All Categories — LPs  

A nicely done compilation of the some of the best of Just-Ice – culled from the legendary Fresh, Warlock and Sleeping Bag recordings – a solid entry point for hardcore hip hop pioneer if you don't already own those records! Includes some the most legendary Mantronix productions, the best of the Just-Ice and KRS-One co-productions and a few of better cuts that Grandmaster Flash produced – and the 2LP set is sprawling enough to bring in some of better 12" versions, too! 21 tracks on 2LP version: "Cold Getting' Dumb", "Back To The Old School", "Latoya", "Gangster Of Hip Hop", "Going Way Back", "Freedom Of Speech '88", "Kool & Deadly", "The Desolate One", "Na Touch Da Just", "Way Back (We're Going)" feat Chubb Rock, "Cool & Wicked" and more.

The timeless classic Cali hip hop standard bearer from Souls Of Mischief – on 2LP vinyl! As much as we love all the best Hiero output of the 90s & beyond, this is still our favorite, and besides, it's pretty much the blueprint for the Hieroglyphics sound. Smoothly jazz and headnodding boom bap production at its finest – along with some of the finest ensemble rapping of the era, this one goes straight up on the top shelf. 14 tracks: "That's When Ya Lost", "Let Em Know", "Live & Let Live", "Make Your Mind Up", "A Name I Call Myself", "Disseshowedo", "What A Way To Go Out", "Never No More", "93 Til Infinity", "Limitations", "Anything Can Happen", "Make Your Mind Up", "Batting Practice", "Tell Me Who Profits" and "Outro"..

Now a classic, and pretty tough to get a hold of on vinyl. Beats by Buckwild, Showbiz and Lord Finesse, rhymes by Harlem's finest. Big L didn't leave behind much recorded work, but if this LP has to stand as his legacy, it's a mighty fine statement. Alongside some of the latter day QB hip hop, probably the pinnacle of streetlife lyrics from the east coast. 12 tracks in all: "Put It On", "MVP", "No Endz, No Skinz", "8 Iz Enuff", "All Black", "Danger Zone", "Street Struck", "Da Graveyard", "Lifestylez Ov Da Poor And Dangerous", "I Don't Understand It, "Fed Up Wit The Bullsh#t", and "Let 'Em Have It L".

Biz's second LP from 1989 – what can we tell you about the Biz that you don't already know? As far as we're concerned there are a lot of MCs that could still learn a lesson or two from the Biz, and producers too! Good time mid school hip hop, with nice sample based production and a great sense of humor, that makes us nostalgic for the late 80s early 90s glory days. 13 tracks in all, with the cuts "Spring Again", "Just A Friend", "A Thing Named Kim", "The Dragon", "Things Get A Little Easier", "I Hear Music", "Biz In Harmony", "Check It Out" and more.

Pure greatness from Brand Nubian at their early best! The Nubes' have made a handful of solid-to-great albums, but none could top this essential debut. Grand Puba, Sadat X and Lord Jamar are on point with the politicized rhymes over classic early 90s jazzed up, funky beats, built from now well known breaks – and truly raising the bar for classic east coast production. With the classics "All For One", "Slow Down", "Drop The Bomb", "Concerto In X Minor", and 2 mixes of "Wake Up" (Stimulated Dummies mix and the penultimate reprise), plus "Who Can Get Busy Like This Man. . .", "Ragtime", "To The Right", "Dance To My Ministry", "Step To The Rear", "Try To Do Me", "Grand Puba, Positive & LG" and "Dedication".

A selection of late 80s South Bronx Teachings – classic Boogie Down Productions circa Criminal Minded! South Bronx Teachings focuses soundly on the class of '87 – so you get fistful of the Criminal Minded cuts and a few other blasts from KRS-One & Scott La Rock, nicely paced over 2 pieces of vinyl. Includes "Poetry", "South Bronx", "9MM Goes Blang", "Word From Our Sponsor", "Elementary", "Advance", "D-Nice Rocks The House", "The Bridge Is Over", "Super-Hoe", "Criminal Minded", and "P Is Free (12" Version)".

Prime early electro hip hop genius from Mantronix – and a set that includes tight singles, 12" mixes and some classic production work for T La Rock, Just Ice and more – 2CDs that cover the vital mid 80s period! Here are those classic early hits with the booming 808 and all the trademark elements – heavy bass, handclaps, high hats, vocoder vox and party rap. Vinyl version features 13 tracks on 2LPs: "Bassline", "Needle To The Groove (12" Version)", "Fresh is The Word (12" Version)" and "We Control The Dice" by Mantronix proper, plus "Turbo Charged" and "Cold Getting Dumb" (parts I and II) by Just Ice, "Breaking Bells" (12" and dub versions) by T La Rock and "Johnny The Fox" by Tricky Tee.

The Biz never looked so great – huffing on a test tube on the front of this special limited picture disc – featuring a remastered version of Biz's second LP from 1989 – packaged with a flexi-disc postcard too, with a turntable-playable version of "Just A Friend"! As far as we're concerned there are a lot of MCs that could still learn a lesson or two from the Biz, and producers too! Good time mid school hip hop, with nice sample based production and a great sense of humor, that makes us nostalgic for the late 80s early 90s glory days. 13 tracks in all, with the cuts "Spring Again", "Just A Friend", "A Thing Named Kim", "The Dragon", "Things Get A Little Easier", "I Hear Music", "Biz In Harmony", "Check It Out" and more.

An incredible album from one of the greatest talents on the Chicago soul scene of the late 60s – guitarist Phil Upchurch, a player with an amazing sound! Phil could work in worlds that were equal parts soul and psychedelia – making his guitar a perfect accompaniment for the best Chicago soul of Curtis Mayfield, Donny Hathaway, Minnie Riperton, and other greats of the time. This album's easily one of Phil's best – a mindblowing set of arrangements put together by the groundbreaking producer Charles Stepney – bringing together bits of jazz, rock, soul, and funk – all providing the perfect genre-blending space for Upchurch to solo! Given that there's no singer on the set, Phil's work on guitar is a lot freer than you're used to hearing – in a really great way, one that puts him in a space somewhere between Shuggie Otis and Jimi Hendrix! Brilliant all the way through, with tracks that include "Adam & Charlene", "You Wouldn't You Couldn't Be True", "Crosstown Traffic", "More & More", "Black Gold", "America", and "As You Said".

A lost bit of 70s soul jazz and global funk percussion from conguero & trombonist Melvyn Price – an incredible set of heavily rhythmic grooves recorded in Stockholm in 1974 – originally a private press effort, and the most impressive rediscovery yet from Wax Poetics Records! Melvyn grew up outside of Detroit, and he cut his teeth with the freeform Afrikan Folk Ensemble before relocating to Sweden in the 60s, where he thrived in the country's healthy and creative jazz scene. He's joined by a great group of international players who bring diverse flavors to the overall sound, with Latin and African styles of percussion from Price, Jon Dill and Luis Agudo, drums by Gunnar Nyberg and Fredrik Noren, piano by Bjorn Wolff, fluidly jazzy tenor sax from Ed Epstein, and bass by Guy Roellinger, who's work here often sounds like the stuff of funky 70s soundtracks. If we can't quite peg the bluesy bits promised by the title, the rhythms are absolutely impeccable – with the conga and percussion as the driving force of the sound! Titles include "Voodoo Love Dance", "Toward Brazil", "Behind Kungstradgarden", "Happiness Is. . .", "Five O'Clock Traffic" and "Last Train".

A masterpiece of early Detroit disco – the debut album by Sins of Satan, and a club classic all the way through! The group have a great sound that really belies their Motor City roots – one that's not afraid to use heavier guitars and funkier elements, but which also rolls along in a tight clubby groove that's equal part disco and equal parts ensemble funk. Jimmy Roach is the main main behind the production and arrangements on the set – and he's got a great little touch that brings in some moogy bits from time to time, and which knows just the right point to chill out. The album's actually got two totally great mellow cuts – the spacey "Sunshine Girl" and harmony soul "Autumn" – alongside the hard-rolling groovers "Dance & Free Your Mind", "Rope-a-Dope", "Heavy Traffic", and "Devil's Disco".

The genius of Nicola Conte gets the remix treatment – in this wonderful new album that steps off heavily from his massive Jet Sounds set of a few years ago! If you know know Nicola, he's the wunderkind behind the Schema label – and, probably more than anyone in the world right now, one of the few producer/musicians who can really handle a retro-sounding groove. Conte's steeped in classic jazz, soundtracks, and bossa nova – all of which come into play in his music – and this set has him working with a host of able talents who help to take his unique creative vision even farther than before! This double 10" package is totally cool – with a total of 5 tracks from the full LP, laid out over double DJ-friendly vinyl. Each track takes on a whole new life, as lots of new elements are added to the music, and most of the tracks are almost completely remade – and titles include "Jazz Pour Dadine" remixed by The Dining Rooms, "Arabesque" done by Micatone, "Forma 2000" reformed by Les Gammas, "Dossier Omega" redone by Espen Horne, and "Trappola Mortale (traffic replay) done anew by The Freeform Arkestra.

The grooviest work so far from the Hi-Fly Orchestra – a set that moves even farther past the sublime territory of their debut, into a really classic blend of soul jazz and Latin rhythms – produced to perfection with a wonderfully solid feel! Instrumentation here is all live – a blend of sax, flute, trombone, Fender Rhodes, piano, and plenty of percussion – all handled with a feel that takes us back to some of our favorite territory on Verve Records from the 60s, those wonderful records that blended elements from the Latin underground with some of the harder jazz leanings of the period – a legacy these guys are happy to add to with their wonderful grooves. Miriam Aida guests on vocals on two cuts, but most titles are instrumental – and tunes include "Afro Boo", "Carioquinha", "Polonesa", "Mrs Shing A Ling", "Hi Fly Stomp", "Mambo Atomico", and a surprisingly groovy cover of "Crosstown Traffic".

Sun Ra's first album as a leader – originally issued on the Transition label, but presented here in its better-known incarnation by Delmark Records! Even at this early point, Ra had a sound unlike any of his contemporaries – large group and modern, but not in a way that showed any similarities to work going on in New York or LA – a voice that was all his own, and already quite boldly stated, even in these early years! The format might be somewhat familiar – an ensemble with horns and rhythm – but the overall execution really starts to open up as the album moves on – with odd phrasings, timings, and unusual moments that live up to all the promise you might expect from Ra. Even Mingus and some of his better-known contemporaries weren't heading in these directions in the mid 50s – and the record is a proud showcase of the freedoms that players were often accorded in the less-trafficked Chicago scene of the time. Horns include Art Hoyle & Dave Young on trumpets, John Gilmore on tenor sax, Pat Patrick on baritone, Julian Priester on trombone, and James Scales on alto sax – and rhythm includes Jim Herndon on tympani, Robert Barry on drums, Wilbur Green on electric bass, and a young Richard Evans on acoustic bass! Titles include "Brainville", "Call For All Demons", "Transition", "Lullaby For Realville", "Street Named Hell", "New Horizons", "Fall Off The Long", "Possession", and "Future".