Way more than just another Christmas album from an older R&B singer – as Brandy brings in plenty of her own songwriting skills to the record, and creates a set that should well be a Christmas classic in years to come! As with some of the best soul-based Holiday sets, the standout cuts here are the originals – and there's more than a few great ones, with titles that include "Shine Out Our Light", "Feels Different", "Christmas Party For Two", and "Christmas Gift" – the last of which features a guest appearance from Sy'rai! And given Brandy's continuing strength on vocals, remakes of classics are nice too – as you'll hear on the set's takes on "Santa Baby", "Somebody's Waiting", "The Christmas Song", and "Someday At Christmas". CD

A great later set from guitar genius Dennis Coffey – one that has him continuing the great run of instrumental funk albums he started a few years before – while also changing up the groove a bit more for the time! The set shows some of Coffey's influence working with clubbier acts on the Westbound label – not that the record is disco, as the sound is lean and a lot more laidback – mostly without vocals, save for a few contributions from Brandy – and served up with lots of great instrumental contributions from the Detroit scene – including trumpet from Marcus Belgrave, and saxes and flute from the great Larry Nozero. Coffey's guitar gets plenty of solo space throughout – and titles include "Wings Of Fire", "Back Home", "Free Spirit", "Funk Connection", "Our Love Goes On Forever", "Boogie Magic", and "High On Love". CD

Did you think that Star Lord launched into space with only one special mixtape from his mom? Think again – as this second volume serves up an equally great array of pop tracks from the past – a mad musical mixup that made the second Guardians Of The Galaxy film every bit as enjoyable as the first! As before, most of these tracks are familiar, but they really sound great together – and hey, for the youngsters hearing them for the first time, they're a perfect path back to the musical genius of the 70s! Tracks include "Brandy" by Looking Glass, "Mr Blue Sky" by Electric Light Orchestra, "Fox On The Run" by Sweet, "Lake Shore Drive" by Aliotta Hayes Jeremiah, "The Chain" by Fleetwood Mac, "Southern Nights" by Glen Campbell, "My Sweet Lord" by George Harrison, "Wham Bam Shang A Lang" by Silver, "Surrender" by Cheap Trick, and "Flashlight" by Parliament. Also includes "Guardians Inferno" – the fake disco tune at the end of the film, with vocals by David Hasselhoff! CD

Tremendous horn interplay from the team of Al Cohn and Zoot Sims – and a record that may well be one of the best illustrations of their famous magic together in the 50s! The record's got a way of focusing energy, yet letting each player state themselves clearly and cleanly – almost a perfect small group variation of the larger jazz modes of a generation before – carried out here by Cohn and Sims with a great balance of tone and timing, modernism and swing! There's an excellent rhythm group on the date – Mose Allison on piano, Teddy Kotick on bass, and Nick Stabulus on drums – who almost bring in a slightly soulful undercurrent, which works especially well on Sims' solo moments. Tracks include "Two Funky People", "Just You Just Me", "The Wailing Boat", "You're A Lucky Guy", "Brandy & Beer", and "Chasing The Blues". CD

As near as we can tell, this wasn't actually recorded live, but features Duke Reid and Coxsone Dodd cuts compiled back to back soundclash style. Top to bottom it makes a great set, of bouncy good time reggae, with 16 tracks in all: Clue J & The Blues Blasters "Milk Lane Hop", Delroy Wilson "Duke & The Sir", Bunny & Scully "Don't Do It", Clue J & The Blues Blasters "Five Minutes On Beeston Street", Owen Gray "Grandma, Grandpa", Rolando & Karl McLaughling "Shocker's Hop", Basil Gabbidon "I'll Find Love", Clue J & The Blues Blasters "Swanee River Rock", Dukies Group "Dukies Cooking", The Skatalites "Twilight Zone", Roland Alphonso "Blackberry Brandy", Bunny, Skita & Count Ossie "Cool Breeze", The Skatalites "What Makes Honey", Duke's Group "Pink Lane Hop", Tommy McCook & The Supersonics "Pink Champain" and Busty & Cool "What A World". CD

Anderson.Paak heads to Ventura for this one – and something about that sunny coastal city brings out his soul influences after the primarily hip hop-leaning Oxnard! Paak leads on his raspy sung style for this one, an easygoing hip hop soul sound that's built to last, and again bringing in a heavy hitting of roster guests – including Andre 3000, Nate Dogg, Lalah Hathaway, Brandy and even Smokey Robinson – on tracks including "Come Home", "Make It Better" with Smokey Robinson, "Reachin' 2 Much", "King James", "Goodheels" with Jazmine Sullivan, "Yada Yada", "Jet Black" with Brandy, "Twilight" and "Chosen One" with Sonyae Elise and more. CD

We loved the debut as much as the rest of the world did, but this one's an easier listen from beginning to end. The production is tight, the guests earn their spots, and the whole thing's furiously soulful. Much is being made of LA hipster/orch pop troubadour Jon Brion's co-production, but this is Kanye's show. On one level Kanye can rock a subject as cliched as "Gold Digger", and still come out with a fresh perspective that runs deeper than it sounds on the surface, then deliver a serious track about the evils of the diamond trade that still rocks the ice. And those are just the first singles. Another great one! Tracks include "Wake Up Mr West", "Heard 'Em Say", "Touch The Sky" feat Lupe Fiasco, "Gold Digger" feat Jamie Foxx, "Drive Slow" feat Paul Wall & GLC, "My Way Home" feat Common, "Crack Music" feat Game, "Roses", "Bring Me Down" feat Brandy, "Diamonds From Sierra Leone" (rmx) feat Jay-Z, "We Major" feat Nas & Really Doe, "Gone" feat Consequence & Cam'Ron and more! CD

Features "Brandy Wine", "Groovy Kind Of Love", "Both Sides Now", "Summer Morning", Be Mine", "Listen To The Words" and more – 24 tracks over 2 discs! CD

A killer bit of female soul by a very short-lived group – one with a great sound that comes out of some real criss-crossing of styles – some deep soul currents, but some hipper modern soul touches at the top! The set was produced by Brad Shapiro, and has a good blend of his modern and southern styles of the mid 70s – similar to his work with Candi Staton – but it also features some impeccable arrangements from David Van DePitte, who gives the record a sweeping, swaying feel that buoys the vocals up on some really soulful backings. Titles include a great version of "How Long", plus the tracks "Mr Mystery", "You Accuse Me", "Rhythm Of Love", "One Woman's Trash", and "I Can't Weigh My Love". CD

The title says "soul standards", but the music here is anything but – not familiar hits or well-worn classics, but instead a great array of lesser-known gems from the TK Records powerhouse of Florida soul! The music here really spans the spectrum of the excellent work that TK was doing at the time – and moves between southern soul, a bit of funk, and some of the more modern elements that TK was hitting at the time – bringing a new sort of sophistication to the southern scene. There's a few familiar cuts here, mixed with a lot more rare gems – and titles include "Jazz Freak" by Paulette Reaves, "You're The Song I've Always Wanted To Sing" by Timmy Thomas, "Gettin With My Baby" by Leon Debouse, "You Made Me Want To Dance" by Irene Reid, "Love The Way You Love Me" by Eddie Horan, "How Long" by Brandye, "Caught In The Act" by Facts Of Life, "Puttin It Down To You" by Jackie Moore, "You Can't See For Lookin" by Betty Wright, "Living For Today" by Jimmy Briscoe & The Beavers "Rock" by The JBs, "Best Part Of A Man" by Wilson Pickett, and "Let's Straighten It Out" by Latimore. CD

An all-star group – featuring John SCOfield, Joe LOvano, Dave HOlland, and Al FOster, hence the unusual name of the ensemble – all grooving in an angular mode that recalls the current Blue Note sound at its freshest. Lovano's edgey tenor and soprano work really make the session hold together nicely, as he's got a tone here that almost reminds us of George Braith back in the days when he was recording for Blue Note himself – especially on some of his organ-based sessions. Scofield's guitar is in that cleaner, leaner sound he's using these days – which is a good match for Foster's spare work on rhythm. Titles include "Oh", "Right About Now", "Brandyn", "Faces", "Oh I See", "In Your Arms", and "Shorter Form". CD

Warm and wonderful tunes from the mighty TK Records – the famous Miami label best known for its disco hits of the 70s, but a company that recorded a whole heck of a lot more great music at the time! Most of these tracks are turned down a few notches from disco or club – still relatively upbeat, but maybe more in a modern soul mode overall – with lots of warm touches that work perfectly with the vocals and instrumentals, and which seem perfectly tuned to set things up with just the right sort of catchy hook! The vibe here is almost more in the mode of some of the Japanese Free Soul collections than others with a Light Mellow tag – and titles include "Tell Me That You Love Me" by Steve Gibb, "All I Know Is That I Have You" by Milton Wright, "I Got Love" by Cheese, "Soul Searchin Lady" by Spats, "I've Got To See You Tonight" by Timmy Thomas, "Rhythm Of Love" by Brandye, "Jolie" by Latimore, "Brick Grits" by Betty Wright, "Elayne" by Freddy Henry, and "Shades Of September" by Obatala. CD

A deep double-dip into the legendary TK Records catalog of Miami Soul – and one that offers up a very different version of the label than you might know from the hits! This 2CD set follows in the best tradition of the Free Soul series from Japan – which means that the collection is filled with unusual tracks that we might have missed otherwise, alongside other numbers that we do know, but which seem to have a really special vibe in this setting – an unpacking of the TK catalog from top to bottom, with a special focus on warmer, more unusual bits of funk and soul. Titles include "Jolie" by Lattimore, "Don't Waste My Time" by Jerry Washington, "Keep It Up" by Milton Wright, "You Knock Me Out" by Wildflower, "Cramp Your Style" by All The People, "I Can't Leave Your Love Alone" by Willie & Anthony, "Street Love" by Spats, "Concrete Jungle" by Little Beaver, "Good Good Lovin" by Charles Johnson, "90% Of Me Is You" by Vanessa Kendrick, "I Got Bills To Pay" by Johnny K, "You Can Be A Lady" by JP Robinson, "Love Is A Simple Thing" by Leon Ware, "Island Girl" by Lew Kirton, "Share Your Love" by Herman Kelly & Life, "Ain't Nothin Wrong" by KC & The Sunshine Band, "What Would Your Mama Say" by Facts Of Life, "Jazz Freak" by Paulette Reaves, "Let's Make A Baby" by Funky Brown, "The Love We Had Stays On My Mind" by Freddy Henry, and "How Long" by Brandye. CD