Delos Plans New Releases, Artist Sign-Ups; Billy Childs Seeks New Worlds to Conquer

The recently signed distribution agreement between Los Angeles-based Delos International Inc., an audiophile record line that specializes in classical music, and A&M; Records will enable the small label--which has eight jazz titles in its catalogue--to expand its jazz operations. “And that includes signing new artists,” said Rudi Simpson, the label’s promotion director.

“Before, even though our jazz releases by Joe Williams, Art Blakey, Cedar Walton and others were critically well received (the Williams disc--”Nothin’ but the Blues” won a Grammy in 1985) sales-wise, we had no networking for getting it out to proper channels,” Simpson said. “But A&M;, which has its own jazz label, does. This is one of the areas they specialize in.”

Delos plans two new jazz releases this summer: “Summer Night” from eclectic Westside foursome, Quartet Music, and “Looking Back,” with pianist Jimmy Rowles, and his talented daughter, trumpeter-fluegelhornist Stacy Rowles.

AROUND TOWN: Pianist Billy Childs, who takes a trio into the Comeback Inn on Friday, feels he made a sound move when he signed a recording contract with Windham Hill Jazz a couple of years ago. “It’s a good company. They’re letting me do what I want creatively, and that’s a big part of why I’m happy there.”

Childs is currently putting the final touches on “Twilight Is Upon Us,” the successor to his debut WHJ release, “Take for Example This . . .” “The new record is similar to my first but I’ve taken the complexity of the compositions a step further,” said the USC graduate, who is often heard working with trumpeter Freddie Hubbard. “I still emphasize trying to be melodic, but on ‘Twilight’ there are more orchestrated synthesizer colorations. My main ax is still acoustic piano, I use that for all my solos, but there are more synth overdubs than before.”

Recently Childs has been traveling out of town a bit, playing clubs in Philadelphia, Santa Fe, Oakland and San Diego. “Yeah, taking a group out is new and kind of fun,” said Childs, whose quartet usually includes saxman Bob Sheppard, bassist Tony Dumas and drummer Mike Baker.

Unfortunately, the crowds for Childs’ engagements haven’t been that big, but the pianist takes it in stride. “I don’t think people knew who I was, since they hadn’t seen me,” he said. “Obviously I like to play to big crowds, but I’ll play for whoever’s there to listen. In some ways, it’s more intimate with fewer people.”

All in all, things are thumbs up for the L.A. native. “My career may not be taking off as fast as I’d like, but it’s definitely going in the right direction.”

TOP OF THE CHARTS: Pianist Marcus Roberts’ “The Truth Is Spoken Here” (Novus) is the top-selling jazz album this week, according to charts in Billboard magazine. Others making up the top five include Chick Corea (“Chick Corea Akoustic Band”/GRP), McCoy Tyner (“Revelations”/Blue Note), Michel Camilo’s “Michel Camilo” (Portrait) and Cassandra Wilson (“Blue Skies”/JMT). The five top-selling contemporary jazz artists are Joe Sample (“Spellbound”/Warner Bros.), Hiroshima (“East”/Epic), Terri Lyne Carrington (“Real Life Story”/Verve Forecast), Kim Pensyl (“Pensyl Sketches 1”/Optimism) and Steps Ahead (“N.Y.C.”/Intuition).

****1/2”Images” (Landmark) is tenor saxophonist Ralph Moore’s American-label debut, and it finds the youthful hornman--who’s worked with Horace Silver and J. J. Johnson and is already one of the top modern mainstreamers around--sounding more like his own man than ever. His hard-bop side comes out on Hank Mobley’s “This I Dig of You” and Johnson’s tender “Enigma,” while such originals as “Freeway” and “Blues for John” reveal Coltrane-ish influences and crackle with vitality. Trumpeter Terrance Blanchard and pianist Benny Green add their share of sparks.