A nicely rootsy session from Don Covay – one that has him getting past the straighter AM pop of his Superdude I set, and going for a sound that's much more down home and southern! The album reunites Covay with his Jefferson Lemon band – and was recorded in Muscle Shoals, but with production by Don that gets way past the more obvious cliches that were already creeping into the scene at the time. Overall, the sound is surprisingly light and personal – almost intimate at times, with Covay moving into a bit more country soul than on any of his other records. The album also includes a few funkier numbers – like "Rumble In the Jungle", dedicated to the Ali/Frazier fight, and "Gangster Strut" – and other tracks include "Sexy Lady", "Hot Blood", "We Can't Make It No More", "A Mind Is A Terrible Thing To Waste", and "It's Better To Have (And Don't Need)". CD features the bonus track "Dungeon Number 3". CD

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One of the hippest entries in the Red Hot series so far – a set of tracks dedicated to the legendary Fela Kuti – felled by AIDS after years of influential grooves – still being felt strongly by the rich array of artists collected in the set! Most tracks are contemporary, but feature a strong influence of the 70s modes of Fela's generation – those sharp percussive lines at the bottom of the tracks, soaring Afro-styled horn passages, and a righteous energy that really drives the whole thing all the way through! The package was put together in support of AIDS/HIV awareness, but is hardly an act of charity – as it's overflowing with great cuts that more than make the set stand as an Afro Funk collection on its own. Most tracks are remakes of older Fela numbers – and titles include "Buy Africa" by Baloiji & L'Orchestre De A Katuba, "Yellow Fever" by Spoek Mathambo & Zaki Ibrahim, ""Gentleman" by Just A Band & Baja, "Go Slow" by King, "Sorro Tears & blood" by Kronos Quartet & Kyp Malone, "Trouble Sleep Yanga Wake Am" by My Morning Jacket, "Afrodisco Beat 2013" by Tony Allen & M1, and "Lady" by Tune Yards, ?uestlove, and Angelique Kidjo. LP, Vinyl record album

The first great, label-spanning compilation of great 50s & 60s tracks by a variety of artists with some little in common in some cases, but share at least one unbreakable bond – they recorded these tracks with the incredible James Burton on guitar! It's got fiery, pivotal rockabilly Dale Hawkins and Bob Luman, pop takeover numbers by Ricky Nelson, rustic charisma from Lee Hazlewood, benchmark honky tonk from Merle Haggard, harmony country rock from Buffalo Springfield and much more – including numbers credited to James Burton himself and with Ralph Mooney. Includes "Susie-Q" by Dale Hawkins, "Red Hot" by Bob Luman, "Cannonball Rag" by James Burton, "Blood From A Stone" by Ricky Nelson, "A Child's Claim To Fame" by Buffalo Springfield, "Swamp Surfer" by Jimmy Dobro, "Someday, Someday" by The Shindogs, "Just For A While" by Carol Williams, "Tryin' To Be Someone" by David & Lee and more. CD

A bit of an odd album, but one that showed the Stones were alive and kicking in the 80s. Taking off from the Stones' take on disco from their previous couple of LPs but keeping a nice rough edge on the proceedings, Jagger and Richards turned in what's probably their last great studio LP. 10 tracks in all, including "Undercover Of The Night", "She Was Hot", "Tie You Up (The Pain Of Love)", "Wanna Hold You", "Feel On Baby", 'Too Much Blood", "Pretty Beat Up", "All The Way Down" and "It Must Be Hell". LP, Vinyl record album

A hell of a trumpeter – making his debut here on one of the grooviest albums on the legendary Latin Percussion label! The session's a bit fuller than some of the other LP albums – a crackling blend of jazz, funk, and Latin rhythms – warm, but with some pretty complicated moments, very much in the best spirit of the second wave of NuYorica grooves! There's still lots of the tight percussion that makes Latin Percussion sessions so great – but the record also features fuller instrumentation too – in ways that really make things soar. Players include Eddie Martinez on Fender Rhodes, Jon Faddis and Randy Brecker on additional trumpets, Steve Khan on guitar, and Carlos Patato Valdez on congas – and Ruben Blades even plays a bit of acoustic guitar on the record. The overall feel's a bit like some of the great Fania/Columbia co-productions – but a bit rawer at points – and titles include "Diana", "Genesis", "Nice & Warm", "Viva Martinez", "I Know", "Hot Blood", and "Perico" – most of which are separated by short percussion interludes! LP, Vinyl record album

A bit of an odd album, but one that showed the Stones were alive and kicking in the 80s. Taking off from the Stones' take on disco from their previous couple of LPs but keeping a nice rough edge on the proceedings, Jagger and Richards turned in what's probably their last great studio LP. 10 tracks in all, including "Undercover Of The Night", "She Was Hot", "Tie You Up (The Pain Of Love)", "Wanna Hold You", "Feel On Baby", 'Too Much Blood", "Pretty Beat Up", "All The Way Down" and "It Must Be Hell". CD

The second album by Three Dog Night – issued hot on the heels of the first, and with a similar heavy-rock trippy-pop kind of approach! The album's surprisingly nice – and with soulful overtones that you wouldn't expect, sounding a bit like parts of early work by Chicago or Blood Sweat & Tears. Titles include "Eli's Coming", "Feelin Alright", "Dreaming Isn't Good For You", "Easy To Be Hard", "Ain't That A Lotta Love", "Circle For A Landing", and "King Solomon's Mines". LP, Vinyl record album

Features Tower Of Power, Santana, Grateful Dead, Taj Mahal, Hot Tuna, New Ridgers Of The Purple Sage, Boz Scaggs, Malo, Cold Blood, and more CD

Includes "Hot Blooded", "Blue Morning, Blue Day", "Double Vision". LP, Vinyl record album

Some of the best R&B you could ever buy! Wynonie Harris was one of the all-time greats – a raw, raunchy, hard-rockin singer who was getting into more trouble with the law, ladies, and booze than most 70s rock groups combined! Wynonie's songs for King are the stuff that kick-started rock and roll – and even from today's perspective, they're still gosh darn hard-rolling, filled with subject matter like drinkin, gamblin, and sleepin around that you'll be hard-pressed to beat in most gangster hip hop albums. And on top of it all, Wynonie's got one hell of a sense of humor, put over the top perfectly by his great swinging vocal style. 18 tracks in all, and nearly all of them are gems! Titles include "Grandma Plays the Numbers", "I Feel That Old Age Coming On", "All She Wants To Do Is Rock", "Bloodshot Eyes", "Don't Take My Whiskey Away From Me", "Lovin Machine", "Good Morning Judge", and "I Like My Baby's Pudding". CD

13 tracks from Tourniquet, Deliverance, Sacred Warrior, Vengeance Rising, Recon, Bloodgood, and scaterd-few. CD

A searing set of west coast psych from a very mysterious group – served up here on a record that was done as a bit of exploitation vinyl at the time, but which has gone on to achieve legendary status over the years! The set's got a raw, ragged energy right from the start – every bit as great as most of the work by labelmates The Seeds – with a similar sense of urgency and intensity that goes way beyond most garagey work of the time! Production is stark and simple, but really makes the best use of the fuzz in the mix – on titles that include "The Trip", "Love Special Delivery", "Talk Talk", "Journey's End", "Blood Beat", "Trip Maker" and "Pictures & Designs" – plus a really wild version of the New Orleans soul classic "Fortune Teller". LP, Vinyl record album

Filled with classics – including "Girls Got Rhythm", "Highway To Hell", "Shot Down In Flames", "Touch Too Much", and "If You Want Blood". LP, Vinyl record album

Seminal quality dub by the mighty Revolutionairies! Raw, fat dubs of Jah Lloyd productions cut at Channel One and mixed at Tubby's by Prince Jammy, featuring the Rhythm Twins on drum & bass, with the rest of the band filled out with an all star cast of top notch shots, so what more do you need to know? 10 tracks in all, including "Calico Jack", "Big Foot", "Bitter Blood", "Goldmine", "Red River Dub", "Heartburn", "Sore Mouth", "Jamintel", "Musketeer Dub" and "Pepper Dub". LP, Vinyl record album

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

Excellent! An astounding 4CD set covering 15 years worth of fine Jamaican music, stopping at all the relevant points for novices, but digging deeply enough to unearth some nice hard to get bits for the initiated. The first disc in the set, Train To Skaville, represents an 8 year block during the formative years of the 60s, starting out with some Mento cuts, then a couple of nice Jamaican R& B numbers on through a nice batch of Ska. Disc 2, Do The Reggay, focus on the transition to Rocksteady and early reggae from 1968 to 1970, as the tempos started to get a little more laidback, and the dawn of the 70s gets highlighted with disc 3, Black & White: Reggae Rising. Disc 4, The Time Has Come, brings it all together collecting a tremendous batch of roots rock. 90 tracks in all, the set includes Derrick Morgan "Fat Man", Stranger Cole "Rough & Tough", Don Drummond & Tommy McCook "Music Is My Occupation", Roland Alphonso & The Soul Brothers "Phoenix City", Desmond Dekker & The Aces "Rudy Got Soul", Keith & Tex "Stop That Train", Toots & The Maytals "Do The Reggay", Lee Perry People Funny Boy", the Untouchables "Tighten Up", the Pioneers "Longshot Kick The Bucket", Gregory Isaacs "Don't Let Me Suffer", Harry J Allstars "The Liquidator", Niney "Blood & Fire", Ken Parker "Groovin Out On Life", Bob Marley & The Wailers "Small Axe", Horace Andy "I Fell Good All Over", Junior Byles "A Place Called Africa", Zap Pow "This Is Reggae Music", Slim Smith "The Time Has Come", Big Youth "S90 Skank", Burning Spear "Marcus Garvey", and way too many more to list here! CD

A classic slice of Jamaican roots – and an essential record from the godlike hands of Lee Perry! The set was produced by Perry at Black Ark – and instantly became the stuff of legend, even though the initial version of the album got very limited exposure – which has led to years of differing reissues and versions of the record! Yet the core sound is always very much in place, no matter what the setting – very spiritual lyrics from the group themselves, set to nicely stripped-down rhythms and instrumentation that are a great contrast to the wave of more polished international reggae releases that were garnering mainstream attention at the time. The lasting power of the set is proof that maybe when it comes to roots, you've got to really go to the roots to get it right – as you'll hear on classic tracks that include "La La Bam Bam", "Fisherman", "Congoman", "Children Crying", "Open Up The Gate", and "The Wrong Thing". 2CDs worth of material are gathered here, including extended mixes and hard-to-find B-sides, with a fat booklet filled with notes and photos. Includes the essential "Fisherman", "Sodom & Gomorrow", "Can't Come In", "Open the Gate" & "Congoman" (which is also served up in a 12" & Chant version), plus "Bring the Macka Back". 17 cuts in all! CD

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The record that really broke the White Stripes out of the box – a set that was recorded as an indie, then later got wider circulation around the globe – as a fantastic demonstration of the raw, back-to-basics energy that made the duo such a standout in contemporary rock at the start of the century! All these many years later, there's still a sense of power that has the group rivaling some of the bigger garage punk legends of the past – on titles that include "Dead Leaves & The Dirty Ground", "Hotel Yorba", "Fell In Love With A Girl", "I Think I Smell A Rat", "Now Mary", "We're Going To Be Friends", "Expecting", "I'm Finding It Harder To Be A Gentleman", and "The Same Boy You've Always Known". CD

The record that really broke the White Stripes out of the box – a set that was recorded as an indie, then later got wider circulation around the globe – as a fantastic demonstration of the raw, back-to-basics energy that made the duo such a standout in contemporary rock at the start of the century! All these many years later, there's still a sense of power that has the group rivaling some of the bigger garage punk legends of the past – on titles that include "Dead Leaves & The Dirty Ground", "Hotel Yorba", "Fell In Love With A Girl", "I Think I Smell A Rat", "Now Mary", "We're Going To Be Friends", "Expecting", "I'm Finding It Harder To Be A Gentleman", and "The Same Boy You've Always Known". LP, Vinyl record album

The record that really broke the White Stripes out of the box – a set that was recorded as an indie, then later got wider circulation around the globe – as a fantastic demonstration of the raw, back-to-basics energy that made the duo such a standout in contemporary rock at the start of the century! All these many years later, there's still a sense of power that has the group rivaling some of the bigger garage punk legends of the past – on titles that include "Dead Leaves & The Dirty Ground", "Hotel Yorba", "Fell In Love With A Girl", "I Think I Smell A Rat", "Now Mary", "We're Going To Be Friends", "Expecting", "I'm Finding It Harder To Be A Gentleman", and "The Same Boy You've Always Known". CD

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Pressure Sounds does it again, with another fine collection of mighty, mighty dub! A much needed Blackbeard retrospective collecting 16 hard to get cuts from British dubmeister Dennis Bovell, rare dubs and instrumentals, plus a couple of outstanding vocal tracks from the man at the epicenter of the British reggae scene. Focusing on Bovell's early work, this collection brings some of his heaviest productions out for the first time since their original release in the mid-seventies, all propelled by his chubby bass playing and rounded out by his deft touch on the console. 16 tracks in all: "The Grunwick Affair", "Harmoniser Dub", "Dominion Dub", "Rowing (12" version)", "Zombie Zones", "Zion Dub", "Higher Ranking", "Ranking High", "Scientific", "Shi-cago", "None Jah Jah Children (Melodica version)", "Uganda Crisis", "Ah Fi Wi Dis", "Entebbe", "Blood Ah Go Run" and "Dub'er". As always, a wonderful package, with new liner notes and photos! LP, Vinyl record album

Killer 2 CD set that focuses on the funky sound of James from the 70s – and which includes great material that was never issued at the time, alternate funky takes, rare singles, and other great bits! There's a wealth of incredible material on here that makes the set essential – even if you have James' full albums from the time, because there's so many other extra bits that weren't included on those! The extra goodies include "Down & Out In New York City" (with a spoken intro), "Coldblooded" (undubbed version), "Mind Power" (alternate take), "Hot Pants Finale" (live), "Don't Tell It", "World Of Soul", "I Can't Stand It '76", "Turn On The Heat & Build Some Fire", "Problems", "I Got A Bag Of My Own", "I Got Ants In My Pants", "King Heroin", "Make It Funky (parts 1 thorugh 4)", "Escape-Ism", "Don't Tell It", "My Thang", "Funky President", and "Make It Good To Yourself" (interlude). Great notes, loads of other great tracks, and a total of 26 cuts make this a monster value! CD

Killer 50's R&B – of the sort that will blow your mind if you never knew that the music could get this raunchy! Wynonie Harris' material alone is worth the price of the album – as it includes insane drunken hard-loving tracks like "Bloodshot Eyes", "Loving Machine", "Shake That Thing", and "All She Wants To Do Is Rock". CD

Fantastic soundtrack work for the Stranger Things series from Netflix – a narrative set in the early 80s, and scored here with a sound that really gets that era right! This isn't schlocky 80s keyboard work, nor some sort of easy retro motif – and instead, the team of Kyle Dixon and Michael Stein go for sort of the coolest moods and styles that were being used in film scores during the time – especially the spare keyboards and careful electronics that were just right for a sci-fi or sophisticated horror story! The keyboards all feel very vintage, but not in an "easy" way – and titles on this first volume include "Lay Z Boy", "Nancy & Barb", "Kids", "Hawkins", "The Upside Down", "Lamps", "Fresh Blood", "Photos In The Woods", and "Hanging Lights". LP, Vinyl record album

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