... LP, Vinyl record album

Early recordings by the King Cole Trio, with Nat King Cole on piano, Oscar Moore on guitar, and Johnny Miller on bass, and also with a later line-up of Irving Ashby on guitar, Joe Comfort on bass, and Jack Costanzo on bongos. LP, Vinyl record album

A nice 12" LP issue from the 50s of sides originally released as 10" LPs – early work that Cole recorded for Capitol, during the years 1943 to 1949, when he was an up and coming talent from the Hollywood scene, blending together jazz, swing, and a touch of blues – to craft one of the most unique sounds in pop! 12 numbers in all including "Sweet Lorraine", "It's Only A Paper Moon", "Makin Whoopee", "Too Marvelous For Words", and "If I Had You". LP, Vinyl record album

Features Jonah Jones, Dizzy Gillespie, Cozy Cole, Milt Honton, Hilton Jefferson, and more. LP, Vinyl record album

... LP, Vinyl record album

A collection of early bop singles cut for Capitol – one that includes some excellent rare material, including fantastic early work by Babs Gonzales, and some of Sonny Rollins' first work on record! Babs clocks in with some great little vocal numbers that include – "Real Crazy", "Prelude To A Nightmare", "Professor Bop", and "Capitolizing" – all gems that rank with his best offbeat vocal tunes of later years. Dizzy's in a similar format on some of his tunes – titles that include "Coast To Coast", "You Stole My Wife You Horsethief", "Say When", and "Oo La La" – and Tadd Dameron finishes up the album with some great tracks that include "Sid's Delight", "Casbah", "John's Delight", and "Heaven's Doors Are Open Wide". (Jazz, Vocalists) LP, Vinyl record album

(Rock, Vocalists) LP, Vinyl record album

Includes recordings with Fletcher Henderson's Orchestra and Her Down Home Syncopaters. LP, Vinyl record album

Ray Charles in a nicely maturing mode – on a record from later in his Atlantic Records years, definitely paving the way forward for his 60s classics on ABC! The tunes are blues, but not in the way that Charles first started recording on earlier singles for Atlantic – as there's a bit more class, care, and a strong current of jazz that Ray was bringing more and more to his music as the years went on. Titles include the Charles originals "Hard Times", "I Believe To My Soul", "Mr Charles Blues", "I Wonder Who", "Some Day Baby", and "Nobody Cares" – plus nice takes on "I'm Movin On" and "The Midnight Hour". (Soul, Vocalists) LP, Vinyl record album

The first album in a legendary run of vocal jazz classics on Atlantic Records – and a set that really helped Chris Connor move to a new level of expression in her music! The sound here is much richer than Connor's previous recordings for Bethlehem – and the small combo jazz backings have been replaced by fuller orchestrations by Ralph Burns – done in a cool, edgey sort of way that really pushes Chris into newly sophisticated territory! The sound's on a par with the best June Christy/Pete Rugolo collaborations on Capitol – and the group's filled with some great jazz players, including Zoot Sims, John Lewis, Milt Hinton, and Oscar Pettiford. Titles include "I Get A Kick Out Of You", "My April Heart", "He Was Good to Me", "Where Are You", and "Get Out Of Town". LP, Vinyl record album

A sublime little set from the legendary Dave Frishberg – his first vocal effort ever, and quite different than most of his later work! At the time of the record, Frishberg was a songwriter who penned such underground hipster jazz vocalist classics as "I'm Hip" and "Peel Me A Grape" – and the set has a clever, laidback feel that's very much in the spirit of those two great tunes – Dave singing and playing electric piano, clavinet, and organ – with some great jazzy touches by a group that includes Al Cohn on tenor, Bill Berry on trumpet, and Garnett Brown on trombone. There's a nicely offbeat feel to the record – both the tunes and the vocals – that reminds us a lot of the work of Bob Dorough – and part of this may have to do with the fact that Dorough cronie Stuart Scharf played guitar on the album. But the real genius is up to Frishberg, who's clever without being cloying – witty without ever being full of himself – and incredibly charming in the way he delivers the lyrics with a simple, honest approach. Titles include "The Prophet Of Doom", "Oklahoma Toad", "One Horse Town", "Van Lingle Mungo", "The Secret Of Successd", "Wallflower Lonely Cornflower Blue", and "Nasty Nasty Habit". LP, Vinyl record album

Amazing sounds from Lee Hazlewood – some of his most offbeat, unbridled recordings ever – and that's saying a lot if you've already heard his classics for Mercury, MGM, and Reprise! The package here brings together rare work from Lee's own LHI label – packaged beautifully with a rich set of notes, session details, and some amazing photos that follow in the spirit of the nutty-looking cover image! Hazlewood's voice is sublime throughout – that deeper-than-deep quality that always leaves us breathless – perfect for the sly wit and and "aw shucks" sensibility of the tunes – and also for unlocking the growing adult sensuality that Lee was letting into his work at the time. A few female singers step forth in that great Hazlewood duet mode – Nina Lizell, Suzi Jane Hokom, and Ann Margret – who each sing on a few tracks – but Lee's in the lead on most numbers, and titles include the previously unreleased "I Just Learned To Run" – plus "The Bed", "Sleep In The Grass", "The Night Before", "If It's Monday Morning", "Won't You Tell Your Dreams", "Hey Cowboy", "No Train To Stockholm", "What's More I Don't Need Her", "Trouble Maker", and "Nobody Like You". LP, Vinyl record album

Possibly one of the most essential Billie Holiday albums for Verve – a set that carries the same title as her famous autobiography, and which also features many key numbers from her songbook at the time! The feel here is quite easygoing and relaxed – with small group backing behind Billie's vocals, which themselves are recorded cleanly and clearly throughout. One side features backing by a combo that includes Wynton Kelly on piano, Kenny Burrell on guitar, Charlie Shavers on trumpet, and Paul Quinichette on tenor – and the other features a group that includes Bobby Tucker on piano, Charlie Shavers on trumpet, Barney Kessel on guitar, and the great Willie Smith on alto sax. Titles include plenty of classics – including "God Bless The Child", "Strange Fruit", "Lady Sings The Blues", "No Good Man", "Good Morning Heartache", "I Must Have That Man", and "Trav'lin' Light". LP, Vinyl record album

Really mindblowing work from Jose James – an artist we loved right from his very first record, but one who has us completely over the top with this record – a set that may well push James from the soul underground into firmly classic territory – the sort of space that will have the record standing strong with soul classics from decades back, and for a long time to come! Jose's tremendous vocally, but there's also an extra-special spirit to some of these tunes – one that's still very strongly in the hands of the man himself, even though James opens the door for plenty of guests – a lineup that includes Ledisi, Christian Scott Atunde Adjuah, Aloe Blacc, Lizz Wright, Eric Truffaz, and others – not the kind of guests who overwhelm and take a too-strong turn in the spotlight, but the right sort of addition to the core sound. Titles include a surprisingly great remake of "Just The Way You Are" – plus "Turn Me Up", "I Need Your Love", "Saint James", "Take Me Home", "Oracle", "Feels So Good", "I Found A Love", and "You Know What I Do". (Neo Soul, Vocalists) LP, Vinyl record album

A record that revolutionized the concept of jazz vocals in the 50s – thanks to famous performances by Annie Ross and King Pleasure! The tracks on the LP include Ross' early interpretations of Wardell Gray's classics "Twisted" and "Farmer's Market", and the King Pleasure set includes classics like "Red Top", "This Is Always", "Sometimes I'm Happy", and his great duet with Jon Hendricks, "Don't Get Scared". A landmark LP of jazz vocal sides, and one that no fan of vocalese should be without. LP, Vinyl record album

The start of a legend – and the very first album by Sergio Mendes' Brasil 66 group, proudly brought to the world through the godlike talents of a young Herb Alpert! Sergio was no stranger to the recording studio by the time of this set, but the record marked a real shift in his music – a change from the mostly-instrumental bossa modes he first forged back in Brazil, and a shift to warmer, sweeter pop with a nice sunny California finish – done through unique production techniques and the group's trademark two-lady lead vocals! The sound is tremendous, and is possibly heard in its purest form here – simple, focused, and given that near-perfect A&M sound through Herb's production skills. Titles include the classics "Daytripper", "Aqua De Beber", "O Pato", "Berimbau", "Mas Que Nada", and "The Joker". (Brazil, Vocalists) LP, Vinyl record album

One of the most striking, most unusual settings for the voice of Leon Thomas we've ever heard – a rare 1970 performance with the Brit group Nucleus – done right at the same time that Thomas was recording his classics with Pharoah Sanders! The initial approach is similar, and the songs are familiar – but the overall execution is quite different given the change in instrumentation – as the Nucleus lineup includes Ian Carr on trumpet, Chris Spedding on guitar, Karl Jenkins on piano and oboe, and Brian Smith on tenor, saxophone, and flute! Tracks are all nice and long, and rhythms begin with a slightly similar mode to Thomas' other records – but the use of Spedding's guitar is especially striking, as is Carr's trumpet – which has a very different quality than any American player that Thomas ever worked with. The sax and oboe lines are especially nice – often exotic, but in more of a European spiritual way than an American one – and throughout it all, Thomas really holds the course with some wonderful vocals – on long tracks that include "One", "Chains Of Love", "The Journey", "Echoes", "Damn Nam", and "The Creator Has A Master Plan". (Jazz, Vocalists) LP, Vinyl record album

A warm set of groovers from Flip Nunez – a San Francisco-based pianist with a great Latin tinge, working here in a fantastic setting that makes for one of his greatest recordings! The album was recorded in SF in 1976, and it's got the laidback groove of some of the best sides coming from the area at the time – a sweet blend of fusion, Latin, and modal jazz grooving. Nunez plays electric piano, clavinet, piano, and organ – and a few tracks feature his vocals, which have a confident style that's somewhere between Mark Murphy and Tony Benett (in his jazzier mode.) The centerpiece of the album is a long mellow-grooving version of "See You Later", a tune that Flip wrote, and which has been covered on a number of other jazz dance classics over the years – but the album's filled with great tunes, like "D'ju Like Me", "This Time For Good", "Why Did You Come Into My Life", and "Mr Cool", a sweet little funky tune! LP, Vinyl record album

One of the best albums that Lou Rawls cut with the team of HB Barnum and David Axelrod – that incredible duo who made some of his 60s Capitol albums so great! The style here is wonderful – upbeat grooves from Barnum – who brings more soul into Lou's music than before – recorded by Axelrod with the right sort of sharpness and punch – that special quality he brought to Cannonball Adderley's 60s soul classics too! Rawls is really at home in the setting – stepping out in some points with these hip monologue passages that are as great as his singing – maybe even better, too – as they show a whole new side of Lou's personality – that badass, totally hip quality that people might never have expected from the early days. One of the best of these is the excellent "Old Man's Memories", about a guy sitting on a bench in Washington Park on the south side of Chicago, which then rolls into an amazing version of "It Was A Very Good Year". Other tunes have a great mix of soul and jazz – and titles include "Love Is A Hurtin Thing", "A Whole Lotta Woman", "Don't Explain", "Old Folks", and "Breaking My Back (Instead Of Using My Mind)". (Soul, Vocalists) LP, Vinyl record album

Jimmy Rushing reprises a nice batch of blues classics from the 20s, all of which were sung by early recording artists like Bessie or Clara Smith. The group that backs him is a nice one, and features Buck Clayton on trumpet, Buster Bailey on clarinet, and Coleman Hawkins on tenor. As with many of Columbia's late 50's sessions in this style, the sound is excellent, and has an intimacy and warmth that works extremely well with the material – including titles like "Arkansas Blues", "Gulf Coast Blues", "Muddy Waters", "Squeeze Me", and "Crazy Blues". LP, Vinyl record album

A set that wasn't initially conceived as a full album by Gil Scott-Heron – but one that's come to be an essential part of his catalog, thanks to the always-relevant title theme! The album's actually a classic collection of work from the early years of Gil Scott-Heron at the Flying Dutchman label – a time when he was recording some of his most impressively righteous material ever – a hip mix of protest poetry and sweet jazzy numbers – played with great keyboard accompaniment from frequent partner Brian Jackson on keyboards on nearly every track – plus help from Hubert Laws on flute and sax, and Bernard Purdie on drums. Nearly all the famous classics by Gil are here, and the titles include some of Gil's best jazz funk groovers, including "Pieces Of A Man", "Lady Day & John Coltrane", "Home Is Where The Hatred Is", "Save The Children", "Sex Education Ghetto Style", "Whitey On The Moon", "Did You Hear What They Said", The Revolution Will Not Be Televised", and "No Knock". (Soul, Vocalists) LP, Vinyl record album

Backings by Eddie Chamblee, on a host of Bessie Smith classics – updated with more of a 50s R&B vibe. LP, Vinyl record album

Spanky Wilson really takes off here – hitting some of her boldest soul modes to date – and serving up a few funk-heavy classics in the process! Production and arrangements are by HB Barnum – who draws on his own rich legacy of soul projects for the set, and finds a way to let Spanky really knock things out of the park – while still also holding tight to a mighty sweet groove! The style's almost an indie soul take on the Capitol Records groove that Barnum forged with David Axelrod for other singers – with all the strong sense of space between the grooves that would imply. The set features Spanky doing nice hard grooving versions of tracks that you've heard before – like "Loveland", "Let It Be", "Gloomy Sunday", and "Perhaps" – but there's also some nice ones like "Foolish" or "Love or Let Me Be Lonely", that are less familiar, and mighty nice too! (Soul, Vocalists) LP, Vinyl record album

A host of early classics from the young Ray Charles – tracks that were some of his most important singles for Atlantic Records, from a time when Ray was really finding his groove – issued here as a full length set in the classic Atlantic "rock & roll" series in the late 50s! These are the tunes that really put Charles on the map – and many have a raw, vibrant quality that's a lot more R&B than some of his later work – hard-burning numbers that move at a mighty quick pace – mixed with a few that show the jazzier approach in years to come. Titles include "Sinner's Prayer", "Mess Around", "Greenbacks", "I Got A Woman", "A Fool For You", "Losing Hand", "Ain't That Love", "Drown In My Own Tears", "This Little Girl Of Mine", and "Don't You Know". (Soul, Vocalists) LP, Vinyl record album

A great example of the Muse Records charm of altoist Richie Cole – bop-fired creativity at its peak, mixed with some added contemporary elements to keep things fresh! In this case, Richie's horn takes on some key bop classics, but also opens up a bit with vocalsits too – Eddie Jefferson on versions of "Hi Fly", "Relaxin At Camarillo", and "Waiting For Waits" – the latter of which also features Tom Waits as well! The Manhattan Transfer make some subtle guest appearances too – but in ways that are much more restrained than their own albums, really leaving most room for Richie's horn. Bruce Forman plays guitar and Dick Hindman piano – and titles include "Hi Fly", "Relaxin At Camarillo", "Hooray For Hollywood", "I Love Lucy", "Malibu Breeze", "Waiting For Waits", and "Tokyo Rose Sings The Hollywood Blues". (Jazz, Vocalists) LP, Vinyl record album