Herbie Hancock's lackluster string of electric albums around this period was enhanced by this one shining exception: an incorrigibly eclectic record that flits freely all over the spectrum. Using several different rhythm sections, Herbie Hancock is much more the imaginative hands-on player than at any time since the prime Headhunters period, overdubbing lots of parts from his ever-growing collection of keyboards. He has regained a good deal of his ability to ride in the groove. "Calypso" finds him playing synthesized steel drums and interacting with customary complexity and ebullience with V.S.O.P. mates Tony Williams and Ron Carter. Disco rears its head, but inventively this time on "Just Around the Corner," and in league with Jaco Pastorius' vibrating, interlacing bass, Hancock gets off some good, updated jazz-funk on "Spiraling Prism" and "4 AM." There is even a reunion of the original Headhunters on a rhythmically tangled remake of "Shiftless Shuffle"; drummer Harvey Mason sounds like a rhythm machine gone bonkers. Easily the outstanding track -- and one of Hancock's most haunting meditations -- is "Textures," where he plays all of the instruments himself. This would be the last outcropping of electronic delicacy from Hancock for some time, and it was mostly -- and unjustly -- overlooked when it came out. ~ Richard S. Ginell

There is so much to love in this album. The Norwegian all-female quartet Spunk has delivered a solid second opus, showing a commanding growth in the group's evolution. Den Overste Toppen Pa en Blamalt Flaggstang, a title that translates to "The Very Top of a Blue-Painted Flagpole," refers (once again) to the children's book character Pippi Longstocking. The identification between the redheaded hellraiser and this group is genuine: the music goes through various levels of charm, wittiness, playfulness, intelligence, and mischief. Spunk allies traditional acoustic instruments (cello, trumpet, French horn), live sampling and electronics, and an array of toys and kitchen percussion. The approach integrates "serious," British school-derived free improv and noise-making. Lene Grenager's cello acts as a reference point since it is almost continually present (her playing, on the other hand, can mutate from romantic to extra screechy). Everything around her changes, turning each track into a surprise. Highlights include "Kamelmusikk," a call to seduction led by a recorder; the toy-ridden "Togturen Til Andes"; and "Sing a-Long." In the latter, Maja Solveig Kjelstrup Ratkje gives her voice a full workout. Her range and vocabulary build a bridge between Bj”rk and Phil Minton. "Strom" sounds like the trumpet of Bill Dixon caught in an electrical storm engineered by Merzbow. Spunk has created a signature sound that remains non-confining. It results in some of the freshest, most thought-provoking music this reviewer has heard in a while. Highly recommended. ~ Fran‡ois Couture

In 2002, Beat Goes On released Solar Plexus/Belladonna, which contained two albums -- Solar Plexus (1971, originally released on Vertigo) and Belladonna (1972, also originally on Vertigo) -- by Ian Carr on one compact disc. ~ Gregory McIntosh

This is an exciting new release from the wildly creative French clarinettist Louis Sclavis, a major figure in European jazz widely recognised as a masterful jazz composer and arranger. Sclavis's work often alludes to more than mere music, and on Lost on the Way, he takes his associative imagery from Homer. The track titles allude to the voyages of Ulysses. Sclavis: "I wanted to travel somewhere unknown, letting myself be blown from Scylla to Charybdis by mastering the winds and the torrents of return to re-evoke a history" - along the way looking at aspects of jazz, rock and modern composition from unfamiliar angles.

Translucent Tones was recorded almost two years after the debut CD by the Clarinet Trio. The dryness and chamber feel of the first opus have been ironed out to make place for a jazzier approach and a warmth only well-worn units can produce. This trio has reached a peak. The ease of conversation is remarkable as the three make the complex arrangements flow effortlessly. Listen to how they trade lines simultaneously in Nabicht's "Anna." Highlights include both of Ullmann's "Translucent Tones" -- they stand among his best compositions. His two arrangements of Nino Rota tunes bring a touch of sun to the set. Also worthy of note are the new arrangements of Ullmann's group pieces, "Blue Trees and Related Objects" and "Almost Twenty-Eight," "Variations on a Theme by Erik Satie," and the exercises "Animalische Stimmen" (an animal-sounding piece) and "Der Ton A" (a swinging number played on a single note). The trio is witty, playful, tender when necessary, and quite fun to listen to -- no poise, no rigid concept, just three clarinetists with different backgrounds and an all-encompassing knowledge of their instruments' legacy, led by a skilled avant-garde jazz composer. ~ Fran‡ois Couture

A three-disc box set from England's Avid Records, Little Jazz Giant tracks trumpeter Roy Eldridge's career from his early work as part of the Delta Four in 1935 through his own efforts to front a swing combo in the late '30s, his work with bandleaders Teddy Hill and Fletcher Henderson, his brilliant early-'40s sides with Gene Krupa, his profitable stay with Artie Shaw, his uncertain position with the modern bop community, and finally, four concluding tracks with Oscar Peterson. In retrospect, it's interesting how many of the most striking cuts here were actually written by Eldridge, including "That Thing," "The Gasser," "Fish Market," "Wild Driver," "Yard Dog," and "They Raided the Joint," each of which has a perceptible modernist edge. Pound for pound, Eldridge was one of the finest upper-range trumpet players jazz has ever produced, and this set has countless examples of his jet-propelled solos (check out his lightning-fast solos in the version of "St. Louis Blues" that is included here). Avid has released each of the discs from this set as single packages as well, entitled The Gasser (1935-1946), Wild Driver (1944-1950), and The Heat's On (1951-1952). ~ Steve Leggett

The follow-up to the introductory package 1-3, 4 is the album that established the Norwegian quartet Supersilent as an up-and-coming free improv artist, drawing much attention from the magazine The Wire, especially. When all young artists were either drawn to lowercase or atmospheric experimental electro, the quartet dived into burning-hot free improvisation, blending jazz, rock, and electronica idioms with a distinctive Scandinavian touch -- something in the use of space and the field recordings that evokes the mountains, snow, and fjords of Norway. As usual, the tracks are numbered instead of titled as to obliterate any preconceptions. "4.1" begins atmospherically before the drummer starts rolling and pounding. But this introduction comes to an abrupt end and almost feels like a false start, a warm-up. "4.2" is also mostly atmospheric, but now the E-Bowed electric guitar is more prominently featured, along with treated voice samples. Drums escalate, synthesizers build tension, and the sonic battle has begun. An intentionally sloppier incarnation of Steamboat Switzerland could have recorded "4.3." The album's highlight resides in "4.6," a long improvisation with many twists, turns, and shifts in dynamics and moods. 4 shows Supersilent exploring an unheard-of fusion of free styles, sculpting their own niche. Recommended. ~ Fran‡ois Couture