All Categories — All Formats  

Great Mid 70s records from Cameo – Cardiac Arrest from 1975 and We All Know Who We Re from 1977 – together in a single set! Cardiac Arrest is excellent early work from the group. It's got a really sublime approach – tightly funking, but not too fast, in the mode of some of their weaker 80s material. The band have that tightly snapped groove firmly in place – as you'd already know if you've heard the album's classic sample cuts, "Rigor Mortis" and "Post Mortem". Other tracks include "Funk, Funk", "Find My Way", and "Good Times" – and the record's one of the best of the bunch from this period! We All Know Who We Are is of the most overlooked Cameo albums – and one we go back to more than the rest! Unlike some of the group's other funk-heavy outings, this one's nicely restrained, with a sophisticated ensemble soul style that reminds us of the best mid 70s work by Earth Wind & Fire. A real highlight is the smooth stepping title cut – "We All Know Who We Are" – a wonderfully catchy number that's also got a really righteous message, and kind of a "Damn Right I Am Somebody" intro, with the band rapping to each other before the song starts. Other tracks include "It's Serious", "Inflation", and "Stand Up".

Tremendous work from Rodney Franklin – one of our favorite soulful fusion players of the era – and 2 albums back-to-back! The Rodney Franklin album is a keyboard delight through and through – and Rodney plays both acoustic and electric piano, often on the same track – which creates this nicely expanded sound that works well with the album's tight arrangements! There's a fair bit of soul in the mix too – some rhythms that make a few numbers great groovers, courtesy of Tom Tom arrangements – and some other full moments handled by Patrick Williams. Titles include a wonderful version of "Windy City" – the cut you might know from a classic Carl Davis recording – plus "On The Path", "I Like The Music Make It Hot", "Life Moves On", "Creation", and "In The Center". You'll Never Know is more fully-formed genius from Franklin – one of the best keyboard stars to emerge from the late 70s scene! Rodney again plays both acoustic and electric keys – blending them wonderfully for a very deep sound – and the group behind him features some especially nice work on reeds, which bring sharper edges to some of the best tracks on the set. There's a wonderfully deep feel to the whole thing – way more than you'd expect for a major label release at the time – and titles include "Felix Leo", "The Watcher", "The Groove", "Journey", "You'll Never Know", "Return", and "Parkay Man".

Smooth mellow soul by Michael Henderson – taking up where he left off with his work with Norman Connors, and proving that he was an even better vocalist than bassist! The overall sound of this one's perhaps a bit slicker than his first 2 albums on Buddah – but there's still some strong modern soul moments, and good production from the Sigma Sound Studios. The best cuts have a smooth mid-tempo groove – not unlike the modern soul coming out of Philly at the time, and perfectly suited to Henderson's jazzy sensibilities. Titles include "Take Me I'm Yours", "Whisper In My Ear", "Am I Special", "One To One", and "In The Night-Time".

A soaring standout from Michael Henderson – proof that his move from jazz bassist to lead soul star was a great one! The album's got a tight groove that's right on the money – a style that's rooted in funky jazz, yet delivered with some straight soulful lyrics too – balancing things out perfectly for an audience that Henderson never would have hoped to reach a few years before! The overall format is very much in the style of the Norman Connors blend of jazz and funk – where Henderson got his start as a singer – and the vocals are nicely mixed with some great instrumental lines, too. Titles include "Reach Out For Me", "Wide Receiver", "I Don't Need Nobody Else", "Prove It", and "Ask The Lonely".

2 Columbia killers from Charles Lloyd – back to back in a single set! Discovery is a wonderful bit of soul jazz – much less trippy than some of Lloyd's later work, and handled with a soulful flair that's a mix of Coltrane spiritualism, with an even larger dose of the sort of post-Trane experimentations in jazz that would crop up during the early 70s on smaller independent labels. The record's quite advanced for its time – and features Lloyd's tenor and flute next to piano by Don Friedman, bass by either Richard Davis or Eddie Khan, and drums by Roy Haynes or JC Moses. Includes Lloyd's classic "Forest Flower", plus "Little Peace", "Love Song to A Baby", "Sweet Georgia Bright", and "Bizarre". Nirvana is lovely work from Charles Lloyd – recorded at the point when he was just pushing off from Chico Hamilton's group, and before he got too noodly for his own good! Side one of the record features Lloyd with his own group – jazzing it up in a mix of flute, guitar, and percussion on a number of short tracks that have a light and breezy feel. There's a nice dose of bossa in the set, plus some of the other freer rhythmic styles that Lloyd and Hamilton experimented with together at the time – but all of the tracks have a strong rhythmic pulse, and never lose their groove for too much experimentation. Side two features two wonderful tracks with Hamilton's group at a point when Lloyd was still working with the ensemble – both long tracks with a modal pulse and a great deal of spirituality – again free, but never too much so! A nice little album – with tracks that include "Island Blues", "Carcara", "Long Time Baby", "One For Joan", and "Freedom Traveler".

A pair of great early albums from Main Ingredient – Tasteful Soul from 1970 and Bitter Sweet from 1971 – in a single set! Tasteful Soul is one of the groups earliest records, with a great set of Bert DeCoteaux arrangements, and a totally sweet soul harmony sound! The arrangements are nice and airy, with lots of smooth sweeping passages that let the vocals float around effortlessly. Tracks include "Magic Shoes", "I'm Better Off Without You", "Spinning Around", "Need Her Love", "Searching", and "Somebody's Been Sleeping". Bitter Sweet is another gem,, and the one that includes the big hit "Everybody Plays the Fool", one of the all-time great AM radio soul classics! Nice east coast group soul throughout, with that slightly heavy production style the band was hitting at the time. Other titles include "No Tears", "Fly Baby Fly", "You've Got to Take It", and "I Can't See Me Without You". 20 tracks in all!

2 long-overdue classics from New Birth – back to back on a single CD! Ain't No Big Thing captures the group near the beginning of their career – when they were sort of a funky soul army, featuring the instrumental talents of The Nite-Liters, the vocal strength of a number of excellent members, and the raw production skills of the great Harvey Fuqua! This album's one of their best-ever – and it features a great mix of soul and funk, with some sweet cuts, and other nice harder numbers, all done in the warm spirit of the group when they were in their prime. Includes "Honeybee", "Oh What a Feeling", "How Good It Feels", plus groovy covers, like "I Want to Make It With You" and "Never Can Say Goodbye". Coming Together is an excellent early album by New Birth – with a good straight ahead soul style, and some nice arrangements by Vernon Bullock, Harvey Fuqua, and Bert De Coteaux. The tracks are a mix of originals and covers, and the band is great throughout – grooving hard in a souful way that makes the record glisten with an honest intensity that's missing from some of the group's later work. With "African Cry", "Don't Knock My Love", "All the Way", "Two Kinds of People", "Yesterday I Heard The Rain", and "I Don't Want To Do Wrong". A tough one to find, and the album that will make you love the band!

Two Arista groovers from Dionne Warwick – back to back on a single CD! How Many Times Can We Say Goodbye has Dionne Warwick stepping out strongly with some great production help from Luther Vandross – who gives the lady a groove that's possibly even tighter than on her other Arista albums, really shaking off some of her more familiar modes, and going for a powerful 80s sound. There's still some good ballads to balance out the upbeat cuts, too – and these really glow with the classy Vandross touch. Titles include "So Amazing", "Got A Date", "I Can Let Go Now", "What Can A Miracle Do", "How Many Times Can We Say Goodbye", and "I Do It Cause I Like It". Friends In Love has Dionne Warwick working in warm, mature territory – a sound that's a bit more like the vibe she explored on her late 70s records – a maturing past the original Bacharach years, with an all-adult style that really works with her voice. Titles include duets with Johnny Mathis on "Got You Where I Want You" and "Friends In Love" – plus "Never Gonna Let You Go", "Can't Hide Love", "Betcha By Golly Wow", "More Than Fascination", "For You", and "A Love So Right".

Soul & blues performances from Hoss Allen's 1966 Rhythm & Blues Revue program which ran on US television and is purported to be the first syndicated series ever revolving around black singers in the US! The history is incredible, but the compilation is all around the music and it's great stuff – featuring Gatemouth Brown, Rodge Martin, The Beat Boys, Earl Gaines, The Might Hannibal, Robert parker, Cleo Randle and many more. 24 tracks in all: "Have You Ever Been Mistreated" by Gatemouth Brown, "Hitch Hike" by The Beat Boys, "Empty Arms & Bitter Tears" by Gerri Taylor, "Respect" by Rodge Martin, "I Don't Know Why I Love You" by Clarence "Frogman" Henry, "24 Hours A Day" by Earl Gaines and much more.

Excellent r&b & soul from the Nashville scene of the 60s – lesser known and smaller label singles issued at the time that deserve to be heard – and with a pretty tight and consistent focus with numbers by just a handful of great singers and combos! Includes rollicking, bluesy and soulful numbers by Cornell Blakely, JJ Barnes, Stone Martin, Larry Birdsong, Clentt Gant, Robert Garrett and others. 24 tracks in all: "Don't Do It", "I Want My Share", "Who Knows" and more by Cornell Blekely, "Try Your Luck On Me" and "You Win Again" by Stonie Martin, "Night Train" and "Stagger Lee" by John R, "Big Oak Tree", "I Gotta Sit Down" and more by Herbert Hunter, ""Somebody Help Me" by Larry Birdsong, "Mean Man" and "I Don't Want To Be Sober" by Robert Garrett and more.

We're not sure where "uptown" is in the Nashville scene – but the location hardly matters, given the strength of the grooves on this set! The package brings forth a whole host of Music City soul gems we've never heard before – lots of work from the Ref O Ree and Tee Jay labels, some of which has the care and class to match the uptown soul sound that was coming from New York in the 60s, although overall, the set's got even more charm as a southern-styled soul collection! You can definitely hear echoes of other Tennessee soul of the time – bits of Sound Stage Seven and Stax – yet the work here also has its own flavor, too – and is a welcome rediscovery in a world of familiar reissues. Titles include "I Still Remember You" by Gene Allison, "Sugar (alt)" by Thomas Henry, "Sweet Way Of Living" by Peggy Gaines, "Clean With Your Dirty Work (alt)" by Rufus Hunter, "I Hear A Melody" by Spice Of Life, "I'd Like To Try It One More Time" by Larry Birdsong, "Let The Funk Get Next To You" by Eddie & Freddie, "You're Still The One" by Roscoe Shelton, "It Has To Be Love" by Freddie Waters, and "Love Is A Wonderful Thing" by Levert Allison.

An Isley Jasper Isley 3-fer – the '84, '85 & '87's Broadway's Closer To Sunset Boulevard, Caravan Of Love and Different Drummer – in a single set! Broadway was the first breakaway effort from the trio of Ernie Isley, Chris Jasper, and Marvin Isley – a set that's got an even leaner groove than some of the Isley Brothers material from years before! The group really hit their stride right away – stepping out in a sweet array of funky rhythms that have some definite 80s touches on the beats, yet which still share all the best Isleys elements overall! Guitar parts are especially sharp – that carved in soul sound that showed up in most Isleys projects from the early 70s onwards – and the vocals have a great sense of warmth and soul, especially on the mellower tunes in the set, which turn down some of the more hook-heavy rhythms heard on other tracks. Titles include "Serve You Right", "Sex Drive", "Love Is Gonna Last Forever", "Kiss & Tell", "I Can't Get Over Losin You", "Look The Other Way", "Break This Chain", and "Broadway's Closer Than Sunset Blvd". Ernie and Marvin Isley team up with Chris Jasper and for Caravan, and more fully reinventing their for the 80s! The record features the wonderful "Caravan Of Love", a soulful spiritual tune that's kind of to 80s soul what The Impressions "People Get Ready" was to 60s soul! Different Drummer was the last album by this configuration of the group, taking on different modes, with some soul gems in the mix. Titles include "Dancing Around The World", "High Heel Syndrome", "Liberation" and more. Includes "Different Drummer", "Do It Right", "Blue Rose", "8th Wonder Of The World" and more.

Jumpin' rhythm & blues from Johnny Jones – excellent, exciting recordings in more of an r&b revue sound than the more definitively blues based numbers later on – big collection of numbers devided between sessions with The Jimmy Beck Orchestra and The Imperial Seven, aka The Beat Boys. Given the largeish backing, the numbers have a jumpin' groove, but the players keeping it tight enough that some bluesy intimacy is still there in the fabric. Some sessions feature alternate lead vocalists, a few with Earl Gaines, a couple with Larry Birdsong, plus Charles Walker, Levert Allison and others. 35 tracks in all! "Every Night In The Week", "Now That We're Together", "Best Of Luck Baby", "Slave To Love", "Fiesta", "Oh Baby", "I'm Going Home", "Slow Down Baby", "Mercy On My Soul". "24 Hours A Day", "Pickin' Berries" and more.

The late 90s solo album and sorta comeback effort by Tennessee soul legend Charles Walker – better known in the post millennium for his next sorta comeback fronting the funky soul combo The Dynamites – and a solid set of timeless bluesy soul! Walker is one of those great soul artists who's earned an excellent reputation among aficionados of classic soul for excellent performances and touring, but hasn't been recorded nearly often enough throughout his career. This one's well worth checking out, just a solid bluesy soul effort from an underappreciated master. Titles include "Homewrecker Legs", "Leavin This Old Town", "Nothing A Young Girl Can Do", "When I'm Gone", "The Very Thing That Makes You Rich", "I'm Available", "Judge Of Hearts" and more – 5 bonus tracks. 75 minutes of music!

A wonderful collection of rare rhythm & blues and soul from the Nashville scene – most of which haven't been reissued before – raw and truthful grooves from the 60s and singles originally released regionally on labels like Jewel, Valdot, Poncello and more. It's wonderful stuff, carrying on the spirit of older blues & r&b well into the 60s – with cuts by Sam Baker, Bobby Lindsey, Roscoe Shelton, Levert Allison, Luvenia Lewis and others. Titles include "Slow Down Baby" and "You Better Check What You Got" by Sam Baker, "No Way Out", "I Had A Dream" and "Don't Stop Now" by The Mighty Men, "Let Me Down Easy" and more by Earl Gaines, "Sugar Booger Baby" by Bobby Lindsey, "The Shape I'm In" and "You Made A World" by Levert Allison, "Since I Fell For You" by Dottie Clark", "Yesterday's Mistake" (previously unreleased version) by Roscoe Shelton and more.

A pair of albums from one of the most creative club acts of the 70s – the mighty Dr Buzzard's Original Savannah Band – back-to-back! Before starting his Kid Creole & the Coconuts combo, August Darnell worked to great fame with Dr Buzzard's Original Savannah Band – kind of a campy, jazzy ensemble – one that worked with a 20s aesthetic over a disco groove on the self-titled set! There's a fair bit of acoustic instrumentation in the rhythms, and lots of those choppy, scratchy lines that we love so much in the Kid Creole work – all of which makes for a very nice change from the usual, especially in the late 70s mainstream. Darnell and Cory Daye are the main vocalists, and Darnell wrote all the lyrics for this album – on titles that include "Cherchez La Femme", "I'll Play The Fool", "Sour And Sweet", "We Got It Made", "Hard Times", "Sunshower", and "Betcha The Love Bug Bitcha". Dr Buzzard's Original Savannah Band Meets King Penett is more unique work from the group – a set that bears all the unmistakeable touches of group leader August Darnell! The set's definitely got the older aesthetic that Darnell brought to his work at the time – possibly even more so than the group's first album – and it's also got a wonderfully acoustic approach to the music, one that uses older jazz inflections mixed with rootsier percussion – almost a late 70s club update of older swing and Latin modes! The tunes are beautifully penned too – most often starting out with a real sort of 30s or 40s style, then sweeping nicely into more of a 70s groove – but always without any sense of gimmick or trickery. Vocals are by the lovely Cory Daye, with a bit of help from Darnell – and titles include "Transistor Madness", "Organ Grinder's Tale", "Mister Love", "The Gigolo & I", "Nocturnal Interludes", and "I'll Always Have A Smile For You".