A great entry in this always-killer collection of rare funk and soul – a series that somehow manages to keep on delivering ultra-rare nuggets, even at a time when there's been so many other compilations from so many other labels over the years! Our ears are always trained to appreciate the best of the best from the world of funky collections – and those ears are plenty pleased with the range of tracks here we'd never heard before – the kind of music that remind us to keep on digging, even when we think we've heard enough! Titles include "All Night" by Vantage Point, "I'm Feeling It Too" by Kim McCrae, "Steps On A Cloud" by Street Life 80, "Real True Voices" by Tory Wynter, "I'll Be Good To You" by Chatham, "Giving On Into Love" by Dalton Reed, "Getting Lucky" by Panama Gold, "Step By Step" by Matter Of Taste, "What Am I Going To Do Baby" by Royal Touch, and "Bi-Centennial 1976" by Frankie Staton & Speckled Rainbow. LP, Vinyl record album

An incredible collection – and one that fills in a crucially under-documented side of the New York dancefloor generation – the wealth of special mixes and edits that were made for that city's important DJs for their own use in clubs! The package sorts through a mountain of never-issued acetates, and goes way past conventional disco or rare club collections – to showcase the special mixing talents these DJs brought to their re-presentation of the material – which was usually done on tape, then pressed onto acetate discs for their own private use! Those rare treasures are brought forth here – in a beautiful package that's also overflowing with fantastic notes that finally give this lost history its due – all handled by Al Kent – who's a hell of a mixer himself, as well as an underground club historian. Vinyl part 1 features five different records, all with lots of space for the tunes to stretch out – and titles include "I Just Wanna Say I Love You (John Luongo rmx)" by Leon Collins, "What About Love (Tony Gioe rmx)" by Marboo, "Ten Percent (Walter Gibbons Sunshine Sound acetate edit)" by Double Exposure, "Inside America (Rick Gianatos disco queen acetate edit)" by Juggy Murray Jones, "Dancing Free (John Luongo rmx)" by Hot Ice, "Black Water Gold (Sunshine Sound acetate edit)" by The Sunshine Band, "Magic Bird Of Fire (Francois Kevorkian Sunshine Sound acetate edit)" by Salsoul Orchestra, "It's Good For The Soul (Jay Negron Sunshine Sound acetate edit)" by Salsoul Orchestra, "My Love Is Free (Walter Gibbons disco madness rmx)" by Double Exposure, "Reaching Out For Happiness (Jonathan Fearing rmx)" by Fay Hauser, "Let Me Be Your Fantasy (Tom Savarese rmx)" by Love Symphony Orchestra, "The Beat Goes On & On (Jim Burgess rmx)" by Ripple, "I Wanna Be Near You (John Morales Sunshine Sound acetate edit)" by Ruby Andrews, "I've Been Looking For Somebody (Walter Gibbons rmx)" by TC James & The Fist O Funk Orchestra, "The Disco Scene (Rick Gianatos rmx)" by Lake Shore Drive, "Bumpsie's Whipping Cream (Tom Savarese rmx)" by TC James & The Fist O Funk Orchestra, and "Janice (Bobby DJ Guttadoro rmx)" by Skip Mahoney. LP, Vinyl record album

One of Bunny's earliest, and one of his best. Although some of the tracks have an uptempo pre-disco feel, there's none of the excesses of his later albums for Gold Mind. Instead, there's a solid Philly soul groove, and great production by Bunny, with arrangements by Norman Harris and Ronnie Baker. Tracks include "Keep Smilin", "Picture Us", "Love Train", "Things Are Gonna Get Better", and "Your Love Is Good". LP, Vinyl record album

The title's a bit strange – given that Bunny Sigler started out as a soul singer in the late 60s, and continued to record well into the 70s too – yet it's also a reminder that by the time of this set, Sigler had become a real powerhouse on the Philly club scene – working as a producer and arranger for a host of other artists too! All that strong work comes to bear on this album – done by Bunny in close collaboration with Instant Funk, who provide lots of sharp-edged grooves that are heavy on guitar – and a nice change from the usual disco modes of the time. Tunes are clubby, but have lots of funk in the rhythms too – and titles include "Let's Get Freaky Now", "Simple Things You Do", "Cry My Eyes Out", "By The Way You Dance", "Glad To Be Your Lover", and "I'm Funkin You Tonight". LP, Vinyl record album

Lesser-known 70s work from Hues Corporation – but still pretty darn sweet! As with other efforts for RCA, the overall sound is somewhat polished, but never too commercial – kind of a more mainstream take on harmony soul modes from a few years before – especially the mixed male/female approach at the end of the 60s. There's a bit of disco in the backings, but usually not too much – and most of the production is in that tight AM radio-friendly RCA mode that worked perfectly back in the day. Arrangements are by Michael Omartin, HB Barnum, and Larry Carlton – and titles include "He's My Home", "Gold Rush", "You Showed Me What Love Is", "Long Road", "One Good Night Together", "Soul Sailin", and "Sing To Your Song". LP, Vinyl record album

A really classic set of dancefloor tracks from Loleatta Holloway – and a set that's got her fully stepping into the disco diva role, after starting out as more of a deep soul singer! Holloway's rich, full voice is perfect for the setting – a proud, confident lead that really soars out in the album's great arrangements – a nicely varied mix of Salsoul-styled club cuts, arranged by Bobby Womack, Floyd Smith, and Tom Washington. The different talents bring a nice range of approaches to the record, which further helps flesh out Loleatta's nicely maturing vocal style – and tunes include That's What You Said", "The Greatest Performance Of My Life", "All About The Paper", "Sweet Mother Of Mine", and "There Must Be A Reason". LP, Vinyl record album

A really unusual set of 70s grooves from the African scene – tracks that almost seem to be out of time, as many of them have electric touches and driving rhythms that sometimes feel as if they are laying the groundwork for clubbier styles in years to come! Yet these also aren't synth-heavy tracks, as in the South African pop to come in the mid 80s – as they're filled with plenty of live instrumentation, soulful vocals, and basslines and drum parts that really keep things gritty! Many of the cuts have unusual production elements and spacey instrumental touches – almost as if you're listening to a P&P take on the styles of West Africa at the time – on titles that include "Jungle Magic" by Benis Cletin, "I Got To Make It" by Joe Kemfa, "Save Me" by Blo, "10 Years In Love" by Danny Offia & The Friks, "Boys & Girls" by Joe Moks, "BMS Bowl" by Goldfinger Doe & BMS, and "Girls For Sale" by Felix Labarty. LP, Vinyl record album

Diana Ross gets some great assistance on this set – the club classic team of Ashford & Simpson, who help give Diana a groove that's very much like their own great work of the time! Tunes are long and clubby, but never throwaway pop disco – and with Ashford & Simpson at the helm, Diana Ross sounds better here than on most of her other late 70s work! There's a tight-stepping groove to most numbers – never too fast, and exploding with that fuller soulful undercurrent we love so much in Ashford & Simpson. Titles include "No One Gets The Prize", "The Boss", "All For One", "I Ain't Been Licked", "It's My House", "Sparkle", and "Once In The Morning". LP, Vinyl record album

A really wonderful collection from a time when the Italian scene was really on fire – getting past some of the more standard modes of Italo Disco of the 80s, and really stepping forward with some of the most soulful, uplifting sounds of house music! Given the way the earlier Italian work influenced the grooves in Chicago and New York clubs, the cultural exchange makes even more sense going the other way around – and the well-chosen cuts on this set represent the cream of the crop from this moment – really well-conceived, well-produced cuts that have a surprisingly soulful vibe throughout. Titles include the previously unreleased cuts "London (orig mix)" by Ricky Montanari & Davide Ruberto, and "Melt The Sun" by Ivan Iacobucci – plus "Let's Face The Music" by Night Communication, "Switch Back" by Green Baize, "Get Up" by Mental Detector, "So In Love With You (club)" by Sound Set, "Make My Move (Tira dub)" by Workin Happily, "Give You Myself (Ethos Mama dub)" by Sima, and "In Total Darkness (irregular dub)" by More Heavy Soul. LP, Vinyl record album

One of a few albums recorded by trumpeter Don Goldie for the Argo label in the early 60s – and probably the best of the bunch! This set has Goldie blowing with a group that includes Eddie Higgons on piano, Richard Evans on bass, and Fred Rundquist on guitar – gently grooving in a small combo early 60s Chicago mode. Goldie's style is a bit bright – as you might guess from the title – but there's enough soul in the rhythm section to keep things solid, even on the shorter tracks. Titles include "Soon", "I'll Be Around", "Look For The Silver Lining", "Toy Trumpet", and "Tis Autumn". LP, Vinyl record album

Brilliant early sounds from Jimmy Jam – rare late 70s material that has a very different sound than his slicker 80s work with Terry Lewis! The style here is a wonderful blend of sweet soul and righteous jazzy funk – a lot warmer than Jimmy's later beat-heavy style – and served up with loads of sweet keyboards alongside the soaring harmony vocals! Jimmy himself plays Fender Rhodes, clavinet, and other keys – but what we really love about the record is the vocals – these harmonies that are as fragile as New Jersey soul from the early part of the decade, but often turned towards more complicated cuts that have lots of jazzy riffing in the rhythms! The work's never been issued before, and is one of the greatest discoveries we've heard so far from the Numero Group – that's really saying a lot, given all their other releases. The vibe is almost like the Moments or Whatnauts recording for Black Jazz records – and titles include "I Don't Know Why", "My Love Is Like A Fire", "The Wonder Of It All", "No One Else Can Do It To Me Baby", "Virgin Lady", and "When You're Touching Me". LP, Vinyl record album