Amazing! This is one of the coolest CDs we've seen in years – and everything about it is fantastic, from the package right down to the double-length set of music! The set features rare unreleased recordings from Raymond Scott's legendary Manhattan Research electronic music studios – originally set up in 1946, and home to some of Scott's landmark early work on non-acoustic music during the 50s and 60s. Far from being the sort of turgid, dark knob-twiddling that computer music later became in the academy, Scott's early experiments are filled with a sense of whimsy and joy – exported directly from his early cartoon-based work, and applied in a fantastic way to his evolving musical inventions! Plus, the whole thing's packaged in this super-cool hardcover book, with a whopping 140 pages of notes, photographs, old advertisements, and interviews – all done in a brilliant graphic style that complements the package even further! Don't forget the music, though – because it's totally fantastic – and kind of reminds us of bits of Jon Appleton's Syntonic Menagerie, Pierre Henry's early Musique Concrete, and later punk-era DIY electronics. That doesn't even come close to pinning it down, though – and with 2 CDs worth of material, the scope of the work is amazing! CD

Amazing! This is one of the coolest sets we've seen in years – and everything about it is fantastic, from the package right down to the triple-length set of music! The set features rare unreleased recordings from Raymond Scott's legendary Manhattan Research electronic music studios – originally set up in 1946, and home to some of Scott's landmark early work on non-acoustic music during the 50s and 60s. Far from being the sort of turgid, dark knob-twiddling that computer music later became in the academy, Scott's early experiments are filled with a sense of whimsy and joy – exported directly from his early cartoon-based work, and applied in a fantastic way to his evolving musical inventions! The LP edition comes in three separate sleeves, plus a great 8 page booklet of notes, in a brilliant graphic style that complements the package even further! Don't forget the music, though – because it's totally fantastic – and kind of reminds us of bits of Jon Appleton's Syntonic Menagerie, Pierre Henry's early Musique Concrete, and later punk-era DIY electronics. That doesn't even come close to pinning it down, though – and with 3 LPs worth of material, the scope of the work is amazing! LP, Vinyl record album

... LP, Vinyl record album

A seminal album from the New York scene – one that took the sound of the lower east side into the bedrooms of America – thanks to the tightness and charm of the group! Chris Stein is in the lead on loads of fantastically sharp guitar lines, Clement Burke gives the music a mighty nice kick on drums, and James Destri brings in a range of keyboard elements that perfectly hang the record between early punk and new wave modes – and maybe underscore some of the beautifully tuneful lead vocals from the great Debby Harry! There's few better places to start if you're looking to leap into Blondie – and titles include the classic "I'm Always Touched By Your Presence Dear", plus "I'm On E", "Fan Mail", "Bermuda Triangle Blues", "Youth Nabbed As Sniper", "I Didn't Have The Nerve To Say No", "Cautious Lip", "Detroit 442", and "Love At The Pier". CD

Loads of classics – "Terminal Preppie", "Trust Your Mechanic", "Winnebago Warrior", "Bleed For Me", "Moon Over Marin", and "Well Paid Scientist" – and a back cover with an image of Cal City, IL! LP, Vinyl record album

One of the groovier albums the Modern Jazz Quartet ever recorded – as you might expect, given the cover and title! In addition to the group's usual cool sound from Milt Jackson's vibes, the set also features John Lewis playing a bit of harpsichord in addition to his usual piano – and the group's also augmented on a few tracks with some great horns from Snookie Young and Joe Newman on trumpets, Garnett Brown on trombone, Jim Buffington on French horn, and Don Butterfield on tuba – a change that really gives the record a nicely different flavor from other MJQ albums. John Lewis composed all of the tracks – and titles include "Walkin Stomp", "Dancing", "Plastic Dreams", "Variations On A Christmas Theme", "Travlin", "Piazza Novona", and "England's Carol". LP, Vinyl record album

... CD

... 12-inch, Vinyl record

A landmark record – even if nobody thought so at the time! The Buggles were the first group of Trevor Horn – soon to be more famous through his work with Yes, Art Of Noise, and the ZTT label – and the group's lasting legacy will forever be the tinny pop number "Video Killed The Radio Star", contained on this album, and the first video ever played on MTV. The rest of the album's pretty darn great – in a similar mode to the more famous tune, with quirky little pop styles colliding with each other, all handled by Horn and Geoff Downes, in a flutter of keyboards, spare backings, and slight guitars – kind of a last gasp of the British mainstream pop sound of the 70s, trying to exist in a post-punk world. Titles include "Kid Dynamo", "Living In the Plastic Age", "I Love You Miss Robot", "Astroboy", and "Johnny On The Monorail". . LP, Vinyl record album

... LP, Vinyl record album

One of the best-remembered albums from the moog pop generation – a record that's definitely a cut above the rest, thanks to the top-shelf talents of pianist Mike Melvoin! Melvoin is a name you'll recognize from countless other great LA sessions of the 60s – and Mike was always able to shift and move into the best sorts of styles when he wanted – jazz, soul, funk, and here, the new world of moogy instrumentals – served up here with some nice electronic effects that really keep things interesting! The record also features groovy help from Paul Humphrey and Earl Palmer on drums, and Dennis Budimir on guitar – and Beaver and Kraus were the "moog consultants" on the record too. There's some nice originals – including "One Man One Volt", "Plastic Cow", and "Medicine Man" – plus covers of "Born To Be Wild", "Sunshine Of Your Love", "Spinning Wheel", and "Ballad Of John & Yoko". LP, Vinyl record album

One of our favorite soundtracks ever – a jazzy swinging ode to love found and love lost – all penned by the legendary Michel Legrand! The work was composed in collaboration with director Jacques Demy for his 1966 film of the same name – and, like the previous Demy/Legrand collaboration, Umbrellas Of Cherbourg, the movie's a story in song – one that has much of the dialogue presented as sung lyrics to the tunes. The mode takes off from a Hollywood musical style, and pushes the genre into territory that's much hipper, very French, and with a soaring approach that's filled with plenty of mod 60s jazz grooves. Legrand's genius has never sparkled so brightly – and his ability to interweave different themes, stories, and grooves is simply amazing! This US package is even better than the original French one – with a nice colored book inside the gatefold cover that has some great photos and lyrics (translated) for the songs. Titles include "Nous Voyagons De Ville En Ville", "Depart De Camionners", "Arivee Des Camionneurs", "Chanson De Maxence", "Marins, Amins, Amants Ou Maris", and "Chanson De Jumelles". LP, Vinyl record album

A really unusual jazzy Brazilian record! One side has tenorist Bill Bell blowing over some nice samba arrangements, mostly of Brazilian tunes – and the other side features trumpeter John Lester, echoing older American jazz modes, but with a groovier 60s beat! LP, Vinyl record album

A rare gem from this Brazilian singer – featuring a few early tunes by Marcos Valle! LP, Vinyl record album

... LP, Vinyl record album

Great small combo bossa on the groovy Farroupilha label – three tracks each by four different artists! LP, Vinyl record album

A fantastic lost legacy in European free improvisation – the complete works of a group who were first known as Modern Jazz Quintet Karlsruhe, then later as Fourmenonly – presented here in a beautiful 3CD set! First up is the album Trees – issued on a small label in 1968, but a set that matches the groundbreaking energy of the early work on FMP – played by a group that features Helmuth Zimmer on piano, Wilfreid Eichorn on tenor and soprano sax, Claus Buhler on bass, Rudi Thielmann on drums, and Herbert Joos on flugelhorn, Mellophon, piston, and percussion! The group have a melodic vibe at the core – often feeling out the initial space as a unit, then exploding with sound and color – and really making especially great work of the talents of Joos and Eichorn – players who work together with great power, driven on by the others. Titles include "Lonely Time", "Trees", "Schnee Verbrennt", "Change Of Beauty", and "The Devil Is Green Blue Yellow". CD also features a bonus unreleased improvisation too! Next is Position 2000 – a record of even longer improvisations, and one that shows the quintet really developing their sound – strongly aware of the farther reaches, but always beginning in some more colorful passages that almost have a melody, before exploding out with very vibrant energy! The lineup is the same as on the debut – with Herbert Joos on flugelhorn, mellophone, Indian flute, and percussion – and Wilfried Eichorn on tenor, soprano sax, bass clarinet, flute, and percussion – alongside Helmuth Zimmer on piano, Klaus Buhler on bass, and Rudi Thielmann on drums. Titles include "The Sun Is Coming Over", "Position 2000", and "Where Love Forever Shines". CD also features an unreleased improvisation. For the next album, bassist Buhler has departed the group – who are renamed Fourmenonly! Their first record is a brilliant set of free jazz from the German scene of the 70s – very different than other work of the time, in that there's maybe more of a future-thinking balance between sounds and silence, frenzy and fragility – all served up by a quartet that features Herbert Joos on trumpet and flugelhorn, Wilfried Eichhorn on tenor and soprano sax, Helmuth Zimmer on piano and percussion, and Rudi Theilmann on drums and percussion. Titles include "Viridiana/Ich Und Meine Bruder/Compulsion" and "Count Down/Excess". On the album Eight Science Fiction Stories, the Fourmenonly lineup is expanded by trombonist Wolfgang Czelusta – and perform some fantastic work billed as "science fiction stories", all composed by Herbert Joos. The sound is as revolutionary as on the group's earliest material, but also maybe more compact as well – nicely focused, with especially strong emphasis on the interplay between Czelusta on trombone, Wilifried Eichorn on bass clarinet, flute, and oboe, and Herbert Joos on flugelhorn, trumpet, and mellophone. The piano of Helmuth Zimmer is amazing – almost Cecil Taylor-like in intensity at times – and drummer Rudi Theilmann does a great job of moving from passages of full-on power to more spacious percussion. Titles include "Lucifer Is Marching On", "Dead Season", "The Beauty Without A Face", "Departure", "Plastic Happiness", and "Space Wall". CD

A great entry in this wonderful series – a tight set of batucada and percussion tracks, played by one of Brazil's more popular bandleaders, in a tight format that adds in some groovy touches! And also like the rest of these, this one's also got a few tasty orchestral tracks that push past the bossa groove, into a groovy post-bossa orchestral sound that's really nice and jazzy! The cuts on here with that feeling include great versions of "Upa Neguinho" and "Chove Chuva" – and the batucada tracks include "Ritmo", "Linda Mascarada", "Segura Este Samba", and "Sassaricando". LP, Vinyl record album

Robert Hopps on prepared guitar, Jonathan Webb on turntables, and both musicians on electronics. CD

Johnny's very much in his "revival" mode here – dipping back to his earlier R&B roots, and working with a host of famous older blues singers. The set's got vocals by Roy Milton, Roy Brown, Esther Phillips, Mighty Mouth Evans, Ivory Joe Hunter, Eddie Cleanhead Vinson, Margie Evans, and Big Joe Turner – and even though Shuggie Otis is on the album, the whole thing's a pretty bluesy affair overall. Titles include "Shuggie's Boogie", "Plastic Man", "Margie's Boogie", "Baby You Don't Know", "Little Esther's Blues", "RM Blues", "Goin Back To LA", "Willie & The Hand Jive", and "Since I Met You Baby". LP, Vinyl record album

Fantastic big band work from Luiz Arruda Paes – one of Brazil's most captivating orchestra leaders in the 60s, and an artist who really kept pace with some of the changes going on in his country's music. This record is most famous for Paes' incredible reading of Edu Lobo's "Upa Neguinho", done in a rolling rumbling style that's been made famous as a jazz dance classic over the years. Lots of other stuff on the LP is every bit as great – and tunes include "Ole Ola", "Sonho De Um Carnaval", "A Banda", and "No Rancho Fundo". LP, Vinyl record album

Fantastic jazz funk by one of the best bands in the genre! This is probably Pleasure's most sought-after album, and it includes the classic breakbeat cut "Bouncy Lady", which begins with a nice hard drumbreak, and ends the same way! The record has a tight, smooth, soulful feel – similar to the best stuff coming out of the west coast Fantasy records scene at the time. There's lots of nice Wayne Henderson production on the record – with his trademark talent for snapping the drums nice and tight, while keeping the grooves nice and mellow. Includes the cuts "What Is Slick", "Reality", "Plastic People", and a great cover of "Midnight At the Oasis"! CD

A collection of hip work from this famous Brazilian song festival – with other material by Quarteto Em Cy, Claudette Soares, Guetemberg Guarabyra & Grupo Manifesto, and Mario Teles! LP, Vinyl record album

One of those rare gems that's definitely worth digging for – an obscure set from Australia at the start of the 70s, and one that has a unique vibe that's very much its own! On his own, Roy Rutanen would probably be more of a folk artist – but here, he gets some great backing that emphasizes electric bass, sometimes-funky drums, and jazzy work on flute and saxophone – so that there's this folk funk vibe to the record, but also with some earthier elements that make you feel like the set was recorded way out in the bush, different than UK work of a similar mode. The instrumentation is as great as Roy's vocals – and titles include "Sinful Man", "The Country Song", "Hitchin", "The Old Man", "The Last Song", "Plastic World", and "The Trip Song". LP, Vinyl record album

A live set from this Brazilian pianist – spinning out non-stop performances on each side, and one tune slides into the next with an old school jazzy vibe. Very late nite, small club! LP, Vinyl record album

The Silver Convention groove is nicely opening up on this set – with an approach that actually seems a bit jazzier than the group's first two albums, bringing more of a focus on the keyboards of Silvester Levay – who's really the brainchild behind the whole group anyway! At some level, Levay seems to be more influenced by the best American club work of the time – especially the Salsoul records that just kept on getting better and better, deeper and deeper with each year. The orchestrations have a bit more soul than before, and mix nicely with the group's trademark Euro-disco sound. Levay wrote all the music on the set, co-produced, and arranged – and his well crafted keyboard lines are the brightest spots in the whole set. Titles include "I'm Not A Slot Machine", "The World Is A Madhouse", "Plastic People", "Fancy Party", "Everybody's Talkin About Love", "Dancing In The Aisle", and "Land Of Make Believe". CD

Killer work from Sly & The Family Stone – hard-grooving, fast-funking, and really setting the scene for countless groups to come! The album's a messed-up funky party, with plenty of short little tracks that have a mix of funk, soul, and rock – perfect for the crossover crowd from whence Sly sprang, and who would become his biggest supporters into the 70s. And almost best of all, there's hardly any hits here – just tight little numbers that are as fresh today as they were back at the end of the 60s – all the kind of righteous funk the group could do better than anybody else! Titles include "Fun", "Plastic Jim", "Dynamite!", "Chicken", "Into My Own Thing", "Life", "Love City", "I'm An Animal", and the seminal "Jane Is A Groupee". CD features 4 bonus tracks – including "Pressure", "Sorrow (inst)", "Seven More Days", and "Dynamite (single)". CD

The rare 3rd album of samba tunes cut by the team of Elza Soares and Miltino – done in a lively, playful style that has the two of them trading vocals on some longer numbers – then moving off into some solo material on their own. Backings are upbeat and jazzy, handled by Nelsinho, with some assistance from Lyrio Panicali – and titles include Miltinho singing "Samba Da Cor" and "Um Samba Pra Ela"; Elza singing "Julgar E Missao Divina" and "Madrugada Vai Chegar"; and the pair of them working through 3 tasty medley tracks! LP, Vinyl record album

... 12-inch, Vinyl record

An amazingly beautiful album, recorded by Vinicius De Moraes, Dorival Caymmi, Oscar Castro-Neves, and The Quarteto Em Cy for some sort of a special show. Castro-Neves provides some excellent bossa backing, the Quarteto girls sing chorus and over the top, Vinicius does some recitations, and Caymmi sings lead vocals. If the whole thing sound's a bit heavy-handed, it's not – and instead is an amazing batch of heavenly bossa-tinged tracks, with all the intelligence and imagination of the best titles on the Elenco label. The whole thing's extremely lively, and has an other-worldly sound that matches Vinicius' classic Afro Sambas LP with Baden Powell. Tracks include "Bom Dia Amigo", "Berimbau", "Historia De Pescadores", "Formosa", "Broto Maroto", and "Aruanda". LP, Vinyl record album

A stone cooker from Jr Walker – the kind of hard-driving soul that made his 60s Motown work a key link between the Detroit sound of the time, and R&B sounds of earlier years! Jr's soulful sax is right up in the mix on most numbers – and the overall sound is nicely freewheeling and almost spontaneous – almost a Motown studio jam at times, with vocals and instruments dancing together in joyous formation! Most tracks are instrumentals, but many also have some sort of vocal chorus – and titles include "Anyway You Wanta", "Pucker Up Buttercup", "Twist Lackawanna", "San Ho Zay", "Money", "Last Call", "Ame Cherie", "Mutiny", and "Road Runner". LP, Vinyl record album

Hard heavy stuff – and some of Jr's earliest work for Motown, only the second album to be issued on the small Soul subsidiary! The groove is nice and hard, with lots of original tracks done in the tenor-heavy instrumental style that was Jr's calling card during the time. Titles include "Mark Anthony Speaks", "Hewbie Steps Out", "Everybody Get Together", "Satan's Blues", "Brainwasher", and "Eight Hour Drag". With titles like that, you can guess how it sounds! LP, Vinyl record album

Great stuff from Walter Wanderley – and a refreshing change from his work on Verve! The record's dated 1968, but we're kind of guessing that the tracks date from earlier years – although we're not sure. Most of the material's as sophisticated as anything Walter was cutting in the US at the time – and there's some great electric guitar playing on the record, which is something you don't normally hear on some of Wanderley's other organ trio albums. Titles include "Chora Tua Tristeza", "Ninho Do Nono", "Teleco-Teco No 2", "O Pato", and "Mulata Assanhada". LP, Vinyl record album

One of the best dates ever as a leader from trumpeter Joe Wilder – and one of the few to have a really relaxed, open sort of format! Joe's not tied up in gimmicks or larger groups here – and he really sparkles in the company of a quartet that features Hank Jones on piano, Wendell Marshall on bass, and Kenny Clarke on drums – players that really match Wilder's inherent sense of soul and lyricism, as he waxes some beautiful solos on the set. There's a nice sort of blueness in Joe's tone, but one that's never too forced or cliched – and titles include "Mad About The Boy", "Six Bit Blues", "Darn That Dream", "Prelude To A Kiss", and "My Heart Stood Still". CD

One of the most mindblowing pop culture pastiches of the 60s – a record that's as absolutely mad as it is absolutely free – and proof that a whole new generation of musicians like Zappa were using the studio like an instrument itself! This is work that could have never existed away from record – as the mix of sounds, moods, and music comes together with a maddening frenzy – hardly the languid speed you'd expect from the early years of hippiedom – and instead, an inspirational stream of styles and ideas delivered with trademark Zappa dexterity and wit! The album's divided into two long passages – "Absolutely Free" and "The MOI American Pageant" – with tracks that include "Plastic People", "Amnesia Vivace", "The Duke Regains His Chops", "America Drinks & Goes Home", "Son Of Suzy Creamcheese", "Status Back Baby", and "The Duke Of Prunes". LP, Vinyl record album

A totally great collection of rare material from the Bluestime label – a rare rootsy side of the Flying Dutchman imprint at the start of the 70s! Flying Dutchman is a well-remembered label for its rich array of funk and jazz titles – and although Bluestime worked in the blues side of the spectrum, most of these numbers are pretty darn funky too – thanks to some shared musicians and production talents with the main Flying Dutchman scene. In other words, the tracks are all pretty darn hip – and way way more than blues – really more funk tunes that have a gritty, raspy edge – like those rare few times when Chess Records' bluesmen got nice and funky. Titles include "I'm A Dues Payin Man" by Optis Spann, "Every Day I Have The Blues" by T-Bone Walker, "Plastic Man" by Joe Turner, "Love" by Harmonica Slim, "Paris Blues" by The Super Black Blues Band, "I Wonder Why" by Otis Spann, "Something So Bright" by Malcolm & Chris, "That's Alright" by Harmonica Slim, Chicago Charva Chapter" by The Plaster Caster Blues Band, "Disillusion Blues" by Leon Thomas, and "For BB King" by T-Bone Walker. CD

The Grasso Brothers definitely know how to boogie – and they more than prove themselves with a wicked selection of rare tracks from the deepest years of the underground! The set's a killer collection right from the start – pulled from vintage 12" singles, albums, and even some funky 45s – with a groove that begins in the best boogie modes of the indie club scene, then soars to the skies in a range of fresh, creative styles – new variations on funky club modes of the 70s, taken to newer heights in the freedom of the post-disco years. There's some wicked cuts here we never would have discovered otherwise – and titles include "A Better Day" by Sharon Johnson, "Done Been" by Kenny Pierce, "We Know How To Boogie" by Those Good Intentions, "Dance To Freedom" by Sherman Hunter, "Stone Luv" by Roller Disco, "Plastic People (G&D edit)" by Living Color, "Never Gonna Give You Up" by Gospel Seekers, "Love Ain't Just A Physical Thing" by Carol Meriwether, and "Ain't No Doubt About It" by William Barlak. LP, Vinyl record album

Bring on the sun if it burns this strongly – as we're more than happy to get extra toasty in the light of such wonderful tracks as these! The set's a stunning look at the massive musical shift on the UK scene in the year of 1967 – a time when psych was certainly making its influence felt, but groups were also opening up in all these other sorts of ways too – really getting past the jaunty rhythms and catchy lyrics of a few years before – and instead somehow managing to make all these amazing things happen in just the space of a short 7" single! Some of the artists here are artists who were making more mainstream music a few years earlier, others are new acts that would soon become superstars, and a few more are genius groups who burst out strongly, then disappeared from view – all brought together in a great 3CD package, with 79 tracks in all, and very detailed notes. Artists include The Herd, Idle Race, Dave Davies, John Williams, Svensk, Universals, Australian Playboys, Tony Rivers, Great Uncle Fred, Artwoods, 23rd Turnoff, Vocal Point, Zombies, Nirvana UK, Lisa & Francesca, The Mirage, Virgin Sleep, Accent, Our Plastic Dream, David Bowie, Living Daylights, John's Children, Episode Six, Orange Bicycle, The Poets, Genesis, Crocheted Doughnut Ring, Piccadilly Line, Scott Henderson, Made In Sheffield, Caleb, and many others! CD

One of the greatest albums on the Bethlehem label – and one of the first albums as a leader by the legendary Booker Ervin! At the time of the set, Ervin had come off a great stint with the Charles Mingus group – one that inflected his rootsy Texas tenor tones with a sharper modern edge – heard to perfection on this great little session, which is equal parts hard swinging soul jazz and dark-tinged early 60s modern! Zoot Sims joins Booker in the front line, and the two of them trade tenor solos throughout on the album's long compositions – grooving with a great sextet that includes Tommy Turrentine on trumpet, Tommy Flanagan on piano, and Mingus' drummer Dannie Richmond on the kit! Cuts include "Largo", "The Book Cooks", "The Blue Book", and "Git It". CD

A killer set from the early 70s German scene – maybe a bit less experimental than most, but pretty great in its own way, with lots of long tracks and some intense instrumental moments! The group features vocals from Inga Rumpf, plus a mix of cool keyboards and saxes from Jean-Jacques Kravetz – on titles that include "Floating", "Baroque", "Life Without Pain", "Morning", "Indian Rope Man", and "Rosalie". LP, Vinyl record album

Early genius from these Bay Area stalwarts – one of the greatest rock records of its time! Surrealistic Pillow is the second Jefferson Airplane album, but they took a number of huge creative leaps in the 8 months or so between their debut record and this one. This one is where they're joined by psych siren Grace Slick, but it's not just the line-up change that sets it apart. Surrealistic Pillow is a perfect title, as it's comforting and disorienting at the same time. It's also the magical confluence of wildly different spirits – with standout contributions by the entire band. Titles include the seminal "White Rabbit" – plus "Embryonic Journey", "3/5 Of A Mile In 10 Seconds", "DCBA 25", "How Do You Feel", "Today", "She Has Funny Cars", and "Plastic Fantastic Lover". CD

Not the out there primal scream of Plastic Ono, and more of an impeccably produced, easy to love landmark from John Lennon! The title track, beautiful as it is, is so heavily ingrained into rock & roll myth making machine that it's become too easy to overlook how great most of the songs on the album are. It must be the most consistent of John's LPs post-Beatles, and it's just about as essential as they come. Co-produced by Phil Spector, yet it's often not as grandly orchestrated as a Wall Of Sound effort, and well tailored to Lennon's songs. Includes "Give Me Some Truth", "Oh My Love", "How Do You Sleep?", "Imagine", "Crippled Inside", "Jealous Guy" and "I Don't Want To Be A Soldier". LP, Vinyl record album

An incredible document of late 60s America – composed and conducted by Gary McFarland, in a style that's much more ambitious than any of his other work! The album's fully titled "America The Beautiful: An Account Of Its Disappearance" – and features "movements" with very telling subtitles that include "On This Site Shall Be Erected", "80 Miles An Hour Through Beer Can Country", "Suburbia: Two Poodles And A Plastic Jesus", and our personal favorite, "Due To A Lack Of Interest, Tomorrow Has Been Cancelled". Gary's really wearing his politics on his sleeve here – picturing a late 60s America that's without hope, without revolution, and clearly in danger of falling prey to its own plasticization. The whole thing's a wonderful antidote to the "revolution is coming" side of the 60s that is more popularly pushed – and Gary was one of the few musicians at the time with an eye that was clear enough to see that in the 60s, you could sing "The Times Are A-Changing" – but in reality, the corporations were a-growing! Musically, the album features a larger group of jazz players working in a full, rich style that has lots of soundtrack touches. There's a real Axelrod-like feel to the set – with string passages one minute, funky rhythms the next – and some breakout jazz soloing that really colors the tunes nicely! Players include Jerome Richardson, Eric Gale, Bernard Purdie, and Chuck Rainey – and Gary's mostly doing the conducting on the set. LP, Vinyl record album

Wonderfully jazzy work from Micatone – a rich album filled with lots of lovely twists and turns, all of them coming off with a level of care and class that we wouldn't expect! The group's core is the instrumental combo – very heavy acoustic bass, drums, guitar, keyboards, vibes, and other jazzy sample bits – and some of the best tracks on the set feature vocals by singer Lisa Bassenge – singing in English, with a very accented tone, on moody and smokey tunes that really stand out from the usual retro jazz diva mode. The instrumental tunes are equally nice – a mixture of electronic club jazz and more classic elements – standing up quite well on their own with a depth of construction and solid instrumentation. Titles include "Plastic Bags & Magazines", "Sit Beside Me", "Another Road", "Sweet Child", "To The Sound", "Mon Coeur", and "Quiet Boy". CD

As any reader of these pages will know, we're nuts about Ennio Morricone – the greatest Italian soundtrack composer ever, and quite possibly one of the greatest composers to have ever walked the face of this planet! Here, a similarly Morricone-mad bunch of folks pay tribute to the maestro, by remixing tracks from his classic soundtracks of the 60s and 70s! Titles include "The Man With The Harmonica" by Apollo Four Forty, "Chi Mai" by Nightmares On Wax, "Giocoso, Gioioso" by Groove Corporation, "La Bambola Come Maddalena" by Sofa Surfers, "La Lucertola" by De Phazz, "Clan Of The Sicilians" by DJ Dick of Rocker's Hi-Fi, "Il Grande Silencio" by Thievery Corporation, and "Belinda May" by Fantastic Plastic Machine. 13 tracks in all! CD

Titles include "Just", "Nice Dream", "Bones", "Fake Plastic Trees", "Planet Telex", "The Bends", "High & Dry", and "Black Star". CD

Stunning work from this legendary Brazilian artist – a post-Tropicalia figure who brings in a slight touch of prog, but definitely pushes the boundaries of MPB too! Gaya provides some wonderful arrangements, as does Eduardo Souto Neto – and Taiguara plays both electric and acoustic piano, amidst some great production touches too! LP, Vinyl record album

2CDs – and a motherlode of classic work by The Temptations! The set focuses on the group's groundbreaking work with producer Norman Whitfield at Motown – sides from the late 60s and early 70s that were some of the most righteous to ever come out of the motor city! Whitfield had a really magical style that was perfect for the group – taking their older group style, and souping it up with heavy bass, rumbling drums, and lots of fuzzy guitar licks – all of which made for a sound that was instantly psychedelic, and massively righteous! The set includes 2 previously unreleased longer takes of "Psychedelic Shack" and "Ball Of Confusion" – plus 22 other classics that include "Slave", "Message From A Black Man", "I Can't Get Next To You", "Don't Let the Joneses Get You Down", "Cloud Nine", "Runaway Child", "Love Can Be Anything", "Smiling Faces Sometimes", "Ungena Za Ulimengu", "Masterpiece", "Ain't No Justice", "1990", "Funky Music Sho Nuff Turns Me On", "Take A Stroll Thru Your Mind", "Plastic Man", and "War". CD

A cool underground set – recorded at Bradley's Barn in Nashville, but with a darker vibe that's like the headier side of the LA scene! The group mix in some work on trumpet and organ next to the fuzzy guitars – and lead vocals are from Joe Hinchliffe, on titles that include "Snake's Problem", "One Man's Way", "Plain Brown Wrapper", "Fat Plastic Mama", and "1099 OS". LP, Vinyl record album

Collects tons of 1966-67 live material, interviews, and other tracks that chart the genesis and gestation of his early pschedelic classic "Freak Out!". Deluxe Edition includes 72 tracks over 4 discs of sprawling Zappa mayhem housed in a cool puffy plastic fold-out box! CD

Music from Henry Mancini, Peggy Lee, Titan, Ursula 1000, Pizzicato Five, Fatboy Slim, Dimitri From Paris, Koop Featuring Yukimi Nagano, Fantastic Plastic Machine, Arling & Cameron, Ludovic Navarre, Kinky, Chris Mancini & Lennart, Nicola Conte, Les Hommes, and Mocean Worker. CD

Music from Madness, Ramones, Generation X, Iggy Pop, Joan Jett & The Blackhearts, Elvis Costello, The B-52's, Plastic Bertrand, The Trashmen, Lene Lovich, and more. CD

A very cool record – not the blues rock album you might expect from the group's name, although there's definitely some bluesy influences – but instead one of those really weird mixes of modes that you'll find in the best Uni groups of the period! There's some great organ and some very cool jazzy bits in the mix too – and titles include "Plastic Is Organic", "Love So Strong", "Darlin", "Tight Rope Walker", and "Swannanoa Tunnel". LP, Vinyl record album

Excellent compilation of some of the earlier material by Black Uhuru, before they were signed to Island, but after the Jammy produced Black Sounds of Freedom set. This is the stuff that really set them at the forefront of the 80s reggae scene, with sharp production by Sly & Robbie, and the Puma Jones, Duckie Simpson & Michael Rose lineup on vocals. Huge singles like "Shine Eye Gal", "General Penitentiary", "Guess Who's Coming To Dinner" and "Abortion" are included, plus "Leaving To Zion", "Natural Reggae Beat" and "Plastic Smile". CD

Prepared piano, standard piano, and even toy piano – all played beautifully by Jeanne Kirstein in a double-length collection of classics by John Cage! The set's one of the best illustrations of the power of Cage's work in the early days – and many of these numbers have more force than silence, particularly the prepared piano compositions – which ring out with an other-worldly sound that still holds up beautifully all these many years later. Also includes a collection of earlier recordings of Feldman's work, most of which feature David Tudor on piano, with occasional other instrumentation, like violin or string quartet. CD

A perennial favorite in the John Coltrane catalog – a beautiful set of standards, handled in a warm laidback style – one that shows that Trane's groundbreaking group with Jimmy Garrison on bass, Elvin Jones on drums, and McCoy Tyner on piano could still express themselves with even more direct soulfulness than usual! The album's completely solid all the way through – and although it won't change your life as much as A Love Supreme, it will show what a fantastically strong player Coltrane was, in any sort of setting! Titles include "I Wish I Knew", "What's New", "Nancy", "You Don't Know What Love Is", and "All Or Nothing At All". CD

One of John Coltrane's best early albums for Impulse – a warm set of modally grooving tracks, and one that picks up where My Favorite Things left off! The group here features McCoy Tyner on piano, Jimmy Garrison on bass, and Elvin Jones on drums – a really magical rhythm section that pulsates with life throughout, and propels Coltrane with a lot more soaring energy than he was getting on records a few years before! Coltrane plays both tenor and soprano sax – the latter of which is especially great, again in ways that have a My Favorite Things sort of feel – edgey, almost exotic at times, with a snakey sublime quality. The album includes wonderful readings of "The Inch Worm" and "Out Of This World" – plus the tracks "Soul Eyes", "Tunji", and "Miles' Mode". Great stuff – and an essential album for any jazz collection! CD