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David Ruffin at Warner Brothers -- a very good thing, thanks to some sublime production from Detroit soul legend Don Davis! As with other key productions in the 70s, Don pitches Ruffin with a sound that's smooth, but still has a great sense of humanity -- a style that's a bit like late 70s Marvin Gaye and Leon Ware, and which proves to be a perfect fit for David -- giving him a new sense of focus here that's totally great! Those classic Ruffin vocals sound wonderful here -- flowing, glowing, and getting a sense of warmth without getting too slick. A few cuts feature backup vocals from Leon Ware and Ronnie McNair, and female singer Laverna Mason brings in some great duets that really help deepen the sound of the record! Titles include "Love Supply", "I Wanna Be With You", "I Got A Thing For You", "Don't You Go Home", "Can We Make Love One More Time", and "All I Need".

One of our favorite graduates of The Temptations -- and one of the greatest singers to ever sing for Motown! David Ruffin has an incredible voice -- right up there with Marvin Gaye and Levi Stubbs in its mixture of the rough and the sweet -- a classic sound that never gets old, and which lives again magnificently in this well-chosen set of 18 tracks. The retrospective includes material from the late 60s and early 70s -- Ruffin's big breakout years as a solo act after leaving the Temps. Given that Ruffin never had as many overplayed hits as other Motown stars, the set is incredibly fresh -- filled with great numbers that include "Questions", "Rode By The Place (Where We Used To Stay)", "On & Off", "Rovin Kind", "The Double Cross", "I'm Just A Mortal Man", "I Let Love Slip Away", "What You Gave Me", "I Don't Know Why I Love You", "My Whole World Ended", "We'll Have A Good Thing Going Ona', and "I Can't Stop The Rain".

Loads of classic Motown performances -- all taken from vintage TV shows of the late 60s and early 70s, offering up a wonderful look at these famous acts in a mainstream setting! Most of the clips are in color -- and come from shows like Teen Town, Shivaree, It's What's Happening Baby, The Mike Douglas Show, Live From The Better End, Upbeat, Hullabaloo, and even The Andy Williams Show -- all packaged beautifully in this special set, which also features vintage interviews, footage of a Motown picnic, and a look at the year 1959 -- the year Motown was founded! Performances include "War" by Edwin Starr, "My Whole World Ended" by David Ruffin, "What Becomes Of The Brokenhearted" by Jimmy Ruffin, "Ain't That Peculiar" by Marvin Gaye, "Please Mr Postman" by The Marvelettes, "Do You Love Me" by The Contours, "I Can't Help Myself" by The Four Tops, "Don't Mess With Bill" by The Marvelettes, "Take Me In Your Arms" by Kim Weston, "Uptight" by Stevie Wonder, "Every Little Bit Hurts" by Brenda Holloway, "My Girl" by The Temptations, and "Dancing In The Street" by Martha & The Vandellas.

A treasure trove of work by one of the most overlooked Motown artists of the late 60s -- both albums recorded by Bobby Taylor, one as a solo act and one with his groundbreaking multi-racial group The Vancouvers -- plus nearly a full CD's worth of previously unreleased material! The scope of the work here is really tremendous -- as the first Bobby Taylor & The Vancouvers album is a landmark bit of righteous 60s soul, with strong echoes of the southern soul scene of the time, but a unique feel all its own -- and Taylor Made Soul is prime Motown adult and baroque soul at its best, a record that stands nicely next to some of David Ruffin's best initial efforts for the label! The bonus tracks are all great too -- and offer up a space of Taylor's talents that lie nicely between the full albums on the set -- that further complicated Motown approach that made for really great work at the end of the 60s, and which sometimes yielded some of its best results in unissued tracks like these! 2CD package features a whopping 46 tracks in all -- 18 of which are previously unreleased -- and titles include "Little Miss Sweetness", "Does Your Mama Know About Me", "Malinda", "You Gave Me Something", "It's Growing", "One Girl", "Oh I've Been Blessed", "Out In The Country", "If You Love Her", "One Too Many Heartaches", "It Should Have Been Me Loving Her", "Blackmail", "Weekend Vacation", "All I Need", "Memories", "Harlem", "Child Of Tears", "Two Sides To Love", "Grandma's Hands", "Look Before You Leap", and "Park Street Bridge".

An all-star effort from The Temptations -- and a well-titled set that has the group brimming over with classic vocal talent! The group's expanded to a seven-piece outfit for the album -- with Eddie Kendricks and David Ruffin back in the fold, singing alongside Dennis Edwards, Otis Williams, Melvin Franklin, and the rest of the group! Motown also culled together some top-shelf production talent for the set too -- including Berry Gordy, Rick James, Barrett Strong, and Smokey Robinson -- all of whom produce numbers for the record. Some of the tracks are in an 80s groove modes, and others are mellower ballads that offer plenty of space for vocal interplay -- and titles include "I've Never Been To Me", "Backstage", "More On The Inside", "Standing On The Top", "Lock It In The Pocket", and "You Better Beware".

The biggest year so far for Motown singles -- so massive, this series had to divide it up into 2 volumes! This first half covers the initial 1971 releases from Motown -- music issued up through June of that year, marking another momentous season for the label -- one that has them getting even hipper and more righteous than before! That change is clearly marked by the inclusion of Marvin Gaye's classic 45 "What's Going On"/"God Is Love" on the inside front cover -- and it's followed through beautifully by a set of work that's easily some of the most mature to come out on Motown -- tunes that are filled with uplifting vocals, dynamic arrangements, and production that's so sophisticated, it makes the big hits of previous years seem like simple pop singles. These crucial 6 months are covered by 5 CDs that feature 119 tracks in all -- packaged as beautifully as previous volumes, with full color artwork inside a hardcover package that's better than taking a trip to any sort of music Hall Of Fame. Artists include Eddie Kendricks, Marvin Gaye, Gordon Staples, Tom Clay, The Undisputed Truth, Hearts Of Stone, Jackson 5, Ken Christie & The Sunday People, The Crusaders, Bill Cosby, The Stylists, Arthur Adams, Hugh Masekela, Letta Mbulu, David Ruffin, Brass Monkey, Joe Hinton, The Temptations, Stevie Wonder, Kiki Dee, Chuck Jackson, and many others. What a year -- and what a package!

The 4th volume in this amazing series -- filled with righteous mellow soul all the way through! There's a gentle groove here that we totally love -- one that's slower and more laidback than any other collection we can think of, but which has a slyly funky undercurrent that shines through in every single tune. DJ Samir's done an incredible job of going past the obvious -- digging hard through a variety of older LPs to pull out tracks that have a slinky, seductive, mellow soul approach -- and which fit together perfectly in a collection like this. Titles include "Man Up In The Sky" by Barrett Strong, "Never Let You Go" by The Dramatics, "Somethin Bout Cha" by Latimore, "Pick Yourself Up" by John Whitehead, "Tryin To Love Two" by William Bell, "Stop Steppin On My Dreams" by Jerry Butler, "Let Your Love Rain Down On Me" by David Ruffin, "I Love You More & More" by Tom Brock, "Come Back To Me Lover" by Margie Joseph, "Somebody's Been Enjoying My Home" by Don Covay, and "Tear It On Down" by Marvin Gaye.

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.

Modern soul, R&B, and smooth grooves -- the sound of the Stepper's scene that's been big in Chicago for years, and which seems to be having a bit of pull outside the Windy City these days! Tracks include "Rising Cost of Love" by Loose Change, "Sing A Simple Song" by Identiy Crisis, "The Joneses (12" Mix)" by The Temptations, "Sweet On U" by Lo Key, "Never Say Goodbye To Love" by Rene Moore, "Special Kind Of Fool" by Basic Black, "Mr Fix It" by Jeffree, "Love's Gonna Last" by Jeffree, "Don't Look Any Further" by Dennis Edwards, and "Don't Know Why" by David Ruffin & Eddie Kendricks.

This series is fast becoming one of our favorite collections of 70s soul ever -- and it's got a groove that's unlike anything else! The Planter's Club sound is one that's laidback, yet funky -- sophisticated and smooth, yet also totally righteous -- a great space before the sound of 80s groove came to dominate heavily, and a mellow approach to a soulful dancefloor that was often overlooked during the disco years. Many of the tracks on the collection are by artists that you'll probably recognize, but they're also tunes that you won't know nearly as well -- because they're often overlooked gems from full LP sets, and tracks that didn't break big at the time on singles. There's an approach here that's years ahead of its time -- and a sound that's slightly in the mode of the Natural High collections on Warner, but somehow deeper overall. Titles include "Star In The Ghetto" by Prince Phillip Mitchell, "Why Can't We Be Lovers" by Coke Escovedo, "You & Your Baby Blues" by Solomon Burke, "I Just Tripped On A Piece Of Your Broken Heart" by Bobby Bland, "In The Mood" by Johnny Taylor, "No Matter Where" by David Ruffin, "Midnight & You" by Barry White, "One Minute From Love" by Marc Sadane, "Hang Tough" by Rockie Robbins, "There You Go" by Edwin Starr, "What You Won't Do For Love" by Roy Ayers, and "Never Gonna Stop" by Linda Clifford.

One of the coolest collections of Northern Soul we've ever seen from a major label -- a massive book-shaped package that features 100 tracks in all, plus a huge booklet with notes on the tunes and lots of vintage photos! Given the never-ending rarities that keep showing up on the Northern scene, this package may not be entirely "complete" -- but it is filled with rare gems from a variety of labels, including a number of under-reissued imprints from the huge holdings of Universal Music! There's plenty of Motown, but lots of other great bits too -- and the package is divided into Motown Memories, Motown's Hidden Nuggets, Northern Floorshakers, and Northern Anthems -- all the kind of cuts that burned strongly on the UK soul scene back in the day. Titles include "Why Am I Lovin You" by Debbie Dean, "Do I Love You" by Frank Wilson, "My Love Is Your Love" by The Isley Brothers, "Keep Stepping" by Carolyn Crawford, "That's Not Love" by Holly St James, "Take My Hand" by The Dalton Boys, "Soul Self Satisfaction" by Earl Jackson, "Picture Me Gone" by Evie Sands, "Angel Baby" by The 3 1/2, "You Didn't Say A Word" by Yvonne Baker, "Night Owl" by Bobby Paris, "Country Girl" by Vicki Baines, "Long After Tonight Is Over" by Jimmy Radcliffe, "I Feel So Bad" by Jackie Edwards, "You Can Come Right Back To Me" by David Ruffin, "I'm Learning To Trust My Man" by The Sisters Love, and "I'll Always Love You" by The Spinners.

Hard to argue with the title on this one -- because at 2CDs, and 51 tracks, the set's probably the biggest Motown Christmas collection ever! The package is filled with goodness from the legendary label -- the kind of Holiday tunes they first started cutting in the 60s, with great gems from the 70s, and a few surprising bits from later years too! The set also features some rare "stripped" mixes -- plus special Seasons Greetings wishes from Jr Walker, David Ruffin, Four Tops, Willie Hutch, The Elgins, Thelma Houston, Shorty Long, The Spinners, Martha & The Vandellas, and other Motown stars! Titles include "Xmas Twist" by Twistin Kings, "Winter Wonderland" by The Funk Brothers, "Silent Night (stripped)" by The Temptations, "Christmas In The City" by Marvin Gaye, "This Christmas" by Diana Ross, "Christmas Cheer" by The Boys, "Wish You A Merry Christmas" by Kim Weston, "A Child Is Waiting (stripped)" by Smokey Robinson & The Miracles, "Rudolph The Red Nose Reindeer" by The Temptations, "God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen" by Smokey Robinson & The Miracles, "One Little Christmas Tree" by Stevie Wonder, "Children's Christmas Song" by The Supremes, and "Santa Claus Is Coming To Town" by The Jackson 5.