Jazz & Improvisation / Post Bop

Acoustic Sounds Series edition  Karma is a jazz recording by the American tenor saxophonist Pharoah Sanders, released in May 1969 on the Impulse! label. A pioneering work of the "spiritual jazz" style, it has become Sanders' most popular and critically acclaimed album. It is among a number of spiritually-themed albums released on the Impulse! label in the late 1960s/early 1970s. The album's main piece is the 32-minute-long "The Creator Has a Master Plan," co-composed by Sanders with vocalist Leo…

Pioneering be-bopper and unorthodox pianist Thelonious Monk was largely underacknowledged for the role he played in changing jazz forever. The Unique Thelonious Monk, the second of his LPs for Riverside, was recorded in 1956 with bassist/cellist Oscar Pettiford, who Monk had bonded with in Coleman Hawkins’ band, and the wildcard drummer, Art Blakey, pushing things farther into the realm of experimentation, despite the set being comprised of jazz standards. Thus, ‘Tea For Two’ becomes a hard-bop …

*2022 stock. In process of stocking* 'Fred Anderson is from Chicago, a city like Detroit known for the strength of its music scene. High time that he was shown in the light of this great quartet session, Birdhouse. Anderson’s association with Hamid Drake has germinated here with Anderson’s quartet giving a searching performance of his [Anderson’s] compositions. Birdhouse reflects that kind of powerful play where the roots are so strong, the music can evolve farther without losing the thread of i…

The great Malcolm Earl "Mal" Waldron makes his debut on Naked Lunch with a collection of his own compositions recorded in New York City during the early '60s in a trio formation with George Tucker on bass and Al Dreares on the drums. The composing skills of Waldron as a post-bop key figure are here on full display on both sides, although pieces like "Modal-Air," "Summerday," "Ollie's Caravan," and "Quiet Temple" really demonstrate the creativity of the trio's playing, with Tucker and Dreares lay…

Recorded when Johnny Walker was touring Worldwide with Veteran Jazz Star Lionel Hampton in 1982 and originally released on his own Private Press label: Walk On Productions. This neglected underground classic LP has been off the radar since then except for the appearance of "Dipping" on the Kev Beadle ‎– Private Collection (Independent Jazz Sounds From The Seventies And Eighties) compilation on BBE Records. Almost unknown and unjustly negected, it's a funk drenched jazz journey with some crunchy …

Temporary Super Offer! On Ezz-thetics: Eric Dolphy alto saxophone, bass clarinet, Don Ellis trumpet, David Baker trombone, George Russell piano, Steve Swallow double bass & Joe Hunt drums. On The Stratus Seekers: Paul Plummer tenor saxophone , John Peirce alto saxophone, Don Ellis trumpet, David Baker trombone, George Russell piano,  Steve Swallow double bass & Joe Hunt drums. The six albums that George Russell recorded in just two years – starting with Sextet at the Five Spot in September 1960 …

*in process of stocking* debut album from swedish piano trio yokada. released May 25, 2018 alex zethson: grand piano, compositions johan holmegard: drums johan berthling: bass

Recorded in November 1957 and released in 1960 on Prestige Records, "Soul Junction" is the highly celebrated Red Garland's release featuring the young John Coltrane on tenor sax and Donald Byrd on trumpet. Garland's ultra-relaxed piano fits perfectly with the steady groove provided by George Joyner on bass and Art Taylor on drums, while Coltrane and Byrd often steal the show with outstanding solos. This is a marvelous quintet digging deep into the Blues idiom and the soulful side of Jazz.

Recorded in 1957 by Rudy Van Gelder and released in the same year on the New Jazz label, this was a major statement from Ray Draper, who besides working with the likes of Max Roach, Jackie Mclean and Donald Byrd, he has been one of the few tuba players who have made a name as band leader. In particular this quintet date was a courageous step with Draper sharing the frontline with John Coltrane. In fact the two gave voice to a very unusual combination of tuba and tenor sax. An unprecedented instr…

"Hungarian guitarist Gabor Szabo (1936-82) issued only three live recordings during his lifetime. Significantly, the first of these, The Sorcerer (1967), remains the most popular album in the guitarist’s all-too abbreviated discography. But there were also More Sorcery (1968) and Gabor Szabo Live with Charles Lloyd (1974), offering Szabo totally in his element and at his bewitching best. Several more of Szabo’s concert recordings have surfaced in the intervening years, including this one, superb…

*2022 stock. In process of stocking* Saxophonist, pianist, vocalist and composer Archie Shepp is one of the most emblematic figures of Afro-American free jazz, in all its components. In the early 1960s he helped found the Jazz Composers Guild, performed with Cecil Taylor in The Connection and made several albums for Impulse. Inspired by the great jazz tradition (Ellington, Monk and Mingus) and the masters of the tenor saxophone, including Ben Webster and John Coltrane, his mentor, Archie Shepp e…

*2022 stock* Blue Marge presents In Paris / Live at the Sunside by Ted Curson ensemble.Ted Curson (trumpet, piccolo trumpet, flugelhorn & vocals), with Alain Jean-Marie (piano), Gilles Naturel (double bass), Philippe Soirat (drums), Pierrick Pédron (alto saxophone), Guillaume Naturel (flute), Julie Saury (percussion), Ferhat Öz, Evrim Özsuca, Daiva Starinskaite, Jaanika Ventsel (vocals & backing vocals), and guest on one track (Blues Medley): Sylvia Howard (vocals). Recorded live on 30 and 31 Au…

*2022 stock* Futura Marge presents Noel McGhie Afro-Caribbean Project's Re-Masters. Recorded on 16, 18 April and 30 November 2015 at Studio du Sous Sol in Argenteuil (France).Rasul Siddik (trumpet), Daniele Vigilucci (alto saxophone), Patrick Sedoc (guitar), Simon Teboul (double bass), Noel McGhie (drums), Awa Timbo (vocals) on one track

Never released outside South Africa, and out of print even there since its original release in 1974, Outernational Sounds presents one of the most sought-after international jazz exclusives ever to appear on South Africa’s famous Gallo imprint – the funky, spiritual and outward bound Habiba. As the archives of South Africa’s premier record labels steadily give up the treasures that were hidden in the darkness of the apartheid era, the incredible heritage of South African jazz is gradually findin…

* Gatefold LP, 180 grams quality reissue * It’s incredible to witness this resurgence of Strata-East’s recordings over the last few years – an appreciation for the label’s ground-breaking approach to music-making, backed by a phenomenal catalogue, continues to attract listeners both new as well as its devoted faithful once again giving rise to its revered and cult-like status. The label’s return to prominence and its subsequent reintroduction to new audiences has been aided, in no small part, by…

*2023 stock. Blue Transluscent Vinyl* 'Every morning, about an hour before sunrise, the day breaks gradually, with little noticeable fanfare. It’s the best time of day outdoors. The nighttime goblins have gone to their hiding places, loud day creatures have yet to rise, and it’s just us with the cool morning mist and that dim kind of landscape that lets us see only what we want to see.When Water Babies was recorded in 1967 and 1968, Miles Davis had with him one his best working units. His and Wa…

Temporary Super Offer! 'Was there more than one Miles Davis? Could he be both the Prince of Darkness and the purveyor of cool? A drug addict and an athletic boxer? A hip bebopper and a protohippie? A flamboyant dresser and a shy vulnerable soul? A brutal misogynist and an insecure romantic? The answer is yes, and yes. Miles Davis was both a creator and a destroyer. His chameleon-like nature can be explained by the times in which he lived and created his art. These live recordings in Stockholm, S…

Grey-area LP reissue, exact replica of the original * ldris Muhammad's legendary first album for Prestige, a great synthesis of the disparate elements that went into the era's Spiritual Jazz, Grooves, Soul and Free Experimentation and an indication of the many changes that were to occur in Black Music generally over the immediate years following the end of the 1960s.   "Parts of the second solo album by Prestige Records' house drummer, Idris Muhammad, are an even poppier affair than Black Rhythm…

TAO Forms is rather stoked to present this astonishing new work from the fertile creative mind of tenor saxophonist–composer James Brandon Lewis. Performed by the Red Lily Quintet, an exceptional & singular inter-generational ensemble, this album speaks to the forever-evolving continuum of the jazz tradition.

*2022 stock* Futura Marge presents Down With It by James Spaulding (saxophone alto & flute), Pierre Christophe (piano), Raphaël Dever (contrabass) & Mourad Benhammou (drums). Recorded live in Paris at the Sunside on July 22nd, 2006. ℗ & © 2006 Terronès

* 2022 stock * Recorded at the Studio Jazz Unité in Paris, France, on June 19, 1981, Filet de Sole / Philly of Soul was the only recording made by brilliant drummer Philly Joe Jones with this exact octet formation.The group plays a variety of tunes, including well-known pieces by Tadd Dameron, Benny Golson, Randy Weston, and the tandem of John Lewis & Dizzy Gillespie, plus an homage to Tadd Dameron composed by the group's tenor saxophonist Charles Davis (a regular with Archie Shepp and Sun Ra), …

*300 copies limited edition* Recorded intermittently between June and September 1962, "Year of the Iron Sheep" was Ken McIntyre's third album, the fruit of various studio sessions featuring three different personnels. Here the great multi-instrumentalist, mostly known for his collaborations with the likes of Eric Dolphy, Archie Shepp, Cecil Taylor and Charlie Haden is heard on alto sax and flute while the rhythm section variously features pianist Jacki Byard, bassists Ron Carter and Ahmed Abdul-…

Tip! “Japanese jazz has been recognized and celebrated by music lovers worldwide for decades. The origins of this trend may be traced back to the rare groove movement that flourished in the 1990s, but its current deep and wide popularity seems to be connected to the fact that Japanese people have been reevaluating their own jazz since the mid-2000s, locally referred to as WaJazz ("Wa" meaning Japan but also the Shōwa emperor period, from 1926 to 1989). Since the beginning of the 2000s, there has…

* 2022 stock * Marge Records presents Live at Dreher by Roy Burrowes Sextet featuring Mal Waldron Roy Burrowes (trompette & bugle), Richard Raux (saxophones ténor et soprano), Mal Waldron (piano), Patrice Caratini (contrebasse) & George Brown (batterie) - On two tracks : Roger Raspail (percussions)  Recorded live on 10th march 1980 at Dreher, Paris.

* 2022 stock * Futura Records presents Autumn Leaves: Ben Webster (saxophone ténor), Georges Arvanitas (piano), Jacky Samson (contrebasse) & Charles Saudrais (drums)  Recorded 5th june 1972 at studio Europasonor, Paris

* 2022 stock * Futura Records presents Chris meets Paris meets Chris : Chris Woods (saxophone alto & flûte), Georges Arvanitas (piano), Jacky Samson (contrebasse) & Charles Saudrais (batterie) Recorded on 24th octobre 1973 at Bilboquet, Paris. Crédits Alto Saxophone, Flute – Chris Woods Bass – Jacky Samson Coordinator – Marianne Fernel Cover [Drawing], Design – Pierre Delgado Drums – Charles Saudrais Edited By, Mastered By – Alexis Frenkel Engineer – Jef Gilson Photography By – Christian Fauchar…

*2022 stock* Futura Records presents Jaki Byard Trio's Live at the Jazz'inn. Jaki Byard (piano & saxophone alto), Gus Nemeth (contrebasse) & Jean-My Truong (batterie), invited on a title: Gerald Byard (batterie / drums). More two unpublished titles with Siegfried Kessler on piano, and Jaki Byard on alto saxophone. Recorded live on July 26th 1971 in Paris. Digipak.

Temporary Super Offer! "These Half Note recordings from March 26 and May 7, 1965, two dates from an extended stay at the club, were captured as a radio broadcast. ezz-thetics has re-sequenced the music here to demonstrate Coltrane’s approach to incorporating all his inventions into a performance, while also mapping a future to his music." – Mark Corroto Producers note: "We have re-sequenced these tracks to allow the listener to become part of the development of the music and to follow J…

Recorded live in London before a studio audience on the 24th August 1961. Previously unissued. By the time this EP is released 60 years will have elapsed since the recordings contained within it were made, and nearly 50 years since the untimely death of pioneering West Indian free jazz altoist Joe Harriott on the 2nd January 1973, aged 42. Only in the very recent past has Harriott started to receive anything approaching the accolades he undoubtedly deserved during his lifetime. For those new to …

**Limited Clear Vinyl edition, 300 copies** Recorded live in Bremen - Germany, on 27th September 1966, and originally broadcasted on Nordwestradio, this fine recording captures the young genius of Paul Bley at the head of his trio featuring bassist Mark Levinson and drummer Barry Altschul. A highly interactive piano trio whose peculiar instrumental interplay became a model for generations to come. The music played by Paul Bley with this line up stands as one of the most advanced statements among…

*2022 stock* Argonne Thornton (who in the late '40s changed his name to Sadik Hakim) had a particularly unusual boppish style in the '40s, playing dissonant lines, using repetition to build suspense, and certainly standing out from the many Bud Powell impressionists. Later in his career his playing became more conventional. Hakim originally studied music with his grandfather and started performing at local gigs in Minnesota. After a period in Chicago, he was heard by Ben Webster, who hired him t…

Iconoclastic saxophonist and composer Ornette Coleman shook the jazz world when he arrived at the Five Spot Café in New York City in 1959 and began his run of seminal albums on Atlantic that laid the foundation for the free jazz movement to come. After a period of disillusionment during which he withdrew from public music making, Coleman re-emerged on Blue Note in 1966 and began writing an intriguing new chapter of his legendary career.  The boxset Round Trip: Ornette Coleman On Blue Note presen…

Stunning duo comprised of two of the most important musicians of the Japanese underground/avant-garde, Otomo Yoshihide in a duo with the great Japanese drummer, Hiroshi Yamazaki – who has Kaoru Abe among his extensive list of past collaborators, and was also a member of Masayuki Takayanagi’s pioneering New Directions group. This album is dedicated to Masayuki Takayanagi.Otomo Yoshihide moves between free jazz, noise, improvisation, composition and the unclassifiable with a generosity that opens …

Temporary Super Offer! "Life Time posited a radicalism quite different from the other watershed recordings of 1964. Anthony Williams had an overt, unconventional approach to form, accentuated by the time constraints of a LP side and the various configurations he employed... By the time the 19-year-old Williams returned to Van Gelder Studio to record Spring with Hancock, Peacock, Rivers, and Shorter, the avant-garde was ascending... He retained some of the parameters  of Life Time ..." - Bill Sho…

*tiny bump on corners, discounted copies* Donald Byrd’s residency in Paris in 1958 to study with composer Nadia Boulanger gave rise to one of the greatest bands of his career with Bobby Jaspar on tenor sax and flute, Walter Davis, Jr. on piano, Doug Watkins on bass and Art Taylor on drums.Sam Records is proud to present this previously unreleased concert by the Donald Byrd/Bobby Jaspar Quintet recorded during the evening dedicated to ‘Modern Jazz’ during the 1st and only Cannes Jazz Festival on …

The Rendell/Carr Quintet has long been regarded as among the most iconic ensembles in 1960s British jazz, famed for its unique blend of musical personalities and the equally singular ‘style’ which resulted from its blend of experience, youth and creative ambition. This, the second R&B release of previously unissued material by the band, captures a moment of genuine jazz history with its inclusion of Michael Garrick’s debut broadcast with the quintet. Two further radio appearances find the band h…

This is the first ever reissue of the lost debut LP by Jamaican tenor saxophone player Fitz Gore and his experimental group The Talismen from 1975. The work was originally released on Gore’s GorBra label and delivers an introspective, sensitive form of Spiritual Jazz. "Soundnitia" is the cipher under which the experimental group "The Talismen" constituted in 1974 and made its presence known on the Jazz scene with the first LP. The initiator and spiritus rector of the avant-garde ensemble is the …

Vocalion presents Hum Dono by Joe Harriott & Amancio D'Silva Quartet. The combination of a Jamaican sax player and an Indian jazz guitarist getting together with a UK jazz elite in its hay day could be the stoned out fantasy. It’s also a music and cultural melting pot making up a real lost treasure in jazz music. Fantasy meeting reality. Recorded at Lansdowne Studios, London, February & March 1969. A&R – Michael J. Dutton, Oliver Lomax. Alto Saxophone – Joe Harriott. Bass – Dave Green (tracks: 1…

Where have you gone, Charles Tolliver? There was such promise in the concept of Music Inc., and in Strata East, but evidently the music world's attention was elsewhere and this tremendous live set was probably heard by only a few hundred sets of ears. On the back of the record sleeve, Tolliver undersigned his mission statement: "Music Inc. was created out of the desire to assemble men able to see the necessity for survival of a heritage and an Art in the hopes that the sacrifices and high level …

Owning both this disc and Live at Slugs', Volume 1 is essential for hardcore Jazz fans. Part two of the Slugs' date is just as impressive and again feature three originals all penned by the group. Here we get a better example of Charles Tolliver's compositional work with the touching John Coltrane tribute Our Second Father. Again Tolliver's trumpet is simply stunning. The rhythm section of Cecil McBee and Jimmy Hopps also deserve mention as these two really drive the quartet along in a similar f…