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A lost gem from the legendary Frank Wright – a previously-unissued live date from 1974, and one of his most hard-burning albums of the 70s! The group here is a quartet – driven by heavy drum work from Rashied Ali, who hosted the performance – plus incredible guitar from James Blood Ulmer, who's really coming into his own here – and bass from Benny Wilson. There's a freewheeling energy to the record that definitely shows the bolder sounds that Wright had picked up on the French scene – yet the whole thing also has that grounded sense of soul that we love in older ESP recordings too – a quality that seems to help Ulmer's guitar find all the right notes! Six long tracks, all part of an longer live performance.

A 2CD collection that features both of Frank Wright's albums for ESP, plus a selection of additional interview material! 1965's Frank Wright Trio is a freewheeling workout in the classic ESP mode – tenor saxophonist Wright's first album as a leader, and a majestic little session that easily stands alongside the best from Albert Ayler and Archie Shepp at the time! The format here is a bit like that of Ayler's ESP work – as Wright's hard tenor is set against the bass of Henry Grimes and the drums of Tom Price – but the difference here is that Wright's sharply-bitten, angular lines on tenor are at the forefront of the record – leaping ahead from the rest of the group and almost standing on their own as if Frank were recording solo! Titles include "The Moon", "Jerry", and "The Earth". Your Prayer is a bit more of a group effort than his first – recorded with an expanded lineup that points the way towards some of the French scene on BYG a few years later – with Jacques Coursil on trumpet, Arthur Jones on alto, Steve Tintweiss on bass, and Muhammad Ali on drums. There's a tight formation at the head of some of the tracks, with freer breakout solos as the tunes go on – very much in the BYG/Actuel mode. Titles include "Fire of Spirits", "No End", and "Your Prayer".

No palaver here – given that the album is tight, focused, and possibly the best so far from this amazing vocalist! Lina Nyberg's a singer like few we can think of today – a creative, compelling artist who really lets her vocals open up in these completely unique styles – with the kind of freshness that you'd find in the 70s generation of singers like Sheila Jordan, Karin Krog, or Monica Zetterlund! The style's creative, but never too outside – avant, yet still plenty swinging jazz, too – that balance that you'd find in the ladies we reference. Core instrumentation includes piano, guitars, bass, and drums – and the set also features some guest trumpet and baritone sax too – on titles that include "Paul", "Ditte", "Caetano", "Adrenalina", "Ingrid", "Aliisa", and "So Long Frank Lloyd Wright".

The record features Cecil's Segments II Orchestra Of Two Continents – with trumpets by Enrico Rava and Tomasz Stanko, bass by William Parker, drums by Rashied Bakr and Andre Martinez, and saxes by John Tchicai, Frank Wright, and Jimmy Lyons. Titles include "Winged Serpent", "Womb Waters Scent Of The Burning Armadillo Shell", and "Cun Un Un Un An".

A post-Supremes disco effort from Mary Wilson – but one that comes off relatively well, especially considering how a session like this could flop if done poorly! Mary's getting some top-shelf help on the album – Hal Davis on production, Art Wright on arrangements, and a set of original material by Frank Busey and John Duarte – all of which keeps the record from being just a disco filler kind of set. But the real strength here is Wilson's vocals – which are strongly soulful, and never overwhelmed by the backings. And while we're not ready to say that Mary's a great club diva, we're surprised at how well she does fit into this mode. Titles include "Midnight Dancer", "Red Hot", "You Make Me Feel So Good", "Pick Up The Pieces", and "I've Got What You Need".

An essential chapter of Miami soul – even if most of the work is appearing here for the first time ever! The set is a magnificent companion to Numero's Deep City collection of pre-TK Miami soul – but it's put together in such a way that it's almost a beautiful introduction to the south Florida sound on its own – served up in a batch of rare, unreleased tracks! The music is every bit as wonderful as you'd expect – Miami soul recorded at a time before cliches had started to hit that scene – and when the best artists down south were strongly resonating ideas from Memphis and Muscle Shoals with other elements borrowed from northern groups both funky and mellow. Numero have really outdone themselves with this one – and the collection is way more than a part 2 to their previous package – more of a brilliant set of soul tunes on its own, complete with a booklet that's as beautiful as the music. Titles include "One Little Piece" by The Rollers, "Don't Be Surprised" by Lynn Williams, "No Way Out" by Clarence Reid, "What's In The Lovin" by Helene Smith, "Mr Lucky" by Betty Wright, "There Goes My Baby" by James Knight & The Butlers, "Do What You're Doin" by The Rising Sun, "Do Your Stuff" by Perk Badger, "Masterpiece" by Deep City Band, "Nasty Dog (part 2)" by The Nasty Dog Catchers, "Thank You Baby" by Betty Wright, "Your Love Won't Let Me Leave You" by Snoopy Dean, "The Pot Can't Talk About The Kettle" by Helene Smith, "Show Me What You Got" by Frank Williams & The Rocketeers, "Don't Be A Fool" by Clarence Reid, and "Knockin At The Wrong Door" by The Rollers. 2LP version features a great 12 x 12 fold out color insert in the middle – and includes 4 bonus tracks – instrumental versions of "Play With Fire" by The Rollers, "True Love Don't Grow On Trees" by Helene Smith, and "There Goes My Baby" by James Knight & The Butlers – plus the cut "Frenchy The Tickler" by Johnny K Killens & The Dynamites.

The birth of Miami soul, and a beautifully done document of the rare Deep City label – home to Willie Clarke, Clarence Reid, and Betty Wright in the years before Alston and TK Records! Way before Miami soul started cracking the charts at the start of the 70s, Deep City was already putting the best parts in place – working with a tight roster of artists and an equally tight in-house band that rose from the ranks of Florida A&M's Marching 100 band – razor-sharp instrumentalists who helped forge a groove worthy to rival the sounds of Memphis, Muscle Shoals, and even the best of Detroit at the time – given that some of the work here has a much sweeter soul sound than other 60s southern soul. As usual, the Numero team have done an incredible job with the package – pulling out rare photos, personal stories, and just the right amount of information to breathe new life into the Deep City label and help it live anew. Titles include "Paralyzed" and "Good Lovin" by Betty Wright, "Am I A Good Man" by Them Two, "Someone To Fulfill My Needs" and "I Love You Baby" by The Moovers, "I Am Controlled By Your Love" and "Willing & Able" by Helene Smith, "Good Thing (part 1)" by Frank Williams & The Rocketeers, "It's My Baby" and "The Upset" by Paul Kelly, and "Stay Away From My Johnny" by Freda Gray & The Rocketeers. 2LP version features 6 bonus tracks – all instrumental – including "Good Lovin (inst)", "I Love You Baby (inst)", "Darling I'll Go (inst)", and "Am I A Good Man (inst)" by The Deep City Band – and "Stay Away From My Johnny (inst)" and "Good Thing (part 2) (inst)" by The Rocketeers.

A crucially important slice of work – and maybe one of the most striking sets in this all-great Spiritual Jazz series! The focus here is on some of the great American players working in Europe during the late 60s and early 70s – often in collaboration with equally forward-thinking Europeans, and with results that are still musically amazing all these many years later! The collection has American flautist Sahib Shihab working with Swiss guitarist Pierre Cavalli, sound library maestro Johnny Hawksworth with west coast giant Hampton Hawes, Don Cherry working with Krzysztof Penderecki, a rare version of "Enlightenment" by Sun Ra in France and other legendary European recordings by Albert Ayler, Billy Gault, and Lee Konitz – a wonderfully rich blend of players. The tracks are pulled from records we almost never see – especially on vinyl – titles include "Studie Nr 1 Fur 12 Saitige Gitarre" by Pierre Cavalli & Sahib Shihab, "Jazz Rule" by Johnny Hawksworth & Hampton Hawes, "Born & Shake" by Clarence Peters, "Enlightenment by Sun Ra, "Summertime" by Albert Ayler, "T & W" by Frank Wright Sextet, "Humus The Life Exploring Force" by Don Cherry & The New Eternal Rhythm Orchestra, "Five, Four, & Three" by Lee Konitz, "The Creators" by Bobby Hutcherson with Harold Land, and the masterful, nearly 20-minute "Springtime" by Eric Dolphy. Includes a great essay on the scene by Francis Gooding, plus extensive info for each track!

A treasure! The set features rare live work from three key members of The Blue Notes, working here alongside tenorist Frank Wright in a late 70s performance from the Netherlands – issued here for the first time, and with really brilliant sound overall! The lineup features Dudu Pukwana on alto and piano, Johnny Dyani on bass and piano, Louis Moholo on drums, and the legendary Frank Wright on tenor and a bit of double bass – all working together freely with a tremendous sense of collaboration – Wright's tenor blown with beautifully soulful, raspy tones that seem to push Dudu even farther than on some of his other albums from the time. There's almost an Art Ensemble Of Chicago feel to the record, although the whole thing comes off with a bit more of a South African soul – as befits the origin of the players – on titles that include "Ancient Spirit" and "Contemporary Fire".

An explosion of music from the legendary ESP Records label – a 50th Anniversary tribute to all the genius that made the imprint so wonderful back in the day – and easily one of the most important jazz labels in America! The set here focuses heavily on ESP's contribution to avant jazz – and the tracks feature the cream of the crop of the east coast scene at the time – particularly the groundbreaking New York players who were running forward with the experiments of the "new thing" generation, and starting to forge the first space for free jazz in the US! Titles include "Burn Baby Burn" by Norman Howard, "No 6" by New York Art Quartet, "The Lady" by Frank Wright, "Cocktail Piece" by Don Cherry, "Metamorphosis" by Sonny Simmons, "Other Worlds" by Sun Ra, and "Batterie" by Paul Bley.

A crucially important slice of work – and maybe one of the most striking sets in this all-great Spiritual Jazz series! The focus here is on some of the great American players working in Europe during the late 60s and early 70s – often in collaboration with equally forward-thinking Europeans, and with results that are still musically amazing all these many years later! The collection has American flautist Sahib Shihab working with Swiss guitarist Pierre Cavalli, sound library maestro Johnny Hawksworth with west coast giant Hampton Hawes, Don Cherry working with Krzysztof Penderecki, a rare version of "Enlightenment" by Sun Ra in France and other legendary European recordings by Albert Ayler, Billy Gault, and Lee Konitz – a wonderfully rich blend of players. The tracks are pulled from records we almost never see – especially on vinyl – titles include "Studie Nr 1 Fur 12 Saitige Gitarre" by Pierre Cavalli & Sahib Shihab, "Jazz Rule" by Johnny Hawksworth & Hampton Hawes, "Born & Shake" by Clarence Peters, "Enlightenment by Sun Ra, "Summertime" by Albert Ayler, "T & W" by Frank Wright Sextet, "Humus The Life Exploring Force" by Don Cherry & The New Eternal Rhythm Orchestra, "Five, Four, & Three" by Lee Konitz, "The Creators" by Bobby Hutcherson with Harold Land, and the masterful, nearly 20-minute "Springtime" by Eric Dolphy. Includes a great essay on the scene by Francis Gooding, plus extensive info for each track!

This is a late 60's reissue of an early 60's album originally titled In A Minor Groove. These tracks show Dorothy at her early best, and jamming (yes, that's right, jamming) on the harp along with her quartet that included Frank Wess on flute, Herman Wright on bass, and Art Taylor on drums. And while the idea of a harp/flute lineup might sound a bit snoozy to you – this isn't some west coast poofy session, but a nicely soulful batch of tracks that shows that the right group can make any set of instruments swing! Titles include "Rascality", "Taboo", "Yesterdays", and "It's A Minor Thing".

A rare little straight ahead set from Cal – not nearly as Latin as some of his other sides for Fantasy at the time, and done in a gently grooving way that's mighty nice! The group's a quartet (in case you couldn't guess from the title!) – with Gerald Wiggins on piano, Eugene Wright on bass, and Bill Douglass on drums – all swinging along with Cal in a gently soulful mode that offers some great interplay between his vibes and Wiggins' piano. Titles include "A Fifth For Frank", "Miss Wiggins", "A Light Groove", "It Never Entered My Mind", and "Fancy Bea".

The birth of Miami soul, and a beautifully done document of the rare Deep City label – home to Willie Clarke, Clarence Reid, and Betty Wright in the years before Alston and TK Records! Way before Miami soul started cracking the charts at the start of the 70s, Deep City was already putting the best parts in place – working with a tight roster of artists and an equally tight in-house band that rose from the ranks of Florida A&M's Marching 100 band – razor-sharp instrumentalists who helped forge a groove worthy to rival the sounds of Memphis, Muscle Shoals, and even the best of Detroit at the time – given that some of the work here has a much sweeter soul sound than other 60s southern soul. As usual, the Numero team have done an incredible job with the package – pulling out rare photos, personal stories, and just the right amount of information to breathe new life into the Deep City label and help it live anew. CD features 17 tracks in all – including "Paralyzed" and "Good Lovin" by Betty Wright, "Am I A Good Man" by Them Two, "Someone To Fulfill My Needs" and "I Love You Baby" by The Moovers, "I Am Controlled By Your Love" and "Willing & Able" by Helene Smith, "Good Thing (part 1)" by Frank Williams & The Rocketeers, "It's My Baby" and "The Upset" by Paul Kelly, and "Stay Away From My Johnny" by Freda Gray & The Rocketeers.

A rare soul jazz session from alto saxophonist Leo Wright – a player that we mostly know from his bossa work of the early 60s! The session's extremely noteworthy as being one of the few to feature female organist Gloria Coleman – a player with whom Wright worked on her classic 1963 date Soul Sisters, and who returns here in a very similar hard-wailing sax-and-organ mode! Wright's work on alto is incredibly deep – with a sharper bite than much of his other 60s sessions, and a gutsy down-n-dirty quality that makes the record feel like one of the best organ jazz albums at the time from Prestige. Coleman's approach to the Hammond is great too – freely skipping around with a liberated sense of rhythm, in a way that matches Wright's every twist and turn with ease – and throws a few of its own into the mix as well! The group's completed by Kenny Burrell on guitar (also sounding harder here than usual!) and Frankie Dunlop on drums – and titles include some fresh originals "Poopsie's Minor", "State Trooper", "Blue Leo", "Blues Fanfare", and "Soul Talk".

A great tribute to the concept of the "wants list" – that crumpled piece of paper that nearly every record collector carries around with them, a listing of hard to find recordings that they're always trying to track down! The set is a great mix of obscure 60s and 70s soul, with a real focus on the kinds of cuts that are all pretty darn important – but also equally hard to track down on their own. Mellow soul is the dominant groove here, making the package a winning set of some killer tunes that are equally appealing now as they were back in the day! Titles include "Touch Me Take Me" by Rita Wright, "Light My Fire" by Erma Franklin, "This Feeling's Rated X-Tra" by Carl Carlton, "One Girl Too Late" by Brenda & The Tabulations, "Let Me Be" by The Duncans, "Mon Belle Amour" by Ann Pebbles, "I Think I'm Falling In Love With You" by Natural High, "I Just Got To Know" by Bennie Johnson, "City Of Brotherly Love" by Soul Survivors, "I'm Always Dancing To The Music" by Benny Golson, "Making Love" by Lou Ragland & GLO, "Hearts & Flowers" by GC Cameron, and "Beware" by Lou Courtney.

Rare work from one of our favorite Dizzy Gillespie groups ever – the quintet that featured Lalo Schifrin on piano and Leo Wright on alto and flute! The combo was easily one of Dizzy's most compelling of the postwar years, and really helped break him into a whole new groove rhythmically – thanks to Schifrin's key influence on rhythms – working here with bass from Bob Cunningham and drums from Mel Lewis. Yet the group only cut a handful of records together, which makes this well-recorded live date a key addition to their catalog – a set you'll proudly stack next to your early 60s Philips recordings from Diz. Titles include "Con Alma", "Willow Weep For Me", "The Mooche", "Kush", "I Can't Get Started", and "Oops Shoo Be Doo Be".

20 heavy tracks of soul from Atlantic's early 70s roster: King Floyd "Groove Me" and "Baby Let Me Kiss You", Brook Benton "Shoes", Little Sister "Somebody's Watching You", Jackie Moore "Precious Precious", Wilson Pickett "Don't Let The Green Grass Fool You" and "Don't Knock My Love - Part 1", Garland Green "Plain & Simple Girl", Tyrone Davis "Could I Forget You", Aretha Franklin "Bridge Over Troubled Water" and "Spanish Harlem", The Beginning Of The End "Funky Nassau - Part 1", Dede Warwicke "Suspicious Minds", Roberta Flack & Donny Hathaway "You've Got a Friend", Barabra Lynn "(Until Then) I'll Suffer", the Persuaders "Thin Line Between Love & Hate", Clarence Carter "Slipped, Tripped & Fell In Love", King Curtis "Changes - Part 2", Sam & Dave "Don't Pull Your Love" and Betty Wright "Clean Up Woman".

An excellent collection of soulful house from the Detroit underground of the mid 00s onward – one that's bubbling over with great work from lesser-known talents – all of whom come together to prove that these days, Detroit's one of the most happening music scenes on the planet! There's a really unified feel to the record, despite the presence of so many different artists – and much of the work here is kind of a homegrown version of the better-known cosmic grooves that have been emanating from the city in the work of Amp Fiddler, Ayro, and others in recent years. There's perhaps a bit more of a house-heavy vibe here than those references might imply – but the sound is cosmically soulful all the way through, with some great vocals on the best tracks! Titles include "Everybody (Amp Fiddler rmx)" by Courtney Jackson, "Melodies From The Jazz Republic" by Mick Huckaby, "Cosmic Jungle" by Rick The Godson Wilhite, "Ecoutez" by Keith Worthy & Malik Alston, "The Feeling Of Love (Amp Fiddler rmx)" by Anetria Wright, "Hot N Funky" by Delano Smith, "Sugar (Amp Fiddler rmx)" by Patchworks, "In The Dark" by Raybone Jones, Marcellus Malik Pittman, & Rick The Godson Wilhite. 2012 version includes the bonus track "Bosmos" by Rick The Godson Wilhite & Kenny Dixon Jr (Moodyman) plus DVD bonus disc: In The Dark: Voices, shot in Detroit by Chris Bravo and featuring Ron Trent, Franki "DJ 3000" Juncaj, Mike Huckaby, Diviniti & Pirahnahead and many more.