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The first Clipse album to see release – and a neo-electro/drug rap/crossover hip hop masterpiece produced by the Neptunes – the debut LP on their own Star Trak label. Malice and Pusha T arrive as smooth, confident rhymers with plenty of standout moments, while the Neptunes reach an early production peak. The Neptunes' fingerprints are evident on just about every second of every track, but it doesn't diminish the role of the rappers in the least. This is a true hip hop record from beginning to end, something the 'tunes had shied away from around the same time with the hard rockin' NERD and their more pop-oriented productions. We thought from the first needle drop that this was a record we'd be able to come back to for years and years and years, and that indeed holds true! Tracks include "Young Boy", "Ma, I Don't Love Her" featuring Faith Evans, "Ego", "Comedy Central" featuring Fabulous, "Gangsta Lean", "Let's Talk About It" featuring Jermaine Dupri, and more. CD

Solo recording by Coryell, with titles including "Discotexas", "Ravel", "Piano Improvisation", "Sweet Shuffle", and "Moon". CD

Tasty set that includes many of the Delfonics' best moments from their classic Philly Groove years! This is the kind of heavenly east coast group soul that never gets old – and it's no wonder this stuff keeps cropping up in movies and samples over the years. Titles include "Tell Me This Is A Dream", "Didn't I Blow Your Mind", "Ready Or Not Here I Come", "When You Get Right Down To It", and "I'm Sorry". CD

A nice dose of work from one of the greatest harmony soul groups of all time – the mighty Delfonics, a trio who took high-end vocals to a whole new level! The package does a good job of mixing hits up with a few lesser-known gems from the group – showing their full vocal potential, and wonderful approach to the music – stellar harmony soul that really redefined the genre at the time, and which remains some of the best male group work you could ever hope to find! 20 tracks in all – including "Hey Love", "Delfonics Theme", "Over & Over", "Funny Feeling", "Loving Him", "Somebody Loves You", "Break Your Promise", "La La Means I Love You", "I'm Sorry", "Walk Right Up To The Sun", "Think It Over", "I Told You So", and "Lying To Myself". CD

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Tracks include "Jazzid", "Get The Funk", "Mr. Lee", "There Goes The Neighbourhood", and "Heavenly City". CD

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All the genius you'd ever want by this sublime soul harmony group – packed up on one CD! Lots of great songs by Jimmy Webb and Laura Nyro – and titles include "One Less Bell To Answer", "Save The Country", "Wedding Bell Blues", "Last Night I Didn't Get To Sleep At All", "Stoned Soul Picnic", and "Up Up & Away". CD

With 21 tracks including "Up-Up And Away", "If I Could Reach You", "Stone Soul Picnic", "Girl's Song", "Carpet Man", "Ashes To Ashes", "California Soul", "Workin' On A Groovy Thing", and "One Less Bell To Answer". CD

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A big one from Aretha Franklin's 80s comeback years on Arista Records – a set that features a surprising guest appearance from Keith Richards, but mostly concentrates on Franklin's successful run with producer/arranger Narada Michael Walden – who continues to do a great job of updating her sound! There's less deep soul numbers here than in the early days, and instead Aretha goes for a gentler expression of her range – but one that still soars in all the right places. The album features duets with Larry Graham and George Michael – and titles include "An Angel Cries", "Rock A Lott", "He'll Come Along", "Jimmy Lee", "I Knew You Were Waiting For Me", "Jumpin Jack Flash", and "Look To The Rainbow". CD

A real standout from Aretha Franklin's years on Arista – a set produced by Luther Vandross, with a soaring groove that really opens Aretha up nicely! Luther's more in the mode here of his 70s club productions than his 80s hits – that warm, midtempo vibe that's full of lush moments, but never in ways that are cloyingly commercial. Franklin's vocals light up the tunes in the way that Luther's own might do – really soaring out beautifully in this setting. Titles include "I Got Your Love", "Giving In", "Get It Right", "Pretender", "Every Girl", "I Wish It Would Rain", and "Better Friends Than Lovers". CD

Aretha's grooving sweetly here in the early 80s for Arista – on a record that's produced by none other than Luther Vandross – and it's a damn strong one, too! Aretha wasn't the first, or the last classic soul singer to embrace the 80s, but relatively few outshined their younger peers as brilliantly as Aretha does here! She's great on this one! There's plenty of space in the arrangements for Aretha to do here thing – emoting naturally, improvising some of vocals, and really just knocking it out of the park. Luther's production shows ample love and respect for the previous generation of soul, while still sounding right at home in '82 – with some timeless ballads along with contemporary chart-ready grooves. Titles include "Jump To It", "Love Me Right", "If She Son't Want Your Lovin'", "This Is For Real", "It's Just Your Love", "I Want To Make It Up To You" and "It's Just Your Thing". CD

Aretha's grooving sweetly here in the early 80s for Arista – on a record that's produced by none other than Luther Vandross – and it's a damn strong one, too! Aretha wasn't the first, or the last classic soul singer to embrace the 80s, but relatively few outshined their younger peers as brilliantly as Aretha does here! She's great on this one! There's plenty of space in the arrangements for Aretha to do here thing – emoting naturally, improvising some of vocals, and really just knocking it out of the park. Luther's production shows ample love and respect for the previous generation of soul, while still sounding right at home in '82 – with some timeless ballads along with contemporary chart-ready grooves. Titles include "Jump To It", "Love Me Right", "If She Don't Want Your Lovin'", "This Is For Real", "It's Just Your Love", "I Want To Make It Up To You" and "It's Your Thing". CD

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Aretha Franklin at the end of the 80s – capping off a big run of records for Arista with another successful collaboration with Narada Michael Walden! There's a bit more of a groove here than before – a nice bounce on many cuts that almost brings in a slight new jack flavor – but handled with a bit more class, given Walden's legacy – and the album's got a lot of collaborative moments, including appearances from James Brown, Whitney Houston, Elton John, The Four Tops, and Kenny G. Titles include "Gimme Your Love", "Mercy", "It Isn't It Wasn't It Ain't Never Gonna Be", "Through The Storm", "If Ever A Love There Was", "Think 1989", and "Come To Me". CD

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With Alan Glass, Corrado Rustici, and John Raymond on guitar; Joe Plass and Randy Jackson on bass, Gigi Conaway and Kenny McDougald on drums, and Tony Gable on percussion. CD

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Features material recorded live in San Francisco and New York. CD

An album that hardly has the Grateful Dead in the dark – given that it was one of their biggest of the 80s, and really helped the group find a big new audience, thanks to a surprising hit! All the older elements are still in place, but the production has definitely changed since the early years – more upfront elements throughout, although still not really aimed at territory that's totally commercial – maybe just refining some of their older ideas for a new generation, in ways that Dylan and Springsteen were finding on their records at the time – maybe as an answer to the younger generations who were copping their style. Titles include "Hell In A Bucket", "West LA Fadeaway", "Tons Of Steel", "Touch Of Grey", "When Push Comes To Shove", and "Black Muddy River". CD

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The first Grateful Dead album on Arista, and a set that definitely marks a new chapter for the group – one that has them using a surprising amount of soul references in their music, in part through some heavy vocal contributions from Donna Jean Godchaux! The arrangements are fuller than before at times – with some elements added later to expand the sound of the group at the core – in ways that are sometimes respectful, sometimes a bit more forceful in the way they approach the sound. Highlights include the laidback "Estimated Prophet", and the long "Terrapin Station" suite – plus "Sunrise", "Passenger", "Samson & Delilah", and a surprising cover of "Dancin In The Streets". CD

A heck of a charmer from Haircut 100 – one of a handful of great UK albums from the early 80s that mixed post-punk energy with warmer touches from jazz and Latin – all in a blend that's completely wonderful overall! Haircut 100 were never trying to change the world – and they certainly never passed themselves off as a real jazz combo – but they've got a great way of adding in just the right touches on sax, congas, and even a bit of vibes – all to create a captivating setting alongside Britpop guitar lines and the great vocals of Nik Heyward. Nik's way more appealing here than on his later work – unabashedly groovy, on tunes that include the classic "Love Plus One", alongside "Snow Girl", "Lemon Firebrigade", "Favourite Shirts", "Milk Film", "Surprise Me Again", and "Fantastic Day". This 4CD package is totally great – in a 7" square book, with a bonus 44 page booklet of notes and new interviews! CD2 features Pelican Plus – 15 more bonus tracks that include the non LP cuts "Skip Club" and "Ski Club Of Great Britain" – plus all sorts of 12", 7" , and extended versions. CD3 features Junction Box – 11 more unfinished tracks, including some very cool instrumentals that really show the jazzier side of the group. And CD4 features a 14 track live set, recorded at Hammersmith Odeon in 1982! CD

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The best album yet from Anthony Hamilton – one of major label soul's saving graces of the mid 00s – and one of the few cats out there making records that melds an organic groove with production that's crisp & poppin'! Anthony's songs dip into the time-honored soul style of songs about love and the heartbreaking loss of it – but there's an easygoing groove to the sound that transcends subject matter – and a consistency that eludes most of his contemporaries! Nice stuff from a major talent! Tracks include "Where Did It Go Wrong?", "Southern Stuff", "Can't Let Go", "Ain't Nobody Worryin'", "Pass Me Over", "Sista Big Bones", "Never Love Again", "I Know What Love's All About" and more. CD

A really strong debut from Anthony Hamilton – easily the strongest album we've ever heard on the usually much more commercial So So Def label! Anthony seriously vibrates the rich depth of southern soul on every cut here, as filtered through late-model natural hip hop beats and vibes. He's definitely influenced by Erykah Badu's sound and Voodoo-era D'Angelo (which HAS to be the most influential serious soul album of the last decade or so), but the groove is a lot sweeter and less tortured than D's. It's really warm and inviting all the way through – crisp beats, tight keys, bass and percussion, and light guitar accent Anthony's lilting and layered vocals very nicely. All of the elements are just familiar enough to let you cozy up to the material right off the bat, but Hamilton's his own man here – nothing's directly bitten, just nicely approximated. Tracks include "Mama Knew Love", "Cornbread, Fish and Collared Greens", "Since I Seen't You", "Charlene", "I'm A Mess", "Comin' From Where I'm From", "Lucille", "Float", "My First Love" and more. A nice record from the not-so-dirty south! CD

A landmark bit of jazz funk – from one of the greatest backup groups of the 70s! Herbie Hancock first brought The Headhunters to light – working with the San Francisco-based combo that included Bennie Maupin, Mike Clark, Paul Jackson, and Bill Summers – using their sound to give his work the right dose of funk it needed to reach new audiences during the decade. This album's the first to feature the group on their own, without Herbie – and if we don't mind saying so, they sound even better without him! The whole thing's a wonderful mix of jazz funk grooves and very unusual rhythms – and the record contains the monster full length version of "God Make Me Funky", which is 9 minutes and 35 seconds of non stop funk, plus the cuts "If You've Got It, You'll Get It", "Magic", and "Here & Now". CD

Herrmann's original score to the film is pretty compelling – almost in the mode of some of his work for Hitchcock – and it's conducted here by Herrmann himself and by Dave Blume. The CD's got 2 especially noteworthy tracks – "Diary Of A Taxi Driver", which features a cool monologue by Robert DeNiro, and "Theme From Taxi Driver", which features alto sax work by Tom Scott. Other titles include "Betsy In A White Dress", "Sport & Iris", "The .44 Magnum Is A Monster", and "God's Lonely Man". CD

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Phyllis Hyman's nicely balanced here between the two key sides of her early career at its best – working with straight soul production from Chuck Jackson, and slightly more complicated grooves handled by Norman Connors! The pair really bring a nice sense of balance to the record, and in a way the set may well be one of the deepest that Hyman cut during the 80s – a set that avoids some of the too-classy or too-contemporary modes that later held back her vocals a bit – and which instead goes for all the warmth and sensual soul that first made Phyllis rise to fame during the 70s! There's a gentle glow to the record that really shines through – a sense that even in the studio, working for a label like Arista, Phyllis Hyman could work with the same deep spirits as the more righteous albums of her youth. Titles include "Can't We Fall In Love Again", "I Ain't Asking", "Sunshine In My Life", "Don't Tell Me, Tell Her", and "Just Another Face In The Crowd". CD

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Exactly the kind of record that shows why Kashif was one of the leading mainstream talents of the 80s – a set that not only has the artist really maturing as a singer, songwriter, and producer – but one that also has him reaching out to bring in a host of other talents from the time as well! The move is no surprise, given that Kashif had lent his talents to so many other artists' records in the past – and the favor seems to be returned by the album's work from Expose, Meli'sa Morgan, Doug E Fresh, Kenny G, Greg Phillinganes, and Whitney Houston – all of whom come across with a really organic feel that only seems to deepen the main sounds from Kashif. Titles include "Vacant Heart", "Fifty Ways", "Somebody", "Love Changes", "Loving You Only", "Love Me All Over", "Midnight Mood", "It All Begins Again", and "Who's Getting Serious". CD

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Reedman Oliver Lake at his most creative – stepping out here on a sublime set of 70s improvisations – all put together with a really spiritual feel! There's a very open, collaborative feel to the music – and the set was recorded in St Louis, at a time when Lake was a key part of that city's scene – and who here also seems able to attract some other musicians from the AACM in Chicago as well! As a result, the album's a wonderful document of the new ideas bursting forth at the start of the 70s – that richly creative moment when local scenes were coming together in various cities to find new ways of jazz beyond Coltrane and Dolphy – giving a player like Lake some of the most imaginative outlets of his career. Oliver plays alto, soprano, flute, and other small instruments – and other players include Baikida Carroll and Floyd Leflore on trumpets, Joseph Bowie on trombone, John Hicks on piano, Clovis Bordeaux on electric piano, Don Officer on bass, Charles Bobo Shaw on drums, and Don Moye on congas too. Titles include "Africa", "Tse Lane", "Eriee", "Zip", and "Electric Freedom". CD

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The first-ever album from The Monkees – a set that's overflowing with great numbers from the teams of Boyce & Hart and Goffin & King – plus one original by Mike Nesmith himself! The whole thing's groovy as groovy can be – and despite any thoughts that folks at the time might have had about these guys being just a TV one-off, the album's got fantastic staying power over the years – thanks to wonderful vocals, impeccable production, and a great selection of songs! Titles include "Theme From The Monkees", "Just Doesn't Seem To Be My Day", "Last Train To Clarksville", "Sweet Young Thing", "Papa Gene's Blues", "Take A Giant Step", "Tomorrow's Gonna Be Another Day", and "Saturday's Child". CD

With Clones, Pharell & Hugo unveil a bigger picture of their Star Trak roster and more, including Pharrell's hit "Frontin'" w/Jay Z, Kelis with Nas on "Popular Thug", Busta Rhymes "Light you're a$$ On Fire", NERD's "Loser", "The Don Of Dons" by Super Cat featuring Jadakiss, "It Wasn't Us" by Ludacris, the first major-released cut by ODB as Dirt McGirt, "Pop Sh#t" and others. CD

With Clones, Pharell & Hugo unveil a bigger picture of their Star Trak roster and more, including Pharrell's hit "Frontin'" w/Jay Z, Kelis with husband Nas on "Popular Thug", Busta Rhymes "Light Your A$$ On Fire", NERD's "Loser", "The Don Of Dons" by Super Cat featuring Jadakiss, "It Wasn't Us" by Ludacris, the first major-released cut by ODB as Dirt McGirt, "Pop Sh#t" and others. CD

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The massive third album from Run DMC – made at the top of their game – a pivotal effort that brought them to peak popularity and helped break hip hop in a huge way in the pop culture landscape! Part of the album's strength is its guitar-heavy sound on some of the grooves – produced by Rick Rubin and Russell Simmons with a classic early Def Jam vibe, in the same manner that helped the Beastie Boys get their records in the hands of folks who'd never buy hip hop otherwise! That sound comes to culmination on the album's hit collaboration with Aerosmith on a remake of "Walk This Way", resulting in the commercial breakthrough, but the real triumph here is the increased complexity in both the lyricism, and the way Jam Master Jay serves up their beats – which makes for a stone classic all the way through, on tracks that include "Peter Piper", "It's Tricky", "My Adidas", "Proud To Be Black", "You Be Illin'", and more. CD

Patrice Rushen in a crisp 80s soul mode! Watch Out finds Patrice really cutting down the keyboards in favor of stronger vocals right out front – breaking all the rules, as the title of second song tells it – and it works really well! Most of the arrangements, synth and drum programming are by Patrice herself, and she has a more sure-footed control of the era's R&B style than we remembered! The title track is fantastic, with a tight synth funk undercurrent and hooky, insistent vocals from Patrice – facets that carry throughout the album – plus strong ballads in "Somewhere" and "Till She's Out Of Your Mind". Patrice's only album for Arista – and it's a nice one! Other tracks include "All My Love", "Anything Can Happen", "Burnin", "Breakin All The Rules" and "Come Back To Me". CD

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A key crossover set from Gil Scott-Heron – still every bit as political as his earlier work, but with a stronger sense of soul as well! The great Brian Jackson is firmly in tow here – bringing warm keyboards and a nice little groove to most of the tracks – and the previous acoustic moments are replaced with more electric instrumentation overall, but never in a way that seeks to dampen Gil's message, nor push him into easy commercial territory. Instead, the tighter rhythms seem to really hammer home some of the lyrics – most famously in "Angel Dust", which almost touched a wider audience than the drug itself – and equally nicely on cuts that include "Cane", "Angola Louisiana", "Show Bizness", "Better Days Ahead", and "Madison Avenue". CD

Great live material from Shepp – not out or crazy, but also not spiritual or hippy dippy, either. The record's kind of a perfectly soulful straight ahead set – in a mode that hints at the traditional direction Shepp would take at the time, but with a lot more interesting moments. The group's a quartet with Charles Greenlee on trombone, Dave Burrell on piano, Cameron Brown on bass, and Beaver Harris on drums – and the tracks feature Shepp soloing with a lot of soul, and criss crossing styles from track to track. "U-jamaa" is a strong straight number – and the 3 other titles are "Lush Life", "Crucificado" and "Miss Toni". CD

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A surprisingly big breakthrough for Spiritualized – something we never would have guessed from the underground years of Spacemen 3 in the decade before! The set fuses that previous group's love of fuzz and space with a tighter sense of songwriting – that new psych blend of guitars and beats that was taking the British scene so strongly in the years after the emergence of Happy Mondays and other groups of their generation – carried forward strongly here by Spiritualized at a level that's maybe a bit hipper and more sonically interesting. All tracks are penned by leader J Spaceman – and titles include "Come Together", "Broken Heart", "No God Only Religion", "Cool Waves", "Cop Shoot Cop", "All Of My Thoughts", and "Electricity". CD

Big bouncing soul from Lisa Stansfield – a record that almost rivaled the first effort from Soul II Soul for UK impact on the American mainstream! Despite a pasty-white cover, the record's got a hell of a lot of color – some rich rhythms that reintroduced a syncopated funky sound to the charts, and soaring vocals from Lisa she hardly ever sung this well again on record. Titles include the tremendous symphonic jam "All Around the World", the beautiful "Live Together", and other nice ones like "This Is The Right Time", "You Can't Deny It", and "Mighty Love". CD

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Angie Stone's first solo LP, after her years with the Sequence and Vertical Hold. With a sound that nods towards the classic soul of the 70s, but firmly rooted in a more contemporary post-Hip Hop/NuSoul vibe, this set's a strong effort with the sort of self assured songcraft and tight production you'd expect from an artists who's paid her dues like Stone. 16 tracksi nall on this hard to get import vinyl pressing, including "No More Rain (In This Cloud)", "Everyday", "Life Story", "Coulda Been You", "Love Junkie" and "Heaven Help". CD

Excellent Revenant reissue that brings together the full set from Cecil's 1962 performance at Cafe Monmartre. He's playing here in a trio that has Jimmy Lyons on alto and Sonny Murray on drums, and the music's a key link between his later seventies stuff, and his earlier work that you can find on OJC reissues. The set has 2 takes of "Lena", plus "Trance", "What's New?", "Nefertiti, The Beautiful One Has Come", and "D Trad, That's What". CD

Includes the songs "Ain't 2 Proud 2 Beg", "What About Your Friends", "Hat 2 Da Back", "Get It Up", "Baby-Baby-Baby", "Creep", "Red Light Special", "Waterfalls", "Diggin' On You", "Kick Your Game", "Silly Ho", "No Scrubs (Rap Version)", "Unpretty", "Come Get Some", "Girl Talk", "Damaged", "Whoop De Woo", "In Your Arms Tonight", and "Turntable". CD

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The classic debut of Whodini – a duo who were maybe seen by some as too pop back in the day, but whose music here still really stands the test of time way back to the old school! Jalil Hutchins and Ecstasy combine new beatcraft and catchy hooks at a level that maybe made them one of the first groups to really push hip hop into the mainstream – and there's some surprising studio talent on the set, which includes production from both Thomas Dolby and the Willesden Dodgers – plus work by Conny Plank at the legendary studios of Can in Germany! That mix of modes really comes through in the set – which is maybe one of the first records to inscribe that love of overseas sounds that Afrika Bambaataa was first bringing to the mix – on cuts that include their classic "The Haunted House Of Rock" – in both regular and vocoder versions – plus "Magic's Wand", "Nasty Lady", "Underground", "Rap Machine", "Yours For A Night", and "It's All In Mr Magic's Wand". CD

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Includes tracks by Whitney Houston, SWV, Aretha Franklin, Chante Moore, Chaka Khan, Mary J Blige, Faith Evans, Patti LaBelle, and TLC. CD