Pent

The score for The Talented Mr Ripley has earned composer Gabriel Yared a nomination for a 1999 Oscar. However, of the five nominees his is the only score which has to share a CD with songs 'from' the film, fine though some of them may be. Eight of the cues (less than 30 mins in total) on the CD are by the composer and are supplemented by mostly jazz pieces that are central to the film's story. Unfortunately the score and the jazz pieces and the vocals are interlaced on the CD, which seems to detract from the listening pleasure of each element…

This music, originally issued in Italy as Chet Sextet & Quartet and in the USA as Chet Baker in Milan, was recorded by the great trumpeter/vocalist backed by a small group of Italian players in Milan, Italy, in 1959. A complete session - also recorded in Italy - presenting Baker mostly on vocals with an orchestra conducted by Ennio Morricone (celebrated for his soundtracks to the films of Sergio Leone), and two tracks recorded in Baden Baden, Germany, have been added as a bonus.

Jenny Scheinman ‘Here on Earth’ presents songs that were composed for the film, ‘Kannapolis: A Moving Portrait,’ a collaboration with director Finn Taylor and commissioned by Aaron Greenwald at Duke Performances. The movie collects archival footage taken between 1936-42 by H. Lee Waters, a North Carolina photographer who traveled across the Piedmont, taking short movies of ordinary, small town folks living through the Great Depression.

One of the all-time great jazz violinists (ranking with Joe Venuti and Stuff Smith as one of the big three of pre-bop), Stéphane Grappelli's longevity and consistently enthusiastic playing did a great deal to establish the violin as a jazz instrument. He was originally self-taught as both a violinist and a pianist, although during 1924-28 he studied at the Paris

This Concord CD was Tito Puente's 99th as a leader and the music is particularly strong. Four jazz standards alternate with a quartet of Puente's originals and Chucho Valdes' "Cha Cha Cha," all of which are potentially good vehicles for jazz improvisations (although "Ode" and "Lambada" are dominated by group vocals). There are plenty of fine solos throughout by the five horn players and the three or four-piece percussion section keeps the rhythms infectious. In the world of Latin-jazz, Tito Puente has had few peers.

JACK BRUCE. The composer, the singer, the multi-instrumentalist, the Legend. Hailed as one of the most powerful vocalists and greatest bassists of his time, his improvisational skill and utterly unique, free-spirited approach to composition and performance would forever change electric music. His pioneering, full-toned, free-wheeling playing on the electric bass revolutionised the way the instrument is used and influenced the playing of countless bassists to today, including Sting and Jaco Pastorius. His work with bands such as Cream and the Tony Williams Lifetime, as well as his solo material, unlocked the doors to the pent-up energy of a new approach to the art of sound, breaking the barriers of tradition and creating a kind of music that had never been heard.