CHRISTIAN McBRIDGE BAND — Sci-Fi (2000) FLAC (image+.cue), lossless

On a large scale, there is no denying that music can move masses of people to assert themselves and establish a particular vision that will benefit many for years to come. With the release of Sci-Fi, the highly acclaimed bassist Christian McBride has established another great realm of music for his fans to explore. Accompanied by the dynamic Ron Blake on tenor and soprano sax, Shedrick Mitchell on piano and Fender Rhodes, the great Herbie Hancock on piano, Rodney Green on drums, David Gilmore on electric and acoustic guitar, Dianne Reeves giving great vocalese on "Lullaby for a Ladybug," James Carter on bass clarinet, and the exciting Toots Thielemans on harmonica, listeners will soon discover that the jazz galaxy will never be the same. The acoustic fusion and thematic sound concept for the CD settled in after McBride wrote "Science Fiction" and discovered it made a great nucleus for the CD. Featured selections include McBride's brilliant arrangements of masterworks by Stanley Clarke, Sting, Jaco Pastorius, and Steely Dan as well as seven original compositions by the versatile leader. Flawless piano grace from Herbie Hancock on "Xerxes" and "Lullaby for a Ladybug" and McBride's Fender Rhodes work throughout is a listen to behold. Particularly, the conversation between McBride's double bass and Carter's bass clarinet on "Walking on the Moon" shouldn't be missed. Sci-Fi is a seminal work by seminal artists and may very well be considered one of the most essential jazz recordings of the 21st century. Paula Edelstein
Tracklist :
 1. Aja (Fagan, Becker) 6:46
2. Uhura's Moment Returned (McBride) 6:18
3. Xerxes (McBride) 7:56
4. Lullaby For a Ladybug (McBride) 7:28
5. Science Fiction (McBride) 6:50
6. Walking On The Moon (Sting) 6:43
7. Havona (Jaco Pastorius) 7:12
8. I'll Guess i'll Have To Forget (McBride) 6:10
9. Butterfly Dreams (Stanley Clarke) 6:43
10. Via Mwandishi (McBride) 8:02
11. The Sci-fi Outro (McBride) 1:13
Credits :
Christian McBride – Bass (Upright, Electric), Keyboards
Ron Blake - Sax (Tenor, Soprano)
Shedrick Mitchell – Piano, Electric Piano
Rodney Green – Drums
Herbie Hancock – Piano (on "Xerxes" and "Lullaby For a Ladybug")
Dianne Reeves – Vocalese (on "Lullaby For a Ladybug")
Toots Thielemans – Harmonica
James Carter – Bass Clarinet
David Gilmore – Guitar (Acoustic, Electric)

DIANNE REEVES — Art & Survival (1993) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

Versatility has gotten vocalist Dianne Reeves in trouble. Those who feel she could be a great jazz singer want her to stick to scat singing and interpreting show tunes; others who enjoyed the light fusion and urban contemporary hits prefer that she look toward the future. Reeves does a little of both on her this set. Art And Survival includes her most hard-hitting message songs to date. The only problem is that Reeves' voice doesn't lend itself to shouts or expressing defiance; she sounds strained on "Endangered Species" and seems more like she's presenting a diatribe than expounding on a theme. Overall, Art And Survival is neither '90s revisited bop nor overtly commercial Quiet Storm fodder. Dianne Reeves is really seeking a middle ground between her two audiences, and if everything here doesn't work, at least she keeps forging ahead. Ron Wynn
Tracklist :
1 Old Souls 5:20
Drums – Joey Heredia
Electric Bass [Fretless] – Jimmy Johnson 
Lyrics By, Music By – Dianne Reeves
Music By – Eddie del Barrio
Percussion – Alex Acuna, Luis Conte, Munyungo Jackson
Piano [Acoustic] – John Beasley
Synth – Eddie del Barrio
2 Come To The River 5:36
Bass – Abraham Laboriel
Drums – Abraham Laboriel Jr.
Guitar – Michael Thompson
Lyrics By, Music By – Diane Louie
Music By – Dianne Reeves
3 One More Time  5:37
Acoustic Bass – Andy Simpkins
Arranged By [String], Conductor – Jorge del Barrio
Concertmaster, Violin – Endre Granat
Contractor – Bill Hughes
Drums – Paul Kreibich
Lyrics By – Dianne Reeves
Music By – Eddie del Barrio
Piano – Frank Collett
4 Anthem 5:26
Arranged By, Conductor – Diane Louie
Bass – Abraham Laboriel
Drums – Abraham Laboriel Jr.
Guitar – Charles 'Icarus' Johnson
Lyrics By, Music By – Dianne Reeves
Music By – David Torkanowsky
Percussion – Luis Conte
Piano [Acoustic], Electric Piano – David Torkanowsky
5 Freedom Dance 6:55
Backing Vocals – Dianne Reeves
Bass – Abraham Laboriel
Drums – Abraham Laboriel Jr.
Guitar – John Pisano
Lyrics By – Jeanne Pisano
Lyrics By, Music By – Dianne Reeves
Music By – Eddie del Barrio
Percussion – Luis Conte
Piano [Acoustic], Electric Piano – David Torkanowsky
Soprano Saxophone [Solo] – Steve Tavaglione
Synth – Eddie del Barrio
6 Endangered Species 3:23
Backing Vocals, Arranged By [Backing Vocals] – Dianne Reeves
Drums [Trap] – Abraham Laboriel Jr.
Lyrics By – Jeanne Pisano
Music By – Dianne Reeves
Percussion – Alex Acuna, Luis Conte, Munyungo Jackson
7 Josa Lee 6:54
Acoustic Bass – John Patitucci
Arranged By [Music], Drums – Terri Lyne Carrington
Arranged By [Strings, Music] – Eddie del Barrio
Lyrics By – Dianne Reeves
Music By – Eddie del Barrio, Terri Lyne Carrington
Piano [Acoustic] – John Beasley
Programmed By – Erik Hanson
Trumpet – Ralf Rickert
8 Body And Soul 10:06
Arranged By – Eddie del Barrio
Bass – John Patitucci
Drums – Billy Kilson
Guitar – Pino Marrone
Piano – Kenny Kirkland
Words By, Music By – Ed Heyman, Frank Eytom, Johnny Green, Robert Sour
9 Silent Tears And Roses 6:49
Acoustic Bass – Andy Simpkins
Arranged By [Strings], Conductor – Jorge del Barrio
Concertmaster, Violin – Endre Granat
Contractor – Bill Hughes
Drums – Paul Kreibich
Lyrics By – Jeanne Pisano
Music By – Eddie del Barrio
Piano – Frank Collett
10 Lament For A Lonely Child 6:48
Acoustic Guitar – Pino Marrone
Arranged By [String, Musical] – Eddie del Barrio
Backing Vocals – Dianne Reeves
Bass – John Patitucci
Drums – Billy Kilson
Percussion – 'Bombo Le Guero' Luis Conte
Piano – Kenny Kirkland
Words By, Music By – Eddie del Barrio
11 Bird Alone 6:46
Acoustic Bass – Andy Simpkins
Arranged By [Musical, Strings], Conductor – Jorge del Barrio
Concertmaster, Violin – Endre Granat
Contractor – Bill Hughes
Drums – Paul Kreibich
Lyrics By, Music By – Abbey Lincoln
Piano – Frank Collett

DIANNE REEVES — I Remember (1991) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

When she wants to sing jazz, Dianne Reeves has always had the ability to reach the top of her field, but she has long seemed unable to make up her mind between jazz, R&B, world music, and pop. This Blue Note disc fortunately finds her mostly sticking to jazz and in consistently superb form. Reeves' treatments of such numbers as "Afro Blue" (which is particularly memorable), "Love for Sale," "Softly As in a Morning Sunrise," "How High the Moon," and McCoy Tyner's "You Taught My Heart to Sing" all border on the classic. Joined by such illustrious sidemen as pianists Billy Childs, Mulgrew Miller, and Donald Brown; bassists Charnett Moffett and Chris Severin; and drummers Billy Kilson and Marvin "Smitty" Smith, plus guest appearances by vibraphonist Bobby Hutcherson, altoist Greg Osby, and guitarist Kevin Eubanks, Reeves sounds inspired by the company. If only she would stick to this direction. Highly recommended. Scott Yanow
Tracklist :
1    Afro Blue 4:49
Bass – Chris Severin
Drums – Billy Kilson
Percussion – Bill Summers, Luis Conte
Saxophone – Justo Almario
Written-By – M. Santamaria, O. Brown Jr.
2    The Nearness Of You / Misty 3:12
Arranged By – Dianne Reeves
Bass – Chris Severin
Drums – Billy Kilson
Piano – Billy Childs
Written-By – Garner, Carmichael, Burke, Washington
3    I Remember Sky 4:23
Bass – Chris Severin
Drums – Billy Kilson
Piano, Arranged By – Billy Childs
Written-By – Stephen Sondheim
4    Love For Sale 3:43
Arranged By – David Torkanowsky
Bass – Chris Severin
Drums – Billy Kilson
Piano – Billy Childs
Written-By – Cole Porter
5    Softly As In The Morning Sunrise 4:52
Alto Saxophone – Greg Osby
Arranged By – David Torkanowsky
Bass – Charnett Moffett
Drums – Marvin Smitty Smith
Percussion – Ron Powell
Piano – Donald Brown
Vibraphone – Bobby Hutcherson
Written-By – Hammerstein, Romberg
6    Like A Lover 5:37
Acoustic Guitar – Kevin Eubanks
Wind Chimes – Ron Powell
Written-By – A. Bergman-M. Bergman, D. Caymmi
7    How High The Moon 4:05
Arranged By – Richard R. Cummings
Bass – Charnett Moffett
Drums – Terri Lyne Carrington
Percussion – Ron Powell
Piano – Mulgrew Miller
Written-By – Lewis, Hamilton
8    You Taught My Heart To Sing 6:14
Bass – Charnett Moffett
Drums – Marvin Smitty Smith
Piano – Mulgrew Miller
Written-By – M. Tyner, S. Cahn
9    For All We Know 8:02
Bass – Charnett Moffett
Drums – Marvin Smitty Smith
Piano – Mulgrew Miller
Written-By – Coots, Lewis