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The Complete Village Vanguard Sessions
:Album Description:20bit digital K2 mastering. :Devoted fans of alto saxophonist Art Pepper share a fascination with Chet Baker fans. They find Pepper's excesses, so flatly confessed in his autobiography, Straight Life, great fodder for intense listening--which they are. Pepper had a rare talent for playing as if his horn were a lens on his torment. He played cushioned, cool melodies in the California jazz heyday and then went off to prison and hardscrabble years as an infamous heroin addict. By the time he performed the music on this massive nine-CD set, ...
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Exclusively for My Friends
: :These four discs collect the material on six long plays of trios and solos that Oscar Peterson recorded in Villingen, Germany, between 1963 and 1968. On standards galore, Peterson never lets up in his rigorous, swinging approach. He is at his prime on these recordings, as he himself noted later. The improvisations range from extraordinary to awe-inspiring. The lyricism of Nat King Cole is in there, along with Art Tatum-esque rococoisms and Bud Powell-like attack. Which partners best complemented Peterson's girth, and bowed to it least, is always in dispute. On ...
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Best of the Big Bands
: :These four discs collect the material on six long plays of trios and solos that Oscar Peterson recorded in Villingen, Germany, between 1963 and 1968. On standards galore, Peterson never lets up in his rigorous, swinging approach. He is at his prime on these recordings, as he himself noted later. The improvisations range from extraordinary to awe-inspiring. The lyricism of Nat King Cole is in there, along with Art Tatum-esque rococoisms and Bud Powell-like attack. Which partners best complemented Peterson's girth, and bowed to it least, is always in dispute. On ...
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Live at the Village Vanguard
: :This stupendous seven-CD collection from the all-world trumpeter, composer, and bandleader Wynton Marsalis chronicles the amazing evolution of his underrated live septets at the legendary Village Vanguard from 1990 to 1994. Sequenced to simulate a week-long gig, the set melds together three different incarnations of Marsalis's ensemble: the gifted New Orleans-born drummer Herlin Riley, the ebullient Wessel Anderson on sopranino and alto saxes, and the fluent trombonist Wycliffe Gordon are the constants. The mercurial Marcus Roberts and the fleet-fingered Eric Reed alternate on piano, while Ben Wolfe and Reginald Veal lock ...
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In the Christmas Mood
: :This stupendous seven-CD collection from the all-world trumpeter, composer, and bandleader Wynton Marsalis chronicles the amazing evolution of his underrated live septets at the legendary Village Vanguard from 1990 to 1994. Sequenced to simulate a week-long gig, the set melds together three different incarnations of Marsalis's ensemble: the gifted New Orleans-born drummer Herlin Riley, the ebullient Wessel Anderson on sopranino and alto saxes, and the fluent trombonist Wycliffe Gordon are the constants. The mercurial Marcus Roberts and the fleet-fingered Eric Reed alternate on piano, while Ben Wolfe and Reginald Veal lock ...
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Beauty Is a Rare Thing: The Complete Atlantic Recordings
: essential recording:The opportunity to possess--in one convenient package--every recording Ornette Coleman made for Atlantic is an opportunity most fans of modern jazz would be hard pressed to turn down. (It must be noted, however, that many jazz fans would have a very easy time turning down anything Ornette recorded, thank you very much). But for Coleman fans, this collection is an embarrassment of riches. Arranged chronologically by recording date, the set collects music from 1959 to 1961, the period many consider Ornette's most vital. Included are sessions from Free Jazz, ...
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The Complete Blue Note Recordings
: :From the 1947 sessions that lead off this set through to the 1958 live recordings at the Five Spot with John Coltrane, this box set chronicles the development of one of the most unique and creative American musicians. The first CD dates entirely from 1947, and on it we hear a Monk conversant in the bebop idiom, his distinct style emerging. By 1951 on the second CD we have a gorgeous version of 'Ask Me Now,' with all the delightful rhythmic hesitation that became one of his trademarks. 'Reflections' on the ...
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1940's Christmas
: :From the 1947 sessions that lead off this set through to the 1958 live recordings at the Five Spot with John Coltrane, this box set chronicles the development of one of the most unique and creative American musicians. The first CD dates entirely from 1947, and on it we hear a Monk conversant in the bebop idiom, his distinct style emerging. By 1951 on the second CD we have a gorgeous version of 'Ask Me Now,' with all the delightful rhythmic hesitation that became one of his trademarks. 'Reflections' on the ...
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Billie Holiday: The Complete Decca Recordings
: essential recording:Holiday recorded for Decca between 1944 and 1950, a period in which she was at the heights of both her popularity and her vocal powers. The music is less jazz-oriented in its backing than were the earlier Columbia and Commodore or later Verve recordings, but these are superb vocal performances, including matchless renderings of 'Lover Man,' 'Don't Explain,' and 'Solitude.' Holiday achieved the highest level that torch singing has ever known, creating consummately expressive, almost etched renditions that are richly nuanced, often enhanced by tasteful string arrangements. Holiday's deepest ...
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Verve Story 1944-1994
: essential recording:Holiday recorded for Decca between 1944 and 1950, a period in which she was at the heights of both her popularity and her vocal powers. The music is less jazz-oriented in its backing than were the earlier Columbia and Commodore or later Verve recordings, but these are superb vocal performances, including matchless renderings of 'Lover Man,' 'Don't Explain,' and 'Solitude.' Holiday achieved the highest level that torch singing has ever known, creating consummately expressive, almost etched renditions that are richly nuanced, often enhanced by tasteful string arrangements. Holiday's deepest ...
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