Buddy Lee

It was a tragedy that Lee Konitz's versatile nonet was not able to succeed commercially. Just like its leader, the group was able to stretch from swing standards, bop and cool jazz to freer improvisations and challenging originals…

In 1997, Blue Moon released Blues Bag/Louis Hayes, which contained two albums on one compact disc - Blues Bag, a 1965 disc originally released on Vee Jay by Buddy DeFranco), and Louis Hayes, a 1960 record also originally on Vee Jay) by Louis Hayes and his quintet.
Blues Bag (1965). For this unusual set clarinetist Buddy DeFranco is exclusively heard on bass clarinet while joined by drummer Art Blakey and an interesting group of players, some of who were with Blakey's Jazz Messengers at the time. DeFranco, Blakey, pianist Victor Feldman, and bassist Victor Sproles are featured as a quartet on four numbers while the other three songs add trombonist Curtis Fuller and either Lee Morgan or Freddie Hill on trumpet…

2022 release from the acclaimed singer/songwriter. On My Ideal (A Tribute to Chet Baker Sings), Amos Lee reanimates the songs of Chet Baker. Working with material sourced from 1954's iconoclastic Chet Baker Sings, including "My Funny Valentine" and "I Fall in Love Too Easily," Lee and his well-oiled jazz quartet deliver 16 gorgeous recordings that are, at once, expansive and understated, intimate and ambient-the perfect soundtrack for gatherings of every variety.

This issue of Buddy DeFranco's recordings as a leader of both a quintet and an orchestra between 1949 and 1952 is a welcome one. The material on these 24 cuts is standard fare from the swing era, which was way over by 1949, but it proves that DeFranco knew how to lead a big band and swing hard as a soloist in a quintet setting - especially with the company he kept. Some of his crew on these sides include Serge Chaloff, Teddy Charles, Teddy Kotick, Lee Konitz, Max Roach, Jimmy Raney, and Al Cohn, just to name a few. Arrangements for these tunes were done by DeFranco, George Russell, and Manny Albam, which gives the listener a taste of the varied sonic interests of the great clarinetist. The sound on these sides is a tiny bit thin, but that's a minor complaint. The material swings no matter the arrangement or the size of the band. This is an intimate look at an often overlooked jazz great.

At the end of 1973, it was reported that Buddy Rich had tired of the road and the challenge of meeting a payroll of 16, not including non-musicians. As reported in Mel Torme's bio of Buddy, he scaled down to a sextet(with variations) and someone bankrolled his own club.
Unlike the very young musicians in his big band, which came right out of Berklee and North Texas State, these were seasoned veterans. What a line-up! The great Kenny Barron - check out his recent playing with vocalist Hilary Kole. Also in the band - Sonny Fortune, Jack Wilkins, a young Anthony Jackson…

Buddy Guy is growing old in a great way! Like a vintage wine he's only getting better and better, deep and emotional. Recorded in Mississippi (all-acoustic, by the way) Buddy performs a moving set of pre-war and contemporary style blues. He does it his way, with a lot of soul, passion and feeling. Special guests: Eric Clapton and B.B. King!

Recorded when he was only 19, Candy was one of the first albums (along with The Cooker, recorded the same year) where Lee Morgan showed his own unique style. His prodigal technical virtuosity had already been proven at this time in the Dizzy Gilliespie band, but Morgan's first solo ventures had been remarkable only because of his young age. Here, the influence of some of Morgan's mentors can be seen, but instead of just emulating the style of older trumpeters like Clifford Brown, he has begun absorbing bits and pieces of the phrasing and style of a wide range of musicians, from Gillespie to Miles Davis, then using them to forge his own sound. Morgan places himself front and center here - there are no other horns to carry the melodic lines, leaving him quite exposed, but he manages to perform beautifully…