The rare first album by The Brief Encounter – a mid 70s funk group from North Carolina, but one who doesn't feel like a southern soul combo at all – as they work here with a sweet, strong, and jazzy flavor that makes them feel like the best of the California scene in the 70s! The group shift effortlessly between tight ensemble funk – including a few tasty instrumentals – and sweeter soul material that feature group vocals, with a strong falsetto lead stepping out front, in a way that really helps the music soar. The material was recorded in Muscle Shoals, but sounds so different than most of the other work from that studio at the time – on titles that include "Just One Moment", "Visions", "Smile", "Loving & Caring", "In A Special Kind Of Way", "Good Thing Bad Thing", "We're Gonna Have A Good Time", "Time Is Moving", "Smile", and "Get A Good Feeling". LP, Vinyl record album

The rare first album by The Brief Encounter – a mid 70s funk group from North Carolina, but one who doesn't feel like a southern soul combo at all – as they work here with a sweet, strong, and jazzy flavor that makes them feel like the best of the California scene in the 70s! The group shift effortlessly between tight ensemble funk – including a few tasty instrumentals – and sweeter soul material that feature group vocals, with a strong falsetto lead stepping out front, in a way that really helps the music soar. The material was recorded in Muscle Shoals, but sounds so different than most of the other work from that studio at the time – on titles that include "Just One Moment", "Visions", "Smile", "Loving & Caring", "In A Special Kind Of Way", "Good Thing Bad Thing", "We're Gonna Have A Good Time", "Time Is Moving", "Smile", and "Get A Good Feeling". LP, Vinyl record album

An incredible lost slice of music from the young Bob Marley – an unissued set of recordings done at the Capitol Studios in LA, at a time when the Wailers were just beginning to rise in global power! The session came at an unusual moment for the group – they had come to the US to tour with Sly & The Family Stone, and were fired because the audiences were not yet ready for their groove – leaving the group a bit astray in California. But an opportunity arose to record at Capitol, a performance that was also filmed – and the result is this amazing set of tracks that captures Bob and the group at a level that's even different than their massive Island Records sets to come. There's a current of funk running through a number of these tracks, and a lean groove that's wonderfully soul-drenched throughout – not just in Marley's vocals, but in the overall performance of the rest – a tight sextet that includes Peter Tosh, Joe Higgs, Aston Barrett, Carlton Barrett, and Earl Lindo. Titles include "Rastaman Chant", "Midnight Ravers", "Put It On", "Stop That Train", "Get Up Stand Up", "You Can't Blame The Youth", "Slave Driver", "Duppy Conqueror", and "Burnin & Lootin". LP, Vinyl record album

The first official release of this debut solo album from Tiombe Lockheart – originally distributed via shows when she was a member of the Platinum Pied Pipers, and still a completely winning bit of spacey soul – with a vibe that really prefaces so much energy on the west coast in more recent years! Tiombe gets help on beats from Bilal, drums from Otis Brown Jr, and piano from Robert Glasper – but it's also very clear that the music is all very much her own – this spacey melange of influences from hip hop and soul, woven together in very deep textures, and topped with her beautifully crispy vocal approach! Titles include "California Dreaming", "Tip Of My Tongue", "You Need Me", "Mr Johnnie Walker", "Working Girls Suicide", "Sexy Suzy On A Sunday 1.5", and "GP". LP, Vinyl record album

Born in Mississippi, raised in Tennessee, but recorded in California with some mighty great grooves! The album's a great mix of the rootsy blues of John Lee Hooker and some of the best production modes ABC Records was using at the time – no hoke or attempt to dampen the energy of the core music – but just the key addition of fresh elements from players who include Clifford Coulter on piano, Sugarcane Harris on violin, Oscar Brashear on trumpet, Mel Brown on bass, George Bohannon on trombone, and John Klemmer on electrified sax with effects! These players all have a great ear for messing up jazz, blues, soul, and funk – and help Hooker to make the set one of his hippest ever – a record that nods strongly at the new generation, yet never panders to it at all. Titles include "Younger Stud", "King Of The World", "Tell Me You Love Me", and "Going Down". LP, Vinyl record album

A real breakout album for Edwin Starr – and the kind of full-on set that really helped give his music a bold new focus! Starr had already scored nicely on some playful tracks from the Motor City scene of the late 60s – but here, he emerges as a singer with a lot more depth than before – not only on the righteous tunes, like the classic title track – but also on some of the warmer ones too, which showcase a new adult style of singing we might not have expected a few years before! Unlike other Motown efforts of this level, there doesn't seem to be any core arranger and producer – which means that Edwin himself did an even greater job of pulling the whole thing together – a great run of tracks that includes the classic "War (What Is It Good For)", a killer version of "California Soul", one of the best Motown-penned tracks from the time – and the tracks "Time", "I Just Wanted To Cry", "All Around The World", "At Last I Found A Love", "I Can't Replace My Old Love", and "She Should Have Been Home". LP, Vinyl record album

Incredibly lovely piano and vocals from Thandi Ntuli – served up here with lots of special touches from spiritual master Carlos Nino – who helped create the proceedings as a very organic meeting of minds and hearts on the shores of sunny California! Thandi's got a soulful way of both playing and singing – the latter often in a non-lyrical way, so that the vocals are more these chants that flow out with a very spiritual vibe – often cyclical, and elliptical, and mixed with these warm piano lines and a bit of keyboards. Carlos adds in percussion and cymbals (plus "plants" – we're not sure how he did that) – and also recorded the album and shaped the sound in a very lovely way. The music is mostly improvised, but very melodic, and extremely personal – one of the most soulful projects we've heard from Nino in years. Titles include "The One", "Voice & Tongo Experiment", "Sunset In California", "Rainbow Revisited", "Breath & Synth Experiment", "Sunrise In California", and "Piano Edit (orig mix)". LP, Vinyl record album

Incredibly lovely piano and vocals from Thandi Ntuli – served up here with lots of special touches from spiritual master Carlos Nino – who helped create the proceedings as a very organic meeting of minds and hearts on the shores of sunny California! Thandi's got a soulful way of both playing and singing – the latter often in a non-lyrical way, so that the vocals are more these chants that flow out with a very spiritual vibe – often cyclical, and elliptical, and mixed with these warm piano lines and a bit of keyboards. Carlos adds in percussion and cymbals (plus "plants" – we're not sure how he did that) – and also recorded the album and shaped the sound in a very lovely way. The music is mostly improvised, but very melodic, and extremely personal – one of the most soulful projects we've heard from Nino in years. Titles include "The One", "Voice & Tongo Experiment", "Sunset In California", "Rainbow Revisited", "Breath & Synth Experiment", "Sunrise In California", and "Piano Edit (orig mix)". LP, Vinyl record album

The second Pharcyde record – and though not as blunted and playful as the first one, it's still nearly as great – with that unrivaled, wholly original, easy west coast vibe! The production is more steady-handed this time around, which alienated fans of Bizarre Ride early on, but it also laid the groundwork for the late 90s Jay Dee groove of keyboards and measured beats! The set also features production by M-Walk and Diamond D. 17 tracks including "Bullsh*t", "Pharcyde", "Groupie Therapy", the classic single "Runnin", "She Said", "Splattitorium", "Drop", "Somethin That Means Somethin", "Hey You", "Devil Music", "Emerald Butterfly", "Heart & Soul", "The Hustle", "The E.N.D." and more. LP, Vinyl record album

An early jazzy soundtrack from the great Piero Umiliani – made even better by some key work from Chet Baker on trumpet and Helen Merrill on vocals! The set was done at a time when both artists were spending some time in Italy – shaping the scene with their presence, and really standing out on a handful of rare recordings like this one – quite different than their American material of a few years before! Baker is especially striking – with lead solos that have a great sense of compression, and a depth of soul that really move beyond the Pacific Jazz recordings. And Merrill is wonderful, too – with that special flavor she only ever seemed to open up when she went overseas – and got to move into more unusual settings. But the real star is Umiliani throughout – balancing modern impulses with late night jazz in a way that really points the way towards his later scores in the 60s – but which is already nearly perfect here! Titles include "Smog" (done in instrumental and vocal versions by Baker and Merrill), plus "Dawn", "Tensione", "Tops", "California In The Summer", "Hollywood Tonight", "Bowling", and "Twilight At Los Angeles". LP, Vinyl record album

A really wicked compilation, of the sort that BBE first started doing back in the day – a mix of records that spans both scenes and generations, yet which come together with a beautifully integrated vibe! There's a warmth here that's undeniable – currents of jazz, Brazilian, acoustic soul, and more – all wrapped up with a sunny vibe that really makes the whole thing soar wonderfully, as strange musical bedfellows really find a great space to play together that's full of imagination, spirit, and plenty of soul! Titles include "Factory Rhythms" by Jr Quintet, "Life" by Bugs Beddow, "I Had A Friend" by Peter Gallway, "Palavras" by Caixa Cubo, "Mystery Of You" by Jeff Scott, "Place In Space" by Joe Thomas, "Heaven" by Crosswind, "Como Aprendi A Soportar Tus Inseguridades, "Easter Suite (edit)" by John Standefer & Friends, "California (Shawn Lee mix)" by Kirk Reed, "Make The Call (ext version)" by MF Robots, "Smile Upon Your Brother" by Ambassador College Band & New World Singers, and "I Know (demo version)" by Astronauts Etc. LP, Vinyl record album