Jazz — In Stock — LPs  

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A beautiful example of the mid-60s power of JJ Johnson – a big band session that features arrangements by JJ, Gary McFarland, and Oliver Nelson – all a very cooking mix of modernism, soul, and swing! The groups are large on all numbers, but there's plenty of room for Johnson to solo... read more

Hard-grooving stuff from JJ – played with a lot more bite than usual, and recorded live with a group that features Nat Adderley, Tommy Flanagan, and Albert Heath. Tracks include "Now's The Time", "Misterioso", "Walkin", and "Tune Up" – jazz... read more

A beautiful bit of hardbop that often gets overlooked because of the "leaderless" quality of the session. One batch of tracks on the record has Jackie McLean playing some beautiful rough interpretations of Bird on the standards "Old Folks" and "Embraceable You". The... read more

A beautiful set of indie soul jazz from the turn of the 80s – recorded in a laidback and soulful style that's right up there with some of our favorite small label sets from the 70s. Lamont is on keyboards, working here with a strong group that includes Charles McPherson on alto, Nathan East... read more

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Great LP issue of material issued on 78s for the Solo Art label in 1939!... read more

The sound here is never too much, baby – as Pete Jolly always swings with a great sense of space and style – a timing that makes his music sound groovy, although often in some deceptively simple ways! At first glance, the album's a simple piano trio date – but it really steps out... read more

Not the Hello Dolly album you might guess from the title, but instead a wonderfully groovy batch of tracks from pianist Pete Jolly – an album done with great larger arrangements from Dick Hazard and Dick Grove, and a tight vibe that makes the set one of Pete's grooviest albums ever! Pete's... read more

Great stuff – the US issue of some very rare tracks that were recorded for MPS in Germany under the leadership of either Carmell Jones or Nathan Davis. One group on the record features Davis and Jones, along with a rhythm section of Francy Boland, Kenny Clarke, and Jimmy Woode. They swing... read more

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Classic trumpet-heavy jive from Jonah Jones! The focus is on Jonah's gutbucket swinging style, with his trumpet up front in the mix in post-KC swing-type tunes. Things get a bit campy at times, but this pop-jazz-swing style worked extremely well for Jones and Capitol. Titles include "Moten... read more

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Weirdly groovy stuff from Jonah Jones – playing here in his usual pop-gospel-swing style, but with backing by a set of voices that gives that album a nice full sound. The vocal group isn't nearly as soporific as those used on other pop/jazz albums from the time, and they have a nice lilting... read more

Groovy big band material, with that very cool 60s Quincy Jones sound! The record has a global gimmick – as Quincy makes a trip around the world, playing tunes associated with various nations, like "Under Paris Skies", "Dear Old Stockholm", "Come Back To Sorrento"... read more

In the early 70s, Quincy Jones surrounded himself with some of the best young soul and jazz talent he could find, plus a few older pros – and the result was a great series of albums that spanned genres and created a whole new approach to modern R&B. This gem of a record was put together... read more

One of Quincy Jones' best for Mercury Records in the 60s – a very groovy record that was done with a feel that's somewhere in between his Big Band Bossa album and his best 60s soundtrack work! The format is simple – Quincy picks a sweet batch of jazz semi-hits from the early 60s, plays... read more

A split 70s LP – with two earlier classics! First up is How I Feel About Jazz – an important early album from Quincy Jones! Q's working here in some of his hippest settings of the 50s – scoring longish versions of jazz tunes for groups that include players like Lucky Thompson on... read more

Sweet funky Q for the 70s – easily one of the coolest albums ever from Quincy Jones! The album's got a very heavy electric vibe – one that's kind of a laidback take on the styles that Jones was forging in some of his 70s soundtrack work – served up with massive work on the... read more

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Large group backings, with a bit of vocals from Dee Dee Bridgewater – and titles that include "Meetin Place", "The Summary", "The Farewell", "The Great One", and "Only For Now".... read more

One of the great lost ones from Blue Note – hard to find in any pressing, and a killer hardbop session from the days when the label could crank them out with a quality unmatched by other labels! Clifford Jordan's leading an unusual group here – a septet, which is a bit of a change from... read more

A nice bop revival session for Clifford Jordan – recorded with a style that takes us back to his first years on wax! The lineup includes Red Rodney on trumpet and flugelhorn, Jaki Byard on piano, and Vernel Fournier on drums – and the tracks are recorded with all the classic and loving... read more

A really wonderful record – straight ahead, but oh so beautiful! Jordan's playing in a very relaxed setting – blowing openly on long tracks in this Japanese only session, working with a quartet that includes Reggie Workman, Freddie Waits, and a very hip Hank Jones, well worth saying... read more

Excellent work by Jordan – recorded right at the same time as his classic sides for the Strata East label, and with a similar feel! The group on the set is the same as heard on the Glass Bead Games album – Cedar Walton on piano, Sam Jones on bass, and Billy Higgins on drums – and... read more

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A brilliant collaboration between Clifford Jordan and Sonny Red! At the time of this recording, Jordan was one of a number of firey young tenor players from Chicago – all of them hard-blowing, with a nice soulful bottom that opened up a bop sound to more moods and emotions – but Jordan... read more

Duke Jordan never made many albums as a leader back in the 50s – but all of them are great, including this classic set on Savoy! As you'd guess from the title, the record features Jordan in two different settings – trio and quintet – the former of which features Percy Heath on... read more

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A crucial album for the jazz guitar in the 80s – the debut effort of Stanley Jordan, and a set that exploded with a very fresh sound! Jordan has a really unique way of handling his instrument – playing up and down the fret board with both hands – in ways that are often so... read more

Guitarist Stanley Jordan takes on a set of standards – not just older tunes from the American songbook, but also some gorovy soul and pop numbers as well! Jordan plays solo throughout – in that open, lyrical style that we loved on his debut – and titles include "Sunny",... read more

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Pure genius from tenor saxophonist Richie Kamuca – a magical exercise in tone and balance, played by Richie with that warm and raspy style that we love so much in his work! Kamuca's probably best known for his bigger group work of the 50s, but on a session like this he steps out as a... read more

An obscure jazzy set from Lake Geneva, Wisconsin!... read more

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A lost chapter in the career of cellist Fred Katz – an album recorded after his small combo work with Chico Hamilton, and sort of a larger group take on the whimsical sound of the classic Hamilton Quintet! The tracks are all older folk tunes, adapted by Katz to fit a chamber jazz mode –... read more

A classic from Der Mickle!... read more

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Double drums – plus Wallace Roney on trumpet, Branford Marsalis on tenor and alto, Slide Hampton on trombone, and Donald Brown on piano!... read more

Great early work from Johnny Keating, not the hokey sound of the "high road" you might expect from the cover, and instead a well-crafted batch of large ensemble tracks that really shows Keating deepening his sound! There's echoes here of some of the best modern work on the west coast... read more

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One of Wynton Kelly's greatest albums, and an all-star hardbop session that includes Lee Morgan, Wayne Shorter, Paul Chambers, and Philly Joe Jones. With Philly Joe on drums, and Morgan and Shorter, the LP almost has the feel of a classic Art Blakey session for Blue Note, but Kelly's piano gives... read more

Genius, pure genius! If you've ever wondered why folks think Stan is so great, check out this landmark set of postwar modern swing tunes – some of the most groundbreaking work of its generation, and proof that there was still a lot of room to grow within the big band format. June Christy... read more

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A great example of the Kenton powerhouse in action – a 90 minute double-live recording that really set a new standard for jazz sets of its type! The album features a side apiece dedicated to each of the three acts – one by Kenton's orchestra, one by Christy on vocals, and one by the... read more

A great blend of older jazz styles and the sweet 70s funk of Robin Kenyatta – served up with a hip sort of sparkle overall! There's a few familiar jazz modes in here that definitely live up to the spirit of the title – but most of the record is more open, laidback, and somewhat... read more

An odd choice for material, but a surprisingly nice record – and just the kind of session needed to break Barney Kessel out of some of his too-familiar trio modes of the 50s! The record here features jazz takes on tunes from the opera Carmen – in case you didn't figure that out from... read more

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A beautiful late chapter in the jazz journey of Rahsaan Roland Kirk – and an album of subtle genius that's really opened up to us over the years! The setting here isn't as "hit you over the head" as on some of Kirk's Atlantic Records – because at one level, the tunes are... read more

One of the hippest albums that Rahsaan Roland Kirk ever recorded – a perfect realization of his "black classical music" ethos, and a pan-generational jazz album that's all held together by one unique musical vision! Side one features the extended suite "The Seeker", which... read more

A key early album from reedman Roland Kirk – at set that really has him strongly finding his voice in jazz, and transforming most of modern music in the process! The set's a perfect illustration of the way that Roland could swing with soul, yet still reach out with bold new ideas too –... read more

One of the rarest Roland Kirk albums – and a great one! The record features Kirk in his prime early years – before he got totally nutty, and when he would still play straight soul jazz/hard bop, but with kind of a mad twist, and with strange instrumentation. Horace Parlan's on piano,... read more

A rare slice of work by Roland Kirk from his early years – a great live set recorded in Europe in the mid 60's – done in a looser mode than his studio sessions from the time! Kirk's playing his usual array of incredible horns – tenor, stritch, flute, nose flute, and manzello... read more

An undisputed classic – and a key turning point in the career of Roland Kirk! The set has Roland leading a large group of musicians through a haunting batch of complicated tracks that clearly illustrate his much-heralded concept of Black Classical Music – a mixture of jazz, older... read more

Mindblowing work from Roland Kirk – a record that really pushes the boundaries of his music even farther than some of his earlier, and excellent, albums for the Mercury label! Kirk's really stretching out here – finding a space in jazz that's uniquely his own – modern, yet... read more

A strange and tasty little album that Roland Kirk made with organist Jack McDuff in the early 60s – one of his few outings in such a format, and a smoking little session that almost makes us wish he'd cut more of them! The format is relatively simple – with lots of interplay between... read more

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Jimmy Knepper keeps things sharp here in later years – blowing trombone in a group with John Eckert on trumpet, John Clark on French horn, Roland Hanna on piano, George Mraz on bass, and Billy Hart on drums.... read more

One of the greatest albums ever from pianist Ronnie Kole – a hip cat who played heavily on the New Orleans scene of the 60s and 70s – but who also had a soulful sound that was much more in keeping with piano work from the Windy City! This set has a nice crackle from the start –... read more

A rare "with strings" session for altoist Lee Konitz – recorded back in his great years with Verve, set to wonderful arrangements from a young Bill Russo! The style here is a bit darker and more spare than some of the other albums of this type from the time – and Russo brings... read more

Titles include "Me & My Baby", "Ten Percent", "Loopin The Loop", "Class", and "Razzle Dazzle".... read more

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A cool European set from Lee Konitz – quite different than some of his other material recorded overseas at the time, with a swinging, upbeat feel that's totally great! The group's a nonet – a large ensemble that features Lee on alto and soprano sax, with Ronnie Cuber on baritone, Kimmy... read more

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A nice little 50s album that compiles Gene's work from the early 40s – his groundbreaking early swing sides, some featuring singer Anita O'Day, others with the great Roy Eldridge on trumpet! Tunes are tight, lively, and feature some killer drum work (natch!) – and titles include "A... read more

Gene Krupa and Gerry Mulligan – hardly a pairing that we would have thought of – but one that works surprisingly well here, and which showcases Mulligan's increasing fascination for larger group settings! The album features Gene on drums with a set of players that include Kai Winding,... read more

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With Charlie Ventura on tenor, Nabil Totah on bass, and John Bunch on piano – and cuts that include "Undecided", "Tickle Toe", "I Love You", "Misty", "Flying Home", and "Cry Me A River".... read more

A killer trio set, with lots of excellent reed work from Eddie Shu!... read more

Steve Kuhn at his funky best! Over the years, you may have seen Steve's name turn up on collections of hip funky tunes from the early 70s – but probably have never been able to find the right record that offers that same sound. Well, search no further, because this is the record – and... read more

One album of solo soprano sax – another with a group that features Bobby Few on piano and Fender Rhodes, Steve Potts on alto and soprano, Irene Aebi on cello and violin, Jean Jacques Avenel on bass, and Oliver Johnson on drums and percussion.... read more

With Lacy on soprano sax, Steve Potts on alto and soprano, Bobby Few on piano, Jean Jacques Avenel on bass, Oliver Johnson on drums, and Irene Aebi on vocals and violin.... read more

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A rather rare recording of Oliver Lake from the early 70s, recorded in Paris. Almost entirely alto solos, but one number that features accompaniment on synthesizer. We find ourselves returning to these early Lake recordings much more than his later work with the World Saxophone Quartet, as the... read more

A sharp late 70s duo session from Oliver Lake & Julius Hemphill – captured at Toronto's Eastern Sound in March of '78 – great material joint composed by the two and performed with muscular, tension and delicate melody. Hempill and Lake both play alto saxes on the great opening and... read more

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Killer stuff! This is one of Billy's earliest albums, and it's a monster batch of funky organ tunes with a much harder groove than on later works! The group is Billy's early Delegates trio – with Hank Swarn on guitar and Mel Brown on drums – and bad, bad grooves abound: including the... read more