John Lewis & Sacha Distel - Afternoon in Paris (1956) [2014 Japan 24-bit Remaster] mp3

Features 24 bit remastering and comes with a mini-description. We would gladly trade every other John Lewis album for a copy of this album – because the album's a treasure all the way through – and a really unique set, with a really unique feel! The session features Lewis' piano in the company of a hip French group that includes Sasha Distel on guitar, Pierre Michelot on bass, and the great Barney Wilen on tenor – all great players who bring out a whole new side of Lewis' genius! Wilen's solos alone are worth the price of the album – deeply soulful, with a resonant tone that's some of his greatest on record – and an easy illustration of why he was one of the few European players of the postwar years to get big notice on this side of the Atlantic.

But amazingly, Sacha Distel's also great here too – and despite the fact that he later went onto become a vocal pop star, Distel displays a beautiful approach to jazz guitar that makes us wish we had more sessions of his from these days. Titles include "Afternoon In Paris", "I Cover The Waterfront", and "All The Things You Are" – but don't let the titles alone speak for the record, because every track is beautiful!
It was in Paris that John Lewis co-led this 1956 date with Sacha Distel, a French guitarist who never became well-known in the U.S. but commanded a lot of respect in French jazz circles. The same can be said about the other French players employed on Afternoon in Paris – neither tenor saxophonist Barney Wilen nor bassist Pierre Michelot were huge names in the U.S., although both were well-known in European jazz circles. With Lewis on piano, Distel on guitar, Wilen on tenor, Michelot or Percy Heath on bass, and Kenny Clarke or Connie Kay on drums, the part-American, part-French group of improvisers provides an above-average bop album that ranges from "Willow Weep for Me," "All The Things You Are," and "I Cover the Waterfront" to Milt Jackson's "Bags' Groove" and Lewis' title song. The big-toned Wilen was only 19 when Afternoon in Paris was recorded, but as his lyrical yet hard-swinging solos demonstrate, he matured quickly as a saxman. It should be noted that all of the Americans on this album had been members of the Modern Jazz Quartet; the only MJQ member who isn't on board is vibist Jackson.

Tracks:

01. I Cover the Waterfront (Green) - 6:53
02. Dear Old Stockholm (Trad.) - 6:08
03. Afternoon in Paris (Lewis) - 9:25
04. All the Things You Are (Kern-Hammerstein) - 5:17
05. Bags' Groove (Jackson) - 6:14
06. Willow Weep for Me (Ronell) - 9:34

Personnel:

John Lewis - piano
Sacha Distel - guitar
Barney Wilen - tenor saxophone
Pierre Michelot (#1-3), Percy Heath (#4-6) - bass
Connie Kay (#1-3), Kenny Clarke (#4-6) - drums

Recorded in Paris on December 4 (#4-6) and 7 (#1-3), 1956.