A big crossover hit for Osibisa – a record that has the group softening up their groove slightly from the heady days of the Roger Dean album covers, yet still retaining enough Afro Funk to keep things interesting! If anything, the rhythms here are a bit pan-global – sometimes hard and heavy, sometimes lighter and more focused on the melodies of the tunes, especially on the catchier numbers – and instrumentation includes plenty of horns and percussion! Titles include "African Jive", We Belong", "Home Affairs", "Osibirock", and "Kelele". LP, Vinyl record album

Mindblowing work from tenorist Sonny Rollins – a set of recordings that we'd rank right up there with his groundbreaking Village Vanguard sessions for Blue Note! As with those recordings, the setting here is live, and a trio – Sonny blowing with incredible imagination in the very open space of the tunes, many of which are very long – with accompaniment from the wonderful bassist Henry Grimes on all numbers, and a shifting lineup of very hip drummers – Pete LaRoca on most tracks, sometimes replaced by Joe Harris or Kenny Clarke. The huge package features a wealth of live tracks, including some material that has been bootlegged before – concerts from 1959 in Stockholm, Zurich, Aix-En-Provence, Frankfurt, and Laren – all presented here with superb sound, voluminous notes, and through cooperation with Sonny Rollins himself. Titles include "Lady Bird", "But Not For Me", "Cocktails For Two", "I Want To Be Happy", "Oleo", "Paul's Pal", "Love Letters", and "I've Told Every Little Star" – but as always with live Sonny Rollins at this point in his career, it's not the melodies, but what he does with them – which is amazing! CD

A smoothly soulful set from Sade – with a bit more heartbreak and sometimes a bit heavier moodiness in the compositions – changing up the groove just enough on her first album in 8 years and reminding us how much we miss her in her years between albums! The first couple of tunes on the album, particularly the excellent title track, bring the more insistent sound, but, Sade is still Sade – the more smoothed out sounds and more lilting melodies come into play, leaving the tear welling passion of her voice to pull us in all the more effectively. Titles include "The Moon And The Sky", "Soldier Of Love", "Morning Bird", "Babyfather", "Long Hard Road", "Be That Easy", "Bring Me Home", "In Another Time", "Skin" and "The Safest Place". LP, Vinyl record album

Maybe the first-ever album to be issued under the name of the great Charles Stepney – even though the artist/musician/producer/songwriter had a huge role in the careers of Chicago contemporaries like Minnie Riperton, Ramsey Lewis, and Earth Wind & Fire! This set brings together recordings that Stepney made on his own, often in his home studio – many of which are songs that never saw the light of day on some of his bigger-name projects, next to others that feature melodies you might recognize, but done in these sweet jazzy instrumentals that are totally great! Most of the set features Charles on a variety of keyboards Rhodes, piano, and even some cool moogy bits – plus some vibes from time to time – often set to spare early electric drum machine rhythms – in a style that makes you feel like you've stumbled upon Timmy Thomas doing an all instrumental jam session in the early 70s. Given that Stepney first got his start as a jazz musician – playing piano and vibes on some great early 60s sessions – the keyboard work is superb, and the record stands as a completely different testament to his genius – with titles that include "Funky Sci Fi", "Gotta Dig It To Dig It", "Daddy's Diddies", "Rubie Charles", "Notes From Dad", "Black Bold", "Gimme Some Sugar", "No Credit For This", "Imagination", "Look B4U Leap", "Mini Mugg", "Denim Groove", and "That's The Way Of The World". LP, Vinyl record album

Sweet 80s grooves from the Turkish scene – served up in a mode that mixes earlier styles with instrumentation that's a bit more fitting for the decade – drum machine rhythms and keyboard lines coming into play with more exotic melodies, and vocals served up in a variety of styles! Some of the tunes here are tagged as "disco", but in a way that's really refracted through the span of space and time that led to these recordings – hardly familiar club modes, but still plenty darn groovy – and a nice take on Andaolu modes from a few years before! Titles include "Fiance", "Fidayda", "Emmoglu", "If You Want My Love", "Sunglasses Belly Dance", "Tabancamin Sapini", "Misty Mountain Melodies", and "Eminem". LP, Vinyl record album

Mindblowing music from Robert Wyatt – never-heard demos, but cuts that are every bit as essential as his music in Soft Machine, and his early solo sides as well! Robert handles almost all the instrumentation here himself – except for one guest solo from Jimi Hendrix on bass, and some other guest bass from Hugh Hopper and guest organ from Mike Ratledge – and the drums are plenty heavy, with surprisingly funky currents – set loose on these studio tracks that are also heavy on Hammond, and both acoustic and electric piano. Wyatt sings on all numbers, already with that unique voice we love so much – and tracks include the incredible "Chelsa", which is a precursor to a later Matching Mole classic – plus "Rivmic Melodies", "Slow Walkin Talk", and "Moon In June". CD

Haunting traditional country-inspired songwriting a la Carter Family, Louvin Brothers, etc from Freakwater – one of their great early 90s albums on Thrill Jockey. The were young-ish and urban-ish at the time, but they are absolutely the real thing. Aching harmonies, dusty melodies and good damn songs. It can't be overstated how unique Freakwater was in an early-to-mid 90s indie rock atmosphere, either. Includes "Crazy Man", "Pale Horse", "My Old Drunk Friend", "Amelia Earhart", "Are You Ready", "Lullaby" and more. CD

An amazing tribute to the late Michael Jackson – a beautifully done package that brings together all of his early solo albums for Motown – plus some great bonus tracks as well – all wrapped up in a book-styled cover with lots of notes and vintage photos! The music here is tremendous – the first stand-alone utterings of the King Of Pop, done in a style very similar to the Jackson 5 material at Motown, but sometimes a bit more pointed and personal too – a very different version of Michael than you may know from later years. The set features the full albums Got To Be There, Ben, Music & Me, and Forever Michael – plus two more albums of material recorded in the 70s, but released later – Looking Back To Yesterday and Farewell My Summer Love. There's a whopping 71 tracks in all – and bonus tracks include original mixes of "Melodie", "To Make My Father Proud", "Twenty Five Miles", "Here I Am", "Girl You're So Together", "Call On Me", "Farewell My Summer Love", "Touch The One You Love", and "Don't Let It Get You Down". CD

The second album from The Paupers – a mix of searing guitar jams, more easygoing psychedelic pop bigger arrangements, even a little bit of a comic take on Byrdsy country rock– making for a pretty wild mix of sounds, but done with a focus on melodies and catchy grooves. The group is really stretching out and trying a lot of things on this second album, throwing caution into the wind as far as stylistic divergence goes, more often than not hitting the mark! Titles include "South Down Road", "Cairo Hotel", "Can't Go On", "Another Man's Hair On My Razor", "Ask Her Again" and more, plus the bonus tracks "If I Call You By Some Name", "Copper Penny" and "White Song". CD

Mindblowing work from tenorist Sonny Rollins – a set of recordings that we'd rank right up there with his groundbreaking Village Vanguard sessions for Blue Note! As with those recordings, the setting here is live, and a trio – Sonny blowing with incredible imagination in the very open space of the tunes, many of which are very long – with accompaniment from the wonderful bassist Henry Grimes on all numbers, and a shifting lineup of very hip drummers – Pete LaRoca on most tracks, sometimes replaced by Joe Harris or Kenny Clarke. The huge package features a wealth of live tracks, including some material that has been bootlegged before – concerts from 1959 in Stockholm, Zurich, Aix-En-Provence, Frankfurt, and Laren – all presented here with superb sound, voluminous notes, and through cooperation with Sonny Rollins himself. Titles include "Lady Bird", "But Not For Me", "Cocktails For Two", "I Want To Be Happy", "Oleo", "Paul's Pal", "Love Letters", and "I've Told Every Little Star" – but as always with live Sonny Rollins at this point in his career, it's not the melodies, but what he does with them – which is amazing! LP, Vinyl record album

An incredible blend of sounds and styles – and one of the most enigmatic albums we've ever heard from the Ethiopian scene! Hailu Mergia plays alone here – but uses lots of overdubbing to layer together Fender Rhodes, accordion solos, and a rhythm machine – all mixed up in ways that make for some incredibly haunting melodies and wonderfully spacey grooves! There's a quality to the music that definitely echoes some of the most mysterious Ethiopian sounds of the 70s – but inflected through a sort of space-age vibe, given the keyboards and rhythm tracks – both of which are used sparingly, but in a really great way. Imagine Mulatu playing in Conny Plank's studio, and you'll get part of the picture of this one – a really unique album that includes the tracks "Hebo Lale", "Shilela", "Hari Meru Meru", "Wegene", "Laloye", "Sewenetuwa", and "Ambasel". CD

The second album from The Paupers – a mix of searing guitar jams, more easygoing psychedelic pop bigger arrangements, even a little bit of a comic take on Byrdsy country rock– making for a pretty wild mix of sounds, but done with a focus on melodies and catchy grooves. The group is really stretching out and trying a lot of things on this second album, throwing caution into the wind as far as stylistic divergence goes, more often than not hitting the mark! Titles include "South Down Road", "Cairo Hotel", "Can't Go On", "Another Man's Hair On My Razor", "Ask Her Again" and more, plus the bonus tracks "If I Call You By Some Name", "Copper Penny" and "White Song". CD

A taut score from Piero Piccioni – penned for an early 60s black and white thriller, with a sound that's often a lot more serious than some of his other work of the time! There's a few whimsical themes at the start, but these drop off quickly – leaving some very spare, atmospheric numbers with a really tense, spooky sound – one that often comes from solo piano or organ work from Piccioni, the latter of which has a really deep-down, rumbling quality. Horns appear on some of the lighter moments – which have almost Nino Rota-like melodies that are a bit playful – but the score definitely leans towards the darker side of the spectrum at most moments. Titles include "Fox Foxy", "Waltz For You", "Il Terrorista", and "Eco Di Un Tempo". CD features the original soundtrack, plus 9 bonus tracks with a stereo mix! CD

Maybe the first-ever album to be issued under the name of the great Charles Stepney – even though the artist/musician/producer/songwriter had a huge role in the careers of Chicago contemporaries like Minnie Riperton, Ramsey Lewis, and Earth Wind & Fire! This set brings together recordings that Stepney made on his own, often in his home studio – many of which are songs that never saw the light of day on some of his bigger-name projects, next to others that feature melodies you might recognize, but done in these sweet jazzy instrumentals that are totally great! Most of the set features Charles on a variety of keyboards Rhodes, piano, and even some cool moogy bits – plus some vibes from time to time – often set to spare early electric drum machine rhythms – in a style that makes you feel like you've stumbled upon Timmy Thomas doing an all instrumental jam session in the early 70s. Given that Stepney first got his start as a jazz musician – playing piano and vibes on some great early 60s sessions – the keyboard work is superb, and the record stands as a completely different testament to his genius – with titles that include "Funky Sci Fi", "Gotta Dig It To Dig It", "Daddy's Diddies", "Rubie Charles", "Notes From Dad", "Black Bold", "Gimme Some Sugar", "No Credit For This", "Imagination", "Look B4U Leap", "Mini Mugg", "Denim Groove", and "That's The Way Of The World". CD

Wonderfully moody piano work from Joe Bonner – working here in spare solo space on one of his most evocative albums of the 70s! The album's filled with swirling piano lines, played in the usual sensitive Bonner style – stark single-note melodies standing out, couched by fuller chords that are dripping with color. The piano's acoustic throughout, but as with Kenny Barron at this time, there's a slight hint of electricity in the phrasing – and titles include "Tattoo", "Little Chocolate Boy", "Native Son", "The Lifesaver", and "The Observer". LP, Vinyl record album

2 obscure albums John Benson Brooks – an overlooked 50s jazz composer who often had a penchant for higher concept recordings! The first half of the CD features Folk Jazz USA – one of Brooks' most stripped down records – done with a core group of Zoot Sims on alto, Al Cohn on baritone, Nick Travis on trumpet, Barry Gailbraith on guitar, Osie Johnson on drums, and Buddy Jones on bass. The style is kind of a chamber jazz reworking of tunes from folk sources – done in a way that hangs modernist clothes on older melodies – really dressing them up with the jazz charms of mid 50s RCA! Travis is especially strong on the set – with boldly-stated lines that preserve the melodies, while other players really take off with their solos on the saxes. Titles include "Darling Corey", "Turtle Dove", "Black Is The Color", "Randall My Son", and "Venezuela". Next up is Alabama Concerto – a record based around the solo talents of Art Farmer on trumpet and Cannonbal Adderley on alto sax! The album's based on a number of historical and mythical southern themes – and although it gets a bit hokey at times, the work of Adderley and Art Farmer on the solo sections really opens up the piece and gives it a deep sense of soul. The setting is a drummer-less small group, with Barry Galbraith on guitar, Milt Hinton on bass, and Brooks on occasional piano – and themes include "The Loop", "Trampin", "Little John Shoes", "Milord's Calling", and "Rufus Playboy". CD

Ultra-hip work from pianist Keith Jarrett – a session that's filled with joy and life, and which has a lot more energy than some of his albums for ECM! The work here is kind of a refinement of the freer styles that Jarrett had laid down on previous albums – performed with a strongly rhythmic undercurrent, but one that also opens up to some strong top-end melodies as well – played not only by Jarrett on piano, but also by Dewey Redman on tenor, in a group with Sam Brown on guitar, Paul Motian on drums, and Guilherme Franco and Danny Johnson on percussion. Titles include "The Rich & The Poor", "Blue Streak", "Le Mistral", "Angles Without Edges", "Treasure Island", and "Sister Fortune". LP, Vinyl record album

Excellent! One of the more underrated producers, perhaps because he wasn't as prolific as some of the others in Jamaica, Harry Mudie produced a body of fine rhythms nonetheless, laced with sweet strings and beautiful melodies over heavy drum & bass workouts. He turns them over to King Tubby here, for this spacious dub set, with fat, round bass, crisp drums and just enough echoey fun to keep things interesting. This mighty set includes an awesome dub take on Mudie's version of Idris Muhammed's sought after sample track "Loran's Dance", done here as "Heavy Duty Dub". Also includes "Full Dose Of Dub", "Madhouse Dub", "Dub For The Dread", "Dub With A Difference", "Caught You Dubbing", "Roman Dubbing", "Dub Conference", "Strip Tease Dub" and "String Dub In Rema", 10 tracks in all. LP, Vinyl record album

The title gets it perfectly right on this sweet little set – as the grooves are raw and stripped down – often just to the core elements of Afro Funk! The music may be the most hard-hitting we've ever heard from this legendary combo – and it's served up beautifully in this well-selected compilation, right down to the detailed notes on the group and their long journey in sound! There's a core groove here that goes way beyond the boundaries of nation or culture – and which is plenty appealing to ears that have only ever been trained on American funk – and even more so on those who dig the great African sounds of the 70s. Plenty of heavy drums and ultra-cool guitar – and titles include "Adjro Mi", "A O O Ida", "Pourquoi Pas", "Ecoute Ma Melodie", "Min We Tun So", "Ai Gabani", and "Aku We Non Houme". CD

Landmark music from Steve Reich – a set that takes his previous experiments in minimalism and phase shifting, and moves them into a highly percussive mode! The rhythms here become melodies – the sorts that you'd hear on other Reich keyboard albums, but played live with incredible dexterity – as each player puts together their passage in ways that interlocks with the other – than slowly moves in space over time – and letting in marimba, voice, piccolo, and glockenspiel to the mix as well. The shift over time is amazing – something that so many others have copied over the years, but never done this well again! CD

A smoothly soulful set from Sade – with a bit more heartbreak and sometimes a bit heavier moodiness in the compositions – changing up the groove just enough on her first album in 8 years and reminding us how much we miss her in her years between albums! The first couple of tunes on the album, particularly the excellent title track, bring the more insistent sound, but, Sade is still Sade – the more smoothed out sounds and more lilting melodies come into play, leaving the tear welling passion of her voice to pull us in all the more effectively. Titles include "The Moon And The Sky", "Soldier Of Love", "Morning Bird", "Babyfather", "Long Hard Road", "Be That Easy", "Bring Me Home", "In Another Time", "Skin" and "The Safest Place". CD

A double length set – with the complete ABC/Probe recordings of Soft Machine! The first disc features the amazing debut of Soft Machine! It's hard to find a more seminal moment of jazz rock from the British scene – and there's certainly few albums from its generation that stand up as well over the years as this one! The trio of Robert Wyatt, Kevin Ayers, and Michael Ratledge carve out the future of progressive playing on this excellent set of shorter tunes that still offer up all the hard jamming of later years. Beat group morphs into prog jazz before your very eyes – on tracks like "Hope For Happiness", "Why Am I So Short", "Save Yourself", "Priscilla", "So Boot If At All", "A Certain Kind", "Lullabye Letter", and "Why Are We Sleeping?". Soft Machine Two is sublime early work from Robert Wyatt and crew – a psychedelic accented jazz rock classic that never gets old – and a visionary set that inspired a generation! The heavily fuzzy guitar sound is transcendent on Volume Two – with sudden jazzy changes, augmented by horns, and all done with a sly sense of humour for which the group doesn't get enough credit. The set's broken up into two different "concept" halves – and side one is "Rivmic Melodies" – and includes "Pataphysical Introduction", "A Concise British Alphabet", "Dada Was Here", and "Out Of Tunes". Side two is "Esther's Nose Job" – with the parts "Pig", "Fire Engine Passing With Bells Clanging", "Orange Skin Food", and "A Door Opens & Closes". Wyatt's on vocals and drums; Hugh Hopper is on bass, guitar, and alto; and Mike Ratledge plays some great Lowry and Hammond organ, plus a bit of harpsichord and flute! CD

A groundbreaking mix of tunes – early work by Thievery Corp, one of the best remix/producer teams of the past 10 years! The Thieves have a huge bag of influences to dip into – one that includes bossa grooves, easy melodies, and 70s electric funk, nearly all of which seem to come into play at one moment or another on many of the album's tracks. There's also a nice dubbed-out quality to the album – making it a downtempo classic with a really deep feel. Titles include "The Oscillator", "Interlude", "Encounter In Bahia", "The Glass Bead Game", "Incident At Gate 7", and "Shaolin Satellite". CD

There's a host of cool keyboards on the cover, and that's what you'll hear on the record as well – used in all these really groovy space age styles over more conventional Latin rhythms – all of which made for a really incredible subgenre of sounds on the scene in Ecuador during the 70s! Most of the music here has the touch of Polibio Mayorga on the keys – sometimes as the lead artist, sometimes as a contributor to another's' work – and the cuts mix rootsier percussion and sometimes use Andean melodies, but all have these really weird and unusual electric parts too – an outer space organ line, or a moogy electronic flourish – all of which makes for some wonderfully trippy sounds throughout! As always with Analog Africa, the presentation is fantastic – and titles include "America India" by Junior Y Su Equipo, "Mi Paisa" by Olmedo Torres Y Poblibio Mayorga, "Haciendo Bomba" by Alcibiades Y Su Banda, "Llorona" by Los Locos Del Ritmo, "Muevase Vecina" by Eduardo Morales, "Bomba De Pobres" by Alcibiades Y Su Banda, "La Perra Vida" by Conjunto La Lorga, "Munequita Blanca" by Orti Mayorga Y Chiriboga, and "Cumbia Totorana", "Ferrocarril", and "Culebrita Dormida" by Polibio Mayorga. LP, Vinyl record album

One of the most evocative albums we've ever heard from pianist Ran Blake – a set that's got all the sharp edges of some of his most adventurous solo work, but one that also has Ran working in a few different settings, often with a very poetic feel! The set's not a hokey retro-crime record – as you might fear from the title (and countless later jazz albums that evoke that aesthetic) – and although Blake's working through melodies from older films, plus a few original numbers in the same spirit, his presentation is completely unique – and explosively personal throughout! His own piano is tremendous – blocks of sound and runs of notes that are extremely imaginative, and which flow forward from the same dark spirit we love on Blake's other recordings. And they're often balanced with shifting contributions from other musicians – players who include John Heiss on flute, Paul Meyers on bass, Ted Curson on trumpet, and Daryl Lowrey on alto and soprano sax – all of whom make some great additions to the set. Titles include a nice take on "The Pawnbroker" – plus other film titles that include "Eve", "Touch Of Evil", "Le Boucher", "Pinky", and "Doktor Mabuse" – as well as Blake originals "Spiral Staircase" and "Garden Of Delight". CD

Pianist Paul Giallorenzo has a fantastic flow here – a deeply personal sound that certainly warrants the title – and which is set up beautifully in a trio with Josh Abrams on bass and Mikel Patrick Avery on drums! It's great to hear Abrams working as a sideman in a setting that's a bit more standard than some of his own projects – as his basswork is sublime, and really matches the pacing and energy of Giallorenzo's work on the keys – in a mode that's modern, but never too avant – with almost the freshness of some of the most inventive pianists of the 60s! Paul wrote all the tunes on the album, and they're extremely fresh – not overplayed standards, or easygoing melodies – but instead material that finds its own space and pace, but without ever calling undue attention to itself. Titles include "Flipd Scrip", "Over/Under", "Rolling", "Interstice", "Fractures", "A Way We Go", and "Lightness". CD

A key early entry in the "jazz meets Broadway" genre – and a record that was so successful, it went onto inspire countless imitations! Shelly Manne's working here in a lightly playful trio setting – alongside Andre Previn on piano and Leroy Vinnegar on bass, in a reading of tunes originally composed for the musical My Fair Lady. Given Manne's talent for unusual rhythms and melodic percussion, the session's got a bit of a whimsical edge that takes it way past the core compositions that most listeners already knew – into a realm that allows for much great improvisation and play with the melodies. Previn's nicely restrained on the keys, and Vinnegar adds in a good sense of bottom to the set – and titles include "Get Me To The Church On Time", "I Could Have Dance All Night", "Ascot Gavotte", "Show Me", and "With A Little Bit Of Luck". CD

The kind of sexy Morricone soundtrack we really really love! This overlooked gem is a sweet 70s side – written for a love story starring Marcello Mastroianni and Nastassja Kinski, and done with the lightly erotic touches that make even Morricone's prettiest melodies extremely haunting and edgey. Most of the music is by a larger orchestra, with some isolated instrumentation – and although a few tracks get a bit uptempo, overall the mood is very languid, slowly drifting from note to note, like a breeze through a window on a summer afternoon. Sultry grooves from the master! Titles include "Verso Madrid", "Amore Per Amore", "Cosi Come Sei", "Spazio 1999", "Postludio Di Amore", and "Cosi Come Sei". LP, Vinyl record album

Maybe the first-ever album to be issued under the name of the great Charles Stepney – even though the artist/musician/producer/songwriter had a huge role in the careers of Chicago contemporaries like Minnie Riperton, Ramsey Lewis, and Earth Wind & Fire! This set brings together recordings that Stepney made on his own, often in his home studio – many of which are songs that never saw the light of day on some of his bigger-name projects, next to others that feature melodies you might recognize, but done in these sweet jazzy instrumentals that are totally great! Most of the set features Charles on a variety of keyboards Rhodes, piano, and even some cool moogy bits – plus some vibes from time to time – often set to spare early electric drum machine rhythms – in a style that makes you feel like you've stumbled upon Timmy Thomas doing an all instrumental jam session in the early 70s. Given that Stepney first got his start as a jazz musician – playing piano and vibes on some great early 60s sessions – the keyboard work is superb, and the record stands as a completely different testament to his genius – with titles that include "Funky Sci Fi", "Gotta Dig It To Dig It", "Daddy's Diddies", "Rubie Charles", "Notes From Dad", "Black Bold", "Gimme Some Sugar", "No Credit For This", "Imagination", "Look B4U Leap", "Mini Mugg", "Denim Groove", and "That's The Way Of The World". LP, Vinyl record album

There's a host of cool keyboards on the cover, and that's what you'll hear on the record as well – used in all these really groovy space age styles over more conventional Latin rhythms – all of which made for a really incredible subgenre of sounds on the scene in Ecuador during the 70s! Most of the music here has the touch of Polibio Mayorga on the keys – sometimes as the lead artist, sometimes as a contributor to another's' work – and the cuts mix rootsier percussion and sometimes use Andean melodies, but all have these really weird and unusual electric parts too – an outer space organ line, or a moogy electronic flourish – all of which makes for some wonderfully trippy sounds throughout! As always with Analog Africa, the presentation is fantastic – and titles include "America India" by Junior Y Su Equipo, "Mi Paisa" by Olmedo Torres Y Poblibio Mayorga, "Haciendo Bomba" by Alcibiades Y Su Banda, "Llorona" by Los Locos Del Ritmo, "Muevase Vecina" by Eduardo Morales, "Bomba De Pobres" by Alcibiades Y Su Banda, "La Perra Vida" by Conjunto La Lorga, "Munequita Blanca" by Orti Mayorga Y Chiriboga, and "Cumbia Totorana", "Ferrocarril", and "Culebrita Dormida" by Polibio Mayorga. CD

Domo Branch is represented as a group on the front cover – but if you take a closer look, you'll notice the image features multiple shots of the man himself – a killer drummer who delivers a wonderful performance on this full album of solo drums! The set was recorded overseas, but Domo Branch hails from Portland, where he's a key part of the scene, both as a player and an educator – and he plays here with a style that certainly understands many currents of jazz – in a mode that maybe takes a Baby Dodd solo drum performance forward through lessons learned in the generation of Milford Graves and Andrew Cyrille! Titles include "Purity/Honesty", "Influence", "Togetherness", "Patience", "Tribal", and "Longing". LP, Vinyl record album

Chicago attracted many great European improvisers to its scene in the 90s – and one of them was pianist Georg Grawe, who moved to the city to take advantage of its thriving jazz and free music scene! Here, Grawe demonstrates his rapport with the city – working with a great group that features Kent Kessler on bass, Hamid Drake on drums, and Frank Gratkowski on reeds – in modes that are quite different than some of George's other recordings of the period! A wild mix of jazz harmonies, intricate polyrhythms, free blowing, and tight bits of straight jazz – on titles that include "Multiversum", "Trajectory", "Nodality", "Pressing Scopes", "Fringe Factor", and "Memory Of Wings II". CD

The warm sound of Cyrus Chestnut's piano balances beautifully with the bass of Curtis Lundy and drums of Victor Lewis – very familiar musical partners who really make the session sparkle! Chestnut's got a great sense of melody throughout, but also finds a way to make the left side of the keyboard pulsate strongly – resonating with Lundy's bass in a beautiful way, and reminding us that Curtis is always a great player on a trio date like this. There's a resonance to the bass and piano that really showcases the strong sound of these Smoke Sessions albums – and titles include "To Be Determined", "Giant Steps", "The Theme", "Naima's Love Song", "Two Heartbeats", "Pocket Full Of Blues", and "Hey It's Me You're Talkin To". CD

Chicago attracted many great European improvisers to its scene in the 90s – and one of them was pianist Georg Grawe, who moved to the city to take advantage of its thriving jazz and free music scene! Here, Grawe demonstrates his rapport with the city – working with a great group that features Kent Kessler on bass, Hamid Drake on drums, and Frank Gratkowski on reeds – in modes that are quite different than some of George's other recordings of the period! A wild mix of jazz harmonies, intricate polyrhythms, free blowing, and tight bits of straight jazz – on titles that include "Multiversum", "Trajectory", "Nodality", "Pressing Scopes", "Fringe Factor", and "Memory Of Wings II". CD

Jackie singing a bunch of different stuff, from a bunch of different sources, but still staying mostly in his Brunswick soul bag. Dick Jacobs did the arrangements, and the tracks include "Pianissimo", "Forever And A Day", "My Empty Arms", and "Hearts". LP, Vinyl record album

All That Jazz expand their sound here, as you might guess from the winds and wood hinted in the title – using saxes and a bit of strings in a great way over their surprisingly dynamic grooves – almost at a level that seeks to link the club jazz modes of the Tokyo scene with some of the thematic elements of the world of Studio Ghibli! The melodies are as spare and compelling as before, but the presentation is nicely full – light strings and other orchestrations in the background – while the core energy comes from the piano, heavy bass, and dancing drums – on titles that include "Kazeno Toorimichi", "Kazeno Tanino Maushika, "Umino Miero Machi", "Kimio Nosete", "Monokoke Hime", "Ano Natuse", "Tonarino Totoro", and "Ashitakasekki". LP, Vinyl record album

An unusual collection of early work by The Beau Brummels – pre-Warner material recorded for Autumn, but on a record issued by the Vault label! There's a great sense of jangle-pop throughout – a slight twang that would later unfold in different ways in Bradley's Barn, but which here works to give the tunes this little sense of sadness amidst the warmer melodies – which themselves are particularly great, and much better-crafted than some of the other US groups of this nature at the time. The boys definitely borrow a bit from The Beatles (including a name that gave them placement right next to the fab four in the record racks) – but maybe they're also drawing on some of the folk harmony groups from the SF scene they called home, too. LP, Vinyl record album

A really unique little album that features jazz versions of themes from Swedish folk music – all served up by a sublime quartet that features Art Farmer on flugelhorn and Jim Hall on guitar! The exploration of folk roots in jazz is not a new one – and a number of the postwar Swedish modernists were especially strong in their love of folk music for inspiration. But the genre's never been handled this well before, and Farmer's warmly lyrical sensibilities really transform the tunes – opening up a timeless sense of expression in their melodies, yet still keeping things strongly in a modern jazz vein with his timing and phrasing. The other members of the piano-less quartet certainly help in this respect – Steve Swallow on bass and Pete LaRoca on drums – and Jim Hall's guitar is always a treat in a stripped-down session like this. The sound of the record is both warm and eerie at the same time – and titles include "Va Da Du?", "De Salde Sina Hemman", "Kristallen Den Fina", and "Visa Vid Midsommartid". CD

A portrait of Duke, done by Dizzy – and one that's got a whole different feel than you might think! Gillespie's working here with arrangements by a young Clare Fischer – who takes Ellington's themes and recasts them with an even deeper sense of color and tone – one that pushes the already-modern themes of the numbers into a whole new realm of sound, and uses the horn passages to carve things out a lot differently than Duke might have done! The result is a wonderfully striking session – one with familiar melodies that unfold in a whole new way – and which showcases some great phrasing from Dizzy, over rhythms by a combo that features Hank Jones, George Duvivier, and Charlie Persip – playing alongside a group of larger horns. Titles include "Perdido", "Caravan", "Upper Manhattan Medical Group", and "Chelsea Bridge". Essential Jazz release adds 4 bonus tracks recorded at the Newport Jazz Festival. CD

A really cool take on the sounds of Studio Ghibli – one that brings classic melodies from the famous animated features into play with the production talents of Grey October Sounds – who delivers the goods with all the low-fi elements promised by the title! The approach is instrumental hip hop, but with a very different approach than usual – as the sweetness and spirit of the originals really grace the whole record in a really wonderful way – so that there's a sense of warmth and redemption that you'd not normally find in a record of beats, keyboards, and samples! Includes tunes from Kiki's Delivery Service, Castle In The Sky, and other Ghibli films – 10 tracks in all. CD

Magical solo work from pianist Keith Jarrett – a set that's comprised almost entirely of standards, similar to some of the better-known trio recordings in this format by the artist – and which has Jarrett playing in this really evocative way that definitely lives up to the title! The solo performances aren't nearly as open or longform as his other recordings without any other players – melodies are intact throughout – but Keith does really have a way of opening up the songs, and almost making them sound like these very fragile, very personal poems that spin from his fingers on the keys of the piano. Titles include "Don't Ever Leave Me", "I Loves You Porgy", "Blame It On My Youth", "Meditation", "Something To Remember You By", and "I'm Through With Love". CD

A real turning point for Sparks – a set that has the duo of Russell and Ron Mael finding a whole new focus for their music on the UK scene! The style is a bit glammy at times – not in the execution, so much as the production – which has a great way of compressing the vocals up against the guitars – while still keeping all the sharpness of the group's earlier music, which is a key component in pushing forward the subtle wit of the tunes! There's also a slight warble to both the vocals and some of the melodies – which might sit nicely next to early Roxy Music in listening spirit, even though Sparks themselves are very much their own thing. Titles include "Here In Heaven", "This Town Ain't Big Enough For Both Of Us", "Amateur Hour", "Equator", "Complaints", "Thank God It's Not Christmas", and "Talent Is An Asset". 2LP pressing features some great bonus tracks – demos from 1973 that include "When I Take The Field ON Friday", "Windy Day", "Marry Me", "My Brains & Her Looks", "A More Constructive Use Of Leisure", "Barbecutie", and "Alabamy Right". LP, Vinyl record album

Pure magic from saxophonist Barney Wilen – captured here at a point when his powers were really back in full force, and when he seemed to be at his most soulful when handling a gentle, easygoing sort of tune! The ballads in the title are definitely out in full force – served up in a mixture of famous French melodies, past and present – so that older postwar melodies are mixed with more contemporary moments from Michel Legrand – with a lyrical vibe that's really emphasized by the superb work on piano for the set by Michel Grallier! The rest of the group is great, too – and players include Sangoma Everett on drums, and Riccardo Del Fra on bass – the last of whom you might know from some fantastic albums with Chet Baker in later years. Wilen blows tenor and a bit of soprano – and titles include "L'Ame Des Poets", "Une Ete 42", "My Way", "Once Upon A Time", "Sous Le Ciel De Paris", "Syracuse", and "What Are You Doing The Rest Of Your Life". CD features new mastering, and four bonus tracks – alternate takes of tunes on the album! CD

A 2CD set of music designed to accompany Japanese animation that starred "the little Norse Prince Valiant" – the cut lil' guy pictured on the cover, who gets some very action-packed accompaniment here! Most tunes are short and lively, and almost echo an older cartoon mode that you might have heard in the US in the 30s and 40s – not exactly Merrie Melodies or Raymond Scott, but not that far away either – as there's all sorts of playful arrangements, unusual horns, offbeat rhythms, and other things that really make the orchestrations sparkle! As with other titles in this series, the whole thing is very well done, but with all notes and titles in Japanese – a 2CD set with 54 tracks in all. CD

A full plate of funky freakout grooves from the Turkish scene – compiled one and all from 7-inch records made from the end of the 60s to the dawn of the 80s! It's a mix of psych folk, funk, more traditional buzzing strings and hypnotic melodies – pretty wonderful all the way! Turkey's been a fertile wonderland of psych era sounds for deep diggers the past few years, but the quality level varies. This is one of the great ones, both for the music and for thick booklet of notes with info on each track. A far reaching set stylistically, with western jazz influences played with Turkish instruments, dreamy folkish melodies, rawer garage style grooves, heavy rhythms and spacier gems! Titles include "Dokuz Sekiz" by Okay Temiz, "Cokertme" by Kardaslar, "Sevdigim" by Erkin Koray, "Hal Hal" by Baris Manco, "Iciyorum" by Ajda Pekkan, "Osman Whlivan" by Arif Sag, "Gunese Don Cicegim" by Ersen and more. CD

Roberta Flack at her most masterful – balancing righteous soul at it's most spiritually resonant and more mainstream accessible melodies – from her classic years at Atlantic when she was forging a whole new sound that was a unique blend of soul, jazz, and spiritualism. Each of Roberta's preceding albums on Atlantic were increasingly incredible – and this one caps of a pretty incredible late 60s to early 70s run of top quality work. Includes the ever-fresh title cut, remade later by The Fugees in a version that cemented it's status with the next generation – plus a great version Leonard Cohen's "Suzanne", "River", "No Tears (In The End)", "I'm The Girl", "When You Smile" and "Conversation Love". LP, Vinyl record album

Brilliant work from the always- great Alain Goraguer – a musician who started out in jazz, then did classic arrangements for Serge Gainsbourg, and went on to some killer soundtrack material too! That's what you'll hear, in a package that brings together lost and un-reissued work from Goraguer – starting with his beautiful sounds for the film L'Affaire Dominici – music that often has a balance of acoustic and electric instrumentation that reminds us of Francois De Roubaix, especially in the way that Goraguer can space out the melodies and rhythms, but also get funky too. The set features two great tracks from Au Dela De La Peur – with a sinister funk quality that reminds us of his best work for Serge Gainsbourg – followed by three final tracks from Musiques Legeres, which have this gentle, watery quality that's really beautiful! LP, Vinyl record album

A lost treasure from the mid 80s Chicago rock scene – the self-titled, self-released first record from Green – with ultra catchy power pop melodies and an excitability that's as infectious as anything that came out of the Chi and other midwestern cities at the time! Green has both a sweetness and rawness that's in line with indie groups that made bigger waves nationally – and might be altogether better. Please don't take us for shameless home team flag wavers here, Green was the real thing, we can't think of a reason beyond bad luck that this record isn't mentioned in the same breath as other great records by groups such as The Replacements. And unlike some of our favorite albums from Chicago underground rock bands of the time, the lean, clear, but no frills production sounds just right to our ears. A total gem ripe for discovery! Titles include "Gotta Getta Record Out", "She's Not A Little Girl Anymore", "Technology", "Baby Why?", "If You Love Me", "For You", "Hurt You", "She, Probably", "Big In Japan" and more. This CD version includes 7 bonus tracks originally from the The Name Of The Band Is Green EP, which was never on CD before now, with EP versions of some album tunes plus "Something About You", "Autograph" and "Away From The Pulsebeat". CD

A really cool take on the sounds of Studio Ghibli – one that brings classic melodies from the famous animated features into play with the production talents of Grey October Sounds – who delivers the goods with all the low-fi elements promised by the title! The approach is instrumental hip hop, but with a very different approach than usual – as the sweetness and spirit of the originals really grace the whole record in a really wonderful way – so that there's a sense of warmth and redemption that you'd not normally find in a record of beats, keyboards, and samples! Includes tunes from Kiki's Delivery Service, Castle In The Sky, and other Ghibli films – 10 tracks in all. LP, Vinyl record album

Classic work from Hugh Masekela – and the album that pushed him over the top! The record features his version of "Grazin In The Grass", a runaway instrumental hit when it was issued – and a sly little groover that was based upon some earlier South African pop melodies that Hugh copped from his roots. The group's a tight little quintet with Al Abreu on tenor and soprano sax, William Henderson on piano, Chuck Carter on drums, and Henry Franklin on bass. The whole thing's great – and tracks include "Stop", "Bajabula Bonke", "There Are Seeds To Sow", "Vuca", "Almost Seedless", and "No Face, No Name, and No Number". LP, Vinyl record album

A surprisingly sensitive soundtrack from Piero Piccioni – especially given that it was done for an early 70s comedy that starred the great Alberto Sordi! The style here is maybe more in that early 60s Italian style of composers like Carlo Rustichelli and Nino Rota – light, lovely melodies that step out from larger but still-light strings – with a gentle sense of whimsy, in a way that never goes too far over the top! Solo instruments include alto sax, accordion, and piano – all used in mighty nice ways – on titles that include "Cocktails From Manhattan", "Roma Amara", "Lunga Storia D'Amore", "Swinging Waltz", "Tango Scopone", and "Gioco Di Carte". CD

Sublime early work from Robert Wyatt and crew – a psychedelic accented jazz rock classic that never gets old – and a visionary set that inspired a generation! The heavily fuzzy guitar sound is transcendent on Volume Two – with sudden jazzy changes, augmented by horns, and all done with a sly sense of humour for which the group doesn't get enough credit. The set's broken up into two different "concept" halves – and side one is "Rivmic Melodies" – and includes "Pataphysical Introduction", "A Concise British Alphabet", "Dada Was Here", and "Out Of Tunes". Side two is "Esther's Nose Job" – with the parts "Pig", "Fire Engine Passing With Bells Clanging", "Orange Skin Food", and "A Door Opens & Closes". Wyatt's on vocals and drums; Hugh Hopper is on bass, guitar, and alto; and Mike Ratledge plays some great Lowry and Hammond organ, plus a bit of harpsichord and flute! LP, Vinyl record album

Beautiful later work by the Dave Brubeck Quartet – an overlooked gem from their 60s Columbia sessions, and an album that features interpretations of tunes written by the great Matt Dennis! Dennis had a way with a tune that often put dark corners in the back of lovely melodies – and this subtle sense of emotion is a perfect foil for the understated talents of Paul Desmond's alto work on the set. Brubeck himself is nice too – less trick-oriented than usual, in a way that lets us focus on the colors of his tone – and drummer Joe Morello and bassist Eugene Wright are in top form, as usual. Titles include "Violets For Your Furs", "Let's Get Away From It All", "Little Man With The Candy Cigar", "Will You Still Be Mine", and "Everything Happens To Me". CD

Beautiful soundtrack material for the last film ever from Alejandro Jodorowsky – composed and performed by his son Adan – aka Adanowsky – in a style that's surprisingly sensitive, and wonderfully thoughtful throughout! The movie is a fantasy autobiography from the legendary filmmaker – and Adan scores the music at a level that takes us back to some of our favorite French soundtracks of the 60s and 70s – sentimental, but never soppy – carefully emotive, yet never overdone – with a haunting blend of keyboards, piano, and light strings – all used in very focused ways, on melodies that range somewhere between the furniture music of Satie, and the whimsical themes of Nino Rota. First-ever release of the soundtrack – with titles that include "Los Mineros", "Bucefalo", "Jose", "Bodisua", "The Midget", "God Doesn't Exist", and "The Clowns". LP, Vinyl record album

Sublime early work from Robert Wyatt and crew – a psychedelic accented jazz rock classic that never gets old – and a visionary set that inspired a generation! The heavily fuzzy guitar sound is transcendent on Volume Two – with sudden jazzy changes, augmented by horns, and all done with a sly sense of humour for which the group doesn't get enough credit. It's broken up into two different "concept" halves – the first half is "Rivmic Melodies" – and includes "Pataphysical Introduction", "A Concise British Alphabet", "Dada Was Here", and "Out Of Tunes". The second is "Esther's Nose Job" – with the parts "Pig", "Fire Engine Passing With Bells Clanging", "Orange Skin Food", and "A Door Opens & Closes". Wyatt's on vocals and drums; Hugh Hopper is on bass, guitar, and alto; and Mike Ratledge plays some great Lowry and Hammond organ, plus a bit of harpsichord and flute! CD

The moody title's a great one for this album by pianist Craig Taborn – given the spare melodies and ghost-like traces of sound that move the album forward! The album's a perfect match between Taborn's music and the ECM aesthetic – as space and air mean as much to the record as the sound of the players – who work together in this really thoughtful way to shape the slow-flowing evolution of the tunes! In addition to piano, Taborn also plays a bit of electronics – and the album features some especially great clarinet from Chris Speed, who also plays tenor – plus bass from Chris Lightcap and drums from Dave King. Titles include "Abandoned Reminder", "The Shining One", "The Great Silence", "Ancient", "Phantom Ratio", and "Subtle Living Equations". CD

Really wild work from this hip Japanese guitarist of the 60s – music that still echoes some of the American instrumental guitar styles of the decade, but which often opens up with all these weird and wonderful touches too! There are some moments that seem to evoke older Japanese melodies, but with an electrified groove – and others almost hint at noise to come in the world of Japanese avant music, but never at a level that overwhelms the melody at all. Great stuff throughout – a real ear-opening collection that brings together his work with The Blue Jeans and Bunnys– with titles that include "Komoro Oiwake", "Tsugaru Hanagasa", "Amefuru Machikado", "Tsugaru Goze", "Abashiri Bangaichi", and "Rashoumon". LP, Vinyl record album

Once again, Cannonball Adderley proves the old jazz adage – it's not the song, but the singer – as he breathes fantastic new life here into a set of tunes from the musical Fiddler on the Roof! Yet in thinking of the music, there's also a special sort of genius – as there's some exotic currents in most of the melodies, which may be why the young producer David Axelrod chose the tracks for the set – as they've got the same blend of hardbop and exotic elements that you'll hear on some of the original tunes by this group. The lineup is great – Nat Adderley on cornet, Charles Lloyd on reeds, Joe Zawinul on piano, Sam Jones on bass, and Louis Hayes on drums – and the tones of Cannon and Lloyd are great together – and the make the best songs sound like strange Eastern-tinged jazz numbers. Tunes include "To Life", "Fiddler On The Roof", "Cajvalach", "Sewing Machine", "Matchmaker", and "Now I Have Everything". LP, Vinyl record album

A portrait of Duke, done by Dizzy – and one that's got a whole different feel than you might think! Gillespie's working here with arrangements by a young Clare Fischer – who takes Ellington's themes and recasts them with an even deeper sense of color and tone – one that pushes the already-modern themes of the numbers into a whole new realm of sound, and uses the horn passages to carve things out a lot differently than Duke might have done! The result is a wonderfully striking session – one with familiar melodies that unfold in a whole new way – and which showcases some great phrasing from Dizzy, over rhythms by a combo that features Hank Jones, George Duvivier, and Charlie Persip – playing alongside a group of larger horns. Titles include "Perdido", "Caravan", "Upper Manhattan Medical Group", and "Chelsea Bridge". CD

A real turning point for Sparks – a set that has the duo of Russell and Ron Mael finding a whole new focus for their music on the UK scene! The style is a bit glammy at times – not in the execution, so much as the production – which has a great way of compressing the vocals up against the guitars – while still keeping all the sharpness of the group's earlier music, which is a key component in pushing forward the subtle wit of the tunes! There's also a slight warble to both the vocals and some of the melodies – which might sit nicely next to early Roxy Music in listening spirit, even though Sparks themselves are very much their own thing. Titles include "Here In Heaven", "This Town Ain't Big Enough For Both Of Us", "Amateur Hour", "Equator", "Complaints", "Thank God It's Not Christmas", and "Talent Is An Asset". LP, Vinyl record album

The second chapter of one of the most obscure set recordings by this amazing duo – singers Brigitte Fontaine and Areski, who you might know best from their work on the legendary Saravah Records at the start of the 70s! The work here isn't musical theater, but was instead recorded for French radio in 1973 – and is maybe even more experimental than some of the duo's other albums of the time – still this amazing blend of poetic lyrics, matched-up voices, and light acoustic instrumentation – but sometimes less song-based than at other points – with Fontaine really bringing a lot of subtle drama into her performance! The whole thing is beautiful – a much-needed addition to the small catalog of this legendary duo. Titles on this volume include "Les Murailles", "Apres La Guerre", "L'Ete L'Ete", "Il Pleut Sur La Gare", "Ragalia", "Les Borias", "Le Six Septembre", and "Les Petits Chevaux". LP, Vinyl record album

Shame about the cover, but cheescake nudie image aside, the album's got all the poise, class, and grace you'd expect in some other classics from pianist Roland Hanna – a player who already attained majesty in his music, long before he started adding "Sir" to his name! There's a fair bit of classical numbers here, used as surprising vehicles for jazz expression by Hanna – not the usual "jazz meets classical" vibe that stays very faithful to the structure of the original compositions – but more just a basic inspiration for improvisational melodies, played by the trio in a way that has Roland's piano strongly out in the lead, with subtle accompaniment from Ron Carter on bass and Grady Tate on drums. Titles include "Prelude", "Like Grains Of Sand", "Serenade", "Apres Un Reve", "Based On Gustav", and "Going Home". CD

The long awaited return of Brazilian iconoclasts Os Mutantes – featuring original Mutante Sergio Dias and a great new band – plus songwriting contributions from Tom Ze and Jorge Ben – a forward looking endeavor, not at all a nostalgia trip! It's been around 30 years since the previous Os Mutantes album, and the never predictable Dias sounds as fresh and energized as we hoped he'd be – with bright, catchy-as-hell melodies, wildly playful carnivalesque sounds as well as more rootsy acoustic bits, on songs that fearlessly blend genres and influences. It's hard to imagine that we'll ever love records from Mutantes, or anyone else in any genre, as much as we love the late 60s stuff – but this is excellent, and among the better Mutantes records since the Rita Lee era. Dias sings and plays electric & acoustic guitars, Egyptian oud, organ, percussion, harmonica and handles the string arrangements, and fellow Mutantes this time out include percussion, drums & vocals by Dinho Leme and Bia Mendes, vocals, piano & keys by Henrique Peters and Fabio Recco, percussion & sound design by Simone Sou, bass, flute, strings and string arrangements and more by Citor Trida. Titles include "Hymns Of The World (Intro)", "Querida Qierida", "Teclar", "2000 E Agarrum", "Baghdad Blues", "O Careca", "O Mensageiro", "Anagrama" featuring Tom Ze, "Aamba Do Fidel", "Nada Mudou", "Gopala Krishna Om", "Hymns Of The World (Final)" and more. CD

The cover here gives you a good idea of what you're in for – rare material from Japanese electronic composer Hirokazu Tanaka – best known for his work on the scores of important Nintendo games – most of of it from the glory days of the cassette, and pulled from Tanaka's archives! The tracks are often beautifully tuneful – spare melodies handled mostly on keyboards, and augmented with other sonic touches and electronic rhythms – kind of a late 80s extension of some of the more familiar modes of Japanese electronic music at the start of the decade. There are vocal tracks at times, although they're not key to the set – and the package features a whopping 25 tracks in all – including "Martian Bird", "Autumn Wind", "Karasu Demo", "Small Gift", "Fairy Wings", "You & Me Demo", "Space Attack Q", "Coco", "Space X", and "Spacemen's March". CD