One of the heaviest electric sets from UK trumpeter Ian Carr – and that's really saying a lot, given how much heavy work he cut with his group Nucleus! The sound here is a groundbreaking mix of acoustic horns and keyboards – trumpet from Carr, and a mix of tenor, soprano, alto, and flute from Brian Smith – coming into contact with the Fender Rhodes of Dave MacRae and the Hohner electric of Gordon Beck! The pairing of keys is wonderful – and the whole thing is sewn together by the guitar of a young Allan Holdsworth, who's very much in the sway of Carr's sound here, instead of the later directions he'd take as a leader. The set might be worth it alone for the massive "Summer Rain" – a slow funk track that trips along beautifully – but the whole thing's great, and other titles include "Belladonna", "Mayday", "Suspension", and "Hector's House". (Jazz, Rock) LP, Vinyl record album

The final chapter of Lula Cortes amazing run of music in 70s Brazil – a small label release that brilliantly blends together a range of psychedelic influences – all with a gritty edge that's quite different than what you might expect from the date of the album! Things here are every bit as tripped out as on some of Lula's other albums from years before – trippily poetic, occasionally folksy, and sometimes touched with heavier electric moments that really offset the gentler, more organic moments. The reissue features full notes on the music by Cortes himself – and the package offers a rare chance to hear an album whose original pressing was supposedly destroyed before it was ever released! Really great sound, and a lovely package that more than lives up to Lula's amazing music. (Brazil, Rock) LP, Vinyl record album

A record with a very plain cover, but one that contains some of the most searing guitar work of the early 70s – the one and only album by a short-lived group from Brazil – one who mix Sabbath-style hard rock with some more experimental modes – all at a level that's completely unlike anything we can think of from the time! There's some really offbeat production twists that almost seem to be learned from the Tropicalia generation – although the music here is much more straightforward, and delivered with familiar guitar, organ, bass, and drums – familiar instruments that, as in the hands of some of the giants of the time, take on raw power and sounds of their own when pushed to their limits! Lyrics are all in Portuguese, but that hardly matters, given the instrumental intensity of the set – which includes the titles "Turpe Est Sine Crine Caput", "Nao Fale Com Paredes", "Metro Mental", "Animaia", and "Espelho". The CD version is loaded with bonus tracks, too – including rare singles released under the name Modulo 1000 and the pseudonymous Love Machine – with titles include including "Ferrugem E Fuligem", "The Cancer Stick", "Waiting For Tomorrow", "Gloriosa", "Cafusa" and more. 17 tracks in all! CD

The first ever career-spanning look at the music of legendary vocalist Asha Puthli – a singer who's maybe best known for her 70s club work on the European scene, but who also has a much wider range of expression – which you'll discover here! There's definitely some of the soul-based work that's made Asha a favorite with the rare groove scene over the years – but the set also includes early work with rock bands, and even a few experimental jazz numbers that predate her recordings for the discos! The double-length set is a delight throughout – a package that's really opened our eyes to sides of Asha's music we never knew – and titles include performances with Ornette Coleman on "What Reason Could I Give" and "All My Life", work with Charlie Mariano on "Mirror", vocals with The Surfers on "Sound Of Silence" and "Sunny", and with The Savages on "Pain" – plus solo tracks that include "Lies", "Right Down Here", "We're Gonna Bury The Rock", "Mister Moonlight", "1001 Nights Of Love (reprise)", "Music Machine", "Peek A Boo Boogie", "Devil Is Loose", "Space Talk", "I'm Gonna Dance", and "One Night Affair". (Soul, Rock) CD

The first ever career-spanning look at the music of legendary vocalist Asha Puthli – a singer who's maybe best known for her 70s club work on the European scene, but who also has a much wider range of expression – which you'll discover here! There's definitely some of the soul-based work that's made Asha a favorite with the rare groove scene over the years – but the set also includes early work with rock bands, and even a few experimental jazz numbers that predate her recordings for the discos! The double-length set is a delight throughout – a package that's really opened our eyes to sides of Asha's music we never knew – and titles include performances with Ornette Coleman on "What Reason Could I Give" and "All My Life", work with Charlie Mariano on "Mirror", vocals with The Surfers on "Sound Of Silence" and "Sunny", and with The Savages on "Pain" – plus solo tracks that include "Lies", "Right Down Here", "We're Gonna Bury The Rock", "Mister Moonlight", "1001 Nights Of Love (reprise)", "Music Machine", "Peek A Boo Boogie", "Devil Is Loose", "Space Talk", "I'm Gonna Dance", and "One Night Affair". (Soul, Rock) LP, Vinyl record album

A bit trippy, a bit groovy – and a very compelling little set from the Brazilian duo of Rubinho & Mauro Assumpcao! At one level, the record's got an earthy feel that matches the cover image of the pair climbing out of a tree without their shirts on – but at another level, there's often echoes of some of the funkier modes coming into Brazilian music at the time – a slight Samba Soul influence that mixes well with the earthy, sometimes personal vocals of the duo. In a way, there's almost a similarity here to early work by Os Novos Baianos – who seem to inhabit a similar space – and like that group, these guys have a sound that's got plenty going on, even if you can't completely understand it! Titles include "Ta Tudo Ai", "Debandada Geral", "A Montanha", "Bloco Da Visao", "Os Olhos", "Sozinho Nao Estou", "Quero Companheira", and "Pe Na Estrada". (Brazil, Rock) LP, Vinyl record album

A bit trippy, a bit groovy – and a very compelling little set from the Brazilian duo of Rubinho & Mauro Assumpcao! At one level, the record's got an earthy feel that matches the cover image of the pair climbing out of a tree without their shirts on – but at another level, there's often echoes of some of the funkier modes coming into Brazilian music at the time – a slight Samba Soul influence that mixes well with the earthy, sometimes personal vocals of the duo. In a way, there's almost a similarity here to early work by Os Novos Baianos – who seem to inhabit a similar space – and like that group, these guys have a sound that's got plenty going on, even if you can't completely understand it! Titles include "Ta Tudo Ai", "Debandada Geral", "A Montanha", "Bloco Da Visao", "Os Olhos", "Sozinho Nao Estou", "Quero Companheira", and "Pe Na Estrada". (Brazil, Rock) CD

A tripped-out set of acid folk guitar from Satwa – featuring Brazilian psychedelic folk genius Lula Cortes, in a feel that's very much like his own great work of the time! Satwa is one of the sweetest sets of psych folk jams we've heard in ages – with a mostly-instrumental, wholly mesmerizing sound spun by Lula on sitar and partner Lailson on 12 string guitar – a rich acoustic blend that's even deeper and more enigmatic than music of this type from the American scene! There's a bit of guest lead guitar on one track by Robertinho Do Recife – and titles include "Satwa", "Can I Be Satwa", "Alegro Piradissimo", "Lia A Rainha Da Noite", "Apacidonata", "Amigo", "Atom", "Blue Do Cachorro Muito Louco", "Valsa Dos Cogumelos", and "Alegria Do Povo". (Brazil, Rock) CD

Easily the best-remembered album by Labi Siffre – thanks to some well-used sample tracks over the years! But over and above the fame of the funky tunes "The Vulture" and "I Got The", the record's a key part of Siffre's 70s catalog – a record that's as great for its complex songwriting and deeply personal lyrics as it is for its Fender Rhodes lines, and tight musical backings from the combo of Big Jim Sullivan. All titles here are originals, and even when the groove slows down there's a depth that clearly marks Labi as one of the best singer/songwriters of the 70s – a talent who's been finally rediscovered in recent years, although sometimes only remembered for a few jazzy hooks from these tunes, and not the strength of the whole magilla! Here's your chance to dip into the Siffre sound at its fullest – on tracks that include "The Vulture", "I Got The", "Another Year", "Down", "Old Time Song", "Sadie & The Devil", "Remember My Song", and "Turn On Your Love". (Soul, Rock) LP, Vinyl record album

A record with a very plain cover, but one that contains some of the most searing guitar work of the early 70s – the one and only album by a short-lived group from Brazil – one who mix Sabbath-style hard rock with some more experimental modes – all at a level that's completely unlike anything we can think of from the time! There's some really offbeat production twists that almost seem to be learned from the Tropicalia generation – although the music here is much more straightforward, and delivered with familiar guitar, organ, bass, and drums – familiar instruments that, as in the hands of some of the giants of the time, take on raw power and sounds of their own when pushed to their limits! Lyrics are all in Portuguese, but that hardly matters, given the instrumental intensity of the set – which includes the titles "Turpe Est Sine Crine Caput", "Nao Fale Com Paredes", "Metro Mental", "Animaia", and "Espelho". LP, Vinyl record album

70s psychedelia from the northeastern state of Pernambuco, Brazil – incredible stuff that combines rawly percussive tropical sounds with a world of psychedelic creativity and possibilities – one of the best compilations ever put together by Mr Bongo! Lula Cortes was a pivotal figure in the scene and he's pretty well represented here, including his influential recordings with Ze Remalho. Even more exciting, though, is the stuff we've never been fortunate enough to hear before now – and there's a pretty good deal of it! The fusion of global psych and folk sounds into a distinctly Brazilian sound is nothing short of amazing – regional and traditional percussion underneath sitars, lutes, keyboards and more. It features songs by the great Lula Cortes & Ze Ramalho, Geraldo Azevedo & Alceu Valenca, Marconi Notaro, Flaviola E O Bando Do Sol and The Gentleman. 19 tracks in all: "Sorriso Delvagem" by The Gentlemen, "O Tempo" and "Desespero" by Flaviola E O Bando Do Sol, "Antropologica", "Maracatu" and "Fidelidade" by Marconi Notaro, "Mister Misterio", "Virgem Virginia" and more by Geraldo Azevedo & Alceu Valenca, "Bailado Das Muscarias" and "Maracas De Fogo" by Lula Cortes & Ze Ramalho, "Noite Preta" by Lula Cortes and more. (Brazil, Rock) CD