The debut album from Terrace Martin, and a set that already has him stretching out and building bridges between scenes and genres – at a level that has continued to make him one of the real giants of the west coast scene! The record's never just about Terrace's keys or saxophone – although his work on both are totally great – and instead, there's an equal presence here from the guests – Robert Glasper on Fender Rhodes, or artists like Kendrick Lamar, Lalah Hathaway, Ty Dolla Sign, Musiq Soulchild, and others on vocals – balancing hip hop and soul with Martin's jazz at the core, as he awakes new ears sounds they never would have discovered otherwise! Titles include "Triangle Ship", "No Wrong No Right", "Over Time", "Watch U Sleep", "Something Else", "You're The One", "I'm For Real", "Gone", and "Motivation". LP, Vinyl record album

The birth of punk rock as a bonafide genre, and not only that, a record that changed the rules – stripping rock and roll back down raw essentials – and unwittingly appearing as one of the greatest rock albums ever made. Given the stripped, buzzing simplicity, it's impossible to describe this record without sounding like a blow hard, but you really can't overstate what these four goony guys from Queens accomplished. 30-odd years of the most visceral pop music concentrated into 2 minute, 3 chord blasts of beautiful sonic catharsis – and they could barely even play! It's astonishing. Thanks boys! Tracks include "Blitzkrieg Bop", "I Wanna Be Your Boyfriend", "Beat On The Brat", "Now I Wanna Sniff Some Glue", "I Don't Wanna Around With You", "Loudmouth", and "Today Your Love Tomorrow The World". LP, Vinyl record album

A sleazy film, but one with some really great music from Francis Lai – the composer better known for his mainstream contributions to classics like A Man & A Woman and Live For Life! In any setting, Lai displays an amazing genius for spare tunes that hit a lyrical chord and a warmly sentimental mode – never one that's sleepy or drippy, but just the right balance of sounds and rhythms to convey a tremendous amount with very little. Lai plays a fair bit of keyboards here, lightly electric, and relatively spare – but not as much so as on some of his other 70s soundtracks. Titles include "Une Soiree Orientale", "La Vierge Anna Marie", "Emmanuelle Au Hong Kong", "Le Theme D'Emmanuelle", and "La Maison De Rendez-Vous". LP, Vinyl record album

One of the hardest to find records on Strata East, and one of the best – a darkly-crafted session of pure beauty, one that lives up to all the best promise of the label! The tracks are long, the sound is bold, and the whole thing moves at a pace that none of the bigger jazz labels were matching at the time – the most righteous, most expressive side of jazz in the mid 70s! Alto player Shamek Farrah is at the lead of a unique group that features Norman Person on trumpet, Milton Suggs on bass, and Sonelius Smith on piano – plus lots of additional drums and percussion, especially on side two of the album, which features some really righteous numbers! Titles include the massive bass sample track "First Impressions" – a symphony of dark, descending chord structures – plus "Meterologicly Tuned", "Watch What Happens Now", and "Umoja Suite". LP, Vinyl record album

A sleazy film, but one with some really great music from Francis Lai – the composer better known for his mainstream contributions to classics like A Man & A Woman and Live For Life! In any setting, Lai displays an amazing genius for spare tunes that hit a lyrical chord and a warmly sentimental mode – never one that's sleepy or drippy, but just the right balance of sounds and rhythms to convey a tremendous amount with very little. Lai plays a fair bit of keyboards here, lightly electric, and relatively spare – but not as much so as on some of his other 70s soundtracks – and titles include "Emmanuelle 2", LA Seduction De L'Ile De Bali", "Emmanuelle Au Hong Kong", "Le Plaisir D'Amour", "La Maison De Rendez-Vous", and "L'Amour D'Aimer" – which has vocals from Sylvia Kristel. LP, Vinyl record album

One of the rarest albums on the Groove Merchant label – and one of the best! Ramon Morris has a sweet tone on the tenor that works very well with the electric piano in his tight little combo – grooving with a style that's like the best Black Jazz funk records of the time – mixing together bright notes, funky rhythms, and plenty of great chord changes! Cecil Bridgewater's on trumpet, and the band has a really righteous feel – with lots of real soul and thoughtful playing mixed into the jazz funk grooves of the record. Massive – with titles that include "Sweat", "Lord Sideways", "Sweet Sister Funk", and a nice version of "People Make The World Go Round". LP, Vinyl record album

A surprisingly strong project from guitarist John Scofield – one that we'll admit we were a bit skeptical about, but which really delivers strongly overall! The set features Scofield and group taking on some tunes from a variety of sources – including the Grateful Dead, who are namechecked in the title – and the lineup features the bass of Vicente Archer and drums of Bill Stewart next to Scofield on electric guitar – all recorded at a level that's a bit warmer than you might expect from ECM, which really makes the music come alive – spacious, yet up-close and personal too, with hollow-body guitar work that resonates almost in an acoustic way at times, even as Scofield shows a few of his funkier currents on a few tunes. Titles include "How Deep", "TV Band", "Old Man", "Nothing Is Forever", "Budo", "The Girlfriend Chord", "Stairway To The Stars", "Mask", "Ray's Idea", and "Uncle John's Band". LP, Vinyl record album

Meshell Ndegeocello just seems to grow more and more with each new record – quite a feat, given how unique she was at the start! Yet this record clearly marks a new chapter in her wonderful legacy – effortlessly weaving together soul, funk, and plenty of jazzy inspiration – all with an approach that's complex, but with a very down to earth appeal – and served up with all sorts of great guests on the sessions – including Brandee Younger on harp, Joel Ross on vibes, Ambrose Akinmusire on trumpet, and Jeff Parker on guitar! Yet it's Meshell who's clearly the leader, the visionary, and the artist who's never content to stay in one lane – as you'll hear on cuts that include "Clear Water", "ASR", "Good Good", "Omnipuss", "An Invitation", "Call The Tune", "Georgia Ave", "Virgo", "Perceptions", "Towers", and "Tha King". LP, Vinyl record album

Brilliant late work from spiritual saxophone genius Albert Ayler – one of his last truly great albums! The session has none of the jazz-meets-other music feel of some of the other Impulse albums – and is more in the straight expressive style of the ESP recordings. Tracks are more reined in here – with some short themes that are almost a distillation of the freedom Ayler had been expressing for a few years, summed up beautifully in tunes that have a plaintive cry, filled with as much soul and love as Ayler could muster into his horn! Players include Donald Ayler on trumpet, Cal Cobbs on harpsichord, Alan Silva on bass, and Milford Graves on drums – and titles include "Zion Hill", "Love Flower", "Love Cry", "Ghosts", "Omega", and "Dancing Flowers". LP, Vinyl record album

A really lovely soundtrack from Forever Pavot – contemporary, but with some of the best touches of our favorite French film scores of the late 60s – a blend of sentiment and subtle instrumentation, light melody and occasional groove – all handled with excellent keyboards, flutes, and other sweet touches throughout! Pavot often has the sense of space and tune of Francis Lai – which makes the record a great hit in our book – and the organ, piano, and harpsichord moments are especially great – on titles that include "Au Chalet 2", "La Ballade De Poulenc", "Dans L'Aquarium", "Generique Debut", "En Voiture", "Les Amants", and "Marche Dans La Niege". LP, Vinyl record album

A real lost treasure from the legendary Michael Garrick – a set that stands strongly with all of his classic albums of the late 60s, but which is issued here for the first time ever! As the title implies, the recording is a bit of a prelude to the Heart Is A Lotus album – as it shares a few compositions and a few group members with that wonderful set – but the overall feel is different, too – in that the album's all instrumental, and stretches out with really wonderful solos over modal rhythms – a bit more like some of Garrick's mid 60s recordings! Michael himself plays piano, harpsichord, and celeste – and the album features sublime solos from Don Rendell on soprano sax, alto, and flute, plus trumpet from Ian Carr – over wonderful rhythms from Coleridge Goode on bass and Trevor Tomkins on drums and percussion. This is hardly demo material at all – as the recording quality is totally top-shelf – and beautifully remastered here. Titles include "Song By The Sea", "Temple Dancer", "Sweet & Sugary Candy", "Heart Is A Lotus", and "Little Girl". LP, Vinyl record album

A set of tracks recorded in the early 90s, unreleased until many years later – and an album that shows a beautifully sensitive side of the music of guitarist Calvin Keys! The title is sometimes very apt – as Calvin is often out front in the lead, crafting these warm lines built from well-chosen chords – but the album's also not just a solo set, as it features work from Jeff Chimenti on piano, Tim Haul on bass, Mark Lignell on drums, and Kenneth Nash on percussion. There's even some light strings at times – but very light, as they just shade in the edges – on titles that include "Dolphin Dance", "Isotope", "Marela", "Windows" and "What's Goin On". LP, Vinyl record album

One of the best albums ever from Japanese pianist Masabumi Kikuchi – a set that continues his development as a wonderfully expressive player on his instrument, but one that also opens up with a bit more bite at times, too – thanks to the presence of some sharp-edged contemporaries! The group's a sextet – with contributions from Hideyuki Kikuchi on alto, Akio Nishimura on tenor, and Tetuso Fushimi on trumpet – all musicians who can lay back in a soulbop groove if needed, but also come on with a bit more fire, too – almost working in a spiritual fusion mode on a few tracks, then balancing things out nicely at other times. Masabumi plays some very cool electric harpsichord on the Sadao Watanabe tune "If I Said The Sky Was Falling" – and other titles include "Matrix", "Green Dolphin Street", "In Fourth Way", and "Little Aby". LP, Vinyl record album

A lost treasure from the legendary Ennio Morricone – a soundtrack written for a crime film starring Charles Bronson & Telly Savalas, and handled with all the spare subtlety of his best work! Bruno Nicolai's directing the orchestra on this one – and isolated instruments include electric harpsichord and woodwinds that drift along nicely in the tunes – mixed with some harder arrangements on a few of the album's more driving cuts. Morricone strikes a great balance here – occasionally hitting sweet notes, but then often falling into these dark depths that perfectly fit the bleak world of the film. Tracks include the lovely slow groover "Riassunto", plus the tracks "Rito Finale", "Svolta Definitiva", "Dolcemente Acre", "Norme Con Ironie", "Citta Violenta", "Mille Volte Un Grido" and more. 2LP pressing, with 21 tracks in all. The complete soundtrack on vinyl for the first time! LP, Vinyl record album

A fantastically dark Morricone score! Morricone originally wrote this material for the film Quattro Mosche Di Velluto Grigio, the third part of Dario Argento's cult terror trilogy – and until the release of this reissue, only 2 of the tracks ever made it to the public, on a rare single issued by Cinevox in 1971. The leadoff track – "4 Mosche Di Vellutto Grigio (titoli)" – is actually a bit funky, with some very heavy drums and cascading fuzzy guitar riffs that sound very nice. Then, the record moves into spookier material – like the cut "Come Un Madrigale", and a number of self-titled themes – all of which feature strange harpsichord work, dark orchestral passages, and some very spooky production work! Fortunately, the score ends on an upbeat note – a hard driving, beat group sounding version of the main theme that's a nice cap to the whole package! LP, Vinyl record album

Sweetness and darkness – perfectly blended together in this classic mid 70s soundtrack by Ennio Morricone! The main theme of the film – "Bambole" – is one of those Mondo Morricone type numbers that floats along on a gossamy sheen – vocals gliding softly over light woodwinds, stepping rhythms, and a bit of electric harpsichord – all used gently, but beautifully to create a wonderfully groovy little tune. But other numbers on the album are much more tense – strings drawn tighter, and sometimes into more atonal passages – and offset by descending woodwind passages that further underscore the melancholy of the film! Additional instrumentation includes some abstracted and slightly fuzzy guitar – and the whole album beautifully blends the sweet and dark tracks together with a great sense of pacing. Titles include "Bambole", in a number of variations – plus variations on "Spasmo" and "Stress Infinito". LP, Vinyl record album

A long-lost performance by Sun Ra and the Arkestra – recorded in Amsterdam at the start of the 70s, when the group were brought in by avant saxophonist Hans Dulfer for a special performance! This album marks the first-ever issue of the material, from rediscovered tapes that finally present the group on that night in all of their glory – a horn-heavy version of the Arkestra with Danny Davis, Danny Ray Thompson, Marshall Allen, Pat Patrick, and John Gilmore on reeds – as well as Kwame Hadi and Akh Tal Ebah on trumpets, June Tyson on vocals, and a surprise appearance from Alan Silva on cello, bass, viola, and violin! Ra himself plays moog, rocksichord, piano, and the Spacemaster organ – and the group has plenty of percussion, and a rich sound that really resonates strongly in the legendary venue. Titles include an early reading of "Space Is The Place" – plus "Watusa", "Walking On The Moon", "Paradiso Improviso #1", "We Travel The Spaceways", "Theme From The Stargazers", "The Solar Moog Approach", and "Second Stop Is Jupiter". LP, Vinyl record album

Four hands, and plenty of power – a stunning set of improvisations between these two longtime avant greats – and a set that may well be one of the boldest we've heard from either player in years! Maybe it's the quality that the Trost label seems to get from musicians, or maybe it's just a special fire that's burning as Aki Takase meets with Alexander Von Schlippenbach – but whatever the case, the record explodes with these incredibly inventive attacks on the piano – energy on the keys that's simply mindblowing, at a level that definitely lives up to Schlippenbach's strongest recordings, and which has us opening up our ears to Takase all over again! Titles include "Stoneblock 2", "Blade", "Apple Of Dischord", "Jumping Jack", "N Dance", "Nearly Yours", "Allegro Agitato", and "Exit O". LP, Vinyl record album

A fantastic lost psych album – with a moody spacey sound augmented by lots of organ, harpsichord, and electric piano! The best cuts are short and echoey – with kind of a trippy pop feel that sounds like post-Brit invasion lyricism, mixed with LA stoner freedom, and a good dash of Love-esque soul. Titles include Tim Hardin's great "You Upset the Grace of Living", "Hang Onto A Dream", and "Never Too Far" – plus a very cool version of "Nature Boy", and the tracks "Tiffany Rings", "I Watch The Moon", and "Me About You". LP, Vinyl record album

Amazing sounds from Robert Glasper – easily one of our favorite fresh jazz talents of the past decade or so! There's really nobody like Glasper, and you'll hear that from the very first notes of this set – a flurry of marvelously blocky chords – wrapped together in these waves of sound that are completely seductive – complex at one point, but perfectly organic at another – almost to the piano what Coltrane was to the tenor – although Glasper's sound is nothing like Coltrane – if that won't confuse you enough! The rhythms leap along with Robert's piano in an equally joyous way – stretching out, finding new space, and taking the music into rich new territory – more than enough to make this record one of Blue Note's best so far of the 21st Century. Titles include "G & B", "Of Dreams To Come", "FTB", "One For Grew", "Tribute", and "Maiden Voyage/Everything Is In The Right Place". LP, Vinyl record album

Prepare to discover your new favorite artist – a tremendously hip cat who never got his due – and who should be held as high on these shores as British talents like Nick Drake, Bert Jansch, or John Martyn! Like all of those three, Davy Graham is a complete original – a guy with an acoustic guitar, but light years beyond familiar folk – often using all these jazzy changes in his style, and mixing his own music with songs by Dylan, The Beatles, Muddy Waters, and even Art Blakey – but all in ways that are completely transformative, and which maybe use the familiar songs just as a way for Graham to show us how individual he can be – because even a song we know sounds nothing like the original. His guitar work is superb – full of all the fresh ideas, unusual phrasings, and special sounds that the best of his generation were bringing to acoustic music – and titles include "Lotus Blossom", "Down Along The Cove", "Stan's Guitar", "Bulgarian Dance", "Buhaina Chant", "I'm Ready", "Getting Better", "Hornpipe For Harpsichord Played Upon Guitar", and "Pretty Polly". LP, Vinyl record album

One of the greatest Bobby Hutcherson albums for Blue Note – a classic session recorded in quartet form, with a style that seems to set a whole new standard for the vibes in modern jazz! The group here is sublime – Herbie Hancock on piano, Bob Cranshaw on bass, and Joe Chambers on drums – all working with Bobby in cool, blocky chords, with a sound that lies somewhere on the road to "out", but has more of a swing than Hutcherson's "new thing" recordings! The balance is a perfect one – exciting and fresh, but still always soulfully grooving – and titles include a sublime version of Herbie's "Maiden Voyage" – plus originals by Hutcherson that include "The Omen", "Aquarian Moon", "Rojo", and "Head Start". LP, Vinyl record album

The music of Misha Panfilov just gets deeper and deeper with each new release – and here, he's light years away from the funk of his earlier sets, and much more in the realm of spiritual jazz! The set's got a vibe that's almost in the Carlos Nino side of the spectrum, but which also resonates strongly with Misha's amazing sense of sound – served up by a group that features Misha on guitars, keyboards, organs, harpsichord, ngoni, and a whole host of other elements – joined by the trumpet of Rafael Andrade, tenor of Francisco Aguilar, bass of Ricardo Dias, and drums of Francisco Coelho. Tunes are long and carry elements of Brazilian and other global styles – but often in a way that evokes cinematic modes too, although things are much deeper than any sort of easy soundtrack reference to such styles. The whole album's a masterpiece of beauty that we never would have expected from Panfilov a few years back – and titles include "Vertical", "Alegria Em Movimento", "Caleidoscpopio", "Domingo Magico" and "Para O Sol". LP, Vinyl record album

Japanese keyboardist Kuni Kawachi works here on a variety of cool keys while also singing – serving up work on Hammond, celeste, harpsichord, and even rocksichord – while also getting strong support from the legendary Flower Travelling Band! The record's leaner than that group's music, yet definitely echoes some of their ear for offbeat sounds – as Kuni's spare vocals and keys get just the right touches of fuzzy guitar, offbeat percussion, and sweet psychedelic elements! Vocals are in Japanese throughout, and there's a balance of acoustic and electric elements that's mighty nice – on titles that include "Where Are You Walking Now", "The Cat", "A Puddle & A Purple Vetch", "Already No More Secrets", "Riddle", and "That's Why Love Is". LP, Vinyl record album

A fantastic guitarist from the Japanese scene, and a player with a tone that's unlike anyone else we can think of – the great Masayuki Takayanagi, heard here in an early session done years before his work on the Three Blind Mice label! Masayuki has a raw edge on the strings – a rasp that's very different from what you might expect on the Japanese scene at the time, which often has guitarists who are much more polished in tone. At times, he's almost sounding as if he's trying to ply the instrument with the inflections of an acoustic guitar – although the more chromatic moments are definitely more electric – and the whole thing is set up with great arrangements from pianist Takeshi Shibuya, whose contributions really make the record shine! Titles include "Say It", "That Old Feeling", "My Foolish Heart", "Moritat", "Prelude In Chords", and "Who Can I Turn To" – all sounding very different than you might expect! LP, Vinyl record album

A really cool hybrid of styles – reggae, but recorded in Libya – which makes for all sorts of twists and turns in the music that are nicely different from mainstream modes! The rhythms still have echoes of Kingston, but the vocals have a special sort of phrasing, and the keyboards often use these cool tones and chords that you'd never hear in Jamaica – and at times, there's more elements in the tunes that shift towards other Mid East styles as well. The whole thing's a really unusual batch of tracks – exactly the kind of music we love from the Habibi Funk label, served up on titles that include "Subhana", "Ya Ghalian", "Damek Majeb", "Ya Ghayeb", "Aziz W Adda", "Ana Middaee", and "La Ta'tather". LP, Vinyl record album

A creepy movie, but a wonderful soundtrack – filled with sweet touches and breezy melodies that recall the best work of the Morricone generation! The score here is penned by Fiorenzo Carpi, but conducted by Bruno Nicolai in a way that would have made Morricone proud – a style that often uses lightly floating instrumentation – gliding and dancing with nice bits of harpsichord, echoey piano, and other sounds that hang suspended in air to be slightly jostled by occasional larger string passages. Edda Dell'Orso contributes a bit of spooky wordless vocals, and there's a main theme that runs through the CD that's especially beautiful – very dreamy and bossa-like! itles include "Mariale", "Garden Party", "Ultimi Passi", "Beni Perduti", "Pelle Di Luna", "Equinozio", "La Vittima", and "Corteo Magico". LP, Vinyl record album