Something of a "lost" album from Sun Ra – material initially intended as his second album for Transition records in the 50s, but not issued until a decade later when Delmark Records was first putting the Chicago underground on the map! The sound here steps out nicely from the first Transition session – and Ra is already a bit bolder, not just in his structure of the songs, but in the way he handles his piano – with some darker notes and tones, more exotic phrasing, and even some very early use of electric piano – already with the haunting qualities that would show up more strongly in the Saturn years. Every member of the group is wonderful too – each with their own voice, spoken strongly and freely – in a lineup that includes Art Hoyle and Dave Young on trumpets, Julian Priester on trombone, Pat Patrick on alto and baritone sax, John Gilmore on tenor, Charles Davis on baritone, Victor Sproles on bass, William Cochran on drums, and Jim Herndon on tympani and timbali. Titles include "El Is A Sound Of Joy", "Overtones Of China", "Ankh", "Two Tones", "Saturn", "Reflections In Blue", and "Planet Earth". CD features 2 bonus tracks – "As You Once Were" and "Dreams Come True" – with vocals by Clyde Williams. CD

Sun Ra's first album as a leader – originally issued on the Transition label, but presented here in its better-known incarnation by Delmark Records! Even at this early point, Ra had a sound unlike any of his contemporaries – large group and modern, but not in a way that showed any similarities to work going on in New York or LA – a voice that was all his own, and already quite boldly stated, even in these early years! The format might be somewhat familiar – an ensemble with horns and rhythm – but the overall execution really starts to open up as the album moves on – with odd phrasings, timings, and unusual moments that live up to all the promise you might expect from Ra. Even Mingus and some of his better-known contemporaries weren't heading in these directions in the mid 50s – and the record is a proud showcase of the freedoms that players were often accorded in the less-trafficked Chicago scene of the time. Horns include Art Hoyle & Dave Young on trumpets, John Gilmore on tenor sax, Pat Patrick on baritone, Julian Priester on trombone, and James Scales on alto sax – and rhythm includes Jim Herndon on tympani, Robert Barry on drums, Wilbur Green on electric bass, and a young Richard Evans on acoustic bass! Titles include "Brainville", "Call For All Demons", "Transition", "Lullaby For Realville", "Street Named Hell", "New Horizons", "Fall Off The Long", "Possession", and "Future". LP, Vinyl record album

Sun Ra's first album as a leader – originally issued on the Transition label, but presented here in its better-known incarnation by Delmark Records! Even at this early point, Ra had a sound unlike any of his contemporaries – large group and modern, but not in a way that showed any similarities to work going on in New York or LA – a voice that was all his own, and already quite boldly stated, even in these early years! The format might be somewhat familiar – an ensemble with horns and rhythm – but the overall execution really starts to open up as the album moves on – with odd phrasings, timings, and unusual moments that live up to all the promise you might expect from Ra. Even Mingus and some of his better-known contemporaries weren't heading in these directions in the mid 50s – and the record is a proud showcase of the freedoms that players were often accorded in the less-trafficked Chicago scene of the time. Horns include Art Hoyle & Dave Young on trumpets, John Gilmore on tenor sax, Pat Patrick on baritone, Julian Priester on trombone, and James Scales on alto sax – and rhythm includes Jim Herndon on tympani, Robert Barry on drums, Wilbur Green on electric bass, and a young Richard Evans on acoustic bass! Titles include "Brainville", "Call For All Demons", "Transition", "Lullaby For Realville", "Street Named Hell", "New Horizons", "Fall Off The Long", "Possession", and "Future". This CD reissue is really well-done too – with pages of writings by Ra, including some poetry! Also features the bonus track "Swing A Little Taste". CD

With Johnny Wiggs on trumpet, Raymond Burke on clarinet, Bob Greene on piano, Allan Jaffe on tuba, and Yoichi Kimura on drums. LP, Vinyl record album

A solo piano album – tracks include "Ragtime Pauper", "Lake St.", "The Champs Rag", "Swampy Lee", "Jack Johnson Rag", "Sedidus Walk", and the "Charles L. Johnson Medley". CD

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The Delmark debut as a leader from drummer Frank Rosaly – and a very unique little record! Rosaly's a player we've really dug on other folks' records, and his vision here at the helm is pretty darn great – a real change from some of the modes used by his avant Chicago contemporaries – almost more poetic at points, although filled with sharp edges throughout! The record was composed for use in a documentary about Chicago scrap recyclers working the alley of the city – and Rosaly brings a really human, personal sort of feel to his music – even though the overall approach is still based on improvisation between group members too. The lineup features James Falzone on clarinet, Jason Stein on bass clarinet, Jason Roebke on bass and cracklebox, Keefe Jackson on tenor and bass clarinet, and Jason Adasiewicz on vibes – which adds some particularly great tones to the metallic narrative. Rosaly also plays a bit of percussion, piano, and electronics – and titles include "Adrian", "Bedbugs", "Driven", "Yards", "Wet Feet Splashing", "The Dark", and "Tragically Positive". CD

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A sharp live set, recorded in 1975 by Trio Records in Tokyo – with Rush on guitar and vocals, Jimmy Johnson on second guitar, Sylvester Boines on bass, and Tyrone Centuray on drums! CD

Cameron Pfiffner and Pat Millinger on saxophones and flutes, Pete Benson on Hammond B3, and Ted Sirota on drums. Tracks include "Mary Anne", "Odd Couple", "China Cat Sunflower", the originals "Dr. Midnight" and "Tetemetearri". CD

Incredible work from one of the greatest groups of the New York avant scene of the 60s! This French set (probably from the late 60s or early 70s) brings live tracks recorded in Copenhagen in 1963 – and which rarely every show up in any form, even on reissue. The group features Shepp, Don Cherry, John Tchicai, Don Moore, and JC Moses – and the work ranks with some of Shepp's best-ever, and has that dark well-managed "new thing" sound of his best early work on Impulse. In fact, we'd rank these two LPs right up there with some of the best avant garde jazz of the 60s – which is a shame when you consider how rare it is to find. Titles include "Mik", "The Funeral", "Cisum", and "When Will The Blues Leave". US issue of the original recording by Polydor. LP, Vinyl record album

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Mike Smith on alto sax, Ron Friedman on trumpet and flugelhorn, Jimy Ryanh on piano, John Whitfield on bass, and Bob Rummage on drums. CD

Tracks include "In The Wee Small Hours", "Angel Eyes", "I Get A Kick Out Of You", and "September In The Rain". CD

Mike Smith on soprano and alto saxophone, Ron Friedman on flugelhorn, Jim Ryan on piano, and Bob Rummage on drums and percussion. CD

Killer tenor tracks from this Chicago legend – a host of singles that were originally issued by the United Records label in the 50s! CD

Tab Smith on alto and tenor saxophone, Sonny Cohn on trumpet, Leon Washington on tenor saxophone, Lavern Dilon and Teddy Brannon on piano, Wilfred Middlebrooks on bass, Walter Johnson on drums, and Louis Blackwell on vocals. CD

Featuring Jorma Kaukonen of Jefferson Airplane and Hot tuna, plus vocals from Brother John Kattke. CD

With Rob Mazurek on tenor saxophone. CD

A brilliant set from the Chicago scene – a trio that features cornet from Rob Mazurek, drums from John Herndon, and some mighty vibes from Jason Adasiewicz – easily one of the most important players on his instrument in the past decade! There's a mixture of freeness and togetherness here that really reminds us of the 60s new thing generation – like Bobby Hutcherson coming together with Tony Williams – yet infused with the genre-crossing energy that all three players embrace – that rich legacy that both Mazurek and Herndon bring to the session, and help show the way for a new chapter in the music of Adasiewicz. Proof that Delmark is suddenly as hip again as it was in the late 60s – with cuts that include "Orange Blossom", "Double Demon", "Vodou Cinque", "Skull Cave", and "Triple Hex". CD

Brilliant work from Jason Stein – a Chicago player who's been making some mighty waves on the avant scene of late, and who really comes into his own with this album! Stein's part of the new generation of avant Chicagoans – players who have a strong knowledge of free jazz, but also opt for a bit more structure and swing too – the kind of modernism that emerged best at the cusp of the 60s, in the generation of Mingus, Dolphy, and Ornette! Stein plays bass clarinet here, and there's definitely a Dolphy vibe to the music – great long solo lines, stretched out and searching, but also still swinging too – thanks to these nicely-blocked rhythms from Josh Abrams on bass and Frank Rosaly on drums. Keefe Jackson also plays some mean tenor – and titles include "Laced Case", "Background Music", "Little Big Horse", "Hatoolie", "Gallop's Gallop", "Work", "Lennie Bird", and "Badlands". Another great one from the new generation of Delmark! CD

A set that's definitely magic, and which offers up a late 60s pairing of the saxophone of Sonny Stitt and the Hammond organ of the great Don Patterson! The format here is a lot like some of Patterson's classics for Prestige Records – in that the group's a trio, with Billy Pierce on drums – leaving Don to handle all the basslines with the pedals of the organ, which he does with a wonderful groove! Stitt is great too – blowing alto and tenor with that right on the money style that made him so great – on titles that include "Shake Your Head", "On Green Dolphin Street", "Parker's Mood", "Just Friends", "How High The Moon", "Four", and "They Can't Take That Away From Me". CD

An album recorded for the Delmark label, but one that follows strongly from the style of Prestige Records in the 60s – particularly those great sessions that featured saxophonist Sonny Stitt blowing next to a Hammond! In this case, the Hammond is handled by the great Don Patterson, who played with Sonny in the 60s – in a trio that also has the great Billy James on drums – a player whose loose, open style really works great with the magic Patterson touch on the keys! The tracks are a bit shorter than some of the longer jams on Don's albums of the 60s, but still equally nice. Stitt plays tenor and alto – and titles include "Funny", "Honey", "Blues For JJ", "Night Has A Thousand Eyes", and "Samba De Orfeo". CD features a previously unissued alternate of "The Night Has A Thousand Eyes". CD

An album recorded for the Delmark label, but one that follows strongly from the style of Prestige Records in the 60s – particularly those great sessions that featured saxophonist Sonny Stitt blowing next to a Hammond! In this case, the Hammond is handled by the great Don Patterson, who played with Sonny in the 60s – in a trio that also has the great Billy James on drums – a player whose loose, open style really works great with the magic Patterson touch on the keys! The tracks are a bit shorter than some of the longer jams on Don's albums of the 60s, but still equally nice. Stitt plays tenor and alto – and titles include "Funny", "Honey", "Blues For JJ", "Night Has A Thousand Eyes", and "Samba De Orfeo". CD features a previously unissued alternate of "The Night Has A Thousand Eyes". CD

A great little record – not only for the early trumpet work of Ira Sullivan, but also for the presence of tenorist Nicky Hill – an under-recorded legend from the Chicago scene of the 50s! The set features Sullivan in extremely tight bop formation – working on longer tracks that represent some of his greatest work on record – studio sides, but done with the sense of on-the-fly imagination of his landmark live dates. Hill's a great partner on this date – a player whose edge and timing really makes things bristle, and a reminder that Chicago had a lot of great jazz to offer the world back in the day! Rhythm is by Jodie Christian on piano, Victor Sproles on bass, and Wilbur Campbell on drums – and titles include "Nicky's Tune #3", "Wilbur's Tune #2", "My Secret Love", "When Sunny Gets Blue", "Nicky's Tune #2", and "Mock & Roll Blues". CD

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A great later date from this legendary pianist and singer – part of the great Delmark revival of his talents! Other players include King Kolax on trumpet, Oett Mallard on tenor, and Robert Lockwood Jr on guitar! CD

Malachi Thompson always has a great ear for the saxophonist in his groups – and that's definitely the case here, as the record sparkles as much from the tenor of Carter Jefferson and alto of Joe Ford, as it does from Malachi's trumpet! The three horns rise together wonderfully – Ford plays a bit of soprano, as well – and the session has a vibe that's very different than others recorded at the time – maybe more in the soulful blend of styles you would have found on a 70s session for a label like Muse. The rest of the group features Kirk Brown on piano, Harrison Bankhead on bass, Nasar Abadey on drums, and Richard Lawrence on congas – and titles include a great reading of the Billy Harper gem "Croquet Ballet", plus "In Walked John", "Lucky Seven", "Drown In My Own Tears", and "Mystic Trumpet Man". CD

Malachi Thompson always has a great ear for the saxophonist in his groups – and that's definitely the case here, as the record sparkles as much from the tenor of Carter Jefferson and alto of Joe Ford, as it does from Malachi's trumpet! The three horns rise together wonderfully – Ford plays a bit of soprano, as well – and the session has a vibe that's very different than others recorded at the time – maybe more in the soulful blend of styles you would have found on a 70s session for a label like Muse. The rest of the group features Kirk Brown on piano, Harrison Bankhead on bass, Nasar Abadey on drums, and Richard Lawrence on congas – and titles include a great reading of the Billy Harper gem "Croquet Ballet", plus "In Walked John", "Lucky Seven", "Drown In My Own Tears", and "Mystic Trumpet Man". CD

Overlooked spiritual jazz genius from Chicago trumpeter Malachi Thompson – a player who was making 70s-styled sessions when most folks had given up on the music! The vibe here is right between Strata East and some of the more righteous 70s sessions on Muse – and the group features superb work from tenorist Carter Jefferson, who's at the level of his Rise Of Atlantis work from back in the day – in a group that also features Albert Dailey on piano, James King on bass, Nasar Abadey on drums, and Randy Abbott on congas. Arnae Burton sings on the track "Back To The One", Leon Thomas guests on "No More Hard Times" – and other instrumental tracks include "A Rising Daystar", "Spirit Of Man", "Dhyia Malika", and "I Remember Clifford". CD features the bonus track "Dearly Beloved". CD

Features work by Oliver Lake on alto and Hamiet Bluiette on baritone and bass clarinet! CD

Features great work from Gary Bartz and Billy Harper! CD

Sir Charles Thompson on piano – with Eric Schneider on saxophone and clarinet, Ed de Haas on bass, and Charles Braugham on drums. CD

Features Charlie Parker, Dexter Gordon, and Leo Parker. CD

With Vinson on vocals and alto, Hal Singer on tenor, Jay McShann on piano, T-Bone Walker on guitar, Jackie Sampson on bass, and Paul Gunther on drums. LP, Vinyl record album

A really unusual setting for the legendary T Bone Walker – one of those fantastic records he made while hanging out on the French scene in the late 60s and early 70s – a time when he was able to work in a crossroads of styles that really opened up his sound! That's definitely the case here – as although Walker is very much his strong self on guitar and vocals, he's backed by a wonderfully unusual group – one that features French jazz legend George Arvanitas on piano, delivering some surprisingly bluesy lines – and which also includes tenor sax from the great Hal Singer, another musician who was really able to bridge worlds on the Parisian scene! George's fantastic bassman Jacky Samson is at the core, helping the groove – and titles include "Leaving You Behind", "I Hate To See You Go", "Ain't That Cold Baby", "Late Blues", and "Someone Is Going To Mistreat You". CD

A really unusual setting for the legendary T Bone Walker – one of those fantastic records he made while hanging out on the French scene in the late 60s and early 70s – a time when he was able to work in a crossroads of styles that really opened up his sound! That's definitely the case here – as although Walker is very much his strong self on guitar and vocals, he's backed by a wonderfully unusual group – one that features French jazz legend George Arvanitas on piano, delivering some surprisingly bluesy lines – and which also includes tenor sax from the great Hal Singer, another musician who was really able to bridge worlds on the Parisian scene! George's fantastic bassman Jacky Samson is at the core, helping the groove – and titles include "Leaving You Behind", "I Hate To See You Go", "Ain't That Cold Baby", "Late Blues", and "Someone Is Going To Mistreat You". LP, Vinyl record album

A very early chapter in the career of the great Dinah Washington – a series of sessions she cut for Apollo Records in the mid 50s, right before she would soon rise to fame on Mercury – and material that's every bit as interesting for the players involved as it is for Dinah's vocals themselves! If you know Washington, you'll know that she's hardly a mellow mama – and her work here is a great combination of jazz with some currents of blues – given strong support by a combo that includes Lucky Thompson on piano, Milt Jackson on vibes, and a young Charles Mingus on bass! Other players include the more obscure Karl George on trumpet, Jewel Grant on alto, and Gene Porter on alto and baritone – on titles that include "My Lovin Papa", "No Voot No Boot", "Pacific Coast Blues", "Blues For A Day", "Rich Man's Blues", "My Voot Is Really Vout", and "Walking Blues". CD

Some of the first recordings ever from Chicago legend Junior Wells – made for the small States label in the Windy City, many years before Wells exploded out with much greater national fame! The music here has Junior stepping into the same early electric space that Chess Records was cutting at the time – and given the presence of Muddy Waters, Otis Spann, and Willie Dixon on some of these sides – the group's also not far off either! Wells is the main star throughout, though – alternating bold young vocals and razor-sharp harmonica lines – in the company of players who include Louis Myers, Elmore James, and Muddy Waters on guitar, Johnnie Jones and Otis Spann on piano, Willie Dixon on bass, and Odie Payne on drums. Titles include "Hoodoo Man", "Tomorrow Night", "Eagle Rock", "Junior's Wail", "Throw This Poor Dog A Bone", "So All Alone", "Blues Hit Big Town", and "Lovin Blues". CD features six previously unissued tracks! CD

Some of the first recordings ever from Chicago legend Junior Wells – made for the small States label in the Windy City, many years before Wells exploded out with much greater national fame! The music here has Junior stepping into the same early electric space that Chess Records was cutting at the time – and given the presence of Muddy Waters, Otis Spann, and Willie Dixon on some of these sides – the group's also not far off either! Wells is the main star throughout, though – alternating bold young vocals and razor-sharp harmonica lines – in the company of players who include Louis Myers, Elmore James, and Muddy Waters on guitar, Johnnie Jones and Otis Spann on piano, Willie Dixon on bass, and Odie Payne on drums. Titles include "Hoodoo Man", "Tomorrow Night", "Eagle Rock", "Junior's Wail", "Throw This Poor Dog A Bone", "So All Alone", "Blues Hit Big Town", and "Lovin Blues". CD

Junior Wells was already a rising star when he cut this album for Delmark in the mid 70s – but the session's got a great back to basics vibe, one that's dedicated to Junior's home turf at Theresa's Tavern on the south side! The groove is great – with twin guitar work, by Sammy Lawhorn in one channel, and Phillip Guy in another – creating this feel as if you're sitting in the small club, hearing the guitarists trade licks back and forth while Junior sings and really wails on harmonica! Other players are great Chicago talents too – and include AC Reed on tenor, Charles Miles on alto, and Johnny Walker on organ and piano. Titles include "The Train I Ride", "What My Mama Told Me", "Key To The Highway", "Watch Me Move", "Someday Baby", "You Gotta Love Her With Feeling", and "Junior's Thing". CD features the unissued bonus track "Goin Down Slow". CD

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An incredible slice of Chicago blues – and maybe one of the most important contributions Delmark ever made to the Windy City scene! The album captures Junior Wells in all his rough and raw brilliance – working in territory that's quite similar to the Chess Records vibe of the early 60s – in a group that has Buddy Guy on guitar, Otis Spann on piano, and Louis Myers on a bit of extra guitar! Guy sings a bit, but Junior does most of the vocals – and also plays harmonica too – on titles that include "Blues For Mayor Daley", "Stop Breaking Down", "You Say You Love Me", "Trouble Don't Last Always", and "Baby Please Lend Me Your Love". LP, Vinyl record album

The incredible mid 60s album from blues singer and harp blower Junior Wells and his Chicago Blues Band with Buddy Guy! This is a most pivotal set in which Junior & his players don't sound as if they're trying to imbue blues tradition with urban grit and electricity – it simply seems to happen naturally, and you can really imagine when you hear this how it blue the minds of so many Brit and American rock & blues fellows who would come the recast the style with their own life and experiences, and pretty much take over popular music with it. Titles include "Snatch It Back & Hold It", "In The Wee Wee Hours", "Hey Lawdy Mama", "Hoodoo Man Blues", "Yonder Wall", and "Chitlin Con Carne". CD

The incredible mid 60s album from blues singer and harp blower Junior Wells and his Chicago Blues Band with Buddy Guy! This is a most pivotal set in which Junior & his players don't sound as if they're trying to imbue blues tradition with urban grit and electricity – it simply seems to happen naturally, and you can really imagine when you hear this how it blue the minds of so many Brit and American rock & blues fellows who would come the recast the style with their own life and experiences, and pretty much take over popular music with it. Titles include "Snatch It Back & Hold It", "In The Wee Wee Hours", "Hey Lawdy Mama", "Hoodoo Man Blues", "Yonder Wall", and "Chitlin Con Carne". LP, Vinyl record album

The incredible mid 60s album from blues singer and harp blower Junior Wells and his Chicago Blues Band with Buddy Guy! This is a most pivotal set in which Junior & his players don't sound as if they're trying to imbue blues tradition with urban grit and electricity – it simply seems to happen naturally, and you can really imagine when you hear this how it blue the minds of so many Brit and American rock & blues fellows who would come the recast the style with their own life and experiences, and pretty much take over popular music with it. Titles include "Snatch It Back & Hold It", "In The Wee Wee Hours", "Hey Lawdy Mama", "Hoodoo Man Blues", "Yonder Wall", and "Chitlin Con Carne". CD

Features James Wheeler on vocals and guitar – and titles include "Blues At Midnight", "Bad Girl", "Extension 309", "Looking For My Baby", "This Old Freight Train", "Gonna Make Some Changes", and "I'm Just Your Fool". CD

Nicely tight work from Mike Wheeler – a contemporary bluesman on the Chicago scene who strongly continues the legacy of the city from the 60s onward – from his work on guitar, to his soulful lead vocals, to his talent for penning a tune! The work here is all original material by Wheeler – tunes that almost have more of a soul structure at times, but which are given a definite electric blues spin in Mike's guitar leads – and the cooking work of his group, which adds in an extra trumpet and tenor to the usual quartet. Titles include "You Won't Do Right", "A Blind Man Can See", "I'm Hooked", "Talking To Myself", "Turn Up", "Yeah", and "Sweet Girl". CD

Blues recorded in St Louis, but with a sound that's much more rural overall – maybe no surprise, given the countless travel by Big Joe Williams on the highways of the south! The setting is lean enough to be recorded out in the field – Big Joe on these wonderfully expressive vocals and his unique nine string guitar – with support from Ransom Knowling on bass, but at a level that really just helps the tunes get this subtle groove – really letting be the shining star up front! In keeping with the title of the record, many of the tunes have themes of travel in the south – titles that include "Overhaul Your Machine", "45 Blues", "Arkansas Woman", "Four Corners Of The World", "Down In The Bottom", and "Blues Left Texas". CD

Mostly Joe on vocals and guitar – with some additional bass from Ransom Knowling on a few tracks. LP, Vinyl record album

The first-ever full length album from Big Joe Williams, despite a much longer legacy as a blues singer in the south – captured in a few different intimate settings in St Louis by the then-fledgling Delmark Records! The approach is very lean, of the sort that made the record a key statement in the folk blues revival at the end of the 50s – with Joe playing this really unique nine string guitar from two different instruments put together, and singing with this really compelling trill in his voice that marks the singer as very distinct from so many others in his generation. JD Short adds harmonica and a bit of guitar – and titles include "Mellow Peaches", "No More Whiskey", "Tailor Made Babe", "Omaha Blues", "Juanita", "Tailor Made Babe", and the interesting "Big Joe Talking" – which has Williams speaking a bit on his life! CD

The first-ever full length album from Big Joe Williams, despite a much longer legacy as a blues singer in the south – captured in a few different intimate settings in St Louis by the then-fledgling Delmark Records! The approach is very lean, of the sort that made the record a key statement in the folk blues revival at the end of the 50s – with Joe playing this really unique nine string guitar from two different instruments put together, and singing with this really compelling trill in his voice that marks the singer as very distinct from so many others in his generation. JD Short adds harmonica and a bit of guitar – and titles include "Mellow Peaches", "No More Whiskey", "Tailor Made Babe", "Omaha Blues", "Juanita", "Tailor Made Babe", and the interesting "Big Joe Talking" – which has Williams speaking a bit on his life! LP, Vinyl record album

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One of the few American albums cut by saxophonist Chris Woods – a wonderfully talented player who cut some of his best work in Paris during the early 70s! The album captures some of the charm of Woods' best European records – with a lightly dancing groove on the best tracks, one that hints at his strong propensity for playing in modal lines, a trait he shared with Nathan Davis, a contemporary on the European scene, and a slightly similar player. Woods here is a bit more rootsy than Davis, though – working in an easily soulful setting, with pianist Jim McNeely, plus trumpet, bass, and drums. Woods plays flute and alto – and tracks include "Monsieur Le Bois In Paris", "What That", "Modus Operandi", and a nice version of "Scufflin Along". LP, Vinyl record album

A near-lost bit of work from Chicago pianist John Young – better known for his work on Argo, but sounding great in this moody 60s session – recorded in Chicago with a familiar lineup that includes Victor Sproles on bass and Phil Thomas on drums. Young's got a nice rhythmic approach to the keys that's a bit similar to the early Lewis style of the time – yet which also sparks with those modern touches that could also come at surprising moments from the Chicago piano crew of the period. Titles include "I Don't Wanna Be Kissed", "Bones", "Cubana Chant", "In Love In Vain", "Serenata", "Baby Doll", "Circus", and When I Fall In Love". CD features 3 bonus alternate takes too! CD

A near-lost bit of work from Chicago pianist John Young – better known for his work on Argo, but sounding great in this moody 60s session – recorded in Chicago with a familiar lineup that includes Victor Sproles on bass and Phil Thomas on drums. Young's got a nice rhythmic approach to the keys that's a bit similar to the early Lewis style of the time – yet which also sparks with those modern touches that could also come at surprising moments from the Chicago piano crew of the period. Titles include "I Don't Wanna Be Kissed", "Bones", "Cubana Chant", "In Love In Vain", "Serenata", "Baby Doll", "Circus", and When I Fall In Love". CD features 3 bonus alternate takes too! CD

Includes music by Magic Sam, Luther Allison, Jimmy Dawkins, Lonnie Brooks, Otis Rush, Lurrie Bell, Sleepy John Estes, JB Hutto, and others. CD

R&B, gritty blues, and some killer tenor talents – a wicked collection of vintage masters from legendary indie United Records! Musically, the package is very much on a par with Ace/Kent collections of this type – the sort that might feature material from King or Modern/RPM Records from the same vintage – and our hat's off to Delmark for doing such a great job of bringing back these crucially overlooked sounds from Chicago! Titles include "Cool Leo" by Leo Parker", "Cut That Out (alt)" by Junior Wells, "Organ Grinder" by Jimmy Coe, "Walking Home" by JT Brown, "Let's Get High" by Morris Pejoe, "Crazy Walk" by Tab Smith, "In The Dark" by Grant Jones, "Nona" by Paul Bascomb, "Goodbye" by The Pastels, "Tiny's Boogie" by Tiny Grimes, "Sophisticated Lady (alt)" by Jimmy Forrest, and "Come In The Room" by Robert Anderson. CD