Top Soul indeed, as Fusion is a hip Chilean funk band from the early 70s – one who take plenty of influence from American grooves, but also bring in their own soulful elements as well! The sound here is somewhere between Kool & The Gang and Banda Black Rio – with quite a bit of the blend of the latter, especially in the way more local percussion riffs fill out grooves that have a solid grounding in American funk! Instrumentation listed is tenor, guitar, keyboards, bass, and drums – but there's clearly a lot more horns too, as well as some very hip percussion – played in ways that are almost more Brazilian than straight Latin – with a really fluid sensibility that jams nicely with the grooves. There's a slight bit of vocals on the record, but most of the album is instrumental – and titles include versions of Sly Stone's "Thank You" and The Crusaders "Way Back Home" – plus "Dedos", "Balada De Matias", "Dee Blooz", "Para Toda La Gente", "Pulsearas", and "Lamentation". LP, Vinyl record album

An obscure zombie film, but one with a great trio of talents in the music! Most noteworthy here are the legendary Goblin – still very much at the top of their game, and working in that mode that has them taking leaner prog energy down to the sparer sound of the John Carpenter generation – with lots of great keyboards and guitar lines in the process! There's also some wonderful work from Gianni Dell'Orso, who turns in a number of more percussive tracks on the record – these spare, almost tribal numbers that really fit the spirit of the "cannibal" expectations you might have in the title! Gianni also handles a few more electric tracks. Titles include a few variations on "Virus" – plus "Diamanti Rossi", "L'Alba Dei Morti Viventi", "Connexion", "Zombi", "Quiet Drops", and "Whity". LP, Vinyl record album

Rare work from composer Robby Poitevin – a great action score, put together with a heavy dose of jazz – great vibes, flute, and plenty of other horns – blasting out with a hip style over lots of tight percussion – almost in the manner of spy films from the time, but with a lot more complexity at points, almost the depths of a drama, without any of the sleepy moments – maybe at a level that rivals some of the best Lalo Schifrin work of the period! There's plenty of drama in the progression of tunes, but things are always pretty darn groovy – jazzy 60s action at its best – on titles that include "Alba A New York", "Central Station", "My Man", "L'Ultima Vittima", "Bassifondi", "Clint In Agguato", and "Tecnica Di Un Omicido". LP features 7 more bonus tracks – half of which are unreleased! LP, Vinyl record album

Michel Legrand is one of our favorite composers of all time – and although the man himself passed away in 2019, his music continues to live on strongly in the hearts of countless singers and musicians he's touched over the years – including those who work together on this wonderful tribute album! The set's very different than other Legrand-related projects of this nature – as both the choice of cuts and the execution is very special – not too pop-polished, or overly sentimental – as most of the numbers here are very spare and open – almost recorded as these elegies to Michel, with beautiful reworkings of his familiar themes, often just with piano and some other light instrumentation – never sleepy, given the talents on board, but sensitively done in just the right spirit of Legrand's genius. Titles include "Windmills Of Your Mind" by Chad Lawson, "Sans Toi" by Luca D'Alberto, "Les Parapluies De Cherbourg" by Lambert, "Toujoirs Jamais" by Akira Kosemura, "Peau D'Ane" by Alban Claudin, "Chanson De Jumelles" by Joseph Schiano Di Lombo, "How Do You Keep The Music Playing" by Moux, and "Summer Of 42" by Chilly Gonzales. LP, Vinyl record album

Fantastic sounds throughout – and maybe the best album ever by this legendary 70s guitar player! O'Donel Levy's got this tremendous sound that comes from playing an electric hollow body – in a tone that takes the best bits of Grant Green and Wes Montgomery, and strips them down for a hipper, badder 70s sort of mode. The album's got some great blackploitation-esque arrangements by Manny Albam, and O'Donel's groove is nice and lean as he snakes over the top of the record in some very soulful solos! Lots of cool grooves, and titles include "Joni", "Nigerian Knights", "Bad, Bad, Simba" and "Sad, Sad, Simba". LP, Vinyl record album

Hip hop for the Gainsbourg fan? This Handsome Boy Modeling School spin off has Nathaniel Merriweather, aka Dan The Automator, working in his smoothest, sexiest, loungiest mode ever! Like Handsome Boy, Lovage is packed to the rafters with mysterious guest appearances, including the turntable and mixing skills of Kid Koala, Chest "Prince Paul" Rockwell, Afrika Bambaataa, and Maseo of De La Soul. Guest vocalists include Jennifer Charles of Elysian Fields, Damon Albarn, and Mike Patton. Tracks include "Ladies Love Chest Rockwell", "Pit Stop (Take Me Home)", "Anger Management", "Everyone Has A Summer They Want To Remember", "To Catch A Thief", "Lies And Alibis", "Book Of The Month", "Strangers On A Train", "Sex (I'm A)", "Tea Time With Maseo", "Herbs, Good Hygiene, & Socks", and the best song named after a bad Burt Reynolds movie ever, "Stroker Ace". LP, Vinyl record album

An album that really lives up to its title, and one that brings together a host of rare singles from this legendary group – all of which are maybe even funkier than some of the tracks on their albums of the time! The bulk of the record is from very rare 7" singles issued on the Albarika Store label, and the set's completed by two rare compilation cuts as well – and the result is a record that's overflowing with hard-edged gems that really show off the unique funky sound of the TP Orchestra Poly Rhythmo – lots of heavy drums at the bottom, cool criss-crossing organ lines, and a style that's a lot leaner than that of Fela and some of his contemporaries. Titles include "Mi Si Ba To", "Minko E So Non Moin", "Gbeti Ma Diro", "Segla", "Kou Tche Kpo So O", "Mi Ve Wa Se", and "Aiha Ni Kpe We". LP, Vinyl record album

A stunning set from bassist Brandon Lopez – a younger player, but one who's already becoming a real standout for solo performances like this – working at a level that's completely breathtaking, and which seems to unlock all these new elements and sound in this once-familiar instrument! Stretching out at a solo level isn't an easy task on the bass – but Lopez has a way of matching a very short list of important improvisers from years past, really finding his own voice in the way he resonates all the qualities of the instrument at once, often with a cyclical sort of energy that just has the performance growing and flowing in all these magnificent ways. Titles include "Billie", "Piri", "Realbadvibes", "Como El Filo Del Machete", "PonceNewYork", and "The Real Bad Vibe". LP, Vinyl record album

A stunner of an album from this legendary group – hard and funky right form the start, with these long tracks that have the TP Orchestre showing that they can jam just as hard and long as Fela Kuti & Afrika 70 – but in a very different way! The percussion is great, the guitar lines completely seductive, and the horn parts have all these cool, crispy currents that really shade in the sound in a wonderful way – making for a rich balance against the leaner qualities of the guitar lines that cut back and forth over the grooves in a really wonderful way. A killer sets from one of the African greats of the 70s – with three long tracks that include "Davi Djinto Super No 2", "Homin Si Tche", and "Aiha Ni Kpe We". LP, Vinyl record album

A record that maybe seemed like something of a one-off at the time of release – given that Gorillaz were more of a "virtual group" cooked up by Damon Albarn of Blur – but a set that's had surprising staying power over the years, thanks to a solid set of hip hop contributions from Dan The Automator, and guest work from Kid Koala and Del The Funkee Homosapien! The hit quality of the tracks soon eclipsed the fact that the Gorillaz were more of a studio project than a real band – and hey, maybe the whole thing was a nod at The Monkees – who had an initial start as a made-up band too. Titles include "Clint Eastwood", "Rock The House", "Latin Simone", "M1 A1", "Man Research", "Sound Check", "Double Bass", "Starshine", "Slow Country", "Re-Hash", and "5/4". LP, Vinyl record album

The rare second volume of this elusive record from one of the funkiest combos in Benin – a set that was originally only circulated in the same cover as the first volume – which has made for plenty of confusion over the years! This follow-up is maybe even more hard-hitting than the initial release – with long tracks that groove wonderfully with skittish rhythms, strong basslines, and raw production that makes the guitar and vocals echo out in a really bold way! There are occasional echoes of Latin American styles that influenced music in West Africa – especially Colombian modes – and the blend of sounds here is completely fantastic. Titles include "General Gowon", "A Non Zoun Mi", "La Verite Blesse", "Je N'En Pleux Plus", and "Gendemou Na Wili We Gnannin". LP, Vinyl record album

The amazing full length debut of Hypnotic Brass Ensemble – a cool combo from the Chicago scene who've been making some big waves around the world over the past few years! The brass-heavy group have a family legacy that links them to the Artistic Heritage Ensemble of Phil Cohran – and an approach to their music that mixes spiritual jazz, deep funk, and elements of New Orleans music too – a really unique style that has earned the group's rare singles some tremendous praise – and which is finally ready to step out fully in this wonderful album! The horns are even harder and heavier than before – honed through some touring around the globe, and brought into focus here beautifully – bristling with energy from the very first note. The set features guest appearances from Malcolm Catto, Tony Allen, Flea, and Damon Albarn – but the real strength of the record lies in the group's amazing horns and rhythms – on titles that include "War", "Gibbous", "Alyo", "Ballicki Bone", "Jupiter", "Marcus Garvey", "Party Started", "Sankofa", "Satin Sheets", "Hypnotic", and 2 versions of "Rabbit Hop". LP, Vinyl record album

A great combination of funk and soul – upbeat and mellow on the same album, served up by this rare indie combo from the 70s! The album's one of the few to appear on the elite BRC imprint of Brunswick Records – home to some incredible work over just a very short stretch, including this near-perfect set of sounds from Total Eclipse! The record begins with a few mellow numbers that would be right at home in the New Jersey soul scene of the early 70s – then rolls into some upbeat funk tracks that aren't disco at all, but show that quicker variant of funk that came to the forefront back when the clubs still had a nice sort of edge. Instrumentation includes lots of offbeat touches on the rhythms – and some cool moog on one track – and lead singer Bernard Fowler has this great quality that's heartbreaking when it wants to be, and positive at other moments. Titles include "St Albans Strut", "Midtown", "A Great Combination", "Loneliness", "Space Boogie", and "Plain Insane". LP, Vinyl record album