Killer funky work from Pete Rock – a set that's still rooted in the hip hop traditions he helped form over the past few decades, but which also has a strong degree of instrumental funk as well! Pete did the set with the Soul Brothers quartet – a great group with riffing guitars, funky bass, and even some occasional vocal chorus bits – and the tunes are every bit as lean as on the previous Petestrumentals sets, but also maybe sharper, funkier, and more lively too – thanks to excellent work from the group throughout the set. The maestro still gets in plenty of his own touches too – that special sort of ear that we first fell in love with when he was working with CL Smooth – and titles include "Super Soul Brother", "Swag", "Live With Me", "Cool Breeze", "Told Y'All", "Say It Again", "That's The Way", "Heavy", and "So Good". (Hip Hop, Deep Funk) LP, Vinyl record album

Killer funky work from Pete Rock – a set that's still rooted in the hip hop traditions he helped form over the past few decades, but which also has a strong degree of instrumental funk as well! Pete did the set with the Soul Brothers quartet – a great group with riffing guitars, funky bass, and even some occasional vocal chorus bits – and the tunes are every bit as lean as on the previous Petestrumentals sets, but also maybe sharper, funkier, and more lively too – thanks to excellent work from the group throughout the set. The maestro still gets in plenty of his own touches too – that special sort of ear that we first fell in love with when he was working with CL Smooth – and titles include "Super Soul Brother", "Swag", "Live With Me", "Cool Breeze", "Told Y'All", "Say It Again", "That's The Way", "Heavy", and "So Good". (Hip Hop, Deep Funk) LP, Vinyl record album

A new album from the great Willie West – an artist we love for his rare vintage New Orleans work of the 60s and 70s – still sounding surprisingly wonderful all these many years later! Willie's vocals have this raspy, honest charm that's totally great – and like Lee Fields during his revival years, West gets superb backing from a small combo of younger players who really appreciate the best roots of the music – tight but unpretentious grooves that feel just like a vintage 45, and suit Willie West to a T! The style is less New Orleans than it is a more righteous, sophisticated version of funky soul – one with some nice dark corners that really raise our opinion of Willie's talents – again with the sort of deeper vibe we love in the recent work by Lee Fields. Titles include "Slow & Easy", "Cold In The Storm", "She's So Wise", "The Devil Gives Me Everything", "Getting Down", and "I'm Aware Of What You Want". (Soul, Deep Funk) LP, Vinyl record album

Whomp! These guys bring it all down on the beat – hitting harder than Cassius Clay at the Rome Olympics in '60, packing bass, guitar, drums & percussion into one funky punch – pounding out a hard heavy groove all the way through their entire debut LP! Of course, these guys have the talent to do it right – sporting a connection to the fellow early oughties funk standard bearers Poets Of Rhythm that you can certainly hear in some of the album's more stoned-out grooves – and like that hip combo, the Whitefield Brothers maintain a strong mix of classic funky modes, with just the right touches of professional trippiness to push the whole thing over the top. An instant classic from El Michels, Bosco Mann, Neal Sugarman, Jay Whitefield and others who fly the flag for classic style underground funk – with tracks that include "Rampage", "Prowlin", "In The Raw", "Sol Walk", "Eji", "Thunderbird", "Weiya", and "Yakuba". LP, Vinyl record album

The True Tones provide soul singer Michelle David with some great backings here – a romping sort of groove on most tracks, and one that bristles with plenty of old school instrumental touches that seem to really spur the vocalist forward! Michelle's got a dynamic style that owes a lot to late 60s funk diva styles – a power and focus that really provides some great energy at the top of the group, and a vocal range that really crackles over the top when she lets loose! Titles include "Let Me Tell It", "Karma", "Peace", "Cold Cold World", "Little Girl", "That Is You", "Brothers & Sisters", "If You Don't Try", "More Grace", and "PUSH". LP, Vinyl record album

The Faithful Brothers are an Israeli duo, but one who come to their debut after years of collecting Northern Soul 45s – decades of listening, learning, and absorbing – all of which really shows through in this well-done debut! The pair work with a very full lineup of musicians – horns, Hammond, and even a bit of vibes – used like you might hear on some late 60s Detroit indie soul single, with soaring sounds over the romping grooves – all of which really do a great job of elevating the vocals! Yet since the Faithful Brothers themselves just handle instruments, they're also not slavish to the singer – and the album's equally strong on the instrumental tip as it is on the vocal one. Titles include "So Low", "Downtown Uptown", "Night Man", "The Town I Live In", "Joy", "They Don't Know", "Let's Break The Curfew", and "Tell Me One More Time". LP, Vinyl record album

There's only one brother in this funky little record – Finnish drummer Teddy Rok, who you might know from some great soulful sets from years back – working here in a lean style that blends funky drums with plenty of other spare instrumental touches! The set's a funk record that's fully informed by hip hop as well – with Teddy playing things in these stark styles that really sound great next to the beats – leading out with plenty of Fender Rhodes, vibes, and other warm instrumentations that speak volumes on the set, even though there's almost no vocals at all! There's a depth here that's missing from so many other contemporary projects of this nature – which is a strong testament to Teddy Rok's years of making great funk and soul records in other formats – as you'll hear on titles that include "Deeper Toner", "Rain Diamond", "Sao Paulo", "Further East", "Futuristic Earth", "King Cesar", and "Duktus". (New Grooves, Deep Funk) CD

The long-awaited third volume Original Raw Soul – a set that pulls together rare funky soul singles by the revolving roster of players led by the Whitefield Brothers – singles that ultimately became just as rare as the obscure funk 45s that inspired them! Nowadays, The Whitefield Brothers, their Poets Of Rhythm and associated acts can be credited for spurring the funk & raw soul revival of the 00s onward. At the time, some of the singles would appear and be hyped as reissues of regional rarities from back in the day – and they're so damn authentic, it was pretty easy to believe! Straight up raw funk instros, some jazzier gems with flute and female vox, organ-drenched jams and more credited to New Process, Poets Of Rhythm, Karl Hector & The Malcouns, Bajka, Whitefield Brothers, Polyversal Souls and more! Includes "Bus People Theme" and "Freedom" by New Process, "Summer Days (Instrumental)" and "Flight To St Vincent" by Poets Of Rhythm, ""Will Power" and "Money For Born, Money For Die" by Transgressors (both previously unreleased), "A Vision" and "The Only Religion That I Believe" by Bajka, "$600 Song" by Mercy Sluts, "Muswell Hill Run" by Polyversal Souls, "The Bastard" by Whitefield Brothers and more. (Funky Compilations, Deep Funk) CD

The True Tones provide soul singer Michelle David with some great backings here – a romping sort of groove on most tracks, and one that bristles with plenty of old school instrumental touches that seem to really spur the vocalist forward! Michelle's got a dynamic style that owes a lot to late 60s funk diva styles – a power and focus that really provides some great energy at the top of the group, and a vocal range that really crackles over the top when she lets loose! Titles include "Let Me Tell It", "Karma", "Peace", "Cold Cold World", "Little Girl", "That Is You", "Brothers & Sisters", "If You Don't Try", "More Grace", and "PUSH". CD

There's only one brother in this funky little record – Finnish drummer Teddy Rok, who you might know from some great soulful sets from years back – working here in a lean style that blends funky drums with plenty of other spare instrumental touches! The set's a funk record that's fully informed by hip hop as well – with Teddy playing things in these stark styles that really sound great next to the beats – leading out with plenty of Fender Rhodes, vibes, and other warm instrumentations that speak volumes on the set, even though there's almost no vocals at all! There's a depth here that's missing from so many other contemporary projects of this nature – which is a strong testament to Teddy Rok's years of making great funk and soul records in other formats – as you'll hear on titles that include "Deeper Toner", "Rain Diamond", "Sao Paulo", "Further East", "Futuristic Earth", "King Cesar", and "Duktus". (New Grooves, Deep Funk) LP, Vinyl record album

The seventh album from prolific modern funky soul gurus The Baker Brothers – a tight, thunderous mix of vocals and instrumentals that range from rawly raucous numbers to sly little groovers! The group really is a well oiled engine at this point – after a good decade or so of activity. Time To Testify is up there with their best material – a record with a nice, live feel and excellent instrumentation for the group! Chris Pedley on bass and piano, Paul Young on sax and flute, Geoff Lai on guitar and lead vox, Rich Baker on drums & percussion, Ted Carrasco on drums and percussion, and Sott Baylis on trumpet, Rhodes, Hammond, clavinet and Moog. Includes "Make Your Move", "Painting Pictures", "Once I Had A Friend", "Patience", "Feeding Freddie", "Pieces Of The Puzzle", "Hang Loose", "The Bottom Rung", "The Young Patter", "Snap Back", "Head South", "Genki Strut" and more. 16 tracks on the CD version. CD

A massive selection of work from the contemporary underground scene – cuts that previously appeared as limited edition 7" singles on the excellent Colemine labels – one of our favorite sources for contemporary funk! The set's got as much vintage vibe as you'd guess from the label styles on the cover – and this limited vinyl version is beautifully pressed, with sound that may well even be more fantastic than the 45s. Titles include "Ice Breaker" by Bubaza, "Winston Theme" by Winston Brothers, "Slipshot" by Jungle Fire, "Rome" by Dojo Cuts, "Morning In America" by Durand Jones & The Indications, "Standing With You" by The Resonaires, "Nothing But His Love" by The Harlem Gospel Travelers, "Sommer" by The Ironsides, "No Laggin & Draggin" by Renaldo Domino, "Sunk In The Mist" by Jr Thomas & The Vocalos, "Step Down" by Sure Fire Soul Ensemble, "Over You" by Aaron Frazer, "Fo Sho" by Delvon Lamarr Organ Trio, "More Than A Memory" by Ben Pirani, and "One & Only" by Oliver James. (Funky Compilations, Deep Funk) LP, Vinyl record album