The term ‘all star group’ can be bandied about a bit too liberally these days but what is perhaps more interesting is a group of relatively unrecognised stars. As in Hugh Ragin, Gerald Oshita, Borah Bergman and Jodie Christian. Or a young Matthew Shipp. All of the aforementioned are in the many groups featured on this 9CD set, which stands out first and foremost for its immense conceptual diversity. There is constant, ongoing change in Mitchell’s collaborators and the canvas on which he paints ideas that are invariably complex but retain the irrepressibly primal, if not ‘dawn-of-time’ energy that has distinguished much of his work with the AEC for several decades now. On occasion that leads to compositions that unfold in the slowest of slow motion, almost like creeping shadows against a wall, in which the musicians exert great control over changes in volume and accenting as well as harmonic development. In contrast there are explosions of energy, unleashing funk raucous enough to stop a preacher at an ‘old time’ tent revival. The early 1980s albums 3x4 Eye and Sound And Space Ensembles are fascinating precisely for their astute blend of tone poetry and dance sensibilities, while the latter recordings also stand tall through the sheer strength of character of the players. Among the overlooked gems in any case is The Italian Concert, a scintillating encounter with the late piano genius Borah Bergman. It is an excellent complement to an earlier album, Duets And Solos, which found Mitchell in the company of Muhal Richard Abrams and then on his own.