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Rare early songs from Nick Drake – home recordings done before his three classic albums on Island Records, somewhat restored and remastered by his original sound engineer! The quality here is a fair bit better than most of the bootlegs from these years, and the overstuffed package features a whopping 28 tracks in all – beginning with more straightly-folksy tunes, and moving into territory that shows the more sophisticated styles that Drake would explore on his albums for Island. A few tracks feature vocals by his mother, Molly Drake, but the bulk of the work is by Nick – and overall, there's a surprisingly great quality to most of the tunes – the nascent genius that would emerge fully formed on Five Leaves Left. Titles include "Blossom", "Been Smoking Too Long", "Tomorrow Is A Long Time", "Here Come The Blues", "If You Leave Me", "Blues Run The Game", "My Baby So Sweet", "Kimbie", "Bird Flew By", "Rain", "Strange Meeting II", "Come In To The Garden", "Poor Mum", "Time Piece", and "Strolling Down The Highway". CD

A record that has Family very much at the top of their game – and working in a format that some of their contemporaries were trying on record at the time – serving up one side of live material, and one set in the studio! Although the group are sometimes linked to the prog scene of the time, there's a quality here that's often more hard rock overall, especially on the live material – very thunderous drums and heady guitar work, and vocals from Roger Chapman singing at the rawer side of his spectrum! Titles include "Part Of The Load", "Willow Tree", "Good News Bad News", "Holding The Compass", "Anyway", and "Normans". 2CD edition is overflowing with bonus material – the cuts "Normans (US LP edit)", "Hung Up Down (1970 single)", "Strange Band (studio)", and "The Weavers Answer (1970 single)" – plus a bonus CD with a dozen more tracks from a BBC Top Gear session in September, 1970! CD

An incredible revamping of some of the most important material recorded by Albert Ayler in the years before his too-soon death – a package that adds in over two hours of new music to the original three volume Fondation Maeght recordings – which were usually issued in low-budget packages without the care that this set receives! Ayler is fantastic here – very spiritual, and bridging the gap between his early material for ESP and his later work on Impulse – less of the experiments of the studio sets of those later years, and more of the searing longform improvisation that he could deliver at his best! The group features wonderful work from Mary Parks (Mary Maria) on soprano sax, plus Call Cobbs on piano, Steve Tintweiss on bass, and Allen Blairman on drums – and Parks delivers a sublime vocal on a version of "Music Is the Healing Voice Of The Universe". Ayler blows both tenor and soprano – and the set features a whopping 29 tracks, recorded on July 25 and 27 in 1970 – titles that include "Spirits Rejoice", "Thank God For Women", "Revelations", "Holy Family", "A Man Is Like A Tree", "Zion Hill", "Truth Is Marching In", "Love Cry", "Ghsots", "Speaking In Tongues", "Heart Love", "Island Harvest", "Masonic Inborn", and a few versions of "Revelations". CD

A nice sampler of Chicago hip hop surrounding the All Natural Family Tree! It's tough to find a fault with this collection. This is not only a fine set of tracks from a strong stable of Chi underground hip hop acts, but it's also really an excellent listen from beginning to end – featuring some of the choicest cuts from the collective! (But that's no excuse to skip the full length efforts of the artists – they're all worth your dime!) 15 tracks on the CD: "Hate" by Capital D, "Warm Up" by Rita J, "Raw" by Primeridan, "You Know My Name" by All Natural, "Virgo" by Family Tree, "Things Change" by Stoney Rock feat Black Spade, "You Make Me" by Mr Greenweedz feat Cosmos Boekell, "Dreams & Aspirations" by Rita J feat Stoney Rock, Adad & KP, "Do Me Right" by Eulorhythmics (Adad & Kenny Keys), and "The Knock" by Pacifics and more! CD includes enhanced footage – live video of Iomos Marad "Live & Direct". CD

Rare rock from the Golden Triangle scene of Southeast TX in the late 60s and early 70s – a well-curated overview of the stylistically sprawling material being cut at Mickey Rouse's Lowland Recording Studio in Beaumont! Texas rock of the late 60s and early 70s justifiably brings to mind acts like The 13th Floor Elevators and The Bubble Puppy – tripped out psychedelia in other words, but Texas is huge, and there was a heck of a lot more going on than just the best remembered cult favorites. The music coming out of just the Beaumont, Port Arthur, Orange, Texas "triangle" chronicled here was incredibly diverse. It includes proto TX boogie rock that's a clear precursor to early ZZ Top, harmony flavored numbers that sound closer to Cali than they do The Lone Star State, one track that somehow fuses CS&N with The Beatles and does so with prominent cowbell in the mix (and it's good!!!), punchy psych grit, and swaggering country rock with some twang in the strings that feels a bit more profoundly Texan. You don't need our word that The Numero Group has devoted some serious attention to detail – with a 35-page booklet of notes, photos and histories, plus the impressive Lost In The Golden Triangle "family tree" of the regional musicians involved – as if discovering these long buried regional relics wasn't impressive enough already. Beautiful! 22 tracks in all: "Trash One" by the Lowland Studio Band, "Live My Life Today" by Insight Out, "Simple House" by Mother Lion, "Love Of The Morning" by Circus, "Take A Look At Your Friends" by Next Exit, "You Know I Love You" by Roy Briggs & Alton Tew, "Calling Me Home (Demo)" by Donald Thomas and more. CD

Miche's at it again – and he's somehow managed to top the great sound of the first volume in the series – digging deeper into the past, coming up with more soulful numbers overall, then throwing in just the right touch of Brazilian grooves to even things out! As before, there's no unifying label or scene to these tracks – they're just brought together in celebration of a really joyous, positive, uplifting vibe – one possessed by each track alone, but which really steps out strongly as they all resonate together! Titles include "Save The Best For Last" by Alice Cohen & Fun City, "You & Me" by Mark Meadows, "Take To The Sky" by Mixed Generation Enterprize, "I Like What She's Doing" by Billy Boomer, "Straight Forward" by PJ City, "Realize" by Maxwell, "High On You" by Freedom, "Blow My Mind" by The Lost Family, "As" by The Family Tree, "A Luz Que Brilha Meu Viver" by Banda 22, "Misterio Brilhante" by Ze Da Lata, "Then I Reach Satisfaction" by Eleventh Commandment, and "Dame Solamente Amor" by Rogers Mitchell. CD

Lots of older record companies got in on the action during the early days of rock and roll – but few folks did it as well as RCA Records – home, of course, to Elvis Presley – and also to all the great lesser-known gems featured in this set! Some tracks are by artists who would break big on later labels, or others who might have stepped over a bit from country – but the bulk of the collection represents all the great singles that RCA cut during the late 50s and early 60s – including some on its sub-labels, where the company was going strong in the worlds of underground styles! Given that this excellent series already looked at RCA once before, it's a further testament that there's an additional 35 rocking gems to be pulled from the label's catalog – as you'll hear on cuts that include "Wild Child" by David Hill, "Get On The Right Track" by Joe Clay, "Rainbow Doll" by Jimmy Dell, "Welcome To The Club" by Jean Chapel, "Wolf Boy" by Sammy Salvo, "Hoebe Snow" by Benny Martin, "Never Been Kissed" by Marlin Greene, "Chicken House" by Dave Rich, "Heart Of A Fool" by Lee Denson, "Almost Eighteen" by Roy Orbison, "That Weepin Willow Tree" by Ray Griff, and "Dumb Bunny" by Bill Carlis. CD

Bear Family does it again – coming up with a sublime selection of vocal tunes from 50s and 60s westerns – mostly films, but with a few TV tunes thrown in for good measure! We're surprised at how much we like this stuff – and it segues nicely not only with our love of soundtracks, but also our appreciation of classic American singers – because when you see who's on the set, you'll be surprised at the voices they get! Titles include "The Hanging Tree" by Marty Robbins, "I'm A Runaway" by Tab Hunter, "Ballad Of Paladin" by Johnny Western, "The Searchers" by Sons Of The Pioneers, "The Legend Of Shenandoah" by Jimmy Stewart, "My Rifle My Pony & Me" by Dean Martin & Ricky Nelson, "North To Alaska" by Johnny Horton, "Bonanza" by Lorne Greene, "Cowboy" by Dickson Hall, "Roll On Texas Moon" by Roy Rogers, "The Rebel Johnny Yuma" by Johnny Cash, and "Nevada Smith" by Merle Kilgore. CD

Yulesville is coolsville – especially when it comes in the form of a killer collection of rare Christmas singles from the folks at Bear Family! The package is awash in the kind of groovy, sometimes goofy Holiday singles that broke big in the early years of rock and soul – a nice antidote to the sort of sleepier work that usually graced the record racks in earlier years – and the kind of music that's perfect for sipping egg nog into the wee small hours of Christmas morning! There's plenty of gems here that we've never heard before, and plenty of other great nuggets too – titles that include "Rock & Roll Christmas" by Cordell Jackson, "Wishing Is For Fools" by The Melodeers, "Jingle Jangle" by The Penguins, "Jingle Rock" by Tommy Lee & The Orbits, "Big White Cadillac" by Little Joey Farr, "Xmas Bell Rock" by Barry & The Highlights, "Twisten Bells" by Santo & Johnny, "Sleigh Bell Rock" by Three Aces & A Joker, "Winter Wonderland" by Allen & The Flames, "The Cactus Christmas Tree" by The McGuire Sisters, "It's Christmas Everywhere" by Paul Anka, "All Winter Long" by Linda Laure, and "Christmas Kisses" by The Bookends & Ray Anthony. 33 tracks in all! CD

A massive overview of Shelby Singleton's SSS family of labels – a key force in the sound of southern soul at the end of the 60s! Singleton first came to fame for his production work at Mercury – but by the time of these recordings, he was stepping out on his own in a great blend of styles that brought together the growing sound of 60s soul with some of the rootsier and more down-home influences in the south at the time. Shelby was based in Nashville, and offered up an approach to southern soul that was a bit different than that coming out of Memphis or Muscle Shoals – one that allowed for a bit of freedom in the way things were played out, and which often featured some nice country elements coming into the mix. The set features work from the SSS, Minaret, and Silver Fox labels – a great assortment of rare singles and album tracks that includes "He Made A Woman Out Of Me" by Betty Lavette, "I Have No One" by Big John Hamilton, "Everybody's Clown" by Johnny Dynamite, "Cummins Prison Farm" by Calvin Leavy, "I Can't Use You" by Double Soul, "Lonely For You Baby" by Sam Dees, "Blue Diamonds" by Double Soul, "I'm Getting It From Her" by Big John Hamilton, "Mama's Got The Wagon" by Mickey Murray, "A Shell Of A Woman" by Doris Allen, "Crying In The Streets" by George Perkins & The Silver Stars, and "So Deep In Love" by Eddy Giles. CD

A blues album, but one with a difference – thanks to some tremendous help from the legendary Johnny Otis and his young son Shuggie! Despite the fact that the leader is billed as Guitar Slim Green, Shuggie actually plays some lead guitar on the record too – adding in some cool, complicated solos that point towards his genius to come as a solo act – and which also get some nicely romping rhythms from Johnny on drums! The Otis family was definitely bringing a lot of funk into their sound at the time, which they share plenty with Slim here – helping to make the record way more than just another late 60s rootsy blues session, and instead a great west coast criss-crossing of modes. Titles include "Shake Em Up", "My Little Angel Child", "5th Street Alley Boogie", "Old Folks Blues", "This War Ain't Right", and "Big Fine Thing". Also features two bonus tracks, both unissued – "My Marie" and "Rock The Nation". CD

A pretty fantastic selection of rare disco tracks from the American underground – all of them infused with a spiritual message, but served up with grooves that go head to head with some of the best underground club of the time! The mix of positive energy and upbeat grooves is wonderful – and if you've ever heard the Clark Sisters club classic "You Brought The Sunshine", then you'll definitely know the spirit of these tunes! If you're worried about the message being one that you're not into, don't – because there's sort of a universal spirit going on here – one that gets past conventions of the church, and which really goes for a general uplifting message that's totally great – almost a precursor to some of the positive house in more recent decades. And speaking of house, there's less of that here than you'd expect – as most of the instrumentation and production are strongly in the best New York underground modes from the disco years – with less of any 80s or electro soul elements. Titles include "I Believe" by Calvin B Rhone, "Imitations" by Johnson Family Gospel Singers, "Change" by Wisdom, "On That Other Shore" by Harrison Jones & The Voices Of Harmony, "I've Been Converted" by The Converters, "Ain't No Way To Do Wrong" by New Creation, "Take It To The Streets" by Prophecy, "Let The Lord Come In Your Life" by Wisdom, "Keep The Fire" by Paradise, and "Jesus Is On The Mainline" by Mr Jesse R McGuire. CD

One of the most comprehensive sets we've ever seen to look at the legacy of the legendary Lee Hazlewood – and one of the few to focus on the impact he's had on the 21st Century! Lee's songs have become the stuff of legend over the years – not just his own recordings, but classic tracks sung by the Sinatra family members, Dean Martin, and countless others – who are usually features on similar sets under the Hazlewood banner. But this package goes those one better – and looks mostly at material from the past 20 years – plus a few older songs – showing that, if anything, the present century has given Lee's music even more power than ever in the hands of diverse talents like these. As with more "vintage" sets from Ace Records, the presentation is great – a lot of tracks, and very detailed notes that really like the Hazelwood heritage to all this recent music. Titles include "A Cheat" by Jarvis Cocker & Richard Hawley, "Some Velvet Morning" by Primal Scream & Kate Moss, "First Street Blues" by Mick Harvey, "I'm Glad I Never" by Jesus & Mary Chain, "Sand" by Holly Golightly, "Look At That Woman" by Gallon Drunk, "You Turned My Head Around" by Dean & Britta, "I'd Rather Be Your Enemy" by Boyd Rice, "Summer Wine" by Ville Valo & Natalia Avelon, "Paris Summer" by Frances Ruffelle, "My Autumn's Done Come" by Mark Morriss, "No Train To Stockholm" by Dan Michaelson & The Coastguards, and "Long Black Train" by Thriftstore Masterpiece with Frank Black. Also includes vintage songs – "She Comes Running" by Waylon Jennings, "The Man Who Made An Angel Cry" by Loy Clingman, "Lady Bird" by Virgil Warner & Suzi Jane Hokom, and "Friday's Child" by Billie Dearborn. CD

All of Prima's sides for Capitol from the late 50s and early 60s, plus wife and colleague Keely Smith and band leader Sam Butera's solo work from the era in an incredible 8 CD box! We often think of Louis as kinda of a loungey, Vegas cool cat, but what is so awesome about the material you'll find here is how furiously manic so much of it is. The first 3 discs document Prima at his wild, hard-swinging studio best – and could give Tito Puente a run for his money in the sweaty big-beat department! Tracks include "Buona Sera", "Just A Gigolo/I A'int Got Nobody ", "Jump, Jive, And Wail", "The Closer To The Bone", "Pennies From Heaven", "Pump Song", "Fee Fio Foo", "Lazy River", "I've Got You Under My Skin", and tons more. Discs 4 covers live sets at the Harrah's Club and the Sahara, and includes "On The Sunny Side Of The Street", "A Foggy Day", "Robin Hood", "Judy", and "Greenback Dollar Bill". Discs 5 & 6 cover Keely's sweeter but nearly as great sides, with Nelson Riddle and others, and tracks include "I Wish You Love", "It's Magic", and "Nothing In Common" and "How Are Ya' Fixed For Love?" with Frank Sinatra. Finally, Sam Butera's solo work is collected on the last 2 discs, returning things to Prima-style rockin' jazz, and including "Bim Bam", "Twinkle In Your Eye", "Bugs", "Tennessee Waltz", "Better Twist Now Baby", and "I'll Feel Good All Over". Great stuff from one of the tightest working units from the era, and a real treat to have in one place! CD

One of the most awe-inspiring Nuggets sets yet – a massive ode to the late 60s San Francisco scene – a wide, wide breadth of amazing singles from a disparate selection of acts – bound by a 120-page hardcover, richly illustrated book! Love Is The Song We Sing isn't at all the lumbering box of hippie nostalgia you might be expecting – it's weighted very heavily in leftfield obscurities, out numbering the big hits by at least 10-to-1 – with harshly buzzing tunes, groovy psychedelia, and topical folk tunes alike. The book is full of great photos, in buoyant color and stately black & white, with notes on each individual track, an essay & track commentary by Alec Palao, a piece by early Rolling Stone figurehead Ben Fong Torres, and an additional piece by Gene Sculatti. This is one of the best Rhino boxes we've ever seen, and that's saying something, isn't it – with amazing songs by Dino Valente, Country Joe & The Fish, Blue Cheer, Sly Stone, Ace Of Cups, Count Five, Moby Grape, Beau Brummels, Flamin' Groovies and many more! Disc one "Seismic Rumbles" includes "Let's Get Together" by Dino Valente, "You Were On My Mind" by We Five, "Number One" by Charlatans, "Can't Come Down" by Warlocks, "She's My Baby" by Mojo Men, "Human Monkey" by Frantics and loads more. Disc 2 "Suburbia" includes "Psychotic Reaction" by Count Five, "Foolish Woman" by Oxford Circle, "Rubiyat" by Immediate Family, "Hearts To Cry" by Frumious Bandersnatch and more. Disc 3 "Summer Of Love" includes "Carl Street" by Mystery Trend, "Superbird" by Country Joe & The Fish, "White Rabbit" by Jefferson Airplane, "Summertime Blues" by Blue Cheer, "Underdog" by Sly & The Family Stone, "Loading Zone" by Bells and lots more. Disc 4 "The Man Can't Bust Our Music" includes "Evil Ways" by Santana, "Revolution" by Mother Earth, "I'm Drowning" by Flamin' Groovies, "Dark Star" (single version) by Grateful Dead, "Get Together" by The Youngbloods and more. 77 tracks on 4CDs! CD

New work from a revived version of Blue Magic – that legendary 70s group who were one of the best on the Philly scene of the time – still sounding great here in a more contemporary set! The album's headed up by producer Butch Ingram – with backing by the whole Ingram Family – and like some of the recent Ingram projects on Society Hill, the record does a great job of both going back into deep Philly soul roots, and adding a few slight contemporary touches – never too many to ruin the old school modes, but just the right dash to keep the record from sounding like a copycat of the old days. Tunes include new material penned by the Ingrams and Barbara Mason – and titles include "I Can Show You Love", "I Can Want You", "I've Got My Heart Set On You", "Hurting", "Your Spell Stayed On My Mind", "On A Crowded Street", and "Seasons For Love". CD

A great slice of work from the New York underground of the post-disco years – served up by a family of labels that had been making things happen through most of the 70s! The set focuses strongly on the singles issued by the Posse and Spring Records labels – the former a new offshoot of the latter, especially geared towards 12" singles that were strongly focused on both the new sounds of the clubs and the streets – including lots of electro, bass-heavy funk, hip hop-inspired grooves, and mabye even some elements that would soon point the way towards house music to come! This side of the Spring Records label has never been covered in detail like this before – and the choice of cuts is as great as the notes on the music – which finally gives the Posse singles their due in the scene from back in the day. Titles include "We Come To Jam" by Blaze, "Sing A Song" by Lonnie Youngblood, "Have Your Cake" by Body, "Wired For Games (long version)" by C Brand, "Workin Out" by Ritz, "Live It Up (short vocal)" by Fonda Rae, "Get Up An Dance" by Mynk, "Spread Love" by Fatback, "Let's Get Nice (7" vocal)" by Glory, and "Got To Have Your Lovin (short vocal)" by Feel. CD

A great assortment of rare grooves from the 70s – most of them cuts that fall nicely in the space between early disco and uptempo soul – working together here in a batch of tracks that includes a fair bit of selections from the TK Records family of labels, plus some other 70s indies as well! Soul is every bit as important as the groove on most of these cuts – and you'll recognize some older singers making the 70s scene, amidst some others who only cut a few records during the decade – in a lineup that features 18 tracks in all, with titles that include "Try To Hold On" by Bobby Moore, "We Got Love On Our Side" by Silver Blue, "I Got It (part 1)" by New York Port Authority, "Discomania" by The Lovers, "Bumpin Bus Stop" by Thunder & Lightnin, "Be Real" by Tomorrow's Edition, "Love Chant (part 1)" by Eli's Second Coming, "Disco Man" by Three Ounces Of Love, "Back From The Dead" by Bobby Byrd, "I Don't Know If I Can Make It (part 1)" by Dawson Smith, and "Baia" by Alice Street Gang. CD

Music from The Earls, The Jive Five & Eugene Pitt, The Contours, The Shirelles, The Miracles, The Majors, The Volumes, The Marvelettes, The Duprees, The Four Seasons, The Excellents, and more - 34 tracks in all. CD

A stone pop soul winner from DeBarge – the kind of record that made the group a heck of a lot of money back in the 80s, and which sounds surprisingly great to our ears today! The record features lots of electro arrangements – fuzzy keyboards and bass pedals grooving around in a way that's got traces of "street" electro, mixed with some super-smooth LA production, and used brilliantly by the group in a family-based pop harmony way that stretches back to some of the great 70s groups of the same style – like The Sylvers or the Stairsteps. A heck of a lot nicer than we remember, and pretty great all the way through – with tracks that include "I Like It", "I'll Never Fall In Love Again", "All This Love", "I'm In Love With You", "Can't Stop", "It's Getting Stronger", and "Life Begins With You". CD

Funky soul from one of the less-discovered scenes in the south – the hotbed of small labels that were making some mighty great grooves in Atlanta during the 70s! The Peachtree city isn't nearly as well-cited as a soul music source in comparison to places like Memphis, Muscle Shoals, and even Miami – but back in the mid 70s, there was something really special going on – and for a strong moment, a few different labels really gave the city some great music! Much of the work here represents the changing character of Atlanta itself – deep soul vocals that were forged in a longer southern tradition, mixed with well-crafted grooves that show all the modern elements coming into play as the city grew and matured. Most of this work has a pre-disco vibe – with rhythms that are similar to the early work of Fatback or Kool & The Gang – with the difference that the singers in the lead are all pretty darn great on their own. BGP did an excellent job of choosing the tracks for the set, and the notes, as always, are great – and the package features 22 titles that include "Let's Dance" by Family Plann, "Seeds Of Life" by East LA Car Pool, "Down At The Disco" by Maggabrain, "Ain't It Funky" by Johnny Jacobs, "The Bump" by Floyd Smith, "Help Me (parts 1 & 2)" by Archie Russell, "I Don't Know What It Is But It Sure Is Funky" by Ripple, "Funk Pump" by The Counts, "Claim Jumpin" by Bill Brandon, "Checkmate" by The Ebony Godfather, "Shouldn't I Be Given The Right To Be Wrong" by Joe Hinton, "Husband In Law" by CL Blast, "Only A Fool" by Loleatta Holloway, "When I Build My World" by Jimmy Lewis, and "Complain To The Clouds" by Deep Velvet. CD

Truly tremendous work from saxophonist Kamasi Washington – a set that may well even blow away his groundbreaking Epic album – given the scope of soul and spirit in the music! As with the previous project, this one's double-length, but maybe feels even more fitted to the mode – as Washington leads this incredible ensemble that unifies a jazz group, orchestra, and choir – all at a level that might even top some of Alice Coltrane's early 70s albums for Impulse! There's a richness in vision here right from the start – music that knows what it is, where it's going, and what it can accomplish – very personal, but also very welcoming too – just the right sort of spirit to help get the nation back on track! Washington blows tenor throughout – and gets great help from Cameron Graves on piano, Brandon Coleman on organ and keyboards, and Miles Mosley on bass – whose work alone really seems to drive the proceedings! Titles include "Can You Hear Him", "Fists Of Fury", "Will You Sing", "Journey", "Street Fighter Mas", "The Space Travelers Lullaby", "The Psalmnist", "One Of One", and "The Invincible Youth". Comes with a bonus CD called The Choice – with the Kamasi-composed "The Secret Of Jinsonson", "Agents Of Multiverse" and "My Family", plus covers of "Will You Love Me Tomorrow" and "Ooh Child" – it's another 38 minutes of music hidden in the center of the cover! CD