Ballads in Blue

Along with Gene Ammons and Stanley Turrentine, Dexter Gordon was one of the top ballad players of the '60s. Having already made his name in the bebop era and as an expatriate in Europe, Gordon returned to the States to record a series of fine Blue Note discs during the first half of the decade. This edition of the label's Ballads series features Gordon at his peak and in the company of some of hard bop's best players. Whether melding nicely with trumpeter Donald Byrd from a Paris date in 1964 ("Darn That Dream") or locking in with the stellar rhythm section of Sonny Clark, Butch Warren, and Billy Higgins ("Don't Explain"), Gordon delivers his almost sleepy and smoke-filled solos with regal grace. The same can also be said of the rest of this incredible program, including a latter-day live cut from 1978.

While it's true that trumpeter and composer Paolo Fresu works in a variety of settings from trio to sextet, it is arguable that his quintets present him with the finest opportunities for creative expression.
This date, a covers-only collection of ballads by Ellington and Strayhorn, Mingus, Monk, Johnny Mercer, etc., has all the hallmarks of a classic Fresu set. For starters, the band is amazing: Tino Tracanna on tenor, Roberto Cipelli on piano, Attilio Zanchi on bass, and Ettore Fioravanti on drums offer Fresu a wide palette for expressing the many shades and textures of the jazz ballad.

"Blues & Ballads, this acoustic collection of songs interpreted simply, recorded live, solo or with a small group of friends celebrates my relationship between music, songs, the written word and legacy. Blues & Ballads celebrates the American oral tradition of blues and folk songs, not only being passed down and evolving but being transcribed (the original recording technique) and entered into the discipline of written sheet music and songbooks.

The Legendary Pink Dots are so prolific, wildly eclectic and experimental, that it's easy to forget how beautifully melodic they are in album after album. This selection of psychedelic power ballads is so skillfully compiled that it sounds like a proper free standing album, not a compilation. It's totally wonderful, with quirky leftfield hooky songs, impeccable musicianship that always characterizes LPD…