Mose Allison creates a very swinging machine for this classic Atlantic Records set – by adding in a few horns to his usual trio, and making for a groove that's even jazzier overall! Mose's vocals are wonderful, as always – extremely witty, with that great balance of New Orleans roots and 60s hipster jazz – served up in a host of his own wonderful compositions! But at some points, the horns step out even more strongly, and get some great solo play of their own – with excellent work from the obscure Jimmy Reider on tenor sax, a surprisingly great player we wish we knew better – plus the great Jimmy Knepper on trombone. Some tunes are instrumentals – and titles include the classic"Swingin Machine", plus "Do It", "Stop This World", "Promenade", "If You're Goin To The City", and "Saritha". LP, Vinyl record album

A great slice of work from the early years of Ernestine Anderson – one of her key swingers for Mercury, and the kind of record that should have made her huge at the time! There's a hip-stepping quality here that points nicely towards the 60s – a bit more of a bounce in the backings, almost a Basie-esque quality at times – thanks to arrangements from Ernie Wilkins and Gigi Gryce, both of whom bring a great ear for horn charts to the date. Anderson's inherent sense of soul really opens up strongly with both arrangers – swinging with poise one minute, but bluesy undercurrents the next – in ways that really mark the record as coming from the more jazz-based side of late 50s Mercury spectrum. Titles include "Harlem Nocturne", "A New Town Is A Blue Town", "Nobody's Heart", "I Got Rhythm", "Beale Street Blues", "My Heart Belongs To Daddy", and "I Wish I Was Back In My Baby's Arms" LP, Vinyl record album

Maybe one of the greatest albums of Chet Baker vocal material you could ever hope to buy – a fantastic testament of the young talent at the top of his game – effortlessly moving between well-conceived trumpet solos and those fantastic vocals that were unlike any other singer at the time! Half the album was recorded live, the other half in the studio, but there's a very unified vibe to the whole thing – and the great Russ Freeman plays piano on both tracks, and a bit of celeste at a few points too. Titles include "That Old Feeling", "Look For The Silver Lining", "There Will Be Another You", "I Fall In Love Too Easily", "My Buddy", "My Funny Valentine", and "I Get Along Without You Very Well". Every track is great, and these are the original vocal recordings that put Chet on the map! (Jazz, Vocalists) LP, Vinyl record album

One of Joe Williams' standout classics from the 50s – just the sort of record that put him on top of his game at the time! The album's one of Joe's classic outings with Count Basie – one recorded for Roulette with a slightly looser, slightly rawer feel than their work together on Verve. Joe's rendition of "Everyday I Have The Blues" is a near-definitive one – tight, syncopated, and grooving in a style that stretches back to its roots, but which also steps out with a fresh sort of groove that points the way towards changes in soulful vocal styles during the 60s. Other titles work equally well in the mode – bluesy, but never hokey, all freshened up by the Basie approach of the time – and titles include "Baby Won't You Please Come Home", "Going To Chicago", "Joe Sings The Blues", and "What Did You Win". (Jazz, Vocalists) LP, Vinyl record album

Rare Belgian avant jazz from the start of the 70s – and material that has the same sort of freewheeling, openly creative vibe of some of our favorite French work from the time! The style here isn't as sharp-edged as German work of the period – and has a creative warmth that's really great – swinging and rhythmic at most points, yet relatively open and very different than jazz of the decade before – with occasional vocals from a lovely female singer who has a breezy way of moving with the grooves, almost in a style that recalls Blossom Dearie, but in French – served up in a lineup that also includes some great Fender Rhodes, vibes, and guitar. Titles include "Achille", "L'Admirable Amas Cellulaire Orange", "Fanfan La Tulipe", and "La Partie D'Echecs". (Jazz, Vocalists) LP, Vinyl record album

Later issue of the first album from Michael Franks – and a bit different than his later hits at Warner! The trademark Frank sound is definitely in place here – well-penned tunes, sung with cool compressed vocals and a slight jazzy tinge – but there's also a bit more of a folksy feel at times, a slightly earthier feel at points that's quite nice, and which almost links him a bit to the early work of Kenny Rankin. Arrangements are by Richard Markowitz, and backings are relatively spare and sometimes jazzy – with bits of flute and sax from Tom Scott, and some especially nice bass work from Max Bennett and Carol Kaye, whose round tones really help shape Michael's vocals. Titles include "Just Like Key Largo", "The King Of Oklahoma", "Born With The Moon In Virgo", "Little Sparrow", and "When Blackbirds Fly". LP, Vinyl record album

A completely hip little record from Morgana King – one that takes her amazing voice, and sets it amidst some expansive arrangements that push past jazz to include some trippier 70s styles! The whole session's got a nice mix of the mellow and baroque – with a subtle funky undercurrent at points, and definitely a fair bit more soul than we're used to hearing from Morgana! Arrangements are by Torrie Zito and Bob James – and the production often compresses the vocals in a really cool way – sliding them amidst the instrumentation with a haunting quality that's hard to describe in words, but which makes the album one of King's most breathtaking ever! The back cover has Morgana getting props from Donny Hathaway, Stevie Wonder, Paul Williams, and Kenny Rankin – all names we can certainly trust – and titles include a great version of "We Could Be Flying", "All In All", "A Song For You", "Like A Seed", and "The Sands Of Time & Changes". LP, Vinyl record album

Mid 70s magic from vocalist Irene Kral – one of a handful of albums that really had Kral setting herself apart from most other jazz vocal contemporaries! The approach here is very simple – just Irene's voice and piano backing from Alan Broadbent – but a hell of a lot goes on in the spare space, thanks to subtly expressive vocals from Kral – never too overdone, yet filled with a mature sophistication that's wonderful – almost conversational at points, yet always with a soft swing that reminds us that she's a jazz singer at heart. Titles include "Love Came On Stealthy Fingers", "I Like You You're Nice", "When I Look In Your Eyes", "A Time For Love/Small World", "Never Let Me Go", "Lucky To Be Me/Some Other Time", "Don't Look Back", and "Spring Can Really Hang You Up The Most". LP, Vinyl record album

A set that's definitely all woman – thanks to the sexy sounds of Monica Lassen on vocals! The singer works at a wordless level here – breezily scatting alongside these slinky, jazzy lines from The Sounds – a Japanese group who've clearly drunk deep from the well of bossa nova and European soundtrack influences of the 60s – and find a way to create their own small combo variation of those styles! The music has bits of organ, guitar, flute, and even what feels like electronics at points – and Monica's often more than content to step back, and let the group groove, then come in for a sigh, a moan, or a lighter vocalized passage. Titles are as sexy as the image on the cover – and include "Three Woman", "Love Touch", "Whimper", "Incitation", and "Happiness" – plus the long "Tie In/Double Bed/Enjoy Time". LP, Vinyl record album

A great little follow-up to Katie Lee's indie hit of the late 50s, Songs Of Couch & Consultation – and like that set, a batch of playful little tunes with psychoanalytic themes at the core! The scoring here, by Ray Martin, is quite similar to some of the other RCA female vocal sides of the late 50s – not entirely jazz, and done with full orchestrations – yet never in a way that's ever too sentimental at all – and in fact, in Martin's hands, surprisingly playful at most points – almost as if Raymond Scott were scoring the tunes! Lee's charm really does a great job of bringing the inner psyche out – and titles include "The Insecure Tango", "Life Is Just A Bed Of Neuroses", "The Ballad Of Group Therapy", and "We Must Adjust". LP, Vinyl record album

Plenty of body, and even more soul – a great little groove on the record at points, in that slinky, vampy sort of mode that Julie London picked up in the 60s! The album's got Julie taking on a fair bit of R&B and bluesy numbers – still singing in her more jazz-based style, but getting a nice groove on most numbers from Kirk Stuart – balancing out some piano-led grooves with more brassy backings, all very much in the style of Peggy Lee over at Capitol in the early 60s – yet completely different too, given London's vocal approach. Titles include "Romance In The Dark", "I Got A Sweetie", "The Comeback", "Come On By", "If You Want This Love", and "Treat Me Good". LP, Vinyl record album

A very unusual session for Carmen McRae – a live recording that features only her vocals and piano, on spare readings of a number of sophisticated songs that ably demonstrate the class and care she was bringing to her work at the time! The approach is quite different from some of the smoother, more soul-based records that McRae was cutting in the 70s – a very laidback, late nite sort of date that takes us right back to Carmen's earliest years on record – but with a 60s' worth of hipness thrown into the mix. She's still got some sense of poise on the tunes, but also brings up a slightly earthy undercurrent at points too – a relaxed, mature vibe that really fits the intimacy of the record. Titles include "The Last Time For Love", "More Than You Know", "I Can't Escape From You", "I Could Have Told You", "Please Be Kind", and "Supper Time". LP, Vinyl record album

One of the deepest soul sets from Esther Phillips' 70s years on Kudu Records – a set with some nicely gritty grooves and a surprisingly earthy feel at times – especially when compared to some of her other albums of the time! Backings are by James Brown's old reedman, Pee Wee Ellis – and although there's some of the usual Kudu electric funk in the mix, there's also some deeper soul elements too – a vibe that's often a bit laidback and open, almost more Atlantic Records at points – which is a mighty good fit for Esther's wonderful voice! As usual for Kudu, the players are an all-star lineup – one that includes Richard Tee on keyboards, George Benson on guitar, Maceo Parker on tenor, and Bernard Purdie and Billy Cobham on drums – and Don Sebesky's also on deck a bit, to sweeten a few tracks up with light strings. The album's got a great version of Bill Withers' "Use Me" that features a tasty break in the intro – and other titles include a great version of "Alone Again (Naturally)", plus the cuts "Let's Move & Groove", "Cherry Red", "Let Me In Your Life", and "You & Me Together". (Soul, Vocalists) LP, Vinyl record album

One of the best albums that Lou Rawls cut with the team of HB Barnum and David Axelrod – that incredible duo who made some of his 60s Capitol albums so great! The style here is wonderful – upbeat grooves from Barnum – who brings more soul into Lou's music than before – recorded by Axelrod with the right sort of sharpness and punch – that special quality he brought to Cannonball Adderley's 60s soul classics too! Rawls is really at home in the setting – stepping out in some points with these hip monologue passages that are as great as his singing – maybe even better, too – as they show a whole new side of Lou's personality – that badass, totally hip quality that people might never have expected from the early days. One of the best of these is the excellent "Old Man's Memories", about a guy sitting on a bench in Washington Park on the south side of Chicago, which then rolls into an amazing version of "It Was A Very Good Year". Other tunes have a great mix of soul and jazz – and titles include "Love Is A Hurtin Thing", "A Whole Lotta Woman", "Don't Explain", "Old Folks", and "Breaking My Back (Instead Of Using My Mind)". (Soul, Vocalists) LP, Vinyl record album

It's time to swing, but with a classy sound throughout – very much the best mix of modes Dakota Staton brought to her key early years at Capitol Records! Backings are by Sid Feller, and are pretty darn jazzy throughout – more so than some of Sid's other work of the time – a perfectly soulful setting for Staton's amazing vocals – very poised at points, yet never as stiff or stodgy as some of her contemporaries. Dakota's got a deep-toned approach to these tracks that really helps make the album way more than just another recording of familiar standards – and instead, does a great job of taking tunes into rich new territory. There's loads of great reedwork – from Phil Woods, Jerome Richardson, and Budd Johnson – and titles include "If I Should Lose You", "When Lights Are Low", "Willow Weep For Me", "But Not For Me", "The Song Is You", and "Until The Real Thing Comes Along". LP, Vinyl record album

Beautiful early sounds from the legendary Sylvester – very different than the later hits, especially the disco ones – and a set that was recorded before all the big records of the 70s! The approach here is jazz, and intimate enough to warrant the "private" in the title – as Sylvester sings on most numbers with just piano backing, but in a way that really has the vocals soaring high – driven to heights of expression without the urging of any other instruments – and a great document of the soulful genius that Sylvester had right at the start! Titles include "Big City Blues", "Stormy Weather", "Carioca", "Viper's Drag", "Indian Love Call", and "When My Dreamboat Comes Home" – and at points, other singers join into the mix as well. (Soul, Vocalists) LP, Vinyl record album

The last album in Leon Thomas' classic run of albums for the Flying Dutchman label – and one of the most unique as well! There's a tighter feel here than some of Thomas' more free-flowing spiritual jazz sessions – but the sound is hardly commercial at all, either – and still has loads of the righteous power that Leon brought to his music, plus some strong bluesy currents too! Arrangements are by Glen Osser, who goes for a sophisticated soul groove – but one that can be funky at all the right points – and the mighty Neal Creque adds in some sweet electric piano lines, which definitely keep things hip. Titles include the funky classic "It's My Life I'm Fighting For", the modal groover "Just In Time To See The Sun", and the tracks "Got To Be There", "I Wanna Be Where You Are", "Balance Of Life (Peace Of Mind)", and "What Are We Gonna Do?" LP, Vinyl record album

Heavy soul from the great Spanky Wilson – an album that explodes with energy right from the start – in a groove that definitely lives up to the title! Spanky's got a great mix of funk and class on this set – a punch in the rhythms at points, yet also a poise in the way she delivers the lyrics – a blend that's a bit like Marlena Shaw in her earlier years – and set to some killer arrangements from the great HB Barnum! Barnum gives the record all the cool punch of his great 60s work with Lou Rawls – and nearly all the material was written by the obscure Howlett Smith – an excellent lost writer who had a real talent for coming up with cool little soul songs that rise above the usual bag of his generation. This material works great for Spanky, and together, the pair, along with Barnum, cook up a unique lost soul treat! Titles include "Apartment 101", "On The Morning After", "The Other Girl", "You're Gonna Miss Me", "Love Has Me By The Hand", and "Mighty Great Feeling". (Soul, Vocalists) LP, Vinyl record album