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Available for the first time since its original release in 1980, this is compelling, funky, exploratory jazz from Melbourne, Australia.
The album opens with the floating Song For Bobby, a downtempo gem with the heartbeat aura of Herbie Hancock’s Butterfly; Orchestral Excerpts (From The Symphony Of Life), In The Basement and City Of Stone are high-grade fusion jams with one eye on Weather Report and Return to Forever, the other on the organic Australian sound of Alan Lee and John Sangster. The album closes out with the completely improvised Universal Suite, a 17-minute excursion which begins with a cinematic opening reminiscent of electric Miles at his most introspective before taking flight on passages of hard-driving Latin percussion, shimmering fusion and gritty funk. Slick, cultured and in close dialogue with the most advanced sounds of the era, Pyramid documents one of Australia’s great fusion bands at the height of their powers.
Live at the Lila Eule 2018.
Brilliant jazz lyricism, in the style of Kenny Burrell, by the thirty-three-year-old, at an impromptu 1965 session in the Federal Studio, with pianist Leslie Butler, drummer Carl McLeod and bassist Stephen Lauz.
Al Ghaba!
‘Classic Vinyl.’
The only LP by this vocal trio; originally out on Creole in 1985. Recorded at Dynamic Sounds and Music Mountain; produced by B.B. Seaton.
Glads and Culture vibes.
Surveying 1974-1978 at King Tubby’s studio, with Scientist in particular coming through. Randy’s and Channel One rhythms — Anywhere But Nowhere, No No No — featuring the likes of Robbie Shakespeare, Lloyd Parks, Sly, Carlton Barrett, Augustus Pablo, and Chinna. A bouquet of exclusive cuts, only issued once before, in the mid-nineties, by Zola & Zola.
Wild, psychedelic, salsa-spiced, Peruvian cumbia.
In the late 1960s, the coastal city of Paramonga, just a three-hour drive north of Lima, gave rise to a vibrant music scene shaped by surf, rockabilly, and tropical sounds. Blending cumbia with guaracha, salsa, and guaguancó, and emerging styles like chicha —with their psychedelic guitars, Fender amplifiers, hot percussion, and wah-wah pedals — Los Orientales would shape the musical identity of the region.
Drawing from the LPs Con Sabor Tropical in 1972 and Tremendo Ritmo the following year, plus numerous 45s, this is a comprehensive review of the sound and spirit of Los Orientales de Paramonga at their peak.
‘You’re never too old to learn something new. Reed credits bebop with keeping him and his friends out of reform school because they were too busy listening to records to get into trouble. Finding fame as a writer, he returned to music circuitously, eventually taking the plunge at aged 60 to study jazz piano. Diagnosed with prostate cancer in 2006 he hastily assembled a quintet to fulfil a lifelong ambition of recording an album. He made the record (and recovered). Cash-strapped during COVID, he became a composer to generate funds money for his plays, enlisting his daughter Tennessee as narrator.
‘These humble origins and a genuine love and natural talent for music are what underpins The Hands Of Grace. Consisting of works written for Reed’s play The Slave Who Loved Caviar alongside new original compositions, it brings in close friends and family to accompany his casual, unvarnished playing style that’s so genuinely heartfelt it feels as if you could be sat alongside in their living room. The music carries a lived-in simplicity yet it also holds something ambiguous that draws it away from the predictable. Music papers rustle, a living room chair is dragged up to the keys whilst Reed’s wife Carla contributes violin and daughter Tennessee recites her poetry on standout How High The Moon. This is a poignant family affair with no-one left out, ending on a touching tribute and voicemail from their late daughter Timothy.’
‘Classic Vinyl Edition.’
‘Classic Vinyl.’