Bob Howard And His Orchestra - Chronogical Classic 1932 - 1947 [4 CD]

 

Bob Howard made a remarkable number of recordings during 1935-38, enough to fill up five LPs. With the popularity of Fats Waller, Howard was signed by Decca as competition but he never came close despite the utilization of some notable sidemen. Howard moved to New York in 1926 and performed as a solo act. He was a fixture on 52nd Street in the 1930's, including at the Hickory House, Park Central Hotel and the Famous Door among others. Howard recorded five selections during 1931-32 for Columbia (three solo sides that included his vocals and two duets with trumpeter Manny Klein). A decent pianist, Howard stuck exclusively to goodtime vocals during his Decca period and among the other players on his records were Benny Carter (on trumpet and alto), trumpeters Bunny Berigan and Marty Marsala, clarinetists Buster Bailey, Barney Bigard, Cecil Scott and Artie Shaw, pianists Teddy Wilson, Frank Froeba, Zinky Cohn and Billy Kyle, guitarist Teddy Bunn, drummer Cozy Cole, tenorsaxophonist Ben Webster and cornetist Rex Stewart! However, after being dropped by Decca in 1938, Howard only recorded two further songs (a couple of obscurities for Atlantic in 1947). During the late 1930's he was at Mamie's Chicken Shack in New York accompanying singer Billy Daniels. Bob Howard remained active at least into the 1950's, having his own pioneering television show for a time on CBS but he is largely forgotten today. Fortunately all of his Decca recordings were reissued on five LPs by the European Rarities label in the 1970's.
 

 

 

Stan Getz - 5 Original Albums (5 CD, 2016/FLAC)

 

CD1 - West Coast Jazz (1955) 

CD2 - In Stockholm (1956) 

CD3 - The Steamer (1957) 

CD4 - And the Cool Sounds (1957) 

CD5 - Stan Meets Chet (with Chet Baker) (1958) 

 

 

Nat King Cole - Embraceable You (Quadromania 4 CD, 2005/FLAC)

 

For a mild-mannered man whose music was always easy on the ear, Nat King Cole managed to be a figure of considerable controversy during his 30 years as a professional musician. From the late '40s to the mid-'60s, he was a massively successful pop singer who ranked with such contemporaries as Frank Sinatra, Perry Como, and Dean Martin. He shared with those peers a career that encompassed hit records, international touring, radio and television shows, and appearances in films. But unlike them, he had not emerged from a background as a band singer in the swing era. Instead, he had spent a decade as a celebrated jazz pianist, leading his own small group.

 

 

VA – The Smooth Jazz Piano - Ebony & Ivory (3 CD, 2001/FLAC)

 

 

CD 1 [58:35]

01. Baia (Ahmad Jamal) (8:34)

02. Havi'n A Ball (Billy Kyle) (2:42)

03. Seabreeze (Chick Corea) (9:45)

04. Chicago High Life (Earl 'Father' Highness) (2:49)

05. All The Things You Are (Errol Garner) (3:24)

06. Lonely Moments (George Sharing) (3:19)

07. Jimmy's Stuff (Jimmy Jancey) (3:19)

08. Squeeze Me (Joe Sullivan) (2:52)

09. Sempre (Marco Di Marco) (7:08)

10. Just An Idea (Marry Lou Williams) (3:08)

11. My Heart Stood Still (Oscar Peterson) (3:25)

12. I Finally Gotcha' (Sam Price) (3:00)

13. Calling You (Ted Rosenthal) (5:11)

CD 2 [60:42]

01. You Took Advantage Of Me (Art Tatum) (3:13)

02. So Sorry Please (Bud Powell) (3:16)

03. Fatty Fats (Claude Bolling) (4:39)

04. Take Five (Dave Brubeck) (7:14)

05. Begin The Beguine (Eddie Heywood) (5:09)

06. Ain't Missbehavin' (Fats Waller) (3:52)

07. King Porter Stamp (Jelly Roll Morton) (2:49)

08. Summerflood (Jürgen Friedrich) (12:37)

09. Fudge Wudge (King Cole Trio) (3:47)

10. Rock It Boogie (Peter Johnson) (3:05)

11. Sea Song (Ted Rosenthal) (7:34)

12. Relaxin' (Willie Smith) (3:26)

CD 3 [64:16]

01. Lost Voices (Bill O' Conell) (6:09)

02. Tea For Two (Bud Powell) (4:15)

03. Fiesta Piano Solo (Chick Corea) (9:10)

04. Twelfth Street Rag (Count Basie) (3:05)

05. Koto Song (Dave Brubeck) (9:59)

06. Poor Butterfly (Errol Garner) (3:09)

07. Doll House Boogie (Meade Lux Lewis) (4:10)

08. Boogie Woogie Stomp (Jaja Wendt) (4:00)

09. Mr. Bill (Marco Di Marco) (7:39)

10. Miss Bea (McCoy Tyner) (7:06)

11. Round Midnight (Thelonious Monk) (3:11)

12. Sunday (Teddy Wilson) (2:25)

Artie Shaw - Classic Artie Shaw Bluebird And Victor Sessions (7 CD, 2009/FLAC)

 

Seventy years after the fact, the argument about whether Artie Shaw was a better clarinetist than his arch-rival Benny Goodman continues to smolder. Clarinetists themselves are often awe- struck by Shaw’s impeccable tone and control, while Goodman was a bit more adventurous. On a personal level, these roles were reversed. Benny was a careful businessman whose only marriage lasted for over 35 years, while the mercurial Shaw hated the music business, and was constantly involved in lawsuits, breaking up his band, and alienating his fans. His very public private life, which included marriages to such icons as Lana Turner and Ava Gardner, was even more volatile. In fact, one comes away from reading John McDonough’s wonderful liner notes feeling that it’s a miracle Shaw left as large a legacy as he did.

 

 

VA - Jazz At The Hollywood Bowl 1956 (2 CD, 2011/FLAC)

 

This double LP was the first jazz concert ever recorded at the Hollywood Bowl (and only the second one held at that L.A. institution). Although not an official Jazz at the Philharmonic concert, it has the same basic format and was also produced by Norman Granz. Trumpeters Roy Eldridge and Harry "Sweets" Edison, tenors Flip Phillips and Illinois Jacquet, the Oscar Peterson Trio and drummer Buddy Rich all jam on "Honeysuckle Rose" and "Jumpin' at the Woodside" and there is also a ballad medley and a drum solo by Rich. In addition the Oscar Peterson Trio plays two numbers, the remarkable pianist Art Tatum (in one of his final appearances) has four, Ella Fitzgerald sings six songs (including a scat-filled "Airmail Special") and collaborates with Louis Armstrong on two others. For the grand finale nearly everyone returns to the stage for "When the Saints Go Marching In" which Armstrong sings and largely narrates, cheerfully introducing all of the participants. This is a historic and very enjoyable release featuring more than its share of classic greats.

 

 

Blue Note Works 1500 series Vol.1541-1550

 

Blue Note Records is an American jazz record label, owned by Universal Music Group and currently operates in conjunction with Decca Records. Established in 1939 by Alfred Lion and Max Margulis, it derives its name from the characteristic "blue notes" of jazz and the blues. Originally dedicated to recording traditional jazz and small group swing, from 1947 the label began to switch its attention to modern jazz. While the original company did not itself record many of the pioneers of bebop, significant exceptions are Thelonious Monk, Fats Navarro and Bud Powell.

Many great jazz musicians recorded for Blue Note, but the man responsible for the quality of label’s recordings – their high dynamic and tonal range and lifelike presence – was sound engineer, Rudy Van Gelder. It was his recording equipment, choice and placement of microphones, the work at the mixing desk, the selection and rejection of takes, and the active supervision of the whole recording process from monitoring the dials through to cutting of the master lacquer, that created the “Blue Note sound”.

Van Gelder always sought to be at the forefront of recording technology – the Scully lathe he used for cutting lacquer masters was the first to feature variable pitch/depth control to optimise groove-width and loudness. He deployed the newest Neumann/ Telefunken U-47 condenser microphone, which he had specially modified for use very close to instruments. His recordings were made on the latest Ampex tape recorders.

Blue Note made the switch to 12" LPs late in 1955. The Modern Jazz Series continued with the following 12" LPs. Many of these were issued in both monaural versions (BLP series) and stereo versions (BST 81500 series), sometimes in electronically rechanneled stereo. In certain cases, the stereo versions of recordings from 1957 onwards only appeared many years later. Beginning in 1956 with BLP 1509, Reid Miles designed most of the Blue Note LP covers. The 1500 series has been systematically reissued by Toshiba-EMI in Japan ("Blue Note Works 1500" series, 20-bit 88.2 kHz CDs); the catalog numbers are TOCJ-1501, etc.

 

BN.1541- Lee Morgan- 1956- Lee Morgan Vol.2. Sextet {RVG Remaster}
BN.1542- Sonny Rollins- 1956- Sonny Rollins Vol.1
BN.1543- Kenny Burrell- 1956- Kenny Burrell Volume 2
BN.1544- Hank Mobley- 1957- Hank Mobley and His All Stars
BN.1545- Lou Donaldson- 1957- Wailing with Lou
BN.1546- Thad Jones- 1957- The Magnificent Thad Jones Vol.3
BN.1547- Jimmy Smith- 1957- A Date With Jimmy Smith, Vol. 1
BN.1548- Jimmy Smith- 1957- A Date With Jimmy Smith, Vol. 2
BN.1549- Clifford Jordan & John Gilmore- 1957- Blowing In From Chicago {RVG Remaster}
BN.1550- Hank Mobley- 1957- Hank Mobley Quintet {RVG Remaster}

Arnvid Meyer - Right Out Of Kansas City 1959 - 1973 (5 CD, 2008/FLAC)

 

Arnvid Meyer was Danish trumpet player, bandleader and music teacher, born June 20 1927 in Copenhagen, Denmark, died August 29 2007 in Næstved, Denmark.

This exclusive collection provides over five hours of music, featuring Arnvid Meyer's Orchestra with or without its many legendary soloists, on private, studio, and Danish Broadcasting Corporation recordings. The music is great and most of it has never been released before!. There are sessions with Hawkins, Webster, Brew Moore and Bill Coleman that are no less than amazing.

 

 

Earl Hines And His Orchestra - Chronogical Classics 1928 - 1954 [11 CD]

 

Earl Kenneth Hines, universally known as Earl "Fatha" Hines (December 28, 1903 – April 22, 1983), was an American jazz pianist. Hines was one of the most influential figures in the development of modern jazz piano and, according to one major source, is "one of a small number of pianists whose playing shaped the history of jazz".

 

 

VA - How Low Can You Go? : Anthology of the String Bass (1925-1941) (3 CD, 2006/FLAC)

 

This three-disc, 79-track box set of vintage string bass sides recorded between 1925 and 1941 from Atlanta's marvelous Dust-to-Digital folks can be listened to in a couple of different ways. It works as a survey of 78-rpm era bass players, certainly, including cuts from Bill Johnson, Walter Page, Al Morgan, and many others, but due to its wide-ranging inclusion of jazz, swing, blues, country, jug band, Western swing, and gospel material, it can also work as a wonderfully upbeat set of vintage American roots music, and one doesn't necessarily need to be a string bass player or music historian to get into it. It isn't a collection of bass solos, either, although there are plenty of those scattered through the tunes, but is rather a look at how this instrument was used in a wide variety of settings. Among the high points are "Dinah" by Jean Goldkette & His Orchestra, a funky "Bull Frog Blues" by Charles Pierce & His Orchestra, a blistering "Tex's Dance" from the Prairie Ramblers, a delightfully loose version of "Mama Don't Allow" called "Don't 'Low" from Washboard Sam, and two takes by the Midnight Rounders of "Bull Fiddle Rag." Fun from start to finish, How Low Can You Go? is like a great cross-genre American barn dance in a box. Another great set from Dust-to-Digital.