Keith Jarrett Tokyo '96 (ECM/BMG)

The latest outing by Jarrett's "standards" trio, with bassist Gary Peacock and drummer Jack DeJohnette, was recorded in March of '96 in Japan. It's yet another excellent example of the group's decidedly different approach to the standard repertoire. Included here in a 10-cut programme are Bird's "Billie's Bounce" and Bud Powell's "John's Abbey," plus gems like "Mona Lisa" and "Summer Night," with a pair by the leader thrown in for good measure. Superior trio playing! 10/10 (Len Dobbin)

The Fire This Time Still Dancing on John Wayne's Head (Extreme/Outside)

In an extremely potent collaborative entity, TTFT's musical efforts are creatively rooted in both political resistance and artistic diversity. In an album that travels the connecting distances between dub, hip hop, drum & bass and spoken word, this collective boasts friends and contributors from all around the globe and every corner of music. Chuck D, Michael Franti, Lee Scratch Perry, Mad Professor, Asian Dub Foundation and Assata Shakur are only a few of the people who helped make this conscious journey into racial injustice and equality hard to ignore. 8/10 (Scott C)

Kenny Lattimore From the Soul of a Man (Sony)

There are moments on Kenny Lattimore's sophomore set that are brilliant. His cover of George Harrison's "While My Guitar Gently Weeps" is one of them. His own "Love You More Than You'll Ever Know" is another. Lattimore is that rare kind of artist who not only writes, produces and arranges most of his own material, but actually sounds like he feels what he sings. As such, this ballad-dominated love opus is never boring, singularly credible and consistently soulful. 8/10 (Gerard Dee)