An incredible album from Bill Evans – and maybe THE record you need in your collection if you're trying to understand his contribution to jazz! The album's one of Evan's first sides from the Village Vanguard – and features the legendary trio that included Scott LaFaro on bass and Paul Motian on drums – both players who could shake free from conventional rhythmic roles in a piano trio, yet who also support Evans' lyrically modal playing here beautifully! The tracks are a bit longer than Bill's studio sides from the time, allowing for even more magical interplay on the keys – and titles include "My Foolish Heart", "Waltz For Debby", "Detour Ahead", "My Romance", "Some Other Time", and "Milestones". LP, Vinyl record album

A legendary set from the team of guitarist Jim Hall and pianist Bill Evans – both already wonderful players on their own, but really hitting a magical sort of space here together! The record is a classic in understatement – the inevitable meeting of two players who'd both made a career out of saying more with less – and both Evans and Hall manage to make this special sort of sound when working together in such a space – spare, but never short on ideas – filled with color and tone, but never overdone. The tracks are long and dreamy, and the piano/guitar lines seem to float in the air, suspended on naught but idea and imagination. Titles include a very nice version of "Skating In Central Park", plus "Dream Gypsy", "Romain", and "Darn That Dream". LP, Vinyl record album

A legendary set from the team of guitarist Jim Hall and pianist Bill Evans – both already wonderful players on their own, but really hitting a magical sort of space here together! The record is a classic in understatement – the inevitable meeting of two players who'd both made a career out of saying more with less – and both Evans and Hall manage to make this special sort of sound when working together in such a space – spare, but never short on ideas – filled with color and tone, but never overdone. The tracks are long and dreamy, and the piano/guitar lines seem to float in the air, suspended on naught but idea and imagination. Titles include a very nice version of "Skating In Central Park", plus "Dream Gypsy", "Romain", and "Darn That Dream". LP, Vinyl record album

A sweet set of tracks that goes way beyond the usual Herbie Mann album! Herbie's playing with Bill Evans' trio that included Chuck Israels on bass and Paul Motian on drums – and the group's got a nice groove that, while not exactly modal, still hits a nice open-ended stretch that works well with Mann's flute – and creates some great exotic-tinged sounds! In a way, the whole album sounds a bit like some sort of 70's soul jazz flute album – nice and airy, a little bit righteous, and very different for both Evans and Mann – and tracks include "Nirvana", "Cashmere", "Gymnopedie", and "I Love You". LP, Vinyl record album

If you've ever doubted the real jazz sensibility of Tony Bennett, then this is an album to change your mind – because Tony's working here in a marvelously unadorned setting – with only the piano of Bill Evans to back him up! The record's a rare gem from years after Bennett was cracking the pop charts, but was willing to pull back to the jazz of his roots – and the session's equally rare for Evans, who rarely worked with vocalists at this point in his career. The simplicity of the album is its strength – and together, the pair really sound tremendous – slightly faltering at times, but in a way that exposes a sense of humanity you might not find in other records, especially those by Bennett. Titles include "When In Rome", "Some Other Time", "The Touch Of Your Lips", "My Foolish Heart", "Waltz For Debby", and "Young & Foolish". LP, Vinyl record album

Solo work by Bill Evans – recorded in 1968, at a time when he was increasingly exploring gentleness in his work! The album's quite haunting – done with no other musicians, no overdubs (as in other solo 60s albums) – just Evans alone at the keys, expressing himself with a somber genius that's breathtaking in its subtlety. The album features a side-long version of "Never Let Me Go" – running for over 14 minutes, and worth the price of admission alone – plus "Here's That Rainy Day", "A Time For Love", "Midnight Mood" and "On A Clear Day (You Can See Forever)". LP, Vinyl record album

A pretty sublime album from Bill Evans – one that has him playing both Fender Rhodes and Steinway, overdubbed together, for an effect that's laidback and completely wonderful! The Fender Rhodes was a natural choice for Evans – given his fluid lyrical style, and on this set (and on his equally great record for MGM) Bill opens up with an approach that really suits him well. Each track features him shifting back and forth between electric and acoustic modes, dancing from one to the other in a way that makes the instruments come together beautifully – supported by some incredibly soulful bass work by Eddie Gomez, and drums by Marty Morrell. Titles include "Sugar Plum", "Funkallero", "Waltz for Debby", "TTT", "Re: Person I Knew", and "Comrade Conrad". LP, Vinyl record album

The Bill Evans trio with Scott LaFaro on bass and Paul Motian on drums – a near-perfect lineup that forever raised the bar for jazz piano expression! The title here is certainly apt – because even though many of the tunes are shortish, Evans has a sense of exploration in the way he's approaching the keys – one that still retains some of the lyrically rhythmic traces of his first few records – but which also glides forth into territory that was virtually untapped on record for the time. The revolution here is so subtle, it's easy to miss from the perspective of our generation – but give it a few listens, and the record will open up beautifully! Titles include "Israel", "Haunted Heart", "Elsa", "Nardis", and "I Wish I Knew". LP, Vinyl record album

A follow up to the similarly-titled Conversations With Myself album recorded several years before – and like that one, a record that has Bill Evans playing "with" himself, via the technology of overdubs! The album's less a solo album, than a duet one – given that most of the numbers feature Evans working between melody and rhythm on overlapping piano lines – creating a mini chorus of pianos that sounds totally great, and wonderfully unique! Titles include "Emily", "Yesterdays", "Santa Claus Is Coming To Town", "Funny Man", "The Shadow Of Your Smile", "Little Lulu" and "Quiet Now". LP, Vinyl record album

Bill Evans' first album as a leader – and a well-titled set that went onto transform the sound of the piano in jazz! The session isn't as lyrically free as some of Evans' later classics, but already has an undeniably fresh approach to the keys – one that's modern, yet never academic – fluid, but never flowery – pure genius of economy and understatement, while also at the same time opening bold new worlds in sound. The trio features drummer Paul Motian and bassist Teddy Kotick, and titles include the classics "Five" and "Waltz For Debby", the latter of which is performed solo by Evans – plus tracks that include "Displacement", "I Love You", "My Romance", "No Cover, No Minimum", and "Our Delight". LP, Vinyl record album

One of Bill Evans' landmark sessions with the young bassist Scott LaFaro – a player who made key contributions on every record he touched, then left this earth far too soon in his career! The live session's a perfect demonstration of the way that the Evans trio format not only re-worked the use of the piano in jazz, but also the bass and drums as well – as LaFaro's deeply evocative playing is paired with the equally fresh drum work of Paul Motian – heard here at his youthful early best, before some of his contributions to jazz had become cliche in the hands of other players. The session was caught live at the Village Vanguard on the night of June 25, 1961 – and titles include longish takes on "Solar", "Jade Visions", "Gloria's Step", and "Alice In Wonderland". LP, Vinyl record album

Milestone 70s two-fer collecting the recordings of the classic (and best) Evans trio caught live at the Village Vanguard in 1961. This is the group that established Evans outside of the Miles group, playing a typical Evans set of standards, with a wonderful open sound that would influence generations to come. 13 numbers in all, including "My Foolish Heart", "Waltz For Debby", "Detour Ahead", "My Romance", "Some Other Time", "Gloria's Steps", "All Of You", "Jade Visions", "Porgy", and "Milestones". LP, Vinyl record album

A beautiful pairing – the keyboards of Bill Evans and harmonica of Toots Thielemans – presented here in a space that marks the record as one of the best from both players in the 70s! Some tunes are sad and blue, and very spare – others a bit more upbeat and lyrical, almost taking us back to Bill's more sprightly modes of the early 60s – and the clear, clean sound offers up the best tones from both players in a perfect space. Other musicians include Marc Johnson on bass, Eliot Zigmund on drums, and Larry Schneider on flute, tenor, and soprano sax – and Evans plays a bit of electric piano in addition to acoustic, something we always love! Titles include "I Do It For Your Love", "The Days Of Wine & Roses", "Jesus' Last Ballad", "The Other Side Of Midnight", "Blue & Green", and "Tomato Kiss". LP, Vinyl record album

Live session with Eddie Gomez on bass and Marty Morell on drums. Titles include "Emily", 'Sleeping Bee", "Alfie", "Who Can I Turn To", "Very Early", "Round About Midnight", and "Autumn Leaves". LP, Vinyl record album

A brilliant return to Montreux from Bill Evans – working here with a trio that includes some killer bass work by Eddie Gomez! The set's an acoustic one – despite its appearance on electric powerhouse CTI – but Evans' work on the piano has an electricity that's all its own, magically crafting waves and shapes of sound and tone. And despite the CTI setting, there's a nicely spacious sound to the way the album was recorded – one that's got a bit less of the "perfection" than on some of Bill's other 70s live dates – a sense of humanity that comes through wonderfully, and which makes this one a very special record! Titles include "Very Early", "34 Skidoo", "Israel", and "Peri's Scope". LP, Vinyl record album

An unusual setting for Bill Evans, but a great one too – an early collaboration with arranger Claus Ogerman, who provides some larger backdrops for Bill's frontline piano! The set's not as ambitious as the symphony-styled one from the pair a few years later – and instead, it's got a nicely romping quality that's still mostly jazz, but which also carries a bit more soundtrack or pop instrumental feel too – never too much to make Evans sound crassly commercial, and a nice new setting that stands out from the mostly-trio mode he was recording in during the 60s. Many tunes are early 60s pop or soundtrack numbers, done with a nice sort of sensitivity – and titles include "Days Of Wine & Roses", "More", "The Caretakers", "Theme From Mr Novak", "Hollywood", "Sweet September", and "The Man With The Golden Arm". LP, Vinyl record album

Bill Evans' first album as a leader – and a well-titled set that went onto transform the sound of the piano in jazz! The session isn't as lyrically free as some of Evans' later classics, but already has an undeniably fresh approach to the keys – one that's modern, yet never academic – fluid, but never flowery – pure genius of economy and understatement, while also at the same time opening bold new worlds in sound. The trio features drummer Paul Motian and bassist Teddy Kotick, and titles include the classics "Five" and "Waltz For Debby", the latter of which is performed solo by Evans – plus tracks that include "Displacement", "I Love You", "My Romance", "No Cover, No Minimum", and "Our Delight". LP, Vinyl record album

A great release of material from the late 50s – that time when reedman Tony Scott was really starting to experiment! This hip quartet date also features Bill Evans on piano, Jimmy Garrison on bass, and Pete LaRoca on drums – a wonderfully sensitive rhythm section who really keep things interesting! Includes extended takes on "Walkin", "Free & Easy Blues", and "My Melancholy Baby". LP, Vinyl record album

Two different sides of Verve Records in the 50s – one modern, one a bit more traditional – and both represented in live material from the Newport Jazz Festival in 1957! Side one features a stunning live performance from pianist Teddy Wilson – working in a tight trio with Milt Hinton on bass and Spec Powell on drums – and really blowing away any conceptions we might have had about Wilson being aging or flowery at the time. Instead, he's got a sharp edge and command of the keys that's amazing – and which almost seems to have a bit more bite than usual in this concert setting. Titles include "Stompin At The Savoy", "Basin Street Blues", and "Airmail Special" – and Gerry Mulligan joins the group on baritone for a reading of "Sweet Georgia Brown". Mulligan then takes off with his own group, in a completely different format – no piano at all, just beautiful work from Joe Benjamin on bass and Dave Bailey on drums – and sublime sounds from Bob Brookmeyer's valve trombone, which is a perfect match for Gerry's deep tones. The group plays long takes on "My Funny Valentine" and "Utter Chaos". LP, Vinyl record album

Great early work from Gary McFarland – much more serious than some of his whimsical bossa sides, but also a stunning example of the depths of his talents! The group on the session isn't really an "orchestra" – just a combo with Gary on vibes, Bill Evans on piano, Jim Hall on guitar, Phil Woods and Spencer Sinatra on reeds – plus some added strings. The tracks have the fragility of some of the collaborations between Bill Evans and Jim Hall – but also a bit more swing and space at times, and a wonderfully chromatic edge from McFarland's vibes! The feel's a bit like some of the work done by Gary over at Impulse – and titles include "Reflections In The Park", "Night Images", "Peachtree", "Tree Patterns", and "A Moment Alone". LP, Vinyl record album

Superb work from pianist Richie Beirach – a set that's dedicated to Bill Evans, and which certainly embraces some of the key numbers in his songbook – but which also has that even more spacious sound that Beirach was bringing to his trio dates in the 70s! Richie's sense of timing and tone are fantastic – doing so much with so little, that Evans would have been pleased – although again, Beirach is hardly borrowing straight from Bill's style. Also fantastic is bassist George Mraz, whose way of inflecting notes and measuring color and mood almost rival the role of Eddie Gomez when playing with Evans – all balanced nicely by the work of Al Foster on drums, who's at his most subtle here. Titles include "Blue In Green", "Nardis", "Peace Pipe", "Spring Is Here", "Solar", and "In Your Own Sweet Way". LP, Vinyl record album

A very cool package – one that brings together a classic album, plus another disc of even more rare material! LP 1 features Blues & The Abstract Truth – one of the all-time classics of early 60s mainstream jazz – and a beautiful record that showcases writing and arranging talents of Oliver Nelson! Nelson had been bumping around a variety of sessions before this one – as a leader, sideman, and arranger – but it was with this album that his true talents really unfolded – sparkling with a depth of imagination and expression that marked him as one of the greatest artists in 60s American jazz! The group on the set is an all-star sextet – featuring Paul Chambers, Eric Dolphy, Bill Evans, Roy Haynes, and Freddie Hubbard – a disparate group of players who manage to come together with Nelson and find a unique voice that's rarely been duplicated again! The album features 6 fantastic compositions by Nelson, including "Stolen Moments", "Hoe Down", and "Yearnin". LP 2 features material from the Sound Pieces sessions – just the small group sides, with two previously unreleased tracks appearing here. The group features Oliver Nelson on soprano sax – plus Steve Kuhn on piano, Ron Carter bass, and Grady Tate on drums. Kuhn's piano brings a nice modern edge that works perfectly with the soprano – and titles include "Patterns", "Shadow Of Your Smile", and "Elegy For A Duck" – plus the unissued "Straight No Chaser" and "Example 78". LP, Vinyl record album

A seminal statement from drummer Jack DeJohnette – a musician who'd already made a pretty big impact in the years before this set – but who really seemed to take off with his New Directions group on ECM! Every player in the lineup is a key sonic pioneer on their instrument – John Abercrombie on guitar, with his great sense of color and tone – Eddie Gomez on bass, with that soundshaping ability he developed with Bill Evans – trumpeter Lester Bowie, really finding a voice here away from the Art Ensemble Of Chicago – and drummer DeJohnette, beautifully set free in territory far beyond standard rhythm! The mix of all four musicians is wonderful – and still quite fresh after all these years, despite how many folks might have tried to copy the approach – on titles that include "Dream Stalker", "Where Or Wayne", "Silver Hollow", "One Handed Woman", and "Bayou Fever". LP, Vinyl record album

An obscure 70s trio session from pianist Tommy Flanagan – and one that really gets at the full depths of his lyrical talents on the keys! As the title implies, the session features Tommy working through a host of Harold Arlen standards – all familiar numbers, but performed here with a fluid grace that's completely sublime – a gentle soul that almost has echoes of some of the later work of Bill Evans, but a bit more of a sense of presence overall. The trio features George Mraz on bass and Connie Kay on drums – but many passages just have Flanagan's piano gliding along on its own, magically setting the pace for the tunes before the rhythm even comes into the mix. Helen Merrill guests on vocals on a version of "Last Night When We Were Young" – and other tunes include "Out Of This World", "Sleepin Bee", "Ill Wind", "My Shining Hour", and "Get Happy". Produced by Helen Merrill, too! LP, Vinyl record album

Brilliant work from that hip 60s period when Hampton Hawes was really stretching out his sound – building on his already-great style of the 50s, by adding in more complex lines and unusual tones – creating far more depth in his music than ever before! In a way, there's a bit of a Bill Evans quality to the record – that contemplative love of sound that always made Bill's records so great. Yet Hawes is definitely his own man on the date too – because he also breaks out with bolder moments than Evans ever would have done – letting some of his older LA groove come into play with his newer ideas, in blend that holds us rapt with attention throughout. Rhythm players are great too – Chuck Israels on bass and Donald Bailey on drums – and titles include "The Girl From Ipanema", "Dear Heart", "Rhonda", "Chim Chim Cheree", and "Days Of Wine & Roses". LP, Vinyl record album

A mindblowing album from Ahmad Jamal – a fantastic start to the 70s, and a set of music that shows just how far the pianist had come in just a few short years! The album's all acoustic, but has some of that spacious flow that Jamal would bring to his work on Fender Rhodes – with an approach that's even more open in terms of song structure than his earlier trio material – as if Jamal's choosing to omit more notes than he's including – but all with a quality that still keeps the music very full and rhythmic – pulsating with a special sort of energy that's neither Bill Evans, nor McCoy Tyner – but instead this really amazing sound that's all Ahmad's own. The trio features equally wonderful work from Jamil Nasser on bass and Frank Gant on drums – and titles include "The Awakening", "I Love Music", "Patterns", "Wave", and "Dolphin Dance". LP, Vinyl record album

One of the all-time classics of early 60s mainstream jazz – and a beautiful record that showcases writing and arranging talents of Oliver Nelson! Nelson had been bumping around a variety of sessions before this one – as a leader, sideman, and arranger – but it was with this album that his true talents really unfolded – sparkling with a depth of imagination and expression that marked him as one of the greatest artists in 60s American jazz! The group on the set is an all-star sextet – featuring Paul Chambers, Eric Dolphy, Bill Evans, Roy Haynes, and Freddie Hubbard – a disparate group of players who manage to come together with Nelson and find a unique voice that's rarely been duplicated again! The album features 6 fantastic compositions by Nelson, including "Stolen Moments", "Hoe Down", and "Yearnin". A fantastic record – and one that you can't go wrong with! LP, Vinyl record album

A real standout set from Tony Scott's 50s catalog – an album that features his sweetly fluid clarinet lines backed by a larger orchestra that includes Gigi Gryce, Sahib Shihab, Zoot Sims, Frank Wess, Thad Jones, and Frank Foster! The format's less bop-oriented than some of Tony's other records from the time, but the expansive sound of the larger group is really great – and brings a sense of drama to the record that seems to push Tony a bit more than usual. Some tracks feature incredible solo work that has Scott really stretching the instrument, almost in a way that foreshadows stronger 60s use of soprano saxophone – and arrangements from Bill Evans, John Carisi, Nat Pierce, and Sonny Truitt help to keep the overall sound of the album fresh throughout. Titles include "The Lady Is A Tramp", "Skylark", "I'll Remember April", "Walkin", "Under A Blanket Of Blue", and 2 very nice extended numbers – "Finger Poppin Blues" and "Time To Go". LP, Vinyl record album

A really hip record from fluteman Jeremey Steig – and a set that's nice and lean, with a very cool groove! The lineup just features Eddie Gomez on bass, Ray Mantilla on congas, and Marty Morrell on drums – and Gomez is fantastic, with a rich sound that's very different than his work with Bill Evans – funky at times, and sounding great next to the percussion! Titles include "Djinn Djinn", "Space Maiden", "Monium", and "Dream Passage". LP, Vinyl record album

An obscure little session from Kenny Burrell – recorded at the end of the 70s, and with a very laidback feel! The set was produced by Helen Keane, who'd done some of Bill Evans' greatest sets – and who had a real ear for the mellower side of the jazz spectrum. And for the record, she's got Kenny playing in a trio format that's very spacious – with only gentle accompaniment from Reggie Johnson on bass and Sherman Ferguson on drums, and most of the sound on the set coming from the strings of Kenny's guitar. Following in the gentle spirit of the set, Kenny even plays an acoustic guitar on 2 numbers – making for a very different sound than usual. Some tracks are quite long, really letting Kenny open up on his solos – and titles include "So Little Time", "All Blues", "I'm Glad There Is You", and "You & The Night & The Music". LP, Vinyl record album

An excellent set that spans the gamut of Miles' work on Columbia – from his early hardbop sides to his later experimental ones! All of the material on the 2LP set was unreleased until the time of this release in 1979 – and the album features Miles in the company of a wide variety of players that include George Benson, Cannonball Adderley, Bennie Maupin, Hank Mobley, Joe Zawinul, Herbie Hancock, Bill Evans, Red Garland, and Joe Beck. Titles include "Teo's Bag", "Side Car (1 & 2)", "Sanctuary", "Guinnevere", "Circle In The Round", and "Two Bass Hit". LP, Vinyl record album

Not actually a proper album – but still one of the greatest Miles Davis albums of all time! Side one features 10 tracks from Miles' amazing soundtrack to the film Ascenseur Pour L'Echafaud – with excellent work by French players Barney Wilen, Rene Urtreger, and Pierre Michelot, on haunting moody tracks like "Generique", "Lassassinat De Carala", "Au Bar Du Petit Bac", and "Dinner Au Motel". Great stuff – and with a wonderful sound that's like no other Miles album! Side 2 is equally great – as it features 3 classic sextet tunes – "On Green Dolphin Street", "Put Your Little Foot Right Out", and "Stella By Starlight" –peformed with Coltrane, Cannonball Adderley, and Bill Evans in that amazing Kind Of Blue mode of perfection. Truly one of our favorite albums of all time! LP, Vinyl record album

Excellent live work from the start of the 80s – very different than the full-on electric jams of Miles Davis concert performances from the early 70s – and at a level that shows that Miles was really finding a way forward with at great new groove! There's a nice sense of open space on the very long performances here – well-blown solos from Davis, really showing a new sort of form – in a lineup that also features Bill Evans on soprano sax, Mike Stern on guitar, Marcus Miller on bass, and the great Al Foster on drums! Mino Cinelu adds in some nice percussion moments, and Miller's basslines really help give the record a great sense of direction. Titles include "Kix", "My Man's Gone Now", "Jean Pierre", "Fast Track", and "Back Seat Betty". LP, Vinyl record album

A pretty nice set of "mood jazz in hi fi" – featuring Don on the mellophone, trumpet, and vibes – working with a surprisingly hip group that features Bill Evans, Hal McKusick, Paul Motian, and Barry Galbraith. A number of tunes feature backings by a vocal choir of 6 voices – dreamily setting a field of sound for the main soloists to work through – creating a style that actually works better here than some of Elliott's straighter jazz sides of the time. Titles include "A Waltz", "Blue Waltz", "Poinciana", "Summer Scene", "Tired Of Me", and "A Million Dreams Ago". Quite nice, with some dark and modern edges that you wouldn't expect! LP, Vinyl record album

A seminal session as a leader by the young Art Farmer – recorded for United Artists, and a great set of tight lyrical tunes, played by Farmer in his sparkling style – in a group along with Benny Golson on tenor and Bill Evans on piano. Evans is a special treat here, as the 1958 session was recorded at a time when he was making a fair bit of appearances in various rhythm sections for horn players (like Miles Davis) – and although this role in Evans' career was a short one, it yielded some amazingly beautiful moments, as you'll hear on this album. Art's brother Addison plays bass, and Dave Bailey rounds out the group on drums. Tracks include "Cold Breeze", "Mox Nix", "Jubilation", and "Fair Weather". LP, Vinyl record album

Eddie continues the funky groove begun on Instant Funk, and smoothed out over albums like I Need Some Money – and although jazz fans probably gave him hell for going this way, we think this is actually a pretty darn great album! The record takes all of Eddie's experimentation with groovy styles from the early 70s, and filters it through some tighter playing that actually makes the groove a lot more compelling than before. A number of the tracks have vocals, almost in a humorous Bill Cosby mode – but in a way that also preserves the party feel of the cuts. Players include Bobby Lyle, Paul Humphrey, Buck Clarke, and Bradley Bobo – and one Chicago-recorded track features a great assortment from older years that includes Muhal Abrams, Odell Brown, Marshapp Thompson, Willie Henderson, and Richard Evans. Titles include "Tryin Ain't Dyin", "Ooh", "Exempt", "Live Again", "Flowers", "Why Do You Hurt Me", and "It's All Right Now". LP, Vinyl record album

A mindblowing album from Ahmad Jamal – a fantastic start to the 70s, and a set of music that shows just how far the pianist had come in just a few short years! The album's all acoustic, but has some of that spacious flow that Jamal would bring to his work on Fender Rhodes – with an approach that's even more open in terms of song structure than his earlier trio material – as if Jamal's choosing to omit more notes than he's including – but all with a quality that still keeps the music very full and rhythmic – pulsating with a special sort of energy that's neither Bill Evans, nor McCoy Tyner – but instead this really amazing sound that's all Ahmad's own. The trio features equally wonderful work from Jamil Nasser on bass and Frank Gant on drums – and titles include "The Awakening", "I Love Music", "Patterns", "Wave", and "Dolphin Dance". LP, Vinyl record album

Groundbreaking work from the legendary Ahmad Jamal – not just in his own career, but in live jazz in general! The album's a classic recording of Jamal's trio with Israel Crosby on bass and Vernell Fournier on drums – captured at the Pershing Lounge on the south side of Chicago, where Jamal was clearly wowing the crowd with his amazing talents on the piano. The groove here is sublimely fluid and soulful – clearly the next wave of expression on the piano in the 50s, and as important to the Chicago scene as Bill Evans was to that of New York at the time. The recording quality is wonderful – clear enough to capture the subtleties of Crosby's amazing bass, and the lightly tippling sound of Fournier's drums – and titles include a classic extended reading of "Poinciana", plus "What's New", "But Not For Me", and "No Greater Love". LP, Vinyl record album

After the success of Jarrett's Standards Trio recording, he revisits the format with Gary Peacock and Jack DeJohnette – the first ever live recordings of this incredible trio in action! Like the studio recordings, this set features roomy, lyrical readings of standards, in a way, reminiscent of classic Bill Evans approaches to similar material – with a relaxed, moody spin on the proceedings. The tried-and-true material is given fresh life by the players, who roll from a looser dynamic with each player having their moments, to some tighter interplay in the heart of the tunes – and the appreciative French audience helping with the mood! 6 numbers: "Stella By Starlight", "The Wrong Blues", "Falling In Love With Love", "To Young To Go Steady", "The Way You Look tonight" and "The Old Country". LP, Vinyl record album

Great work from one of the most compelling trombonists of the 50s! Jimmy Knepper is probably best known for his excellent work on some of Charles Mingus' best records – but this set from 1957 shows that Knepper was also an extremely capable (if under-recorded) leader in his own right! The album is one of the rarest Bethlehem sides – and it features Knepper leading a crack group that includes Bill Evans, Gene Quill and drummer Dannie Richmond, making a rare non-Mingus appearance here! The tracks are shortish, and a number of them are standards, but the group swings nicely, and Knepper's tone is nice and edgey on most tracks. Titles include "Avid Admirer", "Close As Pages In A Book", "Ogling Ogre", "Irresistable You", "How High The Moon", "Love Letters" and "Idol Of The Flies". LP, Vinyl record album

A beautiful lost session from Lee Konitz – one that has him blowing beautifully over larger backings penned by Jimmy Giuffre – all done with that great blend of modern and swing that Jimmy was bringing to his best work of the 50s! Bill Evans and Jim Hall provide support in the rhythm section, using their fluid styles of piano and guitar to gently swing the tunes without pushing too much on the bottom – so that Lee's flowing solos on alto are allowed to glide majestically over the top! The Konitz presented here is a rare one, and an extremely charming player who's more concerned with tone and soul than on some of his other more modern outings of the time. Titles include "I Didn't Know About You", "You Are Too Beautiful", "The More I See You", "Everything I've Got Belongs To You", and "You're Driving Me Crazy". LP, Vinyl record album

A 70s issue of 2 seminal sides from George Russell, originally recorded in the 50s. The first, New York New York is a wonderful album from George Russell – and a refreshing change from his overly-academic modernist work! The session's an unusual one – a musical portrait of New York City, performed with an all-star cast that includes John Coltrane, Art Farmer, Bill Evans, Phil Woods, Benny Golson, Max Roach, and Hal McKusick – all working together to paint tones on the tunes that George has crafted to set up his scene of New York in the 50s. Most importantly, though, Jon Hendricks acts as the narrator of the album – talking and scatting in hipster mode, laying out a bit of beat rapportage about the Big Apple, all done in a very cool 50s style that's a bit different from his own vocal work. Titles include "Manhattan", "Big City Blues", "Manhattan-Rico", and "A Helluva Town". And don't let the title of the second, Jazz In The Space Age, mislead you into thinking it's a record of bachelor pad musi. The set's one of Russell's finest recordings of the 50s, and it features some wonderful work in odd tones and scales, executed by another awesome cast of players, including Bill Evans, Paul Bley, Hal McKusick, Bob Brookmeyer, and David Young. An essential chapter in Russell's career, and nice to have in any form. Titles include "Chromatic Universe (parts 1, 2, & 3)", "Dimensions", "Waltz From Outer Space", and "The Lydiot". LP, Vinyl record album

A reissue of one of Blakey's best non-Blue Note sides from the late 50s, a killer album that sports a great lineup of the Jazz Messengers that included Jackie McLean, Johnny Griffin, Bill Hardman, Sam Dockery and Spanky DeBrest. The three of them sparkle and shine with the sort of brilliance that Blakey's leadership brings to the group, and they wail their way through a 13 minute long reading of "Night In Tunisia", with excellent solos all around, and the other cuts "Theory Of Art", "Couldn't It Be You?", "Evans", and "Off The Wall". This reissue adds the bonus number "Social Call" recorded for RCA at very nearly the same time, but with a larger group that features Wynton Kelly in place of Sam Dockery, plus the addition of Lee Morgan, Sahib Shihab, Melba Liston and Cecil Payne in the horn section. LP, Vinyl record album

Miles Davis in the early 80s – but still sounding pretty darn great, and somehow managing to take some of his best elements from the 70s and refine them into a slightly more focused groove! The tracks here are shorter than before – no side-long jams at all – but they definitely bristle with slight undercurrents of noise, and have some unbridled rhythms that make for a good sense of energy. Added to these are a few more (then) contemporary touches – a very slight update of Miles' older funk, but never in a slick or commercial way – and still cerebral enough to show the world that Davis wasn't selling out late in the day. Miles plays a bit of keyboards in addition to trumpet – and other players include Bill Evans on saxophones, John Scofield on guitar, Marcus Miller on bass, and Al Foster on drums. Titles include "Come Get It", "It Gets Better", "Speak", "Star People", "U N I", and "Star On Cicely". LP, Vinyl record album

Features a bit of bass from Chuck Israels, who mostly directs – plus tenor from Sal Nistico, trumpet from Tom Harrell, alto from Lee Konitz, piano from Bill Evans, trombone from Jimmy Knepper, and other reeds from Greg Herbert. LP, Vinyl record album

Beautiful beautiful early work from Dave Pike – a cascading array of vibes and piano – stretched out over some longer tracks that skip with a lyrical and modal groove throughout! Dave's working here with a group that includes Bill Evans on piano, Herbie Lewis on bass, and Walter Perkins on drums – and although his style is a bit more restrained than on his later funk albums, it also proves to be a wonderful match for the fluid colors of Evans' work on piano – as well as Perkins' light and playful work on the drum kit. There's a simplicity here that's really great – not as "over your head" as the Dave Pike Set of later years, and with a gentle grace that shows what a keenly mature player Pike was, even at this early age. Titles include "Why Not", "Vierd Blues", "Besame Mucho", and "Wild Is The Wind". LP, Vinyl record album

With selections by Stanley Jordan, Bobby McFerrin, Michel Petrucciani, James Newton, Tony Williams, Bill Evans, Bennie Wallace, and OTB. LP, Vinyl record album