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Blue-eyed soul from Boz Scaggs, with a decidedly Philly influenced sound to the production, which we'd hazard a guess comes more from the Hall & Oates side of town than the Sigma Sound axis. Still, this is a solid album with the irresistible hit "Lowdown", still a favorite around these parts. Also includes "Lido Shuffle", "Harbor Lights", "Jump Street" and "What Do You Want The Girl To Do". CD

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Blue-eyed soul from Boz Scaggs, with a decidedly Philly influenced sound to the production, which we'd hazard a guess comes more from the Hall & Oates side of town than the Sigma Sound axis. Still, this is a solid album with the irresistible hit "Lowdown", still a favorite around these parts. Also includes "Lido Shuffle", "Harbor Lights", "Jump Street" and "What Do You Want The Girl To Do". CD

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A pair of early Boz Scaggs albums – back to back on a single set! My Time is Boz Scaggs at the height of his early powers – still very much in the best blue-eyed soul style that first got him noticed by CBS, but also working with a stronger, richer, prouder sound that's really great! A number of the tracks on the set were recorded in Muscle Shoals, with superb small combo soul backing that Boz seems to respond to tremendously well – hitting a mode that's somewhere between Al Green and Van Morrison, with vocals that are simply mindblowing, and extraordinarily soulful. The rest of the set was recorded in San Francisco, and has a similarly freewheeling sound to Boz debut for CBS – with some great backing vocals by Linda Tillery and Dorothy Morrison as well. Titles include "Dinah Flo", "Slowly In The West", "Full Lock Power Slide", "Old Time Lovin", "Might Have To Cry", "Hello My Lover", "He's A Fool For You", and "Freedom For The Stallion". Slow Dancer is one of Boz Scaggs most soulful albums – thanks to production from Johnny Bristol, and arrangements from HB Barnum! Titles include "Slow Dancer", "I Got Your Number", "Hercules", "Take It For Granted", and "Pain Of Love". CD

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Really wonderful work from Jazzhole – a record that goes far beyond some of the simpler modes bubbling around the Neo Soul underground these days! Lead vocalist Marlon Saunders will be familiar to Dusty Groove customers for his other great solo work – but here his sound is somewhat different – a bit more introspective and sophisticated, with a warm rasp in his voice that sounds beautiful alongside the flowing keyboards and jazzy phrasing of the backings. The style is one that's really all its own – certainly inspired a bit by the classics, but hardly a simple copy of them – and Jazzhole prove once again that they're a great little combo who don't need to hit you over the head to hook you into their soul! Titles include "Poet's Walk", "All The Ways", "Jonesing", "One More Time", "Do It Right", "Timeless", and "It Would Have Been Enough" – plus a surprisingly great cover of Boz Scaggs' "Lowdown". CD

Blue-tinged work for those days when your heart is breaking and your soul is aching – a really wonderful batch of tracks that are heavy on those late 60s/early 70s moments when male singers were starting to open up a bit and let their emotions show! The vibe here is very different than Bobby Gillespie's own music – and the set brings together bits of country, roots rock, and soul – really special tracks that have a perfect blend of heartfelt vocals, well-penned lyrics, and the kind of arrangements and production that really send the whole thing over the top! The best thing about the collection is that it brings together songs we never would have thought to combine like this – a masterful set list that includes "I Don't Want To Talk About It" by Crazy Horse, "Wait & See" by Lee Hazlewood, "Shades Of A Blue Orphanage" by Thin Lizzy, "The Coldest Days Of My Life" by The Chi-Lites, "Roll Um Easy" by Little Feat, "Magnolia" by JJ Cale, "I Still Can't Believe You're Gone" by Willie Nelson, "Love Sick" by Bob Dylan, I'll Be Long Gone" by Boz Scaggs, "Strong As Death" by Al Green, "Kind Woman" by Percy Sledge, "Dark End Of The Street" by Ry Cooder, "I Feel Like Goin Home" by Charlie Rich, "When My Mind's Gone" by Mott The Hoople, and "By The Time I Get To Phoenix" by Nick Cave. CD

The first moment of genius from the Steve Miller Band – a killer debut that also features a young Boz Scaggs as a key member of the group! Steve's the core star here, though – setting things up in this amazing blend of psych, blues, and hard rock – one that's easily a lot more ballsy than most of his Bay Area contemporaries at the time – really taking off on some propulsive rhythms, razor-sharp guitar, and cooking keyboards! Scaggs' vocal help is mighty nice – and titles include "You've Got The Power", "Pushed Me To It", "Junior Saw It Happen", "Baby's Callin Me Home", "Roll With It", and "Key To The Highway". CD

A trio of classics from this groundbreaking group! First up is Living With The Animals – fantastic early work from Mother Earth – one of those special late 60s groups who emerged out of the rock, folk, and blues scenes – but who somehow managed to make a very special sound of their own! Part of the group's strength is the lovely Tracey Nelson – a singer who could have been a soul artist if she wanted – but who works here with a looser approach to generic conventions as she moves through a number of different modes – sometimes stepping aside for the group's lead singer, R Powell St John Jr, who also plays a bit of harmonica. Instrumentation is given some stronger currents from a combo that features Mike Bloomfield on guitar, Barry Goldberg on organ, and Luis Gasca on trumpet – and titles include "Marvel Group", "Mother Earth", "It Won't Be Long", "Down So Low", "The Kingdom Of Heaven", and "My Love Will Never Die". Make A Joyful Noise is an album that has slightly fuller backings than their debut, but in a way that only seems to bring out more of the soulful currents of their sound! The mix of rural inspiration and tighter presentation is a great illustration of the changing North Cali style of the period – and no surprise, a young Boz Scaggs is in the group, providing rhythm guitar next to the vocals of Tracy Nelson and R Powell St John. A few country legends provide extra support on fiddle, dobro, and steel – balanced nicely by a strong horn section too – on titles that include "Stop The Train", "Soul Of The Man", "Blues For The Road", "Come On & See", "I The Fly", "Wait Wait Wait", "I Wanna Be Your Mama Again", and "Then I'll Be Moving On". Last up is Satisfied – countrified rock from Tracy Nelson and Mother Earth – done in a warm and sincere style that goes way beyond any of the cliches of the genre! There's something about the way the group put together the tunes that really makes us like this one – an honesty that's not bogged down in any hippy dippy expectations, and which never tries to be anything other that what it is. And yes, that's not much of a good description of the set – but it's also our way of identifying the uniqueness that set Mother Earth apart from a lot of their contemporaries. Titles include "Satisfied", "Groovy Way", "Andy's Song", "Ruler Of My Heart", "This Feeling", and "You Won't Be Passing Here No More". CD

Features Tower Of Power, Santana, Grateful Dead, Taj Mahal, Hot Tuna, New Ridgers Of The Purple Sage, Boz Scaggs, Malo, Cold Blood, and more CD

The first moment of genius from the Steve Miller Band – a killer debut that also features a young Boz Scaggs as a key member of the group! Steve's the core star here, though – setting things up in this amazing blend of psych, blues, and hard rock – one that's easily a lot more ballsy than most of his Bay Area contemporaries at the time – really taking off on some propulsive rhythms, razor-sharp guitar, and cooking keyboards! Scaggs' vocal help is mighty nice – and titles include "You've Got The Power", "Pushed Me To It", "Junior Saw It Happen", "Baby's Callin Me Home", "Roll With It", and "Key To The Highway". CD features the bonus track "Sittin In Circles". CD

A collision of generations – as giants of the world of 70s and 80s AOR come together to pay tribute to the soulful styles of the years before! At the time, the album was the sort that really made us cringe – since we were such soul purists back in the 90s – but over the years, we've really come to accept the whole thing both as a well-meaning effort, and more importantly, as a lost chapter of the Donald Fagan/Steely Dan genius – as Fagan produced the set, and really brings a lot of his older music into play! Other artists include Boz Scaggs, Phoebe Snow, and Michael McDonald – but the set also features work from older bluesman Charles Brown – and titles include remakes of "Madison Time", "Knock On Wood", "Shakey Ground", "Lonely Teardrops", "Downing In The Sea Of Love", "Groovin", and "People Got To Be Free" – plus nice takes on "Chain Lightning", "Pretzel Logic", and "Green Flower Street". CD

A really cool 70s album from the great Link Wray – done at the time when he was reinventing himself, and changing from a damn great instrumental guitarist to a singer as well – one with a much bolder presence in the limelight than ever before! Wray serves up some fantastic electric solos here, and sings a fair bit too – and the record has some connection to his earlier self-titled set on Polydor, but was recorded at Wally Heider's in San Francisco – instead of Link's three-track shack – which makes for a richer vibe overall! There's plenty of great help on the session – all-star work from Boz Scaggs on guitar, Pete Escovedo on congas, and Lenny Pickett on tenor – and Wray may well be at the apex of his 70s confidence in the lead, as you'll hear on titles that include "It Was A Bad Scene", "Good Time Joe", "Walkin/Bulldog", "I Got To Ramble", "We Said I Do", "Step This Way", "Super 88", and "She's That Kind Of Woman". CD