Big Star

When one considers the large number of great players who participated in this project (including trumpeters Arturo Sandoval, Randy Brecker and Chuck Findley, trombonist George Bohanon, the reeds of Eric Marienthal, Nelson Rangell, Tom Scott, Ernie Watts and Bob Mintzer, such keyboardists as Dave Grusin, Chick Corea, Ramsey Lewis and Russell Ferrante, bassist John Patitucci, drummer Dave Weckl, and guests B.B. King and tenor great Michael Brecker), the rather predictable results are a disappointment. With the exception of Chick Corea's recent "Blue Miles," this album could have been titled "Warhorses" due to the very familiar material. The arrangements by Michael Abene, Scott, Grusin, Mintzer and Ferrante contain no real surprises (other than some unexpected moments on "Misterioso"), and none of the solos are long enough to really build…

Refined big band compositions and Nordic throat singing. Yet again this big band shows its capabilities to surprise with something new every time. It is immediately recognisable through its unconventional, absorbing yet unambiguous approach. Their leader is absolutely uncompromising. Norwegian Geir Lysne, born in 1965, manages to create a uniquely radical sound and yet with his pieces still remains very accessible. It’s like a solved paradox. On his new CD "Boahjenásti – The North Star" you can hear a continuously unexpected but satisfying mix comprising everything from various electronic elements through jew’s harp to traditional Norwegian singing.

Various Artists - Acadian All Star Special (2011) {3CD Set, Bear Family BCD17206CK rec 1946-1959}
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© 1946-59, 2011 Bear Family Records | BCD 17206 CK
Country / Cajun / Folk / Traditional Country / North American Traditions

A labor of love and a monument to exhaustive research, Bear Family's 2011 box set Acadian All Star Special: The Pioneering Cajun Recordings of J.D. Miller contains every recording Cajun music producer J.D. Miller cut between 1946 and 1959. This simple description downplays the effort behind this triple-disc box. It took considerable effort to document each of these tracks, and more still for Lyle Ferbrache to assemble the notes, but the end result winds up as a cornerstone of Cajun music.

Milt Jackson Orchestra - Big Bags (1962) {Riverside OJCCD-366-2 rel 1989}
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© 1962, 1989 Riverside / Fantasy / OJC | OJCCD-366-2
Jazz / Hard Bop / Modern Big Band / Vibes

A sweet larger group session from vibist Milt Jackson – proof that he was really trying to stretch his wings, and get into new things during the 60s! The set's got Milt working with some great help from Tadd Dameron and Ernie Wilkins on larger group arrangements – nicely swinging charts that have a nice touch of modern, but lots of straightforward grooving too! Milt's the primary soloist, buoyed by an orchestra built around a rhythm section of Hank Jones on piano, Ron Carter on bass, and either Connie Cay or Philly Joe on drums – plus loads of great horn players like Clark Terry, Nat Adderley, Melba Liston, James Moody and Jimmy Heath among others.

Lionel Hampton All Star Band - Live At Newport '78 (1978) {2015 Japan Timeless Jazz Master Collection Complete Series CDSOL-63}
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© 1978, 2015 Timeless Records / Solid Records Japan / Ultra-Vibe | CDSOL-6372
Jazz / Mainstream Jazz / Big Band / Swing / Vibes

Reissue with the latest remastering. Features original cover artwork. Comes with a descripton in Japanese. Lionel Hampton was the first jazz vibraphonist and was one of the jazz giants beginning in the mid-'30s. He has achieved the difficult feat of being musically open-minded (even recording "Giant Steps") without changing his basic swing style.

Live concert: Rotterdam, January 28, 1967.
Duke Ellington was the most important composer in the history of jazz as well as being a bandleader who held his large group together continuously for almost 50 years. The two aspects of his career were related; Ellington used his band as a musical laboratory for his new compositions and shaped his writing specifically to showcase the talents of his bandmembers, many of whom remained with him for long periods…

Dutch girl Group formed around Patricia Paay. Originally formed as a gimmick for a Dutch TV-show ( with Yvonne Keeley and their mother Mrs. Paay) to perform a Andrews Sisters medley. Becoming a huge success, they replaced mother for Sylvana van Veen and became an act. After a few years the succees declined and they split up around 1987. In 2007 they tried to make a comeback with their former successingle "Stars on 45".