A fresh take on the HH album from guitarist Lionel Loueke, which itself was a fresh take on the music of Herbie Hancock – translated here in ways that take both Loueke's album and the original inspiration far past their roots! Gilles Peterson is best known as a presenter and producer – but in recent years, he's taken a more active role in music making – something he does here by reworking Lionel's original music in very abstract ways, with some help from Alex Patchwork on the mixes. Titles include "Butterfly (version)", "Tell Me A Bedtime Story (version)", "Driftin (version)", "Hang Up Your Hang Ups (version)", "One Finger Snap (version)", and "Watermelon Man (version)". LP, Vinyl record album

A brilliant update of the older Blue Note All-Stars concept – a set that features a tremendous lineup of the contemporary talents who've helped shape the new sound of the label in recent years – including trumpeter Ambrose Akinmusire, keyboardist Robert Glasper, bassist Derrick Hodge, guitarist Lionel Loueke, drummer Kendrick Scott, and tenor saxophonist Marcus Strickland. The set's produced by Glasper, and has all the open, soulful currents of his own great records for the label – but also really draws a lot from the contributions of the other heavyweights too – as they work together on a se of mostly original tunes, all with shapes and sounds that you never would have expected on Blue Note in years past. We're huge fans of this direction of the label – and appreciate the way that they've found a way to keep things creatively soulful, but without rehashing the past or resorting to easy gimmicks. There's a depth here that would have made the old school proud – and titles include "Bayyinah", "Cycling Through Reality", "Witch Hunt", "Second Light", "Freedom Dance", and "Message Of Hope" – plus a few shorter tracks dedicated to Bruce Lundvall, the always-optimistic champion who headed the label in the years before his death. CD