Sean Khan - Azawala (September 2021 BBE Music)

Named after a word in Ghana’s Fante language, meaning “it’s up to you”, Sean Khan presents ‘Azawala’, the second single from his upcoming album ‘Supreme Love : a Journey Through Coltrane’, featuring UK jazz pioneer Peter King and a remix by Kaidi Tatham.

Steeped in 12/8 African rhythms, Azawala’s overall feel pays homage to Coltrane’s recordings of such classics as Ole, My Favourite Things, and Afro Blue, acknowledging the essential role of African music and culture within jazz.

This track notably features the powerful last performance by English jazz saxophonist Peter King, who sadly passed away in August 2020, shortly after the recording. The historical significance of King’s artistic career simply cannot be over-stated. It’s safe to say he was probably the last surviving link between the legends of the 1960s New York scene and Europe. He played the first ever gig at Ronnie Scott’s club in 1959 and went on to perform with, among many others, Philly Joe Jones, Elvin Jones, Bud Powell, Ray Charles; recording with Freddie Hubbard, Tubby Hayes and Miles Davis collaborator George Coleman, to name but a few.

As Khan puts it: “the solo Peter plays on Azawala put simple is world class. I do hope people who know my work and probably know me more for my underground status will open themselves up to Peter’s playing and let a master of the improvised art form tell his story.”

The remix of Azawala is delivered by another undisputed master, this time from the Broken Beat scene: Kaidi Tatham (with a great mixdown by Daz I Kue). Kaidi’s remix features an alternative saxophone solo and original flute arrangements from Khan, moving from an African jazz rhythm into an incredible crescendo of uplifting House.

“So there you have it…” says Sean. “My new single Azawala, one legend on the original and another legend on remix duties, what more could you want?” 

1. NAzawala 07:39

2. Azawala (Kaidi Tatham Remix) 07:23

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The Fantastics! - Take A Shot (June 25, 2021 BBE Music)

BBE Music welcomes respected UK funk / soul / jazz combo The Fantastics! to the label for ‘Take A Shot featuring Sulene Fleming’, the band’s long awaited third studio album, nine years in the making.

The Fantastics! story begins back in 2003, when keys maestro and Freestyle Records boss Greg Boraman joined London group ‘Reverend Cleatus & The Soul Saviours’. Officially changing their name to The Fantastics! in 2007, in 2009 the ranks were bolstered by the arrival of prodigious UK vocal talent Sulene Fleming in 2009. Only Greg and bassist Raydn Hunter remain from the band’s original line-up, which now features Mark Norton (saxophone / flute) and James Smith (drums). New member James Byron (guitar) brings yet another fresh perspective on the band’s genre-agnostic approach, which takes Afrobeat, Latin, Rock and Rhythm & Blues influences in easy stride.

The band have been honing this album at gigs and in the studio for nine long years, during which time singer Sulene Fleming has been busy collaborating with Incognito and Leroy Hutson, as well as enjoying a stint as lead vocalist for The Brand New Heavies. The approach of constantly testing material in a live setting has endowed this record with an indefinable yet distinctive, authentic feel; put simply, it successfully transmits the energy and immediacy of a great concert.

The range of sounds to be heard on ‘Take A Shot’ is ambitious, but it feels pretty effortless. From the library music tinged spacey jazz-fusion of ‘Oblique’ and ‘Better Than Dead’, ‘Hey Misters’’s intense Hammond driven, risqué sister-funk, ‘Pyramid’’s touching & serene modal jazz-dance, ‘Say You Will’ with its shimmering, sweet & summery soul-pop, the Betty Davis- esque ‘Can’t Decide’ which is a straight up funk-rock monster, the deceptively slinky West Coast smooth ‘Mind Time’ that takes a sharp left when you least expect it, the woozy and tripped out ‘St Tropez Blue’ – and of course the album’s title track ‘Take A Shot’ – not only display the ensemble’s collective and solo abilities, but also frame Sulene’s powerful and versatile voice in a wonderfully wide election of musical settings.

Special mention goes to Mark Ashfield & his youthful sidekick James Nugent, who not only cheerfully put up with The Fantastics! slow and meandering methods, but also engineered, mixed and mastered this album with truly special levels of detail, warmth and musicality. Eclectic? yes, multi-faceted? Versatile? Very much. Certainly, but the one word you couldn’t use to describe The Fantastics! is prolific.

It’s been a 9 long years since the bands last long player – 2011’s ‘All The People’ was the follow up to 2009’s ‘Mighty Righteous – so Take A Shot is the 3rd album and there isn’t really any specific reason.. other than the first studio recordings of Take A Shot album laid down in 2012 eventually got binned, trashed, disposed of and also deleted. After playing the new songs live for 18 months at venues like London’s Jazz Café and Pizza Express Jazz Club, when it came to finally mixing those tracks, the recordings, compared to how the songs had been honed and polished by those live performances in across those shows, sounded like demos’ – so the entire process was began again.

There was also, since All The People, the arrival of new guitarist James Byron, an appropriately open minded player that further embellished the bands non genre specific approach. One other mildly delaying factor was the bands long established vocalist, the enviously talented Sulene Fleming had a successful stint as lead singer for The Brand New Heavies amongst her other various projects (including with Incognito and Leroy Hutson), she also found the time to get married and start a family. The rest of us didn’t really have such good excuses.

The upside to this convoluted route – is that this collection is without doubt the bands favourite and most proud accomplishment. The time taken over the music on this has given it depth, variety, quality and as is the groups stated modus operandi on record and when playing live, is to touch upon as many styles, musical textures and modes as possible, but still maintain an identity across the project. It’s a big ask- and was that achieved? You be the judge.

‘Honorary Fantastic Status’ is awarded to Mark Ashfield & his youthful side kick James Nugent, who not only cheerfully put up with The Fantastics! slow and meandering methods, but also managed to build his 2 different recording studios, GTA Studios and then Cosmic Audio that this project was started, and then finally completed in. He also engineered, mixed and then mastered the resulting recordings beautifully, and under charged us too – so the group didn’t bust the budget in the process.

The range of sounds to be heard is ambitious but assured; the library music tinged spacey jazz-fusion of Oblique and Better Than Dead, ‘Hey Misters’s intense Hammond driven, risqué sister-funk, Pyramid’s touching & serene modal jazz-dance, Say You Will with it’s shimmering, sweet & summery soul-pop, the Betty Davis-esque Can’t Decide which is a straight up funk-rock monster with a wailing guitar solo and Sulene simply smashing it at the opposite end of her amazing vocal range, the deceptively slinky West Coast smooth Mind Time, that takes a sharp left when you lest expect it, the woozy and tripped out St Tropez Blue – and of course the albums title track – not only display the ensembles collective and solo skills on the instrumental tracks – but also frame Sulenes insanely versatile voice in a wonderful sly wide election of musical poses and explorations.

What do the band like most about this album? All of it. 

1. Better Than Dead

2. Take a Shot

3. Oblique

4. Say You Will

5. Pyramid

6. Can't Decide

7. Mind Time

8. Hey Mister!

9. St Tropez Blue

10. The Bounce

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Billy Bang - Lucky Man (May 2021 BBE Music)

In association with IF Music, BBE Music presents ‘Lucky Man’: music from the eponymous documentary film, charting jazz violinist and Vietnam veteran Billy Bang’s brave return to the country, 40 years after the War.

The film ‘Lucky Man’ by Jean-Marie Boulet & Markus Hansen follows Billy Bang as he returns to the battlefields of his past, this time with a violin in-hand instead of a rifle. The documentary follows Billy as he travels the length and breadth of Vietnam to collaborate with local musicians, discover the culture he never got to experience the first time around, and to try to find some closure for the haunting trauma that still lingers within.

The trip took place in 2008, three years before Billy Bang’s passing and these never-before released field recordings, lovingly polished at The Carvery studio in London, capture the musician’s many poignant musical encounters along the way. The journey took him from Ho Chi Minh City and the Mekong Delta, through to the highlands and the Banhar and Jorai gongs of the Montagnards, north across the 17th parallel, climaxing with ‘Mystery of the Mekong’, his collaboration with the Hanoi Symphony Orchestra.

The album ‘Lucky Man’ is composed of recordings captured throughout Billy Bang’s travels in Vietnam, interspersed with his candid thoughts about music, art, war, and his return to the country. Trần Mạnh Tuấn, the saxophonist featured on ‘Jungle Lullaby’ is well known in Saigon, where he owns a club called Sax n’Art, in which the live collaboration was recorded. In the more rural Kon Tum province, The Banhar Gong Group of Kuntum perform one of their traditional pieces, over which Billy’s off-the-cuff improvisation simply soars. The Phu Dong Family Band (a collective comprising an incredible 25 members of leader Duc Dau’s family) appears on ‘New Saigon Phunk’ and ‘Song for Don Cherry’, recorded in their native Ho Chi Minh City. Duc Dau is also a collector of ancient traditional instruments, and he plays a primitive stone Lithophone called a Dan Da with Billy in an energetic and exciting live jam that feels more like a duel at points.

“Bang was a genuine original, whose radicalism of method was always balanced by a powerful lyrical sense, a driving inner beat and the earthiness of the blues.” – The Guardian

Born in 1947, Billy Bang was only 18 years old when he was drafted and shipped out to Vietnam. He served only one tour of duty, but his traumatic experiences there would haunt him for the rest of his life. Small in stature, Bang became a ‘tunnel rat’, searching for North Vietnamese soldiers in booby-trapped tunnels with only a flashlight and a .45 pistol. On his return to the USA, Billy felt lost, haunted and stateless. He fell into revolutionary politics, alcohol and drugs, and on a trip to a pawnshop to purchase guns, chose to pick up up a $25 violin instead.

Having played violin, drums and flute before the War, Billy Bang found music to be a perfect medium through which to channel his emotions and trauma, initially under the mentorship of early free-jazz exponent Leroy Jenkins. Bang soon became a fixture in New York’s fertile ‘loft jazz’ scene, and went on to perform with the Sun Ra Arkestra in the 1980s.

A prolific composer, recording artist and sideman, Billy Bang started to address his Vietnam memories more directly with his music on 2001’s critically acclaimed album ‘Vietnam, The Aftermath’, which also featured fellow veteran Ted Daniel. The 2005 follow-up ‘Vietnam: Reflections’ featured four American Vietnam war veterans and two Vietnamese musicians. This project, ‘Lucky Man’, completes Billy Bang’s trilogy of Vietnam-themed works with a courageous solo voyage into the unknown; embarking on a new creative challenge while confronting a past he could never quite get over.

Live Virtual Film Screening and Q&A with filmmaker Markus Hansen, Kahil El Zabar and IF Music’s Jean-Claude.

Join us on Wednesday April 28th at 6pm (BST) for a virtual screening of ‘Lucky Man’, the 2010 film, followed by an interactive Q&A session. Be one of the first 150 customers to pre-order the album here on our website, via Bandcamp or at ifmusic.co.uk before April 26th to join the event for free. Details on how to join the event will be emailed to customers on Tuesday April 27th. 

1. Lucky Man: Introduction 04:10

2. Billy playing with the Banhar Gong Group of Kuntum (traditional and improvised) 06:16

3. Lucky Man: Flashback Tunnel Reflections 01:26

4. Mystery of the Mekong 06:59

5. Lucky Man: The Sun Rising - Introduction to Song for Don Cherry 01:03

6. Song for Don Cherry 13:26

7. Lucky Man: Flashback Memories 01:45

8. New Saigon Phunk (Extended Version) 11:35

9. Lucky Man: Traditional Vietnamese Catru Music 00:59

10. Lucky Man: Billy Reflecting on Memories and Feelings 00:51

11. Jungle Lullaby (Live at the Sax n'Art Club) 12:26

12. Lucky Man: Quynh Anh Pham's Memories About Her Father 01:07

13. Dan Da 09:45

14. Lucky Man: Billy Speaking About Music and Art 00:47

15. Lucky Man: Flashlight and a 45 Tunnel Memories 01:53

16. Lucky Man Title Music: Vietnam 1967 Battle Composition 01:06

17. Lucky Man: Teach Me Banhar 01:09

18. Traditional Quan Ho 05:47

19. Lucky Man: Billy Reflecting on America, Music and Being Left Alone 01:05

20. Moments for the KIAMIA (Solo in a Hotel Interior Courtyard) 02:30

21. Lucky Man: Quynh Anh Pham Lullaby 00:44

22. New Saigon Phunk 05:51

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BBE - Modern Love (May 2021 BBE Music)

BBE Music is thrilled to announce the release of Modern Love, a diverse compendium of specially commissioned cover versions of rarities and classics in tribute to David Bowie.

Featuring an array of artists such as Jeff Parker, We Are KING, Meshell Ndegeocello, Helado Negro, Khruangbin, Matthew Tavares, Nia and more, Modern Love seeks to champion Bowie’s lesser-known connection to soul, R&B, jazz, funk, and gospel. The prominent jazz influences throughout Bowie’s final album, Blackstar, were a key inspiration for curating this collection of reimagined Bowie songs with these artists. The resulting album is an eclectic tribute featuring a group of artists who not only fit together creatively, but who, like Bowie, straddle different worlds musically, with soul and jazz at their core.

Modern Love offers a fresh look at Bowie’s trailblazing career, aiming to highlight the often overlooked relationship between his back catalogue and musical genres traditionally pioneered by artists of color. The project was curated by music executive and DJ Drew McFadden, alongside BBE Music founder Peter Adarkwah. “I felt that the connection between Bowie and R&B, jazz, funk, gospel and all things soulful, had never really been explored before — at least not so much in covers, which tend to lean more towards rock and pop,” says McFadden. “Certainly, there’s been plenty of Bowie covers over the years, but none that have really tapped into what seems to have been a big part of his core musical

style and direction.”

Modern Love is an interactive sonic map. Here, seventeen artists make their way into the varied regions of his sundry catalog and circle back with seventeen unique re-imaginings of both his cornerstone and lesser-known tracks. Some, in atmosphere, feel like a sly alternate take from original sessions (Khruangbin’s ethereal, funk infused version of “Right” from Young Americans); others nod at the source, then wink before diving into the deep waters of another musical stratosphere (Sessa’s sexy Tropicalia-drenched “Panic in Detroit” from Aladdin Sane). Still others take tunes down to the studs and then re-arrange the moody interiors: Meshell Ndegeocello’s pensive “Fantastic Voyage” from Lodger and Tavares’ clever take on “Heroes” which is restructured into a kinetic hardbop-esque backdrop, fronted by ice-cool, held-back vocals. The bullseye these artists aim for is Bowie’s fearlessness. “Fame was an incredible bluff that worked,” he once reflected. “Very flattering. I’ll do anything until I fail. And when I succeed I quit too.”

Modern Love packs us off on a journey that balances on risk’s sharp blade. Track-to-track, it explores what happens when a musician throws out notions of should and safe and stretches beyond the known. These artists use Bowie both as a guide and a prism: A way of being and seeing. Their offerings, widely divergent, explore the inheritance from an artist who freed himself from labels, genres and, consequently, pigeonholes. While he was at it, he decimated fixed notions about territory (or terra) itself; boundaries hemmed-in his creative process, but his essence remained free to roam. He may have vanished in earthly form, yet, as he also promised in the lyrics of “Modern Love,” But I never wave bye-bye . . .” This compilation assures us that his spirit swirls around us. His force is alive to all of us and, here, it is summoned with an incantation that celebrates possibility. 

1. Life On Mars – Miguel Atwood-Ferguson 04:22

2. Sound and Vision – Helado Negro 03:21

3. Lady Grinning Soul – Kit Sebastian 03:48

4. Soul Love – Jeff Parker, The New Breed 04:43

5. Panic in Detroit – Sessa 03:44

6. The Man Who Sold the World – The Hics 03:28

7. Right – Khruangbin 05:08

8. Silly Boy Blue – Nia Andrews 02:37

9. Chant of the Ever Circling Skeletal Family – Foxtrott 03:11

10. Move On – L’Rain 04:00

11. Modern Love – Jonah Mutono 03:19

12. Where Are We Now – Bullion 03:31

13. Tnght – Eddie Chacon, John Carroll Kirby 03:35

14. Golden Years – Léa Sen 02:56

15. Fantastic Voyage – Meshell Ndegeocello 03:58

16. Space Oddity – We Are KING 04:45

17. Heroes – Matthew Tavares 08:41

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Kohsuke Mine - First (April 30, 2021 BBE Music)

PRE-ORDER ITEM : The 2LP & CD will be available on April 30, 2021. If you wish to secure yourself a copy, order now to avoid disappointment. Please note any orders containing pre-order items won’t be shipped until all items are available, so please order this separately to avoid delays.

BBE Music present the latest in the acclaimed J Jazz Masterclass Series: Kohsuke Mine ‘First’, the debut album by one of the leading artists in the new wave of modern jazz that swept Japan in the late 60s and early 70s. ‘First’ epitomises the shifting sound of the Japanese modern jazz scene of the time, characterised by rich textures and tones, kinetic rhythms, punctuated by urgent, angular melody lines.

Reissued for the first time since original 1970 release, Mine is joined by master keyboard player Masabumi Kikuchi on electric piano, and two American players – bassist Larry Ridley and drummer Lenny McBrowne – to deliver one of the strongest debuts in the J Jazz canon. ‘First’ announced the arrival of a serious talent, one who was to be a hugely influential figure in the Japanese jazz scene across the decade that followed and beyond. ‘First’ established an artist who built a reputation for standout albums spanning spiritual jazz, post-bop, modal and funk-fusion. All of that started here, on this exemplary album.

‘First’ is issued on CD, digital and vinyl. The vinyl edition is presented as a double album, cut at 45rpm by the Grammy-nominated Carvery, with full original reproduction artwork, including obi strip. Both CD and vinyl comes with a 4500 word sleeve note and interview with Kohsuke Mine by Tony Higgins, plus artist portraits by Shigeru Uchiyama.

J Jazz Masterclass Series is curated by Tony Higgins and Mike Peden for BBE Music.

1. Morning Tide

2. Love Talken

3. Straight No Chaser

4. McPhee

5. Little Abbi

6. Bar 'L' Len

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Yan Tregger - Ducks & Drakes (BBE MUSIC October 5, 2018)

Originally released on library music label Musical Touch Sound back in 1979, ‘Ducks & Drakes’ is an instrumental disco LP by pioneering French electronic musician Yan Tregger. Reissued this year by BBE alongside his 1978 album ‘Catchy’, Ducks & Drakes has achieved cult status among crate diggers and DJs, thanks to its ebullient charm and rock-solid leftfield grooves. 

Virtually impossible to find on vinyl for many years now, ‘Ducks & Drakes’ found wider allure in 2008 when Alexis Le-Tan selected album track ‘Girls Will Be Girls’ for experimental disco compilation ‘Space Oddities’. UK music hero Frankie Valentine brought these two magical albums to BBE’s attention and curated the project alongside the team. 

Amazingly (especially given the era in which it was recorded) the album was almost entirely performed, produced and composed by Tregger himself. Presented with its beautiful original artwork and previously unavailable to all but a lucky few record collectors, we’re excited to share the disco-infused magic of ‘Ducks & Drakes’ with the world.

1. Friend Island 03:25

2. The Girl In the Gold 02:50

3. Dawn and Darkness 03:34

4. The Ivy Heart 00:15

5. The Last Girl 04:07

6. Threshold 01:57

7. Haunting Refrain 04:39

8. The Ivy Heart (Reprise) 00:15

9. Girls Will Be Girls 05:21

10. Lanterns and Lances 03:18

11. Head for the Hills 00:13

12. The Way of All Flesh 02:48

13. Huff 02:47

Jerome Sydenham - Cosmic Urban Flight (BBE MUSIC October 5, 2018)

Deep-thinking, heavy-grooving House music for connoisseurs, Cosmic Urban Flight is the new album from revered producer and DJ Jerome Sydenham. 

Recorded entirely in Sydenham’s Berlin studio, the Cosmic Urban Flight project was originally planned as an EP for BBE Music, but a hot streak of musical inspiration soon swelled the proposed track-list and this unique album was born. As Jerome puts it: “It was a nonstop process until I felt, creatively, my point had been made.” 

Musically, Jerome says, “the sound of Cosmic Urban Flight was inspired by the idea of creating an energetic, DJ-friendly form of Deep House to fit into todays diverse sets.” Diversity is something this album has in abundance, as distinctly European house and techno influences meet with afro flavours and carefully weighed spoken word sections, giving a powerful commentary on today’s cultural and social climates. 

Featuring collaborations with Fatima Njai, Janne Tavi, E-Man, Karim Kaz, Mr V and Demetr1us, Cosmic Urban Flight is yet another reminder of why Kerri Chandler once likened Sydenham’s impeccable musical arrangement abilities to those of Quincy Jones. Cover photo by Marie Staggat.

1. Jerome Sydenham - Cosmic Urban Flight (Inflight Dub) 06:01

2. Jerome Sydenham - Soul Descendants 06:41

3. Jerome Sydenham - Purple Beech 05:58

4. Jerome Sydenham - Cortège 06:27

5. Mr. V - Til the Morning (Jerome Sydenham Special Edit) 05:09

6. Jerome Sydenham - Sifah & the Queen 05:14

7. Jerome Sydenham - Talk to Me 05:00

8. Jerome Sydenham - Track Model 17 05:26

9. Jerome Sydenham - The Tombs 06:09

10. Jerome Sydenham - Talk to Me (Instrumental) 04:58

11. Jerome Sydenham - Red Zero 05:55

12. Jerome Sydenham - Purple Beech (Janne Tavi Remix) 06:20

Marcel Vogel - The Sound of Lumberjacks in Hell (BBE MUSIC 2018)

For the best part of a decade Marcel Vogel has been carefully building a reputation as a refreshing voice of authenticity in today’s musical landscape.

A gifted pair of ears, DJ and owner of the seminal ‘Lumberjacks In Hell’ label and visionary imprint, ‘Intimate Friends’, Marcel’s reputation has been earned through persistent work, and impeccable taste. There are no gimmicks or shortcuts in his rulebook, just a passion for raw, soulful sounds geared towards the dancefloor.

Like many a DJ, Marcel found his route to the turntables through a love of Hip Hop and later house, but the gravity towards disco and soul was what really pulled him in and still reflects in his DJ Sets and productions.

Although he started messing around with the AKAI MPC in the early 2000’s it would take him about a decade to release his first productions with the 7” Body to Body feat Milos Gersi (MATE 001) in 2013 and the mini Album Human Being (2016) . After residing in Berlin amongst other cities he relocated to Amsterdam in 2010 to train for a degree in Audio Engineering. In the same year as his relocation he founded his esteemed Lumberjacks in Hell imprint. First as a hub for his own edits but quickly developing a profile for cutting edge dancefloor favourites, releasing music by acts like Karizma, Soulphiction and Jamie 3:26.

As part of Marcel’s touring schedule he regularly hosts Lumberjacks in Hell nights all over Europe in clubs like DJOON (Paris), Prince Charles (Berlin) and Ampere (Antwerpen) as much as having toured Northern America, Australia and Asia.

1. Giovanni Damico – Even The Stones

2. Beam Me Up – Rabbit’s Foot

3. Ant La Rock – Goddess

4. Funk Butcher feat. Trim – Check The Flow

5. Seven Davis Jr – Get To Know Me

6. Krewcial – Over

7. Boogie Nite – Jazz-A-Nova (Oooh)

8. Nachtbraker – Jared Fogle*

9. Harry Wolfman – Ava*

10. Reece Johnson – Neyt Life

11. Joel Holmes – Outer Light

12. Jonna – Everyday

13. Frawl – Be Good To Me

Tom Noble – Lord I’m Trying**

* CD only

** Vinyl and mixed CD only

Includes unlimited streaming of The Sound of Lumberjacks in Hell via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.

Ralph Thomas - Eastern Standard Time (BBE MUSIC October 5, 2018)

Following hard on the heels of BBE delving into the archives of Detroit’s Strata Records and delivering their widely acclaimed and hugely in-demand exploration of J-Jazz, comes another crate digger’s delight- Ralph Thomas’ ‘Eastern Standard Time’, which dropped in the USA back in in 1980, on the obscure Zebra Jazz imprint. 

This is the is the kind of “spiritual’ jazz gem that appears on You Tube and upon checking it out on Discogs reveals a price well in excess of £150.00. To have it widely available in its original vinyl format, as well as digitally and on CD, is a real treat. So, who is Ralph Thomas?

The self-produced ‘Eastern Standard Time’ features Thomas on baritone, alto and tenor saxophones as well as flute and percussion. He describes himself as a practicing ethno- musicologist who’s musical vision evolved during the Sixties and it’s Thomas’ multifaceted, global approach that gives the music on Eastern Standard Time’ an engaging and distinct flavour.

“My music has always been open to different cultures and sounds Afro-Cuban, Brazilian, Mexican, Peruvian, American, Hebrew, Turkish, African, Indian and Japanese,” declares the Chicago born musician. While attending the Chicago conservatory of music in 1969 he became a member of the Chicago A.A.C.M, studying with master musicians Phil Cohran and Richard Muhal Abrams. He also recorded with well-known blues legends, Howlin’ Wolf and Mighty Joe Young for the Cadet imprint of Chess records. 

In 1974, he moved to Los Angeles and was employed as a session player with both 20th Century Fox and Motown – where he recorded with Marvin Gaye, Jermaine Jackson, Smokey Robinson and Rick James. In the early Eighties he was working for Quincy Jones Productions appearing on the soundtrack of Roots and The Color Purple but a passion for reggae music led him to Jamaica where he recorded with producer Jack Ruby and artists like Augustus Pablo and Gregory Isaacs. 

In ’86 he moved to NYC where he collaborated with Boogaloo legend Johnny Colon and played with like-minded musical explorers Sun Ra, Don Cherry and Olatunji. However, by 1993 his restless spirit carried him to Paris where studied Ethnomusicology and performed with trumpeter Mra Oma and film-maker Ranaivo-Rajaona Hery. There were also gigs with percussionist Trilok Gurtu as well as drummer Sunny Murray and saxophone legend Archie Shepp. Upon moving to the South of France Thomas ran an art gallery and initiated his MusArt project – which has since toured in the US, Canada and Japan 

After a productive stint in Chiang Mai, Thailand – where he immersed himself in Issan culture – Ralph Thomas recently re- located back to the US to live and work. Though creating a huge amount of music over the years ‘Eastern Standard Time’ remains Ralph Thomas’ only album and it’s available now from BBE Music. 

1. Cafe Phillipp 08:02

2. Doloreso 05:32

3. Muscavado 04:01

4. Big Spliff 05:52

5. Venice 01:33

6. E.S.T. 06:16

7. Spellbound 07:52

Yan Tregger - Catchy (BBE MUSIC October 5, 2018)

Yan Tregger remains one of the more cultish names to emerge from the experimental French disco scene of the 1970s. But to a growing number of obsessive crate diggers, the two LPs recorded for the Musical Touch Sound label in 1978/9 ‘Catchy’ and ‘Ducks & Drakes’ have become like the holy grail of rare disco. 

Those diggers include Mark Grusane of the late Mr Peabody record store in Chicago. One of the deepest collectors of rare soul, disco and boogie, he included an edit of the sleazy disco bomb ‘Riff On’ from ‘Catchy’ on ‘The Real Sound of Mark Grusane’, his recent collection of hen’s teeth rarities for BBE. 

Now, thanks to the careful curation of UK music hero Frankie Valentine, BBE is delighted to dig deeper into the Yan Tregger archives and reissue these two in- demand LPs. First up is the 1978 LP ‘Catchy’, a heady collection of cosmic disco that should see Tregger’s name ranked alongside those of Arpadys, Cerrone and Space as one of the pioneers of French dance music. 

Characterised by its energetic rhythm sections, space-age synths and funky guitar riffs, ‘Catchy’ couldn’t be a more perfect title for this classic collection of late 70’s grooves.

1. Carry On 03:25

2. Catchy 04:11

3. Gimmicky 03:05

4. Sunny Wing 02:10

5. Light Heart (Pt. 1 & 2) 05:08

6. Riff On 03:26

7. Lyric Soul 03:18

8. Slow Zoom 02:30

9. This Time 03:48

10. At the Feet 03:37

Takeo Moriyama - East Plants (BBE MUSIC 2018)

BBE Music is proud to present the next instalment in the J Jazz Masterclass Series: ‘East Plants’ by Takeo Moriyama, one of Japan’s finest jazz drummers. 

A genuine ‘under the radar’ album known only to a handful of Japanese jazz collectors, ‘East Plants’ is now available once more, reissued for the first time as a double 180g LP, with exact reproductions of the original artwork, obi strip and insert. It also comes with the original notes fully translated. ‘East Plants’ is also available as CD and digital formats. This reissue is fully endorsed by Takeo Moriyama himself. 

Originally released in 1983 on the Japanese VAP label, ‘East Plants’ is an essential album in the J Jazz canon. It’s an album that distils several key characteristics of Moriyama’s music: clearly articulated and inventive rhythms, open yet orderly arrangements, and an accessible groove balanced with a graceful control. 

‘East Plants’ features no piano, just percussion, bass and reeds. From the luxurious raga-like build of the album’s hypnotic title track and the fierce post-bop workout of ‘Fields’, to the stately modal track ‘Kaze’ ( as featured on the sell-out BBE compilation, ‘J Jazz: Deep Modern Jazz From Japan 1968-1984’), the album was, until now, a rarely acknowledged masterpiece. ‘East Plants’ shows Moriyama’s quintet at their most transcendent: delicate layers of percussion by Yoji Sadanari, a warm and pliant bass from Hideki Mochizuki, with colour and texture provided by the eloquent reed work of Shuichi Enomoto and Toshiko Inoue. And, overseeing it all, Moriyama’s discreet yet commanding drumming. 

The BBE J Jazz Masterclass Series is curated by Tony Higgins and Mike Peden and is dedicated to presenting the very finest in Japanese jazz. The series will feature rare, long-lost and unreleased material presented in the highest quality reproductions of the original releases, fully licensed and authorised.

1. East Plants 10:22

2. 竹 (Take) 06:50

3. か げ ろ う (Kagelou) 01:34

4. 風 (Kaze) 05:11

5. Fields 04:18

6. 遠 く (Tooku) 08:16

Charles Mingus - Jazz in Detroit / Strata Concert Gallery / 46 Selden (BBE MUSIC November 2, 2018)

“I’m trying to play the truth of what I am. The reason it’s difficult is because I’m changing all the time.” Charles Mingus

The radical discovery by Amir Abdullah of 5 two-track master tapes in the care of Hermine Brooks ­– widow of innovative Detroit drummer Roy Brooks – of the Charles Mingus Quintet recorded live in Detroit at Strata Concert Gallery is cause for some serious celebration.

These electrifying recordings took place during Mingus’ week-long residency in February 1973. They were broadcast live by drummer/producer and broadcaster Robert “Bud” Spangler for WDET FM – a public radio station dedicated to jazz – from Kenny and Barbara Cox’s multi-purpose home for Strata Records at 46 Selden. Entrance to the gig was $5 dollars in advance and $6 on the door.

By the early Seventies Mingus’ militant musings, volatile character and hugely innovative musical offerings had already earned him global notoriety. He’d played with the Bird, Dizzy, Max Roach, Duke Ellington and had released universally acclaimed albums as a leader like ‘Blues & Roots’, Oh Yeah’ and ‘Black Saint & The Sinner Lady’. This gig – one of a Jazz In Detroit series that also included Keith Jarrett, Tribe and Herbie Hancock – took place a few months after the release of Mingus’ “third stream” masterpiece ‘Let My Children Hear Music’.

The music on these tapes is blazing. According to the late Roy Brooks, the band – which included himself and fellow Detroit trumpeter Joe Gardner – had not long returned from playing two tours in Europe. Fresh to the quintet was stellar pianist Don Pullen and listening to these recordings Pullen’s church-driven power, blues sensibility and harmonic sophistication perfectly complements the bassist’s own vision. On tenor saxophone we have the soulful and innovative John Stubblefield. Like Pullen he was a recent recruit. Unfortunately, the saxophonist’s time with Mingus lasted a mere 5 months: “I got in a fight with Mingus and I shouldn’t have done that. After that, I couldn’t get arrested in New York.” Ironically, when Sue Mingus formed the Mingus Big Band in 1992, to perpetuate her husband’s legacy, Stubblefield emerged as a talismanic presence in the ensemble until he passed in 2005.

PRE-ORDER ITEM : Released November 2nd 2018. This item will only be shipped to you 4 days before official release date. Please note any orders containing pre-order items won’t be shipped until all items are available, so please order this separately to avoid delays.

EXCLUSIVE: THE LOST TAPES!!

MINGUS MEETS STRATA: LIVE FROM THE GALLERY

CD Quintuple Album

Compact Disc (CD) + Digital Album

5CD boxset includes poster, CD booklet,5 CDs in cardboard wallets, housed all together in a clamshell box.

CD Tracklisting:

CD 1

1. Pithecanthropus Erectus

2. The Man Who Never Sleeps

3. Peggy's Blue Skylight

CD 2

1. Introduction by Bud Spangler / Celia

2. Bud Spangler Interview with Roy Brooks and Commentary

CD 3

1...  more

shipping out on or around November 2, 2018

Pre-order Compact Disc

Vinyl Quintuple Album

Record/Vinyl + Digital Album

5LP Boxset includes 5x180g vinyls, booklet & poster

LP Tracklisting:

A1 - Pithecanthropus Erectus

B1 - Pithecanthropus Erectus (continued)

C1 - The Man Who Never Sleeps

D1 - Peggy's Blue Skylight

E1 - Introduction by Bud Spangler / Celia

F1 - Celia (continued)

G1 - C Jam Blues

H1 - C Jam Blues (continued)

I1 - Orange Was the Color of Her Dress, Then Blue Silk

J1 - Dizzy Profile 

Includes digital pre-order of Jazz in Detroit / Strata Concert Gallery / 46 Selden. You get 1 track now (streaming via the free Bandcamp app and also available as a high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more), plus the complete album the moment it’s released.

shipping out on or around November 2, 2018

Pre-order Record/Vinyl

Digital Album

Streaming + Download

Pre-order of Jazz in Detroit / Strata Concert Gallery / 46 Selden. You get 1 track now (streaming via the free Bandcamp app and also available as a high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more), plus the complete album the moment it’s released.

releases November 2, 2018

1. Pithecanthropus Erectus

2. The Man Who Never Sleeps

3. Peggy's Blue Skylight

4. Introduction of the Band by Bud Spangler / Celia

5. Bud Spangler & Roy Brooks - Bud Spangler Interview with Roy Brooks and Commentary

6. C Jam Blues

7. Orange Was the Color of Her Dress, Then Blue Silk

8. Dizzy Profile

9. Noddin' Ya Head Blues

10. Celia (Alternate Take)

11. Dizzy Profile (Alternate Take)

12. Bud Spangler - Strata Gallery Announcement / Radio Broadcast WDET FM

13. Pithecanthropus Erectus (Alternate Take) (Digital Exclusive Track)

Pre-order Digital Album

Tohru Aizawa Quartet - Tachibana (BBE MUSIC July 27, 2018)

The desire to discover and delve into new and unexplored areas of music has turned attention on the Japanese jazz scene of the 1970s, often regarded as its gilded age. The recent ground-breaking sell-out BBE compilation J Jazz: Deep Modern Jazz from Japan 1969-1984 threw much needed light on this fascinating era and presented a range of artists and music that surprised and delighted all who heard it. A key track on the compilation was one of the rarest and least known: Dead Letter by the Tohru Aizawa Quartet, taken from ‘Tachibana’, an album so elusive that some pondered whether it even existed. 

The album, Tachibana, was recorded in 1975 and, until included on the J Jazz compilation, was unknown except to a small group of obsessive Japanese jazz collectors. The privately pressed record was the only album made by the Quartet, four amateur musicians who were university students at the time. The session was financed by a local businessman, Ikujiroh Tachibana, who pressed up a few hundred copies to use as a business card. In the intervening 40 odd years since its recording, few copies have surfaced, making it an in-demand yet elusive artefact from the golden age of Japanese jazz. BBE Records are honoured to present a fully authorised reissue of this holy grail, licensed directly from the band themselves. 

Tachibana has all the necessary components of a cult album: pressed in small numbers, a few mysterious and vague details about its origins, languishing in obscurity for decades and, above all, superb musical craftsmanship and skill. It can now be enjoyed by a new audience around the world. 

The album opens with the dynamic percussion work-out Philosopher’s Stone written by the then law-student and drummer Tetsuya Morimura. It propels along with the band at full pelt, showcasing Morimura’s well-developed drumming style. For a teenage amateur player to compose and perform such an accomplished and impressive piece is a testament to the talent that the band contained. Philosopher’s Stone is followed by Sacrament, an epic modal composition by saxophonist Kyoichiro Morimura that fans of Wayne Shorter, Pharoah Sanders and late-era John Coltrane will appreciate. After an extended intro the band drop into a heavy, churning groove, Morimura’s saxophone scorching above the volcanic rhythm section. 

Dead Letter, written by Aizawa himself, is an epic piano led symphony of spiritual jazz. Think McCoy Tyner at his imperial finest and you’ll get a flavour: impact, emotion and power all suffuse to create a overwhelming experience. Amazingly, this is still the only Aizawa composition yet to be recorded. 

The Tachibana album also includes two cover versions, both Latin flavoured numbers delivered with élan and brio: La Fiesta by Chick Corea and the classic Samba de Orfeu by Luiz Bonfá. 

So, just five tracks in total, the sole existing evidence of an astonishing band, the Tohru Aizawa Quartet. 

The long-awaited reissue of this mythic album will include new liner notes and photos, plus fully translated notes from the original Japanese text. The album will be presented in an authentic thick card gatefold sleeve in a faithful reproduction of the original sleeve design.

1. Philosopher's Stone

2. Sacrament

3. La Fiesta

4. Dead Letter

5. Samba De Orfeu

The Contemporary Jazz Quintet - Location (BBE MUSIC 2018)

Following on from the welcome revival of Lyman Woodard’s classic ‘Saturday Night Special‘ and drummer, Bert Myrick’s ‘Live ’n Well’ – which features the epic ‘Scorpio’s Child’ – BBE Records continue to dig deeper into the vaults of Detroit’s Strata label with The Contemparary Jazz Quintet album ‘Location’. 

Working in conjunction with 180 Proof’s Amir Abdullah BBE are poised to unearth a steady flow of hard to find or previously unheard gems from the short-lived but consistently innovative community based initiative that was Strata. Next up on CD is the Contemporary Jazz Quintet (CJQ) who were recently described by Jazzwise magazine as “one of the best kept secrets in jazz”. That declaration arrived via a review of their one-and-only recording for Blue Note Records – ‘Introducing Kenny Cox and The Contemporary Jazz Quintet’ – an album that was recorded in 1968. 

Four years elapsed before the CJQ released another album. ‘Location’ dropped on Cox’s own Strata imprint. Led by Kenny Cox on piano and electric piano, the quintet also features Charles Moore on flugelhorn, trumpet and percussion – an enormously influential figure on the Detroit scene – along with guitarist and Motown side-man Ron English. This five-track offering shows the ensemble to have side-stepped the shadow of 60’s Miles Davis for a more muscular and explosive art form. From the aptly entitled opening salvo of ‘Bang’ to the expansive thirteen minute ‘Inner Beckoning’, ‘Location’ delivers that sense of restless reflection and stubborn resistance which characterized the dawn of the Seventies in the Motor City.

1. Bang! 07:13

2. Tao 11:16

3. Noh Word 01:59

4. Nzugo Saba (Struggle) 08:05

5. Inner Beckoning 13:18

Various Artists: J​-​Jazz - Deep Modern Jazz from Japan 1969​-​1984 (BBE MUSIC 2018)

In the years following the World War Two, Japan developed one of the most insatiable, dynamic and diverse markets for jazz. For a crucial period of little over a decade - from the late 1960s to the early 1980s - Japanese jazz culture progressed at an astonishing rate, producing an extraordinary array of artists, recordings and record labels that created some of the most forward thinking and impressive jazz to be committed to tape. This amazing journey is explored on ‘J Jazz’. 

This compilation from BBE uncovers some of the most sought after and rare material from this period and pulls together key artists who shaped the postwar modern jazz scene in Japan. ‘J Jazz' includes obscure and sought after rarities like the bass-driven power jazz of Koichi Matsukaze’s ‘Earth Mother’, the holy grail rarity of Aizawa Tohru Quartet’s ‘Dead Letter’ and the loping majesty of Takeo Moriyama’s ‘North Wind’. 

This collection takes the listener into deep spiritual jazz, post-modal impressionism and fierce dance-floor fusion with material from artists and composers whose names are generally only known to committed collectors of Japanese jazz. Fumio Karashima, Mitsuaki Katayama, Takeo Moriyama and Kiyoshi Sugimoto are among the names featured on an album aiming to shed a little light on the shadowy world of Japanese jazz clubs, tucked away in the neon backstreets. This music demands a wider audience and BBE are excited to deliver a landmark compilation, lifting the veil on this wonderful and mysterious area of the global jazz catalogue. None of the tracks featured on ‘J Jazz’ have ever received an official release outside Japan before. 

The albums the tracks are taken from are extremely hard to find and often fetch huge sums on the collector’s circuit. Originally pressed in small numbers on independent and private labels such as Union, Johnny’s Disk, Whynot, ALM and VAP, these tracks are now available for everyone to enjoy. Compiled by Tony Higgins and Mike Peden, both long-time collectors of Japanese jazz, ’J Jazz’ brings together the very best in modern jazz from Japan, recorded during a critical period of musical and cultural transition that saw composers and musicians not only assert a new artistic identity but also create a lasting musical legacy.

1. Koichi Matsukaze Trio - Earth Mother 11:22

2. Tohru Aizawa Quartet - Dead Letter 10:11

3. Eiji Nakayama - Aya's Samba 06:33

4. Takao Uematsu - White Fire 07:48

5. Shintaro Quintet - A Blind Man 10:55

6. Mitsuaki Katayama - Unknown Point 06:33

7. Takeo Moriyama - Kaze 05:09

8. Terumasa Hino - Ode to Workman 15:19

9. Fumio Karashima - Little Island 09:04

10. Kiyoshi Sugimoto - Long Neal 08:26

Tracklist 3LP Vinyl Album:

Side A

Koichi Matsukaze Trio - Earth Mother

Takeo Moriyama Quartet with Shigeharu

Mukai - North Wind*

Side B

Tohru Aizawa Quartet - Dead Letter

Eiji Nakayama - Aya’s Samba

Side C

Takao Uematsu - White Fire

George Otsuka Quintet - Sea Breeze*

Side D

Shintaro Quintet - A Blind Man

Mitsuaki Katayama - Unknown Point

Side E

Fumio Karashima - Little Island

Kiyoshi Sugimoto - Long Neal

Side F

Takeo Moriyama - Kaze

Terumasa Hino Meets Reggie Workman - Ode to Workman*

*This tracks are vinyl only, not on CD.

PRE-ORDER ITEM : The vinyl LP is currently being repressed and will be available on or about June 10th. If you wish to secure yourself a copy, order now to avoid disappointment. Please note any orders containing pre-order items won’t be shipped until all items are available, so please order this separately to avoid delays.

In the years following World War Two, Japan developed one of the most insatiable, dynamic and diverse markets for jazz. For a crucial period of little over a decade – from the late 1960s to the early 1980s – Japanese jazz culture progressed at an astonishing rate, producing an extraordinary array of artists, recordings and record labels that created some of the most forward thinking and impressive jazz to be committed to tape. This amazing journey is explored on ‘J Jazz’.

This compilation from BBE uncovers some of the most sought after and rare material from this period and pulls together key artists who shaped the post-war modern jazz scene in Japan.

‘J Jazz’ includes obscure and sought after rarities like the bass-driven power jazz of Koichi Matsukaze’s ‘Earth Mother’, the holy grail rarity of Aizawa Tohru Quartet’s ‘Dead Letter’ and the loping majesty of Takeo Moriyama’s ‘North Wind’. This collection takes the listener into deep spiritual jazz, post-modal impressionism and fierce dance-floor fusion with material from artists and composers whose names are generally only known to committed collectors of Japanese jazz. Fumio Karashima, Mitsuaki Katayama, Takeo Moriyama and Kiyoshi Sugimoto are among the names featured on an album aiming to shed a little light on the shadowy world of Japanese jazz clubs, tucked away in the neon backstreets. This music demands a wider audience and BBE are excited to deliver a landmark compilation, lifting the veil on this wonderful and mysterious area of the global jazz catalogue.

None of the tracks featured on ‘J Jazz’ have ever received an official release outside Japan before. The albums the tracks are taken from are extremely hard to find and often fetch huge sums on the collector’s circuit. Originally pressed in small numbers on independent and private labels such as Union, Johnny’s Disk, Whynot, ALM and VAP, these tracks are now available for everyone to enjoy.

Compiled by Tony Higgins and Mike Peden, both long-time collectors of Japanese jazz, ’J Jazz’ brings together the very best in modern jazz from Japan, recorded during a critical period of musical and cultural transition that saw composers and musicians not only assert a new artistic identity but also create a lasting musical legacy.

Click HERE to search for the album on other stores and formats.