Have guitar, will travel – and back in the day, Bo Diddley was going pretty darn far with great material like this! The album's a real standout, even in the classic Chess catalog of the early years –no filler, no covers, just all original material by Bo Diddley – done in that unique Diddley blend of fast riffing guitar, playful vocals, and odd rhythms that often chug along at a really frenetic pace, especially in these pre-funk years! A key influence on funky music for many years to come, and a record that explodes from the very first note – on a set of original tracks that include "Run Diddley Diddley", "Mumblin Guitar", "Say Man, Back Again", "Come On Baby", "Dancing Girl", "She's Alright", and "Cops & Robbers". LP, Vinyl record album

A group that definitely lives up to its name – given that the lineup features the Chess Records stalwarts Bo Diddley, Howlin Wolf, and Muddy Waters! The set's maybe a bit more in the mode of Wolf or Waters than some of Bo's own records – although there's a bit of that riffing spark of his at times – and the tracks are often nice and long, with more than enough room to make you feel like Phil Chess gave these guys plenty of space in the studio to hang out, and find the right way to interact. As much as we love Chess albums with short songs and a soulful punch, we really appreciate it when they can break format and open up on a session like this – which really helps create a unique moment on record! Titles include "Goin Down Slow", "Long Distance Call", "Sweet Little Angel", "Ooh Baby & Wrecking My Love Life", and "Spoonful". LP, Vinyl record album

Damn funky gospel from The Violinaires – easily one of the hippest spiritual albums you could ever hope to find on Chess! The groove here is gritty Chicago funk, put together by Gene Barge with lots of heavy bass on the bottom – in a blend that's somewhere between the Cadet/Concept funk used with Chess bluesmen at the time, and some of the bassy bottom modes that Norman Whitfield was using over at Motown! The grooves are more than enough to send this one out to anyone with a secular soul sensibility – and titles include "No Back Door", "Grooving With Jesus", "Let Us Pray", "Let The Sunshine In", "We Got To Live Together", and "Take Me". LP, Vinyl record album

A great set of groovers from the Cameo/Parkway label – a company that gave the world the biggest twist record of the 60s, but which also was perfectly poised to deliver all sorts of other upbeat tracks as well! The label was in Philly – a huge dance town in the early days of soul and rock – and the set list here is filled with the kind of cuts that were Philadelphia's answer to the rising sound of Motown – the roots of the Northern Soul sound that would be followed by soul collectors for decades! These aren't novelty hits, but upbeat cuts that groove plenty – most by soul artists, a few by pop singers – but all given the kind of tight instrumentation and strong studio handling that made the Philly scene such a standout. 22 tracks in all – including "Shimmy Shimmy" and "The Wah Watusi" by The Orlons, "Bristol Stomp" and "You Can't Sit Down" by the Dovells, "Mashed Potato Time" and "Do The Bird" by Dee Dee Sharp, "The 81" by Candy & The Kisses, "The Mash" by Tony Young & The Hippies, "Mexican Hat Rock" by The Applejacks, "Baby Do The Frog" by The Dardenelles, "The Swim (part 1)" by The Marlins, "Slow Twistin" by Chubby Checker & Dee Dee Sharp, "The Third House" by Bobby Rydell, "When You Dance" by The Turbans, "Everybody South Street" by The Taffys, "The Popeye Waddle" by Don Covay, and yes, "The Twist" by Chubby Checker. LP, Vinyl record album

A legendary night at Chicago's Checkerboard Lounge – a set recorded at a time when the Rolling Stones were in town, and decided to pop down to the south side, and visit the home turf of their blues hero, Muddy Waters! You'll notice that the record bills the performance as Muddy Waters & The Rolling stones – and that's definitely the case here, as the Stones step in almost as Muddy's backing band – allowing Waters to really step out in the lead, while the group remind us that way back in the day, they got their start as a blues-based group first, before finding a style of their own! The set's also filled with guest appearances – including work from Buddy Guy, Junior Wells, and Lefty Dizz – and titles include "Mannish Boy", "Hoochie Coochie Man", "Long Distance Call", "Next Time You See Me", "Champagne & Reefer", "Clouds In My Heart", "One Eyed Woman", and "You Don't Have To Go". LP, Vinyl record album

A great little record from Booker T and group – often overlooked amidst the range between Green Onions and Melting Pot, but a very strong album of soulful Memphis instrumentals all the way through! Book's organ is bubbling hot, and the band's tight rhythm style works in a perfect laid-back mode to push the group way past the stock grooves of earlier albums – thanks to great work from the rest of the combo too. There's some mighty nice rhythm changes on this one, and a good range of non-pop tunes like "Night Owl Walk", "Chinese Checkers", "Soul Dressing", "Tic Tac Toe", "Outrage", "Home Grown", "Big Train", "Jelly Bread", and "Plum Nellie". LP, Vinyl record album

A late 70s return to glory for the Captain – and a set that has a bit of a checkered path, in that it was originally done for Frank Zappa's Discreet label as the album Bat Chain Puller – then was held back, and mostly re-recorded for this seminal release on Warner Brothers! The set shows all the grown that Don Van Vliet had undergone during the decade – and also echoes his previous collaboration with Zappa – served up with instrumentation that is wonderfully complex, but still quite personal and earthy – a blend of composition, improvisation, and individuality that almost has Beefheart rivaling the work of Hermeto Pascoal during the decade, yet in a very different mode – given his vocal styles and occasional spoken musings! The Cap sings, plays harmonica, and blows soprano sax – alongside Jeff Moris Tepper on slide guitar and spell guitar, Bruce Lambourne Fowler on trombone, Eric Drew Friedman on Fender Rhodes and bass, Art Tripp III on marimba and percussion, Robert Arthur Williams on drums, and Richard Redus on slide guitar, bottleneck guitar, fretless bass, accordion, and guitar. Tracks include "The Floppy Boot Stomp", "Ice Rose", "Bat Chain Puller", "Candle Mambo", "Love Lies", and "Suction Prints". This 2LP version features a full bonus record of rare material – including "Love Lies (demo)", "Harry Irene (rough mix)", "Witch Doctor Life (demo)", "Brickbats (inst rough mix)", "Suction Prints (inst demo)", "You Know You're A Man (inst alt version)", and "When I See Mommy I Feel Like A Mummy (demo)". LP, Vinyl record album