Tag: Worcester MA
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Sonny Clark, Cool Struttin’, 1958 on Blue Note
Fantastic late 50s “hard bop” jazz record, with Clark joined by Art Farmer (trumpet), Jackie McLean (alto sax), Paul Chambers (bass), and Philly Joe Jones on drums. Recorded by Rudy Van Gelder, liner notes by Nat Hentoff. This should be in everyone’s vinyl collection whether you think of yourself as a Jazz fan or not.…
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Ella Fitzgerald and Duke Ellington, Ella at Duke’s Place, 1966 on Verve
The album is divided between “The Pretty, The Lovely, The Tender, The Hold-Me-Close Side” and “The Finger-Snapping, Head-Shaking, Toe-Tapping, Go-For-Yourself Side.” Recorded by Val Valentin and produced by Norman Granz (those are his black & white photos), this is Verve at its mid-60s best. In addition to Ellington and Fitzgerald, personnel included Louis Bellson on…
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Art Farmer, Portrait of Art Farmer, 1958 on Stereo Records
“Stereo Records” was a jazz label made by Contemporary Records in 1958 to push records made with the new-fangled stereo technology: Stereophonic two-channel disc recording utilizing Westrex 45-45 “StereoDisc” cutting system. To be reproduced only with stereophonic cartridge. Warning: use of conventional monaural cartridge without sufficient vertical compliance may well result in damage to this…
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Milt Jackson, Ballads & Blues, 1956 on Atlantic
Jackson’s most well know as the vibraphonist in the Modern Jazz Quartet but he also collaborated and recorded with many other bop musicians. Here he is joined by Lucky Thomson (sax), John Lewis (piano), Skeeter Best (guitar), Oscar Pettiford (bass), Kenny Clarke (drums), Barney Kessel (guitar), Percy Heath (bass), Lawrence Marable (drums), and Barry Gailbraith…
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Herbie Hancock, Empyrean Isles, 1964 on Blue Note
Early jazz Herbie Hancock – this was his fourth studio LP for Blue Note, backed by Freddie Hubbard on cornet, Ron Carter on bass, and Anthony Williams on drums. Recorded on June 17th, 1964 at Rudy Van Gelder’s studio in Englewood Cliffs, NJ. The most well known track here is “Cantaloupe Island” which became something…
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Django Reinhardt, Nuages, 2017 on Jazz Images
Nuages was first issued under that name in 2002, as a reissue of The Great Artistry of Django Reinhardt, a 1953 10″ record on Norman Granz’s Clef label, plus 4 bonus tracks that had been issued as singles by Decca (also in 1953). This vinyl issue was produced in 2017 by Jazz Images, presumably a…
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Sonny Boy Williamson, The Real Folk Blues, 1966 on Chess
This album was first released in the UK in 1965 as In Memorium, (Williamson died in May of 1965). In the US it was retitled to The Real Folk Blues and released in 1966. Later reissues have appeared with either title in different regions. This is one of my favorite blues albums of all time…
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Fleetwood Mac, The Pious Bird of Good Omen, 1969 on Blue Horizon
This is the earlier, Peter Green led, British Blues Fleetwood Mac, and collects their first four non-album UK singles and their B-Sides. It serves as a pretty good intro to what that first-stage Fleetwood Mac was all about. Eddie Boyd guests on “The Big Boat” and “Just the Blues” – and there are covers here…
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Ella Fitzgerald, The Harold Arlen Songbook, (originally) 1961 on Verve
I miss this trend from the 50s and 60s where great singers like Ella (as well as folks like Oscar Peterson) did “song books” of great composers. My copy of this one, with Ella doing the songs of Harold Arlen, is an 80s reissue of what originally came out in 1961, with 2 additional tracks…
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Bill Evans, Spring Leaves, 1976 on Milestone
2xLP release from 1976 which collects two previous Riverside releases: Portrait In Jazz (1960) and Explorations (1961). This one includes two takes on “Autumn Leaves” – one which appeared in Mono (Riverside 315) and one in Stereo (Riverside 1152). This also includes “The Boy Next Door” which was left off of Explorations originally. Milestone records…
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Chet Baker, Big Band, 1957 on Pacific Jazz
A ton of great musicians here, including Chet Baker but also: Norman Faye, Conte Candoli, Frank Rosolino, Art Pepper, Bud Shank, Bill Perkins, Phil Urso, Bobby Timmons, James Bond, Lawrence Marable, Bob Burgess, Bob Graf, Fred Waters, Bill Hood, Bobby Timmons, Peter Littman, Jame McKean. Produced by Richard Bock, the “chieff panjandrum” of Pacific Jazz…
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Thelonious Monk, The Complete Genius, 1976 on Blue Note
Though this compilation was released in 1976 – part of The Blue Note Re-Issue Series – it actually collects sides he recorded for Blue Note in 1947, 1948, 1951, and 1952. Note: This album contains the complete Monk on Blue Note with the exception of his appearance as a sideman on two of his compositions…
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Cooder Browne, self-titled, 1978, on Lone Star Records.
Cooder Browne, self-titled, 1978, on Lone Star Records. I so wanted this to be a collaboration between Ry Cooder and Jackson Browne, but instead it’s just some down home Texas country/rock. “Hanging on a Lie” is the standout, but “Jalapeño Lady” is solid too. Sadly, no followup album was forthcoming, though Jimmy Nails had a…
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John Grant, Queen of Denmark, 2010 on Bella Union.
John Grant, Queen of Denmark, 2010 on Bella Union. Honestly I’ve yet to find anything John Grant has done that I haven’t loved, so was very happy to find this at Joes Albums in Worcester. This is the 2xLP plus bonus 7″ single reissue on Partisan Records which came out in 2016
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Laura Marling, song For Our Daughter, 2020 on Chrysalis / Partisan Records.
Laura Marling, song For Our Daughter, 2020 on Chrysalis / Partisan Records. Such a beautiful record that came out this summer. Marling’s seventh studio release, co-produced by Marling and Ethan Johns I could just put all her albums on repeat for weeks on end Via Joes Albums in Worcester MA
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Hot Tuna, Double Dose, 1978 on Grunt
Hot Tuna, Double Dose, 1978 on Grunt Picked this live album up at Joe’s Albums last week – Jorma Kaukonen, Jack Casady, Bob Steeler, and Nick Buck Wonderful find