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Archive for the ‘Album’ Category

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Moanin’ (Bobby Timmons)

In Album, Moanin' on September 24, 2010 at 1:53 pm

Moanin’ is a jazz album by Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers, recorded in 1958.Moanin'

This was Blakey’s first album for Blue Note in several years, after a period of recording for a miscellany of labels, and marked both a homecoming and a fresh start. Originally the LP was self-titled, but the instant popularity of the bluesy opening track “Moanin'” (by pianist Bobby Timmons) led to its becoming known by that title. The rest of the originals are by saxophonist Benny Golson (who wasn’t with the Jazz Messengers for very long, this being the only American album on which he is featured). “Are You Real?” is a propulsive thirty-two-bar piece with a four-bar tag, featuring strong two-part writing for Golson and trumpeter Lee Morgan; “Along Came Betty” is a more lyrical, long-lined piece, almost serving as the album’s ballad. “The Drum Thunder Suite” is a feature for Blakey, in three movements, or themes: “Drum Thunder”; “Cry a Blue Tear” (with a Latin feel); and “Harlem’s Disciples”. “Blues March” calls on the feeling of the New Orleans marching bands, and the album finishes on its only standard, an unusually brisk reading of “Come Rain or Come Shine”. Of the originals on the album, all but the “Drum Thunder Suite” became staples of the Messengers book, even after Timmons and Golson were gone.

The album stands as one of the archetypal hard bop albums of the era, for the intensity of Blakey’s drumming and the work of Morgan, Golson and Timmons, and for its combination of old-fashioned gospel and blues influences with a sophisticated modern jazz sensibility. The album was identified by Scott Yanow in his Allmusic essay “Hard Bop” as one of the 17 Essential Hard Bop Recordings.

A vocalese version of “Moanin'” was later written by Jon Hendricks, and recorded by Lambert, Hendricks and Ross, as well as jazz vocalist Bill Henderson or Sarah Vaughan (lyrics here)

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Doxy 1st recording in Bags Groove – Miles Davis

In Album, Doxy on July 2, 2010 at 6:48 am

Bags Groove Miles Davis

  • Enregistrement 29 juin et 24 décembre 1954
  • Label Prestige Records

Bags Groove est le titre d’un Album cool jazz de Miles Davis sorti en 1954. L’album réunit deux séances d’enregistrements avec deux formations différentes.

La première, de juin 1954, reprend des titres de Sonny Rollins : Airegin anagramme de Nigeria, témoignant de l’intérêt de Rollins pour l’Afrique, Oleo et Doxy. But not For Me est un standard alors beaucoup joué par Ahmad Jamal que Miles admirait.

La deuxième séance est enregistrée la veille de Noël avec Thelonious Monk. La plupart des titres enregistrés lors de cette session se trouvent sur l’album Miles Davis and the Modern Jazz Giants. Le standard Bags Groove est une composition de Milt Jackson, vibraphoniste faisant partie du sextet « Bags » étant son surnom, provenant des poches sous ses yeux quand il arrive en retard.

Musiciens, Séance du 29 juin 1954

  • Miles Davis Trompette
  • Sonny Rollins Saxophone ténor
  • Horace Silver Piano
  • Percy Heath Basse
  • Kenny Clarke Batterie

Séance du 24 décembre 1954

  • Miles Davis Trompette
  • Thelonious Monk Piano
  • Sonny Rollins Saxophone ténor
  • Percy Heath Basse
  • Milt Jackson Vibraphone
  • Kenny Clarke Batterie

Séance du 24 décembre 1954

  • Bags Groove Milt Jackson take1 11:222.
  • Bags Groove take 2 9:30

Séance du 29 juin 1954

  • Airegin Sonny Rollins 4:564.
  • Oleo Sonny Rollins 5:115.
  • But Not For Me G. & I. Gershwin take 2 5:406.
  • Doxy Sonny Rollins 4:507.
  • But Not For Me take 1 4:33

Miles :« Au cours de l’été 1954, je suis retourné en studio pour Prestige, cette fois-ci avec Sonny, Horace, Percy et Klook à la batterie. J’avais décidé que pour le son que je cherchais, Klook m’apporterait une dimension supplémentaire par rapport à Art Blakey; il était plus subtil. Je ne veux pas dire qu’il était meilleur batteur, simplement c’était son style que je cherchais à ce moment-là. »— Miles Davis

via Bags Groove – Wikipédia.

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Mulatu (Ethio Jazz Vol1, Mulatu Astatké)

In Album, Mulatu on March 30, 2010 at 2:59 pm

Nouveau morceau de Mulatu Astatké, tiré de l’album Ethio Jazz Vol. 1,

Record Label: AZMARI

Release Date: 2006

Ethio Jazz – Jazz and fusion with the Ethiopian five-tone scales.

Mulatu est dans la boite.

Pour la partition, tendez l’oreille…


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Lady Soul – Hank Crawford

In Album, Lady Soul on March 12, 2010 at 4:58 pm

Hank Crawford’s “Mr. Blues Plays Lady Soul” on Atlantic from 1969. The groove is unreal, thanks to the great Bernard Purdie on drums, and the big band sound is killer thanks to the great arrangements of Arif Mardin. This is doubly fascinating because Hank was also a brilliant arranger who almost always wrote his own charts. Finally, the guitar chair is manned by the late, great Eric Gale, so business is handled 110% all the way ‘ round.”

Hank Crawford – Mr. Blues Plays Lady Soul (Atlantic Records)
Hank Crawford (as); David Newman (ts, fl); Paul Griffin (p, el-p); Eric Gale (g); Ron Carter (el-b); Bernard Purdie (d); Arif Mardin (arr, dir); Gene Orloff (strings cond); Bernie Glow, Joe Newman, Ernie Royal, Snooky Young (tp); Jimmy Cleveland, Benny Powell (tb); Frank Wess (as); Seldon Powell (ts); Pepper Adams (bars); unidentified strings.

Chaudement recommandé: Lady Soul


The Very First Jazz recording (ODJB 1917)

In Album on January 1, 2010 at 3:20 pm

First “Jass” Recording “Livery Stable Blues”

26 February 1917

While a couple of other New Orleans bands had passed through New York City slightly earlier, they were part of Vaudeville acts. The O.D.J.B., (Original Dixieland Jazz Band) on the other hand, played for dancing and were hence the first “jass” band to get a following of fans in New York, and then record at a time when the USA’s recording industry was almost entirely centered in New York and New Jersey.
Shortly after arriving in New York they were offered a chance per a letter dated January 29, 1917 to audition for the Columbia Graphaphone Company which took place on Wednesday, January 31, 1917. Nothing came of this audition.
They then recorded two sides (“Livery Stable Blues” and “Dixie Jass Band One Step”) on February 26, 1917 for the Victor Talking Machine Company. The record with these titles came out the following month. The ODJB’s records, first marketed simply as a novelty, were a surprise hit, and gave many Americans their first taste of jazz.

L’ODJB first members were: Larry Shields (clarinet), Eddie Edwards (trombone), Henry Ragas (piano), Tony Sbarbaro (drums) e Nick LaRocca (cornet).

listen here

LiveryStableBlues

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Blues for Yna Yna – The Artist Selects: Gerald Wilson (Blue Note 31439)

In Album, Blues for Yna Yna on December 20, 2009 at 9:36 am

Musicians:

Gerald Wilson (leader), Richard ‘Groove’ Holmes (organ), Carmell Jones(trumpet), Harold Land (tenor sax),

Ray Triscari, Jimmy Zito, John Audino (trumpets), Bob Edmondson, Lester Robertson, John Ewing, Kenny Shroyer (trombones), Buddy Collette (flute, alto sax), Harry Klee (alto sax), Teddy Edwards (tenor sax), Jack Nimitz (baritone sax), Jimmy Bond (bass), Mel Lewis (drums)

Composed by Gerald Wilson

Recorded: Los Angeles, September 9, 1961

Gerald Wilson led bands on and off during the 1950s, but except for a group of recordings for the King label in ’54, could not get a record contract. Dick Bock, president of Pacific Jazz, was interested but did not have the money. Albert Marx signed Wilson and put up the money for Gerald’s recordings that Bock released. Assembling a powerhouse group of established studio men and younger soloists (some of whom Wilson discovered), the maestro went into the studios with guest organist Holmes. This minor blues waltz got a lot of airplay all across the country, and was a great start toward reestablishing Wilson’s band. Solos are played by Jones (one of his earliest recordings) and Land.

Read the rest of this entry »


Blues for Yna Yna – Gerald Wilson

In Album, Blues for Yna Yna on December 18, 2009 at 10:35 am


Watermelon Man (1973)

In Album, Watermelon Man on November 24, 2009 at 5:10 pm

Quelques années passent depuis la sortie en 1962 de Watermelon, Herbie remet le couvert en 1973 avec Head Hunters, voici la nouvelle version de Watermelon Man, tout  le funk y est.  (Watermelon Man 1973 in the library)

Watermelon Head Hunters

Watermelon - Head Hunters

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Watermelon Man (Herbie Hancock)

In Album, Watermelon Man on November 17, 2009 at 10:44 am

Written by Herbie Hancock, first released on his debut album, Takin’ Off (1962), in a grooving hard bop version that featured improvisations by Freddie Hubbard and Dexter Gordon.  A single of the tune reached the Top 100 of the pop charts.  Cuban percussionist Mongo Santamaría released the tune as a Latin pop single the next year on Battle Records, where it became a surprise hit, reaching #10 on the pop charts. Santamaría’s recording was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 1998. Hancock radically re-worked the tune, combining elements of funk, for the album Head Hunters (1973)

Herbie Hancock’s debut as a leader, Takin’ Off, revealed a composer and pianist able to balance sophistication and accessibility, somewhat in the vein of Blue Note’s prototype hard bopper Horace Silver. Yet while Hancock could be just as funky and blues-rooted as Silver, their overall styles diverged in several ways: Hancock was lighter and more cerebral, a bit more adventurous in his harmonies, and more apt to break his solos out of a groove (instead of using them to create one). So even if, in retrospect, Takin’ Off is among Hancock’s most conventional albums, it shows a young stylist already strikingly mature for his age, and one who can interpret established forms with spirit and imagination. Case in point: the simple, catchy “Watermelon Man,” which became a Hancock signature tune and a jazz standard in the wake of a hit cover by Latin jazz star Mongo Santamaria. Hancock’s original version is classic Blue Note hard bop: spare, funky piano riffing and tight, focused solo statements. The other compositions are memorable and well-constructed too (if not quite hit material); all have their moments, but particular highlights include the ruminative ballad “Alone and I,” the minor-key “The Maze” (which features a little bit of free improvisation in the rhythm section), and the bluesy “Empty Pockets.” The backing group includes then up-and-coming trumpeter Freddie Hubbard, tenor saxophonist Dexter Gordon, bassist Butch Warren, and drummer Billy Higgins. All in all, Takin’ Off is an exceptional first effort, laying the groundwork for Hancock to begin pushing the boundaries of hard bop on his next several records. (AMG)

Takin’ Off Track list:

  1. Watermelon Man
  2. Three Bags Full
  3. Empty Pockets
  4. The Maze
  5. Driftin’
  6. Alone And I



This Masquerade (Leon Russell)

In Album, This Masquerade on September 21, 2009 at 8:17 pm


“This Masquerade”
Single by George Benson
from the album Breezin’
B-side “Lady”
Released 1976
Format 7″ single
Genre R&B/Jazz
Length 3:18
Label Warner
Writer(s) Leon Russell
Producer Tommy LiPuma
George Benson singles chronology
“This Masquerade“
(1976)		 “Breezin'”
(1976)


From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia . “This Masquerade” is a song written by Leon Russell.  The song appeared on the B-side of the single for Russell’s 1972 hit “Tight Rope“.

The Carpenters version was released on their album Now & Then (1973), and performed on TV withElla Fitzgerald, the medley in which it was sung was subsequently released on the compilation album As Time Goes By.

The song has also been recorded by many other artists. The Carpentersrecorded a version of the song and released it on their 1973 Now & Then album, as well as on the B-side of “Please Mr. Postman” in 1974. Shirley Bassey has also recorded this song, first released on her 1982 albumAll By Myself. Other artists to perform it include Sergio Mendes & Brasil ’77, No Mercy, Robert Goulet, Helen Reddy, Bob Berg and Kenny Rogers. The song was also a top-ten pop and R&B hit for jazz guitarist/vocalistGeorge Benson, who recorded it on his 1976 signature album Breezin’. It reached number ten on the Billboard Hot 100 and number three on the Hot Soul Singles chart. Benson won the Grammy Award for Record of the Year with his version of the song. SaxophonistDavid Sanbornalso recorded the song on his 1995 “Pearls” project.Leon Russell‘s version is part of the soundtrack for the Exorcist director William Friedkin‘s psychological thriller film Bug. The Bug Soundtrack is released on May 22, 2007. It also appeared in the movie The Pursuit of HappynessXX