Blue+note+jazz

Shift is a welcome return to the emotive stylings of Logan Richardson, the Paris-based, Kansas City-born saxophonist and composer who garnered respect as a fluent voice with his 2007 debut Cerebral Flow (Fresh Sound) and projects with peers like pianist Gerald Clayton in NEXT Collective. With this debut on Blue Note the blending of culturally rich environments feed creative music realized by Richardson's dream band of jazz luminaries: guitarist Pat Metheny, pianist Jason Moran and a superb rhythm unit of bassist Harish Raghavan and drummer Nasheet Waits.

Blue Note Plays Cole Porter is a solid single-disc collection of Cole Porter standards culled from various Blue Note jazz releases. Included are such vintage cuts as trumpeter Lee Morgan's 1957 version of "Just One of Those Things" off The Cooker and tenor saxophonist Joe Henderson's 1964 take on "Night and Day" from Inner Urge.

Blue Note Plays Billie Holiday is a solid single-disc collection of standards associated with legendary vocalist Billie Holiday that were culled from various Blue Note releases. Included are such cuts as trumpeter Clifford Brown's 1953 version of "Easy Living" off New Star on the Horizon and tenor saxophonist Ike Quebec's take on "Lover Man" from his 1961 album It Might as Well Be Spring.

The soaring spirit of Blue Note Records – served up here with a really special twist to fit the mode of the Free Soul series! The package is overflowing with goodness – four hours' worth of listening, with a special focus on two periods of the label – that great late 60s/early 70s stretch when they were trying out so many new ideas and rhythms, including elements borrowed from soul, Latin, fusion, and Brazilian modes – and the more recent stretch that has seen Blue Note re-emerge as one of the most forward-thinking labels in jazz!

Bill Frisell convenes a new line-up of musical friends on his third Blue Note album Four, which features the acclaimed guitarist with Greg Tardy on saxophone and clarinet, Gerald Clayton on piano, and Johnathan Blake on drums. Together the foursome delve into intimate explorations of 13 Frisell originals both new and old to create this stunning new work that is a meditation on loss, renewal, and friendship.

This release is a change of pace for Eliane Elias. Instead of interpreting Brazilian songs, fusion, or modern bop, Elias shows off her classical technique on a set of acoustic solos plus six duets with Herbie Hancock. She really digs into the standards (sometimes sounding a little like Keith Jarrett) and creates some fairly free and unexpected ideas while putting the accent on lyricism. Some of the music is introspective, and there are wandering sections, but the net results are logical and enjoyable. As for the duets, Elias and Hancock mostly stay out of each other's way, which is an accomplishment when one considers that the four-part "Messages" is a series of free improvisations. There are playful spots (particularly on the adventurous ten-minute rendition of "The Way You Look Tonight") and, since Elias knows Hancock's style well (and was clearly thrilled to have him on the date), their collaborations work quite well.

Art Blakey - The Complete Blue Note Recordings Of Art Blakey's 1960 Jazz Messengers (1992) {6CD Mosaic MD6-141}
EAC rip (secure mode) | FLAC (tracks)+CUE+LOG -> 2.50 Gb | MP3 @320 -> 928 Mb
Full Artwork @ 300 dpi (jpg) -> 65 Mb | 5% repair rar
© 1960-61, 1992 Blue Note / Mosaic | MD6-141
Jazz / Hard Bop

Drummer Art Blakey led many great editions of the Jazz Messengers from the inaugural mid-'50s sessions until his death in the '90s. While arguments rage regarding which was his best, there is no doubt that the 1960-1961 unit figures in the debate. This wonderful six-disc set, notated with care and painstaking detail by Bob Blumenthal, covers studio and live sessions from March 6, 1960, to May 27, 1961, with the same personnel on all but two songs. Producer Michael Cuscuna used only first issue dates, and while he included some alternate takes, he did not litter the discs with second-rate vault material. They smoothly detail the band's evolution, cohesion, and maturation. This set, as with all Mosaic boxes, goes beyond essential. Get it post haste.

Clifford Brown - The Complete Blue Note and Pacific Jazz Recordings (1995) {4CD Set Capitol rec 1953-1954}
EAC rip (secure mode) | FLAC (tracks)+CUE+LOG -> 1.45 Gb | MP3 @320 -> 584 Mb
Full Artwork @ 600 dpi (png) -> 781 Mb | 5% repair rar
© 1953-54, 1995 Blue Note / Pacific Jazz / Capitol | CDP 7243 8 34195 2 4
Jazz / Bop / Hard Bop / Trumpet

This four-CD set has the exact same music as an earlier Mosaic five-LP box, but is highly recommended to those listeners not already possessing the limited-edition set. Trumpeter Clifford Brown is heard on the most significant recordings from the first half of his tragically brief career. Whether co-leading a date with altoist Lou Donaldson, playing as a sideman with trombonist J.J. Johnson, interacting with an all-star group of West Coast players, or jamming with the first (although unofficial) edition of Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers (a two-disc live performance with a quintet that also includes the drummer/leader, Donaldson and pianist Horace Silver), Brown is the main star.

Finally Blue Note issues a Latin collection from its Italian (Italiana SPA) and Brazilian (EMI-Odeon) vaults that reveals the true diversity of its catalog and exploits some of the serious sensuous grooves that DJs have been spinning for over a decade. This is the first of three volumes, all of which feature the rarest most representative tracks from the various trends in jazz that grew out of Brazilian pop in the '60s, '70s, and even '80s. For starters, there's the mean brass swagger of Luis Amuda Perez on "Upa Neguinho," which was written by Edu Lobo. Besides being a popular dance tune (you can hear that in the opening measures), it is a masterpiece of Brazilian big band arrangement. Also featured is the stellar "Noa Noa," a trademark of Sergio Mendez. This is a tough bossa nova trio jam, with arpeggiated piano figures cutting right through the rhythms in the tune. In addition, Mandrake Som's "Beriambu" was the first to utilize in a swinging pop jazz context the use of the one string percussion instrument – there's also a very soul-jazzy sax solo in the break. This set's full of warm, frighteningly good examples of bossa, samba, and even the MPB and Joven Guarda rhythms as they inform folk and jazz melodies and modal figures.