Gary Burton takes on the music of Carla Bley – in a wonderfully sensitive set that opens up rich new colors in her music! The group here is a particularly well-chosen one for the effort – a quintet with Burton on vibes, Mick Goodrick on guitar, Steve Swallow on bass, and Bob Moses on drums – plus a young Pat Metheny on guitar, really shading in the tunes with his evocative tones. Burton's vibes are angular one minute, spare and spacious the next – and in a way, his treatment if Bley's tunes is some of the most sensitive we've ever heard. Titles include "Ictus/Syndrome", "Dreams So Real", "Intermission Music", "Doctor", and "Vox Humana". CD

The music of Carla Bley is always a special thing – compositions that began appearing on modern jazz recordings long before Carla herself got a chance to record as a leader – yet there's also maybe something extra special about this set, as Paul Bley really gets all the special sense of spacing and tone in the tunes completely right – delivered here in a record that's very different than most of his other albums from the time! The other trio members have ears that fit the songs perfectly too – Marc Johnson on bass and Jeff Williams on drums – working with Paul's piano in this special sonic space that's completely sublime, on titles that include "Turns", "Ictus", "Ida Lupino", "Vashkar", "Seven", "Around Again", and "Olhos De Gato". CD

2 amazing albums from the 2nd version of the Jimmy Giuffre 3! After working with his first combo of Bob Brookmeyer and Jim Hall during the late 50s, Giuffre hooked up with a pair of younger modernists – Paul Bley and Steve Swallow – reintroducing the piano and bass to his trio format, instruments that had been previously missing because Giuffre wanted to explore the possibilities of melodic composition freed from rhythmic constraints. With this trio, Giuffre was still working in that mode – as you'll hear on Bley and Swallow's incredibly free playing. The group's performances are not free jazz by any means, but they're a key link in that tradition – as Giuffre and crew do an excellent job of creating unconventional compositions, most of which feel like little sculptures in sound. There's a total of 20 tracks on 2CDs – and titles include "Cry, Want", "Trudgin", "Jesus Maria", "Ictus", "Sonic", "Whirrrrr", "The Gamut", "Herb & Ictus", and "Flight". Both records originally available on Verve, now repackaged by ECM. CD

Includes 16 tracks by Chairmen Of The Board, 100 Proof, Laura Lee, Glass House, HDH, 8th Day, Barrino Brothers, Honey Cone, and Freda Payne. CD

22 songs from Chairmen Of The Board, The 8th Day, Freda Payne, Barrino Brothers, The Glass House, The Hi-Lites, Eloise Laws, Holland - Dozier featuring Lamont Dozier, Lee Charles, New York Port Authority, Ty Hunter, Holland - Dozier featuring Brian Holland, and Melvin Davis. CD

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An insane bit of fuzzed-out funk! This is Parliament's rare first album – a trippy batch of tunes that come off of Clinton's experimentation in the Detroit soul scene, infused by the rock-heavy energy of the city at the time, and probably a heck of a lot of cannabis, too! The record is quite different than the slick funky sound of the group's later work for Casablanca – and has the psychedelic funk sound of the early work of Funkadelic, which was also recorded during the same period. The album's filled with funky classics – including "I Call My Baby Pussycat", "Little Ole Country Boy", "My Automobile", "Funky Woman", and "Nothing Before Me But Thang". CD

Sublime work from The Glass House – two full albums, plus bonus tracks too! First up is Inside The Glass House – a great album by one of lost groups on the Invictus label! Glass House were a stellar male/female vocal group with a good deep soul sound – very much in the spirit of other Invictus albums of the era, with a tremendous feel for down home, gritty soul but executed with the smooth HDH vibe – a really wonderful blend that's slightly different than other Holland-Dozier-Holland productions of the time – making The Glass House a real standout in 70s soul! Ronald Dunbar handled all of the production for Holland-Dozier-Holland, and he also wrote most of the tracks – and titles include "You Ain't Livin' Unless You're Lovin", "Crumbs Off The Table", "Heaven Is There To Guide Us", and "I Surrendered". Thanks I Needed That is the sublime second album from The Glass House – even rarer than the group's first, and an overlooked gem in the Holland-Dozier-Holland treasure box of the early 70s! There's a sweetness here that you don't always find on other H-D-H projects – a touch of harmony soul that really makes the album come off with a great deal of charm, even though there's plenty of Invictus Records force in the grooves – that great post-Motown sound that the label pioneered as the second generation of Detroit soul. Arrangements are by McKinley Jackson and HB Barnum – and the album's filled with great titles that include "Horse & Rider", "House Is Not A Home", "VIP", "Thanks I Needed That", "Don't Let It Rain On Me", and "Giving Up The Ring". CD also features 6 bonus tracks – including "He's In My Life", "Bad Bill Of Goods", "I Can't Be You", "Playing Games", "It Ain't The World", and "Let It Flow (single)". CD

A classic deep soul set from Eloise Laws – an early album recorded for Invictus Records, and done with stellar production from Brian Holland! The title cut's a monster, one of the best tracks on the label from the 70s – with some wonderfully spacey keyboards, funky drums and bass grooving! But there's loads of other strong cuts too – all with that great Invictus blend of masterfully produced, tight dancefloor soul – yet also served up with more than enough grit in the grooves to make the album a great one for funk fans too! Tracks include "Ain't It Good Feeling Good", "Where Did We Go Wrong", "I Believe In You Baby", "Love Goes Deeper Than That", "Put A Little Love Into It", "Camouflage", and "Make It Last Forever". CD features lots of bonus tracks – including "Love Factory", "You Made Me An Offer I Can't Refuse", "Tighten Him Up", "Touch Me", "Stay With Me", "Love Goes Deeper Than That (12" version)", and "Put A Little Love Into It (12" version)". CD

A nicely complicated little record – and one of the funkiest albums on the legendary Invictus label! The 8th Day group was a loosely-conceived batch of Detroit soul talents designed to cash in on a concept of the Holland-Dozier-Holland team – and they weren't just a studio project, as they included some wonderful talents that could make some great music when they wanted to! One of these was the amazing Detroit organist Lyman Woodard – who contributed the fantastic track "Cheba" to the album, an incredible organ groover that's unlike anything you've ever heard, rolling on with this pinched Hammond sound over congas, all-instrumental, and completely seductive! Another was Melvin Davis, who had recorded the song "Good Book" as a solo artist – but which was released here as if it was by the group. There's also a great guitarist in the group – unnamed due to the lack of liner notes – but who really shines on the funky tracks "Anythang", "Rocks In My Head", and "Heaven Is There To Guide Us", all with a fuzzed-out Detroit 70s groove! CD features the bonus tracks "Just As Long (single)", "I'm Worried (single)", "It's Instrumental To Be Free", and "You Made Me Over". CD