Jun 3, 2025 11:25 AM
In Memoriam: Al Foster, 1943–2025
Al Foster, a drummer regarded for his fluency across the bebop, post-bop and funk/fusion lineages of jazz, died May 28…
A document of John Lee Hooker live in Paris.
(Photo: Courtesy Southern Echoes)Here’s a fresh batch of blues on vinyl to break your heart and make you love it. And when that heart needs mending, we’ve got a little Mahalia Jackson to get your soul stirring.
John Lee Hooker
The Charcot Sessions
Southern Echoes
An RSD Exclusive with a pressing of 1,250, Southern Echoes gives us a three-album set of blues godfather John Lee Hooker. The set documents the full October 1969 recording from Studio Charcot in Paris — music that had never been previously released in its entirety. Pressed on electric blue vinyl, the set includes 22 classic tracks.
recordstoreday.com
Willie Dixon
What Happened To My Blues
Culture Factory
An RSD Exclusive, What Happened To My Blues could be the finest album from Willie Dixon, one of the true fathers of Chicago blues. This package includes an OBI side strip, cardboard jacket, printed inner sleeve, and it’s pressed on bright orange vinyl.
culturefactory-usa.com
recordstoreday.com
Dave Specter
Message In Blue
Delmark
This thinking-man’s bluesman from Chicago has been an artist deserving wider recognition for decades. That may be the reason that Delmark, also based in Chicago, decided to make this album the first vinyl pressing the company has done since 1991.
delmark.com
JJ Grey & Mofro
Orange Blossoms (Deluxe Edition)
Alligator Records
An RSD First, limited to 900 copies, this first-time-on-vinyl release shakes the Southern roots of this blues-rockin’ juggernaut. The tracks have been remastered and pressed at 45 rpm on dual orange LPs housed in a gatefold cover that includes previously unpublished photos.
alligator.com
recordstoreday.com
Mahalia Jackson
Movin’ On Up A Little Higher
Shanachie
Ah, Mahalia, one of the the greatest vocalists in gospel history. Here we have an RSD First limited to 1,000 copies, where Jackson performs hymns from her youth with her mentor Thomas A. Dorsey. The performances come from 1946–1957.
shanachie.com
Foster was truly a drummer to the stars, including Miles Davis, Sonny Rollins and Joe Henderson.
Jun 3, 2025 11:25 AM
Al Foster, a drummer regarded for his fluency across the bebop, post-bop and funk/fusion lineages of jazz, died May 28…
Benny Benack III and his quartet took the Midwest Jazz Collective’s route for a test run this spring.
Jun 3, 2025 10:31 AM
The time and labor required to tour is, for many musicians, daunting at best and prohibitive at worst. It’s hardly…
To record Dream Manifest (Dom Recs), Croker convened artists from his current and recent past ensembles, plus special guests.
Jun 10, 2025 4:13 PM
Partway through his early set at Smoke Jazz Club, Theo Croker blinks the room back into focus. He leans over the piano.…
“There’s nothing quite like it,” Springs says of working with an orchestra. “It’s 60 people working in harmony in the moment. Singing with them is kind of empowering but also humbling at the same time.”
Jun 17, 2025 11:12 AM
When it came time to pose for the cover of her new album, Lady In Satin — a tribute to Billie Holiday’s 1958…
James Brandon Lewis earned honors for Artist of the Year and Tenor Saxophonist of the Year. Three of his recordings placed in the Albums of the Year category.
Jul 17, 2025 12:44 PM
You see before you what we believe is the largest and most comprehensive Critics Poll in the history of jazz. DownBeat…
