os

A must have..., 19 May 2013

For Ellington even his established pieces were works in progress. In this beautifully recorded relaxed outing from 1950 the Duke has taken a few concert favourites,extended and re-orchestrated them with added solo space for the many virtuosos in his band. From the very off, the quality of this project is clear. The lovely clarinet feature by Russell Procope on the album opener ,'Mood Indigo' sets us up nicely for some sumptuous ensemble work by the horns before languidly moving to wonderful vocal by the little known Yvonne Lanauze. It is all done with such ease and feeling, that is easy to forget the level of sophistication and technical accomplishment that Ellington and his crew routinely… Read more

Stunning Weather Report..., 15 May 2013

'I Sing The Body Electric' builds upon the jazz-rock experiments of the Miles Davis albums like 'Jack Johnson', 'In A Silent Way' and 'Bitches Brew'. But where some of Miles albums like 'Live at the Fillmore' and perhaps 'Pangaea' ramble on a tad,this set packs a powerful, compact punch.Combing exotic densely textured musical themes with the adrenalin of rock and the pulse of funk, the music has an inventiveness and momentum that is not to be denied.And whilst the music is 'accessible' it is a far way away from the groups later work on outings such as 'Heavy Weather'. So if you are looking for the poppier jazz of Weather Report, this is a disc to avoid.

Buy this album if you… Read more

Lovely biggish band girl singer album..., 13 May 2013

'Girl Singer' is a poignant,happy -sad collection of familiar and not so familiar jazz standards. Backed by an impressive horn and reed section,Rosemary puts in a performance that summons up all her years of topsy-turvy heartache and happiness. Of Love gone wrong and love new found.Her voice is a little frayed but she has superb control and unrivaled ability to bring out the nuance of any song she covers. Rosemary also has a sense of humour, witness her work on 'Miss Otis Regrets' and of course she is always up for a shot at happiness, hence the sheer oomph of her performance on 'The Best is Yet to Come'

This is a lovely jazz- cabaret album.The band, arrangements and production… Read more