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Previously available only as a limited edition, Japanese import. Herbie Hancock never really focused on solo piano. However, this 1978 release, which was previously only available in Japan, is a rare gem in the Hancock discography. Thanks ... Full Descriptionto this overdue 2004 reissue, the listener is invited to explore the musical mind of this pianist in an up-close and intimate setting.
All 11 tracks on THE PIANO are quite reflective, with Hancock employing many rich chordal textures and winding melodic gestures throughout. On "My Funny Valentine," Hancock combines the harmonic palette of Bill Evans with his own distinctive phrasing and unexpected modal shifts. His own composition "Blue Otani" is the only bluesy piece on this disc, and here Hancock slyly suggests the stride piano tradition without ever really playing in this style. "Harvest Time" is the most atmospheric piece on the album. As Hancock's fingers glide over the keys, one can almost envision the first blush of daybreak on a farm. For anybody seeking to better understand the conceptual and technical wizardry of Hancock, THE PIANO is a priceless find.
1978 Remastered W/4 Prev.Unrel Tracks. 1st Time On CD.
Personnel: Herbie Hancock (piano).
Liner Note Authors: Herbie Hancock; David Rubinson; Bob Belden.
Recording information: CBS Studios, Tokyo, Japan (10/25/1978 - 10/26/1978).JazzTimes (p.101) - "THE PIANO is a rich, vivid sonic documentation of an individual piano at a specific moment in a particular acoustic space in the hands of a special artist."
Mojo (Publisher) (p.124) - 3 stars out of 5 - "[F]ull of riches..." Hide DescriptionPurchase Piano CD To buy, Click on price to add to cart | Lee Morgan Sonic Boom CD (1967) Bonus Tracks; Remastered
Piano album
 $11.29 
Recorded at The Van Gelder Studio, Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey on April 14 & 28, 1967 and on September 12 and October 10, 1969. Originally released on Blue Note (987) and BNLA (582-2). Includes liner notes by Michael Cuscuna, Bob Blumenthal.
Personnel: Lee Morgan (trumpet); David "Fathead" Newman, George Coleman (tenor saxophone); Julian Prester (trombone); Cedar Walton, Harold Mabern (piano); Ron Carter, Walter Booker (bass); Billy Higgins, Mickey Roker (drums).
| | Herbie Hancock V.S.O.P. - Live Under The Sky CDs (1979) Bonus Tracks; Remastered
Piano CD music
$15.65  
If you're looking for some potent jazz, look no further. Pianist Herbie Hancock's V.S.O.P. - LIVE UNDER THE SKY is about as heavy as it gets. This release features the legendary mid-1960s Miles Davis lineup, minus Davis, of course. In the great trumpeter's stead, however, is the fiery Freddie Hubbard.
Recorded live in Japan during the summer of 1979, this double album features Hancock and his group combining the funky groove of hard-bop with the seeming lawlessness of '70s fusion. No one player outshines another on this record, though many of the sparks that ignite the music come from drummer Tony Williams, who swings elegantly, but fills the gaps in between phrases with thunderous tom-tom rolls and piercing cymbal smashes, his playing spurring each soloist on to higher vistas. Even though most of this material is hard-hitting, there is some sensitivity on LIVE UNDER THE SKY, too. For example, bassist Ron Carter's tune "Tear Drop" is dark and subtle. On this selection, Carter's bass solo is abstract yet easy to follow. Towards the end of the chorus, the drums fade out, leaving room for Carter and Hancock to create an intimate musical dialogue. (Note: The entire second disc of the 2004 reissue consists of previously unreleased performances.)
2cds.Rec.In Tokyo 7/26/79. Incl.10 Prev.Unrel.Tracks
Recording information: Denon Colosseum, Tokyo, Japan (07/26/1979 - 07/27/1979).
Personnel: Herbie Hancock (piano); Wayne Shorter (tenor saxophone); Freddie Hubbard (trumpet); Ron Carter (double bass); Tony Williams (drums).
Liner Note Author: Bob Belden.
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| Seven Steps: The Complete Columbia Recordings Of Miles Davis: 1963-1964 CDs (2004) Limited Edition
Piano music CDs
$105.85 
Initial pressings of SEVEN STEPS are packaged with a deluxe metal spine.
Also includes a 92-page booklet with rare photos, complete discography and essays by Michael Cuscuna and Bob Blumenthal.
All tracks have been digitally mastered using 24-bit technology.
In the 1960s, trumpeter Miles Davis became a star outside of the jazz world, first with what history refers to as "the Quintet" with Wayne Shorter and Herbie Hancock, then with his highly influential post-BITCHES BREW electric bands. But there was a "transitional" period, after John Coltrane left Davis's employ and before the Shorter/Hancock era, which the SEVEN STEPS box set based around the SEVEN STEPS TO HEAVEN album documents in its entirety, often in a live context.
Davis was seeking the right combination of musicians for his sonic flights, where hard-bop and modal styles could be combined with a wide-open, increasingly elastic sound. Before settling on Shorter (present here), he tried the conventionally hearty, blues-accented bop approach of saxophonist George Coleman and the rippling, somewhat more avant-garde Sam Rivers. Both soar and sear at their respective best, providing remarkable contrast to Davis's magically cool horn. UK-born pianist Victor Feldman plays on some tracks, Hancock on others; the drum chair features Tony Williams (also an explorer of avant expression) and Frank Butler (a crackling, swinging mainstream bopper). SEVEN STEPS includes material originally available on the early-'60s albums IN EUROPE and FOUR & MORE, among others, with (attention, collectors!) the inclusion of eight previously unreleased tracks.
Personnel: Miles Davis (trumpet); George Coleman , Sam Rivers, Wayne Shorter (tenor saxophone); Victor Feldman, Herbie Hancock (piano); Ron Carter (double bass); Frank Butler, Tony Williams (drums).
Liner Note Authors: Michael Cuscuna; Bob Blumenthal.
Recording information: Columbia Studios, Los Angeles, California (04/16/1963 - 04/17/1963); Columbia 30th Street Studios, New
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| Miles Davis Cellar Door Sessions 1970 CDs (2005) Remastered; Box Set; Special Edition
Piano songs
$68.19 
Contains previously unreleased material. Some of the recordings on the CELLAR DOOR SESSIONS were originally released in edited form on the 1971 double-LP LIVE EVIL.
There is an entire universe contained in this box. Sumptuously packaged and scrupulously annotated, CELLAR DOOR SESSIONS 1970 is a six-disc set that documents Miles Davis's extended residency at the Washington, D.C., club. Davis is backed by a group of genius musicians: keyboardist Keith Jarrett, drummer Jack DeJohnette, bassist Michael Henderson, saxophonist Gary Bartz, percussionist Airto Moreira and guitarist John McLaughlin (who appears only on the last two discs). Together they pioneered an ecstatic fusion of jazz, rock, funk, and abstract sound-painting that established the blueprint for the future of progressive music.
Each disc contains a different live set, and while songs are often repeated across the set lists, no two tracks sound the same. The players improvise at a fever-pitch, pushing themselves to endless invention, and the ensemble's interplay--expressionistic, protean, and fierce--is near telepathic. The influence of rock artists like Sly Stone and Jimi Hendrix can be heard in the layering of deep funk rhythms and psychedelic inflections (especially with Miles's wah-filtered trumpet), but the overall sound seems to subsume and transcend the entire history of 20th century music. In a career full of musical innovation, this is some of Miles's most visionary work, and this essential set (which also boasts splendid remastering) documents it for a near-religious listening experience.
Personnel: Miles Davis (trumpet); John McLaughlin (electric guitar); Gary Bartz (soprano saxophone, alto saxophone); Keith Jarrett (Fender Rhodes piano, electric organ); Michael Henderson (bass guitar); Jack DeJohnette (drums); Airto Moreira (percussion).
Recording information: Cellar Door, Washington, D.C. (12/16/1970 - 12/19/2005).
| | John Coltrane One Up, One Down: Live At The Half Note CDs (2005) Remastered
Piano album
$20.35
The dramatic, spiraling inventions of Tyner lend a frenetic element to Coltrane's already intense lines, while Jones and Garrison find and rearrange nearly every rhythm and counter-rhythm imaginable. There are only four tracks here (spread out over two discs), but each--whether it's the fiery title track or the exhilarating take on "My Favorite Things"--is a study in artistry.
Live Recording
ONE DOWN, ONE UP: LIVE AT THE HALF NOTE, recorded in the last year of the classic quartet's existence, captures John Coltrane, drummer Elvin Jones, pianist McCoy Tyner, and bassist Jimmy Garrison going full blast. Recorded a year after A LOVE SUPREME, Coltrane was already moving on to extended improvisation, stretching out a single composition for 15 or 20 minutes while deconstructing it from every conceivable angle, turning his saxophone into an instrument of relentless exploration.
Personnel: John Coltrane (soprano saxophone, tenor saxophone); Alan Grant (spoken vocals); McCoy Tyner (piano); Jimmy Garrison (double bass); Elvin Jones (drums).
Recording information: The Half Note, New York, New York (1965).
| | Thelonious Monk At Carnegie Hall CD (2005)
Piano CD music
$14.19
On paper it seems as if such titanic and distinctive musical personalities as Thelonious Monk and John Coltrane might not mix very well, but this stellar set, recorded live at Carnegie Hall in 1957, plays almost like a blissful extended duet between the two (with support from a sensitive yet hard-swinging bassist and drummer). The opener, "Monk's Mood," for example, features the composer/pianist's typically brilliant, idiosyncratic playing, while Coltrane floats over the top in the most lyrical of modes. Monk, in particular, is a master of tension-and-release tunefulness, creating rhythmic and harmonic intricacies that seem to spur Coltrane's saxophone exploration to new heights.
The quartet shines on ballads ("Sweet and Lovely"), but the leaders display their best chemistry on the Monk's thorny, uptempo bop numbers. "Evidence" and "Epistrophy," for instance," have Monk adding rhythmic, dissonant punctuation to Coltrane's torrential stream of ideas, creating a thrilling push-pull balance. A superb date, and a must for fans of both artists, AT CARNEGIE HALL captures two of jazz's most important figures working in perfect symbiosis.
Personnel: Thelonious Monk (piano); John Coltrane (tenor saxophone); Ahmed Abdul-Malik (bass instrument); Shadow Wilson (drums).
Recording information: Carnegie Hall, New York, New York (1957).
Award Winner
| | Society One Slacker Jesus CD (1999)
Piano music CDs
$13.35
Society 1 Play Aggressive Rock & Industrial Music.
Society 1: Matt Zane (vocals); Devin Norris (guitar); Justin Reynolds (bass, background vocals); Jame Potter (drums).
Additional personnel: Rudy Hewlett (guitar); Erik Gregory (programming).
| | Mike Vax Big Band Featuring Alumni Of The Stan Kenton Orchestra Live... On The Road CD (2003)
Piano songs
$14.69
Recorded live in Cambridge, Massachussets, and Windber, Harrisburg, Pittsburgh and Gettysburg, Pennsylvania.
Full performer name: Mike Vax Big Band Featuring Alumni Of The Stan Kenton Orchestra.
Mike Vax Big Band: Mike Vax (trumpet); Kim Richmond, Bruce Johnstone, Bob Keller, Pete Gallo, Joel Kaye (saxophone); Dennis Noday, John Harner, Steve Campos, Steve Huffsteter (trumpet); Roy Wiegand, Dale DeVoe, Curtis Fox, Kenny Shroyer, Mike Suter (trombone); Liz Sesler-Beckman (piano); Jim Widner (bass); Gary Hobbs (drums); John Akal (Latin percussion).
| | Dingoes Five Times The Sun & Other Delicacies CD (1995) (Import) Import; Australia
Piano album
$19.69
Track Listing of songs: Boy on the Run; Child in the Middle; Come on Down; High Living; I Never Seem to Get Through; Into the Night; Johnnie's the Last One; Outside Man; Shine a Light; Since You've Been Gone; Singing Your Song; Smooth Sailing; Starting Today; Last Place; Stand-Off Game; Waiting For the Tide to Turn; Way Out West; Goin' Down Again;
| | Gary Boggs Motion CD (2004)
Piano CD music
$13.95
Personnel include: Gary Boggs (acoustic guitar, electric guitar, keyboards); Marcia Miget (flute, soprano saxophone); Wayne Wallace (keyboards, drums, sampler); Paul Van Wageningen, Bob Mocarsky (drums).
| | Folias Tangos Metamorphoses CD (2004)
$14.29 | | Various Artists History Of Harcore 2 CD (2004) (Import) Import; Netherlands
Piano music CDs
$30.55
The legendary DJ compiles all his favorite tracks on this mix CD that includes A DVD with interviews & exclusive backstage material. Sony. 2004.
DJ: DJ Dano.
| | Lords This Ain't A Hate Thing, It's A Love Thing CD (2006) Import
Piano songs
$18.59
Sabbath-goes-Beefheart through a Prog-Rock mincer. This is the debut album from the band formed by members of Wolves! (of Greece) and Twinkie in 2003.
| | Pete McGuiness Jazz Orchestra First Flight CD (2007)
Piano album
$13.25
The Pete McGuiness Jazz Orchestra: Pete McGuiness (vocals, trombone); Paul Meyers (guitar); Jason Rigby, Dave Pietro, Charles Pillow (saxophone); Tony Kadleck, Bill Mobley, Jon Owens (trumpet, flugelhorn); Steve Armour, Bruce Eidem (trombone); Mike Holober (piano); Andy Eulau (bass instrument); Scott Neumann (drums).
| | Down Home Blues Classics New York & East Coast Down Home Blues Classics New York & East Coast CD (2007) (Import)
Piano CD music
$32.89
2CD featuring 54 tracks of blues from the East coast, remastered with many tracks on CD fir the first time.
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