Featured Label,
J Jazz and Beyond: Favourites from Barely Breaking Even (BBE) Music
Independent UK label Barely Breaking Even has its roots in the mid-90s, originally founded by DJ and record collector Peter Adarkwah as a club night in London. Named after the disco record by Universal Robot Band, the label's first runs of releases ranged from not just disco, but jazz, house and funk music too. Right from the get-go the label has curated projects on particular scenes and eras, early on including the Beat Generation Series which focussed on hip-hop producers, including J Dilla's debut Welcome 2 Detroit and even the first album of Will.I.Am, later of more mainstream Black Eyed Peas fame.
Some of the label's more recent output includes its 'J Jazz Masterclass' series, reissuing previously forgotten jazz albums from Japan, including the much-celebrated Kohsuke Mine's First, as well as spotlights on other historical labels. BBE aren't just about reissues though, and as well as celebrating its 25th anniversary last year, BBE continue to release new albums by current artists - from Brian Jackson to Sly Johnson.
Have a browse through some of our recent favourites from BBE...
J Jazz Masterclass
BBE's reissue of Japanese saxophonist Kohsuke Mine's debut album First proved to be a surprising success for the label; a true rare gem of '70s Japanese jazz, Mine's experimental first outing is a key piece of the country's jazz canon, embracing experimental new sounds of the American contemporary scene. Absolutely left-field, Mine's music still has a certain edge that keeps it pretty accessible for even the most casual jazz listener. This recording also features a line-up of both Japanese and American musicians; besides Mine on sax, he's joined by fellow Japanese keyboardist Masabumi Kikuchi, while the rhythm section consists of Kenny Burrell bandmates Larry Ridley and Lenny McBrowne from the 'States.
Available Formats: CD, MP3, FLAC
Recorded in front of a classroom full of students at Chuo University, Tokyo, in 1976, At the Room 427 is not unlike a good bootleg recording. This was a little further on in the Japanese jazz sound's development, and you can hear Matsukaze and co. experimenting in free jazz sounds on this somewhat scrappy but intimate and equally charming recording.
Available Formats: CD, MP3, FLAC, Hi-Res FLAC
Available Formats: Vinyl Record, MP3, FLAC, Hi-Res FLAC
One of this year's new J Jazz reissues is the 1979 debut record of pianist Masao Nakajima, originally released on Yupiteru Records. Recorded with an all-acoustic trio when many of his contemporaries would've been deep into their electric fusion phases, it sat mostly ignored at the time of its release - but don't let that detract you from giving it a listen; much like the rest of BBE's J Jazz series this is a real hidden gem.
Available Formats: CD, MP3, FLAC, Hi-Res FLAC
Originally released in 1978, vocalist Noriko Miyamoto's soul-jazz debut Push was part of a larger movement of female vocalists in Japan that managed to cross over into mainstream audiences. Miyamoto herself had more of a disco/soul background than jazz per se, and Push was produced in close collaboration with the late multi-instrumentalist, arranger and composer Isao Suzuki, known in Japan for helping to develop promising young talent.
Available Formats: CD, MP3, FLAC, Hi-Res FLAC
Available Formats: Vinyl Record, MP3, FLAC, Hi-Res FLAC
Archival and Reissues
Curated by IF Music's Jean-Claude, following up his 'Journey Into Deep Jazz' series on BBE is an introduction to the German jazz imprint of Enja Records. Originally founded in 1971 by Munich jazzheads Matthias Winckelmann and Horst Weber, the Enja catalogue boasts some pretty impressive names - Eric Dolphy, Charles Mingus, John Scofield and Chet Baker all released albums on Enja, as well as more world music-focussed projects from folks like Abdullah Ibrahim and Mahmoud Turkmani. Jean-Claude's introduction to the label makes for an excellent primer for the label's long archive.
Available Format: 4 Vinyl Records
An alumni of the infamous New York 'loft scene', BBE's reissue of bassist David Wertman and his Sun Ensemble's 1983 album Wide Eye Culture comes courtesy of his wife and musical partner-in-crime Lynne Meryl, with a deluxe expanded edition that includes eight bonus tracks and a full remaster of the album.
Available Formats: CD, MP3, FLAC
Available Formats: 3 Vinyl Records, MP3, FLAC
And more...
One particularly popular BBE release from this year is that of American multi-instrumentalist Brian Jackson, best known for his close work with Gil-Scott Heron in the 1970s. This Is Brian Jackson marks his first solo album in over 20 years, coalescing his tastes from jazz, funk, soul and hip-hop.
Available Formats: CD, MP3, FLAC, Hi-Res FLAC
Another new issue from BBE, this time from Parisian soul, hip-hop and jazz musician Sylvère Johnson, also known as Sly Johnson. Recorded during the first COVID lockdowns back in March to May 2020, his latest album is a blend of soul and hip-hop, citing Prince and D'Angelo as key influences.
Available Format: CD
British saxophonist Sean Khan celebrates his love of the enigmatic jazz pioneer, and despite the occasional 'Trane tune the program is mostly original material. Besides being a classically-trained and jazz-schooled saxophonist, Sean was also a progenitor of the broken beat style, and that same innovative spirit seeps into A Journey Through Coltrane with its evident love of swung hip-hop beats.
Available Formats: CD, MP3, FLAC, Hi-Res FLAC
Available Formats: Vinyl Record, MP3, FLAC, Hi-Res FLAC
This eponymous debut of this genre-bending duo, comprised of American producer JTronius and British producer-instrumentalist Maverick Quest, mixes sounds of soul, funk and nu-jazz, as well as a healthy amount of hip-hop sensibilities.
Available Formats: CD, MP3, FLAC
Available Formats: Vinyl Record, MP3, FLAC
Joshua Lee - Jazz Content
