A huge amount of recordings from one of our favorite singers ever – the incredible Claude Nougaro, a French vocalist of the postwar years, and a master of many styles that included jazz, samba, and bossa nova! Nougaro had a unique talent for penning French lyrics to American and Brazilian tunes – and during the 60s, he rose to fame through his inventive compositions, unique vocalizations, and keen ear for a jazzy groove. His work of the 70s progressed with an even deeper exploration of modern jazz and Brazilian idioms – and as the 80s approached, he stretched out into even more complicated styles of his own. Nougaro's growth over the years is tremendous – and his work comes across with a sound that is really unique, and which stands as some of the greatest mainstream French work of his era – on a par with that of Serge Gainsbourg and Brigitte Fontaine! The set features 12 albums in all – albums include Cecile Ma Fille, Bidonville, Paris Mai, Soeur Ame, Locomotive D'Or, Femmes Et Famines, Plume D'Ange, Tu Verras, Assez, Chansons Nettes, Ami Chemin, and Bleu Blanc Blues. (French, Vocalists) CD

A huge amount of recordings from one of our favorite singers ever – the incredible Claude Nougaro, a French vocalist of the postwar years, and a master of many styles that included jazz, samba, and bossa nova! Nougaro had a unique talent for penning French lyrics to American and Brazilian tunes – and during the 60s, he rose to fame through his inventive compositions, unique vocalizations, and keen ear for a jazzy groove. His work of the 70s progressed with an even deeper exploration of modern jazz and Brazilian idioms – and as the 80s approached, he stretched out into even more complicated styles of his own. Nougaro's growth over the years is tremendous – and his work comes across with a sound that is really unique, and which stands as some of the greatest mainstream French work of his era – on a par with that of Serge Gainsbourg and Brigitte Fontaine! The set features 24 different albums by Nougaro – mostly studio, but with a few live records – mostly from the 60s, 70s, and 80s – but also including some real gems from his comeback years in the 21st century. Albums include Cecile Ma Fille, Bidonville, Paris Mai, Soeur Ame, Locomotive D'Or, Femmes Et Famines, Plume D'Ange, Tu Verras, Assez, Chansons Nettes, Ami Chemin, and Bleu Blanc Blues – and the package is a book-style volume, with a 48 page booklet, and 24 CDs with 317 songs in all! (French, Vocalists) CD

With "Stars Fell On Alabama", "Our Monday Date", "Casanova's Lament", "Doctor Jazz", "After You've Gone", "If I Could Be With You", "The Shiek Of Araby", "Beale St Blues", and more. (Jazz, Vocalists) LP, Vinyl record album

Soul jazz vocalist Dwight Trible gathers the forces for this magnificent effort – an album pairing his emotionally rich vocals and singular spirit with a group of largely west coast allstars – and it's pure genius! The Life Force Trio, from what we can tell, is simply the moniker for a small army of free thinking guests from the deep funk, hip hop and turntablist underground assembled by Carlos Nino of Ammon Contact. The guest list includes SA-RA, J Dilla, Madlib, Daedelus, Scienze Of Life, Nate Morgan, Dwight's Build An Ark fellows and many others. It features some vocals Dwight has laid down for other albums, and some unreleased recordings – how they pair up so intricately well, with such fresh and varied production is a beautiful mystery. This record could have merely served as an interesting exercise in combined talents, but instead it absolutely soars, and could be remembered as Dwight's masterpiece! It may also be one of the best Ninja Tune albums ever! Tracks include "Equipoise" feat SA-RA, "Freedom Dance", "The Rhythm", "Waves Of Infinite Harmony", a fresh take on Coltrane's "A Love Supreme", "Love Is The Answer", "I Was Born On Planet Rock", "Constellations" feat Super Nova, "Celestial Blues" and more. The CD also includes a bonus disc on instrumentals! CD

A much-needed look at a near-lost side of Ella's work for Verve – the singles she recorded for the label in the 50s and 60s, work that's very different than her more famous LPs! Historically, Ella's probably best remembered for her Songbook albums at Verve – serious efforts that focused on the work of 20th Century songwriters like Cole Porter and Irving Berlin. But during the same years she was working on those projects, she also cut a tremendous amount of singles for the label – many of them in styles not heard on LPs. The set's got some really wonderful numbers that really open up our understanding of Ella – short jazzy tunes, catchy pop numbers, weepy ballads, bossa nova, novelty tracks, and even a few Holiday tunes – all packaged in a great 2CD set that includes 36 titles in all! Tunes include "Ol Man Mose", "Desafinado", "Stardust Bossa Nova", "All The Live Long Day", "I'm A Poached Egg", "Your Red Wagon", "But Not For Me", "Dreams Are Made For Children", "Stay There", "Hotta Chocolatta", "Too Young For The Blues", "It's Only A Man", and "Lonely Is". CD

Peggy Lee's at Basin Street, but the set's an upbeat, swinging date that's right up there with her studio work for Capitol in the 60s! The album's billed as an "after hours" performance – and it's definitely got the relaxed feel to live up to that promise – a feel that's more small combo jazzy than other Lee work of the period, although it's still got that upbeat punch we love from the Capitol years. The group is directed by Joe Harnell, who also plays piano – and other members include Bob Donovan on flute, Willie Thomas and Phil Sunkel on trumpets, Dennis Budimir on guitar, and Chino Pozo on congas and bongos. Titles inlcude "I Got A Man", "The Second Time Around", "Fever", "Moments Like This", "Day In Day Out", and "Them There Eyes". CD also features a bonus track – "Call Me Darling". LP, Vinyl record album

Peggy Lee's at Basin Street, but the set's an upbeat, swinging date that's right up there with her studio work for Capitol in the 60s! The album's billed as an "after hours" performance – and it's definitely got the relaxed feel to live up to that promise – a feel that's more small combo jazzy than other Lee work of the period, although it's still got that upbeat punch we love from the Capitol years. The group is directed by Joe Harnell, who also plays piano – and other members include Bob Donovan on flute, Willie Thomas and Phil Sunkel on trumpets, Dennis Budimir on guitar, and Chino Pozo on congas and bongos. Titles inlcude "I Got A Man", "The Second Time Around", "Fever", "Moments Like This", "Day In Day Out", and "Them There Eyes". CD also features a bonus track – "Call Me Darling". CD

Bill Evans is reunited with singer Monica Zetterlund – in a live date done more than a decade after their classic Waltz For Debby album! The first side of the record features Evans in a trio mode – working instrumentally, without Monica, in a group that features the great Eddie Gomez on bass and Eliot Zigmund on drums – easily some of the better-recorded European live material by Bill from the 70s, caught in a way that really shows his new sensitivity in the later decade. Evans' piano is breathtaking here – a subtle symphony of shades and tones that delights the ears at each new twist and turn – recorded in some slightly longish takes on tunes that include "Sugar Plum", "Sareen Jurer", "Very Early", and "Gloria's Step". Bill continues the feeling of the first side wonderfully on the flip – as Zetterlund joins the group, and shows how much she's matured as well since here last meeting with Evans. Most of the tunes are standards, but they've got a sensitivity that goes way beyond familiar readings – carried off wonderfully by Monica in some beautifully dark-toned vocals. Titles include "Come Rain Or Come Shine", "The Second Time Around", "Once Upon A Summertime", "What's New", and the lovely "Samba". (Jazz, Vocalists) CD

A lost early chapter in the career of Roberta Flack – material recorded during the sessions for her legendary First Take album, but unissued at the time – and presented here with an amazing demonstration of the depth of her young talents! All the genius of First Take is in place here – that groundbreaking territory between jazz and soul that set Roberta apart from the pack, right from the start – but there's also a wider range of currents going on – maybe some more jazz-based numbers, mixed with other soul-referenced titles too – a wider span that furthers the role that Flack plays as a bridge between the 60s innovations of Nina Simone and a host of others to follow. The group is just a trio – Flack on piano with Marshall Hawkins on bass and Bernard Sweetney on drums – but the tunes have a very wide-open vibe that's very visionary, and every bit as great as Roberta's debut! Titles include a stunning version of "Afro Blue", plus "It's Way Past Suppertime", "This Could Be The Start Of Something", "Groove Me", "To Sir With Love", "The Song Is Love", "Ain't No Mountain High Enough", "Nobody Knows You When You're Down & Out", "The House Song", and "Hush A Bye". (Soul, Vocalists) LP, Vinyl record album