Enrico Pieranunzi — The Complete Remastered Recordings On Black Saint & Soul Note (6 CD, 2010/FLAC)

 

Born in Rome in 1949, Pieranunzi grew up to become one of Europe's established masters of mainstream modern jazz. His six-CD set opens with the album Isis, which was recorded in February 1980. Pieranunzi shared the date with trumpeter Art Farmer (heard on flügelhorn) and alto saxophonist Massimo Urbani. A handful of compositions by Charlie Parker and Dizzy Gillespie bring extra warmth to an already substantial itinerary. Pieranunzi's next Soul Note album, Deep Down, was recorded in February 1986 with drummer Joey Baron and Marc Johnson, whose presence was significant as he was the last bassist to work with Pieranunzi's idol, Bill Evans. Those expecting to encounter the 1987 album Silence will not find it in this set, but rather in the Charlie Haden edition from the same series. Chronologically speaking, the next album in this box is No Man's Land, recorded in May 1989 with Johnson and drummer Steve Houghton. Flux & Change, which came together in August of 1992, is a suite of 23 studies (some of them quite brief) created in duet with percussionist Paul Motian. Seaward was recorded in March of 1994 with bassist Hein van de Geyn and drummer André Ceccarelli. Both players hailed from Dee Dee Bridgewater's backing band. This bundle of dependably enjoyable modern jazz closes with the album Ma l'Amore No. Recorded in February 1997, it features alto saxophonist Lee Konitz, trumpeter Enrico Rava, and vocalist Ada Montellanico. 

In later years Pieranunzi recorded a lot for the CAM Jazz label, variously collaborating with Charlie Haden, Paul Motian, and Kenny Wheeler; reuniting with Johnson and Baron; or devoting entire albums to reinterpretations of music by Domenico Scarlatti, George Frederick Handel, and Johann Sebastian Bach. Among denizens of North America, Pieranunzi's portion of the Soul Note reissue series may serve to increase awareness of his contributions to the inextinguishable, ever-changing braid of musical traditions called jazz. 

 

CD 1 • Enrico Pieranunzi Quartet & Quintet featuring Art Farmer – Isis (1980)

CD 2 • Enrico Pieranunzi, Marc Johnson, Joey Baron – Deep Down (1987)

CD 3 • Enrico Pieranunzi Trio With Marc Johnson And Steve Houghton – No Man's Land (1989)

CD 4 • Enrico Pieranunzi, Paul Motian – Flux And Change (1995)

CD 5 • Enrico Pieranunzi Trio With Hein Van de Geyn & André Ceccarelli – Seaward (1996)

CD 6 • Enrico Pieranunzi Trio & Ada Montellanico with Lee Konitz & Enrico Rava – Ma L'amore No (1997)

 

Lennie Tristano - The Complete Lennie Tristano on Keynote(1947)/Live in Toronto(1952) (2 CD, 1994/FLAC)

 The Complete Lennie Tristano on Keynote(1947)

The earliest of these 19 sides, dating from 1946, capture Lennie Tristano at age 27, newly arrived in New York and beginning to carve a place for himself in the embryonic bebop scene. Playing with Billy Bauer on guitar and bassist Clyde Lombardi, Tristano shows off a mix of youthful verse and pianistic elegance, coupled with effortless, seamless invention, matched by Bauer's crisp, economical, yet quietly flamboyant guitar.

Miles Davis - Out Of The Blue [10 CD, 2010]

 

A rich collection with 157 remastered original recordings of the legendary jazz musician covering the period 1945-1957. The superb sound of Miles' trumpet with a great variety of jazz ensembles like Charlie Parker's, Billy Eckstine's, Lee Konitz's, Gil Evans' and of course, his own quintet, sextet and nonet. Also enjoy Davis, backing the unique Sarah Vaughan in six ballads. A jazz gem in perfect sound quality.

Lennie Tristano, Lee Konitz & Warne Marsh - The Complete Atlantic Recordings [6 CD, 1997]

 Pianist Lennie Tristano was an early inspiration and a major influence on the playing of altoist Lee Konitz and tenor saxophonist Warne Marsh. Their very notable and highly original Capitol recordings of 1949 -- with the quiet metronomic rhythm section, advanced melodic improvising and reharmonizations -- stood apart from the typical bop of the period. By 1955, when the earliest performances on this limited-edition 1997 six-CD set were recorded, the trio was not working together very often; in fact, Tristano was mostly functioning as a teacher, only surfacing for occasional records and club dates. Despite the title of the box, Tristano, Konitz and Marsh never all appeared on the same Atlantic record. However, their individual projects and collaborations during the era were of consistently high quality. Included on the set are a live quartet date with Konitz and Tristano, a couple of the pianist's solo and trio sessions (including a few controversial items where he overdubbed and even sped up piano parts), several Konitz quartet sets (with such sidemen as pianists Sal Mosca and Jimmy Rowles and guitarist Billy Bauer), a Marsh trio/quartet album, and a stimulating meeting between Konitz and Marsh (with Mosca and Bauer) in a sextet. Four of the performances were previously unreleased, and one of the Konitz albums was formerly only available in Japan. Although the inventive music often utilizes familiar chord changes, there are plenty of surprises in the cool-toned solos, and this is well worth acquiring by bop collectors.