Peter Brötzmann was a German jazz saxophonist and clarinetist regarded as a central and pioneering figure in European free jazz. Throughout his career, he released over fifty albums as a bandleader. Amongst his many collaborators were key figures in free jazz, including Derek Bailey, Anthony Braxton and Cecil Taylor, as well as experimental musicians such as Keiji Haino and Charles Hayward. His 1968 Machine Gun became "one of the landmark albums of 20th-century free jazz".
Milestones is a studio album by Miles Davis. It was recorded with his "first great quintet" augmented as a sextet and released in 1958 by Columbia Records.
Hamid Drake is an American jazz drummer and percussionist.
The Velvet Lounge was a nightclub in the South Loop of Chicago. It started as a jazz club and was called the "dusty epicenter of the Midwest's free form jazz scene." It was located at 2128 1/2 S. Indiana Avenue before moving to 67 E. Cermak when the original building was scheduled for demolition. It closed permanently in 2019.
Fred Anderson was an American jazz tenor saxophonist who was based in Chicago, Illinois. Anderson's playing was rooted in the swing music and hard bop idioms, but he also incorporated innovations from free jazz. Anderson was also noted for having mentored numerous young musicians. Critic Ben Ratliff called him "a father figure of experimental jazz in Chicago". Writer John Corbett referred to him as "scene caretaker, underground booster, indefatigable cultural worker, quiet force for good." In 2001, author John Litweiler called Anderson "the finest tenor saxophonist in free jazz/underground jazz/outside jazz today."
Scrapbook is an album by American jazz bassist and composer William Parker's Violin Trio featuring Billy Bang which was recorded in 2002 and released on the Thirsty Ear label.
Dance with Death is a studio album by American jazz pianist Andrew Hill featuring performances recorded in 1968 but not released on the Blue Note label until 1980. The album features Hill with saxophonist Joe Farrell, trumpeter Charles Tolliver, bassist Victor Sproles and drummer Billy Higgins performing six originals with an alternate take added to the 2004 CD reissue.
Destiny is an album by American jazz pianist Marilyn Crispell with saxophonist Fred Anderson and drummer Hamid Drake recorded in the 1994 "Women of the New Jazz" festival at Chicago’s HotHouse and released on Okka Disk.
Song For is the debut album by American jazz saxophonist Joseph Jarman, recorded in 1966 and released on the Delmark label.
The Missing Link is an album by American jazz saxophonist Fred Anderson, recorded in 1979 but not issued until 1984 by Nessa Records.
The Milwaukee Tapes Vol. 1 is an album by American jazz saxophonist Fred Anderson recorded live in 1980 but not issued until 2000 by Atavistic as part of their Unheard Music Series.
Sound Unity is a live album by American jazz double bassist William Parker, which was recorded in 2004 and originally released on the AUM Fidelity label.
Fred Anderson Quartet Volume One is an album by American jazz saxophonist Fred Anderson which was recorded live during the 1998 season at the Chicago club owned by Anderson, the Velvet Lounge, and released on the Asian Improv label. The Anderson's Quartet features longtime partner trumpeter Bill Brimfield, drummer Chad Taylor and Asian American bassist Tatsu Aoki.
2 Days in April is a double album by a free jazz quartet consisting of saxophonists Fred Anderson and Kidd Jordan, bassist William Parker and drummer Hamid Drake, documenting two 1999 concerts at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology at Cambridge. It was released on Eremite, a label founded by producer Michael Ehlers. Anderson and Jordan first meeting was at a mid-80s AACM concert in Chicago, but this is their first recording together.
Trinity is an album by American mult-instrumentalist and composer Joe McPhee recorded in 1972 and originally released on the CjR label, then reissued by Atavistic in 2001.
Underground Railroad is a live album by saxophonist and composer Joe McPhee recorded in 1969 at the Holy Cross Monastery and originally released on the CjR label, then reissued by Atavistic in 2001 with a bonus concert from the same venue.
Pieces of Light is an album by multi-instrumentalist and composer Joe McPhee with John Snyder on synthesizer recorded in 1972 and originally released on the CjR label, then reissued by Atavistic in 2005.
Emancipation Proclamation: A Real Statement of Freedom is an album by percussionist Hamid Drake and multi-instrumentalist and composer Joe McPhee recorded in 1999 and first released on the Okka Disk label.
Lörrach / Paris 1966 is a live album by saxophonist and composer Albert Ayler, recorded in Europe in 1966 and first released on the Swiss hat MUSICS label in 1982. The album was remastered and rereleased on CD in 2002 with corrected track titles. The music was also reissued on a 2021 Hat Hut release titled Albert Ayler Quintet 1966: Berlin, Lörrach, Paris & Stockholm. Revisited.
Never Too Late But Always Too Early is a two-CD live album by saxophonist Peter Brötzmann, bassist William Parker, and drummer Hamid Drake. It was recorded in April 2001 at Casa del Popolo in Montréal, and was released in 2003 by Eremite Records. The album is dedicated to Peter Kowald.
