Beautiful, baby! Symphony Sid was one of the pivotal Latin DJs in New York radio, and throughout his career, he helped many of the city's best players and singers get their start on the scene. In 1972, Sid did his last radio show ever – and the event was broadcast from the famous Cheetah night club, with the help of a host of famous Latin music guest stars like Willie Colon, Willie Rosario, Ray Baretto, Orchestra Harlow, and others! This 2LP captures all the excitement of that broadcast, and has Sid rapping his usual rap in between songs, just as he did on radio. The release is an amazing way to sneak a peek into the NY Latin scene as it really existed, and since it's a double LP set, you get a huge amount of great material, put together and introduced by one of the greatest figures in the business. Very nice, and a priceless treasure! LP, Vinyl record album

An early concept album from the great Jon Hendricks – one that tells the story of blues through jazz – all put together as a flowing story in music! Jon speaks and sings the whole tale – but also gets some help on vocals from Big Miller, Hanna Dean, and Jimmy Witherspoon – as well as great musical backing from the core Ike Isaac Trio, with solos by Pony Poindexter and Ben Webster! The music is mostly rooted in blues, but with a hipper jazz sensibility – almost in the way that Oscar Brown Jr and others were going back to the roots, but updating them for the 60s. Titles include "WPA Blues", "Sometimes I Feel Like A Motherless Child", "New Orleans", "I Had My Share", "Jumpin With Symphony Sid", and "Please Send Me Someone To Love". LP, Vinyl record album

A nice, if a bit obscure, recording featuring Bluiett's compositions for a larger group, with a stellar lineup that includes Chief Bey, Michael Carvin, Ahmed Abdul-Malik, Abdul Wadud, Reggie Workman, Olu Dara, Don Pullen and others. There's a strong pulse and some heavy African influence here, buoying Bluiett's robust playing, and Dara's trumpet offers up some nice lines, which we don't hear often enough on recordings. Mining a vein that pulls from some of the other more overtly Afro-centric out jazz explorations of the time, this set stands up nicely alongside more groove and vamp oriented material like the Tribe records stuff from the same era. "Glory (Symphony For World Peace)" features a large group, "Nioka" is a duet with Don Pullen and "Oasis – The Well" is a septet side. LP, Vinyl record album

Both full Warner Brothers albums by this excellent group – plus bonus tracks too! First up is Vehicle – the debut album from Ides Of March – a group who will forever be known for the jazzy grooving title hit – "Vehicle", a brassy driving number that seems as if it's always being used in some sort of car commercial (which must net these guys a lot of royalties!) – but which is usually mistaken by others for being the work of Blood Sweat & Tears! Like BST, Ides Of March have a really driving sound here – pushing forward with heavy drums, sharp bits of brass, and a great early jazz rock sound that's way better than most work by the competition in years to come! Tracks include "Vehicle", "Wooden Ships", "Home", "Bald Medusa", "One Woman Man", and "Symphony For Eleanor".. Next is Common Bond – a great second set from Ides Of March – proof that the jazz rock combo had a lot more going on than just their famous single! The sextet hailed from the same scene as early Chicago (Chicago, of course!) – and have here a sound that shares plenty of the jazzy flourishes of that better-known group – blasting trumpet lines that soar, dip, and turn alongside the more uptempo tunes, and shade in the mellower ones. But there's also a more personal approach to this set overall, one that comes from the rough vocals of James Michael Peterik and some of the surprisingly heartfelt lyrics to a few of the album's best tunes – not entirely the height of early 70s singer/songwriter material, but also not that far either. Titles include the funky "Superman", plus "LA Goodbye", "Mrs Grayson's Farm", "Friends Of Feeling", "We Are Pillows", "Freedom Sweet", and "Tie Dye Princess", an extended number that runs for over 11 minutes. CD

A fantastic early record by one of the true guitar geniuses of the 70s – and a set that shows why even at ECM, Terje Rypdal could still sound unlike anybody else in his generation! Side one features a quintet working through two very striking tunes – a bit noisy and funky at times, atmospheric at others – filled with freaky lines from Rypdal on guitar! Other players include Pete Knutsen on mellotron and electric piano, Odd Ulleberg on French horn, Sveinung Hovensjo on basses, and Jon Christensen on percussion – and the group plays the tunes "Silver Bird Is Heading For The Sun" and "The Hunt". Side two features a very different mode – the title track "Whenever I Seem To Be Far Away" – billed as an "image for electric guitar, strings, oboe, and clarinet"! Rypdal's guitar is mixed with work from members of the Sudfunk Symphony – and the 17 minute track is a masterful showcase not just for Terje's guitar, but also for his large conceptions of music. LP, Vinyl record album