Stoking the engine of the renewed interest in vinyl reissues are the resurrection of some of the more obscure recordings that haven’t seen the light of day since first being released. Here are some that have come out of the crypt, still alive and well.
Nina Simone’s 1966 release displays here wide variety of performing, arranging and composing skills. She sings and plays piano with Rudy Stevenson/fl-g, Lisle Atkinson/b and Bobby Hamilton/dr and mixes things up with traditional folk tunes such as “Black Is The Color Of My True Love’s Hair” to soundtracks such as “Wild Is The Wind”. A pair of tunes by Van McCoy make for soul stirring moments on “Either Way I Lose” and “Break Down…” but the highlight is her own riveting collection of stories on “Four Women”. Unforgettable.
I’ll bet no one out there under 60 has ever heard of the funk band La Clave. Let me tell you; you’re in for a 
treat. They were put together in 1972 by percussionist Benny Velarde and includes none other than Dizzy Gillespie alumnus Lalo Schifrin (best known for his “Mission Impossible” theme) on keyboards as well as bassist Willie Colon among others in a sizzling horn section. The music? It is Cruise Night, as vocalists Tito Garcia and Johnny Nelson sizzle on Lonnie Smith’s “Move Your Hand” with a throbbing bass line and a relentless groove on Dizzy Gillespie’s “Soul Sauce”. The salsa is picante on “Baila Mi Guaguanco” and the funky “Road Runner”, with more hot pulses than an Olympic Sprint team. Oye!
Trombonist Kai Winding took a side trip to Nashville, Tennessee in order to versions of country classics. He’s got a team of Grady Martin-Harold Bradley-Ray Edenton-Wayne Moss/g, GeneMullins-Bill Watrous/tb, Joe Zinkan/b and Murray Harman-Doug Kirkbom along with The Anita Kerr Singers guesting on half the songs. On paper it 
sounds like a potential disaster, but it actually works well, with Winding delivering a hoot of Roger Williams’ “Dang Me” and digging in on “Busted”. The singers work well on “Bye Bye Love” and “Cool Water” while raising an few eyebrows on Johnny Cash’s “I Walk The Line”. Any side gigs at the Grand Ol’ Opry?
Best known for his work with Antonio Jobim and Astrud Gilberto, keyboardist Joao Donato in 1970 plugged in and put together a funk fusion album with the likes of Dom Um Romao/dr, Bud Shank/fl, Conti/Pete Condoli/tp, Jimmy Cleveland/tb, Ernie Watts/ts, Don Menza/ts, Jack Nimitz/bs and producers including Tommy LiPuma for a funky mix of soul and boogaloo. Lots of wacka wooka material sounding like background music for a Blaxploitation film as on “The Frog” and “Bambu”. The rhythm section which includes percussionists Emil Richards and Joe Porcaro works overtime, and the horn section rivals Tower of Power in the crisp charts. Brazil with Afro Sheen.
The real ringer here is Stan Getz’s 1970 album produced by George Martin. The tenor giant is backed by an orchestra arranged and conducted by Richard Hewson, and the songs feel like they were made for some film for Cary Grant or Peter Sellers. Getz is definitely swinging on tunes like the pop hit “Marrakesh Express” , while the backup is a kind of amalgam between pop bossa nova and Henri Mancini soundtracks. Surprising, the charts work well as frames for Getz, and have aged quite well, particularly on “Both Sides Now” and the more obscure “The April Fools”, with “The Love Them From ‘Romeo And Juliet’” featuring Getz in mellifluous form. Hard to believe that this is album is sandwiched between Sweet Rain and Captain Marvel, but that just goes to show the width and breath of the best sounding tenor saxist in the history of jazz.