Artist: Pe'z
     Album: BEST STAGE ZERO
     Label: Daiki Sound
     Year: 2007
     Genre: Japanese Jazz
     Format, bitrate:aac, 128kbps
     Time: 1:19:17
     Size: 73.64MB

Abroad was released "The Illusion" albums back as a domestic board! Hear the roar in the United States has been wildly! 14 works from three independent remix the song in LIVE + '06NY Complete takes! 』And『 now slavishly things back three years ago in 2005 at the NHK Hall PE `Z REALIVE 2005" section ~ FUSHI ~ "After a very successful, the same year 11 European tour in January 2006 three month North American tour (11 cities in nine performances) to press ahead, and was released shortly after the AL is local. Three independent works "pe` z "" Hayato-HAYATO-"" OKOKOROIRE "from a selection of 14 songs. Bonus tracks on the LIVE NY AL takes complete this is a remix of Western consciousness, is decorated with remastered, has just finished work hard PE'Z also say from a challenge. Despite the release overseas became a hot topic among enthusiasts now, and then imported back in circulation in the form of foreign-owned shops, some have disappeared quickly. This "visionary album" The point that has been called. 2009, rising star Orutanatibufoku "suzumoku" with the unit, pe'zmoku vigorously active middle, and finally back as a domestic board! 『BEST STAGE ZERO』 slavishly-YAMIKUMO-born, street dreams were overseas continued to run frantically toward the locus of PE'Z advance beyond the border in both name and reality, in a foreign land, "SAMURAI SPIRIT" that held sway the work can feel the moment. ATM Accident!

     Artist: Matthew Shipp
     Album: Nu Bop
     Label: Thirsty Ear Recordings
     Year: 2002, realise: 2003
     Format, bitrate: mp3, 320
     Size: 93 mb
     AMG Rating:

Jazz and electronica mated many times before NU BOP, on both the electronic side and the jazz side, but seldom so purposefully and definitively as on this recording by boundary-pushing pianist Matthew Shipp.

"Here's a twist that's full-on bent: Matthew Shipp making funky avant-garde jazz. It's true that, like Sun Ra on his Lanquidity album in the late '70s, Shipp has decided to add programming and synths to his mix for this disc, to at least walk a tightrope between improvisational art and the music of the street. For any of you groaning as you read this, give it up — this disc is one of Shipp's very best and one of the first really new things to come across on the American jazz front in over a decade. The band is comprised of Shipp on piano, William Parker on contrabass, Daniel Carter replacing David S. Ware on saxophone and flute, Guillermo Brown on drums, and FLAM on synths and programming. Shipp's methodology is one of shifting rhythmic hypnosis and modal inquiry along scaled intervals and striated harmonic pathways that lead through the middle registers of both the saxophone and the piano. "X-Ray" is a keen example of how Shipp employs an ostinato line that changes itself ever so slightly in each chorus, is treated by FLAM with tweaked programming moves that underscore the rhythmic line, and allows Parker to roll around the changes between Carter and Shipp. In other places, such as on "Space Shipp," which opens the album, the funky line sets the pace for a six-chord thematic statement by Shipp. Parker lays in the cut with Brown, allowing the funk and roll to slip dramatically into a hypnotic groove that flows into Shipp's solo. Rather than a flurry of middle- and upper-register notes and chords, Shipp concentrates on establishing intervallic patterns that dig deeper into the thematic material and "deepen the funk," if you will, by modalizing its context. The disc closes with "Select Mode 2," an angular off-minor modal move with interplay and polyrhythmic accents by FLAM and Brown over a 5/8 samba figure as Shipp and Parker close ranks with the extensions of line and syntax in repetitive phrases that revolve around the rhythmic construct and move beyond it without leaving the groove. This is truly a new way of approaching jazz, a new way of hearing the intricacies of rhythmic counterpoint and textured harmonics that syncopate the entire methodology of composition and improvisation into a holistic view of the music as pulse and force. Shipp has clearly outdone himself this time, and the Blue Series that he coordinates on Thirsty Ear continues to be one of the bravest and most exciting series of recordings in jazz today." ~ Thom Yurek, All Music Guide

Alternative Press (2/02, p.80) - 8 out of 10 - "...A great album..."
The Wire (1/02, pp.64,66) - "...Shipp's confrontation of the emotive beats of HipHop with improvised interplay is well served by his musicians and the glowing, bass solid, 'in your face' production."

     Artist: Cuong Vu
     Album: Bound
     Label: Omnitone
     Year: 1999 ; release: 2000
     Genre: Modern Creative, Avantgarde Jazz, Jazz-Rock, Trumpet Jazz
     Format, bitrate: mp3, 320
     Time: 47:56
     Size: 97 mb
     AMG Rating:

Vietnamese-born trumpeter Vu displays a modern progressive aesthetic in his music that points to many influences in jazz, 20th century contemporary, and even pop music. Keyboardist Jamie Saft, electric bass guitarist Stomu Takeishi, and percussionist Jim Black are able to wring every ounce of emotion and power out of the leaders solid toned, never mushy, or slurred horn. The clarity of Vu's sound is astonishing, and this band may be bound by an avant- jazz pigeonhole, but not ever gagged by it. Vu wrote most of the material here. A naturally kinetic, dissented funk with throbbing Fender Rhodes from Saft acts as a fuse, setting off the artist's intense, searing trumpet on "Two." A Sun Ra-like mystery processional with yearning trumpet and flowing piano informs "Our Bridge." Contrary rhythms of six and four match a bass/drums versus trumpet/piano battle on the quintessential push me/pull you piece "Still Ragged," with wild bridge work á la Cecil Taylor via Saft. The title track, co-written by Vu and Holly Palmer, has a three-way personality, starting in lovely, soaring space musings, going to a pounding rock beat from Black, a sweet pop-type vocal from the surprisingly attractive Vu, and an acidic tail. "The Drift" is as it sounds, from introspective to dramatic three piano chords, first somber, then forceful. "Acid Kiss" is a lower, edited Swiss cheese funk, with holes filled by Vu's inquiring trumpet and Saft's here and there Rhodes. It's quite Miles Davis-esque, building to peak intensity. The finale, "The Burn," written by Scott Wilk and Palmer, claims to be Charles Ives influenced. It's more rockish under urban landscape vista sonorities, a very free and unforced wall of sound that eventually settles on a glassy, aquamarine bottom. Vu's concept is unique and distinctive, but this is only the beginning for him. It's short in time at under 50 minutes, but fully charged with depth, substance, and fine musicianship. Recommended. ~ Michael G. Nastos, All Music Guide

     Artist: Paul Bley
     Album: Solo In Mondsee
     Label: ECM
     Year: Recorded 2001; release: 2007
     Format, bitrate: MP3, 320kb/s
     Time: 55:39
     Size: 156.5MB (with 1400x1400 cover)
     AMG Rating:

Fully 35 years after Open, To Love, Paul Bley's seminal solo piano recording for ECM (which stands as a watermark both in his own career and in the history of the label -- i.e., unconsciously aiding Manfred Eicher in establishing its "sound"), the pianist returns to the label for another go at it on Solo in Mondsee. Recorded in Mondsee, Austria, in 2001, and not issued until Bley's 75th year, these numbered "Mondsee Variations" were played on a Bцsendorfer Imperial grand piano, an instrument that is, like its player, in a class of its own. Bley moves through ten improvisations lasting between two and just under nine minutes each. His range of thought, instinct, and motion is staggering. In a little over 55 minutes, he combines melodic and abstract notions of jazz and blues (especially on "VII" for the latter), ghost traces of popular song from the 1930s to the present, various folk musics, contemporary classical ideas, and reflections on the art of improvisation itself. This set isn't about flash, nor is it about transcendence. It's about the investigation of space, and the arrangement of music within it. While Bley has recorded other solo albums in the last 35 years, none is more diverse and tender in its sparseness than this one. His sense of detail is also his sense of economy on the instrument, which is graceful and elegant, rarely simply "percussive." In this manner Bley is a poet of sound. He pushes a line only as far as the extension of his own "breath," as the late poet Charles Olson put it regarding written language. Where the writer felt compelled to use the "/" symbol as a way of creating a break, Bley is not so specific; he is not interested in being a celebrated "technician." He pushes the line in any way that suits the idea at hand, which in turns suggests others; he allows room for its reverberations and trace echoes to inform each following sound, creating song from silence, lyric from air. His vast knowledge of musical forms is never knotty or purely intellectual; there is a great deal of emotion put into -- and coming out of -- each and every piece; the harmonic reflections on "IV" and "V" are particularly beautiful in very different ways. There is a wall that writing about this music presents; there is only so much explaining to do, because there isn't a written language that can even hope to convey this except poetry itself, and even there, it falls short. For anyone who has ever wondered about Bley and his amazing 60-year career in jazz, or for anyone interested in either the piano or improvisation, this recording, like its predecessor, will mystify, delight, and satisfy in ways that cannot really be imagined until Solo in Mondsee is actually encountered.

     Artist: Alice Coltrane
     Album: Ptah, The El Daoud
     Label: Impulse!
     Year: 1970
     Format: mp3@320
     Size: 58MB
     Time: 46:01
     

Ptah the El Daoud is a truly great album, and listeners who surrender themselves to it emerge on the other side of its 46 minutes transformed. From the purifying catharsis of the first moments of the title track to the last moments of "Mantra," with its disjointed piano dance and passionate ribbons of tenor cast out into the universe, the album resonates with beauty, clarity, and emotion. Coltrane's piano solo on "Turiya and Ramakrishna" is a lush, melancholy, soothing blues, punctuated only by hushed bells and the sandy whisper of Ben Riley's drums and later exchanged for an equally emotive solo by bassist Ron Carter. "Blue Nile" is a case where the whole is greater than the sum of its parts; Coltrane's sweeping flourishes on the harp nestle in perfectly with flute solos by Pharoah Sanders and Joe Henderson to produce a warm cocoon of sound that is colored by evocations of water, greenness, and birds. Perhaps as strong as the writing here, though, are the performances that Coltrane coaxes from her sidemen, especially the horn players. Joe Henderson, who can always be counted on for technical excellence, gives a performance that is simply on a whole other level from much of his other work — freer, more open, and more fluid here than nearly anywhere else. Pharoah Sanders, who at times with John Coltrane seemed like a magnetic force of entropy, pulling him toward increasing levels of chaos, shows all of the innovation and spiritual energy here that he is known for, with none of the screeching. Overlooked and buried for years in obscurity, this album deserves to be embraced for the gem it is.

     Artist: George Lewis
     Album: Solo Trombone Record
     Label: Sackville 3012
     Year: 1976
     Format, bitrate: mp3@320 kbs ( Ripped from original LP)
     Time: ~42 min
     Size: 97,42 MB (with Covers Front/Back HD)
     AMG Rating:


At the time of this, his first solo recording, George Lewis was all of 24 years old, having already served in bands led by artists ranging from Count Basie to, most famously, Anthony Braxton. Yet not only can one hear his obvious technical mastery of the instrument but, more crucially, both his respect for the tradition as well as his determined sense of exploration and experimentation. The latter is shown to huge effect on the opening composition, "Toneburst: Three Trombones Simultaneously." Not simply an exercise in overdubbing, Lewis melds the parts into a substantial, if relatively abstract, whole. Aside from demonstrating his inordinate technical ability (which was already, at this point, on par with the best of his generation as well as the previous one), he sets up marvelous counterpoints and variations in style, ranging from the dryly pointillistic to rich and luxurious tones straight out of Ellington's band. It's an astonishingly mature performance. "Phenomenology" is a raucous ride through R&B-inflected jazz, Lewis displaying chops aplenty (and prodigious plunger technique) while nodding with reverence and good humor toward his antecedents on the instrument. He turns to his more prickly style with "Untitled Dream Sequence," though still infusing it with enough romantic elements to avoid any aridity. Finally, there's the spectacular rendition of Billy Strayhorn's gorgeous "Lush Life," played by the young Lewis with such love and feeling so as to put to shame most of his peers. Solo Trombone Record was finally released to disc in 2001 and should be heard by all with an interest in Lewis, the contemporary trombone, and late-20th century creative music in general. ~ Brian Olewnick, All Music Guide

     Artist: Matthew Shipp Quartet
     Album: Pastoral Composure
     Label: Thirsty Ear Recordings
     Year: 2000
     Genre: Avantgarde Jazz, Piano Jazz
     Format, bitrate: mp3/320 kbps
     Time: 48:15
     Size: 108 mb
     AMG Rating:
     
     Included in CMJ's "Best of the Year" for 2000

     Pastoral Composure is a rich and moving album that is one of the highlights of Matthew Shipp's array of recent releases. The pianist and composer is joined by trumpeter and flugelhorn player Roy Campbell, leading bassist William Parker, and drummer Gerald Cleaver, who are all strong contributors to this January, 2000, session. The album doesn't lose momentum from the dramatic opener, "Gesture," through the solo piano exposition — the shortest number and closer — "XTU." The first cut opens with Cleaver's unexpected military-like rolls on a loose snare that remain an integral sound throughout the piece. Cleaver is soon joined by Shipp and Parker who stir up a thunderstorm with dark, tense chords and percussive left-hand work on the piano and a constant buzzing from the bass. Campbell soon enters on trumpet to make this one of the quartet numbers on this album. The album's second piece, "Visions," will surprise naysayers with its straight-ahead seams on a jaunty form, and restrained (yet discernible) Shipp attitude.

     Artist: Joris Posthumus Quartet
     Album: The Abyss
     Label: Challenge
     Year: 2010
     Quality: mp3\320
     Size: 142 mb




After the project The New Quartet meets and The New Quartet invites, Dutch saxplayer Joris Posthumus and bassplayer Jurriaan Dekker have found their two 'partners in crime' to stay: Jeroen van Vliet and Pascal Vermeer. With the four of them they now form the new Joris Posthumus Quartet (featuring on this record also Tom Beek on tenorsax). This band is unbelievably strong and no-nonsense. You can call it nu-bop! They themselves call it a kick-ass jazz band! ~ challenge.nl

     Artist: Benjamin Herman
     Album: Blue Sky Blond
     Label: Dox records
     Year: 2009
     Quality: mp3@320
     Size: 135 mb (covers: all + autographs)

Benjamin Herman got his first saxophone at the age of twelve. At thirteen he was already playing on the professional club circuit. Within a few years he was appearing with different groups around the world and initiating projects of his own. His fame spread beyond jazz circles in the 1990s when he formed the groundbreaking ensemble New Cool Collective. Having made a name as soloist while still a teenager, Benjamin Herman has appeared on over a hundred records with all kinds of artists, from Candy Dulfer to Misha Mengelberg.

Herman has also built a career in Holland and abroad as a composer. With New Cool Collective as well as with his smaller band’s his gigs are inspired by dance floor jazz, surf and punk music, free jazz and traditional music from all over the world, attracting music fans of all genres as well as straight ahead jazz aficionados. At the same time he has explored in depth the repertoire of composers such a Byard, Monk and Mengelberg.

Today Benjamin Herman is one of the most original and productive jazz musicians in the Netherlands exploring influences beyond the confines of the jazz world. After signing to DOX Records in 2005 Benjamin Herman produced a series of cd’s and vinyl’s. He also won his third Edison for the album ‘Campert’ (featuring Dutch poet Remco Campert), He recorded and toured with Paul Weller, programmed several festivals, toured in Brazil, Argentina, Kenya, Russia, Britain, Canada, England, Ireland and Japan and worked on numerous projects in the Netherlands. In 2006 he received the prestigious VPRO/Boy Edgar Award and was voted 'Best dressed Dutchman of 2008' by Esquire magazine. ~ myspace.com

      Artist: NICHEY QUARTET
     Title Of Album: First day Of Spring
     Label: Newfolder2 records
     Year: 2010
     Formrate: VBR ~192kbs
     Size: 72mb
     Total Time: 00:52:26




Ничей Kвартет исполняет современный джаз с элементами рок-музыки и музыки free.
Музыканты комбинируют классические инструменты и современные технологии обработки звука , чем достигается необычность звучания саксофона , гитары или контрабаса. Концертные выступления доказывают правомерность использования различных эффектов на классических джазовых инструментах. Зачастую прямо на сцене рождаются композиции в стиле free , основой которым служит использование Леонидом Сендерским мундштука для саксофона как отдельного инструмента.

     Artist: Pharoah Sanders
     Album: Oh Lord, Let Me Do No Wrong
     Label: Zillion (1989)
     Year: 1987
     Format: FLAC / MP3 (320k/s)
     Total time: 43:44
     Size: 287 / 102 MB (incl. covers)



     Although Pharoah Sanders was originally considered a firebrand, thanks to his wild early free jazz work in the '60s, his later records are actually more in the tradition of players like his one-time leader John Coltrane and, especially, Rahsaan Roland Kirk. The title track from this 1987 session could have been on any of Kirk's Atlantic albums, a mixture of gospel sway and free jazz honk that builds into a hypnotic swoon under Leon Thomas' rich baritone vocals. (Thomas also appears on his own composition, the blues "If It Wasn't for a Woman," and the closing "Next Time You See Me.") On the extended, relaxed take of Coltrane's "Equinox," Sanders doesn't try to copy his former boss' phrasing, but there's certainly a Coltrane-like elegance to Sanders' lyrical solo. In fact, Sanders' playing on the standard "Polka Dots and Moonbeams," which also features a lovely Vince Guaraldi-like piano solo by William S. Henderson III, is downright pretty. Oh Lord, Let Me Do No Wrong is a mellow and peaceful set by a player who no longer needs to make noise; whether old-school fans will appreciate this is debatable.

     Artist: Marcin Wasilewski Trio
     Album: January
     Label: ECM
     Year: 2007, release: 2008
     Genre: Modern Jazz, European Jazz
     Format, bitrate: MP3, 320
     Time: 1:10
     Size: 160mb



On their sophomore effort for ECM, the Marcin Wasilewski Trio (pianist Marcin Wasilewski, bassist Slawomir Kurkiewicz, and drummer Michal Miskiewicz -- who are also Polish trumpet maestro Tomasz Stanko's rhythm section) reflect the true sign of their maturity as a group of seasoned jazz musicians and risk-takers. Their debut album, simply called Trio, merely reflected to American and Western European audiences the wealth of talent, vision, and discipline that Polish and Eastern Europe's audiences had known for over a decade. (The group recorded five previous albums in its native country between 1993 and 2004.) They came together in 1991 as teenagers: Wasilewski and Kurkiewicz were only 16 and had already been playing together for a year when they met up with Miskiewicz. In 1993 they began playing behind Stanko, and eventually became his recording group as well. They were first heard on his 2001 album The Soul of Things, as well as his subsequent ECM outings, Suspended Night and Lontano. But all of this is history and history only. It doesn't begin to tell of the magic and mystery found in this beautiful album. There are four Wasilewski compositions in this ten-cut set. They range from the lovely songlike opener, "The First Touch," with its romantic melody that suggests Bill Evans' late "Song for Evan" period, as well as elliptical European improvisers like Bobo Stenson. But it's that inherent sense of dimension and space that is in all the best Polish jazz that makes this is such a stellar tune. The utterly lyrical brush and cymbal work by Miskiewicz and present yet uncluttered bassline of Kurkiewicz allow the full range of Wasilewski's reach from melodic invention to gently ambiguous modal exploration to come to the fore. The group's reading of Ennio Morricone's "Cinema Paradiso" underscores the deep and inseparable relationship between Polish jazz and the cinema that has existed since the collaborations between director Roman Polanski and Stanko's first boss, pianist and composer Krzysztof Komeda. The sense of dynamic that the trio goes for on this piece is perhaps less forcefully pronounced than the composer's, but it is almost a reading of its other side, where the brooding aspects of the original give way to something fuller and more picaresque, while allowing its sense of nostalgia and memory free rein inside the narrative of the tune.>>>

     Artist: James Blood Ulmer
     Album:Tales Of Captain Black
     Label:DIW (Japan)
     Year:rec.Dec 5, 1978 / rel.1996
     Format:MP3 @ 320 Kb/s
     Time:33:29
     Size: 73,6 Mb
     AMG rating:

     Artist: Pharoah Sanders
     Album: Journey to the One
     Year: 1979, release: 1980
     Format: FLAC + MP3 (320)
     Size: 471 + 168 MB (inc. artwork)
     Label: Theresa
     Total time: 72:40
     AMG Rating



Formerly a Theresa double LP, this single CD contains all ten of Pharoah Sanders's performances from the sessions. As usual, Sanders shifts between spiritual peace and violent outbursts in his tenor solos. The backup group changes from track to track but often includes pianist John Hicks, bassist Ray Drummond and drummer Idris Muhammad. Sanders really recalls his former boss John Coltrane on "After the Rain" (taken as a duet with pianist Joe Bonner) and a romantic "Easy to Remember"; other highpoints include "You've Got to Have Freedom" (which has Bobby McFerrin as one of the background singers) and the exotic "Kazuko" on which Sanders is accompanied by kato, harmonium and wind chimes.

Artist: Eberhard Weber
Album: Endless Days
Label: ECM (ecm1748)
Year: 2001
Genre: Jazz, Modern Jazz, Jazz-Classical crossover
Format, bitrate: FLAC
Time: 47:28
Size: ~275 MB (2 files)


For his first recording since 1993's Pendulum, bassist Eberhard Weber teams up with Paul McCandless on woodwinds, Rainer Brьninghaus on piano and keyboards, and (emerging from retirement) Michael DiPasqua on drums and percussion. Weber's new compositions involve little improvisation and a steadfast avoidance of typical jazz vocabulary. Evocative and thoroughly composed, these tracks have something of a European classical, chamber jazz feel; McCandless' oboe and English horn emphasize this aspect all the more. DiPasqua's percussion can be quite dramatic and effective, particularly on "French Diary." Brьninghaus' piano shines throughout, but his synthesized string pads are also so prevalent that they begin to have a narcotic effect. Weber is no showoff on his instrument, although he reserves "Solo for Bass" and "A Walk in the Garrigue" for himself. His clear, cello-like electric tone brings Eddie Gomez to mind. Compositionally, there are distinct echoes of Lyle Mays in Weber's music as well, although more likely it is Mays who borrowed from Weber. Well done and moving at times, but a bit mild and innocuous overall. ~ David R. Adler, All Music Guide

     Artist: Joachim Kьhn & Michael Wollny
     Album: Live at Schloss Elmau (ACT Piano Works IX)
     Label: ACT (ACT 9758)
     Year: 2008; release: 2009
     Genre: Jazz, Modern Jazz (piano duet)
     Format, bitrate: mp3, 320 kbps CBR
     Time: 53:17
     Size: ~98 MB

     Recorded on September 10, 2008 at the ACT Jazz And Friendship Festival at Schloss Elmau, Joachim Kьhn & Michael Wollny Live at Schloss Elmau (Piano Works IX) answers the question of ”What would happen if a thirty-something jazz piano phenom and a sixty-something jazz piano legend teamed up in concert?” The resulting work is nothing short of brilliant as two masters of the grand piano collectively flex their jazz abilities with intensity and sincere reverence for each other’s work.

     Artists: Archie Shepp and Roswell Rudd
     Album: Live In New York
     Label: EmArcy 013 482-2
     Year: 2000
     Format, bitrate: mp3@320 kbs Covers Front/Back HD
     Time: ~ 67 min
     Size: 140,73 MB

Recorded live at New York's Jazz Standard in 2000, this generally excellent CD marks the reunion of two avant-garde improvisers who were separated for way too long: tenor man Archie Shepp and trombonist Roswell Rudd. The jazzmen played together a lot during the turbulent 1960s but, regrettably, they didn't record together at all in the 1970s, 1980s, or 1990s. After more than 30 years apart, was that old chemistry still there? Absolutely. A 63-year-old Shepp (who doubles on piano) and a 65-year-old Rudd have no problem bringing out the best in one another whether they are embracing pieces from the 1960s (including Shepp's remorseful "Steam") or turning their attention to songs they wrote in the 1980s or 1990s such as Rudd's "Bamako" and Shepp's "Hope No. 2." Some people might wish that the veteran jazzmen paid more attention to their 1960s work, but Live in New York isn't meant to be an exercise in nostalgia. Shepp and Rudd (who are joined by trombonist Grachan Moncur III, bassist Reggie Workman, and drummer Andrew Cyrille) aren't trying to recreate the past -- nor should they. But that doesn't mean that they aren't excited about being reunited; they bring a wealth of enthusiasm to their post-bop and avant-garde performances -- none of which are as extreme as some of the blistering free jazz that Shepp provided in the 1960s. Shepp's "Déjà-Vu," in fact, is a hauntingly pretty torch ballad that finds the saxman singing. Although Shepp's singing isn't in a class with his tenor playing, he still manages to get his points across on "Déjà-Vu" -- which is an ironic song title for an album that avoids being nostalgic. Shepp and Rudd keep things unpredictable on this inspired reunion.

     Artist: Grachan Moncur III
     Album: Evolution
     Label: Blue Note
     Year: Nov. 21, 1963
     Format, bitrate: 256 kbps (VBR)
     Time: 40:59
     Size: 84.4 MB
     AMG Rating:

One of the New Thing's extremely few trombonists and a greatly underappreciated composer of tremendous evocative power, Grachan Moncur III got his first major exposure on Jackie McLean's groundbreaking 1963 masterpiece, One Step Beyond. Toward the end of the year, most of the same musicians reconvened for Moncur's debut as a leader, Evolution; McLean, vibist Bobby Hutcherson, and drummer Tony Williams are all back, with Bob Cranshaw on bass and an extra voice in trumpeter Lee Morgan, moonlighting from his usual groovy hard bop style. While Moncur takes a little more solo space here, the main emphasis is on his talent as a composer. The four originals are all extended, multi-sectioned works (the shortest is around eight minutes), all quite ambitious, and all terrifically moody; much of the album sounds sinister and foreboding, and even the brighter material has a twisted, surreal fun-house undercurrent. Part of that is due to the accuracy with which the musicians interpret Moncur's vision. Hutcherson provides his trademark floating chordal accompaniment, which is crucial to the overall texture; what's more, the album features some of McLean's weirdest playing ever, and some of Morgan's most impressively advanced, as he makes the most of a situation he longed to be in more often. Of the pieces, "Monk in Wonderland" is the most memorable; its whimsical, angular theme is offset by Hutcherson's mysterious vibes, which create a trippy effect in keeping with the title. "Air Raid" is alternately ominous and terrifyingly frantic, and the funereal title track keeps time only in the pulse of the horns and the backing, which is based entirely on whole notes. With such an inventive debut, it's a shame Moncur didn't record more as a leader, which makes Evolution an even more important item for fans of Blue Note's avant-garde to track down. ~ Scott Yanow, All Music Guide

     Artist: Chris Beier
     Album: Aeolian Green (ACT Piano Works VIII)
     Label: ACT (ACT 9757-2)
     Year: 2007; release: 2008
     Format, bitrate: mp3, VBR (avg 180 kbps)
     Time: 50:48
     Size: ~68 MB

Whoever believes they have heard everything that jazz and its related musical categories have to offer should listen to the first bars of the title track to Chris Beier’s CD Aeolian Green: they will be confronted with some truly “unheard of” music. Every note is in the aeolian or “natural minor” scale. Nevertheless, there is a bluesy feeling, and a surprisingly compelling strength that you just can’t ignore. In turn, sounding almost like a compatriot of Eric Satie, the composition “Aigues-Mortes” amplifies on jazz’s basic improvisatory approach.

Beier has been developing his own original style since the beginning of the 1980’s when he began working as a sideman for such jazz greats as Albert Mangelsdorff, Aladar Pege, Bill Elgart, Jörg Widmoser and John Etheridge, and as member of various groups led by renowned Polish saxophonist Leszek Zadlo. He has also been leading his own groups, such as “Space” (with Zadlo and bassist Rainer Glass). Beier plays a music with an accent on its European roots in which the American jazz idiom melds with the modern classical. Here McCoy Tyner is as much an influence as Debussy, Ravel and Bartok. Correspondingly, rhythm, which plays such a dominant roll in jazz, is subordinate here; Beier is a harmonist. >>>

     Artists: Don Cherry, Dewey Redman, Charlie Haden, Eddie Blackwell
     Album: Old and New Dreams
     Label: Black Saint (120 013-2)
     Year: 1976; release: 1977
     Format, bitrate: FLAC
     Time: 43:31
     Size: 271 MB (2 files)
     AMG Rating:


     Old and New Dreams was a jazz group that existed from 1976 to 1987. The band was composed of tenor saxophone player Dewey Redman (doubling on musette), bassist Charlie Haden, cornet player Don Cherry and drummer Ed Blackwell. All of the members were former sidemen of free jazz progenitor, alto saxophonist Ornette Coleman, and the group played a mix of Coleman’’s compositions and originals by the band members.
     They released two records on the German jazz label ECM: a self-titled release in 1979 and Playing, recorded live, a year later. These discs were bookended by a pair of discs on the Italian Black Saint label: a studio record from 1976 (also self-titled) and 1987’’s One For Blackwell, capturing the quartet’’s final concert at a birthday celebration for Blackwell.
     Haden is the only surviving member of the quartet, Blackwell having died in 1992, Cherry in 1995 and Redman in 2006. (Source: Wikipedia)