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Scofield and Metheny. What more needs to be said? A masterpiece meeting of musical minds, these two guitar virtuosos entered the studio in December 1993 with Steve Swallow on bass guitar and Bill Stewart on drums to create one of the greatest jazz guitar albums of all time. Produced by Lee Townsend, I Can See Your House From Here is an 11-track set of Scofield and Metheny originals including Sco’s expansive title track and Pat’s rocking “The Red One” and the stunning ballad “Message To My Friend.” – Blue Note

How is it that one of Art Blakey's greatest albums with the Jazz Messengers is so little known? The 1961 edition of the Messengers included Lee Morgan on trumpet, Wayne Shorter on tenor saxophone, Bobby Timmons on piano, and Jymie Merritt on bass. In February and May of 1961, this group (with pianist Walter Davis Jr sitting in on two tracks) entered Rudy Van Gelder's studio in New Jersey and proceeded to lay down Roots & Herbs, a brilliant set of six Shorter compositions including the driving hard bop of the title track, the playful “Ping Pong,” and the clever “United.” The album was eventually released in 1970 and deserves a place among Blakey’s finest recordings. – Blue Note

George Russell was one of the most forward-thinking composers and arrangers on the jazz scene during the 1950s, but his work was generally more appreciated by musicians than the jazz-buying public. New York, New York represents one of many high points in his career. He assembled an all-star orchestra, including pianist Bill Evans (a frequent participant on Russell's recordings), Art Farmer, Bob Brookmeyer, John Coltrane, and Milt Hinton, among others. In Rodgers & Hart's "Manhattan," Russell has the soloists playing over the orchestra's vamp, while he also creates an imaginative "East Side Medley" combining the standards "Autumn in New York" and "How About You." His original material is just as striking as his arrangements, while vocalist Jon Hendricks serves as narrator between orchestra segments. – All Music

When jazz bass virtuoso Paul Chambers recorded Bass On Top, his third and final album as a leader for Blue Note, he was only 22 years old but already well established as one of the top bassists in jazz. This brilliantly seductive album features stalwarts Hank Jones on piano, Kenny Burrell on guitar, and Art Taylor on drums. Highlights include the chamber-jazz interpretation of Jerome Kern’s “Yesterdays” and a lightly swinging version of “Dear Old Stockholm,” a tune often associated with Miles Davis who was Chambers’ employer at the time. – Blue Note

About Duke Ellington:

"Duke Ellington called his music "American Music" rather than jazz, and liked to describe those who impressed him as "beyond category. He remains one of the most influential figures in jazz, if not in all American music and is widely considered as one of the twentieth century's best known African American personalites. As both a composer and a band leader, Ellington's reputation has increased since his death, with thematic repackagings of his signature music often becoming best-sellers. Posthumous recognition of his work include a special award citation from the Pulitzer Prize Board.

Simply put, Ellington transcends boundaries and fills the world with a treasure trove of music that renews itself through every generation of fans and music-lovers. His legacy continues to live onand will endure for generations to come. Winton Marsalis said it best when he said "His music sounds like America." Because of the unmatched artistic heights to which he soared, no one deserved the phrase “beyond category” more than Ellington, for it aptly describes his life as well. He was most certainly one of a kind that maintained a llifestyle with universal appeal which transcended countless boundaries.

Duke Ellington is best remembered for the over 3000 songs that he composed during his lifetime. His best known titles include; "It Don't Mean a Thing if It Ain't Got That Swing", "Sophisticated Lady", "Mood Indigo", “Solitude", "In a Mellotone", and "Satin Doll". The most amazing part about Ellington was the most creative while he was on the road. It was during this time when he wrote his most famous piece, "Mood Indigo"which brought him world wide fame.

Duke Ellington's popular compositions set the bar for generations of brilliant jazz, pop, theatre and soundtrack composers to come. While these compositions guarantee his greatness, whatmakes Duke an iconoclastic genius, and an unparalleled visionary, what has granted him immortality are his extended suites. From 1943's Black, Brown and Beige to 1972's The Uwis Suite, Duke used the suite format to give his jazz songs a far more empowering meaning, resonance and purpose: to exalt, mythologize and re-contextualize the African-American experience on a grand scale."" - DukeEllington.com

On the spectrum of jazz challenges, Wayne Shorter’s “Speak No Evil” appears to lean toward the easy side. The title track of the eminent saxophonist and composer’s 1964 masterpiece Speak No Evil sits in a comfortable and utterly approachable medium swing. Its primary theme is a series of long tones outlining placid, open-vista harmony. Its bridge resembles something from the notebook of Thelonious Monk – a simple staccato motif that stairsteps up and down, each phrase defined by strategic accents.

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Yet as often happens in the music of Wayne Shorter, things are not entirely what they seem. There are layers. The notes of the melody tell one story; the chords nudge the musicians someplace else, a realm where theory lessons are of limited value and instinct matters more than intellect. To thrive in this place, the musicians have to relinquish the tricks of the jazz trade – the lightning-fast bebop runs, the killer licks they lean on to navigate chord changes. The tune, simple though it may be, comes with its own specific language – a trait it shares with many of Shorter’s pieces. Before diving into the conversation, the improviser has to discover the specific quirks of the form, its textures and temperament. How challenging is this? Even Shorter, who wrote the tune, sometimes struggles. He begins “Speak No Evil” by repeating a deftly tongued single note over and over, as though chopping his way into new territory. Shorter’s first few lines are simple declarations with a smidgen of blues in them – he’s not thinking about solo hijinks, he’s just trying to hang with the slalom course that is his creation. As he steers around tight curves, his lines coalesce into a kind of spontaneous lyricism – he’s singing through the horn, linking seemingly disconnected phrases into one (!) hauntingly memorable chorus. The subsequent soloists embrace his melody-first example when improvising: trumpeter Freddie Hubbard blows wistful then tender then fierce; pianist Herbie Hancock follows spry modal lines into quiet introspective corners.

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This subtle “guiding” of soloists is a crucial component of Speak No Evil, and much of Wayne Shorter’s compositional output. The last of three monumental works Shorter recorded in 1964 (the others are Night Dreamer and Juju), this album frequently turns up on shortlists of essential jazz, and one reason is Shorter’s ability to coax those around him out of their comfort zones, and into new ways of playing. Shorter’s melodies encourage musicians to stretch, and so do his vividly imagined harmonic environments – playgrounds, really. No other jazz figure found such innovative ways to balance hard bop rhythmic fire against delicately loosened (yet, crucially, still tonal) harmony. And where some contemporaries built brainy maze-like contraptions, Shorter went straight for the heart, trusting that the poignancy he embedded in his structures would stir something similar within the soloists. The moods he explores here are deep and absorbing, far from typical jazz club fare: “Dance Cadaverous” offers a macabre tour of a haunted house (or, perhaps, a haunted mind), while the keening octaves of “Infant Eyes” sketch human vulnerability with a rare sustained empathy. Incredibly, these pieces become deeper and thicker in the solo passages, as each of the players gingerly endeavors to enhance the beauty already on the page.

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That’s what every composer wants – the chance for the vague notions he scribbles on paper to take root, expand and blossom as music. Shorter managed that with astounding consistency over the years, creating a songbook that’s regularly described as the “mother lode” of jazz composition. That songbook has many riches – some are stone simple, some merely sound simple, and some are deceptively sophisticated and complex. It’s a vast trove of heady music, and the high-level sorcery at work within Speak No Evil is a great way to begin exploring it. – Blue Note

TAV ESSENTIAL LISTENING

NOW AT 45 RPM!

Plated and pressed by Quality Record Pressings

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"MoFi's One-Step aside, 200g vinyl at 45 rpm appears to be the ultimate in audiophile formats. On the strength of this edition — which I've heard countless times on standard pressings — one could easily be converted to 45rpm, despite the cost. Even as a regular LP, Simone's 1957 debut is a milestone among jazz vocal albums. Her 'Porgy' would have brought tears to the Gershwins' eyes, while 'My Baby just Cares For Me' is one of the genre's most celebrated titles. Backed by bass and drums, her piano is as big a star as her voice, while 'You'll Never Walk Alone' will cause you to shudder at the thought of the Liverpool supporters massacring it."

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Little Girl Blue was Nina Simone's debut release. Bethlehem founder Gus Wildi, taken with the uniquely beautiful quality of her voice, gave her complete control over song selection, backing musicians, arrangements and production of the recording. Nina and her rhythm section recorded the entire album plus three additional tracks in just one session. In her biography of Nina, Nadine Cohodas recounts engineer Irv Greeenbaum's recollection of that day: "Nothing like Nina's artistry had ever happened before ... Her voice and the keyboard playing were so rich and interesting that they could have stood alone."

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Little Girl Blue documents Nina Simone's unparalleled and idiosyncratic musical persona at a particularly vibrant, formative stage, and helped launch her on a trajectory with more than its share of personal and professional trials and triumphs.

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Now with Analogue Production's 45 RPM release, the best-sounding version of this historic album gives listeners an even richer sonic experience. – Acoustic Sounds

Art Forms of Dimensions Tomorrow, a key transitional album in the Sun Ra catalog, was produced in two sessions shortly after the bandleader's 1961 migration from Chicago to New York (with a brief stopover in Montreal). One of about a dozen Arkestra albums compiled from recordings made at the Choreographer's Workshop, Art Forms displays Sun Ra's increasing tendency to juxtapose stylistic incongruities on vinyl in the interests of showcasing his versatility—or accommodating restless attention spans (perhaps his own).

After arriving in Gotham, Sunny set about broadening his resume by reinventing older jazz and blues forms while edging towards tomorrow's dimensions. "Cluster of Galaxies" and "Solar Drums" are modernistic percussion soundscapes, bracketing "Ankh #1," a swaggering R&B rework of a late '50s tune from the artist's Chicago years. "The Outer Heavens," sans rhythm section, echoes Third Stream chamber jazz, while "Infinity of the Universe" offsets a percussion battalion with thunderous low-register piano. "Lights on a Satellite" and "Kosmos in Blue," both recorded at an earlier Choreographer's session, ground the set on terra firma with some stylish hard bop. "Lights" remained a staple in Sunny's concert repertoire for the rest of his life.

Like many albums recorded during this period, Art Forms was not released on Saturn until several years later (1965), by which time Sun Ra's repertoire and concerts had progressed beyond conventional jazz forms. ("Lights on a Satellite" and "Kosmos in Blue" were recorded at the late 1961 session from which emerged the Bad & Beautiful album—which was not released until 1972.) Like all Choreographer's sessions, the ad hoc acoustics painted the proceedings with a raw, warehouse ambience—what we call "Garage Jazz."

Art Forms is one of the first Saturn releases to feature what became a trademark effect on many Sun Ra recordings during the 1960s: an otherworldly reverb courtesy drummer Tommy Hunter's open-reel tape deck. Hunter discovered the process while testing the unit during a band warm-up. He ran a cable from the output back through the input, creating a mind-bending feedback loop that could be shaped by adjusting the volume of the playback knob. You can hear Hunter's alchemy on "Cluster of Galaxies" and "Solar Drums." Tommy was initially apprehensive that Sun Ra might be furious at the cacophony, but when he heard it, the bandleader was delighted. The reverb became a recurring instrument in the band's lineup (and later an overused gimmick in psychedelic rock). It is, by serendipity, Sun Ra's initial foray into experimental electronic music. - Bandcamp

The astonishing sessions that went light years beyond "free jazz" improvisation to create a music of deeply-felt, explosive and gentle gesture made from sound itself without reference to previous notions of melody or harmony. Recorded by Richard Alderson on April 20, 1965, this set of tunes finds Sun Ra breaking ground by using synthesizers and having the Arkestra musicians double on percussion.

Secrets of the Sun consists of sessions recorded by drummer Tommy "Bugs" Hunter in 1962 at the Choreographer's Workshop in New York City, the Arkestra's regular rehearsal studio. Since they had only recently moved to New York (some decided to stay in Chicago), these are small-group Arkestra recordings. This is an interesting transitional album because you can still hear echoes of the Chicago sound in some of the pieces, but the sound is growing beyond merely "exotic," with percussion playing an increasingly larger role and the pieces starting to sound more amorphous. "The Friendly Galaxy" has the same sort of mysterious vibe as "Ancient Aetheopia," with nice trumpet and piano work as well as John Gilmore on bass clarinet (which he plays on a couple cuts). "Solar Differentials" has a similar but weirder feel because the horns change to "Space Bird Sounds" and Art Jenkins adds some of his distinctive "Space Voice." "Space Aura" is built on a great horn riff, while both Gilmore (again on bass clarinet) and Sun Ra both shine on a stripped-down version of "Love in Outer Space." Things head a bit more out for the last couple tracks, where percussion and reverb start to dominate the sound, as they would on several of the Choreographer Workshop recordings. This is an interesting album for Ra fans because it's such a small band and shows how new ideas were taking hold in the music, not to mention Gilmore's use of bass clarinet, which he stopped playing completely sometime in the '60s. – All Music

In 1972, Sun Ra inked a high-profile deal with ABC / Impulse, bringing his recorded work to the widest audience he’d had to date. A slew of Saturn back catalog titles and two newly-recorded albums (Astro Black, Pathways To Unknown Worlds) were issued before ABC cancelled the contract, dumped the records into the cut-out bins, and left the unreleased albums to languish. Now, over four decades later, Roaratorio is proud to offer one of the lost Impulse recordings for the first time. Sign Of The Myth hails from the same studio session as Pathways, and shares its emphasis on guided improvisations. With a constantly shifting palette of Moog textures, Ra tosses off a dazzling array of ideas throughout, supported by the usual Arkestra stalwarts; in particular, bassist Ronnie Boykins and drummer Clifford Jarvis are in shining form here, giving shape and solidity to these pieces. Sign Of The Myth is a welcome augmentation to an especially fertile period from Sun Ra’s time on Earth. Download coupon included. – Roaratorio

Space Is the Place is the soundtrack to a film that was made but never released, and the tunes are among his most ambitious, unorthodox, and compelling compositions. Between June Tyson's declarative vocals, chants, and dialogue and Ra's crashing, flailing synthesizer and organ fills, and with such songs as "Blackman/Love in Outer Space," "It's After the End of the World," and "I Am the Brother of the Wind," this disc offers aggressive, energized, and uncompromising material. Ra's pianistic forays, phrases, and textures were sometimes dismissed as mere noodling when they were part of a well-constructed multimedia package. This comes as close as any of Ra's releases to being not only a concept work but a blueprint for his live shows from the early '70s until the end of his career. Features some previously unissued cuts. – All Music

The present record is a standout work amid the myriad records of the x-rated / lounge genre of the 1960s and 1970s that catered to adult audiences in both the east and the west. Masami Kawahara, who was a mainstay in both the jazz and pop scenes in Japan, brought together musicians including Akira Ishikawa, Masaoki Terakawa, and Jake H. Concepcion for this recording. As would be expected of such a stellar and diverse lineup of performers, the tracks boast a unique and eclectic mix of musical elements spanning Latin, soul jazz, Afrobeat, and psychedelic styles. The erotic moods conjured up through various sound effects and female moans / scat vocals are sure to evoke pleasure, as well as some bashfulness, in listeners. This record, which had often been categorized under the mondo / bizarre slot and was only found in the collections of a handful of cult fans, was rediscovered by Japanese DJs during the 1990s and subsequently attracted the attention of collectors around the world. A bizzare and idiosyncratic work that could only have been created during the 20th century (and the 1970s at that), it has now been reissued on vinyl for the first time ever! – Light In The Attic

Columbus, Ohio's Rudolph Johnson drew comparisons to John Coltrane during his career; like the jazz legend in his later years, Johnson eschewed drugs or alcohol and spent his time every day either meditating and rehearsing on his horn. You can definitely hear a little bit of Coltrane in Johnson's playing on this, his 1971 debut release for the Black Jazz label, the first of two he recorded for the imprint and the first he recorded as a leader after some sideman work (most notably for organist Jimmy McGriff); his ability to explore the upper registers and overtones of his tenor sax while retaining control is quite striking. Of course, this being a Black Jazz release, along with the bebop sounds of 'Sylvia Ann' and the mid-'60s Blue Note stylings of 'Sylvia Ann,' there's the soul jazz of 'Diswa' and the groove funk of 'Devon Jean,' all played by, as is typical on Black Jazz releases, by top-notch sidemen including drummer Raymond Pounds, who's played with everybody from Stevie Wonder to Pharoah Sanders to Bob Dylan, and pianist John Barnes, whose work is very familiar to Motown fans (Supremes, Temptations, Marvin Gaye). Bassist Reggie Jackson, who appeared on the Walter Bishop, Jr. Coral Keys record we previously released, rounds out the quartet. First vinyl reissue of another stellar Black Jazz release, remastered for CD and vinyl by Mike Milchner at Sonic Vision and featuring liner notes by Pat Thomas, author of Listen, Whitey! The Sights and Sounds of Black Power 1965-1975! – Real Gone Music

Calvin Keys's 1971 debut album for the Black Jazz Records label announced the arrival of a new star in the jazz guitar firmament. Keys had spent the '60s backing up the crème de la crème of jazz organists'Jimmy Smith, Jimmy McGriff, Jack McDuff, Richard 'Groove' Holmes'but for his first record as a leader, he was eager to play with a piano player instead. So he recruited one of the best'Larry Nash, who, besides being a member of the L.A. Express, played with everybody from Eddie Harris to Bill Withers to Etta James. Bassist Lawrence Evans, drummer Bob Braye, and flautist-songwriter Owen Marshall rounded out the group on Shawn-Neeq, which might remind some of Pat Metheny's early work (Metheny acknowledges Keys as an influence), or Grant Green. But what gives Shawn-Neeq extra depth is that it comes from the heart; as Keys says in Pat Thomas' liner notes, which feature an interview with the artist: 'My thing was, I write about some of the experiences that I've had in my life.' Keys has since become a fixture in the Bay Area jazz scene; this is the album that started his journey. Another gem from the celebrated Black Jazz catalog, freshly remastered for CD and vinyl by Mike Milchner at Sonic Vision and ready to be savored! – Real Gone Music

Cuba: Music and Revolution: Culture Clash in Havana: Experiments in Latin Music 1975-85 Vol. 1 is the new album compiled by Gilles Peterson and Stuart Baker (Soul Jazz Records) that explores the many new styles that emerged in Cuba in the 1970s as Jazz, Funk, Brazilian Tropicalia and even Disco mixed together with Latin and Salsa on the island as Cuban artists experimented with new musical forms created in the unique socialist state of Cuba.

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The album is released to coincide with the massive new deluxe large format book Cuba: Music and Revolution: Original Cover Art of Cuban Music: Record Sleeve Designs of Revolutionary Cuba 1959-90, published in November, which is also compiled by Gilles Peterson and Stuart Baker (Soul Jazz Records), and which features the music and record designs of Cuba, made in the 30-year period following the Cuban Revolution.

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The music on this album features legendary Cuban groups such as Irakere, Los Van Van and Pablo Milanés as well as a host of lesser known artists such as the radical Grupo De Experimentación, Juan Pablo Torres and Algo Nuevo, Grupo Monumental and Orquesta Ritmo Oriental, groups whose names remain largely unknown outside of Cuba owing to the now 60-year old US trade embargo which remains in place today and which prevents trade with Cuba – and thus most Cuban records were only ever available in Cuba or in ex-Soviet Union states.

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The music on this album reflects the most cutting-edge of Cuban groups that were recording in Cuba in the 1970s and 1980s – who were all searching for a new Cuban identity and new musical forms that reflected both the Afro-Cuban cultural heritage of a nation that gave birth to Latin music - and its new position as a socialist state. Most of the music featured on this album have never been heard outside of Cuba.

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Both Gilles Peterson and Stuart Baker have been involved in Cuban music for more than two decades – Gilles Peterson with his many Havana Cultura projects for his Brownswood label and Stuart Baker with a number of Soul Jazz Records albums recorded in Cuba. This Soul Jazz Records album is released in conjunction with Egrem, the Cuban state record company, and has been put together after the many crate-digging trips that both compilers have made on the streets of Havana and beyond in Cuba stretching over a 20-year period, searching out rare and elusive original Cuban vinyl records. – Sounds of The Universe

The creative process of the album revolved around two Sun Ra’s ideas - deconstruction and discipline. “He sent members of the Arkestra out to research individual players in Henderson group in the order to get the feeling right when playing their parts. Sun Ra told them they weren’t copying those pieces, they were re-creating them, and with the proper information they could know the spirit behind the original." That’s how Herman Sonny Blount treated the music of the swing legend, Fletcher Henderson. EABS approached the composition of Sun Ra in exactly the same way. An equally important element with recording was a regime associated with the discipline and precision that the pianist from Saturn fought for, using a series of exercises-compositions entitled ‘Discipline’ previously used by Arkestra. They were strictly designed for exercises with the minimum amount of material, the most common built on the brass section parts, with a cyclical melody unfolding from fragments so each person played their lines meticulously, without any deviation. This is what the title of the album ‘Discipline of Sun Ra’ refers to.

Sun Ra was aiming to record timeless music that could still be alive in a 1000 years, and with no hesitation, he managed to do it. The music from distant planets is infinite. “By infinity, Mr.Ra means creating jazz of the future, but also covering the past”- the same idea is carried by polish musicians. On the ‘Slavic Spirits’ album, EABS was inspired by the ancient past. As we now know, discovering Sun Ra’s concept wasn’t coincidental. He also believed and shared the philosophy of coming through the darkness to see the sun and enlightenment. In case there’s no hope for living on our planet, we need to look for metaphorical escapism. That’s where the idea of building a cosmic ship under ‘Polish Space Program’ was born. – Astigmatic Records

And what if the infamous UNDERGROUND and OVERGROUND albums had a third psychedelic chapter, still secret and unreleased until today? Yes, you heard correctly: this SUPERGROUND LP is sonically akin to the legendary pair for which composer Sandro Brugnolini will always shine worldwide, and ideally brings the trilogy to a close. Composed and recorded in two sessions between July 1969 and November 1970, the album echoes the shocking 1969's Charles Manson massacre, with tracks dedicated to the villa at Cielo Drive, in Hollywood, where Sharon Tate e Roman Polanski lived for six months. Some music was also used for an animated short movie signed by Pino Zac, “Radice Quadrata di 3”, a little art-film gem about the consumer society.

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The recordings have all in common the terrific line up, featuring MARC 4 members Antonello Vannucchi (organ), Maurizio Majorana (bass), Roberto Podio (drums), along with Angelo Baroncini (guitar) replacing Carlo Pes. An incredible groovy combo that plays a strange psychedelic rock and r’n’b with funky and prog flavor. Another lost masterpiece from Italian golden age soundtracks finally rescued and brought back in life to see the light of the wax for its very first time. - Bandcamp

Over the course of 24 tracks and spanning 2 x 2LPs, we present an overview of the contemporary exponents of Spiritual Jazz; musicians who are intent on bringing something personal to the table, as much as they recognize the importance of those who have paved the way for them. We feature music recorded within the past 20 years and from 15 different countries, including modern classics from veterans Steve Reid and Idris Ackamoor, providing a vital link between the past masters and the enlightened new generation.

It’s pioneers such as John Coltrane, Sun Ra, Pharoah Sanders et al, with their innovations in reaching another plane of consciousness that was and remains uppermost in the minds of exponents of Spiritual Jazz. Fittingly, several of the artists featured on this compilation, such as Cat Toren and David Boykin, are practitioners of the art of music therapy and sound healing, and have absolute conviction in the role of song as solace. The pioneers may no longer be with us, but their saintly selves loom large, shining a light in the darkness, inspiring many a brave new disciple today, as this album will testify: the new wave of jazz is gathering pace and still sounds fresh, vibrant and as relevant as ever. - Jazzman

Over the course of 24 tracks and spanning 2 x 2LPs, we present an overview of the contemporary exponents of Spiritual Jazz; musicians who are intent on bringing something personal to the table, as much as they recognize the importance of those who have paved the way for them. We feature music recorded within the past 20 years and from 15 different countries, including modern classics from veterans Steve Reid and Idris Ackamoor, providing a vital link between the past masters and the enlightened new generation.

It’s pioneers such as John Coltrane, Sun Ra, Pharoah Sanders et al, with their innovations in reaching another plane of consciousness that was and remains uppermost in the minds of exponents of Spiritual Jazz. Fittingly, several of the artists featured on this compilation, such as Cat Toren and David Boykin, are practitioners of the art of music therapy and sound healing, and have absolute conviction in the role of song as solace. The pioneers may no longer be with us, but their saintly selves loom large, shining a light in the darkness, inspiring many a brave new disciple today, as this album will testify: the new wave of jazz is gathering pace and still sounds fresh, vibrant and as relevant as ever. - Jazzman

Musical maverick Mark de Clive-Lowe returns to his roots with a new electro-acoustic record ‘Dreamweavers’, displaying his talent as a pianist and composer in partnership with creative collaborators bass player Andrea Lombardini and drummer Tommaso Cappellato. The two Italians have been a consistent presence on Mark de Clive-Lowe’s European tours for several years now, and it was during a road trip from Italy to Switzerland that Lombardini and Cappellato envisioned producing an MdCL album themselves.

‘Dreamweavers’ reflects on and celebrates the sounds that de Clive-Lowe grew up loving and finding inspiration in – from Sakamoto’s meditative melancholy and Ahmad Jamal’s soulful playfulness, to the rhythms of broken beat, boom bap and global rhythms. With the Italian rhythm section in empathetic support from start to finish both in their playing and producing, de Clive-Lowe embraces new found freedoms on ‘Dreamweavers’. - Mother Tongue Records

It's safe to say that starting a jazz album with a version of Led Zeppelin's "Black Dog" was quite a daring deed, to say the least. In Argentina -- back in 1977.

And yet this is something a musician with the career of Jorge Navarro could afford. Navarro belongs to a generation of musicians who shaped the history of jazz music in Argentina, starting already in the mid-50s alongside other renowned jazzmen such as Lalo Schifrin, Leandro "Gato" Barbieri, "Baby" López Furst or Jorge López Ruiz.

This tightly-knit group of musicians often looked abroad and followed the dominant current in the US, going through swing and be-bop phases, but towards the end of the sixties many started to develop their own identity, a tendency that intensified in the early 70s.

In Argentina, "con polenta" is an expression used to describe something with great energy or strength -- which perfectly defines the mood for the album. As many other musicians, most notably Schifrin and Barbieri (who enjoyed a huge international success and would only sporadically return to Argentina), Navarro had just left the country and spent several years in the USA, returning to his homeland full of energy and new ideas, which translated into his debut solo album. A rocking blend of Jazz and Funk, the album unexpectedly kicks off with a groovy cover of Led Zeppelin's "Black Dog" and includes equally wicked takes on compositions by Eumir Deodato, Keith Jarrett and Joe Farrell, as well as two self-penned originals and a funky number by Roberto Valencia, who's in charge of percussion in the album.

Doug's newest project, his entry in the Jazz Is Dead album series helmed by Adrian Younge and Ali Shaheed Muhammad, takes his unique and timeless art and places it within the context of a musical culture that has always taken cues from his 70s classics. There's no mistaking the musical mind that created legendary albums like Infant Eyes and Adam's Apple, but the encounter of that with the distinctive jazz-hip hop-funk-noir that is the Younge/Muhammad/JID trademark creates something worthy of comparison to Carn's past work but which could only have been made right now. One can detect nods to musical motifs by Carn's jazz peers that have served as frequent sample fodder, but his compositional and improvisational integrity remain indisputable throughout. – Bandcamp

Such was the warmth of reception granted NuNorthern Soul's debut EP of Ryo Kawasaki music, the label's Phat Phil Cooper has decided upon a follow up. And having made over 25 albums in his almost five decade long career, there's plenty of Ryo's music to choose from. Once again, Phil Cooper has chosen to concentrate on Kawasaki's mid 1970s to early 1980s period, a time which saw the guitarist living in New York, surrounded by and often playing alongside some of the finest jazz players of the era. It was a time of much experiment with jazz music and few things propel Kawasaki more than experimentation.

His mid 1970s period saw him explore what was to become known as jazz fusion music, a sometimes heavy-sounding variation, wild with revolutionary, new electronic sounds and steeped in funk and rock influences. From that period Kawasaki lead several album projects and the band Golden Dragon, upon whose recordings Kawasaki's famous, personally modified guitar synthesizer really comes to the fore. – Bandcamp

Two years after the death of his mentor and boss John Coltrane and shortly before signing his own contract with Impulse!, Pharoah Sanders finally managed to release an album as a leader outside the Impulse! family. Sanders proved with a cast of no less than 13 musicians that his time with Coltrane and his debut "Tauhid" with Impulse! were no coincidences.

Although he was hated by many of the jazz musicians of that time - and even more by jazz critics who thought Coltrane was musically lost when he put together the last quintet - Sanders followed his own path to Far Eastern music and sometimes completely beyond the boundaries of what one could call jazz. Nevertheless, "Izipho Zam" is a wonderful session, full of the power of his vision and the deeply felt soul that has shaped every Sanders recording ever since.

Guests include Sonny Sharrock, Lonnie Liston Smith, Chief Bey, Cecil McBee, Sirone, Sonny Fortune, Billy Hart, Howard Johnson and others. The set begins with a beautiful soul melody in "Prince Of Peace", in which Leon Thomas plays out his trademarks, yodels and languishing whining, while Smith, McBee and Hart support him and Sanders fills the gaps.

Next is "Balance", the first horn number in the set, with the African drums, modal horn section and Sanders' microtonal exploration of sound polarity in contrast to Johnson's tuba, with the rhythm section joining him as Sharrock and Smith swap bass lines and Sanders transforms the action into a Latin American dance from outer space - simply amazing.

Finally, the band members - all of them - begin a slow tonal exploration on the 28-minute title track, a structured stroll into the abyss of dissonance and harmonic integration, with Thomas as the bridge over which all sounds must travel on their way to the ensemble. From here, percussion, bells, whistles and Sharrock's strong guitar chords provide a rhythm to the beat of the sound figure until the horns join in after about 12 minutes.

They move slowly at first and gather strength until they really open after 20 minutes, the last eight minutes all play completely free, an endurance ride for the listener, because in the remaining four minutes Sanders leads the band into a wonderful lyrical excursion, which unites all different elements in his and our world and makes this track - and his album - an exciting, indispensable jazz experience.