Lovely work from Tabu Ley, aka Rochereau – a singer who definitely earns the "voice of lightness" title on this set! Tabu's style isn't light in a soft of mellow way – but it's got a wonderfully floating sort of quality – a way of staying on top of the percussion and guitars that back him up on the tunes, but always with a sense of depth and feeling. The approach is tremendous – and Ley's singing has a way of going beyond language in its appeal – bringing you in, even though you don't know the meaning of the lyrics. Backings are by African Jazz, African Fiesta, Afrisa International, ad Onanza – and the 2CD set features 29 tracks from the 60s and 70s – supported by a 44 page booklet of notes! Titles include "Pesa Le Tout", "Kelya", "KJ", "Christine", "Ana Mokoy", "Kasala", "Nzale", "Omanga", "Mongali", "Aon Aon", "Adeito", "Yombe", and "Kaful Mayay". CD

Sweet 80s grooves from Cherrelle – a set that really has the singer cooking strongly with the production team of Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis – complete with all the heavy beats you might expect! Jam and Lewis borrow plenty of bottom sounds from the styles of hip hop and electro, and do a great job of mixing the rhythmic elements with Cherrelle's catchy vocals – all in a way that really blows away some of their more chart-topping productions, as the tunes have a bit more of an underground appeal! Make no mistake, this is definitely the poppier side of the soul spectrum – but there's also a freshness here that goes way past Janet Jackson – and which retains some of that smoother, more sophisticated sound we always love in the Tabu label. Titles include "You Look Good To Me", "High Priority", "Artificial Heart", "Saturday Love", "Oh No It's U Again", and "New Love". CD

A classic set from all-true Alexander O'Neal – and maybe one of his last great records for the Tabu label! The set's got a nice balance of groovers and mellower moments – really showing the growing diversity of O'Neal as an artist, as he tries to move away from some of his bigger ballads. The rhythms are often handled by Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis – who themselves are going for a leaner style than in the 80s, yet still have that undeniable funky punch in the mix! At tines, Alexander's not leading the songs so much as stepping into the grooves – but at other times, he comes as the strong singer that first emerged in the mid 80s. Titles include "What Is This Thing Called Love", "The Yoke", "Time Is Running Out", "All True Man", "Midnight Run", "Used", "Shame On Me", and "The Morning After". CD

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Sweet sweet grooves from the SOS Band – definitely on the rise at the time, but still sounding great, with all the best elements of their early work firmly intact! The core group are very much at home in the studio – and have this cohesive sound that really comes through right away – leading off with some big numbers produced and arranged by the team of Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis – a few of which really pushed up the charts – then stepping into some of their own production work with help from Gene Dozier, who definitely brings more of a funky feel to the proceedings! Lead vocals are mostly handled by Mary Davis, but a few tracks feature Abdul Ra'oof up front – and titles include "Just Be Good To Me", "Tell Me If You Still Care", "For Your Love", "If You Want My Love", "On The Rise", and "Steppin The Stones". CD

The mighty SOS Band, still grooving hard well into the 80s – and still showing the world that their sound is way tighter than any of their many imitators! The style here is updated a bit from the group's first few records – given a sharper punch and polish by the Jimmy Jam/Terry Lewis team – yet the record's still got a depth that goes way past some of the more commercial soul the duo had been working on at the time – a great evolution of an older funk style into a sweet, lean sound for the latter half of the 80s! Keyboards soar over bouncy basslines – and the trademark mix of male and female vocals really works well on the album's hook-heavy cuts. Tracks include "Borrowed Love", "The Finest", "Do You Still Want To", "Sands Of Time", "Even When You Sleep", "Nothing But The Best", "No Lies", and "Two Time Lover". CD

A Jimmy Jam & Terry Lewis classic – and key proof that their pairing with singer Cherrelle was a mighty good thing! Cherrelle's got a voice that's perfect for the beat-heavy approach of the pair – light enough to dance around the rhythms, but bold enough with a presence all its own, too – a quality that helps keep most of these tunes pretty darn catchy, while still staying in front of some of the blander mainstream soul of the time. The groove here is practically early new jack at times – with some great influences from hip hop and electro in the mix – and titles include "Looks Aren't Everything", "Affair", "Discreet", "Everything I Miss At Home", "Keep It Inside", "My Friend", and "What More Can I Do For You". CD

One of the crowning achievements of Alexander O'Neal – a set that uses cool little intro tracks to help structure the standout songs on the set – giving the whole thing a much more well-conceived approach than other mainstream soul albums of the time! Some of the cuts draw from O'Neal's own life and experience, and that feel is definitely augmented by the spontaneous, conversational feel of the intros and links – a really nice contrast to the wonderfully tight R&B production from the superteam of Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis! Of course, lots of these tracks also struck big as singles for Alexander – proof that the cuts are more than strong enough to stand on their own – yet taken over the course of the whole album, with all the extra bits, the whole thing really sounds great. Titles include "Hearsay", "The Lovers", "Fake", "Criticize", "Never Knew Love Like This", "To Make You Love Me", "Crying Overtime", and "Sunshine". CD

A beautiful document of some of the most laidback jazz ever recorded – the sublime 50s recordings of the Johnny Smith group, done at a time when the lineup included Stan Getz! The tunes on the set feature Johnny's mellow electric guitar setting the pace, alongside wonderfully-blown early solos from Stan, plus some other tenor work from Zoot Sims and Paul Quinichette, who also sit in the tenor chair on a few of these recordings. The tunes are mostly standards, but done in a great style that's not exactly cool jazz, but which has a groundbreakingly easy groove that's simply sublime! Titles include "Yesterdays", "Vilia", "Ghost Of A Chance", "Jaguar", "Moonlight In Vermont", "Tabu", and "Where Or When". CD

A dozen tracks from Wendo Kolosoy & Henry Bowane, Grand Kalle & L'African Jazz, Tabu Ley Rochereau & L'African Jazz, Dr Nico & African Fiesta, Verckys & Orchestre Veve, Franco & TPOK Jazz, Tabu Ley Rochereau & L'Afrisa International, Sam Mangwana, Tabu Ley Rochereau & Mbilia Bel, Franco & TPOK Jazz, Papa Noel, and Madilu System. CD

Cro-Magnon returns with a killer batch of cosmic grooves and electro funk jams – full of spacey synths, thunderous drums & percussion, and fusiony jazz funk – glorious grooves from one of the leading combos in the cosmic realm of the Japanese scene! The core Cro Magnon crew is just the 3 piece of percussionist Shigekazu Otake, guitar/bass/programming guru Tusuyoshi Kusuga and Takumi Kaneko on the keys– but they get a little help in the studio by a couple of horns from the mighty Soil & Pimp Sessions crew – sax by Motoharu and trumpet by Tabu Zombie, on the excellent "Chase After The Shadow" track – plus some addional percussion and vocals for the intro & outro. If Cro-Magnon's debut was a bit heavier with straight up keyboard heavy fusion funk, Great Triangle shoots further into the cosmos – full of ultra hypnotic jams with an insistent groove! Titles include "Riding The Storm", "ECLIPSE", "Keep Me Satisfied", "La Fusion", "SPARKLING", "Sign Of Fire", Take Me Higher" and "New Horizon". CD

A beautiful document of some of the most laidback jazz ever recorded – the sublime 50s recordings of the Johnny Smith group, done at a time when the lineup included Stan Getz! The tunes on the set feature Johnny's mellow electric guitar setting the pace, alongside wonderfully-blown early solos from Stan, plus some other tenor work from Zoot Sims and Paul Quinichette, who also sit in the tenor chair on a few of these recordings. The tunes are mostly standards, but done in a great style that's not exactly cool jazz, but which has a groundbreakingly easy groove that's simply sublime! CD features a number of bonus and unreleased cuts, with 19 tracks that include "What's New", "Yesterdays", "Vilia", "Ghost Of A Chance", "Jaguar", "Moonlight In Vermont", "Tabu", and "Where Or When". CD

A cool cooker from Oliver Nelson – one of the few 60s albums he cut as a leader with the same sense of soul and swing as his backings for other players! The sound here is right up there with Nelson's work with Jimmy Smith over at Verve – soaring, soulful arrangements that sparkle in ways that few other arrangers could match – perfectly balanced between bold statements by the soloists and a tight ensemble feel overall! The players are all top-shelf – and include Phil Woods on alto sax, Jerome Richardson on flute and baritone, Robert Hashton on tenor, Art Hoyle on trumpet, and Patti Brown on piano – plus Nelson himself on alto, getting in a few key solos. The whole thing's wonderfully upbeat and joyous, but with a deeper sense of feeling too – and many titles are originals by Nelson, including "Hobo Flats", "Post No Bills", "Laz-ie Kate", "Teenie's Blues", and "Three Plus One". CD

Gil Shaham is superb on his reading of Arvo Part's "Fratres" – a piece dedicated to Gideon Kremer, and played here with as much deftness and edge as we find in Kremer's own best work of the time. The larger orchestra fills in amidst the strings with growing force as the piece moves on – and Roger Carlsson provides some percussion as well. Part's "Tabula Rasa" is given an especially beautiful reading, too – with twin violins from Shaham and Adele Anthony, really unlocking the tunefulness of the work – which also includes prepared piano by Erik Risberg. The second half of the album features "Symphony No 3" – a fully orchestral work, conducted by Neeme Jarvi with the Gothenberg Symphony Orchestra. CD

Two wonderfully fresh works for orchestra – both conducted with plenty of inventive touches by Howard Hanson during his tenure with the Eastman Rochester Orchestra! "The Black Maskers" is a piece originally penned for a production of the dramatic work by Leonid Andreyev – but it works beautifully here on its own, in theses very vivid passages on woodwinds and percussion – recorded superbly, so that all of Hanson's energy from the stand flows through the playback of the performance. The flipside features "Tabuh Tabuhan" – a toccata for orchestra by Colin McPhee, done in a very modern sort of mode – one that mixes work on percussion that's almost gamelan-like at times, with brightly vivid orchestrations. The piece is beautiful – and almost seems like a precursor to later work by Lou Harrison, but mixed with some of the energy of the early century Russian composers. This CD version also includes Virgil Thomson's "Symphony On A Hymn Tune" and "The Feast Of Love". CD

Like many other 70s reissues in the Prestige/Milestone/fantasy family, this set compiles 2 early albums by Mose. Unlike a lot of his later material, this set's mostly instrumental, though he does get in some vocals on about a third of the tracks. The album features some great work by Allison's trio of the time – Addison Farmer on bass and Ronnie Free or Nick Stabulas on drums – simple piano-driven groovers, performed with a slight gutbuckety approach, and lots of sweet down home soul. 20 tracks in all, including "Don't Get Around Much Anymore", "How Long Has This Been Going On", "Baby Let Me Hold Your Hand", "Stroll", "I Hadn't Anyone Till You", "Seventh Son", "If You Live", "Mule", "If I Didn't Care", "Moon & Cypress", and "Creek Bank". CD

Great early work from trumpeter Jon Eardley – captured here at a point when he was a budding young modernist in the 50s! The album features 2 early 10" LPs – Jon Eardley in Hollywood and Hey There Jon Eardley – both recorded for Prestige within a few months in the mid 50s. The first date features Eardley's trumpet right out front in the mix – hard, spare, and a bit angular – with backing from the piano of Pete Jolly, as well as Red Mitchell on bass and Larry Bunker on drums. Titles include "Late Leader", "Indian Spring", "Black", and "Gloss". The second session is even more interesting, as it features Eardley's horn in tandem with tenor saxophonist JR Monterose, brimming with new ideas at this point in his career, and adding a real edge to the tracks. The remaining players include George Syran on piano, Teddy Kotick on bass, and Nick Stabulas on drums – and titles include "Hey There", "Sid's Delight", "Demanton", and "If You Could See Me Now". CD

Fantastic early work from Gil Evans – emerging here in this early session as an already far-thinking modernist. The tracks are shorter and less ambitious than some of Evans' work on Impulse, but the group is excellent – and even in a shorter format, the conception of the work still contains plenty of rich new ideas. Players include Louis Mucci, John Carisi, Steve Lacy, Willie Ruff, Paul Chambers, Nick Stabulis, and "Zeke Tolin" on alto, who is certainly a more famous player under a fake name. Titles include "Ella Speed", "Big Stuff", "Jambangle", "Nobody's Heart", and "Remember". CD

Fantastic early work from Gil Evans – emerging here in this early session as an already far-thinking modernist. The tracks are shorter and less ambitious than some of Evans' work on Impulse, but the group is excellent – and even in a shorter format, the conception of the work still contains plenty of rich new ideas. Players include Louis Mucci, John Carisi, Steve Lacy, Willie Ruff, Paul Chambers, Nick Stabulis, and "Zeke Tolin" on alto, who is certainly a more famous player under a fake name. Titles include "Ella Speed", "Big Stuff", "Jambangle", "Nobody's Heart", and "Remember". CD

The team of Phil Woods & Gene Quill hit Prestige Records – and get a bit more space to blow than on other sessions of the time! The album's definitely got a quality that lives up to the "with prestige" in the title – a classy, careful sort of sound that's very much the height of alto work for the time – a style that's modern, yet never too much so – and informed by bop, but never in the shadow of Charlie Parker or Sonny Stitt. Rhythm is strong – by George Syran on piano, Teddy Kotick on bass, and Nick Stabulas on drums – but it's mostly there just to give the players the right impetus to blow nicely together. Titles include "Lazy Like", "Nothing But Soul", "A Night At St Nicks", and "Black Cherry Fritters". CD

Tremendous horn interplay from the team of Al Cohn and Zoot Sims – and a record that may well be one of the best illustrations of their famous magic together in the 50s! The record's got a way of focusing energy, yet letting each player state themselves clearly and cleanly – almost a perfect small group variation of the larger jazz modes of a generation before – carried out here by Cohn and Sims with a great balance of tone and timing, modernism and swing! There's an excellent rhythm group on the date – Mose Allison on piano, Teddy Kotick on bass, and Nick Stabulus on drums – who almost bring in a slightly soulful undercurrent, which works especially well on Sims' solo moments. Tracks include "Two Funky People", "Just You Just Me", "The Wailing Boat", "You're A Lucky Guy", "Brandy & Beer", and "Chasing The Blues". CD

A standout 70s set from Dexter Gordon – one that's a bit tighter than some of his longer-blown dates from overseas – and which almost sparkles with the same power as his 60s albums on Blue Note! The group here is nice and tight – with Kenny Drew on piano, Niels Henning Orsted Pedersen on bass, and Albert Heath on drums – all grooving in a style that's sharply focused, and which really sets the stage for Dex's wonderful tone on the solos. Pedersen's bass is great too – sometimes stepping out with a presence not usually heard on a set like this – and titles include the Gordon originals "The Apartment", "Antabus", and "Candlelight Lady" – plus "Wee Dot" and "Old Folks". CD also features the bonus track "Stablemates" – from the same session, but previously unissued. CD

A host of hits from this 80s MPB singer – titles that include "Nana Por Mim", "Me Chama", "Gata Todo Dia", "Doida De Rachar", "Garota De Ipanema", "Pe Na Tabua", "Essas Coisas Que Eu Mal Sei", "Acho Que Da", and "Dificil". CD

Music from Tyrone Davis, Mel & Tim, Barbara Lynn, Lee Dorsey, Little Willie John, the Delfonics, the Intruders, Peaches & Herb, Jackie Wilson, the Isley Brothers, Joe Henderson, Joe Tex, Brenda & The Tabulations, OC Smith, and more. CD

An all-instrumental set from Mose Allison – one that drops out his familiar jazz vocals, and really brings a nice focus to his energy on the keys of the piano! Given that Mose really got his start as a sideman in other combos during the 50s, the selection's no surprise – and if you've only heard Allison's better-known numbers with singing, you'll really be floored here at his skills as an instrumentalist – particularly in the way he manages to play the piano with deep-down roots, yet also hit some stunningly modern tones as well! Accompaniment is by Addison Farmer on bass, plus either Ronnie Free or Nick Stabulas on drums – and titles include "Dinner On The Ground", "Crepuscular Air", "Mule", "Creek Bank", "Town", "Devil In The Cane Field", "The Minstrels", "Moon & Cypress", "Carnival", and "Mojo Woman". CD

Tracks include "Sneakin' Up Behind You", "Some Skunk Funk", "Tabula Rasa", "Baffled", "Jacknife", and "Funky Sea, Funky Dew". CD

The only 2 trio sessions recorded by pianist and vibist Eddie Costa – both done in the late 50s, a few years before Eddie's untimely early death! The first 9 tracks on the CD feature work from the Eddie Costa/Vinnie Burke Trio album – a spare and sweet little set from the team of Costa and Burke – one of the best of the east coast chamber jazz pairings of the 50s! The duo's trio has Eddie on piano and vibes, Vinnie on bass, and Nick Stabulas on drums – all working together to craft light, rhythmic versions of tunes that really change them up rhythmically – working in the most playful mode of the time to freely create over the top of familiar numbers that include "Fascinating Rhythm", "It Could Happen To You", "Sweet & Lovely", "Yesterdays", and "Let's Do It". The set also features two nice originals – "Unison Blues" and "Pile Driver". House Of Blue Lights is a quite different record altogether – one that has Eddie playing with a much heavier touch on the left hand – inflecting the keys in a bluesier mode, but also working here with some modern touches from drummer Paul Motian, who's in the trio along with bassist Wendell Marshall. Costa's tone has changed decidedly for the record – and he's often got a loudly flowing approach to the keys that echoes later work by McCoy Tyner, Steve Kuhn, and other key 60s innovators. And even though tracks are again mostly familiar numbers, Costa's really pushing them to new levels – pushing, pausing, and twisting them into unusual time structures and melodic progressions. Titles include "House Of Blue Lights", "Diane", "When I Fall In Love", "My Funny Valentine", "What's To Ya", and "Anabelle". 15 tracks in all – 9 from the Costa/Burke Trio album, and 6 from Blue Lights. CD

Del Tha Funkee Homosapien, Kid Koala, and Dan The Automator pool their skills for this dawn of the 2000s sci-fi hip hop classic – the masterful Deltron 3030! The guest list is almost too long to get into, but Money Mark, Prince Paul, PB Wolf and Mr. Lif are all here, along with many others. One of the benchmark albums in the leftfield underground hip hop canon – and a hugely influential set that burst the doors wide open for the more creative spirits in the hip hop and even experimental pop. Tracks include "State Of The Nation", "3030", "The Fantabulous Rap Extravaganza", "Things You Can Do", "Positive Contact", "St Catherine St.", "Virus", "Mastermind", "National Movie Review", "Time Keeps On Slipping", "Turbulence (remix)", "Battlesong", "Memory Loss" and more. This reissue edition adds 3 bonus tracks: "Positive Contact" (Charlie Clouser remix), "Terbulence" (Mark Bell rmx) and "Positive Contact" (Mario C rmx). CD

Late live recordings from the mighty Dexter Gordon – 3 CDs worth of material recorded at the Keystone Korner in the late 70s, all with an inventively-blown power to match Gordon's earlier live sets from the European scene! The format here is similar – with Dexter out front, laying down incredible lines on tenor sax – and getting support from George Cables on piano, Rufus Reid on bass, and Eddie Gladden on drums. But in a way, the music here is even stronger than before – as Gordon's got a sharper edge, focused solo approach, and is working with an agility that really leaves us breathless. The tracks are long, but have the energy of Gordon's shorter studio tracks for Columbia at the time – and although we're not always huge fans of the "soloist in unfettered live setting" style of recording, we've gotta admit that we really love these tracks! Titles include "You've Changed", "It's You Or No One", "Antabus", "Backstairs/LTD", "The Panther", "Tangerine", "Gingerbread Boy", and "I Told You So". CD

With Gigi Gryce, Oscar Peterson and Kenny Clarke on the first 4 tracks and Hall Overton, Phil Woods, Teddy Kotick and Nick Stabulas on the back 4. CD

An excellent mid 90s album from Joyce – and one of the first really great records she made in years! The album's got a nice no-nonsense sound that returns Joyce to the sparer settings of her earlier work – and which paves the way for more recent strong efforts, like Hard Bossa or Tudo Bonito. The backing's mostly by a jazz quintet of piano, tenor sax, bass, and drums – and Joyce plays guitar and sings in both English and Portugese. Tracks include "Upa Neguinho", "Cantaloupe Island", "No Tabuleiro da Baiana", "Tenderly", "Speak Low", "Here There & Everywhere", and "Delirios De Orfeu". CD

The third album by Nils Petter Molvaer – another groundbreaking set from the current Norweigian scene! Nils plays trumpet in a moody and atmospheric way that recalls some of the 70s work of Harold Budd, but he's also working in a mode that's much more modern and experimental, slightly groove-oriented at times, and darkly quiet at others. The album features guest artists that include Eivind Aarset, Rune Arnsen, Sidsel Endressen, TeeBee, and Audun Erlien – and tracks include "Tabula Rasa", "Nebulizer", "Simply So", "Marrow", "Hurry Slowly", and "Frozen". CD