Excellent early recordings from the team of JJ Johnson and Kai Winding – the kind of sides that always remind us how great their twin trombone work could be! The album's lacking the cliches of later albums, and presents both players at their best – soulful and stripped down, grooving in a few different groups – with players who include Billy Bauer on guitar, Leo Parker on baritone, and Charles Mingus on bass. The album also features a solo track by each – and titles include "Coop", "The Major", "Lament", "Bernie's Tune", and "Blues For Trombones". CD

Great bop trombone material from the Prestige Records 10" years! LP, Vinyl record album

Genius, pure genius! If you've ever wondered why folks think Stan is so great, check out this landmark set of postwar modern swing tunes – some of the most groundbreaking work of its generation, and proof that there was still a lot of room to grow within the big band format. June Christy provides some icy vocals on a few numbers, and other strong players on the set include Vido Musso, Boots Mussulli, Kai Winding, Eddie Safranski, and Shelly Manne. Arrangements are by Pete Rugolo, Gene Roland, and Stan – and titles include "Artistry In Bass", "Artistry In Percussion", "Fantasy", "Come Back To Sorrento", "Soothe Me", "Opus In Pastels", and "Artistry In Bolero". 78 RPM, Vinyl record

With Chris Vadala on saxophones, flute, and clarinet, Grant Geissman on guitars, Charles Meeks on bass, and James Bradley Jr on drums and percussion, and featuring Jeff Tkazyik on lead turmpet and flugelhorn, Ron Leonard on cello, Don Potter and Phyllis Hyman on vocals, Bill Reichenbach, Kai Winding, Mayo Tiana, and Dana Hughes on trombones, and Dick Decker, George Stimpson, and Brad Warner on french horns. LP, Vinyl record album

A well-done package that celebrates the key contributions that Savoy Records made to the field of jazz on record – as the New Jersey company was one of the first to record the new wave of bebop in the late 40s, and quickly unleashed the music of Charlie Parker and his contemporaries on a host of famous 78rpm singles at the time! This set features many of those key 78 recordings, but focuses on their presentation in a series of 10" LP releases that Savoy did in the early 50s – vinyl packages that compiled the earlier shellac sides into a more durable format – and presented the key efforts that the label made in helping bebop get out of the clubs and onto the turntable! As with other Craft Records packages, the presentation is great – and really upgrades other reissues of the material with great sound, notes, and artwork that really live up to the contents within. 5LP set features all the original 10" LP sleeves, housed in a slipcase, alongside notes and photos – with classic material recorded under the leadership of Milt Jackson, Leo Parker, Stan Getz, Dexter Gordon, JJ Johnson, Charlie Parker, Kai Winding, Allen Eager, Budd Johnson, Fats Navarro, Eddie Lockjaw Davis, Roy Porter, and Serge Chaloff! LP, Vinyl record album

The roots of modern jazz never sounded this great before – and this is the first time ever that all the early bop recordings by Savoy have been properly brought together in one place! Savoy was one of the most important labels to record the early bop pioneers – and had a dedication to the music that begin in 1945, and moved well into the 50s – as the label captured some of the brightest young stars who'd go onto shape a generation! Almost all of this material was originally issued just as 78rpm singles – then later scattered and repackaged in a confusing way – although many tracks here also never made it into the LP or CD generation, either. The folks at Mosaic have worked incredible magic to correct that error – and have pulled together a stunning 10CD package that finally presents this amazing legacy of music in its proper form – complete with notes and session details that were never given in later years, too. There's way too much here to list in this space – but the set features dates recorded under the name of Dexter Gordon, Fats Navarro, Stan Getz, JJ Johnson, Sonny Stitt & Kenny Dorham's Bebop Boys, Allen Eager, Kai Winding, Ray Brown, Eddie Davis, Serge Chaloff, Kenny Hagood, Leo Parker, Tadd Dameron, Teddy Reig, Brew Moore, Milt Jackson, Kenny Clarke, and Gil Fuller – all with groups that are filled with equally hip and important musicians too. We love Mosaic all the time – but with a collection of 78rpm material, they really knock it out of the park – and do us, and the jazz history books, a mighty big favor! CD

A great little set of jazzy grooves – put together by the Messin Around team from London's Jazz Cafe! The package features 18 groovy little gems – a mix of funk and strident jazz dancers, handled with the fresh approach of the London scene, and with a feel that reminds us a lot of some of the best Gilles Peterson compilations for Talking Loud. There's plenty of gems on here that haven't been reissued – plus other tunes that have provided samples for the likes of The Beastie Boys or Fat Boy Slim. Includes the totally rare Roy Ayers cut "Party Sex", worth the price of the compilation alone – plus "La Descarga Del Bobo" by Willie Bobo, "Cloudburst" by Jon Hendricks, "Outrageous" by Johnny Pate, "Burning Spear" by Kenny Burrell, "Jim On The Move" by Lalo Schifrin, "Sliced Tomatoes" by The Just Brothers, "Gimme Some More (very live)" by The JBs, "The Sidewinder" by Kai Winding, "Sunny" by Herb Albert, "Mathar" by Dave Pike, "Afrodisia (Snowboy rmx)" by Roy Hargrove's Cristal, "Au Right" by George Duke, and "Got Myself A Good Man" by Gladys Knight. CD

Beautifully icy vocals from the amazing Chris Connor – the kind of record that set a new standard for vocal jazz back in the 50s! The session's a small group one – with Chris singing intimately alongside backing from Herbie Mann on flute and tenor, Kai Winding and JJ Johnson on trombones, Joe Puma on guitar, and Ralph Sharon on piano – all lightly arranged to allow Connor's vocals prime placement in the record, while shading in the spaces with some nicely modern colors. Titles are mostly familiar, but wonderfully transformed into Connor's own personal statements – and tracks include "Ridin High", "It's All Right With Me", "Someone To Watch Over Me", "All Dressed Up With A Broken Heart", "All This & Heaven Too", "Trouble Is a Man", "Blame It On My Youth", and "The Thrill Is Gone". CD

Early small group recordings with Hank Jones, Zoot Sims, Walter Bishop, and Duke Jordan – plus as a soloist with Kai Winding's Krazy Kats and Woody Herman and his Orchestra. CD

With Kai Winding, June Christy, Vido Musso, Shelly Manne, Bob Cooper, John Anderson, Boots Mussulli, and Eddie Sadranski. CD

Featuring Vido Musso, Kai Winding, Eddie Safranski, Boots Mussulli, Stan Getz, Shorty Rogers, and Shelly Manne. LP, Vinyl record album

Classic work from a time when the soundtrack scene turned heavily to jazz music – when both American and European directors moved away from using larger orchestrations, and focused instead on smaller combos and strong soloists who really gave the music a heck of a lot of feeling! The work here is mostly from a generation that's a bit beyond the years of film noir – mostly crime and thrillers that took strong advantage of jazz for more dramatic and action-based scenes – in ways that also gave a lot of showcase to some of the players and composers working in and around LA in the 50s. The tracks here are maybe a bit less obscure than some of the other Lux & Ivy collections – more from albums than singles, including a few that offer up covers of original recordings – 24 titles that include "After Sunset" by Frankie Ortega, "A Quiet Gass" and "Touch Of Evil" by Henry Mancini, "Harlem Nocturne" by Warren Barker, "MacDougal Street Special" by Elmer Bernstein, "Floozie" by Alex North, "Experiment In Terror" by Kai Winding, "Dragnet" by Ray Anthony, "Two Hour Honeymoon" by Paul Hampton, and "End Title" by Gerry Mulligan. CD