There would be no point in remaking an entire album if it were to be done the same way. That was the challenge before Dan Cavalca and he rose to it by converting the freewheeling, improvised ‘Colors of Red Island’ into the creatively electronic ‘Lights of Red Island.’

Head With Wings’ new EP offers a 17 minute-plus glimpse into a very modern prog-rock world filled with the beauty of a continuous thought.

‘Mayan Space Station’ is another facet of the multi-dimensional artistry of William Parker. The first listens will surprise, and later listens will uncover that the same man who brought us ‘O’Neal’s Porch’ and ‘I Plan to Stay a Believer: The Inside Songs of Curtis Mayfield’ can absolutely be the brainchild behind these spiritual, loose rock jams.

That blues spirit is alive and well inside Mike Zito and with ‘Resurrection,’ he spreads that healing feeling to anyone within earshot of his music.

Matt Mitchell and Kate Gentile’s “for teens,” “spinal thought” and “peripheral drome” are spare conceptions with rich detail filled in on the fly from the assembled collection of improvisation masters.

“It Starts When We Disappear” is the enthralling opening track from Pat Metheny’s upcoming September 2021 release, ‘Side-Eye NYC (V1.IV).’

Dave Seidel’s ‘Involution’ adds color and texture to minimalism in such an inventive way.

Smooth jazz is usually dismissed as soporific melodies played by an anonymous instrumentalist with programmed rhythms. None of this is that.

Approaching his 70th birthday, trumpet maestro Natsuki Tamura made the very personal ‘Koki Solo’ with a youthful frivolity that belies his age and signals that he remains in his peak period.

Ellen Foley joins Paul Matts to discuss the forthcoming ‘Fighting Words,’ working with Jim Steinman, and a few other favorite musical moments along the way.