A set of unreleased improvisations between these two fantastic free jazz musicians – intended as a session in which, according to Paal Nilssen-Love, "we agreed to bring all the metal we could bring"! That means that Peter Brotzmann is blowing a wide variety of reed instruments, and Paal is handling lots of percussion and gongs next to his drums – yet all elements are used in these very spare styles, almost more loft jazz than you'd guess from the legacy of intensity from both of the musicians – which makes for yet another great late life surprise in the final years of Brotzmann – proof that he never stopped reinventing and opening doors to new avenues of creation! Titles include "Dancing Octopus", "Move On Over", "South Of No Return", "Butterfly Mushroom", "Found The Cabin But No People", and "Five Of Them Survived The Dream". CD

A really cool blend of jazz and electronics – done up in some of the ambitious modes of composer Bingo Miki's other work, yet with a style that's a lot more straight ahead overall! The jazz component of the record is served up strongly by tenorist Tatsuya Takahashi – who leads a group that's mostly acoustic, but which features lots of cool keyboard work from Mickey Yoshino – who soars in with spacey lines and weird melodies, and really expands on the rich tones and colors of the horns – always in ways that are a lot different, and a lot more creative than the usual 70s big band record with keyboards. Tracks are all quite long, with a richly illustrative feel – and titles include "Sketches Of Munch", "The Legend Of Garbo", "Andersen Fantasia", "Sibelius Testament", and "Children At Play". CD

Classic work from one of the grooviest Japanese big bands of the 70s – a great combo who mix lots of great keyboard lines with soaring horn passages – all in a style that's as evocative as the title image and cover! There's a very special feel to the record – a mode that's different than the 70s electric big bands from Europe, like some of the MPS groups – as the approach is often very unified, with a bit less sense of solo voice – yet still filled with lots of personality and humanity along the way. Masaru Imada plays electric piano, Masayuki Nakatomi plays Arp and mini moog, and Himiko Kikuchi plays Fender Rhodes and clavinet – and while the horns solo more than the keyboards, those electric elements really help give the record a very cool sound – with kind of a fluid, watery feel at times. Two tracks feature wordless female vocals – and titles include "Back To The Sea", "Swingin On The Horizon", "When Waves Sing", "Natural Flow", and "Merman's Dance". CD

The groovy 70's big band of Japanese arranger Bingo Miki hits the Montreux festival in 1979, and they're joined by a host of guest players that include Richard Davis, Jon Faddis, and Joe Beck. If you don't know Miki's work, the 70's stuff (like this album) has a cool electric orchestral sound that feels like it was lifted from a cop show, or a crime film. Most of the instrumentation is acoustic, with a large sax section in front, but there's also some guitar and electric bass that work well with the kicking rhythm section. This album was originally issued as a double, but this cool XRCD gatefold package fits all the material on one CD – and titles include "Zylvia", "Pitter Pat", "Sibelius' Testament", and "Alcazar". CD

Lockjaw and Griff were a mighty team together – and their records from the 60s cook with incredible intensity. This great set was recorded at Minton's Playhouse in Harlem, on January 6, 1961 – as part of a marathon live session that was a big seller for Prestige. The group's incredible – a mixture of hardbop and moderism that's unstoppable – and all tracks are long, all with incredible two-tenor solo sections, plus some nice soulful piano from Junior Mance. Titles include "Bingo Domingo", "Straight No Chaser", "I'll Remember April", and "Light & Lovely". CD

A brilliant return from the Hot 8 Brass Band – a New Orleans combo who take tradition into some great funky new territory! As you'd guess from their name, the instrumentation is heavy on brass – played with a gritty, soulful edge – in the way you'd find during some street performance in a corner far from the mainstream Quarter – sometimes accompanied by ensemble vocals, and almost always driven by these great rhythms at the bottom – more than funky enough to set even the heaviest horns on fire with their energy. Titles include "Bingo Bango", "Fine Tuner", "Steamin Blues", "Can't Hide From The Truth", "New Orleans (After The City)", and a nice remake of The Specials' "Ghost Town". CD

A Tom Verlaine double header – two albums back to back on a single CD! First up is the fantastic first solo album from Tom Verlaine – a set recorded shortly after the breakup of Television, but with a vibe that almost makes it feel like the group's third album! The songs are maybe a bit tighter, but no less creative – both from a lyrical and sonic perspective – and Verlaine's got that fantastic sense of edge in his vocals, which can even make some of the nicer lyrics feel a bit nasty – but all at a level that's never overstated, and which should be a blueprint for later generations of singers who always try too hard. Titles include "The Grip Of Love", "Kingdom Come", "Mr Bingo", "Yonki Time", "Red Leaves", and "Last Night". On Dreamtime, Tom Verlaine has lost none of his edge – and instead has almost emerged as one of the most mature singer/songwriters on the New York scene – an underground-to-mainstream poet to match the skills of Lou Reed and Patti Smith! The album's got a vibe that's almost like Reed's work of the time – in that Tom's an artist who clearly knows the path to the dark side, and ways to overindulge – but always instead finds a way to keep things well-crafted and economical, but without sacrificing his sound or his intellect. Titles include "Penetration", "The Blue Robe", "Mr Blur", "A Future In Noise", "Down On The Farm", "Without A Word", and "Fragile". CD

A Tom Verlaine double header – two albums back to back on a single CD! First up is the fantastic first solo album from Tom Verlaine – a set recorded shortly after the breakup of Television, but with a vibe that almost makes it feel like the group's third album! The songs are maybe a bit tighter, but no less creative – both from a lyrical and sonic perspective – and Verlaine's got that fantastic sense of edge in his vocals, which can even make some of the nicer lyrics feel a bit nasty – but all at a level that's never overstated, and which should be a blueprint for later generations of singers who always try too hard. Titles include "The Grip Of Love", "Kingdom Come", "Mr Bingo", "Yonki Time", "Red Leaves", and "Last Night". On Dreamtime, Tom Verlaine has lost none of his edge – and instead has almost emerged as one of the most mature singer/songwriters on the New York scene – an underground-to-mainstream poet to match the skills of Lou Reed and Patti Smith! The album's got a vibe that's almost like Reed's work of the time – in that Tom's an artist who clearly knows the path to the dark side, and ways to overindulge – but always instead finds a way to keep things well-crafted and economical, but without sacrificing his sound or his intellect. Titles include "Penetration", "The Blue Robe", "Mr Blur", "A Future In Noise", "Down On The Farm", "Without A Word", and "Fragile". CD

Think you know the sound of Atlantic Records in the 60s? Think again – because this stunning series opens the vault to a huge amount of rare treasures from the legendary label! The package is amazing – and offers up rare tracks that were mostly only issued by Atlantic on singles – including some on the other imprints associated with the company – some by names we never even knew recorded for the label, others by bigger names, but represented here by obscure material that goes way past their hits – and which is ultra cool because of that. There's also a fair bit more deep soul than you might expect from the usual Atlantic mix – tremendous vocals, and often in less hit-heavy modes – which makes the whole thing a great revelation – and just one more reason to bow down and give even more expect to one of the key companies who helped soul music find a home in the 60s. Plus – as if that's not enough – the whole thing comes in a very cool 7" gatefold package – which emphasizes the from-singles nature of the collection. Volume 3 is overflowing with amazing sounds from the heart of the 60s – rare 45rpm tracks by Atlantic stars, Stax artists, and a few lesser-knowns too. Titles include "Hello Stranger" by The Capitols, "Help Me (parts 1 & 2)" by Ray Sharpe, "Long Distance Love" by Ted Taylor, "Lonely Soldier" by Mike Williams, "How Can You Babysit A Man" by Ned Towns, "Keep Looking" by Solomon Bourke, "I'm Sorry" by Fred Lowrey, "Please Uncle Sam" by The Charmels, "Share What You Got" by William Bell, "Reputation" by The Four Shells, "Me & My Baby" by Mary Wells, "Got No One" by The Delcardos, "Weak Spot" by Ruby Johnson, "Good Love Bad Love" by Eddie Floyd, "Bingo" by Ned Towns, "I Had A Dream" by Johnny Taylor, "I Can't Take It" by Ray Sharpe, "You Can't Love Them All" by The Drifters, "Believe It Or Not" by Rex Garvin & The Mighty Cravers, "Patch My Heart" by The Mad Lads, "She's The One I Love" by The Delcardos, "Find Me Somebody" by Bobby Womack, "Hello Stranger" by The Capitols, "So Much Love" by Ben E King, "Help The Bear" by Ted Taylor, and "I Feel A Sin Coming On" by Solomon Burke. CD