One of the last recordings ever made by the genius trumpeter Jaimie Branch – and a set that shows the bold new direction she was going in, right before she left our planet all too soon! The music here leaps forward from any of Branch's earlier recordings – with harder rhythms, more focus in the driving quality of the music, and even some lyrical passages that are quite stunning – vocals that add a lot to the music, and which could have had Jaimie finding an audience in a world far past just jazz! The core group is incredible – the drums of Chad Taylor have never been so powerful, urged on by the bass work of Jason Ajemian – and folded beautifully with the cello, voice, marimba, and keyboards of Lester St Louis. Branch herself also plays keyboards and percussion – and Daniel Villareal guests on some additional percussion too – and the whole thing comes together with an incredible sense of energy and vision, at a level that has us missing Jaimie's presence on the planet even more than before. Titles include "Aurora Rising", "Take Over The World", "Baba Louie", "Burning Grey", "The Mountain", and "Borealis Dancing". LP, Vinyl record album

Mid-40s recordings with the classic Ellington Orchestra line-up with Rex Stewart, Taft Jordan, Ray Nance, Lawrence Brown, Al Sears, Sonny Greer, Al Hibbler, and others. LP, Vinyl record album

One of the last recordings ever made by the genius trumpeter Jaimie Branch – and a set that shows the bold new direction she was going in, right before she left our planet all too soon! The music here leaps forward from any of Branch's earlier recordings – with harder rhythms, more focus in the driving quality of the music, and even some lyrical passages that are quite stunning – vocals that add a lot to the music, and which could have had Jaimie finding an audience in a world far past just jazz! The core group is incredible – the drums of Chad Taylor have never been so powerful, urged on by the bass work of Jason Ajemian – and folded beautifully with the cello, voice, marimba, and keyboards of Lester St Louis. Branch herself also plays keyboards and percussion – and Daniel Villareal guests on some additional percussion too – and the whole thing comes together with an incredible sense of energy and vision, at a level that has us missing Jaimie's presence on the planet even more than before. Titles include "Aurora Rising", "Take Over The World", "Baba Louie", "Burning Grey", "The Mountain", and "Borealis Dancing". LP, Vinyl record album

One of the last recordings ever made by the genius trumpeter Jaimie Branch – and a set that shows the bold new direction she was going in, right before she left our planet all too soon! The music here leaps forward from any of Branch's earlier recordings – with harder rhythms, more focus in the driving quality of the music, and even some lyrical passages that are quite stunning – vocals that add a lot to the music, and which could have had Jaimie finding an audience in a world far past just jazz! The core group is incredible – the drums of Chad Taylor have never been so powerful, urged on by the bass work of Jason Ajemian – and folded beautifully with the cello, voice, marimba, and keyboards of Lester St Louis. Branch herself also plays keyboards and percussion – and Daniel Villareal guests on some additional percussion too – and the whole thing comes together with an incredible sense of energy and vision, at a level that has us missing Jaimie's presence on the planet even more than before. Titles include "Aurora Rising", "Take Over The World", "Baba Louie", "Burning Grey", "The Mountain", and "Borealis Dancing". LP, Vinyl record album

With featured soloists Ray Nance, Johnny Hodges, Lawrence Brown, Taft Jordan, Jimmy Hamiltn, Harry Carney, Junior Raglan, and Joe Nanton. Titles include "Star Spangled Banner", "Take The A Train", "Tea For Two", "Honeysuckle Rose", "Ring Dem Bells", "Black And Tan Fantasy", and more. LP, Vinyl record album

(Sound Library, Jazz) LP, Vinyl record album

The brilliant 3rd album from Mike Westbrook – a sharp-edged, two volume set with a scathing anti-war theme! The work is Westbrook's first total-concept album, and it's still one of his best – written with an edge that's free from some of the more whimsical touches that showed up in Mike's later years, and played by a core group of British avant soloists with searing intensity! You've never heard large group scoring like this – bold, ambitious, and quite different than most of what's come before. And although the whole thing sounds as if it's going to fall apart at any moment, it always snaps back into a sharp focus just in the nick of time – with brilliant results that bring the same sense of surprise that you might get from, say, a classic album from Charles Mingus or Archie Shepp! Players include Kenny Wheeler and Henry Lowther on trumpets, Mike Gibbs and Paul Rutherford on trombones, John Surman on baritone and soprano sax, Mike Osborne on alto and clarinet, Alan Skidmore on tenor and flute, Brian Smith on tenor, and Harry Miller and Barre Phillips on bass. This set features both volumes of the recording – with titles that include "Landscape", "Hooray", "Other World", "Marching Song", "Transition", "Rosie", "Tension", "Ballad", "Conflict", and "Requiem". LP, Vinyl record album

... LP, Vinyl record album

One of the greatest Sun Ra records from the early 80s – and a set that's every bit as striking as its sinister title! The album was recorded in 1982 – in marathon New York sessions that yielded more than one album's worth of material – but of all of them, this is probably the best, and the one with some of the strongest playing – a really unified album that should have gotten a lot more circulation at the time, instead of a mostly underground release on Saturn Records. The set kicks off with the fantastic "Nuclear War", a wonderful little groover – and a track that's probably as strong a number in the Arkestra's book as "Space Is The Place" – but with a shift in righteous message from the 70s to the 80s. The album then shifts into 2 mellower numbers with weird spacey overtones – "Retrospect" and "Makeup" – before moving into side two, and the drawn-out edgey "Fireside Chat With Lucifer". Players include Ra on piano, electronics, and organ – plus John Gilmore on tenor, Danny Ray Thompson on baritone, Marshall Allen on flute and alto, and Atakatune on percussion – plus vocals from June Tyson and Tyrone Hill on "Nuclear War". LP, Vinyl record album

A really wonderful under-discovered performance by Sun Ra & The Arkestra – a complete live set from 1984, presented here with really stunning fidelity! The package is a great antidote to some of the fuzzier Ra live sets on the market – as it's got the care that the Trost label has brought to their reissues of material by Peter Brotzmann and the FMP generation – with sound that's more than sensitive enough to capture some surprisingly great spare piano passages, as well as the full force of the Arkestra when they really get going. Sun Ra is still a tremendous force on the keys at this time – and delivers a lot of solos that are interspersed between larger, more structured songs – played with fire by a lineup that includes John Gilmore on tenor and clarinet, Marshall Allen on alto and flute, James Jackson on bassoon and infinity drum, and Danny Ray Thompson on baritone and flute. Titles include a number of "untitled improvisation" tracks – plus "Big John's Special", "Days Of Wine & Roses", "What's New", "Nuclear War", "East Of The Sun", "Yeah Man", "Mack The Knife", "Day Dream", and "Love In Outer Space". This great 4LP box set includes an insert card with notes and photos. Beautiful! LP, Vinyl record album

Soft Power follow up their previous set with a record that's maybe even more striking overall – a fantastic blend of spiritual jazz and electric elements – served up with some especially nice Fender Rhodes, and plenty more going on as well! The tunes build with a sense of majesty that's great – often really making a lot of the basswork of Iiro Tulkki, whose sense of sound establishes a great core to the record, as do the drums and percussion of Mikael Jurmu – a player who's got a nice edge, and occasionally gets additional percussion help on the set. Staffan Sodergard handles both Fender Rhodes and trumpet – in a lineup that also includes tenor from Esa Umberg, soprano and alto from Antti Vauhkonen, and guitar from Otto Kyrklund – on titles that include "War Setib", "Raw Bites", "Doom", "Riff", "Duke", "Kesam", and "Archie". LP, Vinyl record album

The brilliant 3rd album from Mike Westbrook – a sharp-edged, two volume set with a scathing anti-war theme! The work is Westbrook's first total-concept album, and it's still one of his best – written with an edge that's free from some of the more whimsical touches that showed up in Mike's later years, and played by a core group of British avant soloists with searing intensity! You've never heard large group scoring like this – bold, ambitious, and quite different than most of what's come before. And although the whole thing sounds as if it's going to fall apart at any moment, it always snaps back into a sharp focus just in the nick of time – with brilliant results that bring the same sense of surprise that you might get from, say, a classic album from Charles Mingus or Archie Shepp! Players include Kenny Wheeler and Henry Lowther on trumpets, Mike Gibbs and Paul Rutherford on trombones, John Surman on baritone and soprano sax, Mike Osborne on alto and clarinet, Alan Skidmore on tenor and flute, Brian Smith on tenor, and Harry Miller and Barre Phillips on bass. Titles on this first volume include "Landscape", "Hooray", "Other World", and "Marching Song". LP, Vinyl record album

The brilliant 3rd album from Mike Westbrook – a sharp-edged, two volume set with a scathing anti-war theme! The work is Westbrook's first total-concept album, and it's still one of his best – written with an edge that's free from some of the more whimsical touches that showed up in Mike's later years, and played by a core group of British avant soloists with searing intensity! You've never heard large group scoring like this – bold, ambitious, and quite different than most of what's come before. And although the whole thing sounds as if it's going to fall apart at any moment, it always snaps back into a sharp focus just in the nick of time – with brilliant results that bring the same sense of surprise that you might get from, say, a classic album from Charles Mingus or Archie Shepp! Players include Kenny Wheeler and Henry Lowther on trumpets, Mike Gibbs and Paul Rutherford on trombones, John Surman on baritone and soprano sax, Mike Osborne on alto and clarinet, Alan Skidmore on tenor and flute, Brian Smith on tenor, and Harry Miller and Barre Phillips on bass. Titles on this second volume include "Transition", "Rosie", "Tension", "Ballad", "Conflict", and "Requiem". LP, Vinyl record album

Smooth as silk, with plenty of soul – a classic set that has the guitar of Eric Gale produced by the legendary Allen Toussaint! The cross of talents is pretty compelling – and although the album's not a New Orleans funk outing, it definitely shares some of the more creative elements that you'd get from some of Toussaint's other side projects at the end of the 70s. A few numbers definitely have a bit more bump than you'd expect from a fsuion date like this – and Toussaint himself plays piano and moog on the record, and even sings a tiny bit. Robert Dabon plays Fender Rhodes – and titles include "You Got My Life In Your Hands", "War Paint", "Touch Of Silk", "Au Privave", "With You I'm Born Again", and "Once In A Smile". LP, Vinyl record album

One of the most beautiful albums that Charlie Haden ever recorded – and if he only ever appeared on one record in his life, we'd still love him tremendously for this one! The album has a feel that's very much in keeping with both the "liberation" and "orchestra" in the title – "liberation", in that the music is filled with inspiration from South American sources, and has a strongly political feel at times; and "orchestra" because the group here is somewhat large, and filled with a tremendous array of expressive players – including Gato Barbieri on tenor, Dewey Redman on alto and tenor, Don Cherry on cornet and flutes, Michael Mantler on trumpet, Roswell Rudd on trombone, Robert Northern on French horn, Paul Motian and Andrew Cyrille on percussion, Carla Bley on piano, and Perry Robinson on clarinet. Haden leads these disparate talents through a set of tremendously focused music – filled with as many ideas as it is with a sense of humanity and soul – all to brilliantly point the way forward for the new sound of Impulse Records in the years after Coltrane's death! Titles include the classic "Song For Che", plus Ornette's "War Orphans", Carla Bley's "The Interlude", and "Song Of The United Front", by Hans Eisler, and with words by Brecht! LP, Vinyl record album

A whole new side of the talents of Sun Ra – especially if you only know the longer-style jams on some of his albums from the 60s and 70s! From the very start of his career, Ra was every bit as interested in issuing music on 45s as he was on albums – and in fact, at some of the more desperate times, the 7" single turned out to be a very affordable format to try out new ideas – including some great projects with other artists! The array of work presented here is stunning – as the set includes some very up-close and personal moments with Ra on record, plus some tight jazzy tracks from the Arkestra, surprising vocal group material designed to crack the R&B market, and some especially cool projects with other singers too. The package is put together with very detailed notes on all the singles – and while the bulk of this material comes from the key Arkestra years of the late 50s through the early 80s, there's also a few tracks from other dates too – including a handful of songs that were only issued as 45s in later years. This limited part 2 of the vinyl set features wonderful tracks from later years – including "The Blue Set", "Space Loneliness", "State Street", "Love In Outer Space", "Mayan Temple", "Quest", "Rough House Blues", "Journey To Saturn", "Blues On Planet Mars", "The Bridge", "Rocket #9", "The Perfect Man", "Outer Space Plateau", "Extensions", "Orbitration In Blue", "A Blue One", "Big City Blue", "I'm Gonna Unmask The Batman", "Saturn Moon", "Disco 2021", "Sometimes I'm Happy", "I Am The Instrument", "Cosmic Drama", "Nuclear War", "Hell #1", and "Cosmo-Extensions" – plus the tracks "Tell Her To Come On Home" and "I'm Making Believe" by Little Mack. LP, Vinyl record album

Hip vibes from the European scene of the 60s – a really amazing little album from Danish player Louis Hjulmand, with a sound that's unlike anything we've heard from the US! Hjulmand's approach to the vibes is a lot sharper and stronger than most of his American contemporaries – almost in the bold chromatic mode of Bobby Hutcherson's "new thing" work for Blue Note, but more inside overall – with a sense of swing and rhythm that are a nice contrast to the sharper notes on his instrument. Accompaniment here is from a shifting lineup of players – Niels Henning Orsted Pedersen on bass, Lars Blach on guitar, and Bjarne Rostvold on drums – sometimes with only drums, other times with just a bit of bass, used very sparely! Titles include "On Green Dolphin Street", "War Dance", "Angel Eyes", "Mallet Dance", "Valse Dania", "Doodlin", and "Memories Of You". LP, Vinyl record album

Amazing stuff from Ahmad Jamal – one of his greatest albums ever, and the kind of Fender Rhodes classic that got passed over in the history books, but which is finally getting some appreciation these days! Ahamad's in a very different mode than his Cadet/Argo years – using the mellow keys of the Fender Rhodes to craft some killer tunes with a laidback edge. Richard Evans did the arrangements, and the sound is very deep and soulful on most of the album. Includes a sublime sample version of War's "World Is A Ghetto" , plus "Superstition", "Children Of The Night", and "Soul Girl". LP, Vinyl record album

Spiritual sounds with a global bent – served up here by a group who mix together sarangi, tablas, cajon, guitar, and a bit of kalimba – plus vocals of their own, which are often buried down in the mix a bit, and help created a larger sonic palette rather than stand as more conventional lyrics! The album was recorded in Lahore, with a really rich sonic palette – especially on the acoustic guitar, which has this way of soaring out from the other instruments, really delivering a personal touch to the album! Titles include J Dilla tribute "Dilla Taal" – plus "Remorsefully Proud", "A War With My Ego", "Her Smile Made Me Smile", "Dha Vi", and "Make Them Proud". Also features two bonus tracks – a version of the Dilla tune "Time The Donut Of The Heart", and "Pak Damun". LP, Vinyl record album

London's Kokoroko are a group with roots in many traditions and global modes – but they've also got a cohesive jazz-based sensibility that really makes the whole thing come together – and makes their music feel fresh and new, instead of a contemporary take on older modes! There's definitely strands of West African styles that run through the record, with vocals on a number of cuts – but those are offset by these prominent instrumental passages too – always given lots of different inflections, depending on the tracks – as the group have a lot to draw from in an octet lineup that mixes together trumpet, keyboards, alto, trombone, guitar, and plenty of percussion. Titles include "Age Of Ascent", "Something's Going On", "Blue Robe", "Home", "War Dance", "Those Good Times", "Soul Searching", and "Ewa Inu". LP, Vinyl record album

A great statement as a leader from drummer Paul Motian – a player that none would have expected to be hitting this territory in the decade before – the start of a great run of records that continued his break from more familiar rhythmic territory! The record's got a very strong ECM vibe, but also maybe a bit more bite, too – as the bass work of Charlie Haden is balanced by sharper sounds from Carlos Ward on alto sax – who really gets plenty of space to dominate the proceedings, with this open soulfulness that really adds a lot to the record. The set's also got twin guitars from Paul Metzke and Sam Brown, which makes for a great approach – especially as Brown moves between acoustic and electric. Titles include a beautiful reading of Haden's "Song For Che" – plus "Victoria", "Tuesday Ends Saturday", "War Orphans", and "Sod House". LP, Vinyl record album

A drum-heavy spectacular that returns Gene Krupa and Buddy Rich to their big band roots – thanks to some hard-swinging arrangements from George Williams! The tracks are a bit shorter and done with a larger group than on some of the other Rich or Krupa sides for Verve – but there actually seems to be even more drum pyrotechnics here, possibly because the players' efforts are compressed into such a tight space! Production is a bit odd – with the drums so high in the mix that they sometimes come across with more treble than bass – but that really highlights some of the most inventive moments on the top of the kit as well. Titles include "Duet", "Perdido", "Evolution", "Night Train", and "Hawaiian War Chant". LP, Vinyl record album

Jazz from the heart of the cold war – not actually recorded in Moscow, but featuring a bunch of hip players on their return from a tour of the Soviet Union – a historic moment in which west met east, with some groovy jazz in the offing! Apart from the tenor of Zoot Sims and alto of Phil Woods, the record also features flute and alto from Jerry Dodgion, trombone from Willie Dennis, trumpets from Markie Markowitz and Jimmy Maxwell, and piano from Eddie Costa – and the set features arrangements from Al Cohn on tracks that hit the 5 minute range – tight at the top, with breakaway solos, as you might hear during some of the Cohn/Sims sides for RCA during the 50s! Titles include "Let's Dance", "Mission To Moscow", "The Sochi Boatman", and the obligatory "Russian Lullaby". LP, Vinyl record album

Soaring keyboards from Hiromasa Suzuki – stretched out on some longer tracks than usual, with beautiful electric elements over some great large arrangements! Suzuki plays a fair bit of electric piano on the set – and is working here with some fairly dramatic larger ensemble sounds that echo the anti-war sentiments of the tunes' titles – not really a jazz-rock style, but definitely with some of the younger, bolder energy of the time! There's a fair bit of funk in the rhythms, especially on the more upbeat tracks – and the album soars along at a pace that would have made Herbie Hancock or Chick Corea proud. Titles include "Warm Honest & Love", "There Is Not Any Way To End The War", "Something Over The War", and "By The Red Stream". LP, Vinyl record album

Very cool stuff – and a fittingly cool collection of work from the great ESP label! If you've never seen one of their samplers before, they're sort of a mad mix of many different styles – putting together tracks in short little blips, filtered out of longer original ones on albums, into a cool collage of sounds and moods – that includes material by Marion Brown, Sunny Murray, New York Art Quartet, The Fugs, Henry Grimes, Albert Ayler, Pearls Before Swine, Pharoah Sanders, and many others! This album features a number of great bits from records we've never seen, mixed together with some more classic moments, all packaged in a cool cover. Includes bits from "East Village Other" by Ishamael Reed, "The Lovebook Record" by Andrei Vozenensky, "Movement Soul" from a record of traditional recordings, "Ni Kantu En Esperanto" from an Esperanto recording, "The Coach With Six Insides" from a musical based on Finnegan's Wake, "Assemblage" by Gunter Hampel, "East Village Other" by Allen Ginsberg, "Call Me Burroughs" by William S Burroughs, "Zitro" by James Zitro, "Of Love & War" by Randy Burns, and lots more by some of the usual suspects. LP, Vinyl record album

Maceo Pinkard wrote plenty of classic tunes in the pre-War years – and here, they're performed by drummer Sticks Evans & The Broadway Recording Orchestra and featuring such vocalists as Delores Andrews (who we learn on the back cover "likes big men and tiny dogs"), Daisy Banks, Vic Carlo, and The Edgar Battle Singers! Titles include plenty of classics – including "Sugar", "Them There Eyes", "Gimme A Little Kiss Will Ya Huh", "Why Do You Torture Me?", "Mammy O Mine", and "Let's Have A Show Down". (Vocalists, Jazz) LP, Vinyl record album

Rare small group sides from the Harlem scene of the pre-War years, with early appearances by Thelonious Monk and Kenny Clarke! LP, Vinyl record album

The amazing full length debut of Hypnotic Brass Ensemble – a cool combo from the Chicago scene who've been making some big waves around the world over the past few years! The brass-heavy group have a family legacy that links them to the Artistic Heritage Ensemble of Phil Cohran – and an approach to their music that mixes spiritual jazz, deep funk, and elements of New Orleans music too – a really unique style that has earned the group's rare singles some tremendous praise – and which is finally ready to step out fully in this wonderful album! The horns are even harder and heavier than before – honed through some touring around the globe, and brought into focus here beautifully – bristling with energy from the very first note. The set features guest appearances from Malcolm Catto, Tony Allen, Flea, and Damon Albarn – but the real strength of the record lies in the group's amazing horns and rhythms – on titles that include "War", "Gibbous", "Alyo", "Ballicki Bone", "Jupiter", "Marcus Garvey", "Party Started", "Sankofa", "Satin Sheets", "Hypnotic", and 2 versions of "Rabbit Hop". (Deep Funk, Jazz) LP, Vinyl record album

Like some of the other issues on Trip, this set brings together some great sides that sort of fell between the cracks in an artist's career. These nice rarer sides by Gene Ammons seem to be recorded by Jug during the early 60's, when he was jumping around his contractual agreements with a number of labels, and recording sessions for just about everybody. The first LP features Jug in the studio with Howard McGhee (the set was briefly issued under his name, on Argo) and a guitarist we're pretty certain is Jake Fisher (from other issues of this material), for a cool laidback soul jazz session that's probably one of Jug's most open-ended from the time. The tracks are all long, with a lot of room for solo space, and a round mellow tone. Titles include "Housewarmin", "Nothin' But Soul", "Jivin Around" and "Jug & McGhee". The second set's a hard-hitting blowing session, cut very much in the mode of Gene's late 50s sides for Prestige – and with a very accomplished group of soul jazzers that includes Nat Adderley, Frank Foster, Bennie Green, and Frank Wess. The groove has a nice raw late night sound – and tracks are pretty long and open-ended. Titles include "Litty Ditty", "Sermonette", "Juggin Around", and "Jim Dog". LP, Vinyl record album

A real standout set in the later years of trumpet legend Chet Baker – in part because the record features some wonderful tenor work from the equally legendary Warne Marsh! Marsh at this point in his career has really developed a subtle edge – this slight current of darkness that wasn't there at the start, and which works well next to the moody qualities that Baker developed in his final years too. Equally wonderful is the piano of Hod O'Brien – a great and overlooked musician, and one who has this almost broken-down quality that really fits the emotive energy of the date. Other players include Eddie Gladden on drums and Cecil McBee on bass – the latter of whom is a bit of a surprise on such a session – on titles that include "Imagination", "We Know It's Love", "Well Spoken", "Blues For A reason", and "Looking Good Tonight". Features a great bonus track – an alternate of "Looking Good Tonight", on vinyl for the first time! LP, Vinyl record album

... LP, Vinyl record album

(Vocalists, Jazz) LP, Vinyl record album

Always brilliant work from the great June Christy – an album that's got a lot more darkness than you might think from the title and the bright-colored cover! The style is very booze-soaked and sad – with plenty of echoes of the classic Something Cool album – and like that set, this one features sublime arrangements from the great Pete Rugolo – who has a perfect way of shading things in with the dark tones and modern elements that always work best for Christy's vocals! One of our favorite-ever records from June – with titles that include "Let There Be Love", "When Sunny Gets Blue", "I Want To Be Happy", "Imagination", "No More", "Better Luck Next Time", and "The Best Thing For You". (Vocalists, Jazz) LP, Vinyl record album

Features Dean Brown on guitar, Gerry Etkins on keys, Baron Browne on bass & Sa Davis on percussion. LP, Vinyl record album

A great set from the John Abercrombie Quartet – that late 70s group that seemed to find one of the best matches for John's unusual phrasing on the guitar – with round, warm work on bass from George Mraz, equally great piano from Richie Beirach, and drums from Peter Donald. The songs are a mix of melodic moments and more chromatic shades – and titles include "Blue Wolf", "Dear Rain", "Stray", "Madagascar", "Foolish Dog", and "Riddles". LP, Vinyl record album

Hardly the blues that you might expect from the title – although knowing Muhal Richard Abrams, there's no doubt some sort of blues influence lurking in the background of his complicated orchestrations for the date! The album's a suite of original compositions by Abrams – all numbers played by a largeish group with lots of wonderful horn patterns – complexly woven together with lots of shifting shapes and tones, then sometimes breaking out in bold, free moments of improvisation! It's records like these that show why Abrams was one of the leading lights of the AACM by the early 80s – as much an important composer as a musician – equally skilled at both levels, and very sensitive to the strengths of the players he chose to work with. Muhal plays piano here – and other group members include Baikida Carroll on trumpet, Craig Harris on trombone, Wallace Laroy McMillan on baritone and flute, Jimmy Vass on alto and flute, Eugene Ghee on tenor and clarinet, Howard Johnson on tuba, Jean-Paul Bourelly on guitar, Michael Logan on bass, and Andrew Cyrille on drums. Titles include "Cluster For Many Worlds", "Quartet To Quartet", "Ancient & Future Reflections", "Du King", "Chambea", and "Duet For One World". LP, Vinyl record album

Bold new work from the legendary Pyramids ensemble – a spiritual jazz group who go back to the 70s, but who've reemerged in recent years with a renewed sense of energy, and a very forward-thinking sound! Leader Idris Ackamoor is still a master of tone and feeling on reeds – including alto and tenor, plus some other instrumentation as well – and he also vocalizes a bit on the record too hitting some righteous expressions that are in the spirit of Leon Thomas or Dwight Trible, mixed along with instrumentation from other players on drums, percussion, keyboards, trumpet, trombone, and guitar. The album's got a beautifully positive vibe – and titles include "Police Dem", "First Peoples", "Afro Futuristic Dreams", "Garland Rose", "Truth To Power", and "Requiem For The Ancestors". LP, Vinyl record album

George Adams and Don Pullen knock it out of the park on this one – finding great company in each other's presence, and really moving things forward in the process! The set begins with a long track titled "Mingus Metamorphosis", and that really sums up the spirit of the record – an 80s reworking of all the ideas that the players had learned from Mingus, but with an individual, personal sense that's all their own – and very different than some of the more standard modes of the Mingus Dynasty group that continued the legacy in a more direct manner. Adams is bold one minute, lyrical the next – and plays both tenor and flute – alongside Pullen on piano, Cameron Brown on bass, and Dannie Richmond on drums. Titles include "Mingus Metamorphosis", "Samba For Now", "City Gates", "Thank You Very Much Mr Monk", and "Nobody Knows The Trouble I've Seen". LP, Vinyl record album

Maybe one of the warmest recordings we've ever heard from pianist Vijay Iyer – but that's maybe no surprise, as the session is graced with these sublime vocals from singer Arooj Aftab – and delivered in a style that's much more than standard jazz! Iyer plays Fender Rhodes and piano, and adds in a bit of electronics – while Shahzad Ismaily uses moog and a vintage Fender bass – all flowing effortlessly, while Aftab brings in these vocal moments that feel both ancient and yet have a sense of new global horizons too – recorded with just a touch of echo that might evoke vintage 4AD. Titles include "Sharabi", "Eyes Of The Endless", "Shadow Forces", "To Remain/To Return", and "Haseen Thi". (Global Grooves, Jazz) LP, Vinyl record album

A really compelling blend of jazz and electronics – served up here in a way that's very different than any other project of its nature! This isn't one of those records where reed improvisations mix with free analog electronics, yet it's also not one where electric rhythms provide the base for jazz samples – as Konrad Agnas criss-crosses all sorts of lines and styles with the record – sometimes reveling in the acoustic warmth of the saxophone work of Per Texas Johanssen, other times letting rhythms get crisp and crackling from his own drums, informed with work on an OP1 synthesizer! Torbjorn Zetterberg provides some amazing bass – almost funky at times, and certainly some of his most soulful work on record – and the group also features Hammond B3 and piano from Johan Graden. Titles include "Manech Och Vargen", "Bismillah", "Half Year Song", "Siwa", "Untitled 1972", "Don Rythmicon", "Rite Of Passage", and "Arthur & Jeremiah". LP, Vinyl record album

One of the few recorded meetings of alto saxophonist Charlie Mariano and pianist Toshiko Akioshi in the studio – quite strange given that they were a couple at the time! The session's easily one of the last great American sessions by either player – a work that shows Mariano's alto really building on the strengths of his work in the 50s, and Akioshi's piano shedding some of its early bop influences, and going for the richly-toned sound that would serve her greatly in the 70s. The long tracks here offer plenty of space for Charlie's sharp tone to really do its thing – and that raspy warmth of the 50s is even more deeply soulful at this point – and augmented by a new sense of composition that gives the record some of its best tracks. There's almost a nascent sense of spiritualism here – quite unusual for the time – and titles include "When You Meet Her", "Toshiko's Elegy", "Deep River", and "Little T". LP, Vinyl record album

One of the funkiest cuts ever from reedman Harold Alexander – served up here in the 45rpm single version, which is short, tight, and really concentrates on the funky drums at the core – although still also topped with plenty of fierce funky flute from the man himself! Speaking of funky drums, Pretty Purdie is on the flipside with "Heavy Soul Slinger" – a cut that definitely earns its name, as the funky drums mix with great conga, massive bass, and this warm organ line that really sends the whole thing home! (Funky 45's, Jazz) 7-inch, Vinyl record

A great one from this lesser-known vocalist – with arrangements by David Terry! (Vocalists, Jazz) LP, Vinyl record album

Funky jazz nuggets with a mighty nice lineup – one that features plenty of vibes next to the keyboards, all resonating strongly over tight rhythms on acoustic bass and drums! There's almost a sunshiney vibe to the music at times that fits the image on the cover – not polished or slick, but this sort of shimmering quality that really lets you bathe in the warmth of the music – especially as the grooves are often laidback, yet still plenty darn funky! The drums are great, and the way they kick in with the vibes is wonderful – on titles that include "Estinto Omicida", "Hydromiel 2022", "Orso Pacifico", "Bourguignon", and "Saint Emilion". (Deep Funk, Jazz) LP, Vinyl record album

A nice collection of Gene Ammons' work that doesn't always get as well remembered as his sides for Prestige or Chess – a 1947 bop session for Savoy with Howard McGhee on trumpet, Leo Parker on baritone, Junior Mance on piano, Gene Wright on bass, and Chuck Williams on drums; and early 50s sesssions with Johnny Coles on trumpet, Lino Murray on trombone, Mack Easton on tenor and baritone, John Houston on piano, Ben Stuberville on bass, and George Brown on drums; done in a wonderfully full-voiced tone! The set features Gene's classic "Red Top", plus the great two part "Big Slam", and the titles "Chips", "Goodtime Blues", "Fuzzy", "Jim Dawgs", and "Street Of Dreams". LP, Vinyl record album

A striking title – and a strong set of grooves, even if the tracks were pulled from a variety of different sessions, and not recorded as a unified album. Jug plays tenor on all cuts – working in formats that range from a Mal Waldron led trio to larger honking groups with horn players like Henderson Chambers, Cecil Payne, Nate Woodward, and Gene Easton. Tracks are short, and most are pretty rocking – with titles that include "Blue Coolade", "Short Stop", "Scam", "Sock", "What I Say", and "Rock Roll". LP, Vinyl record album

Sweet trumpet work from one of Duke Ellington's best sidemen – done for Mercury in 1958 with some very tight arrangements by Anderson and Ernie Wilkins – all in a mode that show's a bit of Cat's Ellington association, but which also opens up in some other swinging modes – including a bit of Basie, and even some wider ranging styles. Cat's in the lead on trumpet, getting support from other players on the instrument – including Clark Terry, Ernie Royal, and Ray Copeland – plus Jimmy Cleveland and Frank Rehack on trombone, Earl Warren on alto sax, Jimmy Forrest and Ernie Wilkins on tenor, and Sahib Shihab on baritone. Titles include "Little Man", "Cat's In The Alley", "June Bug", "Adorable D", "Nina", "Birth Of The Blues", and "Blue Jean Beguine". LP, Vinyl record album

A gem of a record from the groundbreaking Landsdowne series of UK jazz recordings at the end of the 70s – an ambitious effort directed by composer Neil Ardley, cut very much in the mode of the best work by the Ian Carr/Don Rendell group of the time! As the title might imply, the tunes are all of Greek mythological inspiration – but not in a hokey sort of style, or one that has any overdone "battle of the gods" feel. Instead, there's a warm, intimate approach to the work – almost in the mode of the best sophisticated jazz soundtracks of the late 60s – with a real concern for color, shadings, and tone – ultimately in a style that has less to do with mythology than you might think, but which is pretty darn impressive nonetheless! Carr plays trumpet and flugelhorn, Rendell plays saxes and flutes – and other players include Jack Bruce on bass, Chris Spedding on guitar, and and Barbara Thompson on reeds. Titles include "The Greek Variations", "Farewell Penelope", "Persephone's Jive", "Veil Of Ino", and "Siren's Song". LP, Vinyl record album