Search results for "Barney Kessel"

Barney Kessel: 64 Bars on Wilshire (Rating: 96/100) posted in Music October 23, 08

Kessel's busy ode to a traffic-soaked Los Angeles thoroughfare contains several wild conflagrations by pianist Hampto...

Barney Kessel: Viva el Toro! (Rating: 90/100) posted in Music January 03, 09

The late-'50s craze for jazz versions of Broadway and television shows scored hits (several fine Porgy and Bess album...

Charlie Byrd, Herb Ellis & Barney Kessel: Lover (Rating: 96/100) posted in Music November 28, 07

Without resorting to the manic metronome marking of quarter note = 5280 that for "Lover" had become de rigueur, th...

This track review is included in: THE DOZENS: TWELVE GREAT LOVERS

Jazz has always relied on popular songs to connect quickly with an audience. In return, jazz has helped keep alive ...

Oscar Peterson: Okie Blues (Rating: 91/100) posted in Music February 23, 08

This track reunites the 1951 Oscar Peterson Trio, two decades hence, doing an O.P. original named for prodigal picker...

This track review is included in: THE DOZENS: TWELVE TRACKS BY PIANO TRIOS WITH GUITAR AND BASS

                  Nat King...

Charlie Parker: Carvin' the Bird (Rating: 95/100) posted in Music March 06, 08

Just weeks after his release from Camarillo State Hospital, Parker was back in Dial’s studios to record with trumpete...

This track review is included in: THE DOZENS: CHARLIE PARKER'S OVERLOOKED GEMS

There are no bad Charlie Parker recordings. Everything Bird recorded had the blues and soul baked right in. So to ass...

Julie London: Cry Me a River (Rating: 97/100) posted in Music October 31, 07

After costarring at 18 in a jungle movie with Olympic swimmer Buster Crabbe, Julie London transitioned from fetching ...

This track review is included in: THE DOZENS: FIFTIES FEMMES FATALES

In 1958, as evidence that love's fever is a long-running malady, singer/lyricist Peggy Lee alluded to Romeo & Julie...

Benny Carter: Blue Lou (Rating: 93/100) posted in Music December 10, 08

Nat Hentoff's liner notes for the original Jazz Giant described it as "the first all-jazz, hot, small combo blowing a...

The Poll Winners: Volare (Rating: 96/100) posted in Music October 31, 07

When covering pop hits of the day, 1950s jazzmen often seemed anxious to hurry past the melody, treating the song as ...

Lester Young & Oscar Peterson: Stardust (Rating: 87/100) posted in Music August 16, 09

Lester’s alcoholism had caught up with him by the early ‘50s, robbing him of his prowess on the saxophone. “Stardust”...

This track review is included in: THE DOZENS: LESTER YOUNG AT 100

It’s hard to imagine what it was like. Today, New York City is so entrenched as the jazz scene of record that the...

Sonny Rollins: I've Told Ev'ry Little Star (Rating: 90/100) posted in Music September 16, 08

Shortly after this West Coast session, Sonny Rollins returned to New York and withdrew from the jazz scene for close ...

The Poll Winners: When the Red, Red Robin (Rating: 92/100) posted in Music November 09, 07

In an odd leap from ASCAP to NASDAQ, the Red Robin gourmet burger chain took its name from the founder's 1940s barber...

This track review is included in: THE DOZENS: JAZZ FOR THE BIRDS

It's only fitting. Since birds inspire us with their songs, composers return the favor, dedicating music in every gen...

Billie Holiday: All or Nothing at All (Rating: 80/100) posted in Music January 21, 08

Norman Granz told me that although he once had to wind up a recording session with Billie because she was too drunk t...

This track review is included in: THE DOZENS: TWELVE ESSENTIAL BILLIE HOLIDAY PERFORMANCES

              Billie Holiday, artwork by Michae...

Charlie Parker: Funky Blues (Rating: 96/100) posted in Music September 09, 08

The live jam sessions that Norman Granz produced were usually hit-or-miss affairs. Raucous audiences could encourage ...

Dexter Gordon & Wardell Gray: The Hunt (Rating: 87/100) posted in Music April 14, 09

Two of Wardell Gray’s and Dexter Gordon’s tenor duels, “The Chase” and “The Hunt,” rank among the all-time highlights...

This track review is included in: THE DOZENS: DEXTER GORDON

                    &...

Benny Carter: Street Scene (Rating: 95/100) posted in Music October 29, 07

Fade in. Street scene. Big city. Rain slicked. Deserted corner. Wee hours. Neon flashing. Deep shadows. Film ...

Lester Young: Ad Lib Blues (Rating: 85/100) posted in Music November 16, 07

This 1952 session will undoubtedly quiet anyone who criticizes Lester Young’s postwar career. Inspired by Oscar Peter...

Billie Holiday: Comes Love (Rating: 95/100) posted in Music November 19, 07

By the mid-1950s, Billie Holiday had been rescued by a record label (Verve) with the wisdom to scrap her former ...

This track review is included in: THE DOZENS: FIFTIES FEMMES FATALES

In 1958, as evidence that love's fever is a long-running malady, singer/lyricist Peggy Lee alluded to Romeo & Julie...

Billie Holiday: Blue Moon (Rating: 88/100) posted in Music December 04, 07

Lady Day evidently brought a head cold to this session, which for other singers might be a handicap. Holiday, however...

Billie Holiday: These Foolish Things (Rating: 96/100) posted in Music December 04, 07

Sixteen years after recording it with Teddy Wilson, Billie revisits this song for a slower, deeper interpre- tation. ...

Harry 'Sweets' Edison: How Deep Is the Ocean? (Rating: 94/100) posted in Music December 05, 07

Browsing rival websites recently for good stuff to steal—or, make that transmute into high art—we found Sweets Edison...

Previous Page | Next Page