Lots of older record companies got in on the action during the early days of rock and roll – but few folks did it as well as RCA Records – home, of course, to Elvis Presley – and also to all the great lesser-known gems featured in this set! Some tracks are by artists who would break big on later labels, or others who might have stepped over a bit from country – but the bulk of the collection represents all the great singles that RCA cut during the late 50s and early 60s – including some on its sub-labels, where the company was going strong in the worlds of underground styles! Given that this excellent series already looked at RCA once before, it's a further testament that there's an additional 35 rocking gems to be pulled from the label's catalog – as you'll hear on cuts that include "Wild Child" by David Hill, "Get On The Right Track" by Joe Clay, "Rainbow Doll" by Jimmy Dell, "Welcome To The Club" by Jean Chapel, "Wolf Boy" by Sammy Salvo, "Hoebe Snow" by Benny Martin, "Never Been Kissed" by Marlin Greene, "Chicken House" by Dave Rich, "Heart Of A Fool" by Lee Denson, "Almost Eighteen" by Roy Orbison, "That Weepin Willow Tree" by Ray Griff, and "Dumb Bunny" by Bill Carlis. CD

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A landmark session that gathered together just about every hip British jazz and jazz/rock musician of the time – and brought them together into one super-cool orchestra of sound! Robert Fripp produced the record, and Keith Tippett is the overall music director – but the album's got a feel that's much more in the avant side of the UK jazz spectrum – particularly the trippier side of the Deram/Decca label of the late 60s – like work by Mike Westbrook or Mike Gibbs! The lineup is huge – with Elton Dean and Dudu Pukwana on alto sax, Alan Skidmore and Gary Windo on tenor, Ian Carr and Mongesi Fesa on trumpets, Mark Charig on cornet, Nick Evans and Paul Rutherford on trombone, Keith Tippett on piano, Brian Godding on guitar, Robert Wyatt and John Marshall on drums, and Maggie Nicholls, Julie Tippett, Mike Patto, and Zoot Money on vocals – plus lots of strings as well! Great 2CD version – remastered from the original tapes, with much better sound than previous versions. (Jazz, Rock) CD

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Heady work from one of the heaviest Mexican rock acts of their generation – a group who are as wild and wooly as they look on the cover – and who deliver a set that's got all the punch, power, and psych genius of some of the best UK material from a few years before! There's a really sinister vibe to the record, right from the start – sounds that emerge from the darkness as the drums explode and the guitar sends up a wail of fuzz – yet matched at times with some richer tones on acoustic guitar and even a bit of flute – showing that these guys weren't just being crazy for crazy's sake – and instead really had a sense of vision and purpose. The whole thing's wonderful, and done with English lyrics that should have made it a big global hit – thanks to titles that include "Lost In My World", "Without Thinking", "Eclipse", "Sometimes", "Let's Make It Now", "World Of Love", "I Got The People", "It's Over", "Going Home", and "Who Would Look At Me". CD

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Jefferson Airplane's weirder follow-up to Surrealistic Pillow – and a pretty incredible record – concentrating their sprawling psychedelic impulses into fairly succinct 3 to 4 minute songs, for the most part! It's a creative approach,and it's a brave record. If Surrealistic Pillow lured the mainstream into the rabbit hole, this one is the tripped out tea party inside! Only a couple of tunes roll past the 5 minute mark, so it never gets too far out, and it's got plenty of chugging, bluesy rock to keep it neat. Includes "The Ballad Of You & Me & Pooneil", "Young Girl Sunday Blues", "Martha", "Wild Tyme", "Two Heads", "Watch Her Ride", "Won't You Try/Sunday Afternoon"and more. CD

Jefferson Airplane flying high in the late 60s – and Crown Of Creation was both a creative and commercial triumph for the band – balancing the tripped out adventurousness of their earlier work, with a more focused approach! Front loaded with moodier, acoustic-based songs that build into heavier rock as the record plays on – with some really great use of sound effects for added drama here and there! Titles include "Lather", "In Time", "Star Track", "Chushingura", "If You Feel", "Ice Cream Phoenix", "The House At Pooniel Corners" and more. CD

Jefferson Airplane flying high in the late 60s – and Crown Of Creation was both a creative and commercial triumph for the band – balancing the tripped out adventurousness of their earlier work, with a more focused approach! Front loaded with moodier, acoustic-based songs that build into heavier rock as the record plays on – with some really great use of sound effects for added drama here and there! Titles include "Lather", "In Time", "Star Track", "Chushingura", "If You Feel", "Ice Cream Phoenix", "The House At Pooniel Corners" and more. CD

Early genius from these Bay Area stalwarts – one of the greatest rock records of its time! Surrealistic Pillow is the second Jefferson Airplane album, but they took a number of huge creative leaps in the 8 months or so between their debut record and this one. This one is where they're joined by psych siren Grace Slick, but it's not just the line-up change that sets it apart. Surrealistic Pillow is a perfect title, as it's comforting and disorienting at the same time. It's also the magical confluence of wildly different spirits – with standout contributions by the entire band. Titles include the seminal "White Rabbit" – plus "Embryonic Journey", "3/5 Of A Mile In 10 Seconds", "DCBA 25", "How Do You Feel", "Today", "She Has Funny Cars", and "Plastic Fantastic Lover". CD

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A classic run of records from Waylon Jennings – brought together in a single package! First up is Lonesome Onry & Mean – a pivotal album for Waylon Jennings – the record where he really found the new direction that would finally get him the fame he deserved – delivered in a way that's free from all the later cliches, and which also ties Waylon pretty strongly to the hipper currents of the underground – especially that point where singer/songwriter genius intersected with country! The production is his own, and vastly different than the late 60s records – even though we love those to death too – and that magical Jennings vocal approach does fantastic things to tunes by Steve Young, Mickey Newbury, Kris Kristofferson, and others! Titles include the fantastic "Lonesome Onry & Mean", plus "Good Time Charlie's Got The Blues", "Freedom To Stay", "Lay It Down", "You Can Have Her", "Pretend I Never Happened", "San Francisco Mabel Joy", "Sandy Sends Her Best", and a great take on "Me &Bobby McGee". Honky Tonk Heroes is genius material from Waylon Jennings – one of those career-defining records from the early 70s that completely put him on top, and heralded a whole new generation in country music! The set's maybe equally noteworthy as a showcase for the up-and-coming Billy Joe Shaver, who wrote much of the songs on the record – and it's also a great showcase for the important production talents of Tompall Glaser, who really gets the spirit of the music right! Titles include great versions of "Honky Tonk Heroes", "Old Five & Dimers Like Me", "Ride Me Down Easy", "Black Rose", "Willy The Wandering Gypsy & Me", "Omaha", and "Ain't No God In Mexico". This Time is one of those Waylon Jennings records from a time when he could do no wrong – fighting the stronger powers at RCA to really find his voice – recording at the studio of Tompall Glaser, with great production help from Willie Nelson – who was enjoying his own transformation at the time too! As with the previous two gems from this period, the choice of material and presentation is great – songs by Willie, JJ Cale, and Billy Joe Shavers – in a set of titles that include "Heaven Or Hell", "It's Not Supposed To Be That Way", "This Time", "Pick Up The Tempo", "If You Could Touch Her At All", "Walkin", "Slow Rollin Low", "Louisiana Woman", and "Slow Movin Outlaw". Ramblin Man is Waylon Jennings at peak mid 70s perfection! Ramblin' Man fits in stylistically with the gruff honky tonk hero mode he first fully realized a couple albums earlier, but he's still fiercely blazing trails here, pairing his gruff lead vocals with sweeter female harmonies on some tracks, changing the groove from laidback swagger to fast-paced honky tonk, working in some tender ballads with the gruffer numbers...Waylon at his best. Starts up with the eternal title track and equally classic "Rainy Day Woman" and hardly lets up in greatness from there, with "Cloudy Days", "The Hunger", "It'll Be Her", a great cover of the Allman Brothers' "Midnight Rider", "Memories Of You And Me", "Amanda" and more. Features bonus tracks too – "Laid Back Country Picker", "The Last One To Leave Seattle", "Big Big Love", "Got A Lot Going For Me", "The Last Letter", and "The One I Sing My Love Songs To". (Folk/Country, Rock) CD

One of the best albums by offbeat jazz singer Annette Peacock – one with a loose, very innovative vibe in arrangements – with some pretty darn cool electronics! Annette not only has a strong voice, she's fearlessly creative in her use of it – and on this album, her vocals are often processed through the electronics – in a way that's a good decade ahead of the curve, but never in a way that never denigrates her strength as a singer! At times, she's screaming like Betty Davis in a funky mode, at others she's getting raw and dirty in a Tom Waits vein, and at others she presages 80s club oddities like Klaus Nomi! Somehow these divergent modes work together, making this one of the most unique and trailblazing albums of Annette's career! Includes the funky break track "Pony", a pretty compelling number, plus "I'm The One", "Been & Gone", "Love Me Tender", "Blood", "One Way", "Gesture Without Plot", "Did You Hear Me Mommy?" and "7 Days". (Soul, Rock) CD

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Every single master take of Elvis Presley's music from the 50s – a comprehensive overview of the King's important years! Also features 14 never-issued tracks and a cool set of stamps! CD

Blue Effect are down to a trio for this early 80s album, but that smaller lineup seems to allow even more space for instrumental interplay and well-crafted solos – served up by Radim Hladik on guitars, Vladimir Cech on drums and percussion, and Lesek Semelka on Moog and Korg keyboards, plus vocals as well! The production is clean, but never commercial – just really letting the longform tunes spin out with plenty of well-played lines – on titles that include "Triatricet", "Obcasna Panska Jizda", "Kohoutek Kamaradstvi Dokapava", and "Avignonske Slecny Z Prahy". CD features 6 bonus tracks – including "Nezna", "Zahada Jmeli", and "Doktor". CD

A prog classic from the Czech scene at the start of the 70s – music from a moment when things were really pushing the cultural barriers in the new freedoms of the time! Blue Effect blend core jamming with some larger arrangements that appear from time to time – all given a sense of power and majesty that really transcends the boundaries of language, soaring out with a vibe that's right up there with the best non-English work on the Euro scene at the time! The set was issued with translated lyrics in some territories, but this is the original album – with titles that include "Osamela Ulice", "Kamenne Blues", "Destivy Den", "Kde Je Ma Hvezda", "Fenix", and "Pamet Lasky". CD features 5 bonus tracks – including "Grave Of The Sun", "Life", and "Gray Hair". CD

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Fantastic fusion from 70s Spain – a set that's maybe equal part jazz and rock – although very different than some of the more jamming prog of the time! Instead, these guys have a great sense of space – so that the guitar of Napi Carratala is used judiciously, and really gives way to these well-crafted solos on alto and tenor from Alain Fabrizio – a player who could easily fit into a more spiritual jazz-styled lineup, but who here adds just the right dose of soulfulness to a record that might have been a lot more cold without his performance! Other players include Pedro Barcelo on drums and Chiqui Navarret on bass – and titles include "Viaje A Prantia", "El Baron De Finestrat", "Tijal", "Cuando El Coco Se Viste De Gris", and "El Caminito Que No Mola". (Jazz, Rock) CD

An overlooked 70s gem from the great Jose Feliciano – a set that really continues the warm soul styles he'd hit on his last few years at RCA – a wonderful blend for his unique vocals and his tremendous way of putting over a tune! The set was recorded down at Muscle Shoals, but it's got a nicely subtle approach that never tries to lean on the modes of that studio too strongly – avoiding some of the cliches that other records might showcase in such a setting – and throughout it all, it's clear that Jose's the star in the spotlight, using that warmly crackling vocal approach in a wonderful way – especially on the more upbeat modern soul moments. Titles include "Every Woman", "Marguerita", "Loving Her Was Easier", "Sweet Soul Music", "I Love Making Love To You", "Love Comes From Unexpected Places", and "Funny/Night Life". CD features the bonus track "What I Wanna Do". CD

The first proper album by Americana rock supergroup Golden Smog – featuring members of Wilco, The Jayhawks & Soul Asylum among others – very much living up to the kind of trends-be-damned album that would come from these guys circa 1995 – inspired by the best acoustic-leaning classic rock of the 70s, sans cliche and feeling fresh all over again! There's a lot to love here for fans of pre-Summerteeth era Wilco and American Recordings era Jayhawks – which is to say it soundly ignores the noisier sounds of the rock mainstream at the time for a more down home vibe. Includes "V", "Pecan Pie", "Glad U Sorry", "He's A Dick", "Red Headed Stepchild", "Williamton Angel", "Friend", "Nowhere Bound", "Radio King" and more. CD

A beautiful early 70s debut LP from a then 20 year old, Halifax-reared Catherine Howe – produced and arranged by US jazz pianist Bobby Scott in a mode that manages to feel lush and opulent while never belying Catherine's warmth, intimacy and maturity! The sound is warmly baroque, and Catherine's lovely vocals and evocative songwriting style is sheerly natural – recorded in a fairly stripped down setting and fleshed out with strings by the London Symphony Orchestra. The mix of intimacy and grandeur makes the record a bit of stylistic cousin to Nick Drake's Bryter Layter – we take our Drake seriously and we don't throw that comparison out lightly! Released by a doomed Reflection Records, which closed up shop the same year – the album was almost instantly relegated to obscurity, but has become the stuff of legend over the years – thanks to reissues, and interest in Howe's music from younger generations. Titles include "Up North", "On A Misty Morning", "Nothing More Than Strangers", "My Child", "The Innocence Of A Child", "It Comes With The Breezes" and more – plus the bonus demo "In The Hot Summer" – which led to the next phase of Catherine's career at RCA. (Folk/Country, Rock) CD

Trini Lopez blew up in pretty big way in the early 60s, circa "If I Had A Hammer", but in the preceding years he cut a slew of great singles for King & DRA – early rock style rumblers and moodier numbers that are just as great – collected here nicely by Ace! Trini's vocals are charismatic as can be, whether it's the slyly menacing way he does on this set's title track, or on more yearning, romantic stylist, and always with cool guitar work. Many of those tunes were released with overdubs, but these rawer, superior versions are seeing reissue for the first time in a generation here. Includes "Sinner Not A Saint", "Rock On", "Where Can My Baby Be", "The Club For Broken Hearts", "Rosita", "Chain Of Love", "Sweet Thing", "My Runaway Heart", "You Broke The Only Heart That Ever Loved You", "It Hurts To Be In Love", "Since I Don't Have You", "Don't Go" and more. 29 tracks in all. CD