George Duke - My Soul: The Complete MPS Fusion Recordings [4 CD, 2008/FLAC]

  

An amazing package of work from George Duke - 6 of his legendary fusion albums for MPS Records, including the never-reissued double-length set Solus / The Inner Source! That incredible album is worth the price of the package alone - as it begins with some sublime trio work from Duke, rooted in jazz but already stretching out in amazing ways - then moves into some even hipper Latin-styled grooves, with Jerome Richardson on reeds and Luis Gasca on a bit of trumpet!
Other albums in the set are equally great - and trace Duke's evolution from straighter jazz into funky freer fusion and soul - an incredible musical shift that's presented on the albums Faces In Reflection, Feel, I Love The Blues She Heard My Cry, The Aura Will Prevail, and Liberated Fantasies - each of them classics in their own right, presented together wonderfully here in this complete MPS package! The set is amazing - with a whopping 64 titles in all, and complete notes on all the music - including some recollections from Duke himself.

Stanley Clarke - Original Album Classics (5 CD, 2007/FLAC)

 

CD1 - Stanley Clarke (1974)

CD2 - Journey to Love (1975)

CD3 - School Days (1976)

CD4 - Modern Man (1978)

CD5 - Clarke/Duke Project (1981)

George Duke - Original Album Series (5 CD, 2010/FLAC)

 

CD1 - Snapshot (1992)

CD2 - Illusions (1995)

CD3 - Is Love Enough? (1997)

CD4 - After Hours (1998)

CD5 - Cool (2000)

Miles Davis - Tutu (2 CD Deluxe Edition, 2011/FLAC)

 

Tutu is an album by American jazz trumpeter Miles Davis, released in 1986 by Warner Bros. Records. It was recorded primarily at Capitol Studios in Los Angeles and Clinton Recording in New York, except the song "Backyard Ritual", which was recorded at Le Gonks in West Hollywood. Davis received the 1986 Best Jazz Instrumental Performance, Soloist Grammy Award for his performance on the album.

Originally planned as a collaboration with pop singer/songwriter Prince, Davis ultimately worked with bassist/multi-instrumentalist Marcus Miller. Miller wrote and arranged all the songs, except "Tomaas" (co-written by Davis), "Backyard Ritual" (by keyboardist George Duke), and "Perfect Way" (by pop group Scritti Politti). The music is strongly inspired by mid-1980s R&B and funk, with heavy use of synthesizers, sequencers and drum machines.

• Miles Davis - trumpet
• Marcus Miller - bass guitars, guitar, synthesizers, drum machine programming, bass clarinet, soprano sax, other instruments.
• Jason Miles - synthesizer programming
• Paulinho da Costa - percussion on "Tutu", "Portia", "Splatch", Backyard Ritual"
• Adam Holzman - synthesizer solo on "Splatch"
• Steve Reid - additional percussion on "Splatch"
• George Duke - all except percussion, bass guitar, and trumpet on "Backyard Ritual"
• Omar Hakim - drums and percussion on "Tomaas"
• Bernard Wright - additional synthesizers on "Tomaas" and "Don't Lose Your Mind"
• Michał Urbaniak - electric violin on "Don't Lose Your Mind"
• Jabali Billy Hart - drums, bongos