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One of the great entries in Duke Ellington's "exotic" albums of the 60s – records that aren't exactly exotica by any stretch of the imagination, but which have musical themes that were inspired by the international travels of the Ellington band at the time! In this case, the locale is the Virgin Islands – where Ellington performed in 1965, and returned home to record this set as a memory of tunes played by the band in St Croix and St Thomas. The core of the set is the initial Virgin Islands suite – made up of four new tunes that include "Island Virgin", "Virgin Jungle", "Fiddler On The Diddle", and "Jungle Kitty" – all nicely rhythmic numbers that explore some fresh themes with especially nice horn solos from the members of the group. Other tracks are older numbers performed on the tour, given a bit of a new twist here – on titles that include "Fade Up", "Mysterious Chick", "The Opener", and "Big Fat Alice's Blues".

The genius of Roy Ayers knows no end – and as this set of unreleased work from the 70s proves, Roy was always working at top form back in the day – even above and beyond his classic albums from the time! The grooves here are tremendous – funky, soulful, jazzy, and every bit as wonderful as the work that Roy did for his classic albums on Polydor – and in a way, the whole set's even tighter and heavier than any of Roy's full LPs, because it's a distillation of his sound from the time, hand-picked from the vaults with an ear towards the kind of timeless grooves that have been a huge influence on many worlds of music for years! You've never heard any of these tunes before, but we can promise you'll love them every bit as much as Roy's tracks on albums like Coffy, Vibrations, Mystic Voyage, and other classics – and the quality of the set only further pushes our jaw-dropping respect for the man! Titles include "Holiday", "Kwajilori", "I Am Your Mind (part 2)", "Touch Of Class", "Third Time", "Come To Me", "Wide Open", "Funk In The Hole", "Liquid Love", "Tarzan", "Sunshine (demo)", and "I Like The Way You Do It To Me".

A sweetly dreamy little album recorded by Daevid Allen away from Gong – working here with his drum-less group Euterpe, described in the notes as "an amazing bunch of catalunatics"! The record was recorded in a home studio in Majorca, and has a really relaxed feel – one that's somewhat spare and intimate, but with a lyrically sing-song sort of approach – one that only further pulls out the more playful side of Allen's vocals. Instrumentation includes mandolin, moog, bass, and guitar – and the approach is almost a prog folk move into the territory of Syd Barrett. Titles include "Children Of The New World", "Spirit", "Song Of Satisfaction", "Have You Seen My Friend", "French Garden", and "Wise Man In Your Heart". CD also features the bonus track "Euterpe Gratitude Piece".

A cooker of a record from Lester Bowie – one that takes the earlier sound of the Brass Fantasy ensemble, and focuses it into a mode that shows his growing love of soul and funk! The set was issued on the the short-lived Venture imprint of Virgin – a surprisingly strong outlook for creative projects like this – and the vibe's quite different than the Brass Fantasy records cut for ECM – with almost a bit more soul at the bottom, and a compact sort of energy that really sends the ideas home. Players include Bowie, Stanton Davis, Malachi Thompson, and Sasul Siddik on trumpets – plus Steve Turre and Frank Lacy on trombones, Vincent Chancey on French horn, Bob Stewart on tuba, and Phil Wilson on drums. Titles include a surprisingly great remake of "Thriller" – plus "Vibe Waltz", "I Am With You", "Duke's Fantasy", "Personality", and "Twilight Dreams".

Sweet and gritty soul from D'Angelo – who takes a huge step into deeper territory on Voodoo – and it's one of the most monumental records of its time! On one level, Voodoo works as a nicely stripped-down session with a very classic soul feel. Gone are the overzealous flourishes that sometimes overwhelmed his earlier songs, and in their place are some sweetly crafted vocal parts with a classic Marvin Gaye/Al Green feel. That warmth is probably what made Voodoo a massive popular success – but what makes it such a creative triumph are the darker undercurrents – hinting at a troubled soul struggling for spiritual truth. One of the rare cases in popular music when great art became music for the masses! Titles include "Left & Right (feat Method Man & Redman)", "The Line", "Spanish Joint", "Africa", "Feel Like Makin Love", "The Root", "Playa Playa", "Devil's Pie", and "Greatdayndamornin/Booty".

The 4th album from legendary German proggers Faust – as if you couldn't guess from the title – and quite possibly their best-remembered set! While still quite progressive, the record also has some tunes that are oddly a bit more hook-heavy – playful little tracks with vocal bits that really give them focus – and a few moments that almost hit a bit of a groove at the bottom amidst all the more experimental guitars and production! The titles almost give some indication that the group's looking at themselves with a bit of a smirk – and include "Krautrock", "Sad Skinhead", "Giggy Smile", and "It's A Bit Of Pain".

A new wave crossover classic from The Flying Lizards – one of the quirkiest groups of their era! The group were European, but have a sound that resonates strongly with the most playful post-disco work of the New York scene of the time, particularly the acts on Ze Records – a groove that mixes equal part punky and clubby rhythms, often topped with lyrics that are cold, but clever, done in the same ironic arty style of Cristina, or Devo. This album's the group's standout opus – and features their classic covers of "Summertime Blues" and "Money" – as well as originals "The Flood", "TV", "The Window", and "Russia". CD also features "Money (single edit)".

Titles include "Red Rain", "Sledgehammer", "Don't Give Up", "In Your Eyes", and "Big Time".

Nice late 70s work from Gong – and a record that's much more jazz fusion based than some of the group's earlier work! Pierre Moerlen's still handling an awful lot of percussion – including vibra, timpani, glock, and marimba – but he's joined here by Mino Cinelou, who adds an additional tighter level of rhythm, plus guitarist Allan Holdsworth, whose ripping style on his axe almost gives a funky feel to a few of the tracks on the set. Titles include "Percolations", "Shadows Of", "Esnuria", and "Expresso".

A treasure trove of rare work by Lee Hazelwood – tracks recorded in the last 25 years of the 20th Century, but unissued until this beautiful compilation! Much of the material has the feel of Hazelwood's albums from the late 60s and early 70s – a sublime mix of country, folk, and Lee's unique "outlaw" approach to vocal pop – and all tunes are produced by Lee with longtime musical partner Al Casey. The quality of the songwriting, as always, is great – and if you like Lee's work of classic years, you'll enjoy this set quite a lot. Titles include "Buying Back", "Suddenly Tennessee", "For My Birthday", "Save A Place For Me", "Dolly & Hawkeye", and "Dirtnap Stories".

One of the greatest crossover moments ever from Heaven 17 – a track that's far more soulful than most of their other work at the time, and which cascades wonderfully over a sublime hook and a great midtempo groove!

Heaven 17 soften up their politics a bit with this second album (yet still address class inequality issues with the title!) – but they also manage to replace their Marxist agenda with some groovier, more soul-based tunes – just the kind of material that helped push them out of import obscurity into more of a crossover market in the US! The album's fondly remembered for the electro dancefloor numbers "Temptation", "Come Live With Me", and "Let Me Go" – all of which stand a cut above the work of their predecessors Human League, and show an ability to go past simple electronic pop riffs – even if they are all pretty darn catchy! Other tracks are great too – and the record has a joyous, optimistic quality that's every bit the best side of this scene from the early 80s generation. Titles include "We Live So Fast", "Best Kept Secret", "Crushed By The Wheels Of Industry", and "Key To The World".

Great post-Gong work from Steve Hillage – an album of gently progressive tracks that really makes some wonderful use of his talents on guitar! The record's got a slightly shimmering quality that's a bit in keeping with the spirit of the title – and the sound is something of a refinement of British progressive modes from a few years back – reigned in slightly, and given a bit more focus on some of the album's most tuneful numbers. But there's also still a nice sense of sonic playfulness throughout, too – the slightly experimental qualities that were one of Virgin's best contributions at the time – as shorter tracks are interspersed with the longer ones – allowing Hillage to create a rich tapestry of sound. Titles include "Solar Music Suite", "Fish", "Mediatation Of The Snake", "The Salmon Song", and "Aftaglid". CD also features the bonus tracks "Pentagrammaspin (2006 rmx)" and "Aftaglid (original power trio backing track)".

The latest from the groundbreaking Bristol crew! The sound on this outing isn't as dark as the last two albums, but there's still the unmistakable Massive vibe, with a full, deep bass, dubby elements, hip-hop & jungle inflected beats and atmospheric touches that spawned scores of copycats. Horace Andy is welcome, as on previous efforts, with his bright voice gracing a number of tracks, while on other songs Sinead O'Connor's vocals actually fit in quite well amongst the thick sonic collage. 9 tracks in all: "Future Proof", "What Your Soul Sings", "Everywhen", "Special Cases", "Butterfly Caught", "A Prayer For England", "Small Time Shot Away", "Name Taken" and "Antistar".

The overlooked collaboration between Human League singer Philip Oakey and producer Giorgio Moroder! The duo initially worked together on the outstanding "Together In Electric Dreams" single – a surprise hit from Moroder's soundtrack for a forgettable movie – and given The Human League's move towards a dancefloor sound around the same time, the timing was perfect to team up! Moroder lays down a soulful synth backdrop that rarely lets up – in fact, the first five tunes flow together almost like a continuous suite! Ultimately, this is a sweet slice of quintessentially 80s sounds – in a style that's endured – especially when you consider its influence on groups like Passion Pit a good 25 years later! Other tracks include "Now", "Why Must The Show Go On", "In Transit", "Goodbye Bad Times" "Brand New Lover (Take A Chance)", "Be My Lover Now", "Valerie" and "Shake It Up". Bonus tracks on this CD version from Gold Legion include an extended version of "Together In Electric Dreams", "In Transit/Goodbye Bad Times (12" Remix)" and "Be My Lover Now (12" Remix)".

The Rolling Stones at their rawest, most shambling, sleazy and brilliant – the epic, unimpeachable Exile On Main Street! What can we say about one of the most iconic LPs of all time other than chime in with our agreement that it's one of the greatest rock albums ever! Big choruses come and go, but the easy hooks of earlier and later Stones hits are buried in mud, grit and a sleazy bluesy groove. Titles include "Rocks Off", "Rip This Joint", "Tumbing Dice", "Sweet Virginia", "Loving Cub", "Torn And Frayed", "Let It Loose", "All Down The Line", "Shine A Light", "Soul Survivor" and more.

A work of incredible brilliance – a lost treasure from the late 80s that's been one of our favorite records for years! The album's quite different than most other work by David Sylvian – not nearly as open-ended and loose as his more experimental, soundscape-like projects – nor as sweet and romantic as some of his earlier solo work, or his albums with Japan. Instead, there's an acoustic, organic quality to the record – really focusing on Sylvian's amazing vocals, set amidst light instrumentation that swells and dips like the sun on rises in the land on a late afternoon hike in the autumn. There's a subtle poetry to the whole album, delivered in a style that is somehow free from pretension, or any of the cloying qualities a work like this should have. Tremendous stuff – one of those rare records that's never been duplicated again! Titles include "September", "The Boy With The Gun", "Maria", "Orpheus", "When Poets Dreamed Of Angels", and "Let The Happiness In".

A key slice of Scott Walker genius – and his only recording from the 80s, cut on the heels of a re-discovery of his older music, but a far step ahead than anything Walker had done before! Climate Of Hunter is far darker than the famous Philips albums – and carries with it echoes of his last few tunes with the re-formed Walker Brothers in the late 70s – a bleaker look at life than ever before, but one that's still touched with the sense of poetry that Scott always brought to his work, and sung in that godlike voice we love so much! Instrumentation carries a definite feel of the time – with some echoes of British post-punk production, especially in the way the drums and guitar are recorded. Yet there's also a timeless quality to the album here too – and each year past its release settles it more warmly into the classic and better-known Scott Walker catalog. Surprising guest appearances on the set include Evan Parker, Ray Russell, Mark Isham, and even Billy Ocean – and titles include "Rawhide", "Dealer", "Track 3", "Sleepwalkers Woman", "Track 5", and "Track 7".

One of the greatest soul groups from the UK in the 80s – a real bright spot in the years before Soul II Soul and the rise of acid jazz – and a set we'd rank right up there with Sade's best work of the time! Working Week have a very jazzy sound at their core – acoustic rhythms, and a strong commitment to jazz at the core – no surprise, given that two of the group's three members were previously involved with Weekend! The third member is the lovely Juliette Roberts – easily one of the best Brit soul singers of the time – and an artist who really helps push some of the more American influences in the group's music – while still giving the whole thing a bit of a London sparkle, too. The mix is sublime, and the whole album's great – full of classic cuts that include "Autumn Boy", "No Cure No Pay", "Sweet Nothing", "Who's Fooling Who", "Thought I'd Never See You Again", and "Venceremos".

The album that put the Bristol sound on the map, and delivered the opening salvo for the trip hop movement. Heady instrumental hip hop clashes with dub and new school soul on this seminal set. Shara Nelson and Horace Andy provided some well placed guest vocals on a few numbers. 9 tracks in all, including "Safe From Harm", "One Love", "Blue Lines", "Be Thankful For What You've Got", "Five Man Army", "Unfinished Sympathy", "Daydreaming", "Lately" and "Hymn Of The Big Wheel".

Not everyone digs the later Captain and crew, but the early 80s efforts have finally gotten their just props after all these years – and we'll we'll come right out and say that this second to last album before Don Van Vliet hung up the music for painting has always sounded great to us! The Magic Band is incredible as always – with Jeff Morris Tepper, Drumbo French and Eric Drew Feldman's antics under the Captain's idiosyncratic vocalese. With "Hot Head", "Ashtray Heart", "A Carrot Is As Close As A Rabbit Gets To A Diamond", "Run Paint Run Run", "Sue Egypt", "Brickbats", "Dirty Blue Gene", "Best Batch Yet", "Telephone", "Flavor Bud Living", "Sherriff Of Hong Kong" and "Making Love To A Vampire With A Monkey On My Knee".

Pure niceness on this first single from the Voodoo LP, produced by Premier.

Sweet and gritty soul from D'Angelo – who takes a huge step into deeper territory on Voodoo – and it's one of the most monumental records of its time! On one level, Voodoo works as a nicely stripped-down session with a very classic soul feel. Gone are the overzealous flourishes that sometimes overwhelmed his earlier songs, and in their place are some sweetly crafted vocal parts with a classic Marvin Gaye/Al Green feel. That warmth is probably what made Voodoo a massive popular success – but what makes it such a creative triumph are the darker undercurrents – which hint at a troubled soul struggling for spiritual truth. One of the rare cases in popular music when great art became music for the masses! Titles include "Left & Right (feat Method Man & Redman)", "The Line", "Spanish Joint", "Africa", "Feel Like Makin Love", "The Root", "Playa Playa", "Devil's Pie", and "Greatdayndamornin/Booty".

A US compilation – with cuts that include "Penthouse & Pavement", "Play To Win", "Let Me Go", "The Height Of The Fighting", "We're Going To Live For A Very Long Time", "I'm Your Money", and "Fascist Groove Thang".

Classic LKJ from the tumultuous late 70s years – self-produced, and featuring the tracks "Song Of Blood", "Doun De Road", "Five Nights Of Bleeding", "Man Free", and "All Wi Doin Is Defindin".

The second album from UK soul trio Loose Ends and the one that really helped them breakthrough! Like their previous album, So Where Are You was produced by Philly producer Nick Martinelli, but this one finds the group tightening up the groove into a more focused modern soul style – mid 80s period production. Dancefloor friendly, but with a focus on the tight focus on the traded male & female lead vocals and really strong songwriting – co-written by the group. Includes "Magic Touch", "A New Horizon", "So Where Are You?", "Golden Years", "Silent Talking", "Hangin' On A String", "Give It All You Got", "The Sweetest Pain" and more. This Soulmusic.com CD edition includes 5 bonus track – including a version of "Magic Touch" featuring Roy Ayers on vibes! Others include "Hangin' On A String (The Twilight Firm All Night Mix)", "Hangin' On A String (Frankie Knuckles Club Mix)", "Golden Years (UK 12" Single Mix).

A wonderful single from Losse Ends, showcasing their coulful approach to 80s groove and contemporary UK R&B.

A nice compilation of Kenyan Afro-pop on the Earthworks label, collecting the work of Daniel Owino Misiani. The overall sound is song oriented, as opposed to the more groove oriented Afrobeat style, and featues chubby bouncing basslines with bright guitar lines over top and harmony vocals throughout. 8 tracks in all, including "Joshirati Misiani", "Safari Ya Tanzania", "Dr J Abuya", "Agnes Nyashirati" and "Okth Atari".

Easily one of the most successful albums of the British jazz rock years – but still a longtime favorite of ours as well! Mike Oldfield sets a whole new standard here for concept rock – not only by working on a single album-length composition that spans all of sides one and two, but also by playing all instruments himself – in a one man symphony of sound that's pretty darn great! The main theme of the piece will be recognizable from it's stripped-down use in The Exorcist – but we really love Oldfield's expansion on it here in a range of different overdubbed instruments, which are also sometimes processed – and then introduced by Mike in a spoken part that's one of the highlights of the album.

Titles include "Angel Eyes", "Flora Nova", "A Esperanca", "Las Olas", "Bodas De Prata", "Good Morning Heartache", "Nothing Will Be As It Was", and "Light As A Feather".

Live recordings, b sides & remixes.

Titles include "Angie", "Star Star", "Hide Your Love", "Winter", "Can You Hear The Music", "100 Years Ago", and "Doo Doo Doo Doo Doo".

A classic bit of stretched-out spaciness from the early days of Virgin Records – two side-long tracks that are filled with lots of cool keyboards, percussion, and other hip instrumentation! The record's the brainchild of Cyrille Verdeaux – who plays piano, organ, mellotron, and even gong on the set – working with a different group on each side – guitar, vibes, bass, and percussion on side one – and on side two, tenor from Didier Malherbe, guitar from Steve Hillage, and synth from Tim Blake! The sound is a bit too relaxed to be jamming, but definitely has a nice sort of proggish vibe – never sleeping, and always nice and exploratory, even when spacey.

You've gotta love a record that begins with the statement "If your breasts are too big, you will fall over – unless you wear a rucksack" – and if that line isn't enough to catch your ears, the rest of the record certainly is! Velvet Donkey is one of Ivor Cutler's brilliant 70s albums – done much more for a rock audience than the folkies that first carried him up at the start of the 60s. Tracks are all short, simple, almost child-like – in a way that makes Cutler the vocal equivalent of the same territory explored by Moondog on his older instrumental records. There's a slightly comic twist to some of the tunes, but the record certainly isn't comedy – more in the mode of short sound-poems, or 2 minute plays than anything else. The album features a whopping 31 tracks in all – many under a minute long – and titles include "Useful Cat", "Bread & Butter", "A Nuance", "Go & Sit Upon The Grass", "The Curse", "Gee Amn't I Lucky", "Sleepy Old Snake", "The Stranger", and "Titchy Digits".

Pure niceness on this first single from the Voodoo LP, produced by Premier.

Titles include "Some Kind Of Nature", "On Melancholy Hill", "Broken", "Plastic Beach", "To Binge", "Pirate Jet", "Rhinestone Eyes", "White Flag", "Stylo", "Superfast Jellyfish", and "Empire Ants".

A nice bit of Detroit Techno – one that really crossed over into the mainstream, hitting all the stops on the remixes here with one from Derrick May, another from Juan Atkins, another from Steve Silk Hurley and the radio version of the original from Kevin Saunderson!

Madness back when they were strongly in a ska vein! Titles include "One Step beyond", "Tarzan's Nuts", "Madness", "Chimunks Are Go", "Razor Blade Alley", and "Land Of Hope & Glory".

The famous theme from "Tubular Bells" – used to great effect in The Exorcist, and a spooky bit of 70s keyboard music you'll recognize instantly! This cool limited pressing replicates a 70s pic sleeve design – and also features the more obscure track "In Dulci Jubilo".

The best track from the Got Purp mixer featuring Big Boi, Killer Mike, Blackowned C-Bone and Rock D.

One of the greatest soul groups from the UK in the 80s – a real bright spot in the years before Soul II Soul and the rise of acid jazz – and a set we'd rank right up there with Sade's best work of the time! Working Week have a very jazzy sound at their core – acoustic rhythms, and a strong commitment to jazz at the core – no surprise, given that two of the group's three members were previously involved with Weekend! The third member is the lovely Juliette Roberts – easily one of the best Brit soul singers of the time – and an artist who really helps push some of the more American influences in the group's music – while still giving the whole thing a bit of a London sparkle, too. The mix is sublime, and the whole album's great – full of classic cuts that include "Autumn Boy", "No Cure No Pay", "Sweet Nothing", "Who's Fooling Who", "Thought I'd Never See You Again", and "Venceremos". Amazing reissue – with a full bonus CD, and a whopping 15 extra tracks! Working Week were early proponents of really reworking tunes for singles, especially with jazzy elements – as you'll hear on cuts that include "Veceremos (jazz dance special 12")", "Afoche", "Storm Of Light (inst)", "Bottom End", "Stella Marina (main mix)", "Inner City Blues (urbane guerilla mix)", "Who's Fooling Who (dance version)", "Venceremos (7" bossa version)", "Stella Marina (full rap)", "Pepe's Samba (live)", and "Murphy's Law (live)".

"Bare Witness" features Guru.

Detroit underground hits the mainstream – in a seminal album of crossover dance tracks! Kevin Saunderson and vocalist Paris Grey, along with help from Juan Atkins, craft a set of tunes that managed to hook the rest of the world on the electro sound that had been bubbling under in the Motor City for most of the 80s. And sure, there's more hooks and less darkness than on some of Saunderson's earlier work – but is that such a bad thing? Not to our ears, as lots of these tunes have still held up quite well over the years. Titles include "Paradise", "Ain't Nobody Better", "Big Fun", "Do You Love What You Feel", "Good Life", and "Secrets Of The Mind".

Remixed by St Germain.

A brilliant little comeback album for Roxy Music – their first album in 4 years after Siren, and a well-done departure that takes off from older records without losing any of their greatness! In a way, the set's almost the group's Lodger – a similar effort to Bowie's record from the same time that reflects a move away from heavier styles of earlier years, but never loses the edge of the group's best work. Manifesto also reflects some of the lessons learned by Bryan Ferry on his solo records – a bit leaner and cleaner presentation of the songs – but the album itself is also strongly a group production effort, and certainly feels that way in its use of Phil Manzenera's great guitars and Andy Mackay's horn arrangements. Titles include "Ain't That So", "Stranger Through The Years", "Trash", "Manifesto", "Angel Eyes", "Spin Me Round", "Cry Cry Cry", and "My Little Girl".

The second album by Soul II Soul, and although not as totally great as the first, still filled with some very nice moments, and the band's trademark modern classic soul style. Guests include Courtney Pine, Kym Mazelle, Marcia Lewis, and Fab Five Freddy – and tracks include "Get A Life", "People", "Courtney Blows", "Time", and "Our Time Has Now Come".