All Categories — LPs  

A mix of pretty heavy garage psych and airier, trippier pop from Sean Bonniwell and his Bonniwell Music Machine for Warner Bros – moving beyond the rawer, headier material from the earlier music the more simply monikered Music Machine! There's a much broader reach here, from rugged rockers with lilting, weird pop – and sometimes a mix of the two. Tripped out strangeness and strangely catchy grooves! Titles include "Astrologically Imcompatible", "Double Yellow Line", "The Trap", "Soul Love", "Bottom Of The Soul", "Me, Myself, And I" and more.

Finally – the long overdue release of one of the funkiest soundtracks ever! The music to Black Belt Jones has always been the stuff of legend – mostly only issued as a promo single back in the 70s, but funky enough that it's ranked among the best soundtracks of the decade! The score was composed and performed by Dennis Coffey and Luchi De Jesus – the former a funk star in his own right, the latter the composer of the ultra-hip Friday Foster soundtrack – and together, the pair have crafted some killer grooves that mix guitars, congas, and blasting orchestrations that could plow Enter The Dragon into the dust! Plus, the soundtrack nicely mixes together bits of dialogue and sound effects from the film – making things sound a lot like some of those cool Japanese Bruce Lee soundtracks that were floating around from years back. Titles include "Love Theme", "At The Beach", "Main Theme", "Opening Theme", "Drama", "Mafia Theme", and "Sexy".

The third album from Alice Cooper and perhaps the first great one – starting the 70s sleaze show win streak with the massive "I'm Eighteen" and an LP full of great, gritty and grimy rock and roll. Bob Ezrin's producing for the first time, and if the songs and the whole show isn't yet as menacingly theatrical as it would get to be in the following couple of years, the angry anthemic vibe is here and it's heavy! Other tracks include "Caught In A Dream", "Hallowed Be My Name", "Black Juju", "Is It My Body", "Second Coming", "Ballad Of Dwight Fry" and "Sun Arise".

First-ever vinyl release of the Flaming Lips at their most gonzo – the 4 disc set Zaireeka – with each intended to be played simultaneously! Call your friends with portable turntables and make it happen!

An excellent session that was one of Herbie Hancock's first free-flowing fusion records of the 70s! Herbie's playing Fender Rhodes with a sound that's at once cosmically beautiful, soulfully fragile, and spacily grooving – and he gets some excellent accompaniment from an all-hip group of players that includes Benny Maupin on bass clarinet and flute, Buster Williams on bass, Eddie Henderson on trumpet, and Julian Priester on trombone – plus percussion from Jose Areas and Ndugu Chancler. The roots of later classics like Sextet and Flood all start with this session – and the album contains 3 long tracks – "You'll Know When You Get There", "Ostinato", and "Wandering Sprit Song".

Brilliantly funky! This is the greatest album they cut for Warner Brothers – and it's one of the few that ever really approaches the genius of their early work for Josie. The record features the incredible breakbeat cut "Just Kissed My Baby" – worth the price of the album alone – plus other nice ones like "Jungle Man", "Africa", "What'cha Say", and the perennial New Orleans favorite "Hey Pocky A Way". Also features the incredible funk jam "It Ain't No Use" – a monster track that's nearly 12 minutes long!

The seminal Gram Parsons solo debut, and arguably his most consistant post-Burritos album. GP is pretty much the record that put the country in country rock – with a sharp steel guitar cry throughout, an unpretentious proud/poor delivery, and those sweet harmonies with Emmylou Harris. The album is split pretty evenly between tunes penned by Parsons, and other writers who aren't as deeply celebrated, like the great Tompall Glaser. Includes "Still Feeling Blue", "We'll Sweep Out The Ashes In The Morning", "Streets Of Baltimore", "She", "That's All It Took", "Cry One More Time", and more.

Talib Kweli & producer Hi Tek reunite as Reflection Eternal – a solid return to from one of the most championed underground duos of the late 90s – still sharp and vital at the end of 00s! Titles include "RPM's", "City Playgrounds", "Back Again" feat RES, "Strangers (Paranoid)" feat Bun B, "In This World", "Got Work", "Midnight Hour" feat Estelle, "Just Begun" feat Jay Electronica, J Cole & Mos Def, "Long Hot Summer", "Get Loose" feat Chester French, "So Good", "Ends" feat Bilal and more.

Excellent work from New Orleans soul legend Allen Toussaint – and a set that may well be his funkiest album ever! The set features 12 tracks from the early 70s – a time when Toussaint was mixing a bit of funk into the heavy soul mix that he'd had from his early days in the Crescent City scene – coming up with a blend that's even darker, and more powerful than all his famous production and projects of the 60s! And while some of Allen's later work tended towards cliche, this record captures him right at that perfect point when all of this was totally fresh – delivered with a razor-sharp edge, and with great instrumental help from New Orleans legends like Leo Nocentelli, Zig Modeliste, and George Porter Jr – all of whom make the album groove harder than most of the other soul albums on Warner at the time. Titles include "Soul Sister", "Victims Of The Darkness", "Am I Expecting Too Much", "Out Of The City", "Goin Down", "Electricity", "Fingers & Toes", and "On Your Way Down".

A masterpiece of messed-up LA funk – and one of the crowning moments in the career of Charles Wright & The Watts 103rd Street Rhythm Band! Charles and crew do an excellent job with all the tracks – most of which are more open ended than some of their earlier ones, and run on for longer than usual with some good trippy instrumental moments that really stretch out the groove from their funky 45 days. The album includes the stoner funk classic "High As Apple Pie", done here in two "slices", plus the classic "Express Yourself", a monster number that still sounds great every time we hear it – even though it's been used on commercials and sampled plenty of times over the years! Other tracks include "I'm Aware", "Love Land", and "I Got Love"

The classic first album by this legendary funky combo – a group who not only went onto change the sound of funk in the 80s, but also went onto have a huge impact on generations of hip hop as well! The album burns from the very first note – the wicked snapping funk of "More Bounce To The Ounce" – a tune that became the blueprint for a generation, and still sounds way better than the millions of copycat attempts that came out over the years! The record follows with some equally wicked bass/keyboard cuts – often with plenty of electro production touches too – thanks to sweeeet work in the studio from Bootsy Collins and Roger Troutman. Bootsy's presence is key, too – as the set kind of strips down the ensemble P-Funk vibe of the generation before – going for a lean, clean groove that's held up beautifully over the years! In addition to "More Bounce To The Ounce", the record also features the mellow steppers cut "Be Alright", which has a wonderful hook, and a great compressed modern soul sound – and other tracks include "Funky Bounce", "Freedom", and "Brand New Pplayer".

The grandest scale and most elaborately furnished Black Sabbath album to this point – but they still bring the heavy! The title track is one of the most influential metal songs ever, with the foreboding lyrics, trudging stomp of a rhythmic pace and those bridges that are almost pretty – and the most of the rest of the album is great, too – more carefully produced than the previous few without compromising the menace. Titles include "A National Acrobat", "Fluff", "Sabbra Cadabra", "Spiral Architect", "Looking For Today", and "Who Are You".

Pre shock rock psychedelia from Alice Cooper – more of a Detroit reared answer to early Pink Floyd than it is a clue to the early metal horror show to come – and as such, it's actually a heck of a lot better than you might be expecting! Since most people never even heard Pretties For You until long after Alice became a notorious rock star, we're thinking it's been judged unfairly in most circles. We hear rare psychedelia by the bucketful that's not as good as this album, but celebrated by rare psych diggers purely for their obscurity. Titles include "10 Minutes Before The Worm", "Sing Low, Sweet Cheerio", "Reflected", "Apple Bush", "Earwigs To Eternity" and more.

The start of funky funky Herbie Hancock! This album's the first to feature Herbie really breaking away from his straight jazz work – moving into a groove that's nice and funky, using electric piano along with acoustic, to forge the sound that he'd develop famously over the 70s. The album's got a harder, heavier sound than some of his straight electric ones – and it features a larger group with soloists that include Johnny Coles on trumpet and Joe Henderson on tenor – plus some sweet basslines from Buster Williams – all led by Herbie into a tight soul jazz flurry of excellent tracks! Includes the cuts "Fat Mama" and "Wiggle Waggle", both sample favorites, plus "Tell Me A Bedtime Story" and "Lil Brother". Classic stuff, and one of his best records ever!

A massively tripped-out set of guitar-based funk – played to perfection by the legendary Eddie Hazel, best known for his work in the George Clinton P-Funk empire! The album offers a different side of Eddie's talents – one that's produced with a smoothly compressed California groove, in a mode that's almost an extension of some of the themes explored by Shuggie Otis on his own 70s albums – taken with a bit more of a P-Funk style. George Clinton produced the set with Eddie – and the tunes have a nice slow-stepping groove that really opens up the guitar solos wonderfully. The record kicks off with a massive cover of "California Dreamin" – but the whole thing's great, with a wonderfully unified feel throughout! Other titles include "Frantic Moment", "What About It?", "So Goes The Story", "Physical Love", and a great cover of "I Want You (She's So Heavy)".

Van Dyke Parks' masterpiece – and one of the hippest records to come out of LA in the 60s! The album's a strangely anachronistic one – steeped in the kind of past-days scoring found on early records by Harpers Bizarre and Randy Newman (both of which Parks had a hand in!), wrapped around simply poetic songs about the scene and state of affairs in late 60s LA, all handled with a cinematic approach that's aging Hollywood at its best! Titles include Randy Newman's "Vine Street" – plus "By The People", "Laurel Canyon Blvd", "Donovan's Colours", and "The All Golden".

REM's major label debut – the culmination of years spent inching closer and closer to the mainstream – and one of the best examples of the past several decades of a band rooted in the indie rock underground reinventing themselves as superstars, without compromising their uniqueness or overall greatness! The previous couple of albums showed that REM was capable of producing songs with sing-a-long potential – and more powerful rock songs – along with their uniquely moody, often acoustic-based songcraft. This is where they took the biggest step yet in that direction. Michael Stipe really stepped out his shell like never before around this time, and his evolution from indie rock poet to extroverted showman is amazing. Titles include "Pop Song 89", "Get Up", "You Are Everything", "Stand", "World Leader Pretend", "The Wrong Child", "Orange Crush", "Turn You Inside Out", "Air Shirt" and "I Remember California".

Mad mad funk, and the fantastic second LP by the Watts 103rd Street Rhythm Band – the group that proved to everyone that LA could be just as funky as any other city in the 60s! The record draws strongly from the group's indie roots in the funky 45 scene – and the album's filled with short tracks that bump along in jagged rhythms, offbeat arrangements, and some slight touches of sweeter soul. Charles Wright is leading the group on vocals, and taking a stronger presence on these soul-based cuts – but as before, it's the strength of the overall group that really makes the album great – especially the bass work of Melvin Dunlap and the funky drums of James Gadson! Titles include some killer original tracks by the band – like "Do Your Thing", "Giggin' Down 103rd", "Phuncky Bill", "65 Bars & A Taste Of Soul", and "A Dance, A Kiss, & A Song" – plus great covers of "Something You Got", "Papa's Got A Brand New Bag", and "Knock On Wood".

Fantastic funk from the 60s LA scene – and the first-ever album by a group who would dominate the west coast groove of the time! This first outing by the Watts 103rd Street Rhythm Band takes off nicely from the group's funky 45 years – using larger arrangements to expand upon their hard and heavy groove, in a style that almost has some funky soundtrack touches at times! Fred Smith produced and is directing the group – and tracks are short, sweet, and filled with groovy touches! Titles include "Spreadin Honey", "Fried Okra", "Soul Concerto", "Watts Happening", "103rd Street Theme", "Whole Hog Or Nothing At All", "Brown Sugar", and "A Little Class & A Little Trash". Great trippy cover too!

One of the most fabled swan songs in rock history – on triple 180 gram vinyl!

Built To Spill at their late 90s live peak – on the Keep It Like A Secret tour! 2013 version includes the previously unreleased bonus tracks "Forget Remember When" and "Now and Then".

First-time vinyl release of Linkin Park's 2000 debut – with a bonus 10" single featuring the tracks "One Step Closer" and "My December".

The first album ever from The Faces – a mighty merger of half of the old Small Faces with the young Rod Stewart and Ron Wood, fresh from the Jeff Beck group! The meeting of talents really set The Faces on fire – bringing even sharper focus to the group's previous sound, and giving it a stellar frontman in the face of Stewart – who was still brilliantly soulful here, and way far from all the cliches he'd spew in later years! The guitars are fantastic, the rhythms very raw – and the whole record romps along with this messy blend of rootsy elements and garagey power – never letting up the sonic onslaught for a minute. In the US, Warner still tried to market the group by using "Small Faces" on the cover – but trust us, the sound is way different than before – as you'll hear on cuts that include "Stone", "Around The Plynth", "Looking Out The Window", "Nobody Knows", "Wicked Messenger", and the classic "Three Button Hand Me Down".

Easily the best record so far from Maria Rita – a set that really pushes her talents a lot, and reaches for a wider range of expression! The vocals are still very much at the forefront – that great legacy from mother Elis Regina, with a similar heavenly approach that works with just about any sort of lyric – but the backings shift things around a good bit, too – moving between full, lush orchestrations, and some gentler, jazzier modes – and even a few cuts that have a lively sense of rhythms. Maria's great throughout – clearly standing strongly on her own, even without the family pedigree – on tunes that include "Santana", "Conceicao Dos Coqueiros", "So De Voce", "A Outra", "Nem Um Dia", and "Pra Matar Meu Coracao".

David Axelrod takes on Handel's Messiah – and the result is an amazingly complex set of music – very similar to his earlier albums on Capitol Records, and his Warner work with the Electric Prunes! If you love the Axe, you'll find plenty to love here – spare, dark orchestrations, often with a subtle hint of funk in the rhythms, some jazzy flourishes, and this bold sense of studio majesty that marks Axelrod as one of the most inventive producers of his time! The sound's one that gave birth to a whole generation of hip hoppers and beatheads – and the proceedings are conducted by Cannonball Adderley, with a feel that's similar to other Adderley/Axelrod high-concept sets – like Soul Of The Bible or Soul Zodiac. Titles include "Overture", "Worthy Is the Lamb", "Behold Recitative", "Comfort Ye My People", and "And The Angel Said Unto Them".

Sure, it's the group's major label debut – but it's also a stunning pop album that blows away most of its generation! Instead of being swallowed in the maw of Warner Brothers, Stereolab take up the challengs of greater professionalism – and hone their skills to an impeccable edge, crafting 10 beautiful little tunes that are every bit as compelling as the promise of the album's title makes them out to be! Titles include "Tone Burst", "Golden Ball", "Pack Yr Romantic Mind", "Paus", "Jenny Ondioline", and "Analogue Rock".

Tight funky work from Dr John – a second collaboration with producer Allen Toussaint, and a set that follows strongly on their Right Place record of the year before! The groove's not as messed-up as on the first few Atlantic records by the Doctor – but in it's place is a sweet electric funk mode, kind of an update on 60s New Orleans grooves – handled here by The Meters and a host of other key players from the Crescent City scene! Toussaint's production and arrangements are tight, but never slick at all – still much earthier than the later work, especially that on Warner Brothers, that was handled by the producer. And the tunes have a good focus that keeps Dr John on track lyrically – even though we'll admit that our main love of this record comes from the keyboards, bass, and funky drums! Titles include "Stealin", "What Comes Around (Goes Around)", "Mos' Scocious", "Rite Away", "R U 4 Real", "Let's Make A Better World", "Sing Along Song", "Go Tell The People", "Quitters Never Win", and "Can't Git Enuff".