Jazz | Fusion Vinyl 270 Items

180 Gram 45RPM Audiophile Vinyl, Numbered Limited-Edition

180g 2LP 45rpm

180 Gram Audiophile Vinyl, limited & numbered!

Dolphy had left his native California and come east as part of Chico Hamilton's group, settling in New York in 1960 and becoming part of Charles Mingus's group. This first recording as a leader brought comparisons with Ornette Coleman but the two were really parallel figures in the then-emerging avant-garde. Dolphy did not eschew 'changes', as Coleman did, but he used them in new ways. This LP was significant not only for his alto saxophone but introduced his individual approach to the flute and, particularly, the bass clarinet.

In 1960, the free jazz pioneered by Ornette Coleman, Cecil Taylor, Horace Tapscott and a very few others was rejected by many musicians and most listeners. For the visionary saxophonist, clarinetist and flutist Eric Dolphy, it was simply new music fed by the mainstream, a logical extension of the jazz tradition. In "Far Cry" without leaving form behind, he incorporated the spirit of adventure and abandon with which free jazz at its best infused freshness into jazz. Recording with a pianoless quartet that used Ron Carter’s cello as the other melody instrument, Dolphy worked from chord patterns developed within structures that depart from ordinary 32-bar jazz and popular song forms. He used 30-bar, 35-bar and 18-bar structures, but he also observed standard practice with 12-bar blues, “Serene”. Dolphy’s speech-like improvisations and Carter’s bowed or plucked cello solos soar over the impeccable and responsive accompaniments of bassist George Duvivier and drummer Roy Haynes.

One night during a one-time, two-week engagement at the Five Spot produced enough music of lasting merit for three albums. When Rudy Van Gelder took his portable equipment down to the fabled Cooper Square jazz club on July 16, 1961, he captured the interaction of an extraordinary quintet.
Eric Dolphy, Booker Little, Mal Waldron, Richard Davis and Ed Blackwell had formed a cooperative group and, if LIttle had not died in October 1961, there is no doubt that it would have been a potent force in the music of the 1960s and beyond. Dolphy himself died in June 1964, after establishing himself as one of the important contemporary reedmen. Here his alto saxophone and bass clarinet and Little’s trumpet explore three originals: "The Prophet" by Dolphy, "Bee Vamp" by Little, and "Fire Waltz" by Waldron. It’s time caught in a bottle — music for the ages.

From the time Coleman Hawkins firmly established the tenor saxophone on the jazz map, it has been one of the most potent forces in the music, its best practitioners able to raise the roof with a jumping blues, soothe the savage beast with a tender love ballad, and do just about anything in between. At the time of this recording (1961), Jimmy Forrest, the St. Louis-born reedman, was a veteran of the Fate Marable, Jay McShann, Andy Kirk, and Duke Ellington bands. Later in his career he starred with Count Basie. Here he leads a quartet of teammates from the combo of 'Sweets' Edison, including the young Austrian pianist Joe Zawinul, through a gamut of the aforementioned moods from "Crash Program" to the caressing "That's All", with a few tips of the cap to Ben Webster along the way. With Joe Zawinul, Tommy Potter and Clarence Johnston.

Intensity marked everything that Booker Ervin played. In his harmonic concept, slashing attack, and broad Texas sound, Ervin demanded attention and constantly built improvisations of searing drama and epic sweep. His primary legacy is a series of albums recorded for Prestige in the 1960s, of which this was his first, a riveting quintet recital where the alto saxophone of Frank Strozier supplies an urgent complement and the rhythm section is piloted by Horace Parlan, Ervin’s longtime compatriot from their days together in the Charles Mingus Jazz Workshop and in a cooperative quartet that worked at "Minton’s Playhouse". In addition to four inspiring originals by Ervin and drummer Walter Perkins, the session features an eloquent reading of Fats Waller’s immortal "Black And Blue" and an exploration of the show tune "Just in Time". Both the latter and "No Land’s Man" are included in two versions, the shorter of which were cut for release as a 45rpm single.

She was the sultry film starlet-turned-torch singer-come-TV actress whose dusky alto captivated a generation. Julie London was 'discovered' while running a department store elevator in Hollywood.
Just three years earlier the bountiful 15 year old, born Julie Peck to her parents, a song-and-dance duo of the vaudeville era, was singing on her parents' radio show. When she started working in the movies in the 1940s, she changed her name to London. During the course of a celebrated career in acting and music, she made more than 30 albums.
The sultry-voiced actress, who was once married to "Dragnet" producer-star Jack Webb, had a hit record with the 1950s single "Cry Me a River". The single debuted in 1955, sold three million copies and remained in demand into the 1960s.
Analogue Productions has brought back Julie London sings Latin In A Satin Mood in damatic, deserving fashion. Remastered by Kevin Gray at Cohearent Audio, and plated and pressed on 200-gram vinyl at Quality Record Pressings, the crispness and vibrancy of this recording is spectacular.
Exotic and Latin albums were big deals in the 1950s and early '60s, and singers as diverse as Dean Martin, Lena Horne, and Peggy Lee were recording with castanets and bongo drums. Like Peggy Lee, London combines a restrained vocal approach with jazz phrasing and a cool attitude with icy sex appeal on this album of relaxing Latin standards. Julie does look beautiful on the cover, and the backup male 'mariachi-esque' serenade adds to the romantic ambiance.
And as to the cover, expect only top-notch reproduction for our Analogue Productions reissue. Originally a single LP jacket, we've upgraded to a gatefold incorporating more original photographs provided by Universal Music.
Describing her smoky vocal style, London once said, »It's only a thimbleful of a voice, and I have to use it close to a microphone. But it is a kind of over-smoked voice, and it automatically sounds intimate.« A style inimitable, in our estimation.

Here is one of the musical giants of the 20th century, poised on the precipice of greatness. Between the spring of 1957 and the winter of 1958, during which time "Lush Life" was recorded, the music of tenor saxophonist John Coltrane (1926-1967) was developing in giant steps, thanks in great part to a six-month 1957 stint with Thelonious Monk that had much to do with sharpening Coltrane’s harmonic conception and torrential attack.
"Lush Life" contains Coltrane’s first recordings as sole leader, his initial date fronting a pianoless trio, and one of his first extended readings of a ballad, Billy Strayhorn’s resplendent title track. We also hear him at the helm of a quartet and quintet, featuring pianist Red Garland, with trumpeter Donald Byrd, bassist Paul Chambers and drummer Louis Hayes added to “Lush Life”. Coltrane handles the tune’s delicate complexities with infinite style and finesse.
Coltrane and jazz would never be the same.

Pressed at Pallas in Germany

e-mastering by Ray Staff at Air Mastering, Lyndhurst Hall, London



'Basie at Birdland' is a 1961 live album featuring Count Basie and his famed orchestra playing at Birdland in New York City. Recorded on June 27-28th of 1961, and released just one month later in July of that year, 'Basie at Birdland' proved once again that Count Basie was one of the world's best players, band leaders, and flag bearers of Jazz. Birdland, the self-proclaimed, 'Jazz Corner of the World' provides a raucous, lively backdrop to the band's soulful Kansas City style Jazz, on tunes like, 'Blue Backstage', and 'Good Time Blues' alongside their harder hitting, big band bop. 'Basie at Birdland' features the Count at the height of his prowess, and he and his band's fervent, swinging performance cannot be missed - it's perfect for novices and aficionados alike.



This is a jaw-dropping recording of Basie's band in 1961. The band is so tight and swings so hard it sounds at times as if one is listening to a Wurlitzer organ. There simply was no band that swung as hard as Basie's - at least not as recorded on this live date. Amazing.



Simply the best live recording of a big band ever!

A timeless piano jazz classic: Bill Evans’ first-ever performance at a concert hall in New York City. Featuring the sensitive accompaniment of Chuck Israels on bass and Arnold Wise on drums. Includes a thirteen-minute solo suite dedicated to the memory of Bill’s father who had only recently passed at the time of the recording.

Verve Acoustic Sounds Series: Stereo, mastered fully analogue from the original tapes by Ryan K. Smith at Sterling Sound, QPR pressing (180 g), firm tip-on gatefold (Stoughton Printing), padded inner sleeve.

24 Jahre jung war der Trompeter Carmell Jones, als er 1960 von seiner Geburtsstadt Kansas City nach Los Angeles ging. Und schon kurz nach seiner Ankunft erhielt der vielversprechende Youngster, den manche damals mit Clifford Brown verglichen, dort einen Plattenvertrag bei Pacific Jazz. 1961 konnte er für das Label sein phänomenales Debütalbum “The Remarkable Carmell Jones” aufnehmen. Im Zusammenspiel mit Tenorsaxophonist Harold Land, Pianist Frank Strazzeri, Bassist Gary Peacock und Schlagzeuger Leon Pettis präsentierte er auf dem Album eine hochinteressante Mischung aus Cool Jazz und Hardbop.

BLUE NOTE TONE POET EDITION: Stereo, produziert von Joe Harley, komplett analog von Kevin Gray von den Originalbändern gemastert, RTI-Pressung (180g), stabiles Tip-on-Gatefold, wattierte Innenhülle.

The album "Night Lights" by American jazz saxophonist Gerry Mulligan was released in 1963, at the height of the bossa nova boom of the early 1960s. Laid-back rhythms and lyrical compositions leave room for improvisations and charming arrangements of signature solos by his fellow musicians - in addition to three original compositions, there are relaxed versions of Chopin's "Prelude in E Minor" and the Brazilian anthem "Morning of the Carnival" from Luiz Bonfa's "Black Orpheus".



Verve Acoustic Sounds Series: mastered fully analogue from the original tapes by Ryan K. Smith at Sterling Sound, QPR pressing (180 g), firm tip-on gatefold (Stoughton Printing), padded inner sleeve, Gatefold Sleeve.

"Silver’s Serenade" was the last album Horace Silver made with his celebrated Quintet with Blue Mitchell, Junior Cook, Gene Taylor and Roy Brooks. These five Silver tunes epitomize his compositional style: captivating melodies, sophisticated harmonies and intricate rhythms with an unerring sense of swing.



BLUE NOTE TONE POET EDITION: Stereo, produced by Joe Harley, mastered by Kevin Gray from the original analogue master tapes, pressed on 180g vinyl at RTI, and packaged in a deluxe tip-on jacket.

"Easterly Winds"—the second of three Blue Note albums Jack Wilson recorded for Blue Note in the late-1960s—found the pianist at the helm of a first-rate hard bop sextet with Lee Morgan on trumpet, Garnett Brown on trombone, Jackie McLean on alto saxophone, Bob Cranshaw on bass, and Billy Higgins on drums.



BLUE NOTE TONE POET EDITION: Stereo, produced by Joe Harley, mastered by Kevin Gray from the original analogue master tapes, pressed on 180g vinyl at RTI, and packaged in a deluxe gatefold tip-on jacket.

Donald Byrd’s 1967 album Slow Drag was one of the last pure hard bop records the trumpeter would make before his music began evolving towards fusion. Byrd flies high on this gratifying set featuring alto saxophonist Sonny Red, pianist Cedar Walton, bassist Walter Booker & drummer Billy Higgins.



BLUE NOTE TONE POET EDITION: Stereo, produced by Joe Harley, mastered by Kevin Gray from the original analogue master tapes, pressed on 180g vinyl at RTI, packaged in a deluxe gatefold tip-on jacket.

Vibraphonist Bobby Hutcherson’s 1966 album Stick-Up! found him in the company of a new band line-up with Joe Henderson, McCoy Tyner, Herbie Lewis, and Billy Higgins. The quintet covers a vast expanse of post-bop territory on five Hutcherson originals plus Ornette Coleman’s “Una Muy Bonita.”

This stereo Tone Poet Vinyl Edition was produced by Joe Harley, mastered by Kevin Gray from the original analog master tapes, pressed on 180g vinyl at RTI, and packaged in a deluxe gatefold tip-on jacket.



Bobby Hutcherson (vibraphone); Joe Henderson (tenor saxophone); McCoy Tyner (piano); Herbie Lewis (bass); Billy Higgins (drums)

In 1963, tenor saxophonist Harold Vick made his sole album as a leader for Blue Note, the underrated soul jazz gem „Steppin’ Out“. The record finds its groove from the first downbeat and stays firmly in the pocket throughout this set featuring Blue Mitchell, Grant Green, John Patton, and Ben Dixon.



Blue Note Tone Poet Edition: Stereo, produced by Joe Harley, mastered by Kevin Gray from the original analogue master tapes, pressed on 180g vinyl at RTI, packaged in a deluxe gatefold tip-on jacket



Harold Vick (tenor saxophone); Big John Patton (organ);

Grant Green (guitar); Ben Dixon (drums); Blue Mitchell (trumpet)

180g audiophile pressing.

Jorge López Ruiz is one of most versatile of musical talents to emerge from Argentina. As a bass player, composer, performer and arranger he has worked across many genres including jazz, pop as well as stage productions and feature films. The "B.A. Jazz" album has been a rarity for years and original pressings attract huge amounts from collectors. It's rarity is matched by the fantastic music contained with its grooves. It's a genuinely important record in the development of jazz in South America.

This 1967 set, recorded live at Boston’s Jazz Workshop, showcases virtuoso guitarist Szabó—a veteran of Chico Hamilton’s and Charles Lloyd’s bands—at the top of his game on a diverse program featuring standards (“What Is This Thing Called Love”) and pop hits (“The Beat Goes On”) as well as the original and psychedelic-tinged jam, “Space.”



Verve BY Request Series: remastered, audiophile-quality 180-gram vinyl from Third Man Pressing/Detroit, gatefold sleeve.

Four-and-a-half decades after the event, saxophonist Charles Lloyd's "Love-In", recorded live at San Francisco's Fillmore Auditorium in 1967, the counterculture's West Coast music hub, endures as much as an archaeological artifact as a musical document. From sleeve designer Stanislaw Zagorski's treatment of Rolling Stone photographer Jim Marshall's cover shot, through the album title and some of the track titles ("Tribal Dance", "Temple Bells"), and the inclusion of John Lennon and Paul McCartney's "Here There And Everywhere", "Love-In's" semiology reeks of the acid-drenched zeitgeist of the mid 1960s, a time when creative music flourished, and rock fans were prepared to embrace jazz, provided the musicians did not come on like their parents: juicers dressed in sharp suits exuding cynicism.
It is likely that more joints were rolled on "Love-In's" cover than that of any other jazz LP of the era, with the possible exception of saxophonists John Coltrane's "A Love Supreme" (Impulse!, 1965) and Pharoah Sanders's "Tauhid" (Impulse!, 1967). Chet Helms, a key mover and shaker in the West Coast counterculture, spoke for many when he hailed the Lloyd quartet as »the first psychedelic jazz group«.
It is to Lloyd's credit that, at least in the early stages of his adoption by the counterculture, he resisted dumbing down his music. The adoption stemmed from Lloyd's espoused attitude to society, his media savvy, his sartorial style and his sheer nerve in playing jazz in the temples of rock culture. He took the quartet into the Fillmore West three years before trumpeter Miles Davis took his into the Fillmore East.
So "Love-In" comes with a load of baggage, some of it less than fragrant. But as 45 minutes of music, it still has legs. Lloyd's vocalized tenor (and flute on two tracks) has Coltrane-derived muscle; the young Jarrett's lyrical and funky solos, particularly on his 07:55 showcase, the gospel-ish "Sunday Morning", his two featured originals ("Sunday Morning" and the soul jazz-ish "Is It Really the Same?"), and his playing the strings of the piano directly with his hands, all remain compelling; McClure and DeJohnette are solid and inventive.

The first studio date of the Charles Lloyd Quartet, with Keith Jarrett, Cecil McBee, and Jack DeJohnette, was recorded and released just a few days before the band took both the European and American festival circuits by storm. First came Europe, which was just getting the disc as the band was tearing up its stages. While the live dates are now the stuff of legend, it's easy to overlook the recordings, but to do so would be a mistake. "Dream Weaver" is a fully realized project by a band -- a real band -- in which each member has a unique part of the whole to contribute. Jarrett's unusual piano style fits musically with Lloyd's lyricism in a way that it shouldn't. Jarrett was even then an iconoclast, playing harmonic figures from the inside out and relying on counterpoint to create new spaces, not fill them in. (Just listen to "Autumn Sequence", where his solos and his backing harmonics are equally strident and inventive as Lloyd's Eastern explorations of mood and mode.) And then there's the rhythm section of McBee and DeJohnette, whose modal inventions on the intervals make the "Dream Weaver" suite an exercise in open time, allowing all players to wander around inside it and take what they want out. The set closes with a group party jam on "Sombrero Sam", with Lloyd and Jarrett trading eights on a Cuban variation on a fantasia. There were no records like this one by new groups in 1966.

There is nothing hurried about this disc. That said, the music is focused and will stretch your mind. Lewis employed masterful melodic improvisers here: Paul Gonsalves, Eric Dolphy, Jim Hall among others. Listen to "Body And Soul" as it builds powerfully and the soloists explore every possible melodic theme, where the quiet power of these master musicians is almost too much to take. Listen to "I Remember Clifford" where the players are essentially the MJQ with Jim Hall replacing Milt Jackson. This set swings, but oh-so-elegantly. Just like Mr. Lewis.
S.C.Berry
Whether you're an old-time jazz afficionado or new to the genre, this album is essential. In my opinion, Lewis' lovely solo on "Body & Soul" makes his version virtually definitive - 15 minutes of bliss. The rest of the album, particularly "Afternoon In Paris", is at the same level. "Wonderful" is the perfect title for this record.
E Barrios

Recording: July and September 1960
Production: Nesuhi Ertegun & Tom Dowd

"Space Flight" was the debut recording by the mysterious organist Sam Lazar, who disappeared from the music scene after just a few recordings in the 1960s. Issued on Argo in 1960, it features guitar wizard Grant Green—on only his second recording—as well as Chicago blues legend Willie Dixon on bass.



Verve BY Request Series: remastered, audiophile-quality 180-gram vinyl from Third Man Pressing/Detroit, Single Sleeve

Tracklisting: Space Flight (1960)

Organist Gloria Coleman discovered drummer Pola Roberts and formed a female band with her. In 1963, the "Soul Sisters", joined by guitarist Grant Green and Leo Wright on saxophone recorded this satisfying and soulful album, unique in the Impulse catalog. Produced by Bob Thiele and recorded by Rudy Van Gelder.



Verve BY Request Series: remastered, audiophile-quality 180-gram vinyl from Third Man Pressing/Detroit, Single Sleeve.

Formed by Kenny Clarke and Francy Boland, the Clarke-Boland Sextett, with the participation of numerous musicians from both Europe and the United States, made significant contributions to the development of jazz in Europe. At the core of this ensemble, the powerhouse sextet consisting of Kenny Clarke, Francy Boland, Sahib Shihab, Jimmy Woode, Joe Harris, and Sadi came together to record the album "Music For The Small Hours" in 1967, and it is now set to be reissued with an obi.

This album spans a wide range of styles, from standards like Burt Bacharach's "Wives & Lovers" to Brazilian and Afro-Cuban influences such as Luiz Bonfá's "Ebony Samba" and Dizzy Gillespie's "Tin Tin Deo." Additionally, it features original compositions like Shihab's "Please, Don't Leave," where he takes on vocal duties. The entire recording exudes a sophisticated and relaxed mood, showcasing the utmost skill of this formidable sextet. "Music For The Small Hours" is a masterpiece that deserves a place in the history of European jazz, boasting the ultimate level of refinement.

1968’s Love Cry mixes Albert Ayler’s free jazz with a catchy combination of nursery rhythms and brass band marches, resulting in a peak example of experimental jazz of the period. This was Ayler’s last recording with his brother, Donald, who keeps the pace fiery along with the rhythm section of bassist Alan Silva and drummer Milford Graves, and harpsichordist Call Cobbs.



Verve BY Request Series: remastered, audiophile-quality 180-gram vinyl from Third Man Pressing/Detroit, gatefold sleeve.

Why should you buy this LP? 1. Because of its super sound? Of course! 2. Because Paul Desmond and Jim Hall are playing? Naturally! 3. For "Easy Living"? Surely one of the best numbers in one of the most multifaceted versions! 4. Because you missed out on the first release in 1966? Well, don’t make the same mistake in 2018!
Not everyone wants to purchase all Victor recordings by Paul Desmond and Jim Hall with umpteen alternate takes in a voluminous CD Box, to listen to it all, and to find it just wonderful to show off on the record shelf. The eight numbers on "Easy Living" constitute the height of Desmond’s career anyway after he had at last managed to take his leave from Dave Brubeck’s group. And the change from purely chordal playing and single notes from Jim Hall is more airy and more inspiring than the meaty piano clusters of his former boss. And don’t forget either that half of the Modern Jazz Quartet, namely the bassist Percy Heath and the drummer Connie Kay, deliver an exquisite skeletal structure over which the musicians can improvise brilliantly.
LPs are, and remain, unbeatable, both as regards sound and feel. And happily they are also a safe investment – maybe not all, but "Easy Living" with Paul Desmond and Jim Hall most definitely!

This Speakers Corner LP was remastered using pure analogue components only, from the master tapes through to the cutting head. More information under www.pure-analogue.com.
All royalties and mechanical rights have been paid.

Recording: June 1963, July and September 1964, June 1965 at RCA Studio, New York City
Production: George Avakian

After his great success as a new discovery through playing on tour and in the studio with Art Blakey’s creative and inspirational group, the Jazz Messengers, Freddie Hubbard made a dozen LPs over 16 years for Blue Note and Impulse under his own direction.
It was no wonder then that a big record company made him a lucrative offer in autumn 1966. All in all, Atlantic Records released six LPs and the very first, entitled "Backlash", is still until today the best of the bunch.
Three numbers by Freddie Hubbard, one by Bob Cunningham, and two by friends, provide the basis for a successful transition between hard bop and soul beat. Hubbard made high demands on his fellow musicians James Spaulding, Albert Dailey and especially the bass player Bob Cunningham and the drummer Ray Appleton because they had to cope with the ever-changing beat. Right from the very first note, it is obvious that Freddie Hubbard had Fats Navarro and Clifford Brown in his heart and fingers. All the titles are excellent. Of special note, however, is "Little Sunflower". The sound colouring of the flute harmonizes particularly well with Hubbard’s brass, and Ray Barretto’s contribution is more than mere decoration. You’re certainly on the right track with this LP, no matter whether it’s the beginning of a Freddie Hubbard collection or a further contribution to a large jazz collection.

This Speakers Corner LP was remastered using pure analogue components only, from the master tapes through to the cutting head. All royalties and mechanical rights have been paid.

Recording: 1967 by Tom Dowd, Phil Jehle and Adrian Barber
Production: Arif Mardin

It was a clever move by George Avakian, producer at Atlantic Records, to record live the Charles Lloyd Quartet during their appearance in Monterey, and to release the LP under the title "Forest Flower". Although the hippy flower-power movement tended towards a rather different musical genre at the end of the Sixties, they were blown away by this music. The four artists attracted masses of people and ensured that every seat was taken and all standing room filled at jazz festivals such as Newport, Molde (Norway), Antibes (France) and the Fillmore East and West. The super group also appeared in Monterey, 120 Km south of San Francisco, the centre of the hippy movement, on 18 September 1966.
On the LP we have the almost 18-minute-long title piece and the standard work "East Of The Sun", which were recorded at the festival. The disc is complemented by a Keith Jarrett composition and one by Cecil McBee, both of which were recorded in the studio ten days before the festival.
Of particular note is the rich interplay, the energy that is palpable throughout, the perfect harmony in each and every change of mood, and the intensity. Even 50 years later, it is quite clear that Charles Lloyd managed to break down the barriers between pop and jazz.
Charles Lloyd is committed to this objective to this very day! All four musicians are still active, although they no longer appear together as a group. Such a special treat for the ears is offered by this newly mastered disc only.

Oscar Peterson's Frank Sinatra tribute features his trio with bassist Ray Brown & drummer Ed Thigpen. The renditions are all under four minutes and are highlighted by "Come Dance with Me," "Just in Time," "I Get a Kick Out of You," and "How About You?" This is one of Oscar Peterson's most essential dates—swinging and enjoyable.

VERVE BY REQUEST SERIES: remastered, audiophile-quality 180-gram vinyl from Third Man Pressing/Detroit, Single Sleeve

Reissue as a part of the Start Your Year Off Right Kampagne von Warner. The final album recorded by Coltrane under his own supervision for Atlantic Records, Ole Coltrane features several of the players from Africa/Brass, which was recorded two days earlier, and is widely considered one of the premiere statements of Avant Garde jazz as well as the moment that Coltrane moved from an accessible artist to a more daring and complicated one. (Original RD: November 1961)

The World Of Cecil Taylor is the fifth studio album by radical, free jazz pianist pioneer, Cecil Taylor.Taylor's music is often described as ahead of its time. And it's easy to imagine what the reaction of the average jazz fan was to this 1961 recording. It is arguably a tremendous departure from what jazz was widely considered to be at the time. At once a modern approach to standard material and a genre pushing exploration, it is a document of an artist pushing the boundaries of what jazz meant and where it was capable of going. This brand new reissue is available on CD and LP (180g) and has been remastered from the original Candid Records master tapes by Bernie Grundman.

We Are Busy Bodies is proud to announce the first official reissue of 'Zodiac' by brilliant French tenor saxophonist, Barney Wilen. Originally released on the Disques Vogue label in 1966, the album has been restored and remastered from Barney Wilen's personal copy of the album. The album was recorded a few years after performing on albums and European tours with Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers and Miles Davis. The album is an exploration of free jazz, dedicated to the signs of the zodiac. Wilen and his friend, photographer Jean Larivière worked together to create the photos and artwork for his album, Zodiac. The intention at the time was to also create a film with a storyline and characters developed by Jean. Unfortunately, the concept was never fully realized at the time,. Sketches, photos and further context are included in the accompanying album insert.

The first and best out of just two collaborative albums by organist Jimmy Smith and guitarist Wes Montgomery, Jimmy & Wes: The Dynamic Duo was recorded in 1966 and features arrangements by Oliver Nelson. It is frequently listed among Jimmy Smith's best albums. The duo's follow-up record, Further Adventures of Jimmy and Wes, was taped during the same sessions and released in 1968. Al/Music critic Richard S. Ginell gave The Dynamic Duo the maximum * * * * * rating, stating that "Creed Taylor matched two of his most famous artists, Wes Montgomery and Jimmy Smith, on this session (Montgomery's last for Verve), and the results are incendiary- a near-ideal meeting of yin a.nd yang. Smith comes at your throat with his big attacks and blues runs while Montgomery responds with rounder, smoother octaves and single notes that still convey much heat. They are an amazing pair."