One of the strongest statements ever recorded by bassist Sam Jones – a wickedly soulful session that cooks on all burners! The album's got a rich depth that far surpasses most of Jones' trio sessions – and is a full quintet album, with Terumasa Hino on cornet, Bob Berg on tenor, Ronnie Matthews on piano, and Al Foster on drums. Matthews' strong and soulful lines really push the whole group along – stretching out with modal energy that really seems to set the horns free. All tracks are extremely fresh, and played at a level that brings out the best we'd expect from the players – possibly more in fact – and the record's an under-appreciated gem in the Steeplechase catalog of the 70s! Titles include "Del Sasser", "Visitation", "Occurrence", "Jean Marie", and "Before You". CD also features 3 bonus alternate takes! CD

Gerry Mulligan meets up with a great array of 50s modernists here – in specially setting dedicated to all Mulligan-penned compositions! Although a radical player himself on the baritone sax, Gerry also added something strong to the 50s jazz catalog with his great tunes from the early days – gently modern numbers that slowly became standards over the years, thanks to respect from other players. The best of these tracks are showcased here – played by Mulligan with a sax section that includes Zoot Sims on alto and tenor, Al Cohn on tenor and baritone, Lee Konitz on alto, and Allan Eager on alto and tenor. Rhythm is by the piano-less section of Freddie Green on guitar, Henry Grimes on bass, and Dave Bailey on drums – and titles include "Venus De Milo", "Revelation", "Sextet", "Turnstyle", "Four & One More", "Crazy Day", and "Disc Jockey Jump". CD also features 4 bonus tracks, too! CD

A really smoking live set from Art Pepper – recorded quite late in his too-short career, and a great reminder that he still had plenty to offer us when he left the planet! The tracks are all very long, and Art's a masterful soloist throughout – blowing with the sort of non-stop energy and creative vision used on some of his famous expanded live dates from the final years – including the Vanguard sessions box set! Yet there's also maybe even more bite here – a very intense approach a times, driven strongly by a trio that features Milcho Leviev on piano, George Mraz on bass, and Al Foster on some especially strong drums. Titles include "Goodbye", "Red Car", "What Is This Thing Called Love", and "Make A List Make A Wish". CD

A really smoking live set from Art Pepper – recorded quite late in his too-short career, and a great reminder that he still had plenty to offer us when he left the planet! The tracks are all very long, and Art's a masterful soloist throughout – blowing with the sort of non-stop energy and creative vision used on some of his famous expanded live dates from the final years – including the Vanguard sessions box set! Yet there's also maybe even more bite here – a very intense approach a times, driven strongly by a trio that features Milcho Leviev on piano, George Mraz on bass, and Al Foster on some especially strong drums. Titles include "Goodbye", "Red Car", "What Is This Thing Called Love", and "Make A List Make A Wish". CD

Hard-swinging big band material – with a heavy emphasis on drums! The album is a suite of six tracks – all written by either Manny Albam or Ernie Wilkins, both of whom arrange the groups on the set – really letting them open up nicely on the album's longish tracks. Manny and Ernie were two of the more soulful arrangers of their day – and they get some strong performances out of the groups, letting players like Conte Candoli on trumpet, Hal McKusick on alto, Al Cohn on tenor, and Freddie Green on guitar open up in longer tracks driven to intensity by some great drum work handled by the lesser-known (but excellent) Ted Sommer. Titles include "Skinning The Valves", "Dancers On Drums", "Bristling", and "The Octopus". CD

Moody brilliance from pianist Mike Nock – a solid quartet date that features plenty of edgey tenor from Michael Brecker, who's in really great form throughout! The rhythm section has a nicely snakey vibe too – with George Mraz on bass and Al Foster on drums – and both players can come on strong when Mike needs them to, then lay back into some warmer, lyrical modes that really show Nock's melodic development at this point in his career. The piano is acoustic throughout – and titles include "Break Time", "Dark Light", "Shadows Of Forgotten Love", "Hadrian's Wall", and "The Gift". CD

Late work from trumpeter Clark Terry, but the kind of record that really lives up to his long legacy of specially-shaped sounds from his instrument – matched here by superb work from Al Grey on trombone! Terry always has this great way of evoking a mouthy, gritty vibe from his horn, while still delivering a clear, clean sound – and a great vision for a solo, even in a compact space – and that's carried forward here by very strong work from Al Grey, a player who didn't always get his chance to sparkle this much in later years! The group's got another great feature – no drums, just the bass of Marcus McLaurine and piano of Charles Fox – leaving plenty of open room for improvisation, and even more reliance on the inherently rhythmic styles of both hornmen. Titles include "Hooties Blues", "Greazy Blues", "Cool Vibes", "Sluggo", "Hip Hat Blues", and "The View From Glencove". CD

An amazing recording finally sees the light of day – a beautiful set of duets between Fred Anderson on tenor and Steve McCall on percussion – both very important players of the second wave of AACM musicians in the 70s, even though both artists never fully got their due! The material was recorded in 1980, not too long before we lost McCall – and the interplay is wonderful, and really represents a shift in the energy of the AACM scene – maybe some influence from the loft jazz world of mid 70s New York, which in turn drew inspiration from late 60s Chicago – but also delivered with a sense of soul that marks Anderson as part of a key lineage of Chicago tenorists that includes Clifford Jordan, Johnny Griffin, and John Gilmore! McCall is great too – a sensitive soul, but a strong force throughout – as the duo improvise on two long tracks, "Within" and "Wandering". CD

Wonderful 50s vocal work from Louis Armstrong – with backing from Sy Oliver, and some sweet trumpet solos too! CD

On Great Summit Duke joins the combo of Louis Armstrong on piano – a group that includes Trummy Young on trombone and Barney Bigard on clarinet! We've always loved Duke Ellington's soundtracks, and Paris Blues is one of his best! The score is a moody introspective one, written for a 1961 film that starred Paul Newman as a frustrated jazz musician living in Paris. The "Paris Blues" theme is a dark, somber composition that is supposedly Newman's masterpiece as a jazz writer – and it works beautifully with the film's themes of frustration and unfulfilled desire. Ellington's at his best here, and apart from the main theme, the score also has great versions of classics like "Mood Indigo" and "Take The A Train", plus originals like "Nite", "Wild Man Moore", "Guitar Amour", and "Paris Stairs". Also features Louis Armstrong on one track! CD

Gentle-going genius from the later years of Satchmo's career – a session that has Louis on trumpet and vocals, backed by the Oscar Peterson Trio! Peterson's usual group with Herb Ellis and Ray Brown is expanded slightly for this outing – bringing in Louis Bellson on drums to syncopate the tunes a bit more strongly, and give them that gently swinging rhythm that always works well with Armstrong's style. The real surprise, though, is Louis' voice – which is simple, almost elegant at times – and free from some of the gimmicks of other 50s sessions, or the too-playful style of his better-known duets of the period. We really love his gentle, honest approach to the lyrics here – on tunes that include "I'll Never Be The Same", "Moon Song", "What's New", "There's No You", "You Go To My Head", "That Old Feeling", and "Let's Fall In Love". CD also features 4 bonus tracks – including "Let's Do It", "I Get A Kick Out Of You", "Willow Weep For Me", and "Makin Whoopee". CD

A previously unreleased live performance by Albert Ayler – recorded in France in 1970 for the Maeght Foundation, but not the same material that was issued on the better-known Shandar albums! This concert predates those, and is a unique later outing that's strongly in the spirit of some of Ayler's earliest work for ESP – with longer tracks that serve mostly as a vehicle for Albert's own exploratory passages on tenor and soprano sax! The group's a quartet, with Steve Tintweiss on bass, Allen Blairman on drums, and Mary Maria on soprano sax and a bit of voice – but the way the concert's recorded, Ayler's tone is most strongly upfront in the mix, and seems to dominate most numbers. Titles include "Music Is The Healing Force Of The Universe", "Birth Of Mirth", "Masonic Inborn", "Oh Love Of Life", "Heart Love", and "Island Harvest". CD

Searing live work from Gato Barbieri – a brilliant little album that follows on the spirit of his other Latin America sessions for Impulse! The format here is similar to those studio outings – an organic blend of percussion, keyboards, and sax – all bubbling together in a highly rhythmic mode that easily shifts between electric and acoustic statements, all in a jazz-based pursuit of older Latin American rhythms and expressions! Eddie Martinez plays some great Fender Rhodes on the album – ringing out with warm tones that are strongly offset by Gato's sharp-edge tenor lines – and all tracks are nice and long, and flow with a sense of creative energy that almost surpasses the studio albums in the series! Titles include "Milonga Triste", "La China Leoncia", "Baihia", and "Lluvia Azul". CD

Fantastic work from the team of Binker Golding and Moses Boyd – a pair who just seem to get more and more fantastic with each new album – as they do here, with some heavy-hitting help from Evan Parker on tenor and soprano sax, and Byron Wallen on trumpet! Yet the most compelling addition might be drummer Yussef Days – who works alongside the drums of Moses, to create this really dynamic two-drum sound to the group – one that's really explosive right from the start, especially when the tenor of Golding gets wrapped around the horns of Parker and Wallen! Tori Handsley also plays harp on the record, and can really change up the sound when her approach is strong – on titles that include "Children Of The Ultra Blacks", "How Land Learnt To Be Still", "The Death Of Light", "The Discovery Of Human Flesh", and "How Air Learnt To Move". CD

Boneshaking music from this mighty bold trio – a lineup that features lots of stunning reedwork from the late Mars Williams, alongside bass from Kent Kessler and drums from Paal Nilssen-Love – both artists who do a great job of coming on strong when needed, then laying back to allow for more sensitive sonic interplay! The vibe's a bit like some of the classic Okka Disk performances from all players, but also shows how much they've evolved as well – especially Williams, whose later work is always so amazing. Mars also plays some toy instruments as well – and titles include "Preantepenultimate", "Oculoplania", "Mallemaroking", and "Brontide". CD

We're not sure why David Boykin couldn't name the club for this performance – as the set's every bit as great as his other live recordings in other venues, and is a testament to the continuing development of this underground saxophone giant of the 21st century! The group is a quartet, with Jim Baker on piano, Alex Wing on bass, and Isaiah Spencer on drums – and at points, Baker's presence on the record is as strong as the raspy tenor of Boykin – even on one track where David vocalizes a bit too. Titles include "Despair", "Big & Fine", and "Fantasy Island". CD

One of the best Dave Brubeck albums from later years – and one of the hippest! The record is noteworthy for its pairing of Anthony Braxton and Lee Konitz – the former a rising star at the time, influenced strongly by the latter in his roots – showcased here in some rare moments of Braxton straight-aheadness! Brubeck's contribution is heard most strongly on the album's extended trio "Jimmy Van Huesen Medley" – played by Dave with Jack Six on bass and Alan Dawson on drums. But we're most partial to the saxophone tunes – Konitz playing a spare duet with Brubeck on "Don't Get Around Much Anymore", soloing with the group on "Like Someone In Love", duetting with Braxton on "All The Things You Are" – and stepping back to let Anthony play with Dave on a version of "In Your Own Sweet Way". Really great stuff throughout – and a unique Brubeck moment! CD

One of the most hard-hitting sessions ever recorded for the Bethlehem label – and a rare date for the imprint by the team of trumpeter Donald Byrd and saxophonist Pepper Adams! The style here is similar to work the pair recorded for Riverside and Blue Note at the same time – razor-sharp hardbop, played with a strong sense of imagination, and plenty of room for drawn-out, creatively-blown solos. Adams is especially great – playing the baritone here with the leanness of a tenor sax – but Byrd is wonderful too, and really starts to break out of some of the more staid modes of his work from a few years back. The group's a sextet that includes guitarist Kenny Burrell, pianist Tommy Flanagan, bassist Paul Chambers, and drummer "Hey" Lewis (another name for Louis Hayes?) – on titles that include "Trio", "Philson", "Libeccio", and "Bitty Ditty". CD

One of those records that just makes us say "wow" right from the very first note – a perfect showcase for all musicians involved, and a really mighty meeting of the creative minds! We've really loved the strong return to form that Matthew Shipp has given us on piano in recent years – and of course, the basswork of William Parker is always tremendous – but they both somehow rise even more to the top alongside the drums of Gerald Cleaver and reeds of Daniel Carter – in a session that's wonderfully spiritual, very rhythmic, and often quite straight at times! There's a balance between the avant impulses of the players and the collective action of the group – almost recalling the loft jazz years, but more contemporarily righteous too – and this second volume features titles that include "Wordwide", "Mask Production", "Da Rest Is Story", and "Blinking Down". CD

Lots of heavy love here – a wonderful sense of rapport between the great tenorist Al Cohn and piano genius Jimmy Rowles! Both musicians were still recording heavily at the time of this album, but the record seems to capture them in a really special space that still stands strongly on its own – a mode that's much more relaxes than some of the Pablo Records sessions of the time, and which has Cohn in an especially striking mode – really hitting these openly-blown, often-angular lines that are dripping with soul – more heart and feeling than we might normally expect from him, matched equally by Jimmy Rowles' wonderful phrasing on piano – very much here at the top shelf level he delivered with Stan Getz on The Peacocks album. Titles include "I Hadn't Anyone Till You", "Bar Talk", "These Foolish Things", "Them There Eyes", and "Sweet & Lovely". Features the bonus track "For All We Know". CD

An unusual session of trad jazz for the mostly-west coast World Pacific label – one that features guitarist Eddie Condon at the host of an all-star group that includes Rex Stewart on cornet, Bud Freeman on tenor sax, Herb Hall on clarinet, and Cutty Cutshall on trombone. The sound's in a strongly trad mode overall – but a number of tunes get some longer treatments here, and expand with freedoms of later recording modes. Titles include "Ostrich Walk", "Sensation Rag", "Livery Stable Blues", "Tiger Rag", "Reisenweber Rag", and "Lazy River". CD also features 4 bonus tracks that include "Skeleton Jungle", "Clarinet Marmalade", and "Satanic Blues". CD

Fantastic work from one of the most overlooked alto talents of all-time! This beautiful CD features tracks from Sonny's 3 rare albums on Imperial – Jazz USA, Go Man, and Plays Cole Porter. The records were all recorded in 1956 – and they feature some of the strongest bop playing to ever come out of LA, total proof that that city wasn't always noodling around with cool jazz during the 50s! Sonny plays alto so well you want to cry – and every note is perfectly placed, with just the right mix of technical skill and warm soulful humanity. Most of this material has only ever been reissued in Japan – and the CD includes wealth of excellent cuts like "If I Had You", "I Love You", "Wailin With Joe", "West Coast Blues", "Criss Cross", "Ham's Blues", and "Blue Friday" – but the whole thing's great! CD

A sublime early set from John Coltrane – and one of Tadd Dameron's greatest moments on record ever! The session's a laidback quartet one – with John Simmons on bass and Philly Joe Jones on drums, completing the group with Dameron on piano and Trane on tenor – all coming together in a style that's loose, but still quite sharp overall – especially given Coltrane's tremendous tone, which really helps take the record to the next level from the very first moment it comes into the mix! Dameron's piano is strong, but subtle – and his compositions are what really make the record great – tunes that include "Soultrane", "Mating Call", "Romas", "Super Jet", and "On A Misty Night". CD

A sublime early set from John Coltrane – and one of Tadd Dameron's greatest moments on record ever! The session's a laidback quartet one – with John Simmons on bass and Philly Joe Jones on drums, completing the group with Dameron on piano and Trane on tenor – all coming together in a style that's loose, but still quite sharp overall – especially given Coltrane's tremendous tone, which really helps take the record to the next level from the very first moment it comes into the mix! Dameron's piano is strong, but subtle – and his compositions are what really make the record great – tunes that include "Soultrane", "Mating Call", "Romas", "Super Jet", and "On A Misty Night". CD

An strong session of soulful hardbop – featuring reunited 60s legends Junior Cook on tenor, Kenny Drew on piano, Sam Jones on bass, and Jimmy Cobb on drums! The album was recorded in Japan, using some of that high-tech production ("super disc", the label says), but still nicely retaining the warm interplay between the players. Titles include "Alone Together", "Sunset", "John Paul Jones", and "All The Things You Are". CD

A very cool date from Duke Ellington – one that's based strongly around the talents of tenorist Paul Gonsalves – always a key member of the Ellington ensemble, and quite a leader on his own in the 60s! The lineup is a familiar version of the Ellington orchestra – but the setting's a bit different, in the Gonsalves is really the main soloist here – blowing long and beautifully on tracks that are really designed to showcase his amazing tone on the tenor! Things are nice and raspy from Paul, and plenty creative too – especially since he's got room to get in a lot more licks than usual – and titles include "Paris Blues", "Ready Go", "Happy Go Lucky Local", "Caravan", and "Jam With Sam". CD

Two slices of never-issued work from pianist Bill Evans – material recorded on two different dates in Denmark in 1964, both featuring work from his fantastic trio that featured Chuck Israels on bass and Larry Bunker on drums! Both players were key to helping Evans develop the sound that he would carry forth strongly into the 70s – Bunker with a very subtle, open touch on the drums – and Israels with a modern conception of basswork that followed strongly from some of the experiments that Scott LaFaro had begun with Evans a few years before. The set features one batch of tracks recorded for Danish Radio, another for TV in Copenhagen – and titles include "Give", "I Didn't Know What Time It Was", "Waltz For Debby", "Sweet & Lovely", "My Foolish Heart", and "How My Heart Sings". CD also features a bonus track – a 1969 Denmark recording of "Round Midnight", with Eddie Gomez on bass and Marty Morell on drums. CD

A pair of albums from saxophonist Wilton Felder – back to back on a single CD! We All Have A Star offers up solo sounds from Crusaders reedman Wilton Felder – a really great set that's very much in the best vibe of his larger group at the time – yet one that also offers up a stronger focus on Wilton's sublime solo work on tenor! The album's got plenty of Crusaders help on board – given that Stix Hooper and Joe Sample produced the set along with Wilton – and the vibe's a wonderful blend of electric backings, with especially great keyboard lines, and Felder's well-phrased saxophone lines over the top! A few cuts feature vocals – sung by Angela Bryant or Debbie Demoia Ross – and titles include "We All Have A Star", "I Know Who I Am", "The Cycles Of Time", "Why Believe", "Ride On", and "You & Me & Ecstasy". Inherit The Wind is one of the best Crusaders-related solo projects – a soulful bit of fusion from saxophonist Wilton Felder, co-produced with his fellow Crusaders! The album's got the best sunny finish of the group's late 70s albums – traces of Latin, funk, and soul bubbling through a warm jazzy mix – staying soulful all the way through, and coming up with a sound that's smooth, but never sleepy. The blueprint for a million other records – none of which ever sounded this good! Titles include "Insight", "LA Light", "Until The Morning Comes", "Someday We'll All Be Free", and "Inherit The Wind". CD

A seminal 70s set from the legendary Air trio – and one of their wonderful non-American dates from the early years – material recorded overseas, where this famous AACM trio was maybe getting more attention than in the US! The album was originally a Japanese-only album, and it's easily one of the group's greatest of the decade – a sublime set that really has them working strongly in their AACM roots, yet also reaching for a new sound too – a beautiful balance between jazz generations, carried off perfectly by the trio of Henry Threadgill on reeds, Fred Hopkins on bass, and Steve McCall on drums! Tracks are long, and extremely inventive – and titles include "Through A Keyhole Darkly", "Air Raid", and "Midnight Sun". CD

An early Verve album by Japanese pianist Toshiko Akioshi – recorded during her 50s years in the US, with a heavy boppish sound that's quite different than her later work! At the time, Toshiko was a strong disciple of Bud Powell – and there's a lot of Powell's fluid frenetic playing in her work – recorded on the first eight tracks with a quartet that includes Herb Ellis on guitar, in sessions from 1953, and recorded on the last four tracks live at the Newport Jazz Festival in 1957 with her trio that includes Gene Cherico on bass and a young Jake Hanna on drums. Twelve tracks in all, with titles that include "Shadrack", "Gone With The Wind", "Toshiko's Blues", "Squatty Roo", "Laura", "Between Me & Myself", "Lover", and "Blues For Toshiko". CD

Tenorist Fred Anderson made some fantastic albums for the Okka Disk label during the later years of his life – and this wonderful set has the legend making tremendous new fire with the label's excellent DKV Trio! Given that the group already features Ken Vandermark on saxes, the pairing of Anderson and Ken is a heck of a match – driven on strongly here by the bassist Kent Kessler, who's at the height of his powers during these years – and drummer Hamid Drake, whose range is maybe even more bold here than usual. Titles include "Planet E", "Lady's In Love", "Aaron's Tune", "Black Woman", "Our Theme", and "Dark Day". CD

An amazing little soundtrack – written in mid 60s Peru by jazz pianist Jaime Delgado Aparicio, but easily on a par with some of the best American or Italian scores from the time! The music's got a really wonderful feel throughout – jazz at the core, but with touches of spy soundtrack scoring and some of the lighter, more comedic modes of the Italian scene. Delgado uses a core combo with heavy piano, percussion, and some great trumpet and tenor – almost with the tightness of the Basso-Valdambrini group – but he also expands the sound with bits of strings and some fuller orchestrations, used to shade in some amazing colors that roll, dip, and turn with the beautiful grooves penned for the set. The whole thing's tremendous, with equally great production that creates some odd twists and turns that further keep things interesting as the album rolls on. Titles include "Elm Embajador Y Yo", "Sexy Surf", "Llegando A La Capital", "Isometria", "Todo El Mundo Me Persigue", "Lucha En El Mar", and "La Arana". Added to the soundtrack is Jamie's 1964 album – Jaime Delgado Aparicio Y Su Trio – a crackling bit of piano jazz from the Peruvian scene of the 60s – and a record that's somewhere between the best of Horace Silver on Blue Note, and some of the Brazilian bossa trios of the time! There's a strong sense of rhythm throughout – round, rolling basslines punctuated by great work on the drum kit – all topped by beautifully lyrical lines from Delgado Aparicio on piano – filled with color, light, and life throughout – and soloing with a depth that's rare for such a young player! Titles include a great version of Horace Silver's "Sayonara Blues", plus "The Climate", "Autumn Leaves", "Walkin", and "Blue Daniel". (Soundtracks, Jazz) CD

One of the most creative albums ever from UK composer Neil Ardley – and that's saying a lot, given the complexity of his other work! The set's got a wonderful blend of jazz arrangements and some freer passages – scored by Ardley with some of his most sensitive, most beautiful music ever – almost as if the whole thing's an extended soundtrack for a passage in time – or at least a sonic journey that's filled with some wonderful twists and turns! There's definitely some jazz/rock elements in the music, but the main focus is jazz – and Ardley has that same strong sense of large charts and forward-moving rhythms that you'd find in the best early work of Mike Westbrook, particularly his albums for Deram. Players are a very familiar, and very top-shelf batch of British musicians – including Barbara Thompson, Dick Heckstall-Smith, and Don Rendell on reeds; Harry Beckett and Henry Lowther on trumpets; Derek Wadsworth on trombone, Frank Rocotti on vibes, and Stan Tracey on both piano and celeste. Ardley plays prepared piano, and Ivor Cutler makes a great guest appearance on one track – reciting "The Dong With A Luminous Nose" – and Norma Winstone sings on "Will You Walk A Little Faster". The title track – "A Symphony Of Amaranths" – is dedicated to Duke Ellington and Gil Evans – with a feel that more than lives up to both! CD features the bonus track "National Anthem & Tango". CD

2 classics by the Art Ensemble Of Chicago – back to back on one CD! At the time they were taking Paris by storm, the Art Ensemble recorded these brilliant albums – both of which are some of their strongest early work, far more well-formed than any of their individual expressions recorded earlier in Chicago! The CD features the group at their best – playing very tightly, but also with a sense of whimsy and imagination, and the kind of free-thinking exploration that informed a whole generation of jazz musicians, offering a different mode of expression than the spiritualism of the post-Coltrane years. Includes "A Brain For The Seine", a real classic by the band – plus "Jackson In Your House", "Get In Line", "Song for Charles", "Dexterity" and "Old Time Religion", and "Rock Out". CD

Beautiful work from the Art Ensemble – and one of their undisputed classics! The record features some of the most perfectly realized moments the band ever cut to wax, with a blend of whimsical multi-instrumental improvisation, and a strong sense of the spiritual tradition in jazz. The album features one long piece – "Reese & The Smooth Ones" – and it's a stunning array of spontanteous instrumentation, with a jagged sound that never stops reinventing itself! CD

An excellent album that's a perfect document of the strong impact that Quincy Jones had in the transatlantic jazz scene of the late 50s and early 60s! The set was recorded in 1960, and features two players that Quincy would leave behind in Europe to have a huge influence on the scene. Trumpeter Benny Bailey is the greatest of these – and his impact on jazz in Germany and Sweden during the 60s and 70s cannot be discounted. The other is drummer Joe Harris, who does excellent work here in a group that includes Arne Domnerus on sax, Ake Persson on trombone, and Gunnar Svensson on piano – all Swedes that Quincy picked up after touring the country heavily during the late 50s. The set grooves with the best of Jones' work on Mercury from the time – and although Quincy's not listed in the credits, it's probably only because of contractual reasons. Titles are all Jones originals – including "Meet Benny Bailey", "Plenty, Plenty Soul", "Fallen Feathers", and "The Midnight Sun Never Sets". CD

A sweet little quartet session from the mid 50s – one of Chet Baker's legendary albums recorded in Paris at the time, with a quality that's nicely different from some of his work in the US! Part of that quality is the group – an unusual lineup that includes Gerard Gustin on piano, Jimmy Bond on bass, and Bert Dahlander on drums – but Baker is also changing things up a bit from the Pacific Jazz years too, and working with a more sophisticated understanding of sound and tone that would develop even more strongly in the later half of the 50s! As usual with Chet, the tunes are standards, but completely transformed by his handling – titles that include "I'll Remember April", "Tenderly", "Lover Man", "Summertime", and "You Go To My Head". CD

Completely evocative late life work from Chet Baker – one of the last albums he ever recorded, and a set that shows just how much Baker kept evolving in the later years of his career! Given some of the personal troubles that plagued Chet over the decades, there's sometimes a thought out there that he was a weaker version of himself at this time – but that's definitely not the case, as Baker really shifted his sound and style to accommodate some of his challenges, at a level that maybe made the music even more powerful than some of his music from years before! Some of the best moments here feature contributions from key musical partner of the 80s Nicola Stilo, who uses flute, guitar, and piano in these light ways while Chet's soloing with this strong, fluid vibe that's a real surprise – gentle, but extremely powerful. A few cuts bring in a bit of keyboards, and Chet sings a bit – but his best "singing" here is through his trumpet, which is still a hell of a voice in jazz. Titles include "Chet's Blues", "Waiting For Chet", "The Party Is Over", "With Sadness", "Deep Arabesques", and "Like The Precedent" – plus a lovely reading of the Elvis Costello tune "Almost Blue". CD

Although the initial release of this music was a cheap attempt to cash in on the tragic fame of the late James Dean, this 1956 session was also one of the nicest big band dates to come out of the Pacific Jazz catalog of the 1950s! Chet Baker and Bud Shank are the featured soloists of the set – and the group's conducted by Johnny Mandel and Bill Holman, both excellent arrangers with a strong feel for soundtrack-oriented material of this sort. Tommy Sands sings vocals on a version of "Let Me Be Loved", which is the only standard on the set – as the rest of the tracks are originals by the great Leith Stevens. The band's filled with other west coasters that you'll recognize – and titles include "The Movie Star", "Jimmy's Theme", "The Search", "Lost Love", and "Rebel At Work". CD

One of the hippest albums Gato Barbieri ever cut – and a key link between his late 60s avant work with Don Cherry, and his Latin-tinged albums of the 70s! The album features Barbieri working with a New York group of avant players – including Beaver Harris on drums, Roswell Rudd on trombone, and Charlie Haden on bass – but the sound is a bit more focused and forward-moving than you might expect, thanks to a strong sense of rhythm on the date. Lonnie Liston Smith plays piano and Richard Landrum handles conga and percussion to give the set a slightly Latin flavor – and the overall sound is not that dissimilar from some of Pharoah Sanders' albums at the same time on Impulse. Barbieri's tone is fantastic – and the spiralling piano work by Smith really gives the album a lofty spiritual tone – on titles that include "Zelao", "Cancion Del Llamero", "Haleo & The Wild Rose", and "Antonio Das Mortes". CD

A great set from the always-soulful Kenny Barron – stepping out here with a sense of soulful interplay that recalls his best recordings of the 70s! The group on the album's a quintet, graced by some extremely strong work on vibes by Stefon Harris – who brings an almost Bobby Hutcherson-like feel to the album, working in rich tones and colors next to Barron's keys, edged in by some sharper flute and alto work by Anne Drummond. The set's awash in great originals, plus a few well-chosen covers – and titles include "Song For Abdullah", "Images", "Miss Missy", "Inside Out", "Jasmine Flower", "The Lost Ones", "So It Seems", and "Footprints". CD

Unissued live material from a great stretch in the career of Count Basie – that time when he was turning in some excellent concert performances for Roulette Records, material that's got very similar charms to the music on this set! As with most of Roulette Basie, that revived sense of timing from Neal Hefti is very strongly in play – that magnificent sense of space between the notes that made this period of the Count's ensemble such a great one – with a rhythmic focus that's brilliant, and which opens up with even more excitement when a key soloist steps in! Players include Thad Jones and Snooky young on trumpets, Henry Coker and Benny Powell on trombones, Frank Foster and Eric Dixon on tenors, Freddie Green on guitar, Marshall Royal on alto, and Frank Wess on flute and alto – and there's a bit of vocals on a few tracks from later soul singers OC Smith and Irene Reid. Titles include "Segue In C", "Why Not", "Easy Money", "Backwater Blues", "Lil Darlin", "Easin It", "April In Paris", and "Cute". CD

Count Basie rewrites history – updating his older work for the Roulette Records years, in this hip collection that features lots of new arrangements from Frank Foster – and rich performances from his great group at the time! The recordings are all new, as are the conceptions of the tunes – so there seems to be even more syncopated swing in the rhythms than on any of the older takes on the material – that fresh sound that the group grew into with Neal Hefti – still going strong here in Foster's hands. So although the tunes are Basie classics – and classics from other bands of the 30s and 40s – the performances and solos are plenty fresh! Titles include "Swinging The Blues", "Out The Window", "Texas Shuffle", "Down For Double", "Lester Leaps In", "Topsy", "Taps Miller", "Shorty George", "Jive At Five", and "Dogging Around". CD

A rare bit of righteous jazz from the Cali scene of the 70s – a record that's much more obscure than some of the better-known efforts from the Bay Area and the LA scene, but which resonates strongly with all the power of those classics too! James Benson was an educator as much as he was a musician – yet here, he proves himself very strongly as a hell of a leader – blowing flutes, tenor, and soprano in a cool combo that also features the greats Cal Green and Roy Gaines on guitars, Ed Pratt on alto, Buffalo Williams on piano, and Ronnie Randall on drums! There's plenty of percussion on the record, including some congas by Big Black – and the set mixes rootsy rumblings with spiritual solos in a really great way. Sandra Meadows sings a bit on the set, and titles include "Malcolm IX", "Spring 2000", "Brother Don", "Song For My Black Mother", "Nigeria West Africa", and a nice remake of "Compared To What". (Jazz, Jazz) CD

A sublime tribute to the music of Bobby Hutcherson – put together by drummer Brian Blade with a group that really lives up to the soulful spirit of some of Bobby's best Blue Note material of the early 70s! Monte Croft is on vibes, and really gets that sense of color right that we love in Hutcherson's music – yet the record also has a nice sense of flavor of its own – thanks to strong use of congas from Rogerio Boccato, guitar from John Hart, and some especially nice flute, tenor, and alto from Myron Walden. John Cowherd colors in things nicely on piano and Wurlitzer piano, Doug Weiss plays bass, and titles include "Now", "Black Heroes", "The Final Four", "Love & Hate", "Hello To The Wind", and "Slow Change". CD

The rarest of all of Art Blakey's percussion group projects – and quite possibly the best, too! The session features Blakey at the head of a strong mix of jazz and percussion players – with Art Taylor and Philly Joe Jones on the regular drum kit, Donald Byrd on trumpet and Ray Bryant on piano, and a host of assorted percussion work by the likes of Ray Barretto, Sabu Martinez, Victor Gonzalez, Julio Martinez, and others. The resultant sound is incredible – very full, rich, and earthy – and done in a way that interweaves African and Latin percussion styles with straighter American jazz! A few cuts have chanting by Blakey and Sabu – and titles include "The Feast", "Mirage", "Lamento Africano", "O'Tinde", "Swingin Kilts", "Dinga", "Reflection", and "Aghano". CD

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! CD

One of Art Blakey's first true moments of genius! This transitional version of the Jazz Messengers included two parts – Lee Morgan and Bobby Timmons – of the holy Morgan/Shorter/Timmons trilogy, and it's also got the added bonus of Benny Golson on tenor, who was at the height of his power at this point. The record really shines in ways that few Blakey albums shone since his days with Horace Silver – in that it's a forum for fresh new writing, most importantly Golson's landmark compositions "Blues March" and "Along Came Betty", and Timmons' instant classic "Moanin". The whole album's wonderful, though, and Golson's edgey modernism adds a strong dimension to the group's usual soulful romping groove! (And in fact, as a tribute to the group's success, the album was initially named Art Blakey & The Jazz Messengers, but quickly retitled Moanin in this version, after the big hit single!) CD also features a bonus version of "Moanin". CD

Trombonist Samuel Blaser pays tribute to the legacy of Jamaican music – but in a way that also resonates strongly with some of his more jazz-based releases too! The record's mostly instrumental – but does have vocals from Carroll Thompson on two tracks, and Lee Scratch Perry on two more – yet the main focus is on the horn work, with Blaser echoing earlier greatness of players like Vin Gordon or Don Drummond – but in a more jazz-based setting with work from Alex Wilson on keyboards and Hammond, Soweto Kinch on alto, Michael Blake on tenor, and Alan Weekes on guitar. The set also features guest work from Steve Turre on one track – and titles include "Rainy Days", "Silver Dollar", "End Of The Beginning", "Rainy Days Dub", "Chronicles", "Beautiful Bed Of Lies", and "Green Island Dub". CD

An all-star group take on the music of Duke Pearson – paying wonderful tribute to the kind of special, soulful grooves that Duke cooked up during his too-short career on Blue Note Records in the 60s! The lineup here is top-shelf, and very much in keeping with the sort of strong combos that Pearson would put together – both for records under his own name, and as a producer for Blue Note – and the lineup here features Diego Rivera on tenor and soprano sax, Art Hirahara on piano, Boris Kozlov on bass, and Vinnie Sperrazza on drums – a no-nonsense group who really focus in on the best elements of the songs, then let loose with great solo work. Jon Davis replaces Hirahara on three tracks on the set on piano – and titles include the great tune "Is That So", plus "You Know I Care", "Sweet Honey Bee", "ESP", "Chili Peppers", "Ready Rudy", and "Idle Moments". CD

Great work as a leader from Don Braden – a set that was one of his last before moving onto bigger-label fame, and one that's very firmly rooted in the soul jazz underground! Don's got a really classic sound on his tenor – blowing with focus, poise, and a hell of a lot of soul – at times taking us back to older Houston Person records from a few decades before, but also burning with more fire too – especially on the numbers that leap strongly forward with some great rhythms from Kevin Hays on piano, Joris Teepe on bass, and Cecil Brooks III on drums. Brooks produced the set, keeping all edges sharp – and titles include "The Break", "Hillside", "A Blue Spree", "Have You Met Miss Jones", "Landing Zone", "Nightline", and "Amsterdam Jam". CD

Dollar Brand playing solo – but with a vibrancy that hardly makes you miss the other instruments at all! Most of the record features solo piano, but there's also a bit of bamboo flute as well – leading off the set and establishing this great organic vibe to the whole thing, which is then followed by Brand's long-spun, completely hypnotic lines on piano! The recording quality is wonderful – very clear and strong, and quite resonant too – and the set features two side-long long suites – "Africa" and "Reflection" – with shorter passages that move through the warm range of moods you'd find in Brand's other strong work from the time. Titles include "Ancient Africa", "Msunduza", "Single Petal Of A Rose", and "African Sun". CD

The baritone sax of German musician Helmut Brandt is at the helm– but the album's equally noteworthy for its strong use of American players Benny Bailey on trumpet, Nat Peck on trombone, and Herb Geller on alto! The concert is one of those wonderful meetings of American and European jazz talents in a large group setting – the kind of mode that cooked up most famously in the Clark Boland Big Band of the 60s – but which also was simmering all over Europe in the decade – as it does here with additional work from Europeans Ack Van Rooyen on trumpet, Stefan Von Dobrzynski on tenor and flute, Gunter Meier on piano, and Siegfried Schmidt on trombone. The tunes are mostly hard-swinging, and exploding with colors – very much in a mid 60s MPS/Saba mode – with a nice balance between individuality and group sound. Titles include "Berlin Calling", "Boris", "Opus C-Moll 794", "Trifi", "Boogie Waltz", and the long "Ferien Suite". CD

A fantastic double-length set – two full albums of music, essential for any fan of Brazilian jazz – or even jazz in general! First up is Esperanto – an incredible album from one of Brazil's greatest reed players of the 70s – the mighty Victor Assis Brasil – a free-thinking spirit who really took Brazilian jazz in bold new directions at the time! The record shows Victor absorbing a lot of post-Coltrane influences, and blending them with a tight approach to rhythm – laid down here by Dom Salvador on piano (and organ), Edison Lobo on bass, and Edson Machando on drums. The group is completed by Helio Delmiro on guitar, and Claudio Roditi plays trumpet on one track – but the real highlight is the amazing reed work by Brasil, which is filled with soul and warmth, plus a deep sense of exploration. The whole session was put together by Roberto Quartin in 1970 – and it's still extremely fresh today. Titles include "Children", "Gingerbread Boy", "Senegal", and "Marilia". Next is Toca Antonio Carlos Jobim – a fantastic album from this legendary Brazilian saxophonist – and one that's way different than the usual instrumental reading of the music of Antonio Carlos Jobim! The setting is less of a bossa-inspired one than a post-Coltrane mode – as Victor Assis Brasil blows alto sax, and a bit of soprano – on long, stretched out versions of Jobim compositions – often given a bit of modal energy, thanks to the group's strong piano and organ performances by Dom Salvador. The rest of the players are all great, too – Helio Delmiro on guitar, Edson Lobo on bass, and Edison Machado on drums – all players who grew up in the bossa jazz years of the 60s, but who here are set free to explore new territory by producer Roberto Quartin. The whole thing's wonderful – and titles include "Bonita", "Wave", "So Tinha De Ser Come Voce", and "Dindi". CD also features two bonus tracks – alternate takes of "Ao Amigo Quartin" and "Marilla". (Brazil, Jazz) CD

A pair of later jazzy vocal LP gems by Teresa Brewer, both backed by jazz greats – Songs Of Bessie Smith with Count Basie and Thad Jones, and It Don't Mean A Thing If It Ain't Got That Swing with Duke Ellington – both released by Flying Dutchman in 1973! Teresa's popularity peaked a couple decades earlier as a girlish pop singer, and she succeeds strongly on both records – not just because of the jazz heavies in the band, but because she has the pipes and genuine affection for the material to pull it off. It's lovely stuff! Songs Of Bessie Smith have the bluesy overtones necessary to make it work, without trying the hide Teresa's naturally softer approach. Basie on piano throughout, with arrangements by Jones, and a great big band on half and more intimate arrangements on the other half. It Don't Mean A Thing. . .works just as wel, with Duke Ellington and Ernie Wilkins arrangements, and great Flying Dutchman players that include Bernard Purdie, Joe Beck and Mtume. 20 tracks in all, including "Trombone Cholly", "Gmme A Pigfoot", "I Ain't Got Nobody", "St Louis Blues", "I Ain't Got Nothing But The Blues", "Mood Indigo", "I'm Beginning To See The Light", "I've Got To Be A Rug Cutter", "Tulip Or Turnip", "I'ts Kinda Lonesome Out Tonight" and more. (Vocalists, Jazz) CD

Keyboardist Julius Brockington really takes off here – in a style that's not quite funk, not quite jazz – and which has some of the unique sophisticated changes that Gene Harris was bringing to his Blue Note records in the mid 70s! Like Gene, Julius already has a strong background on the keys – and here, he's able to open up and create all sorts of new rhythms in his music – working on organ, piano, and even a bit of Arp – in a combo that features Steve Turner on alto and flute, Jim Wilson on trumpet, and Garry Langston on guitar! The vibe is great – sophisticated, but funky too – and very unusual compared to other albums of the time. All the material is original – and titles include "Gettin' Into It", "Lost Tribe", "Jaded Jackie", and "In the Back of the Churchyard". (Soul, Jazz) CD

There's nothing broken about this set – as the album's one of the strongest, most spiritual sessions we've ever heard from the Chicago Tentet of Peter Brotzmann – a really great group who gave us some amazing albums on the Okka Disk label! The set features two great guests – trumpeter Roy Campell and bassist William Parker – and at some level, the rest of the lineup seem to be opening up into modes that welcome the territory of both jazz giants – especially on the long first track, which is a very different reworking of a composition the group explored on another album! As usual, reedman Peter Brotzmann is at the helm – on tenor, alto clarinet, and tarogato – with Ken Vandermark, Mars Williams, and Mats Gustafsson on other reeds – plus Joe McPhee on trumpet and valve trombone, Jeb Bishop on trombone, Fred Lonberg-Holm on cello and violin, Kent Kessler on bass, Michael Zerang on drums, and Hamid Drake on drums and frame drum, plus some great vocalizations. Titles include "Stonewater" and "Broken English". CD

Fantastic work from reedman Marion Brown – an unissued live set from the mid 70s, and one that features a whole new side of his talents! The music is definitely the improvisations promised in the title – but never in a free jazz sort of way, as Brown is working with a group, who have a nice sort of swing on all the tracks – and almost put Marion into hardbop territory that he hardly ever touched at this time! The whole performance is a unique glimpse at that much richer life that Brown was living overseas in the 70s – a time when he was connecting strongly with the jazz scene in Europe, in ways that were not always that well-documented on record – and also working on the American underground, but in ways that were different from some of his better-known material. This set is certainly one of those sides of his career – a beautifully swinging, soulful set that also features work from Brandon Ross on guitar, Jack Gregg on bass, and Steve McGreven on drums. Titles include "First Improvisation", "Second Improvisation", "Third Improvisation", and so on. CD

A fantastic solo set from altoist Rob Brown – maybe the first we've ever heard from him, and a set that definitely elevates him to the pantheon of classic players in this format! Brown always has a tone that's all his own, and that comes through strongly in this setting – as does his way of wrenching out all these incredible sounds from the alto, yet at a level that's always quite musical and never as much in the more sonic experimentalist area of other reed improvisers. The performances are very loose with open structures, yet have an inherent sense of tune at times too – one that's even more satisfying, given Brown's tone. Titles include "Adrift", "Marine Life Encounter", "Gathering Breeze", "Tacking & Jibing", and "Oversea Undersea". CD

The legendary Kenny Burrell played often at the Village Vanguard over the years – and this sweet set from later years has the guitarist really stretching out in the familiar setting – hitting some surprisingly deep, strong lines throughout – all with effortless ease! The record's a great reminder that Burrell kept on growing over the decades, and never seemed to lose his power as both a leader and a soloist – something we've been reminded of in his many records after this early 90s set – and the younger combo here really seems to bring out a fresh fire in Kenny, with work from James Williams on piano, Peter Washington on bass, and Sherman Ferguson on drums. Titles include the originals "Then Along Came You", "Good News Blues", and "Maya's Dance" – plus "Fungi Mama", "Lament", and "Black & Tan Fantasy". CD