Modern Jazz Quartet - Fontessa (1956)

Modern Jazz Quartet - Fontessa (1956)

jazz | 1cd | eac-flac-cue-log-cover | 215MB

Atlantic

Allmusic:
This LP has a particularly strong all-around set by the Modern Jazz Quartet. While John Lewis' "Versailles" and an 11-minute "Fontessa" show the seriousness of the group (and the influence of Western classical music), other pieces (such as "Bluesology," "Woody 'N You" and a pair of ballads) look toward the group's roots in bop and permit the band to swing hard.

Tracks
-1. "Versailles" (John Lewis) - 3:22
-2. "Angel Eyes" (Earl Brent, Matt Dennis) - 3:48
-3. "Fontessa" (Lewis) - 11:12
-4. "Over the Rainbow" (Harold Arlen, E.Y. Harburg) - 3:50
-5. "Bluesology" (Milt Jackson) - 5:04
-6. "Willow Weep for Me" (Ann Ronell) - 4:47
-7. "Woodyn You" (Dizzy Gillespie) - 4:25

Personnel
* John Lewis - piano
* Milt Jackson - vibraphone
* Percy Heath - double bass
* Connie Kay - drums

 sample & buy: Fontessa

 

Count Basie - Kansas City 5 (1977) (eac-log-cover)

Count Basie - Kansas City 5 (1977)

jazz | 1cd | eac-flac-cue-log-cover | 270MB

OJC

Allmusic:
This studio session from 1977 features Count Basie in a quintet with vibraphonist Milt Jackson and guitarist Joe Pass. The predictably excellent group performs spirited versions of some of Basie's "hits" (including "Jive at Five" and "One O'Clock Jump"), some blues and a few standards. It is always interesting to hear Basie in a hornless setting like this one where he gets opportunities to stretch out on the piano.

Tracks
-01. "Jive at Five" (Count Basie, Harry "Sweets" Edison) – 5:30
-02. "One O'Clock Jump" (Basie) – 3:53
-03. "(We Ain't Got) No Special Thing" (Basie, Milt Jackson, Joe Pass) – 5:33
-04. "Memories of You" (Eubie Blake, Andy Razaf) – 3:49
-05. "Frog's Blues" (Basie, Jackson, Pass) – 4:55
-06. "Rabbit" (Basie, Jackson, Pass) – 3:46
-07. "Perdido" (Ervin Drake, Hans J. Lengsfelder, Juan Tizol) – 4:27
-08. "Timekeeper" (Basie, Jackson, Pass) – 5:12
-09. "Mean to Me" (Fred E. Ahlert, Roy Turk) – 5:00
-10. "Blues for Joe Turner" (Basie, Jackson) – 4:55

Personnel
* Count Basie - piano
* Milt Jackson - vibraphone
* Joe Pass - guitar
* John Heard - double bass
* Louie Bellson - drums

sample & buy: Kansas City 5

Modern Jazz Quartet - No Sun in Venice (1957) (eac-log-cover)

Modern Jazz Quartet - No Sun in Venice (1957)

jazz, soundtrack | 1cd | eac-flac-cue-log-cover | 210MB

Atlantic

Allmusic:
This recording has six John Lewis compositions that were used in the French film No Sun in Venice. The music is quite complex and disciplined, making this set of lesser interest to fans who prefer to hear Milt Jackson playing bebop-oriented blues. However the versatile group was perfect for this type of music and these thought-provoking performances reward repeated listenings.

Tracks
-1. "The Golden Striker" - Lewis - 3:41
-2. "One Never Knows" - Lewis - 9:12
-3. "The Rose Truc" - Lewis - 4:57
-4. "Cortege" - Lewis - 7:29
-5. "Venice" - Lewis - 4:28
-6. "Three Windows" - Lewis - 6:45

Personnel
* Bass – Percy Heath
* Drums – Connie Kay
* Piano – John Lewis
* Vibraphone – Milt Jackson

sample & buy: No Sun in Venice

Milt Jackson & Ray Brown - Montreux '77 (music video) (DVD5) (iso-mds)

Milt Jackson & Ray Brown '77
DVD5 PAL | DD5.1; DTS5.1; PCM2.0 | 4:3 | 60 min | iso-mds | Covers | 4,1 GB
Eagle Vision - Norman Granz | Genre: jazz | rel. 2004 | RAR +5% recovery
Allaboutjazz:
The combination of Norman Granz and the Montreux Jazz Festival was a strong one. The music that Granz presented at the festival had some top notch performers. Several of the concerts are now available as part of the Norman Granz Jazz in Montreux series on DVD. There are several releases, among them performances by Mary Lou Williams, Benny Carter, Roy Eldridge, Ray Bryant and Ella Fitzgerald and Count Basie. All have been restored and remastered.

Milt Jackson and Ray Brown took the stage on July 13, 1977 with Clark Terry on trumpet and flugelhorn, Monty Alexander on piano, Eddie "Lockjaw" Davis on tenor saxophone and Jimmie Smith on drums. And what an exemplary band it was! The music is electrifying, zapped by the rapport between them. There is an unmitigated joy in their playing, the passion kneaded by their virtuosity. Jackson rings the bell with his clean notes, unhurried yet filled with a rich resonance. And if Brown was of the opinion that too many notes spoilt the adventure, he shows precisely how economy can make a song sizzle. And there is Terry, often happy as is his wont, blowing some mean wah wah trumpet on "Red Top." When Davis goes into his cutting-edge solo, Jackson goes over, whispers and returns grinning ear to ear. In that closeness comes a harmony which can only go towards creating a strong emotional core. If there is one player who brings in resplendence with a chockfull of notes, it is Alexander. He is in constant ferment with thick juicy layers and emphatic chords and a nice imagination that at one time sees him invest some calypso in "You Are My Sunshine." Smith keeps the rhythm ticking, ever sensitive. In one of the many interesting camera angles, his right hand is in close cleave with Brown's conceptualization. Attention pays dividends.

There was magic in the air that night in Montreux and it is worth experiencing every moment.

Extras on the DVD come in the form of a presentation from Nat Hentoff and a short profile of Granz, drawings by David Stone Martin and photographs by Georges Braunschweig. One little error: when the pictures of the musicians come up during Hentoff's narration, Brown is identified as Alexander.

Tracks:
Slippery; Beautiful Friendship; Red Top; Mean to Me; You Are My Sunshine

buy

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