Jazz /
Open Space (The Down Beat Poll Winners In Europe)
LP issued to celebrate more European artists than ever before winning the annual “Downbeat” polls in 1969. On this release they all perform as a unit. Jazz giants from six European countries coalesce to play wide-open music. One of Norway’s greatest jazz singers, Karin Krog has worked and recorded with Jan Garbarek and Clare Fischer. English multi-saxophonist John Surman and Krog have jointly won two Norwegian Grammys. Surman has played with Mike Westbrook’s Orchestra and John McLaughlin, as wel…
Noise For Vendor Mouth
"The Nigerian establishment labelled Kalakuta Republic inhabitants as — ‘hooligans’, ‘hemp smokers’, etc. Noise For Vendor Mouth is Fela’s indifference to that name calling because, for him, people in Kalakuta are really a bunch of hard working citizens, trying to survive in a society riddled with corruption and mismanagement. He adds that the real hooligans are those in authority who resort to political gangsterism, and sometimes military coups in order to resolve constitutional issues. He cons…
Excuse O
The deepest song here is the second track, ""Mr Grammarticalogylisationalism Is The Boss,” which ridicules the notion that speaking ""proper"" English demonstrates superior intelligence, and bemoans the fact that doing so is, unfortunately, a requirement for upward mobility. As the chorus repeats the line “Him talk oyinbo pass English man” (“He talks English better than an Englishman”), Fela lays it down: “The better oyinbo you talk, the more bread you get, school start na grade four bread, B.A.…
Kalakuta Show
"The Kalakuta Show album release was Fela’s undaunted manner of extracting revenge on the military regime that attacked and brutalized him in 1974. The second of such attacks in a space of eight months, Kalakuta Show was an attempt by the Nigerian police to influence the cause of justice. After the first police raid on Kalakuta in April 1974, Fela was charged to court for: ‘possession of dangerous drugs’, and abduction of ‘minors’. However, the evidence presented by the prosecution was easily ex…
Why Black Man Dey Suffer.......
Also featuring Ginger Baker, the title track is among Fela’s first overtly political lyrics. His political perspective had evolved during the 1969 / 1970 tour of the US, largely through his friendship with the black-rights activist Sandra Izsadore, who introduced him to the writings of Malcolm X, Stokely Carmichael, Angela Davis and other revolutionary thinkers. By the time Fela wrote “Why Black Man Dey Suffer,” his songwriting and public statements were becoming increasingly critical of the pow…
Bonjin Tan
Jim O'Rourke plays a lot with Japanese Free jazz legend Akira Sakata in various formations. Together with Italian composer and pianist Giovanni di Domenico and the drummer Tatsuhisa Yamamoto they form this powerful band. This is their first release, combining contemporary Avantgarde and Free Jazz in a beautiful way.Line-up:Akira Sakata - sax, clarinet, voiceJim O’Rourke - double bassGiovanni di Domenico – piano, hohner pianetTatsuhisa Yamamoto - drumsRecorded at Pit Inn Tokyo on 10 January 2017
VII - CD
If Zeuhl is any indication, it's not only a French phenomena. This great Japanese group, well-known in the Japanese underground, proves that. Their work, which spans from rock to fusion to experimental to ethnic and draws more from the European school (Magma) than the Japanese new music movement, concentrates on avant-garde jazz structures, loud, blaring rock 'n roll, and occasionally all-out discord. They make extensive use of the violin, contrebass, and vibraphone in addition to the standard r…
Shadow Puppeteer
For the very first time on double vinyl, one of the most amazing musical adventures of influential singer & songwriter Julie Tippetts. Originally released on cd in 1999, Shadow Puppeteer is the result of a long running career, a devotional solo album fulfilling her royal artistic vision. Surely one of the foremost European vocalists in the field of contemporary jazz and improvised music, she started out with The Brian Auger band in the 60’s fusing soul jazz and r&b with amazing results. Moving…
Road To Saint Ives
*2024 stock. Deluxe packaging* "A gentle, introspective, yet adventurous solo work... The entire album is a one-man effort, from the composition to all of the instrumentation, with Surman building strata of sound over keyboard and percussion structures using bass clarinet and the soprano and bass saxophones he is known for. The resulting work communicates a unique vision and mood, unsullied by the conflicting interpretations of other performers." - Stacia Proefrock
Time Capsule
A heretical symbol of Rare Groove, with its alternative and avant-garde ferocity! Irvine Weldon's 1973 masterpiece, which continues to have a wide influence around the world even today! Although it is based on jazz, it is a work released in 1973 that is more soul/funk than the first album, and reflects more experimental and political aspects and ideas. For over 30 years, it has been loved by diggers all over the world and reigns at the top of the rare groove as a most wanted item, and today the …
Liberated Brother
Weldon Irvine was one of the most talented and influential artists of his era. Liberated Brother was his first album, originally issued on his own Nodlew label in 1972 in very limited quantities. An impressive showcase for Irvine’s skills as a songwriter, producer, and keyboardist, the collection boasts a rich array of musical textures, resulting in deep, spiritual, funky jazz with elements of soul and psychedelia. Innovative not only for its moody, nuanced jazz-funk sensibility, Liberated Broth…
Family And Friends
Hilton Felton's Family & Friends is a rare groove classic that now gets reissued for the first time ever courtesy of P-Vine. The master keyboardist has a cult following thanks to his magically mellow and sophisticated playing style. He was prolific, too, recording several great albums but none as definitive as this one, which is a sought after and pricey gem if you want an original. It has many highlights such as the fantastic jazz-funk cover of the Delfonic's classic 'La, La Means I Love You', …
Concerts By The Sea
Funky groove master Les Demar's legendary live recordings have been sampled by numerous artists and DJs, and have captivated jazz funk listeners and rare groove freaks alike with their raging drum breaks and intense grooves. Recorded at Concerts by the Sea in Redondo Beach, California, in August 1978, the eight-piece big combo's frenetic night is back in its original 1970s release!
The fusion-like 'Quetzal' (A1), which starts with an opening MC and cheers, quickly raises the tension, followed by…
Transcendental Watusi!
Funky groove master Les Demar's legendary live recordings have been sampled by countless artists and DJs, and have captivated jazz funk listeners and rare groove freaks alike with their raging drum breaks and intense grooves! Recorded in August 1978 at Concerts by the Sea in Redondo Beach, California, the eight-piece big combo's frenzied night is back in its original 1970s release!
A sharp jazz-funk "Manfred S" (A1) that starts from a drum break that just asks you to sample, a ballad "Once Upon …
Charles Mingus Presents Charles Mingus To Pre Bird „Revisited“
"Heard together, Charles Mingus Presents Charles Mingus and Pre Bird suggest the enormity of
Charles Mingus’ artistic vision. No one album encompasses it in its entirety, and perhaps not even
two or three. However, these recordings, made six months apart in 1960, vividly summarized his
work to date, as he headed towards to jazz’s pantheon." – Bill Shoemaker
Hellbound Train (An Anthology)
*2024 stock* Hellbound Train is a double-album retrospective from Steve Tibbetts with music selected by the US guitarist from 40 years of recordings on ECM . Neatly divided into electric and acoustic chapters, the anthology juxtaposes pieces originally featured on the albums Northern Song, Safe Journey, Exploded View, Big Map Idea, The Fall Of Us All, A Man About A Horse, Natural Causes and Life Of. With its liquid melodies and textures and hypnotic patterns and pulsations subtly influenced by…
Nice Guys
*2024 stock. Deluxe packaging* Nice Guys is an album by the Art Ensemble of Chicago, recorded in May 1978 and released on ECM the following year—their debut for the label. The quintet features trumpeter Lester Bowie, saxophinists Joseph Jarman and Roscoe Mitchell and rhythm section Malachi Favors Maghostut and Famoudou Don Moye.
Urban Bushmen
*2024 stock* Urban Bushmen is a live double album by the Art Ensemble of Chicago recorded at the Amerika Haus in Munich over two days in May 1980 and released on ECM in March 1982. The quintet comprises trumpeter Lester Bowie, saxophonists Joseph Jarman and Roscoe Mitchell and rhythm section Malachi Favors Maghostut and Don Moye.
A German Jazz Story
**English edition. 200 pp. Hardcover** Eberhard Weber is a central figure in the evolution of European jazz. A virtuoso who revolutionized jazz bass playing - he brought his instrument from the far corner of the stage into the spotlight – and turned it into a solo force. He began his career as a jazz bassist in the 1960s, and his band Colours, with the saxophonist Charlie Mariano, became one of the most successful jazz groups in Europe. His record Colours of Chloë (made for ECM) was a cult albu…
Lord Of Lords
Remastered reissue on Impulse/Elemental Music. Alice Coltrane was among the most important creative voices of 20th century. A woman like no other, who sculpted a body of music, so singular, that it can be distinguished a mile out – sounding like nothing, before. Originally released in 1972, Lord Of Lords was Alice Coltrane's final album for Impulse! and the last installment in her awe-inspiring trilogy that also included Universal Consciousness and World Galaxy. While all three records featured …