One of Oscar Pettiford’s big fans was Joachim-Ernst Berendt, the jazz editor of the Südwestfunk Baden-Baden, who went straight to work organizing various studio appointments and band members for the American guest, who had decided after an All Star tour of Europe in 1958, to settle in the Old World.

In changing sessions, local talents such as the trumpeter Dusko Goykovich, the clarinetist Rolf Kühn, and the drummer Hartwig Bartz, but also established colleagues such as the saxophonist Hans Koller and the guitarist Attila Zoller, each took his place in the queue. Sometimes American colleagues such as drummer Kenny Clarke or saxophonist Lucky Thompson joined the team and formed exquisite combos that discreetly courted Pettiford. He for his part thanked them on his instrument with eloquent and inspired noblesse.

Thus, over a period of almost two years after 1958, a good dozen recordings were made, consisting mainly of standards, but also of Pettiford hits such as “Blues in the Closet”, all of which document a master of the voluminous, bebop swinging groove bass, who was silenced only by his premature death in Copenhagen on 8 September 8, 1960, as the result of a traffic accident. Oscar Pettiford thus remains a charismatic figure in the background of jazz history, whose art is always worth rediscovering.

Complete Personnel and Recording Details:

Studio Recordings, SWF Baden-Baden: 15.07.1959 (tr.1-2); 14.06.1959 (tr.3-7); 24.02.1959 (tr.8-11); 02.12.1958 (tr.12-14)

Live recordings, SWF-Jazz-Session Stadthalle Karlsruhe: 3.12.1958 (tr.15-16)

Oscar Pettiford (b, cello); Dusko Goykovich (tp) tr. 1; Lucky Thompson (ss) tr. 2; Hans Hammerschmid (p); tr. 2, 13-16; Hartwig Bartz (dr) tr. 2; Rolf Kühn (cl) tr. 3-6; Jimmy Pratt (dr) tr. 3-11; Hans Koller (ts) tr. 4, 7-15; Attila Zoller (g) tr. 8-12, 15, 16; Kenny Clarke (dr) tr. 12-16; Helmut Brandt, Helmut Reinhardt, Johnny Feigl (bs) tr. 13, 14 ; Rudi Flierl (as) tr. 13, 14.

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An internationally admired jazz quartet consisting of a Dane and three Swedes plays Nordic jazz, with a lyrical expression and a living interplay. SE-Quartet gets their inspiration from many different genres, like gospel, avant-garde, soul, classical and popular music. Their music is captivating, with it's beautiful melodies and energetic beats, as well as a sensitive interaction with epic improvisations. SE-Quartet released their third album Going North, in April 2017, which now has more then 2.5 million streams on Spotify. In addition, radio stations and newspapers in Scandinavia, have highlighted the album and acclaimed SE-Quartet as it conveys an ideal. Since the beginning in 2007 SE-Quartet has performed 100 concerts in Sweden, Denmark and Norway. During the next decade SE-Quartet will hopefully reach out for the rest of the world.

This release of Gunter “Baby” Sommer is the ninth publication in the “European Jazz Legends” series. “We are called Gunter Baby Sommer’s Quarteto Trionfale,” the 73-year-old drummer said right before this concert to make sure the band would be announced correctly. “You know, like Art Blakey’s Jazz Messenger’s.” The fact that Sommer feels a deep connection to the African-American roots of Jazz also resonates in his nickname, which can be traced back to Louis Armstrong’s drummer “Baby” Dodds. It is no contradiction, that this “Baby” belongs to the generation of East German musicians, who, some forty years ago, caused a stir with their mostly improvised music in and around what was then the GDR. As a sound artist in general and a percussionist in particular, as a soloist or an instrumentalist in an ensemble, Sommer is and has always been interested in widening the instrumental range of his drumset and discovering new repertoire. For his concert in the series “European Jazz Legends” at the Theater Gutersloh on October 31, 2016, Sommer reunited a band he first played with at Jazzwerkstatt Peitz in 1979. In order to “counter” the possibly compromising influence of trumpeter Manfred Schoof from West Germany, the cultural bureaucracy demanded that the band also included Gianluigi Trovesi, bass clarinet and alto saxophone, and the American bassist Barre Philips.

... an ambitious, genre-transcendent musical palette... This is a deeply thoughtful and wildly infectious musical adventure you shouldn & rsquo;t miss! - JW Vibe. Though based in multiple musical realms, pianist Alain Mallet's ambitious Mutt Slang projects coalesce into a world that exudes 'exotic' yet ultimately feels familiar, the roots of it's various components meeting somewhere deep within. Sharing the musical landscape with young musicians from Palestine, Brazil, Italy, Israel, Japan, Bulgaria, Panama, Ireland, Puerto Rico and the US, the complexity of their backgrounds - musically, ethnically, and otherwise, permeates the session, suffusing Mallet's compositions with an undeniable energy and life. "Mutt Slang is very much the result of this convergence of all the musics I love, of digging to get to their shared soul and rebuild something fresh, in order to discover where I belong and give others a chance to do the same." - Alain Mallet

This wonderful album, recorded by The United States Coast Guard Dixieland Band, contains many selections considered to be standards in the Dixieland repertoire. Songs include classics like "Yellow Dog Blues", "Fidgety Feet" and "Wabash Blues". South is a fantastic reflection of the cutting edge of today's Dixieland music. (Altissimo)

Composer/Saxophonist Michael Zilber's musical approach has always been a unique mix, bred from myriad activities over the years in New York & Boston in the east, and Vancouver & San Francisco in the west. On East West, that aspect of his being is front and center, along with his delving into writing and arranging for big bands over the last decade.

... Markowitz's effervescent piano rides spryly over Eckhardt's fluid, undulating bass lines... propelled along by Moore's bright, crisp drumwork. - Jazzwest. Covering many years and reflecting a wealth of experiences, drummer Ted Moore's striking array of compositions meld into a singular, dynamic statement on his debut trio recording. With pianist Phil Markowitz - a musical partner since meeting at the Eastman School of Music in the '70s - along with the extraordinary bassist, Kai Eckhardt, the trio expands ever outward from the piano trio tradition, utilizing their shared influences of music from Brazil and Spain as well as classical music and it's forms. Moore also acknowledges his musical inspirations through "Waltz for Chick," for Chick Corea, and "Beyond Silence," for Miles & Tony Williams. "Simple Gifts" is Moore's arrangement of the traditional Shaker theme that Aaron Copland utilized in "Appalachian Spring." "... a collection of thematically beguiling and rhythmically stunning performances that will excite even the most jaded listener." - Mark Holston, Jazziz

Temptation is a stellar example of creative courage. Given her large and loyal international audience, powerhouse Canadian jazz vocalist Chantal Chamberland could easily have played it safe by delivering an album of Songbook standards sure to please the following she has built over the last two decades. Instead, a rigorous search for new and oft-unconventional material resulted in a generous collection of 13 songs for which the description 'eclectic' is an understatement. Her seventh full-length release, Temptation moves from Blues, Jazz, to Bossa and features such classics as "I Put A Spell On You" and "I Want A Little Sugar In My Bowl" nestling alongside tunes written or made famous by artists as diverse as Tom Waits, Bill Withers, Justin Timberlake and Michael Jackson, Rodriguez, Cher, U2, and modern rock band Snow Patrol. Chamberland makes this seemingly unlikely song selection work by breathing vibrant new life into every single one, assisted by the inventive arrangement and production choices she makes and the stellar accompaniment of her carefully chosen cast of A-list players. The diverse material, all focused on different facets of love, showcases her impressive range as a vocal stylist. While always avoiding vocal gymnastics, Chamberland moves from quiet and intimate to sultry, sensual and soulful with seamless ease. The result is a Temptation you will gladly and inevitably succumb to. French-Canadian singer Chantal Chamberland strikes a perfect balance between the soul of the classic singer/songwriter and the dynamic verve of a jazz chanteuse. Chantal Chamberland's sensuous, smoky voice is her trademark instrument. Temptation is a dish best served chilled. Relaxed mood during wine o'clock. Extraordinary company with a snifter of XO. Play on shuffle while soaking in some bubbles. 'Temptation' will carry on evosound's tradition of making beautiful pieces for the Audiophiles and music connoisseurs. Recorded & mixed at 24bit/96khz. This album is recorded with audiophiles in mind and exemplifies high definition audio, ready to be experienced on super class HiFi stereos, in Master Quality Authenticated sound. MQA CD plays back on all CD players. When a conventional CD player is connected to an MQA-enabled device, the CD will reveal the original master quality.

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The history of the JAZZPAR AWARDS constitutes a significant development in the recognition of jazz by international arbiters of taste. Set up by the Danish Jazz Center and sponsored by Skandinavisk Tobakskompagni, it was the first award in the jazz field to offer an international nominee not only the exposure of a concert series, but the donation of a statuette and a significant cash prize. Between 1990 and 2004, the award was made to several American performers but also, reflecting the history of the music itself, to six Europeans. Each annual winner was required to perform in a situation of their own choosing, but one which would involve several local players, as seen in the present series of reissues. When the late guitarist and composer Jim Hall emerged triumphant in 1998, it was not because of any conscious awareness of the pendulum effect but because his name evoked the most unanimous praise, out of the dozens of artists who had come up for discussion. Already at that point, his career had covered more than 40 years and evoked past associations with people such as Chico Hamilton, Jimmy Giuffre, Sonny Rollins and Art Farmer. What these great artists (and many more) found in Hall was a player of great sensitivity and intelligence, to whom the idea of co-operation was second nature but whose approach was completely individual. Personality is obviously the key factor, and Jims can perhaps be described as confident but self-effacing. Musically, that translated into a style which was both cogent and laconic which makes a lot of sense but not a lot of noise and its this combination that lends itself to taking on board others ideas and complementing rather than contradicting them.

2022 release. With a career spanning over half a century, marked by influential collaborations with jazz greats like Miles Davis and Joe Henderson as well as several dozen genre-bending leader dates, it's all the more striking that this is in fact John Scofield's first ever guitar-solo recording. The long wait, however, pays off, as John is able to benefit from his decades of experience and charts an intimate path through the styles and idioms he has traversed up until today. He is not entirely all on his own on this endeavour though: the guitarist enters into dialogues with himself, soloing to his own tasteful chordal and rhythmic accompaniment via loop machine. John's main emphasis throughout the years, however, has remained his deep commitment to the jazz tradition, and here he grabs a number of standards off the rack and gives them unique interpretations.

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Since releasing his self-titled debut in 1982, Kenny G has become the top instrumental musician of the modern era and one of the best-selling artists of all time, with global sales totaling more than 75M records. His first new album in 6 years, New Standards, features 11 original compositions inspired by the jazz ballads of the '50s and '60s. These new 'standards' capture the sophistication, style and romance of this amazing time period in jazz and combine it with Kenny G's signature sound.

Not just guitarists, but jazz lovers everywhere marveled at the feats of musicianship and musicality pulled off by Pass on the LP that made him famous ('73). These unaccompanied solos still stun and deeply satisfy: Night and Day; Stella by Starlight; Cherokee; How High the Moon; 'Round Midnight; the Song Is You, and more!

Joe Albany (1924 – 1988) was one of the handful of bebop pianists who re-emerged to the world stage in the 70s. Although there exist no official recordings with Charlie Parker, Joe Albany was one of the few white pianists who played with Bird. Albany’s troubled life seen from his only daughter’s perspectives were made into a film entitled “Low Down” which has recently been premiered at the Sundance Film Festival to critical and public acclaim. One of the music used in the movie was from Joe’s SteepleChase first release SCCD 31003 Birdtown Bird” (1972). Joe Albany’s sensational moment captured here in this recording from a solo concert at Copenhagen’s famed Montmartre club serves as the testimonial of an extraordinary artist.

In 1964, the National Film Board of Canada asked John Coltrane to record the soundtrack for a French-language film titled Le Chat Dans Le Sac (The Cat in the Bag). In June of that year, Coltrane's classic quartet entered Rudy Van Gelder's studio and recorded five previously-recorded Coltrane originals. For many years, viewers of the film who recognized the music thought that they were listening to the original recordings, though in fact they were new and had never been heard.

Together with jazz legend and Grammy award winner Bob James, Till Br�nner - Germany's most successful jazz musician - has recorded his longawaited new studio album. One a musician from the birthplace of jazz and the other immersed in European tradition, the two met in the autumn of 2019 at the legendary La Fabrique studio in the south of France long before the coronavirus outbreak. "Initially, we had very different ideas about how our shared session should unfold. However, we immediately knew that we wanted all theory to yield to a basic feeling," said multiple ECHO prize-winner and exceptional Grammy-nominated artist Br�nner about how their collaboration worked in the studio. Of all pieces, it was the well-known jazz standard Basin Street Blues that ultimately delivered the breakthrough. A song from New Orleans - the cradle of freedom so bitterly fought for - gave them a clear view of their collaborative space. The result is at once profound and ambiguous in meaning: "To me, On Vacation is the soundtrack to dwell on and reflect." Technically brilliant, brimming over with a creative love for refined detail, and also exuding the greatest possible nonchalance, Br�nner and James create richly imaginative, onomatopoeic music to ponder and dwell on, smile about and even cry over. In collaboration with fantastic musicians, including jazz drummer legends Harvey Mason and Wolfgang Haffner, they combine famous hits with mysteriously iridescent textures, weaving together colourful new interpretations and performing their own compositions too, all of which has the stuff of eternity. "These recordings definitely feel different from anything I've ever done before," says Br�nner.

Marimba/vibes veteran Steve Hobbs releases his strongest release in his 43-year career on Challenge Records. The recording is centered mostly around cutting edge originals by Hobbs encompassing modern mainstream examples of post-bop, Latin, Funk, Calypso, and more... arranged and performed with the typical creative and hard edged energy you are used to hearing on his past New York Recordings. Hobbs centered the music around marimba, dedicating the recording to his mentor and late friend Bobby Hutcherson. This is the group's third recording. It's a hot all-star group consisting of Steve Hobbs, Adam Kolker, Bill O'Connell, Peter Washington, and John Riley. The group's first album, released in 2007, was nominated Jazz Recording of the Year by the Jazz Journalists Association of America and made it to #3 on the Jazz Week Jazz Chart. Next in 2010 the group released the critically acclaimed Vibes Straight Up, which hit #1 on it's second week of airplay on Jazz Week and remained at #1 for seven weeks! "This album is a beautiful tribute to Bobby Hutcherson. The playing is masterful, the compositions beautiful, and show a Bobby Hutcherson influence... in essence, a heartfelt and touching tribute." (Ron Miller)

This is the first collection of her greatest recordings plus 3 tracks unavailable on any Diana Krall CD!

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2015 album from the acclaimed vocalist/pianist. WALLFLOWER is a collection of songs from the late 60's to present day that inspired Krall in her early years. Produced by 16-time Grammy Award-winning producer David Foster, the album finds Krall breaking new ground with her interpretations of some of the greatest pop songs of all time. On WALLFLOWER, Diana Krall showcases her considerable gifts as a vocalist in a bold and beautiful way. Krall sings a set of songs that include familiar popular classics like the Mamas and the Papas' "California Dreaming" and the Eagles' "Desperado," favorite vintage songs by Krall's musical heroes Bob Dylan (he inspired the album's title track "Wallflower") and Elton John ("Sorry Seems to Be the Hardest Word"). The album also features more recent gems like Crowded House's "Don't Dream It's Over" and a wonderful new composition from Paul McCartney ("If I Take You Home Tonight").

Joe Pass / Niels-Henning Orsted Pedersen Northsea Lights. Recorded at Northsea Jazz Festival, the Hague, Holland, July 1979. Joe Pass on guitar and bassit Niels-Henning Orsted Pedersen are featured on "If I Were a Bell," "I Can't Get Started," "Blues for the Hague," "Round About Midnight," "How Deep Is the Ocean" and "Stella By Starlight."