While it is not as powerful or as revelatory as For Alto, Anthony Braxton's second album for Delmark, 3 Compositions of New Jazz is his debut as a leader and showcases just how visionary -- or out to lunch depending on your point of view -- he was from the very beginning. Recorded nine months after his debut with Muhal Richard Abrams on Levels and Degrees of Light, Braxton's compositional methodology and his sense of creating a band are in full flower. For one thing, there is no use of...   [ read more ]

CD $12.33

Also reissued as 2 Degrees East, 3 Degrees West and occasionally listed under tenor saxophonist Bill Perkins' name, this classic session is the ultimate in cool jazz. Perkins' mellow tone matches quite well with the quiet but inwardly passionate playing of pianist John Lewis, guitarist Jim Hall, bassist Percy Heath, and drummer Chico Hamilton. Lewis is featured with the rhythm section on "I Can't Get Started," Hall is added for "Skylark," and the full group plays three stan...   [ read more ]

CD $32.28

The second outing from the Bombay Dub Orchestra pretty much picks up from where they left off last time, although there's perhaps less emphasis on the dub aspect and more on the lovely chill-out melodies heavily ornamented by strings from Mumbai, Chennai, and London. Although it starts off with swooshing Cairo-style strings on "Egypt by Air," the main focus, as before, is on India. At lot of the time they're content to keep things quiet and lush, with the orchestra ornamenting the small, pretty melod...   [ read more ]

CD $16.13