BOBBY SCOTT — The Compositions Of Bobby Scott (1955-2014) RM | Serie Bethlehem Album Collection 1000 – 126 | FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

Tracklist :

1    Dot    3:38
2    Kwan Youen    2:57
3    Moon Tan    3:49
4    Betty    4:16
5    Aunt Sarah    4:10
6    Cerebellum    4:09
7    Wigwam    2:19
8    The Creed    4:03
9    Table Cloth Stomp    2:58
10    A Parable    2:59
11    The Wig    2:35
12    Count Bill    2:45
– BONUS TRACK –
13    Makin' Whoopee    4:36
Credits :
Alto Saxophone – Charlie Mariano (tracks: 2, 7 to 12), Hal McKusick (tracks: 1, 3, 4, 5, 6)
Baritone Saxophone – Al Epstein (tracks: 1, 3, 4, 5, 6), Jimmy Giuffre (tracks: 2, 7 to 12)
Bass – Max Bennett (tracks: 2, 7 to 12), Milt Hinton (tracks: 1, 3, 4, 5, 6)
Conductor – Bobby Scott (tracks: 1, 3, 4, 5, 6)
Drums – Osie Johnson (tracks: 1, 3, 4, 5, 6), Stan Levey (tracks: 2, 7 to 12)
Piano – Bobby Scott (tracks: 2, 7 to 12)
Tenor Saxophone – Bill Holman (tracks: 2, 7 to 12)
Trombone – Eddie Bert (tracks: 1, 3, 4, 5, 6), Frank Rosolino (tracks: 2, 7 to 12)
Trumpet – Conte Candoli (tracks: 2, 7 to 12), Ronnie Woellmer (tracks: 1, 3, 4, 5, 6)

JIMMY GIUFFRE — Free Fall (1962-1998) RM | APE (image+.cue), lossless

 Jimmy Giuffre's 1962 recording for Columbia with his trio is one of the most revolutionary recordings to come out of the 1960s. While Coltrane and Coleman and Taylor were trying to tear music down from the inside out to discover what it really counted for, Giuffre was quietly creating his own microtonal revolution that was being overlooked by other avant-gardists in jazz. On Free Fall, Giuffre, pianist Paul Bley, and bassist Steve Swallow embarked on a voyage even farther-reaching than their previous two Verve albums, Fusion and Thesis (both recorded in 1961), in their search of pointillistic harmony, open-toned playing, and the power of the nuanced phrase to open new vistas for solo or group improvisation. The original album is comprised of five clarinet solos, two duets for clarinet and bass, and three trio pieces. The CD reissue adds five more clarinet solos to the bank and makes it a stunning view of Giuffre as a master of the idiom of not only jazz free improvisation but also a fine interpreter of the musical languages being discussed by classical composers Darius Milhaud, Stravinsky, Messiaen, and even Morton Feldman and Earle Brown. All of Giuffre's clarinet studies -- particularly "Man Alone," "Yggdrasill," and "Present Motion" -- are studies in tonal coloration, where phraseology opens onto second and third tonal ideas being layered atop one another to de-emphasize one or the other. Of the group interactions, "Threewe" and "Spasmodic" offer the view of intertwining chromatic pointillism as it shapes itself linguistically between one instrument and the next without concern for a dominant harmony, rhythm, or melody. Indeed, Free Fall was such radical music, no one, literally no one, was ready for it and the group disbanded shortly thereafter on a night when they made only 35 cents apiece for a set. Reissued in 1999, Free Fall predates all of the European microtonal studies and is indeed an inspiration to all who have
-> This comment is posted on Allmusic by Thom Jurek, follower of our blog 'O Púbis da Rosa' <-
Tracklist :
1. Propulsion (3:07)
 Jimmy Giuffre
2. Threewe (4:11)
 Jimmy Giuffre
3. Ornothoids (2:43)
 Jimmy Giuffre
4. Dichotomy (3:57)
 Jimmy Giuffre
5. Man Alone (2:18)
 Jimmy Giuffre
6. Spasmodic (3:27)
 Jimmy Giuffre
7. Yggdrasill (2:32)
 Jimmy Giuffre
8. Divided Man (1:53)
 Jimmy Giuffre
9. Primordial Call (2:17)
 Jimmy Giuffre
10. The Five Ways (10:19)
 Jimmy Giuffre
11. Present Notion (3:41)
 Jimmy Giuffre
12. Motion Suspended (3:16)
 Jimmy Giuffre
13. Future Plans (3:56)
 Jimmy Giuffre
14. Past Mistakes (2:05)
 Jimmy Giuffre
15. Time Will Tell (3:49)
 Jimmy Giuffre
16. Let's See (3:26)
 Jimmy Giuffre
Credits :
Paul Bley - Piano (tracks 2, 6, 10, 12)
Jimmy Giuffre - Clarinet
Steve Swallow - Double Bass (tracks 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, 12)

PAUL BLEY | JIMMY GIUFFRE | STEVE SWALLOW — The Life Of A Trio : Saturday (1990-2007) RM | Confluences Series | FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

 The venerable Sunnyside label has re-released the two Life of a Trio nights -- originally issued in the early '90s on CD by France's Owl label -- that featured the 1989 reunion of the 1961-1962 Jimmy Giuffre 3 of Giuffre on reeds, pianist Paul Bley, and bassist Steve Swallow. The first evening, Saturday, December 16, began with a solo clarinet improvisation by Giuffre, followed by "Black Ivory," a duet between Giuffre and Bley, and then "Owl Eyes," by solo Bley, with the tension heating up as Bley duets with Swallow on "Endless Melody," until they come together all too briefly (5:22) for "Turns." Effortless, spontaneous, adventurous, and even moving, this trio released three of the most provocative -- and all but ignored -- recordings in '60s jazz: Fusion and Thesis for Verve in 1961 and the undisputed radical classic Free Fall for Columbia in 1962. Live performances from the period have appeared on Hat and ECM. As the trio plays together -- with Swallow on his electric bass -- on "Turns," time seems to be stripped away, and the microtonal and pointillistic investigations in collective improvisation embarked upon nearly three decades previously are as current as the next breath. And indeed they are, as there were no rehearsals, no extra or alternate takes, nothing but the music as it happened. There are only two other trio pieces (the others in two parts each) on Saturday night; the other pieces making up the set are solos by Bley, Swallow, and Giuffre on soprano. No matter. What comes out is an investigation of sound from the inside out, textually, tonally, spatially. Extraordinary.
-> This comment is posted on Allmusic by Thom Jurek, follower of our blog 'O Púbis da Rosa' <-
Tracklist & Credits :

PAUL BLEY | JIMMY GIUFFRE | STEVE SWALLOW — The Life Of A Trio : Sunday (1990-2007) RM | Confluences Series | FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

The second night of the 1989 reunion in New York of the 1961-1962 Jimmy Giuffre 3 with pianist Paul Bley and (now electric) bassist Steve Swallow in some ways eclipses the first. The fact that there is more integration between the trio members as a whole than on the first evening is certainly one place to start. At the very beginning, "Sensing" -- with Giuffre on soprano and Bley playing bass notes in the lowest register as Swallow enters and takes over the role and Bley moves to the middle -- is a stunner, though it is only four minutes and 13 seconds long. The breadth of the players seems to have come back to them as a unit with these live, as-they-happened, no-second-take performances. There are six full performances here -- and oddly enough the most satisfying of them is a composed piece by Carla Bley entitled "Where Were We?" -- instead of three from the previous evening. Giuffre is more comfortable on the soprano here, and the duos are quite literally amazing. Bley has a pair of piano solos, Giuffre has one clarinet solo, and the rest are duos made up of either bass and piano, clarinet and bass, soprano and piano, soprano and bass, etc. The joy of music-making and the inherent lyricism in these pieces reflect not only a sense of familiarity with the dialogue and improvisational feel of each player, but the true desire to communicate from inside the sound being explored to the listener as well. There may have been a few more viscerally exciting performances by vanguard jazz trios during 1989, but few of them that revealed -- via the strength of restraint -- what tonality, dissonance, and harmony can achieve when what is explored is music for its own sake. Highly recommended.
-> This comment is posted on Allmusic by Thom Jurek, follower of our blog 'O Púbis da Rosa' <-
Tracklist & Credits :

JIMMY GIUFFRE | PAUL BLEY | STEVE SWALLOW — Conversations with a Goose (1996) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

Jimmy Giuffre, Paul Bley, and Steve Swallow had reunited four years prior to this recording session before a live and very enthusiastic audience. On this date, they had been touring together on and off for four years and were as telepathic as in 1961 when they recorded Fusion and Thesis with Creed Taylor at Verve (yeah, the same guy who aesthetically ruined Wes Montgomery and Grover Washington, Jr.). The differences were few but marked: For one, on this date Swallow plays electric bass -- an instrument that Giuffre has enjoyed in his bands since the late '70s. Bley's playing -- trademark as ever with those big spaces in the middle of a dense passage -- is like liquid here; he pours himself through the group tunes and, on his solos, slips through the keys in a fierce contrapuntal assertion of thematic development. Swallow is the most understated and elastic of bassists. He understands implicitly that the place of rhythm in this trio is between interplay, not underscoring it. The set opens with the title track written by Bley. Giuffre moans an intro on the clarinet and Bley answers with his theme, which is a variation on a Harold Arlen tune and Thelonious Monk's "Pannonica." Giuffre seemingly pays no mind and creates a modal tone bridge for Swallow to create a wedge for himself. Being in 4/4, it feels like a blues, and in Bley's right hand it is, but Giuffre finds the contrapuntal element to be more expressive and follows along just after the beat in a semi-quaver that suggests an intervallic shift, but the meter is the same. Giuffre's solo actually quotes (for six notes) Carla Bley's "Jesus Maria" from the group's 1961 Fusion album. On Giuffre's "Calls in the Night," thematic development is very gradual, though the piece is only six minutes long. Bley plays counterpoint with himself and Giuffre and Swallow are forced to follow scalular chromatics until the tune opens up and then all three members form a contrapuntal mode where the aesthetic is microtonal and the improvisation is a harmonic shift in dynamic, not the other way around. Giuffre's sheer number of tones and colors is staggering; they seem limitless -- it is impossible to tell what has been predetermined and what is improvised given the formlessness of his approach. Swallow's "Watchin' the River" is an actual chromatic study in scale and interval. Bley and Giuffre offer separate nodes of harmonic invention as Swallow, playing at the top of the instrument's register and getting a guitar effect, creates the tune's body from chromaticism to institute a theme that can be opened in any number of directions. Bley chooses a serialist approach and Giuffre chooses melodic invention before Bley gives in and trades eights with both men. It's breathtaking to listen to the intricate interplay and staggering communication inherent in a music this understated and free. Conversations With a Goose may not be a muscular recording in the way that Hat's Berlin 1961 was, or in the aggressive nature of Free Fall's two group pieces. That said, it is far more challenging and exhilarating to listen to because this trio used Free Fall as a starting point toward a peak it seems they had yet to reach. Onward and upward.
-> This comment is posted on Allmusic by Thom Jurek, follower of our blog 'O Púbis da Rosa' <-
Tracklist & Credits :

RAY BROWN — Bass Hit! (1958-1998) RM | Serie Verve Elite Edition | FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

Ray Brown's earliest date as a leader features him prominently in the solo spotlight with arrangements by Marty Paich. They collaborated on a swinging original blues, "Blues for Sylvia," and the snappy "Blues for Lorraine." The rest of the release concentrates on familiar standards, with the addition to the reissue of several complete and incomplete takes of "After You've Gone," which didn't appear on the original release. The supporting cast includes the cream of the crop of musicians living on the West Coast at the time: Jimmy Rowles, Harry "Sweets" Edison, and Jimmy Giuffre among them. Out-of-print for a long time, this record was reissued in 1999, though as a limited-edition title in the Verve Elite series, so it will not remain available for long. Ken Dryden
Tracklist & Credits :

BUDDY RICH AND HIS ORCHESTRA – 1946-1948 | The Chronogical Classics – 1099 (1999) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

This is the first CD from the French Classics reissue series showcasing drummer Buddy Rich as a big-band leader. These 22 titles were recorded between 1946 and 1948 with several of them being V-discs. The tight arrangements of Tadd Dameron, Neil Hefti, Eddie Finckel, Bill Channon, and Turk Van Lake are strict yet thoroughly swinging ensemble playing. Even though Rich led this big band, he does not take center stage over the entire outcome. His Frank Sinatra-influenced vocals are heard here along with those of Dorothy Reid and Linda Larkin. During this three-year period his bands included the likes of Johnny Mandel, Red Rodney, Hal McKusick, Jimmy Giuffre, Warne Marsh, and Allen Eager. With the proven talent heard here it's a shame Rich couldn't sustain his ensembles, but finding gigs as the big-band era was drawing to a close made it economically unfeasible. Rich would not attempt to lead another big band until 1966. Al Campbell  
Tracklist + Credits :

BILL EVANS & LEE KONITZ - Play The Arrangements Of Jimmy Giuffre (1959-2005) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

This Lone Hill Jazz compilation presents the contents of two separate releases Lee Konitz Meets Jimmy Giuffre and You and Lee featuring Lee Konitz and Jimmy Giuffre (the latter playing baritone sax and contributing the arrangements) together, with pianist Bill Evans being the prominent sideman, though the ensemble includes tenor saxophonists Warne Marsh and Ted Brown (both of whom studied with Lennie Tristano alongside Konitz), and alto saxophonist Hal McKusick, though it is Konitz that is featured throughout the sessions from Lee Konitz Meets Jimmy Giuffre. Konitz contributed the quirky blues "Cork 'N' Bib," which features an unusually bluesy solo by Evans, plus an atonal offering by Marsh and Giuffre's robust single chorus. The breezy setting of "The Song Is You" is an excellent wrap to this spring session. Later the same year the musicians returned to the studio while adding guitarist Jim Hall to record the Verve LP You and Lee, which had not been reissued on CD until appearing in this anthology. Play the Arrangements of Jimmy Giuffre concentrates exclusively on Giuffre's arrangements of standards and while it isn't quite as wide-ranging as the earlier effort, Konitz is obviously inspired by the arrangements and excellent ensemble behind him. Ken Dryden  
Tracklist :
1    Palo Alto    3:08
 Konitz
2    When Your Lover Has Gone    5:02
 Swan
3    Cork 'N Bib    9:50
Konitz
4    Somp'm Outa' Nothin'    4:29
Giuffre
5    Someone To Watch Over Me    3:36
 George Gershwin / Ira Gershwin
6    Uncharted    3:55
Giuffre
7    Moonlight In Vermont    3:59
Suessdorf / Blackburn
8    The Song Is You    5:08
 Oscar Hammerstein II / Jerome Kern
9    Darn That Dream    1:58
De Lange / Van Heusen
10    Ev'rything I've Got (Belongs To You)    4:48
Rodgers / Hart
11    You Don't Know What Love Is    4:19
Raye / De Paul
12    I Didn't Know About You    4:00
Ellington / Russell
13    I'm Getting Sentimental Over You    3:57
 George Bassman / Ned Washington
14    You're Driving Me Crazy    4:11
Donaldson
15    You're Clear Out Of This World    4:08
Arlen / Mercer
16    The More I See You    3:39
Warren / Gordon
17    You Are Too Beautiful    4:12
Rodgers / Hart
Credits :   
Alto Saxophone – Hal McKusick (tracks: 1 to 9), Lee Konitz (tracks: 1 to 9)
Baritone Saxophone, Arranged By – Jimmy Giuffre (tracks: 1 to 17)
Bass – Buddy Clark (tracks: 1 to 8), Sonny Dallas (tracks: 10 to 17)
Drums – Ronnie Free (tracks: 1 to 8), Roy Haynes (tracks: 10 to 17)
Guitar – Jim Hall (tracks: 14 to 17)
Piano – Bill Evans (tracks: 1 to 8, 10 to 13)
Tenor Saxophone – Ted Brown (tracks: 1 to 9), Warne Marsh (tracks: 1 to 9)
Trombone – Bill Byers, Eddie Bert
Trumpet – Ernie Royal, Marky Markowitz, Phil Sunkel  

GIUFFRE | KONITZ | CONNORS | BLEY - IAI Festival (1978-1992) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

Although four musicians are listed for this date (Jimmy Giuffre, altoist Lee Konitz, guitarist Bill Connors and pianist Paul Bley), these five performances are actually a set of duets featuring Giuffre on tenor, clarinet, bass flute and soprano interacting with the other players. Three songs are duets with Konitz (there is also one apiece with Bley and Connors), including "Blues In the Closet," and these are the main reasons to acquire this disc. The CD reissue is an exact duplicate of the original LP, with just 37 minutes of music, but it is definitely worth hearing. This was the final release by Bley's Improvising Artists label. Scott Yanow
Tracklist :
1    Blues In The Closet 5:10
Alto Saxophone – Konitz
Tenor Saxophone – Giuffre
Written-By – Oscar Pettiford
2    The Sad Time 3:10
Written-By, Alto Saxophone – Konitz
Written-By, Bass Flute – Giuffre
3    Spanish Flames 8:50
Written-By, Clarinet – Giuffre
Written-By, Guitar – Connors
4    Enter, Ivory 11:10
Written-By, Piano – Bley
Written-By, Soprano Saxophone, Flute – Giuffre
5    From Then To Then 5:50
Written-By, Alto Saxophone – Konitz
Written-By, Tenor Saxophone – Giuffre

LEE KONITZ | JIMMY GIUFFRE - Lee Konitz Meets Jimmy Giuffre (1959-1996) 2CD | FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

This unusual two-CD set not only reissues the original LP of the same name but three other rare Verve LP's from the 1950's. Altoist Lee Konitz (on "An Image") is showcased during a set of adventurous Bill Russo arrangements for an orchestra and strings in 1958, pops up on half of Ralph Burns' underrated 1951 classic Free Forms (the most enjoyable of the four sets) and meets up with baritonist Jimmy Giuffre, whose arrangements for five saxes (including the great tenor Warne Marsh) and a trio led by pianist Bill Evans are sometimes equally influenced by classical music and bop. The least interesting date showcases Giuffre's clarinet with a string section on his five-part "Piece For Clarinet And String Orchestra" and the 16 brief movements of "Mobiles." Overall this third-stream two-fer contains music that is easier to respect and admire than to love although Lee Konitz fans will probably want to acquire the obscure performances. Scott Yanow
Tracklist 1 :
1     'Round Midnight 5:16
Bernie Hanighen / Thelonious Monk / Cootie Williams
2     The Daffodil's Smile 4:01
Bill Russo
3     I Got It Bad (And That Ain't Good) 2:19
Duke Ellington / Paul Francis Webster
4     Music for Alto Saxophone and Strings, Pt. 1 4:25
Bill Russo
5     Music for Alto Saxophone and Strings, Pt. 2 2:53
Bill Russo
6     Music for Alto Saxophone and Strings, Pt. 3 2:35
Bill Russo
7     What's New? 2:41
Johnny Burke / Bob Haggart
8     Blues for Our Children 6:52
Lee Konitz / Bill Russo
9     An Image of Man, Pts. 1 - 7 15:22
Bill Russo
10     Terrisita 3:04
Ralph Burns
11     Lillith 2:51
Ralph Burns
12     Vignette at Verney's 2:44
Ralph Burns
13     Cameo 2:40
Ralph Burns
14     Places Please 3:09
Ralph Burns
15     Tantallon 2:40
Ralph Burns
16     Spring Is 1:55
Ralph Burns
17     Someday, Somewhere 2:51
Ralph Burns
18     Darn That Dream 1:55
Eddie DeLange / James Van Heusen
Tracklist 2 :    
1     Palo Alto 3:08
Lee Konitz
2     When Your Lover Has Gone 5:02
Einar A. Swan
3     Cork 'N' Bib 9:50
Lee Konitz
4     Somp'm Outa' Nothin' 4:29
Jimmy Giuffre
5     Someone to Watch over Me 3:36
George Gershwin / Ira Gershwin
6     Uncharted 3:55
Jimmy Giuffre
7     Moonlight in Vermont 3:59
John Blackburn / Karl Suessdorf
8     The Song Is You 5:05
Oscar Hammerstein II / Jerome Kern
9     Piece for Clarinet and String Orchestra, Movement 1 6:21
Jimmy Giuffre
10     Piece for Clarinet and String Orchestra, Movement 2 4:06
Jimmy Giuffre
11     Piece for Clarinet and String Orchestra, Movement 3 2:41
Jimmy Giuffre
12     Piece for Clarinet and String Orchestra, Movement 4 2:36
Jimmy Giuffre
13     Piece for Clarinet and String Orchestra, Movement 5 2:07
Jimmy Giuffre
14     Mobiles, Movement 1 1:03
Jimmy Giuffre
15     Mobiles, Movement 2 1:33
Jimmy Giuffre
16     Mobiles, Movement 3 0:46
Jimmy Giuffre
17     Mobiles, Movement 4 1:30
Jimmy Giuffre
18     Mobiles, Movement 5 2:11
Jimmy Giuffre
19     Mobiles, Movement 6 0:52
Jimmy Giuffre
20     Mobiles, Movement 7 2:19
Jimmy Giuffre
21     Mobiles, Movement 8 0:24
Jimmy Giuffre
22     Mobiles, Movement 9 1:59
Jimmy Giuffre
23     Mobiles, Movement 10 0:36
Jimmy Giuffre
24     Mobiles, Movement 11 1:53
Jimmy Giuffre
25     Mobiles, Movement 12 0:35
Jimmy Giuffre
26     Mobiles, Movement 13 1:47
Jimmy Giuffre
27     Mobiles, Movement 14 1:05
Jimmy Giuffre
28     Mobiles, Movement 15 1:15
Jimmy Giuffre
29     Mobiles, Movement 16 1:00
Jimmy Giuffre
Credits :    
Alto Saxophone – Hal McKusick (faixas: 1-18 to 2-8), Lee Konitz
Arranged By, Conductor – Bill Russo (faixas: 1-1 to 1-9)
Arranged By, Conductor, Piano – Ralph Burns (faixas: 1-10 to 1-17)
Baritone Saxophone, Arranged By – Jimmy Giuffre (faixas: 1-18 to 2-8)
Bass – Buddy Clark (faixas: 2-1 to 2-8), Ray Brown (faixas: 1-10 to 1-17)
Cello – Alan Shulman (faixas: 1-1 to 1-9)
Conductor – Wolfram Röhrig (faixas: 2-9 to 2-29)
Drums – Jo Jones (faixas: 1-10 to 1-17), Ronnie Free (faixas: 2-1 to 2-8)
Flute – Danny Bank (faixas: 1-10 to 1-17)
French Horn – Tony Miranda (faixas: 1-10 to 1-17)
Guitar – Billy Bauer (faixas: 1-1 to 1-9)
Orchestra – Sudwestfunk Orchestra Of Baden-Baden
Piano – Bill Evans (faixas: 2-1 to 2-8), Lou Stein (faixas: 1-1 to 1-9)
Producer [Original Recordings] – Norman Granz
Tenor Saxophone – Ted Brown (faixas: 1-18 to 2-8), Warne Marsh (faixas: 1-18 to 2-8)
Violin – Gene Orloff (faixas: 1-1 to 1-9)

LEE KONITZ | ARRANGEMENTS BY JIMMY GIUFFRE - You and Lee (1960-2007) RM | Lee Konitz By Special Requests – 6 | FLAC (tracks), lossless

One of the lesser-known Lee Konitz albums, this LP (which has not been reissued yet on CD) features the altoist joined by six brass and a rhythm section for eight Jimmy Giuffre arrangements. The shouting brass contrasts well with Konitz's cool-toned solos and together they perform eight underplayed standards. Guitarist Jim Hall and pianist Bill Evans (who are on four songs apiece) are major assets behind Konitz on this pleasing set. Scott Yanow
Tracklist :
1     I'm Getting Sentimental over You
George Bassman / Ned Washington
2     You Don't Know What Love Is
Gene DePaul / Don Raye
3     I Didn't Know About You
Duke Ellington / Bob Russell
4     Everything I Have Belongs to You
Bob Russell, Duke Ellington
5     You're Clear Out of This World
Harold Arlen, Johnny Mercer
6     You Are Too Beautiful
Lorenz Hart / Richard Rodgers
7     The More I See You
Mack Gordon / Harry Warren
8     You're Driving Me Crazy
Walter Donaldson
Credits :    
Alto Saxophone – Lee Konitz
Arranged By, Conductor – Jimmy Giuffre
Bass – Sonny Dallas
Drums – Roy Haynes
Guitar – Jim Hall (faixas: 3, 5, 6, 7)
Piano – Bill Evans (faixas: 1, 2, 4, 8)
Trombone – Billy Byers, Bob Brookmeyer
Trumpet – Ernie Royal, Marky Markowitz, Phil Sunkel

LEE KONITZ - Rhapsody (1995) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

Lee Konitz's Evidence release has seven selections from the veteran altoist that utilize different all-star personnel. The performances all have a similar commitment to relaxed and melodic freedom, but some work better than others. "I Hear a Rhapsody" (featuring a haunting vocal by Helen Merrill) precedes a more abstract "Rhapsody" (titled "Lo-Ko-Mo-And Frizz") which has wandering interplay by Konitz (on alto, soprano, and tenor), Joe Lovano (switching between tenor, alto clarinet, and soprano), guitarist Bill Frisell, and drummer Paul Motian. Jay Clayton's beautiful voice and adventurous style is well displayed on "The Aerie," and baritone great Gerry Mulligan sounds reasonably comfortable on a free improvisation with Konitz and pianist Peggy Stern, but a fairly straightforward vocal by Judy Niemack on "All the Things You Are" is followed by an overlong (19-minute) exploration of the same chord changes (renamed "Exposition") by the quartet of Konitz, clarinetist Jimmy Giuffre, pianist Paul Bley, and bassist Gary Peacock; their different approaches never really mesh together, and this selection is a bit of a bore. The final performance, an extroverted duet by Konitz (on soprano) and flügelhornist Clark Terry (titled "Flyin': Mumbles and Jumbles") adds some badly needed humor to the set. While one can admire Lee Konitz for still challenging himself after all this time, some of the dryer material on the CD (especially the two quartet numbers) should have been performed again; maybe the next versions would have been more inspired. Scott Yanow  
Tracklist :
1     I Hear a Rhapsody 4:31
Jack Baker / George Fragos / Dick Gasparre
Alto Saxophone – Lee Konitz
Piano – Peggy Stern
Vocals – Helen Merrill
2     Lo-Ko-Mo-And Frizz 12:05
Bill Frisell / Lee Konitz / Joe Lovano / Paul Motian
Alto Saxophone, Soprano Saxophone, Tenor Saxophone – Lee Konitz
Drums – Paul Motian
Guitar – Bill Frisell
Tenor Saxophone, Alto Clarinet, Soprano Saxophone – Joe Lovano
3     The Aerie 7:11
Peggy Stern
Alto Saxophone – Lee Konitz
Bass – Ben Allison
Drums – Jeff Williams
Piano – Peggy Stern
Vocals – Jay Clayton
4     Trio, No. 1 8:52
Lee Konitz / Gerry Mulligan / Peggy Stern
Baritone Saxophone – Gerry Mulligan
Piano – Peggy Stern
Soprano Saxophone – Lee Konitz
5     All the Things You Are 5:07
Oscar Hammerstein II / Jerome Kern
Guitar – Jean François Prins
Soprano Saxophone – Lee Konitz
Vocals – Judy Niemack
6     Exposition 19:00
Paul Bely / Paul Bley / Jimmy Giuffre / Lee Konitz / Gary Peacock
Bass – Gary Peacock
Clarinet – Jimmy Giuffre
Piano – Paul Bley
Soprano Saxophone, Alto Saxophone – Lee Konitz
7     Flyin': Mumbles and Jumbles 5:55
Lee Konitz / Clark Terry
Flugelhorn, Scat – Clark Terry
Soprano Saxophone, Scat – Lee Konitz

MARTY PAICH - Four Classic Albums (2015) 2CD / FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

Tracklist 1 :
Tenors West (1955)
1. Tenors West (3:22)
2. There's No You (3:06)
3. The Dragon (4:14)
4. Shorty George (3:22)
5. Paichence (4:06)
6. At the Mardi Gras (3:25)
7. Take the "A" Train (3:09)
8. Ballet du Bongo (8:27)
9. Line for Lyons (3:10)
10. Jacqueline (3:34)
11. Con-Spirito (3:04)
Take Me Along (1959)
12. Overture-Take Me Along (4:46)
13. Nine O'Clock (3:09)
14. Little Green Snake (3:01)
15. Promise Me a Rose (3:22)
16. But Yours (3:32)
17. Sid, Ol' Kid (5:04)
18. Patience of a Saint (4:08)
19. Staying Young (2:49)
20. Thinkin' Things (3:45)
21. We're Home (2:47)
Tracklist 2 :
The Picasso of Big Band Jazz (1957)
1. From Now On (5:58)
2. Walkin' on Home (4:27)
3. Black Rose (5:11)
4. Tommy's Toon (4:03)
5. New Soft Shoe (3:13)
6. What's New (3:35)
7. Easy Listnin' (5:11)
8. Martyni Time (3:09)
9. Nice and Easy (4:44)
Lush, Latin & Cool (1960)
10. Honky Tonk Train (2:49)
11. Invitation (2:41)
12. Autumn Leaves (4:07)
13. Honeysuckle Rose (2:30)
14. Stella by Starlight (2:38)
15. Cumana (2:39)
16. Sabre Dance (2:13)
17. Canadian Sunset (3:39)
18. St. Louis Blues Boogie Woogie (3:36)
19. Little Rock Getaway (2:26)
20. Misirlou (3:19)
21. One O'Clock Jump (3:20) 

 All credits

PEGGY CONNELLY - That Old Black Magic (1956-2014) [24bits-96khz] RM / FLAC (tracks), lossless

Tracklist :
1     That Old Black Magic 3:15
Harold Arlen / Johnny Mercer
2     Ev'ry Time We Say Goodbye 3:19
Cole Porter
3     Trav'lin' Light 2:30
Johnny Mercer
4     Ev'ry Time 2:11
Blane, Martin   
5     It Never Entered My Mind 4:27
Lorenz Hart / Richard Rodgers
6     Why Shouldn't I 3:00
Cole Porter
7     Gentlemen Friend 2:47
Horwitt, Lewine
8     What is There to Say 2:55
E.Y. "Yip" Harburg
9     He Was Too Good to Me 2:43
Lorenz Hart / Richard Rodgers
10     I Got Plenty O' Nuttin' 2:41
George Gershwin / Ira Gershwin / DuBose Heyward
11     Fools Rush in 2:25
Johnny Mercer
12     Alone Together 3:17
Schwartz-Dietz
Credits :
Accompanied By – Russ Garcia "Wigville" Band
Alto Saxophone – Charlie Mariano
Baritone Saxophone – Jimmy Giuffre
Bass – Max Bennett
Drums – Stan Levey
Guitar – Al Hendrickson
Leader – Russ Garcia
Soprano Saxophone – Russ Cheever
Tenor Saxophone – Bill Holman
Trumpet – Pete Candoli, Stu Williamson

BETTY BENNETT - Nobody Else But Me (1956-2007) Atlantic 60th / Mp3

Nobody Else But Me illuminates the dark corners of romance with rare depth and maturity -- Betty Bennett's sultry, knowing vocals further establish the palpable feeling that this is a record for adults. Shorty Rogers and André Previn share arranger duties, and both operate in a framework emphasizing nuance and restraint, enabling Bennett to articulate her tales of love and loss without embellishment or redundancy. Equal parts stylist and storyteller, she fully inhabits relatively little-known songs like "This Is the Moment" and "Treat Me Rough." by Jason Ankeny
Tracklist :
1    Nobody Else But Me 3:38
Oscar Hammerstein II / Jerome Kern
2    You're Driving Me Crazy 2:54
Walter Donaldson
3    My Man's Gone Now 3:27
George Gershwin / Ira Gershwin / DuBose Heyward
4    Island In The West Indies 2:58
Vernon Duke / Ira Gershwin
5    The Next Time I Care 3:14
Bronislaw Kaper / John Latouche
6    Tomorrow Mountain 3:29
Duke Ellington / John Latouche
7    Treat Me Rough 2:49
George Gershwin / Ira Gershwin
8    Mountain Greenery 2:33
Lorenz Hart / Richard Rodgers
9    This Is The Moment 3:20
Frederick Hollander / Leo Robin
10    You Took Advantage Of Me 2:50
Lorenz Hart / Richard Rodgers
11    Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas
Martin / Blane
12    Sidewalks Of Cuba 2:31
Irving Mills / Ben Oakland / Mitchell Parish
Credits :
Alto Saxophone – Harry Klee
Bass – Ralph Pena
Bass, Arranged By – Jimmy Giuffre
Drums – Irv Cottler
Guitar – Barney Kessel
Piano, Arranged By – André Previn
Tenor Saxophone – Bob Cooper
Trombone – Frank Rosolino
Trumpet, Flugelhorn, Arranged By – Shorty Rogers
Vocals – Betty Bennett

LURLEAN HUNTER - Blue And Setimental (1960) lp / Mp3

Singer Lurlean Hunter made five albums on her own during the second half of the '50s, starting out as a Lonesome Gal on RCA and winding up still feeling Blue & Sentimental for Atlantic. She was discovered in Chicago where she had been singing in many clubs, including a collaboration with drummer Red Saunders that held forth at the Club DeLisa. Hunter's move to New York City in 1955 was prompted by RCA's interest in recording her. The singer's recording career actually began before she left the Windy City at the behest of indie jazz labels, some of them quite short-lived -- such as Seymour, with a catalog topping out at four releases. The press described Hunter as a "blues thrush" in announcing her interpretations of three numbers actually written by the label's owner, producer and record store owner Seymour Schwartz.

The latter promotional blurb inevitably told some truth about Hunter's stylistic traits, if not her relation to winged fauna. Her recordings were more about rhythm & blues and pop than jazz, yet were done in an era when such sessions often involved fine mainstream jazz players in the accompaniment. The 1956 Night Life, for example, featured pianist Hank Jones and tenor saxophonist Al Cohn. Blue & Sentimental -- with arrangements by the progressive Jimmy Giuffre -- was reissued in 2000 as a split CD also including an album by fellow singer Betty Bennett, a former wife of pianist André Previn. Hunter's final recordings were done in 1964, at which point she was still well under 40 years old. She is known to have died young, although details of this tragedy are murky. In one version of the story she was knocked off by a mobster lover, yet whether anybody was really that mean to Lurlean cannot be completely confirmed.  by Eugene Chadbourne
Tracklist :
A1. Crazy He Calls Me
Bob Russell / Carl Sigman
A2. Blue & Sentimental
Count Basie / Mack David / Jerry Livingston
A3. If You Could See Me Now
Tadd Dameron / Carl Sigman
A4. Blue Turning Grey over You
Andy Razaf / Fats Waller
A5. As Long as I Live
Harold Arlen / Ted Koehler
A6. We'll Be Together Again
Carl Fischer / Frankie Laine
B1. Just Imagine
Lew Brown / Mack David / Buddy DeSylva / Ray Henderson
B2. My Kinda Love
Louis Alter / Jo Trent
B3. Fool That I Am
Floyd Hunt
B4. Then I'll Be Tired of You
E.Y. "Yip" Harburg / Arthur Schwartz
B5. The Song Is You
Oscar Hammerstein II / Jerome Kern
Credits:
Arranged By, Conductor – Jimmy Giuffre
Bass – George Duvivier (faixas: A1, A2, A4, A6, B5), Trigger Alpert (faixas: A3, A5, B1 to B4)
Clarinet – Rudy Rutherford
Drums – Don Lamond
Guitar – Jim Hall
Piano – Jimmy Jones
Tenor Saxophone – Bud Freeman
Trumpet – Harry Edison

HELEN MERRILL - The Artistry of Helen Merrill (1965-2014) FLAC (image+.cue), lossless

This is a rare Helen Merrill folk-oriented album from 1965, with songs from all over the world. Perhaps it was her Croatian upbringing, but very few jazz singers sound as natural singing non-jazz material as Merrill does. She sounds just like herself (which she always does anyway), with no particular adjustment to a straighter idiom, as if she had to shed herself of jazz sophistication in order to become more "innocent." Highlights include the quasi-folk bossa nova "Quiet Nights" and "Itsi No Komoriuta." The great Charlie Byrd is on board, to provide the requisite acoustic accompaniment, as is Jimmy Giuffre on clarinet. Richard Mortifoglio
Tracklist :
1    Quiet Nights (Corcavado) 2:44
2    Careless Love 3:30
3    Scarlet Ribbons 3:01
4    The House Of The Rising Sun 2:37
5    I Left My Heart Behind 2:20
6    Cannetella 2:18
7    The River (Sciummo) 2:58
8    Minha Rocca 2:29
9    Itsi No Komoriuta 2:18
10    Forbidden Games 2:35
11    John Anderson, My Love 2:07
Credits
Keter Betts - Bass
Charlie Byrd - Guitar
Jimmy Giuffre - Clarinet
Osie Johnson - Drums
Teddy Kotick - Bass
Hal McKusick - Flute
Helen Merrill - Vocals
Jimmy Raney - Guitar

JUNE CHRISTY - Something Cool (The Complete Mono & Stereo Versions) (2001) FLAC (image+.cue), lossless

June Christy's Something Cool, originally released as a 10" LP in 1954, single-handedly inaugurated the cool jazz vocal movement. Christy had been a star vocalist with the Stan Kenton Orchestra in the late '40s, enjoying major hits with "Tampico" and "Shoo Fly Pie & Apple Pan Dowdy." Soon after she left the band, she began working with key Kenton arranger Pete Rugolo and a slew of top West Coast studio musicians (including her husband, tenor saxophonist Bob Cooper) on her first solo album for Capitol Records. The result was Something Cool, which is both a winning showcase for Christy's wistful style and a landmark of cool jazz modernism. From the start, Christy established herself as an artist who strove for the very best in song selection, arrangements, and notably intelligent interpretation. There were perhaps other vocalists with greater vocal equipment, but few could match June Christy's artistic integrity. The celebrated title track is the soliloquy of a female barfly of a certain age, reminiscing (and fantasizing) about better days to a fellow male patron who just might buy her another drink. It immediately became Christy's signature performance, and remained so throughout her career. Other highlights include a swinging "It Could Happen to You," "Midnight Sun," and an ambitious arrangement of Kurt Weill's "Lonely House." by Richard Mortifoglio  
Tracklist:
1 Something Cool 4:17
Bass – Joe Confort 
Drums – Frank Carlson
Flute, Alto Saxophone – Gus Bivona
Guitar – Barney Kessel
Piano – Geoff Clarkson 
Trumpet – Jimmy Zito 
Written-By – Bill Barnes 
2 It Could Happen To You 1:55
Written-By – J. Van Heusen, J. Burke 
3 Lonely House 3:56
Written-By – K. Weill, L. Hughes
4 This Time The Dream's On Me 1:29
Written-By – H. Arlen-J. Mercer 
5 The Night We Called It A Day 4:48
Written-By – M. Dennis*, T. Adair 
6 Midnight Sun 3:13
Alto Saxophone – Skeets Herfurt, Willie Schwartz 
Bass Trombone – Dick Noel  
Drums – Alvin Stoller
Guitar – Tony Rizzi
Piano – Paul Smith  
Tenor Saxophone – Fred Fallensby
Trombone – Dick Reynolds, Nick DiMaio
Trumpet – Ray Linn, Ray Triscari, Uan Rasey
Written-By – Mercer, Hampton, Burke 
7 I'll Take Romance 2:19
Written-By – B. Oakland, O. Hammerstein 
8 A Stranger Called The Blues 3:56
Written-By – M. Torme, R. Wells 
9 I Should Care 2:08
Written-By – Stordahl, Weston, Cahn
10 Softly As In A Morning Sunrise 2:13
Piano – Claude Williamson
Trombone – Bob Fitzpatrick
Written-By – O. Hammerstein, S. Romberg
11 I'm Thrilled 2:39
Written-By – S. Lippman, S. Dee
12 Something Cool 4:57
Written-By – Bill Barnes
13 It Could Happen To You 2:00
Written-By – J. Van Heusen, J. Burke
14 Lonely House 4:03
Written-By – K. Weill, L. Hughes
15 This Time The Dream's On Me 1:36
Written-By – H. Arlen-J. Mercer
16 The Night We Called It A Day 4:53
Written-By – M. Dennis T. Adair
17 Midnight Sun 3:31
Written-By – Mercer, Hampton, Burke
18 I'll Take Romance 2:20
Written-By – B. Oakland, O. Hammerstein
19 A Stranger Called The Blues 4:19
Written-By – M. Torme, R. Wells
20 I Should Care 2:11
Written-By – Stordahl, Weston, Cahn
21 Softly As In A Morning Sunrise 2:14
Written-By – O. Hammerstein, S. Romberg
22 I'm Thrilled 2:47
Written-By – S. Lippman, S. Dee
Credits:
Alto Flute – Bud Shank (tracks: 4, 5, 11), Harry Klee (tracks: 4, 5, 11)
Alto Saxophone [Soloist] – Bud Shank
Alto Saxophone, Flute – Bud Shank (tracks: 1 to 5, 7 to 22), Harry Klee (tracks: 2 to 5, 7 to 9, 11, 12, 14 to 17, 20, 21)
Arranged By, Conductor – Pete Rugolo
Baritone Saxophone – Bob Gordon (tracks: 4, 5, 10, 11), Chuck Gentry (tracks: 1, 6 to 8), Johnny Rotella (tracks: 2, 3, 9)
Bass – Harry Babasin (tracks: 4, 5, 11), Joe Mondragon (tracks: 2, 3, 6 to 10, 12 to 22)
Bass Trombone – George Roberts (tracks: 1, 12 to 22)
Drums – Larry Bunker (tracks: 12 to 22), Shelly Manne (tracks: 2 to 5, 7 to 11)
Flute – Ted Nash (tracks: 1 to 3, 7 to 9)
French Horn – John Graas (tracks: 2, 3, 7 to 9), Vincent DeRosa (tracks: 4, 5, 11, 13 to 16, 18 to 20, 22)
Guitar – Howard Roberts (tracks: 2 to 5, 7 to 11), Jack Marshall (tracks: 12 to 22)
Piano – Claude Williamson (tracks: 4, 5, 11), Joe Castro (tracks: 12 to 22), Russ Freeman (tracks: 2, 3, 7 to 9)
Reeds – Buddy Collette (tracks: 13, 18, 19, 22), Chuck Gentry (tracks: 12 to 22)
Tenor Saxophone – Jimmy Giuffre (tracks: 4, 5, 10, 11), Ted Nash (tracks: 1 to 3, 6 to 9)
Tenor Saxophone, Flute – Bob Cooper (tracks: 1 to 3, 7 to 10, 12 to 22), Paul Horn (tracks: 12 to 22)
Trombone – Frank Rosolino (tracks: 4, 5, 11 to 22), Harry Betts (tracks: 2 to 5, 7 to 9, 11, 12, 17, 21), Herbie Harper (tracks: 1, 10), Milt Bernhart (tracks: 1 to 5, 7 to 22), Tommy Pederson (tracks: 1 to 3, 6 to 9)
Trumpet – Conrad Gozzo, Conte Candoli (tracks: 10, 12 to 22), Frank Beach (tracks: 6, 12 to 22), Maynard Ferguson (tracks: 1 to 5, 7 to 9, 11), Ollie Mitchell (tracks: 12, 17, 21), Shorty Rogers (tracks: 1 to 5, 7 to 11)
Tuba – Paul Sarmento (tracks: 2 to 5, 7 to 9, 11), Phil Stephens (tracks: 13 to 16, 18 to 20, 22)
Vocals – June Christy

JIMMY GIUFFRE - Western Suite (1958-1998) FLAC (tracks), lossless

In late 1957, jazz saxophonist, clarinetist, composer, and iconoclast Jimmy Giuffre broke up the original Jimmy Giuffre 3 with Ralph Pena and Jim Hall. In early 1958, for a recording session, he formed a new trio without a rhythm section. For the album Trav'lin' Light, his new trio included Hall on guitar and the underrated trombone giant Bob Brookmeyer. For a year, they gigged together up and down the West Coast and played summer festivals, recorded, and even played clubs in New York. They became a trio of adventurous musicians for whom form was not an obstacle to creativity. As the year wound down, Giuffre wanted to document the trio once more, sensing its life was coming to an end. He composed the four-movement "Western Suite" with the trio's strengths in mind, as a way of documenting how they had come together as a band during that year. The piece itself stands as a crowning achievement in a career that included discovering the talents of Steve Swallow and Paul Bley and making the truly revolutionary recording Free Fall for Columbia three years later. The roots of that thinking lie in this set. Jim Hall's playing was dark, funky, ambiguous, sounding like drums and voices all at the same time -- particularly in the fourth movement. Brookmeyer became the pace setter. His lines were played as stage settings for the other two players to dialogue and narrate against. Giuffre, ever the storyteller, advanced the improvisation angle and wrote his score so that each player had to stand on his own as part of the group; there were no comfort zones. Without a rhythm section, notions of interval, extensions, interludes, and so on were out the window. He himself played some of his most retrained yet adventurous solos in the confines of this trio and within the form of this suite. It swung like West Coast jazz, but felt as ambitious as Copland's Billy the Kid. The record is filled out with two other tunes, one of Eddie Durham's, "Topsy," and the final moment of mastery this band ever recorded, the already classic "Blue Monk." The easy stroll of the front line with Brookmeyer's trombone strutting New Orleans' style is in sharp contrast to Giuffre's clarinet playing. Which carries the bluesy melody through three harmonic changes before he solos and then plays three more. Hall keeps it all on track, and somehow the piece sounds very natural this way, though unlike "Monk," there are no edges here -- everything is rounded off. This is as solid as any of the earlier or later Jimmy Giuffre 3 records, and two notches above Trav'lin' Light in that it reveals a fully developed sense of the responsibilities, possibilities, and freedoms of reinventing jazz for the trio. by Thom Jurek 

HOWARD RUMSEY'S LIGHTHOUSE ALL STARS - Sunday Jazz a La Lighthouse (1953) OJC / FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

For quite a few years in the 1950s, it was a tradition at the Lighthouse for music to be presented on Sundays from 2 p.m. until 2 a.m. The Lighthouse All-Stars formed the core of the all-star group, but quite often other notable players would sit in. This CD reissue presents live performances from one such Sunday. In addition to the usual bandmembers of the time (trumpeter Shorty Rogers, trombonist Milt Bernhart, Bob Cooper and Jimmy Giuffre on tenors, pianist Frank Patchen, bassist Howard Rumsey, and drummer Shelly Manne), trumpeter Maynard Ferguson, pianist Hampton Hawes, and Carlos Vidal on conga have opportunities to be heard. The music is straight-ahead, generally cool-toned, but with plenty of heat; "Viva Zapata" is a Latin romp. Virtually everyone is featured. Highlights include "Four Others," and Rogers' playing on "All the Things You Are" and "Bernie's Tune."  by Scott Yanow
Tracklist:
1 Four Others 6:01
Jimmy Giuffre
2 All the Things You Are 5:16
Oscar Hammerstein II / Jerome Kern
3 Creme de Menthe 4:30
Erroll Garner / Jimmy Giuffre
4 Viva Zapata! 8:14
Shorty Rogers
5 Bernie's Tune 5:18
Jerry Leiber / Bernard Miller / Mike Stoller
6 Solitaire 4:24
Bill Russo
7 Morgan Davis 6:03
Shorty Rogers
8 La Soncailli 9:55
Jimmy Giuffre
Credits:
Bass, Liner Notes – Howard Rumsey
Congas – Carlos Vidal
Drums – Shelly Manne
Piano – Frank Patchen, Hampton Hawes
Tenor Saxophone – Bob Cooper, Jimmy Giuffre
Trombone – Milt Bernhart
Trumpet – Maynard Ferguson, Shorty Rogers

HOWARD RUMSEY'S LIGHTHOUSE ALL STARS - Sunday Jazz a La Lighthouse

 (1953-1991) Contemporary / OJC / FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

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