Matana Roberts returns with the fourth chapter of her extraordinary Coin Coin series - a project that has deservedly garnered the highest praise and widespread critical acclaim for it's fierce aesthetic originality and unflinching narrative power. The first three Coin Coin albums, issued from 2011-2015, charted diverse pathways of modern/avant composition - Roberts calls it "panoramic sound quilting" - and ranged sequentially from large band to sextet to solo, unified by Roberts' archival and often deeply personal research into legacies of the American slave trade and ancestries of American identity/experience. Roberts also emphasizes non-male subjects and thematises these other-gendered stories with a range of vocal and verbal techniques: singspeak, submerged glossolalic recitation, guttural cathartic howl, operatic voice, gentle lullaby, group chant, and the recuperation of various American folk traditionals and spirituals, whether surfacing in fragmentary fashion or as unabridged set-pieces. The root of this vocality comes from her dedication to the legacy of her main chosen instrument, the alto saxophone. On Coin Coin Chapter Four: Memphis, Roberts convened a new band, with New Yorkers Hannah Marcus (guitars, fiddle, accordion) and percussionist Ryan Sawyer (Thurston Moore, Nate Wooley, Cass McCombs) joined by Montreal bassist Nicolas Caloia (Ratchet Orchestra) and Montreal-Cairo composer/improviser Sam Shalabi (Land Of Kush, Dwarfs Of East Agouza) on guitar and oud, along with prolific trombonist Steve Swell and vibraphonist Ryan White as special guests. Memphis unspools as a continuous work of 21st century liberation music, oscillating between meditative incantatory explorations, raucous melodic themes, and unbridled free-improv suites, quoting archly and ecstatically from various folk traditions along the way. Led by Roberts' conduction and unique graphic score practice, her consummate saxophone and clarinet playing, and punctuated by her singing and speaking various texts generated from her own historical research and diaristic writings, Coin Coin Chapter Four is a glorious and spellbinding new installment in this projected twelve-part Gesamtkunstwerk. Says Roberts: "As an arts adventurer dealing w/ the medium of sound and it's many contradictions I am most interested in endurance, perseverance, migration, liberation, libation, improvisation and the many layers of cognitive dissonance therein as it relates to my birth country's history. I speak memory, I sing an American survival through horn, song, sadness, a sometimes gladness. I stand on the backs of many people, from so many different walks of life and difference, that never had a chance to express themselves as expressively as I have been given the privilege. In these sonic renderings, I celebrate the me, I celebrate the we, in all that it is now, and all that is yet to come or will be... Thanks for listening."
180gm vinyl LP pressing. One of Miles Davis' earliest recording sessions. The very first known instance of the famed trumpeter playing in an "open" style, and in a band with legendary tenor saxophonist Gene Ammons and drummer Art Blakey. Need any more be said? Very few jazz albums possess more historical import and wow-inspiring significance than Bopping the Blues, which documents a 1946 session in which Davis supported a group and two singers, Earl Coleman and Ann Baker, in a splendid bop affair. Yes, it's got that elusive Holy Grail quality. Originally released by the UK label Black Lion, an imprint that specialized in resurrecting rare gems from US jazz and blues legends, Bopping the Blues marks what are indisputably Davis' initial open-voiced contributions and a can't-miss opportunity for collectors and enthusiasts to get closer to the man and his music.
180gm vinyl LP pressing, includes digital download. As part of legendary jazz musician Herb Alpert's reissue collection, 4 classic albums from the trumpeter's illustrious catalog will be re-released on LP. The albums were remastered from the original analog tape mixes by Grammy-winning mastering engineer Bernie Grundman, who was the mastering engineer on many of the Tijuana Brass and Alpert albums. All releases, several of which have been out of print for a number of years (in Europe, some have not been available in over 30 years!), will be presented with their original artwork, making this collection must-have for the Herb Alpert fan!
Instrumental collective Snarky Puppy will release their first major label album in the form of Sylva on May 26 via Impulse!/Universal Music Classics. The album is a noted creative departure from the group, as they have collaborated with the Metropole Orkest orchestra from Holland to record the album live. Sylva marks the first time the band has joined forces with an orchestra. Specifically, Metropole Orkest is known for past work with artists like Elvis Costello, Tori Amos and John Scofield.
Weather Report was one of the super-bands in the 70s and beginning of the 80s. The 40th anniversary of the founding of the band, which was started by the legendary keyboarder Joe Zawinul and the saxophonist Wayne Shorter, occurs now in a fine remastered vinyl. The concert the band gave at the Berliner Jazztage in 1975 can be heard for the first time on: The band gave a fantastic performance including Mysterious Traveller, Scarlet Woman And Badia/Boogie Woogie Waltz from among the earlier weather report hits.
Vinyl LP Pressing. Herb Alpert's The Christmas Wish is the trumpeter's first holiday album in almost 50 years! Recorded at the legendary Capitol Recording Studios at Hollywood's Capitol Records building, The Christmas Wish boasts a 10-piece rhythm section, a 45-piece orchestra, and a 32-member choir!
Highly Rare is a new mixtape produced and arranged by Makaya McCraven, featuring Junius Paul (bass), Nick Mazzarella (alto saxophone), and Ben Lamar Gay (cornet, diddley bow, voice). Recorded live to Tascam 424MKIII cassette four-track at the legendary Danny's Tavern in Chicago, Illinois. 1 Danny's Intro 2 The Locator 3 Above & Beyond 4 Venus Rising 5 Icy Lightning 6 Left Fields 7 R.F.J. III 8 Early Bird Once Again
This San Francisco trio of the mid-1950s has a sparkling personality all it's own, with a refreshing lack of pretentiousness. With an ebullient swing on the up-tempos, and a subtle, unhackneyed approach to ballads such as "Sweet and Lovely" and jazz standards such as John Lewis's "Django", this 1956 LP marks Guaraldi's triumphant first complete album as a leader. With Eddie Duran and Dean Reilly.
50 years ago, Herb Alpert & The Tijuana Brass released the iconic album, Whipped Cream & Other Delights. In celebration of it's momentous 50th anniversary, this classic of American pop music is once again available on CD and vinyl, remastered and better than ever!
Originally released in 1962, this classic jazz album has been newly reissued on 120-gram vinyl to commemorate the 65th anniversary of Prestige Records and the 90th birthday of legendary recording engineer Rudy Van Gelder. Trane, trumpeter Wilbur Harden, pianist Red Garland, bassist Paul Chambers and drummer Jimmy Cobb lend exquisite ensemble playing to Don't Take Your Love from Me; I'll Get By (As Long As I Have You); Spring Is Here, and Invitation ! Fantasy.
180-gram vinyl. Word Of Mouth was the second album by virtuoso bassist Jaco Pastorius, released in 1981 while he was still a member of Weather Report. Word Of Mouth focused on his ability to compose and arrange for a larger band than was previously featured on his first self titled album from 1976 [MOVLP136].The band's all-star cast included Herbie Hancock, Wayne Shorter, Peter Erskine, Jack DeJohnette, Michael Brecker, Don Alias and Toots Thielemans who is featured on harmonica on many of the songs.
180gm vinyl LP pressing, includes digital download. As part of legendary jazz musician Herb Alpert's reissue collection, 4 classic albums from the trumpeter's illustrious catalog will be re-released on LP. The albums were remastered from the original analog tape mixes by Grammy-winning mastering engineer Bernie Grundman, who was the mastering engineer on many of the Tijuana Brass and Alpert albums. All releases, several of which have been out of print for a number of years (in Europe, some have not been available in over 30 years!), will be presented with their original artwork, making this collection must-have for the Herb Alpert fan!
180gm vinyl LP pressing, includes digital download. As part of legendary jazz musician Herb Alpert's reissue collection, 4 classic albums from the trumpeter's illustrious catalog will be re-released on LP. The albums were remastered from the original analog tape mixes by Grammy-winning mastering engineer Bernie Grundman, who was the mastering engineer on many of the Tijuana Brass and Alpert albums. All releases, several of which have been out of print for a number of years (in Europe, some have not been available in over 30 years!), will be presented with their original artwork, making this collection must-have for the Herb Alpert fan!
Vinyl LP pressing. Kamasi Washington's sophomore album Heaven and Earth not only fulfills it's overarching ambition, but illustrates the dialectic between seen and unseen, real and imagined, citizen and culture, self and self, as well as self and other, and does so through the lens of a mature but never jaded revolutionary consciousness. The artist's own words best convey the inspiration behind this monolith of an album "The world that my mind lives in, lives in my mind. This idea inspired me to make this album Heaven and Earth. The reality we experience is a mere creation of our consciousness, but our consciousness creates this reality based on those very same experiences. We are simultaneously the creators of our personal universe and creations of our personal universe. The Earth side of this album represents the world as I see it outwardly, the world that I am a part of. The Heaven side of this album represents the world as I see it inwardly, the world that is a part of me. Who I am and the choices I make lie somewhere in between."
The jazz legend's first 12" LP, originally released in 1955, has been newly reissued on 120-gram vinyl to commemorate the 65th anniversary of Prestige Records and the 90th birthday of legendary recording engineer Rudy Van Gelder. Hear Miles, pianist Red Garland, bassist Oscar Pettiford and drummer Philly Joe Jones perform sublime renditions of Will You Still Be Mine?; I See Your Face Before Me; I Didn't; a Gal in Calico; a Night in Tunisia, and Green Haze ! Fantasy.
