The cover's a bit nondescript, but the music is anything but – instrumental funk with a great jazzy vibe – served up here by an obscure Portland group from the end of the 70s! These guys are clearly schooled on some of the best jazz funk of the time, but also have a more personal vibe of their own – a nice change from the slickness of major label fusion, as they serve up a great mix of two keyboards, guitar, bass, drums and percussion – all recorded in a home studio, but with instrumentation that really goes beyond any sort of homegrown affair! The mixture of tight instrumentation and a down-to-earth vibe reminds us of some of our favorite Fantasy Records work of the time – on titles that include "Latin Summer", "Tut's Strut", "Song For Valerie", "Chrome Dome", and "Time Of My Life". LP, Vinyl record album

Beautiful solo electronics from Moebius – an album recorded in the early 80s, but with a really timeless feel that takes it far from so many other electric sets of this vintage! There's still very much a spacious sound going on here – similar to the Cluster projects with Roedelius – warmly melodic, and very understated – every bit that picture perfect approach to analogue electronics that Kraftwerk first brought into the scene, and which guys like Moebius perfected even more with records like this! Titles include "Nervos", "B 36", "Immerhin", "Sinister", "Furbo", "Etwas", and "Transport". LP, Vinyl record album

Accompanied by the European Division Band of the Air Transport Command. CD

... LP, Vinyl record album

... LP, Vinyl record album

A monumental piece of funk – and a record that came into the world at a time when it seemed like just about everyone had forgotten how to play real funky music! This set's the US version of the first album by London scenesters The Brand New Heavies – and although it came out in the states 2 years after the UK set, it's essentially the same record – just featuring new vocals by singer N'Dea Davenport in place of the original vocalist Jay Ella Ruth. Davenport's vocals transported the group from indie acid jazz obscurity into the US soul charts in a way that nobody ever expected – and the resulting album is a stone classic that's filled with excellent cuts like "Ride In The Sky", "Never Stop", "Dream Come True", and "Stay This Way". Great stuff all around – and one of the few classic soul albums of its generation! CD

A weird idea for a collection, but a great one too – a set that brings together a batch of train-themed tunes from the 60s, and uses the transportation narrative as a way to unlock ideas of personal freedom and social change! The "train" here isn't just a gimmick – and instead focuses on the way that the mode of transportation helped open up new ideas and new vistas in the postwar years – a way of getting out, and getting past – served up here in a range of soul, blues, and other styles too! The set's got 25 tracks in all, put together with the usual top-shelf Ace Records approach – and titles include "Freedom Riders" by Harold Jackson, "Steam" by Caroline Day, "Number 9 Train" by Tarheel Slim, "Hurry Hurry Choo Choo" by Sharon Tandy, "Memphis Train" by Rufus Thomas, "Won't Be Long" by Dusty Springfield, "The Downbound Train" by Chuck Berry, "Train To Skaville" by The Ethiopians, "Go Go Train" by Jackie Pain, "Freedom Train" by James Carr, "This Train" by Sister Rosetta Tharpe, "Up The Line" by Little Walter, "Death Train Blues" by Daddy Long Legs, "Stop That Train" by Keith & Tex, "Country Line Special" by Cyril Davies, and "Big Train" by Bobby Wayne. CD

Transportation, animals, clocks, office machines, and more. LP, Vinyl record album

An obscure set of German electronic instrumental work from the start of the 80s – and a set that's maybe got some of the darker, colder sounds of the UK scene of the time, especially the sorts of music that was brewing up from the city of Sheffield! Zeus B Held hits harder and goes deeper than some of his German new wave counterparts – none of the playful modes of the Atatak label crew, and instead a more dystopian use of analog electronics that almost makes you feel like you're trapped in a no man's land between East and West Berlin! Titles include "Raise Your Gun", "Daily News", "Transportable Music", "Cowboy On The Beach", "Test", "Didn't I", and "Enfant Terrible". CD

An obscure set of German electronic instrumental work from the start of the 80s – and a set that's maybe got some of the darker, colder sounds of the UK scene of the time, especially the sorts of music that was brewing up from the city of Sheffield! Zeus B Held hits harder and goes deeper than some of his German new wave counterparts – none of the playful modes of the Atatak label crew, and instead a more dystopian use of analog electronics that almost makes you feel like you're trapped in a no man's land between East and West Berlin! Titles include "Raise Your Gun", "Daily News", "Transportable Music", "Cowboy On The Beach", "Test", "Didn't I", and "Enfant Terrible". LP, Vinyl record album