Funky 45's — All Formats  

One of the funkiest tunes we've ever heard from Charles Bradley – thanks to some killer drums on the intro, and this wild psychedelic guitar as well! These instruments set a perfect scene for Bradley to really let loose on "Stay Away" – with these blistering vocals that have a late 60s sort of deep soul energy – totally amazing, and pushing our respect for Bradley even further! The tune's a cover of a Nirvana tune – in case you didn't know it – and the flipside features a continued instrumental take on the groove!

A great remake of "I'll Slip Away" – done by Charles Bradley in a style that's even more soulful than the Rodriguez original! The Menahan Street Band provide backings – and are funky, but laidback too – with this nice echoey guitar underneath Bradley's vocals, and a snapping rhythm part that grooves along, yet lets Charles firmly take the lead! The flipside features the original by Rodriguez – a bit moodier, and with a really dark and echoey quality!

All new funky soul from Charles Bradley & The Menahan Street Band – a killer cover of Joe Quarterman's "No Time For Dreaming" and the groover "Golden Rule"! "No Time For Dreaming" wastes no time in getting to the good stuff – that tracks in full soulful swing from the opening second, with Bradley's gritty vocals, tight drums, brass and female backup vocals. "Golden Rule" another winner, with pulled-tight groove laid down by the band and a gritty soul message delivery from Mr. Bradley.

Classic style funky soul from Daptone supergroup the Menahan Street Band – featuring members of the Dap-Kings, El Michels Affair, and Budos Band – and a killer guest vocal by Charles Bradley! "The Telephone Song" sounds like a lost soul nugget, from the gritty 70 style instrumentation to the old school telephone sound effect that kicks it off – with Charles's achingly soul vocals in full control. The flip side is essentially the instrumental version, titled as "Tired Of Fighting" as it appears on the Menahan Street Band's Make The Road By Walking. The very embodiment of the neo classic funky soul sound!

Scorching raw soul from Charles Bradley – backed by the tight Menahan Street Band! "World (Is Going Up In Flames)" might be the best track yet from Bradley – an incredible groover with a heavy theme – but the apocalypse never sounded so sweet! The groove is raw and emotive, given a deeper feel thanks to some piano in the mix – with a rubbery bass line and backing vocals by the Gospel Queens! The flip "Heartaches And Pain" is another emotional workout – and has the feel of a lost southern soul scorcher, but with funkier bassline and drums! Amazing stuff!

A sweet little single from Menahan Street Band! "Lights Out" has this slow funk brilliance that's almost lifted off a rare 70s soundtrack – beats that are hard, but mellow too – topped by these snakey horns that really bring in a blue sort of feel to the music – almost an Ethiopian feel, but funkier! "Keep Coming Back" is awash in Hammond lines right from the start – swing-stepping like a cool 60s instrumental, complete with some wangly guitar – all again in a slow mode that's really a nice change from the usual!

Madly tripped-out grooves from the Menehan Street Band! "Wolf" is a number with a lot of Ethiopian elements in its groove – a cut that feels like it came from one of Mulatu's famous albums of the 70s – with lots of odd-stepping rhythms, offbeat horn parts, and this spacey bit of guitar and organ that really makes the tune sound spooky! "Bushwick Lullaby" is pretty sinister too – a bit more standard funk, but still pretty offbeat – and with some angular horn lines that would make Salah Ragab proud!

A pair of numbers by Brooklyn soul great Charles Bradley backed by The Menahan Street Band – including a wonderful take on Neil Young's classic "Heart Of Gold"! The cover works incredibly well, with Bradley's gravely vocals carrying the emotion of Young's lyrics in really moving way. Incredible! It's backed by the stellar "In You (I Found A Love)" from the instant classic No Time For Dreaming LP.

Raw underground funk from Los Sospechos – featuring members of Budos Band & Menahan Street Band – excellent numbers created for the soundtrack to the film Postales! "Jano's Revenge" starts with and revolves around a killer bass groove with a nice & pulpy kick to it – with funky horns with just a bit of a Latin, or even southwestern flair. The drums & percussion are also Daptone worthy and there's some grooving organ in the mix, too! "Mirror Door" has even more swelling organ sounds, and a great flavor of it's own, with the horns and organ playing over a drum machine groove that's anything but cold and robotic! Both tracks are Car-Del Productions, the work of Michael Deller and John Carbonella of The Budos Band.