[engl] This is the sixth album by Dorothy Ashby, a Detroit born jazz harpist who passed away in her early 50s in 1986 way before her time. She left us a rich legacy of music with this 1965 release being one of her milestones. The music is pure bright and swinging with a joyful mood. Dorothy Ashby performs her lines big time with her harp and captures your soul with the melodies she picks from its strings. She is always there upfront while the brass section mostly fills the background with colour if there is not a short solo part for the trumpet. Typical for the ancient jazz there are no vocals to be heard on this record but this only adds to the depth and intriguing atmosphere of the music. She starts where Coltrane has left the field of real song oriented albums for his experimental efforts and really pulls it off. I can only describe this record as haunting with a rather relaxed approach. Dorothy Ashby and her band know fairly well how to perform and they do it with passion despite reaching a level of perfect playing not many did before. For the time it was released this has been an utterly progressive effort and the pop sensibility of many tracks here make it a great joy to spin and dive into. Jazz fans will dig it and open minded people who love the music of the 60s will also develop a fondness for this beauty.

[engl] I do not really need to introduce this man to you, do I? Well, for legions of youngsters who think that THE BLUES PILLS (one of my favorite bands around by the way) would play them the hipster blues seem to have no idea about who Muddy Waters - real name McKinley Morganfield - really is. Well, being cited as the father of modern Chicago blues, an influence on folk, jazz, blues, rock'n'roll and even heavy rock and composer of quite a few popular standards we should pull him back from the depths of oblivion. The album at hand is his forth longplayer from 1964 and his first and only all acoustic affair of which originals from the very first and scarce pressing fetch prices up to 1000,00 US$ in good condition. Backed by some big names from the blues community such as Willie Dixon on standing bass and a young Buddy Guy on second acoustic guitar Waters created an album with “Folk singer” that was reduced to the bare bones. That means on the other hand that every of the few notes played on wooden guitars is so meaningful and vibrant. Even an acoustic version of a song like “Good morning little schoolgirl” rocks the hell out of the speakers. It is a remake of a Sonny Boy Williamson composition and lives from the strongly pronounced guitarplay of Mr. Waters and his interaction with Buddy Guy. His voice comes very much upfront but since he is the commander and preacher man, the storyteller and wizard, that's another advantage of this record. There is much room in the sound, much space in between the instruments where passion and magic may flow and therefore you can hear with how much obsession Waters and Guy handle their instruments, while Dixon pulls out the most laid back bass lines he can´, not to disturb the master and his apprentice in firing smoking hot lead work from their fretboards even in an all acoustic manner. This is indeed one album that has much more to say than most over amplified rock efforts which came later. Just listen and be enchanted.

[engl] This is the third album in a row that has been released on Phillips Records back in 1965 after “Pastel blues” featuring the raging and lengthy “Sinner man” and “Let it all out” where she tried out Bob Dylan's “Hollis brown” as her signature tune and let it rule supreme. Now we got “I put a spell on you” of which original copies fetch prices up to 200,00 Euros if seen in good condition. Thank goodness there is this excellent reissue now so the kids can take a listen to the real thing. I was up to consider it one rather dark and mellow album but it is not, in fact it is a typical effort for Mrs. Simone in that era who is at home in so many genres giving all songs - self penned or cover tunes - a piece of her own due to her distinctive voice and the way she performs. Whatever she sings is more than just a song, it becomes a statement. In this case the title track originally recorded by the incredible blues man Screamin' Jay Hawkins and the longing blues ballad “Feeling good” were the ones I already knew in other versions. Nina smokes on both tunes and nails them down thoughtfully but with a burning desire within her heart. Amazing. The rest ranges from blues to lush ballads to melancholic French chanson to singer / songwriter stuff to hot blooded soul and again she comes as an emotional thunderstorm even in the most gentle moments. Nina Simone changes her face with every tune played here and still the whole album has a homogeneous feel. Her performance on the piano by the way burns as much as her vocals. She runs over the keys as if there was no tomorrow then takes out the pace and makes every note be meaningful and even the pauses in between. Drifting around upon big arrangements is the same for her as reducing the tunes down to the bare skeleton. Whatever she does here, it feels good, it feels right, man it feels. If you want to be enchanted by some utterly soulful music beyond the barriers of the pop, blues, soul and jazz genres, this is yours. Lovely Nina, we miss you like mad.

[engl] 1964 seemed to be a great year for jazz music in general and this special piece from a quartet led by the great tenor saxophonist Paul Gonsalves who was a long time member of the Duke Ellington Orchestra confirms this once more in an astonishing way. This record is a typical instrumental post bop album still not on the verge of progressive and free jazz filled to the max with memorable yet steaming compositions. Gonsalves nails it as a saxophone player and his backing crew consisting of piano, stand up bass and drums joins in to create a stream of sound that drags your soul away directly when you put the needle in the groove. The playing feels easy with sweet but rather melancholic melody lines from piano and sax. It seems like they were singing love songs to each other while the rhythm section lays down the beat both lead instruments dance to. The swinging sleaziness of the one or another passage heats up your blood to a simmering level. As if you were swallowed into a scene of Jack Kerouac’s “On the road”, where a sax player goes wild in a small and dusty club somewhere at the West Coast. Paul Gonsalves and his guys take their listener onto a journey due to these very expressive and strong melodies. This should have been a shining crown jewel of jazz where swing benignly turns into bop. The new and often more radical streams within the genre just oppressed this development and “Boom-Jackie-Boom-Chick” whose title was inspired by the name of Mr. Gonsalves’ regular heroin dealer became an underground classic for those who like to dig deeper into a genre to discover the real treasures. This is pure magic put into music!

[engl] A mid 1960s rock'n'soul smasher! Shirly Ellis and her songwriting team went for a colorful album here combining hard hitting rock'n'roll with a slightly softened garage flavor and lush soulful pop. It presents smooth yet striking vocal melodies on nearly ecstatic rhythmical patterns. Dance songs thrown in for the good measure put an emphasize on the groove that shake and rattle your funky bones! Shirley Ellis knows to put words together and sing them in a way that they put fuel to the rhythm fire. The album will certainly appeal to soul aficionados but this goes deeper and further and melts down the borders to beat and rock'n'roll. Despite the singer's age this album felt fresh and youthful which is owed to her timelessly elegant voice that shows class and style even in the more naughty moments. A fantastic gem for certain and a must have for fans of black 60s pop, soul and rock'n'roll.