A holy grail from the prime years of Blue Note hardbop – and one of the first records ever recorded by Clifford Jordan, then a fresh young tenor talent, just blown in from Chicago! The album has Jordan working with an all-star lineup that includes Art Farmer on trumpet, Sonny Clark on piano, and Louis Hayes in drums – blowing with a style that is a bit looser than other Blue Notes from the time, with touches of lyrical expression, brought on by the presence of Farmer and Hayes. Great overall – as tight as a bop side, but with a much deeper soul! Titles include "Confirmation", "Laconia", "Soul-Lo Blues", and "Cliff Craft". LP, Vinyl record album

Flute man Moe Koffman was one of the strongest jazz talents on his instrument in the late 50s – an artist whose work on records like this may well have paved the ground for the success of Herbie Mann and others to come! The title's a play on Moe's earlier work on the "Swingin Shepherd" tune – a surprise instrumental hit, with a very sprightly groove – but the approach here is much more jazz overall, and really lets Koffman show off his chops – including a few points at which he blows alto sax too! The arrangements are fresh, and slightly modern – and the group features Ed Bickert on guitar, Hugh Currie on bass, and Ron Rully on drums – on titles that include "Marty's Mourge", "What Can You Do", "Doxy", "Sure It Is", "Alone Together", and "Cloud Nine". LP, Vinyl record album

An early vocal set from Les McCann – quite unusual, and pretty darn soulful as well! The album's done in a mode that foreshadows Les' move to soul during the 70s, and features him singing to some hip arrangements by Gerald Wilson – in a soulful, jazzy style that was common for LA of the mid 60s – somewhere in a space between Lou Rawls and Arthur Prysock – with all the hip, adult aspects you'd expect from those references! Tunes include a fair bit of standards, but swung in really fresh ways by Wilson – and McCann's got this restrained style of singing that's really great – almost as if he's hiding a broken heart beneath his groove. Tracks include "It's Way Past Suppertime", "Next Spring", "Bye Bye Black Bird", "Deed I Do", "I Cried for You", and "Wonder Why". LP, Vinyl record album

Key 70s work from Charles Mingus – an album that was recorded over the course of three days of creative activity at the end of 1974, but somehow split into two different albums under the Changes name! The lineup here is prime 70s Mingus – George Adams on tenor, Jack Walrath on trumpet, and Don Pullen on piano – young players who really give a fresh voice to Mingus' musical ideas, and help him find this beautiful late life sense of color, tone, and timing that's completely sublime! Titles on this second volume include "Free Cell Block F Tis Nazi USA", "Black Bats & Poles", "For Harry Carney", and "Duke Ellington's Sound Of Love" – which features a guest appearance by Marcus Belgrave on trumpet and Jackie Paris on vocals. LP, Vinyl record album

A fantastic fresh new chapter in the career of Charles Mingus – a set that features the addition of two key players who would really shape his sound in the 70s – Don Pullen on piano and George Adams on tenor, both completely wonderful here! The group also features excellent trumpet from Roland Hampton, a player we don't know from many other settings – and the set also features some really nice vocal work from Honi Gordon and Doug Hammond. Titles include "Canon", "Moves", "Wee", "Flowers For A Lady", "Opus 3", and "Newcomer". LP, Vinyl record album

A fantastic album – one of our favorite-ever records from Charles Mingus! The album was recorded in the same breath as his legendary works Tijuana Moods, The Clown, and Pithecanthropus Erectus – and it features the same sort of fire and emotion that made those classics so great. The group alone is amazing – with Horace Parlan on piano, Shafi Hadi on alto and tenor, Jimmy Knepper on trombone, and the amazing Clarence (aka Gene) Shaw on trumpet – all getting plenty of room to open up on the album's longer tracks! The work bristles with a sense of imagination and dark energy that Mingus hardly had in his music in later years – and each new tune brings a fresh sense of vision that never fails to astound us! In keeping with the "poetry" title, the album begins with an incredible 12 minute track "Scenes in the City" – which features a long spoken bit written by Langston Hughes about one man's love of jazz and the way that it affects his life in the city – all supported with excellent instrumentation from the group. Other titles are instrumental, and include "Nouroog", "New York Sketchbook", "Slippers", and "Duke's Choice". LP, Vinyl record album

A prime Argo gem from James Moody – and key proof that when he wanted to, he could be one of the hippest cats working in 60s jazz! The approach here is subtle, but amazing – a blend of hardbop with some of the more modern ideas that were coming up in the post-bop generation from the team of Moody and Dizzy Gillespie. The rhythms are quite complicated at times – very fresh and vibrant, but without any of the easy gimmicks that other 60s artists would fall into – like vamping soul jazz or borrowed bossa lines. Instead, working in a combo with a young Kenny Barron, Moody concentrates on fresh timings and complicated changes – modes that push his own work on alto, tenor, and flute far from expected territory – and which also features Barron on piano and organ, George Eskridge on guitar, Chris White on bass, and Rudy Collins on drums. Tracks include "Zanzibar", "Dizzy", "Ole", "Sonnymoon For Two", and a nice version of "Fly Me To The Moon". 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 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 really wonderful collection of live work from Gerry's early 60s Concert Jazz Band – a really forward-thinking large group that was one of Mulligan's greatest accomplishments of the time! In some ways, the ensemble worked in a sound that was like that of Mulligan's small group recordings of the 50s – with the horns moving around in free space, interacting beautifully in a fresh, modern, unfettered style. Gerry himself plays a bit of piano on the session, but most of the strength of the set is from the horn interplay from the larger group – from players that include Gene Quill, Bob Brookmeyer, Nick Travis, Gene Allen, Conte Candoli, and star soloist Zoot Sims. Material was recorded on a European tour of the time – and titles include "Go Home", "Barbara's Theme", I Want To Live", "Red Door", and "Apple Core". LP, Vinyl record album

Rare work from obscure Chicago tenor player Vito Price – recorded back in the days when there actually used to be a jazz scene in the city's center – also known as The Loop! Price was a New Yorker by birth, but worked in Chicago clubs, TV, and radio in the 50s – and was most likely brought to Argo for this session by Chubby Jackson – with whom he'd worked on a previous date for the label. Price has a strong, bold tone in his horn – swing-based, but with a fluid sense of movement that's absorbed plenty of bop – and on the album, he's playing in two different settings. Side one features a largeish group with two more trumpets and two trombones, and side two features a quintet with a slightly more intimate sound. Lou Levy plays piano in both groups, and titles include "Credo", "Eye Strain", "Swingin The Loop", "Mousey's Tune", and "Duddy". LP, Vinyl record album

A legendary overview of jazz on the Italian scene at the start of the 60s – a great document of the new modes that was really setting the work of Italian jazz musicians apart from those in other parts of Europe – working with fresh ideas and a new conception that's completely sublime! The work here often has a great balance between structure and individual voice – and many numbers feature strong soloists who'd go on to great fame in a variety of settings – already graced here with talents that seem greater than their young years. Trumpeter Enrico Rava leads things off in a quartet with pianist Maurizio Lama, on a version of the tune "Line For Lyons" – and Lama follows with a trio reading of his own "Tema For Franco". Trumpeter Sergio Fanni is joined by the great Eraldo Volante on tenor and baritone on the tunes "Duo" and "Circeo". Later soundtrack artist Piero Umiliani serves up his "Picolla Suite Americana" – followed by the Modern Jazz Gang of saxophonist Sandro Brugnolini (with later sound library giants Enzo Scoppa and Cicci Santucci), on the tracks "The Drum Is A Tramp" and "Blue Mirria". Trombonist Dino Piana delivers the tune "Tempo Di Febbraio" with help from the great Gianni Basso on tenor – and the set also features a reading of "Bag's Groove" with Giorgio Azzolini on bass, Piano on trombone, and Attilio Donadio on alto. LP, Vinyl record album

Key recordings from Sonny's breakout year of 1954 – tracks from 2 different sessions, brought together into one album that packs a hell of a punch! The modernist Rollins tenor is at its early peak here – fresh, bold, and highly creative – yet equally concerned with the role of the ensemble as well. And with players like Kenny Dorham, Elmo Hope, Thelonious Monk, and Art Blakey helping things out, the sessions are both cookers all the way through! Titles include 4 by a group with Dorham, Hope, and Blakey – "Solid", "Moving Out", "Swingin For Bumsy", and "Silk N Satin" – plus 1 more by a quartet with Monk, Tommy Potter, and Art Taylor – the longer "More Than You Know". LP, Vinyl record album

A classic from Jimmy Rushing – recorded at a time when he was really finding a new audience for his vocals! In a style that Columbia was using on a number of sides in the late 50s and early 60s, Jimmy and Buck do a bit of educatin' – and trace a progression of jazz styles from New Orleans, to Chicago, to Kansas City, and New York. The Odyssey's not really Jimmy's, so much as it is the jazz that was defined by the white liberal tastes that always were the main force between Columbia in the early years – but the set's still a nice one, like all of Jimmy's later work for Columbia, which features some of the best-recorded vocal work of his career. Titles include "New Orleans", "Doctor Blues", "Rosetta", "Piney Brown Blues", "Lullaby Of Broadway", and "Some Of These Days". (Vocalists, Jazz) LP, Vinyl record album

An interesting set – kind of a parody of the Girl Meets Boy album that had been issued a year or two before on Columbia – done with vocals by Jimmy and Ada Moore, and recorded as a "story in jazz" about love, love found, and love lost. Jimmy and Ada sing both separately and together, Buck Clayton plays a few instrumental sides – and titles include "The Blues", "Cool Breeze Woman", "Ain't She Sweet", "If I Could Be With You", and "Pretty Little Baby". (Vocalists, Jazz) LP, Vinyl record album

A beautiful document of some of the most laidback jazz ever recorded – the sublime 50s recordings of the Johnny Smith quintet, done at a time when the lineup included Stan Getz! The tunes on the set feature Johnny's mellow electric guitar setting the pace, alongside wonderfully-blown early solos from Stan. The tunes are mostly standards, but done in a great style that's not exactly cool jazz, but which has a groundbreakingly easy groove that's simply sublime! Titles include "Tenderly", "Vilia", "A Ghost Of A Chance", "Jaguar", "Moonlight In Vermont", "Tabu", and "Where Or When". LP, Vinyl record album

Beautiful Roost material from Sonny Stitt – solid, mature, and extremely well-placed lines on the alto sax – all caught at a level that's higher than most of his contemporaries were dising out at the time! The boppier side of Stitt's roots is nicely suppressed here – and in its place is a focused and deeply personal approach to the music – one that's wonderfully complemented by the "New Yorkers" combo of Hank Jones on piano, Shadow Wilson on drums, and Wendell Marshall on bass. The record's one of the jewels in the crown of his Roost catalog – and titles include "I Didn't Know What Time It Was", "It Might As Well Be Spring", "Engos, The Bloos", and "Bloosey". LP, Vinyl record album

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 moment – letting Leon spin out some spiritual vibes of his own, and step into a few fresh new styles as well! The album's plenty righteous right from the start – partly because the lineup includes James Spaulding on alto and flute, Lonnie Liston Smith on piano, Cecil McBee on bass, and the enigmatic "Little Rock" on tenor – who is actually Pharoah Sanders – but also because Leon serves up a shorter take on "The Creator Has a Master Plan" – done in a great style! The album also features a classic vocal take on Horace Silver's "Song for My Father", with lyrics that we totally love – plus the frenetic "Malcolm's Gone" – and the tracks "One", "Echoes", "Let The Rain Fall On Me", and "Damn Nam". (Vocalists, Jazz) LP, Vinyl record album

One of the grooviest Mel Torme albums ever – a smoking little live set that has the Velvet Fog hitting a whole new soulful sound for the 60s – with a leaner groove than ever before! Backing is from the trio of pianist Jimmy Wisner – although Mel himself also plays a bit of piano on the record – and the rhythms have this upfront, super-tight sound that really makes Torme's vocals pop – coming across with a fresh, swinging sound that's quite a change from the 40s and 50s! Yet throughout it all, ol' uncle Mel still keeps his pipes in perfect tune – that amazing voice that never lets up for a minute – and which holds its own beautifully on tunes that include "Anything Goes", "Love For Sale", "Love Is Just Around the Corner", "Shakin The Blues Away", and "In Other Words". (Vocalists, Jazz) LP, Vinyl record album

A key pairing of vocalist Mel Torme and pianist George Shearing – two aging jazz artists who really helped re-ignite each others' careers in the 80s! The format here takes Torme back to the best years of his jazz roots – and features spare backing from Shearing's trio, at a level that's intimate, but never too sleepy or prone with cliche. Shearing's touch on the keys is wonderfully sensitive – never just standard backing to a singer – and in a way, he brings out a new sense of depth in Torme's vocals, one that never showed itself so strongly, or so personally in the past. And best of all, at the time of this recording, the duo haven't yet lapsed into the cliches that would later mar their pairing – and instead really work together beautifully in a fresh sense of discovery and joy in each others' company. Titles include "The Midnight Sun", "Someday I'll Find You", "Whisper Not/Love Me Or Leave Me", "Since I Fell For You", "Out Of This World", and "Little Man You've Got The Blues". (Vocalists, Jazz) LP, Vinyl record album

One of the straighter sessions ever recorded by vocalist Bobby Troup – an intimate quartet side, with backing by Howard Roberts on guitar, Bob Enevoldsen on bass, and Don Heath on drums. Bobby sings and plays piano – in that warm, laidback LA style that's made him one of our favorite male vocalists of the time – and he's less tongue-in-cheek here than on some of his other recordings, bringing a simple but honest presentation to material that includes "Have You Met Miss Jones", "It Still Suits Me", "Little Girl Blue", "You Are Too Beautiful", "They Can't Take That Away From Me", and "The Boy Next Door". (Vocalists, Jazz) LP, Vinyl record album

As pure a distillation of McCoy Tyner's lyrical vision as one could ever hope for – a brilliant early standout session for the pianist as a leader! McCoy is backed up here by the energetic drumming of Elvin Jones – with whom he shares a natural empathy from their many years together under Coltrane – as well as the incomparable bass of Ron Carter, and the spirited tenor of Joe Henderson – both players who make the quartet date explode with a fresh sense of imagination – the kind of work that has McCoy stepping out strongly from the shadows of The Great One, into a hip space of his own. The set glistens with 5 Tyner originals – including "Passion Dance", "Four By Five", "Contemplation" and "Search for Peace" – all of which point towards new directions in the post-Coltrane years! LP, Vinyl record album

One of the records that really put saxophonist Scott Hamilton on the map – a well-matched set with reedman Bob Wilber, and a date that has each player taking a different end of the sonic spectrum! Wilber blows alto, soprano, and clarinet – often with a style that maybe hints at trade, but with more swing strengths overall – which Hamilton really amplifies with his well-blown, well-toned solo work. Other group members include Chris Flory on guitar, Phil Flanagan on bass, and Chuck Riggs on drums – and the use of a guitar instead of a piano really makes for a fresh flavor on the date. Titles include "Puggles", "Freeman's Way", "Riff", "Time After Time", "Treasure", "Jonathan's Way", and "144 West 54th". LP, Vinyl record album

Although Tony Williams started out as one of the most subtle drummers of the 60s, this album has him coming a long way from his "new thing" Blue Note recordings – and taking off with enough power to reach the moon! The group featured is Williams classic Lifetime lineup – with John McLaughlin and Larry Young, who was also reaching far past his Blue Note groove here – and bassist Jack Bruce, who was working his jazz chops strongly after his years in Cream. There's a raw power here that cannot be denied – a ferocity that must have been incredibly fresh at the time, and which is still, today, one of the clearest visions of a jazz rock fusion that was soon muddied too quickly in the heady waters of 70s jazz. Titles include "To Whom It May Concern", "Right On", "This Night This Song", and "Allah Be Praised". LP, Vinyl record album

A brilliant showcase for the best of the London scene in recent years – a special live recording done in Studio Two at Abbey Road – put together by the Jazz Refreshed label, and featuring some of its best artists in a set of exclusive recordings! The work here bristles with the kind of new energy that's made the London scene so amazing in recent years – and the live performance means that these cuts have less of programmed elements of some of their studio recordings – just fresh, spontaneous performances on titles that include "This Too" by Doom Cannon, "Ekpe" by Camilla George, These Days" by Daniel Casimir & Tess Hirst, "Panda Village"b y Theon Cross, "Red" by Noya Rao, and "Helsinki Trio" by Richard Spaven. LP, Vinyl record album

The genius of Basie meets the genius of Quincy Jones – a 60s pairing that's every bit as great as the 50s pairing of Basie and Neal Hefti! Jones and Basie worked together in a number of settings during the 60s – including a very successful album for Frank Sinatra on Reprise – but here, the pair are really going full-on and hard-swinging, in a fresh style that's got all the hipness of Quincy's budding talent in the 60s, played with the deeply soulful manner of the still-great Basie band of the time. Titles include "Rat Race", "For Lena & Lennie", "The Big Walk", "Meet BB", "Jessica's Day", "Muttnik", and "Quince". LP, Vinyl record album

Don't think "disco", think "funky jazz" – because this sweet South African group from the 70s is filled with lots of groovy twists and turns – all in a mode that's quite different than any of the American or European jazz albums we know from the time! The lineup here includes reed heavyweight Basil Coetzee on both flute and tenor sax – working in a quartet with some sublime organ lines from Pops Mohamed – who plays in this snakey sort of way that's a bit like South African jazz piano, but maybe even more flowing and moody. The grooves are sometimes funky, sometimes more modal – but always forward moving in a really great way, but again with a very fresh approach to rhythm! Titles include "Super Natural Love", "Yasmeen's Blues", "Night Express", "Odd's On", and "Echo On The Delay". (Global Grooves, Jazz) LP, Vinyl record album

A really great collection – one that offers up the earliest work by Nat King Cole – before he even recorded for Decca or Capitol! The music here was all recorded in Hollywood, when Nat was fresh on the scene – and a number of titles were never issued at all! The group features Oscar Moore on guitar and Wesley Prince on bass – and some tracks have extra vocals from Maxine Johnson. (Vocalists, Jazz) LP, Vinyl record album

A great example of the Muse Records charm of altoist Richie Cole – bop-fired creativity at its peak, mixed with some added contemporary elements to keep things fresh! In this case, Richie's horn takes on some key bop classics, but also opens up a bit with vocalsits too – Eddie Jefferson on versions of "Hi Fly", "Relaxin At Camarillo", and "Waiting For Waits" – the latter of which also features Tom Waits as well! The Manhattan Transfer make some subtle guest appearances too – but in ways that are much more restrained than their own albums, really leaving most room for Richie's horn. Bruce Forman plays guitar and Dick Hindman piano – and titles include "Hi Fly", "Relaxin At Camarillo", "Hooray For Hollywood", "I Love Lucy", "Malibu Breeze", "Waiting For Waits", and "Tokyo Rose Sings The Hollywood Blues". LP, Vinyl record album

Possibly the strongest album ever recorded by mellow-voiced jazz vocalist Earl Coleman – a singer with a deeper style that's very much in the classic Billy Eckstine mode, but which swings a bit more freely in a small combo! The set's got a nicely open style – with longer tracks than usual for a jazz vocal date, and lots of room for jazz soloists that include Art Farmer on trumpet, Gigi Gryce on alto, and Hank Jones on piano. The backing is in a great small group mode, and in a way, the album's almost unique for the time – and really predates a lot of later male vocal sides of this nature – offering Coleman more of a fresh start than just a standard "return" – and really paving the way for Johnny Hartman sides in the 60s. Titles include "Say It Isn't So", "Reminiscing", "Come Rain Or Come Shine", "No Love No Nothin", and a great version of "Social Call". (Vocalists, Jazz) LP, Vinyl record album

Sonny Criss plays Cole Porter – and the results are way greater than the sum of the parts – even though those parts are already pretty darn great! Criss' alto sax has a superb tone at this time – razor-sharp, and nicely crisp – yet still filled with warmth that sets it apart from some of his more modern contemporaries – a beautiful balance that really illuminates these tunes, and has you thinking of them as fresh Criss compositions, not older Porter standards. The instrumentation is quite fresh, too – thanks to the addition of Larry Bunker on vibes, which is a really nice surprise – and piano by Sonny Clark and Jimmy Bunn. The great Lawrence Marable plays drums – and titles include "I Love You", "Easy To Love", "Night & Day", and "Love For Sale". LP, Vinyl record album

Excellent Duke Ellington work from the late 50s – written and recorded during a period in which he was reemerging with a stronger jazz vision than ever before! The set was written by Ellington and Strayhorn – and dedicated to the Shakespeare Festival in Stratford, Ontario – but forget the Bard-inspired roots of the tracks, because the shimmering moods of the pieces is pure Ellington – with a richness of feeling that's totally great, and a sound that's wonderfully fresh, given that most of these numbers aren't overplayed Ellington compositions! Players include Cat Anderson and Clark Terry on trumpets, Paul Gonsalves on tenor, and Johnny Hodges on alto – and titles include "The Telecasters", "Circle Of Fourths", "Sonnet For Caesar", "Sonnet To Hank Cinq", and "Such Sweet Thunder". LP, Vinyl record album

An expanded version of Bill Evans' first album as a leader – and a well-titled set that went onto transform the sound of the piano in jazz! The core session isn't as lyrically free as some of Evans' later classics, but already has an undeniably fresh approach to the keys – one that's modern, yet never academic – fluid, but never flowery – pure genius of economy and understatement, while also at the same time opening bold new worlds in sound. The trio features drummer Paul Motian and bassist Teddy Kotick, and titles include the classics "Five" and "Waltz For Debby", the latter of which is performed solo by Evans – plus tracks that include "Displacement", "I Love You", "My Romance", "No Cover, No Minimum", and "Our Delight". Added to the original album is a full record of (then) previously unissued tunes – mostly solo piano numbers recorded in 1958 and 1962 – on titles that include "Easy To Love", "Some Other Time", "Danny Boy", and "In Your Own Sweet Way". LP, Vinyl record album

The second album of funky fusion from this all-star CTI group that included Stanley Turrentine, Stanley Clarke, Ndugu, Tom Brown, Eric Gale, Ronnie Foster, and George Benson! The ensemble come together for a great set of laidback fusion tracks that groove with a nice soulful undercurrent – surprisingly fresh, and not nearly as slick as you'd expect from the date of the session – showing that the original open-ended CTI vibe could still be strongly alive on the right records! Tracks have a great mix of acoustic and electric touches – and although Stanley Clarke was the musical director of the album, the whole thing's clearly a group effort. Titles include "Silk", "Hot Fire", "Sunwalk", and "In Celebration Of The Human Spirit". LP, Vinyl record album

One of Herbie Hancock's great acoustic moments of the 70s – quite a contrast to his more dynamic electric work of the time, with the subtle, sensitive approach of some of his Japanese trio sessions! Likewise, Chick Corea reminds us that he's great on the acoustic keys too – and works here alongside Herbie on these long-spiralling tracks with no other instrumentation at all – just sublime twin-piano magic as both players bring their voices together, then rise up individually – on titles that include "Maiden Voyage", "Button Up", "Liza", "La Fiesta", and "February Moment" – all coming out very fresh and different here! LP, Vinyl record album

One of the last great records by Charles Mingus – a set of extremely compelling original compositions, played by a fresh group of younger players, plus a few older masters! The record's got a fire and sense of emotion that's missing from a number of other 70s Mingus sessions – and it's one of the few later albums we'd easily rank right up there with his late 50s and early 60s classics! Orchestrations were partially arranged and conducdted with help from Sy Johnson – and soloists include James Moody and Bobby Jones on tenor, Charles McPherson on alto, Snookie Young and Lonnie Hillyer on trumpet, and Roland Hanna on piano. Titles include "The Shoes Of The Fisherman's Wife Are Some Jive Ass Slippers", "Adagio Ma Non Troppo", "The Chill of Death", and "The I Of Hurricane Sue". LP, Vinyl record album

An excellent set of smooth funky fusion tunes cut by Brazilian trumpeter Marcio Montarroyos – done in a style that's partly like some of Freddie Hubbard's albums of the sort, but which also has a mixture of Brazilian percussion and electronic touches – similar to early 80s work by Azymuth! The blend of styles is a great one – making things darker than you'd think for an album on Columbia a the time, and creating a nice juxtaposition between the earthy and the smooth that really keeps things fresh! Titles include "Christina", "Samba Solstice", "Sky Dive", "Ocean Dance", and "Aruanda". LP, Vinyl record album

One of Billy's best, and it's got a pretty tight instrumental groove that's similar to some of Jimmy McGriff's work for the Sue and Veep labels. Billy's organ fronts some groovy and offbeat arrangements by Sly Stone – and although the set list includes a number of late 60s hits, the overall approach is pretty fresh. Titles include "Free Funk", "The Duck", "Hard Day's Night", "Uptight", "Ain't Got No Time To Play", and "It's Got To Happen". Also features one vocal cut – "Advice" – written with Sly. (Soul, Jazz) LP, Vinyl record album

About as classic as you can get for Sonny Rollins during the 50s – from the cover right down to the incredible solos on the set! The album's got Rollins really stretching out – still not finding the freer trio mode of his Vanguard session, but still bringing in plenty of fresh ideas in both his phrasing and the construction of his tunes – way more than just the roots of his (still excellent) years as a boppish player. The group's nice and loose – with Wynton Kelly on soulful piano, Doug Watkins on bass, and Philly Joe Jones on drums – all able to snap into a groove when needed, but also letting Rollins really lay back into a solo too. Titles include the sublime "Asiatic Raes", plus "Namely You", "Tune Up", "Wonderful Wonderful", and "Blues For Philly Joe". If you've ever needed a record to convince you how great Rollins is, this might just be the one! LP, Vinyl record album