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One of the most political of Dr King's albums – recorded in 1967, but issued after his death when the Vietnam War was still going strong. The album's one of the great titles on Motown's short-lived Black Forum imprint, and is a lot stronger stuff than some of the other King albums they continued to keep in print.

Surprisingly nice work! Like the rest of Solomon's post-Atlantic LPs, this one has a sound that's different than his classic work, but which also exposes a whole new side of his talent, and range of vocals that didn't always show up for Atlantic. Solomon arranged and produced here, and the sound is mellow and a bit modern, but still with excellent southern soul touches. Most of the tracks are new, and are dedications to Martin Luther King Jr., who was the inspiration for the album. The stuff's a lot more political than most of Solomon's work, as you might guess by titles like "I Have A Dream", "Now Is The Time", "Social Change", and "Mountain Top".

A great set that brings together 2 live albums from organist Charles Earland! Live At The Lighthouse is a real killer – with that tight jazzy groove that Earland had on his first few albums for Prestige, a mix of jazz funk and soul jazz, handled with an incredible touch on the organ! The band includes lesser known players like trumpeter Elmer Coles, alto player James Vass, and conga player Kenneth Nash – but they all groove very tightly, and provide a perfect foil for Earland's soaring solos. Includes a great version of "Moontrane", plus the groovers "Spinky", "Smiling", and "Black Gun". Kharma is a spiritual live set recorded at the 1974 Montreux festival, and one that has Earland opening into the freer sound that dominated his playing during the mid 70's – with lots of modal grooves, and those long soulful leaps that made his solos always so great! Jon Faddis, Clifford Adams, and Dave Hubbard are in the lineup, and tracks include "Morgan", "Kharma", and his "Suite for Martin Luther King". 11 tracks in all!

One of the more unusual records on Sue from the 60s – an all-instrumental outing, recorded by Juggy Murray in tribute to the late Dr Martin Luther King Jr! The music is done in a larger orchestral mode that's much more soundtrack-oriented than Juggy's other work – with less (or none) of the soul jazz/soul instrumental touches you might expect – and more of a serious approach to the music that features various period and mood musical montages. Packaged in a nice cover with images of King over newspaper stories and headlines – and featuring arrangements by Fred Norman, on tunes that include "The Freedom Riders", "Dawn Of A New Era At Ole Miss", "Birmingham", "Mourning", and "The Nobel Peace Prize".

A classic speech by Jesse Jackson – one that became quite a hit for Stax's Respect subsidiary, and which was one of the better selling albums of its type in the early 70s. The album was recorded back in the days before Jesse had become a bit of a cliché, when he appeared to be emerging as the heir to Martin Luther King's crown, with possibly as much potential for social change and political motivation. The record contains Jesse's famous "I Am Somebody" speech – which included the title chant that would be taken up often in the 70s, even on funky records, as well as into the 80s and 90s, when it was frequently sampled by hip hoppers.

One of the harder-hitting books we've ever seen on James Brown – an account of his famous Boston performance on April 5, 1968 – the night after Martin Luther King was assassinated – but one that also looks at Brown's lasting impact on race in America as well! We appreciate author James Sullivan's approach here, as it gets right past some of the over-told stories from Brown's early days – and jumps right in to the time when The Godfather was really starting to get funky, and shake things up around the country in the process. Book includes a foreword by Chuck D, some black and white photos, and is 244 pages, paperback.

Dialogue excerpts from two early 70s films documenting the shift between the Civil Rights and Black Power eras in the US! Side one is taken from the film Huey – and features Black Panthers Bobby Seale, Eldridge Cleaver and H Rap Brown – plus what sounds like interviews with police and other officials at the time. One of the highlights is as speech in which the platform of the Black Panther party is enumerated, with its 10 point program. The second side is drawn from the film Listen Whitey – and features bits from phone-in radio programs the day after Martin Luther King was assassinated, as well as pieces taken from official statements from pundits and other black leaders from the period.