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The start of a beautiful relationship between the Art Ensemble Of Chicago and the DIW label – a Japanese imprint who brought the group back to full prominence in the years after they stopped recording for ECM! DIW also let the group really do their own thing, too – almost moving back... read more

A really dreamy little set from this hip Brazilian combo – a set that's got a bossa feel overall, but which also seems to draw a bit from folkloric roots too! The instrumentation is nice and warm – a great 60s blend of light percussion, acoustic guitar, and nice bits of jazzy flute and... read more

A massive tribute to the overlooked John Danser – a force on the New York scene for decades – but an artist whose genius is only finally getting its due! Danser's 70s groovers have been causing ripples with crate diggers for years – but this set stretches back to show the full... read more

A great guitar session from late 60s Brazil – bossa at its core, but with some other groovy touches too! Guitarist Heraldo Do Monte plays light acoustic, in a style that's right up there with Luiz Bonfa or Baden Powell – but the overall setting of the album also gives a nod towards... read more

A great bit of fusion from the start of the 70s – kind of a bridge between the late 60s "groovy" Japanese jazz, and some of the freer-thinking work to come! The group features excellent tenor from Takeru Muraoka, who plays with kind of a sharp edge that almost echoes more of the... read more

Deep deep sounds from this hip Japanese drummer – a set that features a fusion-styled mix of keyboards and sax, but one that comes across with a gentle feel that's light years from conventional fusion! The balance is perfect throughout – kind of a spacey, soulful vibe –... read more

An amazing moment from the Brazilian music scene of the 70s – an album that's both extremely personal for each of the artists involved, yet also a wonderful collaboration between a host of up-and-coming talents! There's a relaxed, intimate feel to the whole thing that's mighty nice –... read more

A rare soundtrack from Japanese trumpeter Terumasa Hino – and a set that's quite different than most of his albums of the time! There's still a strong jazz approach to the music – often with Teru's trumpet out in the lead – but the tunes are relatively sort, and often pretty darn... read more

Heavy funk from Japan's Soul Media combo – and one of the group's great 70s outings with the engimatic Sammy on vocals! Sammy's got this raw, raspy style that might owe a bit to Janis Joplin at times – but also nods strongly to the work of the American underground at others –... read more

A highly percussive little album – and the first-ever appearance of the M'Boom ensemble on record! You might know the group from their later fame under the guidance of Max Roach, but here the combo is a much more equally-assembled cast of players – featuring not just Roach, but... read more

A tremendous burner from Japanese drummer Takeo Moriyama – a really freewheeling set that rolls out with the kind of post-Coltrane energy that may well make Moriyama the Japanese equivalent of Elvin Jones! The drums are fantastic throughout – but the real star of the set may well be... read more

Modal, magical, and mighty soulful too – a killer 70s set from drummer Takeo Moriyama, and one that wonderfully mixes lyrical moments with some more freewheeling energy! Moriyama's got a perfect balance with the group – and the album has some especially nice work on piano from the... read more

Funky, fuzzy, and outta site – a really wonderful set of extended psychedelic jazz numbers from twin tenorists Takeru Muraoka and Takao Uematsu! The set's billed as a live tenor "battle" on the cover – but it's hardly the sort of record that you'd hear from American players... read more

Samba and guitar – served up in a really warm and wonderful blend from Neco – a player who never made it big on our shores, but who can play the acoustic guitar in the same best 60s modes as Baden Powell! The session is nice and spare – mostly just light percussion, plus an... read more

One of the greatest albums ever on the legendary Strata East label – and that's saying a hell of a lot! Drummer Billy Parker is a player that we don't know much, but he'll always be well-remembered for this album's sublime blend of spiritual jazz styles! The lineup is wonderful – a... read more

An overlooked gem from the killer soul years at Capitol Records – the only record we've ever seen from Pyrymyd, a group with grooves as angular as their name! The tunes have a mix of bassy funk and clubby rhythms – that sweet 80s groove style that nobody seemed to do better than... read more

Wonderfully tripped-out sounds from the Japanese scene at the start of the 70s – a mix of older folkloric elements and more electric fusion modes – coming together in a really unique sound! There's lots of flute at the front of the tracks – played with an airy, spacious quality... read more

Exciting flute from the Japanese scene of the 70s – a wicked little set that's filled with funky numbers throughout! The backings are large, but often nice and tight – kind of a groove-ified version of the 60s approach to bigger band jazz albums based around a single soloist – a... read more

A gem of a bossa nova guitar session – light and lively, and filled with great acoustic lines from guitarist Geraldo Vespar! The tunes are all instrumental, and they feature some great larger backings too – arrangements that either bring up the rhythms nicely with a lot of percussion,... read more

The first album recorded by Kazumi Watanabe, the Japanese guitarist whose firey style would go onto play a big part in the growth of that country's jazz scene during the 70s! This album's quite different from the later smoother work from Kaz – a pretty intense set, and it features Watanabe... read more

A really unique little record – and a wonderful cross-section of the Japanese scene at the start of the 70s! The album features work by three trios – hence the title – some avant, some straight, and all if it pretty great! First up are the Yosuke Yamashita trio – who... read more

An amazing dip into the best years of Japanese jazz – that special time when the nation was really finding its own musical voice – and turning out some sounds that are still pretty darn incredible all these many years later! Despite the dates in the title, most of these tracks hail... read more