t’s 48 years and counting for the Strata-East record label, which was founded by musicians Charles Tolliver and Stanley Crowell. The label released over fifty albums in the 1970s alone, and it was a prime vehicle for post bop, spiritual jazz and afro jazz, giving many artists more control over the production of their musical visions. Both of the albums covered here are a product of those creative years in the 1970s, when the label was at its peak.

Music Inc. was the very first release from Strata-East, and it featured both Tolliver and Crowell prominently, along with bassist Cecil McBee and drummer Jimmy Hopps. These four provided the groundwork, the foundation, as it were, for this album. But Tolliver and Crowell looked beyond the typical jazz quartet and brought in a complete horn section with trumpeters Richard Williams, Virgil Jones, Larry Greenwich and Danny Moore; reed and flute players the stature of Jimmy Heath, Clifford Jordon, Bobby Brown and Wilber Brown; tuba and baritone sax player Howard Johnson; and trombonists Garnett Brown, Curtis Fuller, John Gordon and Dick Griffin. Together these musicians crafted six Tolliver and Crowell original compositions into a musical feast that brought back memories of jazz’s heyday twenty years earlier without ever veering into nostalgia.

The music is innovative and adventurous, yet still accessible, hardly surprising given that Tolliver and Crowell were weaned on hard bop and came of age during the rise of free jazz. What really makes this album enjoyable is the way Tolliver and Crowell wove the horn section into each composition. It helps fill out each tune, adding a layer of harmony and color that makes each number sound more intricate while still giving that small-group feel.

Sonically, Music Inc. is an excellent first album for a fledging label to hang its hat on. Tolliver and Crowell demonstrate that sound was important to them. Given that this album was recorded in 1970, the severe left/right sound of vintage jazz is a thing of the past. There’s a nice soundstage with room for all of the musicians. Tolliver’s trumpet is brassy and blatty, while Crowell’s piano has weight and precision -- both sounding more like real instruments than recorded facsimiles.

Jazz trombonist John Gordon’s Step By Step, recorded nearly six years later, in 1976, also featured not your garden-variety quartet (or, for that matter, quintet). Gordon returned the favor and brought on board both Tolliver and Crowell as well as tenor sax, soprano sax and flute man Roland Alexander, bassist Lisle Atkinson, and drummer Andrew Cyrille to make the six tunes on this album come alive. Five of the six are Gordon originals -- it seems that not only was Strata-East a label where jazz musicians could exert control over the production values of their albums, but they were also encouraged to be creative in the music they wrote.

With a front line that features the deeper growl of Gordon’s trombone, Tolliver’s soaring trumpet, and Alexander’s tenor or soprano sax or flute, there are plenty of opportunities for weaving a colorful sound from almost all of Gordon's original tunes (and the one standard). Gordon does just that, taking the sharper trumpet sound and mixing it with either his deeper trombone or the reedy saxophones, or the lighter, more delicate flute. The results have all the earmarks of a 1950’s blowing session but with far more care exerted over the performance.

The sound on Step By Step is easily the equal of that from Music Inc.. The instruments have a full-bodied yet delicate sound that one hears more from a live performance than a recorded one. Gordon’s trombone has a deeper growl to it, while still sounding like a familial match to Tolliver’s trumpet. Atkinson’s tenor is full-sized, and you can hear the bend in the horn, compared to when he plays his straight-bodied soprano sax. His flute work offers a sense of air and delicacy. Cyrille’s drums have snap and weight, and his cymbal work rings true. As an example of how realistic this album sounds, listen to Crowell’s piano on "P & G Incorporated." The resolution is high enough to convey what both Crowell’s right and left hands are doing, even when playing at the same time.