Sunday, November 19, 2023
Hey My Friends!
Harold Land - The Peace-Maker
Styles: Saxophone And Flute Jazz
Year: 2006
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 35:32
Size: 81,5 MB
Art: Front
(5:11) 1. The Peace-Maker
(3:37) 2. Stylin'
(4:51) 3. 40 Love
(3:40) 4. Angel Dance
(4:12) 5. Timetable
(3:26) 6. Imagine
(5:33) 7. The Aquarian
(4:58) 8. One for Nini
The Peace-Maker
Year: 2006
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 35:32
Size: 81,5 MB
Art: Front
(5:11) 1. The Peace-Maker
(3:37) 2. Stylin'
(4:51) 3. 40 Love
(3:40) 4. Angel Dance
(4:12) 5. Timetable
(3:26) 6. Imagine
(5:33) 7. The Aquarian
(4:58) 8. One for Nini
The first pairing of tenor saxophonist Harold Land and vibist Bobby Hutcherson crackles with the energy and joy of collaboration. Each spurs the other to new zeniths of creativity and craft, yielding one of the finest if little-known jazz LPs of its era. The Peace-Maker is a particularly apt title. The record's serene, supple contours glow with a lyricism that eschews the angularity of bop. Land's graceful sax melds perfectly with Hutcherson's warm, shimmering vibes to create a deeply soulful, even divine sound. His original compositions are no less thoughtful, galvanized by a yearning for harmony that embraces all senses of the term. ~ Jason Ankeny https://www.allmusic.com/album/the-peace-maker-mw0001881640
Personnel: Harold Land - tenor saxophone, flute; Bobby Hutcherson - vibraphone; Joe Sample - piano; Buster Williams - bass; Donald Bailey - drums
Personnel: Harold Land - tenor saxophone, flute; Bobby Hutcherson - vibraphone; Joe Sample - piano; Buster Williams - bass; Donald Bailey - drums
The Peace-Maker
Grant Green - Born To Be Blue
Time: 59:10
Size: 135.5 MB
Styles: Bop, Guitar jazz
Year: 1962/1989
Art: Front
[6:29] 1. Someday My Prince Will Come
[4:56] 2. Born To Be Blue
[4:41] 3. Born To Be Blue (Alternate Take)
[6:05] 4. If I Should Lose You
[8:04] 5. Back In Your Own Back Yard
[5:50] 6. My One And Only Love
[6:21] 7. Count Every Star
[7:57] 8. Cool Blues
[8:44] 9. Outer Space
Bass – Sam Jones; Drums – Louis Hayes; Guitar – Grant Green; Piano – Sonny Clark; Tenor Saxophone – Ike Quebec. Recorded at the Van Gelder Studio, Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey. B3 recorded on December 23, 1961. All other titles recorded March 1st, 1962. Digitally remastered.
Although Grant Green provided his share of groove-oriented soul-jazz and modal post-bop, his roots were hard bop, and it is in a bop-oriented setting that the guitarist excels on Born to Be Blue. Most of the material on this five-star album was recorded at Rudy Van Gelder's New Jersey studio on December 11, 1961, when Green was joined by tenor titan Ike Quebec, pianist Sonny Clark, bassist Sam Jones, and drummer Louis Hayes. Tragically, Quebec was near the end of his life -- the distinctive saxman died of lung cancer at the age of 44 on January 16, 1963 -- but there is no evidence of Quebec's declining health on Born to Be Blue. He was playing as authoritatively as ever well into 1962, and the saxman is in fine form on hard-swinging interpretations of "Someday My Prince Will Come" and Al Jolson's "Back in Your Own Back Yard." It's interesting to hear Quebec playing bop, for his big, breathy tone was right out of swing and was greatly influenced by Coleman Hawkins and Ben Webster. Although Quebec and Green (who was 14 years younger) had very different musical backgrounds, they were always quite compatible musically. They clearly enjoyed a strong rapport on the uptempo selections as well as ballads like "My One and Only Love" and Mel Torme's "Born to Be Blue." Originally a vinyl LP, this album was reissued on CD in 1989, when Blue Note added an alternate take of the title song and a previously unreleased version of Charlie Parker's "Cool Blues." ~Alex Henderson
Although Grant Green provided his share of groove-oriented soul-jazz and modal post-bop, his roots were hard bop, and it is in a bop-oriented setting that the guitarist excels on Born to Be Blue. Most of the material on this five-star album was recorded at Rudy Van Gelder's New Jersey studio on December 11, 1961, when Green was joined by tenor titan Ike Quebec, pianist Sonny Clark, bassist Sam Jones, and drummer Louis Hayes. Tragically, Quebec was near the end of his life -- the distinctive saxman died of lung cancer at the age of 44 on January 16, 1963 -- but there is no evidence of Quebec's declining health on Born to Be Blue. He was playing as authoritatively as ever well into 1962, and the saxman is in fine form on hard-swinging interpretations of "Someday My Prince Will Come" and Al Jolson's "Back in Your Own Back Yard." It's interesting to hear Quebec playing bop, for his big, breathy tone was right out of swing and was greatly influenced by Coleman Hawkins and Ben Webster. Although Quebec and Green (who was 14 years younger) had very different musical backgrounds, they were always quite compatible musically. They clearly enjoyed a strong rapport on the uptempo selections as well as ballads like "My One and Only Love" and Mel Torme's "Born to Be Blue." Originally a vinyl LP, this album was reissued on CD in 1989, when Blue Note added an alternate take of the title song and a previously unreleased version of Charlie Parker's "Cool Blues." ~Alex Henderson
Born To Be Blue
Sunday, November 5, 2023
Ramsey Lewis - Back To The Roots
Year: 1971
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 39:39
Size: 91,4 MB
Art: Front
(2:53) 1. Candida
(3:53) 2. We've Only Just Begun
(2:59) 3. Back To The Roots
(5:02) 4. Love Now On
(5:57) 5. Fool On The Hill
(3:02) 6. Since I Feel For You
(4:31) 7. Up In Yonder
(4:28) 8. Crescent Noon
(6:50) 9. He Ain't Heavy, He's My Brother
Pianist and composer Ramsey Lewis has been a major figure in contemporary jazz since the late '50s, playing music with a warm, open personality that's allowed him to cross over to the pop and R&B charts. Initially emerging with his jazz trio, Lewis broke through with his Grammy-winning 1965 album The In Crowd. He further developed his sound, experimenting with synthesizers and funk grooves on work such as 1974's Sun Goddess. He has remained a crossover icon, hosting his own radio and television programs and issuing albums like 2002's Meant to Be with Nancy Wilson, 2011's Taking Another Look, and 2019's VII with his long-running contemporary jazz collective Urban Knights.
Lewis was born in Chicago on May 27, 1935 and was introduced to music by his father, who directed the choir at a local church and enjoyed the music of Duke Ellington and Art Tatum. He began studying the piano when he was four years old and was soon accompanying the choir at Sunday services. At the age of 15, he joined a jazz combo called the Cleffs, who played at parties and dances. Lewis was interested in a leaner, more bebop-oriented sound, and when the group splintered after several members joined the military, he formed the Ramsey Lewis Trio with two other former Cleffs, bassist Eldee Young and percussionist Redd Holt. The trio became a fixture on the Chicago jazz scene, and they were signed to a deal with Chess Records, releasing their first album, Ramsey Lewis & His Gentlemen of Jazz, in 1956.
Lewis and his trio continued to record and tour steadily over the years, building a sizable audience among jazz fans, but their career received a serious boost in 1965, when they recorded a swinging version of Dobie Gray's hit "The In Crowd" at a gig in Washington, D.C. Chess released the track as a single, and it became a sizable pop hit, earning Lewis his first gold record, as well as a Grammy Award for Best Jazz Performance. As Lewis' star rose, he returned to the pop charts in 1966 with versions of "Hang on Sloopy" and "Wade in the Water." Meanwhile, Young and Holt left Lewis' trio to form their own group, Young-Holt Unlimited, and the pianist hired a new rhythm section of Cleveland Eaton on bass and Maurice White on drums.
In 1970, White resigned to form his own group, and Morris Jennings signed on as the trio's new percussionist. Lewis continued to record for Chess until 1972, when he moved to Columbia, and as his music developed a more contemporary groove, White's group, Earth, Wind & Fire (also on Columbia), was beginning to enjoy considerable success on the R&B charts. White produced Lewis' 1974 album Sun Goddess, in which he experimented with electronic keyboards for the first time, and several members of EWF played on the sessions; it became a major crossover hit and took Lewis to the upper ranks of the smooth jazz/fusion scene. Lewis would record R&B-influenced material throughout the '70s but continued to explore his roots in more traditional jazz sounds as well as Latin rhythms. In 1983, he went into the studio with Eldee Young and Redd Holt for the album Reunion; in 1984, he collaborated with Nancy Wilson on The Two of Us; in 1988, he recorded with London's Philharmonia Orchestra for the album A Classic Encounter, and in 1989, Lewis and Dr. Billy Taylor cut a set of piano duets, We Meet Again.
In 1992, Lewis signed with the successful jazz label GRP Records, and in 1995, he launched the side project Urban Knights, in which he collaborated with a handful of successful crossover jazz stars, including Grover Washington, Jr., Earl Klugh, and Dave Koz. In 1997, Lewis added disc jockey to his résumé, hosting a popular show on Chicago's WNUA-FM that ran until 2009; the show went into syndication in 2006 under the name Legends of Jazz with Ramsey Lewis, and is still on the air. In 2005, Lewis looked back on his roots in gospel music with the album With One Voice, which earned him the Stellar Gospel Music Award for Best Gospel Instrumental Album. In 2007, he was commissioned to write a jazz ballet for the Joffrey Ballet Company, and "To Know Her..." debuted at Highland Park, Illinois' Ravina Music Festival, where Lewis is artistic director of the festival's jazz series and helped found their Jazz Mentor Program.
Lewis has also written several pieces for string ensemble and orchestra that have premiered at Ravina; highlights were featured on the 2009 album Songs from the Heart: Ramsey Plays Ramsey, his first release from Concord Records. In addition to his work as a performer, composer, educator, and disc jockey, Lewis has received five honorary doctorate degrees, won the National Endowment for the Arts' Jazz Master Award in 2007, and is one of the few noted jazz artists to carry the Olympic Torch, having briefly escorted the flame as it passed through Chicago en route to the 2002 Winter Games. In 2011, he delivered Taking Another Look, a reworking of his classic 1974 electric jazz-funk album Sun Goddess. The album was reissued in a deluxe package with bonus tracks in 2015. Two years later, Lewis was a featured guest on pianist Alan Storeygard's trio album New Directions. In 2019, he rejoined Urban Knights for VII, which featured original songs as well as renditions of classics by John Coltrane, Chick Corea, and the Beatles. ~Mark Deminghttps://www.allmusic.com/artist/ramsey-lewis-mn0000334770/biography
Personnel: Ramsey Lewis - piano, electric piano; Cleveland Eaton - electric bass; Morris Jennings - drums; Henry L. Gibson - congas, percussion; Bobby Rush - harmonica; Charles Stepney - organ
Lewis was born in Chicago on May 27, 1935 and was introduced to music by his father, who directed the choir at a local church and enjoyed the music of Duke Ellington and Art Tatum. He began studying the piano when he was four years old and was soon accompanying the choir at Sunday services. At the age of 15, he joined a jazz combo called the Cleffs, who played at parties and dances. Lewis was interested in a leaner, more bebop-oriented sound, and when the group splintered after several members joined the military, he formed the Ramsey Lewis Trio with two other former Cleffs, bassist Eldee Young and percussionist Redd Holt. The trio became a fixture on the Chicago jazz scene, and they were signed to a deal with Chess Records, releasing their first album, Ramsey Lewis & His Gentlemen of Jazz, in 1956.
Lewis and his trio continued to record and tour steadily over the years, building a sizable audience among jazz fans, but their career received a serious boost in 1965, when they recorded a swinging version of Dobie Gray's hit "The In Crowd" at a gig in Washington, D.C. Chess released the track as a single, and it became a sizable pop hit, earning Lewis his first gold record, as well as a Grammy Award for Best Jazz Performance. As Lewis' star rose, he returned to the pop charts in 1966 with versions of "Hang on Sloopy" and "Wade in the Water." Meanwhile, Young and Holt left Lewis' trio to form their own group, Young-Holt Unlimited, and the pianist hired a new rhythm section of Cleveland Eaton on bass and Maurice White on drums.
In 1970, White resigned to form his own group, and Morris Jennings signed on as the trio's new percussionist. Lewis continued to record for Chess until 1972, when he moved to Columbia, and as his music developed a more contemporary groove, White's group, Earth, Wind & Fire (also on Columbia), was beginning to enjoy considerable success on the R&B charts. White produced Lewis' 1974 album Sun Goddess, in which he experimented with electronic keyboards for the first time, and several members of EWF played on the sessions; it became a major crossover hit and took Lewis to the upper ranks of the smooth jazz/fusion scene. Lewis would record R&B-influenced material throughout the '70s but continued to explore his roots in more traditional jazz sounds as well as Latin rhythms. In 1983, he went into the studio with Eldee Young and Redd Holt for the album Reunion; in 1984, he collaborated with Nancy Wilson on The Two of Us; in 1988, he recorded with London's Philharmonia Orchestra for the album A Classic Encounter, and in 1989, Lewis and Dr. Billy Taylor cut a set of piano duets, We Meet Again.
In 1992, Lewis signed with the successful jazz label GRP Records, and in 1995, he launched the side project Urban Knights, in which he collaborated with a handful of successful crossover jazz stars, including Grover Washington, Jr., Earl Klugh, and Dave Koz. In 1997, Lewis added disc jockey to his résumé, hosting a popular show on Chicago's WNUA-FM that ran until 2009; the show went into syndication in 2006 under the name Legends of Jazz with Ramsey Lewis, and is still on the air. In 2005, Lewis looked back on his roots in gospel music with the album With One Voice, which earned him the Stellar Gospel Music Award for Best Gospel Instrumental Album. In 2007, he was commissioned to write a jazz ballet for the Joffrey Ballet Company, and "To Know Her..." debuted at Highland Park, Illinois' Ravina Music Festival, where Lewis is artistic director of the festival's jazz series and helped found their Jazz Mentor Program.
Lewis has also written several pieces for string ensemble and orchestra that have premiered at Ravina; highlights were featured on the 2009 album Songs from the Heart: Ramsey Plays Ramsey, his first release from Concord Records. In addition to his work as a performer, composer, educator, and disc jockey, Lewis has received five honorary doctorate degrees, won the National Endowment for the Arts' Jazz Master Award in 2007, and is one of the few noted jazz artists to carry the Olympic Torch, having briefly escorted the flame as it passed through Chicago en route to the 2002 Winter Games. In 2011, he delivered Taking Another Look, a reworking of his classic 1974 electric jazz-funk album Sun Goddess. The album was reissued in a deluxe package with bonus tracks in 2015. Two years later, Lewis was a featured guest on pianist Alan Storeygard's trio album New Directions. In 2019, he rejoined Urban Knights for VII, which featured original songs as well as renditions of classics by John Coltrane, Chick Corea, and the Beatles. ~Mark Deminghttps://www.allmusic.com/artist/ramsey-lewis-mn0000334770/biography
Personnel: Ramsey Lewis - piano, electric piano; Cleveland Eaton - electric bass; Morris Jennings - drums; Henry L. Gibson - congas, percussion; Bobby Rush - harmonica; Charles Stepney - organ
Back To The Roots
Greg Diamond - Beata
Year: 2022
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 53:58
Size: 128,1 MB
Art: Front
(5:56) 1. Beata
(5:08) 2. Salas
(4:38) 3. Tiniebla
(3:46) 4. Giant Steps
(4:36) 5. El Condor Pasa
(5:53) 6. Caprichosa
(6:04) 7. Rastros
(5:58) 8. Ensimismado
(5:27) 9. Cumbita
(6:28) 10. Song For Jerry
Greg Diamond is a prolific guitarist, composer, and recording artist from New York City. Touted as “a rising star in the NewYork jazz scene" by All About Jazz and a “composer of great maturity and genius” by Latin Jazz Network, he has created his own niche with an innovative and eclectic to composition paired with remarkable instrumental versatility.
Since 2008 he has released five albums in various formats. His work encompasses a broad spectrum of genres such as, contemporary and Afro-Latin jazz, blues, Americana, Latin American folk traditions, classical, funk, hip-hop, and jamband among many others.
He has presented his group at numerous premier venues, such as The Blue Note, Iridium Jazz Club, Joe’s Pub, Smalls Jazz Club, and Zinc Bar not to mention numerous international festivals such as, The Madrid International Jazz Festival, Barranquijazz Festival, Jimmy Glass Jazz Festival, Teatro Libre Jazz Festival, Medejazz Festival, Jazz al Parque Festival, and the Nublu Jazz Festival. In 2007 he was a semi-finalist at The Gibson International Jazz Guitar Competition hosted by The Montreux Jazz Festival in Switzerland.
In the past two decades he has collaborated with numerous noteworthy artists such as, Seamus Blake, Hector Martignon, John Benitez, Steve Turre, Bob Belden, Mark Shim, Henry Cole, Stacy Dillard, Samuel Torres, Oscar Stagnaro, Emilio Solla, Antonio Hart, Michael Philip Mossman, Don Friedman, Gretchen Parlato, Asha Puthli and others
Diamond has a DMA in Instrumental Jazz Performance from the University of Miami and currently resides in the city of Miami.
Since 2008 he has released five albums in various formats. His work encompasses a broad spectrum of genres such as, contemporary and Afro-Latin jazz, blues, Americana, Latin American folk traditions, classical, funk, hip-hop, and jamband among many others.
He has presented his group at numerous premier venues, such as The Blue Note, Iridium Jazz Club, Joe’s Pub, Smalls Jazz Club, and Zinc Bar not to mention numerous international festivals such as, The Madrid International Jazz Festival, Barranquijazz Festival, Jimmy Glass Jazz Festival, Teatro Libre Jazz Festival, Medejazz Festival, Jazz al Parque Festival, and the Nublu Jazz Festival. In 2007 he was a semi-finalist at The Gibson International Jazz Guitar Competition hosted by The Montreux Jazz Festival in Switzerland.
In the past two decades he has collaborated with numerous noteworthy artists such as, Seamus Blake, Hector Martignon, John Benitez, Steve Turre, Bob Belden, Mark Shim, Henry Cole, Stacy Dillard, Samuel Torres, Oscar Stagnaro, Emilio Solla, Antonio Hart, Michael Philip Mossman, Don Friedman, Gretchen Parlato, Asha Puthli and others
Diamond has a DMA in Instrumental Jazz Performance from the University of Miami and currently resides in the city of Miami.
Beata
Rhoda Scott - Paris - New York Disc 1 And Disc 2
Album: Paris - New York Disc 1
Styles: Jazz, Post Bop
Year: 2012
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 58:19
Size: 134,6 MB
Art: Front
(3:08) 1. Moanin'
(3:43) 2. Il Est Mort Le Soleil
(7:41) 3. Medley from ''West Side Story''
(4:13) 4. Take A Ladder
(4:43) 5. Ebb Tide
(2:47) 6. What Kind Of Fool Am I?
(2:26) 7. Count Basie (Lil Darlin)
(6:38) 8. Splanky
(4:29) 9. Mach II
(3:26) 10. Fire And Brimstone
(5:08) 11. Jeremy
(6:30) 12. Delilah
(3:20) 13. Blues At The Bilboquet
Styles: Jazz, Post Bop
Year: 2012
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 58:19
Size: 134,6 MB
Art: Front
(3:08) 1. Moanin'
(3:43) 2. Il Est Mort Le Soleil
(7:41) 3. Medley from ''West Side Story''
(4:13) 4. Take A Ladder
(4:43) 5. Ebb Tide
(2:47) 6. What Kind Of Fool Am I?
(2:26) 7. Count Basie (Lil Darlin)
(6:38) 8. Splanky
(4:29) 9. Mach II
(3:26) 10. Fire And Brimstone
(5:08) 11. Jeremy
(6:30) 12. Delilah
(3:20) 13. Blues At The Bilboquet
Album: Paris - New York Disc 2
Time: 43:57
Size: 101,4 MB
(4:32) 1. Mach 2
(4:33) 2. Tanikka
(5:02) 3. Rhoda Map
(4:15) 4. R And R
(4:34) 5. Charlotte's Walz
(5:08) 6. Walkin' About
(7:26) 7. Take A Ladder
(4:24) 8. La La Solitude
(4:00) 9. Quand Je Monte Chez Toi
In 1967, following in the footsteps of Tadd Dameron and Quincy Jones, Rhoda Scott arrives in France to take classes with Nadia Boulanger. Barely a year later, she recorded her debut album Barclay, Take a Ladder duet with one of the best drummers of the moment, Daniel Humair. A long series of albums will follow, two of which are particularly distinguished by the presence of first-rate accompanists: Mach II (1971) in which his long-time accomplice, American saxophonist / flutist Joe Thomas and especially Rhoda Scott in New York, participate. (1976), the result of the collaboration between the virtuoso organist and the great orchestra of Thad Jones / Mel Lewis. Translate by Google https://www.amazon.fr/Paris-New-York-Rhoda-Scott/dp/B007JNN1LG
Personnel: Organ [Hammond] – Rhoda Scott; Alto Saxophone, Soprano Saxophone, Flute – Edward Xiques, Jerry Dodgion; Arranged By, Flugelhorn – Thad Jones; Baritone Saxophone – Pepper Adams; Bass – Bob Bowman ; Drums – Mel Lewis; Electric Piano – Harold Danko; Tenor Saxophone, Clarinet – Larry Schneider; Tenor Saxophone, Flute, Clarinet – Gregory Herbert; Trombone – Billy Campbell, Clifford Adams, Earl Mc Intyre, John Mosca; Trumpet – Al Porcino, Cecil Bridgewater, Earl Gardner, Lynn Nicholson
Personnel: Organ [Hammond] – Rhoda Scott; Alto Saxophone, Soprano Saxophone, Flute – Edward Xiques, Jerry Dodgion; Arranged By, Flugelhorn – Thad Jones; Baritone Saxophone – Pepper Adams; Bass – Bob Bowman ; Drums – Mel Lewis; Electric Piano – Harold Danko; Tenor Saxophone, Clarinet – Larry Schneider; Tenor Saxophone, Flute, Clarinet – Gregory Herbert; Trombone – Billy Campbell, Clifford Adams, Earl Mc Intyre, John Mosca; Trumpet – Al Porcino, Cecil Bridgewater, Earl Gardner, Lynn Nicholson
Charles Mingus - Mingus, Mingus, Mingus, Mingus, Mingus
Styles: Jazz, Post Bop
Year: 2015
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 40:12
Size: 92,7 MB
Art: Front
(4:45) 1. II B.S.
(7:36) 2. I X Love
(6:10) 3. Celia
(4:44) 4. Mood Indigo
(6:26) 5. Better Get Hit in Yo' Soul
(5:49) 6. Theme for Lester Young
(4:39) 7. Hora Decubitus
Year: 2015
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 40:12
Size: 92,7 MB
Art: Front
(4:45) 1. II B.S.
(7:36) 2. I X Love
(6:10) 3. Celia
(4:44) 4. Mood Indigo
(6:26) 5. Better Get Hit in Yo' Soul
(5:49) 6. Theme for Lester Young
(4:39) 7. Hora Decubitus
Having completed what he (and many critics) regarded as his masterwork in The Black Saint and the Sinner Lady, Charles Mingus' next sessions for Impulse found him looking back over a long and fruitful career. Mingus Mingus Mingus Mingus Mingus is sort of a "greatest hits revisited" record, as the bassist revamps or tinkers with some of his best-known works. The titles are altered as well "II B.S." is basically "Haitian Fight Song" (this is the version used in the late-'90s car commercial); "Theme for Lester Young" is "Goodbye Pork Pie Hat"; "Better Get Hit in Your Soul" adds a new ending, but just one letter to the title; "Hora Decubitus" is a growling overhaul of "E's Flat Ah's Flat Too"; and "I X Love" modifies "Nouroog," which was part of "Open Letter to Duke." There's also a cover of Duke Ellington's "Mood Indigo," leaving just one new composition, "Celia." Which naturally leads to the question: With the ostensible shortage of ideas, what exactly makes this a significant Mingus effort?
The answer is that the 11-piece bands assembled here (slightly different for the two separate recording sessions) are among Mingus' finest, featuring some of the key personnel (Eric Dolphy, pianist Jaki Byard) that would make up the legendary quintet/sextet with which Mingus toured Europe in 1964. And they simply burn, blasting through versions that equal and often surpass the originals which is, of course, no small feat. This was Mingus' last major statement for quite some time, and aside from a solo piano album and a series of live recordings from the 1964 tour, also his last album until 1970. It closes out the most productive and significant chapter of his career, and one of the most fertile, inventive hot streaks of any composer in jazz history.
By Steve Huey https://www.allmusic.com/album/mingus-mingus-mingus-mingus-mingus-mw0000653088
Personnel: Tracks #1 and 4–8, recorded on September 20, 1963: Eddie Preston – Trumpet; Richard Williams – Trumpet; Britt Woodman – Trombone; Don Butterfield – Tuba; Jerome Richardson – Soprano, baritone saxes, flute; Dick Hafer – Tenor sax, clarinet, flute; Booker Ervin – Tenor sax; Eric Dolphy – Alto sax, flute, bass clarinet; Jaki Byard – Piano; Charles Mingus – Bass, (narration, #8); Walter Perkins – Drums; Bob Hammer – Arranger and orchestrator
The answer is that the 11-piece bands assembled here (slightly different for the two separate recording sessions) are among Mingus' finest, featuring some of the key personnel (Eric Dolphy, pianist Jaki Byard) that would make up the legendary quintet/sextet with which Mingus toured Europe in 1964. And they simply burn, blasting through versions that equal and often surpass the originals which is, of course, no small feat. This was Mingus' last major statement for quite some time, and aside from a solo piano album and a series of live recordings from the 1964 tour, also his last album until 1970. It closes out the most productive and significant chapter of his career, and one of the most fertile, inventive hot streaks of any composer in jazz history.
By Steve Huey https://www.allmusic.com/album/mingus-mingus-mingus-mingus-mingus-mw0000653088
Personnel: Tracks #1 and 4–8, recorded on September 20, 1963: Eddie Preston – Trumpet; Richard Williams – Trumpet; Britt Woodman – Trombone; Don Butterfield – Tuba; Jerome Richardson – Soprano, baritone saxes, flute; Dick Hafer – Tenor sax, clarinet, flute; Booker Ervin – Tenor sax; Eric Dolphy – Alto sax, flute, bass clarinet; Jaki Byard – Piano; Charles Mingus – Bass, (narration, #8); Walter Perkins – Drums; Bob Hammer – Arranger and orchestrator
Tracks #2 and 3, recorded on January 20, 1963: Rolf Ericson – Trumpet; Richard Williams – Trumpet; Quentin Jackson – Trombone; Don Butterfield – Tuba; Jerome Richardson – Soprano, baritone saxes, flute; Dick Hafer – Tenor sax, flute, oboe; Charlie Mariano – Alto sax; Jaki Byard – Piano; Jay Berliner – Guitar; Charles Mingus – Bass, piano; Dannie Richmond – Drums; Bob Hammer – Arranger and orchestrator
Mingus, Mingus, Mingus, Mingus, Mingus
Wednesday, November 1, 2023
Dave Stryker - Blue Soul (Feat. Bob Mintzer & WDR Big Band)
Year: 2020
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 58:06
Size: 136,3 MB
Art: Front
(5:40) 1. Trouble Man
(6:07) 2. Aha
(7:20) 3. What's Going On
(6:46) 4. Came To Believe
(6:57) 5. Blues Strut
(6:27) 6. When Doves Cry
(5:31) 7. Wichita Lineman
(6:07) 8. Shadowboxing
(7:06) 9. Stan's Shuffle
Bob Mintzer had an idea. The renowned tenor saxophonist, who serves as principal conductor of Cologne, Germany's world-class WDR Big Band, had made several appearances as guest artist with guitarist Dave Stryker's New York-based organ trio and was so impressed that he thought it would be a good idea to re-orchestrate some of Stryker's music for big band and invite the guitar maestro to return the favor by traveling to Germany and performing as guest artist with the WDR ensemble, an offer that Stryker accepted without pause. Was Mintzer's idea credible? In a word, yes the evidence of which abounds on the superb album Blue Soul, wherein Stryker, Mintzer and the WDR merge forces to brighten a trio of Stryker's handsome themes and others by Marvin Gaye ("Trouble Man," "What's Going On"), Prince ("When Doves Cry"), Jimmy Webb ("Wichita Lineman"), Stanley Turrentine ("Stan's Shuffle") and Mintzer's breezy "Aha." Stryker solos adroitly on every track, Mintzer on "Aha," "Stan's Shuffle" and Stryker's prancing "Blues Strut," while the WDR does its part to lend warmth and substance to every number. Stryker's other compositions, the cantering "Came to Believe" and assertive "Shadowboxing," stand out among the album's many pleasurable moments.
Stryker and organist Billy Test share blowing space on Gaye's earnest, blues-based "Trouble Man," which raises the curtain and paves the way for "Aha" and the second offering from Gaye, "What's Going On," a carefree showpiece for Stryker, Test and alto Karolina Strassmayer. A second alto, Johan Horlen, sparkles on "Came to Believe" before Stryker and Mintzer take charge on what is arguably the album's piece de resistance, the bright and irrepressible "Blues Strut." Horlen and drummer Hans Dekker undergird Stryker on the fast-paced "When Doves Cry," trombonist Andy Hunter sparkles on "Wichita Lineman," Dekker and tenor Paul Heller on "Shadowboxing," after which Stryker and Mintzer strike the ideal note on an exemplary codicil, the buoyant "Stan's Shuffle." Mintzer's idea, as it turns out, was far better than good; it was brilliant. All hands are resolute and standing firm, and Blue Soul is an appetizing entree that should command pride of place on any big-band enthusiast's menu. ~ Jack Bowers https://www.allaboutjazz.com/blue-soul-dave-stryker-with-bob-mintzer-and-the-wdr-big-band-strikezone-records
Personnel: Dave Stryker: guitar; Bob Mintzer: saxophone; Wim Both: trumpet; Rob Broynen: trumpet; Andy Haderer: trumpet; : trumpet; Johan Horlen: saxophone, alto; Karolina Strassmayer: saxophone, alto; Olivier Peters: saxophone, tenor; Paul Heller: saxophone, tenor; Jens Neufang: saxophone, baritone; Ludwig Nuss: trombone; Raphael Klemm: trombone; Andy Hunter: trombone; Mattis Cederberg: trombone; Billy Test: piano; John Goldsby: bass; Hans Dekker: drums.
Stryker and organist Billy Test share blowing space on Gaye's earnest, blues-based "Trouble Man," which raises the curtain and paves the way for "Aha" and the second offering from Gaye, "What's Going On," a carefree showpiece for Stryker, Test and alto Karolina Strassmayer. A second alto, Johan Horlen, sparkles on "Came to Believe" before Stryker and Mintzer take charge on what is arguably the album's piece de resistance, the bright and irrepressible "Blues Strut." Horlen and drummer Hans Dekker undergird Stryker on the fast-paced "When Doves Cry," trombonist Andy Hunter sparkles on "Wichita Lineman," Dekker and tenor Paul Heller on "Shadowboxing," after which Stryker and Mintzer strike the ideal note on an exemplary codicil, the buoyant "Stan's Shuffle." Mintzer's idea, as it turns out, was far better than good; it was brilliant. All hands are resolute and standing firm, and Blue Soul is an appetizing entree that should command pride of place on any big-band enthusiast's menu. ~ Jack Bowers https://www.allaboutjazz.com/blue-soul-dave-stryker-with-bob-mintzer-and-the-wdr-big-band-strikezone-records
Personnel: Dave Stryker: guitar; Bob Mintzer: saxophone; Wim Both: trumpet; Rob Broynen: trumpet; Andy Haderer: trumpet; : trumpet; Johan Horlen: saxophone, alto; Karolina Strassmayer: saxophone, alto; Olivier Peters: saxophone, tenor; Paul Heller: saxophone, tenor; Jens Neufang: saxophone, baritone; Ludwig Nuss: trombone; Raphael Klemm: trombone; Andy Hunter: trombone; Mattis Cederberg: trombone; Billy Test: piano; John Goldsby: bass; Hans Dekker: drums.
Blue Soul (Feat. Bob Mintzer & WDR Big Band)
Kenny Burrell - Jazzmen Detroit
Styles: Guitar Jazz
Year: 1956
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 33:52
Size: 77,9 MB
Art: Front
(5:57) 1. Afternoon in Paris
(4:46) 2. You Turned the Tables on Me
(5:28) 3. Apothegm
(5:21) 4. Your Host
(5:37) 5. Cottontail
(6:40) 6. Tom's Thumb
Jazzmen Detroit
Year: 1956
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 33:52
Size: 77,9 MB
Art: Front
(5:57) 1. Afternoon in Paris
(4:46) 2. You Turned the Tables on Me
(5:28) 3. Apothegm
(5:21) 4. Your Host
(5:37) 5. Cottontail
(6:40) 6. Tom's Thumb
This Savoy CD lists Kenny Burrell as session leader, but it is clearly a group effort that could easily have been attributed to Pepper Adams or pianist Tommy Flanagan. Burrell has the edge, though, in writing credits with the contribution of two tunes: the quietly assured "Your Host" and the bluesy, hard bop line "Tom's Thumb." Adams offers his leisurely, sophisticated "Apothegm" to the date. Flanagan, for his part, is pure elegance, subtlety, and swing. With the exception of drummer Kenny Clarke, all the players hail from the motor city.
Coming up through the same hometown music scene may help account for the fine group interplay. It's also apparent the musicians had the luxury of working through these six tunes before sitting down to record. The result does full justice to the fine writing and arranging and allows for thoughtfully developed improvisations. Ensemble entries are crisp and assured, as are the entrances by all soloists. Burrell favors a dry, clean attack here, while Adams reins in his more full-throated tendencies. Clarke, Flanagan, and bassist Paul Chambers support with consummate taste. The overall mood may be a bit too polite, but this remains a classy, near classic performance. There's no padding, although, at 33 minutes, the running time is brief. The sound recording is excellent.By Jim Todd http://www.allmusic.com/album/jazzmen-detroit-mw0000097797
Personnel: Kenny Burrell (guitar); Pepper Adams (baritone saxophone); Tommy Flanagan (piano); Paul Chambers (bass); Kenny Clarke (drums).
Coming up through the same hometown music scene may help account for the fine group interplay. It's also apparent the musicians had the luxury of working through these six tunes before sitting down to record. The result does full justice to the fine writing and arranging and allows for thoughtfully developed improvisations. Ensemble entries are crisp and assured, as are the entrances by all soloists. Burrell favors a dry, clean attack here, while Adams reins in his more full-throated tendencies. Clarke, Flanagan, and bassist Paul Chambers support with consummate taste. The overall mood may be a bit too polite, but this remains a classy, near classic performance. There's no padding, although, at 33 minutes, the running time is brief. The sound recording is excellent.By Jim Todd http://www.allmusic.com/album/jazzmen-detroit-mw0000097797
Personnel: Kenny Burrell (guitar); Pepper Adams (baritone saxophone); Tommy Flanagan (piano); Paul Chambers (bass); Kenny Clarke (drums).
Jazzmen Detroit
Sunday, October 29, 2023
The Hot Club Of Cowtown - Rendezvous In Rhythm
Styles: Retro Swing
Year: 2013
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 49:23
Size: 113,4 MB
Art: Front
(3:55) 1. Dark Eyes / "Ochi Chornye"
(2:36) 2. I'm In The Mood For Love
(2:59) 3. Crazy Rhythm
(2:59) 4. Avalon
(4:00) 5. If I Had You
(3:48) 6. The Continental
(3:50) 7. Minor Swing
(3:59) 8. Melancholy Baby
(3:56) 9. I'm Confessin'
(3:50) 10. Sweet Sue, Just You
(3:52) 11. Slow Boat To China
(2:42) 12. Sunshine Of Your Smile
(3:28) 13. Back In Your Own Backyard
(3:22) 14. Douce Ambiance
Year: 2013
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 49:23
Size: 113,4 MB
Art: Front
(3:55) 1. Dark Eyes / "Ochi Chornye"
(2:36) 2. I'm In The Mood For Love
(2:59) 3. Crazy Rhythm
(2:59) 4. Avalon
(4:00) 5. If I Had You
(3:48) 6. The Continental
(3:50) 7. Minor Swing
(3:59) 8. Melancholy Baby
(3:56) 9. I'm Confessin'
(3:50) 10. Sweet Sue, Just You
(3:52) 11. Slow Boat To China
(2:42) 12. Sunshine Of Your Smile
(3:28) 13. Back In Your Own Backyard
(3:22) 14. Douce Ambiance
Hot Club of Cowtown patented their style early in their career, and if they haven't found a lot of variation within their blend of hot dance music and western swing, they have nevertheless found a lot of depth within this unique fusion. Rendezvous in Rhythm, the group's 2013 album and eighth overall, is the flipside of 2010's Bob Wills salute What Makes Bob Holler, focusing entirely on jazz standards often heard in the south of France. In some ways, this underplays the "cowtown" element of the Hot Club, but there's a looseness in the rhythms that is ever so slightly western, plus, by this point, the trio is so fluid in blurring the boundaries between swing and western swing, it doesn't much matter that this album doesn’t have much in the way of country.
Every one of the three members fiddler Elana James, guitarist Whit Smith, bassist Jake Erwin get space to spill out lyrical solos and they truly seem to cherish playing these familiar melodies, savoring their lyrical turns as well as the group's familiar but lively interplay. Similarly, listeners will find this comfortable but not complacent, as the trio cooks with some serious heat on these beloved tunes. And don't say the Hot Club's version of "Slow Boat to China" cashes in on the song's appearance in Paul Thomas Anderson's cryptic 2012 film The Master this album was recorded in July of 2012, long before anybody would have known Philip Seymour Hoffman bid farewell to Joaquin Phoenix with the tune at the movie's conclusion. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine http://www.allmusic.com/album/rendezvous-in-rhythm-mw0002430771
Buddy Rich - Speak No Evil
Year: 1976
File: MP3@128K/s
Time: 40:57
Size: 38,3 MB
Art: Front
(3:47) 1. Speak No Evil
(5:40) 2. Yearnin' Learnin'
(6:37) 3. Medley: Storm At Sunup
(4:26) 4. Medley: Love Me Now
(6:02) 5. Fight The Power
(3:58) 6. Games People Play
(3:07) 7. Sophisticated Lady (She's A Different Lady)
(3:24) 8. Sneakin' Up Behind You
(3:51) 9. How Long (Betcha Got A Chick)
Released in 1976, Buddy Rich's Speak No Evil is one of the most unusual dates in his long career. For starters, it was produced and arranged by the legendary Richard Evans, house producer and arranger at Chess Records' Cadet imprint. Amazingly enough, this set comes off beautifully as a funky, soulful jazz date. And for a change, it seems, Rich allowed his producer to do his job without inserting himself at every turn.
Some jazz fans may write off the date simply because the great drummer is decked out in kung fu garb and is sporting a pair of nunchucks on the back cover. That's too bad for them, because this one is a killer. As usual, Rich surrounded himself with some of the great soloists and session players available for the date saxophonists Joe Farrell, Steve Marcus, Dave Tofani, and Turk Mauro; trumpeters Lew Soloff and Jon Faddis; bassist Bob Cranshaw; guitarist Ross Traut (who co-produced the session with Evans); and Kenny Barron on electric piano amidst the other brass and percussion and trio of female backing vocalists including Vivian Cherry, Lani Groves, and Rhetta Hughes.
The program walks a free-flowing line between funky and progressive big-band jazz, sophisticated pop, and soulful instrumental tunes that border on disco (especially the Natalie Cole-Chuck Jackson tune "Sophisticated Lady [She's a Different Lady]"), but for the most part stays on the funk side of the street. The program features some of the bigger tunes of the day, including a burning, break-laden rendition of the Isley Brothers' "Fight the Power," Gino Vanelli's "Storm at Sunup," the Spinners' "Games People Play," and the Pointer Sisters' "How Long (Betcha Got a Chick)." The charts are simply infectious. Evans, scoring for the popping bass and guitar-driven rhythm section, is always at the core.
Add Barron's smoking choppy Fender Rhodes lines and you have a bottom the drummer (who is amazingly restrained here) can play off of. Evans gives plenty of solo space to the principals while keeping things taut and grooving check out the Brecker Brothers' "Sneakin' Up Behind You," with killer breaks by Rich and a rubbery bassline by Cranshaw. The counterpoint in the horn chart between trombones and trumpets is virally infectious. Rich may not have scored commercially with this set at the time, but it has become a favorite of beat hunters since the dawn of sampling. Speak No Evil was released finally on CD by Wounded Bird in 2008.
https://www.allmusic.com/album/speak-no-evil-mw0000786612
Some jazz fans may write off the date simply because the great drummer is decked out in kung fu garb and is sporting a pair of nunchucks on the back cover. That's too bad for them, because this one is a killer. As usual, Rich surrounded himself with some of the great soloists and session players available for the date saxophonists Joe Farrell, Steve Marcus, Dave Tofani, and Turk Mauro; trumpeters Lew Soloff and Jon Faddis; bassist Bob Cranshaw; guitarist Ross Traut (who co-produced the session with Evans); and Kenny Barron on electric piano amidst the other brass and percussion and trio of female backing vocalists including Vivian Cherry, Lani Groves, and Rhetta Hughes.
The program walks a free-flowing line between funky and progressive big-band jazz, sophisticated pop, and soulful instrumental tunes that border on disco (especially the Natalie Cole-Chuck Jackson tune "Sophisticated Lady [She's a Different Lady]"), but for the most part stays on the funk side of the street. The program features some of the bigger tunes of the day, including a burning, break-laden rendition of the Isley Brothers' "Fight the Power," Gino Vanelli's "Storm at Sunup," the Spinners' "Games People Play," and the Pointer Sisters' "How Long (Betcha Got a Chick)." The charts are simply infectious. Evans, scoring for the popping bass and guitar-driven rhythm section, is always at the core.
Add Barron's smoking choppy Fender Rhodes lines and you have a bottom the drummer (who is amazingly restrained here) can play off of. Evans gives plenty of solo space to the principals while keeping things taut and grooving check out the Brecker Brothers' "Sneakin' Up Behind You," with killer breaks by Rich and a rubbery bassline by Cranshaw. The counterpoint in the horn chart between trombones and trumpets is virally infectious. Rich may not have scored commercially with this set at the time, but it has become a favorite of beat hunters since the dawn of sampling. Speak No Evil was released finally on CD by Wounded Bird in 2008.
https://www.allmusic.com/album/speak-no-evil-mw0000786612
Speak No Evil
Sherrie Maricle & The Diva Jazz Orchestra - TNT: A Tommy Newsom Tribute
Styles: Big Band
Year: 2005
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 64:14
Size: 147,5 MB
Art: Front
(4:22) 1. Titter Pipes
(6:43) 2. Pensativa
(7:55) 3. Three Shades Of Blue
(4:56) 4. Moonlight (What A Little Moonlight Can Do)
(9:03) 5. Nat Cole Medley (Mona Lisa/Nature Boy/Straighten Up & Fly Right/Route 66)
(5:31) 6. Too Late Now
(6:20) 7. Trail Mix (On The Trail/Surrey With The Fringe On Top)
(6:32) 8. Remember Medley (Remember/I Remember You)
(7:19) 9. Come Sunday
(5:27) 10. Red Door
TNT is the fifth album by the explosive New York-based all-female DIVA Jazz Orchestra, blending a contemporary mainstream big band sound with a progressive flavor. Founded by a former relief drummer for the Buddy Rich Big Band, Stanley Kay, the fifteen piece big band has been under the direction of bandleader/drummer Dr. Sherrie Maricle for the last several years. Whether in the studio or in concert, the group has drawn critical acclaim for its play. This record is a tribute to composer/arranger Tommy Newsom, who provided all of the arrangements and two original charts. "Titter Pipes," the opening swinging number, highlights a chase between Scheila Gonzalez on tenor sax and Karolina Strassmayer on alto. The other Newsom chart is "Three Shades of Blue," a slow and bluesy piece. Of the other pieces on the album, Claire Fischer's "Pensativa" is one of the most delicious. Strassmayer shows her range with a flute solo, followed by a moving run on the piano by Chihiro Yamanaka, backed up by bassist Noriko Ueda. Anat Cohen takes center stage on clarinet with the Billie Holiday favorite "Moonlight," played in a New Orleans/Dixieland style.
The "Nat Cole Medley" is a cleverly crafted musical collage of melodies and harmonies with a playful version of "Straighten Up and Fly Right" that finds the band on vocals. Barbara Larangona provides one memorable performance with her emotional flugelhorn solo on the slow and mellow "Too Late Now." I did not particularly care for the heavy trombone statements in the beginning of "Trail Mix," which is mostly a matter of taste. Scheila Gonzalez delivers a passion-filled baritone sax solo on "Remember Medley." The finale, "Red Door," is another swinging number that simmers with a torrid pace and features Maricle's powerful drumming. In appraising the album I would give an "F" for the color selection in the liner notes, whose lack of contrast makes for difficult reading. Musically, this is an exciting, entertaining, and thoroughly enjoyable CD that warrants a grade of "F" for many things: (F)ine arrangements by Newsom, superbly interpreted by the (F)abulous musicianship of a (F)irst-class all-(F)emale extraordinary big band that plays with (F)inesse, (F)reshness, and (F)ire.By Edward Blanco https://www.allaboutjazz.com/tnt-a-tommy-newsom-tribute-sherrie-maricle-lightyear-entertainment-review-by-edward-blanco.php
Personnel: Sherrie Maricle: drums; Chihiro Yamanaka: piano; Noriko Ueda: bass; Karolina Srassmayer, Leigh Pilzer, Anat Cohen, Scheila Gonzalez, Lisa Parrot: saxophone; Leisi Whitaker, Barbara Larangona, Tanya Darby, Jamie Dauber: trumpet; Deborah Weisz, Jen Krupa, Leslie Havens: trombone.
The "Nat Cole Medley" is a cleverly crafted musical collage of melodies and harmonies with a playful version of "Straighten Up and Fly Right" that finds the band on vocals. Barbara Larangona provides one memorable performance with her emotional flugelhorn solo on the slow and mellow "Too Late Now." I did not particularly care for the heavy trombone statements in the beginning of "Trail Mix," which is mostly a matter of taste. Scheila Gonzalez delivers a passion-filled baritone sax solo on "Remember Medley." The finale, "Red Door," is another swinging number that simmers with a torrid pace and features Maricle's powerful drumming. In appraising the album I would give an "F" for the color selection in the liner notes, whose lack of contrast makes for difficult reading. Musically, this is an exciting, entertaining, and thoroughly enjoyable CD that warrants a grade of "F" for many things: (F)ine arrangements by Newsom, superbly interpreted by the (F)abulous musicianship of a (F)irst-class all-(F)emale extraordinary big band that plays with (F)inesse, (F)reshness, and (F)ire.By Edward Blanco https://www.allaboutjazz.com/tnt-a-tommy-newsom-tribute-sherrie-maricle-lightyear-entertainment-review-by-edward-blanco.php
Personnel: Sherrie Maricle: drums; Chihiro Yamanaka: piano; Noriko Ueda: bass; Karolina Srassmayer, Leigh Pilzer, Anat Cohen, Scheila Gonzalez, Lisa Parrot: saxophone; Leisi Whitaker, Barbara Larangona, Tanya Darby, Jamie Dauber: trumpet; Deborah Weisz, Jen Krupa, Leslie Havens: trombone.
TNT: A Tommy Newsom Tribute
Nat Birchall - Songs Of The Ancestors Afro Trane Chapter 2
Year: 2023
File: MP3@128K/s
Time: 38:33
Size: 35,5 MB
Art: Front
(2:37) 1. One For The Son (For Pharoah)
(5:57) 2. Ogunde Uarerre
(9:24) 3. Song Of The Ancestors
(5:29) 4. The Drum Thing
(9:53) 5. Africa
(5:12) 6. Sun In Libra
This is the fifth of Nat’s “one-semble” recordings where he plays all the instruments himself. This album celebrates our collective ancestors, in particular the ones who carried the Music in their bones and blood and spread it around the Earth, from the earliest times until now.
Music crosses continents and cultures and time itself, and when it speaks of the truth it transcends musical genealogy, and continues a timeline from the earliest sources up to the present day. The music in the album is inspired by many things but particularly the master musicians John Coltrane, Pharoah Sanders, Cedric Brooks and Count Ossie. https://www.deejay.de/nat.birchall
.
Music crosses continents and cultures and time itself, and when it speaks of the truth it transcends musical genealogy, and continues a timeline from the earliest sources up to the present day. The music in the album is inspired by many things but particularly the master musicians John Coltrane, Pharoah Sanders, Cedric Brooks and Count Ossie. https://www.deejay.de/nat.birchall
.
Songs Of The Ancestors Afro Trane Chapter 2
Sunday, October 22, 2023
Deborah Silver - Glitter & Grits
Year: 2020
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 43:24
Size: 104,5 MB
Art: Front
(3:26) 1. I got rhythm
(3:27) 2. That old black magic
(4:40) 3. I'm gonna sit right down and write myself a letter
(3:44) 4. After you've gone
(3:06) 5. Ballin' the jack
(2:34) 6. Almost like being in love
(3:19) 7. Get happy
(2:57) 8. Ac-cent-tchu-ate the positive
(3:44) 9. Embraceable you
(3:18) 10. Bill Bailey, won't you please come home
(2:44) 11. Don't get around much anymore
(3:17) 12. Fly me to the moon
(3:02) 13. Deep in the heart of Texas
I love a good surprise (except for being scared, a favorite pastime of my spouse) and the new Deborah Silver album GLITTER AND GRITS is one of the most pleasant and unexpected of surprises I've had in awhile. I guess the title should have given it away, but I truly wasn't prepared for the rock-a-billy vibe to the CD when you think about standards and Silver, you have your mind pretty much set on something a little more traditional. This is traditional alright traditional Texas swing, man! Oh my GOSH, is it refreshing! From Deborah's opening Gershwin tune, you'll have your fingers snapping and your toes tapping, and if you're not dancing within the first 90 seconds, then you're missing out on something that can only be described as pure fun. And, kids, I WAS dancing and I was at the gym, so put that picture in your head, why don't you? Do yourself the favor of allowing yourself to dance... even if you're at the gym.
Glitter and Grits is a totally appropriate title for the CD because Deborah Silver is rarely seen (in a professional capacity) in anything less than seamlessly crafted glamor, and there is no doubt that the woman has grit. An individual as a person and as a talent, Silver is also a warrior who survived a 58-day isolation with Covid-19, emerging to release the Ray Benson-produced CD. Mr. Benson, famed for an impressive artistic legacy in which he and his band ASLEEP AT THE WHEEL have earned ten Grammy Awards, has created arrangements and orchestrations to which jazz diva Silver takes as though she was born and raised in the land of cowboy boots, Mums, and grits N gravy. Without sacrificing one iota of the jazz efficacy for which she is famous, Deborah gets right down into the Southern sound, no hesitation, no tentative tendencies, she gets into it, and she gets down with it, and (I cannot stress this enough) it is incredible. It would not be a far reach to think that the team on Glitter And Grits might join forces for another album in the future, because, although they might not have dreamed of a partnership of this nature, what they have here is too special to leave at just one album.
The canon of standards that people call The Great American Songbook (a distinction that grows more, and grows more vague, with each passing year) holds specific and personal connections in the hearts and minds of every person who listens to songs like "Embraceable You" and "That Old Black Magic"; whatever their age, whatever the reason they first found this brand of music, everybody loves it for a reason that is all their own. What about the people who don't usually listen to Judy Garland and don't know the song "Get Happy"? There are country music fans who probably never heard "Almost Like Being In Love" before. Well, this CD is a perfect way to introduce those people to incredible works of art from the history of songwriting, just like there are jazz listeners and Deborah Silver fans who are going to be introduced to Texas Swing and this dude Ray Benson, who they never heard of before, and, as a result, have their own musical tastes altered. I'll be doggoned if Deborah Silver isn't only delivering to the public some damn fine music, she is providing a service by bridging a gap for lovers of different genres of music, educating folks a little, and expanding peoples' level of experience. I can't think of a sweeter way to broaden your mind and your artistic tastes.
Mr. Benson and co. are doing work on this CD that is beyond reproach; you could actually take out all of Deborah's vocal tracks and you would have a heck of an enjoyable album. Take my word for it: removing Deborah's voice from the tracks would be a mistake of epic proportion. Golly Gee Moses, is this lady special. You know how sometimes you can listen to a singer who has a gorgeous voice but you're not really sure what emotion is being conveyed, IF any emotion is being conveyed? That's not Deborah Silver. The quality of the voice is exquisite: you can tell that, even without training, this would be a pretty voice - I mean, if you were standing next to her at a party singing Happy Birthday, you would think "What a pretty voice." The thing is, though, pretty voice aside, not only has Silver had training, she has an innate instinct for styling and performance, a showomanship that serves the audience, and she has a kinship that serves the music, whether it's a cheeky "I'm Gonna Sit Right Down And Write Myself a Letter" or a down home "Bill Bailey, Won't You Please Come Home" (come on, Mama!). Then she layers in the emotion, and even though the upbeat Southern nature of the cd doesn't leave a lot of room for ballads with all the moony romantic feels, every single track here still touches the place in your heart where you can tell that Deborah Silver was smiling while recording. She was having fun. She was enjoying life.~ Stephen Mosher https://www.broadwayworld.com/cabaret/article/BWW-CD-Review-Deborah-Silver-GLITTER-AND-GRITS-Swings-Sings-and-Shines-Like-Stars-In-a-Texas-Sky-20201023
Glitter and Grits is a totally appropriate title for the CD because Deborah Silver is rarely seen (in a professional capacity) in anything less than seamlessly crafted glamor, and there is no doubt that the woman has grit. An individual as a person and as a talent, Silver is also a warrior who survived a 58-day isolation with Covid-19, emerging to release the Ray Benson-produced CD. Mr. Benson, famed for an impressive artistic legacy in which he and his band ASLEEP AT THE WHEEL have earned ten Grammy Awards, has created arrangements and orchestrations to which jazz diva Silver takes as though she was born and raised in the land of cowboy boots, Mums, and grits N gravy. Without sacrificing one iota of the jazz efficacy for which she is famous, Deborah gets right down into the Southern sound, no hesitation, no tentative tendencies, she gets into it, and she gets down with it, and (I cannot stress this enough) it is incredible. It would not be a far reach to think that the team on Glitter And Grits might join forces for another album in the future, because, although they might not have dreamed of a partnership of this nature, what they have here is too special to leave at just one album.
The canon of standards that people call The Great American Songbook (a distinction that grows more, and grows more vague, with each passing year) holds specific and personal connections in the hearts and minds of every person who listens to songs like "Embraceable You" and "That Old Black Magic"; whatever their age, whatever the reason they first found this brand of music, everybody loves it for a reason that is all their own. What about the people who don't usually listen to Judy Garland and don't know the song "Get Happy"? There are country music fans who probably never heard "Almost Like Being In Love" before. Well, this CD is a perfect way to introduce those people to incredible works of art from the history of songwriting, just like there are jazz listeners and Deborah Silver fans who are going to be introduced to Texas Swing and this dude Ray Benson, who they never heard of before, and, as a result, have their own musical tastes altered. I'll be doggoned if Deborah Silver isn't only delivering to the public some damn fine music, she is providing a service by bridging a gap for lovers of different genres of music, educating folks a little, and expanding peoples' level of experience. I can't think of a sweeter way to broaden your mind and your artistic tastes.
Mr. Benson and co. are doing work on this CD that is beyond reproach; you could actually take out all of Deborah's vocal tracks and you would have a heck of an enjoyable album. Take my word for it: removing Deborah's voice from the tracks would be a mistake of epic proportion. Golly Gee Moses, is this lady special. You know how sometimes you can listen to a singer who has a gorgeous voice but you're not really sure what emotion is being conveyed, IF any emotion is being conveyed? That's not Deborah Silver. The quality of the voice is exquisite: you can tell that, even without training, this would be a pretty voice - I mean, if you were standing next to her at a party singing Happy Birthday, you would think "What a pretty voice." The thing is, though, pretty voice aside, not only has Silver had training, she has an innate instinct for styling and performance, a showomanship that serves the audience, and she has a kinship that serves the music, whether it's a cheeky "I'm Gonna Sit Right Down And Write Myself a Letter" or a down home "Bill Bailey, Won't You Please Come Home" (come on, Mama!). Then she layers in the emotion, and even though the upbeat Southern nature of the cd doesn't leave a lot of room for ballads with all the moony romantic feels, every single track here still touches the place in your heart where you can tell that Deborah Silver was smiling while recording. She was having fun. She was enjoying life.~ Stephen Mosher https://www.broadwayworld.com/cabaret/article/BWW-CD-Review-Deborah-Silver-GLITTER-AND-GRITS-Swings-Sings-and-Shines-Like-Stars-In-a-Texas-Sky-20201023
Glitter & Grits
Hot Club of Cowtown - Swingin' Stampede
Year: 1998
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 38:33
Size: 100,8 MB
Art: Front
(2:54) 1. I Had Someone Else
(3:17) 2. You Can't Break My Heart
(1:42) 3. Red Bird
(3:02) 4. Chinatown, My Chinatown
(3:24) 5. Just Friends
(3:06) 6. Ida Red
(3:06) 7. Silver Dew On the Blue Grass Tonight
(2:12) 8. Somebody Loves Me
(3:02) 9. My Confession
(2:03) 10. Snowflake Reel
(2:55) 11. End of the Line
(2:55) 12. T and J Waltz
(2:34) 13. Sweet Jenny Lee (2:15) 14. Mission To Moscow
On this, their debut, the Hot Club of Cowtown jump out of the gate like a fired-up, pared down version of the Texas Playboys. A trio, their playing is light and assured, full of grins. What guitarist Whit Smith and fiddler Elana Fremerman lack in vocal prowess they make up for with honest chops and spirit. Swingin' Stampede captures the ambience of old-timey swing nearly to perfection. By Jim Smith
https://www.allmusic.com/album/swingin-stampede-mw0000042562
Personnel: Whit Smith - Vocals, Guitar, Producer; Elana Fremerman - Vocals, Fiddle, Producer, Billy Horton - Backup Vocals, Upright Bass, Producer; Johnny Gimble - Fiddle (Tracks 1, 4, 8, 14); T Jarrod Bonta - Piano (Tracks 8, 10); Jeremy Wakefield - Steel Guitar (Tracks 8, 10); Mike Maddux - Accordion (Track 7).
https://www.allmusic.com/album/swingin-stampede-mw0000042562
Personnel: Whit Smith - Vocals, Guitar, Producer; Elana Fremerman - Vocals, Fiddle, Producer, Billy Horton - Backup Vocals, Upright Bass, Producer; Johnny Gimble - Fiddle (Tracks 1, 4, 8, 14); T Jarrod Bonta - Piano (Tracks 8, 10); Jeremy Wakefield - Steel Guitar (Tracks 8, 10); Mike Maddux - Accordion (Track 7).
Swingin' Stampede
The Diva Jazz Orchestra - The Diva Jazz Orchestra Swings Broadway
Year: 2022
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 61:32
Size: 143,1 MB
Art: Front
(7:48) 1. Heart
(6:38) 2. Pure Imagination
(5:44) 3. The Man I Love
(7:12) 4. With Every Breath I Take
(6:06) 5. The Sound of Music
(6:29) 6. Oh, What a Beautiful Morning
(5:17) 7. Seventy-Six Trombones
(7:18) 8. Love Who You Love
(8:55) 9. Get Me to the Church On Time
At the ripe old age of thirty (closer to a hundred in big-band years), the superlative New York-based, all-female DIVA Jazz Orchestra remains as frisky as a newborn colt, swinging up, down and around Broadway with abandon on its thirteenth album, a brisk and colorful tribute to the Great White Way that shines brightly from start to finish.
The album opens and closes in a mid-1950s vein, raising the curtain with Steven Feifke's breezy, well-grooved arrangement of "Heart" from Damn Yankees (1955) and ringing it down with a spirited battle of alto saxophones (Mercedes Beckman, Alexa Tarantino) on Scott Whitfield's full-throttle treatment of Get Me to the Church on Time from Lerner and Loewe's classic My Fair Lady (1956). Drummer and music director Sherrie Maricle has the last word on that flag-waver, taking her only extended solo before brass and reeds append a boisterous exclamation point.
Whitfield, a trombonist himself, deftly arranged "Seventy-Six Trombones" from Meredith Willson's The Music Man as a showcase for DIVA's admirable 'bone section (Jennifer Krupa, Sara Jacovino, bass Leslie Havens), squeezing in a quick "trad" section that summons forth clarinetist Roxy Coss and trumpeter Barbara Laronga before adding a brief line from the venerable "Lassus Trombone" as a coda. Coss delivers a forceful tenor solo on "Heart," as do Krupa and trumpeter Jami Dauber. Bassist Noriko Ueda takes a solo bow on the Gershwin brothers' "The Man I Love," as does Jacovino (who also arranged) on Cy Coleman's seductive ballad, "With Every Breath I Take," from City of Angels.
Coss, Dauber and Maricle share blowing space on baritone saxophonist Leigh Pilzer's buoyant samba version of "Pure Imagination" from Leslie Bricusse/Anthony Newley's delightful score for Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, the first of two splendid charts by Pilzer who spreads a Basie-style canopy over Rodgers and Hammerstein's "The Sound of Music," on which she solos with Ueda and pianist Tomoko Ohno. Ueda arranged a second R&H masterpiece, "Oh, What a Beautiful Mornin,'" from Oklahoma! (sturdy solos courtesy of Ohno, flugel Rachel Therrien and tenor Laura Dreyer), while Scott Silbert uses his impressive orchestral talents to score the enchanting "Love Who You Love" from A Man of No Importance (spotlighting Ohno, Laronga on flugelhorn and Tarantino on soprano sax).
DIVA has a proud history of swinging, on Broadway and everywhere else, and this latest example of its mastery warrants a gold star, blue ribbon, laurel wreath, feather in the cap, or any other commendation a superlative ensemble deserves. To put it another way, Swings Broadway is emphatically recommended.
Personnel: Sherrie Maricle: Music Director, drum set; Tomoko Ohno: piano; Noriko Ueda: bass; Alexa Tarantino: soprano/alto saxophones, flute; Mercedes Beckman: soprano/alto saxophones, flute; Roxy Coss: tenor saxophone, clarinet; Laura Dreyer: soprano/tenor saxophones, clarinet; Leigh Pilzer: baritone saxophone, bass clarinet, clarinet, flute; Liesl Whitaker: lead trumpet, flugelhorn; Jami Dauber: trumpet, flugelhorn; Rachel Therrien: trumpet, flugelhorn; Barbara Laronga: trumpet, flugelhorn; Jennifer Krupa: trombone; Sara Jacovino: trombone; Leslie Havens: bass trombone; Annette Aguilar: guest percussionist on tracks 2 & 6
The album opens and closes in a mid-1950s vein, raising the curtain with Steven Feifke's breezy, well-grooved arrangement of "Heart" from Damn Yankees (1955) and ringing it down with a spirited battle of alto saxophones (Mercedes Beckman, Alexa Tarantino) on Scott Whitfield's full-throttle treatment of Get Me to the Church on Time from Lerner and Loewe's classic My Fair Lady (1956). Drummer and music director Sherrie Maricle has the last word on that flag-waver, taking her only extended solo before brass and reeds append a boisterous exclamation point.
Whitfield, a trombonist himself, deftly arranged "Seventy-Six Trombones" from Meredith Willson's The Music Man as a showcase for DIVA's admirable 'bone section (Jennifer Krupa, Sara Jacovino, bass Leslie Havens), squeezing in a quick "trad" section that summons forth clarinetist Roxy Coss and trumpeter Barbara Laronga before adding a brief line from the venerable "Lassus Trombone" as a coda. Coss delivers a forceful tenor solo on "Heart," as do Krupa and trumpeter Jami Dauber. Bassist Noriko Ueda takes a solo bow on the Gershwin brothers' "The Man I Love," as does Jacovino (who also arranged) on Cy Coleman's seductive ballad, "With Every Breath I Take," from City of Angels.
Coss, Dauber and Maricle share blowing space on baritone saxophonist Leigh Pilzer's buoyant samba version of "Pure Imagination" from Leslie Bricusse/Anthony Newley's delightful score for Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, the first of two splendid charts by Pilzer who spreads a Basie-style canopy over Rodgers and Hammerstein's "The Sound of Music," on which she solos with Ueda and pianist Tomoko Ohno. Ueda arranged a second R&H masterpiece, "Oh, What a Beautiful Mornin,'" from Oklahoma! (sturdy solos courtesy of Ohno, flugel Rachel Therrien and tenor Laura Dreyer), while Scott Silbert uses his impressive orchestral talents to score the enchanting "Love Who You Love" from A Man of No Importance (spotlighting Ohno, Laronga on flugelhorn and Tarantino on soprano sax).
DIVA has a proud history of swinging, on Broadway and everywhere else, and this latest example of its mastery warrants a gold star, blue ribbon, laurel wreath, feather in the cap, or any other commendation a superlative ensemble deserves. To put it another way, Swings Broadway is emphatically recommended.
Personnel: Sherrie Maricle: Music Director, drum set; Tomoko Ohno: piano; Noriko Ueda: bass; Alexa Tarantino: soprano/alto saxophones, flute; Mercedes Beckman: soprano/alto saxophones, flute; Roxy Coss: tenor saxophone, clarinet; Laura Dreyer: soprano/tenor saxophones, clarinet; Leigh Pilzer: baritone saxophone, bass clarinet, clarinet, flute; Liesl Whitaker: lead trumpet, flugelhorn; Jami Dauber: trumpet, flugelhorn; Rachel Therrien: trumpet, flugelhorn; Barbara Laronga: trumpet, flugelhorn; Jennifer Krupa: trombone; Sara Jacovino: trombone; Leslie Havens: bass trombone; Annette Aguilar: guest percussionist on tracks 2 & 6
The Diva Jazz Orchestra Swings Broadway
Nancy Sinatra - Keep Walkin': Singles, Demos & Rarities 1965-1978
Year: 2023
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 75:17
Size: 179,2 MB
Art: Front
(2:52) 1. The City Never Sleeps At Night
(2:51) 2. The Last Of The Secret Agents
(3:04) 3. My Baby Cried All Night Long
(2:17) 4. Shades
(2:38) 5. In Our Time
(2:36) 6. Love Eyes
(2:48) 7. Rockin' Rock and Roll
(3:02) 8. This Town
(2:26) 9. Tony Rome
(2:32) 10. 100 Years
(3:04) 11. See The Little Children
(2:17) 12. Something Pretty
(2:55) 13. Do I Hear A Waltz
(3:20) 14. Drummer Man
(3:12) 15. Zodiac Blues
(3:28) 16. Highway Song
(3:41) 17. Are You Growing Tired Of My Love
(2:22) 18. Flowers In The Rain
(3:57) 19. Glory Road
(2:48) 20. Ain't No Sunshine
(3:43) 21. Easy Evil
(3:24) 22. Sugar Me
(2:35) 23. Kinky Love
(4:29) 24. Dolly and Hawkeye
(2:44) 25. I Just Can't Help Believing
*Light in the Attic* continues to celebrate the influential career of singer, actress, activist, and icon *Nancy Sinatra* with a captivating new collection, *Keep Walkin': Singles, Demos & Rarities 1965-1978*.
Exploring the lesser-known gems from Sinatra's rich catalog through *25 B-sides, rare singles, covers, demos, and previously-unreleased recordings*, *Keep Walkin'* was remastered by the *GRAMMY®-nominated engineer John Baldwin* and available in a variety of formats, including *vinyl, CD, 8-track, and digital*.By Editorial Reviews
www.amazon.com/Keep-Walkin-Singles-Rarities-1965-1978/dp/B0CGMQ3FWH
Exploring the lesser-known gems from Sinatra's rich catalog through *25 B-sides, rare singles, covers, demos, and previously-unreleased recordings*, *Keep Walkin'* was remastered by the *GRAMMY®-nominated engineer John Baldwin* and available in a variety of formats, including *vinyl, CD, 8-track, and digital*.By Editorial Reviews
www.amazon.com/Keep-Walkin-Singles-Rarities-1965-1978/dp/B0CGMQ3FWH
Keep Walkin': Singles, Demos & Rarities 1965-1978
Gonzalo Rubalcaba - Borrowed Roses
Year: 2023
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 61:01
Size: 140,5 MB
Art: Front
(4:42) 1. Chelsea Bridge
(4:36) 2. Summertime
(4:22) 3. Someone To Watch Over Me
(5:04) 4. Take Five
(6:20) 5. Here There And Everywhere
(4:11) 6. Windows
(6:41) 7. Lush Life
(5:09) 8. Night And Day
(6:19) 9. In A Sentimental Mood
(4:25) 10. Very Early
(2:37) 11. Do It Again
(6:30) 12. Shape Of My Heart
While many men and women approach their sixtieth birthday with visions of retirement, pianist and iconoclast Gonzalo Rubalcaba, with his perceptive ear for folk dance and dense improvisation, moves as far as possible from the idea of retirement and attains another peak of perfection on Borrowed Roses.
Unlike his previous head-turning, stylistic solo recordings the Latin Grammy-winning Solo (Blue Note, 2005) and the spirit cleansing Fe Faith (5Passion, 2019) Borrowed Roses contemplates popular song and standards.
Coming off yet another Grammy win for Skyline (5Passion, 2022), a highly distinguished trio outing with Ron Carter and Jack DeJohnette, Rubalcaba, avowed that music, like imagination and creativity, is never a static thing. He focuses his formidable interpretative prowess on two melodic Billy Strayhorn gems, "Chelsea Bridge" and "Lush Life," centering the melodies within themselves, choosing not to buoy them with the rich harmonic accents which made the originals memorable. That is not to imply in any way that Rubalcaba's approach and playing is anything less than memorable.
Taken back to back, and guided by the lyrical flow, two George Gershwin classics, "Summertime" and "Someone To Watch Over Me," become of one piece, each glorying in the external (the season of the sun) and the internal (the season of longing). Perhaps not an original pairing (given the many times each has been performed down the decades) but certainly an inspiring one, and one which spotlights Rubalcaba's intricate delicacy and determination.
If it were not for the instant familiarity of Paul Desmond's game-changing "Take Five," this performance could be taken as one of the pianist's own time-defying compositions, his coordination and solo improvs holding court. More and more jazz players are recognizing the depth and durability of the John Lennon-Paul McCartney songbook, guaranteeing future years of great music; the pianist takes his place among the true interpreters, translating the emotional core of "Here, There, and Everywhere" with a clarity which a surviving Beatle might marvel at. Rubalcaba muses and expands on Chick Corea "Windows;" conjures and calls onBill Evans with "Very Early," and closes the regal Borrowed Roses with the hushed elegance of Sting's understated ballad "The Shape of My Heart."By Mike Jurkovic
https://www.allaboutjazz.com/borrowed-roses-gonzalo-rubalcaba-top-side-music
Personnel: Gonzalo Rubalcaba: Piano
Unlike his previous head-turning, stylistic solo recordings the Latin Grammy-winning Solo (Blue Note, 2005) and the spirit cleansing Fe Faith (5Passion, 2019) Borrowed Roses contemplates popular song and standards.
Coming off yet another Grammy win for Skyline (5Passion, 2022), a highly distinguished trio outing with Ron Carter and Jack DeJohnette, Rubalcaba, avowed that music, like imagination and creativity, is never a static thing. He focuses his formidable interpretative prowess on two melodic Billy Strayhorn gems, "Chelsea Bridge" and "Lush Life," centering the melodies within themselves, choosing not to buoy them with the rich harmonic accents which made the originals memorable. That is not to imply in any way that Rubalcaba's approach and playing is anything less than memorable.
Taken back to back, and guided by the lyrical flow, two George Gershwin classics, "Summertime" and "Someone To Watch Over Me," become of one piece, each glorying in the external (the season of the sun) and the internal (the season of longing). Perhaps not an original pairing (given the many times each has been performed down the decades) but certainly an inspiring one, and one which spotlights Rubalcaba's intricate delicacy and determination.
If it were not for the instant familiarity of Paul Desmond's game-changing "Take Five," this performance could be taken as one of the pianist's own time-defying compositions, his coordination and solo improvs holding court. More and more jazz players are recognizing the depth and durability of the John Lennon-Paul McCartney songbook, guaranteeing future years of great music; the pianist takes his place among the true interpreters, translating the emotional core of "Here, There, and Everywhere" with a clarity which a surviving Beatle might marvel at. Rubalcaba muses and expands on Chick Corea "Windows;" conjures and calls onBill Evans with "Very Early," and closes the regal Borrowed Roses with the hushed elegance of Sting's understated ballad "The Shape of My Heart."By Mike Jurkovic
https://www.allaboutjazz.com/borrowed-roses-gonzalo-rubalcaba-top-side-music
Personnel: Gonzalo Rubalcaba: Piano
Borrowed Roses
Friday, October 20, 2023
Pepper Adams - The Adams Effect
Time: 49:12
Size: 112.6 MB
Styles: Saxophone jazz
Year: 1985/2007
Art: Front
[6:56] 1. Binary
[6:56] 2. Now In Our Lives
[5:45] 3. Valse Celtique
[6:22] 4. Dylan's Delight
[7:01] 5. How I Spent The Night
[7:26] 6. Claudette's Way
[8:43] 7. Now In Our Lives
Baritonist Pepper Adams' final album as a leader (he died 14 months later) matches him with tenor saxophonist Frank Foster, pianist Tommy Flanagan, bassist Ron Carter and drummer Billy Hart for five of his straight-ahead if occasionally complex originals plus Foster's "How I Spent The Night." Adams still sounded in prime form at the time and, even if none of his tunes became standards, they served as strong and diverse vehicles for the musicians' improvisations. A fine effort by a classic baritone saxophonist.By Scott Yanow
The Adams Effect
Thursday, October 19, 2023
Jeri Southern - Jeri's Velvet Voice
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 42:22
Size: 99,2 MB
Art: Front
(2:41) 1. Kiss and Run
(2:08) 2. Run
(2:35) 3. Bells Are Ringing
(2:37) 4. Speak Softly to Me
(2:57) 5. Candlelight Conversation
(2:51) 6. Forgive and Forget
(2:32) 7. We're Not Children
(3:03) 8. Autumn in My Heart
(2:36) 9. I Waited So Long
(3:00) 10. You Better Go Now
(2:44) 11. The Touch of Love
(3:11) 12. The Ruby and the Pearl
(3:08) 13. The Man That Got Away
(3:11) 14. Don't Explain
(3:02) 15. Nothing at All
A converted piano player and vocal coach, Jeri Southern became one of the most underrated jazz vocal interpreters of the 1950s despite a voice regarded as subpar. Transforming a potential failing into her prime strength, Southern was devastatingly effective at delivering songs charting the downhill romantic life of world-weary everywoman characters. After recording for Decca, Roulette, Capitol and Jasmine during the 1950s though, she abruptly retired after growing tired of the music industry.
Born in rural Nebraska, Jeri Southern played piano by ear at the age of three and began formal lessons three years later. She studied classical piano and voice at a school in Omaha, but after an introduction to jazz at a local nightclub, Southern quickly changed her focus. After graduation, she moved to Chicago and began making appearances at clubs during the late '40s, occasionally supporting Anita O'Day. Convinced to begin singing as well, Southern abandoned her classical training and began singing in a voice just several steps removed from her speaking voice.
After signing to Decca in 1951, her first hit, "You Better Go Now," established her style lyrically focused, somewhat desultory, and definitely lovesick, the style of singing often called (for better or worse) torch songs. Her decidedly unflashy voice lent additional weight to the lyrical concerns of other Southern favorites like "I Don't Know Where to Turn," "Ev'ry Time We Say Goodbye," "Someone to Watch Over Me" and "If I Had You." She also had a moderate hit in 1954 with "Joey" and toured with the Birdland Jazz Stars of 1957. Southern's LPs of the '50s for Decca utilized mostly small groups in an era of large orchestras, including top-flight jazz-pop names like Ralph Burns, Dave Barbour and Marty Paich.
After Southern recorded two LPs for Roulette during 1958, she moved to Capitol for her most celebrated album, 1959's Jeri Southern Meets Cole Porter, arranged by Billy May. She recorded only one additional LP for Capitol (live at the Crescendo) before retiring in 1961, disgusted at the state of traditional pop. She married several times, raised a family and worked as a piano/vocal coach in Hollywood until her death (from double pneumonia) in 1991. She was booked for her first studio time in years at the time of her death.by John Bush
https://www.allmusic.com/artist/jeri-southern-mn0000324819/biography
Born in rural Nebraska, Jeri Southern played piano by ear at the age of three and began formal lessons three years later. She studied classical piano and voice at a school in Omaha, but after an introduction to jazz at a local nightclub, Southern quickly changed her focus. After graduation, she moved to Chicago and began making appearances at clubs during the late '40s, occasionally supporting Anita O'Day. Convinced to begin singing as well, Southern abandoned her classical training and began singing in a voice just several steps removed from her speaking voice.
After signing to Decca in 1951, her first hit, "You Better Go Now," established her style lyrically focused, somewhat desultory, and definitely lovesick, the style of singing often called (for better or worse) torch songs. Her decidedly unflashy voice lent additional weight to the lyrical concerns of other Southern favorites like "I Don't Know Where to Turn," "Ev'ry Time We Say Goodbye," "Someone to Watch Over Me" and "If I Had You." She also had a moderate hit in 1954 with "Joey" and toured with the Birdland Jazz Stars of 1957. Southern's LPs of the '50s for Decca utilized mostly small groups in an era of large orchestras, including top-flight jazz-pop names like Ralph Burns, Dave Barbour and Marty Paich.
After Southern recorded two LPs for Roulette during 1958, she moved to Capitol for her most celebrated album, 1959's Jeri Southern Meets Cole Porter, arranged by Billy May. She recorded only one additional LP for Capitol (live at the Crescendo) before retiring in 1961, disgusted at the state of traditional pop. She married several times, raised a family and worked as a piano/vocal coach in Hollywood until her death (from double pneumonia) in 1991. She was booked for her first studio time in years at the time of her death.by John Bush
https://www.allmusic.com/artist/jeri-southern-mn0000324819/biography
Jeri's Velvet Voice
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)