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Why the heck don't they make records like this anymore? The whole thing's incredibly groovy – a blend of Sunshine Pop and vocal harmonies – put together with a high-art theory, but grooving with some really cool late 60s backings! There's a great drummer in the group who really makes... read more

This is Asphodel's wonderful reissue of "word jazz" maestro Ken Nordine's classic mid 60s ode to the sultry side of the common, the uncommon, and some seemingly made up colors. ("Muddy" anyone?) Billed as "A Sensuous Listening Experience" – and truly living up... read more

A beautiful album of jazzy vocal tracks with a definite bossa feel, recorded by the group O Quarteto – a harmony group whose style is very reminiscent of earlier Brazilian ones – like Os Cariocas and The Tamba Trio! The record's a sparkling batch of bossa tracks, produced with an... read more

A great little solo album from Israeli singer Esther Ofarim – a vocalist who's usually heard in the company of her husband Ari, but who's working here alone in New York City, with some really great arrangements from jazzman Bobby Scott! The style here is less poppy than Esther's other work... read more

The third album from the legendary Os Mutantes – part of the essential trio of sides released during the Tropicalia years! The record's got a sound that's tighter and a bit more straightforward than their previous efforts – stricter song formats, and styles that lean heavily on rockish... read more

Quite possibly the clearest moment of genius ever from the legendary Hermeto Pascoal – a tremendous album that helped reshape instrumental Brazilian music for many years to come! At one level, the record shares a sound with some of the fuller, richer orchestrations going on in the post-bossa... read more

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A very cool 70s album from Quarteto Em Cy – done with a sound that's quite different than their earlier work, but still pretty darn great! There's a compressed approach used to record the vocals here – a style that takes off from their 1972 album, but has a slightly more electrified... read more

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Elis Regina hits the London scene of the late 60s – with amazing results that make the album one of her best from the early years! The style here is still quite bossa-oriented, but backings are done by Peter Knight – who'd worked with Scott Walker and some of the other hip British... read more

One of the first albums ever by this legendary bossa singer! Even at this young age, Elis Regina diplays a talent for interpretation and an emotional power that few other Brazilian vocalists could match – a way of putting over a tune that brought a whole new level of sophistication to... read more

One of the first albums ever by this legendary bossa singer! Even at this young age, Elis Regina diplays a talent for interpretation and an emotional power that few other Brazilian vocalists could match – a way of putting over a tune that brought a whole new level of sophistication to... read more

2 amazing albums from Elis Regina – back to back on a single CD! First up is Elis Como Et Porque – one of our favorite albums ever from the incredible Elis Regina – a record that really has her hitting new levels in her style – moving past simple bossa into a realm of music... read more

An incredible album – and a landmark session that showed that the bossa nova was still alive and well in the 1970s! The album pairs the breathy jazz vocals of Elis Regina with the booze-soaked warmth of Antonio Carlos Jobim – in a set of spare arrangements that feature a lot of touches... read more

Hip vocal tracks from Dutch singer Rita Reyes – recorded with backing by the Pim Jacobs Trio, a lively combo that features Pim's piano, plus bass and guitar – a nicely light rhythmic style that really works well for the vocals! The format is simple, but compelling – and the... read more

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A killer concept album from Demis Roussos – his first solo project, but recorded while still working with Aphrodite's Child – and with some of the same dark elements as their legendary 666 album! The songs here are shorter, and sometimes more tuneful – but the overall... read more

A killer concept album from Demis Roussos – his first solo project, but recorded while still working with Aphrodite's Child – and with some of the same dark elements as their legendary 666 album! The songs here are shorter, and sometimes more tuneful – but the overall... read more

A rare Japanese-only album from trombonist Roswell Rudd – one of his few full length statements of genius from the mid 70s! The album's got a very collaborative feel overall – one that takes off from some of Rudd's better-known work of the "new thing" era, but opens things up... read more

An unusual albums from the west coast scene of the 50s – recorded under the name of the Lighthouse All Stars, but featuring arrangements and compositions by Bob Cooper – who was the real driving force behind the set. Conte Candoli's in the group on trumpet – and other players... read more

A wonderful gem from Emilio Santiago – soaring and hip all the way through! After some of his earlier funkier work, this may well be the best full album ever cut by Santiago – thanks to some warm jazzy arrangements from the likes of Antonio Adolfo and Meirelles, both of whom really... read more

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Wonderful stuff from Nina – still with one foot in the jazzier style of early days, but with haunting elements of the later progressive style to come! The "pastel" in the title shouldn't imply any sort of softness on Nina's part, because if anything, she's really sharpening up her... read more

A landmark album from Nina – one that broke down countless barriers with the classic tune "Four Women" – a righteous portrait of 4 different women and their struggles, unique for its time, and a key part of the early Women's Liberation movement! The rest of the album has a... read more

Groundbreaking work from one of the most unsung heroes of British jazz – tenorist Alan Skidmore, a player with a tone and a talent that took him through many settings in his day! This 1970 album is one of Skidmore's greatest moments in the studio – a blend of jazz styles that includes... read more

All the great ones – "Stay Awhile", "You Don't Have To Say You Love Me", "Wishin & Hopin", "All Cried Out", "I Only Want To Be With You", and "In The Middle Of Nowhere".... read more

Some of the earliest work from Dusty Springfield!... read more

Groovy groovy stuff from Dusty – and some of her best work! Forget the Memphis sessions, we think this early British material is her best stuff – and the album's got Dusty grooving along in perfectly soulful format, on lots of nice tunes like "24 Hours From Tulsa", "Wishi... read more

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A groovy groovy treasure! The work of The Swingle Singers is well known to any fan of 60s French tunes – as their groundbreaking approach to vocalese had a huge influence on other pop, easy, and soundtrack work of the time. This nicely-done set features jazz scat versions of tunes by all... read more

One of our favorite albums by the Swingle Singers – a really cool batch of tracks that has them working with compositions by French composers – rococo tunes that have a bit more of a flourish for them to work with their vocal trickery! The sound is great, and tunes are short, very... read more

Nearly 3 albums' worth of music from the legendary Tamba Trio – one of the grooviest groups in the 60s bossa years in Brazil! The trio are quite unique – in that they not only play upbeat bossa rhythms, but also harmonize along with their grooves – in a soaringly sublime quality... read more

The stuff of legend – and one of the greatest albums ever from Brazil's Tamba Trio! The group have a sound here that goes way beyond standard bossa jazz – in that amidst the piano, bass, and drums, the trio also harmonize vocally too – swirling together the lyrics, which are... read more

The stuff of legend – and one of the greatest albums ever from Brazil's Tamba Trio! The group have a sound here that goes way beyond standard bossa jazz – in that amidst the piano, bass, and drums, the trio also harmonize vocally too – swirling together the lyrics, which are... read more

An early gem from Ghana legend Ebo Taylor – a smoking little set with a really hypnotic feel overall! The tracks here are all nice and long – and build energy with kind of a minimal layering of sound – an approach that's different than some of the longer Nigerian jams you might... read more

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A nice little solo record from guitarist Toquino – featuring a number of excellent original compositions, most of which are spare guitar instrumentals, with occasional other backing on sax or strings. Titles include "Caro Raul", "Regra Tres", "Suite Argentina",... read more

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Sweetly jazzy, funky, and soulful work from Caetano Veloso – a great departure from some of his headier work of the early 70s – and proof that he still sounds great, even when in sweetly melodic territory! The album's got some full backings from Perinho Albuquerque, but the sound is... read more

One of the building blocks of the late 60s Tropicalia scene in Brazil – and a standout solo debut from the young Caetano Veloso! The album's got an approach that's as dynamic and trippy as its cover image might imply – the same amazing blend of sounds and styles you'd hear on... read more

A warm, wonderful and spare record from the mid 70s, with Caetano's voice out front, and minimal accompaniment by percussion, guitar, and keyboards. It's anything but a snoozer, though – it's got a deep rich sound, and excellent songs throughout – with even more of an emotional focus... read more

A lively album that mixes Caetano's rich songwriting style with a hard percussive base, which gives the tracks a fast jumpy feel, and gives even more power to Caetano's strong voice. There's little psychedelic bits, with good guitars that get noisy in parts, but there's also a warm MPB feel to the... read more

Some of the most beautiful work ever recorded by Caetano Veloso – an album that carries on the style of English language lyrics used on his session in exile in 1971, but which also introduces him back to the world of Brazilian popular music! The album's a great transition for Veloso –... read more

Groovy psychedelic rock from Brazil – the self-titled effort from Ronnie Von – a Brazilian television personality and musician who stayed incredibly busy from late 60s through the 70s – but recorded few albums as sublime as this album from 1968! It's really a near-perfect batch... read more

Over 3 hours of classical piano virtuosity, including performances by Vladimir Horowitz, Artur Rubinstein, Edwin Fischer, Sviatoslav Richter, Glen Gould, Wilhelm Backhaus, Alfred Cortot, and others!... read more

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A landmark album – not just in Brazilian music, but in all modern music in general! The set's a legendary manifesto for the Tropicalia movement in Brazil – and features key works by all the leading musical luminaries in the movement – including a few later stars who are heard... read more

Rare Ethiopian material from the early 70s – ostensibly a set of wedding-related tracks, but with grooves that are every bit as great as classics in the Ethiopiques series! The songs are traditional, but given some great golden age arrangements by Getachew Degefu – who swings most of... read more

CD includes Mendelssohn's "Scherzo", Stravinsky's "Petrouchka", and Debussy's "La Mer" under the direction of Valery Gergiev. The DVD has Solti conducting Beethoven's "Fidelio (Act II Finale)", Rossini's "Guillaume Tel (overture)", and Bartok's... read more