Early genius from drummer Norman Connors – a sensational bit of righteous soul jazz – right up there with the best work on Strata East and Black Jazz from the time! The sound here is full, soulful, and spiritual – as Connors heads up a large ensemble that includes luminaries like Herbie Hancock, Eddie Henderson, Gary Bartz, Carlos Garnett, Buster Williams, and Dee Dee Bridgewater – all working together in a formation that's free spirited, yet tightly unified – often at a level that's even stronger than their own recordings! The album mixes a few longer tracks with shorter numbers – in a mode that reminds us a lot of Garnett's classic Black Love album – and titles include "Song For Rosa", "Black Lightnin", "Dark Of Light", "Butterfly Dreams", and "Laughter". LP, Vinyl record album

Groovy compilation that brings together tracks from Cal's hard-to-find albums for the Skye label from the late 60s – all of which are excellent, and all of which we can't find that easily on wax anymore! Cal's hitting a nice sweet funky vibe here, with a lot of electric piano grooving nicely next to his classic moody sound. Titles include "Solar Heat", "Here", "Alonzo", "Nica's Dream", "Don't Make Me Over", and a tasty cover of "Ode To Billie Joe". LP, Vinyl record album

Easily one of the greatest records that Brazilian percussionist Airto ever recorded – a stunning blend roots and jazzy currents, and a set that follows strongly off his work in the group Quarteto Novo! The set's got contributions from one of his key partners in that combo – reedman Hermeto Pascoal – and like Pascoal's material at this point, the whole thing is maybe one of the most perfect realizations of the musical vision that Airto was going for! There's none of the tighter, more polished sounds of his later fusion years – and this is the record that will show you just why his arrival on the American scene made such big waves at the time. Flora Purim also sings on the record – and titles include "Andei", "On Sonho", Papo Furado", and "O Galho da Rosiera". (Brazil, Jazz) LP, Vinyl record album

An incredibly inventive album from pianist Steve Kuhn – one that takes his earlier modern style, and fuses it with a warmer sort mode for the 70s! The approach is quite unique – in that Kuhn's core trio style is augmented both by additional percussion from Airto, plus occasional string quartet backing – for a sound that's fresh and different on each new tune! Some tracks feature Fender Rhodes, but most are acoustic – and Steve even sings a bit at one point, showing his newly discovered talent for penning a creative lyric. Our favorites are the groovers "The Baby (aka Saharan)" and "Time To Go (aka Tomorrow's Son)" – and the album also features a great version of "Pearlie's Swine (aka The Zoo)". Other tracks include "The Drinking Song", "The Meaning Of Love", and "Silver". LP, Vinyl record album

A great smooth soul session from Carmen McRae – an album that's not nearly as well known as her American sides of the 70s, but which is possibly even better overall! The record features a great batch of smooth soul arrangements by Mario Sprouse – a blend of jazz and contemporary soul modes that's almost in the same space as Marlena Shaw – and the band backing up Carmen is filled with superstar players who include Freddie Hubbard on trumpet, Hubert Laws on flute, and Grover Washington on sax. The whole thing's got that well-crafted feel you'd expect from a Japanese session at the time – and it includes many nice moments, like a cover of "Mister Magic" with some nice breaks – plus "New York State Of Mind", "Sweet Alibis", "Come In From The Rain", "This Masquerade", and "I'd Rather Leave While I'm In Love". (Vocalists, Jazz) LP, Vinyl record album

A landmark first album from drummer Norman Connors – a spiritual jazz masterpiece that builds wonderfully on the post-Coltrane tradition! Norman is years away from his smoother soul recordings at this point, and coming out of a righteous jazz background that included work with Marion Brown and Archie Shepp. For this initial set, Norman's in incredible company – working with players that include Herbie Hancock on both electric and acoustic keys, plus Eddie Henderson on trumpet, Gary Bartz and Carlos Garnett on saxes, Stanley Clarke on bass, and Billy Hart and Airto on percussion – plus a chorus of vocalists on the album's mighty title cut! Tracks are all long, spiritual, and freely exploratory – but never in a style that goes too far outside, or that forgets the joy and love that can spring forth in a forward-thinking session like this one! Titles include "Dance Of Magic", "Give The Drummer Some", "Morning Change", and "Blue". LP, Vinyl record album

A spiritual jazz masterpiece from drummer Norman Connors – one of those unique albums he cut before moving into soul music – done at a level that rivals the early 70s genius on labels like Strata East or Impulse Records! Connors worked with many contemporaries on those labels, and gets a good degree of help from them here, too – in a massive lineup that includes Eddie Henderson on trumpet, Herbie Hancock on keyboards, Gary Bartz on alto, Carlos Garnett on tenor, Buster Williams on bass, Bill Summers on drums, and even Dee Dee Bridgewater on a bit of vocals too! With a lineup like that, it would be easy to lay back and just do nothing – but you can really hear Connors' musical vision taking the lead – that warmly soulful approach that was there right from the start, given some great focus here by producer Skip Drinkwater. Tracks are all long, and free-flowing – a bit out at times, but always returning to the modal pulse of Connors' soulful rhythms. Titles include "Carlos II", "Kumakucha", "Holy Waters", "Revelation", and "Love From The Sun". LP, Vinyl record album

One of the greatest Airto records ever – a really overlooked record cut for the mostly-Latin Montuno label in the 80s! The album's quite spare, and almost more in a Latin mode at times – given the harder percussion on the set, and the firey recording style given to the set by Montuno – but it also echoes some of the great spare styles that Airto used in his first American recordings, too – the sessions he cut for Cobblestone/Buddah right at the start of the 70s. Airto plays a range of percussion instruments, and Flora's on the set adding in some vocals – and the record also features great keyboards from Jorge Dalto, whose sound really ties thigns together nicely. Includes the classic "Samba De Flora", plus "Yahna Amina", "El Fiasco", "Dedos", "La Puerta", "Parana", and "Latin Woman". (Brazil, Jazz) LP, Vinyl record album

Important 70s work from Don Cherry – one of the first albums to bring his overseas experiments to a larger US audience! The set builds nicely off of styles that Don forged earlier in France and Scandinavia – a freer style of music than his work with Ornette Coleman, and a richly organic groove that builds up strongly from the bottom, often with elements of world music settled in alongside the jazz – but there's also some funkier moments here too, a bit like the Brown Rice album, but looser overall! The groups on most numbers are relatively large and spiritual – almost like Alice Coltrane at times, but a bit more electric and funky at others – and players include Collin Walcott on sitar, Michael Brecker on saxes, Cliff Carter on keyboards, Lenny White and Tony Williams on drums, Lois Colin on harp, and Raphael Cruz on percussion. Cherry himself plays conch shells, bells, and flute in addition to his usual trumpet – and he even sings a bit on a few numbers, in a soulful, scatting sort of groove. Narada Michael Walden produced, and the whole set's got a very righteous feel – with tracks that include "Universal Mother", "Buddah's Blues", "Eagle Eye", "Mahakali", "Karmapa Chenno", "Surrender Rose", and "Journey Of Milarepa". LP, Vinyl record album

A really incredible performance from Ornette Coleman – recorded in Italy in 1968, and featuring a unique lineup that includes Ed Blackwell on drums, plus the dual basses of Charlie Haden and David Izenzon! The two-bass lineup gives the set an amazingly tight edge – with one player bowing the instrument, and the other playing rhythm – in a way that bounces magically over the drums of Ed Blackwell, making for a rhythmic spirit that's missing from a lot of Ornette's other work from the time! There's still a sense of sound texture and exploration here that matches some of the Blue Note late 60s recordings – but the overall feel is a bit more focused, and (dare we say it?) more rhythmically swinging! Titles include long takes on "Lonely Woman", "Monsieur Le Prince", "Forgotten Children", "Tutti", "Three Wisemen & The Saint", "New York", and "Buddah Blues". CD

One of the coolest, grooviest albums you'll ever hear from the legendary percussionist Airto – a set that mixes his own Brazilian roots with the electric genius of 70s CTI – all with stunning results! Airto's in the lead – and blows some beautiful wood flute lines alongside percussion – but the album also features killer contributions from Joe Farrell on soprano sax, Hubert Laws on flute, Keith Jarrett on piano, and Chick Corea on Fender Rhodes – as well as a hip bit of vocals from Flora Purim as well! There's some added horns at parts – but the arrangements are relatively spare and subtle – so that most tracks have a core organic quality, very similar to Airto's work on Buddah/Cobblestone, but given a bit more of a CTI twist. Most tunes are quite long and free-flowing – and titles include "Lucky Southern", "Flora's Song", "Creek (Arroio)", and "Return To Forever". LP, Vinyl record album

Important 70s work from Don Cherry – one of the first albums to bring his overseas experiments to a larger US audience! The set builds nicely off of styles that Don forged earlier in France and Scandinavia – a freer style of music than his work with Ornette Coleman, and a richly organic groove that builds up strongly from the bottom, often with elements of world music settled in alongside the jazz – but there's also some funkier moments here too, a bit like the Brown Rice album, but looser overall! The groups on most numbers are relatively large and spiritual – almost like Alice Coltrane at times, but a bit more electric and funky at others – and players include Collin Walcott on sitar, Michael Brecker on saxes, Cliff Carter on keyboards, Lenny White and Tony Williams on drums, Lois Colin on harp, and Raphael Cruz on percussion. Cherry himself plays conch shells, bells, and flute in addition to his usual trumpet – and he even sings a bit on a few numbers, in a soulful, scatting sort of groove. Narada Michael Walden produced, and the whole set's got a very righteous feel – with tracks that include "Universal Mother", "Buddah's Blues", "Eagle Eye", "Mahakali", "Karmapa Chenno", "Surrender Rose", and "Journey Of Milarepa". LP, Vinyl record album