Two older players, cooking together beautifully on this early 80s session – and both hitting a vibe that almost makes the set smoke like some rare 60s gem on Blue Note! Frank Wess plays both tenor and alto sax – both of them extremely deep and soulful – with these open, thoughtful solos that almost show more imagination and maturity than in the early days – and also a swinging vibe that's undeniably great. Trumpeter Johnny Coles turns out to be a perfect partner for the session – and manages to mix his sweeter tones with some of his more modern phrasing too – in ways that make the album a treasure trove of unexpectedly great surprises – loads of illuminated passages that keep us coming back again and again over the years. The rhythm section is a good reason for the strength of the set too – and features Kenny Barron on piano, Reggie Johnson on bass, and Kenny Washington on drums – on titles that include "Celia", "Minority", "An Oscar For Oscar", "Ill Wind", "Morning Star", and "Whistle Stop". LP, Vinyl record album

A nice collection of Gene Ammons' work that doesn't always get as well remembered as his sides for Prestige or Chess – a 1947 bop session for Savoy with Howard McGhee on trumpet, Leo Parker on baritone, Junior Mance on piano, Gene Wright on bass, and Chuck Williams on drums; and early 50s sesssions with Johnny Coles on trumpet, Lino Murray on trombone, Mack Easton on tenor and baritone, John Houston on piano, Ben Stuberville on bass, and George Brown on drums; done in a wonderfully full-voiced tone! The set features Gene's classic "Red Top", plus the great two part "Big Slam", and the titles "Chips", "Goodtime Blues", "Fuzzy", "Jim Dawgs", and "Street Of Dreams". LP, Vinyl record album

With Mercer Ellington, Money Johnson, Johnny Coles, and Barry Lee Hall on trumpets; Vince Prudente, Art Baron, and Chuck Connors on trombone; Harry Carney, Harold Ashby, Russell Procope, Geezil Minerve, and Percy Marion on reeds; Joe Benjamin on bass; Rocky White on drums; and Anita Moore and Money Johnson on vocals. LP, Vinyl record album

A pivotal session for Gil Evans – one that brought his genius to the American public strongly and successfully, without the help of Miles Davis! Sure, Gil had recorded albums as a leader before this one – but the sparkling quality of this set is right up there with the charts he handled for Miles, and the quality of the players in the group make the performance every bit as great. Gil's band includes trumpeter Johnny Coles, plus Ron Carter on bass, Elvin Jones on drums, Budd Johnson on tenor, and Ray Crawford on guitar – all players who open up the sound with a magnificent array of colors that sparkle from the sublime Evans arranging touch. Titles include "Stratusphunk", "Sunken Treasure", "La Nevada", and a great reading of Kurt Weil's "Bilbao Song". LP, Vinyl record album

The start of funky funky Herbie Hancock! This album's the first to feature Herbie really breaking away from his straight jazz work – moving into a groove that's nice and funky, using electric piano along with acoustic, to forge the sound that he'd develop famously over the 70s. The album's got a harder, heavier sound than some of his straight electric ones – and it features a larger group with soloists that include Johnny Coles on trumpet and Joe Henderson on tenor – plus some sweet basslines from Buster Williams – all led by Herbie into a tight soul jazz flurry of excellent tracks! Includes the cuts "Fat Mama" and "Wiggle Waggle", both sample favorites, plus "Tell Me A Bedtime Story" and "Lil Brother". Classic stuff, and one of his best records ever! LP, Vinyl record album

Live material from Mingus' classic mid 60s period – one album recorded at Town Hall in New York in 1964, the other recorded at the Tyrone Guthrie Theatre in Minneapolis in 1965. Town Hall set features Johnny Coles on trumpet, Clifford Jordan on tenor, and Eric Dolphy on flute, bass clarinet, and alto – on the tracks "So Long Eric" and "Praying With Eric". The Minneapolis set features Lonnie Hillyer on trumpet, Charles McPherson on alto, and Jaki Byard on piano – on another version of "So Long Eric" – this one recorded after Dolphy's death – plus a medley of standards, done the Mingus way! LP, Vinyl record album

Great work from Moody's "second phase" – the post-Overbrook time in which he picks up the flute, drops a bit of the bop style, and starts working in a much more complicated style that showed that he had a hell of a lot of room to grow as an artist! This album's Moody's second for Argo – recorded in 1959, with help from the brilliant arranger Tom McIntosh. Players include Johnny Coles, Musa Kaleem, Gene Kee, and McIntosh – and the album features the first reading of Moody's famous "Darben The Redd Foxx", plus "Cookie", "RBQ", "Daahoud", and McIntosh's perennial favorite, "With Malice Toward None". LP, Vinyl record album

Surprisingly wonderful work from Kenny! The album has Kenny's guitar set to arrangements by Gil Evans – who gives the session a modern edge that really sets it apart from other Burrell albums of the time. Kenny's freed to do his thing – wonderfully, we might add – and Gil paints these washes of sound, color, and tone with the help of hip players like Johnny Coles, Louis Mucci, Julius Watkins, Steve Lacy, Richie Kamuca, Elvin Jones, and Lee Konitz. Tracks include "Lotus Land", "Downstairs", "Moon & Sand", "Terrace Theme", "Greensleeves", and "Loie". LP, Vinyl record album

A nice late Blue Note change from Herbie Hancock – a very different album than his previous sets for the label – in that it features a slightly larger group, and a sound that really points the way towards his directions in the 70s! There's a slightly ambitious feel to some of these cuts – not in a way that's over-arranged, but just a new sort of thinking for Herbie's kind of groove – a mode that's partially informed by the seriousness of 60s jazz soundtracks, but which also has the beginnings of some more righteous modes of expression too. Players are all great – and include Joe Henderson on tenor and flute, Johnny Coles on flugelhorn, Garnett Brown on trombone, Hubert Laws on flute, Jerome Richardson on bass clarinet, Buster Williams on bass, and Tootie Heath on drums. Herbie plays both acoustic and electric piano – using the latter here in one of his first recordings on the instrument – and titles include "Firewater", "I Have A Dream", "The Prisoner", and "He Who Lives In Fear". LP, Vinyl record album

A magnificent set of two great Booker Ervin sessions recorded in the 60s, and not released until the mid 70s in this great Blue Note two-fer. Record one has also since come out under Horace Parlan's name as "Happy Frame of Mind", and is a great post-Mingus sextet with a tight group that includes Johnny Coles and Grant Green, and featuring some nice Randy Weston material. Record two's a bit more searching, and has Booker with Woody Shaw and Kenny Barron, and was recorded in 1968 – one of the last sessions before his tragic early death! LP, Vinyl record album

Pivotal work from James Moody! The record was cut at a time when Moody was completely reinventing himself – shifting from the hard bopper of earlier years, into a sophisticated, slightly exotic player with an interest in mixing many different styles into a unique soul jazz vision. As part of this, Moody took up the flute heavily – adapting it wonderfully to his rich style, and playing the instrument with a lot more soul than had been previously been applied to the instrument. A few of the tracks on the album feature Moody on tenor, but most of them have flute in the forefront – recorded in a great echoey way that really sounds cool and a little rough around the edges. Other players include Johnny Coles, Tate Houson, and Jimmy Boyd – and tracks include "Phil Up", "Foolin The Blues", "Plus Eight", "Mean To Me", and a version of "Billie's Bounce" with vocals by Eddie Jefferson. LP, Vinyl record album

Recorded live at the Village Vanguard in late 1986, with Johnny Coles on flugelhorn, Cedar Walton on piano, Buster Williams on bass, and Billy Higgins on drums. LP, Vinyl record album

An excellent Duke Pearson album – and (dare we say it?) better than any of his Blue Note LPs! The record features a very tight lineup with Johnny Coles on trumpet, Garnett Brown on trombone, Les Spann on flute, James Spaulding on alto, and George Coleman on tenor – all players who are well suited to Pearson's warm funky style on the piano, but who also have a strong modernist sensibility that really comes through on the solos. The album is filled with nice tracks – like "New Girl", "Honeybuns", "Heavy Legs", and the fantastic lyrical groover "Is That So", plus "You Know I Care" and "Our Love". LP, Vinyl record album

Upfront issue of some Donald Byrd stuff recorded in the early 60's. Two great lineups, one that pairs Donald Byrd with the tenor of Jimmy Heath and the alto of Bunky Green; another that has him joining Johnny Coles on trumpet and Duke Pearson on piano. Nice hard bop stuff, in settings Byrd's not often heard in, 5 tracks in all: "My Babe", "Counter Punch", "Step High", "Out Of This World" and "Angel Eyes". LP, Vinyl record album