One of the most striking, most unusual settings for the voice of Leon Thomas we've ever heard – a rare 1970 performance with the Brit group Nucleus – done right at the same time that Thomas was recording his classics with Pharoah Sanders! The initial approach is similar, and the songs are familiar – but the overall execution is quite different given the change in instrumentation – as the Nucleus lineup includes Ian Carr on trumpet, Chris Spedding on guitar, Karl Jenkins on piano and oboe, and Brian Smith on tenor, saxophone, and flute! Tracks are all nice and long, and rhythms begin with a slightly similar mode to Thomas' other records – but the use of Spedding's guitar is especially striking, as is Carr's trumpet – which has a very different quality than any American player that Thomas ever worked with. The sax and oboe lines are especially nice – often exotic, but in more of a European spiritual way than an American one – and throughout it all, Thomas really holds the course with some wonderful vocals – on long tracks that include "One", "Chains Of Love", "The Journey", "Echoes", "Damn Nam", and "The Creator Has A Master Plan". (Jazz, Vocalists) LP, Vinyl record album

Ella Fitzgerald recorded one of her most successful albums in Berlin – a smoking live set that gave the world her take on "Mack The Knife" – and this set marks a fantastic second chapter to that record – unreleased tapes that appear here for the first time ever! The concert's from a different year than the previous record, but done in a very similar mode – Ella in front of a very enthusiastic concert crowd, running through upbeat, swinging takes on a variety of classics – all at a moment when both her vocal skills and onstage personality were at an all-time high! The group is just a trio – Paul Smith on piano, Wilfred Middlebrooks on bass, and Stan Levey on drums – but they swing things as hard as an orchestra, and merge with the vocals in a really wonderful way. Titles include a great version of "My Kind Of Boy" – with Ella switching around a lot of the lyrics – plus "C'Est Magnifique", "Good Morning Heartache", "Hallelujah I Love Him So", "Summertime", "Mr Paganini", "Mack The Knife", "Angel Eyes", "Cheek To Cheek", "Clap Hands Here Comes Charlie", "Taking A Chance On Me", and "Jersey Bounce". LP, Vinyl record album

The magnificent voice of Gregory Porter is a wonderful fit for the Holiday season – full of feeling, and coming across with a sense of honest, human emotion that really makes the music come alive! Gregory's definitely in more of the soul side of his spectrum than the jazz of his roots – but he delivers things with a mature, sophisticated vibe that's balanced nicely between the two at most moments – with a sense of care that makes most of the album resonate with Christmas classics from artists like Donny Hathaway, Bill Withers, and Luther! Titles include the great "Everything's Not Lost", plus "Purple Snowflakes", "Christmas Waltz", "Someday At Christmas", "Christmas Wish", "Do You Hear What I Hear", and "Heart For Christmas". (Holiday Music, Vocalists) LP, Vinyl record album