At Brownswood Recordings, we’re proud to present Where Rivers Meet, a new collaborative album from Gary Bartz and London ensemble Your Brother’s Keeper. Released on June 19, 2026, as we celebrate 20 years of the label, the record captures a rare and powerful meeting between generations of jazz musicians. Rooted in deep listening and collective improvisation, it’s a project that speaks to both legacy and forward motion.
The first single, “Cauldron,” is out now everywhere, offering an early glimpse into the album’s expansive, exploratory sound.
At the centre of the album is Bartz, a saxophonist whose career spans more than five decades, including collaborations with Charles Mingus, Max Roach, Art Blakey and Miles Davis. As a defining musician in spiritual jazz through his NTU Troop recordings, his playing remains as vital and distinctive as ever.
Where Rivers Meet also introduces Your Brother’s Keeper, a collective assembled by Jake Long and shaped by London’s vibrant jazz scene. Featuring Al MacSween, Axel Kaner-Lidstrom, Twm Dylan, Tim Doyle and Chelsea Carmichael, the group reflects a generation redefining contemporary jazz through collaboration and improvisation.
Said collaboration began in 2019, when Gilles Peterson brought the musicians together for performances at the inaugural We Out Here Festival and Royal Festival Hall. A subsequent direct-to-disc session for Night Dreamer Records, released under Gary Bartz and Maisha, captured the immediacy of their connection, which has continued to evolve through touring and now into this new studio work.
With Where Rivers Meet, we bring that dialogue into a more exploratory setting, placing Bartz’s unmistakable sound within a contemporary sonic landscape, and continuing our commitment to music that bridges generations while pushing the sound of jazz forward.
This project will be available digitally, on Black vinyl and CD, so whatever your preferred method of listening, you will be able to enjoy these incredible tracks.
