Neal Hefti

Frances Wayne - The Warm Sound (1957) {2012 Japan Jazz Best Collection 1000 Series WPCR-27197}
EAC rip (secure mode) | FLAC (tracks)+CUE+LOG -> 194 Mb | MP3 @320 -> 95 Mb
Full Artwork @ 600 dpi (png) -> 229 Mb | 5% repair rar | 24-bit remaster
© 1957, 2012 Atlantic / Rhino / WEA / Warner Japan | WPCR-27197 | Jazz Best Collection 1000 Series
Jazz / Vocal Jazz / Swing / Cool

Features 24 bit remastering and comes with a mini-description. The aptly titled The Warm Sound reunites Frances Wayne with husband and arranger Neal Hefti, adding to the equation a wonderful support unit including tenorist Al Cohn, guitarist Billy Mure, pianist Hank Jones, and flautist Jerome Richardson to yield one of the singer's most delightful and consistent sessions. Hefti keeps his more extravagant impulses in check here, creating a series of sophisticated but appealingly simple arrangements that underscore the breathy appeal of Wayne's vocals. Likewise, warhorses including "'Round Midnight" and "Prelude to a Kiss" prove particularly well-matched to her sexy but sweet persona.

The circumstances surrounding the recording of this album are as important as the music you will hear and enjoy. Inspired by the songbook of Count Basie, tenor saxophonist Stanley Turrentine and his wife of four years, organist Shirley Scott, planned on recording with a septet, and went into the studio with that band on October 12, 1963, but those sessions were scrapped. On October 14, two tracks were finished and included here, but October 21 saw the band pared down to a quintet, and the results were acceptable. Trumpeter Blue Mitchell's contributions were quite desirable, he was the second lead voice in the ensemble, and success was attained. Turrentine and Mitchell played together in the 1954 edition of the Earl Bostic ensemble, and happily renew their musical friendship…

Volume three in the Classics Georgie Auld chronology opens with the last four sides he cut for the Musicraft label on June 14, 1946. The 16-piece big band had Neal Hefti in the trumpet section, Auld, Al Cohn and Serge Chaloff in the reeds, and vocalist Sarah Vaughan featured on "You're Blasé." While Hefti's two original compositions are pleasantly modern sounding, the true gem from this date was Budd Johnson's rock-solid "Canyon Passage." Changes in the postwar entertainment industry resulted in the dissolution and dispersal of many big bands. Auld threw in the towel and waited about two-and-a-half years before resuming his recording career on January 17, 1949. His new band had ten pieces, including trombonist Billy Byers, pianist Jimmy Rowles and drummer Alvin Stoller…

The aptly titled The Warm Sound reunites Frances Wayne with husband and arranger Neal Hefti, adding to the equation a wonderful support unit including tenorist Al Cohn, guitarist Billy Mure, pianist Hank Jones, and flautist Jerome Richardson to yield one of the singer's most delightful and consistent sessions. Hefti keeps his more extravagant impulses in check here, creating a series of sophisticated but appealingly simple arrangements that underscore the breathy appeal of Wayne's vocals. Likewise, warhorses including "'Round Midnight" and "Prelude to a Kiss" prove particularly well-matched to her sexy but sweet persona.

While promoting Metallica's 11th album, Lars Ulrich claimed 72 Seasons was "maybe the most friction-free record we've ever made," which is a fair assessment of the LP. Never before has Metallica seemed so comfortable being Metallica, embracing their identity as a collective and letting each member play to their strengths: Ulrich's drums are pushed forward in the mix, Robert Trujillo roams wild with his bass, Kirk Hammett gets plenty of room to solo, while James Hetfield processes all he's learned in therapy. Hetfield provides the hook that holds together 72 Seasons: the title derives from the passing time during the first 18 years of life, the period when a child becomes a man. The album is filled with meditations on mortality and morality, Hetfield looking back on his raising with clarity, not anger.

Count Basie - The Complete Roulette Live Recordings Of Count Basie and His Orchestra, 1959-1962 (1991) {8CD Set Mosaic MD8-135}
EAC rip (secure mode) | FLAC (tracks)+CUE+LOG -> 3.14 Gb | MP3 @320 -> 1.24 Gb
Full Artwork @ 300 dpi (jpg) -> 71 Mb | 5% repair rar
© 1959-62, 1991 Mosaic Records | MD8-135
Jazz / Big Band / Swing

Count Basie defined the jazz meaning of swing. His band could get more bounce from a line that any other. And though his soloists were never of highest dazzle, they always fit the program. These live recordings from 1959, 1961 and 1962 capture the Count at his comfort. Mosaic has done its usual fine job with them on eight CDs. Roulette itself has reissued 12 of the cuts on a single CD entitled ``Basie in Sweden,`` for those who just want a taste.