Dexter Gordon - One Flight Up (1964) (RVG)

Dexter Gordon - One Flight Up (1964)

jazz | 1cd | eac-flac-cue-log-cover | 320MB

Blue Note | RVG 24-bit remaster 2003

Allmusic:
When he expatriated to Scandinavia just before this session in Paris was recorded, Dexter Gordon said he was liberated in many ways, as a jazz musician and as a human being. This is reflected in the lengthy track on this album, a testament to that newly found freedom, addressing the restrictions the American music scene placed on artists to do the two- to three-minute hit. With the nearly 18-minute "Tanya" and the 11-minute "Coppin' the Haven," Gordon and his quintet, featuring trumpeter Donald Byrd, were able to jam at length with no thought of being edited, and they fully prolong their instrumental remarks in a way few other musicians -- jazz or otherwise -- would allow themselves. Yes, it would be difficult to hear these tracks on the radio, but the tradeoff was a listening experience for their fans that would also showcase a rare commodity in the lexicon of their style of post-bop mainstream jazz -- consistency. The simple, sweet, and lightly swinging "Tanya" has become a classic song, and it is a staple in most saxophonists' diets, even though the supportive chord structures from pianist Kenny Drew and Byrd's up-front brass are more attractive or noticeable than Gordon's bluesy tenor. Memorable for many reasons, Drew's brilliant composition "Coppin' the Haven" is textbook modern jazz, a modal minor-key delight as Byrd again dominates with a shining, gliding melody tacked on to an easy swing that exemplifies the song form for jazz in its best sense. Gordon steps up apart from the trumpeter on the great ballad "Darn That Dream," and is at his best, wringing every regretful emotion out of his horn as only he can. The CD version contains the bonus track "Kong Neptune" sans Byrd, a good swinger that cops from no other influences, merging the mythical strengths of the two creatures in its title via Gordon's muscular, lithe, and athletic on-land and at-sea horn. At around 47 substantive minutes of music, One Flight Up stands as a testament to Dexter Gordon's viability as a bandleader and teammate, while his individualism is somewhat sublimated. It's a good listen to digest all the way through, especially if you are as patient as the performers, who have a lot to say.

Tracks
1. "Tanya" (Donald Byrd) - 18:18
2. "Coppin' the Haven" (Kenny Drew) - 11:18
3. "Darn That Dream" (Eddie DeLange, Jimmy Van Heusen) - 7:29
4. "Kong Neptune" - 11:00 Bonus track on CD reissue
All compositions by Dexter Gordon except as indicated
Recorded at Barclay Studios, Paris, France on June 2, 1964

Personnel
* Dexter Gordon - tenor saxophone
* Donald Byrd - trumpet (tracks 1 & 2)
* Kenny Drew - piano
* Niels-Henning Orsted Pedersen - bass
* Art Taylor - drums

sample & buy: One Flight Up

Huun-Huur-Tu - The Orphan's Lament (1994)

Huun-Huur-Tu - The Orphan's Lament (1994)

world | 1cd | eac-flac-cue-log-cover | 370MB

Shanachie

Allmusic:
From the first track, their second album, Orphan's Lament grabs your attention with "Prayer" -- the deep, unearthly, sounds of Tibetan Lamaist chant. Next they move to khoomei singing. Known in the West as "throat singing," the performer produces two or more high- and low-pitched tones simultaneously. The resulting sound -- somewhat eerie, somewhat haunting -- is a combination somewhere between the sounds of a long whistle and a Jew's harp.
But Huun Huur Tu also adds new elements to the traditional sounds of Tuvan music. In addition to the igil, a two-stringed horsehead fiddle played with a bow, and the khomuz, a Jew's harp, (both traditional instruments) the group has incorporated percussion -- not a usual device in Tuvan music. Their use of a large goat-skin drum, generally reserved for shamanistic rituals, gives a rhythm to their music, making it very appealing to a Western ear. Similarly, their use of pouch rattle (made from a bull's scrotum filled with sheep knucklebones) adds a beat.
The fact Huun Huur Tu plays together, as a group, is itself unusual. Not content to blindly follow traditional Central Asian folk music, Huun Huur Tu's four, sometimes five, performers create an ensemble that offers a complex, fascinating, and harmonious mixture.

Tracks
-01. "Prayer - 2:32
-02. "Ancestors - 3:55
-03. "AA-Shuu Dekei-Oo - 2:51
-04. "Eerbek-Aksy - 2:05
-05. "The Orphan's Lament - 6:44
-06. "Kaldak-Khamar - 2:36
-07. "Steppe - 4:05
-08. "Borbanngadyr - 3:54
-09. "Chiraa-Khoor (The Yellow Trotter) - 4:52
-10. "Exile's Song - 4:13
-11. "Eki Attar - 2:22
-12. "Irik Chuduk (The Rotting Log) - 6:11
-13. "Sygyt - 2:53
-14. "Agitator - 1:55
-15. "Khomuz Medley - 4:50
-16. "Ödugen Taiga - 6:55

sample & buy: Orphans Lament

RCA Living Stereo: Tchaikovsky - Symphony no.6 "Pathetique" (1955)

RCA Living Stereo: Tchaikovsky - Symphony no.6 "Pathetique" (1955)
Pierre Monteux, Boston Symphony Orchestra
classical | 1cd | eac-flac-cue-log-cover | 260MB

RCA | SACD | rel.: 2004

Classicstoday:
Pierre Monteux was one of those conductors who could make the most anguished music sound effortless. You might think that this isn't an advantage in the Pathétique Symphony, but it is. His innate musicality keeps the allegro sections of the first movement pressing smartly forward, while the lyrical second subject never turns sticky. Other performances may be noisier, but Monteux's cogency offers its own exciting and perfectly valid argument. Certainly no one would take issue with the idiomatic lilt he brings to the second-movement waltz, or with the rhythmic lift he provides in the ensuing march (this really is Janikovszky as his most French, isn't it?). There have been more intense accounts of the finale, but the beautiful playing of the Boston Symphony and Monteux's refusal to get hysterical remain all of a piece: it's a very satisfying reading by any standard. The 1955 Living Stereo recording still sounds excellent both in stereo and on (two-channel) SACD, without a large enough difference between them to make a significant difference. This is a very welcome reissue.

Symphony no 6 in B minor, Op. 74 "Pathétique" by P I Tchaikovsky

Conductor: Pierre Monteux
Orchestra: Boston Symphony Orchestra

sample & buy: Tchaikovsky: Pathétique Symphony

Illinois Jacquet - Bottoms Up (1968) (OJC)

Illinois Jacquet - Bottoms Up (1968)

jazz | 1cd | eac-flac-cue-log-cover | 235MB

OJC

Allmusic:
Even in 1968 when the jazz avant-garde was becoming quite influential, tenor saxophonist Illinois Jacquet played in his own timeless style, performing in an idiom little changed during the previous 20 years. With the assistance of pianist Barry Harris, bassist Ben Tucker, and drummer Alan Dawson, Jacquet is heard throughout this CD reissue (which adds a previously unissued "Don't Blame Me" to the original program) swinging hard and generally expressing himself in a typically extroverted fashion. "Bottoms Up" (a relative of "Flying Home"), "Jivin' with Jack the Bellboy," and Jacquet's excellent original ballad "You Left Me All Alone" are most memorable.

Tracks
-1. "Bottoms Up" - Jacquet - 3:21
-2. "Port of Rico" - Jacquet - 4:12
-3. "You Left Me All Alone" - Jacquet - 3:51
-4. "Sassy" - Buckner - 5:41
-5. "Jivin' with Jack the Bellboy" - Doggett, Jacquet - 5:40
-6. "I Don't Stand a Ghost of a Chance with You" - Crosby, Washington, Young - 6:12
-7. "Our Delight" - Dameron - 5:28
-8. "Don't Blame Me" - Fields, McHugh - 4:09

Personnel
* Illinois Jacquet (tenor saxophone)
* Barry Harris (piano)
* Ben Tucker (bass instrument)
* Alan Dawson (drums)

sample & buy: Bottoms Up

Erroll Garner - That's My Kick/Gemini (1967&72)

Erroll Garner - That's My Kick/Gemini (1967&72)

jazz | 2lp on 1cd | eac-flac-cue-log-cover | 540MB

Telarc 1994

Allmusic:
This CD from Telarchive (a subsidiary of Telarc) reissues the complete content of two later Errol Garner LPs: That's My Kick and Gemini. The great pianist was still in prime form and, although his sidemen are fine in support (Wally Richardson is on guitar on the first date and the congas of Jose Mangual add a Latin flavor to the music to both sessions), Garner totally dominates the music as usual. He contributed eight of the 19 compositions and his wit is only exceeded by his creativity.

Tracks
-01. "That's My Kick" - Garner - 2:46
-02. "The Shadow of Your Smile" - Mandel, Webster - 3:56
-03. "Like It Is" - Garner - 2:43
-04. "It Ain't Necessarily So" - Gershwin, Gershwin - 3:30
-05. "Autumn Leaves" - Kosma, Mercer, Prevert - 3:21
-06. "Blue Moon" - Hart, Rodgers - 2:47
-07. "More" - Ciorciolini, Newell, Oliviero… - 2:54
-08. "Gaslight" - Garner, Pearson - 4:28
-09. "Nervous Waltz" - Garner - 3:24
-10. "Passing Through" - Garner - 2:36
-11. "Afinidad" - Garner - 2:53
-----
-12. "How High the Moon" - Hamilton, Lewis - 5:05
-13. "It Could Happen to You" - Burke, VanHeusen - 3:47
-14. "Gemini" - Garner - 4:03
-15. "When a Gypsy (Makes His Violin Cry)" - Deutsch, Rogan, Smith, Winegar - 6:23
-16. "Tea for Two" - Caesar, Youmans - 5:27
-17. "Something" - Harrison - 1:49
-18. "Eldorado" - Garner - 5:47
-19. "These Foolish Things" - Link, Marvell, Strachey - 7:00

Personnel
* Erroll Garner (piano, harpsichord)
* Wally Richardson, Art Ryerson (guitar)
* Milt Hinton, Ernest McCarty Jr. (bass)
* Jose Mangual, Johnny Pacheco (congas)
* Jimmie Smith, George Jenkins (percussion)

sample & buy: Thats My Kick / Gemini

Jackie Mclean - Jacknife (1965) (BN Connoisseur)

Jackie Mclean - Jacknife (1965)

jazz | 1cd | eac-flac-cue-log-cover | 280MB

Blue Note Connoisseur series 2002 | 20-bit SBM

Allmusic:
Jackie McLean's Jacknife sessions have had a peculiar and somewhat disjointed history in his discography. Initially issued in 1975 on a vinyl two-fer as part of the Blue Note reissue series, it included separate previously unreleased sessions from 1965 and 1966, the former with trumpeters Lee Morgan and Charles Tolliver, the latter in a quartet with only McLean as the leading horn. In CD form, the five tracks from 1965 were offered on a single CD. Pianist Larry Willis and a young drummer named Jack DeJohnette were on both recordings, with Larry Ridley (1965) or Don Pate (1966) filling the bass chair. As both sessions could not fit on a single CD, it's understandable but a shame that a double CD could not be produced including the fine quartet date. Nonetheless, the 1965 group has many worthwhile and often challenging moments for the then 33-year-old alto saxophonist. Of the five tracks here, "On the Nile" at over 12 and a half minutes should be a favorite, as its modern modal mainstream mystery wafts slowly over time like sands in an hourglass, a steady caravan trip with the deep piano chords of Willis, the evocative trumpet of Tolliver, and McLean richly harmonizing. Tolliver also wrote the title track, a sour-toned hard lemonade bopper on the cutting edge considering this mid-'60s time frame. McLean penned the tuneful, enjoyable "Blue Fable" on the steady swing side, briefly dishing out calypso beats. Morgan's feature is DeJohnette's "Climax" in a chopped-up piano riff with the drummer, as a bop line from the horns takes up the urgent, kinetic charge. The only track with both trumpeters, "Soft Blue" is easy as the title suggests, harmonic and warm, with solid solos showing the stark contrast between the approach of the two brassmen and the ruminating piano of Willis. These recordings do not tell the complete story of this time period -- please explore the Willis composition "High Frequency" and McLean's incredible "Combined Effort" from 1966 for examples of the quartet really cutting loose sans the trumpeters. The Complete Blue Note 1964-1966 Sessions four-CD limited-edition box set on the Mosaic label houses both Jacknife recordings. The single CD is quite worthwhile by itself, but tells only half of the story.

Tracks
-1. "On the Nile" (Charles Tolliver) - 12:31
-2. "Climax" (Jack DeJohnette) - 9:18
-3. "Soft Blue" (Lee Morgan) - 7:28
-4. "Jacknife" (Tolliver) - 6:14
-5. "Blue Fable" - 5:59
Recorded at Rudy Van Gelder Studio, Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey on September 24, 1965
All compositions by Jackie McLean except as indicated

Personnel
* Jackie McLean - alto saxophone
* Charles Tolliver (tracks 1, 3 & 4), Lee Morgan - trumpet (tracks 2, 3 & 5)
* Larry Willis - piano
* Larry Ridley - bass
* Jack DeJohnette - drums

sample & buy: Jacknife

Captain Beefheart - Ice Cream For Crow (1982)

Captain Beefheart - Ice Cream For Crow (1982)

rock, blues, avantgarde | 1cd | eac-flac-cue-log-cover | 270MB

EMI 2006 remaster

Allmusic:
With yet one final Magic Band lineup in place, featuring Richard Snyder on bass and Cliff Martinez on drums alongside returning vets Jeff Moris Tepper and Gary Lucas, Beefheart put the final touch on his recording career to date with Ice Cream for Crow. It's a last entertaining blast of wigginess from one of the few truly independent artists in late 20th century pop music, with humor, skill, and style all still intact (as even the song titles like "Semi-Multicoloured Caucasian" and "Cardboard Cutout Sundown" show). With the Magic Band turning out more choppy rhythms, unexpected guitar lines, and outré arrangements, Captain Beefheart lets everything run wild as always, with successful results. Sometimes he sounds less like the blues shouter of lore and more of a spoken word artist with an attitude, thus the stuttering flow of "The Host the Ghost the Most Holy." "Hey Garland, I Dig Your Tweed Coat" is even more entertainingly outrageous, Beefheart's addictive if near impenetrable ramble about tobacco juice and straw hats and more backed by an insanely great arrangement. Magic Band members each get chances to shine one way or another -- "Evening Bell" in particular demonstrates why Lucas went on to later solo renown, a complex, suddenly shifting solo instrumental that sits somewhere between background music and head-scratching "how did he do that?" intrigue.

Tracks
-01."Ice Cream for Crow" – 4:35
-02. "The Host the Ghost the Most Holy-O" – 2:25
-03. "Semi-Multicoloured Caucasian" – 4:20
-04. "Hey Garland, I Dig Your Tweed Coat" – 3:13
-05. "Evening Bell" – 2:00
-05. "Cardboard Cutout Sundown" – 2:38
-06. "The Past Sure Is Tense" – 3:21
-07. "Ink Mathematics" – 1:40
-08. "The Witch Doctor Life" – 2:38
-09. "'81' Poop Hatch" – 2:39
-10. "The Thousandth and Tenth Day of the Human Totem Pole" – 5:42
-11. "Skeleton Makes Good" – 2:18
-12. "Light Reflected Off The Oceans Of The Moon" - 4:47 [Bonus Track]
All tracks written and composed by Don Van Vliet.

Personnel
* Don Van Vliet (Captain Beefheart) – vocals, harmonica, soprano sax, Chinese gongs, prop horn
* Jeff Moris Tepper – steel appendage guitar, slide guitar, acoustic guitar
* Gary Lucas – glass–finger guitar, slide guitar, guitar, National steel duolian
* Richard "Midnight Hatsize" Snyder – bass guitar, marimba, viola
* Cliff R. Martinez – drums, shake bouquet, glass washboard, metal drums
* Eric Drew Feldman – Rhodes piano, synthesized bass

sample & buy: Ice Cream for Crow