Funky Compilations — LPs  

A wonderful follow up to one of our favorite compilations in recent years! London Is The Place For Me compiles the stylistically varied music coming from the emergent West Indian and African communities of 50s and 60s London – far more than just the topical, and often quite whimsical calypso tunes of the era! Calypso is well represented, but the set includes strains of jazz, percussive instrumentals that veer towards native Trinidad and Nigeria, and loads of Caribbean grooves! It's all exceptionally bright – with some lovingly, and knowingly, naive vocals that are as sweet as they are wise. A truly wonderful compilation. Essential! 20 tracks in all: "Calypso Be" by Young Tiger, "Yolanda" by Ambrose Campbell, "Calypso Blues" by Mona Baptiste, "My Wife's Nightie" by Lord Kitchener, "Ominara" by West African Rhythm Brothers, "Gerrard Street" by King Timothy, "ET Mensah's Rolling Ball" by West African Swing Stars, "West Indian Drums" by Russ Henderson, "Gbonimawo" by Rans Boi's Ghana Highlife Band and more!

The 4th entry in the amazing London Is The Place for me – a collection of incredible work from the postwar, post-colonial years in the UK! As with other volumes, there's an array of Carribean and African influences at work here – often highly rhythmic and performed with lots of percussion, but also served up in ways that has the original modes coming into contact with more contemporary UK styles! Most of the work here was recorded in London, but overflowing with global styles that include mentos, high life, calypso, Latin, and even a bit of jazz – played by an array of artists who all found new means of expression in the capital. Titles include "Mambo Indio" by Shake Keane, "Alphonso In Town" by Lord Kitchener, "Give Her The No 1" by Eric Hayden, "Khauleza" by Dorothy Masuka, "Chicken & Rice" by Young Tiger, "Egyptian Bint Al Cha Cha" by Ginger Johnson, "Don't You Go Away" by Cab Kaye, "Highlife Piccadilly" by The African Messengers, "Darling Don't Say No" by Nat Akins, "African Jazz Cha Cha" by Ginger Johnson, "Piccadilly Folk" by Lord Kitchener, and "Ilu Oyinbo Dara" by Victor Coker.

An amazing collection – and one that really helped completely revise our understanding of Caribbean music! The collection features a fair bit of artists with roots in the West Indies, but who made a huge impact on London's postwar immigrant population – the new rise of non-native residents who were swelling the ranks of the city in the years after the way – bringing with them new cultures, new sounds, and new traditions – with all the requisite ideas and politics that might imply! The work here often has a subtle social agenda – working through themes important to these new Londoners, yet still echoing modes of the homeland as well – often with great musical backings that's heavy on percussion, jazzy instrumentation, and very upbeat rhythms. Titles include "London Is The Place For Me" by Lord Kitchener, "I Was There" by Young Tiger, "Some Girl Something" by The Lion, "No Carnival In Britain" by Mighty Terror, "Jamaica Hurricane" by Lord Beginner, "Birth Of Ghana" by Lord Kitchener, "Victory Test Match" by Lord Beginner, "Spanish Calypso" by The Lion, "Bulldog Don't Bite Me" by Timothy, "My Landlady" by Lord Kitchener, "If You're Not White You're Black" by Lord Kitchener, and "Aguiti" by Lord Invader.

One of our favorite volumes in the London Is The Place For Me collection – and a brilliant batch of work that criss-crosses West African, West Indian, and postwar jazz styles! Most of the recordings here were done under the leadership of Ambrose Adekoya Campbell – a transplant to London from Lagos in the postwar year, and an artist who had a huge influence on the changing rhythms of his scene. Campbell mixed styles of his roots with those of the larger London community around him – in a way that let in more Latin and Caribbean influences to more traditional African styles – often using guitar in a high-life styled way, but also bringing in some key jazz phrasings as well. As usual with Honest Jons' reissues, the notes are quite detailed, but ultimately a bit unspecific about the actual recordings in the set – although we can say that Campbell's on nearly all of these, and they were all done as 50s 78rpm singles for the Melodisc label. Titles include "We Have It In Africa", "Iku Koni Payin", "I Am A Stranger", "Lagos Mambo", "Ela Da Awa", "and "Calabar-O" by West African Rhythm Brothers; "The Wind In A Frolic" and "Unity" by Nigerian Union Rhythm Group; "Ibikunle Alakija" by Ayinde Bakare & His Meranda Orchestra; and "Late Ojo Davies" and "Geneva Conference" by West African Rhythm Stars.

London's always been one of the hippest cities in the world – but back during the postwar years, there was an especially wonderful outpouring of music on the scene – a rich array of new sounds and styles pulled from around the globe – as so many residents from crumbling British empire came to live in the UK! Musicians and listeners arrived in London with plenty of cultural baggage on hand – influences from the Caribbean, West Africa, and India too – plus other smaller scenes that once fell under the British banner, all now the fuel for the cultural fire that was happening in England! The title here tells plenty about the music being made in this newly-formed scene – bits of African highlife, Jamaican calypso, American jazz, Cuban Latin, and more – all filtered into the modernism of the 50s, and given a new twist that was decidedly urban as well. The package may well be the most impressive so far in this legendary series – and is certainly the one that moves the farthest past any sort of easy expectations or cultural conventions. Titles include "Women Police In England" by Mighty Terror, "My Sorrow" by West African Swing Stars, "Cricket Umpires" by Lord Kitchener, "Jordhu" by Caribbean Swing Band, "Trumpet Highlife" by Shake Keane, "Calypso Mambo" by George Browne, "Cuban Nightingale" by Buddy Pipp's Highlifers, "Kitch" by The Quavers, "Tabu" by Mona Baptiste, and "King Jimmy Foo Foo" by Tejan Sie with The West African Rhythm Brothers.

London's always been one of the hippest cities in the world – but back during the postwar years, there was an especially wonderful outpouring of music on the scene – a rich array of new sounds and styles pulled from around the globe – as so many residents from crumbling British empire came to live in the UK! Musicians and listeners arrived in London with plenty of cultural baggage on hand – influences from the Caribbean, West Africa, and India too – plus other smaller scenes that once fell under the British banner, all now the fuel for the cultural fire that was happening in England! The title here tells plenty about the music being made in this newly-formed scene – bits of African highlife, Jamaican calypso, American jazz, Cuban Latin, and more – all filtered into the modernism of the 50s, and given a new twist that was decidedly urban as well. The package may well be the most impressive so far in this legendary series – and is certainly the one that moves the farthest past any sort of easy expectations or cultural conventions. Titles include "The Escape" by Dizzy Reece, "Mambo Contempo" by Ginger Johnson, "Life In Britain" by Mighty Terror, "Sway" by Buddy Pipp's Highlifers, "Song Of Joy" by Rupert Nurse's Calypso Band, "Joe Louis Calypso" by Lord Beginner, "Uncle Joe" by Fitzroy Coleman Quintet, "Me Donkey Want Water" by Tony Johnson, "Belly Lick" by Eric Hayden, "Nigeria Odowoyin" by West African Rhythm Brothers, and "Football Calypso" by King Timothy.

Fantastic funky soul! The Pama label was a London-based operation in the late 60s – and they cut and licensed some very groovy tracks that mixed funk, soul, and rocksteady, and which featured artists from America, Jamaica, and England! This first volume of the label's output features one of their best-known (and heavily-sampled) tunes, the breakbeat classic "The Champ" by The Mohawks! Other great cuts include "Broadway Ain't Funky No More" by Bobby Patterson & The Mustangs, "Jerking The Dog" by The Crowns, "Baby Hold On" by The Mustangs, "Oh Babe" by The Milwaukee Coasters, "Wet Dream" by Max Romeo, "Every Day Will Be Like A Holiday" by Roy Docker, "Honey Bee" by The Classics, and "Soul Man" by Rico. Very nice, and done with a faithful reproduction of the original cover, too!

A different groove than usual from Keb Darge – not the deep funk we're used to seeing associated with his name, but a killer selection of rare R&B and rockabilly work – co-compiled here with Cut Chemist! Turns out both Keb and Chemist are longtime fans and collectors of the genres, and they really know their stuff – digging here as deep into 50s material as they might usually do with 60s and 70s soul and funk. But even without the high-end collector pedigree, the set's a great one – way more than just obvious older numbers – and filled with ultra-rare tracks that are as hard-grooving and gritty as they are obscure! As with other BBE compilations, the sound here is great – a very welcome antidote to all the dodgy rockabilly sets on the market – and Keb also includes some great liner notes too, offering up a unique London perspective on these older American sounds. 2LP set features a whopping 37 tracks in all – including "All I Can Do Is Cry" by Wayne Walker, "Chick Chick" by Junior Dean & The Avalons, "Cottonpickin" by Mickey Hawks & The Night Raiders, "Stressed Up" by Kick Em Jenny, "Juicy Fruit" by Rudy Greene, "Sadie Green" by Big T Tyler, "Stampede" by The Scarlets, "Fever" by Carlos & The Bandidos, "Shorty The Barber" by Lou Millet, "That'll Get It" by The Imps, "Long Time Dead" by Jack Rabbit Slim, "Don't Have A Heart Left To Break" by High Noon, and "Hot Dog" by Corky Jones.

The debut compilation from Hugo Mendez and the Sofrito collective on Strut – tropical dancefloor grooves from Africa, the Caribbean and South American – featuring Banda Los Hijos De La Nina Luz, Frente Cumbiero, Fair Nick Stars, Victor Uwaifo, "Dany Play", Quantic Y Su Conjunto Los Miticos Del Ritmo, Roaring Lion and more! The basis is the Sofrito parties that began in East London in the mid 80s, where lovers of vintage Latin and African dance music got together and brought tropical grooves to an appreciative British club scene. It's great stuff all the way! Titles include "Quiero Amanacer" by Banda Los Hikos De La Nina Luz, "Je Ne Bois Pas Beaucomp" by Les Ya Toupas Du Zaire, "Arrete Mal Parle" by Fair Nick Stars, "Descarga Bontempi" by El Timba, "Fa'Waka (Pt 1)" by Dany Play, "Cumbia De Mochilla" by Quantic Y Su Conjunto Los Miticos Del Ritmo, "Yiri Yiri Boum" by Gnonnas Pedro" and more. 15 tracks in all.

An overdue look at the Irish contributions to the post-punk years – music that's often overlooked in comparison with sounds from London – and Northern scenes like Manchester or Sheffield – but which, arguably, has even more power in the end! The music here really holds onto the best initial burst of energy from the Brit Isles underground – the kinds of sounds that you'd be likely to hear on Rough Trade or Factory a few years before – but which, by the time of this set, were quickly fading in favor of more polished crossover material. Leave it to the Irish to keep things going – and serve up some brilliant home-grown sounds filled with skittish guitars, rough electronics, urgent vocalizations, and sharp stark rhythms – mostly issued on small label vinyl and tape releases at the time. The package really opens up these overlooked years – with great cuts that include "Avenue B" by Major Thinkers, "Accentuate" by SM Corporation, "Play Safe" by Chant Chant Chant, "Just Friends" by Dogmatic Element, "High Cost Of Living" by The Threat, "Last Days" by PH, "Eighties Rampwalk" by Operating Theatre, and "Twenty Tens" by Virgin Prunes.

One of our favorite compilations of all time – a smoking batch of soulful jazz from the 60s, with a slight bit of funk and blues thrown in as well! The set's exactly what's promised in the title – jazz cuts, but with an ultra-cool mod vibe – the kind of soulful sounds that played big with the younger London crowd digging American music in the mid 60s – and also the kind of music you'd be likely to find blasting out of a backroom jukebox on the west side of Chicago! There's loads of rare single mixes of LP tracks on the set, and a number of smoking 45s from artists you might know better from more mainstream work – really hitting hard here, alongside a few special numbers from the indie underground too. Tracks are cool enough for old school hipsters – but appealing enough to bring in a new listener too – and as proof of that, we've given this one away for many years as a Christmas present. The collection features 25 tracks in all – non-stop pleasure throughout – with titles that include "Soul Shoutin" by Shirley Scott, "Tengo Tango" by Cannonball Adderley Sextet, "Whip It On Me" by Billy Hawks, "Yeh Yeh" by Mongo Santamaria, "Black Talk" by Charles Earland, "I'm Ready" by Otis Spann, "Mama Rufus" by Merced Blue Notes, "Theme From NYPD" by Johnny Hammond, "Step Out & Get It" by The Nomos, "Why Don't You Do Right" by Mark Murphy, "Collard Greens" by Freddie McCoy, "Theme From The Carpetbaggers" by Jack McDuff, "Filthy McNasty" by Eddie Jefferson, "Evil Ways" by Cal Tjader, "Kenny's Theme" by Kenny Burrell, and "Games" by Ivan Boogaloo Joe Jones.

Soulful dancefloor euphoria – lovingly selected and mixed back to back by Bobby & Steve, to celebrate 20 years at the heart of London's house and club scene! This celebration packs in the heartiest, most soulful club sounds that the crew could dredge up – heavy with disco era soul groovers – with Diana Ross, Thelma Houston, Freeez, Teddy Pendergrass, The Jones Girls, Alicia Meyers and Rufus with Chaka Kahn. Includes "Saturday Night, Sunday Morning" by Thelma Houston, "The Boss" by Diana Ross", "The Southern Freeez" by Freeez, "You're Gonna Make Me Love Someone Else" by The Jones Girls, "I Want To Thank You" by Alicia Meyers and more.