Includes "Resurrection" with Masta Killa, "He Got Game", "Unstoppable" with KRS-One, "Is Your God A Dog", "House Of The Rising Son", "Politics Of The Sneaker Pimps", "Go Cat Go", "What You Need Is Jesus", "Game Face", and "Sudden Death". CD

With tracks by Blind Lemon Jefferson, John Lee Hooker, Son House, Big Boy Crudup, Bukka White, and many more more! 73 tracks totals including interview footage! CD

A fantastically soulful delight! The CD features a continuous mix of tracks handled by New York's supreme maestro Ron Trent – a perfectly blended and expertly selected batch of spiritual house, strident soul, and jazzy grooves. Not a bit of BS in the mix, and lots of rare sides lifted from singles on the Giant Step DJ pool – solid all the way through, and cutting a swath through the garbage to lift out the future of soul and club music! Titles include "Lamentations (you son)" by Carl Hancock Rux, "Future Love (original)" by Atlantis feat Naomi, "Stars (Tauriva mix)" by Jiva, "Elevation (Shelter late night voc)" by Blaze, "Naima" by Hipnotic, "Saturday Night Experience (Ron Trent mix)" by Jody Watley, "Rise (Sentinel Dome mix)" by Richard Worth, "Jingo (Aquamarine mix)" by Kalawang, "Do You Know" and "Holiday (DJ Deep & original)" by Donnie, and "When It Rains (Restless Soul rmx)" by Jeymes Samuel. CD

Includes the songs "Midnight Special", "Cotton Fields", "Special Delivery Blues","Rambling Round Your City", "Cool Water", "Down On Me", "I've Been Driving On Bald Mountain/Water Boy", "Saro Jane", "Battle Hymn Of The Republic","If I Had A Hammer", "Joshua Fit The Battle Of Jerico", "Meetin' At The Building", "No More Auction Block For Me", "Sometimes I Feel Like A Motherless Child", "Spoken Introduction: He Had A Long Chain On", "Another Man Done Gone", "He's Got The Whole World In His Hands", "Make Me A Pallet On Your Floor", "Livin' With The Blues", "Nobody Knows You When You're Down And Out", and "House Of The Rising Son". CD

Music from BB King, John Lee Hooker, Muddy Waters, Leadbelly, Amos Milburn, Memphis Slim, Brownie McGhee, Barbecue Bob, Big Bill Broonzy, Son House, and more. CD

A sprawling 5CD box set of benchmark 80s indie pop from the UK – chronologically sequenced (for the most part) from the beginning to the end of the decade – with so many brilliant songs both straight-up classic and others that are relatively forgotten! Incredible stuff from the post punk guitar years, to dreamier and more psych steeped sounds, to the dancier grooves late in the decade that laid the groundwork for the 90s. Classics and early singles by Prefab Sprout, TV Personalities, Everything But The Girl, Pulp, Biff Bang Pow!, Primal Scream, The Wedding Present, The Soup Dragons, House Of Love, The Shamen, The Rosehips, Pop Will Eat Itself, The Wonder Stuff, The Stone Roses, Inspiral Carpets, James, The Jesus & Mary Chain, Lloyd Cole & The Commotion, The Darling Buds, The Boo Radleys and many, many more! More than 130 tracks in all – with a thick booklet of notes! Kind of like a Nuggets for the indie 80s British scenes! SO many great songs, but to name a few: "Revolutionary Spirit" by Wild Swans, "The Missionary" by Josef K, "Lions In The Garden" by Prefab Sprout, "A Picture Of Dorian Gray (Live)" by TV Personalities, "Just Like Honey (demo October '84)" by Jesus & Mary Chain, "Oblivious" by Aztec Camera, "Velocity Girl" by Primal Scream, "Go Out And Get 'Em, Boy" by The Wedding Present, "If I Said" by The Darling Buds, "Son Of A Gun (demo)" by The LAs, "The Hardest Thing In The World" by Stone Roses, "Catweazle" by The Boo Radleys and many, many more! CD

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Milt Jackson on vibraphone – working with a strong group of younger players that includes Joshua Redman on tenor, Jesse Davis on alto, Benny Green on piano, Christian McBride on bass, and Kenny Washington on drums. CD

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A great electric set – recorded at the Lighthouse in 1970, in that slightly funky mode of Joe's best work from the time! Joe Henderson's beautiful soloing style, honed at this point on a number of fine Blue Note recordings, is set free in a band that includes Woody Shaw, Lenny White, and George Cables, who plays beautifully on electric piano. Tracks include new versions of "Mode for Joe" and "Blue Bossa" – redone with a sweet gliding 70s groove – plus "Carribean Fire Dance", "If You're Not Part Of The Solution, You're Part Of The Problem", and "Round Midnight". The core original album If You're Not Part Of The Solution is expanded with tracks pulled from the Joe Henderson box set – making for a 10-title package that recaptures the whole original performance. Extra tracks include "Recorda-Me", "Isotope", "A Shade Of Jade", and "Invitation". CD

A bunch of nice, pumped up house mixes of this popular Janet cut. 12-inch, Vinyl record

One of the best albums ever by this crack soul jazz combo – the mighty Jazztet, an early 60s group led by Art Farmer and Benny Golson! The set was recorded in Chicago, and it features the group hard-grooving through some really well-arranged numbers – lively tunes with a snapping, in-the-pocket kind of groove, played with a lot more soul than you'd expect from either Golson or Farmer's solo albums. The rest of the group's great, too – and features Cedar Walton on piano, Tom McIntosh on trombone, and Albert Heath on drums. A few tracks are nice and long, and titles include "Farmer's Market", "Junction", "November Afternoon", and "Shutterbug". CD

... LP, Vinyl record album

Two wonderful live albums with Peterson at the piano – backed by Ray Brown on bass and Ed Thigpen on percussion. Tracks include "There Is No Greater Love", "Blues For Big Scottia", "Old Folks", "Diablo", and "The Lonesome One". CD

Amazing package – fold-over cardboard sleeve and binder! CD

The first new studio recording by tenorist Fred Anderson since 1980 – and a set that shows just how much he'd grown in the intervening years! Here, Fred's newly alive with a younger Chicago group – a great quartet with Jim Baker on piano, Harrison Baker on bass, and Hamid Drake on drums – all players openly fluid to move with Anderson from swinging passages to freer ones – a beautiful balance of soul and experimentation, captured in a way that maybe links Fred more closely to Von Freeman than any other record in his career – yet which still captures all the AACM vitality in his music too. Titles include "Birdhouse", "Bernice", "Like Sonny", and "Waiting For Me". CD

One of the best albums ever by this crack soul jazz combo – the mighty Jazztet, an early 60s group led by Art Farmer and Benny Golson! The set was recorded in Chicago, and it features the group hard-grooving through some really well-arranged numbers – lively tunes with a snapping, in-the-pocket kind of groove, played with a lot more soul than you'd expect from either Golson or Farmer's solo albums. The rest of the group's great, too – and features Cedar Walton on piano, Tom McIntosh on trombone, and Albert Heath on drums. A few tracks are nice and long, and titles include "Farmer's Market", "Junction", "November Afternoon", and "Shutterbug". LP, Vinyl record album

Later issue of the first-ever proper full length album by Roy Orbison, recorded for Sun 1956, but not released until 1961! It's hard to imagine how rock and roll history might've been changed if this incredible record was release closer to the time of it's recordings, but it'll sound great forever! Includes "This Kind Of Love", "Devil Doll", "You're Gonna Cry", "I Never Knew", "Mean Little Mama", "Problem Child" and more. LP, Vinyl record album

It's the early 70s, and Mose is still going strong – grooving with a unique blend of New Orleans soul and Northern jazz influences, his own particular brand of music, timeless from the day it was born! The setting here is a live one, and Mose is playing with a trio that includes Clyde Flowers on bass and Eddie Charlton on drums. The album features a number of strong originals – including "Look What You Made Me Do", "Powerhouse", "I Don't Worry About A Thing", and "Don't Forget To Smile" – plus versions of "The Seventh Son" and "Fool's Paradise". LP, Vinyl record album

Near-perfect work from Ashford & Simpson – really grooving in full powerhouse mode here, and never missing a beat! By all rights, the team should have run out of steam by this point, but the album's another winner from their sublime Warner years – caught in a unique space between chart soul, ensemble funk, and disco – taking all the best elements of each, and really sending the whole thing home with some incredible vocals and impeccable production and arrangements! Titles include "Rushing To", "Love Don't Make It Right", "We'll Meet Again", "Get Out Your Handkerchief", and "I Ain't Asking For Your Love". LP, Vinyl record album

A really cool project, and one that's even cooler than you might guess from the title – as the graphic novel is a very well-done exploration of key strands of electronic music – starting with the early years, moving through disco, Chicago House, Detroit Techno, and beyond – all with individual chapters that really do a great job of telling the story! At some level, the book is a bit like the hip hop history of Ed Piskor, but there's a different approach to storytelling too – as the scenes are interwoven with more personal, reflective elements – almost a Harvey Pekar quality at times, which really makes the narrative come alive. The artwork is great – mostly black and white, but with some color as things move to the 21st Century – and we're really pleasantly surprised at how enjoyable the book is, and especially proud of the way it handles Chicago. Harcover edition is 239 pages, with images throughout – and a smaller text section at the end. Book

A high school record, but also one of the first hip hop singles to come out of Chicago! Given that in the early 80s, Chi-town was still focusing mostly on soul (and soon, house), the Windy City was way behind New York in terms of hip hop production – and most early rap efforts came out as novelty tunes by local personalities. But this little gem has a surprising level of quality – simple old school backings at best, copping a Sugarhill groove from the start – but some nicely scripted lyrics from a number of Carver High School seniors, presented in a way that's a bit more staid than the usual east coast single – but still quite nice! The flipside has a mellower cut – a cool "Senior Song" that's done like some laidback 80s R&B ballad, but with a more youthful vocal approach. 12-inch, Vinyl record

A wonderful small combo session from tenorist Benny Golson – one of a few key albums like this from the early years! Although Golson is perhaps best known as a lively arranger in the modern idiom, he's also a kick-ass tenor player when he wants to be – and on this classic, he definitely wants to be! Unlike some of Golson's more tightly arranged records of the early years, this date is a deeply gutsy soul jazz session – support from a group that includes Ray Bryant on piano, Paul Chambers on bass, Art Blakey on drums, and Curtis Fuller on trombone – all sliding into long tracks that have plenty of room for solos! The whole thing's a bit like the more spontaneous side of the Jazz Messengers groove – and titles include "The Stroller", "Drumboogie", "My Blues House", and a beautiful version of "Yesterdays". CD

One of the rarest Lee Hazlewood albums, and one of the coolest, too – the set falls a bit later than some of his other work on the Swedish scene – and, like Cowboy In Sweden, it's also a soundtrack too – but the vibe is different than that one, and almost shows this maturation of Lee's style – as if he's absorbing even more unusual elements during his time overseas, and finding a way to keep growing his sound away from his American years in LA! All the Hazlewood craft for songs and nicely wry vocals is still very much in place – but there's also some nice shifts in the arrangements, too – deepening things some fuller elements at times, yet stepping back into tighter elements at others. Titles include "Soul's Island", "A House Safe For Tigers", "Our Little Boy Blue", "Sand Hill Anna & The Russian", "Absent Friends", and a nice remake of "The Nights"! CD

Excellent early work from Al Hudson – a soulful talent who stood his own in the late 70s, forging an up-tempo funk sound that lived long past disco, and which was sort of a platform for groups of the 80s to build a new dancefloor sound. Hudson relied heavily on bass-y funk to hit his groove, but he also gave strong focus to the good singers who worked with his groups – adding in good ballads that act as a showcase to members like bassist Kevin McCord, who sings some great vocals on this set. The album kicks off with the up-tempo groover "Spread Love", an anthemic dancefloor tune that almost points the way towards soulful house, and it's got some other nice cuts, like the ballads "Lost Inside Of You" and "Love Me Forever", plus the funky numbers "How Do You Do", and "Dance, Get Down". LP, Vinyl record album

Brilliant early work from Alan Hull – best known as the creative guiding force of Lindisfarne, but heard here on a whole host of earlier tracks that really showcase his songwriting brilliance and really wonderful vocal style – most of which have never been issued before! Hull's maybe a great lost talent in the manner of Bill Fay – not that he sounds like Fay, but he's someone who was recognized as a creative powerhouse right at the start, and given the chance to cut so many great tracks like this – a wealth of fantastic material that maybe makes Hull sound even better in such laidback settings. Backings and styles vary in a really great way – and the box features 90 tracks in all – only a few of which got any sort of later release as later CD bonus tracks. CD

Titles include "I'm Free", "House For Sale", "Bad Risk", "Feel Like Making Love", "Solitary Love Affair", and "Do What Makes The World Go Round". LP, Vinyl record album

A flawless batch of classics from Millie Jackson in the heart of her early years on Spring Records – maybe sounding better than ever here! Millie's raunchier style would come later on, but here she's working in styles that are a perfect mix of gritty and sweet – arrangements tailored perfectly to those characteristics in her sultry, smoky voice – and equally at home in sessions in Muscle Shoals, Philly or NYC. Covers the bases from moody southern soul, to tender ballads, to lightly soaring strings – and the mixes by Steve Levine really bring out the vibe of the original sessions, as closely as possible to the spirit and vision of the original recordings – a restoration as opposed to a revision. Includes "Sweet Music, Soft Lights & You" featuring Isaac Hayes, "House For Sale", "I'll Continue To Love You", "My Man, A Sweet Man", "I Cry", "If Loving You Is Wrong (I Don't Wanna Be Right)" and "It Hurts So Good" – plus "Kiss You All Over", "Bad Risk", "Never Change Lovers In The Middle Of The Night" and more. 12 tracks on the CD. CD

Upbeat soul from Millie Jackson – a massive batch of tunes that work perfectly for the dancefloor, but which still retain all the grittier edges of her best early years! Although Millie's probably best known for her weepy ballads of the 70s, she also pioneered a more upbeat style of southern soul too – a nicely grooving approach to the music that was almost the southern equivalent of grooves from Philly and New York at the time. The style's a great one for Jackson's bold, proud lyrical style – and this wonderful set really shows the best bad-stepping side of Millie's talents in the 70s. Most cuts are pulled from her years on the Spring label during the decade, and the set features a few rare versions and edits that make the package essential, even if you've got all the individual LPs! 22 tracks in all – including "If That Don't Turn You On", "All I Want Is A Fighting Chance", "House For Sale", "Somethin Bout Cha", "You Can't Stand The Thought Of Another Man Loving Me", "Love Doctor", "Put Something Down On It", "A Little Taste Of Outside Love", "Ask Me What You Want", "I Miss You Baby", "Letter Full Of Tears", "Fancy This", "Rising Cost Of Love", and "You Can't Turn Me Off In The Middle Of Turning Me On". CD

Jefferson Airplane flying high in the late 60s – and Crown Of Creation was both a creative and commercial triumph for the band – balancing the tripped out adventurousness of their earlier work, with a more focused approach! Front loaded with moodier, acoustic-based songs that build into heavier rock as the record plays on – with some really great use of sound effects for added drama here and there! Titles include "Lather", "In Time", "Star Track", "Chushingura", "If You Feel", "Ice Cream Phoenix", "The House At Pooniel Corners" and more. CD

A gritty little gem in the Gram Parsons/Burritos catalog – mostly covers of classic honky tonk tunes! Many of the tracks were recorded for what would have been an honest, earnest, hard country album that was never fully realized – eventually paired with a few other tracks of similar vintage and some outtakes with Emmylou, then released as a posthumous Gram Parsons/Flying Burrito Bros LP. Gram is hardly acknowledged by the country music establishment to this day, but this set shows that he loved and respected the songs of Merle Haggard (Gram's supposed cultural opposite at the time, so little did the world actually know), Buck Owens, The Louvin Brothers and the endless lost highway of roadhouse jukebox classics – played here with a boozy after hours swagger! Tracks include "Brand New Heartache", "Tonight The Bottle Let Me Down", "Sing Me Back Home", "Crazy Arms", "Close Up The Honky Tonks", "Honky Tonk Women", "Dim Lights" and more. LP, Vinyl record album

Oscar Peterson's living the vida bueno here – returning to the London House in Chicago, over a decade after his famous recording date in the early 60s – and working with a very different style overall! The tracks are long, and quite open – a great way to hear Peterson working out some inventive ideas on the keys, with, arguably, a lot less "trademark" moments than usual for the 70s – and the trio also features Joe Pass on guitar and Niels Henning Orsted Pedersen on bass. The set features a great version of "Wave", plus "Wheatland", "The Good Life", "On A Clear Day", and "For Count". LP, Vinyl record album

The sound of the trio is loud and clear on this set – captured before a very appreciative crowd at the London House in Chicago, and featuring Peterson at his inventive best! The tracks on the set stretch out longer than most of the group's studio sessions from the time, and the album's recorded in a great way that also includes Oscar's mumbling at the keys – that humming and grunting style that isn't always caught on record, but which adds a great deal of grit and humanity to the record – especially considering his fluid grace on the piano! As usual, Ray Brown is on bass and Ed Thigpen's on drums – and titles include "Tricotism", "On Green Dolphin Street", "Thag's Dance", and "Kadota's Blues". Includes 5 bonus tracks. CD

Strong work from the Peterson Trio's London House gig in Chicago in 1961 – material that offers some slightly longer than usual takes on the group's sound, especially on a few numbers that really let Oscar open up on the keys! The group here is the legendary combo with Ed Thigpen on drums and Ray Brown on bass – but on the album's long versions of "Sometimes I'm Happy", "In The Wee Small Hours" and "Chicago", it's Oscar's inventive work on the keys that really dominates the nearly 10 minute run of each track. Other shorter tunes include "Billy Boy", "Whisper Not", and "The Night We Called It A Day". Includes five bonus tracks. CD

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A very unique session that features the often-modern tenor sax of Lucky Thompson in the company of bluesman Sammy Price, who plays piano and sings on a number of the tracks on the record. Amazingly, Thompson's raspy tenor tone is a perfect fit with the style of the recording – laying down lean blusey licks that really work nicely with Price's barrelhouse piano style, and which also give it a bit more of a jazz-oriented style than usual. The rest of the group features Pierre Michelot on bass, Jean-Pierre Sasson on guitar, and Gerard Pochonet on drums. Titles include "Lucky T", "Minor Blues", "Paris Blues", "Embassy Boogie", and "Up Above My Head". CD

Frenetic bop work from Sonny Rollins – recorded in 1956 with an open-mouthed tone that's certainly less controlled than later years, but still no less compelling! Sonny races along some of these tracks like a train out of control – especially on "B Quick" and "B Swift", and the aptly titled "Ee-Ah". Side two has him mellowing out a bit – extended takes of "The House I Live In" and "Sonny Boy" – but the overall groove is still quite hard, a lot harder than the RCA years. Max Roach is on drums, Kenny Drew plays piano, and George Morrow is on bass. CD

A crackling bit of hardbop from Sonny Rollins – and a session that has Sonny playing with the Max Roach/Clifford Brown group that included Bud Powell's brother Richie on piano! Sonny had already made a strong name for himself on albums issued under the Roach/Brown tag at the time, and here the group returns the favor by allowing Sonny to lead, and by giving him a good deal of time in the spotlight! Rollins' solo ability is risen to a razor-sharp level for the set – really getting fire, and managing to invent at a speed and sharpness that's simply amazing. Titles include Sonny's classic reading of "Pent-up House", plus "Valse Hot", "Kiss & Run", and "Count Your Blessings". CD

A crackling bit of hardbop from Sonny Rollins – and a session that has Sonny playing with the Max Roach/Clifford Brown group that included Bud Powell's brother Richie on piano! Sonny had already made a strong name for himself on albums issued under the Roach/Brown tag at the time, and here the group returns the favor by allowing Sonny to lead, and by giving him a good deal of time in the spotlight! Rollins' solo ability is risen to a razor-sharp level for the set – really getting fire, and managing to invent at a speed and sharpness that's simply amazing. Titles include Sonny's classic reading of "Pent-up House", plus "Valse Hot", "Kiss & Run", and "Count Your Blessings". CD

Nice album that contains a mid-50s session recorded by Rollins for Prestige – with a quintet that includes the Clifford Brown-Max Roach ensemble, with Rollins filling in the tenor spot. Richie Powell's on piano, and the whole group has a very tight "roots of hardbop" sort of sound. Includes a classic reading of "Pent-up House", plus "Valse Hot", "Kiss & Run", and "Count Your Blessings". LP, Vinyl record album

The start of a fantastic tradition – the first-ever recording of the SF Jazz Collective, a kickoff to a series that would give us amazing records for years to come! This time around, the group work through a series of Ornette Coleman tunes, re-arranged by Gil Goldstein for the octet – which features an all-star lineup that includes Bobby Hutcherson on vibes, Joshua Redman on tenor, Nicholas Payton on trumpet, Miguel Zenon on alto, Josh Roseman on trombone, Renee Rosnes on piano, Robert Hurst on bass, and Brian Blade on drums – all strong leaders on their own, but doing a remarkable job here of putting aside egos and working together as a whole! Coleman tunes include "Una Muy Bonita", "Lonely Woman", "School Work", "Happy House", and "When Will The Blues Leave" – and originals include "Of This Day's Journey", "Wages", "March Madness", and "Rise & Fall". CD

One of those hard-wailing all-star sessions that Jimmy did so well for Blue Note! The album features an amazing array of top-line players – like Tina Brooks, Lee Morgan, Curtis Fuller, Lou Donaldson, Art Blakey, and Kenny Burrell – and they all play with Smith in differing combinations, all of which have an open-ended groove that sounds very nice, and very much like the kind of material that Smith would have laid down at some small club in the late 50s. This early CD reissue collects material from both the House Party & Sermon sessions, with a slightly different track list than the original album, or the RVG remaster – titles include "Just Friends", "Blues After All", "J.O.S.", "What Is This Thing Called Love", & "Cherokee". CD

One of the greatest European jazz guitarists – heard here in some of his grooviest work of the 60s – an amazing batch of material recorded for the art house films of director Hansjurgen Pohland! Zoller already had a modern tone by the time of these recordings – a sublime sound on the guitar that rivaled that of Billy Bauer with the Lee Konitz group of the 50s, but which was also freer, and open to rich new ideas too – especially from a rhythmic and tonal standpoint, which always keeps Zoller's work compelling! Attila's way more than just another jazzy player on the instrument – and film material like this really lets him stretch his imagination – and unlock a whole whose of tones and colors that are quite imagistic in nature. Most tracks are played by a small combo led by Zoller – often working in front of the screen as images passed by – scenes from films that include Katz Und Maus, Tamara, and The Bread Of Our Early Years. This set marks the first release of the material actually recorded for those films on record – and titles include "Family Bricks", "Pilenz", "Road Song", "Minesweeper", "Cold Fusion", "Adam's Apple", "Hedwig's Departure", "Mousetip Strut", and "Mahlke". CD

Serving time has never been this groovy – thanks to a whole host of prison-themed tunes from the postwar years, presented here in a package that's especially strong on blues and R&B! Sure, most folks know "Folsom Prison Blues", but this package digs much deeper to come up with two dozen near-lost tracks that also echo the legacy of incarceration that frequently interacted with the music business during years when even the most minor infraction might get a singer or instrumentalist locked up. We're not saying that all these artists have experience behind bars, but the set does resonate strongly as a showcase of the too-common theme of jail and prison in American music. Titles include "Jailbird" by Smiley Lewis, "But Officer" by Sonny Knight, "Hey Mr Warden" by Danny Cobb, "Prisoner's Song" by Fats Domino, "Please Mr Jailer" by Wynona Carr, "Ball & Chain Blues" by Josh White, "Jail Bird" by El Pauling & Royal Abbit, "Prisoner's Plea" by Billy Boy Arnold, "Jailhouse Blues" by Ottille Patterson, "When I Leave These Prison Walls" by The Larks, and "I'm A Prisoner" by Eddie Boyd. CD

Classic tracks from one of the greatest songwriting teams in soul music during the 60s and 70s – the legendary trio of Brian Holland, Lamont Dozier, and Eddie Holland – two of whom started out as soul singers, and all three of whom left behind a huge legacy on the Detroit scene! And while the trio were a famous part of Motown before moving off to start their own HDH family of labels, the work here also expands past those roots and includes some other gems that really show the wide reach of their music – including some non-soul titles that stack up here as a real surprise! As always with Ace Records, the notes tell the huge story behind the music, along with a great set of vintage images – and the package features 24 tracks in all, with titles that include "Band Of Gold (unedited alt version)" by Freda Payne, "There's A Ghost In My House" by The Fall, "New Breed Kind Of Woman" by Lamont Dozier, "Come & Get These Memories" by Laura Nyro, "Leaving Here" by Eddie Holland, "Come See About Me" by Barbara Mason, "Helpless" by Kim Weston, "A Love Like Yours" by Dusty Springfield, "You Keep Me Hanging On" by Vanilla Fudge, "This Old Heart Of Mine" by Bettye Swann, "Take Me In Your Arms" by Isley Brothers, "Don't Do It" by The Band, "Love's Gone Bad" by Chris Clark, "How Sweet It Is" by Brenda Lee, and "Where Did Our Love Go" by Donnie Elbert. CD

A pretty fantastic selection of rare disco tracks from the American underground – all of them infused with a spiritual message, but served up with grooves that go head to head with some of the best underground club of the time! The mix of positive energy and upbeat grooves is wonderful – and if you've ever heard the Clark Sisters club classic "You Brought The Sunshine", then you'll definitely know the spirit of these tunes! If you're worried about the message being one that you're not into, don't – because there's sort of a universal spirit going on here – one that gets past conventions of the church, and which really goes for a general uplifting message that's totally great – almost a precursor to some of the positive house in more recent decades. And speaking of house, there's less of that here than you'd expect – as most of the instrumentation and production are strongly in the best New York underground modes from the disco years – with less of any 80s or electro soul elements. Titles include "I Believe" by Calvin B Rhone, "Imitations" by Johnson Family Gospel Singers, "Change" by Wisdom, "On That Other Shore" by Harrison Jones & The Voices Of Harmony, "I've Been Converted" by The Converters, "Ain't No Way To Do Wrong" by New Creation, "Take It To The Streets" by Prophecy, "Let The Lord Come In Your Life" by Wisdom, "Keep The Fire" by Paradise, and "Jesus Is On The Mainline" by Mr Jesse R McGuire. CD

Not really the house of ages – given that most of these cuts are so rare, they're only making their first appearance here – but a great little collection that reminds us that there's still so much to discover in the funky underground of the last few years of the 20th Century! Jeremy Newell really knocks it out of the park with this one – and comes up with a deep, soulful collection of house tracks from the farthest reaches of the scene – either work that only appeared on very obscure singles, or didn't even make it past tape back in the day – leaping forth here with a wickedly groovy sound that's more than worth the wait. Titles include "Take Me Higher" by Jimi Polo, "I Promise (more beats for passion mix)" by Mark Rogers, "Keep On Pressing (KOT orig mix)" by Sean Grant, "More I Get" by Teleport feat Russell Patterson, "Yo Razor" by Arts & Craft with Razor Cain, "Don't Run Away" by Soul Dhamma, "When I See You (tight voc)" by Frank Youngwerth with Ernie, "Freak It (Tony Humprhies inst mix)" by Johanna, "Mainline (Roger S Ego trip mix)" by Tribal House, "We Can Make It (unreleased dub)" by UBQ Project, and "Deeper (Benji Candelario's deeper than deep unreleased mix)" by Susan Clark. CD

Music from Paul Evans, Leroy Pullins, The Nutty Squirrels, Vicky Randle & Stewart Copeland, Billy Williams, Henhouse Five Plus Two, Stewart Copeland, Dave Hardin, Vicky Randle & Stewart Copeland, Stan Ridgeway & Stewart Copeland, Stewart Copeland & Judd Miller, Damecus Metoyer & Stewart Copeland, The Grid, and The Rock-A-Teens. CD

An incredible addition to the rich legacy of Stax Records – a massive collection of 146 tracks, almost all of which appear here for the first time ever – a set that represents recordings done by all the great songwriters who were working for Stax at the time, most of whom were also recording artists on the label! Given that fact, these aren't scratchy recordings performed by hacks who can't sing – as almost all the material features the sort of top-shelf vocalists who made Stax such a deep soul powerhouse in the 60s and 70s – represented here in a style that shows just how much freedom of creative expression the label allowed its best – very different than the way some of the bigger companies would just cram a song down a quickly-booked session in the studio! Plus, these demo tracks are done in a variety of modes – some with very stripped-down instrumentation, some with fuller groups – and together, they offer a key look at the creative process at Stax – one that's very different than the iconic sound of productions in their Memphis studio, and which really shows an even deeper range of expression through the variety of approaches. The 7CD set has a really cool approach – CDs 1, 2, and 3 feature demos by Stax artists singing their own material; CD4 features Stax singer/songwriters working on non-Stax material; and CDs 5, 6, and 7 feature songs by these artists that were never issued at the time! The set includes work by The Staple Singers, William Bell, Carla Thomas, Bettye Crutcher, Homer Banks, Eddie Floyd, Veda Brown, Frederick Knight, Mack Rice, Delaney Bramlett, Jimmy Hughes, and many others – and the package features 146 tracks in all, with copious notes on the material! CD

An incredible addition to the rich legacy of Stax Records – a collection of rare tracks, almost all of which appear here for the first time ever – a set that represents recordings done by all the great songwriters who were working for Stax at the time, most of whom were also recording artists on the label! Given that fact, these aren't scratchy recordings performed by hacks who can't sing – as almost all the material features the sort of top-shelf vocalists who made Stax such a deep soul powerhouse in the 60s and 70s – represented here in a style that shows just how much freedom of creative expression the label allowed its best – very different than the way some of the bigger companies would just cram a song down a quickly-booked session in the studio! Plus, these demo tracks are done in a variety of modes – some with very stripped-down instrumentation, some with fuller groups – and together, they offer a key look at the creative process at Stax – one that's very different than the iconic sound of productions in their Memphis studio, and which really shows an even deeper range of expression through the variety of approaches. This LP version features tracks that later became hits in the finished versions – titles that include "A Woman's Love" by Carla Thomas, "634-5789" by Eddie Floyd, "If Loving You Is Wrong" by Homer Banks, "I Got To Be Myself" by Carl Smith, "I'll Be Your Shelter" by Homer Banks, "I've Got No Time To Lose" by Deanie Parker, "I'll Be The Other Woman" by Shelbra Bennett, "Respect Yourself" by Mack Rice, "Woman To Woman" by Henderson Thigpen, and "We Can Love" by Eddie Floyd. LP, Vinyl record album

Jefferson Airplane flying high in the late 60s – and Crown Of Creation was both a creative and commercial triumph for the band – balancing the tripped out adventurousness of their earlier work, with a more focused approach! Front loaded with moodier, acoustic-based songs that build into heavier rock as the record plays on – with some really great use of sound effects for added drama here and there! Titles include "Lather", "In Time", "Star Track", "Chushingura", "If You Feel", "Ice Cream Phoenix", "The House At Pooniel Corners" and more. CD

JJ Johnson's always a cooker, but during the late 50s he cut some incredible records for the Columbia label – tight bop sessions that still stand as some of his best work! This album's one of them – a real smoker of a set that features Johnson's trombone as the only lead horn in a cool quartet that also includes Tommy Flanagan on piano, Paul Chambers on bass, and Max Roach on drums – a crackling rhythm trio who make the record move a lot more than most other jazz sessions on Columbia at the time! Johnson's sense of tone and phrasing is wonderful – unadorned by any other horns, but a very powerful solo vehicle, especially in the company of the other players – and titles include "Harvey's House", "That Tired Old Routine Called Love", "Nickels & Dimes", "Be My Love", "Paul's Pal", and "Commutation". LP, Vinyl record album

Some of the most soulful housey sounds your likely to find in the later 00s – a warm & grooving Destination from Anthony Nicholson! Destination has numbers flavored by smoothed out keys, beats more lightly percolated gems as well as spacier, more thumpingly percussive numbers – with uncommonly soulful vocals and a more live feel than so much of the club ready grooves out there. Anthony's on keys, vocals, drums, percussion & programming with assistance from Chris Robb on keys and bass, Matt Cashdollar on sax, Will Kurk on keys, guitar & vocals, Jrod Indigo on vocals, and others. Titles include "Love Is Everything", "Fallin", "So Good (Feel The Joy)", "Your Love", "Never", "Destination", "Hot Sauce & Drama", "Robot Disco", "Black Galaxy Suite", "Go" and more. CD

The sound of the trio is loud and clear on this set – captured before a very appreciative crowd at the London House in Chicago, and featuring Peterson at his inventive best! The tracks on the set stretch out longer than most of the group's studio sessions from the time, and the album's recorded in a great way that also includes Oscar's mumbling at the keys – that humming and grunting style that isn't always caught on record, but which adds a great deal of grit and humanity to the record – especially considering his fluid grace on the piano! As usual, Ray Brown is on bass and Ed Thigpen's on drums – and titles include "Tricotism", "On Green Dolphin Street", "Thag's Dance", and "Kadota's Blues". LP, Vinyl record album