Tour de Force [CD-single]

Tour de Force [CD-single]

Track Listings

1. Tour de Force [Album Version]

2. Tour de Force [Com-pass mix by Daniel Myer of Haujobb] [Club Remix]

3. It's Alright [Non-Album B-Side]

4. Tour de Force [Extended Dance Mix by J. Cosmo] [Remix by Daniel Myer (h

Tracks:

If I'd Been The One
Back Where You Belong
One Time For Old Times
See Me In Your Eyes
Twentieth Century Fox
Long Distance Affair
I Oughta Let Go
One Of The Lonely Ones
Undercover Lover

Customer Reviews:

Great album--worth having.......2007-07-11

Besides the top 20 hits, I feel that "See Me in Your Eyes" and "One of the Lonely Ones" are fantastic. No bad songs on this album, just some are better than others. Should be part of your collection if you like this type of music. Love Don Barnes' lead vocals!!!!!!!!!

Southern Rockers.......2006-07-11

I have always been a great fan of Southern Rock. From Skynyrd to Blackfoot. 38 Special is no exception, with members from Donnie Van Zant to Jeff Carlisi, Don Barnes n the rest of the crew. 38 Special are truly a great rock band. Hits like Back Where You Belong n If I'd Been The One. It just doesn't get any better then that! If you like Southern Rock you gotta check this out. Get the party started with the Wild-Eyed Southern Boys and enjoy.

Wild Eyed Southern Boys' Finest Effort.......2003-11-23

.38 Special is a six-men band featuring twin bass guitars and twin drums often what southern rockers are like. Their sixth album in 1983 may be a bit too defined to be southern rock but is one of the finest albums during that time. Despite the lack of songwriting genius Jim Peterik of Survivor, they could make the greatest song collections with also great songwriting pair Don Barnes and Jeff Carlisi. This album produced two top 20 hits IF I'D BEEN THE ONE and BACK WHERE YOU BELONG. Actually these songs were the very reason why I became a 38 Special fan. These hits were well received by Japanese yogaku (western music) fans during the winter of 1983/84. I just started listening to yogaku program and I instantly liked these songs. The rest of the album is also great with Don Barnes' melody-driven mellow vocal. ONE OF THE LONELY ONES, TWENTY CENTURY FOX and ONE TIME FOR OLD TIME are also the highlights of this album.

Recommended for 80's pop rock fans, particularly Foreigner and Survivor fans.

38 Special Hitting their stride.......2002-12-21

If the whole CD were as good as the first two songs ("If I'd Been the One" and "Back Where You Belong") this would have been a superb CD. As it is, the other seven songs tend to blend together, as many of their others do. However there is nothing here that is terrible, just not as noteworthy as the first two songs. If you are a fan of 38 Special or Southern Rock, this will fit in well with your collection.

Great Music.......2002-10-22

This is my favorite .38 Special CD. I love the ballads on it.

Average customer rating:

Live at its best
Forceful and magnificent
The true tour de force is listening to this entire album
Superb... both sonic and musically .
When Al was fusion guitar

Tour de Force: Live
Al Di Meola
Manufacturer: Sony
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Jazz | Styles | Music

Jazz Fusion | Jazz | Styles | Music

Jazz Fusion | Live Albums | Jazz | Styles | Music

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Electric Rendezvous
Splendido Hotel
Elegant Gypsy
Casino
Land of the Midnight Sun

ASIN: B0000025TC
Release Date: 1990-10-25

Tracks:

Elegant Gypsy Suite
Nena
Advantage
Egyptian Danza
Race With Devil On Spanish Highway
Cruisin'

Customer Reviews:

Live at its best.......2007-06-11

This in my opinion is the best live album (CD) I've ever heard. Talking about virtuousity is not even close to doing Di Meola and his gang justice. This review is for the sake of those who are not familiar with Di Meola's work (I'm sure his fans have it). Check out especially the dual betweeen Di Meola and Hammer. Really awesome stuff

Forceful and magnificent.......2007-03-13

Al, Steve Gadd and Chick Corea are amazing in the cd. Probably the best live instrumental CD available in the market.

The true tour de force is listening to this entire album .......2007-01-08

I own this album since my school days. I had it in vynil and now I have my copy in cd. I still enjoy very much the first two tunes here which are really balanced and very creative compositions. Elegant Gypsy Suite is a sort of fusion of styles suite where every player has his moments to shine but without losing himself in pure virtuosism. This tune is what really makes me love this album. The second one is really great too, the lovely "ballad" Nena. I did buy this one again just for these two tunes which I really wanted to have in my cd collection because I think they really deserves ammiration. "Advantage" even if it's not great as the opener is still a very good fusion ride. Simply I can't stand what follows. "Egyptian danza", "Race with devil" are simply boring, unbearable tunes. They are exotic and dramatic in their flavour (thanxs to the harmonic minor scale used here and there) but they are simply unbelievable heavy to listen to. There are moments as in "Egyptian danza" that are even ridicolous (around 2.15)!!! Awful stuff! The last tune "Cruisin" is a little bit better there is more melody and the things get better a little bit again. But frankly I think that even if it is a short album it could even be shorter and noone would complain. 13 minutes shorter to say the least! In the end 5 stars for the first two tunes, 3 and a half stars for the last song, and no stars for the 4th and fifth tunes that personally I find totally unbearable. But we all know Al never recorded a true masterpiece from the first note to the last one. He is very inconsistent as an artist. Impressive guitarist, decent music writer but without a true, solid inspiration. It's a shame because I still think he can do great things. He's talented (for example I enjoy very much Passion Grace and Fire the album he recorded with McLaughlin and DeLucia and even Orange and Blue another album of his) ... so c'mon Al!

Superb... both sonic and musically ........2002-03-10

This is the first time those huge musicians got together on stage, and unfortunately this is the only live album they've recorded. For worst... it's only a single cd (single LP in the original release).
Though Al's marvelous guitar skills don't surprise anyone at this time it is worth to mention that he colors every riff, every tune with his unique latin-like style.
Jan Hammer on keyboards plays a dramatically first role, for moments rivaling DiMeola's leadership of the band.
Steve Gadd on drums and Mingo Lewis on percussion give the band a rock-solid platform on which they develop in such a beautiful manner.
One reviewer here mentions ¨Race with Devil...¨ as his favourite. Well, I would pick Elegant Gypsy Suite for me. It perfectly combines rock-jazz fussion with caribbean rhythms in a solid coherent tune. The last track ¨Cruisin¨ is another jewel.
Mixing and recording quality is excellent considering it comes from analog tapes taken in 1982. Soundstaging and stereo image are unbelievable. Anyone could say it surpasses many live recordings of today.
Well... If I have to mention something negative side on this album, I'd surely shoose its poor printed information. Only a couple of photos and several lines of text. But this doen't demerit the recording in any manner.

When Al was fusion guitar.......2002-02-15

"Tour De Force Live" is a mini-best of Al Dimeola. The Band is a once in a lifetime lineup. Gadd(Drums), Hammer(Keyboards),Jackson(Bass)and Mingo(Percussion) ensure that the perfection of the studio is kept in this live recording. One dissapointment is that, besides a litttle reggae in "Race With the Devil", there isn't any improvisation. Dimeola pretty much recreates his studio versions verbatim. I recommend that you get this disc as an introduction to Al's solo career(It was mine). This is an incredible live recording and if it wasn't for the crowd being heard at the end of tunes you would have no idea. Al delivers most of the goods in his playing and the compositions are original. Anyone that thinks that these are simplistic should try writing something like "Race With the Devil". The other dissapointment of this disc is no acoustic showcase. If you desire to hear all that Al is capable of then get "Elegant Gypsy". This disc is still a very good one.

Average customer rating:

Groovy
Pretty good
Music that's food for your ears!
Buy this album
Old School Meets New

Influence
Sister Machine Gun
Manufacturer: Positron! Records
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Alternative Rock | Styles | Music

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sistermachinegun: 6.0
Revolution
sistermachinegun: 6.6 Machine
To Hell With You
Transient 5.2

ASIN: B000127SLQ
Release Date: 2003-11-28

Tracks:

To Hell With You
Another One Down
Influence
Clean
The Death Of Me
Everything Else
Motivator
Entropy
Everybody
Denial
Antagonizer Prelude
The Antagonizer

Album Description

Sister Machine Gun's seventh full-length album is a tour-de-force of electronic rock that recalls the industrial sound of the late eighties and early nineties. Heavy beats, distorted guitars and pounding synth lines drag your favorite sounds, kicking and screaming into the future!

Customer Reviews:

Groovy.......2004-10-04

Sister Machine Gun has effectively carved out a cozy niche for itself and their latest release Influence does nothing but carry on the winning account. Some of the sound design seems a bit out of date but that scarcely deters from the fact that Chris Randall is one of the best songwriters in the Industrial Hard Rock genre. Randall's hooks and melodies are seldom matched in the field while his panache for powerful downbeats and dance grooves should never be over-looked either. Sister Machine Gun feeds the fire.

By: C. Curry

Pretty good.......2004-04-29

i'll make this short.. Sister machine gun attempts to recreate that 90's industrial feel and for the most part they succeed. although there is a couple tracks that bore me.. for the most part this is as good as it gets aside from those original songs back in the day. highly reccomended if you're an industrial fan.

Music that's food for your ears!.......2004-01-19

Sister Machine Gun has been one of those bands that never disappoint, whether you see them live, or pick up their cd.

This newest CD from the Chicago band has all the elements of their roots, and aims to please the listener, and I am more than pleased with the results.

I have watched this group expand their horizons to grab new fans and also to grab your attention the second the first song off this cd starts, "To Hell With You" all the way through to the last one, "The Antagonizer". It's all non-stop. I find it difficult to listen to this without getting my body into the groove, can you?

From singer and musician, Chris Randall's sensual voice , to Miguel Turanzas, wow, now THIS is SMG. This cd will definitely make you want more.

You're always welcomed at http://www.sistermachinegun.com. Don't be shy, stop by sometime.

Buy this album.......2003-12-25

Do yourself a favor and pick up this CD. Sister Machine Gun goes back to it's roots on Influence and the results are a CD that sounds like Wax Trax era industrial updated for the new millennium.

Old School Meets New.......2003-12-24

It's SMG's most danceable release since Transient 5.2 - it has everything I ever loved about electro-industrial, irradiated with enough creativity to keep it from ever getting stale. Chris Randall and Miguel Turanzas have done the seemingly impossible - they combined everything the band has ever been into one package. It has taken my CD player hostage, and I couldn't be happier.

Average customer rating:

tremendously under-rated.
awesome!
Overall...quite a nice disc
Hot! Definitly A Must Have!
Dancing on the floor

Mobius
QED
Manufacturer: Siren
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Dance & DJ | Styles | Music

Electronica | Dance & DJ | Styles | Music

General | Dance Pop | Dance & DJ | Styles | Music
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Greatest Hits
Rain
Closer
Be My World
And She Said

ASIN: B0000EMY8Y
Release Date: 2003-11-18

Tracks:

Love Bites
Hardly a Day
So It Is (Kiss the Dream)
Islands
Alone
Dark Side of Your Heart
Unaware
Running Away
Vampyre (Prelude)
Vampyre (Soul)
Vampyre (Body)
Epilogue (Hardly a Day Part 1)
Love Bites (Ean Sugarman Remix)

Customer Reviews:

tremendously under-rated........2007-07-08

this is a great album that has many great songs. the music is awesome too. it is sad that this duo has not recieved the attention they deserve. very talented!!! they both sing and have beautiful voices.

all the songs are good, seriously. my favorites are dark side of your heart, alone, islands, hardly a day.

awesome!.......2007-02-13

This cd is awesome! Kristine is one of my new favorite vocalists. Thank you!

Overall...quite a nice disc.......2004-06-29

I had heard QED's version of "Love Bites" sometime last year, and honestly didn't think much of it back then, and still don't now, really (however, the Ean Sugarman Mix, also on here, is a bit better). QED's original version is ok, but not the reason I'd buy the disc. However, I had heard "Hardly a Day" the other night on a dance music run on the radio and was completely "Wow"ed by it. It's a great song, and although the version on this disc isn't the club version I heard, it still gives one a pretty good taste of what the club version sounds like. The club version's just a little meatier and longer (and I will be getting that, too).

I honestly wasn't expecting much from the rest of the disc, but I was quite surprised at how good the disc is overall. Instead of a really cheesy dance pop (i.e. - DJ Sammy...awful!!!), QED has a pretty good ear for music. There is some borderline cheese on it (to appease to the mainstream masses I imagine), but there is some nice stuff on here:

"Unaware" is a nice sharp sounding tune. Good bassline, and Kristine Hendricks' vocals shine here very nicely. My guess is this will be the next club hit for QED after "Hardly a Day".

"Dark Side of Your Heart"; for a balladish type song on a dance album, it's quite listenable. It's much better than "So It Is", another ballad on the disc, which is one of the "borderline cheese" songs on this disc...uh, make that "cheese", and really should be on a Backstreet Boys album instead.

"Vampyre" almost has the feel of an epic song, as it's broken into three parts (Prelude, Soul and Body), starting off with some nice piano, then suddenly blasting off with a fast beat, nice bassline, "opera"ish vocals from Ms. Hendricks, tribal drums, chants and so forth. It's quite well done and best listened to as one whole piece. (Soul is my favorite section of it).

"Epilogue (Hardly a Day, Pt. 1)" almost feels like it should be on another album. It's really more of a rocker than a dance tune, but I can appreciate Valentin (the other 1/2 of QED) putting it on anyway because it is different from the rest of the disc and to indicate his interest in music overall.

The other tracks, "Islands", "Alone" and "Running Away" are listenable, but don't really do anything for me at the moment, and for me, border on the cheese factor just a bit.

However, overall, I quite like this. It somewhat reminds me of KLF's "White Room" album or Chicane's first CD, as Valentin has tried something a little different here and there, not just loading it with cheese pop. Recommended.

Hot! Definitly A Must Have!.......2004-03-25

I've been looking for their CD and finally found it. I loved their remix version of Love Bites and this CD has another version as well. Their sound is upbeat and I really love listening to this CD.

Dancing on the floor.......2004-02-16

I Listen to QED Love Bites on the Big Ass Battle last week.

Average customer rating:

rough sounding, but charming and well played
Best quality songs
Good Listening
Stunning fingerwork
Early Bola Sete w/ Primative Recording...

Tour de Force
The Bola Sete Trios
Manufacturer: Fantasy
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

Brazil | South & Central America | International | Styles | Music

General | Jazz | Styles | Music

Latin Jazz | Jazz | Styles | Music

Bossa Nova | Latin Music | Styles | Music
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Bola Sete at the Monterey Jazz Festival
Ocean Memories
From All Sides
Voodoo Village
Orphans [Fold-out Digipak with 24-page booklet]

ASIN: B00000DTTY
Release Date: 2001-08-28

Tracks:

Up The Creek (To De Sinuca)
My Different World (Meu Mundo Diferente)
Dilema (Dilema)
Sweet Thing (Piteuzinho)
If You Return (Se Acaso Voce Chegasse)
Samba Do Perroquet
Manha De Carnaval
Brazilian Bossa Galore (Muita Bossa Brasileira)
You're The Reason (Por Causa De Voce)
Wagging Along (Gingadinho)
Ash Wednesday (Agora E Cinzas)
Without You (Sem Voce)
Baccara (Baccarat)
Moon River
Mambeando
Ceu E Mar (Sky And Sea)
Asturias
Samba De Orfeu
Sad Note (Nota Triste)
Tour De Force
A Noite Do Meu Bem (Night Of My Love)
Bourree

Customer Reviews:

rough sounding, but charming and well played.......2007-04-02

I'm not going to wax poetic about how great a guitarist he is, because it's already been said well enough...I'll just affirm that he is amazing! Anyway, if you want to explore Bola Sete's music, this is a great disc to get. His later material is a lot more polished in the recording department, but this CD is just a blast to listen to. Fun and great musicianship are not always found together, but they are here and this disc will always be one of my favorites.

Best quality songs.......2007-01-19

A really refined guitar player. A great album to the most demanding listener. I'm so sorry that just a few people know Bola Sete in Brazil his own country. I can tell since I'm brazilian and it is impossible to find his legacy here.

Good Listening.......2004-01-14

This is my first and only Bola Sete CD. The songs start off with some heavy percussion which is a little too much but then the songs start to balance out by about the 8th song and by the end it's just guitar and it's beautiful stuff. I like it because there's a lot of songs on it and a variety of styles as well.

Stunning fingerwork.......2003-01-02

I'm new to Bola Sete. This is the only music of his that I have heard. The music is masterful, I'm anxious to hear more and so I've ordered Ocean Memories. In describing his sound I would certainly say bossa nova although that is a simplification. He wowed them at the Monterray Jazz Festival in 1962, its understandable. Listening to it feels like your listening to a backstage jam session by a band about to go out and play Girl from Ipanema for the thousandth time, or perhaps it feels like ordering from the Chinese menu instead of the one they give out to Americans at a Chinese restaurant. In other words, while Getz/Giberto and Jazz Samba are brilliant, they brought bossa nova to the mainstream and thus in someway dumbed down the music for mass conumption (witness the dozens of syruppy orchestral accompaniments to later bossa nova albums). Bola Sete never joined that crowd. He stayed behind (not literally, he was in America before the bossa nova craze even hit) composing and arranging 2 brilliant albums presented here. It includes originals, Brazilian songs, Flamenco, even Motzart and Mancini. Sete never was swept into the 60's Bossa Nova mainstream and never left his Brazilian roots.

Early Bola Sete w/ Primative Recording..........2002-03-12

The playing is very good & the recording was primative on these early '60s recordings of master Brazilian guitarist Bola Sete... BUT this collection is much more traditional Brazilian guitar [a la Baden Powell]& not the full-blown genius that is exhibited on Ocean Memories... Bola definitely matured into an amazing solo guitarist after these recordings were made & had a better studio 'n' effects to help him create an unmatched acoustic sonic environment later w/ "Ocean Memories" [his masterpiece recordings]... still, despite the poor sound quality 'n' percussion-heavy mixes, this is still a great acoustic Brazilian guitar CD for fans of such music... BUT i'd recommend "Ocean Memories" to those who want to hear the best of Bola Sete !!!!

Average customer rating:

Jazz Standards With Originality, Richness and Feeling

The Darkling Thrush
Sasha Dobson , and Chris Byars Octet
Manufacturer: Smalls Records
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Jazz | Styles | Music

Vocal Jazz General | Vocal Jazz | Jazz | Styles | Music

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Modern Romance
Introducing Sasha Dobson
Half the Perfect World
Easy To Love
Blues in the Night

ASIN: B00066VU52
Release Date: 2004-11-16

Tracks:

Who Will Buy?
You Go To My Head
Goodbye
Queit Nights
What Is This Thing Called Love?
Guess I'll Hang My Tears OUt To Drive
Detour Ahead
I'm Beginning To See The Light
Sophisticated Lady
I'll Get By
If You Could See Me Now
April In Paris
The Song Is You

Customer Reviews:

Jazz Standards With Originality, Richness and Feeling .......2005-01-05

Sasha Dobson sings jazz standards with precision and feeling. The richness of her voice is complimented by the Chris Byers Octet, which sounds like more than 8 musicians yet does not overwhelm Ms. Dobson. The originality of some of the "improvisations" make these standards, like "What Is This Thing Called Love?" and "April in Paris" absolutely wonderful to listen to.

Laurel Zucker-Inflorescence-Music for Solo Flute

Average customer rating:

GREAT CD.

Laurel Zucker-Inflorescence-Music for Solo Flute

Manufacturer: Cantilena Records
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

Classical | Indie Music | Stores | Music

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Laurel Zucker -Inflorescence II -Music for Solo flute

ASIN: B000093SSC
Release Date: 2000-12-01

Tracks:

Ibert Piece for flute
Lowell Liebermann Soliloquy for Solo flute
Robert Muczynski Three Preludes for Unaccompanied flute, Op. 18
Andante molto
Allegro molto
Jindrich Feld -Quatre Pieces for Flute
Caprice
Intermede
Burlesque
Laurel Zucker -Homage
Laurel Zucker Lookout
Zucker Piece
Arthur Honegger -Danse de la Chevre
Paul Hindemith Eight Pieces for Flute Solo
#2
#3
#4
#5
#6
#7
#8
Jean Francaix -Suite for Flute seule
Pavanne
Saltarelle
Allemande
Menuet
Marche
Kuhlau -Divertissement No. 1, Opus 68
Kuhlau -Divertissement No. 1, Opus 68
Kulau -divertissement No. 2, Opus 68
Kuhlau Divertissement, opus 2

Tracks:

Toru Takemitsu -Air for flute
Alan Hovhaness Sonata for Flute solo,Opus 118
Allegro
Adagio
Kazuo Fukushima Requiem for solo flute
Fukushima Mei for flute alone
Ulysses Kay -Prelude for Unaccompanied Flute
Virgil Thomson -Sonata for Flute alone
Adagio
Vivace
Stephen Blumberg -Inflorescence
Carl Nielsen -the Children Are Playing for flute
Edgard Varese -Density 21.5 for solo flute
Kuhlau Divertissement No. 3, Op. 68
Kuhlau Divertissement No. 4, opus 68
Kuhlau Divertissement No. 5, op. 68
Kuhlau -Divertissement No. 5
Kuhlau Divertissement No. 6, Op. 68

Album Description

A tour de force of Solo flute music played beautifully by flute soloist , Laurel Zucker

Customer Reviews:

GREAT CD........2003-04-09

A beautiful interpretation of the flute sonatas by J.S. Bach.

Average customer rating:

Tour de force?
Rollins' farewell to Prestige
Forceful Playing on "Tour De Force"

Tour de Force
Sonny Rollins
Manufacturer: Ojc
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

Bebop General | Bebop | Jazz | Styles | Music

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Rollins Plays for Bird
Work Time
Sonny Rollins, Vol. 1
Moving Out
Sonny Rollins and the Contemporary Leaders

ASIN: B000000Y5O
Release Date: 1991-07-01

Tracks:

Ee-Ah
B. Quick
Two Different Worlds
B. Swift
My Ideal
Sonny Boy (Bonus Track)

Customer Reviews:

Tour de force? .......2007-05-03

This 1956 session for Prestige offers an interesting peek at the earlier recording career of this legend of the tenor saxophone. While listeners tuning in to this album will not do so in vain, certain aspects of it do leave some things to be desired. The singing of Earl Coleman is somewhat cumbersome on both "My Ideal" and "Two Different Worlds", and the album would have done well to exclude Mr. Coleman from this release.

Max Roach does stand out on this recording, though the original master takes didn't pick up his drum solos very well. "B. Quick" and "B. Swift" are romping numbers that really save this album from falling into obscurity, featuring intense interactions between the members. The remastering which was done in 1989 is not up to our standard today, and so the sound quality is not all that it should be. This is an album worth adding to your collections, though it is not essential.

Personnel:

Sonny Rollins (tenor saxophone)
Kenny Drew (piano)
George Morrow (bass)
Max Roach (drums)
Earl Coleman (vocals on #2 and #5)

Recording date: December 7, 1956
Label: Prestige
Digital remastering in 1989 by Joe Tarantino of Fantasy Studios, Berkeley
Total time: 42 minutes

Rollins' farewell to Prestige.......2002-07-21

Sonny Rollins recorded a lot for Prestige in the 1950s, the central body of work being the six albums recorded from December 1955 (_Worktime_) to December 1956 (_Tour de Force_/_Sonny Boy_). By consensus the greatest achievements among these albums are the remarkable _Saxophone Colossus_ & _Tenor Madness_. _Tour de Force_, the last of the albums, is a less compelling listen, perhaps, but is of equal importance. Rollins' impatience & restlessness are audible: this is in the strict sense an "experimental" record, trying out different things in the studio in a way that is fascinating though rather uncomfortable to listen to.

Like the preceding date, _Rollins Plays for Bird_, this album is preoccupied with Charlie Parker's legacy, mere months after Parker's death. This gives the album a strange edginess. On the one hand there's "B. Swift" & "B. Quick", themeless improvisations on "Lover" & "Cherokee" on which Rollins & Roach decided to play as fast as possible. The results are interesting though not exactly swinging--arguably such tempos make more sense in free jazz than they can here (& indeed Rollins's lines can disconcertingly resemble Evan Parker on these tracks). These sit oddly with two ballads sung by Earl Coleman, a Billy Eckstineish singer now almost exclusively remembered for cutting "Dark Shadows" & "This Is Always" with Parker. Prestige later repackaged this album with the outtake "Sonny Boy" & another track from _Plays for Bird_, "The House I Live In", dropping the vocal tracks, under the title _Sonny Boy_, & perhaps they were right: the juxtaposition is mostly rather odd instead of effective. "Ee-Ah" is an unusual rhythmically off-kilter blues.

In many ways a very impressive album, I nonetheless find _Tour de Force_ hard to warm to. Certainly worth a listen, but I would more strongly recommend _Worktime_, _Saxophone Colossus_ & _Tenor Madness_.

Forceful Playing on "Tour De Force".......2000-08-25

"Tour De Force" finds Sonny Rollins playing some of his fastest and most forceful tenor saxophone. It is no surprise that Sonny is joined once again on the kit by Max Roach (with Kenny Drew and George Morrow also in the band), because few drummers could keep this pace going on the album's smokers, the aptly named "B. Swift," "B. Quick," and "Ee-ah," and the only slightly slower (normal hard bop speed) "Sonny Boy." "Tour" also features two tracks with vocals by Earl Coleman, the tender ballads "My Ideal" and "Two Different Worlds." While it's not "John Coltrane and Johnny Hartman" (even though this pre-dates 'Trane's session by five years), it's pretty good. However, the disparity between the "speed bop" and the ballads is so great, it causes "Tour De Force" to feel schizophrenic. There is great material here, but I only give it four stars because the album doesn't flow together very well.

Average customer rating:

An Appropriately Named Album Since........
Outstanding Mainstream Jazz

Tour De Force
Al Cohn w , and Scott Hamilton & Buddy Tate
Manufacturer: Concord Records
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

Bebop General | Bebop | Jazz | Styles | Music

Cool Jazz | Jazz | Styles | Music

General | Jazz | Styles | Music
ASIN: B0000006DU
Release Date: 1990-06-27

Tracks:

Blues Up And Down
Tickle Toe
Soft Winds
Stella By Starlight
Broadway
Do Nothin' Till You Hear From Me
Jumpin' At The Woodside
Bernie's Tune
Rifftide

Customer Reviews:

An Appropriately Named Album Since...............2006-07-29

it features some of the best tenor saxists around at that time (August 1981) in a live concert in Tokyo, Japan.

The experience of this threesome spanned some of the best of times in jazz from the thirties to the time of this recording. Buddy Tate was the elder statesman of the group (age 68) having taken over Herschel Evans chair in the Count Basie band back in 1939. Al Cohn, age 55, was an excellent tenor who started making his reputation while playing with Woody Herman's Second Herd (1948-1949). This was long before young Scott Hamilton, age 27, was born (1954). It's a credit to Scott's talent at this early age to be trading licks with these two veterans. Of course Scott's albums had already charted on Billboard's top jazz albums four times leaving no doubt as to his credentials.

The program is good solid mainstream material and these guys are clearly on top of their form. It's sometimes difficult to pick out the different solos on the faster pieces but the liner notes provide a great assist. At times, Scott and Buddy sound very similar......but Buddy seems to play with a little more force while Scott appears to me to be more fluid and breathier.........sort of like comparing a Ford and GM automatic transmission (I know that's a strange analogy). You can feel the shift points on the Ford product (Buddy) but the GM is much less noticeable (Scott). Doubtless because at this time one can hear the influence of Ben Webster in Scott's playing. Al Cohn, on the other hand, is more recognizable since although he was comparable to Zoot Sims , with whom he had played many times, his tone seems deeper and darker with maybe a slightly harder edge.

Besides chasing each other in solos in a half dozen of the selections, each of these gentlemen has his own spotlight feature, "Stella By Starlight" (Scott), "Do Nothin' Till You Hear From Me" (Al) and "Jumpin At The Woodside" (Buddy).

All of this is very capably supported by guitarist Cal Collins and a rhythm section comosed of Jake Hanna on drums, bassist Bob Maize, and Dave McKenna at the piano.

This should be appealing to anyone who likes great mainstream jazz, followers of these particular musicians, and most especially, fans of truly great tenor sax. A worthy addition to anyone's library!

Outstanding Mainstream Jazz.......1999-05-18

Just what one would expect from the caliber of these fine musicians. An energetic, live performance.

Average customer rating:

Tour de Force
Nick Brignola
Manufacturer: Reservoir Records
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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