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A very tight early session by the great organist Larry Young! The album's quite different than Young's later Blue Note work -- more in-the-pocket soul jazz, but filled with the expansive sensibility that would later have him take off for the heavens. The biggest example of this tendency is the ...

Lester Young at his early best -- blowing clean and lean, on a set of tracks that were originally issued as singles, but which are packaged here as an early 10" LP under the Collates title, with a hip David Stone Martin cover! Titles include "Foggy Day", "Deed I Do", " ...

Key recordings from Sonny's breakout year of 1954 -- with the modernist Rollins tenor is at its early peak here -- fresh, bold, and highly creative -- yet equally concerned with the role of the ensemble as well. And with players like Kenny Dorham, Elmo Hope, Percy Heath and Art Blakey helping ...

Key recordings from Sonny's breakout year of 1954 -- with the modernist Rollins tenor is at its early peak here -- fresh, bold, and highly creative -- yet equally concerned with the role of the ensemble as well. This side's also an important early meeting of two bop greats, a seminal exchange of ...

Walkin, Talkin, and Wailin -- one of Bennie Green's most soulful sessions, and a monster groover that shows that Blue Note could cook with the best when they wanted to! Bennie's working here with a great little group -- featuring core rhythms by the Gildo Mahones trio, plus some great frontline ...

Part of a live performance of solo piano recorded at Antioch in 1973 -- issued elsewhere in other formats, but presented here in an early pressing on Cecil's Unit Core label. The cover yields little information except for the listing of Second Set of Indent which seems to have been called "My ...

An excellent lost classic from Detroit soul jazz powerhouse Phil Ranelin! Trombonist Ranelin was one of the key figures in the city's Tribe Records scene -- and this album is one of the greatest that the label ever issued. The set features Ranelin on trombone, Marcus Belgrave on trumpet, Kenny ...

An incredible album from the man that changed the way the world hears the Hammond! This album was Larry Young's first for Blue Note -- and it's a mindblowing batch of tunes that push the organ into realms that had never been heard of in jazz. Young's got a real penchant for a modal groove -- no ...

A genius bit of work from the legendary Weldon Irvine -- a mightily righteous effort that more than lives up to its heady title and cover! After turning out 2 great albums on his own indie Nodlew label, Weldon really steps into greatness with this set -- using the bigger budget of his deal with ...

One of the coolest, baddest, funkiest albums Cannonball Adderley ever recorded -- a massive suite of tunes based on the signs of the Zodiac, produced to perfection by David Axelrod, and featuring some hip recitations from the mighty Rick Holmes! The double-length set is completely compelling all ...

One of the grooviest records ever -- a sublime blend of African percussion, soulful orchestrations, and Dorothy Ashby's amazing electric harp! By the time of this landmark album, Dorothy had been knocking around the jazz world for a number of years, but it wasn't until she hooked up with Richard ...

Landmark early work from the legendary Weldon Irvine -- recorded way back when he was first coming to fame with Nina Simone, but done as an obscure indie effort for his tiny Nodlew label! The set's a wicked batch of keyboard-heavy funk -- at a level that's similar to some of the best titles on ...

A sock-solid sextet session from the mighty Lee Morgan -- recorded for Blue Note at the height of his mid 60s powers, and carried off in a beautiful blend of soul jazz and some slight modern touches! The group here is top-shelf all the way through -- Jackie McLean on alto, Hank Mobley on tenor, ...

One of the all-time classic Blue Note albums -- from the hip looking cover, right down to the excellent hardbop in the grooves! Pianist Sonny Clark leads an incredible lineup that includes Art Farmer on trumpet, Jackie McLean on alto, Paul Chambers on bass, and Philly Joe Jones on drums -- all ...

One of the best-remembered Sun Ra albums from the 70s -- a really cool little session that features Ra playing the unusual "rocksichord" all the way through! The instrument's a very weird one -- kind of like a messed-up electric piano, with lots of cool broken notes and a weird fuzzed-out ...

A super-hip batch of soul jazz tracks by Albert Toodie Heath of the Heath Brothers -- working here on a rare session as a leader, with a sound that's right up there with the Heath Brothers' early work for Strata East!! The lineup is incredible -- as Heath is joined by players that include Don ...

One of the greatest Blue Note albums of all time! Hank Mobley leads an incredibly soulful group that includes Lee Morgan, Curtis Fuller, McCoy Tyner, and Billy Higgins -- and the group plays this amazing mix of soul jazz and modal grooves that is hardly matched by anything else in the Blue Note ...

One of the rarest non-Saturn LPs by Sun Ra -- an obscure set recorded for the Philly Jazz label, the imprint who also released Ra's classic Lanquidity album! This set has the group returning to a more traditional Arkestra groove -- recording in Chicago with a mix of acoustic instruments and ...

One of the most legendary albums of jazz funk ever recorded! Rufus Harley was a saxophone player who also picked up the bagpipes for a few excellent 60s albums for Atlantic Records -- and although those records are great, this 1972 independent album is a real mind blower! By the time of this set, ...

Classic Herbie from the early years, and a great mix of soul jazz and modernism! The record include a nice groovy "hit", Herbie's "Blind Man, Blind Man" -- an obvious follow-up to "Watermelon Man", but still a standout track with a lot of imagination, and a fierce ...

A wicked bit of funky jazz from Harold Alexander -- and one of the hardest to find albums on the legendary Flying Dutchman label! The set's got a great sound that's freer than your average jazz funk album of the time -- with some nice traces of post-Coltrane spiritualism, mixed in alongside some ...

An amazing record -- quite possibly one of the greatest jazz albums of all time, and a session that has Charles Mingus stepping boldly forward in a whole new direction! The album shakes loose the sometimes too-academic modern tones of Mingus albums from the previous year or two -- and unleashes ...

A tremendous set from Jackie McLean -- perfectly poised between his hardbop and modern years, with a set of compositions that are as great as the performances! The lineup on this one's a bit unusual -- with Walter Bishop on piano, Blue Mitchell on trumpet, Paul Chambers on bass, and Art Taylor on ...

Essential stuff! This is one of Ornette Coleman's greatest albums -- and it was recorded during a period when he just couldn't miss! The group features Don Cherry on pocket trumpet, Charlie Haden on bass, and Billy Higgins on drums -- working here with a lively dancing sound on the kit, one that ...

Monster funk from Hammond hero Reuben Wilson -- an album of hard-burning, bad-walking tunes that are a fair bit different than most of his other work! Although Wilson recorded some pretty traditional organ jazz for the Blue Note and Groove Merchant labels, this album has him working with his " ...

Oh how we love this album -- and we think it may well be the best album ever from Charles Mingus! The set was recorded in that magical Mingus year of 1957, but oddly not released until 1962 -- missing some of the initial frenzy of his discovery during the Atlantic and Columbia years. But the ...

One of the best-ever Hank Mobley albums on Blue Note -- and a killer batch of soulful hardbop that was cut right around the same time as the classic No Room For Squares LP. In fact, the album contains work from 2 different sessions that filtered over to the Squares album -- one that featured ...

An incredible album -- one of our favorite Blue Notes ever! Despite the fact that the album's a spare quartet session, the record is one of Wayne Shorter's richest -- and features his gutsy young tenor soloing insanely with a rhythmically intense combo that includes Herbie Hancock, Reggie Workman, ...

The title gets it right -- as the album's easily the closest thing to free jazz that Ornette Coleman ever recorded -- an album-length improvisation played by a "double quartet" that's overflowing with classic players! The style here is a fair bit like John Coltrane's Ascension album for ...

Incredible stuff from the jazz underground of Newark! This is one of the rarest albums ever recorded by jazz organist Larry Young -- cut for the tiny Perception label during the early 70s, and featuring some of the cream of the New Jersey jazz underground. The album's got playing that bridges a ...

One of Art Blakey's first true moments of genius! This transitional version of the Jazz Messengers included two parts -- Lee Morgan and Bobby Timmons -- of the holy Morgan/Shorter/Timmons trilogy, and it's also got the added bonus of Benny Golson on tenor, who was at the height of his power at ...

An incredible record -- the kind of album that only Blue Note could put out, and an instant classic that will sound wonderful forever! The album's truly one of the great ones -- one of those Blue Notes that still makes you stop and pause when you hear it, even though you've heard it a million ...

A landmark in modern jazz -- from the stark stares of the band on the cover, to the starkly haunting music in the grooves! Ornette, Don Cherry, Charlie Haden, and Ed Blackwell make severe statements about the future of modern music in tracks like "Humpty Dumpty", "Beauty Is a Rare ...

John Coltrane's classic -- and only -- recording as a leader for Blue Note! The album's no throwaway date, though -- as it stands strongly with both Coltrane's other label work of the time, and with the best of the late 50s Blue Note scene -- a time when the label was really cooking at full ...

A stunner! You'll probably never find this rare first Dennis Coffey album in the original, so you owe it to yourself to snatch up this funky funky reissue of stripped down guitar breakbeat jams! The record has Coffey playing his trademark fuzzy guitar, along with his early group that included the ...

An amazing album -- and one of the underground soul jazz classics of the 70s! The album's also one of the few ever cut as a leader by drummer Roy Brooks -- one of the hippest players on the Detroit scene back in the day, working here with a great lineup that includes Woody Shaw, George Coleman, ...

A lost electric groover from Brother Jack McDuff -- sweet keyboards instead of his usual Hammond, but still plenty darn great! The record's got a slinky groove that's almost more CTI than Chess Records -- with full arrangements by Billy Jones, who also plays guitar on the record -- alongside ...

Gary Burton hits a sweet electric funky sound here -- a great groove that really makes the album stand out from most of his other work! The support Burton gets is a big reason for the greatness of the date -- as he's working in a group that includes Eric Gale on guitar, Richard Tee on piano and ...

A killer album of soul jazz piano instrumentals -- produced by James Brown! The Dee Felice Trio were a groovy combo from Cincinnati, and James Brown took a shine to them at some point in the late 60s. They backed James on one record, but their big moment was this album -- which had James ...

The butt-squeezing cover should be enough to let you know that this is one funky album -- but if that doesn't get the message across, the grooves certainly do! O'Donel Levy plays tight and funky guitar, and also sings a bit on the set -- working with a tight combo that features Charles Covington ...

Massively mellow funk -- played by a cool Chicago trio that's heavy on the electric keys! The group's led by the team of keyboardist Gregory Bibb and guitarist James Norris -- with the former working through a set of tasty keys that include Fender Rhodes, clavinet, and farfisa! Rhythms are lean, ...

A strangely beautiful little record -- the standout career effort from tenorist Jim Pepper -- a Native American player who draws heavily here on his heritage! Although Pepper plays sax on most numbers, he also sings a fair bit too -- in kind of a raspy style that alternates from slightly soulful ...

A great little set of grooves by organist Lonnie Smith -- and one of his best albums ever! The key to Drives is that it finds Lonnie backed by a totally sympathetic group of musicians -- including Ronnie Cuber on baritone, Dave Hubbard on tenor, and the great Joe Dukes on drums -- whomping away on ...

One of our top 5 favorite Blue Note records of all time -- a bold and powerful session from trumpeter Lee Morgan, but one that sat in the vaults for 15 years before release! The session was recorded around the same time as Morgan's hit The Sidewinder (which eclipsed its release at the time) -- but ...

A jazz classic if there ever was one -- and the best-selling album ever by Lee Morgan, thanks to the use of the title track in a car commercial! Sure, you've probably heard "The Sidewinder" enough that you think you know the album already -- but the rest of the tunes really open up past ...

A nice bit of funky organ work from Jimmy McGriff! The record's recorded with a slightly larger than usual band -- but that's a good thing here, as players like Horace Ott, Cliff Davis, Richard Evans, and Everett Barksdale provide a strong bouncy groove, which Jimmy uses to solo over the top with ...

One of the last Gary Bartz albums for Prestige -- and a really unique session with a different feel than some of his earlier work! Gary's still got plenty of angular funk in his sound here -- thanks to some edgey keyboards from Hubert Eaves -- but he's also tightened things up a bit without ...

A brilliant album -- and real turning point for Herbie Hancock! After first coming onto the scene as the soul jazz hero between Blue Note funky classics like "Watermelon Man" or "Blind Man, Blind Man" -- Herbie emerges here as a concerned modernist with a strand of spirituality ...

A classic of spiritual jazz! The album is one of the few rare pairings of Sonny Simmons and Prince Lasha from the 60s -- and it's arguably the greatest album they ever cut! The set was recorded for the Contemporary label in LA, but it's far far different than the cool jazz that was the label's ...

A brilliant album that would forever change the way the organ was used in jazz! The set's the greatest contribution ever from organist Larry Young -- a lean and modal session recorded with help from a young quartet that includes Woody Shaw, Joe Henderson, and Elvin Jones -- all leaping and loping ...