Heads or tails, it's a winner every time – as the record's one of the last clear moments of genius from keyboardist Bob James in the 70s! The sound here is stepping out a bit more from Bob's earlier sides on CTI, but there's still plenty of great keyboard work to make the album worth seeking out – as well as that unusual James approach to rhythm, which often makes tunes come across with lots of angular moments and darker corners, no matter how smooth the overall production might sound. Other players here include Richard Tee, Ralph MacDonald, Randy Brecker, Alphonso Johnson, and Steve Gadd – and titles include the seminal break track "Night Crawler", plus "Heads", "We're All Alone", "I'm In You", and "One Loving Night". LP, Vinyl record album

Features great work on tenor by Joe Henderson – alongside Eddie Gomez on bass and Jack DeJohnette on drums. LP, Vinyl record album

A deep glass of champagne from Wilbert Longmire – classy, sophisticated jazz from the end of the 70s – but still served up with plenty of soul, too! Bob James and Jay Chattaway produced – and James plays Fender Rhodes and other keyboards on the set – helping carve out some mighty sweet lines next to Longmire's lead guitar – which often sounds best at some of the record's mellowest moments! Wilbert sings just a bit, too – underscoring some of the soul influences on the set – and titles include "Pleasure Island", "Ragtown", "Funshine", "Diane's Dilemma", and "Love's Holiday". LP, Vinyl record album

A live set by Bob – packaged in a cover that has a picture of him in a Taxi, certainly designed to cash in on his fame doing the theme for that TV show! The record's actually quite nice, and is a good blend of the mellow Bob from later years and the darker Bob from earlier ones – performed with a set of players that include Steve Gadd, Idris Muhammad, Tom Scott, Richard Tee, Earl Klugh, Tom Browne, Joanne Brackeen, and Eddie Gomez. Includes nice versions of "Westchester Lady" and "The Golden Apple", plus "Kari", "Touchdown", "Farandole", and "Stompin At The Savoy". LP, Vinyl record album

A monster – and quite possibly one of the greatest Fender Rhodes albums of all time! Bob James is really at the height of his powers here – stepping out with a sound that's a lot smoother than some of his earlier work, yet in a groove that's never too slick or too overproduced – as happened with some of his later records on the Tappan Zee imprint. Here, James is still a master of space and sound – using the Fender Rhodes with bell-like tones to craft some key grooves that are still having an amazing impact today, more than 30 years after the album was initially recorded! There's a darkness here that we totally love – and tracks include the legendary "Take Me To The Mardi Gras", which has been sampled by Run DMC and loads of others – plus"The Golden Apple", "I Feel A Song", "You're As Right As Rain", "Farandole", and "Dream Journey". LP, Vinyl record album

A monster – and quite possibly one of the greatest Fender Rhodes albums of all time! Bob James is really at the height of his powers here – stepping out with a sound that's a lot smoother than some of his earlier work, yet in a groove that's never too slick or too overproduced – as happened with some of his later records on the Tappan Zee imprint. Here, James is still a master of space and sound – using the Fender Rhodes with bell-like tones to craft some key grooves that are still having an amazing impact today, more than 30 years after the album was initially recorded! There's a darkness here that we totally love – and tracks include the legendary "Take Me To The Mardi Gras", which has been sampled by Run DMC and loads of others – plus"The Golden Apple", "I Feel A Song", "You're As Right As Rain", "Farandole", and "Dream Journey". Also features the bonus track "Here Let My Life" – and presented here with new liner notes! CD

Maybe one of the most soul-based records ever from percussionist Ralph MacDonald – partly because Ralph does a bit of singing, in addition to playing the heavy congas on the cover! Yet the record's still got the core jazz vibe of his other sets from the late 70s – served up with an all-star lineup that includes Grover Washington Jr on soprano and tenor, David Sanborn on alto, Randy Brecker on trumpet, Michael Brecker on tenor, Richard Tee on keyboards, and Eric Gale on guitar – all musicians who help give the whole thing the warm funky fusion vibe of late 70s albums on labels like Kudo or Tappan Zee! Some of the best cuts slide into a snapping 80s groove that opens up nicely with the instrumentation – and Ralph only sings a bit, leaving plenty of room for solos from the players. Titles include the great Latin-inflected groover "East Dry River" – plus "You Are In Love", "I Need Someone", "Tell The Truth", and "Always Something Missing". LP, Vinyl record album

The 4th in Bob James legendary run of Fender Rhodes classics for CTI – and a record that still has him working with the dark edges that made the first few so great! As usual with these sets, there's a way of putting over the groove that's really unique – not really funky, but spacious enough to make even the simplest instrumental statements resonate with a punch that other fusion records never had – a James-like approach to rhythm and sound that's totally great, and which is made even better by key contributions from CTI labelmates who include Hubert Laws, Eric Gale, and Art Farmer. James plays Fender Rhodes, Arp, and clavinet – and titles include the funky sample cut "Tappan Zee", plus "Nights Are Forever Without You", "Where The Wind Blows Free", "Pure Imagination", "Treasure Island", and "El Verano". LP, Vinyl record album

A monster – and quite possibly one of the greatest Fender Rhodes albums of all time! Bob James is really at the height of his powers here – stepping out with a sound that's a lot smoother than some of his earlier work, yet in a groove that's never too slick or too overproduced – as happened with some of his later records on the Tappan Zee imprint. Here, James is still a master of space and sound – using the Fender Rhodes with bell-like tones to craft some key grooves that are still having an amazing impact today, more than 40 years after the album was initially recorded! There's a darkness here that we totally love – and tracks include the legendary "Take Me To The Mardi Gras", which has been sampled by Run DMC and loads of others – plus"The Golden Apple", "I Feel A Song", "You're As Right As Rain", "Farandole", and "Dream Journey". LP, Vinyl record album

A killer album from Johnny Richards – possibly the best he ever cut! The album sparkles with all the intensity he brought to Stan Kenton's Cuban Fire album – with bits of Latin, jazz, and some of the modernist scoring that Kenton, Richards, and Pete Rugolo were using at the time. However, the main thing about this album is that it swings like a mo-fo – moving past any tricks and gags to hit a strong jazz mode, with excelelnt solo work by players like Frank Socolow, Gene Quill, and trumpeter Burt Collins. Willie Rodriguez brings some nice Latin percussion to the set – and titles include "Cimarron", "Eyes", "Nipigon", and "The Ballad Of Tappan Zee". LP, Vinyl record album