Groove Note Records has released Hybrid Stereo Super Audio CDs by the Ray Brown Trio and Ernestine Anderson. The albums are The Red Hot Ray Brown Trio with Gene Harris and Mickey Roker and Never Make Your Move Too Soon. The SACDs are the Groove Note label series of remastered Stereo Super Audio CDs from the Concord Jazz catalog under a licensing arrangement with that label.
Groove Note also plans the release of three more Hybrid Stereo Super Audio CDs in the weeks ahead. Here’s more on the two Groove Note SACDs and the three that are scheduled to appear after that.
The Red Hot Ray Brown Trio
Ray Brown Trio with Gene Harris and Mickey Roker
SACD Stereo/CD Audio
(Groove Note GRV 1028-3)
The Red Hot Ray Brown Trio features jazz stars Ray Brown and Gene Harris in a live recording at the Blue Note in New York City. The session was recorded in November and December 1985 by audiophile recording engineer Jim Anderson.
Miles Jordan of Jazz Times says
«Everything in this trio is definitely red hot. The rapport Brown and Harris have developed not only eloquently reveals the affinity that each man feels for the warm, emotional side of the tune selected, but the musical bond between them. The trio provides us with a new look at such standards as Lady Be Good and Elvis Presley’s Love Me Tender. Jobim’s lilting Meditation is a buoyant exercise in levitation as the trio conspires to float us down to Rio.»
Groove Note Records owner Ying Tan produced the SACD edition of the album with the SACD mastering credits going to David Glasser at Airshow Mastering in Boulder, Colorado.
Track 4 (Lady Be Good) offers some lively piano playing by Gene Harris while Track 8 (Captain Bill) features excellent detailing of the trio’s piano, deep bass notes and the drum kit. It definitely shows off what a well done Super Audio CD can bring to an already fine jazz performance.
Musicians
- Ray Brown — Bass
- Gene Harris — Piano
- Mickey Roker — Drums
Album Tracks
- Have You Met Miss Jones?
- Meditation
- Street Of Dreams
- Lady Be Good
- That’s All
- Love Me Tender
- How Could You Do A Thing Like This to Me?
- Captain Bill
Never Make Your Move Too Soon
Ernestine Anderson
SACD Stereo/CD Audio
(Groove Note GRV 1029-3)
Never Make Your Move Too Soon features jazz vocalist Ernestine Anderson performing perhaps her best known song along with 7 other standards. She is backed on the album by several jazz all stars including pianist Monty Alexander (the star of several earlier Super Audio CDs on the Telarc and Concord Jazz labels) as well as Ray Brown on bass and Frank Gant on drums.
Edith Hamilton of the Miami Herald says
«The lady loves the blues, and they kick things off with a rouser, Never Make Your Move Too Soon in the old original unabashed vein. Ernestine does two of her favorites — Old Folks and Poor Butterfly — Ray Brown does his creative arrangements and fitting bass, Frank Gant gives subtle support and Monty Alexander plays what must be the perfect accompaniment. He and Ernestine are two parts of a felicitous whole in a sparkling contrapuntal showcase for voice and piano.»
As with the previous SACD, Groove Note Records owner Ying Tan produced the SACD edition of the album with the SACD mastering credits going to David Glasser at Airshow Mastering in Boulder, Colorado.
The Stereo Super Audio CD tracks of the album are very well done. Anderson’s vocals are very clear and she seems to be in the room with you as she is performing. Tracks 7 and 8 on the SACD are very clean and provide fine detailing of the piano and bass accompanying Anderson.
Musicians
- Ernestine Anderson — Vocals
- Monty Alexander — Piano
- Ray Brown — Bass
- Frank Gant — Drums
Album Tracks
- Never Make Your Move Too Soon
- What A Diff’rence A Day Made
- As Long As I Live
- Old Folks
- Just One More Chance
- My Shining Hour
- Why Did I Choose You?
- Poor Butterfly
Availability
The Groove Note Hybrid Stereo Super Audio CDs of The Red Hot Ray Brown Trio with Gene Harris & Mickey Roker and Never Make Your Move Too Soon by Ernestine Anderson are now available at music stores including Tower Records (filed in the regular Jazz CD section). They are also available on web sites that carry Super Audio CDs including Acoustic Sounds, Elusive Disc, Music Direct, Amazon.Com and CD Universe.
3 More Jazz Super Audio CDs from Groove Note
Groove Note has 3 more Jazz Super Audio CDs planned for release in the weeks ahead. The upcoming Super Audio CDs include Savivity by the Anthony Wilson Trio which features material from the same recording session that generated the excellent SACD titled Our Gang (Groove Note GRV 1008-3) in 2001.
Also on the list are two more remastered Stereo SACD titles from the Concord Jazz catalog. They include Latin Odyssey by Laurindo Almeida & Charlie Byrd — a follow-up to last year’s Tango SACD (Groove Note GRV 1021-3) by the same duo and Brazilville by Charlie Byrd with Bud Shank.
Groove Note — Upcoming Hybrid Stereo SACD Releases
- Anthony Wilson Trio — Savivity (Groove Note GRV 1030-3)
- Laurindo Almeida & Charlie Byrd — Latin Odyssey (Groove Note GRV 1031-3)
- Charlie Byrd with Bud Shank — Brazilville (Groove Note GRV 1032-3)
- The Red Hot Ray Brown Trio with Gene Harris & Mickey Roker (Groove Note GRV 1028-3) [Left] and
- Never Make Your Move Too Soon by Ernestine Anderson (Groove Note GRV 1029-3) [Right]