Jothan Callins- Winds of Change  Jothan Callins released one album as a band leader- Winds of Change, which captures everything that I revel in when listening to the less well travelled jazz records I’ve been seeking: engaging compositions, stunning performances and impressive sonics. Though Callins was known as a bassist, he plays trumpet on this album (Cecil McBee handles the bass and glorious it is). Released as a one and done on Triumph Records, there is a little information about Callins and almost nothing about the sessions. Born in Birmingham, Alabama, Callins played with a long... Read More

Cecil McBee- Mutima (Strata-East)  I didn’t appreciate how much I enjoyed listening to Cecil McBee until I started to sift through some of the records I loved and found him credited as the bassist. This album, Mutima, features McBee as bandleader and composer and it’s a killer. The first track, “From Within,” begins with bowed bass- what sounded like double stops to me is apparently two basses. Some commentators on the web have talked about McBee playing two instruments simultaneously, which I find a little implausible; more likely overdubbing. (I did send a note to Mr. McBee to... Read More

Ronnie Boykins (The Will Come, Is Now) Ronnie Boykins was a disciple of Sun Ra’s Arkestra with a long list of credits as a bassist.  This album, which is Boykins’ sole release as a band leader, is great fun. It starts with “The Will Come, Is Now,” a good simple bass line that is joined by an agglomeration of horns that sound, well, a little “off”—maybe somewhat out of tune, a little discordant, it could be just a free jazz thing where everybody is playing something different, but I find it amusing. They knock it into shape as they get going, though, and it gets better as... Read More

Black Jazz Records -Theo Parrish’s Black Jazz Signature  The Black Jazz Records label is becoming increasingly collectible due to some powerful albums that cross multiple modern jazz boundaries. This compilation of some of the great tracks from that label, compiled by DJ Theo Parrish, is an inexpensive introduction to some of the artists and tracks whose work made that label legendary. It does not contain all the best work to be found on the label, but there is enough here not only to whet your appetite, but to satisfy. Two LPs, four sides, it starts with a Doug Carn track from his... Read More

Robin Trower- Twice Removed From Yesterday Robin Trower released this album a year before his classic Bridge of Sighs. Although it is probably overshadowed by the latter’s popularity, it has just as much power and is bluesier in its orientation. It’s also an excellent hard rock recording. I’m listening to an early UK pressing, which is cheap enough (shipping to the States notwithstanding). You don’t have to wait long for the pay-off: that hard, bluesy guitar with distorted edges rippling with fuzz and echo jumps right out on the first track, “I Can’t Wait Much Longer,” which... Read More

Clifford Jordan- Glass Bead Games Glass Bead Games is the second albumJordan released on Strata-East in 1974, following In the World in 1972. Like In the World, it relies on two different groups of musicians, including Stanley Cowell, one of the co-founders of the label and Bill Lee, whose family participated on The Descendants of Mike and Phoebe reviewed here.  Unlike In the World, Glass Bead Games is a two record set. The album seems to garner universal praise, with prices to match. It has been reissued on vinyl several times. I thought it might be helpful for readers, both those... Read More