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Dr. John - City Lights (1978) Reissue 2008

Posted By: Designol
Dr. John - City Lights (1978) Reissue 2008

Dr. John - City Lights (1978) Reissue 2008
EAC | FLAC | Image (Cue&Log) ~ 216 Mb | Mp3 (CBR320) ~ 94 Mb
Label: Verve | # 0602517686823 | Time: 00:38:34 | Scans ~ 56 Mb
New Orleans R&B, Piano Blues, Soul-Jazz

After the release of Mardi Gras in 1975, Dr. John (aka Mac Rebennack) left Atlantic Records. In late 1977, he signed with A&M's Horizon imprint – a label whose purpose was to showcase the jazz side of its parent company. City Lights is the better of two recordings he cut there. Produced by Tommy LiPuma and Hugh McCracken, City Lights was recorded at New York's Hit Factory Studios with a band of studio aces: drummer Steve Gadd, guitarists Cornell Dupree and John Tropea, bassist Will Lee, and Richard Tee as an additional keyboardist; Arthur Jenkins added percussive effects. The five-piece horn section included both David Sanborn and Ronnie Cuber. What's really startling, however, is the material. For most of the 1970s, Rebennack had been playing well-known tunes by other Crescent City luminaries and pop songwriters, contributing precious little of his material to his albums. On City Lights he wrote or co-wrote everything on the set. His songwriting partner for part of this date was none other than Doc Pomus. The best of both men is captured on the opener, "Dance the Night Away with You," a strolling New Orleans R&B number.

The Meters - Fire On The Bayou (1975) Expanded Remastered 2001

Posted By: Designol
The Meters - Fire On The Bayou (1975) Expanded Remastered 2001

The Meters - Fire On The Bayou (1975) Expanded Remastered 2001
EAC | FLAC | Image (Cue&Log) ~ 401 Mb | Mp3 (CBR320) ~ 158 Mb | Scans included
Label: Reprise/Warner/Rhino | # 8122-73548-2 | Time: 01:00:26
Funk, New Orleans R&B, Soul

By the time they released Fire On the Bayou in 1975, the Meters (now a quintet, with addition of Cyril Neville to the lineup) had graduated from regional cult heroes to internationally renowned recording act. In addition to playing on records by the likes of Paul McCartney, Dr. John, LaBelle and Robert Palmer, they were personally invited by the Rolling Stones to open their 1975 U.S. tour. The momentum helped Fire On the Bayou to become one of the Meters' most acclaimed and commercially successful albums. It remains a fan favorite, thanks to such gritty classic jams as "Talkin' 'bout New Orleans" and "They All Ask'd for You," which demonstrate the band's effortless instrumental expertise and organic rhythmic rapport. This remastered expanded edition contains five bonus tracks.

Dr. John with The Donald Harrison Band - Funky New Orleans (2000) Recorded in 1991

Posted By: Designol
Dr. John with The Donald Harrison Band - Funky New Orleans (2000) Recorded in 1991

Dr. John with The Donald Harrison Band - Funky New Orleans (2000) Recorded in 1991
EAC | FLAC | Tracks (Cue&Log) ~ 365 Mb | Mp3 (CBR320) ~ 145 Mb | Scans included
New Orleans R&B, Jazz, Blues, Bayou Funk | Label: Metro | # METRCD002 | 00:57:06

Playing in front of an invited studio audience, Dr. John is featured with a full-scale jazz ensemble on this 1991 session Funky New Orleans. Alto saxophonist Donald Harrison Jr. is the leader of the date, which allows Dr. John to concentrate not only on piano and vocals but also his guitar playing. A hand full of Mac Rebennack and Harrison originals are mixed with the dirty blues of "Shave em Dry" and a nod to Professor Longhair and Earl King on "Big Chief." Also, two instrumental straight-ahead jazz pieces are explored on "Hu-Ta-Nay" and "Walkin Home." This really isn't a Dr. John recording as much as an honest portrayal of these (mainly) New Orleans musicians in an extremely loose and funky setting. Recommended and available on the budget Metro label.

Dr. John - Afterglow (1996)

Posted By: Designol
Dr. John - Afterglow (1996)

Dr. John - Afterglow (1996)
XLD | FLAC | Tracks (Cue&Log) ~ 302 Mb | Mp3 (CBR320) ~ 141 Mb | Scans included
Piano Blues, Jazz, New Orleans R&B | Label: GRP/Jazz Heritage | # 514240W | 00:45:32

Unlike his In a Sentimental Mood, which swung wildly from Tin Pan Alley standards to supper-club blues, Afterglow is mostly interested in recapturing the late '40s and early '50s, when jazz, blues, and pop intersected with sophisticated ease. The choice of material is impeccable–songs made popular by Nat "King" Cole, Louis Jordan, and Duke Ellington–and the playing is superb throughout. However, "Ain't I Been Good to You," "Just a Lucky So and So," and a stark read of "I'm Confessin'" are particularly effective. And on his original, "I Still Believe in You," Dr. John proves just how influenced he is by West Coast blues legend Charles Brown, who once recorded at Cosimo Matassa's studio where the future Night Tripper got his start.

Trombone Shorty - For True (2011)

Posted By: gribovar
Trombone Shorty - For True (2011)

Trombone Shorty - For True (2011)
EAC Rip | FLAC (tracks+.cue+log) - 310 MB | MP3 CBR 320 kbps (LAME 3.93) - 105 MB | Covers - 10 MB
Genre: Jazz, Jazz-Funk, Neo Soul, New Orleans R&B | RAR 3% Rec. | Label: Verve Forecast (0602527693798)

New Orleans' Troy “Trombone Shorty” Andrews knows the music biz inside out. Hounded for years by friends and music business types to jump into the game, he understood the lessons of his lineage elders: too many had been been ripped off and discarded. He took his time, assembling, rehearsing, and touring Orleans Avenue, a band steeped in brass band history, jazz improv, funk, soul, rock, and hip hop. He finally signed to Verve Forecast and released Backatown in April of 2010. Entering at number one on the jazz charts, it stayed there for nine straight weeks, and was in the Top Ten for over six months. For True hits while Backatown is climbing again. Chock-full of cameos it is an extension, but sonically different. It's production is crisper, but the musical diversity more pushes further. In addition to trombone, Shorty plays trumpet, organ, piano, drums, synths, and, of course, sings…

The Meters - New Directions (1977) Remastered Reissue 2001

Posted By: Designol
The Meters - New Directions (1977) Remastered Reissue 2001

The Meters - New Directions (1977) Remastered Reissue 2001
EAC | FLAC | Image (Cue&Log) ~ 329 Mb | Mp3 (CBR320) ~ 124 Mb | Scans included
Funk, New Orleans R&B, Soul | Label: Rhino | # 8122-73550-2 | Time: 00:49:34

The title of the Meters' final album is hopeful, and New Directions does indeed represent if not a new direction, at least a shift from the disco dead end of Trick Bag. From the second "No More Okey Doke" kicks off the record, it's clear that the Meters are gritty again, kicking out some really funky grooves – maybe not as dirty as their Josie recordings, maybe a little cleaned up, but still pretty funky. The slower numbers betray their era, but in a pleasing way, something that's also true of generic numbers like "My Name Up in Lights," which may have too much talk-box guitar, but still grooves effectively. That may not be a new direction, per se, but it is a welcome change-up after the dud Trick Bag. It wasn't enough to save the Meters and it's not really a lost treasure, but it's a far more dignified way to bow out.

Trombone Shorty - Say That to Say This (2013)

Posted By: gribovar
Trombone Shorty - Say That to Say This (2013)

Trombone Shorty - Say That to Say This (2013)
EAC Rip | FLAC (tracks+.cue+log) - 246 MB | MP3 CBR 320 kbps (LAME 3.93) - 83 MB | Covers - 13 MB
Genre: Jazz, Jazz-Funk, Neo Soul, New Orleans R&B | RAR 3% Rec. | Label: Verve (0602537364923)

Troy "Trombone Shorty" Andrews' third Verve album, Say That to Say This, might be the one he should have cut first. Backatown and For True - both produced by Galactic's Ben Ellman - were as steeped in rock and hip-hop as they were jazz and funk; they were actually very experimental records yet both charted and were well-received internationally. This date, co-produced with Raphael Saadiq, is a much more R&B-oriented recording - and proves a definite plus in a number of ways. Shorty's become much more disciplined, as revealed by this collection of groove-conscious soul and modern NOLA funk (and though it's more polished - having been recorded almost wholly in Hollywood - it is closer to what he does live). Things kick off with the title track, one of four instrumentals, led by Michael Ballard's whomping bassline…

Clarence 'Frogman' Henry - Ain't Got No Home: The Best of Clarence 'Frogman' Henry (2004)

Posted By: Designol
Clarence 'Frogman' Henry - Ain't Got No Home: The Best of Clarence 'Frogman' Henry (2004)

Clarence "Frogman" Henry - Ain't Got No Home: The Best of Clarence "Frogman" Henry (2004)
EAC | FLAC | Tracks (Cue&Log) ~ 190 Mb | Mp3 (CBR320) ~ 96 Mb | Scans ~ 47 Mb
Label: MCA Records, Chess | # CHD-9346 | Time: 00:42:00
Rhythm & Blues, R&B, Early R&B, New Orleans R&B

Scoring an unexpected novelty hit with the title track in 1956, Henry disappeared from the charts for four years before roaring back with two smashes in the early '60s, "(I Don't Know Why) But I Do" and "You Always Hurt the One You Love." Actually, Clarence recorded a fair number of singles for Chess' Argo subsidiary between 1956 and 1964 in the relaxed New Orleans R&B styles of his big hits. Ain't Got No Home includes 18 of these sides, most of which were previously unavailable on U.S. album. Henry developed slightly over the course of his career, adding beefier horn sections that occasionally reached back to the spirit of Dixieland. Crescent City legends like saxophonist Lee Allen and pianists Allen Toussaint and Paul Gayton crop up on these sessions; when Henry traveled to Memphis for a session, he was backed by the all-star band of Bill Justis (guitar), Boots Randolph (sax), and Floyd Cramer (piano). A bit more eccentric and unpredictable than Fats Domino, not as contemporary or inventive as, say, Lee Dorsey, Henry's vocals were consistently warm and humorous, his recordings always polished. That said, the hits remain the standouts on this collection. The rest is pleasant and fun, but don't vary much from the prototype or cause exceptional interest.

Professor Longhair - Mardi Gras In New Orleans (2007)

Posted By: gribovar
Professor Longhair - Mardi Gras In New Orleans (2007)

Professor Longhair - Mardi Gras In New Orleans (2007)
EAC Rip | FLAC (image+.cue+log) - 213 MB | MP3 CBR 320 kbps (LAME 3.93) - 127 MB | Covers - 17 MB
Genre: New Orleans Blues, New Orleans R&B, Piano Blues | RAR 3% Rec. | Label: SPV/Blue Label (SPV 49912 CD)

Toweringly influential New Orleans pianist, vocalist, songwriter, and vital bridge between jazz, rock & roll, and R&B.
Justly worshipped a decade and a half after his death as a founding father of New Orleans R&B, Roy "Professor Longhair" Byrd was nevertheless so down-and-out at one point in his long career that he was reduced to sweeping the floors in a record shop that once could have moved his platters by the boxful.
That Longhair made such a marvelous comeback testifies to the resiliency of this late legend, whose Latin-tinged rhumba-rocking piano style and croaking, yodeling vocals were as singular and spicy as the second-line beats that power his hometown's musical heartbeat…

Professor Longhair - Fess: The Professor Longhair Anthology [Recorded 1949-1980] (1993)

Posted By: gribovar
Professor Longhair - Fess: The Professor Longhair Anthology [Recorded 1949-1980] (1993)

Professor Longhair - Fess: The Professor Longhair Anthology [Recorded 1949-1980] (1993)
EAC Rip | FLAC (image+.cue+log) - 559 MB | MP3 CBR 320 kbps (LAME 3.93) - 310 MB | Covers - 199 MB
Genre: New Orleans Blues, New Orleans R&B, Piano Blues | RAR 3% Rec. | Label: Rhino (R2 71502)

The rhumba-rocking rhythms of Roy "Professor Longhair" Byrd live on throughout Rhino's 40-track retrospective of the New Orleans icon's amazing legacy. Most of the seminal stuff arrives early on: "Bald Head," the rollicking ode cut for Mercury in 1950, is followed by a raft of classics from his 1949 and 1953 Atlantic dates ("Tipitina," "Ball the Wall," "Who's Been Fooling You"), the storming 1957 "No Buts, No Maybes," and "Baby Let Me Hold Your Hand" for Ebb, and his beloved "Go to the Mardi Gras" as waxed for Ron in 1959. The second disc is a hodgepodge of material from the Professor's '70s comeback, all of it wonderful in its own way but not as essential as the early work.

Irma Thomas - True Believer (1992)

Posted By: Designol
Irma Thomas - True Believer (1992)

Irma Thomas - True Believer (1992)
EAC | FLAC | Image (Cue&Log) ~ 255 Mb | Mp3 (CBR320) ~ 109 Mb
Label: Rounder | # RCD 2117 | Time: 00:42:48 | Scans included
Soul, Blues, New Orleans R&B, Rhythm & Blues

Like her first two efforts for Rounder, True Believer is a stellar collection of contemporary soul performed in the classic '50s New Orleans tradition. The difference is in conception. True Believer focuses on heartbreak songs, and there is genuine anguish in Irma Thomas' voice, making new songs by the likes of Dan Penn, Dr. John, Tony Joe White, Allen Toussaint, and Doc Pomus sound like instant classics. Another excellent effort from a woman who has plenty to her credit.

Dr. John - The Very Best Of Dr. John (1995)

Posted By: Designol
Dr. John - The Very Best Of Dr. John (1995)

Dr. John - The Very Best Of Dr. John (1995)
EAC | FLAC | Image (Cue&Log) ~ 398 Mb | Mp3 (CBR320) ~ 160 Mb
Label: Rhino | # 9548-33553-2 | Time: 01:09:58 | Scans ~ 51 Mb
New Orleans R&B, Louisiana Blues, Bayou Funk, Blues-Rock, Psychedelic

Dr. John has recorded many great albums, but it's difficult to argue with such a perfect distillation of his catchy, grooving, slapdash pop work as this Rhino set. Coming out of the R&B studio subculture of New Orleans, the former Mac Rebennack possessed songwriting smarts and reams of recording expertise, each of which had reached their peak by the early '70s. Focused squarely on that prime era, 1970 through 1974, the collection begins with his only Top Ten hit, 1973's irrepressibly fatalistic "Right Place, Wrong Time." Two others come from his best album (1973's In the Right Place), the jaunty "Such a Night" and "Qualified." 1972's Dr. John's Gumbo also rates three tracks: the New Orleans classics "Iko Iko" and "Tipitina," plus "Junko Partner." The compilers were also wise to choose three songs from Gris-Gris, his unjustly neglected psychedelic debut, including "Mama Roux" and "I Walk on Guilded Splinters" (but unfortunately, not the glorious "Gris-Gris Gumbo Ya Ya"). A version of Jimmy Liggins' jump-blues classic "Honeydripper," from 1981's Dr. John Plays Mac Rebennack, spotlights his sparkling boogie-woogie piano, and the set closes with a pair of standards from his latter-day Warner Bros. years (one of which is the unofficial Mardi Gras theme "Goin' Back to New Orleans"). Whether it's for a first listen or the perfect road-trip disc, The Very Best of Dr. John has all of the New Orleans master's best recordings in one spot.

Bruce Katz - Connection (2023)

Posted By: Fizzpop
Bruce Katz - Connection (2023)

Bruce Katz - Connection (2023)
WEB FLAC (Tracks) 321 MB | Cover | 56:22 | MP3 CBR 320 kbps | 130 MB
Blues, New Orleans R&B, Jam Blues, Soul-Jazz, Blues Rock | Label: Dancing Rooster Records

Connections is the newest CD from the legendary keyboardist Bruce Katz and his dynamic band. Recorded at famed Capricorn Studios in Macon Georgia, this album includes ten new original tunes that explore the connections between Bruce’s many influences: Blues, New Orleans R&B, Jam Blues, Soul-Jazz, and Blues Rock.

Barbara Lynn - Here Is Barbara Lynn (1968) Reissue 2009

Posted By: Designol
Barbara Lynn - Here Is Barbara Lynn (1968) Reissue 2009

Barbara Lynn - Here Is Barbara Lynn (1968) Reissue 2009
EAC | FLAC | Image (Cue&Log) ~ 194 Mb | Mp3 (CBR320) ~ 86 Mb | Scans included
New Orleans R&B, Northern Soul | Label: Water | # water239 | Time: 00:30:19

To be a woman singing your own blues and soul songs in 1960s Texas was a rare thing. To do so while brandishing a left-handed Stratocaster and bashing out hard-edged licks was even rarer. Yet that’s just what Barbara Lynn did, inspired by Guitar Slim, Jimmy Reed, Elvis Presley and Brenda Lee. And it was a hit: her 1962 debut single, “You’ll Lose A Good Thing,” recorded with session musicians including Dr. John, gave her an R&B chart Number One and a Billboard chart Top 10 hit.

Irma Thomas - The Story Of My Life (1997)

Posted By: Designol
Irma Thomas - The Story Of My Life (1997)

Irma Thomas - The Story Of My Life (1997)
EAC | FLAC | Image (Cue&Log) ~ 245 Mb | Mp3 (CBR320) ~ 100 Mb | Scans ~ 136 Mb
New Orleans R&B, Blues, Soul | Label: Rounder | # CD 2149 | Time: 00:43:49

The Story of My LIfe stands out among latter-day Irma Thomas albums not only because she gives a consistently excellent performance, but because the record boasts three new songs from Dan Penn, who wrote some of the greatest soul songs of the '60s. While his new songs ("Hold Me While I Cry," "I Count the Teardrops," "I Won't Cry for You") aren't quite as strong as his best, they are nevertheless wonderful contemporary soul numbers, and they help make the record, the remainder of which is comprised of covers and slightly weaker new numbers, one of Thomas' best latter-day albums.