Heavy, chilling Channel One.
Horace is in deep; jittery and urgent. Sly is surgically trigger-happy.
Killer.

Pianist James Edward Manuel’s only release; amongst the deepest custom-press jazz recordings of them all.
Jaman studied under greats like Horace Parlan. Gigging on the Buffalo club scene, one of his early trios included the renowned bassist John Heard and drummer Clarence Becton, till both were poached one night by a visiting Jon Hendricks. Other sidemen include Sun Ra Arkestra bassist Juini Booth and Ahmad Jamal regular Sabu Adeyola.
Pressed in tiny quantities by the Mark Records custom service in 1974, and issued with a stock landscape cover, Sweet Heritage presents a soulful mixture of covers and originals. In particular, the flying, spiritual sound of Free Will and the upful, Latin-tinged In The Fall Of The Year — both Jaman compositions — have turned the LP into a legendary collector’s classic.

Eniola Famodimu’s UK house monster back to stalk the earth, more than twenty years on.
Co-produced and mixed by Chris Simmonds — hardcore HJ massive in those days.

Terrific, gospelised, soulful disco by Gwendolyn Dennison, produced for P&P by Arthur Manning and P. J. Wyatt, making a change from Greg Carmichael or Patrick Adams.
Theo and Floating Points both rinse it.

No surprise that JC does the absolute business over this scorching do-over of Winston Riley’s Nothing Is Impossible rhythm (as nailed originally by the Interns / Viceroys).

Spine-tinglingly yearning, yet dignified, rootical rocksteady classic — one of Phil Pratt’s top tunes, limpidly delivered by Lynn Taitt — with an ace Tommy McCook version.

‘As deeply rooted in soul’s past as you’d expect, but it never feels self-consciously retro… strikingly raw, racked with very real emotion’ (The Guardian).

‘By turns gleeful, sensitive, urgent and ruminative, this is a brilliant set that plays to the trio’s formidable strengths… Hearteningly delightful contemporary music-making’ (The Guardian).
‘A spare, de-cluttered, étude-like qualitymusic of sometimes unassuming but penetrating emotion and structural focus… full of the detail given to artists with powers of judgment to match the command of their instruments’ (Jazzwise).

With Larry Young, Elvin Jones, and Bobby Hutcherson.

‘Young is exceptional, very much on form, and Hutcherson makes an enormous contribution to a slower-paced and more meditative session than he’d normally favour’ (Penguin Guide to Jazz).
‘Bittersweet and beautiful, Street Of Dreams will be enjoyed by anyone who loves Idle Moments’ (All About Jazz).

Full-on, sex-hungry, hard-grooving, rock-steady, into-the-future electric blues.
Check out Muddy dancing in his last minute on stage. Otis Spann led the closer — torch-carrying verses by Langston Hughes — because the boss was so knackered.
Look at all the people laughing, shouting out, swaying in their deck-chairs… and wonder about Dylan causing such a cataclysmic stink five long years later, on the same stage, going electric the same way (on the same type of Telecaster).

On harp and piano — with Pharoah Sanders (soprano sax), Vishnu Wood (oud), Rashied Ali (drums), Cecil McBee (bass), Charlie Haden (bass), Majid Shabazz (bells, tambourine), Tulsi (tamboura).
Transcendent jazz from 1970; full fathom five deep but compellingly accessible. Our favourite of all her records, and over the decades our first recommendation as an introduction to her work.
According to AC’s sleeve note, ‘Anyone listening to this selection should try to envision himself floating on an ocean of Satchinandaji’s love, which is literally carrying countless devotees across the vicissitudes and stormy blasts of life to the other shore.’

Transportingly sublime, dazzlingly virtuosic Carnatic chanting in Sanskrit about female divinity, accompanied by mridangam drums, bells and tambura drone. Beautifully recorded, in Chennai. The chorus singing is the coup de grace.
Ravishing, restorative music; hotly recommended.