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No need to be a connoisseur to enjoy this set – because the tunes here are all plenty darn groovy – rare soul numbers with an instant appeal to our ears, thanks to their freshness and the quality of the work! The package features rare singles and a bunch of previously unissued tracks from the vaults of the Kent/Modern labels – most recorded at the end of the 60s, in a range of soulful styles! Some numbers have a sweeter feel, but many echo the headier sounds of the times – bringing in some funkier or psychedelic soul influences, even when the themes might be a bit more conventional, or the grooves a bit more mellow. As always with Kent, the package features loads of notes on the music – enough to help even a novice become a connoisseur after a few listenings – and the CD features 24 titles that include "Cut Me Loose" by Gene Taylor, "Beverly" by Billy Watkins, "If I'd Lose You" by Jackie Day, "That Righteous Feeling" by Marvin Phillips & The Spinners, "My Name Is Misery" by Al King, "I've Gotta Get You Back" by Mary Love, "I'm Guilty" by Vernon Garrett, "Can't Count The Days" by Jeb Stuart, "Baby Baby Baby" by Leon Peterson, "The Ta Ta Song" by Little Henry & The Shamrocks, and "It's OK" by Esther Williams.

A dozen of Blue Magic's finest harmony soul numbers: "Sideshow", "Stop To Start", "Spell", "What's Come Over Me", "Three Ring Circus", "Welcome To The Club", "Chasing Rainbows", "Look Me Up", "Summer Snow", "Love Has Found Its Way To Me", "Grateful Part One" and "Grateful Part Two".

A sublime set of soul instrumentals – very funky work, and sort of a 70s follow-up to the Soulful Strings albums on Cadet Records from the 60s! Maestro Richard Evans is at the top of his game here – stepping out with that hip Chisoul mode he first forged at Chess, tuned here towards some even more sophisticated modes for Atlantic Records! Many of Evan's previous players are on board to make the record great – including Lennie Druss on flute, Paul Serrano on trumpet, Odell Brown on organ, and Phil Upchurch on guitar. Evans himself plays bass for the record – using a very funky bottom sound – and the set also features some wicked vibes from the legendary Billy Wooten, working away from his Nineteenth Hole group on a rare major label date! The sound is blacksploitation soundtrack, part Curtom funk – and titles include the great originals "Pie Daddy's Dream", "Wado City", "Angela My Sister", and the great "Patutu" – which was done by the Soulful Strings – plus a few nice covers like "Mercy Mercy Me" and "Ellie's Love Theme", by Isaac Hayes.

Great stuff! We love Deon Jackson – we love his voice, we love his songs, and we love the great production he gets from the legendary Ollie McLaughlin! This set features 12 of Deon's great soul work recorded with Ollie for the Detroit-based Carla label from the 60s – and they're picture-perfect tunes, with vocal phrasing that's right up there with the best male singers of the 60s, and a fresh approach to instrumentation that mixes Motown grooving with uptown soul arrangements. Deon's unique style works extremely well on all the tracks, from the super-hit "Love Makes The World Go Round", to other material like "Come Back Home", "You Said You Love Me", "I Need A Love Like Yours", "Ooh Baby", "Nursery Rhymes", "Love Takes A Long Time Growing" and "Hush Little Baby".

A beautiful late chapter in the jazz journey of Rahsaan Roland Kirk – and an album of subtle genius that's really opened up to us over the years! The setting here isn't as "hit you over the head" as on some of Kirk's Atlantic Records – because at one level, the tunes are mostly straight, and free of gimmicks – yet also still manage to conjure up the warmth, spirit, and soul that Roland brought to his best work. There's a slightly electric vibe running through some of the tunes, thanks to keyboards from Hilton Ruiz – and the album also benefits from organ work by Trudy Pitts and guitar from Billy Butler – both of whom are wonderfully restrained, in a way that matches the subtlety of the entire conception of the set. Titles include "Theme For The Eulipions", which features a great recitation from Betty Neals, plus cool chorus vocals – and other titles include "Goodbye Porkpie Hat", "Giant Steps", "Loving You", and "I'll Be Seeing You".

One of the hippest albums that Rahsaan Roland Kirk ever recorded – a perfect realization of his "black classical music" ethos, and a pan-generational jazz album that's all held together by one unique musical vision! Side one features the extended suite "The Seeker", which mixes together bop, avant garde, and New Orleans styles – and side two features more of the same in an extended medley of tracks, plus the titles "Baby Let Me Shake Your Tree" and "Sweet Fire". The album's got a few cool passages that feature recitations by Rahsaan – stating his musical philosophy, and tracing the development of the styles of work – and other players include Leroy Jenkins on violin, Dick Griffin on trombone, Ron Burton on piano, and Sonelius Smith on celeste!

A classic set from reedman Charles Lloyd – a set that really pushes forward all the experiments he'd begun in the Chico Hamilton group – and shows a bold move forward for rhythms in 60s jazz! The tracks are long, and spiral out wonderfully – but in ways that are different than those used by other creators of the time – like Eric Dolphy or John Coltrane. Even though leading the group on tenor and flute, Lloyd's got a real sense of rhythm to his playing – echoes of the Hamilton group – but set loose with a stellar quartet of younger players – including Keith Jarrett on piano, Cecil McBee on bass, and Jack DeJohnette on drums – all perfect choices for inventive music like this! The standout cut is the amazing "Sombrero Sam", a tight little groover that we never tire of – and one that has Jarrett sounding much more in the pocket than you'd ever imagine – and other tracks include "Dream Weaver", "Autumn Sequence", and "Bird Flight".

A classic batch of modal grooves from Charles Lloyd – recorded during the height of his mind-expanding years, with his famous quartet that included Keith Jarrett on piano and Jack DeJohnette on drums! The tracks are long and magical, done with that spiritual spiraling sound that Lloyd was wowing the hippies with at the time – and considering that this set was recorded live at the Fillmore, there were an awful lot of hippies present to be wowed! But the set's also got a charm that lives long past its time – thanks to an expansive vision from Lloyd on flute and tenor, and from Jarrett on piano too. Titles include "Sunday Morning", "Love-in", "Tribal Dance", and "Temple Bells".

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".

It's plenty easy to make way for Dionne Warwick with an album as great as this – the kind of set that spawned countless imitators in later years, but which still sounds better than most of the rest! Hearing the record is almost like going back to the headwaters of 60s pop – especially the more mature version that started to take hold later in the decade at labels like A&M or Capitol. But here, recording for Scepter, Dionne's already got it all in place – thanks in large part to a young Burt Bacharach, who's set things up here with poise and perfection that match the vocals perfectly! Titles include "Get Rid of Him", "A House Is Not A Home", "They Long To Be Close To You", "You'll Never Get To Heaven", "Walk On By", and "Make The Night A Little Longer".

Two soul classics from Jerry Butler! Moon River is an incredible album of sophisticated soul tunes – one that features Jerry's hit single of "Moon River", the first version of the song to chart after Mancini composed it – plus original tunes "I Found A Love" and "Butterfly", plus great renditions of "Where Do I Turn", "Lost Without You", "No End Or Time", "Couldn't Go To Sleep", and "The Challenge". Delicious Together features Jerry in a very big-selling set of soul duets with Betty Everett – some of the first male/female soul tracks recorded in the 60s, and the beginning of a sub-genre that would go on to become very popular. Titles include "Let It Be Me", "I Can't Stand It", "Fever", "Just Be True", "It's All Right", "Ain't That Loving You Baby", "The Way You Do The Things You Do", and "Our Day Will Come".

For some odd reason, the Collectables label chose to release albums by two different artists on one CD. We should be mad at them for that, but we can't get that angry, since we're extremely happy to have this Jimmy Giuffre album back in print again! Travelin' Light is one of Giuffre's best albums of all time, and the record is a perfect realization of his piano-less/bass-less trio style. The group is simply Bob Brookmeyer on trombone, Jim Hall on guitar, and Giuffre on reeds – and the sound is amazing! Notes hang in mid-air, slowly sliding around one another, flying freely from the players, yet still managing to swing in a beautiful way. The titles are a mix of standards and originals – but all tracks sound completely unique, with a sound unlike anything else we can describe. Cuts include "Swamp People", "Lonely Time", "Green Country", and "Travelin Light". The Mabel Mercer album? Consider it a bonus!

Definite pop disco material from Dan Hartman – the kind of work that showed that the underground sound of the clubs was now firmly lodged in the mainstream! The tracks are long and the grooves are upbeat – definitely disco, even if the soulful aspect isn't as deep as it might be in some of Dan's contemporaries. Fortunately, Hartman has a nice way with a hook – and has come up with some pretty good ones for the set. And also fortunately, Gene Page handles all arrangements here – giving the album a bit more depth than you might expect – a fact that's echoed by Tom Moulton's mix for the whole set as well. Titles include "Instant Replay", "Countdown/This Is It", "Double O Love", "Chocolate Box", and "Love Is A Natural".

Some of the greatest spiritual jazz of the late 60s – and 2 of Rahsaan Roland Kirk's best Atlantic albums back to back on one CD! The Inflated Tear is a landmark album from Roland – one of his key 60s sides for Atlantic records, and an amazing blend of soul jazz, hardbop, and freer thinking styles! Roland's playing an insane assortment of horns on the set – often at the same time, if you know his 3-way style of blowing – and instruments used for the recording include Manzello, stritch, flute, whistle, English horn, and flexatone – in addition to standard tenor and clarinet. Other players in the group include Ron Burton on piano, Steve Novosel on bass, and Jimmy Hopps on drums – and the album's got some incredible original compositions that include "Many Blessings", "Handful Of Fives", "Lovellevellioqui", "Laugh for Rory", "Black and Crazy Blues", and "The Inflated Tear". Natural Black Inventions is even more amazing – a session that features solo work by Kirk – incredible soundscapes of tone, color, soul, and energy – all recorded without the use of overdubs or studio tricks, but in a style that will have you stopping the record, and saying "how the heck does he do that?" As was well known at the time, Kirk could blow more than one saxophone at the same time – which he does on the session – unaided by bass, piano, or drums – working the saxophones at the same time with a sound that must be heard to be believed! The record has these fantastic throbbing pulsating reed lines, with one horn blowing rhythm, and one playing an adventurous solo – and both being blown live a the same time! Tracks include "Black Root", "Raped Voices", "Day Dream", and "Something For Trane That Trane Could Have Said".

One of David Newman's grooviest albums of the 60s – a stripped-down set that features a quartet with Hammond and guitar – all in a vibe that's a bit more relaxed than some of Newman's other sessions for Atlantic! There's a gritty edge to the record – with organ by the obscure Kossie Gardner, and a young Ted (listed as "Tod") Dunbar on guitar – in a combo that also features Milt Turner on drums. This less "iconic" presentation seems to open up a new side of Newman's tenor (as well as flute) – a nd titles include a great version of Cedar Walton's "The Holy Land", plus the Newman originals "Little Sister", "Blue New", "Miss Minnie", and "House Of David".

2 albums in the kind of "between the hits" years for The Spinners – one featuring lead vocalist Phillipe Wynne, the other featuring new arrival John Edwards. The sound here isn't as right-on or soaringly confident as in earlier years – but there are some nice moments that make the 2-in-1 CD a good way to sample these albums. There's a total of 17 tracks in all, many written by producer Thom Bell – and titles include "You're All I Need In Life", "Tony My Love", "The Clown", "The Rubberband Man", "If You Can't Be In Love", "Easy Come Easy Go", "Heaven On Earth", "Painted Magic", and "I'm Gonna Getcha".

Beautifully smooth soul from Robert Winters & Fall – a great mix of 80s groove and modern mellow – handled with lots of warm touches that make Winters' vocals come off wonderfully! The feel here is a bit like some of the smoother sets from DJ Rogers – as Winters' voice has a deeply soulful quality, but is also set up in some tighter arrangements that seem to take it even farther – augmented by some nice jazzy work on keyboards from time to time, and set up in larger backings from Gene Page. Titles include "Face The Magic", "Touched By You", "Magic Man", "Watchin' You", and "How Can Love Be Wrong".

Rumbing fuzzy guitar genius from the legendary Link Wray – his debut LP from the dawn of the 60s! Link Wray & The Wraymen is a batch of tunes Wray recorded that sound a good decade ahead of their time – and they were – with that buzzing, teen noirish vibe that influenced the garage rockers and punks to come. Titles include "Caroline", "Slinky", "Right Turn", "Rendezvous", "Dixie-Doodle", "Ramble" (not to be confused the "Rumble"), "Hand Clapper", "Lillian", "Radar", "Comanche" and "Studio Blues".

2 very groovy records by Mose Allison – both recorded during the early 70s, when he was hipping up his bag a bit! Western Man is a really amazing record – with some good funky tracks! The real key here is the fact that Mose plays electric piano and is working in a hip trio with Billy Cobham playing some funky and soulful drums! We don't know what kind of piano Mose is using, but on the tracks where he's playing the electric, it's got a jagged and raw kind of sound, almost recalling the one used on the Atlantic albums by Eugene McDaniels. Includes the great funky track "If You Only Knew", which has a real McDaniels kind of feel – plus the cuts "Western Man", "Mountains", "Ask Me Nice", "Night Club", and "Meadows". Mose In Your Ear is a live set – one that's a bit more back-to-basics than the first, but still grooving with a unique blend of New Orleans soul and Northern jazz influences, his own particular brand of music, timeless from the day it was born! The setting here is a live one, and Mose is playing with a trio that includes Clyde Flowers on bass and Eddie Charlton on drums. The album features a number of strong originals – including "Look What You Made Me Do", "Powerhouse", "I Don't Worry About A Thing", and "Don't Forget To Smile" – plus versions of "The Seventh Son" and "Fool's Paradise".

An odd little album from tenorist Clifford Jordan – but a great one too, given the unique format! As the title implies, Cliff pays tribute to Leadbelly – handling a host of Huddie Ledbetter originals, but in a style that's kind of 60s soul jazz, with a bit of blues as well – one of those unusual criss-crossings of styles that you'd get on some of the Atlantic jazz sessions of the 60s. Jordan's tenor is firmly in the lead on all numbers – and other players include Roy Burrowes on trumpet, Cedar Walton on piano, Julian Priester on trombone, and Chuck Wayne on banjo instead of his usual guitar! Two tracks feature vocals by Sandra Douglass – and titles include "Dick's Holler", "Silver City Bound", "Black Girl", "De Gray Goose", "Yellow Gal", and "Black Betty".

2 of Brother Jack's best albums for Atlantic on one CD! Both records have a groovy 60's soul jazz organ sound, and the kind of amazing arrangements that make Jack's albums way better than most of his contemporaries. Change Is Gonna Come has lots of short soulful instrumentals, Joe Dukes or Pretty Purdie on drums, and titles like "Down In The Valley", "Same Old, Same Old", "No Tears", "Minha Saudade", and "Hotcha". Double Barrelled Soul has David Fathead Newman as a special guest, and features some nice early guitar playing by Melvin Sparks. That one includes a great version of "Sunny", plus the cuts "Esperanto", "Duffin' Round", and "More Head". Nice stuff, and over 70 minutes of funky organ grooves!

A great little meeting of Latin and jazz players – an oft-overlooked album in Puente's catalog of the time! The album features Woody leading a small group of jazz players – including Al Cohn, Paul Quinichette, Billy Byers, and Nick Travis – with extra timbales by Puente and congas by Ray Barretto – and the overall approach is light but tight, with more of a straight jazz component than you'd find on most of Tito's records from the time, but also a wonderfully driven groove that still keeps the rhythms mostly on the Latin end of things! Titles include "Cha Cha Chick", "Tito Meets Woody", "New Cha Cha", "Latin Flight", "Mambo Bambo", "Mambo Herd", and "Fire Island".

A super-long batch of messed-up funky jazz from Eddie Harris! The record's got Eddie working all aspects of the electric sax – in a similar style to some of his other work on the best Atlantic albums of the 70s (like Instant Death of Plug It In) – and the group features a shifting cast of hip players that even includes Muhal Richard Abrams on electric piano! Eddie's nice and tripped out here – yet still undeniably funky – and the record is proof that the move to Atlantic let him really open up his concept. Titles include "Renovated Rhythm", "Turbulence", "Recess", "Drunk Man", "Listen Here Goes Funky", "Hey Wado", and "Fragmentary Apparitions".

2 hip ones from Eddie's groundbreaking early 70s years! After already proving himself as a soul jazz giant during the 60s, Eddie's work of the early 70s pushed all the envelopes – taking funky jazz to a whole new level with a number of interesting experiments and techniques. You'll hear some of these in the Live At Newport set – a 1970 performance at the Newport Jazz Festival, one in which Eddie's got a hip Chicago group that includes Jodie Christian on electric piano, Louis Spears on bass, and Bob Crowder on drums. Tracks are long, with a mix of funk and soul – and titles include "Don't You Know The Future's In Space", "Carry On Brother", "Walk Soft", and "Silent Majority", which has guest vocals by Eugene McDaniels! Instant Death is even better, and features a lot of funky Varitone material from Eddie – plus some African percussion, avant-funk leanings, and lots of tasty grooves! Includes the title cut "Instant Death, a real triple-time groover – plus "Zambezi Dance", "Superfluous", and "Tampion". Muhal Richard Abrams plays piano and kalimba, and the whole thing's a great link between two schools of Chicago jazz – avant and funky!

A warm set of soulful 60s numbers from Eddie Harris – almost a ballad album at times, but with a groovier feel overall! The album features a great group that has Harris on acoustic tenor or Varitone sax – warmed up by the piano of Cedar Walton, bass of Ron Carter, and drums of Bobby Thomas. Walton's presence here is especially strong – a nice pairing with Eddie, given the inherently lyrical lines in both players. Titles are familiar, but come off with a very personal vibe – and tunes include "My Funny Valentine", "If Ever I Would Leave You", "The Tender Storm", and "On A Clear Day". Great stuff – with a very solid vibe!

Mega-hit material from KC & The Sunshine band – an album issued firmly into the disco years, but which still had the group hitting hard in their trademark Miami sound! The tracks here are a bit longer and more hook-heavy than before – and represent the kind of material that linked harder Kool & The Gang-styled funk with some of the crossover sounds that Miami was famous for at the time – a sound that was still largely pre-disco in its roots, but which also helped set the crossover scene for so many other groups of the 70s. The set is filled with loads of huge hits – like "Shake Your Booty", "I'm Your Boogie Man", and "Baby I Love You" – and other tracks include "I Like To Do It", "Come On In", and "Let's Go Party".

A sweet set of 70s Latin Disco – less Afro-Cuban than you might expect, but a great illustration of the way that older Latin modes had filtered down to more mainstream dancefloors at the time! There's definitely still some Latin elements in the mix – but the set's also got Michael Zager arranging and producing, and giving the whole thing more of a disco focus overall – in ways that criss cross nicely throughout the record. Titles include a sweet clubby cover of Joe Cuba's "Bang Bang", a remake of Sly Stone's "Life & Death In G&A", and the titles "Black Skin Blue Eyed Boys", "Once You Get Started", and "Get Dancin".

2 albums on one CD – and some great early work by Lou Rawls! No, the albums don't have funky David Axelrod arrangements – but they do feature Lou with some great jazzy backing by Benny Carter – who really knows how to put the right degree of punch in the arrangements to bring out the best in Lou's voice. Together, the albums rank as some of Lou's best pre-Axelrod albums for Capitol – filled with strong renditions of standards and familiar tunes. Titles include "Nobody But Me", "If I Had My Life To Live Over", "Power Of Love", "It's Monday Every Day", "My Buddy", "Three O'Clock In The Morning", "Charmaine", "Cold Cold Heart", "Margie", and "Two Tickets West".

Fab pop harmony soul! The Friends Of Distinction were LA counterparts of the 5th Dimension – and at one time, members of both groups had worked under the name of Rex Middleton's Hi Fi's. Unlike the 5th Dimension, who were a bit more pop, the Friends Of Distinction stayed more in the soul vein – using the sweet harmony style they'd crafted earlier to work through some jazzy changes that brought a whole new sound to the male/female soul group mode. This 12 track set features some of their best gems, including the super-huge vocal version of Hugh Masekela's "Grazing In The Grass", and other great ones like "This Generation", "I Really Hope You Do", "Check It Out", "Honey Baby Theme". "Going In Circles", "Time Waits For No One", "Love Shack", "Let Yourself Go", and "I Need You".

Early early early work by The Isley Brothers – an album built around their huge rock and roll hit "Shout" – one of those numbers you've heard a million times, in a million versions, and which you've probably forgotten came from the first trio of Isleys way back before they turned into one of the biggest funky soul acts of the 70s! "Shout" is offered here in 2 parts, and other tracks include "Ring A Ling A Ling", "Without A Song", "That Lucky Old Sun", and "Yes Indeed".

Nice Baby Washington package, and waaay better than the cheap CD put out in the U.S. by the Collectables label. 28 tracks in all, and loads of her great singles recorded for the Sue label in the 60's. Includes, of course, "That's How Heartaches Are Made", one of those beautiful ones that still surprises us even though we've heard it a million times. Also with "There He Is", "Your Fool", "No Tears", "You Are What You Are", and lots more.