Artist: Kenny Burrell

Artist: Kenny Burrell

Pure Class, 2010-08-13
When I first bought this cd, I could not beleive the artistry of the musicians.
Kenny plays the guitar like a truly gifted master.
Such ease, such style, very few out there can touch him!

Artist: Ray Brown, Kenny Burrell, Herb Ellis, Russell Malone, John Pizzarelli

Bassist Ray Brown has been a quietly forceful presence in the jazz world since he joined Dizzy Gillespie's band in 1946. He's played in a variety of settings since then, and has always returned to the trio format (he formed his first one in the late 40s, with pianist Hank Jones). This release is part of a continuing series that has teamed Brown with a variety of singers, trumpet players, saxophonists and pianists. Here the 75-year-old Brown augments his regular trio (pianist Geoff Keezer and drummer Karriem Riggins) with a half-dozen guitarists. From the snappy articulation of Herb Ellis to the big-bodied warmth of Kenny Burrell and the smooth coolness of John Pizzarelli, these dozen performances are a veritable tour through contemporary traditional stylists. The repertoire is a mix of standards and a few originals, with Burrell's gorgeous "Soulful Spirit" (dedicated to Billy Higgins) bringing the set to a close with quiet grace and emotional resonance. --David Greenberger

Artist: Kenny Burrell

Artist: Kenny Burrell

the sublime bluesy burrell, 2009-05-20
This is one of those fabulous jazz albums that you can come home to after work, pour yourself a gin and tonic, and just lose yourself in. Turn it up loud and bask in all the loveliness: 'Tres Palabras', 'Montono Blues' and 'Its getting dark' all stand out, but the tracks between are quietly smashing too. And what a dream-team combination: Kenny Burrell inspired on guitar, Coleman Hawkins giving it some welly on sax, Tommy Flanagan heavenly on the piano and Ray Baretto weaving it through with some smart rhythms. Recorded on a rainy september day in New Jersey in 1962, these musicians are on real form. Swinging, sexy, soaring and soothing: buy this and enjoy it for the rest of your life.

Artist: Kenny Burrell

Excellent Jazz - Yet Diverse!, 2009-10-22
I was reluctant to make this purchase for sometime! Having heard too many of my Jazz hero's release albums titled as "with strings" and "conducted with" etc, and only be very disappointed. The main reason I have been uninspired with previous artists in this type of setup is the fact that more times than not, the music comes across as melodramatic. Too often it can comes across as forced and contrived. However, with this album I was struck by the subtlety and delicacy than Gil Evan gives the this fantastic album. Its a combination of various Jazz styles of guitar play, however highlighting Kenny Burrell's blues influence to the fore. Yet another sublime Mr Burrell album to join all the others in my extensive Jazz collection! Highly recommended.

Artist: Jimmy Smith, Kenny Burrell, Grady Tate

Artist: Kenny Burrell

There have been great partnerships in history: Adam and Eve, Fred and Ginger, and the one under the spotlight here, Jimmy Smith and Kenny Burrell. For whenever the organist and guitarist got together something good usually happened. This is certainly true of this reissued 1963 album that the pair cut for Verve. Leaving the big band sound, which Verve were then encouraging Smith to use, this one harks back to the small group albums Smith made for Blue Note in the late 50s. Also often to be heard on those was, of course, Kenny Burrell (including Smith's finest album, Back At The Chicken Shack). The pair's use of blues and funk were ideally suited and put together made for some exhilarating jazz. The two versions here of "Fever", for example, are just the epitome of sexy cool. Now coming in lush packaging this CD shows a double act perfectly in tune with each other. --Phil Brett
Witness something really special, 2006-12-02
This record is amazingly sleak from the bluesy title track, the jumping, "travellin," on to the wonderfully subtle,"fever," where Smith really starts to blow some fire into his organ. They work so well in tandem; Jimmy provides the funk, Kenny the sophistication. The guitar at the start of,"Blues for Del," is simply beautiful and then the scurrying organ comes in. Burrell's solo in the middle really makes the track, he's the master at making the complicated sound easy. "Easy living," is so sumptuously languid it's almost painful to listen to, this is followed by the upbeat Benny Goodman number,"soft winds," where Jimmy Smith gets a chance to showcase his trickery.
This definitely has the feel of two old mates getting together one afternoon to simply have fun, it all sounds so effortless and I guess that's evidence of their brilliance as musicians.
This is one of THE great Jazz convocations your likely to hear, the reworkings and alternative takes on this reissued CD really capture the essence of a session. Really worth the investment if you're a fan of either of these two guys.

Artist: Kenny Burrell, John Coltrane

Artist: Kenny Burrell