Mcshann

Various Artists - The Complete Master Jazz Piano Series (1992) {4CD Box Set Mosaic MD4-140 rec 1969-74}
EAC rip (secure mode) | FLAC (tracks)+CUE+LOG -> 1.12 Gb | MP3 @320 -> 614 Mb
Full Artwork @ 300 dpi (jpg) -> 29 Mb | 5% repair rar
© 1969-74, 1992 Mosaic Records | MD4-140
Jazz / Bop / Stride / Swing / Piano

During a five-year period the Master Jazz label recorded 11 swing-based pianists in solo settings. Although the label went under later in the decade, the recordings were treasured by collectors. Mosaic, on this four-CD set, brought back all of the music from the original five-volume Master Jazz Piano series, adding two unissued selections and a full album released separately of Ram Ramirez's playing. In addition to Ramirez (who is heard on 13 numbers), there are 13 performances by Earl Hines, four apiece from Claude Hopkins, Cliff Jackson, Keith Dunham, Sonny White, Teddy Wilson, Cliff Smalls and the obscure Gloria Hearn, eight by Jay McShann and two from Sir Charles Thompson. Most of these pianists (other than Hines and Wilson) rarely recorded during this period in their careers, making this box very important both musically and historically.

Charlie Parker - Intégrale Charlie Parker, Vol. 1, "Groovin' High", 1940-1945 (2010) {3CD Set Frémeaux & Associés FA1331}
EAC rip (secure mode) | FLAC (tracks)+CUE+LOG -> 517 Mb | MP3 @320 -> 405 Mb
Full Artwork @ 600 dpi (jpg) -> 398 Mb | 5% repair rar
© 1940-45, 2010 Frémeaux & Associés | FA 1331
Jazz / BeBop / Bop / Saxophone

Charlie ‘Yarbird’ Parker should need no introduction; recognised as one of the twentieth century’s true musical greats, he revolutionised saxophone playing in the forties. The recordings on these three CDs capture him in the very act, and additionally present jazz at a crucial time, when swing was shortly to give way to bebop, and when the blues could be played with a big band before r&b took over. Many of the recordings here were not made commercially - some are from radio broadcasts, some were made in concert, and a few, such as the fascinating opener, just Bird and his sax tackling ‘Honeysuckle Rose’ and ‘Body And Soul’, were never intended to be heard outside of the immediate circle.

Besides the legendary B.B. King and Muddy Waters, a live Newport audience in New York hears some lesser lights such as Eddie "Cleanhead" Vinson. Of historical interest, Big Mama Thornton, Arthur "Big Boy" Crudup, and Jay McShann offer renditions of their own songs that were covered for a much larger audience by Janis Joplin, Elvis Presley, and others…

A wonderful collector's edition of jazz pianists' records in almost all styles from the first ragtimes to modern jazz.

Taking inspiration from Charlie Christian and Lonnie Johnson, T-Bone Walker plays with an exceptionally elegant and relaxed style, the perfect foil for Charles Brown's piano. An innovator of this caliber could only spark emulation. T-Bone Walker's influence can be heard in B.B. King, Clarence "Gatemouth" Brown or Buddy Guy. Even Jimi Hendrix confessed his indebtedness. Today guitarists, like Duke Robillard, Pete Mayes or Otis Grand, still perpetuate his legacy. In 1962 he toured with the very first American Folk Blues Festival (with John Lee Hooker). T-Bone Walker subsequently performed in Europe on a regular basis, with a marked preference for France. In November 1968, Black & Blue took advantage of one of his tours to have him record the album "Feelin’ The Blues," rightly considered to be one of the best he made at the end of his career. We thought it appropriate to add a few titles from his sessions with Jay McShann and Eddie Vinson, recorded a few months later while T-Bone was doing a stint at the Trois Mailletz club in Paris. T-Bone Walker is surely the most jazzy blues musician, while McShann and Vinson are among the most bluesy jazz musicians! It was impossible for this confrontation to produce anything but success.

Jimmy Witherspoon - Goin' To Kansas City Blues (1957) {RCA Victor–Mosaic MCD-1011 rel 2007}
EAC rip (secure mode) | FLAC (tracks)+CUE+LOG -> 288 Mb | MP3 @320 -> 108 Mb
Full Artwork @ 300 dpi (jpg) -> 12 Mb | 5% repair rar
© 1957, 2007 RCA Victor / Mosaic Records / Sony BMG | MCD-1011
Jazz / Jazz Blues / Jump Blues / Vocal / Urban Blues

A reunion of sorts with McShann, with whom Witherspoon had sung for four years in the late '40s. A relaxed, swinging set that bisects jazz and blues, it holds no great surprises, but 'Spoon fans will find this an enjoyable and accomplished record. About half of the material was penned by McShann or Witherspoon, including "Blue Monday Blues" (Witherspoon's adaptation of "Kansas City Blues") and a remake of "Confessin' the Blues."