VA • A Raymond Chandler Tribute Philip Marlowe Jazz and Blues Unveiled Favorites

 

Colaboradora / Contributor: 

Charlie Haden Quartet West • Haunted Heart

 

Review from AllMusic (by Ron Wynn)
Charlie Haden loves film as much as music, combining both loves on the critically acclaimed Haunted Heart. Haden led his tremendous group Quartet West through 12 numbers, several, like Cole Porter's Every Time We Say Goodbye, and Alan Broadbent's Lady In The Lake, Arthur Schwartz and Howard Dietz's Haunted Heart, and even the short introduction, with film ties andor links. Haden transferred vocals on some numbers from Jeri Southern, Billie Holiday and Jo Stafford into the mix without disrupting or disturbing the group framework. Quartet West has emerged as a premier small combo, and Haden nicely paid tribute to the past without being held hostage to it.
httpswww.allmusic.comalbumhaunted-heart-mw0000083338

///////

Reseña de AllMusic (por Ron Wynn)
Charlie Haden ama el cine tanto como la música, combinando ambos amores en el aclamado por la crítica Haunted Heart. Haden dirigió a su tremendo grupo Quartet West a través de 12 números, varios, como Every Time We Say Goodbye de Cole Porter y Lady In The Lake de Alan Broadbent, Haunted Heart de Arthur Schwartz y Howard Dietz, e incluso la breve introducción, con vínculos yo lazos cinematográficos. Haden transfirió vocales en algunos números de Jeri Southern, Billie Holiday y Jo Stafford a la mezcla sin interrumpir o perturbar el marco del grupo. Quartet West ha emergido como un combo pequeño de primer nivel, y Haden rindió un buen homenaje al pasado sin ser rehén de él.
httpswww.allmusic.comalbumhaunted-heart-mw0000083338

Jazz Makers Vanguards of Sound

 

Jazz Makers gathers together short biographies of more than 50 of jazz's greatest stars, from its early beginnings to the present. The stories of these innovative instrumentalists, bandleaders, and composers reveal the fascinating history of jazz in six parts:
* The Pioneers, including Scott Joplin, Louis Armstrong, and Bessie Smith
* Swing Bands and Soloists, with Duke Ellington, Ella Fitzgerald, and Billie Holiday
* The Piano Giants, featuring Fats Waller, Art Tatum, and Mary Lou Williams
* Birth of Bebop, including Dizzy Gillepsie, Charlie Parker, and Miles Davis
* Cool Jazz, Hard Bop, and Fusion, with John Coltrane, Sonny Rollins, and Stan Getz
* A Century of Jazz, featuring Wynton Marsalis, Joshua Redman, and other contemporary greats.

VA • Autour De Minuit - After Midnight

 

Bill Evans, Shirley Horn, Billie Holiday, Wes Montgomery, Chet Baker, Mel Torme ...

VA • My Funny Valentine

 

VA • Verve Jazzclub - Jazz For Broken Hearts

 

Verve JazzClub • Cole Porter Songbook

 

 

VA • 100 Greatest Jazz Icons

 

Dave Brubeck, Miles Davis, Thelonious Monk, Sonny Rollins, John Coltrane, Stan Getz, Nina Simone, Bill Evans, Charlie Parker, Glenn Miller, Dizzy Gillespie, Billie Holiday, Sarah Vaughan, Ahmad Jamal, Quincy Jones, Charles Mingus …

 

VA • 20 Greatest Female Songs

 

VA • Jazz Noireː Darktown Sleaze Mean Streets of 1940's

 

 

Artie Shaw • The Best Of

 

Artie Shaw, a brilliant jazz clarinetist, was one of the most enigmatic, daring and adventurous bandleaders of the swing-era. An intellectual, he hated public life and the music industry. Over the course of his short career he formed ten orchestras and disbanding most of them after only a few months. At the peak of his career in the years just before World War II, Shaw was matched by few other musicians in popularity and technical skill.

Born Arthur Arshawsky in New York City and raised in Connecticut, Shaw took up the saxophone at an early age and began playing professionally when he was only 14. He left home at 15 for a job in Kentucky. The position never materialized and he was forced to play with traveling orchestras in order to get home. At age 16 he switched to the clarinet and went to Cleveland, where he spent three years playing in local groups, including that of Austin Wylie.

In 1929 Shaw joined Irving Aaronson's Commanders. While traveling the country with the band he discovered the works of contemporary avant-garde classical composers whose influence would later surface in his own music. When the Commanders arrived for a gig in New York, Shaw decided to remain. There he freelanced with many of the top artists of the day, including Vincent Lopez, Red Nichols, and Teddy Wilson. He also briefly spent time with Fred Rich's orchestra and toured with Roger Wolfe Kahn.

In 1934 Shaw became disillusioned with the music industry and quit for the first of what would be many times. He bought a farm in Pennsylvania and tried his hand at being a writer. He soon returned to New York and took up studio work again. He was one of the most successful studio musicians in the city when in 1935 he was asked to lead a small group during intermissions at a swing concert held by the Imperial Theater. He put together an unusual outfit consisting of a string quartet, a rhythm section minus piano, and his clarinet.

Shaw's unique combination was wildly received by the audience. He was offered financial backing to form his own orchestra, and in 1936 he debut his first dance band, which featured a Dixieland approach and a string quartet. The new group made some impressive recordings but couldn't compete with the brassier swing orchestras of the day, so Shaw disbanded it the following year and formed a more conventional big band.

His new outfit was a huge success, featuring such musicians as Georgie Auld, Buddy Rich, Tony Pastor, and Jerry Gray. Vocalists included Billie Holiday, Kitty Kallen, Peg LaCentra, and Helen Forrest. Shaw could scarcely have known that within a short time he would make a hit record of a song called “Begin the Beguine.” The breakthrough hit record catapulted him into the ranks of top band leaders and he was immediately dubbed the new "King of Swing." Shaw's recording of the song continues to sell and has become one of the best-selling records in history.

In September of 1938 Shaw collapsed on stage due to exhaustion. He was also absent from the band in the summer of 1939 due to illness. Upon his return to good health he announced he was quitting the business again but was talked out of it by Gray and Pastor. He didn't stay long however. He left in November and moved to Mexico.

Shaw returned to the U.S. two months later and formed a 32-piece studio orchestra which recorded several songs, including his famous version of ''Frenesi.'' Later in the year, he formed a new band of his own that included the now famous Gramercy Five, with which he recorded several more smash hits, among them his by now classic version of “Star Dust,” plus a number of other fine recordings such as “Moonglow,” “Dancing in the Dark,” “Concerto for Clarinet,” and many others. Ray Conniff arranged for the new group and Anita Boyer sang. Shaw again grew restless and disbanded his new outfit in early 1941. He formed another group in the fall of that year. Vocalists included Bonnie Lake, Paula Kelly and Fredda Gibson (later to become Georgia Gibbs). He also disbanded this group soon after starting it, in January of 1942.

In April Shaw joined the Navy. After going through boot camp and serving two months on a minesweeper he was put in charge of a service band. He shaped up the group and took it on a tour of Pacific combat zones, often playing in dangerous and primitive conditions. The strain of such an endeavor soon got to him, however, and he was medically discharged in November 1943.

By fall of 1944 Shaw's health had recovered and he formed a new civilian band, which included Conniff, Barney Kessel, Roy Eldridge, and Dodo Marmarosa. Imogene Lynn provided vocals. By 1947 he had quit that group and taken up the study of classical clarinet, for which he performed and recorded an album. In 1949 Shaw formed a bop orchestra. He again quit the music industry in 1951 and retired to a farm, where he wrote his autobiography.

In 1954 he returned briefly to music with a new Gramercy Five, but by the end of the year Artie Shaw had packed up his clarinet for the last time. He spent the rest of his life doing various concerns: writing and working briefly as a film distributor and a gun expert. He moved to Spain in 1955, to Connecticut in 1960, and to Southern California in 1973. In the 1980s he formed a new orchestra for special performances, though he did not play in it himself. The 1985 film documentary “Time Is All You've Got” traced his career in some detail. Shaw suffered from ill health the last few years of his life. He passed away on December 30, 2004.
Source: James Nadal
https://www.allaboutjazz.com/musicians/artie-shaw/

///////

Artie Shaw, un brillante clarinetista de jazz, fue uno de los directores de orquesta más enigmáticos, atrevidos y aventureros de la era del swing. Intelectual, odiaba la vida pública y la industria de la música. A lo largo de su corta carrera formó diez orquestas y disolvió la mayoría de ellas después de solo unos meses. En la cima de su carrera en los años previos a la Segunda Guerra Mundial, Shaw fue igualado por pocos otros músicos en popularidad y habilidad técnica.

Nacido Arthur Arshawsky en la ciudad de Nueva York y criado en Connecticut, Shaw tomó el saxofón a una edad temprana y comenzó a tocar profesionalmente cuando tenía solo 14 años. Se fue de casa a los 15 años por un trabajo en Kentucky. El puesto nunca se materializó y se vio obligado a tocar con orquestas itinerantes para poder llegar a casa. A los 16 años cambió al clarinete y se fue a Cleveland, donde pasó tres años tocando en grupos locales, incluido el de Austin Wylie.

En 1929, Shaw se unió a los Comandantes de Irving Aaronson. Mientras viajaba por el país con la banda, descubrió las obras de compositores clásicos contemporáneos de vanguardia cuya influencia surgiría más tarde en su propia música. Cuando los Comandantes llegaron para un concierto en Nueva York, Shaw decidió quedarse. Allí trabajó independientemente con muchos de los mejores artistas del momento, incluidos Vincent Lopez, Red Nichols y Teddy Wilson. También pasó un tiempo breve con la orquesta de Fred Rich y realizó una gira con Roger Wolfe Kahn.

En 1934, Shaw se desilusionó con la industria de la música y renunció por primera de lo que serían muchas veces. Compró una granja en Pensilvania y probó suerte como escritor. Pronto regresó a Nueva York y volvió a trabajar en el estudio. Era uno de los músicos de estudio más exitosos de la ciudad cuando en 1935 se le pidió que dirigiera un pequeño grupo durante los intermedios de un concierto de swing celebrado en el Teatro Imperial. Armó un atuendo inusual que consistía en un cuarteto de cuerdas, una sección rítmica sin piano y su clarinete.

La combinación única de Shaw fue recibida salvajemente por la audiencia. Se le ofreció respaldo financiero para formar su propia orquesta, y en 1936 debutó con su primera banda de baile, que presentaba un enfoque de Dixieland y un cuarteto de cuerdas. El nuevo grupo hizo algunas grabaciones impresionantes, pero no pudo competir con las orquestas brassier swing de la época, por lo que Shaw lo disolvió al año siguiente y formó una big band más convencional.

Su nuevo atuendo fue un gran éxito, con músicos como Georgie Auld, Buddy Rich, Tony Pastor y Jerry Gray. Las vocalistas incluyeron a Billie Holiday, Kitty Kallen, Peg LaCentra y Helen Forrest. Shaw apenas podía haber sabido que en poco tiempo haría un exitoso disco de una canción llamada "Begin the Beguine."El gran éxito discográfico lo catapultó a las filas de los principales líderes de la banda e inmediatamente fue apodado el nuevo "Rey del Swing"."La grabación de la canción de Shaw continúa vendiéndose y se ha convertido en uno de los discos más vendidos de la historia.

En septiembre de 1938 Shaw colapsó en el escenario debido al agotamiento. También estuvo ausente de la banda en el verano de 1939 debido a una enfermedad. A su regreso con buena salud, anunció que dejaría el negocio nuevamente, pero Gray y Pastor lo convencieron de que no lo hiciera. Sin embargo, no se quedó mucho tiempo. Se fue en noviembre y se mudó a México.

Shaw regresó a los Estados Unidos dos meses después y formó una orquesta de estudio de 32 integrantes que grabó varias canciones,incluida su famosa versión de " Frenesi. Más tarde ese año, formó una nueva banda propia que incluía a los ahora famosos Gramercy Five, con la que grabó varios éxitos más, entre ellos su versión ya clásica de "Star Dust", además de una serie de otras excelentes grabaciones como "Moonglow", "Dancing in the Dark", "Concerto for Clarinet" y muchos otros .  Ray Conniff arregló para el nuevo grupo y Anita Boyer cantó. Shaw volvió a inquietarse y disolvió su nuevo atuendo a principios de 1941. Formó otro grupo en el otoño de ese año. Las vocalistas incluyeron a Bonnie Lake, Paula Kelly y Fredda Gibson (que más tarde se convertiría en Georgia Gibbs). También disolvió este grupo poco después de iniciarlo, en enero de 1942.

En abril, Shaw se unió a la Marina. Después de pasar por el campo de entrenamiento y servir dos meses en un buscaminas, fue puesto a cargo de una banda de servicio. Formó el grupo y lo llevó a una gira por las zonas de combate del Pacífico, a menudo tocando en condiciones peligrosas y primitivas. Sin embargo, la tensión de tal esfuerzo pronto le afectó y fue dado de alta médicamente en noviembre de 1943.

Para el otoño de 1944, la salud de Shaw se había recuperado y formó una nueva banda civil, que incluía a Conniff, Barney Kessel, Roy Eldridge y Dodo Marmarosa. Imogene Lynn proporcionó la voz. Para 1947 había abandonado ese grupo y se dedicó al estudio del clarinete clásico, para el que actuó y grabó un álbum. En 1949 Shaw formó una orquesta bop. Volvió a dejar la industria de la música en 1951 y se retiró a una granja, donde escribió su autobiografía.

En 1954 regresó brevemente a la música con un nuevo Gramercy Five, pero a finales de año Artie Shaw había empacado su clarinete por última vez. Pasó el resto de su vida haciendo varias preocupaciones: escribiendo y trabajando brevemente como distribuidor de películas y experto en armas. Se mudó a España en 1955, a Connecticut en 1960 y al sur de California en 1973. En la década de 1980 formó una nueva orquesta para actuaciones especiales, aunque él mismo no tocó en ella. El documental de 1985 "Time Is All You've Got" trazó su carrera con cierto detalle. Shaw sufrió problemas de salud los últimos años de su vida. Falleció el 30 de diciembre de 2004.
Fuente: James Nadal
https://www.allaboutjazz.com/musicians/artie-shaw/

VA • Verve Jazzclub - Jazz Ladies

 

 

VA • Verve Jazz Club - Bar Jazz

 

 

 

Antonio Carlos Jobim, Shirley Scott, Kenny Burrell, Walter Wanderley, Dizzy Gillespie, Coleman Hawkins, Ben Webster, Billie Holiday, Gerry Mulligan, Stan Getz, Art Van Damme, Xavier Cugat, The Three Sounds, Oscar Peterson, Anita O'Day ...

VA • 50s and 60s Jazz Hits

 

Ella Fitzgerald, Louis Armstrong, Oscar Peterson, Julie London, John Coltrane, Gerry Mulligan, Paul Desmond, Bill Evans, Gary McFarland, Sonny Stitt, Lee Konitz, Etta James, Charlie Parker, Anita O'Day, Billie Holiday …

Billie Holiday The Musician and the Myth

 

When Billie Holiday first stepped into a recording studio in November 1933, it marked the beginning of what is arguably the most remarkable and influential career in twentieth-century popular music. Her voice weathered countless shifts in popular taste, and today new reincarnations of her continue to arrive, most recently in the form of singers like Amy Winehouse and Adele.
 
Most of the writing on Holiday has focused on the tragic details of her life—her prostitution at the age of fourteen, her heroin addiction and alcoholism, her series of abusive relationships—or tried to correct the many fabrications of her autobiography. But Billie Holiday strips away the myths and puts her music front and center, staying close to her artistry, her performance style, and the self she created and put on record and onstage.
 
Drawing on a vast amount of new material that has surfaced in the last decade, critically acclaimed jazz writer and musician John Szwed presents not just a biography, but a meditation on Billie Holiday’s art and its relation to her life. Along the way, he illuminates her influences, her uncanny voice and rhythmic genius, her signature songs—including Strange Fruit and God Bless the Child—and her enduring legacy as the greatest jazz singer of all time.

 

VA • Jazz On A Spring Day Vol. II

 

Fats Waller, Chick Webb, Ella Fitzgerald, Mel Torme, Marty Paich, Billie Holiday, Count Basie, Louis Armstrong, Mr. Acker Bilk, Chris Barber, Julie London ...

VA • Jazz Me Tonight

 

Quincy Jones, Grant Green, Bud Shank, George Shearing, Art Tatum, Booker Ervin, Dorothy Ashby, Joe Henderson, Kenny Dorham, Lou Donaldson, Oscar Peterson, Ben Webster, Wes Montgomery, Billie Holiday, Ramsey Lewis, Oliver Nelson …

VA • Introducing Verve Jazz Masters - Verve Jazz Masters 20

This CD is a sixteen-track sampler of cuts by artists who are part of the Verve Jazz Masters series.

VA • Blue Note Blend

Review by Alex Henderson

If you wandered into Starbucks Coffee in 1995 and heard a Blue Note recording playing in the background, it was no coincidence. In the mid-'90s, Starbucks and Blue Note/Capitol had an arrangement -- Blue Note plugged Starbucks, and Starbucks plugged Blue Note. That arrangement resulted in various Blue Note compilations; assembled in 1995, this one was the first. Blue Note Blend, Vol. 1 could have been titled "Jazz Basics" because its main focus is some of the better-known jazz recordings of the '50s and '60s. Blue Note Blend, Vol. 1 was not assembled with hardcore jazz collectors in mind; the target audience is Starbucks patrons who have a casual interest in jazz and need to start out with the basics. Except for US3's "Cantaloop" -- a dance/hip-hop instrumental that, in 1993, sampled Herbie Hancock's "Cantaloupe Island" -- this CD focuses on the '50s and '60s, and listeners get a rewarding dose of introductory Blue Note 101 with gems like Horace Silver's "Song for My Father," Thelonious Monk's "Straight, No Chaser," and John Coltrane's "Blue Train." About half the selections, however, did not come out on Blue Note originally -- they were recorded for Pacific Jazz, Roulette, or Capitol itself. In the '80s, Blue Note/Capitol had acquired the Pacific Jazz and Roulette catalogs, which explains the presence of Louis Armstrong and Duke Ellington's 1961 version of "Duke's Place" and Chet Baker's definitive 1955 performance of "Let's Get Lost." Neither of those treasures were actually recorded for Blue Note, although they were the property of Blue Note/Capitol when Blue Note Blend was assembled in 1995. But if Blue Note Blend takes liberties, they're good liberties. Regrettably, Blue Note doesn't provide exact recording dates or list all of the musicians and producers, which is inexcusable. Nonetheless, most of the selections are first-rate.

https://www.allmusic.com/album/blue-note-blend-vol-1-mw0001235036

///////

Reseña de Alex Henderson

Si te adentraste en Starbucks Coffee en 1995 y escuchaste una grabación de Blue Note en el fondo, no fue una coincidencia. A mediados de los 90, Starbucks y Blue Note/Capitol tenían un acuerdo: Blue Note enchufó Starbucks y Starbucks enchufó Blue Note. Ese arreglo dio lugar a varias compilaciones de la Nota Azul; reunidas en 1995, ésta fue la primera. Blue Note Blend, Vol. 1 podría haberse titulado "Jazz Basics" porque su enfoque principal son algunas de las grabaciones de jazz más conocidas de los años 50 y 60. Blue Note Blend, Vol. 1 no fue montado con los coleccionistas de jazz hardcore en mente; el público objetivo son los clientes de Starbucks que tienen un interés casual en el jazz y necesitan empezar con lo básico. Excepto por el "Cantaloop" de US3 -- un instrumento de danza/hip-hop que, en 1993, sampleó el "Cantaloupe Island" de Herbie Hancock -- este CD se enfoca en los'50s y'60s, y los oyentes reciben una dosis gratificante de la introducción de Blue Note 101 con gemas como "Song for My Father" (Canción para mi padre) de Horace Silver, "Straight, No Chaser" (Heterosexual, sin chasquidos) de Thelonious Monk, y "Blue Train" (Tren azul) de John Coltrane. Sin embargo, cerca de la mitad de las selecciones no salieron en Blue Note originalmente -- fueron grabadas para Pacific Jazz, Roulette, o el Capitolio mismo. En los años 80, Blue Note/Capitol había adquirido los catálogos de Pacific Jazz y Roulette, lo que explica la presencia de la versión de 1961 de "Duke's Place" de Louis Armstrong y Duke Ellington y la interpretación definitiva de "Let's Get Lost" de Chet Baker en 1955. Ninguno de esos tesoros se registró para Blue Note, aunque eran propiedad de Blue Note/Capitol cuando se ensambló Blue Note Blend en 1995. Pero si Blue Note Blend se toma libertades, son buenas libertades. Lamentablemente, Blue Note no proporciona fechas exactas de grabación ni una lista de todos los músicos y productores, lo cual es inexcusable. Sin embargo, la mayoría de las selecciones son de primera clase.

https://www.allmusic.com/album/blue-note-blend-vol-1-mw0001235036

Billie Holiday • A Flag For Lady Day