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Fierce funky grooves from the legendary Nico Gomez – a set cooked up in Europe, but heavy with influences from the other side of the Atlantic – from Havana all the way up to New York! There's definitely a Latin groove to the record – one that's similar to other Gomez productions – but there's also lots of heavy funk at the bottom – with basslines that drive most numbers along boldly, really raw percussion played with a nice sense of spontaneity, and these super-tight keyboards and guitars that you might find in American funk! The mix of modes is very much in the best spirit of contemporary groups like Chakachas or Lafayette Afro Rock Band – and titles include "Caballo Negro", "Lupita", "Baila Chibiquiban", "Pa! Pa! Pa! Pa!", "One Note Samba", "Cuba Libre", and "El Condor Pasa".

An excellent album of funky drumbreaks – cut by a drummer who's a legend among funk fans, but who hardly ever gets mentioned in history books of jazz. Les was a little known LA player, but he had a monster approach to the kit – and most of the few albums he cut are very in demand for fans of a good funky drum break. This one's a stellar session that mixes together straight funk with some strong choppy fusion numbers – and it was issued on the tiny Dobre label, which came out with some excellent obscure sides during the 70s. Raul De Souza's on trombone, Milcho Leview plays piano, and Robby Robinson plays plenty of nice electric keyboards. Includes the break-heavy tracks "Moondial" and "Funk It!", the jazz dance cut "Canned Heat Suite", the choppy funky "Bacchanal", and the great groover "Kaballa".

A smoking little set from Flaming Ember – a rock group at the core, but one who has plenty of blue-eyed soul in the mix – thanks to great production from Greg Perry, and strong arrangements from HB Barnum and McKinley Jackson – all of whom give the record a vibe that's right up there with the best Hot Wax/Invictus soul sets of the time! There's a nice amount of fuzz in the grooves – that post-Motown style that uses lots of great bass and guitar alongside core Detroit soul modes – and although the vocals have more of a rockish approach, the instrumental undercurrent is a great mix of funk, rock, and soul! Titles include the sweet soul ballad "Sunshine", plus the cuts "Ember Blues", "1200 Miles From Heaven", "Livin High Money Low", "Gotta Get Away", "Heart On Lovin You", "Stop The World & Let Me Off", and "Ding Need Dong".

One of best ever albums by Tom Waits – the beginning of his gutbuckety, Americana Carnivalesque era of dreamlike sinister romance and lovelorn surrealism! The tin pan piano ballads and get pushed a bit to the wayside for Tom's more mysterious and poetic side, and this begins one of the great second acts in pop/rock history. Includes the tracks "Underground", Shore Leave", "Dave The Butcher", "16 Shells From A Thirty-Ought-Six", "Franks Wild Years", "Down, Down, Down", "Rainbirds", "Just Another Sucker On The Vine", "Town With No Cheer, and others.

Soulful, spiritual work from guitarist Grant Green – an exploration of older tunes with a hip Blue Note 60s soul jazz approach! The album features Grant working in a quartet with Herbie Hancock, Billy Higgins, and Butch Warren – plus some added tambourine on a number of tracks – and the overall approach is extremely laidback and open, with Green soloing in a personal style that's a bit less frenetic than some of his other work of the period. Tracks include "Go Down Moses", "Just A Closer Walk With Thee", and "Nobody Knows The Trouble I've Seen". CD features the bonus track "Deep River".

Beautifully understated work from trumpeter Roy Hargrove – an open, laidback session that's easily one of the best he's done in years! Gone are the urban sounds of his RH Factor records, and the more cerebral modes of some of his other jazz sets – and instead, this time around Roy's hitting a warm, fluid groove with plenty of classic overtones and a wonderfully soulful feel! The album's one that would settle in nicely along some of Freddie Hubbard's best later work, and it features a strong quintet with Justin Robinson on alto and flute, Gerald Clayton on piano, Danton Boller on bass, and Montez Coleman on drums. Roy plays flugelhorn as well as trumpet, and titles include "I'm Not So Sure", "Strasbourg/St Denis", "Starmaker", "Joy Is Sorrow Unmasked", "Mr Clean", "Rouge", "Style", "Divine", and "To Wisdom The Prize".

A 70s soul genius – even if you've never heard of the guy! Ron Henderson's a real enigma – a totally great soul artist who recorded throughout the 60s and 70s, but never really cracked the big time – thanks to the fact that his work was spread out over a number of different labels, and never given the push or full album release it deserved. His sound is one that rivals the best bigger names of the 70s mellow soul era – and Ron's got a wonderful talent for gently grooving rhythms and lovingly laidback tunes – in a style that reminds us a bit of Bobby Wilson, or of some of Leroy Hutson's first solo work, and which has a similar evolution as the 70s progress. This excellent CD finally gives Henderson his due – and presents a total of 20 tracks recorded during the early and mid 70s – all packaged with great sound and a full set of notes on Ron's life and music. Titles include "Gemini Lady", "I Feel I Have It In Me", "Your Love", "Problem Child", "The Other Side", "Hooked On Your Love", "Yours Is The Love I Want", "I'll Be Around", "Baby I Wanna Be Yours", "Sunshine", "Mary Green", "You're Twenty One Today", and "She Pleases Me".

Jazzy funk and an all around pretty diverse batch of tunes from the JTQ – with some mighty Rhodes funk tunes, some more groovy jazz tunes, some instro soul, and bits of bossa! James opens up the Rhodes and Hammond funk flavors we best know him for when the mood hits, but we really love the jazzier stuff, too, which he's working more with this time out – on piano, plus clavinet – with the players including Andrew McKinney on bass, Adam Betts on drums, Nick Smart on trumpet, Gareth Lockrane on flute and John Parricelli on guitar. Titles include "Blacksmith", "Rochester Raining", "Same Old Fool", "New World", "Inner Mystic Love", "Stonemason", "Blue Lady", "Hot Wire", "Milk & Honey" and more.

Get ready to discover a true soul genius – the vastly under-known Richard Caiton, an excellent sweet soul singer who hailed from the New Orleans scene of the 60s! Unlike some of his more famous Crescent City contemporaries, who sung in a chunkier funkier style, Caiton's got a mellow soul approach that's much more in keeping with east coast work of the same period. His voice has a sweetly crackling style that we really love – never too sweet, but with an honest and personal approach that brings some nice fragile touches to his music. This collection of work is the first time Caiton's genius has ever been properly brought to light, as most of his tunes were issued on smaller labels, only as singles – leaving it to the genius compilers at Grapevine to bring together all of these great rare tracks from the late 60s and early 70s. 20 tracks in all, with titles that include "I Like To Get Near You", "Take A Hold Brother & Sister", "Superman", "Got To Get Across To You", "I See Love Girl In Your Eyes", "I Gotcha My Love", "Forgive Me Baby", "Reflections", "Our Love Is True", "I'm Not The Other Man", and "What's Wrong Baby".

Incredible work from a singer we know almost nothing about – but who steps out beautifully in this overstuffed set! Tony Owens is a name that we've only seen once or twice on some rare singles that have passed through our hands – and honestly, we'd never dreamed that he'd made so many recordings, or that they'd all be this great! As part of their project to open up the farthest corners of the American scene of years back, the folks at the Grapevine label have brought most of Tony's classic work back to life for this set – stretching back to the mid 60s, and running up through the late 70s – and featuring an assortment of New Orleans soul tracks cut for labels that include Soul Sound, Soulin, Listening Post, Buddah, Island, and Sansu! As with other Grapevine CDs – such as their Johnny Moore or Phillip Mitchell collections – the work is augmented by a history of the artist, and the tracks themselves have been beautifully remastered for a really cohesive sound. The set features 22 tracks in all – including 4 previously unissued numbers – and titles include "I'll Be There", "This Heart Can't Take No More", "I Got Soul", "Confessin A Feeling", "I Can't Lose (parts 1 & 2)", "Thank You", "Woman I Got To Leave You", "Do What You Wanna Do", "All That Matters", "One Man's Woman Another Man's Wife", and "I Need I Need Your Love".

A lost soul treasure from the 70s – and a rare secular album recorded by gospel singer Dottie Peoples! The set's got a stunning deep soul feel – easily right up there with the best 70s work from the Malaco and Muscle Shoals scenes – with a pure and top-shelf approach to the material that stands tall throughout the entire session. Dottie's vocals are tremendous – influenced by her gospel work, but with an easygoing style that's never too overdone, and which has the same mix of modern and southern that we love in work from the time by Jimmy Lewis or Sam Dees. The album's never been issued before, and the original 1978 tapes have been lovingly remastered with beautiful sound. Titles include "Look Around", "Imagine Me", "A House Made Of Love", "Very Strong Affection", "I Don't Want Nobody", and "Bring It Over Baby".

One of the best collections of southern funk we've ever heard! The set has a cover that's a bit inconspicuous, but the music is excellent – an extremely well-selected, all-funky batch of tunes that blows away most other sets of this nature we've heard. The tracks start out in the New Orleans scene, then run northward with a hard and heavy sound – all funky 45-style numbers all the way through, with a quality level that's extremely high, and which blows away most of those bootleg-styled packages on the market. The folks at Grapevine are really getting their goods together for these full compilation releases, and this set's their first real funk outing – and a real killer! Titles include "Four Corners (part 2)" by Lee Dorsey, "Mama Said We Can't Get Married" by Warren Lee, "Goobah" by Soul Continentals, "Funky Lu" by Al Trahan, "Hung Up" by Salt, "Junk" by The Fantoms, "Coffee Pot (part 1)" by Bo Jr, "That Thing" by Pee Wee Ellis, "Katty's Thing" by Anthony Butler & The Invaders, "Squeeze Me (parts 1 & 2)" by Dynamic 7, "Down In A Bag" by BB Daddy, "Let The Groove Move You" by Gus The Groove Lewis, and "Hot Tamales (part 1)" by Prime Mates. 20 tracks in all – and all great!

A double-length collection of work from two obscure Atlanta soul labels – the Tragar and Note imprints, both run by local producer Jesse Jones! Back in the day, Atlanta wasn't nearly as big of an outlet for soul records as it's become in recent years – so Jones' labels were key in showcasing under-exposed local talent in the city, a range of soul groups, solo singers, and funk combos – all produced here with a really fresh sound! Nearly every track here is super-obscure – and there's few southern soul cliches to get in the way of the music – no overdone blues, no Hotlanta disco, no Muscle Shoals copies – just honest-to-goodness indie soul at its best – full of life, vitality, and personality – all presented with the usual deep-digging Numero look at the artists in the notes. The package features a whopping 50 tracks in all – one of the biggest Numero collections so far – and together, they really tell the tale of this crucially overlooked scene – a key link between more familiar southern styles and rising Northern modes, all with a personality of its own. Titles include "All Because of You" and "Down In The Country" by Tee Fletcher, "The Hump" and "Tipping Strings" by The Knights, "Somebody Got A Help Me" and "Love is So Mean" by Richard Cook, "I'll Show You With Love" by Young Divines, "Watch The Dog That Bring The Bone" by Sandy Gaye, "Messing Around" by Bobby Owens & The Diplomats, "I Think It's Time" by Alice Swoboda, "Black Midnight" by JJ Jones, "That's How Much I Love You" by Eula Cooper, "Let's Get Funky" by Langston & French, "You Got A Spell On Me" by Bill Wright, "Strange Feeling" by Nathan Wilkes, "Shake Daddy Shake" by Eula Cooper, and "Nitecap" by L Daniels.

Cheekily-titled, totally invigoring live material from Japan's great avant jazz sax player Akira Sakata, never-predictable soundscape crafter Jim O'Rourke (on guitar, harmonica and electronics here) and the Chikamorachi duo of drummer Chris Corsano and bassist & percussionist Darin Gray – recorded during a 2008 tour of Japan! Disc One features 2 nearly half hour long pieces titled for the city being visited: "Kyoto" and "Hanamaki". Sakata's sax is a thing of grace and beauty in solo moments, and he digs in with the tense, noisy dynamic of the more heated passages with O'Rourke, Corsano and Gray in real heated way. Disc Two features "Nagoya 1" (a 22 minute tumult), "Nagoya 2" (slow-building with an intense Sakata solo) and "Nagoya 3" (another ascending, increasingly dynamic effort that runs north of 15 minutes).

A fresh serving of genius from Madlib – served up here in yet another manifestation of the Yesterday's New Quintet combo! Sound Directions have a groove that's quite similar to YNQ, but which focuses a bit more on the skittish percussion of Otis Jackson and "Sloppy" Joe Johnson – a live but spacey approach to rhythm, and one that often has the drums recorded in this gritty way that's nice and crunchy – and which is a perfect "bottom" to the tighter horns and electric keyboards of the set! Madlib's got help from guest players who vary from track to track – fleshing out his unique musical vision that includes new takes on Billy Brooks' "40 Days", Marcos Valle's "Wanda Vidal", Oliver Sain's "On The Hill", Lesiman's "Play Car", and David Axelrod's "A Divine Image" – as well as the original tunes "Theme For Ivory Black", Directions", and "Dice Game". Great stuff all around – with a groove that's as wild as Madlib's trip into the Blue Note vaults!

The title's a bit clunky, but the grooves are wonderfully smooth – a great assortment of hard to find tracks from recent years, all brought together in one totally wicked set! The cuts here are pulled from a variety of sources – Japanese-only CDs, previously unreleased sessions, and now out of print albums – all with a warmly contemporary vibe, but one that's steeped in older soul modes from the 70s and early 80s. Many of the artists here are familiar, but they're represented by tracks you probably don't have in your collection – tunes that are definitely "desirables", both for their quality and rarity! Titles include "Bad Company" by Luther Vandross, "Dance" by Sara Devine, "Tell Me" by Tiffany, "For You" by Jack Herrera, "It's Good To Be Loved" by Ronee Martin, "For Goodness Sake" by K Fox, "Cloud 9 (DJ Spinna rmx)" by Donnie, "Dreamin Of One" by Trina Broussard, "Where Did We Go Wrong (so right mix)" by Incognito, "Days Like This (black sand mix)" by Kenny Lattimore, "No Matter What I'll Do" by Donald McCollum, and "Can't Get Over You" by Brigette McWilliams.