Thelonious Monk - Les Liaisons Dangereuses (OST 1960 / 2017) [24-96]

The only soundtrack recorded by Thelonious Monk in 1959 to be released for the first time! Contains performances of classic Monk tunes heard in Roger Vadim's 1960 French film Les Liaisons Dangereuses. Features Monk's 1959 all-star band of Charlie Rouse, Sam Jones & Art Taylor, plus special guest saxophonist Barney Wilen. 

• Thelonious Monk - piano
• Charlie Rouse - tenor saxophone
• Barney Wilen - tenor saxophone (1, 2, 8, 11)
• Sam Jones - bass
• Art Taylor - drums

Rec.: Nola Penthouse Sound Studios, 111 W. 57th St., New York City, NY, July 27, 1959.

01. Rhythm-A-Ning (5:47)

02. Crepuscule With Nellie (5:16)

03. Six In One (4:28)

04. Well, You Needn't (4:57)

05. Pannonica (Solo 1) (2:27)

06. Pannonica (Solo 2) (2:55)

07. Pannonica (Quartet) (6:20)

08. Ba-Lue Bolivar Ba-Lues-Are (6:57)

09. Light Blue (2:47)

10. By And By (We'll Understand It Better By And By) (1:47)

11. Rhythm-A-Ning (Alternate) (5:36)

12. Crepuscule With Nellie (Take 1) (2:29)

13. Pannonica (45 rpm Master) (6:53)

14. Light Blue (45 rpm Master) (4:09)

15. Well, You Needn't (Unedited) (6:47)

16. Light Blue (Making Of) (14:13)

Ken Burns Jazz: The Story of America's Music [ 5 CD soundtrack to documentary series, 2000/FLAC]

 

In conjunction with documentary filmmaker Ken Burns' ten-part 2000 PBS special, Columbia/Legacy and Verve teamed up to issue a special series of reissues covering much of the history of 20th century jazz. The central release of this program is the five-CD box set Ken Burns Jazz: The Story of America's Music, its 94 selections covering the history of 20th century jazz, from 1917 to the mid-'90s. Chronologically, the set is very skewed toward the first 50 years of that time span; there is only just under a CD's worth of music dating from after the mid-'60s. What's here is a very good range of classic jazz from throughout the decades, touching upon performances, many acknowledged classics, from many of the music's giants: Louis Armstrong, Duke Ellington, Benny Goodman, Billie Holiday, Dizzy Gillespie, Charlie Parker, Thelonious Monk, John Coltrane, Miles Davis, Ornette Coleman, and up to Wynton Marsalis and Cassandra Wilson. There are just a few dubious inclusions (Grover Washington, Jr.'s "Mister Magic," for instance), and as music it's nearly wall-to-wall excellence. As far as core classics of the jazz repertoire, there are quite a few: Armstrong's "West End Blues," Goodman's "Sing, Sing, Sing (With a Swing)," Count Basie's "Lester Leaps In," Holiday's "Strange Fruit," Ellington's "Take the 'A' Train," Gillespie's "Salt Peanuts," Monk's "Straight, No Chaser," Davis' "So What," Dave Brubeck's "Take Five," Coltrane's "Giant Steps," Weather Report's "Birdland," and Hancock's "Rockit." As education, if you didn't know much about jazz before hearing this box, you'll have been exposed to a good deal of its major touchstones after digesting it. Just don't be under the impression that it covers all of the main mileposts, or even that it gives you all of the key launching pads from which to explore further.

 

James Taylor Quartet - Hammond-Ology: The Best Of The James Taylor Quartet [2 CD, 2001/FLAC]

 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.