NAT "KING" COLE – 1947-1949 | The Chronogical Classics – 1155 (2000) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

 Nat King Cole could charm most listeners by simply singing a few lines from the phone book. His delivery is so intoxicating that even less-than-stellar material doesn't cause so much as a blink of the eye. This is true with Classics' collection of some of his 1947-1949 cuts, where hardly a classic standard or hit is in sight. What one does get, though, is a generous dose of Nat Cole and the trio's slow-riffin' best . While ranging from the ballad perfection of "How Lonely Can You Get" and "Lost April" to svelte blues sides like "My Mother Told Me," Cole, guitarist Irving Ashby, and bassist Johnny Miller show how they perfected the piano trio template forged by the singer's first group with guitarist Oscar Moore and bassist Wesley Prince. The disc also includes two boppish instrumentals: "Leap Here" and "Metronome Riff," featuring Cole with large combos stuffed with likes of Dizzy Gillespie, Buddy DeFranco, Bob Cooper, Art Pepper, Bill Harris, and Shelly Manne. Also included are two takes of "Portrait of Jennie," an early strings affair that nicely foreshadows Cole's symphonic run of hits in the '50s. This disc might not work too well as a prime introduction to the the Nat Cole Trio's '40s material -- check out Capitol's Vocal Classics titles for that -- but it certainly will please fans wanting to delve beyond the more popular tracks. And for those keen on getting a good share of Cole's instrumental and jazz-centric sides, check out Capitol's Instrumental Classics and Jazz Encounters collections. Stephen Cook
Tracklist + Credits :

BENNY GOODMAN AND HIS ORCHESTRA – 1949-1951 | The Classics Chronological Series – 1436 (2007) FLAC (tracks), lossless

This is the 34th volume in the Classics Benny Goodman chronology. It combines four titles from the Capitol records session of October 27, 1949 (Goodman's last for that label) with seven tunes recorded for Columbia on October 10 and November 24, 1950 and ten previously hard-to-find selections from a broadcast that aired April 1, 1951. Although the band on the Capitol date had Zoot Sims in the reed section, slick vocals by Dolly Houston, Buddy Greco and the Heathertones seem to use up all the air in the room. The Columbia sessions employed the Goodman Sextet, featuring pianist Teddy Wilson, vibraphonist Terry Gibbs and guitarist Johnny Smith, these last two helping to emphasize a contemporary bop-to-cool stylistic emphasis that was still playing a prominent role in Goodman's approach to music during this period. Vocalists on this leg of the journey include Nancy Reed, a carefully rehearsed, mixed vocal group known as the Pastels, and a deep-voiced male singer billed as "Rickey." This was none other than Jimmy Ricks, bass singer for the Ravens. Issued as Columbia 39121, the two instrumentals -- "Lullaby of the Leaves" b/w "Temptation Rag" -- are stunning examples of the Goodman/Gibbs collaboration at its finest. Yet the real gold in this compilation lies in the ten more traditional jazz melodies that were performed on the air, recorded and sold on a limited-edition LP in order to raise funds to benefit Fletcher Henderson, Goodman's greatest arranger as well as a pioneer of big-band jazz, who made his first jazz recordings in 1923. Henderson was ill and in serious need of cash. The fact that Goodman held this exciting jam session as a benefit for him adds considerable ethical ballast to an already superb bundle of live jazz. Teaming with Goodman in various combinations throughout the session were pianist Teddy Wilson, drummer Gene Krupa, bassist Eddie Safranski, guitarist Johnny Smith, trombonist Lou McGarity and trumpeter Buck Clayton. arwulf arwulf
Tracklist + Credits :

STAN KENTON AND HIS ORCHESTRA - 1946 | The Classics Chronological Series – 949 (1997) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

Tracklist:
1    All The Time 2:56
Vocals – Gene Howard
Written-By – Freed, Fain
2    That's The Least You Can Do 2:56
Vocals – Gene Howard
Written-By – Torme, Levinson
3    Intermission Riff 3:14
Written-By – Ray Wetzel
4    Four Months, Three Weeks, Two Days, One Hour Blues 3:02
Vocals – June Christy
Written-By – Torme, Levinson
5    Rika Jika Jack 3:00
Vocals – June Christy
Written-By – Dawson, Sullivan, Hagen
6    Artistry In Boogie 2:56
Written-By – Rugolo, Kenton
7    Come Back To Sorrento    3:03
Traditional
8    Ain't No Misery In Me 2:59
Vocals – June Christy
Written-By – Gene Roland
9    Artistry In Percussion 3:11
Written-By – Pete Rugolo
10    Safranski 3:06
Written-By – Pete Rugolo
11    Artistry In Bolero 3:02
Written-By – Raskin, Rugolo
12    It's A Pity To Say Goodnight 2:52
Vocals – June Christy
Written-By – Billy Reid
13    Willow Weep For Me 3:10
Vocals – June Christy
Written-By – Ann Ronnell
14    Fantasy 2:38
Written-By – Stan Kenton
15    Concerto To End All Concertos - Part 2 3:10
Written-By – Kenton
16    Concerto To End All Concertos - Part 1 3:06
Written-By – Stan Kenton
17    Collaboration 2:44
Written-By – Rugolo, Kenton
18    Don't Want That Man Around 2:54
Vocals – June Christy
Written-By – Rizzo, Braude, Volk
19    Opus In Pastels 2:48
Written-By – Stan Kenton

STAN KENTON AND HIS ORCHESTRA - 1947 | The Classics Chronological Series – 1011 (1998) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

Bucking the tide while beginning to surf on a wave of increasingly mannered modernity, Stan Kenton's orchestra maintained its popularity during the post-WWII decline of the big bands. Volume four in the Classics Stan Kenton chronology presents all of his Capitol recordings made between January 2 and September 24, 1947. June Christy continued to be the featured vocalist, often backed by Kenton's newly formed vocal group, the Pastels. Dave Lambert was the director of this ensemble and sang with them on at least the first three tracks heard here. Noteworthy instrumentalists present in Kenton's 19-piece band during 1947 were drummer Shelly Manne, trombonists Kai Winding and Eddie Bert, as well as saxophonists Vido Musso, Boots Mussulli and the largely unknown George Weidler, who demonstrated impressive skill and dexterity on the arresting "Elegy for Alto." Kenton, who is known to have been obsessed with the notion that he was "greater than Duke Ellington," had a penchant for emulating and (he thought) one-upping African-American musicians. This seems to have manifested itself in "Machito," a spiced up portrait devised by Pete Rugolo soon after Kenton's band shared the bill with Machito's Afro Cuban Salseros at a Town Hall concert in New York. Dizzy Gillespie had this to say about Kenton and the postwar big band scene: "By 1947, a lotta bands had begun to imitate our style of playing. And some of them, especially the white bands like Stan Kenton's, did better in America, commercially, than we could at that time with segregation. No one could take our style, but we had to stay in existence to keep the style alive. They had us so penned up within the concept of race that a colored big band wasn't all that economically feasible, unless you were playing and doing just what the people ordered." Living and working within this kind of a social environment, it is unfortunate that Stan Kenton sometimes exacerbated the problem by stating publicly that white jazz musicians were victims of racial discrimination! Sadly, this sort of twisted ignorant logic has survived into the 21st century. arwulf arwulf
Tracklist :

MARY LOU WILLIAMS – 1951-1953 | The Classics Chronological Series – 1346 (2004) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

While the Asch recordings of Mary Lou Williams, recorded during the mid-'40s, are wrapped in a veil of pleasant 78-rpm surface noise, her Circle recordings of 1951 are presented here as direct transfers from early 33-and-one-third-rpm platters. This creates a different listening experience, for while sustained 78-rpm "scratchiness" acts as a constant texture through which the music may usually be heard, the inconsistent wandering hiss of the primitive acetate "long-playing" record creates at times a slightly distracting rhythmic pattern that is most noticeable on the slower numbers. This is emphasized by the otherwise "clean" sound of the recording. With Willie Guerra's bongos and Billy Taylor's upright bass backing the leader's excellent piano, the intrusive little hisses sound at times as though someone might be carelessly handling a shekere, or possibly teasing a pet snake. All phonographic pickiness aside, the music heard on the opening session is exquisite, particularly "Handy Eyes," a grooved-up rendition of W.C. Handy's "St. Louis Blues." Two further Circle sides from 1952 feature the pianist supported by an unidentified bassist and drummer. After a marvelous passage through Ellington and Tizol's "Caravan," the men open "Yes, We Have No Bananas" by shouting the title in a bizarre and surprising manner. On July 11, 1952, Mary Lou Williams performed in front of a loudly appreciative audience with a band including her second ex-husband, trumpeter Harold "Shorty" Baker, trombonist Vic Dickenson, and tenor saxophonist Morris Lane. The ten-minute "Down Beat" is a warm, swinging jam during which the players are able to stretch out and cook nicely. A lovely take on "Out of Nowhere" leads into eight and a half smoky minutes of "C Jam Blues." The remaining 12 tracks were recorded during Mary Lou Williams' visit to England during the first half of 1953. Backed by guitar, bass, and either the regular drum kit or bongos, she delivers her customary blend of original compositions, jazz standards, classic ragtime, and contemporary tropes from innovators such as Tadd Dameron and Thelonious Monk. arwulf arwulf
Tracklist :
1    Mary Lou Williams Trio–    Lover, Come Back To Me    3:30
2    Mary Lou Williams Trio–    S'Posin'    3:16
3    Mary Lou Williams Trio–    Handy Eyes    3:20
4    Mary Lou Williams Trio–    Tisherome    4:03
5    Mary Lou Williams And Her Modern Music*–    Caravan    2:35
6    Mary Lou Williams And Her Modern Music*–    Yes, We Have No Bananas    2:08
7    Mary Lou Williams And Her Orchestra–    Down Beat    9:57
8    Mary Lou Williams And Her Orchestra–    Out Of Nowhere    4:06
9    Mary Lou Williams And Her Orchestra–    C Jam Blues    8:25
10    Mary Lou Williams Trio–    Titoros    2:55
11    Mary Lou Williams Trio–    Lady Bird    3:00
12    Mary Lou Williams Trio–    Don't Blame Me    3:24
13    Mary Lou Williams Trio–    They Can't Take That Away From Me    2:39
14    Mary Lou Williams Trio–    Koolbongo    2:52
15    Mary Lou Williams Trio–    Perdido    2:33
16    Mary Lou Williams Trio–    For You    2:54
17    Mary Lou Williams Trio–    Round About Midnight    4:05
18    Mary Lou Williams And Her Rhythm–    Laughing Rag    1:49
19    Mary Lou Williams And Her Rhythm–    Rag Of Rags    1:51
20    Mary Lou Williams Quartet–    Melody Maker    2:30
21    Mary Lou Williams Quartet–    Musical Express    2:16
Credits :    
Bass – Billy Taylor Sr. (tracks: 1 to 4), Eddie Safranski (tracks: 7 to 9), Jack Fallon (tracks: 18, 19), Ken Napper (tracks: 10 to 17), Rupert Nurse (tracks: 20, 21), Unknown Artist (tracks: 5, 6)
Bongos – Tony Scott (tracks: 10 to 17), Willie Guerra (tracks: 1 to 4)
Drums – Don Lamond (tracks: 7 to 9), Gerry McLaughlin (tracks: 18, 19), Tony Kinsey (tracks: 20, 21), Unknown Artist (tracks: 5, 6)
Guitar – Allan Ganley (tracks: 10 to 17), Nevell John (tracks: 7 to 9), Ray Dempsey (tracks: 20, 21)
Piano – Mary Lou Williams
Tenor Saxophone – Morris Lane (tracks: 7 to 9)
Trombone – Vic Dickenson (tracks: 7 to 9)
Trumpet – Harold Baker (tracks: 7 to 9)