100 Best Of Blue Note

The first of 100 tunes in this collection is a 1937 recording of tenor saxophonist Coleman Hawkins and guitarist Django Reinhardt playing Out Of Nowhere. It was recorded two years before Blue Note Records was founded. The taping was done for EMI’s Capitol label’s French division. This is an ominous hint as to the content of the 10-disc “100 Best of Blue Note” box set, which at first glance appears to have all the trimmings of a slick 21st century collection.

Granted, a single-disc overview of Blue Note's finest recordings can't help but offer listeners more than a myopic view of the label's true scope, but for jazz neophytes, this nine-track collection will undoubtedly serve as a tantalizing taste of the company's riches. The song selection, though lacking few surprises, is consistently wonderful – how could a disc featuring John Coltrane's "Blue Train," Herbie Hancock's "Maiden Voyage," Horace Silver's "Song for My Father" and Lee Morgan's "The Sidewinder" be anything but? – and purists' complaints aside, for new fans it's a solid introduction to the Blue Note magic.

One of the great jazz trumpeters of all time, Freddie Hubbard formed his sound out of the Clifford Brown/Lee Morgan tradition, and by the early '70s was immediately distinctive and the pacesetter in jazz.

Blue Note Plays the Beatles contains 11 previously released performances by jazz artists dipping into the Lennon/McCartney songbook. When deciding to cover such well-known songs, an artist has two possible ways of going about it: either re-create the track with no challenge to the original or attempt the complete opposite. Falling into the first category are "I've Just Seen a Face" by Holly Cole, "And I Love Her" by Kevin Hays, and "Come Together" by Dianne Reeves and Cassandra Wilson with Bob Belden.

The Best of Don Pullen collects nine highlights from Don Pullen's 11 years with Blue Note. Spanning the late '80s and early '90s, the compilation includes tracks culled from the pianist's time with the George Adams Quartet, his trio albums (one with Gary Peacock, one with Tony Williams) and cuts he recorded with his group the African-Brazilian Connection. While his original recordings remain the best way to understand his achievements, this collection is a good introduction to his style for the curious, featuring such titles as "Song from the Old Country," "New Beginnings," "Jana's Delight," "Indio Gitano," "Reservation Blues," "El Matador" and "Andre's Ups and Downs."

De samenwerking van Trijntje Oosterhuis met de Amerikaanse legende Burt Bacharach en het Metropole Orkest heeft inmiddels twee uiterst succesvolle albums opgeleverd. Genoeg materiaal voor een volledig concert gewijd aan het materiaal dat in de jaren zestig aan de basis stond van de carrière van wereldsterren als Dionne Warwick en Dusty Springfield. Dat concert vond plaats in de Heineken Music Hall, op 2 oktober 2009. Hoewel er weinig wordt afgeweken van de bekende arrangementen lukt het Trijntje toch de liedjes zich eigen te maken, waarmee ze dit tijdloze materiaal bij een hele nieuwe generatie luisteraars introduceert.

This best-of collection tellingly starts off with four consecutive, woefully banal tracks from Elias' 1991 album A Long Story. It's certainly her most commercial work; whether it's her best is highly debatable. The disc doesn't get out from under the fluffy wordless vocals and synth pads until track seven, "Fantasia (To Amanda)," a teasingly short duet with bassist Eddie Gomez.

Larry Young - The Complete Blue Note Recordings Of Larry Young (1964-69) [6CD BoxSet] {1991 Mosaic Remaster}
EAC rip (secure mode) | FLAC (tracks)+CUE+LOG -> 2.20 Gb | MP3 @320 -> 865 Mb
Artwork @ 300 dpi (jpg) -> 31 Mb | 5% repair rar
© 1964-69, 1991 Mosaic Records / Blue Note | MD6-137
Jazz / Soul Jazz / Hard Bop / Hammond B-3

Larry Young, one of the most significant jazz organists to emerge after the rise of Jimmy Smith, is heard on this limited-edition six-CD set at the peak of his creativity. Formerly available as nine LPs, the set includes the original Larry Young albums Into Somethin', Unity, Of Love and Peace, Contrasts, Heaven on Earth, and Mother Ship, while drawing from the compilations 40 Years of Jazz, The History of Blue Note (Dutch), The World of Jazz Organ (Japanese), and The Blue Note 50th Anniversary Collection Volume Two: The Jazz Message, and also including guitarist Grant Green's Talkin' About, Street of Dreams, and I Want to Hold Your Hand.

Part of Blue Note's quality series of artist samplers, The Best of Hank Mobley surveys the great tenor saxophonist's prime stretch from 1955-1965. Originally overshadowed by the likes of Joe Henderson, Wayne Shorter, and, of course, Coltrane, Mobley nevertheless gained the respect of his peers, thanks to his richly fluid phrasing and smooth, caramel tone – in lieu of trying to impress you, he seduced you slowly from afar. And while one is advised to dive in directly with any one of his Blue Note discs – especially Soul Station, No Room for Squares, and A Slice of the Top – this ten-track overview still works well as a launching pad. Backed by a stellar array of "Blue Note" regulars like Lee Morgan, Curtis Fuller, Billy Higgins, Freddie Hubbard, and Horace Silver, Mobley ranges effortlessly from early hard bop favorites ("Funk in a Deep Freeze") to mature, solo-rich material from the mid-'60s ("The Turnaround"). In between, there are two stunning originals from his banner year of 1960 ("This I Dig of You," "Take Your Pick") and one of the best of his several bossa nova numbers ("Recado Bossa Nova"). For listeners who just want a taste, this best-of collection will do the trick just fine.

Larry Young - Unity (1965) {Blue Note Japan SHM-CD UCCQ-5049 rel 2014} (24-192 remaster)
EAC rip (secure mode) | FLAC (tracks)+CUE+LOG -> 467 Mb | MP3 @320 -> 153 Mb
Full Artwork @ 600 dpi (png) -> 220 Mb | 5% repair rar | 24-bit 192 kHz remaster
© 1965, 2014 Universal Japan / Blue Note | BN 75th The Masterworks | UCCQ-5049
Jazz / Hard Bop / Soul Jazz / Organ Hammond B-3

Features the high-fidelity SHM-CD format (compatible with standard CD player) and the latest 24bit 192kHz remastering. A brilliant album that would forever change the way the organ was used in jazz! The set's the greatest contribution ever from organist Larry Young – a lean and modal session recorded with help from a young quartet that includes Woody Shaw, Joe Henderson, and Elvin Jones – all leaping and loping with Larry's free-thinking work on the Hammond – stretching things out into spiritual grooves that belie Young's fascination with Coltrane's sound of the time, and his freer fusion work of later years!