A classic from this Chicago area group (named Off Broadway, but adding the USA because there was an overseas group with the same name) – a set that features their power pop classic "Stay In Time". LP, Vinyl record album

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Definitely a USA union from John Mayall – given that he's got great American work here from Harvey Mandel on guitar and Don Sugarcane Harris on violin! LP, Vinyl record album

The MC5 move to Atlantic Records after their first album – and find a whole new sort of focus that's pretty great! Their classic debut was a raw live album – designed to capture their intensity on the Detroit scene of the late 60s – but this set has the group stretching out, and really going for something else – working in the studio for the first time, with surprisingly strong production from a young Jon Landau – and a sense of focus in the songs that shows a great degree of maturity, while still keeping all their pre-punk edges! Wayne Kramer and Fred Sonic Smith are plenty darn fierce on guitar – and the titles alone give a good idea of the energy of the record – and include "Tutti Frutti", "Teenage Lust", "High School", "Shakin Street", "The Human Being Lawnmower", and "Back In The USA". LP, Vinyl record album

A great little collection that's maybe the opposite of the long-running tradition of "desert island discs" – in that the music here is hardly essential, but would be plenty of fun to hear if you were trapped alone with nowhere else to go! Think of the set as the darker side of exotica at the end of the 50s – a spot where tropical sounds mix with Latin rhythms and some rockish touches too – material from the years before surf guitars were really hitting the mainstream, but older modes were being infused with a bit of electricity and new modes of production – all in ways that make for some very cool cuts collected in the set! The package brings together rare singles from a variety of sources – and titles include "Jivaro" by Harvey Anderson, "Babalu" by Phyllis Branch, "The Lonely Sea" by Rick & Trisha, "Strictly Polynesian" by Davy Jones & The Dolphins, "Midnight" by Hank Levine, "Bongo Heat" by Coral & The South Seas, "Martinique" by Ty & Ed, "Atlantis" by Blue Bells, "Rumba Rhapsody" by Hector Cari & The Dancing Strings, "Ho Ba La La" by Dariel Kay, and "Miserlou" by Vitin Aviles Y Su Orquesta. LP, Vinyl record album

The MC5 move to Atlantic Records after their first album – and find a whole new sort of focus that's pretty great! Their classic debut was a raw live album – designed to capture their intensity on the Detroit scene of the late 60s – but this set has the group stretching out, and really going for something else – working in the studio for the first time, with surprisingly strong production from a young Jon Landau – and a sense of focus in the songs that shows a great degree of maturity, while still keeping all their pre-punk edges! Wayne Kramer and Fred Sonic Smith are plenty darn fierce on guitar – and the titles alone give a good idea of the energy of the record – and include "Tutti Frutti", "Teenage Lust", "High School", "Shakin Street", "The Human Being Lawnmower", and "Back In The USA". LP, Vinyl record album

The album where Bruce Springsteen really settles in as The Boss – gritty, chest-pumping anthems all the way here on this one! Born In The USA is so exuberant and full of life, even when Bruce is angry –as he is on the title track – his charisma is so strong that you'd be forgiven for thinking he's cheerleading, when he's really criticizing. Strong stuff, even if you might want to skip over couple of overplayed numbers – with "Cover Me", "Darlington County", "I'm On Fire", "I'm Going Down", "My Hometown", "Glory Days", "Born In The USA", "No Surrender", "Bobby Jean", "Dancing In The Dark", and "Working On The Highway". LP, Vinyl record album

The world of girl groups might seem cliched to some – but if you know where to look, you'll find a host of really amazing material – and that's definitely the case in this well-chosen set, a superb Ace Records package that's overflowing with material that goes way past the obvious! At some level, Ace are approaching the style in the reverse way of more mainstream collections – not starting with hits, then trickling down to obscurities – and instead pulling together unusual bits from a variety of indie labels that might have gotten otherwise overlooked, including a few cuts that were never issued at the time, mixed here with rock and soul gems from singles on labels like Keetch, Challenge, Bang, Mira, and Etiquette. As with their CD-length dips into the music, the quality here is superb – with 14 titles that include "Chu Sen Ling" by The Bermudas, "My Little Baby" by The Witches, "Tossin A Ice Cube" by The Hollywood Chicks, "Chico" by Linda Laurie, "A Dumb Song" by The Delicates, "Baby That's Me" by The Carolines, "Don't Worry About Me Baby" by Mayalta Page, "You May Be Holding My Baby" by The Pussycats, "I Wanna Know Right Now" by Carol Slade, "Sweet Kind Of Loneliness" by The Darlettes, and "My Baby Looks But He Don't Touch" by Carol Connors. (Soul, Rock) LP, Vinyl record album

A really great collection of unusual female soul and pop from the 60s – a package that features rare singles, unreleased tracks, and other gems we never would have heard otherwise! Few folks know 60s music as well as the folks at Ace/Kent Records in the UK – which means that you can really trust them to serve up the best when it comes to a collection of girl group music – the sort of tracks that go way past the obvious, and really get at the fantastic range of sounds that were transforming the female side of the spectrum in the US! The package features 16 tracks in all, and spans a nice mix of artists and styles – with titles that include "Too bad He's Bad" by Beverly Williams, "Cupid's Got A Hold On Me" by The Belles, "Whirlwind" by The Rev-Lons, "First Love Baby" by Lena Calhoun & The Emotions, "So In Luv" by Othello Robertson, "You Are My First Love" by Pat Hunt, "I Need A Guy" by The Lovettes, "He's All Right With Me" by The Mirettes, "Mr Everything" by Little Eva Harris, "Sing Me A Love Song" by Felice Taylor, "Sir Galahad" by The Elites, "I Say Yeah" by The Pets, "Summertime Is Surfin Time" by The Surf Bunnies, and "It's Better To Live Or Die" by Mary Saxton. (Soul, Rock) LP, Vinyl record album

Includes selections from Halfbreeds, Woggles, Others, Sleepwalkers, Nuthins, Overcoat, Hatebombs, Element 79, Kartoons, Fortune & Maltese, and 1-2-5's! LP, Vinyl record album

70s issue of their "Sailor" record and includes the tracks "Dear Mary", "Living In the USA", "Quicksilver Girl", and "Lucky Man". LP, Vinyl record album

Really cool cuts from that magical moment when monster movies, rock and roll, and the 45rpm single all collided together – creating a short-lived but fantastically rich underground of really weird and wonderful records! The music here is a great mix of instrumentals, vocal numbers, and plenty of tracks that use odd effects to create all these sonic touches that make the records even better than just the sum of their parts – like mini-movies or musical cartoons, all with elements that hearken back to the glory days of horror movies! Titles include "Lock Your Door" by Ken Meyer, "Night Walk" by Dick D'Agostin, "The Prowler" by The Idols, "Shock Hop" by Johnny Cale, "Vampire" by The Cyrstals, "The Nightmare" by The Nightmares, "Zombie Walks" by Rebel Rousers, "Rigor Mortis" by Gravestone Four, "Night Sweats" by The Sadists, "The Chiller" by Googie Rene, "Egor's Chant" by Ziggy Gee & His Combo, "The Morgus Creep" by Morgus With The Daringers, and "Haunted Sax" by The Nite Caps. (Halloween, Rock) LP, Vinyl record album

Greasy Mike's been making the global rounds on records like this – serving up an imagined landscape of weird and wonderful sounds, all pulled from rare singles of late 50s/early 60s vintage! We're not sure Mike's efforts will ever win him a harem, but he's done a great job here – coming up with tunes that often have some slight exotic or Eastern sort of vibe, mixed with more familiar American sounds of the time – like electric guitar or Latin percussion! Titles include "Ole Tsasa" by Valisas & His Slaves, "Desert Wind" by The Vaqueros, "Cairo Twist" by The Royce McAfee Combo, "Cobra" by The Boys, "Sahara" by The Cotillions, "Port Said" by The Kasuals, "Moroc-Kin" by Arabian Knights, "Snake Charmer" by Torrents, "The Bagdad Fantasy" by Ilo Kay & His Trio, and "Istanbul" by Jol Coyes Boys. LP, Vinyl record album

Titles include "California Sun", "Oh Boy", "HB Goose Step", "Rockin Robin", "Killer Joe", and "Twist & Shout". LP, Vinyl record album

One of the most stunning debut albums of the 70s – and a set that burst on the scene with a sound that summed up a generation, but which had never been heard this clearly before! This self-titled Clash album was different from other landmarks of the time – work by the Sex Pistols, Ramones, and others – as the group had a sense of raw power, but also a tunefulness too – a way of pushing their message into territory that others wouldn't have reached – with tunes that were as surprisingly hummable as they were politically correct! There's a bit less Jamaican influence here than in later Clash years, but that quality is still present somewhat – and over the years, this is definitely a set we can return to again and again – with no sense of apology or outdated ideals at all. Nearly every cut's a classic – and titles include "Janie Jones", "Career Opportunities", "Police & Thieves", "Garageland", "Clash City Rockers", "I Fought The Law", "White Riot", "London's Burning", "White Man In Hammersmith Palais", and "I'm So Bored With The USA". LP, Vinyl record album

The second album from the Modern Lovers – but one that's completely different than the first! In an oft-told story, Jonathan Richman had a complete musical turnaround in the space between the records – shirking off the proto-punk of his roots (which was also a huge inspiration to the UK and US punk scenes to come) – and instead going into more personal material, delivered with the upfront and open emotionality that would mark Richman's music for decades to come! The shift is actually a great one – a way of really finding his own mark, and creating a sound that's completely unique – music that's surprisingly ageless, and with themes that nobody else could deliver this well. Titles include "Rockin Shoppin Center", "Back In The USA", "Important In Your Life", "New England", "Lonely Financial Zone", "Hi Dear", "Hey There Little Insect", and "Spring Time". LP, Vinyl record album

A rare gem produced by the Cali pop genius team of Terry Melcher and Bruce Johnston – with some of the surf rock elements you'd know from Johnston's work in the Beach Boys! "Titles include "Three Window Coupe", "Bonneville Bonnie", "Beach Girl", "Surf City", "Wah-Wahini", "Red Hot Roadseter, "Summer USA", "One Piece Topless Bathing Suit" and more. LP, Vinyl record album

Ulmer on Blue Note – who'd a thunk it? And oddly, although the album's on one of the most jazz-based labels at the time, it's also one of Ulmer's most rock-oriented – with strong lead vocals on nearly every track, and an overall style that's as bluesy as it is experimentally jazzy. Ulmer's clearly emerged as a star in his own right (or own mind) by the time of the album – and there's less of the shared group dynamic of the harmelodic years, and more of a style that's set up to support his lead presence. Players include Bill Laswell, Ronald Shannon Jackson, and Nicky Skopelitis – and titles include "I Belong In The USA", "Lady Blue", "After Dark", "Black Sheep", and "Show Me Your Love America". (Jazz, Rock) LP, Vinyl record album

The thunderous, chaotic buzzsaw rumble of the great Link Wray – a batch of the amazing earlier pulp guitar stormers from one of most legendary rock instrumentalists of all time! Early Recordings was released as an LP compilation in 1978 – comprised of his best early material. With that in mind, it's hardly worth mentioning that this is one of the best long playing collections of the great Wray ever put together – featuring many of his signature instrumental gems! Tracks include an exceedingly pulpy take on Neal Hefti's "Batman Theme" plus a bunch of tracks penned or co-penned by Wray, including "Ace Of Spades", "Cross Ties", "Jack The Ripper", "I'm Branded", "Fat Back", "Run Chicken Run", "Turnpike USA", "Mr Guitar", the immortal "Rumble", Willie Dixon's "Hidden Charms" and more! LP, Vinyl record album

A weird set of sitar and bongos backed sing-speak about gurus, devil gods, leprechauns, elves, opium, the wind, hippie boys and other oddball psychedelia enhanced storytelling from Kali,The Gypsy Star Child! We don't know a thing about Kali – she has a cute, girly-girl, Anytown, USA voice, but the hippie fantasy, pseudo spiritual storytelling is weird, yet genuinely committed – with droning, Eastern-tinged psych backdrops. Includes "A Game Called Who Am I", "Cosmic Remembrance", "A Cosmic Telephone Call", "From The Angel Liesle & The Buddha" and "How Can I Tell My Guru?" LP, Vinyl record album

A classic collection of Chuck Berry's early genius – a set that introduced his best cuts to a new younger audience in the 70s! All the work here is from the early Chess Records days – and titles include "Deep Feeling", "Wee Wee Hours", "Nadine", "Brown-Eyed Handsome Man", "Roll Over Beethoven", "Thirty Days", "Havana Moon", "Too Much Monkey Business", "School Days", "Reelin & Rockin", "Oh Baby Doll", "Too Pooped To Pop", "Round & Round", "Rock & Roll Music", and "Back In The USA". (Soul, Rock) LP, Vinyl record album

Titles include "Small Town", "Rain On The Scarecrow", "Justice & Independence 85", "Rumbleseat", "You've Got To Stand For Somethin", "ROCK In The USA", and "Between A Laugh & A Tear". LP, Vinyl record album

Frankie, Frankie – OW! Take a broken-down synth, some crazy vocals, and a rich sense of imagination – and you've got one of the seminal groups of the New York scene of the early punk years. Suicide were a key bridge between earlier prog underground sounds and the art-rock punk styles that were coming out of New York in the late 70s – and one that was in a space that was completely their own – and still is, after all the decades since the release of this record! With this one landmark album, the band completely dismantled the cold German prog synth of groups like Kraftwerk, La Dusseldorf, and Tangerine Dream – and created a wild sound of spare anguish that brought a whole new dimension to punk rock. The album has got to be one of the top 50 "must have" rock records of all time – and titles include the cuts "Ghost Rider", "Rocket USA", "Johnny", "Frankie Teardrop", "Che", and "Cheree". LP, Vinyl record album

Killer work from The Flamin Groovies – a group who were already a bit out of time at their start, and who continue that approach here during the late 70s punk years – but at a way that maybe makes them stand out even more than before! The set's got a style that mixes rock roots with some rawer punk-styled production – a mode that really fits the Groovies, and seems to intensify their sound more than before – especially the lead guitar work of Cyril Jordan, who co-produced the set, and makes sure that he's right up front in the mix! The set includes a great version of the Warren Zevon tune "Werewolves Of London", a nice remake of Dylan's "Absolutely Sweet Marie", and the tracks "Jumpin' In The Night", "Next One Crying", "First Plane Home", "In The USA", "Down Down Down", "It Won't Be Wrong", "Ladyfriend", and "Tell Me Again". LP, Vinyl record album

A classic set that really helps put the Steve Miller sound on the map – a wonderful blend of tightness and easy going energy that makes the group one of the greatest things going from San Francisco at the time! Some tunes have this burning quality that's completely sublime – while others still preserve some of the looser jamming energy that spawned the group – those heady waves of sound that Miller and Scaggs really helped filter down for a whole new generation! Titles include the brilliant "Living In The USA", plus "Song For Our Ancestors", "Dear Mary", "Quicksilver Girl", "Gangster Of Love", and "Overdrive". LP, Vinyl record album

One of their best, recorded for 4AD with John Fryer production – with titles that include "Medusa", "Michelle", "After The Call", "Lorrentine", "Back Doore", and "Agonised By Love". LP, Vinyl record album

Beautifully tripped-out material from Gale Garnett & The Gentle Reign – titled after the Sausalito Heliport, a northern California complex that housed a bunch of hippy dippy bands in the late 60s! The album's a wonderful blend of Bay Area freedoms and some of the folksier and sweeter touches of east coast groups of the time – with instrumentation that includes organ, harpsichord, guitar, and lots of cool percussion – and a style that's got lots of wild elements, yet always manages to compress them down into cool sunshiney tunes! Titles include "Peace Comes Slowly To The Thrashing Fish", "Water Your Mind", "The Trip Note Song", "Man In The Middle", "Want Ad", and "Deer In The City". LP, Vinyl record album

A record with a much harder edge than you'd expect from the cover – not the ancient vibe of a medieval crusade, or the religiosity in the title – and instead this searing entry to the hard rock underground at the time! The group have a really heavy Black Sabbath sort of sound – with excellent lead guitars from Bob Cooke, and a sinister sound that has the grooves really dipping down into the depths, pushed even further by evil-edged vocals from singer Lynden Williams. The album's got the raw power of Sabbath's best work – and the whole thing's a killer record that should have been an instant classic. Titles include "Midnight Steamer", "Frustration", "Hooded Eagle", "Primitive Man", "She Came Like A Bat Out Of Hell", and "When The Wolf Sits". LP, Vinyl record album

John Mayall's on a new crusade here – hitting lines that are almost more truly blusey than his previous albums – thanks to a new lineup in the Blues Breakers combo! Alongside Mayall's lead on vocals, organ, harmonica, and bottleneck guitar – the group also features Mick Taylor on guitar, John McVie on bass, Keep Hartley on drums, Chris Mercer on tenor, and Rip Kant on baritone sax – the latter two of whom help keep the set from being a straight Chicago electric blues copy. Titles include "I Can't Quit You Baby", "Streamline", "Snowy Wood", "Man Of Stone", "Stand Back Baby", and "My Time After A While". LP, Vinyl record album

Tim Blake looks like he's sitting at the helm of a spaceship on the cover – and in a way, that's what his music was at the time – a way of taking off to the skies on waves of electronics, in the kinds of sounds that Blake first created in his Crystal Machine project, but which have an even sharper focus here! The album's got more vocals than Tim's previous effort, and in a way that's what really sets it apart from the rest – as Blake's got this warmly positive approach that would be at home in progressive folk, but which here comes across with a very unique style – given the mostly electronic setting of the album! All the banks of knobs, slides, and keys pictured on the cover are used to strongly skillful effect – on titles that include "Generator", "Passage Sur La Cite", "New Jerusalem", "Song For A New Age", and "Lighthouse". LP, Vinyl record album

The first-ever release of some incredible funky folk tunes from vocalist Susan Christie – originally recorded as demos in the years before her work at Columbia Records, and arguably even better than those classic singles! Backings here are by John Hill, who inflects Susan's folksy style with a heavier undercurrent – one that's subtly funky at the best moments, and which also pushes fuller strings and more baroque instrumentation into the mix – all in a way that almost sounds like David Axlerod might, had he started making folk records! Titles include the amazing 9 minute "Yesterday, Where's My Mind" – a funky mini-suite that's worth the price of the record alone – plus "Paint A Lady", "Rainy Day", "Ghost Riders In The Sky", "Echo In Your Mind", "When Love Comes", and "For The Love Of A Soldier". (Folk/Country, Rock) LP, Vinyl record album

A record with a much harder edge than you'd expect from the cover – not the ancient vibe of a medieval crusade, or the religiosity in the title – and instead this searing entry to the hard rock underground at the time! The group have a really heavy Black Sabbath sort of sound – with excellent lead guitars from Bob Cooke, and a sinister sound that has the grooves really dipping down into the depths, pushed even further by evil-edged vocals from singer Lynden Williams. The album's got the raw power of Sabbath's best work – and the whole thing's a killer record that should have been an instant classic. Titles include "Midnight Steamer", "Frustration", "Hooded Eagle", "Primitive Man", "She Came Like A Bat Out Of Hell", and "When The Wolf Sits". LP, Vinyl record album

Long hair, jazzy riffing, and all the best hope that the early years of prog had to offer – all coming together on a record that's years ahead of its time! It's really hard to put a label on Pete Brown's sounds with Piblokto – music that's maybe more poetic than most of its contemporaries, but also has more of a bite, too – definitely that wit of Brown's that never dimmed at all, and instrumentation that's super-sharp, and super-smart – but never too full of itself to be overly indulgent. The songs are longer than on the previous Piblokto record, but in ways that only flesh out the ideas even more fully – on titles that include "Highland Song", "Aeroplane Head Woman", "Got A Letter From A Computer", "Thousands On A Raft", and "Station Song Platform Two". LP, Vinyl record album

Rootsy noise sweetened by raggedly alluring melodicism from Califone – still one of the most vital and idiosyncratic groups of their time! We can no long heap the experimentalist tag on Califone – if we ever really could. They've got quite a sonic blueprint laid down after 8 or so albums, but they do continue to surprise us. Roots And Crowns is a strange and compelling blend of crackling, somehow rural sounds & percussion, strummed and sometimes chugging guitars, pastoral found-sound atmosphere and singing that's no more or less part of the ether than any other element. A timeless piece of work! Tracks include "Pink & Sour", "Spider's House" (which references Brian Wilson at his furthest out stage), "The Eye You Lost In The Crusades" (which references Nick Drake a bit in the guitar), "A Chinese Actor", "Our Kitten Sees Ghosts", "The Orchids", "Black Metal Valentine", "Rose Petal Ear", "3legged Animals", "If You Would" and more. LP, Vinyl record album

Totally great stuff by The Hollies – and don't let anyone else tell you any different! For Certain is one of the band's greatest albums – forged out of some totally great songwriting, amazingly precise guitar parts, and sharp-edged vocals that make the tracks sparkle and glisten. Big hits include "Pay You Back With Interest" and "Stop Stop Stop" – but it's all great, and other titles include "Tell Me To My Face", "Clown", "What's Wrong With The Way I Live", and "Crusader". LP, Vinyl record album

A goofy title track, and a groovy little album from Jan & Dean – a set that has them settling nicely into their role as one of the most playful pairs in west coast pop – with a heck of a lot more staying power than some of their more surf-washed contemporaries! The album's got a number of tracks that follow in the similar LA-environs mode as the title track – but instead of being gimmicky, they almost come across with this whimsical sort of charm – like they're Jan & Dean's version of British tunes from The Kinks – a wonderfully playful picture postcard version of California, with more wit than you might expect! Titles include "The Little Old Lady From Pasadena", "The Anaheim Azusa & Cuckamonga Sewing Circle", "Summer Means Fun", "Old Ladies Seldom Power Shift", "Sidewalk Surfin", "One Piece Topless Bathing Suit", and "Horace The Swinging School Bus Driver". LP, Vinyl record album

We don't normally dig hippies that much, but these guys are great – and this album may be one of the sweetest we've heard from the Bay Area scene of the early 70s! Joy Of Cooking have a wonderful style that puts plenty of jazz in the vocals of lead singers Toni Brown and Terry Garthwaite – a sweetly gliding approach to the music that pulls the folksy instrumentation of the rest of the combo into hipper territory, and which almost points towards some of the best breezy vocal work to come out of the SF scene later in the 70s. Instrumentation includes keyboards, guitar, alto sax, trombone, and lots of great percussion that punctuates the tunes with an earthy groove, and really emphasizes the rhythmic quality of the work. Titles include "Pilot", "Closer To The Ground", "Blues For A Friend", "New Colorado Blues", "A Thousand Miles", "Sometimes Like a River", and "The War You Left". LP, Vinyl record album

A mad mix of loud guitar, wild samples, and heavy Brazilian percussion – all nicely topped with the soulful vocals of Chico Science! The record's one of the group's earlier ones, and it's filled with a sense of raw power and experimentation that easily demonstrates why the band grabbed so much attention so quickly. Forget all those cliches you keep hearing about the postmodern power of Tropicalia – this stuff's equally as complex, and filled with bits and pieces you wouldn't even imagine! Titles include "Da Lama Ao Caos", "Salusatiano Song", "Riso Flora", "Coco Dub", "Rios, Pontes & Overdrives", and "A Cidade", which has a nice little snippet from Mark E Smith! (Brazil, Rock) LP, Vinyl record album

A very cool set on Liberty – oddly produced by George Goldner, of NYC soul/doo wop/Latin fame! Most tracks are written by the group's Tommy Marcus, who also arranged – and titles include "It Feels Like Friday", "Mr Zig Zag", "A Thousand Years", "Elegy On A Brick Wall", "Christopher Street Story", and "Third Story Window Ledge". LP, Vinyl record album

The second album from Traffic, and a set that forever cemented their legacy in the annals of modern music – a set that has Dave Mason returning to the group after a brief hiatus, and maybe helping the quartet find a tighter, rootsier sound overall! The approach here is nicely mixed – almost half Dave Mason moments, and half from the energy of Jim Capaldi and Steve Winwood – held together wonderfully by the reed work of Chris Wood! There's a few key classics here, and lots more overlooked gems – and titles include "You Can All Join In", "Forty Thousand Headmen", "Pearly Queen", "Who Know What Tomorrow May Bring", and "Feelin' Alright". LP, Vinyl record album

An interesting mix of 70s radio ready rock and harder edged numbers from Treasure – a group featuring vocals, keys and synth from one time Young Rascal Felix Cavaliere – and hard rock guitar guru Vinnie Cusano, later to go by Vinnie Vincent and join Kiss! The sound is catchy and tailor made for 70s stadium rock, but the group never hit that kinda pay dirt. Titles include "I Wanna Love You", "Turn Yourself Around", "My Lady Once Told Me", "When The Sun Shines", "Jubilation" and more, plus bonus single version of "I Wanna Love You". LP, Vinyl record album

The great early double album from Tom Waits! This is peak Asylum era Waits, getting into that charismatic, drunken bluesy poet mode – essentially working live in the studio with a small audience , giving it a genuine sounding latenight cabaret vibe, and embracing his wit and style as brilliantly as he'd done to this point. Brilliant vintage Waits and a loose, yet nicely rhythmic backing combo. Titles include "Better Off Without A Wife", "Emotional Weather Report", "On A Foggy Night", "Eggs & Sausage", "Spare Parts", "Big Joe & Phantom 309", and "Putnam County". LP, Vinyl record album

With tracks from Buffalo Springfield, Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young, The Stray Gators, The Tony & Susan Alamo Christian Foundation Orchestra & Chorus. LP, Vinyl record album

Fantastic sounds for fans of funk and rock alike – music from the freaky, fuzzy 70s scene in Zambia – a place where styles effortlessly criss-crossed to really produce something new and unique! The work here is often heavy on fuzz guitars, but also has some wickedly soulful basslines and drums – so that although the tunes can be psych-styled, they're also pretty darn funky too – often at a level that's a bit like the Nigerian Afro Funk of the time, but much grittier and more righteous! The quality of the music and scene is explored in depth in the package – which includes a very detailed booklet of notes and photos – all to support the selection of music, which may well be the hippest so far from the Now Again label – and that's really saying a lot, if you know their other titles! Titles on volume 2 include "Really" by Crossbones, "History Of Man" by Amanaz, "Poor Man" by Five Revolutions, "Hold On" by Ngozi Family, "Katonga" by Musi-O-Tunya, "Request To God" by Oscillations, "Mpundu" by Tinkles, "Otenta" by Dr Footswitch, "Mad Man" by Born Free, "SM" by Mike Nyoni, "Hot Do" by Jesper Siliya Lungu, "I'm Not Made Of Iron" by Chrissy Zebby Tembo, "Umbwalwa Ne Chamba" by Peace, "Umwana Wakusanga Mung'Anda" by Fire Balls, and "See The Storm" by Salty Dog. (Global Grooves, Rock) LP, Vinyl record album

As the notes say, "this album is a series of aural and spatial fantasies evoking the spirit of American patriotic music" – and the whole thing's recorded on electronic keyboards. Given that this one's on Takoma, you can guess the kind of hippy-dippy folksist influence it might have, which gives the electronic music tracks an even weirder edge. Maybe this is the kind of thing that Ives might have recorded, had he been alive in the 60s! With work by Byrd himself, plus Sousa, Cohan, and others. LP, Vinyl record album