Hard-ripping genius from Agent Orange – one of the group's first moments on wax, and arguably one of their greatest, too! The set's everything you'd ever want from an LA hardcore record from the glory days – tight, fast, simple, and completely effective – the kind of music that America did best, right at a time when the punk rock flag was failing in other parts of the globe – just guitar, bass, and drums – but played with an energy that set fire to a whole new generation! Includes the classic "Everything Turns Grey", a great remake of "Miserlou", and the cuts "Living In Darkness", "A Cry For Help In A World Gone Mad", "No Such Thing", and "Too Young To Die". Includes 4 tracks by Symbol Six. CD

A mega-hit for David Bowie – and an album that reduced some of the complexity of previous efforts, yet still managed to hold onto all that was great! There's definitely some massive chart material here, but the tunes are still some of the best of their time, pop-wise – tracks that bring forward the best dark corners of the Bowie mythos, and refine them slightly for a new generation – always in tunefully compelling ways. And despite the crossover fame of the set, it holds up surprisingly well over the years – possibly because of that status. Did you know that Stevie Ray Vaughan plays guitar on this album? Titles include "Modern Love", "China Girl", "Let's Dance", "Without You", "Criminal World", and "Cat People" (in a different take than the soundtrack version.) LP, Vinyl record album

The start of a fantastic chapter for the legendary Arthur Brown – the first album issued with his Kingdom Come group, a combo who were even more insane than his Crazy World project of the late 60s! Brown is the quintessential front man here – singing in this really dynamic, dramatic way that's years ahead of its time – much more upfront than so many of the singers of the psych generation, and even the new hard rock vocalists too – at a level that makes music like this a great inspiration for so man styles to come! The instrumentation is as dynamic as the vocals, too – not prog jamming, but instead this really focused, fused blend of heavy drums, searing guitar, and organ – all sending things way way over the top. Titles include "Internal Messenger", "Night Of The Pigs", "Trouble", "Sunrise", "Brains", the "Galactic Zoo/Space Plucks" medley, "Creep", and "Creation". LP, Vinyl record album

An amazing little record from Joe Byrd – an artist with roots in serious music, but who's serving things up here with a wild hippie aesthetic that makes the whole thing come across more like a "happening" than the usual sort of studio album – but in ways that also echo an earlier generation of Americanist composition too. The process of the record mimics some of Byrd's famous work in New York – and has a very collaborative feel overall, with elements of electronics, acoustics, and vocals coming together beautifully! There's some great tabla, harpsichord, moog, and organ on the record – plus more serious woodwinds and brass – and vocals from Victoria Bond, Susan De Lange, Christie Thompson, and Ernie Anderson – plus Joe himself. Titles include "Kalyani", "Moonsong Pelog", "You Can't Ever Come Down", "Gospel Music", "Nightmare Train", "Leisure World", and "The Elephant At The Door". CD

An amazing little record from Joe Byrd – an artist with roots in serious music, but who's serving things up here with a wild hippie aesthetic that makes the whole thing come across more like a "happening" than the usual sort of studio album – but in ways that also echo an earlier generation of Americanist composition too. The process of the record mimics some of Byrd's famous work in New York – and has a very collaborative feel overall, with elements of electronics, acoustics, and vocals coming together beautifully! There's some great tabla, harpsichord, moog, and organ on the record – plus more serious woodwinds and brass – and vocals from Victoria Bond, Susan De Lange, Christie Thompson, and Ernie Anderson – plus Joe himself. Titles include "Kalyani", "Moonsong Pelog", "You Can't Ever Come Down", "Gospel Music", "Nightmare Train", "Leisure World", and "The Elephant At The Door". LP, Vinyl record album

A landmark batch of work from the British jazz scene – the complete early run of recordings from Colosseum, maybe the greatest jazz-rock group of their time! The combo grew out of earlier work in the beat group generation – informed strongly by American jazz and R&B, but already on the forefront of the new prog generation – driven by the mighty drums of Jon Hiseman and topped with the sax and reed work of Dick Heckstall-Smith – both fantastic players who really gave the group their grounding! The lineup shifts a bit throughout this set, and maybe gets even better as the records go on – with later work from Chris Farlowe on vocals, whose soulful style is a perfect match to the groove-heavy sound of the group. Back in the days when we didn't like prog at all, and were more focused on jazz and funk, we still had a very soft spot for Colosseum – and it's no surprise that some of these records are always found in the collections of funk fanatics around the world. The 6CD set features the full albums Those About To Die Salute You, Valentyne Suite, Grass Is Greener, Daughter Of Time, and Colosseum Live – almost all of which are presented here with bonus tracks – alongside a full bonus CD of rare studio and live recordings too! There's also a huge booklet of notes – and this package is the comprehensive take on this legendary group. CD

The striking debut of PJ Harvey – a record that not only has the British singer maybe topping any of the new generation of American female singer/songwriters that were emerging at the time – but also really showing the world her skills as a producer too! There's a ferocity to some of these songs, and open emotion throughout – a style that's often dark, but never too brooding or self-absorbed – which is maybe why Harvey's star rose so much with a record like this! Titles include "Oh My Lover", "Dress", "Stella", "Happy & Bleeding", "Sheela Na Gig", "Hair", "Joe", and "Plants & Rags". CD

The genius of Richie Havens at this point is beyond compare – a unique take on the dying folk sound of the 60s, one that infused it with a deeper sense of soul that helped it get new legs in the Woodstock generation – yet which is also heard here before any of the post-hippie cliches that would bog down some of Richie's later work. There's an earnestness to this music that's also touched with a good degree of worldly sense – a notion that the world was changing, but one person at a time, and mostly through the gentle efforts and honest efforts of souls like Richie. This LP features 11 tracks in all – with titles that include "High Flyin' Bird", "San Francisco Bay Blues", "Just Like A Woman", "Sandy", "Three Day Eternity", "Follow", and "Handsome Johny". (Soul, Rock) CD

The genius of Richie Havens at this point is beyond compare – a unique take on the dying folk sound of the 60s, one that infused it with a deeper sense of soul that helped it get new legs in the Woodstock generation – yet which is also heard here before any of the post-hippie cliches that would bog down some of Richie's later work. There's an earnestness to this music that's also touched with a good degree of worldly sense – a notion that the world was changing, but one person at a time, and mostly through the gentle efforts and honest efforts of souls like Richie. This LP features 11 tracks in all – with titles that include "High Flyin' Bird", "San Francisco Bay Blues", "Just Like A Woman", "Sandy", "Three Day Eternity", "Follow", and "Handsome Johny". (Soul, Rock) LP, Vinyl record album

The sound of Kraftwerk, updated for a whole new generation – almost as if the quartet had decided to show all the folks in 80s electro soul and the world of Detroit techno that they could still do things better than anyone else! The result is a set of fresh 1991 remixes of classics – still fortunately spare enough to retain all the charms of the originals, but sometimes with the groove picked up a bit for more contemporary dancefloors! Titles include "The Robots", "Computer Love", "Pocket Calculator", "Autobahn", "Radioactivity", "Trans Europe Express", "Metal On Metal", and "Music Non Stop". CD

Only an EP, but a set that's had maybe more impact than thousands of other full length records over the years! Come On Pilgrim gave the world a mighty strong taste of The Pixies – eight tracks that forever put Black Francis and the group on the map, with a sound that's raw, but focused – really heralding a whole generation of new groups to come! Yet here, at the source, things sound better than ever – on titles that include "Caribou", "Vamos", "Ed Is Dead", "The Nimrod's Son", "I've Been Tired", "Levitate Me", and "Isla De Encanta". CD

Only an EP, but a set that's had maybe more impact than thousands of other full length records over the years! Come On Pilgrim gave the world a mighty strong taste of The Pixies – eight tracks that forever put Black Francis and the group on the map, with a sound that's raw, but focused – really heralding a whole generation of new groups to come! Yet here, at the source, things sound better than ever – on titles that include "Caribou", "Vamos", "Ed Is Dead", "The Nimrod's Son", "I've Been Tired", "Levitate Me", and "Isla De Encanta". LP, Vinyl record album

A pair of early 70s albums from Tom Rush – back to back on a single CD! First up is the self-titled Tom Rush album for Columbia – maybe the biggest album ever from Tom Rush – a set that pushes the singer strongly past his more folksy roots, and seems to set him up for a bigger career in the 70s mainstream! And yet the record's not commercial at all – done with a laidback instrumental style that moves into rock from folk, with occasional rootsy elements, but passages of softer phrasing that really work well with Tom's vocals too. Titles include "Old Man Song", "Livin In The Country", "Driving Wheel", "Rainy Day Man", "Drop Down Mama", and a really great take on "These Days". Wrong End Of The Rainbow is an album that lets Tom Rush bring in a lot more of his own songs than his Columbia Records debut – a great reminder of the early years of his career, when Tom gave the world a few songs that were picked up and redone by some of his key contemporaries! The style moves Rush even more past folk than before – still done with an intimate sense of instrumentation, which includes plenty of acoustic elements – but handled with phrasing that's very different than it would have been in the 60s, as Rush and his generation find a new way to move forward with more mature modes and a stronger sense of variety. Titles include "Starlight", "Jazzman", "Rotunda", "Biloxi", "Merrimac County", "Wrong End Of The Rainbow", and "Gnostic Serenade". (Folk/Country, Rock) CD

An incredibly beautiful set of work from Arthur Russell – one of the few records to be issued under his own name during his tragically short life – and a hauntingly spare blend of vocals, hand percussion, and solo cello – recorded with more than enough echo to live up to the title! The style is incredibly hard to peg – at times delivered with an almost Nick Drake-like approach that's extremely personal, but also sharing some styles with the mellower work of Suicide and other New York art rock groups from Russell's generation. Russell's voice billows out in a field of echo, directed almost imperceptibly by resonant notes on an electrified cello, and bumped along by muted rhythms that have almost no "attack" but lots of delay. One thing is extremely clear: that the album, which virtually died upon release back in the 80s, was years ahead of its time – and has a quality that easily ranks it as one of the most inventive recordings of its decade. The whole thing's as surprisingly appealing as it is experimental, and this extra-deluxe package features a number of additional tracks. Titles include "Wax The Van", "Tone Bone Kone", "Answers Me", "Being It", "She's The Star/I Take This Time", "Tree House", "See Through", "Lucky Cloud", "Happy Ending", "Tower Of Meaning/Rabbit's Ear/Home Away From Home", and "Our Last Night Together". CD

Amazing sounds from The Stark Reality – an obscure group from the early 70s, but one who've really risen to fame over the years – thanks to their groundbreaking ear for new music, and their freewheeling way with a funky groove! This package brings together all the incredible work recorded by the group in the late 60s and early 70s – a mindblowing assortment of funky and fuzzy jazz tracks – almost all of which are graced by the offbeat vibes work of Monty Stark! Stark often adds a bit of distortion into his instrument, which makes for a very tripped-out approach to vibes – one that blends perfectly with the heavy funk of some of the rhythms, and the freaky guitar lines added to most tracks by a young John Abercrombie. Yet at other times, things are very laidback and chilled-out – balanced beautifully from track to track, in a way that illustrates the larger picture the group were always going for in their music. This massive package brings together everything Stark Reality ever recorded – their famous Discovers Hoagy Carmichael's Music Shop album, the Acting Thinking Feeling live performance, the Roller Coaster Ride/1969 album, and lots of rare singles too – more than enough music to please any fan of the group, and blow the minds of anyone who's just getting a first taste. Titles include "Roller Coaster Ride", "On Being Black", "New World Generation", "Theme To Say Brother", "Dreams", "Clouds", "All You Need To Make Music", "Rocket Ship", "Cooking", "The Old Prospector", and "Junkman's Song". Great package too – with two LP-styled CD sleeves inside a larger case, plus a big booklet of notes and photos! (Jazz, Rock) CD

A fantastic CD collection – one that brings together all five volumes of Stereolab's Switched On albums in one set – a huge collection of unusual material and rare singles! On the original Switched On record, moog, fuzz, and farfisa have never sounded so great together – and although these guys drank deep of the well of 60s pop magic before making this modern-day classic – they also come off sounding pretty darn original on their own! When this gem of a record first hit the world, it was as if all of us were hearing music from the cosmos for years, but could never find a way to make it part of our everyday lives. Then along come Tim Gane, Laetitia Sadier, and crew – and completely change the world for the better! An album that no home should be without – with titles that include "Contact", "Super-Electric", "Doubt", "Brittle", "Au Grand Jour", "The Way Will Be Opening", and "Changer". Refried Ectoplasm is the second in the holy trinity of "switched on" albums from Stereolab – a set that collects together all the unusual recordings and other side bits the group were doing in the early years of their career – standing strong as a testament to their non-stop efforts to forever push the boundaries of electric fuzzy pop! The vocals Laetitia Sadier are completely sublime – almost a bridge between the darker modes of the previous pop generation and all the new ideas of the world to come – when the rest of rock music would finally catch up to these guys, and realize that the best path to the future is through the past! Titles include "Farfisa", "John Cage Bubblegum", "Tempter", "Exploding Head Movie", "French Disko", "Harmonium", "Revox", "Mountain", and "Sadistic". By the time of Aluminum Tunes (Switched On Vol 3) – it had only been a few years since the previous Switched On set, but Stereolab had already created so much musical magic, they needed a double-length record to keep the whole thing intact! The sound here is somehow getting even more dreamy and wonderful – definitely showing their work with the mighty Sean O'Hagan, and also really opening up into all the many musical ideas that Tim Gane was picking up from his never-ending search for unusual records! The 60s swirl through time and space, and make the future sound even better than we could have imagined it – while the Channel is drained, and England and France become one in a genius marriage of pure pop modes. Titles include "The Extension Trip", "How To Play Your Internal Organs Overnight", "Space Moment", "Iron Man", "The Long Hair Of Death", "One Note Samba/Surfboard", "Percolations", "1000 Miles An Hour", "Klang Tone", and a great take on the theme to "Get Carter". Switched On 4 is full of fantastic sounds from Stereolab – an assortment of rare singles and other unusual recordings that were mostly issued on their own Duophonic label, and which are far more obscure than their bigger label albums during the same period! Even though Stereolab gave the world some undeniable classics in the late 90s and early 00s, they were also working endlessly, and seemed to record more than they could ever fit on a full length set – which resulted in all the cool singles, limited releases, and other material included here – not dusty tapes pulled from the archives, but beautiful work that often returns the group to all the space age charms of their first few records! The package is huge – 25 tracks in all, of varying length – and titles include "Barok Plastik", "Calimero", "Fried Monkey Eggs (voc)", "Solar Throw Away", "Variation One", "Monkey Jelly", "Explosante Fixe", "Jump Drive Shut Out", "The Super-It", "L'Exotisme Interieur", "Pandora's Box Of Worms", "Retrograde Mirror Form", "Nomus E Phusis", "I Feel The Air Of Another Planet", "Outer Bongolia", and "Intervals". Includes tracks from Duophonic 45s, Underground Is Coming EP, Moog, First Of The Microbe Hunters, and work from compilations, unreleased tracks, and even a collaboration with Brigitte Fontaine! Switched On 5 is maybe the coolest entry so far in this really wonderful series – a set that's overflowing with rare and unusual work from Stereolab – most of it done at a time when the group were riding high on a major label, but still managed to issued a huge amount of music on their own, and work in a variety of collaborative settings too! One of our favorite is their work with Nurse With Wound, and tracks from that partnership begin this set – which then moves into rare singles, work with artists, compilation contributions, and plenty more – all with the usual Stereolab charm, but often with a nicely different vibe too! Titles include "Simple Headphone Mind", "Symbolic Logic Of Now", "Magne Music", "Forensic Itch", "Spool Of Collusion", "Robot Riot", "Trippin With The Birds", "Cybele's Reverie (live)", "Nth Degrees, "Refractions In The Plastic Pulse (Autechre Feebate mix)", and "Plastic Mile (original version)". CD

Was there a finer moment of 80s pop than this little gem? Maybe not – as the duo are at their most floppy-haired charming throughout – serving up some of the catchiest new romantic material of their generation, including the hits "Shout" and "Everybody Wants To Rule The World" – plus the tracks "Broken", "Listen", "Head Over Heels", "Mothers Talk", and "The Working Hour". CD

The massive full length flowering of Television – a record issued on a major label, but which represents all the underground genius that the group had been bringing to the New York scene for a few years in the mid 70s! The guitar might be worth the price of admission alone – a standard-setting approach that influenced a generation – and, when matched with the vocals of Tom Verlaine, really knocks the whole thing out of the park! There's a blend of raw edge and understated poetry that instantly demonstrates why the American underground of the time was so different than the world of British punk – and although the set came out in 1977, it still has a massive power all these many years later. Every track's a gem – and titles include "See No Evil", "Venus", "Friction", "Marquee Moon", "Elevation", "Guiding Light", "Prove It", and "Torn Curtain". LP, Vinyl record album

The massive full length flowering of Television – a record issued on a major label, but which represents all the underground genius that the group had been bringing to the New York scene for a few years in the mid 70s! The guitar might be worth the price of admission alone – a standard-setting approach that influenced a generation – and, when matched with the vocals of Tom Verlaine, really knocks the whole thing out of the park! There's a blend of raw edge and understated poetry that instantly demonstrates why the American underground of the time was so different than the world of British punk – and although the set came out in 1977, it still has a massive power all these many years later. Every track's a gem – and titles include "See No Evil", "Venus", "Friction", "Marquee Moon", "Elevation", "Guiding Light", "Prove It" and "Torn Curtain". LP, Vinyl record album

Maybe the first true moment of greatness from Thin Lizzy – a record that really has them coming into their own, with a sharpness that really points the way at their later classics – and that unique approach that has Phil Lynott standing out as one of the most unique singers of his generation! There's still a bit of a bluesy undercurrent at the start, but as the album comes together some really tremendous songs emerge – tuneful yet rocking, and with a surprising undercurrent of soul as well. Titles include the classic "The Rocker", the great "Mama Nature Said", and "The Hero And The Madman", "Vagabond Of The Western World", and "A Song For While I'm Away". Amazing 3CD set – features bonus tracks on CD1, including "Whiskey In The Jar", "Black Boys On The Corner", "Randolph's Tango", "Broken Dreams", "The Rocker (single edit)", "Here I Go Again", and "A Ride In The Lizzy Mobile". CD2 features rare radio work – a whole bunch of BBC sessions plus RTE Radio material too! CD3 features live tracks, demos, and rare outtakes – lots more rare goodies! Blu-ray audio features an Atmos mix, a 5.1 mix, and a stereo mix of the album – plus bonus Atmos mixes of some of the singles. Comes in a great box, along with a 60 page booklet with new notes and unpublished artwork! CD

Great experimental work from Holger Hiller – a set that was issued on the important German new wave label Ata Tak, but which was maybe even more revolutionary than most other records on the imprint at the time! Hiller bridges so many different worlds here – earlier German electronic experimentation at an academic level, some of the spacier sounds of the prog generation, and the really creative exploration of earlier ideas in a more personal level that marked the new wave of the post-punk years – using some elements here that would be right at home on a cold wave recording, but with modes that are sometimes more playful, and almost in territory that Holger Czukay would explore on some of his solo work of the decade. The mix of keyboards, vocals, and analog elements is great – and titles include "Jonny", "Hosen Die Nicht Aneinander Passen", "Mutter Der Frohlichkeit", "Das Feuer", "Ein Hoch Auf Das Bugeln", and "Budapest Bukarest". CD

Great experimental work from Holger Hiller – a set that was issued on the important German new wave label Ata Tak, but which was maybe even more revolutionary than most other records on the imprint at the time! Hiller bridges so many different worlds here – earlier German electronic experimentation at an academic level, some of the spacier sounds of the prog generation, and the really creative exploration of earlier ideas in a more personal level that marked the new wave of the post-punk years – using some elements here that would be right at home on a cold wave recording, but with modes that are sometimes more playful, and almost in territory that Holger Czukay would explore on some of his solo work of the decade. The mix of keyboards, vocals, and analog elements is great – and titles include "Jonny", "Hosen Die Nicht Aneinander Passen", "Mutter Der Frohlichkeit", "Das Feuer", "Ein Hoch Auf Das Bugeln", and "Budapest Bukarest". LP, Vinyl record album

Beautiful early work from Jethro Tull – a formative set that really has the group deepening both their themes and their music! There's still a bit of blues rock at the core – but also some richer, more lyrical modes too – and Ian Anderson does a perfect job of bridging both worlds with his sublime work on flute – an instrument that must have seemed like an odd lead for a rock group at the time, but which is no surprise in the same generation that artists like Herbie Mann and Roland Kirk were making their own hip records – not to mention the great Harold McNair, who was a UK contemporary of Andreson. The whole thing's great – a record that's ripe for rediscovery, and which really gives back year after year – and titles include "A New Day Yesterday", "Back To The Family", "Fat Man", "Reasons For Waiting", "Nothing Is Easy", and the classic instrumental "Bouree". LP, Vinyl record album

A collision of generations – as giants of the world of 70s and 80s AOR come together to pay tribute to the soulful styles of the years before! At the time, the album was the sort that really made us cringe – since we were such soul purists back in the 90s – but over the years, we've really come to accept the whole thing both as a well-meaning effort, and more importantly, as a lost chapter of the Donald Fagan/Steely Dan genius – as Fagan produced the set, and really brings a lot of his older music into play! Other artists include Boz Scaggs, Phoebe Snow, and Michael McDonald – but the set also features work from older bluesman Charles Brown – and titles include remakes of "Madison Time", "Knock On Wood", "Shakey Ground", "Lonely Teardrops", "Downing In The Sea Of Love", "Groovin", and "People Got To Be Free" – plus nice takes on "Chain Lightning", "Pretzel Logic", and "Green Flower Street". CD

A seminal album from the American underground of the late 70s – the debut of Pere Ubu, bursting forth from the Cleveland scene with a sound to challenge the greatness of anything coming from New York or LA at the time! The album's not exactly punk, not exactly art rock, but has strong elements of both – all wrapped around the unique conception of singer Dave Thomas, whose vocals are some of the oddest ever recorded! The tunes here are a lot more straightforward and upfront than some of Pere Ubu's later work – in a way that definitely makes the album their biggest favorite with new generations of indie rockers. But there's also still a fair number of more experimental touches too – odd sonic tricks and almost-abstract moments that were quite revolutionary for the time – especially from Cleveland! Titles include "Non Alignment Pact", "The Modern Dance", "Chinese Radiation", "Real World", "Life Stinks", "Over My Head", and "Humor Me". LP, Vinyl record album

One of the greatest British groups of the 70s – presented here in all their glory – a huge package that includes all their full length albums in one set, plus rare bonus material too! The music here runs from the original quartet lineup through the time when Kevin Godley and Lol Creme stepped out – and 10CC still continued their genius approach to recording, with some of the most inventive studio work of their generation – and unusual, hook-heavy tunes that made for record after record that were full of sonic surprises! The set features all the albums – 10CC, Sheet Music, Original Soundtrack, How Dare You, Deceptive Bends, Live & Let Live, Bloody Tourists, Look Here, Ten Out Of 10, Windows In The Jungle, and Meanwhile – and also comes with 2 extra CDs of rare material – titled Bits We Missed – with 33 more tracks that include "Run Away", "Bee In My Bonnet", "Waterfall", "18 Carat Man Of Means", "Channel Swimmer", "Good News", "Hot To Trot", "Get It While You Can", "I'm So Laid Back I'm Laid Out", "Nothing Can Move Me", "Tomorrow's World Today", "Only Child", and "Don't Squeeze Me Like Toothpaste". CD