The long-overdue release of an unissued Blue Note session from 1959 – one that features a version of the Jazz Messengers right before Wayne Shorter joined the group, with the mighty Hank Mobley on the quintet lineup on tenor! The Messengers in 1959 and 1960 were really at the top of their game – and here feature the fantastic newcomers, Lee Morgan on trumpet and Bobby Timmons on piano, both of whom were helping drummer Blakey to form a new, evolved version of the sound he'd been crafting with other lineups in previous years – aided here by the rock-solid Jymie Merritt on bass! As with some of the other unissued Blue Note dates of this type, the whole thing is fantastic – not an unformed, half-baked session – but the kind of material that could stand right next to Blakey classics of the time, like The Big Beat or Moanin. Titles include "Quick Trick", "M&M", "Just Coolin", "Jimerick", "Close Your Eyes", and "Hipsippy Blues". LP, Vinyl record album

A really great collection of jazzy groovers – one that effortlessly combines older material and newer recordings, all with a great ear that never tires in its pursuit of the groove! The blend of old and new is a bit like some of the collections we used to love from Gilles Peterson back in the last century – but Paul Murphy definitely has his own style and way of choosing a tune, and like Peterson, he has a great way of setting a new sort of fire with jazz – one that will burn strongly for generations to come! Titles include "Yatra-Ta" by Terje Terasmaa, "African Mailman" by Rhythmagic Orchestra, "Smells Like Teen Spirit" by Blue Mode, "Foot In The Door" by Onward International, "Zombie" by Art Ensemble Of Chicago, "Emnete (live)" by Imperial Tiger Orchestra, "4 Beat Cha Cha Cha" by Lucas Van Merwijk & His Cubop City Big Band, "Tribute To Mulatu" by Patchworks, "Koumba Fri Fri" by Mamelon, "Sorrow Tears & Blood" by Shola Adisa Farrar & Florian Pellissier Quartet, and "Mambo De La Pinta" by Art Pepper. (Funky Compilations, Jazz) LP, Vinyl record album

Very groovy work from these two Brit sound library greats – loads of funky tunes, and great keyboards too – all served up in a massively funky record that was never issued to the public at large! Had this set hit the real record racks in 1974, it might well have challenged some of the greatest material from George Duke or Herbie Hancock – as the tunes are mostly funky, and feature lots of wonderful work on a wide variety of keyboards – sometimes getting all cool and wigged-out, even when the grooves are upbeat – a bit like Herbie in his Sextant years! Titles include "Hit Me Hit Me", "Big Black Cadillac", "Collision Course", "The Executive", "Hovercraft", "Mermaid", "Auto Glide", "Where The Action Is", and "Getting It Together". (Sound Library, Jazz) LP, Vinyl record album

One of the few albums ever cut by Les DeMerle, one of the hippest drummers of his time – made legendary thanks to legions of samplers and beatheads in the 90s! The album is one of Les' best records – a tight batch of funky big band tracks, with lots of nice grooves, and a very hip lineup that includes Frank Foster, Joe Beck, Chris Woods, Arnie Lawrence, and Charles Sullivan – all coming together in some great tunes that have very unusual rhythms, and a great format that puts the drums in line with the hip playing in the reed section! The album includes Les' famous version of "A Day in the Life", which begins with a monster funky intro – plus the cuts "Fusion – Pro & Con", "Underground", "Deflections 1, 2, 3, & 4", and "Aquarius". LP, Vinyl record album

A real rising star on Schema Records – composer Alessandro Magnanini, best known for his hit with Mario Biondi – stepping out here in a beautiful album of his own original music! There's a fresh feel here that really opens up a new chapter at Schema – still a bit of their old jazz/bossa vibe, but with a more expansive quality too – one that embraces bits of Bacharach, snaps of 60s soundtracks, and gentler jazzier passages too – all put together by a group that features key talents from the contemporary Italian scene – like vocalists Rosalia De Souza and Stefania Rava, trumpeter Fabrizio Bosso, and other instrumentalists on vibes, piano, tenor, and trombone. Most instrumentation is live – scored nicely, but not enough so that it loses the spontaneity of jazz – and other vocals are by Jenny B and Liam McKahey. The work is really beautiful – still mostly upbeat, but hardly just the stuff of dancefloor grooving too – key proof that Maganini's a big talent to watch in years to come. Titles include "Livin My Life", "Open Up Your Eyes", "Stay Into My Life", "But Not For You", "Greetings From Here", "Something Fine", "Suddenly", "Blind Date Blues", and "So Long Goodbye". (New Grooves, Jazz) LP, Vinyl record album

A legendary meeting of talents from two different sides of the underground – avant composer John Cage and jazz visionary Sun Ra – both performing together at a special one-night event that took place at Coney Island in 1987! The set doesn't really feature Ra jamming with Cage (as if anyone could "jam" with John Cage!) – and instead, both players were on the stage at the same time, but would each step aside to let the other do their thing – Cage would vocalize in these amazing passages that are right up there with the most beautiful vocal work he ever did, alongside some "silent" performances too – and Ra would play keyboard solos that have a beautifully offbeat electric vibe! The pair do come together at one point – but mostly in a "silent" duet, although one title does feature Cage's weird vocals with Ra's keyboard. And big bonus – this package also presents the full complete concert – with material that appears here for the first time ever – including a beautiful vocals from June Tyson over Ra's keyboards on "Enlightenment", other Ra numbers that include "This Is The Space Age", "The Living Parable", "The Damned Air", and "We Hold This Myth To Be Potential". LP, Vinyl record album

One of the coolest albums ever cut by Japanese wood flute player Hozan Yamamoto – a set that has him working with very groovy backings from the Sharps & Flats ensemble – who almost give the whole thing an MPS label blending of funky jazz and world music sounds! The approach is wonderful – a bit more upbeat and swinging than some of Yamamoto's other records, as Nobuo Hara leads the larger group with a totally cool sound – which makes the flute lines a sweet exotic touch over straightforward, soul-drenched, big band jazz! We might even link the sound to some of Dorothy Ashby's grooviest albums for Chess/Cadet – although with flute, instead of harp – and titles include "Komoro Mago-Uta", "Soma Bon-Uta", "Kokirio Bushi", "Sado Okesa", "Tairyo Utaikomi", and "Kuroda-Bushi". LP, Vinyl record album