MAX ROACH / ABBEY LINCOLN - Love for Sale (1999) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

Tracklist :
1     Sophisticated Lady 6:11
Written-By – Ellington, Mills     
2     Jordu 6:35
Written-By – Duke Jordan
3     Love for Sale 3:59
Written-By – Cole Porter
4     Long as You're Living 5:31
Written-By – Priester, Brown, Turrentine
5     Who Will Buy? 2:38
Written-By – Lionel Bart
6     Mop Mop 5:12
Written-By – Dalmerius, Williams    
7     Ceciliana 6:21
Written-By – Max Roach
8     This Night Mountain 13:11
Written-By – Max Roach
Credits :
Bass – Eddie Kahn
Drums – Max Roach
Piano – Coleridge T. Perkins
Tenor Saxophone – Clifford Jordan
Vocals – Abbey Lincoln

ABBEY LINCOLN / HANK JONES - When There Is Love (1993) FLAC (image+.cue), lossless

This CD is a change of pace for Abbey Lincoln. She interprets ten standards (plus four of her originals), all love songs performed as duets with pianist Hank Jones. Although there is some social comentary, the emphasis is on male-female relationships and Lincoln sounds more optimistic than usual. Among the more memorable selections are Duke Ellington's "Black Butterfly," "The Nearness of You," "You Came a Long Way from St. Louis," Fats Waller's "Jitterbug Waltz" and "You Won't Forget Me." by Scott Yanow
Tracklist :
1     A Part of Me/There Are Such Things 4:36
Stanley Adams / Abel Baer / Abbey Lincoln / George W. Meyer
2     When There Is Love 4:43
Abbey Lincoln
3     Balck Butterfly 3:27
Ben Carruthers / Duke Ellington / Irving Mills
4     Angel Face 5:37
Hank Jones / Abbey Lincoln
5     The Nearness of You 5:39
Hoagy Carmichael / Ned Washington
6     Can't Help Singing 2:32
E.Y. "Yip" Harburg / Jerome Kern
7     Close Your Eyes 3:07
Bernice Petkere
8     I Should Care 5:45
Sammy Cahn / Axel Stordahl / Paul Weston
9     You Came a Long Way from St. Louis 3:56
John Benson Brooks / Bob Russell
10     C'est Si Bon 5:44
Henri Betti / André Hornez
11     The Jitterbug Waltz 3:16
Richard Maltby, Jr. / Fats Waller
12     Time After Time 4:34
Sammy Cahn / Jule Styne
13     You Won't Forget Me 5:14
Kermit Goell / Fred Spielman
14     First Came a Woman 5:40
Abbey Lincoln
Credits :
Piano – Hank Jones
Vocals – Abbey Lincoln

ABBEY LINCOLN + ARCHIE SHEPP - Painted Lady (1987-2007) FLAC (image+.cue), lossless

Abbey Lincoln was in her late fifties at the time of this 1987 session in Paris, but she was showing little wear on her voice, aside for a slightly more pronounced vibrato. Joining her for this session is Archie Shepp on soprano and tenor saxophones, trumpeter Roy Burrowes, pianist Hilton Ruiz, bassist Jack Gregg, and drummer Freddie Waits. The sparse liner notes give no background as to how this session or choice of musicians came about, and at times there is such an informal air that one would think that this was a run-through prior to a record date or concert. The extended workout of Duke Ellington's "Sophisticated Lady" lives up to its title, with Lincoln, Shepp (on soprano sax), Burrowes (on muted trumpet), and Ruiz shining in their respective solos. The vocalist interprets several several of her originals, though she comments to the musicians midway through "Golden Lady" that she thinks the tempo may be a bit too slow, while she also seems to stumble at one point. But she shines in her defiant "Throw It Away." Ruiz sets up Michel Legrand's "What Are You Doing the Rest of Your Life?" with a lush solo, and while this isn't the type of material one associates with Lincoln, she delivers a stunning, original interpretation. The release could have been improved in several ways. At times, the sound was overmodulated by the original session engineer, unnecessarily distorting Lincoln's voice and Shepp's saxes at times, while occasionally there is a bit too much reverb used on the leader's vocals. It's also puzzling not to see any composer/lyricist credits listed in the package or on the disc itself. by Ken Dryden  
Tracklist :
1    Sophisticated Lady    7:45
2    Golden Lady    9:30
3    Painted Lady On The Stage    5:15
4    Throw It Away    6:35
5    What Are You Doing The Rest Of Your Life    9:30
6    Caged Bird    6:15
Credits :
Atwork – Peter Kowald
Bass – Jack Gregg
Drums – Freddie Waits
Piano – Hilton Ruiz
Tenor Saxophone, Soprano Saxophone – Archie Shepp
Trumpet – Roy Burrowes
Vocals – Abbey Lincoln

ABBEY LINCOLN - Wholly Earth (1998) FLAC (image+.cue), lossless

Lincoln's place among the pantheon of great jazz singers is undisputed, but this recording finds her voice past its best years. The ravages of time have taken their toll, and the result is pleasant but not her best work. The drop in strength is especially evident in the opening duet with a much younger Maggie Brown. Still, the album has many fine moments, such as an easy swinging "If I Only Had a Brain" and the sweet original "And It's Supposed to Be Love." Her band is particularly fine, especially pianist Marc Cary and Bobby Hutcherson on vibes. by Tim Sheridan
Tracklist :
1     And It's Supposed to Be Love 5:12
Abbey Lincoln
2     Midnight Sun 8:23
Sonny Burke / Lionel Hampton / Johnny Mercer
3     Wholly Earth 6:01
Abbey Lincoln
4     Look to the Star 6:42
Abbey Lincoln
5     Another World 9:13
Abbey Lincoln
6     Conversation With a Baby 6:36
Abbey Lincoln
7     If I Only Had a Brain 5:33
Harold Arlen / E.Y. "Yip" Harburg
8     Another Time, Another Place 7:13
Benny Carter
9     Caged Bird 7:04
Abbey Lincoln
10     Learning How to Listen 6:32
Abbey Lincoln
Credits :
Bass – John Ormond (faixas: 2 to 8, 10), Michael Bowie (faixas: 1, 9)
Drums – Alvester Garnett
Flugelhorn – Nicholas Payton (faixas: 8)
Marimba – Bobby Hutcherson (faixas: 1)
Percussion – Daniel Moreno (faixas: 1, 3, 5, 6, 9)
Piano – James Hurt (faixas: 1, 9), Marc Cary (faixas: 2 to 8, 10)
Trumpet – Nicholas Payton (faixas: 4)
Vibraphone – Bobby Hutcherson (faixas: 2, 4, 8, 10)
Vibraphone, Marimba – Bobby Hutcherson (faixas: 5, 6, 9)
Vocals – Maggie Brown (faixas: 1, 9)
Vocals, Arranged By – Abbey Lincoln
Written-By – Abbey Lincoln (faixas: 1, 3 to 6, 9, 10)

ABBEY LINCOLN - It's Me (2003) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

In a return to the orchestrated settings that she had explored nearly a decade earlier on A Turtle's Dream, Lincoln performs a set rich in variety, with plenty of original tunes that more than hold their own amidst a scattering of classic standards. Whether working with or without strings, she maintains a sophisticated and intimate tunefulness; her adherence to melody, and to subtle phrasing as an alternative to showy improvisation, has always earned comparisons to the work of Billie Holiday, though in this case Lincoln more than matches and arguably surpasses much of the legendary singer's work. Her husky timbre, extraordinary sense of swing at any tempo, and sometimes surprising range make each of these tracks a masterwork of interpretation. Though she has always sought the best accompanists, Lincoln strikes gold here with Kenny Barron, who negotiates the complex melodic structure and chord changes of Cedar Walton's "The Maestro" as if he'd been playing it for years, while on the title track, a duet, he follows and leads her with a dignified medium-tempo gospel feel. Aside from the gimmicky flute chirps on "Yellow Bird," every moment of It's Me, down to the title itself, supports a clear answer to the question "Who is the outstanding jazz chanteuse of our time?" by Robert L. Doerschuk  
Tracklist :
1     Skylark 5:25
Hoagy Carmichael / Johnny Mercer
2     Love Is Made 4:02
Abbey Lincoln
3     Chateau de Joux 4:38
Abbey Lincoln
4     It's Me, O' Lord (Standin' in the Need of Prayer) 3:42
Abbey Lincoln / Traditional
5     They Call It Jazz 5:14
Abbey Lincoln
6     Through the Years 4:30
Abbey Lincoln
7     Runnin' Wild 3:52
Arthur Gibbs / Joe Grey / Leo Wood
8     The Maestro 5:25
Cedar Walton
9     The Search 5:31
10     Yellow Bird 4:45
Irving Burgie
11     Can You Dig It 5:39
Abbey Lincoln
Credits :
Alto Saxophone – James Spaulding (faixas: 5)
Bass – Ray Drummond
Conductor, Arranged By [Orchestra Arrangement] – Alan Broadbent (faixas: 2, 5, 9), Laurent Cugny (faixas: 1, 3, 6, 10)
Drums – Jaz Sawyer
Flute – James Spaulding (faixas: 6, 8 to 10)
Piano – Kenny Barron
Soprano Saxophone – Julien Lourau (faixas: 3)
Tenor Saxophone – Julien Lourau (faixas: 2, 6 to 8)
Vocals – Abbey Lincoln

ABBEY LINCOLN - Naturally (1973-2005) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

Tracklist :
1    You And Me Love    4:24
2    Natas - Playmate -    2:26
3    Dorian - The Man With The Magic -    4:31
4    Africa    7:06
5    People In Me    4:51
6    Living Room    4:51
7    Kohjoh-No-Tsuki    3:24
8    Naturally    4:36
Credits :
Bass – Kunimitsu Inaba
Congas – James Mtume (faixas: 1, 5)
Drums – Al Foster
Piano – Hiromasa Suzuki
Soprano Saxophone, Tenor Saxophone, Flute – Dave Liebman
Vocals – Abbey Lincoln

ABBEY LINCOLN - Abbey Sings Abbey (2007) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

Vocalist Abbey Lincoln's voice is the sound of the earth yearning for your soul. She is lust turned to wisdom. She is diva turned to soothsayer. In her mid-seventies at the time of this recording, Lincoln is the embodiment of a life lived as a performer and lover and now a storyteller through song. Abbey Sings Abbey finds the songstress revisiting a number of her own compositions from past albums. And while she remains a pre-eminent jazz singer, here she has surrounded herself with an eclectic and organic small group that imbues these tracks with a soft country-blues meets klezmer sound that rubs elegantly against Lincoln's burnished vocals. This is a beautifully raw and intimate album full of lament and the faint perfume of romance. As she sings on "Should've Been," "It's the sound of sorry/Looking yonder with regret. Sorry 'cause of what you got/And what you didn't get." These are enigmatic torch songs and playful blues, dark elegies and poignant ballads all featuring Lincoln's own devastatingly precise lyrics and melodies that hint at not just death and regret, but also a lingering passion for life. by Matt Collar
Tracklist :
1     Blue Monk 5:15
Abbey Lincoln / Thelonious Monk
2     Throw It Away 5:19
Abbey Lincoln
3     And It's Supposed to Be Love 4:47
Abbey Lincoln
4     Should've Been 5:28
Abbey Lincoln
5     The World Is Falling Down 3:41
Abbey Lincoln
6     Bird Alone 4:57
Abbey Lincoln
7     Down Here Below 6:33
Abbey Lincoln
8     The Music Is the Magic 3:54
Abbey Lincoln
9     Learning How to Listen 4:38
Abbey Lincoln
10     The Merry Dancer 6:30
Abbey Lincoln
11     Love Has Gone Away 4:41
Abbey Lincoln
12     Being Me 3:55
Abbey Lincoln
Credits :
Accordion – Gil Goldstein
Acoustic Guitar, Electric Guitar, Resonator Guitar [National], Steel Guitar, Mandolin – Larry Campbell
Arranged By [Cello, Accordion] – Gil Goldstein (faixas: 4, 7, 11)
Bass – Scott Colley
Cello – Dave Eggar
Drums – Shawn Pelton
Performer, Lyrics By – Abbey Lincoln

ABBEY LINCOLN - Abbey Sings Billie (2001) 2xCD / FLAC (image+.cue), lossless

Finally, the two halves of Abbey Lincoln's two-day, Billie Holiday tribute recording sessions are complete in one set. Originally issued separately, the November 1987 dates features Ms. Lincoln accompanied by drummer Mark Johnson, bassist Tarik Shah, Harold Vick on tenor, and pianist James Weidman. These are two of the singer's finest recordings and, if not groundbreaking, are certainly soul-stirring and aesthetically definitive. by Thom Jurek
Tracklist 1 :
1 What a Little Moonlight Can Do 3:18
Harry Woods
2 I Only Have Eyes for You 2:52
Al Dublin / Harry Warren
3 Gloomy Sunday 5:09
László Jávor / Steven Chino Lewis / Harry Warren
4 Crazy He Calls Me 4:26
Bob Russell / Carl Sigman
5 Strange Fruit 6:16
L. Allen
6 Lover Man 5:41
Ram Ramirez
7 These Foolish Things 4:41
Harry Link / Eric Maschwitz
8 I'll Be Seeing You 5:20
9 Soul Eyes 10:18
Mal Waldron
10 I'll Wind 9:02
Harold Arlen
Tracklist 2 :
1 Gimme a Pigfoot 7:02
Wesley Wilson
2 No More 7:00
Bob Russell
3 God Bless the Child 5:23
Billie Holiday / Arthur Herzog, Jr.
4 Don't Explain 6:23
Billie Holiday / Arthur Herzog, Jr.
5 For Heaven's Sake 5:30
Elise Bretton / Donald Meyer / Sherman Edwards & Donald Meyer
6 Please Don't Talk About Me (When I'm Gone) 3:21
Sidney Clare / Sam H. Stept
7 For All We Know 5:37
J. Fred Coots / Sam M. Lewis
Credits:
Bass – Tarik Shah
Drums – Mark Johnson
Piano – James Weidman
Tenor Saxophone – Harold Vick
Vocals – Abbey Lincoln

ABBEY LINCOLN - A Turtle´s Dream (1994) FLAC (image+.cue), lossless

Miss Abbey was on some other stuff when she crafted this CD. She is the voice of experience and wisdom. There is nothing superficial about "A Turtle's Dream". She wrote most of the songs, and though they would be impressive sung by anyone, she invests each lyric with staggering pathos and clarity. Standouts are "Being Me", "Throw It Away" and the devastating title song. I love "Avec Le Temps" and I can't speak French so I have no idea what she's singing but it sounds so wonderful. Apparently, this song is a much-recorded French-language standard and I've been advised by one of my snotty French friends that Abbey's French diction is very coarse, but even he loves her version of the song. Also, she does a particularly noteworthy version of "Nature Boy". A pleasant pop standard in the hands of the great Nat "King" Cole, this song has since invited a number of loopy, idiosyncratic interpretations, but again Abbey sticks to the lyric and comes up with a real winner. In creating the mood, Lincoln is aided enormously by stellar musicians, most notably Rodney Kendrick, Charlie Haden, Pat Metheny, Roy Hargrove, and Julien Lourau. web

Tracklist:

1. Throw It Away (Lincoln) 5:41

2.  A Turtle's Dream (Cugny, Lincoln) 6:28

3. Down Here Below (Lincoln) 8:48

4. Nature Boy (Ahbez) 5:04

5. Avec le Temps (Ferre) 5:38

6. Should've Been (Lincoln) 7:57

7. My Love Is You (Lincoln) 5:43

8. Storywise (Lincoln) 4:21

9. Hey, Lordy Mama (Lincoln, Simone) 7:13

10. Not to Worry (Lincoln) 5:46

11. Being Me (Lincoln) 6:17

Credits

Abbey Lincoln (vocals)

Julien Lourau (soprano & tenor saxophones)

Roy Hargrove (trumpet)

Pierre Blanchard, Vincent Pagliarin, Sandra Billingslea (violin)

Frederic Fymard (viola)

Anne-Gaelle Bisquay, Marc Gilet, John Robinson (cello)

Rodney Kendrick, Kenny Barron (piano)

Pat Metheny (acoustic & electric guitars)

Lucky Peterson (guitar, background vocals)

Christian McBride, Charlie Haden, Michael Bowie (bass)

Victor Lewis (drums)