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Donna Hightower - Take One! (1958) + Gee, Baby, Ain't I Good To You? (1959) 2LP on 1CD, 2009

Posted By: Designol
Donna Hightower - Take One! (1958) + Gee, Baby, Ain't I Good To You? (1959) 2LP on 1CD, 2009

Donna Hightower - Take One! + Gee, Baby, Ain't I Good To You? (2009)
EAC | FLAC | Tracks (Cue&Log) ~ 230 Mb | Mp3 (CBR320) ~ 157 Mb | Scans included
Genre: Vocal Jazz | Label: Fresh Sound Records | # FSR-CD 561 | Time: 00:59:23

One of the highest tributes to any musician in a recording session is that he or she is a “Take One” artist. Donna Hightower is just that, a singer who delivers perfectly the first time she steps to the mike. In these late Fifties sides she demonstrated the phrasing, taste and skill which marked her as one the brightest new vocalist stars of the time. Backing her are two all-star groups conducted by Sid Feller and featuring some of the greatest soloists of the New York jazz scene, including Joe Wilder, Ben Webster, Hank Jones, Georgie Auld, Mundell Lowe, George Duvivier and Don Lamond.

Duke Ellington - Reminiscing In Tempo (1991)

Posted By: Designol
Duke Ellington - Reminiscing In Tempo (1991)

Duke Ellington - Reminiscing In Tempo (1991)
EAC | FLAC | Tracks (Cue&Log) ~ 229 Mb | Mp3 (CBR320) ~ 181 Mb | Scans included
Jazz, Big Band, Swing | Label: Columbia/Legacy | # CK 48654 | Time: 01:16:41

Just the fact that Ellington's extended masterpiece "Reminiscing in Tempo" is included here in its original and continuous form is reason enough to pick up this compilation. Initially recorded in 1935, "Reminiscing" was the first thoroughly composed jazz piece and one that not only demonstrated Ellington's knack for longer forms, but also featured practically all of his singular soloists. Upon its first release, the 13-minute piece was broken up over a few 78s, later making its way into EP form. Currently, the Classics label includes it on one of its Chronological discs, but spread over four distinct tracks. So, this 1991 Columbia release might be the only way to get this great work in its seamless form as it was originally recorded. Collector's concerns aside, this CD was the audio companion to an Ellington documentary aired on PBS. Predictably, it provides something of an overview of Ellington's career, beginning with a recording of "The Mooche" from his Cotton Club days in the late '20s up through a version of "Black Beauty" from 1960.

John Pizzarelli - John Pizzarelli meets The Beatles (1998) Japanese Reissue 2007

Posted By: Designol
John Pizzarelli - John Pizzarelli meets The Beatles (1998) Japanese Reissue 2007

John Pizzarelli - John Pizzarelli meets The Beatles (1998) Japanese Reissue 2007
EAC | FLAC | Image (Cue&Log) ~ 276 Mb | Mp3 (CBR320) ~ 110 Mb | Scans ~ 48 Mb
Label: RCA/BMG Japan | # BVCJ-37562 | Time: 00:46:04
Vocal Jazz, Swing, Guitar Jazz, Pop/Rock

Beatles fans love to explain that the key to the successful partnership of John Lennon and Paul McCartney was their contrasting songwriting personalities – Lennon was the tongue in cheek sardonic wit, McCartney the earnest balladeer. On John Pizzarelli Meets the Beatles, a sharply conceived tribute which sets the duo's classics in a jazz trio with big-band arrangements, the singer/guitarist hits the mark more often when he's taking on the Lennon persona. He approaches "Cant' Buy Me Love," "When I'm 64," and "Get Back" with a playful wink, jumping off his speedy melody lines and the rising brass sections for extended improvisational tradeoffs with pianist Ray Kennedy, and adding colorful touches like scatting and even ad libbing his own lyrical verses based on the originals.

Clarence 'Gatemouth' Brown - Timeless (2004)

Posted By: Designol
Clarence 'Gatemouth' Brown - Timeless (2004)

Clarence 'Gatemouth' Brown - Timeless (2004)
EAC | FLAC | Image (Cue&Log) ~ 340 Mb | Mp3 (CBR320) ~ 132 Mb
Label: HighTone | # HCD8174 | Time: 00:57:36 | Scans ~ 71 Mb
Modern Electric Texas Blues, Rock & Roll, Swing

Journeyman blues icon vocalist/guitarist/violinist Clarence "Gatemouth" Brown delivers another solid mix of electric Texas blues, country, and swing on Timeless. At this point in his career, Brown essentially represents all that is "roots" music, which is another way of saying he has nothing to prove and the listener has everything to gain. To these ends, Brown's impassioned wail fills the sky on the slow blues "For Now So Long," he reworks "Unchained Melody" into an atmospheric John Coltrane-inspired piece, and he delivers a funny yet compelling Sun Ra-esque spoken word intro on "The Drifter." Featuring a full complement of horns and a rhythm section, Timeless showcases all that makes Brown a living national treasure.

Joe Turner - 1941-1946 (1997)

Posted By: gribovar
Joe Turner - 1941-1946 (1997)

Joe Turner - 1941-1946 (1997)
EAC Rip | FLAC (tracks+.cue+log) - 215 MB | MP3 CBR 320 kbps (LAME 3.93) - 152 MB | Covers - 14 MB
Genre: Early R&B, Jump Blues, Swing | RAR 3% Rec. | Label: Classics Records (CLASSICS 940)

The original blues shouter found a way to meld some of Jimmy Rushing's rambling jazz phrasing with the low-down tone he naturally bellowed out to Kansas City audiences - sometimes while behind the bar serving drinks. And before hitting the charts with several early rock & roll hits, Big Joe Turner did bedrock work with such fine stride and boogie-woogie pianists as Pete Johnson, Freddie Slack, and Willie "The Lion" Smith. On Classics' 1941-1946 chronological sampler of Turner's early prime, these and other luminaries of the after-hours fraternity sympathetically back Turner over the course of 22 gems. A good chunk of the material finds Turner ideally framed by just a piano trio, with highlights including "Nobody in Mind" (Sammy Price is at the keys for this cut), "Little Bittie Gal's Blues," and "Blues on Central Avenue"…

The Glenn Miller Orchestra - In The Digital Mood (1983 Reissue) (1991)

Posted By: tirexiss
The Glenn Miller Orchestra - In The Digital Mood (1983 Reissue) (1991)

The Glenn Miller Orchestra - In The Digital Mood (1983 Reissue) (1991)
EAC | FLAC (tracks+.cue, log) | Covers Included | 34:25 | 224 MB
Genre: Swing, Big Band | Label: GRP | Catalog: 2004

This CD may be scoffed at by serious jazz listeners, and even by big-band devotees wary of modern "ghost band" performances, but the fact is that it sold over 100,000 pieces when it first appeared in 1983, and its CD version was among the very earliest compact discs ever released commercially in the United States (indeed, so early that the actual CDs had to be imported from Japan). The second-ever release by GRP Records, it put the label on the map, and it also stood as testimony to how good those original arrangements of the Glenn Miller Orchestra were. So how is it as music?

Juanita Hall - Juanita Hall Sings The Blues (1958) DCC Reissue 1996

Posted By: Designol
Juanita Hall - Juanita Hall Sings The Blues (1958) DCC Reissue 1996

Juanita Hall - Juanita Hall Sings The Blues (1958) Mastered by Steve Hoffman
EAC | FLAC | Tracks (Cue&Log) ~ 245 Mb | Mp3 (CBR320) ~ 119 Mb | Scans included
Blues, Vocal Jazz, Swing | Label: DCC Compact Classics | # DJZ-623 | 00:37:42

Juanita Hall is best-known for being a stage actress, playing Bloody Mary in South Pacific. However on this 1958 set for Counterpoint, she shows that she could effectively sing blues. Mostly sticking to songs from the Bessie Smith songbook (including "You've Been a Good Old Wagon," "Gimme a Pigfoot" and "Nobody Wants You When You're Down and Out"), Hall's extroverted and shouting style fit the music quite well. Pianist Claude Hopkins arranged for the sextet and gathered quite an all-star backup group that includes tenor-saxophonist Coleman Hawkins, clarinetist Buster Bailey and trumpeter Doc Cheatham. Well worth getting.

Della Reese - The Jubilee Years (2010) 2 CDs

Posted By: Designol
Della Reese - The Jubilee Years (2010) 2 CDs

Della Reese - The Jubilee Years (2010) 2 CDs
EAC | FLAC | Tracks (Cue&Log) ~ 600 Mb | Mp3 (CBR320) ~ 343 Mb | Scans included
Vocal Jazz, Swing, Vocal Pop | Label: Jasmine Records | # JASCD 544 | 02:26:16

The many talents of Della Reese has meant she has enjoyed a long and successful career as top drawer performer of Jazz, Blues, R&B, Gospel and stylish pop music. Here the spotlight is on her two complete albums and a collection of her singles from Jubilee records including the classic hit 'And That Reminds Me'. This is a great introduction to the work of Della Reese and shows exactly why she was to considered one of the foremost interpreters of the American Songbook.

Dick Hyman - From The Age Of Swing (1994)

Posted By: gribovar
Dick Hyman - From The Age Of Swing (1994)

Dick Hyman - From The Age Of Swing (1994)
EAC Rip | FLAC (image+.cue+log) - 352 MB | MP3 CBR 320 kbps (LAME 3.93) - 156 MB | Covers - 7 MB
Genre: Jazz, Swing, Mainstream Jazz | RAR 3% Rec. | Label: Reference Recordings (RR-59CD)

As the title implies, this is very much a swing set. Pianist Dick Hyman (a master of all pre-bop styles) has little difficulty emulating Teddy Wilson, Art Tatum and Count Basie (among others) plus his own style in an octet also featuring trumpeter Joe Wilder, trombonist Urbie Green, altoist-clarinetist Phil Bodner, baritonist Joe Temperley, rhythm guitarist Bucky Pizzarelli, bassist Milt Hinton, drummer Butch Miles and (on three tunes) altoist Frank Wess. The opening and closing numbers are ad-lib blues both titled "From the Age of Swing"; sandwiched in between are ten swing-era standards plus a couple of obscure Duke Ellington items. Among the highlights are "Topsy," "Them There Eyes," "Rose Room" and "Mean to Me." No real surprises occur, but mainstream fans should like this swinging set.

Duke Ellington & Johnny Hodges - Side By Side (1959) [Reissue 1999]

Posted By: gribovar
Duke Ellington & Johnny Hodges - Side By Side (1959) [Reissue 1999]

Duke Ellington & Johnny Hodges - Side By Side (1959) [Reissue 1999]
XLD Rip | FLAC (tracks+.cue+log) - 288 MB | MP3 CBR 320 kbps (LAME 3.93) - 108 MB | Covers - 134 MB
Genre: Jazz, Swing | RAR 3% Rec. | Label: Verve (521 405-2)

Topping off a wealth of full-band recordings, the various stars of Ellington's great outfit recorded many combo sides under their own names. And while not on the same sophisticated level of classic Ellingtonia, the late-'30s material cut by Johnny Hodges, Cootie Williams, and Rex Stewart is packed with tasty solo work and some of the finest examples of early small-group swing. These later examples from 1958-1959 feature Hodges backed by both Ellington and Billy Strayhorn on piano and such non-Duke luminaries as Ben Webster, Roy Eldridge, Harry "Sweets" Edison, and Jo Jones. Like its companion album, Back to Back, Side by Side has a loose, jam session feel, with all the soloists stretching out. Hodges is in top form throughout, while Edison and Webster man their spots just fine. Highlights include the sveltely swinging "Going Up" and Hodges' bluesy closer, "You Need to Rock." A must for fans of vintage combo swing.

Shelly Manne & His Men - Here That's Manne: Septet & Quintet Sessions 1951-1958 (2009) 3CD Box Set

Posted By: Designol
Shelly Manne & His Men - Here That's Manne: Septet & Quintet Sessions 1951-1958 (2009) 3CD Box Set

Shelly Manne & His Men - Here That's Manne: Septet & Quintet Sessions 1951-1958 (2009) 3CDs
EAC | FLAC | Tracks (Cue&Log) ~ 1.1 Gb | Mp3 (CBR320) ~ 520 Mb | Scans ~ 102 Mb | Time: 03:47:07
West Coast Jazz, Mainstream Jazz, Cool, Bop | Label: Fresh Sound | # FSRCD 2251

3-CD Box set, 60-page booklet including comprehensive biography, original liner notes and cover art, rare photos, unseen memorabilia and extensive discography. Shelly Manne (1920-1984) was one of the most important drummers in jazz history. Opening with his first recordings as a leader for Dee Gee Records in 1951 (Chicago) and 1952 (Los Angeles), this collection covers both these septet sessions and the great series of all-star septet and quintet recordings made for Contemporary by Shelly Manne and His Men between 1953 and 1958. Here’s that Manne.

Henry Mancini - The Real... Henry Mancini: The Ultimate Collection (2014) 3CD Set

Posted By: Designol
Henry Mancini - The Real... Henry Mancini: The Ultimate Collection (2014) 3CD Set

Henry Mancini - The Real… Henry Mancini: The Ultimate Collection (2014) 3CD Set
EAC | FLAC | Tracks (Cue&Log) ~ 961 Mb | Mp3 (CBR320) ~ 391 Mb | Scans included | 02:47:36
Instrumental Pop, Easy Listening, Jazz | Label: RCA Victor, Sony Music | # 88875010252

Henry Mancini was an American composer, conductor and arranger, who is best remembered for his film and television scores. Often cited as one of the greatest composers in the history of film, he won four Academy Awards, a Golden Globe, and twenty Grammy Awards, plus a posthumous Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 1995. His best known works include the theme to The Pink Panther film series ("The Pink Panther Theme"), "Moon River" to Breakfast at Tiffany's, and the theme to the Peter Gunn television series. The Peter Gunn theme won the first Grammy Award for Album of the Year. Mancini also had a long collaboration on film scores with the film director Blake Edwards. 2014 three CD box set containing 60 of the composer/arranger's finest recordings. Features 'Moon River', 'Baby Elephant Walk', 'Peter Gunne' and many others.

Judy Garland - Over The Rainbow (2005) 4 CD Set [Quadromania Series]

Posted By: Designol
Judy Garland - Over The Rainbow (2005) 4 CD Set [Quadromania Series]

Judy Garland - Over The Rainbow (2005) 4 CD Set [Quadromania Series]
EAC | FLAC | Image (Cue&Log) ~ 866 Mb | Mp3 (CBR320) ~ 501 Mb | Scans included
Vocal Jazz, Vocal Pop, Show/Musical | Label: Membran | # 222430-444 | Time: 03:38:04

This is an essential package! Whoever put this together obviously knew what they were doing, and all is placed in chronological order. Discs 1-3 are a terrific compilation of material from the MGM years, consisting of commercial recordings of soundtrack materal. If no recording was commercially released, the original soundtrack is used-great for such numbers as "Hoe Down" with Mickey Rooney! But the last disc makes this package essential-here is a pristine soundboard recording of Judy's final performance at the Palace Theater, MYC-2/24/52! She was concluding a 19-week engagement, and the atmosphere is electric. Fantastic stuff!

Ella Fitzgerald - Newport Jazz Festival: Live At Carnegie Hall (1973) 2 CD, Japanese Remastered Reissue 1997

Posted By: Designol
Ella Fitzgerald - Newport Jazz Festival: Live At Carnegie Hall (1973) 2 CD, Japanese Remastered Reissue 1997

Ella Fitzgerald - Newport Jazz Festival: Live At Carnegie Hall (1973) 2 CD, Japanese Remastered 1997
EAC | FLAC | Tracks (Cue&Log) ~ 758 Mb | Mp3 (CBR320) ~ 324 Mb | Scans ~ 38 Mb
Vocal Jazz, Standards | Label: Sony Records | # SRCS 9211-2 | Time: 02:22:09

This two-CD set (a reissue of an earlier two-LP set plus six previously unreleased numbers) brings back a memorable Carnegie Hall concert that both features and pays tribute to Ella Fitzgerald. The great singer is joined on a few numbers by a Chick Webb reunion band that has a few of the original members (plus an uncredited Panama Francis on drums). Although the musicians do not get much solo space (why wasn't trumpeter Taft Jordan featured?), the music is pleasing. Fitzgerald performs three exquisite duets with pianist Ellis Larkins and then sits out while the Jazz at the Philharmonic All-Stars romp on a few jams and a ballad medley. Trumpeter Roy Eldridge's emotional flights take honors, although tenorman Eddie "Lockjaw" Davis and trombonist Al Grey are also in good form. Fitzgerald comes out for the second half of the show and sings 14 numbers with guitarist Joe Pass (including a pair of tender duets) and the Tommy Flanagan trio.

Billie Holiday - Rare Live Recordings 1934-1959 (2007) 5CD Box Set

Posted By: Designol
Billie Holiday - Rare Live Recordings 1934-1959 (2007) 5CD Box Set

Billie Holiday - Rare Live Recordings 1934-1959 (2007) 5CD Box Set
EAC | FLAC | Tracks (Cue&Log) ~ 834 Mb | Mp3 (CBR320) ~ 751 Mb | Scans ~ 63 Mb
Vocal Jazz, Swing, Standards, Vocal Pop | Label: ESP Disk | # ESP 4039 | Time: 05:28:24

These rare treasures take you all across Billie's career-from '35, the year she debuted at the Apollo and first charted, to '59, the year she died. The stunning early performances include a 20-year-old Billie with Ellington in '35 and a 1937 radio broadcast from the Savoy Hotel in NY with the Basie Orchestra; you'll also hear rare rehearsal tapes, her Monterey '58 performance, songs on The Eddie Condon Show, The Tonight Show, The Steve Allen Show, an impromptu recording of Billie and friends singing My Yiddish Mamma, and more with Art Tatum, Lionel Hampton, Johnny Hodges, Lester Young, Coleman Hawkins and more! Includes 129 tracks: Swing Brother Swing; Fine and Mellow; I'll Get By; Billie's Blues; All of Me; Lover Man; Them There Eyes; You're My Thrill; I Cover the Waterfront; Porgy; Tenderly; God Bless the Child; My Man; Moanin' Low; Ghost of a Chance, and more.