Genius, pure genius from a young David Bowie – an album that we've always treasured as much as Ziggy Stardust! This set's pre-Hunky Dory, pre-Space Oddity – and it's an amazing little record that's almost completely devoid of guitars – instead using weird woodwinds (lots of oboe!), soaring strings, and offbeat orchestrations to carry off the tunes – all of which are as weird, mad, and wonderful as anything Bowie wrote in later years! The subject matter of the songs is almost a dark reflection of the picture postcard England that you'd find in work by The Kinks – the local pederast, weird guy who lives with his mum, old military geezer who can't get out of the past, cross-dressing soldiers, a gravedigger about to meet his death, and hip Londoners gallivanting all over town – all delivered with a sharpness that's stunning. We honestly think the record is flawless – incredibly complicated instrumentally, but incredibly groovy too – with all the edge you'll always love in Bowie, but in a fresh young flavor too. Years back, as young Bowie-heads, we always passed this one by – assuming it was unformed early roughness – but it's not, and is an incredible album that would have been more than enough for any other artist to build a career on. Titles include "Uncle Arthur", "Sell Me A Coat", "Rubber Band", "Love You Till Tuesday", "There Is A Happy Land", "When I Live My Dream", "Maids Of Bond Street", "We Are Hungry Men", "She's Got Medals", and "Please Mr Gravedigger". LP, Vinyl record album

A record that has some blues influences at the core, but which also really moves past that energy right away – by folding in some of the hipper, headier styles that Frijid Pink had picked up while working on the Detroit scene at the end of the 70s! The vocals are raw in a great way, and the guitar work follows suit nicely – on titles that include "Sloony", "I'll Never Be Lonely", "Black Lace", "Sing A Song For Freedom", "I Haven't Got The Time", "Pain In My Heart", and "We're Gonna Be There". LP, Vinyl record album

A brilliant little set from Keef Hartley – a blend of jazz, blues, and rock that's really tremendous – quite different than other efforts of its sort at the time, with a gritty edge that really makes the record stand up strongly over the years! Keef's on drums, and has a great way of rumbling up the bottom of the tunes – a feature that's always made his records a favorite of beatheads – and vocals here are from Miller Anderson, who definitely has a touch of Eric Burdon in his approach. Other instrumentation includes organ, harpsichord, and some wickedly fuzzy guitar – plus occasional brass from a section that includes Harry Beckett and Henry Lowther, the latter of whom did arrangements. Titles include "Born To Die", "Just To Cry", "Think It Over/Too Much To Take", "Just To Cry", "Leavin Trunk", and "Sinnin For You". LP, Vinyl record album

A record with a much harder edge than you'd expect from the cover – not the ancient vibe of a medieval crusade, or the religiosity in the title – and instead this searing entry to the hard rock underground at the time! The group have a really heavy Black Sabbath sort of sound – with excellent lead guitars from Bob Cooke, and a sinister sound that has the grooves really dipping down into the depths, pushed even further by evil-edged vocals from singer Lynden Williams. The album's got the raw power of Sabbath's best work – and the whole thing's a killer record that should have been an instant classic. Titles include "Midnight Steamer", "Frustration", "Hooded Eagle", "Primitive Man", "She Came Like A Bat Out Of Hell", and "When The Wolf Sits". LP, Vinyl record album

... LP, Vinyl record album

... LP, Vinyl record album

Here's a guy with a great gimmick – whistling! Jack Smith was a youngster, but he could blow with the best of them – whistling his way through the massive international pop hit "I Was Kaiser Bill's Batman" – a tune that's as groovy as it sounds, with a crashing goofy approach that's really really great! Smith wets his whistle on 11 other tracks on this one and only album – mixing in a bunch of cool arrangements from Ivor Raymonde that have a nice 60s Brit feel. Titles include "I Was Kaiser Bill's Batman", "Song Of The Steppes", "Happy Wanderer", "Union Jack", and "Early One Morning". LP, Vinyl record album

... LP, Vinyl record album

A beautiful lost slice of British jazz, recorded during the crucial period before some of the scene's players went too far off the deep end! John Surman partners here with composer/leader John Warren, for a large group recording that sounds similar to some of the best early Mike Westbrook recordings. The album's comprised of a suite of 5 tracks, all played by a large group in a style that shows the best British modernist tradition of the 60's. The ensemble playing is dark and moody – but always tight at all moments. The group's soloists – like Surman, Mike Osborne, Barre Phillips, Kenny Wheeler, and others – soar out of the arrangements in tightly constructed, brilliantly realized solos that stand as some of their best work. Titles include "With Terry's Help", "We'll Make It", "The Dandelion", "The Picture Tree", and the "Tales Of The Algonquin" suite. LP, Vinyl record album

The first album by British bandleader Mike Westbrook – and a searing session that crackles with energy that's missing from much of his later work! The album features Westbrook unlocking a whole new chapter in British jazz – bringing together a host of top-shelf London players that include John Surman on baritone and soprano saxes, Mike Osborne on alto, and Harry Miller on bass – all working in an array of rich colors, tones, and musical shapes – swinging all the time, but also managing to explore some pretty heady space! The whole thing's amazing – never bogged down in its own sense of self – and simply a fresh, bold statement by a young talent ready to set the world on fire! Tracks include "Pastoral", "Awakening", "Image", "Dirge", and "Portrait". LP, Vinyl record album

The brilliant 3rd album from Mike Westbrook – a sharp-edged, two volume set with a scathing anti-war theme! The work is Westbrook's first total-concept album, and it's still one of his best – written with an edge that's free from some of the more whimsical touches that showed up in Mike's later years, and played by a core group of British avant soloists with searing intensity! You've never heard large group scoring like this – bold, ambitious, and quite different than most of what's come before. And although the whole thing sounds as if it's going to fall apart at any moment, it always snaps back into a sharp focus just in the nick of time – with brilliant results that bring the same sense of surprise that you might get from, say, a classic album from Charles Mingus or Archie Shepp! Players include Kenny Wheeler and Henry Lowther on trumpets, Mike Gibbs and Paul Rutherford on trombones, John Surman on baritone and soprano sax, Mike Osborne on alto and clarinet, Alan Skidmore on tenor and flute, Brian Smith on tenor, and Harry Miller and Barre Phillips on bass. Titles on this first volume include "Landscape", "Hooray", "Other World", and "Marching Song". LP, Vinyl record album

The brilliant 3rd album from Mike Westbrook – a sharp-edged, two volume set with a scathing anti-war theme! The work is Westbrook's first total-concept album, and it's still one of his best – written with an edge that's free from some of the more whimsical touches that showed up in Mike's later years, and played by a core group of British avant soloists with searing intensity! You've never heard large group scoring like this – bold, ambitious, and quite different than most of what's come before. And although the whole thing sounds as if it's going to fall apart at any moment, it always snaps back into a sharp focus just in the nick of time – with brilliant results that bring the same sense of surprise that you might get from, say, a classic album from Charles Mingus or Archie Shepp! Players include Kenny Wheeler and Henry Lowther on trumpets, Mike Gibbs and Paul Rutherford on trombones, John Surman on baritone and soprano sax, Mike Osborne on alto and clarinet, Alan Skidmore on tenor and flute, Brian Smith on tenor, and Harry Miller and Barre Phillips on bass. Titles on this second volume include "Transition", "Rosie", "Tension", "Ballad", "Conflict", and "Requiem". LP, Vinyl record album

A record with a much harder edge than you'd expect from the cover – not the ancient vibe of a medieval crusade, or the religiosity in the title – and instead this searing entry to the hard rock underground at the time! The group have a really heavy Black Sabbath sort of sound – with excellent lead guitars from Bob Cooke, and a sinister sound that has the grooves really dipping down into the depths, pushed even further by evil-edged vocals from singer Lynden Williams. The album's got the raw power of Sabbath's best work – and the whole thing's a killer record that should have been an instant classic. Titles include "Midnight Steamer", "Frustration", "Hooded Eagle", "Primitive Man", "She Came Like A Bat Out Of Hell", and "When The Wolf Sits". LP, Vinyl record album

Possibly one of the best-remembered albums by John Mayall's legendary Blues Breakers combo – thanks to vocals and guitar from a young Eric Clapton! Clapton at this point is way fresher than in later years – not prone to cliches, and still coming across with a raw, edgey power that is drenched in American blues tradition. Mayall's great too – wailing on harmonica, organ, and piano – and other members of the core group include John McVie on bass and Hughie Flint on drums – augmented by contributions from UK jazzers John Almond on baritone sax and Alan Skidmore on tenor. Titles include "All Your Love", "Little Girl", "Key To Love", "Parchman Farm", "Have You Heard", "It Ain't Right", and "Steppin Out". LP, Vinyl record album

Possibly one of the best-remembered albums by John Mayall's legendary Blues Breakers combo – thanks to vocals and guitar from a young Eric Clapton! Clapton at this point is way fresher than in later years – not prone to cliches, and still coming across with a raw, edgey power that is drenched in American blues tradition. Mayall's great too – wailing on harmonica, organ, and piano – and other members of the core group include John McVie on bass and Hughie Flint on drums – augmented by contributions from UK jazzers John Almond on baritone sax and Alan Skidmore on tenor. Titles include "All Your Love", "Little Girl", "Key To Love", "Parchman Farm", "Have You Heard", "It Ain't Right", and "Steppin Out". LP, Vinyl record album

... LP, Vinyl record album

... LP, Vinyl record album

A searing live document of the magic of Ten Years After – recorded at London's Klooks Kleek as a great example of the kind of sound that got the group a huge amount of attention before they were even signed to a record label! The sound's still got some of the bluesy influences that both the group and that club were known for – but the guitar of Alvin Lee is really taking off, especially on the album's very long tracks – which seem to insist on solos that would go onto influence a whole psychedelic generation. The Hammond solos are great, too – and titles include "I May Be Wrong But I Won't Be Wrong Always", "Spider In My Web", "I'm Going Home", and a surprisingly great take on Woody Herman's "Woodchopper's Ball", which is completely transformed here! LP, Vinyl record album

A fantastic idea – the complex prog sounds of Caravan, matched with larger orchestrations – all with a sound that's completely sublime! Tracks are all nice and long – and features Pye Hastings on vocals and guitar, and Dave Sinclair on electric piano, organ, and electronics! LP, Vinyl record album

A tremendous set from one of the best – and most under-recognized – groups of the British jazz rock scene at the end of the 60s! The group have an approach that mixes heavy blues-influenced jamming with some of the lighter, more lyrical touches that were showing up at the time – in a way that gives them a firmly grounded sound at one level, but also a slightly more sophisticated, contemplative approach – making the group almost a UK equivalent to the sound of the Steve Miller Band at the time. The jazzier tracks on the album feature work by some great straight British players – including Harry Beckett and Ray Warleigh – and the album's also got a few nice slightly funky cuts that are known for their breaks! Tracks include "The Dansette Kid", "Hickory", "Not Foolish, Not Wise", "Poor Mabel", "Believe In Me", "Don't Give Up", "Hickory", and "Tadpole". LP, Vinyl record album

The name of the group may be obscure, but it's one of the key ensembles who recorded as part of the legendary Deram jazz series at the turn of the 70s – directed by cellist Paul Buckmaster, and featuring trumpet from Ian Carr and soprano sax from Brian Smith! The style here mixes together strings and freer jazz styles – in a tightly scored way that makes for shifting patterns in sound and mood. Overall, there's a quality to the work that always seems to be yearning for the next level – especially on the earlier tracks on the album, which kind of set the stage – and then open up at the final half of the record in some especially groovy numbers that feature Chris Karan on tabla! Other players include Peter Robinson on electric piano, Diana Lewis on acoustic piano, and Barry Morgan on drums – and titles include "Chitinous", "Dance", "Aldebaranian Song", and "Ronkproat'tn". LP, Vinyl record album