McDonald & Sherby - Catharsis 1974

McDonald & Sherby's sole contribution to the canon of 20th century music was Catharsis, an album which originally appeared on the appropriately-named Omniscient label (Omniscient Records 1426S) Catharsis was recorded in 1974 at Minneapolis's Sound 80 Studios. The album consists of six long tracks with a decidedly heavy guitar-based vibe, all well- recorded and delivered with considerable aplomb. Thanks to ChrisgoesRock.

listen here

Buy @ Amazon: USA - FR - UK

Abdullah Ibrahim - Africa , Tears And Laughter 1979

This unusual set is powerful but clearly for selected tastes. Pianist Abdullah Ibrahim and saxophonist Talib Qadr, who doubles on soprano and alto, are mostly heard singing and chanting during Ibrahim'sreligious piece "Ishmael," a heartfelt but difficult-to-listen-to tribute to the pianist's Islamic faith. His other originals, which sometimes find Ibrahim playing soprano, are also quite spiritual, featuring a lot of emphasis on the melody statements and pure religious passion from the quartet, which also includes bassist Greg Brown and drummer John Betsch. A sincere but not essential release. AMG.

listen here

Buy @ Amazon: USA - FR - UK

Charles Tyler - Saga Of The Outlaws 1978

Charles Tyler's Saga of the Outlaws is one of the quintessential epic pieces of free improvisation in history, a 37-minute, one-piece of pure emotion and depth of spirit. Subtitled "Ride of the Marauders" -- a polyphonic sonic tale/drama of the old and new West, Tyler and his extraordinary, vanguard quintet power their way through free bop with an edge that reflects a gunslinger's cool and vicious mentality, while allowing a shoot-'em-up feeding frenzy of wailing discourse that incorporates plenty of harmonic depth and counterpointed interworkings. Trumpeter Earl Cross is alto saxophonist Tyler's main foil, very much in the post-Freddie Hubbard tradition of brass players like Ted Curson or Raphe Malik, who were seeking a sound without any boundaries whatsoever. Bassists John Ore and Ronnie Boykinsboth came out of the bands of Sun Ra, so their credentials are airtight, whether swinging hard or digging into the depths of their instruments.
Drummer Steve Reid is really the glue, a perfect rhythmic navigator, and has the requisite stamina to keep the band moving forward for the entire time. Recorded live at Studio Rivbea owned by Sam Rivers and his wife Bea, Saga of the Outlaws not only identifies the so-called loft jazz movement and post-Ornette Coleman/Albert Ayler revolution, but set its own standard in the mid-'70s where this music would became very influential both in America and on the burgeoning European (particularly German) scene, where Tyler fled to (the Netherlands) a year later, and stayed until his passing in 1992. The piece starts with clarion calls from Tyler and Cross commanding the freedom fighters to arms, with steady rhythms and probing basses buoying some lovely counterpoint. You hear gun fight imagery as the piece widens and intensifies, with Tyler's extended solo stretching harmonic parameters of tonality in the manner of his former bandmates, brothers Donald and Albert Ayler. The group plods along briefly as if conserving their reserve will power, Ornette Coleman type note approximations occur, Cross offers up a spiky solo, and Tylerbecomes more animated in tandem with Cross. This absolute blowing session also features a pithy drum solo from the quite capable Reid, then a new west free jam precedes a return to the imagery of the old west, as calmed, wafting smoke rises as the sun sets. It should be mentioned that many months of painstaking work, trial and error studio recordings, chance meetings, and much thought process were all preludes to this performance being documented here. To some, it may sound like a lark or random chance, but it was far from that. It is Charles Tyler's magnum opus, historically one of the most definitive free jazz statements of the '70s, ranking up there with the Wildflowers sessions and the work of Roscoe Mitchell, the Art Ensemble of Chicago, Frank Wright, and Anthony Braxton. For specific tastes -- those who enjoy absolute creative improvised music -- it's a must-have item, and thankfully now on CD. AMG.

listen here

Buy @ Amazon: USA - FR -UK

The Barry Goldberg Reunion - There's No Hole In My Soul 1968

Barry Goldberg was a regular fixture in the white blues firmament of the mid-'60s that seemed to stretch from Chicago to New York. A keyboardist (organ seemed to be his specialty), Barry was an in-demand session man -- he appears with Michael Bloomfield on a Mitch Ryder album, for instance -- along with Al Kooper and his blues-playing contemporary from the original Butterfield band, Mark Naftalin. Goldberg was a member of Charlie Musselwhite's first band, contributing great piano and organ lines to theStand Back! album (his work on "Cristo Redentor" is moody and introspective, with a strong jazz-inflected feel, while still retaining strong blues roots) and a handful of others throughout the decade. AMG.

listen here

Buy @ Amazon: USA - FR - UK

Dolo Coker - California Hard 1976

Pianist Dolo Coker had just four opportunities to lead his own record dates during his career, all for the Xanadu label between 1976-1979. The title of this LP refers to the fact that the music is not California "cool jazz" but intense hard bop from the Golden State. In addition to bassist Leroy Vinnegar and drummer Frank Butler (who appear on Coker's first three Xanadu albums) and trumpeter Blue Mitchell (who was on the preceding LP Dolo), the great altoist Art Pepper (doubling on tenor) makes one of his very rare appearances as a sideman. The well-rounded set has originals by Coker, Pepper("Mr Yohe") and Mitchell (a drum feature for Butler on "Roots 4FB") along with a showcase for the trio ("Gone Again") and a vintage standard ("Gone with the Wind"). A strong effort. AMG.

listen here

Buy @ Amazon: USA - FR - UK

Hampton Hawes - I'm All Smiles 1966

Pianist Hampton Hawes led a trio during the 1960s and '70s that remained popular without compromising its sound or musical integrity. His phrasing and voicings could entice or amaze, and he displays great range, rhythmic vitality, and harmonic excellence during the five selections featured on this 1966 live date now reissued on CD. Hawes moves from the Afro-Latin feel of "Manha de Carnaval" to the brilliant chordal exposition on "Spring Is Here" and "The Shadow of Your Smile," before concluding with a flourish on "Searchin." Hawes is backed by wonderful bassist Red Mitchell and steady drummer Donald Bailey, who had both been with him for over a decade. They are not just a cohesive unit, but an intuitive team, maintaining a communication with him that is amazing even within a genre that demands it. AMG.

listen here

Buy @ Amazon: USA - FR - UK

Tom Johnston - Everything You've Heard Is True 1979

Best known for his guitar work in the Doobie Brothers, Tom Johnston was born August 15, 1948, in Visalia, CA. Johnston fell in love with R&B music at a young age and learned to play the songs of Little Richard, Bo Diddley, and James Brown when he received his first guitar at the age of 12. He played in soul, blues, and even a Mexican wedding band in his teens and continued playing in a blues group while attending college in San Jose. It was there he met the legendary lead singer of Moby Grape,Skip Spence, who was drumming for the Jefferson Airplane at the time. Spence introduced Johnstonto John Hartman and the two would play together in numerous bands, finally finding success when they formed the Doobie Brothers. 
Despite Johnston's disappointment that the first Doobies album went "Teflon" instead of gold or platinum, he stuck with the band and wrote "Listen to the Music" and "Rockin' Down the Highway" -- two songs that would be key to the band's massive success. A stomach ailment kept Johnston off the band's 1975 tour and his replacement -- Michael McDonald -- would eventually change the band's sound. Johnston didn't like where the band was going and decided to leave in 1977 for a solo career. His solo albums Everything You've Heard Is True from 1979 and Still Feels Good from 1981 failed to make much of an impact. In 1988, he rejoined the McDonald-less Doobies and wrote their minor 1989 hit, "The Doctor."  AMG.

listen here

Buy @ Amazon: USA - FR - UK

Wilson Pickett - I'm In Love 1968

Surely no one was expecting a "quiet storm" album from Wilson Pickett in 1968, and that sure isn't what they got with I'm in Love, but the Wicked Pickett sounds a lot more convincing on this album's romantic numbers than anyone would have had a right to expect from one of the baddest cats of Southern soul. Of course, there aren't all that many romantic ballads here, but Pickett's rough-and-ready soul shouting manages to sound just as convincing on "Bring It On Home to Me" and "That Kind of Love" as he does on the pained "Jealous Love" and a properly intense rip through "Stagger Lee."Pickett makes the most of the songwriting contributions from frequent collaborators Bobby Womackand Don Covay, while Tommy Cogbill and his crew of Muscle Shoals session heavyweights offer music which keeps up with Pickett for guts, soul, and drive -- no small statement, considering Pickett's richly deserved reputation as one of the strongest and most consistent artists of the period. Like most R&B albums of the period, I'm in Love sounds more like a set of tunes than a unified album, but it's a good set of tunes, performed with Pickett's usual high level of passion and skill, and if you're any kind of fan you'll revel in it . AMG.

listen here

Buy @ Amazon: USA - FR - UK

Ballin' Jack - Special Pride 1973

A jazz-rock instrumental sextet of the early '70s that charted briefly with its debut album Ballin' Jack and the single "Super Highway."  AMG.

listen here

Buy @ Amazon: USA - UK

Baby Face Willette - Mo-Roc 1964

After recording a handful of sessions for Blue Note in the early '60s (including two albums as a leader), organist Baby Face Willette abruptly left the label and soon resurfaced on Argo. Mo-Roc (titled Mo' Rock on the front cover only) is the first of Willette's two 1964 albums for Argo, and it's further proof that if Willette hadn't been so underexposed, he certainly wouldn't be quite so underrated. Mo-Roc is recorded in a trio format with guitarist Ben White and drummer Eugene Bass, who may not be up to the caliber of Blue Note players like Grant Green and Ben Dixon, but are competent and swinging nonetheless. Willette shines brightest on the hard-driving up-tempo cuts, swinging like a madman and displaying more melodic imagination on his instrument than straight blues players. Highlights in this vein include the charging title cut -- dedicated to Chicago's Moroccan Village neighborhood, whereWillette played frequently -- and "Zip Five," where the busy melody lines produce some explosive displays of chops from both Willette and White. Not all of the compositions make much of an impression -- some are basically just swinging, mid-tempo grooves -- but it's hard to miss the mysterious, atmospheric "Unseen and Unknown," Willette's tribute to an African witch doctor, which is punctuated by comically manic screams and dissonant, horror-film chords. Overall, Mo' Rock isn't quite up to the level of Willette's Blue Note sessions, but it's still a very respectable outing, and given the unfortunate skimpiness of his discography, his fans should find it rewarding enough to seek out the Japanese CD reissue. AMG.

listen here

Buy @ Amazon: USA - FR - UK

Elmo Hope - Meditations 1955

Although Elmo Hope was one of the more interesting jazz composers of the 1950s, the emphasis on his trio set with bassist John Ore and drummer Willie Jones is on Hope's piano playing. Influenced greatly by Bud Powell (his contemporary), Hope performs standards (such as "All the Things You Are" and "Falling in Love with Love") along with some originals, most of which are based on the chord changes of earlier songs. Fans of bop piano and Bud Powell will want this enjoyable CD reissue. AMG.

listen here

Buy @ Amazon: USA - FR - UK

Barry Melton - We Are Like The Ocean 1978

Guitarist Barry Melton entered music in his teens, in San Francisco, as a member of the Instant Action Jug Band, which was where he met Country Joe McDonald, a singer and guitar player who was also putting out an underground newspaper called Rag Baby. The two worked together on some of McDonald's recordings in support of his political journal, and out of that linkup they decided to form a band -- the resulting group was christened Country Joe & the Fish. Melton's lead guitar -- a searing psychedelic assault on the strings -- was as essential a part of the group's three classic albums asMcDonald's voice. Amid numerous personnel changes, especially after the third album, Together,Melton and McDonald formed the stable core of the band, which lasted into the late '60s. Melton held the group together after McDonald withdrew from full-time work with the group to get married, and he brought ex-Big Brother & the Holding Company members Peter Albin and David Getz aboard when they were left high and dry after Janis Joplin's split with the band. Working as Barry "The Fish" Melton, he continued as a solo act through the 1970s and into the 1980s, also fronting the Barry "The Fish" Melton Band. Melton has also been a practicing attorney since the early '80s; in more recent years, that career has apparently prevented Melton from participating in music as often as his former bandmates. AMG.

listen here

Buy @ Amazon: USA - FR - UK

Calvin Keys - Shawn-Neeq 1971

Jazz guitarist Calvin Keys is a legend among soul-jazz fans for his appearances as a session musician and his small catalog of releases under his own name. Known for his lean, muscular single-string solo style, Keys was born in 1943 in Omaha, Nebraska. His first musical influence was his father Otis, a well-known drummer on the city's music scene. He passed the music bug on to Calvin, who picked up the guitar early. Keys eventually landed his first notable gig as a member of Eddie "Cleanhead" Vinson's band when he was 17. He first hit the road with sax player Little Walkin' Willie during his that same year, before moving on to Kansas City. There his first gigs were with Preston Love (of the Count Basie Orchestra) and later the Frank Edwards Organ Trio. After woodshedding with Edwards, he landed a spot in organist Jimmy Smith's road trio. After leaving Smith, Keys worked the rest of the 1960s with Jimmy McGriff, Jack McDuff, and Richard "Groove" Holmes.
Keys moved to Los Angeles in 1970. In 1971, he signed to Gene Page's fledgling Black Jazz label and cut his debut album, the now legendary Shawn-Neeq. He gigged on his own before auditioning for the Ray Charles Orchestra.Keys' unique phrasing and his ability to balance sophisticated jazz harmonics with tough R&B and soul grooves were showcased nightly in the Charles band. In 1973, Black Jazz released Keys' second offering, Proceed with Caution. He toured briefly before being snapped up by Ahmad Jamal. Keys spent the next seven years with the pianist, recording six albums and touring the globe.

By 1975, Keys had relocated to the San Francisco Bay Area, where he became -- and remains -- an avid participant in its jazz community. He worked in live settings and recording sessions with John Handy, Bobby Hutcherson, Eddie Marshall, Leon Williams, Bob Braye, Ed Kelly, Eddie Duran, Bruce Forman, Junius Simmons, and Eddie Moore. In 1976, he played on Doug and Jean Carn's Ovation album Higher Ground. The 1980s proved similarly fruitful; Keys was an in-demand studio and live sideman, with credits including appearances with Tony Bennett, Pharoah Sanders, and Sonny Stitt. Keys began recording another solo album in 1984. In 1985, Olive Branch Records released tracks from these sessions as the album entitled Full Court Press; it was followed a year later by Maria's First.

Keys continued playing sessions and performing with touring acts in the Bay Area and the occasional Los Angeles gig. In 1991 he was part of the band that recorded film composer James Newton Howard's original score for the film Dying Young. Working with his own trio, Keys released Standard Keys on Lifeforce Records in 1992; his session and live work continued at a relentless pace, which eventually took its toll. Some of his work included reuniting with Jamal for the pianist's 1994 album Night Song for Motown's MoJazz imprint, and a tour of Europe that resulted in Jamal's Live in Paris 1996. An Evening with Calvin Keys, taken from a radio broadcast, was released that same year.
He was sidelined in 1997 by heart surgery, undergoing a quadruple bypass. Undaunted, he released the widely acclaimed Detours into Unconscious Rhythms on Wide Hive Records. The large cast included organist Chester Thompson (Ray Charles, Santana) and upright bassist Kenneth Nash (from Jamal's band). After the album's release, Keys toured regionally in the U.S. and in Europe before returning to the Bay Area, where he performed with organists Big John Patton and Dr. Lonnie Smith, and Taj Mahal. In 2005 Keys recorded Calvinesque for Silverado. The album hit number 30 on the jazz charts.
His second Wide Hive release, Vertical Clearance, was issued in 2006. It reunited Keys with Doug Carn, and included Phil Ranelin, Sonny Fortune, Roger Glenn, and Babatunde in its lineup. In 2007 Keys released Hand-Made Portrait on Silverado, and received a tribute from fellow Midwesterner -- and fan -- Pat Metheny, who composed and included the tune "Calvin’s Keys" on his album Day Trip.Keys appeared on Ranelin's Living a New Day for Wide Hive and on organist Gloria Coleman's Sweet Missy for Doodlin in 2009. In 2012 Tompkins Square Records re-released Shaw-Neeq exclusively on 180-gram vinyl. Keys supported it by touring with a band, performing the album in its entirety. AMG.

listen here new link

Buy @ Amazon: USA - FR - UK