Vladimir Cosma —
Diva ... CD
Galaxie Musique,
1982. Used ....
$9.99
When we were impressionable little arty tykes, this was one of our favorite soundtracks. It's got some beautiful Satie-esque tracks that feature solo piano by Vladimir Cosma, plus some weird Euro electronic stuff that has a nice cold feel to it. Also features a few tracks from the opera "La... read more
A crossover classic from Deborah Cox – a record that's filled with plenty of tuneful tracks, yet sung with a surprising depth of soul! Production is top-shelf on most numbers – and is often in that great 90s mode that's reintroducing warmer sounds that had slipped out of soul music the... read more
A sweet bit of electric funk, and one of Hank Crawford's greatest records from the time! Thanks is due in a large part to Bob James – who arranged and produced the set with a smooth CTI/Kudu groove, leaving Hank to solo over the top in dreamy soulful riffs. The groove is really great –... read more
Rich, proud work from Randy Crawford – sung with the mature mix of jazz and soul that made her one of the more sophisticated mainstream singers of her generation! The album's heavy on mellower cuts, but it's never too sleepy – thanks to a slow-burning sensibility that Randy uses to... read more
Apart from the title's terrible pun on the Glenn Campbell hit of the mid 70s, this album's a real treat – a very soulful batch of smooth funky jazz tunes by The Crusaders, who by this point have fully emerged to claim the throne of the pop soul jazz genre they virtually invented. The record's... read more
Celia Cruz/La Lupe/Graciela —
Divas Latinas ... CD
Laser Light,
1960s. Used ....
$4.99
Wonderful B-Movie sleaze from Mike Curb and his usual host of studio rock freakout groups! The sound is pure Tower – a bit kitsch and a bit garagey – kind of a blend of the gritty sound of the late 60s underground, mixed with soundtrack modes that offer up a cool fantasy of that scene... read more
It's easy to survive the 80s when you've got an army of future-suit cats behind you – and given the groove here, it's clear that Andre Cymone was doing way more than just surviving back in the day! The set's a super-tight batch of 80s grooves – with a sharp sound that comes from lots... read more
A nicely done collection of post-Irakere work from saxophonist Paquito D'Rivera – pulled from his Columbia recordings of the 80s! The work on the set goes a long way towards fusing the two styles of Paquito's roots – Afro-Cuban rhythms and North American jazz – sometimes in... read more
Hypnotic, organic and spiritual music from Rastafarian singer and hand drummer Ras Michael – organic, echoey, atmosheric drums, bass and trippy bits of keyboards – a very spacious backdrop for the freedom seeking lyricism! Its very unique stuff, grounded in the spiritual vibes... read more
An obscure but excellent session – recorded at the end of the 70s with some of the best players in the New York salsa underground! The music is extremely vibrant – and the styles of the tracks range from hard Afro-Cuban percussion grooving to tight Latin jazz in a classic mode –... read more
D'Angelo —
Voodoo ... CD
Virgin,
2000. Used ....
$3.99
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... read more
Rare lost work by Miles Davis – recordings from 1951 broadcasts from the legendary Birdland nightclub, restored here with surprisingly good fidelity! The recordings are interesting for a number of reasons – first, because the tracks are longer than usual for Miles – certainly... read more
A session of "collectors items" that Miles Davis recorded for Prestige in the 50s – both dates that were too short to be issued as albums by themselves, combined here into one full length record! The first batch of material is from 1953 – and features Davis working with Sonny... read more
A seminal session from the team of Miles Davis & John Coltrane – not nearly as "cookin" (at least in a blowing session way) as you might guess from the title, but instead a beautiful example of the lyrically modern explorations the pair created together! Rhythm is by the trio... read more
Miles Davis —
Decoy ... CD
Columbia,
1984. Used ....
$3.99
The decoy here might be in the rhythms, which are often electric, but still played live – handled by Robert Irving III on many tracks, with a cool 80s fusion sound that's mighty nice! The style of the album's a nice change from the Miles groove of the 70s – a bit leaner, with almost a... read more
Miles Davis —
Doo Bop ... CD
Warner,
1992. Used ....
$0.99
Miles must have turned over in his grave with this one – although it went on to influence a decade of jazz remix projects! Miles spacey trumpet is remixed from tapes recorded before his death, and production is handled by Easy Mo Bee, with kind of a "hip hop meets jazz" sort of... read more
Miles Davis —
ESP ... CD
Columbia,
1965. Used ....
$5.99
An album of dark and subtle beauty – and still one of our favorite Miles Davis albums of all time! The set's not as earth-shattering as some of Davis' other work of the 60s, but that's why we like it so much – because the emerging genius of the group with Wayne Shorter, Herbie Hancock,... read more
A dark blend of acoustic and electric modes from Miles Davis – a set that still has him working with elements of the classic 60s quintet, but which also brings in a stronger emphasis on electric piano too! The rhythms here are really fantastic – ready to burst forth into a whole new... read more
A masterful meeting of 2 50s modern jazz talents – the trumpet of Miles Davis balanced with the arrangements of Gil Evans – with results that have made the album one of Miles' greatest ever! The sound here is completely sublime – as Davis gets all chromatic and spooky over Evans'... read more
Miles Davis' first-ever performance in Japan – a really unique concert that featured the quintet with Herbie Hancock, Ron Carter, and Tony Williams – augmented by a young Sam Rivers on tenor! The presence of Rivers really gives the set an edge – and although Miles is holding Sam... read more
Miles Smiles, but his grin is a wry one – given the angular energy of the set! The album's a landmark effort from the mid 60s quintet that includes Wayne Shorter, Herbie Hancock, Ron Carter, and Tony Williams – all of whom work without fail to capture Davis' newly emerging approach to... read more
Miles Davis —
Tutu ... CD
Warner,
1986. Used ....
$3.99
A nice collaboration between Miles and Marcus Miller from the latter part of Miles career. As much of the recording here is overdubbed, with many multiple instruments played by Miller, it doesn't have the improvised vibe of Miles' classic performances, but the songwriting and arrangements are head... read more
A brilliant full-length statement from Mark De Clive-Lowe – an artist who's been making some big waves in the global underground for the past few years – including a range of singles and remixes so great, we can almost forgive him for the length of his name! The set's everything we... read more
A wonderfully complicated soundtrack – one with many moods, and some really great work overall! The set starts out a bit strangely – pushing the "concerto" aspect with some overly-dramatic classically-styled themes – but as the work unfolds, a range of different... read more
Quirky Brazilian rock from the late 70s – a bit arty at times, and more straightforward at others – almost post-glam sliding into new wave, if we can bludgeon about so many terms so loosely! There's probably a fair bit of wit in the lyrics here – which we can't get due to our... read more
Get ready to fall in love with a new bossa singer! The lovely Rosalia De Souza is a sweet-voiced vocalist with a sound that's very much in keeping with classic 60s work from Brazil – and she's got the added benefit of working here with new arrangements from the great Nicola Conte, the... read more
Guido & Maurizio DeAngelis —
Zorro ... CD
CAM (Italy),
1975. Used ....
$11.99
A groovy take on the Zorro sound of yore – put together by Guido and Maurizio De Angelis for a hip 70s version of the character! The style here mixes some older Italian western modes with touches of "Mexican" instrumentation to set the scene – but there's also a brighter... read more
A stone pop soul winner from DeBarge – the kind of record that made the group a heck of a lot of money back in the 80s, and which sounds surprisingly great to our ears today! The record features lots of electro arrangements – fuzzy keyboards and bass pedals grooving around in a way... read more
Junior Delahaye —
Showcase ... CD
Wackie's (Germany),
1982. Used ....
$13.99
Nice reissue of this early 80s reggae groover, cut by NY based producer Bullwackie Barnes. In the late 70s and early 80s Barnes offered an update on the classic Jamaican soul sound, that never deviated too far from the classic roots and lover's rock vibe, but had a sublime moody twist that made it... read more
Classic stuff from the man who brought the Exotica sound to the mainstream! We hardly need to tell you about these albums – as they're virtually the blueprint for countless exotica albums to come, a mixture of 50s easy listening, strange tropical rhythms, and odd little sound effects! Denny'... read more
An excellent little live set from Deodato – hard to believe because the sound's just as slick and funky as his studio albums, and possibly even more interesting because he manages to pull it off equally well in a live setting! The record features percussion by Airto, guitar by John Tropea,... read more
Damn great work from Raheem DeVaughn – the full promise of his soulful sojourn in the underground mixtape scene! Raheem first got his start laying down vocals over beats and other folks' tracks on self-crafted CDs that changed hands covertly in the east coast scene – and that... read more
An infectious batch of soul tunes from Raheem DeVaughn – his long overdue debut for Jive Records! Raheem stands apart from many in the mainstream soul and neo soul, not because he wears his influences so proudly on his sleeve, but in the way he wears them. Raheem's soul style is born of... read more
Devin (The Dude) —
Dude ... CD
Interface/Rap-A-Lot,
1998. Used ....
$6.99
The long-awaited debut album from Julie Dexter – one of our favorite soul singers of the past decade! The album kicks off where Julie's excellent Peace Of Mind ep left off – a mix of underground American soul with British 21st Century influences – cosmic production, dubby... read more
Forget the silly cowboy costume on the front cover – because this is a heck of a great album! Bo might have gotten saddled (no pun intended!) with a silly gimmick for the title and image of the set – but the album's one of his best from the early Chess years, and features a rip-roaring... read more
A far-reaching selection of styles from Diesler – a one man operation that spins enough sweet, beat heavy mastery to outpace a lot of full blown collectives! Diesler first came to our attention with his contribution to the Tru Thoughts Shapes One compilation – and he carries that vibe... read more
Dinosaur L (Arthur Russell) —
24 24 Music ... CD
Sleeping Bag,
1981. Used ....
$6.99Just Sold Out!
An incredible full album from Dinosaur L – the legendary New York dancefloor project of Arthur Russell! The group's a punky, funky, chunky amalgam of bass thumping, guitar riffing, keyboard filling, and sax honking – all very much in the spirit of Russell's best quirky club work of the... read more
Double LP from 1998 DMC mix champ, DJ Craze featuring long, mostly instrumental tracks, with, of course, lots of nice dj work and some well-chosen vocal samples. Most of the tracks are low- to mid-tempo, but one of our favorites is the triple speed "Miami International Break". 12 tracks... read more
DJ Heather —
Tangerine ... CD
After Hours,
2000. Used ....
$3.99