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Beautiful music from Charles Lloyd – a great package that brings together all the important Norwegian recordings the tenorist made for ECM in the 90s – music that really helped renew interest in this legendary player! The style here is wonderful – laidback and flowing, in a mode... read more

Beautiful duets between this richly creative pair – a stripped-down set that really showcases the warmth and intimacy of Charles Lloyd's reed styles in recent years – and one that also has Jason Moran warming up a bit more than usual too! Lloyd plays tenor and alto, both with a very... read more

With a name like this, you'd expect Lollipop Shoppe to be a sweet California band with a sunny pop feel – but instead, they've got a really nasty, nicely gritty sort of feel – kind of Sunset Strip garage rock turned towards more manic modes, a bit like early Love at their best! There's... read more

Fred Lonberg-Holm at his collaborative best – working with a great group of Chicago citizens, each of whom shape the others' sound in the set! Parts of the record have Lonberg-Holm's older style of arch avant energy – an almost academic mode that comes across with thoughtfully... read more

On Sophisticated Lady, Julie London's got her hair up, and is wearing a classy gown – so you can bet that the feel of the record definitely follows through with the "sophisticated" promise of the title! Things are as mellow as on London's early classics for Liberty, but there's a... read more

That's London, Ontario – not London, England – which means that the group have an even more far-flung sound than you might expect! The album's a brilliant and overlooked gem from the Canadian scene of the 70s – really mindblowing music by a group who are equally great at grooving... read more

The 2 fantastic albums Shorty Long cut for Soul/Motown – '68's funky Here Comes The Judge & '69's soulful Prime Of Shorty Long – a perfect pair, put together with 2 bonus tracks and great notes by the rare soul-reverent heroes at Kent UK! The CD kicks off with the Here Come The... read more

French pop meets LA production – and the result is some of the best work ever recorded by A&M Records – a gently groovy, slightly sexy sound that really helped define the label in its early years! Claudine Longet's got a gentle Parisian style of singing that's perfect, simply... read more

Dreamy vocals, catchy tunes, bossa rhythms – it's gotta be Claudine Longet! During the late 60s, Claudine first warmed ears in America with a lovely take on the gentle sounds of the Astrud Gilberto era – a French-accented approach to mellow vocal pop, often touched with a bit of jazz... read more

The genius of 60s pop is hardly summed up better by anyone else than Claudine Longet! This dreamy female singer cut a handful of excellent late 60s albums for A&M – and this gem from 1967 is one of her best! The set's arranged by Nick DeCaro, and produced by Tommy LiPuma – all in... read more

Always-great work from lovely French singer Claudine Longet – a vocalist with a style that's unlike anyone else we can think of! This one's another sublime blend of French 60s pop and sunny A&M production – arranged to perfection by the great Nick DeCaro, with touches that deepen... read more

A near-lost Philly disco album – recorded at Sigma Sound, but released on Casablanca at the end of the 70s – one that was almost 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 –... read more

A really nice batch of early 80s soul from Loose Ends – one of the best remembered groups who were making strong soul music in Britain in the period – and who actually recorded this excellent first album at Philadelphia's Alpha Studios! Making the record in Philly was a wise decision... read more

Early Brit pop from Jerry Lordan – best known as the songwriter of a host of hits for bigger artists in the pre-Beatles years – stepping out here in an album of his own! Jerry's a singer with a surprising degree of charm – not a full-on rocker, but more of an old school vocalist... read more

A really cool record from the late 60s Spanish rock scene – done with a pop-ready simplicity, but accented with some gritty, garage psych touches too! Contrabando features a newer line-up of the group, after Juan Pardo and Antonio "Junior" Morales left the group to for Juan Y... read more

Beautiful brown-eyed soul from the Ohio scene of the 70s – just the sort of record you might have expected to hear from East LA or Spanish Harlem back in the day – but even more amazing to come from Cleveland! The group are a Latin combo at the core, but they've soaked up plenty of... read more

Wonderful work from this New Orleans combo – a Latin act that feels like they'd be much more at home in the Spanish Harlem scene of the 60s, especially given the soulful undercurrents of this set! On previous releases, the group already showed a great talent for crafting just the right sort... read more

One of the most striking groups we've heard from the Chilean scene of the late 60s – a quartet who have the groovy garagey sound of their contemporaries, but also manage a darker style overall! The lyrics are in English throughout – something the band always insisted on – but... read more

A mindblowing bit of psych from the late 60s – and a record that has way more to offer than just the usual fuzzy guitar, thanks to key use of moog, theremin, and tape tricks! There's a really freaky feel to the record from the start – a quality that's hipper than most of the... read more

An unusual album from Arthur Louis – and a set that features some surprising guest work from Eric Clapton on guitar! Louis has this raspy style that's not far from Clapton's – and the presence of the famous guitar definitely helps shape the sound of the record too – giving it a... read more

A wonderfully well-rounded set from Lil Louis – one of the few early Chicago house artists with enough imagination to break into a wider soul audience and still hold their ears over the course of a full LP! The record's a strongly-crafted batch of tunes that mixes mellow ballads with more... read more

An amazing organist – probably the best in Europe! Eddy Louiss is a genius – a massive player who should have been huge, but who's barely been recognized over on this side of the Atlantic, save for a bit of recording with Stan Getz. This 1972 session is a gem – one of his best... read more

The soul saving, Satan deterring classic by The Louvin Brothers – plus the excellent Handpicked Songs compilation of Louvin tracks lovingly selected by an eclectic group of indebted artists – in this great 2CD set from Light In The Attic! Satan Is Real is a fantastic record of country... read more

C'mon, you can never have too much Love – particularly the beautiful, soulful voice of Darlene Love – and this fantastic compilation from Ace puts together a diverse set of singles from the 60s & 70s, a few rare demos, plus hard to find tunes from earlier and later years! Darlene... read more

Sweet soundtrack grooves from Brit maestro Geoff Love – two late 70s albums back to back in a single package! First up is Star Wars & Other Space Themes – a set that has Love really cashing in on the sci-fi cinema boom of the mid 70s – leaping off with the lead theme to Star... read more

Two soundtrack-themed albums – back to back on one CD! Themes For Super Heroes is a 1979 effort from Geoff Love – one timed to match up with the successful Superman film, but which also features bits from a range of TV heroes as well! Love's arrangements are lush, but often quite lean... read more

What can we say? This is one of the greatest albums of all time – and it's made even better through the addition of a bunch of previously unissued tracks! The record's got a sound that's completely unique – as crack LA garage punk rock meets Hollywood baroque production, and the... read more

An excellent funk party all the way through! Preston was Johnny Otis' tenor star in the late 60s – and this album has him grooving hard with members of Johnny's band, including a young Shuggie Otis, who's really wailing with some acid licks on guitar! The overall feel is very much in the... read more

A beautiful swirling instrumental album that features the classic "Love's Theme", the cut that made Barry a multi-millionaire, and which firmly established his sophisticated orchestral soul style as one of the trademarks of the 70s! This is the ultimate in 70s soul class – from the... read more

A tremendous little record from Love Peace & Happiness – a great vocal trio from the early 70s, and one who really shine with this overlooked gem for RCA! The trio were part of the New Birth/Nite Liters universe that producer Harvey Fuqua brought to the label at the time – and they'... read more

Funky fusion with plenty of Latin touches – a really compelling set from the Nicaraguan scene of the 70s! The album's got the same criss-crossing of influences you'd hear in some of the best Bay Area projects of this type – no surprise since Jose Chepito Areas is a key member of the... read more

Never-heard music from the legendary Frank Lowe – but pulled from the same sessions that produced the classic Black Beings album on ESP! The group here features wonderful interplay between Frank's tenor and the soprano and alto sax of Joseph Jarman – both of whom get plenty of space to... read more

The title's a great one for the set, as Mundell Lowe was one of the moodiest players of his generation – a great guitarist with a really unique tone – recorded in a perfect setting for the album! The group's a bit unusual, as it features Lowe's guitar next to small combo arrangements... read more

A great follow-up to some of the Latin Percussion jam sessions of the late 70s – a recent recording, but one that really retains a classic vibe! The session takes the same approach as the older ones – pulling together a core batch of well-matched musicians, and letting them jam in the... read more

Rare, spare and hypnotic post psychedelic material from Ted Lucas – a Detroit reared instrumentalist who studied sitar under Ravi Shankar, and whose alternate guitar tunings lead some fairly straightforward songcraft into the realm of ragas and otherwise hypnotic atmospheres! It's a great... read more

Lovely bossa work from Argentine guitarist Agustin Pereyra Lucena – one of his first records, done in a style that's right up there with the best of Brazil in the 60s! Acoustic guitar is the main instrumentation on the set – supported by light percussion, warm basslines, and some... read more

A landmark bit of Brazilian from Europe – and a sweet groover from guitarist Agustin Pereyra Lucena! The set was recorded in Oslo, but it's got the warm sound of a Brazilian jazz set from the time – with Agustin on acoustic guitar and percussion – backed by a quartet that... read more

A beautiful album from Jon Lucien – one that's been far too neglected over the years! This was Lucien's second album for Columbia – and it's a wonderfully strong effort that fuses together jazz, soul, and Brazilian styles, in a manner that recalls some of his best work for RCA –... read more

Wonderfully weird sounds from Lucifer – a record cut during the powerhouse 70s soul years of the Invictus/Hot Wax label, but done with a sound that's much more bluesy and rootsy than any other work for the company! Vocals are by Eugene Smith, who has a cool sort of Bay Area vibe –... read more

A festival of samba from mid 70s Brazil – a set that's packaged with an unassuming title and cover, but which contains a host of excellent samba tunes throughout! The artists' names are slightly submerged in the presentation – but the record smokes like some of the best music from the... read more

Great tones here from guitarist Lage Lund – a player who works in these rich, chromatic modes that are really beautiful – and strung together here with a nicely gentle swing! The rhythms of the tunes are quite fresh – not what you'd expect for a conventional jazz guitar record... read more

A great little album from Pat Lundy – an enigmatic talent who crops up a number of times over the years – but always on different record labels, and always with a slightly different sound and style! This album's one of Pat's best – and has her working in a sophisticated soul... 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 wonderful record by Bobby Lyle – and a genius blend of jazz, soul, and lots of other righteous sounds! Lyle started out as a keyboardist, but this album really has him taking off as a vocalist too – working in a sweet Roy Ayers-styled groove – one that blends mellow rhythms... read more

A stone classic from Bobby Lyle – and a record that really has him stepping out strongly, both as a keyboardist and a singer! Bobby's strength at this point is undeniable – and he's got a perfect sense of balance that rivals contemporaries like Roy Ayers or Webster Lewis – both... read more

Arthur Lyman in 1966 – heard here on two albums from that year, packaged together on a single CD! Lyman 66 has Arthur still working strongly in the vibes/percussion blend of his start – moving into tunes that are familiar 60s pop numbers, but still done here in a smaller combo... read more

One of Cheryl Lynn's early killers for Columbia – an album of tight, bouncy, joyous soul all the way through – free from any of the too-commercial touches that sometimes slowed Cheryl's later work! Ray Parker Jr produced the set – and he as well is free from the slicker sounds of... read more

Cheryl Lynn and Luther Vandross – a tremendous combination that makes for one heck of a great record! Luther arranged and produced the entire set – and he does a great job here of pushing Cheryl Lynn into more upbeat territory without getting too poppy or schmaltzy! In a way, the... read more

An incredibly captivating album of female soul – unlike anything else we can think of! Side one features a suite of tracks that details an ill-fated love affair in 4 modes: Introduction, Hoping, Final Attempt, and The Next Time – all done in a mode that mixes standard southern soul... read more

An overlooked 70s treasure from the great Carlos Lyra – and quite a different set than his more famous work of the bossa nova generation! The album's got some really wonderful electric piano – used in ways that help soften and deepen the feel of Lyra's aging vocals – similar to... read more

Two lost smokers from vibes legend Johnny Lytle – back to back on a single CD! The Soulful Rebel is lost early 70s set from Lytle – totally funky, but in a way that's very different than his famous 60s work! The album's got a sweet electric groove that comes not only from Johnny's... read more

Mad funk from the great Galt MacDermot – a wonderful selection of obscure tunes from some of his best funky soundtracks! Galt's work on Hair has been sampled heavily by a variety of hip hop producers over the years – but even better is his work for less famous soundtracks, a good... read more

2 killers from the legendary Galt MacDermot – composer, jazz musician, and hero to beatheads and samplers everywhere! First up is Shapes Of Rhythm – a weird off-kilter batch of jazzy instrumentals, with Galt playing acoustic and electric piano – and with backing by a tight little... read more

Some of the funkiest work ever recorded by Galt MacDermot – the quirky jazz and soundtrack composer who's become a favorite of beatheads over the years! The set combines two albums worth of unreleased tracks by Galt – killer material from his legendary years, all recorded for his own... read more

A rare gem from Maceo Parker – the second album cut with his King's Men group in the short time he was away from James Brown in the early 70s! The set was done for the Excello southern soul label, and it's got a bit of a different groove than his work for House Of Fox with the same group... read more

A raw, frantically-paced live set by boxer turned soul singer Freddy Mack – captured live at Toft's Club in the UK! It's rawly recorded, which is great, given the gritty soul style at play It's a batch of rollicking covers done with infectious energy, Freddy clearly doing his thing out... read more

One of the grooviest albums of the late 60s – a lost vocal treasure from the team of Dave MacKay & Vicky Hamilton! The pair were sort of like a hip version of Jackie & Roy – usually singing together on their tracks, with a mixed male/female vocal approach that sounds totally... read more

Madlib invades Blue Note! He gets free reign of the catalog for this mix of sampler genius and live band interpretations, too, as/with Ahmad Miller, Yesterdays New Quintet, Malcolm Catto, Medaphoar, and others from the Stones Throw camp. This one's truly a conceptual triumph, if there ever was... read more

A real revolution in music from Japanese arranger Norio Maeda – a set that takes off with the same rich energy as his soundtrack work, but which also shows off all his keyboard skills as well! The range of styles here is great – from the "auto race" sound effects on the... read more

Three different pianists from Japan, working together in a sweet trio format – but recorded in a way that gives each artist their own time in the spotlight! The album's divided into three tracks by each player – with the main pianist right out front on the solo, as the other two bring... read more

A contemporary set, but one that's unlike any other recent Brazilian recording we can think of – given the very unique vibe that Mauricio Maestro is going for! You might know Mauricio from his mid 70s work with Joyce on Visions Of Dawn – and although this set is a recent recording, it... read more

Freaky spandex and a mighty nice groove – a record that sounds a lot better than you might guess from the group's outfits on the cover! Magic Lady are a trio of funky females – grooving in a style that's a bit like the Brides Of Funkenstein, but a lot more stripped-down – an 80s-t... read more

A classic bit of indie blues from the Chicago scene – featuring some great players from the second generation after Chess Records stopped picking up the younger local talents! Magic Sam leads the group on vocals and guitar, and he's working here with Mighty Joe Young on guitar, Odie Payne on... read more

Two sweet 80s scores from Michel Magne – still very much at the top of his game here! First up is the sexy soundtrack for Emmanuelle 4 – done in a style that's very similar to some of the 70s films in the series, but with some slight 80s twists in the instrumentation and overall... read more

Amazing work from French film composer Michel Magne – a set of more serious compositions, but all of which still have the great ear for odd sounds and subtle humor we love in his soundtracks! The centerpiece of the set is his "Musique Tachiste" suite from 1959 – an extended... read more

Sweet grooves from this hip Italian combo – a group with a name that reminds us of some of our favorite sound library ensembles from years back, and a musical style to match! Magnetic 4 are heavy on 60s bossa and modal styles – jazzy in the instrumentation, but often set to dancefloor... read more

Later than Tim Maia's classic soul years, but a set with a nice focus on older bossa material – sung to backings by a small group arranged by Almir Chediak, and featuring Antonio Adolfo on piano and Wilson Das Neves on drums! Given the richness of Tim's vocals, there's a style here that's... read more

Insanely great sounds from the legendary Tim Maia – easily the most soulful singer in 70s Brazil, and an artist with a heck of a strong ear for funk, too! The music here is an incredible hybrid of American soul and Brazilian elements – especially since some lyrics are in English –... read more

Two of our favorite albums by The Main Ingredient – back to back on a single CD! Euphrates River is a wonderfully complex batch of tunes that shows that the group were taking a cue from some of their hipper contemporaries, and pushing past a stock hit formula. Bert DeCoteaux was still... read more

A killer set from a group that never lets us down – stepping out here in a sound that's more modern, more mature than their hit work of the 70s – yet still filled with all the sublime harmony soul we'd expect from the trio of Tony Silvester, Cuba Gooding, and Luther Simmons! Wade... read more

Some of the greatest work ever by The Main Ingredient – a selection of their singles for RCA records from the late 60s and early 70s – but one that goes way past just the hits, in order to fully trace the evolution of their heavenly vocal style! The trio started out as an already-great... read more

A pair of great early albums from Main Ingredient – Tasteful Soul from 1970 and Bitter Sweet from 1971 – in a single set! Tasteful Soul is one of the groups earliest records, with a great set of Bert DeCoteaux arrangements, and a totally sweet soul harmony sound! The arrangements are... read more

Diplo's back as Major Lazer – which is now a full-fledged all star project – and still steeped in big, boundary-busting, floor-shaking dancehall influences – with appearances by Santigold, Bruno Mars, Vybes Kartel, Amber from Dirty Projectors, Elephant Man, Wyclef, Shaggy, Opal,... read more

A set of performances dedicated to Thelonious Monk – yet music that's quite far from anything by Monk that we've ever heard before! Yet there's also a definite Monkish inspiration going on here – a sense of space and timing that resonates in different, often drawn-out ways –... read more

A really great group with a strong influence from 70s Italian soundtracks – one that serves up some mighty spare instrumentation that just includes percussion and keyboards – the latter of which is heavy on organ and synthesizer! The music has a really sinister feel – like the... read more

A great debut from The Malemen – a short-lived group in the recording studio, but one who spent many years on the southern scene as a well-travelled showband! The group have a more modern vibe here than they might on the stage – a sweet 80s groove approach that features plenty of tight... read more

Always-lovely work from Sabrina Malheiros – serving up a sublime blend of Brazilian roots and soulful overtones – a style that's easily made her one of the best artists on the Far Out label over the years! Sabrina's got a family lineage that traces back to Azymuth – and the music... read more

Bits of jazz and bits of soul, perfectly folded together with a raspy brilliance that really grabs our attention – a subtle depth of singing that almost takes us back to Nina Simone at times, but which also has some leaner 21s Century styles that are mighty nice too! Malia's vocals alone are... read more

The early 70s last hurrah for the Mamas & The Papas – who still deliver rich harmonies and a surprisingly creative breadth of styles on this long-delayed final album! The Cali rock scene, and the world at large, were both quite different in 1971 than they were in the late 60s –... read more

Funky breaking piano! Although Junior Mance has made some pretty mellow albums in his time, this is a great record of funky piano tracks – with a nice groove that puts it in a Three Sounds/Young Holt camp! The highlight of the record is the great "Well, I'll Be White Black", which... read more

Great 70s work from Henry Mancini – a wonderfully rich score composed for The Moneychangers – an early mini-series for TV, and one that required a lot more music than the usual film project! This double-length set is filled with great Mancini moments from the 70s – some very... read more

The last album ever issued by the enigmatic studio collective Mandigo – a batch of British musicians, but recording here in the best Afro Rock mode of the 70s sound library scene! As with some of the best British projects of this nature, there's a lot of different elements at play in the mix... read more

Wonderfully tight work from Mandrill – a real standout from the years at Arista – and a set that seems to take all the key instrumental energy of the Polydor years, and focus it on a soulful groove that's even more soaring than before! The energy is wonderful – very much like the... read more

Brilliant sounds from trombonist Albert Mangelsdorff – a rare live set that captures the modern jazz giant at the height of his powers! The set was recorded around the same time as Albert's famous Now Jazz Rammwong record – and it's got a very similar feel, with lots of elements from... read more

Think what you want about Chuck and his 70s hits, this version of the Mangione Brothers is a cooker! Chuck is on trumpet, Gap is on piano, and the rest of the group features Larry Combs on alto, Sal Nistico on tenor, Bill Saunders on bass, and Roy McCurdy on drums – all grooving in a nice... read more

An excellent mix of American and Japanese players – all brought into sharp Manhattan focus for this session! The date was recorded in New York, and features arrangements from Al Foster, Tom Harrell, Bib Berg, and Kunhiko Sugano – on cuts that are more warmly acoustic than the... read more

Some of the tightest tracks we've ever heard from Chico Mann – and some of his most soulful too – a great set of work that really has him stepping past some of the rougher structures of earlier years, and showing a new love of 80s keys and beats as well! The album's got a skittish... read more

Herbie Mann's really getting interesting here – stepping out from straight jazz flute, and moving into some more exotic territory that's mighty nice! There's a definite Latin bent to the album at times – thanks to conga work by Ray Barretto – but the tunes also bring in some... read more

A sweet early 60s set by Herbie Mann! After cutting a very successful side at the Gate in 1962, Herbie returns with an even broader approach to the groove – working here with players that include Ahmed Abdul-Malik, Dave Pike, Ray Mantilla, and Ray Barretto, on a set of long tracks that have... read more

Great early 70s work from Herbie Mann! By this point in his career, Herbie must have had a fleet of cars, a harem of ladies, and a golden flute. You can hear his success in the live material that makes up the album – recorded before very enthusiastic audiences at the New York and Montreux... read more

Very groovy stuff – and one of Herbie Mann's best records from the 60s! In a way, this album's very similar to some of the best Verve "groovy experimental" albums from the same period – like some of Cal Tjader's Eastern/Latin work – and it features Herbie playing with a... read more

Herbie Mann's got Latin fever – and it makes for one heck of a great 60s album! The vibe here is more bossa nova than the New York Latin of the time – but that's OK with us, because Mann's flute is perfect in the setting – and really sparkles here on the album's tracks that were... read more

Herbie Mann's going for a bit of a Memphis soul groove on this album – but he handles the work with his own sort of flair, and takes the style in a whole new direction! Unlike other sessions of this nature, Herbie didn't just fly down to Memphis and cook up a standard batch of tracks in the... read more

Herbie makes one more trip back to the Village Gate – site of some of his most successful live recordings of the 60s, and a place where he always feels at home with a Latiny groove! But somehow, this album's even better than before – and has a hard Latin feel throughout, thanks to an... read more

Just Wailin is right – as the album's a real cooker in the classic Prestige mode of the late 50s – and a record that shows lots of early bite from a young Herbie Mann! Mann's in the frontline, working alongside the heavy tenor of Charlie Rouse – and in company like that, it's... read more

Way way more than just a simple "jazz meets Broadway" session – as Shelly's working here with vocals by Jack Sheldon & Irene Kral, and arrangements by soundtrack maestro Johnny Williams – in a style that completely recasts the score! The album's got a really dynamic kind... read more

A never-issued session from a young Terry Manning – later a big force on the Memphis scene, thanks to his work for Stax and Ardent – but here heard in one of his first musical outings ever, a small trio with just his own vocals and guitars, plus drums and percussion! The recording... read more

One of the coolest albums ever from the mighty Keith Mansfield – an arranger best known for his sound library work, but one who steps out beautifully here on a rare commercial album for CBS! The set's way more than just the batch of late 60s pop tunes that you might guess from the Beatles'... read more

If Terry Melcher hadn't given Charles Manson the brush off, this album may well have come out on Columbia in the late 60s, and made Manson the rock and roll star he wanted to be! And while we're as disturbed as everyone else by the history of Charlie's violence, we also have to admit that we're... read more

Beautiful work from pianist Guido Manusardi – a player who's best known for his work on the Italian scene, but who's heard here in a rare gem from Romania! The style of the work is quite similar to some of Guido's Italian work, but there's a nicely balanced feeling too – a sense of... read more