A great lost chapter in the Cannonball/David Axelrod story! The record features Cannon's classic quintet performing some longer, more serious works with orchestral backing – and the sound is vaguely similar to some of Axelrod's "high concept" work for Capitol. The record features a recording of Axelrod's "Tensity" and William Fischer's "Experience In E", both conducted by Fischer, a hip modern soul-oriented arranger, with a sound that's not dissimilar to Axelrod. The last piece on the album is a nice long one by Lalo Schifrin, "Dialogues For Jazz Quintet & Orchestra", which is also conducted by him as well. 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

A beautiful album from Lorez Alexanderia – one of her two excellent sessions for Impulse! The record was cut after Lorez recorded some great sides for the Argo label – and it works off the strength of those sides, taking her unique vocal approach, forged in R&B, but smoothed by jazz, into a whole new level of expression! The backing is great – small combo, with featured musicians who include Bunk Shank and Paul Horn on reeds, and Victor Feldman and Wynton Kelly on piano – all working with moody, soulful arrangements that are a perfect accompaniment to Lorez' beautiful voice. Includes the cuts "Get Me To The Church On Time", "Satin Doll", "Show Me", "The Best Is Yet to Come", "I'm Through With Love", and 5 more! (Vocalists, Jazz) LP, Vinyl record album

A great one from drummer Rashied Ali – issued here on his own Survival label! Ali's perhaps best remembered for his spare backing behind Coltrane's solo sax on the record Interstellar Space – and we're tempted to say that there's a similar vibe going on here – as the record just features Ali on drums and percussion, and the great Frank Lowe on tenor, plus Japanese flute and a bit of percussion too. The approach is nice and open, in a loft jazz mode – and Frank blows with a rough-hewn emotion that brings a lot to the session, and which provides a good grounding for Ali's sometimes loose work on drums! The original album features one long improvisation – "Duo Exchange" – but it's expanded here by more than a full album's worth of bonus material, really great recordings that appear here for the first time ever, pressed up beautifully. LP, Vinyl record album

A stunning surprise from Andre 3000 – at least if you only know him as part of Outkast – and a record that finally gives us an audio document of the sounds that Andre has really been involved with in recent years – a beautiful blend of spiritual jazz with mellower currents, aided here by some members of the contemporary LA scene! There's a resonance here with some of the more laidback projects on the International Anthem label, and with the work of Carlos Nino – and no surprise, Nino is on board to deliver great production work throughout, and co-produced the album with Andre too. Andre delivers a lot of work on flute, as hinted at by the cover – and also serves up beautiful sounds on wind controller too – as the set moves between contributions from other artists who include Nate Mercereau on guitars, and Diego Gaeta and Surya Botofasina on keyboards – as well as guest vocals from Mia Doi Todd on two tracks, and shakuhachi from Shabaka Hutchings on one more. Titles include "That Night In Hawaii When I Turned Into A Panther & Started Making These Low Register Purring Tones That I Couldn't Control", "Ninety Three Til Infinity & Beyonce", "Dreams Once Buried Beneath The Dungeon Floor Slowly Sprout Into Undying Gardens", "Ants To You Gods To Who", and "I Swear I Really Wanted To Make A Rap Album But This Is Literally The Way The Wind Blew Me". CD

A stunning surprise from Andre 3000 – at least if you only know him as part of Outkast – and a record that finally gives us an audio document of the sounds that Andre has really been involved with in recent years – a beautiful blend of spiritual jazz with mellower currents, aided here by some members of the contemporary LA scene! There's a resonance here with some of the more laidback projects on the International Anthem label, and with the work of Carlos Nino – and no surprise, Nino is on board to deliver great production work throughout, and co-produced the album with Andre too. Andre delivers a lot of work on flute, as hinted at by the cover – and also serves up beautiful sounds on wind controller too – as the set moves between contributions from other artists who include Nate Mercereau on guitars, and Diego Gaeta and Surya Botofasina on keyboards – as well as guest vocals from Mia Doi Todd on two tracks, and shakuhachi from Shabaka Hutchings on one more. Titles include "That Night In Hawaii When I Turned Into A Panther & Started Making These Low Register Purring Tones That I Couldn't Control", "Ninety Three Til Infinity & Beyonce", "Dreams Once Buried Beneath The Dungeon Floor Slowly Sprout Into Undying Gardens", "Ants To You Gods To Who", and "I Swear I Really Wanted To Make A Rap Album But This Is Literally The Way The Wind Blew Me". LP, Vinyl record album

A beautiful little record from this overlooked Windham Hill team – pianist Barbara Higbie and violinist Darrol Anger – working here in an open live setting that really lives up to the best spirit of the label! Both instruments are used in very fresh ways – moving through that new acoustic underground generation into modes that are more open to new phrasing and concepts, yet without any of the colder, quieter styles you'd hear from ECM records of a similar generation. Instead, there's this subtle sense of brightness, but one that's never too cloying or sentimental – as the players work with a quintet that also includes Mike Marshall on mandolin and guitar, Todd Phillips on bass, and Andy Narell on a bit of steel drums. Titles include "Egrets", "Egypt", "Brann St Sonata", "Pumpkin Time", "Duet", "Tideline", "Near Northern", and "Daughter Of Cups". CD

An excellent funky fusion group from Chicago – and one of the best ensembles to record for the Black Jazz label! The group's made up of hip Chicago underground players – and includes Ken Chaney on electric piano, Ari Brown on saxes, and Frank Gordon on trumpet – a lineup that comes together with the same sort of righteous energy and soulful power as Windy City contemporaries like The Pharoahs or Earth Wind & Fire! On this first LP, they jam with a mix of righteous funk and spiritual soul jazz, mixing electric piano, choppy reeds, and tight horns with a powerful rhythm backing that never goes too over the top, and which stays in a good modal mode that works great for the soloists – soaringly expressive at a personal level, yet coming together with a really righteous group feel in the end. Tracks include "Jupiter", "Brand New Feeling", "Convulsions", and "Kera's Dance". CD

A real cooker in the Atlantic Records' 60s series from Preservation Hall – a record that definitely keeps up the groove throughout! Side one features work by the combo of drummer Paul Barbarin – a lively player with a romping approach to rhythm – one that perfectly suits the trad sounds from Ernie Cagnolatti on trumpet, Waldren "Frog" Joseph on trombone, and Louis Cottrell on clarinet. Titles include "Too Late", "The Second Line", and "Give It Up". Side two features a great group led by legendary trumpeter Ernie "Punch" Miller – with sweet horn work from a lineup that includes Louis Nelson on trombone and George Lewis on clarinet – the latter of whom is in perfect late formation on his well-crafted solos. Titles include "Nobody Knows The Way I Feel This Morning", "Preservation Blues", and "Hindustan". LP, Vinyl record album

Count Basie goes pop, and the results are mighty nice – a hard-swinging take on familiar tunes from the 60s, but all re-tooled the jazzy Basie way! The vibe here is right up there with the best Neal Hefti moments with the group – and although the arrangements are by Billy Byers, they've got that sense of tightness that Hefti first help bring to the band – a great setting for the inventive solos, and all the cool little twists and turns that make a record like this so great. And while you might think of the setting, or the title, as some sort of sell-out on the Count's part – the album's instead a perfect way to hear what made the Basie band so great – how they could completely transform tunes like "Pretty Woman", "Bye Bye Love", "Doo Wah Diddy Diddy", "At Long Last Love", and "Go Away Little Girl". LP, Vinyl record album

One of the few albums ever recorded by pianist Charles Bell – a fresh-voiced modernist who flourished briefly on the recording scene at the beginning of the 60s, when he recorded great records for Columbia and Atlantic, plus this little gem for the smaller Gateway label! The set's a live one, and has Bell playing in a style that's more open than some of his other records – still very much concerned with moods and colors, in an almost John Lewis-like way – but also playing some extremely inventive lines on the piano, and giving the record a keenly improvised quality. Titles include "Take Five", "Memories Of Home", "Whisper Not", "Work Song", "Prancing", and "Tommy's Blues". LP, Vinyl record album

Drummer Louis Bellson grooves it nice and hard in this excellent session from his early 50s Verve years! The record kicks off with the tremendous "Skin Deep" title cut – a number that features Louis really going to town in an extended drum solo that must be one of the longest ever recorded during the period – maybe even the "Moby Dick" of its time! Other titles include "Loris", "Claxton Hall Swing", and "Phalanges" – and though the notes don't name any of his hard swinging side men, the group's billed as his big band, and the set more than lives up to it's name! LP, Vinyl record album

Art Blakey, without any Jazz Messengers – but still coming through loud and clear, thanks to help from a unique group that features Sonny Stitt on tenor, McCoy Tyner on piano, and Art Davis on bass! The album's still got all the hardbop charm of Blakey's best Blue Note dates, but also feels a bit more spontaneous too – and the basslines of Davis are a wonderful change from the usual – beautiful sounds that drive the record quite strongly up from the bottom! Titles include the killer "Cafe", plus "Blues Back", "Just Knock On My Door", "Summertime", and "The Song Is You" – and the album features fantastic blowing from Stitt! LP, Vinyl record album

Angular Monk meets hard-driving Art Blakey – in a session that's quite unique, and which has gone onto become one of the best-remembered Atlantic jazz sessions of the late 50s! The album features Blakey in that key non-Blue Note year of 1957 – a time when he was working with a variety of players, at a variety of labels, and taking some real chances with his music before settling into his more established hit Jazz Messengers sound. The group here is Art's own – with Johnny Griffin on tenor, Bill Hardman on trumpet, and Spanky DeBrest on bass – augmented by the piano of Thelonious Monk – a match that might seem unlikely at first, but not so much so after you consider the great work that Monk and Griffin did together at Riverside during the late 50s. There's a nice match between Johnny's sharp-edged tenor and Monk's imaginative playing – and if anything, the record has Blakey, Hardman, and DeBrest moving dynamically to keep up with the flurry of modern ideas coming from Griffin and Monk! Tracks are almost all originals by Thelonious too – a fact that definitely helps keep up the "Monk-ish" sound of the record – titles that include "Evidence", "Blue Monk", "I Mean You", and "Rhythm A Ning" – alongside Griffin's "Purple Shades". LP, Vinyl record album

A long-overdue set from the great Johnny Blas – the percussionist who really made the Cubop label so great back in the 90s, returning here with a sound and style that's even more classic than ever! The instrumentation and production are rock-solid throughout – no too-polished modes, and a really strong focus on Johnny's conga work at the core – which seems to ground all the other great instrumentation on the set – including lots of strong work on trombone, piano, flute, and alto – the last two of which are sometimes played by Johnny too! There's vocals on the record on a few tracks, but the main focus is on jazzy instrumentation – and titles include "Unfinished Business", "Never Let Me Go", "Baila Que Baila", "Chi Town (parts 1 & 2)", "Berwyn Stop", and "Danzon For Rocio". (Latin, Jazz) LP, Vinyl record album

One of our favorite-ever albums on Blue Note – a great 60s session that features one of the most unique reed players to ever record for the label! George Braith takes a bit of a page from Roland Kirk – in that he handles a variety of oddly-tuned reed instruments, but with a wonderfully soulful focus – mixing this nice edge with more familiar soul jazz modes, at a level that makes his records of the time completely unique! The group also features some sublime organ lines from Billy Gardner – a player you might know more from previous records with Lou Donaldson on piano, but who's very open and expressive here – almost echoing Larry Young at times – which is great next to the work of Grant Green's guitar on the record! Braith's playing is incredible – slightly exotic, but also quite soulful – and titles include "Nut City", "Sweetville", and "Extension". CD

One of those rare Blue Note sessions from tenorist Tina Brooks – originally recorded for the label in 1960, but never issued at the time – yet easily on a par with their more famous work of the period! Brooks' horn has a nice hard edge here – that sharp-edged modernism you'd hear with Jackie McLean, who makes a key appearance here on the album's famous "Street Singer" track. Jackie's not on the rest of the record, but that's fine with us – because other players are all equally great, and include Blue Mitchell on trumpet, Kenny Drew on piano, Paul Chambers on bass, and Art Taylor on drums. Apart from "Street Singer", other titles include "The Ruby & The Pearl", "Back To The Tracks", "For Heaven's Sake", and "The Blues & I". CD

One of those rare Blue Note sessions from tenorist Tina Brooks – originally recorded for the label in 1960, but never issued at the time – yet easily on a par with their more famous work of the period! Brooks' horn has a nice hard edge here – that sharp-edged modernism you'd hear with Jackie McLean, who makes a key appearance here on the album's famous "Street Singer" track. Jackie's not on the rest of the record, but that's fine with us – because other players are all equally great, and include Blue Mitchell on trumpet, Kenny Drew on piano, Paul Chambers on bass, and Art Taylor on drums. Apart from "Street Singer", other titles include "The Ruby & The Pearl", "Back To The Tracks", "For Heaven's Sake", and "The Blues & I". CD

A wonderful title for this rare fourth album from Tina Brooks – as the set was recorded by Blue Note in 1961, but had to wait for many decades to finally get reissued! Don't let that put you off, though, as the set's every bit as sublime as Tina's classic True Blue album for the label – an equally masterful session from a tenor talent whose every note seems to be very special and well-placed – working here in a quintet setting with Johnny Coles on trumpet, Kenny Drew on piano, Wilbur Ware on bass, and Philly Joe Jones on drums! This was the last year that Brooks would ever record, making the set one of his final testaments in jazz – before he lapsed into relative obscurity, and passed away in the mid 70s. Titles include "David The King", "Dhyana", "Talkin About", and "The Waiting Game". CD

Hard to get work by Clifford Brown – 1953 recordings originally done in Europe for the Vogue label! On the first record, Brown's working in front of a Parisian trio that features Henri Renaud, Pierre Michelot, and Benny Bennett. There's 11 tracks in all, including "I Can Dream, Can't I?", "The Song Is You", "You're A Lucky Guy" and "Come Rain Or Come Shine" plus "It Might As Well Be Spring" and "Blue & Brown". On record 2, Brown's working here with Gigi Gryce in a sextet that features Henri Renaud, Pierre Michelot, and Benny Bennett – plus some big band material too. LP, Vinyl record album