SONNY CRISS — Sonny Criss Plays Cole Porter (1956-1990) Serie We Love Jazz | FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

Tracklist :
1    I Love You 4:13
Cole Porter
2    Anything Goes 3:12
Cole Porter
3    Easy to Love 3:16
Cole Porter
4    It's All Right With Me 3:10
Cole Porter
5    In the Still of the Night 4:19
Cole Porter
6    Love for Sale 2:43
Cole Porter
7    Night and Day 4:43
Cole Porter
8    Just One of Those Things 2:48
Cole Porter
9    What Is This Thing Called Love? 5:43
Cole Porter
10    I Get a Kick Out of You     2:46
Cole Porter
Credits :
Alto Saxophone – Sonny Criss
Bass – Buddy Clark
Drums – Lawrence Marable
Piano – Sonny Clark
Vibraphone – Larry Bunker

HAMPTON HAWES — Bird Song (1958-1999) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

The essence of this set is Charlie Parker's numerous variations on "I Got Rhythm" and Parker's key blues-based tunes, such as "Confirmation." The result is a spirited, highly communicative session, where pianist Hampton Hawes gets to the core of the bop idiom. It's a mystery why these tracks from 1956 and 1958 went unreleased until 1999. They come from a key creative period in Hawes' career when he was enjoying new levels of commercial and critical acclaim. Regardless, the music has now been done justice in a well-mastered release that will please fans of Hawes and of bop piano in general. From a lesser artist, the dry, unadorned, direct style at the center of Hawes' playing could expose technical vulnerabilities. In Hawes' case, it exposes a natural, fluent grace of phrasing and rhythm. Each track is a freshly interpreted joy ride across familiar chord changes. Bassist Paul Chambers and drummer Larance Marable, not Hawes' regular partners from this period, are prominent, supportive parts of the pianist's heartbeat. Besides the Parker originals and Parker-derived themes, there are fine versions of several standards, "Yesterdays" and "Stella by Starlight" being just two deliriously swinging highlights. The three tracks from a 1958 date, with Scott LaFaro on bass and Frank Butler on drums, maintain the same joyous pulse of the earlier tracks. Jim Todd  
Tracklist :
1 Big Foot 5:36
Charlie Parker
2 Ray's Idea 4:42
Ray Brown / Gil Fuller
3 Stella by Starlight 4:38
Ned Washington / Victor Young
4 Blues for Jacque 4:52
Hampton Hawes
5 I Should Care 4:41
Sammy Cahn / Axel Stordahl / Paul Weston
6 Bird Song 4:05
Thad Jones
7 Yesterdays 5:29
Otto Harbach / Jerome Kern
8 What's New? 5:29
Johnny Burke / Bob Haggart
9 Just One of Those Things 3:15
Cole Porter
10 I'll Remember April 5:26
Gene DePaul / Patricia Johnston / Don Raye
11 Cheryl 3:46
Charlie Parker
12 Clue 'N' Boogie 3:23
Dizzy Gillespie / Frank Paparelli
Credits :
Acoustic Bass – Paul Chambers
Drums – Lawrence Marable
Piano – Hampton Hawes 

MILT JACKSON — Ballads & Blues (1956-2012) RM | Jazz Best Collection 1000 Series | MONO | FLAC (image+.cue), lossless

Comes with a mini description. Ballads & Blues is an album by American jazz vibraphonist Milt Jackson featuring performances recorded in 1956 and released on the Atlantic label. The unassuming title of this compilation understates the fact that Milt Jackson is a master of ballad and blues forms, and an inspired collaborator when working flautists.
The small group settings for these performances allow the players – some of the very best in jazz and all in top form – to be heard to full advantage. The guitarists are particularly effective, the crisp, cool tones of Skeeter Best, Barry Galbraith, Barney Kessel, and Kenny Burrell complementing the rich, ringing cascade from Jackson's vibes. Of note from 1956's Ballads and Blues are two performances with tenor saxophonist Lucky Thompson. These will be appreciated by anyone who has enjoyed Jackson's work with Thompson on the Savoy label. The 1956 date also has three Ralph Burns arrangements that augment the players with a woodwind quintet. While neither overly lush or cloying, the oboes, etc., still don't add a lot to what the core group has to say.
Tracklist :
1    So In Love 3:11

Written-By – Cole Porter
2    These Foolish Things 4:26
Written-By – Harry Link, Holt Marvell
3    Solitude 4:39
Written-By – Duke Ellington, Eddie de Lange, Irving Mills
4    The Song Is Ended 4:39
Written-By – Irving Berlin
5    They Didn't Believe Me 3:44
Written-By – Jerome Kern, M. E. Rourke
6    How High The Moon 6:12
Written-By – M. Lewis, Nancy Hamilton
7    Gerry's Blues 5:00
Written-By – Milt Jackson
8    Hello 3:44
Written-By – Milt Jackson
9    Bright Blues 6:11
Written-By – Milt Jackson
Personnel :
Milt Jackson – Vibes
Lucky Thompson - Tenor Saxophone (tracks 6, 8 & 9)
John Lewis - Piano (tracks 1, 3, 5, 6, 8 & 9)
Skeeter Best (tracks 6, 8 & 9), Barry Galbraith (tracks 1, 3 & 5), Barney Kessel (tracks 2, 4 & 7) – Guitar
Percy Heath (tracks 2, 4 & 7), Oscar Pettiford (tracks 1, 3, 5, 6, 8 & 9) - Bass
Kenny Clarke (tracks 1, 3, 5, 6, 8 & 9), Lawrence Marable (tracks 2, 4 & 7) – Drums

CHET BAKER & ART PEPPER - Playboys (1956-2012) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

These 1956 Pacific Jazz sides appeared in 1961 under the title Playboys. Myth and rumor persist that, under legal advice from the publisher of a similarly named magazine, the collection would have to be retitled. It was renamed Picture of Heath, as more than half of the tracks are Jimmy Heath compositions. Regardless, the music is the absolute same. These are the third sessions to feature the dynamic duo of Art Pepper (alto sax) and Chet Baker (trumpet). Their other two meetings had produced unequivocal successes. The first was during a brief July 1956 session at the Forum Theater in L.A. Baker joined forces with Pepper's sextet, ultimately netting material for the Route LP. Exactly three months to the day later, Pepper and Baker reconvened to record tracks for the Chet Baker Big Band album. The quartet supporting Baker and Pepper on Playboys includes Curtis Counce (bass), Phil Urso (tenor sax), Carl Perkins (piano), and Larance Marable (drums). Baker and Pepper have an instinctual rapport that yields outstanding interplay. The harmony constant throughout the practically inseparable lines that Baker weaves with Pepper drives the bop throughout the slinky "For Minors Only." The soloists take subtle cues directly from each other, with considerable contributions from Perkins, Counce, and Marable. With the notorious track record both Baker and Pepper had regarding other decidedly less successful duets, it is unfortunate that more recordings do not exist that captured their special bond. These thoroughly enjoyable and often high-energy sides are perfect for bop connoisseurs as well as mainstream jazz listeners. by Lindsay Planer   
Tracklist :
 1    For Minors Only 3:59    
Jimmy Heath
2    Minor Yours 6:40    
Art Pepper
3    Resonant Emotions 5:41    
Jimmy Heath
4    Tynan Tyme 5:31    
Art Pepper
5    Picture of Heath 6:43    
Jimmy Heath
6    For Miles and Miles 6:24    
Jimmy Heath
7    C.T.A. 5:14
Written-By – Jimmy Heath
8    Tynan Time 6:19
Written-By – Art Pepper
9    Little Girl 4:17
Written-By – Henry, Hyde
10    Minor Yours 7:14
Written-By – Art Pepper
11    Sonny Boy 3:57
Written-By – Jolson, De Sylva, Brown, Henderson
12    The Route 5:04
Written-By – Pepper, Baker, Kamuca
Credits :
Alto Saxophone – Art Pepper
Arranged By – Art Pepper (faixas: 2,4,8,10), Jimmy Heath (faixas: 1,3, 5-7), Johnny Mandel (faixas: 9,11)
Bass – Curtis Counce (faixas: 1 to 7), Leroy Vinnegar (faixas: 8 to 12)
Drums – Lawrence Marable (faixas: 1 to 7), Stan Levey (faixas: 8 to 12)
Piano – Carl Perkins (faixas: 1 to 7), Pete Jolly (faixas: 8 to 12)
Tenor Saxophone – Phil Urso (faixas: 1 to 7), Richie Kamuca (faixas: 8 to 12)
Trumpet – Chet Baker