Luis Dalvan

In the late 1920s, pianist Luis Russell was one many performers that helped lay the foundation for the Big Band era, yet his career wound down just as Goodman's and Basie's were kicking into high gear. Russell's band featured such New Orleans jazz players as Pops Foster, Albert Nicholas, and Paul Barbarin, along with future Ellington stars Rex Stewart and Barney Bigard. The music - energetic, hot, witty, danceable - was the bridge between the New Orleans and swing styles of jazz. This collection features a generous 24 tracks, and with cuts such as "You Rascal, You," the ribald "It's Tight Like That," and the eerie "New Call of the Freaks," it's a wild party waiting to happen.

It's a shame this and the earlier Classics collection split up the bandleader's prime 1930 recordings, but such is the way of a strictly chronological series. Those wanting just one disc that covers most of Russell's best work will want to pick up JSP's Savoy Shout disc, which includes 22 cuts from 1929-1930. But for collectors in need of all of the recordings Russell cut before Louis Armstrong practically swallowed up his band whole in 1934, the two Classics discs will certainly do the trick. And while this later disc pales a bit to the 1926-1930 collection, its first half does feature classic work from Russell's band and its spin-off combo, J.C. Higginbotham and His Six Hicks. Along with Higginbotham's own irrepressible trombone work, these sides also offer a wealth of solo treats from such band standouts as trumpeter Henry Allen and saxophonists Charlie Holmes and Albert Nicholas. The later 1931 and 1934 recordings might not match up to earlier classics like "Panama" and "Song of the Swanee," but they still include enough fine performances amongst the filler to keep the quality level up. A worthwhile disc, but one that's probably best suited for Russell completists.

José Luis Fernández Ledesma is a big name in the Mexican avant-garde musical scene. He is acknowledged as an adventurous creator and a proficient musician: his performing skills include guitars, keyboards, various ethnic wind, string and percussion instruments, something like a Mike Oldfield with a RIO heart. His first steps in the world of prog took place in Nirgal Vallis, a band contemporary of Iconoclast and others, that never got to release a proper LP. After the band disbanded, Fernández Ledesma began his solo venture determined to explore his unique musical vision. Singer/keyboardist Margarita Botello is his recurrent partner in almost all his records…

Luís de Narváez - Música de Vihuela II: Los Seis Libros del Delfín de Música
DbPowerAmp secure mode FLAC (tracks+log, no cue) + MP3 (320 kbps CBR) | 344.75 Mb (FLAC) + 161.05 Mb (MP3) | 65:30 minutes | Full info & covers.
classical, renaissance, vihuela | Auvidis-Astrée Records, Recorded at the Roman Church of Saint Lambert in September 1988. Cd published in 1996

The “Vihuela de mano” is a somewhat mysterious instrument. It evolved in Spain alongside the lute which it replaced at the begining of the 16th century and from which it differed in its guitar-like flat back and waisted shape. Narváez was a Spanish composer active during the second quarter of the sixteenth century. The Seys Libros del Delphin de Música was a large collection of his works for vihuela solo, published in 1538...