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Seminal work by one of our favorite soul singers of all time! Jerry first came to fame with The Impressions and on his own in the early 60s – singing dark moody easy tunes that well earned him the nickname of "Iceman". In the late 60s, though, he moved onto Mercury where he broke through even bigger with some excellent early production by Gamble & Huff, which took Jerry to a whole new level, and which gave his work a swinging soul groove that worked great with his vocals. This set compiles some of the best moments of the Mercury years – including "Never Give You Up", "Lost", "Moody Woman", "Mr Dream Merchant", "Hey Western Union Man", and "Only The Strong Survive".

Mid 60s surf grooves from Jerry Cole – blazing guitar-led instrumentals, though this is not a simple, quickie cash-in on the surf trend – it's a actually a top notch taste of expert LA studio genius! Cole is a brilliant guitarist, and the Spaceman he assembled for the Surf Age record features the crème of the crop of LA studio geniuses from the period – including Hal Blaine, Earl Palmer, Steve Douglas and others. The mix of searing guitars with a raw rhythms with virtuoso musicianship really puts this record above and beyond most others! Includes "Surf Age", "Martian Surf", "Night Rumble", "Night Rumble", "Power Surf", "Bronze Surfer", "Jerry's Jump", "Deep Surf", "Racing Waves", "One Color Blues", "Ride-Um!" and more. CD includes 6 bonus tracks, too: "Boss Dance", "Super Charged", Drag Shot", "Wild Willys", "The Screamer" and more!

A pair of great albums – brought together in one super-heavy package! First up is the legendary East Of Underground record – an uber-obscure LP recorded in 1971 by a group of US Army serviceman at the Armed Forces Network studios in Frankfurt, Germany – originally used as a recruiting tool during the Vietnam war! Given the strength of the set, we wouldn't be surprised if plenty of folks signed up for a tour of duty after hearing it – as the set cooks like some of the best American funk from the indie 45 world at the time. The production is nice and dark – with an echoey quality that makes us guess the album was a live recording – done by American servicemen with the feel of some backroom funk show from the Indy or Ohio scene of the 70s. Some of the tracks are familiar numbers from American hits – but redone here with a nicely gritty feel – and titles include the awesome medley "Bet'Ya Never Lose My Love California Dreamer" – plus "Higher", "Smiling Faces", "Hell Below", "Getting Over", "Popcorn/Santana", "I Love You", "Java Girl", and "Walk On By". The set also includes the Soap album – a very similar record with a mix of rock and soul, done with the same sort of US Army-endorsed approach – and some great raw production that really makes the album sparkle! Many tunes are covers, but they're played here with a gritty live energy – so that even the rock tunes feel a bit funky at times – given a really odd edge. Titles include weird versions of "Uncle Albert", "Ticket To Ride", "Southern Man", "I Just Want To Celebrate", "Get Together", and "Walk Away".

Instrumental hip hop tracks from Frankie Feliciano, taking a break from his work as a house producer.

One of the trippiest albums ever recorded by British pianist Michael Garrick – a set done with his Garrick's Fairground group – at a level that's almost a wilder abstraction of some of the other work he'd done at the end of the 60s! The album's an extended suite of shorter tracks – linked together thematically, and by the use of vocals from Norma Winstone, Betty Mulcahy, and others, plus a larger chorus – and with some even more compelling instrumental passages as well! The whole work almost feels like one of Mike Westbrook's more high-concept albums – especially given the use of vocals – and Garrick's own work on organ is augmented by Art Themen on saxes and flute, Henry Lowther on trumpet, Don Rendell on tenor and clarinet, Coleridge Goode on bass, and Trever Tomkins on percussion. Titles include "Blues", "Who Can Endure", "For We Are Lost", "I Have Torn Up", "Invocation", "The Waters Of Love", "To The Celebration", "What Is This Clamour", "I Will Speak I Will Say", and "Organ Improvisation. CD also features "Epiphany" and "Blessed Are The Peacemakers" – two smaller group tracks originally issued as a single, both with vocals by Norma Winstone, and both quite beautiful!

A windy city hero – the amazing Garland Green, a singer who makes us mighty proud we hail from Chicago! Garland's got an incredible style that few others can touch – partly schooled in the 60s iceman modes of Jerry Butler and Walter Jackson, with all the sophistication that might imply – but also often given a raspier twist, with slightly southern echoes that make Garland's music feel even more deeply personal! And while most folks know Green's big hits for the Uni label, this package shows a rich legacy that goes much father than that – work recorded for labels that include Cotillion, Spring, RCA, Ocean Front, and Revue – in addition to some key Uni tracks. This trans-label set really does a wonderful job of showing the full range of Garland's mighty talents – a sublime set of soul cuts that run from the start of the 70s right up to the early 80s modern years – packaged with detailed notes too. Titles include "Since You've Been Gone", "These Arms", "Just Loving You", "Just My Way Of Loving You", "He Didn't Know", "Don't Think That I'm A Violent Guy", "Love's Calling", "Just What The Doctor Ordered", "Sweet Loving Woman", "Ask Me What You Want", "You Played On A Player", "Don't Let Love Walk Out On Us", and "Sending My Best Wishes".

Like the back of the cover says "WARNING: The bass in this LP is contaminated by radioactive material!!"! Insanely hyped electro beats meet ridiculously radioactive low end tones with the best tracks being the instrumentals featuring some vocoded vocal bits, which is about half the record. Titles include "Da Intro", "Let it Flow", 'Freak Out", "Stay Awake", "Rollin With Da Boom", "Planet Bass", "Klickinda Bass" and "Bionic Bass".

Music from the film by Harmony Korine.

Sublime stuff from Chuck – a mix of iceman soul and New York uptown production, crafted in a heartbreaking mode that was hardly ever matched by other singers of his day! This is a perfect one to bookshelf next to your Jerry Butler and Walter Jackson albums – and it includes Chuck's spooky hit "Tell Him I'm Not Home", plus "Lonely Am I", "Blue Holiday", "Getting Ready for the Heartbreak", and loads of other stuff that makes you sigh with heartache!

A crowning moment of the Chicago soul scene of the 60s! Nobody was better than Walter Jackson at Iceman soul – and no cut of his carried this off better than the sublime "It's All Over" – one of those incredible tunes that we never tire of hearing!

A tremendous second step for Chicago soul legend Walter Jackson – packaged here with a huge amount of bonus tracks as well! The core album is a sublime mix of new tunes and re-imagined standards – and a set that takes Walter Jackson into even more sophisticated soul territory than before! The record is proof that the up and coming soul artists of the 60s had a key place alongside the more established mainstream acts on the other side of the fence – as Walter's working here with arranger Riley Hampton to re-cast a number of familiar tunes in his cool Iceman soul mode – changing the themes, rhythms, and inflections of the tracks for a more contemporary soul market – and also interspersing them with a few great new songs of his own! The approach is amazing – far better than even Jerry Butler or Chuck Jackson's work in a similar idiom – and the album features the sublime hit "Welcome Home", plus the Van McCoy tunes "Suddenly I'm All Alone", "Still At The Mercy Of Your Love", and "The Magic's Gone" – alongside versions of "Moon River", "Let It Be Me", "Imagination", and "My Funny Valentine". Added to the original album are 7 more rare tracks pulled from singles – some of the true gems in Jackson's 60s career for Okeh – with titles that include "Deep In The Heart Of Harlem", "Cold Cold Winter", "That's When I Come To You", "Special Love", "One Heart Lonely", "I Think It's Going To Rain Today", and "The Folks Who Live On The Hill".

Unbelievably beautiful work – and possibly the greatest album ever from the mighty Walter Jackson! Jackson was one of the best singers to come out of the Chicago soul scene of the 60s, and his Okeh recordings are a perfect example of the city's sophisticated approach to Iceman soul – as perfected by Walter, Jerry Butler, and (later) Garland Green. The arrangements are by Riley Hampton, and they have a cold fragile beauty that lingers somewhere between a Scott Walker album and Riley's earlier work with Lorez Alexandria – and the no-filler selection of songs is one of Jackson's best ever– a range of work that really show his deep talents, and his maturing approach to a tune – proud, powerful, and a new level of adult sophistication in soul. Titles include the amazing title cut "Speak Her Name" – plus "Corner In The Sun", "My One Chance To Make It", "It's An Uphill Climb To The Bottom", and "Not You". This expanded CD makes the original album ever better – and adds in a full batch of 10 bonus tracks – some of which are unissued, others of which are rare singles from Jackson's later Okeh years, plus rare Epic sides. Bonus titles include "No Butterflies", "Ad Lib", "The Look Of Love", "The Bed", "Forget The Girl", "My Ship Is Coming In", "Road To Ruin", and "Just One Smile".

A masterpiece of Turkish psychedelia – and quite possibly the greatest album ever from Turkish psychedelic maestro Erkin Koray – a mad blend of sounds that definitely lives up to its "elektronik" title! Most numbers feature a weird blend of electric guitar and baglama – used in a style that's similar to Koray's earlier Arabesk recordings, but in ways that are often more tripped out and free-thinking – almost in a groove that's similar to late 60s blends of Eastern influences and progressive rock in the US and Europe – but even wilder and weirder throughout! There's a bit of vocals on the set, but the instrumentation dominates – and titles include "Sir", "Karli Daglar", "Cemalim", "Inat", "Hele Yar", "Turku", and "Korkulu Ruya".

Trippy Turkish rock from Erkin Koray – rarities and singles recorded in Istanbul, and every bit as brilliant as the work on his famous self-titled albums! The music is awash in a blend of buzzing, hypnotic folk sounds of Turkey – mixed with western and otherwise globally resonant psychedelia – a wicked blend that's right up there with the best Anatolian grooves of the time! It's wild stuff, but done with passionate vocals and tuneful melodism that's pretty amazing – English and American rockers who brought Middle Eastern errata into pop music made millions and became superstars for it, but we really must say, that creative reach works even more brilliantly in reverse! Includes "Mechul", "Kendim Ettim Kendim Buldom,", "Gun Dogmuyor", "Goca Dunya", "Kraller", "Cumbur Cemaat", "Hadi Hadi Ordan", "Dusunus", "Olmayinca Olmuyor" and "Sevdigim".

A great batch of harmony vocal tracks – nearly all of them with an upbeat, kind of silly approach – similar to The Coasters at their best! The Olympics owed a lot to the late 50s Atco recordings The Coasters did with Lieber & Stoller – and they had a similar tight-lipped approach, with lots of vocal tricks, and a set of song themes that runs through the dregs of pop culture of the time – titles like "The Slop", "Little Pedro", and "Private Eye". Other tracks include "Baby Hully Gully (parts 1 & 2)", "Dance By The Light Of The Moon", and "Big Boy Pete". The Marathons were actually The Vibrations – recording under another name, to showcase their more novelty type numbers – again like The Coasters, and also a bit like The Cadillacs. Titles by them include "Oink Jones", "Chicken Spaceman", "Tight Sweater", "Peanut Butter", and "Talkin Trash".

Al's an obscure singer – but one with an excellent voice, very much in the "iceman" tradition of Garland Green or Jerry Butler. It's no surprise that he sings Butler's classic "I Stand Accused" on this one, done in a version that's more updated and a bit nicer than the original. "Yes, My Goodness" is a great one, too – and the credits make it appear to be written by Butler and Bobby Womack!

Amazing 70s work from Moacir Santos – the first album the Brazilian arranger recorded for Blue Note, and a set that sparkles with warmth and soul from the very first note! The approach is a brilliant updating of the famous sound that Santos crafted in Brazil the decade before – recast here with some warmer elements that includes great organ from Clare Fischer, electric piano from Bill Henderson, trombone from Frank Rosolino, and flute and tenor from Don Menza! Santos sings on a number of tracks, but in this cool angular way that's often right in line with the instrumentation – almost submerged a bit in the mix, as an element that gives the record a strong degree of warmth. The album's unlike any other we can think of – even a bit different than Santos' two other albums for Blue Note – and has a wonderful fusion of influences that never fails to delight our ears over the years! Titles include his version of "Nana", which was performed often by others – plus "Luanne", "Bluishmen", "Kermis", "Mother Iracema", and "Astral Whine".

The fuzzed out drone rock of Spaceman 3 – live in Amsterdam in the summer of '88! Where the group's best studio recordings blended weary, but catchy melodies and some more delicate songs with the heady distorted guitar sound. The live set, if this and the other recordings we've heard are representative, focuses a bit more on the latter, and it sounds pretty fresh and invigorating all these years later. Includes "Mary Anne", "Come Together", "Things'll Never Be The Same", "Take Me To The Other Side", "Rollercoaster". "Starship" and "Walking With Jesus".

We love Frank Strozier – and think he's one of the greatest talents in jazz – period! This long-overdue CD brings together two of Frank's early 60s sessions for the Jazzland label – both of them gems that have lain under-discovered for years. Long Night is an excellent example of the maturity and modernism that was coming out of the Chicago jazz scene as it hit the early 60s – and it features Strozier's soulful alto in the company of some of the city's best players, like pianist Chris Anderson, drummer Walter Perkins, bassist Bill Lee, and baritonist Pat Patrick, playing here away from Sun Ra's group! The title track alone is an incredibly fantastic composition, full of moodiness and incredible reed work – but the rest of the record's great, too, and features excellent originals like "The Need For Love", "The Crystal Ball", and "Pacemaker". March Of The Siamese Children continues the trend – with a sound that goes far beyond the hardbop and soul jazz in which Strozier first cut his teeth – into a mode that's angular and exploratory, yet also still warmly expressive – filled with a richness of sound that holds up fantastically year after year. Titles include "March Of The Siamese Children", "Our Waltz", "Hey Lee", "Lap", "Extension", and "Something I Dreamed Last Night".

Joe Turner rides again – but in a style that's a bit more like his Kansas City roots than some of the R&B he was cutting for Atlantic Records in the 50s! There's a nice jazz vibe to the record – thanks to sharp arrangements from Ernie Wilkins, who's really coming into his own here – and knows how to serve up just the right blend of modern jazz and swinging soul to make the tunes work! The ensemble is filled with jazz heavyweights too – including Seldon Powell, Coleman Hawkins, Pete Brown, and Jerome Richardson on reeds – plus Ernie Royal on trumpet. But Joe's vocals definitely take center stage – infused with all the heavy power he'd assumed during this seminal comeback decade – still bluesy, but with a lot more punch than before. Titles include "Switchin In The Kitchen", "I Get The Blues When It Rains", "Nobody In Mind", "Don't You Make Me High", and "Here Comes Your Iceman".

Go Go galore – a massive compilation of Chocolate City grooves – some of the best funky numbers from the DC scene of the 80s – a unique strech when the nation's capital was cooking up some mighty heavy grooves! Although recorded in the 80s, these tracks really preserve a 70s sort of funky sound – and in a way, the Go Go scene was kind of a refuge for all the great live funk energy of the 70s – especially the larger ensemble groups, like those in the P-Funk universe! Tracks are nice and long, filled with great rhythms, and lots of nice live instrumentation – and some great call-response vocals that are a bit like old school hip hop too. Titles include "Welcome To The Go Go" by Class Band, "Feel It" by The Mighty Peacemakers, "Somebody's Ringing That Doorbell" by EU, "You Can Dance" by Davis Pinckney Project, "Virginia Gone Go Go" by Code Red, "Skunk Funk Go Go" by Dr Skunk Funk, "Who Comes To Boogie" by Little Benny & The Masters, and "DC Groove" by Static Disruptors. 24 tracks in all – way more than any other set of this nature we've seen!

Psych funk and disco edits by Baris K – of Turkish cuts by Erkin Koray and Derdiyoklar! Thie 7-inches releases follow and feature material from the unexpectedly excellent and now out of print 12" EP series. Vol 1 includes "Cemalim" by Erkin Koray and "Yaz Gazeteci" by Derdiyoklar.

Triumphant indie from the heart of the 80s – the well titled Perfect Prescription from Spaceman 3 – balancing feedback guitar squals and hazy melodies, heady bursts of noise with delicate, sweeter songs! The group again pays homage to the sonic psyche experimentalists of yore on a few numbers, and carve their own niche even better here, and the differing sensibilities of Jason and Sonic Boom providing tonal counterbalances that never better suited each other than on this album. Includes "Take Me To The Other Side", "Walkin With Jesus", "Ode To Street Hassle", "Ecstasy Symphony", "Transparent Radiation (Flashback)", "Feels So Good", "Things'll Never Be The Same", "Come Down Easy" and "Call The Doctor".

A masterpiece of Turkish psychedelia – and quite possibly the greatest album ever from Turkish psychedelic maestro Erkin Koray – a mad blend of sounds that definitely lives up to its "elektronik" title! Most numbers feature a weird blend of electric guitar and baglama – used in a style that's similar to Koray's earlier Arabesk recordings, but in ways that are often more tripped out and free-thinking – almost in a groove that's similar to late 60s blends of Eastern influences and progressive rock in the US and Europe – but even wilder and weirder throughout! There's a bit of vocals on the set, but the instrumentation dominates – and titles include "Sir", "Karli Daglar", "Cemalim", "Inat", "Hele Yar", "Turku", and "Korkulu Ruya".

27 tunes pulled from Jerry's years at Vee Jay Records – including some hits and lesser known numbers, all done in his fantastic Iceman style. Titles include "Thanks To You", "Find Another Girl", "Make It Easy On Yourself", "Need To Belong", "Just For You", "Give It Up", "Give Me Your Love", "I've Been Trying", "It's Too Late", "You Can Run", "I'm The One", "Good Times", "I Stand Accused", "For Your Precious Love", "Believe In Me", and "Moon River".

Early string band styled numbers and timeless rural folk-blues music from the Carolina Chocolate Drops – brilliant stuff that's appropriately titled Heritage. It reflectsnow acclaimed trios own heritage – as well as that of all American music going back to the early 20th century. Live tracks and studio material that shows the group's depth of understand of lots of styles of old school rural American music. Includes "Another Man Done Gone", "Wayward Gal", "Black Eye Blues", "Georgie Buck", "Jack O' Diamonds", "Poor Lazarus", "Rickett's Hornpipe", "Bye-Bye Policeman", "Banjo Dreams/Jalidong", "Gambia" and more.

A masterpiece of Turkish psychedelia – and quite possibly the greatest album ever from Turkish psychedelic maestro Erkin Koray – a mad blend of sounds that definitely lives up to its "elektronik" title! Most numbers feature a weird blend of electric guitar and baglama – used in a style that's similar to Koray's earlier Arabesk recordings, but in ways that are often more tripped out and free-thinking – almost in a groove that's similar to late 60s blends of Eastern influences and progressive rock in the US and Europe – but even wilder and weirder throughout! There's a bit of vocals on the set, but the instrumentation dominates – and titles include "Sir", "Karli Daglar", "Cemalim", "Inat", "Hele Yar", "Turku", and "Korkulu Ruya".

Turkish psych, funk, and disco – plus cross-pollinated grooves created from all of the above! If you don't know the Turkish scene of the 70s, there's plenty here to love – a really wicked combination of Western modes and local elements – styles that echo out in some of the classic arabesk rock of the scene, as well as some more unusual modes that are a great addition here. The full length set follows up on previous 12" singles from Nublu – but offers all original material from back in the day, with no edits or remixes at all – just killer classics that show why the Turkish scene of the time is well worth digging up! Titles include "Cemalim" by Erkin Koray, "Yaz Gazeteci" by Derdiyoklar, "Nem Alacak Felek Benim" by Cem Karaca, "Ikimiz Bir Fidaniz" by Kamuran Akkor, "Hal Hal" by Nazan Soray, "Derman Bulunmaz" by Ersen & Dadaslar, "Teselliye Sen Gerek" by Nazay Soray, and "Binboganin Kizi" by Baris Manco & Mogollar.