KING PLEASURE | ANNIE ROSS — King Pleasure Sings | Annie Ross Sings (1958-1987) APE (image+.cue), lossless

The brief life span of classic jazz vocalese singing found its first inspiration in these King Pleasure sides. Pleasure vocalized many bebop solos by the likes of James Moody, Charlie Parker, and Lester Young, often adding his own hip and witty lyrics to the mix. Initially issued on his debut, Moody's Mood for Love, the first eight sides here include solid senders like "Parker's Mood," "Red Top" (based on a Gene Ammons solo and featuring singer Betty Carter), and "Jumpin' With Symphony Sid" (Lester Young). Balancing out the boppish fare, Pleasure also delivers ballads like "This Is Always" (featuring the Dave Lambert Singers) and his own composition, "Don't Be Scared" (up-and-coming vocalese star Jon Hendriks guests). Future Hendriks cohort Annie Ross co-headlines this LP, matching Pleasure's best with hits like "Twisted" (Wardell Gray) and "Farmer's Market" (Art Farmer). Her wordless scat feature, "Annie's Lament," is a highlight as well. A must for bop and vocal jazz fans. Stephen Cook 
Tracklist :
King Pleasure Sings
King Pleasure - Red Top 3:12
Bass – Peck Morrison
Drums – Herbie Lovelle
Piano – Ed Swanston
Tenor Saxophone – Charlie Ferguson
Trumpet – Eddie Lewis
Vocals – Betty Carter
King Pleasure - Jumpin' With Symphony Sid 2:34
Bass – Peck Morrison
Drums – Herbie Lovelle
Piano – Ed Swanston
Tenor Saxophone – Charlie Ferguson
Trumpet – Eddie Lewis
King Pleasure - Sometimes I'm Happy 2:55
Bass – Percy Heath
Drums – Kenny Clarke
Piano – John Lewis 
Vocals – Dave Lambert Singers
King Pleasure - This Is Always 3:12
Bass – Percy Heath
Drums – Kenny Clarke
Piano – John Lewis 
Vocals – Dave Lambert Singers
King Pleasure - What Can I Say Dear 3:09
Bass – Percy Heath
Drums – Kenny Clarke
Piano – John Lewis 
King Pleasure - Don't Get Scared 3:18
Baritone Saxophone – Danny Bank
Bass – Paul Chambers 
Drums – Joe Harris 
Piano – Jimmy Jones 
Tenor Saxophone – Lucky Thompson
Trombone – J.J. Johnson, Kai Winding
Vocals – Eddie Jefferson, Jon Hendricks
King Pleasure - Parker's Mood 2:55
Bass – Percy Heath
Drums – Kenny Clarke
Piano – John Lewis 
King Pleasure - I'm Gone 3:27
Baritone Saxophone – Danny Bank
Bass – Paul Chambers 
Drums – Kenny Clarke
Piano – Jimmy Jones 
Tenor Saxophone – Lucky Thompson
Trombone – J.J. Johnson, Kai Winding
Vocals – Eddie Jefferson, The Three Riffs
Annie Ross Sings
Annie Ross - Twisted 2:37
Bass – Percy Heath
Drums – Art Blakey
Organ – Ram Ramirez
Piano – Teacho Wiltshire
Annie Ross - Farmer's Market 2:43
Bass – Percy Heath
Drums – Art Blakey
Organ – Ram Ramirez
Piano – Teacho Wiltshire
Annie Ross - The Time Was Right 3:16
Bass – Percy Heath
Drums – Art Blakey
Organ – Ram Ramirez
Piano – George Wallington
Annie Ross - Annie's Lament 2:58
Bass – Percy Heath
Drums – Art Blakey
Organ – Ram Ramirez
Piano – George Wallington

LIONEL HAMPTON AND HIS ORCHESTRA – 1949-1950 | The Chronogical Classics – 1161 (2001) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

Although some of the personnel had changed in the interim, Lionel Hampton's big band sounded largely the same in 1949 as it had before the recording strike in late 1947. The main change was that there were now more vocals and the band had clearly shifted toward R&B and a bit away from bebop. But the excitement level remained quite high, as can be heard on such numbers as "Chicken Shack Boogie," "New Central Avenue Breakdown," "Hamp's Boogie No. 2," and "Rag Mop." The key sidemen are trumpeter Benny Bailey, tenors Gene Morris and Johnny Sparrow, guitarist Wes Montgomery (a decade before he became famous), and trombonist Al Grey. Boogie-woogie pianist Albert Ammons is on a few numbers and the vocalists include such future greats as Betty Carter and Little Jimmy Scott, who had a hit with "Everybody's Somebody's Fool." Scott Yanow
Tracklist :

BETTY CARTER - The Audience With Betty Carter (1980) 2CD / FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

After years of being told what she ought to do by record companies and producers, and then putting up with being ignored thanks to the public's fanatic interest in rock & roll, virtuoso jazz singer Carter started her own label. After getting her feet wet with the first few releases, she came up with this double album, which some fans would consider her masterpiece. Eventually it was licensed to Verve. The set is as faithful as possible; a transcription of her nightclub sets with piano trio backing. Interestingly enough, it is not actually recorded at a nightclub per se, because the Great American Music Hall, formerly one of San Francisco's most posh bordellos, is actually more a small theatre, with the set up just intimate enough to pull off this kind of live recording. A pity that the singer herself had to fund the project, because, in 1980, it was much more expensive and complicated to record live than it would become decades later with new technology. And no doubt Carter had to cut a few corners and make do with the results. So, most listeners will have some quibble with the sound, wishing, for example, for much more piano presence, more clarity from the drums, and so forth. This would have to be the only complaints that could be allowed over this material, recorded over three nights, and no doubt allowing plenty of choice of takes. "Sounds (Movin' On)" is Carter's "Chasin' the Trane": it is a bit more than 25 minutes worth of vocal improvisation, use of the voice as an instrument in interplay with the other musicians, and, above all, sheer energy, which is one thing it definitely has in common with the aforementioned Coltrane performance. Another thing in common with Coltrane would be the pianist, John Hicks, who comes out of McCoy Tyner, the saxophonist's main piano accompanist. Hicks goes just about as far out as his notoriously anti-avant-garde boss will allow in these circumstances. The remaining three sides are a mixture of standards and songs written by Carter. Her songwriting talents are an area that has definitely been overshadowed by her singing chops in terms of critical reception. The fourth side of this set, which consists almost totally of her originals, is a good place for one to explore the beautiful, tough-minded songs she writes. Other high points are the lovely exploration of "Spring Can Really Hang You Up the Most" and, of course, the fast numbers. There is not a singer alive that takes on the tempos Betty Carter does, and it is a good thing, too. Otherwise, the cardiac wards would be full of drummers and there would be no room for anyone else to get treatment. An interesting choice amongst the songs is a version of "Caribbean Sun," written by the under-appreciated saxophonist Carlos Garnett. Carter's original gatefold packaging included a photo of the entire audience. by Eugene Chadbourne  
Tracklist 1 :
1     Sounds (Movin' On) 25:20
Betty Carter
2     I Think I Got It Now 3:33
Betty Carter
3     Caribbean Sun 4:17
Carlos Garnett
4     The Trolley Song 3:37
Ralph Blane / Hugh Martin
5     Everything I Have Is Yours 6:16
Harold Adamson / Burton Lane
6     I'll Buy You a Star 2:12
Dorothy Fields / Arthur Schwartz
Tracklist 2 :
1     I Could Write a Book 3:41
Lorenz Hart / Richard Rodgers
2     Can't We Talk It Over/Either It's Love or It Isin't 7:26
Ned Washington / Victor Young
3     Deep Night 2:45
Charles Henderson / Rudy Vallée
4     Spring Can Really Hang You up the Most 7:22
Fran Landesman / Tommy Wolf
5     Tight 3:44
Betty Carter
6     Fake 4:16
Betty Carter
7     So... 7:03
Betty Carter
8     My Favorite Things 4:39
Oscar Hammerstein II / Richard Rodgers
9     Open the Door 5:09
Betty Carter
Credits :
Betty Carter – Vocals
Bass – Curtis Lundy
Drums – Kenneth Washington
Piano – John Hicks

BETTY CARTER - Look What I Got (1988) FLAC (image+.cue), lossless

This well-rounded set gives listeners a good look at the adventurous music of Betty Carter. For this CD, she is joined by one of two rhythm sections (with either Benny Green or Stephen Scott on piano) and, on four of the nine songs, tenor saxophonist Don Braden. Carter twists and turns some familiar songs (such as "The Man I Love," "Imagination" and "The Good Life") along with a variety of lesser-known material including two songs of her own. Consistently unpredictable (whether scatting or stretching out ballads) Betty Carter's recordings are always quite stimulating. by Scott Yanow
Tracklist :
1     Look What I Got! 5:41
Betty Carter
2     That Sunday, That Summer 4:51
Joe Sherman / George David Weiss
3     The Man I Love 7:28
George Gershwin / Ira Gershwin
4     All I Got 4:40
Diane Cole
5     Just Like the Movies (Time) 4:20
Betty Carter
6     Imagination 4:23
Johnny Burke / James Van Heusen
7     Mr. Gentleman 2:40
Betty Carter
8     Make It Last 6:00
Bob Haymes
9     The Good Life 6:58
Sacha Distel / Jack Reardon
Credits :
Bass – Ira Coleman (faixas: 2, 8, 9), Michael Bowie (faixas: 1, 3 to 7)
Drums – Lewis Nash (faixas: 2, 9), Troy Davis (2) (faixas: 8), Winard Harper (faixas: 1, 3 to 7)
Piano – Benny Green (faixas: 1, 3 to 7), Stephen Scott (5) (faixas: 2, 8, 9)
Saxophone – Don Braden (faixas: 2, 3, 5, 9)
Vocals – Betty Carter

BETTY CARTER - It's Not About The Melody (1992) FLAC (image+.cue), lossless

A song's melody is simply a reference point and a beginning for Carter; she takes words and inverts, probes and extends them, embellishes themes, changes moods and alters rhythms. She's a vocal improviser in a manner few have equaled, and if her voice lacks the clarity and timbre of the all-time greats, she's more than compensated with incredible timing, flexibility and power. Throughout this 11-track effort, Carter's vocals direct and steer the responses of pianist Cyrus Chestnut, bassist Ariel J. Roland and drummer Lewis Nash. It was yet another memorable outing for Betty Carter, an all-time great. by Ron Wynn
Tracklist :
1     Naima's Love Song 8:25
Betty Carter / John Hicks
2     Stay as Sweet as You Are 7:11
Mack Gordon / Harry Revel
3     Make Him Believe 5:10
Betty Carter
4     I Should Care 3:26
Sammy Cahn / Axel Stordahl / Paul Weston
5     Once upon a Summertime 5:58
Eddie Barclay / Michel Legrand / Eddy Marnay / Johnny Mercer
6     You Go to My Head 5:35
J. Fred Coots / Haven Gillespie
7     In the Still of the Night 4:07
Cole Porter
8     When It's Sleepy Time Down South 7:45
Clarence Muse / Otis Rene / Leon René
9     The Love We Had Yesterday 7:17
Pat Watson
10     Dip Bag 8:57
Betty Carter
11     You're Mine, You 7:16
Johnny Green / Edward Heyman
Credits :
Bass – Ariel J. Roland (faixas: 1,3,4,6,7,10,11), Christian McBride (faixas: 2,5,8), Walter Booker (faixas: 9)
Drums – Clarence Penn (faixas: 3,4,10,11), Jeff "Tain" Watts (faixas: 1,9), Lewis Nash (faixas: 2,5-8)
Piano – Cyrus Chestnut (faixas: 3,4,6,7,10,11), John Hicks (faixas: 1,9), Mulgrew Miller (faixas: 2,5,8)
Tenor Saxophone – Craig Handy (faixas: 1,9)
Vocals – Betty Carter