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Great material from the late 50s live albums that Sarah Vaughan cut for Mercury! CD

Nothing crazy and mixed up here, but a wonderful later date from Sarah Vaughan – one that's recorded with subtly sophisticated brilliance! The setting is easygoing and relaxed – far more so than most of Vaughan's records from many years past – and backing is provided by Roland Hanna on piano, Joe Pass on guitar, Andy Simpkins on bass, and Harold Jones on drums – all grooving in a warmly rounded mode that seems to further the already-great sound of Sarah's vocals at this point in her career. The record's one you might pass by because of the date, but it's easily one of the greatest Vaughan albums from later years – and tracks include "I Didn't Know What Time It Was", "That's All", "Seasons", "Love Dance", "The Island", "In Love In Vain", and "Autumn Leaves". CD

A perfect title for a perfect album from Sarah Vaughan – one of those wonderful dates from the singer's second chapter of her career – a time when she was finding newly sophisticated ways to spin out her songs! The music here is arranged by Jimmy Jones – who makes things lush, but never too much so – this beautiful balance he brought to other records of the time, such as his work with Basie – in a way that has Vaughan very much out front in the mix, working her voice with effortless ease, announcing to the world that she's one of the all-time greats, but never has to hit anyone over the head to prove it! Harry Sweets Edison provides some great trumpet lines to underscore the jazz in the music – and titles include "Dreamy", "Hands Across The Table", "Moon Over Miami", "I'll Be Seeing You", "Star Eyes", "Trees", and "Crazy He Calls Me". LP, Vinyl record album

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A dozen classics from sassy Sarah Vaughan's Mercury years, including "Misty", "Broken Hearted Melody", "Make Yourself Comfortable", "Autumn In New York", "Moonlight In Vermont", "How Important Can It Be", "Smooth Operator", "Whatever Lola Wants", "Lullaby Of Birdland", "Eternally", "Poor Butterfly" and "Close To You". LP, Vinyl record album

A great collection – classic Sarah Vaughan recordings of material from famous shows, set to arrangements from Hal Mooney! LP, Vinyl record album

A hip album from Sarah Vaughan – one recorded with great jazz backings from Ernie Wilkins, and featuring a young Cannonball Adderley as the main soloist! The addition of Adderley's alto definitely brings a swinging sound to the set – a sense of soul that's even deeper than usual for Vaughan, and which helps the album live up to its hi-fi promise! Wilkins arrangements have a bit of a Basie bounce at times, but never overwhelm Sarah's vocals – and Jimmy Jones is also on the set, handling the piano lines. Titles include "An Occasional Man", "Oh My", "Soon", "How High The Moon", "It Shouldn't Happen To A Dream", and "Maybe". LP, Vinyl record album

Sarah Vaughan takes on two R&B stormers from the Atlantic Records scene! 7-inch, Vinyl record

Live material by Sarah Vaughan – recorded in Tokyo, as you might guess from the title – and done with relatively spare backing throughout! The group's a trio, with Carl Schroeder on piano and Jimmy Cobb on drums – but they really lay back at times, and almost let Sarah sing in near-solo formation on vocals – stretching out with a lot more vocal flair than in the earlier years, and really set free to do her thing. Titles include "On A Clear Day", "I Cried For You", "Tonight Tonight", "Tenderly", "There Is No Greater Love", "Summertime", "The Blues", and "Rainy Days & Mondays". LP, Vinyl record album

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The title's a bit of a joke – because the record features a batch sidemen from the Count Basie band – Thad Jones, Joe Newman, Freddy Green, Billy Mitchell, Frank Foster, and others – all working with Sarah, but the Count's name is missing, due to contractual obligations! Despite that lack, though, the grooves are very much in the best Basie mode – full of soul and searing horn lines – at a level that makes the album one of Sarah's liveliest from the time! Players include Thad Jones and Joe Newman on trumpet, Al Grey on trombone, Frank Foster and Frank Wess on tenor, and Freddie Green on guitar – and Ronnell Bright handles the piano, instead of Basie. Titles include "Darn That Dream", "Smoke Gets In Your Eyes", "Doodlin", "Just One Of Those Things", "No Count Blues", and "Missing You". LP, Vinyl record album

One of Vaughan's nice jazz sides from the 50s on EmArcy, but cut with slightly larger backing, almost in the vein of some here concurrent pop oriented work at the Mercury parent label during the same time. Arrangements are by Hal Mooney, and Vaughan takes an approach that showcases how she garnered the titular nickname in great readings of a number of standards on this set. Titles include "Lush Life", "Only You Can Say", "The Boy Next Door", and "I'm The Girl". LP, Vinyl record album

Very nice jazz-oriented material that has Sarah working with Jimmy Jones, one of her best accompanists, or John Malachi, who was in Billy Eckstine's band at the same time Sarah was with the group. All the tracks have nice small combo instrumentation – and Sarah keeps things nice and warm vocally, free to get a bit more intimate than usual in the album's casual setting. Titles include "All Of Me", "Lover Man", "Polka Dots & Moonbeams", "Prelude To A Kiss", and "You Hit The Spot". CD

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One of our favorite albums ever by Sarah Vaughan – and a really jazz-based session that's totally hip! Sarah's working here live at the legendary London House nightclub in Chicago – singing with a small combo that includes Ronnell Bright on piano, Richard Davis on bass, and Roy Haynes on drums – augmented by some great horn work from Thad Jones on trumpet and Frank Wess on tenor. The set's got a relaxed jazzy feel that's really a welcome departure from some of Sarah's more over-arranged albums from the time – and the interplay between the vocals and the horns is easy, relaxed, and very well placed throughout – a perfect summation of the subtle Vaughan genius, but one that's rarely ever captured this well on record! Titles include "You'd Be So Nice To Come Home To", "Detour Ahead", "I'll String Along With You", "Three Little Words", "Speak Low", and "All Of You". LP, Vinyl record album

One of the fuller-sounding albums recorded by Sarah Vaughan for Emarcy in the 50s – a set of George Gershwin numbers, mostly set to large studio backings directed by Hal Mooney! The lush approach is a nice one for Vaughan, and an early hint of her talents in such a setting – one that makes for sophisticated sounds and phrasing that really sets her apart from the pack! Jimmy Jones plays piano on most numbers, and titles include "But Not For Me", "Isn't It A Pity", "Someone To Watch Over Me", "Bidin' My Time", "Man I Love", "My One & Only", "Lorelei", "I've Got A Crush On You", "Summertime" and more. CD

Arrangements by Thad Jones and JJ Johnson – with titles that include "Sposin", "I Left My Heart In San Francisco", "All Alone", "The Sweetest Sounds", "On The Other Side Of The tracks", "I Had A Ball", and "I Want To Be Happy". LP, Vinyl record album

A huge amount of greatness – including Clifford Brown's famous recordings with Max Roach, his All Stars jam session, and recordings with Dinah Washington, Sarah Vaughan, and Helen Merrill – plus a "with strings" session, and unreleased tracks! CD

The first album in many years from pianist Larry Novak – a Chicago pianist who worked with giants like Sinatra and Sarah Vaughan many decades back, and who's remained a committed stylist after all these years! In fact, the set's got a depth of feeling and sensitivity that might be more common in a younger player – a lyrical beauty that's extremely captivating, and which has a vibrancy that hardly belies Larry's age at all – so much so, we had to make sure we had the right CD in the player when writing up this review! Part of the album's strength is the rhythm duo – which features superb bass from Eric Hochberg, who seems born to work with Novak – and drums from Rusty Jones, who often still lets Novak set the pace. Titles include "Minority", "Very Early", "Nobody Else But Me", "The Touch Of Your Lips", and "The Days Of Wine & Roses". CD

Obscure set of sexy vocal numbers, sung by Teri Thornton with some nice backing by Larry Wilcox and his orchestra. Thornton's got a polished style that resembles some of Sarah Vaughan's Mercury recordings of the mid and late 50s, and the backing is lush and dreamy, and works well with her voice. The set includes the "Somewhere In The Night" theme to The Naked City, plus a great reading of Babs Gonzales' "Lonely One". Other titles include "Clap Yo Hands", "I Believe In You", and "I've Got Your Number". LP, Vinyl record album

Kitty White's first album for Mercury – a sublime set recorded right at the height of Mercury's jazz years – and done in a personal, unfettered style that's really great – right up there with more famous albums for the label by Dinah Washington or Sarah Vaughan from the same time. Backing is by a small combo that includes Gerald Wiggins on piano, Barney Kessel on guitar, Red Callender on bass, and Chico Hamilton on drums – plus some especially nice tenor sax work from Georgie Auld, who cuts in nicely next to Kitty's dark-hued vocals. Titles include "Skylark", "So Many Beautiful Men", "If You Were Mine", "Among My Souvenirs", "Softly", "Out Of This World", and "See Saw". LP, Vinyl record album

A really fantastic collection of funky jazz from the Mainstream Records label – a funky powerhouse that was maybe only second to CTI in the early 70s – and which had a great way of moving forward older soul jazz players to a sweet electric sound for the new generation! The choice of cuts here is superb – some of our favorites from Mainstream, including a lot of lesser-known gems from their more obscure LPs – packed in a collection that runs for nearly 80 minutes in length, with never a letup on the funky moments! Titles include "El Torro Poo Poo" by Charles Kynard, "Red Clay" by Jack Wilkins, "House Of The Rising Funk" by Afrique, "Naima" by Charles McPherson, "Equipoise" by Roy Haynes, "Quadrivium" by Hadley Caliman, "Mambo Au Go Go" by Joe Cain, "Hot Peppers" by Mauricio Smith, "Mi Hermano" by Blue Mitchell, "Inner City Blues" by Sarah Vaughan, "M'Bassa" by Lamont Johnson, "The Loud Minority (edit)" by Frank Foster, "Babylon" by Buddy Terry, and "Ain't Got Nobody" by Maxine Weldon. CD

A wicked dip into the catalog of 70s powerhouse Mainstream Records – a set that brings together the funkiest tracks from the label – not just from their electric jazz albums, but also their more obscure funky 45s from the same time too! The package is a strong blend of jazz, funk, and soul – and alongside familiar breaks sampled from the Mainstream label, you'll also hear some funky nuggets that are long overdue for greater exposure – all laid out in a way that really gets at the diversity of the company's great ear for heavy grooves! Long tracks mix with shorter ones, in a way that really keeps things fresh – and titles include "TB's Delight" by Dave Hubbard, "Miss Fatback" by Saundra Phillips, "Kissing My Love" by Afrique, "These Memories" by Almeta Lattimore, "Mother McCree" by Reggie Moore, "Make It With You" by Maxine Weldon, "Blue's Blue" by Blue Mitchell, "Livin Way Too Fast" by December's Children, "This Moment" by Hal Galper, "Bird & The Ouija Board" by Pete Yellin, "Papa Was A Rolling Stone" by Jay Berliner, and "Just A Little Lovin" by Sarah Vaughan. LP, Vinyl record album

A great small club date from singer Della Reese – recorded early in her career, and maybe one of her best albums from the time! There's a relaxed, easygoing charm that Della has on stage – maybe more personality than on some of her studio albums, to match her undeniable skills as a singer – in a way that really illustrates the power and character she can bring to a tune. Backing is by the Kirk Stuart Trio – but Della's clearly the star of the show, and comes across on record with the charm that most folks wouldn't discover until her screen performances many years later. The set's a nice match with Sarah Vaughan's album at Mr Kelly's – both recorded in a similar format, but with the singers coming across in very different ways – and titles here include "Sometimes I'm Happy", "Someone To Watch Over Me", "The Party's Over", "The Nearness Of You", "Getting To Know You", and "If I Forget You". LP, Vinyl record album

Music from Stan Getz & Joao Gilberto with Antonio Carlos Jobim, Sarah Vaughan, Billy Eckstine, Stan Getz & Luiz Bonfa with Antonio Carlos Jobim, Astrud Gilberto with Antonio Carlos Jobim, Antonio Carlos Jobim, Wes Montgomery, Shirley Horn, Ella Fitzgerald & more. CD

Music from Miles Davis & His Orchestra, Lennie Tristano Quintet, Gene Norman's "Just Jazz" featuring Red Norvo & Stan Getz, Sarah Vaughan, Thelonious Monk Quartet,Horace Silver Quintet, Charles Mingus Quintet, Modern Jazz Quartet & Sonny Rollins Plus Four. CD