Jon Irabagon on tenor and soprano saxophone, Tom Harrell on trumpet and flugelhorn, Luis Perdomo on piano, Yasushi Nakamura on bass, and Rudy Royston on drums. CD

One of the greatest Milt Jackson albums ever – thanks to an incredible lineup that features Art Farmer on trumpet and Benny Golson on tenor – both of whom give the record a lot more edge than usual for Jackson! The set's almost a maturation of the earliest modern grooves that Milt forged in his earlier sessions for Blue Note and Prestige – a sound that comes across here with a lot more confidence and focus than some of his 50s Savoy sides – with a sharper, edgier quality that comes from Golson's great arrangements for the record. Milt's vibes have a really chromatic feel here, and a sound that's almost louder than usual – and the rest of the group features Tommy Flanagan on piano, Paul Chambers on bass, and Connie Kay on drums. Titles include "Blues For Diahann", "I Remember Clifford", "Thinking Of You", and "Whisper Not". LP, Vinyl record album

A sweet larger group session from vibist Milt Jackson – proof that he was really trying to stretch his wings, and get into new things during the 60s! The set's got Milt working with some great help from Tadd Dameron and Ernie Wilkins on larger group arrangements – nicely swinging charts that have a nice touch of modern, but lots of straightforward grooving too! Milt's the primary soloist, buoyed by an orchestra built around a rhythm section of Hank Jones on piano, Ron Carter on bass, and either Connie Cay or Philly Joe on drums – plus loads of great horn players like Clark Terry, Nat Adderley, Melba Liston, James Moody and Jimmy Heath among others. Titles include renditions of "Old Devil Moon", "'Round Midnight", "The Dream Is You", "You'd Be So Nice To Come Home To", "Echoes", "If You Could See Me Now", "Star Eyes", "Namesake", "If I Should Lose You", and "Later Than You Think". CD features 2 bonus tracks! CD

A sweet larger group session from vibist Milt Jackson – proof that he was really trying to stretch his wings, and get into new things during the 60s! The set's got Milt working with some great help from Tadd Dameron and Ernie Wilkins on larger group arrangements – nicely swinging charts that have a nice touch of modern, but lots of straightforward grooving too! Milt's the primary soloist, buoyed by an orchestra built around a rhythm section of Hank Jones on piano, Ron Carter on bass, and either Connie Cay or Philly Joe on drums – plus loads of great horn players like Clark Terry, Nat Adderley, Melba Liston, James Moody and Jimmy Heath among others. Titles include renditions of "Old Devil Moon", "'Round Midnight", "The Dream Is You", "You'd Be So Nice To Come Home To", "Echoes", "If You Could See Me Now", "Star Eyes", "Namesake", "If I Should Lose You", and "Later Than You Think". LP, Vinyl record album

Two great 60s albums from vibist Milt Jackson – both a bit unusual in format! On Big Bags, Jackson takes on a set of 10 standards (mostly) with some help from Tadd Dameron and Ernie Wilkins on larger group arrangements! Milt's the primary soloist, buoyed by an orchestra built around a rhythm section of Hank Jones, Ron Carter and either Connie Cay or Philly Joe on drums, plus loads of great horn players like Clark Terry, Nat Adderley, Melba Liston, James Moody and Jimmy Heath among others. Includes renditions of "Old Devil Moon", "'Round Midnight", "The Dream Is You", "You'd Be So Nice To Come Home To", "Echoes", "If You Could See Me Now", "Star Eyes", "Namesake", "If I Should Lose You", and "Later Than You Think". The second album of this set is also a surprisingly nice pairing – the vibes of Milt Jackson and some larger horn backings that fall heavy on the trumpet and trombone side of the spectrum! The sound's not nearly as heavy or hokey as you'd expect – thanks to arrangements by Melba Liston – and the horns do a nice job of setting a scene that lets Milt's vibes sneak in and out with effortless ease – coloring things with a great one, and a very rhythmic feel. The album's worth it for one track alone – the really great "Bossa Bags", which grooves with a sound that's everything you'd expect from the title! Other tracks include "Extraordinary Blues", "Save Your Love For Me", "For Someone I Love", "Days Of Wine & Roses", and "Just Waiting". LP, Vinyl record album

A surprisingly nice pairing – the vibes of Milt Jackson and some larger horn backings that fall heavy on the trumpet and trombone side of the spectrum! The sound's not nearly as heavy or hokey as you'd expect – thanks to arrangements by Melba Liston – and the horns do a nice job of setting a scene that lets Milt's vibes sneak in and out with effortless ease – coloring things with a great one, and a very rhythmic feel. The album's worth it for one track alone – the really great "Bossa Bags", which grooves with a sound that's everything you'd expect from the title! Other tracks include "Extraordinary Blues", "Save Your Love For Me", "For Someone I Love", "Days Of Wine & Roses", and "Just Waiting". LP, Vinyl record album

A surprisingly big collection of tracks from Milt – documenting his oft-forgotten years at Impulse Records, plus a few more sides from albums he cut with other folks for ABC. The range of the material is far greater than you might think – and takes Milt way past the MJQ stylings of more famous recordings, into a span of tunes that include soul jazz, hardbop, and even a few funky numbers! Titles include "I Love You", "Braddock Breakdown", "Who Can I Turn To", "Queen Mother Stomp", "Bags' Groove", "Evening In Paris", "Put It Off", and "Gingerbread Boy". LP, Vinyl record album

A great little set from that time when Milt Jackson was fronting a group that also included Jimmy Heath on tenor – a wonderful pairing of talents that made for some of Milt's most soulful sides of the 60s! Heath's sharp-edged tone is a great contrast to Jackson's smoother touch on the vibes – and the pair are supported here by rhythm from Hank Jones on piano, Bob Cranshaw on bass, and Albert Heath on drums – all great players who bring plenty of personal inflection to their work on this live date. Titles include a great version of Heath's "Gemini" – plus Jackson's "Bags Of Blue", "Gerri's Blues", and "Ignunut Oil" – plus takes on "Little Girl Blue" and "Time After Time". CD

A wonderful little record – a real standout in both the careers of Milt Jackson and Coleman Hawkins! The album captures Hawk during his great later years – that time when his sound was even more soulful and inventive than ever – with lots of odd modern undercurrents that really work nicely with the album's slight Latin inflections – a bit like those you might hear on some of Hawkins' Impulse Records material from the same generation. Milt Jackson's vibes are great too – chromatic and edgey, and set up with rhythm support from Kenny Burrell on guitar, Tommy Flanagan on piano, Eddie Jones on bass, and Connie Kay on drums. Titles include "Indian Blues", "Don't Take Your Love From Me", "Sandra's Blues", "Stuffy", and "Close Your Eyes". CD

A wonderful little record – a real standout in both the careers of Milt Jackson and Coleman Hawkins! The album captures Hawk during his great later years – that time when his sound was even more soulful and inventive than ever – with lots of odd modern undercurrents that really work nicely with the album's slight Latin inflections – a bit like those you might hear on some of Hawkins' Impulse Records material from the same generation. Milt Jackson's vibes are great too – chromatic and edgey, and set up with rhythm support from Kenny Burrell on guitar, Tommy Flanagan on piano, Eddie Jones on bass, and Connie Kay on drums. Titles include "Indian Blues", "Don't Take Your Love From Me", "Sandra's Blues", "Stuffy", and "Close Your Eyes". LP, Vinyl record album

An incredible collaboration from John Coltrane and Milt Jackson – and one that gives Milt one of his sharpest records ever! The setting is relatively straight – tenor from Coltrane, vibes from Jackson – plus rhythm from Hank Jones on piano, Paul Chambers on bass, and Connie Kay on drums. Yet there's also a sense of openness here that you'd hardly ever expect on other records by Jackson – especially his contemporaneous sides with the Modern Jazz Quartet – and Coltrane's tenor gets as much room to roam here as it did on Prestige – really cutting some beautifully soulful, open, and flowing lines throughout! Titles include "Bags & Trane", "Three Little Words", "Be-Bop", "Late Late Blues", and "The Night We Called It a Day". LP, Vinyl record album

An incredible collaboration from John Coltrane and Milt Jackson – and one that gives Milt one of his sharpest records ever! The setting is relatively straight – tenor from Coltrane, vibes from Jackson – plus rhythm from Hank Jones on piano, Paul Chambers on bass, and Connie Kay on drums. Yet there's also a sense of openness here that you'd hardly ever expect on other records by Jackson – especially his contemporaneous sides with the Modern Jazz Quartet – and Coltrane's tenor gets as much room to roam here as it did on Prestige – really cutting some beautifully soulful, open, and flowing lines throughout! Titles include "Bags & Trane", "Three Little Words", "Be-Bop", "Late Late Blues", and "The Night We Called It a Day" – plus 2 bonus tracks! CD

A beautiful combination we'd like to hear more of – one that comes from the meeting of Milt Jackson's vibes and the guitar of Wes Montgomery – both recorded here in easygoing brilliance! The session's a nice break from the usual sound of both players at the time – and although Wes played a bit with vibes when working in The Montgomery Brothers, the Jackson approach here is a bit different – more soulful, and a bit more driven on by the rhythm section of Wynton Kelly, Sam Jones, and Philly Joe Jones. Titles include the originals "SKJ", "Blue Roz", "Jingles", and "Sam Sack" – plus versions of "Stairway To The Stars" and "Delilah". LP, Vinyl record album

A beautiful combination we'd like to hear more of – one that comes from the meeting of Milt Jackson's vibes and the guitar of Wes Montgomery – both recorded here in easygoing brilliance! The session's a nice break from the usual sound of both players at the time – and although Wes played a bit with vibes when working in The Montgomery Brothers, the Jackson approach here is a bit different – more soulful, and a bit more driven on by the rhythm section of Wynton Kelly, Sam Jones, and Philly Joe Jones. Titles include the originals "SKJ", "Blue Roz", "Jingles", and "Sam Sack" – plus bonus tracks "Stairway To The Stars (take 2)" & "Delilah (take 3)". CD

Pop culture baggage aside, this is some pretty mesmerizing stuff from Kanye West! Ye the album, if his persona hasn't turned you off by now, is a compelling effort from what we'll dub Kanye's "puzzle period" – this strange era of his recorded output that's a long time since his creative and popular breakthroughs, past the more challenging and complex work circa My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy that enchanted critics and polarized fans, and just got more polarizing from there. The man is a riddle, wrapped in an enigma, hiding behind a Twitter handle but this might be very well be pop art genius...we'll see how it holds up over time! Pretty stripped down compared to some of his denser productions the past few years, and lyrically daunting, but oddly hypnotic all the way. Includes "I Thought About Killing You", "Yikes", "All Mine", "Wouldn't Leave" and "Ghost Town" with PartyNextDoor, "No Mistakes" and "Violent Crimes". LP, Vinyl record album

Pop culture baggage aside, this is some pretty mesmerizing stuff from Kanye West! Ye the album, if his persona hasn't turned you off by now, is a compelling effort from what we'll dub Kanye's "puzzle period" – this strange era of his recorded output that's a long time since his creative and popular breakthroughs, past the more challenging and complex work circa My Beautiful Dark Twisted Family that enchanted critics and polarized fans, and just got more polarizing from there. The man is a riddle, wrapped in an enigma, hiding behind a Twitter handle but this might be very well be pop art genius...we'll see how it holds up over time! Pretty stripped down compared to some of his denser productions the past few years, and lyrically daunting, but oddly hypnotic all the way. Includes "I Thought About Killing You", "Yikes", "All Mine", "Wouldn't Leave" and "Ghost Town" with PartyNextDoor, "No Mistakes" and "Violent Crimes". LP, Vinyl record album

... CD

A great collection that brings together early 50s work in the "birth of the cool" mode! Side one features Lee Konitz and Miles Davis – in a group with Sal Mosca, Max Roach, and Billy Bauer, on very "birth of the cool" like tracks that include "Odjenar", "Hi Beck", "Yesterdays", and "Ezz Thetic". The flipside features several takes of "All The Things You Are", "I'll Remember April", and "These Foolish Things", plus "You'd Be So Nice To Come To" with Jimmy Gourley on guitar, Henry Renaud on piano, Don Bagley on bass, and Stan Levey on drums. LP, Vinyl record album

... CD

Loads of playful groovers – and titles include "Johnny Guitar", "Delicado", "Garbage Man's Cha Cha", "Prelude In Rhythm", "The Martian Cha Cha", and "Batakum". LP, Vinyl record album