Review: J&F Quintet - Contrast (BBE Music)

This was originally released in 1976 by J&F Quintet on a little know Swiss label, Delta Production.   The group were clearly into Miles' fusion in a deep way so why isn't this better known with original copies demanding £350 prices!

Well, it is a bit of a mystery but thankfully IF... Music's Jean-Claude Thompson has a finger on this type of thing in Europe (check out his 'If Music Pressents You Need This' series  which has compilations covering labels like Enja Records, Black Saint & Soul Note and more) and he's managed to get this LP re-issued from the original master tapes!

The band, Stefan Schneller, Donat Beer and Toni Schädler, with the addition of drummers Gieri Bievi and Peter 'Huck' Hug and bassist Andri A Piorta, split up after this release; presumably Jazz-funk experimental mixed with trad. Swiss-Romansh isn't going to pay the mortgage.

Well, I say that now, but trad vocal/flute and jazz-funk-synth-out, 'White Arena' should have as it's got Can meets Jazzdance nonsense all over it; where's the 12" mix?

If you need "tips for tourist in Switzerland", this is the album you need and you jazz nuts will got for the longer tracks, like the 'Basilio' and the killer, 'Shagalak' plus the flute gang favourite, 'Sint-Flute'.

I'm guessing this won't be around for long so pre-order your copy now to avoid disappointment.

Artist: J&F Quintet 

Title: Contrast

Release date: 16th June, 2023

Label : BBE Music

Catalog Number : BBE728 LP / CD / Digital / Bandcamp 

Review: Sphere - Inside Ourselves (BBE Music/180 Proof Records)

New release on BBE by a band you've never heard off; it must be new then?

Well sort of as in it was orginally from 1974 (almost making it into our new found "50 year old" set) and recorded in 1970, it is part of DJ Amir's dig into seminal Strata East's archives (more on this HERE).

And when I say "live", it is just that on seven original jazz/jazzy fusion tracks at the Detroit Institute of Arts wth John Dana (b), Jimmy Peluso (d), Keith Vreeland (electric piano), Eddie Nuccilli (tr, fh) and leader, Larry Nozero (ts,ss).

It sounds 'free' and very Miles influenced which would the thing at the time for any young self-respecting jazz head in the heart of Detroit; check out that cover photo!

And whilst some of these tracks are long/very long (there's 2 'unknown' bonus tracks, worth getting for the 12 minutes of mostly jazz-dance-speeding of  'Unknown Track 1'), hence the special remastered 2 LP format, there's no particular solo/noodles/puffery here, even with the slower tracks like 'Lonely Girl' and 'Where', there's a sense of energy/purpose. Note: excepting 'Spitfire' that's less than a minute.

Where are these guys now? Well the geeks ampngst us will want to know that Larry played the sax solo on Marvin Gaye's 'What's Going On' and that'd be enough for most of us but he did work much later with Sergio Mendez and Henri Mancini!

This series will never be able to top, the Mingus, 'Jazz In Detroit / Strat Concert Gallery / 46 Selden' release in 2018 (really, 5 years ago!) but this is definitely up there in obscure jazz finds that you wouldn't want to miss out on.

Also, if you like this, you'll also want to get the 'Live' album by Shamek Farrah & Norman Person that was released towards the end of last year (see Review HERE)

Artist: Sphere

Title: Inside Ourselves

Release date: 19th May, 2023

Label : BBE Music

Catalog Number : BBE714 LP / CD / Digital / Bandcamp 

Review: Dizzy Gillespie - The Real Thing (BBE Music)

Dizzy Gillespie will always be remembered for developing bebop (along with Charlie Parker) and introducing Afro-Cuban/Latin style into jazz in the late 40s.  But what was he doing in the early 70s? 

There's two album released on Perception Records, 'The Real Thing' and 'Portrait Of Jenny' that are both being re-issued on BBE on 17th February.

'The Real Thing' features a regular companion James Moody (ts) along with Mike Longo (p), Eric Gale (gtr), Phil Upchurch (b) and Candy Finch (d).

Longo, best known for his '900 Shares Of The Blues' album of jazz-funk-fusion wrote most of the material including the club classic 'Matrix' which Longo included on his own album a couple of years later on Mainstream Records.

But this is more than a one hit album as the very next track 'Alligator' is another sort after on the Mo' Mod Jazz scene and whilst all the musicians are brilliant, what was Eric Gale on?  Whatever it was, this is definitely some of his best work.

'Closer' is a rare vocal track in the gospel swing of things before 'Soul Kiss' gets Even Mo' Mod with the benefit of Nate Edmonds' big organ sound and Dizzy being very 60s interproative/experimental (this guy was in his 50s at the time!)

Could the b-side be as good with an cover of 'Summertime' and a tracks called, 'High On A Cloud', 'Let Me Outta Here' and 'Ding A Ling'?  We'll, it's far more relaxed and showcases the bands love of the blues, especially on the longest track on the album, 'Let Me Outta Here' and the more upbeat 'Ding A Ling.

Once more, thanks to BBE for diggin' this one (in more ways than one) and getting it Dizzy to the wider audience it and he deserves.

See review of 'Portrait Of Jenny' HERE.

Artist: Dizzy Gillespie feat. James Moody

Title: The Real Thing

Release date: 17th February, 2023

Label : BBE Music

Catalog Number : BBE659 LP / CD / Digital / Bandcamp 

Review: Dizzy Gillespie - Portrait Of Jenny (BBE Music)

Dizzy Gillespie will always be remembered for developing bebop (along with Charlie Parker) and introducing Afro-Cuban/Latin style into jazz in the late 40s. But what was he doing in the early 70s?

Well, there are two lesser known albums that were released on Perception Records, 'The Real Thing' and 'Portrait Of Jenny'; and both have been re-issued on BBE on 17th February.

'Portrait Of Jenny' features the 'svengali' of 'The Real Thing', Mike Longo (p) but the rest of the band have changed with the Gonzalez Brothers, Andrew (b) and Jerry (congas) together with Gillespie's collaborator of over 30 years, the master of Afro-Cuban congas, Carlos Valdes.

Longo, shines again with the 12 minutes of 'Me 'n Them' but there's just brilliant Latin post-bop funky spiritual jazz with the other 3 tracks.

You'd be hard pressed to have a favourite when 'Olinga' is for you're trumpet head, 'Diddy Wa Diddy (Mozambique)' satisfys your dancing groove (along with Me 'n Them) and the finger lickin' guitar of George Davis on the soul-jazz of 'Timet'.

Once more, thanks to BBE for diggin' this one (in more ways than one) and getting it Dizzy to the wider audience it and he deserves.

See review of 'The Real Thing' HERE.

Artist: Dizzy Gillespie 

Title: Portrait Of Jenny

Release date: 17th February, 2023

Label : BBE Music

Catalog Number : BBE660 LP / CD / Digital / Bandcamp 

Review: Monzanto Sound - Tomorrow, Tomorrow, Tomorrow EP (None More Records)

Last year we were excited about the release of Monzanto Sound's debut on None More Records, 'Time Lapse' EP, asking, "Where has all the post-punk-funk gone?" And even then, the tracks themselves were also neo-soul-jazzy and much more.  

This year, the EP 'Tomorrow, Tomorrow, Tomorrow', takes on this theme further as on  'The Letter' we take their ESG leanings to more Kraut-rock Can and the Erykah Budu vocals are, at times, an Dagmar Krause operatic avant-garde with space synths too!  Just stunning stuff.

And that's not all as 'The Fool' is the vocal version to the dub that appeared on Mali-I’s debut album 'In Session'. There's no foolin' us they go all reggae/dub; I'd recommend vocal/dub 12" which would be so cool, so come on None More Records!

'Nuff Blues' is just as radio friendly as a neo-soul blues-jazz-funk grooves can be and the 4-tracker is completed with 'Eja' (being in part a tribute to ‘Yemọja’ the Yoruba goddess of the sea).

"Where has all the post-punk-funk gone?" Monzanto Sound are so much more and have passed the 'Gilles Peterson approved' test by a distance.

Artist: Monzanto Sound 

Title: Tomorrow, Tomorrow, Tomorrow

Release date: 25th November, 2022

Label: None More Records

Cat. No: -

Format: Digital

Review: Yasuhiro Kohno + One - Song Of Island (BBE Music)

You may recall that the title track to 'Song Of Island' appeared on the BBE J-Jazz compilation Volume 3: Deep Modern Jazz From Japan 1969 - 1983 and in a collection of such "heavy... bop", this track was the odd-80s recording, sounding like the 60/70s with a  "touch of the spiritual". 

Pianist, leader of the trio + 1, Yasuhiro Kohno has the love and feel of a Hancock/Corea/Tyner as he controls the thrust of 'Song of Island' for nearly 11 minutes with the '+1' of Masahiro Kanno on vibes doing his best Milt Jackson/Gary Burton that you'd never know 1. this was an all Japanese line-up and 2. Recorded live on August 28th and 29th 1985 at "Live House Again" - no overdubs/no re-takes/just 'live'. 

A one off track you might think? Not on this album! All five tracks are pretty lengthy which is really great news in this case. If you thought you'd already heard enough versions of 'Love For Sale' that you'd never need to hear another in your life, stick with this as it swings with attitude (as someone might have said) and I'll say it, best version of the standard I'm ever likely to hear. And the perfect follow-on to the softer 'Time For Peace' before we get into the other two original compositions, 'Mr Nilson' (a little avant-modal blues walk at 13 minutes) and the best in the set, jazzdance head and feet at the ready, 'Village Festival' (12 minutes). 

Originally a private pressing (so rare as!), it's re-issued with original/translated sleeve notes plus a new Tony Higgins interview as well. Fans are already saying 'Corker ain't it !!' and it must be up there for re-issue of the year. Thank you everyone involved in making this happen, from original label ASCAP to BBE and the J-Jazz conception dynamic duo of Mike Peden and Higgins; you'll never be able to see Yasuhiro Kohno +1 at their 1985 peak ever again so this is the next best thing and yet another essential in the J-Jazz series - go Yasuhiro GO! 

Artist: Yasuhiro Kohno + One

Title: Song of Island

Release date : 18th November, 2022

Label : BBE Music

Catalog Number : BBE665

Format: LP / CD / Digital

Review: Enrico Bracco - Flying In A Box (A.MA Records)

Italian jazz has a huge history with labels as Black Saint and Soul Note to Schema Records and A.MA Records.

A.MA Records/Edizioni you say? Yeah, not so well known but that's changing as DJ Bob Hill (BBE, TWR, ReddSugarBlack Creative) as he is championing their releases with a compilation series and there's some remixes by Elbert Phillips.

 

Their latest album release by electric guitar maestro, Enrico Bracco is just out.  

'Flying In A Box' is his fifth album an very much modern jazz from the opening track 'Flow', with it's gentle stream like quality into the more angular 'Unresolved'.

'Urge' finds the band - personnel: Daniele Tittarelli (as), Pietro Lussu (p), Giuseppe Romagnoli (db), Enrico Morello (d): Drums - in more of a swing mode before the reflective gentleness of 'Cold' (in fact, I think 'Cold' is my favourite track of the eight on the album). 

There certainly is a sense of drama throughout the tracks that the band interpret prefectly as with the title track, 'Proved Honestly' and the more upbeat, 'The Same Way'.  

Bracco is certain not at all flashy and whilst jazz guitarist come in many forms these days, from the ever active/popular Bill Fisell to Lionel Loueke (who's recently announced a Herbie Hancock tribute album with Gilles Peterson!).  But if you're a fan of Kenny Burrel and Barney Kessel or even Stanley Jordan and Bireli Lagrene, this album is for you.

Artist: Enrico Bracco 

Title: Flying In A Box 

Release date: 11th November, 2022

Label : A.MA Records / A.MA Edizioni

Catalog Number : LP / Digital / Bandcamp

Review: Surya Botofasina - Everyone's Children (Spiritmuse Records)

If you're looking for an event in London next week, look no further (well, look below to be precise) as London Jazz Festival is hosting Surya Botofasina & Carlos Niño. 

If you know your Carlos Niño, you'll know that that's he's a deeply spiritual man that will love a student of the teachings of Alice Coltrane and her Ashram in California, which is by coincidence, where Surya Botofasina grew up.  

So whilst they prepare for the upcoming live gigs, the album 'Everyone's Children ' is being released by Spiritmuse Records.

This is the definitive ambient spiritual jazz album as the nine tracks are soaked in sunsine and joy, love and peace eminating from keyboards of Surya and, at times, all the delicate percussion by Carlos.

All the tracks titles allude to the gentle, reflective and meditative strength within the music and  'Beloved California Temple' has the addition of Dwight Trible sailing throught the gulf streams and swimming with the dolphins and whales.  It's all just a beatiful sound to give you new breath and rejuvinate. The other track to feature vocals is the title track which see Mia Doi Todd (who we last saw/heard 'Walking With Trees' with Bobby Lee) and she sounds great here too!

I met Niño many years ago in London opposite Rough Trade East and he mostly talked about his love of swimming in the Pacific (he was living in San Diego at the time) and being close to nature and his time with his son, with whom his was DJing with on his radio show, as he was going through his "60's period" of rediscovering The Beatles.

This would have been around 2011 at same the time of Niño's Build An Ark project was in full flow with Miguel Atwood-Ferguson when Niño first suggested Surya lead his own project.  I think we could safely say that 'Everyone's Children' is a long awaited album and it's definitely something all concerned should be very proud of as it's even "bigger than The Beatles!"

Artist: Surya Botofasina 

Title: Everyone's Children

Release date: 4th November, 2022

Label : Spiritmuse Records

Catalog Number : 2xLP vinyl Gatefold w/ obi / CD / Cassette / Digital

Tour Dates

Nov. 10th: London / Brilliant Corners listening event of the new album by Surya Botofasina, 'Everyone's Children'. 

Nov. 11th: London / UK - London Jazz Fest - Surya Botofasina & Carlos Niño

Nov. 12th: Utrecht / NL - Le Guess Who? - Surya Botofasina, Nate Mercereau, Carlos Niño with Special Guests 

Dec. 9th: Brooklyn, New York - Public Records with Carlos Niño, Surya Botofasina, Laraaji, Photay, William Alexander Logan

Review: Stefano De Santis - Unreachable Galaxy EP (Ramrock Records)

It's been a while since we last caught up with Ramrock Records with thier 'Over Again' release by Mr Bird featuring Greg Blackman (see review HERE) but they have been on a roll ever since and their lastest, Unreachable Galaxy EP, is a monster of modern jazz-funk and more. 

Stefano De Santis is an Italian musician/composer/producer has a thing for all your favourite keyboards from Fender  Rhodes, piano, clavinet, Prophet 5, Moog, Solina String Ensemble, Juno 6 (so you know this is going to sound incredible already) and he does all the drum programming too!

He's definitely got his fingers on the keys when it comes to jazzy bruk dancefloor Lonnie/Herbie/Deodato inspired space funk; what more could anybody need? A four tracker that touches the jazz-funk dancer in all of us.   Particularly 'Cosmic Days' (with a nod to Azimuth 'disco') and 'Unreachable Galaxy' are a diggers dream (Ramrock Red Records having done the hard work for us in this case) and then merge all this (if you can imagine) and bring in the fashionable BRUK underground for 'Nova Laze' and 'Sick With Rhyme'.  

Totally Worldwide FM with usual suspect fans already like Gilles Peterson, Colin Curtis, Ashley Beedle, Kev Beadle etc. so expect to hear much more of these tracks soon.

Ramrock/ Ramrock Blue/ Ramrock Red · 01. Stefano De Santis - Unreachable Galaxy

Artist: Stefano De Santis

Title: Unreachable Galaxy EP

Release date: 28th October, 2022

Label: Ramrock Red Records Soundcloud.com/ramrockrecords

Cat. No: RRR034

Format: Digital

Review: Per Husby Septett - Peacemaker (BBE MUSIC)

It's clear from the BBE J-Jazz series that Mike Peden does love a rare record but in addition to tracking down the best of the rare in the land of the rising sun, this time he's got a gem from the land of the midnight sun with a super rare LP (original only 500 so an instant collectors item) from the Per Husby Septett. 

With covers of tracks by the be-and-post-boppers Kenny Wheeler, Cedar Walton and Charlie Parker you'd thought that'd be enough to covert this album (that features the finest of Norway's Jazz musicians that's led by pianist & arranger Per Husby) but the title track is a killer (erm, let's try 'is a peacemaker'). 

Getting back to Peden, he does like 100mph bop and 'Au Privave / Bloomdido' is that. And then, by contrast, 'Nokve' has the pace and vibe of a 'Smoke Gets In Your Eyes' whilst the Kenny Wheeler compositions 'Smatta' and 'Introduction To No Particular Song' hark back to Peden's usual sidekick, Tony 'Impressed' Higgins and his Brit-Jazz revival [this release being Peden's equivalent to Higgins' recent BBE post bop re-issue release on BBE, Shamek Farrah & Norman Person 'Live' - get the feeling these guys are in friendly competition?]. 

So jazz-heads and dancers will know 'Fantasy In D' (the Walton track) , 'Confirmation' (Parker) and 'Lush Life' (Strayhorn) that are all impecable interpretations in both small and big band arrangements. 

What really stands out is the title track, 'The Peacemaker' written by Harold Land. Perhaps we just need to give peace a chance today (bearing in mind this set was recorded back in 1976) along with Per Husby's own 'Adgang F.'. 

And then the original artwork is kinda Monty Pythoneaque and Per Husby has done some new sleeve notes for what is now a 2xLP/CD/Digital release thus making this a necessary addition to any record collection. 

Nice one Mike, lets hope there's more to follow in a series.

BBE Music · Per Husby Septett - The Peacemaker

Artist: Per Husby Septett

Title: Peacemaker

Release date: 21st October 2022

Label: BBE Music

Cat. No: BBE641

Format: 2xLP / CD / Digital

Interview: Jean-Claude (If Music, Amalgamation of Soundz)

Record shop owner, renowned DJ and one half of respected production duo The Amalgamation Of Soundz, Jean-Claude has been a mainstay of London’s music scene for almost 4 decades now. Alongside artists such as Kruder & Dorfmeister and Saint Germain, The Amalgamation of Soundz championed a genre defying, jazz influenced style that became the soundtrack to the late nineties and early naughties for many music lovers. Their 2003 Fabric compilation is a slept-on classic, flying in the face of convention with cinematic elegance and off-kilter weirdness whilst retaining the DNA of the pair’s memorable DJ sets, which included a Glastonbury appearance in 2005. More recently, Jean Claude has been busying himself with new projects of late: namely running his record shop If Music, hosting shows on NTS and Soho Radio and curating a series of compilation albums. The latest of these, A Journey Into Deep Jazz (out now on BBE Music) sees Jean-Claude digging deep into his formidable collection and emerging with a fantastically eclectic haul of rare musical gems. We caught up with the man himself to find out more.

How did you get your start in music? Were you collecting records for a long time before you began DJing? 
Apparently I was obsessed with buying and owning my own music since the age of six (so the story be told by my late mother). I had my first ever DJ-gig at the age of fifteen for the school party.

You clearly have wide-ranging musical tastes. As a DJ, do you pull it all together in a way that makes sense? 
As a DJ I have learnt that unless it is a residency each gig has to be approached as if it’s the first time. If it’s a Fabric on a Saturday night, of course I’m playing Disco, house/Techno and I will throw as many breaks into that mix as I can. If it’s a Plastic Peeps (legendary and sadly missed London venue Plastic People) scenario then I’m going stupidly heavy and playing the most obscure shizzle I can get away with. When it’s a Glastonbury, you hit them with the shit they know and want but, everything with my own way of delivering the party. We all have the same records, it’s just how one plays them. The right notes in the wrong order or maybe the wrong notes in the right order!

You've been a DJ for well over three decades now. Please describe how you've seen the scene change and evolve in London during that time. 
 I have DJd man and boy for nearly forty years and the evolution of the DJ is hand in hand with technology as it constantly evolves. For the past ten years or more it’s been all about turning your back on vinyl and the basics, to let the computers do all the work for u. Not surprising really, with the advancement in technology that has transpired over the last twenty years!

We hear your record shop, If Music, has just moved to new premises… 
We are coming up to our 14th b/day and after a seven year absence we have returned to Soho (our 1st spot was in Green’s Ct. back in Jan. 2003). This time we are on D’Arblay Street, right opposite where Black Market Records used to be (serendipity? For sure).

What's it like running a record shop now compared to back in the 90s? 
Indie record spots like ours still function in the same way they always have: we break acts, we turn on the players from all over the world to the latest heat and the classics they need, we introduce the next generation of new talent to the established underground Dons and Donettes and even to the major labels so, the wheels of the music industry keep on truckin’. Running a small record emporium has always been a ***ed up double-edged sword: on one hand, great to be surrounded by brilliant music all day and have the dream job where no two days are the same but, not likely to make millions from doing it. Saying that, one doesn’t do it for the money, I guess.


Your 'Journey Into Deep Jazz' LP on BBE is a very special compilation. How did you go about selecting (and ordering) the music? 
I chose an X amount of records from my collection. Whatever we were able to license was licensed and hey presto, job done!

What's next for Jean-Claude? 
We have the label tie-in with Ninja Tune, so, we will have an array of artist albums continually released on IF Music, there are a host of different comps I’m putting together for BBE et al. There’s the NTS & Soho Radio shows which are a lot of fun, gigs and a busy shop to run……

Jean Claude's 'Journey Into Deep Jazz' is out now on BBE Records.
Check out the 'If Music' online store here

Review: Lay-Far - How I Communicate (Local Talk)

It’s always a pleasure to see a favourite underground record label evolve from releasing the odd 12” or EP to becoming a fully-fledged ‘grown up’ imprint releasing artist albums. Sweden’s Local Talk is one such label, gaining an international following for its off-kilter releases from Kyodai, HNNY, Fred Everything and others. I’m glad to say they’ve extended their distinctive music policy to their first few long players too.

‘How I Communicate’ is the second album from Moskow’s Lay-Far, an artist who’s been heavily hyped by those in the know over the last couple of years. For once, the hype is entirely justified. Critics and stores will probably put this record on the same shelf with the likes of Todd Terje, Crazy P and other ‘disco crossover’ acts, but although there are undeniable similarities, I’d argue that this record is subtly and essentially different. Why? Because Lay-Far isn’t pulling any creative punches. While the other two acts mentioned have a tendency toward the saccharine which makes them the dance music equivalent of ‘gateway drugs’, Lay-Far has struck a near-perfect balance between accessibility and authenticity.

From the warm, string-laden musical hug of ‘Like The First Time’ which opens the record, through the jazzy broken-beat / House crossover ‘Slope’ featuring Ashley Beedle, to the low slung deepness of ‘Submerging’, this album really has breadth. Supplying enough melody and variation to (hopefully) please a more mainstream audience, whilst retaining enough repetition and groove to satisfy the heads, Lay-Far’s balanced and elegant offering should serve as a lesson to us all on the difficult craft of album-making.

'How I Communicate' is out now, so go get it.

Review: Fae Simon - Outrospective (BBE Records)

This is one of those albums that, even in these globalized times, could’ve only been made in the UK with its distinctive musical melting-pot.  From the first track, we’re given a taste of Fae’s diverse influences : her own vocals reminiscent of a hundred lovers rock singers from the early ‘80s, but also bringing to mind left-field artists from the ‘90s like Nicolette, while the underlying rhythm also combines  an organic, roots reggae vibe with those dark, stoned trip-hop gestures that were such a feature of the musical landscape of her native London twenty years ago.  Other tracks veer towards hip-hop, and there’s even a little jazz feel on track five, where you can really feel  the interplay between singer and musicians.

If none of that sounds like anything exactly new, then, yes, you’re right –this is perhaps not the most adventurous, forward-thinking album the very eclectic BBE label have put ever out. What it is, is a solid set which they might find it difficult to fit into contemporary music marketing categories, but which will definitely find a home with some of the more open-minded and inquisitive music-lovers out there.

This is definitely an album put together by and for someone who feels she has something to say, both socially and musically. ‘Outropective’ suggests she is looking out at the world rather than inside her own head.  Let’s hope the world is similarly inclined to notice her. Both classically and jazz-trained, according to the press release that came with our copy of this album, there needs to be a place for the Fae Simons of this world in an era when most music is put together through a computer programme.

Outrospective is available now via iTunes

Review: Malombo Jazz Makers, Jabula and Jazz Afrika – Spirit of Malombo (Strut Records)

South African jazz produced a couple genuine world stars in Hugh Masekela and in Dollar Brand/Abdullah Ibrahim. There were also some revered exile musicians in the form of the former Blue Notes Chris McGregor, Mongezi Feza, Johnny Dyani and Dudu Pukwana who moved to London and pioneered their very own brand of fiery free jazz as The Brotherhood of Breath (and in innumerable small groups) from  the ‘60s. Never a Blue Note, and perhaps less inclined to the avant-garde, was drummer Julian Bahula, who carried on playing an authentic township dance-based groove for many years through a succession of bands  Originally a star with the Malombo Jazz Men, that group transformed itself into Jazz Makers which is where this compilation picks up the story.
The Malombo Jazz Makers, which included flautist Philip Cindi invoking the traditional penny whistle sounds of the townships, and guitarist Lucky Ranku, were active in anti-apartheid cultural activity within South Africa and had been particularly aligned with the Black consciousness movement led by Steve Biko. As for  many other creative and dissident South Africans, conditions became intolerable at home, and Bahula moved to London in the early ‘70s where he proceeded to become virtually synonomous with the anti-apartheid movement. His new group, Jabula, were seldom missing from the fundraisers of the day.

Luckily the music took a more melodic turn with Jabula, as two discs of township jazz and its emphasis on swinging rhythm could pall as a ‘listening’ experience. The more fusion-oriented Jabula material breaks up the tempo and mood. That said, it’s hard to find anything to fault here. This is direct, powerful music  and a long overdue retrospective for a player who might’ve had a lucrative career as a session player, but chose to dedicate himself to the greater struggle of liberation.

The album is available now via iTunes or the Strut Store

Podcast: Jeff Daniels - Jazz Journey #1

The first mix to be posted on You and the Music comes courtesy of our resident blogger Jeff Daniels, taking us through a selection of utterly essential jazz beats. Anyone with even a passing interest in dance music should get stuck into this- the roots are laid out before us here (as well as some very tasty recent cuts).

In the words of the man himself: "I've been meaning to put together a selection of Jazz or Jazz influenced tracks for a while now, and finally, here it is. The 1st installment..."Jazz Journey #1", taking in all forms of Jazziness, and featuring some real dance-floor burners to get your jazz juices flowing, a few head nodders and a couple of spat scuffers thrown in there as well, merging styles and adding new dimensions. No weakness in the whirl. Niiiiiiiiiiiiice."

You can download the link here http://www.sendspace.com/file/xc67xq

Feel free to share and please leave a comment, it's all about connecting up!

For DJ bookings please email djjeffdaniels@facebook.com

Jazz Journey #1 by Jeff Daniels on Mixcloud