A huge moment in jazz – not just for trumpeter Miles Davis, but also for saxophonist John Coltrane – who was virtually introduced to the world at large with this record! As you might guess from the title, the record's the first to feature Coltrane playing along with Davis – a sublime combination that resulted in some key sides that forever helped shape the sound of jazz. Rhythm is by the famous trio of Red Garland, Paul Chambers, and Philly Joe Jones – and apart from the top-shelf solo work, the interplay between the horns is also fantastic. Titles include "Just Squeeze Me", "There Is No Greater Love", "How Am I To Know", "S'Posin", "The Theme", and "Stablemates". LP, Vinyl record album

Rare radio broadcasts recorded at Royal Roost and Birdland– with players who include Gerry Mulligan on baritone, Lee Konitz on alto, Brew Moore on tenor, JJ Johnson on trombone, and Walter Bishop on piano. Both Max Roach and Art Blakey handle drums – and Charlie Parker steps in on one track too! LP, Vinyl record album

A much different album than you might expect from the cover – hardly the funky 70s set implied by the Big Fun-styled cover – and instead a lost slice of work from his groundbreaking late 60s years! The set was recorded in 1967, but unissued until Miles late 70s time away from the studio – hence the cover, which attempts to contemporanize the record – and the music is very much in the dark moods and sharp tones of Filles De Kilimanjaro, and features a somewhat similar group! The core quintet of Wayne Shorter on tenor, Herbie Hancock on piano, Ron Carter on bass, and Tony Williams on drums handles the first half of the set – but the group's then expanded to include Chick Corea on electric piano along with Herbie on keys – and Ron Carter steps out so that Dave Holland can bring some more modern tones to the bass. Tracks are all somewhat long, and titles include "Capricorn", "Water Babies", "Sweet Pea", and "Two Faced". LP, Vinyl record album

An Italian comedy take on the story of Robinson Crusoe – one that's served up with lots of light musical touches, thanks to the team of Guido and Maurizio DeAngelis! The music here is a blend of tropical themes and some of the comedic 70s modes you'd guess from the cover art – rootsier percussion and a bit of light ukulele to create the "island" elements – and some warmer, fuller passages that evoke the Italian placement of the film – although overall, the music is probably more attuned to the acoustic elements than most of its type from the time. Heavy vinyl pressing features 12 tracks from the film – plus the 7" single versions of "Signor Robinson" and "L'Isola Di Robinson". LP, Vinyl record album

With Roland Hanna on piano, John Chiadini on guitar, George Mraz on bass, and Mel Lewis on drums. LP, Vinyl record album

Sweet funky fusion from one of the hippest drummers of the 70s – the mighty Les DeMerle, a player who's given the world plenty of samples over the years! The grooves on the set are some of Les' best – tightly snapping in a warm mix of electric and acoustic playing – with tight bass work that matches Les' drums perfectly, and lots of snaking horn solos from the great Don Menza. Josh Hanna sings on a few cuts, giving the record a more soulful feel than any of Les' other albums – and the whole thing's smoking at a level that really almost surpasses the best of DeMerle's studio work. Titles include "San Quenti Quail", "Freedom Jazz Dance", "Sambandrea Swing", "Quetzal", "Ambidextrous", and "Island Winds". LP, Vinyl record album

The birth of a sound and the birth of a legend – Martin Denny's first album in the Exotica series, and a record so great it named an entire genre! Denny certainly didn't invent the tropical style of easy listening that came to be known as "exotica" in the 50s – but with a record like this, he delivered the goods better than anyone else – by taking away all the too-sweet styles of Hawaiian music, and serving up a stripped-down, jazzy kind of sound! The album features Denny's classic original quartet – with Arthur Lyman on vibes and Augie Colon on bongos – and titles include "Stone God", "Jungle Flower", "Busy Port", "Lotus Land", and his hit recording of "Quiet Village". LP, Vinyl record album

A legendary album from the 70s funk scene – and one of the crowning achievements of keyboard maestro Eumir Deodato! Deodato got his start during the bossa years of the 60s – where his sophisticated charts were already enough to make his career a landmark – but in the following decade he picked up the Fender Rhodes, and really took off in a great new direction with classic records like this! The set's a wonderful blend of larger charts and jazzy soloing – with sublime Rhodes lines from the leader, plus a mix of acoustic and electric instrumentation in the best CTI mode – underscored by percussion from both Ray Barretto and Airto. The features Deodato's remake of "Also Sprach Zarathustra" into the funky "2001" – soaring with Fender Rhodes lines that set a new standard for the instrument, with a funky undercurrent that few would have expected for the tune. Other tracks are nice too – and include a great bossa-y version of "Baubles Bangles & Beads", plus "Spirit Of Summer", "September 13", and "Carly & Carole". LP, Vinyl record album

A real 70s standout from guitarist Al Di Meola – and that's saying a lot, given the strength of most of his albums from the decade! The record's one that broke Al's talents out to so many different groups – yet never in a way that waters down his sound, nor dims his genius for a solo. Al plays a host of guitars – electric, and both six and 12 string acoustic – the latter of which are especially beautiful, and handled in a balance between European virtuoso modes, and some of the more rhythmic elements of the American fusion scene. Speaking of fusion, the other players on the date really help set the tone – Chick Corea on keyboards and piano, Barry Miles on Fender Rhodes and mini-moog, Stanley Clarke on bass, and both Steve Gadd and Lenny White on drums – each setting a different pace when they appear. Titles include "The Wizard", "Suite Golden Dawn", "Short Tales Of The Black Forest", and "Land Of The Midnight Sun". LP, Vinyl record album

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A fantastic set from the young tenorist Klaus Doldinger – hardly jazz made in Germany, as the whole thing has a smoking soul jazz quality to rival the best on Prestige Records at the time! Klaus plays tenor throughout – in a fantastic combo that features Hammond organ from the great Ingfried Hoffman, and drums from Klaus Weiss – who'd later go onto great fame in funk and fusion. Titles include "Signal", "Solar", "Blues For George", and "Bluesy Toosy". LP, Vinyl record album

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A 2LP set of rare Doors – the LA Woman Workshop Sessions – three sides of never-before-released tracks from the sessions, plus a laser-etched fourth side with the "Electric Woman" art originally issued with the landmark LA Woman LP! The vinyl focuses exclusively on the unreleased material – with alternate versions of "The Changeling", "Love Her Madly", "The Wasp (Texas Radio And The Big Beat)" and "Riders On The Storm", plus versions of "Cars Hiss By My Windows", "LA Woman" and "Been Down So Long" featuring rhythm guitar by Marc Benno. Last, but not least the previously unreleased song "She Smells So Nice" and "Rock Me". LP, Vinyl record album

A mid 70s repackaging of one of the best vocal jazz albums that Bethlehem ever produced, and a landmark recording in the vocalese tradition! The first record ever from a young Bob Dorough – and easily one of his most swinging sessions! The style here is a bit straighter jazz than on some of Bob's later work – vocalese inspired by Jon Hendricks, King Pleasure, Eddie Jefferson, and others – recorded with a small combo that includes Jack Hitchcock on vibes, Warren Fitzgerald on trumpet, Jerry Segal on drums, and Bob's longtime partner Bill Takas on bass. Many of the tunes are vocalized versions of bop numbers – done with a nicely quirky style that shows that the mad Dorough touch was already in place during these early years – on titles that include "It Could Happen To You", "Polka Dots & Moonbeams", "Baltimore Oriole", "Yardbird Suite", "Devil May Care", and "Ow" – plus his great original "You're The Dangerous Type"! LP, Vinyl record album

There's nothing quite like the voice of Nahawa Doumbi – a sound that's lean and powerful at once, haunting and heartfelt, and served up here on a set of tunes that were originally only issued on cassette in her homeland of Mali! The music features really deft guitar work from N'Gou Bagayoko – who crafts these lines that are as rhythmic as they are melodic – dipping, turning, and making great musical moments alongside the fantastic lyrics. Titles include "Tou Dibile", "Djankonia", "Sokono Woulouni", "Nianimanjougou", and "Kourouni". LP, Vinyl record album

Godlike work from the legendary Nick Drake – and exactly the kind of record that's made him a continuing legend over the years! The style is completely its own – not really folk or rock, but not really jazz either – yet served up with plenty of jazzy phrasing that's helped keep Drake's music fresher than most as the decades move on – and which makes each song here a really rich discovery – even if, like us, you've heard the album hundreds of times in the past! The production is wonderful – with slight underscorings of strings that help unlock dark corners of the songs – and tracks include the classic "River Man" – easily one of Nick's best songs ever – plus "Fruit Tree", "Day Is Done", "Three Hours", "Saturday Sun", and "Time Has Told Me". A record we'd never part with – ever! LP, Vinyl record album

Some great funky grooves by this legendary British ensemble – featuring excellent keyboard work by Brian Auger, recorded during the period when he was really beginning to stretch out a bit, and hit a much more open-ended kind of sound. Julie Driscoll is still on vocals, singing in her raw sound, but Brian's Trinity group gets a fair number of nice instrumental moments on the set – which are greatly appreciated! Titles include the classic and sample laden "Light My Fire", "Czechoslovakia", "Finally Found You Out", "In Search Of The Sun", "Ellis Island", "I've Got Life", and "Save The Country". LP, Vinyl record album

A strange film, but a great soundtrack! George Duning came up with an excellent batch of jazzy tracks for the film – and most of them swing hard and tightly, with strong jazzy solos, in a manner that's similar to some of Mancini's best scores of the late 50s. A number of tracks have odd "Eastern" touches in the melody – mostly through the use of percussion – and this makes the jazzy tracks even nicer, and gives them a strange feel that's similar to some of the "east meets jazz" albums on Verve during the 60s. Titles include "Aberdeen Caper", "Gwenny Lee", "At The Namcock", "Groove For Suzie", and "Hit The Road To Dreamland". Towards the end of the soundtrack, some cuts have a more orchestral feel, and this is in keeping with the change of mood in the film. LP, Vinyl record album

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An even more amazing record than the previous outing from Petter Eldh and his Koma Saxo ensemble – a set that adds in a bit of vocals from Sofia Jernberg, and really has the group pushing their sound to a whole new level! The music is jazz at the start, but is quickly concerned with all these other sonic possibilities – as Eldh adds in samples and piano next to his own bass, in a lineup that mixes cello, violin, and a range of saxes with some nicely jagged drums – the last of which create rhythms that are unsettling, while the music itself is still tuneful – especially at moments when Kit Downes brings in some piano solos to the work. Titles include "Ostron Accordion", "Kippan Granit", "Koma Rail", "Narhet", "Clos Eko", "Lo Ve Ko Ma", "Croydon Koma", and "Flamman". LP, Vinyl record album

Short tracks with a spare swinging groove – featuring the trumpet of Eldridge, with backing by Ronnie Ball on piano, Benny Moten on bass, and Edward Locke on drums. The focus is on Eldridge's lightly playful trumpet style – and tracks include "Song Of the Islands", "Bossa Nova", "The Way You Look Tonight", "I've Got A Crush On You", "Misty", and "Easy Living". LP, Vinyl record album

Includes sessions by Duke Ellington & His Famous Orchestra, Johnny Hodges & His Orchestra, and Cootie Williams & His Rug Cutters. LP, Vinyl record album

One of the great entries in Duke Ellington's "exotic" albums of the 60s – records that aren't exactly exotica by any stretch of the imagination, but which have musical themes that were inspired by the international travels of the Ellington band at the time! In this case, the locale is the Virgin Islands – where Ellington performed in 1965, and returned home to record this set as a memory of tunes played by the band in St Croix and St Thomas. The core of the set is the initial Virgin Islands suite – made up of four new tunes that include "Island Virgin", "Virgin Jungle", "Fiddler On The Diddle", and "Jungle Kitty" – all nicely rhythmic numbers that explore some fresh themes with especially nice horn solos from the members of the group. Other tracks are older numbers performed on the tour, given a bit of a new twist here – on titles that include "Fade Up", "Mysterious Chick", "The Opener", and "Big Fat Alice's Blues". LP, Vinyl record album

One of our favorite Duke Ellington albums, and a sometimes-overlooked work that stands as one of his best compositions from the time. The "Liberian Suite" was originally issued as a 10" LP, and is one extended suite of tracks commissioned by the Liberian government for their centennial celebration in 1947. The piece starts with the haunting "I Like The Sunrise", with vocals by Al Hibbler, then leads into 5 "Dances", with solo work by Jimmy Hamilton, Johnny Hodges, Harry Carney, and Tyree Glenn. "Tone Parallel To Harlem" is added to the album, taking up all of side two, and is another beautiful extended work – the kind that really showed tremendous growth in Ellington's style. LP, Vinyl record album

Titles include "Portrait Of Mahalia Jackson", "Bourbon Street Jingling Jollies", "Second Line", "Portrait Of Wellman Bruad", and "Thanks For The Beautiful Land On The Delta". LP, Vinyl record album

Hard to believe it took a few decades in the careers of both players for them to record together – but that's exactly what you've got here – a landmark meeting of Count Basie and Duke Ellington from the early 60s, near the tail end of Duke's classic stretch on Columbia! Teo Macero produced the session with just the right amount of care and class to keep the whole thing from being an exercise in cliche – and there's a surprising amount of depth here that you might not expect – the best modern elements of Duke's orchestra on Columbia, coming into play with a bit more of the fire and vamp of the Basie group at the time! Titles include "Battle Royal", "Wild Man", "Segue In C", "Jumpin At The Woodside", "To You", and "Take The A Train". LP, Vinyl record album

This album was recorded live in 1962 at the Second Fret club in Philadelphia. It's a nice set where he plays some Woody Guthrie, Leadbelly and Jimmie Rodgers tunes as well as some others. The recording is good – you can tell it was in an intimate setting – and his voice is strong and the guitar playing tight; he switches between a folksy sound and more of a blues mode. Tracks include "Cool Water", "Hobo's Lullaby", "Boll Weevil", "How Long Blues", "Mule Skinner Blues", and "Rock Island Line". LP, Vinyl record album

Fairport Convention are down to a quartet here, but still sounds fantastic – with Simon Nicol on guitar and dulcimer, Dave Pegg on bass and violin, Dave Swarbrick on mandolin and violin, and Dave Mattacks on drums and piano – and vocals from all members of the group. LP, Vinyl record album

An amazing record! By all rights, this shouldn't be so good – but it's an incredible album of haunting tracks that really has us coming back again and again over the years. The formula is simple: Jose plays late 60s pop tunes on acoustic guitar, and sings them in his spacey soulful voice. Backings are by George Tipton, plus a jazz combo made up of Jim Horn, Ray Brown, and Milt Holland – but it's Jose that really makes the whole thing amazing! His style of presentation is like anything else we can describe – filled with sadness and soul, but enough joy to keep moving forward. He takes tracks like "Light My Fire", "In My Life", "Sunny", and "California Dreamin", and transforms them into an amazing document of the darkness hidden behind the sun of southern California. "California Dreamin" is especially amazing – and Jose's version is one of the best soul songs of all time! LP, Vinyl record album

Titles include "Soulin", "Thunder Island", "Night Shift", "Babylon", "Love Is Cold", "Happy Too", "Cozumel", and "Magic Moment". LP, Vinyl record album

Put aside your reservations about Maynard Ferguson, because this is a very hip little record – one of Maynard's excellent early sessions for Roulette Records, and like the rest, done with a group that's overflowing with top-shelf players! Ferguson's definitely got a great ear for putting together an ensemble – because players here include Don Ellis on trumpet, Slide Hampton and Don Sebesky on trombones, and Joe Zawinul on piano – all working strongly alongside some lesser-known talents who are equally great! And although the group is large, there's a definite modern edge to the set – strong writing, unusual timings, and some sharp-edged solos that really make some of the longer tracks bristle. Titles include versions of Benny Golson's "Starfire" and "Night Life", Marty Paich's "Lonely Time", and Slide Hampton's "The Mark Of Jazz" – plus "Oleo" and "Back In The Satellite Again", the latter of which was written by Willie Maiden, one of the tenor players on the date. LP, Vinyl record album

A landmark LP by this famous Philly trio who forever went onto change the face of club music! The record is pre-disco, but has a great strident soul sound, augmented by tight Norman Harris arrangements. Features the famous title hit – "Armed & Extremely Dangerous" – a great one in the "crime" soul subgenre, plus "Smarty Pants", "Newsy Neighbors", and lots more. LP, Vinyl record album

A superstar performance from the Antibes jazz festival at Cote D'Azur – one that features Ella Fitzgerald and Duke Ellington sharing the stage, in a concert that was also recorded for a film! Most numbers here feature the full Ellington orchestra backing Ella up – but a few other numbers feature just backings from a trio with Jimmy Jones on piano and Grady Tate on drums. Duke and Ella trade the spotlight nicely – and Fitzgerald only sings on about half of the set, numbers that include "Mack The Knife", "The More I See You", "Lullaby Of Birdland", "Jazz Samba", "How Long Has This Been Going On", and "Going Out Of My Head". Ellington's heard on other instrumental performances – some of which are a bit more upbeat and unbridled than usual – almost in a Basie mode. These tunes include "Trombonio Bustosolssimo", "Diminuendo In Blue & Blow By Blow", "The Old Circus Train Turn Around Blues", and "The Matador". LP, Vinyl record album

Sounds hokey – but this is a fantastic album! French pianist Raymond Fol leads a group that includes American and European players of the Clarke-Boland Big Band mode, like Johnny Griffin, Jimmy Woode, and Fats Sadi, plus American Art Taylor on drums – and he's come up with a swinging take on Vivaldi's Four Seasons that's one of the hippest French jazz sides we've heard from the 60s! Forget the source of the material, because Fol lets the players really go loose on the solos – which means you'll hear great vibes from Sadi, searing tenor from Griffin, and some excellent work on piano and celeste from Fol himself, all set to tight rhythm accompaniment that makes the tracks swing harder than you'd ever expect. A real treat, kind of a swinging jazz suite, ala the best MPS work of the Clarke-Boland Big Band! LP, Vinyl record album

Includes "Rage Hard", "Warriors of the Wasteland", and "Watching the Wildlife". LP, Vinyl record album

Arguably one of the greatest concept albums of the 80s – and the only really strong full length album cut by Frankie Goes To Hollywood! At the time of the set, the group was riding high on the success and controversy of their singles "Relax" and "Two Tribes" – but in the ambitious ZTT mode, sought to expand their sound way past familiar hits, and into a realm of sonic exploration that rivaled that of labelmates Art Of Noise. Don't get us wrong, because the Frankie of this album is still very much in groove-oriented territory – but they also let Horn take over with some more striking tunes that are both longer and shorter than the usual pop track – offsetting the vocal numbers on the record with a rich tapestry of musical backdrops that also more firmly forward the group's social and sexual leanings. The album features surprising covers of "War", "Do You Know The Way To San Jose", and "Born To Run" – plus the hits "Relax" and "Two Tribes", and the original numbers "Welcome To the Pleasure Dome", "Krisco Kisses", "The Ballad Of 32", "Wish The Lads Were Here", "Black Night White Light", "The Only Star In Heaven", "The Power Of Love", and "Bang". LP, Vinyl record album

Titles include "Mr Big", "All Right Now", "Fire & Water", "Remember", "Oh I Wept", and "Heavy Load". LP, Vinyl record album

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A landmark late Judy Garland performance – extended, and strung out in all its boozy wonderfulness! LP, Vinyl record album

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One of the best by Red Garland for Prestige – a totally cooking record that features some great added conga work from Ray Barretto! Ray's presence really helps the record live up to its Latin-styled title – and Garland's usual trio with Paul Chambers on bass and Art Taylor on drums seems to get a whole new life from the added percussion – really stepping things up with a bit more of a groove than usual! The title cut – "Manteca" – is an 8 minute jam that's gone onto become a real jazz dance classic – and other tracks include "Exactly Like You", "S'Wonderful", and "Mort's Report". LP, Vinyl record album

A war soundtrack – but with some different touches that make it nicer than you'd think! The music was written by groovy French composer Georges Garvarentz, and performed in the KPM studios by Roland Shaw's orchestra – so despite the fact that the setting of the film is a military thriller, there's also some nice numbers that have kind of a 60s easy feel to them. Tony Allen sings the title song – and other tracks include "Victory Day", "Rendez-vous Of Paulette & Eddie", "Test For Parachute Landing", "Le Bistro De Paulette", and "Elga & Eddie's Farewell". LP, Vinyl record album

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An album we come back to more and more over the years – a bit more subtle than some of the other Gabriel-era Genesis records, but in a really great way! You'll not get any overly-heavy concepts here, yet the album still retains all the instrumental complexity the group was getting so great at – nicely subtle at times, a bit more expanded at others – and with a balance of bigger songs and more personal moments that hints at the direction the group would take after Peter Gabriel. Instrumentation is superb, especially the keyboards – and titles include "Aisle Of Plenty", "Firth Of Fifth", "Dancing With The Moonlit Knight", "I Know What I Like", "Battle Of Epping Forest", "The Cinema Show", and "More Fool Me" – the last of which was a key early vocal moment for Phil Collins. LP, Vinyl record album

Life after Peter Gabriel – with Phil Collins doing a surprisingly great job on vocals – free from all the tripe of later years! The group are still very much in the mode of their early prog years, but balance things out with a few catchier tunes – a mode that's a bit like the Selling England By The Pound album, sans Gabriel. Collins is learning how to express himself soulfully, but not in a commercial way – and the few off moments are more than balanced with some wonderfully tight instrumental work – on tracks that include "Dance On A Volcano", "Robbery Assault & Battery", "Ripples", "Trick Of The Tail", and "Mad Man Moon". LP, Vinyl record album

An overlooked gem from the Verve bossa years – a session that features the sweet tenor sax work of Stan Getz, alongside some swinging bossa arrangements from the great Gary McFarland! Given the strength of Gary's own work for Verve at the time, it's no surprise that he's a perfect accompanist for Getz on the session – working with just the right amount of space to let Stan stand out from the pack, and really creating a great blend of Brazilian rhythms and some of the modder 60s styles at Verve. Gary contributed a number of originals to the session too – and titles include "Bim Bom", "Manlancolico", "Balanco No Samba", "Noite Triste", "Chega De Saudade", and "Manha De Carnival". 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