A super-huge moment for Miami funk guru Peter Brown – a record instantly recognized by the silhouetted cover image of a perky nude in a window on the front, and for the very famous title hit, "Do You Wanna Get Funky With Me?" Despite its hit status, the record's actually a pretty nice example of Brown's talents – with plenty of spare cuts that feature keyboards, percussion, and synth – plus some occasional vocals by Betty Wright, Pat Hurley, or the vocal group Wildflower. Titles include "Do You Wanna Get Funky With Me", "Dance With Me", "Without Love", "Fantasy Love Affair", "You Should Do It", and "For Your Love". CD features the bonus track "Dance With Me (7" mix)". CD

A super-huge moment for Miami funk guru Peter Brown – a record instantly recognized by the silhouetted cover image of a perky nude in a window on the front, and for the very famous title hit, "Do You Wanna Get Funky With Me?" Despite its hit status, the record's actually a pretty nice example of Brown's talents – with plenty of spare cuts that feature keyboards, percussion, and synth – plus some occasional vocals by Betty Wright, Pat Hurley, or the vocal group Wildflower. Titles include "Do You Wanna Get Funky With Me", "Dance With Me", "Without Love", "Fantasy Love Affair", "You Should Do It", and "For Your Love". LP, Vinyl record album

... CD

One of the few albums ever as a leader from alto saxophonist Pete Brown – a less-remembered talent of his times, but a key link between the generations of bop and swing! The set was only issued as a 10" LP, but packs the full punch of most longer albums – sublime alto from Brown with a crisp tone firmly in place – sitting somewhere between older bop players and some of the emerging Tristano-ites from the east coast – a vibe that's almost like Charlie Mariano or Dick Johnson in their best younger years, but with a bit more soul too. The group's a hip sextet – with trumpet from Joe Wilder, guitar from Wally Richardson, and piano by Wadde Legge – and the album includes a great version of "The World Is Waiting For The Sunrise", plus the nice originals "Delta Blues" and "Used Blues". LP, Vinyl record album

Peter Guralnick has written some mighty big, career-defining books on key figures in music – but from the start, we've always loved his shorter pieces the best – the kind of work we first fell in love with in books like Sweet Soul Music and Lost Highway! And if you dig his shorter pieces, there's plenty of those here – really wonderful essays on artists in a variety of genres – penned by one of the few figures who can balance an understanding of their music with a mixture of historical detail and unabashed fandom! Guralnick's writing has gotten better and better over the years – and it's great to have it focused back on his roots – in chapters that focus on artists who include Solomon Burke, Jerry Lee Lewis, Ray Charles, Merle Haggard, Allen Toussaint, Howlin Wolf, Tammy Wynette, and even the great country trucker Dick Curless! Hardcover book is 554 pages, with black and white illustrations throughout. Book

A record with a very deep sound – maybe what you'd guess from the richness of the trombone work of Steve Swell, which is also echoed here by the bass of Peter Giron and drums of John Betsch – both of whom make for a very solid bottom to the set! The music is improvised, but this grounding seems to give it some earth from which to grow – resulting in these flowering lines from Rob Brown on alto sax, and Michel Edelin on flutes – both players whose sense of tonal expression is really opened up here! Swell has this way of moving between the different layers of sound with effortless ease – and the quintet improvise over light compositions with the sort of freshness that keeps free jazz so vibrant over the years. Titles include "Dawn", "Nexus", "Hop Skip & Jump", "New Orleans", "Oer The Wall", "Prevert Is Now", and "For Frank Lowe". CD

A fantastic testament to the slow-burning spiritual genius of Marion Brown – a player who sometimes got eclipsed in an era of bigger avant personalities, but who really gets to showcase his talents in a spare setting like this! The live performance pairs Brown's alto with the piano of Dave Burrell – another player who's sometimes understated, but in the best way possible – and together the pair sound completely sublime – gently exploring the farther reaches of tonal space with their improvisations, and almost always keeping things in relatively soulful formation! The set features beautiful readings of two Billy Strayhorn tunes – "My Little Brown Book" and "Lush Life" – balanced with original material that includes "Gossip/Fortunado", "La Placita", "Crucificado", "Puna Mae Ole", and "Punaluu Peter". CD

A very unusual setting for the legendary Ruth Brown – the singer who first rose to fame singing raw-edged R&B tracks for Atlantic Records in the 50s – but who works here in a much jazzier mode overall! The set features backings from Peter Matz – who often accompanied the classier singers of the time – and Ruth really does a great job of mixing her bold vocals with his jazzy charts – soaring to new heights in a way that swings nicely, and makes for much deeper soul than most of Matz's other projects. Musicians include Hank Jones on piano, Clark Terry on trumpet, Barry Galbraith on guitar, Urbie Green on trombone, and Richard Davis on bass – and there also seem to be some female backup singers in a few spots too. Titles include two from Nellie Lutcher "Hurry On Down" and "He's A Real Gone Guy" and Dick Hyman's "Watch It", "Whispering Grass", "I Know Why", "Here's That Rainy Day", and a very interesting interpretation of "On The Good Ship Lollipop" – which almost makes the whole tune sound like a sad ballad. LP, Vinyl record album

A nice overview of Coleman Hawkins' career in a great 2LP set, containing material recorded between 1939 and 1947, and later work recorded in 1956. Most of the early work is in a wonderful small group format that lets Hawkins' tenor really come to the forefront. Other players on the sessions include Benny Carter, JC Higginbotham, Allen Eager, Peter Brown, and Budd Johnson – and titles include "Half Step Down Please", "Bouncing With Bean", "Meet Doctor Foo", "Spotlite", "Low Flame", and "Jumping For Jane". The later work features the orchestra of Billy Byers, including soloists Zoot Sims, Al Cohn, and Hank Jones. Coleman's the main blower, though – and the arrangements have a solid base that lets him open up in that exploratory tone he was crafting during the time. And although tracks are short, there's a heck of a lot of soul packed into them – recorded with impeccable quality, much more so than earlier sides. Titles include "I Never Knew", "Bean & The Boys", "The Essence of You", "Have You Met Miss Jones", "Dinner For One Please, James", and "I'm Shooting High". LP, Vinyl record album

Nice 60s crime jazz from Mancini! Although Mancini's fame was made in the late 50s for his work on the classic Peter Gunn TV show, it's less known that he also did the score for the less-than-successful Peter Gunn film. Directed in 1967 by Blake Edwards, the film was a weak attempt to transfer the Gunn image to the big screen – but Mancini remained above the fray, as his solid scoring is just about the only thing we remember about the film today. The tracks include 60's remakes of some nice themes from the original show, plus a few other nice numbers thrown in for good measure. Recorded (as usual) in LA, with players like Bud Shank, Ray Brown, Plas Johnson, and Shelly Mann – and a set list that includes "Dreamsville", "Sky Watch", "A Bluish Bag", and "The Monkey Farm". LP, Vinyl record album

A pretty amazing survey of the Cali art scene of the late 70s – served up here in a book that's half essay, half images – with work from dozens of important artists who include Edward Ruscha, Jim Melchert, Charles Gaines, Joe Goode, Patrick Hogan, The Kipper Kids, Hal Fischer, Judy Chicago, Robert Arneson, Peter D'Agostino, Karen Carson, Robert E Brown, Tony Berland, Terry Fox, Gary Panter, Raymond Pettibon, and even the folks at Survival Research Laboratories! The book offers up large, full-color images of dozens of important art works – and the writing does a great job of contextualizing the material – as part of an exhibition put together by the Museum Of Contemporary Art in Los Angeles. 312 pages, hardcover, and super-heavy! Book

Features flute from a young Peter Gabriel! Titles include "Time", "Katmandu", "I Wish I Wish", "Lillywhite", "Pop Star", "Maybe You're Right", "Lady D'Arbanville", and "I Think I See The Light". LP, Vinyl record album

Music from James Brown, The Zombies, Lee Dorsey, Cher, Peter And Gordon, Jackie DeShannon, Cannibal And The Headhunters, Gary Lewis And The Playboys, The Larks, The Vogues, The Kinks,and more - 23 songs in all. CD

A heck of a collection – and one that really gets at the amazing array of free-thinking jazz that was brewing up on the European scene during the 70s! The set brings together over eight hours of music recorded during two years of this legendary festival – and each new disc has some great surprises along the way! There's some possibly more familiar material here – such as long improvisations that include a solo piano performance by Joachim Kuhn, two by a Mal Waldron trio with Jimmy Woode on bass and Allen Blairman on drums, one by a trio headed by pianist Yosuke Yamashita and with Akira Sakata on alto, two more by the duo of Peter Brotzmann on tenor and Han Bennink on drums, and a final two long improvisations by a great Archie Shepp gruop with Richard Greenlee on trombone, Dave Burell on piano, Cameron Brown on bass, and Beaver Harris on drums! Yet that's only the tip of the iceberg – as there's a full CD of music by a group led by Hugo Heredia on saxes and flute – with Horace Parlan on piano, Dodo Goys on bass, Tullio D'Piscopo on drums, and Mandrake Ivanir Do Nascimento on percussion. And there's another CD that features an hour-long improvisation by a version of the Willem Breuker Kollektief with Leo Cuypers on piano, Maarten Van Norden on tenor, Boy Raaymakers on trumpet, and Bernhard Hunnekink and Willem Van Manen on trombones. There's also a very long track by a cool quartet headed by Polish alto giant Zbigniew Namyslowski – and one more by the French Machi Oul Big Band. There's also tracks by Riot, with Uli Beckerhoff on trumpet; Grumpff with Michael Schlaper on tenor and soprano, and Ekkehard Jost on baritone; Mumps with Albert Mangelsdorff on trombone and John Surman on tenor; and the Eddie Prevost Quartet with Geoff Hawkins on tenor and Gerry Gold on trumpet. And last but not least are two long trcks by the Czech group Celula Jazz Crew – with Laco Deczi on trumpet, Karel Ruzicka on electric piano, and Svatopluc Kosvanec on trombone. Phew – that's a lot of music, and the whole thing comes in a very cool 10" box set, complete with a booklet of notes, too! CD

Music from Bob Andy, Derrick Harriott, Freddie McKay, Val Bennett, Keith & Tex, U Roy, Peter Tosh, Dennis Brown, Big Youth, I Roy and more. CD

Michael Musillami on guitar, Tom Christensen on tenor and alto saxophone, alto flute, english horn, and wood flute, Art Baron on trombone, bass recorder and didgeridoo, Peter Madsen on piano, Tom Beckham on vibraphone and marimba, Cameron Brown on bass, Michael Sarin on drums, and Satoshi Takeishi on percussion. CD

A sweet bit of disco, with a wonderful hook! We've never been sure if this Caress is the same group that went onto record later for P&P Records fame, but the tune's got these sweeping strings, falsetto vocals, and a nicely rhythmic pulse that all share real P&P touches – even if Peter Brown or Patrick Adam's names aren't on the credits! Written by Gregg Diamond, and a really nice little tune! 7-inch, Vinyl record

Three great 60s albums from jazz singer Carmen McRae – all in a single set! Second To None is one of Carmen McRae's best records of the 60s – an album done with beautiful arrangements from Peter Matz, who's probably best known for his work with Barbara Streisand at the time – and who really helps McRae take her music to the next level! Carmen was already one of the most sophisticated jazz singers of the 50s – but in the following decade, she really perfected her phrasing – and was able to grab material and make it completely her own – all with a mode that's steeped in the special sort of inflections a jazz singer can bring, but which is also able to maybe be even more adult in approach overall. The strings soar, the percussion is fairly spare and often a little bit off kilter – and Carmen emphasizes her phrasing and more earthy tendencies without any empty histrionics – on titles that include "In The Love Vain", "The Music Makes Me Dance", "Too Good", "Once Upon A Summertime", "The Night Has A Thousand Eyes", and "Cloudy Morning". Live & Doin It is about as strong an example of the genius of Carmen McRae as you could ever hope to find – a live album that displays Carmen's impeccable phrasing in a very stripped-down setting – and one that also swings with a fair degree of sophisticated soul as well! Back in the 50s, Carmen paved the way for later stars like Marlena Shaw or Nancy Wilson – and here, she outdoes both of them with effortless ease – working with a very cool trio that features Norman Simmons on piano, Victor Sproles on bass, and a very young Stu Martin on drums. The set's got that strong understanding of soul that was explored even more fully in her Atlantic Records years – which really transforms tracks in unexpected ways. Titles include "Guess Who I Saw Today", "Quiet Nights", "Trouble Is A Man", "My Ship Has Sailed", "No Where", "Meaning Of The Blues", and "I Only Have Eyes For You". Haven't We Met is great work from Carmen McRae – light and groovy one minute, deeply expressive the other – but all with a sense of balance that few other singers can touch at this point in her career! Carmen's already moved past straight jazz, yet she also avoids the traps of bigger label commercial singers too – really making the best of the sophisticated charts by Don Sebesky, yet also always reminding us who's in charge! The album's on a par with the excellent work to come for Atlantic records – and titles include the groovy "Life Is Just A Bowl Of Cherries", "Who Can I Turn To?", "He Loves Me", "Sweet Georgia Brown", "Limehouse Blues", "I'm Foolin' Myself", "Fools and Lovers", and the title track – a wonderfully groovy take on the Kenny Rakin tune "Haven't We Met". CD

And a disco party it is – with 14 groovers from the TK/Marlin catalog, featuring some of the best Miami groovers of the mid to late 70s! Titles include "Gimme Some" by Jimmy Bo Horne, "Do Ya Wanna Get Funky With Me" by Peter Brown, "Rock Your Baby" by George McCrae, "Love Chant" by Eli's Second Coming, "Get Down Tonight" by Kool & The Gang, "Get Off Your Ahh & Dance" by Foxy, "Do What You Wanna Do" by T Connection, "Superman" by Celi Bee & The Buzzy Bunch, "Where Is The Love" by Betty Wright, and "Calypso Breakdown" by Ralph MacDonald. LP, Vinyl record album

A legendary moment in European free jazz – performances all recorded on a single Sunday in 1969 – but which stand as some of the most powerful music of the time! The vibe here is often in the best spirit of early FMP, or maybe the most outside work of MPS – and the recording quality equals the best avant jazz on both labels – with very long performances on each track that represent the pinnacle of all players involved! One side alone is worth the price of admission – a searing track titled "Finally", performed by an octet with Peter Brotzmann at the helm, alongside Evan Parker on tenor and soprano sax, Fred Van Hove on piano, Paul Rutherford on trombone, Peter Kowald on bass, and Pierre Favre on drums. Favre returns on "Let's Talk About The Weather" – played by a trio with Kowad on bass and Irene Schweizer on piano. Other tracks include "Five To Five" and "Gluga Gluga Blues" by the Joki Freund Quintet, "In Memory Of John Coltrane" by Marion Brown, "Vibration" by the group of saxophonist Joe Fiera and trombonist Ed Kroger, and "Circus Live" by a quartet led by Rolf Kuhn on electric clarinet, with Joachim Kuhn on piano and Stu Martin on drums. CD

Art Blakey on drums, Wallace Roney on trumpet, Kenny Garrett on alto saxophone, Jean Toussaint on tenor saxophone, Tim Williams on trombone, Donald Brown on piano, and Peter Washington on bass. CD

Nothing fancy, but a great back to basics session from Byrd – very solidly played, with a tight group, in a style that recalls his best mid 60s work for Blue Note! Players include Kenny Garrett, Joe Henderson, Donald Brown, Peter Washington, and the great Al Foster on drums – and the strength of Garrett and Henderson makes for some excellent tracks that rank with Byrd's best work of his late career. Titles include "Around The Corner", "Theme For Malcolm", "Popmponio", "A Certain Attitude", and "The Onliest". CD

Incredible work from Chocolate Star – less a group than a record label or project name used for some excellent underground club recordings from the late 70s and early 80s! Gary Davis is the real brainchild here – keyboardist, songwriter, and main spiritual force behind the music – but Peter Brown also played a big hand in some of the initial Chocolate Star sessions too, and there's a definite P&P groove to most of this work! The Chocolate Star touch is perhaps best known on the classic club track "Got To Get Your Love" by Clyde Alexander & Sanction – but it's even better on the more obscure work throughout the entire package – an array of tunes that run from funky club to other modes that include mellow soul, old school hip hop, and even some very spare tracks that mostly just have keyboards and beats! Titles include "Gee Dee", "Last Night", "Stay With Me", "Time For Love Is Now", "Super Jake", "Gotta Get Your Love", "The Professor Here", "The Pop", "Gotta Get Your Love (Kenny Dope rmx)", "The Pop (12")", "The Professor Is Space Walking", and "Gee Dee (alt mix)". LP, Vinyl record album

A killer moogy club classic! Cloud One were part of the whole Patrick Adams/Peter Brown cluster of groups who used tight club grooves and spacey production styles to forge a legendary disco sound that's finally getting its due these days. This single, the obscure "Patty Duke", is one of the most compelling chapters in that legacy – as it's a strange bubbly track, with a tight hard groove, and lots of weird little moogy and keyboard bits! Very nice, and issued here in the 2-part instrumental version! 12-inch, Vinyl record

Ryan Kisor on trumpet, Grant Stewart on tenor saxophone, Peter Zak on piano, John Webber on bass, and Jason Brown on drums. CD

A contemporary Cuban group, but one who fit easily in the long cultural legacy of Havana – as the combo have a way of taking timeless modes and making them come alive again in all new ways – often really stripping things down to their roots, with an intimate, earthy presentation that you wouldn't even find on classic Cuban records from many years back! In a way, the style here is similar to some of the recent Gilles Peterson/Brownswood Records projects from Havana – really tapping into the overlooked richness that still flows from the city's corners with a group like this – heavy on percussion, working in a variety of rhythms, often with guitar or tres in the mix – and topped with some wonderfully soulful vocals. Titles include "Caridad", "Na Na Saguey", "Devuelvame La Voz", "Rumbarimbula", "Gaston's Rumba", and "Chichiribako". CD

Oscar Peterson on piano, Ray Brown on bass, and Milt Jackson on vibes. CD

A key bit of jazz funk from trumpeter Tom Browne – still grooving strong here, with a sublime mix of modern soul, funky jazz, and some of the 80s groove touches that showed up on the best GRP titles from the time! The album's got a smooth compressed groove – kind of post-Donald Byrd, with Tom taking solos over the top of most tracks, and occasional vocals , wither from a backing group, or an assortment of different lead singers. Players on the set include Bernard Wright, Dave Grusin, Bobby Broom, and Marcus Miller – and tracks include "I Know", "Midnight Interlude", "Let's Dance", "Night Wind", "Making Plans", "Thighs Hihg", and "Magic". LP, Vinyl record album

A classic killer from trumpeter Tom Browne – a smoking set that still has all the jazz funk touches of his earlier records, yet which also picks up a bit of an electro vibe as well! The move here is a bit like that taken by some of Browne's labelmates on GRP at the time – particularly Bobby Broom and Bernard Wright – and offers up a great mix of jazzy roots and some of the newer sounds hitting the streets in the early 80s – a vibe that's maybe one of the first moments when older genres of music were beginning to show an influence from hip hop! Maurice Starr handles most of the production, and really makes things tight throughout – but Tom himself does a great job of keeping things interesting with the solos, augmenting the electric vibe with some rock-solid acoustic playing. Titles include "Rockin Radio", "Angeline", "Brighter Tomorrow", "Never My Love", "Mr Business", "Cruisin", and "Feel Like Makin Love". LP, Vinyl record album

A study in brown, and a study in hardbop too – a seminal album of 50s jazz that forever went on to set the tone for the music! The album was one of a few that trumpeter Clifford Brown cut as his star was strongly rising, before a tragic early accident took his life – and it's a masterpiece of bop modernism, done with the co-leadership of drummer Max Roach – with an equally well-matched group that includes Harold Land on tenor, George Morrow on bass, and Bud Powell's brother Richie on piano. Tracks are short, and played with great boppish fire and fury – virtually the blueprint for the hardbop sound of the 50s, and one of the strongest expressions from this important, but short-lived group. Titles include "Gerkin For Perkin", "Sandu", "Jacqui", "Swingin", and the great "Land's End". CD

A study in brown, and a study in hardbop too – a seminal album of 50s jazz that forever went on to set the tone for the music! The album was one of a few that trumpeter Clifford Brown cut as his star was strongly rising, before a tragic early accident took his life – and it's a masterpiece of bop modernism, done with the co-leadership of drummer Max Roach – with an equally well-matched group that includes Harold Land on tenor, George Morrow on bass, and Bud Powell's brother Richie on piano. Tracks are short, and played with great boppish fire and fury – virtually the blueprint for the hardbop sound of the 50s, and one of the strongest expressions from this important, but short-lived group. Titles include "Gerkin For Perkin", "Sandu", "Jacqui", "Swingin", and the great "Land's End". LP, Vinyl record album

A study in brown, and a study in hardbop too – a seminal album of 50s jazz that forever went on to set the tone for the music! The album was one of a few that trumpeter Clifford Brown cut as his star was strongly rising, before a tragic early accident took his life – and it's a masterpiece of bop modernism, done with the co-leadership of drummer Max Roach – with an equally well-matched group that includes Harold Land on tenor, George Morrow on bass, and Bud Powell's brother Richie on piano. Tracks are short, and played with great boppish fire and fury – virtually the blueprint for the hardbop sound of the 50s, and one of the strongest expressions from this important, but short-lived group. Titles include "Gerkin For Perkin", "Sandu", "Jacqui", "Swingin", and the great "Land's End". LP, Vinyl record album

An early gem from trumpeter Tom Browne – a set that not only firmly established Browne as one of the best young players of his generation, but which also paved the way for a whole new direction for jazz funk in the 80s! The record is a perfect example of how great the mix of R&B rhythms and jazz fusion instrumentation could be – groovy enough to capture a whole new audience from the soul market, but still more than respectful of the solo talents of the leader – but all without any attempt at smooth jazz commercialism at all! There's some great hard funk moments on the set – and Browne approaches the music in a way that's nicely different than Donald Byrd or Freddie Hubbard, two older players who first helped forge this sound in the 70s – and whose path Tom's clearly taking, but with new directions of his own. There's almost more of a street-worthy vibe to the set – quite a surprise if you only know later records on the GRP label – and the arrangements are by Tom, Weldon Irvine, Lesette Wilson, and Dave Grusin. Titles include the funky classic "Funkin' For Jamaica", plus "Her Silent Smile", "Moon Rise", "Nocturne", "Forever More", and "Weak In The Knees". LP, Vinyl record album

An incredible pairing of two of the most important modern jazz talents of the 50s – trumpeter Clifford Brown and altoist Gigi Gryce – whose sense of structure on these tunes really gives Brownie a whole new space in which to shine! Gryce really seems to get at the mixture of sweetness and bite that Clifford can deliver when he's at his best – which comes through brilliantly in his solos, which are then matched by these raspy, soulful lines from Gryce on his alto. The group's a French one – and swing, but really let the American horn players take the lead – with Henri Renaud on piano, Jimmy Gourley on guitar, Pierre Michelot on bass, and Jean Louis Viale on drums. Tracks include "Baby", "Minority", "Salute To The Band Box" and "Strictly Romantic". LP, Vinyl record album

A strange pairing – but that's sometimes what makes these Verve "pro meets pro" sets from the 50s so great. Getz and Johnson are backed by Oscar Peterson, Ray Brown, Herb Ellis, and Connie Kay – and the tracks are longish, with plenty of solo room in the open jam session mode of the recording. Titles include "Billie's Bounce", "My Funny Valentine", "Crazy Rhythm", and "Blues In The Closet". LP, Vinyl record album

A strange pairing – but that's sometimes what makes these Verve "pro meets pro" sets from the 50s so great. Getz and Johnson are backed by Oscar Peterson, Ray Brown, Herb Ellis, and Connie Kay – and the tracks are longish, with plenty of solo room in the open jam session mode of the recording. Titles include "Billie's Bounce", "My Funny Valentine", "Crazy Rhythm", and "Blues In The Closet". LP, Vinyl record album

A never-issued set from the great Weldon Irvine – late 70s material made after his classic jazz/funk albums on RCA – and a set that's every bit as great as that material! Irvine works with some of the key musicians who'd make great funky records for the Arista/GRP label – including guitarist Bobby Broom, trumpeter Tom Browne, and keyboardist Don Blackman – the last of whom even sings a bit on the record! There's plenty of moments that resonate strongly with the GRP albums from all three of those jazz funk giants – and if the set had been issued by the label, it would have helped Weldon continue onto greatness well into the 80s. Yet regardless, the long-overdue record is a gem through and through – with titles that include include "Egypt", "Sexy Eyes", "It's Funky", "Blue In Green", "Morning Sunrise", and "The Sisters". LP, Vinyl record album

The stuff of legends, and one of the best sides that Webster cut for Verve in the 50s, this reissue adds a whole 'nother set of quartet sides, recorded with almost the same group, minus Herbn Ellis and replacing Stan Levey with Ed Thigpen. On the original LP the group's a quintet – with the usual suspects (Oscar Peterson, Ray Brown, Herb Ellis, Stan Levey), and a rolling easy groove that's a perfect platform for Webster's gutsy tenor. Norman Granz's formula of easy swing sessions didn't always work for everyone, but in this case, it's a perfect format – as you'll hear on tracks like "Soulville", "Last Date", and "Ill Wind". 15 tracks in all, also including "When Your Lover Has Gone", "Bye Bye Blackbird", "In The Wee Small Hours Of The Morning", "Lover Come Back To Me" and "This Can't Be Love". LP, Vinyl record album

An incredible debut from Ben Westbeech – easily one of the greatest artists so far to emerge from Gilles Peterson's Brownwood label – and one of the best new UK soul singers we've heard in years! The album's got a freshness and brilliance that takes us back to the first time we heard Omar, Jamiroquai, or Lewis Taylor – kind of an instant smile that hits our face after the first few notes of each tune – a joy of discovery that's every bit as rewarding as the music itself! Ben's warm vocals are mixed nicely with subtle arrangements that get slightly cosmic, but never too much so – and which instead always veer towards organic territory that beautifully respects the lyrics of the tunes, and Westbeech's role as soul singer first and foremost. The record's one you'll be playing for years to come – and it's filled with great tracks that include "Bright Future", "Get Silly", "Welcome", "So Good Today", "Gotta Keep On", "Taken Away From", "Grey Skies", "Stop What You're Doing", "Dance With Me", and "Hang Around". CD

An excellent album from Max Roach – cut at a time when he was rising from the ashes, after the too-soon death of trumpeter Clifford Brown – and began working with really inventive younger players who would drive him into a whole new mode of righteous styles! That's definitely the case here – as Roach leads a group that includes Kenny Dorham on trumpet, filling in the Clifford Brown spot with a very different sound – next to Sonny Rollins on tenor, Ray Bryant on piano, and George Morrow on bass – players who really help open new doors in the music! The tunes are a mixture of the hardbop that Roach forged with Brown, plus a growing sense of the spiritual, slyly sneaking in, and working an agenda that is at once subtle and powerful – on titles that include "Dr Freezee", "Mr X", "Woodyn You", and "Body & Soul". CD features 3 bonus tracks – "Minor Trouble", "Love Letters", and "It Don't Mean A Thing". CD

4 incredible tracks from the instant classic CD by Soil & Pimp Sessions – including the 2 bonus tracks from Gilles Peterson's Brownswood label version! "Fuller Love" floors us in the same way as the harder hitting material from the full length – with wild riffing that manages be completely riveting, and borderline ferocious – while retaining a titanic groove! Next up is their take on the Burt Bacharach-Hal David nugget "Wives And Lovers" – marrying the indelible groovy melody of the original to the pummeling Soil & Pimp sound! We hate to admit it, but if you've already purchased an earlier version of the album – you need these tracks! "Waltz For Goddess" and "Wheel Within A Wheel" round out the EP. 12-inch, Vinyl record

Early Verve work from Lester Young – recorded in a setting that features 2 different groups: one with Oscar Peterson, Ray Brown, Barney Kessel, and JC Heard; the other with John Lewis, Joe Schulman, and Bill Clark. The sound is mellow and soulful throughout – a perfect summation of Young's small-group genius, recorded in the easygoing Norman Granz style that was so groundbreaking at the time. Titles include "Pete's Cafe", "Count Every Star", "Stardust", "I'm Confessin", "These Foolish Things", and "Lester Swings". LP, Vinyl record album

A live set from the Oscar Peterson Trio – with Herb Ellis on guitar, Ray Brown on bass, and Peterson on piano – plus a little extra help from drummer Bobby Durham. Tracks include "Falling In Love With Love", "Billie's Bounce", and "I Wished On the Moon". CD

From Oscar Peterson "Perdido" and "Mack The Knife", from Milt Jackson & Ray Brown "Red Top", from Dizzy Gillespie "Here 'Tis",from Count Basie "Freeport Jump", and Pablo All Stars' "Donna Lee". CD

Gentle-going genius from the later years of Satchmo's career – a session that has Louis on trumpet and vocals, backed by the Oscar Peterson Trio! Peterson's usual group with Herb Ellis and Ray Brown is expanded slightly for this outing – bringing in Louis Bellson on drums to syncopate the tunes a bit more strongly, and give them that gently swinging rhythm that always works well with Armstrong's style. The real surprise, though, is Louis' voice – which is simple, almost elegant at times – and free from some of the gimmicks of other 50s sessions, or the too-playful style of his better-known duets of the period. We really love his gentle, honest approach to the lyrics here – on tunes that include "I'll Never Be The Same", "Moon Song", "What's New", "There's No You", "You Go To My Head", "That Old Feeling", and "Let's Fall In Love". CD also features 4 bonus tracks – including "Let's Do It", "I Get A Kick Out Of You", "Willow Weep For Me", and "Makin Whoopee". CD