| Links | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | 2001 | |||
| Recorded | 2000 | |||
| Studio | M & I Studios, New York City | |||
| Genre | Vocal jazz | |||
| Label | HighNote Records | |||
| Producer | Don Sickler | |||
| Mark Murphy chronology | ||||
| ||||
Links is a studio album by Mark Murphy.
Links is the 39th album by American jazz vocalist Mark Murphy. It was recorded in 2000 when Murphy was 68 years old and released by the HighNote label in the United States in 2001. It is his second release on HighNote. This album is a collection of standards and original songs.
Links was recorded at the end of 2000, the same year Murphy recorded and released The Latin Porter, with most of the same personnel from his prior release on HighNote records, Some Time Ago.
Don Sickler, who worked with Murphy on Some Time Ago , returned as producer for Murphy's second project with HighNote. Lee Musiker also returned as arranger and pianist, as did bassists Steve LaSpina and Sean Smith, drummer Winard Harper, saxophonist Allen Mezquida, and trumpeter Dave Ballou.
Murphy contributes an original composition, "Breathing", and the lyrics to three additional songs, one by bassist Sean Smith ("Taming of a Rose") and two by Alan Broadbent ("Don't Ask Why" and "Ode to the Road"). Murphy is joined by Paulo Braga on drums, Sérgio Brandão on bass, and Cidinho Teixeira on piano for his composition "Breathing". Memo Acevedo is featured on percussion. Tim Horner is the drummer on four tracks.
Bassist Sean Smith (on four tracks) worked frequently with Murphy. He wrote the songs "I'll Call You" and "Song for the Geese (Tema Para los Gansos)" with Murphy. [1] Bassist Steve LaSpina (on four tracks) previously recorded with Murphy on Beauty and the Beast and Kerouac, Then and Now . [2] Saxophonist Mezquida helped inspire Murphy to write the lyrics for "Song for the Geese" on Song for the Geese. Murphy heard Mezquida playing the melody of Sean Smith's song in a nightclub appearance with Smith's band. "I never forgot the way he played", Mark said in the liner notes to Some Time Ago. [3] Trumpeter Dave Ballou knew Murphy from a teaching job in Italy. [3] "I was amazed at how he played outside the song harmonically", said Murphy. [3] Ballou previously recorded with Roseanna Vitro and Steve LaSpina. [4]
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| The Penguin Guide to Jazz Recordings |   [5] |
Richard Cook and Brian Martin assign 4 qualified stars to Links in The Penguin Guide to Jazz Recordings. [5] (***(*), meaning, "An excellent record, with some exceptional music. Only kept out of the front rank by some minor reservations"). [5]
Scott Yanow includes Links in his list of Murphy's "other worthy recordings of the past 20 years" in his book The Jazz Singers: The Ultimate Guide. [6]
Murphy biographer Peter Jones included "In the Land of Oo-Bla-Dee" by Milt Orent and Mary Lou Williams on his list of "10 tracks by Mark Murphy I Can't Do Without". [7] He applauded the choice of songs on the album but found the scat singing on Alan Broadbent's "Ode to the Road" and "The Lady's in Love with You" (a hit for Glenn Miller) to be "ugly and intrusive". [8]
Empyrean Isles is the fourth studio album by American jazz pianist Herbie Hancock, released on Blue Note Records in November 1964. The album features Hancock alongside trumpeter Freddie Hubbard, bassist Ron Carter, and drummer Tony Williams.
Mark Howe Murphy was an American jazz singer based at various times in New York City, Los Angeles, London, and San Francisco. He recorded 51 albums under his own name during his lifetime and was principally known for his innovative vocal improvisations. He was the recipient of the 1996, 1997, 2000, and 2001 Down Beat magazine readers' jazz poll for Best Male Vocalist and was also nominated five times for the Grammy Award for Best Vocal Jazz Performance. He wrote lyrics to the jazz tunes "Stolen Moments" and "Red Clay".
Steven Frank LaSpina is an American jazz bassist who plays both upright and electric bass.
Hiram Winard Harper is an American jazz drummer.
The Art of the Song is an album by jazz bassist Charlie Haden and his Quartet West, released in 1999. It reached number ten on the Billboard Top Jazz Albums chart.
In Angel City is an album by the American jazz bassist Charlie Haden's Quartet West, recorded in 1988 and released on the Verve label.
Always Say Goodbye is an album by American jazz bassist Charlie Haden's Quartet West that was recorded in 1993 and released on the Verve label. The "intro" and the "ending" tracks feature excerpts from Hawks's masterpiece The Big Sleep.
Urban Griot is an album by Billy Taylor, featuring tracks recorded in 2000 and released by Soundpost Records.
Live at the Berlin Philharmonie is a 1970 live album by Dave Brubeck and his trio with Gerry Mulligan recorded at the Berlin Philharmonie. It was reissued in 1995 with several bonus tracks. The album peaked at 21 on the Billboard Top Jazz Charts.
Allen Mezquida is an illustrator and jazz saxophonist.
The Spirits Up Above is an album by trombonist Steve Turre recorded in 2004 and released on the HighNote label.
Edgewise is the eighth album led by jazz pianist and mathematician Rob Schneiderman, released on the Reservoir label in 2001.
Song for the Geese is a 1997 studio album by Mark Murphy.
Kerouac, Then and Now is a 1989 studio album by Mark Murphy.
Beauty and the Beast is a 1986 studio album by Mark Murphy.
Mark Murphy Sings Nat's Choice: The Nat "King" Cole Songbook, Volume Two is a studio album by Mark Murphy.
One for Junior is a 1991 studio album by Mark Murphy.
Some Time Ago is the 37th album by American jazz vocalist Mark Murphy. It was recorded in 1999 when Murphy was 68 years old and released by the HighNote Records label in the United States in 2000. The album is a collection of jazz bebop tunes and standards with Murphy backed by a jazz quintet.
Lucky to Be Me is a studio album by Mark Murphy.
Sean Smith is an American modern jazz double bassist and composer.
