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Seminal sounds from the Kansas City scene of the late 70s – a wealth of power pop work from the tiny Titan label – all brought together in one of the most brilliant packages we've ever seen from the Numero Group! Like most Numero releases, there's a great story behind this set – a tale of bounced checks, interstate culture, and a cadre of great groups who would have been huge – had they recorded this music out on the coast! Titan's way more than just a tiny label that managed to put out some killer singles back in the day – it's a pop powerhouse that shows just how much under-discovered genius the American scene can hold – music that really helps break down simple understandings of late 70s rock, especially when presented this well. The 2CD set features 42 tracks and a 40 page booklet – a great counterpart to Numero's Yellow Pills set – filled with notes on Titan, a complete discography, and a wealth of wonderful photos that really make this unique scene come alive. Titles include "Shark" and "Real Life Saver" by Gary Charlson, "No Way Baby" and "I Wanna Be" by Arlis, "It's Your Heart Tonight" and "Radio Heart" by Secrets, "Please Change Your Mind" and "Baby It's You" by Boys, "Rock N Roll Song" and "Radio City" by Bobby Sky, "The Last Song" by JP McClain & The Intruders, "Cry" and "Didn't Like It Anyway" by Gems, "Coit Tower" and "Drink A Toast" by Millionaire At Midnight, and "I Think About You" by Scott McCarl. CD

A mighty hefty set of photos of Roxy Music on stage – served up in a massive oversize book that's filled with fan photos from the early days onward! Photographer Jocelyn Fiske has a lifetime love of Roxy Music and Bryan Ferry – and managed to sneak some great shots of the group in the early 70s, then get very serious once their comeback years hit in the later part of the decade – served up here in hundreds of oversized, full color shots of the new romantic years, later solo Bryan Ferry, and even the 21st Century reunion as well! The images are striking – these are definitely not the polished shots of Ferry and the group on the album covers – and from the drenched look of Bryan on stage alone, the whole thing stands as a vivid testimony to the "work" that went into the music of Roxy! Hardcover edition is oversize, 317 pages, and full color throughout. Book

A huge book of oversized posters from artist Juan Ortiz – all based on specific episodes of the 60s sci fi classic Lost In Space – and presented here in a dizzying array of styles! As you can see by the image on the front, Ortiz has a strong eye for retro modes – and throughout the book, he creates all these cool color images that follow the show, season by season, episode by episode – creating a picture for each, in ways that are sometimes like movie posters, other times like book jackets, subway ads, and other older styles. The images are very cool, even if you don't know the show (but we do – and love it) – and there's a white margin on the side of each image, so you could cut out the very large pages, and have yourself a whole room full of posters – or just enjoy the book as it is. Book is hardcover, 120 pages, and a very large 10.5" x 14.5". Book

The second comeback effort from Booker T Jones for Anti-! All around, it's a more sharply-honed and classics-steeped set than its solid, but more southern rock-inflected predecessor – one the finds the Stax organ titan backed by co-producers ?uestlove & Rob Schnapf, Dennis Coffey and others on the sessions, and allstar guest vocals on a few numbers! It's really well done and a worthy effort from a true giant! The heart of the album is the loosely grooving organ soul instrumentals – with a quite a bottom end wallop, thanks to ?uesto, and the incomparable Booker T in great form – but the handful of guest vocalists include Sharon Jones, Jim James of My Morning Jacket, Lou Reed, Matt Berninger and Booker T himself. Titles include "Walking Papers", "Crazy", "Progress", "Down In Memphis" with Booker T on vocals, "Representing Memphis" with Sharon Jones & Matt Berninger, "The Bronx" with Lou Reed (weird, but it kinda works!), "The Vamp", "Harlem House" and "Rent Party". CD

Classic work from Willie Colon – the "payoff" of his youthful hoodlum routine, and a hard-hitting batch of salsa tunes pulled from earlier records – all in a package that defines his groove of the 70s! Hector LaVoe's on vocals with Willie's group – and he's also standing with Willie on the cover, a nice image that has the two of them dressed as big-time gangsters, standing next to a Rolls Royce! (Wonder what it cost them to rent that for the cover shoot?) But more important than Willie's perpetuation of himself as the bad boy of Latin music, is the overall sound of the record – fierce salsa, with a really strong approach that's as bold and proud as the image which supports it. Solid all the way through, and tracks include "El Malo", "Jazzy", "El Titan", and "Che Che Cole", a nice groover. LP, Vinyl record album

Classic work from Willie Colon – the "payoff" of his youthful hoodlum routine, and a hard-hitting batch of salsa tunes pulled from earlier records – all in a package that defines his groove of the 70s! Hector LaVoe's on vocals with Willie's group – and he's also standing with Willie on the cover, a nice image that has the two of them dressed as big-time gangsters, standing next to a Rolls Royce! (Wonder what it cost them to rent that for the cover shoot?) But more important than Willie's perpetuation of himself as the bad boy of Latin music, is the overall sound of the record – fierce salsa, with a really strong approach that's as bold and proud as the image which supports it. Solid all the way through, and tracks include "El Malo", "Jazzy", "El Titan", and "Che Che Cole", a nice groover. LP, Vinyl record album

A huge step forward for the mighty, expansive Exploding Star Orchestra – having recruited free jazz trumpet titan Bill Dixon as a band member and featured composer, if not the de facto leader – on this incredible second album for Thrill Jockey! The previous Exploding Star Orchestra set balanced a fiery, unpredictable intensity with a 70s style pulp soundtrack groove – while this one has more delicate and sublime moments at the outer edges, while ratcheting up the intensity all the more when the spirit hits! The group is made up of mainstays from the genre defiant Chicago scene – with group harbinger Rob Mazurek on coronet, Nicole Mitchell on flute, Jeb Bishop on trombone, Jeff Parker guitar, Jim Baker on piano, Jason Adasiewicz on vibes and tubular bells, Matthew Lux on bass, Jon Herndon on drums, Damon Lock with a spoken text read, and others. Heavy, spacious and truly beautiful! Titles include 3 long pieces that add up to over an hour all together, with the Dixon compositions "Entrances/One" and "Entrances/Two", and the killer centerpiece "Constellations For Innerdelight (For Bill Dixon)" composed by Rob Mazurek. CD

Jazz critic Dave Gelly's biography of the tenor sax titan – who's legacy is so much more than just "The Girl From Ipanama". Gelly describes Getz's early days, playing with some of the giants when he was still just a teenager, until his days as one of the most esteemed bandleaders in jazz, and the highs and lows of his career. An insightful journey of one of the biggest names and most important figures in bringing jazz to the masses! Paperback, 176 pages. Book

A real standout in the career of drummer Roy Haynes – and a sweet set of spiritual jazz from the 70s, unlike most other albums that Haynes ever cut! The lineup here is totally great – with George Adams on tenor, Marvin Peterson on trumpet, and Roland Prince on guitar – and the set has a slightly electric groove that blends beautifully with the soaring acoustic solo work by the main players – in a style that's strongly reminiscent of the best work on Strata East, Black Jazz, or Muse at the time! This album's definitely one of the few times that Mainstream really got things "right" in the studio – and Haynes is superb at the helm of the group, making things come off with a great sense of exploratory creativity! Tracks are long – and titles include "Full Moon", "Senyah", "Brujeira Con Salsa", and "Little Titan". CD

The 4th collaboration between electronics maestro Kieran Hebden & free jazz drum titan Steve Reid – a duo that might have seemed an odd fit at first, but actually makes a lot of sense given their adventurous sensibilities – and their joint body of work keeps growing in surprising ways! NYC is, you guessed it, and ode to the great city – with a pretty diverse approach that builds throughout the six longish tracks. Some find Reid hitting pretty hard and heavy while others are more dexterous and complicated in the rhythms, while Hebden works in both a groove based mode and in artier, Eno-esque experimentation. Truly inspired work from a duo we hope work together for years to come. Titles include "Lyman Place", "1st & 1st" & "25th Street" (both of which work in some avant garde funk), "Arrival", "Between B & C" and "Departure". CD

2 lost sessions from early 60s tenor titan Wild Bill Moore – an R&B inflected player who only cut a few sides on his own, all of them a unique mix of jazz with some of the more screaming R&B saxophone tendencies! This set brings together two albums that feature Bill rocking with a Latinized rhythm section – Ben Riley on drums, Joe Benjamin on bass, and Ray Barretto on conga, kicking things up from the bottom. One album features Johnny Hammond Smith on organ, the other Junior Mance on piano – and both sets groove nicely with a wealth of original tracks! Titles include "Heavy Soul", "A Good Un", "Tearin Out", "Wild Bill's Beat", "Sister Caroline", "Bottom Groove", "Bubbles", "My Little Girl", and "Down With It". CD

A lost session from early 60s tenor titan Wild Bill Moore – an R&B inflected player who only cut a few sides on his own, all of them a unique mix of jazz with some of the more screaming R&B saxophone tendencies! This set features Bill rocking with a Latinized rhythm section – Ben Riley on drums, Joe Benjamin on bass, Junior Mance on piano and Ray Barretto on conga, kicking things up from the bottom. 7 tracks in all: "Heavy Soul", "A Good Un", "Tearin Out", "Wild Bill's Beat", "Things Are Getting Better", "Bubbles", and "Just You, Just Me". LP, Vinyl record album

A landmark album in the British avant garde – the first set ever issued on Incus Records, and a monumental set of improvisations between Evan Parker on saxes, Hank Bennink on percussion, and Derek Bailey on guitar! The album followed from some great energy on the British scene of the previous few years – but went onto set the tone for countless other improvisations in years to come – especially in the way that Bailey's guitar is integrated into the sharper sounds of the saxes and drums. That blend may well be the record's strongest contribution to improvisation – but even without that historic status, it's still a hell of a set from some genius players at their height. Titles include "Dogmeat", "For Peter B & Peter K", "Fixed Elsewhere", and "Titan Moon". LP, Vinyl record album

Al Stewart, right before his big hit years to come – sounding wonderful here on both his tremendous vocals, and the range of tunes that seem to flow effortlessly from his pen! Production is by Alan Parsons, whose ability to compress elements to perfection is a perfect foil for Al's voice – a style that's tight, but never too smooth – not overly commercial, yet very nicely focused on the kind of hooks that can make Stewart's best songs so wonderful. There's still key traces of Al's folksy roots – but the shift in presentation here marks a real achievement, one that none of his other contemporaries were ever able to hit this well. Titles include "Not The One", "Apple Cider Re-Constitution", "Carole", "Sirens Of Titan", "Modern Times", and "Dark & Rolling Sea". LP, Vinyl record album

Music from Henry Mancini, Peggy Lee, Titan, Ursula 1000, Pizzicato Five, Fatboy Slim, Dimitri From Paris, Koop Featuring Yukimi Nagano, Fantastic Plastic Machine, Arling & Cameron, Ludovic Navarre, Kinky, Chris Mancini & Lennart, Nicola Conte, Les Hommes, and Mocean Worker. CD

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With Nick Fraser on drums. CD

With Nick Fraser on drums. CD

Stunning work from Michael Angelo – a little-known singer/songwriter from the Kansas City scene of the late 70s – one with a style that's totally great, but way too off the era's chronological expectations to get much notice at the time! Michael's music has a real late 60s vibe – some of the trippier folk modes of someone like Donovan, but mixed with the more complete songwriting of an artist like Nilsson or some of the hipper LA writers of the late 60s – all recorded in this laidback, understated way – especially for the 70s – with acoustic guitar most strongly in the mix, and a few other light rhythm touches and keyboards. The production's sharper than folk, but not much more so – and the music here is a great reminder that while we can look at the rock and roll timeline, and think that the punk explosion of the mid 70s was changing everything at once – out in the hinterlands there were still folks like Angelo who were dedicated to refining an older craft. The CD features a huge amount of material – the full original self-titled album, more tracks from those sessions, and a full second album recorded around the same time. 32 tracks on 2CDs, with lots of notes too – and titles that include "Field Of Lonely Eyes", "Future", "Journey To Find Who We Are", "Russian Lament", "Nubian Queen", "This Is The Night", "Love Is Too High", "Spirits Of Mercury", and "SOS Titanic". CD

Boy, does the heavy slab psychedelic sludge grooves of Blue Cheer ever sound wonderful, even more than 40 years since it originally walked the earth! Outsideinside hit not too long after the classic Vincebus Eruptem, and damned if we can determine why it's not as celebrated as the debut. That fuzzed out stomp of a sound is back in full effect, as are the titanic drums and an overall sound that uses an electric blues influence as a springboard into heavy cosmic space. Includes their ferocious cover of "(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction" plus "Feathers From Your Tree", "Just A Little Bit", "Gypsy Ball", "Come And Get It", "The Hunter", "Babylon" and "Magnolia Caboose Babyfinger". LP, Vinyl record album

The funky titans are at it again! "Deuces Up, Double Down" is a killer new track from the group – an original tune written by drummer Miles Tackett, with a heavy scattershot beat at the bottom, and lots of loud, fast, honking horns over the top. The guitar player's licking away at the cut too – and the whole thing's a delightful romping funky groove! CD version also includes a great cover of "Humpty Dump", the scratchy guitar groover originally cut by The Vibrettes – plus a "Funky Soul/16 Corners" medley, recorded live in LA at one of the band's smoking shows! CD

An early moment of genius from composer Gavin Bryars – and a set that was issued on Brian Eno's Obscure Records label in the mid 70s, which ensured that Bryars' music found a larger audience outside the realm of avant classical! That turns out to be a good thing here, as the music here is almost of its own genre – warmer and more personal than some of the arch modes of the CRI generation – as Bryars mixes a small string group with his own piano, a bit of spoken word, and tapes of additional strings – which add in this eerie sort of ghost vibe to the piece – a slight current of sentiment, but not in a romantic way. The second piece is equally important to Bryars' career – the wonderful "Jesus Blood Never Failed Me Yet" – which uses a found recording of the older song by an elderly singer, then echoed and augmented by work from Michael Nyman on organ and Derek Bailey on guitar, plus a bit of strings. LP, Vinyl record album

Common newcomers who buy Electric Circus for the single with Mary J Blige are going to be left with some head scratching – but if you like the spiritual/psychedelic Com that was hinted at on Like Water For Chocolate, this may be the follow up you were waiting for! This is still hip hop – with production by the Neptunes, Jay Dee, ?uestlove and others, but it's definitely a boundary stretcher. The mood runs from Roots style soul bumpers to Hendrix and Eugene McDaniels style feedback heavy freakouts. There's a guest on nearly every track, mostly from the Okayplayer camp and NuSoul titans, including Bilal, Omar, Pharrell Williams, Cee-Lo, Erykah Badu, Jill Scott, Laetitia Sadier of Stereolab and others. We won't lie to you, we miss the Chicago hip hop Common that kicked insight over raw and soulful productions, but you can't fault the guy for being an artist, and he really has crafted something original here. A great cover – a kind of rainbow drenched cut and paste photo collage of the contributors and inspirations with Com out front, sort of reminding us of Tribe's Midnight Maurauders, and even Sgt. Pepper. Tracks include "Ferris Wheel", "Soul Power", "The Hustle", the first single "Come Close", "New Wave", "Star *69", "Jimi Was A Rock Star" and more. CD

Pre-shock rock psychedelia from Alice Cooper – more of a Detroit-reared answer to early Pink Floyd than it is a clue to the early metal horror show to come – and a record that stands stunningly well on its own! Since most people never even heard Pretties For You until long after Alice became a notorious rock star – which has made it unfairly judged in most circles – because if you enter it fresh, and take it for what it is, the whole thing's an incredible record that stands with some of the more revolutionary British albums of the late 60s. We hear rare psychedelia by the bucketful that's not nearly as good as this album, but which celebrated by rare psych diggers purely for its obscurity – and the overall presentation and performance is right up there with some of the coolest material on Harvest or Vertigo. Titles include "10 Minutes Before The Worm", "Sing Low Sweet Cheerio", "Reflected", "Apple Bush", "Earwigs To Eternity", "Titanic Overture", and "No Longer Umpire". CD

A wickedly sharp album from Earl Sweatshirt – a set that comes on strong from the very first notes, then keeps on with a tightness that really makes a nice difference from some of Earl's other albums – an approach that's maybe more compact in terms of the way the songs are laid out, especially compared to sprawling efforts from bigger names – at a level that shows that there's plenty to learn from the left side of the spectrum in hip hop! Production is by Black Noise and The Alchemist, Armand Hammer make a guest appearance on "Tabula Rasa", and other cuts include "Old Friend", "2010", "Sick", "Fire In The Hole", "Titanic", "Vision", "God Laughs", and "Lye". LP, Vinyl record album

A wickedly sharp album from Earl Sweatshirt – a set that comes on strong from the very first notes, then keeps on with a tightness that really makes a nice difference from some of Earl's other albums – an approach that's maybe more compact in terms of the way the songs are laid out, especially compared to sprawling efforts from bigger names – at a level that shows that there's plenty to learn from the left side of the spectrum in hip hop! Production is by Black Noise and The Alchemist, Armand Hammer make a guest appearance on "Tabula Rasa", and other cuts include "Old Friend", "2010", "Sick", "Fire In The Hole", "Titanic", "Vision", "God Laughs", and "Lye". LP, Vinyl record album

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A Stones Throw sci-fi masterpiece – one that was destined for greatness from conception, but we're still pretty well blown away by the final product! MC Doom and beatmaster Madlib couldn't be better suited for a collaboration. As much as we've dug the best of Doom's material of the last couple years, he's always needed a good editor – and Madlib brings nothing but the best sci-fi sound collages, scratches, and titanically driving funky beats – the grooved out 70s side of 'Lib's personality is wisely given a powder, while in the company of a vocal presence that's as insane as Doom. When it's not so pounding, the sound drops into the kinda gloomy, murky crackle of earliest Wu Tang. This is easily the best album of its kind since Dr. Octagon tore the flood gates open. Essential!!! "The Illest Villains", "Accordian", "Bistro", "Raid" feat Medaphoar, "America's Most Blunted", "Rainbows", "Curls", "Money Folder", "Hardcore Hustle","Fancy Clown", "Supervillain", "All Caps", "Rhinestone Cowboy" and more. LP, Vinyl record album

Maybe the greatest moment ever from Paul McCartney & Wings – a set that features killer hits and lesser-known gems – all woven into a fantastic 70s sonic tapestry! The production and presentation of the record are wonderful – the whole thing was virtually a pop art piece when it came out – and Paul's got a way of both being intimate and charming, and helping push the whole group with soaring energy that really made them huge at the time. The album's got great production – and also features guest work from Allen Toussaint, Tom Scott, and Dave Mason. Side one is a non-stop flow of pop genius – woven from the tunes "Venus & Mars", "Rock Show", "Love In Song", "You Cgave Me The Answer", "Magneto & Titanium Man", and "Letting Go" – and side two follows up with so many great surprises – including "Treat Her Gently Lonely Old People", "Medicine Jar", "Spirits Of Ancient Egypt", and "Listen To What The Man Said". LP, Vinyl record album

Ralph Moore's a player we always like to keep our ear on, and this album's no exception – a cracklingly soulful batch of tunes played with a razor-sharp quintet, all tied together beautifully with Moore's tenor on top! The date's great proof that rock-solid sessions could still be cut well after the classic Blue Note or Prestige Records years – and Moore's sense of timing and guidance easily matches that of many other tenor titans from previous years. And even more than some tenorists, who really see themselves as the star of the show, Ralph's got a sense of warmth and comradeship that always seems to bring out the best in his players – who on this date include Roy Hargrove on trumpet, Benny Green on piano, Peter Washington on bass, and either Victor Lewis or Kenny Washington on drums. Titles include "Pheobe's Samba", "Girl Talk", "Line D", "Monk's Dream", "310 Blues", and "Hopscotch". CD

A massive tribute to the music of Neu – set with three classic albums, and an exclusive double-length batch of mixes and covers too! First up is the self-titled Neu – maybe not the earliest record in the Krautrock generation, but a set that certainly set a new sort of standard after it was released! The group mix together slow-building rhythms and plenty of fuzz – all recorded by the great Conny Plank, who has a way of blending the songs and all their many elements – instrumentation put together by ex-Kraftwerk members Klaus Dinger and Michael Rother – who mostly use guitars, bass, and drums – but end up turning them into something completely different with the help of Plank! Some of the tracks are quite long, and really take a great path to find their way forward – very different than Can or Cluster, at least from an outside perspective – but equally classic. Titles include "Hallogallo", "Sonderangerbot", "Im Gluck", "Negativland", "Weissensee", and "Lieber Honig". Neu 2 follows, and continues their trademark pulsating rhythms and raw Teutonic energy – essential listening not only for its titanic importance to the minimalist rock to come – but for it's impeccable hard driving hypnotic genius that has yet to be topped by any of the followers. The album starts off with the longer piece "Fur Immer", while the rest of the album is made up of mostly shorter segments, including "Spitzenqualitat", "Super 16", "Cassetto" and "Hallo Excentrico!". Next is Neu 75 – the third album in a legendary run from Krautrock pioneers Michael Rother and Klaus Dinger – one that uses two different drummers next to the duo's fantastic spare blend of keyboards, guitar, and electronics! The sound is still nice and lean, and every bit as revolutionary as on their first two records – and the whole thing is a masterpiece in blending waves of sonic energy and pulsating rhythms! Titles include "Isi", "See Land", "Leb Wohl", "Hero", "E-Musik", and "After Eight". The set also features the two-part Tribute album – hardly the usual tribute project – as a number of tracks are remixes of the originals, blended with other very unusual takes and original material! Titles include "Im Gluck" (National rmx)", "Weissensee (Fink version)", "Negativland (Idles negative space rework)", "After Eight (They Hate Change cover)", "Lieber Honig (Yann Tiersen rmx)", "Super (Mogwai rmx)", and "Hallogallo (Stephen Morris & Gabe Gurnsey rmx)". CD

Classic Krautrock from Michael Rother and Klaus Dinger – the second album from their immortal Neu! Neu! 2 continues their trademark pulsating rhythms and raw Teutonic energy – essential listening not only for its titanic importance to the minimalist rock to come – but for it's impeccable hard driving hypotic genius that has yet to be topped by any of the followers. The album starts off with the longer piece "Fur Immer", while the rest of the album is made up of mostly shorter segments, including "Spitzenqualitat", "Super 16", "Cassetto" and "Hallo Excentrico!". 11 tracks in all. CD

A driving, dramatic score for this early 80s epic of the gods! LP, Vinyl record album

Volume 5 in the La Vie Electronique series from electronic music pioneer Klaus Schulze – solo concert recordings from the mid 70s – 3 CDs of each with more than 70 minutes of music! Disc 1 includes "Berlin Schoeneberg" – featuring "Heftige Passage" and "Ruhige Passage" recorded at a Berlin radio concert in '76, plus the "Vie De Reve" performance, recorded at a French solo concert that year. Titles include "Le Retour Au Pays", "Et La Fete Continue", "Eteignez Les Limieres" and more. Disc 2 includes the "Nostalgic Echo" and Titanisch Tage" performances – recorded during solo concerts in '76. Includes "The Creation Of Eve", "Portrait Of Freud", "Autumn Sonata", "The Ran", "The Falling Angel" and more, plus the 15+ minute "For Barry Graves". Disc 3 features more solo concert performances from 1976 titled "The Poet" and The Oberhausen Tape" – with "Witness And Wait", "The Poet Of The Body" and "The Poet Of The Soul", plus "Quelle Idee De Peindre", "Et La Ple Lui Dit Merci", "Et Picasso Mange La Pomme" and more. CD