... CD

... LP, Vinyl record album

... LP, Vinyl record album

A really striking album in the career of Atomic Rooster – one that's a little bit groovier than most, and maybe a bit funky as well! The drums are great, and have plenty of soulful currents – and the Hammond, piano, and electric piano work of Vincent Crane almost seem to echo earlier UK beat group currents, but turned towards a much hipper 70s vibe – one that's followed by an equally extended range from vocalist Chris Farlowe, who seems to fold together both his mod and prog experience in the vocals! Steve Bolton brings in some tight, riffing guitar – and titles include "Time Take My Life", "Never To Lose", "Breathless", "People You Can't Trust", "All In Satan's Name", "Close Your Eyes", "Little Bit Of Inner Air", and "Stand By Me". LP, Vinyl record album

The third and fourth albums from Atomic Rooster – back to back in a single set! First up is Made In England – a really striking album in the career of Atomic Rooster – one that's a little bit groovier than most, and maybe a bit funky as well! The drums are great, and have plenty of soulful currents – and the Hammond, piano, and electric piano work of Vincent Crane almost seem to echo earlier UK beat group currents, but turned towards a much hipper 70s vibe – one that's followed by an equally extended range from vocalist Chris Farlowe, who seems to fold together both his mod and prog experience in the vocals! Steve Bolton brings in some tight, riffing guitar – and titles include "Time Take My Life", "Never To Lose", "Breathless", "People You Can't Trust", "All In Satan's Name", "Close Your Eyes", "Little Bit Of Inner Air", and "Stand By Me". On Nice N Greasy, Atomic Rooster definitely get a bit greasy – using some funkier elements at times, and bluesier currents at others – all at a level that really lets singer Chris Farlowe hit some of his most expressive modes! The group's got a fresh guitarist this time around, Johnny Mandala on lead – and his presence gives some of the cuts a harder rock edge than before, often taking the lead more than the keyboards of longtime member Vincent Crane, which helps shape the sound of the set. Titles include "Voodoo In You", "Save Me", "Satan's Wheel", "Can't Find A Reason", "Take One Toke", and "All Across The Country". CD set features the bonus tracks "Moods" and "What You Gonna Do". CD

Joyously romping grooves from Auteur Jazz – a combo who take the modal style of the 60s European scene, and infuse it with a few contemporary touches of their own! The group are a bit more open-ended than some of the other club jazz combos on the Ricky Tick label – willing to stretch out in some occasional exploratory modes or mellower moments, then step back with a hard-hitting groove to round things in place – often getting a surprisingly rich sound from their relatively small lineup, which is mostly based around reeds and piano from Antti Hynninen, but also features occasional other saxes, strings, keyboards, and percussion. Sara Sayaed sings on the tracks "Kill You Alive" and "Tomorrow Knows" – and other instrumental tracks include "Two Jaguars In Warsaw", "Marbles", "Who Struck John", "Gris Gris", "Uruguayo", and "Najgo". Japanese CD features 2 bonus tracks – "Aphorisms" and "Gui-Do". CD

A British art rock jam session, more or less, pulled together by Soft Machine bassist Kevin Ayers, who recruited Eno, John Cale and Nico, former bandmate Robert Wyatt, the enigmatic Rabbit (John Bundrick) on keyboards – more well known for his work with the Who – plus Mike Oldfield on guitar and a number of other guests and co-conspirators. A nice document of the scene a the time, with concise performances and a much tighter feel than you might imagine given the circumstances of the recording. 9 numbers in all, including "Driving Me Backwards", "Baby's On Fire", "Heartbreak Hotel", "The End", "May I?", "Shouting IN A Bucket Blues", "Stranger In Blue Suede Shoes", "Everybody's Sometime And Some People's All The Time Blues" and "Two Goes Into Four". LP, Vinyl record album

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

... LP, Vinyl record album

A hell of a record from one of the key groups who put the "hard" in the American hardcore scene – and a record that's so blisteringly intense, we still sometimes have to check to make sure we've got it on the right speed! Although Bad Brains may fly the flag of the Rastas, and definitely claim a reggae influence – the record manages to both blow away the work of the LA scene with its full-on hardcore tracks, and the UK scene with the group's few reggae-styled numbers. The original was only issued as a cassette, but that hasn't stopped it from being one of the key punk records of the time – and titles include "Sail On", "Don't Need It", "Attitude", "The Regulator", "Banned In DC", "Jah Calling", "Supertouch/Shitfit", "Leaving Babylon", "Fearless Vampire Killers", "I", "Big Take Over", "Pay To Cum", "Right Brigade", "I Luv I Jah", and "Intro". LP, Vinyl record album

Great work from this ultra-hip trio – an amazing combination of keyboards, bass, and drums – served up in styles that are rooted in funk and jazz, but go to so many other places as well! The drums crackle with a quality schooled in 70s breaks and beats, stripped down to their core – and the mix of keyboards echo a range of innovators from CTI to Money Mark, with a spacious flow that leaves plenty of room for the basslines to drive the tunes! Other instrumentation includes bits of guitar and percussion from the group, plus some guest tenor and strings as well. Titles include "Hedron", "Differently Still", "Confessions", "Triangle", "Can't Leave The Night", "CS60", and "Since You Asked So Kindly". LP, Vinyl record album

Badu is back with some of the deepest, funkiest and best music of her career – a mindblowing treatise for a New Amerykah – and what we'll consider an instant classic whether the world at large catches on or not! Erykah steps up this time with a set that balances the wilder impulses of her criminally underappreciated Worldwide Underground and more of a hip hop based, righteously grooving style – but still bursts with a freshness that's unrivaled to say the least. From free spirited soul, to sparse hip hop funk this record is both blunt and beautiful – with a slow-building emotional resonance that'll reach the most jaded souls. Modern soul music of the first order that gives us goosebumps from the first spin to the last beat! The album kicks off with Erykah riffing on and remixing Ramp's "American Promise" as an intro – and it just gets deeper from there. Producers/collaborators include Madlib, Sa-Ra, Karriem Riggins, James Poyser and ?uestlove. Amazing!!! Titles include "The Healer", "Me", "My People", "Soldier", "The Cell", "Twinkle", "Master Teacher", "The Hump" and "Telephone". The 9th Wonder produced single "Honey" is an unlisted bonus track. CD

Badu is back with some of the deepest, funkiest and best music of her career – a mindblowing treatise for a New Amerykah – and what we'll consider an instant classic whether the world at large catches on or not! Erykah steps up this time with a set that balances the wilder impulses of her criminally underappreciated Worldwide Underground and more of a hip hop based, righteously grooving style – but still bursts with a freshness that's unrivaled to say the least. From free spirited soul, to sparse hip hop funk this record is both blunt and beautiful – with a slow-building emotional resonance that'll reach the most jaded souls. Modern soul music of the first order that gives us goosebumps from the first spin to the last beat! The album kicks off with Erykah riffing on and remixing Ramp's "American Promise" as an intro – and it just gets deeper from there. Producers/collaborators include Madlib, Sa-Ra, Karriem Riggins, James Poyser and ?uestlove. Amazing!!! Titles include "The Healer", "Me", "My People", "Soldier", "The Cell", "Twinkle", "Master Teacher", "The Hump" and "Telephone". LP, Vinyl record album

The second chapter of Erykah Badu's New Amerykah – recorded for the most part, quite incredibly, during the same period and with the same collaborators as the mind-altering, murky and righteous hip hop funk experimentalism that was Part One – some months that must be among the most dizzyingly creative in Badu's career! We're reluctant to call Return Of The The Ankh a lighter listen than its predecessor, but, it's a less dense and outwardly experimental batch in the sonic realm – the emotionalism and the head nodding warmth is at the forefront, yet she's as uncompromising and real as ever. The sound is still innovative, unique and her own on all fronts, but the songs chosen for Part Two are ones you want to approach and embrace from the opening seconds – there's not as much of a tripped out overall vibe and you don't need to acclimate from a distance – these songs pull you right in! Includes collaborations with James Poyser, Shafiq Husayn, Ta'Raach, Karriem Riggins, Madlib and Georgia Anne Muldrow. Includes "20 Feet Tall", "Window Seat", "Agitation", "Turn Me Away (Get Munny)", "Gone Baby, Don't Be Long", "Love", "Out My Mind, Just In Time" and more. CD

The second chapter of Erykah Badu's New Amerykah – recorded for the most part, quite incredibly, during the same period and with the same collaborators as the mind-altering, murky and righteous hip hop funk experimentalism that was Part One – some months that must be among the most dizzyingly creative in Badu's career! We're reluctant to call Return Of The The Ankh a lighter listen than its predecessor, but, it's a less dense and outwardly experimental batch in the sonic realm – the emotionalism and the head nodding warmth is at the forefront, yet she's as uncompromising and real as ever. The sound is still innovative, unique and her own on all fronts, but the songs chosen for Part Two are ones you want to approach and embrace from the opening seconds – there's not as much of a tripped out overall vibe and you don't need to acclimate from a distance – these songs pull you right in! Includes collaborations with James Poyser, Shafiq Husayn, Ta'Raach, Karriem Riggins, Madlib and Georgia Anne Muldrow. Includes "20 Feet Tall", "Window Seat", "Agitation", "Turn Me Away (Get Munny)", "Gone Baby, Don't Be Long", "Love", "Out My Mind, Just In Time" and more. LP, Vinyl record album

A rare Italian-only album from Chet Baker – wonderfully cooking small group work that's a far bit greater than his more familiar "with strings" session recorded in Italy during the same period! The album's got Chet working with an array of great players from the local scene – including Gianni Basso on tenor sax, Renato Sellani on drums, and Glauco Masetti on alto sax – all in a groove that shows plenty of traces of that opened-up sound that Baker was exploring in the very late 50s – the modes he was crafting in his group with Phil Urso on tenor, as he started to get a bit more bit in his style! Yet there's also a nicely compressed approach going on here too – that west coast sound that was a strong influence on the Italian players of the postwar years, but which was unfolded to new ends in their hands. Titles include "Lady Bird", "Line For Lyons", "Tune Up", "Cheryl Blues", "Indian Summer", and "Pent Up House". LP, Vinyl record album

A rock-solid set from the late 70s European years of Chet Baker – a set that's done with a more conventional quartet, which is different than some of his looser, lighter lineups of the time! The vibe is a bit like old school Chet, but the tracks are still open and have that nicely exploratory sense of sound that made the last decade of Baker's life such a musical revelation – a time of renewed creativity, even when most of the American scene had written him off! The group features Phil Markowitz on piano, Scott Lee on bass, and Jeff Brillinger on drums. All tracks nice and long – with versions of "Broken Wing", "Beautiful Black Eyes", and "This Is Always". Features the first-time vinyl appearance of the tracks "I Remember You" and "Love For Sale". LP, Vinyl record album

A really fantastic idea for a project – and one that comes off even better than we would have guessed – new versions of classic grooves from the nations of Cabo Verde and Guinea Bissau, performed by a really well-matched group of singers and musicians, in a mode that's quite different than the usual revival record of this nature! The songs are definitely classics, but the presentation is very contemporary – directed by producer Guts, and Francisco Sousa, with a special ear for avoiding the sorts of cliches that both mar a project like this, and some of the stereotypes that get reinforced by reissues on the market. Instead, there's a fresh criss-crossing of cultures, but one that never waters down the roots at all – maybe a bit like some of the best Parisian productions of the 70s and 80s post-colonial years. Titles include "Dunia Be Tene", "Riba Bass Di Mi", "Citi Ku Liti", "No Guinea", "Mulato Ferrera", "Segunda", and "Di Mas". LP, Vinyl record album

One of Gato Barbieri's later recordings – but don't hold that against it! The set's a smoother effort than most of Gato's earlier work, but it's also still pretty darn soulful – done in a way that allows plenty of space for his raspy reed work on tenor to flow over the top of larger arrangements that have a nice electric touch. Players include Eric Gale and Joe Beck on guitars, Don Grolnick on keyboards, and Mtume and Ralph MacDonald on percussion – both of whom give the tunes a nice earthy undercurrent when needed. And while we might be put off by the larger, more heavily-arranged sound – Gato himself is still in charge of the charts, and keeps things nicely focused in a soulfully expressive way! Titles include "Firelies", "Fiesta", "Europa", "Don't Cry Rochelle", "Behind The Rain", "Los Desperados", and "I Want You". LP, Vinyl record album

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

One of Gato's best! The record's neither too out, nor too poppy – and it has Barbieri playing with that incredible raspy tone – and working over modal grooves laid down by a hip group that includes Lonnie Liston Smith on acoustic and electric pianos, Ron Carter on bass, Lennie White on drums, and additional percussion on most tracks. The cuts have a Latin finish to them, but they've also got a strongly pronounced soul jazz vibe – something that's missing from lots of Gato's other work, and which feels a lot here like some of Pharoah Sander's best work for Impulse! Titles include "Tupac Amaru", "Bahia", "Falsa Bahiana", "El Dia Que Me Quieras", "El Arriero" and "Carnavalito". CD

Two jazz giants of the 70s come together on this rare Italian recording from the late 60s – South African pianist Dollar Brand (Abdulla Ibrahim) and Argentine tenorist Gato Barbieri – both working here in spare duo formation, with edges that are a fair bit sharper than most of their later work! The format is incredibly spare – just tenor and piano, plus some occasional cello work by Brand – dark and angular, but also filled with small flowers of hope, flowering in the spontaneous presence of these two great minds – a tremendous spirit that makes the record very different than freer jazz outings, and which maybe points the way towards some of the classic European tenor/piano recordings to come. Tracks are long, with a free flowing quality that's infused with soul and spirit – and titles include "Hamba Khale", "The Aloe & The Wildrose", and "To Elsa". LP, Vinyl record album

Taboo is a great all-acoustic outing from Ray Barretto – a set recorded with a stripped-down combo that features trumpet, tenor, flute, piano, bass and drums – all stretching out in a soaring, exploratory Latin jazz mode! The feel is much more open and loose than on some of Ray's 80s albums – and in a way, the record's almost a nod back to Barretto's freest modes of the early 70s – some of those great jazz albums recorded for Fania back in the day. Titles include "Bomba-Riquen", "Work Song", "99 MacDougal Street", "Lazy Afternoon", "Effendi", and "Brother Tom". CD

Frank Foster is one of our favorite talents in jazz – an excellent tenorist who spent some of his key years in the Count Basie orchestra, but a player who also had a very rich career on his own as well! This album features Frank's talents really coming to the forefront of the Basie group – in a set of all-original material penned and arranged by Foster – really fresh tunes that are a perfect fit for the soulful spirit of the reedman's collaborators in the group, and which definitely show off the growing talents of Foster as a composer. There's a lot more going on here than you might expect – some surprisingly complicated charts for the horns, yet still with that rock-solid swing you'd expect from Basie – and most tracks are longer than usual for a Roulette album, nicely open numbers that include "Brotherly Shove", "Easin It", "Blues For Daddy-O", "Four Five Six", and "Mama Dev". LP, Vinyl record album

The game changing Def Jam classic – and possibly the greatest album by the Beastie Boys – even though they'd grow up a whole lot after this! Profane party anthems galore, and the Beasties would distance themselves from much of the attitude of this album, making their career arc from stoopid (as opposed to stupid) to thoughtful and playful innovators one of the more interesting artistic evolutions of their generation for sure. With all the killer cuts: "Rhymin & Stealin", "The New Style", "Girls", "Fight For Your Right To Party", "No Sleep Til Brooklyn", "Paul Revere", "Hold It Now Hit It", "She's Crafty", and more. LP, Vinyl record album

... LP, Vinyl record album

A bit more of a stripped-down set than other work that Benny Sings has given us in recent years – definitely a record with the vibe of the beat tape promised in the title – but one that still has some of the soulful elements that Benny's given us on other records too! The hip hop element is stronger here than usual, right down to the record's guests – who include Koreatown Oddity, Cola Boyy, Mocky, St Panther, Rae Khalil, and others – and Benny put the album together out of elements that weren't used in the final version of his album Music – but which still carry some of the soulful currents of that set. Titles include "Money & Guns", "Don't Look", "CGEOOL", "Green Grass", "Watch Me Heal", "Song 13", and "Mag Ik In Je Huid". LP, Vinyl record album

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". CD

... LP, Vinyl record album

A great package – one that features some wildly experimental work from French electronics whiz Philippe Besombes! First up is the album Libra – tripped out electronics meet progressive rock jamming – all in a weird and wonderful film score from the early 70s! The record's one of the best by French experimentalist Philippe Besombes from the time – and it's got a style that sort of starts in the territory of Francois De Roubaix similar electronic work for film – but gets a lot darker and noisier right away! There's a textural depth here that's really great – almost a pre-industrial music exploration of sounds – but the work's also not that over-indulgent, either – and Besombes always has a great way of getting back to a tune, especially on the shorter tracks. Titles include "La Plage", "Rugby", "Ceremonie", "Hache 06", "La Ville", "Les Cosmonautes", "Tis A Song", "Boogimmick", and "PJF 261". Next is the record Esombeso – also release as Ceci Est Cela – a strange mix of sound library electronics and much more experimental work from Philippe Besombes – a set that carries echoes of some of the best Italian soundtrack electronics of the 70s, but which also features much darker, more turgid moments as well! The album collects some of Besombes' performances for ballet and other settings – and stands as an even starker document of his talents than some of the other albums issued under his name in the 70s. Titles include "Pawa"," Geant", "Seul", and "Ceci Est Cela". Next are two more albums done under the name Hydravion – both of which show Besombes turning his electronics into tighter, more song-based territory – although not without some noise from time to time – shorter tracks that sometimes get a bit tuneful, but which are still light years from mainstream music of the period. CD set also features bonus tracks for the first two albums – 8 more numbers that include "L'Or Des Fous", "Traversee", "Trio", "Piano Prepare", "Orgue Hache", and "Chocolate Cream". CD

... 7-inch, Vinyl record

... CD

... LP, Vinyl record album

Just tenor and drums, coming together beautifully – the former from Binker Golding, the latter from Moses Boyd – a contemporary London duo who step out here in a soulful, almost spiritual mode! The music is loose, and very exploratory – yet never too free to swing – and always has this sense of rhythmic cohesion that almost seems to come more from Golding's tenor than it does from the drums of Boyd – although both players seem to shift back and forth in terms of centering the performance. The recording quality is wonderful – with this stark, crisp feel that almost takes us back to 70s New York loft jazz performances of this nature – and titles include "The Creeper", "Retox", "ESU", "No Long Tinges", and "Black Ave Maria". CD

... LP, Vinyl record album

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

A trio of spacey classics from Tim Blake – all brought together in a single set! First up Crystal Machine – fantastic sounds from Tim Blake, an artist who previously worked with Gong, and sometimes worked with Hawkwind – but who really came into his own on this legendary album of electronics! Tim works here on a self-constructed "crystal machine" – a bank of electronics that was often played in performance to front some trippy film installations (as shown on the cover) – which perfectly suited the stretched-out spacey style of his music! The vibe is maybe a bit like early Tangerine Dream, but with some of the warmer modes of the French electronic scene of the time – and titles include "Midnight", "Last Ride Of The Boogie Child", "Synthese Intemporel", and "Crystal Presence". On the cover of Blake's New Jerusalem, Tim looks like he's sitting at the helm of a spaceship on the cover – and in a way, that's what his music was at the time – a way of taking off to the skies on waves of electronics, in the kinds of sounds that Blake first created in his Crystal Machine project, but which have an even sharper focus here! The album's got more vocals than Tim's previous effort, and in a way that's what really sets it apart from the rest – as Blake's got this warmly positive approach that would be at home in progressive folk, but which here comes across with a very unique style – given the mostly electronic setting of the album! All the banks of knobs, slides, and keys pictured on the cover are used to strongly skillful effect – on titles that include "Generator", "Passage Sur La Cite", "New Jerusalem", "Song For A New Age", and "Lighthouse". Magick is a really great later set from electronic genius Tim Blake – an album recorded 15 years after his early classics, and done in his windmill home in France – but all played live, in a way that makes the electronics and keyboards here maybe more amazing! Blake has certainly picked up some of the elements from the 80s generation who were influenced by his earlier work – but also keeps the more open sense of song structure from his classics at points – with a sound that still knows when to revel in the best analog moments, next to the digital ones. Titles include "Tonight", "Strange Secret Of Ohm Gliding", "A Dream", "More Magick", and "Waiting For Nati". Also features the bonus b-side "The Woodland Voice". CD

A true orgy in rhythm from Art Blakey – a set that not only features his drums next to the kit of Art Taylor, but which also adds in a bevy of other percussionists – including Sabu Martinez, Patato Valdez, and Jose Valentine! Joe Jones and Specs Wright also bring in additional jazz drums – making for more drummers than you might even find in a high school band – all working together with amazing qualities in sound, sometimes even melodic amidst all of the rhythms. Lighter lyrical touches are provided by Herbie Mann's flute, and Ray Bryant throws in some great lines on piano – underscoring the grooves in a nice way. Titles on this first volume include "Buhaina Chant", "Split Skins", and "Toffi". LP, Vinyl record album

A true orgy in rhythm from Art Blakey – a set that not only features his drums next to the kit of Art Taylor, but which also adds in a bevy of other percussionists – including Sabu Martinez, Patato Valdez, and Jose Valentine! Joe Jones and Specs Wright also bring in additional jazz drums – making for more drummers than you might even find in a high school band – all working together with amazing qualities in sound, sometimes even melodic amidst all of the rhythms. Lighter lyrical touches are provided by Herbie Mann's flute, and Ray Bryant throws in some great lines on piano – underscoring the grooves in a nice way. Titles on this second volume include "Amuck", "Elephant Walk", and "Abdallah's Delight". LP, Vinyl record album

Absence is a word that can instantly have a sense of sadness, but it can also have a sort of beauty, too – and that's definitely the case in this album of work done as a tribute to the great Wayne Shorter by trumpeter Terence Blanchard! The record's way more than just a collection of Shorter's tunes – and although it features a few numbers penned by the saxophonist, there's also a set of new music by Blanchard and his piansist too – really lovely numbers that have the trumpeter at his most evocative – in maybe a condensed expression of some of the modes he brings to his larger soundtrack material. The core group is his E-Collective – with Fabian Almazan on piano, Charles Altura on guitar, David Ginyard on bass, and Oscar Seaton on drums – but maybe the most interesting aspect of the record is the gentle use of the Turtle Island String Quartet, who shade in Blanchard's deeper ideas in a nicely subtle way. Titles include "I Dare You", "Envisioned Reflections", "When It Was Now", "Diana", "The Elders", "Dark Horse", "The Second Wave", and "Fall". CD

Four fantastic albums from Bobby Bland – all brought together in a single package for the first time! First up is Come Fly With Me – great work from Bobby Blue Bland – one of the few artists to rise up at the end of the 50s, and still find a way to chart their own path forward in soul with fresh material like this! Bobby's voice is still incredible here, and he works with production from Al Bell and Monk Higgins, the latter of whom arranged – in this cool style that's a bit like some of the territory that Tyrone Davis was taking on at Columbia Records during the second half of the 70s – fuller arrangements that bring some sophisticated soul touches to the music, but in ways that never lose the core of Bobby's genius! Titles include "Lady Lonely", "Night Games", "You Can Count On Me", "Love To See You Smile", "Come Fly With Me", and "To Be Friends". The next album is I Feel Good I Feel Fine – and Bobby Bland sounds pretty good too – thanks to arrangements from the great Monk Higgins, who does a perfect job of mixing Bland's trademark vocals with some sweet late 70s arrangements! The sound is upbeat, but never in a cliched disco mode – more in the territory that you'd hear Johnnie Taylor using over at Columbia Records – maybe a good comparison, given the Memphis roots that both artists shared – as both also evolved a lot to shift their sound with the changing modes of the time. And as with Johnnie, Bobby never loses the core that makes him great – as you'll hear on titles that include "Tit For Tat", "Soon As The Weather Breaks", "In His Eyes", "Someone To Belong To", "I Feel Good I Feel Fine", and "Little Mama". Sweet Vibrations is a real gem from the start of the 80s – arranged by Monk Higgins, who co-produced the set with Al Bell – a duo who'd already given Bobby some great records before, but who really knock it out of the park with this one. There's an extra-special quality going on here – maybe a slight reintroduction of blues roots, but still with a very contemporary spirit – set up to superb backings throughout. Titles include "Soul With A Flavor", "Hollywood Woman", "You'd Be A Millionaire", "Sweet Vibrator", "Special Kind Of Fool", and "A Real Woman Is What It Takes". Try Me I'm Real is record with a title that certainly fits the bill – as the amazing voice of Bobby Bland is as real here as it ever was, and blended with superbly soulful backings that take the singer's sound forward for a whole new generation! Some of Bobby's contemporaries were content to just stick in a straight blues mode – but Bland really grew and developed a lot as an artist, thanks in part to Monk Higgins and Al Bell – who are both at the production helm of the record, and balance the bluesy roots of Bobby with some richer soul backings that really knock the whole thing out of the park! We love Bobby Blue Bland during his early Duke Records years – but we love him equally as much for music like this, on titles that include "But I Do", "What A Difference A Day Makes", "Givin Up The Streets For Love", "A Song For You My Son", "Just You Just Me", and "Love Is Where It's At". CD

A great little album from Booker T & The MGs – recorded in the post Green Onions years, at a time when the group was really coming together – with a tightness that perfectly illustrates their sublime Memphis instrumental groove! The album's heavy on guitar and organ, as you'd expect – that great Booker/Steve Cropper sound that can't be denied – and there's a rawness here that you don't get as much in later years – more of a funky 45 vibe that really keeps things fresh! Titles include a few nice originals – like "Soul Jam" and "My Sweet Potato" – but ever the covers sound pretty darn great, with a lot more imagination than the usual instrumental filler. As proof, there's a killer version of "Summertime", with a nice modal groove, plus nice takes on "Think" and "Working In A Coal Mine". LP, Vinyl record album

A sweet set of 70s spiritual jazz from Argentine tenor player Chivo Borraro – one of his best albums of the time, and a really wonderful session with lots of nice touches! The record features Borraro playing keyboard effects, in addition to his usual tenor – and it also features some additional keyboards by Fernando Gelbard, who plays both Fender Rhodes and ring modulator on the album, working things wonderfully as he did on his own albums of the time. This wealth of keyboards gives the album a spacious feel – keys soaring out into space, creating platforms for solo work on sax, and a space to showcase the talents of Stenio Mendes, who plays the 12-stringed craviola on the album. There's lots of post-Coltrane exploration to the record – and titles include "Mi Amgio Tarzan", "Cancion De Cuna Para Un Bebe Del Ano 2000", "Lineas Torcidas", and "La Invasion De Los Monjes". CD also features two bonus tracks – "Intro/Mi Amigo Tarzan" and "Mi Amigo Tarzan (alt take)". CD

Very underground work from Malian guitarist Bounaly – a musician whose work first appeared on a Whats App compilation, and makes its first ever full length appearance on this set! The album was recorded live, with a very gritty vibe – long tracks that have Bounaly's electric guitar spinning out these very hypnotic lines next to driving rhythms – all very spare, and topped with vocals that have a raspy urgency that really matches the music! The whole thing is almost like a field recording of an electric instrument and amplified voice – right down to the excited voices of onlookers – and titles include "Wato To", "Toure Iseye", "Cherie Ye Bani", "Tamala", and "Mali Mussow". LP, Vinyl record album

Domo Branch is represented as a group on the front cover – but if you take a closer look, you'll notice the image features multiple shots of the man himself – a killer drummer who delivers a wonderful performance on this full album of solo drums! The set was recorded overseas, but Domo Branch hails from Portland, where he's a key part of the scene, both as a player and an educator – and he plays here with a style that certainly understands many currents of jazz – in a mode that maybe takes a Baby Dodd solo drum performance forward through lessons learned in the generation of Milford Graves and Andrew Cyrille! Titles include "Purity/Honesty", "Influence", "Togetherness", "Patience", "Tribal", and "Longing". LP, Vinyl record album

A killer bit of female soul by a very short-lived group – one with a great sound that comes out of some real criss-crossing of styles – some deep soul currents, but some hipper modern soul touches at the top! The set was produced by Brad Shapiro, and has a good blend of his modern and southern styles of the mid 70s – similar to his work with Candi Staton – but it also features some impeccable arrangements from David Van DePitte, who gives the record a sweeping, swaying feel that buoys the vocals up on some really soulful backings. Titles include a great version of "How Long", plus the tracks "Mr Mystery", "You Accuse Me", "Rhythm Of Love", "One Woman's Trash", and "I Can't Weigh My Love". LP, Vinyl record album

A sweet mix of Brazilian grooves and New York attitude – an overlooked session from the end of the 90s – recorded in the US by Brazilian saxman Leo Gandelman, with soulful help from a variety of American players – including Reuben Wilson on organ and both Charlie Hunter and Grant Green Jr on guitar! There's a rich sort of 70s vibe to the record – a tight, funky blend of jazzy riffing and Brazilian percussion, all put together at a level that almost reminds us of Kudu Records at its best – lean, soulful, and surprisingly focused throughout – a great step forward for Gandelman, and for percussionist Juliano Zanoni, who co-arranged the set with Leo, and also wrote most of the tunes. Supposedly, the record never saw the light of day when it was recorded – making this sweet Far Out package its first-ever release! Titles include "Safari", "Pau Grande", "April 7th", "Dance", "Prince Samba", "Groove In The Head", "Pirulito", and "Charlie 1". 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

... CD

... LP, Vinyl record album

... LP, Vinyl record album

... CD

A great collection of 60s work by James – one that goes way past the hits, to show the birth of the funky style that would forever be James' calling card in the 70s! The package starts in the earlier King R&B years – with tracks that are hard and soulful, yet which also have a unique approach to rhythm that was the beginning of Brown's experiments in funk. As the set moves on, it runs through an assortment of 60s hard soul styles – with touches of soul jazz, sock-boogaloo, and more – all coming together to serve up a great portrait of James' early genius! The package has a number of wonderful vocal cuts, some instrumental bits, and even some rare studio dialogue – and it features tracks pulled from a number of rare singles and long out of print LPs, complete with a killer booklet too! Titles include "Baby You're Right", "Doodle Bee", "This Old Heart", "I'll Never Never Let You Go", "I Cried", "I Don't Care", "Shout & Shimmy", "Mashed Potatoes USA", "Maybe The Last Time", "Oh Baby Don't You Weep (parts 1 & 2)", "Just You & Me Darling", "And I Do Just What I Want", "Hold It", "Begging Begging", "That Dood It", and "Chonnie On Chon". 43 tracks in all! CD

A rare TK Records effort from James Brown – very much in the best uptempo funk mode of the later Polydor years! The groove here is quite similar to those better-known efforts – grooves that are a bit quicker than a few years before, but still played in a core JB funky style – live and lively, with plenty of emphasis on the rhythms! Brown often referred to his style here as disco, but it's a lot more like some of the P-Funk progressions of the period – a mode that's more polished than a grittier funky generation, yet far from smooth club or disco overall. There's plenty of choppy little groovers that make the record great – and titles include the long cut "Rapp Payback", plus "Funky Men", "Smokin & Drinkin", "Stay With Me", and "Mashed Potatoes". CD

A rare TK Records effort from James Brown – very much in the best uptempo funk mode of the later Polydor years! The groove here is quite similar to those better-known efforts – grooves that are a bit quicker than a few years before, but still played in a core JB funky style – live and lively, with plenty of emphasis on the rhythms! Brown often referred to his style here as disco, but it's a lot more like some of the P-Funk progressions of the period – a mode that's more polished than a grittier funky generation, yet far from smooth club or disco overall. There's plenty of choppy little groovers that make the record great – and titles include the long cut "Rapp Payback", plus "Funky Men", "Smokin & Drinkin", "Stay With Me", and "Mashed Potatoes". CD

An unusual slice of work from the James Brown Family – material from three different periods – early 60s cuts for Dade Records, early 70s material for Brownstone, and late 70s tracks for TK Records! The collection features some especially rare Dade material – tracks from artists that were working with James Brown, recording off for Henry Stone in a raw early 60s mode with James helping out in the studio – killer cuts that include "I Need Love" by The Baby, "Someone Up & Told Me" by Sonny Till, and "Do The Mashed Potatoes (parts 1 & 2)" by Nat Kendrick & The Swans. The set then features some early 70s cuts that were contemporaneous with the big burst of activity at People Records, but issued on Brownstone – tracks that include "Never Get Enough" and "I Need Help" by Bobby Byrd, "In The Land Of Milk & Honey" by Vicki Anderson, "You've Got To Change Your Mind" by Bobby Byrd, and "Nature (parts 1 & 2)" by The JBs International. The set also has some TK Records cuts – "You & Me Together" by Vicki Anderson, and "Mashed Potatoes" and "Rapp Payback" by James Brown – then also includes more rare cuts, including "Wichita Lineman" by Dee Felice Trio, "I Loves You Porgy" by James Brown & The Famous Flames, and "Win Your Love For Me" by Johnny The Man. CD

An unusual slice of work from the James Brown Family – material from three different periods – early 60s cuts for Dade Records, early 70s material for Brownstone, and late 70s tracks for TK Records! The collection features some especially rare Dade material – tracks from artists that were working with James Brown, recording off for Henry Stone in a raw early 60s mode with James helping out in the studio – killer cuts that include "I Need Love" by The Baby, "Someone Up & Told Me" by Sonny Till, and "Do The Mashed Potatoes (parts 1 & 2)" by Nat Kendrick & The Swans. The set then features some early 70s cuts that were contemporaneous with the big burst of activity at People Records, but issued on Brownstone – tracks that include "Never Get Enough" and "I Need Help" by Bobby Byrd, "In The Land Of Milk & Honey" by Vicki Anderson, "You've Got To Change Your Mind" by Bobby Byrd, and "Nature (parts 1 & 2)" by The JBs International. The set also has some TK Records cuts – "You & Me Together" by Vicki Anderson, and "Mashed Potatoes" and "Rapp Payback" by James Brown – then also includes more rare cuts, including "Wichita Lineman" by Dee Felice Trio, "I Loves You Porgy" by James Brown & The Famous Flames, and "Win Your Love For Me" by Johnny The Man. CD

A classic album from San Francisco pianist Dave Brubeck – recorded at Oberlin College, the mid-Ohio haven of bohemiana, and a growing hotbed of jazz activity centered around students in the college's conservatory of music at the time of the recording! Dave and crew made the trip at the request of the kids – breaking from their mostly San Francisco-based recording career to cut what would end up becoming a very successful album in Dave's catalog, and begin a whole "at" or "goes to" series in his career – followed up at many other locations. The group's the early quartet with Paul Desmond on alto, Ron Crotty on bass, and Lloyd Davis on drums – and tunes include long and jamming versions of "The Way You Look Tonight", "How High The Moon", and "Stardust". LP, Vinyl record album

A very unusual high-concept project from Dave Brubeck – with the man himself on piano, in a setting that features the Cinncinnatti Symphony conducted by Erich Kunzel, with voices too! LP, Vinyl record album