A group that's not really folk, but who definitely have a special magic of their own – a collective ensemble who played on the Italian scene of the 70s, and who bring together free improvisation with a range of other earthy and organic elements! There's definitely some global currents going on here – and at points, the record's not far from some of the Don Cherry experiments of this nature – especially on passages that are heavy on percussion elements. But the size of the ensemble really gives them a strong force once they get going – and the saxes and flutes are sometimes merged with use of voice – only conventionally singing on one more straight ahead track on the record. Most musicians are ones that we don't recognize from other jazz efforts of the time – but the group does include flute from Nicola Stilo, who later played with Chet Baker – plus soprano and alto from Giancarlo Maurino, tenor from Mario Fulci, and altos from Sandro Satta and Luciano De Bonis. Titles include "Inno Per L'Imperatore", "Grass Leaf Rag", "Alice Alice Che Piange E Che Ride", "Free Bop New Bop", and "Monkey". LP, Vinyl record album

One of Europe's greatest jazz musicians ever – captured here on two rare albums from the 50s! Although Lars Gullin was mostly a baritone player, his rich talent on the instrument won him many accolades during the postwar years – and he recorded a huge amount of albums, both here in the US, and home in his native Sweden. These two sessions were originally issued in Sweden on Metronome, but are offered here in the versions issued by Atlantic in the US during the late 50s. Both records are some of Gullin's best straight material from the time – and they feature him swinging hard and straight-ahead, in a perfect setting made up of some of Sweden's finest players. Titles include "Always", "After 8pm", "Half Nelson", "So What", "Fedja", and "Perntz". Great to have back out again – and what a deal! (Please note that the CD had to omit the track "Ma" because of space limitations.) CD

A wonderful album of straight ahead jazz – cut by a current combo from Italy, but done with a really classic sound! The style here is a bit like that of the straighter jazz albums on Schema Records – all acoustic, but often highly rhythmic – and focused in styles that explore older Italian modal jazz of the 60s, as well as some of the deeper shadings of the Blue Note scene from years back! The lineup is incredibly strong – with tenor from Daniele Scannapieco, trumpet from Fabrizio Bosso, and piano from Luca Mannutza, whose firm work and bold notes on the keys really give the album a lot of drive and fire! CD features Nicola Conte remixes of the leadoff track "Conversation" – which is actually great enough in its original version by the group – and other tracks include "Wide Green Eyes", "The Driver", "Shade Of Gira", "Dubai", and "Campagna". CD

An album with a classic modernist cover image – and one that's also got the same sort of sound to match – brilliant early work from trumpeter Freddie Hubbard, who's really coming into his own as a leader with this date! Freddie's really finding a voice here – a sharper edge than on some of his later albums, at the beginning of a more modernist phase in the mid-60s – when his efforts would mark him as one of the more straight ahead players of the "new thing" scene. There's a careful balance in Hubbard's work here – spurred on by youthful energy of group mates Herbie Hancock on piano, James Spaulding on alto and flute, Reggie Workman on bass, and Clifford Jarvis on drums. Hubbard is really brimming over with new ideas – as are the other players – and titles include "Lament for Booker", "Prophet Jennings", "Hub Tones", "For Spee's Sake", and "You're My Everything". LP, Vinyl record album

An album with a classic modernist cover image – and one that's also got the same sort of sound to match – brilliant early work from trumpeter Freddie Hubbard, who's really coming into his own as a leader with this date! Freddie's really finding a voice here – a sharper edge than on some of his later albums, at the beginning of a more modernist phase in the mid-60s – when his efforts would mark him as one of the more straight ahead players of the "new thing" scene. There's a careful balance in Hubbard's work here – spurred on by youthful energy of group mates Herbie Hancock on piano, James Spaulding on alto and flute, Reggie Workman on bass, and Clifford Jarvis on drums. Hubbard is really brimming over with new ideas – as are the other players – and titles include "Lament for Booker", "Prophet Jennings", "Hub Tones", "For Spee's Sake", and "You're My Everything". CD also includes 3 alternate takes of titles on the album. CD

One of the greatest lost sessions ever! Legendary vibist Bobby Hutcherson recorded this set of tracks in his early days with Blue Note – but the set's never come out until now, and its release is cause for rejoicing! The material shows Hutcherson playing in a straight-ahead format, tinged with some of the modernist new thing elements of other recordings from the time, but mostly filled with a soulfulness not always heard on his Blue Note albums at the time. The group includes Duke Pearson on piano, whose lovely lyrical approach works perfectly with Hutcherson's vibes. Joe Henderson plays some great hard-edged tenor, cutting nicely through all the tracks – and Grant Green sits in on half of the material, playing some nice spiralling modal lines on guitar. Many of these titles have been recorded in other versions on later Blue Note albums – but they're all in fantastic versions here, including "Bedouin", "The Kicker", "Step Lightly", and "Mirrors". LP, Vinyl record album

Yusef Lateef's one and only album for the Charlie Parker label – cut during a period when he's been making real waves in the jazz scene with work on Prestige and Savoy! The set's a bit more straight ahead than some of Lateef's more exotic sides of the time – focusing on his work on tenor, and going for a soulful hardbop approach that relatively upbeat and swinging, with traces of the work that Lateef was doing in the Cannonball Adderley group of the time. Players on the album include Vincent Pitts on trumpet, John Horman on piano, Ray McKinny on bass, and either George Scott or Clifford Jarvis on drums – and all tunes save two are originals, with titles that include "Outside Blues", "Blue Rocky", "Introlude", "Train Stomp", and "Trudy's Delight". LP, Vinyl record album

An incredible legacy of jazz – one that's certainly as disconnected as promised by the title, but which stands as a much-needed look at the many-sided talents of tenorist Allen Lowe! The set's on ESP Records, but often has sounds that are somewhat straight ahead – although often in a way that's a bit more than you might expect – as Lowe's a player with a strong knowledge of older generations of jazz, but who can put things together with a very contemporary ear – maybe best summed up in the Avant Garde Tribute To Louis Armstrong – a Knitting Factory performance that's part of this set. Lowe works with a compelling range of musicians throughout – maybe most importantly, trumpeter Doc Cheatham, who shows that in the 80s and 90s, he was still very open to new ideas – as well as Percy France and David Murray on tenor, Randy Sandke on trumpet, Roswell Rudd on trombone, Matthew Shipp on piano and Farfisa organ – and many others along the way. The massive 8CD set features countless rare recordings from over 40 years of Lowe's career – private recordings, live sets, and lots more – a huge addition not just to his own catalog, but a revelation of a connecting web on the east coast scene for decades! CD

Henry Mancini's second album of stuff for the Peter Gunn TV show, and arguably better than the first one! The album's straight-ahead crime jazz – performed by a great set of players that includes Plas Johnson, Shelly Manne, Ted Nash, Paul Horn, and other west coasters. Tracks include "My Manne Shelly", "Timothy", "Goofin At The Coffee House", "Odd Ball", "Walkin' Bass", and "Spook!". LP, Vinyl record album

Never-issued material from the legendary South African pianist Tete Mbambisa – all recorded in the mid 70s, right around the time of Tete's classic albums! The double-length set is a treasure trove of soulful SA jazz expression – and tunes move between slightly funky numbers to others that have a more straight ahead vibe – almost always with some great electric bass at the core, sometimes moving gently, sometimes groovily – and topped by strong horn work that echoes some of the best jazz currents coming into the scene at the time – snakey and soulful in all the best ways. Titles include "Mr Mecca", "Umsenge", "Relaxin", "Untitled For Duke Makasi", "African Day", "Siviwe", and "Khumbula Jane". LP, Vinyl record album

A great contrast to some of the more straight-ahead James Brown biographies on the market – as writer James McBride takes a circuitous path to look at the genius of The Godfather – not the shining stars of the bigger highlights in his career, but the lost corners and more distant pathways that shaped not just the man and his music, but Brown's role in our culture as well. The book is beautifully written – no surprise, given McBride's literary talents – and amidst all the hype and overblown myths about James Brown, the author really seems to unlock something new, and very personal as well. 232 pages, softcover. Book

Two key albums from a young Jackie McLean – both very early entries in the "new thing" mode of the 60s! First up is Let Freedom Ring a record that features a young Jackie McLean at the height of his powers – really stretching out here, but never going too far out – a perfect balance between his modern bop of previous records, and his groundbreaking "new thing" jazz to come! The group is a relatively straight ahead one – with Walter Davis on piano, Herbie Lewis on bass, and Billy Higgins on drums – but the tracks are all quite long, and have this really arch sensibility on Jackie's horn – this edge, this cry he didn't have a few years before – easily one of the freshest voices in alto sax at the time, yearning here to break free with new ideas and new modes of expression. The vibe is perfectly balanced – like McLean's classic A Fickle Sonance – and titles include the classic "Melody For Melonae", plus "Rene", "I'll Keep Loving You", and "Omega". Destination Out is a modernist classic from 60s Blue Note! The album's one of Jackie McLean's greatest from the time – and one of his seminal "new thing" sessions cut with young modernists Grachan Moncur III on trombone and Bobby Hutcherson on vibes – both young players who were really finding the sharper edges of their sound at the time! Three of the four long tracks on the record were written by Moncur, and have a similar approach to his own recordings for Blue Note – moody and introspective, in a style that's as concerned with sound and space as it is jazz and rhythm – and Hutcherson's vibes are beyond compare here, with have a sinister metallic quality that he only used briefly in his early career! The whole record's a gem, and one not to pass up! Titles include "Kahlil The Prophet", "Riff Raff", and "Love & Hate". CD

A live album, but every bit as seminal as the studio sides that Pat Metheny cut for ECM at the time – and proof that the Metheny magic was clearly his own, and not just a product of studio tricks by Manfred Eicher! The set reprises tunes and themes from a variety of Metheny's earlier ECM albums – but the live presentation of the material somehow really transforms a number of them – pushing them into a soundspace that's similar to the one explored by Pat on the Offramp album, augmented especially by the presence of percussionist Nana Vasconcelos in the group. Titles include "Phase Dance", "Farmer's Trust", "Straight On Red", "The Fields The Sky", "Are You Going With Me", "Extradition", "Going Ahead", "As Falls Wichita So Falls Wichita Falls", and "Travels". LP, Vinyl record album

One of the best-ever Hank Mobley albums on Blue Note – and a killer batch of soulful hardbop that was cut right around the same time as the classic No Room For Squares LP. In fact, the album contains work from 2 different sessions that filtered over to the Squares album – one that featured Mobley with Freddie Hubbard, Barry Harris, Paul Chambers, and Billy Higgins; and another that included Herbie Hancock, Donald Byrd, Butch Warren, and Philly Joe Jones. The work is incredibly sharp – with that wonderful mix of soul jazz, hardbop, and nascent spiritualism that Mobley brought to his best work of the 60s. Titles include "My Sin", "Straight Ahead", "The Turnaround", and "Pat N Chat". CD

Ellington numbers all around, played by a great Japanese 70s big band, headed up by Toshio Mori! The sound here would make the late Duke proud – as Mori and the group perform 8 Billy Strayhorn numbers all with just the right mix of ensemble soul and modern touches that made the later Ellington group such a thrill. And while you might be expecting a gimmick or some sort of a stylistic move to mark the album as particularly Japanese or 70s-oriented – it's a just a great straight ahead big band session, done in a very respectful style. Titles include "UMMG", "After All", "Lotus Blossom", "Chelsea Bridge", and "Snibor". CD

A classic Blue Note album – with one of the label's most compelling cover images ever! The "three" in this case refers to pianist Horace Parlan, bassist George Tucker, and drummer Al Harewood – all of whom jam nicely on this classic soul trio album from Blue Note! The record was the inspiration for the name of the 90s Blue Note remix group US3, but the groove on this one is much more straight ahead – as Parlan and crew were the house rhythm team at Minton's Playhouse in Harlem, and had developed a great talent for a wide range of soul jazz and hardbop styles through playing with a variety of different players night after night. Titles include Parlan's own "Us Three", "Return Engagement", and "Wadin" – plus versions of "Walkin" and "Come Rain Or Come Shine". CD

One of Sun Ra's best non-Saturn live sets of the 70s – a nice little record that shows the group mixing it up with equal parts avant garde and straight ahead jazz, all handled in that ever-growing large group style that made them a real force to be reckoned with in a concert setting! The album was recorded during the 1976 Montreux Jazz Festival, and has a bit more focus and polish than some of the other Arkestra live material from the time – a mature, coherent sound that almost points the way towards some of their work to come in the 80s – when Ra and the group were finally reaching the wider audience they deserved. The set's a double-length one, and features players who include John Gilmore on tenor, Marshall Allen and Danny Davis on alto and flute, Pat Patrick on baritone, Ahmed Abdullah on trumpet, Craig Harris on trombone, and James Jackson on Ancient Egyptian Infinity drum – which is always a treat. Ra plays solar organ and moog, as well as piano – and titles include "Of The Other Tomorrow", "On Sound Infinity Spheres", "El Is The Sound Of Joy", "Gods Of The Thunder Realm", "Gods Of A Thunder Realm", "The House Of Eternal Being", and "Lights On a Satellite". CD

A killer batch of hardbop tracks – no-nonsense, straight-ahead, and with all the fire of Roach's work with Clifford Brown! The set was recorded a few years after the untimely death of the Brown/Roach group – and although the album's got "Charlie Parker" in the title, there's a lot more going on here than just a bop revival mode. Players include Kenny Dorham, Hank Mobley, and George Coleman – and the album's got that Prestige Records feel from the late 50s, similar to some of Mobley's own work for that label at the time. Titles include "Yardbird Suite", "Confirmation", "Koko", "Billie's Bounce", and "Au Privave". CD also features 4 bonus cuts – "Anthropology", "Tune Up", "This Time The Dream's On Me", and "Raoul". CD

Beautiful late 80s work from Pharoah – a wonderfully uncomplicated session that still has a great degree of soul! The album was recorded in Paris, with a quintet that includes William Henderson on acoustic piano, Stafford James on bass, Eddie Moore on drums, and Cheikh Tidiane Fale on percussion – and the overall approach is a bit more straight ahead than on some of Sanders' other albums – but in a really great way! The tunes are long and introspective – all done with spiritual rhythmic approaches, letting Pharoah open up on tenor and soprano sax – but never in a way that's overblown or overdone. The solos are perfectly placed – with wonderful phrasing and tone, rich in the colors that we've always loved on Sanders' work, but which can sometimes get lost in the confusion of an over-ambitious session. Titles include "Moon Child", "Moon Rays", "Soon", "Moniebah", and "The Night Has A Thousand Eyes". LP, Vinyl record album

A record that's a stunning departure for reedman Tony Scott – a set that's completely different than his more straight ahead jazz on the American scene in the 50s! The set is an early step on a spiritual journey that Scott would continue overseas in years to come – an initial moment of opening up his familiar jazz clarinet to reed styles from other scenes – in this case a very Japanese-based one, as the trio here features work from Shinichi Yuize on koto and Hozan Yamamoto on shakuhachi – a very different group than Scott would have blown with in the previous decade! The album is less jazz-based than some of Tony's later projects – and also less jazz than some of Yamamoto's records to come – but there's definitely a sense of improvisation, and the whole thing is really a delight in getting to hear a musician open up whole new aspects of his instrument. Titles include "To Drift Like Clouds", "The Murmuring Sound Of The Mountain Stream", "Is All Not One", "Satori", "Sanzen", and "After The Snow The Fragrance". LP, Vinyl record album

A record that's a stunning departure for reedman Tony Scott – a set that's completely different than his more straight ahead jazz on the American scene in the 50s! The set is an early step on a spiritual journey that Scott would continue overseas in years to come – an initial moment of opening up his familiar jazz clarinet to reed styles from other scenes – in this case a very Japanese-based one, as the trio here features work from Shinichi Yuize on koto and Hozan Yamamoto on shakuhachi – a very different group than Scott would have blown with in the previous decade! The album is less jazz-based than some of Tony's later projects – and also less jazz than some of Yamamoto's records to come – but there's definitely a sense of improvisation, and the whole thing is really a delight in getting to hear a musician open up whole new aspects of his instrument. Titles include "To Drift Like Clouds", "The Murmuring Sound Of The Mountain Stream", "Is All Not One", "Satori", "Sanzen", and "After The Snow The Fragrance". LP, Vinyl record album

One of Archie Shepp's most fragile and most beautiful albums – a set of mellower tunes dedicated to John Coltrane, played on tenor and soprano sax with support from a trio that includes Albert Dailey on piano, Reggie Workman on bass, and Charlie Persip on drums! The album's a real standout in Shepp's aging stretch – a session that's much more straight ahead than his earlier work, but which also benefits from his years of more exploratory blowing – experience that echoes out here in powerful notes and phrasings that he brings into the tunes at delightfully unexpected moments. As with Shepp's earlier Four For Trane album for Impulse, the sound here is not a copycat of Coltrane at all – but a fresh new vision that takes inspiration from the creativity of the master, and works with the same sense of soul and striving. Titles include "Soul Eyes", "You Don't Know What Love Is", "Wise One", "Where Are You", and "Theme For Ernie". CD

Great live material from Shepp – not out or crazy, but also not spiritual or hippy dippy, either. The record's kind of a perfectly soulful straight ahead set – in a mode that hints at the traditional direction Shepp would take at the time, but with a lot more interesting moments. The group's a quartet with Charles Greenlee on trombone, Dave Burrell on piano, Cameron Brown on bass, and Beaver Harris on drums – and the tracks feature Shepp soloing with a lot of soul, and criss crossing styles from track to track. "U-jamaa" is a strong straight number – and the 3 other titles are "Lush Life", "Crucificado" and "Miss Toni". LP, Vinyl record album

Sublime Sonny Stitt for Verve – a near-perfect record in just about every way from start to finish! Sonny's tone is amazing here – crisp, but still with a great deal of warmth – and focused, but never in a way that's hackneyed or cliched – really showing the brilliance of jazz in a simple, straight ahead way that still leaves us breathless! The trio's an unusual one – LA players who include Amos Trice on piano, George Morrow on bass, and Lenny McBrownie on drums – but even they can't dislodge the classic Stitt quality of the album! Titles include "Blues For Lester", "What's New", "Subito", "Tune Up", "Presto", and a great reading of "The Way You Look Tonight". CD

Very cool early work from Vangelis – an album recorded right after he left Aphrodite's Child, and with a sound that's not that different than the group's final album 666 – especially in the compelling sonic range that's used throughout! Some tracks are straight ahead, some are experimental, and there's some very interesting keyboards, guitars, and unusual production. Titles include "The City", "Come On", "We Were All Uprooted", "A Song", "Watch Out", "Sunny Earth", and "Ritual". LP, Vinyl record album

Really wonderful work from the legendary Tony Williams – a set that has the drummer hitting a whole new sound at the start of the 90s – a groove that's rich and soulful, yet still every bit as sharp as before! The set's straight ahead, and graced with some very youthful energy by a new-generation lineup that includes Wallace Roney on trumpet, Bill Pierce on tenor and soprano sax, Mulgrew Miller on piano, and Robert Hurst on bass – all players who bristle with excitement from the very first notes, expressing a sense of confidence and vision of a new jazz generation that no longer has to battle between its inside and outside impulses. Williams' drumming is superb, and nicely understated at many points – and titles include "Native Heart", "City Of Lights", "Extreme Measures", "Liberty", and "Two Worlds". CD

One of the best sets of funky Turkish work we've heard in years – a package that brings together a wealth of rare grooves we'd never have heard otherwise! Most of the cuts here have that Arabesk rock sort of feel – funky rhythms mixed with exotic guitar bits – all produced with a fuzzy, freaky edge that's mighty nice – especially on the vocals, which often have this weird watery feel around the edges! Some of the tunes get really off-center, while others are a bit more straight ahead – and titles include "Sis Kebap" by Esin Engin Orkestrasi, "Odana Serdim Hali" by Ruya Cagla, "Coban Yildizi" by Melih Kibar, "Gunler Aylar" by Aydin Tansel, "Nalina Da Vur Mihina Da" by Serter Bagcan, and "Eyvallah" by Hayko. LP, Vinyl record album

A pivotal album for post-punk legends A Certain Ratio – done at a time when the group was really putting a lot of funk and soul into their style – learning to play their instruments a bit more like the soul artists who inspired them, and acting less like the punk musicians they first appeared to be. The change actually makes for a pretty darn nice album – a record of smoother than usual instrumental sides that have some more straight ahead rhythms than before, but still enough darkly-tinged moments to keep things interesting. Titles include "Touch", "Saturn", "Hot Knights", "Sesamo Apriti Corco Vada", "Axis", "Guess Who" and "Show Case". LP, Vinyl record album

A lost treasure from the glory days of the LA soul jazz bop scene of the early 60s! Alto player Earl Anderza has this crazy tone that's unlike anything we've ever heard – and he plays with a calculated approach to atonality that hints at later work by Ayler and others – but which comes across here a lot more straight ahead. Unlike Ayler, Anderza is backed by a tight soul jazz combo that includes stunning work by pianist Jack Wilson, one of our all-time favorite players – working here on both straight piano and electric harpsichord – which has a very crazy sound! Other players include George Morrow and Jimmy Bond on bass, plus Donald Dean on drums – and titles include "Blues Baroque", "Freeway", "Benign", and a great version of Wilson's modal classic "Outa Sight"! LP, Vinyl record album

By this point in his career, Ray Barretto certainly was Indestructible – one of the biggest Latin leaders of his day, working at the forefront of new trends and new sounds! This fact is wonderfully displayed by the front cover, which shows Ray unbuttoning his shirt and taking off his Clark Kent-styled glasses to reveal a Superman costume underneath – and apart from this easy gimmick, the album itself is a straight ahead Latin jammer, with no tricks, no silliness – just a perfect early 70s salsa sound! Arrangements are by Eddie Martinez, Louie Cruz, and Louie Ramirez – and titles include "Ay No", "La Orquesta", "El Hijo Do Obatala", "Indestructible", "La Familia", and "El Diablo". LP, Vinyl record album

One of our favorite David Bowie albums ever! Aladdin Sane was a real turning point for Bowie – recorded on the heels of the tremendously popular Ziggy Stardust album, but really pushing the boundaries past the more straight-ahead rock and glam of that record. Instead of just sitting on his laurels, Bowie tripped out into a wilder, weirder world with this one – mixing together elements of some of the baroque arrangements of early records, with the meaner leaner sound of the 70s – populating the songs with freaks, weirdos, and odd characters that gave the whole thing a really creepy edge. The whole thing's an oft-overlooked gem that, to us, is truly one of Bowie's most magical moments – and titles include "Drive In Saturday", "Panic In Detroit", "Aladdin Sane", "Watch That Man", "The Jean Genie", "The Prettiest Star", "Time", and "Lady Grinning Soul". LP, Vinyl record album

An incredible version of one of our favorite David Bowie albums ever! Aladdin Sane was a real turning point for Bowie – recorded on the heels of the tremendously popular Ziggy Stardust album, but really pushing the boundaries past the more straight-ahead rock and glam of that record. Instead of just sitting on his laurels, Bowie tripped out into a wilder, weirder world with this one – mixing together elements of some of the baroque arrangements of early records, with the meaner leaner sound of the 70s – populating the songs with freaks, weirdos, and odd characters that gave the whole thing a really creepy edge. The whole thing's an oft-overlooked gem that, to us, is truly one of Bowie's most magical moments – and it's finally given its due here, in a beautiful 2CD package that features a whole disc worth of bonus material, plus a hard book-like cover, and a big booklet of goodies! Original titles include "Drive In Saturday", "Panic In Detroit", "Aladdin Sane", "Watch That Man", "The Jean Genie", "The Prettiest Star", "Time", and "Lady Grinning Soul" – and bonus tracks include "John I'm Only Dancing (sax version)", "Time (single edit)", "All The Young Dudes", and live recordings of "Drive In Saturday", "Life On Mars", "John I'm Only Dancing", and "Jean Genie". CD

Legendary early live work from Miles Davis – one of the first examples on record of the way that Davis could really stretch out in a concert setting! The music's a bit more straight ahead than later live dates, but still pretty open and exploratory – and in addition to Davis' sparkling work on trumpet, the album also features some killer tenor lines from Hank Mobley – working here as a key part of Miles' group, and blowing with a hell of a lot of soul. Rhythm is by the rock-solid trio of Wynton Kelly on piano, Paul Chambers on bass, and Jimmy Cobb on drums – and titles include "All Of You", "No Blues", "Bye Bye" and "Walkin". LP, Vinyl record album

An excellent groover from Kenny Dorham – possibly one of his best ever albums for Blue Note – a record that shows how much he was pushing past his bop roots in his later years! The tracks are extremely long, and done with a complexity in rhythms that mixes Latin elements with hardbop modes – all set up in a style that really stretches out, and drives Dorham's trumpet with a fire he'd hardly had before. The rest of the group is super-sharp – key young players who really help keep an edge the the whole thing – with Herbie Hancock on piano, Joe Henderson on tenor, Butch Warren on bass and Tony Williams drums. Tracks are all long, incredible Dorham originals – "Una Mas" fills up side one, and "Straight Ahead" and "Sao Paulo" cover the flip. Also includes a bonus track, a sweet warm take of "If Ever I Would Leave You". CD

An excellent 1959 session that was Slides first as a leader, and which featured Freddie Hubbard, Booker Little, and George Coleman on horns – as well as Pete LaRoca on drums! The format is in that tightly-controlled early Hampton mode – not really big band, but a small combo take on the style – with wonderful breakout solos, and a real flair for soulful arranging that brings out the best in the group – even on the more straight ahead tunes! Titles include "Althea", "Jazz Corner", "Go East Young Man", and "Newport". LP, Vinyl record album

Soulful 70s work from Herbie Hancock – a record that tightens things up from the Headhunters and Sextant sessions, but which still retains a lot of their depth and charm! Players here including some previous partners – like Bennie Maupin on reeds and Paul Jackson on bass – plus the mighty Wah Wah Watson on guitars, James Levi on drums, Kenneth Nash on percussion, and Ray Parker on additional guitar. Tracks are tightly electric fusion, but still have some of the sharper tones of Herbie's electric work – weird moogy moments mixed into more straight ahead funk – all with a sound that's not unlike some of Ramsey Lewis' best Columbia work of the period. Herbie plays Fender Rhodes, Arp, clavinet, mini-moog, and more – and titles include "Doin' It", "Spider", "Swamp Rat", "People Music", and a remake of "Cantelope Island" that's pretty darn tasty! LP, Vinyl record album

One of the best-ever Hank Mobley albums on Blue Note – and a killer batch of soulful hardbop that was cut right around the same time as the classic No Room For Squares LP. In fact, the album contains work from 2 different sessions that filtered over to the Squares album – one that featured Mobley with Freddie Hubbard, Barry Harris, Paul Chambers, and Billy Higgins; and another that included Herbie Hancock, Donald Byrd, Butch Warren, and Philly Joe Jones. The work is incredibly sharp – with that wonderful mix of soul jazz, hardbop, and nascent spiritualism that Mobley brought to his best work of the 60s. Titles include "My Sin", "Straight Ahead", "The Turnaround", and "East Of The Village". LP, Vinyl record album

A beautiful session cut by the obscure tenor player J.R. Monterose – a musician who never made it big by jazz standards, but who was always one of the most respected players amongst his jazz contemporaries. This rare session was originally cut for the short lived Jaro label, and on vinyl, it sells for well over $100 (if we ever see it!) The session's got Monterose's unique tenor in a setting with Tommy Flanagan on piano, Jimmy Garrison on bass, and Pete LaRoca on drums – and as you might expect from that cast, the set's a great mix of hardbop and modernism. Titles include "Straight Ahead", "Short Bridge", "Green Street Scene", and "Chafic" – and the CD's got the original cover photo of Monterose from the LP, plus 20 bit remastering! CD

Of course it's about time for Joe Morello – because as Dave Brubeck's drummer, he was constantly caught in recording sessions that were all about unusual rhythms and timings in jazz! Yet this set really helps Joe break free from the Brubeck mode – and also shine strongly as a leader, too – something he only did on a rare few records over the years! The approach is a bit more straight ahead – almost an extension of the RCA large ensemble sides of the 50s, with arrangements by Phil Woods and Manny Albam – yet there's also some great 60s touches too, thanks to work from a young Gary Burton on vibes, and some nicely mature solos by Woods on alto. Titles include "Time After Time", "Summertime", "Every Time", "It's About Time", and "Fatha Time". LP, Vinyl record album

A surprisingly nice album of straight ahead tenor tracks from David Murray – playing here in a quartet with guitarist Stanley Franks, drummer Andrew Cyrille, and the great Don Pullen, who plays organ on the session! The album's not exactly in the classic soul jazz organ/tenor mode – but it is one of the few that Murray ever recorded, and it's quite interesting to hear him in this sort of a format. Plus, it was also one of the few recorded during that magic year of 1991 – when DIW really seemed to be getting things right, turning out some of the few truly genius albums in the history of the label. Titles include "Milano Strut", "Black February", "At The Cafe Central", "In The Spirit", and "High Priest". CD

Includes the albums Meet Oliver Nelson, Taking Care Of Business, Screamin' The Blues, Soul Battle, Blues & The Abstract Blues, Straight Ahead, Main Stem, and Afro-American Sketches. CD

One of Charlie Palmieri's best records from the 60s! The session is an obscure one-off done for Atlantic in 1968 – and for some reason, the record was never issued as widely as some of Charlie's other sides for smaller labels during the time, making it one of the most hard-to-find chapters of his career. The tracks are played by a tight little Latin jazz combo – with Charlie on piano, Julian Priester on trombone, and Louis Ramirez on timbales – and the set is filled with some great original tunes that mix together boogaloo rhythms and straight ahead Latin jazz. Tracks include "Bugalu", "Mambo Show", "Panama's Boogaloo", and "Bitter Sweet" – plus a Latin soul instrumental reading of "Up Tight". LP, Vinyl record album

A classic Blue Note album – with one of the label's most compelling cover images ever! The "three" in this case refers to pianist Horace Parlan, bassist George Tucker, and drummer Al Harewood – all of whom jam nicely on this classic soul trio album from Blue Note! The record was the inspiration for the name of the 90s Blue Note remix group US3, but the groove on this one is much more straight ahead – as Parlan and crew were the house rhythm team at Minton's Playhouse in Harlem, and had developed a great talent for a wide range of soul jazz and hardbop styles through playing with a variety of different players night after night. Titles include Parlan's own "Us Three", "Return Engagement", and "Wadin" – plus versions of "Walkin" and "Come Rain Or Come Shine". LP, Vinyl record album

Quite possibly the funkiest record ever made by guitarist Joe Pass – a real surprise from an artist we mostly know for his mellower and straight ahead work! The style here is tight electric funk, almost in a Groove Merchant sort of way – and given Joe's heavy use of hollow-body guitar on the record, and the warm chromatic hues in his tone, the style's a fair bit like O'Donel Levy on his 70s classics from the same era. Bassist Carol Kaye had a hand in putting together the record, and there's a similar feel here to her own best grooves – tight, studio-oriented work – but never slick or too commercial! Other players include Joe Sample on keyboards, Paul Humphrey on drums, Tom Scott on sax and flute, and JJ Johnson on trombone – and despite the presence of these heavyweights, the record has a nicely soulful sound that's more indie grit than major label funk! CD adds some bonus tracks to the original record – and features 18 titles that include "Free Sample", "Better Days", "Head Start", "It's Too Late", "Gotcha", "Alison", "The Preacher", "Bass Blues", "Burning Spear", "Slick Cat", "Flying Down To Baja", and "Love Is". LP, Vinyl record album

Heavy soul from Ike Quebec – one of Blue Note's greatest players of the 78 era in the 40s, stepping out here on one of his brilliant comeback sets from the early 60s! The set features Ike blowing in an all soul jazz mode – working with a quartet that includes some great work from organist Freddie Roach – swinging here in a great straight ahead mode, and really pushing Ike to lay out some of the best solos of his later Blue Note years. There's a few tracks on the set that step out in a tight modal jazz groove – organ vamping as Ike blows away – and titles include "Heavy Soul", "Que's Dilemma", "Acquitted", and a very spooky version of "Nature Boy". CD

Pure mainstream 70s pop genius, the most fully-formed of all early Supertramp albums – and a record that's filled with a surprising amount of great Fender Rhodes moments too! The set's a masterpiece from start to finish – filled with themes of loss and loneliness, but served up by the group with an incredibly redemptive sense of majesty and power – really fresh for the time, and still wonderful all these many years later – despite the fact that so many of these songs have gone onto become classics. The keyboards on the set work perfectly with the oddly-timed rhythms of the tunes – and there's a great blend here between high concept and straight ahead pop – on titles that include "School", "Bloody Well Right", "Asylum", "Dreamer", "Rudy", and "Crime Of The Century". LP, Vinyl record album

A great debut from Japanese tenorist Takao Uematsu – a player who blows here with a wonderful sense of tone right from the start – almost an inherent sense of spiritualism that he still manages bring to tunes with a straight ahead swing! The approach is a bit like Archie Shepp in that cool 70s stretch when he was stepping away from the outside – and Uematsu's clearly a player who knows the far reaches, but often just hints at them in his music – while moving through these long-blown lines spurred on by a really wonderful group! The combo features excellent Fender Rhodes from Sadayasu Fuji – who stretches out on the long tracks on the set – plus trombone from Takashi Imai, bass from Yoshio Suzuki, and drums from George Otsuka. Titles include "TI", "Sleep My Love", "Stella By Starlight", and "Inside Parts". CD

Groovy gals from 60s France – a power-packed array of Parisian pop nuggets that goes way beyond most other compilations of this nature! Some of the big names are here, but there's way more obscure numbers too – the cool kind of French femmes that made a bit splash during the "yeh yeh" generation, with a mix of the rough and the sweet that few other girl singers could ever hope to touch! There's a really special mod sort of energy here – vocals that push out strongly, yet never succumb to emotional cliches of American and British singers – and backings that are always tight and groovy, but in a jaunty, jerky way that's quite different than straight ahead rock. The mix of modes is completely sublime – just the sort of music that still really sends us after all these years – and titles include "J'Ai Des Problemes Decidement" by Violaine, "Hymne Au Soleil" by Pussy Cat, "Attends Ou Va-T'En" by France Gall, "Tomorrow Is Another Day" by Gillian Hills, "Bravo" by Jacqueline Taieb, "Pas De Taxi" by Annie Philippe, "La Fermeture Eclair" by Delphine, "Les Paillons Noirs" by Michele Arnaud, "Comme Tu Es Jeune" by Liz Brady, "Sous Le Soleil Exactement" by Anna Karina, and "Ecoutez" by Elsa. CD

A hardbop classic from Cannonball Adderley – and one of his harder to find albums from the Riverside days! The set has Cannon playing without his usual group, in the context of an all-star batch of players that includes Wynton Kelly, Paul Chambers, and Jimmy Cobb – who he worked with in his time with Miles Davis – plus occasional guest rhythm work by Albert and Percy Heath. The set's strong and straight ahead – a good bridge between Cannon's early Mercury recordings, and his later albums for Riverside and Capitol – tightly crafted solos with a good deal of soul, Adderley holding down all the horn work on the record. Titles include "If This Isn't Love", "Serenata", "Poor Butterfly", "I Remember You", and "I've Told Ev'ry Little Star". CD also features 2 bonus alternate tracks! CD

Two early 60s albums from the team of Gene Ammons and Sonny Stitt – both recorded in Chicago! Boss Tenors is a head to head classic from Jug & Stitt that perfectly captures the joy and fury of their live performances from years before! The record was cut here in our hometown with a very hard rhythm section that includes John Houston on piano, Charles Williams on bass, and George Brown on drums – and it's way heavier than the usual Verve "meeting of the masters" session, and feels more like a record that should have been issued on Prestige or Argo. Both players are impeccable, and the solos stretch out for a long long very live time. Titles include "Blues Up & Down", "The One Before This", and "Counter Clockwise" – but these guys even groove amazingly on standards like "Autumn Leaves" and "No Greater Love". The second album, Dig Him, is one of those overlooked Argo sessions and features great straight-ahead blowing from Stitt and Jug! The album's a quintet session, with John Houston piano, Buster Williams bass, and George Brown drums providing all the rhythm. But the real focus is on the twin-sax frontline – with Sitt taking up the alto on a few numbers, but mostly blowing tenor head to head with Jug. Recorded in 1961 during Jug's great year of contract-breaking – and issued later in the 60s by Prestige under a different title. Titles include "A Mess", "Water Jug", "New Blues Up & Down", "Red Sails In The Sunset", and "A Pair Of Red Pants". CD

Nothing fancy – but some great straight-ahead blowing from Stitt and Jug! The album's a quintet session, with John Houston piano, Buster Williams bass, and George Brown drums providing all the rhythm. But the real focus is on the twin-sax frontline – with Sitt taking up the alto on a few numbers, but mostly blowing tenor head to head with Jug. The album was supposedly recorded in 1961, but not issued until later in the 60s by Prestige – and it's right up there with the excellent work that the team were cutting at the time for Verve and Argo. Titles include "A Mess", "Water Jug", "New Blues Up & Down", "Red Sails In The Sunset", and "A Pair Of Red Pants". CD

A great early CTI session by George Benson, and one of the most stripped-down, straight-ahead funky records he did for the label! There's a sharpness here that's different than the larger feel of some of Benson 's later records – a sound that almost links back to his soul jazz roots in the 60s – played by a tight combo that features Benson on guitar, Clarence Palmer on organ, Ron Carter on bass, and Jack DeJohnette on drums – plus percussion from Michael Cameron and Albert Nicholson. There's a version of "So What" on here that's got to be one of the best funky takes of that standard ever – with great hard grooves on the intro – and on other cuts, the real genius is in the way the simple tracks are arranged to shift between darkly chromatic passages and slight bits of funk. Titles include "All Clear", "Ode To A Kudu", and "Somewhere In The East". LP, Vinyl record album

Three albums from reedman Arthur Blythe – served up in one nicely-priced set! Retroflection is a great showcase for the alto talents of Arthur Blythe – a set that's maybe a bit more stripped-down than some of his bigger label albums of the 80s, but in a way that really lets you focus on his strength of tone and phrasing! The group's a quartet, working in an open live setting – John Hicks on piano, Cecil McBee on bass, and Bobby Battle on drums – and while all players certainly know how to go inside, they keep things swinging and relatively straight at the core – while Blythe waxes beautifully on the alto, with these sharp edges that mix nicely with more lyrical moments. Titles include "Jana's Delight", "JB Blues", "Lenox Avenue Breakdown", "Faceless Woman", and "Peacemaker". Calling Card is a great little record from Arthur Blythe – mostly straight ahead, but pretty darn freewheeling too – thanks to a selection of long tracks that really let him open up on alto sax! The setting is a quartet – nicely put-together with John Hicks on piano, Cecil McBee on bass, and Bobby Battle on drums – a rhythm trio who do equally well on the album's spiritual tracks and its more soulful groovers. The performance was recorded live, but with a nice degree of intimacy, especially on Blythe's horn – and titles include "Hip Dripper", "Naima's Love Song", "As Of Yet", "Blue Blues", "Break Tune", and "Elaborations". On Hipmotism, there's a really hypnotic blend of sounds – the always-strong alto work of Arthur Blythe, whose solos are a key part of the strength of the set – matched with a super-strong lineup that includes Hamiet Bluiett on baritone sax, Kelvin Bell on guitar, Gust William Tsilis on vibes, Arto Tuncboyaci on percussion, and Famoudou Don Moye on drums! There's a slight crackle of electricity at times, but never in a way that dampens the soul, especially that of a leader – and while earlier efforts of this sort might have gotten mired in too much criss-crossing of modes, this set comes off perfectly – a fresh entry in Blythe's wonderfully storied career. Titles include "Miss Eugie", "Hipmotism", "My Son Ra", "Bush Baby", "Dear Dessa", "Cousin Sidney", "Shadows", and "Dance Benita Dance". CD

One of our favorite David Bowie albums ever! Aladdin Sane was a real turning point for Bowie – recorded on the heels of the tremendously popular Ziggy Stardust album, but really pushing the boundaries past the more straight-ahead rock and glam of that record. Instead of just sitting on his laurels, Bowie tripped out into a wilder, weirder world with this one – mixing together elements of some of the baroque arrangements of early records, with the meaner leaner sound of the 70s – populating the songs with freaks, weirdos, and odd characters that gave the whole thing a really creepy edge. The whole thing's an oft-overlooked gem that, to us, is truly one of Bowie's most magical moments – and titles include "Drive In Saturday", "Panic In Detroit", "Aladdin Sane", "Watch That Man", "The Jean Genie", "The Prettiest Star", "Time", and "Lady Grinning Soul". LP, Vinyl record album

Way more than just a gimmicky bossa nova session – and a surprisingly great showcase for the inventive rhythms of the Brubeck group, and the sensitive alto work of Paul Desmond! The record's got a really different feel than some of Dave's other work for Columbia – in that the modernism is put slightly on the back burner – letting drummer Joe Morello snap out with some lightly gliding percussion that's a bit more straight ahead than usual, and which offers a unique take on the bossa groove. Paul Desmond's the real star of the set, though – and his alto steps out here with the best gentle presence of his later work for RCA and A&M – beautifully blown throughout, and with a tone that most other players would die for! Titles include "Bossa Nova USA", "Coracao Sensivel", "Theme For June", "Lamento", and "Cantiga Nova Swing". LP, Vinyl record album

One of the few albums ever cut by trumpeter Dave Burns – an excellent batch of soul jazz numbers with a comfortable easy swing that will make you wonder why he wasn't a much bigger success! Dave played trumpet briefly in the Dizzy Gillespie and Duke Ellington groups – and at the time of this set, he was playing with Al Grey and Billy Mitchell. This album's quite different than his work with them, though – as it's a very tight, very in the pocket set of grooves that feels like the best on Blue Note or Prestige from the time. Burns' trumpet is fantastic – sounding a bit like a young Lee Morgan – and his group features a young Kenny Barron on piano, plus sharp tenor work by Herbie Morgan, a player who recorded as rarely as Burns. Titles include "Tali", "Something Easy", "CB Blues", "Rhodesian Rhapsody", and "Straight Ahead". LP, Vinyl record album

More straight ahead than some of Charles' other work from the time – most of which is fairly modernist – but still a strong batch of tracks, and one that has a lot more edge than the work of Lionel Hampton, to whom it was recorded as a "salute". Teddy's on vibes throughout – working in different groups that include players like Hank Jones, Zoot Sims, Art Farmer, Bob Brookmeyer, Ed Thigpen, and Addison Farmer. Tracks are all Hamp standards – including "Airmail Special", "Midnight Sun", "Flyin Home", "Stardust", and "Blue Hamp". CD also features some bonus alternate takes! CD

The title may say "standard", but with Coltrane at the helm, the record is anything but! Sure, the tunes are all familiar ones, but the presentation here is a far cry from mainstream piano jazz of the 50s – as John's working in a group with the Red Garland trio for rhythm, as well as trumpeter Wilbur Harden, the slightly off-kilter player who made some great Savoy records with Coltrane. Tracks are all quite long, and really open up with a fair bit of invention – and even when Coltrane's straight ahead, he's still compellingly creative. Tracks include "Don't Take Your Love From Me", "I'll Get By", "Spring Is Here", and "Invitation". CD

The title may say "standard", but with Coltrane at the helm, the record is anything but! Sure, the tunes are all familiar ones, but the presentation here is a far cry from mainstream piano jazz of the 50s – as John's working in a group with the Red Garland trio for rhythm, as well as trumpeter Wilbur Harden, the slightly off-kilter player who made some great Savoy records with Coltrane. Tracks are all quite long, and really open up with a fair bit of invention – and even when Coltrane's straight ahead, he's still compellingly creative. Tracks include "Don't Take Your Love From Me", "I'll Get By", "Spring Is Here", and "Invitation". LP, Vinyl record album