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One of the all-time great ones by Cannonball! This record captures him in the prime of his early soul jazz fame – working with an unbelievably heavy quintet that featured Bobby Timmons on piano (with Barry Harris sitting in on a few tracks), Sam Jones on bass, Louis Hayes on drums, and brother Nat Adderley on cornet. The quintet forged a sound that made them an immediate hit – and which had their tight, jagged, soul-drenched sound getting copied by everyone. The record features some amazing soul jazz standards – like Nat's original version of "Work Song", the first-ever record of Timmons' amazing "Dat Dere", Cannon's slinky "Them Dirty Blues", and the jaunty groover "Jeannine", a wonderful cut by Duke Pearson that never sounded better! The CD features alternates of "Work Song" and "Dat Dere" – for a total of 9 tracks in all!

The only album ever from Allspice – but a hell of an incredible soul record – and one that's kept the group's name strong with collectors and rare groove fanatics for years! The album's on of the best Fantasy Records productions by Wayne Henderson and his At Home team – and like some of the others, is handled with a groove that's tight, yet plenty sophisticated too – light years from mainstream disco or common club of the late 70s, and instead informed by plenty of jazz and deeper ideas as well! The vibe is perfect – as heavenly and righteous as some of the best Roy Ayers club tracks of the time – which proves to be a perfect foil for the Allspice style of mixing male and female vocals – which again is often done in an Ayers-like mode. The sound is sublime throughout – one of those real treasures that should have been a huge record in the 70s, but was barely pressed up at all – and quickly forgotten about by the record company. Yet even after all these years, the whole thing sounds amazing – one of those albums we'd never part with at all! Titles include the groovy "Slipped Away", the funky stepper "Hungry For Your Love" – and loads of other great tunes that include "Love Fire", "Destiny", "She's A Lady", "I Don't Know", and "Give It Time".

A massive amount of early work by The Animals – brought together in one overstuffed package with some unreleased tracks as well! The group here have a great rough sound – much more bluesy than in later years, which turns out to be a perfect setting for the young Eric Burdon – whose vocals soar out wonderfully over a mix of original tunes and remakes of American classics by folks like Ray Charles, John Lee Hooker, Sam Cooke, Bo Diddley, and others! Producer Mickie Most really knows how to keep the right sort of edge on the tunes – lots of raw power in the instrumentation, especially the Hammond and guitar – and a stark, dark quality to Eric's vocals that went onto become the stuff of legend. Package features 40 tracks in all – with titles that include "I Believe To My Soul", "Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood", "Club A Go Go", "For Miss Caulker", "Feel", "Boom Boom", "Don't Want Much", "It's My Life", "House Of The Rising Sun", "We've Gotta Get Out Of This Place", and "I'm Gonna Change The World".

One of Roy Ayers' greatest albums of the 70s – a set that tightens up the groove from previous Polydor productions, yet still keeps all the soul intact! The record picks up the style begun with the Mystic Voyage album, and pushes it to some slightly tighter territory – a more focused Roy Ayers sound that's totally great, and which makes the album sparkle wonderfully throughout! All aspects of Roy's talents are perfectly balanced here – his warm vocals and jazzy vibes, his uptempo grooves and mellower rhythms – played to perfection by a hip lineup of players that includes Philip Woo on electric piano, Justo Almario on tenor sax, and Steve Cobb on drums. Edwin Birdsong guests a bit on the record – bringing in a nice edge to a few tunes – the album's got a really unique dark undercurrent, even in smoother moments – that subtle Roy Ayers' approach that's always made him one of our all-time favorite artists. Titles include the wonderful jazz-tinged "Searching", a great midtempo stepper that we really love; the funky break track "The Memory", a righteous number that feels like work from earlier records; the clubby classic "One Sweet Love to Remember"; and the sweet instrumental "Vibrations", which has a mellow kickback feel! Other tunes include "Higher", "Domelo (Give It To Me)", "Baby I Need Your Love", and "Better Days".

The best album so far from this up-and-coming Colombian group – a great mix of rootsy elements and more electronic production – served up in the forward-reaching style we've come to love in recent projects from the Soundway label! Bomba Estereo are easily one of the most contemporary groups to hit the imprint of late – and they've got no trouble at all moving between upbeat, soulful styles and more earthy levels of instrumentation – all fused together with the kind of warmth and joy we might expect in some of the older productions from Luaka Bop, but with a bit more edge too. Titles include "Bosque", "Bailar Conmigo", "Pa Respirar", "Mozo", "Pajaros", "Pure Love", and "Caribbean Power".

One of the best debuts in the history of hip hop – and one of the most important albums the genre ever produced! Criminal Minded is landmark for a number of reasons. Among the biggest is, of course, that it was recorded with the late great DJ Scott La Rock – and he was soon to fall prey to the very street violence that BDP documented with such raw brilliance, courtesy the lyricism and delivery of KRS-One. Importance aside, though, Criminal Minded is simply a great, timeless record that no true fan of gritty classic hip hop should be without. The track list alone is a full chapter in the hip hop book of legends – with tunes like "Poetry", "Elementary", "South Bronx", "Super-Hoe", "Bridge is Over", and the "P is Free" remix. Also includes "Criminal Minded", "Dope Beat", and "9mm Goes Bang".

Deep southern soul from vocalists Chuck Brooks, Joe Wilson and George Soule – a both gritty and and some sweeter material cut at Malaco Studios, mostly in the early-to-mid 70s – with some rare 45 numbers, and others that were never issued at all! The Chuck Brooks tracks are wonderful and show a real range, from funky, stripped down numbers to bigger productions that still have plenty soulful grit to them! The Joe Wilson tunes are just as strong – with a heavy bottom end to the rhythms, organ and vamping soul guitar in the mix, and uniquely emotive vocals from Chuck. The set's closed out by a trio of tunes by George Soule, solid, moody, a mix of soul, a bit of southern rock & pop, and Motown ballad influences. Really incredible stuff! Includes "Loneliness (Is A Friend Of Mine)", "Baby Please Don't Set Me Free", "You Can't Be In Two Places At The Same Time", "Once Up A Love Affair" and more by Chuck Brooks, "(Don't Let Them) Blow Your Mind", "Sweetness", "When A Man Cries", "Our Love Is Strong", "Don't Look Back", "Go On And Live", "Walking Away From True Love" and more by Joe Wilson, "Talking About Love", "The Easiest Think I've Ever Done" and "That's Why I'm A Man" by George Soule. 25 tracks in all!

A killer set from the young Kenny Dope – one of his first big-name projects of the 90s, and a great showcase for his already-mature approach to a groove! There's echoes here of the indie east coast club scene of a few years before – some of the soul of New Jersey, and the playful pastiche of Todd Terry and others – yet Kenny also takes things even farther, really hitting that warm, soulful synthesis of elements that made his Masters At Work productions so unique – way more than just the sum of their parts, as you'll hear here! The record has a few famous samples that stand out nicely – and titles include "Whew", "Sayin Dope", "Got Myself Together", "Time & Space", "Just Plain Funky", "You're A Runway", and "The Bomb" – in both radio edit and "original Henry St mix".

The Latin Impressions here are more Brazilian than Cuban – and maybe a bit Spanish, too – given the strong use of acoustic guitar from Charlie Byrd! The set's got a laidback, open feel – and Byrd's guitar work is mighty deft, yet without all the frills and flowers of some of the more dramatic, emotive players of the time – a great illustration of the huge shift that the early bossa guitar recordings had at a global level. Byrd was one of the first big American proponents of bossa, and you can definitely hear that influence at work here – amidst additional guitar from Gene Byrd, bass from Keter Betts, and drums from Bill Reichenbach. A few tunes feature Charlie on solo guitar with no backing – and titles include "O Pato", "Homage A Villa Lobos", "Bogota", "Vals", "Samba De Uma Nota So", "Amor Flamengo", and "Azul Tiple".

Sweet 80s grooves from Cherrelle – a set that really has the singer cooking strongly with the production team of Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis – complete with all the heavy beats you might expect! Jam and Lewis borrow plenty of bottom sounds from the styles of hip hop and electro, and do a great job of mixing the rhythmic elements with Cherrelle's catchy vocals – all in a way that really blows away some of their more chart-topping productions, as the tunes have a bit more of an underground appeal! Make no mistake, this is definitely the poppier side of the soul spectrum – but there's also a freshness here that goes way past Janet Jackson – and which retains some of that smoother, more sophisticated sound we always love in the Tabu label. Titles include "You Look Good To Me", "High Priority", "Artificial Heart", "Saturday Love", "Oh No It's U Again", and "New Love". 2CD version features a cool book-style cover, new notes, and 11 bonus tracks that include "Artificial Heart (dance rmx)", "Oh No It's U Again (ext version)", "Saturday Love (ext version)", "Saturday Love (feelin luv ext mix)", "Saturday Love (Steve Anderson rmx)", and "You Look Good To Me (ext rmx)".

Really sweet later work from The Chi Lites – 2 classics on a single set! The sound on Heavenly Body is less Brunswick Chicago soul than before – and the group step along in warm and sophisticated backings that sparkle in the best Chi-Sound style – uptempo at some times, but sweet and mellow at others. The vocals are superb – easily adaptable to both sorts of settings, but especially great on the ballads – which really seem to benefit from the move away from some of the more cliched styles that the Chi-Lites were falling into during their last years on Brunswick. Eugene Record produced, and titles include "Love Shock", "Round & Round", "Heavenly Body", "All I Wanna Do Is Make Love To You", "Give Me A Dream", and a remake of "Have You Seen Her". Heavenly Body has the group hitting a whole new groove, but keeping things real in the vocal department! The album's got a great mix of ballads and groovers – similar to other Chi-Sound productions at the time – and the upbeat numbers follow nicely from the group's work on Mercury in the late 70s, more kicked up than their fragile ballads of the early 70s, but with great vocals nonetheless. Production is by Carl Davis with group leader Eugene Washington, and arrangements are by an old Brunswick crew who include Tom Tom and Sonny Sanders. Titles include "Whole Lot Of Good Good Lovin", "Tell Me Where It Hurts", "Me & You", "Never Speak To A Stranger", "Get Down With Me", and "Try My Side".

NuHop? Common newcomers who buy Electric Circus for the single with Mary J Blige are going to be left with some head scratching – but if you like the spiritual/psychedelic Com that was hinted at on Like Water For Chocolate, this may be the follow up you were waiting for! This is still hip hop – with production by the Neptunes, Jay Dee, ?uestlove and others, but it's definitely a boundary stretcher. The mood runs from Roots style soul bumpers to Hendrix and Eugene McDaniels style feedback heavy freakouts. There's a guest on nearly every track, mostly from the Okayplayer camp and NuSoul titans, including Bilal, Omar, Pharrell Williams, Cee-Lo, Erykah Badu, Jill Scott, Laetitia Sadier of Stereolab and others. We won't lie to you, we miss the Chicago hip hop Common that kicked insight over raw and soulful productions, but you can't fault the guy for being an artist, and he really has crafted something original here. A great cover – a kind of rainbow drenched cut and paste photo collage of the contributors and inspirations with Com out front, sort of reminding us of Tribe's Midnight Maurauders, and even Sgt. Pepper. Tracks include "Ferris Wheel", "Soul Power", "The Hustle", the first single "Come Close", "New Wave", "Star *69", "Jimi Was A Rock Star" and more.

Amazing work from the great Roy Crane – one of the most important newspaper strip artists of the 20th Century! The book features the initial few years of Buz Sawyer – a new project that Crane did for William Randolph Hearst after leaving behind his very successful Wash Tubbs & Captain Easy strip – and the volume features beautiful black and white reproductions of over two years' worth of daily strips, plus cool color fold-out pages of Sunday pages as well! Crane's penmanship is amazing – tight, yet full of feeling and energy – and definitely at a level that wins him comparisons to Milt Caniff, Alex Raymond, and other contemporary greats. Over 206 pages, and very nicely done!

A massively wonderful album from Dayton – an album that has the group really getting their groove together – still sticking a bit in the older funk mode from the past, but also bringing in some warmer, deeper touches to their music too! There's a solidness here that's undeniable – a balance of rhythms and instrumentation that few other soul groups of the time were hitting – topped by vocals that have a nice dose of jazz in the mix too, with the sort of sophistication you might expect to hear from some of Wayne Henderson's At Home productions. Production is nice and warm, never too cold or commercial – and titles include the group's great cut "The Sound Of Music" – not the theme from the Broadway show, but a great two-stepper that's instantly infectious – plus "Caught In The Middle", "It Must Be Love", "Promise Me", and "Lookin Up".

A massively wonderful album from Dayton – an album that has the group really getting their groove together – still sticking a bit in the older funk mode from the past, but also bringing in some warmer, deeper touches to their music too! There's a solidness here that's undeniable – a balance of rhythms and instrumentation that few other soul groups of the time were hitting – topped by vocals that have a nice dose of jazz in the mix too, with the sort of sophistication you might expect to hear from some of Wayne Henderson's At Home productions. Production is nice and warm, never too cold or commercial – and titles include the group's great cut "The Sound Of Music" – not the theme from the Broadway show, but a great two-stepper that's instantly infectious – plus "Caught In The Middle", "It Must Be Love", "Promise Me", and "Lookin Up".

80s groove galore – a pair of classic albums form Dayton! Hot Fun is a wonderfully sweet groover from Dayton – a group that's equal parts modern soul and 80s groove – and outta site all the way! The album's big title hit is a remake of Sly Stone's classic "Hot Fun In The Summertime", done in such a way that it's got a cool skating stepper's groove to it – and set amidst some jazzy riffing and ensemble vocals that are totally great. The rest of the album follows in a similar mode – really bouncy and joyous, with mixed male and female vocals stepping out over a set of lean, mean 80s groovers that should have been huge! Tracks include "Hot Fun", "Patiently", "We Can't Miss", "Meet The Man", "Movin Up", and "Gunch". Feel The Music is a massively wonderful album from Dayton – an album that has the group really getting their groove together – still sticking a bit in the older funk mode from the past, but also bringing in some warmer, deeper touches to their music too! There's a solidness here that's undeniable – a balance of rhythms and instrumentation that few other soul groups of the time were hitting – topped by vocals that have a nice dose of jazz in the mix too, with the sort of sophistication you might expect to hear from some of Wayne Henderson's At Home productions. Production is nice and warm, never too cold or commercial – and titles include the group's great cut "The Sound Of Music" – not the theme from the Broadway show, but a great two-stepper that's instantly infectious – plus "Caught In The Middle", "It Must Be Love", "Promise Me", and "Lookin Up".

While we have more or less dismissed a lot of the Celluloid world music productions from the 80s in the past, we look back now and realize that was pretty much just purist snobbery. This Laswell produced album of funky afro grooves doesn't have the same hard African funk that we dig so much about Dibango's early work, but it's more than just a respectable outing, and the 80s electro feel that's creeping in on a number of tracks sounds even better today. Most of the cuts are mid to down tempo, with playing that's a bit more smooth from Dibango's sax, and when you look at the crew Laswell assembled, it's quite the all star cast: Herbie Hancock, Bernie Worrell, Wally Badaru and Aiyb Deng alongside Dibango's Soul Makossa Gang. Four lengthy tracks: "Pata Piya", "Electric Africa", "Echoes Beti" and "L'Arbre A Palabres".

A great set of archival DJ Shadow instros from the early-to-mid 90s – from back when his primary means of production was the Akai MPC sampler – along with his endless arsenal of vinyl and limitless creative inspiration! This is formative, but essential material for fans of classic Shadow. It's a superior follow up to the 4 Track Era compilation, and a solid blueprint for his very best work to come! This is all previously unreleased, and it was produced from 1992 to 1996 – which is the period that beat heads and leftfield hip hop production historians outta know culminated in the release of the classic Endtroducing album. That said, this is not a set of Endtroducing leftovers – it's strong, original and legacy-building instrumental work from a crucial period – assembled by the man himself! 24 tracks on the CD. Includes "Intropy (Original Version)", "Vee In Detroit", "Alright", "Don't Try It", "Falling Up", "Aye", "Britty But Magic", "Atmospheric Disturbances", "Quickstep", "Freddi's Popcorn", "From The Old School", "Mystical With Solo", "Fast Rap Fanfare" and more.

Fantastic soul from Lamont Dozier – his first LP as a solo artist, and one of the best debuts of the 70s! The record has a quality that's impossible to describe accurately – but it's kind of a post-Motown full-on approach to soul that mixes strings, piano, and that wall of sound groove that was one of Dozier's biggest contributions to the Motor City. Surprisingly, the album's produced by McKinley Jackson – leader of The Politicians, who provided regular backing for Dozier's HDH productions of the time. The real strength, though, is Dozier's voice – which is produced here in a compressed way that brings up the better raspy qualities of his style, juxtaposing them with the tightness of the arrangements in a mode that's similar to Bobby Womack's work of the time. However, Dozier's songwriting is way way better than Womack's by this point – and the album's filled with anthemic soul cuts like "Fish Aint' Bitin", "Out Here On My Own", "Take Off Your Make Up", "Trying To Hold Onto My Woman", and "Let Me Make Love To You".

Chicago stepping taken to the next level – in this great follow up DVD to the first Chicago Steppers package! This one's actually a lot better done than the first one – better production values, better image quality, and an overall more classy level of presentation – all of which is good, because the moves here are more complicated than the first time around. In addition to regular instructional footage, the DVD features an interview with legendary DJ Herb Kent – the 50s and 60s soul legend whose career was revived in the 90s steppers scene. Music is by Bobby Hutton, Marzette Griffith, and others – and the DVD also provides introduction to steppers clubs like the 50 Yard Line, Taste Entertainment Center, and others.

A great introduction to the Chicago Steppers scene – one that not only features interviews and footage from events in the scene, but also some instructional details as well! The package features material from a wide range of events, and interviews with a number of key figures on the scene – really opening up the nature of this soul music genre that's often not that well understood outside of Chicago. The dancefloor footage is probably worth the price of the DVD alone – and it gives you a good taste of the kind of local programming we get here in our hometown!

A key event in the Chicago Steppers scene – the World's Largest Steppers Contest, held in 2004 and hosted by Chitown DJs Ramonski Luv, Joe Soto, and Herb Kent! The DVD presents the contest pretty much as it happened – with introductions by the luminaries, then performances of some of the best contestants, all captured in glorious color on the floor of the ballroom of the Hyatt Regency. The footage is sometimes a bit rough, but that also makes it a key documentary of this important local soul music scene!

One of the most modern moments from Don Elliott in the 50s – a twin-trumpet album that's awash in counterpoint experiments of the time! Trumpeter Rusty Dedrick joins Don in the frontline – working together in tight head arrangements that have a strong chamber feel to them, but then opening up into more fluidly expressive solos that are the main strength of the set. Other players include Mundell Lowe on guitar, Eddie Safranski on bass, and Don Lamond on drums – as well as Dick Hyman, who handled all the arrangements and wrote a good number of the tunes! Titles include "Mine", "Vampire Till Ready", "Your Own Iron", "Dominick Seventh", "The Bull Speaks", and "Henry's Mambo".

A huge hit for both The Emotions and Maurice White – whose Kalimba Productions handled this album in the same hit mode they'd been using for Earth Wind & Fire! There's a polished, soaring bounce her that definitely shows the Earth Wind & Fire touch – and which takes the girls miles from their rougher, rootsier soul of the Stax/Volt years – yet like all the best EWF records of the time, the sound is also plenty soulful, with lots of righteous undercurrents. The album includes the group's wonderful track "Don't Ask My Neighbors", a heavenly tune that builds on a long tradition of sweet female soul from Chicago; the super-huge "Best Of My Love", a hit on dancefloors and radios for years to come – and many other nice numbers like "Blessed", "How'd I Know That Love Would Slip Away", and "Key To My Heart".

A pair of killer albums from The Five Stairsteps – 1967's self-titled set for Windy C – plus '68's Love's Happening by The Five Stairsteps & Cubie – together with bonus track on this great set from Outta Sight UK! The Five Stairsteps album is a landmark batch of sweet soul – recorded by the still youthful group that included a 13 year old Kenny Burke! The kids were brought together by their parents Clarence and Betty Burke, but it was Curtis Mayfield who really gave them a push – as he discovered them, produced them, and wrote some excellent songs for them during their best early years. Mayfield's sweet soul style forged with The Impressions runs through most of these tracks – and although the group is young, they really do a fantastic job with the material, and infuse it with a soulfulness way past their years. Titles include "Danger She's A Stranger", "World Of Fantasy", "Ooh Baby Baby", "Don't Waste Your Time", and "Behind Curtains". Love's Happening might be the best record ever by this Chicago soul group! The record's got a full batch of original tracks written and produced by Mayfield – including their amazing, funk steeped version of "Don't Change Your Love", with a breakbeat that lit up the sampler culture for years! That raw drum sound is in effect on even the more delicate numbers, and the lead vocals and harmonies soar or sink deep to the soul, as the groove demands. There's also some kind of tripped out touches in the production in spots, making for a nice balance of sweet soul and leftfield touches. Kind of an underappreciated effort in the grand scheme of Curtis Mayfield productions, but wholly essential! Other titles include "Stay Close To Me", "New Dance Craze", "Baby, Make Me Feel So Good", and "Little Young Lover". 5 bonus singles in the set: "Ain't Gonna Rest (Til I Get You)", "You Can't See", "Change Of Pace", "Madame Mary" and "We Must Be In Love".

Killer stuff – and probably the best record ever by this Chicago soul group! The record's got a full batch of original tracks written and produced by the group's mentor, Curtis Mayfield – including their amazing, funk steeped version of "Don't Change Your Love", with a breakbeat that lit up the sampler culture for years! That raw drum sound is in effect on even the more delicate numbers, and the lead vocals and harmonies soar or sink deep to the soul, as the groove demands. There's also some kind of tripped out touches in the production in spots, making for a nice balance of sweet soul and leftfield touches. Kind of an underappreciated effort in the grand scheme of Curtis Mayfield productions, but wholly essential! Other titles include "Stay Close To Me", "New Dance Craze", "Baby, Make Me Feel So Good", and "Little Young Lover".

A real standout from Aretha Franklin's years on Arista – a set produced by Luther Vandross, with a soaring groove that really opens Aretha up nicely! Luther's more in the mode here of his 70s club productions than his 80s hits – that warm, midtempo vibe that's full of lush moments, but never in ways that are cloyingly commercial. Franklin's vocals light up the tunes in the way that Luther's own might do – really soaring out beautifully in this setting. Titles include "I Got Your Love", "Giving In", "Get It Right", "Pretender", "Every Girl", "I Wish It Would Rain", and "Better Friends Than Lovers". CD features bonus tracks "Get It Right (single)", "Get It Right (12" inst)", and "Every Girl Wants My Guy (single)".

Grand Slam take plenty of inspiration from the P-Funk universe – and as proof of that fact, they've got Gary Mudbone Cooper on vocals for a few tracks on this sweet little set – a record that definitely offers up a 21st Century evolution of the original P-Funk groove! The combo are heavy on basslines and keyboards – often used with that best slinky style that the George Clinton groups hit at the end of the 70s – and occasionally touched by some modern rhythms, although overall the group have a very live funky mode! Vocals are often layered together nicely, and sometimes vocoded too – as a few cuts echo that early 80s shift to more electric funk, particularly from the Zapp generation. Lige Curry sings lead on a few other numbers – and titles include "Long Term Ticket", "You Can't Nickname The Truth", "Camp Down", "Elemelemel", "Streets Of Harlem", and "The Fog".

Excellent work from this smooth Chicago vocal group! The album may well be the best the group ever recorded – and it features some stellar ballad work produced with a nice spacey tone, almost in a Rose Royce mellow mode – by Jerry Butler's Fountain Productions team and by Clarence Johnson, who brought the group up from the beginning! The real strength of the album, though, is the group's vocals – wonderfully harmonious, but with a rougher edge and a deeper soul than many other 70s groups of the same type. The album includes the massive semi-hit "Guess Who's Back In Town" – plus other good ballads like "How Do You Think You're Gonna Find Love", "Let's Work It Out", and "Distant Melody". The album also features some uptempo numbers – and other tracks include "Run & Tell That", "Dance A Thon", and "No Limit".

Excellent work from this smooth Chicago vocal group! The album may well be the best the group ever recorded – and it features some stellar ballad work produced with a nice spacey tone, almost in a Rose Royce mellow mode – by Jerry Butler's Fountain Productions team and by Clarence Johnson, who brought the group up from the beginning! The real strength of the album, though, is the group's vocals – wonderfully harmonious, but with a rougher edge and a deeper soul than many other 70s groups of the same type. The album includes the massive semi-hit "Guess Who's Back In Town" – plus other good ballads like "How Do You Think You're Gonna Find Love", "Let's Work It Out", and "Distant Melody". The album also features some uptempo numbers – and other tracks include "Run & Tell That", "Dance A Thon", and "No Limit".

A glorious send off from J Dilla – with some of the most soulful productions Dilla's ever laid down – and appearances by Common, D'Angelo, Pharoahe Monch, Madlib, MED, Black Thought and others! It's impossible to listen to The Shining without considering the sad circumstances surrounding its release, and all too easy to over praise, but this record is filled timelessly inventive production – and passionate rhymes from the honored guests. A lot of the more leftfield, abstract touches that create most of the character on the Donuts LP are really on the outskirts of the sound here – a much richer, deeper, funky drum influenced batch of sounds. We're speechless. There's one more official posthumous LP in the can, and thank goodness for that. Tracks include in-your-f**kin' face intro "Geek Down" with Busta Rhymes, "E=MC2" feat Common, "Love Jones", "Love" feat Pharoahe Monch, "Baby" feat Madlib & Guilty Simpson, "So Far To Go" feat Common & D'Angelo (come back D', the world needs you), "Jungle Love" feat MED & Guilty Simpson, "Dime Piece (Remix)" feat Dwele, "Love Movin'" feat Black Thought and "Won't Do".

A glorious send off from J Dilla – with some of the most soulful productions Dilla's ever laid down – and appearances by Common, D'Angelo, Pharoahe Monch, Madlib, MED, Black Thought and others! It's impossible to listen to The Shining without considering the sad circumstances surrounding its release, and all too easy to over praise, but this record is filled timelessly inventive production – and passionate rhymes from the honored guests. A lot of the more leftfield, abstract touches that create most of the character on the Donuts LP are really on the outskirts of the sound here – a much richer, deeper, funky drum influenced batch of sounds. We're speechless. There's one more official posthumous LP in the can, and thank goodness for that. Tracks include in-your-f**kin' face intro "Geek Down" with Busta Rhymes, "E=MC2" feat Common, "Love Jones", "Love" feat Pharoahe Monch, "Baby" feat Madlib & Guilty Simpson, "So Far To Go" feat Common & D'Angelo (come back D', the world needs you), "Jungle Love" feat MED & Guilty Simpson, "Dime Piece (Remix)" feat Dwele, "Love Movin'" feat Black Thought and "Won't Do".

A compilation of pivotal mid 90s Dilla productions and remixes – classics and rarities from the Pharcyde, N'Dea Davenport, and the Brand New Heavies with guest appearances by Q-Tip and Mos Def – great stuff from the prime Delicious Vinyl years! It's full of bedrock jazzy funk from Jay Dee – a 2CD set with vocal versions on the first disc and a second CD featuring instrumentals. This is a great refresher course on Jay Dee's golden age pedigree – especially if you came on board with Dilla in the later Stones Throw years – featuring his earlier genius productions plus a second disc featuring instrumental versions. Proceeds from the CD are to go to Ma Dukes. Titles include "Runnin'" (plus instrumental), "Somethin' That Means Somethin'" (plus instrumental), "Bullsh*t" (plus instrumental), Y? (remix)" (plus instrumental) by Pharcyde, "Sometimes (remix)" (plus remix instrumental) by Brand New Heavies feat Q-Tip, "Saturday Night (remix)" (plus remix instrumental) by Brand New Heavies feat Mos Def, "Whatever You Want (remix)" by N'Dea Davenport and more.

Regal King Jammy productions from the late 70s – featuring a stellar roster of vocalists and instrumention laid down by the cream of the group – numbers by Anthony Johnson, Dennis Brown, Sugar Minott, Junior Brown Wayne Smith, Puddy Roots, Junior Reid, Mighty Rudo and more! Soulful voices and steadily rumbling rhythms underneath. Timeless material! 14 tracks in all: "More Love In The City" by Anthony Johnson, "Life Can Be Easy" by King Everald, "No Darkness Tonight" by Junior Reid, "Come Along" by Wayne Smith, "Yah Wi Deh" by Anthony Johnson,"Learn Fi Drive" by Early B, "Just Cool" by Mighty Rudo and more.

A dozen Aggrovators jams from the golden age of Jamaican music, all with Tubby's expert knob twirling taking them into the next dimension. We aren't entirely certain, we'd hazard a guess that these are all Bunny Lee productions, filled out nicely with fat bass, crisp hi hats and a heavy thumping kick, punctuated nicely by dubby reverb and echoplex. With "King Of The Arena Dub", "No Partial Dub", "Crazy Baldhead Dub", "A Living Dub", "Destroy Dub Style", "Book Of Numbers Dub" and "Natty Roots Man Dub".

Neither pop nor fusion – but a great little record that reminds us why we love William Kurk so much! There's definitely some of the jazzy styles promised by the title, but they're mixed in with Kurk's inventive approach to soul music – warm instrumentation wrapped around compelling lyricism, but in a bouncy, playful way that's light years from the usual! This time around, there's a slight echo of 80s ideals – not so much in the music, which still has lots of 70s warmth – but in the criss-crossing of modes, and in the way that acoustic and electric elements are used together to create a really full sound. Titles include "9 by 3", "Revenge Of Mega Man", "Star Of The Sky", "All Of The Time", "Moonrise", "2012", and "Dragon Force".

Neither pop nor fusion – but a great little record that reminds us why we love William Kurk so much! There's definitely some of the jazzy styles promised by the title, but they're mixed in with Kurk's inventive approach to soul music – warm instrumentation wrapped around compelling lyricism, but in a bouncy, playful way that's light years from the usual! This time around, there's a slight echo of 80s ideals – not so much in the music, which still has lots of 70s warmth – but in the criss-crossing of modes, and in the way that acoustic and electric elements are used together to create a really full sound. Titles include "9 by 3", "Revenge Of Mega Man", "Star Of The Sky", "All Of The Time", "Moonrise", "2012", and "Dragon Force".

Two stone classics from Ronnie Laws – back to back on a single CD! Friends & Strangers is a stone classic from reedman Ronnie Laws – and an album that really helped set a whole new standard for funky fusion in the 70s! Laws works here with great Wayne Henderson production – which gives the album an even sharper sound than other Blue Note sets of this vintage – and that kind of tight blend of funk and jazz you'd find in the Crusaders, with a similar no-nonsense approach in the grooves! Henderson's got a great way of never being too smooth – and Laws responds with some wicked solos on tenor, soprano sax, and flute – soaring out over the course of the whole wonderful album. Titles include "Goodtime Ride", "Just Love", "Saturday Evening", "Friends & Strangers", "Nuthin Bout Nuthin", "New Day", and "Same Old Story". Flame features Ronnie Laws at the top of his early game – working in a tight mix of jazz and soul put together with some great help from Wayne Henderson's At Home Productions – very much in the hit style that team was putting out at the time! The work's surprisingly open and hip compared to efforts like this from a decade later – still smooth in production, but with lots of room for instrumental solos, and a groove that's still more heavy on fusion influences than anything else! Laws plays tenor, flute, and soprano sax – and other players include Larry Dunn on keyboards and Melvin Robinson on guitar – and a few cuts feature chorus vocals, by hip singers who include Eloise and Debra Laws, Diane Reeves, and Phillip Bailey. Titles include "All For You", "These Days", "Flame", "Living Love", "Joy", "Live Your Life Away", and "Love Is Here".

Post-Tropicalia work from Leno – a Brazilian singer who'd worked as part of a duo during the Jovem Guarda years, but who really sounds great here on his own! The style's a bit more straightforward rock than the Brazilian sound of a few years back – a bit fuzzy and compressed at times, yet still with a really strong edge, and light years from more mainstream American rock of the time. Many tracks were supposedly banned by the censors in Brazil at the time, although from today's perspective they've got a hard-rocking charm that's more innocent than anything else – a quality that makes the record ripe for rediscovery today! Lion productions have done a wonderful job with the notes and packaging (as usual!) – and titles include "Johnny McCartney", "Por Que Nao", "Lady Baby", "Deixo O Tempo Me Levar", "Peguei Uma Apolo", "Pobre Do Rei", "Sentando No Arco-Iris", and "Bis".

Two electric killers from Ramsey Lewis – back to back in a single package! Funky Serenity is sweet electric funk from Ramsey – one of his best from the 70s, and a set with Lewis on Fender Rhodes, electric harpsichord, and other keyboards, grooving away in an open-ended 70s mode that still retains all the heavy soul of his classic work for Chess. Morris Jennings adds in some very nice percussion with his drum work, and Cleveland Eaton's on funky bass, giving the set a strong bottom groove. Features the sublime sample cut "My Love For You", a great version of "Knights In White Satin" that's done with a weird spacey groove, plus the tracks "Kufany Mapenzi (Making Love)", "Serene Funk", "What It Is!", and "Dreams". Salongo is a tremendous little record, and one of the funky 70s sets that Ramsey Lewis recorded with Earth Wind & Fire! Well, not Earth Wind & Fire entirely – but the Kalimba Productions team of Maurice White and Charles Stepney that gave the group its sound – plus a nice sprinkling of other players that were often associated with sessions by the group! Ramsey's own combo here includes Steve Cobb on drums and vocals, and Derf Reklaw on reeds and vocals as well – and the overall sound has bits of African and Brazilian influences, worked into a soulful fusion groove that sounds a lot like the instrumental backings EWF were using at the time. Titles include "Brazilica", "Slick", "Rubato", "Salongo", and "Seventh Fold".

A tremendous little record, and one of the funky 70s sets that Ramsey Lewis recorded with Earth Wind & Fire! Well, not Earth Wind & Fire entirely – but the Kalimba Productions team of Maurice White and Charles Stepney that gave the group its sound – plus a nice sprinkling of other players that were often associated with sessions by the group! Ramsey's own combo here includes Steve Cobb on drums and vocals, and Derf Reklaw on reeds and vocals as well – and the overall sound has bits of African and Brazilian influences, worked into a soulful fusion groove that sounds a lot like the instrumental backings EWF were using at the time. Titles include "Brazilica", "Slick", "Rubato", "Salongo", and "Seventh Fold".

An obscure group, but a wonderful one – and an ensemble we really wish we could hear more from! Yet thankfully, they've given us this wonderful album from the start of the 80s – a soaring, soulful set that seems to pick up the funky torch dropped by Earth Wind & Fire – and push things forward with the same blend of jazzy undercurrents and righteous feelings! Tunes are uptempo, but never too much so – and handled with musicianship that's really top-shelf – and the production has a wicked blend of jazz and soul that almost feels like some of Wayne Henderson's best productions from the At-Home years. The record features a wonderful soul number called "Dreams", which has great compressed grooves, and some early vocals by Miki Howard – and other titles include "Swingin", "Aspects", "Mirror Of My Soul", "I'll Always Love You", and "Who Are You?". CD features both UK and US cover art – and bonus cuts that include "Emergency", "The Word Is Out", "Swingin (rmx)", "Midnight Groovin (single)", and "Midnight Groovin (12" version)".

Soaring soul from Stephanie Mills – one of the lady's all-time hits, and for good reason too! The album really gives Stephanie's great voice a lot of focus – an upbeat, uptempo groove that sets her firmly on the dancefloor, but always with a touch of class – and a lot more depth than some of the easy come/easy go disco divas of her day! Thanks here is clearly due to the team of Reggie Lucas and Mtume – who strike strongly with the album as one of their key early productions – the sort of work that really helped push mainstream soul a bit further at the end of the 70s, and set some new tones for a lot of growth in the next decade. The keyboards on the record are almost as nice as the vocals – played by Hubert Eaves and Harry Whitaker with a nice degree of sensitivity – hardly the stronger keyboard voice of the early 80s soul scene, and often with a dose of jazziness that's really appreciated. Titles include "Whatcha Gonna Do With My Lovin'", "Deeper Inside Your Love", "Feel The Fire", "Put Your Body In It", "Starlight", and "Don't Stop Dancin". ^This Big Break UK remastered edition has 6 bonus tracks: "Better Than Ever", ""Whatcha Gonna Do With My Lovin' (12" Remix)", "You Can Get Over (12" Remix)", "Put Your Body In It (12" Remix)" and more.

They definitely got the title right on this one – as the set's a solid batch of soulful instrumentals all the way through – one of our favorites from the great Willie Mitchell! Willie's got a lot more bite here than on some of his famous warmer productions in the 70s – a gritty Memphis soul instrumental style that's pretty close to the best of its kind over at Stax Records – complete with tight, punchy drums on the bottom – and a sweet mix of organ, tenor, guitar, and trumpet in the lead! Nothing's ever too forced, and there's a groove that's laidback, but right on the money – on titles that include "San Ho Zay", "Monkey Jump", "Strawberry Solo", "Hideaway", "Up Hard", "The Horse", and "Grazing In The Grass".

A peach of a record from Melba Moore – one that's produced by Eugene McDaniels, who helps find a tight funky sound that unlocks some of the most righteous elements in Moore's vocals! Like some of McDaniels' best productions of the time, there's a good sense of balance here – a way of going deep, then swinging back for a nice hook – ensuring that the record would reach just the right audience, while still helping get the message across! Gary King did all the arrangements, with a righteous soul style that works perfectly with Melba's vocals – and the set's got some great keyboards from Bob James, Richard Tee, and Dave Grusin – all of whom keep things hip. Titles include "If You Can Believe", "My Soul Is Satisfied", "Must Be Dues", "I Am His Lady", "A Million Years Before This Time", "If I Lose", and "Natural Part of Everything".

A rare non-Blue Note outing from Lee Morgan – and a record that's sometimes mistaken as a large group effort because of the "twelve" in the title, but which is a tight small group set that's equally cooking as some of Lee's better known records! As with the best mid 60s Blue Note work from lee, the players here are both soulful and modern – able to shift easily into some of Lee's most complicated ideas of jazz expression, yet always doing so in ways that are never stiff or academic – but filled with life and spirit in every note! Clifford Jordan's tenor is a fantastic accompaniment to Morgan's trumpet in the frontline – and Barry Harris' piano has the warmth and flowing quality of a young Cedar Walton on most tracks. Bass is by Bob Cranshaw and drums are by Louis Hayes – and titles include "Lee-sure Time", "Second's Best", "Little Spain", and "Waltz For Fran".

A hell of a trumpeter – making his debut here on one of the grooviest albums on the legendary Latin Percussion label! The session's a bit fuller than some of the other LP albums – a crackling blend of jazz, funk, and Latin rhythms – warm, but with some pretty complicated moments, very much in the best spirit of the second wave of NuYorica grooves! There's still lots of the tight percussion that makes Latin Percussion sessions so great – but the record also features fuller instrumentation too – in ways that really make things soar. Players include Eddie Martinez on Fender Rhodes, Jon Faddis and Randy Brecker on additional trumpets, Steve Khan on guitar, and Carlos Patato Valdez on congas – and Ruben Blades even plays a bit of acoustic guitar on the record. The overall feel's a bit like some of the great Fania/Columbia co-productions – but a bit rawer at points – and titles include "Diana", "Genesis", "Nice & Warm", "Viva Martinez", "I Know", "Hot Blood", and "Perico" – most of which are separated by short percussion interludes!

Damn, we love these guys! And this time around, Osaka Monaurail sound harder and heavier than ever – very much back in their best 70s JBs mode – after a recent foray into 60s soul! The rhythms are incredibly tight – razor-sharp, with a forcefulness that few other funky combos can match – that hard-ripping groove you're usually only likely to find on the best James Brown productions from back in the day. Instrumental passages are at the forefront, too – which means a bit less vocals from group leader Ryo Nakata, although we still always love his unique funky soul approach when he does come into the mix. Titles include "Endemism", "Work Song", "Hung Up", "Andrias Japonicus", "Stop Doggin Me Around", "Syrinxology" and "The Archipelago". 11 tracks on the CD.

Damn, we love these guys! And this time around, Osaka Monaurail sound harder and heavier than ever – very much back in their best 70s JBs mode – after a recent foray into 60s soul! The rhythms are incredibly tight – razor-sharp, with a forcefulness that few other funky combos can match – that hard-ripping groove you're usually only likely to find on the best James Brown productions from back in the day. Instrumental passages are at the forefront, too – which means a bit less vocals from group leader Ryo Nakata, although we still always love his unique funky soul approach when he does come into the mix. Titles include "Endemism", "Work Song", "Syrinxology", "Andrias Japonicus", "Stop Doggin Me Around", "Mother Popcorn" and "The Archipelago". 10 tracks on the vinyl version.

Damn, we love these guys! And this time around, Osaka Monaurail sound harder and heavier than ever – very much back in their best 70s JBs mode – after a recent foray into 60s soul! The rhythms are incredibly tight – razor-sharp, with a forcefulness that few other funky combos can match – that hard-ripping groove you're usually only likely to find on the best James Brown productions from back in the day. Instrumental passages are at the forefront, too – which means a bit less vocals from group leader Ryo Nakata, although we still always love his unique funky soul approach when he does come into the mix. Titles include "Endemism", "Work Song", "Hung Up", "Andrias Japonicus", "Stop Doggin Me Around", and "The Archipelago".

A stellar set of surviving 70s Black Ark productions by Lee Perry – with rare and unreleased cuts plus pivotal, if long-buried sides by Junior Byles, U Roy, Delroy Butler, Tinga Stewart, The Upsetters, The Flames, The Ethiopians, Jah T and more – Perry-produced gems for Kingston's cultural rebels and sufferers! The Sound Doctor compilation is really an essential, perfectly-collected batch on Pressure Sounds – the UK label that once again proves to be among the finest and most respectful of Sound Doctor devotees. Among the exceptional rarities are the unreleased "Army Of Love" by Junior Byles, an exclusive dub plate mix of the Upsetters "Horny Train", the raw original mix of U Roy's "006" and many more – stirringly soulful Black Ark singles and dub versions including "Sound Doctor" by Bobby Floyd, "Do Good" by Al Maytone", "Different Experience" by Brother Ray", "Smiling Faces" by Tinga Stewart, "It’s Impossible" by The Ethiopians, "Grandfather Land" by Jah T, "King Of Kings" by Pat Francis, "Be Prepared" by Keith Poppin, "Key Card" by Lee & Jimmy, "Start Over" by The Gatherers and more.

A smoking set of late 70s 12-inch disco mixes from Lee Scratch Perry – some of the very best of Black Ark productions from the period, actually – in a 2CD set from Trojan! Disco Devil features numbers that Scratch produced, mixed and tripped out from 1977 to 1979 at Black Ark – elongating some truly stellar material for slow cooking, mostly 7-9 minute workouts of recordings by Max Romeo & The Upsetters, George Faith, The Congos, Junior Delgado, Junior Murvin & Dillinger, Watty Burnett, Lee Perry himself and others. One of the finer selected compilations of prime 70s reggae we've seen from Trojan in a little while! Includes "Norman" by Max Romeo & The Upsetters, "Bad Weed" by Junior Murvin, "Disco Devil" by Lee Perry & The Full Experience, "Roots Train" by Junior Murvin & Dillinger, "Open The Gate" by Watty Burnett, "Neckodeemus" by The Congos, "Party Time" by The Heptones, "Garden Of Life" by Leroy Sibbles and more.

Excellent work from Oscar Pettiford – his last sessions, in case you couldn't tell by the title, recorded in Copenhagen in 1959 and 1960, with players that include Allan Botchinsky on trumpet, Jan Johansson on piano, Erik Nordstrom on tenor, and Luis Hjulmand on vibes. Despite the introduction of European ringers to the set, and despite the posthumous collection of sessions, the album's actually one of Pettiford's strongest, and certainly one of the best to show his ever-growing commitment as a modernist during the 50s. The album includes loads of original tunes – including "Blue Brothers", "Two Little Pearls", "Laverne Walk", "Why Not? That's What!", and "My Little Cello".

Early work by Dave Pike – one of his first albums ever, recorded with an all-star lineup that includes Barry Harris on piano, Reggie Workman on bass, and Billy Higgins on drums. Pike's got less of the groovy and fuzzed-out sound of his later work – but even at this young age, he's a heck of a vibes player, and working here with such a great group, he can't help but sparkle. Tracks include "Cheryl", "On Green Dolphin Street", "Forward", "Tendin To Business", "Solar", and "Hot House".

A killer blend of soul and funk from Pockets – a group with a very jazzy pedigree in their roots, but who stretch forth here with some great studio help from the Kalimba Productions team of the Earth Wind & Fire empire! The groove is very much in the best 70s EWF mode – tight, but never uptight – impeccably played throughout, but with a looseness that also really hearkens back to the small club origins of the group. Lead singer Larry Jacobs really makes the tunes cook – with a style that's deft enough to match the instrumentation, yet still strong enough to soar soulfully on its own. The blend is sublime throughout – and titles include "Tell Me Why", "Take It On Up", "Heaven Only Knows", "Got To Find My Way", "Sphinx", "In Your Eyes", "Happy For Love", and "You And Only You". CD features a bonus track too – "Take It On Up (ext 12" mix)".

Joyous grooves from congolero Johnny Ray – a contemporary set of salsa tracks, put together with a mix of keyboards and acoustic instrumentation at the core! Ray's conga's lost none of its edge over the years, and helps direct the group with a nice rootsy vibe – even amidst the more modern keyboards – and singers in the group include Jose Davila and Sammy Gonzalez Jr. Titles include "Si No Soy Yo", "Estoy Amandote", "Te Quiero Un Monton", and "Ganas De Ti".

The complete Tamla and Motown singles of The Satintones – the soul, R&B & popular music juggernaut's first male vocal group – and a treasure trove of rare post doo wop from the end of the 50s/beginning of the 60s! It's fascinating for the history herein – the group is hugely under-anthologized in a world of myriad Motown compilations – which is a real shame, as you'll hear in this sweet set – with numbers that rely on the doo wop influences as well as tunes more devoted to lead vocals – with a slew of early Berry Gordy productions and compositions. The set includes the then legally challenged Shirelles knockoff/answer song "Tomorrow and Always" plus "Motor City", "Going To The Hop", "Sugar Daddy", "A Love That Can Never Be", "Foot Stomping Time", My Kind Of Love", "Boogie Woogie Heart", "Because I Love You", "You Can't Beat My Lovin" and many more. 26 tracks in all.

One of the earliest albums on the Free Jazz Productions label – a large group session led by trumpeter Manfred Schoof, and featuring a wealth of great talents from the European avant garde of the 60s – including Peter Brotzmann on tenor, Enrico Rava on trumpet, Irene Schweizer and Alexander Von Schlippenbach on piano, Derek Bailey on guitar, Evan Parker on soprano sax, Paul Rutherford on trombone, and both Han Bennink and Pierre Favre on drums! The album features one long track – Schoof's "European Echoes" – the kind of extended, freewheeling, large group improvisation that was exemplary of the united front being expressed across nations by the free jazz movement of the late 60s. Still as powerful today as it was back then!

Quite possibly the greatest album ever from Side Effect – a wonderful set that mixes their soulful harmonies with some killer jazz funk from Wayne Henderson! The album may be the most perfect realization of the groove that Henderson was going for during his At Home Productions years – lots of funky fusion in the instrumentation, but all directed towards a tighter, more soul-based style – that perfect contribution that Fantasy Records made to the world in the 70s – after labels like Blue Note and Columbia first started setting things down. Whatever the chronology, though, this set's a standout no matter how you slice it – damn catchy tunes, incredible vocals, and a set of rhythms that are every bit as hip today as they were back when first recorded – really genre-defining grooves that you'll definitely recognize in the album's classics "Always There" and "Keep That Same Old Feeling" – and will go on to love in the cuts "Life Is What You Make It", "Changes", "I Know You Can", "SOS", "Time Has No Ending", "Finally Found Someone", and "Honky Tonk Scat".

Quite possibly the greatest album ever from Side Effect – a wonderful set that mixes their soulful harmonies with some killer jazz funk from Wayne Henderson! The album may be the most perfect realization of the groove that Henderson was going for during his At Home Productions years – lots of funky fusion in the instrumentation, but all directed towards a tighter, more soul-based style – that perfect contribution that Fantasy Records made to the world in the 70s – after labels like Blue Note and Columbia first started setting things down. Whatever the chronology, though, this set's a standout no matter how you slice it – damn catchy tunes, incredible vocals, and a set of rhythms that are every bit as hip today as they were back when first recorded – really genre-defining grooves that you'll definitely recognize in the album's classics "Always There" and "Keep That Same Old Feeling" – and will go on to love in the cuts "Life Is What You Make It", "Changes", "I Know You Can", "SOS", "Time Has No Ending", "Finally Found Someone", and "Honky Tonk Scat".

Bedrock beatcraft and DJ mix mastery from Steve Stein – including the hugely important Double Dee & Steinski mixes of the early 80s – paired up with solid later work for this excellent 2CD compilation! The Double Dee & Steinski stuff really couldn't be more important to the turntablist scene of the mid 80s, and its influence stretches up to and beyond the mash up DJs of the 00s. Monumental DJ funk and deftly blended samples. Astounding! Disc 1 is the retrospective material – featuring benchmark Double Dee & Steinski mixes: "The Payoff Mix", "Lesson 2 (James Brown Mix)", "Lesson 3 (History Of Hip Hop)", "Jazz" and "Voice Mail (Sugarhill Mix)" – plus the Steinski tracks "The Motorcade Sped On", "I'm Wild About That Thing", "Ain't No Thing", "Number Three On Flight Eleven" and more. Disc 2 is Nothing To Fear – A Rough Mix By Steinski – done for Solid Steel Productions and BBC London – 28 continuous cuts including "Swingset (10 beautiful girls mix)", "The Id (small world mix)", "By All Means Necessary (Malcolm & Bobby mix)", "I Like It Like That (Scratch It One Time mix)" "Country Grammar (hydro mix)", "Funk Construction (Prodigal Son mix)" and lots more. It's all in the title – it's a rougher set with the scratch & cut effects, bit not as dance club bubbly as other Steinski work.

A very earthy set of piano tracks, recorded by LA pianist Roosevelt Wardell – who was one of the ultra-hip discoveries that Cannonball Adderley brought to Riverside Records during the early 60s! Wardell's got a heck of a lot of blues in his playing, but overall he's a jazz player – working with Sam Jones and Louis Hayes to craft some tunes that almost out "soul jazz" Cannonball's own work! Titles include "The Revelation", "Elijah Is Here", "Lazarus", "Like Someone In Love", and "Max The Maximum".

An unusual early album by Joe Zawinul – one cut at the start of his early fame with Cannonball Adderley (and years before his success in Weather Report) – but in an easygoing way that's a perfect setting for the aging Ben Webster! Joe's not funking things up the way he did with Cannon, and instead he's gentle and soulful – often hitting more sensitive moments that match the emotive blowing of Webster nicely. The recording quality is great – and captures Ben especially well on the ballads – and other players include Sam Jones or Richard Davis on bass, Philly Joe Jones on drums, plus Thad Jones on cornet on a few tracks. Titles include "Frog Legs", "Evol Deklaw Ni", "The Governor", and "Soulmates".

Arguably one of the greatest albums ever cut by Jimmy Witherspoon – recorded live at an early Monterey Jazz Festival, and done in a style that shows the strong link between jazz and blues in Jimmy's work! The group on the set includes Ben Webster, Roy Eldridge, Coleman Hawkins, and Woody Herman – and the longish tracks on the set give them all more than enough room to solo alongside Jimmy's bluesy vocals. The album's also one of the first to be produced by a young David Axelrod – and shows a clear respect for both the singer and the musicians, in a combination that would come out even more strongly on Axe's later productions for Capitol. Titles include "No Rollin Blues", "Big Fine Girl", "Good Rockin Tonight", "Ain't Nobody's Business", and "When I Been Drinkin".

A sweet set of vintage American blue eyed soul from the 70s & early 80s – a diverse and deep set of it, too – featuring sunny and soulful numbers by Breakaway, 1619 Bad Ass Band, Society Of Seven, Lil' Albert, Jay P Morgan, Life Force and more! There's a pretty broad range styles, but the set flows consistently – with numbers that for the most part share a penchant for laidback, simmering grooves and excellently layered productions. But from there, the styles roll from soft rock arrangements with soul-based vocals, to some sly bits of funk, groovy strings and other sweeter touches. We're hoping to see a Vol 2 after this one! 16 tracks in all: "I Love Music" by Babadu, "Lving Off The Love" by Eric Tagg, "Just For You" by 1619 Bad Ass Band, "SLow Dancer" by Life Force, "Never Gonna Leave You" by Evans Pyramid, "Who Was It This Time", "Coast To Coast" by Tender Leaf, "My Girl Friday" by Lil'Albert, "Thought You Ought To Know" by Jesse McFall & The Funk Elegant Orchestra and more.

A teeny-tiny Philly label, but a pretty great one too – home to just a handful of singles, but most of them the kind of rare soul sides that keep us digging over the years! The package features nearly ever key release on Lash – a mix of male soul numbers, group sides, and some sweet female numbers – all recorded over the space of a decade on the Philly scene – showing a great evolution over the years in style! All selections were originally produced by Howard Ravitsky, who owned the label, and definitely improved his chops along the way – and titles include "Get Goin" and "Tell Me" by Lee Johnson, "Here She Comes Now" by Sonny Fulton, "The Guy" by Fannie & The Varcells, "I'm Not The Only One" by Tommy White, "Don't Start That Again" by The Swans, "Inside O Me" by Honey & The Bees, "Treat Myself To A New Love" and "I'm Cuttin In" by The Inspirations, "I'm Happy Without You" by Anny Byers, "Got No Time" by Timmy Carr, "I Can Give You Love" by Benny Sigler, "Give Me What You're Givin Her" by Alfreda Brockington, and "He Brought Sunshine Into My Life" by Patty Hamilton. CD features 30 tracks in all, and full notes on the label.

A heavy dose of funky jazz – and one that goes way past the obvious too – to include some real gems from the 70s that even we'd passed up! The package is filled with stellar jazz from the Fantasy Records family – Prestige, Pablo, Galaxy and Fantasy proper – choice numbers by The Blackbyrds, Stanley Cowell, Charles Earland, Patrice Rushen and others – funky jazz, soul, boogie and Brazil-flavored numbers from the top shelf of the diverse period! It's a tight, well chosen compilation with numbers you simply could not overlook in putting a set like this together – productions by the Mizells, Donald Byrd, Earland and others – but there's a few of leftfield choices, too. Simply a great little snapshot of the funky jazz and soul period and the family of labels that generated so much of the most creative music to come from it! 14 tracks and nearly 80 minutes of grooves: Includes "Happy Music" by Blackbyrds, "Close To You" by Marlon McClain, "Let Me Love You (Let Me Be Me)" by Stanley Cowell, "Taj Mahal" by Paulinho Da Costa, "Nov Ano" by Azar Lawrence, "Moon Dreams" by Flora Purim, "Montevideo" by Opa, "Glide" by Pleasure, "Shout It Out" by Patrice Rushen, "If Only I Could Prove To You" by The 3 Pieces and more.

One of the coolest sets the Numero Group has ever released – and that's saying a heck of a lot, given their already-mighty catalog! Although the label issued a previous dip into the enigmatic Boddie Recording company of Cleveland, this massive package brings together a whopping 57 tracks from the Boddie studios and related labels – many of which have never been reissued before, even by Numero – and all of which offer up a mindblowing microcosm of the American scene in the 60s and 70s – a wealth of rare funk, soul, psych, gospel, and more – all of it the kind of gritty material that 45 collectors die for! But just as cool as the music is the package itself – a heavy box with a flap that fits around five LPs, two booklets, flyer reproductions, and even a Boddie greeting card! There's loads of rare photos, band information, studio details, and more – billed by Numero as a "self-contained record industry" in one box. Musically, the whole thing's right on par with other Numero releases – maybe even above them, given the wide range and depth of the collection – and artists include Bo & The Metros, Inter Circle, King James Version, Ricky Hodges, Jackie Russell, Angela Alexander, Frankie Pighee, Chantells, AC Jones, Harvey Hall, Headlines, Modern Detergents, Penny North, JC Akins, Little Anthony Mitchell, Gospel Fabulators, Royal Kings, Corinthian Singers, Brother Bill, Victory 5, and many more.

A killer collection of funk and soul from an ultra-hip Bay Area label of the 70s – Oakland's enigmatic Brown Door Records – headed up by funk maestro Marvin Holmes! The music's got a beautifully sunny vibe – all the best Bay Area elements of the time, reflected in the scene-crossing, genre-stepping modes that often made the East Bay way more exciting than anything going on in San Francisco – particularly in the cool crossbreeding that would happen between Berkeley, Oakland, and other communities. Holmes' cuts here are a great example of that – still the funk and jazz of his late 60s music for bigger labels, but also pretty stretched-out and open too – filled with an all-encompassing spirit that rivals the best music from the Fantasy studios at the time – but with a hipper, indie vibe all the way through. This spirit also steps over to the work by other artists on the collection, too – and is told in the rich notes and images included with the heavy booklet – both in English and Japanese, at a level that shows the Shout Productions folks stepping into Numero territory. A wonderfully deep compilation – filled with great cuts that include "You & Me", and "Goin Home" by Faye Marshall, "Making New Friends" and "Trippin On The Sounds" by Jeanie Tracy, "Cain't Get Anuff" by Bill Bell, "I Can't Go Without You (parts 1 & 2)" by Doroth Morrison, "Love Yo Love" and "Confess Your Love" by John Turk & The 3rd Street Annex, and the tracks "Kwame", "You Better Keep Her (7" version)", "Find Yourself (parts 1 & 2)", "Gimme Some Tonight (parts 1 & 2)", "Feel So Good (inst)", "You Girl", "Tell The Truth", and "Kimani Mdogo" by Marvin Holmes & Justice.

Massive sounds from the Dopebrother Studio – home to some of the funkiest Kenny Dope productions of the past few years! The grooves here are mostly older nuggets from the 70s – rare funk, soul, and club numbers – mixed by Kenny and the Undercover Brother in ways that really bring up the funkiest energy of the tunes – lots of hard drums, great breaks, and crisp instrumentation that actually sounds way more dope than if you were spinning a copy of an original funky 45! Most tracks on here have only ever been issued as singles, so the full length collection makes for a great way to dig into all these massive grooves in one place – at a price that's pretty damn hard to beat. Plus, there's even a few unreleased tracks on here too – sure to please even the folks who already own a few of the singles! Titles include "How You Gonna Do It (Undercover Brother edit)" by Lenis Guess & The Raw Soul, "Foxfire (Dopebrother rmx)" by Kenny Smith & The Fox Fire Band, "Party & Get On Down (Undercover Brother edit)" by BAB, "Creative Happiness" by Steve Marshall, "I Can't Dance (Undercover Brother edit)" by Jimmy James Thomas, "We Got To Get Together" by The Masterminds with Lady Bianca, "Your Chicken Ain't Funky Like Mine" by Dirty Red Morgan Group, "Skunkie (Undercover Brother edit)" by Kenny Smith & The Maximum Feeling, "Waiting At The Station" by Jimmy James Thomas, "Do What You Like (Undercover Brother edit)" by 400 Years Of What, and "It's Over Now (Undercover Brother quiet storm mix)" by Manzel.

A host of wonderful work produced by James Brown – most of it by a range of different singers, and one by The Godfather himself! The collection brings together some of the earliest James Brown productions – mid 60s tracks recorded for King and Smash Records, most of which aren't nearly as well known as later JB productions for the People and Polydor labels! As with that later work, all the grooves here are right in the same territory that James was hitting himself – upbeat, funky, and stone out of sight soul – all with plenty of rough edges, and backings from the same tight core of musicians that were helping out Brown on his recordings. The package is a real treasure – and is a great complement to the James Brown Singles collections from the Hip-O Select label – proof that even in these early days, James was clearly the hardest working man in show business – given all his time in the studio with other artists! 22 tracks in all – including "I Found Out" and "I'll Keep Pressing On" by Bobby Byrd, "That's When I Cry" and "If You Don't Think" by Anna King, "I Don't Care" and "Unexplainable" by Dizzy Jones, "Got No Excuse" and "If You Don't Work You Can't Eat" by James Crawford, "Do You Really Want To Rescue Me (part 1)" by Elsie Mae, "Lookie Lookie Lookie" by The Jewells, "Wide Awake In A Dream" and "Nobody Cares" by Vicki Anderson, "Devil's Den" by The Poets, "It Hurts To Be In Love" by Yvonne Fair, "That's The Spirit" by Rev Willingham, "Faith" by The Five Royales, "I Cried" by Tammy Montgomery, "Soul Food (parts 1 & 2)" by Al Brisco Clark, and "New Breed (The Boo Ga Loo) (part 1)" by James Brown.

Stellar material that Ike Turner produced in just a couple years for Modern Records – in many cases, with Ike also given the songwriting credit – New Orleans & LA recordings from '63-'65! Ike was one incredible vessel of pure musical talent and ingenuity – overshadowed badly by that red hot hell of a public and private life. That's a shame for a number of reasons, but the work speaks for itself. What's most incredible here, is that other voices speak for their own immense talent as well as Ike's work behind the scenes. It's get great, rare material by Ike & Tina Revue & Kings Of Rhythm members and others. 27 tracks in all: "Darkest Hour", "I Smell Trouble", "Feel So Good" and more by Jimmy Thomas, "All In My Mind" by Tina Turner, "In Love" by Jackie Brenston & The Ikettes, "That's All Right" and "You're So Fine" by Vernon Guy, "Think" by Bobby John & The Ikettes, "Walking Down The Aisle" by Ike Turner & The Ikettes and more.

A sweet platter of rare dubs – the third in the Jamaican Recordings Dub Sampler series. This one features numbers credited to Horace Andy, Max Romeo, Barry Brown, Wailers Band, Johnny Clarke, Cornell Campbell and others – including some plundered from the depths and exclusive to this CD! Lost King Jammy, Niney Holness and Ossie Thomas productions in addition to the wealth of Bunny Lee niceness! Includes "Dub Children" by Horace Andy, "Crazy World Of Dub" by Max Romeo, "Don't Rock My Boat Dub" by Wailers Band, "Dubs Not Gone Forever" by Johnny Clark, "Bad Shine Eye Dyb" by Johnny Clarke, "Going Dub"" by Freddie McKay and more. 12 in all.

The RZA-curated Iron Fists Chronicles! This limited volume in the Man With The Iron Fists soundtrack series is a 2CD compilation of classic Stax deep soul – and it's not only the material that inspired the score for RZA's directorial debut – it's also the funky soul bedrock for his most legendary Wu Tang productions! It's got classics and relative rarities alike by The Dramatics, The Emotions, Soul Children, Mad Lads, Sweet Inspirations, Isaac Hayes, Mel & Tim, Booker T & The MGs, Johnnie Taylor, William Bell and many more! You know RZA isn't compromising or messing around when he's including Isaac Hayes' 15+ minute "Joy" in the set list – and the whole thing is great – really a top-shelf compilation from the Stax vaults! Nearly 2 1/2 hours of music on 2CDs! Includes "I Forgot To Be Your Lover" by The Mad Lads, "I Could Never Be Happy" by The Emotions, "All It Takes Is You And Me" by Sweet Inspirations, "Move Over" by Soul Children, "Steal Away" by Johnny Taylor, "Keep The Faith" by Mel & Tim, "Sing A Simple Song" and "LA Jazz Song" by Booker T & The MGs, "Poverty's Paradise" by 24-Carat Black and more.

A profoundly funky Message – a smoking set of early 70s funky jazz & heavy soul from the Mainstream Records vaults – a diverse set of incredible recordings from the label that may be fairly sprawling in style, yet holds together thanks to shared funky urgency! It's filled with Bob Shad productions for his stellar Mainstream roster, which at the time included a host of far reaching jazz veterans, soulful chanteuses, and killer funky combos – including Afrique, Blue Mitchell, Sarah Vaughn, Alice Clark, Charles Kynard and many more! The session players reads like a heavyweight jazz title card itself, with Don Pullen, Stanley Clarke, George Cables, Joe Sample, Victor Feldman and more. The set features a very well chosen 18 tracks, with solid notes on each by Dean Rudand. Titles include "House Of Rising Funk" by Chubukos, "Soul Makossa" by Afrique, "The Message" by Blue Mitchell, "Funky Butt" by The Delegates", "Never Did I Stop Loving You" by Alice Clark, "I Want You Back" by Bobby Shad & The Bad Men, "Grits Ain't Groceries" by Maxine Weldon, "The Spirit" by Curtis Fuller", "Bacon Butt Fat" by Charles Williams and more.

A wild collection of extraterrestrial country, pulp, pop, r&b and even some doo wop influenced tunes from the outerspace fringes of 60s & 70s Nashville & beyond – largely from the brain bananas of Jack Blanchard & Misty Morgan! We knew that Jack & Misty recorded some fairly far out countryish gems as a duo – but this crazy set really opens our minds to how wild they were as writers, producers & arrangers! It truly rivals Joe Meek's productions when it comes to pulpy themes and unpredictable stylistic range – while carrying a weird, earthier rustic & rural groove. Jack & Misty sing and play often throughout, as themselves and under pseudonyms – and they recruited friends and peers as singers and players for the others. Far more than just an exercise in strangeness – the songs are good enough to stand out as more than novelties, and some of the most respected Nashville session players of the past half century can be found in the notes. You get electrified banjo, sax, and organ in the same wild tunes – any questions? The majority of songs were cut between the fertile period between 1965 and 1974 – with a few going back earlier & later – a whopping 30 tracks in all! "Strange New World" by Jacqueline Hyde & The Moonfolk, Time Machine" by Joel Mathis, "Skellykins" by Rusty Diamond, "I'm Hung Up On You" by Rusty Diamond, "Hit Me One More Time" by Jack Blanchard & Misty Morgan, "Let's Have A Hayride" by Maryanne Mail, "New World" by The Jack Blanchard Group, "Monkey See, Monkey Do" by Brad Wolfe, "Dance Of The Living Dead Chickens" by Jack Blanchard and more!

An amazing collection of music – put together ostensibly as a tribute to Excelsior label owner Otis Rene – but also a wonderful document of the wealth of wonderful sounds on the LA scene of the 40s and early 50s! The set is especially notable in that it includes rare early recordings by artists who'd flourish later on bigger labels like Capitol, Liberty, and Atlantic – yet heard here at the start of their careers, and already sounding wonderful – coming up with those unique hybrids of musical modes that made LA sounds some of the most compelling of the time – jump blues, smooth vocal R&B, and more – often pointing the way towards musical growth to come in the 60s. Despite the label's small status, its productions were all top-shelf – very polished, and well put-together – as you'll hear on this batch of 44 tracks that includes the titles "Pitchin Up A Boogie" and "All For You" by Nat King Cole, "Synthetic Joe" and "Groovin High" by Gerald Wilson, "Thursday Blues" and "I've Got To Have You That's All" by Jimmy Rushing, "Jeff Hi Stomp" and "Volcano" by Johnny Otis, "John The Revelator" by Luvenia Nash Singers, "Mobile" by Otis Rene, "I'm Still Crazy" and "Ribbely Bop" by The Drifters, "Strange Land Blues" by The Hollywood Flames, "Huckle Boogie" by Preston Love, "Crazy Baby" and "Think It Over" by Phil Flowers, "You Better Change Your Way" by Charles Brown, and "At Least You Could Save Me A Dream" by Herb Jeffries.

An absolute treasure trove of rare soul singles from Pied Piper Productions – a mid 60s Detroit soul operation that features Funk Brothers Jack Ashford, Joe Hunter, and Mike Terry – laying down sounds that rival the best Motown groovers of the period! The work is amazing throughout – soul cuts heavily focused on the groove and amazing lead vocals – recorded in ways that are similar to the best of Detroit at the time, but with some rawer aspects too – which makes for a massive package of Northern Soul gems! The package features both solo singers and great groups too – artists who include Lorraine Chandler, The Hesitations, September Jones, The Cavaliers, Willie Kendrick, Nancy Wilcox, and – heard here on rare singles and LP tracks that were originally released on labels like Karate, Kapp, Ruby and Giant – plus a number of recently unearthed titles that are seeing release for the first time ever! The set features 24 tracks in all, and the usual superb Kent notes and packaging – with titles that include "I Can't Hold On" by Lorraine Chandler, "Stuttering Sam" by September Jones, "Gambler's Blues" by Nancy Wilcox, "This Heart Is Lonely" by Rose Batiste, "Just Can't Leave You" by Tony Hesher, "Could It Be" by Micki Farrow, "I Fell In Love (Can't Help It)" by Freddy Butler, "He'll Be Leaving You" by The Pied Piper Players, "If Only You Knew" by Mike & Ray, "Time Changes Things" by Willie Kendrick, and "Lonely Too Long" by The Sandpipers.

No jumble here, as the collection's a really well-done batch of tracks – all rarer-than-rare psychedelic gems from the UK scene of the late 60s, a good deal of which have never been issued before! There's a real nuggets-like sound to the set – plenty of fuzz guitar, flanged-out vocals, and trippy productions – but there's also some sweeter elements too, a few echoes of Sunshine Pop that help keep the set from just being a rehash of familiar psych modes – and which makes it a tremendous new discovery in sound! The notes are as full, detailed, and thoughtful as the track selection – and titles include "Friends & Mirrors" by Five's Company, "You Can Run" by The Majority, "Do What You Must" by Tintern Abbey, "What's The Rush Dillbury" by Paradox, "Delighted To Meet You (demo)" by Honeybus, "Meet Me At The Fair" by The Penny Peeps, "Mary Ann With The Shaky Hand (demo)" by Opal Butterfly, "Time Machine Man" by The Majority, "Like The Day Goes" by Paradox, "Flying High" by Rupert's People, "You & Me Baby" by Obscured Rays, and "Into My Life She Came" by The Penny Peeps.

A beautiful box set of vintage roots 7-inch singles from Randy's – Clive Chin productions cut at the fabled Kingston studios from 1971-1975 – all killer 45s repressed and reproduced with the benchmark originals and flipside dubs! It's a beautiful format – with respect for the original singles. Includes classic and rare cuts by Augustus Pablo & Bongo Herman, Hortense Ellis, Black Uhuru, African Brothers, Roots & Wailers Band, Ansel Collins with Skin, Flesh & Bones and more. Each single comes in the Randy's sleeve with the original inner labels. Beautifully done! Includes "Java Passion" by Augustus Pablo & Bongo Herman, "Woodpecker' by Winston Wright & Impact All Stars, "Woman Of The Ghetto" by Hortense Ellis, "Guns In The Ghetto" by Broadway, "Evil That You Do" by Roots & Wailers Band, "Don Won Dub' by Wailers Band, "Spanish Town Road" by Ansel Collins/Skin, Flesh & Bones, "S-Corner Dub" by Impact All Stars, "The Race" by Gladiators, "Race Version" by Impact All-Stars, "Hod Tight" by African Brothers and more,

A tremendous follow up to the first Spirit Of Philadelphia collection – released many years after that seminal set, and with an even farther-reaching selection of music! The first Spirit set focused on the best mellow and midtempo soul efforts of the Philly International label – but this one expands the groove even more to show the wide influence that Gamble & Huff had on the sound of Philly soul on other labels – especially the major labels, who'd begun following the indie lead in their productions by the mid 70s. There's a fair bit of work here by bigger names at the time, but all of it's got a stone Philly sound – and is either work by artists who first sprung out of the Philly scene directly, or others from different points around the country, and who'd made a trip to Philly in the 70s to record in a hipper groove! Titles include "Do You Remember Yesterday" by New York City, "Falling In Love With You" by Jimmy Ruffin, "It's Not What You Got" by Eddie Kendricks, "We Got Love" by Ben E King, "Don't Take Your Love" by The Whispers, "Can't Accept The Fact" by Gateway, "Straighten It Out" by Anglo-Saxon Brown, "Midnight Lady" by David Morris, "You Make Me Feel So Good Baby" by The Temprees, "It's Love" by The Persuaders, "In Love Again" by The Joneses, "Let's Go All The Way Down" by Brenda & The Tabulations, "Walk Away From Love" by Jackie Moore, "I Don't Have Time To Worry" by Little Anthony & The Imperials, and "That's What Love Does" by Vince Montana & The Philly Sound Orchestra.

A great batch of early 70s grooves from Thailand – all produced by Theppabutr Satirodchompu – and it's one of the best compilations of Thai music we've ever stocked! By focusing on the work of one legendary producer – over the span of just a few years – the set has nicely cohesive vibe. That said, it's a quite expansive sound! Revolving vocals and melodies make it as hypnotic as can be –- and the instrumentation is fantastic. Raw drums, bells and other hand percussion lie underneath bursts of horns, woozy organs and other textures. It's beautifully put together by the Zudrangma label and compiler Maft Sai – with a thick booklet and top-notch sound. Titles include "Lam Yao Salab Teoy", "Siang Toey Jak Jai", "Lam Pleanr Caroen Jit", "Keun Pen Ken Faai" and more by Banyen Rakkaaen, "Lam Plearn Kiew Bao", "Lam Plearn Ha Fan" and more by Chanpen Sirithep, "Lam Plearn Sam Jang Wa" by Sumalee Pongkate, "Tid Kiew Tiew Krung" by Porn Tawan, "Hug Al Bor" by Roeid Petchsiam and more. 17 tracks in all.

This ain't Chicago, but the sound here owes plenty to the Windy City as well – as the collection documents an amazing criss-crossing of cultural modes that occurred when early UK house musicians took the sound of the underground into the bigger British club scene! In a way, this music's a third chapter in a journey that began when the post-disco American underground were digging the styles of the British electronic generation – then began to craft their own music with early house productions from Chicago and Detroit. These rose in such popularity with UK listeners, that by the end of the 80s, the grooves reversed themselves, and flowed back over the Atlantic – inspiring musicians like these to take the best elements of American house music, particularly Chicago acid, and push it even further into something new! And while the generation yielded plenty of lame tracks and crossover pop, this set shows the real deal – those excellent initial singles that made digging UK singles almost as great as US ones, at least for a brief while. 2CD package features 24 titles that include "Take Me High (mansion mix)" by Colm III, "Show Me What You Got (acid mix part 1)" by SLF, "Jealousy & Lies" by Julian Jonah, "Where's The Love Gone (rmx)" by Julie Stapleton, "Safety Zone" by Exocet, "Pressure Dub" by Ability II, "1666 (pyro-maniac mix)" by MD Emm, "Free To Be" by Window Smashers, "Twin Tub" by Return Of The Living Acid, and "Crashing" by Baby Ford.

The classic club album by Love Committee, and one of the most sought-after albums on Gold Mind/Salsoul – a soulful set of club classics that almost beats most of the other work by its contemporaries! The session's grounded in some very solid help from the Sigma Sound team – production and arrangements by the likes of Norman Harris, Ron Tyson, or BHY Productions – in that wonderfully soulful style that was the best mode of the Harris Machine when it was working overtime! The style is disco, but far from the cliches of more commercial work like this – and much more in the legacy of Philly soul from the earlier part of the decade. Titles include "Cheaters Never Win", the classic dancefloor track – plus "Law & Order", "Pass The Buck", "Give Her Love", "Just As Long As I Got You", and "If You Change Your Mind".

A really standout set from Brazilian rocker Ronnie Von – easily one of his greatest records ever, and a set that shows some wonderful steps forward in production and arrangements! Ronnie's still got a rock approach at his core, but he's often working here with fuller backings that include strings and large orchestrations – all blended with key psychedelic elements of the time, in ways that are a fair bit like some of the best productions from the Cadet Concept series – especially the work of Rotary Connection! Like that group, Ronnie's music here draws from the familiar, then pushes its boundaries – taking the music into unexpectedly majestic territory, but still making it groove in the end. Great credit should certainly go to arrangers Francisco De Moraes and Djama Mellin – and titles include "Enseada", "Imagem", "Seu Olhar No Meu", "Verao Nos Chama", "A Maquina Voadora", "Cidade", and "Voce De Azul".

Two cuts from the Edutainment LP. KRS asks "Who Protects Us From You?" over spare dancehall sythesizers and on "Why Is That" KRS applies his exegesis of the Pentateuch to today's educational system with a dope piano line.

Some of the greatest albums ever from tenorist George Adams – packaged together here in a sweet set that also features the CDs in tiny LP-styled covers! Much of the music here was done in collaboration with fellow members of Charles Mingus' group – three albums with pianist Don Pullen, and all with drummer Dannie Richmond – players who are very simpatico with Adams' vibe, as they all together find rich new ground after the passing of Mingus. There's a soulful swing to most of the records – that way that Adams and Pullen had of being sharply creative, yet still rooted in straighter jazz modes too – balancing both impulses perfectly, especially over the progression of albums in this set. The package includes tiny LP-styled reproductions of the records Don't Lose Control, Hand To Hand, Gentleman's Agreement, and Live At The Village Vanguard Volumes 1 & 2.

Pre funk, perhaps, but mightily storming soul singles from Vicki Anderson – James Brown productions from the mid 60s to the end of the decade – incredible stuff that's been a bit underappreciated in a world of funky compilations, yet no less incredible and even more diversely soulful than the funky stuff! Vicki's 70s funk sides are the stuff of legend, and these 60s recordings, which started around the time she joined the James Brown Revue in the mid 60s are just about as good a selection of period female fronted R&B and soul as we can think of – and a really eye opener if you came on board with Vicki for the 70s sounds and her later work with Bobby Byrd! Includes a pair of duets with James Brown – the proto funk gem "Think" from 1968 and "Let It Be Me" from 1970, which truth be told, has more than a little funk bubbling underneath, and some groovy guitars, strings and brass on top – plus "Here Is My Everything" and "Loving You" with Bobby Byrd. But this is Vicki's showcase all the way, and it's a great one! Titles include "I Love You", "My May", You Send Me", "Wide Awake In A Dream", "All In My Mind", "Tears Of Joy", "No More Heartaches, No More Pain", "In The Land Of Milk And Honey", "The Feeling Is Real", "I'll Work It Out" and more. 23 tracks in all.

One of Roy Ayers' greatest albums of the 70s – a set that tightens up the groove from previous Polydor productions, yet still keeps all the soul intact! The record picks up the style begun with the Mystic Voyage album, and pushes it to some slightly tighter territory – a more focused Roy Ayers sound that's totally great, and which makes the album sparkle wonderfully throughout! All aspects of Roy's talents are perfectly balanced here – his warm vocals and jazzy vibes, his uptempo grooves and mellower rhythms – played to perfection by a hip lineup of players that includes Philip Woo on electric piano, Justo Almario on tenor sax, and Steve Cobb on drums. Edwin Birdsong guests a bit on the record – bringing in a nice edge to a few tunes – the album's got a really unique dark undercurrent, even in smoother moments – that subtle Roy Ayers' approach that's always made him one of our all-time favorite artists. Titles include the wonderful jazz-tinged "Searching", a great midtempo stepper that we really love; the funky break track "The Memory", a righteous number that feels like work from earlier records; the clubby classic "One Sweet Love to Remember"; and the sweet instrumental "Vibrations", which has a mellow kickback feel! Other tunes include "Higher", "Domelo (Give It To Me)", "Baby I Need Your Love", and "Better Days".

Massive work from Darrell Banks – two tracks from his rare album for Stax Records – both of them a perfect example of his unique talents! Banks was one of the deepest soul talents working on the Detroit scene of the 60s – a singer who could hit a motor city groove like the best of his contemporaries, but with raw vocal power that was much more at home alongside the best singers of the southern scene of the time. Both of these cuts show that balance beautifully – and come from some key Don Davis productions for Stax – almost the first step of that Memphis/Detroit bridge that Davis would forge even more strongly in the 70s.

The best album so far from this up-and-coming Colombian group – a great mix of rootsy elements and more electronic production – served up in the forward-reaching style we've come to love in recent projects from the Soundway label! Bomba Estereo are easily one of the most contemporary groups to hit the imprint of late – and they've got no trouble at all moving between upbeat, soulful styles and more earthy levels of instrumentation – all fused together with the kind of warmth and joy we might expect in some of the older productions from Luaka Bop, but with a bit more edge too. Titles include "Bosque", "Bailar Conmigo", "Pa Respirar", "Mozo", "Pajaros", "Pure Love", and "Caribbean Power".

One of the best debuts in the history of hip hop – and one of the most important albums the genre ever produced! Criminal Minded is landmark for a number of reasons. Among the biggest is, of course, that it was recorded with the late great DJ Scott La Rock – and he was soon to fall prey to the very street violence that BDP documented with such raw brilliance, courtesy the lyricism and delivery of KRS-One. Importance aside, though, Criminal Minded is simply a great, timeless record that no true fan of gritty classic hip hop should be without. The track list alone is a full chapter in the hip hop book of legends – with tunes like "Poetry", "Elementary", "South Bronx", "Super-Hoe", "Bridge is Over", and the "P is Free" remix. Also includes "Criminal Minded", "Dope Beat", and "9mm Goes Bang".

Tracks include "Blackman In Effect", "Ya Know The Rules", "Beef", "House Niggas", "100 Guns", "Ya Strugglin", "Breath Control II", "Edutainment", "The Homeless", "Original Lyrics", "The Racist", "The Kenny Parker Show", and "Love's Gonna Getcha (Material Love)".

Fab early work from unsung British studio genius John Carter – 2 albums from his Ministry Of Sound group in the 60s! Carter's best known for his later, more baroque productions – but here he's working in a great blend of jangle pop and trippier influences – almost the British equivalent of some of the hipper LA groups of the time, but with bits of Hollies and Kinks-era pop in the mix as well! Tracks are relatively short and straightforward – based around catchy choruses, but often hitting on deeper themes, especially on the later work represented on the set. The 2CD package features the full tracks from the albums Men From The Ministry (1966) and Midsummer Nights Dreaming (1968), plus 11 more bonus singles from the group's Sunny Records sessions of the time. Titles include "I'm Coming Home", "Something Very Good", "Goodbye To Rosalie", "White Collar Worker", "In The Sky", "Sequin Sally", "Rain Raiin Rain", "Roberto Billow", "Love Equals Love", "Memory", "Turn Around", "Time & Motion Man", "Sunday In The Park", and "Magic People".

Heavy electro work from Suzanne Ciani – an artist who peaked a bit later than some of her sound library contemporaries – which means she was able to contribute music experimental films, record productions, and video games – and not just the usual mainstream outlets! Ciani's electronics here are a great mix of modes – both analogue and digital – and her sounds often have a darkness that's really compelling, especially when you consider the ways some of them were used in areas that reached some larger audiences – really cool little spooky bits that underscore the more potent ways that electronic sounds were often used in the 70s generation. The music is light years beyond the playfulness of Perry & Kingsley – and has none of the softness of Ciani's later new age sides – a great revelation that will hopefully get her the recognition she deserves. Titles include "Atari Video Games Logo", "Princess With Orange Feet", "Paris 1971", "Live Buchla Concert 1975", "Sound Of Wetness", "Eighth Wave", "Liberator Atari TV Spot", "Pop & Pour Coca Cola Logo", and "Lixiviation".

A massively wonderful album from Dayton – an album that has the group really getting their groove together – still sticking a bit in the older funk mode from the past, but also bringing in some warmer, deeper touches to their music too! There's a solidness here that's undeniable – a balance of rhythms and instrumentation that few other soul groups of the time were hitting – topped by vocals that have a nice dose of jazz in the mix too, with the sort of sophistication you might expect to hear from some of Wayne Henderson's At Home productions. Production is nice and warm, never too cold or commercial – and titles include the group's great cut "The Sound Of Music" – not the theme from the Broadway show, but a great two-stepper that's instantly infectious – plus "Caught In The Middle", "It Must Be Love", "Promise Me", and "Lookin Up".

One of Bill Evans' landmark sessions with the young bassist Scott LaFaro – a player who made key contributions on every record he touched, then left this earth far too soon in his career! The live session's a perfect demonstration of the way that the Evans trio format not only re-worked the use of the piano in jazz, but also the bass and drums as well – as LaFaro's deeply evocative playing is paired with the equally fresh drum work of Paul Motian – heard here at his youthful early best, before some of his contributions to jazz had become cliche in the hands of other players. The session was caught live at the Village Vanguard on the night of June 25, 1961 – and titles include longish takes on "Solar", "Jade Visions", "Gloria's Step", and "Alice In Wonderland".