Left XG

This here is the definition of international jazz, recorded in Paris in 1956 by two relaxed, unpretentious, melodic, and well-rehearsed groups including both American and European jazz musicians. These meetings were documented in two excellent albums: “Jazz on the Left Bank” and “Réunion à Paris.”

Various Artists - Out Of Left Field: Where Soul Meets Country (2016) {Ace Records CDCHD 1464}
EAC rip (secure mode) | FLAC (tracks) +CUE+LOG -> 421 Mb | MP3 @320 -> 168 Mb
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© 2016 Ace Records | CDCHD 1464
Country / Soul

Not a set of country-styled soul music – as you might guess from the title – and instead a package that shows the undeniable influence that soul music songs had on the sound of country music in the 60s and 70s! The flipside of the scene has been well-documented on collections of western-tinged soul music we've stocked in the past – but this great set is the first we've ever heard to show the way that country singers were able to easily pick up hit soul songs of the time, then recraft them completely with a whole new sort of style!

All I Got Left, the new solo album from internationally acclaimed guitarist, singer and songwriter Chris Bergson, is an intimate, stripped-down affair. Bergson’s “glorious guitar” (Blues Magazine) provides the only accompaniment for his “deeply soulful vocals.” (Blues in Britain.) Hailed as "the New York street poet with a blues soul” (MOJO) and "one of the most inventive songwriters in modern blues music" (All Music Guide), Bergson offers a collection of songs that speak to the shared experience of the past year through the universal lens of the blues. Born during lock down in New York City in 2020, the album includes original material – both new and reimagined - inspired by lived-in scenes of the pandemic, along with new interpretations of songs by Richard Julian (Norah Jones, Little Willies), Glenn Patscha (Ollabelle, Rosanne Cash), Chuck Berry and Bob Dylan.

The warm roots rock of Frank Migliorelli & The Dirt Nappers glows throughout their newest release, The Things You Left Behind as they inject power pop, country twang, love ballads and protest anthems into their well-worn sound.

Although the Concertos for Piano (left hand) by Korngold, Prokofiev, Ravel and others may be better known, it was Josef Labor who marked the beginning of the genre in 1915 with his first Konzertstück for Piano (left hand) and Orchestra. It was commissioned by Paul Wittgenstein, who had lost his right arm in Russia during the First World War, but was determined that his career should progress nonetheless. Labor was part of Johannes Brahms’ close circle of friends who, at the age of three, had lost his sight due to smallpox. Composition was a luxury for him, in that he had to rely on the help of an amanuensis to commit his works to paper. Labor’s music is very skillfully composed, always sensuous and, above all, melodious. These world premiere recordings represent a high-point in Capriccio's Labor-Edition, which for a number of years has been spotlighting the sensitive music of this largely forgotten composer.

Chico Freeman (tripling on this album on tenor, soprano and bass clarinet) made many records from 1977-84, and all are worth picking up by fans of adventurous jazz. Freeman's warm tone and knowledge of more traditional areas of jazz make even his more abstract flights seem fairly accessible. Joined by vibraphonist Jay Hoggard, bassist Rick Rozie and drummer Don Moye on this somewhat obscure effort, Freeman stretches out on lengthy renditions of his originals "No Time Left," "Uhmla," and a briefer "Circle."

Bill Evans - From Left To Right (1970) {Verve 557 451-2 rel 1998}
EAC rip (secure mode) | FLAC (tracks)+CUE+LOG -> 276 Mb | MP3 @320 -> 122 Mb
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© 1970, 1998 Verve / PolyGram | 557 451-2
Jazz / Post-Bop / Modal Music / Piano

In the '60s the jazz pianist Bill Evans would occasionally record an orchestral "easy listening" session to pay the bills, with predictably mediocre results. But FROM LEFT TO RIGHT, while certainly easy on the ears, is also one of Evans' most intriguing "lost" records, brought to us courtesy of Verve's winning "By Request" series. The novelty is that Evans plays both Fender Rhodes and acoustic piano simultaneously in real time, trading off themes and improvs with deliberative taste and, of course, rare skill. The sessions were produced by Evans' long-time, protective manager Helen Keane, so there was little danger of "selling out."