2 great 60s sessions from Duke Ellington – both with a key tenorist! First up is Duke Ellington & Coleman Hawkins – the meeting of two classic talents late in their careers – in a setting that's ideal to bring out all the complexity of their well-honed genius! The approach of the album is mostly an Ellington one – as the group features some of Duke's stalwarts, like Ray Nance, Johnny Hodges, Harry Carney, Lawrence Brown, and Aaron Bell – but Coleman Hawkins gets plenty of space as the main soloist on each number, alongside Duke, who also solos strongly on piano! As with most later records by the players, the writing is great – with a lot more dark moments than you'd expect – and titles include "The Rictic", "You Dirty Dog", "Limbo Jazz", "Wanderlust", and "Self Portrait Of The Bean". Next is Duke Ellington & John Coltrane – a seminal meeting of the old and new generations of jazz in the 60s – put together in perfect Impulse fashion! At some level, this is actually an early 60s John Coltrane Quartet album – with Duke Ellington sitting in for McCoy Tyner on piano, as that's the lineup on about half of the album – tracks that feature Coltrane on tenor, Elvin Jones on drums, and Jimmy Garrison on bass, all working with Ellington on the keys. On other titles, though, the album features Coltrane playing with a Duke-ish trio that has Aaron Bell on bass and Sam Woodyard on drums – slightly less modern, but with a nice sense of depth throughout! Overall, the the record does a great job of balancing between the best talents of both players – and titles include "Big Nick", "The Feeling Of Jazz", "Take The Coltrane", and "My Little Brown Book". LP, Vinyl record album

with Pepper Adams, Art Blakey, Donald Byrd, Paul Chambers, John Coltrane, Johnny Griffin, Coleman Hawkins, Roy Haynes, Billy Higgins, Philly Joe Jones, Sam Jones, Thad Jones, Harold Land, Gerry Mulligan, Max Roach, Sonny Rollins, Charlie Rouse, and others. CD

A great example of the way that older trad players found new life in the 60s modern scene – as the set was part of the same Candid Records series that captured genius from Cecil Taylor and Charles Mingus! Bob Brookmeyer brings some modern trombone elements to the set, alongside Pee Wee Russell on clarinet and Coleman Hawkins on tenor – with piano from Nat Pierce, trumpet from Emmett Berry, bass from Milt Hinton, and drums from Jo Jones! CD

The first LP features the full album The Hawk Relaxes – a great illustration of the gentle genius that made so many later Coleman Hawkins records so great! The relaxed setting for this record is a perfect setting for Hawkins to open up and stretch out – working his tenor with a sound that has surprising modern edges, and unusual twists and turns, yet still all the careful economy of his better-known classic sides. There's a command of the instrument here that few other aging players ever seemed to muster – always a sense of new discovery and invention that marks the work strongly, even at a time when Hawkins could have been sitting on his laurels, playing the same old tune! Titles are all standards, but don't let that fool you – because there's plenty of magic in Coleman's versions of "Moonglow", "Just A Gigolo", "Speak Low", "When Day Is Done", and "I'll Never Be The Same". Oh, and we almost forgot – just because we're so focused on Hawkins – the other players include Ronnell Bright on piano, Kenny Burrell on guitar, Ron Carter on bass, and Andrew Cyrille on drums – making a surprising early appearance here! Side 3 features material from the album Bluesy Burrell, also with Hawkins – and side 4 features material from Kenny Burrell & Ray Bryant. LP, Vinyl record album

A great example of the way that older trad players found new life in the 60s modern scene – as the set was part of the same Candid Records series that captured genius from Cecil Taylor and Charles Mingus! Bob Brookmeyer brings some modern trombone elements to the set, alongside Pee Wee Russell on clarinet and Coleman Hawkins on tenor – with piano from Nat Pierce, trumpet from Emmett Berry, bass from Milt Hinton, and drums from Jo Jones! CD

The Hawk Relaxes, but never lets himself go – and a set like this is a great illustration of the gentle genius that made so many later Coleman Hawkins records so great! The relaxed setting for this record is a perfect setting for Hawkins to open up and stretch out – working his tenor with a sound that has surprising modern edges, and unusual twists and turns, yet still all the careful economy of his better-known classic sides. There's a command of the instrument here that few other aging players ever seemed to muster – always a sense of new discovery and invention that marks the work strongly, even at a time when Hawkins could have been sitting on his laurels, playing the same old tune! Titles are all standards, but don't let that fool you – because there's plenty of magic in Coleman's versions of "Moonglow", "Just A Gigolo", "Speak Low", "When Day Is Done", and "I'll Never Be The Same". Oh, and we almost forgot – just because we're so focused on Hawkins – the other players include Ronnell Bright on piano, Kenny Burrell on guitar, Ron Carter on bass, and Andrew Cyrille on drums – making a surprising early appearance here! CD

The Hawk Relaxes, but never lets himself go – and a set like this is a great illustration of the gentle genius that made so many later Coleman Hawkins records so great! The relaxed setting for this record is a perfect setting for Hawkins to open up and stretch out – working his tenor with a sound that has surprising modern edges, and unusual twists and turns, yet still all the careful economy of his better-known classic sides. There's a command of the instrument here that few other aging players ever seemed to muster – always a sense of new discovery and invention that marks the work strongly, even at a time when Hawkins could have been sitting on his laurels, playing the same old tune! Titles are all standards, but don't let that fool you – because there's plenty of magic in Coleman's versions of "Moonglow", "Just A Gigolo", "Speak Low", "When Day Is Done", and "I'll Never Be The Same". Oh, and we almost forgot – just because we're so focused on Hawkins – the other players include Ronnell Bright on piano, Kenny Burrell on guitar, Ron Carter on bass, and Andrew Cyrille on drums – making a surprising early appearance here! CD

A massively expanded package of music – filled with previously unreleased gems! The 2CD set features a landmark collaboration between John Coltrane and Thelonious Monk – two generations of jazz modern, working here to create some really incredible music! The core of this material is from the pair's work issued on the amazing Monk's Music album for Riverside – but the expanded collection also features lots of additional work from the same period too – including some unusual and alternate studio moments too! Other players vary from track to track – and include Gigi Gryce on alto sax, Ray Copeland on trumpet, Coleman Hawkins on additional tenor, Wilbur Ware on bass, and Art Blakey on drums. Titles wonderful versions of "Ruby My Dear", "Trinkle Tinkle", "Nutty", "Well You Needn't", "Crepescule With Nellie" and "Monk's Mood" – plus some alternate versions, false starts, and more – all wrapped up with notes and reflections from original producer Orrin Keepnews. CD

A rich testament to the strength of the Parisian traditional jazz scene in the early 70s – as key players Coleman and Lafitte work here with a quintet live at the Montreux jazz fest in 1973. Lafitte's tenor is always a treasure, warm and rich, but moody and edgey at the same time – like the best late work of Coleman Hawkins. The longish tracks on the set give him plenty of space to solo – and titles include "Sur Les Quais Du Vieux Paris", "L and L Blues", "Tour De Force", and "Montreux Jump". LP, Vinyl record album

A rich testament to the strength of the Parisian traditional jazz scene in the early 70s – as key players Coleman and Lafitte work here with a quintet live at the Montreux jazz fest in 1973. Lafitte's tenor is always a treasure, warm and rich, but moody and edgey at the same time – like the best late work of Coleman Hawkins. The longish tracks on the set give him plenty of space to solo – and titles include "Sur Les Quais Du Vieux Paris", "L and L Blues", "Tour De Force", and "Montreux Jump". CD

Very hip work from Art Turk Burton – percussionist, educator, and underground figure on the AACM scene in Chicago for decades – working here on a set of very long, live readings of key jazz tunes, served up with help from some equally hip musicians on the scene! The great Ari Brown plays tenor in the group, alongside the alto of Edwin Daugherty, keyboards of Ed Beard, and bass of Yosef Ben Israel – in a group that also features plenty of congas from Art, and more percussion from Sammie Torres and Dushun Mosley too – as the group takes off on these very extended performances that are filled with plenty of strong solos over equally strong percussion too! Maggie Brown brings in some vocals and spoken parts too – and titles include long takes on "Song For My Father", "Freedom Jazz Dance", "Listen Here", "Afro Blue", and "Inner City Blues". CD

Fantastic work from Hawkins – recorded for a small label at a time when his star had fallen a bit, but with some AMAZING tone that really makes the album cook! The group's a combo that features piano and organ by Earl Knight, trumpet by Ernie Royal, trombone by Eddie Bert, and guitar by Sidney Gross – and the whole thing has a laidback blowing feel that really lets Hawkins hit some of those fantastic notes he keeps pulling out at the end of his career. If you've ever doubted why folks think Hawk's a genius, check this one out, and prepare to have your ears cook! Titles include "My Own Blues", "What's New", "Running Wild", "Blue Room", and "I'll Never Be The Same". CD

The title's terrible, but the album's a great one – a really classic-styled jam session, of the sort that the Prestige label hardly ever recorded! The session features 4 tenor giants of slightly older vintage – Eddie Lockjaw Davis, Coleman Hawkins, Arnett Cobb, and Buddy Tate – all coming together in some loosely-structured arrangements that offer the same sympathetic blowing space that you might get from an all-star tenor date on Verve. Rhythm is by a trio with Shirley Scott on organ, George Duvivier on bass, and Art Edgehill on drums – and titles include "Very Saxy", "Fourmost", "Foot Pattin", and "Light & Lovely". CD

The Hawk, in prime late form, lays down some beautiful tenor solos over gentle bossa nova accompaniment – working in a mode that's much more satisfying than just a "classic player meets bossa" session, angularly crafting the solos with that dark edge that he had in all of his later work. The groove's similar to a Stan Getz bossa outing, with light acoustic guitar backing him up, but Hawkins' playing is very deep and soulful, and the groove gets very low. With the great cuts "Samba Para Bean" and "Stumpy Bossa Nova". CD

The Hawk, in prime late form, lays down some beautiful tenor solos over gentle bossa nova accompaniment – working in a mode that's much more satisfying than just a "classic player meets bossa" session, angularly crafting the solos with that dark edge that he had in all of his later work. The groove's similar to a Stan Getz bossa outing, with light acoustic guitar backing him up, but Hawkins' playing is very deep and soulful, and the groove gets very low. With the great cuts "Samba Para Bean" and "Stumpy Bossa Nova". CD

A wonderful little record – a real standout in both the careers of Milt Jackson and Coleman Hawkins! The album captures Hawk during his great later years – that time when his sound was even more soulful and inventive than ever – with lots of odd modern undercurrents that really work nicely with the album's slight Latin inflections – a bit like those you might hear on some of Hawkins' Impulse Records material from the same generation. Milt Jackson's vibes are great too – chromatic and edgey, and set up with rhythm support from Kenny Burrell on guitar, Tommy Flanagan on piano, Eddie Jones on bass, and Connie Kay on drums. Titles include "Indian Blues", "Don't Take Your Love From Me", "Sandra's Blues", "Stuffy", and "Close Your Eyes". LP, Vinyl record album

A great little album from Kenny Burrell – one that has Ray Barretto's congas on most cuts, giving the album a similar Latiny feel to Kenny's classic Midnight Blue album on Blue Note! The Latin undercurrent hits both New York and bossa-styled modes – a great setting for Burrell's thin, snakey lines on guitar – and also a surprisingly great showcase for the tenor of Coleman Hawkins, which really opens up nicely in this setting – in ways that are a bit like his own bossa date for Impulse, or the sound of Ike Quebec's Soul Samba album! Rhythm is by Tommy Flanagan on piano, Major Holley on bass, and Eddie Locke on drums – and titles include "Tres Talbras", "Montono Blues", "Guilty", "No More", and "It's Getting Dark". CD

A wonderful little record – a real standout in both the careers of Milt Jackson and Coleman Hawkins! The album captures Hawk during his great later years – that time when his sound was even more soulful and inventive than ever – with lots of odd modern undercurrents that really work nicely with the album's slight Latin inflections – a bit like those you might hear on some of Hawkins' Impulse Records material from the same generation. Milt Jackson's vibes are great too – chromatic and edgey, and set up with rhythm support from Kenny Burrell on guitar, Tommy Flanagan on piano, Eddie Jones on bass, and Connie Kay on drums. Titles include "Indian Blues", "Don't Take Your Love From Me", "Sandra's Blues", "Stuffy", and "Close Your Eyes". CD

Something wonderful happened to Coleman Hawkins at the end of his career – record companies started letting him record in really long formats, stretching out creatively on extended solos that continued to push the boundaries of his talents! This set is a prime example of that shift – as it features Hawkins alongside Roy Eldridge and Johnny Hodges – all working with trio backing by Tommy Flanagan, Major Holley, and Eddie Locke in a live setting at the Village Gate. Tracks are all well over ten minutes long – 2 at eleven minutes, and 1 at sixteen – and they allow the three lead soloists to really stretch out in a warmly improvisatory manner that surpasses even the easygoing Verve studio sessions of the 50s. Titles include "Satin Doll", "Perdido", and "The Rabbit In Jazz". Plus, added to these 3 are 4 more bonus tracks from the Hawkins Alive album – recorded at the same time, but without the other 2 soloists. These titles include "It's The Talk Of The Town", "Mack The Knife", "Caravan", and "Bean & The Boys". CD