A host of southern soul tracks – all presented here in versions that have never been issued before – as they're all the original takes of the tunes that were first tone for Ace Records of Mississippi! You'll recognize a few of these tunes, which sound different in the earlier takes – and there's also plenty of other more obscure numbers you won't know at all – served up in modes that bridge the New Orleans soul and deeper Mississippi music that Ace did so well at the end of the 50s. CD features 24 tracks in all – and titles include "I Was Wrong" by Roland Cook, "Can't Let You Go" by Albert Scott, "Heaven Came Down" by Calvin Spears, "Mr Blues" by Joe & Ann, "I Know" by Bobby Marchan, "Blessed Are These Tears" by Joe Tex, "Gee Baby" by Joe & Ann, "Yes I Got You" by Chuck Carbo, "Honey Honey" by The Supremes, "Teenage Rock" by Little Booker, and "My Love Is Strong" by Earl King. (Soul, Blues) CD

Could anyone ever utter a sexier line than "Don't go to strangers, come to me?" We think not, and it's material like that that makes the album a real killer from Etta Jones – one of her best from the 60s, cut when she was really developing her skills as a vocalist, but still had enough of an edge to be interesting. Backing is by a small group that includes Frank Wess, Roy Haynes, and Richard Wyands – and the album has a relaxed, jazzy quality that easily makes it one of the real standouts in Etta's career! Titles include "All The Way", "Where Or When", "Yes Sir, That's My Baby", "If I Had You", "Something To Remember You By", and "Don't Go To Strangers". (Soul, Blues) CD

A nice dose of jazz – as usual for Jimmy – thanks to some arrangements by Oliver Nelson, plus piano from Dave Frishberg and tenor from Buddy Tate! Titles include "You Can't Run Around", "Blues In The Dark", "Tell Me I'm Not To Late", "Berkely Campus Blues", and "Undecided Blues". (Vocalists, Blues) LP, Vinyl record album

A great set that may well be Big Maybelle's best record ever – really rare work that's quite different than her famous work of the 50s! The set was recorded in the Criteria studios in Miami – and it's got a cool southern soul sound that's part Bobby Blue Bland bluesy soul, and part Muscle Shoals funk – fused together wonderfully by arranger Eric Knight – who really has a great ear for giving Maybelle a wicked new groove! Maybelle's vocals are a bit deeper than usual – much more soul than the blues of a decade before – and tracks include "This Bitter Earth", "How It Lies", "Old Love Never Dies", "My Mother's Eyes", and "Love Careless Love". (Soul, Blues) CD

Four fantastic albums from Bobby Bland – all brought together in a single package for the first time! First up is Come Fly With Me – great work from Bobby Blue Bland – one of the few artists to rise up at the end of the 50s, and still find a way to chart their own path forward in soul with fresh material like this! Bobby's voice is still incredible here, and he works with production from Al Bell and Monk Higgins, the latter of whom arranged – in this cool style that's a bit like some of the territory that Tyrone Davis was taking on at Columbia Records during the second half of the 70s – fuller arrangements that bring some sophisticated soul touches to the music, but in ways that never lose the core of Bobby's genius! Titles include "Lady Lonely", "Night Games", "You Can Count On Me", "Love To See You Smile", "Come Fly With Me", and "To Be Friends". The next album is I Feel Good I Feel Fine – and Bobby Bland sounds pretty good too – thanks to arrangements from the great Monk Higgins, who does a perfect job of mixing Bland's trademark vocals with some sweet late 70s arrangements! The sound is upbeat, but never in a cliched disco mode – more in the territory that you'd hear Johnnie Taylor using over at Columbia Records – maybe a good comparison, given the Memphis roots that both artists shared – as both also evolved a lot to shift their sound with the changing modes of the time. And as with Johnnie, Bobby never loses the core that makes him great – as you'll hear on titles that include "Tit For Tat", "Soon As The Weather Breaks", "In His Eyes", "Someone To Belong To", "I Feel Good I Feel Fine", and "Little Mama". Sweet Vibrations is a real gem from the start of the 80s – arranged by Monk Higgins, who co-produced the set with Al Bell – a duo who'd already given Bobby some great records before, but who really knock it out of the park with this one. There's an extra-special quality going on here – maybe a slight reintroduction of blues roots, but still with a very contemporary spirit – set up to superb backings throughout. Titles include "Soul With A Flavor", "Hollywood Woman", "You'd Be A Millionaire", "Sweet Vibrator", "Special Kind Of Fool", and "A Real Woman Is What It Takes". Try Me I'm Real is record with a title that certainly fits the bill – as the amazing voice of Bobby Bland is as real here as it ever was, and blended with superbly soulful backings that take the singer's sound forward for a whole new generation! Some of Bobby's contemporaries were content to just stick in a straight blues mode – but Bland really grew and developed a lot as an artist, thanks in part to Monk Higgins and Al Bell – who are both at the production helm of the record, and balance the bluesy roots of Bobby with some richer soul backings that really knock the whole thing out of the park! We love Bobby Blue Bland during his early Duke Records years – but we love him equally as much for music like this, on titles that include "But I Do", "What A Difference A Day Makes", "Givin Up The Streets For Love", "A Song For You My Son", "Just You Just Me", and "Love Is Where It's At". CD

If you ever doubted the blues chops of Canned Heat, take a listen to this album – as the group are joined by the great John Lee Hooker, who they let stand strongly in the spotlight and almost make the album his own! Previous sets by Canned Heat were already pretty darn great – a huge cut above blues-inspired rock groups of the late 60s years – but with Hooker in the lineup here, the sound gets even more raw and sensitive – so much so that a number of these cuts almost feel like some of the early Detroit 78rpm recordings the older blues musician recorded at the start of his career – hardly the watered-down blues rock you might expect. Titles include "Burning Hell", "Send Me Your Pillow", "Messin With The Hook", "Boogie Chillen No 2", "Peavine", "Just You & Me", "Whiskey & Wimmen", and "I Got My Eyes On You". (Rock, Blues) CD

Raw genius from Smokey Hogg – a set of recordings originally issued as singles for the Modern/RPM label, brought together here to make one of the few full length documents of Hogg's talents from the time! Smokey sings here with spare acoustic guitar on most tracks, and a bit of piano added in on some others – but all with a very lean, very rootsy vibe that reflects his rural roots, and which is especially resonant with Lightning Hopkins on the piano-less tunes! Titles include "I Got Your Picture", "Goin Back To Chicago", "Coming Back Home To You Again", "You Can't Keep Your Business Straight", "Look In Your Eyes Pretty Mama", and "It's Raining Here". LP, Vinyl record album

A pair of very stripped-down albums from John Lee Hooker – issued together in this 70s set! First up is Country Blues Of John Lee Hooker – featuring the legendary John Lee Hooker, heard here in one of his more obscure recordings from the late 50s – at least in contrast to his famous sides for Vee Jay Records! This set's an unusual date – recorded in Detroit, despite the claim of the title – and featuring Hooker on acoustic guitar and vocals, without any other instrumentation at all – pitched much more towards the growing folk blues scene than some of his more familiar Chicago recordings. Tracks are short, but pack plenty of punch – and titles include "Black Snake", "I Rowed A Little Boat", "Bundle Up & Go", "Behind The Plow", "Water Boy", "Tupelo Blues", and "Pea Vine Special". That's My Story is from 1960, and features great rootsy blues from John Lee Hooker – and an unusual session that has him getting backup help from jazz players Sam Jones on bass and Louis Hayes on drums! Jones and Hayes only play on a handful of tracks, and most of the focus is on Hooker's damn-great vocals, and acoustic guitar – spun out nicely over a set of tracks that includes "I Need Some Money", a controversial clash with early Motown – plus "One Of These Days", "Gonna Use My Rod", "I Want To Talk About You", "Democrat Man", and "I'm Wanderin". LP, Vinyl record album

Great rootsy blues from John Lee Hooker – and an unusual session that has him getting backup help from jazz players Sam Jones on bass and Louis Hayes on drums! Jones and Hayes only play on a handful of tracks, and most of the focus is on Hooker's damn-great vocals, and acoustic guitar – spun out nicely over a set of tracks that includes "I Need Some Money", a controversial clash with early Motown – plus "One Of These Days", "Gonna Use My Rod", "I Want To Talk About You", "Democrat Man", and "I'm Wanderin". LP, Vinyl record album

Collects b-sides, alternate takes, plus unissued cuts from Albert King's run at Stax and features Isaac Hayes, Booker T, Steve Cropper, and others! 13 tracks total. CD

BB King live in Japan – really cooking here on a concert performance that's quite different from his other live records of the time! The set's a double-length one – originally a 2LP set – and most tracks are nice and long, with lots more room for solos from BB – stretching out wonderfully in front of a crowd that's clearly going out of their minds – almost as enthusiastic, at least in the way they're recorded, as the Apollo crowd at a James Brown performance! Although not issued in the US at the time, the material is essential BB King – really great tracks that are some of the best he recorded in the 70s. Titles include "Jamming At Sankei Hall", "Hikari", "Chains & Things", "You Are Still My Woman", "Niji Baby", "How Blue Can You Get", and "Eyesight To The Blind". LP, Vinyl record album