Gritty live work from twin tenor giants Gene Ammons and Dexter Gordon – recorded in an open-ended style that's a bit like some of Gordon's famous early work on the Central Avenue scene in LA, or Ammons' famous live "battles" with Sonny Stitt! The date was recorded in Chicago at the North Park Hotel – with sound that's a bit more "live" than some of the other Prestige sessions at the time – and an unusual lineup that features local players Jodie Christian and John Young on piano, Cleveland Eaton on bass, and Steve McCall on drums. The lovely Vi Redd makes a vocal appearance on the track "Lonesome Lover Blues" – and other titles include "The Chase", "Polka Dots & Moonbeams", and "The Happy Blues" – all nice and long! CD also features 2 extra tracks, both long – "Wee Dot" and an extended "Ballad Medley". CD

A killer – and one of the greatest records ever cut on Bethlehem! Charlie Rouse and Paul Quinichette go head to head in a hard-blown session that's very different than most of the work on Bethlehem – grooving in a free-wheeling "chase" mode, as you might guess from the title – with lots of heavy tenor in the lead, cooking at a level that's more like a Prestige or Savoy session from the 50s! The group's as tight as can be – with some killer drum work from Ed Thigpen, and piano by either Wynton Kelly or Hank Jones. Titles include "The Chase Is On", "You're Cheating Yourself", "Knittin", "Tender Trap", and "When The Blues Come On". CD

Dave Ballou on trumpet and flugelhorn, Greg Gisbert, and Tim Hagans on trumpet, George Colligan on trumpet and piano, Doug Weiss on bass, and Darren Beckett on drums. CD

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A killer – and one of the greatest records ever cut on Bethlehem! Charlie Rouse and Paul Quinichette go head to head in a hard-blown session that's very different than most of the work on Bethlehem – grooving in a free-wheeling "chase" mode, as you might guess from the title – with lots of heavy tenor in the lead, cooking at a level that's more like a Prestige or Savoy session from the 50s! The group's as tight as can be – with some killer drum work from Ed Thigpen, and piano by either Wynton Kelly or Hank Jones. Titles include "The Chase Is On", "You're Cheating Yourself", "Knittin", "Tender Trap", and "When The Blues Come On". CD

Conducted by William Russo, Paul Mertens and Tyrone Tatum on alto saxophone, Billy Rogers on baritone saxophone, Eddie Johnson and Pat Mallinger on tenor saxophone, Chuck Parrish, Mark Olen, Orbert Davis, Scott Hall, and Terry Connell on trumpet, Audrey Morrison, Edwin Williams, Loren Binford, and Tracy Kirk on trombone, Fritz Hocking on bass trombone, Larry Combs on clarinet, Charley Harrison on guitar, Brandon McCune on piano, James Cammack on bass, Bobby Everson on timpani, and Dana Hall and Frank Donaldson on drums, with Bobbi Wilsyn, Carol Loverde, and Cynthia Felker on vocals. CD

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A great set of early modern bop material – 37 tracks that bring together the complete Blue Note recordings of Tadd Dameron and Fats Navarro – about half of them featuring Navarro in Dameron's group, the other half featuring Fats on his own, working with Bud Powell, Howard McGhee, and Benny Goodman. The set includes a few alternate takes, and titles include "Stealin Apples", "Focus", "John's Delight", "The Squirrel", "The Chase", "Our Delight", "The Skunk", "Double Talk", "Boperation", and "Wail". CD

Amazing stuff from No Wave legends DNA – 32 tracks from long out of print singles, EPs and live recordings – many on CD for the first time ever! DNA was one of the most uproarious acts in that increasingly legendary NYC scene – featuring Arto Lindsay's scratchy guitar and haggard banshee wail of a lead vocal presence, those primitive Bowery funk keyboards by Robin Krutchfield, and thumping, metronomic bass and drums by Tim Wright and Ikue Mori. The band's songs rarely marched past the 2 1/2 minute mark or so, getting in-and-out for a quick catharsis. These tracks trace the range of the under-recorded group perfectly, from the raw punk squall of the early singles to the funkier, sinister post disco sound later on. Amazing, awe inspiring stuff from a scene that keeps on belching greatness! Great notes and photos, here too! Includes "You & You", "Egomaniac's Kiss", "Not Moving", "Size", "New Fast", "New New", "Young Teenagers Talk Sex", "Police Chase", "Cop Buys A Donut", "Nearing", "Low", "Brand New", "Horse", "Forgery", "A New Low" and tons more! CD

We can't get enough of this stuff! Another fab collection of groovy soundtrack bits, and oblique dialogue from just about our favorite TV series of all time. This batch has more of the dramatic moments, chase scene buildups, sonic scene setting and electronic tones tied together in one long collage of mod sounds. 32 tracks in all, including "janet's Party", "European Drive", "Exploding Ball", "Poisoned Beer", "Turkish Bath", "Boxing Booth", "Attack On The Bulldozer" and "Regression". CD

Curtis Mayfield's lasting classic – and an album that the world will remember forever! Apart from being his hugely successful entry into the blacksploitation soundtrack field, this album's also a monster set of grooves that includes some of Curtis' funkiest work ever – a record that works as well as a 70s soul album as it does a hip action film score! The track list alone reads as a who's who of 70s funk – filled with gems that include "Pusherman", "Freddie's Dead", "Little Child Runnin' Wild", "Give Me Your Love", and "Superfly" – and the rest of the set is equally great, essential listening throughout! Plus, this set also features a whole bonus CD – one that brings together extra tracks, unreleased cuts, alternate versions, instrumental versions, and even some cool radio promotional spots! with the "Check Out Your Mind" instrumental studio jam, the full-length version of the instrumental "Junkie Chase", the demo version of "Ghetto Child", and lots more! CD

Buddy Bregman's doing the arrangements on this one – and he brings a great jazzy flair to the backings, helping Anita O'Day open up in her most dynamic mode! The whole set swings nicely, but without any sort of hoke – and Bregman manages to highlight specific instruments in the arrangements in different ways on each tune – creating a nice sense of variety that really keeps things fresh. Titles are mostly familiar numbers, but the match of Bregman and O'Day is more than enough to make them come alive anew – and tunes include "Man With A Horn", "Let's Begin", "I Never Had A Chance", "Stars Fell On Alabama", "Don't Be That Way", and "I Won't Dance". The CD's been hugely expanded from the original album – to include a total of 21 tracks in all, some with a smaller sextet, including a few previously unissued tracks! Titles include "Rock N Roll Waltz", "We Laughed At Love", "Your Picture's Hanging Crooked On The Wall", "I'm Not Lonely", and "The Getaway & The Chase". CD

A great little soundtrack from Pete Rugolo – Stan Kenton's right-hand man during the early 50s modernist years, and a hell of an arranger in his own right! Pete wrote some of the best crime jazz soundtracks of the late 50s and early 60s – and his work for television ranks up there with the best by Mancini or Nelson Riddle. This 24-track set is the first time that Rugolo's work for the original Fugitive TV show has been reissued – and it's a nice mix of crime themes, chase numbers, and mellower scene-setting tunes. Titles include "Kimble vs One Armed Man", "The One Armed Man's Name is Fred Johnson", "Theme From The Fugitive", "Tragic Homecoming", "Under Arrest", "On The Run", "Brass Interlude", "Freedom & Finale", and "Back On The Road". CD

Two great 70s thrillers, back to back – both scored by the amazing Michael Small! The first stretch of the set features music from Marathon Man – the chilling mid 70s film directed by John Schlesinger, about a creepy Nazi war criminal living in New York! Small's music is wonderfully tense – as taut and dark as his famous work for Klute, with perhaps less of the warmth and sex of that film – and more of a focus on short, stark numbers that will set your hair on edge, even if you're not watching the movie. Film Score have done their usual amazing job here – and have come up with 37 tracks from the score – much more of Small's music than we might have hoped for – with cuts that include "Chase", "Nightmare Of The Past", "Scylla Stabbed", "Airport", "The Letter", "Szell Arrives", "Soccer Ball", "Tragedy At The Truck", and "Szell Escapes". The CD also features 11 more tracks from The Parallax View, also scored by Small – a dark thriller directed by Alan Pakula, with a really paranoid sort of narrative that Small's music fits wonderfully. The tunes are often quite short – these airy flourishes of sound made out of brooding string bits and tense woodwinds – and titles include "Gunmen Search", "Morgue", "Sheriff's House", "Joe's Final Run", and "Parallax Test". CD

Music from Hobart Smith, Etta Baker, Bone Reid, Edd Presnell, Richard Chase, and Lacey Phillips. 20 tracks in all. CD

Curtis Mayfield's lasting classic – and an album that the world will remember forever! Apart from being his hugely successful entry into the blacksploitation soundtrack field, this album's also a monster set of grooves that includes some of Curtis' funkiest work ever – a record that works as well as a 70s soul album as it does a hip action film score! The track list alone reads as a who's who of 70s funk – filled with gems that include "Pusherman", "Freddie's Dead", "Little Child Runnin' Wild", "Give Me Your Love", and "Superfly" – and the rest of the set is equally great, essential listening throughout! Plus, this set also features a whole bonus CD – one that brings together extra tracks, unreleased cuts, alternate versions, instrumental versions, and even some cool radio promotional spots! with the "Check Out Your Mind" instrumental studio jam, the full-length version of the instrumental "Junkie Chase", the demo version of "Ghetto Child", and lots more! Great stuff – and in a lovely fold-out package, with the same foldover die-cut cover of the original LP! CD

The clubby jazz funk debut of Freeez – plus the Anti-Freeez remix album from a couple years later – issued together along with even more bonus material in this great 2CD set! Dancefloor ready live band grooving is the warmly beating heart of the Freeez sound at this early point – with heated drums and killer basslines driving it – clearly influenced by late 70s international club sounds, but with this great, tight energy and dexterous musicianship that could only come from a real, functioning, true band. Nice stuff! Disc One includes the original album & remixes: "Mariposa (Butterfly)", "Caribbean Winter", "Easy On The Onions", "Sunset", "Flying High", "Roller Chase", "First Love" and more from the original, plus bonus tracks including "Ainti-Freeez (Set Me Free) – Disco Version", "Fly By Night", "Flying High (12" Remix)" and more. Disc Two includes early singles, demos, instrumentals and the complete Anti-Freeez remix album from 1984 – with "Keep In Touch", "Hot Footing It", "Stay", "Roller Chase (1984 Remix)", "Alone (1984 Remix)", "One To One (1984 Remix)", "Caribbean Winter (1984 Remix)", "Say You Will Be My Lover (Previously Unreleased Demo)" and more. 30 tracks on 2CDs. CD

Mindblowing work by The Impressions – a double-length set that's totally great! First up is the soundtrack for the Fred Williamson/Jim Brown/Jim Kelly action flick Three The Hard Way – not only a great soundtrack, but one of the best 70s albums by The Impressions! The set was written, arranged, and produced by the Curtom super-team of Rich Tufo and Lowrell Simon – and it's got a super-dope feel that reminds us of the work by Natural Four from the same time, with sweet harmonies over funky backings, in a hip 70s groove that's totally great! All cuts are vocal, but they have plenty of funky moments – and in a way, the whole album's as great as the lead track, which is normally the best one in a blacksploitation soundtrack like this. In other words, if you dig hit soundtrack theme songs like "Across 110th Street" or "Theme from Cleopatra Jones", you'll dig this entire album! Tracks include the great "Having A Ball", plus "Make A Resolution", "Something's Mighty Mighty Wrong", and "Three The Hard Way (Chase & Theme)". First Impressions is hardly the first album by The Impressions, despite the title – but a wonderful batch of modern soul tunes that proves that the group could groove long after Curtis Mayfield was gone! As with other Curtom gems from the 70s, the album has the group working with some really top-shelf help in the studio – production from Ed Townsend, who does a really great job of making the harmonies sparkle with a rich quality that really stands out – a mode that returns the group to the mellow brilliance of their 60s recordings, but still keeps some of the maturity they picked up along the way. Townsend also wrote most of the tracks on the set, with a confident male soul style that's not unlike the best love-heavy territory that Marvin Gaye was exploring at the time – a perfect fit for the newly-refined vocals of the mid 70s quartet lineup that included original members Sam Gooden and Fred Cash, plus Ralph Johnson and Reggie Toran. Titles include the sublime "Groove", which has a nice two-step feel, and "Sooner Or Later", which is a nice mellow cut with an undercurrent of funk – and other tracks include "Old Before My Time", "Same Thing It Took", "I'm So Glad", and "How High Is High". CD

A masterpiece from prime era Tribe Called Quest! Midnight Maurauders was Tribe's third LP, and even though there were no tracks yet credited to the Ummah, this is pretty much the beginning of Tribe's transition to that sound – with the same mellow, laid back vibe as their best early material, but less of an overtly jazzy reference in their sound. Phife and Tip are still on point lyrically, and honestly, this is pretty much the last LP that Tribe dropped that's got nearly all hits and no misses on it. With the cuts "Award Tour", "Midnight", "Electric Relaxation", "Clap Your Hands", "Oh My God", "The Chase, Part II", and "Keep It Rollin". CD

One of the funkiest blacksploitation soundtracks of the 70s – a rare indie gem from Nat Dove & The Devils! Dove's got a style that's a lot rougher and rootsier than other soundtrack artists of the 70s – an approach that's more based in the modes of the indie funk underground of the time, and less in the more polished studio funk you'd find on bigger film releases. The grit in the grooves is wonderfully welcome here – and it's a quality that really sets this one apart from the pack, and keeps it in heavy rotation over the years! Most of the tracks on here are instrumentals, and a few of the cuts have vocals by Mary Love – and titles include "Joy", "Petey Wheatstraw", "Steve's Den", Junkie Chase", "Zombie March", "Ghetto Street USA", and "Loving You". CD

Funky soundtrack tunes from the early 70s – a great mix of lesser known album cuts and a few other rare gems pulled from Universal's Soul Cinema series! The groove is wah-wah funk, fast riffing drums, tight "chase" theme grooves, and even a bit of soul – and tracks include "Monkey Hustle" by Jack Conrad, "It's Hard To Say Goodbye To Yesterday" by GC Cameron, "Fat Poppadaddy" by Quincy Jones, "I'm Gonna Catch You" by The Hues Corporation, "The Boss" by James Brown, "Bus Stop" by Harry Betts, "King George" by Roy Ayers, "Give It To Me" by Isaac Hayes, "She Did It" by Barbara Mason & Monk Higgins, and "It Sure Is Groovy" by Gil Bernal. 13 cuts in all! CD

Sweet reissue of this lost Roy Budd score to an excellent suspense thriller starring Michael Caine. The music is a mixture of dark brooding suspense themes (sort of in the vein of Budd's more famous "Fear Is The Key"), plus other numbers that have a lighter, groovier feel. The main instrumental twist is a bank of woodwinds, which float nicely around, and provide cool windy passages of sound. Underneath are tightly banking strings, and occasional flickers of Budd's lively piano. The album includes the very nice cut "No Co-operation", which has a tightly grooving string part underneath some nice washes of sound. Other highlights include "Cassette Jazz", "Drabble Calling", "The Chase", and the funky cut "Diamonds". Nice stuff, and very beautifully packaged, with a full cover fold out repro of the original poster, and very nice notes! CD

2 overlooked 70s gems from Barry Harris – both of them trio dates based around famous jazz composers! First up are 8 tracks in which Barry Harris stretches out wonderfully in a set of compositions by Tadd Dameron – most of them familiar jazz standards from a few decades before, transformed magically by Harris in a hip 70s piano trio mode! The group here features Gene Taylor on bass and Leroy Williams on drums – both of whom work nicely with Barry's newly discovered sweetness at the time – an approach that's sometimes a bit warmer than his work in the 60s, and which helps make these tunes stand out in newly sensitive readings. Titles include "The Tadd Walk", "Lady Bird", "Casbah", "Our Delight", "Soultrane", "The Chase", and "Hot House". Next up are 5 more tracks penned by Thelonious Monk, and played by Harris with a trio that includes Bill Lee on bass and Leroy Williams on drums! Harris hits the right angular modes to make Monk's music come alive, but also warms them up with a bit more sensitivity too – slight colorings in his choice of tone, and an almost more personal feel on some of the numbers, even when taken at a fast clip. Titles include "Epistrophy", "In Walked Bud", "52nd Street Theme", and "Light Blue". CD also features a solo version of "Pannonica" from 1984, and a reading of "All God's Chillun Got Rhythm" from 1978 – recorded live in Montreux with Sam Jones on bass and Leroy Williams on drums. CD

A full length album that brings together 2 different earlier 10" sessions by Manne – groundbreaking work in a freer mode than most of what was going on in LA during the mid 50s! Side one features material from The Three – a 10" session that featured Manne on drums, Shorty Rogers on trumpet, and Jimmy Giuffre on tenor, clarinet, and baritone. The trio work their way – bass and piano-less – through tunes that include "Pas De Trois", "Flip", "Abstract No 1", and "Steeplechase". Side two features material from The Two – an even freer session, with Manne on drums and Russ Freeman on piano – no other accompaniment, and sounding quite revolutionary for the time! Titles include "Billie's Bounce", "The Sound Effects Manne", "Everything Happens To Me", and "Speak Easy". CD

A very cool take on the music of Thelonious Monk – a set that's far more abstract and offbeat than any of Monk's original recordings – but in a way that the composer might have appreciated, had he lived until the 21st Century! Mast clearly really loves these tunes, and knows them inside and out – and he splits them down the middle and feels free to take them in any way he wants – sometimes angular jazz, sometimes, much more freewheeling and electronic – but almost always with some acoustic instrumentation at play. Musicians include Gavin Templeton on alto and baritone, Jonah Levine on trombone, and Dan Rosenboom on trumpet – and Tim Conley handles guitar, bass, keyboards, and rhythms. Titles include "Evidence", "Epistrophy", "Well You Needn't", "Blue Monk", "Oska T", "Nutty", "Straight No Chaser", and "Friday The 13th". CD

One of Jackie McLean's beautiful recordings for Steeplechase from the early 70's – a real return to basics that helped form the groundwork for his soulful playing of later years! This set features two long compositions by Billy Gault, the magical young pianist who graced some of McLean's best work – and although Billy's not actually playing on this session, his presence is more than felt on the excellent tunes "Mode For Jay Mac" and "Ghetto Lullaby". The set was recorded live, with backing by a European group that includes (then expat) Kenny Drew on piano, Niels Henning Orsted Pedersen on bass, and Alex Riel on drums – and other tracks include "Callin", "Jack's Tune", and "Where Is Love". CD

A great meeting of two generations of jazz – and one that really blows the top off some of Dexter Gordon's other European sessions of the time! The setting here is definitely one that's more a Gordon-based date – long tracks with rhythm backing from a trio with Kenny Drew on piano, Niels Henning Orsted Pedersen on bass, and Alex Riel on drums. But unlike some of the other long-blown Gordon-heavy albums for the stretch, the presence of Jackie McLean really brings in a new sort of fire – the kind of soaring, soulful energy he brought to his own records in these immediate post-Blue Note years – almost a Coltrane influence, and a sense of spiritualism that really comes through on some of his solo moments – even in this relatively straight setting. Titles include "Half Nelson", "I Can't Get Started", "Another Hair-Do", and "Dexter Digs In". CD

Classic 60s work from Thelonious Monk – featuring his incredible quartet with Charlie Rouse on tenor, certainly Monk's best-ever musical soulmate! The album features some newer versions of older tunes, and a few written just for the album – but the source of the material is not important, as the Monk/Rouse treatment always transforms whatever is handled, and recreates the work as an an angular sculpture of modernist beauty. Other players include Larry Gales on bass and Ben Riley on drums – and titles include "Locomotive", "Blue Sea", "We See", "Japanese Folk Song", and "Straight No Chaser". Features previously unreleased versions of "Green Chimneys" and "I Didn't Know About You". CD

A famous European set from Thelonious Monk – recorded early in the 60s with his famous quartet that included Charlie Rouse on tenor! Even at this point before the Columbia sides, Rouse is already amazing – really stretching out in these modern, angular lines that are quite different than any of his recordings a few years before – a perfect match for the inventive piano of Monk, as would later be demonstrated on a host of classic studio recordings. There's an open, spontaneous energy between the pair in this live setting, though – almost like they're working out new ideas, but doing so perfectly – with the bass of John Ore and drums of Frankie Dunlop to round things out. Titles include "Bemsha Swing", "Crepuscule With Nellie", "San Francisco Holiday", "Body & Soul", "Straight No Chaser", and "Epistrophy". CD

Includes the tracks "Well, You Needn't", "Misterioso", "Bemsha Swing", "'Round Midnight", "Epistrophy", "Ruby, My Dear", "Crepuscule With Nellie", "Blue Monk", and "Straight, No Chaser". CD

An unlikely pair, but a great one here – and the record's one of those few magical moments where bringing together unusual partners actually works! Mulligan's cool hardly seems a match for Monk's angular modernism, but together the players seem to strike a middle ground that resonates with the strength of both – a sound that cuts a bit more edge on Gerry's normally smooth baritone, and which still lets Monk's keys flow into wonderful twists and turns. Rhythm is by the great bassist Wilbur Ware and drummer Shadow Wilson – and titles include the Monk classics "Straight No Chaser", "Rhythm A Ning", "Round Midnight", and "I Mean You" – plus a version of Mulligan's "Decidedly". CD features two bonus takes of "I Mean You" – plus one alternate each of "Decidedly" and "Straight No Chaser". CD

With 78 tracks on 5 CDs including "Little Joe From Chicago", "Sweet Lorraine", "Rhythm Sam", "Besame Mucho", "Boogie A La King", "The Man I Love", "Wild Goose Chase", "Mexico Joe", and "A Pile O'Cole". CD

Just George Colligan on piano and Jesper Bodilsen on bass! Titles include the originals "Twins" and "Scandinavian Rhythm", plus "Wrap Your Troubles In Dreams", "So Tender", "Nobody Else But Me", and "Consolation". CD

Junior Cook on tenor sax, Mickey Tucker on piano Wayne Dockery on bass, and Leroy Williams on drums. Tracks include "Cedar's Blues", "I Should Have Known", "This Is The Place To Be", "Cup Bearer", and "Over The Rainbow". CD

A brilliant sextet session from Stanley Cowell – one of his few larger group sessions of the time, done during a period when he was recording almost exclusively in trio format! The album features a well-crafted sextet with lots of nice edges – bringing together Eddie Henderson on trumpet, Rick Margitza on tenor, Dick Griffin on trombone, Peter Washington on bass, and Billy Hart on drums – all to shade and color Cowell's rich piano work and fresh compositions for the set. There's a deeply soulful feel to the record that's quite wonderful – a new exploration of Cowell's inspirations from the 70s, taken to some very tight territory here – but never with any sense of slickness at all. Titles include the excellent "Bright Passion", plus "Departure", "Setup", "Varions", "Bip Bip Bam" and "Sendai Sendoff". CD

Cro-Magnon returns with a killer batch of cosmic grooves and electro funk jams – full of spacey synths, thunderous drums & percussion, and fusiony jazz funk – glorious grooves from one of the leading combos in the cosmic realm of the Japanese scene! The core Cro Magnon crew is just the 3 piece of percussionist Shigekazu Otake, guitar/bass/programming guru Tusuyoshi Kusuga and Takumi Kaneko on the keys– but they get a little help in the studio by a couple of horns from the mighty Soil & Pimp Sessions crew – sax by Motoharu and trumpet by Tabu Zombie, on the excellent "Chase After The Shadow" track – plus some addional percussion and vocals for the intro & outro. If Cro-Magnon's debut was a bit heavier with straight up keyboard heavy fusion funk, Great Triangle shoots further into the cosmos – full of ultra hypnotic jams with an insistent groove! Titles include "Riding The Storm", "ECLIPSE", "Keep Me Satisfied", "La Fusion", "SPARKLING", "Sign Of Fire", Take Me Higher" and "New Horizon". CD

One of the few 70s albums as a leader from pianist Albert Dailey – a player who was making great magic with Stan Getz at the time, but who also seems to have a completely different voice on his own! Dailey's got a way of being open, joyous, and very creative – but always in a style that's never too familiar, nor ever aping the modes of some of his more famous 70s contemporaries – which creates a very fresh sound to the whole record, that kind of special, stand-alone spirit that maybe graces some of the best of the Japanese-recorded trio dates of the 70s, and a rare few American sessions too. Accompaniment is superb – Buster Williams on bass and Billy Hart on drums – both players with more than enough imagination to both keep up with Dailey's creativity, and augment him in just the right way – on titles that include "Body & Soul", "Yesterdays", "Lover Man", "Music That Makes Me Dance", and "That Old Feeling". CD

With Billy Hart on drums. CD

The full story of Miles Davis at the Newport Jazz Festival in 1958 – an album that expands out the original half-album release of this material from the set that Miles shared with Thelonious Monk! The first half of the record features the three tracks that appeared on Miles & Monk At Newport – and the remaining material joins it here for the first time in one date – making for a well-rounded package that finally tells the whole tale of the group's performance on July 3, 1958! The lineup here is right in the Kind Of Blue mode – Cannonball Adderley on alto, John Coltrane on tenor, Bill Evans on piano, Paul Chambers on bass, and Jimmy Cobb on drums – but the overall sound is a bit looser and freer, much more turned towards the solo spotlight focus that often characterized Miles Davis' live work. Coltrane's solos alone are worth the price of admission – nicely sharp-edged, with a sound that he didn't always show on his own albums until the 60s – and titles include "Ah Leu Cha", "Straight No Chaser", "Fran Dance", "Two Bass Hit", "Bye Bye Blackbird", and "The Theme". CD

Guitarist Pierre Dorge has been giving us amazing music for many years – but he sounds especially amazing here in the company of a really great group – the excellent Kirk Knuffke on cornet, plus Stephen Riley on tenor, Conrad Herwig on trombone, Jay Anderson on bass, and Adam Nussbaum on drums – all very dynamic players who seem to make Dorge sound even fresher than ever! There's an especially strong sense of phrasing on the record – no surprise, especially with Knuffke in the mix – and while Pierre can sometimes use his instrument in more abstract ways, that quality is really balanced by all the other members of the lineup. Anderson's bass is great – nicely pointed at the best moments, and a great contrast to Dorge's strings – and all tracks are originals, with titles that include "Lullaby For Sun Ra", "Mingus' Birthday Party", "Afrikaa Mbizo Dyani", "Sim Sim Ba", and "Alligator In Paradise". CD

Not a new version of Pierre Dorge's famous group, but a 30th anniversary celebration that shows the guitarist and ensemble to be as creative as ever! As with earlier efforts, the approach here is a very offbeat extrapolation of modern large ensemble modes from the generations of Ellington and Kenton – taken to very weird territory with Dorge's guitar in the lead, and with some very inventive use of familiar horns, plus keyboards and percussion. Tracks are mostly short, and titles include "Xongly", "Sankt Jakob", "Fur Kontrabas", "Balada Para El Trompetista", "Ratatata Lang Ra", and "Blessing Bones". CD

Pierre Dorge on guitar, Gunnar Halle on trumpet, Morten Carlsen on taragot & tenor saxophone, Jakob Mygind on tenor & soprano saxophones, Anders Banke on tenor saophone, clarinet & bass clarinet, Kenneth Agerholm on trombone, Irene Becker on piano & synthesizer, Thommy Andersson on bass, Martin Andersen on drums & cajon & Ayi Solomon on congas & percussion. CD

There's a really great pairing going on here – the always-amazing sound of Pierre Dorge's New Jungle Orchestra, and the tenor of Stephen Riley – a guest who's brought into the fold after a successful European tour with the group, and a perfect match for their ever-inventive sound! Dorge's guitar sets the scene and colors the music right from the start – with plenty of the blue elements you might expect in the title – and Riley seems as if he's challenging all the other group members to do their best with the strength of his own tenor – a lineup that includes Tobias Wiklund on trumpet, Kennet Agerlhom on trombone, Jakob Mygind on tenor and soprano, Anders Banke on tenor and bass clarinet, and Irene Becker on piano and keyboards. The tracks are mostly originals by Dorge, plus a few by Becker – and they've got that angular, shape-heavy vibe that marks the work of the NJO – on titles that include "Dancing In The Jungle", "Aburu Kuwa", "Mingus' Birthday Party", "Witchdoctor In The Burial Mound", "Fulani", and "Blue Afriki". CD