Jaleel Shaw on alto saxophone, Charlie Kohlhase on baritone saxophone, Russ Gershon on tenor and soprano saxophone, Rick McLaughlin on bass, Vicente Lebron on congas, bongos and percussion, Harvey Wirht on drums, Dan Kaufman on piano and organ, Joel Yennior on trombone, and Colin Fisher and Tom Halter on trumpet and flugelhorn. CD

Russ Gershon on tenor and soprano saxophone, Jeremy Udden on alto saxophone, Charlie Kohlhase on baritone saxophone, Joel Yennior on trombone, Colin Fisher and Tom Halter on trumpet, Greg Burk on piano and keyboards, Rick McLaughlin on bass, Harvey Wirht on drums, and Vicente Lebron on percussion. CD

An amazingly great set from Either/Orchestra – easily their finest album ever, and a wicked batch of Ethiopian funk! The set's a very faithful homage to the best Ethiopian styles of the 70s – with lots of echoes of the generation of Mulatu, who also makes a guest appearance himself on the album! Bits of Afro Funk come into play with more complicated jazz – making for a really unique approach to the music that stays faithful to its roots, but also somehow extrapolates the best elements and pulls them even more strongly forward. Features percussion by Mulatu, tenor sax by Getachew Mekurya, and vocals by Bahta Gebre-Heywet, Michael Belayneh, and Tsendia Gebre-Marqos. 2CD set includes the tracks "Soul Tezeta", "Amlak Abet Abet", "Muziqawi Silt", "Yezemed Yebada", "Eyeye", "Embi Ba", "Shellela", "Bati", "Feger Aydelem Wey", and "Keset Eswa Betcha". Almost a tribute to the sound of the Ethiopiques series – played with some of its key stars from older years! CD

A sweet larger group session from vibist Milt Jackson – proof that he was really trying to stretch his wings, and get into new things during the 60s! The set's got Milt working with some great help from Tadd Dameron and Ernie Wilkins on larger group arrangements – nicely swinging charts that have a nice touch of modern, but lots of straightforward grooving too! Milt's the primary soloist, buoyed by an orchestra built around a rhythm section of Hank Jones on piano, Ron Carter on bass, and either Connie Cay or Philly Joe on drums – plus loads of great horn players like Clark Terry, Nat Adderley, Melba Liston, James Moody and Jimmy Heath among others. Titles include renditions of "Old Devil Moon", "'Round Midnight", "The Dream Is You", "You'd Be So Nice To Come Home To", "Echoes", "If You Could See Me Now", "Star Eyes", "Namesake", "If I Should Lose You", and "Later Than You Think". CD features 2 bonus tracks! CD

Never-issued material from this legendary pianist – a set of recordings done in Denmark during the mid 60s – some of which feature Bill Evans in familiar trio format, others which have him playing in the much more unusual solo and "with orchestra" modes! We're especially big fans of the latter – a mode that Evans only used on a handful of records, and which seems to free him in some ways on the piano – almost creating a painterly sense of sound, as he works with superb support from Palle Mikkelborg, who directs the larger group – while the Evans trio with Eddie Gomez on bass and Marty Morrell on drums is at the core. The set also features six never-heard solo tracks – a beautiful demonstration of Evans at his intimate best – mixed with a few other trio recordings – two with Eddie Gomez on bass, and either Alex Riel or Marty Morrell on drums – plus two more with the unusual lineup of Niels Henning Orsted Pedersen on bass, and either Riel or Alan Dawson on drums. Together, the tracks paint this amazing picture of Bill Evans at a real high point in his creative life – all never-heard before, with titles that include "Very Early", "Treasures", "Walkin Up", "Time Remembered", "Waltz For Debby", "My Bells", "Elsa", "Re Person I Knew", "Nardis", "Quiet Now", and "Emily". CD

Director Quentin Tarantino has drawn plenty of inspiration from the music of Ennio Morricone over the years – either using short passages of older Morricone music in his films, or evoking the substance and style of the maestro in the way he uses sounds from other sources too! So it's only fitting that this time around, the pair are finally brought together fully – as Morricone turns out one of his best soundtracks in years for Tarantino's Hateful Eight – a brooding, suspenseful tale that owes plenty to the western generation that first sprung Morricone to global fame! Yet as with most of Ennio's best work, the style here is something that goes far beyond expectation – orchestrations that take on a style completely their own – with instrumental elements that have stronger focus amidst the larger charts, and a sense of mood and color here that's completely sublime. The record is mostly music from Morricone – written for the film – and features a few passages of dialogue from the movie, plus just a few additional tracks by The White Stripes, Roy Orbison, and David Hess. Yet it's more than fair to think of this as a complete score by Morricone – very different than the usual compilation-style soundtracks we've had before from Tarantino. CD

A 2CD set of music designed to accompany Japanese animation that starred "the little Norse Prince Valiant" – the cut lil' guy pictured on the cover, who gets some very action-packed accompaniment here! Most tunes are short and lively, and almost echo an older cartoon mode that you might have heard in the US in the 30s and 40s – not exactly Merrie Melodies or Raymond Scott, but not that far away either – as there's all sorts of playful arrangements, unusual horns, offbeat rhythms, and other things that really make the orchestrations sparkle! As with other titles in this series, the whole thing is very well done, but with all notes and titles in Japanese – a 2CD set with 54 tracks in all. CD

Sexy ladies on the cover, and some equally sexy sounds underneath – served up in a perfect 60s Italian blend of jazz and bossa-based styles! Sweeping strings bring a nice sense of depth to some numbers, while others have a more intimate feel – either via spare guitar, or some jazzy elements on piano, sax, and organ – shifting instrumentation that really keeps things interesting throughout, and which makes the record feel like some rich narrative on its own, in sound – without any need for the images on the screen. The whole thing is wonderful – one of those Italian soundtrack treasures that delivers even more than it promises – and music was composed by Alessandro Alessandroni and Francesco De Masi, then orchestrated by De Masi, with some cool wordless vocal moments as well. Titles include a number of variations on "Lesbo" plus the sweet vocal opener "Qualsiasi Cosa", "Crepuscolo Sul Mare", and "IL'Isola Dell'Amore". CD

Sexy ladies on the cover, and some equally sexy sounds underneath – served up in a perfect 60s Italian blend of jazz and bossa-based styles! Sweeping strings bring a nice sense of depth to some numbers, while others have a more intimate feel – either via spare guitar, or some jazzy elements on piano, sax, and organ – shifting instrumentation that really keeps things interesting throughout, and which makes the record feel like some rich narrative on its own, in sound – without any need for the images on the screen. The whole thing is wonderful – one of those Italian soundtrack treasures that delivers even more than it promises – and music was composed by Alessandro Alessandroni and Francesco De Masi, then orchestrated by De Masi, with some cool wordless vocal moments as well. Titles include a number of variations on "Lesbo" plus the sweet vocal opener "Qualsiasi Cosa", "Crepuscolo Sul Mare", and "IL'Isola Dell'Amore". CD

Although Gil Evans is probably best remembered for his work behind Miles Davis, the albums he cut on his own are actually even more interesting, and feature a far-reaching conception of modern jazz, executed by Evans, and some of the top players of his day. This great album from 1964 features a host of wonderful musicians – including Steve Lacy, Eric Dolphy, Johnny Coles, and Wayne Shorter. The set includes mostly original compositions by Evans, like "Las Vegas Tango", "El Toreador", "Flute Song", and "Hotel Me" – all of them a shimmering blend of free solos and tightly composed orchestral passages, filled with rich colors and shades of warm imagination! Plus, this CD also includes a huge amount of extra tracks, either unreleased, or longer versions – including "Time Of The Barracudas", "Spoofull", "Nothing Like You", and "Proclamation"! CD