Concord

Ray Brown was in at the beginning of the Concord Jazz record label in the early '70s, and starting with Brown's Bag in 1975, he recorded a dozen albums as a leader for Concord before departing for Telarc Records in the early '90s. This two-disc compilation, with a running time of almost two hours and 20 minutes, presents 24 selections drawn from 19 Concord Jazz albums recorded between 1973 and 1993, including live performances at the Concord Jazz Festivals, recordings by Brown's trio and the L.A. 4, and a Brown duet with Jimmy Rowles, among other configurations. As a bass player, Brown only rarely solos, so one usually notices the horn players (Harry "Sweets" Edison, Red Holloway, Plas Johnson, Richie Kamuca, Blue Mitchell, Ralph Moore, and Bud Shank), the pianists (Monty Alexander, George Duke, Gene Harris, Art Hillery, and Rowles), or other frontline musicians…

Ray Brown was in at the beginning of the Concord Jazz record label in the early '70s, and starting with Brown's Bag in 1975, he recorded a dozen albums as a leader for Concord before departing for Telarc Records in the early '90s. This two-disc compilation, with a running time of almost two hours and 20 minutes, presents 24 selections drawn from 19 Concord Jazz albums recorded between 1973 and 1993, including live performances at the Concord Jazz Festivals, recordings by Brown's trio and the L.A. 4, and a Brown duet with Jimmy Rowles, among other configurations. As a bass player, Brown only rarely solos, so one usually notices the horn players (Harry "Sweets" Edison, Red Holloway, Plas Johnson, Richie Kamuca, Blue Mitchell, Ralph Moore, and Bud Shank), the pianists (Monty Alexander, George Duke, Gene Harris, Art Hillery, and Rowles), or other frontline musicians…

The Concord Jazz Guitar Collective was a 1995 project that united Howard Alden with fellow guitarists and Concord artists Jimmy Bruno and Frank Vignola. For Concord, a three-guitar date was hardly unprecedented; back in 1974, the label had brought Barney Kessel, Charlie Byrd, and Herb Ellis together as the Great Guitars. Despite the fact that they all play the same instrument, Alden, Bruno, and Vignola prove compatible on this outing, which also employs Jim Hughart on upright bass and Colin Bailey on drums. Although Bruno tends to be more aggressive and forceful than Alden, he can be quite lyrical when he wants to; and while Alden isn't as hard a player as Bruno, he definitely swings. The two have a strong rapport on uptempo numbers like Charlie Parker's "Ornithology," Sam Jones' "Bittersweet," and Benny Goodman's "Seven Come Eleven," as well as on more relaxed performances like Django Reinhardt's "Song D'Autumne"…

Herb Ellis & Joe Pass - Seven, Come Eleven (1973) {2014 Japan Concord Jazz Selection Series UCCO-90302}
EAC rip (secure mode) | FLAC (tracks)+CUE+LOG -> 247 Mb | MP3 @320 -> 100 Mb
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© 1973, 2014 Concord / Universal Japan | UCCO-90302
Jazz / Bop / Post Bop / Guitar

The second Concord album was recorded the day after the first with the same lineup: guitarists Herb Ellis and Joe Pass, bassist Ray Brown and drummer Jake Hanna. Pass would sign with Pablo but Ellis would be a fixture on the Concord label throughout the 1970s. If anything, the guitarists' rematch was a bit stronger than their first due to material better suited for jamming including "In a Mellotone," a speedy "Seven Come Eleven," "Perdido" and "Concord Blues." Although Pass would soon be recognized as a giant, Ellis battles him to a draw on this frequently exciting bop-oriented date, which has been reissued on CD.

True Concord’s newest album, A Dream So Bright, features two world premiere recordings of works by Jake Runestad. His EMMY®­-winning choral/orchestral work, Earth Symphony, with poetry of Todd Boss, was commissioned and premiered by True Concord in 2022. Dreams of the Fallen, Runestad’s prize­-winning work for solo piano, chorus & orchestra, features pianist Jeffrey Biegel and includes texts of the poet Brian Turner, a veteran of the Iraq and Afghanistan war. Turner states: When the music lifts to its peak, when the choir sings into the high cathedral of the human experience—the hairs on the back of my neck take notice, my own heart takes notice, and I am moved once again by the fusion of sound and story. “Dreams of the Fallen” is a compassionate, emotionally­ layered, elegant, and poignant work of art that I am proud to be a part of.