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A real smoker of a session – Rusty Bryant's first comeback album of the jazz funk years, done in a mode that virtually set the tone for other Prestige sessions of the time! Rusty's working here on alto sax, in a mode that's clearly inspired by the Lou Donaldson sessions of the time on Blue Note – but done with a freer, looser, more rolling sort of vibe. Organist Sonny Phillips really makes the set great with some fluid work on the Hammond that matches Bryant's groove – and guitarist Grant Green's also in the group, setting up some great single note lines that punctuate the tunes nicely. A key factor is also bassist Bob Bushnell, who plays Fender bass on the record (an element missing from the Donaldson sound), and gives the record a key bit of motion at the bottom! Tracks include the groovy "Zoo Boogaloo", plus "Streak O' Lean", "Night Flight", "The Cat", and "Ready Rusty".

Fantastic funky jazz from tenorman Rusty Bryant – one of the real standout titles in the classic early 70s Prestige jazz/funk years! Rusty leads a group that includes heavyweights like Charles Earland on organ, Virgil Jones on trumpet, Melvin Sparks on guitar, and Idris Muhammad on drums – all top-shelf players who make for a date as great as you might imagine – one that definitely liberates Rusty's soul from older modes, and sets it free into new funky pastures! The vibe here is right up there with Bryant's legendary Fire Eater record – and titles include "Soul Liberation", "Cold Duck Time", "Lou Lou", and "Freeze Dried Soul".

Killer funk from the glory days of the Prestige Records scene! "Got Myself" is one of the catchiest numbers ever ecorded by Pucho & The Latin Soul Brothers – a barrage of bouncy beats, peppered with jaunty piano, and completed by a frenetic funky flute line over the top! "Fire Eater" is one of those cuts that just goes "whomp" from the word go – slamming with some Idris Muhammad-styled beats, very heavy work on the Hammond organ, and a killer tenor solo from Rusty!

A sweet sweet change for Rusty Bryant – as electric piano moves in on the usual Hammond heard on most of his funky sessions – with a resulting groove that's outta site! The change in keys makes for more of a soundtrack funk feel than a rough-edged one – not smooth at all, but more in a 70s class sort of area – partly CTI, but still with lots more of that loose energy that makes the Prestige jazz funk sessions so great. Unlike later dates of this nature, the group's still small, and very unified – with Khalid Kenneth Moss on electric piano and a bit of organ, Harold Young On guitar, Fred Masey on drums, and Norman Jones on percussion. Titles include "Friday Night Funk For Saturday Night Brothers", "Have You Seen Her", "Blues for a Brother", and "Mercy Mercy Mercy".

Fantastic funky jazz from tenorman Rusty Bryant – one of the real standout titles in the classic early 70s Prestige jazz/funk years! Rusty leads a group that includes heavyweights like Charles Earland on organ, Virgil Jones on trumpet, Melvin Sparks on guitar, and Idris Muhammad on drums – all top-shelf players who make for a date as great as you might imagine – one that definitely liberates Rusty's soul from older modes, and sets it free into new funky pastures! The vibe here is right up there with Bryant's legendary Fire Eater record – and titles include "Soul Liberation", "Cold Duck Time", "Lou Lou", and "Freeze Dried Soul".

A killer instrumental album of hard organ grooves and funky basslines! This was the album that broke Funk Inc out of their Indianapolis scene, and made them a force to be forever reckoned with in the history of funky jazz. The album grooves hard in the same sound as some of the classic work by Prestige jazz funk giants like Rusty Bryant, Charles Earland, or Ivan Boogaloo Jones – but it's almost even tighter than their work, because the Funk Inc combo as a tightly woven group of players who'd been together for a number of years. The record's filled with monster cuts that you'll recognize immediately, like the group's famous "Kool is Back", which has a monster sample on the intro, and hard heavy Kool & The Gang grooves throughout. Other tracks include "Sister Janie", "The Whipper", and "Bowlegs".

Great stuff from Groove – a tight, no-nonsense set of hard grooves featuring a quartet that includes Rusty Bryant, Billy Butler, and Herbie Lovelle. There's a strong bottom sound to the session – picking up from the Misty days, when Groove learned that he could take just about any track, and make it groove like a mofo! Because of this, the album's selections – "That Healin Feelin", "Irene Court", "Castle Rock", and "On a Clear Day" – all sound night and tight, as Groove would have delivered the tunes playing before one of his many well-attended audiences at the time!

A sweetly funky set from Johnny Hammond Smith – a date done right at the start of the jazz funk era on Prestige – and one that marks a nicely heavy change in Johnny's sound! The format here is quite different than the style of Smith's early 60s work – with Hammond that's much more sharply tuned and direct – set amidst longer tracks that are freely jamming – served up with instrumentation that includes Rusty Bryant on tenor and a bit of alto, Wally Richardson on guitar, Bob Bushnell on Fender bass, and Bernard Purdie on drums. The best tracks are long, jamming numbers that really take off nicely – and titles include "Purdy Dirty", "Up To Date", "All Soul", and "Soul Talk".

Keyboardist Sonny Phillips was one of the lesser-known talents on the Prestige roster of jazz funk greats in the early 70s – and this nice 2-in-1 CD brings together his 2 best albums for the label, both of which feature Phillips on organ, along with giants like Ivan Boogaloo Joe Jones on guitar, Bernard Purdie on drums, and Rusty Bryant on tenor. The album Sure Nuff is probably Phillips' best for the label – a set that's done with the lean, hard funky sound of other greats working for Prestige during the same time – especially on the cuts "Sure Nuff, Sure Nuff", "The Other Blues", "Be Yourself", and "Oleo". Black On Black has a bit more of a mellow groove, but still kicks nicely, especially on the tracks "Check It Out", and "Black On Black". 10 tracks in all, with the usual "Legends Of Acid Jazz" package.

A tasty batch of funky jazz cuts from Ivan Boogaloo Joe Jones – working here in a tight guitar groove that's actually better than that heard on his early albums for Prestige! The group's a good one – with Rusty Bryant on tenor, Butch Cornell on organ, and Grady Tate on drums – but it's Ivan's funky guitar style that really makes the whole thing work, as his fingerwork on the strings is enough to make any jazz-funk hopeful give up their guitar for life! Titles include "Hoochie Coo Chicken", "Snake Rhythm Rock", "The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face", "He's So Fine", and "Big Bad Midnight Roller".

2 late 60s sides by Groove Holmes – back to back on one CD! The Groover is a nice one from the days when Groove was playing with guitarist George Freeman! The core of the tracks on here feature a trio of Holmes, Freeman, and drummer Billy Jackson – and the trio knows how to cook nice and nicely, especially on the original cut "The Walrus", a groovy number written by Freeman, with his usual off-kilter approach. Other cuts include "My Scenery", "Blue Moon", and "I'll Remember April". That Healin Feelin is a tight, no-nonsense set of hard grooves featuring a quartet that includes Rusty Bryant, Billy Butler, and Herbie Lovelle. There's a strong bottom sound to the session – picking up from the Misty days, when Groove learned that he could take just about any track, and make it groove like a mofo! Because of this, the album's selections – "That Healin Feelin", "Irene Court", "Castle Rock", and "On a Clear Day" – all sound night and tight, as Groove would have delivered the tunes playing before one of his many well-attended audiences at the time!

Jazzy 45s galore – and a huge dip into the vaults of Prestige Records! This tasty set brings together 18 classics recorded in the heyday of the jazz funk years at Prestige – the late 60s and early 70s, a time when the soul jazz sounds of previous years were being forged into a leaner, meaner, harder-hitting groove. And although the LP was the growing format during these days, there was actually a heck of a lot of great work issued on 45s – still spinning strong with the jukebox crowds in the clubs and tap rooms, and still getting major play on radio stations, where the single was still king. The set features many 45 mixes of funky classics that you might know from LPs – and intersperses them with some other more obscure numbers pulled from full albums – making for an all-solid, all-funky set of tracks from one of the hippest jazz labels ever! Titles include "Fire Eater" by Rusty Bryant, "Don't Knock My Love" by Idris Muhammad, "Jungle Strut" by Gene Ammons, "Express Yourself" by Idris Muhammad, "Right On" by Boogaloo Joe Jones, "Who's Gonna Take The Weight" by Melvin Sparks, "Sing A Simple Song" by Charles Earland, "Son Of Man" by Houston Person, "Listen Here (part 1)" by Freddie McCoy, "Black Talk (part 1)" by Charles Earland, "Message From The Meters" by Leon Spencer, "Reelin With The Feeling" by Charles Kynard, "I Want You Back" by Harold Mabern, and "Thank You (part 1)" by Melvin Sparks.