One of Johnny Hammond's most obscure records – and a great little album that's filled with short tracks played by a largeish group – all in a groove that's almost got a cop show feel! The album's got a gritty, dirty feel that's totally great – a nice change from Johnny's early 60s soul jazz, and a definite nod at the funk that would come in the 70s. There's twin tenors on the date from Houston Person and Earl Edwards – who often blow together on the heads, creating a mini-horn section sort of feel that then breaks up into more of a small combo mode as the set rolls on. Guitar is by the wonderful Wally Richardson, who works alongside electric bass from Jimmy Lewis – rumbling nicely next to Hammond's newly-lean sound on the organ. Added congas from Richard Landrum round out the set – and titles include the wonderful "NYPD", plus "Dirty Apple", "Ode To Billie Joe", "Days Of Wine & Roses", "Tara's Theme", and "I Got A Woman". LP, Vinyl record album

A massive groover from the great Johnny Hammond – the famous 60s organist from the soul jazz scene, getting a whole new sound for the 70s here on the CTI label! Johnny was always one of those players who was ready to try something new – and the open, extended format of the label really helps him find new energy after his previous albums – to a level that points at his collaborations with Larry Mizell in years to come. The record's got arrangements by Grover Washington and Leo Johnson – on tracks that feature a complicated set of rhythms that push past the straighter funk grooves of Johnny's Prestige years. Drums and bass dance around nicely at the bottom, tenor and trumpet groove out the melody, and Johnny washes across the whole thing with some widemouth action on the organ! Titles include "Blues Selah", "Workin On A Groovy Thing", and "Breakout". LP, Vinyl record album

Massive work from Johnny Hammond – stretching out here in some totally jamming grooves that really transform his style for the 70s! The sound here is a lot hipper and tighter than some of Hammond's more rough-edged soul jazz of the 60s – a groove that's a great precursor to his more famous meetings with Larry Mizell a few years later – and equally great! Johnny's got plenty of space here – and is really taking his time with the grooves, thanks to some open ended arrangements by Bob James, who also plays electric piano on the record! The record is a seminal piece of work in the transformation of the chunky 60s organ sound to a sweeter 70s keyboard groove – and was proof that Johnny, more than most of his 60s soul jazz contemporaries, was ready to embrace the new sounds of the decade with open arms. Includes the great sample cut "Big Sur Suite" – plus "Higher Ground", "Summertime/The Ghetto", and "Catch My Soul". LP, Vinyl record album

An overlooked gem from organ jazz giant Johnny Hammond Smith! The album was cut during a time when Hammond was picking a page from the book of Groove Holmes – tightening up the tracks a bit, and going for a punchy sound that would hit big with the crossover and jukebox crowd. The tracks are all short and tight, and the approach to the tunes is a lot hipper than some of Johnny's earlier work. The group features Virgil Jones on trumpet, Houston Person on tenor, Thornel Schwartz on guitar, and Jimmy Lewis playing some mean Fender bass – which gives the set a driving soulful groove that's certainly appreciated by our ears! Johnny clearly digs it too, as he's a monster on the keys – wailing away like we've hardly ever heard him, blowing it off like he's Jimmy Smith or Jack McDuff from the same period. Titles include "The Sin In", "Summertime", "Getting Up", "The In Crowd", and a great reading of "Ebb Tide", possibly Johnny's bid at a "Misty". LP, Vinyl record album

A record that definitely lives up to its title – reminding us not only that Johnny Hammond Smith is one hell of an organist, but also a great leader with a really unique feel for a groove! The set's noteworthy not just for Johnny's own work on Hammond, but also for the presence of a young Houston Person – blowing tenor here in a way that's breathtaking right from the start – a bold, soulful tone that's a perfect fit for the group – which also includes trumpet from Johnny Williams and guitar from Eddie McFadden. The set includes a lot of tasty originals by Johnny – like "Cyra", "Lambert's Lounge", "Departure", and "Opus 2" – and already shows the way that Hammond was complicating his groove from that of other players of the time! LP, Vinyl record album

One of the coolest, grooviest albums ever from jazz vibist Johnny Lytle – a set that really leans into the impact that he was having with the soul instrumental crowd, and which serves up tunes in these short, tight grooves that show why Johnny was the king of the stepping dancefloor in the 60s! The set's still done with producer Orrin Keepnews, who'd handled Lytle's earlier jazz sides – but the tunes are shorter, and have the grooves punched up nicely – with plenty of cool Hammond work from organist Milt Harris, and tight drums from Peppy Hinnant – augment6ed with work from Willie Rodriguez on congas, and guest piano from Wynton Kelly on a few cuts! The whole thing's sweet and groovy, and the set features Johnny Lytle originals "Big Bill", "The Shyster", "Possum Grease", "The Man", "The Loop", and "Hot Sauce" – plus a cool cover of "Cristo Redentor". LP, Vinyl record album

Groovy groovy work from Johnny Williams – one of his best 60s soundtracks, with lots of nice touches! The film's a goofy sex romp, as you might expect from the title, and Williams' tunes really keep the spirit of the movie up nicely – running through a variety of upbeat styles, from jazzy Hammond, to groovy vocals, and even a few surprisingly nice chorus vocal type tunes! Includes the great song "Big Beautiful Ball", presented in instrumental and vocal versions, the latter of which is sung by Johnny Mercer. Other titles include "Not With My Wife You Don't", "Two Of Everything", "Trumpet Discotheque", "Hungarian Jungle Music", and "My Inamorata". LP, Vinyl record album

Man, it's like a talent bomb exploded! This set's stuffed with work by some of the greatest jazz funk players of the early 70s – Johnny Hammond, Bob James, Deodato, George Benson, Joe Farrell, Stanley Turrentine, Freddie Hubbard, Grover Washington Jr, Hubert Laws, and others – all playing together at a massive live concert recorded in Hollywood in 1972! And although you might worry that the collection of so many great talents on one stage might just create confusion – don't! The quality of the work is excellent – almost better than the best of the CTI studio sides, with a lean, clean sound that's really really tight – never overblown, just sweet electric funk with loads of great space for solo work. This second volume of the 3 LP set includes takes of "Blues Force", "Rock Steady", "People Make The World Go Round" and a medley of "Ithe From Love Story", "Pavane" and "Fire & Rain". LP, Vinyl record album

A killer concert all the way through – and a great showcase for the CTI sound! Although the genius of the CTI label might be often thought of in a studio format – especially since the Creed Taylor Influence on the label is what really turned the sound into something wonderful – this live set from 1971 shows that the label's players, with the right frame of mind, can easily get into the CTI groove in any setting – soaring out in a magical blend of acoustic and electric instrumentation, really stretching out on some killer long tracks! The group's a great all-star one – with organ and electric piano by Johnny Hammond, guitar by George Benson, flute by Hubert Laws, trumpet by Freddie Hubbard, tenor by Stanley Turrentine, and percussion by Airto – and all tracks are long, and very free-flowing. Titles include "Red Clay", "Sugar", "Blues West", "Leaving West", and "Fire & Rain". LP, Vinyl record album

A nice bit of funky organ work from Jimmy McGriff – a set that's got his famous talents on the Hammond out front of a larger ensemble – but in a way that's very different than some of his albums of that type from the 70s! There's lots of electricity in the mix – electric piano from Horace Ott, bass from Richard Evans, and guitar from Wayne Bennett – mixed with sharp work on horns from Cliff Davis on tenor and flute, Murray Watson on trumpet, and Johnny Beard on baritone – three players who really flesh out the sound! The album's got some excellent stone funky classics – like "The Bird", "Groove Grease", and "Plain Brown Bag" – plus some surprisingly funky readings of standards like "Canadian Sunset" and "Mr Lucky", both made to sound super-nice, thanks to excellent work on bass and drums! LP, Vinyl record album

Funky fusion in a runaway spaceship – the second album by Larry Young's cosmic heavy Fuel ensemble! The album's a perfect batch of jazzy keyboard grooves in a tradition that includes Lonnie Liston Smith, Johnny Hammond, and Charles Earland during his Mercury years – with Larry on moog, organ, Hammond B-3, Fender Rhodes, and other cool keyboards – grooving with a sound that ranges from fast and choppy to sweet and spacious. Julius Brockington also plays a lot of funky keys on the set next to Larry, and although a few tracks have vocals, the real focus here is on the instrumentation. Titles include "Startripper", "Message From Mars", "Moonwalk", "Sticky Wicket", and "Flytime". His last album, and a nice bit of far-reaching funk! LP, Vinyl record album

A fantastic bit of spacey soul – and an amazing collaboration between the Mizell Brothers and vocalist Rance Allen! The set's quite different than Rance's earlier, rootsier work for Stax – and instead has the soaring, joyous quality of some of the other great Mizell productions from the time on albums by Gary Bartz, Bobbi Humphrey, and Johnny Hammond! The best cuts here soar along with a really jazzy feel – that trademark Mizell groove, supported with excellent production that somehow manages to fuse a wide range of keyboards, rhythms, and string together with a really lean sound. Rance's spiritual vocals are wonderful throughout – and the whole album's essential for both Mizell fans, and any lover of righteous 70s soul! Titles include the sublime classics "Truth Is Marching On", "Reason To Survive", and "Peace of Mind" – plus "I'm Gonna Make It After All", "Got To Be Ready", and "You're My Everything". LP, Vinyl record album

A stone classic from Gene Ammons – and a record that introduced his talents to a whole new audience in the 60s! The album's a more laidback one than some of Jug's more hard-blown honkers – as you might guess from his hit rendition of the ballad in the title – and the instrumentation here varies between organ from Johnny Hammond Smith and piano from Mal Waldron – making for a nice tapestry of dark-tinged, late nite moods. Other players include Frank Wess on tenor and flute, and Art Taylor or Ed Thigpen on drums. Titles include the classic "Angel Eyes", plus "You Go To My Head" and "It's The Talk Of The Town" – and slightly more groovin numbers like "Getting Around" and "Water Jug". LP, Vinyl record album

A fantastic bit of jazz funk fusion – and one of the landmark 70s albums produced by Larry Mizell! This is Gary Bartz's second (and most amazing) collaboration with Larry Mizell – a studio genius who could focus on the best talent of a jazz artist, then expand it using additional keyboards, percussion, and often a sweet bank of chorus vocals to give the tracks an extra soulful sound! By the time of this album, Larry had already worked to great fame with Donald Byrd, Bobbi Humphrey, and Johnny Hammond – and the record has him turning his talents towards Gary Bartz to unlock a whole hidden side of soulful expression that would never be matched again! The title cut – "Music Is My Sanctuary" – is a jazz fusion classic in anyone's book, and it features characteristic Mizell keyboards alongside Gary's soulful sax, augmented by a deep vocal chorus that's simply fantastic. Other highlights include "Carnaval De L'Esprit" and "Macaroni" – and the whole album's nice! LP, Vinyl record album

One of the greatest albums of Hammond jazz ever recorded – and a darn funky one at that! Bobby Forrester may not look like a hipster on the cover, but this set grooves like some of the best early 70s work by Jack McDuff, Jimmy McGriff, and Groove Holmes – hitting hard with some really funky tracks that have made the album a must-have with collectors for years. The sound here a lean, mean revision of the Prestige Hammond jazz groove of the 60s – Bobby grooving on organ with just drums by Johnny Kirkwood and guitar by Elijah Williams Jr – all coming together in a totally solid sound that has plenty of funky riffs, nice drums, and soaring organ lines! Given the lean, compact approach to the groove, we might compare Forrester most with Charles Earland at his best – although the album's got a voice and depth that's certainly all its own. Titles include the classic groover "Uncle Funky", a great cover of "Sanford & Son Theme", and the cuts "Blues For Razz", "Don't Misunderstand", and "Funky Fly". LP, Vinyl record album

A great lost chapter in the Larry Mizell story – a record that's not nearly as well known as Mizell-produced jams for Bobbi Humphrey or Johnny Hammond, but which is every bit as great! Roger Glenn's a funky flute player with a really great groove – California groovy, with just a touch of Latin – served up here with some great Mizell-infused touches – that rolling rhythm on the bottom, soaring instrumentation on the top, and some great Latin elements that are wrapped up warmly in the fusion! There's plenty of great keyboards, too – played both by Larry Mizell, and also by Mark Soskin – a range of Fender Rhodes, Arp, mini-moog, and more – all adding in the right sort of warmth to Roger's flute, and the album's rich array of percussion. Titles include "Kick", "Reachin", "Rio", "Gloria", "Overtime", and "Don't Leave". LP, Vinyl record album

One of the best solo records from Harvey Mason – best known as the drummer on some really monster 70s funky fusion sessions (such as Johnny Hammond's Gears album) – but a surprisingly well-rounded R&B artist overall! As with Norman Connors, another fusion drummer gone soul star, Harvey's working here in a style that mixes jazz influences with modern soul – grooving things for a more mainstream audience, but still keeping things real underneath. The record's filled with guest appearances by fusion greats – like Bob James, David Spinozza, Richard Tee, Lee Ritenour, and others – and Jim Gilstrap sings vocals on a cut or two. Titles include "The Race", "Groovin You", "Wave", "We Can", and "Here Today, Gone Tomorrow". LP, Vinyl record album

A sweet sweet set of electric 70s funk – recorded by Booker T during a brief, but well-needed reunion with the MGs! The sound here is quite different than Stax-era MGs – as Booker plays a range of keyboards, not just organ – and the grooves have these great jazz funk touches at the bottom – almost a CTI vibe at times, but packed with the tighter energy you'd expect from the group! Steve Cropper's guitar is great – super-fine, and razor-sharp – really helping cut a nice edge on the cuts – over bass from Donald Duck Dunn and drums from Willie Hall, who's the only new member of the group. In a way, the album feels like mid 70s efforts from Johnny Hammond or Jimmy Smith – sweetly soaring on a let-loose 70s vibe. Titles include the funky break track "Grab Bag", plus "Sticky Stuff", "Moto Cross", "Tie Stick", and "Space Nuts". LP, Vinyl record album

Man, it's like a talent bomb exploded! This set's stuffed with work by some of the greatest jazz funk players of the early 70s – Johnny Hammond, Bob James, Deodato, George Benson, Joe Farrell, Stanley Turrentine, Freddie Hubbard, Grover Washington Jr, Hubert Laws, and others – all playing together at a massive live concert recorded in Hollywood in 1972! And although you might worry that the collection of so many great talents on one stage might just create confusion – don't! The quality of the work is excellent – almost better than the best of the CTI studio sides, with a lean, clean sound that's really really tight – never overblown, just sweet electric funk with loads of great space for solo work. This first volume of the 3 LP set includes takes of "First Light", "California Dreaming" and a medley of "Inner City Blues" and "What's Going On". LP, Vinyl record album

Man, it's like a talent bomb exploded! This set's stuffed with work by some of the greatest jazz funk players of the early 70s – Johnny Hammond, Bob James, Deodato, George Benson, Joe Farrell, Stanley Turrentine, Freddie Hubbard, Grover Washington Jr, Hubert Laws, and others – all playing together at a massive live concert recorded in Hollywood in 1972! And although you might worry that the collection of so many great talents on one stage might just create confusion – don't! The quality of the work is excellent – almost better than the best of the CTI studio sides, with a lean, clean sound that's really really tight – never overblown, just sweet electric funk with loads of great space for solo work. This third volume of the 3 LP set includes takes of "Funkfathers", "Cherry", "Bowl Full Of Blues", "Cherry Red" and "God Bless The Child". LP, Vinyl record album

One of a handful of records cut by the lovely singer Byrdie Green for Prestige during the 60s! Byrdie's got a sweet soulful voice – not the greatest in the world technically, but very much in that classic small club mode of the 60s and 70s, as often heard singing with a hip small combo late into the nights. In this case, the hip combo's that of Johnny Hammond Smith – as Johnny arranged the whole set, and sort of acted as Byrdie's mentor at Prestige. Johnny's groovy organ group also features Virgil Jones on trumpet, Gene Walker on tenor, and Eddie Diehl on guitar – and they provide some very tasty backing for Byrdie on cuts like "Hurt", "Gin House Blues", "Goin Out Of My Head", "Somebody Groovy", and "In The Dark". LP, Vinyl record album

Legendary drummer Harvey Mason in sweet jazz funk groove at Arista – a way stronger record than we remembered! Harvey played on some of our favorite jazz funk records of all time – including the massive Gears LP by Johnny Hammond among so many other great albums – and on his on 70s work for Arista, he explored jazz funk and soul instrumentals, with an expansive approach. He was an integral piece of the pie on so many completely essential records by other artists, that it's far too easy to overlook the considerable strengths of the records he headlined, and this is surely of on one of those! Players include Lee Ritenour & Ray Parker on guitars, the Sea Wind Horns of Bruce Fowler, Sally and Kenny Mason, Greg Pillinganes and Paul Smith on pianos and organs, Jan Hammer on Mini Moog and others. Cuts include "Sweet Mercy", "Bertha Baptist", "First Summer" (with Harvey Mason on vibes, bells and chimes), "No Lands Man", "Sho Nuff Groove", "The Mase", "When I'm With You (Live Version)" and "KY And The Curb". LP, Vinyl record album

A really unusual setting for the tenor of Houston Person – in that the four-person group features very prominent trombone work from Mark Levine, whose soulful sound is a great match for Person – plus hammond from Charles Boyston, a player we don't know at all, but who sounds great here – and drums from Frank Jones. The sound is a very groovy one – similar to some of Person's work with Johnny Hammond's combo – and the tracks have a bit more of a bite than some of his later prestige work. Titles include "Ballin", "The Pimp", and "Underground Soul" – which should give you an idea of the nature of the proceedings! LP, Vinyl record album

A really great collection of work from De-Lite Records – one that goes way way past the bigger hits on the label from Kool & The Gang and the Kay-Gees! Instead, this one really digs deep – and comes up with rare 45s for a host of artists that we didn't even know recorded for De-Lite – obscure but great material that shows just how tied to the east coast scene the label was before it starting hitting the charts and the clubs! There's lots here you'll be hard-pressed to track down otherwise – and titles include "The Story Of Our Love" and "It Really Hurts Me Girl" by The Carstairs, "Super Soul Music" and "I Got To Get Close To You" by Yvonne Daniels, "Darling Baby" and "I Wish It Would Rain" by Beverly Hammonds, "I Need You" and "I'll Always Love You" by Felton Burks, "I Smell Trouble" by Johnny De'Vigne, "Love Making" and "When A Woman Loves A Man" by Jean Battle, and "I Saw You There" and "Keep Away" by The Appointments. LP, Vinyl record album