Stormin soul – and a killer set of upbeat 60s numbers! The package was put together for the UK mod scene, but it's a great batch of American tracks from the classic years of soul – not really Northern, not really southern – but kind of a hard-swinging approach to the music that makes for a really lively package overall! The set's got 20 tracks in all, all thumpin, bumpin, and gruntin-type numbers – with titles that include "Do The Whoo Pee" by Sugar Pie Desanto, "Lay This Burden Down" by Mary Love, "Make Me Yours" by Bettye Swann, "I Keep Forgetting" by Chuck Jackson, "I've Got Papers On You Baby" by BB King, "Hole in The Wall" by George Stone, "Have Love Will Travel" by Richard Berry & The Pharoahs, "Keep My Woman Home" by Danny White, "Mama Julie" by Terry & Jerry, and "I Got A Woman" by Billy Hawks. CD

Think you know the sound of Atlantic Records in the 60s? Think again – because this stunning series opens the vault to a huge amount of rare treasures from the legendary label! The package is amazing – and offers up rare tracks that were mostly only issued by Atlantic on singles – including some on the other imprints associated with the company – some by names we never even knew recorded for the label, others by bigger names, but represented here by obscure material that goes way past their hits – and which is ultra cool because of that. There's also a fair bit more deep soul than you might expect from the usual Atlantic mix – tremendous vocals, and often in less hit-heavy modes – which makes the whole thing a great revelation – and just one more reason to bow down and give even more expect to one of the key companies who helped soul music find a home in the 60s. Plus – as if that's not enough – the whole thing comes in a very cool 7" gatefold package – which emphasizes the from-singles nature of the collection. Volume 3 is overflowing with amazing sounds from the heart of the 60s – rare 45rpm tracks by Atlantic stars, Stax artists, and a few lesser-knowns too. Titles include "Hello Stranger" by The Capitols, "Help Me (parts 1 & 2)" by Ray Sharpe, "Long Distance Love" by Ted Taylor, "Lonely Soldier" by Mike Williams, "How Can You Babysit A Man" by Ned Towns, "Keep Looking" by Solomon Bourke, "I'm Sorry" by Fred Lowrey, "Please Uncle Sam" by The Charmels, "Share What You Got" by William Bell, "Reputation" by The Four Shells, "Me & My Baby" by Mary Wells, "Got No One" by The Delcardos, "Weak Spot" by Ruby Johnson, "Good Love Bad Love" by Eddie Floyd, "Bingo" by Ned Towns, "I Had A Dream" by Johnny Taylor, "I Can't Take It" by Ray Sharpe, "You Can't Love Them All" by The Drifters, "Believe It Or Not" by Rex Garvin & The Mighty Cravers, "Patch My Heart" by The Mad Lads, "She's The One I Love" by The Delcardos, "Find Me Somebody" by Bobby Womack, "Hello Stranger" by The Capitols, "So Much Love" by Ben E King, "Help The Bear" by Ted Taylor, and "I Feel A Sin Coming On" by Solomon Burke. (Soul, Funky Compilations) CD

A really great take on the style of the funky compilation – one that mixes in lots of gritty garagey rock tracks along with a bit of vintage soul! The blend here is surprisingly seamless – as the rocking tracks often have a funky kind of groove, and the soul cuts sometimes have trippier elements in the mix – which makes the whole thing come together with a strongly color-blind sense of sound – even though things are pretty darn soulful throughout! Most numbers are from rare singles, but there's also some unreleased cuts – and very detailed liner notes that shed plenty of light on these very groovy sounds. Titles on volume 1 include "Mojo" by Van Broussard, "Girl Give Me Love" by The Little Bits, "Jamm (part 1)" by Frozen Sun, "You're No Good" by Phlegethon, "If You Can't Love Me Pity Me" by The Chapters, "B Side" by The Looking Glass, "Good Thing Going" by The Four, and "Ashtray Candle" by Pump. LP, Vinyl record album

A huge amount of 12" singles, stuffed into one mighty nice 4CD set – maybe not the greatest of all time, but still pretty darn wonderful overall! The set does an especially great job of looking at a late 70s moment when some of the hipper soul artists were able to get the extra space of a 12" single to really open up their sound – grooves that move past the shorter space of a 7", and really do plenty in the process – often in ways that are much more interesting than some of the overplayed disco of the time. There's 43 long grooves on the set – all 12" singles – and titles include "Space Age" by Jimmy Castor, "You Are A Star" by Aquarian Dream, "Flashlight" by Parliament, "Good Times" by Chic, "Ten Percent" by Double Exposure, "I Should've Loved Ya" by Narada Michael Walden, "Fantastic Voyage" by Lakeside, "You're My Occupation (ext)" by Chaz Jankel, "Expansions" by Lonnie Liston Smith, "And The Beat Goes On" by the Whispers, "You Got The Floor" by Arthur Adams, "Do It Any Way You Wanna (Tom Moulton mix)" by People's Choice, "Do What You Wanna Do" by T-Connection, "Twilight (inst)" by Maze, "You + Me + Love" by Undisputed Truth, "More Bounce To The Ounce (parts 1 & 2)" by Zapp, "Now That We Found Love (disco mix)" by Third World, "Hi Tension" by Hi Tension, "Dancing In Outer Space" by Atmosfear, "Money's Too Tight To Mention" by Valentine Brothers, "Searching" by Change, and "Running Away" by Roy Ayers. CD

A really wonderful entry in this excellent series – one that initially helped identify a really special strand in postwar music – then continue to provide rare and unique examples with new volumes like this! The music isn't really mambo or Latin at all – but the rhythms here are more sophisticated and modern than more blues-oriented work of the time – and pulled from a fantastic moment when things were really mixing up in the new indie recording scene of the postwar years! Bits of jazz, early soul, and other touches make these tunes really shine – all lively numbers that include both group material and solo singers too – in a killer set list that includes "Wanda" by The Heartbreakers, "You're So Good Looking" by Otis Smith, "Heartaches & Troubles" by Mr Bo, "Song Of Sadar" by Lawrence Peel & The Filatones, "Buddha's Boogie" by Dukes Of Rhythm, "Calvalry" by Marie Knight & Sister Rosetta Tharpe, "Evil One" by The Dundees, "Love For Sale" by Helene Polite, "Oscalypso" by Oscar Pettiford, "Mambo Blues" by Effie Smith, "Big Mary's" by Titus Turner, "Caldonia" by Monchito, "Ali Baba's Boogie" by Preston Love, "Canveral Rock" by The Blasts, "I Want You To Be My Baby Mambo" by The Royals, "Girl Of My Dream" by Frank Butler, and "My Beat Is 125th Street" by Eunice Davis. LP, Vinyl record album

An incredible collection – and one that fills in a crucially under-documented side of the New York dancefloor generation – the wealth of special mixes and edits that were made for that city's important DJs for their own use in clubs! The package sorts through a mountain of never-issued acetates, and goes way past conventional disco or rare club collections – to showcase the special mixing talents these DJs brought to their re-presentation of the material – which was usually done on tape, then pressed onto acetate discs for their own private use! Those rare treasures are brought forth here – in a beautiful package that's also overflowing with fantastic notes that finally give this lost history its due – all handled by Al Kent – who's a hell of a mixer himself, as well as an underground club historian. Vinyl part 1 features five different records, all with lots of space for the tunes to stretch out – and titles include "I Just Wanna Say I Love You (John Luongo rmx)" by Leon Collins, "What About Love (Tony Gioe rmx)" by Marboo, "Ten Percent (Walter Gibbons Sunshine Sound acetate edit)" by Double Exposure, "Inside America (Rick Gianatos disco queen acetate edit)" by Juggy Murray Jones, "Dancing Free (John Luongo rmx)" by Hot Ice, "Black Water Gold (Sunshine Sound acetate edit)" by The Sunshine Band, "Magic Bird Of Fire (Francois Kevorkian Sunshine Sound acetate edit)" by Salsoul Orchestra, "It's Good For The Soul (Jay Negron Sunshine Sound acetate edit)" by Salsoul Orchestra, "My Love Is Free (Walter Gibbons disco madness rmx)" by Double Exposure, "Reaching Out For Happiness (Jonathan Fearing rmx)" by Fay Hauser, "Let Me Be Your Fantasy (Tom Savarese rmx)" by Love Symphony Orchestra, "The Beat Goes On & On (Jim Burgess rmx)" by Ripple, "I Wanna Be Near You (John Morales Sunshine Sound acetate edit)" by Ruby Andrews, "I've Been Looking For Somebody (Walter Gibbons rmx)" by TC James & The Fist O Funk Orchestra, "The Disco Scene (Rick Gianatos rmx)" by Lake Shore Drive, "Bumpsie's Whipping Cream (Tom Savarese rmx)" by TC James & The Fist O Funk Orchestra, and "Janice (Bobby DJ Guttadoro rmx)" by Skip Mahoney. LP, Vinyl record album

Sammy Davis Jr is looking pretty darn hip on the cover – and all the artists inside are sounding pretty darn hip as well – coming together during the glory days of soul jazz, at a time when blues, vocals, and R&B were also criss-crossing into other styles too! There's an upbeat, soul-drenched, ultra-cool vibe to the whole thing – not too-familiar retro jazz numbers, but instead a wealth of rare cuts that often come from the sort of 7" singles that change hands for big money in the funky 45 underground, next to obscure album cuts too – mixed with the kind of unreleased material that the Ace/Kent label has always done such a good job of digging up! The package explodes with groovy musical delights – and titles include "What Is love" by Bobby Jenkins, "Out House" by Eddie Bridges & His Lowriders, "Empire City" by Gene Walker & The Combo, "Pushin The Button Of Soul" by Hank Jacobs, "Fat Man" by Montego Joe, "The Bold" by Russell Evans & The Nite Hawks, "Hey Mrs Jones" by Jimmy Witherspoon, "Poppa Nickel" by The Tempo Rhythms, "Sherry's Party" by Ray Johnson, "Hot Tamale Man" by Harold Betters, "Shank & Grits" by Ray Shanklin, "Pluckin" by Jimmy Mayes & The Soul Breed, "East 24th Ave" by Billy Graham & The Escalators, and "Do The Thing" by Gate Wesley. CD

If there's anyone we'd trust with a trip through the Blue Note catalog, it's Jazzanova – as the group have been a key force in the jazz-inspired sound of the global dancefloor for many years! This set's the 4th in Blue Note's "Trip" series – and it may well be the best, as Jazzanova really know their way around a groove – and manage to get way past the obvious in their selection of tracks from the Blue Note catalog of the 60s and 70s. The hits are pushed aside for some lesser-known gems that stretch out with a wonderfully fluid approach to a jazzy groove – mixing together fusion, Latin, and soul jazz influences with ease! 2LP set features the titles "Afreaka" by Lee Morgan, "Think Twice" by Donald Byrd, "You Make Me Feel So Good" by Bobbi Humphrey, "Yu Yo" by Bobby Hutcherson, "I've Had A Little Talk" by Horace Silver, "Congalegra" by Horace Parlan, "Afrodisia" by Kenny Dorham, and "Beatrice" by Sam Rivers. LP, Vinyl record album

Slammin's a definite good choice for the title of this one – as this 5th entry in the Easy Tempo series seems even funkier than the other volumes – a set that's got plenty of full-on grooves, hand-picked from the genius Italian soundtrack years of the 60s and 70s! If you're looking for a place to start digging the full range of talents of the maestros of this time, you'd be hard pressed to find a better collection – as the Easy Tempo name always means the best bits from this scene, served up in a package that packs a lot more punch than any single individual soundtrack! Titles include "Loco Love Motor" and "The Frog" by Augusto Martelli, "Montreal Non Stop" and "Anice Nuraghi" by Luiz Bacalov, "L'Arcangelo" by Piero Umiliani, "Running Fast" by Stefano Torossi, "Blazing Magnum" by Armando Trovajoli, "Trop's" by Alberto Baldan Bembo, "Vuca" by Tony Mimms, and "The Chicken" by Dick Oliver. CD

A really wonderful entry in this excellent series – one that initially helped identify a really special strand in postwar music – then continue to provide rare and unique examples with new volumes like this! The music isn't really mambo or Latin at all – but the rhythms here are more sophisticated and modern than more blues-oriented work of the time – and pulled from a fantastic moment when things were really mixing up in the new indie recording scene of the postwar years! Bits of jazz, early soul, and other touches make these tunes really shine – all lively numbers that include both group material and solo singers too – in a killer set list that includes "Wanda" by The Heartbreakers, "You're So Good Looking" by Otis Smith, "Heartaches & Troubles" by Mr Bo, "Song Of Sadar" by Lawrence Peel & The Filatones, "Buddha's Boogie" by Dukes Of Rhythm, "Calvalry" by Marie Knight & Sister Rosetta Tharpe, "Evil One" by The Dundees, "Love For Sale" by Helene Polite, "Oscalypso" by Oscar Pettiford, "Mambo Blues" by Effie Smith, "Big Mary's" by Titus Turner, "Caldonia" by Monchito, "Ali Baba's Boogie" by Preston Love, "Canveral Rock" by The Blasts, "I Want You To Be My Baby Mambo" by The Royals, "Girl Of My Dream" by Frank Butler, and "My Beat Is 125th Street" by Eunice Davis. CD

There's plenty to love here, and the groove is way more than just the disco promised in the title – and instead this sublime array of funky soul, modern soul, and lots other soul styles too! The tunes are definitely upbeat, but they're not slavishly tied to disco – and instead really represent the great array of groove-centric work that was bubbling in the American underground in the late 70s and early 80s – as soul singers worked with a variety of different rhythms to come up with the kind of cuts that still sound plenty fresh all these many years later! Legendary collector/DJ Al Kent put the package together – and also contributed a few re-edits to a few tracks, to help extend their best elements. Titles include "I Found Love" by Lee Edwards, "Call Me" by Symbol 8, "If It Feels This Good" by Barbara Jean English, "Things Got To Get Better" by Genobia Jeter, "I'd Rather Leave On My Feet" by Emanuel Lansky, "Prophesy" by Betty Everett, "A Slong For You" by Fresh Fruit, and "Looking Over My Shoulder" by Marva Hicks – and the set also features Al Kent re-edits of "Equal Love Opportunity" by Clear, "Love Is Gone" by Mary Mundy, "I Wanna Give You Everything" by Hazel Rambaransingh, "Running Away From Love" by Skip Mahoaney & The Casuals, and "Keep On Loving You" by Perfect Touch. LP, Vinyl record album

An incredible package – and one that goes way farther, and way deeper than any of the previous volumes of Stax/Volt Records singles! This 4th volume is kind of a correction/addition to territory covered by the previous three – as CDs 1 to 3 of the collection go back to bring together all the wonderful b-sides for the singles that didn't appear on the other packages – really incredible work that's often more amazing than the bigger-name cuts on the a-side – as the tracks are often rougher, rawer, and a fair bit more edgey too! Then, CDs 4 & 5 do a great job of looking at some of the rock and other non-soul material cut by the Stax labels – with a focus on material that came out on the Hip, Enterprise, and Ardent labels – followed by CD 6, which features all the excellent gospel material issued by Stax on the labels Gospel Truth and Chalice. The whole thing's got a hell of a lot of music in one sleek package – 145 tracks on 6CDs, with a big booklet of notes. Artists include Shirley Walton, Linda Lynell, Jeanne & The Darlings, Soul Children, Shack, The Nightingales, John Gary Williams, Hot Sauce, Ilana, Lee Sain, Green Brothers, Prince Conley, The Astors, Gorgeous George, Karen Casey, The Caboose, Clark Sullivan, Chuck Boris, Connie Eaton, Paris Pilot, The Goodees, The Cheques, Poor Little Rich Kids, Lonnie Duvall, Dixie Nightingales, Louise McCord, Rance Allen, Stars Of Virginia, and many more! (Soul, Funky Compilations) CD