A trio of albums from Jimmy Castor – complete with bonus tracks too! First up is Butt Of Course – a funky funky classic from Jimmy Castor – a set that kicked off a tight run of records for Atlantic – and which firmly established his rep as a master of 70s funk! The sound of the set follows nicely from Jimmy's work on RCA – some of the fuzzy "Troglodyte" guitar work of those years, lots of earthy rhythms on the bottom, and Castor's trademark sense of wit – which was firmly in place even during his Latin Soul years! There's a few smoother, sweeter moments too – but these all come off nicely – and as always, Castor's a one-man soul music machine – able to handle plenty of sounds and styles with effortless ease! Titles include "Bertha Butt Boogie", "E Man Boogie", "Hallucinations", "Let's Party Now", "Potential", and "One Precious World". On Supersound, Jimmy Castor bursts forward with a groove that's different than his fuzzier work for RCA Records, but still equally funky throughout! Castor's still quite the multi-instrumentalist on the record – as in addition to singing lead, he plays plenty of soprano sax and timbales – the latter of which have this great skittish energy that really pushes the grooves forward strongly! And although the timbales are quite different than in Jimmy's earlier Latin work from the late 60s, there's a definite Latin-izing element in the way they're used – kind of an "it's not heavy enough – let's add more percussion" approach to the core 70s funk styles of the combo! Tunes are nicely quirky, and have a sense of humor in keeping with the cover – and titles include "Magic In The Music", "Supersound", "Bom Bom", "King Kong", and "A Groove Will Make You Move". E Man Groovin is a great extension of the funky style that Castor first started forging at RCA – touches with plenty of Jimmy's multi-instrumental touches on tenor, alto, and timbales – and given that great monster-inspired approach to lyrics – which ensures that the whole thing stays plenty vivid throughout! Vocals are nice and rough, and the instrumentation is heavy on basslines and clavinet – on titles that include the two part "Dracula", plus "Super Love", "I Love A Mellow Groove", "E Man Groovin", "I Don't Want To Lose You", and "Space Age". 2CD set features bonus tracks – "Space Age (12" disco version)", "King Kong (part 1)", "Supersound (7" version)", "The Christmas Song", "Merry Christmas", and "Bertha Butt Boogie (7" version)". CD

A funky funky classic from Jimmy Castor – a set that kicked off a tight run of records for Atlantic – and which firmly established his rep as a master of 70s funk! The sound of the set follows nicely from Jimmy's work on RCA – some of the fuzzy "Troglodyte" guitar work of those years, lots of earthy rhythms on the bottom, and Castor's trademark sense of wit – which was firmly in place even during his Latin Soul years! There's a few smoother, sweeter moments too – but these all come off nicely – and as always, Castor's a one-man soul music machine – able to handle plenty of sounds and styles with effortless ease! Titles include "Bertha Butt Boogie", "E Man Boogie", "Hallucinations", "Let's Party Now", "Potential", and "One Precious World". LP, Vinyl record album

Heavy heavy funk from the Louisiana scene of the late 60s and 1970s – and a great collection that really gets past the dominance of the New Orleans sound! The set moves way past the Crescent City to uncover a wealth of great bits recorded in smaller studios located in Shreveport, Lake Charles, and a variety of tiny scenes in the southwest side of Louisiana – and the result is a great batch of tunes with a really gritty, down-n-dirty sound! There's a wealth of great funky styles in the set – including James Brown-inspired jammers, southern soul burners, and some other great modes that show that Louisiana's got a heck of a lot more to offer than just New Orleans funk. Titles include work from the Anla, Murco, Soul International, Goldband, and Tic Toc labels – a total of 22 cuts that include "Soul Time" by Ernest Thomas, "Soul Feeling (parts 1 & 2)" by Eddy G Giles, "Soul Brothers Testify (part 1)" by Chester Randles Soul Senders, "Soul Power" by Abraham & The Casanovas, "Put It On" by Count Rockin Sidney with The Dukes, "Fix It" by Clifton White & His Royal Knights, "Miss Hard To Get" by Dennis Landry, "No Sad Times" by Johnny Truit, "Black Water Gold" by African Music Machine, and "I Got A Groove" by JJ Callier. CD

A huge amount of material from this legendary Philly female trio – three full albums, plus a stunning amount of bonus tracks too! First up is Delusions – one of the best records ever cut by this soulful Philly female trio! The album's one of the first on Salsoul's Gold Mind subsidiary – and it features sparkling club production by the Harris/Baker/Young team – a landmark force not only in Philly disco, but 70s female soul as well – as their backings for groups of this nature are always sensitive to the complexities of the vocals! The record's mostly uptempo – with plenty of soaring tracks that still retain the more soulful sound of the group's early work – and the songwriting's generally tight, a few notches above earlier albums on Warner – showing that their return to the indie fold was a very good move. Titles include the classic "Let No Man Put Asunder" – plus "Doctor Love", "Indian Giver", "Do Me Again", and a great version of Stevie Wonder's "Love Having You Around". On Hold Your Horses, Rochelle and the girls are in full force – with production by Norman Harris and Tom Moulton! The opening trio of cuts have the continuously flowing vibe of an extended suite – and it's a really exhilarating 16 minutes of dancefloor soul – with gorgeous lead and harmony vocals, funky bass grooves and unexpected changes among the club soul standard-bearing grooves. The drum heavy sections of "Let Me Down Easy" and the title track stand out strongly amongst those, but there's lots of nice little twists throughout! Other titles include "Love Thang", and "Double Cross". Breakaway is a fantastic late album from the wonderful First Choice – a trio who started out strongly in soul music first, which was maybe one of the reasons why they always seemed to stand head and shoulders above some of the other female groups in the disco generations! And one of the best moves that First Choice ever made was hooking up with the legendary Norman Harris – the excellent Philly producer who always managed to bring a lot of soul to the dancefloor, and who works wonders here with his Harris Machine production team – really opening up the cuts with plenty of Philly club soul! Cuts include "Can't Take It With You", "Breakaway", "Pressure Point", and "I Can Show You". All 3 albums feature bonus tracks – and then CD4 features more bonus remixes and reworks – which adds in 22 additional tracks to the collection! CD

A great set of old school funky numbers – the kind of indie soul 45s that first helped define the sound of rare groove back in the 80s – still as brilliantly bumping all these many years later! Most tracks here are from small label 45s of the early 70s – tracks that weren't issued on LP, and were often by artists who didn't ever even get to cut full albums – but who hit some great underground fame for their sharp grooves and wicked approach to instrumentation and vocals! The set's got loads of classics we've loved for years, but which haven't been reissued often in recent sets – cuts that include "Mr Brown" by African Music Machine, "It's Your Thing" by Toddlin Town Sounds, "Keep On Dancing" by Alvin Cash, "Somebody Help The Beggar Man" by Jackie Beavers, "Right On Jody" by Bobby Patterson, "Gossip" by Cyril Neville, "Good Book" by The 8th Day, "Close Your Big Mouth" by The Politicians, "Hunk O Funk" by Scott Brothers Orchestra, "Ace In The Hole" by Honey Cone, "Miss Funky Fox" by Exit 9, "Gotta Get Away" by Harolyn Montgomery, and "Know What To Do When You Get It" by The Genies. CD

Heavy heavy funk from the Louisiana scene of the late 60s and 1970s – and a great collection that really gets past the dominance of the New Orleans sound! The set moves way past the Crescent City to uncover a wealth of great bits recorded in smaller studios located in Shreveport, Lake Charles, and a variety of tiny scenes in the southwest side of Louisiana – and the result is a great batch of tunes with a really gritty, down-n-dirty sound! There's a wealth of great funky styles in the set – including James Brown-inspired jammers, southern soul burners, and some other great modes that show that Louisiana's got a heck of a lot more to offer than just New Orleans funk. Titles include work from the Anla, Murco, Soul International, Goldband, and Tic Toc labels – a total of 22 cuts that include "Soul Time" by Ernest Thomas, "Soul Feeling (parts 1 & 2)" by Eddy G Giles, "Soul Brothers Testify (part 1)" by Chester Randles Soul Senders, "Soul Power" by Abraham & The Casanovas, "Put It On" by Count Rockin Sidney with The Dukes, "Fix It" by Clifton White & His Royal Knights, "Miss Hard To Get" by Dennis Landry, "No Sad Times" by Johnny Truit, "Black Water Gold" by African Music Machine, and "I Got A Groove" by JJ Callier. LP, Vinyl record album

A huge disco cash-in moment of the 70s – but a great one too, and a strong illustration of the power that Casablanca Records had in both the clubs and charts at the time! The movie and record were both a bit over-pressed upon release, but they nonetheless stand as a great snapshot of the way that funky soul had taken over the clubs during the disco generation – giving showcase to a whole host of new young artists, and exposing lots of mainstream listeners to soul music at a level they wouldn't have touched a few years before! Donna Summer was one of Casablanca's big acts at the time – and she really dominates the record with her classic rendition of "Last Dance", plus tracks "With Your Love" and a disco remake of "Je T'Aime Moi Non Plus". Both other cuts are strong too – and include "Lovin, Livin, & Givin" by Diana Ross, "Too Hot Ta Trot" by The Commodores, "Disco Queen" by Paul Jabara, "Leatherman's Theme" by Wright Bros Flying Machine, "Floyd's Theme" by Natural Juices, and "Find My Way" by Cameo. LP, Vinyl record album

Mindblowing music from the great Frederic Rabold – a German jazz artist of the classic 70s MPS generation – and one who does a really great job of mixing funkier moments, spiritual currents, and some freer flights of inspiration! Rabold's maybe best known for work with his funky combo The Crew – who served up this great choppy approach to fusion in the 70s – and that group's featured here, along with some other Rabold combos – presented as a double-length package that's sure to delight any fan of the 70s MPS groove – as the work here really resonates with early 70s work by artists like Dave Pike, Peter Herbholzheimer, and Volker Kriegel! There's plenty of keyboards on the cuts too – and titles include "Berlin", "Ride On", "Explosion", "Children Of The Sun", "Noon In Tunisia", "Last Of The Past", "Relaxing Walk", "Brother WH", "Indian Impression", and "Zest". LP, Vinyl record album

Incredible work from the obscure African Music Machine – a southern funk combo led by bassist Louis Villery – a legendary batch of funky singles, finally brought together as a full album! The band has a very unique sound that involves a lot of rolling bubbling basslines, spacey organ grooves, tight choppy guitar riffs, and punchy horn blasts – almost with the African elements promised in the title, but served up with a deeper funk sound all the way through! In a way, the group's a bit like Cymande or some of the other 70s hybrid ensembles – yet they've got a lot less dub, a much more direct funky groove, and plety of raw southern elements in the mix as well! This is the funky 45 material we first cut our teeth on back in the day – and the original singles are legendary! Includes massive cuts like "Black Water Gold (Pearl)", "A Girl In France", "Never Name A Baby (Before It's Born), "Making Nassau Fruit Drink", "Camel Time", "The Dapp", "Tropical", and "Mr. Brown". CD

Sweet grooves from the Duomo Sounds label – a short-lived Nigerian imprint who cut some mighty funky sounds at the start of the 80s! The title here uses the word "disco", but these cuts have none of the strings and polish of the sounds you'd hear at Studio 54 – as most numbers here are stripped-down and raw, really more in a clubbier take on the more famous Nigerian funk of a few years before! However, there's also a quality here that could easily cross over to the hipper clubs on the New York underground – as most of these guys are also using the same sort of small combo funk instrumentation of the best of the indie post-disco scene – which means that some tracks resonate with the work of labels like P&P, and others echo some of the more global currents that were showing up in New York funk during the period! Most lyrics are in English, which further gives these tracks a universal appeal – and titles include "Perfect Disco Machine" and "Disco Connection" by Bindinga, "Aimiuugwia" and "Advice" by Christy Ogbah, "Xmas Eve" by Johnny O Bazz, "Look At Me" and "Shake You Body" by Mike Umoh, "You Do Good You Do For Yourself" by Godfrey Odili, "On My Mind" by Bassey Black & The Natty Messiah, and "Ariro" by Eunice Mokus Arimoku. CD

A fantastic collection of really rare club cuts – music we'd never have heard otherwise, all brought together in a package that remind us that any time we think we know a lot about classic funk and soul – we realize we still have plenty to learn! The previous volumes in this series were totally great, and this set definitely lives up to that greatness – filled with tracks that are nicely different than mainstream disco or upbeat soul – served up by groups who were working deep in the American underground of the late 70s and early 80s – some whose music barely saw the light of day at the time. Think of these tracks as disco-era equivalents of funky 45s – then dive in and dig titles that include "As" by The Family Tree, "Momma Said Shut Up" by John Blair, "Dancin All Over The World" by Chosen Few, "Firebolt Hustle" by The Firebolts, "Freex Funkatize" by The Freex Machine, "Tag (Woody Bianchi edit)" by Aggression, "Straight To The Point" by Pressure Point, "Plie & Isolation" by Joe Pugliese, "Fantasy (Woody Bianchi edit)" by Wylie, "Visions" by Cania, "Nite People" by Montreal, "Sweetie" by The Headquarers, and "Sporo Disco (Woody Bianchi edit)" by Nzimande All Stars. CD

A mostly orchestral soundtrack – scored by Stu for this Buck Rogers remake from the end of the 70s. Most of the tunes have kind of a retro-thriller feel – dramatic and upbeat, in the mode of music from an old serial – but there is one really great track called "Something Kinda Funky", which is a bit Kraftwerk, a bit electro, with lots of cool old drum machine bits! Other tracks include "Attack Of The Mutants", "Buck Returns To Earth", "Pirate Attack", "Fanfare & Appearance Of Draco", and "Tailpipe Tornado". LP, Vinyl record album

A set with old school breakdancers on the cover, but one that features music from the generation before – a whole host of 70s funky nuggets, all of which might provide the right sort of beats and grooves for spinning on a piece of linoleum on the sidewalk! There's just a slight touch of hip hop here, and most of the numbers date from the earliest years of the South Bronx street parties – cuts that included key samples and breaks that would later build up into more famous hip hop cuts – mixed with others that stand equally strong on their own – all working together in a package that's maybe one of the best funk collections we've heard from the soul jazz label in years! Titles include "Energy Level" by BT Express, "Sunshine Of Your Love" by Spanky Wilson, "Last Night Changed It All" by Esther Williams, "Soul Makossa" by Manu Dibango, "Soulwanco" by Candido, "Breaker's Revenge" by Arthur Baker, "The Panther" by Manu Dibango, "Life & Death In G & A" by Abaco Dream, "Dancing Machine" by Jackson 5, "It's Just Begun" by Jimmy Castor, "Get On The Good Foot" by James Brown, "Hot Wheels" by Badder Than Evil, and "I Just Wanna Do My Thing" by Edwin Starr. CD

A set with old school breakdancers on the cover, but one that features music from the generation before – a whole host of 70s funky nuggets, all of which might provide the right sort of beats and grooves for spinning on a piece of linoleum on the sidewalk! There's just a slight touch of hip hop here, and most of the numbers date from the earliest years of the South Bronx street parties – cuts that included key samples and breaks that would later build up into more famous hip hop cuts – mixed with others that stand equally strong on their own – all working together in a package that's maybe one of the best funk collections we've heard from the soul jazz label in years! Titles include "Energy Level" by BT Express, "Sunshine Of Your Love" by Spanky Wilson, "Last Night Changed It All" by Esther Williams, "Soul Makossa" by Manu Dibango, "Soulwanco" by Candido, "Breaker's Revenge" by Arthur Baker, "The Panther" by Manu Dibango, "Life & Death In G & A" by Abaco Dream, "Dancing Machine" by Jackson 5, "It's Just Begun" by Jimmy Castor, "Get On The Good Foot" by James Brown, "Hot Wheels" by Badder Than Evil, and "I Just Wanna Do My Thing" by Edwin Starr. LP, Vinyl record album

A stunning collection of rare funk and soul – and a set that, back in the 80s, was our doorway to a lost 70s world that we missed the first time around! The track selection is great – all sorts of gems that were playing big on the London rare groove scene of the late 80s – with tracks that include "Got to Get Your Own" by Reuben Wilson, "You're Losing Me" by Ann Sexton, "Moon Walk" by Pee Wee Ellis, "I Don't Dog No Phony (part 2)" by Moody Scott, "So Much Trouble In My Mind" by Joe Quaterman, "Black Water" by African Music Machine, "Funky Song" by Ripple, "Goo Bah" by Continental Showstoppers, "The Dapp" by African Music Msachine, and "Brother Man Sister Ann" by Clemon Smith. LP, Vinyl record album

War did the music for this funky soundtrack to an early Lawrence Hilton-Jacobs film, and although most of the stuff on here is just typical War stuff, there's one track called "Flying Machine" that's a long funky chase scene-type track that's worth the price of the album alone! Other tracks include "The Kingsmen Sign", "Junk Yard", "Superdude", and "Youngblood". One of the best War LPs! LP, Vinyl record album

War did the music for this funky soundtrack to an early Lawrence Hilton-Jacobs film, and although most of the stuff on here is just typical War stuff, there's one track called "Flying Machine" that's a long funky chase scene-type track that's worth the price of the album alone! Other tracks include "The Kingsmen Sign", "Junk Yard", "Superdude", and "Youngblood". One of the best War LPs! CD

A fantastic collection of really rare club cuts – music we'd never have heard otherwise, all brought together in a package that remind us that any time we think we know a lot about classic funk and soul – we realize we still have plenty to learn! The previous volumes in this series were totally great, and this set definitely lives up to that greatness – filled with tracks that are nicely different than mainstream disco or upbeat soul – served up by groups who were working deep in the American underground of the late 70s and early 80s – some whose music barely saw the light of day at the time. Think of these tracks as disco-era equivalents of funky 45s – then dive in and dig titles that include "As" by The Family Tree, "Momma Said Shut Up" by John Blair, "Dancin All Over The World" by Chosen Few, "Firebolt Hustle" by The Firebolts, "Freex Funkatize" by The Freex Machine, "Tag (Woody Bianchi edit)" by Aggression, "Straight To The Point" by Pressure Point, "Plie & Isolation" by Joe Pugliese, "Fantasy (Woody Bianchi edit)" by Wylie, "Visions" by Cania, "Nite People" by Montreal, "Sweetie" by The Headquarers, and "Sporo Disco (Woody Bianchi edit)" by Nzimande All Stars. LP, Vinyl record album

Cool cuts from around the globe – all brought together in one wonderfully funky set! The music here all draws heavily from American funk and psych styles – and often uses some slightly different instrumentation, or more regional inflection – to make the usual psych funk styles sound even more groovy and exotic – in a mindblowing way that makes the entire set a real musical delight! Most tracks are instrumental – heavy on drums and fuzzy guitar – but there's a few vocal moments, too – and the funk current is super-strong, way more so than on other collections that promise a heavy bottom, but usually just present offbeat psych. Titles include "Jet Pop" by Bana Pop Band, "Foxy Lady" by 49th Blue Streak, "Karate Chop" by The Tijuana Brats, "Stari Dvorac" by Pro Arte, "Nie Przejziemy Do Historii" by Krzysztof Klenczon, "Louis Louis" by Friar Tuck, "Time Of Machines" by Sergio Ferraresi, and "The Shaman's Dance" by Alexandr Sergeyevich. CD

A mountain of funk from one of the greatest soul labels of all time! Stax is known round the world over for their soulful work – by singers like Otis Redding or Carla Thomas, and instrumental tunes by Booker T & The MGs – but the label was also quite a funky powerhouse – especially as the 60s drew to a close, and the management of the company got a lot hipper, and a heck of a lot more musically open-minded! This killer batch of tracks features 21 numbers from those days – including many obscure and funky tunes that only ever came out on singles, or which were recorded by artists that never made it as big as Stax stars from earlier years. The result of all that obscurity is an extremely fresh selection of tracks – plenty of down-n-dirty funky 45 numbers, played by hip Memphis combos, and featuring some really deep soul vocals. Titles include "Dark Skin Woman" by Sir Mack Rice, "Ain't No Sin" by John Kasandra, "Bump & Boogie" by The Wrecking Crew, "Shame On The Family Name" by Calvin Scott, "Cool Strut" by Bernie Hayes, "Bump Mean" by Sir Mack Rice, "Soul Machine" by Reggie Milner, "How Can You Mistreat The One You Love" by Katie Love, "Cold Blooded" by The Bar Kays, "Do The Side Saddle" by Rufus Thomas, "Stay Away From That Monkey" by Jimmy McCracklin, "Them Hot Pants" by Lee Sain, "Devil In A Man" by Stu Gardner, "Circuits Overloaded" by Inez Foxx, "From Toys To Boys" by The Emotions, "Got It Together (parts 1 & 2)" by Rudy Robinson & The Hungry Five, and "Crosscut Saw" by Albert King. CD

A mountain of funk from one of the greatest soul labels of all time! Stax is known round the world over for their soulful work – by singers like Otis Redding or Carla Thomas, and instrumental tunes by Booker T & The MGs – but the label was also quite a funky powerhouse – especially as the 60s drew to a close, and the management of the company got a lot hipper, and a heck of a lot more musically open-minded! This killer batch of tracks features 21 numbers from those days – including many obscure and funky tunes that only ever came out on singles, or which were recorded by artists that never made it as big as Stax stars from earlier years. The result of all that obscurity is an extremely fresh selection of tracks – plenty of down-n-dirty funky 45 numbers, played by hip Memphis combos, and featuring some really deep soul vocals. Titles include "Dark Skin Woman" by Sir Mack Rice, "Ain't No Sin" by John Kasandra, "Bump & Boogie" by The Wrecking Crew, "Shame On The Family Name" by Calvin Scott, "Cool Strut" by Bernie Hayes, "Bump Mean" by Sir Mack Rice, "Soul Machine" by Reggie Milner, "How Can You Mistreat The One You Love" by Katie Love, "Cold Blooded" by The Bar Kays, "Do The Side Saddle" by Rufus Thomas, "Stay Away From That Monkey" by Jimmy McCracklin, "Them Hot Pants" by Lee Sain, "Devil In A Man" by Stu Gardner, "Circuits Overloaded" by Inez Foxx, "From Toys To Boys" by The Emotions, "Got It Together (parts 1 & 2)" by Rudy Robinson & The Hungry Five, and "Crosscut Saw" by Albert King. LP, Vinyl record album

Cool cuts from around the globe – all brought together in one wonderfully funky set! The music here all draws heavily from American funk and psych styles – and often uses some slightly different instrumentation, or more regional inflection – to make the usual psych funk styles sound even more groovy and exotic – in a mindblowing way that makes the entire set a real musical delight! Most tracks are instrumental – heavy on drums and fuzzy guitar – but there's a few vocal moments, too – and the funk current is super-strong, way more so than on other collections that promise a heavy bottom, but usually just present offbeat psych. Titles include "Jet Pop" by Bana Pop Band, "Foxy Lady" by 49th Blue Streak, "Karate Chop" by The Tijuana Brats, "Stari Dvorac" by Pro Arte, "Nie Przejziemy Do Historii" by Krzysztof Klenczon, "Louis Louis" by Friar Tuck, "Time Of Machines" by Sergio Ferraresi, and "The Shaman's Dance" by Alexandr Sergeyevich. LP, Vinyl record album

Maybe the funkiest trunk that DJ Craig Charles has ever given us – a searing set of tracks that really expand upon the ideas of previous volumes! The set marks a shift to a new label, BBE – which may well also explain the extra-strong selection of cuts – tracks that span the gamut of funky styles, and which are mostly contemporary overall – music that bristles over with the strong commitment to soulful modes that has made Craig's BBC shows so popular over the years! You'll recognize a few names here from key releases in recent years, and they sit alongside other discoveries from the digital universe – in a great selection of cuts that includes "Ain't No Good" by Sister Cookie, "Shake" by Kaz Hawkins, "Big Time" by The Nextmen, "Starlight (radio)" by Dave Lee & Omar, "In The Morning" by Say She She, "Somebody Help Me Out (boogie back radio)" by Beggar & Co, "Prophet" by La Rochelle Band, "Trust Me" by Sly Johnson, "Day In Day Out" by Cotonete, "Gonna Lift You Up" by Sugaray Rayford, "I Don't Mind (Mr Lex Trunk Of Funk rmx)" by Lexsoul Dancemachine, "Tarzan" by Roy Ayers, "Power (A Skillz rmx)" by The Niceguys, and "Watchu Want (exclusive Trunk Of Funk voc)" by New Mastersounds. CD

Maybe the funkiest trunk that DJ Craig Charles has ever given us – a searing set of tracks that really expand upon the ideas of previous volumes! The set marks a shift to a new label, BBE – which may well also explain the extra-strong selection of cuts – tracks that span the gamut of funky styles, and which are mostly contemporary overall – music that bristles over with the strong commitment to soulful modes that has made Craig's BBC shows so popular over the years! You'll recognize a few names here from key releases in recent years, and they sit alongside other discoveries from the digital universe – in a great selection of cuts that includes "Ain't No Good" by Sister Cookie, "Shake" by Kaz Hawkins, "Big Time" by The Nextmen, "Starlight (radio)" by Dave Lee & Omar, "In The Morning" by Say She She, "Somebody Help Me Out (boogie back radio)" by Beggar & Co, "Prophet" by La Rochelle Band, "Trust Me" by Sly Johnson, "Day In Day Out" by Cotonete, "Gonna Lift You Up" by Sugaray Rayford, "I Don't Mind (Mr Lex Trunk Of Funk rmx)" by Lexsoul Dancemachine, "Tarzan" by Roy Ayers, "Power (A Skillz rmx)" by The Niceguys, and "Watchu Want (exclusive Trunk Of Funk voc)" by New Mastersounds. LP, Vinyl record album

Maybe the first-ever album to be issued under the name of the great Charles Stepney – even though the artist/musician/producer/songwriter had a huge role in the careers of Chicago contemporaries like Minnie Riperton, Ramsey Lewis, and Earth Wind & Fire! This set brings together recordings that Stepney made on his own, often in his home studio – many of which are songs that never saw the light of day on some of his bigger-name projects, next to others that feature melodies you might recognize, but done in these sweet jazzy instrumentals that are totally great! Most of the set features Charles on a variety of keyboards Rhodes, piano, and even some cool moogy bits – plus some vibes from time to time – often set to spare early electric drum machine rhythms – in a style that makes you feel like you've stumbled upon Timmy Thomas doing an all instrumental jam session in the early 70s. Given that Stepney first got his start as a jazz musician – playing piano and vibes on some great early 60s sessions – the keyboard work is superb, and the record stands as a completely different testament to his genius – with titles that include "Funky Sci Fi", "Gotta Dig It To Dig It", "Daddy's Diddies", "Rubie Charles", "Notes From Dad", "Black Bold", "Gimme Some Sugar", "No Credit For This", "Imagination", "Look B4U Leap", "Mini Mugg", "Denim Groove", and "That's The Way Of The World". CD