It says »PRIVATE« on it, so it can be assumed that it contains the very rare material. A few tracks typed into the digital record exchange’s search bar confirm the assumption: you have to pay a lot of hard cash for the originals, if indeed they are even for sale. But that’s why we’re here, for the music. And the music was always good in the »Spiritual Jazz« series – and recently also new. Having made a name for itself with a series of re-releases and compilations of old spiritual jazz, the Jazzman label has lately turned its attention to the present day. After two years in the same vein, they’ve had enough and are going back. The pieces compiled here all come from the USA; the performers recorded them between 1964 and 1987, and then released them on their own, without a label. The release comes with comprehensive liner notes that tell the individual stories behind each release. The music on »Spiritual Jazz 14: PRIVATE« can be summarised more quickly: modal jazz, spiritual jazz, lots of brass, sometimes vocals, and strongest where Latin American influences add extra »sabor«. The compilation opens so strongly that listeners soon find themselves with open mouths and welcoming wallets ready to spend. A small, somewhat sluggish lull in the middle section briefly halts the buying frenzy before Andrew McPherson reignites it with abandon.
JJ Whitefield & Forced Meditation
The Infinity Of Nothingness
Jazzman