An early session as a leader from trumpeter Blue Mitchell – recorded during his glory years with Horace Silver! Unlike his other records, which usually have him in the company of another horn player, this set's got him carrying the full horn solo load by himself – working in a quartet, and playing in a vein that reminds us of similar Art Farmer quartet sessions from the time. Wynton Kelly's backing him up on piano – in a group that also includes Sam Jones on bass and Roy Brooks on drums. Some of the titles are quite unique too – and include "Avars", "Kinda Vague", "Sir John", and "Sweet Pumpkin". LP, Vinyl record album

A searing live set from trumpeter Charles Tolliver – one of the few talents who could take his instrument into the kind of long-blown, beautifully open territory explored on a double length album like this! Tolliver maybe inherits a late Lee Morgan quality, but also opens up with the Woody Shaw generation – but at a level that's even more exploratory than Woody, and which follows up the fantastic sounds of his two part Live At Slugs albums, issued slightly earlier on the Strata East label! Strata is a name that's come to be synonymous with the best in spiritual jazz of the 70s – and Tolliver is the key figure at the top of that legacy – really making magic here in a quartet that includes John Hicks on piano, Reggie Workman on bass, and Alvin Queen on drums. Titles are all nice and long – and include "Grand Max", "Truth", "Prayer For Peace", "Our Second Father" and "Repetition". LP, Vinyl record album

The last-ever Chet Baker recording with a quartet – and a set that shows just how completely magical the legendary trumpeter was even up to the end! Chet at this time is completely different than Chet in the 50s or 60s – as he'd really found a way to make all these amazing new sounds on his horn, partly as a way of getting around some of his physical limitations, but also as a way of opening up some of those mid 60s ideas that he barely explored on record at the time. He's working here with a very important musical partner from the last decade – getting great help on guitar and flute from Nicola Stilo – plus Marc Abrams on bass and Luca Flores on piano – on titles that include "Portrait In Black & White", "Funk In Deep Freeze", "Arborway", "In A Sentimental Way", and "If I Should Lose You". LP, Vinyl record album

A sweet little album of breezy jazz – with vocals by Joan Johnson on a number of tracks, and that modally grooving post-MPS sound that still resonated strongly on a few German labels at the end of the 70s! The real star here is Peters, whose work on saxes is great – kind of pinched in tone, in a snaking way that bubbles soulfully out of the album's best tracks. Johnson's vocals are nice, too – but they come to their strongest point when really challenged by Peters reed work, and by the driving piano of Walter Norris, who's also in the group. Titles include "Kekay", "Mr Steve", "Wings Of Steve", "Morning Mist", and "Happy Endings". LP, Vinyl record album

Key early work from trumpeter Jack Sheldon – a set that captures his talents at their most basic and most stripped-down – very much in the spirit of the best LA jazz coming out on the Pacific Jazz label at the time! If the cover makes the set look a bit like a Chet Baker album, that's because there's a bit of the Baker approach here – one that's simple and focused, with a strongly melodic style that comes through beautifully on Sheldon's shimmering horn. But there's also a bit more of an edge, too – thanks to bold piano work from Walter Norris, and the addition of Zoot Sims on a number of tracks – and unlike Baker (or Sheldon on later records), there's no vocals here at all – just a strong instrumental groove. Titles include "Beach-Wise", "Groovus Mentus", "Dozo", "Jack Departs", and "Palermo Walk". LP, Vinyl record album

Count Basie taken down a few notches – not in quality, but in terms of the size of the group – as Oscar really opens up some of the Count's standards in a whole new way, by playing them with a stripped-down quartet that features Herb Ellis on guitar, Ray Brown on bass, and Buddy Rich on drums. Given that Rich is working with the Peterson trio, their sound has a bit more bottom than on some other Verve sides from the time – grooving things nicely in a true Basie way, on a set of tunes that includes "Blues For Basie", "Broadway", "Topsy", "One O'Clock Jump", and "Jive At Five". LP, Vinyl record album

Late work from Chet Baker, but great work too – and sounds that have Baker returning to an incredibly strong sense of force in the final year of his life! We love some of Chet's records from earlier in the decade, but many of those are a bit laidback – kind of a beautiful exploration of space and lanquidity. But here, Baker's got a hell of a fire – blowing crisp notes that are given a wonderful drive from a quartet that features Harold Danko on piano, Hein Van De Geyn on bass, and John Engels on drums! Chet sings a bit, but the real showcase is his trumpet work – superb, and maybe still at the top of the range of trumpeters working at the time on the planet – on titles that include "Portrait In Black & White", "Stella By Starlight", "For Minors Only", and "My Funny Valentine" – plus a nice reading of the Elvis Costello tune "Almost Blue". LP, Vinyl record album

Some of the most tripped-out music ever from The Holy Modal Rounders – and that's saying a lot, given the nature of the group! This unique early album on ESP features two side-long tracks – both of which are mini-suites of sort, and filled with odd sounds, weird themes, and a strange mixture of hippie instrumentation and sci-fi experimentation! The group for the record is a quartet – with the core combo of Peter Stampfel on violin and vocals and Steve Weber on guitar, augmented by playwright Sam Shephard on drums and Lee Crabtree on piano and organ – plus extra vocals from the trio of Antonia, Barbara, & Wendy. The music is in the best free-thinking style of other rock on the ESP label in the 60s – and titles include "Jimmy & Crash Survey The Universe" and "The Second-Hand Watch". LP, Vinyl record album

Some of the most tripped-out music ever from The Holy Modal Rounders – and that's saying a lot, given the nature of the group! This unique early album on ESP features two side-long tracks – both of which are mini-suites of sort, and filled with odd sounds, weird themes, and a strange mixture of hippie instrumentation and sci-fi experimentation! The group for the record is a quartet – with the core combo of Peter Stampfel on violin and vocals and Steve Weber on guitar, augmented by playwright Sam Shephard on drums and Lee Crabtree on piano and organ – plus extra vocals from the trio of Antonia, Barbara, & Wendy. The music is in the best free-thinking style of other rock on the ESP label in the 60s – and titles include "Jimmy & Crash Survey The Universe" and "The Second-Hand Watch". LP2 features Live In 1965 – Some of the earliest music ever from The Holy Modal Rounders – a rare live performance from 1965, recorded at the Chess Mate nightclub in Detroit, and featuring only the duo of Peter Stampfel and Steve Weber! The music here is a bit more folksy and a bit less trippy than some of the Rounders' later recordings, but it still shows a decidedly left-field approach – not just in the subjects of the tunes, but also in the way the guitar, banjo, and fiddle are used – almost as additional voices at times, instead of conventional folk instrumentation. Titles include "Crowley Waltz", "Black Eyed Suzy", "My Mind Capsized", "Fishin Blues", "Rum Mountain", "Random Canyon", "Skin Game", "Indian War Whoop", and "Flop Eared Mule". LP, Vinyl record album

Milt Jackson's working here with his "Big 4" group – a quartet (natch) that includes Oscar Peterson on piano, Niels Henning Orsted Pedersen on bass, and Mickey Roker on drums – all opening up nicely in this laidback live environment! Despite the Montreux hype of the 70s, the record's got a surprisingly intimate feel – and offers a nicely restrained Peterson doing some very sensitive solo work – augmented by some of Jackson's most chromatic sounds on vibes. Titles include "Mack The Knife", "Night Mist Blues", "Stella By Starlight", "Speed Ball", "Nature Boy", and "Funji Mama". LP, Vinyl record album

Plenty plenty soul here – as Milt Jackson's moving away from the Modern Jazz Quartet, and working with a great group of players that really expand his sound! The session's a bit like some of Milt's soul jazz work for Riverside and other labels – in that it's got rhythms, timings, and solos that all are much more gutbuckety than you'd expect from the other side of his career – a real nod towards the nascent soul jazz sound in the late 50s, served up with lots of undercurrents from R&B and gospel in the mix. Side one features players that include Ronnie Peters on alto sax, Frank Foster on tenor, and Sahib Shihab on baritone – plus Horace Silver on piano – and Silver makes a return appearance on side two, alongside a group that includes Lucky Thompson on tenor and Joe Newman on trumpet. Titles include "Plenty, Plenty Soul", "Boogity Boogity", "Heartstrings", "Sermonette", "The Spirit Feel", "Ignunt Oil", and "Blues At Twilight". LP, Vinyl record album

A legendary overview of jazz on the Italian scene at the start of the 60s – a great document of the new modes that was really setting the work of Italian jazz musicians apart from those in other parts of Europe – working with fresh ideas and a new conception that's completely sublime! The work here often has a great balance between structure and individual voice – and many numbers feature strong soloists who'd go on to great fame in a variety of settings – already graced here with talents that seem greater than their young years. Trumpeter Enrico Rava leads things off in a quartet with pianist Maurizio Lama, on a version of the tune "Line For Lyons" – and Lama follows with a trio reading of his own "Tema For Franco". Trumpeter Sergio Fanni is joined by the great Eraldo Volante on tenor and baritone on the tunes "Duo" and "Circeo". Later soundtrack artist Piero Umiliani serves up his "Picolla Suite Americana" – followed by the Modern Jazz Gang of saxophonist Sandro Brugnolini (with later sound library giants Enzo Scoppa and Cicci Santucci), on the tracks "The Drum Is A Tramp" and "Blue Mirria". Trombonist Dino Piana delivers the tune "Tempo Di Febbraio" with help from the great Gianni Basso on tenor – and the set also features a reading of "Bag's Groove" with Giorgio Azzolini on bass, Piano on trombone, and Attilio Donadio on alto. LP, Vinyl record album

Amazing grooves from the legendary Dave Pike – one of the American vibists' few albums for the MPS label – and quite possibly the trippiest of the bunch! The set's a beautiful illustration of the freedoms that the MPS label offered American players like Pike – a chance to really open up and do his thing, and find new sides and styles he'd never expressed before on his records back home! Of course, part of the strength of the set is the group he's working with here – an ensemble that includes the amazing Volker Kreigel on guitar (and sitar!), plus JA Rettenbacher on bass and Peter Baumeister on drums. But, lest you think this is a standard quartet affair, let it be known that all players – including Pike – handle a very wide variety of instruments throughout the session – including bongos, toys, maracas, other percussion, and more – even a bit of vocalizations as well! Tracks often have a slow-building, slightly-trippy feel that's totally great – and Kreigel's work on guitar is a perfect pairing with Pike's vibes – especially as both players are clearly digging an Eastern influence for the set. Titles include "Suspicious Child", "Soul Eggs", "Raga Jeeva Swara", "Rabbi Mogen's Hideout", "Attack Of The Green Misers", "Infra Red", and "Send Me The Yellow Guys". LP, Vinyl record album

A great little date – one that's presented here with a really classic sense of jazz vocal recording, but oddly the kind of record that Sarah Vaughn hardly ever got to make back in the 50s! The setting is spare and simple – backing by a quartet that includes Oscar Peterson, Joe Pass, Ray Brown, and Louis Bellson – but all players are nicely relaxed here, and never too uptight, or trying to over-express their place in the lineup – and instead step forward gently, quietly, to match Sarah's wonderfully mature vocals on the record. Titles include "Easy Living", "You're Blase", "More Than You Know", "Teach Me Tonight", "Body & Soul", "How Long Has This Been Going On", and "Midnight Sun". LP, Vinyl record album

A killer album from one of the most legendary versions of John Mayall's Blues Breakers – a quartet that features drummer Aynsley Dunbar, bassist John McVie, and lead guitarist Peter Green – who's also singing a fair bit on the album as well! The style here is tighter and more focused than before – showing a bit more of a rockish bent, especially on the guitars – but still strongly drenched in American R&B traditions, served up in a way that never waters down the sound for a mainstream audience. While other UK artists were taking American roots and softening them up for the charts, Mayall only seemed to deepen his commitment to more authentic representation of the styles – really only taking a bit more liberties with the strength and length of guitar parts. As before, there's a bit of reed work here that's especially nice – served up by UK jazzers Ray Warleigh, John Almond, and Alan Skidmore – and titles include "A Hard Road", "It's Over", "The Stumble", "Dust My Blues", "There's Always Work", "The Same Way", "The Supernatural", and "Living Alone". LP, Vinyl record album

Quite possibly the greatest record that Don Ellis ever recorded – and his hippest too! The trumpeter's playing here with a quartet that includes Jaki Byard on alto and piano, Ron Carter on bass, and Charlie Persip on drums – coming together perfectly in that arch-modern style that you'd find on the best Candid albums from the time. Ellis tone is skittish and fragile – and sounds here almost like he's working in a Mingus-y mode, quite possibly because Byard's influence on the session is pretty strong. Titles include "Waste", "A Simplex One", and "Sallie" – and side two features an extended "Improvisational Suite #1". LP, Vinyl record album

A really rare look at the scene in Basel, Switzerland in the mid 60s – a combination of modern jazz and older styles served up here by a few different groups! Perhaps the most noteworthy combo on the record is Modern Jazz Group Basel – a quintet that features work from latter bassist Isla Eckinger on trombone, with Andy Scherrer on tenor, Urs Ramseyer on piano, Louis Mermet on bass, and Peter Scmidlin on drums. Other combos include The Svannah Junkmen and South Street Saloon Sweepers – plus the Chester's Tea Pot Combo, a quartet with tenor from Chester Gill. LP, Vinyl record album