Espresso 5.8

In the hands of Richard Galliano, the mechanical intricacies of the accordion become agents of a compelling musical power, grace, and expression. A virtuoso of the instrument, Galliano exploits the complete orchestral potential of the keys, buttons, and air beneath his fingers. On Laurita, his musicianship is put in the service of utterly swinging jazz that is informed by the romantic and impressionistic influences of Galliano's French-Italian heritage. Call it the soundtrack for the boulevardier who likes to chase his espresso with a shot of bop. The core group on this 1995 session is Galliano, drummer Joey Baron, and bassist Palle Danielsson – a formidable trio in which Baron's muscular, musical touch and Danielsson's rich tone and technique…

In the eyes of the rap generation, an older musician's hipness is often defined by how many times he or she has been sampled for beats and breaks. That means that keyboard wizard Bob James - whose records have been sampled a staggering 1,435 times, according to the website WhoSampled - is a bona fide legend and cooler than cool…