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A stone slammer from saxophonist Steve Grossman – a record that's essentially a Stone Alliance album with added keyboards from Jan Hammer! Steve's blowing hard, free, and soulfully with his regular bandmates Gene Perla on bass and Don Alias on drums – and Hammer's nicely restrained here, never jamming too much but really bringing a heck of a lot of force to the record with his work on electric piano and moog! Tracks are mostly in the hard choppy funk of the Stone Alliance mode, but have a few freer jazz touches at times – and titles include "This Way Out", "Inmate Man", "Katonah", "Enya", and "In It".

Why was it that the left end of jazz in the 80s often produced some of the most unexpected alliances? Perhaps it was because it was so tough to gig and earn on one own's creative vision that it made more sense to play together with other leaders. Or perhaps the dearth of really creative music in the mainstream made more avant players try to fill the void. Whatever the case, this album's a very typical batch of 80s avant – featuring the unlikely alliance of Peter Brotzmann, Bill Laswell, Ronald Shannon Jackson, and Sonny Sharrock, all playing with noisy whimsy on tracks like "Panzer Be Bop", "Blind Willie", "Straw Dog", and "Pig Cheese".

Stunning stuff – and one of the greatest Charles Mingus albums of all time – a true treasure recorded in that magical year of 1957, when Mingus was finally finding his strongest voice in modern music! The album's near-perfect from start to finish – as bold a statement in jazz as anyone might be allowed to make in the late 50s, yet still always focused, driven, and wrapped up with a tremendous sense of energy. The tracks are all quite long – perfect vehicles for Mingus to reach his full level of expression – played by a group that includes Curtis Porter on tenor and alto sax, Jimmy Knepper on trombone, Wade Legge on piano, and Dannie Richmond on drums – making an early appearance in his alliance with Mingus that would last for many many years. Titles include classic versions of "Haitian Fight Song", "Blue Cee", and "Reincarnation Of A Lovebird" – plus "The Clown", which features a long improvised monologue by Jean Shephard!

Rare grooves in many flavors – a wonderful collection of rare gems from the American 70s underground – and a set that's overflowing with cuts from some of the most valuable albums of the period! The core vibe here is jazz, but there's also a lot more going on too – bits of funk, some spiritual touches, and some downright soulful moments too – all presented in a set of tracks that really lives up to the "deep" in the title – a bit like Gilles Peterson pulling together music of this nature, but as if he dug even deeper than usual! Titles include "Shake Your Poo Poo (45 version)" by Earl Carter & The Fantastic 6, "Vaya Mulatto" by Stone Alliance, "Free Man" by George Freeman, "African Rhythms (45 version part 1)" by Oneness Of Juju, "Mr PC" by Mike Selesia, "Destroy The Nihilist Picnic" by London Experimental Jazz Quartet, "Intergalactic Love Song (alt mix)" by The Diddys with Paige Douglas, "Ain't Got No I Got Life" by Nina Simone, "Only Yesterday" by Weldon Irvine, "Afra Jum (alt take)" by Francisco Mora Catlett, and "Dream Come True (part 1)" by Three Of Us.

A stone slammer from saxophonist Steve Grossman – a record that's essentially a Stone Alliance album with added keyboards from Jan Hammer! Steve's blowing hard, free, and soulfully with his regular bandmates Gene Perla on bass and Don Alias on drums – and Hammer's nicely restrained here, never jamming too much but really bringing a heck of a lot of force to the record with his work on electric piano and moog! Tracks are mostly in the hard choppy funk of the Stone Alliance mode, but have a few freer jazz touches at times – and titles include "This Way Out", "Inmate Man", "Katonah", "Enya", and "In It".

Stunning stuff – and one of the greatest Charles Mingus albums of all time – a true treasure recorded in that magical year of 1957, when Mingus was finally finding his strongest voice in modern music! The album's near-perfect from start to finish – as bold a statement in jazz as anyone might be allowed to make in the late 50s, yet still always focused, driven, and wrapped up with a tremendous sense of energy. The tracks are all quite long – perfect vehicles for Mingus to reach his full level of expression – played by a group that includes Curtis Porter on tenor and alto sax, Jimmy Knepper on trombone, Wade Legge on piano, and Dannie Richmond on drums – making an early appearance in his alliance with Mingus that would last for many many years. Titles include classic versions of "Haitian Fight Song", "Blue Cee", and "Reincarnation Of A Lovebird" – plus "The Clown", which features a long improvised monologue by Jean Shephard! The deluxe CD reissue includes two bonus tracks, "Passions of a Woman Loved" and "Tonight At Noon", and comes in a 5 inch cardboard sleeve.