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Last chance, last repress.

Sault - 5 is the debut album by the mysterious collective Sault, released in May 2019. It was the first in a series of albums that would establish the group's signature blend of genres, including funk, soul, R&B, post-punk, Afrobeat, and electronic influences. The album received critical acclaim for its fresh sound, combining socially conscious themes with infectious grooves and rhythms.

The album features minimalist yet impactful production, with prominent basslines, funky guitar riffs, and layered vocal harmonies. The vocals are often delivered with a cool, detached style, which contrasts with the emotional and sometimes politically charged lyrics. Themes of identity, love, power dynamics, and the Black experience are present throughout the album.

Sault's 5 also stands out for its stripped-down approach to instrumentation, emphasizing rhythm over complexity, and allowing space for the vocals to shine. The tracks have a raw, DIY aesthetic, reminiscent of post-punk and underground soul movements, yet they feel timeless and modern.

Key Tracks:
“Up All Night” – One of the most well-known songs from the album, it’s a funky, high-energy track with danceable grooves and infectious hooks.
“Don’t Waste My Time” – A song that encapsulates the band’s ability to blend catchy melodies with a gritty, almost industrial sound.
“Why Why Why Why Why” – This track combines soulful vocals with a driving rhythm and contemplative lyrics about the struggles of life.
“Let Me Go” – A standout song about freedom and independence, with minimalist production that places focus on the emotional delivery of the vocals.
Mystery Around Sault: At the time of this release, very little was known about the members of Sault, which only added to the intrigue. The group has kept a low profile, eschewing traditional promotion and rarely giving interviews or detailed credits for their music. It’s widely believed that the producer Inflo is a central figure in the collective, with vocal contributions from artists like Cleo Sol and Kid Sister, though these have not always been officially confirmed.

Sault - 5 marks the beginning of the collective’s prolific output, which would continue to evolve with subsequent albums like 7 (2019), Untitled (Black Is) (2020), and more.

Sault - 7 is the second album by the enigmatic collective Sault, released in September 2019, just a few months after their debut 5. Like its predecessor, 7 builds on the group's distinctive fusion of funk, soul, Afrobeat, R&B, post-punk, and electronic music. The album continues to explore socially conscious themes, especially around the Black experience, empowerment, and resilience, all while maintaining a danceable and groove-driven sound.

Sault - 7 has a slightly darker and more introspective tone than 5, though it retains the infectious rhythms and minimalist production that define the group's sound. The album feels more cohesive, with stronger thematic continuity across the tracks. It deals with themes of love, loss, self-empowerment, and societal struggles. The music is often underpinned by hypnotic basslines, percussion-heavy grooves, and layered vocals, combining the experimental with the accessible.

Key Tracks:
"Over" – A standout track with a raw, pulsating rhythm and a sense of emotional urgency. The vocals convey a sense of heartbreak and frustration, paired with a minimal but powerful instrumental.
"No Bullshit" – This song blends funk and soul with a defiant message, urging listeners to cut through dishonesty and focus on truth and realness.
"Friends" – A soulful, almost melancholic reflection on relationships, with stripped-down instrumentation that lets the emotive vocals shine.
"Living in America" – One of the more overtly political tracks, it addresses racial injustice and the realities of systemic oppression, a theme that becomes more pronounced in Sault's later work.
"Feel So Good" – With its infectious groove and danceable rhythm, this track channels optimism and joy, bringing a sense of release and celebration despite the heavier topics covered in other songs.
Mystery and Collective Approach: Much like with their debut 5, Sault continued to maintain a low profile with 7, avoiding typical promotional strategies or revealing much about their identities. Inflo is believed to be the primary producer, with artists like Cleo Sol and Kid Sister likely contributing vocals, though the group's collaborative nature makes it difficult to pin down exact credits. This mystery only adds to their allure, allowing the music to stand front and center.

The release of 7 so soon after 5 demonstrated the collective's prolific creativity, establishing a pattern of frequent and impactful releases that challenge genre conventions while maintaining a strong social and cultural consciousness.

Sault - 7 was well-received by critics, who praised the album for its innovative sound, emotional depth, and powerful messages. It solidified Sault as a major force in contemporary music, blending the political with the personal in a way that feels both timeless and urgent.

The Three Sounds were one of the most prolific Blue Note acts. Led by pianist Gene Harris, the trio’s sound had evolved by 1970 with a new line-up featuring bassist Henry Franklin and drummer Carl Burnett. The blues and gospel roots were still there but the rhythm had a funkier edge as heard on the rousing live recording “Live at the ‘It Club’ “. This Blue Note Classic Vinyl Edition is stereo, all-analog, mastered by Kevin Gray from the original master tapes, and pressed on 180g vinyl at Optimal.

5lp+12"+7".

Souffle Continu records presents Byard Lancaster – The Complete Palm Recordings 1973-1974, the definitive package of Philadelphia-born jazz wizard Byard Lancaster including his 4 legendary albums released on Jef Gilson’s Palm Records in the 1970s, Us, Mother Africa, Exactement and Funny Funky Rib Crib, along with the first ever standalone edition of Love Always, a fifteen minute modal jazz beauty plus a 20 page booklet with rare photos and in-depth article about Byard Lancaster’s Parisian years by Pierre Crépon.

At the beginning of the 1960s, at the Berklee College of Music, Byard Lancaster met some feisty friends: Sonny Sharrock, Dave Burrell and Ted Daniel. It is easy to see why he rapidly became involved in free jazz. Once he was settled in New York, he appeared on Sunny Murray Quintet, recorded under the leadership of the drum crazy colleague of Albert Ayler.

In 1968, the saxophonist and flutist recorded his first album under his own name: It’s Not Up To Us. The following year he came to Paris in the wake of... Sunny Murray. He would come back to France in 1971 (again with Murray) and in 1973 (without Murray for a change). This is when he met Jef Gilson, the pianist and producer who encouraged him to record under his own name again. On Palm Records (Gilson’s label), he would release four albums: Us, Mother Africa, Exactement and Funny Funky Rib Crib.

“Us”, the first of the four records was recorded on November 24th, 1973 with Sylvin Marc on electric bass (a Fender... Lancaster?) and the evergreen Steve McCall on drums.

On the album, the trio works from the John Coltrane model; free jazz shook up by the timely contributions of the bassist, followed by a mesmerizing atmospheric music. Then, Lancaster delivers a sinuous solo path, which is a reminder of his unique tone. On the album’s companion single, the trio launches into great black music of a different genre which would lead the clairvoyant François Tusques to claim that Byard Lancaster is an “authentic representative of soul/free jazz”, to sum up this is Great Black Music! A few months after recording “Us”, Lancaster recorded “Mother Africa” along with Clint Jackson III, a trumpeter, partner of Khan Jamal or Noah Howard on other recordings.

On march 8th, 1974, Lancaster and Jackson headed up a group composed of Jean-François Catoire (electric and double bass), Keno Speller (percussion) and Jonathan Dickinson (drums). Together, they create an immediate impression. From the first seconds of “We The Blessed”, they develop a free jazz which rapidly abandons any virulence under the effect of blues and soul based interventions. When Gilson’s composition “Mother Africa” begins, listeners are transported into the studio, listening to the musicians setting up: chatting and joking... Then comes the melody: a dozen or so notes of a repeated theme which is accelerated and deformed according to their whims... The jazz played by the association Byard Lancaster / Clint Jackson III is rare: creative AND recreational. “We the blessed”, is apt listening to this again today!

The recording of “Exactement” required two sessions in the studio: February 1st and May 18th 1974 – in between the two dates, Lancaster recorded, alongside Clint Jackson, the excellent Mother Africa.

Two names appear on the cover of “Exactement”: Lancaster (Byard) and Speller (Keno). Byard Lancaster wanted to be precise, moving regularly from one instrument to another: first on piano, which was the first instrument he learned. On “Sweet Evil Miss Kisianga”, his inspiration is first and foremost Coltrane (even if leaning more towards Alice than John), this announces the storm to follow.

It is Lancaster’s horn-playing which really stands out: on alto (the sound of which is transformed by an octavoice on one track, "Dr. Oliver W. Lancaster") or soprano saxophones, as well as on flute or bass clarinet, the musician walks a tightrope making the most of all the risks he takes. Using the full register of his instruments, he has fun with the possibilities.

Then, Lancaster invokes or evokes Ornette Coleman, Eric Dolphy and even Prokofiev, before going into a danse alongside Keno Speller on percussion. Above all, he has a unique sound. Byard Lancaster, on whatever instrument he plays and by continually seeking, always ends up hitting the right note... ends up by playing exactement the note he had to play.

“Funny Funky Rib Crib” is an unforgettable recording (made up of several sessions dating from the middle of 1974) of creative jazz overwhelmed by funk and soul. If Lancaster had already made successful albums in the same genre – notably New Horizons, under the name Sounds Of Liberation which he co-led with Khan Jamal –, this one is an homage to James Brown and Sammy Davis enjoying the company of a host of guests including François Tusques (electric piano), Clint Jackson III (trumpet), François Nyombo (guitar), Joseph Traindl (trombone)...

Funny Funky Rib Crib’s cover is a three-quarter profile portrait of the saxophonist (who can also be heard on flute, piano and even vocals), however, on the record, it is the whole group, inspired and frenetic, that tests the melodies of “Just Test”, “Dogtown” or “Rib Crib” – the two versions of which display leader Lancaster’s art of nuance. On both sides of the album, the group also moves into a calmer groove, infused by blues and soul, “Work And Pray” and “Loving Kindness” are meditative tracks where listeners can lay back and relax before asking for more: Funny Funky Rib Crib!

The magnificent “Love Always” was originally released on the fourth (and last) volume of the Jef Gilson Anthology series released in 1975. Recorded on 8th March 1974, it is a beautiful 15-minute-long modal jazz piece. Four notes from the bass (the relentless Jean-François Catoire, who makes up the rhythm section alongside drummer Jonathan Dickinson and percussionist Keno Speller), and the group is up and running! On piano, Gilson shows the subtle tact of a sideman, leaving the lions’ share of the place to the horns. This allows us to hear the trumpet of Clint Jackson III and the alto (which sometimes sounds almost flute-like) of Byard Lancaster each staking their claim in a long hallucinatory march which moves from moments of direct exaltation to profoundly sensitive collective playing. And if further proof was required of the confidence that Byard Lancaster and Jef Gilson inspire, “Love Always” provides it on this one sided release exclusive to the box set.

Limited to 200 copies that are - in Germany, Switzerland and Austria - only available to HHV customers.

German jazz pianist Jutta Hipp is one of the most intriguing yet little-known figures in Blue Note history. Shortly after moving to NYC in 1956 she recorded the charming live trio album “At The Hickory House” with bassist Peter Ind and drummer Ed Thigpen. Vol. 1 presents a set of standards and bebop themes that showcases her hip, lightly-swinging style.
This Blue Note Classic Vinyl Edition is mono, all-analog, mastered by Kevin Gray from the original master tapes, and pressed on 180g vinyl at Optimal.

Ståle Storlokken - Hammond, Rhodes, Mellotron Nikolai Hængsle - Electric bass Torstein Lofthus - Drums Terje Rypdal - Electric guitar.Five years ago, Elephant9 released two double live albums, Psychedelic Backfire I and II, the latter with guest guitarist Reine Fiske, whose favourite guitar...

Tenor saxophonist Hank Mobley had already led nine dates for Blue Note Records by the time he arrived at Rudy Van Gelder’s studio on February 7, 1960 with pianist Wynton Kelly, bassist Paul Chambers, and drummer Art Blakey, but on that day the quartet laid down what would become his masterpiece: Soul Station.
The crystalline six-song set was a showcase for Mobley’s lyrical flow from the breezy opening take on Irving Berlin’s “Remember” through bluesy originals like “Dig Dis” and the title track, and the swinging up-tempo numbers “This I Dig of You” and “Split Feelin’s.” Soul Station endures as a jazz classic for the ages.

Limited to 1000 copies on curacao colored vinyl. Exclusive to HHV customers.

Vacation. Not only in Italy.

A backpack trip through Australia, a campfire in the allotment.

In the car with friends through the Lunenburg Heath or just a short holiday in your head, during the rainy lunch break or with a glass of spritzer on the balcony. And that includes music, music, music! Grooves that roll into the distance like an Intercity, Rhodes chords soft as the sand on the beach and synthesizers that sparkle like the reflections on the ocean. Music as colorful as a Hawaiian shirt and as warming as the morning sun. Welcome to Erobique's second album: "Erobique No.2"

Here, even the song titles are in holiday mood:

"Ahoj!" greets the young "Springinsfeld". The "Mantas" glide elegantly around the "Acquamarina". "Salut les Copines!" we call to the neighboring boat. "Come along to the 'Ravedave!'" it echoes back happily. "Riding Low" is the motto, and the "Arpeggiator" condenses the "Synaesthesia" of the foggy senses in a wonderful way. The "Italotape" in the cassette deck plays the "Hit Song of Both of Us".

That's all so nice "Verkackt", that sounds like "Future Music"!

Carsten Meyer released his debut album "Erosound" in 1998 under the name "Erobique". Exactly 25 years later, the now 50-year-old releases his second Erobique album on his own label A-sexy.

Thirteen varied tracks and songs between holiday disco and rhythm box rave, recorded and produced with many of his friends and companions.

25 years, that's pretty much how long it took disco to go from the legendary loft parties of pioneer David Mancuso to the awe-inspiring mass spectacles of Daft Punk performances.

Or from Meyer's birth to his first long-playing record. So why only now a second album as “Erobique”?

Meyer has been improvising performances in front of a dancing audience for years. Even his hits "Easy Mobeasy" and "Urlaub in Italien" aren't actually pop songs, but rather arose from spontaneous inspiration, in an adrenaline rush, in the middle of the party, right in the moment! Sang along and faded away again. Recorded live and released as is. Just don't repeat! Every Erobique concert is an attempt to turn the unforeseen, the unexpected and accidents into a unique moment of being there. "Mistakes are king" said the witty Knarf Rellöm once - and Carsten Meyer is the king of mistakes!

How are you supposed to conjure up such moments in the studio, without a party, without the energy that spills back onto the stage at a children's birthday party for adults?

Meyer remembered another Erobique hit and changed his title accordingly:

He collaborated with an overdose of joy!

Drummer Lucas Kochbeck (The KBCs, Bacao Rhythm & Steel Band) who now also supports Carsten at his live gigs as well as neighbor and buddy Christoph M. Kaiser (former bassist with the Jeremy Days, now film music and pop strategist) layed down the Groove foundation with glowing tiles, like at the Trinity, Hamburg's legendary 80s disco.

Sophia Kennedy came over from the neighboring studio to sing and Lieven Brunckhorst dragged the entire wind section of Jan Delay's big band Disco No1 in front of the microphone.

Meyer recorded harps, xylophones and violins in his music room at the Hamburger Fischmarkt or with Tobias Levin in his Electric Avenue studio with a view of the Fleet.

Carsten went to Berlin where he met his hero Siriusmo to put some ideas through the electronic grinder. Nicola Rost of Laing stopped by and left incredibly dense choirs and wonderful songs.

Finally, all tracks were brought to Swabian Ludwigsburg where the Freundskreis DJ and disco expert Martin Welzer aka DJ Friction screwed the whole madness into an incredibly warm and dancefloor-friendly overall sound.

Back to the drawing board, like all A-sexy releases, the cover art is painted and designed by Meyer himself, after all his original career aspiration was to be a school book illustrator.

In the course of one summer, a musical chocolate box was created that will not only enrich the holiday playlist of his fans and listeners, but also made his archive of ideas and sketches, which is several quantum bytes deep, a little bit thinner. Outside of his disco fairs up and down the country, Meyer has not remained idle in the last quarter of a century:

Between 1998 and 2006 he developed hypermodern electronic soul with DJ Koze and Cosmic DJ as an international pony. Together with Jacques Palminger and Chris Dietermann, he supervised amateur songwriters in the project "Songs for Joy" at the Maxim-Gorki-Theater Berlin when they made pop music, which is how the secret hit "Wann Strahlst Du?" was created in 2007 with the great text by Barbara Stützel. In general, theatre: For the theater director Herbert Fritsch he arranged the hits by Gino Paoli and Hugo Wolff for crazy evenings at the Schauspielhaus Zurich (2016) and at the Residenztheater Munich (2015), for Stefan Pucher he shot the fairy tales of Hans Christian Andersen through the home organ wolf ( 2010). For the colleagues from Studio Braun, he brought the "Dorfpunks" to life at the Hamburg Schauspielhaus, and immediately afterwards he developed the authentic Neue-Welle sound for their mockumentary "Fraktus", which was released in cinemas in 2012.

So there we are with film and television music. Here, too, Meyer had a lot to do in recent years. The soundtrack for the popular TV series "Der Tatortreinigung" with Bjarne Mädel in the title role was the best. Incidentally, the "jack of all trades" (quote Peter Bursch) also released a few albums on his own label A-sexy: Rumpel-Funk as "Babyman", the finest chanson pop with Palminger and Yvon Janssen for "Yvon im Kreis der Liebe" and warm, modern Hammond jazz with the "Hamburg Spinners".

And now finally his anniversary album, the silver wedding with himself.
25 years Carsten and Erobique, together forever and happier than ever!

To the next… stop no. We don't want to wait that long!

Celebrating Frédéric RABOLDs 80th birthday
Frédéric Rabold was born on November 23rd, 1944, in Paris, France. His father was a jazz musician and had dreams of all three of his children becoming musicians as well. Frédéric started out learning the violin but always gravitated to the trumpet. The violin actually ended up on the wall at some point, which may have revealed Rabold's tendency toward impulsiveness. He came into contact with jazz music at an early age when he lived with his parents in France. Later on, his father had a big band with which he performed at dances in health resorts. At the age of 16, he often played with his father in American Army Clubs. From 1961 to 1964, Frédéric studied at the University of Music in Karlsruhe. In 1965, he moved to Stuttgart where he still lives today. In the same year drummer Axel Lauser approached him and asked if he wanted to play in his trio. Then, for a few years, Frédéric played in the Axel Lauser Quartet. In 1968, Frédéric founded his own band, the Frédéric Rabold Crew. The music of the "Crew" was well received in the 1968 era and the band quickly gained recognition in the German modern jazz scene. Invitations to several major festivals followed, including the jazz festival in Zurich. Later, they toured extensively through Eastern Europe on behalf of the Goethe Institute. In 1968, the first recordings were made by a friend of the band during a rehearsal. However, they were not to be released until 1980 on the LP "Berlin". "Noon In Tunisia" is one of these tracks. In March, 1970, the crew performed at the 12th German Jazz Festival in Frankfurt am Main amongst such Jazz greats as the Albert Mangelsdorff Quartet, the Klaus Doldinger Quartet and the Dave Pike Set. Two years later, the Frédéric Rabold Crew released their debut album entitled "Flair". This was followed in the 1970s by more than half a dozen albums for various labels. These included the album "Open House" with guest guitarist Martin Ederer, as well as three albums with singer Lauren Newton between 1975 and 1979. Rabold also worked with avant-garde jazz musicians such as Gunter Hampel, Leszek Zadlo, Lester Bowie, Manfred Schoof, Albert Mangelsdorff and Jeanne Lee.
In the mid-1970s, a second formation was formed, the "Frédéric Rabold Jazz Inspiration Orchestra", which, unlike the crew, continued to exist with the same line-up well into the 2010s. In 2018, Frédéric Rabold celebrated the 50th anniversary of his group, the Frédéric Rabold Crew.
Today, Rabold can look back on more than 1000 original compositions. Sometimes certain events led him to a composition, other times he just sat down at the piano and something happened, or not. Even though his real love is modern jazz, he has played all styles himself, including classical trumpet. In this respect, his role models were actually always American jazz musicians, who were sometimes quite unconventional in this respect. Frédéric Rabold's motto has always been: there is good and not so good music in all styles. This album brings together only the former.
Key selling points:
- deluxe double gatefold vinyl LP
- incl. detailed liner notes in german and english language
- incl. unseen photographs
- incl. download code
- limited to 500 copies
- pressed on Biovinyl => Replacement of petroleum in S-pvc by recycling used cooking oil or industrial
waste gases

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.

Blue Note Records will release the first-ever official release of Donald Byrd Live: Cookin’ with Blue Note at Montreux on what would have been the legendary trumpeter’s 90th birthday: December 9, 2022. The LP of the dynamic 1973 live set is all-analog cut directly from the original analog master tapes.



In July 1973, Blue Note Records headed to Montreux, Switzerland to showcase several of the label’s stars at the Montreux Jazz Festival. Produced by Blue Note President George Butler, live albums all titled Live: Cookin’ with Blue Note at Montreux followed from vibraphonist Bobby Hutcherson, organist Ronnie Foster, flutist Bobbi Humphrey, and vocalist Marlena Shaw, but one of the performances by trumpeter Donald Byrd remained unreleased in the Blue Note vaults, until now.

Donald Byrd: trumpet, flugelhorn, vocals - Fonce Mizell: trumpet, vocals - Allan Barnes: tenor saxophone, flute - Nathan Davis: tenor & soprano saxophone - Kevin Toney: electric piano - Larry Mizell: synthesizers - Barney Perry: electric guitar - Henry Franklin: electric bass - Keith Killgo: drums, vocals - Ray Armando: congas, percussion



Original recordings produced by George Butler

Recorded live by Chris Penycote at Montreux Jazz Festival, Montreux, Switzerland, July 5, 1973

Mixed by Qmillion at EastWest Studios Los Angeles, CA


1-lp, 180g, unprinted polylined paper inner sleeve.

One of the last records made by avant sax legend Albert Ayler – a really mind-expanding album that's unlike anything else he ever did! By the time of the record, Ayler had made a full round trip between the New York and European jazz scenes – leaving important influences wherever he went, and trying desperately to pick up new ones the further he moved on. Here, he's working in a style that's a bit like that of Archie Shepp at the time – still steeped in free jazz and new thing ideals, but infused with a free-thinking approach to the music that allows for bold new styles and sounds. In addition to his own stunning work on tenor, Ayler's also blowing bagpipes and vocalizing a bit next to singer Mary Maria, who does a great recitation on one track of the record. Rhythm is by the two-bass team of Stafford James and Bill Folwell, next to drums by Muhammad Ali – and the whole thing's capped off by guitarist Henry Vestine, who plays in modes that range from bluesy to free. At the time, this one was kind of dismissed as a messed-up mistake that occurred at the end of Ayler's too-short life – but honestly, over the years, this record really really opens itself to us more and more, and we have to say that we think it's one of his most groundbreaking albums!

Continuing Four Flies' dedication to delving into lesser-explored periods of Italian music, Africamore takes us on a captivating journey into the intersection of Afro-funk and the Italian soundscape during the six years between 1973 and 1978 - a time when disco was looming on the horizon and the nightclub market was rapidly expanding.

Before reaching Italian shores, the infectious sound originating from African and Afro-Caribbean roots traversed both the Mediterranean and the Atlantic, landing on New York dancefloors, where DJ Dave Mancuso discovered "Soul Makossa" by Manu Dibango. In 1973, from Mancuso's Loft parties, the song's hypnotic groove spread to the rest of the globe, including in Italy, where it sparked a wave of imitations and variations.

Tribal influences thus found their way into Italian soul-funk and early-disco productions released between 1973 and 1978 – from psychedelic-tinged tunes like Jean Paul & Angelique's "Africa Sound"to the Afrobeat-inspired club banger "Kumbayero" by composer/producer Albert Verrecchia (aka Weyman Corporation); and from groundbreaking Afro-cosmic songs like Chrisma's "Amore", co-written by Vangelis and featuring the rhythms of Ghanaian-British Afro-rock band Osibisa, to mind-blowing floor-fillers like Beryl Cunningham's "Why O", a re-write of Nat King Cole's "Calypso Blues" arranged by Paolo Ormi, with percussion breaks that sound pretty much like what would later become known as techno.

Combining feel-good vibes with driving rhythms, world-style percussion, and even synths, all these productions pushed the boundaries of dance music at a time when disco had not yet taken over. In doing so, they sowed many of the seeds of the later Italian cosmic scene and its unique mixture of African elements, disco-funk and electronic music.

This was a brief but nuanced period in Italian music history, one that deserves to be rediscovered, with love.

When Frank Sinatra and producer Quincy Jones met in the studio for the first time in twenty years in 1984 to produce another album together, the music world held its breath. A big band made up of top musicians and prominent guests such as George Benson, Lionel Hampton and Bob James rounded off the meeting between the two entertainment giants. “L.A. “Is My Lady” peaked at #58 on Billboard’s Pop and #8 on the Jazz charts. The quite contemporary, funky title song even made it onto MTV rotation, together with the remaining tracks in a classic swing style he makes one the singer's most popular albums today. The “40th Anniversary Deluxe Edition” has been newly remixed by original sound engineer Larry Walsh. The CD version additionally includes six alternative versions of the album tracks “Mack The Knife”, “Body And Soul”, “After You’ve Gone” and “How Do You Keep The Music Playing”, three of which celebrate their world premiere here!

LP: 140g, gatefold sleeve with new liner notes

New York city based bassist and visual artist Josh Werner was awarded an artist in residence from The Cell Gallery located in New York NY. As a part of this residency which occurred in the month of July 2020, Josh presented various works in different mediums from visual art to music. In lue of the 2020 pandemic Josh was unable to present music to a live audience and instead offered a pre-recorded live performance to be aired at a later date. Werner was able to put together an ensemble of some of the leading improvisors on the New York City scene in that of James Brandon Lewis, Ches Smith and Patrick Holmes. One of the leading jazz pioneers Ornette Coleman once expressed himself by saying " you know more, but i feel more ". During these turbulent times this statement resonates with this ensemble; it's one that embodies the acknowledgement of feelings within your being to then pour into the music being presented. This ensemble draws from proceeding generations of musicians such as Don Cherry, Roy Ayers, John Coltrane, Cecil Taylor, Albert Ayler, Tribe Called Quest and the energy of the downtown art rock movement.

Even by the high-water marks set by Herbie Hancock’s tremendous 1960s Blue Note output, 1965’s Maiden Voyage remains one of the pinnacle artistic achievements of the great pianist’s career. Hancock is joined here by his Miles Davis Quintet bandmates Ron Carter on bass and Tony Williams on drums, along with Freddie Hubbard on trumpet and George Coleman on tenor saxophone. The quintet embarks on an oceanic exploration of five original Hancock compositions, several of which have since become enduring standards of the jazz lexicon including the title track, “Eye of the Hurricane,” and “Dolphin Dance.”

By the time he recorded GO! in 1962, Dexter Gordon had already lived several lifetimes in jazz. He was among the first to adapt the language of bebop to the tenor saxophone in the 1940s, but after a decade in which personal troubles limited his output, he signed with Blue Note in 1961 and began a run of essential albums that marked a rebirth for the tenor giant. Featuring a quartet with Sonny Clark on piano, Butch Warren on bass, and Billy Higgins on drums, GO! was a showcase of Gordon’s limitless creativity on hard-swinging numbers like his great tune “Cheese Cake” and a sure-footed version of “Love for Sale,” as well as his peerless artistry on ballads as evidenced on stunning takes of the standards “I Guess I'll Hang My Tears Out to Dry” and “Where Are You.”

1964 was one of the most momentous years in the musical life of Wayne Shorter. Early in the year the saxophonist was still a member of Art Blakey & The Jazz Messengers, appearing on classic Blue Note albums like Free for All and Indestructible. Shorter made his own auspicious label debut that spring with Night Dreamer and quickly recorded the impressive follow-up JuJu. That summer he joined the Miles Davis Quintet, cementing a line-up that would become one of the seminal bands in jazz history. And when Shorter entered Van Gelder Studio with Freddie Hubbard, Herbie Hancock, Ron Carter, and Elvin Jones on Christmas Eve 1964 they created a masterpiece with Speak No Evil, a transcendent set of six Shorter originals including the swinging title track, “Witch Hunt,” and sublime ballad “Infant Eyes.”

First Word Records is very proud to present 'The Liminality of Her', a brand new 10-track album from their newest signing, Amanda Whiting; a highly-acclaimed Welsh harpist & composer.

A virtuoso in her field, this classically trained musician has quickly established herself as an essential player in the UK jazz scene, carving her own unique sound, following on from the paths forged by Ashby and Coltrane.

Amanda recently joined the First Word label roster, via a collaborative project with Don Leisure, 'Beyond The Midnight Sun', as well as a feature on his Welsh Music Prize nominated project 'Shaboo Strikes Back'.

She's previously toured extensively with her own band, as well as with Matthew Halsall, Rebecca Vasmant, DJ Yoda and Chip Wickham (who also features on this new project), whilst previously releasing three solo albums on Jazzman Records, and a remix project for Scrimshire's Albert's Favourites imprint. Along the way, there's been a nomination for 'Instrumentalist of the Year' from Jazz FM and she's garnered the support of DJs such as Radio 2's Jamie Cullum ("highly recommended") and BBC 6Music's Cerys Matthews ("my highlight of the Cheltenham Jazz festival 2023").

This 10-track album exemplifies Amanda's talents as a performer and composer, taking in an array of hypnotising sonics from the worlds of jazz; from fusion to spiritual and beyond. She is backed with accompaniment from a remarkable set of players in their own right, including Chip Wickham on flute and Peach. on vocals. A confident display of purposefully blissful compositions that saunter as much as they soothe, whilst being unafraid to lean into some deep uptempo grooves.

Amanda describes the theme of this project as "liminality... that place in between, the transition from one place to another. No longer what it was, yet not what it's going to be.

The harp always presents itself at these moments. It's a sound that causes an emotion. My instrument chose me. It's been with me through every chapter of life. It's how I speak, especially when there are no words.

This album is a rite of passage for "her". A feeling of alchemy, a feeling of liberation. Moments of inner searching, intertwined, waiting but moving forward. Never looking back.

'The Liminality of Her' encompasses the highs and the lows. The nomadic love of freedom and spirituality. It's all so much bigger than you or I…"

From the cinematic, classical fusion of 'After Dark', to the more playful 'Lost in Abstraction', this album invites you to float in a soundscape of liminality...

Proudly presenting, ‘Калі ты запытаеш (If You Ask)’, a brand new, blissed-out pop production with a ‘70s AOR touch, by the ever-on-point Soyuz (союз). Coming at a period between albums, the single features guest appearances from the sensational musicians, Biel Basile (O Terno, Sessa) and Anthony Ferraro (Toro Y Moi, Astronauts, Etc.). Friends of the band, they add their signature touch on the drums and synth respectively. To complete the package, Soyuz back the title track with a short but sweet, Wurlitzer-laden, MPB-tinged number, ‘Tenório’.

‘Калі ты запытаеш (If You Ask)’ tells the story of lost dreams. A track that can be interpreted either as a bittersweet longing for childhood times, or for a native place you can’t return to. For the writer Alex Chumak he suggests, "In my case, as in the case of many Belarusians, it’s both".

For this song, Alex chose to sing in his native Belarusian tongue. As he explains this language "to me feels underrepresented in pop music, also it’s a beautiful legacy and sonority that I wanted to share with the listeners of our project around the world". One of the key inspirations was a Belarusian band “Песняры” (“Pesniary”), who produced a host of great progressive folk, jazz fusion and AOR, from the ‘70s to the ‘90s, predominantly sung in Belarusian.

Another key influence was the music coming out of the Brazilian state of Minas Gerais in the ‘70s, drawing inspiration from the sentimental and harmonious music of Beto Guedes, Lô Borges, Fernando Oly and Wagner Tiso.

Having parted ways with their drummer Anton, Soyuz needed to find a new way to produce songs. The answer was to go remotely. Alex contacted the brilliant Biel Basile, who had recorded Sessa's contemporary classic ‘Estrela Acesa’, in which Alex also participated. Utilising Biel and Sessa’s newly built studio in São Paulo, Soyuz had Biel record the drums directly to tape to get the rich sound they were after. Adding the final magic into the mix, California’s Anthony Ferraro provided a beautiful Solina String Ensemble synth arrangement, with drummer/recording engineer Albert Karch expertly assisting with the production.

To capture the essence of the single visually, Alex and the Brazilian one-man-industry visual artist Gabriel Rolim, spent a blazing sunny May day in Berlin shooting film and stills – one of which became the perfect cover image. We hope you enjoy this little nugget of Soyuz mastery, a sweet taster to savour while the new album is recorded.