Playhouse Sessions

Presented on DOUBLE-CD are no less than 29 radio and tv broadcast live tracks from The Who, all dating back to the period 1965-1967. Included are cool versions of classic tracks s.a. 'Substitute', 'I Can See For Miles', 'My Generation', 'Happy Jack', 'Pictures Of Lily, 'Boris The Spider', a.s.o.

In 2007 the Classics Chronological Series began reissuing every recording known to have been made by pianist Joe Bushkin (1916-2004), starting with the Commodore and Savoy sessions of 1940-1946. Released in 2008, the sequel to that amazing collection delves even deeper into the discographical dilemma of Bushkin's recording activities by tracing his movements during the years 1947-1950, beginning with six sides by Joe Bushkin & His Rhythm that originally appeared on 10" Royale and Rondo-lette LPs. This grab bag of obscure delights includes V-Disc jams, collaborations with cornetist Bobby Hackett and trumpeters Buck Clayton and Roy Eldridge, a smart take of "I May Be Wrong" sung by Liza Morrow, and a two-part romp through "Indiana" drawn from an MGM sampler called Maggie Fisher's Piano Playhouse. Tracks 15-24 are piano solos, recorded on February 24 and 25, 1950, and issued on one of the first-ever Atlantic LPs, I Love a Piano. A marvelous improviser and a skilled interpreter of popular melodies with a background in both Chicago-style and big-band swing, Joe Bushkin was now helping to establish the great mid-20th century genre of keyboard mood music.

Pay the Devil, an album-long foray into country music, shouldn't come as a surprise to Van Morrison fans. It's a logical extension of his love affair with American music. Certainly blues, R&B, soul, and jazz have been at the forefront, but one can go all the way back to the Bang years and find "Joe Harper Saturday Morning," or songs on Tupelo Honey that touch country. More recently, You Win Again, with Linda Gail Lewis, offered two Hank Williams tunes and "Crazy Arms." The Skiffle Sessions with Lonnie Donegan offered traditional Southern tunes including Jimmie Rodgers' "Mule Skinner Blues." Morrison's lyrics have also referenced country music blatantly. Pay the Devil comes from direct sources of inspiration: his father's skiffle band and Ray Charles' historic forays into country on the two volumes of Modern Sounds in Country and Western Music in 1962. The evidence lies in three cuts on this disc, all of which Charles recorded: Curley Williams' "Half as Much," Art Harris and Fred Jay's "What Am I Livin' For," and Hank Williams' "Your Cheatin' Heart."

When Eddie "Lockjaw" Davis and Johnny Griffin joined forces and formed a two-tenor front line, bop enthusiasts could safely assume that the sparks were going to fly. Davis and Griffin, after all, were one of hard bop's exciting tenor teams – their saxophone battles were as legendary as the encounters of Gene Ammons and Sonny Stitt, Dexter Gordon and Wardell Gray, or Phil Woods and Gene Quill (who, unlike the other teams mentioned here, were a two-alto pair). Battle Stations, like other Davis/Griffin encounters, points to the fact that the two tenormen never had a problem finding common ground.

Johnny Copeland's tenure on Rounder Records was mostly productive. He made several albums that ranged from decent to very good, increased his audience and name recognition, and got better recording facilities and company support than at most times in his career. The 15 numbers on this anthology cover four Rounder sessions, and include competent renditions of familiar numbers. But what makes things special are the final three selections; these were part of Copeland's superb and unjustly underrated Bringin' It All Back Home album, recorded in Africa, which matched Texas shuffle licks with swaying, riveting African rhythms.

Bill Barron - Quintet & Sextet (1961-1962) {2012 2CD Savoy Jazz-Fresh Sound Records FSR-CD 707}
EAC rip (secure mode) | FLAC (tracks)+CUE+LOG -> 885 Mb | MP3 @320 -> 331 Mb
Full Artwork @ 300 dpi (jpg) -> 20 Mb | 5% repair rar
© 1961-62, 2012 Savoy / Fresh Sound Records | FSR-CD 707 | 24bit remaster
Jazz / Hard Bop / Saxophone

The three albums tenorman Bill Barron made as a leader for Savoy Records in early 60s embody every facet of this accomplished jazzman as a talented soloist, composer and arranger. And, despite the similarities in their harmonic ideas, Barron was not a slavish disciple of John Coltrane.

Directed by filmmaker/musician Spookie Daly (Georgia Warhorse documentary and several JJ videos), the DVD intersperses riveting concert footage with the stunning beauty of Grey's north Florida home, the inspiration for so much of his music. The film also follows Grey and company into the studio and features band interviews along with insightful commentary from Grey and others, recalling the format of classic "rockumentaries." Filmed at the Variety Playhouse in Atlanta, Georgia on 22 January 2011.