Jazz & Improvisation / All styles

Before Don Cherry appeared in Ornette Coleman's quartet, the band's trumpeter was Bobby Bradford. Responsibility for his family dissuaded him from his career as a nomadic musician. It's a well-known story, but it's hard not to wonder "what would have happened if Bradford had stayed in New York and continued to create with Coleman?" This thought is even more intriguing when we learn that the marriage, which dominated the development of the young musician, broke up in 1970.I like to think that if …

We have a special relationship with Ivo Perelman, so when his latest trio with Cuban-born and hugely respected pianist Aruan Ortiz and Spanish-born but French-based friend of our label Ramon Lopez finally came about, we felt that their first studio meeting had to be in our catalog. Their first album, Ephemeral Shapes, was recorded in Catalonia's Rosazul studio under the delectable ear of Ferran Conangla himself. We are all the more pleased that the band has entered the roster of the famous Akamu…

One of the most brilliant contemporary improvisers playing the recorder, Dominik Strycharski is not the first time he has appeared on recordings in our catalog. An album featuring him came out nearly a decade ago, Myriad Duo, recorded with bass guitar virtuoso Rafal Mazur, sometime later a solo recital Flauto Dolphy, dedicated to the music of the great Eric Dolphy. And then October Suite, a disc documenting the anniversary concert of the RGG formation, during which Dominik was a special guest al…

Udo Schindler is truly a man of many talents. He was a rock musician, an educated architect, a pretty well-educated instrumentalist, and a virtuoso playing clarinets, saxophones and flutes. His extensive activity in the field of art includes composition, improvisation and live performance, and in each of these areas Udo Schindler has gained a reputation as a deep-thinking explorer and expert. This resulted in collaborations with musicians such as Hubert Bergmann, Gerry Hemingway, Eddie Prévost, …

** 2026 restock, long out of print - few copies available **  Here’s an astonishing fact: This album was recorded during John Tchicai’s first and only weeklong residency at a New York jazz club. Tchicai — co-founder of the New York Art Quartet, one of the most innovative bands of the 1960s; member of Albert Ayer's New York Eye and Ear Control; participant in John Coltrane’s Ascension, perhaps the most influential of Coltrane’s late works; practitioner of world music-jazz fusions in bands such as…

** 2024 restock, long out of print - few copies avaialble **  Reissue of the legendary Amalgam recording with Trevor Watts, Jeff Clyne, John Stevens and Barry Guy. This recording received the highest rating by The Penguin Guide to Jazz. It was re-mastered from the original reel to reel tapes. : In the late 60s, British jazz was in a state of flux, pulling itself into strange new shapes influenced by the U.S. avant garde, European improvisation and rock and giving birth to bands such as Keith Tip…

Strut proudly presents a special edition, deluxe repress of Sun Ra’s classic ‘Lanquidity’, for the 25th anniversary of the label. Housed in a tip-on sleeve with  OBI strip, this new special editions features an A2 poster including a rare Veryl Oakland photograph of Sun Ra in his home, as well as liner notes by Tom Buchler (Philly Jazz), Michael Ray and Danny Ray Thompson (Sun Ra Arkestra) and Bob Blank. “Enter the sober, tranquil chambers of the next moment. Soft angles of lights into space, cho…

Strut presents an exclusive reissue of Experience Unlimited’s 1977 debut album, Free Yourself, featuring a brand new interview with bandleader and co-founder ‘Sugar Bear.` This seminal recording blends soul, jazz, and funk-rock, laying the foundation for Washington D.C.'s go-go scene.  Experience unlimited had originally started out in 1973 when they met at Ballou Senior High School in South-East D.C. and came to the attention of Black Fire Records’ Jimmy Gray after winning a school talent compe…

"Space Jungle Luv" emerged in 1976 (a year after the classic "African Rhythms" set) and marked a distinct change of direction for Plunky and co. Their feet were still in the ghetto, but this time they were looking at the stars; headed up by the strong, sweet vocal stylings of Jacqueline Holman (aka Lady Eka-Ete) and Branch's often effects drenched saxophones, this is cosmic dancefloor jazz of the first water.

Strut presents a brand new reissue of Juju’s powerful Afrocentric album ‘Chapter Two: Nia’ from 1974, originally released on Strata East. This is probably the rarest of the Juju/Oneness of Juju albums – and it's also one of the best! Unlike their first album on Strata East, the group's a little bit more inside, and doesn't get lost in overindulgent avant garde solos. Instead, they groove hard with a deep warm sound, in strident tracks with a mix of percussion, vibes, piano, and the excellent ree…

2024 stock. The energetic somersault greeting us on the debut of Danish born Trondheim based saxophone player and band leader Amalie Dahl’s Dafnie is a heads up for this fresh breath of air that Dafnie represents. The quintet colour out Dahl’s strong, melodic compositions with playfulness and convincing weight. What we hear is harmonic yet avant-garde, with references to both old school free jazz and modern contemporary reed-leaded bands. But be not in doubt - Dafnie is something of its own.The …

All songs written and performed by Erlend Smalås and Trond Wiger. Recorded and mixed in GODSterminalen by Trond Wiger for Alt for Høyt for Langt for Kort Forlag 2023. Mastering by Karl Klaseie, Øra Mastering. Chorus lyrics På gli by Stig Aarskog

*200 copies limited edition. 2024 stock* This release is an orchestral expansion of the vocabulary of The Hatch. The duo work of Desprez and Rasmussen extrapolating into two local scenes in Texas. A co-release with Astral Spirits from Austin, Texas.Pressing off only 200 copies! Beautiful gatefold double LP with artwork by Jaime Zuverza!

Šalter Ensemble operates on the border between free improvisation and composition, focusing on collective processes as a central part of its practice. The project is an international electro-acoustic ensemble initiated in 2017 by Jonas Kocher in collaboration with Zavod Sploh Ljubljana and Izlog Festival Zagreb, and has since performed at numerous venues and festivals in Slovenia, Croatia, Italy, Switzerland and Serbia.The ensemble consists of outstanding personalities from the Swiss music scen…

2024 stock. The Swiss-based trio Koch/Loriot/Kocher formed in the summer of 2020 has kept developing a distinct musical identity ever since. The band makes use of insistently repeated motifs, broken melodic lines and occasional tonal harmonies cohabiting with pure sound production. The three musicians develop their respective materials in tension with each other: they are able to merge their sounds at any moment, but just as well might evolve their individual voices for a long time in parallel, …

2024 stock. The album Entschlummern sollst du, sollst entschlummern (engl.: Thou shall slumber, slumber, shall thou) brings us the first ever released recordings of four string quartets by Frieda Bertelsohn Martholdy (1878 -1907), a composer yet unknown to most of us. The first listening makes undoubtedly clear what an original voice as a composer and what an astonishing achievement from the performers we are witnessing here. Frieda Bertelsohn Martholdys thoroughly modern sounding music fluently…

*100 copies limited edition. 2024 stock* Trio existing since 2014, it consists of three major figures of the Swiss improvised music scene. Koch, Kocher & Badrutt brilliantly achieve to play a subtle electro-acoustic improvised music, blending acoustic sources and electronics on a surprising way to create a music full of unpredictable events and of particular beauty. Archytas Curve is their second release."[…] I am stunned by the immediacy of the improvising. They have developed a special way of …

Big Tip! Rapid Light is the inaugural quartet in Lauritz Heitmann Skeidsvoll's personal repertoire, established during the winter of 2023. The quartet recorded this album in February 2024 in Studio Paradiso, Oslo, Norway - Collaborating with the talented sound engineer Christian Engfelt. Rapid Light is born out of a desire to cultivate a vibrant, dynamic, and inclusive musical environment where musicians can flourish and collaborate. The melodies in orchestral film music have always captivated t…

Star Quality – Speculations for Guitar and Voice is a highly original album of experimental music that transcends the categories of free improvisation, jazz, electro-acoustic art, and the opera aria

Recorded live on 25th February 1979, Teatro Cristallo, Milan, Italy. Second of two performances. Previously unreleased. Stereophonic sound. Elton Dean - saxophones, Keith Tippett - piano,  Harry Miller - double bass, Louis Moholo-Moholo - drums.  All tracks composed by Elton Dean. Original event organised by Riccardo Bergerone. Very special thanks to: Marino Dean, Roberto Ottaviano, Sergio Balletti, Carlo Verri, Aymeric Leroy. Executive producer: Riccardo Bergerone. Restored and produced by Matt…

The Derek Bailey transcription were performed at the Holywell music room in October 2005 as part of a concert organised by Fran Ryan, who wanted to hear me playpiano in a more composed setting. I agreed to play music based on Derek Bailey’s early recordings and brilliantly transcribed by Chris Burn, which he had sent me, I was inter-ested in the challenge and the obvious contradiction of performing free improvisationsas compostions, especially Derek’s, knowing his view on the use of transcriptio…

Svensk Jazzhistoria is a unique series about the evolution of jazz in Sweden, published by Caprice Records. While the first ten volumes reflect the years between 1899 and 1969, this red-hot eleventh installment delves deep into the 1970s. On four albums with a total of 62 tracks, and a book of 188 pages, we summarize a vigorous, explosive, and many-sided decade of Swedish jazz. Like with the preceding ten volumes, volume 11 is the masterstroke of jazz archaeologist Jan Bruer. Assisting him this …

The project Swedish Jazz History is a CD series issued by Caprice Records. The research for this is subsidized by the Bank of Sweden Tercentenary Foundation and the production is partly financed by the Swedish Council for Cultural Affairs. Our ambition has been to reflect the development of Swedish jazz up to and including the 1960s, and Volume 10, the final album in the series, covers the latter half of that eventful decade. Like its predecessor, Vol. 9 (“Brand new!”), the box contains 4 CDs an…

South African born and raised pianist/bandleader Chris McGregor formed the racially mixed Blue Notes in the early 1960's, touring and trying to get by in extremely difficult political circumstances as best they could. By 1964, facing continuous government harassment, Chris & the Blue Notes fled their South African homeland, finally settling in London in 1966. They made a huge impact on London's jazz scene and befriended many in London's emerging avant-garde jazz community. By 1969, the Blue Note…

“Radiance” is the first album of solo piano improvisations from Keith Jarrett in a decade. The last such was “La Scala”, recorded 1995, released 1997. (In between, in 1999, Jarrett issued the home recording “The Melody At Night With You”, a solo album of standards and folk songs). Four years ago, Jarrett told interviewers it was unlikely he would return to solo piano performance. Having been sidelined for several seasons by illness, he had attempted two solo concerts in Japan in the autumn of 19…

*2023 stock* Long awaited, never before published live chronicles of legendary Kondo / Chadbourne / Centazzo 1979 Italian tour. The document of the time, the music, and one of the direction of the improvised art form in late 70s. "We showed up at the train with all the equipment, 50 cases of percussion. The organizer is five hours late to meet. Then we all get searched on highway by the Italian police, looking for terrorists of the Red Brigade…" - Eugene Chadbourne

Hidefumi Toki's 1975 album Toki offers a deeply personal journey into the realms of jazz, showcasing his expressive prowess on alto and soprano saxophones. Backed by a stellar quartet including Kazumi Watanabe on guitar, Nobuyoshi Ino on bass, and Steve Jackson on drums, Toki creates a stunning sonic landscape filled with gentle, raspy tones. The album's ambiance is laidback and mellow, yet infused with a profound sense of spiritual depth reminiscent of Coltrane's work. Original compositions lik…

Mari Nakamoto's third Three Blind Mice (TBM) release showcases her tender vocal style, complemented by the masterful accompaniment of Isao Suzuki on bass and Kazumi Watanabe on guitar.

Featuring Natsuki Tamura on trumpet, Satoko Fujii on piano & compositions, Takeharu Hayakawa on electric bass and Tatsuya Yoshida (from RUINS!) on drums & voice. What I find most fascinating about this quartet is that although Satoko & Natsuki come from a mostly diverse jazz background, those crazed Ruins dudes have created their own progressive/punk world. Quite an odd combination of extremes which grows stronger with each disc by challenging each member and the audience as well. Once more Sato…

The second of two releases of this trio recorded live in Krakow in 2016 finds Chicago reedist Vandermark, German drummer Kugel and Ukranian bassist Tokar blowing holes in walls. There are occasional respites, say when Tokar takes one his fascinating, focused solos. But generally this is tough stuff. Vandermark is a master of taking a phrase and working it repeatedly, wringing out the last drops as he modulates his ideas to the boiling point. His clarinet playing brings to mind what Artie Shaw mi…

This album was inspired by the music coming out of Jamaica in the mid 1970s, in particular the use of drum machines by Lee Perry and Aston Family Man Barrett (and Sly Stone in the USA) but also the instrumentals and dubs by Keith Hudson and Im & Count Ossie etc. Searching out, buying and listening to those records had a deep and profound effect on me and became a big influence on me as a musician, which continues to this day.

Followers of our Quarterly will recall, about 6 years back, Woodbury's inspired arrangement of 'Shenandoah', which managed to embrace the whole of America history in under 10 minutes. Since then he has been working on completing this collection, his first full ensemble instrumental CD. The interest starts with the ensemble itself, half as expected for Latin, Jazz and Big band arrangements and half traditional American: pedal steel, banjo, accordion and fiddles. One thinks of Van Dyke Parks', and…

Released on LP in 1987-8 these are composed rock/contemporary/experimental pieces for electric guitar quartet and drums, complex and enegetic. Both LP's are now on one CD, omitting the Fred Frith guitar quartet extracts, which have now been released separately.

Tip! Behind the deceptive veneer of the demure monotone artwork, something unassuming lies within this long-play waiting to be explored. Intrigued by the ironic title, enticed by the elegant text positioned alone on the beautifully tactile matte canvas, the listener will experience musical wonderment at odds with the presentation and discover that the 1976 album Colours is a powerful yet sophisticated set of electric soul-jazz. An inspired recording that bursts with warmth and texture, the pivot…

Two gigs by a loose ensemble of nomads, hybrids, tech-heads and agitators gravitating around Porto, Portugal. ANTIFLUFFY is the pop cousin of Autodigest, both dedicated to a critique of the current culture of entertainment and the paradoxical labyrinths of late consumerism. While Autodigest takes the cerebral, strategic route, Antifluffy gets down and dirty, visceral in the face of fluff. Whether disemboweling magnetic tape or analogue photographs, delivering impassioned manifestos or crooning a…

Tip! The trio of Japanese Saxophone legend Akira Sakata with the scandinavian rhythm section presents already his fifth album! While the trio was on a Japan tour in 2019, Sakata arranged for a handful of special collaborations, with some of Japan’s most important artistic figures. Featuring the avantgarde dancer Min Tanaka, the pianist Yuji Takahashi and a heavyweight veteran of Japanese experimental music - drummer Takeo Moriyama. Moriyama was playing with Sakata in the Yosuke Yamashita Trio an…

*2024 stock* The new ONJQ (Otomo Yoshihide New Jazz Quintet), with new members Shinpei Ruike (Tp) and Osamu Imagome (Tb), will release their first album, "Hat and Beard," featuring a selection of songs and edits from live recordings from their 2018 tour. Mixed & mastered by Soichiro Nakamura (Peace Music). Includes songs by Ornette Coleman, Eric Dolphy, and Wayne Shorter, plus self covers and new originals, for a total of 6 songs over 70 minutes.

*2024 stock* The cliffhanger collaboration by Masataka Fujikake and Takeharu Hayakawa, which has been going on since 2007, is now complete with a live performance of the May 2011 session with Jim O'Rourke as a guest. The trio's bold arrangements are a powerful work centered on a solitary guitar sound that only Jim O'Rourke could express.

Souffle Continu records is thrilled to present Byard Lancaster – Us, Mother Africa, Exactement and Funny Funky Rib Crib. His all 4 legendary albums released on Jef Gilson’s Palm Records in the 1970s. At the beginning of the 1960s, at the Berklee College of Music, Byard Lancaster met some feisty friends: Sonny Sharrock, Dave Burrell and Ted Daniel. It is easy to see why he rapidly became involved in free jazz. Once he was settled in New York, he appeared on Sunny Murray Quintet, recorded under th…

Souffle Continu records is thrilled to present Byard Lancaster – Mother Africa, one of his 4 legendary albums released on Jef Gilson’s Palm Records in the 1970s. At the beginning of the 1960s, at the Berklee College of Music, Byard Lancaster met some feisty friends: Sonny Sharrock, Dave Burrell and Ted Daniel. It is easy to see why he rapidly became involved in free jazz. Once he was settled in New York, he appeared on Sunny Murray Quintet, recorded under the leadership of the drum crazy colleag…