One of our favorite albums ever from the legendary trumpeter Lee Morgan – a set that Blue Note recorded in the mid 60s, but didn't show the world until almost two decades later! The album's got Lee as his lyrical best – working almost with a sense of exoticism, especially on the wonderful leadoff track – which is this loping take on Cal Massey's lesser-known composition "Pilgrim's Funny Farm" – blocked out into bold solos from Lee, plus Hank Mobley on tenor and Cedar Walton on piano! You can really hear Walton's influence on the record – that mix of flow and lyricism that he was hitting at the time – and drummer Billy Higgins also brings a lot to the record, too – creating these shifting rhythms that really move past the standard hardbop modes of a few years before. In addition to "Pilgrim's Funny Farm", the album also includes the tracks "The Rajah" and "Is That So" – and the whole thing's wonderful all the way through! LP, Vinyl record album

A great album by Lee Morgan – and one not to pass up! The Rumproller often gets too easily lumped next to The Sidewinder – because of an obvious title and cover similarity to that hit record – but like that one, the album's far more than jazz cliche – and shows Lee Morgan to be one of the greatest jazz musicians of the 60s. The set starts off with the title cut, "The Rumproller" – hard-wailing soul bop, in the manner of Lee's most popular work – but then it easily flows into more sensitive material that has a freer, lyrical feel – like the great original tune "Eclipso" and Wayne Shorter's "Edda" – both of which are superb. Lee is astounding, as always, on trumpet – and the rest of the group includes the great Ronnie Matthews on piano, plus Joe Henderson, Victor Sproles, and Billy Higgins. LP, Vinyl record album

A great album by Lee Morgan – and one not to pass up! The Rumproller often gets too easily lumped next to The Sidewinder – because of an obvious title and cover similarity to that hit record – but like that one, the album's far more than jazz cliche – and shows Lee Morgan to be one of the greatest jazz musicians of the 60s. The set starts off with the title cut, "The Rumproller" – hard-wailing soul bop, in the manner of Lee's most popular work – but then it easily flows into more sensitive material that has a freer, lyrical feel – like the great original tune "Eclipso" and Wayne Shorter's "Edda" – both of which are superb. Lee is astounding, as always, on trumpet – and the rest of the group includes the great Ronnie Matthews on piano, plus Joe Henderson, Victor Sproles, and Billy Higgins. LP, Vinyl record album

A brilliant album that proves that even at the height of his success, Lee Morgan was one of the freest thinkers on Blue Note – always coming up with fresh ideas that continued to grow his talents! The first cut on the album is keep roof of that fact – the title track "Search For The New Land" – a beautiful 16 minute exploration of modal jazz themes, with an unusual stop/start device as a means of ushering solos by different bandmates – including Wayne Shorter on tenor, Grant Green on guitar, and Herbie Hancock on piano! The approach is unlike anything that Morgan ever did before – and unlike most of other Blue Note as well – and it also benefits from great rhythmic help from Reggie Workman on bass and Billy Higgins on drums. Other tunes are a bit more conventional, but still pretty special – like some of Morgan's inventive work on the Rajah albums – with titles that include "The Joker", "Melancholee", "Mr. Kenyatta" and "Morgan The Pirate". CD

A brilliant album that proves that even at the height of his success, Lee Morgan was one of the freest thinkers on Blue Note – always coming up with fresh ideas that continued to grow his talents! The first cut on the album is keen poof of that fact – the title track "Search For The New Land" – a beautiful 16 minute exploration of modal jazz themes, with an unusual stop/start device as a means of ushering solos by different bandmates – including Wayne Shorter on tenor, Grant Green on guitar, and Herbie Hancock on piano! The approach is unlike anything that Morgan ever did before – and unlike most of other Blue Note as well – and it also benefits from great rhythmic help from Reggie Workman on bass and Billy Higgins on drums. Other tunes are a bit more conventional, but still pretty special – like some of Morgan's inventive work on the Rajah albums – with titles that include "The Joker", "Melancholee", "Mr. Kenyatta" and "Morgan The Pirate". LP, Vinyl record album

A brilliant album that proves that even at the height of his success, Lee Morgan was one of the freest thinkers on Blue Note – always coming up with fresh ideas that continued to grow his talents! The first cut on the album is keep roof of that fact – the title track "Search For The New Land" – a beautiful 16 minute exploration of modal jazz themes, with an unusual stop/start device as a means of ushering solos by different bandmates – including Wayne Shorter on tenor, Grant Green on guitar, and Herbie Hancock on piano! The approach is unlike anything that Morgan ever did before – and unlike most of other Blue Note as well – and it also benefits from great rhythmic help from Reggie Workman on bass and Billy Higgins on drums. Other tunes are a bit more conventional, but still pretty special – like some of Morgan's inventive work on the Rajah albums – with titles that include "The Joker", "Melancholee", "Mr. Kenyatta" and "Morgan The Pirate". CD

A jazz classic if there ever was one – and the best-selling album ever by Lee Morgan, thanks to the use of the title track in a car commercial! Sure, you've probably heard "The Sidewinder" enough that you think you know the album already – but the rest of the tunes really open up past that groover, into a realm of lyrical, soulful playing that's simply tremendous! The group on the record features Joe Henderson on tenor, Barry Harris on piano, Bob Crenshaw on bass, and Billy Higgins on drums – and the album rolls along with a sense of perfect power that is every bit Blue Note at its best! Titles include "Sidewinder", "Gary's Notebook", "Hocus-Pocus", and "Totem Pole". LP, Vinyl record album

A great Lee Morgan set – and one of his rarest! The album was recorded in 1967, but unissued until 1998, when Blue Note unveiled the material as part of its "standards" series that featured label players performing material not of their own composition. Unlike the other records in the series, though, this set by Morgan is not filled with snoozy evergreens, and instead features some excellent reworkings of 60's pop tracks and a few traditional numbers. The group's a septet, with instrumentation that hearkens to other Morgan sessions from the time – like Infinity or Sixth Sense – and players include Wayne Shorter, James Spaulding, and Herbie Hancock. Duke Pearson did the arrangements, and titles include "If I Were A Carpenter", "A Lot Of Livin To Do", and "This Is The Life". CD

Unreleased genius from Lee Morgan – a key session from the later years of his too-short life, but one that wasn't issued until nearly a decade after his death! The sound here is completely sublime – a mix of the best later Morgan modes – soulful, lyrical, and modal – played by a sextet lineup that features unique guitar work from George Benson! Benson's presence on a date like this is a bit unusual, and his instrument really brings a lot to the record in terms of color and tone – shadings that are much more sensitive than some of his better-known 60s work in organ combos. Other players include Bennie Maupin on tenor, John Hicks on piano, Reggie Workman on bass, and Billy Higgins on drums – the last two of whom provide the sort of near-perfect rhythmic accompaniment for Morgan's musical vision! Titles are great, and include Cal Massey's "Taru What's Wrong With You", Hicks' "Avotcja One", and Morgan's "Dee Lawd" – plus "Durem" and "Get Yourself Together". CD

One of our top 5 favorite Blue Note records of all time – a bold and powerful session from trumpeter Lee Morgan, but one that sat in the vaults for 15 years before release! The session was recorded around the same time as Morgan's hit The Sidewinder (which eclipsed its release at the time) – but it's got the soaring, searching energy of later Morgan work on records like Sixth Sense or Charisma – a whole new groove at the time, and one that's explored perfectly by a group that includes Jackie McLean on alto sax, Curtis Fuller on trombone, McCoy Tyner on piano, Bob Cranshaw on bass, and Art Blakey on drums. Modal lines come into play with older hardbop and soul jazz modes – and the result is an explosive batch of tunes that resonate with bold power throughout! Nearly all tunes are incredible originals by Lee Morgan – and titles include "Tom Cat", "Exotique", "Twice Around", and the completely captivating "Rigor Mortis". A treasure, and one not to pass up! CD

A heavy heavy set from the legendary Alphonse Mouzon – one of his drum-heavy funk records for Blue Note! Alphonse has a style that's a bit different than some of his other work here – very direct, with plenty of soul undercurrents – although definitely some of the rockish elements that also made Mouzon a key crossover player in the fusion years! The album was Mouzon's first, and in some ways may be one of his best – and has a strong jazz component, thanks to work from sidemen who include Sonny Fortune and Buddy Terry on reeds, and the great Larry Willis on acoustic and electric piano. Alphonze wrote, arranged, and conducted all the tracks – and titles include "Crying Angels", "Funky Finger", "Spring Water", and "Sunflower". CD

Trumpeter Fats Navarro was one of the true giants of the early bop years, but he passed away at a young age just as the music was taking off – leaving behind just a handful of killer recordings to document his legacy! This set was put together by Blue Note as a great reminder of his genius – a style on the trumpet that was different than that of Dizzy Gillespie or Miles Davis – and which really set the tone for some of the more expressive players who would follow him on the instrument. Navarro is incredibly deft, yet never in a way that calls attention to itself too much – truly organic, and set up here in groups led by pianists Tadd Dameron and Bud Powell, plus some recordings in a group he co-led with trumpeter Howard McGhee. Titles on this first volume include "Wail", "The Chase", "The Squirrel", "Our Delight", and "Dameronia". LP, Vinyl record album

Trumpeter Fats Navarro was one of the true giants of the early bop years, but he passed away at a young age just as the music was taking off – leaving behind just a handful of killer recordings to document his legacy! This set was put together by Blue Note as a great reminder of his genius – a style on the trumpet that was different than that of Dizzy Gillespie or Miles Davis – and which really set the tone for some of the more expressive players who would follow him on the instrument. Navarro is incredibly deft, yet never in a way that calls attention to itself too much – truly organic, and set up here in groups led by pianists Tadd Dameron and Bud Powell, plus some recordings in a group he co-led with trumpeter Howard McGhee. Titles on this second volume include "Lady Bird", "Jahbero", "Symphonette", "Double Talk", and "The Skunk". LP, Vinyl record album

Tremendous work from a trumpeter who was taken from us all too soon – the legendary Fats Navarro, an important early voice in the sound of bop! The album's a short one, but every track is a gem – as Navarro blows beautifully in groups led by Bud Powell, Tadd Dameron, and Howard McGhee – always with this balance between sweetness and bite that's totally wonderful – an undeniable influence on later hardbop trumpeters to come, served up here with a sense of phrasing and economy that's still very powerful after all these years! Titles include "The Squirrel", "Lady Bird", "Our Delight", "The Chase", "Dameronia", "Double Talk", and "52nd Street Theme". LP, Vinyl record album

One of the most sophisticated albums to come from the funky reed talents of Greg Osby – one of Blue Note's biggest hopes of the past 10 years. Osby's moving way past the simple riffing of early days, and is working here with a sextet that includes the great Andrew Hill on piano, Jim Hall on guitar, and west coast reed legend Gary Foster on flute and alto. The overall sound is much different than some of Osby's other work, and the young player emerges as a strong and sensitive soloist, especially in the moments in which he's matching lines with Foster. Titles include "With Son", "The Watcher", "Ashes", "Sanctus", "Tough Love", and the lovely 60s soundtrack theme "Who Needs Forever". CD

Osby expanding his sound as ever – adding in a string quartet to a jazz recording performed on alto and soprano sax, in a quartet with Jason Moran on piano, Scott Colley on bass, and Marlon Browden on drums and percussion. The quartet are used in various interesting ways in kind of a post Kronos sort of groove – taking up a lot of the rhythm parts as well as filling in the tracks with washes of sound and color, but never dominating the jazz group that is at the core. Titles include "Northbound", "One Room", "Repay In Kind", "3 For Civility", "The Keep", "M", and "Golden Sunset". CD

An odd little session for Blue Note, but a great one too! The record is odd in that it features a host of players who weren't normally part of the label's off-used roster of big-name sidemen, and odd in that it features a swinging style that's a bit of a nod to earlier jazz days than the early 60s – but it's also a great revival of a player from an earlier generation of jazz! Baritonist Leo Parker cut some heavy sides for labels like King and Savoy – but on this Blue Note session he really opens up in a hard-swinging way that you don't always hear on his earlier recordings. The group's a firey sextet, with John Burks on trumpet, Bill Swindell on tenor, and Yusef Salim on piano – but the real star is Parker, who swings the baritone harder and faster than just about anyone else we've heard. Titles include "Blue Leo", "Glad Lad", "Parker's Pals", "Low Brown", and "Vi". CD also features 2 bonus tracks – a longer take on "Low Brown" and "The Lion's Roar". CD

One of those great "never was" Blue Note sessions – recorded in the 60s, but never issued until years later – even though the label had assigned it a cover, title, and catalog number! The album was the last session by baritone sax player Leo Parker – a bop and R&B legend who sadly passed along at the young age of 36, but left a really rich legacy of music. Parker has a way with the baritone that's almost as lean as a tenorist – blowing the horn with sharp, well-placed notes that really make this session cook – somewhere in the R&B-influenced territory of Don Wilkerson's work on Blue Note. Other players include the great Dave Burns on trumpet – always a welcome presence on any date – plus Bill Swindell on tenor sax, Johnny Acea on piano, Al Lucas or Stan Conover on bass, and Wilbert Hogan or Purnell Rice on drums. Tracks include "The Lion's Roar", "Rollin With Leo", "Jumpin Leo", "Talkin The Blues", "Mad Lad Returns", and Illinois Jacquet's "Music Hall Beat". CD

Wicked work by pianist Horace Parlan – and one of his most stunning Blue Note sessions ever! The album was first recorded in 1963, but then kept on the shelf for years – seeing only brief release as part of a Booker Ervin package in the late 70s, and finally coming out with the proper cover and lineup at some point in the 80s! Why Blue Note waited so long is a mystery, because the album's a gem throughout – almost more important, and more starkly modern than any of Parlan's other work for the label. Booker Ervin leads the frontline on tenor, alongside Johnny Coles on trumpet, Grant Green on guitar, and the rhythm section of Butch Warren and Billy Higgins. Parlan's choice of material is fantastic – with a number of Africanist tracks that feature unique rhythmic patterns that really push the soloists! Titles include "A Tune For Richard", "Dexi", "Home Is Africa", "Kucheza Blues", and "Back From The Gig". CD

A killer set of tracks by one of the best piano players that Blue Note ever recorded – and a great trio outing that sparkles with soulful intensity! Even in this more traditional format, Horace Parlan's still one of the most inventive players of his generation – working with a sense of bottom groove that makes even familiar tunes move nicely, and hitting an approach to his solo work that trades flowery touches for earthier tones that often dance around each other with a focused sound that's really unique! Dark and blue tones echo out wonderfully throughout the set, and Horace's piano is backed by the extremely thoughtful bass work of Sam Jones and drums of Al Harewood – on tunes that include "Up In Cynthia's Room", "C Jam Blues", "Bag's Groove", "On Green Dolphin Street", and "Lady Bird". CD

Maybe one of the most hard-burning performances ever recorded by this legendary South African jazz combo – a set dedicated to trumpeter Mongezi Feza, a key member of the group who'd passed away just a short time before the recording! The session was done in London, right after all four remaining members had come together for a memorial for Mongezi – and throughout the set, you can feel the raw emotion that's driving the performance – bold, freewheeling and very expressive sounds from the lineup of Dudu Pukwana on alto sax, Chris McGregor on piano, Johnny Dyani on bass, and Louis Moholo on drums – all players who pick up extra percussion and vocalize at points – almost in the tradition of the AACM, but more emotive too. The set features a double-length performance, titled "Blue Notes For Mongezi" – divided into four movements. LP, Vinyl record album

An all-star group take on the music of Duke Pearson – paying wonderful tribute to the kind of special, soulful grooves that Duke cooked up during his too-short career on Blue Note Records in the 60s! The lineup here is top-shelf, and very much in keeping with the sort of strong combos that Pearson would put together – both for records under his own name, and as a producer for Blue Note – and the lineup here features Diego Rivera on tenor and soprano sax, Art Hirahara on piano, Boris Kozlov on bass, and Vinnie Sperrazza on drums – a no-nonsense group who really focus in on the best elements of the songs, then let loose with great solo work. Jon Davis replaces Hirahara on three tracks on the set on piano – and titles include the great tune "Is That So", plus "You Know I Care", "Sweet Honey Bee", "ESP", "Chili Peppers", "Ready Rudy", and "Idle Moments". CD

A surprisingly great meeting between Kenny Burrell and Jimmy Smith – and a set that's one of Jimmy's standout small combo sessions for Verve! The feel here is much more Jimmy Smith at Blue Note than some of the bigger group Verve dates of the 60s – and Kenny Burrell's sensitive guitar lines provide wonderful company for Smith on the date – shading in his Hammond lines with a nice sense of color, in ways that really fit the late nite setting of the record. Other players on the date include either Bill English or Mel Lewis on drums, George Duvivier or Milt Hinton on bass, Vince Gambella on guitar, and Art Marotti on percussion – and titles include "Kenny's Sound", "Blues For Del", "Blue Bash", "Travelin", and "Soft Winds". LP, Vinyl record album

One of the greatest American albums to be issued under Kenny Clarke's name – a smoking set of boppish tracks that groove in a very early 50s Blue Note sort of way! And in fact, the tracks are a bit longer than the usual Blue Note bop sides, which makes them open up with some even longer solos – and creates plenty of space for the septet lineups to do their thing. The album features 2 different groups – one with Milt Jackson on vibes, Frank Morgan on alto, Walter Benton on tenor, and Gerald Wiggins on piano; the other with Jackson on piano (!), Henry Coker on trombone, Frank Wess on tenor, and Charlie Fowlkes on baritone. Titles include "Inhibitions", "Klook's Nook", "Telefunken Blues", "Skoot", "Sonor", and "Blue's Mood". CD

An overlooked later album from alto player Lou Donaldson – done both after his 60s Blue Note work, and his 70s material for bigger labels – and a great back to basics session all the way through! Lou is reunited with the great Herman Foster on piano – a player who made some of his early 60s pre-funk records really sound so great – and the duo take off with all the warmth and spontaneous imagination of those excellent early years – getting help in the quartet from Geoff Fuller on bass and Victor Jones on drums. Titles include "Confirmation", "Whiskey Drinkin Woman", "This Is Happiness", "Exactly Like You", "Don't Blame Me", "Melancholy Baby", and Donaldson's terrific centerpiece "Tracy". LP, Vinyl record album

A really great session from pianist Andrew Hill – and one of his few post-Blue Note sessions to feature a horn player! The style of the set draws from a few strands of Hill's career – in that Hill is playing in some freely exploratory piano modes, yet also manages to swing soulfully with the rest of the group, especially sax player Jimmy Vass – who makes a rare appearance here on soprano, alto, and flute. In a way, the album probably most closely resembles the Andrew LP on Blue Note – which is great by us, as it's one of his best sets! Titles include "One For", "Remnants", "Blue Black", and "Golden Spook". CD

A hokey kind of cover, but a great little album – another easy winner from the team of Eric Alexander and Harold Mabern, easily one of the greatest pairs working together in jazz for the past decade or so! Alexander's got a tremendous tone on the tenor – finely-honed with the maturity of a later Dexter Gordon, but also open to fluid, free moments too – with a sense of joy and exploration that recall our favorite moments on mid 60s Blue Note or Prestige. Mabern is great too – warm on the keys, but never sloppy – a player more filled with soul these days than ever, and always a great accompanist to Alexander's shifting range of modes in a set like this. Drums are by Joe Farnsworth, another trustworthy regular partner to the pair – and Nat Reeves completes the quartet on bass. Titles include 3 excellent Alexander originals (always his best work on record) – "Typhoon 11", "Little Lucas", and "Open & Shut" – plus versions of "Where Is The Love", "Where Or When", "Ruby My Dear", and "It's All In The Game". CD

Hammond player Jim Alfredson works here in a setting that's nicely full and rich – one that mixes his sharp work on the organ with just the right sort of horn contributions – in a mode that's got some of the best energy of the Lonnie Smith or Lou Donaldson late 60s organ years on Blue Note! Part of the record's strength comes from the wonderfully snapping drums of EJ Strickland, sounding even funkier than usual – and really providing the right sort of crackle to push lean and groovy performances from the trombone of Michael Dease, trumpet of Alex Sipiagin, and tenor of Diego Rivera – all players we're not used to hearing in such a setting! The group also features guitar from Will Bernard and percussion from Kevin Jones – on original titles that include "Foster Blues", "The Side Eye", "Reo Town", "Strange Matter", "For Miles", and "Verna". CD

Beautifully sensitive work from pianist Geri Allen – a session cut with a core trio of Ron Carter on bass and Jimmy Cobb on drums, but one that sparkles even more from guest contributions by Wallace Roney and Carmen Lundy! Geri's piano is at the forefront of the set – sliding out gracefully with a sound that's not exactly timeless, but which has a soulful energy that reminds us a lot of some of the best styles of her roots – focused a bit more here, and augmented on a few tracks by the Atlanta Jazz Chorus, a vocal group who hardly dominate the record, but float in very gently alongside Geri's piano – almost in a style that's similar to the use of voices on some of Duke Pearson's last recordings for Blue Note. Titles include "Portraits & Dreams", "Oh Freedom", "Melchezedik", "Well Done", "La Strada", "I Have A Dream", "Nearly", "In Real Time", "Our Lady", and "Timeless Portraits & Dreams". CD features a bonus disc with a version of "Lift Every Voice & Sing" by vocalist George Shirley with the Atlanta Jazz Chorus. CD

1973 recording that would become the last that Jug and Stitt did before Jug's untimely death in the mid 70's. Duke Pearson produced it (even though it wasn't for Blue Note), and the group includes Junior Mance on piano, Sam Jones on bass, and either Mickey Roker or Ajaramu on drums. Tracks include "One For Amos", "The Window Pain", "Saxification", and "I'll Close My Eyes". LP, Vinyl record album

An amazing little soundtrack – written in mid 60s Peru by jazz pianist Jaime Delgado Aparicio, but easily on a par with some of the best American or Italian scores from the time! The music's got a really wonderful feel throughout – jazz at the core, but with touches of spy soundtrack scoring and some of the lighter, more comedic modes of the Italian scene. Delgado uses a core combo with heavy piano, percussion, and some great trumpet and tenor – almost with the tightness of the Basso-Valdambrini group – but he also expands the sound with bits of strings and some fuller orchestrations, used to shade in some amazing colors that roll, dip, and turn with the beautiful grooves penned for the set. The whole thing's tremendous, with equally great production that creates some odd twists and turns that further keep things interesting as the album rolls on. Titles include "Elm Embajador Y Yo", "Sexy Surf", "Llegando A La Capital", "Isometria", "Todo El Mundo Me Persigue", "Lucha En El Mar", and "La Arana". Added to the soundtrack is Jamie's 1964 album – Jaime Delgado Aparicio Y Su Trio – a crackling bit of piano jazz from the Peruvian scene of the 60s – and a record that's somewhere between the best of Horace Silver on Blue Note, and some of the Brazilian bossa trios of the time! There's a strong sense of rhythm throughout – round, rolling basslines punctuated by great work on the drum kit – all topped by beautifully lyrical lines from Delgado Aparicio on piano – filled with color, light, and life throughout – and soloing with a depth that's rare for such a young player! Titles include a great version of Horace Silver's "Sayonara Blues", plus "The Climate", "Autumn Leaves", "Walkin", and "Blue Daniel". (Soundtracks, Jazz) CD

A far-reaching early gem from Roy Ayers – a set that's much more jazz-based than his later work, and a record that has him touching base with the Blue Note and Strata East sides of the jazz spectrum! The lineup here is incredibly hip – a mix of players that includes a young Charles Tolliver on trumpet, Harold Land and Joe Henderson on tenor, Jack Wilson on piano, and Reggie Workman on bass – not to mention Roy himself on some mighty great vibes! There's a surprising spiritual undercurrent to the music – pointing the way towards jazz to come in the 70s – and titles include "Glow Flower", "Ayerloom", "Virgo Vibes", and "In The Limelight" – plus an early take on Charles Tolliver's "The Ringer". LP, Vinyl record album

Hardbop albums don't get any better than this – and although drummer Dave Bailey only recorded for a brief stretch as a leader, this session's one that shows that he was a heck of a force to contend with! The record's got an intensity that easily rivals the best by Art Blakey over at Blue Note during the early 60s – but Dave's also got a slightly looser groove too – a bit more sense of humanity, and one that allows for really organic interplay between the players. There's a slight soul jazz undercurrent – especially in the piano lines of Billy Gardner – and other players in the quintet include Bill Hardman on trumpet, Frank Haynes on tenor, and Ben Tucker on bass. The group wails on an early version of Tucker's classic "Comin' Home Baby", plus other great originals like "Coffee Walk", "Lady Iris B", and "Two Feet In the Gutter". A old favorite on the south side of Chicago! LP, Vinyl record album

Hard to have any feet in the gutter when you sound this great – as the album's a killer batch of hardbop, led by drummer Dave Bailey during his classic short run on Columbia! The lineup here is amazing – a rock-solid sextet with Clark Terry on trumpet, Junior Cook on tenor, Curtis Fuller on trombone, Horace Parlan on piano, and Peck Morrison on bass – all hitting with an intensity which rivals the best on Blue Note or Prestige – but which is arguably even better, given that most of the tracks on the set really stretch out! Side two features an extended 20 minute take on "Sandu" – and side one features "One Foot In The Gutter" and "Well You Needn't" – both over 10 minutes long! CD

Low-burning tenor from Jerry Bergonzi – a player we grow to appreciate more and more as the years go by! Jerry starts this set off with a great reading of Joe Henderson's "Inner Urge" – which is a very apt choice, as Bergonzi's tenor has all the deep soul and modern edges we loved in Henderson's early Blue Note work – a real breath of fresh air when Jerry first came on the scene, and still holding up beautifully over the years! Mulgrew Miller's piano provides some great support here, too – supporting Bergonzi's vibe beautifully with lots of dark, thoughtful lines – even on the ballad numbers – and the rest of the group features Adam Nussbaum on drums and Dave Santoro on bass. In addition to "Inner Urge", other titles include "Jones", "Red's Blues", "On The Brink", and "Everything Happens To Me". CD

A sublime tribute to the music of Bobby Hutcherson – put together by drummer Brian Blade with a group that really lives up to the soulful spirit of some of Bobby's best Blue Note material of the early 70s! Monte Croft is on vibes, and really gets that sense of color right that we love in Hutcherson's music – yet the record also has a nice sense of flavor of its own – thanks to strong use of congas from Rogerio Boccato, guitar from John Hart, and some especially nice flute, tenor, and alto from Myron Walden. John Cowherd colors in things nicely on piano and Wurlitzer piano, Doug Weiss plays bass, and titles include "Now", "Black Heroes", "The Final Four", "Love & Hate", "Hello To The Wind", and "Slow Change". CD

Killer stuff by Art Blakey – one of his few non-Blue Note sessions from the time, and a hard-wailing set that features the Jazz Messengers as a sextet! The format is one that flourished briefly in these early 60s years – and in this case, the already great lineup of Lee Morgan on trumpet, Wayne Shorter on tenor, and Bobby Timmons on piano is joined by Curtis Fuller on trombone – a frontline that makes for some really amazing music, and which starts to bring in a lyrical energy to the group that's really amazing! The force of Fuller on the ensemble cannot be denied – and the group shift from straight hardbop with a soulful bent into an even more inspired mode – as you'll hear on the album's classic reading of Fuller's "Ala Mode" – nestled in alongside Jazz Messenger takes on standards like "Invitation", "I Hear A Rhapsody", and "You Don't Know What Love Is". CD

A legendary lineup of Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers – heard here on an extended set of concert performances done in France at the start of the 60s! As on the Blue Note live albums by the group, there's a special sort of energy going on here that pushes past the already-great studio material – long solos, and a tremendous showcase for the talents of the key players in the group – the genius young trio of Lee Morgan on trumpet, Wayne Shorter on tenor, and Bobby Timmons on piano – all at the height of their early powers! The group also features the great Jymie Merritt on bass next to Art's drums – and titles include nice long versions of "Noise In The Attic", "It's Only A Paper Moon", "Night In Tunisia", "So Tired", "Blues March", "Kozo's Waltz", "Close Your Eyes", "Lost & Found", "Dat Dere", and "Moanin" – plus "My Funny Valentine", "Round Midnight", "Yama", and "The Summit". CD

Quite an unusual record from Art Blakey – a rare big band session, recorded with a lineup that's quite different than the usual Jazz Messengers! Turns out, Blakey's quite good in this setting – and has the same firey energy to direct a larger ensemble that he has when working with a smaller quintet. The added players here really help him express some new musical ideas with greater depth – almost like the added percussionists on some of his drum-heavy Blue Note dates of the late 50s. Members of the group include John Coltrane and Al Cohn on tenor, Sahib Shihab on alto, Donald Byrd and Idrees Sulieman on trumpet, Melba Liston on trombone, and Walter Bishop on piano – and titles include "Last Date", "The Outer World", "Midriff", "Tippin", and "Pristine". CD

Quite an unusual record from Art Blakey – a rare big band session, recorded with a lineup that's quite different than the usual Jazz Messengers! Turns out, Blakey's quite good in this setting – and has the same firey energy to direct a larger ensemble that he has when working with a smaller quintet. The added players here really help him express some new musical ideas with greater depth – almost like the added percussionists on some of his drum-heavy Blue Note dates of the late 50s. Members of the group include John Coltrane and Al Cohn on tenor, Sahib Shihab on alto, Donald Byrd and Idrees Sulieman on trumpet, Melba Liston on trombone, and Walter Bishop on piano – and titles include "Last Date", "The Outer World", "Midriff", "Tippin", and "Pristine". LP, Vinyl record album