Artist - Toots Thielemans
     Album - Harmonica Jazz
     Label - Columbia
     Years: 1954-55; 1978, release - 1994
     Quality - MP3@320 kbps


     This album is a nice combination of the commercial and jazz music of Toots. This music is very honest and comes from his heart.

     Artist: Gil Coggins
     Album: Gil's Mood
     Label: Interplay
     Quality: FLAC & MP3@320
     Size: 268 MB & 123 MB
     Time: 54:46

     Pianist Gil Coggins had an extremely brief career in jazz but nonetheless managed to score the type of sideman credits everyone else wants—in other words, he made records with Miles Davis, John Coltrane and Sonny Rollins. "I knew Miles when he was a yard," the ultimate cool cat is supposed to brag, but Davis was actually only 16 years old when Coggins met him. The pianist was only two years Davis' senior at this point, an army soldier stationed at Jefferson Barracks near St. Louis, Missouri. As for Davis, he had a gig playing his trumpet at a bowling alley near the base. The tap dancer Honey Coles was also Coggins' sergeant in this period. Coggins eventually played on sessions with Davis that were released on labels such as Blue Note and Prestige.

     Artist - Joгo Donato Trio
     Album - Amazonas
     Label - Elephant Records
     Year - 2000
     Quality - Mp3@320 kbps
     Size - 159 mb
     Total time - 63:00

     Another one of my ”desert island” recordings. I know, I know, that island is getting crowded.

     This killer trio album by pianist Joгo Donato with his longstanding drummer Claudio Slon and bassist Jorge Helder is a mighty force to be reckoned with. Donato is one of the more inventive improvisers and arrangers in Brazil, and his debut on the criminally under-recognized Vartan Jazz imprint is a revelation of his process. In his compositions, Donato looks toward the rhythmic element of any series of changes. Once this has been established, his melodic invention comes into play by using his vast knowledge of Latin and Caribbean musics as well as his place in the Brazilian musical lineage. Donato will often graft a Cuban son onto a samba onto a merengue onto a funky post-bop tune. His sense of timing and lyric on the title track is impeccable, breezing through a beautiful bossa theme that echoes Jobim while holding true to the Bill Evans dictum of melodicism and the Horace Silver edict of rhythmic improvisation. Other cuts where Donato shines his warm humor and grand emotional style onto a cooking post-bossa beat are "Alegria Pra Cantar" and the charanga-touched "Brisa do Mar." Donato's solos are wispy things as they fly by before the listener can take in the full weight of what it is he's playing. But when it finally occurs to you what you've heard, long after he's left the chorus and moved into other territory with his pervasive chromatic flourishes and shimmering ostinatos, the totality of what's being articulated will leave you literally sighing in disbelief. This is a hell of an album, and one that deserves far wider notice that it has received. ~ Thom Jurek, All Music Guide

     I have posted a video of the Trio (with Luiz Alves replacing Jorge Helder) performing Amazonas on YouTube

     Artist: The Cinematic Orchestra
     Album: Every Day
     Quality: mp3@320 Kbps
     Size: 137 MB (scans)
     Label: Ninja Tune
     Total time: 60:39
     Genre: electro-jazz

     With Every Day, Cinematic Orchestra move beyond the electro-jazz fusion of their debut to make a record more natural, more paced, and, surprisingly, better than the justly hyped Motion. J Swinscoe is more the arranger/conductor here than the producer, but of course, there's little need for samples or effects with such an accomplished band sharing the burden. For the opener "All That You Give," Swinscoe and Co., plus harp player Rhodri Davies, spend a few minutes delicately paving the way for a deeply felt vocal by soul hero Fontella Bass. "Burn Out" is a lush, meditative track with a pleasantly ambling solo from Phil France on electric piano, a few appropriately cinematic-sounding horns, an age-old vocal sample, and occasional creaking static phasing through. Bass returns for another splendid track ("Evolution"), and the mighty Roots Manuva appears on a magisterial, spoken-word quasi-autobiography, "All Things to All Men." Except for a pair of detours into highly programmed "broken beat" production, Every Day is a textured, acoustic work; Cinematic Orchestra take their time setting up these songs -- of the seven tracks, four last over nine minutes. The sounds and styles heard may not be revolutionary, but instead of simply pushing stylistic boundaries, Cinematic Orchestra display a real gift in making emotional, artistic music. ~ John Bush, AMG

     Artist: Michael Buble
     Album: Michael Buble
     Label: REPRISE / WEA
     Release Date: 02/11/2003
     Genre: Jazz
     Format, bitrate: mp3, 320kb/s
     Size: 61,8+53,7 MB

     Unlike most young guys who gravitate towards the latest rock or rap trend, Michael Buble chose to study the classic works of pop vocal masters like Ella Fitzgerald and Frank Sinatra while slowly developing his own technique and career as a vocal interpreter. Thanks to producer David Foster, the 25-year-old Buble has graduated to the big time with a self-titled debut disc that shows off his knowledge and appreciation for a style of music that is mostly unfamiliar to his generation. Swinging his way through a set of pop standards both classic ("The Way You Look Tonight"), and more recent ("Moondance"), Buble already possesses a quality that reaches beyond his youthfulness, with a voice that incorporates his influences into a sound that is fresh yet familiar. When he launches into a standard like "Come Fly With Me," images of Sinatra are conjured up; but as the song progresses, the listener realizes that this is not Sinatra, or Bobby Darin, or any other famous vocalist. It is someone who has learned the art of popular song and is creating his own colorful music from shades of the past. In doing so, Bublй throws a fresh coat of paint on an old standard like "Fever," and gives it a satiny sheen that the song hasn't seen in years. In addition to revitalizing the classics, he draws in a younger audience by covering more recent, rock-era songs in a swinging gloss. Songs like George Michael's "Kissing a Fool" or Queen's "Crazy Little Thing Called Love" are jazzed up even further than their retro-based originals, and flow easily alongside the standards. The only interruption comes when Barry Gibb guests on his own "How Can You Mend a Broken Heart," with a reverb-laced vibrato that simply does not fit in this musical environment. Throughout the disc it is apparent that Buble has done his homework and aced the test, but there is always room for improvement. Sinatra haunts his vocals a bit too much on songs like "Summer Wind," and there are moments throughout the disc when he forces his technique instead of following a natural cadence, but these minor criticisms will improve with time; and nothing can really diminish the sheer pleasure and joy he expresses in each performance. He sounds absolutely thrilled to be singing these songs, and that goes a long way in making Michael Buble an exciting debut. ~ Aaron Latham, All Music Guide

     Artist: Michael Buble
     Album: It's Time
     Label: REPRISE / WEA
     Release Date: 02/08/2005
     Genre: Jazz
     Format, bitrate: mp3, 320 kb/s
     Size: 60,8+53,3 MB

     Although it took more than a year of concerts and promotional appearances, Michael Buble's 2003 debut disc of swinging pop standards finally ascended the Billboard album chart and landed at number 47. That peak may not seem impressive at first, but in a musical world dominated by rap or the latest flavor of alternative rock, Bublй's upper chart appearance was a real accomplishment and it sparked a renewed interest in music associated with great vocalists like Frank Sinatra. With his second studio disc, It's Time, Buble builds upon the musical foundation he laid with his debut and demonstrates that he is much more than a flavor-of-the-month celebrity. Like his debut, It's Time mines the rich history of pop music as Buble applies his own technique to classic standards and incorporates his Rat Pack sound into modern pop songs. Other pop vocal giants have made attempts to reinterpret the pop songs of their day with appalling results (Mel Tormй's version of "Sunshine Superman" comes to mind), but Buble has the knack for selecting the right songs that he can properly transform into edible works that avoid a cheesy aftertaste. Having a standard like "A Foggy Day (In London Town)" share space with the Beatles' "Can't Buy Me Love" may seem like a lounge lizard joke waiting to happen, but the arrangements (most courtesy of producer David Foster) and performances are seamless. Therefore, the quiet groove of "I've Got You Under My Skin" can sit comfortable next to Buble's smoky version of Leon Russell's "Song for You," featuring Chris Botti on trumpet. Perhaps it is due to this formula working so well that Buble has incorporated more of his unique takes on modern pop than on his debut. He even ventures into R&B territory with older hits like "Try a Little Tenderness" and "How Sweet It Is," all the while giving these songs a retro freshness that breathes new life into these gems. Pop starlet Nelly Furtado sounds lovely and elegant in the duet "Quando, Quando, Quando," while Bublй ends the disc with a beautiful reading of Stevie Wonder's "You and I." Another positive step forward is the inclusion of the lovely original tune "Home," a somewhat autobiographical "too long on the road" song co-written by Bublй. The success of this ballad provides yet another direction that he can explore and expand upon. Throughout the disc Bublй emits the feeling that he loves these songs and truly enjoys what he is doing. He sounds pure of voice and pure of heart. Those are rare commodities in the recorded world and they, along with Bublй's talent and vision, help to make It's Time a wonderful listening experience. ~ Aaron Latham,All Music Guide.

     Artist: Lonnie Liston Smith & The Cosmic Echoes
     Album: Cosmic Funk
     Quality: FLAC & mp3@320 Kbps
     Size: 236 & 84 MB (scans)
     Label: Flying Dutchman
     Total time: 36:09



     This one is packed with classic tracks and is probably Smith's best record of them all. He wasn't quite discoed-out yet and he was fresh off of his traditional jazz runnings, so this record hits a very comfortable middle ground for fusion heads as well as those more tuned into smooth jazz. An incredible record that doesn't get anywhere near enough props as it should for helping define the fusion movement of the early 70s. ~ by Scott Woods, Amazon.com

     Artist: Paul Chambers
     Album: Go
     Label: Vee-Jay
     Year: 1959
     Format, bitrate: MP3@320 Kbps + Full Version (MP3 & Flac)
     Size: 100 mb + 44 mb (RS.com)
     Full Version: 107 MB + 154 MB (MP3)
                    + 294 MB + 392 MB (Flac)
   Time (Full Version): 48:04 (Disc1) + 1:08:52 (Disc2)


     A renowned jazz bassist who was known for his solos, Paul Chambers spent a significant portion of his career playing with the Miles Davis Quintet. Paul Chambers' GO was originally released in 1959, and featured the master and alternate take for each cut on the album.