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A set that came out at the end of the 90s, but which features unreleased material from earlier years – which you might have guessed, given the "vault" in the title! The set has tracks that go all the way back to the mid 80s, but is mostly focused on the final years when Prince was working with Warner Brothers – including some when he'd dropped his name – and overall, although there's no huge hits here, the material from Prince's cutting room floor is still head and shoulders above most from the rest – tight, funky, and full of catchy hooks! Titles include "My Little Pill", "Extraordinary", "Rest Of My Life", "It's About That Walk", "She Spoke 2 Me", "5 Women", and "When The Lights Go Down". LP, Vinyl record album

Mixed by Chris Simmonds with tracks by Tim Deluxe, Diggers, House Proud People, B. Rich, Alex Faith, Partners In Time, and Simmonds himself. (New Grooves, Soul) CD

Tracks by RL Burnside, Pinetop Perkins, Boogaloo Ames, Eddie Cusic, and Robert Curtis Smith. (Blues, Soul) CD

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... 12-inch, Vinyl record

The King Curtis combo in all of its glory – really grooving hard here in a set of instrumental performances recorded at the same time as Aretha Franklin's famous live date at the Fillmore West! King backed Aretha up on her own record from Fillmore, but this set features all the instrumental grooves laid down by Curtis and his group before Aretha took the stage – very tight and funky numbers that showcase King's work on alto and soprano sax, as well as organ from Billy Preston, guitar from Cornell Dupree, electric piano from Truman Thomas, and funky drums from Bernard Pretty Purdie! The Memphis Horns get into the action a bit – blasting out when the tunes require it – and as with the Franklin album, the recording style here is totally great – very "live", but still with the best focus of Atlantic studio soul! Titles include a smoking 7 minute version of King's funky classic "Memphis Soul Stew", plus long takes on "Changes", "I Stand Accused", and "Soul Serenade" – as well as shorter versions of "A Whole Lotta Love" and "Ode To Billy Joe"! CD

A great return to form for Prince – even though at the time, we all had to refer to him with an unpronounceable symbol! There's a lean, funky vibe to most of the record – almost a step back to the unified group approach of his mid 80s classics – and even though a few sonic elements have been updated, they changes have been done in the best way possible – partly by absorbing some of the new pop psychedelic touches that Prince himself had unlocked back in the 80s, filtered into the work of others, and which are taken back here with great modifications that really sound great next to the grooves! Titles include "The Most Beautiful Girl In The World", "We March", "Now", "319", "Billy Jack Bitch", "Eye Hate U", "P Control", and "Shy" – plus a number of short "NPG Operator" tracks. CD

Tracks include "Only Your Love", "It's Cool", "The Sha-La Bandit", "Ms. Grace", "Your Little Trustmaker", "Hypnotized", and "So Much In Love". CD

Fantastic west coast blues from the 60s, none of issued at the time – collected together here in a set that really shows the continuing evolution of the sound of LA! During the 60s, the city's blues took on some of the transformations that were happing in Chicago – with similar roots in a southern scene that moved into a hipper, more urban environment – where blues phrasing was more electrified, and mixed with influences from soul and jazz – often with some funky hybrids along the way! All the cuts here were recorded by Kent Records – the clear black music powerhouse of the west coast at the time – and half were issued on rare Japanese CDs in the 90s, the other 12 appear here for the first time ever – and as usual with Ace, the presentation, notes, and sound quality are wonderful. Titles include "Mama Said" and "Hey Baby" by Willie Headen, "Address In My Hand" and "Soul Blues" by Willie Garland, "Christine" and "Baby Don't Tear My Clothes" by Model T Slim, "Blues Pain" by Lowell Fulson, "You Told Me A Lie" by Smokey Wilson, "Before Day" by Big Mama Thornton, and "Rocks In My Pillow" and "Let Me Play With Your Poodle" by Long Gone Miles. (Blues, Soul) CD

A massive look at the mighty pairing of Cannonball Adderley and David Axelrod – a partnership that's way more than just jazz musician and producer! Axelrod's talents in the studio are many, but his greatest heights were possibly reached in collaboration with Cannonball – a relationship that spawned an amazing run of singles and albums that allowed the saxophonist to expand his music to amazing new levels, and touch audiences that few other jazz musicians could reach! Axelrod's sense of sound and timing are a perfect match for Cannonball's intrinsically funky approach to the saxophone – and no matter what the setting here, from big band to small combo, studio recordings to live date, high concept records to relaxed jazz sessions, there's an undeniable groove in the music that never lets up. The CD pulls together a very wide range of work from key Axelrod/Adderley Capitol recordings – and offers a double-length look at their pairing that's as soulful as it is essential. Titles include "The Black Messiah", "Space Spiritual", "Do Do Do", "Gone", "Ndolima", "Up & At It", "Hummin", "Make Your Own Temple", "Tensity", "Fun In The Church", "Khutsana", "Price You Got To Pay To Be Free", "Walk Tall", "Music You All", and "Dialogues For Jazz Quintet & Orchestra". (Jazz, Soul) CD

... 12-inch, Vinyl record