Brit-jazz explosion of the 1960s/70s uncovered in weighty new ‘Labyrinth’ book
Jon Newey
Tuesday, January 2, 2024
A major new book published in January focuses on over 300 albums from what's now referred to as 'the Golden Period of British Jazz' from the 1960 and 70s
Entitled Labyrinth - British Jazz On Record 1960-75 and written by Richard Morten Jack the book is a 375 page, large-format, premium quality hardback that focuses on all the key albums on both major and independent labels of this pivotal time when boundary-breaking and experimentation first broke through in UK jazz.
Labyrinth's large format has allowed for near full-size reproductions of both the front and rear sleeves of original pressings of each album, beginning chronologically with Tubby Hayes Tubby's Groove on the Tempo label from 1960 all the way through to Nucleus Alleycat and Don Rendell with the Joe Palin Trio Live at the Avgarde Gallery Manchester both from late 1975, and taking in such sought after cult-classics as the Mike Taylor Trio Pendulum and Joe Harriott/Amancio D'Silva Hum Dono. Not only does this maximise the LPs visual impact, but also the importance of the back cover, which featured informative essays, notes and full personnel listings.
Each album comes with an overview and period music press reviews, while a lengthy introduction by former Mike Taylor Trio and Colosseum bassist Tony Reeves sets the scene. Priced at £60.00, it's out on 8 January.
More details from www.lansdownebooks.com or www.elvinyl.com
