Gary Burton Quartet - In Concert (1968)

This album is a live recording of Burton and his quartet at Carnegie Hall. The performance mixes elements of hard-bop, modal jazz, rock and even country, creating an requiem of the post-bop era. The interplay between Burton and guitarist Larry Coryell is something worth checking out. Coryell's compositions make their way onto the album (Lines, Wrong is Right), as well as the Dylan tune I Want You. Together they offer a nice respite from the free-jazz mentality of Burton. The song One, Two, 1-2-3-4 showcases their complimentary styles as well as a killer drum solo by Bob Moses.


Vinyl ripped @ 320 kbps

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Leon Thomas - Gold Sunrise on Magic Mountain (1971)

Even before his tenure with Pharoah Sanders, Santana and Archie Shepp, avant garde jazz vocalist Leon Thomas was a force to be reckoned with. Recorded live on June 18, 1971 at the Montreaux Jazz Festival, this performance showcases Tomas's ability to wow and amaze.

Occupying a precarious position between jazz and the occult, Thomas's performance is both pithy and wild. This probably has to do with the environment it was recorded in. When Thomas sings, "It's five o'clock in the morning," he isn't just reciting the standard blues lyrics - it actually was five o'clock in the morning. Regardless, the audience that had been crowded into the smoke filled casino since eight the previous evening was still eager for more only to be stopped by festival officials who had to pull the plug.


The band was comprised an all-star lineup. It features, Cornell Dupree on guitar, Oliver Nelson on alto sax, Neal Creque on piano, Victor Gaskin on bass, Sonny Morgan on congas, David Lee, Jr. on drums, and Nana Vasconcelos on percussion and berimbau (the instrument that opens the track Na Na).

The album is tour-de-force and will probably leave you wondering the same thing as the Swiss yodellers up the hill from Montreaux - how did this guy get so good?



Vinyl ripped @ 320 kbps

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V/A - New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival (1976)

Once a year, during the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival, some of the greatest artists the Crescent City has to offer get together to revel in their colourful past and give fans a sample of what's in store for the future. The 1976 Jazz & Heritage Festival was no exception to this tradition. The music contained within is not only indicative of the time it was recorded but also transcends time by affecting the popular music being produced today by bands like Galactic.

Most of the tracks on this album were recorded on April 9, 10, and 11 at the R&B segment of the festival. The album contains performances by jazz progenitors and New Orleans greats such as, Professor ('Fess) Longhair, Allen Toussaint, Irma Thomas, Lee Dorsey, Ernie K-Doe, Robert Parker, Earl King, and Lightnin' Hopkins.

This is some of the most heartfelt and feel-good music I've heard in a while and it's bound to make you feel the same way.

Vinyl Ripped @ 320 kbps

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Stuff - Live at Montreaux (1976)

The cover may not look like much, but trust me, this is truly a killer album from start to finish.

Legend has it that during a break in a Esther Marrow sound check, the guys in Stuff shot each other a wink and started to grove. The rest is history. Stuff hail from New York and the band backed some of the largest acts in the 1970's and 80's, including the likes of: Aretha Franklin, Paul Simon, and John Lennon (just to name a few). Stuff's greatness is not solely attributable to the virtuosity of the players, but also to the dynamic they share. Led by bassist Gordon Edwards, Stuff includes Richard Tee on keys, Eric Gale on guitar, Cornell Dupree on guitar and once again, the awesome Steve Gadd on drums.

What really makes the album is the dynamic range of the musicians. Every member of the band sacrifices part of their ego for the benefit of the groove. Gadd's syncopation on "Ode To Stuff" is a perfect example of the shared respect they had for one other. Listen to how the band drops out when Tee solos on the same track then slowly return to full throttle, all in perfect sonic balance. At no point is one person dominating the groove.

The group works through a bunch of instrumentals beginning with their song, "Foots." The band chose to do a lot of covers during the set including a cover of Stevie's, "Signed Sealed Delivered", "Boogie on Reggae Woman", and Earth Wind and Fire's, "That's the Way of the World." They even grace gospel music with their magical touch covering the spirituals, "Lift Every Voice" and "Oh Happy Day." Also, a review of the album would not be complete without mentioning either of the two stellar one minute drum solos done by Steve Gadd - a must listen.

If you don't know Stuff, this is the perfect album to get your feet wet with. Once you turn it on, you won't want to stop it.

CD ripped @ 320

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Otis Redding - In Person At The Whisky A Gogo (1968)

There's a reason they call him Mr. Pitiful. Following in the tradition of James Brown's Live at the Apollo ('63), Sam Cooke's Live at the Harlem Square Club ('63), and Ray Charles' Live in Concert ('64), Otis Redding recorded this performance live from the Sunset Strip LA at the Whiskey A Go Go club on March 30, 1966. Like the R&B giants who preceded him, Redding was looking to make the switch from the Rhythm & Blues Scene to the more popular 'crash pop scene' (think Sinatra and the Beatles), and this recording proves such. Redding belts out the classics: "Mr. Pitiful", "Papa's Got A Brand New Bag", "Respect" and the Stones' "(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction" with a heart that's clearly been broken and mended many times over.


Redding died in a plane crash in 1967 and is most commonly known for his sedentary "Sitting on the Dock of the Bay" - which was written and recorded less than a week before his untimely death and proved to be his post popular song. This album is of note because it shows Otis trying to appeal to the pop audience before his performance at the Monterey Pop Festival (organized by Jerry Wexler) in June 1967 - which is commonly acknowledged as signifying Redding's switch from R&B to Pop. That being said, the album was released a year after his performance at Monterey which shows it may have taken a while for the record execs to catch on to the fact that Redding appealed to all audiences.

Redding drops some of his R&B swagger but doesn't sacrifice intensity. Listen to the ferocity of his band. The album reached #7 on the US R&B charts and is soaked in soul, blues and pure emotion.

Vinyl ripped @ 320

On loan from J.M - many thanks!

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Bill King and Wayne McGhie - Blue Skies

Here's a great clip of Wayne McGhie performing live with Toronto's own version of Dr. John - Bill King. King is the founder and director of the Toronto Beaches Int'l Jazz Fest. His son is Torontonian Reggae/Dub DJ - Dubmatix. From watching this video, you can see where his son probably got his influences from.

Event - Steve's Vinyl

The records we listen to tend to reflect the type of people we are. You could call it a aural mirror of sorts. Let's be honest here, we're all narcissists at heart and we love our records because we can associate with them. They make us remember things about ourselves that no one else can. They're our sonic double. 

When I make the trip to the next world, I know I definitely don’t want my hard-earned vinyl’s going to a bin in the Salvation Army. So what do you do when you’ve got a deceased loved-one’s record collection to disperse? Throw a party!

This was one of the problems Cathy Busby faced when her brother Steve, died in December 1993 from an AIDS related illness. He was born in 1953 and was only 40 when he passed away. The event consisted of 200 of Steve’s vinyl’s showcased on an 8-colour paneled wall. It was set up in such a way that you would buy a ticket and be entered into a draw. When your number was called, you would choose one of Steve’s disks and after you took it down from the wall, you would draw your own rendition of the cover in its place. The event coincided with World AIDS week and all proceeds were donated to the AIDS coalition of Nova Scotia and the Khyber Centre for the Arts. Busby was hoping to raise $500 for each cause respectively.

The casual warm environment afforded me the opportunity to meet Steve’s sister and the organizer of the event - Cathy Busby. When I asked her about Steve, she described him as, “someone who really loved life”. I asked Cathy why she decided to hold the event and she called it a metaphorical spreading of the ashes. She wanted to make sure that Steve’s vinyls were going to people that would appreciate them, and she also wanted to have an event that would honour the memory of her brother. She said, “It’s nothing if people don’t come and choose a record.” From looking at the number of people who showed up, I’d say she was certainly successful. After the initial excitement and nail-biting over who was going to get what subsided, everyone began to loosen up. I won't scar you with pictures of my renditions of their covers, but I was very happy with my two finds - Bob Marley's Natty Dread and a French pressing of a Boogie Woogie record (which I'll post shortly). With great music being spun all night by DJ Al Barbour, an open bar and a tasty local selection of hors d'oeuvres, it wasn’t long before people were 'dancing the night away' to Steve’s vinyl.