This two-disc set, one of numerous crossover collections released by the Decca/Universal family of labels, bears the name of Russian pianist Vladimir Ashkenazy only in small print at the end of the list of pieces included. Newcomers to classical music can rest assured that they're getting a two-for-one bonus by purchasing Essential Chopin – not only an introduction to the Polish-French composer who helped elevate the small solo piano work to the pinnacle of musical art, but also a sampling of the talents of one of the great keyboard artists of our own time. Ashkenazy rumbles with power on the more extended Ballades and the "Revolutionary" Etude in C minor, Op. 10/2, while Chopin's lighter dance-rhythm pieces and lyrical Nocturnes sparkle under Ashkenazy's effortless hands.

‘New American Suite’ from the newly form trio Kevin Toney 3 is a quality collection of piano driven jazz of a standard that befits Toney’s track-record as leader of the legendary The Blackbyrds and thirty year recording artist in his own right. In fact with Toney on keyboards, Michael Bradford on bass and Chris Coleman on drums, Kevin Toney 3 are a collective united in both their religion and their music. They prayer together and play together while the album’s nine hugely cinematic tracks acknowledge in music what Toney identifies as a recent paradigm shift in the USA toward real, forward thinking change. This vibrant recording is not ‘easy on the ear’ smooth jazz but is a sophisticated collection that has the power both to defy genres and delight those who listen.

Carnival of Sins: Live is a 2-CD live album by Mötley Crüe. It was released in 2006 on Mötley Records. The album features the Grand Rapids, Michigan performance from the band's 2005-2006 Carnival of Sins tour…

Norman Simmons - The Art of Norman Simmons (2000) {Savant ‎SCD 2029}
EAC rip (secure mode) | FLAC (tracks)+CUE+LOG -> 469 Mb | MP3 @320 -> 172 Mb
Full Artwork @ 300 dpi (jpg) -> 10 Mb | 5% repair rar
© 2000 Savant ‎Records | SCD 2029
Jazz / Bop / Hard Bop / Post Bop / Piano

As the accompanist for singers Dakota Staton, Carmen McRae, and Joe Williams, as well as a member of bands led by Johnny Griffin, Roy Eldridge and others, pianist Norman Simmons has spent little of his fifty-plus years as a musician in the spotlight. On the appropriately titled The Art of Norman Simmons, he successfully strikes a balance between putting his own talents front and center and melding them with musicians he respects and admires. The members of his quintet share the common goal of swinging in a relaxed, unhurried manner and no one ever feels compelled to shout to make a point.

For all the many recordings of Duffy Power in the 1960s and the '70s that eventually found release, his 1973 album on the GSF label (sometimes reported to have come out in 1972) was the only full-length Power LP that came out shortly after the material it contained was recorded. Confusingly, another album titled Duffy Power came out around the same time on the Spark label, though that LP contained tracks recorded in the late '60s. The Duffy Power album on the GSF label was entirely different, and has received relatively little attention even among his cult followers, in part because so much other Power material was reissued on CD prior to the record finally coming out in the compact disc format in 2007.

Dexter Gordon - I Want More (1964) {SteepleChase SCCD 36015 rel 2004}
EAC rip (secure mode) | FLAC (tracks)+CUE+LOG -> 313 Mb | MP3 @320 -> 125 Mb
Full Artwork @ 600 dpi (jpg) -> 26 Mb | 5% repair rar
© 1964, 2004 SteepleChase | SCCD 36015
Jazz / Bop / Hard Bop / Saxophone

SteepleChase has released on six CDs the radio broadcasts of Dexter Gordon and his 1964 Quartet (with pianist Tete Montoliu, bassist Niels-Henning Orsted Pedersen and on this volume drummer Rune Carlsson) from Copenhagen's Montmartre Club. In adition to the title cut, Dexter and co. perform "Come Rain or Come Shine," "Where Are You," the fun "I Want to Blow Now" (which Gordon sings) and "Second Balcony Jump." Fans will want all of the releases in this enjoyable and well-recorded series.

With 850,000 volumes, 120,000 old books and a collection of 7,500 newspapers, the Municipal Library of the Archiginnasio of Bologna is a place steeped in history. It was here, in early 2021, that Paolo Fresu decided to celebrate his own history. For his 60th birthday, the Sardinian trumpet player gathered a handful of relatives for an exceptional concert, obviously without an audience. Together with bandoneonist Daniele di Bonaventura, pianist Dino Rubino, double bassist Marco Bardoscia and the Alborada Quartet, he wandered through various rooms in this magnificent library performing pieces in his own style. A colourful and hybrid jazz, European at heart and always strolling around.

Art Blakey & The Jazz Messengers - Kyoto (1964) {Riverside OJCCD-145-2 rel 1990}
EAC rip (secure mode) | FLAC (tracks)+CUE+LOG -> 203 Mb | MP3 @320 -> 78 Mb
Full Artwork @ 300 dpi (jpg) -> 10 Mb | 5% repair rar
© 1964, 1990 Riverside Records / Fantasy | OJCCD-145-2
Jazz / Hard Bop / Drums

Reissued on Fantasy's OJC series, this album finds Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers paying tribute to Japan (where they had toured to great acclaim) on two selections, featuring Art Blakey's cousin as a vocalist on "Wellington's Blues" (a real rarity in The Jazz Messengers' discography) and debuting Curtis Fuller's "The High Priest." With trumpeter Freddie Hubbard, tenorman Wayne Shorter and trombonist Fuller in fine form, this is one of literally dozens of recommended Jazz Messengers recordings.