One of James Brown's earliest full albums for King Records – and a set that kicks off with his monstrous reworkin of the tune "Think" – originally recorded by the Five Royales, but recast here by James as the blueprint for all the funky goodness in years to come! That track really sets the scene for the record – and James follows up with some other harder, sharp-edged tunes – offset by a few more deep-burning mellower soul tracks. Other titles include "You've Got The Power", "If You Want Me", "So Long", "Baby, You're Right", "I'll Go Crazy", "Good Good Lovin", and "I Know It's True". Reissued with the great original cover, too! CD

The beautiful full scale duets set from Peabo Bryson and Roberta Flack – a record that's no doubt defined by it's biggest hit – but the rest is just as great! Born To Love kicks off with "Tonight I Celebrate My Love For You" – a song that's doubtlessly one of the most inescapable slow dance classics ever – and if its ubiquity overshadows the rest of the record, that's not because it's any less excellent! Peabo's affectionate style is in top form here, and Roberta is such a perfect duet partner – with plenty of lead moments of her own. It definitely feels like a perfectly balanced partnership. The record's got some lovely slow jams on par with the aforementioned pop soul standard, plus some great ones that up the tempo a little bit. Other titles include "Blame It On Me", "Born To Love", "Heaven Above Me", "Comin' Alive", "Can We Find Love Again", "You're Looking Like Love To Me" and more. LP, Vinyl record album

Terry Callier's first album for Cadet – and the kickoff of one of the greatest three album runs that any soul artist ever recorded! This one's got a different feel than the later two, as it takes songs by Terry, and structures them with these little musical "segue" tracks in between every song, done in a sparer folksy style that recalls Terry's roots in the Old Town scene in Chicago. At the time, Terry was making the transition from folk artist to soul singer – and he'd been picked up by Jerry Butler and The Dells as a promising young songwriter, one of the best talents of the second generation of Chicago soul stars. The record's a stripped-down affair that features a small group with Charles Stepney on harpsichord and organ, Callier on guitar, and backing vocals by Minnie Riperton, Shirley Wahls, and Kitty Haywood. The album kicks off with Terry's great little pop ditty "Ordinary Joe" – probably the catchiest song he ever wrote – then rolls into more somber titles like "Occasional Rain", "Do You Finally Need A Friend", "Golden Circle", and "Blues For Marcus". A totally unique album – and a prime example of the genius that was coming out of Chicago at the time! CD

A stone stellar batch of tracks from the mighty Chi-Lites – and a record that really shows why the group were such a standout at the time! There's a freshness here that few other groups could ever hope to match – lots of new material, penned by group leader Eugene Record – and these wicked arrangements by Record and Sonny Sanders – often put together with this gentle undercurrent of funk that kicks things along from the bottom, yet still saves plenty of space up top for the group's sublime harmonies! The approach is quite different than modes that east coast vocal groups were using at the time – and even different than Detroit, too – a really sophisticated blend of styles that shows the Windy City soul scene at its best. The whole thing's great – no filler at all – and titles include "Give It Away", "I Like Your Lovin", "Are You My Woman?", "Let Me Be The Man My Daddy Was", and "You're No Longer A Part Of My Heart". CD

The biggest-label release ever cut by 70s funk legend Betty Davis – but a set that's every bit as hard and heavy as the indie dates that preceded it! Davis is at the top of her form here – bad-stepping amidst the heavy drums and freaked-out guitars that easily made her one of the funkiest folks working in the 70s – an artist who was definitely very much into her own bag, and who's only finally getting her due all these many years later! In a way, the groove is even leaner than before – especially the drums, which are turbocharged with energy, and set a badass vibe for the record throughout – mixing up equal parts of rock, funk, and soul – almost with the genre-busting modes that wouldn't really show up on the New York scene until a number of years later. The whole thing kicks ass – and titles include "Nasty Gal", "Talkin' Trash", "Dedicated To The Press", "FUNK", "Getting Kicked Off Havin Fun", "Shut Off The Light", "This Is It", "The Lone Ranger", and "Feelins". Great new pressing of the classic – with a 32 page booklet that includes liner notes, lyrics, and lots of cool photos! CD

The biggest-label release ever cut by 70s funk legend Betty Davis – but a set that's every bit as hard and heavy as the indie dates that preceded it! Davis is at the top of her form here – bad-stepping amidst the heavy drums and freaked-out guitars that easily made her one of the funkiest folks working in the 70s – an artist who was definitely very much into her own bag, and who's only finally getting her due all these many years later! In a way, the groove is even leaner than before – especially the drums, which are turbocharged with energy, and set a badass vibe for the record throughout – mixing up equal parts of rock, funk, and soul – almost with the genre-busting modes that wouldn't really show up on the New York scene until a number of years later. The whole thing kicks ass – and titles include "Nasty Gal", "Talkin' Trash", "Dedicated To The Press", "FUNK", "Getting Kicked Off Havin Fun", "Shut Off The Light", "This Is It", "The Lone Ranger", and "Feelins". Great limited pressing of the classic – with liner notes, lyrics, and lots of cool photos! LP, Vinyl record album

Amazing work by The Delfonics – their first 2 albums, back to back on a single CD! La La Means I Love You is a landmark album in harmony soul – one of those records that pushed the genre to a whole new level! The Delfonics emerge fully formed here as one of the most compelling groups of their time – a tremendous trio with a really unique approach to soul music – one that's heartfelt and heartbreaking, but never too sweet to be cloying or poppy – definitely just the right groove to keep things hip while also cracking the charts! The album's their first full collaboration with legendary producer Thom Bell – and it's got a sound that's summed up perfectly in the quintessential cut "La La Means I Love You" – and which is followed through beautifully on a batch of tracks that includes "Losing You", "Can You Remember", "You're Gone", "I'm Sorry", and "Break Your Promise". Sound Of Sexy Soul is an equally groundbreaking album of vocal group soul – right from the first note! The record kicks off with the sublime "Ready Or Not, Here I Come" – which starts with fierce stepping strings that are actually funky, then soars into some of the best harmonies the group ever put to record, superbly arranged by the great Thom Bell, who also wrote the track. As the album progresses, the sound expands further to encompass many elements that would become the blueprint for vocal groups over the next few years – like twangy electric sitar, cascading orchestrations, and pinched lead vocals that take a lot more chances than most group singers had been taking for years! There's still a bit of a 60s soul sound to some of the cuts, but the album's a watershed – not only for Thom Bell and the group, but for harmony soul as well! Titles include "Ready Or Not Here I Come", "My New Love", "Loving Him", "With These Hands", "Somebody Loves You", and "Everytime I See My Baby". CD also features the bonus track "You Got Yours & I'll Get Mine". CD

Incredibly great work from The Dramatics – the kind of record that hits on all burners instantly, and just keeps on cooking all the way through! The set kicks off with the title funky cut "Shake It Well" – done in a mode that the group handle surprisingly well, thanks to some excellent vocals. These vocals only get better on following tracks, though – as the group kicks back, relaxes, and stretches into some amazing mellow tunes that rank with some of the best harmony soul of the late 70s! Part of the magic of the set is thanks to producer Don Davis – who had a hand in all of the best cuts, using that mix of rough and sweet that was always the best side of his 70s sound. Titles include "Come Inside", "Spaced Out Over You", "That Heaven Kind Of Feeling", "Ocean Of Thoughts & Dreams", "You Make The Music", "I Like Makin You So Happy", and "Music Is Forever". LP, Vinyl record album

A definite good thang from Faze-O – easily the masters of snakey funk at the end of the 70s! The set's got loads of great elements that echo the group's Riding High debut – a groove that never goes too far over the top, and which kicks back at a pace that so many others would copy a few years later – a vibe that's a bit Ohio, a bit Cali, yet crafted here with a vision that's totally unique to the band! Horns are a bit heavier than before, but there's still plenty of great keyboards too – and the vocals definitely recognize that they're the second star of the record, and usually defer to the rhythms on most numbers. Tracks include "Good Thang", "Party Time", "Space People", "Who Loves You", and "Funky Lady". LP, Vinyl record album

A trio of funky classics from Faze-O – collected here with bonus tracks too! First up is their debut, Riding High – a spacey soul classic – with a sound that never gets old! Faze-O will be forever remembered for their massive cut "Riding High", the leadoff on this album – a stretched out slow funk jam that has amazing keyboards, floating guitars, and a super-dope groove that's stayed fresh from the moment it was first set to wax back in 1977! This album's the group's first, and best – and it's a really wonderful record that blends together funky fusion and heavy soul – filled with killer cuts arranged by the Ohio Players, and with lots of great keyboards by the group! Includes, of course, the massive cut "Riding High" – plus "Toe Jam" and "Funky Reputation"! The second album is a definite Good Thang from Faze-O – easily the masters of snakey funk at the end of the 70s! The set's got loads of great elements that echo the group's Riding High debut – a groove that never goes too far over the top, and which kicks back at a pace that so many others would copy a few years later – a vibe that's a bit Ohio, a bit Cali, yet crafted here with a vision that's totally unique to the band! Horns are a bit heavier than before, but there's still plenty of great keyboards too – and the vocals definitely recognize that they're the second star of the record, and usually defer to the rhythms on most numbers. Tracks include "Good Thang", "Party Time", "Space People", "Who Loves You", and "Funky Lady". Breakin The Funk is wicked funk from Faze-O – a group who seem even tighter than before on this smoking album – yet still hold onto all the laidback modes that made them so great in the first place! There's a lean quality here that really prefaces the direction so many funk acts would take a few years later – a way of compressing everything down on the rhythm, to get past some of the excesses of too-large funk groups, or some of the overblown qualities of the disco generation! Faze-O were definitely out front with this approach, and continue to craft it strongly here – and the album's got a few great mellow tracks too – a great illustration of the claim made in the liner notes – that "Faze-O music is carefully built in panels of melodic phases, to sensuously put you in a funky but heavenly mood of time and rhythm." Titles include "See You Through The Night", "I'm Thankful", "I Still Love You", "Let's Rock", and "Ya Ba Da Ba Duzie". Features bonus tracks – 7" single mixes of "Riding High", "Breakin The Funk", "Good Thang", and "Who Loves You". CD

One of THE all time classics of funky blues – a record built around Lowell's huge single "Tramp" – a massive tune that spawned a whole generation of answer tunes! "Tramp" kicks off the set with a stone break that's worth the price of the album – then Lowell slides into some tunes that have a bit more of a conventional bluesy approach, mixed with a few other nice cuts that get a bit funky too! A rough-edged classic that really stands out – and which has made Fulsom one of the better-collected bluesmen of the beathead crowd. In addition to "Tramp", other tracks include "Two Way Wishin", "Back Door Key", "Year Of 29", "Pico", "Goin' Home", and "Black Nights". (Blues, Soul) LP, Vinyl record album

One of THE all time classics of funky blues – a record built around Lowell's huge single "Tramp" – a massive tune that spawned a whole generation of answer tunes! "Tramp" kicks off the set with a stone break that's worth the price of the album – then Lowell slides into some tunes that have a bit more of a conventional bluesy approach, mixed with a few other nice cuts that get a bit funky too! A rough-edged classic that really stands out – and which has made Fulsom one of the better-collected bluesmen of the beathead crowd. In addition to "Tramp", other tracks include "Two Way Wishin", "Back Door Key", "Year Of 29", "Pico", "Goin' Home", and "Black Nights". Includes 2 bonus tracks – "Tramp (take 1)" and "Year Of 29 (alt take)". (Blues, Soul) CD

Hard to go wrong with Al Green at this point – 1973, when the mighty one was at the height of his secular soul powers – and when the sweetly compressed production style of Willie Mitchell just couldn't miss! There's a homey, earthy feel to the record that's really great – a sound that kicks back and lets the soul flow magically – never forcing things at all, nor taking them into the sort of easy hit territory that would have been a temptation at this point. And if anything, the album's a wonderful exercise in understatement – the kind of gently flowing soul that Green virtually invented at the time, and which few other singers could hope to match! Titles include the excellent "Let's Get Married", plus "Livin For You", "Free At Last", "Home Again", "So Good To Be Here", and "Beware" – all original tracks written by Green! CD

Hard to go wrong with Al Green at this point – 1973, when the mighty one was at the height of his secular soul powers – and when the sweetly compressed production style of Willie Mitchell just couldn't miss! There's a homey, earthy feel to the record that's really great – a sound that kicks back and lets the soul flow magically – never forcing things at all, nor taking them into the sort of easy hit territory that would have been a temptation at this point. And if anything, the album's a wonderful exercise in understatement – the kind of gently flowing soul that Green virtually invented at the time, and which few other singers could hope to match! Titles include the excellent "Let's Get Married", plus "Livin For You", "Free At Last", "Home Again", "So Good To Be Here", and "Beware" – all original tracks written by Green! CD

Hard to go wrong with Al Green at this point – 1973, when the mighty one was at the height of his secular soul powers – and when the sweetly compressed production style of Willie Mitchell just couldn't miss! There's a homey, earthy feel to the record that's really great – a sound that kicks back and lets the soul flow magically – never forcing things at all, nor taking them into the sort of easy hit territory that would have been a temptation at this point. And if anything, the album's a wonderful exercise in understatement – the kind of gently flowing soul that Green virtually invented at the time, and which few other singers could hope to match! Titles include the excellent "Let's Get Married", plus "Livin For You", "Free At Last", "Home Again", "So Good To Be Here", and "Beware" – all original tracks written by Green! LP, Vinyl record album

One of our favorite albums of all time – and a record that just gets better and better the more we listen to it – and we've listened to it for years! Johnny "Hammond" Smith began his career as a simple soul jazz organist – but by the time of this album, he'd teamed up with the mighty Larry Mizell, the genius arranger/producer who'd breathed new life into the careers of Donald Byrd and Bobbi Humphrey. Mizell works with Hammond in the same way he does with other jazz artists – by taking a groove that works best with their solo style, and slowly layering other instrumentation and effects on top of it, so that when the solo kicks in, it's supported on waves and waves of funky sounds and soulful grooves. Mizell and his brother Fonce both play keyboards on the record, and the rest of the group includes monster fusion players like Harvey Mason, Roger Glenn, Hadley Caliman, and Jerry Peters. The real treat is Johnny, though – as his solos are heavenly, the best of his 70s work, stripped mean and lean, laid in at just the right points. Includes the breakbeat classic "Shifting Gears", the house classic "Los Conquistadores Chocolates", and funky numbers "Fantasy" and "Tell Me What To Do". (Jazz, Soul) LP, Vinyl record album

One of our favorite albums of all time – and a record that just gets better and better the more we listen to it – and we've listened to it for years! Johnny "Hammond" Smith began his career as a simple soul jazz organist – but by the time of this album, he'd teamed up with the mighty Larry Mizell, the genius arranger/producer who'd breathed new life into the careers of Donald Byrd and Bobbi Humphrey. Mizell works with Hammond in the same way he does with other jazz artists – by taking a groove that works best with their solo style, and slowly layering other instrumentation and effects on top of it, so that when the solo kicks in, it's supported on waves and waves of funky sounds and soulful grooves. Mizell and his brother Fonce both play keyboards on the record, and the rest of the group includes monster fusion players like Harvey Mason, Roger Glenn, Hadley Caliman, and Jerry Peters. The real treat is Johnny, though – as his solos are heavenly, the best of his 70s work, stripped mean and lean, laid in at just the right points. Includes the breakbeat classic "Shifting Gears", the house classic "Los Conquistadores Chocolates", and funky numbers "Fantasy" and "Tell Me What To Do". This stunning version adds in some killer bonus tracks – 6 never-heard cuts from the Milestone vaults, including "Song For My Family", "Funky Native", "Detroit Rainbow", "Can't We Smile (alt)", and slow and fast versions of "A Child's Love". (Jazz, Soul) CD

One of our favorite albums of all time – and a record that just gets better and better the more we listen to it – and we've listened to it for years! Johnny "Hammond" Smith began his career as a simple soul jazz organist – but by the time of this album, he'd teamed up with the mighty Larry Mizell, the genius arranger/producer who'd breathed new life into the careers of Donald Byrd and Bobbi Humphrey. Mizell works with Hammond in the same way he does with other jazz artists – by taking a groove that works best with their solo style, and slowly layering other instrumentation and effects on top of it, so that when the solo kicks in, it's supported on waves and waves of funky sounds and soulful grooves. Mizell and his brother Fonce both play keyboards on the record, and the rest of the group includes monster fusion players like Harvey Mason, Roger Glenn, Hadley Caliman, and Jerry Peters. The real treat is Johnny, though – as his solos are heavenly, the best of his 70s work, stripped mean and lean, laid in at just the right points. Includes the breakbeat classic "Shifting Gears", the house classic "Los Conquistadores Chocolates", and funky numbers "Fantasy" and "Tell Me What To Do". This stunning version adds in some killer bonus tracks – 6 never-heard cuts from the Milestone vaults, including "Song For My Family", "Funky Native", "Detroit Rainbow", "Can't We Smile (alt)", and slow and fast versions of "A Child's Love". (Jazz, Soul) LP, Vinyl record album

2 massive Isaac Hayes soundtracks in one set – both from the magical cinematic year of 1974! Truck Turner is a hard and heavy soundtrack that we like even more than his classic work on Shaft! Unlike Shaft, Ike actually starred in the film Truck Turner – which may be one reason why he brought his full game to the table for the record – and scored a batch of badass tunes that still stand with some of the best funky soundtrack work of the 70s! The rhythm's especially hard on the best cuts – really crackling with a lot of intensity, and a stark, hard funky sound that's made the record a favorite of beatheads for years! Ike kicks it hard on cuts like "Pursuit Of The Pimpmobile", "House Full Of Girls", "Drinking", "Give It To Me", "Now We're One", "Breakthrough", "House of Beauty", and the massive title cut "Truck Turner". Tough Guys is deeper and more complicated than the groove of Shaft and Truck Turner, and filled with some great tunes that glow with color, life, and imagination – showing an Isaac Hayes that almost seems to be moving beyond the usual blackploitation groove! The album sports 2 really classic tunes – the title theme "Tough Guys", and the classic "Hung Up On My Baby" – both of which have a solidly funky feel that will more than please the usual soundtrack beathead crowd. But overall, the other tunes twist and turn in a delightful mix of modes – expanding on the soulful territory Ike first explored in his original soundtracks, and offering up a great range of moods and emotion. The album's got some especially great chromatic guitar work – and other titles include "Joe Bell", "Randolph & Dearborn", "Buns O Plenty", "Run Fay Run", and "Red Rooster". CD

Massive work from Isaac Hayes – a hard and heavy soundtrack that we like even more than his classic work on Shaft! Unlike Shaft, Ike actually starred in the film Truck Turner – which may be one reason why he brought his full game to the table for the record – and scored a batch of badass tunes that still stand with some of the best funky soundtrack work of the 70s! The rhythm's especially hard on the best cuts – really crackling with a lot of intensity, and a stark, hard funky sound that's made the record a favorite of beatheads for years! Ike kicks it hard on cuts like "Pursuit Of The Pimpmobile", "House Full Of Girls", "Drinking", "Give It To Me", "Now We're One", "Breakthrough", "House of Beauty", and the massive title cut "Truck Turner". LP, Vinyl record album

A fantastic lost chapter in the career of genius soul/jazz/funk maestro Roy Ayers – a set that was only ever issued in the UK, and which is a great second part to his Lots Of Love album on the Uno Melodic label! This album features a few tracks from that gem, but in longer versions – mixed with other cuts that were never issued in the US at the time – all with that return to perfection that Roy found on Uno Melodic – which was his own label, and one of the few times in the 80s when he matched the brilliance of his 70s recordings on Polydor! Like those albums, the style here is tight and right in the pocket, but also full of meaning and message too – beautiful songs that are catchy, but far from commercial – funky, but never dance music in a conventional way. The set kicks off with a 7:20 minute version of "Chicago" – one of our favorite Roy Ayers songs ever, natch – and other cuts include "Smiling With Our Eyes", "Good Good Music", "Keep On Movin", "Silver Vibrations", "DC City", and "Lots Of Love". LP, Vinyl record album

Some of the most unique vocal work ever recorded – a stunning collection of Columbia sides by Oscar Brown Jr, a singer who mixed together equal parts jazz, soul, and folk – and came up with a sound that was all his own! Oscar bubbled out of the hip Chicago scene of the early 60s – and had a much more righteous approach than most of his contemporaries – not only writing his own lyrics for most of the tunes, but working in a genre-blending style that crossed over to a variety of difference audiences. Oscar could groove with the best in a southside club, but also appeal to the northside intellectuals – opening doors wherever he went with a fresh approach to jazz vocals! The set features work from all 4 of his Columbia albums – including a number of tracks on CD for the first time – and features arrangements by Quincy Jones, Floyd Morris, and Ralph Burns – on 23 tracks that include "All Blues", "Work Song", "Excuse Me For Living", "The Snake", "Mr Kicks", "Afro Blue", "Signifying Monkey", "Dat Dere", "Hazel's Hips", "Jeannine", "Opportunity Please Knock", "The Tree & Me", "Elegy (Plain Black Boy)", "Tall Like Pine", and "But I Was Cool". (Vocalists, Soul) CD

You know, over the years, you get exposed to so many cliches about Ray Charles that it's easy to forget how great he is – but you won't after hearing this set! This totally essential box pushes way past any other collection to pull together the raw early R&B sides by Ray – much harder stuff than any of his later country soul work, and way more rockin than even his instrumental sides that show up more as "jazz" efforts. No, this stuff kicks ass – and is right up there with the best 50s R&B work by artists like Tiny Bradshaw, Wynonie Harris, or Ray Brown. Plus, a huge amount of the cuts on here never really appeared on full LPs, so it's not like you'll be able to track them down that easily on other reissues. There's a wealth of excellent material here that will open up a whole new side of Ray for you – and which will fill in loads of holes if you've already got some of his work. There's a total of 53 tracks in all, plus a great set of notes and a very handsome box – and titles include "What Kind Of Man Are You", "Get On The Right Track", "Leave My Woman Alone", "Roll With My Baby", "Jumpin In The Morning", "It Should Have Been Me", "Feelin Sad", "Mess Around", "I Wonder Who", "Blackjack", "Greenbacks", "A Fool For You", "Hard Times", "A Bit Of Soul", "I Want To Know", "It's Alright", "Ain't That Love", and "That's Enough". All cuts are vocal – and this is some of the most satisfying Ray Charles you could ever buy! CD

Funky Fatback from the mid and late 70s – not as scratchy and hard as the group's earlier recordings on the Perception label, as most of these are pulled from their later work for the Event and Spring labels, but still pretty darn nice! The set kicks off with two funky 45 classics – "Mr Bass Man" and "Wicky Wacky" – then rolls into a set that takes the group from the funky shack to the dancefloor, as Fatback expand their sound a bit more for the late 70s club scene. Titles include "Feeling", "Party Time", "The Man With The Band", "I Feel Real Good", "The Joint", "Feed Me Your Love", "Freak The Funk The Funk (Rock)", "Put Your Love In My Tender Care", and "Changed Man". CD

Blue-eyed soul from the legendary Mitch Ryder – and pretty darn gritty at that – steeped in styles borrowed from Memphis and Muscle Shoals, and given a bit of a color-blind twist on the Detroit scene of the late 60s! Mitch clearly loves the motor city sound of the 60s, but also takes things to farther points south, too – using elements that would be right at home on Stax or Atlantic Records, and coming up with a crossover sound that had his recorded almost ending up in more soul collections over the years than rock ones! Production is by pop maestro Bob Crewe, but it's surprisingly unadorned compared to some of Crewe's other work of the time – and the album bristles with sock-soul instrumentation from the Detroit Wheels, and loud, proud vocals from Mitch. There's a bit of garaey guitars in the mix, too – making for a mighty nice hybrid of styles – and titles include "Shakin With Linda", "You Get Your Kicks", "Any Day Now", "I Need Help", "Little Latin Lupe Lu", "Walkin The Dog", "I Had It Made", and the classic "Breakout". (Rock, Soul) LP, Vinyl record album

Massive work from Sun – a tightly crafted batch of dancefloor funk that reminds us of some of our favorite work from Fantasy Records at the time – especially some of the more righteous groups that blended equal parts jazz and soul! Sun's got a tightness here that's amazing – right up there with Earth Wind & Fire at their best, but not as commercial overall – and instead, always delivered with a nice sense of righteous energy! The set kicks off with the wicked "Sun Is Here", a guitar-driven groover with a very famous sample riff – and a sound that's somehow more stripped-down and jazz funk-driven than a lot of the group's other tunes. Other cuts are pretty great too, with lots of warm bubbly soulful moments – and titles include "Dance", "Long Drawn Out Thang", "I Had A Choice", "Sun Of A Gun", and "You're The One". LP, Vinyl record album

Muddy kicks it live in the studio at Woodstock with a number of rock and/or blues luminaries in toe for this mid 70s gig – including the great Pinetop Perkins on piano, Paul Butterfield on harmonica, and Levon Helm on bass and drums! Interestingly, the set is much more of return to the rumbling, gritty blues and soul that made Muddy's name at Chess Records years earlier – and thankfully, not at all the crossover rock moment it could have been. There's a lot more Mud here than Water! Tracks include "Why Are People Like That", "Getting Down To Main Street", "Born With Nothing", "Caledonia", "Funny Sounds", "Love, Deep As The Ocean", "Let The Good Times Roll", and more. (Blues, Soul) CD