Funky African work from Fred Fisher – a Nigerian trombonist who crafted his own unique groove at the end of the 70s! Fred both sings and plays trombone – the latter with a Fred Wesley-like soulfulness – and his rhythms here are really wide-ranging, and embrace a host of new styles coming into play at the time – including a fair bit of influences from American soul! Some cuts have a rootsy groove, while others move into tighter dancefloor territory – never in a commercial style at all, but with traces of boogie and other 80s modes in the mix. Vocals are sometimes in English, which furthers the global appeal of the music – and the set brings together tracks from 4 different albums by Fisher. Titles include "Say The Truth", "Asa Sa", "Iye Ye Mu Elediamemisise", "No Way", "Let Love Free", "WTFS", "Beautiful Dancer", "Happy Blue Night", "The Beginning Ishan", "Ehimedede", "Babajoo", and "Ebi Lolo". 2CD set features 20 tracks in all. Note: The music on the whole set is great, but there are a few tracks that suffer sound-wise from some distortion in the masters used. Most of the other tracks are fine, though. CD

Funky African work from Fred Fisher – a Nigerian trombonist who crafted his own unique groove at the end of the 70s! Fred both sings and plays trombone – the latter with a Fred Wesley-like soulfulness – and his rhythms here are really wide-ranging, and embrace a host of new styles coming into play at the time – including a fair bit of influences from American soul! Some cuts have a rootsy groove, while others move into tighter dancefloor territory – never in a commercial style at all, but with traces of boogie and other 80s modes in the mix. Vocals are sometimes in English, which furthers the global appeal of the music – and the set brings together tracks from 4 different albums by Fisher. Titles include "Say The Truth", "Asa Sa", "Iye Ye Mu Elediamemisise", "No Way", "Let Love Free", "WTFS", "Beautiful Dancer", "Happy Blue Night", "The Beginning Ishan", "Ehimedede", "Babajoo", and "Ebi Lolo". 2LP set features 12 tracks in all. Note: The music on the whole set is great, but there are a few tracks that suffer sound-wise from some distortion in the masters used. Most of the other tracks are fine, though. LP, Vinyl record album

A musical masterpiece from this legendary Egyptian talent – a blend of strings, grooves, and soul – all served up at a level that's got a sense of power that moves way beyond its Mid East roots! This is the kind of record that most of us in the western world overlooked for decades – and which represents a sophistication of sounds and rhythms that's really ripe for new discovery all these many years later! The tracks are long, the rhythms infectious, and the orchestrations are completely sublime – on titles that include "Takassim Oud", "Hebina Hebina", "Alachan Malich Gheriak", and "Ya Habaybi Ya Ghaybin". LP, Vinyl record album

Insane grooves from arranger Mustafa Ozkent – an artist who was to Turkey what Lalo Schifrin was to the US in the 70s! Like Lalo, Mustafa had a great ear for mixing funkier rhythms and fuller orchestrations – often with odd instrumental twists and turns that bubble over with a fair bit of electricity over heavy percussion – kind of in an Incredible Bongo Band way, but with some moogier touches overall! The record's an instrumental masterpiece through and through – filled with enough heavy breaks to satisfy even the pickiest crate-digger, but also the more complicated arrangements to appeal to fans of funky 70s soundtracks! Titles include "Uskudar", "Burcak", "Dolana", "Carsamba", "Lorke", "Ayas", "Emmioglu", and "Karadir". (Rock, Global Grooves) LP, Vinyl record album

Insane grooves from arranger Mustafa Ozkent – an artist who was to Turkey what Lalo Schifrin was to the US in the 70s! Like Lalo, Mustafa had a great ear for mixing funkier rhythms and fuller orchestrations – often with odd instrumental twists and turns that bubble over with a fair bit of electricity over heavy percussion – kind of in an Incredible Bongo Band way, but with some moogier touches overall! The record's an instrumental masterpiece through and through – filled with enough heavy breaks to satisfy even the pickiest crate-digger, but also the more complicated arrangements to appeal to fans of funky 70s soundtracks! Titles include "Uskudar", "Burcak", "Dolana", "Carsamba", "Lorke", "Ayas", "Emmioglu", and "Karadir". (Rock, Global Grooves) LP, Vinyl record album

Afro-psychedelia from Chrissy Zebby Tembo – a set recorded in the Zambian scene of the early 70s, and served up in a blend of fuzzy guitar, funky drums, and some really unusual vocals! At times, Chrissy's voice almost sounds like it's being processed – filtered down nicely amidst the fuzzy guitar and bass, which themselves are kicked along by some especially great drums – not conventionally funky in the familiar Afro 70s mode, but really finding a heavy groove that's totally great! Some numbers get mighty dark, given the heavy use of fuzz – and titles include "Fisherman", "I've Been Losing", "Gone Forever", "Feeling Good", "My Ancestors", and "Trouble Maker". LP, Vinyl record album

The legendary Gilles Peterson takes on the African sound of the 70s – serving up the music at 2 different levels on this overstuffed set! Disc 1 features "The Soul" – classic tunes from the Afro Funk years, brought together by Gilles with a real ear for an interesting groove – and the kind of deeply soulful tracks we've come to expect in his collections over the years. Disc 2 features "The Spirit" – modern tracks from the global underground – all of which have echoes of the older African groove in their rhythms, but which update the sound with changes in rhythm, production, and instrumentation. As with Gilles Peterson In Brazil, the package is a wonderful overview of a genre – done in a way that goes deeper and sounds fresher than most other collections of its nature on the market! 2CD set features 19 tracks in all – including "Bukom Moashie" by Oscar Sulley, "Ajo" by Peter King, "Asmarina" by Fequadu Made-Mesqel, "Mulatu" by Mulatu, "Mahlalela" by Letta Mbulu, "MAW Expensive (Tribute To Fela)" by Masters At Work, "Heart's A Lonely Hunter" by Thievery Corporation with David Byrne, "Aso Kere (IG Culture mix)" by Lekan Babalola, "Lufala Ndonga" by Konono No 1, "Samba" by Miriam Makeba, "Afrika" by Osborne, "Angola (Carl Craig rmx)" by Cesaria Evora, and "New Bell" by Manu Dibango. (Funky Compilations, Global Grooves) CD