Soul — Sale Items — LPs  

... read more

A return to Stax by Rance Allen – his first album for the label after a stellar set for Capitol, and a much smoother set than before! Rance has learned from his work with Larry Mizell on Capitol, and is using a warmer glide on his tracks on this set – arrangements mostly done by... read more

No honking here, as Sil Austin takes his deeply soulful tenor sax, and turns it to a set of creamy late-nite tracks – all done over some very "pretty" backings, ala the Verve strings work of Ben Webster or Lester Young. Most cuts have voices in with the orchestrations – and... read more

... read more

A dancefloor classic! The album's the second by Gregg Diamond's Bionic Boogie, and head and shoulders above the rest – a sublime blend of soul and club that's hardly been matched again! Diamond manages to make things groove, but never loses sight of the soulful styles that make the record... read more

Here's a record we wish they would have used for the soundtrack to Happy Days – Blowfly cashing in on the 50s craze in the 70s, and offering up his own off-color version of a number of classic oldies! The sound is pretty darn goofy, but also has links to Blow's roots as singer Clarence Reid... read more

Smooth ensemble funk – somewhere between Earth Wind & Fire and Average White Band – not bad on the vocals, which are mostly sung harmony style, but lacking a bit of an edge on the grooves, which never really seem to catch. Titles include "Top 40 Band", "Soul... read more

... read more

... read more

An obscure record with a silly title – but a seminal batch of southern soul instrumentals, recorded at the height of the Muscle Shoals scene! The record's a really odd one in the Chess catalog – because it's got the feel of a record that should have come out on Atlantic or Capitol, or... read more

This one has the Chambers working in a number of styles, sweating hard in a gritty version of Otis Redding's "I Can't Turn You Loose" and to some funky percussion and call-and-response vocals on "Do Your Thing", and grooving softly on "Guess Who" and others. Other... read more

One of Doug Clark's bawdy frat rock-soul party LPs on the Gross label – with his trademark "blue" material for adult listeners, backed up by raunchy R&B riffing! The general style's a bit dated, but it's also the kind of album that paved the way for Rudy Ray Moore in the 70s. ... read more

The first album cut by party favorites Doug Clark & The Hot Nuts – a raw mix of comedy and music, done in the fast-talking style that they served up to countless gatherings in the south! The album's perhaps a bit less blue than some of the later work, but also possibly more compelling... read more

Classic funky groovers from Dennis Coffey – with his hard guitar sound gettin' all fuzzy over some loud drums and funky Sussex production! This one's still very much on the "Scorpio" vibe, when the label was keeping things nice and hard – and before Dennis got a bit hooked... read more

... read more

Forget the "funk" in this album – because the best bits are the mellow ones! Crème D'Cocoa are one of those groups pushing slick bass-heavy funk when they should stick to the mellower cuts – which they do nicely on this album, in a smooth male/female harmony style that... read more

Great early work from Andrae Crouch & The Disciples – just the kind of soulful set that made the group a big crossover act at the time! Although gospel at heart, the record's got a nicely secular feel in approach – a style that's a bit like some of the other larger group soul of... read more

... read more

A groundbreaking album of vocal group soul – right from the first note! The record kicks off with the sublime "Ready Or Not, Here I Come" – which starts with fierce stepping strings that are actually funky, then soars into some of the best harmonies the group ever put to... read more

... read more

... read more

... read more

Coke Escovedo's best album and a nice bit of groovy soul from the mid 70's. Patrick Gleeson produced, Harvey Mason plays drums, and the whole thing's got a nice laid back spacey soul sound. Includes covers of Lamont Dozier's "Why Can't We Be Lovers" and Leon Ware's "If I Ever Lose... read more

... read more

A classic killer from The Fabulous Rhinestones – a group with a plenty soulful approach to their music, even if the group was probably more of a rock outfit than a funk-based one! There's some heavy rhythms on most of the tracks – kind of a gentle funky groove that's mixed in with... read more

... read more

Early work from Gwen Guthrie – produced by Sly & Robbie, but with a sweet modern soul sound that's got a lot less of their influence than you'd guess! The sound is much more New York than Jamaica – and that's probably due to some great instrumental backing on keyboards by the likes... read more

... read more

After leaving Stax, Ike seemed to be trying to turn himself into more of a Barry White-style artist – with more emphasis on original tracks about love and loving, instead of his older method of transforming pop hits into little baroque symphonies. On a record like this, the approach meant... read more

Nice one! This obscure blacksploitation soundtrack features a hip Monk Higgins score for a Pam Grier film that's supposedly "Hotter than Coffey and meaner n' Foxy Brown". Having seen the film, we don't know if we'd totally agree with that assessment, but the music's strong enough, and... read more

Titles include "Marriage License", "Young Wings Can Fly", "Actions Speak Louder Than Words", "There's No Fool Like A Young Fool", "Make Him Feel Like A Man", and "Bring It To Me".... read more

Wonderful work from Ingram – an incredibly talented soul family who'd spent more than enough time woodshedding in earlier years, and emerged to become one of the strongest mainstream acts of the 80s scene! There's a solid feel here that goes way beyond commercial soul – a great way... read more

A wicked 80s groove from the mighty Ingram Family! Ingram were one of those groups that actually got better as they got slicker – and by the time of this 1983 release, Butch, James, and William Ingram had had more than enough experience working together and with other artists to really forge... read more

... read more

... read more

... read more

... read more

A pretty odd little record from Gloria Jones – a great soul singer back in the 60s when she was pounding out the hard northern numbers, but not so great here, where she's in an odd style that mixes disco with a hard soul approach, and just doesn't work. The "Reunited" in the title... read more

... read more

An amazing blend of raspy vocals, rumbling backings, and hip late 60s Motown soul – proof that Gladys Knight's move to the label was one of the smartest of her career! Thanks to top-shelf production here from Norman Whitfield, Gladys gets a newer sound that's ultra-hip – a bit deeper... read more

A 60s LP that compiles Julia's earlier sides for Capitol – a mixture of jump blues, swing, and R&B, recorded with players that include Red Norvo, Benny Carter, Vic Dickenson, and Baby Lovett. Titles include "Last Call For Alcohol", "After Hours Waltz", "King Size... read more

Some very nice pop soul tracks by this lovely vocalist from the 60s! The record features a core group of backing by the Ronnie Brown trio, plus some larger arrangements by Lincoln Mayorga. The sound is nice and soulful, with a bit of a jazzy touch – in the manner of some of Nancy Wilson's... read more

A near-lost Philly disco album – recorded at Sigma Sound, but released on Casablanca at the end of the 70s, and nearly buried under the weight of the label's collapse at the time! There's a style here that borrows bits from some of Casablanca's more mainstream artists – focusing... read more

Excellent solo work by Lowrell Simon – once a singer with Lost Generation, but opening up a whole new style of Chicago soul here on his own! The album's a tasty batch of smooth soul tracks with a midtempo club groove – not disco, but with the kind of large production and loping groove... read more

... read more

A funky fusion classic – and quite possibly Bobby Lyle's most perfectly realized album! The set was Bobby's first full US outing, and it's filled with soaring, riffing keyboards that stretch out into territory explored a few years before by Johnny Hammond and Lonnie Liston Smith! The real... read more

A landmark album of the 60s – and a record that forever put Gloria Lynne on the map! The album's got a sense of poise and class that was almost a genre into itself – one that crossed Gloria over big with the title hit version of "I Wish You Love", but which was also supported... read more

Excellent little small combo record, cut by this obscure funky jazz group for 20th Century – and probably the only thing they ever did! The album's got a number of tight short cuts, played by organ, vibes, and guitar – and titles include "Soul Samba", "Mad Hatters... read more

... read more

Nice! US reissue of one of the better post-Josie albums by the Meters, with a groove that's a little New Orleans, and a little 70's funky soul. Not all cuts are great, but there's some nice funky tracks on here that make this one worth having, and which keep it from being a disappointment, like... read more

Real 80s groove soul – with polished sound that's got a bit of a jazzy flavor in it, thanks mostly to the competent instrumentation of the band. Titles include "You Satisfy Me", "Just A Little Bit", "Heavy Rotation", "Start It Up", "Sweet... read more

... read more

One of the more unusual records on Sue from the 60s – an all-instrumental outing, recorded by Juggy Murray in tribute to the late Dr Martin Luther King Jr! The music is done in a larger orchestral mode that's much more soundtrack-oriented than Juggy's other work – with less (or none)... read more

A funky instrumental classic – with a groove that was copied by a huge amount of other groups! Cliff and crew take the funky 45 sound into the mainstream – vamping and comping in tight choppy grooves that were perfect for dances like The Horse, The Jerk, and some of the other harder... read more

Babatunde Olatunji's two classic percussion ensemble albums for Columbia collected in one set. The first LP was recorded in New York with a mix of drums, chants, and afro grooves. Olatunji's joined by Montego Joe and Baba Hawthorne Bey on percussion, and they're backed by a large group of... read more

A great batch of harmony vocal tracks – nearly all of them with an upbeat, kind of silly approach – similar to The Coasters at their best! The Olympics owed a lot to the late 50s Atco recordings The Coasters did with Lieber & Stoller – and they had a similar tight-lipped... read more

Titles include "We Belong To Love", "Soweto", "You Should Be Mine", "Emotional", "A Second Chance", and "Love's Not Ready".... read more

British disco tunes from Larry Page – kind of in a mode that's like work by Cecil Holmes & The Soulful Sounds from the mid 70s, a mixture of blacksploitation funk and smoother Barry White-styled tunes. The overall sound of the album's higher than you'd expect – and there's plenty... read more

... read more

Unlike a lot of the group's other records from the early 70s – most of which are all-acapella – this one features the group's rich harmony vocals backed by some heavier funk arrangements. Far from wrecking their sound, this approach actually makes them sound a lot better – and... read more

Not as completely sublime as some of Phillips' other records from the 70s, but with some jazzy touches that takes it past the hippy folk sound, into the farther reaches of the cosmic soul universe. Includes the jazzy instrumental "Planscape", which has a heavy fusion groove – plus... read more

... read more

Sure, it's the 70s – but this album's still got some excellent moments on it, like the amazing track "Bless You", which is worth the price of the album alone! The cut was written by The Corporation, and it's got this incredible wall of sound arrangement, with Martha singing verse... read more

A killer album of modern soul from ex-Dramatics singer LJ Reynolds! The album's in a modern Detroit mode all the way through – with top-shelf production by Reynolds, Don Davis, and Ronnie McNeir – and Ronnie, who'd been lost to the industry for a few years, also re-emerges as a writer... read more

A great mix of symphonic disco and Latin hustle – one of the more compelling moments from The Rice & Beans Orchestra, served up with some tight arrangements by Hector Garrido! There's a nice blend of New York and Miami modes going on here – and the proceedings are largely... read more

The last album ever from the amazing Minnie Riperton – and one of her greatest records as well! The album was sadly issued after Minnie's untimely early passing from this planet – but it's a heavenly batch of tunes that definitely shows that her love of music lives forever –... read more

Full on disco from Vicki Sue Robinson – a bit crossover at times, but handled with a top-shelf approach all the way through! Maestro Warren Schatz produced and arranged the set – and the tunes have a smoothly grooving approach that really lets Vicki flow out nicely in advance of the... read more

... read more

... read more

A soulful set of swinging jazz vocals – and one of a handful of rare albums cut by singer Joan Shaw in the 60s! The set's got some great backings from the Herman Foster Trio – who give the whole thing a Chess/Argo sort of vibe – with plenty of soul jazz undercurrents beneath the... read more

The Silver Convention are still recording in Germany here, but they're getting some great help from John Monster Davis – who seems to warm the grooves up a bit more than before, and give the album a nicely needed dose of soul! The song format is similar to their hits – three lead... read more

Early work from Smash – a group that included the core of DeBarge before they went onto bigger fame! Oddly, the album was first issued in Germany in 1977, but made its US debut here on Source – about time, too, as the record's a nice blend of funky tunes and the sweeter pop soul you'd... read more

... read more

A lost bit of mid 70s soul from Candi – an album that's often eclipsed by the Young Hearts hit before it, but which actually comes across stronger than that one! The groove is funky southern soul on the best cuts – tight and full, but still with a harder edge on the bottom, and rhythms... read more

Syreeta's a bit past the point of her early genius here – still singing in that warm and sweet style we love so much, but working with Jermaine Jackson, in a setting that's sometimes a bit too cold for her magic to fully take place. Overall, the album's got a few nice numbers – and is... read more

A tightly funky set from The Temptations – a record that has the group still standing strong in the post-Norman Whitfield years – working here with producer Jeffrey Bowen in a groove that's almost got some P-Funk touches at times! Things are somewhat polished, but still in the best... read more

... read more

... read more

... read more

Backings by a small combo that features Von Freeman on tenor sax!... read more

One of the greatest steel band records ever – and a hip hop sample classic from way back! Sure, there were other hip steel bands back in the 70s – but nobody else ever got as far as 20th Century – ending up on a major label, cutting some key funky covers, and crossing over with... read more

... read more

... read more

... read more

A modern soul gem produced by Lenny White! Though White lends a touch of jazzy sophistication to the set, it's a straight up dose of mainstream modern soul, with great ensemble vocals and crisp production over tight songs that should have landed Wax at the top of the radio. Somehow though they... read more

A pretty great album in which Larry revisits some of his earlier hits from the late 50s – redoing them in versions that have a bit more 60s soul in the mix, in keeping with his shift to the Okeh label! Overall, the sound's still pretty hard hitting – very R&B inspired, and perfect... read more

The fourth album from Bill Withers and an overlooked gem recorded for Sussex – and a great bit of funky soulful stuff in the best Withers tradition – a record that's sadly kind of withered in relative obscurity for far too many years! The soul in Withers voice is in as fine of form as... read more

The legendary Bobby Womack embraces 80s grooves fully on Last Soul Man – his gritty vocals bringing real, gritty soul to backdrops centered by keyboards, synth and programmed beats – and live instrumentation from some exceptional players. Womack brings more depth to the proceedings... read more

One of the strongest albums of recordings we've heard by Malcolm X – issued on the Douglas Records label, and featuring shorter snippets of longer speeches. The package is put together with a strong focus on Malcolm's true charisma as a speaker – his incredible ability to deliver... read more

A great later project from Zulema – one done in the years after her fame on bigger labels, but still pretty darn great overall! The groove here is quite different than the records she did back in the 70s – much more in the street soul mode you'd expect from the TSOB label – with... read more

... read more

Features work by Galaxy Disco Band, Hot City, Brian Newman, The Disco Gang, and The Diskoteers!... read more

... read more

Rare rock and soul – with performances by The Drifters, Dionne Warwick, dee Dee Sharp, The Ronettes, Bobby Freeman, and George & Teddy!... read more

... read more