Quincy Jones had jazz fans wondering when he released his killer Gula Matari album in 1970. That set, with gorgeous reading of Paul Simon's "Bridge Over Troubled Water" with a lead vocal by none other than Valerie Simpson, pointed quite solidly into the direction Jones was traveling: unabashedly toward pop, but with his own trademark taste, and sophistication at the forefront of his journey. Its follow-up, Smackwater Jack, marked Jones, along with Phil Ramone and Ray Brown in the producer's chair, and knocked purist jazz fans on their heads with its killer meld of pop tunes, television and film themes, pop vocals, and big-band charts. The personnel list is a who's- who of jazzers including Monty Alexander, Jim Hall, Pete Christlieb, Joe Beck, Bobby Scott, Ernie Royal, Freddie Hubbard, Jerome Richardson, Ray Brown, Jaki Byard, Toots Thielemans, and many others…
Quincy Jones had jazz fans wondering when he released his killer Gula Matari album in 1970. That set, with gorgeous reading of Paul Simon's "Bridge Over Troubled Water" with a lead vocal by none other than Valerie Simpson, pointed quite solidly into the direction Jones was traveling: unabashedly toward pop, but with his own trademark taste, and sophistication at the forefront of his journey. Its follow-up, Smackwater Jack, marked Jones, along with Phil Ramone and Ray Brown in the producer's chair, and knocked purist jazz fans on their heads with its killer meld of pop tunes, television and film themes, pop vocals, and big-band charts.
Primarily a renowned music critic and conductor and composer of ballets, Constant Lambert wrote very few choral works. Summer’s Last Will and Testament is an extensive cantata of stylistic diversity and emotional power. Completed in 1935, this setting of writings by the poet Thomas Nashe has strong claims to being one of its composer’s finest works. Despite attracting little attention at its premiere, Malcolm Arnold called it “one of the undiscovered treasures of the English choral repertoire”.
Features 24 bit remastering and comes with a mini-description. It isn't fair to limit Jack Wilson to two sides. The range of players with whom the pianist has performed: from Sammy Davis and Eartha Kitt to Jackie McLean and Roland Kirk, makes clear he is multi-dimensional. All that range is not demonstrated on this set, but – despite its title – this is not simply a program of uptempo tracks followed by an equal number of ballads.