Maybe one of the most hard-burning performances ever recorded by this legendary South African jazz combo – a set dedicated to trumpeter Mongezi Feza, a key member of the group who'd passed away just a short time before the recording! The session was done in London, right after all four remaining members had come together for a memorial for Mongezi – and throughout the set, you can feel the raw emotion that's driving the performance – bold, freewheeling and very expressive sounds from the lineup of Dudu Pukwana on alto sax, Chris McGregor on piano, Johnny Dyani on bass, and Louis Moholo on drums – all players who pick up extra percussion and vocalize at points – almost in the tradition of the AACM, but more emotive too. The set features a double-length performance, titled "Blue Notes For Mongezi" – divided into four movements. LP, Vinyl record album

A genius pairing of these two legendary improvisers – two artists who really had an amazing sense of tone and timing on their instruments! By the time of the recording, Evan Parker had lept far ahead most of his improvising contemporaries on tenor and soprano sax – using the horns in ways that were very far from their roots, as he opens up all sorts of sonic possibilities – at a level that is also echoed by George Lewis, who'd already given the world some amazing moments on his solo trombone record, yet pushes even farther here! The set features five different improvisations, each numbered variations on the title – all great. LP, Vinyl record album

Groundbreaking improvisations from the British scene of the early 70s – a set that stands as a key demonstration of the tonal genius of Evan Parker on reeds, and one that also marks a seminal mix of percussion and electronics from the great Paul Lytton! Parker blows soprano and tenor saxes, sometimes in those cyclical modes that he can pull off effortlessly – which also seems to open the door to Lytton's electronic pulsations, and some of his percussive touches in a similar way – while both musicians also use other elements, including tape and home made instruments – touching the proceedings with some very cool and unexpected sounds! Titles include "Lytton Perdu", "Shaker", "Cat's Flux 2", "Peradam", "Voice Fragment", and "What's Left Of The Neo Left". LP, Vinyl record album

A fantastic meeting between pianist Pat Thomas and alto saxophonist Matana Roberts – recorded live in London, and showing an amazing sense of sympathy between the two improvisers – even though they're normally separated by the space of an ocean! Thomas has these really dark, moody tones on the piano at times – almost as if he's playing with a prepared version of the instrument, although we're guessing that he's showing more of a Cecil Taylor-like understanding of the full tonal possibilities of the piano – even though his approach is very different than Cecil. Matana has this crispy soulfulness and depth – almost as if she's bringing the best modern traditions on the alto into play with the richer currents of the tenor – with results that are breathtaking throughout! The set features one long track – "The Truth". LP, Vinyl record album

A landmark album in the British avant garde – the first set ever issued on Incus Records, and a monumental set of improvisations between Evan Parker on saxes, Hank Bennink on percussion, and Derek Bailey on guitar! The album followed from some great energy on the British scene of the previous few years – but went onto set the tone for countless other improvisations in years to come – especially in the way that Bailey's guitar is integrated into the sharper sounds of the saxes and drums. That blend may well be the record's strongest contribution to improvisation – but even without that historic status, it's still a hell of a set from some genius players at their height. Titles include "Dogmeat", "For Peter B & Peter K", "Fixed Elsewhere", and "Titan Moon". LP, Vinyl record album

A beautiful record – although one that's tinged with a touch of sadness, given the setting. In what was becoming an unfortunate tradition in their later years, the remaining members of the legendary South African jazz group The Blue Notes join together to mourn the passing of one of their original bandmembers – the great bassist Johnny Dyani, a player whose sound had a key influence on both African and European jazz scenes of the 60s, 70s, and 80s. The group for this session is reduced to Chris McGregor on piano, Louis Moholo on bass, and Dudu Pukwana on alto and soprano saxes – working together in a beautiful session of tunes that hearken back to the rhythms of the group's roots – while still allowing some of the freer interplay that they discovered in later years. McGregor's piano is especially nice – tinged with sadness and appropriate blue notes – providing a nice undercurrent to the solo work of Pukwana. Titles include "Funk Dem Dudu", "Eyomzi", "Blues For Nick", and "Monks & Mbizo". LP, Vinyl record album