Vinyl fans! Record Store Day returns to local independent stores worldwide on April 23. This year’s cheat sheet features an extensive list of exclusive releases and reissues, as well as special and limited edition vinyl. Below are five of the most noteworthy, including music by Max Roach, Charles Mingus, Art Pepper and more.
Max Roach, We Insist! Max Roach’s Freedom Now Suite (Candid)
Quantity: 2000
Iconic jazz label Candid Records relaunches with legendary ’60s recording remastered by audio engineer Bernie Grundman. Among them, a Record Store Day reissue of Max Roach’s groundbreaking We Insist!, the drummer/composer’s instrumental-vocal suite from 1960. Directly addressing the racial and political issues of its day, We Insist! is widely recognized as one of the most important jazz statements of the Civil Right Movement and comes remastered by Bernie Grundman from original tapes on clear vinyl.
Pepper Adams with The Tommy Banks Trio, Live at Room at the Top (Real to Reel)
Quantity: 1000
Reel to Real, Cellar Music Group’s archival imprint, will release Pepper Adams with The Tommy Banks Trio: Live at Room at the Top. The 2-LP set marks the historic release of a live performance by the late baritone saxophonist Adams from September 25, 1972, at the University of Alberta alongside Tommy Banks on piano, Bobby Cairns on electric bass and Tom Doran on drums. The package includes an extensive booklet with rare photos, essays and interviews.
Dave Brubeck Trio, Live from Vienna 1967 (Brubeck Editions)
Quantity: 3500
Brubeck Editions releases newly-found recordings from piano legend Dave Brubeck’s final European tour. Live from Vienna 1967 documents an electrifying concert at Vienna’s famed Konzerthaus. It also marks the only recording of Brubeck with drummer Joe Morello and bassist Eugene Wright performing in a trio concert, as saxophonist Paul Desmond had curiously missed the flight to Austria. The pared-down instrumentation exemplifies the genius of Brubeck and his legendary rhythm section.
Charles Mingus, The Lost Album from Ronnie Scott’s (Resonance)
Quantity: 3000
The Lost Album from Ronnie Scott’s comes one day after Charles Mingus’ 100th birthday anniversary and documents a previously unheard 1972 performance by the bassist/composers’ sextet at London’s famed jazz venue. Professionally recorded, the session was unreleased after Mingus was inexplicably dropped by Columbia in 1972. The two live sets comprise almost two-and-a-half-hours of music and come with a deluxe booklet with essays, interviews and appreciations by bassists Christian McBride, Eddie Gomez and more.
Art Pepper, Art Pepper Meets the Rhythm Section (Craft)
Quantity: 6000
Craft reissues Art Pepper Meets the Rhythm Section, documenting one of the most historic jazz sessions of its time; saxophonist Art Pepper and Miles Davis’ highly respected rhythm section with Red Garland, Paul Chambers and Philly Joe Jones from January 19, 1957. A landmark title and testament to the musicians’ incredible talents, as well as a cultural meeting of the period’s East Coast and West Coast jazz scene, this special mono edition is being released in partnership with Acoustic Sounds to celebrate the venerable Contemporary Records label.
Featured photo courtesy of the Brubeck Family.
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