Bill Coon - Standard Elegance

Styles: Jazz Guitar
Year: 2025
Time: 48:17
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Size: 111,2 MB
Art: Front

(3:59) 1. All the Things You Are
(3:31) 2. Yesterdays
(3:25) 3. And I Love Her
(2:44) 4. But Beautiful
(4:11) 5. I Cover the Waterfront
(4:41) 6. Prelude to a Kiss
(3:52) 7. East of the Sun
(3:08) 8. The Nearness of You
(3:59) 9. How Deep Is the Ocean
(3:31) 10. Nuages
(3:02) 11. Fall Rain at Night
(3:38) 12. Here's That Rainy Day
(4:30) 13. We'll Be Together Again

Guitarist Bill Coon's Standard Elegance stands as a finely crafted tribute to the timeless appeal of well-made melodies and the skilled artistry needed to refresh them without losing their essence. True to the tradition of great solo jazz guitar recordings, the album finds Coon exploring familiar territory while conveying a deeply personal sense of phrasing, touch, and warm reflection. Whether he chooses his archtop electric or nylon-string instrument, Coon approaches each selection with the restraint and clarity of a musician who knows that standards flourish most when treated with respect and imagination in equal measure.

Coon begins the recital with two Jerome Kern pieces: "All the Things You Are" and "Yesterdays." On the former, he delivers a performance that highlights the tune's elegant structure. His harmonic substitutions stay true to the original flow, yet add graceful tension that brings the melody to life. On the latter, he leans into the number's minor-inflected mood, using shifts in tempo and dynamics to underscore its inward spirit. John Lennon and Paul McCartney's pop hit "And I Love Her" bridges the gap between pop lyricism and jazz sophistication. He maintains the simplicity of the melody while adding gently reharmonized passages that broaden the emotional palette.

"I Cover the Waterfront," the Johnny Green-Edward Heyman gem, offers Coon the chance to craft layers of nuance as he shapes pacing and understated chordal movements that give the piece a late-night, solitary feel. This serves as the ideal introduction to Duke Ellington's "Prelude to a Kiss," where Coon expertly employs voice-leading to highlight the romantic richness of Ellington's composition and to reveal its inner lines with crystalline clarity. Coon's lively side is evident with "East of the Sun," which he frames with a bright, lightly swinging rhythm, enabling the melody to dance freely over his steady accompaniment.

The Romani guitarist Django Reinhardt composed "Nuages," which provides Coon with a lyrical backdrop. His interpretation honours Reinhardt's nostalgic melody while shaping the jazz-manouche nuances into an intimate solo-guitar style, blending respect with personal expression. The closer is the Frankie Laine-Carl T. Fischer tune "We'll Be Together Again." It is delivered with a quiet assurance that honours the ballad's legacy. Coon's version is both an invocation and a fitting tribute to an album firmly grounded in tradition yet keenly alive in the present.

https://www.allaboutjazz.com/standard-elegance-bill-coon-cellar-music-group/

Standard Elegance (mp3 320)
Standard Elegance (FLAC)

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Sienna Dahlen, Bill Coon - Balladextrous

Styles: Vocal And Guitar Jazz
Year: 2023
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 40:22
Size: 92,9 MB
Art: Front

(4:56) 1. Too Late Now
(6:33) 2. Round Midnight
(6:29) 3. Happy Talk
(3:07) 4. I Get Along Without You Very Well
(4:01) 5. When Lights Are Low
(2:52) 6. Autumn In New York
(4:33) 7. Day Dream
(4:58) 8. All Of You
(2:48) 9. I'm In The Mood For Love

Balladextrous, a collaborative jazz album featuring vocalist Sienna Dahlen and guitarist Bill Coon, is a delightful exploration of the ballad form which allows the artists to make moment-to-moment choices about how they are feeling the rhythm or letting it breathe. This session invites the listener on a soothing and introspective musical journey which showcases the artists' chemistry and individual virtuosity.

Over the course of the nine tracks, Dahlen's warm and resonant voice, combined with Coon's delicate and expressive guitar playing, creates an atmosphere of intimacy and emotional depth. The opener is "Too Late Now" by Burton Lane & Alan Jay Lerner which immediately sets the tone for the collection. Dahlen's voice gently glides over the lyrics, with Coon's supporting guitar capturing the listener's attention. The Thelonious Monk classic "'Round Midnight" was originally created as an instrumental, but lyrics by Bernard Hanighen were subsequently added. Dahlen's phrasing and subtle inflections bring out the lyric's depth while, near the end of the tune, Coon subtly changes the rhythm to something slightly more lively, Dahlen picks this up seamlessly.

Tracks such as "When Light Are Low" and "Autumn In New York" showcase Dahlen's exceptional vocal control and ability to convey a wide range of emotions. Coon's sensitive accompaniment and inventive chord changes provide the perfect backdrop for her storytelling. The Billy Strayhorn compositional gem "Day Dream" is a perfect hand-in-glove moment for the duo as they engage in a musical dialogue which seems to transcend words.

Sienna Dahlen and Bill Coon's musical partnership is a testament to their deep understanding of each other's artistic sensibilities.By Pierre Giroux
https://www.allaboutjazz.com/balladextrous-sienna-dahlen-and-bill-coon-cellar-music-group

Balladextrous

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Cory Weeds, Bill Coon Quartet - With Benefits

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 66:18
Size: 151.8 MB
Styles: Saxophone jazz
Year: 2013
Art: Front

[5:29] 1. Broadway And Alma
[5:17] 2. There's A Small Hotel
[7:27] 3. Cory's Story
[5:20] 4. Smile Stacey
[6:39] 5. East Of The Sun
[7:08] 6. With Benefits
[8:29] 7. Search For Peace
[8:43] 8. Just Squeeze Me
[7:09] 9. Wesology
[4:34] 10. Sunday Morning

Cory Weeds: tenor saxophone, Bill Coon: guitar, Peter Washington: bass, Lewis Nash: drums.

A saxophonist with an expressive sound rooted in Jazz tradition, a label owner tirelessly documenting unsung Jazz heroes, one of Canada’s most important Jazz impresarios, the hardest-working man in Jazz business – Cory Weeds is all of these things, and much more. Weeds may be best known as the founder and owner of Cory Weeds’ Cellar Jazz Club in Vancouver, which he successfully ran for more than 13 years. Weeds built the Cellar to become one of North America’s best Jazz clubs, where masters such as George Coleman, Jeff Hamilton, Louis Hayes, David “Fathead” Newman, Dr. Lonnie Smith, and the finest Jazz musicians from Vancouver and across Canada performed before it closed in February 2014.

But he wasn’t just the club owner. As a saxophonist who studied at the University of North Texas and Capilano College, Weeds spent many nights on the Cellar bandstand as a leader and sideman. He held his own when performing with icons like Joey DeFrancesco and Christian McBride. Weeds has also recorded twelve albums as a leader, including: Dreamsville (with The Jeff Hamilton Trio), It’s Easy To Remember (with David Hazeltine, Joe Magnarelli, Paul Gill and Jason Tiemann) This Happy Madness, (with The Jeff Hamilton Trio), Condition Blue, The Music Of Jackie McLean (with Peter Bernstein, Mike LeDonne, and Joe Farnsworth), As Of Now (with the Harold Mabern Trio), Let’s Go (with Steve Davis), the Juno-nominated Up A Step (Cory Weeds Quartet), With Benefits (with Lewis Nash and Peter Washington), Just Like That (with the Tilden Webb Trio), The Many Deeds of Cory Weeds (with Joey DeFrancesco), Everything’s Coming Up Weeds (with Jim Rotondi), and Big Weeds (with Peter Bernstein, Mike LeDonne, and Joe Farnsworth).

With Benefits mc
With Benefits zippy

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