Angelica Enja****

Released in semi-obscurity 25 years ago, Angelicawas American guitarist Nels Cline's first date as leader and shows a remarkable maturity. Cline is better known these days as guitarist with Chicago hipsters Wilco, and there are few modern musicians who can run with the jazz hare and hunt with the rock hounds with such ease. This well-deserved reissue is a chance to hear where the young guitarist's head was at and is notable also for an unusually consonant contribution from saxophonist Tim Berne – now undisputed heavyweight champion of New York's downtown scene, then barely out of his 30s. Not just an excellent record, Angelica is also a fascinating insight into jazz's nascent avant-garde that, in 1987, was impatiently waiting for the hard-bop renaissance to hang up its zoot suit. With Stacy Rowles on flugelhorn, at times it even recalls some of Kenny Wheeler's ECM sessions with John Abercrombie. I could praise it no higher. nelscline.com