One of the most important indie labels of the postwar years – heard here in a flurry of great tracks that really show them at their finest! This excellent double-length set brings together magical moments from a time when the Flair imprint was really hitting on all burners – recording key vocal, instrumental, blues, and doo wop tracks that would go onto have a huge impact on generations to come – mixed here with a host of titles that haven't been on CD before! The package digs deeper than any look at Flair we've ever seen – and that's saying a lot, given that Ace Records was already giving the label their due a few decades before – and all the new material sits strongly next to classics that make the 50 track collection one of the best R&B collections from the 78rpm era that we've heard in a long long time. Titles include "She Wants To Rock" and "Getting High" by The Flairs, "Loosely" and "Cuban Get Away" by Ike Turner, "Chop House" by Blinky Allen, "Quit Hangin Around Me" by Saunders King, "Early In The Morning" and "Can't Stop Lovin" by Elmore James, "Hello Baby" and "Baby Beat It" by Big Duke, "Midnight Hours Journey" by Johnny Ace, "Night Howler" by Billy Gale, "You Better Hold Me" by James Reed, "I've Got The Feeling" by Baby Parham, "This Time It's Real" by Ricky & Jennell, "Send Him Back" by Shirley Gunter, "An Angel Cried" by Anna Marie, "Blue Mambo" by Bobby Rey, and "Love Me Love Me Love Me" by The Chimes. (Soul, Blues) CD

A really fantastic showcase for the Chicago-raised Otis Spann – a musician who'd already had plenty of recordings under his belt by the time of this session, but definitely gets a different sort of exposure here – thanks to the unique presentation of the Candid Records label! Candid mostly recorded modern jazz, and had a very open ear to getting the best out of their musicians – which they definitely do here with Spann's piano, set up in spare duo formation next to the guitar of the equally great and important Robert Lockwood. Both players sing on the record, alternating vocals from track to track in a set of all-original material – with titles that include "Worried Life Blues", "Great Northern Stomp", "Otis In The Dark", "The Hard Way", "Take A Little Walk With Me", and "Beat Up Team". LP, Vinyl record album

An excellent collection of rare work from the legendary BB King – a selection of 25 tracks from the vaults of RPM and Kent Records, 23 of which appear here for the first time ever! Some cuts are alternates, some are different versions of other recordings – and all are pretty darn wonderful – that sharp-edged BB King sound right at the start, before the famous Memphis powerhouse was recording for bigger labels in a more commercial setting! Lots of these cuts have a jazzy backing alongside BB's sweet guitar and raspy vocals – a mode that's similar to the mix of bigger band and bluesy elements you'd get on early work from Bobby Blue Bland – that great Memphis mix of modes that always makes us love this stretch in King's career so much. Titles include unusual versions of "Sweet Little Angel", "Catfish Blues", "Early In The Morning", "I Wonder Why", "Goin Down Slow", "Whole Lotta Meat", "Loving You In Vain", "Long Nights", "The Woman I Love", "Soul Beat", "Don't You Want A Man Like Me", "Be Careful With A Fool", and "Whole Lot Of Lovin". CD

One of the funkiest albums ever from Junior Parker – a great little set that shows he had a lot more to offer than just the average bluesman! The album's got a nice little soul sound in the backings – tight rhythms from Horace Ott, who nicely avoids a lot of the cliches that the blues business was hitting at the time – in order to keep Junior in hip territory that's filled with breaking drums and heavy basslines! There's a few key crossover tracks here, plus some surprisingly sweeter numbers – and the album's a gem through and through – well-appreciated by new generations over the years, thanks to its diversity of tracks! Titles include a great break version of "Taxman" – plus two more Beatles numbers, "Tomorrow Never Knows" and "Lady Madonna" – and the tracks "Outside Man", "Darling Depend On Me", "You Know I Love You", "River's Invitation", and "Just To Hold My Hand". CD

One of the funkiest albums ever from Junior Parker – a great little set that shows he had a lot more to offer than just the average bluesman! The album's got a nice little soul sound in the backings – tight rhythms from Horace Ott, who nicely avoids a lot of the cliches that the blues business was hitting at the time – in order to keep Junior in hip territory that's filled with breaking drums and heavy basslines! There's a few key crossover tracks here, plus some surprisingly sweeter numbers – and the album's a gem through and through – well-appreciated by new generations over the years, thanks to its diversity of tracks! Titles include a great break version of "Taxman" – plus two more Beatles numbers, "Tomorrow Never Knows" and "Lady Madonna" – and the tracks "Outside Man", "Darling Depend On Me", "You Know I Love You", "River's Invitation", and "Just To Hold My Hand". LP, Vinyl record album

An album named after a genre, but one that offers up the very special focus that BB King brought to blues music – especially in these early years of his career! King's a giant at this point – a hell of a singer, with a sound that's a key bridge between gospel and soul – and a equally solid guitarist, able to grace his tunes with searing solos, but in a way that's never as showy or overcrowded as all the later bluesmen who tried to copy his act! Instead, King's balance here is perfect – and often set to romping backings that link his approach not only to a postwar R&B tradition, but maybe even to the jazz world as well – with a vibe that's a lot less downtrodden than you might expect from a record called "the blues". If you've never dug BB at this early point in his career, you'll find plenty here to love – and titles include "When My Heart Beats Like A Hammer", "What Can I Do", "Troubles Troubles Troubles", "Early In The Morning", "You Don't' Have To Cry", and "Why Do Everything Happen To Me". CD features bonus tracks – "Sweet Little Angel", "Tickle Britches", "I'm In Love", "Bye Bye Baby", "Don't Keep Me Waiting", and "Don't Break Your Promise". CD

Tasty batch of funky blues tracks from Sonny – an artist who we normally don't like that much, but who sounds very sweet here, thanks to tight arrangements by The Bar-Kays, who back him up on the session! The record is a great mix of funky blues and Memphis soul – and includes the massive funky breakbeat track "Memphis B-K", plus "You Got A Good Thing", "They Want Money", and "Hung Up". LP, Vinyl record album

Four fantastic albums from Bobby Bland – all brought together in a single package for the first time! First up is Come Fly With Me – great work from Bobby Blue Bland – one of the few artists to rise up at the end of the 50s, and still find a way to chart their own path forward in soul with fresh material like this! Bobby's voice is still incredible here, and he works with production from Al Bell and Monk Higgins, the latter of whom arranged – in this cool style that's a bit like some of the territory that Tyrone Davis was taking on at Columbia Records during the second half of the 70s – fuller arrangements that bring some sophisticated soul touches to the music, but in ways that never lose the core of Bobby's genius! Titles include "Lady Lonely", "Night Games", "You Can Count On Me", "Love To See You Smile", "Come Fly With Me", and "To Be Friends". The next album is I Feel Good I Feel Fine – and Bobby Bland sounds pretty good too – thanks to arrangements from the great Monk Higgins, who does a perfect job of mixing Bland's trademark vocals with some sweet late 70s arrangements! The sound is upbeat, but never in a cliched disco mode – more in the territory that you'd hear Johnnie Taylor using over at Columbia Records – maybe a good comparison, given the Memphis roots that both artists shared – as both also evolved a lot to shift their sound with the changing modes of the time. And as with Johnnie, Bobby never loses the core that makes him great – as you'll hear on titles that include "Tit For Tat", "Soon As The Weather Breaks", "In His Eyes", "Someone To Belong To", "I Feel Good I Feel Fine", and "Little Mama". Sweet Vibrations is a real gem from the start of the 80s – arranged by Monk Higgins, who co-produced the set with Al Bell – a duo who'd already given Bobby some great records before, but who really knock it out of the park with this one. There's an extra-special quality going on here – maybe a slight reintroduction of blues roots, but still with a very contemporary spirit – set up to superb backings throughout. Titles include "Soul With A Flavor", "Hollywood Woman", "You'd Be A Millionaire", "Sweet Vibrator", "Special Kind Of Fool", and "A Real Woman Is What It Takes". Try Me I'm Real is record with a title that certainly fits the bill – as the amazing voice of Bobby Bland is as real here as it ever was, and blended with superbly soulful backings that take the singer's sound forward for a whole new generation! Some of Bobby's contemporaries were content to just stick in a straight blues mode – but Bland really grew and developed a lot as an artist, thanks in part to Monk Higgins and Al Bell – who are both at the production helm of the record, and balance the bluesy roots of Bobby with some richer soul backings that really knock the whole thing out of the park! We love Bobby Blue Bland during his early Duke Records years – but we love him equally as much for music like this, on titles that include "But I Do", "What A Difference A Day Makes", "Givin Up The Streets For Love", "A Song For You My Son", "Just You Just Me", and "Love Is Where It's At". CD

One of THE all time classics of funky blues – a record built around Lowell's huge single "Tramp" – a massive tune that spawned a whole generation of answer tunes! "Tramp" kicks off the set with a stone break that's worth the price of the album – then Lowell slides into some tunes that have a bit more of a conventional bluesy approach, mixed with a few other nice cuts that get a bit funky too! A rough-edged classic that really stands out – and which has made Fulsom one of the better-collected bluesmen of the beathead crowd. In addition to "Tramp", other tracks include "Two Way Wishin", "Back Door Key", "Year Of 29", "Pico", "Goin' Home", and "Black Nights". Includes 2 bonus tracks – "Tramp (take 1)" and "Year Of 29 (alt take)". CD

An incredible late 50s set for King by singer Lula Reed – and a pretty unique blend of R&B and bluer and moodier material – but a lot more upbeat than you'd expect from the title! Lula's voice is a genuine vessel for the bluesy material, but it's also light and lovely, and works even better on more upbeat sounding tunes – and she does both here beautifully. It's almost unbelievable that this is her lone solo album, and it's even harder to belive that it's been so hard to find over the years, given how strong it is! Includes "Watch Dog", "I'll Drown My Tears", "Going Back To Mexico". "Three Men", "Sample Man", "Last Night", "Rock Love", "Bump On A Log", "My Poor Heart", "Every Second" and "Jealous Love". (Soul, Blues) CD

One of THE all time classics of funky blues – a record built around Lowell's huge single "Tramp" – a massive tune that spawned a whole generation of answer tunes! "Tramp" kicks off the set with a stone break that's worth the price of the album – then Lowell slides into some tunes that have a bit more of a conventional bluesy approach, mixed with a few other nice cuts that get a bit funky too! A rough-edged classic that really stands out – and which has made Fulsom one of the better-collected bluesmen of the beathead crowd. In addition to "Tramp", other tracks include "Two Way Wishin", "Back Door Key", "Year Of 29", "Pico", "Goin' Home", and "Black Nights". LP, Vinyl record album