Just three months before his death, pianist BIll Evans was extensively recorded at the Village Vanguard. Originally, one or two LPs were to be released featuring his brilliant new trio (with bassist Marc Johnson and drummer Joe LaBarbera), but after the innovative pianist's death, the project was stalled for over 15 years. Finally, when Warner Bros. got around to it, a definitive six-CD box set was released (although unfortunately in limited-edition form). Evans sounded quite energized during his last year, Johnson was developing quickly as both an accompanist and a soloist, and the interplay by the trio members (with subtle support from LaBarbera) sometimes bordered on the telepathic. The playing throughout these consistently inventive performances ranks up there with the Evans-Scott LaFaro-Paul Motian trio of 20 years earlier.
For their expanded 2002 reissue of Randy Newman's classic Sail Away album, Rhino/Reprise unearthed five previously unissued gems. Of these, arguably the most notable is the studio version of "Maybe I'm Doing It Wrong," originally released on the stop-gap Randy Newman Live album; it was left off the album because Newman and his producers felt that he didn't capture the song but, decades later, this sounds every bit as good, if not better, than the issued live version. Of the remaining four bonus tracks, only "Let It Shine" isn't an alternate version or demo, and while it's not quite up to the high standards of the other songs on Sail Away, it's still quite strong. If the early version of "Dayton, Ohio – 1903" isn't radically different, the early version of "Sail Away" is – bouncy and bluesy, its humor more apparent. Finally, the demo of "You Can Leave Your Hat On" is a little rawer than the album version and wholly welcome. Though these five bonus tracks are the main attraction for Randy Newman fans, the remastered sound, the liner notes by David Wild, introduction by Randy, and rare photos make this another wonderful reissue in Rhino's line of Newman expanded editions.
Fruit of the fusion of three musicians, their voices and their strings, Trio Zéphir has been wavering among cultures and sound territories for more than a decade. Nourished by world music but also classical music and jazz, the Trio is exploring new sensitive areas, those that erase the instrumentalist for the benefit of a music full of raw emotion. Together Delphine Chomel (violin), Marion Diaques (alto) and Claire Menguy (cello) compose a music which goes far beyond the boundaries of a classical Trio. For this new album they have chosen to find their inspiration in their favorite field: the theme of travelling by train and its consecutive poetic dreaming world.