Butterfly (1982) [repost]

This was an excellent outing by the Count Basie Orchestra during its later years. Actually, half of this album features a medium-sized group from Basie's big band, but his orchestra usually had the feel of a small group anyway. Soloists at this late stage include Eric Dixon and Kenny Hing on tenors, trombonist Booty Wood, altoist Danny Turner and four different trumpeters. The rhythm section is of course instantly recognizable and the music is very much in the Basie tradition.

Michel Petrucciani was not quite 20 years old at the time of this trio session with drummer Aldo Romano and bassist Furio Di Castri, but he was already displaying incredible potential as a pianist. Petrucciani's risk-taking interpretation of Bill Evans' turbulent "Very Early" is the highlight of this release, closely followed by his own bittersweet ballad, "I Just Say Hello." Romano's rapid fire "Samba Des Prophetes" is superior to his rather bland and predictable "Pasolini."

German-born composer and arranger Claus Ogerman, born in 1930, must rank as one of the most versatile musicians of the twentieth century. When he was at his peak in the 1970s, writing everything from ballet scores to arrangements for Brazilian composer Antonio Carlos Jobim, diva Barbra Streisand, and jazz/R&B saxophonist George Benson, there was hardly a radio station on the dial where his music wasn't heard during the course of a typical day – and he's still quite active. The key to his success has been his ability to stay in the background behind the musician he's working with and yet create something distinctive…

Mozart's music for flute always seems to cause a twofold reaction. On the one hand, the music is undeniably beautiful, balanced and just a little more than what could be expected from the "gallant" style. On the other hand, note-writers are at pains to point out that Mozart apparently did not like the flute as an instrument and that in the case of the Flute Quartets, two of the four have not even been proved to be genuine Mozart.

On the current CD issue you can hear just how superbly Carmirelli plays the most difficult passages, and how glowing a sound stage the engineers captured at the recording site. The fullness of so many Stradivarius string instruments creates a lavish outpouring of tones, an embarrasment of riches which quite overwhelms one.

This CD is a straight reissue of a Pablo LP. Norman Granz teamed together the very distinctive trumpeters Dizzy Gillespie, Freddie Hubbard and Clark Terry with pianist Oscar Peterson, guitarist Joe Pass, bassist Ray Brown and drummer Bobby Durham for a "Trumpet Summit." This particular release features (with one exception) unissued material from the session. There are four versions of a slow blues (only the fourth was released before), all of which have very different solos from the three trumpeters. In addition they interact on "Wrap Your Troubles in Dreams" and share the spotlight on a three-song ballad medley; Hubbard's "Here's That Rainy Day" is hard to beat.