Maybe an even more compelling album than the debut set from Wau Wau Collectif – as this record continues the cultural crossroads of the first, but at a level that feels even more joyous and ambitious! Traditional elements like the balafon and kora are mixed with more contemporary production, ... read moreLP, Vinyl record album
A South African soul set from Gloria Weems, but one that feels like some of the best of the New York scene at the time – especially the underground indie work that was letting a lot of electro soul elements come into the mix! The bass pedal elements are great, and the drum machine rhythms ... (Soul, Global Grooves)read moreLP, Vinyl record album
Tripped-out and wonderful sounds from Witch – served up in this excellent early record from the Zamrock kings of the 70s! Lyrics are in English, and have these dark tones that work perfectly with the group's offbeat guitar and organ lines – sometimes mixed here with acoustic guitar ... read moreLP, Vinyl record album
A surprisingly great later set from Witch – one that still has some of their funky styles of a few years before, but which also seems to bring in some stronger African elements as well – in the kind of sweet fusion that was showing up in some of the hipper South African acts of the ... read moreLP, Vinyl record album
Global psychedelic grooves from Zambia – the tripped out sounds of Witch! Witch works in a killer rock groove on Lazy Bones, with furious rhythms, heavy drums and fuzzed out guitars. It's all nice and raw and done with a really heady and fierce sense of groove – but there's some more ... read moreLP, Vinyl record album
Zambian funk legends Witch really knock it out of the park with this smoking little set – using really amazing basslines on most tracks, in a way that sets up a rumbling groove for all the other instruments to follow – a heady blend of psychedelic currents with more soulful styles, in a ... read moreLP, Vinyl record album
Witch —
Movin' On ... LP Teal/Sharp Flat (Netherlands), 1980. New Copy (reissue)...
$30.9934.99
An unusual later album from Witch – one that has a sweet funky style at the core – a mode that shows the group picking up a fair bit of disco and club from the American scene, and fusing it with their older Zamrock styles to create a really unique sound overall! At times, the record ... read moreLP, Vinyl record album
Just a short record, but one that brings together three tracks from Wilfred Trevor Woodley – a very cool pianist from Trinidad & Tobago, and one who effortlessly mixes together soulful jazz with just the right amount of elements from the Caribbean! "The Lone Pilgrim" is a great ... (Jazz, Global Grooves)read moreLP, Vinyl record album
An unusual set from the 70s Argentine scene – vocals and guitar from Yabor, with backing on fllute, electric piano, and percussion! LP, Vinyl record album
(Cover has light wear – and back has some interesting notes in red pen.)
Melodic psychedelia from 70s Iran – an incredible full scale anthology of recordings by guitarist and vocalist Kourosh Yaghmaei from the pre-revolution years – and an absolute treasure! Kouroush often recorded with his brothers – Kourosh singing lead and playing guitars or bass ... read moreLP, Vinyl record album
Melodic psychedelia from 70s Iran – an incredible full scale anthology of recordings by guitarist and vocalist Kourosh Yaghmaei from the pre-revolution years – and an absolute treasure! Kouroush often recorded with his brothers – Kourosh singing lead and playing guitars or bass ... read moreLP, Vinyl record album
(2016 reissue in a non-gatefold cover, with lightly bumped corners.)
A really cool record from the Japanese scene of the 70s – one that mixes traditional instrumentation with some high fidelity recording styles – then adds in just the right dash of contemporary elements too! The set's not as all-out funky as others like it from the time, but does rise ... (Japanese, Global Grooves)read moreLP, Vinyl record album
Yoruba Singers —
Ojinga's Own ... LP Bluegrass/Soundway, 1974. New Copy (reissue)...
$27.9929.99
A really cool record by a very unique group – a set of singers from Guyana, working together in chorus formation – but with an approach that's nicely suited to the funkier modes of the instrumentation! The approach is a bit hard to describe – this isn't soul or jazz choral work, ... read moreLP, Vinyl record album
Slim Young —
Bisa ... LP Coconut (Nigeria), 1987. Fair ...
$9.99
... LP, Vinyl record album
(Vinyl plays with crackles and surface noise. NOTE – the bottom half of the cover is stained, split bottom seam, surface wear.)
The great drummer Tony Allen left our planet all too soon – but not before cutting this fantastic album as part of the Jazz Is Dead series – a killer record that may be one of the best he's given us in the past decade or so! The format here is different than some of Tony's other ... (Deep Funk, Global Grooves)read moreLP, Vinyl record album
Maybe not the complete roots of African funk, but a set that does a great job of bringing together a range of different cuts that show the new sounds and styles that were really hitting the scene as the 70s moved in – work from a wide variety of sources, but which all seems to share a sound ... read moreLP, Vinyl record album
A whole new world of grooves we've never heard before – music from a short stretch on the Italian scene when local artists were really taken with the new developments in Afro Funk, and started to serve up some fresh styles of their own! The music here is maybe a blend of West African sounds ... (Funky Compilations, Global Grooves)read moreLP, Vinyl record album
Very different sounds than what you might expect from the title – not exotica at all, nor some of the more familiar Afro Funk material issued by the Africa Seven label – and instead a great range of tracks that really seems to defy genre or description! Some of the work here is by ... read moreLP, Vinyl record album
A sweet little set that's exactly what's promised in the title – a batch of rare disco grooves from the 70s, all of which have a distinctly Middle Eastern vibe! Traditional instrumentation mixes with lots of great funky club touches – in ways that are often more wide-ranging and ... read moreLP, Vinyl record album
Really cool cuts from the second generation of Bollywood funk – that 80s moment when things were still ever bit as groovy as during the heyday of 70s soundtracks, but served up with some slightly different instrumentation in the mix! There's maybe a bit more keyboards here at times – ... read moreLP, Vinyl record album
Highly percussive sounds from the kingdom of Buganda – an area that predates the formation of modern day Uganda, and which has an equally ancient sound to its music! The work here is served up on a variety of instruments – percussion, drums, flutes, and stringed instruments – but ... read moreLP, Vinyl record album
(Limited 2021 issue on purple vinyl. Cover has a hype sticker.)
A very mysterious compilation – so much so that none of the tracks are listed with artists names – which is maybe a testament to their obscurity, at least to our American ears! And while the title says "disco", the groove is different than the soaring strings and female ... read moreLP, Vinyl record album
A smoking overview of work from the glory days of the Venezuelan scene – that moment when the nation's economy was opening the doors to rich new avenues of expression – including the important Discomoda label, which recorded all the gems on this set! The vibe is great – kind of a ... (Latin, Global Grooves)read moreLP, Vinyl record album
Amazing sounds from Cambodia – gong-based ensembles recorded live at different funeral ceremonies over the course of a few short years – all with a musical approach that's really stunning! In some ways, these groups share qualities with Indonesian gamelan ensembles – as their ... read moreLP, Vinyl record album
Sweet jazzy grooves from a variety of global points in the late 70s/early 80s scene – music that's often much cooler and more interesting than mainstream fusion or jazz funk of the time! The set features work by artists who've dug the 70s experiments on CTI Records, but soon move into ... (Funky Compilations, Global Grooves)read moreLP, Vinyl record album
Most folks can't even find Estonia on the map, much less tell you about its music – yet that might change soon, thanks to the legendary quality of the rare gems on this set! As the title implies, there's a great mix here of funky styles – some clubby, some more jazz-based – and ... (Funky Compilations, Global Grooves)read moreLP, Vinyl record album
Get ready to have your mind completely blown – because this compilation is one of those completely rare ear-opening experiences that will let you know that there's a hell of a lot of music in the world that you've never heard before – even if, like us, you've heard plenty of funky music ... read moreLP, Vinyl record album
A second amazing collection of rare funk tracks from the Mid East – work that didn't exist in the same "scene"-styled world as American funk, but which instead comes from a disparate group of recordings that surprisingly, amazingly, turned out to be pretty darn funky! Musical modes ... read moreLP, Vinyl record album
A record that offers way more than just the vocal delights promised in the title – as there's definitely singing on the album, but it's often mixed in with all sorts of unusual instrumentation – which, along with the phrasing of the vocals, makes for a sound that's completely ... read moreLP, Vinyl record album
A compilation of several African groups performing songs that represent certain kinds of grooves! For instance Orchestre Les Bantous perform "Pitie" (soukous), Orchestre Hi-Fives perform several songs such as "Nichukuwe Twende Kwako" (Kibushi), "Ba Kibushi Batano Na ... read moreLP, Vinyl record album
Killer grooves from the Kenyan scene of the 70s – sounds that are very spare, and very timeless – often just percussion, a stringed instrument, and chanted vocals – all served up in a very driving, hypnotic blend! The set collects tracks from a time when the initially rural ... read moreLP, Vinyl record album
One of our favorite volumes in the London Is The Place For Me collection – and a brilliant batch of work that criss-crosses West African, West Indian, and postwar jazz styles! Most of the recordings here were done under the leadership of Ambrose Adekoya Campbell – a transplant to ... read moreLP, Vinyl record album
Heady sounds from a variety of different scenes – served up here in a compilation that was one of the first to turn western ears onto the sounds of the east! The music is a fuzzy blend of sounds from Southeast Asia, Korea, India, and even Turkey – and the package was one of the first ... (Rock, Global Grooves)read moreLP, Vinyl record album
A set of merengue tracks, but from a very focused source – as the package features all numbers recorded in the Dominican Republic during the 60s and 70s – often with a groove that sets them apart from the rest! The rhythms here are often blindingly fast – so much so, you might be ... (Latin, Global Grooves)read moreLP, Vinyl record album
The Mr Bongo Record Club just seems to get hipper and hipper as the volumes go on – to a point where this fifth edition in the collection is overflowing with tracks that we might never have heard otherwise! Plus, the scope of sounds here is really great too – a mix of styles from ... (Funky Compilations, Global Grooves)read moreLP, Vinyl record album
A stunning blend of soul, Latin, jazz, and Brazilian numbers – and a set that may well be our favorite entry in the Mr Bongo Record Club so far! If you know the Mr Bongo label, you'll know that for decades, they've turned us on to the sort of rare gems we might not have heard otherwise ... (Funky Compilations, Global Grooves)read moreLP, Vinyl record album
Spanish tracks with a very soulful vibe – and a set that includes a fair bit of very groovy tracks from the years when the scene was mixing older flamenco styles with disco rhythms of the 70s! The flamenco mode here doesn't involve guitar so much as it does a wonderfully expressive style of ... read moreLP, Vinyl record album
One of the best collections of music from Mali that we've ever heard – and a set that nicely gets past some of the overdone cliches of that scene, to really focus on the kind of overlooked 70s gems that showcase sides of the music that are funky, jazzy, and plenty soulful throughout! There's ... read moreLP, Vinyl record album
A really revelatory collection – one that showcases a West African influence on sounds in Colombia – in a way that's almost a further shift of the way that Afro-Cuban sounds had an impact on Congolese and other rhythmic styles on the other side of the Atlantic! The music often features ... read moreLP, Vinyl record album
The follow-up to one of our favorite Turkish funk compilations of recent years – and it's just as great! Volume 2 focuses on the fertile mid 70s period for the most part – and it got tunes that carry the buzzing strings and raw rhythms of the psych era pretty well into the next decade ... read moreLP, Vinyl record album
A tight collection of gems from Ghana and Cape Verde – pulled together by Arp Frique, as an illustration of the sounds that have inspired him greatly over the years! The package features four cuts that move with mighty tight grooves – very upbeat, but in ways that are different than ... read moreLP, Vinyl record album
A second mighty batch of rare work from points south – the kind of tunes we'd never have tracked down on our own, making us even more grateful for a set like this! As before, the music's a blend of obscure African tunes and other bits picked from the Caribbean – the latter of which ... read moreLP, Vinyl record album
One of the hippest entries in the Red Hot series so far – a set of tracks dedicated to the legendary Fela Kuti – felled by AIDS after years of influential grooves – still being felt strongly by the rich array of artists collected in the set! Most tracks are contemporary, but ... read moreLP, Vinyl record album
"A high fidelity guide to the enchantment that awaits you in Japan, Bangkok, Hong Kong, and Singapore" – brought to you by Japan Air Lines. LP, Vinyl record album
(In the booklet cover, with light wear and aging.)
Various —
Sounds Of Lecak Vol 1 ... LP Guruguru Brain (Netherlands), 2023. New Copy 2LP Gatefold ...
$44.9949.99
A really cool collection of cuts from the contemporary underground in Singapore – new music, but work that often resonates with some of our favorite funky global tracks of the 60s and 70s! Think "sitar funk", and you'll start to get the vibe of the set – as there's some of ... read moreLP, Vinyl record album
Weird and wonderful grooves from the Taiwanese scene – tracks that definitely echo some of the disco and funky soul modes of the American market in the 70s, but which have plenty of strange twists and turns of their own! The vibe here is a bit like other collections of Southeast Asian pop ... read moreLP, Vinyl record album
One of the coolest collections of underground Thai rock we've seen – and it certainly is The Heavier Sound Of the Luk Thung Underground – including a uniquely Thai vision flavored with a Black Sabbath riff, psych makeovers of Thai folklore, and a bunch great tunes that meld Bangkok life ... read moreLP, Vinyl record album
Amazing sounds made from very little at all – mostly focused on the Kenyan nyatiti instrument, set up next to spare percussion and chanted vocals – all with a very hypnotic sound! The nyatiti has this very resonant quality – lute-like, but with a depth that almost feels gong-like ... read moreLP, Vinyl record album
Beautiful sounds from a very unique label – one started in Paris by a Malian merchant in the 80s, in order to both present sounds from his homeland, and all of the wonderful new variations that were taking place on the cross-cultural scene in France! The body of work is partly a compelling ... read moreLP, Vinyl record album
The Heavenly Sweetness label celebrates its first ten years in business – with a special birthday present of all-exclusive unreleased tracks! This set doesn't look back at the previous decade of the label, but instead points the way forward – with a wonderful selection of newly-recorded ... (New Grooves, Global Grooves)read moreLP, Vinyl record album
(Limited numbered pressing in the paste-on cover – #23/70.)
Fantastic sounds for fans of funk and rock alike – music from the freaky, fuzzy 70s scene in Zambia – a place where styles effortlessly criss-crossed to really produce something new and unique! The work here is often heavy on fuzz guitars, but also has some wickedly soulful basslines ... read moreLP, Vinyl record album
A really cool collection of cuts that we might never have encountered otherwise – all brought together in celebration of 20 years of work from the If Music shop, who clearly just keep on refining their ears over the years! There's so many cuts here that fall in a special space between ... (Funky Compilations, Global Grooves)read moreLP, Vinyl record album