Great work from this legendary tenorist! Although Foster's often lumped into the cliche camp for his long years with Basie, he shines like a rough diamond on sessions like these, proving that he's got a tone and a style that he keeps tightly reserved for small group sessions. On this rare Blue Note session from the 10" days, he plays with the great Gildo Mahones on piano – on tracks like "Little Red", "Blues For Benny", and "How I Spent The Night". The record's a hard wailing groover, and it's a treasure for fans of that early Blue Note sound! LP, Vinyl record album

Very cool small group work from the Ellington camp – a handful of rare sides by each artist as a leader – including trumpeter Rex Stewart, pianist Billy Taylor, clarinetist Barney Bigard, and trombonist Juan Tizol. LP, Vinyl record album

During the early 60s, the team of Eddie Lockjaw Davis and Johnny Griffin was one of the most exciting unions in jazz. The two tenorists came from two different camps – Davis, the gutsy R&B soloist, Griffin, the hardbop powerhouse with a flair for the modern. Their pairing was an incredible stroke of genius and luck, and the albums they waxed – like this one – feature an approach hardly ever matched again by a two-tenor band. One of the best features of the group was their dedication to opening up the works of Monk into a freer blowing style – and they do so nicely on this album's two long takes of "Epistrophy" and "Well, You Needn't", both recorded live at the legendary Minton's Playhouse in Harlem (site of some of the band's best recordings.) Junior Mance heads up the soulful rhythm section that also includes Larry Gales and Ben Riley. LP, Vinyl record album

Great early stuff from Paul Winter – a player who's certainly done some terrible stuff over the years, but who really sounded great in his younger days! Winter was a hip young player coming out of Northwestern U in Chicago, and he had a well-educated, slightly-modern approach to jazz that was still supported by a lot of straight soulful playing. Here, Winter's working with a great group – his sextet that included Jay Cameron on baritone, Dick Whitsell on trumpet, Chuck Israels on bass, and Ben Riley on drums. The set list includes some very hip numbers like "The Sherrif" by Gil Melle, "All Members" by Jimmy Heath, and "With Malice Towards None", "Cupbearers", and "Ally" written by Tom McIntosh. LP, Vinyl record album

A smoking twin-tenor session for MPS – one that reunites the mighty talents of Johnny Griffin and Eddie Lockjaw Davis! The album was done as an offshoot of both players' work for the Clarke Boland Big Band at the time – and the set was not only produced by CBBB impresario Gigi Campi, but also features a core rhythm trio from that ensemble – Francy Boland on piano, Jimmy Woode on bass, and Kenny Clarke on drums! Tracks are nice and long, and have a sound that really shows the evolution of both players since their famous recordings of the early 60s – tones that are even more modern and edgey at points, served up with a fire that hasn't died at all – and set loose on rhythms that move past the usual grooves you might have expected from their American sessions together. Titles include "Tin Tin Deo", "Jim Dawg", "Gigi", "When We Were One", and "Again N Again". LP, Vinyl record album

Magical work from Lonnie Liston Smith – one of those players who actually seemed to get better the more he worked on major labels! The album's a really wonderful blend of mellow jazz and soulfully spiritual themes – at one level inspired by Roy Ayers-styled crossover material, but at another still very much in the righteous camp of some of Lonnie's earlier records. A few tracks have vocals, but others step along in a sweet and smooth instrumental mode that mixes up acoustic piano and keyboards very nicely! Titles include "In The Park", "Speak About It", "Love Is The Answer", "On The Real Side", "Give Peace A Chance", and "The Enchantress". LP, Vinyl record album

The Dave Brubeck Quartet goes to college – a pretty good place for the combo, considering how many fans they had on campus in the 50s! The sound here is never too academic for the setting, though – just the same sort of Brubeck groove first forged in the small clubs in San Francisco – played beautifully by an incarnation of the quartet that includes Paul Desmond on alto sax, Bob Bates on bass, and Joe Dodge on drums. The long, bluesy "Balcony Rock" is a real gem, with some standout work by Desmond that reminds us that he could be a great improvisor in an extended format – and other tracks include "Out Of Nowhere, "Le Souk", "The Song Is You", "Don't Worry Bout Me", and "Take The A Train". LP, Vinyl record album

A rare early side of Miles Davis – recorded in postwar Paris in the company of Tadd Dameron! The group's a quintet – with Miles on trumpet and Tadd on piano – and although the overall vibe certainly shows a lot of bop generation spirit, there's also a strong indication of the deeper ideas that were already becoming a part of both artists' music. The group features some excellent work on tenor from James Moody – plus bass from Barney Spieler and drums from Kenny Clarke. Tunes include a fair bit of familiar numbers from the Charlie Parker camp – and titles include "Rifftide", "Good Bait", "Don't Blame Me", "Lady Bird", "Wah Hoo", "Allen's Alley", "Embraceable You", "Ornithology" and "All The Things You Are". LP, Vinyl record album

An overlooked fusion set from the mighty Muse Records – an early 80s date recorded under the leadership of keyboardist Mitch Farber, and featuring work from Randy Brecker on trumpet, Gary Campbell on tenor and soprano, and Steve Khan on guitar! Given the players, there's almost a major label fusion feel to the set, although the overall sound is more open and laidback – not slick at all, and a nice reminder that in the farther corners of jazz in the early 80s, fusion didn't always have to be focused on commercial hits. Rhythm is from Mark Egan on bass, Danny Gottlieb on drums, and Sammy Figuera on percussion – and titles include "Monuments", "Sky Dance", "The Chooser", "Lonely Promises", and "Starclimber". CD also features the bonus track "Theme From Travels" – recorded in 1990. LP, Vinyl record album

One of two albums that Lee Konitz cut with the trio of Marial Solal in 1968 – originally issued only very briefly in Europe on the small Campi label, and some of Konitz' most groundbreaking work of the 60s! Solal had been transforming the sound of jazz piano for most of the 60s by this point – working in a modernist mode that pushed far past most other American players of the time. His trio with Henry Texier and Daniel Humair is honed to perfection by this point – and the addition of Konitz's icy, angular horn really gives the set a compelling finish that you don't even find on Solal's own albums of the 60s. Titles include "Impressive Rome", "Anthropology", "Roman Blues", and "Stella By Starlight". LP, Vinyl record album

Sweet 80s fusion from saxophonist Ernie Watts – one of his key albums as a leader in that decade, after countless years as a session player on other folks' records! The album's mostly jazz, but there's also a soul component as well – thanks to vocals from Phil Perry on some of the album's best tracks, used in a way that settles in nicely alongside Watts' work on alto and tenor sax. And despite the date of the album, there's a nice sense of warmth throughout – instrumentation that's never too forced or commercial – handled by other fusion stalwarts like Don Grusin on keyboards, Lee Ritenour on guitar, and Jimmy Johnson on bass. Titles include "Rock Camping", "One Love", "Red Dress", "Looking Glass", "Where The Spirit Lives", and "Music Prayer For Peace". LP, Vinyl record album

One of the few albums ever made as a leader by tenorist Don Wilkerson – a hell of a talent who was usually working in the background of the Ray Charles band, but got this chance to step out as a leader for Blue Note – in a session that's also one of the rarest on the label! Brother Don plays lean and mean, in a nice tight group that features Grant Green on guitar, Sonny Clark on piano, and Billy Higgins on drums – all of whom give Wilkerson a freer setting than he ever got working with Ray Charles – a groove that's right in the best soul jazz pocket of early 60s Blue Note! The groove has a freer edge than on some of Wilkerson's few other albums, with touches that almost reach a Latin sound at times – an influence most likely from Green's exotic work on guitar, and Higgins' wonderfully free rhythms. Titles include "Pigeon Peas", "Camp Meetin", "Jeanie Weanie", and "Dem Tamborines". LP, Vinyl record album

Way more than just an album with Gene Ammons as a leader – and instead, a set with a great array of supporting players, and a very loose, open-ended jam session style that lets everyone get in plenty of solo space! Ammons' tenor is tremendous, but he's also a great collaborator here, too – working with Idrees Suliman on trumpet, Pepper Adams on baritone, Mal Waldron on piano, Art Taylor on drums, Doug Watkins on bass, and Ray Barretto on conga – in a mode that's maybe slightly tighter than some of the blowing sessions Prestige was doing at the time, but which still has that key longform creative energy that made the hardbop generation so great. Titles include "Blue Gene", "Scamperin", "Blue Greens n Beans", and "Hip Tip" – and all tracks are long, with plenty of focus on solos! LP, Vinyl record album

A classic album of vocal tracks from Chet Baker – one that elevates the sound of his earlier small group work with some added backings on some tracks – all at a level that continues the new level of sophistication that Baker brought to jazz on his first few recordings! The mid 50s set is overflowing with key performances from Chet, both on vocals and trumpet – and the core group features wonderful work on piano from Russ Freeman, and this great use of flute by Bud Shank – which seems to underscore some of the moodier currents in Baker's music. Some tracks feature larger arrangements that really elevate the proceedings – handled by Johnny Mandel, Marty Paich, and Frank Campo – and the album's classic Chet all the way through – cool but fragile – summed up in the set's perfect take on the stone classic "Lets Get Lost" – plus titles that include "Just Friends", "Grey December", "I Remember You", "Long Ago & Far Away", "Someone To Watch Over Me", "I Wish I Knew", and "Daybreak". LP, Vinyl record album

A surprisingly nice little album from Brubeck – one that's mostly comprised of old-fashioned type tunes, but which all take on a hip new light in the hands of his classic quartet! As usual, Paul Desmond's one of the main assets of the set – working with Brubeck to forge a slightly off-beat and swinging approach that brings plenty of nice moments to tunes like "Gone With The Wind", "Ol Man River", "Shortnin Bread", "Camptown Races", and "The Lonesome Road". LP, Vinyl record album

A fantastic bit of space age funk – and maybe one of the greatest moments ever from Philly Soul maestro Dexter Wansel! The album goes way beyond any of Wansel's other work – and blends his warm soulful styles with some of the more keyboard-oriented funk that was coming out of the Herbie Hancock camp during the mid 70s – a vibe that's every bit as electric and spacey as you'd guess from the cover! Some cuts have a bit more of a soul focus, but others have loads of jazzy keyboards from Dexter – driven on by some great drums at points too. Titles include Wansel's legendary version of "Theme From the Planets" with the much sampled breakbeat at the beginning – plus the funky "Life On Mars", and the tracks "One Million Miles From The Ground", "You Can Be What You Wanna Be", "Prophet Named KG", "Rings Of Saturn", and "Stargazer". LP, Vinyl record album

A great 2-fer – with 2 different classics from Dave Brubeck! First up is Gone With The Wind – a surprisingly nice little album from Brubeck – one that's mostly comprised of old-fashioned type tunes, but which all take on a hip new light in the hands of his classic quartet! As usual, Paul Desmond's one of the main assets of the set – working with Brubeck to forge a slightly off-beat and swinging approach that brings plenty of nice moments to tunes like "Gone With The Wind", "Ol Man River", "Shortnin Bread", "Camptown Races", and "The Lonesome Road". Time Out is easily the crowning moment of genius for the legendary Dave Brubeck Quartet – the moment when all things came together magically, and the group somehow elevated themselves to a whole new level in jazz! At the time of the set, Brubeck, Paul Desmond, and the rest had already been making plenty of waves with their creative yet swinging approaches to modern jazz – heard on a number of successful albums for Fantasy and Columbia in the 50s. But with this record, they really knocked one out of the park – blending Desmond's cool alto, Brubeck's unusual piano phrasing, Joe Morello's melodic drum work, and Eugene Wright's pulsating bass into a waltzing, almost modal groove that crossed over to many camps at the time! The classics "Take Five" and "Blue Rondo Ala Turk" were both hits on their own – but all titles are great, and include "Kathy's Waltz", "Strange Medow Lark", "Everybody's Jumpin", and "Pick Up Sticks". LP, Vinyl record album

A massive early Prestige set from tenorist Willis Jackson – and just the kind of record that set him firmly in the soul jazz camp for the 60s! By the time of the set, Jackson had already won plenty of fame for his R&B-tinged work – but here, he stretches out a bit more, and really gets creative on his solos – working with a very hip group that includes Jack McDuff on organ and Wild Bill Jennings on guitar – both players making a similar shift in their music at the time. The tracks are lively, recorded with a bold, loud tone, and have lots of those great open-mouthed tones from Jackson – quite possibly a good reason for his "Gator" nickname! Tracks include "Blue Gator", "East Breeze", "The Gator Jumps", and "Try A Little Tenderness". LP, Vinyl record album

The Dave Brubeck Quartet goes to college – a pretty good place for the combo, considering how many fans they had on campus in the 50s! The sound here is never too academic for the setting, though – just the same sort of Brubeck groove first forged in the small clubs in San Francisco – played beautifully by an incarnation of the quartet that includes Paul Desmond on alto sax, Bob Bates on bass, and Joe Dodge on drums. The long, bluesy "Balcony Rock" is a real gem, with some standout work by Desmond that reminds us that he could be a great improvisor in an extended format – and other tracks include "Out Of Nowhere, "Le Souk", "The Song Is You", "Don't Worry Bout Me", and "Take The A Train". LP, Vinyl record album

Rare sides by the Clarke Boland ensemble – recorded by Gigi Campi in 1967 in Prague, and licensed to Muse in the mid 70s. The group's at their finest here – with some searing soloists like Johnny Griffin, Tony Coe, Sahib Shihab, and Ronnie Scott cutting it hard hard hard throughout. Side one features some CBBB standards – like "Milkshake" and "New Box" – but side 2 features the "All Blues Suite", written by Boland, and a great little trio of tracks that includes "Open Door", "Dia Blues", and "Total Blues". Forget the cliches that "blues" makes you think of, because this is hard wailing modern jazz – with a rich amount of emotion, power, and creativity! LP, Vinyl record album