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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

Plenty of style here – a great later date from Sonny Stitt – one of those near-perfect gems from the years when he had fallen far from the mainstream of jazz, but could still blow with some of the best! There's a simple, almost understated quality to the date that's really wonderful... 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

A record with a simple, elegant title – and a similar cover image too – but if you know Sonny Stitt, you know there's often plenty beneath the surface, and this classic Chess Records has plenty to offer, once you start listening! The album's right up there with Sonny's work for Roost... read more

A great later date from the legendary Sonny Stitt – and one recorded with the same soulful depth and laidback feel as his best 50s sessions for Roost or Verve! Sonny blows both alto and tenor sax here – and works in the warm company of Sadik Hakim, whose sharp tones on piano bring in a... 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! O the first 4 numbers, the group is a bit on the larger side – giving the material a... 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

Lost late Stitt – and a much more compelling album than you might think. The album's got a nice underground feel, despite the fact that it's a tribute to Ellington – with a core combo that features Stitt on alto and tenor, Gildo Mahones on piano, Allen Jackson on bass, and Clarence... read more

A sweetly funky little set from Sonny Stitt – one of his hippest albums ever, and a rare date cut for Ahmad Jamal's short-lived record label! The sound here is a great combination of the late 60s tone that Sonny forged on other east coast indies – and some of the hipper, more open... read more

Head to head blowing from Sonny Sitt and Paul Gonsalves – just the kind of twin-horn performance that Stitt was famous for in his live battle days, and one that also reminds us that Gonsalves can be a very loose swinger when he wants to be! The tracks are all long, and played with the sort... 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 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 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

An unusual non-Ellington session from Billy Strayhorn – but one that's recorded in septet formation with plenty of the Duke's men at his side! Strayhorn's in the lead on piano, and other players include Quentin Jackson on trombone, Cue Porter (Johnny Hodges?) on alto sax, Shorty Baker on... read more

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We love Frank Strozier – and think he's one of the greatest talents in jazz – period! This long-overdue CD brings together two of Frank's early 60s sessions for the Jazzland label – both of them gems that have lain under-discovered for years. Long Night is an excellent example... read more

Hardly a prelude – as the album's a fully-formed, fully-stated set right from the start – easily one of the best moments ever for reedman John Stubblefield – and an overlooked spiritual classic from the 70s! There's a vibe here that rivals the Strata East scene at their best... read more

Late 70s soul fusion from masters of the groove – perhaps the best ever by the late 70s supergroup Stuff – featuring a core group that includes Cornell Dupree, Steve Gadd, Eric Gale, and Richard Tee! This time out the smooth sound is vibrantly top notch – all produced by Steve... 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

A real finger-popper from Japanese pianist Kunihiko Sugano – a sweet 60s album that has him playing like the best American players of the soul jazz generation! There's a boldness to the left hand that echoes bits of Ray Bryant or Junior Mance – yet Sugano can also tipple the keys with... read more

One of our favorite albums by Don Sugarcane Harris – largely because it's got more of a jazz component than some of the others! Harris is still playing violin on the set, but the real charm seems to come from the tightness of the group – which features some lesser-known LA players on... 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

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

In the years after Charlie Parker passed away, tributes to his greatness were a very common thing in local jazz scenes across the US. This is a prime example of that tradition, but way more than that, it's also a killer Chicago jazz session from the old days – featuring trumpeter Ira... read more

A beautiful, and oft-overlooked, album of modal jazz tracks performed by Chicago jazz musician Ira Sullivan – who normally plays trumpet and tenor, but who also shows here his amazing talent on soprano sax! The album's quite different than most of Sullivan's straighter material, and some... read more

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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

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

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

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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

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

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Heavy fusion from southern Wisconsin – a pretty tasty little set by a group we know nothing about! The lineup includes bass, drums, guitar, keyboards, and saxes – played in a style that's somewhere between some of the jamming, frenetic European groups of the time, and some of the... read more

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Sweet funky fusion from France – a classic set played by an all-star group of players! The groove here is a blend of choppy euro fusion, funky big band grooving, and some soulful touches that remind us of some of the funky jazz coming out of the west coast during the 70s. A few cuts have... read more

Sweet funky fusion from France – a classic set played by an all-star group of players! The groove here is a blend of choppy euro fusion, funky big band grooving, and some soulful touches that remind us of some of the funky jazz coming out of the west coast during the 70s. A few cuts have... read more

2 of Gabor Szabo's classic late 60s albums for the Skye label – back to back on 1 CD, making for a tripped-out guitar-driven batch of groovy tunes! Both records have this mod exotica sound that would hardly ever be matched again – and feature Gabor's own lead guitar next to another... read more

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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

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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

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 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

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

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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

A real stormer! This was one of the few albums ever cut as a leader by the great hardbop drummer Art Taylor – and it's one of the best from the Blue Note catalog at the time! The band is a heavily smoking one – with Dave Burns on trumpet, Stan Turrentine on tenor, and Wynton Kelly on... read more

A real stormer! This was one of the few albums ever cut as a leader by the great hardbop drummer Art Taylor – and it's one of the best from the Blue Note catalog at the time! The band is a heavily smoking one – with Dave Burns on trumpet, Stan Turrentine on tenor, and Wynton Kelly on... 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

A great change of pace for Billy Taylor – and one of the most striking sessions he made in the 50s! As you'll guess from the title, the record features Taylor's piano along with four flutes – played by Frank Wess, Herbie Mann, Jerome Richardson, and Phil Bodner – working here... read more

An early classic from pianist Billy Taylor featuring his classic 50s trio with bassist Earl May and drummer Percy Brice! The tracks are mostly short and simple, and done in Taylor's warmly rhythmical approach to the keys – a groove that was clearly informed by the hardbop of the time, but... read more

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Freewheeling Cecil – in his best 70s mode – recorded live in Austria in 1976, playing beautifully on a Bosendorfer Grand piano! Taylor works wonders with the instrument – giving it a pyrotechnic workout during the extended performance on the set. The album features one long... 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

One of Cecil's best for Hat Art, and a beautiful working of the extended title cut, "The Garden". Cecil's solo here, and other tracks include "Driver Says", "Points", "Pemmican", and "Introduction to Z". The set includes two LPs, and is boxed in... read more

The record features Cecil's Segments II Orchestra Of Two Continents – with trumpets by Enrico Rava and Tomasz Stanko, bass by William Parker, drums by Rashied Bakr and Andre Martinez, and saxes by John Tchicai, Frank Wright, and Jimmy Lyons. Titles include "Winged Serpent", "Wo... 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

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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

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A really incredible record from Jimi Tenor – spiritual soul jazz at its best, and unlike anything else he's ever recorded before! We always knew that Jimi's had a record like this inside of him, but it's taken years to get past the colder, stiffer styles of his earlier records – but... 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

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 surprisingly nice little set from Clark Terry – featuring arrangements by Oliver Nelson, and a pretty nice little group that includes Budd Johnson on tenor and Eddie Costa on vibes and piano. The material appears to be lifted from the musical All American – by the team of Charles... read more

Clark Terry's breezy trumpet is paired with Don Butterfield's tuba for a real "top and bottom" session of brassy jazz. The two of them are backed by a sharp rhythm section that includes Jimmy Jones on piano, Sam Jones on bass, and Art Taylor on drums. The set's got a lot of nice... read more

An obscure session that Clark Terry cut for the mostly-pop Cameo label during the early 60s – and some of the better recording that Terry did during the decade. The group is relatively small – filled with soul jazz players like Buddy Lucas, Seldon Powell, Willie Rodriguez, and Dave... read more

Includes the tracks "Wailin Blues", "Barrelhouse Stomp", "I Found A New Baby", "Baby Won't You Please Come Home", and "There'll Be Some Changes Made".... read more

Really wonderful work from the postwar side of the Swedish scene – modern jazz from leader Gosta Theselius, recording here with one hell of a great group! Theselius may not be that well known on these shores, but the record features key work from players who are – including Bengt Arne... read more

Hard and heavy funky jazz from west coast tenorist Fats Theus – and one of the rarest albums on CTI! This one differs strongly from the label's smoother electric output – as it's got the rough n ready feel of a classic Prestige jazz funk session. Fats is backed by an all star group... 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

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One of Joe's sweeter and smoother sessions of the 70s – a record that takes the core horn sound of his Ebony Godfather years, and fuses it with some larger backings directed by Brad Baker (of B Baker Chocolate Company fame!) The sound actually works well for Joe – and has him playing... read more

The greatest album ever recorded by Joe Thomas – and a hip batch of funky flute tracks that ranks with the best work of Jeremy Steig or SOUL! Joe's blowing here with arrangements by Chico O'Farrill – strangely off-beat backings that add in more than a touch of Latin to the funk, making... read more