Here's a party that we'd love to be invited to – a festive gathering of bongos and other percussion – served up in a mix of different cuts from a surprising array of sources! The music moves from Latin, to exotica, to jazzy modes – and while percussion is at the core of every cut, there's also plenty of other great elements too – flute lines, organ, guitar, vibes, and vocals at points too – all delivered with a sense of spirit that's totally great! Jack "Mr Bongo" Costanzo is the main star of the set – and delivers tunes that include "Inspector Bongo", "Escuadron De Policia", "Boyle Heights", and "Cigarillo" – and other tracks include "The Idea Of The Greater Age" by Sun Ra, "Wild Percussion" by Tak Shindo, "Singing Bongos" by Rene Hall, "Where's Tim's Guitar" by Jill Kroesen, "Cinco Sin Titulo" by Herb Schoenbohm's Quintet Ipanema, and "Bongo Birthday Surprise" by Nicholas Carras. LP, Vinyl record album

Here's a party that we'd love to be invited to – a festive gathering of bongos and other percussion – served up in a mix of different cuts from a surprising array of sources! The music moves from Latin, to exotica, to jazzy modes – and while percussion is at the core of every cut, there's also plenty of other great elements too – flute lines, organ, guitar, vibes, and vocals at points too – all delivered with a sense of spirit that's totally great! Jack "Mr Bongo" Costanzo is the main star of the set – and delivers tunes that include "Inspector Bongo", "Escuadron De Policia", "Boyle Heights", and "Cigarillo" – and other tracks include "The Idea Of The Greater Age" by Sun Ra, "Wild Percussion" by Tak Shindo, "Singing Bongos" by Rene Hall, "Where's Tim's Guitar" by Jill Kroesen, "Cinco Sin Titulo" by Herb Schoenbohm's Quintet Ipanema, and "Bongo Birthday Surprise" by Nicholas Carras. CD features bonus tracks that include "Jungle Duck" by Nicholas Carras, and "Sunny" and "My Sadness" by Herb Schoenbohm's Quintet Ipanema. CD

Here's a party that we'd love to be invited to – a festive gathering of bongos and other percussion – served up in a mix of different cuts from a surprising array of sources! The music moves from Latin, to exotica, to jazzy modes – and while percussion is at the core of every cut, there's also plenty of other great elements too – flute lines, organ, guitar, vibes, and vocals at points too – all delivered with a sense of spirit that's totally great! Jack "Mr Bongo" Costanzo is the main star of the set – and delivers tunes that include "Inspector Bongo", "Escuadron De Policia", "Boyle Heights", and "Cigarillo" – and other tracks include "The Idea Of The Greater Age" by Sun Ra, "Wild Percussion" by Tak Shindo, "Singing Bongos" by Rene Hall, "Where's Tim's Guitar" by Jill Kroesen, "Cinco Sin Titulo" by Herb Schoenbohm's Quintet Ipanema, and "Bongo Birthday Surprise" by Nicholas Carras. LP, Vinyl record album

A surprising slice of work from the 70s – three different albums all released under various guises by Armenian American reedman Souren Baronian – all put out on his own Carlee label, and done in a very cool mix of styles! Baronian blows both familiar American horns and more exotic instrumentation – sometimes with snakey qualities that echo both Egyptian music and Klezmer, other times with different inflections depending on the setting – and that setting varies here depending on the different records – as they each have a slightly different vibe! These are the sort of sets that would have easily been missed otherwise – either thought of as some 70s knockoff, or watered-down material for the crowds at a tourist spot – but they're wonderful throughout, with a depth of expression that really holds on throughout all the albums. The set brings together the records Middle Eastern Soul by Bob Tashijan & Souren Baronian, The Exciting Music Of The Nor-Ikes by The Nor-Ikes featuring Souren Baronian, and Hye Inspiration by Bob Tashijan & Souren Baronian with The Oud Of John Tarpinian. LP, Vinyl record album

One of the most obscure albums ever issued by exotica king Chaino – a set that was originally only released as a reel to reel tape, and which maybe shows an even wider sonic palette that was designed for that format! All the percussion we love on other Chaino records is firmly in place, but the orchestrations and arrangements are also richer and jazzier – almost more in an RCA Living Stereo mode, and we mean that in the best way possible – as the whole thing is really a top-shelf instrumental exotica album from the bachelor pad generation! There's a few Martin Denny elements here and there, but again the sound is wider and fuller overall – on titles that include "Mambo Italiano", "Mambo Inn", "Cuban Caper", "Caravan", "Cool Mambo", "Tempation", "Eso Es El Amor", and "An Occasional Man". CD

A fantastic array of really cool songs – all written and recorded by Tom Dawes of The Cyrkle – as part of a big career as a jingle writer after his group cut a famous theme song for 7 Up! The music here is great – work from a time when jingles for TV and radio ads were like mini songs in and of themselves – often as catchy as anything on the charts, if not more so – so that the tunes you'd hear for a few short seconds would stick in your head all day long! If you dig sunshine pop, there's plenty to love here – and remember that the great Roger Nichols also gave the world a wonderful tune that was originally designed as a jingle. Some of the tracks here never made it to the TV screen, others are classics – and the set includes songs written for Windex, GI Joe, Alka Seltzer, Calgon, Stridex, Murine, Hartford Insurance, Thom McCann, Life Savers, Timex, Ford, and many others. LP, Vinyl record album

An amazing setting for the righteous words and message of Nikki Giovanni – as the set has the poet working with backing vocals by the New York Community Choir, who also recorded a great soul album on RCA around the same time – and an overall approach that elevates Nikki's poetry into a very spiritual realm! There's definitely some gospel currents to the music, but Givoanni's words and spoken passages have much more down to earth concerns – the mix of political and personal themes that made her one of the most important young black poets of her generation. The whole thing is fantastic – very powerful throughout, with titles that include "My Tower", "Poem For A Lady Of Leisure Now Retired", "Second Rapp Poem", "Great Pax Whitey", "Poem For Aretha", and "Ego Tripping". CD

A really groovy record by a really unusual group – a trio who played at a small resort in Missouri during the 60s, where they effortlessly mixed up elements of rock, jazz, and country for the crowds at the bar! That's the lovely Ann Delrene on the front, and she's a hell of a singer – way more than some lounge wanna-be, and instead a richly talented vocalist who not only does a hell of a lot when she steps to the mic, but also manages to give familiar tunes a very fresh flavor of their own – playing bass alongside the guitar and drums in the trio! Titles include "The Tide", "Funnel Of Love", "Girl From Ipanema", "Voodoo Doll", "Hey Bo Diddley", "Night Train", and "Your Cheatin Heart". LP, Vinyl record album

A very groovy set of jazz vocals – recorded in the mid 60s by Lisa Marne, who was once a TV variety show personality – but never issued at the time! The "combo" on the title really gives a great indication of the feel of the record – small group backing with a very jazzy vibe, in a lineup that includes a nice tenor that slinks alongside Lisa's vocals – as she moves through a very groovy set of tunes that have a hiply swinging vibe – very much in the territory of mid 60s work by Peggy Lee or Marion Montgomery! Titles include her great reading of the vocal version of the "Bewitched" theme song – plus "Like Young", "Wives & Lovers", "Hey Pussycat", "Night Train", "Moment Of Truth", and "Boy From Ipanema". CD

A very groovy set of jazz vocals – recorded in the mid 60s by Lisa Marne, who was once a TV variety show personality – but never issued at the time! The "combo" on the title really gives a great indication of the feel of the record – small group backing with a very jazzy vibe, in a lineup that includes a nice tenor that slinks alongside Lisa's vocals – as she moves through a very groovy set of tunes that have a hiply swinging vibe – very much in the territory of mid 60s work by Peggy Lee or Marion Montgomery! Titles include her great reading of the vocal version of the "Bewitched" theme song – plus "Like Young", "Wives & Lovers", "Hey Pussycat", "Night Train", "Moment Of Truth", and "Boy From Ipanema". LP, Vinyl record album

Wonderful sounds from space – put together in a rare album that was initially issued in a small batch, to coincide with the Seattle Worlds Fair in 1962! For the set, Art Mineo comes up with an amazing batch of spacey sounds that were played at the fair in conjunction with a machine called the "Bubbleator" – a weird transparent elevator – and although Mineo had recorded the music a decade before, it fits surprisingly well for the setting – thanks to quality that's definitely futuristic! There's no electronic instrumentation on the LP, but the sound is off-kilter and mighty weird – with an atonal quality that sounds like it's being made by early computer music instruments, but which is really just a string section and percussion – played in a strange, otherwordly way. The music is spooky, spare, and with an arch-evil sound that's made the record a space age classic since the day it was released – on titles that include "Welcome To Tomorrow", "Gayway To Heaven", "Soaring Silence", "Man Seeks The Future", "Science Of Tomorrow", and "The Queen City". LP, Vinyl record album

A tantric sensual masterpiece, served up with sitar musical backings from the great Jim Sullivan – and a set that's maybe one of the strangest albums to come out of that late 60s psychedelic moment when record labels were really willing to take chances on unusual material like this! Chitra Neogy originally created the album with just a microphone and a bit of echo – but the producer wisely added in some flute, percussion, and especially nice sitar to really flesh out the sound – creating this very cool mix of spoken word and sonic elements, as Neogy speaks on topics like "Advice To The Lovelorn", "Woman Is Like A Fruit", and "Encouragement Of The Lusty Wife" – while talking in a very traditional voice that's supposed to sound "authentic", and hide the racy nature of the material! CD

A tantric sensual masterpiece, served up with sitar musical backings from the great Jim Sullivan – and a set that's maybe one of the strangest albums to come out of that late 60s psychedelic moment when record labels were really willing to take chances on unusual material like this! Chitra Neogy originally created the album with just a microphone and a bit of echo – but the producer wisely added in some flute, percussion, and especially nice sitar to really flesh out the sound – creating this very cool mix of spoken word and sonic elements, as Neogy speaks on topics like "Advice To The Lovelorn", "Woman Is Like A Fruit", and "Encouragement Of The Lusty Wife" – while talking in a very traditional voice that's supposed to sound "authentic", and hide the racy nature of the material! LP, Vinyl record album

An obscure session from Sun Ra and the Arkestra, and a great one too – a set that's maybe a bit different than some of their other material from the time! The album's from the early 80s, but maybe feels a bit more like the group in the late 50s – when they were in Chicago, and first stepping from straighter modes to more adventurous music – which means that the tracks here have maybe a stronger relationship to familiar jazz styles than the more avant Arkestra work, yet are still filled with plenty of originality and the kind of elements that always made the group so wonderful! Ra plays a fair bit of organ, using the instrument in soul jazz ways at a few points, which is really great, alongside work on piano and electronics – and the group also features John Gilmore on tenor, Marshal Allen on alto and flute, Danny Ray Thompson on baritone, Walter Miller on trumpet, and Tyrone Hill on trombone. June Tyson joins the group for a small bit of vocals – and overall, the session almost feels like a rough take on territory that the Arkestra would explore in the second half of the 80s, particularly on their European tours. Titles include "Celestial Love", "Blue Intensity", "Interstellarism", "Nameless One 2", "Sophisticated Lady", "Smile", and "Sometimes I'm Happy" – plus the track "Drop Me Off In Harlem", which was not on the original Saturn album. LP, Vinyl record album

The first far-reaching collection of vocal tracks recorded by Sun Ra and his Arkestra over the years – perfectly put together, and featuring a number of previously-unissued tracks as well! The Space Age Is Here To Stay covers a wide range of the cosmic jazz styles Ra traveled (and pretty much invented) from the late 50s to early 80s – from the immediate post-doo wop underground sound he worked in the late 50s, to the impeccable mix of free jazz and subtle, soulful tones a decade later, to the searching spiritualism that came later still. For all that's going here stylistically, the vocals and thematic lyricism hold it all together aesthetically, with Ra himself on chants and spoken passages, June Tyson and Hattie Randolph bringing an angelic quality on some numbers, and all around excellent Arkestra ensemble vocals throughout! The incredible opener "Along Came Ra/The Living Myth" is a live recording from Paris in 1983 that sets the creative bar quite high with feverish percussion, the sweetly soulful voice of June Tyson, and spacey spoken word by Ra. That said, the quality soars high throughout – and other titles include "Interplanetary Music No. 1", "Back In Your Own Back Yard", "Sometimes I'm Happy", "Space Is The Place", "Forest Of No Return", "Truth About Planet Earth", "Space Chant (Third Heaven)", "Antique Blacks", "Enlightenment" and more. CD

One of the weirdest records Sun Ra ever made – music to accompany the strange film Space Is The Place – which itself was an odd mixture of science fiction and blacksploitation-type action! The sounds here are sometimes in the usual Arkestra mode – wonderfully exotic rhythms mixed with freewheeling jazz solos – but other parts seem to follow more of a soundtrack-styled need – and include some bolder action riffs, spare scene-setting moments, and even some strong vocal themes. Titles include "Watusa", "Calling Planet Earth", "Mysterious Crystal", "Outerspaceways Incorporated", "Cosmic Forces", "Satellites Are Spinning", and a version of "Space Is The Place". This special set also includes the bonus Mathematics Of The Altered Destiny, a full LP of unreleased music from Sun Ra featuring June Tyson – and the first ever US Blu-ray release of the film, and a standard DVD as well! CD also features the bonus track "The Idea Of A Greater Age". CD

One of the weirdest records Sun Ra ever made – music to accompany the strange film Space Is The Place – which itself was an odd mixture of science fiction and blacksploitation-type action! The sounds here are sometimes in the usual Arkestra mode – wonderfully exotic rhythms mixed with freewheeling jazz solos – but other parts seem to follow more of a soundtrack-styled need – and include some bolder action riffs, spare scene-setting moments, and even some strong vocal themes. Titles include "Watusa", "Calling Planet Earth", "Mysterious Crystal", "Outerspaceways Incorporated", "Cosmic Forces", "Satellites Are Spinning", and a version of "Space Is The Place". This special set also includes the bonus Mathematics Of The Altered Destiny, a full LP of unreleased music from Sun Ra featuring June Tyson – and the first ever US Blu-ray release of the film, and a standard DVD as well! LP, Vinyl record album

A really cool side of work from the enigmatic Raymond Scott – the legendary midcentury figure who did a wealth of creative work in jazz, soundtrack, and electronic music fields! Turns out, Scott also recorded a heck of a lot of commercials in his studio – all in ways that embrace all the many modes that Raymond did so well – a good number of which also feature lead vocals from his wife Dorothy Collins – a great recording star in her own right! The songs here are all pretty darn short – usually just a minute or less – but the set features a whopping 82 numbers in all, and is a fantastic representation of this lost side of the Raymond Scott legacy – all packaged beautifully with plenty of notes, and sound quality strong enough to move this material way past the demo archive status. Includes ads and jingles for a wide variety of products – from Hamm's Beer, to RCA TV, Gold Medal Flower, Teryton Cigarettes, Krystal Hamburgers, Sprite soda, Revlon Hair Spray, and other big products for the 50s homemaker! Also includes a few rare jingles sung by Mel Torme, too. LP, Vinyl record album

An expanded version of a really unique EP originally issued in the early 80s by Tomek Lamprecht – a set that uses a Fairlight synthesizer in all sorts of post-punk, art rock-styled ways – really creative, but catchy too – as Tomek takes on the new instrument and mixes it with more conventional work on funky bass and drums! There's a playfulness here that's right up there with some of the genre-stepping material of the New York downtown of the period – no regard for easy labels, and plenty of fun with new technology – but in a very down to earth way too. Titles on the original album include "Reminder", "Contract", "Talked", "Love Music", "Prelude", and "Jingle" – and this expanded edition includes the tracks "Kill", "Ok What", and "Things Will Come & Go". CD

An expanded version of a really unique EP originally issued in the early 80s by Tomek Lamprecht – a set that uses a Fairlight synthesizer in all sorts of post-punk, art rock-styled ways – really creative, but catchy too – as Tomek takes on the new instrument and mixes it with more conventional work on funky bass and drums! There's a playfulness here that's right up there with some of the genre-stepping material of the New York downtown of the period – no regard for easy labels, and plenty of fun with new technology – but in a very down to earth way too. Titles on the original album include "Reminder", "Contract", "Talked", "Love Music", "Prelude", and "Jingle" – and this expanded edition includes the tracks "Kill", "Ok What", and "Things Will Come & Go". LP, Vinyl record album

Wonderfully weird work from the New York scene of the late 70s and early 80s – recordings that bristle with some of the best post-punk and new wave energy of the time, but which are much more obscure than most work you might know from other records! Some of the tracks here were done for NYC cable, others are more creative and almost experimental – and apart from a few rare singles that were issued at the time, almost all of the tracks appear here for the first time as a commercial release! Twinart are the group at the core, but plenty of other friends are along for the ride, including Jill Kroesen – and overall, there's a very progressive, girl-powered approach to the whole thing – on titles that include "Hands On Hands Off", "Instant This Instant That", "Double Shot Of Love", "You Got To Know", "Gassum", "Poodle Paper", "Dream On (demo)", "Honey You're So Mean", "Freak Of Nature (alt)", "Blinxong", and "Trashy Fashions" – plus a number of short "Itit" tracks. LP, Vinyl record album

A totally cool collection of songs, sound effects, and vintage movie trailers – all pulled from the glory days of the American horror film! The package is a tribute to the old time monster shows that used to travel the theater circuit – a mix of horror movies and live action activity – revived by by the folks at Something Weird in live performances, a great counterpart to all the great films they've given us on DVD over the years! This CD brings together the kind of deep knowledge that only fans of these lost b-movie gems could discover – a massive 32 track package that features the songs "The Morgus Creep" by The Daringers, "Cemetary Stomp" by The Essex, "Count Dracula" by The Rockin Continentals, "Haunted House" by Oscar & The Majestics, "The Giggler" by The Pot & The Wildcats, "The Guillotine" by The Executioners, "Transylvania" by The Mysterians, and "Night Beat" by The Night Beats – plus a huge host of film trailers, radio spots, and more! LP, Vinyl record album

Don't think "rock", think "groove" – because oud player John Berberian takes his instrument into some very groovy territory here – mixing its Mid-East roots with a sweet array of modal rhythms and psychedelic elements – all of which make for an album that's even trippier than you'd guess from its cover! The album's one of the few "jazz meets world" sets that really gets things right – bringing together different global elements to come up with a sound that's wonderfully new and fresh – and which moves the whole thing way past its roots in Turkish, Greek, Armenian, and North African styles! Joe Beck plays some great electric guitar on the record – but the main string focus is on the oud, which Berberian uses with this exotic tinge that rivals the instrument in the hands of Ahmed Abdul-Malik on his own albums like this. The lineup also includes tenor and other reeds from Souren Baronian, plus other percussion, and nice use of electric bass to hold the whole groove together – and titles include "The Oud & The Fuzz", "Tranquility", "Chem-oo-Chem", "Iron Maiden", "Flying Hye", "3/8=5/8=8/8", and "The Magic Ground". LP, Vinyl record album

A really strange little record from the glory days of Cherry Red Records – and a set that's very different than you might expect from the high-end fashion look of the cover! The group have a mix of punk and reggae elements – usually nice and lean, with the bass as upfront in the mix as the guitar, and vocals in an English-accented mode, very deep in the bassier range – which really fits the rhythms well! There's maybe kind of a Z Records feel at times – but the guitars are edgier, and echo a Leeds scene style too – on titles that include "Don't Touch Me", "Bike Boys", "Red Green & Gold", "Die In The West", "Product Perfect", and "Technofascist". LP, Vinyl record album

A fantastic bit exotica from Tak Shindo – quite rootsy at times, in a way that really lives up to the cover – and which makes the whole thing a lot more striking than Shindo's other big album on Capitol at the time! The instrumentation is filled with heavy percussion and rhythms, often recorded with a lot of echo – and peppered with these chanting vocals that are totally great – much moodier than more mainstream exotica. Imagine Les Baxter going deeper into the jungle – and you've got a good idea of the vibe here – as the instrumentation goes way beyond mere "primitive sounds" – with some Latin jazz inspiration and other global accents seamlessly working their way into a richly-layered sound! Titles include "Mombasa Love Song", "Nyoba Festival", "Slave Chains of Mtumwa", "Mganga", "Watusi Drum Dance", and "Port of Trinkitat". LP, Vinyl record album

A heck of a great little guitar funk album – a rare early 70s session from the groovy Eddy Senay – an artist that we'd rank right up there with bigger names like Phil Upchurch, David T Walker, Dennis Coffey, or Eddie Fisher at the same time! Fisher's maybe the best comparison here – especially his second album for Cadet – as the style here is clearly born in jazz, but taken through lots of soul and funk territory – so that the instrumental tunes are maybe even heavier on groove than solo space – although Senay manages to deliver plenty with his fuzzy tone on the strings! Eddie's got roots in Detroit, and there's almost some Westbound Records elements taking place here at times – as the set was recorded in the Motor City with help from Johnny Clapton and Thomas Hale on tenor, Rudy Robinson on keyboards, Gordon Camp on trumpet, and some especially great work from Eddie Bongo Brown on congas – whose groove really adds a deeper layer to the tunes. Titles include great remakes of Donny Hathaway's "Zambezi" and Bill Withers' "Ain't No Sunshine" – plus "Jubo", "Hot Thang", "Message of Love", and "Down Home". LP, Vinyl record album

One of Cal Tjader's best albums ever – and a sweetly electric side that features Joao Donato on organ and Gary McFarland on vibes! The record is a brilliant extension of Cal's styles at Verve – a bit of Latin, a bit of jazz, with some easily grooving numbers that have just the right dose of funk! Donato's organ sounds especially great, and there's also some added electric piano and electric harpsichord on the record, which expands the electricity even more – and gives the whole thing a really groovy sound! Loads of great numbers – including "Mambo Sangria", "Fried Bananas", "Solar Heat", "Ode to Billy Joe", and Donato's great "Amazonas". LP, Vinyl record album

A surprising 90s set from The Jazz Passengers – the New York group who'd worked in many modes other than just the straight jazz you might guess from their name, but who here maybe take things back to basics, especially on some of the cuts that bring in vocals from famous guests who include Deborah Harry and Elvis Costello! In some ways, Harry is the core of the set – as she unlocks this great jazz-based side of her style, in a way that gives her voice a whole new level of expression – one that's surprisingly strong next to the instrumentation provided by Roy Nathanson, Curis Fowlkes, and the rest of the group. Elvis Costello sings moodily on the tune "Aubergine" – but most other vocal numbers feature Deborah Harry, and include "Pork Chop", "Lil Darlin", "Maybe I'm Lost", "Imitation Of A Kiss", "Ole", and "Angel Eyes". Harry and Costello duet on "Doncha Go Way Mad" – and the set also features a nice instrumental remake of the Nat Adderley tune "Jive Samba". LP, Vinyl record album

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One side features Floyd Jones on vocal and guitar, with Eddie Taylor on second guitar, Otis Spann on piano, and Walter Horton on harmonica – the other features Taylor on vocal and guitar, with Jones on bass – and Spann and Horton too, all recorded at the One-Der-Ful studio CD

Features Johnny Shines on vocals and guitar – with Walter Horton on harmonica, Otis Spann on piano, Lee Jackson on bass, and Fred Below on drums – all recorded at the Chicago soul paradise, One-Der-Ful Studios! LP, Vinyl record album

A really transformative record in modern jazz – the first-ever Jazz At The Philharmonic album, issued by Norman Granz on the tiny Stinson label in the years before starting Clef, Norgran, and Verve! The record kicks off the concept with a real bang – offering up soon-to-be-standard takes on "Lady Be Good" and "How High The Moon" – played in long jam session mode by a group of players that includes Illinois Jacquet, Willie Smith, Charlie Ventura, Howard McGhee, Garland Finney, and Joe Guy – the last 2 of whom are definitely fake names used for the date! LP, Vinyl record album

Very groovy stuff – and a rare vocal group date from Mel Torme's later years! The album has Mel reprising the sound of his classic Mel-Tones vocal group during the 40s – but given the more modern setting, the sound here is a lot hipper than their original recordings – more in the mode of 50s harmonicists like The Four Freshmen or The Hi-Los. The great Marty Paich conducted, which is part of the strength of the record too – because it's got a strongly jazzy feel throughout, easily as great on the instrumental tip as it is on the vocal one! Titles include "Truckin", "A Smooth One", "Hit The Road To Dreamland", and "Some Like It Hot". LP, Vinyl record album

A great presentation of this classic work from Elmore James – a set that brings together all of his 7" singles for the Fire & Fury labels in a special box – with each single done as an exact replica of the original! Fire & Fury were as much a powerhouse of soul and R&B as they were of blues, and these singles from James were some of his key crossover cuts – work that still retained the gritty sound of his roots, but also had a more modern crackle at times – especially on the later sides recorded in New York! Players on the sessions include Johnny Walker on piano, Paul Williams on Baritone Sax, JT Brown on tenor, and Sammy Myers on harmonica – and titles include "Make My Dreams Come True", "Bobby's Rock", "Anna Lee", "Stranger Blues", "Look On Yonder Wall", "It Hurts Me Too", "Pickin The Blues", "Dust My Broom", "Bleeding Heart", "The Sky Is Crying", and "Rollin & Tumblin". Limited edition – in box set with booklet of notes and photo! 7-inch, Vinyl record

An overlooked jazz soundtrack from early 60s Hollywood – and some amazing early work from composer David Amram! Amram's always had an ear for higher-concept versions of jazz – but his approach here is a wonderful blend of modernity and spontaneity – just right for the sort of energy of the film, and it's JD "young savages" theme – and played by a very hip group of musicians that include Harold Land or George Barrow on tenor, Teo Macero on alto, Toots Thielemans on harmonica, and Amram himself on piano – playing in this very cool Monk-like style. Some cuts are more jazz combo modes – like the long jazz numbers, including "Harold's Way Out", "True Blue", and "Las Muchacas Delicadas". Other cuts have more of a soundtrack approach, but still with great jazz elements – and these include "Rooftops", "Help", "Subway Sounds", and "Theme From The Young Savages". CD

To our knowledge, this is the only 2LP set issued under the JATP series – and it's a nicely laid out batch of tracks that actually also features some discreet work by smaller combos, in addition to the usual jam session format. Disc one features "The Blues" – played by a group that includes Flip Phillips, Lester Young, Illinois Jacquet, and Dizzy Gillespie; "The Modern Set", played by Diz and Lester Young, with the Oscar Peterson group, plus Buddy Rich, on rhythm; "The Swing Set", with Illinois Jacquet, Roy Eldridge, and Flip Phillips and the same rhythm combo; and "The Ballad Medley", with Lester Young, Flip Phillips, Jacquet, Diz, and Roy. Disc two features one side by the Oscar Peterson Trio, and another by the Gene Krupa Quartet with Eddie Shu. This side is great – with 2 long tracks, "Sleepy Lagoon" and "Sing Sing Sing". Album also features "Buddy Rich's Explosion". LP, Vinyl record album

A wonderful musical discovery – a 2CD set that brings together the complete recordings from the Jazz At The Philharmonic performance in Hamburg, Germany in 1956! The first half of the set features the JATP All-Stars really wailing away – playing on long tracks that are filled with lively solo energy that recall the genius of the first few sessions of this type in the US. Players include Dizzy Gillespie and Roy Eldridge on trumpets, Flip Phillips and Illinois Jacquet on tenor, Oscar Peterson on piano, Herb Ellis on guitar, Ray Brown on bass, and Gene Krupa on drums. 11 tracks include "My Man", "The Modern Set", "Jam At JATP #2", "My Man #2", "The Modern Set #2", "Drum Boogie", and an extended "Ballad Medley". The Oscar Peterson trio takes the stage next – with Peterson on piano, Herb Ellis on guitar, and Ray Brown on bass – on 6 titles that include "Elevation", "Indiana", "Easy Does It", "How High The Moon", and "Seven Come Eleven". On the last set of tracks, Ella Fitzgerald is featured on vocals, with backing by the full JATP All-Stars – on 9 tracks that include "Lady Be Good", "This Can't Be Love", "I Love Paris", "Lover Come Back To Me", "Lullaby Of Birdland", and "I Want You To Be My Baby". Great package too – 2 CDs in a slipcase, with a nice booklet as well! CD

The fantastic final album from Sharon Jones – a wonderfully deep talent who was taken from us all too soon! The set's maybe the ultimate setting for Sharon's incredible voice – as it features both her longtime core combo, the Dap-Kings – as well as additional backings from the Bushwick Philharmonic – a small ensemble of strings who really help elevate the music to classic status! If you're worried that the strings might soften the sound, the very first note of the record will put your mind at rest – as will the heavy drums that mark just about every track, and keep things hard and funky throughout. If anyone ever doubted that the Daptone label was our modern equivalent of Stax Records or Atlantic, this will certainly be the set to change their mind – and will also stand forever as a bittersweet reminder of all the greatness that Sharon Jones gave us over the years. Titles include "Searching For A New Day", "Rumors", "Matter Of Time", "Sail On", "Just Give Me Your Time", "Come & Be A Winner", "Call On God", and "These Tears". LP, Vinyl record album

Over 50 years in jazz, and Toots Thielemans is still one of the most distinctive players around – one of the few who could actually make us like the sound of harmonica in modern music, and an artist who's lent his style to countless great albums over the years! For this set, Toots explores the music of Harold Arlen – set to arrangements by Jurren Haanstra that follow strongly in the mode of some of Thieleman's albums with larger orchestrations from the 70s and 80s – warm and lush, but never too overwhelming. And noteworthy here are a number of vocalists who are sure to push Toots talents into the consciousness of younger audiences who may recognize his sound, but not know the man behind it – singers who include Jamie Cullum, Laura Fygi, Beth Hart, Till Bronner, Oleta Adams, Silje Nergaard, Madeleine Peyroux, and Lizz Wright. Tunes include "Come Rain Or Come Shine", "Ill Wind", "Last Night When We Were Young", "Stormy Weather", "It's Only A Paper Moon", "I Gotta Right To Sing The Blues", and "That Old Black Magic". CD

The fantastic final album from Sharon Jones – a wonderfully deep talent who was taken from us all too soon! The set's maybe the ultimate setting for Sharon's incredible voice – as it features both her longtime core combo, the Dap-Kings – as well as additional backings from the Bushwick Philharmonic – a small ensemble of strings who really help elevate the music to classic status! If you're worried that the strings might soften the sound, the very first note of the record will put your mind at rest – as will the heavy drums that mark just about every track, and keep things hard and funky throughout. If anyone ever doubted that the Daptone label was our modern equivalent of Stax Records or Atlantic, this will certainly be the set to change their mind – and will also stand forever as a bittersweet reminder of all the greatness that Sharon Jones gave us over the years. Titles include "Searching For A New Day", "Rumors", "Matter Of Time", "Sail On", "Just Give Me Your Time", "Come & Be A Winner", "Call On God", and "These Tears". LP, Vinyl record album

The fantastic final album from Sharon Jones – a wonderfully deep talent who was taken from us all too soon! The set's maybe the ultimate setting for Sharon's incredible voice – as it features both her longtime core combo, the Dap-Kings – as well as additional backings from the Bushwick Philharmonic – a small ensemble of strings who really help elevate the music to classic status! If you're worried that the strings might soften the sound, the very first note of the record will put your mind at rest – as will the heavy drums that mark just about every track, and keep things hard and funky throughout. If anyone ever doubted that the Daptone label was our modern equivalent of Stax Records or Atlantic, this will certainly be the set to change their mind – and will also stand forever as a bittersweet reminder of all the greatness that Sharon Jones gave us over the years. Titles include "Searching For A New Day", "Rumors", "Matter Of Time", "Sail On", "Just Give Me Your Time", "Come & Be A Winner", "Call On God", and "These Tears". CD