With Ray Gomez on guitars, Wornell Jones, Isla Eckinger, and Jean Ristori on bass, Andy Newmark on drums, John McBurnie and Francois Zmirou on lead vocals, and The Percussionists Of Rio De Janeiro. LP, Vinyl record album

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A well-remembered set from The Cocteau Twins' sublime 80s run on the 4AD label – a set that was one of the duo's first American titles, culled together from some of their early singles and import EP releases! The song choices are wonderful – some of the most focused, expressive cuts from the first few Cocteau years – magical moments that have the wordless vocals of Liz Frazier carving out these really beautiful melodies – while lush keyboards and splashy rhythms fill in the background with that unique 4AD style of production. There's still never been anything like the group at this point over all the years that have past – and the album's filled with gems that include "Wax & Wane", "Pearly Dewdrop Drops", "From The Flagstones", "Lorelei", "Aikea Guinea", "Pepper Tree", and "Musette & Drums". LP, Vinyl record album

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The third album recorded by British jazz rockers Egg – a set done only after the group had reformed for Virgin Records, and easily their most complicated work to date! By the time of this recording, the members of the core trio – especially keyboardist Dave Stewart – had really honed their skills, and were able to work in a range of jamming, jazzy modes. Much of the focus here is on the instrumentation – especially Stewart's work on organ – and the session adds in extra oboe, bassoon, clarinet, and "germophone" – plus a trio of voices on one number. The sound is progressive without being overindulgent – and titles include "Germ Patrol", "Pielude", "Wind Quartet 1", "Wring Out The Ground Loosely Won", and "Enneagram". LP, Vinyl record album

A collection of soundtrack work by Emerson, with selections from Honky, Best Revenge, Murderock, Inferno, and Harmagedon. LP, Vinyl record album

The American debut of The English Beat – aka the UK group The Beat, who'd been making some big waves with import 45s on the 2Tone label, the burst forth on our US market with a slight shift in name, due to another group hogging their original moniker on our side of the Atlantic! That bit of backstory hardly need matter, though – as the group wear their English loud and proud here, setting off a huge ska revival as they blend Jamaican roots with London attitude in the post-punk years – stacking up a set of classics that continue to groove many turntables all these many years later. Titles include "Mirror In The Bathroom", "Hands Off She's Mine", "Twist & Crawl", "Big Shot", "Best Friend", and "Jackpot". CD

The American debut of The English Beat – aka the UK group The Beat, who'd been making some big waves with import 45s on the 2Tone label, the burst forth on our US market with a slight shift in name, due to another group hogging their original moniker on our side of the Atlantic! That bit of backstory hardly need matter, though – as the group wear their English loud and proud here, setting off a huge ska revival as they blend Jamaican roots with London attitude in the post-punk years – stacking up a set of classics that continue to groove many turntables all these many years later. Titles include "Mirror In The Bathroom", "Hands Off She's Mine", "Twist & Crawl", "Big Shot", "Best Friend", and "Jackpot". LP, Vinyl record album

The American debut of The English Beat – aka the UK group The Beat, who'd been making some big waves with import 45s on the 2Tone label, the burst forth on our US market with a slight shift in name, due to another group hogging their original moniker on our side of the Atlantic! That bit of backstory hardly need matter, though – as the group wear their English loud and proud here, setting off a huge ska revival as they blend Jamaican roots with London attitude in the post-punk years – stacking up a set of classics that continue to groove many turntables all these many years later. Titles include "Mirror In The Bathroom", "Hands Off She's Mine", "Twist & Crawl", "Big Shot", "Best Friend", and "Jackpot". LP, Vinyl record album

A killer set from the early 70s German scene – maybe a bit less experimental than most, but pretty great in its own way, with lots of long tracks and some intense instrumental moments! The group features vocals from Inga Rumpf, plus a mix of cool keyboards and saxes from Jean-Jacques Kravetz – on titles that include "Floating", "Baroque", "Life Without Pain", "Morning", "Indian Rope Man", and "Rosalie". LP, Vinyl record album

An all-German version of Peter Gabriel's third album! Peter Gabriel at the top of his solo game – tight, focused, and coming across with a nice sort of edge – one that really sits nicely in the same late 70s generation that includes Bowie in Berlin, early Talking Heads, and some of the darker-minded work on the left side of the mainstream at the time! The guitars have a nice edge, but never dominate – and Gabriel's vocals are totally great – soaring with majesty, but never overblown, and deeply personal in all the right spots – but without any fake soul modes. Instrumentation is right on the money – processed nicely, but never overproduced – and hell, players on the album even include Brit jazz legend Dick Morrisey on a handful of tracks! Titles include German versions of "No Self Control", "I Don't Remember", "Biko", "Intruder", "And Through The Wire", and "Games Without Frontiers". LP, Vinyl record album

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Live material from the short-lived Gong reunion – and a great reminder of how great Daevid Allen and Gilli Smyth can be together! LP, Vinyl record album

A stunning double length set from this legendary Krautrock group! Titles include "Woman Drum", "Samantha's Rabbit", "Ooga Booga", "The Story Of Life", "Oxymoron", "Baby Cake Walk", and "Immer Lustig". LP, Vinyl record album

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The last full 70s album from Pilot – just a duo by this point, but working with all the punch and panache of their early records! As before, their ability for hook-heavy tunes is amazing – as there's so many numbers here that could have been huge AM radio hits, but which also have some surprisingly thoughtful lyrical touches, and arrangements that are simple, but which really pack a hell of a punch. Titles include "Monday Tuesday", "Big Screen Kill", "Creeping Round At Midnight", "Library Door", and "Mr Do Or Die". LP, Vinyl record album

A powerful late testament to massive sound and ultimately legend of Rage Against The Machine – with great live recordings and once hard to find tracks from singles and import releases. Includes live versions of "Bullet In The Head", "Settle For Nothing", "Bombtrack", "Freedom", "Black Steel In The Hour Of Chaos", "F Tha Police" and more. LP, Vinyl record album

Seminal sounds from this legendary group – a combo who feature a young Ted Nugent on some complete amazing guitar, but in a way that's very different than Ted's big arena rock albums of the 70s! The Amboy Dukes have a way of combining the rawness of garage rock with the headiness of psych, all while also reaching a bit into blues roots to really let the guitars speak loudly – one of those really important 60s records that twisted up different rock genres at once, and helped pave the way for a unique generation to come! Singer John JB Drake is pretty great too – and titles include great versions of "I Feel Free", "Let's Go Get Stoned", "Baby Please Don't Go", and "It's Not True" – plus the originals "Young Love", "Colors", "Down On Philips Escalator", and "Gimme Love". LP, Vinyl record album

An important record in the 70s – one that really kept alive the spirit of the pre-Sgt Pepper's Beatles – with a range of fantastic tracks from their first four years! LP, Vinyl record album

Cheap Thrills, maybe – but they cut deeply and last forever! This is one of greatest albums by Big Brother & The The Holding Company – and it's also one of the most important in cementing the legacy of singer Janis Joplin. The raw manic energy of the group at their live best is somehow bottled and presented on record as perfectly as ever could be – and even better are the delicate moments that show such an incredible depth! Titles include "Turtle Blues", "Oh Sweet Mary", "Ball & Chain", "Summertime", "Piece Of My Heart", and "I Need A Man To Love". LP, Vinyl record album

Almost a "greatest hit" of "greatest hits" collection – given the importance of this album to the David Bowie catalog! Sure, it compiles tracks from other releases – but it also was the album that gave the world the killer cut "John I'm Only Dancing" – one of the key cuts in Bowie's gender revision in the 70s – and a title that was previously only out as a single! Alongside that gem, you also get a fantastic run of greatness from Bowie's first chapter of recording – the kind of cuts that would make other singers weep – including "Space Oddity", "Changes", "Ziggy Stardust", "Suffragette City", "Jean Genie", "Diamond Dogs", "Rebel Rebel", "Young Americans", "Fame", and "Golden Years". LP, Vinyl record album

Almost a "greatest hit" of "greatest hits" collection – given the importance of this album to the David Bowie catalog! Sure, it compiles tracks from other releases – but it also was the album that gave the world the killer cut "John I'm Only Dancing" – one of the key cuts in Bowie's gender revision in the 70s – and a title that was previously only out as a single! Alongside that gem, you also get a fantastic run of greatness from Bowie's first chapter of recording – the kind of cuts that would make other singers weep – including "Space Oddity", "Changes", "Ziggy Stardust", "Suffragette City", "Jean Genie", "Diamond Dogs", "Rebel Rebel", "Young Americans", "Fame", and "Golden Years". LP, Vinyl record album

Amazing music from one of our most-treasured stretches of David Bowie's career – that creatively-fertile time when he escaped to West Berlin, hid from the mainstream, and made some groundbreaking records with Brian Eno – then returned to the limelight to remind us all that he was still a hell of a force to be reckoned with! The set includes everything post-Thin White Duke, and pre-Let's Dance – a run of music that's still shaping new sounds on this planet all these many years later. The set begins with Low – the mix of experimental instrumentals and subtle vocal tracks that was a complete change from Ziggy Stardust – and follows with Heroes, Lodger, and Scary Monsters & Super Creeps – all albums that reintroduce some sense of song and lyrical interplay, but at a level that clearly indicates how important Bowie was to the generation of post-punk and new wave as his earlier work was to psych, prog, and glam! But the package isn't just a standard collection of albums – because along with those four studio records, it also features the live album Stage, presented here in two different full mixes – plus a new 2017 mix of Lodger, which really increases the edge. There's also a special Heroes EP, with all the different language versions of the song – and a very cool Re:Call 3 album – which features all the singles that were issued at the time, plus other rare material – and Bowie's very unique take on Bertolt Brecht's Baal. Titles on this album include "Alabama Song", "Crystal Japan", "Under Pressure", "Remembering Marie A", "The Drowned Girl", "The Dirty Song", "Cat People", and even his "Peace On Earth/Little Drummer Boy" duet with Bing Crosby. As with other entries in this complete Bowie series, the presentation is wonderful – album sleeve replicas, great packaging, and lots of notes – kind of a treasure, even if you already own some of the records! CD

An early moment of genius from composer Gavin Bryars – and a set that was issued on Brian Eno's Obscure Records label in the mid 70s, which ensured that Bryars' music found a larger audience outside the realm of avant classical! That turns out to be a good thing here, as the music here is almost of its own genre – warmer and more personal than some of the arch modes of the CRI generation – as Bryars mixes a small string group with his own piano, a bit of spoken word, and tapes of additional strings – which add in this eerie sort of ghost vibe to the piece – a slight current of sentiment, but not in a romantic way. The second piece is equally important to Bryars' career – the wonderful "Jesus Blood Never Failed Me Yet" – which uses a found recording of the older song by an elderly singer, then echoed and augmented by work from Michael Nyman on organ and Derek Bailey on guitar, plus a bit of strings. (Out Sound, Rock) LP, Vinyl record album

The lone album from the Bubble Puppy – a monumental effort of late 60s hard grooving psychedelia – and one of very best albums to come out of the original Texas psych scene! A couple of the Pup's labelmates at United Artists get a lot of revelry all these years later, and rightfully so – who would argue the importance of The Red Krayola and 13th Floor Elevators – but Bubbly Puppy deserve to be on that top shelf, too. The sound is tight and hard hitting, with trippy lyricism and groovy group harmonies, while the guitars range from cathartic fuzz to some surprisingly pretty melodicism. Not as far out as some of their peers, but the groove is absolutely killer. Titles include the benchmark single "Hot Smoke And Sasafrass", plus "Todd's Tune", "I've Got To Reach You", "Lonely", "Hurry Sundown", "Elizabeth", "It's Safe To Say", "Beginning" and much more. CD

Beautiful early work from British singer Vashti Bunyan – an important figure in the acid folk scene at the end of the 60s, heard here on some really wonderful work from a few years before! Some of the tracks have a really trippy style, and others are a bit more like conventional Brit girl pop of the time – but given a very weird twist overall, with a sound that's quite hard to describe! Vashti's vocals have these really dark qualities overall – and even when the backings are fuller (which often they are not), there's a sad, earthy feel to her singing. But equally great is her guitar work – heard with more prominence on most of the album's previously-unissued tracks from mid 60s tapes. Bunyan plays with these warm harmonics that kind of nestle and bristle underneath her vocals – pushing the tunes up with a sense of brightness in contrast to the voice – almost in a Nick Drake sort of way (and trust us, we don't throw around comparisons to his music easily!) The package is a wonderful look at these almost-lost years of Vashti's career – and it features both sides of her Decca and Columbia singles, an unreleased Immediate single, and a lot more tracks pulled from rare tapes from 1964, 1966, and 1967! Set features 25 tracks that include "Some Things Just Stick In Your Mind", "Train Song", "Love Song", "Winter Is Blue", "Leave Me", "How Do I Know", "Go Before Dawn", "Girl's Song In Winter", "Don't Believe", "17 Pink Sugar Elephants", "Someday", and "I Know". (Rock, Rock) LP, Vinyl record album

The first album from this legendary group – an important American hard rock powerhouse, driven by the famous rhythm duo of Tim Bogert on bass and Carmine Appice on drums – both of whom roll out of the gate here with amazingly frenetic energy! They're maybe only topped by the guitar work of Jim McCarty, whose searing lines are clearly learned from blues inspirations, then turned up in both speed and power – to match the vocals and harmonica of Rusty Day! There's nothing going on here that sounds like blues rock at all – even though the set begins with a cover of "Parchman Farm" – next to other titles that include "My Lady From South Of Detroit", "No Need To Worry", "You Can't Judge A Book By The Cover", and "Let Me Swim". CD

The first four albums from this crucial group – along with four more CDs of rare live material too! First up is the self-titled Cactus – the first album from this legendary group – an important American hard rock powerhouse, driven by the famous rhythm duo of Tim Bogert on bass and Carmine Appice on drums – both of whom roll out of the gate here with amazingly frenetic energy! They're maybe only topped by the guitar work of Jim McCarty, whose searing lines are clearly learned from blues inspirations, then turned up in both speed and power – to match the vocals and harmonica of Rusty Day! There's nothing going on here that sounds like blues rock at all – even though the set begins with a cover of "Parchman Farm" – next to other titles that include "My Lady From South Of Detroit", "No Need To Worry", "You Can't Judge A Book By The Cover", and "Let Me Swim". On One Way Or Another, Cactus are totally at the top of their game – and the guitar of Jim McCarthy really sets the record on fire, right from the very first note – at a level that should have made Jim one of the real guitar hero legends of his generation! Yet there's also power from the whole group going on too – tight rhythms from the team of Carmine Appice and Jim Bogert, the latter of whom starts to bring in his own vocals a fair bit more, offering backup to the raspy lead of Rusty Day. And while there's a few currents that show their older influence from blues, the sound here is massively hard rock all the way through – making the record a great illustration of the way that slavish blues rock gave birth to a fresh new jamming sound in a matter of just a few short years. Titles include "Rockout Whatever You Feel Like", "Song For Aries", "Feel So Bad", "Rock N Roll Children", and "Hometown Bust". Restrictions is next, and despite the title, there's no restrictions at all – as Cactus seem to be even more confident, more able to stretch their wings and fly than ever before – even adding in some extra piano and keyboards at points to the core guitar-heavy sound of the quartet! All the group's best elements are very firmly in place – searing guitar, righteously confident vocals, and a strutting sensibility that makes this early 70s album way ahead of the game in terms of territory that so many bigger groups would later copy for their own classic records. Titles include "Guiltless Glider", "Evil Alaska", "Sweet Sixteen", "Bag Drag", "Restrictions", and "Mean Night In Cleveland". Ot N Sweaty is a record that's got a bit of a shift in the classic Cactus lineup – as the group's still driven strongly by the work of Carmine Appice on drums and Tim Bogert on bass, but get guitar power from Werner Fritzschings, who's a pretty amazing player – next to some added keyboards from Duane Hitchings, and vocals from Peter French – a singer who's ballsy power might be even more in line with the group than their previous lead singer! The album's got an unusual approach in that side one was recorded live, side two in the studio – each with a nicely different flavor as a result – on titles that include "Swim", "Our Lil Rock N Roll Thing", "Bedroom Mazurka", "Telling You", "Bad Stuff", and "Bringing Me Down". 8CD set is overflowing with great material – bonus tracks added to three of the four albums in the collection, than a further 4CDs worth of live material – titled Fully Unleashed – The Live Gigs Vols 1 & 2. The live material is great – and really shows the tightness of the group at their best! CD

Glen Campbell cut plenty of fantastic songs for Capitol Records – but year after year, some of the best were written by the young Jimmy Webb – an important 60s songwriter who brought magic to a number of different singers, but maybe clicked most strongly with Glen! You'll know the key tracks here, as they represent some of Campbells biggest early hits – but his association with Webb goes way past those few tracks, through a legacy of great 70s recordings that are presented here – in a package that features every single Glen Campbell recording of a Jimmy Webb tune through the start of the 80s – including live material, and even a more obscure track done for Atlantic Records too. The sensitivity of Webb's material is really on full display here – and the whole thing is a great contrast to some of the thinner greatest hits packages of Campbell's material – presented with very detailed notes, lots of great vintage images, and a set list of 23 tracks that include "You Might As Well Smile", "Just This One Time", "I Keep It Hid", "The Moon's A Harsh Mistress", "Galveston", "Didn't We (live)", "In Cars", "Highwayman", "Early Morning Song", "Christian No", "It's A Sin When You Love Somebody", "Adoration", "Wichita Lineman", "Where's The Playground Susie", "I Was Too Busy Loving You", "Just Another Piece Of Paper", and "Ocean In His Eyes". CD

The complete Woodstock performance by Creedence Clearwater Revival in 1969 – brought together here as an official album for the first time ever! CCR were a very important part of that legendary rock festival, but didn't get placement on the original record in a way that lived up to their presence at the concert – a fact that's nicely corrected here, with a double-length album that brings together every song they played that night in 1969! The set features a very long jamming take on "Suzie Q" – plus "Green River", "Born On The Bayou", "Proud Mary", "Bad Moon Rising", "I Put A Spell On You", "Night Time Is The Right Time", "Keep On Chooglin", "Commotion", and "Bootleg". CD

A mindblowing debut from Cybotron – one of the most unusual groups to ever hail from Detroit – and that's saying a hell of a lot, given the musical legacy of the city! Cybotron have a sound that's starkly electronic, and a huge influence on later electro, hip hop, techno, and house – served up here as a spare, fuzzy approach to funk – but with lots of the colder touches you'd find from post-punk imports at the time! The blend is quite unique, and even more unusual given the fact that the trio were working in virtual obscurity on the Detroit scene – as an early project from the legendary Juan Atkins, with guitarist Jon-5, and the mysterious electronician 3070! There's more funk here than most of the group's electro contemporaries – but the sound is still nicely cold in all the right parts too – and titles include the seminal "Clear", which was years ahead of its time – plus "Cosmic Cars", "Cosmic Raindance", "Industrial Lies", "The Line", and "Alleys Of Your Mind". (Soul, Rock) LP, Vinyl record album

Landmark work from The Dead Kennedys – and maybe still one of the greatest punk records to ever come from the American scene! There's so much here that so many other records are missing – razor-sharp instrumentation, a great sense of pacing, and most importantly, a biting wit that always keeps the whole thing from ever lapsing into any sort of over-serious cliches! Yet unlike their LA contemporaries, the group were also never ones to just lay into the jokes – as the political commentary here is especially pointed, and nearly every single song is a blistering attack on late 70s California mores and national obsessions. Every track's a gem – and titles include "Kill The Poor", "Forward To Death", "Let's Lynch The Landlord", "Your Emotions", "Holiday In Cambodia", "California Uber Alles", and "Stealing People's Mail" – plus a killer cover of "Viva Las Vegas". LP, Vinyl record album

A killer set of southern rock – even if the whole thing was recorded in London, while the group was on tour with Eric Clapton! Delaney and Bonnie Bramlett are at the height of their powers here – really reworking rootsy southern elements into the kind of sharp-edged 70s sound that made them such an important part of the scene at the time – even though they never went as mainstream to get the kind of crossover fame as some of their contemporaries! But it's that true-to-roots quality that really keeps things great here – as they work with famous help from Eric Clapton and Dave Mason on guitars – alongside sounds by southern stalwarts who include Bobby Whitlock on organ, Jim Price on trumpet, Bobby Keys on saxes, and Jim Gordon on drums. Titles include "Things Get Better", "Little Richard Medley", "Coming Home", "That's What My Man Is For", and "I Don't Want To Discuss It". LP, Vinyl record album

A really important album on the west coast country rock scene – recorded with help from the great Buddy Emmons on steel guitar! (Folk/Country, Rock) CD

Really important early live work from The Doors – a performance at the legendary Matrix club in San Francisco – and one of the first concert recordings ever done of the group! The set wasn't originally part of their legacy with Elektra Records, but has become rehoused as a key part of their catalog at the label – a really burning performance that effortlessly mixes blues inspirations, psych inclinations, and that very special quality that the band was forging right from the start! As with other unearthed Matrix recordings – which seem to show up more and more as the years go on – the whole thing is a key window into not just a moment in the group, but a moment in the scene as well – even though, reportedly, the concerts were very under-attended at the time. This triple-length package brings together the entire five nights of recording, with lots of unissued material – including surprising versions of jazz tunes "Bag's Groove" and "All Blues" – plus never-heard versions of "Summer's Almost Gone", "When The Music's Over", "My Eyes Have Seen You", "Alabama Song", "Break On Through", and "Moonlight Drive". CD

Fairuz is a singer with a legendary voice – already one of the most important vocalists in Lebanon by the time of this album – with a way of soaring and stretching a note that's completely breathtaking, even if you can't understand the language! And while Fairuz had previously recorded in more conventional modes, she works here with the amazing arranger Ziad Rahbani, who blends together ancient and contemporary styles at once – sometimes letting her voice hang out in the open, unadorned – other times casting it with these arch-modern edges that you'd hear on the brilliant albums he issued under his own name. The whole thing is a massive pairing of two key Lebanese musical talents – on titles that include "Kifak Inta", "Something Is Happening", "Indi Thika Fik", "It's Not A Problem", "Prova", "Ya Leili Leili Leili", and "Farewell Song". (Global Grooves, Rock) LP, Vinyl record album

A great summation of Jose Feliciano's genius during his initial years at RCA – that unique mix of Chicano soul, acoustic folk, and Latin rhythms that made him sound unlike anyone else at the time! There's a charm to this work that's undeniable – an instantly compelling feel that makes you understand just why folks went so nuts for Jose right from the start, and why his particular growth and contribution to American music was as important from his perspective during these years as was Stevie Wonder's over at Motown! The set features a mix of live work, singles, and album tracks – and titles include his haunting version of "California Dreaming", plus "Hitchcock Railway", "Nature Boy", "Light My Fire", "Susie Q", "Hi Heel Sneakers", "Destiny", "Malaguena", "Life Is That Way", and "Rain". LP, Vinyl record album