... LP, Vinyl record album

... LP, Vinyl record album

... LP, Vinyl record album

Titles include "Crazy Little Thing Called Love", "Memphis Sun", "Susie Q", and "Rockabilly Rebel"! LP, Vinyl record album

Heavenly grooves from Hiroshi Okazaki & His Star Gazers – a group who harmonize wonderfully on this set! Despite their Japanese origin, the Star Gazers sing in English – clearly drawing from a legacy that includes The Four Freshmen and Hi-Los – but they also scat wordlessly at points too, in ways that really transform the sound of the tunes! There's a wonderfully sparkling feel to the whole record – of the sort you'd find in the hippest 60s European soundtracks or Brazilian bossa albums – and although the group hardly cracked the market outside their native Japan, a session like this has strong global appeal all these many years later. Titles include "What Can I Do Dear", "Agua De Beber", "I Can't Find The Words", "Quiet Nights Of Quiet Stars", "This Guy's In Love With You", and "The Last Waltz". CD

Classic-styled space rock from Golem – epically paced, trippy, expertly done wigged out instrumental rock that was purportedly laid down by heavies from the soon-to-be legendary krautrock scene working pseudonymously after hours in the studio! The album's a bit of an enigma – a set that's become famous over the years for its quality, but shrouded in enough mystery that some have doubted its story – although overall, the music here feels like the best early 70s space rock on labels like Brain or Egg – with lots of layers of keyboards and guitars over building drums and basslines. Produced by Genius P Orridge – and titles include "Orion Awakes", "Stellar Launch", "Godhead Dance", "Jupiter & Beyond", and "The Returning". CD

... CD

... CD

That sun-drenched image on the cover really gets at the spirit of the music on this excellent compilation – as most of the work has this slow-stepping, laidback sort of vibe – funky, but easygoing too – with the kind of cool, casual elements that maybe feel like the kind of music that you'd put on back at home, to rest up with a cool drink after spending a long day at the ocean! Many of the tracks are vintage, but there's some contemporary nuggets here too – a really well-chosen blend of cuts that are almost a genre unto themselves. Titles include "Just A Thought" by Just Us, "Tight Tonight" by Bengt Liedman, "More Than Hope" by Wendy Grace, "As The Day Grows Tired" by Will & James Ragar, "Moonshine" by Orion, "Kayenta Crossing" by William Eaton, "Peace Train" by Garth Fletcher, and "Golden Hour" by Aria Rostami. CD

That sun-drenched image on the cover really gets at the spirit of the music on this excellent compilation – as most of the work has this slow-stepping, laidback sort of vibe – funky, but easygoing too – with the kind of cool, casual elements that maybe feel like the kind of music that you'd put on back at home, to rest up with a cool drink after spending a long day at the ocean! Many of the tracks are vintage, but there's some contemporary nuggets here too – a really well-chosen blend of cuts that are almost a genre unto themselves. Titles include "Just A Thought" by Just Us, "Tight Tonight" by Bengt Liedman, "More Than Hope" by Wendy Grace, "As The Day Grows Tired" by Will & James Ragar, "Moonshine" by Orion, "Kayenta Crossing" by William Eaton, "Peace Train" by Garth Fletcher, and "Golden Hour" by Aria Rostami. LP, Vinyl record album

A piano trio set, but one that's unlike anything that Oscar Peterson or Ramsey Lewis might have recorded – as Siegfried Kessler really breaks the whole format down here, working in a very free setting with accompaniment from Gus Nemeth on bass and Stu Martin on drums! The energy here is very much in the post-68 vibe of the French free scene – and the record's got a sound that would have been equally at home as one of the 1969 sessions on BYG/Actuel – especially in the way that Kessler's not content to just play piano, but also handles a bit of flute as well! The whole thing is nicely unbridled – with long tracks that include "Persecution", "Drum", "De L'Orient A Orion", and "Solaire". LP, Vinyl record album

Sweet grooves from George Duke – and a set that almost feels like it's got a bit more edge than usual – at least in recent years! The vibe's still got that warm mix of soul and jazz that's continued to make George great – but the keyboards also feel richer at points, with some of the mystical inflections you'd expect from the Dreamweaver title – served up by Duke in a mix of Fender Rhodes, acoustic piano, and other keyboards. A number of tracks have vocals – by George himself, with help from Rachelle Ferrell on one track, the late Teena Marie on another, and a group with Freddie Jackson, Jeffrey Osborne, and Lalah Hathaway on another – but there's also a fair bit of instrumental moments that spin out with more flourish than we've heard from Duke in years. Titles include "Brown Sneakers", "Round The Way Girl", "Ball & Chain", "Stones Of Orion", "Ashtray", "Change The World", and "Missing You". CD

A swirling array of tones, colors, and sounds – written and arranged by JJ Johnson, conducted by Gunther Schuller, and with Dizzy at the helm, blowing some of his most complicated solos ever. The approach is firmly in the Verve jazz orchestra tradition – and recalls the earlier brilliance of such projects in the hands of Ralph Burns, done here with a great depth of expression, and none of the coldness that you might expect from Schuller's participation. Clearly, there's a Miles/Gil Evans influence here, but the crew retains their identity strongly – and Dizzy's hot tone on the trumpet provides a broder spectrum than Miles ever could. Titles include "Fantasia", "Ballade", "Jubelo", and "The Sword Of Orion". LP, Vinyl record album

An unimpeachable metal masterpiece! Master Of Puppets is one of the rare cases when the critical and popular consensuses match right up and are both right on the money – there's just no arguing against this being considered one of the greatest, most influential, and surprisingly timeless metal albums of all time – and it built that reputation organically, fan by fan, without radio or music videos to hype it. All the more impressive for the few disarmingly quiet moments and borderline pretty instrumental passages before the heaviness comes walloping back in. All classic songs on this one: "Battery", "Master Of Puppets", "The Thing That Should Not Be", "Welcome Home (Sanitarium)", "Disposable Heroes", "Leper Messiah", "Orion" and "Damage, Inc.". LP, Vinyl record album

An unimpeachable metal masterpiece! Master Of Puppets is one of the rare cases when the critical and popular consensuses match right up and are both right on the money – there's just no arguing against this being considered one of the greatest, most influential, and surprisingly timeless metal albums of all time – and it built that reputation organically, fan by fan, without radio or music videos to hype it. All the more impressive for the few disarmingly quiet moments and borderline pretty instrumental passages before the heaviness comes walloping back in, this one is for the ages. All classic songs on this one: "Battery", "Master Of Puppets", "The Thing That Should Not Be", "Welcome Home (Sanitarium)", "Disposable Heroes", "Leper Messiah", "Orion" and "Damage, Inc.". CD

An unimpeachable metal masterpiece! Master Of Puppets is one of the rare cases when the critical and popular consensuses match right up and are both right on the money – there's just no arguing against this being considered one of the greatest, most influential, and surprisingly timeless metal albums of all time – and it built that reputation organically, fan by fan, without radio or music videos to hype it. All the more impressive for the few disarmingly quiet moments and borderline pretty instrumental passages before the heaviness comes walloping back in, this one is for the ages. All classic songs on this one: "Battery", "Master Of Puppets", "The Thing That Should Not Be", "Welcome Home (Sanitarium)", "Disposable Heroes", "Leper Messiah", "Orion" and "Damage, Inc.". CD

Spacey Frenchy disco stuff, recorded in French Canada, where they do that sort of thing pretty well. 4 long tracks with a space theme to them, including "Conquest Of The Stars", "Beyond Orion", and "Mission To Lyra". LP, Vinyl record album

A great little set – way more than you might think from the cover! Ostensibly, this one's a cash-in album for the mid 70s Star Wars soundtrack craze – but since it's handled by trumpet genius Don Ellis, it's got a surprisingly funky feel – with many tracks that recall his own great soundtrack work of the time, especially the nice electric current in his grooves. In fact, the album only has two tracks from the Star Wars soundtrack – despite the fact that the logo for the movie is displayed largely on the cover – and all other tracks are originals by Ellis, handled with a sweet mix of electric funk and funky jazz soloing! Lots of nice keyboards, and titles include "Star Wars", "Orion's Sword", "Eros", "Lyra", "Ursa", "Vulcan", "Crypton" and "Arcturas". CD

Lovely sounds from Masumi Hara – an album that was originally issued in 1984, and which ties together a few different strands running through Japanese music at the time – some of the more electronic pop-styled elements in the post-city pop generation, and some of the mellower, more atmospheric styles of the ambient scene! The result is an album that's got a surprising amount of depth, and a good deal of charm – an album that's playful one minute, and dreamy the next. Titles include "To live in the Sea", "Living With Sound", "Twist", "Doncha Of The Moon & The Stars", "Futon Making", "The Deepest Of Nights", and "Orion". LP, Vinyl record album

An unimpeachable metal masterpiece! Master Of Puppets is one of the rare cases when the critical and popular consensuses match right up and are both right on the money – there's just no arguing against this being considered one of the greatest, most influential, and surprisingly timeless metal albums of all time – and it built that reputation organically, fan by fan, without radio or music videos to hype it. All the more impressive for the few disarmingly quiet moments and borderline pretty instrumental passages before the heaviness comes walloping back in, this one is for the ages. All classic songs on this one: "Battery", "Master Of Puppets", "The Thing That Should Not Be", "Welcome Home (Sanitarium)", "Disposable Heroes", "Leper Messiah", "Orion" and "Damage, Inc.". LP, Vinyl record album