Jazz — In Stock — CDs  

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 key turning point for Johnny Hammond Smith – 2 hip albums from the latter half of the 60s, a time when he was really changing up his groove! First up is Soul Flowers, one of Johnny's most obscure records – and a great little album that's filled with short tracks played by a largeish... 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

Tremendous duets between these two seasoned players – a set that really lives up to the best energy of both musicians! Smith's trumpet is especially nice – stretched-out, soulful, and flowing – with a quality that really takes us back to his more dynamic recordings of the 70s... 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

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

Some of the richest sounds we've heard from trumpeter Tomasz Stanko in years – played by his New York Quartet on a double-length record that really shines with some wonderful colors! Some tunes have the moody, atmospheric quality of other Stanko records on ECM – but others are a bit... read more

An incredible bit of funky fusion from the Texas scene of the 70s – a record that's unlike anything else we've ever heard from the Lone Star state, and which still sounds plenty fresh all these many years later! Starcrost have a sound that mixes jazzy riffing with great female lead vocals... read more

Amazing sounds from The Stark Reality – an obscure group from the early 70s, but one who've really risen to fame over the years – thanks to their groundbreaking ear for new music, and their freewheeling way with a funky groove! This package brings together all the incredible work... read more

Massive massive work from Starship Orchestra – a trio of talents from the Norman Connors universe, but one who get some heavy help in the studio from arrangers Bobby Lyle, McKinley Jackson, and Jerry Peters! There's a real Aquarian Dream sound at play here – all the best energy of... read more

A legendary album from the Texas scene of the 70s – exactly the kind of set that helps the city of Austin live up to its massive reputation for music! The group's got a wonderful blend of jazz, soul, and funk – a unique blend that reminds us of our favorite funky Fantasy Records sides... read more

A mindblower from flute man Jeremy Steig – his only album ever for Blue Note – and quite possibly his best! There's a stripped-down feel here that beats even the rich soul of Steig's sets for Solid State – a brilliant pairing of Jeremy's choppy lines on flute with the soulful... read more

Moodier music than you might guess from the lush image on the cover – a really evocative mix of acoustic and electronic elements – filtered together in ways that lie somewhere between the world/jazz experiments of 70s Sweden, and some of the more creative moments at ECM! The music's... read more

The title's a bit confusing, but it'll make a bit more sense once we get through telling you about all the great music on this CD! The core of the disc features the album 4444 – a 1978 London performance from the quartet of John Stevens on drums, Paul Rutherford on tormbone, Evan Parker on... read more

A great tenorist, heard here in a wonderfully rich setting – a set of long, open tracks that really let Grant Stewart solo strongly – all with the special sort of energy that seems to take place in these Smalls Live recordings! Most numbers push up towards the 10 minute mark, leaving... read more

A really cool trio recording – one that has Fred Lonberg-Holm playing some mighty sweet tenor guitar in addition to his usual cello – an instrument that comes across with this great sort of fuzzy sound! The tones spin out in these fluid waves – often a bit more forward-moving... read more

A lost Sonny Stitt session from the 60s – but wonderfully swinging, and with a groove that really works well! The album's a set of Broadway tunes played jazz-wise – but in the hands of Stitt, they come up wonderfully – stretching out with soulful intensity that's mighty nice,... read more

A great little Sonny Stitt album – very different than any of his other sets from the 60s! The album has a number of interesting aspects – from hard-wailing organ by Wilmer Mosby (who we think is Don Patterson under a fake name), to some screaming guest work by Rufus Harley and Robin... read more

Sonny Stitt makes Oscar Peterson sit up and groove! The record's a great one, and uses the Peterson Trio as a perfect rhythm section for Sonny's confidently blown solos of the late 50s – in a way that pushes the combo past their usual safe area, and into more freewheeling territory to keep... read more

2 classic Stitt albums back to back – Turn It On and Black Vibrations, both recorded during his early 70s funk years at Prestige! Turn It On is very firmly the funky Prestige sound of the early 70s – complete with Idris Muhammad on drums, organ by Leon Spencer, guitar by Melvin Sparks,... read more

An oft-overlooked, but very nice record from Sonny Stitt – recorded in Chicago in the early 70s, and with two different types of groups that show off both sides of the city's jazz scene at the time! On the first 4 numbers, the group is a bit on the larger side – giving the material a... read more

A beautiful project from the contemporary underground scene in LA – a record that shares lots of energy and musicians with recordings by Build An Ark and Life Force Trio! Dexter Story's the main force behind the record, but the set's a strongly collaborative effort – and features... read more

A beautiful little record – and one that definitely earns the "suite" distinction in the title – given the thoughtful longform approach of the set! The album's got a more composed feel than other spiritual jazz sessions of the time – not in a stiff way, but in a style... read more

A really great quartet that works together beautifully here – bass from Joelle Leandre, trombone from Sebi Tramontana, violin from Carlos Zingaro, and drums from Paul Lovens – all well-trained players for open improvisations like this – coming together in ways that recall some of... read more

Whomp! It's a stormer! Killer killer killer! No kidding, this album's a monster – and it's one of the heaviest slices of funk we've heard in ages! Pardon the exclamations, but we're telling the truth – and this classic by the Sugarman Three is a must-have for any fan of funky jazz... read more

The return of the great ones – and quite possibly the funkiest album ever from The Sugarman Three – a crowning achievement for this funky combo that we've loved for years! The core trio is still in place – soaring Hammond, tight tenor, and heavy drums – but they've also... read more

Beautiful duets between vocalist Milton Suggs and pianist Willie Pickens – two Chicago generations coming together beautifully in a very intimate setting! Unlike some of Sugg's other work, which is all self-penned, this set features some Ellington standards – done in a wonderfully... read more

One of the few sessions ever cut as a leader by soul jazz trumpeter Charles Sullivan – a brilliant talent who shone brightly in the mid 70s, working in hip small groups that were very much in the Strata East mode. This rare, previously Japanese-only release has Sullivan working with Rene... read more

Tremendous work from bassist/percussionist Juma Sultan – a wealth of wonderful tracks from the loft jazz years of the 70s! Sultan's a player who doesn't always get his due on record – especially during this formative generation – so the release is a much-needed look at his mighty... read more

Masterful funky soul jazz from the mid 70s – and one of the best solo albums recorded by Headhunter Bill Summers – a sunny batch of Bay Area funk that really grooves with the best of Fantasy Records from the time! The set was produced by Skip Scarborough, and has that great bubbling,... read more

Snapping rhythms with plenty of jazz – a great collaboration between musicians who've worked together with Gregory Porter, Jose James, and Ty – stepping out here on a unique project of their own! The core energy of the set comes from the live drums of Richard Spaven and keyboards of... read more

A near-perfect album from the great John Surman – recorded at the crossroads of the British jazz scene as it stepped into the 70s, and done with a fullness and focus that Surman hardly matched again! As with some of the other Deram sessions of the time, the album's overflowing with great... read more

An essential lost bit of British jazz – and the first record ever released by avant reed player John Surman! The album's an interesting mix of styles, with a split that runs right down the middle. The first 4 tracks on the record reflect a distinct Carribean style, and are a good indication... read more

Beautiful sounds from reedman John Surman – played solo, but on a variety of different instruments – all in tones and textures that aptly demonstrate that Surman's style is as sonic as it is musical! The record does a great job of avoiding some of the colder elements that sometimes... read more

A beautiful lost slice of British jazz, recorded during the crucial period before some of the scene's players went too far off the deep end! John Surman partners here with composer/leader John Warren, for a large group recording that sounds similar to some of the best early Mike Westbrook... read more

Loads of great keyboards here from Hiromasa Suzuki – working in a mode that's somewhere between earlier funky jazz, and the tighter Japanese fusion of the late 70s! The style here is never too smooth, yet Suzuki really manages to blend some great elements together – his own keys, lots... read more

An excellent early album from Japanese drummer Masahiko Togashi, featuring a group that he co-led with trombonist Hiroshi Suzuki! The quintet's got a sound that's kind of a messed-up take on the Blue Note groove of the 60s – particularly the Lee Morgan rolling funky soul jazz sound of the... read more

A really inventive little record from Japanese bassist Isao Suzuki – and a set that, like most of his best 70s work, really defies any sort of easy categorization! Suzuki's got a wonderfully wide range of ideas running through his music – at one level a really close-up and personal... read more

A wicked wicked set of tracks from Japan – one that blends together jazzy riffing and Brazilian rhythms, all played with a surprisingly soulful bent! Suzuki's on bass and piccolo bass, and Yamamoto plays not only electric piano but also a bit of electric harpsichord – which adds a cool... read more

Lew Tabackin looks a bit stiff on the cover of this one (who wouldn't, in a tan polyester suit?) – but the record's a surprisingly hip date, and a great chance to hear Lew away from his 70s big band with Toshiko Akioshi! As the title and cover imply, the album features Tabackin's "dual... read more

New blues, but with some definite rootsy elements too – yet all turned around in really weird ways, by an ensemble that features some key contributions from Eugene Chadbourne! The set's half originals by pianist Aki Takase, and half old classics by Fats Waller, WC Handy, and Jelly Roll... read more

Pure genius from Horace Tapscott – a record that really lights a new fire under his talents – and takes us back to some of the most expressive, most righteous jazz from the LA scene of the 70s! The quartet here features key LA player John Carter on clarinet – an instrument that... read more

A great group recording from pianist Horace Tapscott – recorded in LA in the early 80s, but done with all the righteousness and spirituality of his earlier albums! Tracks are long and exploratory, but also relatively lyrical too – stretching out with a style that's never too "outsi... read more

One of the best trio sessions we've ever heard from Horace Tapscott – warmer and a bit more soulful than some of his other sides of this nature, and played with a well-rounded style that really hits home! The group features great drum work from Ben Riley, and bass by Fred Hopkins – and... read more

A lost treasure from pianist Horace Tapscott – material recorded live at the legendary Lighthouse club, done with a very hip group of players from the Nimbus Records scene! The tracks are quite long throughout – and often start with Tapscott musing into the groove with solo piano, soon... read more

A second unearthed gem from pianist Horace Tapscott at the Lighthouse club in 1979 – very sharp stuff featuring a solid group of Nimbus players! Volume 2 was recorded on October 11, appropriately the night after the set featured on Lighthouse 79 Vol 1, with Tapscott leading the way, and... read more

A surprisingly strong trio session from Horace Tapscott – recorded in Santa Barbara in 1981, with a group that features Sonship on percussion and the great Roberto Miranda on bass! Miranda's tone is round and warm, and brings out some of the most soulful sides of Tapscott's playing –... read more

Beautiful solo work from Horace Tapscott – a record that's a bit gentler than some of his other sessions for Nimbus – very stretched out and moody, and with a wonderfully contemplative feel overall! There's a bit of echo in the recording quality here – so that even when Tapscott's... read more

Large-group genius from the legendary Horace Tapscott – one of the few recordings of his groundbreaking Pan Afrikan Peoples Arkestra! The music here is totally righteous right from the start – even more searching and soaring than Tapscott's trio or solo work – thanks to help from... read more

An excellent double-length set from Horace Tapscott's Pan-Afrikan Peoples Arkestra – an extremely righteous ensemble that was one of the hippest things going on the LA jazz scene of the 70s! The vibe is free and spiritual, but it also has a wonderful groove pulsating underneath many of the... read more

One of the best Horace Tapscott albums on Nimbus – and one that features him playing with the Pan-African Peoples Arkestra, who give the session a much fuller feel than some of Horace's other sparer sets. The group's made up of some strong hip players from the LA underground – and in a... read more

Definitely the standards promised in the title, but in the hands of Gregory Tardy, they're also something more – these beautiful little poems in sound, served up mostly by Tardy on tenor sax, but also featuring clarinet on a few sweet numbers too! The album's mostly a quartet outing –... read more

Soulful fusion by one of the best groups of their genre! The CD contains both albums recorded by Tarika Blue for Chiaroscuro Records in the 70s – both of them wonderful fusion records that have an incredibly soulful sound. The group features work by soulful luminaries like Justo Almario,... read more

A set that's maybe a bit more subtle than you'd expect from the "vortex" in the title – but one that definitely has a compelling quality that really draws us in! The set features piano from Benjamin Taubkin and gentle percussion from Adriano Adewale – spun out over these long... read more

The Billy Taylor touch is mighty nice here – on a blend of tracks that were partially recorded during Billy's earliest years as a leader, and partially recorded during his big rise to fame in the late 50s! Taylor's handling of the piano is beautiful throughout – already quite soulful,... read more

That's five flies in the title – each of them warranted, given the incredible energy of Cecil Taylor on the keys of the piano! This obscure solo set is a gem all the way through – an unusual session recorded for MPS – with Taylor playing beautiful tones on a Bosendorfer Grand... read more

A very moody performance from Cecil Taylor – one long reading of the piece "Calling It The 8th", originally presented as 2LP set, but finally getting its due here as a single CD that presents the whole thing from start to finish with no interruption! Although as free as some of... read more

A pair of very unusual albums – back to back on a single CD! The set's a bit out of order – and actually starts with Panic, the sequel to Creed Taylor's previous album for ABC, and like that one, a very weird mix of jazzy backings, odd sound effects, and cool production techniques! ... read more

A pair of very different albums from John Tchicai – both hard to find, and brought together here on a nicely priced package! Strange Brothers is overlooked brilliance from reedman John Tchicai – a late 70s session recorded for the FMP label, and easily one of the most soulful sets on... read more

We've always loved the music of Jimi Tenor – but recently, he seems to get better and better with each new record – hitting a spiritual, soulful depth we never would have expected years ago! This album's one of his best efforts ever – and feels more like some lost 70s... read more

A mindblowing collaboration – one that brings the soulful vocals of Nenah Cherry into play with the avant jazz sounds of The Thing – but all in a mode that's unlike anything either artist has recorded before! The mix of talents is no surprise – given that Nenah's dad is Don... read more

A remixed version of the collaboration between Neneh Cherry and The Thing – but a set with a sound so different, it may as well be an additional record from project! The remixes here really take a lot of liberties with the original music – so that the resulting tracks aren't just jazzy... read more

One of the strangest covers we've seen in years – and a perfect fit for this obscure session of unusual grooves! Drummer Bubbha Thomas is working here in a mode that's kind of an electrified 70s take on the Texas showband style of earlier years – a mode that has the core funky combo... read more

A long-overdue compilation dedicated to the work of the great soul jazz vocalist Leon Thomas. If you don't know Thomas' own work, you might recognize him as the vocalist on some of Pharoah Sanders' great recordings, like "The Creator Has A Master Plan" and "Hum Allah Hum Allah".... read more

Wonderful work from Leon Thomas – easily one of his greatest albums ever, and a set that was recorded at the same time he was working with Pharoah Sanders! Thomas really rose to fame on Sanders' classic "The Creator Has A Master Plan" – and this set really takes off from that... read more

Heavy Hammond from the mighty Chester Thompson – a smoking soul jazz set that's a real return to the sound of his Powerhouse album from the 70s! Thompson's jazz chops have only gotten better with age – and although he's certainly got a strong resume in funk and soul, we're really... read more

One of the few solo albums ever cut by organist Chester Thompson – a player who's known to most as the keyboardist in Tower Of Power, but one who's also remembered by a select funky few for this killer record for the Black Jazz label! The album's a stripped-down quartet session – with... read more

A wicked little set from British pianist Eddie Thompson – a player who always wasn't as well noticed on this side of the Atlantic, but who will forever be remembered for this classic date for MPS! The set's got a great criss-crossing of styles – a punctuated way of playing the keys... read more

Some of Lucky Thompson's rarest work from the 50s – and some of his best! The American tenorist is working here in two different French groups – one a quintet with Henri Renaud on piano, the other a tentet with the core quartet of Renaud, plus some additional local horn players. ... read more

An amazing run of music – and key sounds from a time when the Chicago avant garde was finally getting its due in the mainstream! The set features all Novus and Columbia recordings from both the Air trio of Henry Threagill, Fred Hopkins, and Steve McCall – a seminal group from the AACM... read more