A great blend of older jazz styles and the sweet 70s funk of Robin Kenyatta – served up with a hip sort of sparkle overall! There's a few familiar jazz modes in here that definitely live up to the spirit of the title – but most of the record is more open, laidback, and somewhat ... read moreCD
Cyrille Aimee & Friends —
Live At Smalls ... CD Smalls Live, 2010. New Copy ...
$8.9914.99
Singer Cyrille Aimee gets help from some great "friends" here – a tight quintet with Roy Hargrove on trumpet, Joel Frahm on tenor, and Spike Wilner on piano – really helping set up her vocals with a solid instrumental footing! Aimee's got a slight Billie Holiday quality to ... (Vocalists, Jazz)read moreCD
A fantastic group of well-matched players – one we've heard together often on albums for other labels, but who really find a new sort of energy here in the Smalls Live series! Trumpeter Jim Rotondi's joined here by equal frontmen Eric Alexander on tenor, David Hazeltine on piano and Fender ... read moreCD
The tenor sound of Seamus Blake is always a treat – and he really stretches out here on a set of long, live tracks with a great group! Most titles go way past the ten minute mark, and the always-inventive Blake manages to make plenty happen with all that time – working deftly in a ... read moreCD
Neal Smith Quintet —
Live At Smalls ... CD Smalls Live, 2009. New Copy ...
$8.9914.99
Drummer Neal Smith has a hell of a group here – Eric Alexander on tenor, Steve Wilson on alto, Mark Whitfield on guitar, and Mulgrew Miller on piano – a lineup that he more than lives up to with his tight leadership, and great choice of material for the date! The tunes include two ... read moreCD
David Kikoski Trio —
Live At Smalls ... CD Smalls Live, 2008. New Copy ...
$8.9914.99
Lots of long tracks played with plenty of fire – just the kind of record to remind us again that David Kikoski's a hell of a pianist, especially in a setting like this! The album follows the format of the other excellent live dates on the Smalls label – lots of room for the artist to ... read moreCD
A previously-unissued performance from Joe McPhee – recorded in the early 80s, and a searing ensemble take on Ornette Coleman's "Lonely Woman"! The arrangements are beautiful – as the track retains some of the haunting melody of the original composition, yet has a loose, ... read moreCD
Kandinsky Effect —
Pax 6 ... CD Ropeadope, 2017. New Copy ...
$8.9912.98
A jazz trio, but one with a very unique vibe – given that, in addition to familiar saxes, bass, and drums – the group also uses a fair bit of effects as well! The drums are often echoey and thunderous, the basslines nicely bumping, and the tones of the saxophone can go off in all sorts ... read moreCD
Ollie Howell —
Self-Identity ... CD Sky Academy/Ropeadope, 2017. New Copy ...
$8.9913.99
A beautiful voyage of self-discovery from drummer Ollie Howell – but a set that also clearly gets its strength his collaboration with the other members of the session too! Ollie adds in a bit of electronics with his drums, but the core energy here mostly comes from the acoustic exchange ... read moreCD
A totally fresh post-millennium take on the electric jazz sound of the late 70s & early 80s from Atlanta-based quartet 4 Korners – inspired by the funky fusion era, but really putting it in a timeless light of their own! We've always loved the sound that provides inspiration here – ... read moreCD
Easily one of the coolest, hippest, and most soulful records that Billy Preston ever cut – very different both from his famous work on A&M, and his early sides for Apple and Vee Jay – and done with a raw groove that makes each cut feel like some rare funky 45! The style here is a ... (Soul, Jazz)read moreCD
David Axelrod/Cannonball Adderley —
Messiah ... CD RCA/Real Gone, 1971. New Copy Gatefold ...
$5.9913.98
David Axelrod takes on Handel's Messiah – and the result is an amazingly complex set of music – very similar to his earlier albums on Capitol Records, and his Warner work with the Electric Prunes! If you love the Axe, you'll find plenty to love here – spare, dark orchestrations, ... read moreCD
George Braith —
Musart ... CD Prestige/Dusty Groove, 1967. New Copy ...
$5.9913.98
One of our favorite-ever albums on Prestige Records from the 60s – and a set that's a fair bit different than most of the other work on the label! The set's an unusual outing for saxophonist George Braith – cut after his famous albums for Blue Note, and in a mode that's quite different ... read moreCD
A pair of killers from keyboardist Gene Harris – both recorded for Blue Note, and back to back on a single CD! First up is Gene Harris/The 3 Sounds – the last Three Sounds album for Blue Note – and the funkiest too – thanks to lots more electrification than usual, and some ... read moreCD
Two albums in one package – both of them featuring excellent work from groundbreaking British reedman Bob Downes! Mixed Bag is nothing like you might expect from its title – because while the set does feature a variety of different sessions from Downes, it's also got a very unified ... read moreCD
Bob Downes Open Music —
Five Trios ... CD Bob Downes Music/Openian (Germany), 1970s. New Copy ...
$8.99
Amazing work from British reedman Bob Downes – a host of previously-unissued 70s recordings, all of them trio numbers with a wonderfully stripped-down feel! Downes is possibly best known for his larger group experiments of the Open Music years – but here, he comes across as much more ... read moreCD
Nat Simkins with Buddy Tate & Houston Person —
Just Friends ... CD Muse, 1990. New Copy ...
$4.99
Old school tenors galore – a triple-horn date that has younger player Nat Simkins working with older legends Buddy Tate and Houston Person! Person sounds a bit bolder than usual here, possibly because of the bite in Tate's horn – and Simkins does a great job in the company of these two ... read moreCD
We never tire of the saxophone work of Sonny Criss – and this mid 70s gem is a perfect example of his brilliance! Sonny's sound on alto here is completely his own – raspily, soulful style that's really unique – and which draws strongly from Criss' rich life experience, including ... read moreCD
A cool take on the music of Charles Mingus – handled here by his old drummer Dannie Richmond, in a great small combo mode that's quite different than usual! The tunes are all pretty darn dynamic, but have a really different flavor – some very right drums from Richmond, who almost seems ... read moreCD
Jack DeJohnette's best known as a drummer, but he's also played a bit of piano too – and this album focuses nicely on that side of his talents, in case you couldn't guess from the title! The trio lineup is a great one – with Eddie Gomez on bass and Freddie Waits on drums – both ... read moreCD
Barry Miles —
Sky Train ... CD Columbia/Wounded Bird, 1977. New Copy ...
$3.9911.98
Barry Miles is riding the Sky Train – and at a pretty fast clip too, given the jamming energy of this record! The album's one of Miles' most full-on fusion sets – but it's also one of his most soulful as well, thanks to strong use of horns on most numbers – with players like ... read moreCD
A tight trumpeter with a really fresh sound – strong, soulful, and equally well-suited to funky tunes and more freewheeling numbers! The set's brimming over with soul – and the range of musicians changes with each different tune – although Fender Rhodes features on most numbers, ... read moreCD
A sublime bit of Miles Davis electric funk – one of the best-remembered electric sets from the 70s, and for good reason too! The tracks are long, the jams are hard, and the whole thing has a lot more funk than some of the noise you'd get on other Miles albums of the time – thanks to ... read moreCD
Like Dave Brubeck's legendary Time Out set? Try this one – a great record that takes off from the concept of the first, but which goes in some very fresh new directions – using the same great group with Paul Desmond on alto, Eugene Wright on bass, and Joe Morello on drums! Dave's ... read moreCD
A mindblower from flute man Jeremy Steig – his only album ever for Blue Note – and quite possibly his best! There's a stripped-down feel here that beats even the rich soul of Steig's sets for Solid State – a brilliant pairing of Jeremy's choppy lines on flute with the soulful ... read moreCD
A wonderful French session from alto genius Lee Konitz – and a record that we might well rank up there with Lee's best 50s material on Atlantic and Storyville! The session's got the open, tone-centric feel of those gems – with Lee's crisp alto right out front, already finding countless ... read moreCD
The music of Ennio Morricone – completely recast into a jazz setting by drummer Arthur Vint and his associates! The project's maybe a bit like the famous John Zorn reworking of Ennio Morricone music from decades ago – but the approach here is more unified, and has as much ear for the ... read moreCD
David Weiss & Point Of Departure —
Wake Up Call ... CD Ropeadope, 2017. New Copy ...
$8.9913.99
Trumpeter David Weiss never fails to give us amazing music, no matter what the setting – and here, he's working with his Point Of Departure group – an ultra-hip lineup that features Myron Waldon and JD Allen on tenor sax, each taking on different parts of the record – plus guitar, ... read moreCD
Red Rodney & Ira Sullivan —
Sprint ... CD Elektra/Wounded Bird, 1983. New Copy ...
$3.9911.98
A tremendous live performance from the group co-led by Red Rodney and Ira Sullivan – two players who really bring a lot to each other's music! There's a mode here that really blows us away – a careful, sensitive approach that allows each horn player to hit their most lyrical moments ... read moreCD
Charles Owens —
As One ... CD Ropeadope, 2017. New Copy ...
$8.9913.99
The first Charles Owens album to have an electric component in the instrumentation – but at a level that's still got the same great sense of understatement that made us like the tenorist's previous records so much! The set features Charles blowing alongside electric bass, Wurlitzer piano, ... read moreCD
Michael White —
X Factor ... CD Elektra/Wounded Bird, 1978. New Copy ...
$3.9911.98
An overlooked soulful gem from Michael White – one of his smoother albums, but with a tight sound that really makes the whole thing great! The set was produced by George Duke, and it's got the same feel as some of Duke's best work of the time – soaring, soulful, with a style that ... read moreCD
Unity through diversity from (U)nity! At the core, players Michael Valeanu, Axel Tosca, Chris Smith, Max Cudworth and Amaury Acosta bring a strong backdrop of Afro-Cuban inspired percussion, exciting early fusion-flavored electric guitar, sax and spacey keys, and with a huge group of contributors ... read moreCD
Freddie Hubbard —
Baddest Hubbard ... CD CTI/Wounded Bird, 1972. New Copy ...
$3.9912.98
Baddest Hubbard or goodest Hubbard – whatever you prefer, the set's a great sampling of Freddie's incredible work for the CTI label during the early 70s! The album only features 4 tracks, but for CTI, Freddie was cutting them so long, that's the only way you could go – as his ... read moreCD
A Caribbean experiment, but one that's more funky than anything else – served up here in a swirling blend of guitar, bass, keyboards, and horns – all with lots of very groovy touches around the edges! The front cover might make these guys look like a jamband, or one of those less-than-g ... (Deep Funk, Jazz)read moreCD
Mostly Other People Do The Killing —
Shamokin ... CD Hot Cup, 2007. New Copy ...
$6.9914.99
A killer second album from Mostly Other People Do The Killing – drawing from an even deeper well of both jazz traditions and ragged, anything goes charm than on their excellent debut – an enthralling blend of credible chops with unpredictable playfulness! Never shy about soloing, ... read moreCD
Mostly Other People Do The Killing —
This Is Our Moosic ... CD Hot Cup, 2008. New Copy ...
$6.9914.99
A really exciting avant jazz set from Mostly Other People Do The Killing – a killer quartet who manage to roll through a wide variety of styles that show a true depth of understanding of some of the greatest jazz of the past half century – and have a heck of great time playing it! ... read moreCD
Vinnie Sperrazza —
Juxtaposition ... CD Posi tone, 2017. New Copy ...
$7.9915.99
Vinnie Sperrazza's the drummer in the group – and he leaves plenty of room in his sound for the great work of Bruce Barth on piano and Chris Speed on tenor sax – both of whom have a lot to do with the shape of the record! At times, Vinnie's drumming is quite subtle – almost as if ... read moreCD
Stunning Hammond work from Brian Charette – a player who's fast becoming one of our favorite contemporary organists in jazz – given his way of both acting completely fluid on the keys, while still able to lay down a chunky rhythm at the bottom! The mix is one that few folks could ever ... read moreCD
An incredible pairing of two of the most important modern jazz talents of the 50s – trumpeter Clifford Brown and altoist Gigi Gryce – whose sense of structure on these tunes really gives Brownie a whole new space in which to shine! Gryce really seems to get at the mixture of sweetness ... read moreCD
Herb Alpert & Hugh Masekela —
Main Event Live ... CD A&M/Herb Alpert, 1978. New Copy Gatefold ...
$7.9911.98
Masterful live set by Herb Alpert and Hugh Masekela – recorded at The Roxy in LA in 1978! Both their studio record from the same year and this massive live recording work incredibly well – as they're both geniuses at blending distinctive global influences – but they really cook in ... read moreCD
Wonderful solo piano from Abdullah Ibrahim – recorded in an open-ended, freewheeling style that's mighty nice – and quite a change from most of his other albums of the time! Even without a bassist or drummer, Ibrahim maintains a strongly rhythmic pulse to his music – an amazing ... read moreCD
Jared Sims has a great way of making a baritone sax open up and groove – sliding in here alongside Hammond and guitar that give the whole record a late 60s soul jazz vibe – and the sort of setting you're not usually likely to hear with baritone! Sims takes his time, and uses the horn ... read moreCD
A great one from saxophonist Chris Greene – a player who just seems to get better and better with each new release – maturing to a point where his strong status on the Chicago scene should be overtaken by a wider national reputation! This set may well have Greene finding a voice that ... read moreCD
The world of Charlie Byrd is a pretty darn groovy one – as you'll hear on this sweet collection of 60s sides, pulled together for a double-length Columbia compilation! Byrd first started out as one of the early American guitarists to recognize the possibilities of bossa nova – mixing ... read moreCD
Chico Freeman —
Tangents ... CD Elektra/Wounded Bird, 1984. New Copy ...
$3.9911.98
Surprisingly dark music for a mid 80s major label jazz album – especially one that features guest work from Bobby McFerrin! Chico Freeman's definitely keeping true to his adventurous roots here – blowing some sharply angular lines on a range of reeds, and exploring both older jazz ... read moreCD
A very unusual album from Max Roach – and one that continues his great 50s trend of seeking out some of the freshest players in jazz! The set's a rare trio outing for Max – and it features some incredible piano work by a musician named Hasaan – a player we only know from this set ... read moreCD
Adam Ben Ezra —
Pin Drop ... CD Little Big Beat/Ropeadope, 2017. New Copy ...
$4.9914.99
Pretty wonderful sounds from Adam Ben Ezra – an artist who works here completely solo, but with a flowing range of sounds that's completely hypnotizing overall! Ezra's a bassist at heart, but also plays piano and clarinet on the record – and also vocalizes a bit, and adds in some foot ... read moreCD
Excellent early work by Leon Haywood – recorded way back in the mid 60s, when he was knocking around the LA indie scene with a very soulful groove! Back in those years, Leon wasn't singing as much, just playing piano and organ in a mixture of soul and jazz instrumental modes – all hard- ... (Soul, Jazz)read moreCD
Wendy Gondeln —
Projections ... CD Corbett vs. Dempsey, 2017. New Copy Gatefold ...
$7.99
The first-ever CD collection of work by Wendy Gondeln – a musician who's issued various 7" and vinyl releases, and created amazing sounds for art installations – working in a very weird mix of electronics, roughly-played violin, and other elements! The electronic elements are ... read moreCD
Ben Wendel's a tenorist with a mighty rich sound – a way of spacing out his notes, so that every moment matters – coming across with an attack that's maybe more subtle than some, but every bit as powerful! A big part of this album's charm comes from the rhythmic core – the work ... read moreCD
Maeve Gilchrist & Viktor Krauss —
Vignette ... CD Adventure, 2017. New Copy ...
$8.9915.99
Very cool sounds from Maeve Gilchrist – a jazz harpist by trade, and one of the few artists in a legacy that also includes the great Dorothy Ashby! Maeve's work here is maybe a bit more contemporary – set to some of her own keyboard lines, and a mixture of bass, guitar, cello, and ... read moreCD
Sweet sweet Hammond from the great Brian Charette – a player who's easily becoming one of our favorite organists in contemporary jazz! Brian's got this way of spinning out a long line with effortless ease – a soaring approach to his instrument that takes us back to a space between ... read moreCD
A set that's great in two different ways – first in that it revives the "four brothers" sound of four saxophonists at once, first forged in the Woody Herman band of the late 40s – and secondly, because the album's a further demonstration of the magical pairing of Al Cohn and ... read moreCD
Fantastic work from Mary Lou Williams – the American pianist who first rose to fame in the 40s, but who's working here on the London scene – on two sessions originally issued as 10" LPs back in the 50s, plus bonus tracks too! Both records feature Williams in a quartet, with the ... read moreCD
Two Pharoah Sanders classics – back to back on a single CD! Tauhid is one of the first moments of genius from a young Pharoah Sanders – a set that builds on the energy of John Coltrane's Love Supreme generation – but takes it in a much more expansive direction! The album's got a ... read moreCD
A tight little duo who don't seem to need anyone else – given the tremendous power of their work on drums and Hammond B-3! These guys are funky jazz at the core, but also open to lots more ideas too – and really blow us away with their work here, which seems to include no other ... (Deep Funk, Jazz)read moreCD
Trio 3 (Oliver Lake/Reggie Workman/Andrew Cyrille) —
Wha's Nine ... CD Marge (France), 2007. New Copy ...
$8.9916.99
A great trio, and a really great live performance – one that's right up there with work you'd expect from the players involved a few decades before – showing all of them to still be very much at the height of their creative powers! Oliver Lake's alto sax is especially great here – ... read moreCD
That's dedicated to Lars, actually – the great Lars Gullin, who made some tremendous music on the Swedish scene in the 50s and 60s – and was a hell of a great composer, too! The set features all Gullin compositions, save one tribute number – recorded by an octet that has swinging ... read moreCD
Berndt Egerbladh —
Schizo ... CD Swedisk/Dragon (Sweden), 1964. New Copy ...
$5.9916.99
Really wonderful early work from pianist Berndt Egerbladh – a player who's gotten a lot more global attention in recent years, but who sounds especially great on this rare date from the 60s! The album's a masterful showcase for Berndt's warm, fluid approach on the keys of the piano – a ... read moreCD
Phil France —
Swimmer ... CD Gondwana (UK), 2017. New Copy ...
$7.99
Beautiful keyboard lines from Phil France – served up here in a mode that's partly jazz, maybe partly more laidback – and often in the kind of slow-building style we love on other records on the Gondwana label! There's almost a meditative vibe to the music – somewhere in the ... read moreCD
Brandee Younger —
Wax & Wane ... CD Brandee Younger, 2016. New Copy ...
$8.99
A hip harpist for the 21st Century – one of the few players on the instrument who've been able to carry on the soulful legacy of Dorothy Ashby in the 60s – while still also giving the instrument a new sort of placement in jazz! Brandee Younger's working here with production help from ... read moreCD
Quite an obscure later session from Sonny Stitt – one recorded for the tiny Finite label, which we mostly know from more "out" recordings! The set features Sonny blowing straight and inside – but always with that clean, confident tone that followed nicely in the Roost years ... read moreCD
Philip Lassiter —
Chill Mode ... CD Philip Lassiter, 2017. New Copy ...
$7.99
A sweetly soulful set from trumpeter Philip Lassiter – a jazz musician at heart, but one who's blowing here with a strong range of contemporary R&B elements! Phil's trumpet is often processed a bit – with a cool, compressed sound that fits right in with the well-produced mellow ... (Neo Soul, Jazz)read moreCD
Rare French material by Zoot Sims – recorded in Paris in 1956, and with a more stretched-out feel than some of his other Parisian sides of the 50s! The group's a hip quintet with Henri Renaud on piano, Jon Eardley on trumpet, and Charles Saudrais on drums – and the set swings with an ... read moreCD
Tremendous work from the great Josh Berman – one of the most important musicians on the Chicago underground scene of the past decade or so – not just for his work on cornet, but also for his warmly collaborative and supportive spirit! That quality really comes through here – on a ... read moreCD
A key recording from one of our favorite tenor talents of the 80s – the amazing Ralph Moore, a player who really carries on a strong legacy from the 60s work of Hank Mobley! Like Mobley, Moore's got a very rich-voiced sound that's steeped in tradition, but which is also never afraid to take ... read moreCD
Jean Michel Davis —
Vibraphone Jazz ... CD Fremeaux & Associates (France), 2017. New Copy ...
$7.9918.99
The title definitely gets it right – but also only gives you part of the picture here – as Jean Michel Davis not only plays vibes, but also a bit of marimba – and the album's split up into three different sections that each offer a slightly different take on the instrumentation! ... read moreCD
A set of mostly solo piano from Cuban legend Frank Emilio – a set of older danzas and danzones, played in a spare, but highly rhythmic style! Emilio's got more than enough command of the keyboard to hold up strongly on his own – and although a few tracks feature additional guiro from ... (Latin, Jazz)read moreCD
Early 80s genius from trumpeter Arturo Sandoval – 2 albums that were never issued in the US at the time! First up is the sublime Turi from 1981 – an album that mixes smooth spacey fusiony production with Sandoval's soulful trumpet style – and the result is a sweet grooving set ... (Latin, Jazz)read moreCD
Daniel Zamir —
Alive ... CD Koren (Israel), 2015. New Copy ...
$7.9918.99
Fantastic work from Israeli saxophonist Daniel Zamir – one of the most popular jazz musicians in his home nation, and an incredibly spiritual force who just seems to get more and more powerful every time he hits the recording studio! This live performance is wonderful – with Zamir ... read moreCD
Robert Glasper Experiment —
ArtScience ... CD Blue Note, 2016. New Copy ...
$8.9914.98
Tremendous material from Robert Glasper – a set that takes us back to the brilliance of his first few releases for Blue Note – while also encompassing all the changes he's gone through in recent years too! There's definitely some vocals on the record – but this time around, ... read moreCD
Various —
Vital Organs ... CD Groovy Sounds, 1960s/1970s. New Copy ...
$1.9913.99
One of the cookingest funky compilations we've ever carried – a monster batch of 10 funky Hammond organ tracks, all pretty darn obscure! The set was done under the supervision of New York Funk 45 DJ Mr Fine Wine – and features a stunning batch of tunes that are all plenty darn hard to ... (Funky Compilations, Jazz)read moreCD
Prince Lasha Ensemble —
Insight ... CD Columbia/Dusty Groove, 1966. New Copy ...
$7.9912.98
Tremendous work from the legendary Prince Lasha – a rare UK-only date from 1966 – and one that has the reedman working away from more familiar contemporaries like Sonny Simmons and Eric Dolphy! The approach on this session is very unique – as Lasha includes harp with the ... read moreCD
(On the Dusty Groove label.)
Stan Hunter & Sonny Fortune —
Trip On The Strip ... CD Prestige/Dusty Groove, 1966. New Copy ...
$5.9912.98
A rare gem on 60s Prestige Records – and one of the earliest records to feature the incredible talents of reedman Sonny Fortune! Sonny burst into fame in the 70s as a spiritual player with a really freewheeling groove – but this late 60s date has Fortune in the company of Hammond ... read moreCD
A genius album from Swedish baritone giant Lars Gullin – and a set that's from a period that was much less documented on our side of the Atlantic! Gullin was one of the undisputed masters of the instrument, and his American recordings on Mercury and Prestige stand as proof to his talent ... read moreCD
A wealth of jazz in many styles -- bop, hardbop, soul jazz, spiritual, rare groove, modal, improvised music, funk, free jazz, fusion, avant garde, and trad!
Robin Kenyatta —
Stompin' At The Savoy ... CD 
