Quincy Jones - Moody's Mood For Love 1995

Tweet

"Moody's Mood for Love" is jazz saxophonist James Moody's 1949 instrumental solo based on Jimmy McHugh's 1935 song "I'm in the Mood for Love" with lyrics later added by Eddie Jefferson.

James Moody created his improvised solo in 1949 on a visit to Sweden. Moody’s version clearly shows the influence of Charlie Parker.In 1952, jazz singer Eddie Jefferson wrote lyrics to this improvisation by Moody, a practice known as vocalese. This particular arrangement of the song did not come to be known by its now common title of "Moody's Mood for Love" until King Pleasure released a very popular vocal version in 1954. 

Following King Pleasure's successful hit version of "Moody's Mood for Love" Jimmy McHugh the original author of "I'm in the Mood for Love" sued for copyright infringement and won a partial victory in court. He and Moody eventually agreed to share the proceeds on sales of any versions of the tune.  King Pleasure's version included vocals by Blossom Dearie as well as instrumental contributions from Teacho and Band.

Other artists who later released renditions of the song include Van Morrison, George Benson, Aretha Franklin from "Hey Now Hey (The Other Side of the Sky)", Queen Latifah, Tito Puente, Kermit Ruffins, The Ray Gelato Giants, Amy Winehouse, Chuck Brown, Mina, The Guess Who and Georgie Fame. In 1995 Quincy Jones released a multi-harmony version of the track with his album Q's Jook Joint featuring the artists Take 6 in collaboration with Brian McKnight.

From Quincy Jones 1995 Q's Jook Joint
Featuring James Moody Brian McKnight Take6 & Rachelle Ferrel




Moody's Mood For Love - Take 6, Brian McKnight, Patti Austin LIVE




James Moody - I'm in the Mood for Love 

Check out this recording of James Moody playing "I'm in the Mood for Love," with a great intro and outro by Dizzy! Thank your for your music, spirit, and genius, James!

Mipham - What About Me

Tweet

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FDSAAlrqAHM

This is a video directed by Chewyguru for spoken word artist Mipham.

Mipham records albums, runs marathons and just happens to be a Tibetan Buddhist Lama.

Check out his website http://www.mipham.com


Song © Mipham

Rafal Blechacz Chopin - Polonaise in A-flat major, Op. 53 - "Heroique"

Tweet

 

 

 

Polonaise in A flat Op.53 "Heroic" by Rafal Blechacz

In the Winners' Concert of Chopin Competition 2005. This is from 2005: Rafal took all awards at the 15th Frederic Chopin International Piano Competition, including the Gold Medal, and three special awards for the best performance of a polonaise, a mazurka and a concerto. (Competition judges decided no competitors were worthy of the second prize. Two brothers from South Korea -- Dong Min Lim and Dong Hyek Lim -- were awarded the third prize.) 

Baden Powell - Samba Triste - Europe by Loronix

Tweet

Baden Powell de Aquino was born in Varre-e-Sai in the state of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. 

His father, a scouting enthusiast, named him after Robert Baden-Powell. When he was three, his family relocated to a suburb in the city of Rio de Janeiro. The new surroundings proved profoundly influential. 

His house was a stop for popular musicians during his formative years. He soon started guitar lessons with Jayme Florence, a famous Choro guitarist in the 1940s. He proved a young virtuoso, having won many talent competitions before he was a teenager. At age fifteen, he was already playing professionally, accompanying singers and bands in various styles. As a youngster, he was fascinated by Swing and Jazz, but his main influences were firmly rooted in the Brazilian guitar canon.

He first achieved notoriety in 1959 by convincing Billy Blanco, who was an established singer and songwriter to put lyrics to one of his compositions. The result was called “Samba Triste” and very successful. It has been covered by many artists, including Stan Getz and Charlie Byrd in their seminal LP Jazz Samba.

In 1962, he met the poet-diplomat Vinicius de Moraes and began a collaboration that yielded some true classics of 1960s Brazilian music. Although Bossa Nova was the prevailing sound of the times, the partnership Baden-Vinicius wanted to transcend the form by syncretizing Afro-Brazilian forms such as Candomblé, Umbanda and Capoeira with Rio de Janeiro’s Samba forms.

“Samba Triste” was the first commercial success for its composer, Baden Powell (1937-2000), who is still considered one of Brazil’s greatest guitarists. Like Jobim, Powell wrote songs with the poet Vinicius de Moraes – “Consolao” being one of their most famous – but Powell was more focused on native Brazilian culture and his melodies are darker than Antonio Carlos Jobim’s.

A very early Baden Powell in Europe with a trio playing Samba Triste

What a Wonderful World

Tweet

 

A beautiful song from the voice of Louis Armstrong, the great Satchmo. 
OST: Good Morning Vietnam.

This was written by Bob Thiele and George Weiss. Thiele was a producer for ABC records, and Weiss was a songwriter who helped create the hit version of "The Lion Sleeps Tonight." The song is about appreciating the beauty of our surroundings.

Armstrong recorded this for scale, accepting only $250 to make sure the orchestra got paid.

This is the song most associated with Louis Armstrong, but it does not represent the body of his work, which consists mostly of Jazz.

In 1988, this was re-released in the US after it was used in the Robin Williams movie Good Morning, Vietnam. It charted at #32.

The boss of ABC Records hated this and did not promote it until it became a hit in England.

The 66-year-old Armstrong became the oldest act to top the UK charts when this reached #1. Four years previously Satchmo had become the oldest artist to record a US #1 when "Hello, Dolly!" hit the top spot. Armstrong's record was broken in 2009 when the 68-years-and 9 months-old Tom Jones was one of the artists on the Comic Relief cover of "Islands in the Stream."

This song's slow tempo seems to emphasize the idea that in order to recognize all the good that is around us, we have to slow down & notice it. As Satchmo sings each verse, the listener has time to visualize each line, and can stop and think, oh, yeah, it IS a wonderful world. 

The voice and perspective of this 66-year-old black man gives the song the depth to touch our souls. If someone like Armstrong can bring such believability to these words after growing up in the world he did (in the most turbulent years of the 60's...1968. Race Riots, two prominent men who stood for civil rights assassinated, Vietnam protests raging, the civil rights movement marching on, and here is a black man from the Deep South singing such a poignant, simple, beautiful song. It's like the daisy being inserted into the gun barrel), then there truly must be value in acknowledging the beauty around us.

As you see all the bad news out there on TV, as you hear of all the war and strife and crime and unrest on the news....how cleansing and refreshing it is to hear this song, to put your mind back into proper perspective....It takes your mind back to a safe, warm place, a place where everyone gets along, where there is peace.

Renee Olstead - Someone To Watch Over Me

Tweet

 



From the CD Album "Renee Olstead" Music & Lyrics By George Gershwin & Ira Gershwin, Musical Arrangement By David Foster.

"Someone to Watch Over Me" is a song composed by George Gershwin with lyrics by Ira Gershwin from the musical Oh, Kay! (1926), where it was introduced by Gertrude Lawrence. Gershwin originally approached the song as an uptempo jazz tune, but his brother Ira suggested that it might work much better as a ballad, and George ultimately agreed. It has been performed by numerous artists since its debut and is a jazz standard as well as a key work in the Great American Songbook. - Wikipedia

Mireille Mathieu Ne me quitte pas Russia Logo

Tweet

 

Song of separation, in a Russian theater. Not a dry eye in the house there.

Originally Performed in French by Jacques Brel.

Performed in English If You Go Away by Dusty Springfield,

Frank Sinatra and many others.

Though often cited as the most beautiful love song in the French language,

Brel tells us it's not a love song at all, rather a portrait of a man who

degrades himself and loses his dignity for a woman who doesn't love him.