The team of Phil Woods & Gene Quill hit Prestige Records – and get a bit more space to blow than on other sessions of the time! The album's definitely got a quality that lives up to the "with prestige" in the title – a classy, careful sort of sound that's very much the height of alto work for the time – a style that's modern, yet never too much so – and informed by bop, but never in the shadow of Charlie Parker or Sonny Stitt. Rhythm is strong – by George Syran on piano, Teddy Kotick on bass, and Nick Stabulas on drums – but it's mostly there just to give the players the right impetus to blow nicely together. Titles include "Lazy Like", "Nothing But Soul", "A Night At St Nicks", and "Black Cherry Fritters". CD

A brilliant album by Hozan Yamamoto – a flute player with a great ear for mixing traditional sounds and modern jazz! The set's a suite of sorts – performed by a cool quartet with Yamamoto on bamboo flute, plus Masabumi Kikuchi on piano, Gary Peacock on bass, and Hiroshi Murakami on drums – all with a rich sense of poetry and feeling, that newly expressive sound that Japanese jazz hit as the 70s approached! Yamamoto's flute work alone is worth the price of admission – but alongside Kikuchi's well-timed (and toned) piano lines, and Peacock's roundly sensitive bass, the instrument is even more brilliant – heard on tracks that include "Silver World", "Stone Garden Of Ryoan Temple", "A Heavy Shower", and "Sawanose". CD

Jazz organ explodes to the next level – on this brilliant and rare session by Larry Young from 1969! The record was Young's last recording for Blue Note, and was never issued at the time – only making a brief appearance in a short series at the end of the 70s – and its obscurity makes it all the more important, as it's the kind of record that would have transformed jazz tremendously if released at the time. On the set, Young delivers on all his 60s experimentation with modal grooves and Coltrane-styled playing – working with a quartet that includes Lee Morgan on trumpet, Herbert Morgan on tenor, and Eddie Gladden on drums – soaring to the skies on long tunes that push the Hammond farther than any organist had ever imagined! And while modern, and freer than before, Young is also playing here without some of the over-indulgent styles of his later jazz-rock work – still sticking to the Blue Note mode, while managing to record in a "new thing" mode long after the label had abandoned the "new thing" sound! Mindblowing – and with titles that include "Visions", "Love Drops", "Trip Merchant" and "Street Scene". CD

A groundbreaking album, put together by Zorn and a group of downtown New York hipsters, as a fitting hommage to the genius of Ennio Morricone! The track list sticks to mostly the bigger known numbers, and the album's got a darkness that we'd actually say was a bit out of place, considering the choice of tracks – but the groups formed by Zorn do a pretty good job of breathing new life into some of the tracks, and the album was a key moment in the recognition of Morricone as one of the century's greatest composers. Players include Robert Quine, Tim Berne, Arto Lindsay, Jim Staley, Bill Frisell, Christian Marclay, Anton Fier, and even Big John Patton. Titles include "Erotico", "Once Upon A Time In The West", "Giu La Testa", "Battle Of Algiers", and "The Big Gundown". CD

Maybe one of the coolest volumes ever in this long-running series from John Zorn – but maybe that's also because the album's dedicated to the great Terry Riley, and features Zorn improvising on organ, on two long tracks that definitely echo the minimalist legacy in Riley's music! The organ is a pipe organ, which has a much fuller sound and larger presence than some of the electric keyboards that Riley used in the past – and while Zorn echoes that sense of song progression that you'll know from the composer/performer's famous recordings, he also lets loose with his own sonic tendencies too – and explores some of the farther reaches of the pipes with very heavy sounds! The album features two long tracks – "A New Door Opens" and "Elissa's Tears" – both improvised. CD

48 tracks across 3 CD's. Includes performances by Dinah Washington, Shirley Horn, Mel Torme, Anita O'Day, Sara Vaughan, Betty Carter, Blossom Dearie, Art Tatum, Charlie Parker, Max Roach and others. (Vocalists, Jazz) CD

An assortment of tracks recorded together under the Downbeat name, but which was really designed to showcase the budding jazz talents on late 50s Dot Records! The set kicks off with a big band, Basie-ish number – "Blues Over Easy", performed by Manny Alban and jazz greats that include Nick Travis, Gene Quill, and Jerome Richardson. Next up is the Tony Scott quintet with Jimmy Knepper – on a version of "Scrapple From The Apple" – followed by 2 tracks by Steve Allen – one trio, one with a quartet with Georgie Auld – "Rose Room" and "The Fast Thing In C". Paul Horn follows up with "Give Me The Simple Life" – and the set's completed by "Dougy's Buggy" performed by the Don Elliott Quintet, with Elliott on trumpet and vibes, plus bass clarinet by Hal McKusick. CD

Fantastic sounds from the years before reggae became the international sound of Jamaica – music from the island nation's jazz scene, which was at the crossroads of so many different styles of music – jazz from the north, Latin rhythms from Cuba and Puerto Rico, and a fair bit of other Caribbean sounds too – all of which filter through the wonderful collection of music on the set! The title breaks down the different genres featured – but there's often a surprisingly unified feel to the whole record too – one that stands partly as a testament to the musical strengths of all the performers involved! In the days before Trojan and Studio One, Federal Records was an important Jamaican label – and did an especially great job of capturing some of the sounds that were part of that nation's club culture and resorts in the 60s. Titles include "Angelima" and "Like Falling In Love" by Ernest Ranglin, "Profile Cha Cha" and "Rhumbina" by Cecil Lloyd & The Starline Troubadors, "Estrellita" and "I Love Paris" by The Lennie Hibbert Combo, "Tis Wonderful" by Eric Grant, "Linstead Market" by Baba Motta & Ernest Ranglin, "Wheel & Turn Me" by Bertie King, "Go Fife Go" by Count Owen, "Mango Walk" by Bertie King & Ernest Ranglin, "String Of Pearls" by Auldey Williams & His Orchestra, "Solas Market" by Baba Motta, and "Monday Monday" by Winston Turner Quintet. (Reggae, Jazz) LP, Vinyl record album

An excellent collection of obscure jazz and R&B instrumental sides from the great Okeh label of the 50s – including some excellent stormers from Chicago! Little Johnny Griffin checks in with "For Dancers Only", "Flyin Home", and "Chicago Riffin", and the first two cuts feature vocals by Babs Gonzales! Other tracks include "Money Is Honey" and "I Want A Big Butter & Egg Man" by Mary Ann McCall; "Dig This Menu Please" and "Red's Mambo", two fantastic R&B tunes from trumpeter Red Rodney; and "Smooth Sailin", "Walkin Home", and "Whispering", all by Arnett Cobb, and included here with some other nice tunes that rank with some of Cobb's best work. LP, Vinyl record album

Disc one includes vocal performances by Ella Fitzgerald, Billie Holiday, Chris Connor, Frank Sinatra, Carmen McRae, Sarah Vaughan, and more. Disc two has instrumentals with Miles Davis, Harry James, Dave Brubeck, George Gershwin, Charlie Parker, Modern Jazz Quartet, and more, 40 songs in all. CD