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One of Eddie's classic dancefloor groovers for Tamla, with production and arrangements by the hit team of Frank Wilson and Leonard Caston! The album keeps Eddie's hit "boogie" groove going strong – grooving mostly in a midtempo smooth soul style that would become a dominant approach to soul during the next few years, Eddie and Motown's contribution to the soul legacy of the 70s that was nearly as strong as that of Philly soul. Titles include "Boogie Down", "Hooked On Your Love", "Honey Brown", "Tell Her Love Has Felt The Need", and "Loving You The Second Time Around".

A truly amazing album – unlike anything Eddie Kendricks ever did before, or since – and one of those records that really helped shape the sound of soul in the 70s! The music is as rich and powerful as the image on the cover – with some righteous undercurrents that really mark the time and place of the record, yet also help it transcend so many other standard soul modes of the period too! Arrangements are wonderfully complex – as you'll hear on the classic groovers "Girl You Need A Change Of Mind" and "Date With The Rain" – each very different numbers, but both a showcase for Kendricks' wonderful vocal approach. Other titles include the progressive "People Hold On" – plus "I'm On The Sideline", "Day By Day", "If You Let Me", "Let Me Run Into Your Lonely Heart", and "Someday We'll Have A Better World".

A truly amazing album – unlike anything Eddie Kendricks ever did before, or since – and one of those records that really helped shape the sound of soul in the 70s! The music is as rich and powerful as the image on the cover – with some righteous undercurrents that really mark the time and place of the record, yet also help it transcend so many other standard soul modes of the period too! Arrangements are wonderfully complex – as you'll hear on the classic groovers "Girl You Need A Change Of Mind" and "Date With The Rain" – each very different numbers, but both a showcase for Kendricks' wonderful vocal approach. Other titles include the progressive "People Hold On" – plus "I'm On The Sideline", "Day By Day", "If You Let Me", "Let Me Run Into Your Lonely Heart", and "Someday We'll Have A Better World".

Eddie's sweet clubby soul is produced by the master, Norman Harris – and the result is one of Eddie's best crossover albums of the 70s. The groove is pure Philly, with the usual crack team in the studio – Vince Montana, Bobby Eli, Ron Baker, and Harris himself. Includes "Born Again", "Sweet Tenderoni", "Don't Put Off Until Tomorrow", and the great "To You From Me".

It's nearing the end of the 70s and Eddie's still goin' strong, with another LP of sophisticated soul. By this point, Eddie's already shown he can groove smooth and mellow, or pop along nicely with a dancefloor oriented groove, which he manages to do in stride here, his light voice meshing nicely with crisp arrangements. With "The Best Of Strangers Now", "Don't Underestimate The Power Of Love", "Ain't No Smoke Without A Fire" and "Maybe I'm A Fool To Love You".

A pair of late 70s Motown gems from Cuba Gooding – back to back on a single CD! The well-titled 1st Cuba Gooding Album is his first project on his own, done after a classic stretch in the Main Ingredient! Gooding's working here with help from Dennis Lambert and Brian Potter – the hit 70s soul team who really help him find a great new groove on his own – a sound that's rooted in the sweeter vocal modes of The Main Ingredient, but which has a sparklingly sophisticated quality of its own! The music is mature and upbeat – a bit like some of David Ruffin or Eddie Kendricks' solo work of the 70s – and nearly all tunes here are originals by Potter and Lambert. Titles include "Fool Of The Year", "Mind Pleaser", "Hold On To What You Got", "All I Can Give You Is Love", and "As Long As There's You". Love Dancer is a tremendous solo outing from Cuba Gooding – a record that not only shows his strength as a lead singer away from The Main Ingredient – but one that also shows that he really knows how to groove as well! The album's produced by Michael Smith, and has a vibe that's a bit different than Gooding's previous Motown record – with some tunes that have a wonderfully rich clubby sort of sparkle – and some even nicer mellow moments that really unlock that mature potential Gooding always had in his vocals – that smooth-stepping sound he'd really bring to the forefront when returning to The Main Ingredient in the 80s. Titles include the great mellow groover "I'm Yours Now" – plus "Hey The Party's In Here", "Disco Royale", "Trust Me", "Tell Me How Long It's Been", and "Running Man".

A late 80s duo set from former Temptations David Ruffin & Eddie Kendricks! The Ruffin & Kendrick album for RCA (we didn't leave the -s off Eddie's last name, that's how he was billed at the time) finds both in excellent form vocally, and rather than making a neo-classic Motown vibe for the record, the production is very much in the 80s modern soul mode of bigger hits of the day. It's got bright synth soul, a bit of boogie, and other other mid-to-late 80s modes that should have made this one a real win commercially – especially given the soulful weight and importance of the singers and genuine emotion in their performances. Titles include "I Couldn't Believe It", "Ordinary Girl", "One More For The Lonely Hearts Club", a cover of "Family Affair", "Goodnight Pillow".

An all-star effort from The Temptations – and a well-titled set that has the group brimming over with classic vocal talent! The group's expanded to a seven-piece outfit for the album – with Eddie Kendricks and David Ruffin back in the fold, singing alongside Dennis Edwards, Otis Williams, Melvin Franklin, and the rest of the group! Motown also culled together some top-shelf production talent for the set too – including Berry Gordy, Rick James, Barrett Strong, and Smokey Robinson – all of whom produce numbers for the record. Some of the tracks are in an 80s groove modes, and others are mellower ballads that offer plenty of space for vocal interplay – and titles include "I've Never Been To Me", "Backstage", "More On The Inside", "Standing On The Top", "Lock It In The Pocket", and "You Better Beware".

Warm groovers galore – an incredible package of uptempo soul tracks from the 70s – cuts that are deeper than disco, but every bit as tight – all brought together to showcase a tremendous generation in music! There's a great mix of classics and underground numbers here – and the package is overflowing with greatness, especially at this price – a whopping 23 tracks in all, including a fair bit we haven't turned up in years – some really rare singles that are great to finally have on CD! The set's easily one of our favorites in this excellent Backbeats series – and titles include "Talkin Bout Poor Folks" by Lou Edwards & Today's People, "Make Me Believe In You" by Patti Jo, "I'm In Need Of Love" by Lou Courtney, "Love Don't Come No Stronger" by Jeff Perry, "Am I Cold Am I Hot" by Bill Harris, "Keep On Trying" by LTG Exchange, "I Couldn't Believe It" by David Ruffin & Eddie Kendricks, "Are You Ready For This" by The Brothers, "Can We Share It" by Rick Shephard, "Lady In Red" by Ronnie Dyson, "Once I've Been There" by Norman Connors, "You Made A Believer Out Of Me" by Betty Lavette, "What About My Love" by Damaris, and "Get Out Of My Life" by Sharon McMahan.

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.

Modern soul, R&B, and smooth grooves – the sound of the Stepper's scene that's been big in Chicago for years, and which seems to be having a bit of pull outside the Windy City these days! Tracks include "Rising Cost of Love" by Loose Change, "Sing A Simple Song" by Identiy Crisis, "The Joneses (12" Mix)" by The Temptations, "Sweet On U" by Lo Key, "Never Say Goodbye To Love" by Rene Moore, "Special Kind Of Fool" by Basic Black, "Mr Fix It" by Jeffree, "Love's Gonna Last" by Jeffree, "Don't Look Any Further" by Dennis Edwards, and "Don't Know Why" by David Ruffin & Eddie Kendricks.

Plenty of Impact from this great Philly group – a soaring quartet who harmonize with some great Bobby Eli arrangements – at a level that shines as strongly as the best 70s work by Blue Magic or The Spinners! Impact never broke the big time as strongly, but they're a great group in the best 70s Philly mode – rooted in an older harmony style, but able to really take off with some sweet Sigma Sound styles – the sort of balance that few other groups managed to handle this well. The quartet features Damon Harris, who sang with the Temptations after Eddie Kendricks left in 1971 – and the group is a re-formation of The Young Vandals, who recorded briefly on T-Neck before Harris left for the Temps. Titles include "Happy Man", "Give A Broken Heart A Break", "Love Attack", "It Only Happens In the Movies", and "Winning Combination".

Plenty of Impact from this great Philly group – a soaring quartet who harmonize with some great Bobby Eli arrangements – at a level that shines as strongly as the best 70s work by Blue Magic or The Spinners! Impact never broke the big time as strongly, but they're a great group in the best 70s Philly mode – rooted in an older harmony style, but able to really take off with some sweet Sigma Sound styles – the sort of balance that few other groups managed to handle this well. The quartet features Damon Harris, who sang with the Temptations after Eddie Kendricks left in 1971 – and the group is a re-formation of The Young Vandals, who recorded briefly on T-Neck before Harris left for the Temps. Titles include "Happy Man", "Give A Broken Heart A Break", "Love Attack", "It Only Happens In the Movies", and "Winning Combination".

Tremendous tremendous grooves – hip, jazzy, and deeply soulful – all hand-picked by DJ Spinna, and way more than just the usual funk compilation! Spinna's not kicking back, letting the licensors do his work for him here – and he's really gone out of his way to select a batch of older tracks that match the hipness of his own current work – sublime tunes throughout, all glowing in a united love of soul, funk, fusion, Latin, and Brazilian modes! 2CD set is unmixed, and features 20 tracks that include "River People" by Weather Report, "Bail Out" by DJ Rogers, "When She Made Me Promise" by Beginning Of The End, "Tuane" by Hammer, "Movin On" by Outside, "The World Was Young" by Monika Linges, "Let's Rock" by Feel, "Nereci" by Djavan, "Too Late" by Junior, "Automan (dub)" by Newcleus, "It Ain't Whatcha Say" by Aquarian Dream, "Come Into My Life" by The Supremes, "Tell Me A Bedtime Story" by Herbie Hancock, and "Body Talk" by Eddie Kendricks.