Guns N’ Roses – G N’ R Lies (1988)

Guns N’ Roses is an American hard rock band from Los Angeles, California, formed in 1985. When they signed to Geffen Records in 1986, the band comprised vocalist Axl Rose, lead guitarist Slash, rhythm guitarist Izzy Stradlin, bassist Duff McKagan, and drummer Steven Adler. The current lineup consists of Rose, Slash, McKagan, guitarist Richard Fortus, drummer Frank Ferrer and keyboardists Dizzy Reed and Melissa Reese.

Guns N’ Roses’ debut album, Appetite for Destruction (1987), reached number one on the Billboard 200 a year after its release, on the strength of the top 10 singles “Welcome to the Jungle”, “Paradise City”, and “Sweet Child o’ Mine”, the band’s only single to reach number one on the Billboard Hot 100. The album has sold approximately 30 million copies worldwide, including 18 million units in the United States, making it the country’s bestselling debut album and eleventh-bestselling album. Their next studio album, G N’ R Lies (1988), reached number two on the Billboard 200, sold ten million copies worldwide (including five million in the U.S.), and included the top 5 hit “Patience”.

Use Your Illusion I and Use Your Illusion II, recorded simultaneously and released in 1991, debuted at number two and number one on the Billboard 200 respectively and have sold a combined 35 million copies worldwide, including 14 million units in the United States. The Illusion albums included the lead single “You Could Be Mine” (also featured in the film soundtrack for Terminator 2), covers of “Live and Let Die” and “Knockin’ on Heaven’s Door”, and a trilogy of ballads (“Don’t Cry”, “November Rain”, and “Estranged”), which featured notably high-budget music videos. The Illusion records were also supported by the extensive Use Your Illusion Tour, a world tour that lasted from 1991 to 1993. “The Spaghetti Incident?” (1993), an album of covers, was the band’s last studio album to feature Slash and McKagan before their initial departure.

Work on a follow-up album stalled due to creative differences between band members; by 1998 only Rose and Reed remained from the Illusion-era lineup. Rose, wanting to expand the band’s sound with industrial & electronic elements, enrolled an eclectic lineup of musicians, including punk bassist Tommy Stinson, virtuoso guitarist Buckethead, synth-player Chris Pitman and several touring members of Nine Inch Nails, among others. After a decade of work, Guns N’ Roses’s long-awaited sixth studio album, Chinese Democracy (2008), was released. At an estimated $14 million in production costs, it is the most expensive rock album in history. It debuted at number three on the Billboard 200, but undersold industry expectations despite mostly positive critical reception. Following the expansive Chinese Democracy Tour, Slash and McKagan rejoined the band in 2016 for the Not in This Lifetime… Tour, which became the third-highest-grossing concert tour on record, grossing over $584 million by its conclusion in 2019.

In their early years, the band’s hedonism and rebelliousness drew comparisons to the early Rolling Stones and earned them the nickname “the most dangerous band in the world”. The band’s classic lineup, along with later members Reed and drummer Matt Sorum, was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2012, its first year of eligibility. Guns N’ Roses have sold more than 100 million records worldwide, including 45 million in the United States, making them one of the best-selling acts in history. (wikipedia)

G N’ R Lies (also known simply as Lies) is the second studio album by American hard rock band Guns N’ Roses and was released on November 29, 1988 by Geffen Records. It is also the band’s shortest studio album, running at 33 and a half minutes. The album reached number two on the US Billboard 200, and according to the RIAA, the album has shipped over five million copies in the United States. “Patience” was the only single released from Lies, and peaked at number four on the Billboard Hot 100. This is their last full-album to featured the drummer Steven Adler following his departure in 1990, shortly after the single “Civil War” was recorded, and featured on Use Your Illusion II (1991), as well as their last album to be recorded as five-piece band members.

The first four tracks consist of the previously released EP Live ?!*@ Like a Suicide. These four tracks were also included as bonus tracks on the 2018 reissue of Appetite for Destruction.

The last four songs were recorded with acoustic guitars. They were written and recorded in only a few studio sessions (with the exception of “You’re Crazy”, which appeared in an alternative version on Appetite for Destruction), which producer Mike Clink called “one of those magical rock and roll history moments.”

In later interviews, Axl Rose stated that while he loved how the band sounded on the last four songs, he hated the sound of his voice. Rose recalled that his voice was husky and scratchy from the band’s lengthy touring at the time, and if he could he would have re-recorded his vocal tracks in a separate session.

A significantly faster version of “You’re Crazy” with electric guitars had previously been released on the band’s debut album, Appetite for Destruction, and was now recorded as originally intended.[3] “Used to Love Her” was written as a joke after Izzy Stradlin disliked a song he heard on the radio featuring “some guy whining about a broad who was treating him bad”. Slash stated that “People think it’s about one of our old girlfriends, but it’s actually about Axl’s dog.”

Three of the four songs from the G N’ R Lies EP are included on the 2018 remastered release of the album Appetite for Destruction, with the exception of the controversial “One in a Million”.

The cover is a humorous parody of tabloid newspapers, as are the liner notes. The album’s cover art underwent several minor modifications when the title was released on CD. First, in the bottom left corner reading “LIES LIES LIES” originally read “Wife-beating has been around for 10,000 years.” Secondly, instead of “Elephant gives birth to midget”, the original headline reads, “Ladies, welcome to the dark ages.” Many copies of the original LP release also contained an uncensored picture of a nude model on the inner LP sleeve.

The UK/Euro WX 218 924 198 – 1 release had 2 stickers on the cover; Special Limited Edition containing Sheet of Japanese Peel off Stickers, and Contains language that some people may find offensive 924 198 – 1. The Peel off Stickers are on a 21mm x 30mm sheet.

The cover art bears a resemblance to John Lennon’s Some Time in New York City, an album that contains Lennon’s controversial “Woman Is the Nigger of the World”, a song Axl Rose cited when he defended his use of the word “nigger” in “One in a Million”.

In addition to the album cover, two songs from the album caused significant controversy.

The song “One in a Million” raised accusations of racism and homophobia. Rose denied that he was a racist and defended his use of the word “nigger”, claiming that “it’s a word to describe somebody that is basically a pain in your life, a problem. The word nigger doesn’t necessarily mean black.” He cited the rap group N.W.A. and the John Lennon song “Woman Is the Nigger of the World” as other examples of musicians using the word.[14] Several years later, Rose conceded that he had used the word as an insult towards black people who had tried to rob him, and because the word is a taboo. In response to the allegations of homophobia, Rose stated that he considered himself “pro-heterosexual” and blamed this attitude on “bad experiences” with gay men.

Rolling Stone, in a 4 out of 5 star review, stated “Given that Guns N’ Roses could probably release an album of Baptist hymns at this point and go platinum, it would be all too easy to dismiss G n’ R Lies as a sneaky attempt by the band to throw together some outtakes and cash in on the busy holiday buying season… The good news is that Lies is a lot more interesting than that… The calm folk-rock melodies of these four acoustic songs reveal yet another welcome facet of Guns n’ Roses. They should also end any further mutterings from the doubting Thomases out there who are still making snide comments about the band’s potential for longevity.”[20] Allmusic, in a 3.5 out of 5 review, criticizied some of the songs on the acoustic side, stating “Constructed as a double EP, with the “indie” debut Live ?!*@ Like a Suicide coming first and four new acoustic-based songs following on the second side, G N’ R Lies is where the band metamorphosed from genuine threat to joke. Neither recorded live nor released by an indie label, Live ?!*@ Like a Suicide is competent bar band boogie, without the energy or danger of Appetite for Destruction. The new songs are considerably more problematic. “Patience” is Guns N’ Roses at their prettiest and their sappiest, the most direct song they recorded to date. Its emotional directness makes the misogyny of “Used to Love Her (But I Had to Kill Her)” and the pitiful slanders of “One in a Million” sound genuine.

In a negative review for The Village Voice, Robert Christgau stated “Axl’s voice is a power tool with attachments, Slash’s guitar a hype, the groove potent “hard rock”, and the songwriting not without its virtues. So figure musical quality at around C plus and take the grade as a call to boycott, a reminder to clean livers who yearn for the wild side that the necessary link between sex-and-drugs and rock-and-roll is a Hollywood fantasy” while condemning “One In a Million” and “Used To Love Her”.

In a 2014 review Metal Hammer dissected the controversy around the album, stating “Conceived as a stop-gap release, the second Guns N’ Roses album remains a remarkable one-off – in every sense. Ultimate Classic Rock stated “Ironically, G N’ R Lies’ tabloid-style cover art also hinted at the incessant scandals and resulting paranoia that would soon engulf the band, and its singer in particular, sowing the seeds to their eventual dissolution after the twin Use Your Illusion behemoths, and protracted creative silence until 2008’s historically delayed Chinese Democracy opus.” (wikipedia)

Personnel:
Steven Adler (drums, background vocals)
Duff “Rose” McKagan (bass, guitar, background vocals)
W. Axl Rose (vocals, piano, whistling)
Slash (guitar, background vocals)
Izzy Stradlin (guitar, background vocals)
+
percussion on 05. – 08.:
West Arkeen − Ray Garden − Rik Richards − Howard Teman

Tracklist:

Live ?!*@ Like a Suicide: Faux-live songs):
01. Reckless Life (Rose/Stradlin/Weber) 3.20
02. Nice Boys (Anderson/Cocks/Leach/Royall/Wells) 3.04
03. Move To The City (Stradlin/Weber/Del James) 3.43
04. Mama Kin (Tyler) 3.57

Acoustic songs, 1988
05. Patience 5-56
06. Used To Love Her 3.13
07. You’re Crazy 4.10
08. One In A Million 6.08

Written by Steven Adler – Duff McKagan – Axl Rose – Slash – Izzy Stradlin

*
**

More from Guns N´ Roses:

Lonnie Smith – Finger Lickin’ Good (1967)

Lonnie Smith (July 3, 1942 – September 28, 2021), styled Dr. Lonnie Smith, was an American jazz Hammond B3 organist who was a member of the George Benson quartet in the 1960s. He recorded albums with saxophonist Lou Donaldson for Blue Note before being signed as a solo act. He owned the label Pilgrimage.

He was born on July 3, 1942 in Lackawanna, New York, into a family with a vocal group and radio program. Smith said that his mother was a major influence on him musically, as she introduced him to gospel, classical, and jazz music.

He was part of several vocal ensembles in the 1950s, including the Teen Kings which included Grover Washington Jr., on sax and his brother Daryl on drums. Art Kubera, the owner of a local music store, gave Smith his first organ, a Hammond B3.

Smith’s affinity for R&B mixed with his own personal style as he became active in the local music scene. He moved to New York City, where he met George Benson, the guitarist for Jack McDuff’s band. Benson and Smith connected on a personal level, and the two formed the George Benson Quartet, featuring Lonnie Smith, in 1966.
Solo career; Finger Lickin’ Good

After two albums under Benson’s leadership, It’s Uptown and Cookbook, Smith recorded his first solo album (Finger Lickin’ Good Soul Organ) in 1967, with George Benson and Melvin Sparks on guitar, Ronnie Cuber on baritone sax, and Marion Booker on drums. This combination remained stable for the next five years.

After recording several albums with Benson, Smith became a solo recording artist and has since recorded over 30 albums under his own name. Numerous prominent jazz artists have joined Smith on his albums and in his live performances, including Lee Morgan, David “Fathead” Newman, King Curtis, Terry Bradds, Blue Mitchell, Joey DeFrancesco and Joe Lovano.

In 1967, Smith met Lou Donaldson, who put him in contact with Blue Note Records. Donaldson asked the quartet to record an album for Blue Note, Alligator Bogaloo. Blue Note signed Smith for the next four albums, all in the soul jazz style, including Think! (with Lee Morgan, David Newman, Melvin Sparks and Marion Booker) and Turning Point (with Lee Morgan, Bennie Maupin, Melvin Sparks and Idris Muhammad).

Smith’s next album Move Your Hand was recorded at the Club Harlem in Atlantic City, New Jersey, in August 1969. The album’s reception allowed his reputation to grow beyond the Northeast. He recorded another studio album, Drives, and another live album (unreleased at the time), Live at Club Mozambique (recorded in Detroit on May 21, 1970), before leaving Blue Note.

He recorded one album in 1971 for Creed Taylor’s CTI label, which had already signed George Benson. After a break from recording, he then spent most of the mid-1970s with producer Sonny Lester and his Groove Merchant and then LRC labels. It resulted in four albums, with the music output veering between jazz, soul, funk, fusion and even the odd disco-styled track.

Smith rejoined the Blue Note label in March 2015. He released his first Blue Note album in 45 years titled Evolution which was released January 29, 2016 featuring special guests: Robert Glasper and Joe Lovano. His second Blue Note album All in My Mind was recorded live at “The Jazz Standard” in NYC (celebrating his 75th birthday with his longtime musical associates: guitarist Jonathan Kreisberg and drummer Johnathan Blake), and released January 12, 2018.

Smith toured the northeastern United States heavily during the 1970s. He concentrated largely on smaller neighborhood venues during this period. His sidemen included Donald Hahn on trumpet, Ronnie Cuber, Dave Hubbard, Bill Easley and George Adams on saxes, George Benson, Perry Hughes, Marc Silver, Billy Rogers, and Larry McGee on guitars, and Joe Dukes, Sylvester Goshay, Phillip Terrell, Marion Booker, Jimmy Lovelace, Charles Crosby, Art Gore, Norman Connors and Bobby Durham on drums.

Smith performed at several prominent jazz festivals with artists including Grover Washington Jr., Ron Carter, Dizzy Gillespie, Lou Donaldson, Ron Holloway, and Santana. He also played with musicians outside of jazz, such as Dionne Warwick, Gladys Knight, Etta James, and Esther Phillips.
Smith died on 28 September 2021 at the age of 79. (wikipedia)

Although it predates his classic soul-jazz dates for Blue Note by a few years, Lonnie Smith’s debut LP, Finger-Lickin’ Good, boasts a deeply funky groove quite unusual for the mid-’60s, a period when few jazz musicians acknowledged the influence of more commercial musical pursuits, let alone introduced such elements into their own work. Aided and abetted by an all-star lineup including guitarist George Benson, saxophonist King Curtis, and trumpeter Blue Mitchell, Smith keeps the performances brisk and bold, galvanized by stiletto-sharp bursts of organ. Cuts like “Hola Muneca” and “Can’t You Just Feel It” possess a raw vitality quite uncommon for the moment in question, and while it’s disingenuous to call Finger-Lickin’ Good groundbreaking, it’s definitely a record ahead of its time. (by Jason Ankeny)

Personnel:
George Benson (guitar)
Marion Booker (drums)
King Curtis (saxophone)
Ron Cuber (saxophone)
Blue Mitchell (trumpet)
Lonnie Smith (organ)
Melvin Sparks (drums)

Tracklist:
01.Hola Muneca (Smith) 2.49
02. Minor Chant (Smith) 3.21
03. Can’t You Just Feel It (Smith) 2.49
04. Jeannine (Benson) 3.23
05. Sideman (Smith) 4.44
06. Keep Talkin’ (Smith) 2.18
07. My Babe (Dixon) 3.23
08. In The Beginning (Smith) 2.52
09. Lonnie’s Blues (Smith) 2.36
10. Say Stuff (Smith) 2.51
11. Our Miss Brooks (Vick) 2.55

*
**

The official Lonnie Smith website:
“I was greatly influenced by Dr Lonnie Smith. He was what I would call a second generation jazz organist, born considerably later than Jimmy Smith, Jack McDuff, Jimmy McGriff and Groove Holmes.
I was lucky enough to have met Dr. Lonnie a few times and saw him play many times – and I used some of what I’d learned from him while recording ‘About Time’ and ‘Nine Lives’. He used many syncopated bass lines other than the ”walking bass” used by his predecessors. He was somewhat eccentric and had a dry sense of humour.
One of the greats, he will be missed.” (Steve Winwood)

Tiamat – Skeleton Skeletron (1999)

Tiamat is a Swedish band that formed in Stockholm in 1987 and led by Johan Edlund. The band went through a number of stylistic changes, usually leaning toward gothic metal.

Initially, the band was named Treblinka. After having recorded the album Sumerian Cry in 1989, vocalist/guitarist Johan Edlund and bassist Jörgen Thullberg parted ways with the other two founding members, and subsequently changed the name to Tiamat. The Sumerian Cry album included re-recorded Treblinka songs and was released in June 1990. AllMusic refers to early Tiamat as “one of the leading lights in symphonic black metal.”

After the debut, Edlund’s leadership would modify the band’s style with influences ranging from Black Sabbath, Mercyful Fate, Candlemass, Pink Floyd and King Crimson, with Sumerian lyrical themes. H. P. Lovecraft’s writings also appear to have influenced Tiamat’s thematology, a development consistent with a broader trend in death metal culture. Polish guitarist Waldemar Sorychta would produce and contribute instrumentation to many of the band’s albums, as well as those by Tiamat’s own tour and labelmates, including Moonspell, Rotting Christ, Lacuna Coil and Samael

1994’s critically acclaimed Wildhoney mixed raw vocals, slow guitar riffs and synthesizer sounds which sounded different from other extreme metal bands active at that time. An almost continuous forty-minute piece of music, Wildhoney led to the band’s appearances at the Dynamo[4] and Wacken Open Air heavy metal festivals in 1995. The group would play a second gig at Dynamo two years later.

Upon the release of A Deeper Kind of Slumber (1997), Edlund relocated from Sweden to Germany and declared himself the only permanent member of the band; all albums that would follow would cement the band into a more gothic rock sound, quite different from the extreme music they did in the years before, with recent albums showing a Sisters of Mercy and Pink Floyd influence.

The band signed to Nuclear Blast in June 2007, and released their ninth album Amanethes on 18 April 2008.

On 10 August 2008, Thomas Wyreson announced that he was quitting the band, stating that “it’s just kinda hard to make everything work with the family etc.”

Their song Cain was also featured in the video game Vampire: The Masquerade – Bloodlines.

The band’s tenth full-length studio album, The Scarred People, was released on 2 November 2012 through Napalm Records. (wikipedia)

With the release of Skeleton Skeletron, Tiamat have effectively crossed over. Whereas early efforts such as Clouds and Wildhoney found the Swedish deathsters taking heavy metal in new and exciting directions by integrating elements of electronica and goth rock, their sixth album begs the question: have they gone too far?

Front + backcover from the Promo CD:

With its female backing vocals, lead-off single “Brighter than the Sun” sounds too much like Sisters of Mercy for its own good, while “Dust is our Fare” features a synthesizer intro borrowed straight from Bronski Beat’s “Small Town Boy.” Sure, both songs are excellent and display a biting guitar tone which not even heavier goth-rock bands like the Sisters or Fields of the Nephilim ever attempted, but the results may still be too extreme even for long-time Tiamat fans. Likewise, they may not be able to stomach the band’s dull cover of “Sympathy for the Devil” and other pedestrian offerings, such as “Church of Tiamat” and “Best Friend Money can Buy.”

Neither song ever really gets off the ground, and both are dominated by the monotonous, breathy baritone delivery of singer Johan Edlund. Not surprisingly, other memorable cuts like “For Her Pleasure” and “As Long As You Are Mine” all possess powerful power chords with synthesizers being used in a supporting role. Overall, Skeleton is still more cohesive and concise a statement than 1997’s transitional and oftentimes sprawling A Deeper Kind of Slumber, but metal fans should approach with caution nonetheless. (by Eduardo Rivadavia)

Personnel:
Johan Edlund (vocals, guitar, keyboards)
Anders Iwers (bass)
Lars Sköld (drums)

Tracklist:
01. Church Of Tiamat 4.52
02. Brighter Than The Sun 4:08
03. Dust Is Our Fare 5:02
04. To Have And Have Not 5:09
05. For Her Pleasure 5:02
06. Diyala 1:25
07. Sympathy For The Devil 5:19
08. Best Friend Money Can Buy 4:35
09. As Long As You Are Mine 4:40
10. Lucy 5:17

All songs written by Johan Edlund
except 07., written by Mick Jagger & Keith Richards

*
**

Chicago Transit Authority – Texas International Pop Festival 1969 (Vol. 1) (1990)

The Texas International Pop Festival was a music festival held at Lewisville, Texas, on Labor Day weekend, August 30 to September 1, 1969. It occurred two weeks after Woodstock. The site for the event was an open field just south and west of the newly opened Dallas International Motor Speedway, located on the east side of Interstate Highway 35E, across from the Round Grove Road intersection.

The festival was the brainchild of Angus G. Wynne III, son of Angus G. Wynne, the founder of the Six Flags Over Texas Amusement Park. Wynne was a concert promoter who had attended the Atlanta International Pop Festival on the July Fourth weekend. He decided to put a festival on near Dallas, and joined with the Atlanta festival’s main organizer, Alex Cooley, forming the company Interpop Superfest.

Artists performing at the festival were: Canned Heat, Chicago (then called Chicago Transit Authority), James Cotton, Delaney and Bonnie and Friends, Grand Funk Railroad, The Incredible String Band, Janis Joplin, B.B. King, Freddie King, Led Zeppelin, Herbie Mann, Nazz, Rotary Connection, Sam and Dave, Santana, John Sebastian, Shiva’s Headband, Sly and the Family Stone, Space Opera, Spirit, Sweetwater, Ten Years After, Tony Joe White and Johnny Winter.

North of the festival site was the campground on Lewisville Lake, where hippie attendees skinny-dipped and bathed. Also on the campground was the free stage, where some bands played after their main stage gig and several bands not playing on the main stage performed. It was on this stage that Wavy Gravy, head of the Hog Farm commune, acquired his name. (At Woodstock, he was Hugh Romney.)

The Merry Pranksters, Ken Kesey’s group, were in charge of the free stage and camping area. While Kesey was neither at the Texas event nor at Woodstock, his right-hand man, Ken Babbs, and his psychedelic bus Further were. The Hog Farm provided security, a trip tent, and free food.

Attendance at the festival remains unknown, but is estimated between 120,000 and 150,000. As with Woodstock, there were no violent crimes reported. There was one death, due to heatstroke, and one birth.

High-quality soundboard bootleg recordings of almost the entire festival are circulated on the internet. Led Zeppelin’s set is one of the most popular Led Zeppelin bootlegs due to the high technical and musical quality of the performance. (wikipedia)

And here´s the Chicago Transit Authority gig from this festival. Their were at that time completly unknown … but their very unique Jazz-Rock was already very exciting.

So, enjoy the very early Chicago Transit Authority ( a bootleg recording of course) …before they did boring songs like “If You Leave Me Now” … 

Personnel:
Peter Cetera (bass, vocals)
Terry Kath (guitar, vocals)
Robert Lamm (keyboards, vocals)
Lee Loughnane (trumpet, claves)
James Pankow (trombone, cowbell)
Walter Parazaider (saxophone, tambourine)
Danny Seraphine (drums, percussion)

Alternate backcover:

Tracklist:
01. Annoucement / Intruduction (Kath) 6.46
02. Does Anybody Really Know What Time It Is (*) (Lamm) 5.02
03. South California Purples (Lamm) 7.05
04. Beginnings (Lamm) 6.21
05. 25 Or 6 To 4 (Lamm) 5.44
06. Announcements (We’ve Been Having Fun In Texas) 0.51
07. I’m A Man (Winwood/Miller) 7.23

(*) The piano intro was interrupted by jet fly over

*
**

More from Chicago:

Rabih Abou-Khalil – Arabian Waltz (1996)

Rabih Abou-Khalil (Arabic: ربيع أبو خليل‎, born August 17, 1957) is an oud player and composer born in Lebanon, who combines elements of Arabic music with jazz, classical music, and other styles. He grew up in Beirut and moved to Munich, Germany, during the Lebanese Civil War in 1978.

Abou-Khalil studied the oud at the Beirut conservatory with oudist Georges Farah. After moving to Germany, he studied classical flute at the Academy of Music in Munich under Walther Theurer.

In his compositions and live concerts, he combines elements of Arabic music with jazz, rock, or classical music, and has earned praise as “a world musician years before the phrase became a label”. — According to a review of his concert in The Guardian of 2002, Abou-Khalil “makes the hot, staccato Middle Eastern flavour and the seamless grooves of jazz mingle, as if they were always meant to.”

In a review of his 2007 album Songs For Sad Women, the BBC wrote “the characteristic blend of jazz-inflected Arabic melody with subtle rhythms combines into a hypnotic whole, as ever with Abou-Khalil’s fluent oud playing in a central role.”

Along with Tunisian oud virtuosos Anouar Brahem and Dhafer Youssef, he has helped establish the oud as an important instrument of Ethno jazz and world fusion.

Among other musicians, Abou-Khalil has worked with ARTE Quartett (saxophone quartet), Alexander Bălănescu (violin), Luciano Biondini (accordion), Milton Cardona (conga), Sonny Fortune (alto saxophone), Michel Godard (tuba), Joachim Kühn (piano, alto saxophone), Howard Levy (harmonica), Charlie Mariano (alto saxophone), Gabriele Mirabassi (clarinet), Glen Moore (bass), Mark Nauseef (percussion), Setrak Sarkissian (darabukka), Ramesh Shotham (Indian percussion), Steve Swallow (bass), Glen Velez (frame drum, percussion), or Kenny Wheeler (flugelhorn).

His only album for the Munich based label ECM was called Nafas (1988). Since 1990, his albums have been published by Enja Records, Munich. For Al-Jadida (1992), Abou-Khalil invited alto saxophonist Sonny Fortune; Blue Camel (1992), featured alto saxophonist Charlie Mariano and flugelhorn player Kenny Wheeler. Morton’s Foot (2004) presents Luciano Biondini on accordion and Sardinian singer Gavino Murgia. Journey to the Centre of an Egg (2005) features a trio of oud, piano (Joachim Kühn, who doubles on alto saxophone) and Jarrod Cagwin on drums.

Nafas and Tarab make use of the ney, the Middle Eastern end-blown flute. Arabian Waltz features Abou-Khalil’s compositions for string quartet (performed by the Balanescu Quartet), along with oud, Michel Godard on tuba (or serpent), and frame drums.

In 2008, Abou-Khalil released an album entitled “Em Português” (“In Portuguese”), where he mixes fado with Arabic music with the participation of the fadista Ricardo Ribeiro.
TV series: Visions of Music
In 1998, Rabih Abou-Khalil hosted the television series Visions of Music. This 13-part documentary series produced by EuroArts Entertainment set out to explore the blending of jazz with different music styles of the world (Caribbean salsa, Brazilian samba, Argentine tango, French musette, Spanish flamenco, Jewish klezmer, New Orleans R&B and Mississippi blues, as well as West African, South African, Indian, and Middle Eastern music) through historical footage and interviews with musicians by Abou-Khalil. The music of the TV-series was released on the album Visions of Music – World Jazz by Enja Records.

Arabian Waltz is an album by the Lebanese oud player and composer Rabih Abou-Khalil, featuring the Balanescu Quartet, which was recorded in 1995 and released on the Enja label the following year. (wikipedia)

Arabian Waltz is the pinnacle of Rabih Abou-Khalil’s achievement as a composer and arranger. It is a sublime fusion of jazz, Middle Eastern traditional music, and Western classical. In addition to Abou-Khalil on oud (the Arabic lute), Michel Godard on the tuba and the serpent (the tuba’s antique kinsman), and Nabil Khaiat on frame drums, the album also features the Balanescu String Quartet instead of the usual trumpet or sax. The presence of the Balanescu might seem to pose a dilemma for the composer: traditional Middle Eastern music uses no harmony but a string quartet is all about harmony. Abou-Khalil achieves a compromise by generally writing the string parts in unison (or in octaves), in effect using the quartet as a single voice, but also letting the quartet split up to play parts in unison with the other instruments or to provide ornamentation.

Without surrendering jazziness at all, the presence of the strings makes possible a wondrous atmosphere, almost as if one is listening to the soundtrack of a classy movie set in Beirut or Damascus during the ’40s. This feeling is greatest on “Dreams of a Dying City” with its brooding tuba and cello motifs and grave, repeated rhythms. “The Pain After” starts with an impressive tuba solo that turns into a long interlude for tuba and string quartet; sad, slow music that sounds like one of Beethoven’s late quartets. Then Abou-Khalil finally enters on oud, bringing a sustained note of wistfulness. Fortunately, beside the darker numbers lie the propulsive drama of “Arabian Waltz” and the bobbing and weaving quirkiness of “Ornette Never Sleeps.” Abou-Khalil is known for experimenting with the possibilities his guest musicians bring to his style. In this case, the guests have inspired the host to reach a new height and maybe even a new style. This recording suits every fan of world music, jazz, classical, or just good music. (by Kurt Keefner)
Personnel:
Alexander Bălănescu (violin)
Clare Connors (violin)
Michel Godard (tuba, serpent)
Nabil Khaiat (frame drums)
Rabih Abou-Khalil (oud)
+
Balanescu Quartet:
Alexander Bălănescu (violin)
Clare Connors (violin)
David Cunliffe (violincello)
Paul Martin (viola)

Tracklist:
01. Arabian Waltz 8.10
02. Dreams Of aA Dying City 12.08
03.Ornette Never Sleeps 6.59
04. Georgina 11:09
05. No Visa 9.59
06. The Pain After 9.25

Music composed by Rabih Abou-Khalil

*
**

Arcade Fire – The Suburbs (2010)

Arcade Fire is a Canadian indie rock band, consisting of husband and wife Win Butler and Régine Chassagne, along with Win’s younger brother William Butler, Richard Reed Parry, Tim Kingsbury and Jeremy Gara. The band’s current touring line-up also includes former core member Sarah Neufeld, percussionist Tiwill Duprate and saxophonist Stuart Bogie.

Founded in 2000 by friends and classmates Butler and Josh Deu, the band came to prominence in 2004 with the release of their critically acclaimed debut album Funeral. Their second studio album, Neon Bible, won them the 2008 Meteor Music Award for Best International Album and the 2008 Juno Award for Alternative Album of the Year. Their third studio album, The Suburbs, was released in 2010 to critical acclaim and commercial success. It received many accolades, including the 2011 Grammy for Album of the Year, the 2011 Juno Award for Album of the Year and the 2011 Brit Award for Best International Album. In 2013, Arcade Fire released their fourth album, Reflektor, and scored the feature film Her, for which band members Win Butler and Owen Pallett were nominated in the Best Original Score category at the 86th Academy Awards. In 2017, the band released their fifth studio album Everything Now.

All the band’s studio albums have received nominations for Best Alternative Music Album at the Grammys. Funeral is widely considered by music critics to be one of the greatest albums of the 2000s.[3] The band’s work has also been named three times as a shortlist nominee for the Polaris Music Prize: in 2007 for Neon Bible, in 2011 for The Suburbs and in 2014 for Reflektor.

The band has been described as indie rock, art rock, dance-rock, and baroque pop. They play guitar, drums, bass guitar, piano, violin, viola, cello, double bass, xylophone, glockenspiel, keyboard, synthesizer, French horn, accordion, harp, mandolin and hurdy-gurdy, and take most of these instruments on tour; the multi-instrumentalist band members switch duties throughout shows.

The Suburbs is the third studio album by Canadian indie rock band Arcade Fire, released on August 2, 2010. Coinciding with its announcement, the band released a limited edition 12-inch single containing the title track and “Month of May”. The album debuted at No. 1 on the Irish Albums Chart, the UK Albums Chart, the US Billboard 200 chart, and the Canadian Albums Chart. It won Album of the Year at the 2011 Grammy Awards, Best International Album at the 2011 BRIT Awards, Album of the Year at the 2011 Juno Awards, and the 2011 Polaris Music Prize for best Canadian album. Two weeks after winning Grammy’s Album of the Year, the album jumped from No. 52 to No. 12 on the Billboard 200, the album’s highest ranking since August 2010.

Arcade Fire released a deluxe edition CD/DVD of The Suburbs on June 27, 2011 (everywhere except the U.S. and Canada). The American and Canadian versions were released on August 2, 2011, to coincide with the original album’s anniversary. The new version included two brand new tracks recorded during The Suburbs album sessions (“Culture War” and “Speaking in Tongues”, the latter featuring David Byrne), an extended version of album track “Wasted Hours”, Spike Jonze’s short film, Scenes from the Suburbs, and an 80-page booklet as well as other exclusive content.

The album’s lyrical content is inspired by band members Win and William Butler’s upbringing in The Woodlands, Texas, a suburb of Houston. According to Win Butler, the album “is neither a love letter to, nor an indictment of, the suburbs – it’s a letter from the suburbs”.[8] The album was recorded in Win Butler and Régine Chassagne’s residence in Montreal, with some parts being recorded at the band’s studio in Quebec and in New York City.[3] Win Butler describes the overall sound of The Suburbs as “a mix of Depeche Mode and Neil Young”,[9] stating that he wanted the album to sound like “the bands that I heard when I was very young, and wondered what those crazy noises were”.[10] It was released by Merge Records in North America and by Mercury Records in the United Kingdom.

The band pressed each completed song to a 12″ lacquer, then recorded it back for the digital master of the album. There are eight alternative covers for the CD version of the album.

A video for “Ready to Start” was released on August 20, 2010, directed by Charlie Lightning and filmed at the band’s July 7, 2010 concert at the Hackney Empire in London.[12] On August 30, 2010, an interactive video was released for “We Used to Wait” at http://www.thewildernessdowntown.com, written and directed by Chris Milk, designed in conjunction with Google Chrome, which makes use of Google Maps and Google Street View, and has been featured in Time’s “Short List”.

Another music video, for the title track “The Suburbs”, was released on November 18, 2010, directed by Spike Jonze. The video, filmed in Austin, Texas, follows a group of teenagers living in the suburbs, and features cameos by Win Butler and Sarah Neufeld as police officers. The music video is composed of excerpts from Jonze’s short film, Scenes from the Suburbs, which debuted at the Berlin International Film Festival 2011, and has a running time of 30 minutes. Scenes from the Suburbs screened at the SXSW Film Festival 2011 and saw its online premiere on MUBI on June 27, 2011. Writing for the Canadian Press, Nick Patch called the film “a sci-fi puzzler that seems to blend the paranoia of Terry Gilliam films with the nostalgia of classic Steven Spielberg flicks”.

The Suburbs received acclaim from music critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album has an average score of 87 out of 100, which indicates “universal acclaim” based on 43 reviews.[18] Writing for BBC Music, Mike Diver described the album as the band’s “most thrillingly engrossing chapter yet; a complex, captivating work that, several cycles down the line, retains the magic and mystery of that first tentative encounter” and stated that “you could call it their OK Computer.”[29] Several reviewers compared The Suburbs favourably to Arcade Fire’s earlier work. Ian Cohen of Pitchfork called it “a satisfying return to form—proof that Arcade Fire can still make grand statements without sounding like they’re carrying the weight of the world”.[26] Noel Murray of The A.V. Club described the album as being “like one long sequel” to the band’s earlier single “No Cars Go”. Q wrote that the band “may well have delivered their masterpiece.”

David Marchese, writing in Spin, wrote of the album: “Radiant with apocalyptic tension and grasping to sustain real bonds, [it] extends hungrily outward, recalling the dystopic miasma of William Gibson’s sci-fi novels and Sonic Youth’s guitar odysseys. Desperate to elude its own corrosive dread, it keeps moving, asking, looking, and making the promise that hope isn’t just another spiritual cul-de-sac.” NME’s reviewer Emily Mackay compared The Suburbs to R.E.M.’s Automatic for the People in the sense of it being “an album that combines mass accessibility with much greater ambition. Pretty much perfect, in other words – and despite their best efforts, listening to it feels just like coming home.” Uncut designated the album as their “Album of the Month”; in a 4-star review for the magazine, Alastair McKay called it “a surprising record, swapping the spit and fire of Funeral for a sense of mature playfulness”, and concluding that “[it] explores the badlands between safety and boredom. It’s nostalgic, with a sense of future dread. There is pain and pleasure, loss and hope. It feels like the anesthetic is wearing off.”

Exclaim! listed the album as their No. 1 Pop & Rock Album of 2010. Writer Andrea Warner summarized it as “a perfect actualization of the suburbs as metaphor for the classic North American dream: a smoothly perfect veneer covering up the lush complexity of motivation. It’s not just metaphor, but goes a step further to exemplify the quintessential Arcade Fire sound ― a controlled frenzy, pushing and reaching for something more.”

The album was also included in the 2011 edition of the book 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die. (wikipedia)

Personnel:
Will Butler (vocals, keyboards, synthesizers bass, guitar, percussion, sitar panpipes, trombone,  omnichord, glockenspiel, musical saw, concertina, clarinet, gadulka)
Win Butler (bass, guitar, keyboards, vocals, mandolin, banjo)
Régine Chassagne (keyboards, accordion, hurdy gurdy, vocals, recorder)
Jeremy Gara (drums, percussion)
Tim Kingsbury (guitar, bass, keyboards)
Sarah Neufeld (violin, background vocals)
Richard Reed Parry (accordion, violin)
+
Pietro Amato (french horn on 13. + 15.)
Colin Stetson (saxophone on 08., 13. + 15.)
+
strings:
Marika Anthony Shaw – Clarice Jensen – Nadia Sirota – Yuki Numata – Caleb Burhans – Ben Russell – Rob Moose

Tracklist:
01. The Suburbs 5.15
02. Ready To Start 4.16
03. Modern Man 4.40
04. Rococo 3.57
05. Empty Room 2.51
06. City With No Children 3.11
07. Half Light I 4.13
08. Half Light II (No Celebration) 4.27
09. Suburban War 4.45
10. Month Of May 3.51
11. Wasted Hours 3.21
12. Deep Blue 4.28
13. We Used To Wait 5.01
14. Sprawl I (Flatland) 2.54
15. Sprawl II (Mountains Beyond Mountains) 5.25
16. The Suburbs (Continued) 1.28

All songs written by Sarah Neufeld, Richard Reed Parry, Jeremy Gara, Win Butler, Will Butler, Régine Chassagne and Tim Kingsbury.

*
**

Paolo Conte – Una Faccia In Prestito (1995)

Paolo Conte (Italian pronunciation: [ˈpaːolo ˈkonte]; born 6 January 1937) is an Italian singer, pianist, composer, and lawyer notable for his grainy, resonant voice. His compositions are evocative of Italian and Mediterranean sounds, as well as of jazz music and South American atmospheres.

Paolo Conte was born in Asti, Piedmont. His parents were avid jazz fans and Conte and his younger brother Giorgio spent their formative years listening to a lot of early jazz and blues recordings. After obtaining a law degree at the University of Parma, Conte started working as an assistant solicitor with his father, simultaneously pursuing his musical studies. He learned to play the trombone, the vibraphone and the piano,[1] and formed a jazz band with his brother on guitar. Conte’s skill for composing music and original arrangements was noted by music producer Lilli Greco, who paired Conte with lyricist Vito Pallavicini. They wrote songs for Adriano Celentano (“Azzurro”, 1968), Caterina Caselli (“Insieme a te non ci sto più”, 1968), Fausto Leali (“Deborah”, 1968) and Enzo Jannacci (“Messico e nuvole”, 1970). In 1974 Conte recorded his first album, Paolo Conte. The following year, he released another eponymous album. Following a series of well-received shows at Club Tenco in Sanremo in 1976 and the commercial success of his third album, ‘Un gelato al limon’, Conte concentrated almost exclusively on his solo career.

Some of Conte’s most popular songs have been used as film soundtracks, including “Come Di” in I Am David (2003) and Mickey Blue Eyes (1999), “Via con me” in French Kiss (1995), Mostly Martha (2001) and Welcome to Collinwood (2002). In addition, Conte’s song “L’orchestrina” is featured during the end credits for episodes 3 and 4 of the television series The New Pope (2020). In 1997 Conte won the Nastro d’Argento for Best Score for the film La freccia azzurra.

On 24 March 1999, Paolo Conte was awarded with the Knight Grand Cross of the Order of Merit of the Italian Republic, by President Giorgio Napolitano for his “outstanding cultural achievements”. On 15 May 2001, France ordered Paolo Conte Chevalier dans l’Ordre des Arts et des Lettres. In 2015, Conte was awarded a Premio Galileo for contemporary music.

Has also received several honorary doctorates, including one from the University of Macerata (1990) (wikipedia)

Una Faccia in Prestito finds Paolo Conte approaching sixty, and much at ease in his hard-earned role of venerable, ultra cool, international cult figure. All of the elements that made Conte’s music and persona so unique are on display here, perhaps even in an ostentatious manner. Una Faccia in Prestito presents Conte at his most mannerist, as he nonchalantly revises or combines genres with astonishing musical facility. The aesthetic of pastiche, always important in Conte’s oeuvre, becomes the very essence of this album, both musically and lyrically. Indeed, in the same way that Conte amalgamates swing, bolero, paso doble, jig, milonga, or German music hall, his texts often become a hybrid of various European languages, including Italian, French, English, Spanish, Portuguese, and even his own native dialect of the Asti region.

Conte employs the same crew that accompanied him since the early 1990s (Jino Touche, Daniele Di Gregorio, Massimo Pitzianti), and the arrangements and performances are customarily faultless. Still, at 17 tracks in under one hour, (the longest single disc of Conte’s career), Una Faccia in Prestito can become a bit tiring in all of its flamboyance. “Danson Metropoli,” for instance, is a hilarious musical and verbal portrait of a modern capital’s chaotic living experience. But when a similar approach is employed for “Vita da Sosia,” it feels like one song too many. Nevertheless, it should also be said that the best moments, such as “Le Tue Parole per Me,” “Un Fachiro al Cinema,” or “Architetture Lontane” are nothing but new Conte standards. (by Mariano Prunes [-])

Personnel:
Claudio Chiara (saxophone)
Paolo Conte (vocals, piano)
Daniele Di Gregorio (drums, percussion, vibraphone)
Alberto Mandarini (trumpet)
Rudy Migliardi (trombone, tuba, euphonium)
Massimo Pitzianti (ccordion, bandoneon, clarinet, piano, saxophone)
Jino Touche (bass, guitar)
Luca Velotti (saxophone)
+
Simone Allione (oboe on 02., 06. + 07.)
Massimo Barbierato (violin on 07.+ 11.)
Michele Cagnetta (violin on 07. + 11.)
Roberto Caviglione (viola on 07. + 11.)
Marco Giani (nassoon on 08.)
Luciano Girardengo (cello on 11.)
Corno Inglese (oboe on 07.)
Leonardo Martina (synthesizer on 17.)
Alessio Menconi (guitar on 05.)
Lia Mellano (oboe on 05., 07.)
Daniele Dall’ Omo (guitar, ukulele on 04., 10., 16. + 17.)
Amelia Saracco (mandolin, mandola on 05., 11. + 13.)
Roberto Rossi (trombone on 13. + 15.)
Jino Touche (vocals on 08.)
+
Coro Elos (choir on 05., 15. + 16.)

Tracklist:
01. Epoca 3.05
02. Elisir 2.22
03. Fritz 3.59
04. Un Fachiro Al Cinema 3.29
05. Teatro 4.43
06. Sijmadicandhapajiee 3.42
07. Le Tue Parole Per Me 3.48
08. Quadrille 2.47
09. Una Faccia In Prestito 3.20
10 Don’t Throw It In The W.C. 5.20
11. Danson Metropoli 4.09
12. Il Miglior Sorriso Della Mia Faccia 2.40
13 La Zarzamora 2.18
14. Vita Da Sosia 3.18
15. Cosa Sai Di Me? 2.55
16. Architetture Lontane 2.53
17 L’Incantatrice 7.36

Muic & lyrics: Paolo Conte

*
**

Various Artists – Shakin’ All Over – Rock & Roll Before The Beat-Boom (2013) (CD 1)

On the one hand this 10 CD box is a low budget product …

On the other hand is this 10 CD Box a real gem, because we can hear (mostly) the British way of Rock N Roll …

Ten CDs of excellent quality covering the rock and roll era when music was music!
Many of the tunes on this collection have been hard to find previously and several new performers can be found for the first time.
This collection is truly great value for money and will not disappoint those of us born in the 40s or 50s. (J.Barry)

Excellent in every way up lifting as you listen to this CD from one of the great performers Sit back and relax fully recommended in every way (Thbrookes)

Well, some of these tunes are the ones I listened to on the Swedish radio station Radio Nord in the beginning of the sixties. Even though I’ve already got some of the songs of this compilation, there are some thet I have been searching for for many years. And believe me: this compilation is worth to be waiting for!!! I reALLY ENJOYED IT! (Jan Szymczak)

In other wods: Hail, hail, hail, Rock N Roll deliver me from the days of old (Chuck Berry)

Tracklist:
01. Johnny Kidd & The Pirates: Shakin’ All Over (Heath) (1960) 2.21
02. Cliff Richard: Move It (Samwell) (1958)  2.23
03. The Shadows: Quatermaster’s Store (Traditional) (1960) 2.22
04. Tommy Steele: Singing The Blues (Endsley) (1956) 2.24
05. Wee Willie Harris: Rockin’ At The 2I’s (Harris) (1957) 2.36
06. Johnny Duncan & His Blue Grass Boys: Rockabilly Baby (Duncan) (1957) 2.10
07. Billy Fury: Don’t Knock Upon My Door (Fury) (1959) 1.48
08. Mort Shuman: I’m A Man (Pomus/Shuman) (1958) 1.55
09. Marty Wilde And His Wildcats: Sea Of Love (Khoury/Baptiste) (1959) 2.26
10. Cliff Richard: A Voice In The Wilderness (Parmor/Lewis) (1960) 2.11
11. Adam Faith: Ah Poor Little Baby (Khoury//Falk) (1959) 2.08
12. Alma Cogan: Fabulous (Lowe/Mann) (1957) 2.07
13. Jimmy Miller & The Barbecues: Jelly Baby (Duke) (1959) 2.13
14. Joan Savage: Lula Rock-a-Hula (Roberts/Katz) (1957) 2.07
15. Petula Clark: Gonna Find Me A Bluebird (Rainwater) (1957) 2.33
16. Michael Cox: Too Hot To Handle (Pomus/Shuman/McDonald) (1959) 2.08
17. Vince Taylor And His Playboys: Brand New Cadillac (Taylor) (1959) 2.33
18. Cliff Richard: My Feet Hit The Ground (Samwell/Seener) 1.59
19. Marion Ryan: Ding-Dong Rockabilly Wedding (Shaw/Kerleen) (1957) 2.03
20. Terry Dene: Start Movin’ (Stevenson) (1957) 2.54

*
**

Front + backcover of the box:

Dickey Betts Band – The Great Southern Riff (1988)

Forrest Richard Betts (born December 12, 1943) is an American guitarist, singer, songwriter, and composer best known as a founding member of The Allman Brothers Band.

Early in his career, he collaborated with Duane Allman, introducing melodic twin guitar harmony and counterpoint which “rewrote the rules for how two rock guitarists can work together, completely scrapping the traditional rhythm/lead roles to stand toe to toe”. Following Allman’s death in 1971, Betts assumed sole lead guitar duties during the peak of the group’s commercial success in the mid-1970s.

Betts was the writer and singer on the Allmans’ hit single “Ramblin’ Man”. He also gained renown for composing instrumentals, with one appearing on most of the group’s albums, the most notable of these being “In Memory of Elizabeth Reed” and “Jessica” (the latter widely known as the theme to Top Gear).

He was inducted with the band into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1995[3] and also won a best rock performance Grammy Award with the band for “Jessica” in 1996.[4] Betts was ranked No. 58 on Rolling Stone’s 100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time list in 2003, and No. 61 on the list published in 2011.

Betts departed the Allman Brothers Band in 2000 under acrimonious circumstances and continued with a solo career that had begun in the 1970s. (wikipedia)

And here´s a real brilliant live recording, with a couple of songs from his great 1988 album “Pattern Disruptive”, a couple of classic songs by The Allman Brothers Band … and … some fine guest musicians like Rick Derringer, Mick Taylor and Jack Bruce …

… so this gig ended with a jam session …

All I can say: Enjoy this great bootleg !

Recorded live at the Lonestar Roadhouse, New York, November 01, 1988
(excellent broadcast recording)

Personnel:
Matt Abts (drums)
Dickey Betts (guitar, vocals)
Warren Haynes (guitar, vocals on 01.)
Johnny Neel (keyboards, harmonica)
Marty Privette (bass)
+
Jack Bruce (bass, vocals on 07.)
Rick Derringer (guitar, vocals on 04. + 06.)
Mick Taylor (guitar on 07.)

Alternative frontcover:

Tracklist:
01. Time To Roll (Betts/Haynes/Neel) 6.28
02. Duane’s Tune (Betts) / The Blues Ain’t Nothin’  (Neel/Morrison) 11.03
03. Jessica (Betts) 15.05
04. Statesboro Blues (McTell) 6.49
05. One Way Out (Sehorn/James) 9.38
06. Rock’ n’ Roll Hoochie Coo (Derringer) 5.10
07. Spoonful (Dixon) 10.05
08. Southbound (Betts) 10.18

*
**

And I’ve just discovered, that I have the complete show (2 CD´s !) in my archive … I will upload this item as an addition soon.

Gerry Mulligan With Jane Duboc – Paraiso Jazz Brazil (1993)

Gerald Joseph Mulligan (April 6, 1927 – January 20, 1996), also known as Jeru, was an American jazz saxophonist, clarinetist, composer and arranger. Though primarily known as one of the leading jazz baritone saxophonists—playing the instrument with a light and airy tone in the era of cool jazz—Mulligan was also a significant arranger, working with Claude Thornhill, Miles Davis, Stan Kenton, and others. His pianoless quartet of the early 1950s with trumpeter Chet Baker is still regarded as one of the best cool jazz groups. Mulligan was also a skilled pianist and played several other reed instruments. Several of his compositions, such as “Walkin’ Shoes” and “Five Brothers”, have become standards

Jane Duboc Vaquer (Belém, November 16, 1950) is a Brazilian singer, songwriter, sportswoman and writer. Jane, who appears at position 73 on the list of The 100 Greatest Voices of Brazilian Music by Rolling Stone Brazil, achieved success in the 1980s with romantic themes such as “Chama da passion”, “Sonhos” and “Besame”. According to Rolling Stone Brasil magazine, “his interpretation of “Besame”, by Flávio Venturini, included in the soundtrack of the soap opera Vale Tudo (1988), is one of the highlights of his trajectory”.

In 2006, her album Uma Voz… Uma Paixão was nominated for a Latin Grammy for “Best MPB Album”.

In addition to her solid solo career, Jane gained notoriety for having recorded, in 1983, as a vocalist, the album Além do Fim, by the Brazilian progressive rock band Bacamarte, considered by the Prog Archives community as one of the 100 Best Rock Albums Progressive of All Time.

Her fan club – “Minas em Mim” (the name of one of his albums, released in 1988) – has already managed to catalog more than one hundred albums with the participation of Jane Duboc. Records by Caetano Veloso, Gilberto Gil, Chico Buarque, Hermeto Pascoal, Roberto Sion, Sarah Vaughan, as well as children’s records and an English course. Her voice can be heard frequently in commercial jingles, which does not prevent him from boosting his solo career, which is successful even in Japan.

Jane is also known for being the mother of singer Jay Vaquer, born from her marriage to fellow musician Jay Anthony Vaquer, who was guitarist for Raul Seixas. (wikipedia)

Although baritonist Gerry Mulligan is listed as the leader of this date, vocalist Jane Duboc is really the main star. The Brazilian-oriented set consists of eight Mulligan originals (including “Tema Pra Jobim,” which finds him switching to piano, and “Willow Tree”) and three other numbers, with “Wave” being the only standard. Duboc sings well, although her voice never sticks in one’s mind, and Mulligan has short solos and mostly sticks to the background; they are joined by a couple of Brazilian rhythm sections. Pleasant music that mostly stands out as a historical curiosity in Gerry Mulligan’s discography. (by Scott Yanow)

Personnel:
Valtinho Anastacio (percussion)
Jane Duboc (vocals)
Charlie Ernst (piano)
Duduka da Fonseca (drums)
Norberto Goldberg (percussion)
Peter Grant (drums)
Cliff Korman (piano)
Rogerio Botter Maio (bass)
Emanuel Moreira (guitar)
Gerry Mulligan (saxophone)
Leo Traversa (bass)

Tracklist:
01. Paraiso (Duboc/Mulligan) 5.37
02. No Rio (In Rio) (Duboc/Mulligan) 4.11
03. Sob a Estrela (Duboc/Mulligan) 5.40
04. O Bom Alvinho (Duboc/Mulligan) 5.06
05. Willow Tree (Duboc/Mulligan) 8.26
06. Bordado (Duboc/Mulligan) 6.16
07. Tarde en Itapoan (Duboc/Mulligan) 5.05
08. Amor en Paz (Jobim) 5.56
09. Wave (Jobim) 4.32
10. Tema Pra Jobim (Theme for Jobim) (Duboc/Mulligan) 4.32
11. North Atlantic Run (Mulligan) 4.36

*
**

More from Gerry Mulligan: