Johnny Coles

Duke Pearson - Prairie Dog (1966) {2012 Japan Jazz Best Collection 1000 Series 24bit WPCR-27166}
EAC rip (secure mode) | FLAC (tracks)+CUE+LOG -> 211 Mb | MP3 @320 -> 82 Mb
Full Artwork @ 600 dpi (jpg) -> 72 Mb | 5% repair rar | 24bit remaster
© 1966, 2012 Warner Japan / Atlantic / Rhino | WPCR-27166 | Jazz Best Collection 1000 Series
Jazz / Hard Bop / Soul Jazz / Piano

Features 24 bit digital remastering. Comes with a description. his 1966 date by Duke Pearson with an octet was originally issued by Atlantic. Reissued by Collectables, this is Pearson in full soul-jazz mode, driven deeply by the blues, with an all-star band (not all members play on all tunes): drummer Mickey Roker; Harold Vick on soprano; James Spaulding on flute and alto; bassist Bob Cranshaw; trumpeter Johnny Coles; tenor George Coleman; guitarist Gene Bertoncini; and Pearson on piano and celeste.

Herbie Hancock - The Prisoner (1969) (RVG Edition)
EAC rip | FLAC + CUE + LOG -> 353 Mb | MP3 @320 -> 132 Mb
Full Artwork @300 dpi -> 25 Mb (jpg)
Blue Note / RVG Edition 2000
Jazz / Hard Bop / Piano

As one of the first albums Herbie Hancock recorded after departing Miles Davis' quintet in 1968, as well as his final album for Blue Note, The Prisoner is one of Hancock's most ambitious efforts. Assembling a nonet that features Joe Henderson (tenor sax, alto flute), Johnny Coles (flugelhorn), Garnett Brown (trombone), Buster Williams (bass), and Albert "Tootie" Heath (drums), he has created his grandest work since My Point of View. Unlike that effort, The Prisoner has a specific concept – it's a tribute to Dr. Martin Luther King, evoking his spirit and dreams through spacious, exploratory post-bop. Often, the music doesn't follow conventional patterns, but that doesn't mean that it's alienating or inaccessible. It is certainly challenging, but Hancock's compositions (and his arrangement of Charles Williams' "Firewater") have enough melody and space to allow listeners into the album. Throughout the record, Hancock, Coles, and Henderson exchange provocative, unpredictable solos that build upon the stark melodies and sober mood of the music. The tone is not of sorrow or celebration, but of reflection and contemplation, and on that level, The Prisoner succeeds handsomely, even if the music meanders a little too often to be judged a complete success.

The Duke Pearson Nonet - Honeybuns (1965) {2012 Japan Jazz Best Collection 1000 Series 24bit WPCR-27121}
EAC rip (secure mode) | FLAC (tracks)+CUE+LOG -> 191 Mb | MP3 @320 -> 72 Mb
Full Artwork @ 300 dpi (jpg) -> 18 Mb | 5% repair rar | 24bit remaster
© 1965, 2012 Warner Japan / Atlantic / Rhino | WPCR-27121 | Jazz Best Collection 1000 Series
Jazz / Hard Bop / Post Bop / Piano

Features 24 bit digital remastering. Comes with a description. Other than "Our Love" (a familiar classical theme adapted to American pop music by Larry Clinton), all six selections are originals by the pianist. Utilizing a nonet that includes trumpeter Johnny Coles (who does his best to be soulful on "Honeybuns"), trombonist Garnett Brown, flutist Les Spann, altoist James Spaulding, tenor saxophonist George Coleman, baritonist Pepper Adams, bassist Bob Cranshaw, and drummer Mickey Roker, Pearson performs music in a style that would have fit in quite well on Blue Note. Most memorable among his originals is "Is That So." This is not an essential date, but it is nice to have this rarity back in print again.

Duke Jordan - Les Liaisons Dangereuses + East and West Of Jazz (2012) {Charlie Parker Records, The Complete Collection, Vol 2, rec 1962}
EAC rip (secure mode) | FLAC (tracks)+CUE+LOG -> 417 Mb | MP3 @320 -> 194 Mb
Full Artwork @ 600 dpi (jpg) -> 60 Mb | 5% repair rar
© 1962, 2012 Charlie Parker Records / Membran Media / Documents | 233193 / 2
Jazz / Hard Bop / Piano

Exhaustive 30 CD collection from the Jazz legend's short-lived label. Contains 44 original albums (421 tracks) plus booklet. Every record-collector has run across an album with the little sax-playing bird in it's label-logo, right next to the brand name Charlie Parker Records or CP Parker Records. Turning the sleeve over, especially if it was one of the non-Parker releases, and seeing a '60s release date under the header Stereo-pact! Was as exciting an experience as it was confusing. Was the claim Bird Lives meant more literally than previously thought?