(Soundtracks, Global Grooves) CD

A record with a really unique vibe – definitely jazzy, but different than most other South African jazz of the time – as the set spins out two very long tracks that take their groove from township modes of the period, but then use some of the longer-form rhythmic jazz instrumentation that bubbled up on the SA scene from the 60s onward! Bra Sello plays some great alto on the set, but there's also guitar, flute, organ, and other solo instrumentation too – and although some vocals might come into the mix here and there, they never get in the way of the solos – on the extended tracks "African Queen" and "Butterfly". LP, Vinyl record album

Maybe not the complete roots of African funk, but a set that does a great job of bringing together a range of different cuts that show the new sounds and styles that were really hitting the scene as the 70s moved in – work from a wide variety of sources, but which all seems to share a sound and spirit with some of the newly independent African nations! There's a few African funk cuts in the mix, but the more interesting ones are almost those from the Anglo world that show a similar sense of groove, but with a slightly different vibe – coming across here on cuts that include "Waterbed (inst)" by LTD Exchange, "African Queen" by Allez Allez, "Them Changes" by Lionel Hampton, "Sangandongo" by Niagara, "Wassahoumba" by Africa Djole, "Do The Choo Choo" by Jack Ashford, "Africa Gone Funky" by Screaming Jay Hawkins, "Super Kumba" by Manu Dibango, "Tite Rope" by Harold Alexander, "Fat City Strut" by Mandrill, and "Corey Died On The Battlefield" by Wild Magnolias. 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

A lean take on the double-length self-titled set from this mighty funky combo – one that brings together a range of great funky 45s, plus a few other hefty nuggets! If you don't know the group, they're totally great – as Bacao Rhythm & Steel Band go back to the funkiest moments of the 70s steel pan scene from the Caribbean – but also have a harder edge that comes from the group's ties to the Mighty Mocambos, and other corners of the deep funk universe! These cuts are funk first, steel drums second – and have a wicked groove that's actually hipper than most of the original steel drum records from back in the day. Titles include "Queen Of Cheeba", "Port Of Spain Hustle", "Tender Trap", "Dog Was A Doughnut", "Beetham Highway Ride", "Pimp", "Bacao Suave", "Jungle Fever", and "Tropical Heat". LP, Vinyl record album

An amazing set that documents the early years of the Zamrock scene – the funk and psych informed Afro Rock pioneered by vocalist and African guitar legend Rikki Ililonga and his group Musi-O-Tunya in Zambia from 1973 to 1976 – and compiled beautifully in this great set from Now Again/Stones Throw! It's incredible stuff that blends fuzzed out guitar psychedelia, raw rhythms and brass-heavy funky soul. Ililonga's legacy is represented strongly on the record made by the group he founded, Musi-O-Tunya – who work with electric guitar, bass, sax, western and African drums and percussion – as well as the Zambia album, credited to Rikki Illilonga, in which he sings and plays all instruments except trumpet. The set also includes his Sunshine Love album, in which he sings and plays all instruments except bass and drums – and a it's got a rawer, bluesier psych soul approach overall. The CD version compiles most tracks from those albums plus Musi-O-Tunya's Wings Of Africa LP and bonus tracks from 7-inches from the time. 31 tracks on 2 CDs and comes a great, book-bound package with extensive liner notes by Eothen Alapatt and an interview of Ililonga by Eothen. Disc one includes Musi-0-Tunya tracks "Tsegulani", "Mpondolo", "Walk And Fight", "The Sun", "Dark Sunrise", "The Wings Of Africa", "Jekete Yamankowa" (Parts 1 & 2), "Mpulula", "Smoke" and more. Disc 2 features tracks from the Rikki Ililonga cuts "Sansa Kuwa", "Sheebeen Queen", "Stop Dreaming Mr D", "The Nature Of Man", "The Queen Blues", "Working On The Wrong Thing", "Sunshine Love", "Angel Black" and more. CD

A collection of tracks that amount to some of incredibly deep audio archaeology – a wonderful, consciousness wakening collection of globe spanning 78s from the first half of the 20th Century – all from the darkest corners of the EMI Vaults! Honest Jons does an impressive job of collecting recordings that are first and foremost exciting pieces of music – and they reportedly spent a couple of years going through thousands and thousands of 78s and to put this thing together. It was worth the effort! The album includes recordings from China in the 10s, Bali and London in the 20s, Constantinople, Kenya and Spain in the 30s, Uganda & Trinidad in the 50s, and much more from each decade in many parts of the world. Cuban rumbas, Middle Eastern & African string tunes, more pop oriented British tunes, vocal and pop with a global focus. Wonderful stuff! Titles include "The English Sound Table" by GU Hsu, "Lagu Kebiar" by Gamelan Gong, "Rumba Negra" by Sacasas, "Laughing" by Vemngopal Chari, "Different Kind Of Motor Car Noises" by Vengopal Chari, "The Queen's Canary" by Mighty Sparrow and more. CD

Spanish tracks with a very soulful vibe – and a set that includes a fair bit of very groovy tracks from the years when the scene was mixing older flamenco styles with disco rhythms of the 70s! The flamenco mode here doesn't involve guitar so much as it does a wonderfully expressive style of singing – a mode that's different than American disco divas of the time, and which taps into a special sort of emotive mode in Spanish pop, then hooks it up to a mighty sweet 70s-styled groove! Titles include "Tu Cigarro" by Perlita De Huelva, "Con Ese Beso" by Marife De Triana, "Embruja Por Tu Querer" by Isabel Pantoja, "Para Que Quieres Volver" by Rosa Morena, "Llorando Lola" by Lola Flores, "Lo Quiero" by La Marelu, and "Ola De La Mar" by La Polaca. LP, Vinyl record album

Weird and wonderful grooves from the Taiwanese scene – tracks that definitely echo some of the disco and funky soul modes of the American market in the 70s, but which have plenty of strange twists and turns of their own! The vibe here is a bit like other collections of Southeast Asian pop hybrids from the 60s and 70s – material that's clearly influenced by the Anglo culture of the time, but which has plenty of localized touches – not just in language and instrumentation, but also in terms of production styles, which gives a lot of these tracks a really cool sound. Titles are all in Taiwanese, but we can say that the set features work from Tian Lu Lu, Liu Guan Lin, Wu Xiu Zhu, Luo Yan Li, Hua Yi Bao, Cui Tai Jing, and others. LP, Vinyl record album

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A rare set of disco tunes we never would have heard otherwise – most from the late 70s , and proof that back in the day, the sound of New York had a huge impact around the globe! Vocals on most cuts are in the local language – tracks here are from Thailand, Taiwan, Indonesia, Singapore, and Malaysia – but the instrumentation often has plenty of the funky elements you'd know from American disco tracks – yet often taken into leaner territory, too – and given a slightly different spin in terms of production and arrangement – maybe a bit like some of the clubbier cuts you'd hear on a Bollywood soundtrack. The set's from the same folks who gave us the great Taiwan Disco compilation – and features work by Chailai & Sawanee, Lei Si Si, Ding Dai, Yasmin, Hit Girls, Grace Simon, Fatimah Razy, and Sum Sum & Pan Pan. LP, Vinyl record album

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Music from Izingqungqulu Zomhlaba, Mahlathini & The Mahotella Queens, Noise Khanyile & The Jo'Burg City Stars, Lucky Dube, Yvonne Chaka Chaka, Tebogo, Spokes Mashiyane, African Jazz Pioneers, the Elite Swingsters, Bheki Mseleku, West Nkosi, Soul Brothers, Boyoyo Boys, Miriam Makeba & The Skylarks, Solomon Linda's Original Evening Birds, and Ladysmith Black Mambazo. CD

Music from Prince Nico Mbarga & Rocafil Jazz International, Papa Noel, Oliver Tuku Mutukudzi, Mahlathini & The Mahotella Queens, Les Troubadours Du Roi Baudouin, Cissoko, Diogal, Simentera, Mose Fan Fan, and more. CD

Includes selections by Babsy Mlangeni, Malomba, Mparanyana and The Cannibals, Ladysmith Black Mambazo, Johnny and Sipho, Mahotella Queens, and Abafana Baseqhudeni. LP, Vinyl record album