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The record that defined a generation, and a set with some surprisingly nice soul tracks, too – including "Open Sesame" by Kool & The Gang, "Disco Inferno" by The Trammps, "KJEE" by MFSB, "Calypso Breakdown" by Ralph MacDonald, "Fifth Of Beethoven" by Walter Murphy, "If I Can't Have You" by Yvonne Elliman, and "More Than A Woman" by Tavares.

One of Capitol's biggest soul bands of the 70s – and a strong sweet group who made the shift from mellow soul to the disco years. Includes the band's massive "Heaven Must Be Missing An Angel", but we prefer their mellower stuff – like their sublime version of "She's Gone", "It Only Takes A Minute", and "The Love I Never Had". 16 songs total!

Always-great work from Tavares – one of those groups who never seemed to miss, and who seemed to weather the disco era a lot better than most of their contemporaries! This 1980 album is key proof of that fact – a tremendous little set, done at a point when Tavares could have rested on their hits – yet they kept on getting better and better – really soaring here with impeccable vocals, and tightening things up into a mode that's not exactly 80s groove, but which sure isn't disco either! Harmonies are great – and titles include "Love Uprising", "Break Down For Love", "Only One I Need To Love", "Don't Wanna Say Goodnight", "She Can Wait Forever", "Do You Believe In Love", and "Life Time Of Love". CD features the bonus track "Love Uprising (7" single version)".

Tavares chill things out nicely, definitely heading for the "new directions" in the title, and going for more of a mellow sound that was clearly going to help them reach new audiences in the post-disco years. The harmonies are as great as they always were in the early days, taking a nicely smoothed out approach in place of the somewhat gritter groove of some of the earlier work – moving fearlessly into the 80s groove with excellent results! Titles include "Mystery Lady", "Abra Ca Dabra Love You Too", "Maybe We'll Fall In Love Again", "The Skin You're In", "I Hope You'll Be Very Unhappy Without Me", "A Penny For Your Thoughts", "Got To Find My Way Back To You", and "Wanna Be Close to You". This CD edition has 4 bonus tracks: "Got To Find My Way Back To You (12" Dance Mix)", "A Penny For Your Thoughts (Single Version)", "The Skin You're In (Single Version)" and "Got To Find My Way Back To You (Single Version)".

A smooth batch of modern soul from this great 70s vocal group! By this point in their career, Tavares have already had great fame on both the radio and dancefloor charts – moving effortlessly between sweet harmony tracks and more strident disco ones. This set has the group working in a mature mode that falls out equally well on both sides of the fence – with arrangements by Bobby Colomby, David Foster, and Benjamin Wright, and tracks that include "Bad Times", "I Don't Want You Anymore", "Paradise", "Why Can't We Fall In Love", and "I Can't Go On Living Without You".

The group's second album – and one that really shows them hitting their stride, harmonically. The album's got some impeccable vocals that really come together well – not as slick as on later albums, but with a polished perfection that shows Tavares as one of the 70s ultimate pop soul combos. Production's by the team of Dennis Lambert and Brian Potter – who also contributed the tracks "To Love You", "Hard Core Poetry", "Too Late", "What You Don't Know", "My Ship", "Someone To Go Home To", and "Leave It Up To The Lady" to the album. Also includes a great rendition of the Hall & Oates tune "She's Gone".

The group's second album – and one that really shows them hitting their stride, harmonically. The album's got some impeccable vocals that really come together well – not as slick as on later albums, but with a polished perfection that shows Tavares as one of the 70s ultimate pop soul combos. Production's by the team of Dennis Lambert and Brian Potter – who also contributed the tracks "To Love You", "Hard Core Poetry", "Too Late", "What You Don't Know", "My Ship", "Someone To Go Home To", and "Leave It Up To The Lady" to the album. Also includes a great rendition of the Hall & Oates tune "She's Gone".

An incredible album from Tavares – every bit as great on the uptempo end, as you'd expect from their bigger hits, as it is on the sweeter ballad tracks – which step out here as a tremendous surprise! The set was crafted with help from Philly maestro Bobby Martin – and begins with a groove that certainly shows Martin in all of his Sigma-inspired glory – but as the set moves on, it glides into some sweeter, gentler tracks that come across with a mighty mellow soul approach! The set features 3 stellar tracks written by the great Sam Dees – "Games, Games", "Let Me Heal The Bruises", and "My Love Calls" – all of which show a strong deeper soul side of the group. Other tracks are great, too – and include "I'm Back For More", Never Had A Love Like This Before", "Straight From Your Heart", "One Telephone Call Away", and "Positive Forces". 3 bonus tracks: "Never Had A Love Like This Before (US Capitol 12" Single" – and the great instrumental version for that – plus ""Straight From Your Heart (US Capitol 7" Single)".

A special radio show – hosted by Lou Rawls, done for the US Navy – and featuring Al Green! Loads of classic Hi Records cuts from the early 70s – and a very unique package!

A pair of killers from Kwick – back to back on a single CD! First up is the self-titled Kwick – sweet 80s groove from a quartet who were once known as The Newcomers, and recorded some Memphis singles for Stax – but who here reemerge more than fully-formed – leaping into the new decade with an amazingly rich sound! Given the group's previous work, the vocals here are really wonderful – trained on old school harmony modes, and refitted to some more contemporary rhythms – yet all in a way that never loses the depth that made them so great in the first place. Although never super-huge, the group have a quality level that rivals the best of their contemporaries in this mode from the time – making this debut a stone gem to rival the best from acts like Switch or Tavares. Titles include "I Want To Dance With You", "Can't Help Myself", "Serious Business", "Let This Moment Be Forever", and "Tonight Is The Night". To The Point is a wonderful second set from Kwick – a bit more grooving than their first, with added emphasis on funky bass bits and keyboards – yet a set that's still filled with all the great vocals from before! It's not easy to harmonize tightly while stepping along with a lively rhythm, but Kwick make it all sound perfect here – super-tight, yet never uptight – in a rare blend that few other groups could ever reach in such a setting! The whole album's a charmer – and titles include "Split Decision", "Nightlife", "You're The Star Of My Show", "You're The Kind Of Girl I Like", "No Winner No Loser", and "I Choose You".

Sublime soul all the way through – a tremendous set of modern and mellow cuts from the end of the 70s and start of the 80s – all put together with a really beautiful feel! There's a perfect balance here – between mainstream and underground, laidback and grooving – the classiest sort of soul from the time, and work that's light years away from both disco dancefloors and chart-oriented cuts. Expansion Records' Ralph Tee put the package together, and his approach here really takes us back to the time when the label first started catching our ear with their subtle, sophisticated approach to soul. Many tracks here haven't been reissued before, and even those that have sound wonderful in the company of the rest. Titles include "If You're Ready" by Beau Williams, "Let's Go All The Way" by Gayle Adams, "The Good Side Of Love" by Ronnie McNeir, "We're In Ecstasy" by Hubert Laws, "Evening Of Love" by Main Ingredient, "It's Alright With Me" by Patti Labelle, "Say You Love Me Girl" by Breakwater, "Never Had A Love Like This Before (inst)" by Tavares, "Here We Go Again (parts 1 & 2)" by Isley Brothers, "I Want To Be Where You Are" by Ronnie Dyson, "Can You Find The Time" by Champaign, "How Do You Take Your Love" by Major Harris, and "What About My Love" by Damaris Carbaugh.

An obscure Motown group from the end of the 70s – 21st Creation had a strident uptempo group sound that reminds us of some of the more successful disco hits of Tavares from the same time. The arrangements are mostly club-oriented – handled by Willie Hutch, Gene Page, and Harold Johnson – and you can hear the group's style to best effect on tracks like their remake of Marvin Gaye's "After The Dance", Willie Hutch's "You Gotta Dance To My Music", or the hard grooving "Thanks For Saving Me". Not totally standout material, but with a few nice moments. Other tracks include "Funk Machine", "Tailgate", and "Baby, I'm For Real".

Smooth and soulful club from the mighty Capitol Records – one of the few major labels to really understand a groove at the end of the 70s! The 2CD package is a wonderful tribute to the hipper soul coming out of Capitol at the time – a set that features some hits, some album tracks, and a fair bit of rarities that we've never seen on CD before – some lesser-known club cuts that sit beautifully here next to the bigger names in the collection. But big or small, the artists here are all pretty darn great – much more soul artists heading for the clubs in the late 70s than quickie disco acts just looking for a buck. The collection features 31 tracks in all – including a few non-Capitol cuts – with tracks that include "A Little Bit Of Love" by Gentle Persuasion, "Expressway To Your Heart" by Margo Thunder, "Sophisticated Lady" by Natalie Cole, "Windstorm" by Gloria Jones, "One Thing On My Mind" by Evie Sands, "Surrender" by Barrett Strong, "Do It Good" by Taste Of Honey, "I'm Back For More" by Tavares, "Save Your Love For Me" by Donna Washington, "Conscience" by Sun, "Party In Me" by Gene Dunlap, "Our Love Is Insane" by Desmond Child, "I'm Going Through Changes Now" by Brown Sugar, "Southern Girl (live)" by Maze, "Adventures In Paradise" by Minnie Riperton, "Man Up In The Sky" by Barrett Strong, "Positive Forces" by Tavares, "Sixty Thrills A Minute" by Mystic Merlin, "Street Corner" by Ashford & Simpson, "We All Need Love" by Troiano, "Annie Mae" by Natalie Cole, "Don't Tie Me Down" by Brown Sugar, and "Ooh Child" by Charles Jackson.