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Dennie
Well-Known Member
Happy Sunday and Happy Holidays everyone....
'S Wonderful -- SACD
Bill Charlap Trio
1998/2014 Venus Records (Import Japan)
Breakthrough Album from Jazz Pianist Bill Charlap and His Trio!
Before the talented pianist Bill Charlap went "major" with the Blue Note label, he was discovered by Venus Records and the Japanese audience. This "debut" album of Charlap, released in 1999, was an enormous hit and became an instant classic.
Deeply rooted in the tradition of jazz and with tremendous knowledge and respect for the American songbook, Charlap's piano playing is lyrical, fantastic and powerful. This album may not dazzle you with apparent "newness," but the beauty of melody, sound, and deep swing will move you and make you smile. The great New York rhythm section, bassist Peter Washington and drummer Kenny Washington, contributes with great performances as well.
"Best known for his work with Gerry Mulligan and later Phil Woods during the 1990s, pianist Bill Charlap was clearly developing rapidly on his own record dates. Beginning with a crisp rendition of "Time After Time," Charlap, with a formidable rhythm section of bassist Peter Washington and drummer Kenny Washington, explores a nice mix of standards and jazz classics...The sound on this studio date is so intimate that it sounds as if the listener is sitting right next to the piano." -Ken Dryden, allmusic.com
Features:
• Single Layer Stereo SACD
Musicians:
Bill Charlap, piano
Peter Washington, bass
Kenny Washington, drums
Selections:
1. Time After Time
2. My Shining Hour
3. The Blue Room
4. Boy, What Love Has Done To Me
5. Isfahan
6. Lover
7. Something To Live For
8. 'S Wonderful
9. Summer Serenade
10. Only The Lonely
'S Wonderful -- SACD
Bill Charlap Trio
1998/2014 Venus Records (Import Japan)
Breakthrough Album from Jazz Pianist Bill Charlap and His Trio!
Before the talented pianist Bill Charlap went "major" with the Blue Note label, he was discovered by Venus Records and the Japanese audience. This "debut" album of Charlap, released in 1999, was an enormous hit and became an instant classic.
Deeply rooted in the tradition of jazz and with tremendous knowledge and respect for the American songbook, Charlap's piano playing is lyrical, fantastic and powerful. This album may not dazzle you with apparent "newness," but the beauty of melody, sound, and deep swing will move you and make you smile. The great New York rhythm section, bassist Peter Washington and drummer Kenny Washington, contributes with great performances as well.
"Best known for his work with Gerry Mulligan and later Phil Woods during the 1990s, pianist Bill Charlap was clearly developing rapidly on his own record dates. Beginning with a crisp rendition of "Time After Time," Charlap, with a formidable rhythm section of bassist Peter Washington and drummer Kenny Washington, explores a nice mix of standards and jazz classics...The sound on this studio date is so intimate that it sounds as if the listener is sitting right next to the piano." -Ken Dryden, allmusic.com
Features:
• Single Layer Stereo SACD
Musicians:
Bill Charlap, piano
Peter Washington, bass
Kenny Washington, drums
Selections:
1. Time After Time
2. My Shining Hour
3. The Blue Room
4. Boy, What Love Has Done To Me
5. Isfahan
6. Lover
7. Something To Live For
8. 'S Wonderful
9. Summer Serenade
10. Only The Lonely
Dennie
Well-Known Member
Stardust - The Music of Hoagy Carmichael -- SACD
Bill Charlap
2002/2003 Blue Note Records
Amazon.com
With his elegant lyric sensibility and use of classic harmonics, which might best be characterized as equal parts Hank Jones and Bill Evans, pianist Bill Charlap manages to suggest something at once timeless and modern in his approach to jazz piano. And while references to past and present masters of the keyboard abound in this recital of Hoagy Carmichael compositions (as in his tasty appropriation of Evans's tolling intro to "Some Other Time" on a poignant reading of "The Nearness of You," or his interpolation of Red Garland's "Billy Boy" as a prelude to "I Walk with Music"), Charlap manages to evoke the dreamy, unhurried character redolent of so much of Carmichael's music, while maintaining his own probing, crystalline presence. Thus, while a briskly swinging jaunt through "Jubilee" finds him navigating an equestrian set of changes in a round-robin romp with his exceptionally empathetic rhythm mates (bassist Peter Washington and drummer Kenny Washington), his sultry flirting with tenorist Frank Wess on "Blue Orchids" and his lofty harmonic byplay with guitarist Jim Hall reveal a musician wise beyond his years--restrained and relaxed and confident enough not to hide behind a fusillade of empty notes. Such maturity is part of what makes his storytelling accompaniments behind master vocalists Tony Bennett and Shirley Horn--and a breathtakingly slow, humid trio treatment of "Georgia"--so richly rewarding. --Chip Stern
1. Jubilee
2. I Get Along Without You Very Well
3. Rockin' Chair
4. I Walk With Music
5. Two Sleepy People
6. Nearness Of You
7. One Morning In May
8. Blue Orchids
9. Georgia On My Mind
10. Stardust
11. Skylark
Dennie
Well-Known Member
Happy Monday everyone...
Back To Back -- Remastered 20 Bit CD
Duke Ellington and Johnny Hodges Play The Blues
1959/1997 Verve Master Edition
The Duke is most often remembered leading his large orchestras, yet throughout his career he would take "breaks" to record many fine small-group sessions. This gem features long-time Ellington player Johnny Hodges, who, in the '50s, struck out on his own. His solo career produced fine music but little financial success, so he rejoined Duke's organization. On this session, the blues forms the common ground on which both men meet.All of these songs were composed between 1910 and 1930, and these cats slip in and walk about in them like a comfy pair of bedroom slippers. Ellington's piano is spare and understated; he gives the spotlight to Johnny. Hodges wails the late-night blues with a combination of gentility, passion and sly wit. Harry Edison's trumpet (he played on many Frank Sinatra sessions in the '50s and '60s) is a joy. Hodges was truly one of a kind--after all, how many saxophonists were admired by both tenor sax innovator John Coltrane and easy-listening bandleader Lawrence Welk? All in all, a richly rewarding collaborative project.
"Wabash Blues" (Fred Meinken, Dave Ringle) – 6:22
"Basin Street Blues" (Spencer Williams) – 8:05
"Beale Street Blues" (W. C. Handy) – 7:40
"Weary Blues" (Artie Matthews) – 6:50
"St. Louis Blues" (Handy) – 5:45
"Loveless Love" (Handy) – 6:05
"Royal Garden Blues" (Clarence Williams, Spencer Williams) – 5:20
Personnel: Duke Ellington (piano); Johnny Hodges (alto saxophone); Harry"Sweets" Edison (trumpet); Les Spann (guitar); Al Hall, Sam Jones (bass);Jo Jones (drums).Original producer: Norman Granz.Reissue producer: Michael Lang.Recorded at Columbia Studios, New York, New York, February 20, 1959. Originally released on Verve (6055). Includes liner notes by Leonard Feather and Michael Ullman.Digitally remastered using 20-bit technology by Chris Herles (PolyGram Studios)
Back To Back -- Remastered 20 Bit CD
Duke Ellington and Johnny Hodges Play The Blues
1959/1997 Verve Master Edition
The Duke is most often remembered leading his large orchestras, yet throughout his career he would take "breaks" to record many fine small-group sessions. This gem features long-time Ellington player Johnny Hodges, who, in the '50s, struck out on his own. His solo career produced fine music but little financial success, so he rejoined Duke's organization. On this session, the blues forms the common ground on which both men meet.All of these songs were composed between 1910 and 1930, and these cats slip in and walk about in them like a comfy pair of bedroom slippers. Ellington's piano is spare and understated; he gives the spotlight to Johnny. Hodges wails the late-night blues with a combination of gentility, passion and sly wit. Harry Edison's trumpet (he played on many Frank Sinatra sessions in the '50s and '60s) is a joy. Hodges was truly one of a kind--after all, how many saxophonists were admired by both tenor sax innovator John Coltrane and easy-listening bandleader Lawrence Welk? All in all, a richly rewarding collaborative project.
"Wabash Blues" (Fred Meinken, Dave Ringle) – 6:22
"Basin Street Blues" (Spencer Williams) – 8:05
"Beale Street Blues" (W. C. Handy) – 7:40
"Weary Blues" (Artie Matthews) – 6:50
"St. Louis Blues" (Handy) – 5:45
"Loveless Love" (Handy) – 6:05
"Royal Garden Blues" (Clarence Williams, Spencer Williams) – 5:20
Personnel: Duke Ellington (piano); Johnny Hodges (alto saxophone); Harry"Sweets" Edison (trumpet); Les Spann (guitar); Al Hall, Sam Jones (bass);Jo Jones (drums).Original producer: Norman Granz.Reissue producer: Michael Lang.Recorded at Columbia Studios, New York, New York, February 20, 1959. Originally released on Verve (6055). Includes liner notes by Leonard Feather and Michael Ullman.Digitally remastered using 20-bit technology by Chris Herles (PolyGram Studios)
Dennie
Well-Known Member
Side By Side -- Remastered 24-bit CD
Duke Ellington & Johnny Hodges, Plus others
1959/1999 Verve Master Edition
The sound of Johnny Hodges's alto saxophone--a tone of ethereal smoothness combined with slyly familiar blues phrasing and a capacity for both wit and romance--may be the most identifiable sonic marker of Duke Ellington's music, and it's much in evidence on the two small group sessions on this CD. One, from 1959, has Hodges and Ellington in a sextet with two great Basie alumni, drummer Jo Jones and trumpeter Harry "Sweets" Edison. The combination generates extraordinary swing, especially on the opening "Stompy Jones," with Ellington's percussive chords and Jones's drums generating enough power to drive a big band. Hodges and Edison maintain the big-band illusion, fuelling one another's solos with supportive riffs, while Ellington seems to revel in the wide-open spaces, soloing on "Going Up" with an expansive and almost casual brilliance. Though Duke is absent from the second date on this CD, featuring a septet recorded in 1958, his alter ego, Billy Strayhorn, plays piano in appropriately ducal fashion. This band has an even stronger Ellington flavor, with tenor saxophonist Ben Webster and trombonist Lawrence Brown adding their unique sounds to a joy-filled session that recalls Duke's small group recordings of the '30s. --Stuart Broomer
Track Listing
1. Stompy Jones
2. Just Squeeze Me (But Don't Tease Me)
3. Big Shoe
4. Going Up
5. Just a Memory
6. Let's Fall in Love
7. Ruint
8. Bend One
9. You Need to Rock
This is part of Verve's Master Edition series.Personnel: Duke Ellington (piano); Johnny Hodges (alto saxophone); Les Spann (guitar, flute); Ben Webster (tenor saxophone); Harry "Sweets" Edison , Roy Eldridge (trumpet); Lawrence Brown (trombone); Billy Strayhorn (piano); Jo Jones (drums).Liner Note Author: Nat Hentoff.Recording information: 08/14/1958-02/20/1959.Digitally remastered by Kevin Reeves (Polygram Studios). Some fine small dates with Hodges up-front and Duke Ellington around the corner. ~ Ron Wynn
Dennie
Well-Known Member
For Ellington -- Remastered CD
The Modern Jazz Quartet
1988 East West Records
The Modern Jazz Quartet: John Lewis (piano), Milt Jackson (vibraphone), Percy Heath (bass), Connie Kay (drums, percussion).Recorded at RCA Studio, New York on February 1-3, 1988.Includes liner notes by Leonard Feather.Tributee: Duke Ellington.This is a tribute album that works quite well. The Modern Jazz Quartet is heard at their best on such Duke Ellington tunes as "Rockin' in Rhythm," "Jack the Bear" and "Ko-Ko." Also quite noteworthy are their two newer pieces, John Lewis's "For Ellington" and Milt Jackson's "Maestro E.K.E." which perfectly capture the spirit of Ellington's music. The ballads sometimes get a little sleepy but on a whole this is a very enjoyable release. ~ Scott Yanow
Track Listing
1. For Ellington
2. Jack the Bear
3. Prelude to a Kiss
4. It Don't Mean a Thing
5. Ko-Ko
6. Maestro E.K.E.
7. Sepia Panorama
8. Rockin' in Rhythm
9. Come Sunday - (bonus track)
The Modern Jazz Quartet: John Lewis (piano), Milt Jackson (vibraphone), Percy Heath (bass), Connie Kay (drums, percussion).Recorded at RCA Studio, New York on February 1-3, 1988.Includes liner notes by Leonard Feather.Tributee: Duke Ellington.
Dennie
Well-Known Member
Jazz In The Garden -- CD
The Stanley Clarke Trio with Hiromi & Lenny White
2009 Heads Up Records
The "GENTLE" side of Stanley...., July 8, 2010
By Joseph W. Szilagy "Joe Szilagy" (Mississauga, Canada) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)
This review is from: Jazz in the Garden (Audio CD)
A truly gorgeous album! Perhaps my favorite jazz album of all time is "Kind of Blue", by Miles Davis, but this comes pretty close, as far as that type of "vibe" goes. The beautiful music here is somewhat reminisent, even without trumpet and sax, which is saying a lot! Lenny's gentle riding on the cymbal reminds me of the soft rain sound of Jimmy Cobb on some of "Kind of Blue", along with Hiromi's less agressive feel and Stanley's acoustic bass. "Sakura Sakura", is simply beautiful!
For those who prefer the "hard stuff", (Stanley's great fusion), I would also highly recommend his new album, simply entitled "The Stanley Clarke Band", released last month, which also features Hiromi, and two other killer players, Ronald Bruner jr. and Ruslan Sirota.
"Paradigm Shift (Election Day 2008)" (Clarke) (7:42)
"Sakura Sakura" (traditional) (5:30)
"Sicilian Blue" (Hiromi) (4:48)
"Take the Coltrane" (Ellington) (3:29)
"3 Wrong Notes" (Clarke) (5:46)
"Someday My Prince Will Come" (Churchill, Morey) (4:52)
"Isotope" (Henderson) (5:27)
"Bass Folk Song No. 5 & 6" (Clarke) (4:01)
"Global Tweak" (Clarke, Hiromi) (3:42)
"Solar" (Davis) (5:12)
"Brain Training" (Hiromi) (4:52)
"Under the Bridge" (Balzary, Kiedis, Smith, Frusciante) (5:30)
Dennie
Well-Known Member
Today's work truck music....
CSN -- CD
David Crosby, Stephen Still & Graham Nash
1977/ 1995 Atlantic Records
Adult music, March 21, 2000
By A Customer
This review is from: CSN (Audio CD)
Some people prefer the youthful flash of this trio's first album, some the rocknroll flash of the first one where "Y" was part of the mix, but I've always found CSN to be the most satisfying of Crosby, Stills and Nash' efforts in that particular formation. The main reason is that it sounds like three ADULTS really giving their all together; in the songwriting, in the harmonies, in every respect. Particular high points are Still's "See The Changes," a sort-of cousin musically to his earlier "Helplessly Hoping," but whose world-weary lyrics are some of the most penetrating the man ever wrote; Nash's "Cold Rain," about returning to where you originally came from and remembering why you left in the first place, with some wonderful close harmonies; Nash again with "Cathedral," a dramatic high point in the group's arrangements; and Crosby's "Shadow Captain," as potently evocative of sailing on the open seas as a song can get. This album doesn't have the "gosh-wow" factor of CSN's 1969 debut, but it's just as rewarding an album---maybe more.
Side One
"Shadow Captain" (Crosby, Craig Doerge) – 4:32
"See the Changes" (Stills) – 2:56
"Carried Away" (Nash) – 2:29
"Fair Game" (Stills) – 3:30
"Anything at All" (Crosby) – 3:01
"Cathedral" (Nash) – 5:15
Side Two
"Dark Star" (Stills) – 4:43
"Just a Song Before I Go" (Nash) – 2:12
"Run from Tears" (Stills) – 4:09
"Cold Rain" (Nash) – 2:32
"In My Dreams" (Crosby) – 5:10
"I Give You Give Blind" (Stills) – 3:21
CSN -- CD
David Crosby, Stephen Still & Graham Nash
1977/ 1995 Atlantic Records
Adult music, March 21, 2000
By A Customer
This review is from: CSN (Audio CD)
Some people prefer the youthful flash of this trio's first album, some the rocknroll flash of the first one where "Y" was part of the mix, but I've always found CSN to be the most satisfying of Crosby, Stills and Nash' efforts in that particular formation. The main reason is that it sounds like three ADULTS really giving their all together; in the songwriting, in the harmonies, in every respect. Particular high points are Still's "See The Changes," a sort-of cousin musically to his earlier "Helplessly Hoping," but whose world-weary lyrics are some of the most penetrating the man ever wrote; Nash's "Cold Rain," about returning to where you originally came from and remembering why you left in the first place, with some wonderful close harmonies; Nash again with "Cathedral," a dramatic high point in the group's arrangements; and Crosby's "Shadow Captain," as potently evocative of sailing on the open seas as a song can get. This album doesn't have the "gosh-wow" factor of CSN's 1969 debut, but it's just as rewarding an album---maybe more.
Side One
"Shadow Captain" (Crosby, Craig Doerge) – 4:32
"See the Changes" (Stills) – 2:56
"Carried Away" (Nash) – 2:29
"Fair Game" (Stills) – 3:30
"Anything at All" (Crosby) – 3:01
"Cathedral" (Nash) – 5:15
Side Two
"Dark Star" (Stills) – 4:43
"Just a Song Before I Go" (Nash) – 2:12
"Run from Tears" (Stills) – 4:09
"Cold Rain" (Nash) – 2:32
"In My Dreams" (Crosby) – 5:10
"I Give You Give Blind" (Stills) – 3:21
Dennie
Well-Known Member
Straight Life -- CD
Freddie Hubbard
1971/1997 CTI/Epic Legacy
Joe Henderson, Herbie Hancock, Ron Carter, George Benson and Jack DeJohnette helped this trumpet titan record the 1970 LP that countless critics and fans hold up as Freddie's very best. Leading to his beautiful duet with Benson, Here's That Rainy Day , are epic renditions of Straight Life and Mr. Clean that feature one heroic Hubbard solo after another!
"Straight Life" - 17:30
"Mr. Clean" - 13:37
"Here's That Rainy Day" (Van Heusen, Burke) - 5:17
Personnel
Freddie Hubbard - trumpet, flugelhorn
Joe Henderson - tenor saxophone
Herbie Hancock - electric piano
Ron Carter - bass
Jack DeJohnette - drums
George Benson - guitar
Richard Landrum - drums, percussion
Weldon Irvine - Tabla, Tambourine
Dennie
Well-Known Member
Red Clay -- 24 bit Remastered CD
Freddie Hubbard
1970/2002 CTI/Epic Legacy
Before Freddie Hubbard signed with CTI Records in 1970, he was already considered one of the most brilliant jazz trumpeters in the world. RED CLAY, his debut album on the label, is an exceptional set of plugged-in hard bop fused with funk - and reportedly the album he considers his best. Joining him on five of the six cuts, is a crack quintet featuring longtime colleagues Joe Henderson and Herbie Hancock, on tenor saxophone and keyboards respectively. The final number, a previously unissued, extended live jam on the title tune, finds Hubbard fronting an all-star septet that includes such fellow CTI stars as George Benson and Stanley Turrentine.
"Red Clay" - 12:11
"Delphia" - 7:23
"Suite Sioux" - 8:38
"The Intrepid Fox" - 10:45
"Cold Turkey" (Lennon) - 10:27
"Red Clay" [live] - 18:44 Bonus track on the 2002 & 2010 CD release
All compositions by Freddie Hubbard except as indicated
Recorded at Van Gelder Studios, Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey, January 27, 28 & 29, 1970 except track 6 recorded live at the Southgate Palace on July 19, 1971
Personnel
Freddie Hubbard - trumpet
Joe Henderson - tenor saxophone, flute
Herbie Hancock - electric piano, organ
Ron Carter - bass, electric bass
Lenny White - drums
Track 6 Personnel
Freddie Hubbard - trumpet
Stanley Turrentine - tenor saxophone
Johnny "Hammond" Smith - organ/electric piano
George Benson - guitar
Ron Carter - bass
Billy Cobham - drums
Airto Moreira - percussion
Dennie
Well-Known Member
For Hamp, Red, Bags and Cal -- CD
Gary Burton
2001 Concord Records
It is only logical that Gary Burton, the modern master of the vibraphone, should pay tribute to the giants of his instrument in the past. With this set, Burton offers homage to Lionel Hampton (Hamp), Red Norvo, Milt Jackson (Bags), and Cal Tjader by performing and updating their greatest signature tunes. Burton has long been recognized as having culminated all the developments of these past masters into his own virtuoso style. Here he expertly displays these abilities on the very pieces that inspired him along the way.The disc mainly alternates between sophisticated Latin grooves, as in the opening classic "Afro Blue," and traditional swing numbers like Hampton's great "Flying Home." Burton shows the uncanny ability to be both a technical wizard, employing a flurrying barrage of four-mallet technique, and to swing unrelentingly. Cuts like the old fashioned "Back Home Again In Indiana" and Denzil Best's swinger "Move" exhibits these abilities to the fullest. In the end, the two most intriguing tracks are the ending tributes to Red Norvo, the ragtime "Hole in the Wall" and the impressionistic "Dance of the Octopus," which find Burton performing on xylophone and marimba, respectively.
Track Listing
1. Afro Blue (Cal)
2. Bags' Groove (Bags)
3. Move (Red)
4. Midnight Sun (Hamp)
5. Flying Home (Hamp)
6. Django (Bags)
7. Back Home Again in Indiana (Red)
8. Body and Soul (Cal)
9. Godchild (Red)
10. Joao (Cal)
11. Hole in the Wall (Red)
12. Dance of the Octopus (Red)
Personnel: Gary Burton (vibraphone, marimba, xylophone); Russell Malone (guitar); Mulgrew Miller, Makoto Ozone, Danilo Perez (piano); Christian McBride, John Patitucci (bass); Horacio Hernandez, Lewis Nash (drums); Luis Quintero (percussion).Recorded at Avatar Studio C, New York, New York on May 11, 23 & 24, 2000 and at Berklee Recording Studio, Boston, Massachusetts on June 3, 2000. Includes liner notes by Neil Tesser."Move" was nominated for the 2002 Grammy Award for Best Jazz Instrumental Solo.
