Shelby Lynne – Just A Little Lovin’ (2007/2014) [Official Digital Download 24bit/192kHz]

Shelby Lynne - Just A Little Lovin' (2007/2014) [Official Digital Download 24bit/192kHz] Download

Shelby Lynne – Just A Little Lovin’ (2007/2014)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/192 kHz | Time – 39:31 minutes | 1,74 GB | Genre: Pop
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Front Cover | © Lost Highway Records

Shelby Lynne has followed her own sometimes reckless, always adventuresome muse throughout her career. Just a Little Lovin’ is her personal homage to the late, legendary Dusty Springfield. Nine of its ten cuts are inextricably linked to the late British vocalist whose sway Lynne came under years ago, but a chance conversation with Barry Manilow – of all people – led to the making of this record. Lynne doesn’t attempt to sound like Springfield. She uses her own phrasing and rhythmic sensibility. Four cuts here come from the Dusty in Memphis period, as well as the title track to The Look of Love and some of her mid-’60s British hits that were not released in America. All these songs, with the exception of the self-penned “Pretend,” were recorded by Springfield. The album was recorded in the Capitol Records studio with Frank Sinatra’s microphone and producer Phil Ramone. Lynne’s aesthetic sense serves her well: most singers automatically shoot for “Son of a Preacher Man,” but Lynne steers clear. She does, however, tackle some truly monolithic Springfield hits: “Just a Little Lovin’,” “Breakfast in Bed,” “Willie and Laura Mae Jones,” and “I Don’t Want to Hear It Anymore.” Lynne’s readings are close, intimate. They’re understated but more direct. Ramone used a small quartet in guitarist Dean Parks, keyboardist Rob Mathes, drummer Gregg Field, and bassist Kevin Axt to give her that edge. Lynne’s delivery takes these songs straight to the listener’s belly. The taut but easy sensuality in her voice adds a very different dimension to them.
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Ruth Olay – Olay! O.K.!! (Remastered) (1963/2019) [Official Digital Download 24bit/44,1kHz]

Ruth Olay – Olay! O.K.!! (Remastered) (1963/2019)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/44,1 kHz | Time – 36:23 minutes | 386 MB | Genre: Vocal
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Front Cover | © Everest Records

Newly remastered! A very popular jazz vocalist from the heady days of Hollywood’s Central Avenue nightclub scene of the mid 1950’s, Ruth Olay counted Frank Sinatra, Judy Garland and Barbara Streisand among her many admirers. Blessed with a wonderfully expressive voice, Ruth was a frequent guest on TV variety shows and appeared at the most prestigious cabaret spots and concert halls in the US and Europe. Her classic 1963 audiophile album, “Olay! OK!” presents many of her finest recorded performances including “I Concentrate on You” and “Under a Blanket of Blue”.

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Red Norvo Combo, Hank Jones, Jimmy Rowles – Vibes a la Red (Remastered) (2018) [Official Digital Download 24bit/192kHz]

Red Norvo Combo, Hank Jones, Jimmy Rowles – Vibes a la Red (Remastered) (2018)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/192 kHz | Time – 34:28 minutes | 1,24 GB | Genre: Jazz
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Front Cover | © 2xHD

Red Norvo was one of jazz’s early vibraphonists. An unusual star during the swing era, he helped establish the xylophone, marimba and vibraphone as jazz instruments. His career began in Chicago in 1925 with a band called “The Collegians”. He subsequently played with many other bands, including, Benny Goodman, Charlie Barnet, and Woody Herman. Norvo had a quieter yet no-less fluent style than Lionel Hampton. He recorded with Mildred Bailey (his wife), Billie Holiday, Dinah Shore and Frank Sinatra. Norvo and his wife were known as “Mr. and Mrs. Swing.”

This 2xHD remastered album contains recordings from two sessions made in New York, NY and Hollywood, CA

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Roberta Flack – First Take (50th Anniversary Deluxe Edition) (1969/2021) [Official Digital Download 24bit/192kHz]

Roberta Flack – First Take (50th Anniversary Deluxe Edition) (1969/2021)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/192 kHz | Time – 02:13:26 minutes | 4,33 GB | Genre: Soul
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Front Cover | © Rhino Atlantic

Earlier this year, Roberta Flack joined an illustrious circle of honorees as a 2020 recipient of the Recording Academy’s Lifetime Achievement Award. Now the 1969 debut album that set the singer-pianist’s 50-year professional career in motion — First Take — is available again for a limited time.

First Take: 50th Anniversary Deluxe Edition, released today (July 24, Rhino), comes packaged as a two-CD, one LP remastered set. The vinyl LP replicates the original Atlantic Records eight-track album — produced by Joel Dorn — which features “The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face.”

Flack’s first No. 1 pop and adult contemporary single topped those charts after Clint Eastwood tapped the song to appear in his 1971 film directorial debut, Play Misty for Me. The song later won Flack the first of two consecutive Grammy Awards for Record of the Year. She won the category again the following year for “Killing Me Softly with His Song,” whose imaginative cover by the Fugees became a huge hit for the hip-hop group in 1996.
Artist Mentioned

The first of the deluxe edition’s two CDs sports the original eight tracks plus three bonus cuts: single edits of the aforementioned hit and the Les McCann/Eddie Harris jazz classic “Compared to What” plus the song “Trade Winds.” However, the 12 previously unreleased demo recordings comprising the second CD further foretell the success to come.

Opening with a live version of Flack performing the Frank Sinatra standard “All the Way,” the CD spotlights a dauntless newcomer switching effortlessly as well between folk (“Frankie and Johnny“), jazz (“Afro Blue”), R&B (“Ain’t No Mountain High Enough”) and pop (“To Sir With Love”).

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Nat King Cole – Just One of Those Things (1957/2011) DSF DSD64

Nat King Cole – Just One of Those Things (1957/2011)
DSF Stereo DSD64/2.82MHz | Time – 01:16:24 minutes | 3,02 GB | Genre: Jazz
Official Digital Download – Source: AcousticSounds | Booklet, Front Cover | © Capitol Records/Analogue Productions XAPP903D64

This has been a totally no-expenses-spared project. Using the original 3-track work tapes from Capitol’s vaults, mastering engineers Kevin Gray and Steve Hoffman along with DSD specialist Gus Skinas bring you an entirely incomparable experience. In order to master from the 3-track masters, AcousTech had to be outfitted for three-channel playback. That meant Kevin Gray had to find a third identical monitoring channel chain (including mixing board, amplifier and speaker) as well as a 3-track playback headstack and also a 3-track preview head for the vinyl cutting system. It was a massive assignment. We’ve spent a fortune to include these extra bells and whistles and to make this a truly historic reissue.

Contrasting downbeat ballads with an ironic brassy, upbeat big band attitude, the ironic Cole Porter standard Just One Of Those Things sets the tone for a distinctive, pungent experience of love and disillusionment with a swing. Brilliantly backing the intimately expressive and supremely musical voice of the incomparable Nat “King” Cole, a big band with no “strings” smolders, swings, saunters, storms, sighs and sizzles with the arrangements of the distinctive Billy May. Featuring top shelf interpretations of “These Foolish Things,” “Who’s Sorry Now?” “The Party’s Over” and more, this album is among its era’s finest recordings of popular music and its quality, style and spirit remains unexcelled.

Just One Of Those Things was recorded in finely polished monaural and more minimalistic 3-channel stereophonic versions, each with dedicated microphones, console, mix and recorders. Each offers a different sonic perspective. The monaural recording was heard on the original hit records while the stereophonic recording offers the potential for a stunning wide-range realism. The bonus track, an alternative take of “Just For The Fun Of It,” is mono only.

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Norah Jones – I Dream Of Christmas (Deluxe) (2021) [Official Digital Download 24bit/96kHz]

Norah Jones – I Dream Of Christmas (Deluxe) (2021)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/96 kHz | Time – 52:51 minutes | 1,08 GB | Genre: Jazz, Christmas
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Front Cover | © Blue Note Records

Norah Jones has been a steady voice of warmth and reassurance for nearly 20 years.

Now, the nine-time Grammy winner and platinum-selling artist has just released her first holiday album, I Dream of Christmas. The collection of timeless seasonal favourites and affecting new originals that explore the complicated emotions of our times and our hopes that this holiday season will be full of joy and togetherness.

Jones joined us to talk about the making of that album and what the Christmas season has meant to her throughout the years.

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Norah Jones – I Dream of Christmas (2021) [Official Digital Download 24bit/96kHz]

Norah Jones – I Dream of Christmas (2021)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/96 kHz | Time – 42:26 minutes | 889 MB | Genre: Jazz
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Front Cover | © Blue Note Records

Norah Jones has announced the release of her first-ever holiday album, I Dream Of Christmas, which will arrive this October.

The nine-time Grammy-winning singer, songwriter, and pianist has recorded a collection of covers of seasonal classics alongside her own original Christmas-themed songs. The covers featured on the album include “White Christmas”, “Winter Wonderland,” and “Run Rudolph Run.”

I Dream Of Christmas will be released on October 15 via Blue Note Records and will be available on vinyl, CD, and digital download. The first track from the record, “Christmas Calling (Jolly Jones)” is available to stream and download now.

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Nat King Cole – Just One Of Those Things (1957) [APO Remaster 2011] SACD ISO

Nat King Cole – Just One Of Those Things (1957) [APO Remaster 2011]
PS3 Rip | SACD ISO | DST64 2.0 & 3.0 > 1-bit/2.8224 MHz | 75:23/36:21 mins | Scans included | 2,23 GB

Just One of Those Things is a theme album comparable to one of Frank Sinatra’s uptempo swing albums of the same period (Come Fly With Me, etc.), and employs the same arranger/conductor, Billy May. Nat King Cole is a bit less effective than Sinatra at uptempo material; he tends to undersing these sprightly standards, and May saves his dramatic horn charts and percussion shots for moments when Cole is away from the microphone. Even so, by the fifth track, “These Foolish Things Remind Me of You,” May has retreated to ballad time, and though his embellishments threaten to break out behind the singer, Cole gives an assured, unhurried performance. And that’s the point: that Cole has tamed the rambunctious May does not mean he doesn’t give wonderful interpretations to some wonderful songs: “Don’t Get Around Much Anymore,” “Just One of Those Things,” “The Song Is Ended (But the Melody Lingers On).” And the light-handed swing supports those efforts well.

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Nat King Cole – Sings For Two In Love (1955/2021) [Official Digital Download 24bit/96kHz]

Nat King Cole – Sings For Two In Love (1955/2021)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/96 kHz | Time – 34:30 minutes | 416 MB | Genre: Jazz
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Front Cover | © Capitol Records

Nat King Cole Sings for Two in Love was Nat King Cole’s first album made specifically for the new 12″ LP format. Like Frank Sinatra, with whom he shared a record company and a conductor, Cole made a thematic album with Sings for Two in Love, in this case a set of 12 romantic ballads. But they aren’t actually all for “two in love.” There are songs for two who think “This Can’t Be Love” or that it’s “Almost Like Being in Love,” or who tell each other “Let’s Fall in Love.” And then there are post-love songs — “Autumn Leaves” and “Dinner for One Please, James.” If Cole really is singing for “two in love,” he’s giving them good news and bad. Of course, his plaintive, undisturbed singing makes the happy and sad sentiments seem equally content, and Nelson Riddle’s orchestrations consistently support the singer without challenging him or getting in his way. – William Ruhlmann

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Nat King Cole – 100 Essentials of Nat King Cole (2014) [Official Digital Download 24bit/96kHz]

Nat King Cole – 100 Essentials of Nat King Cole (2014)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/96 kHz | Time – 04:41:34 minutes | 3,70 GB | Genre: Jazz, Vocal Jazz, Oldies
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Front Cover | © BnF Collection

For a mild-mannered man whose music was always easy on the ear, Nat King Cole managed to be a figure of considerable controversy during his 30 years as a professional musician. From the late ’40s to the mid-’60s, he was a massively successful pop singer who ranked with such contemporaries as Frank Sinatra, Perry Como, and Dean Martin. He shared with those peers a career that encompassed hit records, international touring, radio and television shows, and appearances in films. But unlike them, he had not emerged from a background as a band singer in the swing era. Instead, he had spent a decade as a celebrated jazz pianist, leading his own small group. Oddly, that was one source of controversy. For some reason, there seem to be more jazz critics than fans of traditional pop among music journalists, and Cole’s transition from jazz to pop during a period when jazz itself was becoming less popular was seen by them as a betrayal. At the same time, as a prominent African-American entertainer during an era of tumultuous change in social relations among the races in the U.S., he sometimes found himself out of favor with different warring sides. His efforts at integration, which included suing hotels that refused to admit him and moving into a previously all-white neighborhood in Los Angeles, earned the enmity of racists; once, he was even physically attacked on-stage in Alabama. But civil rights activists sometimes criticized him for not doing enough for the cause.

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Michel Legrand – Legrand “Live” Jazz (1958/2019) [Official Digital Download 24bit/44,1kHz]

Michel Legrand – Legrand “Live” Jazz (1958/2019)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/44,1 kHz | Time – 58:34 minutes | 588 MB | Genre: Jazz
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Front Cover | © Gryphon Records

Michel Legran feat. Miles Davis, Bill Evans, John Coltrane, Ben Webster, Hank Jones, Donald Byrd, Paul Chambers, Art Farmer, Phil Woods, Herbie Mann, Jimmy Cleveland.

Michel Legrand is a three times Academy Award-winning French composer, conductor and pianist who composed over 200 film and television scores as well as recorded over a hundred albums of jazz, popular and classical music. Legrand collaborated with legendary Miles Davis, John Coltrane, Bill Evans, Stan Getz, Stephane Grappelli, Phil Woods, Ray Charles, Claude Nougaro, Perry Como, Neil Diamond, Ella Fitzgerald, Aretha Franklin, Jessye Norman, Diana Ross, Frank Sinatra, Barbra Streisand, Sarah Vaughan, Shirley Bassey, Nana Mouskouri etc.

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Michael Bublé – Nobody But Me (Deluxe Version) (2016) [Official Digital Download 24bit/44,1kHz]

Michael Bublé – Nobody But Me (Deluxe Version) (2016)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/44,1 kHz | Time – 44:57 minutes | 520 MB | Genre: Pop
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Front Cover | © Reprise

“Nobody but Me” is the ninth studio album and seventh major label studio album by Canadian singer-songwriter Michael Bublé. It features three original songs co-written by Michael Bublé and nine cover versions. Bublé said of the album “I don’t know that I’ve ever had this much fun working on an album. It was especially thrilling to collaborate with my band who understand that I want to sound better than I’ve ever sounded. I’m also very proud of the new songs. Having the opportunity to co-produce was a joy for me personally”.

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Michael Buble – love (Deluxe Edition) (2018) [Official Digital Download 24bit/96kHz]

Michael Buble – love (Deluxe Edition) (2018)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/96 kHz | Time – 45:03 minutes | 852 MB | Genre: Pop
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Front Cover | © Reprise

On the surface, the title of Michael Bublé’s tenth studio album, 2018’s Love, announces a swinging collection of standards and originals all thematically centered on themes of romance, fidelity, and desire. That said, it could also speak to two heart-wrenching years leading up to Love, during which time the singer’s then three-year-old son was diagnosed with liver cancer and underwent chemotherapy and radiation treatments. Prior to the release of Love, Bublé even intimated in an interview that, in light of his son’s illness, he might be ready to retire. All these notions of love and the stakes that drive our passionate emotions are redolent on the album, whose brightly swinging and upbeat production via longtime mentor David Foster belies the personal turmoil of Bublé’s private life. Which isn’t to say that Love is a sad album. These are lush arrangements (split between big band, small group, and orchestra) via Foster and pianist Alan Broadbent that showcase Bublé’s warm vocals. Much of it evokes the classic ’40s and ’50s pop Bublé so clearly admires. His supple voice is backed throughout by his snappy ensemble, featuring pros like Weather Report drummer Peter Erskine, noted Diana Krall bassist Ben Wolfe, longtime Bublé associate pianist Alang Chang, and others. There are also two gorgeous duets, including a charming take on “La Vie en Rose” with acclaimed vocalist Cécile McLorin Salvant and a heartfelt rendition of “Help Me Make It Through the Night” with Loren Allred. As with past albums, there are also nods to contemporary pop music, represented here by the catchy, boy band-esque Charlie Puth co-write “Love You Anymore.” Similarly, Bublé draws upon his experience as a parent with the heartfelt adult contemporary ballad “Forever Now,” in which he sings “You know as well as anybody how tough this life can be/But you’ve got so much strength inside you/A strength I pray you’ll never need.” Primarily, Love builds upon Bublé’s own strengths, as he dives into the Louis Prima-style jump blues of “Such a Night,” evokes Frank Sinatra’s of-the-cuff élan with the Deluxe Edition bonus track “I Get a Kick Out of You,” and even manages to sidestep comparisons to Nat King Cole as he conjures his own brand of vocal magic on “Unforgettable.” In many ways, Love is the epitome of the kind of traditional big-band pop album that Bublé has been honing for over a decade. The difference here is that the heart of the album lies not only in his immense vocal skill, but in his moving devotion to his son, his family, and his fans. ~ Matt Collar

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Michael Bublé – Call Me Irresponsible (2007) [Official Digital Download 24bit/44,1kHz]

Michael Bublé – Call Me Irresponsible (2007)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/44,1 kHz | Time – 53:25 minutes | 601 MB | Genre: Jazz
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Front Cover | © 143 – Reprise

More than any of his contemporaries, vocalist Michael Bubl has bridged the gap between standards-oriented vocal pop and more contemporary pop vocals. Having perfected the mix on his superb 2003 effort, It’s Time, which found the Frank Sinatra-influenced singer covering both “I’ve Got You Under My Skin” and Leon Russell’s R&B ballad “A Song for You,” Bubl wisely doesn’t mess with a good thing on 2007’s Call Me Irresponsible. Once again delving into a mix of swinging big-band numbers and classic pop hits such as the wickedly hip ’60s standard “Comin’ Home Baby” (featuring backing vocals from Boyz II Men), the album is a breezy, stylish good time. And while such cuts as “The Best Is Yet to Come” and the laid-back title track comfortably cast Bubl as a modern-day crooner consistent with his billing, the unexpected reworkings of contemporary pop songs often make the biggest impact. To these ends, his bossa nova duet with vocalist Ivan Lins on Eric Clapton’s “Wonderful Tonight” and the reharmonized Willie Nelson perennial “Always on My Mind” work particularly well here, not as cheeky cabaret but as artfully crafted and devastatingly moving ballads. And it’s not just the cover tunes that drive the album; on the contrary, much like the Bubl co-written ballad “Home” defined the mood of It’s Time, his sparkling melodic pop original “Everything” helps make Call Me Irresponsible a truly welcome pop album by any standard. This CD was nominated for a Grammy award in 2007 as Best Traditional Pop Vocal Album, and “Everything” was nominated for Best Male Pop Performance.

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Gordon Goodwin’s Big Phat Band – The Phat Pack (2023) [Official Digital Download 24bit/44,1kHz]

Gordon Goodwin’s Big Phat Band – The Phat Pack (2023)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/44,1 kHz | Time – 01:15:11 minutes | 879 MB | Genre: Jazz
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Front Cover | © Music Content

The Phat Pack is the third studio album by the jazz ensemble Gordon Goodwin’s Big Phat Band. Goodwin received a Grammy Award nomination for Best Instrumental Arrangement for the song “Attack of the Killer Tomatoes”.

The title is a parody of the Rat Pack, a group of friends and performers during the 1960s which included Frank Sinatra and Sammy Davis Jr. Goodwin arranged cover versions of two songs that were associated with the Rat Pack, “Too Close for Comfort” and “It Was a Very Good Year”, and a hit from the 1970s, “Play That Funky Music”.

Soloists include Wayne Bergeron, Eddie Daniels, Eric Marienthal, Andy Martin, David Sanborn, Bob Summers, and the vocal group Take 6.

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