Weird and wonderful grooves from the Taiwanese scene – tracks that definitely echo some of the disco and funky soul modes of the American market in the 70s, but which have plenty of strange twists and turns of their own! The vibe here is a bit like other collections of Southeast Asian pop hybrids from the 60s and 70s – material that's clearly influenced by the Anglo culture of the time, but which has plenty of localized touches – not just in language and instrumentation, but also in terms of production styles, which gives a lot of these tracks a really cool sound. Titles are all in Taiwanese, but we can say that the set features work from Tian Lu Lu, Liu Guan Lin, Wu Xiu Zhu, Luo Yan Li, Hua Yi Bao, Cui Tai Jing, and others. LP, Vinyl record album

A legendary compilation – and one that marked the start of the huge On-U Sound legacy to follow throughout the 90s! The work here is maybe even more messed-up than some of the later productions by Adrian Sherwood – as there's maybe a bit more post-punk influence in the blend, alongside plenty of that Jamaican groove that was so important to both Sherwood and the UK scene at the time, already getting manipulated here in the way that made the producer and label such an important aesthetic force in years to come! Titles include "Bed Bound Saga" by Machine Gun Hogg & Co, "Woodpecker Sound" by Jah Woosh, "Quit The Body" by The Chicken Granny, "Dreams Are Better" by London Underground, "Demonic Forces" by Alan Pellay, "Afghani Dub" by The Mothmen, "The Dice" by Judy Nylon, "Yipee I Aah" by New Age Steppers, "Quante Jubila" by Prince Far I & Creation Rebel, and "Asian Rebel" by Suns Of Arqua. LP, Vinyl record album

An early 70s gem from Captain Beefheart – not as wild-eyed and whacked out as the late 60s glories – but still a good stretch weirder than most of the post psych, blues-steeped rock of the time! Ultimately, it's still Captain Beefheart & The Magic Band, despite it being billed solely to Captain Beefheart on the cover (and his only album NOT co-billed with The Magic Band) – and we'd say it's their first album to go for a consistent mood from beginning-to-end, and we love it for that! If the Trout Mask Replica and Lick My Decals Off Baby records are the more feral early twin masterpieces – we'd say this one and Clear Spot are the wiser and more focused siblings, but no less classic! Tracks include "I'm Gonna Booglarize You Baby","Grow Fins", "There Ain't No Santa Clause On The Evenin' Stage", "Blabbern Smoke", "Alice In Blunderland", "The Spotlight Kid", and "Glider". Great 2LP version features lots of rare tracks – the never issued full length versions of "I'm Gonna Booglarize You" and "Pompadour Stomp" – plus the instrumental "Semi Multicolored Caucasian", and the tracks "Harry Irene", "Best Batch Yet (version 1)", "I Can't Do This Unless I Can Do This/Seam Crooked Sam", "The Witch Doctor Life (inst)", and "Two Rips In A Haystack/Kiss Me My Love". LP, Vinyl record album

Cambodian rock, pop and psychedelia from the 60s & 70s – compiled by the members of Dengue Fever, LA's modern torchbearers of rare prime rock era rarities from Cambodia! It's wonderful stuff – like a lot of the sounds from the pulpy garage rock era Asian underground, most tunes have love female vocals, but the instrumentation varies from raw r&b & kind of moddish influenced sounds, to more psychedelic electric guitar and hazy melodies, bits of funk, and strains that come closer to traditional Cambodian sounds. The tracks were culled for rare cassette tapes, and the sound quality is top notch! Titles include "Give Me One Kiss" by Dara Chom Chan, "Don't Speak", "Jombang Jet", "I Will Marry You" and more by Pan Ron, "Shave Your Beard", "Flowers In The Pond", "I Will Starve Myself To Death", "Cold Sky" and more by Ros Sereysothea. 12 tracks in all. LP, Vinyl record album

The final recording from the good Captain and his last crew, and one of our favorites. Sideways rhythms collide with arthritic guitar parts in a remarkable gumbo topped off by Don Van Vliet's unique lyrical vision. A modern classic! Includes "Ice Cream For Crow", "Semi Multi Coloured Caucasian", "Hey Garland, I Dig Your Tweed Coat", "The Past Sure Is Tense", "The Witch Doctor Life" and "81 Poop Hatch". LP, Vinyl record album

Hypnotic sound library material from Italian composer Daniela Casa – some of her rarest work from the mid 70s – recorded in her home studio and never before released commercially! It's very compelling work, with a range of styles from minimalist soundtrack music, to fairly heavy psych, to sitar-driven strings, to airy flute pieces and beyond. It was recorded for use in radio, television and film, but it honestly works just as well as melodic, if experimental instrumentals that masterfully blends and straddles genres. Titles include "Ricerca Dela Materia", "Pericolo", "Dimensione Concreta", "Grosse Cilindrate", "Avventura", "Visione Surreale", Occultismo", "Fantasia", "Motocross", "Dimensione Astrata", Ugnoto", "Circo Del Bimbi", "Sovrapposizione Di Immagini" and more. LP, Vinyl record album

Casino has a smaller, tighter lineup than some of Al DiMeola's other records of the time, but the overall sound is still pretty far-reaching – thanks to a mix of keyboards from Barry Miles, and a blistering array of acoustic and electric guitars from Al himself! Steve Gadd propels the group with some very heavy drums, and Anthony Jackson plays bass – on titles that include "Egyptian Danza", "Chasin The Voodoo", "Senor Mouse", "Casino", and "Fantasia Suite For Two Guitars". LP, Vinyl record album

A swirling array of tones, colors, and sounds – written and arranged by JJ Johnson, conducted by Gunther Schuller, and with Dizzy at the helm, blowing some of his most complicated solos ever. The approach is firmly in the Verve jazz orchestra tradition – and recalls the earlier brilliance of such projects in the hands of Ralph Burns, done here with a great depth of expression, and none of the coldness that you might expect from Schuller's participation. Clearly, there's a Miles/Gil Evans influence here, but the crew retains their identity strongly – and Dizzy's hot tone on the trumpet provides a broder spectrum than Miles ever could. Titles include "Fantasia", "Ballade", "Jubelo", and "The Sword Of Orion". LP, Vinyl record album

With Hariprasad Chaurasia, John McLaughlin, and Jan Garbarek. LP, Vinyl record album

One of the first ever albums by the Ramsey Lewis Trio – featuring an assortment of lively tracks with a touch of jazz-based humor, the kind that were winning them huge audiences in Chicago at the time! With Eldee Young and Redd Holt to back him up, Ramsey's got plenty of pyrotechnics in tow – which means that he does a great job on versions of familiar tunes like "Carmen", "I'll Remember April", and "Bi Mir Bist Du Shon" – as well as great originals like "Fantasia For Drums", "Dee's New Blues", and "Tres". LP, Vinyl record album

Very groovy LP of bongo-oriented tracks conducted by Les Baxter for "young America" (or so says the label!) The overall feel is nice and jazzy, and the tracks have a nice snapping bongo sound. Tracks include "Reverberasia", "Bustin the Bongos", "Brazilian Bash", and "Afro-Deesia" – and they all sound as great as the titles might imply. LP, Vinyl record album

A fantastic illustration of the live music tradition on Brazil – one that really arose on records during the 60s, and blossomed strongly on 70s records like this – which feel almost more like an event than a recorded document! The concert features a magnificent meeting of Chico Buarque and Maria Bethania – both very strong talents on their own, balanced in this really great way amidst larger backings from Maestro Gaya – duetting on tunes that really turn into something special from their performance – never a challenge of egos, but instead a wonderful folding of strong ideals. Terra Trio provide the rhythms – and most numbers are Buarque originals – with titles that include "Flor Da Idade", "Vai Levando", "Bem Querer", "Noite Dos Mascarados", "Tanto Mar", "Gota D'Agua", "Com Acucar E Com Afeto", and "Sem Fantasia". LP, Vinyl record album

A wonderful album that's as swinging as it is exotic! The record really picks up the groove from Lateef's earlier sides for Savoy – and features a mixture of hardbop and more "Eastern" themed musical images, all extremely compelling, and a wonderful look at a jazz underground that rarely got a voice on record. Lateef plays tenor, but also flute and argol in a snaking moody way – and he's joined by a group that features Wilbur Harden, Hugh Lawson, Ernie Farrow, and Oliver Jackson, all of whom play the usual bass, piano, drums, plus some odd bits on percussion and strange instruments. Titles include "Anastasia", "Minor Mood", "Taboo", and "Mahaba". LP, Vinyl record album

A great debut from Taylor McFerrin – family member to another famous jazz singer, but very much possessed of his own self and style! The album's got this crackling, glistening quality – subtle electronics and Fender Rhodes mixing with Taylor's well-crafted vocals – never overwhelming them, but taking them into a space that's beyond conventional soul or jazz – and completely hypnotic throughout! Robert Glasper guests on one track on the set – and McFerrin's approach is a bit like some of the most creative elements in Glasper's Black Radio experiment – and other guests on the record include Emily King, Nai Palm, and Thundercat. Titles include "Decisions", "Postpartum", "Degrees Of Light", "The Antidote", "Florasia", "4am", "Stepps", and "Already There". LP, Vinyl record album

The music on this album is very orchestral, almost soundtrack-like, with the strings dominating in sweeping dramatic arrangements, with traditional Cuban elements coming through. Titles include "Fantasia Cubana", "Mosaico Cubano", "El Mambi", "La Bella Cubana", "Quiereme Mucho", and "Flor De Yumuri". LP, Vinyl record album

The second album from Haruomi Hosono, Ryuichi Sakamoto and Yukihiro Takahashi, not as much of an electro groove filled affair as the first, but still a great batch of quirky techno-electro Asian pop with lots of great bubbling synth touches! 8 tracks in all including "Behind The Mask", "Day Tripper", "Technopolis", "Multiples", "Citizens Of Science" and "Solid State Survivor". LP, Vinyl record album

The second album from Harumi Hosono, Ryuichi Sakamoto and Yukihiro Takahashi, not as much of an electro groove filled affair as the first, but still a great batch of quirky techno-electro Asian pop with lots of great bubbling synth touches! 8 tracks in all including "Behind The Mask", "Day Tripper", "Technopolis", "Multiples", "Citizens Of Science" and "Solid State Survivor". LP, Vinyl record album

A contemporary set, but one with a very old school Brazilian vibe – acoustic guitar and vocals from Gabriel Da Rosa, set to some warm post-bossa arrangements from Pedro Dom! Dom produced the record too, and the whole thing's got a nicely understated quality – with percussion that hints at a bit of samba influence, but always in a gentle way – and use of slight keyboards, flute, and tenor – warming things up just a bit, but in all the best ways to really give the record a unique sort of personality! Titles include "Jasmim", "Idiossincrasia", "So You Can Se Me", "Dona Chica", "Cachaca", and "Batuque". LP, Vinyl record album

The first of 3 LA EPs from Flying Lotus – rich, textural and sublimely soulful tunes from one of the more inventive soundscape makers on the Warp label! LA EP 1 features a couple of the best tracks from the fine Los Angeles LP, plus four worthy non album tracks that meld Asian string accented grooves, layers of crackling beats and synth, spare atmosphere and heavier dynamics when the mood fits. Titles include "Sleepy Dinosaur" and "Roberta Flack" from the album – plus "Rickshaw", "My Chippy" , "Paper Crane Gang" and "Interference". LP, Vinyl record album

Tremendous work from the great Mark Murphy – a great reminder that he's still one of the greatest jazz vocalists to come our way in the past 50 years! The short set's a loving tribute to the late Shirley Horn – delivered by Mark in some of his most personal, poetic modes in years – with backing from a trio that features Alex Minasian on piano and Curtis Lundy on bass – plus guest trumpet from Til Bronner on two of the album's tracks! Bronner's trumpet rings out warmly alongside Murphy's vocals – which have the same edge we've loved for so many years. The pairing is one that would definitely make Shirley Horn smile – and titles include "A Beautiful Friendship", "Get Out Of Town", "Here's To Life", and "But Beautiful". LP, Vinyl record album

One of the most unique musical talents we've heard in years – finally given his due in this wonderful collection of work from the late 70s and early 80s! Alain Peters works in a style that's beyond description – a global mix of elements from both the Caribbean and Africa, but often given a slight South Asian spin, given that Alain spent a fair bit of time exploring the cultures of the Indian Ocean – which he weaves here into a hypnotic blend of percussion, guitar, and extremely evocative French language lyrics! Rather than stepping on and pilfering from a range of cultures – Peters is instead a unique citizen of the post-colonial world, and allows himself a boundary-less space to stretch out beyond any simple generic descriptions. If we had to try to relate this music to anything, we might say that it's at the level of some of the most perfect experiments on the Saravah Records label – with a similarly haunting, live-changing vibe. Titles include "Mange Pou Le Coeur", "La Rosee Si Feuilles Songes", "La Peche Bernica", "Wayo Manman", "Rest'La Maloya", and "Ti Pas Ti Pas N'Arriver". LP, Vinyl record album

A wonderful sound library set from Piero Umiliani, and one that's overflowing with contributions from some mighty hip jazz musicians on the Italian scene of the 70s – including Enrico Pieranunzi on both electric and acoustic piano, Oscar Valdambrini on trumpet, Dino Piana on trombone, and Bruno Tommaso on bass – all working with very cool organ and moog from Piero himself! There's flute on many tracks – played by both S Genovese and N Rapicavoli, both players we don't know at all – and the instrument is often used in these cool, compressed ways that are mighty nice – and which make a stunning sonic counterpart to the other instrumentation, especially when Umiliani turns up some of the odd effects in the production! Titles include "Regalita", "Babilonia", "Chiaroscuro", "Battimenti A Tarantella", "Flauto Notturno", "Penombra", and "Fantasia Italica". LP, Vinyl record album