Ira Sullivan

The last of six LPs by the Red Rodney-Ira Sullivan Quintet was also the band's finest. There are times in the music (which consists of three originals by pianist Garry Dial, Herbie Hancock's "Speak Like a Child" and "As Time Goes By") where the group sounds like the early Ornette Coleman Quartet. The setting and advanced repertoire clearly challenged Rodney (who mostly sticks here to flugelhorn) and inspired Sullivan (switching between alto, alto flute, soprano and flugelhorn). A post-bop gem, one of Rodney's finest recordings.

Bob Albanese Trio with Ira Sullivan - One Way / Detour (2009) {ZOHO ZM 200905}
EAC rip (secure mode) | FLAC (tracks)+CUE+LOG -> 349 Mb | MP3 @320 -> 143 Mb
Full Artwork @ 300 dpi (jpg) -> 21 Mb | 5% repair rar
© 2009 ZOHO Music | ZM 200905
Jazz / Post Bop / Piano / Saxophone

In Chicago bop circles, Ira Sullivan's name has commanded the type of respect that Chicagoans have given the likes of Gene Ammons and Johnny Griffin. Mention Sullivan's name to the local jazz connoisseurs who have spent countless nights hanging out at the Green Mill, the Jazz Showcase, or Andy's, and you're likely to hear a very enthusiastic dissertation about the Washington, D.C.-born trumpeter/reedman's contributions to jazz in the Windy City – which is ironic in light of the fact that Sullivan moved from Chicago to Florida back in 1960. Nonetheless, his name still carries so much weight on Chicago's jazz scene that some Chicagoans (and non-Chicagoans as well) will want to acquire Bob Albanese's One Way/Detour simply because of Sullivan's presence.

Red Rodney & Ira Sullivan - Spirit Within (1981) {2013 Japan Jazz Best Collection 1000 Series 24bit Remaster WPCR-27367}
EAC rip (secure mode) | FLAC (tracks)+CUE+LOG -> 258 Mb | MP3 @320 -> 90 Mb
Full Artwork @ 600 dpi (png) -> 160 Mb | 5% repair rar | 24-bit remaster
© 1981, 2013 Electra Musician / Asylum / Warner Japan / WEA / Rhino | WPCR-27367 | Jazz Best Collection 1000 Series
Jazz / Post Bop / Trumpet / Flugelhorn

Features 24 bit remastering and comes with a mini-description. Really beautiful work from the team of Red Rodney and Ira Sullivan – hardly the sort of stuff we might have heard from the players a decade or two before – and a sophisticated batch of tunes that has them stretching out in rich musical directions! There's little of the boppish roots of either player here – and instead, the album mostly features inspiring jazz compositions from Garry Dial – the pianist in the group, and a real genius with color, tone, and timing. Dial's tunes dominate most of the record, and they really set the group on a great footing – horn trading between Rodney's trumpet and Sullivan's soprano, flute, and flugelhorn – supported with complicated changes from the core rhythm trio.

Ira Sullivan - Horizons (1967) {2013 Japan Jazz Best Collection 1000 Series 24bit Remaster WPCR-27315}
EAC rip (secure mode) | FLAC (tracks)+CUE+LOG -> 249 Mb | MP3 @320 -> 97 Mb
Full Artwork @ 600 dpi (png) -> 162 Mb | 5% repair rar | 24-bit remaster
© 1967, 2013 Atlantic / Warner Japan / WEA / Rhino | WPCR-27315 | Jazz Best Collection 1000 Series
Jazz / Bop / Post Bop / Saxopohone / Trumpet

Features 24 bit remastering and comes with a mini-description. Ira Sullivan's first recording in five years (which was originally released on Atlantic) features him switching between soprano, tenor, trumpet and flugelhorn with a quintet consisting of some obscure Florida players: pianist Dolphe Castellano, trombonist Lon Norman, bassist William Fry and drummer Jose Cigno. The relaxed and thought-provoking performances of tunes ranging from "Norwegian Wood" and "Everything Happens to Me" to group originals display a solid group sound and Sullivan's interest in integrating freer music and ideas into his playing.

Red Rodney & Ira Sullivan Quintet - Sprint (1982) {2013 Japan Jazz Best Collection 1000 Series WPCR-27368}
EAC rip (secure mode) | FLAC (image)+CUE+LOG -> 261 Mb | MP3 @320 -> 94 Mb
Full Artwork @ 300 dpi (png) -> 20 Mb | 5% repair rar | 24-bit remaster
© 1982, 2013 Electra Musician / Asylum / Warner Japan / WEA / Rhino | WPCR-27368
Jazz / Post Bop / Flugelhorn / Saxophone

Features 24 bit remastering and comes with a mini-description. A tremendous live performance from the group co-led by Red Rodney and Ira Sullivan – two players who really bring a lot to each other's music! There's a mode here that really blows us away – a careful, sensitive approach that allows each horn player to hit their most lyrical moments – shading things in with a far richer palette of sounds than we might ever have expected. The rest of the group's a big factor for the album's sound, though – as it features the great pianist Garry Dial, who also wrote some of the tunes – plus Jay Anderson on bass and Jeff Hirschfield on drums. Rodney plays trumpet and flugelhorn, and Sullivan plays flute, flugelhorn, alto, and soprano sax – on titles that include "How Do You Know", "As Time Goes By", "Sprint", "My Son The Minstrel", and "Speak Like A Child".

Ira Sullivan - Nicky's Tune (1958) {Delmark DD-422 rel 1994}
EAC rip (secure mode) | FLAC (tracks)+CUE+LOG -> 150 Mb | MP3 @320 -> 105 Mb
Full Artwork @ 300 dpi (jpg) -> 11 Mb | 5% repair rar
© 1958, 1994 Delmark Records | DD-422
Jazz / Bop / Trumpet

A great little record – not only for the early trumpet work of Ira Sullivan, but also for the presence of tenorist Nicky Hill – an under-recorded legend from the Chicago scene of the 50s! The set features Sullivan in extremely tight bop formation – working on longer tracks that represent some of his greatest work on record – studio sides, but done with the sense of on-the-fly imagination of his landmark live dates. Hill's a great partner on this date – a player whose edge and timing really makes things bristle, and a reminder that Chicago had a lot of great jazz to offer the world back in the day! Rhythm is by Jodie Christian on piano, Victor Sproles on bass, and Wilbur Campbell on drums.

Lin Halliday - East of the Sun (1992) {Delmark DE-458}
EAC rip (secure mode) | FLAC (tracks)+CUE+LOG -> 383 Mb | MP3 @320 -> 152 Mb
Full Artwork @ 300 dpi (jpg) -> 20 Mb | 5% repair rar
© 1992 Delmark Records | DE-458
Jazz / Hard Bop / Saxophone

On his second album, muscular tenor saxman Lin Halliday continues to excel by sticking with what he does best: unapologetic hard bop greatly influenced by Sonny Rollins' recordings of the late '50s. The insightful Windy City support he'd enjoyed on Delayed Exposure reunites with him on East of the Sun: Ira Sullivan (who is heard on trumpet, flugelhorn, tenor sax, and alto flute), pianist Jodie Christian, bassist Dennis Carrroll, and drummer George Fludas. As intensely as Halliday swings on "I Found a New Baby," his warm and very personal lyricism on "Corcovado," "Indian Summer," and "Will You Still Be Mine" indicate that he's a romantic at heart. Like its predecessor, East of the Sun makes listeners wish a label had offered Halliday a deal 20 or 30 years earlier.

Art Blakey - The Jazz Messenger (1956) {Columbia Jazz Masterpieces, CK 47118 rel 1991})
EAC rip (secure mode) | FLAC (tracks)+CUE+LOG -> 321 Mb | MP3 @320 -> 129 Mb
Full Artwork @ 300 dpi (jpg) -> 14 Mb | 5% repair rar
© 1956, 1991 Columbia / Sony Music | CK 47118
Jazz / Hard Bop / Drums

Digitally remastered from the original analog masters. Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers not only supplied consistently exciting and innovative music for nearly 40 years, but also provided the experience and mentoring for young musicians to learn their trade.

Lin Halliday - Delayed Exposure (1991) {Delmark DE-449}
EAC rip (secure mode) | FLAC (tracks)+CUE+LOG -> 410 Mb | MP3 @320 -> 157 Mb
Full Artwork @ 300 dpi (jpg) -> 18 Mb | 5% repair rar
© 1991 Delmark Records | DE-449
Jazz / Hard Bop / Saxophone

Lin Halliday's first album was titled Delayed Exposure because the big-toned tenor saxophonist was 55 before given a chance to record as a leader. This fine release showed listeners outside of Chicago what Windy City residents had realized for many years – that he was a passionate, richly expressive hard bopper who never failed to swing. Heartfelt performances of "Woody'N You" and "Serpent's Tooth" leave no doubt that Sonny Rollins is Halliday's primary influence, but also demonstrate that he's very much his own man.