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Release date June 20: The seminal Matthew Shipp String Trio (Shipp: piano; Mat Maneri: viola; William Parker: bass) reconvened to commune with tenor saxophonist Ivo Perelman, and Armageddon Flower is the epic result. This album is a peak gem in each of their extensive bodies of work, revealing new ways of exemplifying tradition, language, physics, material, and energy. A profound work presenting improvised communication at it's highest level.Since 1996 Perelman & Shipp have recorded 46 albums together in duo and small group settings. But as Shipp is careful to point out, "there's only one Matthew Shipp String Trio." At the turn of the century, this Trio struck out on a path to redefine "Third Stream" chamber jazz via two very well-received Hat Hut CDs. A quarter century later, this new work clearly builds on extensive, musically interwoven personal history. For Shipp, "William and Mat are as close to my natural soul brothers as you can get-and by soul I mean the soul. Ivo is another layer of that same soul."Perelman's copious studio dates - beginning with his self-titled Ivo (1989) - are a continual refinement and study in process whether or not they share personnel, and countless gems reside in his vast body of work. Armageddon Flower is a singular gem in the entire body of improvised music. +++This work is fundamentally a group music; while there are sections of duo and trio interaction, the onus is on a four-way conversation in which parallel streams become oceans of sound, only to be distilled into isolated rivulets once again. Without a drummer but with forward motion and bounce, the music on Armageddon Flower is sublimely striking and operates in a continuous flow of both impulsion and idea. As these four musicians have spent decades together in various capacities, their language is on one level honed. What's surprising is that entirely new pathways are exploding into view. It's unquestionable that this is music of necessity, of striving, and of possibility.

The first album with Coltrane is a favorite of mine.  Was the Sextet/Quintet album with Jackie McLean from 1955 as well?

Release date July 11: After 13 years, internationally acclaimed saxophonist Jaleel Shaw returns with Painter of the Invisible - a deeply personal and emotionally resonant album that honors the heroes, places, and legacies that shaped him. With critical praise from The New York Times, DownBeat, and The Philadelphia Inquirer, Shaw is celebrated as a visionary voice in modern jazz. On this long-anticipated full-length release, he delivers a powerful suite of original compositions that merge expressive storytelling with exquisite musicianship.Backed by an all-star ensemble - Lawrence Fields (piano), Ben Street (bass), Joe Dyson (drums), Lage Lund (guitar), and Sasha Berliner (vibraphone) - Shaw weaves an unforgettable sonic narrative that explores themes of love, loss, ancestry, identity, and social justice. From the uplifting tribute "Good Morning" to the heartbreaking meditation "Tamir (for Tamir Rice)," each track paints a vivid portrait of those who remain invisible in life, yet unforgettable in memory.Shaw's virtuosic playing and soulful compositions reveal a singular jazz artist at the height of his powers - thoughtful, fearless, and uncompromising. Painter of the Invisible is not only a celebration of life and legacy, but a vital contribution to the evolving story of Black American music.

Release date August 29: Nonesuch Records releases pianist and composer Brad Mehldau’s Ride into the Sun—a songbook recordof music by the late singer, songwriter, and guitarist Elliott Smith. Featured musicians include singer/guitarist Daniel Rossen (Grizzly Bear); singer/mandolinist Chris Thile (Punch Brothers, NickelCreek); bassists Felix Moseholm (Brad Mehldau Trio) and John Davis; drummer Matt Chamberlain (FionaApple, Tori Amos, Randy Newman, etc.); and a chamber orchestra led by Dan Coleman. Ride into the Sun’s ten Elliott Smith songs are complemented by four Mehldau compositions that he says are “inspired by, and reflect, Smith’s oeuvre.” Also included are interpretations of Big Star’s “Thirteen,” which Smith also covered, and “Sunday” by Nick Drake, who Mehldau says, “I look at in some ways assort of Smith’s visionary godfather.” Recalling how he first got to know Smith and his music, which has been a regular part of his repertoire for years, Mehldau said that after years living in New York, he moved to Los Angeles “and there was this wonderful scene of singer-songwriters that was congregating at a club called Largo. That included Elliott but it also included artists like Rufus Wainwright, Fiona Apple. And then other musicians who had been around for a while would come down every Friday night to sit in on a gig that was led by Jon Brion. I played behind Elliott on his own tunes with Jon. It felt to me like a kind of renaissance in songwriting that flourished for a number of years.”

Release date June 27: After his acclaimed solo album Silent, Listening, Fred Hersch comes back on ECM with Drew Gress and Joey Baron for a new trio recording: The Surrounding Green.