Bags

Although seemingly impossible to comprehend, this landmark jazz date made in 1960 was recorded in less than three days. All the more remarkable is that the same sessions which yielded My Favorite Things would also inform a majority of the albums Coltrane Plays the Blues, Coltrane's Sound, and Coltrane Legacy. It is easy to understand the appeal that these sides continue to hold. The unforced, practically casual soloing styles of the assembled quartet – which includes Coltrane (soprano/tenor sax), McCoy Tyner (piano), Steve Davis (bass), and Elvin Jones (drums) – allow for tastefully executed passages à la the Miles Davis Quintet, a trait Coltrane no doubt honed during his tenure in that band.

Sabrina Starke is a soul-jazz singer/songwriter based in Rotterdam, the Netherlands, who made her full-length debut in 2008 with the Top Ten hit album Yellow Brick Road. Born on August 9, 1979, in Paramaribo, the capital city of Suriname, a small Dutch-speaking country of 500,000 people in northern South America, she made her recording debut in 2008 with the single "Do for Love" on the Star-K label. Co-written by Starke and produced by Beat Royalty (the Dutch production team of Chris Kooreman and Edo Plasschaert), "Do for Love" eventually rose to Top Ten success in the Netherlands and garnered the attention of EMI, which signed the singer/songwriter to a major-label recording contract with its famed Blue Note Records division.

Miles Davis - Bags' Groove (1954) {2008 Prestige RVG Remasters Series}
EAC rip (secure mode) | FLAC (tracks)+CUE+LOG -> 241 Mb | MP3 @320 -> 110 Mb
Full Artwork @ 600 dpi (png) -> 147 Mb | 5% repair rar
© 1954, 2008 Concord / Prestige | 0888072306455 | Prestige RVG Remasters Series | 24-bit remaster
Jazz / Bop / Hard Bop / Trumpet

There are a multitude of reasons why Bags' Groove remains a cornerstone of the post-bop genre. Of course there will always be the lure of the urban myth surrounding the Christmas Eve 1954 session – featuring Thelonious Monk – which is documented on the two takes of the title track. There are obviously more tangible elements, such as Davis' practically telepathic runs with Sonny Rollins (tenor sax). Or Horace Silver's (piano) uncanny ability to provide a stream of chord progressions that supply a second inconspicuous lead without ever overpowering. Indeed, Davis' choice of former Dizzy Gillespie Orchestra and concurrent Modern Jazz Quartet members Milt Jackson (vibes), Kenny Clarke (drums), and Percy Heath (bass) is obviously well-informed.

Milt Jackson & John Coltrane - Bags & Trane (1959) {2006 Japan Mini LP Edition, WPCR-25108}
EAC rip (secure mode) | FLAC+CUE+LOG -> 386 Mb | MP3 @320 -> 135 Mb
Full Artwork @ 300 dpi (jpg) -> 8 Mb
© 2006 Atlantic | WPCR-25108 | 24-bit remaster
Jazz / Hard Bop

As John Coltrane moved from music rich in chordal complexity to a newer, freer form of modality–in which melodic and rhythmic freedom came to the fore–some critics couldn't make the imaginative leap. But no one could ever question Coltrane's superb musicianship. This all-star session isn't merely an aesthetic bone to these critics, but a superb example of two masters blowing relaxed and free over a tight, intuitive rhythm section. There's Jackson's Modern Jazz Quartet collaborator Connie Kay on drums, master of understated swing; the elegant, eternally tasteful Hank Jones on piano; and Mr. P.C., Paul Chambers, one of the fathers of modern bass playing.