Quite a weird little record – part psychedelia, but with some really rootsy elements – and also some odd use of recorded music as well! The sound here is really mindblowing – experimental and trippy, but never too free or over the top – and the core instrumentation includes lots of fuzzy guitar, organ, and rough percussion – plus additional vocals in parts, and even a bit of sitar as well! The production abstracts some of the sounds nicely, but never too much – and at times a more traditional Japanese style of music lurks in the background, possibly as a brief nod to the Buddha in the title. Most unusually, though, is that the first track on the record features part of a David Axelrod album playing in the background! There's clearly an Axelrod influence going on – both in the structure and sound of the record – although the group also take things very much in their own direction too. Titles include "Shomyo (part 1)", "Flower Strewing", "Prologue", and "Prayer (parts 1 & 2)". (Japanese, Rock) LP, Vinyl record album

A German group, but one who've got a sweet, sunny sound that would have been right at home in the Cali scene of the 70s! The harmonies on the record alone are great – right up there with America or CSN – and the instrumentation has slight jazzy currents, with a blend of acoustic guitar, flute, percussion, and other electric instrumentation – delivered in a style that's tight, but never commercial or overproduced – which is really the charm of the album! If these guys were working in LA, no doubt a bigger label would have mucked things up with too much polish for the charts – but instead, the record has this down to earth quality that makes the tightness seem even more appealing. Tracks include "Natures Melody", "Tears Take It Away", "Expression Of Feeling", "Upside Down", "Like A Ship On The Water", and "Out On the Road". LP, Vinyl record album

An amazing avant session from the Czech scene of the 70s – and a record that may well be one of the most important to come out of the Eastern Bloc during the decade! Plastic People Of The Universe are a group who managed a legend that went way past their very tight national boundaries – kind of a secret global sense of attention that was spread through the intellectual underground, and forever cemented with this masterpiece of music! The album effortlessly shifts between free jazz, avant experimentation, art rock, and other mode used in these dark and powerful ways – a strong-burning torch that let the world know that Czech innovation was alive and well, even during years of strong Soviet oppression. Instrumentation mixes alto sax, theremin, claviphone, guitar, violin, and double drums – and titles include "The Wondrous Mandarin", "Look At You, All Sound Asleep", "Past My Window", "Constipation", and "Toxica". LP, Vinyl record album

An amazing avant session from the Czech scene of the 70s – and a record that may well be one of the most important to come out of the Eastern Bloc during the decade! Plastic People Of The Universe are a group who managed a legend that went way past their very tight national boundaries – kind of a secret global sense of attention that was spread through the intellectual underground, and forever cemented with this masterpiece of music! The album effortlessly shifts between free jazz, avant experimentation, art rock, and other mode used in these dark and powerful ways – a strong-burning torch that let the world know that Czech innovation was alive and well, even during years of strong Soviet oppression. Instrumentation mixes alto sax, theremin, claviphone, guitar, violin, and double drums – and titles include "The Wondrous Mandarin", "Look At You, All Sound Asleep", "Past My Window", "Constipation", and "Toxica". LP, Vinyl record album

A trilogy of albums from this unique group – presented here with all their original artwork, and a bit bonus booklet of notes and images too! First up is Love & Poetry – the killer debut of this heady power trio from the British Isles – one who've got some of the same harder rock leanings as some of the other lean groups of their time, but who also seem to manage to hang onto some psychedelic fuzziness too – a fantastic approach that's always made Andwella such a unique group! The bass is nicely brooding, drums are plenty hard, and the great UK reedman Bob Downes adds a bit of sax and flute to the record. There's a wonderfully unique vibe throughout – and titles include "Clockwork Man", "Man Without A Name", "Sunday", "Andwella", "High On A Mountain", "Shades Of Gray", and "Take My Road". World's End is a set that begins with one of the greatest funky rock tracks ever – then leaps into the fray with a whole host of wonderful tunes! That track is the mighty "Hold On To Your Mind" – well worth the price of the album alone, and a tune that takes all the funky energy of the freakbeat scene, and moves it into more sophisticated rock territory! The rest of the record continues the shift to sophistication that makes this second album from Andwella so great – really well-penned songs that manage to do a lot with a little, use familiar instrumentation in unusual ways, and there's some nice use of flute, piano, and organ along the way – deepening their sound in all the best ways. Titles include "Hold On To Your Mind", "Just How Long", "Michael Fitzhenry", "Lady Love", "I'm Just Happy To See You Get Her", and "World's End (parts 1 & 2)". On the cover of People's People, Andwella are looking a bit shaggier and more mature, and they're sounding that way too – really pushing their vocals with more soulful qualities than before, which are a perfect fit for the searching qualities of the music! There's almost a US roots current to the record at times – the sort of vibe that should have made an already-great band even better – and which really takes Andwella on a surprisingly long musical journey in just a very short span! Titles include "She Taught Me To Love", "World Of Angelique", "Saint Bartholomew", "Are You Ready", "Lazy Days", "Behind The Painted Screen", and "Four Days In September". LP, Vinyl record album

A trilogy of albums from this unique group – presented here with all their original artwork, and a bit bonus booklet of notes and images too! First up is Love & Poetry – the killer debut of this heady power trio from the British Isles – one who've got some of the same harder rock leanings as some of the other lean groups of their time, but who also seem to manage to hang onto some psychedelic fuzziness too – a fantastic approach that's always made Andwella such a unique group! The bass is nicely brooding, drums are plenty hard, and the great UK reedman Bob Downes adds a bit of sax and flute to the record. There's a wonderfully unique vibe throughout – and titles include "Clockwork Man", "Man Without A Name", "Sunday", "Andwella", "High On A Mountain", "Shades Of Gray", and "Take My Road". World's End is a set that begins with one of the greatest funky rock tracks ever – then leaps into the fray with a whole host of wonderful tunes! That track is the mighty "Hold On To Your Mind" – well worth the price of the album alone, and a tune that takes all the funky energy of the freakbeat scene, and moves it into more sophisticated rock territory! The rest of the record continues the shift to sophistication that makes this second album from Andwella so great – really well-penned songs that manage to do a lot with a little, use familiar instrumentation in unusual ways, and there's some nice use of flute, piano, and organ along the way – deepening their sound in all the best ways. Titles include "Hold On To Your Mind", "Just How Long", "Michael Fitzhenry", "Lady Love", "I'm Just Happy To See You Get Her", and "World's End (parts 1 & 2)". On the cover of People's People, Andwella are looking a bit shaggier and more mature, and they're sounding that way too – really pushing their vocals with more soulful qualities than before, which are a perfect fit for the searching qualities of the music! There's almost a US roots current to the record at times – the sort of vibe that should have made an already-great band even better – and which really takes Andwella on a surprisingly long musical journey in just a very short span! Titles include "She Taught Me To Love", "World Of Angelique", "Saint Bartholomew", "Are You Ready", "Lazy Days", "Behind The Painted Screen", and "Four Days In September". LP, Vinyl record album

A wonderful little set of post-folk rock – with lots of lovely baroque touches! Ars Nova were really short-lived group – known for only two rare records – but they've got a sound that perfectly sums up a generation! There's a wonderful LA late 60s sound here – somewhere between Love and The Byrds, with the baroque touches of the former and the best country influences of the latter – all wrapped up in earnest, honest songwriting that makes even the ambitious moments come across with surprising charm. A true lost relic, and the kind of record that should be in any late 60s cannon! Titles include "Album In Your Mind", "Pavan For My Lady", "General Clover Ends A War", "And How Am I To Know", "Fields Of People", "Automatic Love", and "Song To The City". 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

The overlooked legacy of John Fekner – a New York artist who works here in the world of hip hop and electro soul – on tunes that are sometimes infused with lyrics that refer to the art concepts that inspire his creations! The sound is spare – just drum machine beats, bits of keyboards, and some samples – and Fekner's vocals aren't trying to challenge the Furious Five, but definitely share that old school confidence for putting over a rhyme! The core of the set features the original 1984 album Idioblast, issued on the tiny Vinyl Gridlock label – and the set also features lots of bonus tracks, including some later material. Titles include "Halley's Comet", "Rapicasso", "Travelogue The 80s", "Wheels Over Indian Trails", and "The Sight Of The Child". Bonus cuts include "Concrete Concerto", "EZ Gee Jammin", "Another Four Years", "Rock Steady", and "Concrete People (dance mix)". LP, Vinyl record album

A gem of a record from the Cali scene of the late 60s – even though it was recorded in LA by a band from Canada! 49th Parallel are one of the great lost groups from the time – a combo who've got a sound that's very fresh, very much their own, yet who also resonate with all the best elements of the period – as they weave their own unique blend of psych and sunshine pop styles through the music! There's occasional horns on the record at times, but never in a jazz rock way – just a touch of brass to give things a bit more punch, used lightly and rightly, and in a very groovy way. Sometimes the guitars get a bit freaky and fuzzy, but never in any style that's overblown to threaten the sweetness of the vocals – and titles include "Now That I'm A Man", "Get Away", "Eye To Eye", "Missouri", "Lazerander Flitchy", "Twilight Woman", "Close The Barn Door", and "The People". LP, Vinyl record album

A fantastic mix of heady sounds and heavy funk from The Heliocentrics – and a record that continues the vibe of their previous set – in which the team of Malcolm Catto and Jake Ferguson were joined by the lovely vocals of Barbora Patkova! Patkova's presence is just what the group needs to really ground their sound – a female singer up front, but one who's as equally comfortable with distortion, fuzz, and echoey spaces as the two instrumentalists – a trio who continue that unique tradition of psychedelic funk that we first loved in Catto's early work on Mo Wax! Titles include "99% Revolution", "Hanging By A Thread", "Nonsense (part 1)", "Light In The Dark", "People Wake Up", "Burning Wooden Ship", and "Elephant Walk". (Deep Funk, Rock) LP, Vinyl record album

A set that's partly an album by massive funk trio Khruangbin, and partly a tribute to some of the musicians they worked with on a recent tour – as side one has the other performers in the lead, while Khruangbin gets plenty of instrumental space on the flipside! The group themselves turn in a great James Brown tribute in the mix of "Blind Man Can See It/It's The Monaurail" – and also serve up "Bin Bin", "Friday Moring", "People Everywhere", and "Number 4". Other titles include "Nobody Smokes Anymore" by Robert Ellis, "Woman Trouble" by Kelly Doyle, "At The Trailride" by Ruben Moreno, and "Don't Bother Me" by The Suffers. (Deep Funk, Rock) LP, Vinyl record album

What can we say? This is one of the greatest albums of all time! The record's got a sound that's completely unique – as crack LA garage punk rock meets Hollywood baroque production, and the result is an amazing bit of loud guitar noise backed by strings and horns, all graced by the godlike vocals of the great Arthur Lee. Forever Changes is a milestone in rock – an incredibly bleak document about insanity, escape, and the coming revolution that never happened. Think of all the best moments of Wild In The Streets, Zabriske Point, and Invocation of My Demon Brother rolled into one – and you'll only have a tiny slice of the picture! A record that will haunt us until the day we die – filled with incredible songs like "Alone Again Or", "Old Man", "Daily Planet", "Red Telephone", and "Maybe The People Would Be The Times Or Between Clark & Hilldale". LP, Vinyl record album

A stunning spinoff from the first incarnation of King Crimson – a brilliant record from the team of Ian MacDonald and Michael Giles – both of whom move into territory that's quite different than their work with the more famous Fripp-led group! There's definitely elements here of the music the pair brought to King Crimson – but the songs are looser, more personal, and often have more jazz-rock elements in the mix – which can even result in some cool funky passages at times that are a quite soulful surprise! The album also features strong lyrical contributions from Peter Sinfield, who also sounds a bit hipper here – and work from Steve Winwood, who may well be one of the forces for the more soulful side of the spectrum. Lots of nice flute lines – almost Harold McNair-ish at times – and titles include "Suite In C", "Flight Of The Ibis", "Is She Waiting", "Tomorrow's People The Children Of Today", and "Birdman". LP, Vinyl record album

An incredible album from the Japanese scene at the start of the 70s – served up by a group with a name that might be clunky, but which also belies one of that nation's heaviest combos of the time! The approach here is a bit like some of the tripped-out blues-influenced rock of the Led Zep generation in the UK – but as with some of this band's contemporaries in Japan, there's also a wilder, wiggier vibe going on too – more freewheeling, especially on the fuzz – and driven by tremendous drums that make for some great changes in some of the more hard-rocking numbers. Titles include "Mr Walking Drugstore Man", "Stoned Out Of My Mind", "Big Headed Woman", and "Ode To The Bad People" – plus the experimental "M Glue", and the acoustic "Sometime We'll All Fall Down". LP, Vinyl record album

One of those lost 60s nuggets that should have been huge – the only album ever cut by this excellent Arizona band, and a record done with a quality that matches mid 60s Byrds, Buffalo Springfield, or any other big names from the LA scene! There's a tunefulness here that really comes through – worked especially well with acoustic elements next to the electric guitars and bass – all with a sense of focus and charm that should have catapulted these guys to superstardom with a record this great! All tracks are originals – and titles include "Crazy Town", "People In The Street", "What's The Hurry", "The Other Sidewalk", "It's Raining", "Day & Night", and "My Place". LP, Vinyl record album

A huge crossover hit for the Talking Heads – music released in conjunction with the great film of the same name, but with a unified vibe that made the whole thing way more than just another soundtrack! In many ways, the set's a part two to Little Creatures – delivered with the same sort of upfront charm, and ear for well-crafted tunes that really display the sharper songwriting skills of David Byrne in this period. Yet there's also some hints of the global elements that were always present in his music, and which would come more to the fore during the Luaka Bop years – used in more subtle ways here. Titles include the big hit "Wild Wild Life" – plus "People Like Us", "Puzzlin Evidence", "Love For Sale", "Radio Head", "Dream Operator", "City Of Dreams", "Hey Now", and "Papa Legba". LP, Vinyl record album

A heavy duty set of rare rock and funk tracks from around the globe – very much the sort of work we've grown to love through the many years of reissues from the Now Again label – the reissue-based arm of the legendary Stones Throw imprint! Now Again has turned us on to more bands than we can count – and they expand that tradition by adding in some obscure groups here with other well-chosen material – including some of the African funk and psych they've really helped introduce to the world in the 21st Century! Titles include "The Out Station" by Image, "Down By The Ocean" by Heaven, "Know Yourself" by Ed Whiting & Joe Lano, "I Am Selfish" by Eye Q, "I Know" by Groep 1850, "Digging" by Trevor McNamara, "December Sequel" by Pat's People, "Let Me Try" by Kaleidoscope, and "Io Prego E Preghero" by Christophe. (Funky Compilations, Rock) LP, Vinyl record album

A really well-done overview of key psychedelic tracks on the UK scene at the end of the 60s – work that crosses a few different modes, to include beat groups getting trippy, prog acts at a time when they were still a bit more compact, and pop singers really letting their hair down and their freak flag fly! Given the huge amount of great work the Grapefruit label has done to give us CD collections of work from this time, the album's almost a distillation of all those years of research and record presenting – a 30 track collection that includes cuts by The Attack, Dantalian's Chariot, Fruit Machine, The Mirage, Rupert's People, Elmer Gantry's Velvet Opera, John's Children, 23rd Turnoff, The Misunderstood, Picadilly Line, Apple, Episode 6, Blossom Toes, Paper Blitz Tissue, The Shame, Plastic Penny, and many others. LP, Vinyl record album

One of the best full lengths by The Cramps! By the time A Date With Elvis came out in the mid 80s, The Cramps had pretty much perfected their wild mix of ghoulish innuendo and truly devoted roots rock/garage revivalism. The sex club and monster movie imagery was for show, but their love of rootsy rumbles was no joke! The record is dedicated to the memory of Ricky Nelson and the dedication is not ironic. Great, ghoulish Cramps at their mid-decade peak. Oh, and by the way. . .Elvis couldn't have handled a date with Ivy. She'd have wrecked that boy. Includes "How Far Can I Go?", "The Hot Pearl Snatch", "People Ain't No Good", "What's Inside A Girl?", "Can Your Pussy Do The Dog?", "Kizmiaz", "Aloha From Hell", "Cornfed Dames" and more. LP, Vinyl record album

A smoking live performance from Yes – heard here in all the glory of their Atlantic Records material at the start of the 70s! The lineup here is the stuff of legends – Jon Anderson on vocals, Chris Squire on bass, Steve Howe on guitar, Tony Kaye on keyboards, and Bill Bruford on drums – spinning out long takes on the two early classics "Yours Is No Disgrace" and "I've Seen All Good People" – both really shining moments for Anderson – plus a wonderful blend of "Clap/Classical Gas" – the latter of which has some nice work from Howe – and the group's complex gem "Perpetual Change". LP, Vinyl record album

The deepest of the deep from the American scene at the start of the 70s – groups so hip they weren't quite soul, weren't quite rock – and instead kind of a funky hybrid of both! After opening our ears to countless underground sounds from around the globe, the Now Again label turn back to some of the territory of its roots – the hinterland of groups who labored mostly in obscurity, but left behind a few funky 45s that have become the stuff of legend – and which show us that there was a much bigger psychedelic funk underground out there besides groups like Funkadelic or the early Ohio Players! As always with the label, the history is really given its due, thanks to very detailed notes – alongside titles that include "Down By The River" by Purple Snow, "There's A Wrinkle In Our Time" by 1984, "Function Underground" by We The People, "Corruption Is The Thng" by Creations Unlimited, "Jimi's Guitar Raps With The Bass" by Jimi Macon, "I'm A Man" by Cisneros & Garza Group, "Just Got To Be Free" by Black Conspirators, "BL Movement" by Blaclites, and "The Siesta Is Over" by The Revolution. (Funky Compilations, Rock) LP, Vinyl record album

A key record in the second chapter of Joni Mitchell on record – a set that has both her vocals and her overall music style flowing with all these amazing touches you might not have heard a few years before – jazzier currents in her music that really set the album apart from earlier work in Joni's career! Mitchell responds to the music with soaring vocals that are completely wonderful, and nicely changed up in character from tune to tune – given backing by a host of great jazz and studio players who include Tom Scott on reeds and Joe Sample on keyboards! Titles include her classic version of "Twisted" – a redone version of the old Annie Ross track – plus the classic hit "Help Me", and "Just Like This Train", "Car On A Hill", "Court & Spark", "Down To You", "Free Man In Paris", and "People's Parties". LP, Vinyl record album