Strata-East - The Legacy Begins

Strata-East Records, founded in 1971 by Charles Tolliver and Stanley Cowell, is an influential jazz label known for artistic freedom and high production standards. Specializing in avant-garde and post-bop jazz, its notable albums include Tolliver's Music Inc, Cowell’s Musa: Ancestral Streams, Charlie Rouse’s Two Is One and Billy Harper's Capra Black. Strata-East addressed social and political themes resonant with the Black Arts Movement. Its pioneering approach to artist rights has inspired generations of musicians and independent labels, cementing its place in jazz history.