THE brilliantly original Bristol-born pianist, Keith Tippett, has been cutting extraordinary albums since his first, You Are Here… I Am There in 1969 when he was 22. So the reissue of his neglected 1979 classic solo album The Unlonely Raindancer is a significant jazz moment.

It was recorded during a 1979 tour of the Netherlands. I asked him about his pathfinding life in music, and the now-times relevance of the record.

“My parents met in the war. My dad became a policeman and my mum was southern Irish and a housewife. At home I heard all kinds of music — western classical, church choral and brass bands. My grandad lived with us and played piano with a beautiful touch. I began to learn when I was six or seven years old.