One of Duke Ellington's standout sides for Columbia – a strong recording that revisits many of the best elements of his earlier work, and offers up some more sophisticated scoring for the 50s – thanks to extended track length in the LP generation! The tunes here are older ones, but they're taken to some nicely hip territory – thanks to Duke's strong ear for modern changes, and a line up of players that includes Billy Strayhorn on piano, Paul Gonsalves on tenor, Clark Terry and Ray Nance on trumpets, Juan Tizol on trombone, and Louis Bellson on drums. Bellson does a great job on the classic "Skin Deep" – a real showcase for his talents in this recording – and other titles include "The Mooche", "Take The A Train", and "Perdido" – plus a 13 minute reading of "A Tone Parallel To Harlem (aka The Harlem Suite)". LP, Vinyl record album

One of Duke Ellington's standout sides for Columbia – a strong recording that revisits many of the best elements of his earlier work, and offers up some more sophisticated scoring for the 50s – thanks to extended track length in the LP generation! The tunes here are older ones, but they're taken to some nicely hip territory – thanks to Duke's strong ear for modern changes, and a line up of players that includes Billy Strayhorn on piano, Paul Gonsalves on tenor, Clark Terry and Ray Nance on trumpets, Juan Tizol on trombone, and Louis Bellson on drums. Bellson does a great job on the classic "Skin Deep" – a real showcase for his talents in this recording – and other titles include "The Mooche", "Take The A Train", and "Perdido" – plus "The Controversial Suite". LP, Vinyl record album

... LP, Vinyl record album

A pretty great trio date from Billy Taylor – and somewhat overlooked, too! The group features Henry Grimes on bass and Ray Mosca on drums – and the set captures Billy in a perfect spot between his early work for Prestige, and some of his 60s mainstream material – heard here in a mode that's still got some nice soul jazz grit in the grooves. Titles include "Soul Sister", "Biddy's Beat", "La Petite Mambo", "Cu Blu", and "Warm Blue Stream". LP, Vinyl record album

A side's worth of recordings from the De Paris Brothers Orchestra and the Edmond Hall Sextet – with Sidney De Paris on trumpet, Wilbur De Paris on trombone, Edmond Hall on clarinet, Clyde Hart on piano, Billy Taylor on bass, and Gordon Specs Powell on drums from 1944; and Edmond Hall on clarinet, Emmett Berry on flute, Vic Dickenson on trombone, Eddie Heywood on piano, Al Casey on guitar, Billy Taylor on bass, and Big Sid Catlett on drums from 1945. LP, Vinyl record album

George Benson's first LP for Columbia – a hard, heavy, soul jazz slammer that bears no resemblance to his overproduced work of the 70s! The album's a real cooker – recorded hot on the heels of Benson's classic work on Prestige with the Jack McDuff group, and sounding a lot like McDuff's hard wailing organ jazz of the same time. George is working with a group that features a young Lonnie Smith on organ, plus Blue Mitchell on trumpet, Ronnie Cuber on sax, and Charlie Persip on drums – all tightly coming together, and jamming hard on the album's short cooking tracks. Tracks include "Clockwise", "Jaguar", "Hello Birdie", and "Bullfight". LP, Vinyl record album

Excellent later work fromt his great trombonist – with Al Cohn on tenor – plus Richard Wyands on piano, Ray Drummond on bass, and Akira Tana on drums! LP, Vinyl record album

The great one blows in a sweet 50s modern harbop mode – in a group with Red Rodney on trumpet, Albert Dailey on piano, Cecil McBee on bass, and Kenny Washington on drums. Titles include "Little Chico", "Social Call", "Half Nelson", "Greenhouse", "Darn That Dream", and "Casbah". LP, Vinyl record album

Two older players, cooking together beautifully on this early 80s session – and both hitting a vibe that almost makes the set smoke like some rare 60s gem on Blue Note! Frank Wess plays both tenor and alto sax – both of them extremely deep and soulful – with these open, thoughtful solos that almost show more imagination and maturity than in the early days – and also a swinging vibe that's undeniably great. Trumpeter Johnny Coles turns out to be a perfect partner for the session – and manages to mix his sweeter tones with some of his more modern phrasing too – in ways that make the album a treasure trove of unexpectedly great surprises – loads of illuminated passages that keep us coming back again and again over the years. The rhythm section is a good reason for the strength of the set too – and features Kenny Barron on piano, Reggie Johnson on bass, and Kenny Washington on drums – on titles that include "Celia", "Minority", "An Oscar For Oscar", "Ill Wind", "Morning Star", and "Whistle Stop". LP, Vinyl record album

One of our favorite-ever albums from Mel Torme – a set that sparkles with the same smooth swing as his best late 50s dates for Bethlehem records! Like those sets, this one features Torme's voice really taking off over some tight jazzy charts – arranged by Johnny Williams, Shorty Rogers, and Dick Hazard – all in styles close to those used previously by Marty Paich. But almost even better is the New York theme of the record – surprising, given the anti-NYC vibe of Torme's classic "California Suite" – but perfect, too, as it really ties the whole thing together wonderfully – creating this beautiful picture of the Big Apple in the postwar years. Titles include the greatest version of "Sunday In New York" you'll ever hear – plus "Let Me Off Uptown", "Autumn In New York", "New York New York", "Manhattan", and "My Time Of Day". (Vocalists, Jazz) LP, Vinyl record album

With selections by Frank Froeba & His Swing Band, Louis Prima & His New Orleans Gang, Frankie Newton & His Uptown Serenaders, The Three Peppers, Fats Waller, Art Tatum, Teddy Wilson, Clarence Profit Trio, and Bunny Berigan & His Boys. LP, Vinyl record album

A key early album from the young Cannonball Adderley – an a set that crossed over big, thanks to a mix of strong jazz solos from the leader and very inventive rhythms in the arrangements! The group here is larger than Adderley's usual quintet/sextet lineup – and includes reed work from Oliver Nelson and Jerome Richardson, trombone from Melba Liston, piano from Wynton Kelly, and even a bit of congas from Ray Barretto – all working under the hip leadership of Ernie Wilkins, who crafts these great charts for Cannon to solo over the top! A key moment of genius is the title track – a beautiful reading of Galt MacDermott's "African Waltz" – and other tracks include "Blue Brass Groove", "Something Different", "The Uptown", and "Letter From Home". LP, Vinyl record album

A really unusual later chapter in the career of guitarist Robby Krieger – a post-Doors album done for Blue Note Records – and a set that's got more than enough jazzy touches to live up to its placement on the label! Krieger's guitar gets plenty of workout on the album's fusion-styled grooves – often a lot more jazz than the rock you'd expect, with some especially great keyboards from Stu Goldberg and Sal Marquez – the latter of whom handled most of the soulful arrangements on the set. There's a bit of vocals – sometimes by a chorus, sometimes processed in a way that's almost vocoder – and the whole thing owes a lot more to mid 70s funky fusion than any of Robby's work with the Doors. Titles include "The Ally", "Low Bottomy", "Big Oak Basin", "Spare Changes", "Uptown", and "Gumpopper". (Rock, Jazz) LP, Vinyl record album

A beautifully full session from McCoy Tyner – one recorded with added horns and voices, and very much in the mode of some of Horce Silver's best 70s experiments for Blue Note! The sound is as bold, dynamic, and soulful as other Tyner albums from the time – and the added elements really help create a unique feeling – horn parts that underscore the power of Tyner's piano, and wordless vocals that rise to the skies, with a feel similar to Donald Byrd or Max Roach sessions like this – but with a bit more 70s vibe overall. Other players include Earl Klugh on guitar, Ron Carter on bass, and Jack DeJohnette on drums – and solos are by Jon Faddis on trumpet, Alex Foster on tenor, and Charles Stephens on trombone. Titles include "For Tomorrow", "Opus", "Festival In Bahia", "Rotunda", and "Uptown". LP, Vinyl record album

One of the coolest, grooviest 60s albums from trumpeter Donald Byrd – one that has him really reaching out for a hip new sound, but in ways that are different than most of his other material at the time! Key on the date is the placement of electric piano from Duke Pearson – played in this open, flowing style that has all the best hallmarks of Pearson's own work on the instrument for his sessions – yet balanced nicely with the bolder punch of Byrd's trumpet as well. Donald's quite far from any Miles Davis cliches on this one – no too-dark electric modes at all – and instead, the album's got this sense of lyrical soulfulness that we've maybe never heard this strongly again on any of Byrd's other albums. Other players include Frank Foster on tenor, Jerry Dodgion and Lew Tabackin on flute, Julian Priester on trombone, Jimmy Ponder on guitar, and either Idris Muhammad or Joe Chambers on drums. All tracks are nice and long, and very fresh – and include "Weasil", "I Love the Girl", "Fancy Free", and "The Uptowner". LP, Vinyl record album

A sweet session of 70s electric jazz – recorded as a unique live all-star outing by a group of Arista's best jazz players at the time! The group's an octet, but plays together in differing formations throughout the record – with Warren Bernhardt on keyboards, Michael Brecker on saxes, Randy Brecker on trumpet, Steve Jordan on drums, Steve Khan and Larry Coryell on guitars, Tony Levin on bass, and Mike Maineri on vibes – the last of which really make for some of the best numbers on the album! Bernhardt's keyboards are pretty good too – stepping out with a spacious, fluid feel that's never jamming – and more in the open-ended Bob James side of the spectrum, although his overall sound is a lot different than Bob's! Titles on this second volume include "Candles", "Cloud Motion", "Uptowned", "Love Play", and "A Funky Waltz". LP, Vinyl record album