Pinocchio V1.0

While most of the discussions of Frank Zappa have to do with his satirical and off-color lyrics, the fact remains that he was one of the finest and most underappreciated guitarists around. This collection places the spotlight squarely on Zappa's mastery of the guitar. Recorded for the most part in 1979 and 1980 (with a few tracks dating as far back as 1977), Shut Up 'n Play Yer Guitar is simply a collection of guitar solos. Even though most of the tracks were just edited out of their original song context, they fare well as stand-alone pieces, as Zappa was an ever-inventive player. Take, for example, the three versions of "Shut Up." These tracks were simply the guitar solos from "Inca Roads," but thanks to Zappa's ability for "instant composition," each version has its own complete story to tell, without ever being redundant…

The first of these is an album dedicated to 11 compositions by the American tenor and soprano saxophonist Wayne Shorter. Inspired by John Coltrane, Shorter made the news in the 1960s through his association with the Jazz Messengers, after which he worked intensively with the Miles Davis Quintet for many years, replenishing Davis’s band book with his own compositions. From 1971 to 1986 Shorter was on the move with the successful jazz rock group Weather Report, and since then he has been active with his own groups. The Pieranunzi Trio plays Wayne Shorter with an eye for the finishing touch and a feeling for style.

The renowned Cuban jazz drummer Ignacio Berroa's debut album as a bandleader is a percolating fusion of African rhythms, neo bop passages, and Berroa's own trademark technically brilliant yet intuitive playing. "Joao Su Merced" takes a litany of Berroa's personal influences as a foundation for extended forays into Afro-Cuban fusion, while "La Comparsa" alternates between straight-ahead jazz and Cuban-influenced solos. Berroa's supple, supportive accompaniment is an education in jazz drumming, though school was never like this.

X-Legged Sally (XLS) is a Belgian avant-garde rock/jazz-band founded in 1988 by composer Peter Vermeersch, and disbanded in 1997. They were one of the first bands from Belgium to combine a set of very different musical styles (jazz, rock, improvisation and classical), becoming a starting point for the Belgian indie music scene that developed in the nineties. Initially, X-Legged Sally was formed to compose and perform the music Peter Vermeersch wrote for dance productions, such as Immer das Selbe Gelogen (Always the Same Lies), released as a live cd in 1991. Vermeersch' composing style was becoming too demanding for the constraints of sheet music such as was used in his earlier band Maximalist! From the beginning, improvisation played an important role in XLS' songs. The first X-Legged Sally concert took place in November 1988. Soon, XLS became a band in its own right, although there would be cooperations with dance ensembles throughout the existence of the group.

Tingvall Trio - Vattensaga (2009) {Skip Records SKP 9087-2}
EAC rip (secure mode) | FLAC (tracks)+CUE+LOG -> 325 Mb | MP3 @320 -> 129 Mb
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© 2009 Skip Records | SKP 9087-2
Jazz / Contemporary Jazz / Modern Bop / Acoustic / Jazz Piano Trio

Following "Skagerrak" and "Norr" the Tingvall Trio finalizes their trilogy of Nordic stories with "Vattensaga". This 2009 release was recorded at the famous Arte Suono studio in Italy, best known for a series of great ECM recordings, the album boasts impeccable sound and the outstanding song-writing qualities of Martin Tingvall. Thirteen new musical pearls, featuring the sound paintings of drummer Jürgen Spiegel , the Mediterranean lightness of double bass player Omar Rodruguez Calvo and the dazzling piano playing of Martin Tingvall (here experiencing a Fazioli grand piano for the first time). A definite highlight of the trio’s recording history so far.

What a fantastic "jazz piano trio" - yes George Mraz is truly a bassist delight, sympathetic, emotive, with improvised soloing thrown in. Virtuosic players all three, Billy Hart is one of the greatest drummers for modern jazz - creative, inventive, and progressive! Last but not least - the leader - Richie Beirach on piano - a consistently inventive pianist whose ability to play straight ahead or avant-garde and with lyricism makes him an original.

One of Italy's best-loved artists, Adriano Celentano has been equally successful in film and music. Whether singing Elvis Presley-inspired rock, as he did as a member of the Rock Boys in 1957, or romantic balladry, Celentano found a dedicated market for his music. Reaching the top of the Italian music charts with his debut single "Il Tuo Bacio e Come un Skirt" in 1959, he matched its success with the million-selling "24000 Baci (24,000 Kisses)" in 1961; "Il Ragazzo Della Via Gluck," which went on to be translated and re-recorded in 18 languages, in 1966; and Prisencolinensinainciusol in 1972…

Bernard Peiffer was a popular pianist on the French jazz scene throughout a good part of the 1950s. Following intensive training as a classical pianist, Peiffer began playing jazz in distinguished company. While still a young man he played with Django Reinhardt, Hubert Rostaing and other European jazzmen and also with visiting Americans such as Rex Stewart, Don Byas and Sidney Bechet. By the end of the 40s he had become very well known in his native land, leading small groups and also working alone. Persuaded to visit the USA, he moved there in the mid-50s and thereafter commuted between the USA and Europe. An exceptionally accomplished technician, Peiffer’s solo playing was rich and sometimes florid. He was forward-thinking in his style, despite the swing era resonances of his early associations.

Most popular to theater audiences from his title role in Andrew Lloyd Webber's version of The Phantom of the Opera, Michael Crawford was in fact a star of the British stage and screen for almost two decades before that. Born in Wiltshire, England, in 1942, he began singing in the school choir and, while still a teenager, changed his name from Dumble-Smith to the more charismatic Crawford and began working in radio, television, and film. After first stepping on the London stage in the early '60s, Crawford's first regular television series was the BBC's 1960s show Not So Much a Programme, More a Way of Life; he appeared in several films as well (The War Lover, A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum, and a starring turn in How I Won the War, which also featured John Lennon).