One of the last John Patton albums for Blue Note, and one of the best! A young James "Blood" Ulmer's on guitar, and Marvin Cabell (who we only know from Patton LPs) is on tenor and flute. The sound is deep and soulful, and despite the "accent on the blues" of the title, the feel's more Blue Note soul than it actually is bluesy. Ulmer's guitar is great, with this raspy edge that gives a nice depth to the album – and titles include reat versions of Harold Mabern's "Rakin' & Scrapin" and Eddie Harris' "Freedom Jazz Dance", plus some excellent originals by Cabell like "Captain Nasty" and "Village Lee". Plus, this CD reissue also features 4 other tracks, 3 of which are unreleased titles like "Sweet Pea", "2 J", and "Buddy Boy". CD

A really unusual album from the mighty Hammond giant John Patton – as the set features two tenor players in the group, both of them great! The tenor's no stranger to the sublime keyboard work of Patton – but here, the great one gets help from both Fred Jackson and Harold Vick – both of whom are at their early 60s soul jazz best, able to play with a hard edge, but also some surprisingly complicated moments too – which really fits into the spirit of Patton's overall groove! The group also features great guitar from Grant Green – one of his key pairings with the organist – plus drums from the wonderful Ben Dixon, who's got a fluid, open approach to rhythm that really works well with John's basslines from the Hammond. Titles include "Gee Gee", "Pig Foots", "Spiffy Diffy", "Along Came John", and the classic modal groover "The Silver Meter". CD

A really unusual album from the mighty Hammond giant John Patton – as the set features two tenor players in the group, both of them great! The tenor's no stranger to the sublime keyboard work of Patton – but here, the great one gets help from both Fred Jackson and Harold Vick – both of whom are at their early 60s soul jazz best, able to play with a hard edge, but also some surprisingly complicated moments too – which really fits into the spirit of Patton's overall groove! The group also features great guitar from Grant Green – one of his key pairings with the organist – plus drums from the wonderful Ben Dixon, who's got a fluid, open approach to rhythm that really works well with John's basslines from the Hammond. Titles include "Gee Gee", "Pig Foots", "Spiffy Diffy", "Along Came John", and the classic modal groover "The Silver Meter". CD

Surprisingly nice recent work from Blue Note organ jazz legend Big John Patton! The album was recorded in New York in 1993 – at a time when Patton was being rediscovered, and brought back into the light as an excellent player with a hell of a lot to offer, one who'd just been slowly forgotten by the record companies over the years. The session features some great (and surprisingly straight!) alto work by John Zorn, one of Patton's biggest supporters in this comeback time – plus tenor by Pete Chavez, tenor and soprano by Bill Saxton, guitar by Ed Cherry, and rhythm by old Blue Note players, with drums by Eddie Gladden and conga by Lawrence Killian. The best tracks on the album have an amazing searching groove – similar to that that Patton was crafting on his late Blue Notes, such as Understanding and Memphis New York Spirit. Other tracks are a bit more funky jazz oriented, but still quite strong – and titles include "U Jaama", "Bama", "Chip", "Congo Chant", and "Popeye". CD

A wonderfully wicked meeting of the minds – and a legendary bit of soul jazz from organist Big John Patton! The core of the record features the usual Patton groove – with John on Hammond, Grant Green on guitar, and Otis Finch on drums – but added to that mix is Bobby Hutcherson on vibes, making a rare appearance on an organ jazz session, with some wonderful results! The combination of vibes and organ is especially haunting – jangling a groove with a really modal feel, and creating a sound that instantly made this one stand out from the pack! The whole thing's great, and tracks include "The Turnaround", "Let Em Roll", "Latona", and "One Step Ahead". CD

A wonderfully wicked meeting of the minds – and a legendary bit of soul jazz from organist Big John Patton! The core of the record features the usual Patton groove – with John on Hammond, Grant Green on guitar, and Otis Finch on drums – but added to that mix is Bobby Hutcherson on vibes, making a rare appearance on an organ jazz session, with some wonderful results! The combination of vibes and organ is especially haunting – jangling a groove with a really modal feel, and creating a sound that instantly made this one stand out from the pack! The whole thing's great, and tracks include "The Turnaround", "Let Em Roll", "Latona", and "One Step Ahead". LP, Vinyl record album

Oh Baby is right – as the album's one of the best Blue Note albums by Hammond legend Big John Patton – a perfect mix of funky organ and burning hardbop! The tracks hare are all originals penned for the album – mostly by Patton, but also by other group members – the kind of fresh grooves that made John's organ work for Blue Note really stand out from the rest of the 60s Hammond generation – very creative stuff, with occasional modern touches, and a rhythmic conception that's not only unusual, but which also really lets the soloists stretch out on their grooves! Players include Harold Vick on tenor, Blue Mitchell on trumpet, Ben Dixon on drums, and Grant Green on guitar – and the album's about as sharp as you can get for a Blue Note organ session. Titles include "Fat Judy", "Each Time", "One To Twelve", and "Night Flight". CD

A really unusual album from the mighty Hammond giant John Patton – as the set features two tenor players in the group, both of them great! The tenor's no stranger to the sublime keyboard work of Patton – but here, the great one gets help from both Fred Jackson and Harold Vick – both of whom are at their early 60s soul jazz best, able to play with a hard edge, but also some surprisingly complicated moments too – which really fits into the spirit of Patton's overall groove! The group also features great guitar from Grant Green – one of his key pairings with the organist – plus drums from the wonderful Ben Dixon, who's got a fluid, open approach to rhythm that really works well with John's basslines from the Hammond. Titles include "Gee Gee", "Pig Foots", "Spiffy Diffy", "Along Came John", and the classic modal groover "The Silver Meter". LP, Vinyl record album

Insanely wonderful – and pretty darn rare! This album by John Patton was cut during the 60s, but never issued until the 80s – and even then, only briefly – yet it's easily one of our favorite records ever by this legendary Hammond player, thanks to lots of weird twists and turns! Although the record's led by Patton, it's more in the mad style of George Braith – who plays some wonderful sax on the session, in the manner of his excellent Laughing Soul album – a Prestige Records session cut with Patton and Grant Green around the same time. The vibe is very different than some of Patton's other Blue Notes – very rhythmically playful, and mixed with mad reed lines from Braith – with superbly sharp guitar lines from Grant Green, top trumpet work from Tommy Turrentine, and this great sense of skittish rhythm from the always-amazing drummer Ben Dixon. Titles include "Hot Sauce", "Bermuda Clay House", "Nicety", and "Blue John". CD

A classic by Big John Patton! The master organ player is joined by Grant Green on guitar, and the much-overlooked drummer Hugh Walker – a fantastic player on the kit, little known, but who played with this incredible "skipping" groove – one that sounds that reminds us a lot of some of the work that Joe Dukes did with Jack McDuff in the 60s! There's no bass on the set at all – and Walker's drums combine with added conga from Richard Landrum – giving the songs an extra roll, and a modal approach that expands Patton's sound past his usual gutbuckety soul jazz! Includes loads of great tracks – especially the jazz dance classic "The Yodel", as well as on Sam Cooke's "The Shake", Duke Pearson's "Amanda", and the great "Soul Woman". CD

An obscure session by John Patton, and a great one too! The set was recorded sometime between the end of Patton's successful run at Blue Note, and before he was rediscovered, and brought back out into the light by John Zorn and other younger players who appreciated his skill. The style of the album's great – in a mode that really recalls the farther-reaching organ work of Pattons' later Blue Note years, not exactly as modern as players like Larry Young, but clearly inspired by a freedom that was coming into use of the organ at the time. The group's an all-star one, too – with Grachan Moncur making a rare organ jazz appearance, Melvin Sparks on guitar, Grant Reed on tenor, and drummer Alvin Queen (who's label the set was recorded for), laying down some dexterous rhythms that remind us a bit of Hugh Walker's work on some of Patton's best Blue Notes. Includes a great reading of Dusko Goykovich's "Soul Connection", plus versions of Moncur's "Space Station" and "The Coaster". And oddly, this one turns up less than most of Pattons' albums from the 60s! LP, Vinyl record album

A brilliantly bubbling session from Hammond genius John Patton – and a set that serves as a real link between the gutbucket soul of his early years, and some of the fresher phrasing he was beginning to explore at Blue Note! Patton's lines on the keys are a wonderful thing to behold (and behear!) – as they're both rhythmic, but extremely fluid and exploratory – more conceived around some of the new ideas on tenor at the time, and pushing forward roughly into the same territory as Larry Young – but with more of Patton's rootsy soul still intact. Junior Cook is in the group on most tracks on tenor – sounding quite fresh himself in this context as he leaps around with new energy – and the rest of the group features Jimmy Ponder on guitar and Clifford Jarvis on drums. The cuts are all originals, further proof of Patton's genius through his writing – and titles include "String Bean", "I Want To Go Home", "Dirty Fingers", and "Daddy James". LP, Vinyl record album

One of the coolest, hippest albums on Blue Note from organist John Patton – a set that really shows the Hammond giant taking on a new sense of direction – especially in his rhythms! The album's one of a few of John's to feature great drums from the massively overlooked Hugh Walker – a player who could really open up a tune, while still letting it swing – creating this sense of space that's really filled up by Patton's broad colors and tones on the keyboard, and by some mindblowing work on tenor sax by the equally overlooked Harold Alexander! The tunes have an open, flowing feel that's almost more in Larry Young territory – yet still retains the soul of Patton's other work too – and titles include "Soul Man", "Chittlings Con Carne", "Ding Dong", and "Congo Chant". LP, Vinyl record album

One of the last John Patton albums for Blue Note, and one of the best. A young James "Blood" Ulmer's on guitar, and Marvin Cabell (who we only know from Patton LPs) is on tenor and flute. The sound is deep and soulful, and despite the "accent on the blues" of the title, the feel's more blue note than bluesy. Great versions of Harold Mabern's "Rakin' & Scrapin" and Eddie Harris' "Freedom Jazz Dance", plus some excellent originals by Cabell. LP, Vinyl record album

Insanely wonderful – and pretty darn rare! This album by John Patton was cut during the 60s, but never issued until the 80s – and even then, only briefly – yet it's easily one of our favorite records ever by this legendary Hammond player, thanks to lots of weird twists and turns! Although the record's led by Patton, it's more in the mad style of George Braith – who plays some wonderful sax on the session, in the manner of his excellent Laughing Soul album – a Prestige Records session cut with Patton and Grant Green around the same time. The vibe is very different than some of Patton's other Blue Notes – very rhythmically playful, and mixed with mad reed lines from Braith – with superbly sharp guitar lines from Grant Green, top trumpet work from Tommy Turrentine, and this great sense of skittish rhythm from the always-amazing drummer Ben Dixon. Titles include "Hot Sauce", "Bermuda Clay House", "Nicety", and "Blue John". LP, Vinyl record album

Insanely wonderful – and pretty darn rare! This album by John Patton was cut during the 60s, but never issued until the 80s – and even then, only briefly – yet it's easily one of our favorite records ever by this legendary Hammond player, thanks to lots of weird twists and turns! Although the record's led by Patton, it's more in the mad style of George Braith – who plays some wonderful sax on the session, in the manner of his excellent Laughing Soul album – a Prestige Records session cut with Patton and Grant Green around the same time. The vibe is very different than some of Patton's other Blue Notes – very rhythmically playful, and mixed with mad reed lines from Braith – with superbly sharp guitar lines from Grant Green, top trumpet work from Tommy Turrentine, and this great sense of skittish rhythm from the always-amazing drummer Ben Dixon. Titles include "Hot Sauce", "Bermuda Clay House", "Nicety", and "Blue John". Includes the bonus tracks "Jean De Fleur", "Chunky Cheeks", "Kinda Slick" & "Untitled Patton Tune". CD

Rare work by Hammond organ giant Big John Patton – recorded in 1968, but never issued until 1995, and even then, only briefly! The record features Patton at his finest – stretching out from his basic soul jazz roots, into a more searching use of the organ that's undoubtedly influenced by Larry Young's work at the same time. The record features great work by Harold Alexander on flute and tenor, plus trumpet by Vincent McEwan, drums by George Brown, and added conga by Richard Landrum. The groove is somewhere between 60s soul jazz and modal – and the tracks are long, with that heavy Patton swing! Title sinclude "B&J (Two Sisters)", "Boogaloo Boogie", "Milk & Honey", "Shoutin' But No Poutin'", and "Spirit". LP, Vinyl record album

A great lost album by John Patton – recorded in 1970, but not ever issued until 1995! The record was most likely held back because it's one of the funky organist's most far-reaching – a stunning batch of modal tracks that moves way past the usual organ sound, and much more into Larry Young-ish territory. A young James Blood Ulmer is on guitar, and the great (and underrecorded) Marvin Cabell plays flute, soprano, and tenor sax. Really great stuff – and most likely material that will disappear again for another 25 years! Titles include "The Mandingo", "Bloodyun", "Memphis", "Steno", and a cover of Wayne Shorter's "Footprints". LP, Vinyl record album

An amazing meeting of two unlikely talents – the classic Blue Note Hammond sound of John Patton, and the angular alto of improvisor John Zorn! The set's not as much of a surprise when you realize that Zorn had been a fan of Patton for years – and had used the organist on some of his key 80s projects, at a time when Patton had really fallent out of the limelight. As a way of returning the favor, Zorn produced this excellent album as part of Patton's comeback efforts in the late 90s – and without a doubt, it's one of Big John's best records since the 60s! Zorn's amazingly respectful of the classic Patton sound, and manages to create a setting of angular, modal grooves that really recalls the freshest, freest-thinking styles of the Blue Note years – with long tracks that let both players stretch out nicely – in a way that shows that Patton has lost none of his solo imagination on the Hammond, and which has Zorn playing soulfully and straight ahead, but with a wonderful edge that's almost like Benny Maupin or Tyrone Washington on Blue Note at the time! The rest of the group features Ed Cherry on guitar and Kenny Washington on drums – and titles include "B Men Thel", "Lite Hit", "The Way I Feel", "Tyrone", "Minor Swing", "The Rock", and "Along Came John". File this one next to your Patton Blue Notes – and you'll hardly notice the difference! CD

An amazing meeting of two unlikely talents – the classic Blue Note Hammond sound of John Patton, and the angular alto of improvisor John Zorn! The set's not as much of a surprise when you realize that Zorn had been a fan of Patton for years – and had used the organist on some of his key 80s projects, at a time when Patton had really fallent out of the limelight. As a way of returning the favor, Zorn produced this excellent album as part of Patton's comeback efforts in the late 90s – and without a doubt, it's one of Big John's best records since the 60s! Zorn's amazingly respectful of the classic Patton sound, and manages to create a setting of angular, modal grooves that really recalls the freshest, freest-thinking styles of the Blue Note years – with long tracks that let both players stretch out nicely – in a way that shows that Patton has lost none of his solo imagination on the Hammond, and which has Zorn playing soulfully and straight ahead, but with a wonderful edge that's almost like Benny Maupin or Tyrone Washington on Blue Note at the time! The rest of the group features Ed Cherry on guitar and Kenny Washington on drums – and titles include "B Men Thel", "Lite Hit", "The Way I Feel", "Tyrone", "Minor Swing", "The Rock", and "Along Came John". File this one next to your Patton Blue Notes – and you'll hardly notice the difference! CD

A groundbreaking album, put together by Zorn and a group of downtown New York hipsters, as a fitting hommage to the genius of Ennio Morricone! The track list sticks to mostly the bigger known numbers, and the album's got a darkness that we'd actually say was a bit out of place, considering the choice of tracks – but the groups formed by Zorn do a pretty good job of breathing new life into some of the tracks, and the album was a key moment in the recognition of Morricone as one of the century's greatest composers. Players include Robert Quine, Tim Berne, Arto Lindsay, Jim Staley, Bill Frisell, Christian Marclay, Anton Fier, and even Big John Patton. Titles include "Erotico", "Once Upon A Time In The West", "Giu La Testa", "Battle Of Algiers", and "The Big Gundown". CD

A groundbreaking album, put together by Zorn and a group of downtown New York hipsters, as a fitting hommage to the genius of Ennio Morricone! The track list sticks to mostly the bigger known numbers, and the album's got a darkness that we'd actually say was a bit out of place, considering the choice of tracks – but the groups formed by Zorn do a pretty good job of breathing new life into some of the tracks, and the album was a key moment in the recognition of Morricone as one of the century's greatest composers. Players include Robert Quine, Tim Berne, Arto Lindsay, Jim Staley, Bill Frisell, Christian Marclay, Anton Fier, and even Big John Patton. Titles include "Erotico", "Once Upon A Time In The West", "Giu La Testa", "Battle Of Algiers", and "The Big Gundown". Plus, this Anniversary Edition comes with a pile of bonus tracks – including "The Sicilian Clan", "The Ballad Of Hank McCain", and "Soegliatti & Uccidi". CD

A cool cooker from the great Lou Donaldson – and a record that's ever bit as tasty as its cover! Lou's really hitting his soul jazz stride here – stepping off his 50s bop years, and moving into a more gutbuckety groove that's delivered with wonderful accompaniment from a quartet that features Grant Green on guitar, John Patton on Hammond, and Ben Dixon on drums! The style is loose and open – and tracks are long, with tight solos, especially from Patton and Green, always a winning combination – really stepping out here with an early raw fury! Titles include "Caracas", "Bad John", "Holy Ghost", and "Good Gracious!". Nice cover, too, with a photo of Lou checking out a sexy model, while speaking the title! CD

A pivotal record from Lou Donaldson – one that has him forging out some of his first funky soul jazz sounds, moving from his bop roots, and working with a hip young group that includes Grant Green and John Patton, both of whom he discovered and brought to Blue Note (thanks Lou!) The tracks have a tight jaunty feel – very much like those on Patton's mid 60s sides for Blue Note, with lots of room for each player to solo intently – but still a strong focus on the overall groove of the ensemble. Cover's very nice – and tracks include "Funky Mama", "Spaceman Twist", and "Nice n Greasy". CD

A pivotal record from Lou Donaldson – one that has him forging out some of his first funky soul jazz sounds, moving from his bop roots, and working with a hip young group that includes Grant Green and John Patton, both of whom he discovered and brought to Blue Note (thanks Lou!) The tracks have a tight jaunty feel – very much like those on Patton's mid 60s sides for Blue Note, with lots of room for each player to solo intently – but still a strong focus on the overall groove of the ensemble. Cover's very nice – and tracks include "Funky Mama", "Spaceman Twist", and "Nice n Greasy". CD features one bonus track too – "People Will Say We're In Love". CD

One of Grant Green's mellowest albums – a haunting set of intimate ballads and blues, played with a quintet that includes John Patton on organ, Joe Henderson on tenor, and Johnny Coles on trumpet. Henderson and Coles give the album a very different feel than the usual Grant Green soul bop session – and Green proves himself to be a sensitive soloist more than capable of opening up new moods and colors of old standards like "For All We Know", "Am I Blue", and "I Wanna Be Loved". CD

One of Grant Green's mellowest albums – a haunting set of intimate ballads and blues, played with a quintet that includes John Patton on organ, Joe Henderson on tenor, and Johnny Coles on trumpet. Henderson and Coles give the album a very different feel than the usual Grant Green soul bop session – and Green proves himself to be a sensitive soloist more than capable of opening up new moods and colors of old standards like "For All We Know", "Am I Blue", and "I Wanna Be Loved". CD

This one was recorded in 1968, issued briefly on a small label, and then finally pressed for the larger masses during the early 70s by the Cobblestone label. Despite this checkered history, though, the album's one of Green's best small group recordings – and features a classic jazz organ trio sound, and features Green's guitar with the organ of John Patton and the drumming of Ben Dixon. We can't imagine a better combo, especially as the three of them were one of the best teams ever to put out soul jazz sessions for Blue Note! The record includes the version of "High Heel Sneakers" that has shown up on a few comps over the years, plus the tracks "Work Song", "Iron City", and "Old Man Moses". The feel is very similar to some of Green's Blue Notes, with a very classic sound. CD

2 great albums by drummer Grassella Oliphant recorded for Atlantic in the mid 60s – back to back on a single CD! 1965's Grass Roots is a moody set of tracks played by a small group that includes Harold Ousley on tenor and Bobby Hutcherson on vibes. Ousley's sound is amazing, and he hits these wonderful moments on some of the solos that will just blow you away. He almost never gets his due on wax, and this record is certainly one of his finest moments. Hutcherson's pretty darn great, too, and lays out some haunting lines on the vibes that match his best Blue Note playing. Titles include lots of originals by Ousley, including "Haitian Lady", "Mrs. O", "The Descendant", and "One For The Masses". Nice stuff, and one that hardly ever turns up! Grass Is Greener is a nice lost bit of funky soul jazz from the obscure drummer! The album's a stone groove, very much in the Blue Note mid 60s mode – and it features Big John Patton, Grant Green, and Harold Ousley. Includes the great groovers by Patton & Green, "The Yodel" and "Soul Woman", a nice cover of "Cantaloupe Woman", and a killer breakbeat version of "Get Out of My Life Woman", with very hard drums at the beginning! Very groovy and funky, in a way that's similar to some of John Patton's best work on Blue Note for the time. CD

Smoking work on Hammond from Freddie Roach – a key player in the Blue Note lineup of the 60s, and a strong link between the label's soul jazz and modern sides! The sound here is a really beautiful one – partly in the organ/tenor mode forged by Baby Face Willette and John Patton in their early recordings for Blue Note, but also stretching out in that way that started to show up in Patton's later work, and in the seminal work from the time by Larry Young. Freddie's touch on the keys is really opening up here – clearly driven by some more original ideas that help push the album past the more R&B influenced sound of some of his earlier work. Players on the set include Joe Henderson on tenor, Eddie Wright on guitar, and Clarence Johnston on drums – and title cuts include "Brown Sugar", plus "All Night Long", "Have You Ever Had The Blues", and "The Right Time". LP, Vinyl record album

A long-overdue reissue of the three Blue Note albums recorded by tenor sax giant Don Wilkerson! Wilkerson's one of the lesser-known artists to record for the label – a deep-throated Texas tenorman with a style that's a bit more R&B influenced than other Blue Note artists. The label took this huge talent, and set it up in some perfectly-conceived settings, inflecting Wilkerson's rootsiness with some of the soul jazz modernism of players like Grant Green, John Patton, Sonny Clark, and Ben Dixon. The set features all the tracks from the albums Elder Don, Preach Brother, and Shoutin – and titles include "Jeanie Weenie", "Lone Star Shuffle", "Drawin A Tip", "Movin Out", "Happy Johnny", "Sweet Cake", "Scrappy", "Pigeon Peas", and "Dem Tambourines". 18 tracks in all! CD

A surprisingly great album from the Yaya trio of Joshua Redman, Sam Yahel, and Brian Blade. Yahel plays Hammond organ on the set, and the format here is kind of like the late late Big John Patton and Larry Young albums for Blue Note – freer, more open grooves than the usual organ/tenor session, kind of an elliptical swing that's still very rooted in the soul jazz organ tradition, yet which also has a post-Coltrane sense of exploration. The setting is wonderful for Redman, who carves out some great solos on tenor and soprano, but the real star of the set is Yahel, whose organ work is sublime – with a tone and a style that we haven't heard executed this well in years! A real delight – the rare kind of new album that will please fans of classic Hammond grooves, yet also push the instrument to new heights of expression. Titles include "Hometown", "Slow Orbit", "Switchblade", "The Scribe", "One More Once", and "The Spirit Lives On". CD

Music from Horace Silver, John Coltrane, Art Blakey, Lou Donaldson, Cannonball Adderley, Kenny Burrell, Lee Morgan, Herbie Hancock, Donald Byrd, US3, John Patton, Grant Green, Jimmy Smith, Richard Elliot, and more – 20 tracks in all. CD

Beautiful beautiful work from David Murray – a follow-up to his initial Shakill's Warrior album, and done in a style that we like even better than the first! Don Pullen is a key part of the set – working here on fluid organ lines that are somewhere between the early Larry Young work on Blue Note and the later John Patton styles for the label – a perfect foil for Murray's straight and soulful blowing on the session. This blend of organ and tenor is really wonderful – and carried off with a near-perfect modal groove on most of the set, save for one or two numbers that get a bit bogged down in guitar work from quartet member Bill White. Titles include "Crazy Tales", "One For The Don", "For Cynthia", "The Sixth Sense", and "1529 Gunn Street". CD

Smoking work on Hammond from Freddie Roach – a key player in the Blue Note lineup of the 60s, and a strong link between the label's soul jazz and modern sides! The sound here is a really beautiful one – partly in the organ/tenor mode forged by Baby Face Willette and John Patton in their early recordings for Blue Note, but also stretching out in that way that started to show up in Patton's later work, and in the seminal work from the time by Larry Young. Freddie's touch on the keys is really opening up here – clearly driven by some more original ideas that help push the album past the more R&B influenced sound of some of his earlier work. Players on the set include Joe Henderson on tenor, Eddie Wright on guitar, and Clarence Johnston on drums – and title cuts include "Brown Sugar", plus "All Night Long", "Have You Ever Had The Blues", and "The Right Time". CD

A healthy dose of organ jazz – with classic cuts that feature work by Leon Spencer, Jimmy Smith, Freddie Roach, John Patton, Jack McDuff, and Charles Earland! CD

A cool cooker from the great Lou Donaldson – and a record that's ever bit as tasty as its cover! Lou's really hitting his soul jazz stride here – stepping off his 50s bop years, and moving into a more gutbuckety groove that's delivered with wonderful accompaniment from a quartet that features Grant Green on guitar, John Patton on Hammond, and Ben Dixon on drums! The style is loose and open – and tracks are long, with tight solos, especially from Patton and Green, always a winning combination – really stepping out here with an early raw fury! Titles include "Caracas", "Bad John", "Holy Ghost", and "Good Gracious!". Nice cover, too, with a photo of Lou checking out a sexy model, while speaking the title! LP, Vinyl record album

Hard wailing! Poppa Lou's caught right at the height of his early Blue Note powers here – recorded in 2 different groups on this set of unreleased sessions from the early 60s! Both sets have Lou in a guitar/organ soul jazz setting – with backing by Grant Green on guitar, and either Jack McDuff or John Patton on organ. The McDuff set features the great Joe Dukes on drums, and the session sparkles like one of McDuff's best Prestige albums from the time. The other session has the classic Patton/Green lineup augmented by trumpeter Irwin Stokes, a lesser-known talent who really opens up the sound nicely. There's a total of 9 tracks in all – a number of them ballads, but done with a lively soulful tone that keeps the whole thing nice and fresh – even after sitting in the vaults for nearly 40 years! Titles include "Star Dust", "Hippty Hop", "Please", "Man With A Horn", and "Cherry Pink & Apple Blossom White". CD

One of Grant Green's mellowest albums – a haunting set of intimate ballads and blues, played with a quintet that includes John Patton on organ, Joe Henderson on tenor, and Johnny Coles on trumpet. Henderson and Coles give the album a very different feel than the usual Grant Green soul bop session – and Green proves himself to be a sensitive soloist more than capable of opening up new moods and colors of old standards like "For All We Know", "Am I Blue", and "I Wanna Be Loved". LP, Vinyl record album

One of Grant Green's mellowest albums – a haunting set of intimate ballads and blues, played with a quintet that includes John Patton on organ, Joe Henderson on tenor, and Johnny Coles on trumpet. Henderson and Coles give the album a very different feel than the usual Grant Green soul bop session – and Green proves himself to be a sensitive soloist more than capable of opening up new moods and colors of old standards like "For All We Know", "Am I Blue", and "I Wanna Be Loved". CD

Lu Watters with Bob Scobey, Turk Murphy, Ellis Horne, Wally Rose, Clancy Hayes, Russ Bennett, Dick Lammi, and Bill Dart. Bunk Johnson with Turk Murphy, Ellis Horne, Burt Bales, Pat Patton, Squire Girsback, Clancy Hayes, and Sister Lottie Peavey. CD

A sweet celebration of 30 years of Kent Records – a longtime home to rare soul from the 60s and 70s, with killer collections like these! The set is way more than a rehash of the label's work from the past three decades – as it also features a big number of previously unreleased tunes too, making the package essential to any longtime fan of the label – as well as any lover of 60s soul in general! All tunes are as upbeat and groovy as you'd expect from the Northern Soul reference in the title – and the whole thing's a smoking reminder of why we've trusted Kent with our record-buying dollars for so many years. Titles include "You Only Live Twice (orig take)" by Lorraine Chandler, "Faith & Understanding (alt mix)" by The Magicians, "What Should I Do (alt mix)" by Little Ann, "I'd Be A Millionaire" by Chuck Jackson, " Two Wrongs Don't Make A Right" by The Mayberry Movement, "True Love Is In The Heart" by Alexander Patton, "Changes" by Lilly Fields, "I'm Shooting High (alt mix)" by OC Tolbert, "I'm Stepping Out Of The Picture" by Johnny Maestro & The Crests, "Handwriting On The Wall" by Bobby Wisdom, "Baby Without You" by Gene & Gary, and "Have Faith In Me" by Sugar & The Spices. CD