East Flower

Charles Lloyd - Forest Flower: Charles Lloyd At Monterey (1966) {2012 Japan Jazz Best Collection 1000 Series 24bit WPCR-27053}
EAC rip (secure mode) | FLAC (tracks)+CUE+LOG -> 262 Mb | MP3 @320 -> 92 Mb
Full Artwork @ 300 dpi (jpg) -> 16 Mb | 5% repair rar | 24bit remaster
© 1966, 2012 Warner Japan / Atlantic / Rhino | WPCR-27053 | Jazz Best Collection 1000 Series
Jazz / Hard Bop / Modal Music / Saxophone

Features 24 bit digital remastering. Comes with a description. When Charles Lloyd brought his new band to Monterey in 1966, a band that included Keith Jarrett on piano, Jack DeJohnette on drums, and the inimitable – though young – Cecil McBee on bass, no one knew what to expect. But they all left floored and this LP is the document of that set. It is difficult to believe that, with players so young (and having been together under a year), Lloyd was able to muster a progressive jazz that was so far-reaching and so undeniably sophisticated, yet so rich and accessible. For starters, the opening two title tracks, which form a kind of suite (one is "Forest Flower-Sunrise," the other "Sunset"), showcased the already fully developed imagination of Jarrett as a pianist.

The Chico Hamilton Quintet - Gongs East! (1958) {2013 Japan Jazz Best Collection 1000 Series 24bit Remaster} (ft. Eric Dolphy)
EAC rip (secure mode) | FLAC (tracks)+CUE+LOG -> 216 Mb | MP3 @320 -> 88 Mb
Full Artwork @ 600 dpi (png) -> 191 Mb | 5% repair rar | 24bit remaster
© 1958, 2013 Warner Bros. / Warner Japan / WEA / Rhino | WPCR-27232 | Jazz Best Collection 1000 Series
Jazz / Cool / West Coast Jazz / Bop / Drums / Saxophone / Clarinet

Features 24 bit remastering and comes with a mini-description. Quite possibly the best album to feature the talents of Chico Hamilton and Eric Dolphy – a set recorded at a time when Dolphy was an up-and-coming player on the west coast scene! Although Chico Hamilton had recorded with unusual reed players before, Dolphy brings a depth of soul and spirit to this album that's missing from a lot of Chico's earlier work at the time – a style that still holds onto some of the measured qualities of the Pacific Jazz work by the Hamilton group, yet which also opens up into some of the darker corners that Dolphy would explore more on his own recordings of the 60s.

When Charles Lloyd brought his new band to Monterey in 1966, a band that included Keith Jarrett on piano, Jack DeJohnette on drums, and the inimitable - though young - Cecil McBee on bass, no one knew what to expect. But they all left floored and this LP is the document of that set. It is difficult to believe that, with players so young (and having been together under a year), Lloyd was able to muster a progressive jazz that was so far-reaching and so undeniably sophisticated, yet so rich and accessible. For starters, the opening two title tracks, which form a kind of suite (one is "Forest Flower-Sunrise," the other "Sunset"), showcased the already fully developed imagination of Jarrett as a pianist. His interplay with DeJohnette - which has continued into the 21st century in a trio with Gary Peacock - is remarkable: whispering arpeggios surrounded by large chords that plank up the drumming as DeJohnette crosses hands and cuts the time in order to fluctuate the time…

Duke Ellington is featured in a complete performance at Basin Street East in New York City on this CD, as it was originally broadcast on WNEW, complete with his verbal exchanges with host William B. Williams. Unlike many of his concerts, there is no long medley of hits; instead, Ellington offers an interesting mix of old and new songs. The newer material includes his "gutbucket bolero," known as "Afro Bossa" (also titled "Bula"), featuring the gruff, muted trumpet of Cootie Williams, and the high-note theatrics of Cat Anderson. "Silk Lace" is a brisk rhumba featuring clarinetist Jimmy Hamilton, while the band (except for the rhythm section) sits out Ellington's masterful ballad "A Single Petal of a Rose."

Andrew Hill - Blue Black (1975) {2015 DSD Japan East Wind Masters Collection 1000 UCCJ-9159}
EAC rip (secure mode) | FLAC (tracks)+CUE+LOG -> 220 Mb | MP3 @320 -> 87 Mb
Full Artwork @ 600 dpi (png) -> 142 Mb | 5% repair rar | DSD Mastering
© 1975, 2015 East Wind Music / Universal Japan | UCCJ-9159
Jazz / Post Bop / Piano

Reissue with the latest DSD remastering. A really great session from pianist Andrew Hill – and one of his few post-Blue Note sessions to feature a horn player! The style of the set draws from a few strands of Hill's career – in that Hill is playing in some freely exploratory piano modes, yet also manages to swing soulfully with the rest of the group, especially sax player Jimmy Vass – who makes a rare appearance here on soprano, alto, and flute. In a way, the album probably most closely resembles the Andrew LP on Blue Note – which is great by us, as it's one of his best sets! Titles include "One For", "Remnants", "Blue Black", and "Golden Spook".