An album-length monster from Fela Kuti – and a cut that has him still burning strong in the final years of his too-short life! The cut "Overtake Don Overtake Overtake" is a funky monster – spanning both sides of the record with a choppy drawn-out groove that features a cool spacey electric piano solo, sad wailing sax, and some catchy vocals on the hook – all with a core acoustic vibe that shows no traces of Fela and the group leaning into 80s technology, as so many of their contemporaries were doing. The track's right up there with Fela's best work ever – and the later, more obscure origin of the album makes it tougher to find than some of the earlier records too! LP, Vinyl record album

A brilliant album from Fela – and one that shows him really coming into his own, with that tremendous new sound that would go onto influence decades of musicians! The title track – "Roforofo Fight" – is a side-long jam that instantly sets a new standard for African funk – skittish drums, a sweet keyboard line that snakily sets the groove, and a wonderful long alto solo that's got even more raspy soul than Fela's vocals! Those vocals are sometimes more broken up, verbally – and have an instrumental quality at the start – then lay into the lyrics later, with some great supporting backup. The flipside features the side-long "Go Slow" – a tune that layers and layers sounds as it moves on – from an initial thin keyboard line, to a rumbling bassy blend that has lots of room for the horns and vocals! LP, Vinyl record album

Rare slices of work from Mdou Moctar – material collected from tapes recorded between 2017 and 2020, often featuring the group in a range of different settings in their native Niger! The work throughout is filled with the sublime guitar of Mahamadou Souleymane – but the shift in setting makes for a strong sense of variety, especially as some of the titles feature more guitar lines than vocals, which is always OK with us! Titles on this second volume include "Azawad", "Ibitilan"," Nakane Dish", "Iblis Amghar", "Chimoumounim", and "Asdikte Akal". LP, Vinyl record album

A brilliant pairing of two key figures from the ESP avant scene of the 60s – united here in a great entry to the Tzadik label's series of "Radical Jewish Culture"! The album features Robinson's spare reeds – mostly clarinet, plus a bit of flute and ocarina – matched with Greene's great piano lines, played with much more sensitivity than we remember in the past, a really great sound alongside Perry's deep-toned reed lines. There's a definite appeal here to fans of jazz klezmer work, but the record also really lives up to the older promise of the artists' earlier avant recordings too – especially some of the rare few sides that Robinson made after his initial appearance in the 60s. The sound is spare, and often sad-tinged – and titles include "A Lamentation", "Syl's Freylekhs", "Song For My Friend Burton", "Ella Turtella", "Der Kats Zogt A Miowke", and "Desert Suite". (Jazz, Global Grooves) CD

Zambian funk legends Witch really knock it out of the park with this smoking little set – using really amazing basslines on most tracks, in a way that sets up a rumbling groove for all the other instruments to follow – a heady blend of psychedelic currents with more soulful styles, in a way that might make the album the group's funkiest in their legendary early run! The vocals are great too – nicely trippy, thanks to the offbeat production style – and titles include "Devil's Flight", "Blood Donor", "Thou Shall Not Cry", "Nasauka", "Kanglaitoito", "Evening Of My Life", "Bleeding Thunder", and "Fool's Ride". LP, Vinyl record album

A really cool idea for a collection – a set that brings together vintage 70s tracks and more contemporary cuts – all with a globe-spanning ear for a groove, and an approach that's as heavy in soul as you'd expect from the title! This isn't your usual collection of sample tracks or funk classics – as the selection moves way past the obvious, and does a brilliant job of combining tracks we never would have thought to put together – while also introducing us to a number we'd never heard before too! Titles include "Every Time I See Him" by Metropolis, "Eva" by Robson Jorge & Lincoln Olivetti, "O Galho Da Roseira" by Airto, "Apocalypse Now Ho" by Nar'Chiveol, "Wache" by Francisco, "After All" by Soylent Green, "Space Queen" by King Errison, "Robot Man" by Yusef Lateef, "Stay This Way (lunar dub)" by Brand New Heavies, "Le Train" by Chene Noir, "Southern Freez" by On, "The PL (ext edit)" by Typesun, and "Le Cyclope" by Daniel Humair, Francois Jeanneau, and Henri Texier. (Funky Compilations, Global Grooves) LP, Vinyl record album