The Belmonts are an American doo-wop group from the Bronx, New York, that originated in the mid-1950s. The original group consisted of Fred Milano, Angelo D'Aleo, and Carlo Mastrangelo. They took their name from Belmont Avenue, the street Milano lived on. There were several stages in their history, including the 1958–1960 period with Dion DiMucci, when the group was named Dion and the Belmonts. At this time Mastrangelo sang the bass parts, Milano the second tenor, D'Aleo the falsetto, and DiMucci did lead vocals. With Dion they scored such hits as 'A Teenager in Love' (No 5) but this was a short relationship & after Dion went solo, they continued to gain hits with such songs as 'Tell Me Why' (No 18), 'Come on Little Angel' (No 28)…
The equality, the almost perfect balance in complement and contrast, of the musical collaboration between Steve Lacy and Mal Waldron was palpable in both its internal and external workings … These four CDs, captured live in Paris in 1981, are notable as the first documentation of their performances as a duo, a particularly felicitous exploration of common interests and uncommon talents, initiating an intermittent series of duo recordings that would span thirteen years, varying repertoire, and several labels, but never venture far from the groundwork that was established here.
The Nearest Faraway Place Vol. 1 (2008). Voices from unknown lands, the call of endless space and the pulse of our time are interlaced in the music of Gert Emmens. It is cosmic and at the same time it is very earthy. And his music is a very powerful. It infects the listener with its vivid energy. This album brings feelings of freshness and simultaneously recalls the best samples of classical electronic music. It has a strong melodical basis around which the composer draws up his improvisations. One hour and eleven minutes run very insensibly with the colorful music of Gert Emmens. His album "Nearest Faraway Place Volume 1" is undoubtedly not just an addition to the artist’s rich discography but also to the collection of any ambient/electronic music lover. It is a creative perception of our contradictory and rapidly changing world…
Vol. 1. One of the nice things about jazz is the cross-pollination of different players in multiple settings. No one would've thought of pairing swing violinist Stéphane Grappelli and bop pianist Oscar Peterson, for instance, but the match works very well. The pair have expanded into a quartet on this reissue with the aid of double bassist Niels-Henning Ørsted Pedersen and drummer Kenny Clarke. The set, recorded in 1973 in Paris, includes a handful of standards, from Pinkard/Tracey/Tauber's "Them There Eyes" to Rodgers & Hart's "Thou Swell." As one might guess, Grappelli is in his own element on upbeat, swinging pieces like "Makin' Whoopee" and "Walkin' My Baby Back Home." Peterson likewise joins in the spirit of these pieces, making them the most interesting interpretations on the album. Other material, like the lingering "Flamingo" and "My One and Only Love," are also enjoyable, but seem rather tepid in comparison…
More from Joe Louis Walker's searing Slim's engagement, Live at Slim's, Vol. 2 includes Joe Louis ripping through Ray Charles' "Don't You Know," and Little Milton's "Love at First Sight," and Rosco Gordon's overworked "Just a Little Bit," along with his own gems. Huey Lewis turns up again as the harpist on Walker's version of Haskell Sadler's "747."
As one of the most highly acclaimed series in the history of MTV, Unplugged afforded the opportunity for some of commercial music's most praised entertainers (as well as those musicians with a bit more artistic merit) to spotlight their hit songs in a different context. The show was met with surprisingly high acclaim and viewership, and everyone and their brother signed up for an "acoustic" session. Very Best of MTV Unplugged compiles some of the series most lauded moments, most notably Eric Clapton's smash performance of "Tears in Heaven."…