Mighty early work from the incredible Willis Jackson – one of most energetic and heavily soulful tenors ever to pick up a horn! These recordings are made of up some of Jackson's earliest recordings, including the legendary 1949 Mercury sessions with the Cootie Williams Orchestra, moves into work he did with for Apollo Records with the Bobby Smith Orchestra and others, and ends with some sessions with Ruth Brown. Explosive bebop and early r&b! 26 tracks in all: "Gator Tail (Parts 1 &2)", "Let 'Em Roll", "Steam Roller Blues" and more with Cootie Williams, "Can't Help Lovin' That Man", "Chuck's Chuckle", "Gonna Hoot & Holler Saturday Night" with Eddie Mack, "Gator's Groove", "Harlem Nocturne", "Daddy Daddy" and "The Tears Keep Tumblin' Down" with Ruth Brown, and much more! CD

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Essential recordings by the classic quartet – McCoy Tyner, Reggie Workman, and Elvin Jones – plus Eric Dolphy on alto sax, bass clarinet, and flute! CD

A lost live date from the great British tenorist Tubby Hayes – recorded right near the end of his too-short life, but a stone cooker all the way through! The material was recorded live at the Hopbine – but it's different than both the other 1972 album from the venue, or earlier Hopbine sessions – as this one features backing by the trio of pianist Tony Lee, who was becoming one of Tubby's main accompanists at the time. The tracks are all long, open, and very stretched out – with that incredible Hayes solo power still very much in top form – that non-stop sense of imagination and creativity that easily made Tubby one of the giants of his time, even amidst American players like Johnny Griffin or Dexter Gordon. Titles include "Symphony", "A Certain Smile", "I Thought About You", and "Autumn Leaves". CD

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An obscure London live date from Carmen McRae – captured here quite early in her career, and working in the same small combo mode as some of her best recordings from the 50s with Ray Bryant! The group here's a British one – with Don Abney on piano, Kenny Napper on bass, and the great Phil Seaman on drums – and the recording quality has Carmen's vocals pretty strongly in the lead, but still allows some space for sensitive instrumental impressions from the trio. The tracks are mostly standards, but they're sung with that early sense of sophistication that really set McRae apart from her contemporaries – and titles include "Day In Day Out", "Stardust", "Loverman", "I Could Write A Book", "Thou Swell", "Body & Soul", "Don't Ever Leave Me", and "Moonlight In Vermont". CD

Includes 93 recordings – mostly solo, trio, and small group material – from Brunswick, RCA, Asch, ARA, and V-Disc. CD

20 songs. CD

The grandest scale and most elaborately furnished Black Sabbath album to this point – but they still bring the heavy! The title track is one of the most influential metal songs ever, with the foreboding lyrics, trudging stomp of a rhythmic pace and those bridges that are almost pretty – and the most of the rest of the album is great, too – more carefully produced than the previous few without compromising the menace. Titles include "A National Acrobat", "Fluff", "Sabbra Cadabra", "Spiral Architect", "Looking For Today", and "Who Are You". LP, Vinyl record album

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Vocalist Ann Rhodes joins Anthony Braxton for this set – a 2CD package that features some pretty compelling improvisations by the pair! The first disc features "Composition 339" – a work that begins almost tentatively, with eerie non-verbal vocalizations by Rhodes moving alongside Braxton's sonorous reeds – sometimes blown in familiar saxophonic modes, other times almost coming across with an electronic sort of energy. "Composition 340" is on the second disc, and is somewhat more dynamic from the start – lots of vocal acrobatics by Rhodes, which are matched nicely by Braxton! CD

The last true masterpiece by the greatest rock band to ever come out of the late 70s and early 80s L.A. scene. More Fun In The New World serves in a lot of ways as X's upright middle finger to the early years of the Reagan era, with the anthemic opener "The New World", and the ballad "I Must Not Think Bad Thoughts", perfectly encapsulating the fear and loathing brought about by the ridiculous politics that infected the entire decade. The album is very much a sequel to the amazing Under The Big Black Sun, full of razor pop anthems, Billy Zoom's punkabilly guitar acrobatics, and amazing depth thanks to John and Exene's sensitive and perceptive song writing. Awesome! Other tracks include "True Love", "We're Having Much More Fun", "Poor Girl", "Make The Music Go Bang", "Devil Doll", "Painting The Town Blue", "Hot House", "Drunk In My Past", "I See Red", and "True Love Part 2". 4 bonus tracks: demo/alternate mixes of "Poor Girl", "True Love Part 2", "Devil Doll", and "I Must Not Think Bad Thoughts". CD

One of the darkest soundtracks ever from the wonderful Francois De Roubaix – a moody, brooding score that really fits the solitary spirit of the main character! There's still plenty of those cool De Roubaix elements in the mix – even some weird melodies on organ and electronics – mixed with other piano or flute lines, all in these slow-stepping modes that have a wonderfully haunting vibe. Titles include "Laetitia Par Alain Delon", "Journal De Bord", "Enterrement Sous-Marin", "Acrobaties Aeriennes", "Hotel Sandwich", "Martey's", "Valerie", "Le Samourai", and "Le Destin De Costello". LP, Vinyl record album

The last true masterpiece by the greatest rock band to ever come out of the late 70s and early 80s L.A. scene. More Fun In The New World serves in a lot of ways as X's upright middle finger to the early years of the Reagan era, with the anthemic opener "The New World", and the ballad "I Must Not Think Bad Thoughts", perfectly encapsulating the fear and loathing brought about by the ridiculous politics that infected the entire decade. The album is very much a sequel to the amazing Under The Big Black Sun, full of razor pop anthems, Billy Zoom's punkabilly guitar acrobatics, and amazing depth thanks to John and Exene's sensitive and perceptive song writing. Awesome! Other tracks include "True Love", "We're Having Much More Fun", "Poor Girl", "Make The Music Go Bang", "Devil Doll", "Painting The Town Blue", "Hot House", "Drunk In My Past", "I See Red", and "True Love Part 2". CD

The last true masterpiece by the greatest rock band to ever come out of the late 70s and early 80s L.A. scene. More Fun In The New World serves in a lot of ways as X's upright middle finger to the early years of the Reagan era, with the anthemic opener "The New World", and the ballad "I Must Not Think Bad Thoughts", perfectly encapsulating the fear and loathing brought about by the ridiculous politics that infected the entire decade. The album is very much a sequel to the amazing Under The Big Black Sun, full of razor pop anthems, Billy Zoom's punkabilly guitar acrobatics, and amazing depth thanks to John and Exene's sensitive and perceptive song writing. Awesome! Other tracks include "True Love", "We're Having Much More Fun", "Poor Girl", "Make The Music Go Bang", "Devil Doll", "Painting The Town Blue", "Hot House", "Drunk In My Past", "I See Red", and "True Love Part 2". LP, Vinyl record album