(Neo Soul, Soul) 12-inch, Vinyl record

Omar's second album for BMG – and an instant classic set of soul tracks that sadly almost disappeared as soon as it was released! The album shows Omar growing even stronger than ever both as a singer and songwriter – moving from the indie feel of earlier work into a confident role as one of the few strong male soul talents of the end of the 20th century. Omar's voice is heavenly, as always – almost an electric-sounding pitch that works perfectly with the keyboards and instrumentation on the set – and his songs have a mature quality that is at once personal and professional. The album's filled with some great songs and wonderful surprises – like Omar's cover of The Stranglers' "Golden Brown", and tracks that include "Say Nothin" (2 versions), "This Is Not A Love Song", "Fallin", "Music For The Pipe", "Waiting Game", and "Spring Step". (Neo Soul, Soul) LP, Vinyl record album

Incredible work from the amazing Dorothy Ashby – a brilliant set of funky and spiritual tunes, set to full backings from Chicago soul arranger Richard Evans! This album is easily one of Ashby's greatest, and it's dedicated to the writings of Omar Khayyam – one of the forces guiding Dorothy's more spiritual sound at the end of the 60s, clearly opened up in a way that's not unlike the direction of Alice Coltrane's work, but a lot more focused and a lot more funky! Ashby not only plays her usual jazz harp, but also koto as well, and even sings a bit too – and the larger group directed by Evans features work by Stu Katz on vibes and kalimba, Lenny Druss on flutes, and Cash McCall on guitar – all in a groove that's really a precursor to the Earth Wind & Fire generation of the Chicago scene! Titles include the amazing break "The Moving Finger" – worth the price of the album alone – plus "Dust", "Joyful Grass & Grape", "Heaven & Hell", "Wax & Wane", "Shadow Shapes", "For Some When Young", "Myself When Young", and "Drink". (Jazz, Soul) CD

A fantastic bit of UK soul from the early 90s – a set that was initially only issued as a white label promo, but which has a classic sound that takes us back to the days of Omar and Soul II Soul! The production is nice and lean – a bit in the homegrown style used on Omar's debut – and the rhythms have that nicely chunky quality that the UK was putting forth at the time, in a way that's nicely different than mainstream US R&B, especially of the new jack generation – all a perfect fit for the way that Rick Clarke can sweetly deliver a lyric in collaboration with guests who include Gina Foster, Imaani, Easton, Jill Francis, and others. The guests really help give the record that upbeat vibe from the UK soundsystem mode of the time – often way more collaborative than US soul – and titles include "Share My Love", "Do What We Gotta Do", "Fantasy", "Love Don't Strike Twice", "I Like To Party", and "Gonna Make You Happy". LP, Vinyl record album

The first album by the second group to call themselves the Last Poets – and as fierce a document of their rich talents as you'll ever find – bursting forth with anger and righteousness at a level as tight as Gil Scott-Heron's first album! The group here is the key second lineup of the ensemble of wordsmiths – comprised of Abiodun Oyewole, Alafia Pudim, and Omar Ben Hassan, plus the percussionist Nilaja – and most cuts feature only spare percussion backing over the spoken protest poetry – delivered with a brutal edge that really sums up the righteous politics of the time. Titles include "Run, N****r", "On The Subway", "When The Revolution Comes", "Jones Comin' Down", "Black Thighs", "N*****s Are Scared Of Revolution", and "Wake Up, N*****s" – all of which should give you a good picture of what's going on with the record! CD

The first album by the second group to call themselves the Last Poets – and as fierce a document of their rich talents as you'll ever find – bursting forth with anger and righteousness at a level as tight as Gil Scott-Heron's first album! The group here is the key second lineup of the ensemble of wordsmiths – comprised of Abiodun Oyewole, Alafia Pudim, and Omar Ben Hassan, plus the percussionist Nilaja – and most cuts feature only spare percussion backing over the spoken protest poetry – delivered with a brutal edge that really sums up the righteous politics of the time. Titles include "Run, N*gger", "On The Subway", "When The Revolution Comes", "Jones Comin' Down", "Black Thighs", "N*ggers Are Scared Of Revolution", and "Wake Up, N*ggers" – all of which should give you a good picture of what's going on with the record! LP, Vinyl record album

A masterpiece of freeform funk from Mandrill – New York group at the start of the 70s, but one who work here with the best longform jamming styles of the Bay Area scene! The combo draw equal influence from jazz, funk, soul, and Latin – using all elements in a unique hybrid that's all their own – and which really favors instrumental passages more than vocal moments on this debut album – with searing lead guitar from Omar Mesa, next to plenty of organ lines, flute, trumpet, and tenor – all carried with heavy bass and percussion, and peppered with lots of surprises along the way! The whole thing's tremendous – a massively funky first statement from the group – with cuts that include the extended suite "Peace & Love", plus other funky goodies like "Symphonic Revolution", "Rollin' On", "Warning Blues", and "Mandrill". CD

A masterpiece of freeform funk from Mandrill – New York group at the start of the 70s, but one who work here with the best longform jamming styles of the Bay Area scene! The combo draw equal influence from jazz, funk, soul, and Latin – using all elements in a unique hybrid that's all their own – and which really favors instrumental passages more than vocal moments on this debut album – with searing lead guitar from Omar Mesa, next to plenty of organ lines, flute, trumpet, and tenor – all carried with heavy bass and percussion, and peppered with lots of surprises along the way! The whole thing's tremendous – a massively funky first statement from the group – with cuts that include the extended suite "Peace & Love", plus other funky goodies like "Symphonic Revolution", "Rollin' On", "Warning Blues", and "Mandrill". LP, Vinyl record album

A beautifully overstuffed collection of early work from New Orleans soul legend Allen Toussaint – a set that not only includes many of his key recordings from the scene in the 60s, but also some of his important productions for other artists too! The package begins with Toussaint in the lead on a series of sides on CD one – working either as himself, or as Al Touson, or with The Stones, The Rubyiats, or Allen & Allen – all with these choppy, loping, heavy-grooving rhythms that were Toussaint's huge contribution to New Orleans soul right from the start! Titles include "Whirlaway", "Whipped Cream", "Moo Moo", "Wham Tousan", "Omar Khayyam", "I Don't Need One", "Baby Do Liddle", "Tomorrow", "Fat Cat", "Banana Split", and "Java". CD2 features a series of recordings done for the Minit, Instant, and Sansu labels – all with Toussaint involved either as producer, arranger, or musician – on material that forever shaped the sound of New Orleans – titles that include "A Certain Girl" by Ernie K Doe, "Over You" by Aaron Neville, "I Like It Like That (parts 1 & 2)" by Chris Kenner, "Sophisticated Cissy" by The Meters, "Holy Cow" by Lee Dorsey, "I'm Evil Tonight" by Betty Harris, "Oogsey Moo" by Jessie Hill, "It Will Stand" by The Showmen, "Ruler Of My Heart" by Irma Thomas, "Fortune Teller" by Benny Spellman, and "Hot Tamales (parts 1 & 2)" by The Primemates. 50 tracks in all! CD

The first-ever full length set of work from Howard Bomar – a singer who only issued a few rare 45s back in the 60s, yet kept on making music for years! From the very first tune, you'll hear that Bomar has a fantastic voice – that sort of searching, searing style that you'd hear from some of the best of the 60s – almost with a Stax Records level of production at times, but also varied a bit more over the course of the record, especially on some of the few later tracks! Howard's definitely in the deepest side of the deep soul spectrum – even as the instrumentation gets a bit more modern – and titles include "Let It Be Me", "I'll Be There", "Best Of Luck To You", "I'm Gonna Love You", "Set Down Fo I Fall Down", "She's A 911", "What Love Has Joined Together", and a remake of "Purple Rain". LP, Vinyl record album

The first-ever full length set of work from Howard Bomar – a singer who only issued a few rare 45s back in the 60s, yet kept on making music for years! From the very first tune, you'll hear that Bomar has a fantastic voice – that sort of searching, searing style that you'd hear from some of the best of the 60s – almost with a Stax Records level of production at times, but also varied a bit more over the course of the record, especially on some of the few later tracks! Howard's definitely in the deepest side of the deep soul spectrum – even as the instrumentation gets a bit more modern – and titles include "Let It Be Me", "I'll Be There", "Best Of Luck To You", "I'm Gonna Love You", "Set Down Fo I Fall Down", "She's A 911", "What Love Has Joined Together", and a remake of "Purple Rain". CD features bonus tracks – "Down Home Georgia Girl", "Something Beautiful", "I'd Like To Be", "Crazy Bout You Baby", and "Just Let Me Love You". CD

The mighty Don Bryant never got the chance to record much back in the day – save for one fantastic album and a set of singles on Hi Records – but he's really returned to form lately, and gets the chance to show the world his Memphis soul pedigree in all of its glory! Scott Bomar produced the set, plays bass, and gives the record some of those funky soul styles that made his work with the Bo-Keys so great – in a group that's heavy on organ lines and riffing guitars, and which also features backup singers behind Don on a number of the tracks. Yet the whole thing is clearly Don's showcase – with great vocals on titles that include "Your Love Is Too Late", "99 Pounds", "Is It Over", "Your Love Is To Blame", "I'll Go Crazy", "Cracked Up Over You", and "Walk All Over God's Heaven". CD

The mighty Don Bryant never got the chance to record much back in the day – save for one fantastic album and a set of singles on Hi Records – but he's really returned to form lately, and gets the chance to show the world his Memphis soul pedigree in all of its glory! Scott Bomar produced the set, plays bass, and gives the record some of those funky soul styles that made his work with the Bo-Keys so great – in a group that's heavy on organ lines and riffing guitars, and which also features backup singers behind Don on a number of the tracks. Yet the whole thing is clearly Don's showcase – with great vocals on titles that include "Your Love Is Too Late", "99 Pounds", "Is It Over", "Your Love Is To Blame", "I'll Go Crazy", "Cracked Up Over You", and "Walk All Over God's Heaven". LP, Vinyl record album

Righteous soul from The Free Movement – a mixed male/female harmony group with a feel that's similar to The Fifth Dimension or The Friends Of Distinction, but a bit hipper! The group have a sunny feel that's quite nice – soaring harmonies reaching to the top of the groove on the best cuts, rolling around in a positive, soulful style that still holds up strongly over the years. Arrangements are by Michael Omartin, Jimmie Haskell, and Toxey French – and the record includes their hit "I've Found Someone Of My Own", plus "Son of The Zulu King", "Where Do We Go From Here", and "The Harder I Try (The Bluer I Get)". LP, Vinyl record album

An obscure later album from Lesley Gore – and a set that's far more mature and adult than you might know from her 60s girl pop hits! The album's cut for Motown's MoWest subsidiary, and has the same hip style as other albums on the label at the time – kind of a California singer/songwriter style, which fits well with all the original material penned by Gore for the album – arranged with kind of a gentle, glowing sound by Artie Butler and the team of Michael Omartin and Jimmie Haskell. The approach is laidback and warm on most numbers, with compressed orchestrations that would be right at home behind Dionne Warwick – and titles include "She Said That", "Out Of Love", "For Me", "The Road I Walk", "Someplace Else Now", "Mine", and "Be My Life". (Rock, Soul) LP, Vinyl record album

Lesser-known 70s work from Hues Corporation – but still pretty darn sweet! As with other efforts for RCA, the overall sound is somewhat polished, but never too commercial – kind of a more mainstream take on harmony soul modes from a few years before – especially the mixed male/female approach at the end of the 60s. There's a bit of disco in the backings, but usually not too much – and most of the production is in that tight AM radio-friendly RCA mode that worked perfectly back in the day. Arrangements are by Michael Omartin, HB Barnum, and Larry Carlton – and titles include "He's My Home", "Gold Rush", "You Showed Me What Love Is", "Long Road", "One Good Night Together", "Soul Sailin", and "Sing To Your Song". LP, Vinyl record album

A damn great little record – a small label indie side, but a set that had an unusually strong influence on vocal jazz in the 60s – really setting a new standard for the generation to come! Marv swings things with a hip, sophisticated style – shaking off some of the excesses of the Billy Eckstine generation, going for the leaner modes of the Frank Minion set – and coming up with some groovy tunes that really sparkle in his hands! Marvin plays piano and celeste, and the set also features organ from Charles Kynard and Groove Holmes, flute and tenor from Buddy Collette and Clifford Scott, trumpet from Carmell Jones, and guitar from Hank Crawford – about as hip a backing group as you could hope to pull from the LA scene! The set includes the killer "Big City" – penned and sung by Jenkins, but covered by plenty of others – plus "Chicago", "Small Town", "City Blues", "Visit Me Today", and "I'm Always Drunk In San Francisco". (Vocalists, Soul) LP, Vinyl record album

A key chapter in the soul career of Dusty Springfield – and an album that has her recording at the ABC studios in LA, with full, rich production from Dennis Lambert, Brian Potter, and Steve Barri! The sound here is a bit like that used on some of the best ABC soul albums of the time – although perhaps a bit more laidback and flowery, in keeping with the style of Dusty's vocals. Michael Omartin handled most of the arrangements for the album, and also plays some sweet keyboards on the set – and tunes include a number of surprising soul tracks, sung nicely by Dusty. Titles include "Easy Evil", "Who Gets Your Love", "Breakin Up A Happy Home", "Of All The Things", "Learn To Say Goodbye", and "I Just Wanna Be There". (Vocalists, Soul) LP, Vinyl record album

A big crossover moment for Donna Summer in the 80s – a set that features lots of keyboard-heavy arrangements from Michael Omartin – who produced the record at a level that really gets the most out of Summer's hook-heavy style! Donna's way past the drama of the disco years here – and does a great job of getting right down to business on most of the tunes – never pushing things too far past her vocal range, but adding just the right sort of punch to the lyrics alongside Omartin's catchy keyboards. Titles include "Eyes", "Supernatural Love", "Cats Without Claws", "Suzanna", "It's Not The Way", "There Goes My Baby", and "I'm Free". LP, Vinyl record album

One of the last great pop records from Donna Summer – thanks to super huge radio and video play for the title cut – and to a huge amount of tuneful tracks put together by producer/arranger Michael Omartin! By this point, Summer isn't trying to fool anyone that she's a deeper soul artist – and has really relaxed into a reworking of her previous 70s disco mode – a catchier, more crossover-pointed style that kept Donna's fire going a lot stronger than most of her club diva contemporaries from the decade before. Titles include "She Works Hard For The Money", "Woman", "Stop Look & Listen", "Tokyo", "People People", and "I Do Believe". LP, Vinyl record album

The final Warner Brothers album from Dionne Warwick – and a smooth, sophisticated affair done with full arrangements from Michael Omartian! The sound's still not as pop disco as you might expect from the time, and Dionne's gentle vocals are often cast in backings that step along nicely with a mellow, midtempo groove – one that's a bit like some of the best Philly soul of the period, yet still with a bit more California polish overall. The album works surprisingly well as a soul record – and really puts Warwick in the company of a whole generation of younger singers who'd risen above her by this point in the 70s. Titles include "One Thing On My Mind", "Don't Ever Take Your Love Away", "Livin It Up Is Startin To Get Me Down", "Since You Stayed Here", "A Long Way To Go", and "Keepin My Head Above Water". LP, Vinyl record album