Jazz | Fusion 294 Items

Sylvie Vartans seminal 1962 debut LP transformed the 18-year-old collegiénne du twist into the French pop diva, whose songs (and high-profile marriage to Johnny Hallyday) would dominate the European pop charts throughout the 1960s. Songs like Est-ce que tu le sais and Le Loco-motion remakes of Ray Charles What Id Say and Little Evas Locomotionbecame two of her first smash hits.

Although the beautiful sound, mutual understanding and harmonic balance mostly predominate, the music of alto saxophonist Paul Desmond performing together with baritone saxophonist Gerry Mulligan is far from what one calls 'easy listening'. For many, it is even difficult to identify the melody of evergreens such as "Stardust" and "The Way You Look Tonight". (And what theme is tucked away in "Two Of A Mind"????)
The recording in the RCA Victor Studio took place over several days in 1962, and this is why different bass players and percussionists are heard – Wendell Marshall, Joe Benjamin and John Beal each take their turn on the bass, while Connie Kay and Mel Lewis change places behind the drum set. These musicians form a brilliant team, and that there is no piano is both deliberate and inevitable for Gerry Mulligan recordings of the day. By the way, the second saxophonist in "The Way You Look Tonight" is Paul Desmond – by means of over-dubbing in the middle of the stereo recording!
The present LP could certainly take a rightful place in a 'Best Of' collection alongside the other recordings by Gerry Mulligan with Ben Webster and Stan Getz.

Pressed to 180g audiophile vinyl.

This is it, the live, double LP where the magical Tony Bennett created indelible memories! "Tony Bennett At Carnegie Hall" is the Tony Bennett album to buy for any Bennett fan or those just introduced to his music. And you'll never hear or experience it presented in finer fashion than from this outstanding reissue by Analogue Productions and Quality Record Pressings!
We've given "Tony Bennett At Carnegie Hall" the deluxe reissue treatment. Starting with premier mastering by Ryan Smith at Sterling Sound from the original analog tapes. Then plating and presssing by Gary Salstrom and the crew at Quality Record Pressings, where the finest quality LPs in the world are pressed. But it doesn't stop there: We've expanded and enhanced the original studio photography, which was supplied by Sony to our graphic designers. And we've wrapped up the whole package in a deluxe 'old-school' tip-on gatefold jacket from Stoughton Printing!
Originally recorded in 1962, "Tony Bennett At Carnegie Hall" is a testament to Bennett's live vocal ability, writes allmusic.com. Backed by the Ralph Sharon Orchestra, Bennett moves far beyond his standard musical catalogue.
Along with standards like "I Left My Heart In San Francisco" and "Just in Time", Bennett reached out to create great medleys such as "(I Like New York in June) How About You/April in Paris", that automatically become his as soon as they are performed. Altogether there are 30 tracks on the album. Most remarkable is the clarity of the recording of the concert. If not for the tremendous applause of the audience, you could swear that Bennett had recorded each track in the studio. A masterpiece!

John Coltrane brought a new sound and style to jazz, and he applied it in his own unique way to the standard material of the storehouse of American music gathered from Broadway, Hollywood and Tin Pan Alley. With the excellent rhythm team of Red Garland, Paul Chambers (both of whom had done so many concert, club and recording dates with him) and Jimmy Cobb and the Miles-directed flugelhorn of Wilbur Harden, Trane puts his personal stamp on numbers not done that often like Henry Nemo's "Don't Take Your Love from Me", Fred Ahlert's "I'll Get By" and two more familiar yet still not overdone songs, Richard Rodgers' "Spring Is Here" and Bronislau Kaper's "Invitation."

"Comin’ Home Baby" – that’s how the LP begins and that’s what catapulted it right into the charts. Not to one of the top places, but from this time on Herbie Mann was one of the superstars in Atlantic’s collection of jazz musicians. He was known as 'our man with the flute', and the critics in the early Sixties were full of praise for him. He became even more famous, and probably richer, through soundtracks and later on sometimes rather commercialised productions. Well, good for him. 'The Man' serves up jazz pure on this recording, made live at the legendary Village Gate club, which is no wonder considering the rhythm group that includes Ahmad Abdul-Malik and Rudy Collins. The composer of "Comin’ Home Baby", Ben Tucker, also makes an appearance as a guest soloist before the two Gershwin numbers from "Porgy And Bess" offer a wealth of rhythm pure. On the cover text of the LP, Willis Conover, who hosted the Newport Jazz Festival as a sideline (older jazz fans will know his baritone voice from AFN broadcasts), describes in detail the ethnic background of the musicians who come from all over the world – from Romania to Puerto Rico. The three numbers are by no means commonplace. Perhaps a tasty flute cocktail would be a good description. This true rarity from Atlantic’s treasure trove in the early Sixties has long been marked down on the wish list of many fans and at long last it’s available again.

Originally issued in Stereo on Prestige LP (PR 7233)
Subsequently reissued in the Prestige/New Jazz budget subsidiary label Status (ST 7233)

The John Wright Trio
John Wright (piano), Wendell Roberts (bass), Walter Perkins, Jr. (drums).
Recorded at Rudy Van Gelder Studios in Englewood Cliff, New Jersey, April 10, 1962

Engineered & mastered by Rudy Van Gelder
Cover photo & design: Don Schlitten
Back-liner notes: Tom Wilson
Recording supervised by Esmond Edwards

180 Gram Newly Remastered Vinyl Reissue of the original Prestige Prlp 7233 Limited edition in Solid carton sleeve

Limited Clear Vinyl edition, 300 copies! Recorded intermittently between June and September 1962, "Year of the Iron Sheep" was Ken McIntyre's third album, the fruit of various studio sessions featuring three different personnels. Here the great multi-instrumentalist, mostly known for his collaborations with the likes of Eric Dolphy, Archie Shepp, Cecil Taylor and Charlie Haden is heard on alto sax and flute while the rhythm section variously features pianist Jacki Byard, bassists Ron Carter and Ahmed Abdul-Malik, drummers Ben Riley, Louis Hayes and Warren Smith. An amazing cast of players for a great and yet forgotten post-bop gem.

There have been many great Jazz Pianists, but foremost amongst them is Bill Evans. Accepted by all fans as being supremely influential for defining the format and scope of the Jazz trio, Evans entered his first purple patch in the mid to late fifties and refined his playing with a series of album. Over the years he recorded many trio albums with frequent changes of members, with the most lauded being his first and second line-ups. By May 1962 Evans cut what would be his seventh album for Riverside . New Bassist, Chuck Israels, joined the group, and together this second classic line-up cut two albums in the same sessions. The first was Moon Beams which contained ballads, while the second one, How My Heart Sings, had the up-tempo numbers. These were recorded as a mixture during the sessions as producer Orrin Keepnews wanted to release an album of just ballads from Evans, and so made up the album from the varied session tracks. During the recordings, Evans only revealed the tracks to his trio at the session itself. Fans and critics alike were more than appreciative of Chuck Israels' ability to meld into the trio with his punchy lines, meshing in especially well with Motian.

When giants of Jazz join together in conjugal jamming the resultant jousting can be less than jubilant. That was often the case in the era when promoters and record producers thought it a bright idea to create battle conditions at concerts and on albums. Undercurrent features the protagonists unsupported by a rhythm section, and relies on their intuition and telepathic understanding to create the interplay revealed in this album. Much admired as an influence on other Pianists, Bill Evans won seven Grammy Awards and a led a Trio that released many acclaimed albums. While Jim Hall continued playing, composing and arranging touring the world, receiving myriad awards in recognition of his achievements.

Limited Clear Vinyl edition, 500 copies! Twistin' the Night Away is Sam Cooke's eighth studio album. Released in April 1962 by RCA Victor, the album shows how the one and only Sam Cooke approached the twist dance phenomenon and as a result became one of Cooke's most successful releases. In fact Twistin' the Night Away peaked while the single of the same name charted high at number nine on the Billboard Hot 100. Twistin' the Night Away stands as one of the great dance albums of its period,"and "a brilliant soul album as well.

First time officially reissue, sourced from the original master tapes in a new edition, the Milan based imprint Dialogo, returns with this compilation published in Italy by RCA Victor in 1962 - a precious historical document of some important international jazz and pop artists who came to Italy and left their marks, influencing the generations of those golden years. The RCA artists on this LP record have only two things in common: “Inter-continental Airport Rome-Fiumicino” stamped on their passports and a great love for Italy. As a tribute to the country which gave them a friendly welcome and where they spent unforgettable vacations and reaped enthusiastic applause, all of them chose to sing songs in Italian or perform - in the case of Perez Prado - a number of outstanding Italian hits. The dazzling trumpets and electrifying rhythms of Perez Prado, the captivating voice of Helen Merrill, rightly considered the top-notch white jazz singer by critics over the world, the young, all-time best-sellers, Paul Anka and Neil Sedaka, the fantastic trumpet of Chet Baker and his mysterious swinging style of singing, and lastly Antonio Prieto, the Latin-American singer-songwriter who wrote “LA Novia”, are the guest stars of this “passport TO Italy”, which, more than a record, is a full-fledged musical show, with a vast assortment of voices, of musical styles and songs. The Italian pronunciation of these North and South American recording artists is virtually perfect and particularly praiseworthy, if for no other reason than for the effort they have made in getting around, in just a few days, the difficult twists and turns of the Italian language. Their accent is naturally somewhat exotic but it only adds to the charm and the originality of the interpretations. The “show” opens with the already classic “arrivederci Roma”, which, though turned into an overpowering “chunga” by Perez Prado, has kept all its original melody intact. Prado, the wizard of Latin-American dance music, is an extremely refined blender of sounds and rhythms, and without any difficulty can take even a Neapolitan song, change it into a mambo and adapt it to his orchestra. In “guaglione”, for example, the “corruption” comes off perfectly and testifies to the everfresh inventiveness and the unmistakable personality of the Cuban-born pianist arranger. Helen Merrill prefers quality over quantity and so has made very few records but they already occupy a place of their own in the annals of jazz. She consented to record two popular ballads only because Armando Trovajoli, the most qualified exponent of Italian jazz as well as a far-out modernist, was to conduct the orchestra. Furthermore, the two songs, “nessuno AL Mondo” and “estate” are particularly congenial to her musical temperament, for she is most of all concerned with creating subtle and seductive moods, making an intelligent use of her vocal resources in that she tries to “add” her voice to the orchestra as though it were another instrument. Canadian-born Paul Anka, by now a regular member of the exclusive club of top-selling vocal artists of America, presents one of his own songs, “ogni Giorno” originally entitled “love ME Warm AND Tender”, the most requested hit in his present-day repertoire. And the young singing star’s interpretation of “voglio Sapere” (“i’d Like TO Know”) once again makes clear why his name became a permanent fixture as all-time best-seller. Neil Sedaka is another representative of the younger generation of American singers. When he was still in high school in Brooklyn, Neil became a close friend of one of schoolmates: Howard Greenfield. The two of them wrote numerous songs together for school shows: Neil handled the music and Howard the words. Their collaboration proved extremely fruitful, and they were soon to make their debut as professional songwriters with two hits of the calibre of “stupid Cupid” and “falling”. The Sedaka-Greenfield team, which in only a few year time has become one of the best-known, presents, in Italian, two songs which in their original tongue have already climbed to the top: “esagerata” (“little Devil”), translated by Leo Chiosso, and “UN Giorno Inutile” (“I Must BE Dreaming”), translated by Gentile and De Simoni. After Sedaka comes one of the big names of cool jazz: Chet Baker. Trumpet-player and singer, he proves here for the nth time that the names “Golden Trumpet” and “Angel Voice”, given him not only by his fans but by the crites as well, are in no way exaggerated. With an at once restless, desperate and almost possessed musical style, Chet sings and plays two songs which he himself wrote: “IL MIO Domani” and “SO CHE TI Perdero”. His reserved, curiously, precarious and profoundly dramatic way of singing, virtually the mirror-image of his life, is the same in both songs and makes them seem almost unconsciously autobiographical. The “show” then closes with Antonio Prieto. Precisely because of his Latin origins (he was born in Chile, but is Argentine by adoption), it is perhaps easier for him than for the others to express himself in Italian. As is well-known, the name of Prieto soared to the Olympic heights of popular music with “LA Novia” which he wrote in collaboration with his brother, Joaquin. He is a typically Latin singer with a warm, melodious and romantic voice, tinged with melancholy, and on more than one occasion he has shown that he thoroughly understands the tastes of the public. Listen to his two most recent compositions: “papà”, written in collaboration with singer-songwriter Sergio Endrigo, the author of “aria DI Neve”, and “baciami” and... judge for yourselves.

Canadian composer Bruce Haack one of the true pioneers in the field of electronic and children's music. Originally released in 1962 "Dance, Sing & Listen" was Haack's debut album. Following instructions from children dance teacher Esther Nelson the album comes as a hyper-eclectic work based on a great variety of sound material. A hybrid soup of medieval, country, classical, and pop styles including tons of electronic effects, guitars, banjos and other acoustic string instruments and bongos!!! This is open minded music for children at its best.

Charles Mingus brought together an amazing lineup spanning the totality of the nation's jazz scene with such luminaries as Eric Dolphy, Buddy Collette, Clark Terry, Zoot Sims, Pepper Adams, Jaki Byard, Grady Tate, and more. Brought together to perform new Mingus compositions for the first time in public, the recording was initially considered weak due to limited rehearsal time but the years have been kind to this recording and it's a fantastic set of Mingus compositions, including the powerful "Freedom" which rivals the works on Mingus Ah-Um (1959) for its strength of purpose and message, in a similar vein to Max Roach's legendary We Insist! album (1960). Mingus is one of the most important figures in 20th century music and this live recording documents his compositional and arranging process as well as sheer swinging joy.

When Charlie Byrd toured South America in 1961, Bossa Nova—a melding of Brazilian samba rhythms with the harmonic structures and cool sound of West Coast jazz—was booming. He brought back records for Stan Getz to hear and they planned a session. The result was Jazz Samba—the first album of Bossa Nova music by jazz artists and the one that created the Bossa Nova wave.



VERVE ACOUSTIC SOUNDS SERIES: Stereo, mastered fully analogue from the original tapes by Ryan K. Smith at Sterling Sound, QPR pressing (180 g), firm tip-on gatefold (Stoughton Printing), padded inner sleeve.

Recorded in New York in 1957 (though not released until 1962), 'Tijuana Moods' was, according to Mingus himself, "the best album i ever made." The music is a vigorous stew of Mexican rhythms and sophisticated post-Ellington arrangements, further invigorated by the soloing of trumpeter Clarence Shaw, trombonist Jimmy Knepper, and, particularly, saxophonist Shafi Hadi. Mingus's vision of Tijuana was clearly sensual, the music evoking strippers, frenetic street scenes, and heart-broken lovers. Making use of suite like thematic material and various forms of counterpoint, the group sounds much larger than it is, and points toward Mingus's later experiments with form. the bristling sound and spirit of the music, however, are its primary attractions - a remarkable place where Mexican fantasy and hard bop meet.

"Legendary Sun Records producer Sam Phillips knew talent when he saw it, and when he started up his new Phillips label in the early 1960s, one of the first acts he signed was Frank Frost and his electric Delta blues trio. Now known as one of the greatest harp players of his generation, Frost learned his trade playing with none other than Sonny Boy Williamson and his influence can be heard whenever he blows. Originally released in 1962, Hey, Boss Man! is one of the last great electric blues albums."

The “straight horn” referred to in the title of this superb album from 1961 is the soprano saxophone, and Lacy is recognized as one of the greatest to ever play the instrument, ranking alongside John Coltrane and Sidney Bechet. Because of the difficulty involved in mastering it’s pitch challenges, very few jazzmen concentrated on it. Lacy is widely considered the first “modern” musician to specialize on the instrument. Lacy had long and prolific career and a fascinating style trajectory. At sixteen he began playing Dixieland with the likes of Pee Wee Russell. In the mid 1950’s he played free jazz with Cecil Taylor, and appeared with his groundbreaking quartet at the 1957 New Port Jazz Festival. He made a notable appearance on the 1959 Gil Evens, Great Jazz Standards album. Along the way, Lacy became obsessed with the music of Thelonious Monk, working with him several times including the 1963 Big Band and Quartet in Concert album, and devoted much of this life’s work to the interpretation of Monk’s materiel

All of You is a live album by American jazz pianist Ahmad Jamal featuring performances recorded at Jamal's own club in Chicago in 1961 and released originally on the Argo label. Jamal's group had a personal sound of its own, often playing quietly and leaving space but never losing the passion. These versions of "Time on My Hands," "Star Eyes" and "All of You" in particular are well worth hearing. On the cover, photographed by Don Bronstein, one of the first staff photographers for Playboy magazine, Jamal sits in an MAA chair, designed by George Nelson.

Drummer Roy Haynes was just about everywhere in the golden age of jazz, recording classic albums with some of the most legendary names of the genre. The hard-bop-verging-on-post-bop Out Of The Afternoon is an excellent example of the adventurous spirit that was taking flight in the jazz world in the early 1960s. Haynes swings as the leader of this 1962 Impulse! session, featuring A-list jazzmen Roland Kirk (multiple instruments including stritch and nose flute!), Tommy Flanagan (piano) and Henry Grimes (bass).

VERVE ACOUSTIC SOUNDS SERIES: mastered fully analogue from the original tapes by Ryan K. Smith at Sterling Sound, QPR pressing (180 g), firm tip-on gatefold (Stoughton Printing), padded inner sleeve.

Jamaican-born jazz trumpeter Dizzy Reece recorded one of his best opus in 1962. Released on the New Jazz label the album featured greats such as bassist Ron Carter, renowned saxophonist Cecil Payne and pianist Hank Jones. It’s a beautifully recorded and sequenced album, the compositions reflecting Reece’s interest in the music of the Asian continent and regions of North Africa, with each piece transitioning nicely into the next. Asia Minor would be the last session Reece would lead until 1967/68. A fixture of the European jazz scene of the Fifties, Reece came to New York in 1959. This intriguing, Eastern-flavored date, is still regarded has one of the best example of cross-pollination in the jazz genre.

Exclusive reissue for Plattenladenwoche 2011!

One of the most important Jazz Albums from the mighty Amiga catalogue is back in print!

Although the name Stan Getz (tenor sax) was initially synonymous with the West Coast cool scene during the mid-to-late 1950s, he likewise became a key component in the Bossa Nova craze of the early 1960s. Getz Au Go Go (1965) is Stan Getz in his prime, recorded with perhaps one of the best quartets of his career, featuring Bossa Nova singer Astrud Gilberto.

180g vinyl.

180g

Hardly any other musician has released so little as Hasaan Ibn Ali, born William Henry Langford Jr., in 1931, who died in 1980. Just seven titles in all are his complete output, all of which he composed himself, all of them on the present Atlantic LP, and all recorded in December 1964. The saxophonist Odean Pope, who often practised with him, talks of a second recording session in 1965 for Atlantic, but the recordings were never released because Hasaan was sent to jail shortly afterwards; rumour has it that the tapes were destroyed in a fire – and it might well be that recordings with John Coltrane still exist somewhere or other.
Until then, one should enjoy the Max Roach Trio with Art Davis on the bass to the full. We have here a recording that will astound and fascinate your ears with its originality. A first impression conjures up reminiscences of Cecil Taylor and Herbie Nichols, while Hasaan himself talks of the pianist Elmo Hope as the man who brought him closer to the 'mystery of music'. When asked how the recording session with maestro Max Roach went, Hasaan said: »They scared me to death.«
According to Odean Pope, Hasaan was not an easy person to get on with, and he was convinced of his talent to the point of arrogance. But despite this – or perhaps because of this – one listens spellbound to the 40 minutes on this LP, a legacy and never-fulfilled promise of an extremely talented man. We are indebted to Max Roach, who persuaded the bosses of Atlantic Records to make these recordings. For many, many years they had vanished from the record market, but fortunately they are now available as an audiophile re-release to be listened to and admired.

This Speakers Corner LP was remastered using pure analogue components only, from the master tapes through to the cutting head. More information under www.pure-analogue.com.
All royalties and mechanical rights have been paid.