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Universounds, HMV Record Shop and 180g team up for an exceptional release in their highly acclaimed WaJazz series, to be out on Jiro Inagaki’s 90th birthday, October 3rd, 2023, celebrating the life and music of one of the most iconic Japanese jazz musicians of the last 60+ years This is the ultimate collection of music from...
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Tapestry: Koto is a three-album series produced by Nippon Columbia in the mid-1970s dedicated to one of the main instruments of Japanese traditional music: Koto The beauty of the trilogy curated by composer Kiyoshi Yamaya, whose chapters are respectively dedicated to Sea, Hillside and Country, lies in the fact that they are a...
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"A rare document of the 1960s Black Arts Movement featuring Albert Ayler, Amiri Baraka, Milford Graves, Sun Ra, Cecil Taylor and many more, The Cricket fostered critical and political dialogue for Black musicians and writers Edited by poets and writers Amiri Baraka, AB Spellman and Larry Neal between 1968 and 1969, and published...
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"A thrilling account of life with Sun Ra's Arkestra and New York's avant-garde jazz scenes of the 1970s-90s In this memoir, Harlem-born trumpeter Ahmed Abdullah recounts decades of national and international touring with the Sun Ra Arkestra and charts the rise of the New York loft jazz scene, offering a fascinating portrait of...
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This remarkable recording sees its first-ever vinyl press An unissued performance by one of the true jazz giants, Dizzy Gillespie At the time of this recording, Gillespie was close to the halfway point of his career and very much in his musical prime The quintet featured here began to form when saxophonist Leo Wright joined...
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Strut follow up their hugely successful Marshall Allen-curated ‘In The Orbit Of Ra’ compilation with a newly curated set from the immense 125 LP back catalogue of jazz maverick, DIY philosopher and self-professed member of an “angel race”, Sun Ra ‘To Those Of Earth And Other Worlds’ is a hand- picked selection from BBC...
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Eight-page booklet with rare and unpublished photos Heavyweight 180-gram LP In 1972, trumpeter Baikida Carroll and some of his colleagues from the Black Artists Group (more precisely saxophonist/flutist Oliver Lake, trombonist Joseph Bowie, drummer Charles "Bobo" Shaw and trumpeter Floyd LeFlore) took the advice of their friends...
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All of You is a live album by American jazz pianist Ahmad Jamal featuring performances recorded at Jamal's own club in Chicago in 1961 and released originally on the Argo label Jamal's group had a personal sound of its own, often playing quietly and leaving space but never losing the passion These versions of "Time on My Hands,"...
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Double LP version "James Brandon Lewis' second album with the glorious Red Lily Quintet: For Mahalia, With Love This highly anticipated new album -- following on their Jesup Wagon -- reimagines songs made famous by the gospel icon who galvanized a nation with her voice Whereas Lewis used his transformative talents to newly...
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Out of stockToday, celebrated multi-instrumentalist and visionary artist Yussef Dayes announces his highly anticipated debut solo studio album ‘Black Classical Music’, released on September 8th via the revered Brownswood Recordings, Warners and Cashmere Thoughts Recordings Alongside this, Dayes shares a first taster of the record, the...
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Originally reissued as part of the Promise Kept: The Complete Artist House Recordings boxed set, now available separately Producer John Snyder had always wanted to record Pepper and booked him into a week at the Village Vanguard in New York At the time, Pepper was under contract to Contemporary Records and label head, Les...
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Anthony Davis has been around since the late '70s with releases on India Navigation and more! He's recently composed more operas including his Pulitzer Prize winning work of The Central Park Five This is a straight up free jazz piano trio, incredible stuff Vertical Motion by Anthony Davis / Kyle Motl / Kjell...
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Coin Coin Chapter Five: In the garden… is the latest instalment in composer, improviser, saxophonist, and visual artist Matana Roberts’ visionary project exploring African-American history through ancestry, archive and place Weaving together elements of jazz, avant-garde composition, folk and spoken word, Roberts tells the...
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Out of stockDarius Jones has created a recognizable voice as a critically acclaimed saxophonist and composer by embracing individuality and innovation in the tradition of Black music “Jones makes his point by showing, not just telling His compositions are so intensely honed and performed they seem to talk, moan, and cry about intimate...
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Occasionally, you find music outside the commercial mainstream, outside of everything – the music of visionaries, eccentrics, inventors, loners, the keepers of secrets, the path-finders Moondog, Daphne Oram, Harry Partch are from this mould And so too is Lori Vambe New on Strut, the first ever reissue of Vambe’s privately...
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Following the star-studded release of Jazz Is Dead’s second series, the venerated label returns with an intimate offering of selected instrumentals from the Series 2 sessions with the legendary vocalist Jean Carne and keyboardist Lonnie Liston Smith Here, standout moments such as Carne’s “Come As You Are” and Smith’s...
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John Stubblefield was one of the most versatile musicians in jazz, an invaluable artist who expanded on the music's potential from within the tradition Stubblefield's tenor and soprano saxophones told the story of four decades of diverse musical experience, from local R&B acts like Jackie Wilson and Solomon Burke (64) through...
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Thelonious Monk could walk from his flat to New York’s famous Philharmonic Hall on the corner of 64th Street and Broadway when he made his very first appearance there with his Big Band in December 1963 And the other musicians could get there on the underground: Phil Woods, Steve Lacy, Thad Jones – all of them were members of...
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Featuring Nate Morgan on piano, Jesse Sharps on reeds, Danny Cortez on trumpet, Rickey Kelly on vibes, Joel Ector on bass and Derek Roberts on drums This music was recorded in Santa Barbara in July of 1987 Since the passing of the great pianist/composer/bandleader Horace Tapscott, the Nimbus West label has continued to document...
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This duet date from 1990 demonstrates the deep blues feeling and technical mastery Archie Shepp has on the tenor saxophone Comprised of four standards — “Things Ain’t What They Used to Be,” “Body and Soul,” “Pannonica,” and “’Round Midnight” — this set is one of Shepp’s most enjoyable ever The reasons...
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Critics often complain that small-group sessions comprised of members of the Duke Ellington Orchestra are somewhat disappointing; this is definitely not the case with this session led by Clark Terry, recorded during a 1959 tour of Europe in the final month of the trumpeter’s almost eight-year tenure with the band Fellow...
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Out of stockSometimes in the course of our exploration of potential titles to reissue, we come across a true gem that somehow escaped mainstream popularity Our new all-analog HQ-180 of Matador by trumpeter Kenny Dorham and his quintet is the latest and perhaps most crystalline example of this There has never been a single 180-gram pressing...
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Out of stockShhh The command to be quiet is not just part of the title of one of the two sprawling compositions on this pioneering album It's also an apt metaphor for the relaxed hypnotism and spaced-out atmosphere that define In a Silent Way, a record that pushes the boundaries of studio possibilities, artist-producer relationships, and...
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Trumpeter, bandleader and composer Matthew Halsall announces landmark new album An Ever Changing View, an expansive, immaculately conceived project which presents Halsall’s signature blend of jazz, electronica, global and spiritual jazz influences An Ever Changing View will be released on September 8th on Gondwana Records...
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"Fearlessly Accessing the Divine Spirit From Here on Out" is the vinyl debut from up-and-coming pianist, composer, and producer Diego Gaeta He has previously released projects as Club Diego and with the trio Human Error Club (whose members Mekala Session and Jesse Justice helped produce this record) He has quickly become a fixture...
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Paul Hillery's third compilation in this series of rare and hard to find grooves is as much a geographical journey as it is a musical one With acts, artists and tracks linked to London, Florida, Atlanta, the Netherlands, Switzerland, California, India and Germany and more this compilation is very much proof of the global language...
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Idris Ackamoor & The Pyramids are back with their first major new studio album in over 3 years, an epic, sprawling new work exploring the future, the past and the urgent reality of the present, ‘Afro Futuristic Dreams’ Recorded between San Francisco and London and brought together by the genius of Malcolm Catto at his...
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Armon-Jones is a busy man With a sprawling catalogue of solo releases and collaborations - mostly released on Gilles Peterson's Brownswood imprint - he's developed a reputation for virtuosic keyboard playing and pristine production, both elements that ground 'Archetype' He connects again with his old flatmate Maxwell Owin, a DJ...
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This live album – released on vinyl for the first time - is made up of 3 European dates in 2001, and introduced Shorter’s “Footprint Quartet” – pianist Danilo Perez, bassist John Patitucci and drummer Brian Blade All are in top form, especially on challenging reimaginations of the title track and “Masquelero,” both...
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Originally released in 1996 — and for the first time here on vinyl — The New Standard features songs by Stevie Wonder, Prince, Sade, Nirvana and more getting creative, inspired and swinging jazz takes from Herbie and a world class band The recording features an all-star cast of Michael Brecker, John Scofield, Dave Holland,...
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Multi-Grammy® and Oscar® winner Jon Batiste invites the world to experience the marriage of hard hitting pop songs to a rich tapestry of international sounds on his highly anticipated album, World Music Radio Jon Batiste delves into the profound question: Isn't all music, in essence, world music Drawing inspiration from...
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Released as part of the Acoustic Sounds Series celebrating 70 years of Contemporary Records, Shelly Manne & Friends' My Fair Lady is the first album to ever consist of jazz versions of songs from just a single Broadway musical First released in 1956 and recorded by legendary engineer Roy DuNann, this new edition features...
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Sun Ra, the extraordinary, outlandish, and sometimes controversial pianist, is often described as an “acquired taste”, with a massive and diverse catalog This release is a good place to start for uninitiated or dismissive listeners The album showcases Ra’s grounding in the jazz tradition, with unique takes on standards like...
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Recorded on Valentine’s Day 1970 at Prince Street in New York, the set depicts Ornette Coleman (alto + tenor sax, trumpet, violin) propelled by the dervish of Haden-Blackwell on bass/drums, and joined by Dewy Rodman (tenor + alto sax) to modulate the intensity It’s shy of Coleman’s wilder urges, showcasing him more...
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Out of stockLegendary American piano player/ composer Andrew Hill (June 30, 1931 - April 20, 2007) lived an active and fruitful life leaving us a legacy of unique, enigmatic music Hill, however disappeared from the scene for about a decade in the late 60s This album and its predecessor "Invitation" released in the mid 70's paved his way back...
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Life On Mars is the 1976 debut album by the American R&B/jazz fusion singer, arranger, musician, composer and conductor Dexter Wansel The album is considered to be a "space-funk" classic, inspired by David Bowie's "Life On Mars" Wansel composed his own sci-fi sounds with swirling, ring-like oscillators, cosmic sub tones, and...
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Ornette Coleman’s second album Tomorrow is the Question! (1959) has been newly mastered by Bernie Grundman from the original tapes for this new SACD format Featuring Don Cherry, Shelly Manne, and either Percy Heath or Red Mitchell on bass, the emphatic, pianoless Tomorrow Is the Question! made it clear that Coleman’s concepts...
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A deluxe, embossed 2 LP box set Alongside a remastered version of PHAROAH, his seminal record from 1977, are two previously unreleased live performances of his masterpiece, “Harvest Time" Includes a 24-page booklet with rarely seen photographs and ephemera, as well as interviews with many of the participants and a conversation...
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Over the past few years, concert patrons have stopped the musician Carlos Niño after gigs to ask two simple questions: “Are you a shaman” “I hear the medicine in your music, can I come to your next ceremony” The queries are fair enough: Looking at Niño, a tall man with a wild beard and kind eyes, one would think he’s...
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Out of stockVictory present a reissue of Pacific, originally released in 1978 Reuniting the best session musicians Japan had to offer to make an album that would evoke the atmospheres of the South Pacific islands, the kind of places Japanese people spend their vacations Pacific is a treat to the ears; its theme of the southern Pacific ocean...
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Out of stockNina Simone's Wild Is The Wind, from March 1966, and its breathlessly engaging title track, were compiled from several recordings that were left over from sessions for previous albums for Phillips In 2020 the album was ranked 212 on Rolling Stone's 500 Greatest Albums of All Time Rolling Stone says it's among Simone's "most...
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“Space Is The Place” is the perfect entry point into Sun Ra’s vast catalogue, and a firm favourite for committed fans too Its centrepiece is the 21-minute title track: with its chugging sax riff and repeated vocal refrain, it’s both Ra’s signature tune and a manifesto of his space-age escapist philosophy Across the...
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Between 1964-1967 the legendary saxophonist and composer Wayne Shorter created a treasured and deeply influential body of work within the acoustic jazz tradition with classic albums such as Night Dreamer, JuJu, Speak No Evil, and Adam’s Apple that presented Shorter’s brilliant and distinctive original compositions performed by...
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In the '60s the jazz pianist Bill Evans would occasionally record an orchestral "easy listening" session to pay the bills, with predictably mediocre results But FROM LEFT TO RIGHT, while certainly easy on the ears, is also one of Evans' most intriguing "lost" records, brought to us courtesy of Verve's winning "By Request" series...
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"The Spiritual, a free jazz album recorded by the Art Ensemble of Chicago in 1974, finds the group of stellar musicians at their creative peak With various types of percussion, though the absence of a traditional drummer, the ensemble is able to create vivid, freeing compositions without the confines of conventional structure The...
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A seminal early moment from the legendary Albert Ayler – an important session recorded overseas in Copenhagen – where enthusiasm for Ayler's music caught fire more strongly than in the US! The group's got an edge that's maybe even sharper than some of Ayler's ESP material, but no less powerful – with Don Cherry on trumpet,...
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Altoist Marion Brown is perhaps best known for performances on albums by his contemporaries, such as Coltrane's Ascension, but Brown stands on his own as one of the most creative and important forces to come out of the 1960s avant-garde jazz movement Porto Novo is widely regarded as one of Brown's best recordings, captured during...