There was no great cunning master plan that brought noted jazz instrumentalists Bob James {keyboards}, Lee Ritenour {guitar}, Nathan East {bass} and Harvey Mason {drums} together to form a supergroup. Released in October 1991, Fourplay - aided by the success of the smash single 'After The Dance' - peaked at No. 1 in America' s Contemporary Jazz charts for 33 weeks and sold over a million copies. It rose to No. 16 in the R& B rankings and No. 97 in America' s list of top pop records, The Billboard 200. Thanks to the group' s impeccable musicianship and it's internal creative chemistry, Fourplay created an immediately identifiable signature sound, setting the gold standard for smooth jazz in the 1990s. Now three decades old, the band s self - titled debut album was not only the blueprint for the group's sound but also functioned as a foundation stone upon which Fourplay built a remarkable career. Originally released in September 1991, Fourplay is now reissued by evosound, to celebrate the album's 30th Anniversary, as a multi-channel hybrid SACD including a 5.1 surround mix. A previously unreleased long version of 'After The Dance' is included as a bonus track {only available in stereo}. The remastering of the album was undertaken using the high-resolution digital transfers from the original analogue master tapes. The hybrid multi-channel SACD plays on both SACD and regular CD players.

Vinyl LP pressing. Within the voluminous catalog that pianist Matthew Shipp has created over the last three and a half decades, his solo piano work has charted a unique and compelling pathway for the evolution of the instrument's vocabulary. On Codebreaker, that path turns yet another unexpected corner, continuing to venture further while taking a surprising turn inward. Codebreaker finds Shipp in an uncharacteristically meditative state of mind. Though the language is unmistakably his own, the usual violent attacks, dense clusters and insistent circularity are in short supply, replaced by harmonic nebulae that luxuriate in the mysterious resonances that Shipp conjures from the keyboard. As ever with the work of this consummate improviser, intention had very little to do with it.

Founded in 1977 by Lionel Hampton, the Who's Who in Jazz label existed as a means to present to the world the best musicians that the jazz world had to offer. With Lionel chairing the recording sessions (and also featuring on several of the sessions himself), these recordings have truly earned their title featuring jazz greats such as Buddy Rich, Charles Mingus, Terumasa Hino, Sonny Stitt, Teddy Wilson, Stephane Grappelli and Dave Brubeck, amidst the many others. Live at Bubba's is a live album recorded at Bubba's Jazz Restaurant in Fort Lauderdale, Florida on October 11, 1980. Combining effortlessly with The Jazz Messengers - Charles Fambrough (bass), Jimmy Williams (piano), Wynton Marsalis (trumpet), Bobby Watson (alto saxophone) and Billy Pierce (saxophone) - Blakey provides the percussion in a program of well known compositions including 'My Funny Valentine' and 'The Soulful Mr. Timmons'. 730167321006 GODM14141672.2 41995617 9.79 13.98 .26 GOOD TIME COMPACT DISCS POP JAZZ 08/24/2021 https://mediacdn.aent-m.com/prod-img/500/58/4006158-2740712.jpg 100 1 N BOLLING,CLAUDE WITH THE HELP OF MY FRIENDS Founded in 1977 by Lionel Hampton, the Who's Who in Jazz label existed as a means to present to the world the best musicians that the jazz world had to offer. With Lionel chairing the recording sessions (and also featuring on several of the sessions himself), these recordings have truly earned their title featuring jazz greats such as Buddy Rich, Charles Mingus, Terumasa Hino, Sonny Stitt, Teddy Wilson, Stephane Grappelli and Dave Brubeck, amidst the many others. With The Help of My Friends is a studio album recorded in Paris, France. Teamed up with Max Hediguer (bass), Marcel Sabiani (drums) and Paul Piguillem (guitar), Bolling dedicates these original compositions as tributes to his favourite pianists.

Duke Ellington was an American composer, pianist, and leader of a jazz orchestra, which he led from 1923 until his death over a career spanning more than half a century. Jazz Violin Session was recorded in 1963 but was not released until 1976 on the Atla

Deluxe two CD + DVD edition. A frequent visitor to Montreux, George Benson has selected this show from 1986 as the first he would like released. Taken from the height of his commercial success, the concert includes classics and hits throughout the set, such as "Lady Love Me (One More Time)," "Love Ballad," "In Your Eyes," "Love X Love," "20/20," "On Broadway," "Turn Your Love Around," "Never Give Up On A Good Thing," and more.

He may not have known it before, but Toronto-born, New York-based guitarist Matthew Stevens, prized for his forceful, distinctive electric sound was an ideal candidate to make an album fully devoted to solo acoustic guitar: the intimate, unadorned, straightforwardly titled 'Pittsburgh'. September 2020, Stevens was hunkering down in his wife's family's hometown of Pittsburgh, while navigating his way through the crisis. He had with him a vintage Martin 00-17, a small-body mahogany guitar. Practicing daily on the Martin, he began generating a series of short song "starts" - ideas and sketches he thought might lead somewhere. Then one rainy Pittsburgh day, Stevens' bike slid out from under him and he broke his right elbow. Rather than getting derailed musically, he became immersed in a creative process that led straight to 'Pittsburgh': a document of those short song "starts" from the notebook, now hatched as completed compositions. "Playing this music became a big part of my rehab," Stevens recalls. As the album took shape, it became clear to Stevens that he was headed in the direction of a wholly unaccompanied recital, with no overdubs or sound layering of any kind. Just him and this special Martin, two Neumann U89 mics and enough peace of mind across two separate sessions to make 'Pittsburgh' the triumph that it is. 1. Ambler 2. Purpose Of A Machine 3. Buckets 4. Can Am 5. Foreign Ghosts 6. Northern Touch 7. Cocoon 8. Ending Is Beginning 9. Blue Blues 10. Broke 11. Miserere

Matthew Shipp takes an introspective turn on his latest solo piano album, continuing to discover new territory for his singular cosmic pianism. Codebreaker encrypts rich harmonies, cloud-like clusters, and the unlikely confluence of Bill Evans and Bud Powell

Racism and disdain for improvised music in the "motherland of jazz" drove more and more Americans to Europe in the 1950s and 1960s. Bud Powell, Kenny Clarke and Oskar Pettiford, who had already contributed to the development of bebop in the early 1940s, appear here on the occasion of the Jazztage in Essen in 1960, and the saxophonist Coleman Hawkins joined them in the second half of the concert.

Discovered by Wynton Marsalis, Hargrove made his solo debut in 1990 on Novus/RCA; he made his Verve Records debut in 1994 and had recorded eight albums for the venerable label, including 2006's double release, DISTRACTIONS featuring the contemporary funk/jazz sounds of the RH Factor, and Nothing Serious, featuring straight ahead jazz by the Roy Hargrove Quintet with special guest Slide Hampton. This new album was recorded by Roy's working quintet, playing a repertoire consisting of songs they play live while on tour, mixed in with a few new originals. Simple melodies moving around luscious chords are to the fore, and Roy gets back to his Jazz roots after the RH Factor releases. Ear Food presents a richly colored snapshot of an artist reaching his prime, a young player once dubbed ubiquitously as the 'Young Lion', is now head of the Jazz Pride. He has nothing left to prove as his current trumpet sound reveals in his total command of tone that's inflected with subtle emotions and, when needed, pure Hard Bop power.

Founded in 1977 by Lionel Hampton, the Who's Who in Jazz label existed as a means to present to the world the best musicians that the jazz world had to offer. With Lionel chairing the recording sessions (and also featuring on several of the sessions himself), these recordings have truly earned their title featuring jazz greats such as Buddy Rich, Charles Mingus, Terumasa Hino, Sonny Stitt, Teddy Wilson, Stephane Grappelli and Dave Brubeck, amidst the many others. Lionel Hampton Presents: Buddy Rich is a studio album recorded in 1977 that sees Rich teaming up with Tom Warrington (bass), Candido (congas), Barry Kiener (piano), Paul Moen (saxophone), Steve Marcus (saxophone) and Lionel Hampton (vibraphone) to showcase an array of classic compositions including 'Moment's Notice', 'My Funny Valentine' and 'Giant Steps'.

The Montreux Jazz Festival takes place for two weeks every summer in Switzerland, on the shores of Lake Geneva. Created in 1967 by Claude Nobs, the Montreux Jazz Festival has become over the years an essential event, generating fantastic stories and legendary performances. In it's 50 year plus history, Montreux has hosted iconic performances by artists including Nina Simone, Miles Davis, Aretha Franklin, Ella Fitzgerald, Marvin Gaye, Prince, Leonard Cohen, David Bowie, Elton John and Stevie Wonder. The High Priestess of Soul made five appearances at the Montreux Festival between 1968 and 1990. The essential 180g vinyl 2LP compilation The Montreux Years gathers material from all five of her storied performances (1968, 1976, 1981, 1987 and 1990) there and serves as one of Simone's definitive live collections!

The Montreux Jazz Festival takes place for two weeks every summer in Switzerland, on the shores of Lake Geneva. Created in 1967 by Claude Nobs, the Montreux Jazz Festival has become over the years an essential event, generating fantastic stories and legendary performances. In it's 50 year plus history, Montreux has hosted iconic performances by artists including Nina Simone, Miles Davis, Aretha Franklin, Ella Fitzgerald, Marvin Gaye, Prince, Leonard Cohen, David Bowie, Elton John and Stevie Wonder. The High Priestess of Soul made five appearances at the Montreux Festival between 1968 and 1990. The essential 180g vinyl 2LP compilation The Montreux Years gathers material from all five of her storied performances (1968, 1976, 1981, 1987 and 1990) there and serves as one of Simone's definitive live collections!

Little Girl Blue (also known as Jazz As Played in an Exclusive Side Street Club) is the debut album by Rock & Roll Hall of Famer Nina Simone. It was originally released by Bethlehem Records in February 1959. At the time, Simone was in her mid-20s and still aspiring to be a classical concert pianist. The album includes the classic tracks "My Baby Just Cares For Me," "Mood Indigo," as well as "I Loves You, Porgy," which was her first Top 20 hit (#18 / #2 "US R&B"). Pressed on 180-Gram audiophile vinyl. Featuring a brand new stereo remaster by four-time Grammy winner Michael Graves as well as vinyl remastering by Kevin Gray. Includes new essay by author of Liner Notes For The Revolution, Daphne A. Brooks.

Did you know that Kurt Rosenwinkel's first instrument was the piano? The most emblematic jazz guitarist of his generation has finally decided to release his first solo piano album, a parisian recording session featuring three of his own compositions. The first, aptly named "Lost Song" is newly rediscovered from his archives; entitled"Mister Hope" references the bebop piano master Elmo Hope and "Sole", one of his most recent songs beautifully ends the album. Includes a download card. Recorded and mixed by Julien Basseres At Barloyd's on 03/07/2020. Mastered by Minerva Pappi Piano prepared by Bastien Herbin

Nina Simone and Her Friends is a 1959 album released by the Bethlehem Records label that compiled songs by jazz singers Nina Simone, Carmen McRae and Chris Connor. All three artists had left the label and signed with other companies by the time Bethlehem released this album. The numbers by Simone were previously unissued "left overs" from the recording sessions for her debut album Little Girl Blue (1958) and released without her knowledge. The tracks by Chris Connor and Carmen McRae were already issued together this way as Bethlehem's Girlfriends in 1956 accompanied by the debut recording session of Julie London.

Released in 1995, Sarala marked it's time by generating a genuine enthusiasm for Mandingo music, encouraging many Western musicians to go to Mali and explore this music at it's very source. Fruit of the reunion of Hank Jones (an African-American musician and one of the most gifted pianists of his generation) and Cheick-Tidiane Seck (a reputed arranger, band-leader, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist from Mali) the album is a symbiosis - one of the spirit and the heart - of two genres.

LOVE FOR SALE BENNETT & GAGA - Celebrating 10 years since they first recorded together, Tony Bennett & Lady Gaga returned to the studio for another collaboration featuring the very best of the Cole Porter Songbook. Continuing the musical legacy that began with "Lady Is A Tramp, " followed by the GRAMMY winning album, Cheek To Cheek, this new recording captures the evolution of the singular creative and personal relationship of these two world famous artists. Tony, who turns 95 on August 3, 2021, has spent over 7 decades dedicated to performing the Great American Songbook and Lady Gaga who, with Tony by her side, renewed her love of the popular standard and redefined herself in the process. The album features duets as well as solo performances by both artists accompanied by Tony Bennett's quartet, The Brian Newman Quintet, along with big band and orchestral arrangements by Marion Evans and Jorge Callandrelli.

Chet Baker is highly regarded as one of jazz's greatest trumpet players recording numerous albums over his 35-year recording career. Recorded in in 1969, Albert's House features 11 instrumental compositions by Steve Allen who produced the recording session to assist Baker in restarting his career after a horrific dental injury in '68. The LP hasn't been in release for vinyl reissue for years.

Hiromi's 2021 album, Silver Lining Suite, pairs her virtuosic and emotive piano with a string quartet assembled by violinist Tatsuo Nishie, concertmaster of the New Japan Philharmonic. Devised for a series of live-streamed concerts at the Blue Note Tokyo during the Covid pandemic, the results blur the lines between classical music and jazz, crafting a vibrant hybrid possessed of the fervent, rock-inspired energy and cinematic beauty that Hiromi has always instilled in her music

In 1999, for the 2nd year in a row, Brad Mehldau's piano trio topped the Down Beat Critic's Poll for Best Acoustic Jazz Group in the Talent Deserving Wider Recognition category. Art Of The Trio 4: Back At The Vanguard further justifies those accolades. This live set, the newest installment of his trio releases, will continue to build Mehldau's growing public recognition (marked by a recent article in Time Magazine) and his stellar profile in the jazz world. Features "Solar," "London Blues" and "Exit Music (For A Film)."

Vinyl LP pressing. Travelogue through a cybernetical soundscape! The future rendered here by Ra seems more dystopian than utopian, and these 1975 guided improvisations are imbued with an underlying violence, alternate twists, bank turns, headchoppers, loops, rolls, sidewinders and drops. It's a dark & glorious journey. Featuring the debut of the complete version of 'Extension Out,' Pathways has been exquisitely mastered from the four-track session reel and includes an insert offering an enlightening glimpse at Ra & co.'s plans for their major label lucre.

1st Time Ever available! Oregon, formed in 1970, comprised Ralph Towner (classical and 12-string guitars), Paul McCandless (oboe and English horn), Glen Moore (double bass) and Collin Walcott (sitar and tabla). The band's music has always been almost totally acoustic. 'Acoustic instruments sound more expressive to me,' Towner explained to Jazzwise magazine (UK) in September 1997. He further explained his guitar style: 'With classical guitar [you're] using all the fingers of your right hand to pluck which means you can be sounding anything from two to five notes in exact unison, rather than a strum.' As well as their core instruments, Towner has played trumpet, synths and piano with the band, McCandless bass clarinet and flute, Moore flute and violin and Walcott clarinet and dulcimer. To name but some. "At one time we were carrying eighty instruments on the road!" McCandless has said. The combining of instruments from disparate musical traditions and the musicians' range of influences meant that 'jazz' was always an inadequate label for the band. 'Live In Bremen 1974' documents Oregon at their mesmerizing best. The interplay between the four players is stunning and on each piece mood and texture are ever-changing, yet always following an aesthetic logic that seems irrefutable. 'Live In Bremen 1974', however, is a reminder of a band that made music that had never been heard before, that had never been imagined before. One track is titled 'Brujo', Spanish for 'sorcerer.' Truly, Towner, McCandless, Moore and Walcott were musical sorcerers whose playing retains it's power to enchant not only the band's original fans but even, surely, anyone lucky enough to be hearing the band for the very first time.