A great one from this all-star group – an incredibly righteous combo that's given Billy Harper one of his best chances to play in years! As with the previous album by The Cookers, the Harper influence really runs strong – not just in the use of some of his great tracks in the performance, but also in the way the tunes build and work together – that bold, powerful energy that Billy first unleashed on the world in the 70s – driven to new heights here by a lineup that also includes Eddie Henderson on trumpet, Craig Handy on alto sax, George Cables on piano, Cecil McBee on bass, and Billy Hart on drums! But key thanks should also go to trumpeter David Weiss – also in the group, and producer for the record – a great talent for getting these guys to work together so well. Titles include tunes by McBee, Cables, and Hart as well – with tracks that include "Ebony Moonbeams", "Believe For It Is True", "Free For All", "Quest", "But He Knows", "Tight Squeeze", and "Naaj". CD

One of the greatest groups going in recent years – a strong revival of key soulful jazz talents from previous years, all working under the leadership of trumpeter David Weiss – who's really helped them come together and find a whole new sort of energy! The lineup features tremendous tenor from Billy Harper – sounding at his classic best with The Cookers – especially when the rhythms spin out majestically from George Cables on piano, Cecil McBee on bass, and Billy Hart on drums – often with these dark undercurrents that make the music wonderfully powerful! And in addition to Weiss on trumpet, the frontline also includes Eddie Henderson's trumpet as well, plus the alto of Donald Harrison – and the horns have a great way of folding together and interweaving, before breaking out in these very personal solos. Titles include tracks by almost all members of the group – and tunes include "Slippin & Slidin", "Renada", "Sir Galahad", "Time & Time Again", "Dance Of The Invisible Nymph", "Dance Eternal Spirits Dance", and "Three Fall". CD

A landmark set for Blue Note – one that features Freddie Hubbard working in raw, firey, freewheeling territory – given space that few other players at the label were getting at the time! The two volume set features tracks recorded live at Club La Marchal in Brooklyn – and have Hubbard working with a completely hip group that features Lee Morgan, James Spaulding, Harold Mabern, Larry Ridley, Pete La Roca, and Big Black on conga. The sound is incredible – a full on burner that easily earns the "cookers" status of the title – and which sounds quite different from most other live jazz albums of the time! Each side of the album features one long track – and this 2CD set features both volumes, with 4 extended titles that include – "Pensativa", "Walkin", "Jodo", and "Breaking Point". CD

One of Eric's stone cookers with Charles Earland on Hammond! CD

A wailier! Trombonist Matthew Gee is a lost groover from the hard side – and this album is one of the few that he ever cut under his own name. Far from the sleepier players on the instrument, Gee knows how to cook just like Bennie Green – and his company on this album includes Ernie Henry, Frank Foster, Wilbur Ware, and Art Taylor, all cookers themselves! The record features 3 great originals – "Gee!", "Kingston Lounge", and "The Boys From Brooklyn" – plus some mellower standards, and the nice track "Joram". CD

A really obscure little session from tenorist Johnny Griffin – and one of his few dates from the time cut with an organist – in this case the up-and-coming LA player Paul Bryant! Bryant's probably best known for his cookers with Curtis Amy, and he hits a similar mode here – by bringing a strong R&B inflection to the album, and offering Griffin a setting that's a bit less hardbop than some of his other Riverside albums of the time! The rest of the group features Joe Pass on guitar, Jimmy Bond on bass, and Doug Sides on drums – and titles include "Cherry Float", "These Foolish Things", "63rd Street Theme", "Grab This", and "Offering Time". CD

A later set from tenor legend Red Holloway – but one that really revives the style of his 60s soul jazz classics on Prestige Records! Red gets plenty of old school company on the set – a group that features Frank Wess on additional tenor, Lonnie Smith on Hammond, Melvin Sparks on guitar, and Paul Humphrey on drums – all cookers we love from years back, doing a pretty great job of keeping things groovy here. Titles include "Avalon", "3 Steps Up Clark", "Water Jug", "Struttin With Julie", "Good To Go", "Million Dollar Secret", and "Still Groovin". CD

A classic! This is one of the rarest of the rare of all Blue Note albums – and it's the only-ever session cut as a leader by the great tenor player Fred Jackson! The album's a really heavy burner – an all-out organ/tenor assault with the kind of gutbuckety soul groove that only peaked on a rare few Blue Note sessions! Earl Van Dyke plays organ on the session, and it's one of the few jazz albums he appears on, apart from the "soul instrumental" sessions he cut later for Motown. The whole thing's down-n-dirty and mighty nasty – with a feel that's much more like some of the Prestige soul jazz cookers of the time than the usual Blue Note set! Tracks include "Preach Brother", "Dippin In the Bag", "Hootin N Tootin", and "Easin' On Down". CD

Not sure what they mean by "Ameriachi" in the title – but from the sound of the music, there's definitely a great A&M Records-styled mix of jazz, Latin, and South American modes! The set begins with a set of cookers from drummer Hideo Shiraki – working with an excellent group that features tenorist Hidehiko Matsumoto handling arrangements – often in ways that have this upbeat, swinging, and pretty darn groovy way of moving along – sometimes with a bold Herb Alpert-styled trumpet in the lead – other times with a bit of marimba vibes. Titles include "Ashita Ni Nareba", "Akasaka After Dark", "You & Me", and "Ginza Wa Koi No Jujiro". The second half is handled by Takeshi Inomata & His West Liners Plus All-Stars – a group that has an equally great A&M approach to the groove – thanks to arrangements from pianist Masao Yagi! The whole thing's a great illustration of the way that 60s Japanese jazzmen could also work in some groovy instrumental styles in the right setting – and titles include "One Rainy Night In Tokyo", "Omoide", "Goodbye Mr Tears", "Koi Wa Akaibara", and "Aitakute Aitakute". CD

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", "Movin 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". CD

2 live cookers from Cal Tajder – back to back on a single CD! The set begins with Night At The Blackhawk – one of Cal's best late 50s dates for Fantasy Records – thanks to some smoking tenor sax from Jose "Chombo" Silva! The album has Cal working in the very comfortable territory of San Francisco's Blackhawk Nightclub – in a combo that also features familiar players Vince Guaraldi on piano, Al McKibbon on bass, Willie Boby on drums, and Mongo Santamaria on congas – all musicians who'd previously helped Tjader hit some of his best Latin grooves! But the addition of Silva on a few tracks here really makes the set crackle – giving it a gutsy, soulful fee that you don't always get on some of Tjader's other records. Tracks are longish – and titles include the nice original "Bill B", plus jazzy versions of "I Love Paris", "Blue & Sentimental", and "Night In Tunisia". Live & Direct is great live work from Cal Tjader – one of a number of sets but at his home turf of the Blackhawk Nightclub in San Francisco! The album's nicely laidback, with tracks that stretch out a bit more than Tjader's studio work for Fantasy Records – often hitting a slight Latin groove at times, but with a bit more of a straight jazz vibes feel overall! The great Lonnie Hewitt's on the group on piano, coloring in the tunes with some very soulful notes – and in addition to Cal's vibes, the rest of the lineup includes Victor Venegas on bass, and Willie Bobo on drums. Mongo Santamaria on congas and Rolando Lozano on flute join in on the track "Mambo Terrifico" – and other titles include "Racoon Straits", "Bad & The Beautiful", and "You Stepped Out Of A Dream". Note that the CD omits the track "The Continental" from Live & Direct – due to space restrictions. CD

Two organ/sax cookers back to back – both featuring Don Patterson and Sonny Stitt! First up is the wonderful album Brothers 4 – a mighty pairing of organist Patterson and saxman Stitt – one of Don's grooviest late 60s outings, thanks to an excellent sound from all players involved! Stitt plays Varitone sax on the date, which gives his horn a cool electric feel that really sounds wonderful next to Don's work on Hammond – and Grant Green's also in the group, serving up some great single-line solos that are almost more in his early 60s style than his Blue Note work from this same period. The group's rounded out by Don's regular drummer Billy James – a wonderful player with a great ear for unusual rhythms! Tracks are nice and long – and titles include "Walk On By", "Creepin Home", and "Brothers 4". Donny Brook is a massively funky new groove from organist Don Patterson – done with a sound that's a great link between his early soul jazz years and the funkier Prestige sound to come! The group here is a rock-solid quartet – Sonny Stitt on Varitone tenor, plus a bit of alto sax – as well as Grant Green on guitar and Billy James on drums. The rhythms are great – often with a slight undercurrent of funk in the mix – and Grant lets loose beautifully on his guitar with that soaring, skipping sort of groove he picked up nicely near the end of the 60s. Patterson's Hammond is sgreat as always, and all tracks are nice and long – with plenty of solo room for everyone! Titles include "Mud Turtle", "Good Bait", "St Thomas", "Starry Night", and "Donny Brook". CD