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| 2015 CD + DVD releases... |
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CD's or DVDs released (or announced) during 2015........................CDs released during 2014.......during 2016
| Real Gone Jazz | "Ronnie Scott Six Classic Albums Plus bonus Tracks" | 
Another low cost 4 CD compilation of well known albums which most collectors will already have. Sadly, there is nothing new here although it is claimed that all tracks have been re-mastered and sound quality is much improved. Tracks come from the following albums:Ronnie Scott Orchestra with Tony Crombie (1956) Progress Report with Dizzy Reece (1956) - 2 tracks only Jazz at the Flamingo (1956) - 4 tracks only Tubby Hayes and the Jazz Couriers (1957) Ronnie Scott Sextet (1957) The Couriers of Jazz (1958) The Jazz Couriers in Concert (1958) The Last Word (1959) Zoot at Ronnie Scott's (1961) - 3 tracks only Track listing Ronnie Scott... Hep | "Eddie Thompson Trio - The Besendorfer Concert 1980 Vol. 2" | 
This album captures a typical gig by the late renowned jazz pianist Eddie Thompson in his years of touring with a trio. Exceptionally he was offered an opportunity of a rare performance on a magnificent Bessendorfer Imperial Grand piano with it's extra octave in the bass. Volume 1 was issued earlier this year. Eddie Thompson burst upon the jazz scene in the late 1940s when young British modernists such as George Shearing were starting to make an impact in an environment dominated by trad. After working with the band of the drummer Carlo Krahmer and the Tommy Whittle Quintet Thompson moved to New York in 1962 where he was for a time resident pianist at the Hickory House. He returned to the UK in 1972 and was a fixture on the British club scene with his own trio as well as performing with the likes of Spike Robinson. Thompson died in 1986 at the age of 61. his passing left a huge void in the British jazz scene. He was admired by many, not just for his playing but also for courage, for despite his blindness from birth he took life at full tilt and let nothing stand in his way. Personnel: Eddie Thompson (piano), Pete Stables (bass), Pete Taylor (drums). Track listing Eddie Thompson... Repertoire Records | "Graham Bond Live at the BBC & Other Stories" | 
Live At the BBC & Other Stories is a 4 CD set containing 46 Remastered tracks and over 4½ hours of music.
BBC tracks sourced from the archives with bonus material and previously unreleased and very rare recordings
with authoritative liner notes by Pete Brown.The ultimate Graham Bond collectors’ item, with all the unreleased BBC recordings, plus numerous bonus tracks that include ultra rare and private recordings made available for the first time ever, and a hard to find EP. The set contains Graham Bond's entire BBC output - under his own name and featured with other acts. More of Graham's award-winning saxophone playing than previously available on any set in the market. He ultimately became periphal to the jazz world and much of this 4CD set will probably not be of interest to jazz only listeners but this CD set does contain broadcasts from the early 1960s including jazz names Don Rendell, John Burch, Dick Heckstall-Smith, John McLaughlin, Bobby Breen and features an amazing 1962 hour-long jam session from Manchester's Club 43 with Ken Wray on valve-trombone and the Joe Palin Trio. Selective track listing Graham Bond... Vocalion | "Johnny Dankworth and Ted Heath" | 
Two more releases of Johnny Dankworth Orchestra BBC transcriptions from 1959/60. Titled "The Johnny Dankworth Orchestra - Too Cool For The Blues - The 1959/60 BBC Transcription recordings Volume 2" and
"The Johnny Dankworth Orchestra - Highgate Hideaway - The 1959 BBC Transcription recordings Volume 3"Dankworth collectors should be aware that of the 20 titles included on "Too Cool For The Blues" 19 of them are included on the Rex Records two CD (40 track) set of the same name issued in 2010. The Vocalion CD is a transcription of three BBC broadcasts including announcements, (in French). Track listing Johnny Dankworth... Released at the same time is Volume 9 of the Ted Heath transcription series Ted Heath & His Music REVIEWING THE SITUATION Rare transcription recordings of the 1960s VOLUME 9 DVD | "Tubby Hayes A Man In A Hurry" | 
January 30th 2015 marked what would have been the 80th birthday of Edward
Brian Hayes, known to the world of jazz as Tubby. A professional jazz musician
at just fifteen, by his untimely death at thirty-eight, he had left behind a
body of work, that has both stood the test of time and has proven to be an
inspiration to many like minded musicians today.For ten years from the mid 1950s to the middle of 1960s, jazz musician, composer and arranger, Tubby Hayes became a household name in Britain. He had his own shows on national television and he played on some of the most iconic recordings of that era, including the soundtracks to the films ‘Alfie’ and ‘The Italian Job’. Tubby became the first solo UK jazz performer to be invited to play in the United States, where Miles Davis attended his first gig in New York and his services were much in demand here in the UK by the likes of Duke Ellington, Ella Fitzgerald, Henry Mancini, Quincy Jones and Dizzy Gillespie. However, the combination of years of over work, drug abuse and the rise of Pop music in the UK – much to the detriment of the world of British jazz – ultimately found Tubby struggling to complete sometimes poorly attended concerts. He had burnt very brightly but then quickly faded from the general publics consciousness soon after his untimely death in June 1973. Perhaps, now a forgotten man by many. But 2015, over forty years since his sad demise, Tubby and his numerous recordings from a highly productive twenty-year period have steadily attracted a growing band of dedicated fans around the globe. October 2015 will see the release of the film ‘Tubby Hayes – A Man In A Hurry’ narrated by actor and Hayes fan Martin Freeman (produced by Mark Baxter/directed by Lee Cogswell). Featuring exclusive interviews with people that knew Tubby, worked with him, musicians influenced by him, people from the music industry and fans, Tubby Hayes – A Man in a Hurry charts the life and Hep | "Eddie Thompson Trio - The Besendorfer Concert 1980" | 
This album captures a typical gig by the late renowned jazz pianist Eddie Thompson in his years of touring with a trio. Exceptionally he was offered an opportunity of a rare performance on a magnificent Bessendorfer Imperial Grand piano with it's extra octave in the bass.Eddie Thompson burst upon the jazz scene in the late 1940s when young British modernists such as George Shearing were starting to make an impact in an environment dominated by trad. After working with the band of the drummer Carlo Krahmer and the Tommy Whittle Quintet Thompson moved to New York in 1962 where he was for a time resident pianist at the Hickory House. He returned to the UK in 1972 and was a fixture on the British club scene with his own trio as well as performing with the likes of Spike Robinson. Thompson died in 1986 at the age of 61. his passing left a huge void in the British jazz scene. He was admired by many, not just for his playing but also for courage, for despite his blindness from birth he took life at full tilt and let nothing stand in his way. Personnel: Eddie Thompson (piano), Pete Stables (bass), Pete Taylor (drums). Track listing Eddie Thompson... Acrobat | "Ronnie Scott - Not So Fast - The Complete Esquire Recordings 1951" | 
When Ronnie Scott scooped first place in the tenor sax category of the Melody
Maker readers’ poll in early 1951 the victory – his third such award –
prompted an especially concentrated patch of recorded activity for the Esquire
label. Sharp-as-a-tack, sports car driving, ineffably glamorous and bursting
with musical swagger, Scott had it all and it was little surprise that
producers Carlo Krahmer and Peter Newbrook clearly wanted to make the most of
their star signing. Over the ensuing year they recorded him not only leading
his own quartet and all-star “Boptet” but also in partnership with pianist
Ronnie Ball’s trio and with fellow tenor star Kenny Graham. The range of the
music on these sessions – covering everything from Graham’s prototypical
Afro-Cuban fusions to the cool, Getz-like ambience of the recordings featuring
Scott in a quartet format – fully illustrated the young tenorist’s gifts, as
well as showcasing the talents of an impressive array of British jazz
notables, including Jimmy Deuchar, Victor Feldman and Tony’s Crombie and
Kinsey. This new Acrobat release concentrates on the results of this single,
eventful twelve months, containing all of the original Esquire 78rpm releases
recorded during that year together with two recently unearthed PREVIOUSLY
UNISSUED alternative takes of Scott’s sextet featuring visiting American
jazzman Spike Robinson. Complete with press cuttings, period photographs and a
detailed booklet essay by saxophonist and writer Simon Spillett, this release
is the ultimate document of a year-in-the-life of one of the UK’s best-loved
jazz legends. Track listing Ronnie Scott...
Renella | "The Spike Heatley Trio with Art Themen - Live at Fleece Jazz 2014" | 
Spike Heatley now lives in France, but luckily he still makes an annual return to the UK to play gigs with his regular trio plus on this occasion tenor sax player Art Themen.
In the mid 1970s Art Themen started a twenty year association with Stan Tracey. Spike is one of the few active jazz musicians still around from the 1950s and between them they have recorded a superb set that received a 4* review from Jazz Journal (April 2015).Spike doesn't relish playing the same repertoire all his musical life. Now he writes his own material and often asks respected friends to create something for him and he says, with a smile, "they always oblige." Those listeners who have his other recordings with three different groups will see exactly what he means. Again there is something fresh and interestingly different on this latest release, besides Spike's originals there are compositions from others including pianist John Horler and Dizzy Gillespie. The CD is available direct from Spike via his e-mail address or his Facebook page... details... Other members of the group are Andy Williams (guitar) and Malcolm Mortimer (drums). track list Acrobat | "Blues at The Manor 1959-60 Tubby Hayes & The Downbeat Big Band" | 
Formed in 1956 by a group of prominent London-based British modern jazzmen
including trumpeter Jimmy Deuchar, The Downbeat Big Band soon entered the
annals of UK jazz history as not only the finest unit of its kind – fiercely
dedicated to musical modernity at a time when many other parochial big bands
trod an awkward path between purism and commerce – but also as a proving
ground for the arranging skills of a musician who would eventually rise to be
its unofficial 'leader' – Tubby Hayes. Indeed, the potent mix of in-house
writing talent, all-star cast, razor’s-edge repertoire and the leader’s own
multi-instrumentalism made the Downbeat band something a prototype for later
incarnations of Hayes' own big band, and for close to five years, its sporadic
existence delighted scores of British jazz fans. However, despite its
formidable reputation and glittering list of alumni – including such legendary
Brit-jazzers as Ronnie Scott and Phil Seamen – the band was long thought to
have left nothing recorded in its wake. This new Acrobat CD proves otherwise
by making available two PREVIOUSLY UNRELEASED sessions recorded during 1959
and 1960.The first was recorded under studio conditions at Ronnie Scott's
then-new Gerrard Street club and is thought to have been possibly recorded as
an audition for radio, while the second marks the band’s sole broadcast
appearance, aired in 1960, with the added attraction of star guest Victor
Feldman. Covering a repertoire drawn from some of the finest composers in
modern jazz – Horace Silver, Tadd Dameron and Benny Golson among them – and
with arrangements by Hayes, Jimmy Deuchar and Harry South, Blues at The Manor
not only uncovers a key document of British jazz history, but also offers yet
another reminder of the genius of the late, great Tubby Hayes. Complete with a
fascinating booklet note by Hayes's biographer and saxophonist Simon Spillett,
rare photographs and press clippings, this album is an unmissable treat for
all Brit-jazz fans.Downbeat Big Band track list... Vocalion | "BBC Jazz Club Rare transcription recordings (1959 - 60) Volume Two" |  The second of Vocalion's BBC transcription recordings compiled by Tony Middleton feature recordings from four groups (Tony Crombie Band, Eddie Thompson Trio, Lennie Felix Trio and the Mike Daniels & his Delta Jazzmen that were first broadcast in 1959 or 1960. The Tony Crombie seven piece band dates from December 1959 as do the Eddie Thompson Trio tracks. Crombie's band included Stan Tracey, Bobby Wellins and Leon Calvert. This was a short lived group that recorded the classic Tempo album "Jazz Inc" in 1960. The Mike Daniels and Lennie Felix broadcast was recorded December 1959 and January 1960. Tony Crombie track list... Eddie Thompson track list... Vocalion | "BBC Jazz Club Rare transcription recordings (1959) Volume One" |  The first of Vocalion's BBC transcription recordings compiled by Tony Middleton feature recordings tracks from four groups first broadcast in 1959. The Tony Kinsey Quartet broadcast was during Alan Branscombe's short spell with Kinsey. He plays alto sax and also present is Bill Le Sage. The Vic Ash Quintet tracks with Ian Hamer and Harry South have been released recently on a recent Acrobat CD (Vic Ash Quintet Studio and live recordings 1959-61). The CD is completed with tracks from the Alex Welsh band and the Dill Jones Trio. Tony Kinsey track list... Vic Ash track list... Dill Jones track list... Retrospective | "George Chisholm - the Gentleman of Jazz" | 
Retrospective presents a superb jazz release celebrating the centenary of jazz trombonist – Britain’s finest ever – George Chisholm, the “Gentleman of Jazz”.
Many remember him primarily as a TV entertainer on such as The Black & White Minstrel Show, yet Europe has
produced few jazz masters to rival him.Disc one (1937-1944) of our 2CD survey presents George from his very first studio session as a trombonist (with Gerry Moore in 1937), through his notable early dates with such as Benny Carter, Coleman Hawkins, Fats Waller, and Danny Polo’s Swing Stars. Alongside his own 1938 Jive Five and 1944 Jive Eight recordings are some of the best from the many years he spent with the famous RAF band, The Squadronaires, plus a trio of surprisingly hot examples of Victor Silvester’s Jive Band. Disc two (1947-1962) shows how his style shifted in the 50s towards mainstream jazz, with eight fine numbers from his own 1956 group, as well as examples of his playing with Kenny Baker, Kenny Graham and others. But he never forsook ‘Trad’, and the disc also contains some delightful tracks with singers Denny Dennis, Michael Holliday and Clinton Ford. Throughout his life, George Chisholm brought happiness wherever he went; happily we can still enjoy it. Track list... Hep | "Eddie Thompson In The USA" | 
Available for the first time on CD (December 2014) this includes a session recorded with his trio in 1962 by Eddie Thompson, one of the UK's finest jazz pianists, plus five solo piano tracks recorded in 1975.Blind from birth, Thompson was born in 1925. By 1947 he was part of the London jazz scene, recording and playing in the company of top London musicians including Vic Ash, Tony Crombie, Ronnie Scott and Johnny Dankworth. In 1962 he decided to try his luck in New York and there he recorded the ten tracks that make up the bulk of this album. Returning to London in 1972 he was soon in demand with regular BBC Jazz Club gigs, recordings for the German BASF and Doug Dobell's 77 labels, and as one of the first call accompanists for visiting American soloists. Making a return visit to the States in 1975 Thompson recorded the five solo piano tracks that complete this recording. Track list... Giant Steps | "Soho After Dark - London's '50s Modern Jazz Scene" | 
Originally issued in 2010 this 2CD set apparently disappeared without trace and has been re-launched. It is a compilation containing 35 tracks from 1949 to 1960 of which only three are not already available on other re-issues.Soho After Dark is a snapshot of a time, now long gone, when London's vibrant Soho square mile almost rivalled New York's 52nd Street and LA's Central Avenue for musical excitement. Stylistically, the music performed reveals influences that encompass East Coast Hard Bop, and West Coast Cool but, importantly, all are delivered in a local accent. Visiting American jazzmen frequently commented on the high standard of the local musicianship they encountered. This was by no means a patronizing gesture to ingratiate themselves with the locals but genuine endorsements. This went as far as Duke Ellington (Tubby Hayes), Lionel Hampton (Jimmy Deuchar). and Stan Kenton (Harry Klein, Tommy Whittle and Don Rendell) hiring local stars to dep for sick or wayward sidemen. Track list... ECM | "Kenny Wheeler - Songs for Quintet" | 
Kenny Wheeler (1930-2014) was an unassuming giant of modern
jazz, a daring improviser, and a writer of many beautiful and
slyly unorthodox tunes. His recorded legacy includes albums
now regarded as contemporary jazz classics such as Gnu High,
Deer Wan, and Music For Large And Small Ensembles. In December
2013 he recorded what was to be his last album. Songs for
Quintet, an inspirational session featuring Wheeler
compositions of recent vintage (plus a fresh approach to
“Nonetheless”, first heard on Angel Song), was recorded in
London’s Abbey Road Studio with four of Kenny’s favourite
players. Stan Sulzmann, John Parricelli, Chris Laurence and
Martin France work together marvellously as an interactive
unit, solo persuasively, and provide support for the tender
and lyrical flugelhorn of the bandleader. Songs for Quintet is
issued on January 14, 2015, which would have been Kenny
Wheeler’s 85th birthday.
Audio-B | "Vic Ash Quartet - The Eyes Have It" | 
This is a welcome re-issue of a 1995 recording with Vic Ash playing tenor sax and clarinet and supported by David Newton (piano), Malcom Creese (bass) and Allan Ganley (drums).Ash died in October, 2014 and the re-issue, (at budget price), gives another chance to obtain this disc. Visitors to this website will know that Vic Ash was a mainstay of the British jazz scene for over sixty years but at the time of this recording he had not recorded under his own name for around 37 years, although he was never out of the studio for long playing on many Dankworth and other big band records including the BBC Big Band. This CD gives an opportunity to hear him in a small group setting again. All of his earlier small group recordings featured him on clarinet so these are unique in that these were his first small group tenor sax tracks. Track listing Vic Ash... Savage Solweig | "The Tubby Hayes Big Band - Rumpus" | 
Savage-Solweig Records is dedicated to the release of previously unissued
recordings by the late, great British jazz virtuoso Tubby Hayes. With unique
access to the tapes left in Hayes personal archive after his death, many hours
of recordings have been unearthed and carefully restored to create a series
which displays this much-missed genius at the peak of his powers.The 1969 star-packed edition of Tubby's big band featuring Peter King, Kenny Wheeler and Spike Wells lifting the roof off The Torrington Arms. The leader grants his sidemen plenty of solo space in a programme that ranges from the tightest of ensembles to uninhibited Tubby Hayes free-form. Each release features extensive booklet notes by Hayes biographer Simon Spillett, contemporary photograph and reminiscence by those directly involved in the actual recordings. Personnel: Tubby Hayes (tenor saxophone), Greg Bowen, Ian Hamer, Les Condon, Kenny Wheeler (trumpets), Keith Christie, David Horler, Bill Geldard (trombones), Peter King (alto saxophone), Brian Smith (tenor saxophone), Harry Klein (baritone saxophone), Louis Stewart (guitar), Ron Mathewson (bass), Spike Wells (drums). Track listing Tubby Hayes... Acrobat | "Tubby Hayes Symphony The Lost Session" | 
January 30th 2015 marks the anniversary of what would have been
Tubby Hayes’ 80th birthday. Undoubtedly THE ultimate British jazz
legend, Hayes’ untimely death, aged 38, in 1973 ended what had been
a truly remarkable 23 year career, and, although long gone, his
musical example still continues to inspire and amaze today.Released to mark this milestone, this new Acrobat album presents a PREVIOUSLY UNISSUED session recorded in early 1972, which has only recently been rediscovered. On what was one of his first post-surgery gigs, Hayes is heard alongside the Tony Lee Trio, then one of the busiest accompanying units on the London jazz scene, playing with the drive, taste and maturity that came from a lifetimes dedication to the art of jazz improvisation. Indeed, those who remember the impact of hearing Hayes in-person will find more than a hint of nostalgia in this performance. The recording also calls into question some of the critical wisdom that has surrounded the music Hayes made during his final years. Far from being a spent force, ravaged by ill-health and forced to make debilitating compromises, as some jazz histories would have him during this “comeback” period, he sounds in imperious form throughout, whether barrelling through a blues or caressing a ballad. This atmospheric release has been newly remastered from the original tape source to gain the best possible sound and comes complete with rare photographs, press cuttings and a detailed booklet essay by saxophonist and Hayes’ biographer Simon Spillett. Track listing Tubby Hayes... | |