Gene Ammons' last session – not as funky as earlier work for Prestige, but pretty nice at that! The group's got Gary Bartz on alto, Kenny Drew on piano, Sam Jones on bass, Louis Hayes on drums, and Nat Adderley on cornet – and they groove together well, in the kind of soul jazz/modal mode that you'd find on some of the better mid 70s sides for the Muse label. The album includes a nice remake of Duke Pearson's "Jeanine", plus the tracks "Out In The Sticks", "Alone Again Naturally", "It Don't Mean A Thing", and "Geru's Blues". LP, Vinyl record album

A nice collection of Gene Ammons' work that doesn't always get as well remembered as his sides for Prestige or Chess – late 40s bop recordings for Savoy, done in a wonderfully full-voiced tone! The set features Gene's classic "Red Top", plus the great two part "Big Slam", and the titles "Chips", "Goodtime Blues", "Fuzzy", "Jim Dawgs", and "Street Of Dreams". The album doesn't list personnel at all for the tracks, or dates – but the music speaks volumes on its own! CD

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Tenorist Fred Anderson made some fantastic albums for the Okka Disk label during the later years of his life – and this wonderful set has the legend making tremendous new fire with the label's excellent DKV Trio! Given that the group already features Ken Vandermark on saxes, the pairing of Anderson and Ken is a heck of a match – driven on strongly here by the bassist Kent Kessler, who's at the height of his powers during these years – and drummer Hamid Drake, whose range is maybe even more bold here than usual. Titles include "Planet E", "Lady's In Love", "Aaron's Tune", "Black Woman", "Our Theme", and "Dark Day". CD

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A stunning set of modal soul jazz from the LA underground of the 60s – the only album we've ever seen by pianist J Reginald Andrews – and an earthy set that's filled with great tracks! The overall approach is piano and percussion plus horn bits – with Andrews on the keys, playing in solidly soulful waves of sound, really setting the scene for the album's strong work on alto, baritone, and trumpet. There's some conga at the bottom, and a freewheeling approach that reminds us a lot of the mighty first album by the Harold Johnson Sextet – a group who were certainly contemporaries of Andrews on the LA scene. Nearly all tracks are originals – and groovers – and titles include "Everyman's Brother", "Ah Na Na", "Chant", "The Debonaire", "Mystique Beauty", and "Song For J". LP, Vinyl record album

Sure, their name marks them as part of that big world of prepackaged soul groups, and yes, their costumes on the cover may look a bit goofy – but over the years, this debut's got maybe a bit more staying power than some of their contemporaries! There's plenty of hip hop production in the mix – mostly handled by Dallas Austin, and with those kind of elements that you might find showing up in remixes of main cuts more than the album cuts themselves – but that also keeps things popping and hopping, and definitely does plenty to offset the youth in the vocals, which might not sound nearly as good on their own. So maybe think of the album as much as Austin's as it is the work of the group, and you'll get the vibe – with titles that include "Spyderman", "Mental Interlude", "Playground", "Little Soldiers", "Jealous Girl", "ABC", "That's My Girl", and "My World". CD

Sure, their name marks them as part of that big world of prepackaged soul groups, and yes, their costumes on the cover may look a bit goofy – but over the years, this debut's got maybe a bit more staying power than some of their contemporaries! There's plenty of hip hop production in the mix – mostly handled by Dallas Austin, and with those kind of elements that you might find showing up in remixes of main cuts more than the album cuts themselves – but that also keeps things popping and hopping, and definitely does plenty to offset the youth in the vocals, which might not sound nearly as good on their own. So maybe think of the album as much as Austin's as it is the work of the group, and you'll get the vibe – with titles that include "Spyderman", "Mental Interlude", "Playground", "Little Soldiers", "Jealous Girl", "ABC", "That's My Girl", and "My World". Cassette

An amazing little soundtrack – written in mid 60s Peru by jazz pianist Jaime Delgado Aparicio, but easily on a par with some of the best American or Italian scores from the time! The music's got a really wonderful feel throughout – jazz at the core, but with touches of spy soundtrack scoring and some of the lighter, more comedic modes of the Italian scene. Delgado uses a core combo with heavy piano, percussion, and some great trumpet and tenor – almost with the tightness of the Basso-Valdambrini group – but he also expands the sound with bits of strings and some fuller orchestrations, used to shade in some amazing colors that roll, dip, and turn with the beautiful grooves penned for the set. The whole thing's tremendous, with equally great production that creates some odd twists and turns that further keep things interesting as the album rolls on. Titles include "Elm Embajador Y Yo", "Sexy Surf", "Llegando A La Capital", "Isometria", "Todo El Mundo Me Persigue", "Lucha En El Mar", and "La Arana". Added to the soundtrack is Jamie's 1964 album – Jaime Delgado Aparicio Y Su Trio – a crackling bit of piano jazz from the Peruvian scene of the 60s – and a record that's somewhere between the best of Horace Silver on Blue Note, and some of the Brazilian bossa trios of the time! There's a strong sense of rhythm throughout – round, rolling basslines punctuated by great work on the drum kit – all topped by beautifully lyrical lines from Delgado Aparicio on piano – filled with color, light, and life throughout – and soloing with a depth that's rare for such a young player! Titles include a great version of Horace Silver's "Sayonara Blues", plus "The Climate", "Autumn Leaves", "Walkin", and "Blue Daniel". CD

A funky treasure trove from Apple & The Three Oranges – a group we hardly know at all, but who really blow us away with the cuts on this collection! The groove is plenty hard right from the get-go – the best of the funky 45 underground of the early 70s – which means that there's more 60s rawness on the record than you'd get from bigger-label funk at the time – as Ed "Apple" Nelson still works here with a mostly underground vibe! Ed plays drums – which are mighty hard on most numbers – and his vocals have this offbeat, off-kilter, over the top quality that almost reminds us a bit of the Hank Ballard/James Brown recordings for late 60s King – particularly in the way that Nelson's completely unbridled with his energy. The whole thing's great – one of the best funky collections we've heard in years – and presented with a rich amount of notes and historical information too. Titles include "Free & Easy (parts 1 & 2)", "Moon Light", "Curse Upon The World", "What Goes Around Comes Around", "Down Home Publicity", "True Love Will Never Die", "Gotta Stand For Something (parts 1 & 2)", and "I'll Give You A Ring". CD features a massive 52 page booklet, too! CD

A funky treasure trove from Apple & The Three Oranges – a group we hardly know at all, but who really blow us away with the cuts on this collection! The groove is plenty hard right from the get-go – the best of the funky 45 underground of the early 70s – which means that there's more 60s rawness on the record than you'd get from bigger-label funk at the time – as Ed "Apple" Nelson still works here with a mostly underground vibe! Ed plays drums – which are mighty hard on most numbers – and his vocals have this offbeat, off-kilter, over the top quality that almost reminds us a bit of the Hank Ballard/James Brown recordings for late 60s King – particularly in the way that Nelson's completely unbridled with his energy. The whole thing's great – one of the best funky collections we've heard in years – and presented with a rich amount of notes and historical information too. Titles include "Free & Easy (parts 1 & 2)", "Moon Light", "Curse Upon The World", "What Goes Around Comes Around", "Down Home Publicity", "True Love Will Never Die", "Gotta Stand For Something (parts 1 & 2)", and "I'll Give You A Ring". Features a great 16 page booklet with extensive liner notes and photos! LP, Vinyl record album

Kind of hard to put a finger on the style of Jho Archer – which is probably why they used the phrase "many talents" in the title of this one! Jho's got a bit of Caribbean in his vocals – traces of calypso and Haitian soul, inflected with a hipper French approach to the backings, which are handled by H Rostaing, in a manner that reminds us of some of those used on the recordings of Henri Salvador. Jho sings in English and French – and the best cuts are nicely swinging. Titles include "Work Song", "Le Condamne", "The Peanut Vendor", "Cousin", "Ibo Lele", and "Sky Boat Song". LP, Vinyl record album

Includes tracks recorded with Clarence Williams – and material with vocals by Hociel Thomas, Eva Taylor, Sippie Wallace, and Virginia Liston! LP, Vinyl record album

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A record that definitely lives up to the sixth decade legacy noted in the title – as it takes work of the remaining members of the Art Ensemble of Chicago, and expands it with contributions from a number of musicians – both from Chicago and the global scene as well! The feel here is a mix of some of the larger concepts that Roscoe Mitchell has been working on of late, and some of the more organic expressions that the Art Ensemble helped encourage in the world of jazz – performed by a lineup that has Mitchell on sopranino and alto, and Don Moye on drums and percussion – joined by a huge lineup that includes Junius Paul on bass, Tomeka Reid on cello, Nicole Mitchell on flutes, Hugh Ragin on trumpet, and a larger lineup of basses, piano, and percussion as well. Moor Mother delivers a spoken word passage, and Roco Cordova and Erina Newkirk sing a bit – on titles that include "Kumpa", "Bulawayo", "I Feel Like Dancing", "Jigiba", "Funky AECO", "Improvisation Two", "Ritual Great Black Music", "Cards", and "Leola". CD

Special 2LP package, with bonus "Re-Works" album! LP, Vinyl record album

Duane Eddy comes out of retirement to add some fantastically twangy guitar to this remake of "Peter Gunn"! 12-inch, Vinyl record

Sublime soundtrack music from Edward Artemiev – not a big name for film scoring on this side of the Iron Curtain, but a really well-remembered talent for his classic 70s work for the films of Andrey Tarkovsky! Side one of this album features wonderful sounds from the film Stalker – music that begins in a sweet electronic mode, but soon gets darker – a weird space that's somewhere between the German elements of Cluster and Tangerine Dream, and some of the more abstract electronics of the underground academic scene! Yet throughout it all, Artemiev has a very visual approach to his sounds – one that steps out nicely on the one track from the film The Mirror, and an extended tribute to the director too. Titles include "Exodus", "Dedication To Andrey Tarkovsky", "Meditation", "They Go Long", "Stalker", and "Train". LP, Vinyl record album

Lost Latin funk from the Bay Area scene of the 70s – and an album that may well blow away better-known work by groups like Malo, Azteca, or El Chicano! The album's near-perfect right from the start – and brings in plenty of New York elements to the groove, thanks to the inclusion of a heady amount of jazz alongside the soul, Latin, and funk elements in the grooves! The legendary Teo Macero produced and arranged – and really takes a lot of care in the studio to focus the overall energy of the tremendous talents on the record – players who include Hadley Caliman on flute and tenor, Steve Marcus on soprano sax, Benny Velarde on timbales, and Francisco Aguabella on congas – plus the trio of Cesar, Mark Levine, and Merl Sanders on keyboards. Most numbers have this really full, flowing groove – jazzy, but with a strong emphasis on the rhythms – and often touched with some great work on guitar that echoes the Santana-inspired sound of the generation, yet never in a rock way at all. Linda Tillery sings vocals on a few numbers, but the main focus is definitely instrumental – and the whole album's great – with cuts that include "See Saw Affair", "Azucar", "Descarga", "The Devil & Montezuma", "Gotta Get Away", and "Bridges". CD

An overlooked gem from the British free jazz scene of the 70s – a set issued on the Bead Records label, and one that got very little circulation at the time – but which is equally as mindblowing as work from the period on labels like Ictus and Ogun! The duo here features Roy Ashbury on drums and percussion, and Larry Stabbins on soprano and tenor – working in this free, open space, but on tracks that are often shorter than album-length improvisations – which allows the players to stop a minute, take a breath, and move into these nicely varied moments of spontaneous creation! You might know Stabbins from later 80s work on more groove-oriented records – but here, he's a tremendousimproviser, with a sense for creative reedwork that might well rival his contemporary Evan Parker. Titles include "Puff", "Formants Of The Deep", "Wych Elm", "Fire Without Bricks", "Rough Cut", and "Maldoror". CD

Darn solid work from Ashford & Simpson – one of the duo's biggest albums for Capitol Records, and a great set from their 80s run for the label! The groove here is a bit more heavy on keyboards and beats than before, but the pair still keep things plenty soulful with their positive, upbeat approach to the music – rich, full, and always steeped in soul! The title track, "Solid", is one of the most-remembered tunes from the duo – and other cuts include "Outta The World", "The Jungle", "Honey I Love You", "Babies", "Cherish Forever More", and "Tonight We Escape". LP, Vinyl record album

Long lean groovers from Brian Auger and the Oblivion Express group – recorded with a slightly freer feel than some of the group's earlier albums, and an approach that has them stretching out nicely! Brian still sings a bit on some tracks, but there seems to be more of a focus than before on the keyboards – that nicely compressed Auger use of Hammond and electric piano that actually went onto influence a fair bit of American players at the time, in the way that Auger himself had been influenced before by their own earlier work. Rhythms are great throughout – making all tracks funky, in a laidback sort of way – and titles include a remake of "Bumpin' On Sunset", one of the band's best tracks, plus "Change", "Beginning Again", "You'll Stay In My Heart", and "Straight Ahead". LP, Vinyl record album

An overdue reunion for Brian Auger and Julie Driscoll (now billed as Tippetts) – and a late 70s session that sounds quite a bit different than their mod soul of the 60s! The format here is still somewhat in a soul-based vein – but the sound is much more 70s, and much more "adult" as well – sometimes smooth, sometimes mellow, with Julie singing in a way that's still heartfelt, but not with the clear nod to American soul of her earlier work. Brian's still playing plenty of keyboards, although not getting in as many licks as on his own albums of the decade – yet still with enough space to help transform some of the best tunes. Titles include "Git Up", "Freedom Highway", "Spirit", "Future Pilot", "Rope Ladder To The Moon", "No Time To Live", and "Nothing Will Be As It Was" – a great English remake of a song by Milton Nascimento! LP, Vinyl record album

Really hard-jamming work from keyboardist Brian Auger – the first of a 2-part live set from the US, and easily some of his greatest work on record! The tracks are all very long and stretched out here – an extrapolation of the territory Auger was already exploring on studio sides, taken into even more cosmic realms through the lively nature of the set. As with other records from the time, Alex Lighterwood sings on some cuts – but the real highlight is the keyboard work of Auger – served up on both organ and electric piano, and hitting a great blend of funk, fusion, and keyboard soul! Titles include a really great funky remake of "Bumpin On Sunset", the original break track "Don't Look Away", and the tunes "Truth", and "Beginning Again". CD

Really hard-jamming work from keyboardist Brian Auger – the first of a 2-part live set from the US, and easily some of his greatest work on record! The tracks are all very long and stretched out here – an extrapolation of the territory Auger was already exploring on studio sides, taken into even more cosmic realms through the lively nature of the set. As with other records from the time, Alex Lighterwood sings on some cuts – but the real highlight is the keyboard work of Auger – served up on both organ and electric piano, and hitting a great blend of funk, fusion, and keyboard soul! Titles include a really great funky remake of "Bumpin On Sunset", the original break track "Don't Look Away", and the tunes "Truth", and "Beginning Again". LP, Vinyl record album

Really hard-jamming work from keyboardist Brian Auger – the first of a 2-part live set from the US, and easily some of his greatest work on record! The tracks are all very long and stretched out here – an extrapolation of the territory Auger was already exploring on studio sides, taken into even more cosmic realms through the lively nature of the set. As with other records from the time, Alex Lighterwood sings on some cuts – but the real highlight is the keyboard work of Auger – served up on both organ and electric piano, and hitting a great blend of funk, fusion, and keyboard soul! Titles include a really great funky remake of "Bumpin On Sunset", the original break track "Don't Look Away", and the tunes "Truth", and "Beginning Again". LP, Vinyl record album

AWB's first for Atlantic – and a nice slice of funk that proves that they can mix it up with the best groups of the 70s! The record's got plenty of sweet electric keyboards over smooth funky basslines – and as the years go by, the band's white boy vocals don't sound nearly as bad as we remember them. And besides, when they play their instruments so nicely – how can you hold the singing against them? Includes the killer classic "Pick Up The Pieces", sampled more times than we can remember – plus "You Got It", "Just Wanna Love You Tonight", "Person To Person", and a nice remake of the Isley Brothers' "Work To Do". CD features lots of bonus tracks – different mixes of tracks on the album, plus "McEwan's Export". CD

Ben E King joins the Average White Band for this sweet 70s set – a killer record that not only stands as one of King's best efforts of the decade, but one that also gives the group a great new frontman! Ben's not the only singer on the record, but his presence here can definitely be felt – deepening up the grooves nicely, and giving the already-great AWB sound an even more badass feel! Titles include the classic "Star In The Ghetto", a funky remake of "What Is Soul", an earlier hit for King – plus "Keepin It To Myself", "Imagine", "Someday We'll All Be Free", "Get It Up For Love", and "The Message". CD features bonus tracks – original single versions of "Star In The Ghetto" and "Get It Up For Love". CD

An excellent funky fusion group from Chicago – and one of the best ensembles to record for the Black Jazz label! The group's made up of hip Chicago underground players – and includes Ken Chaney on electric piano, Ari Brown on saxes, and Frank Gordon on trumpet – a lineup that comes together with the same sort of righteous energy and soulful power as Windy City contemporaries like The Pharoahs or Earth Wind & Fire! On this first LP, they jam with a mix of righteous funk and spiritual soul jazz, mixing electric piano, choppy reeds, and tight horns with a powerful rhythm backing that never goes too over the top, and which stays in a good modal mode that works great for the soloists – soaringly expressive at a personal level, yet coming together with a really righteous group feel in the end. Tracks include "Jupiter", "Brand New Feeling", "Convulsions", and "Kera's Dance". CD

An excellent funky fusion group from Chicago – and one of the best ensembles to record for the Black Jazz label! The group's made up of hip Chicago underground players – and includes Ken Chaney on electric piano, Ari Brown on saxes, and Frank Gordon on trumpet – a lineup that comes together with the same sort of righteous energy and soulful power as Windy City contemporaries like The Pharoahs or Earth Wind & Fire! On this first LP, they jam with a mix of righteous funk and spiritual soul jazz, mixing electric piano, choppy reeds, and tight horns with a powerful rhythm backing that never goes too over the top, and which stays in a good modal mode that works great for the soloists – soaringly expressive at a personal level, yet coming together with a really righteous group feel in the end. Tracks include "Jupiter", "Brand New Feeling", "Convulsions", and "Kera's Dance". LP, Vinyl record album

Takumi Awaya's pictured on the cover along with his bass – in an image that will give you an idea of the richness of the set, with Awaya's instrument often stepping out as the leading force of the trio – alongside the piano of Takuma Yamamoto and Naoki Takahashi! Yamamoto still gets in plenty of space, but the record, which is a live one, is often a lot more about the interaction between bass and piano instead of just having the piano in the lead – captured with warm tones that really recall some of the more inventive Japanese trio sessions of the 70s. Titles include a great remake of the Ryo Fukui tune "Mellow Dream" – plus "Pretty Woodstock", "Breeze Suite", "I Should Care", and "Too Late Now". CD

A groovy little vocal group with a swinging 50s sound – working here with some great jazzy arrangements from trombonist Kai Winding! The style of the set prefaces Winding's pop/jazz sides for Verve in the mid 60s – but has a sound that's somewhat similar – with lead vocals by the male/female Axidentals group, and some trombone-based jazzy backings that showcase Winding's horn amidst a larger brass section. There's a great poppy punch to these tunes – and the Axidentals themselves can be credited for some extremely inventive vocal arrangements at times – in styles that go way beyond those of conventional groups of the period, in a mode that reminds us of some of the work by the Kirby Stone Four or the John LaSalle Quartet. Titles include "Walkin", "Out Of This World", "You Gotta Wail", "No Moon At All", "Day In Day Out", and "Close To You". LP, Vinyl record album

A wonderful departure for Kevin Ayers – an album that's a lot lighter and more whimsical than his original fame with Soft Machine! The tunes are extremely playful, and often quite catchy – almost a Donovan-esque blend of folksy roots and jazz inflections – but tuned a bit more towards trippier ends, thanks to instrumentation that includes celeste, electronics, flute, oboe, kazoo, cello, organ, and a wide range of different guitars! David Bedford handled arrangements, and other players on the session include some ex-Soft Machine comrades – like Hugh Hopper and Robert Wyatt! Ayers' vocals are produced with a nicely compressed quality that squeezes them in alongside the instrumentation – and titles include "Joy Of A Toy Continued", "The Lady Rachel", "All This Crazy Gift Of Time", "Eleanor's Cake", and "Girl On A Swing". LP, Vinyl record album

A great little album by Roy Ayers – one that features none of his hits, which means lots of fresh material – and which has great examples of both sides of Roy's talents at the time! The dancefloor side of Roy kicks in with "Love Will Bring Us Back Together", an extremely catchy groover that's very much in the mode of "Running Away", with plenty of choppy funky riffs, and a good soul base at the core. Even better, though, is the mellow spacey side of Roy – which shows up wonderfully in the cuts "Is It Too Late To Try" and "If You Love Me" – two overlooked gems that float along in a perfect blend of jazz and modern soul, with great breathy vocals and vibes, very much in the spirit of stuff on the You Send Me album. Other cuts include "I Wanna Feel It", "Leo", "Take Me Out To The Ball Game", and "Simple & Sweet" – all nice too! LP, Vinyl record album

One of Roy Ayers' best-remembered albums of the 70s – a sublime blend of mellow numbers and some of his more club-oriented grooves of the time – all wrapped together with a genius that we can only describe as Ayers-like! The album's a beautiful example of the balance that Roy was striking in his work at the time – because alongside some of the more upbeat, catchy numbers, there's other tracks that are a fair bit more laidback, and almost abstract at times – a wonderful extrapolation of that sensitive Ayers blend of jazz and soul, with key emphasis on the vibes and keyboards. Titles include the massive groover "Running Away" – which you'll recognize from a key sample history over the years – and club cuts "Cincinnati Growl", "Fruit", "Sanctified Feeling", and "Stranded In The Jungle" – plus the more laidback cuts "Gotta Find A Lover", "I Still Love You", "Lifeline", and "This Side Of Sunshine". LP, Vinyl record album

The genius of Roy Ayers knows no end – and as this set of unreleased work from the 70s proves, Roy was always working at top form back in the day – even above and beyond his classic albums from the time! The grooves here are tremendous – funky, soulful, jazzy, and every bit as wonderful as the work that Roy did for his classic albums on Polydor – and in a way, the whole set's even tighter and heavier than any of Roy's full LPs, because it's a distillation of his sound from the time, hand-picked from the vaults with an ear towards the kind of timeless grooves that have been a huge influence on many worlds of music for years! You've never heard any of these tunes before, but we can promise you'll love them every bit as much as Roy's tracks on albums like Coffy, Vibrations, Mystic Voyage, and other classics – and the quality of the set only further pushes our jaw-dropping respect for the man! Titles include "Holiday", "Kwajilori", "I Am Your Mind (part 2)", "Touch Of Class", "Third Time", "Come To Me", "Wide Open", "Funk In The Hole", "Liquid Love", "Tarzan", "Sunshine (demo)", and "I Like The Way You Do It To Me". LP, Vinyl record album

An expanded, remastered version of the album Prophecy – early work by Albert Ayler, recorded live in 1964 at the Cellar Cafe in New York, but not issued by ESP until years later, after his untimely early death. The performance is a trio outing – with Ayler's tenor alongside the bass of Gary Peacock and drums of Sunny Murray – all freely skirting around each other's space on the date, in a way that allows Ayler to take the bold lead with his sharp-toned solos, but which also allows for free interplay between the bass and percussion. Ayler's tone and wide swaths of sound are simply amazing – and titles include two variations on "Ghosts", plus "Spirits", "Prophecy", and "Wizard". Newly remastered version of the full concert – with 10 tracks in all! CD

A crucial European performance by Albert Ayler in the mid 60s – one that wasn't issued until many years after the recording, but which has become one of the sharpest pictures of his genius at the time! The vibe here is different than the Ayler albums for ESP – still very much in the same territory, but with this approach that's really reaching out with a deeply spiritual consciousness – an energy to embrace the whole history of jazz, both very old and very new – and re-form its entire ideology into a richly personal expression. Ayler's tremendous on tenor, but Don Ayler is often equally great on trumpet – and the unusual group features Michel Samson on violin, William Fowell on bass, and Beaver Harris on drums. Titles include really unique readings of "Bells", "Prophet", "Our Prayer/Spirits Rejoice", "Ghosts", "Truth Is Marching In", and "Spiritual Rebirth/Light In Darkness/Infinite Spirit". CD

Early work by avant saxophone genius Albert Ayler – and very very striking! The setting is very spare, with only bass and drums backing Ayler up – and the way the album is mixed, Ayler's solos dominate the tracks in a way that isn't always the case with some of the more group-driven later work. His tone is amazing even in this early date of 1962 – and he completely blows away the other two players on the set, drummer Sune Spangberg and bassist Torbjorn Hulcrantz. The set was first recorded by the small Swedish label Bird Notes, and it's the beginning of a longtime love affair that Swedish modernists had with Ayler's tone and playing – a love affair that runs up to the current avant garde that includes Mats Gustafsson. Includes a mindblowing reworking of "I'll Remember April", plus versions of "Rollins Tune", "Tune Up", and Ayler's own "Free". LP, Vinyl record album

Classic soul from Chicago! The 300-pound Baby Huey was one of the city's premier party acts in the old days, and this single – his cover of the rollicking Curtis Mayfield tune (which was later done by Chicago soul descendents Earth, Wind & Fire) – is one of his best! The two-part track has a rolling party funk groove, with production by Curtis, and arrangements by Donny Hathaway! 7-inch, Vinyl record

Badbadnotgood have always been pretty damn great, actually – and never better than on album IV – a remarkable step forward for the group! As ever, they take inspiration from some of the best prog, jazz, funk (and proggy jazz funk...they blend) of the 70s and beyond, but weave it into fairly distinctive and genuinely fun modern sound. It's built to last, too –we're sure be able to come back to their work in a couple decades and it'll still work! IV finds them with the confidence to trade in some fairly subtle, smoothed out moments between to more boisterous ones, and they're more dexterous in the instrumentation – especially in the horns, keys and percussion – but some great vibes, strings, flute and more when the mood calls. Includes the great vocal track "Time Moves Slow" with Sam Herring of Future Islands, "And That, Too", "Lavender", "IV", "Chompy's Paradise", "Structure No. 3", "Cashmere", "Hyssops Of Love" and more. LP, Vinyl record album

Badu is back with some of the deepest, funkiest and best music of her career – a mindblowing treatise for a New Amerykah – and what we'll consider an instant classic whether the world at large catches on or not! Erykah steps up this time with a set that balances the wilder impulses of her criminally underappreciated Worldwide Underground and more of a hip hop based, righteously grooving style – but still bursts with a freshness that's unrivaled to say the least. From free spirited soul, to sparse hip hop funk this record is both blunt and beautiful – with a slow-building emotional resonance that'll reach the most jaded souls. Modern soul music of the first order that gives us goosebumps from the first spin to the last beat! The album kicks off with Erykah riffing on and remixing Ramp's "American Promise" as an intro – and it just gets deeper from there. Producers/collaborators include Madlib, Sa-Ra, Karriem Riggins, James Poyser and ?uestlove. Amazing!!! Titles include "The Healer", "Me", "My People", "Soldier", "The Cell", "Twinkle", "Master Teacher", "The Hump" and "Telephone". The 9th Wonder produced single "Honey" is an unlisted bonus track. CD

Badu is back with some of the deepest, funkiest and best music of her career – a mindblowing treatise for a New Amerykah – and what we'll consider an instant classic whether the world at large catches on or not! Erykah steps up this time with a set that balances the wilder impulses of her criminally underappreciated Worldwide Underground and more of a hip hop based, righteously grooving style – but still bursts with a freshness that's unrivaled to say the least. From free spirited soul, to sparse hip hop funk this record is both blunt and beautiful – with a slow-building emotional resonance that'll reach the most jaded souls. Modern soul music of the first order that gives us goosebumps from the first spin to the last beat! The album kicks off with Erykah riffing on and remixing Ramp's "American Promise" as an intro – and it just gets deeper from there. Producers/collaborators include Madlib, Sa-Ra, Karriem Riggins, James Poyser and ?uestlove. Amazing!!! Titles include "The Healer", "Me", "My People", "Soldier", "The Cell", "Twinkle", "Master Teacher", "The Hump" and "Telephone". LP, Vinyl record album

A nice one from Badu – one with a depth of feeling and genuine soulful vibes that live up to its title, despite the fact that she records for one of the world's biggest media conglomerates! It's all about the vibe here. Erykah rolls her syllables, scats and emotes feelings more than an actual narrative in the strongest of these cuts. It's not that she's forgone lyrics, but it's all about the ambience, not radio sing-a-longs. She also dives head first into her organic soul and hip hop hybrid sound a little more sparingly, but still better than most who that followed her lead post-Baduizm. She channels Donald Byrd on the great "Think Twice", which is pretty indicative of the vibe as a whole. The groove is sorta mellow, but in a very tripped-out way, with deep organ washes and synth tones, scratchy soul guitar, and crisp organic beats. There's an appearance by Dead Prez on "Steady On The Grind", and a really sweet old school flavored remake of the great "Love Of My Life" track from the Brown Sugar soundtrack with Queen Latifah and Bahamadia, but for the most part Erykah is sweating soul on her own spiritual plane here. It's gonna take a little while to sink in, but this may be her best album (despite whatever naysaying BS you may read in mainstream reviews.) Tracks include "Bump It", the great single "Danger", "Woo", "Back In The Day" and "I Want You". LP, Vinyl record album

One of the few albums cut by the great soul singer JR Bailey – done with production from Buddy Scott, who also wrote most of the lyrics – in conjunction with Phil Medley, who also did the arrangements! The set begins with an uptempo clubby remake of "Taste of Honey", and also features a nicely grooving take on "Stella By Starlight". Other tracks include "Million To One", "Live Love & Play", "Love & Conversation", and "The Coming Of Your Love". LP, Vinyl record album

A sweet little quartet session from the mid 50s – one of Chet Baker's legendary albums recorded in Paris at the time, with a quality that's nicely different from some of his work in the US! Part of that quality is the group – an unusual lineup that includes Gerard Gustin on piano, Jimmy Bond on bass, and Bert Dahlander on drums – but Baker is also changing things up a bit from the Pacific Jazz years too, and working with a more sophisticated understanding of sound and tone that would develop even more strongly in the later half of the 50s! As usual with Chet, the tunes are standards, but completely transformed by his handling – titles that include "I'll Remember April", "Tenderly", "Lover Man", "Summertime", and "You Go To My Head". CD

A sweet little quartet session from the mid 50s – one of Chet Baker's legendary albums recorded in Paris at the time, with a quality that's nicely different from some of his work in the US! Part of that quality is the group – an unusual lineup that includes Gerard Gustin on piano, Jimmy Bond on bass, and Bert Dahlander on drums – but Baker is also changing things up a bit from the Pacific Jazz years too, and working with a more sophisticated understanding of sound and tone that would develop even more strongly in the later half of the 50s! As usual with Chet, the tunes are standards, but completely transformed by his handling – titles that include "I'll Remember April", "Tenderly", "Lover Man", "Summertime", and "You Go To My Head". LP, Vinyl record album

Completely evocative late life work from Chet Baker – one of the last albums he ever recorded, and a set that shows just how much Baker kept evolving in the later years of his career! Given some of the personal troubles that plagued Chet over the decades, there's sometimes a thought out there that he was a weaker version of himself at this time – but that's definitely not the case, as Baker really shifted his sound and style to accommodate some of his challenges, at a level that maybe made the music even more powerful than some of his music from years before! Some of the best moments here feature contributions from key musical partner of the 80s Nicola Stilo, who uses flute, guitar, and piano in these light ways while Chet's soloing with this strong, fluid vibe that's a real surprise – gentle, but extremely powerful. A few cuts bring in a bit of keyboards, and Chet sings a bit – but his best "singing" here is through his trumpet, which is still a hell of a voice in jazz. Titles include "Chet's Blues", "Waiting For Chet", "The Party Is Over", "With Sadness", "Deep Arabesques", and "Like The Precedent" – plus a lovely reading of the Elvis Costello tune "Almost Blue". CD

A rock-solid set from the late 70s European years of Chet Baker – a set that's done with a more conventional quartet, which is different than some of his looser, lighter lineups of the time! The vibe is a bit like old school Chet, but the tracks are still open and have that nicely exploratory sense of sound that made the last decade of Baker's life such a musical revelation – a time of renewed creativity, even when most of the American scene had written him off! The group features Phil Markowitz on piano, Scott Lee on bass, and Jeff Brillinger on drums. All tracks nice and long – with versions of "Broken Wing", "Beautiful Black Eyes", and "This Is Always". Features the first-time vinyl appearance of the tracks "I Remember You" and "Love For Sale". LP, Vinyl record album

Two of the coolest trumpeters from the LA scene of the 50s – reunited here in a never-issued album from the start of the 70s! At the time of the set, Jack Sheldon was the real star of the date – big on TV, and a very confident, cool player – as well as a singer with a wonderfully distinct sound (which some folks might remember from Schoolhouse Rock or The Merv Griffin Show!) Jack started out in the mellow modes shared by Chet Baker during his early years – but by the time of this set, he was a nicely different player – which makes the pairing with Baker so great – especially as this was a time when Chet was really laying low, and hardly recording at all. The rest of the group features Jack Marshall on guitar, Dave Frishberg on piano, Joe Mondragon on bass, and Nick Ceroli on drums – a very sprightly combo who add a lot to the record – and both Chet and Jack sing on the record, in addition to serving up trumpet solos too. Titles include "Evil Blues", "You Fascinate Me", "Once I Loved", "Too Blue", "Just Friends", "But Not For Me", "I Cried For You", and "Historia De Un Amor". CD

Two of the coolest trumpeters from the LA scene of the 50s – reunited here in a never-issued album from the start of the 70s! At the time of the set, Jack Sheldon was the real star of the date – big on TV, and a very confident, cool player – as well as a singer with a wonderfully distinct sound (which some folks might remember from Schoolhouse Rock or The Merv Griffin Show!) Jack started out in the mellow modes shared by Chet Baker during his early years – but by the time of this set, he was a nicely different player – which makes the pairing with Baker so great – especially as this was a time when Chet was really laying low, and hardly recording at all. The rest of the group features Jack Marshall on guitar, Dave Frishberg on piano, Joe Mondragon on bass, and Nick Ceroli on drums – a very sprightly combo who add a lot to the record – and both Chet and Jack sing on the record, in addition to serving up trumpet solos too. Titles include "Evil Blues", "You Fascinate Me", "Once I Loved", "Too Blue", "Just Friends", "But Not For Me", "I Cried For You", and "Historia De Un Amor". LP, Vinyl record album

Excellent sounds from Ojo Balingo – a Nigerian juju artist from the same stretch as King Sunny Ade – but one whose music is much more obscure to audiences on this side of the Atlantic! Balingo's group here has the loose, spontaneous vibe that characterizes juju at its best – this real sense of jamming, especially in the criss-crossing of the percussion, which is tremendous throughout – a real driving force of the music, and exploding with all these melodic elements as much as rhythmic ones – so much so, that the talking between the drums speaks volumes, even before the vocals come into the mix. The whole thing's a masterpiece of creative percussion, mixed with other elements that creep in a bit more strongly on side two – and titles include "Oba Mimo Olorun Ayo", "Ayo Igbala Ni Mofe, "Igbe Eiye Oloburo", "Jide Babaloa & Bayo Babalola", and "Ile Aiye Ile Ese Ile Aiye Ogun". LP, Vinyl record album

Maybe not the first album from the legendary Band – but a record in which the group get everything completely right all the way through – and sparkle with that special sound that continues to influence generations of music makers, and music lovers! All the great elements the group were bringing to their work with Bob Dylan are in place here – but the focus is completely different, with this warm glow that really fits the vocals of Levon Helm, and a sense of unified vision that makes it really hard to even come up with a match for the energy of the group on this album. The great John Simon adds a few special touches to the overall sound – and titles include "Rockin Chair", "Across The Great Divide", "When You Awake", "Up On Cripple Creek", "The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down", "Look Out Cleveland", and "King Harvest". Includes 7 bonus tracks. CD

A brilliant new vision for the legendary Banda Black Rio – the pioneering samba, soul and funk combo that broke so much ground in the 70s and remain vital to this day – led here by William Magalhaes, in a mode that celebrates decades of the best Brazilian music, while fearlessly moving it forward! William's father Oberdan Magalhaes was a driving force behind the original Banda Black Rio, and we couldn't really imagine a more appropriate new vision for the group than his son's. William wrote or co-wrote each track and he sings, plays keys and synth, guitar, bass, drums and more. The expansive group brings a depth of percussion, horns, strings and vocals – delivering timeless and dexterous jazzy Brazilian funk and dancefloor soul. The guest list includes classic and contemporary greats like Seu Jorge, Elza Soares, Marcio Local, Caetano Veloso, Gilberto Gil and others! Includes "Louis Lane" with Seu Jorge & Mano Brown, "Super Nova Samba Funk (9 No Samba)", "America Do Sul", "Isabela" feat Elza Soares and Cesar Camargo Mariano, "Samba Nova", "Quem Vem La" feat Marcio Local, "Deixa Estar" feat Aleh, "Lindos Olhos" feat Seu Jorge and Don Pixote, "Paname" feat Pyroman, "Final Feliz", "Irere" feat Gilberto Gil, "Aos Pes Do Redentor" feat Caetano Veloso and more. 16 tracks on the CD version. CD

With Dr John, Freddie Kohlman, and the New Orleans Brass Band. LP, Vinyl record album

Patricia Barber on piano and vocals, John McLean on guitars, Michael Arnopol on bass, and Mark Walker on drums and percussion. Titles include "What A Shame", "Mourning Grace", "Ode To Billie Joe", "Mahna De Carnaval", "Inch Worm", "The Thrill Is Gone", "Romanesque", and more. CD

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One of Gato Barbieri's later recordings – but don't hold that against it! The set's a smoother effort than most of Gato's earlier work, but it's also still pretty darn soulful – done in a way that allows plenty of space for his raspy reed work on tenor to flow over the top of larger arrangements that have a nice electric touch. Players include Eric Gale and Joe Beck on guitars, Don Grolnick on keyboards, and Mtume and Ralph MacDonald on percussion – both of whom give the tunes a nice earthy undercurrent when needed. And while we might be put off by the larger, more heavily-arranged sound – Gato himself is still in charge of the charts, and keeps things nicely focused in a soulfully expressive way! Titles include "Firelies", "Fiesta", "Europa", "Don't Cry Rochelle", "Behind The Rain", "Los Desperados", and "I Want You". LP, Vinyl record album

Two jazz giants of the 70s come together on this rare Italian recording from the late 60s – South African pianist Dollar Brand (Abdulla Ibrahim) and Argentine tenorist Gato Barbieri – both working here in spare duo formation, with edges that are a fair bit sharper than most of their later work! The format is incredibly spare – just tenor and piano, plus some occasional cello work by Brand – dark and angular, but also filled with small flowers of hope, flowering in the spontaneous presence of these two great minds – a tremendous spirit that makes the record very different than freer jazz outings, and which maybe points the way towards some of the classic European tenor/piano recordings to come. Tracks are long, with a free flowing quality that's infused with soul and spirit – and titles include "Hamba Khale", "The Aloe & The Wildrose", and "To Elsa". LP, Vinyl record album

A great return to form for the legendary Sidney Barnes – known best as a onetime member of both Rotary Connection and the P-Funk universe – but working here with great small combo backing from the Speedometer combo! "Best Thing" is an original by Barnes – sung in this sweet raspy style that gets great support from the funky group – who even thrown in a sweet Hammond solo in the middle! The flipside is a remake of Nolan Porter's "If I Could Only Be Sure" – a midtempo burner that has Sidney sounding even better on vocals! 7-inch, Vinyl record

Two deeply resonant players, working here without any other accompaniment at all – just the vibes of Joe Locke and piano of the wonderful Kenny Barron – coming together with a sense of interplay that's really wonderful! The titles are mostly standards, but get pulled out in long renditions that revel in the way the vibes and piano come together – a mode that's especially nice given the sharpness of Locke's sense of attack on his instrument, as the record might be a bit too sleepy with a softer sort of player. Titles include a very nice remake of "Stolen Moments" – plus "But Beautiful", "On A Misty Night", "You Don't Know What Love Is", and "Nancy". LP, Vinyl record album

The Maybeck solo series produced plenty of greatness when it was going on – and one of the greatest moments was this sweet solo set from Kenny Barron! Barron's one of those players we never get tired of – and while we love him in group and trio settings, he's equally magical here working by himself – opening up on these long, lyrical numbers that have a really evocative feel – beautiful runs up and down the keyboard, but in ways that are extremely thoughtful and well-paced – and not just an unbridled display of his talents. There's a sense of soul to the set that never lets up – and titles include "Bud Like", "Witchcraft", "Sunshower", "And Then Again", "Skylark", and "Spring Is Here". CD

One of the lesser-known John Barry scores of the 60s – penned for an equally lesser-known comedy that starred Michael Caine, Peter Sellers, Peter Cook, Tony Hancock, and Dudley Moore! The tunes have kind of a period feel with slight whimsical touches – not as mod and groovy as you might expect for the time, or for Barry – but with a strong orchestral approach overall, showing John's ability to work well in a more mainstream setting. There's a nice undercurrent of darkness at times, as on some of Barry's other orchestral work – and titles include "Morris Visits Dr Pratt", "Bournemouth Strangler", "Morris Hides As He Sees Handcart", "Montage Of Deaths", and "Yes Who Is That". LP, Vinyl record album

A real return to classic form for saxophone legend Gary Bartz – stepping out here with a younger group of musicians who return his sound to the spirit of his NTU Troup records from the early 70s! The group has some hard percussion at the core – and matches Gary's own work on alto and soprano with trumpet from Axel Kaner Lidstrom, keyboards from Al Macsween, and guitar from Shirley Tetteh – a really vibrant combo who help bring Bartz back to the territory of spiritual jazz funk, as he stretches out on the kind of long, snakey solos that first set him apart from the pack! The combo also features Twm Dylan on bass, Jake Long on drums, and Tim Doyle on percussion – and titles include "Harlem Haarlem" and "The Stank" – plus remakes of "Uhuru Sasa", "Dr Follow's Dance", and "Leta's Dance". LP, Vinyl record album

A tremendous tribute to the tenor talents of Paul Bascomb – pulled together here from rare 78rpm sides for United Records – including more than a few that were never issued at the time! Bascomb's got a rich and soulful tone – easily one of the best of the postwar generation, even though Paul never got the same sort of due as tenorists on big labels like King, Chess, or Savoy! The set features most of the same players on all tracks – Bascomb on tenor, Eddie Lewis on trumpet, Frank Porter and Tommy Waters on alto, and Duke Jordan on piano – and Porter sings on a few tracks too. Titles include "Mumbles Blues", "Blues & The Beat", "Black Out", "Nona", "Love's An Old Story", "Liza's Blues", and "Soul & Body". LP, Vinyl record album

Tremendous work from one of the greatest pairings in 50s jazz – the crack later group of Count Basie and the amazing arranging talents of the great Neal Hefti! Hefti later went onto greater fame as a 60s soundtrack composer, but back in the day him and Basie were an incredible team together – as Hefti's talent for quirky, witty, whimsical horn passages really opened up the Basie sound of earlier years – and took the band far past any Kansas City cliches, into a groove that was much more suited for a modern audience! This album's one of the best the two ever cut together – and it's overflowing with Hefti gems that include "Cute", "Pensive Miss", "Sloo Foot", "Scoot", "A Little Tempo Please", "Count Down", and "Pony Tail". CD

Tremendous work from one of the greatest pairings in 50s jazz – the crack later group of Count Basie and the amazing arranging talents of the great Neal Hefti! Hefti later went onto greater fame as a 60s soundtrack composer, but back in the day him and Basie were an incredible team together – as Hefti's talent for quirky, witty, whimsical horn passages really opened up the Basie sound of earlier years – and took the band far past any Kansas City cliches, into a groove that was much more suited for a modern audience! This album's one of the best the two ever cut together – and it's overflowing with Hefti gems that include "Cute", "Pensive Miss", "Sloo Foot", "Scoot", "A Little Tempo Please", "Count Down", and "Pony Tail". CD

Early Basie material, packaged in a nicely done 50s LP format – supposedly with some remixing to improve the sound quality of the tracks. Players include Lester Young, Buck Clayton, Herschel Evans, Freddy Greene, Walter Page, and Jo Jones – and titles include "Jumpin At The Woodside", "Every Tub", "Out The Window", "Shorty George", "Doggin Around", "Texas Shuffle", "Cherokee", and "Topsy". LP, Vinyl record album

A strange little record that's a bit tough to describe. The theme appears to be 50s space age – but the sound is more of a cartoony remix of some loungey grooves, with a fairly heavy leaning towards more current popular music. There's bits of guitar pop in the set, bits of pop drum n bass, and even touches of happy hardcore. Title sinclude "We Are Ready", "Bow Wow", "Los Angeles Underground", "Lonesome Spaceboy", and "Call Me A Doctor". CD

A sharp-edged session of tremendous trumpet and tenor interplay – served up by the legendary quintet of Gianni Basso and Oscar Valdambrini! The album's got a sound that's as hip as it looks – a great approach to 50s modern jazz, done in a style that's equally influenced by west coast cool and east coast hardbop! Valdambrini's trumpet is beautifully measured throughout – with echoes of both Kenny Dorham and Chet Baker – offset by some deeper grooving on tenor from Basso, who plays with a strength and command that few American players of the time could match. Titles include "Come Out Wherever You Are", "Lo Struzzo Oscar", "Lotar", "Gone With The Wind", "Parlami D'Amore Mariu", and "Fan Tan". LP, Vinyl record album

A real standout set from the end of Les Baxter's run at Capitol Records – originally scored for a film that was never released, but a great set of tracks that more than stands strongly on its own! The theme here is a Mexican/Latin American one – explored by Baxter with his trademark blend of larger orchestrations and lighter exotica touches – often swirling around in an extremely evocative mode that makes us wish the film had been issued to the public, and at a few key moments even hinting at the funkier modes that would follow on some of Les' later work for other labels. Titles include "Aqueducts", "Gardens Of The Moon", "Pyramid Of The Sun", "Temple Of Gold", and "Procession Of The Princes". LP, Vinyl record album

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One of the few albums ever recorded by pianist Charles Bell – a fresh-voiced modernist who flourished briefly on the recording scene at the beginning of the 60s, when he recorded great records for Columbia and Atlantic, plus this little gem for the smaller Gateway label! The set's a live one, and has Bell playing in a style that's more open than some of his other records – still very much concerned with moods and colors, in an almost John Lewis-like way – but also playing some extremely inventive lines on the piano, and giving the record a keenly improvised quality. Titles include "Take Five", "Memories Of Home", "Whisper Not", "Work Song", "Prancing", and "Tommy's Blues". LP, Vinyl record album

Drummer Louis Bellson grooves it nice and hard in this excellent session from his early 50s Verve years! The record kicks off with the tremendous "Skin Deep" title cut – a number that features Louis really going to town in an extended drum solo that must be one of the longest ever recorded during the period – maybe even the "Moby Dick" of its time! Other titles include "Loris", "Claxton Hall Swing", and "Phalanges" – and though the notes don't name any of his hard swinging side men, the group's billed as his big band, and the set more than lives up to it's name! LP, Vinyl record album

Jessie Belvin's often talked about in reverent tones as a bridge between a number of different styles of 50's R&B and vocal soul, but it's not until you hear a great compilation like this one that you realize how fantastic his stuff really is. This excellent Ace set compiles tracks from his great early years at Modern, and even includes some stuff that he did with the vocal group The Cliques. The sound is deep warm LA R&B, with a touch of Charles Brown and Clyde McPhatter, but also a startling premonition of later soul artists like Jerry Butler. Beautiful stuff, with a wide range of tracks, including some unreleased material that's as good as the hits on here. CD

A fantastically soulful album from Jorge Ben – one of his greatest records ever, and a key part of Brazilian music in the 70s! The album marks an earthier shift for Jorge – a sound that's still rooted in the samba influences of the 60s, but which also takes on a bit more soul at the bottom – thanks to rhythmic contributions from Trio Mocoto, who work here famously to help Ben shape the overall feel of the set! There's still a bit of larger orchestrations at moments, but these are used sparingly just to sweeten the sound – leaving the main force of the music to come from Jorge's guitar, and the cuica, percussion, and tamborim of the trio. The vocals are wonderful too – slightly raspy, and with a bit more feeling than we ever remember Jorge having on record – sometimes a bit intimate, yet always with an undeniable presence throughout. One of those records that still sends chills up our spines, year after year – with tracks that include "Oba La Vem Ela", "Ze Canjica", "Pulo Pulo", "Apareceu Aparecida", "Terezinha", "Mulher Brasileira", "Forca Bruta", "O Telefone Tocou Novamente", and "Charles Junior". LP, Vinyl record album

Three full albums from this tremendous singer – all in a single set! Morning In Paris is very early work from South African singer Sathima Bea Benjamin – recorded in Paris in 1963, with backing by longtime partner Abdullah Ibrahim, plus additional piano and production by Duke Ellington! The album was cut around the same time as Ibrahim (Dollar Brand) did his famous Reprise album in Paris with Ellington – and it's got a similar mix of modern and moody styles – with Sathima singing in a mellower tone than we're used to from her later records, over extremely spare backing that often has the piano barely stepping in, and which also features some nice plucked violin work from Svend Asmussen – acting almost as the bass on a few tracks! Billy Strayhorn also sits in on this extremely unusual session – and titles include "The Man I Love", "Soon", "Lover Man", "I Should Care", "I Could Write A Book", and "Darn That Dream". Lovelight is always-great work from Sathima Bea Benjamin – one of the hippest jazz vocalists of the 80s, working here in a highly spiritual mode that sounds a lot more like records from many years past! There's a warmly gentle glow to the whole set – thanks to instrumentation from Larry Willis on piano, Buster Williams on bass, Billy Higgins on percussion, and Ricky Ford on tenor sax – all coming together in ways that are filled with unusual rhythms, odd turns of phrases, and just the right sort of unconventional accompaniment to fit the Africanist themes of Sathima's music at its best. A few numbers are more traditional, but even these have a nicely sensitive feel – and offer plenty of room for Willis to solo. Titles include "Winne Mandela Beloved Heroine", "African Songbird", "Gift Of Love – For Duke", "Music", and "You Are My Heart's Delight". Southern Touch is a set that's maybe a bit more of a straight jazz vocal record than some of Sathima Bea Benjamin's earlier material – but that might also be because the great Kenny Barron is part of the group on piano – supporting Sathima's great voice with the help of Buster Williams on bass and Billy Higgins on drums! Tunes are mostly standards, but it's great to hear them opened up with Benjamin's unique phrasing – that voice that was raised up on more righteous material in earlier years, and which still seems to bring some of that power to tunes that include "Street Of Dreams", "Lush Life", "One Alone", "I'm Glad There Is You", and "I've Heard That Song Before". CD