Twin-tenor magic from South African saxophonists Winston Mankunku Ngozi and Mike Makhalemele – working together here with backing from a sweet electric combo that features Trevor Rabin on guitar! The groove is open and fluid – the band just vamping and opening things up, to let Ngozi and Makhalemele spin out these long solos that have plenty to say – which is maybe why both artists are listed on the cover as "voices" in the credits! The vibe is different than Ngozi's early records, and much more in the style of Makhalemele's music – and the set features the side-long track "Rainy Day", plus "Snowfall" and "Togetherness" – all great mellow jazz funk numbers! LP, Vinyl record album

Rare material that was originally recorded in 1972 by organist Larry Young – some of his most outside material ever, and done with a bunch of young musicians who wail on all of these weird electronic instruments! The set's way wilder even than any of Young's albums that were issued at the time – including the classics with his group Fuel, or even his Lawrence of Newark album – and the album's got loads of wild, very noisy synth sounds and crazy percussion! The tunes come across as sheets and sheets of white noise – with Larry's organ going all over the place in freewheeling solos and groovy rhythm lines. Young plays Hammond, and other instrumentation includes Joe Gallivan on synth, percussion, drums, and steel guitar; Nicholas on guitar synth, ring modulator, hi-tension wires, wind, rain, and thunder (!); and Jimmy Molneiri on drums and percussion. Titles include "Love Cry", "Ancient Place"," Angels Wing", "Peace", and "Great Medicine Dance". LP, Vinyl record album

The brilliant return of Rolf and Joachim Kuhn to Impulse Records – and a set that's every bit as their landmark album for the label in the 60s! As with that classic – Impressions Of New York – there's a sound here that's let free right from the start – bold stepping forward by both players, with piano and clarinet interwoven together in lines that are free, yet still have an inherent sort of pulse – guided subtly by the work of John Patitucci on bass and Brian Blade on drums! What's truly amazing is that the Kuhns sound as vibrant, urgent, and potent as ever – as if the passage of decades hasn't dimmed them a bit, and that they're still breaking down barriers of jazz with a record like this. Titles include "Girona", "Lion's Speech", "Mosquitas", "A Little Time Machine", "Light Year", and "Researching Has No Limits". LP, Vinyl record album

A great new showcase for the legendary keyboard work of Doug Carn – and a set that's very different both from his famous albums for the Black Jazz label, and some of his organ jazz records in more recent years too! The set's maybe got a more pronounced influence from Adrian Younge and Ali Shaheed Muhammad than some of the others in this series – as Carn's Hammond B3 and Fender Rhodes still get center stage, but the grooves are very much in the heavy funk style of Younge's legacy of recent recordings – sharp drums, strong basslines, and horns that are sometimes jazzy, sometimes seemingly touched by currents of Ethiopian work from the past. All tracks are originals, and titles include "Processions", "Dimensions", "Windfall", "Down Deep", "Freedom At Sunset", "Nunca Um Malandro", and "Lion's Walk". (Deep Funk, Jazz) LP, Vinyl record album

The second trip into the studio for Cedar Walton's mighty Eastern Rebellion ensemble – and every bit as great as the first! This time around, the lineup's a bit different – with Bob Berg in on tenor, and Curtis Fuller expanding the group on trombone – but the groove is still the same – wonderfully in the pocket soul jazz, swinging with a gentle and fluid glide that's really tremendous. The work ranks up there with the best of Walton's recordings ever – and the tunes are all originals with a rich imagination for tone, soul, and color – and plenty of space for strong solo work. Titles include "The Maestro", "Sunday Suite", "Ojos De Rojo", and "Fantasy In D". LP, Vinyl record album

Funky jazz nuggets with a mighty nice lineup – one that features plenty of vibes next to the keyboards, all resonating strongly over tight rhythms on acoustic bass and drums! There's almost a sunshiney vibe to the music at times that fits the image on the cover – not polished or slick, but this sort of shimmering quality that really lets you bathe in the warmth of the music – especially as the grooves are often laidback, yet still plenty darn funky! The drums are great, and the way they kick in with the vibes is wonderful – on titles that include "Estinto Omicida", "Hydromiel 2022", "Orso Pacifico", "Bourguignon", and "Saint Emilion". (Deep Funk, Jazz) LP, Vinyl record album

A very cool album from the Italian branch of RCA Records – and a set that features a host of artists from other nations who briefly stopped over in Italy, and recorded some of these gems for the label! There's a core energy to the set, which balances contributions from a few key artists, mostly from America – and for jazz fans alone, the set is noteworthy for two tracks that have trumpeter Chet Baker blowing with orchestrations from a young Ennio Morricone – "So Che Ti Perdero" and "Il Mio Domani"! And there's plenty of other great bits too – singer Helen Merrill working with maestro Armando Trovajoli on "Nessuno Al Mondo" and "Estate" – plus Perez Prado on "Guaglione" and "Arrivederci Roma", Antonio Prieto on "Papa" and "Baciami", and even some very cool cuts from young poppers Paul Anka and Neil Sedaka. LP, Vinyl record album

The front cover might look a bit dramatic, but the set's got a warm and wonderful feel – lean, soulful instrumentation from a Finnish trio that features Aleksi Heinola on drums, Temu Akerblom on bass, and Marku Holkko on reeds and flute – coming together with this gentle groove that's got a subtle glow all the way through! The music of Holkko is sometimes in a familiar mode, with sax or flute lines snaking through over the grooves – sometimes a bit more laidback and textural – and there's clearly some other instrumentation on the record that warms up the sound from time to time, including a bit of uncredited keyboards. Titles include "Blue Sitar", "Joyous Water", "Hunting Heads", "Waves Of Sound", "Friday Gig", "Momentum Finale", "Amboseli", and "Little Dandelion". LP, Vinyl record album

A beautiful lost slice of British jazz, recorded during the crucial period before some of the scene's players went too far off the deep end! John Surman partners here with composer/leader John Warren, for a large group recording that sounds similar to some of the best early Mike Westbrook recordings. The album's comprised of a suite of 5 tracks, all played by a large group in a style that shows the best British modernist tradition of the 60's. The ensemble playing is dark and moody – but always tight at all moments. The group's soloists – like Surman, Mike Osborne, Barre Phillips, Kenny Wheeler, and others – soar out of the arrangements in tightly constructed, brilliantly realized solos that stand as some of their best work. Titles include "With Terry's Help", "We'll Make It", "The Dandelion", "The Picture Tree", and the "Tales Of The Algonquin" suite. LP, Vinyl record album

That's Band X, not Brand X – and they're a damn funky jazz combo from the 70s – one whose work is filled with plenty of sharp changes and wonderfully chromatic moments! Rhythms are at the core of the set – lots of choppy drum parts that are mighty nice, bumped along by sweet compressed basslines too – and other instrumentation includes lots of vibes, reeds, and a bit of keyboards from time to time – used in really creative ways! If we had to come up with a comparison, we might say these guys sound a bit like some of the best work by Steve Grossman and the PM Records crew in the 70s – but they've definitely got their own vibe too. Titles include "Home", "Black Hole", "Rip Van Winkle", "Red Cloud", "Trullion Alastor", "Afterthought", and "Picking Mushrooms With Rabbit". LP, Vinyl record album

Sun Ra quartet material from the late 70s – his great Italian studio recordings from Voice Studio in Rome –rare material originally released on the New Steps and Other Voices, Other Blues LPs on the Horo label that's been hard sought over the years! The group features John Gilmore on percussion and tenor, Michael Ray on trumpet, Luqman Ali on drums, and Ra on keyboards. It's got a number of tracks that are relatively straight – at least for Ra – and which are played with a wonderful edge that makes them instantly compelling, sounding almost like obscure indie soul jazz sides from the east coast underground of the mid 70s. The feel on most numbers is very different than Ra's usual work, and the record sparkles with a genius that makes us wish it was easier to find the Horo work! Includes the sublime vocal tune "When There Is No Sun", plus the original tracks "The Horo", "Moon People", "Rome At Twilight", and "Friend & Friendship" – plus a very nice cover of "My Favorite Things", Along The Tiber", "Rebellion", "The Mystery Of Being", "One Day In Rome", and "Springtime & Summer Idyll". LP, Vinyl record album