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A landmark bit of indie funk from the 70s – one of the few records cut by Detroit keyboardist Eddie Russ, and easily the best! The album features Russ going to town on electric piano – working with a hip combo called The Mixed Bag, which features some wicked work on flute and soprano... read more

Sweet funky jazz from pianist Gene Russell – one of the hippest albums he ever recorded! Russell's a pianist with a wonderfully fluid touch – used here to near perfection in a small combo date that really stands out from most of his other albums – just the kind of effort we'd... read more

Some of the hippest sounds we've ever heard from pianist Gene Russell – an album that features heavy use of Fender Rhodes – and a soulful, solid, rhythmic core that comes from the basslines of Henry Franklin, guitar of Calvin Keys, and drums of Ndugu Chancler! The set's one of the... read more

A pair of modern moments from George Russell – back to back on a single CD! Stratusphunk is not "phunk", in the way you might think of "funk" – but an album that sets a whole new standard for modern jazz in the 60s – thanks to the fresh ideas of George Russell!... read more

A mindblowing moment on the Chicago avant scene of the 80s – a key flowering of the talents of Hal Russell – a musician who'd been working the Windy City since the early 60s, yet who really came into his own in these later years! Hal challenges both the AACM and the European... read more

One of the few solo albums ever cut by trombonist Paul Rutherford – an important talent on the British jazz scene of the 70s, and every bit as creative a player on his instrument as Albert Mangelsdorff or George Lewis! Like those players, Rutherford has a freely inventive quality that... read more

Previously unreleased work from the important British Iskra ensemble of the 70s – and quite possibly some of the most striking we've ever heard from the group! Trombonist Paul Rutherford is at the helm – conducting a large ensemble on two of the long tracks here – and playing... read more

A brilliant collection of work from this seminal Brit avant trio of the 70s – a really striking collaboration between trombonist Paul Rutherford, guitarist Derek Bailey, and bassist Barry Guy! Both Bailey and Guy play their instruments with some amplification, which expands out their unusual... read more

An amazing second chapter from this extremely inventive trio – a marvelous matching of the talents of Paul Rutherford on trombone, Barry Guy on bass, and Phil Wachsmann on violin! All three players use a fair bit of electronics, too – very much in the best FMP mode of mixing live... read more

A strong statement from drummer Dylan Ryan and Sand – Dylan's trio with guitarist Timothy Young and bassist Devin Hoff. This is in a more paired down setting than we've heard Dylan in recently and it's damn strong stuff! Chicago-bred musician Ryan has never been one to heed stylistic... read more

Two albums from guitarist Terje Rypdal – packaged together in a single set! The first 2CDs comprise the landmark Odyssey album – a great setting for the spacey tones of Terje Rypdal's guitar – a double-length set for ECM that lets Terje stretch out in very spacious splendor! The... read more

A classic album of short hard funky grooves – put together by the legendary Oliver Sain, a genius instrumentalist/producer from St. Louis, and the man behind more soul classics than you might imagine! Oliver plays alto, organ, and piano on most cuts – and the backing is spare and hard... read more

Killer jazzy grooves from the French jazz house scene – and hands down one of our favorite albums of the 00s! St Germain take a Blue Note 70s sound as their base – with lots of sweet Hammond riffs, mellow Fender Rhodes licks, funky flute lines, and spacey percussion – then they... read more

A tremendous live set from pianist Teru Sakamoto – a session that soars with all of the life, soul, and imagination of McCoy Tyner at his 70s best! The record's got a feel that's quite open – long tracks, with plenty of solo space for Sakamoto on the piano – but the sound is... read more

Amazing sounds from this Japanese duo – raw, raspy, and vibrant work on reeds – with a rich quality that really grabs us right from the start! Akira Sakata plays alto and clarinet, and Nobuyasu Furuya plays tenor, alto, clarinet, and flute – a real flurry of reeds that are... read more

Sammy sings soul – not Sammy Davis Jr, but this ultra-hip Japanese singer from the early 70s – a female vocalist who works here with great backings from the Freedom Unity ensemble! The tunes are all numbers from American and British sources of the 50s and 60s – tunes you'd know... read more

Funky grooves from Jiro Inagaki and his Soul Media combo – and some cool vocals from 70s Japanese singer Sammy – a pretty enigmatic talent who really makes her mark with this record! The album's less island-styled than you might guess from the title or cover – and instead, it... read more

The coolest music we've heard so far from this fantastic funky talent – served up here in an ultra-cool package that also offers up four different cover images over two separate pieces of music! Sammi's got a name that's a bit unwieldy, but he serves up the groove with a sound so tight, we... read more

A funky funky big band – and one that blasts away with a power that's just incredible – almost the force of some small combo from the funky 45 universe, stretched out over a wide range of heavy horns! The album's light years past the previous album from Samuel Jon Samuelsson –... read more

A beautiful little record by Pharoah Sanders – quite different than most of his other recordings of the 70s, and done in a smoothly jazzy mode that also features plenty of soul! Sanders did the set in collaboration with Norman Connors – and the style is in that same great mix of mellow... read more

If you think that Pharaoh Sanders' genius as a leader first blossomed during his post-Coltrane years on Impulse, you owe it to yourself to check out this early album for ESP – a startlingly great session that offers a whole new side of his talents! The album features 2 side-long tracks... read more

A wonderful tribute to Dizzy Gillespie – put together by trumpeter Arturo Sandoval – who can not only claim a big influence from Diz, but a number of past musical partnerships as well! The setting is great – not the simple bop mode that you'd usually get from other Diz tributes... read more

A sublime 70s session from Moacir Santos – a set that mixes the complex grooves he forged in 60s Brazil with the warmly jazzy sound of American fusion – all in a result that's totally unique! The album's quite different than any other electric Brazilian sets recorded in the US at the... read more

Amazing 70s work from Moacir Santos – the first album the Brazilian arranger recorded for Blue Note, and a set that sparkles with warmth and soul from the very first note! The approach is a brilliant updating of the famous sound that Santos crafted in Brazil the decade before – recast... read more

One of the rare Blue Note gems from Brazilian arranger/composer Moacir Santos – an album of incredible warmth and charm, with a sound that's hardly been duplicated again! Santos is usually best known for his early bossa arrangements in the 60s, but here he's working in the US – hitting... read more

The third and best album yet from Sao Paulo Underground – formed by Chicago scene veteran and sonic adventurer Rob Mazurek – with a sound that's informed by the rhythms and creatively boundless possibilities of Tropicalia era Brazil and well beyond, along with the cosmic spirit of other... read more

A great little set from guitarist Shungo Sawada – a player who was Japan's answer to Wes Montgomery in the 60s – and went onto cut some really nice records in later years too! This album's definitely one of that batch – and has a sparkling quality that's very much like Sawada's... read more

A brilliant set from tenorist David Schnitter – maybe the best we've heard from him in years – and that's saying a lot, given the strength of his work! The album's got that special spark and crackle we love in the Live At Smalls series – a magic way of really letting the leader... read more

A great step forward for trumpeter Christian Scott – a set that really delivers all the promise we've always seen in his music – and really pushes things into rich new territory too! The title and cover look rootsy, but the rhythms are really futuristic – soaring, spiraling bass,... read more

A bold step forward for drummer Kendrick Scott – a set that bristles with way more sharp changes and soulful undercurrents than any of his previous work – and which almost feels nicely in the same vein as some of the best recent artists to step forth on Blue Note! The record is... read more

Under-exposed genius from the legendary Raymond Scott – a set of straighter jazz material from the late 40s, but all of it with Scott's undeniable sense of madness still very firmly in place! Most of the work here is small combo – played by either a quintet or sextet – and... read more

A standout early session from organist Shirley Scott – noteworthy in that it's a quintet recording, different than Shirley's mostly-trio output from the time! Here, she's working in a group that includes Oliver Nelson on tenor sax and Joe Newman on trumpet – and Nelson's edgey tone... read more

Sweet Hammond grooving from the legendary Shirley Scott – a set that brings together two of her earliest albums for the Moodsville label at Prestige, both of which are in a soulful, mellow, late nite mode! The first album in the set is The Shirley Scott Trio – a date done for the... read more

Hip soulful work from organist Shirley Scott – one of the first records that has her breaking out of the straighter soul jazz sound of her work on Prestige and Impulse – and a gem of a set that features some great funky arrangements from the great Marty Sheller! The group's all-Atlantic... read more

Great later work from Tom Scott – an artist who cut funk records at the start of the 70s, worked on some great soundtrack jazz, and really spun things out strongly in later years too! Despite Tom's placement here on the GRP label, which was then home to a lot of smooth jazz – the Scott-... read more

An amazing chapter in the career of reedman Tony Scott – some key late 50s recordings done on the Swedish scene, issued here together for the first time, with a rare bonus track as well! Scott made some huge waves on the European scene in the 60s – thanks to important collaborations... read more

A beautiful set of 70s soul jazz flute tracks – featuring work by flautist Adele Sebastian, with backing by a hip group that includes Billy Higgins, Ricky Kelly, and Roberto Miranda. The tracks have a nice mellow Strata East/Black Jazz kind of sound to them – and the production is... read more

A hard-driving Latin set from early 70s Japan – served up in a non-nonsense mode that's arguably more classic than most American work of the time! The group is very heavy on percussion – with Segami in the lead, but a handful of other players providing strong accompaniment too –... read more

Plenty of flavor here – a really well-crafted brew that's heavy with searing saxophone from Mike Selesia – mixed with other rootsy instrumentation in a very groovy way! Mike plays soprano, tenor sax, and flute on the set – clearly inspired by the John Coltrane generation, yet... read more

A beautiful second set from Seval – even more powerful and personal than the group's debut – with sublime compositions and cello by Fred Lonberg-Holm, and these fragile yet soulful vocals from Sofia Jernberg! Instrumentation is quite spare – just cello, guitar, trumpet, and bass... read more

A beautiful document of the work of Sevda – a cool Swedish group from the early 70s, and one who mixed together equal parts jazz and Turkish music! First up is their Jazz I Sverige album form 1972 – a mixture of jazz and folkloric influences – a really unique album that shows the... read more

Sublime early work from Bud Shank – one of our favorite west coast players ever – captured here away from some of his better-known work on Pacific Jazz! There's a nicely rough edge to some of the material – with Bud really blowing alto strongly on some of the leadoff tracks... read more

One of the few albums as a leader cut by pianist Ralph Sharon – a player who's best known for his years supporting singer Tony Bennett, but who sounds really wonderful here in an instrumental setting too! Sharon's got a way of coming up both with a punch and a fluid sort of groove –... read more

An interesting project from Elliott Sharp – a set that mixes his older downtown sounds with some surprising rootsy elements – all in a blend that really helps his music stretch out strongly! Sharp's guitar work is still incredible – whether arch and arty, or acoustic and bluesy... read more

Soaring spiritual soul jazz from the LA scene – a CD that features a beautiful performance by the Jesse Sharps Quintet, plus a longer extended track from Horace Tapscott's Pan Afrikan Peoples Arkestra! We'll be honest in saying that we'd never heard of Sharps before this CD – but he's... read more

One of the best-ever Sonny Sharrock albums – and one of the few that really captures the fresh genius of his approach! The set was recorded in New York during the period when Sonny had just come out of Herbie Mann's group with Roy Ayers – but the sound is far far different than the... read more

A brilliant second volume to this classic series of live recordings from Archie Shepp – and a record that shows both ways he could really shine in the 70s! The record's got a wonderful 28 minute take on Archie's classic "Blues For Brother George Jackson" – an Attica Blues-era... read more

A fierce and full-on session from Archie Shepp – a real return to avant jamming, in a style that recalls his best French work of the late 60s, but which also has some of the soulful touches of his late 70s years! The group features Sigfried Kessler on piano, Clifford Jarvis on drums, and... read more

A seminal live set from tenorist Archie Shepp – and some of his freest, least-structured material ever! Shepp's still a righteous force here on his horn, but there also seems to be equal emphasis on the contributions of all members of the group – woven together in a really rich... read more

A legendary album from saxophonist Sahib Shihab – a record that's gone onto become the birth of all things modal and club jazz in the current scene! Shihab always sounded great, no matter what the setting, but there was definitely something magical going on with this session – a one-of-... read more

A fantastic early record by Sahib Shihab – a motherlode of modal jazz grooves, cut during the early days of the Clarke-Boland Big Band! The record features a core group of players from that ensemble – including Shihab on alto, baritone, and flute, plus Francy Boland on piano, Jimmy... read more

A late 50s stormer from Japanese drummer Hideo Shiraki – caught here at a great point in his early career! The album's got a bit more of a swing-based feel than some of Shiraki's later sides – a bit more Verve-like energy than Blue Note style – which is a-ok with us, because the... read more

Bossa jazz from 60s Japan – a set recorded right around the same time that Verve first started hitting bossa grooves in the US! The sound here is sharper than a Verve bossa album, though – with some of the same hardbop inflections you'd hear on other Hideo Shiraki albums from the time... read more

The music of Horace Silver is magically presented here by drummer Hideo Shiraki – grooving nicely in the same exotic approach to soul jazz you'd find on Silver's best Blue Note sides of the late 50s! Shiraki's always had a bit of a Jazz Messengers approach in his music – at least at... read more

Not sure what they mean by "Ameriachi" in the title – but from the sound of the music, there's definitely a great A&M Records-styled mix of jazz, Latin, and South American modes! The set begins with a set of cookers from drummer Hideo Shiraki – working with an excellent... read more

A perfect illustration of the rich new directions Wayne Shorter was taking at the start of the 70s – an amazing flurry of sounds and styles that's light years ahead of where he began in the 60s! Shorter's one of those players who was already great at the start – an amazing tenorist,... read more

A really classic-styled set – as you might guess from the Art Blakey homage image on the front cover – a cracker of a session that features some great players from the contemporary Italian scene! There's a bold hardbop vibe to the whole thing – a mode that hangs right up there in... read more

Sweet guitar and smooth grooves – a remastered version of this mellow jam from Ricardo Silveira from the mid 90s – brought out with rich new fidelity here in an Adventure Music pressing! There seems to be less of the slickness of the previous issue, and a lot more warmth – that... read more

A real watershed album from Horace Silver – a record that has him stepping strongly into the 70s – but with a rich new groove that's different both from his 60s work, and from the heavy politics of his United States series too! The album has Horace picking up a slightly electric sound,... read more

A beautifully soulful set from Horace Silver – hardly the "with brass" session you might guess from the title, and instead a well-integrated album that really showcases a new level of arranging genius from Horace! The set is heavy on hip horns – with work from Oscar Brashear,... read more

A beautiful, beautiful record from Horace Silver – one of his great 70s experiments for Blue Note – and a set that has him working in the same "jazz with voices" mode explored by Max Roach and Donald Byrd in earlier years! The core of the set is focused around the great work... read more

An excellent 70s album from Horace Silver – one that's often overlooked, but which yields of listening joy, once you open it up! The set's got some wonderful modal/spiritual numbers – in a mode that would make the record highly prized if it were issued on Strata East, and which is... read more

Horace Silver's last record for Blue Note – and an amazing end to his decades of work for the legendary label! The set's a perfect summation of all the new directions that Horace took in the 70s – new territory that's deeply spiritual, and undeniably righteous – yet which also... read more

Wonderful work from Horace Silver – part of a great run of late 70s sides for Blue Note that unlock a whole new side of his soulful talents! The vibe here is different than the previous United States trilogy – still very righteous, with an overt message too – but served up in... read more

One of the most righteous Horace Silver albums for Blue Note – and a far-reaching, politically-bent batch of tracks that feature vocals by Andy Bey, in a similar style to the work he did on the Gary Bartz records from the time – very hip, and quite different than other jazz vocal work... read more

Horace Silver at his most righteous – stepping out here in the amazing Phase 2 of his United States Of The Mind series – with some heavy vocals from the great Andy Bey! The grooves are more complicated than Silver was laying down a few years before – yet still equally soulful... read more

An amazing document of righteous soul jazz – the full recordings for Horace Silver's United States Of Mind trilogy – done in collaboration with singers Andy and Salome Bey! The sound is completely different from Silver's work of the 60s – very righteous and message-oriented, with... read more

Brilliant work – and one of the rare few albums to feature the genius alto of Sonny Simmons from the 60s! The session has the fierceness of other ESP sessions from the time, but it's also tempered with a bit of spiritualism, too – somewhat more introspective in the heavy moments than... read more

The very last performance at the legendary Keystone Korner in San Francisco – a well-blown session from Zoot Sims' overlooked years on Pablo Records! Like other Pablo dates, this one's got a very easygoing groove – a relaxed format that allows Sims to really stretch out on his horn... read more

Loose, soulful and swaggering tenor sax from a pair of legends – Hal Singer and David Murray – fellows who busted boundaries for decades! On Challenge, recorded in Paris in Spring, 2010, they play great, mostly original material with passionate conviction and a a boundless sense of... read more

Gypsy swing from Germany – a great little combo that features four different acoustic guitars, plus violin – all in a mode that's a cool variation on the style of the Hot Club! The tracks are relatively short, and most are the sorts of numbers you'd hear in a Paris club in the pre-war... read more

Spiralling, soaring work from the Alan Skidmore Quintet – a group led by one of the greatest British tenor talents at the end of the 60s! Skidmore's name turns up often in some of the larger ensemble sessions from the period, but this album's one of his few smaller group outings – and... read more

Groundbreaking work from one of the most unsung heroes of British jazz – tenorist Alan Skidmore, a player with a tone and a talent that took him through many settings in his day! This 1970 album is one of Skidmore's greatest moments in the studio – a blend of jazz styles that includes... read more

A treasure trove of rare work from the obscure German Ego label – four different albums, all of them great – packaged here in tiny LP-styled covers too! The set's especially noteworthy for the work of British saxophonist Alan Skidmore – working here on some of his best material... read more

Prime Jimmy Smith material from his earliest years at Blue Note – hidden here under some more modern 70s cover art! The work here is very much in the best long-blown, open-ended style of Smith's jam session sides for the label – and the album features Jimmy's Hammond in the company of... read more

An incredible record by Jimmy Smith – unlike anything we've ever heard from him! The session is a rare French soundtrack one – recorded in 1965, in a setting that was quite different than any of Jimmy's American sessions from the same time. According to the notes, Smith was just shown... read more

A wealth of unreleased tracks recorded by Jimmy Smith for Blue Note in the late 50s – most of them short, with a feel that's like his 45rpm work for the label! The sound here is prime early Smith – that totally cooking Hammond sound he had back in the day – mostly set up here in... read more

Great late 70s work from Jimmy Smith – two albums back to back on a single CD! One of our favorite later albums from organist Jimmy Smith – and a set that cooks heavily in a wicked blend of jazz, funk, and soul! The style's a bit like the groove that Johnny Hammond hit during his... read more

The second great session from two of Verve's biggest jazz stars of the 60s – organist Jimmy Smith and guitarist Wes Montgomery – an unlikely pair, to be sure, but one who work great together on the set! The real change here is in Wes' playing – as it's shifted from the mellower... read more

A great date from the non-Louis Prima years of Keely Smith – a rare radio performance done with backing from the Count Basie Band! Both Keely and Basie are at the height of their powers here – and the album has a format that alternates vocal numbers with some equally great instrumental... read more

Righteous jazz, with plenty of soul – a killer collection of the mid 70s work of Lonnie Liston Smith – all based around his legendary recordings for the Flying Dutchman label! Lonnie got his start on the hippest side of the jazz spectrum – including work with Pharoah Sanders on... read more

Wonderfully warm work from the late 70s years of Lonnie Liston Smith – material from his key stretch a Columbia Records, a time when he'd really learned to tighten up his groove a bit from earlier years, yet still keep all the deeper soul intact! The set kicks off with Song For The Children... read more

Quite possibly the most celebrated album ever from keyboardist Lonnie Liston Smith – a groove-heavy classic that's burned up many a dancefloor in its day, yet also a record that features some great mellow moments as well! The title track "Expansions" is virtually a blueprint for... read more

A killer batch of modern spiritual soul jazz – with a classic sound that reminds us a lot of the 70s work on labels like Tribe or Strata East! The New Composers Ensemble is led by vibist Paris Smith, an underground Chicago jazz artist who cut a few very enigmatic albums on his own –... read more

One of the most important records from Wadada Leo Smith in years – an extended set of compositions that offer reflections on and reactions to the Civil Rights era in America! The work here stretches back to the 70s – as some of the tracks were penned by Smith many years ago, but have... read more

Mad grooves from a group who's unlike anyone else we can think of – and who just get more and more compelling with each new release! This time around, Soil & Pimp still have lots of the fast-jamming jazz of their roots, but they're also expanding their rhythmic palette nicely –... read more

A beautiful, beautiful little record – as righteous and soulful as some of the best spiritual jazz classics of the 70s – and arguably even rarer, as it was only issued on a tiny label from Atlanta! Solar have a sound that uses 3 female lead vocalists in chorus formation – one... read more

A Fender Rhodes treasure – the one and only album from Solis Lacus – a hip 70s Belgian group who were contemporaries of Placebo – and work here in very similar modes! The album's resplendent in Rhodes lines from Michel Herr – a great keyboardist with an excellent ear for... read more

A sweet debut set from Solution – a Dutch group who work here in a seriously jazzy blend of keyboards and reeds – almost with a vibe that's like Brian Auger in his post-Trinity years, but sometimes a bit more freewheeling too! The group's got great instrumentation from Tom Barlage on... read more

Incredible sounds from this important Brit trio of the 70s – a wonderful combination of the reeds of Mike Osborne, Alan Skidmore, and John Surman! There's some wonderful use of electronics by Surman, who mixes sounds in sparingly, in a way that sounds beautiful with the saxes of Skidmore and... read more

A soaring stormer from the Spanish Harlem Orchestra – a contemporary group, but one who plays with some really classic Latin jazz modes! The group's always been great, but this may well be their best album to date – full of rich tones, bold colors, and tight rhythms that keep things... read more

One of the few albums ever cut as a leader by Les Spann – an extremely talented jazz player who worked a lot with Dizzy Gillespie in the 50s, and Quincy Jones in the 60s! Les plays both guitar and flute on the set – grooving soulfully in a mode that recalls the stylings of Frank Wess... read more

2 great ones from funky guitarist Melvin Sparks – back to back on a single CD! The Sparks album is a killer – one of the best from Prestige during the runaway classic years of the early 70s! Melvin Sparks is a genius guitarist, with a talent as rich as that of Grant Green, who's... read more

A great great session from reedman James Spaulding – and way more than you'd guess from the title! Sure, the tunes are all Ellington numbers – but they're swung by James and a very hip group, in ways that are more open and soulful than most readings of the tunes – given a slight... read more

A definite set of bare essentials from the Spontaneous Music Ensemble – especially given that at this point, the group was stripped down to just the duo of John Stevens on percussion and cornet, and Trevor Watts on soprano sax! The material was all recorded live, and the double-length set is... read more

Early sounds from the Spontaneous Music Ensemble – in this case mostly the duo of John Stevens on percussion and Evan Parker on soprano and tenor – with the bass of Peter Kowald added in on two tracks! The material is quite striking, especially given the vintage – and the... read more

The title here is an apt one – as the SME is a trio on most of these recordings, but augmented by a nice range of players on two of the album's five tracks! The core group features John Stevens on cornet and percussion, Nigel Coombes on violin, and Roger Smith on guitar – working in... read more

Unreleased recordings from that amazing moment when British jazz was really coming into its own – exploring the farther reaches of the avant garde, but in ways that were quite different than American sounds at the time! The lineup here features some of the most inventive London players of... read more

Soaring spiritual jazz from Larry Stabbins – a reedman you might know from his recent Stonephace project for Tru Thoughts, or for his seminal work in the groups Weekend and Working Week! Yet the sound here is something else entirely – a righteous side of Larry's music we never would... read more

Amazing sounds from Heiner Stadler – an artist who's not just remembered for his own work on piano, but for his great talent for choosing excellent players to work with! In fact, this album may well be best known for the musicians working with Heiner more than for his own talents – a... read more