VA - The History Of Blue Note: The New Era, Volume 6 (2009)

  • 05 Dec, 17:15
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Artist:
Title: The History Of Blue Note: The New Era, Volume 6
Year Of Release: 2009
Label: Blue Note
Genre: Jazz
Quality: FLAC (tracks) / MP3 320 Kbps
Total Time: 02:16:56
Total Size: 831 Mb / 350 Mb
WebSite:

Tracklist:

CD 1
1. Dominoes
by Donald Byrd
2. Angelina
by Earl Klugh
3. Always There
by Ronnie Laws And Pressure
4. Freedom Is A Voice
by Bobby McFerrin
5. The Lady In My Life
by Stanley Jordan
6. Never Said
by Dianne Reeves
7. The Time Is Now
by Eliane Elias
8. You Don't Know What Love Is
by Rachelle Ferrell
9. I'll Take Les
by John Scofield
10. I Can't Stand The Rain
by Cassandra Wilson
11. Fistful Of Haggis
by Charlie Hunter
12. Cantaloop (Flip Fantasia) [feat. Rahsaan & Gerard Presencer]
by Us3

CD 2
1. Beatrice (Live)
by Joe Henderson
2. Nostrand And Fulton
by Freddie Hubbard and Woody Shaw
3. Lonnie's Lament
by McCoy Tyner
4. Red Mask
by Tony Williams
5. Song From The Old Country
by Don Pullen & George Adams
6. Bish Bash
by Benny Green
7. Lines & Spaces
by Joe Lovano
8. Well You Needn't
by Gonzalo Rubalcaba
9. Not Yet
by Javon Jackson
10. I Love Paris
by Jacky Terrasson
11. Miss D'Meena
by Greg Osby

I bought this collection with a tinge of trepidation. Initially, 'The New Era' of Blue Note records was synonymous with the kind of jazz-funk that now sounds pretty diluted compared to that of Art Blakey, Lee Morgan, Jimmy Smith and other giants of the label's golden age.
I needn't have worried. This is a marvellous eclectic compilation that starts with Donald Byrd's breezy '(Falling Like) Dominoes' from 1975 and ends with Greg Osby's rather more demanding 'Miss D'Meena' from 1996. In between there are goodies to suit all tastes. Everything from Ronnie Laws' dangerously danceable 'Always There' - later covered by Incognito and Side Effect among others - to a furious, turbo-charged version of Monk's 'Well You Needn't' by the Cuban pianist, Gonzalo Rubalcaba. Elsewhere, Freddie Hubbard and fellow trumpet great, Woody Shaw, unite for some unfettered 'old era' blowing; McCoy Tyner plays a lesser known number of ex-employer, John Coltrane; Stanley Jordan plays some nice conventional jazz guitar on Rod Temperton's 'Lady in My Life'; Rachelle Ferrell demonstrates her extraordinary vocal range; John Scofield is accompanied by the old Atlantic label tenor man, Eddie Harris, for a viciously funky 'I'll Take Les'; and Joe Lovano, spurred on by Michel Petrucciani, shows why he is considered a modern-day giant of the tenor sax.
What's more, surprises like Charlie Hunter's swinging 'Fistful of Haggis', which features the first Nashville pedal steel guitar I have ever heard in a jazz context, and Cassandra Wilson's haunting 'I Can't Stand the Rain', accompanied only by a bottle-neck acoustic guitar, are almost worth the price of admission alone. If, like the Bonzos, you believe jazz is 'delicious hot [and] disgusting cold', I can recommend without hesitation producer Michael Cuscuna's quirky compilation. It certainly goes to prove that there's still lots of life left in the old label.