Following the late 2024 reissue of her debut Finding My Way Home (reviewed in Jazzwise 302) and ahead of the release of her new album A Paradise In The Hold (look out for an interview and review next issue) comes this brace of re-releases, meaning that for the first time Yazz’s complete album catalogue will be available on one label, namely Night Time Stories.

From 2016, La Saboteuse demonstrated an appetite for eclecticism – Ahmed and her musicians incorporate Arabic folk melodies and textures, evocations of muezzins’ calls, catchy electro loops, late 1960s Miles, Frisell-style finger picking with atmospheric melodies – as well as a growing compositional confidence. Ahmed’s gorgeously burnished trumpet and flugelhorn dominates, but the other outstanding presence here is Shabaka Hutchings on tenor and (especially) clarinet, contributing some of his best-ever playing.

2019’s Polyhymnia has its roots in a 2015 concert piece commissioned by Tomorrow’s Warriors. It’s a concept album, described by its creator-composer as “a celebration of female courage, determination and creativity”; each of the six lengthy pieces is dedicated to an inspirational woman. So, ‘Barbara’ is devoted to Barbara Thompson’s ongoing creativity despite her 25-year battle with Parkinson’s disease; it both echoes and further develops Thompson’s innovations. ‘Lahan al-Mansour’ is for Haifaa al-Mansour, one of Saudi Arabia’s first female film and TV directors (Wadjda, Mary Shelley), and draws upon Ahmed’s Gulf roots. The gorgeous, piano-led ‘One Girl Among Many’ celebrates – and features the voice of – girls’ education activist Malala Yousafzai. Rosa Parks (‘2857’) and the Suffragettes (‘Deeds Not Words’) are also namechecked.

If all this sounds a bit worthy, then fear not, because Ahmed is intelligent enought to make sure she leavens ‘the message’ with a sense of playfulness, as on the angular Mardi Gras interludes of ‘Ruby Bridges’ (dedicated to the Louisiana Civil Rights activist); or her well-judged deployment of the Kaoss Pad effects unit. She also makes good use of a large and diverse array of top-notch musicians (many of them female), and with co-producer Noel Langley creates a rich, melodic and often sensuous sound world, and the sheer diversity of styles keeps the listener engaged – there’s much to delight and surprise here.

These two albums – which both sound superb in their new incarnations – represent impressive consecutive leaps in Ahmed’s development as an artist, composer and thinker, auguring well for that forthcoming album.