With Steve Wilson on alto and soprano sax, Ingrid Jensen on trumpet and flugelhorn, and Steve Davis on trombone. CD

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Mose Allison is one of the coolest, grooviest singers ever to grace the face of jazz – a voice you'll recognize instantly, even if you don't know his name – and an artist who had a huge influence on the sound of the London scene in the 60s! Mose was mod before mod was a thing – and was able to mix his sharp jazz skills on piano with a gutbuckety style of singing that drew heavily from the sound of New Orleans – as did his sense of rhythm – but always with an approach that was more upbeat and jazzy overall, with a hip sophistication that few other artists could hope to touch! And while Mose recorded excellent sounds for decades, this collection focuses in on some of the most important work he ever cut – music done for Prestige, Columbia, and Atlantic Records from the late 50s through the early 70s – served up in the most amazing tribute to Allison we've ever seen. 24 tracks in all – with cuts that include "Foolkiller", "I'm Not Talking", "If You Only Knew", "The Seventh Son", "I'm Smashed", "Wild Man On The Loose", "Back On The Corner", "I Love The Life I Live", "Jus Like Livin", "If You Live", "V8 Ford Blues", "Parchman Farm", "Baby Please Don't Go", "Western Man", "Your Molecular Structure", "Hellow There Universe", and "Swingin Machine". CD

Rare Belgian avant jazz from the start of the 70s – and material that has the same sort of freewheeling, openly creative vibe of some of our favorite French work from the time! The style here isn't as sharp-edged as German work of the period – and has a creative warmth that's really great – swinging and rhythmic at most points, yet relatively open and very different than jazz of the decade before – with occasional vocals from a lovely female singer who has a breezy way of moving with the grooves, almost in a style that recalls Blossom Dearie, but in French – served up in a lineup that also includes some great Fender Rhodes, vibes, and guitar. Titles include "Achille", "L'Admirable Amas Cellulaire Orange", "Fanfan La Tulipe", and "La Partie D'Echecs". (Jazz, Vocalists) LP, Vinyl record album

A set that's a great bridge between the fuller sound of Nina Simone's late 60s material and some of smaller jazz combo work – as the album mostly features Nina working with a smaller group, but already at a level that hints at the righteous rising power in her music! The core combo features Rudy Stevenson on guitar and flute, Bobby Hamilton on drums, and Lisle Atkinson on bass – and one track, "For Myself", features arrangements by Horace Ott – and another, "Images", was recorded live – but overall, the album's got a warmly intimate feel that's really great, and which has Nina singing in that perfect sharp-edged mode of the time. Titles include "Chauffeur", "The Other Woman", "This Year's Kisses", "Nearer Blessed Lord", "Ballad of Hollis Brown" and "Don't Explain". LP, Vinyl record album

Vocalist Fay Victor pens lyrics for a jazz composer we're not sure we've ever heard with words before – modern piano legend Herbie Nichols, a player whose songs are often as full of angles and sharp changes as Thelonious Monk! And as you might guess from a style like that, the music doesn't easily lend itself to vocalization – but when it does, the results are amazing – as Victor's not only penned some fantastic lyrics for these tunes, she also delivers one of her best performances on record to date! The sound is modern, but never too outside – maybe like Jon Hendricks taking on some of Monk's music, in the way that Fay always retains a sense of humanity – working here with piano from Anthony Coleman, alto and baritone from Michael Attias, bass from Ratzo Harris, and drums from Tom Raney. Titles include "Descent Into Madness", "Non Fraternization Clause", "The Culprit Is You", "Shuffle Montgomery", "Sinners All Of Us", and "Bright Butterfly". LP, Vinyl record album