A tight early 80s record from Freddie McGregor – backed by the Roots Radics and mixed by Scientist – and if you'll pardon the pun, all the above make sure that this here Greensleeves effort is in ship shape to say the least! A nice little gem, recorded at Harry J's and Channel One. Titles include Includes "Big Ship", "Sweet Lady", "Peaceful Man", "Stop Loving You", "Get Serious", "Don't Play The Fool", "Get United". "Let Me Be The One", "Roots Mak Skanking", "Holy Mount Zion" and more. LP, Vinyl record album

Fantastic unreleased work from the famous 1961 recordings of John Coltrane at the Village Vanguard – every bit as wonderful as the material that was issued on the core album! The group here is unusual in that Eric Dolphy joins them on alto and bass clarinet – alongside the piano of McCoy Tyner, bass of Reggie Workman or Jimmy Garrison and the drums of Elvin Jones –agumented on one track by Ahmed Abdul-Malik's oud playing. The set includes "India", "Greensleeves", "Spiritual", "Untitled Original", and "Chasin' The Trane" – all done in nice long long takes! LP, Vinyl record album

Includes the songs "All Or Nothing At All", "Greensleeves", "Lush Life", "Softly As In A Morning Sunrise", "I Want To Talk About You", "The Inch Worm", "Autumn Serenade", "Feelin' Good", "What's New", and "Out Of This World". CD

The second album from one of the most unique voices in British music in the 60s – a really sublime little set that moves beyond familiar folk, rock, and pop – to put Marianne Faithfull in a mighty special place that's all her own! Right from the very first note of her voice, Marianne's out to sound way different than the rest – with a darkness that almost echoes the solo work of Nico, but a warmer sound that still holds on to some of the previous Brit mode that inform the album. Arrangements are totally great – penned by David Whittaker, Mike Leander, and Jon Mark – conducted by Leander with an eerie sound that's really amazing. Titles include "Come & Stay With Me", "As Tears Go By", "Down Town", "I'm A Loser", "What Have I Done Wrong", "They Never Will Leave You", and "He'll Come Back To Me". CD features 6 bonus cuts – "I'd Like to Dial Your Number", "Morning Sun", "Greensleeves", "House Of The Rising Sun", "The Sha La La Song", and "Oh Look Around You". CD

Overlooked 70s work from pianist Eddie Higgins – a longtime Chicago jazz legend, but actually recording here at a studio up in Lake Geneva! Still, the set's got all the subtle magic that Eddie was bringing to Windy City clubs back in the day – piano lines that were a lot more complex than his earlier work on bigger labels, almost effortless at most time as they tipple off his fingers with gentle care – mellow, but able to evoke generations of jazz in a single tune, while also covering a fair bit of the keyboard too. Tracks include "Greensleeves", "Valsa De Porto Das Caixas", "Air For G String", "Duke Ellington Medley", "Lela", and "How Long Has This Been Going On". CD

A groovy record from the International Pop All Stars for Decca's Phase 4 label of percussion & strings oriented LPs! Vibrations Around The World has a groovy, moddish, cheeky charm with an international focus, picking themes to represent countries as if this were some kind of easy listening Olympics! "Aquarius" reps the USA, "Greensleeves" is for the UK, "Tulips From Amsterdam" represents Holland, "One One Samba" stands for Brazil, and more. LP, Vinyl record album

Drummer Akira Ishikawa was easily one of the hippest cats on the Japanese scene of the late 60s and early 70s – a player and leader with a great ear for American funk and soul changes of the time, most of which he brought into play on a record like this! The album's definitely got the soul and rock promised in the title, but also plenty of jazz too – as some of the solos go nicely outside, in weird offbeat ways that nicely contrast with the tighter grooves in the rhythm – creating a nice sense of tension that really makes this record stand out from the pack! There's a really sinister undercurrent here – odd edges and weird tones on piano, guitar, and saxophone – all amidst some strongly soulful grooves from the rest of the group. Titles include "The Cougar", "Greensleeves", "No More Than A Drop", "Deep River", "Mago-Uta", and "I'm Gonna Make You Love Me". LP, Vinyl record album

Titles include "Kill The King", "Man On The Silver Mountain", "Starstruck", "Catch The Rainbow", "Mistreated", and "Sixteenth Century Greensleeves". LP, Vinyl record album

A jazzy Christmas, but a vocal one too – as the set mixes together instrumental jazz with cuts from key singers of the postwar years – all in a package that makes for a mighty nice take on the sounds of the season! Titles include "Blue Xmas" by Miles Davis with Bob Dorough, "I've Got My Love To Keep Me Warm" by Julie London, "Jingle Bells" by Count Basie, "Santa Claus Is Coming To Town" by Dave Brubeck, "May Everyday Be Christmas" by Louis Jordan, "Boogie Woogie Santa Claus" by Lionel Hampton, "That's What I Want For Christmas" by Nancy Wilson, "Winter Wonderland" by Chet Baker, "Greensleeves" by John Coltrane, "Silent Night" by Dinah Washington, and "Jingle Bells" by Duke Ellington. LP, Vinyl record album

Hard-hitting trio work from Ray – one of his early albums for Columbia, and the record that gave him a surprisingly big hit! "Little Susie" is one of those early 60s soul jazz standards, the kind of catchy tune that got played all over the place on radio, and which forever put the artist at the top of the list for recording dates and live sets for a few years. Ray's riding high here – with a trio that features brother Tommy Bryant on bass, and either Eddie Locke or Gus Johnson on drums – and the album's got lots of other short tracks with a similar down-home soul jazz kind of approach. Titles include "Blues For Norrie", "Big Buddy", "Greensleeves", and "If I Can Just Make It". LP, Vinyl record album

Quite a different album than usual for John Coltrane, but a classic one too – and a set that has the great one exploring his ideas in a set of longer tracks recorded with an expanded jazz orchestra! The format's hardly the mainstream big band of the time – as Coltrane's filled the group with very hip players – including Booker Little, Freddie Hubbard, Julian Priester, and Eric Dolphy – in addition to usual compatriots who include McCoy Tyner, Reggie Workman, and Elvin Jones. The tunes have a soaring, modal sort of pulse – one that's filled with color and light from the addition of the other horn players, but which still has plenty of space for extended, exploratory solos. Coltrane plays both tenor and soprano sax – and titles include the legendary 16 minute track "Africa", a classic reading of "Greensleeves", redone here as a modal searching spiritual track, and "Blues Minor". With Vol 2 the tracks feature Trane leading a group young modernists through a set of larger arranged charts, woven tightly together in a soulful spiritual groove that's similar to some of Max Roach's projects like this from the same time. Players include Booker Little, Eric Dolphy, McCoy Tyner, Elvin Jones, Reggie Workman, and Julius Watkins – and the album includes an alternate version of "Africa", plus "Greensleeves" and "Song Of The Underground Railroad". CD

Terumasa Hino's looking a bit cheesy on the cover of this one – but the record's hardly the slick 80s affair you might expect – and instead is a great session of ballads and more gentle numbers, recorded in the US with full string backings and a warmly sensitive approach to the music! There's a depth here that goes beyond most of Hino's other work of the decade – an approach to the tunes that reminds us a bit of Art Farmer or Freddie Hubbard in a similar setting – with warmly lyrical lines undercut with a slight hint of sadness – that "blue" reference in the title and cover image. Hino plays cornet with a core group that includes Jim Hall on guitar, Kenny Kirkland on piano, Eddie Gomez on bass, and Grady Tate on drums – plus a bit of vocals – and strings are arranged by David Nadian. Titles include "Greensleeves", "Black Orpheus", "Alone Alone & Alone", "Nature Boy", and "Lush Life". CD

A wicked wicked set of tracks from Japan – one that blends together jazzy riffing and Brazilian rhythms, all played with a surprisingly soulful bent! Suzuki's on bass and piccolo bass, and Yamamoto plays not only electric piano but also a bit of electric harpsichord – which adds a cool feel to the album, and one that's almost like some lost European soundtrack. Rhythms are mostly in a breezy sort of style that mixes samba with bossa jazz – and Donald Bailey is in the group on drums, providing some very nice bottom to the set. The whole thing's great, with a really unique style – one that's so great it even transforms older numbers like "Night & Day", "Sweet Georgia Brown", "Greensleeves", and "La Vie En Rose". Also features an especially great take on Michel Colombier's "Overture"! CD