Jazz /
New Trombone
Jazz fans rejoice: Curtis Fuller's seminal debut album, New Trombone, originally released on Prestige in 1957, is back in the spotlight. At just 23 years old, the Detroit-born trombonist arrived on the scene with a fluent, innovative style that marked a bold evolution for the trombone in jazz.
Backed by an all-star quintet – Sonny Red on alto sax, Hank Jones on piano, Doug Watkins on bass, and Louis Hayes on drums – Fuller delivers a powerhouse hard-bop session. The album bursts open with three …
Golden Flower: Live In Sweden
There are musicians who play jazz and there are musicians who expand its very definition. Yusef Lateef was the latter - a visionary who brought the oboe, the argol, the shanai, the bamboo flute and countless other instruments into the jazz vocabulary decades before "world music" became a marketing category. Golden Flower: Live in Sweden presents two never-before-released concert recordings that capture this master at the height of his powers, finally emerging from the Sveriges Radio tape vaults …
Mating Call
Experience a remarkable session led by the legendary pianist and composer Tadd Dameron, recorded in 1956 and featuring the young lion John Coltrane, fresh from his tenure with Miles Davis. Mating Call is a solid and often overlooked gem showcasing six powerful and beautiful Dameron compositions. Performed by an impeccably tight quartet, the album features John Simmons on bass and Philly Joe Jones on drums, complementing Dameron’s distinctive bass-heavy piano style. This foundation offers a rich …
Live in Kallio
On Live in Kallio, Markus Holkko Quartet turns a Helsinki neighborhood into a pressure chamber of color and rhythm, blending proggy contours, retro-fusion heat and modern Nordic lyricism into long-form live explorations that feel both heady and immediate, cerebral yet unafraid to let the groove bite.
Live At Sogn Student Campus 1968
On Live At Sogn Student Campus 1968, Ditlef Eckhoff Quintet captures Oslo’s student underground at full boil: hard-bop heads splinter into early freebag squalls while Knut Riisnæs and Christian Reim drive the frontline with nervy, melodic fire, turning a long-lost campus tape into a vivid document of Nordic modern jazz in transition.
Jyväskylä Workshop Band 1970
A previously unissued post-bop document from 1970, Jyväskylä Workshop Band 1970 assembles American saxophonist Charlie Mariano, Norwegian bassist Arild Andersen and Finnish luminaries Heikki Sarmanto, Eero Koivistoinen, Paroni Paakkunainen, Seppo Ranniko, Pekka Pöyry, Edward Vesala and Matti Koskiala. Professionally captured in concert, the album delivers a vibrant set of groovy, exploratory and subtly exotic tunes that helped assert Finland’s place on the international jazz map.
At The Montreux Jazz Festival
This live jazz album, recorded on June 15, 1968, at the Montreux Jazz Festival in Switzerland, showcases the extraordinary artistry of Bill Evans on piano, accompanied by Eddie Gómez on bass and Jack DeJohnette on drums. Capturing the trio at a peak of creative interplay, the album presents a captivating blend of original compositions and classic standards.
The repertoire features Evans originals such as “One for Helen” and “Nardis”, alongside his masterful interpretations of timeless pieces lik…
Karel Velebny SHQ (PF 69)
In February, 1968, as the false Spring of hope was rising in occupied Czechoslovakia, ESP instructed Karl Velebny to record his group of improvisers during their upcoming tour of Germany. In April, 1968, the clandestine project was completed. Karel survived a terrible auto crash and sent photographs to ESP, which were utilized on the LP cover as a symbolic reference to the plight of the Czech people. A must for anyone interested in European jazz and the history of its relationship with the '60s …
Mama Too Tight
Originally released in 1967, Mama Too Tight stands as one of the most daring and structurally innovative albums from Archie Shepp, a pivotal figure in the free jazz movement and African-American cultural protest of the 1960s. Distinct from his more explosive works, this album showcases a refined compositional complexity, featuring avant-garde marching-band-style arrangements, masterful horn orchestrations, and a unique blend of humor and improvisational tension.
The title track, Mama Too Tight, …
Jacknife
Recorded at the legendary Van Gelder Studio in September 1965 and released on the prestigious Blue Note label, this remarkable album spotlights alto saxophone virtuoso Jackie McLean leading a powerhouse quintet through five original compositions. This recording captures a pivotal moment in post-bop jazz, highlighting McLean’s bold, expressive style and his commitment to pushing the boundaries of the genre.
Joining McLean are two celebrated trumpeters, Charles Tolliver and Lee Morgan, each bringi…
Wranglin'
First released in 1964 under the expert production of Blackwell for Island Records, this remarkable album captures the essence of Jamaican soulful jazz through the extraordinary talent of Ernest Ranglin. As a pioneering guitarist and composer, Ranglin delivers an impeccable performance that blends the rich traditions of jazz with the vibrant rhythms of Jamaica.
Accompanied by a highly swinging rhythm section, featuring Malcolm Cecil on bass and Alan Ganley on drums, the album explores a captivat…
Portrait of Sheila
Portrait Of Sheila is the legendary 1962 debut album by Sheila Jordan, recognized as one of the only vocal jazz albums released by Blue Note in the 1960s. Backed by Barry Galbraith (guitar), Steve Swallow (bass), and Denzil Best (drums), Jordan’s inimitable approach includes stark, intimate renditions of standards, including a celebrated voice-bass duet on Bobby Timmons’ “Dat Dere.” The album’s new Tone Poet Series reissue, shipping in late 2025, brings her singular artistry to new audiences wit…
By All Means
By All Means is the new album from Aaron Parks due for release on November 7, 2025 via Blue Note Records, expanding the acclaimed Parks-Street-Hart jazz trio into a luminous acoustic quartet with the addition of tenor saxophonist Ben Solomon. This set of seven original compositions explores Parks’ signature mix of modern jazz innovation and tradition, highlighted by tender dedications to his wife and son and the sly, swinging lead track “Parks Lope”.
Jazz By Sun Ra Vol.2
** Deluxe edition, Tip-on jacket, 24 pp booklet ** Sam Records continues its essential reissue series of Transition Records' visionary catalog with Jazz By Sun Ra Vol. 2, the companion piece to Sun Ra's landmark 1957 Jazz by Sun Ra Vol. 1. Originally intended as Transition TRLP-28 but left unreleased when the label folded, these recordings remained in limbo until Bob Koester rescued them for Delmark in 1968 as Sound of Joy [DS-414]. Now, over half a century later, this crucial document of the Ar…
Jazz By Sun Ra Vol.1
** Deluxe edition, Tip-on jacket, 24 pp booklet ** Did you know that the short-lived Transition label released the first LPs, or first sessions as leaders of three of the greatest performers in modern jazz? Donald Byrd – Byrd Jazz – Transition TRLP 5; Sun Ra – Jazz by Sun Ra Vol. 1 – Transition TRLP 10; Cecil Taylor – Jazz Advance – Transition TRLP 19. Tom Wilson, its founder and manager, was undoubtedly a man of taste more than a businessman as the label had to close its doors after only two ye…
Super-Sonic Jazz
When Sun Ra released his debut Saturn release in 1957, he signaled the Arkestra’s mission for the future. The cover declared the album a "21st Century Limited Edition." The compositions on Supersonic Jazz conveyed optimism and hope, bringing a message auguring the World of Tomorrow. Ra declared this the first dimension of a fresh art form, as he set about evolving a new American music — a composite of the past and future, the known coalescing with the unknown. The album, not very well received u…
Tokyo '81
*2025 stock* Elemental Music proudly announces the release of "Woody Shaw – Tokyo '81," a remarkable newly discovered live recording from one of jazz’s most visionary trumpet players. Captured on December 7, 1981, in Tokyo, this previously unreleased performance reveals Shaw at the height of his creative powers, supported by his all-star quintet: Steve Turre (trombone, percussion), Mulgrew Miller (piano), Stafford James (bass), and Tony Reedus (drums).
Boasting Shaw's signature melodic inventive…
The Ancients
Bomb! The debut recording by The Ancients, the intergenerational coalition of Isaiah Collier, William Hooker and William Parker formed by Parker to play concerts in conjunction with the Milford Graves' “A Mind-Body Deal” exhibition at the Institute of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles, and now a working group. Across 2LPs of side-length long-form improvised sets recorded at 2220 Arts & Archives in LA and The Chapel in San Francisco, The Ancients bring the free jazz trio languages first explored by t…
The Modern Sound Of Finland (The Music Of Esa Pethman)
*2025 stock* A landmark in Scandinavian jazz returns to the spotlight: The Modern Sound of Finland by Esa Pethman, the pioneering Finnish saxophonist and composer, is once again available to audiences seeking a timeless fusion of Nordic sensibility and modern jazz expression.
Originally released in the 1960s, this album represents the breakthrough moment of Finland’s entry into the international jazz scene, capturing the sophistication and creativity of a musician whose work resonated far beyo…
Bill Evans Trio with Symphony Orchestra
Legendary 1966 collaboration with Claus Ogerman and 48-piece orchestra represents peak of jazz sophistication