Jazz | Fusion 422 Items

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

This is one of Eddie Harris' great records. The playing is inspired! What a band! Cedar Walton (piano) and Billy Higgins (drums), Lee Morgan's favourite rhythm section. The underrated but popular tenor saxophonist introduces his "Freedom Jazz Dance," which would become a jazz standard after featuring on Miles Davis' album Miles Smiles. Plays one of the earlier versions of "The Shadow of Your Smile," romps on "Love for Sale" and "'S Wonderful," and also performs "Born to Be Blue" and his own "Cryin' Blues." Harris is heard in prime form in a quartet/quintet with pianist Cedar Walton, bassist Ron Carter, drummer Billy Higgins, and part-time trumpeter Ray Codrington. A gem. - Scott Yanow/AMG

Recorded 1965
Engineer – Tom Dowd

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

Clifford Jordan hailed from Chicago, hometown of hard-driving, so-called ‘tough tenorists’ like Gene Ammons and Eddie ‘Lockjaw’ Davis. While Jordan shared their unnerving bravado, his tone is different, an alluring tone, simultaneously rough around the edges and ephemeral. A sought-after sideman, Jordan recorded with stalwarts as Lee Morgan and Max Roach in the late fifties and early sixties, as well as a series of high standard solo albums. Like age matures wine, Jordan’s style ripened in the early seventies, his lines becoming fluent like ripples of lake water. Jordan kept recording and performing steadily until his death in 1993.

Maybe this album, filled with interpretations of such classic tunes as Take This Hammer and Goodnight Irene, is not such a surprise act after all. The preceding year, Jordan had been part of Charles Mingus’ outfit (appearing on the hi-voltage live album Right Now: Live At The Jazz Workshop) Musical gobbler Mingus’ unfazed search for new vistas while retaining an all-embracing sense of the past’s relevance and blend of harmonic finesse with unbridled juke joint tumult surely rubbed off on Jordan.

Da Gray Goose is one of the cases in point. Tasteful harmony over the stop-time theme kicks it into action, strongly plucked bass and fiery drums inspire the soloists, creating an atmosphere of abandon. Lusty shout choruses stoke up the fire as the tune progresses. There are also some, yes, virtuoso banjo parts.

The gloomy folk blues music of Huddie ‘Leadbelly’ Ledbetter, whose life story reads like a combined effort of Shakespeare and James Baldwin, including oppression, hardship, addiction, treachery, murder and prison life, is excellently cast in a jazz frame. But not too jazzy, often the sound of Jordan’s top-notch group is as tough-as-nails as the sound of any one group that enlivened the back alley bars way back when. Jordan’s unpredictable phrasing overcomes the restrictions of the rigid folk blues form.

Craftily uncrafted, These Are My Roots is a spirited album of earnest, raw and ebullient swing.

Recorded on February 1 & 17, 1965 in NYC

Underrated drummer’s 1965 album
His debut solo album and one of only two Blue Note albums as leader (the second emerged in 1997)
Recorded at the Van Gelder Studio on 19th May 1965
Featuring Blue Note legend Joe Henderson on tenor, Steve Kuhn on piano and Steve Swallow on bass
Showcasing three fine La Roca originals (the title track, ‘Candu’, ‘Tears Come From Heaven’), Steve Swallow’s ‘Eiderdown’ and interesting takes on the standards ‘Malaguena’ and ‘Lazy Afternoon’
 Produced by Alfred Lion
Includes a famous Reid Miles cover, plus photography by Francis Wolff and liner notes by Ira Gitler

The drum hero’s classic 1963 album
 Recorded at Van Gelder Studios, Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey, during November and December 1961
The Jazz Messengers’ 11th Blue Note album
Featuring the classic Messengers line-up of Freddie Hubbard (trumpet/flugelhorn), Wayne Shorter (tenor), Curtis Fuller (trombone), Cedar Walton (piano) and Jymie Merritt (bass)
Showcasing three classic Shorter compositions (‘Backstage Sally’, ‘Contemplation’, ‘Reincarnation Blues’) plus Fuller’s ‘Bu’s Delight’, Walton’s ‘Shaky Jake’ and a take on Henry Mancini’s ‘Moon River’
Produced by Blue Note co-founder Alfred Lion
Includes photography by BN co-founder Francis Wolff and liner notes by esteemed writer Leonard Feather

The debut album by a prolific musician, ‘Grant’s First Stand’ is a significant work that set out the Blue Note musician’s highly personal manifesto.

Though Grant’s First Stand was guitarist Grant Green’s maiden release for Blue Note Records it wasn’t his debut recording session for the famous New York jazz label. The St Louis guitarist had, in fact, gone into Rudy Van Gelder’s legendary studio at Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey – where Blue Note did the majority of their recordings from 1959 onwards – on two previous occasions. For some reason, however, the music recorded on two days across October and November 1960 was shelved. It wasn’t until Saturday, 28 January 1961, that Green got to lay down the six tracks that became his debut album for the label.

This release comes on 180g vinyl and was remastered from the original tapes.Be With have raided the KPM archives to re-issue another of our favourites from the KPM 1000 series. They say: A Dramatic Suite Of Themes, Montage, Sequences And Generics. We say: An enormously influential and heavy KPM set of timeless, killer funk breaks from 1972 by the mighty John Cameron. Jazzrock is an aggressive, percussion-heavy album with an energy that leaves jaws on the floor. Breaks and beats for days with electric piano, bass loops, and pounding percussion. Funky jazz with a deep, tough, soundtrack feel. As with all of our KPM re-issues, the audio for The Road Forward comes from the original analogue tapes and has been remastered for vinyl by Be With regular Simon Francis. We’ve taken the same care with the sleeves, handing the reproduction duties over to Richard Robinson, the current custodian of KPM’s brand identity. And don’t worry! Those KPM stickers aren’t stuck directly on the sleeves!

Hardly any other musician has released so little as Hasaan Ibn Ali, born William Henry Langford Jr., in 1931, who died in 1980. Just seven titles in all are his complete output, all of which he composed himself, all of them on the present Atlantic LP, and all recorded in December 1964. The saxophonist Odean Pope, who often practised with him, talks of a second recording session in 1965 for Atlantic, but the recordings were never released because Hasaan was sent to jail shortly afterwards; rumour has it that the tapes were destroyed in a fire – and it might well be that recordings with John Coltrane still exist somewhere or other.
Until then, one should enjoy the Max Roach Trio with Art Davis on the bass to the full. We have here a recording that will astound and fascinate your ears with its originality. A first impression conjures up reminiscences of Cecil Taylor and Herbie Nichols, while Hasaan himself talks of the pianist Elmo Hope as the man who brought him closer to the 'mystery of music'. When asked how the recording session with maestro Max Roach went, Hasaan said: »They scared me to death.«
According to Odean Pope, Hasaan was not an easy person to get on with, and he was convinced of his talent to the point of arrogance. But despite this – or perhaps because of this – one listens spellbound to the 40 minutes on this LP, a legacy and never-fulfilled promise of an extremely talented man. We are indebted to Max Roach, who persuaded the bosses of Atlantic Records to make these recordings. For many, many years they had vanished from the record market, but fortunately they are now available as an audiophile re-release to be listened to and admired.

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.

Expertly utilised in hit series 'Breaking Bad' to soundtrack Walt and Jesse's meth manufacturing, The Peddlers 'On A Clear Day You Can See Forever' is a sumptuous smooth soul journey - full of exquisite organ solos and deep vocal tones.
2019 marks 50 years since it's release and with original copies pushing £40 it's a chance to bag this iconic record at a fraction of the price.
Remastered and reissued on 7 inch with large / dinked centre hole in Epic generic paper sleeve.

Fat Albert Rotunda is the venture into jazz-funk by keyboardist Herbie Hancock. The record is
centered around the music Hancock wrote the Fat Albert cartoon show. It’s one of the records which
appeared in the period between his landmark album Maiden Voyage of 1965 and his 1973 classic
Head Hunters. Fat Albert Rotunda is a unique item in Herbie Hancock’s long and diverse catalog, with
funky tracks like "Fat Mama" and modern jazz-oriented tunes like "Tell Me A Bedtime Story". The
sextet which is backing Hancock consists of some of the most prominent musicians of that time, like
Joe Henderson on tenor sax, Johnny Coles on trumpet and Buster Williams on the bass.
Herbie Hancock is one of the most prolific jazz pianists of the 20th century. A child prodigy, he played
with the greats such as Donald Byrd and Miles Davis. As he was a bit of a geek, he enjoyed gadgets &
buttons and he was one of the first to embrace and master the electric piano, but he always stayed
true to the acoustic sound. In fact, he always bounced back and forth between his electronic and
acoustic sound, touching upon almost every development in R&B, Funk and Jazz while retaining an
original and distinctive voice.

"Comin’ Home Baby" – that’s how the LP begins and that’s what catapulted it right into the charts. Not to one of the top places, but from this time on Herbie Mann was one of the superstars in Atlantic’s collection of jazz musicians. He was known as 'our man with the flute', and the critics in the early Sixties were full of praise for him. He became even more famous, and probably richer, through soundtracks and later on sometimes rather commercialised productions. Well, good for him. 'The Man' serves up jazz pure on this recording, made live at the legendary Village Gate club, which is no wonder considering the rhythm group that includes Ahmad Abdul-Malik and Rudy Collins. The composer of "Comin’ Home Baby", Ben Tucker, also makes an appearance as a guest soloist before the two Gershwin numbers from "Porgy And Bess" offer a wealth of rhythm pure. On the cover text of the LP, Willis Conover, who hosted the Newport Jazz Festival as a sideline (older jazz fans will know his baritone voice from AFN broadcasts), describes in detail the ethnic background of the musicians who come from all over the world – from Romania to Puerto Rico. The three numbers are by no means commonplace. Perhaps a tasty flute cocktail would be a good description. This true rarity from Atlantic’s treasure trove in the early Sixties has long been marked down on the wish list of many fans and at long last it’s available again.

This 1961 set of standards, favoring ballads, is Gene Ammons in his prime. For the most part, this session is tight and structured, keeping Ammons firmly locked in the groove more so than on some of his more wandering dates. His big-as-a-house tone stands center stage in front of a sympathetic piano-bass-drums trio of Richard Wyands, Doug Watkins and J.C. Heard, respectively.

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

For the few people lucky enough to have heard the entire album in the five
decades since its release, the mythical POPERA COSMIC LP is now considered
to be France’s first dedicated psychedelic album and the shrouded blueprint for
the hugely influential Gallic concept album phenomenon that followed – including
SERGE GAINSBOURG’s HISTOIRE DE MELODY NELSON and GÉRARD
MANSET’s LA MORT D’ORION.
Spearheaded by FRANÇOIS WERTHEIMER (songwriter for VANGELIS, BARBARA
and BYG RECORDS), composed with future JODOROWSKY soundtracker
and genius all-rounder GUY SKORNIK, and based on an embryonic concept
co-conspired by a teenage JEAN-MICHEL JARRE, this instantly deleted 1969
recording is a true essential for any outernationalradicalised record collection.
With credentials that mark the birth of the cosmic funk (later disco) that helped
shape the influential sound of France today, this LP also includes the first pressed
instrumentals by members of SPACE ART, some of the best orch rock arrangements
by WILLIAM SHELLER (Lux Aeterna, Eriotissimo) and orchestrator PAUL PIOT
(Jean Rollin), as well as sitar psych benchmarks courtesy of uber legend SERGE
FRANKLIN – all pinned down by the rhythm section that would later be known to
prog aficionados as ALICE.
Subtitled LES ESCLAVES (The Slaves), this street theatre/rock opera (influenced
by the work of Julien Beck’s Living Theatre) now celebrates its 50th birth-day
standing firmly as a sonic tome to the birth of the no-no era (that rebuked
France’syé-yé” hamster wheel) leading directly to the thematic progressive
network of WAKHÉVITCH, MANSET and MAGMA while comprising an inter-Gallic
intergalactic super group from the early annals of France’s pop psych revolution.
Imagine a rock opera where the cast of MISTER FREEDOM perform CLASH OF
THE TITANS at the foot of THE HOLY MOUNTAIN – then pinch yourself...

This is 180g vinyl.

The virtuoso trombonist Albert Mangelsdorff was one of the prominent figures of European Jazz of the 60s – 70s. Eastern influences with a perfect blend of Western culture characterized this album recorded in Frank- furt after the groups Asian tour. “Now Jazz Ramwong” sees the group in its best shape: alto saxophonist Gunther Kronberg, tenor saxophonist Heinz Sauer, bassist Gunter Lenz and drummer Ralf Hubner. A really mind-blowing mix of jazz, folk and Eastern sounds. The album contains “Three Jazz Moods”, a jazz adaptation of Ravi Shankar’s music.

The album Rock 'n Soul was originally released in 1964 by Grammy Award winning Solomon Burke (†2010). 7 tracks ended up in Top 100 Billboard Hits at the time. "If You Need Me" went as high as #2 in the Black Singles Chart. This extraordinary album is not only soulful but a confirmation that Burke is a genius when it comes to writing music and making it happen in a studio!

It's 1964 and the first Berlin Jazz Festival is about to reach its absolute peak: the final concert on the night of Friday, 25th September by Miles Davis. And the European subsidiary of Columbia Records, CBS, couldn’t wait to release this legendary event on LP.
The new quintet, for the first time with Wayne Shorter on the tenor sax (and not yet as composer), thrilled and roused the audience in the Philharmonie from the first minute to the very end. The classics "Miles(tones)", "So What" and "Walkin’" were performed at an astonishingly fast pace, the ballads were tender and dreamy. Such a magical atmosphere was rarely evoked at later concerts, which was probably due to the excellent acoustics of the large concert hall. The audience were also seated behind the stage, so Miles couldn't turn his back provokingly on people; sometimes he just squatted on the stage. However, this didn’t prevent him from performing his solos lyrically and tenderly, most of them finely nuanced, soft and gentle, yet audible right into the furthest corner. The rhythmic structure created by the young drummer Anthony Williams provided the necessary excitement.
Miles at the top of his form, an enthusiastic audience, impressive acoustics and, to top it all, excellent recording technology and a fantastic pressing on virgin vinyl - what more does a jazz fan want? Now’s the time to dig out your credit card!

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.