MAX ROACH — The Complete Mercury Max Roach Plus Four Sessions (2000) RM | 7xCD BOX-SET | MONO | FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

This seven-CD box set features 95 tracks from legendary drummer Max Roach's small group, consisting of the 1956-1960 recordings for Emarcy and Mercury Records, as these noteworthy sessions also represent the drummer's post Max Roach-Clifford Brown Quintet output. In 1956 the jazz world witnessed the tragic and untimely deaths of the great trumpeter Clifford Brown and pianist Ritchie Powell. Within these seven CDs, we find Roach maintaining his assault on jazz along with trumpeter Kenny Dorham, pianist Ray Bryant, and the drummer's bandmates from the Clifford Brown years, tenor saxophone giant Sonny Rollins and bassist George Morrow. Jazz aficionados will find a wealth of fantastic music here, as Roach also employed renowned artists such as tenor saxophonists Hank Mobley, Stanley Turrentine, and George Coleman, along with trumpeter Booker Little and many others of note. Essentially, Mosaic Records continues to excel in the reissue department, as they seemingly take great pains to portray or perhaps enhance the original LP recordings for modern day audiophiles and jazz connoisseurs. This collection also includes extensive annotations, biographies of the artists, interviews, recollections, and categorical documentation of the sessions presented in a matrix format. Here, the listener is treated to hard bop renditions of Charlie Parker's "Billie's Bounce" and "Koko," where trumpeter Kenny Dorham and tenor saxophonist George Coleman trade vicious, fierce fours, as the various aggregations and ensembles also tackle standards and originals. The infamous union of Max Roach and Buddy Rich originally titled, "Roach vs. Rich" presents an added bonus to this all encompassing package, as these works are further enhanced by Gigi Gryce's bold, fiery arrangements along with the addition of 14 previously unreleased alternate takes. Simply stated, Roach and Rich perform via a firebrand approach as the musician's distinct styles provide contrast and symmetry to Gryce's radiant horn charts. Basically, these pieces offer a glimpse of two masters/innovators whose respective techniques have often been imitated yet never duplicated. Suffice to state, Rich's blazing speed and unfathomable dexterity counterbalances Roach's complex, melodically constructed rolls, impeccable timing and bop-induced fills. Hence, the two are remarkable as they reciprocate impossibly fast motifs with cataclysmic fury. Overall, this 2000 release should be deemed required listening for astute observers of late-50's bebop and the continuing evolution of modern jazz. Highly recommended! Glenn Astarita    All Tracks & Credits :

CLIFFORD BROWN – Brownie : The Complete EmArcy Recordings of Clifford Brown (1989) RM | 11xCD BOX-SET | MONO | FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

Although undoubtedly an expensive acquisition, this ten-CD set is perfectly done and contains dozens of gems. The remarkable but short-lived trumpeter Clifford Brown has the second half of his career fully documented (other than his final performance) and he is showcased in a wide variety of settings. The bulk of the numbers are of Brownie's quintet with co-leader and drummer Max Roach, either Harold Land or Sonny Rollins on tenor, pianist Richie Powell, and bassist George Morrow (including some previously unheard alternate takes), but there is also much more. Brown stars at several jam sessions (including a meeting with fellow trumpeters Clark Terry and Maynard Ferguson), accompanies such singers as Dinah Washington, Helen Merrill, and Sarah Vaughan, and is backed by strings on one date. Everything is here, including classic versions of "Parisian Thoroughfare," "Joy Spring," "Daahoud," "Coronado," a ridiculously fast "Move," "Portrait of Jenny," "Cherokee," "Sandu," "I'll Remember April," and "What Is This Thing Called Love?" Get this set while it stays in print. Scott Yanow   Tracklist + Credits :

CLIFFORD BROWN – Clifford Brown with Strings (1955-1987) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

There are two schools of thought regarding this Clifford Brown with strings session (which has been reissued on CD). Brownie plays quite beautifully and shows off his warm tone on such numbers as "Portrait of Jenny," "Memories of You," "Embraceable You" and "Stardust." But on the other hand the string arrangements by Neal Hefti border on muzak and Brown never really departs from the melody. So the trumpeter's tone is the only reason to acquire this disc which to this listener is a slight disappointment, not living up to its potential. Scott Yanow     Tracklist + Credits :

CLIFFORD BROWN AND MAX ROACH – At Basin Street (1956-2002) RM | Verve Master Edition | FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

The last official album by the Clifford Brown/Max Roach Quintet is the only one that featured the great Sonny Rollins on tenor. With pianist Richie Powell and bassist George Morrow completing the group, this date is a hard bop classic. Brownie and Rollins fit together perfectly on memorable versions of "What Is This Thing Called Love," "I'll Remember April," and a witty arrangement of "Love Is a Many Splendored Thing." Highly recommended. Scott Yanow   Tracklist + Credits :

CHET BAKER - Chet Baker Sings It Could Happen to You (1958-2010) Original Jazz Classics Remasters / FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

The ultra-hip and sophisticated "cool jazz" that Chet Baker (trumpet/vocals) helped define in the early '50s matured rapidly under the tutelage of producer Dick Bock. This can be traced to Baker's earliest sides on Bock's L.A.-based Pacific Jazz label. This album is the result of Baker's first sessions for the independent Riverside label. The Chet Baker Quartet featured on Chet Baker Sings: It Could Happen to You includes Kenny Drew (piano), Sam Jones (bass), and Philly Joe Jones (drums). (Performances by bassist George Morrow and drummer Dannie Richmond are featured on a few cuts.) This results in the successful combination of Baker's fluid and nonchalant West Coast delivery with the tight swinging accuracy of drummer Jones and pianist Drew. Nowhere is this balance better displayed than the opening and closing sides on the original album, "Do It the Hard Way" and "Old Devil Moon," respectively. One immediate distinction between these vocal sides and those recorded earlier in the decade for Pacific Jazz is the lissome quality of Baker's playing and, most notably, his increased capacity as a vocalist. The brilliant song selection certainly doesn't hurt either. This is an essential title in Chet Baker's 30-plus year canon. [Some reissues contain two bonus tracks, "I'm Old Fashioned" and "While My Lady Sleeps"].  by Lindsay Planer
Tracklist :
1   Do It The Hard Way  3:00
Written-By – Rodgers & Hart
2   I'm Old Fashioned  5:04
Written-By – Kern, Mercer
3   You're Driving Me Crazy  2:54
Written-By – Walter Donaldson
4   It Could Happen To You  2:50
Written-By – Burke-Van Heusen
5   My Heart Stood Still  3:26
Written-By – Rodgers & Hart
6    The More I See You  3:03
Written-By – Warren, Gordon
7   Everything Happens To Me  5:02
Written-By – Matt Dennis, Tom Adair
8   Dancing On The Ceiling  3:06
Written-By – Rodgers & Hart
9  How Long Has This Been Going On?  4:07
Written-By – George & Ira Gershwin
10    Old Devil Moon 2:58
Written-By – Lane, Harburg
11    While My Lady Sleeps (Take 10) 4:22
Written-By – Kaper, Kahn
12    You Make Me Feel So Young (Take 5) 3:41
Written-By – Myrow, Gordon
13    The More I See You (Take 8) 2:51
Written-By – Warren, Gordon
14    Everything Happens To Me (Take 2) 4:51
Written-By – Dennis, Adair
Credits :
Bass – George Morrow (faixas: 1, 2, 5, 7, 8, 14), Sam Jones (faixas: 3, 4, 6, 9 to 13)
Drums – Philly Joe Jones (faixas: 1, 2, 5 to 8, 10 to 14), Dannie Richmond (faixas: 3, 4, 9)
Piano – Kenny Drew
Trumpet, Vocals – Chet Baker

SONNY ROLLINS - Sonny Rollins Plus Four (1956-1985) RM / MONO / Prestige Masterpiece Series / FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

1956, Sonny Rollins was spiritually and physically rejuvenated. And on Sonny Rollins Plus 4, he's clearly inspired by Max Roach and Clifford Brown's depth of spirit. Multi-dimensional re-arrangements of popular songs were a Brown-Roach trademark. "Kiss and Run" is treated to a stop-and-go intro, then settles into a brisk 4/4, as Rollins, Brown, and the perennially underrated Richie Powell fashion long dancing lines. "I Feel a Song Coming On" creates tension by alternating a vamp figure with a swinging release. Rollins takes an immense solo, contrasting chanting figures and foghorn-like long tones with Parker-ish elisions, and Brown answers with buzzing figures and daring harmonic extensions. Then Roach takes things out with sweeping melodic choruses and polyrhythmic fanfares, setting the stage for a torrid tenor-trumpet duel. On "Valse Hot," there's an early example of a successful jazz waltz as Rollins offers up one of his most charming themes. Max Roach treats the European three with the dancing elan of an American four, and Rollins responds by floating in between the beat, syncopating in Monk-ish stabs and thrusts, as Brown answers with the kind of rhythmically complex, sweetly articulated melodic lines that have inspired every modern trumpeter. by Rovi Staff  

1 Valse Hot 8:35

Composed By – Sonny Rollins

2 Kiss And Run 7:07

Composed By – Sam Coslow

3 I Feel A Song Coming On

Composed By – Dorothy Fields, George Oppenheimer, Jimmy McHugh

4 Count Your Blessings 5:13

Composed By – Irving Berlin

5 Pent-Up House 8:53

Composed By – Sonny Rollins

Credits:

Bass – George Morrow

Drums – Max Roach

Piano – Richie Powell

Recorded By – Rudy Van Gelder

Tenor Saxophone – Sonny Rollins

Trumpet – Clifford Brown

SONNY ROLLINS - Rollins Plays for Bird (1956-2008) RVG REMASTERS / FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

As the tenor sax is not in the same key as an alto, Sonny Rollins would have to transpose a lot of music to take a tribute to Charlie Parker to a high level. Instead Rollins has chosen standards associated with Parker, and recorded them within a year after Bird's passing. This idea poses some peculiar challenges, added on to the fact that the quintet of Rollins starts the proceedings with a 27-minute medley of seven tunes seamlessly stitched together. Pianist Wade Legge, an unsung hero of jazz in the '50s for sure, plays some wonderful music here, and laces the grooves of the tunes together, while bassist George Morrow and the always exceptional drummer Max Roach keep things moving forward. Even more unusual is that trumpeter Kenny Dorham is in many instances invisible on the date, playing less than a cursory role to Rollins. Dorham rarely plays together with him, and is much more separate than equal, which in many regards is a shame. Considering how well Dorham and tenor saxophonist Joe Henderson worked as a tandem, one wonders why this happened. The music certainly has its moments, as on the inexhaustible medley. Rollins plays the melody on alternating songs "I Remember You" and "They Can't Take That Away from Me," Dorham has at it for "My Melancholy Baby" and "Just Friends," with Legge getting his two cents in on trio only versions of "Old Folks" and "My Little Suede Shoes." Finally the whole band joins in on the ten-minute finale "Star Eyes." Even for the heartiest fans, this long-winded exercise might prove taxing. Rollins does the ballad "I've Grown Accustomed to Your (Her) Face," and the horns finally play together for the nearly 12-minute cool waltz "Kids Know." A disappointment in terms of the division of labor, and not the merging of titans jazz lovers would have wished for, this recording still provides a great deal of high level music that could have been so much more. by Michael G. Nastos 
Tracklist:
1 Medley: I Remember You / My Melancholy Baby / Old Folks / They Can't ... 26:55
Gene DePaul / Public Domain / George Gershwin / Ira Gershwin / John Klenner / Johnny Mercer / Norton / Charlie Parker / Don Raye / Earl Robinson / Victor Schertzinger
2 Kids Know 11:39
Sonny Rollins
3 I've Grown Accustomed to Your Face 4:52
Alan Jay Lerner / Frederick Loewe
Credits:
Bass – George Morrow
Drums – Max Roach
Piano – Wade Legge
Recorded By, Remastered By, Engineer – Rudy Van Gelder
Tenor Saxophone – Sonny Rollins
Trumpet – Kenny Dorham

SONNY ROLLINS - Sonny Boy (1957-1989) RM / FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

 Recorded in 1956 but issued in 1960, Sonny Boy combines three tracks previously heard on Rollins' 1957 release Tour de Force, omitting two ballads sung by Earl Coleman) with the title track, popularized by Al Jolson in the '20s, and an instrumental version of "The House I Live In" from the Frank Sinatra film of the same title.
The blues "Ee-Ah" features a laid-back introduction by pianist Kenny Drew and a remarkable extended solo by Rollins. The aptly titled "B. Quick" and "B. Swift" are lightning-fast improvs spotlighting exceptional solos by all members, especially drummer Max Roach. Of the previously unissued tracks, "Sonny Boy" has a bounciness unusual in '50s jazz, and "The House I Live In" (featuring trumpeter Kenny Dorham and pianist Wade Legge) manages to be simultaneously stately and swinging. They're hardly mere leftovers, and should have been issued long before they were. AllMusic
Tracklist 
1 Ee-Ah 6:53
Sonny Rollins
2 B. Quick 9:11
Sonny Rollins
3 B. Swift 5:14
Sonny Rollins
4 The House I Live In 9:21
Piano – Wade Legge
Trumpet – Kenny Dorham
5 Sonny Boy 8:22
Sonny Rollins
Credits:
Bass – George Morrow
Drums – Max Roach
Piano – Kenny Drew (tracks: 1 to 3, 5), Wade Legge (tracks: 4)
Tenor Saxophone – Sonny Rollins
Trumpet – Kenny Dorham (tracks: 4)