For Toe

At the end of 1969, Cliff Bennett had seemingly run out his string as a British Invasion-era star. Seeking a new sound and image, he hooked up with keyboard player/singer Ken Hensley, bassist John Glascock, and drummer Lee Kerslake, all of whom had previously played with a group called the Gods (who later became known for having Greg Lake, in his pre-King Crimson days, as a member). For unknown reasons, they christened themselves Toe Fat and managed to get signed to Parlophone and then to Regal Zonophone in England, with their albums appearing in America on the Rare Earth label. Their mix of blues and progressive rock wasn't the most commercial of sounds in any case, and the grotesque cover art on the group's two LPs seemed to repel potential purchasers…

On January 24th, 2018. toe released a new album compiling tracks not included in their previous albums such as tracks produced for TV spots, remixes, tracks by other artist, and more.

Cy Touff & Sandy Mosse - Tickle Toe (1981) {Delmark DE583 rel 2008}
XLD rip (secure mode) | FLAC (tracks)+CUE+LOG -> 444 Mb | MP3 @320 -> 159 Mb
Full Artwork @ 300 dpi (jpg) -> 11 Mb | 5% repair rar
© 1981, 2008 Delmark Records | DE 583
Jazz / Cool / West Coast Jazz / Trumpet / Saxophone

Veteran mainstream jazz purveyors Sandy Mosse and Cy Touff from the Rogers Park neighborhood of Chicago played together on several occasions. Mosse passed away in 1981 shortly after this date was recorded. He was born in Detroit and lived in Amsterdam, Holland, for a number of years. Touff pretty much stayed in Chicago until his death in 2003, and these sessions lay dormant for decades, surrounded in legal and contractual issues. The paperwork was finally resolved, and listeners can now hear the wonderfully smooth Stan Getz cum Lester Young tenor saxophone style of Mosse and the burnished bass trumpet tones of the singularly unique Touff, together and united in swing.

Gnidrolog are one of the more overlooked bands that took part in the progressive rock explosion in Britain around 1971-73. Intricate band, with an eclectic music that is very hard to categorize. Their music is a blend of blusy prog, with horn instruments, and intense vocals on top of it. They might appeal to Gentle Giant, Jethro Tull and VDGG fans. Still, pick up "In Spite of Harry's Toenail" or better yet, their opus "Lady Lake", and prepare to be bowled over.

A young band from Strasbourg, France, drawing on 30 years of alternative French rock/prog tradition. Obviously inspired by Gong and Frank Zappa - Studio Tan period - , they embrace elements as diverse as trip-hop and jazz-funk, as well as African, Latino and other cultural World musics. Quintessentially French, and also akin to the Canterbury and RIO "Rock In Opposition" fields, Camembert cheekily call their music "Cheese Rock". The band is articulated around very original instruments such as Harp, Xylophone and Vibraphone. The band's aim is to abolish frontiers between musical styles by including some world music arrangements. The best definition of their music heard in the press as the meeting between Henry Cow and Herbie Hancock for the writing of a blaxploitation movie soundtrack.

This 1997 release by Too Slim & the Taildraggers is chock-full of the wide-ranging spectrum of blues in its plethora of styles as done by this fun group in their own inimitable fashion. The thing that always seems to come through on this group's discs is their love of playing. This band is rooted in the blues, but they are not confined to any one style of playing, and the wide-roaming influences of non-commercial radio expose wider and wider varieties of music which burst out all over this disc. A brief sampling of the styles shows that you've got the rockabilly swing of "Uranium Blues," and the Chicago sound of "A Girl Like Mine," and the New Orleans-influenced, Caribbean-inflected rhythms of "Have to Let You Go."

Guitarist John Scofield takes the traditional jazz route on Works for Me, an excellent collection of 11 compositions that feature the all-star lineup of Christian McBride on acoustic bass, Kenny Garrett on alto saxophone, Brad Mehldau on acoustic piano, and the dynamic Billy Higgins on drums. This CD is unlike the alternative rock and funk jazz fusion on his previous efforts A Go Go and Bump. On this offering, John Scofield gives a great reassessment of straight-ahead post-bop jazz that is distinguished and stimulating. On "Big J," Scofield and saxophonist Kenny Garrett make a great team as they reach out with a call and response improvisation that engrosses the listener throughout its development…