Plenty of Chicago overtones here – thanks to the Windy City setting of the recording, and to contributions from Jeb Bishop on trombone, Kent Kessler on bass, and Robert Barry on drums! Daniele D'Agaro is no stranger to this scene – and his tenor and clarinet are right at home in the lineup – finding free spaces of expression to voice his presence strongly, yet also moving in ways that clearly inspire the other musicians – especially on the more compositional tracks on the set. Titles include variations on the Ellington numbers "Melancholia" and "Sweet Zurzday" – plus "Ultramarine #13", "Chicago Beer Coaster", "Dick's Holler", and "Barry K". CD

Daniele D'Agaro on tenor saxophone and clarinet, Ernst Glerum on double bass, and Han Bennink on drums and percussion. CD

One of the grooviest 60s live albums from Herbie Mann – done in a style that's a bit different from the rest! Herbie cut many successful live albums for Atlantic, most of them with a hard wailing soul jazz groove – but this one's a nice batch of mellower bossa tunes, played at the Newport festival in Herbie's early love affair with the music, by a group that includes Dave Pike on vibes and Atilla Zoller on guitar. All tracks are long, and the groove is much more open-handed than on Herbie's studio bossa albums. Titles include "Garota De Ipanema", "Desafinado", "Samba De Orfeu", and the more soul jazz oriented tune "Don't You Know", written by bassist Ben Tucker. CD

One of the more soulful, spiritual records to ever come from the horn of Peter Brotzmann – thanks to tremendous work from both Rashied Ali on drums and Fred Hopkins on bass – a duo who give the record a very different flavor than some of Brotzmann's other albums for FMP! The record gives lots of open space both musicians, and Hopkins is especially wonderful – almost inheriting a Jimmy Garrison legacy in his work here, with a balance between outside steps and a core pulse that really sounds wonderful. Ali's as great as on his late work with Coltrane – and Brotzmann seems to respond in spirit in his work on tenor, alto, and tarogato. Titles include "Songlines", "Two Birds In A Feather", "No Messages", "Old Man Kangaroo", "Man In A Vacuum", and "It Is Solved By Walking". CD

A very different record than the first collaboration between Stan Getz & Joao Gilberto – but that's also one of the things that makes it great! The album's more of a split LP than a shared one – as side one features a live performance from the great mid 60s Stan Getz quartet that featured Gary Burton on vibes – a wonderfully cool combo that was very under-documented on record, and which makes a key appearance here. The combination of Burton's vibes and Stan's tenor is pure genius – a sound that's got all the subtle hues and cool colors of the Getz bossa recordings, but which is quite different overall. Stan's tone is amazing on these tunes – and titles include "Here's That Rainy Day", "Tonight I Shall Sleep With A Smile On My Face", "Grandfather's Waltz", and "Stan's Blues". Side two features Joao Gilberto without Stan – playing in a very groovy trio that's more straight bossa than most of his other US recordings – cool small combo grooving that's totally great! The lineup features Gilberto on guitar and vocals, Keeter Betts on bass, and Helcio Milito on drums – all working in a sweetly grooving mode on titles that include "Samba De Minha Terra", "Meditation", "Bim Bom", "Rosa Moreno", and "O Pato". CD also features 5 bonus tracks with vocals from Astrud Gilberto – "It Might As Well Be Spring", "Only Trust Your Heart", "Corcovado", "Garota De Ipanema", and "Eu E Voce" – all from the Getz Au Go Go album. CD

Guitarist Bola Sete made some of his most important American recordings of the 60s on the San Francisco scene – but this huge set of unreleased tracks captures the Brazilian player farther up north, as he works in a sweet set of trio recordings captured at a small club in Seattle! The music is a great counterpart to some of Bola's recordings for Fantasy Records during the same time, but also captures the guitarist with a bit more complexity too – some of the qualities that he wouldn't always show on record at this level until the 70s, but which were clearly part of his sound right from the start! The group's a trio – with Sebastiao Neto on bass and Paulinho Magalhaes on drums – and titles include "Soul Samba", "Deve Ser Amor", "Malaguena", "Garota De Ipanema", "Astrurias", "Consolacao", "Tristeza", "A Feliciade", "Prelude No 3", "Spanish Dance No 5", "Shadow Of Your Smile", "Satin Doll", "One Note Samba", and "Corcovado". (Brazil, Jazz) CD

Nice soundtrack to the now-legendary film by Bruce Weber that tracked Chet Baker during some of the last days of his life. The set's got a nice mix of vocal and instrumental tracks, with Chet in fine enough form at the time of the recording. Titles include "You're My Thrill", "Moon & Sand", "Zingaro", "My One & Only Love", and "Almost Blue". CD

A record that adds in some sweet alto sax, courtesy of Bud Shank – played with all the great bossa tones that Bud brought to older work with guitarists like Laurindo Almeida and Joe Pass! The album's got a relatively spare setting – Shank on alto, Byrd on guitar, Joe Byrd on bass, and Charles Redd on drums – and titles include "Zingaro", "Speak Low", "Brazilville", "What Are You Doing The Rest Of Your Life", and "Saquarema". CD

Includes the songs "Favela", "Corcovado", "Desfinado", "How Insensitive", "Agua De Beber", "If You Never Come To Me", "The Girl From Ipanema", "Once I Loved", "So Danco Samba", "Zingaro", "Someone To Light Up My Life", and "Meditation". CD

The first we've heard as a leader from saxophonist Alexa Tarantino – a great talent who's really been bubbling under on other ensemble records for the Posi-Tone label, and who's very much at the start of a great career of her own! Alexa plays some mighty nice soprano sax on the album – plus tenor and flute – all with this nice sense of edge in her tone, mixed with a more forward-moving flow – this subtle quality that really keeps things interesting, and which has us held surprisingly rapt whenever one of her horns stretches out in a solo. Most tunes are originals, with this fresh sense of timing that really works with her tone – and the rest of the group features Christian Sands on piano, Joe Martin on bass, and Rudy Royston on drums – and a few tracks also feature trombone from Nick Finzer. Titles include "Wisp After Wisp", "Breeze", "Face Value", "Seesaw", "Without", "Ready Or Not", "Zingaro", and "Square One". CD

Titles include "Hermeto", "Uncle Frank", "Belovely", "Afro-Joe", "Garota de Ipanema", and "Viva Hugo". CD