J.J. Johnson, along with Bennie Green, was a founding father of bop trombone; Willie Dennis's promising career was cut short by an early death; "Jay and Kai" had successfully collaborated on several projects in the Fifties. But the unique and legendary meeting of these trombone giants, which first appeared on the Debut label and is reissued here, was unprecedented in jazz. Almost as remarkable is the rhythm section on this CD, with John Lewis making a rare appearance outside the Modern Jazz Quartet.
Reissue with the latest remastering. Comes with liner notes. One of JJ's best from the late 50s – a tightly crackling hardbop set, recorded very much in the manner of his classic JJ Inc album! The sound here is a bit more compact overall – with some shorter tracks that really allow Johnson to display his keen sense of economy on his horn, while working in a burning mode that recalls some of his best bop sides from the early years – particularly his work on Blue Note.
Reissue with the latest 2015 DSD remastering. Comes with liner notes. Not J.J. Johnson's initial public offering by any means, First Place was done with only a quartet in 1957 for Columbia Records, where other efforts by the legendary jazz trombonist were set in a larger ensemble format. Long out of print, this is now on CD with bonus tracks from 1954 featuring Charles Mingus. Playing standards and originals, Johnson assembled a mighty band with pianist Tommy Flanagan, bassist Paul Chambers, and especially on-fire drummer Max Roach, a group you'd be hard-pressed to top.
Verve Records celebrated the 50th anniversary of Norman Granz's first Jazz at the Philharmonic concert with an all-star get-together at Carnegie Hall. Different groups of top players from Verve's legacy (both past and present) had opportunities to perform, and this CD has many of the highlights. Pianist Peter Delano plays "Tangerine" with a trio; Dee Dee Bridgewater sings "Shiny Stockings" with the Carnegie Hall Jazz Band; Hank Jones pays tribute to Art Tatum; Abbey Lincoln sings "I Must Have That Man"; Joe Henderson meets up with Antonio Carlos Jobim (who made his final concert appearance) on "Desafinado"; "Manteca" features trumpeter Roy Hargrove and trombonist Steve Turre; pianist Yosuke Yamashita pays tribute to Bud Powell; Betty Carter scats on "How High the Moon"; Herbie Hancock and John McLaughlin play a restrained acoustic version of Bill Evans' "Turn out the Stars"; Hargrove teams up with altoist Jackie McLean and guitarist Pat Metheny for "The Eternal Triangle"; organist Jimmy Smith revisits Oliver Nelson's arrangement of "Down by the Riverside"; Art Porter and Jeff Lorber play some crossover, and J.J. Johnson contributes a few trombone solos.
Digitally remastered and expanded edition of this 1957 release from the Jazz trombonist, Johnson's second complete album ever in a quartet format. The sessions, with master accompaniment by Tommy Flanagan, Paul Chambers and Max Roach, went so well that material for two albums was gathered (the other album being First Class). As an added bonus, there are two quartet tracks taken from Johnson's previous quintet sessions, as well as five quintet tracks that complete all of the master takes from the latter of those sessions.
"Sexy…Soulful…Irresistible…Incredible." - Smooth Jazz Monthly "Increasing the boundaries of jazz." - Jazziz Saxophonist, vocalist, songwriter Jessy J is one of the brightest stars on the Smooth Jazz scene. My One And Only One is Jessy J's most deliciously grooving, sensuous, creative work to date. Produced by the great Paul Brown (George Benson, Boney James, Peter White), the album features special guest, Grammy winning keyboardist Gregg Karukas. Highlights include Jessy's sensitive re-imaginings of Adele's "Lovesong," Toni Braxton's "You're Makin' Me High," the R&B classic "Strawberry Letter 23" plus 7 great Jessy J originals.