Leo Parker

A live duo performance by musicians of this extraordinarily high caliber occasionally results in something incredible but perhaps more often describes a battle of egos with neither side giving in. In this case, the participants appeared willing to compromise and to some extent lay aside their commitment to the vast and idiosyncratic musical structures that they had developed over the year. If the recording still fails to live up to impossibly high expectations, it is nonetheless a fine album on its own merits. The session consists of five improvisations of varying moods, textures, and intensities. Much of the time is spent in areas of surprising lyricism and restraint, as on "ParkBrax #3," a lush, contemplative piece. But even when things become somewhat frenetic, as on the second and fourth tracks, the absolute control of these masters over their instruments is clear…

"Thunder in My Heart" and "Easy to Love" barely nicked the Top 40, and of his eight chart hits from 1975 to 1981, these two were the weakest, but this disco album by the quirky singer, once again produced by Richard Perry, is listenable and has more than its share of good players. Olivia Newton-John songwriter Tom Snow co-wrote the title track with Sayer, while Albert Hammond helped out on the second song and follow-up hit. Half of the ten songs are Snow co-writes, with Hammond, Michael Omartian, Bruce Roberts, and others all contributing. The second Hammond/Sayer title, "I Want You Back," is a pleasant album track, but with Omartian on piano, Jeff Porcaro on drums, and Larry Carlton on guitar, Perry could just put the session on automatic pilot.

Anthony Braxton - 20 Standards (Quartet) 2003 (2005) {4CD Set, Leo Records ‎CD LR 431/434}
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© 2005 Leo Records ‎| CD LR 431/434
Jazz / Modern Jazz / Avant-Garde Jazz / Saxophone

Released a year after 23 Standards (Quartet) 2003, this second four-disc set doubles the amount of material released from Braxton's tours of Europe in early and late 2003, with the same lineup (Braxton on saxes, Kevin O'Neil on guitar, bassist Andy Eulau, and drummer Kevin Norton), same focus on jazz standards, and even the same dates in some cases. Together, the two four-CD sets released by Leo Records present recordings from ten different European dates (two in February 2003 and eight in November of that year). This second set continues with the editorial approach used in the first one: each disc consists of tracks from different concerts, brought together to make a balanced record.

This single CD reissues all of the music from a former LP and a ten-inch LP. Of greatest interest are two fairly long selections (the blues "I Wrote This for the Kid" and a stomping "The Kid and the Brute") that match Illinois Jacquet with fellow tenor great Ben Webster. Since they have equally passionate and distinctive sounds, their "battle" is a draw. ~ AllMusic

Cecil Taylor - Live In Vienna (1987) {Leo Records CDLR174 rel 1991}
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© 1987, 1991 Leo Records | CD LR 174
Jazz / Avant-Garde Jazz / Improvised Music / Piano

One look at this recording and anyone familiar with the work of Cecil Taylor will know that it isn't for the faint of heart or spirit. An unbroken, hurricane of an album that extends for more than 71 minutes, Live in Vienna begins with a multi-voice poetry performance that descends into glossolalia and clucks, reminding the listener of the heyday of the Four Horsemen. Perhaps it isn't a coincidence that while the rest of the album remains firmly perched on the edge of the avant-garde, like the Four Horsemen it also seems to come from a previous time when the outrageous, experimental, and cerebral were more likely to be found together.

15 original albums with Dizzy Gillespie, Fats Navarro, Buck Clayton, Freddie Hubbard, Charlie Parker, Gene Ammons, Wardell Grey, Melba Liston, Ben Webster, Duke Ellington, Bud Powell, Hampton Hawes, Billy Higgins, Max Roach, Billy Eckstine and Herbie Hancock, among others…

James Carter & John Medeski with Christian McBride, Adam Rogers & Joey Baron - Heaven On Earth (Live At The Blue Note) (2009)
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© 2009 Half Note / ADA | HN4542
Jazz / Jam / Jazz Funk / Groove

Saxophonist James Carter and organist John Medeski (of the pioneering jam-band, Medeski, Martin & Wood) lead a supergroup featuring Christian McBride (bass), Adam Rogers (guitar) and Joey Baron (drums). Together they carve out a groove that captures the buzz and vitality of jam-jazz at its most exhilerating. Recorded live at the Blue Note in New York, the group throws down the funk on Django Reinhardt's "Diminishing," Larry Young's "Heaven On Earth," Leo Parker's "Blue Leo," and the songbook standard, "Street Of Dreams."