VA - Gilles Peterson: Magic Peterson Sunshine (2016) [HDTracks]

Gilles Peterson Presents another killer compilation, strickly MPS. Gilles Peterson has a special love affair with MPS. To be exact, it goes back more than three decades to the London of the 1980's when Gilles stood at the beginning of an exceptional career as DJ, Radio personality, and producer. At that time he was already interested in unusual and unique jazz recordings, and so he inevitably came across the record label from Germany's Black Forest (Schwarzwald), whose catalogue encompassed a large, totally distinct repertoire that had never been released anywhere else. Naturally, there was a long list of amazing interpretations of jazz classics from acknowledged jazz masters, but early on Gilles had developed the talent to dig deeper into the depths of the archives in order to ferret out the special features of the catalogue - occasionally discovering a obscurity - and bring them to the light of day.
Chief in this regard the inclusion of a Mary Lou Williams “dinner-jazz”-friendly version of the Gershwins’ ‘It Ain’t Necessarily So,’ is a must as is the rare ‘White Magic’ from the John Taylor trio’s Decipher, the latter worth getting for alone. But as it is a CD bonus track, craftily, you might have to, making do, if you are an impecunious and equally time-poor trio head especially as the original vinyl (ideal format for this kind of music) is nigh on impossible to find for less than the price of a slap-up meal at a top restaurant. One track is enough to go trawling for Decipher in the suburbs at the Last Record Shop Still Standing, you never know, but, really, dream on.
Sold on Gilles Peterson’s name, DJs of course are artists too, the audiophile-friendly superb sound and consummate taste of MPS and the jazz artists featured are he’d be sure to admit the true stars. But kudos once more, nuff respect, to conjure the Coronet Street days of Straight No Chaser’s Paul Bradshaw, to Peterson once more. After Impressed blew even the most curmudgeonly away all those years ago he’s making a habit of it.