Wayne Fontana without The Mindbenders – and sounding really cool, really groovy, and a like a completely different singer than before! A big part of the credit for the record might go to Les Reed – who sets up that great Fontana vocal style with modes that are jazzier than before, and which also echo other mod currents on the London scene – mixing in familiar American standards and soul tunes with a more swinging 60s style – which gives the whole thing the charms of similar work at the time by Alan Price or Georgie Fame! The whole thing's great – a real revelation – and titles include "It Was Easier To Hurt Her", "Please Stop The Wedding", "My Friend & I", "Star Of Eastern Street", "Internal Circle", and "Perfidia". 2CD set features 22 more fantastic tracks – all excellent solo singles that continue the trend of the album – titles that include "Dayton Ohio 1903", "Charlie Cass", "Pamela Pamela", "Storybook Children", "Waiting For A Break In The Clouds", "24 Sycamore", "The Sun's So Hot Today", "The Impossible Years", and "Mind Excursion". CD

... CD

An amazing collection of music – the legendary Fontana Records run of albums by tenor giant Tubby Hayes – a key player on the UK bop scene of the 50s, but one who took off in all these great new directions with these classic albums for the Fontana label in the following decade! The package features twelve full albums done by Tubby as a leader – all newly remastered by Gearbox, and packaged here with bonus material that was not on previous reissues – a number of alternate takes across the entire Fontana catalog! Each album comes in an LP-styled jacket with original cover art, save two, which are combined – and albums include Tubbs, Tubbs In New York, Palladium Jazz Date, Equation In Rhythm, Down In The Village, Late Spot At Scotts, Tubbs Tours, Return Visit, 100% Proof, Mexican Green, The Orchestra, and the 2CD version of the newly-discovered Grits, Beans, and Greens. There's a big booklet of notes, too, with rare photos and other images – and the whole package is wonderful throughout! CD

A long-lost album from one of our favorite jazz talents of all time – British tenor legend Tubby Hayes, a player we'd easily place on a short list with giants like Dexter Gordon or Sonny Rollins! Like both of those players, Hayes has an incredible talent for longform solos that never lose their fire, direction, or imagination – a quality that emerges here maybe even more strongly than on some of the records that preceded it – as Hayes works with just a quartet, on long tracks that are really dominated by both his great sound, and the strong contributions of pianist Mike Pyne – an equal star on the set! At a time when British jazz was going for a lot of new recording modes, crossover styles, and other gimmicks, the whole thing is a back to basics record for Tubby – but also one that shows just how much he's grown as a soloist in just a few short years – really on fire, as the tenor is driven strongly by the efforts of Ron Mathewson on bass and Spike Wells on drums, completing a great quartet who really get the energy of their leader. Titles include a great version of the Duke Pearson tune "You Know I Care", a lovely take on "Where Am I Going", and the Hayes originals "For Members Only", "Rumpus", and "Grits Beans & Greens". Fantastic stuff – long overdue, and instantly a key addition to the Tubby Hayes Fontana catalog of the 60s! CD

A long-lost album from one of our favorite jazz talents of all time – British tenor legend Tubby Hayes, a player we'd easily place on a short list with giants like Dexter Gordon or Sonny Rollins! Like both of those players, Hayes has an incredible talent for longform solos that never lose their fire, direction, or imagination – a quality that emerges here maybe even more strongly than on some of the records that preceded it – as Hayes works with just a quartet, on long tracks that are really dominated by both his great sound, and the strong contributions of pianist Mike Pyne – an equal star on the set! At a time when British jazz was going for a lot of new recording modes, crossover styles, and other gimmicks, the whole thing is a back to basics record for Tubby – but also one that shows just how much he's grown as a soloist in just a few short years – really on fire, as the tenor is driven strongly by the efforts of Ron Mathewson on bass and Spike Wells on drums, completing a great quartet who really get the energy of their leader. Titles include a great version of the Duke Pearson tune "You Know I Care", a lovely take on "Where Am I Going", and the Hayes originals "For Members Only", "Rumpus", and "Grits Beans & Greens". Fantastic stuff – long overdue, and instantly a key addition to the Tubby Hayes Fontana catalog of the 60s! This great 2CD version features the full versions of all the sessions, with a number of takes on some of the tunes – including an unusual version of "Where Am I Going" with the guitar of Louis Stewart instead of the piano of Mike Pyne. Also has a hardcover package, and a nice booklet of notes! CD

... LP, Vinyl record album

An excellent collection of early work by John Cage – and a set that's maybe not nearly as sweet as you'd guess from the "lollipops" in the title! The box is worth it alone for its presentation of the 25 Year Retrospective Concert – which brings together 1958 performance versions of important early works, including "Imaginary Landscape No 1", "Six Short Inventions For Seven Instruments", "First Construction In Metal", "She Is Asleep" (in quartet and duo version), "Sonatas & Interludes", "Music For Carillion No 1", "Williams Mix", and "Concert For Piano & Orchestra", which was new at the time. The package then goes on to include "Double Music" by Cage with Lou Harrison, the spoken word/piano statement "Indeterminacy" done with David Tudor, and key early readings of "Cartridge Music" and "Fontana Mix". CD

A long-lost album from one of our favorite jazz talents of all time – British tenor legend Tubby Hayes, a player we'd easily place on a short list with giants like Dexter Gordon or Sonny Rollins! Like both of those players, Hayes has an incredible talent for longform solos that never lose their fire, direction, or imagination – a quality that emerges here maybe even more strongly than on some of the records that preceded it – as Hayes works with just a quartet, on long tracks that are really dominated by both his great sound, and the strong contributions of pianist Mike Pyne – an equal star on the set! At a time when British jazz was going for a lot of new recording modes, crossover styles, and other gimmicks, the whole thing is a back to basics record for Tubby – but also one that shows just how much he's grown as a soloist in just a few short years – really on fire, as the tenor is driven strongly by the efforts of Ron Mathewson on bass and Spike Wells on drums, completing a great quartet who really get the energy of their leader. Titles include a great version of the Duke Pearson tune "You Know I Care", a lovely take on "Where Am I Going", and the Hayes originals "For Members Only", "Rumpus", and "Grits Beans & Greens". Fantastic stuff – long overdue, and instantly a key addition to the Tubby Hayes Fontana catalog of the 60s! LP, Vinyl record album

One of Oscar Brown's great ones, recorded live at the Cellar Door in Washington before an enthusiastic crowd of hipsters! The record's a beautiful mix of soul, jazz, and folk – in the same Chicago tradition that spawned Terry Callier (although Brown's style has a bit more of a "show" feel to it). There's a lot of great stuff on here, and most of it doesn't appear on Oscar's other albums in studio versions. Tracks include "Call of the City", "Muffled Drums", "Maxine", "Brother Where Are You?", and more! Backing's by a tight little combo that includes Floyd Morris and Phil Upchurch – and this CD has a very groovy little gatefold package! CD

3 incredible albums from the British jazz scene at the end of the 60s – all together in one 2CD package! Down Another Road is incredible work from one of England's greatest jazz talents – bassist Graham Collier, a player with an amazing ability to absorb a lot of the modern and progressive influences of his jazz generation – but all without succumbing to the same indulgences as them – a fact which resulted in a razor-sharp style that forged some of the freshest jazz ever to come out of the UK. This 1969 album is a masterpiece – filled with a modal groove and a strident searching theme, yet also as tight and grooving as most of the best Blue Note sessions from the same time. Harry Beckett's on trumpet, Nick Evans is on trombone, John Marshall plays drums, and Stan Sulzmann handles the reeds. Tracks include "Down Another Road", "Danish Blue", "The Barley Mow", and "Aberdeen Angus". Songs For My Father is a masterpiece of modernist soul jazz, with a sound that recalls the best late Blue Note work by Lee Morgan or Hank Mobley. Alan Wakeman's tenor is perfectly pitched, and searingly searching; Harry Beckett's trumpet is round, lyrical, and filled with soul; and the piano of John Taylor comps along in chunky modal grooves that make the whole album fall together brilliantly. Tracks include "Song One", "Song Two", "Song Three", etc – and they're all fantastic! Mosaics is a wonderfully searching session – filled with warm McCoy Tyner-esque modal moments, and searing post-Coltrane solos! The album comprises one long piece – Collier's "Mosaics" – performed live by a group that includes Alan Wakeman on tenor and soprano, Harry Beckett on trumpet, and Geoff Castle on piano. "Mosaics" has that amazing mid 60s Coltrane quality of going out in a spiritual kind of way – yet always returning to the groove, never getting too free, and always remaining firmly focused on the direction ahead. All players are great, and the record crackles with the intensity of a classic session on Impulse! CD

Nice little bit of Brit easy jazziness. Features a few Dankworth originals, plus versions of "African Waltz", "Skyliner", and "Ja Da". Recorded in "complex multi-track stereo" to get that "Living Presence Stereo" sound! LP, Vinyl record album

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An early US album from UK folk singer Julie Felix – a singer with a very distinct voice, who here works in a range of tracks that include titles from Mike Heron, Donovan, Bob Dylan, and Joni Mitchell! LP, Vinyl record album

A landmark collaboration between Serge Gainsbourg and actress Jane Birkin – his paramour at the time, and a much younger woman! This album is perhaps the archetypal Gainsbourg erotic effort – and it's filled with wonderful duets set to breathy, bouncy orchestrations – tunes that forged a whole new "adult" level in pop music – not just in France, but around the globe! The arrangements are amazing, and feature some of the weirdest instrumentation ever heard on a pop record – especially one that was as successful as this – and titles include the classic "69 Annee Erotique", plus"Jane B", "Elisa", "Orang Outan", "Les Sucettes", and "Manon". LP, Vinyl record album

Pure madness – and the original sex groove track by Serge and Jane Birkin! "Je T'Aime" is simply fantastic from the word go – funky bass, moody organ, and some raunchy whispered vocals – and don't miss "Jane B", which has vocals by Jane, excellent piano, and a nice dark sound! 7-inch, Vinyl record

A sweet little album of cinematic-inspired instrumentals – featuring the sax work of Brit Easy star Johnnie Gray, over backings put together by Peter Smith. The sound is easily grooving – not really funky, but in that streamlined late 60s British mode – and the best tracks come off in very nice versions. Titles include "Rosemary's Baby", "Odd Couple", "Irina", "Limbo Line", and "Shalako". LP, Vinyl record album

... LP, Vinyl record album

A crackling hard batch of tracks from 60s sax giant Tubby Hayes – and the kind of record that will dispel any doubts you've ever had about British jazz scene! Hayes is at the prime of his form here, and he wails on tenor, soprano, and vibes – along with his great quintet that included Gordon Beck and Jimmy Deuchar. The set's fantastic, and the kind of album that you'd swear was on Blue Note, if you didn't hear a British voice announcing the tracks – and the energy and vitality of the group is apparent on every track – working with an intensity that rivals the best work on American labels at the time! Tracks include "Yeah!", "Half A Sawbuck", and "The Sausage Scraper". LP, Vinyl record album

A crackling hard batch of tracks from 60s sax giant Tubby Hayes – and the kind of record that will dispel any doubts you've ever had about British jazz scene! Hayes is at the prime of his form here, and he wails on tenor, soprano, and vibes – along with his great quintet that included Gordon Beck and Jimmy Deuchar. The set's fantastic, and the kind of album that you'd swear was on Blue Note, if you didn't hear a British voice announcing the tracks – and the energy and vitality of the group is apparent on every track – working with an intensity that rivals the best work on American labels at the time! Tracks include "Yeah!", "Half A Sawbuck", and "The Sausage Scraper". CD

An amazing record by one of England's greatest jazz talents ever! This very rare album was recorded in the US, under the supervision of Roland Kirk – who also plays on the record, along with Walter Bishop Jr, Sam Jones, and Louis Hayes. Tubby's tone is fantastic – with all the raw mature cutting solo power that's made his early 60s sessions some of our favorite jazz records ever. Putting him on a record with Kirk was a genius move – as Kirk's approach brings out a nuttiness in Hayes that you don't always get in his otherwise more straight-laced British groups. Titles include "Lady E", "Afternoon In Paris", "I See With My Third I", and "For Heaven's Sake". Nice long tracks, too! Beautiful reissue of the British version of this set – also issued in the US as Tubby's Back In Town. LP, Vinyl record album

... 7-inch, Vinyl record

A weird one – but one of the real standouts in Cleo Laine's 60s catalog! As the title might imply, Cleo sings jazz versions of Shakespeare poems and bits from plays – with musical backing by husband Johnny Dankworth, who gives the set a cool enough groove to really make it work, and keeps things from being as stuff as you might fear! Kenny Wheeler plays a fair bit of trumpet solos when Cleo's not singing – further emphasizing the jazz component of the record, and moving it away from the flowery language of The Bard. There's a strangely sinister feel here that we really like – and titles include "Blow Blow Thou Winter Wind", "Duet Of Sonnets", "Winter", "O Mistress Mine", 'Witches Fair & Foul", and "The Compleat Works". LP, Vinyl record album

... LP, Vinyl record album

Lovely English-language work from Nana Mouskouri – a set recorded with some really great arrangements from Bobby Scott, who seems to help Nana pack even more feeling than usual in her work! Scott's arrangements have some elements of jazz, but are usually more complicated overall – sensitively shading things in alongside Nana's well-crafted vocals – and really getting past some of her poppier modes of the 60s with an all-adult approach to the tunes. Strings figure into most of the backings, with almost a Scott Walker sense of depth – and titles include "Tiny Sparrow", "I Love My Man", "Johnny", "Half A Crown", "Just A Ribbon", "If You Love Me", "The Love We Never Knew",a nd "Ballinderrie". CD

A groovy 60s set from pianist Errol Parker – with two nice originals "Sats" and "Soulful"! LP, Vinyl record album

... 12-inch, Vinyl record

One of the more obscure 60s albums from French pianist Maurice Vander – with some nice vibes in the mix at times! LP, Vinyl record album

Quite possibly the greatest moment ever from the legendary Scott Walker – a set that strongly steps beyond even the genius of his first two solo albums, thanks to an amazing assortment of original tunes! Scott's dark vision of masculinity is emerging full-blown here – in an array of imagistic songs that piece together a very different picture of the male voice in music at the end of the 60s. Arrangements are quite large – echoing Scott's love of Jacques Brel and Jack Jones – but they've got a very subdued quality too, one that always takes second seat to Walker's incredibly haunting voice – rich, yet unquestionably fragile at the same time. Titles include "Copenhagen", "Winter Night", "30 Century Man", "It's Raining Today", "Two Ragged Soldiers" and "Big Louise". CD

Features Sal Nistico on tenor, Carl Fontana on trombone, and Luis Gasca on trumpet! LP, Vinyl record album

One of the more obscure 60s albums cut by jazz vocalist Irene Kral – and a great little record that shows her to be more of a singer than we expected! Some of the tunes on the set have the straight vocals with band feel of Irene's other albums, but a few more go for a groovier sort of 60s sound that we really love – pushing Irene almost into pop vocal territory, but with enough jazz and enough class to keep things cool. Overall, the album's sort of in the range of similar mid and late 60s work by Blossom Dearie or Chris Connor – and the set list includes a lot of hip tunes, like "Nothing Like You", "Wonderful Life", "There Is No Right Way", "Is It Over Baby?", "Goin To California", and "I've Never Been Anything". LP, Vinyl record album

A really cool little package – one that brings space age sounds from both the world of mainstream pop, and the farther reaches of electronic music composition in the postwar years! The core of CD1 is the groundbreaking album I Hear A New World by Joe Meek – presented here both in the "restored" version that was first issued by RPM in 1991, and the original unreleased tapes from 1960. The whole record is like The Ventures meeting space aliens – and Joe Meek composed and conceived the incredible 60s session of strange space-age instrumentals – one that mixes instrumental surf-flavored guitars with crazy sound effects and production techniques, for an out-of-this-world batch of tracks that's like nothing else we can think of! Tracks include "Glob Waterfall", "I Hear A New World", "Orbit Around The Moon", "March Of The Dribcots", and "Valley Of The Saroos". CD1 also features 11 more weird electronic tracks from the BBC Radiophonic Workshop – and from Ray Cathode. Then CD2 and CD3 move into the darker corners of experimental electronics and musique concrete – with works that include "Dripsody" by Hugh Le Caine, "Syncopation" by Tom Dissevelt, "Timbres Durees" by Olivier Messiaen, "Poeme Electronique" by Edgard Varese, "The Innocents" by Daphne Oram, "Fontana Mix" by John Cage, "Visage V (parts 1, 2, & 3)" by Luc Ferrari, "Musica Su Due Dimensioni" by Bruno Maderna, "Deux Etudes De Musique Concrete For Magnetic Tape" by Pierre Boulez, "Fantasy In Space" by Otto Luening, and "Piece For Tape Recorder" by Vladimir Ussachevsky. CD

A killer collection of work from one of the hippest jazz singers of all time – captured here at a point when he was really opening up into some fresh, unique territory of his own! Mark Murphy first began recording in the mid 50s for Decca, and had a run of other records in the 60s for Capitol, Fontana, and other labels – but by the time he hit Muse Records in the 70s, he was really open to new ideas – and able to do far more than just the simple singing of a tune! Instead, he'd worked his voice into a mode that was more like an instrument overall – able to run free with brilliant solo passages, and inflect the lyrics in ways that even the great singers of years before might never have dreamed of! And at Muse, he got excellent support and instrumental backing – always hip combos, and the freedom to create the sort of special albums that still make his records for the label a real high point in the development of jazz vocals. These are sides that went onto inform generations of singers – from Kurt Elling, to Gregory Porter, and so many others – and this well-chosen selection of songs is completely sublime. Titles include "On The Red Clay", "Stolen Moments", "Effendi", "Naima", "Maiden Voyage", "Lookin For Another Pure Love", "Waters Of March", "Come & Get Me", "Be-Bop Lives", "Dingwalls", "Cantaloupe Island", "Sly", "Empty Faces", and "Two Kites". LP, Vinyl record album

A really fantastic album from this hip British reedman – and maybe his strongest jazz album to date! As you might guess from the title, Tenderlonious plays the music of Tubby Hayes here – taking on older songs by the 60s British jazz giant, served up in small combo modes, with flute in the lead instead of a tenor! The group's got a really deep, rich sound – with creative instrumentation from Hamish Balfour on Fender Rhodes, piano, and vibes – plus Nick Walters on trumpet, Aidan Shepherd on accordion, Pete Martin on bass, and Tim Carnegie on drums – all players who really get that very hip groove of Tubby at his best – particularly the style of his mid 60s live albums on Fontana. There's no processing or other effects – as on other Tenderlonious albums – just straight jazz, beautifully done – and also a bit of soprano and piccolo from the leader too. There's just four tracks on the record – this is more of an EP than an LP – but the whole thing is superb, and titles include "Down In The Village", "Raga", "In The Night", and "Trenton Place". CD

A really fantastic album from this hip British reedman – and maybe his strongest jazz album to date! As you might guess from the title, Tenderlonious plays the music of Tubby Hayes here – taking on older songs by the 60s British jazz giant, served up in small combo modes, with flute in the lead instead of a tenor! The group's got a really deep, rich sound – with creative instrumentation from Hamish Balfour on Fender Rhodes, piano, and vibes – plus Nick Walters on trumpet, Aidan Shepherd on accordion, Pete Martin on bass, and Tim Carnegie on drums – all players who really get that very hip groove of Tubby at his best – particularly the style of his mid 60s live albums on Fontana. There's no processing or other effects – as on other Tenderlonious albums – just straight jazz, beautifully done – and also a bit of soprano and piccolo from the leader too. There's just four tracks on the record – this is more of an EP than an LP – but the whole thing is superb, and titles include "Down In The Village", "Raga", "In The Night", and "Trenton Place". LP, Vinyl record album

A gem of an album from trumpeter Dusko Goykovich! The album's a rare 1966 session that features Goykovich leading a sextet comprised of musicians who were playing in Woody Herman's mid 60s group – Nat Pierce, Ronnie Zito, Sal Nistico, Carl Fontana, and Mike Moore – and on this open-ended hardbop set, the group are given a lot more room to solo than they might on some of Herman's albums from the time. The solos of Nistico are especially great – well-crafted, and sharply edged in a way that matches Goykovich's firey trumpet work. Titles include "Wee", "Belgrade Blues", and "Be My Love". LP, Vinyl record album

A pretty nice left turn from Krautrock pioneer Michael Rother – who veers from the more outwardly lumbering sound of his earlier Flammende Herzen LP into a tighter, even more melodic instrumental sound on Sterntaler! This album indeed shares some of the traits of Rother's earlier partners in Kraftwerk – particularly the gliding atmosphere the Autobahn album – not to mention Rother's earlier work with Neu! That said, Rother does his own thing with a bit more of an anthemic quality that really manages to tug at your emotions – also with a little more of a reliance on traditional rock & roll instrumentation behind the soaring keyboards! Titles include "Sterntaler", "Blauer Regen", "Stromlinien", "Sonnenrad", "Fontana Di Luna", "Orchestrion". CD

That's right – you're not dreaming – this is a rare Scott Walker album, never reissued on CD! The album features Scott singing a number of standards and pop covers, the sort of fare that he laid down on his short-lived TV show in the late 60s. The tunes aren't exactly the same as Scott's own compositions – but the record is arranged by Peter Knight and produced by Johnny Franz, who handled most of Scott's other work on Fontana. Kind of a hint at the direction he would take after his 5th album – and with the tracks "The Look of Love", "Will You Still Be Mine", "If She Walked Into My Life", "Who", "When The World Was Young", and "I Have Dreamed". Cool cover, too – with a picture of Scott wearing the key to a monastery that once offered him refuge! LP, Vinyl record album

One of the coolest soundtracks of the 60s – presented here in a massive package that brings forth a wealth of never-reissued music! Piero Piccioni really hit his stride for the music to this film that was directed by its star – the effervescent Alberto Sordi – a fantastic send-up on the London scene of the time, set to a range of modly romping tunes! Piccioni handled the main music – often with loads of great piano and organ lines – but there's also some great vocal moments too, sung by Lydia MacDonald, Julie Rogers, and even Sordi – and the record also features a few touches from I Cantori Moderni, and a bit of music from Ennio Morricone too. Titles include the wonderful "Mr Dante Fontana", a nutty groover about the mod fashion scene in London – and it also features the famous tracks "Richmond Bridge" and "You Never Told Me". Titles include a few versions of "Fontana" and "Richmond", plus "Ascot Dream", "Magic Castle", "Tango Walk", "Drag Beat", "This Is Life", "Palace Parade March", "Babylon, I'm Coming", and "His Dream Has Come True". 3CD set features the full original album in both mono and stereo – plus 71 bonus tracks from the film score! CD

A pretty nice left turn from Krautrock pioneer Michael Rother – who veers from the more outwardly lumbering sound of his earlier Flammende Herzen LP into a tighter, even more melodic instrumental sound on Sterntaler! This album indeed shares some of the traits of Rother's earlier partners in Kraftwerk – particularly the gliding atmosphere the Autobahn album – not to mention Rother's earlier work with Neu! That said, Rother does his own thing with a bit more of an anthemic quality that really manages to tug at your emotions – also with a little more of a reliance on traditional rock & roll instrumentation behind the soaring keyboards! Titles include "Sterntaler", "Blauer Regen", "Stromlinien", "Sonnenrad", "Fontana Di Luna", "Orchestrion". CD

A great set of under-reissued material by Herman – featuring sides recorded for MGM in 1951 and 1952, plus a few more for the Mars label – when he was working with his "Third Herd" group that included Urbie Green, Don Fagerquist, Bill Perkins, and Carl Fontana. Most titles were originally only issued on 78s, and titles include "Moten Stomp", "Perdido", "Celestial Blues", "Teressita", "This Is New", "Dandy Lion", "New Golden Wedding", and "Blue Flame". CD