High Note Continues Their Stereo Super Audio CD Jazz Highlights Series [HFR]

High Note Records continues their series of affordable Jazz highlights albums issued in Stereo Super Audio CD this week with two more additions to the series. Funky Organ: B3 Jazz Grooves and Jazz After Midnight follow in the footsteps of the previous editions in this series by offering 10 cuts each from the High Note Records Jazz catalog.

The albums are also easily spotted in stores as they are packaged in a unique black plastic box. They carry the very affordable list price of only $9.98 each.

The new releases are Single Inventory Hybrid Stereo Super Audio CDs. They feature Stereo Super Audio CD and CD Audio versions of the music on each album on each disc and serve as both the CD and SACD release of these albums. Here’s more information on the two new entries in the High Note Jazz Collection SACD series.

Funky Organ: B3 Jazz Grooves
Joey DeFrancesco, Papa John DeFrancesco, Mike Ledone, Charles Earland, Bill Heid & Reuben Wilson
Stereo SACD/Stereo CD

(High Note HCD 6017)

As the title of this new SACD suggests, the album is a compilation of performances by Jazz Organists. It includes tracks by both Joey DeFrancesco and his father, “Papa” John DeFrancesco.

High Note describes the disc by noting that “The Hammond B3 has lent its sound to a number of musical genres – groove, funk, acid jazz, jam band, the midnight slows, bedroom blues and others. Here is a collection of the best of them all played by today’s undisputed masters.”

The Funky Organ SACD was produced by Michael Hurzon. Mastering and authoring of the album was done by Allan Tucker at Foothill Digital in New York. The SACD was made by Sony DADC in Austria.

Listening to the album in Super Audio CD Stereo provides over 1 hour of organ music. It lives up to the billing that it covers organ music in a wide variety of genres and setting. Highlights are Track 7 where “Papa” John DeFrancesco’s organ is in the middle of a lively Jazz band performance and Track 9 where Joey DeFrancesco’s organ is clearly the lead instrument in a jazzy performance of the song “The Preacher”.

Album Tracks
1. The Cat – Joey DeFrancesco
2. Cold Duck Time – “Papa” John DeFrancesco
3. Delilah – Mike LeDonne
4. My Blues Is Funky – Charles Earland
5. That Dirty Thang – Bill Heid
6. Watch Me Fly – Reuben Wilson
7. 160 Million Dollar Chinese Man – “Papa” John DeFrancesco
8. In the Bag – Mike LeDonne
9. The Preacher – Joey DeFrancesco
10. Put It Where You Want It – Charles Earland

Jazz After Midnight
Houston Person with Bill Charlap, Don Sickler, Louis Hayes & the Cannonball Legacy Band, James Spaulding, Frank Morgan, Larry Coryell, Mike Le Donne, Cedar Walton, Joey DeFrancesco and David “Fathead” Newman
Stereo SACD/Stereo CD

(High Note HCD 6018)

Jazz After Midnight provides ten Jazz performances by a number of Jazz stars including Bill Charlap, Larry Coryell, Joey DeFrancesco and David “Fathead” Newman. Also noteworthy here is that all ten of these selections were recorded by legendary producer and engineer Rudy Van Gelder who also handled the label’s only Surround Sound SACD release – Griot Liberte by Buster Williams (High Note Records HCD 7123).

High Note Records says this SACD is “For those times, usually after the midnight hour, when you are still awake for sleep. These tracks will help you unwind and relax after a long day of work.”

Jazz After Midnight was produced by Michael Hurzon. Mastering and authoring of the album was done by Allan Tucker at Foothill Digital in New York. The SACD was made by Sony DADC in Austria.

The music on this Super Audio CD is suited for more mellow moments. It features some excellent performances and is very well done. Highlights include the guitar playing of Larry Coryell on the John Coltrane composition “Naima” (Track 6), a different take on the song “Superstar” by Tenor Sax player Eric Anderson and Organist Mike LeDonne (Track 7) and a pairing of Tenor Sax player David “Fathead” Newman and Steve Nelson on Vibes on “Georgia On My Mind” (Track 10).

Selections:
1. If I Ruled the World – Houston Person & Bill Charlap
2. Gone But Not Forgotten – Done Sickler
3. The Two of Them – Louis Hayes
4. La Mesha – James Spaulding
5. Crazy He Calls Me – Frank Morgan
6. Naima – Larry Coryell
7. Superstar – Mike LeDonne
8. Smoke Gets In Your Eyes – Cedar Walton
9. What’s New – Joey DeFrancesco
10. Georgia On My Mind – David “Fathead” Newman

Availability
Funky Organ: B3 Jazz Grooves and Jazz After Midnight are now available for purchase in stores that carry Jazz music discs. The High Note Jazz Collection SACDs are also available on several web sites. These web sites include Acoustic Sounds, Elusive Disc, CD Universe and Amazon.Com. They are also available as SACD imports at the Amazon.Ca (Canada), Amazon.co.jp (Japan), Amazon.de (Germany) and Amazon.co.uk (United Kingdom) web sites.