corea.

Speaking of James, Patitucci says, “Andy is a very generous and flexible collaborator. She has a great love for the Great American Songbook. When she sings, her phrasing is reminiscent of so many of the great singers that I grew up listening to. The style that she sings in provides the opportunity to write arrangements for larger orchestrations.”James returns the compliment. “John is very important to my whole performance. Without John’s playing I would have been restricted in the way I could sing and approach every song in the album. John Patitucci brings a deep sound that allows me the freedom to sing with a lot of mood or feeling in my voice. He gives me a lot of space to create a meaningful performance.”

From the intoxicatingly lush opener “Autumn in New York,” with Patitucci’s robust bass matched by a fervent tenor solo by Potter, to the last-call balladry of “Angel Eyes” that closes the set, An Evening with John Patitucci & Andy James features countless classic songs along with a few surprises, including the smoldering James and Pata-penned love song “Burn for Love.”As she did on her previous release, Tu Amor, James reaches into her Latin influences on “Besame Mucho.” In addition to a number of well-known jazz standards James stretches the American Songbook to encompass great pop and rock classics like The Beatles’ “Blackbird” and James Taylor’s “Fire and Rain.”

The choices certainly inspire passionate playing from James and Patitucci’s guests, with standouts including Rick Margitza’s soaring solo on “Fire and Rain,” Terell Stafford’s heart-wrenching take on “Moonlight in Vermont,” and the soulful playing of Potter and John Beasley on the Gerry Goffin/Carole King favorite “Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow.” “The songs came naturally,” James explains. “I just wanted to sing some beautiful songs. The mood I had in mind when choosing these songs was one of love I just wanted people to find love with each other again after the era of Covid!” https://bassmagazine.com/artists/john-patitucci-announces-new-album-an-evening-with-john-patitucci-andy-james

An Evening with Andy James & John Patitucci

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Francesca Leone - Querida (Francesca Leone Sings Bossa Nova)

Styles: Vocal
Year: 2016
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 50:29
Size: 116,1 MB
Art: Front

(4:34) 1. Samba em Paz
(5:17) 2. Olha pro Ceu
(5:33) 3. Favela
(5:27) 4. Desafinado
(4:28) 5. Samba do Aviao
(6:11) 6. Querida For Laura
(4:27) 7. Samba de Mulher
(4:15) 8. Batida Diferente
(5:01) 9. O Pato
(3:33) 10. Samba de Orly
(1:38) 11. Samba Triste

Francesca Leone was born in Rome from a family of artists. After her participation at the group exhibition Arte Contemporanea per i Rifugiati (Musei Capitolini, Rome, 2007), she had her first solo exhibition at Loggiato di San Bartolomeo, Palermo (Riflessi e riflessioni), and Palazzo Venezia, Rome (Primo Piano, then Castel dell’Ovo, Naples, 2009). In 2009 she exhibited at the MMOMA-Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art in Moscow with the project Beyond their gaze and she was appointed Honorary Member of the Russian Academy of Fine Arts. In 2011 she has been invited to exhibit at the LIV International Art Exhibition of the Venice Biennale within the Italian Pavilion and in 2013 she participated in the LV International Art Exhibition of the Venice Biennale with the Cuba Pavilion. The exhibition, entitled “La Perversión de lo Clásico: anarquía de los relatos”, is a dialogue between 7 Cuban and 7 international artists.

In 2014, she had three solo-exhibition: at MAC-Museum of Contemporary Art in Santiago de Chile; at MACBA-Museum of Contemporary Art in Buenos Aires; at Museum of the Academy of Fine Arts in St. Petersburg. In 2015, “Our Trash” a solo exhibition hosted at La Triennale in Milan, followed, in 2017, by “Giardino” at MACRO-Museum of Contemporary Art in Rome. In June 2018 as a project of Palermo Capitale della Cultura 2018 and the collateral events of Manifesta 12, she exhibited in Palermo the installation “Monaci”, curated by Danilo Eccher at the Real Albergo dei Poveri, followed by the solo exhibition “Domus” at the Palacio de Gaviria in Madrid. In 2020, Magazzino Gallery in Rome hosted the artist’s first solo exhibition in a gallery, “Si può illuminare un cielo melmoso e nero?”. In 2021, in Milan, at Sala delle Colonne in Gallerie d’Italia, the solo-exhibition “Ulteriori gradi di libertà, nella città che resiste”, curated by Andrea Viliani. https://www.francescaleone.it/biography/?lang=en

Querida (Francesca Leone Sings Bossa Nova)

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Joe Locke, David Hazeltine Quartet - Mutual Admiration Society 2

Styles: Vibes Jazz
Year: 2009
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 54:30
Size: 125,8 MB
Art: Front

(6:42)  1. Pharoah Joy
(8:28)  2. The Peacocks
(5:56)  3. One for Reedy Ree
(8:39)  4. Twelve
(6:02)  5. What's Not To Love?
(6:51)  6. Convocation
(5:35)  7. If It's Magic
(6:14)  8. Blues for Buddy

In the last year of the twentieth century, Sharp Nine Records released Mutual Admiration Society, a quartet date co-led by vibraphonist Joe Locke and pianist David Hazeltine, which also included bassist Essiet Essiet and drummer Billy Drummond. A brainchild of Sharp Nine honcho Marc Edelman, the collaboration between these two longtime friends was based on a desire to explore each other's strengths. Hazeltine was keen on interacting with the blues-oriented, earthy side of Locke's playing, as well as experiencing the vibraphonist's harmonically adventurous compositions. Locke welcomed the opportunity to interpret Hazeltine's arrangements and play off of the pianist's swinging, individualistic style. A few of the record's highlights included a deliberately paced, dreamlike version of the 1960s pop hit, "I Say a Little Prayer," Hazeltine's "Can We Talk?," which moved between funk and straightforward swing, and Locke's intriguing reharmonization of the standard "Spring Will Be a Little Late This Year." Locke and Hazeltine played a six night engagement at New York City's Sweet Basil in support of the record and then went their separate ways. Early this year, Edelman brought the quartet back into the studio and once again the co-leaders contribute the bulk of the material. The ringing chords which underlie the melody of Locke's "Pharoah Joy" resemble a revved up version of the foundation of Pharoah Sanders' "The Creator Has A Master Plan." 

Dedicated to the late drummer Tony Reedus, Hazeltine's "One For Reedy Ree" entails a throbbing, repetitive introduction followed by an angular melody with a few twists and turns. Based on Cole Porter's "Everything I Love," Locke's "What's Not To Love?" begins with a haunting figure, voiced at the low end of vibes and piano, that reappears in the midst of this bright, optimistic tune. Employing a Latin rhythm and pockets of straight-ahead swing, Hazeltine's "Blues For Buddy" is an up-tempo romp that breathlessly jams a handful of melodies into twenty-four bars. It's hard to imagine a bassist and drummer better suited to complement Locke and Hazeltine. Essiet and Drummond have so much to contribute, and the bulk of what they play doesn't sound overly assertive or particularly busy. They demonstrate many ways to swing, often subtly tightening or loosening the pressure behind the soloist during the course of a single chorus. Locke and Hazeltine are expansive, stimulating improvisers who stay in touch with everything going on around them. In the final analysis, however, it's the group's sound that makes the record special. Even on up-tempo tracks like "Convocation" and "Blues For Buddy," there's warmth and a centered vibe to the music. It's a pleasure to hear how they support one another (Hazeltine's comping behind Locke, for example, is marvelous), and always find common ground regardless of the feel or tempo of the material. Mutual Admiration Society 2 is a significant contribution to the jazz mainstream. Here's hoping another ten years don't have to go by for the next installment. ~ David A.Orthmann https://www.allaboutjazz.com/mutual-admiration-society-2-joe-locke-sharp-nine-records-review-by-david-a-orthmann.php

Personnel: Joe Locke: vibes; David Hazeltine: piano; Essiet Essiet: bass; Billy Drummond: drums.

Mutual Admiration Society 2

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Brian Lynch - Brian Lynch Meets Bill Charlap

Styles: Trumpet Jazz
Year: 2003
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 62:28
Size: 143,2 MB
Art: Front

(7:58)  1. On Green Dolphin Street
(7:34)  2. Autumn Nocturne
(6:38)  3. My Heart Stood Still
(5:46)  4. Cheryl
(8:23)  5. Before the First Cup
(6:44)  6. Atras da Porta
(4:54)  7. On the Dot
(6:34)  8. Come Rain or Come Shine
(7:53)  9. Blues for Gilad

While he adroitly blows his way through a couple of medium-to-up tempo tracks with the edgy assurance of a veteran bebopper, the largest part of trumpeter/flugelhornist Brian Lynch’s latest disc on Sharp Nine Records displays a temperate approach to the music. A welcome relief from the clamor that characterizes a lot of today’s jazz, Lynch’s moderation as a player and bandleader is evident in a number of ways. He knows that melodies are to be relished instead of glossed over; tempos other than rapid ones make a positive impression; and music that breathes easily can be as effective as rough-hewn, densely textured sound.Lynch possesses ample technique and a full, warm tone on the horn, but it’s his ability to imbue every note with an emotional weight (minus any mawkishness) that makes this record special. For example, the splendor of his rendition of the ballad “Autumn Nocturne” makes time stand still; and the way he subtly invokes a feeling of yearning during the bossa “Atras da Porta.” Accordingly, Lynch’s solo lines favor measured, linear development over fireworks and showy gestures. Moreover, his bandmates, pianist Bill Charlap, bassist Dwayne Burno, and drummer Joe Farnsworth are all on the same wavelength, ably balancing the roles of support and self-expression, following or inducing subtle shifts in emphasis, and nudging the music forward in ways more fluid than forceful.

The record opens with Lynch’s treatment of “On Green Dolphin Street.” He revitalizes this warhorse by recasting it in 7/4 time. The arrangement centers around a nice, easy rolling vamp played by the piano, bass, and drums, and the bridge has a conventional jazz feel. In particular, the contrast between the broad click of Farnsworth’s rim knocks and portions of triplets to the tom-toms gives the music an irresistible, dancing movement. Beginning the round of solos, Charlap initially takes his time playing around Farnsworth’s and Burno’s variations of the vamp and then becomes more expansive over their straight-ahead groove. Utilizing a mute throughout, Lynch’s turn starts by lazily building melodic lines that float over the rhythm section. A shooting double-time phrase toward the end of his first chorus signals change as he digs in and becomes more dynamic, all the while prodded by Farnsworth’s brusque snare drum fills. The drummer’s decidedly non-linear solo is structured but not hemmed in by the vamp. He offers a loose yet calculated configuration of rhythmic fragments, such as a stick to the bell of the cymbal, long, rigid rolls to the snare and toms, and poking, three and four stroke shots to all the drums, some of which are mindful of Burno and Charlap’s persistent accompaniment, and others that chafe against it. Combining a strongly accented ostinato and a pensive melody, Lynch’s waltz “Before the First Cup” may not be a lyric writer’s dream; nonetheless the tune holds up well in comparison to the record’s selections from the American Popular Songbook (including “Autumn Nocturne,” “On Green Dolphin Street,” “My Heart Stood Still,” and “Come Rain or Come Shine”). Farnsworth keeps things from getting too settled by creating a choppy undercurrent with the boot of his bass drum, martial snare drum triplets, and irregularly timed cymbal crashes. Never straying from a romantic vein, the composer’s solo gradually moves from a dreamlike state to something grittier, as he increases the length and velocity of his lines.

The set’s closer “Blues For Gilad” is significant for the ways in which the rhythm section supports the soloists. During Lynch’s first two choruses, Farnsworth’s relaxed rim knock and tom-tom combinations provide an undemanding cushion. Conversely, there’s nothing rote about Charlap’s comping, as he moves from carefully chosen chords that mirror the drummer’s relaxed feel to those that shoot up and abruptly break off all without disturbing the trumpeter’s flow. At the beginning of Lynch’s third chorus, Burno starts walking for the first time and Farnsworth begins to keep straight time on the ride cymbal and the hi-hat. The music immediately begins to jump and the trumpeter swings harder and plays with more raw emotion. Burno and Farnsworth adopt a similar strategy for Charlap’s penetrating turn. Farnsworth serves up a slightly different rhythmic quality toward the end of Burno’s solo when he plays the lightest of shuffle beats, and carries it over into Lynch’s single chorus, right before the band takes the tune out.~David A.Orthmann https://www.allaboutjazz.com/brian-lynch-meets-bill-charlap-by-david-a-orthmann.php

Personnel:  Brian Lynch—trumpet/flugelhorn; Bill Charlap—piano; Dwayne Burno—bass; Joe Farnsworth—drums.

Brian Lynch Meets Bill Charlap

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