Dick Hyman – Thinking About Bix (2008) [HDTracks FLAC 24bit/96kHz]

Dick Hyman, one of the most accomplished and versatile musicians alive, is especially known as an authority on early jazz. After a lifetime of playing and studying the music of Bix Beiderbecke, Hyman announced he’d like to record for RR a solo program of music associated with Bix, including all five original pieces Bix wrote for piano. (Most likely, these are a recorded first.) Hyman arranged other numbers Bix performed with various groups, and plays and improvises upon these in his distinctive, brilliant style. The title track is an infectious Hyman original reminiscent of the period. An attractive bonus is a piano four-hands performance with Hyman’s friend and stride authority, Mike Lipskin.

Long an admirer of cornetist/composer Bix Beiderbecke, Dick Hyman pays tribute to the gifted but short-lived jazz legend by interpreting the songs Bix recorded in a series of piano solos, mixing transcriptions of Beiderbecke’s solos (and occasionally, others’ as well) with his own improvisations. One exception is Hyman’s original composition “Thinking About Bix,” a warm, easygoing piece that captures the spirit of the era. The pianist’s buoyant setting of “Singin’ the Blues” and playful rendition of “Ostrich Walk” prove captivating, while his jaunty interpretation of “‘Tain’t So, Honey, ‘Tain’t So” is lots of fun. But the obvious high points of this CD, recorded not long before Hyman’s 81st birthday, are Beiderbecke’s rarely performed works for solo piano. The shimmering impressionist air of “Candlelights,” the subtlety of “In the Dark,” the Gershwin-flavored “In a Mist,” the constantly shifting “Flashes,” and the loping treatment of “Davenport Blues” all glisten in Hyman’s gifted hands. Stride pianist Mike Lipskin (a protégé of stride pianist Willie “The Lion” Smith) joins Hyman in a lively duo rendition of “You Took Advantage of Me”.

Tracklist:
01 – Thinking About Bix
02 – Singin’ the Blues (Till My Daddy Comes Home)
03 – Ostrich Walk
04 – I’m Coming, Virginia
05 – Jazz Me Blues
06 – Candlelights
07 – ‘Tain’t So, Honey, ‘Tain’t So
08 – Since My Best Gal Turned Me Down
09 – In the Dark
10 – Clementine (From New Orleans)
11 – Lonely Melody
12 – In A Mist
13 – Sweet Sue (Just You)
14 – Wringin’ and Twistin’
15 – Flashes
16 – Davenport Blues
17 – You Took Advantage of Me, with Mike Lipskin (piano four-hands)

Download:

mqs.link_DickHymanThinkingAbutBix2008HDTracks2496.part1.rar
mqs.link_DickHymanThinkingAbutBix2008HDTracks2496.part2.rar

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