Jazz Is Dead kicks off their second series with an incredible compilation previewing the next wave of releases

FEATURED RELEASES

Jazz Is Dead kicks off their second series with an incredible compilation previewing the next wave of releases

After 10 outstanding releases over two years featuring new music by Roy Ayers, Azymuth, Gary Bartz, Doug Carn, João Donato, Brian Jackson, and Marcos Valle, Jazz Is Dead’s masterminds Adrian Younge and Ali Shaheed Muhammad are just getting started, as they have kicked off the second series of releases with an incredible new compilation highlighting standout tracks from the next wave of releases.

With Series 2, Younge and Muhammad have once again, pulled together a roster of legendary artists like Henry Franklin of the iconic Black Jazz label, the cosmic jazz-funk great Lonnie Liston Smith, Phil Ranelin and Wendell Harrison of Detroit’s Tribe collective, the soul and spiritual jazz vocalist Jean Carne, and the late Afrobeat pioneer Tony Allen. The series also includes lesser known Los Angeles-based multi-instrumentalist Garrett Saracho, who released the influential En Medio album on Impulse! Records, and Katalyst, a collective of highly talented younger artists moving the music forward. Throughout each session, Younge and Ali Shaheed play a heavy role in the direction of the music, with the goal to recapture the spirit of these great’s “golden era” of recordings, while still creating something fresh and new.

Similar to their debut compilation release, this new eight-track record features some of the standout tracks from each session, which will eventually be released as it’s own album. Brilliant from start to finish, every track really stands on it own, while Lonnie Liston Smith’s “Love Brings Happiness” and Jean Carne’s “Come As You Are” are absolutely two of the best tracks of the year.

Overall, this well-crafted and impressive new compilation provides a nice glimpse into a string of highly anticipated forthcoming releases to get very excited about.