Montreux

After a break in the eighties Keith Emerson, Greg Lake and Carl Palmer reunited in the early nineties and took to the road once more. In 1997 they made their debut at the Montreux Jazz Festival with a performance that included all their trademark virtuosity and showmanship. The concert includes classic tracks from across their career including "Karn Evil 9", "Hoedown", "Take A Pebble", "Lucky Man", "Tiger In A Spotlight", "Tarkus" and "Fanfare For The Common Man".

Bobby Hutcherson - Live At Montreux (1973) {2012 Japanese BNLA Series 24-bit Remaster TOCJ-50506}
EAC rip (secure mode) | FLAC (tracks)+CUE+LOG -> 342 Mb | MP3 @320 -> 123 Mb
Full Artwork @ 600 dpi (png) -> 168 Mb | 5% repair rar | 24bit remaster
© 1973, 2012 Blue Note / EMI Music Japan | TOCJ-50506
Jazz / Post Bop / Vibes

One of the most wonderful 70s albums from Bobby Hutcherson – and one of the most deeply spiritual, too! As with others in Blue Note's Montreux series, the tracks are long and very open – with a different flavor than the artists' studio work. Hutcherson works with a hip small group that includes excellent trumpet from Woody Shaw, piano from Hotep Cecil Bernard, bass from Ray Drummond, and drums from Larry Hancock – all snaking out beautifully on these long, spiritual tunes – very much shaped by Woody's presence.

This 1995 recording showcases the legendary Dr. John (Mac Rebennack) fronting a full band of New Orleans greats - including Alvin "Red" Tyler on tenor saxophone in the horn section - playing a deep rootsy set that ranges from deep second-line funk, like "Iko Iko" and "Right Place, Wrong Time," to beautiful standards including "Blue Skies" and "Makin' Whopee," to pop tunes like "(C'mon Baby) Let the Good Times Roll," to sophisticated blues like Charles Brown's "Tell Me You'll Wait For Me." The good Doc doesn't steal all the glory for himself, either; this crack band gets a chance to shine throughout. The highlights of the set are the extended workouts like "The Bass Bass Drum (On a Mardi Gras Day)" (which medleys with "I Shall Not Be Moved"), "Iko Iko" and the burning read of "Mess Around." This is a cooking set from start to finish. Its sound is clean, immediate and warm, documenting a momentous occasion by a very hot and inspired band.

Cut at the 1974 Montreux Jazz Festival with Stones' bassist Bill Wyman anchoring the rhythm section, the set captures some of the ribald musical repartee that customarily distinguished the pairing of Buddy Guy and Junior Wells, though they certainly break no new ground as they roll through their signature songs.

Bill Evans - Montreux II (1970) {2013 Japan Blu-spec CD CTI Supreme Collection}
EAC rip (secure mode) | FLAC (tracks)+CUE+LOG -> 249 Mb | MP3 @320 -> 95 Mb
Full Artwork @ 600 dpi (png) -> 175 Mb | 5% repair rar
© 2013 CTI Records / King Records Japan | KICJ-2328
Jazz / Post Bop / Modal Music / Piano

Reissue features the high-fidelity Blu-spec CD format (compatible with standard CD players) and the latest remastering. A brilliant return to Montreux from Bill Evans – working here with a trio that includes some killer bass work by Eddie Gomez! The set's an acoustic one – despite its appearance on electric powerhouse CTI – but Evans' work on the piano has an electricity that's all its own, magically crafting waves and shapes of sound and tone. And despite the CTI setting, there's a nicely spacious sound to the way the album was recorded – one that's got a bit less of the "perfection" than on some of Bill's other 70s live dates – a sense of humanity that comes through wonderfully, and which makes this one a very special record! Titles include "Very Early", "34 Skidoo", "Israel", and "Peri's Scope".

Recorded on the closing night of this year's Montreux Festival on July 16, this concert features Deep Purple playing their classic hits with the accompaniment of a full contemporary orchestra conducted by Stephen BK Bentley-Klein. The orchestrated arrangements give an added depth and range to the familiar songs and the band, who are clearly enjoying the experience, deliver one of their finest performances.

he legendary bluesman John Lee Hooker brought his boogie style blend of rhythm & blues to deliver two blistering performances at the Montreux Jazz Festival in 1983 and 1990. Joined by The Coast to Coast Blues Band they cover an impressive set of hits from across his career including ‘Boom Boom”, “Crawling King Snake” and his very first single “Boogie Chillen’”.

From Norman Granz's marathon series of performances recorded at the 1977 Montreux Jazz Festival, this set finds Count Basie fronting a jam session featuring trumpeter Roy Eldridge, altoist Benny Carter, Zoot Sims on tenor and the trombones of Vic Dickenson and Al Grey. Despite the possibility of being overcrowded, a bit of planning by Basie made this into a very coherent set with a blues, a long ballad medley and the closing "Jumpin' at the Woodside." Lots of nice moments.

A good but not great set from the 1975 Montreux Jazz Festival, this set of four extended standards is nonetheless impressive for its complete rejection of all innovations in jazz after around 1955, even those that Dizzy Gillespie had himself spearheaded. This is a straight-up bop jam session. The tunes are standards almost to the point of being clichés - "Lover, Come Back to Me," "I'll Remember April," "What's New?," and the obligatory run-through of Charlie Parker's signature tune, "Cherokee" - but Gillespie and his all-star group do an impressive job of finding new avenues of exploration. The 17-minute take on "Lover Come Back to Me" is particularly impressive, with meaty solos from both Gillespie and tenor Eddie "Lockjaw" Davis. The ballad "What's New?" is primarily a showcase for Milt Jackson's vibes and Tommy Flanagan's piano, though Johnny Griffin also serves up a lovely tenor solo.