The first Thelonious Monk album for Columbia Records – and one of the best, as well – a beautiful illustration of the way that his shift in labels really set some new fire to his music in the early 60s! The group is Monk's sharp-edged quartet with the amazing Charlie Rouse on tenor, John Ore on bass, and Frankie Dunlop on drums – a group that's beautifully understated, but able to do incredible things in the company of the pianist – hanging back to let Thelonious take center stage one minute, then swinging hard together the next. The set includes great renditions of Monk classics that really illustrate his new energy at Columbia – and titles include "Bolivar Blues", "Bye-Ya", and "Monk's Dream" – plus great remakes of "Body & Soul" and "Just A Gigolo". LP, Vinyl record album

They're not kidding with the title of this one – because although the record was only Wes Montgomery's second album as a leader, he was already making plenty of waves with the sound of his guitar! The session lines Wes up with the very tight rhythm team of Tommy Flanagan on piano, Percy Heath on bass, and Albert Heath on drums – all of whom lay back and mostly let Wes take center stage – sparkling on a number of original tunes that include "West Coast Blues", "Mister Walker", and "D Natural Blues". Other tracks include a great fast take on Sonny Rollins' "Airegin", plus "In Your Own Sweet Way" and "Polka Dots & Moonbeams". CD

The last in a series of rare 50s live material from Chet Baker – featuring a near-lost performance from the Tiffany Club in LA, recorded in 1954 with a group that includes Russ Freeman on piano, Carson Smith on bass, and Bob Neel on drums. The tracks are presented in crystal-clear long versions – really sparkling with a sound that's tremendous for a live set at the time – and which is even more amazing, considering that most of the tracks hadn't been issued before. A few numbers were issued in edited form on an Italian label, and later briefly on one of the out of print Mosaic box sets – but the CD features the full performance – 12 tracks in all, all in unedited takes. Titles include "Lullaby Of the Leaves", "Russ Job", "The Wind", "Frenesi", "Carson City Stage", and "A Dandy Line". CD

The second volume of work that Donald Byrd recorded live at the Olympia in Paris in 1958 – even harder-hitting in tone than the first! The set features Byrd playing some tight hardbop lines – working in a cool group that also features Bobby Jaspar on tenor, Walter Davis Jr on piano, Doug Watkins on bass, and Art Taylor on drums – all players who come together with the sound and style of some of those great late 50s Prestige blowing sessions! The difference, though, is that Byrd is the clear leader here – working his trumpet solos with techniques that really show him growing as an artist on this Paris trip – forging a tight vision into the music that makes it way more than just a loose bop exercise on stage. You'll hear that especially on "52nd Street Theme", but the whole set's pretty darn great – and tracks include "At This Time", "Formidable", "Two Bass Hit", "Parisian Thoroughfare", and "Stardust". CD

A beautiful album by Ron Carter – and quite rare, too! The record features a group that's got a nice 70s modal soul jazz sound – with players that include Herbie Hancock on acoustic and electric piano, Hubert Laws on flute, Sam Brown on guitar, and both Billy Cobham and Grady Tate on drums – all working in sweet small group mode alongside Carter's excellent work on acoustic and Fender bass. The sound is sometimes spacey, sometimes groovy – and marks a key chapter in Carter's career, one that has him stepping out of the background into a great role as a leader – setting the stage for many more albums to come in the 70s! Titles include the very funky "Uptown Conversation", plus the tracks "Half A Row", "Doom", "Little Waltz", "Ten Strings" and "Einbahnstrasse". Very soulful, with a stone mellow moody groove! CD

One of Kenny Dorham's best records ever – and one of his rarest too! The set was cut for the short-lived Jaro label, home to a few great jazz sides during its short-lived American tenure – and the set features Kenny grooving at a level that's extremely tight, very much in the best spirit of his work for Blue Note or Prestige – and recorded here with equally top-shelf sound! The record shows Kenny at his lyrical best – working alongside the piano of Tommy Flangan, who really helps enforce this side of his music – and also getting some help from Charles Davis on baritone, who brings in some darker edges to the record. Other players include Butch Warren on bass and Buddy Enlow on drums – on tracks that include the original entitled "Stage West", plus another sweet tune by Davis entitled "Turbo" – as well as the numbers "Butch's Blues", "Six Bits", and "Stella By Starlight". CD

One of Kenny Dorham's best records ever – and one of his rarest too! The set was cut for the short-lived Jaro label, home to a few great jazz sides during its short-lived American tenure – and the set features Kenny grooving at a level that's extremely tight, very much in the best spirit of his work for Blue Note or Prestige – and recorded here with equally top-shelf sound! The record shows Kenny at his lyrical best – working alongside the piano of Tommy Flangan, who really helps enforce this side of his music – and also getting some help from Charles Davis on baritone, who brings in some darker edges to the record. Other players include Butch Warren on bass and Buddy Enlow on drums – on tracks that include the original entitled "Stage West", plus another sweet tune by Davis entitled "Turbo" – as well as the numbers "Butch's Blues", "Six Bits", and "Stella By Starlight". CD

Work Of Art is a great batch of material that Art Farmer recorded for Prestige in the early fifties. This is way before he got hyper-lyrical, and his playing is raw and hard on a bunch of Quincy Jones arrangements, including the savage cut "Mau-Mau", which features a very early use of the electric bass, driving drumming by Sonny Johnson, and a savage Afro groove. This cut alone is worth the price of the album, and deserves to be a club classic. Warm Valley is a wonderfully-titled set for Art Farmer – working here in a warm valley of sound, and blowing in that open, spacious tone that marked so much of his best later work! The group's a quartet – with Fred Hersh on piano, Ray Drummund on bass, and Akira Tana on drums – all sort of nicely sticking in the back and letting Art take center stage on his round, well-crafted fluegelhorn solos. Titles include "Eclypso", "And Now There's You", "Three Little Words", "Warm Valley", and "Sad To Say". CD

A wonderfully-titled set for Art Farmer – working here in a warm valley of sound, and blowing in that open, spacious tone that marked so much of his best later work! The group's a quartet – with Fred Hersh on piano, Ray Drummund on bass, and Akira Tana on drums – all sort of nicely sticking in the back and letting Art take center stage on his round, well-crafted fluegelhorn solos. Titles include "Eclypso", "And Now There's You", "Three Little Words", "Warm Valley", and "Sad To Say". CD

A wonderfully-titled set for Art Farmer – working here in a warm valley of sound, and blowing in that open, spacious tone that marked so much of his best later work! The group's a quartet – with Fred Hersh on piano, Ray Drummund on bass, and Akira Tana on drums – all sort of nicely sticking in the back and letting Art take center stage on his round, well-crafted fluegelhorn solos. Titles include "Eclypso", "And Now There's You", "Three Little Words", "Warm Valley", and "Sad To Say". LP, Vinyl record album

2 Eric Kloss albums back to back on a single CD – both under-discovered, and both totally great! Sky Shadows is one of the late 60s killers for Prestige by reedman Kloss – sublime material that was every bit as great as some of the bigger-name work for the label, but never really got its due! Kloss is sharper and more focused here than in later years – starting with a hardbop groove, but really reaching out with some inventive sounds of his own, and some great changes from the group! The inventive ensemble features Pat Martino on guitar, Jaky Byard on piano, Bob Cranshaw on bass, and Jack DeJohnette on drums – and titles include "Sky Shadows", "January's Child", "The Girl With The Fall In Her Hair", and "In A Country Soul Garden". In The Land Of Giants is a crackling bit of modernist free play, with a very soulful edge – and the group includes Booker Ervin, Jaki Byard, Richard Davis, and Alan Dawson all joining Kloss as he hits his mid-period "exploratory" stage. His alto is super-crisp here, and although he's reaching out a bit more than on earlier albums, he never manages to lose the swing that made him sound so great right out of the box. Tracks include "So What", "When Two Lovers Touch", and "Sock It To Me Socrates". CD

They're not kidding with the title of this one – because although the record was only Wes Montgomery's second album as a leader, he was already making plenty of waves with the sound of his guitar! The session lines Wes up with the very tight rhythm team of Tommy Flanagan on piano, Percy Heath on bass, and Albert Heath on drums – all of whom lay back and mostly let Wes take center stage – sparkling on a number of original tunes that include "West Coast Blues", "Mister Walker", and "D Natural Blues". Other tracks include a great fast take on Sonny Rollins' "Airegin", plus "In Your Own Sweet Way" and "Polka Dots & Moonbeams". CD

Lost genius from trumpeter Lee Morgan – a session recorded for Blue Note in 1967, but not issued until the late 70s – and even then, only for a very short time! The session has Morgan moving into that wonderful last stage of his career – working in tight formation towards a sound that still had that groovier hardbop styles of earlier recordings, but which also unfolds towards a more ambitious spiritual jazz mode. The writing on the session is superb – original tunes that crackle with energy in a surge of dark notes and shadowy moods, inspiring the soloists to express themselves at levels that rank with their best work of the time! The group features David Newman on tenor – sounding completely different, and far more righteous, than on his Atlantic sides of the 60s – plus Cedar Walton on piano, Ron Carter on bass, and Billy Higgins on drums. A great sound overall – right up there with Tom Cat or The Gigolo for lyrical modernism – and with titles that include "Sneaky Pete", "The Mercenary", "Sonic Boom", and "Mumbo Jumbo". LP, Vinyl record album

An evocative title, and one that really sets the stage for the great sound of the record – an Oscar Peterson album that's a bit more open and flowing than usual – with some great long tracks, and a mighty soulful sound throughout! The title track is a real gem – as Niels Henning Orsted Pedersen begins the number with a long bass bit that's wonderful – which then ignites Peterson's piano into these long-rolling lines that really fit the spirit of the number! Other tunes spin out with a similar magic – still familiar Peterson modes, but kind of a deeper sense of lyricism too. Terry Clark handles drums – and titles include "Nigerian Marketplace", "Cakewalk", "Nancy With The Laughing Face", "You Look Good To Me", and "Au Privave". CD

Pure genius from The Revolutionary Ensemble – and one of the records that really helped set the stage for the New York loft jazz sound of the 70s! The lineup is quite unique – percussion from Jerome Cooper, violin from Leroy Jenkins, and bass from Sirone – a much more subtle lineup of instruments than you'd hear on previous avant sides from ESP – with a resultantly different sound as well – one that's got more subtle colors and tones, and a slow-building, organic approach to improvisation that definitely shows an influence from the experiments of the AACM in Chicago. The album features one long track – "Vietnam (parts 1 & 2)" – but it's got a heck of a lot of variety over its nearly 50 minutes of music! CD

Some of Lucky Thompson's most obscure recordings from the Paris scene of the mid 50s – a great complement to the better-known material issued on the Jazz In Paris and Fresh Sound CDs! The conditions here are similar to those – in that Thompson's working in well-chosen groups with drummer Dave Pochonet, in tightly arranged nonet formation, but in a way that still has Lucky's solo work center stage. The sound is totally great – with lots of those raspy, earthy tones that we love in Thompson's work – and the other players often just complement Lucky in the background, almost as if they were recorded at a slightly lower level. CD features 12 tracks from sessions recorded March 29 and April 17, 1956 – titles that include "Once Upon A Time", "A Sunkissed Rose", "Still Waters", "Brown Rose", "Portrait Of Django", "Distant Sound", "Quick As A Flash", "The Parisian Knight", "Street Scene", and "To You Dear One". CD

A seminal jazz rock statement from drummer Tony Williams – one that has him stepping out quite far from his original "new thing" recordings of the mid 60s! The album's got a genre-forming sound that's incredibly fierce – a power trio churning of Williams drums, John McLaughlin's guitar, and Larry Young's free-thinking work on organ. The tunes are long and jamming, but also have a tight rhythmic focus that never gets too sloppy – and which virtually set the stage for a whole generation of 70s fusion players in years to come! Young and McLaughlin are especially great – working here with Williams to pound out sheets of sound in a cosmic trippy maze of riffs and grooves, certainly enough to inspire the most addled rocker to head over to the jazz section! Though this set was released as two separate volumes, this double LP version has both albums, and features 8 tracks in all "Emergency", "Beyond Games", "Where", "Vashkar", "Sangria For Three", "Something Spiritual", "Spectrum", and "Via The Spectrum Road". CD

A landmark recording – Albert Ayler's first album for the ESP label, and a record that hit the jazz world like a bullet! Spiritual Unity sets the stage for a format that would become huge in the European avant scene of the 70s, 80s, 90s, and even today – the sax-driven power-trio, tenor against bass and drums, working freely with less rhythmic constraints than before, searching for new sounds and new modes of expression, working through changes in a style first proposed by Sonny Rollins, but taken to new intensity by the New York underground of the 60s. That sound is summed up here perfectly by Ayler, Gary Peacock, and Sunny Murray – working together with an edgey brilliance, on classic tracks that include "Ghosts: First Variation", "Ghosts: Second Variation", "The Wizard", and "Spirits". LP, Vinyl record album

A beautiful album by Ron Carter – and quite rare, too! The record features a group that's got a nice 70s modal soul jazz sound – with players that include Herbie Hancock on acoustic and electric piano, Hubert Laws on flute, Sam Brown on guitar, and both Billy Cobham and Grady Tate on drums – all working in sweet small group mode alongside Carter's excellent work on acoustic and Fender bass. The sound is sometimes spacey, sometimes groovy – and marks a key chapter in Carter's career, one that has him stepping out of the background into a great role as a leader – setting the stage for many more albums to come in the 70s! Titles include the very funky "Uptown Conversation", plus the tracks "Half A Row", "Doom", and "Einbahnstrasse". Very soulful, with a stone mellow moody groove! CD

Man, it's like a talent bomb exploded! This set's stuffed with work by some of the greatest jazz funk players of the early 70s – Johnny Hammond, Bob James, Deodato, George Benson, Joe Farrell, Stanley Turrentine, Freddie Hubbard, Grover Washington Jr, Hubert Laws, and others – all playing together at a massive live concert recorded in Hollywood in 1972! And although you might worry that the collection of so many great talents on one stage might just create confusion – don't! The quality of the work is excellent – almost better than the best of the CTI studio sides, with a lean, clean sound that's really really tight – never overblown, just sweet electric funk with loads of great space for solo work. This first volume of the 3 LP set includes takes of "First Light", "California Dreaming" and a medley of "Inner City Blues" and "What's Going On". LP, Vinyl record album

Man, it's like a talent bomb exploded! This set's stuffed with work by some of the greatest jazz funk players of the early 70s – Johnny Hammond, Bob James, Deodato, George Benson, Joe Farrell, Stanley Turrentine, Freddie Hubbard, Grover Washington Jr, Hubert Laws, and others – all playing together at a massive live concert recorded in Hollywood in 1972! And although you might worry that the collection of so many great talents on one stage might just create confusion – don't! The quality of the work is excellent – almost better than the best of the CTI studio sides, with a lean, clean sound that's really really tight – never overblown, just sweet electric funk with loads of great space for solo work. This third volume of the 3 LP set includes takes of "Funkfathers", "Cherry", "Bowl Full Of Blues", "Cherry Red" and "God Bless The Child". LP, Vinyl record album

A 70s issue of one of Kenny's best records – The Arrival Of Kenny Dorham – one of Kenny Dorham's best records ever – and one of his rarest too! The set was cut for the short-lived Jaro label, home to a few great jazz sides during its short-lived American tenure – and the set features Kenny grooving at a level that's extremely tight, very much in the best spirit of his work for Blue Note or Prestige – and recorded here with equally top-shelf sound! The record shows Kenny at his lyrical best – working alongside the piano of Tommy Flangan, who really helps enforce this side of his music – and also getting some help from Charles Davis on baritone, who brings in some darker edges to the record. Other players include Butch Warren on bass and Buddy Enlow on drums – on tracks that include the original entitled "Stage West", plus another sweet tune by Davis entitled "Turbo" – as well as the numbers "Butch's Blues", "Six Bits", and "Stella By Starlight". LP, Vinyl record album

A really great little album recorded by trumpeter Don Ellis in his early years – done at a time before he started putting a bit more fusion in his mix! The record features an extended live performance by a larger group, caught in concert at the Monterey Jazz Fest in 1966 – opening up in a fresh, youthful, modern sound – never too out there, but with a sense of optimism that Ellis must have carried to the stage right from music school! The band has a lot of extremely cool elements in its composition – like organ by Dave Mackay, tenor by Ira Schulman, and some very heavy conga work by Chino Valdes – all of which help give the tunes some unusual flavors and tones – making them swing with a lot more character than you might expect. The overall feel is a mix of strange time changes, off-kilter arrangements, and (most importantly) a tight jazzy groove! Titles include "Passacaglia & Fugue", "New Nine", and "Concerto For Trumpet". CD

An essential Art Farmer session from the mid 50s – and a magnificent batch of hardbop tracks that we'd rank with some of our favorite work on Blue Note! The group is incredibly strong – with Hank Mobley on tenor, Kenny Drew on piano, Addison Farmer on bass, and Elvin Jones on drums – all coming together with a magical in-the-pocket groove that persists on nearly every track. Farmer's still at a formative stage here – and he's going for a much harder sound than usual, with an excellent tone and extremely well calculated solos throughout. Mobley's at his best from this period, and his playing puts this session more in the tightly executed Blue Note camp (ala some of the Horace Silver late 50s recordings), than it does the Prestige/New Jazz blowing session mode. The whole thing's great – and titles include "Ad-Dis-Un", "By Myself", "Farmer's Market", "With Prestige", and "Wailin' With Hank". CD

An essential Art Farmer session from the mid 50s – and a magnificent batch of hardbop tracks that we'd rank with some of our favorite work on Blue Note! The group is incredibly strong – with Hank Mobley on tenor, Kenny Drew on piano, Addison Farmer on bass, and Elvin Jones on drums – all coming together with a magical in-the-pocket groove that persists on nearly every track. Farmer's still at a formative stage here – and he's going for a much harder sound than usual, with an excellent tone and extremely well calculated solos throughout. Mobley's at his best from this period, and his playing puts this session more in the tightly executed Blue Note camp (ala some of the Horace Silver late 50s recordings), than it does the Prestige/New Jazz blowing session mode. The whole thing's great – and titles include "Ad-Dis-Un", "By Myself", "Farmer's Market", "With Prestige", and "Wailin' With Hank". CD

One of Art Farmer's pivotal mid 50s sides – recorded in the company of altoist Gigi Gryce, a great player and a budding young arranger who helped Farmer really formulate the best side of his sound! The tracks are lyrically modern – but still have a nice dose of soul in them – a wonderful blend that really sets the stage for the move that Art was making away from earlier trumpeters in jazz – into that hip territory that was neither too cool, nor too overblown – and which would almost be known as "Farmer-like" in years to come! The album features Gryce and Farmer in 2 different groups – one with Horace Silver on piano, Percy Heath on bass, and Kenny Clarke on drums – the other with Freddie Redd on piano, Addison Farmer on bass, and Art Taylor on drums. Titles include "Social Call", "Capri", "Deltitnu", "Stupendous Lee", and "Blue Concept". LP, Vinyl record album

They're not kidding with the title of this one – because although the record was only Wes Montgomery's second album as a leader, he was already making plenty of waves with the sound of his guitar! The session lines Wes up with the very tight rhythm team of Tommy Flanagan on piano, Percy Heath on bass, and Albert Heath on drums – all of whom lay back and mostly let Wes take center stage – sparkling on a number of original tunes that include "West Coast Blues", "Mister Walker", and "D Natural Blues". Other tracks include a great fast take on Sonny Rollins' "Airegin", plus "In Your Own Sweet Way" and "Polka Dots & Moonbeams". CD

Lost genius from trumpeter Lee Morgan – a session recorded for Blue Note in 1967, but not issued until the late 70s – and even then, only for a very short time! The session has Morgan moving into that wonderful last stage of his career – working in tight formation towards a sound that still had that groovier hardbop styles of earlier recordings, but which also unfolds towards a more ambitious spiritual jazz mode. The writing on the session is superb – original tunes that crackle with energy in a surge of dark notes and shadowy moods, inspiring the soloists to express themselves at levels that rank with their best work of the time! The group features David Newman on tenor – sounding completely different, and far more righteous, than on his Atlantic sides of the 60s – plus Cedar Walton on piano, Ron Carter on bass, and Billy Higgins on drums. A great sound overall – right up there with Tom Cat or The Gigolo for lyrical modernism – and with titles that include "Sneaky Pete", "The Mercenary", "Sonic Boom", and "Mumbo Jumbo". Plus, the album is expanded here by 6 more tracks – all recorded in 1969, and only briefly issued on a 2LP late 70s album called The Procrastinator. These tunes have a slightly different, almost sadder feel – with a group that includes Julian Priester, George Coleman, and Harold Mabern – on more wonderful originals that include "Cla Til Da", "Uncle Rough", "Mr Johnson", and "The Stroker". CD

Three later albums from pianist Horace Parlan – all cut overseas, many years after his early work for Blue Note! On Joe Meets The Rhythm Section, the "Joe" is Dutch tenorist Joe Van Enkhuizen, who's a great fit with a trio that features Horace Parlan on piano, Rufus Reid on bass, and Al Harewood on drums! The album's got that subtle approach that marks Parlan's later years – a less all-out style than his start on Blue Note, but one that's maybe even more rewarding if you're willing to let yourself slide into it – something that's easy to do when you've got Joe pointing the way with his well-blown, raspy-edged tenor! Reid is mighty nice too – with those instantly-deep notes that always grab us strongly when he's recorded this well – the sort of presence that most other bassists would need to be electric to reach. Titles include "Alfie's Theme", "Bluesville", "FSR", "Wadin", and "Willow Weep For Me". Ellington Ballads is a nice little record that's very much along the lines of the duet sessions that pianist Horace Parlan cut with Archie Shepp – done with a similar open, soulful style that really brings a lot of personal energy to these tunes penned by Duke Ellington! This might be the first time we've ever heard tenorist Joe Van Enkhuizen, but he's a surprisingly great player – and one who carves out these raspy lines on his instrument that fit really well with the well-crafted lines from Parlan's piano – a lot more subtle and spacious than during his Blue Note years, but maybe even more powerful because of that. Titles include "Serenade To Sweden", "I Got It Bad", "Prelude To A Kiss", "Melancholy", "Sophisticated Lady", and "Creole Blues/Tonight I Shall Sleep". Pannonica is a tight little live set from pianist Horace Parlan – recorded with a wonderful trio that features Reggie Johnson on bass and Alvin Queen on drums – both players who seem to effortlessly match Parlan's shifts at every stage of the proceedings! The tracks are relatively long, and showcase all those changes that Horace had made on the European scene since his earlier years on Blue Note – that move towards warmer, more lyrical elements in his music – but still shaped with his ear for soulful modernism too. The titles are all familiar, but served up at the level that can make the right sort of live piano date sound so great – on selections that include "Hi Fly", "Who Cares", "No Greater Love", and "Pannonica". CD

A stone classic – and one of the wilder, more electronic albums from Sun Ra – a set that has him playing on "two moog synthesizers" – which both sound as if they're going at the same time! The rest of the group is quite small – with only John Gilmore, Marshall Allen, and Danny Davis – so Ra really center stage on the keys, and spends most of the record making some really weird and wonderful sounds on the moog – showing the world that, although the instrument was already gaining popularity in the hands of others, nobody could handle the futuristic sound machine like the spaceman himself! The mix of moog with avant jazz solos is completely sublime – and titles include "Intergalactic II", "To Nature's God", and "The Code Of Interdependence". CD features some great bonus tracks – the 17 minute "Space Probe", plus some alternates and odd takes too! CD

One of the key classics from the Jimmy Smith years at Blue Note Records – a really groundbreaking time for the Hammond organ in jazz, as Jimmy helped take it from backrooms in bars to center stage of jazz with a record like this! The album's about as iconic as you can get for Jimmy at the label – from the fantastic cover image, to the well-crafted tunes – many of which are shorter than some of Smith's earlier jam session-styled work, and help forge a bridge between soul jazz and the emerging soul instrumental sound of the early 60s. The album features some excellent work from the obscure Percy France on tenor on most of the tracks – a player we only know from a handful of dates – next to other quartet members who include Kenny Burrell on guitar and Donald Bailey on drums. Titles include "Sugar Hill", "I Got A Woman", "Motoring Along", "Gracie", and "Messin Around". CD features 5 previously unissued bonus tracks! CD

One of the key classics from the Jimmy Smith years at Blue Note Records – a really groundbreaking time for the Hammond organ in jazz, as Jimmy helped take it from backrooms in bars to center stage of jazz with a record like this! The album's about as iconic as you can get for Jimmy at the label – from the fantastic cover image, to the well-crafted tunes – many of which are shorter than some of Smith's earlier jam session-styled work, and help forge a bridge between soul jazz and the emerging soul instrumental sound of the early 60s. The album features some excellent work from the obscure Percy France on tenor on most of the tracks – a player we only know from a handful of dates – next to other quartet members who include Kenny Burrell on guitar and Donald Bailey on drums. Titles include "Sugar Hill", "I Got A Woman", "Motoring Along", "Gracie", and "Messin Around". LP, Vinyl record album

A seminal jazz rock statement from drummer Tony Williams – one that has him stepping out quite far from his original "new thing" recordings of the mid 60s! The album's got a genre-forming sound that's incredibly fierce – a power trio churning of Williams drums, John McLaughlin's guitar, and Larry Young's free-thinking work on organ. The tunes are long and jamming, but also have a tight rhythmic focus that never gets too sloppy – and which virtually set the stage for a whole generation of 70s fusion players in years to come! Young and McLaughlin are especially great – working here with Williams to pound out sheets of sound in a cosmic trippy maze of riffs and grooves, certainly enough to inspire the most addled rocker to head over to the jazz section! Though this set was released as two separate volumes, this double LP version has both albums, and features 8 tracks in all "Emergency", "Beyond Games", "Where", "Vashkar", "Sangria For Three", "Something Spiritual", "Spectrum", and "Via The Spectrum Road". CD

A landmark recording – Albert Ayler's first album for the ESP label, and a record that hit the jazz world like a bullet! Spiritual Unity sets the stage for a format that would become huge in the European avant scene of the 70s, 80s, 90s, and even today – the sax-driven power-trio, tenor against bass and drums, working freely with less rhythmic constraints than before, searching for new sounds and new modes of expression, working through changes in a style first proposed by Sonny Rollins, but taken to new intensity by the New York underground of the 60s. That sound is summed up here perfectly by Ayler, Gary Peacock, and Sunny Murray – working together with an edgey brilliance, on classic tracks that include "Ghosts: First Variation", "Ghosts: Second Variation", "The Wizard", and "Spirits". CD

The second volume of work that Donald Byrd recorded live at the Olympia in Paris in 1958 – even harder-hitting in tone than the first! The set features Byrd playing some tight hardbop lines – working in a cool group that also features Bobby Jaspar on tenor, Walter Davis Jr on piano, Doug Watkins on bass, and Art Taylor on drums – all players who come together with the sound and style of some of those great late 50s Prestige blowing sessions! The difference, though, is that Byrd is the clear leader here – working his trumpet solos with techniques that really show him growing as an artist on this Paris trip – forging a tight vision into the music that makes it way more than just a loose bop exercise on stage. You'll hear that especially on "52nd Street Theme", but the whole set's pretty darn great – and tracks include "At This Time", "Formidable", "Two Bass Hit", "Parisian Thoroughfare", and "Stardust". LP, Vinyl record album

Seminal modern jazz from Art Farmer & Gigi Gryce – a pair of records the players recorded together on Prestige Records in the mid 50s! First up is When Farmer Met Gryce – one of Art Farmer's pivotal mid 50s sides – recorded in the company of altoist Gigi Gryce, a great player and a budding young arranger who helped Farmer really formulate the best side of his sound! The tracks are lyrically modern – but still have a nice dose of soul in them – a wonderful blend that really sets the stage for the move that Art was making away from earlier trumpeters in jazz – into that hip territory that was neither too cool, nor too overblown – and which would almost be known as "Farmer-like" in years to come! The album features Gryce and Farmer in 2 different groups – one with Horace Silver on piano, Percy Heath on bass, and Kenny Clarke on drums – the other with Freddie Redd on piano, Addison Farmer on bass, and Art Taylor on drums. Titles include "Social Call", "Capri", "Deltitnu", "Stupendous Lee", and "Blue Concept". Art Farmer Quintet has Farmer playing in a quintet (natch!), with able accompaniment from Gigi Gryce, a young newcomer at this point, with a post-bop complication to his style that was not to dissimilar from Farmer's. Gryce's mode is perhaps a bit more academic than Farmer's, but Art's lyricism offsets that tendency nicely, and the pair work together in a mode that's every bit as pleasing as Gigi's work with Donald Byrd. The set features some great tracks in sort of an exoticist hardbop mode – and titles include "Satellite", "Shabozz", "Sans Souci", and "Evening In Casablanca". CD

Pianist Per Husby is a player with a rich, warm tone – one that really sets the stage here for some wonderfully soulful explorations by a very hip group – a combo who sound perfect when they hit a modal mode, but can also do some other wonderful things as well! Husby's piano is rich at the core, but the record is balanced with all sorts of great reed work – Knut Riisnaes on tenor, Harald Bergsen on alto and tenor, and Bjorn Johansen on soprano, tenor, and baritone – balanced nicely by the trumpet work of Bernt Anker Steen, and given a strong rhythmic pulse from Carl Morten Iversen on bass and Svein Erik Gaardvik on drums. And if you think all these Norwegian names might add up to a sleepy session, you're totally wrong – as the record is a great example of the way the better players on the European scene were absorbing American spiritual jazz experiments, then using the energy to make something new of their own. The title track "The Peacemaker" is worth the price of admission alone – and other titles include "Introduction To No Particular Song", "Smatta", "Nokve", "Fantasy In D", and "Adgang F". CD

Gerry's second 10" album for the Pacific Jazz label – and almost as groundbreaking as the first! Not only is the quartet with Chet Baker featured strongly on side 1 – with classics that include "Cherry", "Carson City Stage", and "Motel" – but Lee Konitz joins the group on side two, cutting things up with his angular alto sax – a sound that's beautifully placed next to the poised horns of Mulligan and Baker, in a way that really gives the record even more life! Titles on that side include "Sextet", "I Can't Believe That You're In Love With Me", "Lover Man", and "Lady Be Good". LP, Vinyl record album