Nice nice reissue of two rare Latin soul albums that Willie Bobo recorded for Verve in the mid 60s! Uno Dos Tres is certainly one of Willie's best-ever albums, and it's paired here with Spanish Grease, which is monsterously hard to find on vinyl. Both records are filled with groovy numbers that hit the good mix of soul and Latin that was coming out of the New York scene at the time. Highlights include the amazing "Fried Neckbones & Some Home Fries" (one of our all-time faves!), plus "Boogaloo In Room 802", "Spanish Grease", "Elation", "Nessa", "I Remember Clifford", "Night Song", and groovy vocal and instrumental takes on "It's Not Unusual". 22 cuts in all, and very nicely packaged! CD

Incredible work by Willie Bobo – a slamming record of hard funky instrumentals, one that sounds different than any of his other albums! The record's a killer all the way through – a mixture of Latin and deep 70s funk, one of the few perfect fusions of the styles, held up beautifully all the way through the set. We've always liked Willie a lot, but honestly, we don't know how he managed to make a record this funky – but we're also not arguing, just enjoying the grooves with tremendous delight and surprise. Great all the way through, and includes the break cuts "Do What You Want to Do", "Broasted or Fried", and "Soul Foo Young" – plus a version of "Dindi", which, for some reason, Willie seemed to record every chance he got! Other titles include "Shut Up & Pay Attention", "Come Together", and "Never You Mind". LP, Vinyl record album

A brilliant soul album! That's right, we said SOUL album! Bowie was at the height of his Ziggy Stardust fame when this one was recorded – a drastic left-turn in styles, forged during a point in his American tour when he could take a break, head to Philly, plug in at the Sigma Sound Studios, and come up with some fantastic little soul tunes, thanks to help from Luther Vandross! The album sparkles with the best sound of Luther's early work – and you'll hear more than a bit of Luther's work on his own, and his tunes with Gregg Diamond on the set. Features the sublime tracks "Win", "Fascination", "Right", "Somebody Up There Likes Me", and "Can You Hear Me" – as well as the hits "Young Americans" and "Fame". LP, Vinyl record album

Brilliant 60s pop from the team of Tommy Boyce & Bobby Hart – best known for their key early songwriting work for The Monkees, but a heck of a great duo on their own! Boyce & Hart have a sparkly, sunshiney sound that's very much a part of The Monkees generation – a beautiful post-folk, post-surf blend of styles, and one that's served up with all the warmth and charm that made The Monkees so great – yet also with some cool twists and turns that make a record like this so great – the kind of chance-taking that A&M sometimes allowed its artists to take at the time! Backings are super-groovy – arranged by Artie Butler and Don McGinis – and titles include "I Wonder What She's Doing Tonite", "Teardrop City", "I Wanna Be Free", "The Countess", "Population", and "Two For The Price Of One" – a great cover of a Larry Williams & Johnny Watson soul tune! LP, Vinyl record album

A real lost classic from the New York club years of the mid 70s – sweetly soulful tracks recorded at Sigma Sound "North" up in Manhattan – but with the same sweeping, soaring sound as the best Philly work of the time. Willy's a saxophonist, blowing soulfully on a set of tracks arranged by David Van DePitte, Horace Ott, and Willy himself – all kind of in a "disco meets jazz" mode that comes across quite nicely, with a Philly-styled instrumental groove. The leadoff cut "Riverside Drive" is worth the price of the album alone – and other tracks include "So Far Away", "Taking Care of Business", "Flower Grows in Springtime", and "True Love Comes Along". LP, Vinyl record album

An obscure album cut by Jimmy Briscoe & The Beavers – the group who cracked the harmony soul charts briefly when they were just little kids, and who still sound pretty great here, after hitting puberty! The record was cut for the Wanderick subsidiary of TK – and there's a bit of an attempt to go disco with the record, but the end result is more in the uptempo Philly group soul mode, as in similar work from Blue Magic at the time. Paul Kyser wrote, arranged, and produced the record – and the slower cuts, as always, are the Beavers' strongest suit. Titles include "No One Can Love You Like I Do", "So Sweet The Love", "Invitation To The World", "True Love", "Living For Today", and "More Than You Realize". CD

Sweet grooves from Funky Brown – an artist who's more soul-based than you'd guess from his name, and who works here in the hippest Miami modes of the mid 70s! The album's got this warm glow that's mighty nice – even smoother and more mature than some of the Timmy Thomas work of the time – with plenty of keyboards from Harold Butler alongside Brown's sweet vocals – in ways that mix together bits of Miami soul with currents from bigger 70s names on the Philly scene, and maybe even a bit of Barry White! Paul Khouri arranged and produced, and definitely has a way with a midtempo groove – and titles include "Nice & Slow", "You'll Never Find Another Love Like Mine", "Let's Make A Baby", "Sharing The Night Together", "For The Love Of You", and "Kiss & Say Goodbye". CD

A stunning set of rare and unreleased grooves by James Brown – nearly all of which were cut during the classic early 70s years with the JBs, but never issued before this cool compilation! The set's got some essentials for any fan of JB – including the lost soul classic "She's The One", a duet with Bobby Byrd called "Since You Been Gone", a live version of "There It Is",an untitled instrumental and another one called "Funk Bomb." Plus, its got the full 9 minute version of the great "People Get Up & Drive Your Funky Soul" from Slaughter's Big Ripoff, and lots more excellent bits, packaged with great notes! The CD features a bonus remix of "I Got Ants In My Pants & I Want To Dance" – and this expanded version also features "You've Changed" and "Bodyheat (alternate mix)". CD

A richly soulful album from tenor giant Rusty Bryant – and a set that mixes his older Prestige Records mode with the larger electric styles of the CTI generation! The group's bigger than on most of Bryant's other records of the time – some larger charts arranged by Horace Ott, who had a lot of background in soul and R&B, and brings all of those elements to work nicely on the grooves. Rusty's still out front soloing nicely – in a manner that recalls Stanley Turrentine on CTI or Hank Crawford on Kudu – and other players include Ott himself on keyboards, Wilbur Baxcomb on bass, George Devens on vibes, David Spinozza on guitar, and Bernard Purdie on drums. Funky cuts include "The Hump Bump" and "Ga Gang Gang Goong" – and other titles include "Draggin The Line", "Red Eye Special", and "Troubles". LP, Vinyl record album

A killer set that's extremely well-titled – as BT Express were one of the hottest ensemble funk acts of their time! The groove here is definitely aimed at a more disco-oriented dancefloor than before – but the overall sound is plenty funky enough for our ears – thanks to some amazing horn passages arranged by Carlos Ward, whose own work on sax and flute really add an edgey quality to the set. Ward's horns are really fantastic – cutting and turning with a sharply-honed tone that keeps things fresh throughout – even when the rhythms are hitting more of a mainstream dancefloor sound. Titles include the group's mellow soul version of "Now That We've Found Love", plus "Herbs", "Time Tunnel", "Energy To Burn", "Can't Stop Groovin Now Wanna Do It Some More", and "Make Your Body Move". LP, Vinyl record album

A killer set that's extremely well-titled – as BT Express were one of the hottest ensemble funk acts of their time! The groove here is definitely aimed at a more disco-oriented dancefloor than before – but the overall sound is plenty funky enough for our ears – thanks to some amazing horn passages arranged by Carlos Ward, whose own work on sax and flute really add an edgey quality to the set. Ward's horns are really fantastic – cutting and turning with a sharply-honed tone that keeps things fresh throughout – even when the rhythms are hitting more of a mainstream dancefloor sound. Titles include the group's mellow soul version of "Now That We've Found Love", plus "Herbs", "Time Tunnel", "Energy To Burn", "Can't Stop Groovin Now Wanna Do It Some More", and "Make Your Body Move". CD features 3 bonus tracks – original single versions of "Make Your Body Move", "Energy To Burn", and "Can't Stop Groovin Now Wanna Do It Some More". CD

The complete Okeh label recordings of Billy Butler – Jerry Butler's lesser-known brother, but an even more grooving artist on the Chicago soul scene of the 60s! Billy's work at Okeh is easily some of the best of the all-great imprint – tracks that step, slide, and groove along in a flurry of tight-edged Chi-soul rhythms – nearly all of which are produced by the legendary Carl Davis, with arrangements from Johnny Pate and Riley Hampton! Billy's in the lead on vocals, but nearly all numbers have a strong harmony soul component too – support from The Four Enchanters or Chanters – in a mode that echoes The Impressions' style of the time somewhat, but which also carries more of the Butler-family emotive quality, thanks to the stronger lead. This is the first time all this material has ever been brought together so well – and the package features great notes and a number of previously unissued titles as well – including some rare versions and instrumentals that are sure to get some play from Northern Soul listeners. Titles include "Found True Love", "Lady Love", "Gotta Get Away", "Can't Live Without Her", "Right Track", "Boston Monkey", "Does It Matter", "Fighting A Losing Battle", "To Be Or Not To Be", "Singing The Blues", and "You're Gonna Be Sorry". CD

One of Jerry Butler's funkiest moments of the 70s – served up in a fantastic soundtrack co-penned and arranged by the great Jerry Peters! Peters is best known for his hip work with a variety of soul acts in the studio, but he really steps out here for the score to Melinda – a lesser-known blacksploitation film from the early 70s, but one that boasts a heck of a great soundtrack! Peters approach here is a bit more baroque than some of his contemporaries – and he uses stepping strings equally alongside funky rhythms – creating a groove that's complicated, yet still plenty darn funky – and a sound that's as soulful on the mellower tunes as it is on the standout uptempo ones. Jerry Butler sings vocals on "Speak Truth To The People", "Tank's Theme", "Love is", and "Melinda Reprise" – but the instrumental tracks are even better, and inlcude the clavinet groover "Part III", the sitar-styled "Melinda Latino", and the cuts "Music For Tank's Boat", "The Blues (Dope Pusher's Theme)", and "I Can't Let You Go". LP, Vinyl record album

Two rare albums from one of the greatest modern pianists ever! Jaki Byard With Strings is a wonderful album – and nothing like any other "with strings" album you've ever heard! Sure, the set does have some stringed instruments in the group – but it's a small combo session with bass, violin, guitar, and cello, not a large overly-orchestral affair. Byard's mad vision uses these strings wonderfully to carve out some oddly arranged tunes that mix together soul jazz grooving and a haunting spiritual approach to jazz that points at later work on labels like Strata East. Includes a sublime remake of "Music To Watch Girls By", "Falling Rains Of Life", "Cat's Cradle Conference Rag", and a long version of "How High The Moon". Solo Piano is an obscure set from 1969, featuring Byard's lonely musings on the keyboard on shorter tracks that reference a huge history of traditions. Titles include "Seasons", "Spanish Tinge 2", "Hollis Stomp", "Top Of The Gate Rag", and "Ray's Blues". CD

Classic Latin-tinged fusion on Capitol – recorded with a smooth soulful style that's right up there with the best of the Capitol Rare generation! Caldera mixes together nice jazzy saxes with guitars, percussion, and some great keyboard work by Eduardo Del Barrio – all produced by the group with a sweet arching style that's very much in the Brazilian fusion style of the time – a wonderful blend that also gets a dose of California warmth, which is just the right element to send the whole thing home nicely! Tracks include the classic "Sky Islands", plus "Pegasus", "Carnavalito", "Triste", and "Ancient Source". CD

Classic Latin-tinged fusion on Capitol – recorded with a smooth soulful style that's right up there with the best of the Capitol Rare generation! Caldera mixes together nice jazzy saxes with guitars, percussion, and some great keyboard work by Eduardo Del Barrio – all produced by the group with a sweet arching style that's very much in the Brazilian fusion style of the time – a wonderful blend that also gets a dose of California warmth, which is just the right element to send the whole thing home nicely! Tracks include the classic "Sky Islands", plus "Pegasus", "Carnavalito", "Triste", and "Ancient Source". LP, Vinyl record album

Stunning funky soul by California Playboys – a heck of a record that should have made the Playboys a huge combo at the time! It's a shame the group didn't become millionaires – but the obscurity of the record is maybe also one of its charms – the kind of small label set that never fully got its due at the time, but which is ripe for rediscovery all these many years later! The California Playboys were together for a number of years – forming as a backing band for singer Lester Young (not the sax player), doing session work for others, and otherwise developing their skills for years – all of which really comes through here in their sharp-edged instrumentation, which sounds even sharper in the 70s indie-level production for the album. The killer title tune sounds like it could (and should!) be the namesake tune of a funky mid 70s soundtrack – as it's really got a perfect cinematic soul vibe, ala Bobby Womack and Marvin Gaye – though in a tighter, smaller combo setting. Most tunes start with vocals and end with long instrumental riffing – and titles include"Double Love", "She's A Real Sweet Woman", "Just Say A Four Letter Word", "I've Got To Find Myself Another Girl", and "Turned On For Good". CD

A great cut here from Detroit soul singer Lorraine Chandler – not the theme to the James Bond film of the same name – but a new tune penned by Jack Ashford, and one that's got this very mod mix of spy theme sounds and heavy female soul! The flipside's an instrumental, arranged by Joe Hunter – and played with this storming Northern Soul groove that reminds us just how great the Pied Piper talents were! 7-inch, Vinyl record

As Ray was making the switch to ABC for his vocal-oriented material, Atlantic managed to capture his jazz-oriented talents on a few great sessions like this one – which features Charles' piano in the foreground, set in a nice small group setting with other players from his band, like David Newman, Joe Bridgewater, and Emmott Dennis. The overall sound is mellow and soulful, and titles include "Black Coffee", "The Ray", "Doodlin", and "Sweet Sixteen Bars". LP, Vinyl record album

Some of the most striking work we've heard from Neneh Cherry in years – and a great follow-up to her previous project with The Thing! This set has Neneh working with producer Kieran Hebden – who returns Cherry to the offbeat, arty sound of her early years on the British scene – particularly her excellent work with Rip Rig & Panic! As with that period, the rhythms here are key – but are also rhythms that really veer from the usual – odd basslines and beats that provide a jagged bottom underneath Cherry's soulfully flowing vocals – a sense of counterpoint that really gives the album a lot of power. Titles include "Naked", "Spit Three Times", "Blank Project", "Cynical", "422", "Out Of The Black", "Dossier", and "Everything". CD

A bit goofy, but a pretty compelling record issued on Motown's MoWest subsidiary. Tom Clay creates these groovy tracks that mix popular soul instrumentals (arranged by Gene Page and Artie Butler) with recitations that have a very righteous political feel. The single on the record, "What The World Needs Now/Abraham, Martin, & John", features Clay asking kids what prejudice is, while militaristic sound effects and JFK speeches creep in and out of the mix. The rest of the album continues this powerful kind of soundscape experiment, and it's actually a pretty resonant work that still holds up nicely today. LP, Vinyl record album

One of the holy grails of the Spaced Out club music scene! Patrick Adams produced and arranged (and wrote and probably performed) this stunning set of spacey club grooves with a cool electronic feel, and a nice sense of mid to up-tempo rhythms. Includes the classic "Atmospheric Strut", one of the moogiest tracks around, plus the classics "Spaced Out" and "Disco Juice". All cuts are great, though, and the album's also got a good soul sound that often gets overlooked, especially on the cut "Doin' It All Night Long". A great one, and on the rare P&P label! LP, Vinyl record album

Great earlier stuff from Natalie Cole – actually her third great album in a row – a tremendous early creative and commerical winning streak for Natalie! Thankful has her sweet, soulful voice out from of prodcution by Chuck Jackson and Marvin Yancy of the Independents, and they give her a nice jazzy sound that made the record one of her best of the 70s. Richard Evans and Gene Barge arranged, which probably had something to do with that, too – but Natalie truly deserves most of the credit of the strength of this set. It includes the standout groovers "La Costa" and"Annie Mae", but the whole record is really sweet – with "Lovers", "Our Love", "Be Thankful", "Just Can't Stay Away" and "Keeping A Light". LP, Vinyl record album

A pair of wonderful soundtracks from the great Michel Colombier – and film music that's every bit as groovy as some of his backings for French singers at the time! First up is Les Onze Mille Verges – a great mix of the groovy and the romantic – and one of the best soundtracks ever from mad French arranger Michel Colombier! The album kicks off with Colombier's famous "Batucada Erotica" – a darkly jagged number that brings together percussion and voices into a really striking groove, one that's made the track a favorite for years in the jazz dance crowd. Other tracks move into a style that's either mellower or more orchestral – the mellower cuts dipping along with a style that's half French (ala Francis Lai's 70s work), and half like some of the best mellow Italian soundtrack work of the same period. A few tunes have weird chorus vocals – almost in a Carmina Burana mode – and titles include "Les 11,000 Verges", "Wanda E Nadege", "Batucada Erotica", "Natacha", "Port Arthur", and "Strip Tease Pour Un Japonais". Tarot is a soundtrack that has a slightly different style – some nice use of vocals by Nanette Workman on a few tunes – a singer who brings a bit more soul to the record than the usual throwaway disco lyrics you'd hear on other European film scores. Lots of other numbers make use of keyboards, but in a very different way – sometimes stark and cold, but still quite tuneful – sometimes bubbling with a more Rhodes-like vibe that creates a nice sense of balance. Titles include "Breakdown", "Blind Luck", "Tarot", "Incantation", "Reading The Cards", "Doggie Style", and "Hearing Aid". CD

One of Alice Coltrane's most adventurous albums – a beautiful blend of organ, harp, percussion, and strings – much of which are transcribed for the album by Ornette Coleman! The most haunting aspect of the album is Alice's work on organ – spare, jagged, with a nascent soulful quality that's quite different from her piano work on other Impulse albums. The strings provide a sheet of sound – a shimmering backdrop to support Alice's work on the keys – moving forward tentatively, but growing in energy as the album progresses through a host of Eastern spiritual influences. Alice is way past jazz at this point – moving towards the new level of consciousness hinted at in the title, growing majestically on tracks that include "Oh Allah", "Sita Ram", "Hare Krishna", "Universal Consciousness", and "The Ankh of Amen-Ra". LP, Vinyl record album

5 early albums from John Coltrane – packaged together in mini LP-styled jackets! First up is Soultrane, a bold early statement from a young John Coltrane – and an album that really has him expanding his talents as a tenor soloist! Coltrane's working here in open-ended quartet format – with backing from the Red Garland trio that includes Paul Chambers and Art Taylor – on a set of longer tunes that really let the young Trane stretch out on his solos, unobstructed by any other horns in the lineup. There's a nice mix of hardbop ideals, gentle ballads, and personal soul to the set – and titles include Coltrane's classic reading of Tadd Dameron's "Good Bait", plus "I Want To Talk About You", "Russian Lullaby", and "Theme For Ernie". Lush Life is strong work from John Coltrane's early years as a leader – even if the album is sort of a collection of tracks that Trane recorded for Prestige, instead of a discreetly separate session! Side one features Coltrane's tenor in a spare setting with Earl May on bass and Art Taylor on drums – playing mellow tunes like "I Love You" and "Like Someone In Love", as well as the original "Trane's Slow Blues". Side two features a blowing session mode – with Donald Byrd, Red Garland, Paul Chambers, and Louis Hayes – on the cuts "Lush Life" and "I Hear A Rhapsody". Dakar is a very unique little record that features twin baritone sax support from Pepper Adams and Cecil Payne! Both players are wonderfully hip here – more than enough to match Trane's unique musical vision for the group's format – and the sound of the session is much edgier than some of his other Prestige work – which may be why the label chose not to issue it until 1963, even though it was recorded back in '57. There's a nice roughness here – the same inspirational early sound you'll get on Coltrane's early sides for Savoy or Imperial – and other players include Mal Waldron on piano, Doug Watkins on bass, and Art Taylor on drums. Titles include "Cat Walk", "Dakar", "Route 4", "Velvet Scene", and "Witches Pit". Bahia is a set that includes some very compelling sounds from the early years, really showing the tenorist in a strongly spiritual transition! Coltrane plays tenor throughout, and the record also features the Red Garland trio, with Red on piano, Paul Chambers on bass, and either Art Taylor or Jimmy Cobb on drums – but the set also features trumpet from the great Wilbur Harden on half the record – Coltrane's frequent partner over at Savoy Records, who comes into the music here with the sort of searching, open style that works so well with Trane's tenor! The music is partly in the Garland/Coltrane late 50s Prestige mode, but also has some of the deeper spiritual vibe of the Savoy years too – and titles include "I'm A Dreamer Aren't We All", "Something I Dreamed Last Night", "Bahia", and "Goldsboro Express". The final CD is album's titled The Last Trane because it represents the last material that Prestige Records had in its vault from the time that John Coltrane was recording for the label in the late 50s. Titles were recorded on 3 different dates from 1957 and 1958 – mostly with Red Garland on piano, and also featuring some additional horn work by Donald Byrd on 2 tracks. The album's got a great spare track called "Slowtrane" – one that features Coltrane playing with only bass and drums for accompaniment – and which recalls the genius of some of his sessions for Transition or Imperial. Byrd's blowing alongside the tenor on versions of "Lover" and "Come Rain Or Come Shine" – and the set's rounded up by a nice open-ended track called "By The Numbers", which has a warm bluesy solo by Trane! CD

Quite a different album than usual for John Coltrane, but a classic one too – and a set that has the great one exploring his ideas in a set of longer tracks recorded with an expanded jazz orchestra! The format's hardly the mainstream big band of the time – as Coltrane's filled the group with very hip players – including Booker Little, Freddie Hubbard, Julian Priester, and Eric Dolphy – in addition to usual compatriots who include McCoy Tyner, Reggie Workman, and Elvin Jones. The tunes have a soaring, modal sort of pulse – one that's filled with color and light from the addition of the other horn players, but which still has plenty of space for extended, exploratory solos. Coltrane plays both tenor and soprano sax – and titles include the legendary 16 minute track "Africa", a classic reading of "Greensleeves", redone here as a modal searching spiritual track, and "Blues Minor". With Vol 2 the tracks feature Trane leading a group young modernists through a set of larger arranged charts, woven tightly together in a soulful spiritual groove that's similar to some of Max Roach's projects like this from the same time. Players include Booker Little, Eric Dolphy, McCoy Tyner, Elvin Jones, Reggie Workman, and Julius Watkins – and the album includes an alternate version of "Africa", plus "Greensleeves" and "Song Of The Underground Railroad". CD

A stone classic – not just from Sam Cooke, but in the genre of "best of" records too! The set's overflowing with classic singles from the legendary soul singers – almost the perfect record to start with if you've ever wanted to sample Sam's genius – that amazing voice, intimate sense of presentation, and undeniably mature, masculine sound that forever changed the face of soul music! Every track's a winner – and titles include "Only Sixteen", "You Send Me", "Cupid", "Chain Gang", "Having A Party", "Twistin The Night Away", "Wonderful World", "Summertime", "Everybody Loves To Cha Cha", "For Sentimental Reasons", "Sad Mood", and "Bring It On Home To Me". LP, Vinyl record album

A wonderful album from this enigmatic soul group! Cornelius Brothers & Sister Rose were one of a handful of early 70s groups – like Chairmen Of The Board or 100 Proof Aged In Soul – who had a sound that was incredibly hard to peg. There were bits of southern rawness in the vocals, but the overall approach also had plenty of elements of smoother Northern Soul, and wasn't afraid to use strings or uptown arrangements when they were needed. This album's their best, and features 10 tracks written by Eddie Cornelius, plus a great little cover of Al Green's "Let's Stay Together". Tracks include the sublime easy soul number "Too Late To Turn Back Now", choppy odd groover "Treat Her Like A Lady", and the cuts "Gonna Be Sweet For You", "Let Me Down Easy", and "Lift Your Love Higher". LP, Vinyl record album

Very folksy soul work from Don Crawford – recorded in New York, with a feel that's almost an extension of the Village folk sound of the mid 60s, but with some slightly hipper touches! The album was arranged by Crawford and organist Robert Freedman – and most tracks feature Crawford's guitar and vocals with little other backing, save for some bass by Ron Carter. The sound makes you think of Terry Callier's work of the time, and if it's not quite on that level, it is still very nice! Titles include "My Daddy Gave Me Wings Of Wax", "A Lady Like You", "Fear Fountain", "Would You Understand My Nakedness", and "Song For My Daughter". CD

A sweet bit of electric funk, and one of Hank Crawford's greatest records from the 70s – thanks in large part to the great Bob James – who arranged and produced the record with a mighty soulful vibe – leaving Hank lots of room to solo on his own over the top! The groove is really great – and the record gets surprisingly chunky in parts – with heavier rhythms than you might expect from a Crawford album from the time – not exactly the heavier funk of other CTI records, but with a definite taste of that style too. Arrangements are fairly large, and feature keyboards from Richard Tee – plus backing vocals at a few spots – and titles include great versions of "You've Got It Bad Girl" and "Corazon", plus the tracks "Good Morning Heartache" and "Wildflower". CD

A great follow-up to the group's first hit LP on Sussex – not nearly as successful chart-wise, but a great display of their unique approach to group soul. The band's a quintet at this point, and their vocals are arranged by Skip Scarborough with that sweet compressed style that he was forging at the time. As on the first album, the band do a great job with a Bill Withers tune – and lay out a very hip reading of "Harlem" with some nice conga backing. The album also features a great funky reading of the Carole King cut "Corazon", an extended take on Scarborough's "I Just Can't See Myself Without You", and the original groovers "Keep On Movin" and "Migration", which both have that fuzzy guitar Sussex sound! LP, Vinyl record album

Apart from the title's terrible pun on the Glenn Campbell hit of the mid 70s, this album's a real treat – a very soulful batch of smooth funky jazz tunes by The Crusaders, who by this point have fully emerged to claim the throne of the pop soul jazz genre they virtually invented. The record's got razor-sharp production, which you'll hear perfectly in the album's jazz stepping hit "Keep That Same Old Feeling", one of the best tunes ever to come from the pen of Wayne Henderson, and a track that he recorded endlessly with other groups. Other tracks include "Feeling Funky", "Spiral", and "Til The Sun Shines". LP, Vinyl record album

A great counterpart to the rare Stanton Davis Ghetto Mysticism album – and a set that was recorded right around the same time, with a number of previously unreleased tracks! The spiritual energy of that group has been well-loved by collectors for years – and enjoyed by others thanks to a recent reissue – and this sweet batch of rare cuts really augments that rare musical moment, by offering up a further set of completely cosmic grooves! The style is spacey jazz funk with some deeper elements in the mix – all recorded and arranged with an indie vibe that reminds us a lot of the classic Oneness Of Juju albums on Black Fire, but without as much vocals – just a strong focus on the sweet keyboard lines and soaring horn passages. Some tracks are brand new, others are different versions of themes from the Brighter Days album – and titles include "Delta Six/Brighter Days", "Isis Voyage", "Odwalla", "Things Can Not Stop Forever (Al Kent version)", "High Jazz (reprise – alt mix)", "Things Cannot Stop Forever (inst mix)", and "Funky Fried Tofu (alt inst version)". LP, Vinyl record album

A groundbreaking album of vocal group soul – right from the first note! The record kicks off with the sublime "Ready Or Not, Here I Come" – which starts with fierce stepping strings that are actually funky, then soars into some of the best harmonies the group ever put to record, superbly arranged by the great Thom Bell, who also wrote the track. As the album progresses, the sound expands further to encompass many elements that would become the blueprint for vocal groups over the next few years – like twangy electric sitar, cascading orchestrations, and pinched lead vocals that take a lot more chances than most group singers had been taking for years! There's still a bit of a 60s soul sound to some of the cuts, but the album's a watershed – not only for Thom Bell and the group, but for harmony soul as well! Titles include "Ready Or Not Here I Come", "My New Love", "Loving Him", "With These Hands", "Somebody Loves You", and "Everytime I See My Baby". LP, Vinyl record album

A wicked reinvention of the sound of Bo Diddley – a set that electrifies his groove even more than before – and takes him into the same mix of funk and blues that Muddy Waters and Howlin Wolf were exploring at the time! This album's right up there with the two Cadet/Chess classics by both of those artists – and is possibly even more messed-up too – with lots of jagged edges that push past the usual Bo Diddley groove – even though that classic sense of rhythm is still at the core to drive things along! We don't know who's playing drums, but they've got a nice heavy handed approach that makes these tracks really boom – and the set's in a massively funky style that's taken far too many years to be acknowledged for in the mainstream! Lots of nice ones, including "Shut Up Woman", "Funky Fly", "Power House", "Black Soul", "Elephant Man", and "I've Got A Feeling". LP, Vinyl record album

A very cool, really rare soul album from the Philly scene – one that was written, produced, and arranged by Hammond organist Charles Earland – but which is a sweet soul album with a really great feel! There's definitely a touch of Earland's keyboard work on the set – especially some of those non-organ lines he brought to his records for Mercury – and there's a jazzy groove that really sets The Diddys apart from other east coast groups of the time – a more complex approach to rhythm and instrumentation that almost makes some of the tunes feel as if they came from the James Mason side of the spectrum! The whole thing's wonderful – as unique as it is rare – and titles include "Intergalactic Love Song", "Strange Love", "Your Love Is Like A See Saw Baby", "How Long Have You Loved Him", and "My Special Love". CD features lots of bonus tracks – alternate takes of nearly every number on the record! CD

Funky funky Hammond – a rare late 60s album from organist Bill Doggett, done with some help from James Brown – and a set that's unlike anything Doggett ever recorded before – or since! There's a blasting groove to the record right from the start – thanks to help from The James Brown Band on the leadoff cut – but even when they drop out, and Doggett's combo goes out on their own, the sound is still amazing – tight, soulful, and very much in a funky 45 style all the way through! Drums are hard, the organ is nice and fluid, and the sound is prime late 60s instrumental funk – a groove that Doggett never managed to reach again, which makes this record a real standout treasure. The album includes the legendary funky break cuts "Honky Tonk" and "Honky Tonk Popcorn", plus lots of other nice groovers, like "A Doozy", "Mad", "Slippin In", and "Corner Pocket". LP, Vinyl record album

One of the greatest vocal groups of the postwar years – an incredible combination of voices that really paved the way for soul styles in years to come! The Dominoes were great right from the start – a group who blew away all the hoke of The Mills Brothers or Ink Spots – and instead forged this really raw, really spare sound that relied strongly on the presence of a key lead singer – who then got incredible support from the harmonies of the other members! The approach was groundbreaking – and matched only by a rare few, like The Drifters – and given that The Dominoes featured that group's great Clyde McPhatter as a lead singer before his work on Atlantic, The Dominoes definitely were the originator. This excellent 2CD set features way more than just the group's early hits – as it brings together 58 tracks from their years on King Records, including loads of lesser-known b-sides – not just with McPhatter as the lead, but also a young Jackie Wilson – who sang with the group after Clyde left. Titles include "Cave Man", "Have Mercy Baby", "Love Love Love", "You Can't Keep A Good Man Down", "How Long How Long Blues", "Give Me You", "One Sweet Moment", "I Really Don't Want To Know", "Pedal Pushin Papa", "The Bells", "I Am With You", "Sixty Minute Man", "Harbor Lights", "No Says My Heart", and lots lots more! CD

Sure, it was silly stuff when we were kids – but once De La Soul sampled "Three Is The Magic Number", this record became one of the most prized in our possession! And thanks to that hip hop reintroduction, we've really fallen in love with the music again over the years – partly because the tunes are all so groovy, and partly because we've really come to know the jazz-based work of composer Bob Dorough! At the time of this set, Dorough was coming off some great work in the 60s – his own rare recordings, music for Spanky & Our Gang, and others – all of which seems to inform these math-based tunes written for Saturday morning TV. The tunes are all pretty darn catchy, and often quite jazzy – and instrumentation often features some great electric piano nestled in alongside the vocals. Dorough sings the lion's share of the work for this album – although Grady Tate sings on two numbers, and Blossom Dearie on one more. Titles include the amazing "Three Is A Magic Number" – plus "Lucky Seven Sampson", "Little Twelve Toes", "Ready Or Not Here I Come", "I Got Six", "Naughty Number Nine", "Figure Eight", and "The Four Legged Zoo". LP, Vinyl record album

If this is the New Lee Dorsey – we forgot all about the old one! The album's one of Lee's best early records – a killer batch of soul tracks that struts out of the New Orleans scene with some amazingly jagged production from Allen Toussaint and Marshall Sehorn, very much in the best style of the Crescent City scene at the time. Lee's vocals are amazing, very pyrotechnic – and the tracks on the set are all original numbers that crackle with a uniquely earthy kind of electricity. Titles include "Working In The Coal Mine", "Ride Your Pony", and "Get Out of My Life, Woman", which has been sampled by so many people off this and other versions. Lots of other great stuff, too, like "A Little Dab a Do Ya", "Mexico", "A Mellow Good Time", "Neighbor's Daughter" and "Holy Cow". LP, Vinyl record album

Carol's at the top of her game in this set of full-sounding disco numbers arranged and conducted by John Davis – singing with that heartfelt tone that still has plenty of great traces of AM radio soul, but which also slides nicely into the smoother, sophisti-club arrangements of the set. There's no real standout singles on the set, but a few of the tracks have some nice hooks – and titles include "Lie To Me", "Life Time Guarantee", "Crime Don't Pay", "Headline News", and "Midnight Love Affair". LP, Vinyl record album

A pair of albums from the legendary Johnny Dyani – packaged here in one great little set! Rejoice features searing live work from Johnny Dyani – a set that has the bassist opening up strongly in a trio with Mongezi Feza on trumpet and Okey Temiz on drums and percussion! Feza sounds even better here than usual – blowing these long, inventive solo lines that match the work of Ted Curson for 70s fire – really spurred on by Okey's creative changes, into a soulful space that may well be some of Mongezi's most spiritually expressive of the 70s! Dyani's bass is strong, and ever-present – never needing to dominate, but always felt as this rich pulse – and powerful melodic element at just the right moments. Titles include "Mad High", "Makaya Makaya", "Pukwana" and "Imbomgolo". CD also features an unreleased track from the same performance – the 20 minute "Mad High Revisited". Together is a record that really gets back to Johnny Dyani's roots in South African jazz! Although Dyani and his expatriates in the Blue Notes helped give London a new sound of avant jazz expression in the 70s, the music here returns to the warmer melodic style of their early 60s days – with loping rhythms that draw on regional tradition, and soulful interplay between the alto of Dudu Pukwana, tenor of Peter Shimmy Radise, and keyboards from Dyani – who shifts his instrument for this special recording! The group also features use of guitar, congas, whistles, and a South American harp – used in rhythmic ways that pulsate warmly – on titles that include "Kalahari", "Tula Tula", "High Priest", "Johnny's Kwela", and "Together". CD

Earth, Wind & Fire's first album – recorded at a time when the group recently had ties to the Chicago soul and jazz scenes, and a range of experience that ran the gamut from work with Sun Ra, the Artistic Heritage Ensemble, The Pharoahs, Ramsey Lewis, and countless other influential groups. Headed up by Maurice White on drums and percussion, the group forged an amazing blend of all these influences, creating a future soul sound that pushed black music to the next level – taking a wealth of previously underground modes of expression, and fusing them into a soaring sound that would soon put them at the top of the charts. This album's a lot looser and freer than their Columbia albums – with plenty of raw funk and some nice off-beat jazz soling. Includes the classic break track "C'Mon Children", plus "Fan The Fire", "Bad Tune", and "Moment Of Truth". LP, Vinyl record album

One of the two early Earth Wind & Fire LPs recorded for Warner – and the one that shows their amazing roots in the avant-garde jazz scene in Chicago! At the forefront, the record's a righteous soul album with an ensemble funk sound – but deeper in, there's a lot of jazz-based playing, and a number of moments that almost get "out" in the solos! Surely this one couldn't have been made without the spiritual advancements in jazz made by the AACM – and EWF couldn't have helped rubbing shoulders with those players, considering that they all often gigged together in the Chicago studio scene, and that they'd also shared some time together in groups like The Pharoahs and Phil Cohran's Artistic Heritage Ensemble. Titles include "Energy", "Beauty", and a nice remake of Donny Hathaway's "Everything is Everything". LP, Vinyl record album

One of the two early Earth Wind & Fire LPs recorded for Warner – and the one that shows their amazing roots in the avant-garde jazz scene in Chicago. At the forefront, the record's a righteous soul album with an ensemble funk sound – but deeper in, there's a lot of jazz-based playing, and a number of moments that almost get "out" in the solos! Surely this one couldn't have been made without the spiritual advancements in jazz made by the AACM – and EWF couldn't have helped rubbing shoulders with those players, considering that they all often gigged together in the Chicago studio scene, and that they'd also shared some time together in groups like The Pharoahs and Phil Cohran's Artistic Heritage Ensemble. Titles include "Energy", "Beauty", and a nice remake of Donny Hathaway's "Everything is Everything". LP, Vinyl record album

One of the greatest albums on the Bethlehem label – and one of the first albums as a leader by the legendary Booker Ervin! At the time of the set, Ervin had come off a great stint with the Charles Mingus group – one that inflected his rootsy Texas tenor tones with a sharper modern edge – heard to perfection on this great little session, which is equal parts hard swinging soul jazz and dark-tinged early 60s modern! Zoot Sims joins Booker in the front line, and the two of them trade tenor solos throughout on the album's long compositions – grooving with a great sextet that includes Tommy Turrentine on trumpet, Tommy Flanagan on piano, and Mingus' drummer Dannie Richmond on the kit! Cuts include "Largo", "The Book Cooks", "The Blue Book", and "Git It". LP, Vinyl record album

Genius work from Peven Everett – one of the greatest talents of the soul underground! The album's perfect all the way through – a sublime blend of house beats, jazz riffing, and Peven's incredible soul vocals – a tremendous style that calls to mind Donny Hathaway, Marvin Gaye, D'Angelo, and a host of other classic vocalists that Peven easily matches on the set! The tunes have a more percussive feel than some of his other work – lots of tribal beats and long rhythmic progressions – traces of house music, to be sure, but also a primal approach that really gets at the heart of the tunes! Titles include "Do You Think About Me", "Colored Culture", "Family Now", "Asteroid Theater", "Ghana Red", and "The Spirit Of The Drum". And like almost all the Peven CDs we carry, this one's hand-made, and hand-packaged by the artist himself – a CDR delivered to you, almost as a personal present! CD

A perfect follow-up to Exuma's first album on Mercury – and like that one, a really rootsy blend of soul, funk, and other global sounds! Percussion and acoustic guitar dominate most of the instrumentation – just right for the rough-edged vocals on the set – in ways that help underscore some of the more righteous themes in the lyrics! The whole sound is a great summation of the musical journey that Exuma's taken from his Bahamian roots – and titles include "Damn Fool","Paul Simon Nontooth", "Fire In The Hole", and "A Place Called Earth". LP, Vinyl record album

Rare early 70s funky soul from Memphis by Fabulous Fugitives! There's a raw, gritty funk groove running underneath "What The World Needs" – keeping the groove on something of a low boil, but still quite funky – leaving the more charged aspects of the number to come out in the lyricism and the the vocals of Michael Sharkey. There's even more of a chunky funk groove to "You Made Me Cry" on the flip. 7-inch, Vinyl record

Good album by this female-male-female soul trio, with a lot of tracks written and arranged by Van McCoy, with the good New York soul sound that he was laying down with groups like this in the days before he hit the disco. Zulema's on vocals, and she also wrote a few tracks. Cuts include "God Bless The World", "I Worship The Very Ground You Walk On", "Heavy Love", "I Was There", and "We Can Change The World". LP, Vinyl record album

Four incredible albums from the young Georgie Fame – served up here in one tremendous package – with all oiriginal artwork, nice heavy vinyl, and even new remastering from the original tapes! First up is Rhythm & Blues At The Flamingo – blistering early work from a young Georgie Fame – a set that definitely lives up to the Rhythm & Blues in the title! The set was recorded live at London's hip Flamingo club – and Georgie and The Blue Flames are very much in command of the crowd – burning with the intensity of a American small organ combo, especially the early 60s variety that often played equal parts soul jazz and R&B! Georgie's on the Hammond, and also sings with a rough-edged style that's plenty soulful, and incredibly appealing – a mode that oozes charisma, but never sounds fake or forced. Titles include "Do The Dog", "Eso Beso", "Work Song", "Baby Please Don't Go", "Shop Around", "Humpty Dumpty", and "You Can't Sit Down". Fame At Last is a brilliant mix of jazz, soul, and R&B – all filtered through a mod sort of London freshness, as early proof that the city could always take some great things from our own musical roots, and feed it back to us with a whole new flavor! Georgie's no copycat here, though – and the sound is instantly Fame-like – a style that's really not the sort that any Americans were doing at the time, and certainly never this well. Hard-burning Hammond colors most of the tunes here – played with a tightly vamping quality – but it's Georgie's charmingly crackling vocals that really win us over! Titles include "Gimme That Wine", "Pink Champagne", "Monkeying Around", "Green Onions", "Let The Sunshine In", "Get On The Right Track Baby", "I'm In The Mood For Love", and "I Love The Life I Live". Sweet Things is a definite sweet thing from Georgie Fame – a record that has him filling in his sound even more than before, with tremendously soulful results! The backings here are bigger than before – a bit tooled in an American soul mode, but still with that beautifully raspy Georgie Fame touch – lots of jazzy inflections on the vocals, and a way of handling a tune, even a familiar one, and really working it on his own level. Hammond still fills in most of the tunes, but other instrumentation includes some nice African percussion from Speedy Acquaye, saxes from Pete Coe, and some nice bold drums from John Mitchell. These come out to the forefront on the classic funky tune "Music Talk" – and still sound great on other numbers that include "The World Is Round", "Last Night", "Dr Kitch", "My Girl", "Ride Your Pony", and "Sweet Thing". Sound Venture is one of the jazziest early albums from Georgie Fame – a set that has him singing with the big band of Harry South, at a level that's a lot more complicated than some of his other work with The Blue Flames! The style here still has that mod 60s London feel, but it also has some deeper inflections as well – modes borrowed a bit from Jon Hendricks or Mose Allison, yet served up with even greater complexity – at a level that really points towards the tremendous growth Fame would unleash over the next few years. Members of the group include Tubby Hayes, Ronnie Scott, Tony Coe, Dick Morrisey, Kenny Wheeler, and many other key Brit jazz figures of the time – and titles include "Three Blind Mice", "Dawn Yawn", "Feed Me", "Lovey Dovey", "Lil Darlin", "Lil Pony", "I Am Missing You", and "Many Happy Returns". LP, Vinyl record album

Pretty strange grooves from Family – their trippy amalgam of harder edged, forceful hippie rock and wispy acoustic elements! A Song For Me displays a bug-eyed feverish intensity in fits and starts – both rhythmically and with via some gravelly, warbling vocals by Roger Chapman. But it does so without stepping into the kind of testosterone laced bombast of groups like Zeppelin or Cream and myriad others – Family has it's own vibe – and there are plenty of more stripped down, airy bits of acoustic arrangements, harp, dobro, flute, vibes and piano. Tracks include "Drowned In Wine", "Some Poor Soul", "Love Is A Sleeper", "The Cat And The Rat", "A Song For Me" and more. LP, Vinyl record album

A lost harmony soul treasure – by an obscure family group from the Newark scene! The Family Circle have a fantastic style that mixes together sweet and deep soul styles into a darkly tinged approach that we'd rank with the best harmony soul of the early 70s – similar to work from bigger New Jersey groups, like The Moments or Whatnauts – but with an interesting twist too, given the mix of male and female vocals.. Nearly every track on the album is an original tune – conducted with baroque arrangements by George Andrews, and delivered with a near-perfect approach that makes this album a real treasure all the way through – not a soul record that's great because it's rare, but just a great album all the way through. Titles include "Change", "If You Really Want To Make It", "Loving You Makes The World Go Round", "I Hope You Really Love Me", "Mariya", and "La La So Lucky". LP, Vinyl record album

An overlooked set of late disco tracks from this sweet little group – produced and arranged by the great Tony Valor, with the best soulful qualities of some of his earlier work! Valor has a way of really getting beyond cliche on a record like this – and goes for rhythms that are simple and straightforward – and which often use as much funk as they do conventional disco. There's a snapping 80s groove approach to some of the better cuts on the set – complete with a bit of spoken sing-song vocals that could almost be considered a bit of a nod to hip hop – but which have more of a Fatback sort of approach overall. Titles include "Funky Song", "You're Too Late", "You Can't Lose What You Never Had", "Read Between The Lines", "Now I Have Everything", and "Love Explosion". LP, Vinyl record album

A tasty Japanese-released session from Art Farmer – recorded at Boomers nightclub, with a quintet that includes Clifford Jordan, Cedar Walton, Sam Jones, and Billy Higgins. Jordan's sharp-edged tenor solos give Farmer a lot more bite than usual – and the rhythm team keeps things leaping at a nicely soulful pace. Titles include "I Remember Clifford", "Barbados", and "Round Midnight" – all done in nice long versions. CD

One of the best albums ever by this crack soul jazz combo – the mighty Jazztet, an early 60s group led by Art Farmer and Benny Golson! The set was recorded in Chicago, and it features the group hard-grooving through some really well-arranged numbers – lively tunes with a snapping, in-the-pocket kind of groove, played with a lot more soul than you'd expect from either Golson or Farmer's solo albums. The rest of the group's great, too – and features Cedar Walton on piano, Tom McIntosh on trombone, and Albert Heath on drums. A few tracks are nice and long, and titles include "Farmer's Market", "Junction", "November Afternoon", and "Shutterbug". CD

An amazing little package of classic late 60s 5th Dimenion – with the complete Up, Up And Away, Magic Garden, Stoned Soul Picnic and Age Of Aquarius LP, back-to-back on 2CDs – and bonus tracks, too! Up Up & Away is the fab first album – and as groovy a batch of pop soul harmonies as you'll ever hope to find! Jimmy Webb is already at the helm on this one – arranging and conducting the group with his heavenly 60s pop approach – all produced to perfection by the amazing Bones Howe! The record soars to the top with the hit "Up Up & Away", and features many other great numbers –lesser-known, but really wonderful gems like "California My Way", "Another Day Another Heartache", "Pattern People", "Rosecrans Blvd", "Learn How To Fly", and the group's great cover of Tim Hardin's "Misty Roses"! Magic Garden is also brilliant work – arguably their best! The reason for this is partly Jimmy Webb – who arranged and conducted the album, which is comprised entirely of his own work. Titles include the sublime "The Girls Song", a track that out-Bacharachs Burt himself – plus "Requiem 820 Latham", "The Worst That Could Happen", "Paper Cup", and "Carpet Man". CD also features 3 bonus tracks – "I'll Be Loving You Forever", "Train Keep On Movin", and "Too Poor To Die" – all by Willie Hutch! Stoned Soul Picnic is a great leap forward for the 5th Dimension – with a strongly soulful quality that moves past just pop, and which hits even deeper territory than before! Titles include the group's hit version of "Stoned Soul Picnic" – plus "California Soul", "Bobbie's Blues", "It's A Great Life", "Sweet Blindness", "Broken Wing Bird", "Good News", and "The Eleventh Song (What A Groovy Day)". Age Of Aquarius is one of their biggest albums ever, built around the group's hit version of "Aquarius/Let The Sun Shine In", and featuring some other psychedelic pop soul gems like "Sunshine Of Your Love", "Blowing Away", "The Hideaway", "The Winds of Heaven", and "Working On A Grooving Thing". Also includes the excellent "Wedding Bell Blues" – one of the greatest songs of all time! CD features 2 bonus tracks – "Chissa Se Tornera" and "East Of Java"! CD

A long-overdue look at this much-neglected part of the 5 Royales career – material cut after their departure from King Records at the start of the 60s – just as the group's influence on soul was starting to take hold with a larger audience! The King sides by the 5 Royales are the stuff of legend – records that helped push earlier doo wop modes into a harder-edged space for the birth of soul music in the 60s – and the work here really follows strongly in the same vein! Despite the "blues" in the name of the label, the tracks are mostly in the style of their last years at King – R&B, but with a strong dose of soul in the mix – especially on the rhythms, which are often a fair bit more modern and complicated than some of their contemporaries. Lowman Pauling's lead vocals are wonderful on the Home Of The Blues sides – and he's heard to even greater effect on the second half of the CD, which features material recorded for Federal and Savoy Records under the name of "El" Pauling – most of which were done as duets with Royal Abbit. And if that's not all, the CD also features a few previously unissued tracks – and one extremely rare ABC side by the 5 Royales! Group titles include "I Want It Like That", "Goofball", "If You Don't Need Me", "Not Going To Cry", "Show Me", "She Did Me Wrong", "I'm Gonna Tell Them", "Catch That Teardrop", and "Take Me With You Baby". El Pauling titles include "Everybody Knows", "Rain Drops Keep Fallin", "Jail Bird", "Send Me Somebody", "I'm A Cool Teenager", "Mr Moon Man (parts 1 & 2)", and "Time For Everything". 28 tracks in all! CD

Hard rockin party soul from the legendary Flares – a sock-soul west coast group who flourished briefly in the early 60s! The group's classic "Foot Stompin" is one of the most recognizable (and most catchy!) tunes of its era – and it's packaged here in a 26 track set that includes a wealth of hard to find recordings. The Flares had a style that took off from the harder-rocking sound of groups like The Coasters and The Olympics, with some of the pyrotechnic touches of The Vibrations – and this package is one of the first times in years their material has been properly presented. Titles include "Foot Stompin", "Loving You", "Jump & Bump", "Yon He Go", "Mad House", "Do It If You Wanna", "A Little Piece Of Paper", "Dishes", "So Fine", "Rock & Roll Heaven (parts 1 & 2)", "Make It Be Me", and "Shimmy & Stomp". Unreleased tracks, too! CD

Ricky Ford explores the music and ideas of Wayne Shorter – a perfect fit for Ford's deeply soulful style of blowing the tenor! The set's actually got a more tightly arranged feel than you might expect – which makes for a nicely fresh take on some of Shorter's greatest numbers from earlier years, and creates some extremely inventive playing between group members that include Jimmy Knepper, James Spaulding, Kirk Lightsey, Rufus Reid, and Jimmy Cobb. Titles include Shorter tunes "Yes Or No", "Miyako", "Dance Cadaverous", and "Pinnochio" – and Ford originals "Wolf Trap" and "Tabloid Blues". LP, Vinyl record album

Massive work from Aretha Franklin's ultra-hip sister – singer Carolyn Franklin, a soul artist that we'd gladly trade for Aretha any time! Carolyn got her start in deep soul modes that were somewhat similar to Aretha's work on Atlantic – but she also worked with production that was a bit looser, freer, and more open to righteous influences than some of her sister's hit-bound sessions – and over the course of 4 albums for RCA she recorded some tremendously hip and funky tunes! This package is one of the first times that Carolyn's material has ever officially made it into the reissue years – and it brings together some of the best cuts from her RCA albums, including work arranged by Horace Ott, Wade Marcus, Bert De Coteaux, and other soul legends. There's a good deal of funk in the mix here – heavy bottoms on the tunes that really make them snap alongside the righteous vocals – and the package is easily one of the hardest-hitting sets of female soul you could ever hope to buy! 22 tracks in all – including "If You Want Me", "There I Go", "Ain't That Groovy", "Boxer", "Reality", "Chain Reaction", "Don't Wake Me Up In The Morning Michael", "Not On The Outside", "Boy I Love You", "You Are Everything", "Shattered Pride", "I Can't Help My Feeling So Blue", "As Long As You Are There", and "You Can Have My Soul". CD

The Frightnrs have plenty more to say here – and they say it in a really sharp-edged approximation of older rocksteady modes! The group are contemporary, but like the best acts on Daptone, they've got an instantly classic feel – thanks to instrumentation and production that take us right back to late 60s Kingston, but with some of the sharper funky currents we've come to expect from the label! And while The Frightnrs may pitch themselves as an old school reggae act, they're also one that have a heavy dose of soul – almost a late night New Jersey current to their music at times – as if the All Platinum/Stang label put out their own version of Jamaican soul. The approach is great, and very unique – and titles include "Hey Brother", "Gotta Find A Way", "What Have I Done", "Nothing More To Say", "All My Tears", "Purple", "Dispute", and "Till Then". CD

One of our favorite early Funkadelic albums – and a real turning point for the group! Gone are the trippier guitar solos of earlier days, and in their place is a tighter approach to funk – one that has the band grooving hard and soulfully on shorter tracks that perfect the dark vision hinted at in the Maggot Brain years! The tunes are shorter, funkier, and catchier – and the vocals are especially great – so much so than on the title cut "Cosmic Slop" has harmonies so great you'd swear you were listening to late-Motown Temptations! Other tracks continue with a great soul-based focus, and include "You Can't Miss What You Can't Measure", "Nappy Dugout", "No Compute", and "Can't Stand the Strain" – and the record is packaged in a mind-blowing wraparound cover by Pedro Bell, the first of many the band would use! LP, Vinyl record album

Amazing stuff – and arguably the greatest early Funkadelic album ever! The set moves past the simple fuzzy style of the group's debut, and the overly-stoned sound of Free Your Mind – and rockets into a heady funk style that's filled with sly social commentary and an incredibly dark vision of the future! The centerpiece of the album is the mindblowing "Maggot Brain" title track – a tune that begins with a chilling spoken intro, then slowly builds amidst washes and washes of post-Hendrix guitar. That cut then rolls into some shorter, funkier numbers that rank with some of the group's best ever – using the device of party-hearty energy to convey a sense of alienation and horror at the world. The whole thing's brilliant throughout – and apart from being a soul classic, the set should also rank as one of the greatest rock albums of all time! Titles include "Maggot Brain", "Super Stupid", "Back in Our Minds", "Can You Get to That", and "Wars of Armageddon". CD

A near-lost album of 80s soul from Rosie Gaines – produced, arranged, and mostly written by Rosie with help from a few key associates – and done in a nicely mellow style that has a deeper feel than most other work from her contemporaries! Instrumentation is definitely in the 80s mode – with a fair bit of electric percussion and keyboards – but Rosie's vocals aren't content with just sliding along with the rhythms, and have a deeply soulful range that we really like a lot, and which totally makes the record great. We've always been surprised that this set didn't push her onto bigger fame – but over and above that mystery, the record's a great one that holds together beautifully over the years. Titles include "I've Gone Too Far", "Skool-ology", "Caring", "Frustration", "Wake Up", "Good Times", and "What Are We Coming To". CD features bonus tracks – "Crazy" and "In A Jam". CD

A bit of an attempt to dive into early 80s mainstream soul – and one that stands the test of time a lot better than we would have expected, despite the super-polished production that all but buries the group's earlier harder-edged style. There's a lot of really nice soulful backing vocals, and sparkling Brit-synth-drum machine funk that gives the production a bit of a Nile Rodgers feel, and even reminds us, weirdly, of some of the modern touches in Raphael Saadiq's work. Tracks include "Is It Love", "I Fled", "Silver Lining", "A Man With A Good Car", and more. LP, Vinyl record album

Rare Baltimore soul from the duo of Gene & Eddie – and a collection that's equally noteworthy for its early contributions from the mighty Sir Joe Quarterman, who'd later become a funk legend in the 70s! The style is rough-edged duo soul – kind of an east coast variant of the modes of Sam & Dave, and one that's both well-suited to romping groovers, and some deeper-tinged numbers that are especially nice – moody tracks that have some righteous undercurrents that definitely fall on the hipper side of the indie soul world of the time. Quarterman contributed a number of songs and arrangements to the pair – and the set also features some of his own solo work, too – all material that came from the studios of the Ru-Jac label in the 60s. Titles include "I Would Cry", "I Tell You", "You Don't Fool Me", "It's So Hard", "Sweet Little Girl", "Let Me Go Easy", "It's No Sin", "Darling I Love You", "Why You Hurt Me", and "She's True Enough" by Gene & Eddie – plus "Every Day", "Baby I'd Drop Everything", "Nobody Beats My Love", and "If You Give Up Your Love" by Sir Joe. CD also features five more rare bonus tracks! CD

Rare Baltimore soul from the duo of Gene & Eddie – and a collection that's equally noteworthy for its early contributions from the mighty Sir Joe Quarterman, who'd later become a funk legend in the 70s! The style is rough-edged duo soul – kind of an east coast variant of the modes of Sam & Dave, and one that's both well-suited to romping groovers, and some deeper-tinged numbers that are especially nice – moody tracks that have some righteous undercurrents that definitely fall on the hipper side of the indie soul world of the time. Quarterman contributed a number of songs and arrangements to the pair – and the set also features some of his own solo work, too – all material that came from the studios of the Ru-Jac label in the 60s. Titles include "I Would Cry", "I Tell You", "You Don't Fool Me", "It's So Hard", "Sweet Little Girl", "Let Me Go Easy", "It's No Sin", "Darling I Love You", "Why You Hurt Me", and "She's True Enough" by Gene & Eddie – plus "Every Day", "Baby I'd Drop Everything", "Nobody Beats My Love", and "If You Give Up Your Love" by Sir Joe. LP, Vinyl record album

Nice 2LP set that brings together some of his most striking sessions of the early 60s recorded for Emarcy. This set includes pieces composed and arranged by Lalo Schifrin played by a large ensemble led by Benny Carter – with Dizzy as the main soloist, and work by players that include James Moody, Phil Woods, Emil Richards, Francisco Aguabella, and Schifrin himself. Tracks are long, and have complicated introductions – then easily give way to the sort of flowing grooves that Schifrin was penning often at the time. Titles include "The Conquerors", "The Chains", "The Swords", "The Empire", and "The Legend Of Atlantis". The set also features Diz playing tracks from Tom McIntosh, one of the scene's brightest arrangers at the time, and a talent who was looming large, thanks to support from folks like Diz and James Moody. Moody's in the group – blowing tenor with a quintet that includes Kenny Barron on piano, Chris White on bass, and Rudy Collins on drums – and his tone is incredible, with a darkness that he'd rarely had before, and the whole group has a mixture of modern tones and soulful grooves that's beyond compare! Titles include "November Afternoon", "The Cup Bearers", "The Day After". Also included are songs from the soundtrack for the lost Shirley Clarke verite drama The Cool World. Mal Waldron wrote the material for the score, and Diz plays the music with a moody emotionality that you don't often hear in his other 60's work. The recording was made by his great group that included Kenny Barron and James Moody, and the titles include "The Pushers", "Duke's Fantasy", "Coney Island", and "Street Music". LP, Vinyl record album

An excellent soundtrack to this early 70s thriller that starred George C Scott! Jerry Goldsmith has come up with some strong action themes that are very much in a Lalo Schifrin mode – mixing guitar, electric harpsichord, and strings with a harder-edged groove so that there's a lot of space in the overall blend of elements – allowing each one to step out nicely, identified on its own! Even the mellower tracks are great – with an airy feel that recalls some of Michel Legrand's best action scores at the end of the 60s – with colors that flow out and really give the record a sense of soul! Steve Lawrence sings "The Last Run" in a mode that recalls Matt Munro's performances on other thriller soundtracks – and other titles include "Claudie's Stockings", "The Trap", "Border Crossing", "Rickard Escapes", and "Double Cross". LP, Vinyl record album

Although Benny Golson is perhaps best known as a lively arranger in the modern idiom, he's also a kick-ass tenor player when he wants to be – and on this classic, he definitely wants to be! Unlike some of Golson's more tightly arranged records of the early years, this date is a deeply gutsy soul jazz session – support from a group that includes Ray Bryant on piano, Paul Chambers on bass, Art Blakey on drums, and Curtis Fuller on trombone – all sliding into long tracks that have plenty of room for solos! The whole thing's a bit like the more spontaneous side of the Jazz Messengers groove – and titles include "The Stroller", "Drumboogie", "My Blues House", and a beautiful version of "Yesterdays". LP, Vinyl record album

Unreleased boogie from Eleanor Goodman – a lost 80s session that's resurrected from rare studio tapes, and presented here for the first time ever! The album's got a really great blend of clubby numbers and mellower, midtempo soul cuts – lots of spare, stark rhythms that have a real street sort of vibe – catchy, cutting, and captivating underneath the warmer vocals of Goodman – and set to a batch of tunes penned by east coast indie soulman Paul Kyser, who produced and arranged the original album. Titles include "I Want You", "Sneak Preview", "Manina My Love", "Don't Take My Love For Granted", "I Like The Way You Do To Me", and "Can't You See What You're Doin To Me". CD

Bobby Gosh may look like a good old boy on the cover here, but the set was recorded up at the Record Plant in New York – with a style that warms up his country roots in just the right way, and provides a bit of soulful backup vocals from a quartet that includes Patti Austin, Tasha Thomas, and Carl Hall! Yet despite the possible slick setting for the record, Gosh still comes across as very much his own man – proudly singing all the songs he penned himself, and not afraid to bring in a bit of broken-down emotion at all the right moments – a blue-tinged, burnt-out vibe that's especially powerful on some of the album's songs about love. Titles include his theme to the film "Bang The Drum Slowly", plus "Wednesday Afternoon Lady", "Have I Got A Song For You", "Harder Man", "Headin For New York City", and "Two For A Dollar". CD

Righteously-arranged work from Ian Green – a British talent of the late 60s, but one with a keen ear for influences from American soul! The style here is somewhat unusual – a fuller, more ambitious blend of modes that were bubbling under in British rock during the soul-influenced years of the 60s – taken to new heights by Green with a full set of orchestrations for this rare 1969 set. And while Green's arranging and production talents are at the head of the recording, the album also features key vocal contributions from Rosetta Hightower and Madeline Bell – both of whom really deepen the groove nicely, almost in the way that soul singers were used by Burt Bacharach to add a lot more feeling in his own music of the time. There's definitely a Bacharach-like sense of majesty to some of the tunes, but others are a bit more focused and forward – and titles include "One Fine Love", "Twilight", "Revelation", "No Face No Name No Number", "When You Love A Man", "Something's Gotten Hold Of My Heart", and "Epitaph For A Good Day". CD also features 2 bonus tracks – "Santa Maria" and "Groover's Grave". CD