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Featuring Camp Lo.

Tremendous work from bassist/percussionist Juma Sultan – a wealth of wonderful tracks from the loft jazz years of the 70s! Sultan's a player who doesn't always get his due on record – especially during this formative generation – so the release is a much-needed look at his mighty talents back in the day – and a picture of a very underground level of American jazz that goes deeper than even some of the more-recorded avant players of the time! Most of the tunes are quite spiritual, and feature a shifting lineup that really keeps things fresh – players who include Sultan on bass, percussion, and flute – plus Ali Abuwi on drums, flute, and oboe; Kasa Allah and Earl Cross on piano, Art Bennett on tenor, Talib Kibwe on flute and oboe, Paul Williams on guitar, and Ora Borman and Charlotte Richardson on vocals. Titles include "Darn My Socks", "She Made Me Feel Like Glory (parts 1 & 2)", "Sundance & Hand Clapping (parts 1 & 2)", "AMS", and "Shake Your Money Maker".

Tremendous work from bassist/percussionist Juma Sultan – a wealth of wonderful tracks from the loft jazz years of the 70s! Sultan's a player who doesn't always get his due on record – especially during this formative generation – so the release is a much-needed look at his mighty talents back in the day – and a picture of a very underground level of American jazz that goes deeper than even some of the more-recorded avant players of the time! Most of the tunes are quite spiritual, and feature a shifting lineup that really keeps things fresh – players who include Sultan on bass, percussion, and flute – plus Ali Abuwi on drums, flute, and oboe; Kasa Allah and Earl Cross on piano, Art Bennett on tenor, Talib Kibwe on flute and oboe, Paul Williams on guitar, and Ora Borman and Charlotte Richardson on vocals. Titles include "Darn My Socks", "She Made Me Feel Like Glory (parts 1 & 2)", "Sundance & Hand Clapping (parts 1 & 2)", "AMS", and "Shake Your Money Maker".

Fantastic Norman Harris production makes this one of the best-ever efforts from The Whispers at this time! Norman put together the incredible "Living Together (In Sin)", and plays some excellent guitar on the track – and he takes the sweet west coast harmonies of The Whispers into the realm of Philly Groove greatness. Other nice tracks include "You're Only As Good As You Think You Are", "Sounds Like A Love Song", and "In My Heart".

Tremendous work from bassist/percussionist Juma Sultan – a wealth of wonderful tracks from the loft jazz years of the 70s! Sultan's a player who doesn't always get his due on record – especially during this formative generation – so the release is a much-needed look at his mighty talents back in the day – and a picture of a very underground level of American jazz that goes deeper than even some of the more-recorded avant players of the time! Most of the tunes are quite spiritual, and feature a shifting lineup that really keeps things fresh – players who include Sultan on bass, percussion, and flute – plus Ali Abuwi on drums, flute, and oboe; Kasa Allah and Earl Cross on piano, Art Bennett on tenor, Talib Kibwe on flute and oboe, Paul Williams on guitar, and Ora Borman and Charlotte Richardson on vocals. Titles include "Darn My Socks", "She Made Me Feel Like Glory (parts 1 & 2)", "Sundance & Hand Clapping (parts 1 & 2)", "AMS", and "Shake Your Money Maker".

Love for Love, but still a pretty groove-heavy set too – one that continues the mix of "dancin and romancin" The Whispers served up on their previous album! Side one is heavy on "dancin" – and features some bass-heavy tunes that are very much in the best mainstream LA soul modes of the time – production by the group and Leon Sylvers, all in a sound that's heavy on basslines and keyboards, but which still has harmonies that are way ahead of most of the group's younger contemporaries! These harmonies come into play even more strongly on the "romancin" side of the record – a batch of ballads that have The Whispers in the mellower territory that first got them started – updated slightly here with an early 80s soul vibe, but sung with proof that the quintet were still at the top of the harmony game. Titles include "Tonight", "Keep On Lovin Me", "This Time", "Had It Not Been For You", "Try It Again", "Lay It On Me", and "Keep Your Love Around".

Not as sublime as some of the group's earlier efforts, but still with a strong harmony sound that keeps things moving nicely ahead. The arrangements are in a smooth soul mode – still uptempo on a number of tracks, in the same style that they were using with the Philly crew. The difference is that there's a bit more of a modern LA soul sound in the mix – although not as much as you'd expect from some of the other albums on the Solar label. Includes the nice midtempo groover "Can't Stop Loving You Baby", plus "World Of A Thousand Dreams", "What Will I Do", "This Kind Of Lovin", and the retro jazzy "The Bright Lights & You Girl".

Beautiful west coast vocal group soul by The Whispers! Although the material they had recorded for Solar and Epic around the time this compilation of earlier material was issued had earned them bigger fame, we just love this early stuff – and this album's pulls together many our favorites by them from their days recording for Soul Clock and Janus, darn tough records to find! The tracks have a soaring harmony sound, and titles include "A Mother For My Children", "Your Love Is So Doggone Good", "If You Feel Like Coming Home", "Can't Help But Love You", "Planets Of Life", "Seems Like I Gotta Do Wrong" and "I Only Meant To Wet My Feet".

Classic uptempo group material by this fantastic harmony combo! This one was recorded in Philly, with great arrangements and performances by the likes of Norman Harris, Vince Montana, Bobby Eli, Ronnie Baker, and Bunny Sigler. Includes the hot track "Bingo", plus "Once More With Feeling", "Will You Be Mine", and "A Mother For My Children". Tough to find on wax, too!

An excellent group from the 70s East Coast scene – one with a heavy harmony sound that should have made them huge! The record was cut during the prime early days of the Sigma Sound Studios – and the record features arrangements by Philly greats like Norman Harris, Ronnie Baker, and Vince Montana – all working here in a mode that's similar to that applied to The Spinners after they made their move to Atlantic, but with a bit more edge. Yet it's the vocal harmonies that really take the cake – as they mix together deep-rooted Temptations-esque righteous vocals with sweeter harmonies in the New Jersey falsetto mode – a perfect blend that's carried off with a great deal of power here! The style is very compelling, and great on just about every cut – and titles include "Society", "That Was Yesterday", "It Really Hurts", "Look At All The Lonely People", and the great cut "Whispers".

The first rumblings of the pop genius in Yello's music – a record that still has all the best quirky electronics of their first two sets, but which also focuses that energy into a sound that's often more direct and oddly hook-oriented on the best numbers! There's a really percussive vibe going on here – a quality that makes the album almost more darkly rhythmic than other efforts, but which also pushes some tunes ahead with quite a sense of drive – mixing early samples, analogue electronics, and Dieter Meier's always-great vocals into a sound that's still better than many of the countless groups who sprung up in Yello's wake. Titles include "I Love You", "Swing", "Heavy Whispers", "Crash Dance", "Lost Again", "Smile On You", "Pumping Velvet", and "Salut Mayoumba".

Not classic disco – but a wealth of 80s soul – packed into a double-length set that's overflowing with R&B gems from the years beyond disco! Most tunes are still pretty clubby – not in an underground way, but with some of the styles of the more important soul modes of the time – those ways of hitting a groove with plenty of midtempo rhythms, sweet stepping moments, and even a bit of boogie too! Titles include "Middle Of The Night" by Body, "Passion From A Woman" by Krystol, "In The Dark" by Roy Ayers, "Rock Steady" by The Whispers, "Ain't Nothin Goin On But The Rent" by Gwen Guthrie, "Don't Let Go Of Me" by Mike & Brenda Sutton, "If You Can Do It I Can Too" by Meli'Sa Morgan, "Strip This Heart" by John Adams, "Back To Love" by Evelyn King, and "Falling In Love" by Sybil.

A massive collection of soulful groovers – tunes that packed the dancefloors in the days before disco, and which definitely show the harder edge of the soul spectrum! The set starts off with mid-60s tunes based around a simple rhythm and a quirky dance gimmick – then branches out into some hard-hitting sock-soul numbers from later in the decade, and eventually slides into some sweet 70s funk! The overview of tunes is a great one, with some tasty familiar numbers, some great obscurities, and a few tracks that have been massively hard to find on CD! Titles include "The Greasy Frog" by Jeb Stuart, "The Matador" by Major Lance, "The Dip" by The Whispers, "Jerk It" by The Gypsies, "The Chicken" by Jackie Lee, "The Meditation" by TNT Band, "Broadway Freeze (parts 1 & 2)" by Harvey Scales & The Seven Sounds, "Walkin The Duck" by The Triumphs, "Temptation Walk" by The Entertainers IV, "Moon Walk (parts 1 & 2)" by Joe Simon, "Bumpin & Stompin" by Garland Green, "Bus Stop" by Fatback Band, and "Do The Sissy" by Albert Collins. 26 tracks in all!

A tremendous follow up to the first Spirit Of Philadelphia collection – released many years after that seminal set, and with an even farther-reaching selection of music! The first Spirit set focused on the best mellow and midtempo soul efforts of the Philly International label – but this one expands the groove even more to show the wide influence that Gamble & Huff had on the sound of Philly soul on other labels – especially the major labels, who'd begun following the indie lead in their productions by the mid 70s. There's a fair bit of work here by bigger names at the time, but all of it's got a stone Philly sound – and is either work by artists who first sprung out of the Philly scene directly, or others from different points around the country, and who'd made a trip to Philly in the 70s to record in a hipper groove! Titles include "Do You Remember Yesterday" by New York City, "Falling In Love With You" by Jimmy Ruffin, "It's Not What You Got" by Eddie Kendricks, "We Got Love" by Ben E King, "Don't Take Your Love" by The Whispers, "Can't Accept The Fact" by Gateway, "Straighten It Out" by Anglo-Saxon Brown, "Midnight Lady" by David Morris, "You Make Me Feel So Good Baby" by The Temprees, "It's Love" by The Persuaders, "In Love Again" by The Joneses, "Let's Go All The Way Down" by Brenda & The Tabulations, "Walk Away From Love" by Jackie Moore, "I Don't Have Time To Worry" by Little Anthony & The Imperials, and "That's What Love Does" by Vince Montana & The Philly Sound Orchestra.

Smooth disco grooving from Carrie Lucas – surprisingly soulful stuff, and handled with some wonderfully tight production by Dick Griffey, the genius behind the sound of Solar at the end of the 70s! Carrie's really moving past the cliches of earlier work here – stepping into a solid blend of pop, soul, and club. Titles include "Keep Smilin", "It's Not What You Got", "Lovin Is On My Mind", and "Use It Or Lose It" – plus "Just A Memory", which is a duet with the Whispers.

A legendary album! This previously unreleased album by Os Mutantes was supposed to be their breakthrough album to an English speaking market – but for years it's only been talked about in hushed whispers, and has only been heard by a lucky few! The record was recorded in Paris in 1970 – and it's ALL IN ENGLISH! (Not that we're biased against Portuguese, mind you – but since we're English speakers, it's kind of a nice thing to have a record that we can understand!) The record features a number of tunes from the Mutantes first two albums – redone here with translated lyrics, and in a compressed pop style that's a bit smoother than the original albums, but still very nice! In fact, the record's a sophisticated pop statement that would have stood well in the company of many of the best of 1970s rock elite – had the boneheads at Philips actually decided to release the record! No use crying over spilled milk, though – because the album's out now, and it's filled with loads of nice tracks like "Panis Et Circensis", "Batmacumba", "Tecnicolor", "El Justiciero", "I'm Sorry Baby", "Saravah", and a sublime reading of "Baby", a track that was virtually the manifesto for Tropicalia!

The last French album from Igor Wakevitch – recorded before eventually settling in India – and a very meditative set that possibly marks the trajectory of that move! The songs are longer than before, and filled with very hypnotic lines – somewhere in a space that echoes La Monte Young or Terry Riley, but still touched with all the darker corners and textures we live in Igor's earlier music! Voices intertwine with keyboards in a very weird way – almost whispers in the dark when they do appear, but with an elliptical sense of repetition that makes them more musical too – especially alongside Wakevitch's strong tendencies to really abstract the his keyboard sounds way past their roots. Titles include "Monks In the Snow", "Ramallah's Road", "Eriador", and "Taddy's Fruit Garden".

Cheesy packaging, to be sure – but a pretty decent collection of smooth soul cuts from the 70s and 80s! Titles on this volume include "Slow Jam" by Midnight Star, "Sparkle" by Cameo, "The Agony & The Ecstasy" by Smokey Robinson, "Hurry Up This Way Again" by The Stylistics, "Love Can Be So Wonderful" by The Temprees, "Sweet November" by The Deele, "This Time" by The Whispers, "So Easy" by 101 North, "Sweet As Sugar" by Brass Construction, "Just A Memory" by Carrie Lucas, "Remember The Rain?" by 21st Century, and "You're Sweet You're Fine You're Everything" by Tomorrow's Promise.

Crazy psyche era wierdness from Cromagnon – the band name and album title may reference prehistory, but this stuff is actually way ahead of it's time – if we didn't see the date on this thing, we'd have sworn it to be from the art damaged post punk early 80s! The group is credited to Austin Grasmere, Brian Elliot and "The Connecticut Tribe" – and the instrumentation is billed as vocals, music and sounds – you figure out the rest. The set opens with some soundbites of Hollywood fan fare that segues into a mix of bagpipes, thundering percussion and vocals that sound like screams and whispers at the same time. The following track "Ritual Fest Of The Libido" rivals "LA Blues" by the Stooges in gutteral grunted nightmare soundscapes, but later tracks mix in more laidback grooves that are just as freaky. A total mindfrack of a record, and a pretty amazing one, if not for everybody! Other titles include "Organic Sundown", "Fantasy", "Crow Of The Black Tree", "Genitalia", "Toth, Scribe I" and "First World Of Bronze".

A great setting for the vibes of Joe Locke – set amidst the larger sounds of the Lincoln Symphony Orchestra – whose soft flourishes prove to be a perfect backdrop for Joe's rich colors and tones! The format is wonderful – an approach that's hardly done this well with other vibist, save for maybe a rare few Bobby Hutcherson dates in the 70s – and Locke's working with a core quartet amidst the larger orchestra, which ensures that there's some forward motion in the rhythms, even amidst the lofty strings. Titles include "Available In Blue", "Sword Of Whispers", "Where Is Love", "Moon River", and "The Moon For Her".

A treasure trove of twelve inch singles from Solar Records – the west coast powerhouse for uptempo soul! Most of the numbers here date from the early 80s years when Solar were totally on top of their game – really dominating mainstream soul of the time in the same way Philly International did a decade before. The 2CD set features 12" mixes for all tracks – which mean that most are longer than the LP versions – and most grooves here are in a bumping, stepping, or boogie-oriented mode – post-disco with plenty of great west coast R&B touches. Titles include "Midas Touch" and "Scientific Love" by Midnight Star, "Show Me Where You're Coming From" and "Dance With You" by Carrie Lucas, "Call Me" by Bill Wolfer, "There It Is" and "Night To Remember (US ext mix)" by Shalamar, "No Pain No Gain" and "Rock Steady" by The Whispers, "I Don't Wanna Be A Freak" and "Love In The Fast Lane" by Dynasty, "It's All The Way Live" and "One Minute After Midnight" by Lakeside, "Classy Lady" by Leroy Hutson, "Romeo Where's Juliet" and "Winners & Loser" by Collage, "Street Beat" by The Deele, and "Come Back Lover" by The Sylvers.

Simply the best Philly 70s collection we've heard – ever! This one goes way past the hits, and moves into work from a variety of labels – not just the famous tunes on Philly International, but all of the Philly-produced gems that were coming out from other sources and other singers during the 1970s – a decade when the Philly sound had a golden touch that could transform the work of any singer into pure genius! The tracks on the set are really well thought-out – a sampling of work from a variety of different artists that you might not think to associate with the Philly groove at first glance, plus others who had their only really truly strong success through a brief link with the City of Brotherly Love. 18 tunes in all – and all of them warm clubby grooves with a perfectly smooth feel! Titles include "Look On The Good Side" by The Invitations, "Make It Last" by Barbara Mason & The Futures, "Good For The Gander" by Jermaine Jackson, "Stay With Me" by The Futures, "Who Loves You" by The Joneses, "I Just Can't Say Goodbye" by Touch Of Class, "Hurt So Bad" by The Philly Devotions, "Will You Be Mine" by The Whispers, "Now OR Never" by Little Dooley, "One More Time" by Dianne Steinberg, "Where It's Warm" by Revelation, and "A Little Bit Or Love" by Charen Cotton.