Venus – The Amazing Super Audio CD Sampler Vol. 24: Jazz Standards, Stevie Wonder and Audiophile SACD Sound

“Beautiful Love” begins with the quiet confidence of a trio that understands how much history can be carried by a familiar melody. Pianist Jon Davis does not rush toward the improvisation or attempt to disguise the song beneath unnecessary complexity. Instead, the Jon Davis Trio allows Victor Young’s standard to enter the room naturally, supported by bass and drums that give the music warmth, movement and a convincing sense of physical presence.

It is an elegant opening to Venus – The Amazing Super Audio CD Sampler Vol. 24, a compilation built around the enduring appeal of melody. Released in Japan by Venus Records on September 19, 2018, the album appeared under catalogue number VHGD-315. The official edition contains 15 performances selected from Venus SACD releases VHGD-294 through VHGD-309, with the label describing it as a long-playing collection exceeding 84 minutes. MusicBrainz lists a running time of 1 hour, 21 minutes and 6 seconds.

The original Japanese release is a stereo single-layer SACD, created for playback on a compatible Super Audio CD player rather than a conventional CD-only machine. That audiophile format places The Amazing Super Audio CD Sampler Vol. 24 firmly within the specialist world of Japanese high-resolution jazz releases, but the music itself remains inviting and accessible.

By the time Venus Records reached the twenty-fourth volume of its sampler series, the format had become something more substantial than a promotional overview. Each album offered a carefully arranged passage through the label’s catalogue, bringing together piano trios, vocal jazz, saxophone-led performances, popular songs, Broadway standards and interpretations of classical themes.

Volume 24 continues that tradition, but it feels especially focused on the transformation of melody. Stevie Wonder sits beside George Gershwin. Cole Porter appears in both instrumental and vocal settings. Harold Arlen’s “Somewhere Over the Rainbow” shares space with an original Harold Mabern composition. Romantic piano, soul-influenced saxophone, Broadway songwriting and solo improvisation become part of the same extended jazz story.

After Jon Davis opens the album with “Beautiful Love,” saxophonist Brandon Fields turns to Stevie Wonder’s “My Cherie Amour.” The song is one of the most recognizable melodies in modern soul and popular music, yet its harmonic sophistication makes it a natural vehicle for jazz interpretation.

Fields does not attempt to imitate Wonder’s vocal performance. The saxophone assumes the melodic role, replacing lyrics with tone, breath and phrasing. The famous theme remains immediately recognizable, but the instrumental setting creates more room around it. Small rhythmic changes and improvised lines reveal details that can disappear inside the polished familiarity of the original hit.

The performance demonstrates why popular songwriting has always provided important material for jazz musicians. A strong melody can survive translation. It can lose its words, change its rhythm and enter a new harmonic environment without surrendering its emotional identity.

“My Cherie Amour” also adds another colour to the audiophile presentation. The saxophone is captured with presence and body, revealing both the warmth of the lower register and the sharper edge of its attack. The rhythm section remains clearly defined around it, allowing the listener to hear not just a soloist but an ensemble interacting in a shared acoustic space.

Nicki Parrott follows with “Summertime,” bringing the human voice into the programme. Gershwin’s aria has travelled through opera, blues, jazz, soul and popular music so often that every new interpretation faces the problem of familiarity. Parrott answers that challenge through intimacy.

Her performance does not attempt to compete with the largest or most dramatic versions of the song. Instead, she draws the listener closer. The voice is warm and carefully controlled, while the arrangement leaves enough room for the melody’s mixture of comfort and unease to emerge.

“Summertime” has always contained an emotional contradiction. Its words promise safety and ease, but its harmony suggests that life beyond the lullaby may be uncertain. Parrott’s restrained delivery preserves that tension.

For listeners drawn to audiophile vocal jazz, the recording offers a revealing test of midrange naturalness and centre imaging. Her voice should appear clearly between the loudspeakers without sounding detached from the musicians around her. Yet the technical quality matters most when it stops drawing attention to itself and allows the emotional closeness of the performance to take over.

John Di Martino’s Romantic Jazz Trio then enters with “The Nobleman’s Journey,” an interpretation connected to Franz Liszt’s Hungarian Rhapsody No. 1. The composition brings classical drama into the jazz-trio world, continuing Venus Records’ long-standing interest in transforming European concert music through swing, improvisation and modern harmony.

Di Martino treats the classical material as a source rather than a restriction. The piano preserves the grandeur and movement associated with Liszt, but the rhythm section opens the structure, allowing the music to breathe differently. What was originally conceived for the concert hall becomes a conversation among three musicians.

The track could easily have become a novelty, but the trio avoids that danger by taking the melody seriously. Classical themes are not inserted merely to surprise the listener. They are examined for their rhythmic and harmonic possibilities.

“The Nobleman’s Journey” also broadens the scale of the compilation. The first three tracks move through American jazz standards, Stevie Wonder and Gershwin. The fourth reaches into nineteenth-century European music. Yet the transition remains convincing because each selection depends on a memorable melodic centre.

Stefano Bollani Trio follows with Cole Porter’s “Just One of Those Things.” Bollani’s approach is naturally more unpredictable. He can move from elegance to playful disruption within a single phrase, and Porter’s sophisticated songwriting gives him an ideal structure to explore.

The song describes romance as something intense but temporary, and Bollani reflects that emotional instability through rhythm and harmonic surprise. The melody may begin in a familiar form, but the trio soon opens it into a more spontaneous conversation.

There is wit in the playing, but it is not superficial. Bollani understands the craft beneath Porter’s song. Every unexpected accent or harmonic detour grows from the original composition rather than being imposed upon it.

The rhythm section responds quickly to his shifts, creating the impression that the arrangement is being reconstructed in real time. The result is lively, intelligent and slightly restless, providing a contrast to the intimacy of Nicki Parrott and the formal sweep of John Di Martino.

“My Foolish Heart,” performed by Renato Sellani and Danilo Rea, brings two Italian pianists together for one of the album’s most reflective moments. Victor Young’s ballad has long been associated with romantic vulnerability, and the meeting of two pianos creates a setting in which melody and harmony can be viewed from multiple directions.

A double-piano performance requires discipline. Without careful listening, the instruments can crowd one another and produce unnecessary density. Sellani and Rea avoid that problem through restraint. One pianist may carry the melody while the other responds with harmonic colour, countermelody or a subtle rhythmic idea.

The effect is conversational. The two instruments do not compete for attention. They appear to remember the song together.

The recording also creates a wide stereo image, allowing the listener to distinguish the personalities of the two pianos. Differences in attack, touch and phrasing become part of the emotional narrative. “My Foolish Heart” is no longer simply a standard about romantic uncertainty. It becomes a dialogue between two experienced musical voices.

Harold Mabern Trio’s “Somewhere Over the Rainbow” changes the weight of the piano immediately. Mabern’s touch is stronger, more deeply connected to blues, gospel and hard bop. Yet beneath that force lies a remarkable gift for melody.

Harold Arlen’s song has often been treated as a symbol of innocence and hope. Mabern does not reject that meaning, but he gives it greater gravity. The famous theme emerges through broad chords and rhythmic authority, sounding less like a childhood dream and more like a hard-won statement of belief.

The rhythm section supports him with strength without overpowering the melody. Bass and drums create a solid foundation beneath the piano, allowing the performance to expand dynamically.

On a high-end stereo system, the track can reveal whether a piano is reproduced with convincing scale. Mabern’s chords need weight and impact, but they must also retain harmonic complexity. A system that presents only force will miss the warmth and colour inside his playing.

David Hazeltine Trio’s “In Between the Heartaches” turns toward the writing of Burt Bacharach. The title itself suggests an emotional space rarely explored directly: not the moment of heartbreak, but the uncertain period between one loss and another.

Bacharach’s compositions often contain unusual harmonic movement beneath their accessible melodies. Hazeltine understands that sophistication and brings it naturally into the jazz-trio setting.

The piano introduces the theme clearly, then begins to examine the spaces inside it. The trio does not need to radically reconstruct the song. Its possibilities already exist within the changes.

Hazeltine’s interpretation balances modern jazz intelligence with respect for melody. The bass remains active and responsive, while the drums guide the performance through subtle changes in energy. The result is thoughtful without becoming distant.

The Super Trio follows with “Marta,” an original composition credited to Massimo Farao’. Here the compilation steps away from familiar standards and allows the musicians to define their own melodic world.

The title suggests a personal dedication, and the performance has the quality of a musical portrait. The piano introduces a lyrical theme, but the trio gives it enough rhythmic strength to prevent the music from becoming overly sentimental.

Original compositions are important within a sampler dominated by recognizable songs. They remind the listener that the Venus Records catalogue was not built solely on reinterpretation. Its musicians also brought their own stories, harmonies and memories into the studio.

“Marta” feels connected to the rest of Volume 24 because it shares the album’s commitment to melody. Even without a famous title or established history, the tune communicates directly.

Harold Mabern returns with “Edward Lee,” his own composition and one of the most personal selections on the album. The track reveals another side of the pianist. “Somewhere Over the Rainbow” required him to enter the emotional world of an established standard. “Edward Lee” allows him to speak through his own musical language.

The composition carries the strength and directness associated with Mabern’s playing. Blues and gospel remain close to the surface, while the trio moves with the authority of musicians deeply rooted in the hard-bop tradition.

His piano chords arrive with a physical sense of purpose. The bass reinforces the harmonic movement, and the drums add momentum without making the performance feel rushed.

The placement of two Mabern tracks within the compilation is revealing. Together, they show how an individual jazz voice can remain recognizable across very different material. Whether interpreting Harold Arlen or playing an original composition, Mabern’s musical identity remains unmistakable.

Ted Rosenthal Trio’s “My Lord and Master” returns the programme to Broadway. Written by Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II for The King and I, the song carries a formal, theatrical quality that Rosenthal reshapes through jazz phrasing.

The melody has dignity and emotional restraint, and the trio preserves both. Rosenthal does not attempt to make the song sound aggressively modern. He brings it into the jazz tradition through harmony, touch and rhythmic flexibility.

The piano remains lyrical, while the bass and drums allow the song to move beyond its theatrical origins. The trio finds improvisational space without losing the composition’s narrative shape.

This is one of the recurring achievements of The Amazing Super Audio CD Sampler Vol. 24. Broadway, popular music and classical material are not treated as separate worlds. They become connected through the musicians’ ability to hear improvisational possibilities inside a memorable melody.

Russian vocalist Alexandra Shakina performs Cole Porter’s “Get Out of Town,” introducing a cooler, more direct vocal personality. The song carries both elegance and emotional confrontation. Its narrator asks a lover to leave precisely because the attraction has become too dangerous.

Shakina’s interpretation respects that tension. Her delivery is controlled, but there is an edge beneath the polish. She does not turn the song into a dramatic outburst. The warning emerges through timing, emphasis and tonal colour.

The arrangement maintains a sophisticated late-night atmosphere. The musicians support her without softening the lyric’s emotional conflict.

Her voice is captured with the close presence associated with Venus Records vocal sessions. Breath and articulation remain audible, but the performance never sounds clinically exposed. The goal is not simply to reveal detail. It is to make the singer’s emotional position feel immediate.

Massimo Farao’ then performs “Autumn Leaves” alone at the piano. After the full ensembles and vocal performances heard earlier, the solo setting creates a sudden sense of space.

Few jazz standards are as familiar as Joseph Kosma’s “Autumn Leaves.” Its descending harmonic movement has been used by generations of musicians as a foundation for improvisation. In a solo-piano performance, however, every element must be created by one person. Melody, harmony, bass movement, rhythm and dynamics all emerge from the same instrument.

Farao’ approaches the song with confidence, using the full range of the piano while preserving the melancholy at its centre. The absence of bass and drums gives him greater freedom, but it also leaves every musical decision exposed.

The recording captures the mechanical and resonant character of the instrument. The listener can hear the attack of the hammers, the weight of the lower register and the gradual decay of sustained chords. Yet once again, the technical detail serves a familiar emotional image: leaves falling, seasons changing and time moving forward.

The Dezron Douglas Trio follows with “Walkin’ My Baby Back Home,” shifting the focus from piano to bass-led jazz. The song, written by Roy Turk and Fred E. Ahlert, carries the relaxed charm of an earlier popular era.

Douglas gives the double bass a central narrative role. Its sound is warm, rounded and rhythmically secure. Instead of remaining beneath the melody, the instrument helps lead the performance.

The trio treats the song with affection but avoids turning it into nostalgia. The rhythm remains flexible, and the arrangement gives each musician room to respond.

For audiophile listeners, the track provides a revealing examination of bass reproduction. The double bass should have depth and body, but individual notes must remain clear. The sound of fingers against strings and the resonance of the instrument’s wooden body should be audible without artificial enlargement.

More importantly, the performance swings gently. Its appeal lies not in sonic spectacle but in the easy communication among the musicians.

Sayaka Tsuruta closes the album with “So in Love,” returning to Cole Porter and bringing the compilation full circle through vocal jazz. Supported by the Ted Rosenthal Trio and featuring Ken Peplowski, Tsuruta approaches the song with a sophisticated late-night mood.

“So in Love” is one of Porter’s most intense romantic compositions. Its language describes devotion, but the harmony suggests obsession and danger. Tsuruta preserves that complexity.

Her vocal performance is poised and intimate. She does not need to raise the emotional temperature through volume. The tension exists inside the melody and lyric.

Peplowski’s clarinet or tenor voice adds another layer of romantic colour, while Rosenthal’s trio surrounds the singer with polished but responsive accompaniment. The musicians do not merely support the vocal; they answer it, giving the performance the character of an ensemble conversation.

As the final track, “So in Love” is an inspired choice. Volume 24 begins with “Beautiful Love” and ends in a state of complete romantic surrender. Between those two titles lies a journey through hope, heartbreak, memory, popular song, Broadway, soul and classical transformation.

The official sequence comprises “Beautiful Love” by the Jon Davis Trio, “My Cherie Amour” by Brandon Fields, “Summertime” by Nicki Parrott, “The Nobleman’s Journey” by John Di Martino’s Romantic Jazz Trio, “Just One of Those Things” by the Stefano Bollani Trio, “My Foolish Heart” by Renato Sellani and Danilo Rea, “Somewhere Over the Rainbow” and “Edward Lee” by the Harold Mabern Trio, “In Between the Heartaches” by the David Hazeltine Trio, “Marta” by the Super Trio, “My Lord and Master” by the Ted Rosenthal Trio, “Get Out of Town” by Alexandra Shakina, “Autumn Leaves” by Massimo Farao’ on solo piano, “Walkin’ My Baby Back Home” by the Dezron Douglas Trio and “So in Love” by Sayaka Tsuruta.

As an audiophile jazz SACD, Venus – The Amazing Super Audio CD Sampler Vol. 24 offers a wide range of material for testing a high-end audio system. Piano appears in trio, double-piano and solo settings. Male and female voices reveal midrange clarity. Saxophone and clarinet expose tonal balance in the upper registers. The Dezron Douglas Trio examines bass definition, while the larger, more energetic piano performances test dynamic scale and control.

Yet the album’s value cannot be reduced to stereo evaluation. Its strongest quality is the way it transforms separate recordings into a coherent narrative.

The compilation repeatedly asks what happens when a melody leaves its original setting. Stevie Wonder becomes instrumental jazz. Gershwin becomes intimate vocal music. Liszt enters the piano trio. Broadway songs move away from the stage, and a familiar seasonal standard becomes a private solo-piano meditation.

Jazz provides the connecting language, but individuality provides the meaning. Jon Davis, Harold Mabern, Stefano Bollani and Massimo Farao’ all approach the piano differently. Nicki Parrott, Alexandra Shakina and Sayaka Tsuruta bring contrasting vocal personalities. Brandon Fields and Dezron Douglas reveal how saxophone and bass can take responsibility for a song’s melodic story.

For collectors of Japanese SACD releases, Volume 24 represents another substantial chapter in the Venus Records catalogue. Its stereo single-layer format, extended running time and carefully selected programme place it firmly within the tradition of specialist audiophile jazz compilations.

For newcomers, it offers an accessible introduction to the Venus sound: close, warm and vivid, with particular attention paid to the physical presence of piano, voice and acoustic instruments.

But the word “sampler” still fails to describe the complete experience. The tracks may have originated on separate albums, yet the sequence has its own rhythm and emotional direction.

It begins with the promise of “Beautiful Love.” It passes through soul, summer, foolish hearts, distant rainbows and heartaches. It remembers autumn, walks a lover home and finally arrives at “So in Love.”

When Sayaka Tsuruta’s final phrase fades, the album leaves behind more than an impression of high-resolution sound. It leaves a chain of melodies connected across decades and musical traditions.

That is the enduring achievement of Venus – The Amazing Super Audio CD Sampler Vol. 24. It is a Japanese audiophile SACD created to showcase exceptional jazz recording, but it also tells a larger story about why songs survive. They survive because musicians continue to enter them, question them and make them personal.

The technology brings the performances closer. The melodies make them unforgettable.