A beautiful early Verve recording by Basie – one that's packaged here in a great David Stone Martin cover, with a red and blue watercolor of Basie himself. Players include Frank Foster, Frank Wess, Ernie Wilkins, Marshall Royal, Joe Newman, Thad Jones, Bennie Powell, and Freddie Green – plus Basie, of course. Titles include "Two Franks", "Ska Di Didle Dee Bee Doo", "Rails", "Blues Backstage", and "Perdido" – and there's a very strong focus on the best soloists in the group! (Note: this material was also issued under the title The Band Of Distinction – but this is the first version.) LP, Vinyl record album

The important first album by singer Judy Roberts – an excellent jazz talent with a sound that's up there with the best jazz fusion vocalists of the 70s! Judy comes at the end of a decade that scored big recordings for singers like Flora Purim and Urzula Dudziak – and she's easily as great as any of those three, and often sadly lost to time because of the later years in which she recorded, and the Chicago scene in which she made her home! This first self-produced album is a rare groovehound's gem – filled with soaring numbers that feature Roberts on both vocals and keyboards – including electric piano, Arp, clavinet, and other keyboards. Titles include "Fantasy", "Thumbs", "Never Was Love", "Dandelion", "Yes Indeed", and "Watercolors". LP, Vinyl record album

The mighty Lonnie Liston Smith live – sounding every bit as great as he did on his famous studio sessions from the 70s – and maybe even more freewheeling too! The feel of the record is really tremendous – extremely soulful, with Lonnie jamming away on keyboards as the band grooves up these cool spacey rhythms – stepping out in territory that's definitely the more cosmic side of jazz funk, with those righteous currents that always made Lonnie so great. The whole thing's wonderful – with loads of great electric work, and an overall spiritual vibe that's every bit as great as his albums for Flying Dutchman – and players include Donald Smith on flute and a bit of vocals, Dave Hubbard on tenor and soprano sax, and Lonnie himself on Fender Rhodes, clavinet, and Arp. The set includes a nice extended take on "Visions of A New World", plus the tracks "Watercolors", "Sorceress" – which isn't on any of his studio albums, "Prelude", and the classic "Expansions". LP, Vinyl record album

... LP, Vinyl record album

An unusual little record from Art Blakey – a live set recorded at the Lighthouse in 1966, with a band that includes the surprising lineup of Keith Jarrett on piano and Chuck Mangione on trumpet! If you're surprised at the mix of players, and figure that they won't groove with Blakey's soulful approach – don't worry, as Art's still strongly at the helm, and manages to get incredibly tight performances out of both of them – really forging them strongly into a Jazz Messengers groove! The group also features Frank Mitchell on tenor and Reggie Johnson on bass – and Mangione wrote a number of the tracks for the album, including "Buttercorn Lady", a nice funky soul jazz groover, "Recuerdo", with a bit of a Latin feel, and "Between Races", a charger in typical Jazz Messengers style! LP, Vinyl record album

A seminal record in the formation of the Pat Metheny sound of the 70s – a set that brings his wonderfully chromatic work on guitar into play with the piano of Lyle Mays – all at a level that's so stripped-down and spacious, you can easily hear all the genius as it unfolds! And yet the album's also markedly different from some of the other ECM material at the time – as Pat's really stating himself with some more personal ideas, a bit of warm tunefulness, and maybe just a slight current of sentiment – which is what makes the record so wonderful, and so different than some of his labelmates. The set also features Eberhard Weber on bass and Dan Gottlieb on drums – on titles that include "Lakes", "River Quay", "Watercolors", "Icefire", "Oasis", and "Sea Song". LP, Vinyl record album

... 12-inch, Vinyl record

... LP, Vinyl record album

Beat group soul from Germany – one of the few albums ever cut by Berry & The Movements, a group who's better known for their album on MPS, but who sound pretty darn great here too! The style of the album is drenched in the Memphis Stax sound of the late 60s – lots of heavy bass in the arrangements, and some nice raw guitar that makes for some edgey takes on familiar soul classics. The sound is raw, round, and mighty – and Berry's singing in some strangely-accented English, which gives the album a nice sound too! Includes versions of James Brown's "Ain't That A Groove" and "Papa's Got A Brand New Bag" – plus "Philly Dog", "I've Been Loving You Too Long", "Mustang Sally", "Don't Fight It", and "Sweet Soul Music". LP, Vinyl record album

... LP, Vinyl record album