 |
|
|
|
> > >
Saxophone | |
|
List Price: £16.99
Our Price: £9.98
Artist:
Lester Young
The Lester Young Story is a masterly selection from the work of a great tenor saxophonist, excellently packaged, with an informative booklet. This four-disc box set of classic recordings follows his career from his very first session, a small band date with Count Basie in 1936, to a star-studded live concert with, among others, Charlie Parker, Roy Eldridge, Buddy Rich, in 1949. This isn't the whole story, of course, because Young lived and worked for a further 10 years, but it covers the period when he was at the height of his powers and is packed with glorious music. To pick out just a few gems--there is the amazing "Lady Be Good"; the record that first announced his arrival to an astonished jazz world and five numbers in which he partners the young Billie Holiday with exquisite delicacy and taste. Elsewhere there are most of his show-stopping solos with Basie's band, in numbers like "Tickle Toe"; and "Taxi War Dance" and a generous selection from his informal small-band sessions with players such as Buck Clayton, Dickie Wells and Charlie Christian, including a rare extract from the soundtrack of the movie Jammin' The Blues. The last disc consists of tracks from Y...
 Magnificent Lester Young, 2006-10-30
How do Proper records do it?
Four CDs of epoc making music for the price of a couple of take-away pizzas!
I probably like best the small group recordings of the second disc (Afternoon of a Basieite), especially the ones with Charlie Christian, totally melodic and swinging like the clappers.
There are also a number of novelty vocals (Blitzkrieg Baby etc) which show Pres earning a living in a quite unworthy environment but still coming up with innovative, ear bending solos.
An absolute must for every serious jazzers collection.
Thank you Proper Records.
List Price: £9.99
Our Price: £7.54
Artist:
Oscar Peterson Trio,
Lester Young
An entire session from November 1952, in which Lester Young (known as "Pres", short for "The President") joined the Oscar Peterson Quartet. It was plainly a happy and relaxed affair, as the incidental studio chatter and badinage reveals. Pres was notoriously sensitive to his surroundings and, particularly in later life, could only function properly in a friendly and supportive atmosphere like this. Not surprisingly, he plays exceedingly well here, his delicate tenor saxophone sound in full flower. At one point he bursts into song, with the current hit "It Takes Two To Tango", his only studio-recorded vocal. However, to prevent anyone being tempted to release it, he inserts some mild rudeness into the lyric (this was the early 50s, remember). At this stage in his life he was becoming more and more fond of slow ballads and there are several prime examples here, including touching versions of "These Foolish Things" and "I'm Confessin'" . Peterson and guitarist Herb Ellis seem inspired by the occasion and contribute superb solos. With Ray Brown and J.C. Heard completing the rhythm section, this CD contains some of the best of Lester Young's later work. --Dave Gell...
very chilled, 2008-10-13
my partner and i heard this album in a bar and had to ask for its name, it was so chilled and nice
don't need to be a jazz expert, it's just perfect to listen to in evenings or sunday mornings, or while reading :)
List Price: £16.99
Our Price: £6.02
Artist:
Young & Wilson
Press & Teddy, 2008-02-15
This is definitely a must have for anyone keen on Lester Young and an interesting fairly late recording.
I hadn't realised how well Teddy Wilson could play. He's certainly up there with Hank Jones and in my view as good a pianist as any .
List Price: £6.99
Our Price: £2.83
Artist:
Coleman Hawkins
Some of the coolest sounds around, 2000-05-28
This is a wonderful album of jazz by one of the great tenor saxophonists, Coleman Hawkins. Every note is played with feeling, tenderness and great skill. There's not a weak track on this album; each one is a carefully crafted piece of musicianship. At full price this would be highly recommended - at bargain price it more or less becomes an automatic choice. Coleman Hawkins should definitely be better known, and this album is a marvellous place to become acquainted with him and his music.
List Price: £9.99
Our Price: £5.73
Artist:
Ben Webster
Join the Jazz, 2000-09-05
This is the perfect record to start to listen to the Jazz music. Deep ballads, good mancini like swingers, standars... All you need to know about the Jazz by one of the masters of the sax.
List Price: £9.99
Our Price: £6.07
Artist:
Oscar Peterson,
Ben Webster
Ben Webster's tenor saxophone is one of the utterly distinctive and inimitable sounds in jazz and in 1959, when this set was recorded, it had reached its full breathy, melting ripeness. It was more than an instrumental tone; it was a voice, with all the variety of nuance that the human voice can command. He applies it here to seven classic American songs, well-known melodies which he explores with the ease and relaxation of long familiarity. Only Sinatra's own version could equal Webster's exposition of "In The Wee Small Hours Of the Morning", while Ray Noble's "The Touch Of Your Lips" was never so well served, either before or since. Most of the pieces are taken either as slow ballads or at an easy, mid-tempo lope, the one exception being "Sunday", which swings out with a will. Oscar Peterson is so celebrated as a virtuoso pianist that his virtues as an accompanist are rarely noticed, but he is one of the most supportive partners any soloist could desire. Along with Ray Brown and Ed Thigpen, his regular bass-and-drums team of the time, he provides the perfect setting for Webster. Altogether, this is a golden set from a golden era. --Dave Gelly
FANTASTIC, 2008-06-01
Yes, when I hear Webster blow his horn I'm smitten by the sheer beauty of his sound; the way he carresses his mouthpeace and blows his horn somehow produces warm and complex tone, capable of extremely wide range of emotion, impressive in all registers, but always beautiful (without even a hint of schmaltz or kitsch...).
In upper register he sometimes sounds sensitive like a violin, without pathetic quality (jazz) violinists can have in their upper register playing, in lower register my whole body reverberates with Ben's power. And for all this to take place it is not even necessary that he is caught at the peak of his form or in the right company!
Well, at this album he is right there at his peak and, in the company of
impressive range and dinamism of Oscar Peterson and his trusted gang (Ray Brown /b/ and Ed Thigpen /dm/), the things could hardly have gone wrong.
I'm particularly pleased with "When Your Lover has Gone", which is a great and logical material for such a group of great musicians, but it is interesting to compare Webster's treatment of children song "Bye Bye Blackbird", famous in jazz circles for Miles Davis' definitive treatment. Also; pay attention to the "In the Wee, Small Hours of the Morning"...
Although Ben is a star of this occasion and Oscar his trusted sidekick, other two musicians also get their licks and kicks, proving, yet again, how mainstream jazz can be a very powerfull mode of artistic expression.
Such a great CD!
List Price: £17.99
Our Price: £9.55
Theme tune compilations have historically set themselves the difficult task of being based around a particular subject or genre. Not this four-disc set however. It's a simple alphabetical arrangement of the 200 chosen titles. You'll start with The A-Team and finish with The X-Files. In between is a heavy leaning toward American shows. Despite no sectional groupings, you'll find Westerns (Bonanza, The High Chaparral, Wild Wild West), sci-fi (Battlestar Galactica, Buck Rogers, Star Trek), crime drama (Murder She Wrote, NYPD Blue, Hill Street Blues) and sitcoms (Cheers, Roseanne, Taxi). UK favourites include The Bill, The Prisoner, Red Dwarf and Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy. It ought to be pointed out that although re-recordings, these are from the Silva Screen label's (now rather huge) catalogue and therefore of superior quality. You'll be amazed by how many you know just from a few notes. With that in mind, this is the ideal trivia quiz accompaniment!--Paul Tonks
Not originals but still good., 2007-11-26
Even though these are not the original television themes, the songs are still done really well. It is kind of refreshing to hear songs you know well done differently. Highly recommended!
List Price: £9.99
Our Price: £7.14
Artist:
Johnny Hodges,
Billy Strayhorn
This album is virtually a showcase for the alto saxophone of Johnny Hodges. The only other soloist on most of the numbers is trombonist Lawrence Brown who is wonderful on "Stardust". He's accompanied by the Duke Ellington band with Billy Strayhorn replacing Ellington at the piano and the crisp drumming throughout is by Sam Woodyard. But half a dozen of the Ellingtonians including Harry Carney and Paul Gonsalves solo on Hodges's own tune, "Tailor Made". All the arrangements were written by Strayhorn and most of the tunes are his or Ellington's, including fine lesser-played pieces like "The Gal From Joe's" and "Azure". Hodges always contrived to be impeccable and inspired at the same time. He was one of the great originals, instantly identifiable by his superb sound, impeccable poise and instinctive feeling for jazz. He was remarkable for many things, not least his ability to play romantic music without ever sounding sentimental or banal. A perfect example of this is on "Your Love Has Faded" where the listener is treated to the sort of playing that caused Charlie Parker to speak of "Johnny Lily Pons Hodges". --Steve Voce--
The Finest Possible Showpiece for a Legend, 2002-11-13
The more snide critic that this album barely qualifies as jazz, but it is the firm framework of Billy Strayhorn's specially commissioned new arrangements (ranging from the reworking of the 1940's hit 'Azure' to the tweaking of the introduction and ensemble passages on 'Jeep's Blues'), that allows Hodges to shine as a soloist comletely unhindered.
The results are spectacular - no man in history has achieved such liquid purity, such languid poise and elegance as Hodges on this album. From the falling first notes of 'Don't Get Around Much Anymore' he is at his best, glissing, bending and swelling as only he could.
He may be superb, but he is run close by the majesty of his old compatriot in the Ellington Band, Laurence Brown, whose trombone lights up Hoagy Carmichael's classic 'Stardust'.
It is the very quality of Strayhorns arrangements that make this album so approachable - many of the classic Ellingtonian discords have disappeared, and the modern idioms that interested Hodges in the mid 1960's have yet to appear. The result is perfect, easy-listening Jazz majesty - this album is certainly one of the jewels of the known World.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|