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Beautiful work from the legendary late 60s run of British pianist Michael Garrick – and a fascinating session that shows the full depth of his talents! A few of the tracks on the set are in a septet mode – with Garrick leading a group that includes Ian Carr on trumpet, Joe Harriott on alto, Don Rendell on soprano sax, and Tony Coe on tenor – all shading in some beautiful tones on the straight numbers "Good Times" and "Webster's Mood" – and really going to town on the modal number "Ursula", a rolling groover that's simply fantastic! 2 other tracks – "Jazz For Five" and "Jazz Nativity" – have the group joined by poet John Smith, who's recitation beautifully matches the horn work of Coe and Harriott. Remaining tracks are even more unusual – and feature Garrick in trio formation on either celeste or harpsichord – really hitting beautiful notes that have a slightly exotic feel, on titles that include "What Are Little Girls", "Spiders", "Black Marigolds", and "Carolling".

A landmark in British jazz – one of the first albums of the 60s to really break from an older English jazz style, and set the stage for countless experiments to come! Pianist Michael Garrick leads a tremendous group that includes Joe Harriott on alto sax, Ian Carr on trumpet, Tony Coe on tenor, and Coleridge Goode on bass – and the album blends together lyrical originals by Garrick with a darker, edgier, almost unsettled approach that provides tremendous contrast on a few of the tunes. There's a wealth of color, tone, and emotion in this album just waiting to be discovered – and for all players involved, it's a rare moment of genius that should be treasured forever! Titles include "Parting Is Such", "Merlin The Wizard", "Thing Of Beauty", "Second Coming", "Requiem", and "Song By The Sea".

Some of the earliest music we've ever heard from British pianist Michael Garrick – a sublime session cut with Peter Shade on vibes in the late 50s – quite different than some of Garrick's better-known music of the 60s, but equally amazing! The sound here is quite modern, but also nicely straight ahead – as most cuts have a swinging sound, amidst the brilliant mix of tones and colors from the piano and vibes! In addition to Shade's vibes and Garrick's piano, other instrumentation includes Paul Hemmings on bass and Brian Barnes on drums – and Barnes also vocalizes on two tracks, and Josephine Stahl sings on two more. Titles include "A Welter Of Phenomena", "Silhouette", "I'll Never Be The Same", "Threesome", "I Saw Stars", "Angel Eyes", and "Willow Weep For Me".

A landmark album from pianist Michael Garrick – one of the sublime recordings he made with vocalist Norma Winstone in the late 60s and early 70s! Garrick's approach is really unique – a flowing, almost modal approach that spirals out in a joyously dancing groove – not nearly as chunky or standard as styles from American jazz, but working in the freer rhythms being explored on the European scene of the time. Winstone's vocals are a perfect accompaniment for this approach – as she sings in a moody style that's often wordless, and which fits nicely next to flowing piano and sax lines on the set. Players include Don Rendell, Coleridge Goode, Art Themen, and Garrick himself – and titles include "Troppo", "To Henry, A Son", "Lime Blossom", "Sons Of Art", and "Overtones Of A Forgotten Music".

A seminal session of modern jazz and poetry – very similar to American experiments of the type from the 1950s, but recorded in mid 60s London with a group that includes pianist Michael Garrick, trumpeter Shake Keane, and alto saxophonist Joe Harriott! The double-length recording features both instrumental jazz and recitations by poets Adrian Mitchell, Dannie Abse, and Jeremy Robson – all presenting their own work, sometimes with musical backing from the Garrick group, sometimes without. The albums are almost worth it alone for the instrumental tracks by the Garrick Quintet – "Salvation March", "Vishnu", "Wedding Hymn", and "She's Like A Swallow" – all of which have the same dynamic changes and modern edges of Garrick's best work on other Argo albums of the time. But the poetic work is pretty good too – especially on the few sections that feature jazz backing, used in a way that draws from some of the beat-era albums from the US. Poetic titles include "Odd", "Pals", "First Love", "Stork In Jerez", "Apples", "The Long War", "SOS The Poets", and "A Face In The Crowd". CD also features bonus material from the Before Night/Day EP – 6 more tracks with readings by poet Jeremy Robson – with backing by a Garrick group with Joe Harriott on alto and Ian Carr on trumpet.

Searing 60s work from Dick Morrissey – a UK tenor player who only ever recorded a handful of dates as a leader! This smoking material features Dick at the top of his game – right up there at the same level as his classic early 60s sides, like Here & Now – blowing tight and soulfully, but also with this really dark edge in his horn – a perfect accompaniment for the piano of Michael Garrick, caught here at an early point in his career, but already with a voice on his instrument that's bold and righteous. The setting is simple – none of the higher concepts in some of Garrick's later work – but the power of the record is undeniable, even over the course of its short 20 minutes of music. Titles include "The Girl With The Brown Hair", "The Gypsy", "Blues", and "Autumn Leaves".

A brilliant little record from the legendary team of Michael Garrick and Norma Winstone – easily one of their most striking albums ever, and hardly the "blues" set you might guess from the title! Winstone's vocals are very firmly woven into the group's sound here – and most tunes have some sort of lyrics, not just wordless jazz voice – so there's almost an extra level of meaning and intensity to the songs, one that further expands the modally-influenced grooves laid down by Garrick and the other instrumentalists! The rest of the group includes Trevor Tomkins on drums, Henry Lowther on trumpet, Art Themen on soprano and tenor, and Don Rendell on tenor – and Garrick himself plays harpsichord as well as his usual piano – all with a flowing, soaring grace that's amazing. Titles include "Fire Opal", "Home Stretch Blues", "Sweet & Low", "Epiphany", "Wishbone", "Blue Poppies", and "Limbo Child".

Long live tracks from pianist Michael Garrick – and some of his most boppish recordings – thanks partly to bold work on tenor from Don Weller! The format's a bit like some of the Ronnie Scotts material of 60s vintage – familiar tunes, but played in an open, relaxed way – so that both Garrick and Weller get plenty of room to solo, often with a quality that evokes the New York scene of the 50s. Rhythm players Chris Laurence on bass and Alan Jackson on drums help to add a bit of 70s lyricism to the proceedings – and Garrick definitely unleashes some of his modern edges at times – on titles that include "Like Someone In Love", "Third Floor Richard", "On Green Dolphin Street", and "Michael's Song".

Beautiful work from the legendary late 60s run of British pianist Michael Garrick – and two of his best records of the mid 60s to early 70s! A few of the numbers on Black Marigolds are in a septet mode – with Garrick leading a group that includes Ian Carr on trumpet, Joe Harriott on alto, Don Rendell on soprano sax, and Tony Coe on tenor – all shading in some beautiful tones on the straight numbers "Good Times" and "Webster's Mood" – and really going to town on the modal number "Ursula", a rolling groover that's simply fantastic! 2 other tracks – "Jazz For Five" and "A Jazz Nativity" – have the group joined by poet John Smith, who's recitation beautifully matches the horn work of Coe and Harriott. Remaining tracks are even more unusual – and feature Garrick in trio formation on either celeste or harpsichord – really hitting beautiful notes that have a slightly exotic feel, on titles that include "What Are Little Girls", "Spiders", "Black Marigolds", and "Carolling". The Heart Is A Lotus is one of the key recordings by the team of Garrick and Norma Winstone! Winstone's vocals here rank right up there with those of Karin Krog or Monica Zetterlund – creating a whole new style for the voice in jazz, as they dance along with the freely searching work of Garrick's sextet on the record. There's a sense of lyrical poetry to the album that's really beautiful – but rhythm is also a key aspect of the session – and most tunes dance along in a flurry of bass and drum interplay, hitting that warm modal groove! Titles include "The Heart Is A Lotus", "Torrent", "Temple Dancer", "Blues On Blues", "Voices", and "Beautiful Thing".

A landmark in British jazz – one of the first albums from Michael Garrick's famous ensemble that also included Joe Harriott on alto sax and Shake Keane on trumpet! The group was one of the hippest of the time – and worked in a blend of modal, tonal, and modern jazz – with Garrick's piano, the bass of Coleridge Goode, and drums of Colin Barnes supporting the core of the group – and the horns of Keane and Harriott coming together in evocative snaking lines. The sound is great – with the trio carrying the set on a few of the tracks, and the full quintet on most of the others – and titles include "Sweet & Sugary Candy", "Anthem", "Blue Scene", "Faries Of Oneiros", "Seven Pillars", "Return Of An Angel", and "Sketches Of Israel". Added to the original album is work from the Wedding Hymn EP – a rare 45 that featured the same group working alongside added church organ and choir – on the tunes "Wedding Hymn" and "Anthem".

One of the trippiest albums ever recorded by British pianist Michael Garrick – a set done with his Garrick's Fairground group – at a level that's almost a wilder abstraction of some of the other work he'd done at the end of the 60s! The album's an extended suite of shorter tracks – linked together thematically, and by the use of vocals from Norma Winstone, Betty Mulcahy, and others, plus a larger chorus – and with some even more compelling instrumental passages as well! The whole work almost feels like one of Mike Westbrook's more high-concept albums – especially given the use of vocals – and Garrick's own work on organ is augmented by Art Themen on saxes and flute, Henry Lowther on trumpet, Don Rendell on tenor and clarinet, Coleridge Goode on bass, and Trever Tomkins on percussion. Titles include "Blues", "Who Can Endure", "For We Are Lost", "I Have Torn Up", "Invocation", "The Waters Of Love", "To The Celebration", "What Is This Clamour", "I Will Speak I Will Say", and "Organ Improvisation. CD also features "Epiphany" and "Blessed Are The Peacemakers" – two smaller group tracks originally issued as a single, both with vocals by Norma Winstone, and both quite beautiful!

Extremely beautiful work from the trio of British pianist Michael Garrick – recorded in the years after Garrick's better-known quintet and sextet recordings with Joe Harriott, but done with an equally inventive sound! The pianist is nicely unfettered here – working alongside bassist Dave Green and drummer Trevor Tomkins – in a session of all original material that sparkles with lyrical beauty and nice undercurrents of soul. Despite the relative freedoms of the time, Garrick holds things nicely inside throughout – avoiding the overdone modes of some of his British contemporaries, and echoing out with a mode that's full of color and light! Most tunes have some strongly rhythmic undercurrents, as in the best work of Steve Kuhn – and titles include "Thanksgiving Dance", "Proclamation", "First Born", "Prayer", "Annunciation", and "Miranda Sleeping".

The sound of spiritual jazz from the European underground of the 60s and 70s – a really rich music-making scene that's every bit as impressive as the one going on in the US – as you'll hear from this amazing set of tracks! As with the first volume in the series, the collection is filled with modal jazz and other groovers – mostly long tracks that really stretch out, yet still always have a tight sense of rhythm – one that makes the music completely infectious right from the start! It might be tempting to think of European jazz of this sort as kind of a copy of a US mode – but instead, it really happened simultaneously – as younger players were really pushing past the styles of previous years – and drawing not only on American jazz for inspiration, but also a range of different post-colonial modes particular to the European scene – bits of African, Latin, Brazilian, and other styles that really helped influence their approach. And in a way, it might even be said that the Europeans of the 60s had a much looser approach to rhythm, one that really allowed for experiments like these – and which, in turn, went back to have an influence on the American side as well. Titles include "Temple Dancer" by Michael Garrick, "Communion" by Erich Kleinschuster, "Archangelo" by Raphael, "Africa Freakout" by Barney Wilen, "Corrida" by Nicolai Gromin, "Duke & Trane" by Hiekki Sarmanto, "Nana Imboro" by Wroblewski Jazz Quintet, "Las Morillas De Jaen" by Pedro Iturralde, "Bosnia Calling" by Dusko Goykovich, and "Candy Clouds (part 2)" by Hans Dulfer & Ritmo Natural.

Spiralling, soaring work from the Alan Skidmore Quintet – a group led by one of the greatest British tenor talents at the end of the 60s! Skidmore's name turns up often in some of the larger ensemble sessions from the period, but this album's one of his few smaller group outings – and it's a real treasure that we'd rank with the most free-thinking jazz on Deram as the time. Skidmore's joined in the group by an all-star lineup that includes Kenny Wheeler on flugelhorn, John Taylor on piano, Harry Miller on bass, and Tony Oxley on drums – and all players are working here in a cohesive, vibrant style that's quite different than some of the freer, more "out" work of later years. There's a real love of color and tone on the session – and the tunes unfold with a soaring quality that's really tremendous – one that's rarely too free, and which explores the shades and hues that were showing up in some of the best British jazz of the time. For one point of reference, we might compare the record to the depth of the best Michael Garrick sessions of the late 60s – but there's also a bit more straightforward quality here that we really love. Titles include "Old San Juan", "Once Upon A Time", "The Yolk", "Free For Al", and "Image".

The sound of spiritual jazz from the European underground of the 60s and 70s – a really rich music-making scene that's every bit as impressive as the one going on in the US – as you'll hear from this amazing set of tracks! As with the first volume in the series, the collection is filled with modal jazz and other groovers – mostly long tracks that really stretch out, yet still always have a tight sense of rhythm – one that makes the music completely infectious right from the start! It might be tempting to think of European jazz of this sort as kind of a copy of a US mode – but instead, it really happened simultaneously – as younger players were really pushing past the styles of previous years – and drawing not only on American jazz for inspiration, but also a range of different post-colonial modes particular to the European scene – bits of African, Latin, Brazilian, and other styles that really helped influence their approach. And in a way, it might even be said that the Europeans of the 60s had a much looser approach to rhythm, one that really allowed for experiments like these – and which, in turn, went back to have an influence on the American side as well. Titles include "Temple Dancer" by Michael Garrick, "Communion" by Erich Kleinschuster, "Archangelo" by Raphael, "Africa Freakout" by Barney Wilen, "Corrida" by Nicolai Gromin, "Duke & Trane" by Hiekki Sarmanto, "Nana Imboro" by Wroblewski Jazz Quintet, "Las Morillas De Jaen" by Pedro Iturralde, "Bosnia Calling" by Dusko Goykovich, and "Candy Clouds (part 2)" by Hans Dulfer & Ritmo Natural.