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Dennie
Well-Known Member
The Legendary Prestige Quintet Sessions -- 4 CD Box Set
The Miles Davis Quintet
2006 Prestige Records
Amazon.com
So which was the greater Miles Davis quintet, the legendary postbop band of the '60s featuring Wayne Shorter, Herbie Hancock, Tony Williams and Ron Carter or the proto-bebop unit of the '50s featuring the emerging John Coltrane? As properly celebrated as the former is, a strong argument can be made for the latter, which in pouring out five albums' worth of material for Prestige in three marathon sessions (to fulfill a contract) took the group aesthetic to dazzling heights--and has been endlessly imitated ever since. Driven by the rhythm section of Red Garland, Paul Chambers and Philly Jones, this band was a remarkable blend of whiplash power and airy emotion--not always perfect or polished, but with the sublimely contained Davis and fiercely uncontainable Coltrane playing off each other, always eventful. (The familiar songs include "Oleo," "If I Were a Bell," "Four" and "My Funny Valentine.") To entice those who already own Chronicles: The Complete Prestige Recordings (1951-1956) or the individual quintet albums (including "Cookin'" and "Relaxin'"), The Legendary Prestige Quintet Sessions offers a bonus disc featuring previously unrecorded radio and TV performances from 1955-58 of acceptable sound quality. Two tracks are from a 1955 installment of The Tonight Show with Steve Allen (whose hipster reputation is retroactively diminished by his painfully square remarks). An intriguing later track, pointing toward Kind of Blue, features Bill Evans at the piano. The enhanced portion of disc four includes transcriptions of five Davis solos. Though the package's cover painting by Davis won't make anyone forget Picasso, the 40-page booklet boasts characteristically incisive notes by Bob Blumenthal. --Lloyd Sachs
CD1
[01]. Stablemates
[02]. How Am I To Know?
[03]. Just Squeeze Me
[04]. There Is No Greater Love
[05]. The Theme
[06]. S'posin'
[07]. In Your Own Sweet Way
[08]. Diane
[09]. Trane's Blues
[10]. Something I Dreamed Last Night
CD2
[01]. It Could Happen To You
[02]. Woodyn' You
[03]. Ahmad's Blues
[04]. Surrey With The Fringe On Top
[05]. It Never Entered My Mind
[06]. When I Fall In Love
[07]. Salt Peanuts
[08]. Four
[09]. The Theme (take 1)
[10]. The Theme (take 2)
[11]. If I Were A Bell
[12]. Well, You Needn't
CD3
[01]. 'Round Midnight
[02]. Half Nelson
[03]. You're My Everything
[04]. I Could Write A Book
[05]. Oleo
[06]. Airegin
[07]. Tune Up
[08]. When Lights Are Low
[09]. Blues By Five
[10]. My Funny Valentine
CD4
[01]. Steve Allen Intro (11-17-55 The Tonight Show with Steve Allen)
[02]. Max Is Making Wax aka: Chance It (11-17-55 The Tonight Show with Steve Allen)
[03]. Steve Allen Intro 2 (11-17-55 The Tonight Show with Steve Allen)
[04]. It Never Entered My Mind (11-17-55 The Tonight Show with Steve Allen)
[05]. Tune Up (12-08-56 The Blue Note, Philadelphia, PA)
[06]. Walkin' (12-08-56 The Blue Note, Philadelphia, PA)
[07]. Four (5-17-58 Cafe Bohemia, New York, NY)
[08]. Bye Bye Blackbird (5-17-58 Cafe Bohemia, New York, NY)
[09]. Walkin' (5-17-58 Cafe Bohemia, New York, NY)
[10]. Two Bass Hit (5-17-58 Cafe Bohemia, New York, NY)
Y'all know I love Shirley Horn. I really like the mood of this album, which was recorded in her own home with a number of guest musicians. It's very easy going, but always very sensitive as per her unique style.
I like this cover art too, very clever.
Dennie
Well-Known Member
Dangerous -- CD
Wes Montgomery
1999 Milestone/Fantasy Records
This fill-in-the-gaps compilation of early-'60s sessions includes six tracks ... Full Description(two of them alternate takes) that were previously only available on the box set The Complete Riverside Recordings, and three previously unissued alternate takes from the performance that yielded the 1961 live album The Montgomery Brothers in Canada. Even with just nine tracks, Montgomery is heard in a variety of contexts: the ballad "If I Should Lose You" performed by the Montgomery Brothers (an alternate take), the 1962 live version of "S.O.S." with Johnny Griffin and Miles Davis' 1959-62 rhythm section (another alternate take), four 1963 songs with organist Melvin Rhyne, and the three unreleased 1961 Montgomery Brothers cuts (two of which are different versions of "Stella By Starlight") with vibraphonist Buddy Montgomery. The material is characteristic early-'60s Montgomery: quality, straight-ahead jazz that you wouldn't place among his most essential efforts, but that wouldn't displease fans or dishonor him either. There's plenty of single-note and parallel octave playing throughout, and it might be that the four tracks with Rhyne, particularly "Lolita" and "Blues Riff," are the most interesting. Three cheers, by the way, to Milestone for putting out box set-only material in a single-CD format, which makes it easy to acquire for fans without deep pockets (a rare service in the record business). ~ Richie Unterberger
01. If I Should Lose You [Take 2-Alternate][Alternate Take]
02. S.O.S. [Take 2-Alternate][Alternate Take]
03. Yesterday's Child
04. Dangerous
05. Lolita
06. Blues Riff [Take 7]
07. Stella by Starlight [Take 1]
08. Stella by Starlight [Take 2]
09. On Green Dolphin Street [Take 2]
Dennie
Well-Known Member
PaulyT said:
I'm glad you liked it. It is one of my favorites!
Early Roberta Flack is very enjoyable, I enjoy her first 3 or 4 albums, but her "killing me softly" period and later, I don't care too much for. Over produced and less soul. IMHO! You can't say that about "First Take", that is pure soul!
Oh and remember Pauly, when she is singing "The first time ever I saw your face", she is singing only to me! :ugeek: Not you! :naughty:
Dennie :music-listening:
Dennie
Well-Known Member
Restless -- CD
Shelby Lynne
1995 Magnatone Records
The Curb reissue of Shelby Lynne's 1995 album, Restless, is a compelling one. While Lynne has undergone almost continual -- and mostly positive -- reinvention since she resurfaced with I Am Shelby Lynne in 2000, it's interesting to hear her on this Brent Maher-produced slab of swinging-for-the-charts commercial country. Of course, her voice is a trademark; whether she's singing the new traditionalist honky tonk of Maher's own "Another Chance at Love," Jamie O'Hara's weeper "Talkin' to Myself Again," or the jazzy country-pop that is Rod McGaha's "I Wish I Knew," the commitment to excellence is total. But these tracks, fine as they are, offer no revelation of Lynne's true "restlessness," which resides in her own R&B-tinged hard country shuffle "Slow Me Down" and in the numbers she wrote with Maher and O'Hara, including the title cut, the Western swing of "Reach for the Rhythm," and the hot jazz gypsy swing of "Swingtown," which closes the set. Here, Lynne reveals in spades that her voice has no limitations when it comes to reaching for the margins in classic American music. She can sing jazz, blues, and R&B, and rock a honky tonk with the best of them. In its day, Restless was dismissed as gimmicky for its stubborn refusal to follow "the format." History has vindicated Shelby Lynne. That this set would get a second chance when so many of the recordings of her contemporaries have long since been deleted or hit the buck bin is proof of the album's elusive yet enduring excellence. ~ Thom Jurek
1. "Slow Me Down" (Stephanie Davis, Shelby Lynne, Brent Maher) – 3:14
2. "Another Chance at Love" (Maher, Allen Shamblin) – 2:25
3. "Talkin' to Myself Again" (Jamie O'Hara) – 3:18
4. "Restless" (Lynne, Maher, O'Hara) – 3:05
5. "Just for the Touch of Your Hand" (Lynne, Maher, O'Hara) – 3:56
6. "Hey Now Little Darling" (Lynne, Maher, O'Hara) – 3:02
7. "I'm Not the One" (Kent Blazy, Craig Wiseman) – 3:52
8. "Reach for the Rhythm" (Lynne, Maher, O'Hara) – 2:20
9. "Wish I Knew" (Rod McGaha) – 3:44
10. "Swingtown" (Lynne, Maher, O'Hara) – 2:34
Dennie
Well-Known Member
Volume 1: Originals - The Best of Eliane Elias -- CD
Eliane Elias
2001 Blue Note Records
Amazon.com
The beautiful pianist Eliane Elias, who stole the show on the documentary and soundtrack Calle 54, arrived in this country from Sao Paulo, Brazil, in the early '80s, performed with the group Steps Ahead and recorded for the Blue Note label. This CD is comprised of selected tracks from her recordings A Long Story, Fantasia, The Three Americas, Everything I Love, So Far, So Close, and Paulistana, all of which display her tasteful and eclectic musicality. Her compositions range from the elegantly funky "Just Kidding" and the classically refined "Fantasia (to Amanda)" to the Caribbean/South American numbers "Caipora," "The Time Is Now," and "Paulistana." Her debts to Herbie Hancock and Bud Powell are evident on her straight-ahead jazz ballad "That's All It Was" and her boppish "Bowing to Bud." Recording with bassist Christian McBride, drummer Jack DeJohnette, and the brother duo of saxophonist and trumpeter Michael and Randy Brecker, Eliane Elias has produced a body of work that excels on the bandstand and on the radio. --Eugene Holley Jr.
Track listing
1. Back in Time
2. Long Story, A
3. Just Kidding
4. Life Goes On
5. Caipora
6. Up Dawn, An
7. Fantasia
8. Paulistana
9. So in Love
10. Time Is Now, The
11. That's All It Was
12. Bowing to Bud
13. Nightimer
14. At First Sight
Dennie
Well-Known Member
Tigerlily -- DVD-A
Natalie Merchant
2000 Elektra Records
Amazon.com essential recording
Though the minor hits "Wonder" and "Jealousy" bore a reasonable resemblance to Merchant's work with 10,000 Maniacs, most of Tigerlily clearly established her as a solo artist apart from her former band. The record's first single, "Carnival," drove that point home, with a hook based more on rhythm than melody and the haunting voice of Katell Keineg adding an intriguing dimension to the chorus. Elsewhere, much of Tigerlily is remarkably solemn and subtle, from the low-key opener "San Andreas Fault" to the widower's lament "My Beloved Wife" to the eight-minute opus "I May Know the Word." Also of note is "River," an emotional ode to friend and fallen star River Phoenix. --Peter Blackstock
1. San Andreas Fault – 3:57
2. Wonder – 4:26
3. Beloved Wife – 5:03
4. River – 5:32
5. Carnival – 5:59
6. I May Know the Word – 8:07
7. The Letter – 2:12
8. Cowboy Romance – 4:39
9. Jealousy – 2:41
10. Where I Go – 3:59
11. Seven Years – 5:31
Dennie
Well-Known Member
Lay It Down -- CD
The Cowboy Junkies
1996 Geffen Records
Amazon.com essential recording
In 1996 the Cowboy Junkies could have gone one of two ways: they could have veered away from their familiar melancholic, somber sound or dug deeper into the groove. They chose the latter. Margo Timmins's distinctively sleepy, seductive vocals never sounded better--here she perfects the art of the subtle attack, best exemplified by the radio hit "A Common Disaster." The band knows when to pull back (it lays a spare, delicate foundation for her wispy words on tracks like "Something More Besides You" and the achingly beautiful "Now I Know") and when to let a groove build ("Speaking Confidentially," "Lay It Down," "Come Calling"). "Angel Mine" wears the band's love for country music plainly on its sleeve, and the stunning "Bea's Song" shimmers. A definite highlight in the band's career. --Lorry Fleming
Dennie said:
:teasing-neener:
Almost done with my second time in a row through this one. It didn't grab me right away like Robert Flack did, but it's growing on me a lot, these tunes are really catchy and the performance very good. I love Joan of Arc! And I think I actually like the live version of it on this edition more than the studio version. I listened to the first track before reading the liner notes, and thought "wow this guitar part is pretty cool" - of course, it being SRV!
+1 yet again for a Dennie recommendation! :handgestures-thumbup:
Dennie
Well-Known Member
That is one of my favorites Pauly! Bird on a wire and Joan of Arc are fantastic!!PaulyT said:
Almost done with my second time in a row through this one. It didn't grab me right away like Robert Flack did, but it's growing on me a lot, these tunes are really catchy and the performance very good. I love Joan of Arc! And I think I actually like the live version of it on this edition more than the studio version. I listened to the first track before reading the liner notes, and thought "wow this guitar part is pretty cool" - of course, it being SRV!
+1 yet again for a Dennie recommendation! :handgestures-thumbup:
I'm glad you are enjoying it and yes SRV is quite the bonus!! :handgestures-thumbup:
Dennie
Dennie
Well-Known Member
What's Going On -- CD
Marvin Gaye
1971/2003 Motown Records
Amazon.com essential recording
Sly & The Family Stone might have psychedelicized soul music, but Marvin Gaye personalized it. Although the powers-that-were Motown didn't even want to release the record, the unexpected success of What's Going On, issued in 1971, inspired Stevie Wonder, Curtis Mayfield, and just about every other black artist on the planet to take greater responsibility for their music and its meaning. Gaye co-wrote the songs and produced the album, flavoring it with layer upon layer of his own multi-tracked vocals, oceans of hand percussion, strings, flutes, and jazzy horn solos. Spacey and loose as a spliff-fueled Sunday afternoon jam in the park, the nine songs all played like a hit single. The title track--inspired by his brother's return from the Vietnam War--and the obvious social commentary of "Inner City Blues (Make Me Wanna Holler)" and "Mercy Mercy Me (The Ecology)" actually were hit singles. Two other tracks ("Wholly Holy" and "Save the Children") would inspire hit covers by Aretha Franklin and Diana Ross, respectively. Nevertheless, What's Going On sounds as fresh today as it did the week that it came out. Recommended reading: Divided Soul: The Life of Marvin Gaye by David Ritz (McGraw-Hill, 1985). --Don Waller
1. "What's Going On" (Al Cleveland, Marvin Gaye, Renaldo "Obie" Benson) – 3:53
2. "What's Happening Brother" (James Nyx, M. Gaye) – 2:43
3. "Flyin' High (In the Friendly Sky)" (M. Gaye, Anna Gordy Gaye, Elgie Stover) – 3:49
4. "Save the Children" (Cleveland, M. Gaye, Benson) – 4:03
5. "God Is Love" (M. Gaye, A. Gaye, Stover, Nyx) – 1:41
6. "Mercy Mercy Me (The Ecology)" (M. Gaye) – 3:16
7. "Right On" (Earl DeRouen, M. Gaye) – 7:31
8. "Wholy Holy" (Benson, Cleveland, M. Gaye) – 3:08
9. "Inner City Blues (Make Me Wanna Holler)" (M. Gaye, Nyx) – 5:26
Dennie
Well-Known Member
Moondance -- CD :handgestures-thumbup: :handgestures-thumbup:
Van Morrison
1970/1990 Warner Bros. Records
Amazon.com essential recording
Van Morrison went a long way towards defining his wild Irish heart with his first two classic albums: the brooding, introspective Astral Weeks (1968), and the expansive, swinging Moondance. If the first was the work of a poet, its sequel was the statement of a musician and bandleader. Moondance is that rare rock album where the band has buffed the arrangements to perfection, and where the sax solos instead of the guitar. The band puts out a jazzy shuffle on "Moondance" and plays it soulful on "These Dreams of You." The album includes both Morrison's most romantic ballad ("Crazy Love") and his most haunting ("Into the Mystic"). "And It Stoned Me" rolled off Morrison's tongue like a favorite fable, while "Caravan" told a tale full of emotional intrigue. Moondance stood out in the rock world of 1970 like a grownup in a kiddie matinee. --John Milward
Side one
1. "And It Stoned Me" – 4:30
2. "Moondance" – 4:35
3. "Crazy Love" – 2:34
4. "Caravan" – 4:57
5. "Into the Mystic" – 3:25
Side two
1. "Come Running" – 2:30
2. "These Dreams of You" – 3:50
3. "Brand New Day" – 5:09
4. "Everyone" – 3:31
5. "Glad Tidings" – 3:13
Dennie
Well-Known Member
More Best of Leonard Cohen -- CD
Leonard Cohen
1997 Sony Music
Amazon.com
Canadian poet Leonard Cohen sings with great weight and authority and his lyrics are among the most elegant and scripted of the rock era. This collection is culled from his past three albums (1988's I'm Your Man, 1992's The Future, and 1994's Cohen Live) and shows a man whose voice has deepened to the point of grim, foreboding death with lyrics sharpened to masterful precision. The arrangements are deliberately clunky--the cheese- whiz female back-ups lend unusual tension bordering on parody--but the sentiments are for real. Two previously unreleased cuts, "Never Any Good" and the non-event, "The Great Event" suggest his well is currently dry. But the unrelenting bleakness of "The Future" and uneasy celebration of "Democracy" are among the past decade's most challenging pop works. --Rob O'Connor
Dennie
Well-Known Member
Live From Austin Tx - Austin City Limits -- CD
Kris Kristofferson
2006 New West Records
Amazon.com
With the aging of Kris Kristofferson into a venerable icon, it's been easier to appreciate his voice as weathered, whereas the younger troubadour more often heard his vocal style dismissed as wooden. No matter--as confirmed by this 1981 taping for Austin City Limits, Kristofferson's artistry has long owed more to the emotional range, depth, and conviction of his material than to his vocal range. And whatever he lacks in the latter is offset by the harmonies and instrumental support from a crack band including Stephen Bruton on guitar and mandolin, "Funky" Donnie Fritts on keyboards, and the great Billy Swan as utility man. Among the revelations are a surprisingly hard-rocking "Me and Bobby McGee," a rollicking arrangement of "The Pilgrim," and a tender "For the Good Times." Of the later and lesser-known fare, both "Darby's Castle" and "Casey's Last Ride" show Kristofferson shifting from confessional intimacy into more of a narrative mode reminiscent of John Prine, while "Magdalene" and the hymn-like closer, "Why Me," extend his thematic artistry into spiritual inquiry. As is typical with the Austin series, a responsive audience coaxes a particularly spirited performance, with the artist gushing more than once that there's no place he'd rather be. --Don McLeese
1. Star Crossed
2. You Show Me Yours (And I’ll Show You Mine) / Stranger
3. Here Comes The Rainbow Again
4. Help Me Make it Through The Night
5. Me and Bobby McGee
6. Magdalene
7. Nobody Loves Anybody Anymore
8. Darby’s Castle
9. Casey’s Last Ride
10. The Pilgrim
11. For The Good Times
12. Loving Her Was Easier (Than Anything I’ll Ever Do Again)
13. Sunday Mornin’ Comin’ Down
14. Silver Tongued Devil
15. Smile At Me Again
16. Why Me
Dennie
Well-Known Member
Magic Time -- CD
Van Morrison
2005 Geffen Records
Amazon.com
Like a human infusion of chamomile tea, hearing Van Morrison's voice has the effect of instantly soothing even the most stressed listener. That said, some of his releases have been so mellow that they muted the '60s soul influences that had been a part of Van's appeal. Not so with Magic Time, a wonderful balance of groove and smoothness, with a "live off the floor" feel evident throughout the disc. Right from the start "Stranded" shows Van at his crooner best--relaxed, present, and joyful. "Celtic New Year" comes next with a very Astral Weeks feel, leading one to believe that this disc might be sedentary through and through… until "Keep Mediocrity at Bay" kicks in, a feisty blues romp proving that though in his sixties, Morrison still has the sass of his best previous days. Morrison's cover of Sinatra's brassy "This Love of Mine" and Perry Como's "I'm Confessin'" are full of cheek and charm. Morrison-as-producer has chosen stellar horn sections that elevate the music from good to great and come from an obvious deep love of classic blues and soul. He's a lover and a fighter (the disc has two references to his disdain of the music industry: "They Sold Me Out" and "Carry On Regardless"), but ultimately true to his own musical vision. This destined-to-be-classic release will please a wide variety of his fans. --Denise Sheppard
All songs by Van Morrison (unless noted otherwise)
1. "Stranded" – 5:34
2. "Celtic New Year" – 6:10
3. "Keep Mediocrity at Bay" – 3:44
4. "Evening Train" – 2:48
5. "This Love of Mine" (Sol Parker, Henry W. Sanicola, Frank Sinatra) – 2:42
6. "I'm Confessin'" (Doc Daughtery, Al Neiburg, Ellis Reynolds) – 4:29
7. "Just Like Greta" – 6:25
8. "Gypsy in My Soul" – 4:04
9. "Lonely and Blue" ("Black and Blue" with altered lyrics) (Harry Brooks, Andy Razaf, Fats Waller) – 3:41
10. "The Lion This Time" – 4:56
11. "Magic Time" – 5:06
12. "They Sold Me Out" – 3:11
13. "Carry On Regardless" – 5:54