Elemental Music Vinyl & CDs

Review: Highly revered jazz innovator and famous spiritualist Alice Coltrane recorded her 1972 album Lord of Lords in California and released it originally on Impulse! Records. It is a slow-building affair that was the last in a trio of hugely orchestral works that took jazz to grand new heights. It hums with cosmic energy and has a throb of organic sound at its core with cinematic, widescreen atmosphere that place you right at the centre of the American's musical universe. It is dense, too, with 25 instruments all featuring and vying for attention with violins, cellos and violas all working in harmony.

Review: It's not often that a previous unheard recording of a giant of jazz is found loitering in the depths of someone's personal collection, but that's the case here. These recordings of legendary jazz pianist Bill Evans, laid to high-quality tape in 1964, were discovered last year in the personal archive of jazz musician Ole Matthiessen. Now fully mastered, it's a genuine unheard "Holy grail" - a set of recordings that show the versatility and quality of Evans' playing. Basically, it's a fantastic collection of piano jazz numbers, with Evans either playing solo, or accompanied by little more than a drummer and a double bassist. If you love jazz, you need this in your life.

Review: The story goes that Donna Summer wasn't t happy when she heard the final version of her most iconic hit 'I Feel Love'. She didn't like how sexualised her vocal had become next to the iconic synths sounds. No such problem with this album which has much morels and orchestra sound on the lavish opener and title cut. It's an epic, 16-minute plus track that takes up one whole side, while the flip side tunes re slow and sentimental ('Full Of Emptiness'), disco-tinged and funky fresh ('Need-a-man Blues') and beautifully tender lullabies ('Whispering Waves'.)

Review: During the 1960s, jazz marimba maestro Cal Tjader performed at Seattle's Penthouse Jazz Club countless times, with many of these performances - made with various quintets and a dizzying array of sidemen, sidewomen and guest performances - being recorded for posterity. This superb double-disc set showcases these atmospheric, often lively recordings for the first time. Tjader is naturally the star throughout, dizzying the audience with mazy and mind-blowing Marimba solos, but at various points he steps back and lets his musical collaborators share the spotlight. For the most part, the tracks are energetic and up-tempo, giving the whole thing a giddy, celebratory feel that's always alluring.