Author: TJ Gorton

Byard Lancaster ‎– My Pure Joy

Strut releases Byard Lancaster’s 1992 soulful spiritual jazz album ‘My Pure Joy’ on vinyl for the first time

Following last year’s phenomenal compilation Soul Love Now and a number of revisited album releases from groundbreaking artists like Oneness Of Juju (aka Juju), Lon Moshe, and others, London’s Strut Records continues it’s ongoing spotlight on the now considered legendary Richmond, Virginia label Black Fire (run by Jimmy Gray) with a reissue of the late Philadelphia reedman Byard Lancaster’s 1992 soulful spiritual jazz recording My Pure Joy. Originally released on CD three years after it was recorded, due the label’s financial challenges, this marks the first time this album has ever been released on vinyl.

Jose Mauro — A Viagem Das Horas

Far Out Recordings releases José Mauro’s 1970 forgotten Brazilian masterpiece ‘A Viagem Das Horas’

In what comes with a remarkable backstory, London’s Far Out Recordings has reissued for the first time ever, the 1970 forgotten masterpiece from Brazilian composer, singer, and guitarist José Mauro, titled A Viagem Das Horas. This exciting new issue of the recording also includes three previously unreleased and unheard tracks from the original studio sessions.

Color De Tropico Vol 2

El Palmas Music releases Vol.2 of their brilliant ‘Color de Trópico’ series featuring the sounds of 60s & 70s-era Venezuela

Following the release of last year’s incredible Color de Trópico compilation (which made the list of BeatCaffeine’s “Favorite Compilations of 2020“), the Barcelona-based label El Palmas Music returns with the highly-anticipated second volume of the series, further shining a light on some of the most obscure gems out of Venezuela during the sixties and seventies.

Sons Of Kemet — Black To The Future

Explosive London-based quartet Sons of Kemet return with adventurous & collaborative album ‘Black To The Future’

The groundbreaking London-based two horn-two drummer quartet known as Sons of Kemet featuring saxophonist Shabaka Hutchings, tuba player Theon Cross, and drummers Tom Skinner and Edward Wakili-Hick have returned following their breakthrough 2018 Mercury Prize-nominated album Your Queen Is a Reptile, with their most adventurous and collaborative album to date, titled Black To The Future.

Melodies Record Club 001 — Four Tet

Melodies International ‘Record Club’ kicks off with two jazz dance classics selected by Four Tet

London-based reissue label Melodies International, run by Floating Points (aka Sam Shepherd) and Mafalda, have just launched their Melodies Record Club series featuring “mini compilations” in a twelve-inch format selected by notable DJs and artists. The series kicks off with a bang, with highly-acclaimed and innovative producer and DJ Four Tet (aka Kieran Hebden) selecting two peak-time jazz dance classics that he used to spin regularly at the now legendary Plastic People nightclub in London.

Carlos Nino — More Energy Fields, Current

LA-based percussionist & producer Carlos Niño with a superb cast of musicians release cosmic ambient jazz masterpiece

You know that moment, often in a time of frustration or in a stressful state, when you are seeking for something to help transport you to another peaceful and meditative dimension? The prolific Los Angeles-based producer, percussionist, and DJ Carlos Niño and superb cast of musicians, many at the center of the creative music scene in Southern California, have provided that spiritual transportation through an absolute cosmic ambient jazz masterpiece recording, titled More Energy Fields, Current on Chicago’s International Anthem label.

Da Lata — Jungle Kitten

London’s Da Lata covers Manfredo Fest’s Brazilian fusion classic “Jungle Kitten” on brilliant new single

The London-based Afro-Brazilian soulful jazz duo known as Da Lata, featuring multi-instrumentalist and producer Chris Franck and legendary DJ and producer Patrick Forge (Dingwalls) have returned with an incredible new twelve-inch single featuring new renditions of two essential Brazilian jazz dance classics in Manfredo Fest’s 1979 “Jungle Kitten” and Raffaela Renzulli Ensemble’s 1987 “Asking Eyes”.

James Brandon Lewis — Jesup Wagon

NYC saxophonist James Brandon Lewis & Red Lily Quintet release astonishing new album ‘Jesup Wagon’

Over the past decade, New York City based tenor saxophonist and composer James Brandon Lewis has made his mark as one of the leading and most cutting-edge artists in jazz. Voted “Rising Star Tenor Saxophonist” in the 2020 DownBeat Magazine International Critic’s Poll, Lewis very much carries on the torch of those great saxophonists that came before him, like John Coltrane, Ornette Coleman, Eric Dolphy, Albert Ayler, Pharoah Sanders and others. He has just released his highly-anticipated new album with his group the Red Lily Quintet, titled Jesup Wagon on the Brooklyn-based AUM Fidelity label.