Jazz /
Live ‘n Well
**In process of stocking** Rescued from relative obscurity by DJ Amir’s 180 Proof Records, BBE is delighted to present a gem from the tiny yet highly influential catalogue of Strata Records. Preceding New York’s Strata East, Detroit’s original Strata label issued only a handful of underground titles in the early 70’s, making it a ‘holy grail’ imprint among jazz lovers and record collectors the world over.
Released by Strata in 1974, Bert Myrick’s ‘Live ‘n Well’ was originally recorded by Strata …
Pause, And Think Again
Eargong Records present a reissue of John Taylor's Pause, And Think Again, originally released in 1971. Pianist John Taylor's debut album featuring an all-star octet with John Surman (soprano sax), Stan Sulzmann (alto sax), Kenny Wheeler (trumpet), Chris Pyne (trombone), Chris Laurence (bass), Tony Levin (drums), and Norma Winstone (vocals). A great example of the fine art of British jazz in its marvelous original gatefold cover. A precious object from an unrepeatable era. Licensed from Turtle R…
Soundmagnificat
* Restocked, reduced price. Last copies * "Soundmagnificat“ is the successor to "Soundnitia“ (GorBra Records F 665 532), the first release from the Talismen, an international group with Jamaican Tenor saxophonist Fitz Gore (born1935) as founder, spiritual and musical leader, main soloist. "Soundnitia“ contained concert performances of June, 1975, including compositions by John Coltrane, Horace Silver and one by Gérard "Prof. Dr. Splüm“ Ebbo, bassist of the Talismen.
This second offering from the…
Revisited
A compilation of lost tracks by the Zurich based Sextet “Jazz Community”. One of the most important Post-Bop and Modal Jazz bands from Europe, that featured the exceptional brass section of Hans Kennel (tp, flh), Paul Haag (tb) and Heiner Althaus (ts). Their most celebrated tracks from the rare LP’s "Jazz Community" and "Il Topo" are on one album. All recordings produced in 1979 at the studio of Bruno Spoerri and in 1983 in concert at The Club in Rubigen, Bern. Lovingly restored and remastered i…
Invisible Roots
** First LP reissue of rare 1974 Canadian Free Jazz album ** Beyond the striking photography of the cover artwork, a cursory glance at this LP may appear misleading. One could be forgiven in thinking that what they had discovered was of a more obvious British provenance, but on closer inspection the truth is revealed… London in fact refers to London, Canada, an artistic hotbed that famously spawned the highly influential insurgent noise ensemble, ‘The Nihilist Spam Band’. Less celebrated yet equ…
Four Units
** Reissued for the first time with its original gatefold sleeve and cover ** Four Units is a kind of Japanese jazz "all star". Recorded in Tokyo on April 1969, it was released the same year on Union records. On the first two long songs that open this album, “Four Units” and “Dull Slumber”, we can feel the influence of the “avant-garde” scene of US jazz (and in particular ESP Disk), without however the music sounding too "free". A whole new vibe on the astonishing cover of "Scarborough Fair", in…
Misty
*2022 stock* Few, if any, international audiophile jazz recordings have maintained the kind of deep and profound influence over techniques and even entire label repretoire as Three Blind Mice's Blow Up, Midnight Sugar and Misty. Originally recorded in Tokyo in 1974, this Piano Trio release from TBM features Tsuyoshi Yamamoto on piano, Isoo Fukui on bass and Tetsujiro Obara on drums. The of-the-moment realism of Yoshihiko Kannari's recordings and production aesthetic of producer and label head Ta…
Lush Life
* Limited edition 180 gram solid purple coloured vinyl. 2020 Stock * Lush Life (1958) is among John Coltrane's best endeavors on the Prestige label. One reason can easily be attributed to the interesting personnel and the subsequent lack of a keyboard player for the August 16, 1957 session that yielded the majority of the material. Coltrane (tenor sax) had to essentially lead the compact trio of himself, Earl May (bass), and Art Taylor (drums). The intimate setting is perfect for ballads such as…
Compassion
I have to admit that I'm biased in favor of Charles Tolliver. He plays with a combination of strength and sweetness that goes beyond mere language. The fact that he is self taught is more miraculous. This particular recording has the best sound quality I've ever heard. The clarity is stunning and all the music is magnificent. The recording is so good, one can hear the sound of a musician's fingertips accidentally brushing across the bass strings, for example. Alvin Queen is always brilliant on t…
Africa / Brass
* Limited edition 180 gram solid orange coloured vinyl. 2020 Stock * This 1961 Impulse album was particularly notable for Coltrane’s use of the ex- panded sound provided by a ‘big band’ with trumpets, trombone, baritone sax, Eric Dolphy’s bass clarinet and flute, and (most unusually) French horns, euphonium and tuba. Overlaying this backing is one of Coltrane’s great quartets with Messrs. Tyner (who, with Dolphy, did the arranging), Workman and Jones. The album’s centrepiece is the extended Colt…
Mona Lisa - Moldejazz 73
* Edition of 500 * An amazing loft tape find of a Norwegian Jazz concert suite taped at Molde Jazz Festival 1973, Christian Reim’s sextet Mona Lisa features Norway's top jazzmen at the time and it’s a rollercoaster post-bop showcase with influences from modal and spiritual jazz with folk undertones and pop psychedelia, one of a kind, never previously released and in great sound quality!
Swing
Big Tip! 2024 Stock. Edition of 300. Swedish free jazz trio consisting of piano, double bass and drums. The trio has during the years since their first recording moved from composition-like melodies, riffs and rhythms to 100% improvised music. However, the trio has strong roots in “conventional” jazz which shines through from time to time with tough swing and clear rhythms and melodies. Correction has received fine reviews from all over the world for their releases, the strong point being their …
I'll Remember
LP version. Tip-on sleeve. For every celebrated name in jazz, soul and related music, there are probably another 1000 musicians who had all the talent and potential but for whom widespread recognition remained elusive. Roscoe Weathers is one such figure, a jazzman who earned his chops the hard way, a sideman in smoky clubs from Memphis to Seattle, before finally settling in LA. He recorded a significant amount of music through the 1960s, but never found the slightest modicum of commercial acclai…
Filles De Kilimanjaro
**180-gram audiophile vinyl** Filles de Kilimanjaro (named after the Kilimanjaro African Coffee) is one the many masterpieces American composer and trumpeter Miles Davis recorded during his lifetime. It can be seen as a transitional album, right between his “acoustic” and “electric” period. He recorded this incredible work of modern jazz together with music great's such as Wayne Shorter, Herbie Hancock, and Chick Corea. The five different songs all fitting together as expressions of the same bas…
Nights of Ballads & Blues
As the title implies, this McCoy Tyner release is a low-key, after-hours affair. Far removed from the intensity of work with then-boss John Coltrane, Tyner stretches out on a fine mix of standards and bebop classics. The pianist, of course, always had his own fleet and rich way with ballads, in spite of the galvanizing marathon solos he became known for on live dates and his later experimental recordings with Coltrane. His ballad style is even touched with a bit of sentimentality, which thankful…
Swing, Waltz, Swing
*2022 stock* Three – instead of – four this figure can mean a whole different world, when it comes to beats. Whereas the even number lets you march straight, turns right-angled, divides itself symmetrically, the odd rhythm goes around in circles and whirls. One heavy step, followed by two light ones, that can not go straight, that has to turn and turn and turn. The old Vienna and its young people was once ruled by “Waltz speeding” as today the beat shakes up even country dancefloors. Yet, that c…
Music For Small Hours
*2022 stock* Had it not been for the post-war migration of many top American jazz musicians to Europe, it is quite likely that the legendary Clarke-Boland Big Band might never have come into existence. As it happened, when Gigi Campi set up the first big band record date in Cologne on December 13, 1961, (Jazz Is Universal for the Atlantic label), he was able to call upon such distinguished self-exiled jazz stars as Benny Bailey (originally from Cleveland, Ohio), Sahib Shihab (Savannah, Georgia),…
Smoke Stack
On his second Blue Note album Smoke Stack, pianist and composer Andrew Hill used an unusual line-up of two bassists (Richard Davis and Eddie Khan) along with the masterful Roy Haynes on drums. Blue Note founder Alfred Lion considered Hill to have as distinct and important a compositional voice as Thelonious Monk, and the seven Hill compositions that the quartet explore here contain all the rare beauty to be found in his music. Designer Reid Miles photographed Hill himself for the striking album …
In 'N Out
Recorded in April 1964, In ‘N Out falls square in the middle of the formidable run of five classic Blue Note albums that launched tenor saxophonist Joe Henderson’s legendary career. The line-up featured the transcendent frontline of Henderson and trumpeter Kenny Dorham along with a powerful rhythm section with pianist McCoy Tyner, bassist Richard Davis, and drummer Elvin Jones. The music charted expansive post-bop territory on three Henderson’s originals (“In ‘N Out” “Punjab” “Serenity”) and two…
Mr. Jones
After his six years with the seminal John Coltrane Quartet, the mighty drummer Elvin Jones signed with Blue Note Records in 1968 and made a series of 10 fantastic albums including 1972’s Mr. Jones, produced by Francis Wolff and George Butler, and featuring saxophonists Dave Liebman, Steve Grossman, and Pepper Adams, Thad Jones on flugelhorn, pianist Jan Hammer, bassist Gene Perla, and percussionists Carlos “Patato” Valdes, Frank Ippolito, and Albert Duffy. The music delves into expansive post-bo…