Journeys in Modern Jazz: Britain - Various Artists - 2 x 180g Vinyl LPs

2021 release. 2 x 180g LPs

Exploring one of the most extensive catalogues in modern jazz, Decca Records presents a 14-track, deluxe 2 x LP compilation album, Journeys in Modern Jazz: Britain (1965-1972). The compilation launches a major new reissue series British Jazz Explosion, which delves into the Universal Music archives to showcase the key British modern jazz recordings of the 1960s and ‘70s.

Featuring a number of tracks available on vinyl and digitally for the first time since their original release, Journeys in Modern Jazz: Britain draws from renowned British labels including Decca, Argo, Lansdowne, Deram and Fontana and presents a broad array of styles from artists who shaped the path of British jazz during a crucial period of change. With audio remastered by Gearbox, the compilation ranges from the lush pastoral orchestrations of Neil Ardley and hard-swinging big band of Stan Tracey, to the modal stylings of Mike Westbrook featuring John Surman, and the warm, funky embrace of Harry Becket. Alongside iconic names like Tracey, Westbrook, and Surman, are other key figures such as Michael Garrick, Kenny Wheeler and Don Rendell, as well as lesser-known figures like Collin Bates and Mike Taylor. Between them, they found a new voice for British jazz and laid the foundations for the generations of jazz musicians who were to follow.

The compilation was compiled by producer, music consultant and jazz historian Tony Higgins. Journeys in Modern Jazz: Britain comes with a 20,000-word booklet of in-depth notes, written by Tony Higgins, featuring a history of post-war British jazz plus artist biographies.