Near-perfect work from Ashford & Simpson – really grooving in full powerhouse mode here, and never missing a beat! By all rights, the team should have run out of steam by this point, but the album's another winner from their sublime Warner years – caught in a unique space between chart soul, ensemble funk, and disco – taking all the best elements of each, and really sending the whole thing home with some incredible vocals and impeccable production and arrangements! Titles include "Rushing To", "Love Don't Make It Right", "We'll Meet Again", "Get Out Your Handkerchief", and "I Ain't Asking For Your Love". LP, Vinyl record album

An overdue reunion for Brian Auger and Julie Driscoll (now billed as Tippetts) – and a late 70s session that sounds quite a bit different than their mod soul of the 60s! The format here is still somewhat in a soul-based vein – but the sound is much more 70s, and much more "adult" as well – sometimes smooth, sometimes mellow, with Julie singing in a way that's still heartfelt, but not with the clear nod to American soul of her earlier work. Brian's still playing plenty of keyboards, although not getting in as many licks as on his own albums of the decade – yet still with enough space to help transform some of the best tunes. Titles include "Git Up", "Freedom Highway", "Spirit", "Future Pilot", "Rope Ladder To The Moon", "No Time To Live", and "Nothing Will Be As It Was" – a great English remake of a song by Milton Nascimento! LP, Vinyl record album

What can we say? This is one of the greatest soul soundtracks ever! In a market that was dominated by the big-selling Shaft and Superfly albums, Roy slipped in this masterful blend of jazzy vibes and wah wah funk that's easily one of the best-composed records of the blacksploitation genre! The album's much more unified than your average funky soundtrack – and each track moves between styles that you'd hear on any of Roy's great albums from the time. There's heavy funk on the track "Brawling Broads", cool vibes and electric piano on "Aragon", off-beat jazz on "Coffy Sauna", and great soul on cuts like "Coffy Is The Color" and "Coffy Baby". Wonderful all the way through – and another jewel in the already-big crown of the great Roy Ayers! LP, Vinyl record album

Ayler's last album ever – and an incredibly strange batch of tracks that shows perfectly the kind of stylistic and emotional struggle he was going through in the final years of his life. Like the albums New Grass and Love Cry, this one shows Ayler toying with influences from other genres – like rock and soul – in order to better communicate his message to the masses. And while there's some strange odd moments that don't really work, there's others that have a gutsiness that's stunning – especially from the otherwise serious (by this point) NY underground. Players include Bobby Few, Muhammad Ali, and Stafford James – and tracks include "Untitled Duet", "Again Comes The Rising Of The Sun", "Toiling", "Birth Of Mirth", and "Desert Blood". LP, Vinyl record album

Pre-ESP Records work from the legendary Albert Ayler – and a really special set that definitely shows his strong ties to a previous legacy of African-American music! Ayler always clamed blues and other roots in his sound, but didn't always show them as clearly – given his free-thinking, forward-moving approach – yet this set has Albert really reworking an older influence, by taking older songs from gospel and secular sources, and using them as a completely compelling springboard for his new ideas on tenor and soprano sax! The album's the sort that David Murray might have cut in the mid 80s – but conceived by Ayler two decades before – and sadly unissued for years after its recording, possibly because it's a very sensitive, soulful set that's different than the frenetic power of later albums on ESP. A real treasure throughout – with work from Call Cobbs Jr on piano, Henry Grimes on bass, and Sonny Murray on drums – on titles that include "Swing Low Sweet Chariot", "Deep River", "Goin Home", "Ol Man River", "Down By The Riverside", and "Nobody Knows The Trouble I've Seen". LP, Vinyl record album

The classic Burt Bacharach score for What's New Pussycat – a mid 60s sex-farce starring Peter Sellers and Peter O'Toole! The album features some amazing vocal tracks that have become enduring classics – like "What's New Pussycat?" sung by Tom Jones, "Here I Am" sung by Dionne Warwick, and the incredible "My Little Red Book" sung by Manfred Mann – but almost better than these are the Bacharach instruments – handled by Burt in ways that really move past some of the simpler stylings of his pop work of the time, yet which still have all the breezy Bacharach charm firmly intact! Some of these sweet original titles include "Marriage, French Style", "Stripping Really Isn't Sexy, Is It?", "Catch As Catch Can", and "Pussy Cats On Parade". LP, Vinyl record album

A great soul album from the CTI years on A&M, and one of the few soul records ever on CTI! Barbary's got this spacey vocal style that's really great – not really falsetto soul, but kind of a tenor with a soft emotive quality. Arrangements by Artie Butler and Horace Ott give his voice a great pop/soul sort of Jerry Butler sound – and the grooviness of the instrumentation keeps things at a strong level that mixes jazz, soul, and pop up into a unique groove that's pretty darn refreshing! Features a totally great version of "Nature Boy", plus "What's Your Name?", "Call On Me", "Please Stay", "Nothin In This World", and "Like You, Babe". LP, Vinyl record album

Claudja Barry makes the move from Salsoul to a bigger label – but given that this album, like the previous one, was licensed from the German Lollipop company, the same creative team is in place! The style's nicely stark at time – kind of a better version of some of the poppy Munich disco by bigger acts – with a post-Moroder blend of keyboards and tightly controled rhythms – all topped by sultry vocals from Barry. Titles include "Boogie Woogie Dancin Shoes", "Cold Fire", "Give It Up", "Heavy Makes You Happy", "Nobody But You", and "Boogie Tonight". LP, Vinyl record album

John Barry did the score for this dark British film starring Dame Edith Evans as an elderly woman slowly succumbing to the "whispers" of old age. The music is far different than Barry's Bond work, with more of a sophisticated orchestral sound – filled with dark brooding passages, occasionally punctuated by jazzier moments – which act as a nice sort of counterbalance! The score is a great step for Barry – really showing a new level of sophistication that's light years from his earlier small combo instrumental work. Titles include "Are You There?", "Sticks & Stones", "Nobody & Nothing", and "Three Attackers". LP, Vinyl record album

A sublime soundtrack from John Barry – common, to be sure, but also a wonderfully-crafted set that goes way beyond the stereotypes of his work for the James Bond films! The record is probably best known for Nilsson's famous version of the Fred Neil tune "Everybody's Talkin" – which is great in itself – but it's Barry's own work on the title theme that we totally love. "Midnight Cowboy" is a darkly turning slowly pondering tune that will haunt us until the day we die – performed here on the original number with a sad-tinged harmonica that unites both the country of Joe Buck's roots and the sleaze of the love generation. The tune's great – and is matched here by the whimsy of "Florida Fantasy", and the Barry tracks "Fun City" and "Science Fiction". Another great number on the set is "Old Man Willow", a really tripped-out longer track from Elephant's Memory – swirling around in organ and hippie vocals, and oddly echoing the main Barry theme of the set at times! LP, Vinyl record album

The soundtrack that put John Barry over the top – and to many, THE James Bond soundtrack! The album chills from the first notes of the haunting title theme – the majestic "Goldfinger", sung by Shirley Bassey with a tone that's as dangerous as a razor-sharp hat spinning through the air! Barry then takes over with some wonderful instrumentals – a blend of crime jazz, mood pieces, chase themes, and more – all peppered with that dark dark Bond theme that we love so much! Titles include "Into Miami", "Teasing The Korean", "Alpine Drive", "Bond Back In Action", "Gassing The Gangsters", and "Death Of Goldfinger". LP, Vinyl record album

Very righteous material from Gary Bartz – and one of his classic NTU Troop albums, with Andy Bey on vocals and electric piano, and the great Stafford James playing some mighty heavy bass! The tracks are nice and long, with a very soulful sound that mixes freer spiritual playing with a good sense for a groove. Includes an excellent remake of the Stevie Wonder/Syreeta cut "Black Maybe", plus "Bertha Baptist", "Africans Unite", and a great version of "I Wanna Be Where You Are". LP, Vinyl record album

One of the last Gary Bartz albums for Prestige – and a really unique session with a different feel than some of his earlier work! Gary's still got plenty of angular funk in his sound here – thanks to some edgey keyboards from Hubert Eaves – but he's also tightened things up a bit without smoothing them out – cutting down on the longer jams in favor of a more focused approach, and singing himself on many cuts, taking on the quirky lyrical role that used to be held by Andy Bey! Bartz also produced the record himself, but Larry Mizell handled the final mix – giving the record a slightly spacier Mizell-inflected groove, but one that's not as full as on other Bartz/Mizell collaborations. The vocals here are all pretty great, and the album's filled with oddly-grooving tunes that really have a heck of a lot of charm – including the call-response track "Dozens", plus "I Don't Care", "Lady Love", "St Felix Street", "Nation Time", and "Blind Man". LP, Vinyl record album

... LP, Vinyl record album

A bittersweet farewell from The Beatles – a record that definitely shows the fracturing unity of the group, with lots of near-solo moments – but a set that also makes us really wonder what they'd have done with all this genius, had they managed to hold it together! There's great hints here of the solo work to come – especially from George Harrison and John Lennon – and the Phil Spector production really helps open up a new sound for the group. Includes the genius cuts "I Dig A Pony", "Two Of Us", "Across The Universe", "I Me Mine", "One After 909", "For You Blue", and "Let It Be". LP, Vinyl record album

One of the most electronic albums that Beaver & Krause ever recorded – a set that was issued as a Guide To Electronic Music, but which has a way more to offer than just a simple demonstration record! Unlike most other B&K albums, which can feature a bit of rock mixing in with the moog, this one is almost entirely analogue electronics – often played in a stark, spare way that has plenty of spooky tones – but also works beautifully together in a mode that's similar to other experimental electronic sets from the time, such as Morton Subotnick's contemporaneous records for Nonesuch. The tracks are very short, with concentrated bursts of sound, and have titles like "White Sound", "Ribbon Controller", and "Sawtooth". Comes in a box with a very cool book that explains a lot of different properties of electronic music. Great for sample-heads or for junior knob twiddlers. 2 LPs strong! LP, Vinyl record album

... LP, Vinyl record album

A tremendous bit of west coast jazz from drummer Louis Bellson – recorded under the auspices of Gene Norman, and with a lineup that includes Ellington contemporaries, plus a few key other players! The all-star lineup includes wonderful alto work from Willie Smith, plus baritone from Harry Carney, trombone from Juan Tizol, trumpet from Clark Terry, tenor from Wardell Gray, French horn from John Graas, and piano from Billy Strayhorn – a very unique lineup that works here with Bellson in a set of tracks rich in colors and moods. Titles include "Eyes", "Shadows", "Rainbow", "Punkin", "Sticks", and "Passion Flower". LP, Vinyl record album

Elmer Bernstein's theme to The Magnificent Seven is one of the standout soundtrack tunes of the 60s – an instantly recognizable number that you'll groove on right away, and which shows up often in Bernstein's soundtrack to this 1966 sequel to the original film. Tracks include "The Magnificent Seven", "In The Trap", "Battle", "Finale", "Council", "The Journey", and "El Toro". LP, Vinyl record album

An overlooked gem from the initial run of Black Sabbath – the last album to feature Ozzy Osborne on vocals, and a set that really hones the group's power of the previous years! You might expect a more commercial outing from the cover – or maybe think that these guys were trying on some newer waves at the end of the 70s – but honestly, the guitars are as sharp as ever, Ozzy's vocals are nice and fierce, and there's a cool, compressed vibe that really shows these guys influencing a new generation with their music. The bass is maybe not as heavy as before, but that seems to be the only point of power missing from the pentagram – on titles that include "Never Say Die", "Junior's Eyes", "Johnny Blade", "Shock Wave", "Air Dance", "Swinging The Chain", and "Breakout". LP, Vinyl record album

Black Sabbath going strong – very much in their own space by this point in their career, setting a sound that countless others would try to follow – but never match for fierceness like this! The fuzz is definitely turned up to 11, the rhythms move at a breakneck speed, and Ozzy's vocals have all the mean, sinister sounds that set a generation on fire – plenty of energy to fill up long tracks that include "Megalomania", "Hole In The Sky", "Symptom Of The Universe", "Supertzar", "Am I Going Insane", and "The Writ". LP, Vinyl record album

A funky jazz treasure – and the band's landmark first album! The Blackbyrds were a legendary 70s combo that were discovered by Donald Byrd while he was teaching at Howard University – and they had a tight style that mixed raw funk influences with smoother jazz playing, creating a sound that was different from many of their contemporaries, and which pushed funk and soul into a whole new level. Byrd's work with the band was as groundbreaking as Larry Mizell's work on his own Blue Note albums – and coincidentally, Larry Mizzell's Sky High Productions handles the studio chores for the set – but in a way that's much more sharply funky than his albums with Byrd! Titles include the tight choppy funk tracks "Do It, Fluid" and "Funky Junkie", plus other nice groovers like "Summer Love", "Gut Level", and "The Runaway". LP, Vinyl record album

A rare Japanese-only live set – with some surprising jazzy material – like takes on Chick Corea's "Spain" and Sam Jones' "Unit Seven" – plus versions of "Ride Captain Ride", "Mean Ole World", "And When I Die", "Lucretia MacEvil", "Spinning Wheel", and "You've Made Me So Very Happy". LP, Vinyl record album

A killer bit of early funk from the great Hamilton Bohannon – and quite possibly his greatest album ever – a really unique approach to funky rhythms, with a sound that's unlike anything else we can think of! The album's got a slower funk sound than Bohannon's later disco groove a few years later – and the wonderful rhythms mix together scattershot drums with funky wah wah guitar, organ, and hard-plugging basslines – all in a blend that's pretty mindblowing not just for its instrumental dexterity, but also for the way it brings complex patterns together in a really hypnotic way! All cuts are instrumentals, save for a few chorus vocals – and players on the album include Wah Wah Watson, Ray Parker, Travis Biggs, and Mose Davis. Bohannon's on drums and percussion – and titles include "The Pimp Walk", "Stop & Go", "Getting to the Other Side", "It's Time For Peace", "Save Their Souls", and "Singing a Song for My Mother". LP, Vinyl record album

Sonny without Cher – and sounding pretty darn amazing! The album's a really unique solo effort from the man on the LA scene – and as you might guess from the title, one that's a lot more cerebral than the jangly pop he was better known for at the time – almost psychedelic at times, with some really "right on" lyrics that kind of take off where "The Beat Goes On" ended – offering up some commentary on the times, with tripped-out arrangements that definitely fit the flavor of the lyrics! The leadoff track – "I Just Sit There" – is a stunning twelve minutes long – and the whole album hangs together line a suite of similarly-themed tunes – with other titles that include "I Just Told My Girl To Go Away", "I Would Marry You Today", "My Best Friend's Girl Is Out Of Sight", and the ultra-groovy drug song "Pammie's On A Bummer". LP, Vinyl record album

Classic Boogie Down Productions circa '89 – with prime street poetry from KRS, perfectly raw beats and overall peak end of the 80s production! Blueprint is an apt title for a couple reasons – the beats aren't what we'd call spare, but they're raw and unvarnished – a perfect framework for KRS's clear, concise and tough rhymes. It's also the blueprint for some of the best, toughest, street conscious hip hop to come. It's a unique snapshot of the time, too, coming at the crossroads of hip hop's rise from the 80s streets to the mainstream, with KRS One standing for realness right there at the brink. Includes "Jack Of Spades", "The Blueprint", "You Must Learn", "Who Protects Us From You?", "Why Is That?", "Breath Control", and "Bo! Bo! Bo!". LP, Vinyl record album

Sweet African funk from Jagger Botchway – a musician with roots in The Barons, Hedzoleh Soundz, and Kelenkye Band – stepping out here on his own in a heady brew of percussion, guitar lines, and horns! Some of the cuts are vocal, some are instrumental – and the mix of melody and rhythm is very unique – almost with Caribbean elements filtered into the more Ghanian styles you'd expect from Jagger – with a brightness in the grooves that fits well with the horn parts in the mix! And this special package doubles the content of the original record – by offering up all the album tracks, then adding in a full album of remixes too – which further emphasize the grit in the grooves. Titles include "Odze Odze", "Take Time", "Obleku", "Chapter 5", "Kake Odzole Oye", "Moko Le Dzen", "Odze Oldze (Africaine 808 rmx)", "Moko Le Dzen (Ruf Dug disco dub)", "Take Time (GRC rmx)", "Odze Odze (Alma Negra rmx)", and "Moko Le Dzen (GRC rmx)". LP, Vinyl record album

A killer set of trio work from pianist Evans Bradshaw – an obscure player we only know from his two rare dates for Riverside Records! Bradshaw's got a nicely angular approach to the piano – and a romping left hand that reminds us a lot of the hipper pianists working in Chicago at the end of the 50s! As with Jamal, King Fleming, and John Wright – Evans has an inherently rhythmic approach to his work – a gentle groove and focused flow that really takes off from the very first note, and keeps us hanging on all the way through! There's no overdone soul jazz cliches here – as Bradshaw also complicates things nicely over the top – and titles include versions of "Night In Tunisia", "Foggy Day", and "It Ain't Necessarily So" – plus two originals called "Pushing the Blues" and "Blues For Jim". Trio features Alvin Jackson on bass and Richard Allen on drums. LP, Vinyl record album

A real gem from The Brass Ring – and an album that has a goofy cover designed to recall the famous TV commercial that used the title hit! The record itself is a work of pure genius – tightly compressed easy instrumentals, all in that unique Brass Ring mode – a sound that's sweetly stepping, slightly Latin, and peppered with great sax parts on top of slinky organ lines! The groove is much more stripped-down than other material of its type at the time, with sax in the lead, and small combo rhythms that really sound great – almost a distillation of all the best 60s influences from bossa Brazil and A&M. Tracks are wonderful too – and titles include "Music To Watch Girls By", "The Dis-Advantages Of You", "I Will Wait For You", "The Dating Game", and "A Man & A Woman". All this, and a wonderful cover of a short old guy with a tall sexy blonde! LP, Vinyl record album

Obscure batch of funky tracks, produced by Horace Ott, and released on the Pyramid subsidiary of United Artists. The tracks have sort of a late 70s well-produced funk feel, with lots of bass, and ensemble playing. Tracks include "Vibes", "Goin Home", "Stay Up", "Whups It On Me", and "Sizzlin". LP, Vinyl record album

One of the most compelling Braxton orchestra projects from the early days – a set that breaks the group up into different units for each selection – with players who include Joachim Kuhn on piano, Ray Stephen Oche and Ambrose Jackson on trumpets, Bob Taylor and Hugh Levick on tenor, Jean Bauchard on alto, and Oliver Johnson on percussion. LP, Vinyl record album

A record that has Pattie reunited with the Soul Galore production team – working with backdrops that are full, but never too overblown – right in that perfect Casablanca mode! Titles include "Heartbreak In Disguise", "After Dark", "This Is The House Where Love Died", and "The Back-up Singer". LP, Vinyl record album

Second volume pulled together in the early 80s of Brownie's remarkable work with a smoking quintet that would record some of the finest bop sides issued on the Emarcy label. He's working here with Max Roach, George Morrow and Richie Powell and either Sonny Rollins or Harold Land as Brown's foil in the front line. 16 tracks in all: "George's Dilema", "If I Love Again", "The Blues Walk", "What Am I Here For", "Cherokee", "Jacqui", "Sandu", "Gertrude's Bounce", "Junior's Arrival", "Powell's Prances", "Flossie Lou", "What Is This Thing Called Love", "Love Is A Many Splendored Thing", "I'll Remember April", "Time" and "The Scene Is Clean". LP, Vinyl record album

One of our favorite albums ever on the legendary ESP label – a rhythmic, soulful, early session by Marion Brown – recorded before his own albums on Impulse, but with a similar feel to the best new thing sessions of that label at the time! The group is superb – with Benny Maupin on sax, Alan Shorter on trumpet, Rashied Ali on drums, and Ronnie Boykins on bass, often playing in tandem with Reggie Johnson – for a unique double-pulsing feel that makes for a nice rhythmic thrust, especially on the side-long jammer "Capricorn Moon". Other titles include "Exhibition" and "27 Cooper Square". LP, Vinyl record album

A rare meeting of 2 modern talents from the 50s – joined together in one unique performance from the Newport Jazz Festival in 1971! The baritone sax of Gerry Mulligan's a nice contrast to the usual Brubeck alto of Paul Desmond – long-departed from Dave's combo by this time, but referenced strongly by Gerry in his fluid lines for the set, almost a solo culmination here of previous recorded duets with Desmond in earlier years. Tracks are all quite longish, and given that Dave's group here features Jack Six on bass and Alan Dawson on drums, there's a quality to the session that's a fait bit more rhythmic than before – pulsating strongly with forceful lines on Brubeck's piano, and an overall feel that's much more freewheeling than you'd expect! Album features 3 long tunes – "Blues For Newport", "Open The Gates", and "Take Five". LP, Vinyl record album

Although the great Lenny Bruce never appeared in the Bob Fosse film based on his tragic story, Dustin Hoffman did a pretty great job of recreating his style, and of bringing together good performances of some of the most important monologues by Lenny, which are often missing from his other recorded work. This nicely done LP version of the soundtrack strings together lots of classic Lenny Bruce material, recreated by Hoffman – including bits like "To Come", "Dykes", "We're All The Same Schmucks", and the legendary "Blah Blah". Interspersed with these are nice jazzy bits by the great Ralph Burns, one of the 50s' most talented arrangers, and a great choice by Fosse to score the film. LP, Vinyl record album

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Sublime smooth soul from Jean Carn – who by this point has really honed her act into a polished one, perfect for the rising modern soul groove of late Philly. The record features production by Jerry Butler, Dexter Wansel, and Eddie Levert – but Jean unites the whole thing with her mature sense of poise, and her warm and loving vocals on classic cuts like "My Love Don't Come Easy", "Was That All It Was", and "When I Find You Love". A real gem – and another winner for one of soul music's greatest ladies! LP, Vinyl record album

A great collection of early work from singer Georgia Carr – including a number of previously unissued tracks, and a fair bit done with backing from Nelson Riddle! LP, Vinyl record album

A great little record – one that keeps up the high standards set by Teddy Charles' earlier work! The set has a bit of a goofy gimmick – in that it takes work by Russian composers (Stravinsky, Korsakoff, Borodin), and makes it swing with a jazzy groove. But because Charles is working here with "the all stars" – a group of players that includes Jimmy Giuffre, Jim Hall, Howard McGhee, Zoot Sims, and Jerome Richardson – he's got more than enough talent to make the whole thing work wonderfully. The album reminds us a lot of some of Richardson's work for United Artists from the 60s – with a slightly goofy edge, but incredible playing throughout, and a good commitment to swinging hard. Titles include "Borodin Bossa Nova", "Lullaby Of The Firebird", "Scherezade Blue", "Dance Arabe", "Etude", and "Love For Three Oranges March". LP, Vinyl record album

Hard to find early work by Judy Cheeks – produced by Ike and Tina Turner, with arrangements by Ike! Titles include "Crazy Bout You Baby", "Getting It Togetha", "Endlessly", "Early In The Morning", "You Flu", and "Please Love Me". LP, Vinyl record album

A genius idea – almost like the World Sax Quartet, but even more groundbreaking, in that the group unites 2 older players (Alvin Batiste and Jimmy Hamilton) with 2 younger players from the forefront of modern jazz (John Carter and David Murray). The result is wonderful – a record that will forever change your expectations of the sound of the clarinet in jazz, and which shows that reed work from a variety of generations can be equally influential across a variety of scenes. Titles include "Clariflavors", "Groovin High", "Sticks & Bones", "Sweet Lovely", and "The Washington Square Park Episode". LP, Vinyl record album

A genius idea – almost like the World Sax Quartet, but even more groundbreaking, in that the group unites 2 older players (Alvin Batiste and Jimmy Hamilton) with 2 younger players from the forefront of modern jazz (John Carter and David Murray). The result is wonderful – a record that will forever change your expectations of the sound of the clarinet in jazz, and which shows that reed work from a variety of generations can be equally influential across a variety of scenes. 7 numbers in all, including "Clariflavors", "Mood Indigo", "Night Mist Blue", "Creole Love Call", "Waltz A Minute", "Solo & Ballad For Four Clarinets", and "Satin Doll". LP, Vinyl record album

The longest album ever from The Clash – a stunning triple LP set that really shows the group bristling with new ideas and energy throughout! There's a hell of a lot going on here – some cuts that are every bit as strong as the previous records, others that offer a few mis-steps but in a wonderfully playful way – and a few more that really hit this sort of unique mix of genres and politics that could only be summed up as Clash-like at its best! Bits of hip hop, reggae, new wave, funk, and more mix together beautifully – and the album's got a hell of a lot of charm and character, even if you're skipping past a few of the cuts you don't like as much as the others. 36 tracks in all – and titles include "The Magnificent Seven", "Hitsville UK", "Junco Partner", "The Leader", "Police On My Back", "Midnight Log", "The Call Up", "Washington Bullets", "Broadway", "Rebel Waltz", "Look Here", "The Crooked Beat", "Somebody Got Murdered", "Lose This Skin", "Charlie Don't Surf", "Kingston Advice", "Corner Soul", "Let's Go Crazy", "The Sound Of Sinners", "Living In Fame", "Silicone On Sapphire", and "Career Opportunities". LP, Vinyl record album

Bizet never sounded so groovy – and the album's a very unique jazz version of his famous opera Carmen, handled by drummer Cozy Cole with plenty of swinging rhythms! Cozy always had a flair for the exotic in his work, and the music of Carmen turns out to be a perfect choice for his driving style of drums – augmented here by a bit of extra percussion that further enhances the Spanish tinges in the music, and topped off by some well-crafted horn parts by a small group that includes Jerome Richardson on baritone sax, clarinet, piccolo, and bass clarinet! Bob Hammer contributes some piano, organ, and glockenspiel to the record – the last of which further enhances the rhythmic pulse of the tunes – and far from being an operatic snoozer, the whole album's a surprising groove fest we really didn't expect! Titles include "Prelude", "Chorus Of Street Boys", "Habanera", "Seguidilla", "Flower Song", "Sextet", "Entr'acte", and "Castanet Dance". LP, Vinyl record album

A really unique chapter in the career of Ornette Coleman – an album that he produced by himself in 1962, away from any other label – as an effort to showcase the newly freer sounds of his music! The recording's the first in a really groundbreaking stretch for the 60s – and it was fortunately finally issued by ESP Records a few years after the recording – providing a nice link between Coleman's earlier experiments and the sound of the younger generation usually showcased by the label. The group's a trio, with a sound that's quite different than the more rhythmic modes of Coleman on Atlantic Records – a freer, less structured lineup that features percussion from Charles Moffett and bass from David Izenzon. One track also adds in a string quartet – making the record one of Coleman's first experiments with this format – and titles include a 23 minute recording of "The Ark", plus "Doughnut", "Sadness", and "Dedication To Poets and Writers". LP, Vinyl record album

This is a repackaged version of an album that was originally issued under Cecil Taylor's name, under the title Hard Drive (and later Stereo Drive, or something like that). The record brings together two of the late 50's most promising modernists – Cecil Taylor and John Coltrane – in a group that includes Kenny Dorham, Chuck Israels, and Louis Hayes. The music is a startling mix of styles – as Taylor's heavy piano clashes noisily with Trane's free flowing lines on the tenor. It doesn't always work, but it's well worth a listen, and stands as a critical meeting of two important talents that were both best known on their own. Tracks include "Shifting Down", "Double Clutching", and "Just Friends". LP, Vinyl record album

Darkly brooding work from John Coltrane's early years as a leader on Prestige – a very unique little record that features twin baritone sax support from Pepper Adams and Cecil Payne! Both players are wonderfully hip here – more than enough to match Trane's unique musical vision for the group's format – and the sound of the session is much edgier than some of his other Prestige work – which may be why the label chose not to issue it until 1963, even though it was recorded back in '57. There's a nice roughness here – the same inspirational early sound you'll get on Coltrane's early sides for Savoy or Imperial – and other players include Mal Waldron on piano, Doug Watkins on bass, and Art Taylor on drums. Titles include "Cat Walk", "Dakar", "Route 4", "Velvet Scene", and "Witches Pit". LP, Vinyl record album

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Larry Coryell's lost none of his genius over the years – and this recent session still has the guitar innovator working with all the best styles we first loved in his initial recordings for Vanguard! Larry's got a tone that can be clear and clean one minute on the electric, then filled with this full fuzz that really takes off – never sloppy, but really unique for a jazz musician – and his acoustic work is equally brilliant, with a knowledge of folk, but still very focused on jazz phrasing – balanced out here alongside electric performances in a really great way. Larry's not just rehashing old territory, though – as he works with a fresh group that also includes George Brooks on soprano sax, Matt Montgomery on bass, and Mike Hughes on drums – on titles that include "River Crossing", "Ghost Note", "Polished", "2011 East", "Heavy Feel", and "Foot Path To Oasis". LP, Vinyl record album

A great follow-up to the group's first hit LP on Sussex – not nearly as successful chart-wise, but a great display of their unique approach to group soul. The band's a quintet at this point, and their vocals are arranged by Skip Scarborough with that sweet compressed style that he was forging at the time. As on the first album, the band do a great job with a Bill Withers tune – and lay out a very hip reading of "Harlem" with some nice conga backing. The album also features a great funky reading of the Carole King cut "Corazon", an extended take on Scarborough's "I Just Can't See Myself Without You", and the original groovers "Keep On Movin" and "Migration", which both have that fuzzy guitar Sussex sound! LP, Vinyl record album

We never tire of the saxophone work of Sonny Criss – and this mid 70s gem is a perfect example of his brilliance! Sonny's sound on alto here is completely his own – raspily, soulful style that's really unique – and which draws strongly from Criss' rich life experience, including his years away from music (he'd been retired for most of the 70s before the time of this album.) The group's laidback and open – with Dolo Coker on piano, Ray Crawford on guitar, Larry Gales on bass, and Jimmy Smith on drums – a group that's all well with Criss on his journey – but also lets him sparkle brightly in the lead. Titles include the extended track "Isle Of Celia", plus "This Is For Benny", "Blues In My Heart", and "Crisscraft". LP, Vinyl record album

A groovy little soundtrack to this strange film that starred Sammy D & Peter Lawford – with some excellent mod tracks written by British jazzman Johnny Dankworth! The album ranks with Dankworth's best from the 60s – and the tracks have a punchy sound that mixes plenty of strong jazz soloing with some more whimsical soundtrack type arrangements. Sammy sings vocals on the tracks "Salt & Pepper" and "I Like The Way You Dance" – and other tracks include "Fine Flavour", "Chase In A Mini Moke", "Submarine Chase", "Flight For An Island", and "Quiet Ending". LP, Vinyl record album

One of the great Miles 70s groove albums – an album that's often as funky as you might expect from the cover, with a sound that's gone onto become the stuff of legend over the years! The noise of previous electric sessions is nicely toned down a bit here – leaving lots more room for soulful grooving – and although the selections were recorded over different dates, there's a very unified feel to the record – as most tracks have a similar groove, away from other Davis electric work of the period. Players vary throughout – and include Wayne Shorter and Sonny Fortune on reeds, Lonnie Smith and Chick Corea on keyboards, Ron Carter and Dave Holland on basses, John McLaughlin on guitar, and Al Foster and Billy Cobham on drums. Titles include "Great Expectations", "Ife", "Go Ahead John", and "Lonely Fire" – and the whole thing kicks! LP, Vinyl record album

Don't let the "horns" in the title put you off – because the record's not a hokey "with horns" record by Miles, but a batch of all-star sessions that has him playing with some really tremendous contemporaries! The set compiles early Miles Davis sides from two different Prestige sessions of the early 50s – material originally issued as 10 inch LPs, but brought together here in a very cool full length package with a cover image by Mad Magazine's Don Martin! Side one features Miles with a sextet that includes Sonny Rollins, Bennie Green, John Lewis, Percy Heath, and Roy Haynes – on the tracks "Morpheus", "Down", "Blue Room", and "Whispering" – all taken in a boppish mode, but with slight modern touches. Side two features the compositions of Al Cohn – "Tasty Pudding", "Floppy", "Willie The Wailer", and "For Adults Only" – played by a septet that features Cohn, Zoot Sims, John Lewis, Kenny Clarke, Leonard Gaskin, and Sonny Truitt – a very nice match to the sound of side one, and a surprisingly unified record overall! LP, Vinyl record album

Miles Davis' first-ever performance in Japan – a really unique concert that featured the quintet with Herbie Hancock, Ron Carter, and Tony Williams – augmented by a young Sam Rivers on tenor! The presence of Rivers really gives the set an edge – and although Miles is holding Sam a bit more in check than on some of his "new thing" albums from the time, there's an overall quality here that's different than the other Davis quintet albums of the time. The set was one of a number of important Miles Davis live sessions from the period – including albums from Berlin, Antibes, and Chicago – and titles include "If I Were A Bell", "My Funny Valentine", "So What", "Walkin'" and "All Of You". LP, Vinyl record album

A beautiful collaboration between Miles Davis and the great Gil Evans – and perhaps the most perfectly realized of all their projects! The album's got a wonderfully unified feel – as it begins with long compositions that have a distinct Spanish-tinge (and not a Latin-tinge, which is an important distinction to the way the album progresses.) Evans' arrangements have a majesty that takes the songs to the next level – working them as lush, lively backings for Davis' equally majestic trumpet solos, some of the finest he ever recorded with large group backing. Wonderful all the way through – and with the tracks "Concierto De Aranjuez", "Saeta", "The Pan Piper", and "Solea". LP, Vinyl record album

A slightly misleading record – but a great one nonetheless! From the title and cover, you might imagine that Thelonious Monk and Miles Davis were sharing the stage together at the Newport Jazz Festival – but instead, the album actually features separate performances by each artist – actually even recorded 5 years apart! The Miles Davis recording is from 1958 – a great year that has John Coltrane working with the group, alongside Wynton Kelly on piano, Cannonball Adderley on alto, Paul Chambers on bass, and Jimmy Cobb on drums – performing lively versions of "Ah Leu Cha", "Straight No Chaser", "Fran Dance" and "Two Bass Hit". The Monk material is even more unique – recorded in 1963, with Monk's usual quartet of Charlie Rouse on tenor, Butch Warren on bass, and Frankie Dunlop on drums – joined by the legendary Pee Wee Russell on clarinet – recently revived in jazz at the time, and displaying surprisingly modernist tendencies! Both Monk tracks are long – and include versions of "Nutty" and "Blue Monk". LP, Vinyl record album

A soulful and ambitious session from saxophonist Nathan Davis – a funky little gem that's got a lot more to offer than just a simple tribute to Dr King! Nathan penned the set in a mode that's expanded from most of his other albums – using larger horns and electric instrumentation to give the record a groove that's almost like funky 70s soundtrack work, but which is also offset by some shorter, more introspective tracks that feature spoken narration about King and his legacy – read by Donald M Henderson, and done in an extremely poetic way. The session's as righteous as it is grooving – and showcases a side of Davis' talents we never even knew he had – a rich larger musical vision, handled perfectly throughout! Nathan plays a range of reed instruments on the album, and Frank Cunimondo plays some sweet electric piano on the record – and singer Brenda Joyce provides lyrics on a few numbers as well. Titles include "Funk A Dilly Molly", "MLK", "Atlanta Walk", "Mean Business", "Latin Happ'n", and "New Dues". LP, Vinyl record album

Great early work from the Spencer Davis Group – back when Steve Winwood was still in the group, and when Chris Blackwell was producing the material in the early days of Island Records!Title sinclude "Watch Your Step", "Together Til The End Of Time", "Mean Woman Blues", "I'm Blue", "Please Do Something", and "Waltz For Lumumba". LP, Vinyl record album

A landmark album in harmony soul – one of those records that pushed the genre to a whole new level! The Delfonics emerge fully formed here as one of the most compelling groups of their time – a tremendous trio with a really unique approach to soul music – one that's heartfelt and heartbreaking, but never too sweet to be cloying or poppy – definitely just the right groove to keep things hip while also cracking the charts! The album's their first full collaboration with legendary producer Thom Bell – and it's got a sound that's summed up perfectly in the quintessential cut "La La Means I Love You" – and which is followed through beautifully on a batch of tracks that includes "Losing You", "Can You Remember", "You're Gone", "I'm Sorry", and "Break Your Promise". LP, Vinyl record album

A reunion of sorts for Paul Desmond and Gerry Mulligan – given that the pair had played together on record 5 years before, in a similar session for Verve! This album's almost lighter and more airy than the previous one – as it's done in a mode that echoes strongly with Desmond's own genius at RCA at the time – using a piano-less quartet format that has both horns carving out their own subtle space in sound, hanging together, but each occupying a different range of tonal color. The tracks are relatively longish, and the pair dart around each other nicely on tracks like "All The Things You Are", "Out Of Nowhere", "Blight Of The Fumble Bee", and "Two Of A Mind". LP, Vinyl record album