Heavy bass, tight percussion, and a wonderfully trippy groove – the stunning second album from Cymande, and one of our funk favorites from the 70s! These guys have a sound that's completely unique – a vibe that mixes African and Jamaican influences up in the heady London scene of the early 70s – with results that were years ahead of their time, and which still go onto blow many minds all these years later! The bass alone is worth the price of admission – as dubby as anything from Kingston, but with a tighter focus – one that drives some sinister lines from the vocals, and which gets strong support from lots of lively conga passages. There's a slight stoner undercurrent, but the sound of the set is never sleepy at all – and titles include the classic "Anthracite", "Fug", and "Them & Us" – plus "Genevive", "Willie's Headache", "For Baby Ooh", "Bird", and "Crawshay". (Soul, Global Grooves) LP, Vinyl record album

A funky gem from reedman Manu Dibango – a set recorded hot on the heels of his huge Soul Makossa hit, and done with a similar blend of African roots and 70s funk! The main focus here is on the instrumentation – not just Manu's saxophone lines, but also some great keyboards too – and some especially nice guitar that both riffs along with the rhythms, then takes off on solo moments that often have some cool processing that makes the sound nice and flangey! The production is a bit tighter than before, but that only seems to sharpen up all the elements even more – making for a massive groove that rolls all the way through cuts that include "Big Blow", "Baobab Sun 7", "Afrovision", "Aloko Party", and "Dakar Streets". LP, Vinyl record album

Mid 70s Afro Funk from the great Manu Dibango – adding in a bit more of a full production sound than on his earlier albums, but still sounding pretty darn nice! There's definitely more of an uptempo club groove going on – and the band has a lot more players than ever before – but the funk component is still high, and Manu's work on funky sax solos is as great as ever. Very much in Manu's "Big Blow" mode – and with the tracks "Mimbo", "Angola", "Bokilo's Boogie", and "Mouvement Ewondo", plus the slow spacey "Besoka On Salsa". In a way, this is the kind of record that would be rated high if it was the first effort by an unknown player – but often tends to get passed up because it's not as hard as the artist's more famous work. LP, Vinyl record album

A smoking lost Afrobeat LP! According to the notes EMI turned this album down when it was recorded in 1971, and we can't imagine what they were thinking – as the set features two lengthy tracks that follow in the best Africa 70s mode! The title track "Why Black Men Dey Suffer" rolls along at a nice midtempo groove – with lots of great Fender Rhodes before the horns come in and blow things over the top! The flipside features "Ikoyi Mentality Versus Mushin Mentality" – which picks up the pace a bit, but still with plenty of room for syncopated percussion, crisp guitar, and electric piano lines – all topped with bold horn lines that urge the tune onto greatness! LP, Vinyl record album

Dust To Digital moves across the Atlantic Ocean – and brings the same great skill to African music they've already brought to blues, folk, and gospel! This package is amazing – 100 rare 78rpm recordings, appearing here on CD for the first time ever – not just wonderful music, but music that's wonderfully put together – with detailed notes that really blow us away as much as the sounds on the discs! The beautiful thing is that these guys not only know how to pick the best tracks, but that they also know what the music is about – and can prove it with a lavish 112 page book that features very rich information on all the obscure recordings – an archival feat that's a real bargain at this price. Heck, some guys would spend an entire career just to excavate and annotate this much great music – yet it's all in a day's work for this legendary label. And we haven't even told you about the actual music yet – but trust us, it's wonderful – the kind of mindblowing 78-era tracks that will really open up your understanding of global sounds! CD

A jazz record, but one with a vibe that's all its down – and a sound that definitely echoes some of the tropical elements hinted at in the title and on the cover! Laurent Bardainne is a saxophonist who blows with a really rich sound – nicely soulful, and with a raspy, laidback quality that's really seductive – set up here amidst a mix of acoustic and electric elements, including great percussion, occasional keyboards, and just the right electric basslines to trip things along in a sweet midtempo groove! The mix of jazz soloing and nods to global elements takes us back to similar French albums of the 80s – and most of the set is instrumental, although there are occasional vocals from guests, next to great use of outside sound recordings too. Titles include "Singing", "Eden", "We Try", "Serpent Kaa", "Gobules Rouges", "Dance For Eternity", "Welcome", and "Meilleur". (Jazz, Global Grooves) CD

Fantastic funk from South African saxophone legend Winston Mankuku Ngozi – working here in the group The Cliffs, who serve up a sweet 70s vibe for his solos! The instrumentation is great – a rougher-edged take on American jazz funk of the time – almost as if the aesthetic of 60s Prestige Records soul jazz moved forward, but without the same sort of polish – perfect for bringing out the edge in Ngozi's alto, as he blows in a group with Stompie Manana and George Tyefumani on trumpets, Roger Khoza on organ, and Allen Kwela on guitar. Titles include "Revelation", "Ever Green", "Over The Cliff", "Alex Express", and "Gu Gu Lethu". (Jazz, Global Grooves) LP, Vinyl record album

A really different setting for the saxophone of Afro Funk legend Femi Kuti – as instead of working with a large group, he just blows here alongside the keyboard creations of Robert Hood – in a mode that makes for a really wonderful album all the way through! The tracks are each just titled "Variations" – and Femi's performance definitely seems improvised throughout, and set to these keyboard heavy grooves created by Hood – who also delivers lots of great keyboard solos too! There's a lot more jazz here than you'd expect on a Femi Kuti album – yet the set also nods to some Afro-styled grooves at points too – a real delight over the course of the eight tracks on the set. (New Grooves, Global Grooves) CD

A really different setting for the saxophone of Afro Funk legend Femi Kuti – as instead of working with a large group, he just blows here alongside the keyboard creations of Robert Hood – in a mode that makes for a really wonderful album all the way through! The tracks are each just titled "Variations" – and Femi's performance definitely seems improvised throughout, and set to these keyboard heavy grooves created by Hood – who also delivers lots of great keyboard solos too! There's a lot more jazz here than you'd expect on a Femi Kuti album – yet the set also nods to some Afro-styled grooves at points too – a real delight over the course of the eight tracks on the set. (New Grooves, Global Grooves) LP, Vinyl record album

One of the coolest records we've ever heard from Japanese drummer Akira Ishikawa – even wilder than some of his famous funk sessions of the time! The set definitely lives up to its African Rock promise – as it features lots of sparely percussive tracks that build beautifully – clearly drawing from African inspiration, in the same way that other albums by Akira drew from American funk – then also adding in some cool production and hip effects that help further some of the "rock" side of the agenda! At points, the record almost feels like a solo percussion jam – but at others, the guitars really get heavy, with a jamming intensity that's simply mindblowing. There's lots of psychedelic overtones when the guitars come in – and they make for a wicked contrast with some of the more organic, percussion-oriented moments. All tunes are nice and long, and titles include the extended break cut "Pigmy", plus "Vita", "Na Tu Penda Sana", and "Wanyamana Mapambazuko". (Jazz, Global Grooves) LP, Vinyl record album

A really game-changing set from late 60s Japan – a group who work with a title in English, but a sound that was definitely helping to give the younger Japanese scene a vibe that's all its own! The Jacks definitely have some of the psychedelic touches you might guess from their image on the front, but they also carry forward older styles of Japanese vocal inflections – especially modes that you'd be more likely to hear from a singer with a melancholy vibe! That mix of vocals and fuzzy guitars is wonderful – especially as the lyrics often have this nearly heartbreaking feel, even if you can't understand the lyrics – underscored by electric guitar that seems informed by ways of playing the shamisen, and even percussion work on the drums that feels more earthy than most rock groups. The whole thing is a mindblowing masterpiece – and although lyrics are in Japanese, English titles for the tunes include "Love", "500 Miles From The Sky", "Love Generation", "Stop The Clock", "Vacant World", "Marianne", and "Gloomy Flower". (Rock, Global Grooves) LP, Vinyl record album

Saxophonist Mike Makhalemele is in great company here – blowing these long, soulful lines in a combo that has plenty of mellow grooves – keyboards from Jabu Nkosi and bass from Sipho Gumede – both players who really know how to lay back, open up a groove, and let Mike do all the rest with his horn! The approach is a more stripped-down take on American soul fusion styles of the time – never too smooth or commercial, and definitely with some elements of older South African jazz in the mix, although in subtle ways. The main focus is on the tenor, which is great – on titles that include "My Thing", "15th Avenue", "Peace Train", "End Of The Road", and "Going West". (Jazz, Global Grooves) LP, Vinyl record album

A great blend of funky jazz and wooden flute – the Japanese shakuhachi reed instrument, blown by Kifu Mitsuhashi here – then mixed with some larger backings that almost have a CTI Records sort of groove! The approach is similar to some of the best 70s projects from Hozan Yamamoto – and like those, updates older Japanese styles with just the right dose of jazz – never getting in the way of the soulful lines from the lead instrument, but also really warming things up nicely with Fender Rhodes, bass, guitar, and drums – in wonderful arrangements put together by Kiyoshi Yamaya. Titles include "Yagi Bushi", "Yosakoi Bushi", "Hokkai Bon Uta", "Kuroda Bushi", "Otemoyan", and "Mamuro Gawa Ondo". (Japanese, Global Grooves) LP, Vinyl record album

An obscure Nigerian groover – but a set with a massive groove to rival the best classics of the 70s scene in Lagos! The cover bills the record as "super-feelings led by Segun Okeji" – and we've gotta say, that's a great way to put it – because there's a soulful undercurrent to the record that definitely has Segun feeling the groove – blowing tenor with a heady sound, over tightly-paced tunes that get going right from the start – mixing in some other great horns, organ, and really massive percussion! Each track takes up a full side of the record – in true Fela format – and titles include "I Like Woman" and "Afro Super-Feelings In Disco". LP, Vinyl record album

A record that's a stunning departure for reedman Tony Scott – a set that's completely different than his more straight ahead jazz on the American scene in the 50s! The set is an early step on a spiritual journey that Scott would continue overseas in years to come – an initial moment of opening up his familiar jazz clarinet to reed styles from other scenes – in this case a very Japanese-based one, as the trio here features work from Shinichi Yuize on koto and Hozan Yamamoto on shakuhachi – a very different group than Scott would have blown with in the previous decade! The album is less jazz-based than some of Tony's later projects – and also less jazz than some of Yamamoto's records to come – but there's definitely a sense of improvisation, and the whole thing is really a delight in getting to hear a musician open up whole new aspects of his instrument. Titles include "To Drift Like Clouds", "The Murmuring Sound Of The Mountain Stream", "Is All Not One", "Satori", "Sanzen", and "After The Snow The Fragrance". LP, Vinyl record album

A record that's a stunning departure for reedman Tony Scott – a set that's completely different than his more straight ahead jazz on the American scene in the 50s! The set is an early step on a spiritual journey that Scott would continue overseas in years to come – an initial moment of opening up his familiar jazz clarinet to reed styles from other scenes – in this case a very Japanese-based one, as the trio here features work from Shinichi Yuize on koto and Hozan Yamamoto on shakuhachi – a very different group than Scott would have blown with in the previous decade! The album is less jazz-based than some of Tony's later projects – and also less jazz than some of Yamamoto's records to come – but there's definitely a sense of improvisation, and the whole thing is really a delight in getting to hear a musician open up whole new aspects of his instrument. Titles include "To Drift Like Clouds", "The Murmuring Sound Of The Mountain Stream", "Is All Not One", "Satori", "Sanzen", and "After The Snow The Fragrance". LP, Vinyl record album

A mad mix of sounds from the glory days of Indian cinema – served up in a package that offers up a much broader blend of styles than other Bollywood collections – as it features numbers from the late 50s all the way through the early 80s! Some of the tracks here have a rockish vibe that's great – romping rhythms, organ and guitars, and a sharp vibe that's contrasted by some of the fuller numbers from later years – including a few nuggets from the heyday of Bollywood funk! The whole thing is upbeat and grooving all the way through – with work by Mohammad Rafi, Asha Bhosle, Kishor Kumar, Kamal Hasaan, Geeta Dutt, Lata Mangeshkar, and others – from films that include Ek Phool Char Kante, Sholay, Aazhi, Bhoot Bungla, Intinti Raamayanam, Blackmail, Junglee, and Howrah Bridge. LP, Vinyl record album

A mindblowing look at a really stunning musical moment in Indonesia – a postwar period when older sounds from the nation were updated with more western-styled instrumentation – yet often at a level that still retained all of the charm of their roots! If you dig Indonesian gamelan or vocal performances, you'll find plenty to love here – as rhythmic and melodic elements from those worlds are mixed with jazz instrumentation, electric guitar, and plenty of percussion that often seems to draw a bit from Latin inspirations as much as it does from larger local ensembles and their musical legacy. The style is maybe a bit like musical shifts that were taking place in other Southeast Asian nations at the time – but the results are far less slavish to western pop, and still really retain all the cultural care of earlier years – sometimes in ways that are a lot more lean and personal, with extremely beautiful sounds throughout. Maybe one of the best collections the Soundway label has ever given us – with the usual detailed notes, and tracks by artists who include Orkes Kelana Ria, Mus DS, Zaenal Combo, Yanti Bersuadara, Band Nada Kentjana, Orkes Tropicana, Nada Kantjana, and Chris Byantoro. LP, Vinyl record album