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Vibration Black Finger - GUADI EP (Enid Records)

Lascelle Lascelles (aka Lascelle Gordon) is the man behind Vibration Black Finger. As one of the house DJs at London's hipper-than-hip Wag Club in the 1980s, he earned a reputation as an eclectic and adventurous musical spirit, before helping to found Acid Jazz pioneers The Brand New Heavies, staying with the band for five years. His next project Heliocentric World scored a chart hit for Gilles Peterson's Talkin' Loud imprint, he then turned up behind the drum kit for indie darlings (and NME cover stars) Campag Velocet in the late 1990s. He's since gone on to appear live or record with the likes of Mr Scruff, Beth Orton, Gossip, Trevor Jackson, Peaches and others. More recently he's been working with indie popsters Le Volume Courbe and touring with James Holden, as well as forming astrojazz improv collective Woven Entity with fellow percussionist Patrick Dawes and drummer Paul May, whose debut album won much critical acclaim. He currently co-hosts a weekly show on NTS Radio, Music to Ease Your Disease.

Vibration Black Finger has long been a labour of love for Lascelle. As well as sporadically gigging under that name, over the last few years he's been in and out of studios and rolling tape with an eclectic cast of trusted collaborators. GUADI is the second EP by the project and follows hot on the heels of the album Blackism, which emerged in January 2017 to enthusiastic reviews from the likes of The Quietus and The Wire.

The title of Horace Tapscott's debut release is apt, if not self-referential, for indeed a giant of West Coast jazz had awakened with this, the pianist/composer/bandleader's 1969 album for the Flying Dutchman label. Tapscott went on to form two groups crucial to the flowering of modern jazz in the Los Angeles area, the Pan Afrikan Peoples Arkestra (or P.A.P.A.; the name is an homage to Tapscott's predecessor and peer, Sun Ra), which eventually became part of a larger umbrella organization, Union of God's Musicians and Artists Ascension (UGMAA). Out of UGMAA came a host of LA-bred musicians, singers, and poets, including Arthur Blythe (who goes by Black Arthur Blythe on this recording), Stanley Crouch (who wrote the original liner notes), David Murray, Butch Morris, Wilber Morris, Jimmy Woods, Nate Morgan, and Sinclair Greenwell, Jr. (a.k.a. Guido Sinclair). And anchoring it all was Tapscott himself; as Kamasi Washington, whose vision of a large, Los Angeles community-based ensemble echoes that of P.A.P.A. and UGMAA, said in 2015: "Horace is one of the most important figures in the foundation of music in L.A., from both a purely musically and socially conscious perspective." Now, Real Gone Music is proud to present the first-ever LP reissue of The Giant Is Awakened (original copies go for hundreds of dollars), taken from high-resolution audio sources and complete with original gatefold artwork. Neon green vinyl pressing limited to 1000 copies... a foundational document of West Coast modern jazz!

"Who Sent You?" by Irreversible Entanglements is an entire holistic jam of "infinite possibilities coming back around," a sprawling meditation for afro-cosmonauts, a reminder of the forms and traumas of the past, and the shape and vision of Afrotopian sounds to come. Stay on it! This is the future! This is the spectral dreaming, the reshaped soundwaves of post-Katrina, post-Osage Avenue, post-Obamacare that we borrow from to do this work, so stay on it. Who Sent You? they said from their liquid cryo-chamber, from a low-light induction field cobbled together with lithium rods, with melted down Romare Bearden and Howardena Pindell paintings, stitched with chaos fibers and placed in the center of the carrion husk of a burnt out shanty town. They took time to scrape ashen samples of what was, their souls the residue thick and caked on, that still climbs those new high-rise condominiums like moss - the only evidence that they were once there, that they were baked into the fabric of this planet - they were there fixing elevators and tossing wrenches into quantum fields until they were stopped! frisked! and turned into weird, 100-foot martyr murals on the backside, the north side, of supermarket walls-Who Sent You? is how the matrix modulation works. Dig it: Who Sent You? is the punk-rocking of jazz and the mystification of the avant-garde, a sci-fi sound from that out-soul-fire jazz quintet Irreversible Entanglements.

The legendary Monk's quartet appearance at the world-famous Concertgebouw in Amsterdam in May 1961. The high priest of Bop, one of the most important, if enigmatic figures in modern Jazz together with three of his main disciples, tenor sax specialist Charlie Rouse and the ultra dynamic rhythm section of John Ore - double bass and Frankie Dunlop - drums, in a wonderful performance based on super tight renditions of classic tunes such as Jackie -ing, Straight No Chaser, Crepuscule with Nellie and Rhythm-a-Ning. Surely, both the band and a packed house had a ball that night!!!

Repress

"ATA Records" is pleased to announce the release of Early Works: Funk, Soul & Afro Rarities From The Archive, a compilation of tracks that were recorded at the very outset of the label and haven't been available since the initial limited run (Released as Funk, Soul & Afro Rarities: An Introduction To ATA Records on Here and Now Recordings) sold out 5 years ago.

Since 2013 label founders and musicians Neil Innes & Pete Williams have been tirelessly fulfilling their shared dream of making the records they weren't hearing. Having spent years working in various bands both players felt the desire to break free of the constraints of working within another band and started on the slow path to creative autonomy by starting to work on the 12 tracks presented on this compilation.While deliberating their next steps they were approached by Here & Now records who licensed the 12 tracks and released them under the titleFunk, Soul & Afro Rarities: An Introduction To ATA Recordsin 2014 as a limited run of 300 copies that sold out within weeks of release.

Now in 2020, celebrating their 5th year of running successfully as a label in their own right, ATA are re-releasing these 12 tracks on a new vinyl pressing under the titleEarly Works: Funk, Soul & Afro Rarities From The Archivewith new artwork and liner notes that detail the labels birth.

The compilation features 12 tracks that include the very first 3 tracks from The Sorcerers that led to their self-titled debut LP & the first proper release on ATA, as well as the first recordings by The Mandatory Eight and The Yorkshire Film and Television Orchestra.

‘Kind of Tango’ is a kaleidoscope of shifting emotions. Wolfgang Haffner’s conception of tango has drama and propulsion in it but also melancholy and longing, with room for frenetic outbursts too. All this is unified by his inimitable groove and feel that commentators have called “an absolute dream,” “magical” and “profoundly relaxed.” Alongside trusted co-protagonists Christopher Dell and Lars Danielsson, he has two guests with him who defy all the clichés associated with tango: guitarist Ulf Wakenius cut his teeth musically in Oscar Peterson’s band and his Swedish heritage always shines through in his playing; Vincent Peirani is one of the leading innovators on the accordion and he finds new ways to define the instrument’s role in the tango. Also, young pianist Simon Oslender makes a first appearance with the band. Jazz and tango find a natural yet constantly shifting equilibrium - to be heard particularly effectively on ‘Close Your Eyes And Listen’ by Astor Piazzolla. In addition to compositions by Haffner himself and by his band members, pieces by the celebrated Argentinian bandoneon player and composer are the focal point of the album. Piazzolla’s innovations with the tango, such as bringing jazz into it, date from around 1955. Haffner and the tango
seem perfectly matched to each other. Tango is no longer a fixed style nowadays, it is above all an attitude to playing and an attitude to life. Wolfgang Haffner’s approach to tango is both authentic and new. It is his and his alone and it is irresistible.

Stigers finds the perfect mood for each tune on Gentleman, with a stellar band - pianist and organist Larry Goldings (James Taylor, Peyroux), bassist David Piltch (k.d. lang), drummer Austin Beede (Alastair Greene Band), trumpeter John “Scrapper” Sneider (Madeleine Peyroux), percussionist Doug Yowell (Duncan Sheik) and cellist Jody Ferber (Esperanza Spalding). Confirmed promo includes ITV1 - Breakfast at Garraway’s, via a live interview via video link plus 30 second acoustic performance, Sunday Express (My Favourite Photo feature), Record Collector (Talking Heads feature), Daily Express (Six Best Albums feature), Financial Times (Inventory feature), Entertainment Focus (Music Features section) plus Gentleman is Track Of The Week on Jazz FM.

Originally released in 1971!

Born in the 19th century, Duke Ellington moved through the 20th either initiating or accompanying every modern phase that traversed the world of jazz. He began appearing at the Cotton Club in 1927, and went on to become no doubt one of that century's major jazz figures, recognized by both his peers and an audience that was immense. From the New Orleans style to the big bands of the swing era, from Swing itself to Bebop, and from the "Cool" to the modern jazz of Coltrane and Mingus, he composed and played with peerless musicians and made the transformation of jazz immortal, all in the course of a career lasting fifty years. His own orchestra made each phase tangible, and he composed a huge number of pieces for them. To those talents he added another: that of revealing, bringing to full bloom and giving new visibility to many, many musicians: Bubber Miley, Johnny Hodges, Cootie Williams, Rex Stewart, Ray Nance, Joe Nanton, Cat Anderson, Billy Strayhorn… The list goes on. The four sides of this album — covering the period 1928-1962 — illustrate not only the path of the composer and the career of the conductor, pianist and bandleader; they also show the evolution of jazz throughout fifty years.

‘AJX500’ celebrates a milestone in Acid Jazz’s catalogue and at the same time harks back to the earlier label collections released in the ‘Totally Wired’ series. This is carried through in both the choice of material - a mix of eight new tracks and one obscure oldie - and the glorious packaging with a sleeve designed by longtime label collaborators The Unknown and printed on a US style Tip On sleeve. The music is what makes this package, nine tracks never before released on vinyl showcasing Acid Jazz 2019 and what the future holds in 2020. There is an exclusive new track by Matt Berry which previews the direction for his long awaited follow up to his Top 40 album ‘TV Themes’. There are exclusive to vinyl remixes of the Brand New Heavies by FOUK, Laville by the Disco Freaks and Corduroy by their drummer Ben Addison. The album opens with two blistering debut releases: the afro-funky psychedelic bootyshake of ‘Theme’ by Lightning Orchestra and newly christened Soul Revivers with their Ethiopiques-meets-Kingston groove on ‘Harder’ which features 87 year old reggae legend Ernest Ranglin’s shimmering guitar hooks. Argentinian mega-producer Kevin Fingier takes time out of the Aggrotones to launch his soul / jazz Project and label friends at Unique in Germany lend the cosmic garage of Suzan Kötcher. The oldies are courtesy of UK producer Graham Dee and the Orchestre Picoby Band D’Abomey’s ‘Dahomy’, the latter with a 1970s funky stew from Benin previously only available on a rare 7” from the Albarika Stores label from Benin. Dee’s Sampaguita is a take on a song that the UKbased producer wrote for a Moacir Santos Blue Note album and is being released for the first time.

Absurd in the Anthropocene - out 31st January 2020 via Gearbox Records - is in line with Dan Rosenboom’s abstract musicianship and virtuous experimentalism but, naturally, pushes the envelope. The record’s inspirations run the gamut from Miles Davis and Ornette Coleman to Frank Zappa, Soundgarden, and Squarepusher, and its title refers to the complicated and often surreal times in which we live. Rosenboom, a musician at the forefront of Los Angeles' ever-thriving creative music scene, boasts an international reputation for boundary-pushing projects and relentless productivity. A trumpet virtuoso equally at home in improvised and classical music, the prolific musician has been featured on stages and festivals all over the world, and has been described as “a phenomenon” by the Los Angeles Times.

Absurd in the Anthropocene is loaded with a an absurd crew of musicians, including producer and keyboard master Jeff Babko, legendary drummers Vinnie Colaiuta, Gary Novak, and Zach Danziger, renowned bassists Jimmy Johnson, Tim Lefebvre and Jerry Watts Jr., Rosenboom’s longtime collaborator Gavin Templeton and jazz icon David Binney on saxophones, guitarists Tim Conley, Alexander Noice, and Jake Vossler, electronics wizard Troy Ziegler, and horn-playing colleagues Brian Walsh, Ryan Dragon, Juliane Gralle, and Javier Gonzalez. 
 “One of the most original, exciting, adventurous artists in LA right now.” Gary Fukushima, LA Weekly

“Rosenboom is a phenomenon.”
Mark Swed, Los Angeles Times “Brilliant.” Chris Phillips, Jazz FM

“Transportative…” Jazziz

Santana’s thirteenth studio album Shangó is named after one of the dominant religions in Latin America and the Caribbean. This is a must own Carlos record reaching number twenty two in Billboard 200 album charts, and the single “Hold On” reached number fifteen in the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 singles chart. Santana is on fire and along with Alex Ligertwood’s soulful vocals they created some fine and versatile songs. The songs are close related to the contemporary pop music, but it also ranges from Latino songs and jazz influential pieces.

Santana gained public attention by appearing at the Woodstock festival in 1969. The Latin influence has always been an important part in their music, although the band also created some blues rock and pop classics. Even after all those years frontman Carlos Santana is still actively performing.

• 180 GRAM AUDIOPHILE VINYL
• INSERT
• FEATURING THE SINGLES “HOLD ON”, “NOWHERE TO RUN” AND “NIGHT HUNTING TIME”

“This January 1968 recorded session pretty much illustrates the dilemma many Jazz men faced at the time: either let themselves be submerged by the waves of Free-Jazz, the avant-garde renewal of the genre or be tempted by the lure of audience recognition and the dollars of the record buying public; if they picked the latter alternative up they’d again be confronted with two options: to cover immediately recognizable Pop hits or to invent something new but equally appealing; Hank Mobley opted ,albeit and thankfully only partially, for
the former and the bait was thus placed at the beginning of each side of the album’s original LP format. This fanciful intro has of course ignored a third possibility which was to simultaneously experiment more than one option while working on a project, and that’s exactly what Mobley and his sextet of hardened musicians did on this date and why this album - rendered in two distinct velocities or levels of
commitment -, is still a very worthy listening experience and deserves a place in any self respecting collection.”

Sidsel Endresen and Bugge Wesseltoft, two artists who cut their own
distinct paths through the Norwegian music scene, had collaborated for many years and had already released two albums as a duo before they began writing and recording the album that, for many listeners, remains the magnum opus of their partnership.
‘Out Here. In There.’ coalesced during a period when both artists had refined their individual musical signatures, but were preparing to launch into new explorations. The album brought them much critical acclaim, a Spellemannprisen (Norwegian Grammy), and garnered a legendary status that has not diminished since. Despite its peripatetic musical nature, it has a fully realised coherence, each track feeling fully connected to every other, more siblings than cousins.
It features “Try”, a song that has taken on a life of its own, appearing on compilations, films and television shows, commercials, and has been given countless remix treatments and cover versions. 2019 sees this album become available on vinyl for the first time since its release.

George Benson's "Give Me The Night" gets a NU Jazzy-Brazilian re-touch under the production umbrella of the Los Charly's boyz: Juan Laya & Jorge Montiel, featuring Jazz Funkster: Xantone Blacq for this uplifting update. As B-Side there are J & J features their debut collaboration with the amazing: Heidi Vogel for a deeper excursion into Latin-Jazz fusions with the track: "Fly Me With You".

CREDITS:
Heidi Vogel - Vocals. Xantone Blacq - Vocals & Keys. Matheus
Nova - Bass. Raphael Delphino - Drums (Fly me with you) & Guitar. Juan Laya - Drums. Eikel Venegas - Trumpet & Trombone. Alejandro Martinez – Congas. Produced by Juan Laya & Jorge Montiel

Electronic / acoustic wonder band KUF deliver a special surprise for their third album: eleven sizzling hot takes on tracks drawn from the Macro label's stellar catalog, as originally crafted by some of today's most respected artists in electronic music. KiNK, Patrick Cowley, Peter Kruder (of K&D), Stefan Goldmann, rRoxymore and more get the treatment. With a nod to the label's previous highly original compilations and mixes from the Macrospective and Vinylism series, Re:Re:Re captures more new ground.

KUF's previous albums presented an astonishing inversion of the typical extended electronic set up, in that they paired a plethora of disembodied, sampled voices with acoustic real time interaction on bass, drums and keys. Re:Re:Re shifts the focus of sampling altogether to scanning entire tracks and compositions which are then reimagined with the band's singular approach. Neither just remixes, nor faithful reproductions, KUF engage in careful sound archaeology. From re-programming key sounds to holistic granular deconstructions, the originals's sound palettes are reproduced to serve as a springboard towards entirely new instalments. The resulting tracks range from intimate ballads to full power dance floor movers, spanning a highly engaging arc of sheer listening pleasure.

The sound world of ‘Kristallen’ relishes the moment when the surfaces and edges of crystals shimmer and cast off unexpected colours. There is a certain stillness that offers space for the imagination to unfold. Magic with fragility.
Nils Landgren and Jan Lundgren have a consistent vision of lyrical chamber jazz which flows gently and naturally. Rather than clamouring for our attention, this is music which reveals its true
beauty the more attentively one listens.

Rare Brazilian spiritual jazz. Reissue for the first time worldwide from the original master tapes. Legendary sessions produced by Amado Maita. Deluxe Numbered Limited Edition with OBI and thick cover. Recorded Live at S. Paulo in 1982 it was originally issued on Amado Maita’s small indie label in the 80's called Poitou.

Featuring one of the best Brazilian Sax Players, the legendary Nestico and his sister composer, piano player Lilu. Nestico joined several Jazz ensembles in São Paulo, having participated in 1977 in the first Jazz festival held at the Municipal Theater, alongside the musicians Samuel (piano), Nilson (bass) and Caram (drums).

He performed several times in São Paulo with Syncro Jazz group. In 1982 released with the ensemble the LP “Syncro Jazz - Live”, along with the musicians Lilu Aguiar (piano), Peter Wooley (bass), Vidal (sax and flute), Dagmar (trumpet) and Ronny Machado ( drums).

In the repertoire, the songs “Pro César”, dedicated to pianist César Camargo Mariano, “Winter know” and “Black Cock”, all by Lilu Aguiar, “For Guzi” (Peter Wooley), “Cruzan” (M. Santamaria) and Revelation (S. Fortune). The LP contains amazing Fender Rhodes solos in a Heavy Modal Spiritual and Bossa Jazz a la Strata-East & Black Jazz Records.

Gowanus Session II was seven years in the planning. Thollem, Nels Cline, and William Parker convened at Peter Karl Studios in Brooklyn on January 3rd, 2012 and recorded two complete albums.

The first was Gowanus Session I, released by Porter Records in April of that year. GS II was put aside to eventually complete the five-album palindromic cycle of trio albums Nels and Thollem ambitiously set out to realize. The albums in between include Radical Empathy with Michael Wimberly (Relative Pitch), Molecular Affinity with Pauline Oliveros (Roaratorio), and Reality and Other Imaginary Places, with Michael Wimberly (ESP-Disk').

William Parker debuted on ESP-Disk' in the mid-'70s on Frank Lowe's classic album Black Beings (ESP3013), with additional material from that session released as The Loweski (ESP4066). He returned to the label this century with Mat Walerian's group Toxic (ESP5011) and in a quartet with Ivo Perelman, Matthew Shipp, and Bobby Kapp (ESP5036), while being highly prolific as a leader, notably with a series of brilliant albums on AUM Fidelity.

Nels Cline has spent decades changing people's ideas about the role of the electric guitar in multiple contexts, ranging from Wilco to Anthony Braxton (think about that!) as well as many projects as a leader, earning a spot on Rolling Stone's Top 100 Guitarists list.

Thollem is a perpetually traveling pianist, keyboardist, composer, improviser, singer-songwriter, activist, author and teacher. He's spent most of his adult life living on the road throughout North America and Europe. His work is ever-changing, evolving and responding to the times and his experiences, both as a soloist and in collaboration with hundreds of artists across idioms and disciplines.

Thollem is known internationally as an acoustic piano player in the free jazz and post-classical worlds, as the lead vocalist for the Italian agit-punk band Tsigoti (ESP4057), and as an electronic keyboardist through a multitude of projects.

Thundercat drops his new album ‘It Is What It Is’ on Brainfeeder
Records. The record, produced by Flying Lotus and Thundercat, features musical contributions from Ty Dolla $ign, Childish Gambino, Lil B, Kamasi Washington, Steve Lacy, Steve Arrington,
BADBADNOTGOOD, Louis Cole and Zack Fox.

A unique voice transcending style and genre: “This album is about
love, loss, life and the ups and downs that come with that,” says
Thundercat. Thundercat has previously worked with the likes of Kendrick Lamar, Pharrell, N.E.R.D., Erykah Badu, Childish Gambino, Mac Miller, Anderson .Paak, Little Simz, BADBADNOTGOOD, Moses Sumney, Kamasi Washington and many more.

For fans of Kendrick Lamar, Childish Gambino, Flying Lotus, Kamasi Washington, BADBADNOTGOOD. Album photography by Eddie Alcazar. CD in softpack. Deluxe 140g picture disc LP housed in a 6mm spined gatefold sleeve with gold foil detail and OBI strip. Includes digital download code.

Deluxe 140g pink clear vinyl LP housed in a 6mm spined gatefold
sleeve with gold foil detail and OBI strip. Includes digital download
code. Red 140g vinyl LP housed in a 3mm spined sleeve with OBI strip. Includes digital download code. Thundercat will play his biggest UK shows to date in April.

Village Of The Sun is the new collaboration between London jazz trailblazers Binker & Moses and Simon Ratcliffe, one-half of legendary UK Electronic pioneers Basement Jaxx Evocative of Ratcliffe’s inspirations such as Alice Coltrane alongside Masters at Work, the track ‘Village Of The Sun’ itself is awash with atmospheric vibes, a future Balearic classic ‘TED’ is enormously catchy, uplifting and feel-good. And classy as you like. Written around an extraordinary chord porgression by Ted Moses from the tune ‘Dreamship’, it compels you to dance with a smile on your face Initial pressing comes in a special edition die-cut sleeve

The sublime Time Capsule remains Weldon Irvine's most fully realized and influential recording. A supremely talented multi-instrumentalist and composer, Irvine had a musical vision that was unerringly soulful, spiritual, and funky. Assembled as a kind of musical scrapbook documenting the thought patterns and belief systems of the early '70s, it nevertheless boasts a surprising vitality and timelessness thanks to luminous funk grooves that anticipate the latter-day emergence of acid jazz. Irvine also rhymes over several tracks, further cementing his influence on successive generations of hip-hop. A profoundly righteous spirituality winds through all eight of Time Capsule's performances, assaying both the affection ("Soul Sisters") and anger ("Watergate") vying for control of post-Woodstock America. Irvine's searing keyboard and piano playing further capture the moment in question, deftly balancing between beatitude and bitterness. For fans of funk, soul and jazz, it doesn’t get much better than this 1973 classic.

a A1. Time Capsule - Electric Piano, Narrator Recitation – Weldon Irvine

Very limited 12" (200 copies worldwide).

In a perfect world one would expect to find the music of Klaus Waldeck in the genre of electronic music. With his new project "The Waldeck Sextet" he leaves this stereotype behind and surprises us with a very pleasant acoustic experiment.

It all began with an analogue recording session in Vienna´s legendary supersense studios.And although it is hardly a perquisite to form a new project for these kind of recording ventures, Waldeck - quite obviously enthused by the idea of this analogue adventure - founded his new project "The Waldeck Sextet". Such was his excitement that he lost track of the number of musicians and thus founded the worlds first sextet that consists of 10 members, including his main vocalist Patrizia Ferrara.

The Brussellians of Commander Spoon interlace their eclectic wealth of influences into an energetic jazz sound, respectfully demolishing walls between jazz, hip hop, rock and electronica.

Louis Armstrong is one of the most important jazz musicians. He belongs to those who transformed the local music scene born in the Southern States of the United States - around New Orleans - into an international language.

It was in the 1920's, in Chicago, that he recorded his first records with His Hot Five and His Hot Seven. His personality and his natural enthusiasm, combined with his talent as a trumpet player and singer, helped him pave his way to success.

He traveled the United States with his orchestra throughout the 1930's and the 1940's, and appeared on television sets from all around the world throughout the 1950's and the 1960's. In five decades, Armstrong's music had evolved into jazz music, then known as a familiar universal language, popular on five continents.

The four sides of this double album revive the history of jazz, from "Muskrat Ramble" to "Hello Dolly".

‘Dark Matter’ is a landmark record, a producer album by a young auteur, threading several thrilling musical traditions into a bold new tapestry: the raw energy of grime and afrobeats and the rolling club rhythms of the London underground, combined with the freewheeling creativity and collaborative spirit of his jazz training. With that mentality in mind, it’s no surprise that his talents have trickled over into fashion, producing original compositions for the Louis Vuitton Foundation x MoMa Archive film (2017) and most recently scoring the Men's Dunhill Paris Fashion shows in both 2018 and 2019 . A double MOBO & Jazz FM Award winner, Boyd’s live and studio collaborations have been as varied as they have been prolific, from touring with Sampha & Kelsey Lu, to drumming on Sons of Kemet’s Mercury-nominated album, to his recent collaboration with South African Gqom king DJ Lag, which made its way onto Beyonce’s official soundtrack for The Lion King. He produced Zara McFarlane 's 2017 full-length, Arise, in its entirety, for Gilles Peterson’s Brownswood label, and released several acclaimed solo projects though his Exodus record label. Boyd has produced original scores for major Paris fashion shows, and with saxophonist Binker Golding, he’s co-leader and co-producer of the ferocious semi-free group Binker and Moses.

Classic 1998 debut album from the drummer best known for his work with Norah Jones, Joni Mitchell and Wayne Shorter. The first of four Fellowship albums to date on Blue Note. Recorded and mixed at The Teatro, Oxnard, California. Produced by Daniel Lanois, best known
for his work with Bob Dylan, Peter Gabriel, Robbie Robertson and U2.
Featuring Melvin Butler (soprano and tenor sax), Myron Walden (alto sax), Jon Cowherd (keys), Dave Easley (pedal steel), Tortoise guitarist Jeff Parker and Christopher Thomas (bass). The album showcases seven slow-burning Blade originals, plus Cowherd’s powerful ‘Lifeline’.

Fine 1973 solo album from the drummer best known for his role in John Coltrane’s Classic Quartet. Elvin’s sixth and penultimate solo album for Blue Note. Featuring Mahavishnu Orchestra maestro Jan Hammer on keyboards, three saxophonists famous for their association with Miles Davis (Dave Liebman, Steve Grossman, George Coleman) plus Pepper Adams (baritone sax), Joe Farrell (tenor and flutes), Thad Jones on flugelhorn, bassist (and another Miles alumnus) Gene Perla and a three-man percussion section. A varied set touching on Latin Jazz and post-bop, showcasing two Elvin compositions (the title track, ‘One’s Native Place’), two by Perla (‘G.G.’, ‘What’s Up? That’s It!’) one by Liebman (‘New Breed’) and a gorgeous take on Tadd Dameron’s ‘Soultrane’. Side one produced by Blue Note co-founder Alfred Lion, side two produced by Dr George Butler.

This album was recorded during Thollem's 2017 residency at Brooklyn-based multi-discipline mecca Pioneer Works. It's the second by Radical Empathy, which combines three uncategorizable improvisors. Michael Wimberly has been astonishing folks since his days in Charles Gayle bands and Steve Coleman & Five Elements in the early '90s, and has gone on become a composer and educator of note. Nels Cline has spent decades changing people's ideas about the role of the electric guitar in multiple contexts, ranging from Wilco to Anthony Braxton (think about that!) as well as many projects as a leader; this is his fourth album in trio with Thollem, and a fifth will follow next year, also on ESP. Some people have given ESP-Disk' flak (and "flak" was not the first word choice here) about putting out Thollem McDonas albums. "He's not in the jazz tradition," they say, and even though their idea of the jazz tradition includes Albert Ayler, we like to think that this album will make their little, closed minds explode.

Late RSD release gets full release. For the ten years leading up to 1972, the James Brown Revue was an outright superfunk freight train, speeding around the world and crushing all competition. This dominance stretched beyond the charts, too – the group was even more dynamic and exciting on stage, a fact that kept them sleepless and on the move, as audiences demanded more. From 1963 to 1971, James Brown had released not one but three albums recorded live at Harlem’s famed Apollo Theater. The first volume of the series is still rightfully revered today as one of the greatest live albums of all time.

But Volumes II (1968) and III (1971 – aka Revolution Of The Mind) were no slackers either, showing James and his incredible band (with talent including “Pee Wee” Ellis, Fred Wesley, John “Jabo” Starks, Clyde Stubblefield, Maceo Parker, Lyn Collins, Bobby Byrd and many more) at the peak of their respective powers each time, playing a litany of JB hits. Because of this, it will always be a mystery as to why Volume IV, which was recorded at the Apollo on September 14, 1972, was shelved.

This is in no small part because the performers and songs heard here are some of the Godfather of Soul’s (and the JBs’) strongest. But shelved it was, full of fire but languishing for decades in the Polydor vaults. Thankfully we can now put that all behind us, with the first-time-ever-on-vinyl release of this incredible concert, from more than four decades ago. One look at the tracklist will make you salivate: from instrumental JBs classics like “Pass the Peas,” “Gimme Some More” and “Hot Pants Road” to James’ own 1972 smash vocal “There It Is,” the assembled group of musical geniuses – including trombonist and bandleader Fred Wesley; saxophonist St. Clair Pinckney; guitarists Hearlon “Cheese” Martin and Jimmy “Chank” Nolan; bassist Fred Thomas; and Brown himself on organ – smash through James’ New New Super Heavy Funk with ridiculous power, control and panache.

Included here, beyond the music, are in-between song introductions and banter, which bring you right into the front row. This live album stands apart because it was conceptualized to showcase James Brown’s favorite players – The JBs – and vocalists, Bobby Byrd and Lyn Collins, who had their own R & B smashes on the People label. And these supreme talents get plenty of space to shine here: Collins’ “Do Your Thing” and “Think (About It)” and Byrd’s “Keep On Doin’ (What You’re Doin’),” alongside “I Know You Got Soul” simply levitate the bandstand. This future classic is a clear reminder that James Brown was as much of a talent scout as he was a more-than-legendary performer.

And while other “Live At The Apollo” releases focused on his own incredible music, here he gives the stage to the musicians that brought his work to life and kept his legend going for decades. Future generations won’t have to wonder why this music was held back for so long, because they will always have this album – and once you hear the first notes, you won’t worry any more either. You will sit back, let some of the greatest musicians of all time blow your mind, and smile for several days straight. So put the needle on the record and let it begin.

Deep Jazz-, Funk – Oneness of Juju’s Debut. Magical, mystical, Afrocentric, progressive words that could be used to describe any number of musical compositions by Sun Ra or his cosmic brothers and sisters, from John to Alice Coltrane, early ‘70s projects on record labels like Detroit’s Tribe or Houston’s Lightin’ or the interests of one Washington, DC native named Jimmy Gray that centered under one, perfect moniker: Black Fire.

Gray spent nearly three decades pushing boundaries as a Black American promoter, distributor and, finally, record label owner. Together with Oneness of Juju’s leader James “Plunky Nkabinde “ Branch, Gray oversaw sixteen releases on Black Fire Records between 1975 and 1996. These are the definitive reissues of five of the label’s key titles; all were lacquered – most directly from master tape - by legendary Los Angeles mastering engineer Bernie Grundman, With this set, Oneness Of Juju and Black Fire’s story burns forth into its fifth decade, its message not tempered, it's sound pure.

It’s cycle, once again, complete. Each release is packaged in a thick, tip-on sleeve and includes a deluxe booklet with extensive notes on the album, the Black Fire collective, and the musical and cultural revolution they created. Limited edition, one time pressing.

Oneness of Juju’s Cosmic Second Album. Featuring Joe Bonner. Magical, mystical, Afrocentric, progressive – words that could be used to describe any number of musical compositions by Sun Ra or his cosmic brothers and sisters, from John to Alice Coltrane, early ‘70s projects on record labels like Detroit’s Tribe or Houston’s Lightin’ or the interests of one Washington, DC native named Jimmy Gray that centered under one, perfect moniker: Black Fire.

Gray spent nearly three decades pushing boundaries as a Black American promoter, distributor and, finally, record label owner. Together with Oneness of Juju’s leader James “Plunky Nkabinde “ Branch, Gray oversaw sixteen releases on Black Fire Records between 1975 and 1996. These are the definitive reissues of five of the label’s key titles; all were lacquered – most directly from master tape - by legendary Los Angeles mastering engineer Bernie Grundman, With this set, Oneness Of Juju and Black Fire’s story burns forth into its fifth decade, its message not tempered, it's sound pure.

It’s cycle, once again, complete. Each release is packaged in a thick, tip-on sleeve and includes a deluxe booklet with extensive notes on the album, the Black Fire collective, and the musical and cultural revolution they created. Limited edition, one time pressing.

This deluxe 2xLP package also contains an extensive booklet by Brian Poust detailing Marks’ story. Download card for WAV files included with 2xLP. These songs, found on reels that Marks kept in his home, colour Marks’ stylistic development from his earliest work for the legendary Tuska label in the late ‘60s, through his more mature releases on smaller regional labels into the late ‘70s.

Marks’ story is that of an unsung soul and funk hero; he was a guitarist, vocalist and songwriter whose phone number was in Al Green’s, Barry White’s and Eddie Kendricks’ rolodexes, but his talents have only been heard in sporadic bursts. He and his music are unknown to the majority, but to an obsessive minority, he is a lightning rod: that singular point at which numerous Southern soul and funk musicians converged and exploded, spreading wondrous music in all directions. Marks died of cancer in May 2006. His first album was our Never Satisfied anthology, released posthumously.

He stands out as a most mysterious talent to originate from Atlanta, a city that birthed no shortage of genius, and Love Is Gone: The Lost Sessions 1969-1977 further makes the case for a reassessment of his talents and his place in the soul and funk canon. Previously unreleased soul and funk from legendary Atlanta guitarist, singer & songwriter Richard Marks, the companion piece to Now-Again’s Never Satisfied anthology.

Robin Renoir lands on Neon Finger with this excellent 7" that many pose as an instant boogie - funk classic! With a clearly 80's sound and with fancy collaborations of Throwbakk, Roxy or Artur Uronen from Beverly Girl. Don't miss it!

Brewerytown Beats proudly presents a special version of “Message” edited by Philly’s own Froz1. This version is not found on The Thompsons’ highly sought after 1975 release I'll Get Over It. The album is licensed direct from producers Eric Ward & Tyrone Broxton. The Philadelphia SOUL album that's rarely if ever been heard.

Nina Simone was an exceptional artist. She was gifted with a precocious talent and she played music at home and in church. Nina originally counted on becoming the first black female classical pianist ; her plans were thwarted and that frustration no doubt permeated almost her entire career. Yet she became a diva capable of combining the jazz world with those of the classics and soul, and among other titles she recorded are some of the most vibrant and moving performances of Wild is the Wind or You Can Have Him, I don’t Want Him.

She was one of the greatest artists of her time, and her fervour and rigorous demands concerning the quality of her music took her to the highest summits, whether in her compositions or in her vocal and piano performances. For all that, she never forgot her condition as a black woman in the America of the Sixties, and her active commitment to defending the rights of the black minority was exemplary - and at times even excessive, for which she was often reproached.

She has left us some of the most beautiful chapters in jazz and soul music, among them the 23 titles that appear in this album.

The New Album From Forward-Thinking Jazz Quartet Led By Bassist Henrik Jensen. Double Bass player and composer Henrik Jensen will release his third album Affinity in March, a collection of incendiary tracks performed by his quartet Followed By Thirteen. Their 2016 album Blackwater received a wide range of complimentary accolades from The Guardian, Evening Standard, London Jazz News and various
other influential critics. Affinity is a whole new proposition, generating an emphatic, melodic sound and lyrical flow in celebration of the Double Bass. Building on the work done by other great bass band leaders like Dave Holland, Charles Mingus and Drew Gress.

Followed By Thirteen is an ensemble of musicians at the top of their game and who deeply respect each others individual merits and sensitively represent each part. They create a disci-plined, measured structure around which Simmons, Tjalve, Ibbetson and Jensen all take turns interpreting the theme of the song. The result is a measured, evening jazz album that has an international feel. Tracks like Chaoyang Park and Darvin transport the listener from a jazz club in Chicago to the reaches of the Far East within minutes. Historically, Followed by Thirteen is a band lead by their heart - their first album Qualia was dedicated to Jensen’s mother who died in the years leading up to the recording.

"Affinity" is no different, the whole album is an earnest celebration of his aunt Jyta Peterson who passed away recently. Within the album Four for a Boy is dedicated to his new-born son with Gentle Giant a dedication to his late friend and esteemed pianist Paolo Losi. Artwork for their new album is created by the talented fine artist Aur lie Freoua, created live during a solo bass performance at the Vortex Jazz Club in September 2019. The resulting piece and methodology has obvious parallels with the work of Wassily Kandinsky and the Bauhaus Movement.