Yardbird Flac

This Vanessa Rubin release is a tribute to Carmen McRae. Although she cites McRae as a major influence, Rubin actually does not sound much like her and leans as much toward middle-of-the-road music as jazz. Also, not all of these songs are really identified with McRae (most notably "Send in the Clowns" which was largely owned by Sarah Vaughan). The ballad-dominated set does have a reasonable amount of variety, Rubin gets off some fine scatting on "Yardbird Suite" and she introduces an excellent original in "No Strings Attached." A variety of guests (including Grover Washington, Jr., Frank Foster, Antonio Hart, Cecil Bridgewater, Kenny Burrell and Monty Alexander) only appear on one or two songs apiece and do not make that much of an impression. However Vanessa Rubin's attractive voice is strong enough to carry the music and this release is a step forward for her. ~ AllMusic Review by Scott Yanow

This is one of the last sessions by Walter Bishop, Jr. prior to his death in 1998. The veteran bop pianist is in great form on this trio date with bassist Paul Brown and drummer Al Harewood, which mixes standards, bop classics, and several originals. Bishop's jaunty approach to 'Yardbird Suite' is a gem, while his lush treatment of 'The Masquerade Is Over' finds the rhythm section staying softly in the background. He revisits 'Speak Low,' a centerpiece of his first date as a leader some 32 years earlier, playfully detouring into Billy Strayhorn's 'Rain Check' and leaving room for a few drum breaks by Harewood. His 'Valley Land' is an intense mid-tempo samba, while 'Keiko's Samba' kicks into a higher gear. This Japanese SACD on the Venus label is worth seeking.

Alan Broadbent is one of New Zealand's favourite musical sons and perhaps the most well-known and multi-talented of them all, on 'Like Minds', he takes a seat on the piano bench for his third Savant recording with his trio featuring the great bassist Harvie S and the colourful drumming of Billy Mintz.

One of the founding fathers of bebop, alto saxophonist Charlie Parker (1920-1955) was the most influential modern jazz artist ever.This set presents his finest studio recordings, including the core of his best sessions for the Dial, Savoy and Verve labels, as well as the complete quintet sets from the classic 1953 Massey Hall concert, on which Bird was joined by Dizzy Gillespie, Bud Powell, Charles Mingus, and Max Roach. Also contained here are the 1950 Bird & Diz date showcasing the two horn legends with Thelonious Monk, and Parker’s celebrated first session with strings, which constituted the saxophonist’s best-selling recording ever.

Charles Parker Jr. (August 29, 1920 – March 12, 1955), nicknamed "Bird" or "Yardbird", was an American jazz saxophonist, band leader and composer.

Charles Parker Jr. (August 29, 1920 – March 12, 1955), nicknamed "Bird" and "Yardbird", was an American jazz saxophonist, band leader and composer.

"The Essential Claude Thornhill - The Columbia Years" celebrates the work of Claude Thornhill and his orchestra during their influential years with Columbia Records. This collection highlights Thornhill's innovative arrangements and distinctive big band sound, blending jazz and classical influences. It includes some of his iconic works such as Snowfall and Autumn Nocturne, reflecting his signature dreamy, lush style.

This expansive four-disc anthology essentially covers the recorded history of the guitar in the 20th century, beginning with the ragtime banjo that set the table for the role of the guitar in a jazz setting in the early 1900s, and then touching all the bases clear through to the post-postmodern possibilities of the instrument in the 21st century. Don't let the subtitle throw you, though, because Progressions: 100 Years of Jazz Guitar interprets jazz guitar in the broadest of strokes, as it includes not only pantheon jazz players like Eddie Lang, Django Reinhardt, Charlie Christian, Les Paul, Wes Montgomery, and John McLaughlin but also provides an uncommon sweep by featuring Hawaiian stylists Roy Smeck and Sol Hoopii; Western swing aces Leon McAuliffe and Eldon Shamblin; country jazzman Hank Garland; rock virtuosos Jimi Hendrix, Carlos Santana, and Jeff Beck; fusion funksters Larry Carlton, Al DiMeola, and Mike Stein; and hard to classify avant-garde players like Derek Bailey, Sonny Sharrock, James Blood Ulmer, and Marc Ribot.