Volume 3 of a definitive collection of early Ellington tracks recorded between 1928 and 1934. CD

... LP, Vinyl record album

... LP, Vinyl record album

Broadcast performances by one of the greatest progressive orchestras of the mid 40's. CD

... LP, Vinyl record album

One of Stanley Turrentine's best albums ever – but a record that was recorded in 1962, yet only released by Blue Note 20 years later! The set's a great example of the sheer raw power that Stan had in his tone before it got watered down by his pop-jazz recordings of the later 60s – a sharp edge and way of phrasing that's simply amazing – filled with soulful tradition, yet never prone to any of the cliches of contemporaries like David Newman or Don Wilkerson. The group here is a great one too – a sextet with the amazing Tommy Turrentine on trumpet, punching up some very sharp lines next to stan – plus Kenny Burrell on guitar, Sonny Clark on piano, Butch Warren on bass, and Al Harewood on drums. Titles are a killer batch of spiritual-oriented soul jazz numbers like "Brother Tom", "Jubilee Shout", "My Ship", "Cotton Walk", and "You Said It". LP, Vinyl record album

A pair of great unreleased Stanley Turrentine albums for Blue Note – issued here for the first time ever! First up is Comin Your Way – one of our favorite-ever albums from the great Stanley Turrentine – a really hard-burning session from his earliest days as a leader – and one of the key dates he cut with his brother Tommy Turrentine on trumpet! Both players are wonderful – a sharply soulful team coming off of work with the Max Roach group, but even more confident and powerful as soloists here on this Blue Note session, where they really get to shine! Horace Parlan plays piano, and blocks out grooves that are perfect for each brother to really take flight on their solos – and although the album was originally unissued at the time it was recorded, it's gone onto become a key building block in Stan's legendary catalog. Titles include "Fine Lil' Lass", "Stolen Sweets", "Thomasville", and "My Girl Is Just Enough Woman For Me". Next is Jubilee Shout – a great example of the sheer raw power that Stan had in his tone before it got watered down by his pop-jazz recordings of the later 60s – a sharp edge and way of phrasing that's simply amazing – filled with soulful tradition, yet never prone to any of the cliches of contemporaries like David Newman or Don Wilkerson. The group here is a great one too – a sextet with the amazing Tommy Turrentine on trumpet, punching up some very sharp lines next to stan – plus Kenny Burrell on guitar, Sonny Clark on piano, Butch Warren on bass, and Al Harewood on drums. Titles are a killer batch of spiritual-oriented soul jazz numbers like "Brother Tom", "Jubilee Shout", "My Ship", "Cotton Walk", and "You Said It". LP, Vinyl record album

Joey Dee may not have been the hardest rocker of his time, but his work at the famous Peppermint Lounge in New York was big hit material early in the 60s. This set shows off the raw energy that made the group such a hit at the club – bringing together all his singles for Roulette and Jubilee – and really tearing it up with fierce energy that never seems to let up at all! In other words, this isn't crossover pop of the sort you might expect – but great raw recordings of a well-matched combo really letting loose – driving drums, fast-riffing guitar, and even some organ too – on a total of 46 tracks over two CDs. CD

The ICP Orchestra is a group that never fails to impress us – quite different at times than other ensembles of avant musicians, in that they're always able to find their own voice together as a unit – without ever giving into the egos of the players involved! There's always a mixture of depth and whimsy we can expect from ICP – and that really comes through on this recording – a batch of mostly longer tracks that offer up complex configurations of the instrumentalists, and richly expressive solos from key members. The lineup includes Misha Mengelberg on piano, Ab Baars on clarinet and tenor, Wolter Wierbos on trombone, Michael Moore on alto and clarinet, Thomas Herberer on trumpet, Ernst Reijseger and Tristan Honsiger on cellos, Ernst Glerum on bass, and Han Bennink on drums – and titles include the suites "Jubilee Varia" and "Jealousy", plus the shorter "Rollo 1". CD

Totally great – a lost Pharaohs performance from their brief revival period in the mid 90s – recorded live, with some of the most spiritual sounds the group ever created! Three long tracks – "Hot Tacos", "The Rag Dung Drum Suit", and "Damballa". CD

Includes tracks by the Orioles, the Sultans, the Ravens, the Volumes, the 4 Tunes, the Marylanders, the Dominoes & the Enchanters. CD

Includes tracks by The Marylanders, The Orioles, The Dominoes, The Top Notes, Bob Knight Four, The Ravens, and The Ray O Vacs – 14 tracks in all. CD

A lesser-known set from vocalist Matt Dennis – not as well-remembered as his 50s dates for RCA and Kapp, but still pretty darn great nonetheless! Matt's working here with full backings from Sy Oliver – in a set that showcases his talents more as a singer than a songwriter – but which still manages to include a few great Dennis originals. And despite a cover that looks a bit lurid – with Dennis cornering a model inside a hotel room – the overall feel of the record is quite homey and domestic, with tunes that echo images of hearth and family, but often with the kind of nod and a wink which you might expect from Matt's usual approach to a tune. Titles include "Home", "Welcome Mat", "Back In Your Own Back Yard", "By The Fireside", "A Cup Of Coffe A Sandwich & You", "Let's Put Out The Lights", and "Your Family". LP, Vinyl record album

A classic trio session from Charles Mingus – one of the few he ever recorded! The set's got Mingus on bass, working with regular drummer Danny Richmond and pianist Hampton Hawes – an unusual choice for the record, but a player whose sense of freedom and intensity at this point really helps bring in some of the energy of some of the larger group recordings from Mingus! Hawes' incredible piano lines really fly over the top, and Mingus' bass comes to the forefront as well – getting plenty of room for personal elements that Charles never got as strongly in the larger sessions. The set list includes a mix of originals and standards, with "Back Home Blues", "Hamp's New Blues", "Dizzy Moods", and "Laura". This pressing is the best that's ever been done of the material – and features a whole disc of unreleased outtakes from the sessions, plus new notes too! CD

A really cool concept record from Della Reese – and an early album that shows just how deeply she approached her role as a jazz singer! The set's the "story of the blues" promised in the title – as Della both sings songs with older roots, and presents overarching narration between them – while Sy Oliver presents some great arrangements that evolve nicely over the course of the record – matching Reese's presentation of the lyrics as the as the musical style shifts! The project is the brainchild of Mort Goode – who wrote the text for the narration – but only Della could make it come off so well – free of hoke, as you'll hear on titles that include "Empty Bed Blues", "Lover Man", "There's Always The Blues", "Stormy Weather", and "Squeeze Me". LP, Vinyl record album

Mellow modernism from Joe Puma – one of those guitarists who appeared on countless 50s sessions, then really seemed to disappear from records as the 60s wore on. This album's one of Puma's best – an easily swinging session that flows with warm group interplay, and which never seems to get bogged down in the traps that sometimes plagued sessions of this nature. Side one features a trio with Puma on guitar, Eddie Costa on vibes, and Oscar Pettiford on bass – a very good choice to accompany the other two – and side two features Puma and Pettiford, plus Bill Evans on piano and Paul Motian on drums. Titles include "Mother Of Earl", "Stablemates", "Ubas", and "Blues For Midge". LP, Vinyl record album

A classic trio session from Charles Mingus – one of the few he ever recorded! The set's got Mingus on bass, working with regular drummer Danny Richmond and pianist Hampton Hawes – an unusual choice for the record, but a player whose sense of freedom and intensity at this point really helps bring in some of the energy of some of the larger group recordings from Mingus! Hawes' incredible piano lines really fly over the top, and Mingus' bass comes to the forefront as well – getting plenty of room for personal elements that Charles never got as strongly in the larger sessions. The set list includes a mix of originals and standards, with "Back Home Blues", "Hamp's New Blues", "Dizzy Moods", and "Laura". This pressing is the best that's ever been done of the material – and features a whole disc of unreleased outtakes from the sessions, plus new notes too! LP, Vinyl record album

Great work by Ray Terrace, brother of Pete Terrace – and a Latin bandleader who was hipper than even he was! Tracks include "Oye Carmela", "En El Barrio", "Confusion Mambo", "Loco Y Contento", "Cuchifrito Man", and Herbie Hancock's "Watermelon Man". CD

A lost bit of sunshine pop from the New York scene – the one and only album by the Blades Of Grass! The group's got a sound that's much more in keeping with the California scene of the time – bits of pop harmony, Brit-inspired rocking, and clear strands of influence from groups like The Left Banke, Millenium, and The Beach Boys. A real treat if you dig groovy 60s pop! LP, Vinyl record album

Early pre-Blue Note hardbop by Jackie McLean – and one of the few recordings to feature his sextet with Ray Draper! Draper was a real legend in late 50s jazz – a tuba (?) player, believe it or not, with a sound that was dark, brooding, and very modern – very unlike you'd expect from the instrument. This album has the same rich quality as the session Draper recorded with Coltrane in the same period – and it also features 2 of his amazing compositions, "Filide" and "Two Sons". As for the rest of the group, Webster Young plays coronet, Gil Coggins plays piano, and George Tucker's on drums – and other titles include "Millie's Pad", "Tune Up", and "What Good Am I Without You". CD

Two hard to get early recordings from one of the architects of the hard bop sound, and certainly one of the foremost alto saxophonists of the 50s and 60s. Fat Jazz is a classic pre-Blue Note recording by McLean – one of the few recordings to feature his sextet with Ray Draper! Draper was a real legend in late 50s jazz – a tuba player, believe it or not, with a sound that was dark, brooding, and very modern – very unlike you'd expect from the instrument. The album has the same rich quality as the session Draper recorded with Coltrane in the same period – and it also features 2 of his amazing compositions, "Filide" and "Two Sons". The rest of the group is made up of Webster Young on cornet, Gil Coggins on piano, and George Tucker on bass and Larry Ritchie on drums – and the two other numbers featured are "Millie's Pad" and "What Good Am I Without You". The second set is a really hard one to find, on the tiny Ad Lib label, one of Jackie McLean's earliest dates as a leader. He's working with a quintet that includes Donald Byrd, Doug Watkins, Mal Waldron, and Ron Tucker. The feel here is similar to McLean's albums for Prestige at the same time – a mixture of bop and some of the modernist themes that often surfaced in McLean's work, played in a seductively laidback manner, but with a razor-sharp intensity overall. There's 4 numbers here too: "Mood Malody", "Lover Man", "Blue Doll", "The Way You Look Tonight". Please note that neither of these sets feature all of the tunes issued on the original LP's. LP, Vinyl record album

Amazing late nite vocals from Ilene Woods – a singer we only know from this classic album on Jubilee! The record's that great sort that hardly ever got made much in later years – one of those dreamy late 50s sessions that floats along with effortless ease – pillowy backdrops from Bill Clifton, and light vocals from Ilene that sparkle with a sort of magic that's wonderful – never too over-emotive, never too blue-tinged – just in the right mode for the melancholy mood of the songs. Tunes are a nice mix of unusual numbers and lesser-known standards – and include "It's Late", "If I Love Again", "It's A Blue World", "Everytime", "While We're Young", "You're Blase", and "If You Were Mine". CD

Bobby sings his hit version of "Do You Wanna Dance", plus a selection of numbers that includes originals like "Mardi Gras Rock", "Responsible", and "Good Lovin Is What I Need" – as well as soul covers of songs like "Ebb Tide", "I Believe", and "You'll Never Walk Alone". LP, Vinyl record album

... 7-inch, Vinyl record

A great little set – despite our initial fears about the package – and a really wonderful pairing of the talents of Count Basie and Benny Carter! We'll admit that we're the first ones to shy away from anything that says "Kansas City" in the title – as we expect a lot of hoke – but this album's a surprisingly great batch of tunes, original numbers written by Benny Carter in honor of the KC of days past, but arranged and performed by the Basie group in a swinging style that's got the best touches of their Roulette years, plus a bit of Ellingtonish ambition in the horn charts. Titles include "Katy Do", "Miss Missouri", "Jackson County Jubilee", "Sunset Glow", "Meetin Time", and "The Wiggle Walk". CD

A great little set – despite our initial fears about the package – and a really wonderful pairing of the talents of Count Basie and Benny Carter! We'll admit that we're the first ones to shy away from anything that says "Kansas City" in the title – as we expect a lot of hoke – but this album's a surprisingly great batch of tunes, original numbers written by Benny Carter in honor of the KC of days past, but arranged and performed by the Basie group in a swinging style that's got the best touches of their Roulette years, plus a bit of Ellingtonish ambition in the horn charts. Titles include "Katy Do", "Miss Missouri", "Jackson County Jubilee", "Sunset Glow", "Meetin Time", and "The Wiggle Walk". LP, Vinyl record album

Notable sidemen include Buddy Rich, Georgie Auld, and Ray Conniff. Tracks include "In A Mist", "Button, Button", "High Society", "Flashes", "Jazz Me Blues", "Rockin' Rollers' Jubilee", and "Gangbusters' Holiday". CD

Titles include "Jubilee Stomp", "Hop Head", "Chicago Stompdown", "Black Beauty", "Misty Morning", "The Mooche", "Paducah", "East St Louis Toodle-oo", "Creole Love Call", and more. CD

Many years back, Brian Eno gave us a record called Music For Films – a set that came out during his initial run of Ambient recordings, showing us how strong his instrumental creations could be when and if applied to a cinematic mode! The tracks there were half imagined works for film – and those of us who loved Eno were always hoping that it would lead to more prominent scoring for the electrosonic genius. Turns out, that happened anyway – as this set of 17 tracks will attest – a rising Eno role in the film soundtrack world, served up on contributions from big productions and lesser-known gems. The set features work from films that include Heat, We Are As Gods, Trainspotting, Married To The Mob, Jubilee, Top Boy, Sebastiane, Hammerhead, Rams, Lovely Bones, Francis Bacon's Arena, and Cool World – a surprisingly rich array of material! LP, Vinyl record album

One of the sexiest covers ever to grace a Wynton Marsalis album, but thankfully a record that's still got plenty of real jazz roots – and not the smoother sound you might expect from the image on the front! The group here is Wynton's expanded septet – a combo with Marcus Roberts on piano, Wes Anderson on alto, Wycliffe Gordon on trombone, and Todd Williams on tenor, soprano, and clarinet – all in far-reaching modes of jazz expression that often have an imagistic, soundtrack quality – one that echoes years and places past. Wynton plays piano, and also speaks to introduce "Monologue For Sugar Cane & Sweetie Pie" – and other titles include "And The Band Played On", "Brother Veal", "Sometimes It Goes Like That", and "The Jubilee Suite". CD

A really great collection of work from the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band – a set that's a collection of mostly older tracks, but which also includes a dozen unissued numbers – all put together with that special flair that always made the group's mid-70s records so different than work of their contemporaries! In other words, this is hardly a lean "greatest hits" collection – and instead, the 3LP collection has bits from the first decade of the group's career coming together in all sorts of different ways – almost with the longform exploratory sense of Will The Circle Be Unbroken, and the playful interplay of their Stars & Stripes set – both expanded packages like this. There's many gems here in an array of styles – and titles include "Bayou Jubilee/Sally Was A Goodun", "Some Of Shelly's Blues", "Ripplin Waters", "You Are My Flower", "Creepin Round Your Back Door", "Sixteen Tracks", "Honky Tonkin", "Soldier's Joy", "Buy For Me The Rain", "Melissa", "Woody Woodpecker", "Cosmic Cowboy (part 1)", "Mother Earth Provides For Me", "Jamaica Lady", "Gavotte No 2", "All I Have To Do Is Dream", "Visiting An Old Friend", and "Win Or Lose". CD

... LP, Vinyl record album

A very hip collection of work from the great Joe Turner – material that hasn't been easily issued elsewhere, and which fills in a key chapter of Joe's career! CD1 features vintage material, and is heavy on work from the postwar years, but before Turner rose to a second wave of fame on Atlantic Records – raw tracks recorded for labels that include Freedom and Stag, often with a style that's heavy on the jazzy arrangements that other jump blues artists were using at the time. CD2 features a variety of live recordings – from 1955, 1969, 1971, and 1985 – showing how strongly Turner held onto both his vocal powers over the years, and his ability to command a concert audience. Vintage cuts include "Still In The Dark", "Adam Bit The Apple", "Just A Travelin Man", "Jumpin At The Jubilee", "Around The Clock (part 1)", "Wine O Baby Boogie", "Christmas Date Boogie", and "Baby Won't You Marry Me". Live tracks include "Call The Plumber", "Chicken & The Hawk", "Honey Hush", "Mad Blues", "Chains Of Love", "Cherry Red", "Low Down Dog", and "Flip Flop & Fly". CD

Features songs by Blind Willie Johnson, Rev JM Gates, Arizona Dranes, Mitchell's Christian Singers, Golden Gate Jubilee, Dixie Hummingbirds, Staple Singers, Dorothy Love Coates and more! LP, Vinyl record album

A great late-life effort from Bobby Womack – hardly the kind of record he would have recorded back in the day, and a tremendous testament to his undeniably soulful talents! The album was done with production help from Damon Albarn and Richard Russell – and definitely has a contemporary bent in some of the backings – nothing too overly-modern, nor commercial at all – but a freshness that seems to really set Womack's vocals free – in a format that has Bobby sounding better than we've heard in a long, long time! Russell contributes some beats and effects to the set – but these almost always have a nice earthy sort of crispness – one that makes for music that's quite warm overall, and really fits the rootsy feel of Bobby's vocals – an approach that's not unlike some of the final Gil Scott-Heron recordings, with equally successful results. Titles include "Deep River", "Dayglo Reflection", "Stupid", "If There Wasn't Something There", "Love Is Gonna Lift You Up", "Jubilee", and "Please Forgive My Heart". CD

Includes the songs " I Can't Get Started", "Trees", "Jelly Roll Blues", "'Deed I Do", "High Society", "Black Bottom", "Russian Lullaby", "The Prisoner's Song", "Caravan", "Swanee River", "Never Felt Better, Never Had Less", "(Shango, Shango, Shangoree) Rockin' Rollers Jubilee", "Frankie And Johnny", "'Cause My Baby Says It's So", and "The Wearin' Of The Green". CD

Danny Cobb is one of those singers who never fully got their due – in part because his work was recorded over a number of different labels in the post war year, and also because he usually acted as a vocalist for a bigger name leader – as in most of the tracks on the set, which feature Danny singing with groups led by Lucky Thompson, Paul Williams, and Arnett Cobb! Yet Cobb's got a fantastic presence of his own – one that really unifies the work here, which is culled from sessions done for labels that include Savoy, Acorn, Deluxe, Jubilee, and Vee Jay – great material with Danny's blues-tinged vocals in a mix of jazzy and R&B-styled settings – on titles that include "A Brand New Deal", "Ay Lah Bay", "Someday Baby", "I Need Your Love", "I'm So Happy", "I'll Never Take My Love From You", "Rockaway Blues", and "Don't Mess With My Woman". CD

Titles include "Morning Dance", "Jubilee", "Song For Lorraine", and more. CD

A great lost session by Stan The Man – recorded in the early 60s when he was doing some of his best work, but not issued by Blue Note until the mid 80s! The album stands right up there with other Blue Note gems of the time – especially albums like Comin Your Way and Jubilee Shout, both of which also had to wait many years to be discovered – and Turrentine's got all the bold, raspy tones we love in his youthful horn – a sense of phrasing and energy that's quite different than his later years. The group on the record helps keep the vibe a lot – with some excellent guitar from Grant Green, always a great one on a date like this – plus Tommy Flanagan on piano, Paul Chambers on bass, and Art Taylor on drums. The interplay between Green and Turrentine is wonderful – even before they start soloing – and titles include "ZT's Blues", "Be My Love", "The Lamp Is Low", and "The Way You Look Tonight". CD

Includes Leadbelly, Grace Horn Dodson, Rosie Hibler, Fisk Jubilee Singers, Little Brother Montgomery, Sonny Terry, Vera Hall Ward, and more. Edited by Charles Edward Smith. LP, Vinyl record album

A tremendous legacy in gospel music during the 60s – a crucially important indie from the Memphis scene – and one who recorded really great groups from around the country! Designer were helping shape the sound of modern gospel at the same time as Chess, Savoy, and some of the bigger labels – and doing their work with a similar ear towards some of the more soulful sounds of the secular world – particularly in the way the harmonies and sound of group vocals came together! And despite their name – designer – which might make you think in terms of throwaway fashion – the label has a really classic sound and a rock-solid approach, which makes this overstuffed 4CD set a treasure trove for anyone interested in these key years in gospel music. The set features 101 tracks, in a very cool LP-sized sleeve, complete with an oversized booklet filled with notes and photos – and the collection features work by Foster Brothers, Gospel Songbirds, Twilight Singers, Melody Kings Of Greenwood MS, The Jubilee Hummingbirds, Jackson Trumpeteers, Little Willie Patterson & The Famous South Land Singers, The Shaw Singers, Sister Carrie Daniel, and many many more! CD

A tremendous legacy in gospel music during the 60s – a crucially important indie from the Memphis scene – and one who recorded really great groups from around the country! Designer were helping shape the sound of modern gospel at the same time as Chess, Savoy, and some of the bigger labels – and doing their work with a similar ear towards some of the more soulful sounds of the secular world – particularly in the way the harmonies and sound of group vocals came together! And despite their name – designer – which might make you think in terms of throwaway fashion – the label has a really classic sound and a rock-solid approach, which makes this overstuffed 4CD set a treasure trove for anyone interested in these key years in gospel music. The set features 101 tracks, in a very cool LP-sized sleeve, complete with an oversized booklet filled with notes and photos – and the collection features work by Foster Brothers, Gospel Songbirds, Twilight Singers, Melody Kings Of Greenwood MS, The Jubilee Hummingbirds, Jackson Trumpeteers, Little Willie Patterson & The Famous South Land Singers, The Shaw Singers, Sister Carrie Daniel, and many many more! CD

Includes the songs "I Come From A Musical Family", "Somebody Stole My Break", "If We Never Meet Again", "Lyin' To Myself", "Ev'ntide", "Swing That Music", "Mahogany Hall Stomp", "The Skeleton In The Closet", "Dippermouth Blues", "Swing That Music", "Public Melody Number One", "Yours And Mine", "Alexander's Ragtime Band", "I've Got A Heart Full Of Rhythm", "Sun Showers", "Once In A While", "On The Sunny Side Of The Street", "Satchel Mouth Swing", "Jubilee", and "Struttin' With Some Barbecue". CD

... LP, Vinyl record album