A seminal set from Eric Dolphy – one of his most perfectly realized moments at the head of a larger ensemble – and a record that definitely set the tone for countless spiritual jazz sessions of the 70s! Dolphy recorded this session for Alan Douglas in 1962, and it features a larger array of players than you'll find on most of his records for other labels – the cream of the "new thing" players that were around New York at the time, including Bobby Hutcherson on vibes, Woody Shaw on trumpet, Prince Lasha on flute, Sonny Simmons on alto, and even Clifford Jordan on soprano sax – making a rare appearance on record on that instrument! Together, the players create a set of soundscapes that lies somewhere between Dolphy's Out To Lunch album, and some of the more modernist work by Mingus – a stunning batch of tracks that go out, but never too far. Titles include "Ode to CP", "Burning Spear", "Iron Man", and "Mandrake". LP, Vinyl record album

A stunner of a set from Ken Vandermark & co as Powerhouse Sound – a riveting 2CD batch of rhythmic juxtaposition inspired by dub, sound collage production, and free rock caterwauling – done with a pair of line-ups in both Oslo and Chicago! The Oslo group is heavy with bass and stuttering electronic manipulations, and features Vandermark, Ingebrigt Haker Flaten and Nate McBride on electric bass, Pall Nilssen-Love on drums and Lasse Marhaug on electronics. The Chicago crew runs through variations of the material and changes up the instrumentation with Vandermark, John Herndon on drums, Jeff Parker on guitar and McBride on bass. Disc one (Oslo version) includes "Shocklee (For Hank Shocklee)", "King To Crown (For King Tubby), "Coxsone (For Coxsone Dodd)", "2-1-75" (For Miles Davis), "Acid Scratch (For Lee Perry)", "Exit-Salida (For Burning Spear)" and "New Dirt (For The Stooges)". Disc two (Chicago version) includes "Old Dictionary (For Bernie Worrell)", "King To Crown Pt 1/Acid Scratch Pt 2", "Coxsonne", "2-1-75" and "New Dirt/King To Crown Pt 2". CD

A pair of near perfect soulful jazz organ sets from Jimmy Smith – 1967's Respect and 1968's Livin' It Up – plus the rare non album single "Mickey Mouse" as bonus track for the first time on CD! Respect is really nice jazz album from Jimmy, although one that got hidden in the years of Jimmy's more "concept" oriented sessions for Verve. Most of the material is quartet stuff, with players like Bernard Purdie, Eric Gale, and Ron Carter backing up Jimmy's soulful organ. The tracks are longer than usual too, with lots of nice soloing going on, and a stone easy soul groove. Includes a tasty loping version of "Get Out Of My Life", with a very different drum groove than usual, plus "Funky Broadway", "T Bone Steak", and "Mercy, Mercy, Mercy". Livin' It Up is a straight up stunner – and quite possibly one of his greatest records for Verve! The set has Jimmy working with arranger Oliver Nelson – in a setting that's got big band backings, but done in a style that's cool enough to cut through all the BS of similar sessions. There's no hoke at all – just a lean and soulful approach that has Nelson serving up a powerhouse jazzy groove underneath – and Jimmy soloing madly over the top! The album's filled with great tunes too – including a fab cover of "Mission Impossible", the original "Big Boss Man", a version of Richard Evans' "Burning Spear", a great takes on "Valley Of The Dolls" and "The Gentle Rain". Great stuff throughout! CD

Features "Blues For 3+1", "Ode To Billie Joe", "Organ Grinder's Swing", "Ape Woman", "(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction", "Funky Broadway", "Mellow Mood", "Burning Spear", "One Mint Julep", "Hobo Flats", "Groove Drops", "TNT", "Blues In The Night", and "the Sermon". CD

Not "blues" like you might expect from the title – but a hip batch of tracks that has guitarist Kenny Burrell soloing over these great large arrangements by Don Sebesky – playing in a warmly chromatic mode that's similar to the work that Wes Montgomery also cut with Sebesky, but with that special sense of rasp and color that's Kenny's own! The tracks all have a nicely angular quality – Burrell taking care of the frontline solos with ease, and Sebesky letting the band fall behind him in broad washes of color, tone, and mood – blue-tinged, but hardly blues at all, save for a few chromatic hues that appear from time to time. Titles include "Sausalito Nights", "Were You There", "Burning Spear", "Angel Eyes", "The Preacher", and "The Common Ground". CD

Quite possibly the funkiest record ever made by guitarist Joe Pass – a real surprise from an artist we mostly know for his mellower and straight ahead work! The style here is tight electric funk, almost in a Groove Merchant sort of way – and given Joe's heavy use of hollow-body guitar on the record, and the warm chromatic hues in his tone, the style's a fair bit like O'Donel Levy on his 70s classics from the same era. Bassist Carol Kaye had a hand in putting together the record, and there's a similar feel here to her own best grooves – tight, studio-oriented work – but never slick or too commercial! Other players include Joe Sample on keyboards, Paul Humphrey on drums, Tom Scott on sax and flute, and JJ Johnson on trombone – and despite the presence of these heavyweights, the record has a nicely soulful sound that's more indie grit than major label funk! CD adds some bonus tracks to the original record – and features 18 titles that include "Free Sample", "Better Days", "Head Start", "It's Too Late", "Gotcha", "Alison", "The Preacher", "Bass Blues", "Burning Spear", "Slick Cat", "Flying Down To Baja", and "Love Is". LP, Vinyl record album

If there's one thing we know about funk legend Dennis Coffey, it's that we can never get enough of his early work – especially when he's working in his trio with the mighty Lyman Woodard on Hammond! The pair together are fantastic – and have this Detroit-bred version of jazz funk that's even grittier than anything coming out on Prestige Records in the 60s – a vibe that reflects the ties both musicians had to the local soul scene, and also hits at Coffey's great wave of records to come on Sussex in the 70s! But the groove here is even deeper and more open – captured live on long tracks that really take off – so that even if the trio is playing familiar songs, they come out completely unique in the hard-jamming style of the group. The mighty Melvin Davis is on drums – and tracks include very long takes on "Eleanor Rigby", "Cissy Strut", and the great Richard Evans' tune "Burning Spear" – plus "Groovin", "It's Your Thing/Union Station", "Big City Lights", "Mindbender", and "I'm A Midnight Mover" – all previously unreleased! (Soul, Jazz) CD

A seminal set from Eric Dolphy – one of his most perfectly realized moments at the head of a larger ensemble – and a record that definitely set the tone for countless spiritual jazz sessions of the 70s! Dolphy recorded this session for Alan Douglas in 1962, and it features a larger array of players than you'll find on most of his records for other labels – the cream of the "new thing" players that were around New York at the time, including Bobby Hutcherson on vibes, Woody Shaw on trumpet, Prince Lasha on flute, Sonny Simmons on alto, and even Clifford Jordan on soprano sax – making a rare appearance on record on that instrument! Together, the players create a set of soundscapes that lies somewhere between Dolphy's Out To Lunch album, and some of the more modernist work by Mingus – a stunning batch of tracks that go out, but never too far. Titles include "Ode to CP", "Burning Spear", "Iron Man", and "Mandrake". LP, Vinyl record album

A fantastic package that finally gives these recordings their proper due – one that takes the cuts that were issued on the albums Iron Man and Conversations (plus a million cheapo packages over the years) – and restores them to their original mono, right from the tapes – then adds in 85 more minutes of never issued material! The tracks here are a perfect balance of Dolphy in his final year – with some spiritual jazz currents, but still a strong sense of swing – with a fantastic lineup that includes Prince Lasha on flute, Sonny Simmons on alto, Clifford Jordan on soprano, Woody Shaw on trumpet, Bobby Hutcherson on vibes, Richard Davis on bass, and both JC Moses and Charles Moffett on drums – almost a who's-who of people who would go onto shape the face of jazz in years to come. Titles include "A Personal Statement", "Ode To Charlie Parker", "Iron Man", "Come Sunday", "Burning Spear", "Muses For Richard Davis", "Alone Together", "Love Me", and "Jitterbug Waltz" – plus a number of other different versions of tunes. 3CD set comes with a 100 page booklet – featuring photos, essays, and interviews with Sonny Simmons, Sonny Rollins, Nicole Mitchell, Henry Threadgill, and David Murray. CD