Finer moments from Frank Zappa, but some lost moments too – given that all the tracks on the set are previously unreleased – and are pulled from both live and studio recordings during Zappa's formative late 60s/early 70s stretch! The package is a real treasure trove – a reward to fans of Frank who've waited so long for music like this – sounds to rival some of the most groundbreaking music from Zappa's years at Verve and Reprise, with incredibly deft instrumental interplay – often a bit more improvised in the live tracks than on the full albums of the time! The sound quality is pretty nice, especially given that a few of these tracks are from near-lost tapes or cassettes – and the package is very well-done – with super-heavy vinyl, and notes on all the tracks. Titles include "Sleazette", "The Walking Zombie Music", "Music From The Big Squeeze", "The Subcutaneous Peril", and "Pumped & Waxed". LP, Vinyl record album

An amazing movie in sound – supposedly music (and more) that was going to be used in a film project, issued to the public while Zappa was trying to raise money for production! The album's one of the most tripped-out studio efforts to date from the group – loads of overdubbing, and wonderfully complicated instrumentation – with some especially great keyboards from Don Preston and Ian Underwood, whose keys alone almost preface the future of fusion – while, at the same time, display some key links to 20th century avant music as well! Vocals are dropped in at just the right time, but the instrumental interplay is what really makes the record special – over many short tracks that include "Mr Green Genes", "We Can Shoot You", "Dog Breath Variations", "Sleeping In A Jar", "The Legend Of The Golden Arches", "Uncle Meat", "Cruising For Burgers", and "King Kong" in many variations. CD

An amazing movie in sound – supposedly music (and more) that was going to be used in a film project, issued to the public while Zappa was trying to raise money for production! The album's one of the most tripped-out studio efforts to date from the group – loads of overdubbing, and wonderfully complicated instrumentation – with some especially great keyboards from Don Preston and Ian Underwood, whose keys alone almost preface the future of fusion – while, at the same time, display some key links to 20th century avant music as well! Vocals are dropped in at just the right time, but the instrumental interplay is what really makes the record special – over many short tracks that include "Mr Green Genes", "We Can Shoot You", "Dog Breath Variations", "Sleeping In A Jar", "The Legend Of The Golden Arches", "Uncle Meat", "Cruising For Burgers", and "King Kong" in many variations. 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

Only the second album from Gypsy, but one that really has the group opening up their wings to soar – especially on the longer tunes that really feature some nicely freewheeling interplay between organ and guitar! Yet even on the shorter cuts, the sound between the two is great too – driven on by some rhythms that feature very tasty use of congas, in a way that might draw some slight comparison to Santana, although these guys maybe have some more mid-American elements in the mix too, almost a dash of light Allman Brothers at times! Whatever the comparisons, though, the whole thing is great – a really under-discovered gem that deserves to be in the bigger pantheon of the time – with cuts that include "Here In The Garden", "Blind Man", "Reach Out Your Hand", "Around You", and "As Far As You Can See". CD

Only the second album from Gypsy, but one that really has the group opening up their wings to soar – especially on the longer tunes that really feature some nicely freewheeling interplay between organ and guitar! Yet even on the shorter cuts, the sound between the two is great too – driven on by some rhythms that feature very tasty use of congas, in a way that might draw some slight comparison to Santana, although these guys maybe have some more mid-American elements in the mix too, almost a dash of light Allman Brothers at times! Whatever the comparisons, though, the whole thing is great – a really under-discovered gem that deserves to be in the bigger pantheon of the time – with cuts that include "Here In The Garden", "Blind Man", "Reach Out Your Hand", "Around You", and "As Far As You Can See". LP, Vinyl record album

A classic live album from Dan Hicks and this mighty cool west coast combo – a set that's all stripped-down, and provides a great showcase for their amazing vocal and acoustic instrumental interplay! Dan's got two two female singers along for the performance – Maryann Price and Naomi Ruth Eisenberg – both of whom do way more than provide backup, as they work with plenty of percussion, and harmonize along with Dan's lead on most tracks – in that cool blend of acoustic roots and jazzy inflections that made the group so unique. The lineup also includes violin, mandolin, and bass – plus guitar from Dan – on titles that include "News From Up The Street", "Shorty Falls In Love", "The Buzzard Was Their Friend", "Is This My Happy Home", "Dig A Little Deeper", "Reelin Down", and "Caught In The Rain". CD

A trio of albums from one of the most unique groups on the west coast scene! First up is Where's The Money – a classic live album from Dan Hicks and this mighty cool west coast combo – a set that's all stripped-down, and provides a great showcase for their amazing vocal and acoustic instrumental interplay! Dan's got two two female singers along for the performance – Maryann Price and Naomi Ruth Eisenberg – both of whom do way more than provide backup, as they work with plenty of percussion, and harmonize along with Dan's lead on most tracks – in that cool blend of acoustic roots and jazzy inflections that made the group so unique. The lineup also includes violin, mandolin, and bass – plus guitar from Dan – on titles that include "News From Up The Street", "Shorty Falls In Love", "The Buzzard Was Their Friend", "Is This My Happy Home", "Dig A Little Deeper", "Reelin Down", and "Caught In The Rain". Striking It Rich features the great Dan Hicks at the height of his powers – working in a sublime acoustic mode that weaves together strands of gypsy swing, American roots, harmony vocals, and plenty more too – all in a mode that's lean and timeless, and which was one of the hipper new sounds on the west coast scene of his generation! Dan works with great support from vocalists Maryann Price and Naomi Ruth Eisenberg – alongside instrumentation that includes guitar, bass, violin, mandolin, and plenty of percussion – all wrapped up with a sublime sound that has all the elements resonating together wonderfully! Titles include a great remake of his earlier gem "I Scare Myself" – plus "You Got To Believe", "O'Reilly At The Bar", "Moody Richard", "The Laughing Song", "Canned Music", "Skippy's Farewell", "Fujiyama", "Woe The Luck", and "I'm An Old Cowhand". Last Train To Hicksville is completely charming work from the great Dan Hicks – one of the few cats who could make us like music like this so much! Dan sings and plays rhythm guitar – and the group also features vocals from Maryann Price and Naomi Eisenberg – that lovely pair whose harmonies with Hicks really helped the group find their sound! As before, instrumentation is all acoustic, but used in these jazzy ways that are very unique – not folk, not string band, nor swing – but something very unique, and a real breath of fresh air in the 70s scene! Titles include "Long Come A Viper", "It's Not My Time To Go", "My Old Timey Baby", "Lonely Madman", "Cowboy's Dream No 19", and "Payday Blues". CD

A pair of classic albums from this unique British group – packaged with lots of bonus material too! First up is the Sea Shanties debut – a freaky, fuzzy set from High Tide – a record that some folks know for its groundbreaking use of electric violin, but one that's equally great as a heavy guitar-driven monster! These guys definitely turn things right up to 11, right from the start – and come on with a hard-wailing style that was years ahead of its time – and right on that cusp when psych energy was starting to turn into hard rock! There's a few mellower moments, but the set's definitely got a lot more bracing power than its title or cover might make you expect – on titles that include "Futilist's Lament", "Death Warmed Up", "Pushed, But Not Forgotten", "Walking Down Their Outlook", "Missing Out", and "Nowhere". Next is the self-titled High Tide album –even more full-on and fantastic than on their debut – as the set just features three long tracks that have the group effortlessly mixing hard rock energy with prog-spun instrumentation – still using the electric violin that worked so well on the previous set, but with qualities that are every bit as trippy and fuzzy as the guitars! The longer tracks allow for lots of amazing instrumental interplay – at a level that makes us wonder where these guys would have gone, had they served up a few more albums during the 70s – on titles that include "Blankman Cries Again", "The Joke" and "Saneonymous". 3CD box set features lots of great bonus material – the long "The Great Universal Protection Racket", plus the cuts "Time Gauges", "Ice Age", "Dilemma", and demo/alternate tracks too! Comes in a box set with lots of notes, and a replica promo poster too. CD

Heavy sounds from Iron Butterfly – a record that's not nearly as well known as their classic In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida – but which has a very similar vibe all the way through! The songs are a bit shorter, but these guys really manage to do a lot with a little – using lots of brooding bass right up from the bottom, to create a blueprint for hard rock imitators in years to come – none of whom were able to match these guys' simple, direct approach – and their optimistic sense of power in their music. Many numbers often have this vocal interplay that really works wonderful with the fuzzy guitar lines – and titles include "Possession", "Unconscious Power", "So Lo", "Look For The Sun", "Stamped Ideas", "Fields Of The Sun", and a nice fuzzy funk version of "Get Out Of My Life Woman". CD

Procol Harum are definitely on home turf here – really honing, really focusing their energy – with a sound that seems to create this almost perfect interplay between the guitars of Robin Trower and vocals of Gary Brooker – two key elements of the group's sound that are even better here than on previous elements, especially when augmented by all the cool, unusual elements they always give us with their music. Brooker's got this bluesy quality, but the lyrics by Keith Reid often have this uniquely poetic vibe – one that's never overdone or pretentious, maybe because of the vocal quality – and which finds its own special space here on tunes that include "The Dead Man's Dream", "Whisky Train", "Barnyard Story", "Whaling Stories", "Your Own Choice", and "Still There'll Be More". LP, Vinyl record album

Maybe not the first album by Queen, but the record that really put them on the map – as the group create a wonderful sense of interplay between all the elements that make them so great – while also using the studio in ways the group had never dared before – taking their transcendent sound to the skies, and forever changing the face of rock in the 70s! The highlight of this approach, of course, is the groundbreaking "Bohemian Rhapsody" – one of the most unlikely pop hits of the time – served up here alongside the easier hit "You're My Best Friend" – in a masterful assemblage of tracks that also includes "I'm In Love With My Car", "39", "Sweet Lady", "Seaside Rendezvous", "The Prophet's Song", "God Save The Queen", "Lazing On A Sunday Afternoon", and "Death On Two Legs". LP, Vinyl record album

Maybe not the first album by Queen, but the record that really put them on the map – as the group create a wonderful sense of interplay between all the elements that make them so great – while also using the studio in ways the group had never dared before – taking their transcendent sound to the skies, and forever changing the face of rock in the 70s! The highlight of this approach, of course, is the groundbreaking "Bohemian Rhapsody" – one of the most unlikely pop hits of the time – served up here alongside the easier hit "You're My Best Friend" – in a masterful assemblage of tracks that also includes "I'm In Love With My Car", "39", "Sweet Lady", "Seaside Rendezvous", "The Prophet's Song", "God Save The Queen", "Lazing On A Sunday Afternoon", and "Death On Two Legs". CD

Four albums from this wonderful group – all brought together in a single set! First up is the self-titled Spanky & Our Gang – the first, and perhaps the most conventional album by the group, but still pretty darn insane! Spanky & Our Gang are a strange mix of 60s styles – with bits of We Five, bits of Harpers Bizarre, bits of The Association – but a totally strange and totally fun approach to pop that's very much their own. Cuts on the album are a mix of originals and covers – and highlights include the incredible "5 Definitions Of Love" by Bob Dorough, "Distance" by Joe Renzetti, "Commercial" by the band, and the track "It Ain't Necessarily Bird Avenue". Great groovy stuff – and with arrangements by Renzetti, Dorough, and Stuart Scharf. Like To Get To Know You is a tiny little pop masterpiece was produced and arranged by Stuart Scharf and the great Bob Dorough, and is filled with one of the grooviest approaches to pop we've heard in ages. The album includes the sublime hit "Like To Get To Know You", set in a very different LP setting – plus great versions of "Suzanne" and "Everybody's Talkin", and the cuts "Stardust", "The Swingin Gate", and "My Bill". Anything You Choose is the third movement in the fantastic pop symphony that is Spanky & Our Gang! The record's perhaps their oddest to date – and mixes groovy vocal stylings with some fairly advanced production approaches that work perfectly with the incredible songs written by Stuart Scharf and Bob Dorough. The voices swirl about in a mad rush – interweaving lines of melody and poetry, punctuated by strange sounds, spacey airy instrumentation, and wonderful little rhythms. Titles include "Anything You Choose", "1-3-5-8", "Without Rhyme Or Reason", "Give A Damn", and "Nowhere To Go". Live is an unusual album from this groovy group – especially given that most of their famous work was in the studio – and done with really inventive arrangements and production! Yet those qualities still come through here, even in a live setting – as the record's got this stripped-down approach that shows just how much of the group's own inventive vocal interplay and harmonies were part of their fantastically groovy style! Titles include "Wasn't It You", "Dirty Old Man", "The Klan", "Nagasaki", "Amelia Earhart's Last Flight", and "That's What You Get For Lovin Me". CD

A totally wonderful little record – one that really lives up to the sci-fi party promised in its title – but with all the German 70s elements you'd guess from the cover! The quintet here is a supergroup of Krautrock giants – a lineup that includes Manuel Gottsching on guitar, Klaus Schulze on drums, Jurgen Dollase on keyboards and vocals, Harald Grosskopf on drums, and Dieter Dierks on bass – the last of whom produced the set with all sorts of electronics, effects, and other weird touches – at a level that maybe even blows away some of the 70s production of Conny Plank! Titles include "Der Herrscher", "Kinger Des Alls 1", "The Electronic Scene", "Planeten Sit In", "Interplay Of Forces", and "The Cosmic Couriers Meet South Philly Willy". CD

Not a soundtrack album from Holger Czukay – despite what you might guess from the title – and instead a batch of nicely tuneful, often-catchy tracks that somewhat follow the style of late 70s work from Can! Not surprisingly, Holger's joined by group makes Jaki Liebezeit on drums, and has guest work from Irmin Schmidt and Michael Karoli too – on tracks that are long, but never without a sense of groove – although one that's often a bit complicated, thanks to creative interplay between Czukay's bass and Liebezeit's drums. Titles include "Hollywood Symphony", "Persian Love", "Oh Lord Give Us More Money", and "Cool In The Pool" – which also features "chicken organ" from Reebop Kwaku Baah. CD

One of our favorite moments in the strong run of records from Family – a set that's still strongly defined by the vocals and songwriting of Roger Chapman, but which also has a lot more going on as well! John Wetton's joined the group for this album, and adds in bass and a bit of vocals – and seems to really jump start their sound in a great way – and the production is great, too – really opening up with some of those new styles that were helping change the UK scene as progressive acts found a way to pack more into a smaller space – resulting in shorter tunes that still bristled with plenty of excitement! The vocal interplay is especially great – and titles include "Between Blue & Me", "Spanish Tide", "Burning Bridges", "Take Your Partners", "Crinkly Grin", "Larf & Sing", "Save Some For Thee", and "Satdy Barfly". This edition features the bonus cuts "In My Own Time" and "Seasons" added to the main album – and CD2 and CD3 feature rare material recorded for the BBC – 21 more live tracks, with lots of great readings of other tunes as well as album material! CD

A brilliant later album from The Feelies – ultimately something of a swan song, serving as what many thought would be their final album! Time For Witness shows The Feelies as a band, much to their credit, assured enough in their legacy as avant rock innovators to be able to deliver the goods with a bit of subtlety – with layered guitar interplay and a sneaky melodic sensibility that's layered in a way that you hear something new years later. We've loved this underrated set for A&M for a couple decades and STILL feel like we learning from it! Includes "Waiting", "Time For A Witness", "Sooner Or Later", "Decide", "For Now", "What She Said", a cool cover of The Stooges classic "Real Cool Time" and more. CD

The last album that Felt recorded for Cherry Red – and maybe their biggest early success too! The tracks are shorter and tighter than earlier releases – still very much concerned with the group's magical interplay of guitar and keyboards, but also going for a mode that really pushes Lawrence forward as a front man – singing in one of the most enigmatic pop voices of the 80s, with a style that stretches back to Dylan, but which also has a colder, more self-conscious style of the post-punk years. Titles include the group's seminal "Primitive Painters", a duet with Liz Frasier – plus the tracks "The Day The Rain Came Down", "Scarlet Servants", "My Darkest Light Will Shine", "Black Ship In The Harbour", and "Southern State Tapestry". LP, Vinyl record album

Heavy sounds from Iron Butterfly – a record that's not nearly as well known as their classic In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida – but which has a very similar vibe all the way through! The songs are a bit shorter, but these guys really manage to do a lot with a little – using lots of brooding bass right up from the bottom, to create a blueprint for hard rock imitators in years to come – none of whom were able to match these guys' simple, direct approach – and their optimistic sense of power in their music. Many numbers often have this vocal interplay that really works wonderful with the fuzzy guitar lines – and titles include "Possession", "Unconscious Power", "So Lo", "Look For The Sun", "Stamped Ideas", "Fields Of The Sun", and a nice fuzzy funk version of "Get Out Of My Life Woman". LP, Vinyl record album

A record with a sexy cover and a slinky sound to match – the rare second album from the cool French instrumental combo Les Jaguars – a 60s group who start in modes that resemble American surf guitar, but really take off into some great directions of their own! The style here is familiar – bass, two guitars, and drums – but the quality of the instrumentation gets nicely complex, and opens up way past catchy themes and references to sand and surf – as the group turn in mostly original tunes throughout, and have some especially great interplay between the two guitars – at a level that might normally be carried by an additional keyboard or tenor sax. The record's a hell of an instro rocker – way more so than you'd guess from the cheesecake cover – and titles include "Tourbillon", "Guitare Cha Cha", "Melle Yeye", "Guitare Strip", "Guitare Jet", "Dors Mon Amour", and "Jaguar Shake". LP, Vinyl record album

One of the coolest studio projects from the early years of the On-U Sound label – a record that's maybe a bit more subtle overall than some of the Tackhead and Mark Stewart projects of the time, but which has an equally similar genre-busting quality! The vibe here is nice and lean – with plenty of bass and effects from Crocodile, on darkly moody tunes that are only partly reggae in inspiration, and which also have plenty of the same elements you might hear on some of Jah Wobble's best early solo projects – with plenty of Adrian Sherwood effects and echo to keep things spooky and moody throughout! Annie Anxiety and Shara Nelson each sing on a track on the record – but most of the set is instrumental, and has this wonderful spare interplay between the instruments, served up in dubby heaven. Titles include "Crocodile's Court", "Savanna Prance", "Meander", "Igloo Inn", "Missing Brazilians", "Gentle Killers", and "Frequency Feast". LP, Vinyl record album

One of the coolest studio projects from the early years of the On-U Sound label – a record that's maybe a bit more subtle overall than some of the Tackhead and Mark Stewart projects of the time, but which has an equally similar genre-busting quality! The vibe here is nice and lean – with plenty of bass and effects from Crocodile, on darkly moody tunes that are only partly reggae in inspiration, and which also have plenty of the same elements you might hear on some of Jah Wobble's best early solo projects – with plenty of Adrian Sherwood effects and echo to keep things spooky and moody throughout! Annie Anxiety and Shara Nelson each sing on a track on the record – but most of the set is instrumental, and has this wonderful spare interplay between the instruments, served up in dubby heaven. Titles include "Crocodile's Court", "Savanna Prance", "Meander", "Igloo Inn", "Missing Brazilians", "Gentle Killers", and "Frequency Feast". LP, Vinyl record album

A really great collection of work from the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band – a set that's a collection of mostly older tracks, but which also includes a dozen unissued numbers – all put together with that special flair that always made the group's mid-70s records so different than work of their contemporaries! In other words, this is hardly a lean "greatest hits" collection – and instead, the 3LP collection has bits from the first decade of the group's career coming together in all sorts of different ways – almost with the longform exploratory sense of Will The Circle Be Unbroken, and the playful interplay of their Stars & Stripes set – both expanded packages like this. There's many gems here in an array of styles – and titles include "Bayou Jubilee/Sally Was A Goodun", "Some Of Shelly's Blues", "Ripplin Waters", "You Are My Flower", "Creepin Round Your Back Door", "Sixteen Tracks", "Honky Tonkin", "Soldier's Joy", "Buy For Me The Rain", "Melissa", "Woody Woodpecker", "Cosmic Cowboy (part 1)", "Mother Earth Provides For Me", "Jamaica Lady", "Gavotte No 2", "All I Have To Do Is Dream", "Visiting An Old Friend", and "Win Or Lose". CD

Great great work by The Paupers – essentially a 60s folk rock combo, but one with a really groovy sound! The group come up with loads of great guitar interplay on the session – jangling acoustic and electric together in a style that comes up with some nice hippie and eastern edges – and which means that even on the vocal tracks, the album's got an instrumental charm that kind of links it to some of the hipper rock/jazz crossover projects on labels like Verve and Impulse at the time. Most tracks do have vocals, in a style that ranges from Sunshine Pop to folksy – and the whole album's pretty darn great, filled with tracks that include "Let Me Be", "Magic People", "It's Your Mind", "Black Thank You Package", "Simple Deed", and "Tudor Impressions". This edition includes 2 bonus tracks: "Like You, Like Me" and "Sooner Than Soon". CD

Procol Harum are definitely on home turf on "Whoosh" – really honing, really focusing their energy – with a sound that seems to create this almost perfect interplay between the guitars of Robin Trower and vocals of Gary Brooker – two key elements of the group's sound that are even better here than on previous elements, especially when augmented by all the cool, unusual elements they always give us with their music. Brooker's got this bluesy quality, but the lyrics by Keith Reid often have this uniquely poetic vibe – one that's never overdone or pretentious, maybe because of the vocal quality – and which finds its own special space here. LP, Vinyl record album

Maybe not the first album by Queen, but the record that really put them on the map – as the group create a wonderful sense of interplay between all the elements that make them so great – while also using the studio in ways the group had never dared before – taking their transcendent sound to the skies, and forever changing the face of rock in the 70s! The highlight of this approach, of course, is the groundbreaking "Bohemian Rhapsody" – one of the most unlikely pop hits of the time – served up here alongside the easier hit "You're My Best Friend" – in a masterful assemblage of tracks that also includes "I'm In Love With My Car", "39", "Sweet Lady", "Seaside Rendezvous", "The Prophet's Song", "God Save The Queen", "Lazing On A Sunday Afternoon", and "Death On Two Legs". (Cassettes, Rock) Cassette

A mindblowing album – and one that we'd never part with, ever! X may have sprung from the LA punk scene of the late 70s – but this second album from the group is one that pushes way past every one of their contemporaries – a set that's always urgent, never dated – and which is filled with well-written, well-penned songs that should all be in the pantheon of rock and roll! Every aspect of the group is perfect at this point – the amazing drums of DJ Bonebrake, the searing guitars of Billy Zoom, and the fantastic vocal interplay between John Doe and Exene – working here at a level that's way different than any male/female duo in rock, pop, or soul from previous decades – as they set fire to the brilliant words of tunes that include "The Once Over Twice", "We're Desperate", "Adult Books", "I'm Coming Over", "In This House That I Call Home", "White Girl", "Some Other Time", and "Year 1". There's not a single mis-step on this album – and we should know, as we've listened to it thousands of times over the years! This crisp remaster also includes seven previously unreleased demos, alternate versions, and live recordings. CD

Finer moments from Frank Zappa, but some lost moments too – given that all the tracks on the set are previously unreleased – and are pulled from both live and studio recordings during Zappa's formative late 60s/early 70s stretch! The package is a real treasure trove – a reward to fans of Frank who've waited so long for music like this – sounds to rival some of the most groundbreaking music from Zappa's years at Verve and Reprise, with incredibly deft instrumental interplay – often a bit more improvised in the live tracks than on the full albums of the time! The sound quality is pretty nice, especially given that a few of these tracks are from near-lost tapes or cassettes. Titles include "Sleazette", "The Walking Zombie Music", "Music From The Big Squeeze", "The Subcutaneous Peril", and "Pumped & Waxed". CD

One of the weirdest moments we've ever heard from early rocker Eddie Cochran – but one of the coolest too! The record has less of the raw rock material that you might know from Eddie's greater fame – and it mixes his core rockabilly modes with some fuller pop backings from Johnny Mann, who even brings in his chorus for backup vocals on a number of tracks – creating this unusual interplay with Cochran's vocals that you don't hear on some of his other records! Yet there's also still all the elements we love from Eddie's music, too – that undeniable sneer and undercurrent of sinister energy, which makes for a really great contrast with the production, almost ironic at times. Titles include "One Kiss", "Cradle Baby", "Undying Love", "Mean When I'm Mad", "Completely Sweet", "Sittin In The Balcony", and "Stockings & Shoes". LP, Vinyl record album

A wonderful set from the early 70s – a record that has John Fahey opening up even more than before, on three very long tracks that really extend his ideas into a much more open space! The territory is maybe a bit more in the mode of Robbie Basho or Sandy Bull – and the pieces themselves are dedicated to Fahey's guru, Swami Satchidananda – with some of the Eastern elements you might expect! Yet John's longstanding tradition to reworking an American idiom is still strongly in place – maybe just inflected with a new spirit breathed into the nation in the late 60s – and opened up with wonderful interplay on the strings of the guitar. Titles include "When The Fire & Rose Are One", "Thus Krishna On The Battlefield", and "Fare Forward Voyagers". (Folk/Country, Rock) CD

The last album that Felt recorded for Cherry Red – and maybe their biggest early success too! The tracks are shorter and tighter than earlier releases – still very much concerned with the group's magical interplay of guitar and keyboards, but also going for a mode that really pushes Lawrence forward as a front man – singing in one of the most enigmatic pop voices of the 80s, with a style that stretches back to Dylan, but which also has a colder, more self-conscious style of the post-punk years. Titles include the group's seminal "Primitive Painters", a duet with Liz Frasier – plus the tracks "The Day The Rain Came Down", "Scarlet Servants", "My Darkest Light Will Shine", "Black Ship In The Harbour", and "Southern State Tapestry". LP, Vinyl record album

A warmly glowing set from Lazarus – a group here who maybe have a bit more punch than on their debut, thanks to the addition of drums on a few cuts – but who still mostly take their cue from the laidback interplay of their vocals! The approach is nicely understated – not the polished pop of some of their contemporaries, but almost a singer/songwriter evolution of harmony work past the 60s – yet before the polish of AOR. The balance is great – maybe like a more understated America – and titles include "Poets & Lovers", "Thoughts Of You", "Take Me High", "Ladyfriends 1", and "When Will The Home Of Me Begin". LP, Vinyl record album

Classic group harmony from The Marcels – a group who scored big with the title track of this solid set, but who also have plenty more to offer! The quintet have a style of vocal interplay that was one of the most dynamic of the time – not gimmicky, but really always in search of new combinations, new inventions, and new ways of getting a lyric across – as you'll know from the hit. But they've also got a soulful cohesiveness that's really underscored by the album's great Bert Keyes arrangements – not entirely an Atlantic Records mode, but not far off either. Titles include the classic "Blue Moon", plus "Most Of All", "Teeter Totter Love", "Crazy Bells", "A Fallen Tear", "Goodbye To Love", and "Sweet Was The Wine". (Soul, Rock) LP, Vinyl record album

A treasure trove of greatness from British folk rock legend John Renbourn – all of his late 60s solo work, done before moving on to greater fame in Pentangle! First up is There You Go – a rare one from singer Dorris Henderson and future Pentangle founder John Rensbourn! Florida born, LA raised singer Dorris Henderson moved to London in 1965 and was soon singing London's folk clubs, where she met Rensbourn. A solid mix of traditionals and then contemporary folk songs – stripped down and honest takes on "Saly Free And Easy", "Cotton Eyed Joe", "Mr Tamborine Man", "Going To Memphis", Something Lonesome", "Mist On The Mountain" and more. This edition includes bonus tracks from a rare 45 – "Hangman" and "Leaves That Are Green". Next is the self-titled John Renbourn from 1965 – a set that would not only establish John's legacy for years to come, but also have a very strong impact upon the role of the guitar on the British scene too! The album's definitely in a mode that owes something to an American folk legacy – but it also really breaks from the past with unusual phrasings and colorings in Renbourn's guitar – certainly with an ear towards ancient English modes, but also at once very fresh and contemporary – a strong precursor to the waves of new acoustic talents that would flow from the UK a few years later, but maybe even more revolutionary – given that John's mostly just working here with his guitar and voice. Bert Jansch adds guitar to a few tracks – and titles include "Song", "Down On The Barge", "Plainsong", "Judy", "Beth's Blues", "Blue Bones", "Train Tune", "Winter Is Gone", and "Noah & Rabbit". Bert & John is a hell of a collaboration between British legends Bert Jansch and John Renbourn – both working here together to completely redefine the sound of their music for the generation to come! This one album may well hold all the sense of subtle power and possibility that was about to flower in the Brit movement often known as "acid folk" – that reworking of older aesthetics with modern conceptions, and doing so mostly with their work on acoustic guitar – quite a feat, given the stripped-down instrumentation of the set! Bert sings a bit – in that incredible style of his – but the real attraction here is the guitar interplay, which is always fresh, never hokey, neither familiar American folk nor forced singer-songwriter backup material. Titles include a wonderful reworking of Charles Mingus' "Goodbye Pork Pie Hat" – plus "Red's Favourite", "Orlando", "Soho", "Piano Tune", "East Wind", "After The Dance", and "The Time Has Come". Another Monday is maybe the most obscure album in the collection – a set that is mostly instrumental, with some completely fantastic work by Renbourn on guitar – but which also features a bit of guest vocals from singer Jacqui McShee – whose warmer presence next to John really makes for a nice pairing. The album's as powerful as it is subtle, really beautiful in its sense of variety – with titles that include "Buffalo", "One For William", "Lost Lover Blues", "Another Monday", "Day At The Seaside", "Nobody's Fault But Mine", and "Waltz". Watch The Stars is another great collaboration with Dorris Henderson – an American singer, but one who moved to London in the 60s – where she cut this rare gem with guitarist John Renbourn! The album's got a righteous vibe that's hipper than the usual folk set – with some traditional tunes and some contemporary material – recorded with that amazing phrasing that made Renbourn's guitar so distinct right from the start, with lots of those jazzy currents we love so much – and which really fit the creative vocal approach of Henderson! Dorris also plays some autoharp, and there's a bit of bass in the backings – although overall the main focus here is on Renbourn's guitar and Henderson's vocals. Titles include "Come Up Horsey", "God Bless The Child", "Watch The Stars", "30 Days In Jail", "Mosaic Patterns", "Tomorrow Is A Long Time", and "There's Anger In This Land". Sir John A Lot Of is perhaps one of the best-known albums from British guitar legend John Renbourn – as it was issued widely in the US, and kept in print for a surprisingly long time over the years! The approach here is slightly different than Renbourn's previous records – a bit in the image presented by the cover, although with maybe not as slavish a sound – as John just uses the whole thing to go a bit more ancient than before, in ways that echo the time travel that the whole British folk scene was taking as the 70s approached. The tunes are done in ways that are really beautiful – still lots of the incredible guitar work that made Renbourn such a standout on the scene – plus flute from jazzman Ray Warleigh, who's very different here than usual – and spare use of finger cymbals, African drums, and glockenspiel by Terry Cox. Titles include "Morgana", "Transfusion", "The Trees They Do Grow High", "Sweet Potato", "Seven Up", and "White Fishes". 6CD box features all records in original artwork sleeves, with a booklet of notes – and bonus tracks that include "Message To Pretty", "The Waggoner's Lad", "Lucky Thirteen", "Blues Run The Game", "The Wildest Pig In Captivity (alt)", "Can't Keep From Crying", "Transfusion (alt)", and "The Leaves Are Green". (Folk/Country, Rock) CD