A bit sweet soul, a bit funky – and a real indie soul classic from the early 70s! The album's the second from The Dynamics – a group from Detroit, but one who work here with a style that's much more in the east coast mode of the All Platinum/Stang generation! The production is nice and mellow on the best cuts – fragile, but never sloppy – and the vocals really dominate nicely on the ballads, sliding forward with a really mellow late nite sound! The album does have one standout funk track, titled "Funkey Key", but most of the set is relatively mellow – and other tracks include "Count Your Chips", "You're The Only One", "Voyage Thru The Mind", "What A Shame", and "You'll Never Find A Man Like Me". LP, Vinyl record album

A key meeting between the Three Sounds trio and the amazing Monk Higgins – done at a time when Higgins was taking his Chicago-crafted grooves to work on the west coast – and doing some really wonderful productions with Dee Ervin! The set features full Higgins backings throughout – a mix of jazz and strings that takes the usual Gene Harris sound into territory that you'd be much more likely to hear on Cadet Records back in Chi-town – a very hip, very soulful style that's totally great throughout, and a much-needed break from the straighter piano trio sound of other 60s albums the group did on Blue Note. Some tracks are laidback, but others are hard and funky – the kind of sock-solid cuts that have made the album a favorite with sample heads and soul dancers over the years – much heavier keyboard work than we'd ever heard before from Gene Harris, and a great precursor to funky favorites to come. Cuts include the excellent numbers "Sitting Duck", "Sugar Hill", "Black Gold", and "Book of Slim" – plus "Elegant Soul", "African Sweets", and "Walls Of Respect". LP, Vinyl record album

Lupe Fiasco takes his style a kick & a push deeper than the perceived sunny positivity of his debut on second album The Cool – flashing some biting social criticism – and a sharp brilliance that shows he's too restless to simply coast! The clean, buzzing synth funk orchestra vibe that was a highlight of the Food & Liquor set encores here, especially on the tracks Soundtrakk produced – but the mood is a little heavier. Strong stuff in both overall quality and lyrical content, with some real standouts. F & L was no fluke – Lupe is the real thing! Titles include ""Free Chilly" feat Sarah Green & Gemstones, "Go Go Gadget Flow", "The Coolest", "Superstar" feat Matthew Santos, "Paris, Tokyo", "Hi-Definition" feat Snoop Dogg and Pooh Bear, "Gold Wathch", "Intruder Alert" feat Sarah Green, "Dumb It Down"feat Gemstones & Graham Burris, "Fighters" feat Mathew Santos and more. LP, Vinyl record album

Superb work from Steely Dan – and a record that really shows them hitting perfection in the studio! The core sound of this one's jazzier than before – with some great help on instrumentation from Victor Feldman, Lanny Morgan, Bill Perkins, and other west coast jazzers – all helping the group sound great on some of the tightest tracks ever written by the team of Becker and Fagan! Ecstasy is definitely in reach with the sound of this set – a sublime effort all the way through that really set a whole new standard in 70s rock! Includes classics like "Bodhisattva", "Your Gold Teeth", "My Old School", and "Show Biz Kids". LP, Vinyl record album

A late 80s high point for Ice T – and a benchmark west coast solo rap classic! Ice T's persona has always been over the top, but he's also great at pointing out the harsh realities of life in a violent world, and he's in peak form on Rhyme Pays – with the classic "6 In The Morning", "Make It Funky", and lots more. Other cuts include "Squeeze The Trigger", "Somebody Gotta Do It (Pimpin' Ain't Easy)", "I Love Ladies" and more. LP, Vinyl record album

Fantastic stuff – a landmark in New Orleans soul, and a rare turning point for singer Aaron Neville – an essential full length set that really presented all the changes that had taken place in New Orleans soul during the 60s! The album was issued before the bigger west coast albums from Aaron Neville – and has the singer working in the Par-Lo studios with George Davis on arrangements, in a style that's part sweet, part deep, and done in that strangely honest mode that you'll recognize instantly in the title hit "Tell It Like It Is" – but which goes way way deeper over the course of the whole album! All cuts are great – and titles include "She Took You For A Ride", "Why Worry", "A Hard Nut To Crack", "Love Love Love", "Space Man", and "Since You're Gone". LP, Vinyl record album

A great lost crime jazz soundtrack – penned by Elmer Bernstein in the style of some of his best work from the 50s! There's a real Man With The Golden Arm feel here – as the orchestra rises and falls in a mode matching the Staccato title – and solos break out with a fluid and brazen sort of feel – plenty of jazz to show the west coast origin of the recording! Players include Don Fagerquist and Pete Candoli on trumpets, Dick Nash on trombone, Ted Nash and Dave Pell on saxes, John Williams on piano, and Barney Kessell on guitar. The show itself is pretty darn cool – and starred a young John Cassavetes as detective Johnny Staccato – a role that supposedly gave Cassavetes enough money to shoot the film Shadows in his free time! Great all the way through – with tracks that include "Staccato's Theme", "Thinking Of Baby", "Poi & Juice", "Deadly Game", "Night Mood", "Jazz At Waldo's", "Like Having Fun", and "MacDougal Street Special". LP, Vinyl record album

The great Dick Curless is doggin it here – and turning out great work on titles that include "Homing Pigeon", "Jukebox Man", "Please Buy My Flowers", "The Lonesome Road", "Golden Girl", "Waiting For A Train", and "Coastline Charlie". LP, Vinyl record album

Kool G Rap & DJ Polo's finest from the Cold Chillin glory days – in a deluxe 4CD special edition featuring a ton of bonus tracks! This full length debut from one of the golden era's greatest duos is a benchmark hip hop album – paving the way for the greatest east coast players to come – with tight production and hard hitting wordplay. A bonafide classic! The original LP tracks include "Road To Riches", "Men At Work", "It's A Demo", "Truly Yours", Cars". "Poison", "Rhymes I Express, "Butcher Shop" and more. The special edition includes the previously unreleased "Riker's Island Radio Promo" and "Raw" (extended alternate version) by Big Daddy Kane feat Kool G Rap. Disc 2 features 14 tracks that include a bunch of versions previously only available on vinyl, including "It's A Demo" (original 12" version), "I'm Fly" (original 12" version) , Riker's Island" (original 12" version), "It's A Demo" (original 12" version) and more, plus previously unreleased tracks which include "Men At Work" (extended instrumental), "She Love's Me, She Loves Me Not" (instrumental) and "Men At Work" (acapella). 30 tracks on 4LPs! LP, Vinyl record album

Elmer Bernstein serves up some of his most famous soundtrack themes – but in a style that's even more jazz-based than the original! The group here is a large one, filled with great west coast players – and Bernstein's tunes sparkle even more in this rich setting than they did in their initial use on film – partly because the presentation allows some musicians the chance to really open up and solo! The lineup features Bud Shank and Bob Cooper on saxes, Pete Candoli and Don Fagerquist on trumpets, Milt Bernhart and Dick Nash on trombones, Bob Bain on guitar, Russ Freeman on piano, Shelly Manne on drums, and Francisco Aquabella on percussion – and titles include "Rat Race", "Three Time Blueser", "Hop Skip But Jump", "Jubilation", "Man With The Golden Arm", "Saints & Sinners", and "Sweet Smell Of Success". LP, Vinyl record album