Brilliantly bold work from pianist Toshiko Akiyoshi – an artist who's really coming into her own for the 70s – stepping out in a big band format that would win her a wide new audience on both sides of the Pacific! The album's one of the first to feature the ensemble co-led with husband Lew Tabackin – a group that features strong work from American players who include Dick Spencer and Gary Foster on alto saxes, Tabackin and Tom Peterson on tenor, Bill Perkins on baritone, Bobby Shew and Don Rader on trumpets, and Charles Loper and Jim Sawyer on trombones. The horns are only part of the picture, though – as the inventive writing and arranging from Akiyoshi is what really makes the album great – a strong sense of painting with sound, while still keeping things swinging – really unlocking all the best elements that had been opened up for larger ensembles in the previous few years. The set features all original tracks that include "Kogun", "American Ballad", "Henpecked Old Man", "Elegy", and "Memory". CD

A 70s classic from the team of Toshiko Akioshi and Lew Tabackin – a duo who did for the jazz ensemble mode in their generation what Kenny Clarke and Francy Boland did in the 60s! The material here is wonderfully inventive – the kind of compositions that Toshiko wouldn't have even written in her smaller combo years – fleshed out here by a fantastic group that includes Lew Tabackin and Gary Foster on reeds, and Bobby Shew and Don Rader on trumpets – all in a setting where the voices of the individual members really get a lot of space to shine! Titles include "Since Perry", "Opus No Zero", "Long Yellow Road", "First Night", "Children In The Temple Ground", and "Yet Another Tear". CD

Composed and arranged by Terry Bonnel, with Bobby Shew and Bob Summers on trumpet, Kim Richmond on alto and tenor, Steve Kaplan on keyboards, Jim Lacefield on bass, and Chuck Flores on drums. LP, Vinyl record album

With sidemen including Blue Mitchell, Bobby Shew, Plas Johnson, Richie Kamuca, with Ernie Andrews on vocals. LP, Vinyl record album

Jim Olsen on flutes with Andrea Niemiec on bass, Mike Snyder on congas & percussion, Jason Palmer on drums, John Harmon on piano & electric piano, Dick Oatts, Hashem Assadullahi & Lynn Baker on saxophones, Glenn Bonney on trombone & Bobby Shew & Dana Heitman on trumpet & flugelhorn. CD

A hard-driving big band set from Buddy Rich – recorded with one of his groovy 60s lineups! The live date features work brom Bobby Shew on trumpet and Ernie Watts on alto – and titles include "Wack Wack", "Norwegian Wood", "The Beat Goes On", and "Mexicali Nose". LP, Vinyl record album

A great little live set from the glory days of the Toshiko Akiyoshi/Lew Tabackin Big Band – a series of performances from Japan, recorded in 1976, all featuring the ensemble at its best! The double-length nature of the record takes the group even farther than usual – really letting them stretch out with the kind of bold tones and broad colors that made the group so great. Soloists include Bobby Shew on trumpet, Jimmy Knepper on trombone, and Gary Foster on alto sax – alongside leaders Lew Tabackin on tenor and flute, and Toshiko Akioshi on piano. Titles include a nicely dancing reading of the classic "Warning: Success May Be Hazardous To Your Health" – plus "Kogun", "Henpecked Old Man", "Tuning Up", "Since Perry/Yet Another Tear", and "Soliloquy". LP, Vinyl record album