Continuing its deep dive into the vaults, Candid Records has not only re-issued a couple classics, but have come up with some obscurities that will make you wonder how you missed them the first, second or third time around
Master of the soprano sax, Steve Lacy put out a classic in 1960 with a team of Roy Haynes/dr and John Ore taking on material from mostly Thelonious Monk and Cecil Taylor. However, Miles Davis’ “Donna Lee” is a treat, while “Criss Cross” snaps and “Air” and “Louise” actually 
make Taylor sound digestible. Lacy’s tone is a force of nature here. Whew!!
Before she married Lew Tabackin and formed the most important big band of the 1970s, Toshiko Akiyoshi worked with her then-husband Charlie Mariano/as in a bopping quartet. This album, including Gene Cherico/b and Eddie Marshall/dr has the couple in 1961 focusing on snappy little originals like “When You Meet Her” and the first take of the classic “Long Yellow Road”, along with a warm read of “Deep River”. 
Warm tones.
Creating a faux “live” feel for the recording, bassist Charles Mingus stretches out over three songs with Booker Ervin/ts, Ted Curson/tp, Nico Bunink/p, Paul Bley/p, Jimmy Knepper/tb, Dannie Richmond/dr, Charles McPherson/as, Lonnie Hillyer/tp, Eric Dolphy/as-bcl, and Britt Woodman/tb. There are solos galore on “MDM (Monk, Duke & Me”) which ties in “Main Stem”, “Straight No Chaser” and “ Fifty-First Street Blues”. Dolphy tears apart “Stormy Weather” like a ravenous dog, with Mingus at his angriest on “Lock ‘Em Up”. No holds barred.
In 1961, alto sax bopper Phil Woods put together an orthodox yet successful octet of Benny Bailey/tp, Curtis Fuller/tb, Sahib Shihab/ts, Julius Watkins/Frh, Tommy Flanagan/p, Buddy Catlett/b and Osie Johnson/dr for a five part “Rights of Swing” suite. The 38 minute opus has Watkins almost stealing the show, while the charts are exciting and clever. Woods sounds right at home in this one-off environment, and the harmonies are hopping. Where’s this been hiding?
One of the most creative and imaginative trumpet players was Don Ellis, who after recording as a sideman with Maynard Ferguson, George Russell and Charles Mingus, released his first album as a leader in 1961 with Jackie Byard/p, Al Francis/vib, Ron Carter/b and Charlie Persip/dr. He gives a wild unaccompanied delivery on the fluid “Solo” and plays a bit of piano on “Tragedy”. The imaginative harmonics and chord structures of “Natural H” and ”Uh-Huh” still sound fresh and risk-taking today. Still crazy after all these years.