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A really rich combination of sounds – one of those rare moments when the end result of a session comes out sounding way more than the instruments that comprise it! The group's led by Jerome Cooper on drums, balaphone, and other percussion – and features Joseph Jarman on tenor and flute, William Parker on bass, Jason Hwang on violin, and Thurman Barker on drums – all working together in ways that are kind of an evolution of the loft jazz style – handled with a lot more thoughtful composition on the part of Cooper, and executed in ways that really have the players thinking about each others' contributions – coming up with these vivid sonic elements in the process, and really holding our attention in the way they instruments take fire from each other. Titles include "Outer & Interactions", "Moments", "The Crouch Opinion", and "Arcunum II".

A great solo performance from Jerome Cooper – not just drums and percussion, but work on flute, balaphone, and other instruments too! Cooper really brings all of his most thoughtful elements into play here – working slowly, and covering space with ideas that really take some time to stretch out and find themselves – then confidently move forward to open up new chapters in the performance – a bit like some of the best early moments of the Art Ensemble Of Chicago, but presented here as a solo act! Side one features "The Unpredictability Of Predictability", in four movements – and side two features "Bert The Cat".

A beautiful example of the maturation of American avant jazz in the 70s – a set that has the Revolutionary Ensemble really drawing their sound into focus, drawing on older experimental modes and forging them into a rich new vision – one that would certainly live up to the AACM's promise of "Great Black Music"! The tracks here are all quite long, but they also have a careful, thoughtful feel too – not just improvisations, but measured exercises in spirit and sound – played beautifully by the trio formation of Sirone on flute and bass, Jerome cooper on drums, percussion, and balaphone, and Leroy Jenkins on violin, flute, and kalimba! The mixture of instrumentation is handled with Art Ensemble-like precision at points – never academic, and occasionally loose enough to be loft jazz – but always with an ear for organic richness of sound, in ways that make the album a surprising delight at each new turn. Titles include "Chicago", "March 4 1", "Clear Spring", and "Revolutionary Ensemble".

An 80s repressing of the album Fast Last – one of the excellent avant sides for Muse from the early 70s, and a record that features Lester Bowie playing in a number of different settings – all with a sound that's different from his Art Ensemble recordings, and from his work for ECM. One track has him playing a duet with pianist John Hicks, another has him in a percussion quartet with Philip Wilson, Jerome Cooper, and Charles Shaw, and some have him in a larger group with players like Cecil McBee, Hicks, Julius Hemphill, and brother Joseph Bowie. Tracks include "Fast Last", "F Troop Rides Again", and "Lonely Woman".

A striking session from Steve Lacy – one of his most powerful albums from 70s Paris! We're tempted to think that this one was called "wordless" because Irene Aebi's on the record, but doesn't sing – and instead plays cello with a quintet that includes Lacy on soprano, Ambrose Jackson on trumpet, Kent Carter on bass, and Jerome Cooper on drums – and the record is a very early realization of Lacy's European sound, more tied to the BYG/Actuel years than later recordings. The album's quite free overall – pretty fierce stuff, especially as the performance moves on – and titles include "Name", "The Breath", "Prologue A Life On Is Way", "Bone", and "The Way".

Pure genius from The Revolutionary Ensemble – and one of the records that really helped set the stage for the New York loft jazz sound of the 70s! The lineup is quite unique – percussion from Jerome Cooper, violin from Leroy Jenkins, and bass from Sirone – a much more subtle lineup of instruments than you'd hear on previous avant sides from ESP – with a resultantly different sound as well – one that's got more subtle colors and tones, and a slow-building, organic approach to improvisation that definitely shows an influence from the experiments of the AACM in Chicago. The album features one long track – "Vietnam (parts 1 & 2)" – but it's got a heck of a lot of variety over its nearly 50 minutes of music!

The larger Cecil Taylor Unit with multiple strings players (Ramsey Ameen on violin and Alan Silva on bass and cello), two drummers: Jerome Cooper and Sunny Murray and longtime reedman Jimmy Lyons. Recorded live in New York in 1980, capturing Taylor's unique conception of group improvisation in full flight. The album features one long work, spread out over 4 sides of the record.