Tocj 9408

Chico Hamilton - Peregrinations (1975) {2013 Japanese BNLA Series 24-bit Remaster TOCJ-50544}
EAC rip (secure mode) | FLAC (tracks)+CUE+LOG -> 231 Mb | MP3 @320 -> 89 Mb
Full Artwork @ 600 dpi (png) -> 220 Mb | 5% repair rar | 24-bit remaster
© 1975, 2013 Blue Note / EMI Music Japan | TOCJ-50544
Jazz / Post Bop / Jazz Funk / Groove / Drums

One more amazing chapter in the mighty development of drummer Chico Hamilton – a killer 70s session for Blue Note – and a record that goes way beyond his earlier experiments of the 50s, modal grooves of the 60s, and funk work for the Flying Dutchman label! The style here is fusion, but way fresher than the usual type – neither jamming rock-styled, nor mellow and smooth – and instead always tickled by Hamilton's sense of a unique rhythm, and his continued great ear for inventive use of reeds – in this case handled by Arthur Blythe on alto and Arnie Lawrence on soprano and tenor sax. The set's also got Steve Turre on bass and trombone, and both Barry Finnerty and Joe Beck on electric guitars – but the real genius is Chico himself, who handled arrangements and wrote most of the album's great tracks. Titles include the exotic number "Abdullah & Abraham" – plus "Andy's Walk", "Peregrinations", "It's About That Time", "Sweet Dreams", "On & Off", "Little Lisa", and "Space For Stacy".

Chico Hamilton - Chico Hamilton And The Players (1976) {2013 Japanese BNLA Series 24-bit Remaster TOCJ-50557}
EAC rip (secure mode) | FLAC (tracks)+CUE+LOG -> 249 Mb | MP3 @320 -> 98 Mb
Full Artwork @ 600 dpi (png) -> 228 Mb | 5% repair rar | 24bit remaster
© 1976, 2013 Blue Note / EMI Music Japan | TOCJ-50557
Jazz / Hard Bop / Post Bop / Cool

Chico Hamilton in the 70s just can't miss – he's really changed loads from his mellow 50s work in LA, and has a tendency to go for a hard grooving sound – but also one that's slightly left of center than the work of most other 70s jazz drummers – and we mean that in a good way! This cooking set for Blue Note is a great example of that offbeat approach – a tight set of fusion tracks with a warm finish and an edgey approach to the rhythms – awash with some really compelling numbers that will have you hunting down the rest of Chico's work from the decade!

Freddie Roach - Mo' Greens Please (1963) {2005 Japan Blue Note 65th 1500 Series, 24bit remaster, TOCJ-6640}
EAC rip (secure mode) | FLAC (tracks)+CUE+LOG -> 235 Mb | MP3 @320 -> 91 Mb
Full Artwork @ 300 dpi (jpg) -> 17 Mb | 5% repair rar
© 1963, 2005 Blue Note / Toshiba-EMI | TOCJ-6640 | 24bit remaster
Jazz / Soul Jazz / Hard Bop / Organ

Features the latest 24 bit remastering. Housed in one of Blue Note house graphic designer Reid Miles' most delightful covers – a powder-blue image featuring a nattily-dressed Freddie Roach receiving a heaping helping of the soul food in question – the outstanding Mo' Greens Please serves as a stepping stone between the more studied soul-jazz of the organist's label debut Down to Earth and the looser, deeper grooves of the following Good Move!

Chico Hamilton - The Chico Hamilton Trio Introducing Freddie Gambrell (1958) {Japan Pacific Jazz TOCJ-5366 rel 1991}
EAC rip (secure mode) | FLAC (tracks)+CUE+LOG -> 131 Mb | MP3 @320 -> 93 Mb
Full Artwork @ 600 dpi (jpg) -> 125 Mb | 5% repair rar | Mono
© 1958, 1991 Pacific Jazz / Toshiba-EMI Japan | TOCJ-5366
Jazz / Cool / West Coast Jazz / Piano Trio

Chico Hamilton Trio Introducing Freddie Gambrell is an album by drummer and bandleader Chico Hamilton released on the World Pacific label. Freddie Gambrell was a little known West Coast pianist playing at San Franciscos Bop City club when, in 1956, Chico Hamilton heard him for the first time. I was so impressed while listening to him play that I felt I must play with this guywhich often happens to a musician when he hears something that he really digs, especially if he is right there when its happeningand so I did, said Hamilton. Gambrells fresh, lively talent was immediately accepted throughout the jazz scene when his playing was heard on his first album, under Chico Hamiltons leadership.

Grant Green - Nigeria (1962) {2012 Japanese BNLT Series Remaster TOCJ-50284}
EAC rip (secure mode) | FLAC (tracks)+CUE+LOG -> 333 Mb | MP3 @320 -> 123 Mb
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© 1962, 2012 Blue Note / EMI Music Japan | TOCJ-50284
Jazz / Hard Bop / Soul Jazz / Guitar

Nigeria is an album by American jazz guitarist Grant Green featuring performances recorded in 1962 but not released on the Blue Note label until 1980. Damn great work from guitarist Grant Green – one of his killer sessions with pianist Sonny Clark – recorded in the early 60s, but unissued until nearly 20 years later! The groove here is a bit different than some of Green's early dates with organ – a bit more soulful hardbop at times, with some great work on rhythm from Sam Jones on bass and Art Blakey on drums – two great players who complete the group beautifully. The setting is calm and spare, but very fluid, and all players play with a brilliant edge – Blakey is excellent, and hearing him on this one makes you want more of his work as a sideman (which was to diminish greatly after this recording).

McCoy Tyner - The Real McCoy (1967) {Blue Note Japan TOCJ-4264 rel 1997}
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© 1967, 1997 Blue Note / Toshiba EMI | TOCJ-4264
Jazz / Post Bop / Piano

As pure a distillation of McCoy Tyner's lyrical vision as one could ever hope for – a brilliant early standout session for the pianist as a leader! McCoy is backed up here by the energetic drumming of Elvin Jones – with whom he shares a natural empathy from their many years together under Coltrane – as well as the incomparable bass of Ron Carter, and the spirited tenor of Joe Henderson – both players who make the quartet date explode with a fresh sense of imagination – the kind of work that has McCoy stepping out strongly from the shadows of The Great One, into a hip space of his own. The set glistens with 5 Tyner originals – including "Passion Dance", "Four By Five", "Contemplation" and "Search for Peace" – all of which point towards new directions in the post-Coltrane years!

Max Roach & Stan Levey - Drummin' The Blues (1957) {Liberty Japan TOCJ-9490, Mini LP rel 2003}
EAC rip (secure mode) | FLAC (tracks)+CUE+LOG -> 211 Mb | MP3 @320 -> 91 Mb
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© 1957, 2003 Liberty Records / Toshiba-EMI Japan | TOCJ-9490
Jazz / Bebop / Drums

When Howard Rumsey transitioned from Max Roach to Stan Levey at the Lighthouse, inevitable comparisons arose from the musicians on the bandstand and the fans in the audience. "Stan was a very simple, basic drummer," said saxophonist Bud Shank, "as opposed to Max, who was complex. But they both achieved the same purpose. They swung like hell." Drummer Don Lamond offered his take: "I loved Max. He was marvelous. But he could sometimes get a little erratic for my tastes. Stan just flows. He's smooth."

Jackie McLean - Swing, Swang, Swingin' (1959) {2007 Blue Note Japan RVG, TOCJ-7007}
EAC rip (secure mode) | FLAC+CUE+LOG -> 249 Mb | MP3 @320 -> 91 Mb
Full Artwork @ 300 dpi (jpg) -> 9 Mb | 5% repair rar
© 1959, 2007 Blue Note / Toshiba-EMI Japan | TOCJ-7007
Jazz / Hard Bop / Saxophone

One of Jackie McLean's earliest Blue Notes, Swing, Swang, Swingin' parts company with the vast majority of his output for the label by concentrating chiefly on standards (only one of the seven tunes is a McLean original). Perhaps as a result of Blue Note's more prepared, professional approach to recording sessions, McLean sounds invigorated here, catapulting each melody forward before launching into a series of impassioned improvisations.

Dizzy Reece - Star Bright (1959) {Blue Note Japan Mini LP, RVG TOCJ-9092 rel 1999}
EAC rip (secure mode) | FLAC (tracks)+CUE+LOG -> 198 Mb | MP3 @320 -> 93 Mb
Full Artwork @ 300 dpi (jpg) -> 12 Mb | 5% repair rar
© 1959, 1999 Blue Note / Toshiba-EMI Japan | TOCJ-9092 | 24bit remastering
Jazz / Hard Bop / Trumpet

The greatest of Dizzy Reece's 3 LPs for Blue Note – and it's also the hardest to find! The British trumpeter is playing here with a group that is totally classic hardbop Blue Note – and which includes Hank Mobley on tenor, Wynton Kelly on piano, Paul Chambers on bass, and Art Taylor on drums. Mobley's playing is fantastic – as on all of his Blue Notes – and his presence alone takes the set into another level. His solos on the harder tracks are all great, and played with a razor-sharp edge that opens up Reece a lot more than usual. Tracks include "The Rebound", "Groovesville", "The Rake", and "A Variation On Monk". Great stuff, and a true classic lost Blue Note!

Lee Morgan - Infinity (1965) {2012 Japanese BNLT Series Remaster, TOCJ-50300}
EAC rip (secure mode) | FLAC (tracks)+CUE+LOG -> 261 Mb | MP3 @320 -> 100 Mb
Full Artwork @ 300 dpi (jpg) -> 53 Mb | 5% repair rar
© 1965, 2012 Blue Note / EMI Music Japan | TOCJ-50300
Jazz / Hard Bop / Trumpet

Lee Morgan on the hippest side of his 60s talents – working here in a style that's really stretching out, and in the same territory as similar unreleased gems from the time – like Tom Cat or Sonic Boom! The group here is very inventive – Jackie McLean on alto, Larry Willis on piano, Reggie Workman on bass, and Billy Higgins on drums – players who really represent the left side of Blue Note, but not as out as the "new thing" crowd – with a really creative approach to both the rhythms and the solos, commanded by Morgan's rich imagination at this point in his career. All tunes are great, and titles include "Zip Code", "Infinity", "Miss Nettie B", "Growing Pains", and McLean's fantastic "Portrait of a Doll".