Groovy rock from Iran – 60s & 70s material that's got the raw and rumbling grittiness of some of best garage rock of the time and others that flirt with psychedelia – most with the Middle Eastern flourishes blended beautiful with western rock and beat sounds! Wonderful stuff all around, regional garage psych beat grooves ripe for discovery! aIncludes "Uncle Chainmaker" by Zangoleah, "Avenue Of Love", "Way To Life" by Kambiz, "Take Leila Away" by Tigers, "Bartender" by Big Boys, "Rain And Rain" a great cover of the Rolling Stones hit "Play With Fire" by Takkhalha, "Shirley" by Ojubeha and more. LP, Vinyl record album

A fascinating look at musical modes in London during the big years of postwar immigration – a time when former residents of the crumbling British Empire were flooding to London for jobs and a better way of life – often bringing along a huge amount of cultural experience in the process! This set follows wonderfully in the spirit of previous volumes of the series – bringing together a range of different sonic styles that were originally recorded in London as 78rpm singles – where a new wave of Caribbean and West African immigrants were fusing older styles with a newly modern sensibility, and often a fair bit of jazz as well! The set list is wonderful – a great array of well-chosen material – and titles include "Wa Sise" by Willie Payne & The Starlite Tempos, "The Emperor Of Africa" by The Mighty Terror, "Royal Wedding" by The Lion, "Modern Telephone" by Dai Dai Simba, "Sons & Daughters Of Africa" by Lord Beginner, "Caroline" by Trinidad Steel Band, "Ema Foju Ana Woku" by West African Rhythm Brothers, "Kana Kana" by Billy Sholanke, "Boul Ve Se" by Calypso Rhythm Kings, and "My Handy Man" by Marie Bryant. LP, Vinyl record album

A stunning selection of highlife material from the Nigerian scene – a huge double-length collection that really offers up a vivid example of the music that was in place before the big wave of 70s Afro Funk and other new styles! The work here is different than some of the more commercial highlife recordings you might know – especially those from the big 80s years of world music – as the recording quality is often nice and raw, and the focus is mostly on acoustic percussion, electric guitar, and jazzier horn lines next to the vocals – with grooves usually moving at a mighty nice clip in a bold explosion of color! The bulk of the work on the 19 track set is from the 50s through the early 70s – and titles include "Yei Ngebewoh" by ET Menseh & The Tempos, "Akwanoma Hiahii" by Rambler Dance Band, "Muntie (Highlife Charanga)" by Ramblers International, "Eyaa Dudm" by Professional Uhuru Band, "Ogiobo" by Sir Victor Uwaifo & His Titibitis Of Africa, "Osondi Owendi" by Chief Stephen Osita Osadebe, and "Koko Ahataw Kur" by George Williams Aingo. CD

Massive work from this funky Nigerian cat – a set that offers up a key mix of James Brown funk and home-grown elements – all in a blend that's totally unique! The 1970 album mixes together equal parts African highlife and American soul – making for a style that's heavy one minute, lighter the next – and always changing things up in a really dynamic way! Percussion plays a big role on the funkier cuts, and guitar is on most numbers too – used with a lyrical, rhythmic style on the highlife numbers – and a much more hard-vamping approach on the funkier ones. Includes killer versions of "Mother Popcorn", "Let Yourself Go", "There Was A Time", "I Feel Alright", and "Cold Sweat" – plus the tracks "Okere Gwonko", "Everybody Needs Love", "Onuro", and "Magic Feet". CD

A really cool Ethiopian record, but not the sort you might expect – as most of the instrumentation here is heavy on electric elements, which includes a fair bit of 80s keyboards, synth, and drum machine lines! The group were actually exiles, living in the Washington, DC area during the early 80s – and the record is almost a fusion of Ethio roots with more familiar American styles – a bit like the work that Mulatu created during his early time in the US, but with a very different vibe! There's lead vocals on one track, but most of the set is instrumental – and filled with plenty of sweet keyboard lines and guitar riffs – jazzy, electro, and plenty charming – on titles that include "Kalatashew Waga", "Anchi Bale Game", "Tez Alegn Yetintu", "Bahta's Highlife" and "Samba Shegitu". LP, Vinyl record album

A really unusual slice of music from the southern African scene of the postwar years – sounds from a strange wave of cowboy-inspired music in Zimbabwe and South Africa – but with results that are completely unique! Many of these guys actually wore cowboy hats and played acoustic guitar – but the sounds are very different than American hillbilly records from the period – in part because the presentation and production are different, as is the language – but also because the guitar is used in ways that would evolve into more familiar African styles in later decades – echoes of Malian blues, highlife rhythms, and other modes. But at the same time, there actually is a bit of yodel on some of the songs, as indicated by the title – an undeniable Jimmie Rogers influence – in a set of tracks that includes work by Sammy Nagaku, Clarkson Sithole, Josaya Hadebe, Petrus Mntambo, Mathew Jeffries, George Sibanda, Sabelo Mathe, and Michael Majozi. LP, Vinyl record album