Raymond Fol's jazz arrangement of Antonio Vivaldi's "The Four Seasons" may have fallen into obscurity, but the French pianist's big band scoring of this classical favorite shows plenty of imagination. With a band of his fellow countrymen, along with expatriate Americans Johnny Griffin (tenor sax), bassist Jimmy Woode, and drummer Art Taylor, he casts a variety of moods, even within individual sections. In the first movement of "Le Printemps (The Spring)" he chooses an Afro-Cuban mood, while the second shifts to a smaller chamber jazz setting, showcasing guitarist Pierre Cullaz, vibraphonist Sadi, and the leader in turn.
Regularly engaged in the Blue Note of the rue d'Artois in the 60s, Lou Benett often performed as a trio with guitarists Jimmy Gourley and René Thomas and drummer Kenny Clarke. With the commercial success of Amen, his first recording, Lou joined the trumpet player Donald Byrd, then student in the composition class of Nadia Boulanger, to make an album with ambitious sound architecture. Benefiting from Thomas' highly mobile guitar and Kenny Clarke's rhythmic flexibility, the Paris Jazz All Stars playing Byrd's toning arrangements, Lou Bennett's churchy organ roars powerful chords. The blues, music of the Baptist temples, permeates a carnal music, widely open to dance.
B.B. King is not only a timeless singer and guitarist, he's also a natural-born entertainer, and on Live at the Regal the listener is treated to an exhibition of all three of his talents. Over percolating horn hits and rolling shuffles, King treats an enthusiastic audience (at some points, they shriek after he delivers each line) to a collection of some of his greatest hits…