Willie Morris, Attentive Listening, Posi-Tone ***1/2

Jumps out of the speakers. Tenor saxophonist Willie Morris is issuing label Posi-Tone's latest exciting leader in their clearly defined roster - both ''family'' bassist Boris Kozlov and drummer-percussionist Rudy Royston are on Attentive Listening with Morris, a studio recording laid down in Brooklyn last winter. UK listeners might know Patrick Cornelius' playing a bit both from earlier on during his tenure on the Whirlwind label on 2013's Infinite Blue as well as on Posi-Tone. We also liked the American altoist's Book of Secrets more recently that Marc Free's label put out last year, for instance. The pianist Jon Davis here is less familiar to us although he is on the rated Swing & Soul from earlier this year. 'Et Tu Caribou' is hardly a case of beware the ides of March. All concerned came not to banish leisure, more to raise it. Kick back bop heads - you will be in your element. Over-relentlessness is offset by the balm provided on 'To Worlds Unknown'. Morris, who hails from St Louis and sounds in the JD firmament the more spiritual he journeys, you also need to hear on Josh Lawrence's Left Hanging issued last year in all tendresse. Willie Morris photo: via the artist's website

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Babyteeth l-r: pianist Matt Jacobs, drummer Alasdair Pennington, bassist Fergus Quill, trumpeter Dan Coulthurst, saxophonist James Romaine, saxist/flautist Rianna Henriques, singer Lydia Kotseria. Photo: Sophie Jouvenar.

New next month from Birmingham, now London, trumpeter, composer, poet Dan Coulthurst who was mentored by fellow trumpeter Steve Fishwick. There's good soloing from saxophonist/flautist Rianna Henriques on 'What We Were, Now We Are Not' who performed with Raye at the Brits on Saturday night. And the retro vocals from Lydia Kotseria on 'Love Will Return' work. Henriques has also recorded with the Olivia Murphy Jazz Orchestra and both Coulthurst and Henriques are on the Murphy Orchestra's Somewhere, Not So Far Away issued in the autumn of 2022.

Coulthurst's playing tonally takes us back to hearing Freddie Gavita live a few years ago. The trumpet sound lands in that realm. The former NYJO player and Leeds College of Music alumnus also compares favourably with the more anthemic side of Henry Spencer who himself was influenced by Chief Xian aTunde Adjuah (Christian Scott). Anything with maverick bassist Fergus Quill on it is worth listening to. He makes most impact in the beefy riff found on the latinate 'Acceptance'. Coulthurst says that ''it was writing poetry that galvanised my need to create this body of work. All the music has been inspired by poems that I have written or by poets that I chose to immerse myself in.''

Out on 5 April. 'What We Were, Now We Are Not' is streaming ahead of the full Babyteeth album

Willie Morris, Attentive Listening, Posi-Tone ***1/2

Dan Coulthurst, Babyteeth, Ubuntu ***