SARAH VAUGHAN – 1951-1952 | The Classics Chronological Series – 1296 (2003) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

Aficionados of Classics' chronological series of compilations may be disheartened by this volume of Sarah Vaughan sides, taken from her early-'50s stint on Columbia. After years of perfection, listeners soon came to expect the best from Classics -- thorough compilations, faithful sound, and dozens of hot sides by some of the best jazz artists of the swing era. Unfortunately, while few female vocalists swung as righteously as Sarah Vaughan, there's no evidence of it here. The compilation includes two dozen sides, from the beginning of 1951 through the very end of 1952, at a time when Columbia was marketing her as a "serious" vocalist, neither jazz fire nor pop novelty but straight, trad balladry. Backed by large, string-filled orchestras (most led by Paul Weston or Percy Faith), Vaughan doesn't shine. Her voice, majestic and filled with drama, should be perfect in this setting, but the gauzy arrangements and often subpar material make a difficult task nearly impossible. Since Vaughan's delivery was usually direct, it was difficult for her to fight poor material and lackluster backing (unlike Billie Holiday, that notoriously excellent singer of bad material). She performs the opener, "Ave Maria," with operatic precision, and exercises her deep, low vibrato on "My Reverie," but shows little interest in anything more than straightforward readings. "Street of Dreams," one of the few songs here that outlasted the '50s, is one of the few bright spots amidst the gloom. John Bush  
Tracklist + Credits :

CHARLIE VENTURA – 1947-1949 | The Classics Chronological Series – 1149 (2000) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

The main reasons to investigate the recordings of Charlie Ventura are of course his wonderful handling of the tenor saxophone and the excellent ensembles he led. Ventura's recordings were predominately instrumental in 1945 and 1946. As the decade drew to a close, singers dominated the recording industry and many bandleaders chose to feature more and more of them. The third volume of the complete recordings of Charlie Ventura illustrates this process in high relief. Four sides recorded for the National label in September of 1947 spotlight the vocal talents of Buddy Stewart, an able crooner who sounded best when bop scatting like a third horn alongside Ventura and trombonist Kai Winding on "East of Suez" and the dynamic "Eleven Sixty," a masterpiece of high-energy bop that Ventura had recorded in March of 1947 as "Stop and Go." A stack of sides recorded in Chicago during October of 1948 packs a few surprises. Ventura switches to baritone sax on "If I Had You" and begins to feature vocalist Jackie Cain as a lone balladeer and in bop scat tandem with pianist Roy Kral. Their cutely hip, wordless passages closely emulate a widely imitated style of singing perfected by Babs Gonzales. As nice as the vocals are, one begins to relish the sax and trombone breaks, while the increasingly rare instrumental tracks ("Oh, Lady Be Good," "Sweet Georgia Brown," and a gorgeous treatment of "Once in a While") begin to feel like precious nuggets of unaffected inspiration. Three of the four titles recorded for Victor on January 6, 1949, showcase the increasingly popular Jackie & Roy in highly charged bop scat mode. The instrumental "Body and Soul" was Ventura's second recorded outing on baritone sax. A smoky, apparently live nightclub recording of "Fine and Dandy" captures the sound of Ventura's sextet at its most unrestrained and inspired, including fine solos by Bennie Green and trumpeter Conte Candoli. Contrary to what the enclosed discography says, Jackie & Roy do not sing on "Fine and Dandy." By April of 1949, Ventura's act had practically become the Jackie & Roy show, albeit with excellent instrumentation behind the singers. "Flamingo" achieves an interesting balance as the vocalists are mainly heard in the background during the introduction, as if to pave the way for the leader's passionate, sophisticated saxophone. arwulf arwulf  
Tracklist + Credits :

BOBBY HACKETT – 1948-1954 | The Classics Chronological Series – 1403 (2005) FLAC (tracks), lossless

The third installment in the Classics Bobby Hackett chronology examines the recordings he made between June 22, 1948, and November 7, 1954. The compilation opens with two superb five-minute V-Disc jams introduced by Hackett and Eddie Condon, who organized this and dozens of other traditional jazz get-togethers during the 1940s. The front line of Hackett, Cutty Cutshall, Peanuts Hucko, and Ernie Caceres worked wonders. "You Do Something to Me" is a marvelous trumpet/piano duet with Joe Bushkin recorded during the second AFM recording ban; in their spoken introduction they even mention the organization's president, a Mr. Petrillo. Two quintet sessions for Columbia dating from the late summer and early autumn of 1950 combine Dixieland repertoire with relaxed swing standards; Hackett's rendering of "A Room with a View" is particularly beautiful. An unattributed vocal choir intrudes upon an unissued recording of "Sleepy Head"; this turns out to have been a premonition of production values yet to come, as Hackett's next date as a leader (Capitol Records, May 11,1953) would find him accompanied by a rhythm section augmented with four violas and a cello. This combination actually worked rather well; the fact that Hackett had Lou Stein, Billy Bauer, Arnold Fishkin, and Denzil Best in the group helped to temper the effect of the strings, which in any case were all low key, literally speaking. Hackett sounds as relaxed and sophisticated as ever on the concluding tracks, which were recorded on November 7, 1954. By this time the Capitol studios and conductor Glenn Osser were backing him with French horns, woodwinds (including flute and oboe), and a classical harp wafting away next to the rhythm section. Fortunately, the ensemble is kept under control and Hackett sounds just as happy here as he did with his old cohorts from the Condon Mob. arwulf arwulf  
Tracklist + Credits : 

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)

RUTH PRICE - My Name is Ruth Price ... I Sing (1955-1989) lp / FLAC (tracks), lossless

A talented singer whose wide expressive qualities do justice to any lyrics that she chooses to interpret, Ruth Price has made relatively few recordings throughout her career. Originally a dancer, she attended ballet school in 1952. However, by 1954 she was singing with Charlie Ventura and, after freelancing in Philadelphia, she worked as a singer and dancer in New York. Price moved to Hollywood in 1957, recorded a fine album with Shelly Manne (which has been reissued in the Original Jazz Classics series), but did not cut her second album as a leader until 1983 (for ITI). She toured with Harry James (1964-1965), but in the '90s became best known for running one of Los Angeles' top jazz clubs, the Jazz Bakery. web
Tracklist :
A1 My Shining Hour 2:18
Johnny Mercer / Harold Arlen
A2 Ev'ry Time 4:15
Hugh Martin / Ralph Blane
A3 Calypso Blues 3:07
Don George / Nat Cole
A4 I Don't Want To Walk Without You 3:19
Jules Styne / Frank Loesser
A5 Who Am I 3:50
Leonard Bernstein
A6 Gentleman Friend 2:51
Arnold B. Horwitt / Richard Lewine
B1 I'm Old-Fashioned 2:21
Jerome Kern / Johnny Mercer
B2 Give Me The Simple Life 3:13
Harry Ruby / Rube Bloom
B3 Sleighride In July 2:16
Johnny Burke / Jimmy Van Heusen
B4 Shadrack 4:14
Robert MacGimsey
B5 Someday My Prince Will Come 3:09
Larry Morey / Frank Churchill
B6 Exactly Like You 2:41
Jimmy McHugh / Dorothy Fields
Credits
Bass – Milt Hinton
Drums – Ellis Tollin
Piano – Lou Stein
Vocals – Ruth Price