W. Mingus, Milt Jackson, Lucky Thompson 1945.

To paraphrase the old stock brokerage commercial: "When Anthony Braxton plays, people listen". And they have been doing so for decades, through dozens of recordings spanning an evolution that is remarkable for it's independence and virtuosity. Braxton's first two albums, "Three Compositions of New Jazz" (1968, DMK #415) and "For Alto" (1969, DMK #420) were released on Delmark, and it's only fitting that the present rare quartet version of his self-described "Ghost Trance Music" be released more than thirty years later on the same label. Features Anthony Braxton on woodwinds, Kevin Uehlinger on piano/melodica, Keith Witty on bass, and Noam Schatz on percussion.

Redefining the collective concept in an ensemble, Two Cities is the follow up to the 2006 release Ready Everyday (DMK 571). The Fast Citizens have a rotating leader chair. This time Aram Shelton has taken the reins as main composer, focusing on orchestration and structural variety to present a stylistically diverse album that includes hard swing, lush ballads, high-energy free improvisation, modern composition and Sun-Ra-inspired grooves. Aram Shelton, alto saxophone, clarinet; Keefe Jackson, tenor saxophone, bass clarinet; Josh Berman, cornet; Fred Lonberg-Holm, cello; Anton Hatwich, bass; and Frank Rosaly, drums. Nine new compositions.

Chicago Hot (DMK 253), the first Delmark release from The Fat Babies, was chosen as a top ten album of 2012 by Howard Reich in the Chicago Tribune. 18th & Racine was recorded at the acoustically gifted Electrical Audio room B as the band swung through a smattering of hot 'n' sweet tunes that have been slaying crowds weekly at their Green Mill and Honky Tonk BBQ performances. The Fat Babies interpret classic styles of the '20s and '30s. Founded in 2010 by string bass player Beau Sample, it's members include Andy Schumm, cornet; John Otto, reeds; Dave Bock, trombone; Jake Sanders, banjo and guitar; Paul Asaro, piano; Alex Hall, drums.

Chicago tenor saxophone legend and proprietor of the longest standing and most adventurous avant garde jazz club in Chicago, Fred Anderson celebrated his 80th birthday this past March and Delmark was there to capture it.

PIANO SOLOS 2

Chicago tenor sax legend Fred Anderson has been getting a lot of press recently because of the forthcoming closing of the current location of the internationally renowned Velvet Lounge. Features Hamid Drake on drums/percussion and Harrison Bankhead on bass. This third live Anderson recording follows "On the Run" (DMK #534) and "Back at the Velvet Lounge" (DMK #549).

Kahil El'Zabar, drums, earth drums, kalimba; Corey Wilkes, trumpet, flugelhorn, percussion; Ernest Dawkins, alto and tenor saxophone, percussion; Fareed Haque, electric and acoustic guitar. In a Down Beat review of their previous Delmark album, Freedom Jazz Dance (517) Paul de Barros wrote "The forms being advanced here-or at least merged in a creative, new way-are African-American syncopation (funk, jazz) and the vertically integrated multiple parts of African drum ensemble music. With folkish simplicity and beguilingly subdued dynamics, Ethnic Heritage Ensemble-drums, guitar and two horns-achieves an effect something like an ad hoc percussion band walking the second line, with a little James Brown thrown in."

Nicole Mitchell brings an exciting new approach to flute improvisation. She is the founder of the critically-acclaimed Black Earth Ensemble, and was called Downbeat Magazine's #1 Rising Star Flutist in 2006 and 2007.

This 1997 release features Billy Harper, Carter Jefferson, Joe Ford, Dee Alexader, Ron Bridgewater and others. A lyrical bop player and cutting-edge free jazz musician, Malachi liked to call his music Freebop; a sound that simultaneously includes blues, straight ahead jazz, the funky grit of soul jazz, African roots and the dazzling extroverted technique of the modern era. 47th Street (the album) is Thompson's musical tribute to a vibrant period of black Chicago history, a period of economic vitality and cultural fluidity that made 47th Street (the actual street) the mainstream of black Chicago. (Previously deleted:4/1/11. Original release date:2/10/98)

Tribute is now available on LP in a limited edition of 1,000 with numbered jackets. Newly recorded blues celebration of Delmark's 65th Anniversary Tribute features Delmark's current roster of artists paying tribute to founder Bob Koester and artists that recorded for the label in the 1960s and 70s. Jimmy Johnson & Dave Specter pay tribute to Magic Sam. Omar Coleman pays tribute to Junior Wells. Lil' Ed pays tribute to J.B. Hutto. Corey Dennison pays tribute to Sleepy John Estes, Lurrie Bell & The Bell Dynasty pay tribute to their dad Carey Bell. Linsey Alexander and Billy Flynn pay tribute to Jimmy Dawkins. And more!

British clarinetist & his American counterparts create the energy, joy & richness of 1950s ensemble-driven, blues-drenched New Orleans jazz.

This is the OSD's third Delmark outing - on the first, they supported Clancy Hays, and on the second, they joined Franz Jackson. The OSD are generally classified as a West Coast traditional revival jazz band, playing in a style whose origins date back to the 1920s. But their music is a synthesis of styles transcending the revivalist category, because you'll hear echoes of Bix, Red Nichols, as well as the old New Orleanians. This album was recorded in 1966 & contains 14 songs, including 5 bonus tracks.

In a review of Jason Stein's debut album, The Story This Time (Delmark 2013), JazzTimes said "This record kills. The double-horn front line allows for torrid, bop-rooted synchronicity and numerous moments of unfettered exploration." Stein understands the bass clarinet's history and seeks to extend it's comfort zone, and he's not prone to move into the stratosphere, staying in the natural range on his instrument, but picking up the pace manually, the overland route, through force of will. Add to a couple tracks the contrabass clarinet of Keefe Jackson, which ratchets the sound down into the substrata a few notches, and the uncanny play between the anchor and the waves is even more pronounced.

The Heat is turned up again for another chapter in the 25-year history of Pierre Lacocque's Mississippi Heat. The Living Blues review of their previous album said "Warning Shot (DMK 839) showcases bandleader and principal songwriter Lacocque's eloquent harp playing, supported by a cast of heavy hitters that delivers the trademark big band sound and one of the hottest, tightest bands in Chicago today, and the original songs on this album are pure fun and are worthy additions to the great history of Chicago blues." Cab Driving Man features 15 new songs with Inetta Visor and Michael Dotson as lead vocalists again. The songs are a wonderful blend of Mississippi, Chicago, boogie, swing and south of the border.