Zaimie’s Black Velvet: A Smooth Sonic Mosaic of Jazz, Soul, and Global Groove

With their long-awaited album Black Velvet, Scottish-based ensemble Zaimie delivers a vibrant, genre-defying journey through lush jazz harmonies, deep funk rhythms, and heartfelt soul vocals—all polished with a global sensibility. Released on May 23, 2025, the album marks a bold step forward for the band following the success of their standout single “Feel The Rush.”

Anchored by the creative duo Zaidi Kiggundu and Jamie McShane, Black Velvet is a meticulously crafted album recorded at the Sugar Shack studio in Carluke, Scotland. The 11-track set includes contributions from vocalist Suzy Duffy, who adds emotional depth to three of the album’s most poignant cuts: the uplifting opener “New Life,” the irresistibly groovy “Can’t Do Without It,” and the heartfelt ballad “I Need You.”

Instrumentally, the album is a masterclass in modern production and live musicianship. Kiggundu handles keyboards, bass, and guitar, while McShane lays down crisp drum programming and additional basslines. Horn arrangements—elegant and punchy—are the work of Kiggundu, McShane, Ewan Mains (trumpet/flugelhorn), and James Steele (tenor & baritone saxophone), giving the album its signature cinematic flair.

From the smooth sensuality of the title track “Black Velvet” to the breezy funk of “Weekend Breeze” and the energetic anthem “Top Of It,” the album radiates intention and polish. The lyrical themes explore love, longing, transformation, and the inner rhythm of city nights—songs that connect both on the dance floor and in more reflective moments.

With artwork by Al Kent and released via Splash Music Productions, Black Velvet is more than just an album—it’s a statement. It’s Zaimie in full bloom, proving that their genre-blending identity is no passing phase but a mature, resonant musical voice worth turning up loud.

Tracklist Highlights:

1. New Life (ft. Suzy Duffy) – A soulful, optimistic opener.

2. Black Velvet – A sultry, funk-infused title track.

3. State of Mind – A moody, late-night jazz number with swagger.

4. Feel The Rush – The high-energy single that started it all.

5. In Too Deep – A haunting closer with layered vocal textures.

Whether you’re after sophisticated soul, groove-heavy funk, or smooth jazz to soundtrack your next sunset, Black Velvet is the experience you didn’t know you were waiting for.

Sarah Wilson Ignites Community Euphoria with Brass Tonic’s New Album “Incandescence”

Community spirit has been a constant in the work of composer and trumpet player Sarah Wilson, whose experiences and inspirations have ranged from socially conscious puppet theater to brass band and New Orleans traditions to her own illuminating style of jazz. When musicians are truly inspired and connected with one another, Wilson describes, time seems to stand still for artist and listener alike.  

“Time just evaporates,” Wilson says, “and you’re completely immersed in feeling the euphoria and joy of being in this creative moment. You forget everything else that is happening in space and time, while paradoxically the music is moving through time.”

During a 2023 artist residency in Krems, Austria, the Bay Area-based Wilson experienced a similar epiphany when she encountered the paintings of Viennese artist Thomas Reinhold. One of the founding figures of German “New Painting” or “Junge Wilde,” Reinhold’s large-scale work combines architectural planning with the chance effects of time. Wilson’s reaction to the paintings inspired the music on Incandescence, the joy-fueled new album by her sextet Brass Tonic. 

Out July 18, 2025 via Wilson’s own Brass Tonic Records and co-produced by Wilson and Grammy Award-winning producer Hans Wendl, Incandescence was commissioned by InterMusic SF’s Musical Grant Program. It draws equal inspiration from Reinhold’s bold, multi-hued abstracts and from the street-level, community-spirited traditions of brass band, marching and New Orleans parade music. In Brass Tonic, Wilson combines an all-woman horn frontline – herself, alto saxophonist Kasey Knudsen, and trombonist Mara Fox – with the buoyant rhythm section of guitarist John Schott, bassist Lisa Mezzacappa, and, for this recording, drummers Jon Arkin and Tim Bulkley.

Brass Tonic played its first gig in 2022, but the seeds for the band were planted more than 20 years before, when Wilson performed with and composed for NYC drummer Kenny Wollesen’s protest-minded marching jazz band, Himalayas. Or perhaps even earlier, when she toured the world playing music with Vermont’s politically radical and community-oriented Bread & Puppet Theater during the 1990s. “Coming from that background of street theater and traditional New Orleans music, my music is always something that you can dance to,” Wilson explains. “Marching band music has to be simple, but I wanted to hone it into more developed music with a similar vibe.”

Stemming in part from the socially conscious aspects of those earlier projects as well as her experience in ensembles like the Montclair Women’s Big Band, Wilson was determined to forefront women in her new sextet. “I wanted to be intentional about that,” she insists. “It feels empowering to have a majority of women in the band, and in particular to have all women horn players. That's one area in classical and jazz music, where there's a bit of a lag in terms of equity.”

Earlier music for the band was written in 2022 during Wilson’s time at the Djerassi Resident Artists Program in Woodside, California. Through that connection, she traveled to Austria for the AIR-Artist in Residence Niederösterreich, through which she was given free rein to explore the arts-rich town of Krems, 50 miles outside of Vienna. There she found Reinhold’s work in the State Gallery of Lower Austria. “These incredible paintings just looked like music to me,” Wilson says.

Wilson has a history of composing music in response to visual art. In 2011-12 she was an artist fellow at San Francisco’s de Young Museum, where she collaborated on a music and aerial dance performance inspired by the Harlem Renaissance painter Aaron Douglas. “She Stands in a Room,” one of the pieces on Wilson’s 2010 album Trapeze Project, drew from a sculpture by Nicolas Africano in the de Young’s collection.

At the State Gallery of Lower Austria, Wilson was given the unique opportunity to set up a mobile studio in the gallery, allowing her to write music in real time while interacting directly with the paintings. The residency also connected her with the artist himself, facilitating a trip to Reinhold’s studio to discuss his artistic methodology – including his love of John Coltrane’s music. “His process is based on a space time modality,” Wilson relates. “He imagines everything he's going to paint and sketches it out, which is very architectural. Then he layers coats of paint, goes off and lets it dry, and returns later to paint more layers – meaning that he's dealing with elements created in a different space and time.” 

Three of the compositions on Incandescence – “Architecture in Space,” “Music Appears to Stand Still,” and “Echoes Refrain” – resulted from Wilson’s Austrian residency. But they share with the remainder of the album’s songs a bright, iridescent sense of joy and ebullience encapsulated in the album’s title. 

“When you have visceral, powerful experience with art or music, that is the essence of joy for me,” Wilson concludes. “I really respond to that ability for music to evoke strong feelings. That’s what I really wanted to happen with this project. I want people to feel good and to have that experience of joy.”

Saul Dautch's 'Music for the People' Elevates the Baritone Sax in a Stirring Jazz Debut

SAUL DAUTCH jokes that playing the baritone sax is a dirty job, but someone has to do it. The good news is, he does it so well. Now, the composer and arranger is releasing his debut album, MUSIC FOR THE PEOPLE, a collection of seven original compositions and one rarely recorded number by Duke Pearson.

Although the baritone sax is a demanding instrument, Dautch’s prowess has led to gigs with many world-class big bands, including the Glenn Miller Orchestra, the Robert Edwards Big Band, John Yao and his 17-Piece Instrument, the Orlando Jazz Orchestra, Bill O’Connell’s Afro Caribbean Ensemble, and many more. He has also been a featured soloist on several albums by the Flying Horse Big Band at the University of Central Florida, where he earned his Bachelor of Music degree. He then went on to earn a Master of Music in Jazz Studies at Rutgers University’s Mason Gross School of the Arts in New Jersey. After completing his degree, Dauch decamped to Brooklyn where he works as a freelance musician, educator, composer/arranger and soloist.

Dautch returned to UCF in 2024 to temporarily lead the Flying Horse Big Band to fill in for Jeff Rupert, the Director of Jazz Studies, who is on sabbatical. Dautch will be returning to Brooklyn soon.

Dautch discovered his affinity for the baritone sax and other lower range instruments when he was just 15 years old. He says, “My family isn’t particularly musical, but friends turned me on to jazz when I was very young. Unlike most of the other young musicians, I always felt I found my own voice on the bari rather than the tenor or alto. It was important to me to find my own specific sound, and I guess others heard it too, because soon everyone started telling me I was a bari player. It was niche I just sort of fell into, but it suited me well.”

Dautch hails from Delray Beach, Florida, where his musical journey began at the International Baccalaureate program at Atlantic Community High School. While in high school, he attended a jazz summer camp, where he met Mike Brignola, the great baritone sax player who led the Woody Herman Band. Brignola was impressed with Dautch’s playing and took him on as a private student.

Joining Dautch on this album are some younger, top-notch, New York-based players, including trumpeter NOAH HALPERN (Wynton Marsalis, Jason Moran, Ulysses Owens, Lalah Hathaway), pianist MIKI YAMANAKA (Antonio Hart, Harish Raghavan Quintet, The Mingus Big Band), bass player LOUIE LEAGER (Rodney Whitaker, Roy Hargrove, Brian Lynch), and drummer HANK ALLEN-BARFIELD (Samara Joy, Emmet Cohen, Vincent Herring, Mike LeDonne).

Dautch wrote most of the music for this album during the Covid lockdown, when he kept his chops up by busking in Washington Square Park in Greenwich Village. The album reflects the challenges and growth he experienced in his first five years in the city.

Dautch is acutely aware of all the support he received from his teachers and mentors along the way, and dedicates the album to them. The “People” in the album title refers to all the people who have helped him through the years -- the people he played for in the park, and all the musicians and friends who enrich his life.

The music on MUSIC FOR THE PEOPLE is composed in a range of styles, but all the compositions are firmly rooted in jazz. Dautch opens the album with “Hello Bright Sunflower,” by Duke Pearson. Pepper Adams, the great baritone saxophonist, is one of his major influences, and this cheerful number was originally performed by the Donald Byrd/Pepper Adams quintet in 1962. Dautch’s version is a nod to that legendary baritone saxophone/trumpet duo.

Dautch began composing “Nighttime on the Red Line” on the subway late at night when he was returning home to Brooklyn after a jam session at Smalls in Manhattan. For Dautch, this composition brings to mind the sounds, sights, and even the smells of New York City. Dautch has two, frisky Bengal cats named after Norse Gods, Odin and Freya. He wrote “Odious Din,” which means a very unpleasant noise, for his very vocal and often destructive cat. The band gainsays the cat’s harsh sound by creating a more joyful noise.

Dautch wrote “Grateful” for his father who passed away far too young in 2019. Dautch says, “Without him I would not be the man I am today, and I owe a lot of my musical taste to him. His favorite band was the Grateful Dead, and while this song isn’t really reminiscent of their music, I thought a nice double entendre for the title would be fitting.” Dautch wrote “L’Chaim” shortly after learning of the unexpected passing of a close cousin who was an advocate for Jews around the world. He always wore a signature hat with a Chai (Hebrew word for life) on it.

Dautch was prompted to write “The Guru” by one of his teachers, Dr. Anthony Branker, during his graduate studies at Rutgers. Dautch says, “His teaching style empowered me to make some unique harmonic choices, and I feel like it allowed me to write differently thank my usual voice. The vibe of this one sounds like a Wayne Shorter tune. I dedicate this one to all of my mentors along my musical journey.”

Dautch is a fan of Japanese anime, and “The Climbing Silver” refers to a sacrifice made by one of his favorite anime characters. Dautch had the work of Eddie Harris and Roy Hargrove in mind when he was writing the tune. Dautch wrote “Bacher’s Batch” to honor the wonderful memories he made at summer jazz camps in South Florida where he grew up. One of his first mentors was a guitarist and educator named Neil Bacher, and his ensemble at the camp was known as Bacher‘s Batch. It was where he discovered and began fostering his true love for jazz.

Saul Dautch is still a young man who, considering his talents as a musician and a composer, is destined to make his mark in the jazz world. Backed by a band of equally talented players, Dautch’s melodic baritone stylings and warm sound, as well as his hip, catchy compositions, make MUSIC FOR THE PEOPLE an outstanding introduction for this rising jazz star.

 

Fuubutsushi Share “Light in the Annex,” a Raw, Exploratory Cut from Their First-Ever Live Set — Columbia Deluxe

Today, acclaimed ambient-jazz quartet Fuubutsushi share “Light in the Annex,” the second preview from Columbia Deluxe, their forthcoming album documenting the project’s first and only live performance—out July 11 via American Dreams. Formed as a remote collaboration during lockdown between four prolific, far-flung multi-instrumentalists—Patrick Shiroishi (The Armed, Wild Up), Chris Jusell (Rosalía, Lizzo, Silk Sonic), Chaz Prymek (Lake Mary), and Matthew Sage (Shabason, Krgovich, Sage)—the track offers another vivid glimpse of Fuubutsushi at their most exploratory and present, charged with the unpredictability of a debut performance.

On the newly released track, Fuubutushi share: "This was a really fun and rare opportunity for us to play a song live before releasing a recording. We were just starting to put together ideas for what would become Meridians, and “Light in the Annex” was an early contender. This version feels a little more wiley compared to the studio/album version. We find some pockets where we can really push moments of disorder or tension and release, which was certainly part of the experience for everyone—anticipation, tension, wonder, relief, and joy all mixed together."

“The music of Fuubutsushi,” Prymek says, “started as a recording project that turned into deep friendships.” After composing music remotely for their acclaimed cycle of four albums for each of the four seasons, the quartet transformed the music in concert at the Columbia Experimental Music Festival: Shiroishi on saxophones and field recordings, Jusell on violin, Sage on piano and synthesizer, and Prymek on guitar and bass, sharing bells, voice and electronics as a group. “I think we were all pretty nervous about it,” says Shiroishi, “but the audience was with us the entire time and really gave us an incredible amount of energy.” “Part of the thrill,” says Sage, “was that we knew the songs separately, kind of on our own terms. And how it felt to finally turn this music, which we made in such a physically isolated way, to finally come into being in person, for a really receptive audience in a really beautiful room.”

“Now,” says Prymek, “what you hear out of us is that energy spilling back into our music.” It flows seamlessly from one song to the next, giving the band room to range while maintaining structure. “Bolted Orange” runs just over three minutes on the band’s self-titled debut album: here the band expands it to ten, blossoming, like the first half of the album, around Prymek’s winding, circular guitar lines. Guitar introduces that song and “Shepherd’s Stroll,” followed by declarative piano from Sage. Saxophone and violin either outline the chordal instruments’ color or push them in new directions. In keeping with past releases, the band incorporates field recordings of Japanese Americans talking about their experience in American internment camps during WWII into the music, inviting listeners to confront the past, present and future.

 

John Stein Revisits a Hidden Gem of Jazz Camaraderie with “Among Friends” — His 20th Album, Decades in the Making

In 1997, just two years after the versatile guitarist JOHN STEIN launched his extraordinary three-decade career as a recording artist, he invited cellist CHRIS WHITE and vocalist FAY WHITTAKER to his home for a spirited, live session in his living room. Stein borrowed a DAT recorder, mixer, and some mics from Berklee College of Music where he was a professor in the Harmony Department and recorded four guitar/cello/vocal trio pieces and two guitar/cello duets. He later recorded four guitar/vocal duets with Whittaker in his office at Berklee after hours using the same equipment. For his 20th album, Stein is finally releasing these sessions with a title that captures the trio’s great camaraderie: AMONG FRIENDS.  

Stein’s cohorts are longtime pals from his early performance days, both prominent performers in the Northeast. The guitarist first met White when he lived in Vermont and, newly interested in playing jazz, was looking for great collaborators. White, a classically trained cellist with special affinity for improvisational music and many other styles, became a favorite. The cello provides a wonderful duet possibility for the guitar, capable of providing both a bass part and soaring melody. Based now in Ithaca, NY, White has performed and taught around the U.S., Canada, Europe, and North Africa. The founder and former director of the New Directions Cello Festival (a haven for alternative uses for the instrument), White’s latest solo album is Song for Rob (2018), a set of original acoustic world jazz with a Spanish flair. 

Later, living in Boston in the 90s, and well into his first decade as a professor at Berklee, Stein got a steady gig for several years playing in duet settings with female vocalists at a café on Thursday and Friday nights. Although he worked with just about “every female vocalist who lived in the Boston area,” he most enjoyed working with Whittaker. Whittaker, whose mother was also a professional singer, began her career in the late 80s and has performed jazz and blues at popular venues in the region ever since. Over the years, she has worked with some of New England’s top jazz performers.

Stein’s recent recordings have all been mastered by engineer John Mailloux at Bongo Beach Productions in Westport, MA. Through the expertise of Mailloux, the music on this home-grown album is sonically superb.  

AMONG FRIENDS features dynamic duo and trio arrangements of eight Songbook standards and three Stein originals. The album opens with an easy swinging spin on Jimmy Van Heusen and Johnny Mercer’s 1939 song “I Thought About You,” a great introductory showcase for Whittaker’s sensual vocals with sweet guitar and cello solos. Rodgers & Hammerstein’s “It Might as Well Be Spring” (from the 1945 film State Fair) is presented as a spirited voice and guitar duet in double-time with a straight 8th feel. Duke Ellington’s timeless “Prelude To A Kiss” is a moody vocal ballad featuring haunting cello accompaniment and a melodic cello solo, with delicate guitar support. Stein’s first original piece in the collection is “Sarlat,” a minor key guitar and cello duet with interactive improvisations. 

After a seductive, bluesy stroll through a vocal/guitar duet on “Since I Fell for You” (popularized by Lenny Welch’s 1958 version), the trio presents “Our Love Will See Us Through,” another Stein original with lyrics by vocalist Ron Gill. The tune has an elegant guitar and cello intro, a gentle swing feel, with dynamic singing cello and guitar solos, and a wonderful vocal performance.

The next two tracks are compelling vocal/guitar duets – a bluesy, swinging romp through Bobby Troup’s classic road tune “Route 66” and a wistful gently reflective “Autumn Nocturne,” featuring a sweetly emotional vocal with delicate textured guitar accompaniment. Stein, White and Whittaker cover the Gershwins’ oft-interpreted “Summertime,” which begins as a dark ballad before becoming an up-tempo swinger. Next is Sammy Cahn and Jule Styne’s “Time After Time.” It features the three musical friends inhabiting their communal musical space together: Whittaker’s mellow vocal supported by Stein’s chordal accompaniment and melodic soloing; White’s plucked bass part, along with a pizzicato and arco solo.

AMONG FRIENDS wraps with Stein’s final original of the set, “Switch-A-Roo,” a whimsical straight 8th boogaloo blues presented as a guitar/cello duet with interactive improvisation. The two musicians listen and react to each other beautifully, weaving funky lines around each other.

Since recording the 11 tracks of AMONG FRIENDS with Chris White and Faye Whittaker very early in his career, John Stein has become one of jazz’s most versatile and acclaimed guitarists, with three decades of recordings in a wide variety of settings. In addition to introducing his fans to the talents of two of the Northeast’s most powerful jazz performers, this album gives Stein’s fans special insight into the artist’s early sensibilities and points the way toward the large body of work he has accomplished in his stellar recording career.

AMONG FRIENDS is available digitally on selected digital platforms, released on May 23, 2025 on Tiger Turn. 

Legendary Afro-Jazz Pioneers Oneness Of Juju Return After 30+ Years with New Album Made Through Ritual

Strut present the first international release in over 30 years by legendary Afro-jazz group Oneness Of Juju with their new album ‘Made Through Ritual’ on 11th July 2025.

In 1975, the late DJ/producer and jazz distributor Jimmy Gray and James “Plunky” Branch joined a musical revolution, founding Black Fire Records and releasing the label’s debut album, the classic ‘African Rhythms’ by Oneness of Juju. This summer, Plunky brings this important musical relationship full circle with ‘Made Through Ritual’, produced by Plunky’s son Jamiah “Fire” Branch and Jimmy’s son Jamal Gray.

The album takes a novel approach to beat culture. Working from demos created by Jamal using a selection of original jazz samples, Plunky took the tracks, replayed and re-interpreted the arrangements using live musicians. “The album explores the art of deconstruction and reconstruction in music – sampling, sequencing, and live improvisation merge with multi-track recording to craft intricate harmonies and arrangements,” explains Plunky. “The process became a ritualistic expression of creativity and transformation.”

The resulting album is a fascinating listen. Opening with the meditative soul chant ‘Share This Love’ voiced by regular Oneness vocalist Charlayne “Chyp” Green, the album opens out into a series of jazz vignettes including the title track, ‘In Due Time’ and ‘Free Spirit’. The powerful album closer, ‘Children Of The Drum’ celebrates black culture and legacy through the poetry of Roscoe Burnem. ‘Made Through Ritual’ represents an important new chapter in the Oneness story.

The album will be supported by a selection of European tour dates during Autumn and Winter 2025.

Kaze Unleashes Avant-Garde Mayhem with Shishiodoshi, Featuring Vocal Maverick Koichi Makigami

No previous album in their 14-year history will prepare you for the gleeful lunacy of Shishiodoshi (July 11, 2025 via Circum/Libra), the latest CD from Kaze, the cooperative quartet featuring Japanese composer-pianist Satoko Fujii and trumpeter Natsuki Tamura along with French trumpeter Christian Pruvost and drummer Peter Orins. With guest vocalist Koichi Makigami along for the ride, Kaze unleashes an inspired blend of serious music-making and quirky humor. “We had so much fun making this record!,” Fujii says. “Koichi brought something unique to the music and it made us play differently.” 

Kaze and Makigami, a legend of Japanese avant-rock and sometime collaborator with free improvisers, first met several years ago when Kaze performed at Jazz Art Sengawa, a festival for which Makigami is an artistic director. But they didn’t play together until early last year during Kaze’s tour of Japan. When Fujii learned that Makigami was going to be in Europe in the late spring, she invited him to join Kaze for a concert in Lille, the home of Pruvost and Orins.

Sparks flew immediately. “Make a Change,” the album’s opening track, explodes upon the listener with a roiling, dense quartet improvisation that impresses with its tightly coordinated high-energy interactions. The instruments break off suddenly and Makigami launches into a mind-boggling display of vocal pyrotechnics, uncorking a flood of incomprehensible babbling, squeaking, vocal multiphonics, growls, and panting that somehow cohere into a musical statement with absurd juxtapositions as an organizing principle. And from there, they continue in a madcap kaleidoscopic flow of sound, changing directions at an exhausting rate. There’s no predicting and no escaping the cascade of sound and feeling rushing at your ears and it’s best to just give yourself over to the sonic cataract and hold on for the ride. 

The pace slows, but the surprises continue on the completely improvised title track. It takes its name from a common sight in Japanese gardens—a water-filled bamboo tube that clacks against a stone when emptied. Even at the slower tempo, the same surreal logic guides the music. Subtle textures and tone colors form a cloud of gentle abstract sounds at the beginning but the delicacy gives way to a quirky vocal trio between Tamura, Makigami, Pruvost and a soaring free-wheeling climax. 

Tamura’s “Inspiration 2” closes the CD with more evocative musical hi-jinks. The opening section provides a temporary moment of serenity, with the group imitating the sounds of nature. But it is soon replaced by quiet percussion and a skein of breathy trumpets, shakuhachi, and strummed piano strings. Another shockingly intense solo vocal outing from Makigami raises the energy level, ushering in a collective improvisation and an incendiary piano solo from Fujii. The music rushes on to an exuberant climax to end on a high note. 

This is music of teeming vitality that embraces life in all its glorious absurdity. 

Pianist and composer Satoko Fujii, “an improviser of rumbling intensity and generous restraint” (Giovanni Russonello, New York Times), is one of the most original voices in jazz today. For nearly 30 years, she has created a unique, personal music that spans many genres, blending jazz, contemporary classical, rock, and traditional Japanese music into an innovative synthesis instantly recognizable as hers alone. Highlights include a piano trio with Mark Dresser and Jim Black (1997-2009), and an electrifying avant-rock quartet featuring drummer Tatsuya Yoshida of The Ruins (2001-2008). In addition to a wide variety of other small groups of different instrumentation, she has established herself as one of the world’s leading composers for large jazz ensembles, prompting Cadence magazine to call her “the Ellington of free jazz.” 

Trumpeter and composer Natsuki Tamura is internationally recognized for a unique vocabulary that blends extended techniques with touching jazz lyricism. This unpredictable virtuoso has led bands with radically different approaches throughout his career. He’s played avant-rock jazz fusion with First Meeting, the Natsuki Tamura Quartet, and Junk Box. Since 2003, he has focused on the intersection of European folk music and sound abstraction with Gato Libre. A member many of Fujii’s ensembles, he has recorded 7 duet CDs with her. In 2022, he released a series of five digital albums in various settings, including a trumpet quintet, Gato Libre, a duet with drummer Ittetsu Takemura, and two solo albums. 

Peter Orins leads his own bands and is a member of Trapeze, a quartet co-led by saxophonist Sakina Abdou, turntablist Joke Lanz, and trombonist Matthias Müller. In addition to serving as an artistic director of Muzzix, a musicians cooperative in Lille, France, and helming the record label Circum-Disc, he also works in theater, composes for film and animation, and has recorded the music of Moondog with the Round the World of Sound project. 

Insatiable innovator of the whole sound spectrum of the trumpet, Christian Pruvost developed a very poetic and personal language for an entirely acoustic expedition. He multiplies collaborations as much in jazz as in creative and experimental music (founding member of the Muzzix and Zoone Libre collectives). In perpetual research on horns and pipes as well as different resonators and their transformations,he practices free improvisation and contemporary music, meets many artists in France and on all continents. He participates in several ensembles and collectives such as Muzzix, Dedalus, Le UN, Organik Orkestra, The Bridge, Nautilis, Ensemble 0 and more. 

Koichi Makigami is a pioneering Japanese vocalist, composer, poet, and performer internationally recognized for his experimental vocal techniques and innovative musical vision. Born in Atami, Shizuoka Prefecture, he rose to prominence in the late 1970s as co-founder and frontman of the avant-garde rock band Hikashu, known for blending punk, jazz, electronic, and traditional Japanese music into a uniquely eclectic sound. 

Renowned for his exceptional vocal range and improvisational flair, Makigami often incorporates throat singing (khoomei), scat, and extended vocal techniques into his performances. His boundary-crossing collaborations include work with John Zorn, Ikue Mori, Thomas Strønen, and Derek Bailey, spanning a wide spectrum of musical and cultural contexts. 

Beyond music, Makigami is also well known as a poet, theatrical performer, and vocal improviser. He is the founder and artistic director of the Jazz Art Sengawa festival, a prominent platform for avant-garde and improvised music in Japan.  Constantly exploring new sonic territory, Makigami continues to perform worldwide, inspiring generations of artists with his fearless creativity and multidisciplinary approach.

 

 

ohn Yao Marks 20 Years in NYC with Powerful New Big Band Album Points in Time

 

It’s been 20 years since trombonist, composer, arranger and bandleader John Yao arrived in New York City; 10 years have passed since the release of his first big band album, the exuberant Flip-Flop. He’ll celebrate that tandem anniversary with Points in Time, the long-awaited follow-up by John Yao and His 17-Piece Instrument (JY-17). While the album arrives as a commemoration of those two significant dates, the music it contains is deeply informed by a number of professional and personal milestones that have marked that two-decade journey. 

Set for release on July 11, 2025, via See Tao Recordings, Points in Time is enriched and invigorated by a wealth of experiences that Yao has enjoyed since Flip-Flop heralded the arrival of “a strong compositional voice and effective band-leader able to use his 17-piece band to paint across a wide spectrum and infuse his complex writing with a thoughtful balance of audacity, structure, humor, and sonic might” (All About Jazz). 

“So much of what’s happened over the last 20 years has definitely sparked different emotions that I’ve wanted to express in my music,” Yao says. “Sometimes those experiences and complex emotions take time to marinate, but ultimately they find their way into my writing and playing in a way that’s something like osmosis.” 

For the album’s repertoire, Yao culled favorite tunes from throughout his discography, revising small-band compositions in vibrant new big band arrangements. He also showcases the new pieces he’s penned over the intervening years, including works premiered during the “Big Band & Beyond” concert series that the JY-17 hosted at Greenwich House Music School in the wake of Flip-Flop’s release. 

Several of those new compositions are inspired by the most indelible experiences of Yao’s life. Since arriving in New York, he met and married his wife, Natalie; stood by her and supported her throughout her valiant battle with cancer; and celebrated the birth of the couple’s son, Nolan, following Natalie’s triumphant return to health. All three are reflected in poignant selections on Points in Time: the early days of romance and the fatigue and determination of health struggles on the elegant, moving “Early Morning Walk,” the sheer joy of new life on “Song for Nolan.” 

The gifted musicians that make up the 17-Piece group also can be traced to multiple points along Yao’s timeline. Some, including tenor saxophonist Tim Armacost, are classmates from Queens College, where Yao earned his master’s degree in his earliest days in the city, while trombonist Matt McDonaldis an even earlier acquaintance from Yao’s days in Chicago. Others – saxophonists Billy Drewes and Rich Perry, trumpeter Nick Marchione and drummer Andy Watson among them – shared the stage with Yao when he subbed in the legendary Vanguard Jazz Orchestra. Drewes is also a member of Yao’s three-horn quartet Triceratops, and several members, including Perry, McDonald, trumpeter David Smith and bassist Robert Sabin, reprise their roles from Flip-Flop. 

The lengthy span of time since that warmly received debut was no accident – as Yao writes in his liner notes, the “funny thing about recording a big band album [is that] it makes you want to never do it again!” Even though “every note somehow feels worth the struggle,” he says, “after the first album I was burned out from pushing that boulder up the hill.” Over the ensuing years he turned his attention to far more manageable endeavors: a co-led sextet with trumpeter Jimmy Smith, and a pair of albums with the aforementioned Triceratops. 

The big band bug never quite left him, however. That passion is evident in Yao’s writing and arranging for Points in Time, on which he revels in, as he puts it, “big band being big band.” After all, he fell in love with playing in large ensembles during his stints in the Vanguard Jazz Orchestra, the pinnacle of traditional big band artistry. Yao isn’t averse to modernism in his own work; witness the striking “The Other Way,” a bold venture into 12-tone technique that points the way to the JY-17’s planned third outing. But Points in Time strongly embraces those timeless elements that make classic big band music so exhilarating.

“Traditional big band elements like sax or trombone soli, or brass opposing saxes, or shout choruses are textures that sometimes get overlooked in the big band idiom nowadays,” Yao explains. “Not to say that they have to be there, but in addition to being a blast to play, they are valuable in more than just a musical sense. They build morale and camaraderie. As a player of big band music for many years, I’ve found that they raise the level of the music in a way that’s hard to quantify, but you can definitely feel it. I’ve made a conscious effort to weave those elements into the arrangements.” 

A prime example is “Not Even Close,” which Yao wrote for his quintet in tribute to VJO founder Thad Jones and recorded on his debut album, In the Now. He once again drew on Jones’ inspiration as he revised the tune for big band, crafting exchanges between saxes and brass reminiscent of Thad’s classic “Little Pixie.” He wrote “First Step” around the same time, but even before forming the JY-17 recognized that it was meant to be a big band chart. It makes its long overdue premiere here. The final reinvention is the brooding “Triceratops Blues,” the first tune he penned for the three-horn band. 

Following the release of Flip-Flop Yao has also been commissioned to contribute compositions and arrangements for high school ensembles; Points in Time is bookended by updated versions of two such commissions, the original “Upside” and a fresh take on Herbie Hancock’s “Finger Painting.” The thrill that Yao describes in hearing these young bands play his music echoes his feelings about big band music in general, shedding light on why he’s returned to the form despite the formidable hurdles. 

“It’s an amazing feeling that you want to experience over and over again,” he marvels. “Playing a great trombone solo is always satisfying, but hearing musicians from all over the world bring your music to life and connecting with them on a deeper level is an extremely profound experience."

For the past two decades, John Yao has established himself as one of the premier trombonists, composers and arrangers on the New York City jazz scene. Yao’s lyrical soloing and expressive, round tone, combined with his relentless drive to push the boundaries of harmony and rhythm, have established him as a unique and forward-thinking jazz talent. He has been called “one of New York’s elite trombonists and is also a first-class, ambitious, and witty composer and leader” (Lucid Culture) and his compositions are described as “boldly diverse, Yao’s compositions cut across the swath of contemporary jazz’s field” (All About Jazz). In 2023, Yao earned a place in the Rising Star Trombone and Rising Star Big Band categories in the DownBeat Critics Poll. He has built an extensive body of work, collaborating with ensembles and performers worldwide and releasing five recordings as a bandleader—each showcasing his bold, boundary-pushing compositions for both small groups and big bands. In April 2025 he was appointed to the 100th class of Guggenheim Fellows in the field of Music Composition.

 

Sly Stone, Funk Pioneer and Revolutionary Music Icon, Dies at 82

Sly Stone, the trailblazing architect of funk and founder of the groundbreaking band Sly and the Family Stone, has died at the age of 82. The iconic singer, songwriter, and producer passed away peacefully on June 9, 2025, in Los Angeles after a prolonged battle with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). His death closes the chapter on one of the most dynamic, turbulent, and influential careers in modern music history.

Sylvester Stewart—known to the world as Sly Stone—was more than a musician. He was a cultural detonator. With a look as flamboyant as his sound, and a message as urgent as his groove, Sly redefined what pop, soul, funk, and rock could be. From the late 1960s into the early ’70s, his music became the soul of a generation longing for change, unity, and something to dance to in the face of it all.

Born March 15, 1943, in Denton, Texas, and raised in Vallejo, California, Stewart was a child prodigy who mastered multiple instruments by age eleven. He sang gospel with his siblings in The Stewart Four before launching into DJing, producing, and eventually forming what would become a musical revolution—Sly and the Family Stone.

Their debut album A Whole New Thing in 1967 quietly set the stage, but it was 1968’s “Dance to the Music” that exploded them into mainstream consciousness. With a racially integrated, gender-diverse lineup—radical at the time—the band created a visual and sonic statement that was impossible to ignore. “Everyday People,” “I Want to Take You Higher,” “Thank You (Falettinme Be Mice Elf Agin),” and the epochal Stand! album offered not only genre-defying innovation but urgent, inclusive messages that resonated through a fractured America.

They didn’t just play music—they embodied a new social contract. They brought together Black and white, men and women, gospel and rock, in a thrilling blend that would go on to influence artists from Prince to Public Enemy, Beyoncé to Beck.

But as the ’70s unfolded, Sly’s brilliance became increasingly shadowed by drug addiction, missed performances, and legal issues. The band splintered, the funk darkened, and Sly spiraled. Yet, even as he retreated from public life, his music continued to speak.

In the 2010s, reports surfaced that Sly had been living in a van, suffering physically and financially. But he began a quiet comeback—emerging sober, supported by his daughter and manager, and determined to tell his story on his own terms.

That story was finally shared in his searing 2023 memoir, Thank You (Falettinme Be Mice Elf Agin), co-written with Ben Greenman and introduced by Questlove. The book marked a cathartic reckoning with fame, addiction, and genius. Then came the 2025 documentary Sly Lives!, directed by Questlove, which premiered to acclaim at Sundance, reigniting appreciation for his artistry and impact.

At the time of his death, Sly had just completed a screenplay adaptation of his memoir. According to his family, he remained creatively active and spiritually at peace in his final years.

The tributes following his death have been overwhelming. Questlove wrote, “He made the world dance and think at the same time. He made music that looked like the future—and it still sounds like it.”

Sly Stone may be gone, but his rhythm lives on in every bassline that thumps with meaning, every artist who defies categorization, and every soul that still believes music can change the world. His was a funk not just of sound, but of purpose. He didn’t just entertain—he inspired, provoked, and united.

And through the haze of stage lights and the hum of amplifiers, he left us one enduring truth: we are all everyday people, bound by groove, lifted by love, and still trying to take each other higher.

Anupam Shobhakar Reimagines Shakti's "La Danse du Bonheur" with a Fusion of Indian Classical and Jazz-Rock in 'Liquid Reality'

Brooklyn-based guitarist Anupam Shobhakar has just released a video for "La Danse du Bonheur", a remake of the classic track by Shakti. It's the latest from his new album Liquid Reality, and one that perfectly captures the freeform jazz and rock that Shobhakar has added to his already deep roots in Indian classical music. It's a wild auditory ride as unique as the musician's own story.

Growing up in Bombay, India, Shobhakar was fascinated by the fretboard sorcery of Western shred guitarists like Eddie Van Halen, Joe Satriani, Steve Vai, and Allan Holdsworth. But after witnessing a life-changing performance by the great sarod master Ustad Ali Akbar Khan, the aspiring teen took up the North Indian instrument and eventually established a flourishing career as a sarod player that took him around the globe.

But much like John McLaughlin and Ustad Zakir Hussain’s groundbreaking Shakti ensemble found a common language between Indian classical music and Western jazz and guitar traditions in the 1970s, Shobhakar always dreamed of bringing together the distinct sounds that so deeply inspired him. On Liquid Reality he does just that, crossing firmly placed boundaries of musical vocabulary and aesthetic to create a thrilling new sonic vision for the 21st century.

And it took the discovery of a literal dream instrument to bring everything together.

“Listening to the first Shakti record,” he remembers, “I heard John McLaughlin play all of this Indian music on the guitar, and that just blew my mind. I was like, ‘Wow, the guitar can do this!? It can play Indian music?’” Just as McLaughlin turned to his studies on the veena, a fretted string instrument, to immerse himself in the vocabulary of Indian classical music, Shobhakar took to the sarod, a fretless 25-string instrument that looks guitar-like but has its own unique technical demands.

While he stuck with the instrument and built his musical career around it, Shobhakar’s idea to fuse styles lingered in the background. “My music was never just about being a classical sarod player,” he recalls. “There was always a writing bug. I wanted to collaborate with Western classical artists, rock musicians, and jazz artists.” That pursuit eventually landed Shobhakar in New York, where he found those types of collaborative relationships. But, he says, “When I was picking up the sarod, I was missing the guitar,” he recalls, “and when I was playing the guitar, I was missing the sarod.”

The solution required a breakthrough, though. “It was brewing in my subconscious,” he recalls, “and it came to me in a dream.” Shobhakar envisioned a double-neck electric guitar with both fretted and fretless necks, providing access to both traditional electric guitar techniques as well as a way to translate the vocabulary of the sarod to guitar. While this is a rare but not completely unheard-of combination of instruments, as a left-handed player, the ideal instrument simply didn’t exist. He commissioned a custom guitar and immediately unlocked his sound.

Liquid Reality, released on guitar-centric AGS Records on March 14, presents the debut of Shobhakar’s radical new approach. The opening “Anjaneya” is a winding course through fretted and fretless wizardry propelled by the powerful combination of South Indian rhythms played by celebrated percussionist and composer Swaminathan Selvaganesh and drum kit played by Satoshi Takeishi, the versatile, in-demand New York jazz percussionist. It’s immediately evident that Shobhakar is forging a brave new sonic future—and one that is wholly his own.

Beyond Shobhakar’s obvious instrumental virtuosity, his compositions, written with his individual collaborators in mind, make Liquid Reality one of a kind. “Ladders to the Sky” is an epic journey with a Brazilian tinge that was composed in part as an homage to the Pat Metheny Group’s 1984 record, First Circle. This track was created to work with Barcelona-born vocalist Ona K (Ona Kirei), who “sings like an angel,” and percussionist Gumbi Ortiz, best known for his work with guitarist Al DiMeola.

“Formless” was conceived as a duo with Swaminathan Selvaganesh on kanjeera. Its expertly executed serpentine form -- “a weird mix of ideas between West and East with a lot of mathematical juggling going on” -- offers a joyous, energetic, and personal musical conversation between the two artists.

Shobhakar decided to tackle Shakti’s looming influence head-on with “La Danse Du Bonheur,” composed by McLaughlin and violinist L. Shankar for the group’s 1976 Handful of Beauty. More than simple cover, though, the version on Liquid Reality provides a link between the original masters of the form and the new generation.

“Swami and I are very good friends, and we would always nerd out to Shakti,” the guitarist says, and quickly points out that Swaminathan Selvaganesh is the third generation of his family to play this music: his father, percussionist and vocalist V. Selvaganesh, has been performing with Shakti since the ensemble reformed in the late ’90s as Remember Shakti, taking on the role played by his father, percussionist Vikku Vinayakram, in the original ensemble. “He was literally born to play this music,” says Shobhakar.

Rather than re-hash what has already been done, Shobhakar explains, “I didn’t just want to do a carbon copy.” Joined by New York-based Indian artists Ben Parag (vocals) and Utsav Lal (piano) Shobhakar was able to add chords to the original, borrowing outside harmony to help make it his own arrangement. As a final touch, he added his own original composition in the middle of the track, delivering new twists and turns to the notably athletic tune. In this blazing take on his most formative influence, Shobhakar makes the Shakti classic his own and pushes it to even more extreme heights.

"La Danse du Bonheur" is a tribute to Shakti but, even more, it’s a poetic way to celebrate the artistic achievement we hear throughout Liquid Reality. After decades spent dreaming of a way to cross Western electric guitar styles with Indian classical music, Shobhakar, with his new bespoke instrument in hand, has connected the traditions and broken through to a new world of sound. 

Ted Olsen's Violette Blends Jazz, Classical, and Songcraft in a Lush, Genre-Defying Album

At once intimate and expansive, Violette presents a vivid and emotionally resonant collection of chamber works performed by the Violette Ensemble, a genre-crossing group of acclaimed soloists, improvisers, and classical performers—including members of the Minnesota Orchestra, international touring artists, and Grammy-nominated musicians. The album also features special guests John Raymond (trumpet/flugelhorn), and vocalists Aby Wolf and Eric Mayson, whose expressive contributions further enrich the ensemble’s textured sound. With this group as his vehicle, Olsen explores themes of twilight and transformation—rooted in his long-standing fascination with the romanticism of autumn, as seen in earlier works like “October Hues” and “Crepuscular Sketches,” and most fully realized here.

Formed in 2021 and inspired by Olsen’s McKnight Composer Fellowship awarded by the American Composers Forum, the Violette Ensemble brings to life a series of works that blur the boundaries between jazz, pop, classical, and art song. The album’s centerpiece, “Dusk, WSQ,” evokes an autumn evening in New York’s Washington Square, with a stunning performance from vocalist Aby Wolf, pianist Will Kjeer, and Olsen’s richly orchestrated writing. Wolf’s perceptive delivery and Kjeer’s precise touch anchor the piece in tender lyricism, while the strings, led by violinists Sarah Grimes and Ernest Bisong, violist Lydia Grimes, and cellist Sonia Mantell, usher in sweeping textures that elevate the composition’s emotional arc.

Though rooted in detailed and elegant writing, Violette also leaves space for improvisation. Trumpeter John Raymond delivers a radiant solo on “To Acquiesce,” while Olsen himself weaves melodic bass improvisations through the string ensemble on “Present Tense.” Elsewhere, the hybridic art songs “Split Rock Postcard,” “Aubade (Violet),” and the aforementioned “Dusk, WSQ” find Olsen merging his roles as composer, songwriter, and arranger with rare fluidity—his melodies welcoming yet nuanced, the borders between vocal and instrumental lines gently dissolved.

The album features contributions from a remarkable cast, including flutist Alicia McQuerrey, bass clarinetist Paul Schimming, drummer Ben Ehrlich, and vocalist Eric Mayson, who, along with Wolf and Olsen, also performs in the chamber-pop group Champagne Confetti. Mayson shines on “Bright Star,” a stark and powerful track performed by the ensemble’s piano trio.

While the vinyl edition presents a tightly curated five-track arc—including two instrumentals and three vocal-forward pieces—the digital release expands the narrative with additional material such as “Intermezzo (Bloom)” and the emotionally climactic “Bright Star.” In both forms, Violette achieves a rare integration of structure and spontaneity, composition and expression.

Violette marks a new creative high point in Olsen’s prolific career. Since receiving his McKnight Fellowship in 2020, he has composed more than 60 original works and released two albums of original music. His 2017 debut Joyfire was lauded by the Minneapolis Star Tribune as “sprawling yet cohesive,” while his 2020 EP It’s Easy to Pretend further showcased his evolving artistic voice. Olsen’s accolades also include recognition from the ASCAP Herb Alpert Young Jazz Composers Awards and a finalist nod from the International Society of Bassists’ Jazz Bass Competition in 2019.

As a performer, Olsen has appeared with artists such as Michael Cain, Dayna Stephens, Javier Santiago, John Raymond, and Aby Wolf, on stages ranging from Twin Cities Jazz Festival and First Avenue to Rockwood Music Hall and Dirty Dog Jazz Café. His music is steeped in jazz tradition but never beholden to it—forward-looking, accessible, and filled with harmonic color, rhythmic vitality, and heartfelt clarity.

With Violette, Ted Olsen offers a deeply personal and genre-blurring statement—music that is as intellectually engaging as it is emotionally stirring. It’s a record of nuance, depth, and imagination that may stand as his compositional masterpiece.

WAR Marks 50 Years of 'Why Can’t We Be Friends?' with Deluxe Anniversary Set Honoring Their Legacy and Message of Unity

This June, WAR will unveil Why Can’t We Be Friends? (50th Anniversary Collector’s Edition), a tribute to the multi-million-selling, chart-topping album that left an indelible mark on music history. This deluxe 3CD and digital set honors 50 years of some of the band's most iconic tracks, including the timeless title song “Why Can’t We Be Friends?,” the effortlessly cool “Low Rider,” “So,” and more. Originally released in 1975, Why Can’t We Be Friends? remains a groundbreaking album—defined by unforgettable melodies, a unifying message, and a cultural influence that continues to resonate in music, film, and social movements today.

Arriving June 6th via Avenue/Rhino, this special edition not only celebrates the album’s milestone anniversary but also honors WAR’s 55-year journey as musical innovators and cultural changemakers. Hailed as “one of the most seminal bands in music” (Billboard), WAR also “wrote the biggest, loudest book” on low rider Cali-cool multiculturalism (Variety).

Newly remastered by Bernie Grundman, the Collector’s Edition features the original album plus two additional discs packed with unreleased bonus tracks, rare jam sessions, and behind-the-scenes audio—including a revealing recording about the making of “Why Can’t We Be Friends?” This expanded 3CD and Digital release follows the 3LP vinyl edition, which debuted as a 2025 Record Store Day exclusive. WAR’s previous box set for The World Is a Ghetto was named Best New Reissue by Pitchfork and hailed among the year’s best by The New York Times, Variety, and more.

WAR’s dynamic blend of funk, soul, jazz, Latin, and rock—rooted in streetwise rhythms and socially conscious lyrics—first catapulted them to prominence 55 years ago. Their signature message of peace and unity reached far and wide, even being broadcast into space by NASA during the 1975 Apollo-Soyuz mission. Their songs have since been sampled or covered by countless artists, including Tupac, Janet Jackson, Method Man, Sublime, De La Soul, The Muppets, George Clinton, ZZ Top, and many more.

With over 50 million albums sold, 20 gold and platinum records, multiple Rock & Roll Hall of Fame nominations, and a GRAMMY Hall of Fame induction, WAR helped shape the soundtrack of the 1970s—and their message of harmony still resonates. More than a musical milestone, this anniversary edition reaffirms the album’s relevance today.

As WAR enters its sixth decade, their impact remains undeniable. Their 2024 debut in the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade and a packed international tour schedule—including a headlining set at the LA County Fair—highlight the ongoing power of their music. 

Track Listing:

CD 1 – Why Can’t We Be Friends?

1. Don’t Let No One Get You Down

2. Lotus Blossom

3. Heartbeat

4. Leroy’s Latin Lament (Medley):
    - Lonnie Dreams
    - The Way We Feel
    - La Fiesta
    - Lament

5. Smile Happy

6. So

7. Low Rider

8. In Mazatlan

9. Why Can’t We Be Friends?

CD 2 – Bonus Tracks & Alternate Mixes (Disc 1):

1. Zorro (Bonus Track)

2. Don’t Let No One Get You Down (Original Unedited Mix)

3. Roam & Ramble (Bonus Track)

4. Low Rider (Original Unedited Mix)

5. So (Unedited Remix)

CD 3 – Bonus Tracks & Studio Footage (Disc 2):

1. Oatmeal Box (Bonus Track)

2. Heartbeat (Original Jam)

3. The Making of “Why Can’t We Be Friends?”

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Rick James’ Street Songs: The Punk-Funk Classic That Redefined R&B Returns in Audiophile Glory

When Rick James dropped Street Songs in 1981, the world didn’t just get another R&B album—it got a musical revolution. Infused with brazen sexuality, street-smart attitude, and genre-bending grooves, Street Songs introduced the world to the bold and unstoppable force of punk-funk. Now, thanks to Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab, this iconic album returns in an exquisitely remastered 180g 45RPM 2LP set sourced directly from the original master tapes—limited to just 4,000 numbered copies.

With hits like “Give It to Me Baby,” the steamy duet “Fire and Desire” featuring Teena Marie, and the unforgettable “Super Freak” (whose DNA runs through generations of hip-hop and pop), this new pressing offers the chance to hear James’ groove-laden brilliance in the highest fidelity ever released.

Every bass thump, every gritty lyric, every horn stab—it’s all here, polished to perfection and ready to light up your living room like it’s 1981 again.

Audiophile Features:

• Sourced from the original 1/4" analog master tapes

• Cut via DSD 256 & analog console lathe

• Pressed at Fidelity Record Pressing

• Housed in a premium Stoughton gatefold jacket

• Limited to 4,000 individually numbered copies

Tracklist

Side One

1. Give It to Me Baby

2. Ghetto Life

Side Two

1. Make Love to Me

2. Mr. Policeman

Side Three

1. Super Freak

2. Fire and Desire

Side Four

1. Call Me Up

2. Below the Funk (Pass the J)

Who Was Rick James?

Born James Ambrose Johnson Jr. in Buffalo, New York, Rick James was a genre-blending musical force whose career pushed the boundaries of funk, soul, rock, and pop. A multi-instrumentalist and visionary producer, James began his journey playing with Neil Young in Canada before returning to the U.S. to craft a sound all his own—a sound that would come to define the '80s.

Known as the “King of Punk Funk,” James rose to fame with his 1978 breakout Come Get It!, but it was Street Songs that catapulted him into the stratosphere. The album was more than just a commercial success—it was a cultural moment, spending 20 consecutive weeks at #1 on the R&B Album Chart and going multi-platinum.

Rick James was as known for his outlandish persona and controversial lifestyle as he was for his music, but beneath the flamboyance was a genius songwriter and producer. He penned hits for Teena Marie, The Mary Jane Girls, and Eddie Murphy, and his influence is still felt today—from MC Hammer’s “U Can’t Touch This” to the sonic DNA of modern funk and trap-soul artists.

Though his life had its ups and downs, Rick James’ musical legacy is undeniable. His boldness, humor, and fearless honesty made him an icon—and Street Songs remains his crowning achievement.

Why This Reissue Matters

This deluxe Mobile Fidelity edition isn’t just a reissue—it’s a full resurrection. The new mastering and pressing reveal depth and clarity previously buried in analog haze. Feel every throb of the bass on “Ghetto Life,” every seductive breath in “Fire and Desire,” and every tight guitar riff in “Super Freak” with stunning immediacy. It’s like hearing the record again for the first time—only better.

Whether you’re a vinyl collector, a funk aficionado, or simply ready to get down and get freaky, Street Songs in this form is a must-have.

Gwen McCrae’s On My Way: A Soul-Drenched Classic That Still Burns Bright

Originally released in 1982, On My Way stands as a shimmering, emotional, and funk-driven portrait of one of soul music’s most expressive and resilient voices—Gwen McCrae. A fixture in R&B and disco circles throughout the '70s and '80s, McCrae's voice is full of fire, grit, and grace. This album, reissued and remastered, reminds us why she became—and remains—one of the genre’s most revered figures.

At the heart of the album is the immortal “Keep the Fire Burning”—a dancefloor anthem that has inspired remixes, covers, and crate-digging devotion from DJs and collectors around the world. But the album runs deeper than one classic cut. Songs like “I Need To Be With You” and “I Didn’t Take Your Man” showcase McCrae’s unique ability to balance vulnerability and confidence, while “Doin’ It” and “Hang In” ride silky grooves that feel as fresh now as they did in the early ‘80s.

Tracklist:

1. Hang In (Remastered Version)

2. Make Believe (Remastered Version)

3. Keep the Fire Burning

4. I Need to Be with You (Remastered Version)

5. Be for Real (Remastered Version)

6. Hey World (Remastered Version)

7. I Didn't Take Your Man (Remastered Version)

8. Doin' It (Remastered Version)

Who Is Gwen McCrae?

Gwen McCrae was born Gwen Mosley in 1943 in Pensacola, Florida. She began singing in church and quickly made a name for herself in the Florida R&B scene during the 1960s. Early in her career, she performed and recorded with her then-husband George McCrae, best known for the disco hit “Rock Your Baby.” Together, they were a formidable soul duo, but Gwen would ultimately break out as a powerful solo artist in her own right.

She signed with TK Records in the 1970s, a label that would become pivotal in the Miami soul and disco movements. Gwen scored her first major hit with “Rockin’ Chair” in 1975, a sultry slow jam that reached No. 9 on the Billboard Hot 100 and cemented her status as a top-tier soul vocalist.

Over the years, her music evolved to blend Southern soul, gospel roots, funk, and disco—creating a signature sound marked by emotional intensity and dancefloor energy. Unlike many of her contemporaries, McCrae’s recordings feel both raw and polished, honest and exhilarating. Her phrasing, vocal grit, and deep emotive delivery made her a favorite not only in the U.S. but also in the U.K. and across Europe, where she’s been continuously celebrated and sampled by soul revivalists and DJs alike.

Even as the music industry shifted, McCrae’s legacy endured. Her work has been widely sampled in house, hip-hop, and electronic music, and her songs continue to appear in DJ sets, reissues, and soul playlists worldwide.

Why On My Way Still Matters

On My Way is more than just a reissue—it’s a document of a woman at the height of her powers, delivering an album filled with emotional clarity, groove-heavy arrangements, and unapologetic self-expression. Whether she’s laying down a powerful ballad or riding a funk-fueled rhythm, Gwen McCrae sings like her life depends on it—and that’s what makes this record essential listening.

Bernard Purdie Drops First Album in Six Years: A Groove-Fueled Celebration of Rhythm, Soul, and Legacy

The Groove Master Returns—And He's Still Got Plenty to Say

Legendary drummer Bernard “Pretty” Purdie returns with a brand-new album—his first in six years, and the first as an octogenarian—that delivers a bold, genre-blurring tribute to rhythm, soul, and timeless musicianship. Out now, this all-vocal studio release isn't just another entry in a celebrated discography—it’s a masterclass in groove, collaboration, and artistic maturity. Featuring an all-star lineup that includes Bill Champlin, Robben Ford, Chuck Rainey, and Christian McBride, the project is a vibrant, soulful testament to Purdie’s enduring brilliance.

From R&B to jazz, AOR to bossa nova, Purdie lays down deep, unmistakably “Pretty” grooves that elevate each track to pure musical joy. His signature pocket drumming—tight, soulful, and always danceable—is the invisible hand that unites a stunning cast of vocalists and instrumentalists into a cohesive, rhythm-first experience.

Tracklist:

1. Ain't You No Shame (Feat. Rob Paparozzi & Vaneese Thomas)

2. I Got the Blues (Feat. Roy Bennet, Robben Ford & Chuck Rainey)

3. Sea and You and Me (Feat. Stephane San Juan & Emanuelle Araujo)

4. Testify (Feat. Gene McCormick, Paul Shaffer & Robben Ford)

5. Stay (Feat. Bill Champlin & Paul Nowinski)

6. Ain’t I the Fool (Feat. Jack Hoban)

7. Chance for Love (Feat. John Korba & Christian McBride)

8. Halfway to the Moon (Feat. Nicolas Bearde)

9. Night Shift (Feat. Roy Bennet & Kenny Black)

With a voice in every beat and a story behind every groove, this album proves that age is just a number when you’re still playing with passion and purpose. Each track is laced with finesse and warmth, showcasing Purdie's rare ability to make even the most complex rhythms feel utterly natural.

Who Is Bernard “Pretty” Purdie?

Widely regarded as one of the most recorded drummers in history, Bernard Purdie’s influence spans more than six decades of popular music. Born in 1939 in Elkton, Maryland, Purdie first rose to prominence in the 1960s and quickly became known for his versatility, rock-solid timing, and unmatched pocket—what he famously calls the “Purdie Shuffle.” His trademark groove has influenced generations of drummers and has been sampled by hip-hop producers and studied in music conservatories around the world.

Purdie’s recording credits are staggering. He’s played with Aretha Franklin, Steely Dan, James Brown, B.B. King, Donny Hathaway, Miles Davis, Hall & Oates, and Cat Stevens, among countless others. His work appears on over 4,000 albums, including many that helped define the sound of funk, soul, R&B, and jazz fusion.

What sets Purdie apart is his expressive, groove-centric style—often marked by a deceptively simple hi-hat pattern layered over intricate, swinging snare and kick drum work. His rhythmic feel is infectious and unmistakable.

Beyond his drumming, Bernard Purdie is a celebrated bandleader, educator, and mentor. He’s published instructional books and videos that have helped shape aspiring drummers around the world, and his live performances continue to captivate audiences with energy, humor, and wisdom.

A Record That Lives in the Pocket—And in the Heart

This latest album is not only a fresh creative statement from one of the greatest drummers of all time, but also a reminder that music is timeless—and that true groove never grows old. For longtime fans, it’s a chance to hear Purdie in peak form. For newer listeners, it’s an invitation into the warm, soul-saturated world of a rhythmic genius.

Whether you’re into jazz, funk, R&B, or just good music played by great musicians, this is one release you don’t want to miss.