Jazz Cafee: April 2021

Perry Como - Hits Collection 1943-62 (5 CD, 2020)

Easy-going singer with a warm baritone voice that made him a superstar on record and television, from the 1950s through the '70s.

Mosaic Records continues to repackage and remaster previously released and unreleased material by jazz legends past and present. Here, the ongoing saga continues with this sharply produced set featuring trumpeter Lee Morgan and saxophonist Wayne Shorter's recordings for the now defunct, Chicago, IL-based Vee-Jay recording label. With this six-CD compilation, the listener will find meticulously detailed annotations of the story behind Vee-Jay, chronological accounts of the musicians' backgrounds and basically what was transpiring during 1959 and 1961, which denotes the time frame of these sessions. The producers also provide an album index of the original recordings and a reference matrix of the personnel on a per-disc basis. And while Morgan was a rising star who had already released six LPs as a leader for Blue Note records, these works represent Shorter's initial dates as a leader. Here we find Morgan manning a front-line attack with either Shorter performing on tenor sax or his collaborations with alto saxophonist Frank Strozier, drummers Art Blakey, and Louis Hayes, pianist Bobby Timmons, and many others of note who appear throughout the entire scope of these discs. Basically, the music is formulated from within the hard bop vein amid a number of medium-tempo and hard-swinging motifs, ballads, and alternate takes. Shorter proceeded to record a number of exceptional LPs for Blue Note Records, whereas, his already shining star had rapidly risen thanks to his affiliation with Miles Davis and collaboration with keyboardist Joe Zawinul in the pioneering fusion band Weather Report. Meanwhile, Morgan was viewed upon as being the logical successor to trumpeter Clifford Brown as he surged onward to record several timeless classics prior to his tragic death in 1972. Hence, this presentation supplies additional evidence to their everlasting influences as you are treated to Morgan's fluent lines, subtle inflections, radiant lyricism, and Shorter's sinewy attack, penetrating extended notes and optimal utilization of space

While occasionally maligned, Thelonious Monk's '60s recordings for Columbia yielded many moments of warmth and ingenuity. His first two albums for the label, Monk's Dream and Criss-Cross, rank among his very best; the latter demonstrated the company's success in raising his profile, becoming in 1963 his sole LP to place on the pop charts. This three-CD box, like the 2000 collection of Prestige sessions, aims to push Monk's '60s music into the spotlight shared by his Blue Note and Riverside classics. While deviled by a handful of questionable choices, The Columbia Years for the most part succeeds.

This double disc reissue on Blue Note contains the three releases that alto saxophonist Sonny Criss did for Imperial: Jazz U.S.A., Go Man!, and Plays Cole Porter. These sessions were all recorded in 1956 at a time when Criss had honed his amazing bebop alto precision. These 34 performances contain only five of his originals and are surrounded by mainly standards.

While Criss had a career that erratically spanned the '70s, these Imperial sessions (reissued in glorious mono) contained highly regarded performances of passionate blues, moving ballads, and energetic up-tempo pieces.

Sonny Criss (alto saxophone);
Larry Bunker (vibraphone);
Sonny Clark, Kenny Drew (piano);
Barney Kessell (guitar);
Leroy Vinnegar, Bill Woodson, Buddy Clark (bass);
Chuck Thompson, Lawrence Marable (drums).

An early jazz singer with a sweet voice, Mildred Bailey balanced a good deal of popular success with a hot jazz-slanted career that saw her billed as Mrs. Swing (her husband, Red Norvo, was Mr. Swing). Born Mildred Rinker in Washington state in 1907, Bailey began performing at an early age, playing piano and singing in movie theaters during the early '20s. By 1925, she was the headlining act at a club in Hollywood, doing a mixture of pop, early jazz tunes, and vaudeville standards. Influenced by Ethel Waters, Bessie Smith, and Connie Boswell, she developed a soft, swinging delivery that pleased all kinds of nightclub audiences in the area. After sending a demonstration disc in to Paul Whiteman in 1929, she gained a spot with one of the most popular dance orchestras of the day.

Collectors of recordings by piano great Art Tatum are frustrated by the many haphazard, poorly documented, and often incomplete collections of his work; this four-CD set by the English label Definitive attempts to collect all of his known recordings for Decca, but there are a few surprising twists. Tatum recorded many of his piano solos with several different takes, so as many as 23 alternate takes remain unissued (and are most likely either lost or unusable) according to Tatum discographer Arnold Laubich. But this is made up by the fact that all of his sessions with singer Adelaide Hall for Brunswick (including four previously unissued alternate takes, one of whose existence was not previously known) and every song he waxed with blues singer Joe Turner are present. Tatum's virtuoso performances -- especially his solos of "Tiger Rag," "Elegie," and "Body and Soul" -- are still amazing many decades after they were first released. The 24-bit sound of this compilation is richer than the earlier MCA and GRP CD reissues, so the release of this thorough collection may cause more than a few Tatum fans to trade up.

Roy Ayers (born September 10, 1940) is an American funk, soul, and jazz composer and vibraphone player. Ayers began his career as a post-bop jazz artist, releasing several albums with Atlantic Records, before his tenure at Polydor Records beginning in the 1970s, during which he helped pioneer jazz-funk.

Evolution: The Polydor Anthology charts Roy Ayers' 12 years and 20 LPs with Polydor, a rich time where his gliding, loose-groove jazz-funk gained many fans -- though perhaps fewer than it did 20 years later in the midst of the rare groove/acid jazz revival. During the 1970s, Ayers and his band, Ubiquity, progressed from political- and social-commentary funk to blaxploitation to disco to some surprisingly touching R&B ballads, and this two-disc set covers it all with grace and a smooth flow. Fans of hip-hop, groove music, funk, and jazz will all be able to find something to enjoy on the collection. Highlights include "We Live in Brooklyn Baby," "Evolution," "Running Away," and "Get on up, Get on Down," among others.

Personnel includes: Roy Ayers (vocals, piano, electric piano, organ, clavinet, vibraphone, vibraharp percussion, synthesizer); Wayne Garfield, Dee Dee Dridgewater, Chicas (vocals); Harry Whitaker (vocals, piano, electric piano, organ, clavinet, harpsichord); Edwin Birdsong (vocals, organ); Seldon Powell (baritone saxophone); Jon Faddis (trumpet, flugelhorn); Garnett Brown (trombone); Jerry Friedman (guitar, electric sitar); Billy Nichols (guitar); Emir Ksasan (bass); Alphonse Mouzon (drums); William King (congas, bongos, percussion).

Trumpeter Buck Clayton led a series of exciting studio jam sessions during the mid-'50s. All of the performances are on this superlative three-CD box set including a few "new" alternate takes and several that have been restored to their full length. Among the many soloists (most of them swing-oriented stylists) are Clayton, Joe Newman, Joe Thomas, Billy Butterfield, and Ruby Braff on trumpets; trombonists Urbie Green, Benny Powell, Henderson Chambers, Trummy Young, Bennie Green, Dicky Harris, J.C. Higginbotham, and Tyree Glenn; altoist Lem Davis; tenors Coleman Hawkins, Al Cohn, and Buddy Tate; Julian Dash doubling on tenor and alto; baritonist Charlie Fowlkes; several rhythm sections with pianists Sir Charles Thompson, Jimmy Jones, Billy Kyle, Ken Kersey, and the forgotten Al Waslohn; and a guest appearance by Woody Herman on clarinet. These generally lengthy performances contain plenty of spontaneous riffing behind soloists and lots of special moments; "How Ili the Fi" is quite memorable.

Guitarist Herb Ellis is joined by rhythm guitarist Freddie Green, pianist Ross Tompkins, bassist Ray Brown and drummer Jake Hanna for this lightly swinging but uneventful program which has been reissued on CD. Since Green as usual does not solo, his contribution is purely as a background player. Ellis, Tompkins and Brown are the lead voices on a variety of swing tunes; best are "It Had To Be You," "A Smooth One" and "When My Dream Boat Comes Home."

This 1960 set is said to be the only recording session on which Ben Webster and Johnny Hodges were the only two horn players. At least, that applies to the first dozen tracks. The last five come from an octet session recorded a year later. The first twelve were recorded at the Jazz Cellar in San Francisco; the last five were recorded somewhere in Los Angeles.

The line-up gives Webster and Hodges the chance to show their paces without much interference. In fact they had played together in the Duke Ellington Orchestra for various periods from 1935 onwards, so they knew one another closely, and their empathy comes through on these sides. You might say that Hodges is to the alto sax what Ben Webster is to the tenor. Their distinctive saxophones blend well together, even though they have slightly different styles. They both actually have a sweet legato style of playing, although Webster can get gruff and growly when he wants to. Their main similarity is that they both aim for (and achieve) mellowness of tone - and they can both swing with the greatest of ease. The staccato single notes of guitarist Herb Ellis contrast nicely with the saxists' predominantly smooth mode.

Charlie Parker's studio recordings have been issued, reissued (and de-issued, so to speak) in so many confusing combinations that anyone seeking a better understanding of his original discography might need a lodestone to hang onto. In addition to his excellent Savoy and Dial recordings, jazz lovers ought to have access to Definitive's wonderful survey of every master take that Bird ever recorded for producer Norman Granz. For years this exceptionally fine material was usually presented categorically, depending on thematic content ("South of the Border"), personae ("Bird and Diz") or instrumentation ("Bird with Strings"). Considered as a whole, this four-CD set is a stunning tribute to a master improviser. Neatly spanning a time period from December 1947 to December 1954, it includes Bird's very first Granz recording (made in Carnegie Hall without an audience); Bird's own big-band sessions; Bird's collaborations with Neal Hefti, Machito, Coleman Hawkins and trumpeters Dizzy Gillespie, Kenny Dorham, Miles Davis, Red Rodney and Benny Harris; three different sessions involving a chamber ensemble with strings; Bird's final quartet and quintet recordings, and a truly awe-inspiring All-Star Norman Granz Jam Session with a frontline consisting of Charlie Parker with Johnny Hodges, Benny Carter, Ben Webster, Flip Phillips and Charlie Shavers. The With Strings sessions sound better than ever when heard in context with the rest of the Parker/Granz collaborations. Here, then, is the Charlie Parker compilation to have, along with the Savoy and Dial master takes. This edition is supremely well-presented, and thoughtfully annotated with a written eulogy by Leonard Feather and a priceless set of transcribed reminiscences by legendary Kansas City bassist Gene Ramey.

The Crimson Jazz Trio was a jazz trio led by drummer Ian Wallace, formerly of King Crimson, who re-interpreted King Crimson's music.

The trio was conceived by Wallace, who recruited Tim Landers (bass) and Jody Nardone (piano) in 2004. They recorded the album King Crimson Songbook, Volume One (Voiceprint) in 2005. The album includes material from beyond Wallace's early 1970s tenure in King Crimson. It was supported with a few live dates in different parts of the U.S., but plans for further touring were scrapped due to Wallace's falling ill.

The band finished recording a second album, King Crimson Songbook, Volume Two, with assistance from Jakko Jakszyk and Mel Collins (Wallace's colleagues in 21st Century Schizoid Band; Collins is also a King Crimson alumnus) before Wallace died on February 22, 2007. It was released on April 7, 2009 on Inner Knot Records.

Bassist Jaco Pastorius was the Jimi Hendrix of jazz. Before he left this world in 1987, he virtually created the fretless bass with an unorthodox playing style that turned that instrument into a highly tuned, electrified African talking drum. This long-overdue, two-CD compilation details the incredible, but incomplete arc of this artist's genius that encompassed the R&B, Caribbean, fusion, and jazz-rock idioms. Jaco-heads will revel in these legendary sides that made Pastorius famous. There's his solo rendition of Bach's "Chromatic Fantasy," his dreamy improvisations on "Midwestern Nights" with Pat Metheny, and, of course, the 1976 Weather Report megahit, "Birdland." There are also a few unreleased tracks including an early home recording of "The Chicken" and a live version of "Okonkole Y Trompa." Pastorius's sideman work with Joni Mitchell, which features a wicked take on Charles Mingus's "Goodbye Pork Pie Hat," is also included. But Pastorius's own compositions steal the show: the West Indian-riffed big band number "Liberty City," and his expansive and exotic tone poem "John and Mary." This set will blow your mind and break your heart.

Chu Berry was considered one of the top tenor saxophonists of the 1930s, just below Coleman Hawkins (his main influence), Lester Young, and Ben Webster. Particularly strong on up-tempo numbers (although his ballad statements could be overly sentimental), Berry might have become an influential force if he had not died prematurely. After playing alto in college, he switched to tenor in 1929 when he joined Sammy Stewart's band. In 1930, he moved to New York, playing with Benny Carter's band and Charlie Johnson's orchestra. He was prominently featured in Spike Hughes' 1933 recording sessions, was a star with the bands of Teddy Hill (1933-1935) and Fletcher Henderson (1936; to whom he contributed his song "Christopher Columbus"), and then found a permanent home with Cab Calloway in 1937. Berry was used on many sessions including with his friend Roy Eldridge, Lionel Hampton (a classic version of "Sweethearts on Parade"), Teddy Wilson, and Calloway (his version of "Ghost of a Chance" became well-known); in addition he led a couple of his own fine dates. Chu Berry died from the effects of a car crash when he was just 31.

Rahsaan Roland Kirk's nearly one-dozen long-players on the Mercury Records family of labels -- including the Smash and Limelight subsidiaries -- are gathered on this massive ten-disc compilation. Actually, it is 11 discs if you count the surprise bonus CD. Additionally, Rahsaan: The Complete Mercury Recordings of Roland Kirk lives up to its name by augmenting those albums with more than two-dozen previously unissued sides. Kirk's thoroughly innovative multi-instrumental reed work caught the attention of legendary producer Quincy Jones, then the vice-president of Mercury Records, who signed Kirk and would later arrange and conduct orchestrations for several of his memorable sessions. Perhaps the most recognizable among them is "Soul Bossa Nova" which is heavily featured in the Austin Powers franchise. Kirk's ability to perform several reed instruments -- including the tenor, flute, clarinet, manzello, and stritch -- simultaneously allowed him a musical autonomy few instrumentalists are afforded. His youthful embrace of the R&B, soul, pop, and eventually rock genres produced swinging interpretations of "And I Love Her" and "Walk on By," among others. Regardless of the genre, however, Kirk's ability to Swing -- with a capitol "S" -- is imprinted upon every piece he performed. Although Kirk continued his prolific output on Atlantic records in the late '60s and '70s, arguably his most profound sides are included here. We Free Kings, Domino, Reeds and Deeds, Gifts and Messages, I Talk with the Spirits and Rip, Rig & Panic are offered in their entirety. Undoubtedly the centerpiece of Kirk's work for the label is the live Kirk in Copenhagen, which features some wicked harp blowing from blues legend "Sonny Boy" Williamson, aka Big Skol. It is only fitting that this album benefits so greatly from inclusion on this set. The original six sides have been supplemented with an additional ten to present the entire October '63 performance, now complete at an hour and 45 minutes. Rahsaan: The Complete Mercury Recordings if Roland Kirk is complimented visually with a 56-page information packed booklet that includes: complete discographical and recording session logs, as well individual essays for each disc. Although not for the light of funds, this is truly the best way to become immersed in these early works of Rahsaan Roland Kirk.

Édith Piaf is almost universally regarded as France's greatest popular singer. Still revered as an icon decades after her death, "The Sparrow" served as a touchstone for virtually every chansonnier, male or female, who followed her. Her greatest strength wasn't so much her technique, or the purity of her voice, but the raw, passionate power of her singing. (Given her extraordinarily petite size, audiences marveled all the more at the force of her vocals.) Her style epitomized that of the classic French chanson: highly emotional, even melodramatic, with a wide, rapid vibrato that wrung every last drop of sentiment from a lyric. She preferred melancholy, mournful material, singing about heartache, tragedy, poverty, and the harsh reality of life on the streets; much of it was based to some degree on her real-life experiences, written specifically for her by an ever-shifting cast of songwriters. Her life was the stuff of legend, starting with her dramatic rise from uneducated Paris street urchin to star of international renown. Along the way, she lost her only child at age three, fell victim to substance abuse problems, survived three car accidents, and took a seemingly endless parade of lovers, one of whom perished in a plane crash on his way to visit her. By the time cancer claimed her life at age 47, Piaf had recorded a lengthy string of genre-defining classics -- "Mon Légionnaire," "La Vie en Rose," "L'Hymne à l'Amour," "Milord," and "Non, Je Ne Regrette Rien" among them -- that many of her fans felt captured the essence of the French soul.

The world has been waiting for a digital-era box set focusing on Johnny Mercer, and the Mosaic label -- which has obliged countless times for other vital jazz artists -- comes through again. A three-disc collection scanning Mercer's recordings for Capitol (the label he founded), Mosaic Select: Johnny Mercer purposefully concerns itself with his "jazz flavored" releases between 1942 and 1947, close to a third of which turn out to be transcription sessions. (Granted, all of these were recorded with a full band and compare favorably to the other sides.) Mercer's pop hits are understandably neglected (only "G.I. Jive" and "Ac-Cent-Tchu-Ate the Positive" are present), and listeners should prepare for a parade of excellent unreleased or long unavailable sides -- more than 20 in all -- featuring bands led by Wingy Manone (including an uproarious "The Tailgate Ramble"), Benny Goodman, Nat King Cole, Cootie Williams, and most often, Paul Weston. Mercer's way with a novelty vocal is infectious, and now that it's arrived, it's hard to quibble. Granted, this is more of the Georgia gentleman's riches than have appeared on three discs.

Anita Belle Colton (October 18, 1919 – November 23, 2006), known professionally as Anita O'Day, was an American jazz singer and self proclaimed “song stylist” widely admired for her sense of rhythm and dynamics, and her early big band appearances that shattered the traditional image of the "girl singer". Refusing to pander to any female stereotype, O'Day presented herself as a "hip" jazz musician, wearing a band jacket and skirt as opposed to an evening gown. She changed her surname from Colton to O'Day, pig Latin for "dough", slang for money.

Art Tatum was among the most extraordinary of all jazz musicians, a pianist with wondrous technique who could not only play ridiculously rapid lines with both hands (his 1933 solo version of "Tiger Rag" sounds as if there were three pianists jamming together) but was harmonically 30 years ahead of his time; all pianists have to deal to a certain extent with Tatum's innovations in order to be taken seriously. Able to play stride, swing, and boogie-woogie with speed and complexity that could only previously be imagined, Tatum's quick reflexes and boundless imagination kept his improvisations filled with fresh (and sometimes futuristic) ideas that put him way ahead of his contemporaries.

Making her Telarc debut, Ann Hampton Callaway comes out strong with Blues in the Night, featuring the title track she made famous in the musical 'Swing'. There are fiery original tunes such as 'I'm-Too-White to-Sing-the-Blues, ' 'Swingin'Away the Blues,' and 'Hip to Be Happy'. Ann brings in a cache of performers to guide her through the night including the DIVA Jazz Orchestra under the direction of Sherrie Maricle, her longtime accompanist Ted Rosenthal, Christian McBride, and Lewis Nash. Ann also performs a medley 'Stormy Weather / When the Sun Comes Out' with her sister Liz Callaway.

Ann Hampton Callaway - vocals
Ted Rosenthal - piano
Christian McBride - bass
Lewis Nash - drums

With special guests:

Liz Callaway - vocals
David Gilmore - guitar
Sherrie Maricle and the Diva Jazz Orchestra

A glorious and inspiring collection presenting the greatest exponents of Indian classical music, playing ragas and light classical pieces on the instruments they each are famous for.

Hariprasad Chaurasia (bansuri),
Ravi Shankar (sitar),
Ram Narayan (sarangi),
Bismillah Khan (shehnai),
Zakir Hussain (tabla),
N. Rajam (violin)

Keith Jarrett at the Blue Note The complete recordings is a 6-CD box set live album by Keith Jarrett's Standards Trio recorded at the Blue Note Jazz Club in New York City in 1994 and released by ECM Records in October 1995. Totaling more than seven hours of music (applause included), the multi-CD box documents the "complete" performances of a three-day / double-set Friday to Sunday stand.

Personnel

Keith Jarrett – piano

Gary Peacock – double bass

Jack DeJohnette – drums

Guitar wizards John Scofield and Pat Metheny have consistently made commercially successful, accessible music while remaining true to their improvisational leanings. It's no surprise that their collaboration sounds so relaxed, fluid, and musically serene. Listeners shouldn't necessarily expect a series of slashing duels, but it's certainly not vapid new age or retrograde fusion. Scofield and Metheny divide compositional duties and play masterful, expressive solos. Guitar fans will be especially impressed with the mastering, which makes Scofield and Metheny's guitars sound right in the room. Even those who don't like sessions without horns, brass, or keyboards shouldn't spurn this one; it still has plenty of muscle.

Lionel Hampton was the first jazz vibraphonist and was one of the jazz giants beginning in the mid-'30s. He has achieved the difficult feat of being musically open-minded (even recording "Giant Steps") without changing his basic swing style. Hamp started out as a drummer, playing with the Chicago Defender Newsboys' Band as a youth. His original idol was Jimmy Bertrand, a '20s drummer who occasionally played xylophone. Hampton played on the West Coast with such groups as Curtis Mosby's Blue Blowers, Reb Spikes, and Paul Howard's Quality Serenaders (with whom he made his recording debut in 1929) before joining Les Hite's band, which for a period accompanied Louis Armstrong.

This monumental compilation features all the artist's concerts at the Montreaux Jazz Festival spanning the years 1974 through 1999.

Featuring

Shakti in July 1976 & 1977 (3 discs),

John McLaughlin & The One Truth Band in July 1978,

John McLaughlin & Chick Corea in July 1981,

Mahavishnu Orchestra in July 1984 (2 discs),

John McLaughlin & Paco DeLucia in July 1987 (2 discs),

John McLaughlin & The Free Spirits in July 1993 & 1995 (3 discs),

John McLaughlin & The Heart Of Things in July 1998

John McLaughlin & Remember Shakti in July 1999.

The last disc is a bonus CD containing two tracks one featuring McLaughlin performing with Santana in July 1993 'Canto de Xango' & another with McLaughlin & Paco DeLucia in July 1996 'Frevo'.

The 17 extraordinary sessions led by Miles for Prestige from 1951 to 1956, sessions frequented by such legends as Charlie Parker, Thelonious Monk, Charles Mingus, Sonny Rollins and, of course, the original Davis Quintet of Coltrane, Garland, Chambers and Jones.

There are many JTQ compilations but this is the first time a truly comprehensive anthology, covering material from all the group's albums, has been put together. Hammond-Ology features 35 tracks, including all the favourites like "Blow Up", "Mission Impossible", and "Theme From Starsky & Hutch". It culminates in a new and previously unreleased track, "Message From Sicily", which gives a taste of the brand new studio album to be released by Sanctuary Records in 2002. At the centre of JTQ is Hammond ace James Taylor, who has lent his distinctive sound to such musical giants as U2, Manic Street Preachers, Tom Jones and Nitin Sawhney.

Chicago jazz and Dixieland fans should go out of their way to pick up this limited-edition five-CD boxed set. The first four discs date from 1953-1957 and feature freewheeling performances (originally out on seven LPs) with such classic soloists as cornetists Wild Bill Davison and Bobby Hackett, trumpeter Billy Butterfield, trombonists Cutty Cutshall, Lou McGarity, and Vic Dickenson, clarinetists Edmond Hall, Peanuts Hucko, Bob Wilber, and Pee Wee Russell and tenorman Bud Freeman among others. Eddie Condon's comments during his band's waterlogged performance at the 1957 Newport Jazz Festival alone are worth the price. The final disc of material (all from 1962) is somewhat commercial but still has its moments of interest.

Eddie Condon, guitar ; his All-Stars (variously: Wild Bill Davison, cornet ; Cutty Cutshall, Lou McGarity, Vic Dickenson, trombone ; Edmond Hall, Peanuts Hucko, Pee Wee Russell, Bob WIlbur, clarinet ; Gene Schroeder, piano ; John Mortillaro, piano, celeste ; Walter Page, Al Hall, Leonard Gaskin, Jack Lesberg, bass ; Cliff Leeman, George Wettling, Buzzy Drootin, drums ; Billy Butterfield, trumpet ; Dick Cary, alto horn ; Bud Freeman, saxophone).

Journey in Satchidananda is the fourth solo album by Alice Coltrane. Its title (and title track) reflects Coltrane's inspiration by Swami Satchidananda, to whom she had become close, and whose disciple she was.

"Shiva-Loka", or "realm of Shiva" — the realm of the third member of the Hindu trinity, the "dissolver of creation". "Stopover Bombay" refers to a five week stay in India and Sri Lanka on which Coltrane was due to go in December 1970. "Something About John Coltrane" is based on themes by her late husband, John Coltrane. "Isis and Osiris", on which Charlie Haden replaces Cecil McBee on bass, and Vishnu Wood plays oud, indicates Coltrane's interest in Middle Eastern and North African music and culture. The presence of the tamboura, played by Tulsi, reflects Coltrane's interest in Indian music and religion.

Alice Coltrane — harp, piano
Pharoah Sanders — soprano saxophone, percussion
Vishnu Wood — oud (on track 5)
Charlie Haden — bass (on track 5)
Cecil McBee — bass
Tulsi — tambura
Rashied Ali — drums
Majid Shabazz — bells, tambourine

Few artists made more of an impact on popular music during the last three decades of the 20th century than the late, great Al Jarreau. His courageous blending of soul, jazz, scat and other styles made him an icon among music lovers, even as he sometimes frustrated record company executives who wanted to put him “in a box.”

Among his many, many albums over his career, Jarreau accumulated a slew of hits, a nice collection of which are included on his new compilation, Works. But the disc also includes some rare gems that haven’t been available for years.

Popularity is double-edged, and perhaps no jazz artist exemplifies this better than Dave Brubeck. The unparalleled success of his classic quartets with Paul Desmond, which expanded the market for jazz into colleges and the homes of suburbia, often obscured his very real musical innovations. The ever-increasing professional sheen of Brubeck's '60s albums for Columbia, his interest in writing for orchestras, the quartet's base in traditional swing rather than bop, and their largely white, middle-class fan base have all led some to brand Brubeck as a lightweight, or worse yet, an 'entertainer.' Although there is a grain of truth to this characterization, extended exposure to Brubeck's best work argues otherwise.

Columbia Records' long-overdue reissue program of classic Brubeck albums has gone some way towards rehabilitating Dave's reputation. The latest release is a 5- CD box set entitled For All Time , which brings together all of the classic quartet's albums devoted to exploring unusual time signatures and rhythmic combinations: Time Out (1959) and Time Further Out (1961), which were already available in remastered editions, along with three records that have never appeared on CD domestically; Countdown: Time In Outer Space (1962), Time Changes (1964), and Time In (1965).

Coleman Hawkins's first major gig was with Mamie Smith's Jazz Hounds in 1921, and he was with the band full time from April 1922 to 1923, when he settled in New York City. In the Jazz Hounds, he coincided with Garvin Bushell, Everett Robbins, Bubber Miley and Herb Flemming, among others. Hawkins joined Fletcher Henderson's Orchestra, where he remained until 1934, sometimes doubling on clarinet and bass saxophone. Hawkins's playing changed significantly during Louis Armstrong's tenure with the Henderson Orchestra (1924–25). In the late 1920s, Hawkins also participated in some of the earliest interracial recording sessions with the Mound City Blue Blowers. During his time with Henderson, he became a star soloist with an increasing amount of solos space on records. While with the band, he and Henry "Red" Allen recorded a series of small group sides for ARC (on their Perfect, Melotone, Romeo, and Oriole labels). Hawkins also recorded a number of solo recordings, with either piano or with a pick-up band of Henderson's musicians in 1933–34, just prior to his period in Europe. He was also featured on a Benny Goodman session on February 2, 1934 for Columbia, which also featured Mildred Bailey as guest vocalist.

In late 1934, Hawkins accepted an invitation to play with Jack Hylton's orchestra in London, and toured Europe as a soloist until 1939, performing and recording with Django Reinhardt and Benny Carter in Paris in 1937. Following his return to the United States, on October 11, 1939, he recorded a two-chorus performance of the pop standard "Body and Soul", which he had been performing at Bert Kelly's New York venue, Kelly's Stables. In a landmark recording of the swing era, recorded as an afterthought at the session, Hawkins ignores almost all of the melody, with only the first four bars stated in a recognizable fashion. In its exploration of harmonic structure it is considered by many to be the next evolutionary step in jazz recording after Louis Armstrong's "West End Blues" in 1928.

The 20 years referred to in the title of this 2CD collection is only the length of the Bombay-born percussionist's solo career. Gurtu was already beginning to play Indian classical tabla at the age of six, eventually opening his jazz-fusion phase by gigging with Oregon and Don Cherry. This set's subtitle blurb reads 'the serial collaborator in full flight with...', then proceeds to list a highly impressive gathering of guest artists, hailing from both jazz and global music zones.

There's always the danger, particularly with drumming leaders, to be subsumed and sidelined by your singers, guitarists and horn players, but Trilok always invites his collaborators into his own universe, retaining a strong sense of Indian classical tradition. Often this will be pleasingly filtered via a fusion with jazz, funk, soul, hip hop, African, Latin, Far Eastern or Western classical musics, but Gurtu usually tends to emerge unscathed and undiluted.

S.M.V. (Stanley, Marcus, Victor) - Thunder (2008) [FLAC]

SMV is a bass supergroup formed in 2008. The group's name comes from the first initials of each of its members, Stanley Clarke, Marcus Miller, and Victor Wooten. SMV's debut album, Thunder, was released on August 12, 2008, with a supporting world tour beginning the same month.

My Song is an album by jazz musician Keith Jarrett recorded in November 1977 and released by ECM Records in June 1978. After Belonging (1974) this would be the second studio album by Jarrett's 'European Quartet' featuring Jan Garbarek, Palle Danielsson and Jon Christensen.

Keith Jarrett: piano
Jan Garbarek: tenor saxophone, soprano saxophone
Palle Danielsson: bass
Jon Christensen: drums

While it's unquestionably true that saxophonist Dexter Gordon is best known for his Blue Note sides made between 1960 and 1965, it is on his Prestige recordings, the vast majority of which were taped between 1969 and 1973, where the full depth and breadth of his gift and contribution are documented. What's more, this box finally sets the historical and chronological record straight as many of Gordon's records were assembled from various sessions. The Complete Prestige Recordings consists of 11 CDs, charting Gordon's rise as a soloist in 1950 as part of the With Wardell Gray memorial album, and his reemergence after a period of drug addiction and imprisonment in 1960 with the album Resurgence.

Collaborations is a four-disc compilation box set by Indian classical musician Ravi Shankar and former Beatle George Harrison. Released in October 2010 on Dark Horse Records, it compiles two studio albums originally issued on that label – the long-unavailable Shankar Family & Friends (1974) and Ravi Shankar's Music Festival from India (1976) – and Chants of India, first issued on Angel Records in 1997. Although all three albums were originally Shankar releases, for which Harrison served in the role of music producer and guest musician, both Shankar and Harrison are credited as artists on the box set. Each of the collaborative projects represents a departure from Shankar's more typical work as a sitarist and performer of Hindustani classical ragas, with the box set showcasing his forays into, variously, jazz and rock, Indian folk and orchestral ensembles, and devotional music.

The fourth disc of Collaborations is a DVD containing previously unissued film of a performance by the Music Festival from India, recorded at London's Royal Albert Hall in September 1974.

In a Silent Way is a studio album by American jazz musician Miles Davis, released July 30, 1969 on Columbia Records. Produced by Teo Macero, the album was recorded in one session date on February 18, 1969 at CBS 30th Street Studio B in New York City. Incorporating elements of classical sonata form, Macero edited and arranged Davis's recordings from the session to produce the album. Marking the beginning of his "electric" period, In a Silent Way has been regarded by music writers as Davis's first fusion recording, following a stylistic shift toward the genre in his previous records and live performances.

Upon its release, the album was met by controversy among music critics, particularly those of jazz and rock music, who were divided in their reaction to its experimental musical structure and Davis's electronic approach. Since its initial reception, it has been regarded by fans and critics as one of Davis's greatest and most influential works. In 2001, Columbia Legacy and Sony Music released the three-disc box set The Complete In a Silent Way Sessions, which includes the original album, additional tracks, and the unedited recordings used to produce In a Silent Way.

Guitarist Grant Green and pianist Sonny Clark recorded together on five separate occasions during the 1961-1962 period, but virtually none of the music was released domestically until decades later. These performances were clearly lost in the shuffle, for the solos are of a consistently high quality, and the programs were well-paced and swinging. Now, the long-lost music (much of which had been previously available only in Japan) is saved for posterity on this Mosaic limited-edition four-CD box set. Green and Clark blend together well. Tenor saxophonist Ike Quebec joins their quartet for one session, and the final two numbers add Latin percussion. All of this music should be enjoyed by hard bop fans. Included are the Blue Note albums Gooden's Corner, Nigeria, Oleo, Born to Be Blue (with Ike Quebec), and unissued tracks.

The Complete Pacific Jazz Joe Pass Quartet Sessions is a compilation album by American jazz guitarist Joe Pass, released on Mosaic Records in 2001. It includes pieces Pass recorded on Pacific Jazz Records in 1963 and 1964.

Guitarist Joe Pass was known for his forthright, straight-ahead style, gorgeous tone, and melodic concepts. This magnificent five-CD set collects his entire output in 1963 and 1964 as a leader, with additional sessions in which Pass plays in a trio led by Les McCann. Most of the tracks feature a quartet (the five exceptions adding the saxophone or flute of Bill Perkins), with the guitarist virtually always a key voice. Pass recorded three records for Pacific after 1964 with limited jazz content, and they are not included in this collection for that reason. While many of the dozens of selections included here do not measure up to Pass' exemplary work recorded later on Pablo Records (a prime example being his classic Virtuoso LP), there are fine tracks to be found in the instant set that no admirer of either Pass or of the jazz guitar will want to be without. This is particularly true of the Django LP sessions with guitarist John Pisano, originally issued on Pacific, as well as the final CD in the instant collection that was initially issued on the Blue Note label, and on which the individual tracks are noticeably lengthier and more substantial. Elsewhere, some of the repertoire is checkered, mixing movie themes, country & western, soul, and jazz standards. But who can really complain about hearing the great guitarist playing Hank Williams' "Hey, Good Lookin'" or "Cold, Cold Heart"? As with all the Mosaic boxed sets, this one comes in a strictly limited edition with a comprehensive, oversized booklet containing a detailed discography and liner notes, extreme attention to detail, and excellent sound quality.

The Chico Hamilton Quintet with Strings Attached is an album by drummer and bandleader Chico Hamilton's Quintet, recorded in 1958 and released on the Warner Bros. label. The album features some of the earliest released recordings of Eric Dolphy.

Chico Hamilton - drums, percussion
Eric Dolphy - alto saxophone, bass clarinet, flute
Nathan Gershman - cello
Dennis Budimir - guitar
Wyatt Ruther - bass

Many musicians dream of making a record with a symphony orchestra, but few can afford to make it a reality. Thanks to an extraordinary ability to compose melodies that take root in his listeners’ minds and because he has, for years, patiently performed these compositions on stage to the point where they are practically a part of him, Avishai Cohen was well-positioned to execute such an ambition. As Cohen himself notes, his songs seem predisposed to adaptation at an orchestral scale, and the fact that they retain the same intensity that has provoked such widespread admiration demonstrates the vigor of his music.

Avishai Cohen had been dreaming of this experience for over a decade. Two Roses is the result of a long process, with his trio and his collaboration with the Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Alexander Hanson, Cohen proves that this foray into classical music was not a passing whim but rather a sincere expression of his desire to remain free from the boundaries of “genre” — a term he admits to loathing.

Tony Scott led several small groups of various sizes during the month of November 1957, resulting in three separate LPs being issued by Seeco, Carlton, and Perfect without duplicating any of the 24 tracks. This Fresh Sound two-CD set collects everything recorded during these sessions. Scott's core group features pianist Bill Evans (not long after he was discharged from military service), either Milt Hinton or Henry Grimes on bass, and drummer Paul Motian. In addition to his powerful clarinet, Scott plays a potent baritone sax on six selections. The music includes a few standards, a handful of originals by Scott, and some obscure compositions. Trombonist Jimmy Knepper is a guest on several songs, providing a perfect foil for the leader in a snappy take of "The Lady Is a Tramp," with the soloing on clarinet and baritone saxophonist Sahib Shihab following Knepper. Trumpeter Clark Terry (still with Duke Ellington at the time) blows a very soft solo in a subdued arrangement of "Tenderly." Even though Evans was yet to make his mark as a leader or composer, his "Five" is heard in extended form rather than as a brief signoff as he played on early recording dates of his own. He also solos brilliantly in "There Will Never Be Another You." The title to this collection is a bit misleading, as trustworthy discographies list these sessions as being recorded over several days. Because obtaining each of the originally issued LPs is likely to be very expensive for collectors, this comprehensive CD set is the better alternative.

Jean Reinhardt (23 January 1910 – 16 May 1953), known to all by his Romani nickname Django was a Belgian-born Romani-French jazz guitarist and composer. He was the first major jazz talent to emerge from Europe and remains the most significant.

With violinist Stéphane Grappelli, Reinhardt formed the Paris-based Quintette du Hot Club de France in 1934. The group was among the first to play jazz that featured the guitar as a lead instrument. Reinhardt recorded in France with many visiting American musicians, including Coleman Hawkins and Benny Carter, and briefly toured the United States with Duke Ellington's orchestra in 1946. He died suddenly of a stroke at the age of 43.

The Complete Woody Herman Decca, Mars and MGM Sessions (1943-1954) presents Woody on seven CDs over a remarkable span of his development: at the very beginning of his career leading a band that would become one of the most enduring in music; a few years later, in the studio and in concert at Carnegie Hall, when the band was enjoying its much-deserved, worldwide renown; and during the Third Herd period, when Woody was not only running his own band but his own record operation as well.

These three dips into Woody's career have had far less exposure than his more-famous work for Columbia and Capitol, previously collected by Mosaic on sets that are now completely sold out. Some of the music has been completely unavailable since the long-playing era. And even if you own Mosaic’s other box sets, or even the Mosaic Select mini-set documenting his early 1960s work on Phillips, you've never had a chance to sample such diverse material in one set by a bandleader who was never content to sit still.

Through its diverse material and the evolving nature of the personnel, Woody's point of view remains consistently crisp, energetic, youthful and relevant. His commitment to big bands was never nostalgic or locked in time, but always looking ahead

Michel Petrucciani's diminutive stature was due to a genetic disorder that caused brittle bones and stunted his growth, but he figuratively stood tall among jazz pianists of the 1980s and 1990s, prior to his premature death at 36 in early 1999. This three-CD set consists of portions of three separate concerts by Petrucianni, none of which have been previously issued.

Artie Shaw led one of the great bands of the 'Swing Era' and from that band he formed a small group called the Gramercy 5. Having a "band within a band" was a popular trend at the time and the Gramercy 5 were one of the best! Presented here, spanning a period from 1940 to 1954, are what are thought to be ALL the commercially released titles by the band. Featuring the familiar "Begin The Beguine" which became a million seller along with the very popular "Frenesi". Also included are the hits "Summit Ridge Drive" & "Smoke Gets In Your Eyes". With bonus tracks that come from The Gramercy 5's appearances on Radio programmes including very rare performances on the 'Radio Hall Of Fame' and 'Kraft Music Hall', this is the seminal release unsurpassed by any other.

A more substantial offering from Jasmine is this 5-CD set, which claims to present the complete commercially released recordings. On the first CD the fifteen sides recorded for Victor are supplemented by ten 1945 airshots. The remaining four CDs all date from the early to mid-fifties, and the second includes vocals by Mary Ann McCall, June Hutton, and Connee Boswell. Like Ellington, Shaw was fond of revisiting favourite tunes. Thus there are several versions of some of the best-known Five numbers, and since the personnel varied considerably over the period they are all well worth having.

The joy, camaraderie and enthusiasm reflected on Mosaic's Columbia Small Group Swing Sessions (1953-62) grabs the heart, soul and mind. The listener yearns to dance to it, sing with it, even take up an instrument and play along. One listen and you will want to join in the fun.

Instead of featuring simply one artist, this amazing 8-CD set has Mosaic taking selected sessions from various musicians. Leading the sessions are the likes of Buck Clayton, Ruby Braff, Illinois Jacquet, Herb Ellis, Ben Webster, Kenny Burrell, Coleman Hawkins and Harry "Sweets" Edison. Musicians, currently caught between "rock/rap" and a hard place, but still with much to say.

Andrew Hill was one of the greatest pianists of the '60s, but he never quite received his due. Hill was a skillful, cerebral musician that consciously positioned his music between hard bop and free. He was at his peak in the mid-'60s, as his playing and composing continued to explore new territory. All of his seminal recordings for Blue Note between 1963 and 1966 are collected on the limited-edition, seven-disc box set The Complete Blue Note Andrew Hill Sessions (1963-66). During those three years, he recorded with an astonishing array of talents, including Eric Dolphy, Freddie Hubbard, Sam Rivers, Joe Henderson, Roy Haynes, Elvin Jones, Tony Williams, Richard Davis, Joe Chambers, John Gilmore, and Kenny Dorham. The box features 15 alternate takes, including ten previously unreleased cuts and a composition that has never been released. The sheer scope of the set means that it's only of interest to serious jazz collectors, but it proves that Hill was one of the most adventurous and rewarding pianists of the '60s.

Bill Laurance - Flint [2014,FLAC]

Bill Laurance (born 2 April 1981) is an English composer, producer, and multi-instrumental musician. Laurance is a member of jazz fusion and funk band Snarky Puppy, as well as founder and CEO of London-based record label Flint Music.