One of the most wonderful records we've ever heard from trumpeter Corey Wilkes – a set that seems to unlock new territory in his music, and has him working in a really unbridled setting overseas! The album just features one single track – "Oysters For The Masters" – improvised at points, but always grooving – with this sublime blend of free jazz, funk, and touches of soul – especially at points when the organist Justin Dillard delivers this righteous spoken passage that's totally great! Wilkes plays some electronics and percussion as well – shifting effortlessly between instruments – alongside co-leader Quentin Biardeau, who blows tenor and handles more electronics – in a group that also features Etienn Ziemniak on drums. There also seems to be some vibes in the mix too – and the shift of instrumentation and modes over the course of the nearly 50 minute performance is totally great! CD

The legendary Spanky Wilson makes a great return to the studio – thanks to superbly funky help from the Quantic Soul Orchestra! Spanky's voice was first heard famously on a number of great soul sides from the end of the 60s, but the passage of decades hasn't dimmed her talents a bit – and the record comes off like some lost funky treasure from the old days! Of course, with Quantic at the helm we could expect nothing less – and the backings here are hard, heavy, and plenty soulful – but also filled with enough fresh twists and turns to keep the whole set from just being a retro-funk affair. Bits of strings, unusual horn passages, and a lean, clean production style all help keep things moving along at an interesting pace – and given the strength of the Quantic Soul sound, Spanky's vocals are almost like the icing on the cake! Titles include "I'm Thankful (parts 1 & 2)", "You Can't Judge A Book By It's Cover", "Don't Joke With A Hungry Man (parts 1 & 2)", "A Woman Like Me", "Blood From A Stone", "Message To Tomorrow", "Waiting For Your Touch", and "That's How It Was". CD

Recorded live with Alex Acuna, Nathaniel Townsley, and Victor Bailey. Tracks include "Black Market", "Night Passage", "March Of The Lost Children", "In A Silent Way", and "Fast City". CD

A massive assortment of tracks that go way past the familiar – not a collection of standard classics from Blue Note, Impulse, or Prestige – and instead a whole host of jazzy groovers that we'd never have discovered otherwise! This volume of the series does a great job mixing in contemporary cuts with rare nuggets from years past – in ways that never make you notice the passage of years, as almost all of this work is rooted in a solid blend of tight rhythms and inventive improvisation – heavy on acoustic instrumentation, but with occasional electric moments too! Imagine the kind of groove that Gilles Peterson used to turn us onto years back, when he was spinning rare jazz records, and you'll get the vibe here – served up on titles that include "Tape Your Beat" by Born 74 & Onj, "Still In Love" by GeeW, "46 To Somewhere" by The Sultan's Swing, "Unreachable Galaxy" by Stefano Di Santis, "Movin" by Charro Band De Emilio Guerro, "Caught In A Fever" by Moreen Meridian, "Mr Fool" by Alonson Gonzalez & Jazz Latino, "Cla Samba" by Juju, "I Face East" by Mary Greer Mudiku, "Mende" by Jacques Schwarz Bart, "Mother Of The Future" by Venus Dodson, "Wanting Touch (inst)" by Juju, "Mambo De Papi" by El Caballo Y Su Orquesta, "Ponteio" by Miho Nobuzane, "Samba De La Cruz" by Tres Men, and "I'll Bet You Thought I'd Never Find You" by Lifetime. CD

An early 80s set from Cherry Red Records, and one that shows just how important the British label was to the world of post-punk music at the time – as you'll hear from an assortment of tracks that's more than enough to give labels like Factory or Rough Trade a run for their money! Cherry Red always had a way of thinking outside of the norm – mixing experimental sounds with more tuneful moments, and sometimes showcasing artists who weren't afraid to put their feelings on the line – at a level that other British indies would pick up more strongly a few years later. There's plenty of formative sounds here – and titles include "Plain Sailing" by Tracy Thorn, "My Face Is On Fire" by Felt, "No Noise" by Eyeless In Gaza, "Don't Blink" by The Nightingales, "Some Things Don't Matter" by Ben Watt, "Modi 2 (extract)" by Piero Milesi, "All About You" by Thomas Leer, "Portrait" by Five Or Six, "Eine Symphonie Des Grauens" by The Monochrome Set, "Lazy Ways" by The Marine Girls, "I Unseen" by The Misunderstood, and "On My Mind" by Everything But The Girl. This massive 3CD version of the collection is overflowing with great material – a whopping 72 tracks in all, 17 of which are unreleased, presented in a book-style package with plenty of notes! Added material includes work from The Nightingales, Kevin Coyne, The Passage, Monochrome Set, Jane, Five Or Six, Thomas Leer, Martyn Bates, Creation Rebel, The Reflections, Swallow Tongue, Bodhi Beat Poets, and even Patrick MacNee & Honor Blackman of The Avengers! CD

All the great early albums from Creation Rebel – plus their excellent comeback too! The set begins with Dub From Creation – not just the debut album from Creation Rebel, but also a set that marks the first studio work from the young Adrian Sherwood – part of the long On-U Sound legacy to come, and a wealth of other wonderful music! There's a spareness here that's great – maybe a bit less dark than later Sherwood projects, but no less stark – with melodica and keyboards weaving nicely amidst the dubby rhythms! Titles include "Basic Principals", "Dub Fusion", "Liberation", "Rising Star", "Vision Of Creation", and "Creation In A Iration". Next is Close Encounters Of The Third World – an early part of the On-U Sound legacy, even if the set wasn't issued on the label – a key effort by Creation Rebel that features recording work done both in London and Kingston, layered together in a beautifully dubby way! The sound here is definitely underground – full of message-oriented lyrics from Crucial Tony, who sings in a style that definitely earns him his name – with great melodica and organ flowing through the mix next to Lizard's bass – topped with added horn work from The Arabs in all the right spots! The production is superb – flat on the drums, wide on the sides, which makes for a really wonderful groove – on titles that include "Know Yourself", "Conspiring", "Creation Fever", "Natty Conscience Free", and "Joyful Noise". Rebel Vibrations features early production genius from Adrian Sherwood – and a record that sets the tone for all the On-U Sound genius to come! The set's a huge step forward from even the previous excellent Creation Rebel album – as the way the sounds are layered together is incredible – almost modes learned from post-punk production, but used to deliver a pure, righteous dub album – one that drops out all the vocals, and allows you to concentrate even more on the totally wicked instrumentation! The set features stunning drums from Style Scott, heady bass from Lizard, and all sorts of very cool keyboard work from Clifton Morrison – used in these ways that float about like a swarm of sounds, especially when mixed with the melodica of Doctor Pablo. The whole thing's amazing – and titles include "Diverse Doctor", "Hunger & Strife", "Jungle Affair", "Rebel Vibration", "Black Lion Dub", and "Mountain Melody". Starship Africa is a brilliant Creation Rebel effort for On-U Sound from the dawn of the 80s – landing in the futuristic dub spacecraft that is their Starship Africa – percussion heavy and spaced out ingenuity from Adrian Sherwood & co! Tripped, echoey atmospherics that's cast as a soundtrack to movie that doesn't exist, the music is forward thinking, boundary busting dubby grooves exists out of time and sounds great to this day. Includes "Starship Africa" (Sections 1-5) and "Space Movement" (Sections 1-4). On Psychotic Jonkanoo, Crucial Tony is back in the mix for this righteous early 80s album from Creation Rebel – a set that has Adrian Sherwood only furthering his production genius as he layers together stunning instrumental work from the group! The presence of the vocals has the instrumentation slightly back in the mix – but there's still a great run of rhythms throughout, all driven by the mighty heady basslines of Lizard Logan! There's less keyboards than before, but still some nice electronic bits all over the place – and titles include "The Dope", "African Space", "Threat To Creation", "Highest Degree", "Mother Don't Cry", and "Drum Talk". From 2023, Hostile Environment is the first album in many years from this legendary studio project from On-U Sound and Adrian Sherwood – and one that makes us feel as if the passage of decades hasn't happened at all! Sherwood's production is still wonderful – and, if anything, maybe less showy, or more soulful, or less moody – just something that seems to let the work of the group come through with energy that's wonderfully warm and organic, while still resonating with plenty of touches that will make longtime label fans proud! Vocals are shared between Charlie Eskimo Fox and Mr Magoo, and the set also features guest appearances from Prince Far I and Daddy Freddy – on titles that include "That's More Like It" "Jubilee Clock", "Swiftly", "Stonebridge Warrior", "Crown Hill Road", "The People's Sound", and "Whatever It Takes". CD

An early 60s Italian tale of love between a boy, a girl, and a shark – scored here with some great exotic elements from Francesco De Masi! The approach is slightly in the mode of the early exotica scene in late 50s US – more conventional charts mixed with just a few island-styled elements – either an exotic woodwind, unusual keyboard passage, or twangy steel guitar – all used in lots of different ways to spice up the sound of the film! Think some of the more serious Les Baxter albums – like Ports Of Pleasure – and you'll get part of the feel here – although the overall soundtrack has a lot more variety, including a few sweet jazzy moments. 2CD set features a massive 50 tracks in all – with loads of rare, unreleased, and alternate titles! CD

Really mindblowing work from Fela – a seminal 70s set that may well open up even more than any other album from the time – as the leader and Africa 70 stretch out on a single track that takes up the entire record! "Confusion" is almost proggish at the start – with a long passage that just features drums from Tony Allen and some really offbeat electric piano from Fela – slowly building up a groove out of the darkness, then letting the rest of the group come into the mix – all at a level that definitely sets the tune on fire for the righteous politics of the lyrics! The whole thing's no sloppy, over-extended jam – and instead, the record's a great demonstration of the care and craft that Fela brought to his musical vision at the time. The Gentleman LP is represented here by 3 songs – "Gentleman", "Igbe (Shit)", and "Fe Fe Naa Efe" – all of which are brimming with angry energy, and a heavy brassy overdrive! Loads of African funk grooves, packed onto one superbly done CD! CD

Really wonderful early work from Keith Jarrett – a spiritually-driven session that's free from the cliches of his later work! The album's a spectacular group effort – one that has Jarrett playing piano, percussion, and sax – in an ensemble that also includes Dewey Redman, Charlie Haden, Paul Motian, and Guilherme Franco. There's a lightly percussive sound underneath most of the tracks – spare, organic, almost earthy – as the tunes open up and flower over a long passage of time – gently stretching out in that beautiful post-Coltrane Impulse spiritual approach to jazz of the early to mid 70s. Great stuff throughout, and with 3 long tracks that include "Great Bird", "Prayer", and "Death & The Flower". CD

The long-awaited "real" second album from Jill Scott – finally out 4 years after her massive debut! Fortunately, the passage of time has done nothing to dampen Jill's genius – and the sound, style, and overall quality of this set is every bit as great as we could have hoped. The production is a bit fuller at times, but never cloying or overly mainstream – and still very much in the lean, mean, stripped-down Philly groove that Jill brought to the masses with incredible force. Jill's got help from a host of great Philly talents too – including Andre Harris, Jazzy Jeff, and Larry Gold – all of whom work with Jill in a sinister blend of beats, keys, strings, and soul! Titles include "I'm Not Afraid", "The Fact Is", "Bedda At Home", "Cross My Mind", "Family Reunion", "Can't Explain", "Not Like Crazy", "Rasool", and "My Petition". CD

A classic live set by Cecil Taylor – easily one of his best-remembered albums of the 70s! The group here is a sextet – with Taylor on piano, Jimmy Lyons on alto, Raphe Malik on trumpet, Ramsey Ameen on violin, Sirone on bass, and Ronald Shannon Jackson on drums – all working together in the collaborative spirit of the loft jazz generation! This is heard especially on the beginning section of the set – which features duet and solo performances by group members, all without Taylor – before rolling into the full sextet performance passage of the work. The album is one long performance – spanning over 2 hours of music! CD

A follow up to Tompkins Square's excellent Berkeley Guitars compilation – featuring some of the best solo acoustic folk guitar players in the Bay Area, and simply an excellent set of timeless music by wonderful modern players – including Aaron Sheppard, Richard Osborn, Trevor Healy, Chuck Johnson, Sean Smith, Lucas Boilon and Ava Mendoza. Includes "The Transmigration Of The Old West" by Aaron Sheppard, "A Dream Of Distant Summer" by Richard Osborn, "Wrapped In Water" by Trevor Healy, "A Struggle, Not A Thought" by Chuck Johnson, "Ourselves When We Are Real" by Sean Smith, "Studies Of The Oak As Pertaining To Druidic Rites Of Passage" by Lucas Boilon and "Redwood Regional Park Blues: Between Hay And Grass" by Ava Mendoza. CD

A cooker from this Chicago living legend – and proof that the passage of time hasn't dimmed the talents of Eddie Campbell at all! Eddie's firmly in the lead on vocals and guitar – plus a bit of harmonica, too – and the setting is mostly stripped-down, with the kind of no-nonsense contemporary blues production you'd expect from Delmark – almost a back-to-basics mode that really fits the music. Lurrie Bell guests on a few tracks – and titles include "Brownout", "I Do", "Call My Mama", "I Don't Understand This Woman", "Boomerang", "Starlight", "All My Life", "Skin Tight", and "My Friend". CD

A wild, far reaching psychedelic rock kaleidoscope from Arthur Brown and his Crazy World! The sounds range from wailing organs and heavy drum backed bigness, to more of a tightly grooving r&b garage influenced trip as the core backdrop – with vocals ranging from falsetto freakouts to rambling speak singing craziness and bursts of brass. Nothing's predictable from one passage to the next, but the group sets a heady groove before it all gets freaky, and they find it again before insanity sets in. Titles include "Prelude-Nightmare", "Fire", "Come & Buy", "Spontaneous Apple Creation", "Child Of My Kingdom", "I Put A Spell On You" and more. CD

A trio of albums from The Grass Roots – plus lots of bonus tracks too! First up is Leaving It All Behind – a really great shift for the Grass Roots – a set that has the group sounding more confident before, and maybe a bit more soulful too – really coming at things with this nice sense of punch both in the lead vocals, and the way the overall groove drives the set! The arrangements are superb – handled by Sid Feller and Jimmie Haskell – and we can especially hear the talents of the latter, in the way that Jimmie can take simple elements and make them sound groovy – but all in a very unassuming way. Titles include "Out Of This World", "I'm Lovin For You Girl", "Wait A Million Years", "Take Him While You Can", "Walking Through The Country", and "Truck Drivin Man". Move Along is a record with a big, bold sound – lots of soulful arrangements from Jimmie Haskell, full of horns and driven by great basslines – all of which really pushes the dynamic energy of the group! The Grass Roots look a bit more mature on the cover, and that comes through in their vocals too – some raspier charms that really reflect the passage of years, and enforce a bit more feeling in the lyrics – giving a heft to the album that's an unexpected surprise, especially if you only know their earlier hits. Titles include "Move Along", "Two Divided By Love", "Monday Love", "One Word", "Runnin Just To Get Her Home Again", and "Anyway The Wind Blows". Alotta Mileage is a 70s standout from The Grass Roots! Back in the 60s, the Grass Roots already had this tight, compressed energy that was totally great – a quality that also makes their 70s work like this so wonderful too! There's a focus here that's totally great – horns informed by earlier soul music styles, and vocals that borrow a bit too – upbeat and bubbling, but with maybe a nicely mature vibe too – still hook-heavy, but slightly different than the earlier hits – on titles that include "Just A Little Tear", "Pick Up Your Feet", "Where There's Smoke There's Fire", "Ballad Of Billy Joe", "We Almost Made It Together", "Ain't No Way To Go Home", and "Claudia". 2CD set features 14 more bonus tracks – including "Temptation Eyes", "Sooner Or Later", "Bella Linda (single version)", "Get It Together", "Baby Hold On", "I'd Wait A Million Years (single version)", "We Can't Dance To Your Music", and "I Can Turn Off The Rain". CD

Open, expressive sounds from the team of Wadada Leo Smith on trumpet and Vijay Iyer on piano, Fender Rhodes, and electronics – all served up in a mode that's quite different from recent records by either musician! The "rhythm" in the title here might be a bit misplaced – as the tunes have very little groove, and instead allow both Smith and Iyer to stretch out boldly in space – Leo on a mix of muted and fully-blown modes, Iyer maybe taking some of his previous ECM lines into even freer territory. The use of electric elements next to Smith's horn is especially nice – and titles include "Marian Anderson", "Passage", and the long title suite "A Cosmic Rhythm With Each Stroke". CD

A long-overdue return as a leader for tenor genius Ralph Moore – an artist who first blew us away when he appeared on the scene in the 80s, but who hasn't gotten this sort of time in the spotlight in many many years! The passage of time hasn't dimmed Ralph's genius at all – as the record bursts forward with the kind of joyous colors and tones that always made us such big fans – and which, in a way, made Moore's appearance on the scene almost a tenor equivalent to the work of Bobby Watson on alto – a whole new voice for a new generation – straight ahead, but filled with positive energy and a very strong spirit – such that he always seems to play with a warmth and soul that really sets him apart. The group here is superb – a quartet with Eric Reed on piano, Gerald Cannon on bass, and Willie Jones III on drums – the last of whom deserves a huge "thanks" for producing the record and getting Ralph back out in the lead. Titles include the Moore originals "Donny", "Three Score", "Blues Alliance", and "623 C Street" – and Reed tunes "Carol", "Another Time", and "Una Mujer Muy Elegante". CD

The first album in many many years from Bobby Pierce – an organist who recorded briefly for Cobblestone and Muse in the early 70s, then seemed to drop out of sight altogether! The passage of time hasn't dimmed Bobby's skills a bit – as he plays the Hammond here just like he did back in the day – with a classic 60s-styled approach to soul jazz, one steeped in plenty of Don Patterson-like lines – and recorded with a similar open sort of flow. Like Patterson, Pierce gets some great work on guitar for the date – played by Frank Potenza, who manages to rhythmically groove in just the right way. Other players include Ricky Woodard on tenor and Clarence Johnston on drums – and titles include "One For Duff & Dink", "The Long Road Back", "Frenchie", "Bobby's Back", "The Good Life", and "Invitation". CD

Totally excellent – and probably the best of the Planet Of The Apes soundtracks! The record features lots of snippets of dialogue from the film – including Cornelius telling the creed of the fate of man, General Ursus addressing Ape City, and the chilling Mass Of The Holy Bomb. The main score has some great work by Leonard Roseman, in kind of an off-kilter style with lots of atonal string passages – but it also features a few tasty funky cuts. The best of these is the "March Of The Apes", a great little funky 70s soundtrack number, and there's also a weird funky passage at the end of the "mass", with voices chanting in a hippy dippy kind of way! Plus, this expanded CD package features a lot more music than the original LP – a 19 track suite of instrumental orchestral titles by Rosenmann, plus 2 bonus tracks "Mind Control SFX" and "Nova Dies", plus the LP program of tracks, which includes the original dialogue bits! 32 tracks in all, very nicely done, and limited to 3000 copies! CD

A tremendous bit of jazz history – 2 classic Archie Shepp albums on 1 CD! Yasmina features Archie Shepp at his spiritual best – recording in Paris in 1969, and absorbing a heck of a lot of pan-African influences! The centerpiece of the album is the amazing "Yasmina" – a long track that builds with passion and fire, pulsing with an intensity that you'd expect more from Pharoah Sanders than Shepp himself. Next up is "Sonny's Back", a wonderful straight jazz groover with Archie and Hank Mobley on twin tenors upfront – making a rare and memorable recorded appearance together! The set's capped off by a mellow version of "Body & Soul", one that points towards the more soulful side of Shepp's work in the 70s. Poem For Malcolm is one of Shepp's most memorable LPs for BYG. Side one has him playing with Burton Greene, Alan Silva, Philly Joe Jones, and Claude Delcloo on the extended Mamarose/Poem For Malcolm. The track starts out with very free playing, then moves into a more subdued passage, with Shepp's recitation of his "Poem For Malcolm". Side two has a great lineup that includes Grachan Moncour III, Malachi Favors, and Hank Mobley, who gives one of the wildest performances of his life! The group runs through the 20 minute track Rain Forest/Oleo, and begins with a dark, spare performance, then leaps into a reading of "Oleo" that's filled with fire. CD

A righteously powerful piece from trumpeter Wadada Leo Smith – a tribute to the political power of Rosa Parks, and her lasting legacy in American history – served up as an oratorio of seven songs, performed with a nicely shifting lineup! The album is one of the most ambitious we've heard from Smith in years – and in addition to participation from the Red Koral string quartet, the set also features the Blue Trumpet quartet, the Diamond Voices vocal group, and other solo performances as well! Amidst the changing instrumentation and focus of each passage, Smith also finds space to add in excerpts from older avant jazz recordings too – the somewhat surprising appearance of Anthony Braxton, Leroy Jenkins, and Steve McCall amidst the performances that create the album. The whole thing's a bit difficult to describe in words, but it definitely lives up to any promise you might expect for a project like this from Wadada Leo Smith – with selections that include "The Truth", "No Fear", "Pure Love", "Resistance & Unity", and "The First Light Gold". CD

It's been over 15 years since the last Liberation record from Talib Kweli and Madlib, and the planet's changed a lot – and maybe not for the better, which is a good reason the duo are back to serve up a heady helping of their message-oriented music! We've always thought that Talib sounds best in the company of Madlib, and this time around he's also got plenty of help – from a great leadoff spoken passage by Diani, through work from Seun Kuti, Mac Miller, Amani, Q Tip, Goapele, Meshell Ndegeocello, Jaimie Branch, and even Roy Ayers – all present as maybe a tribute to what's at the core! Titles include "Loop Digga's Revenge", "One For Biz", "Nat Turner", "Air Quotes", "Wild Beauty", "Ad Vice", "Assata's Code", "After These Messages", "Something Special", and "Marathon Through Babylon". CD

A record that not only shows off the great skills of pianist Cedar Walton as a composer, but one that also shows how he can really work a special sort of magic when he lets some horns into his group, and shifts from his usual mode in a trio! Walton's always wonderful on the keys – and works here with Christian McBride on bass and Victor Lewis on drums – but it's the presence of the hornmen on the record who really shade things wonderfully – the presence of Vincent Herring on alto, Ralph Moore on tenor, and Roy Hargrove on trumpet – all really bringing out some great qualities in Walton's original tunes. Titles include "Martha's Prize", "Minor Controversy", "Hindsight", "Groove Passage", "Theme For Jobim", and "Groundwork". CD

That's a real Roger Dean-styled image on the cover, which maybe heralds the sound that's going on here for the Budos Band – an approach that's even heavier than before, with maybe stronger guitar and bass at times – yet a vibe that still bristles with the group's great use of percussion and horns! There's maybe a new sort of majesty going on here – as if someone whispered to the band that they could be at the top of the deep funk spectrum if they stepped on the gas a bit more – which they definitely do on this super-sharp set, delivering a half-dozen tunes that are completely smoking throughout! Titles include "Devil Doesn't Dance", "Kritn", "Crescent Blue", "Passage To Ashinol", "Curled Steel", and "Frontier's Edge". CD

Sure, the cover's a bit dated – but the politics have stayed surprisingly strong over the years – as has the music as well! Keep in mind that The Clash were waging war in the Mideast years before Desert Storm – in this searing mix of London punk, rocksteady roots, and slight new wave elements – delivered here with a surprising sense of self that really gave the whole thing a sense of wit – and more than enough legs to keep on going without collapsing under the passage of time! Titles include the hit "Should I Stay Or Should I Go", the classic "Rock The Casbah", and the tracks "Ghetto Defendant", "Car Jamming", "Know Your Rights", "Straight To Hell", and "Inoculated City". CD

Sure, the cover's a bit dated – but the politics have stayed surprisingly strong over the years – as has the music as well! Keep in mind that The Clash were waging war in the Mideast years before Desert Storm – in this searing mix of London punk, rocksteady roots, and slight new wave elements – delivered here with a surprising sense of self that really gave the whole thing a sense of wit – and more than enough legs to keep on going without collapsing under the passage of time! Titles include the hit "Should I Stay Or Should I Go", the classic "Rock The Casbah", and the tracks "Ghetto Defendant", "Car Jamming", "Know Your Rights", "Straight To Hell", and "Inoculated City". CD

The title here is very apt – as this fantastic quartet seem to set a different kind of fire on every one of the CDs in the set – six different performances, recorded over the space of two months – in Paris, Chicago, Milwaukee, and Poland! The group should be well-known to lovers of improvised music from earlier Okka Disk recordings in the 90s – and the passage of two decades has only made them sharper and more intense – especially when the tenor and pocket trumpet of Joe McPhee joins the lineup of Ken Vandermark on reeds, Kent Kessler on bass, and Hamid Drake on drums. The set of recordings is dedicated to James Baldwin – which you might have guessed from the title – and the whole thing is a fitting tribute to the transformation of ideas about freedom and identity over the passage of time. CD

Late work from Ella Fitzgerald – but still pretty darn nice, and very much in the sweet small group mode she used often for Pablo Records! Norman Granz produced, so the set's still got echoes of Ella's Verve years – and players include Harry Edison on trumpet, Benny Carter on alto, Kenny Barron on piano, and Al Grey on trombone – all inflecting the tunes with some nice instrumental elements. You can definitely hear the passage of years in Fitzgerald's vocals, but that's not necessarily a bad thing – as it brings a nice degree of humanity to the record too. Titles include "My Last Affair", "Dream A Little Dream Of Me", "All That Jazz", "When Your Lover Has Gone", and "Good Morning Heartache". CD also features 2 bonus tracks – "Little Jazz" and "The Nearness Of You". CD

A bold statement from the Free Music Ensemble – not a large group, but instead a searing power trio that features Ken Vandermark on reeds, Nate McBride on bass, and Paal Nilssen-Love on drums! The group work in a full-on mode that recalls the early power of the FMP scene, or some of the most striking work on ESP from the 60s – but given Vandermark's influence, they've also got a more open sensibility – clear in the shift from passage to passage of the album's numbered tracks, dedicated to influential heroes that include Peter Brotzmann, Paul Lytton, Joe Morris, and Joe McPhee – all contemporary heroes that are given great due here, but in a way that still has the trio retaining a very strong identity of their own. CD

Don't let the 80s-styled cover, and the word "dance" put you off – as the set's filled with beautiful music from Philip Glass – two works done at a time when the composer was maybe at his greatest power, each for two difference dance-related projects! Side one features "In The Upper Room" – done for choreographer Twyla Tharp, and with full orchestrations that are wonderful – very much in the spirit of some of his soundtrack material for Koyaanisqatsi – but without some of the deeper tones and vocal chorus parts. At times, the piano is at the forefront – played by Michael Riesman – but strings and woodwinds are key, too, as the piece shifts through five different dances. "Glasspiece" was done for Jerome Robbins, and has a bit more keyboards at the start, like some of Glass' smaller group 70s work – but then brings in woodwinds and strings in a nice way, before moving back to more keyboards in the final third, which is a reworking of a passage from the opera Akhnaten. CD

Tremendous blowing from tenorman Sherman Irby – an alto player who can swing soulfully one minute, then hit these great modern lines the next – a wonderful blend that comes through beautifully in this sweet session for Blue Note! The album's got a title that makes you think it might be a hokey, retro soul jazz set – but instead, it's got a great deal of complexity – with none of the cliches you might expect from a soul food title, especially in the 90s. Most of the set is pretty stripped down – with Gerald Cannon on bass and Clifford Barbaro on drums – but one track adds in guest trumpet from Roy Hargrove and piano from James Hart – and a few others feature Ed Cherry on guitar. Titles include "Bama", "Lake Tuscaloosa", "Too High", "Passage Of Time", "Aunt Dorothy", "Call To Order", and "Away From Home". CD

A mindblowing contribution to the early catalog of Pink Floyd – served up here in a special series of CD/DVD combinations that bring together rare recordings, unusual mixes, different versions, live tracks, and some beautiful film performances too! This 1972 package features a full CD of Obscured By Clouds, presented in a completely new 2016 remix – as well as Live At Pompeii, again in a new 2016 stereo remix – plus an alternate take of "Careful With That Axe Eugene". DVD/Blu-Ray features footage from the recording session for Obscured By Clouds in France, Live At Pompeii with the newly remixed sound, a concert/news report from France Poitiers/Autour Du passage, the Roland Petit Pink Floyd Ballet from France, and two tracks performed at Brighton Dome in the UK. Also features cool bonus replica memorabilia too! CD

A pair of albums from Rain Parade – back to back on a single set! First up is Emergency Rail Power Trip – an undisputed treasure from the early 80s west coast scene – a trippy little record that was one of the shining jewels in the new psych underground – quite a shift from the LA hardcore sound of a few years before! Yet unlike some of their contemporaries, Rain Parade were hardly copping any sort of easy retro modes – as their approach here is leaner, maybe a bit colder, and almost influenced by post-punk styles in the same way that some of the better UK bands were at the time – almost as if there was a synchronous explosion of fuzzy energy between the group and the Creation Records generation to come. The whole thing holds up wonderfully over the years – maybe even more so, given the passage of time, and the legions of other groups who never made the music this well. Titles include "Talking In My Sleep", "I Look Around", "This Can't Be Today", "Look At Merri", "Saturday's Asylum", and "Kaleidoscope". Explosions In The Glass Palace is fuzzy magic from The Rain Parade – an EP, but one that's every bit as important to their catalog as their full length debut! In fact, the record might be an even purer distillation of their sound – recorded by a four member lineup, with a nice focus on the more subtle elements of their songwriting skills, and sometimes augmented by just a bit of light strings, in a really nice way. Titles include "Broken Horse", "Prisoners", "You Are My Friend", "Blue", and "No Easy Way Down". CD

Landmark music from Steve Reich – a set that takes his previous experiments in minimalism and phase shifting, and moves them into a highly percussive mode! The rhythms here become melodies – the sorts that you'd hear on other Reich keyboard albums, but played live with incredible dexterity – as each player puts together their passage in ways that interlocks with the other – than slowly moves in space over time – and letting in marimba, voice, piccolo, and glockenspiel to the mix as well. The shift over time is amazing – something that so many others have copied over the years, but never done this well again! CD

The incredible second album from Roxy Music – a record that's even more focused on the group's unique vision than the first – and a set that grabs your ears and blows you away from the very first note! These guys are completely in their own genre here – not art rock, nor glam, nor prog – although all the different members of the group could handle those styles, and plenty more – yet choose to work here in territory that's still brilliant and unique after the passage of decades! The progression of the album is amazing – from the catchy leadoff track "Do The Strand", to the tale of lost love with a sex doll in "Every Dream Home A Heartache", to the almost-funky "Bogus Man", the proto-punk "Editions Of You", and the swirling hypnotic extended closer of "For Your Pleasure". A masterpiece through and through! CD

The second great live album from Rush – with versions of "La Villa Strangiato", "Tom Sawyer", "Spirit Of Radio", "Red Barchetta", "Passage To Bangkok", "YYZ", "Closer To The Heart", and "Jacob's Ladder". CD

Volume 5 in the La Vie Electronique series from electronic music pioneer Klaus Schulze – solo concert recordings from the mid 70s – 3 CDs of each with more than 70 minutes of music! Disc 1 includes "Berlin Schoeneberg" – featuring "Heftige Passage" and "Ruhige Passage" recorded at a Berlin radio concert in '76, plus the "Vie De Reve" performance, recorded at a French solo concert that year. Titles include "Le Retour Au Pays", "Et La Fete Continue", "Eteignez Les Limieres" and more. Disc 2 includes the "Nostalgic Echo" and Titanisch Tage" performances – recorded during solo concerts in '76. Includes "The Creation Of Eve", "Portrait Of Freud", "Autumn Sonata", "The Ran", "The Falling Angel" and more, plus the 15+ minute "For Barry Graves". Disc 3 features more solo concert performances from 1976 titled "The Poet" and The Oberhausen Tape" – with "Witness And Wait", "The Poet Of The Body" and "The Poet Of The Soul", plus "Quelle Idee De Peindre", "Et La Ple Lui Dit Merci", "Et Picasso Mange La Pomme" and more. CD

The pairing of Steve Swell's trombone and Joe McPhee's tenor here is pure genius – as both horns almost feel like creatures born from the same parent – working with these earthy, breathy elements that are totally great – very organic, and just another illustration of the very rich improvising talents of both musicians! Chris Corsano adds in just the right sort of work on drums and percussion – often furthering the earthiness of the sound – and the tunes build with an understated energy that has the sonic elements all coming together in these really thoughtful ways, while still communicating all the best energy of improvised music at its best. Titles include "Cosmic Passage", "Ardent Disruptor", "Open That Other Can Of Worms", "Every Edge Of Every Fold", and "Welcome To The Dancing Notes". CD

Beautiful sounds from pianist Denny Zeitlin – one of those players who often gets overlooked, but who's made some incredibly expressive music over the years! The album's got a sparkle that really takes us back to Denny's 60s sides for Columbia, but it's also got a slightly more mature quality as well – especially at the gentler moments – a sense of humanity that definitely comes through the passage of time in Zeitlin's years at the piano, given just the right sort of gentle accompaniment here from Buster Williams on bass and Al Foster on drums. Titles include "Cousin Mary", "Canyon", "As Long As There's Music", "There & Back", and "I Fall In Love Too Easily". CD

A haunting score from Jerry Goldsmith – filled with dark and turgid orchestrations, set as the rich backdrop for this 1969 film based on the Ray Bradbury story of the same name! The scoring is often atonal, with lots of off-kilter string passage that have an eerie sound that reminds us of Morricone's more avant-styled work. The CD features 17 tracks from the film, plus notes on the music, and some great images – with titles that include "The Rain", "The Sun Dance", "The House", "The Illustrations", and "Angry Child". CD

A massive package of work from the mighty Kool & The Gang – 6 full albums from the 80s, served up here in a 3CD set! First up is Ladies Night – a shameless dancefloor cash-in move – but a record that's still pretty darn great as well! You all know the big title cut "Ladies Night", so we won't bother to describe it – but we can say that the group wisely hooked up with Deodato, who produced, mixed, and even played keyboards on the album. Deodato keeps a nice jazzy punch in the tracks, while still moving towards the slickly produced funk sound that was the group's main approach at the time of the record. JT Taylor's on vocals, and the album's even got a few mellow cuts – like the crossover easy number "Too Hot" – amidst the midtempo 80s grooves that really step out and make the whole thing move. Other tracks include "Ladies Night", "Hangin Out", "Tonight's The Night", "If You Feel Like Dancin", and "Got You Into My Life". The next album is Something Special indeed – as the album was one of the biggest hits for Kool & The Gang, and showed that the group still had plenty of energy left to groove into the 80s! The record features production work by Brazilian music maestro Eumir Deodato – who by this point had become a sweet and smooth talent with a real flair for putting over a modern soul groove! Deodato's approach is really great – smooth, yet soulful, without any tricks or gimmicks – and a real appreciation for lead vocals and a catchy little hook! The album features the group's party classic "Get Down On It", plus "Steppin Out", "No Show", "Pass It On", "Be My Lady", "Take My Heart", and "Good Time Tonight". As One is solid 80s grooving from Kool & The Gang – a group who inspired so many others in the early 80s soul generation, but who could still do it better than most of the rest! The style here is tight and smooth, but never too slick – and Deodato's giving the group some really great production for the album – helping them to focus their energy and soar soulfully, but without resorting to any stiff gimmicks or cliches! There's a great groove running through most of the numbers here – a confident quality that's never too commercial, and which bubbles along nicely throughout. Titles include "Street Kids", "Big Fun", "As One", "Hi De Hi Hi De Ho", "Let's Go Dancin", and "Pretty Baby". In The Heart is a sweet set that's part of a big early 80s run from Kool & The Gang – a time that saw the funk legends really hitting the mainstream, and winning over a huge new audience in the process! Given that the Gang virtually invented ensemble funk at the start of the 70s, they're perfectly poised here to move into modes that so many of their younger competition were trying – but never did so well – that blend of 80s elements and more sharply-fused funk instrumentation, all honed down into a tightly snapping groove. The real surprise, though, is the group's growing ability for ballads – which put records like this into hands of folks who never would have dug their funk a few years before. And while we might have had a few problems with that shift at the time, the passage of years has got the whole thing sounding pretty darn great to our ears – especially in comparison to so much weaker work from the time. Titles include "In The Heart", "Joanna", "Tonight", "Straight Ahead", "September Love", "You Can Do It", and "Home Is Where The Heart Is". Last up is Emergency – one of the key classics from the second chapter of the group – when their lineup and sound were a lot leaner than before, and they managed to cross over big to a much wider audience than before! The upbeat cuts show that the group were still kings of the funky dancefloor – and the mellower ones are equally great too – showing a rising ballad style that proved to be the group's big crossover card at the time – a way of putting over a laidback track, but with plenty of soul. This approach is heard to great effect on the album's great single "Cherish" – and other tracks include "Bad Woman", "Surrender", "Emergency", "Misled", "Fresh", and "You Are The One". CD

A really beautiful record from London pianist Sultan Stevenson – a set that seems to hearken back to the wonderful 70s territory of McCoy Tyner, especially in the way that Sultan can balance a sense of subtle majesty with an undeniable flow! Half the record features a core trio – with Jacob Gryn on bass and Joel Waters on drums – but the other half of the set also brings in some superb horn work that really rises the righteous power of the record – trumpet from Josh Short and tenor from Denys Baptiste, playing together with a richly spiritual vibe. Titles include "He Has Made Me Whole", "Faithful One", "Safe Passage", "Prayer", "Guilt By Association", and "Summer Was Our Holy Place". CD

Sweet electronic grooves from the great Yan Tregger – French sound library composer and all-around electric genius – equally well-skilled at making the best sort of sounds in both the analog and digital generations! As you'll hear in the set, the collection brings together some of Treggers best from both generations – and there's a wonderfully unified feel to the whole batch of cuts, despite the space of almost 20 years – as Tregger showcases the best sort of cosmic clubby sounds that made him such a pioneer of outer space-styled funk! Titles include "Slow Zoom", "Chandigargh", "The Crash", "Deo Volente", "Passage Of The Red Sea", "Creative Blow", "Zodiac", "Gold Calf Dance", and "Pavilion Des Reves". CD

Beautiful sounds from pianist Denny Zeitlin – one of those players who often gets overlooked, but who's made some incredibly expressive music over the years! The album's got a sparkle that really takes us back to Denny's 60s sides for Columbia, but it's also got a slightly more mature quality as well – especially at the gentler moments – a sense of humanity that definitely comes through the passage of time in Zeitlin's years at the piano, given just the right sort of gentle accompaniment here from Buster Williams on bass and Al Foster on drums. Titles include "Cousin Mary", "Canyon", "As Long As There's Music", "There & Back", and "I Fall In Love Too Easily". CD

Dig 80s electro pop? You'll find plenty to love here – as the set's a killer collection of tracks from a time when the UK scene was really exploding with new ideas and fresh music! The "radio" in the title is a reference to the fact that once-underground electronic acts were starting to get wider fame – tightening up their sound a bit, yet still sounding pretty darn great – never too poppy or overproduced, and with a quality that's pretty wonderful all these many years later! Most groups here are from the UK, but there's a few other European acts too – and the set moves between warmer coldwave to catchy electro tunes – in a selection of 56 titles, by artists who include Fad Gadget, Colourbox, Japan, Heaven 17, Thomas Leer, Communication, The Passage, Talk Talk, Thomas Dolby, Fiat Lux, New Order, Yello, Soft Cell', 'Blancmange, Poeme Electronique, OMD, Ultravox, Section 25, Endgames, Moebius, Zoo Boutique, Human League, Thick Pigeon, and many others! CD

Maybe the most majestic album from this very majestic group – a righteous combo of musicians whose sound is far more than the simple "cookers" name might imply – as they really reach for the skies with a masterful blend of talents from an all star group! Trumpeter David Weiss leads the group, but also gives plenty of space to the giants alongside him – a lineup that includes Billy Harper on tenor, Donald Harrison on alto, Eddie Henderson on trumpet, George Cables on piano, Cecil McBee on bass, and Billy Hart on drums – all musicians who maybe sound better here together than they sometimes do on their own! And despite the status of these players, there's no ego involved – as the unified passages come together beautifully, the unfurl into solos that really stake some individual territory Titles include "Destiny Of Yours", "The Mystery Of Monifa Brown", "Somalia", "Aka Reggie", "Traveling Lady", and "Mutima". CD

Stellar early 70s work from John Dankwork – in a 2CD set! Full Circle is simply one of the greatest albums we've ever heard from the Brit maestro – a big band album as in earlier years, but one done with lots of hip 70s touches! The feel here is halfway between that of sound library grooving and some of the larger group 70s sessions on MPS – often funky at times, but with freshly modern solo work that breaks out from the larger ensemble nicely to accentuate the mood of the tunes. Players include Alan Branscombe on vibes, John Taylor on piano, Joe Moretti on guitar, and Kenny Wheeler on trumpet – and tunes include Mike Vickers' "Eleven Plus", Mike Gibbs' "A Family Joy" and "Triple Portrait", Keith Jarrett's "Grow Your Own", and Dankworth's "Academy One" and "Earthman". Also features a nice bass-y take on "You Are Too Beautiful". Lifeline is another great one – also reminding us of some of the larger MPS projects of the same time. The tracks have a bit of an electric glow in the basswork and production, but the main focus is on acoustic big band grooving – with breakout solos, and some tighter ensemble passages. Includes the sweet suite "Lifeline", which has a few funky moments – plus"Tomorrow's World", "WRVR", and "Fighting The Flab". Players include Don Rendell, Tony Hymas, Ken Gibson, and Dankworth himself. CD

A great counterpart to the rare Stanton Davis Ghetto Mysticism album – and a set that was recorded right around the same time, with a number of previously unreleased tracks! The spiritual energy of that group has been well-loved by collectors for years – and enjoyed by others thanks to a recent reissue – and this sweet batch of rare cuts really augments that rare musical moment, by offering up a further set of completely cosmic grooves! The style is spacey jazz funk with some deeper elements in the mix – all recorded and arranged with an indie vibe that reminds us a lot of the classic Oneness Of Juju albums on Black Fire, but without as much vocals – just a strong focus on the sweet keyboard lines and soaring horn passages. Some tracks are brand new, others are different versions of themes from the Brighter Days album – and titles include "Delta Six/Brighter Days", "Isis Voyage", "Odwalla", "Things Can Not Stop Forever (Al Kent version)", "High Jazz (reprise – alt mix)", "Things Cannot Stop Forever (inst mix)", and "Funky Fried Tofu (alt inst version)". CD