Fantastic ballad soul from one of the greatest groups from the east coast 70s scene! Black Ivory may not have scored as big as some of their contemporaries on the charts – but to fans of harmony soul, they'll always be kings, and this record is the sort that forever gave them keys to the kingdom! They're working here with writer/arranger/producer Patrick Adams – back when his main talents were for ballads, not disco – and Adams perfectly crafted a set of songs to bring out the best side of the group's heavenly vocal talents. Includes loads of wonderful ballads, like "Wishful Thinking", "No Ifs, Ands, Or Buts", "It's Time to Say Goodbye", "Time is Love", and "Baby, Won't You Change Your Mind". Features the bonus track "We Made It". CD

Although titled after one of their early albums, this "golden classics edition" features 13 cuts from different releases that Black Ivory did for the Today label in the early 70s. Nearly all tracks feature heavenly east coast soul production from the great Patrick Adams, and the tracks on the CD focus most strongly on the group's ballad/harmony style, instead of the uptempo material that became more dominant in their mid 70's recordings. This is classic old school harmony material, and the set list is a winner all the way through, with titles like "Time Is Love", "You & I", "Our Future", "No If's And's Or But's", "It's Time To Say Goodbye", and "She Said She's Leaving". Sweeeeeeet sweeeeeeet soul! CD

Epic harmony soul by this excellent sweet soul group! Black Ivory were just kids when they recorded this session – but they had a sophistication that pushed them way past any of their contemporaries on the east coast scene. The band are very lucky to have the talents of the great Patrick Adams – originally singer himself, but who wisely made a move to producer once he'd heard the rich talents of the young group. Adams perfectly handles the sweet voices of the group, building up their raw emotions into a dreamy web of harmony vocals to rival the best work of The Stylistics, The Delfonics, and other older groups. Includes the classic "Don't Turn Around", written by Adams, plus "You and I", "Our Future", "Surrender", and "If I Could Be a Mirror". Heavenly harmony soul, and a classic of the east coast scene! CD

Wanda Robinson was one of the first hip, black, female poets to set righteous words to funky music – and this album is one of her two classic sides for the Perception label from the early 70s. The format is spoken word over funky instrumentals – and backing is by Patrick Adams, James Moody, and others, mixing jazz, soul, and funk conceptions to fit the mood of each of Wanda's tracks on the set. The titles should give you a good flavor of the material – as the set includes "The First Time I Saw Loneliness", "The Great American Passtime", "Parting Is Such", "Tragedy No 456", "A Black Oriented Love Poem", "Instant Replay", "The Trouble With Dreams", and "Grooving". LP, Vinyl record album

Although composed by 70s sex-soundtrack genius Pierre Bachelet, this one's mostly a batch of jaunty, jagged little themes, a bit like Nino Rota's work for Fellini, with lots of similar touches. There's one striking number, though – "Ivory Coast Drums" – which has a weird back/forth rhythm approach, a bit of echo on the drums, and a melodic progression that makes the track a nice dark little number. Bachelet sings vocals on the French version of the "Black & White" theme – and other tracks include "The Letter", "The Battle", "Crossing The Rhine", "Fresnoy's Theme", and "La Chanson Des Souliers". LP, Vinyl record album

With players like these, the life of a trio must be a great one – and the album's one part of a two-day recording session done by pianist Paul Bley, bassist Steve Swallow, and saxophonist Jimmy Giuffre! The "trio" tag is somewhat misleading at times – because the album's often a gathering of all three players in the studio, rather than a continuous collaborative effort. Some tracks have a single player, working alone – while others sneak in a duet, and others then follow a trio format – and the album's a great illustration of the sharp talents that all players still had at this point in their career! Giuffre's especially great – and works here on both clarinet and soprano sax – and given that Swallow had been a key part of Jim's trio in years back, many moments often sound like a revival of the more "out" Giuffre trio sides, with the addition of Bley's great tones on piano. This first volume features the "Saturday" recordings – with 12 titles that include "Endless Melody", "Foreplay", "Black Ivory", "Owl Eyes", "Clarinet Zone", and "By The Way". CD

Heavy psych from Detroit, in the years before Bob Seger became a "lighters in the air" peddler of redneck theme songs. Cut from the same cloth as the early Mitch Ryder, Amboy Dukes and Grand Funk that were the hallmark of the Motor City rock sound of the day, most of the tracks on this outing are concise rockers, but the band delves into a bit of nice jamminess on side 2. Includes 'Tales Of Lucy Blue", "Ivory", "Gone Down Home", "Train Man", "White Wall", "Black Eyed Girl", "2 + 2 = ?" and "Doctor Fine". LP, Vinyl record album

Vocalist Charles Brown is backed by a group that includes young and old musicians, for a variety of styles, and which includes Mel Brown, Red Holloway, Jimmy Bond, and Ed Thigpen. Dorothy Ivory sings on a few cuts, but most of the vocals are by Charles, with his smooth raspy mellow tone, and a very soulful sound. Titles include "The Combination", "Black Night", "Drifting Blues", and "I Want To Go Home". Nice long renditions, and some very nice production. CD

A club classic on Salsoul – with a soaring sound that's still grooving dancefloors today! The record was arranged and conducted by Leroy Burgess – who also sang lead vocals and wrote all the material – and it's got a sound that's similar to some of the later uptempo grooves that Burgess was forging with Black Ivory. Greg Carmichael produced the set with Burgess, and there's some nice elements of his earlier underground disco work – like cool keyboards, and small touches of electronics used in just the right doses. Tracks include "You've Got That Something", "I Know You Will", "Sweet To Me", "Lay It On The Line", and "Something Else". LP, Vinyl record album

A fresh serving of genius from Madlib – served up here in yet another manifestation of the Yesterday's New Quintet combo! Sound Directions have a groove that's quite similar to YNQ, but which focuses a bit more on the skittish percussion of Otis Jackson and "Sloppy" Joe Johnson – a live but spacey approach to rhythm, and one that often has the drums recorded in this gritty way that's nice and crunchy – and which is a perfect "bottom" to the tighter horns and electric keyboards of the set! Madlib's got help from guest players who vary from track to track – fleshing out his unique musical vision that includes new takes on Billy Brooks' "40 Days", Marcos Valle's "Wanda Vidal", Oliver Sain's "On The Hill", Lesiman's "Play Car", and David Axelrod's "A Divine Image" – as well as the original tunes "Theme For Ivory Black", Directions", and "Dice Game". Great stuff all around – with a groove that's as wild as Madlib's trip into the Blue Note vaults! CD