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The protean Quincy Jones returned to the recording studio as a leader after a long stretch in Hollywood with this triumphantly contemporary big band album. He re-established himself firmly with his big band jazz base while casting a keen eye on the pop scene and the world of electric instruments (even Ray Brown is caught playing superb electric bass here). The diplomat also unveils his uncanny ability to attract some of the biggest names in jazz as sidemen(Freddie Hubbard, Roland Kirk, Hubert Laws, J.J. Johnson, Kai Winding, etc.), a quality that will be put to use again and again in the following decades. For jazz buffs, the long, dramatic title track from the then-raging musical Hair is the highlight; Hubbard positively sizzles on muted trumpet, and the brash Kirk blasts through the grooving rhythm section under heavy reverb. You also get Jones' classic, swaggering arrangement of Benny Golson's "Killer Joe" -- practically the definitive version -- and a rendition of Edwin Hawkins' freak hit "Oh Happy Day" that bursts with wit and sheer joy. This is one of the great peaks of Creed Taylor's A&M period, and it still sounds spectacular today. ~ Richard S. Ginell, All Music Guide
Sir Paul to blast off in space
In a live-music first, portion of McCartney concert in Anaheim Sunday to be broadcast to international space station with two astronauts aboard.
Sir Paul McCartney's got a ticket to ride...to outer space.
McCartney announced today on his Web site that two songs from his concert at Anaheim's Arrowhead Pond on Sunday will be broadcast to the international space station, making him the first musician to ever do so.
The linkup from the concert to the space station will occur shortly before 12:55 a.m. EST, just as the concert is nearing its end and just as NASA astronaut Bill McArthur and Russian cosmonaut Valery Tokarev are awaking to their 44th day in space.
The pair are in the midst of a six-month flight aboard the space station, 220 miles above Earth, while McCartney is nearing the end of his 11-week US tour in support of his latest album, Chaos and Creation in the Backyard.
The broadcast will include "English Tea" from Chaos and Creation in the Backyard, as well as the Beatles classic "Good Day Sunshine."
On August 9, the crew of the Space Shuttle Discovery awoke to the news of a good weather forecast allowing the shuttle to land. Mission Control relayed the news by playing "Good Day Sunshine" to the crew.
"I was extremely proud to find out that one of my songs was played for the crew of Discovery this summer," McCartney said on the site. "In our concert we hope to repay the favor."
McArthur and Tokarev are the 12th crew of the station, which is the size of an average three-bedroom house and has had a continuous human presence aboard for more than five years
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