The last recordings ever cut by the legendary Elmore James – a legendary force in electric blues of the 50s, and an artist who left this planet all too soon, at the early age of 45! The material really has James taking off on some of his guitar parts – working his slide style with a ... (Blues, Soul)read moreCD
An excellent set of messed-up funky soul from Etta James – one of her killer early 70s sides for Chess! The album mixes together bluesy tracks and straight ahead soul – in a hip, bad-walking style that nicely updates Etta's older style for the 70s. The set includes a great funky cut ... read moreLP, Vinyl record album
An excellent set of messed-up funky soul from Etta James – one of her killer early 70s sides for Chess! The album mixes together bluesy tracks and straight ahead soul – in a hip, bad-walking style that nicely updates Etta's older style for the 70s. The set includes a great funky cut ... read moreCD
Unlike some of her other early recordings, which tend to be raw screamin' R&B, this album's a beautiful set of ballads and weepers with arrangements by Riley Hampton, who also did stunning work like this for Lorez Alexandria and Walter Jackson. You might be tempted to call the album a sell-out ... read moreCD
Searing stuff – easily one of Etta James' greatest albums! The set is a non-stop jam, recorded live at the New Era Club in Nashville before a small and screaming crowd – a perfect performance all the way through, one that showcases Etta as she rarely sounded on vinyl during the 1960s. ... read moreLP, Vinyl record album
Searing stuff – easily one of Etta James' greatest albums! The set is a non-stop jam, recorded live at the New Era Club in Nashville before a small and screaming crowd – a perfect performance all the way through, one that showcases Etta as she rarely sounded on vinyl during the 1960s. ... read moreCD
(Out of print.)
Etta James —
Her Best ... CD Chess/MCA, 1960s. Used ...
$3.99
Loads of classics from Etta James' Chess Records years – 20 tracks in all! CD
A great collection that brings together rare work from two bluesy soul artists of the 60s! Jesse James is one of our favorite singers ever – an obscure San Francisco talent with a voice that's instantly captivating, as you'll hear on the set's selection of his early singles, plus tracks from ... read moreCD
(Out of print. Note: CD appears to have been mastered from vinyl sources – and although printed professionally, it's a bit low-budget in terms of the packaging. CD may not play well on all players.)
Think what you might about Rick James, this is actually a pretty darn funky album – with lots of tight bass-heavy grooves! Rick's working here with the Stone City Band, in a style that's leaner and less commercial than some of his later work – going for a mainstream funk approach, but ... read moreLP, Vinyl record album
Another stone winner from Rick James' early 80s run for Motown – a set that follows strongly on territory opened up by previous records – especially that bass-heavy approach to funk! The record's maybe not as stone classic as others, but still is way tighter and more put-together than ... read moreCD
Rick James' first LP for Motown subsidiary Gordy – an effort that was to provide the blueprint for his later success! James' trademark pop bass funk style is fully formed on this one already, and though we may once have thought little of the slick production and style, looking back this ... read moreCD
One of the all-time great Rick James albums – a return to funkier sounds for Rick that worked both artistically and commercially – and actually got over far better than his more blatant attempts at crossover material on other records! The mix here is perfect – a true summation of ... read moreCD
One of the all-time great Rick James albums – a return to funkier sounds for Rick that worked both artistically and commercially – and actually got over far better than his more blatant attempts at crossover material on other records! The mix here is perfect – a true summation of ... read moreLP, Vinyl record album
Rick James is massively throwing down on this classic set – tight, right, and on the money all the way through – in that trademark groove that so many others would try to cop, but never get this right! The album bristles with energy right from the start – lots of bass at the ... read moreCD
A killer 2CD set of funky grooves by one of the best backing bands ever! The JBs were James Brown's legendary combo during his monster funk years of the early 70s – and this well-selected compilation brings together 30 rare tracks from their best years! The set's got a great set of notes ... read moreCD
(Includes the large booklet but not the slipcover.)
One of the most fantastic albums by the JBs – a masterpiece of funky jamming, tight instrumentation, and that free yet tight style of the James Brown 70s years! The tracks are longer than on some of the earlier singles – especially the 8 minute jammer "(It's Not The Express) It's ... read moreCD
(Part of the Rare Groove Funk 1000 Best Collection!)
A fantastic slice of lost work from the legendary JBs – including the track that first got Bootsy Collins and company the job as James Brown's backing band! The set leads off with that gem of a groove – the fast funky "More Mess On My Thing" – a tune that's got the sort ... read moreCD
A fantastic slice of lost work from the legendary JBs – including the track that first got Bootsy Collins and company the job as James Brown's backing band! The set leads off with that gem of a groove – the fast funky "More Mess On My Thing" – a tune that's got the sort ... read moreLP, Vinyl record album
A stunner of a record – the first-ever album by The JBs, never issued back in the day – and lost for years until it recently resurfaced on a test pressing! The set features a leaner, more stripped-down version of the group – one that features Bootsy Collins on bass, and which ... read moreLP, Vinyl record album
(Also comes with a great book – detailing the album and its rescue from obscurity!)
A soulful classic from Chicago! "Move Your Body" is a wonderful house tune – one with a warmer groove than usual, and vocals that really drive the track in a great way. Mixed by Chicago legend Ron Hardy, this track needs no introduction around these parts, and we'd be surprised if ... read more12-inch, Vinyl record
Classic, classic mid 80s house music from one of the architects of the style, Marshall Jefferson, featuring a mix by Frankie Knuckles! 12-inch, Vinyl record
This one hardly needs an introduction – and it's a record that set the cause of corporal punishment back 100 years! Tracks include "Spank Your Blank Blank", "To Spank With Love", "Spank A Little Bit", and "Spank Your Thang". More proof that the ... read moreLP, Vinyl record album
Smooth and sweet soul from Jeffree – an unsung 70s vocalist with a really great approach! Jeffree, aka Jeff Perry, is the brother of Greg Perry – and works in a similar style to his more famous brother – warmly grooving soul with a fluid, mellow approach – served up with ... read moreCD
A really great collection of rare soul singles from Norma Jenkins – a singer who's probably best known for her mid 70s album Patience Is A Virtue – but who's heard here on much more obscure hard soul tracks from before that record! Norma's both funky and groovy here, depending on the ... read moreCD
An essential collection of rare material by this important female gospel trio of the 50s – a group who's not only known for bringing a style to the music that was ever bit as great as male group gospel of the pre-soul years – but who also are the initial early home to later soul ... (Gospel, Soul)read moreCD
An obscure early 80s electro effort from George Clinton – all the more surprising, given how much he pretended to hate hip hop! At some level, Jimmy G & The Tackheads are mostly an 80s groove outfit – using lots of bass and keys to pop and lock the groove, while throwing in plenty ... read moreLP, Vinyl record album
(Cover has a large peeld spot down most of the spine.)
Titles include the sublime "My True Story" – plus "When I Was Single", "Never Never", "Hurry Back", "Johnny Never Knew", "Rain", "These Golden Rings", and "Hully Gully Callin Time". CD
A great run of records from Alphonso Johnson – the best of his career, wrapped up here in one sweet set! First up is Moonshadows – one of the earliest of bassist Alphonso Johnson's funky fusion albums for Epic! Moonshadows is a nice little set of choppy grooves that recalls the best ... (Jazz, Soul)read moreCD
A sublime bit of indie soul from the early 70s – the one and only album by vocalist Benny Johnson, recorded with some totally great backings from funk legend Julius Brockington and his United Chair combo! For the session, Brockington chose a warm, organ-drenched sound that's a fair bit like ... read moreCD
Buddy Johnson —
Walkin ... LP Mercury, Mid 50s. Very Good- ...
$3.99
Classic material from Buddy Johnson – a key figure in the transition from bigger band jazz to raw R&B in the 50s! (Jazz, Soul)LP, Vinyl record album
(Black label pressing with deep groove. NOTE – Cover has been "customized" on front with a paper collage.)
The self-titled set comes a few years after the breakup of Chairmen Of The Board, and General shows the world that he can keep on keeping on as a 70s soul singer! The record has some some fantastic gems that easily stand with Johnson's best work – like the smooth soul stepper "Don't ... read moreLP, Vinyl record album
(Includes the printed inner sleeve. Cover has unglued teams.)
Groovy 80s soul from Howard Johnson – the Doin It My My Way and Vision LPs – back-to-back on CD! Doin It My Way features is a sweet batch of electro-influenced pop soul – produced by Mic Murphy & David Frank of The System! The record has a very System-y vibe, but Howard's ... read moreCD
Sexy soul magic from LJ Johnson – not to be confused with ex-Dramatic LJ Reynolds, but a great singer in his own right! LJ's got a sweet vocal approach that's almost that you'd hear from earlier years, on east coast vocal group records – but here, he's working in a fuller, richer mode ... read moreLP, Vinyl record album
A tremendous little record from LV Johnson – an obscure indie soul effort from the early 80s, but one that's recorded with a really great sound overall! The production is quite professional – full backings done with help from Chicago arrangers Willie Henderson, Floyd Morris, and Sonny ... read moreLP, Vinyl record album
The complete recordings of a crucially overlooked deep soul singer – the amazing Rozetta Johnson, a voice that should have been as big as Aretha Franklin or Gladys Knight, if there were any justice in the world! And Johnson isn't just a great singer on her own – she gets incredible ... read moreCD
Samuel Jonathan Johnson —
My Music ... LP Columbia/Be With (UK), 1978. New Copy (reissue)...
$29.99
One of our favorite 70s soul records ever – and a totally unique set as well! To our ears, Samuel Jonathan Johnson belongs in the company of Roy Ayers, Norman Connors, and other spiritual soul heavyweights – even though he only ever cut this one album for Columbia Records back in 1978! ... read moreLP, Vinyl record album
A great second-chapter effort from the legendary Syl Johnson – a sweet little record in which Johnson's raw vocals come into play with the tighter, warmer sound of Hi Records – with amazing results that have made the album a classic for years! The blend here is great – as Johnson' ... read moreCD
A really really amazing package – the full story of the early years of Syl Johnson – one of the funkiest soul singers to ever come from Chicago! Syl's music has become the stuff of legend over the years – initially collected in rare funky 45s and two even rarer albums – ... read moreLP, Vinyl record album
One of the best-ever soul albums to come out of Chicago – and it may well be one of the best soul albums ever! The set's the deepest that Syl Johnson ever recorded – and it takes all the hard, raw soul he forged on previous funky 45s – and spins it out in longer album format ... read moreLP, Vinyl record album
(180 gram vinyl pressed at RTI!)
Syl Johnson —
Total Explosion ... CD Hi Records/Ultra Vybe (Japan), 1975. New Copy ...
$13.99
A wicked explosion from the legendary Syl Johnson – one of his smoking sets for Hi Records – done with solid soulful help from Willie Mitchell! Mitchell's familiar Memphis groove is firmly in place here – tightly compressed rhythms and horns, vamping perfectly for Syl's raw ... read moreCD
Totally wonderful work from this obscure Detroit group – a quintet of very young gospel singers, and one that gets some wicked work on electric guitar as well! The music has a vibe that's every bit what you'd expect from the cover – very raw, and at-home – with that guy on his ... (Gospel, Soul)read moreLP, Vinyl record album
Durand Jones & The Indications —
American Love Call ... CD Colemine/Dead Oceans, 2019. New Copy ...
$12.9913.99
Man, these guys just keep on getting better – and this time around, Durand Jones & The Indications deliver a record that's way more than just another funk band with a lead singer! Instead, there's a depth and complexity to this set that takes us back to our favorite indie soul albums at ... (Deep Funk, Soul)read moreCD
Durand Jones & The Indications —
American Love Call ... LP Colemine/Dead Oceans, 2018. New Copy ...
$18.99
Man, these guys just keep on getting better – and this time around, Durand Jones & The Indications deliver a record that's way more than just another funk band with a lead singer! Instead, there's a depth and complexity to this set that takes us back to our favorite indie soul albums at ... (Deep Funk, Soul)read moreLP, Vinyl record album
Could anyone ever utter a sexier line than "Don't go to strangers, come to me?" We think not, and it's material like that that makes the album a real killer from Etta Jones – one of her best from the 60s, cut when she was really developing her skills as a vocalist, but still had ... (Vocalists, Soul)read moreLP, Vinyl record album
(Green label pressing in a pink cover. Cover has large initials in marker and nots in pen on back.)
Hard to imagine Etta Jones being lonely and blue – especially when she sounds as great as this! The album's one of Jones' early classics from Prestige – a date that really has her classing things up a lot, and drawing on bits of Billie Holiday and Dinah Washington's styles, to mix in ... (Vocalists, Soul)read moreLP, Vinyl record album
(Black & silver label stereo pressing. Cover has a light mark from sticker removal.)
Excellent work by Glenn Jones – even if the record is only a 5 track EP! The set is one of those strange little records issued in the early 80s, when the music industry was trying to figure out a way to make money between the ever-escalating cost of the LP and the less-popular 12" ... read moreLP, Vinyl record album
Sweet 80s soul from the mighty Glenn Jones – one of the best mainstream singers of his generation, as you'll hear on this set of mellow grooving tunes! Instrumentation's pretty electric at most moments – lots of synth, keyboards, and beats – but Glenn's well-trained vocals bring ... read moreLP, Vinyl record album
A heavy heavy set from Gloria Jones – a record that features some killer Paul Riser arrangements that are right up there with the deepest Motown work of the early 70s! Jones' groove is always a bit different than most of her contemporaries – not the usual Motown bag, and really far-reac ... read moreCD
Fantastic compilation of 70's east coast soul sides by one of the greatest (and least recognized) female vocalists of the era. Originally recorded for the great All Platinum/Stang set of labels, now repackaged nicely, and with better notes than any U.S. reissue of Linda Jones' stuff. 18 great ... read moreCD
Tight work from those magical years of west coast R&B – a set that features Luke Jones on alto with his Five Joes and Four Joes group, and with Joe Alexander's Highlanders – and Red Mack on trumpet and vocals with his own group, and with Jones' orchestra! (Blues, Soul)LP, Vinyl record album
In the early 70s, Quincy Jones surrounded himself with some of the best young soul and jazz talent he could find, plus a few older pros – and the result was a great series of albums that spanned genres and created a whole new approach to modern R&B. This gem of a record was put together ... (Jazz, Soul)read moreLP, Vinyl record album
(Includes the printed inner sleeve. Cover has some wear.)
Quincy Jones —
Dude ... LP A&M, 1981. Very Good+ ...
$5.99
Quincy just never stopped putting out classic soulful albums! This one, from the early 80s, features a smooth jazzy blend of tracks, with a strong nod to the kinds of souped-up studio sounds that were being used by groups like The Crusaders, but also with a lot of the kind of soulfulness that made ... read moreLP, Vinyl record album
(Includes the printed inner sleeve. Cover has light wear.)
Quincy Jones —
I Heard That! ... LP A&M, Late 60s/1970s. Very Good+ 2LP Gatefold ...
$6.99
This set is divided into three parts – new songs recorded with a vocal group called Wattsline, the Award Winning Jones and the Grammy Winning Jones. The personnel involved with all of these songs is huge and they include George Duke, Herbie Hancock, Billy Preston, The Johnson Brothers, Toots ... (Jazz, Soul)read moreLP, Vinyl record album
Sweet funky Q for the 70s – easily one of the coolest albums ever from Quincy Jones! The album's got a very heavy electric vibe – one that's kind of a laidback take on the styles that Jones was forging in some of his 70s soundtrack work – served up with massive work on the ... (Jazz, Soul)read moreCD
Sweet funky Q for the 70s – easily one of the coolest albums ever from Quincy Jones! The album's got a very heavy electric vibe – one that's kind of a laidback take on the styles that Jones was forging in some of his 70s soundtrack work – served up with massive work on the ... (Jazz, Soul)read moreLP, Vinyl record album
(Original brown label pressing. Cover has light wear.)
Great work from soul singer Ronnie Jones – an artist who was born in the US, but cut all of this work in the swinging London scene of the 60s – where he was obviously a very big addition to the mod scene! Ronnie's got a voice that's capable of a great range when needed, but which can ... read moreCD
Sharon Jones & The Dap Kings —
Soul Of A Woman ... LP Daptone, 2017. Near Mint- ...
$14.99
The fantastic final album from Sharon Jones – a wonderfully deep talent who was taken from us all too soon! The set's maybe the ultimate setting for Sharon's incredible voice – as it features both her longtime core combo, the Dap-Kings – as well as additional backings from the ... (Deep Funk, Soul)read moreLP, Vinyl record album
They might be borrowing her band, but they sure can't dampen her soul – because Sharon Jones is strongly back in action, and sounding funkier and more deeply soulful than ever! Given that Sharon wasn't singing back in the 60s, it's hard to think we'd be calling her the real deal – but ... (Deep Funk, Soul)read moreCD
Essential female Philly soul recorded by the Jones Girls, a group who came to Philly later than many of their big 70s acts, but who went onto become possibly the best female act who recorded with Gamble & Huff. The record's a group effort of the Philly team – with arrangements by Gene ... read moreLP, Vinyl record album
(Frankford/Wayne acetate in a plain sleeve.)
Joneses —
Joneses ... CD Epic/Big Break (UK), 1977. Used ...
$6.99
A killer for the Joneses – probably their strongest album all the way through, thanks to some great production and arrangements by Bobby Eli! This one's got the group taking the fragile harmony style of their earlier records, and filtering it through the Philly powerhouse groove to create a ... read moreCD
A pretty sweet little solo album by Lonnie Jordan – a key War member during the group's biggest fame. The album lives up to its title, and serves up a number of different musical styles, all with Lonnie on keyboards and vocals – but the best work is the stuff that's still in the War-typ ... read moreLP, Vinyl record album
Margie Joseph's really hitting on all burners here – thanks to sublime production from Lamont Dozier, working at the height of his mid 70s powers! Joseph's earlier deep soul vocals are given a nice sense of focus and righteous energy from Dozier's production – a fullness that somehow ... read moreLP, Vinyl record album
Two classic break tracks on one single! "Catch A Groove" is a monstrously hard track to find by Juice – issued only on a single, and with a great riffing guitar and funky keyboards that you'll probably recognize instantly. The cut's got a catchy vocal refrain, but there's a lot of ... read more12-inch, Vinyl record
An uber-rare album from Orlando Julius & The Afro Sounders – recorded at Ginger Baker's studio in Lagos and originally (apparently quite scarcely) released by Philips in 1973 – wonderful stuff and on par with the excellent material the group recorded in the handful of previous years! ... (Global Grooves, Soul)read moreCD
(CD version comes with a great hardcover book-like package that includes liner notes by Orlando Julius.)
Junie —
Bread Alone ... CD Columbia/Big Break (UK), 1980. Used ...
$3.99
Slicked up funk from Junie – not as crazy has his stoned-out albums on Westbound, but just as great overall! There's plenty of 80s bass pedal whomping in the mix, but production's nice and smooth, with some good doses of soul that keep the record from being a silly throwaway funk effort. ... read moreCD
A soaring effort from Kaina – one we're sure to remember as a major creative statement from a versatile singer and as a vital snapshot of a burgeoning era in Chicago's indie soul scene! Kaina's triumph here is the way she sets up a dreamy mood that holds throughout the album – wherein ... (Neo Soul, Soul)read moreCD