Ben Webster - 2003 - My Romance (SACD 24 88 2) FLAC torrent

Ben Webster - 2003 - My Romance
SACD rip 24 bit 88.2 KHz

This was quite a surprise, coming from the Asian label specializing in various audiophile CDs and SACDs of more middle-of-the-road material. The two sessions that produced these dozen tracks both were recorded in Copenhagen in 1965, and for most of the tracks – as you can see – Webster’s band was mostly local musicians. Ben Webster was one of many black American jazz men who moved to Europe in the 1960s or later. Denmark and Holland were his main bases of operation. Earlier he had been a mainstay of Norman Granz’ Jazz at the Philharmonic concerts, and had also played with Ellington for a few years.
Nobody else achieved quite the rich, warm, soulful and caressing tenor sax sound so distinctively laid down by Ben Webster. And I don’t believe I’ve ever heard it so cleanly and realistically as on this reissue disc. In the booklet remastering engineer Povee Chan lists some of the gear involved, and it’s obvious no effort was spared to transfer these old stereotapes with the very highest fidelity humanly possible. The European players are right up to American standards in playing proficiency. This is great stuff. The CD layer doesn’t sound seriously compromised either.

Track list:
01. Nancy (With The Laughing Face)
02. Brother John's Blues
03. Duke's In Bed
04. What's I'm Gotchere
05. My Romance
06. Days of Wine And Roses
07. Blue Light
08. Stompy Jones
09. I Can't Get Started
10. The Theme
11. Friskin' The Frog
12. Stormy Weather

Personnel:
Ben Webster, tenor sax
Arnved Meyer, trumpet
John Darville, trombone
Ole Kongsted, tenor sax
Niels Jorgen Steen, piano
Hendrik Hartman, bass
Hans Nymand, drums
Later session:
Kenny Drew, piano
Nils Pederson, bass
Alex Riel, drums

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