A twin-tenor classic from the team of Al Cohn and Zoot Sims – one of the duo's best-remembered albums from their 50s years at RCA – and a perfect blend of their talent for individual improvisation and unified ensemble energy! The album boasts 2 different groups – one with Hank Jones on piano, Milt Hinton on bass, and Osie Johnson on drums; the other with Dick Sherman on trumpet, Dave McKenna on piano, and the rhythm team of Hinton and Johnson – but the main focus is on Al and Zoot throughout, both blowing these lines that are crisp and modern, yet filled with soul – especially on Sims' passages, which break free a bit more than some of the other RCA jazz sessions of the time. Titles include "My Blues", "More Bread", "Sherm's Terms", "From A To Z", "Crimea River", and "Mediolistic". CD

Very nice stripped-down set by Tony Scott – one of the most overlooked reed players of the 50s, and an artist who ventured into much more hippy-dippy oriented material during the 60s. The set supposedly features "both sides" of Scott's work – but it's really only a simple batch of clarinet tracks, performed in the company of 2 different quartets: one with Mundell Lowe, Teddy Kotick, and Shadow Wilson; the other with Dick Garcia, Milt Hinton, and Osie Johnson. The guitar/clarinet sound works very nicely throughout – and titles include "East Coast, West Side", "Counterpoint Pleasant", "Star Dust", and "Cry Me A River". CD

With Clark Terry on trumpet and flugelhorn, Jimmy Cleveland on trombone, Julius Watkins on frech horn, Jay McAllister on tuba, Phil Woods on alto, Frank Wess on tenor, Jerome Richardson on baritone, Les Spann on guitar, George Duvivier on bass, and Osie Johnson on drums. LP, Vinyl record album

One of the best sessions that Al Cohn ever cut – done with a small group setting, a rare privilege for Al, who was so often lost in a larger group! Cohn's tenor is right out front, and the rest of the players include Frank Rehak, Hank Jones, Milt Hinton, and Osie Johnson. Cohn contributes the original tunes "Be Loose", "Good Ol Blues", and "Abstract Of You" – and the rest of the tracks include "We Three", "Idaho", "When Day Is Done", and "Blue Lou". LP, Vinyl record album

Wonderful later work by Coleman Hawkins – a player who was very much "at ease" with himself at the time, and opened up tremendously on albums like this! The format is beautiful – simple small group backings by Tommy Flanagan, Wendell Marshall, and Osie Johnson – with Coleman out front, blowing these deep and mellow tenor lines that could stop a locomotive in its tracks! Titles include "At Dawning", "I'll Get By", "For You For Me For Evermore", and "Mighty Lak A Rose". CD

A great collection – one that features a side of material from the album Soul, with piano by Ray Bryant; and another side of a set recorded with the Red Garland Trio. Also features the full album At Ease – wonderful late work by Coleman Hawkins – a player who was very much "at ease" with himself at the time, and opened up tremendously on albums like this. The format is beautiful – simple small group backings by Tommy Flanagan, Wendell Marshall, and Osie Johnson – with Coleman out front, blowing these deep and mellow tenor lines that could stop a locomotive in its tracks! Titles include "At Dawning", "I'll Get By", "For You For Me For Evermore", and "Mighty Lak A Rose". LP, Vinyl record album

Tony Scott plays with his septet, which includes Eddie Wasserman on tenor, Danny Banks on baritone, Jimmy Nottingham on trumpet, Billy Byers on trombone, Milt Hinton on bass, and Osie Johnson on drums. LP, Vinyl record album

A tight swinger from Sonny Stitt – one of the standout 60s dates he recorded for the Impulse label, a place where he seemed to get even more care and focus in the studio! The record's got all the soulful swing of Stitt's classics for Roost, but also hits a slightly more lyrical groove at times too – and backing is by a trio that features Hank Jones on piano, Al Lucas on bass, and Osie Johnson on drums. Stitt himself plays a bit of alto alongside his tenor – and titles include "Lester Leaps In", "Please Don't Talk About Me When I'm Gone", "Estralita", "My Mother's Eyes", "Never Sh!", "Touchy", and "Surfin". LP, Vinyl record album

Head to head blowing from Sonny Sitt and Paul Gonsalves – just the kind of twin-horn performance that Stitt was famous for in his live battle days, and one that also reminds us that Gonsalves can be a very loose swinger when he wants to be! The tracks are all long, and played with the sort of feel you'd hear if you caught these guys live at some small southside club – and the solos also show the kind of inventiveness and imagination you'd catch in that sort of setting – backed by a swinging rhythm combo that features Hank Jones on piano, Milt Hinton on bass, and Osie Johnson on drums. Titles include a version of "Perdido" that's nearly 13 minutes long – plus "Stardust", "Sposin", "Salt & Pepper", and "Theme From Lord Of The Flies". LP, Vinyl record album

2 rare sides of work by trumpeter Clark Terry – both with a fair bit more edge than many of his later recordings! The first half of the CD is from the amazing 1955 album Clark Terry for Emarcy – a real stunner, and one of Terry's finest moments ever! The record has a rawness and groove that you'd hardly expect from his later albums – no surprise, though, considering that it was cut during that really hip time at Emarcy, when the label was working in a mode that was darker and more challenging than many of the smaller labels at the time. Credit is also due to arranger Quincy Jones – who pulls together a group that includes Horace Silver, Jimmy Cleveland, Cecil Payne, and Art Blakey, all into a fiercely grooving sound that recalls some of his most adventurous work of the 50s. The album kicks off with the stunning "Swahili", a tune that will instantly make you happy you bought the record – and other tracks include "Coop", "Chuckles", "Tuma", "Kitten", and "The Countess". These tracks are followed by 8 more from an obscure 1954 session done under the leadership of clarinetist Jimmy Hamilton – and featuring Terry on trumpet, Barry Galbraith and Sidney Gross on guitars, Oscar Pettiford on bass, and Osie Johnson on drums – all in a really unusual group formation that's totally great! One guitar's used for solos and the other for rhythm – and the lack of piano gives the record a decidedly different swing than you might expect from a Jimmy Hamilton session – one that's less traditional, and more airy and open – really inventive in the rhythmic construction of the tunes, in a mode that's followed up very nicely by the soloists in their own energy. Titles include "Chuckles", "Bohemia After Dark", "Blues In My Room", "Blues For Clarinet", and "What Am I Here For". CD

With Eddie Costa on piano, Joe Benjamin on bass, and Osie Johnson on drums. LP, Vinyl record album

A great little album from Ben Webster – perhaps not his most sophisticated, jazz-wise, but done up in a cool cover that has him standing in front of the steel globe at the 1964 World's Fair in New York. The music on the disc has a similar optimistic approach – as Ben solos lightly over rhythms by either Hank Jones or Roger Kellaway on piano (and a bit of harpsichord), plus bass and drums backing by Richard Davis and Osie Johnson. The album's got a great rolling soul jazz number called "See You At The Fair", and a very odd crashing harpsichord number called "Lullaby Of Jazzland" – plus the tunes "Fall Of Love", "While We're Dancing", and "Our Love Is Here To Stay". CD

One of the rare few records recorded by a young Andy Bey and his sisters! The group was an obscure jazz harmony trio formed by Andy in his earlier years – and it features him on piano, joining with the vocals of his two sisters Salome and Geradine Bey – in a soulful, moody style that's unlike anything else we can think of! Their three heavenly voices are backed by Kenny Burrell's guitar, Milt Hinton's bass, and Osie Johnson's drums, and there's lots of room around the arrangments for the Beys to stretch out and sing beautifully. Includes a haunting arrangment of "Round Midnight", plus "God Bless The Child", "Everytime We Say Goodbye", "Solitude", and the "Love Medley". CD

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

Cannonball Adderley and Earle Warren on alto saxophone, Jerome Richardson on baritone saxophone and flute, Ray Brown and Sam Jones on bass, Ray Brown on cello, Nat Adderley on cornet, Albert Heath, Grady Tate, and Osie Johnson on drums, Kenny Burrell on guitar, Wild Bill Davis on organ, Hank Jones and Tommy Flanagan on piano, Danny Bank, Jimmy Heath, Phil Woods, and Robert Ashton on reeds, Budd Johnson and Seldon Powell on tenor saxophone, Yusef Lateef on tenor saxophone and flute, Britt Woodman, Jimmy Cleveland, Melba Liston, Paul Faulise, Tom McIntosh, Tony Studd, and Urbie Green on trombone, Clark Terry, Ernie Royal, Joe Newman, and Snooky Young on trumpet, Milt Jackson on vibraphone, and Marion Williams on vocals. CD

The first full album from the great Ray Bryant – recorded shortly after his famous Epic Records session with Betty Carter! The album's got Ray grooving in a hard early soul jazz mode – working in a trio with either Kenny Clarke or Osie Johnson on drums, and Wyatt Reuther on bass – at a level that still shows some influence from other pianists, but already with that unique hard-left style that would make Bryant a big favorite in short years to come. Candido joins in on congas on 2 of the album's best tracks – a hard grooving take on "Night In Tunisia", plus Ray's classic "Cubano Chant", a dancing Latin groover that went onto become an oft-recorded Latin Jazz standard – and other titles include "Pawn Ticket", "Philadelphia Bound", and "Off Shore". CD

Amazing small group work from Ralph Burns – a real standout, given the amount of his larger ensemble sessions in the 50s! The album features Burns on piano – overdubbed on some tracks – working with a combo that includes Jimmy Raney on guitar, Clyde Lombardi on bass, and Osie Johnson on drums – all gently modern players who fit perfectly with Ralph's vision for the record. Things aren't as dark or as arch as on some of Burns' bigger dates of the decade – almost a bit warm at times, especially thanks to Ralph's piano lines. Titles include "Autobahn Blues", "Echo Of Spring", "Spring Sequence", "Spring", "Spring Is Here", and "Gina". LP, Vinyl record album

Two closely related sessions with Joe Newman and Al Cohn in the front line – plus guitarist Freddie Green, pianist Nat Pierce, Milt Hinton on bass, and Osie Johnson on drums. Tracks include "Up In The Blues", "Free & Easy", "Something's Gotta Give", "Doggin' Around" and "9:20 Special". CD

A really unusual chapter of the Coleman Hawkins catalog – an album of easy-going ballads and late nite tracks, recorded with backings from arranger Frank Hunter – hence the title of the set! Hunter's using some lush strings on the set, but not in a way that gets in front of Hawkins' horn – and Coleman gets plenty of room to blow on the session, recorded here in a nice echoey mode that brings out the deepness of his tone even more than usual! Rhythm is by 2 different trios – one with Dick Hyman, Milt Hinton, and Osie Johnson; the other with Hank Jones, George Duvivier, and Jimmie Crawford – and tunes include "Easy Walker", "Traumerei", "Lazy Butterfly", "Pebbles", "Not Quite Right", "Whisper To Me", "Lonely Tenor", and "Hawk Talk". LP, Vinyl record album

Wonderful work by Oscar Pettiford! Manhattan Jazz Septette is a nice mid 50s effort from– with a sound that ranges from an easy-going, lightly swinging style to full on, dexterous workouts! The arrangements by Manny Alban really allows for a lot of tight grooving from a stellar group – including Herbie Mann on flute and tenor, Barry Galbraith on guitar, Osie Johnson on drums, Urbie Green on trombone, Hal McKusick on alto, and Eddie Costa on piano and vibes! Titles include "King Porter Stomp", "Never Never Land", "Like Listen", "Rapid Transit", the great Herbie Mann showcase "Flute Cocktail", My Shining Hour" and more. CD

Great small group material from these key revival years of Pee Wee Russell's career – a time when he was a dedicated modernist, even in a trad setting! Players include Buck Clayton on trumpet, Tommy Flanagan on piano, Wendell Marshall on bass, and Osie Johnson on drums. LP, Vinyl record album

Early Atlantic Records work from the great Mose Allison – easily one of the most unique jazz artists of his time! Most started out as a pianist with a nicely bluesy vibe, but soon added in this excellent vocal approach that was maybe part New Orleans, part New York hipster – delivered here with a vibe that follows nicely from his earlier recordings for Columbia and Prestige Records! The sound is nice and stripped-down – none of the larger arrangements that Mose would soon use on Atlantic – and the set features accompaniment from Addison Farmer on bass and Osie Johnson on drums. Titles include the classic "Your Mind Is On Vacation" – plus "I Don't Worry About A Thing", "It Didn't Turn Out That Way", "Stand By", "Meet Me At No Special Place", and "The Song Is Ended". CD

A brilliant example of why Eddie Bert was one of the hippest trombonists of the 50s – a player who could bridge the worlds of Stan Kenton and Charles Mingus, and always come up with a sound that was one of the freshest on his instrument! The bulk of the CD features small combo work Bert recorded for the Discovery label in 1953 and 1954 – quintet sessions done with Duke Jordan on piano and Clyde Lombardi on bass, plus other players that include Sal Salvador on guitar, Vinnie Dean on alto sax, and Joe Morello on drums. Bert's sound throughout is fluid, lean, and modern – gliding with light colors one moment, a crisp modern edge the next, and a bit of boppish inflection at others – always opening up new areas of expression for the sometimes-staid trombone, and working here at a level that matches 50s invention of better-known players on the instrument. 4 additional tracks on the CD are from a previously unissued 1959 recording with Dean on alto, Lombardi on bass, Sal Mosca on piano, and Ed Shaughnessy on drums – plus a really unique 17 minute live recording of the title track by a quartet with Bert, Jordan, Lombardi, and Osie Johnson on drums. Bert's playing on this extended track alone is worth the price of admission – but the CD features a total of 73 minutes of music in all, on 17 tracks that include "Ripples", "Conversation Piece", "Interwoven", "Little Train", "Kaleidoscope", "Around Town", "Melting Pot", "He Ain't Got Rhythm", and "Blues At Sunrise". CD

One of the great Ray Brown LPs for Verve, featuring the legendary bassist in the company of Jerome Richardson, Herb Ellis, Osie Johnson, and Oscar Peterson (who plays organ on some cuts!). Cuts include "Jim", "Cool Walk", "Upstairs Blues", and "Bric a Brac". LP, Vinyl record album

A real lost treasure from Art Farmer – a tremendous album that hardly ever shows up in the history books, and which, to our knowledge, appears here on CD for the first time ever – plus a bonus album of earlier Farmer work with the Mundell Lowe Septet! Many Faces is a rare 1964 jazz side for the mostly-pop Scepter label – featuring Farmer at the head of a small group working with Tommy Flanagan on piano, Charles McPherson on alto, and Steve Swallow or Ron Carter alternating on bass. The album was done under the direction of Tom McIntosh – the brilliant young composer who had a magical talent for blending together modern and lyrical modes while still keeping a strong degree of soul. McIntosh contributed a few tunes to the set, as did Dennis Sandole – the nearly-forgotten trumpeter from the Philly scene of the 50s. There's a dark beauty to this session that surpasses even many other Farmer sides from the time – and titles include "Hyacinth", "Ally", "Happy Feet", "Minuet In G", and "Saucer Eyes". 1958's Porgy & Bess finds Farmer playing trumpet for guitarist Mundell Lowe's Septet on a nice set of material from Gershwin – including lesser known numbers from the original play. Players include Tony Scott on clarinet and baritone, Ben Webster on tenor and either George Duvivier or Osie Johnson on the kit. Titles include "Summertime", "Bess, You Is My Woman", "I Love You Porgy", "Redhead Woman", "There's A Boat That's Leaving Soon For New York", "It Ain't Necessarily So" and more. CD

With Thad Jones on trumpet, George Duvivier on bass, Eddie Costa on piano and vibes, and Osie Johnson on Drums. LP, Vinyl record album

Gritty grooves from Coleman Hawkins – a set that has the aging tenorist still working in swing-based formation, but with a much blusier tone than on his Verve albums of the decade! The group's a small one – with Hawkins on tenor and Charlie Shavers on trumpet – plus some especially nice guitar work from Tiny Grimes, who really underscores the soul of the session, and almost makes the whole thing feel a bit more laidback and open than usual. Rhythm is from the trio of Ray Bryant on piano, George Duvivier on bass, and Osie Johnson on drums – and the album features two very long tracks – "Hawk Eyes" and "C'Mon In" – which are more blowing session numbers – plus the shorter tunes "Stealin The Bean", "La Rosita", "I Neer Knew", and "Through For The Night". LP, Vinyl record album

With Bob Wilbur on tenor, Peanuts Huckel on clarinet, Urbie Green on trombone, Marty Napoleon on piano, Mundell Lowe on guitar, Jack Lesberg on bass, Osie Johnson on drums, and Chet Amsterdam on percussion. LP, Vinyl record album

We're not sure we've ever heard trumpeter Joe Newman and tenorist Zoot Sims work together on a record – and certainly never as striking a setting as this – a record that really gives both musicians a chance to open up and blow! Despite the title, the players are less "locking horns" here than really working together in the lead – hitting the kind of tight head arrangements that you might hear on some of Sims material with RCA, but getting a grittier groove from both the Roulette Records style of recording, and the efforts of a cool rhythm trio that features Adrian (Johnny?) Acea on piano, Oscar Pettiford on bass, and Osie Johnson drums. Newman's horn has an especially gutbuckety quality, and Sims follows suit with some deeply soulful work on his solos – on titles that include "Corky", "Mambo For Joe", "Midnite Fantasy", "Tater Pie", "Oh Joe", and "Oh Shaye". LP, Vinyl record album

Head to head blowing from Sonny Sitt and Paul Gonsalves – just the kind of twin-horn performance that Stitt was famous for in his live battle days, and one that also reminds us that Gonsalves can be a very loose swinger when he wants to be! The tracks are all long, and played with the sort of feel you'd hear if you caught these guys live at some small southside club – and the solos also show the kind of inventiveness and imagination you'd catch in that sort of setting – backed by a swinging rhythm combo that features Hank Jones on piano, Milt Hinton on bass, and Osie Johnson on drums. Titles include a version of "Perdido" that's nearly 13 minutes long – plus "Stardust", "Sposin", "Salt & Pepper", and "Theme From Lord Of The Flies". CD

Head to head blowing from Sonny Sitt and Paul Gonsalves – just the kind of twin-horn performance that Stitt was famous for in his live battle days, and one that also reminds us that Gonsalves can be a very loose swinger when he wants to be! The tracks are all long, and played with the sort of feel you'd hear if you caught these guys live at some small southside club – and the solos also show the kind of inventiveness and imagination you'd catch in that sort of setting – backed by a swinging rhythm combo that features Hank Jones on piano, Milt Hinton on bass, and Osie Johnson on drums. Titles include a version of "Perdido" that's nearly 13 minutes long – plus "Stardust", "Sposin", "Salt & Pepper", and "Theme From Lord Of The Flies". Also features the full bonus album – Now! CD

Joe Wilder on trumpet, Oscar Pettiford on bass, Osie Johnson drums on all groups plus on Fats George Wallington on piano, Nick Travis on trumpet, Eddie Bert & Jimmy Cleveland on trombone, Aaron Sachs on tenor sax plus on Bix Joe Soldo on flute, Danny Bank on clarinet, Harold Goltzer on basoon, Jim Buffington on french horn, Barry Galbraith on guitar, plus on Duke/Talbert Herb Geller, Joe Soldo, Aaron Sachs & Danny Bank on reeds, Jim Buffington on french horn, Eddie Bert on trombone, Barry Galbraith on guitar. LP, Vinyl record album