Massive work from one of the funkiest drummers of all time – the legendary Bernard Pretty Purdie, stepping out here in a batch of instrumentals that may well be his greatest album ever! Bernard's drums are right up front in the mix – leading off all tunes with a full, funky, echoey sort of approach that's unlike anything else we can think of – and certainly different from any other late 60s albums of this type! The production is totally great – and has a way of pulling out some of the weirdest aspects of the music – which itself features guitar from Billy Butler and Eric Gale, bass from Bob Bushnell, tenor and flute from Seldon Powell, and organ and piano from Richard Tee – who also handled all the arrangements on the set! The centerpiece is the hit single "Funky Donkey", but just about every track's a groover in its own way – and titles include "Soul Drums", "Bill's Groove", "Jimmy's Back", "Testifyin", "Modern Jive", "Blow Your Lid", "Bee N Tee", and "Soul Bossa Nova". This new edition includes 8 bonus tracks, with a couple rare 45 tracks and more that have never been released – all soulful & funky – well paired with the Soul Drums album! Bonus tracks are in stereo, and include "Alexander's Rag Time Band", "Genuine John", "Soul Clappin", "If You Never Cried", "Stop" and "Time Is Tight". Also comes with a nice booklet with new liner notes, and choice quotes from Purdie's peers and those he influenced, from Galt MacDermot to Large Professor. LP, Vinyl record album

A groovy 60s session from vibist Cal Tjader – and an excellent little Latin set, with a mixture of bossa nova and Latin jazz that goes way beyond the promise of the title! The great Clare Fischer arranged the set – and if you know his work with Cal, you know that he's got a wonderful approach to jazz that works perfectly with Tjader's unique phrasing – a spacious sensibility, and a great sense of timing – one that always ensures the tunes sparkle with a sweetly stepping groove. Fischer plays piano on the record – and other players include Laurindo Almeida on guitar, Paul Horn on reeds, Johnny Rae on timbales, and Milt Holland on percussion. Titles include "Choro E Batuque", "Nao Diga Nada", "Elizete", "Imagen", "Vai Querer", and "Que Tristeza". LP, Vinyl record album

A really great meeting of talents – legendary reedman Sadao Watanabe, who'd already done plenty to bring the bossa nova to Japan by the time of this record – and a host of Brazilian musicians who further help him expand his groove! The combo is listed as Sadao's Brazilian 8 – and includes Jose Ferreira Godinho Filho on alto, Carlos Alberto Alcantara on tenor, Waldir De Barrios on trumpet, and Aparecido De Barros on trumpet – a group who are way more than just the added guitar and percussion that American musicians might use on such a set – although there's plenty of that here too! Watanabe's out front on alto and flute and he runs through a groovy set of bossa cuts that includes "Muito A Vontade", "Tristeza", "Barquinho Diferente", "Eu E A Brisa", "Bim Bom", and "E Nada Mais". LP, Vinyl record album

One of the grooviest albums ever from pianist Clare Fischer – and one of the few to really get at the bossa nova spirit that's only hinted at in some of his other work! Clare's bossa touches had a great effect on other artists in the 60s – most notably Cal Tjader – but here, he's on his own and at the head of the pack – working in sweet small combo formation with some really great rhythms! Fischer plays both piano and organ – the latter of which is totally great, and which almost adds a Walter Wanderley charm to the set – and other players include the great Dennis Budimir on guitar, Bob West on bass, and Colin Bailey on drums. The track list is a mix of tracks by Jobim and Fischer – and titles include "Ornithardy", "One Note Samba", "Carnavel", "Pensativa", and "Quiet Nights". LP, Vinyl record album

Sergio Mendes is definitely a swinger – especially on this jazz-based session that was recorded before his famous work with Brasil 66! This album was recorded in New York, at a time when Mendes was one of the hottest things brewing in the bossa scene in Brazil – and apart from the great Antonio Carlos Jobim on guitar, many of the other players are American jazz musicians – including Art Farmer on flugelhorn, Phil Woods on alto sax, and Hubert Laws on flute – all adding in some nice jazzy elements to the tunes! The music is all instrumental, and a great mix of jazz and bossa that really lets you hear the young Sergio's skills on piano. Titles include "Maria Moita", "Sambinha Bossa Nova", "The Dreamer", "Primavera", "Favela", and "Pau Brazil". LP, Vinyl record album

Moody vibes and light guitar – a wonderful meeting of two unique talents – the third stream jazz of the Modern Jazz Quartet, and the introspective guitar of Laurindo Almeida! The session blends together a host of different influences – from classical guitar to bossa nova to modern jazz – all with the light and spacious touches of the MJQ at their best, recorded with some really warm brilliance that makes the whole set sparkle! Titles include "Foi A Saudade", "One Note Samba", "Fugue In A Minor", "Silver", "Trieste", and "Concierto De Arajunez". LP, Vinyl record album

A very unique album from Sonny Rollins – one that features him blowing tenor over some Latin-based rhythms that have a tight uptempo feel. The core group on the album features Jim Hall on guitar, Bob Cranshaw on bass, and Ben Riley on drums – but they're augmented by larger arrangements that mix together bossa nova and calypso rhythms, which forge a surprisingly great background for Rollins' gutsy tenor. Although it's easy to dismiss the record as a throwaway cash-in affair on the Latin boom of the early 60s – Rollins actually handles himself wonderfully, and the longer-than-usual tracks on the album show a whole new side of his talents that were later reprised on Latin sessions during the 70s. Titles include "Bluesongo", "Jungoso", "The Night Has A Thousand Eyes", and "Brownskin Girl". LP, Vinyl record album

A great later effort from tenor sax giant Charlie Rouse – a record that's quite different than his 50s hardbop or his 60s modernist work with Thelonious Monk – but still pretty darn great in its own sort of way! The album features Rouse working with a larger ensemble in a batch of tracks that has a distinct Brazilian influence – not one from bossa nova, but from the more sophisticated Brazilian jazz modes of later years – particularly as the style started to pick up from some of the arranging modes used in MPB. The players here are all well-suited to the session – and include Clifford Adams on trombone, Claudio Roditi on trumpet, Dom Salvador on piano, Ted Dunbar on guitar, Amaury Tristao on acoustic guitar, Ron Carter on bass, Bernard Purdie on drums, and Wilbur Bascomb on bass – all working together in a style that's somewhat complicated, yet which has an open-ended flow, and a very joyous sensibility overall! Arrangements are by Dom Salvador and Amaury Tristao – and titles include Salvador's romping groover "On The Corner – a real jazz dance classic – plus "Sertao", "Desencontro", "Alvorada", "Natal No Interior", and "Cravo Canela". LP, Vinyl record album

One of the most seductive sound library albums ever recorded by Piero Umiliani – a set that was originally issued under his Zalla pseudonym, but which has all the best jazzy grooves of some of his famous soundtrack material from the end of the 60s! As on those records, Umiliani plays a host of great keyboards, especially organ – over rhythms that are mellow-stepping and slightly funky – often updated with modes borrowed from bossa nova, but brought into a more sensuous Italian soundtrack setting – balanced with nice touches on flute, guitar, and other instrumentation as well. The whole thing's wonderful – as lovely as your favorite soundtrack work by Umiliani, Piero Piccioni, or Armando Trovajoli – with titles that include "Porta D'Oriented", "Tanto Lontano", "Pianure D'Asia", "Oriente Rosso", "Prime Nebbie", "Nel Parco", "Vecchie Strade", and "Laguna Tropicale". LP, Vinyl record album

A landmark record – both in 60s jazz and bossa nova – and a set that not only bridged worlds of music, but set the tone for so many other albums to come! By the time of this 1964 set, Stan Getz had already issued a few bossa nova experiments on Verve – but this pairing with guitarist Joao Gilberto really pushed the format over the top – thanks in part to the vocals of Gilberto's lovely wife Astrud, who'd never sung in the studio before this famous recording! The record created a sound that was copied endlessly, and which catapulted Astrud to unbelievable fame worldwide – even though she was only included in the session at the last minute, because Joao couldn't sing in English – and the mix of Stan's tenor and Joao's guitar is wonderful – and backed throughout by this light, lilting bossa nova rhythms. Titles include the classic recording of "Girl From Ipanema", plus loads of other bossa classics like "Desafinado", "Cocovado", "O Grande Amor", and "Vivo Sonhando". LP, Vinyl record album

A landmark record – both in 60s jazz and bossa nova – and a set that not only bridged worlds of music, but set the tone for so many other albums to come! By the time of this 1964 set, Stan Getz had already issued a few bossa nova experiments on Verve – but this pairing with guitarist Joao Gilberto really pushed the format over the top – thanks in part to the vocals of Gilberto's lovely wife Astrud, who'd never sung in the studio before this famous recording! The record created a sound that was copied endlessly, and which catapulted Astrud to unbelievable fame worldwide – even though she was only included in the session at the last minute, because Joao couldn't sing in English – and the mix of Stan's tenor and Joao's guitar is wonderful – and backed throughout by this light, lilting bossa nova rhythms. Titles include the classic recording of "Girl From Ipanema", plus loads of other bossa classics like "Desafinado", "Cocovado", "O Grande Amor", and "Vivo Sonhando". LP, Vinyl record album

A landmark record – both in 60s jazz and bossa nova – and a set that not only bridged worlds of music, but set the tone for so many other albums to come! By the time of this 1964 set, Stan Getz had already issued a few bossa nova experiments on Verve – but this pairing with guitarist Joao Gilberto really pushed the format over the top – thanks in part to the vocals of Gilberto's lovely wife Astrud, who'd never sung in the studio before this famous recording! The record created a sound that was copied endlessly, and which catapulted Astrud to unbelievable fame worldwide – even though she was only included in the session at the last minute, because Joao couldn't sing in English – and the mix of Stan's tenor and Joao's guitar is wonderful – and backed throughout by this light, lilting bossa nova rhythms. Titles include the classic recording of "Girl From Ipanema", plus loads of other bossa classics like "Desafinado", "Cocovado", "O Grande Amor", and "Vivo Sonhando". LP, Vinyl record album

One of Quincy Jones' best for Mercury Records in the 60s – a very groovy record that was done with a feel that's somewhere in between his Big Band Bossa album and his best 60s soundtrack work! The format is simple – Quincy picks a sweet batch of jazz semi-hits from the early 60s, plays them with a nice mix of soul jazz arrangements, and works with a great ensemble filled with wonderful players – including Roland Kirk, Budd Johnson, Seldon Powell, James Moody, and Jerome Richardson on reeds; Lalo Schifrin and Patti Brown on piano, Jim Hall on guitar, Clark Terry on trumpet, and Melba Liston on trombone – plus lots of great percussion at the bottom, helping bring some Latin energy to the grooves at points. Tunes are familiar, but all given a great Quincy Jones twist – and titles include "Gravy Waltz", "Jive Samba", "Walk On The Wild Side", "Bossa Nova USA", and "Watermelon Man". LP, Vinyl record album

Nice two-fer that combines 2 great sides from Rollins' RCA years. What's New is a unique album from Sonny Rollins – one that features him blowing tenor over some Latin-based rhythms that have a tight uptempo feel. The core group on the album features Jim Hall on guitar, Bob Cranshaw on bass, and Ben Riley on drums – but they're augmented by larger arrangements that mix together bossa nova and calypso rhythms, which forge a surprisingly great background for Rollins' gutsy tenor. Although it's easy to dismiss the record as a throwaway cash-in affair on the Latin boom of the early 60s – Rollins actually handles himself wonderfully, and the longer-than-usual tracks on the album show a whole new side of his talents that were later reprised on Latin sessions during the 70s. Titles include "Bluesongo", "Jungoso", "The Night Has A Thousand Eyes", and "Brownskin Girl". Our Man In Jazz is one of Sonny Rollins' best albums ever, and a totally inspired, totally non-stop freewheeling live set, recorded with Don Cherry, Bob Cranshaw, and Billy Higgins. Rollins' hits one of those rare moments of genius where he can turn his solo over and over again, never losing interest, and always opening up new territory. Thankfully, the three tracks on the album are long enough to let him get enough creative action in. Titles include "Oleo", "Dearly Beloved", and "Doxy". LP, Vinyl record album

Fabiano Do Nascimento picks up his groove here, but just slightly – adding in some slight percussion and gentle rhythms to his fantastic work on 7 string and 10 string guitar! The record's got all the lightness and charms of his previous sets, but also maybe has just a slightly larger rhythmic pulse – sometimes through added guitar from Daniel Santiago, who also brings a bit of midi to the mix – yet never in a way that overshadows the acoustic guitar at the core! The blend is almost as if a bossa nova guitar style was filtered through a Durutti Column aesthetic, but without vocals – on titles that include "Train To Imagination", "Thrdwrdl", "Babel", "Eterno", "Stranger Nights", "Blu's Dram", "3 Pontas", and "Aurora". LP, Vinyl record album